In a flash, three days had passed, and it was time for Yukina to start going to Kaibara High. She was elated and nervous at the same time, and her heart was wavering as she dressed in the uniform, packed the things that Hatori bought for her into her bag, and got into Hatori's car to go to school.
Once she reached, she was greeted enthusiastically by Tohru and the others, who had been expecting her. Hatori left, relieved and knowing that they would help to take care of Yukina. That time, it was snowing, and Yuki frowned up to the sky.
Noticing it, Yukina asked curiously, "What's wrong, Yuki-kun?"
Yuki smiled softly, "It's nothing…just that I'm wondering why the snow had not stopped yet…it should be melting by this time of the year…"
Yukina heard his answer, and she had a flashback to when she healed Hatori from his guilt and pain.
"The snow is actually the tears of people forced to separate from each other…"
And she wondered where she heard this legend from. Her memories then flew back to the conversation she had with the mysterious man from her past, and she thought with a start.
"Maybe the snow lasts so long because…after it melts, I can finally reunite with him…"
By then, the others had noticed that Yukina was spacing out, and she did not react even when Haru waved his hand in front of her face. Grinning, he jumped loudly and abruptly in front of her, giving her a big shock.
She cried out in surprise, drawing attention from the other students around them. They started to whisper to each other excitedly when they saw this new face in the chuckling group. Instantly, many pairs of hostile eyes stared at Yukina, belonging to the fan girl club of 'Prince Yuki', the nickname for the popular Yuki, who was the heart throb of almost every girl in the school.
However, they relaxed slightly as they observed that Yukina was not particularly close to Yuki, and she just chatted around with everyone else. Suddenly, a whirlwind with blond hair flew into the corridors and threw itself into Tohru's arms.
"TOHRU-CHAN, I MISSED YOU SO MUCH DURING THE HOLIDAYS!" it shouted excitedly.
Tohru smiled back at the girlish boy in her arms, and replied, "I missed you very much too, Momiji-chan."
Then, the person called Momiji stared curiously at Yukina, who stared equally curiously back.
"Have I seen you anywhere before? You look extremely familiar…" he asked shyly.
Yukina bowed slightly and smiled, "Momiji-san…I think you must be one of the Soumas…I'm Yukina-Rei Jia or Yukina for short…"
"Eh…" Momiji was surprised how she recognised him as a Souma even though it was the first time they met each other.
Yuki intervened, "It's a long story, Momiji. Why don't you follow us? I will explain everything the best I can…"
Happily, Momiji walked together with the group, while Yuki described briefly the circumstances they were in now. After he finished, Momiji stared at the shy Yukina, who was also their hope for cure and salvation.
"Yukina-chan…you are so adorable!" Momiji turned and gave the surprised girl a big bear hug.
Startled, Yukina smiled warmly at Momiji. "Thanks…Momiji-kun."
The ice between them was broken and in a brief moment, Yukina and Momiji became close friends after chatting with each other. Observing that, Kyou smirked and said to Tohru, "I don't think I need to worry about Momiji stealing my girl away any more."
Tohru blushed at this and gave him a playful hit on the shoulder. Before they knew it, they had already arrived at Yuki's classroom, which both Yuki and Yukina would be in for the rest of the year. On the other hand, Kyou and Tohru, being just fair in their studies, would be in the opposite class, while Haru and Momiji were in the same class, a year lower than the rest.
Yuki turned to glance at Yukina. "This would be our class, Yukina-chan."
Then, they said their goodbyes to the others, and they went to their respective classes. The teacher was already inside the class, and he recognised Yukina, being the one who gave her the qualifying test.
"Ah…Yukina, you are here. Would you mind coming over to give me some of your personal details?"
Before the school reopened, the principal had already briefed the teachers on the newcomer, and they were aware to be more cautious when they were teaching, as not to disturb Yukina's emotions.
Obediently, Yukina walked over, and gave the teacher, Shinto-san all the details he wanted. The teacher smiled kindly at her and said, "I understand your problem, so just give me your name, birthday, and address. The others, like parents' name…anything that you don't recall you can just leave it out. Besides, it would be a good idea if you introduce yourself as someone who had just moved here from a foreign country, Yukina."
Yukina smiled gratefully at the understanding teacher and then went to sit beside Yuki, who had already saved a place for her. She was grateful to Yuki for taking care of her, or else she would have been very lonely and afraid in this new environment. Suddenly she remembered what the mysterious man told her, that Yuki had feelings for her…
She gazed at Yuki, who smiled kindly back at her, and wondered about the truth in his words. However, she was determined not to hurt any Soumas any more, and began to form a plan in her mind.
After a few hours of studying, it was recess time. Together, Yuki and Yukina made their way out of the class, making conversation about what the teacher taught just now. Suddenly, Yukina stopped in mid-track, and looked straight at Yuki.
"Umm…Yuki-kun, may I say something?" Yukina asked shyly.
Yuki glanced at her curiously, and nodded.
"Uh…thanks for being so kind to me, you are like my brother, the brother I never had," she added hurriedly.
"She had already chosen Hatori-kun…" Yuki thought to himself, heart growing heavy.
Then, she saw the flash of shock and pain run through his eyes, and she quickly tried to cheer him up using her powers. As she tried to summon her powers, she continued to speak to him.
"I said this because…I had a feeling that I can trust you with anything. Besides, you seem to be one of the few that I can talk normally to, and I really enjoy the time we spend together…" as she spoke, she channelled her energy into her words, comforting him, and was relieved to see Yuki smile once again.
"Of course, Yukina-chan, I am delighted to have such a cute little sister," he said to her, smiling radiantly.
Then, the both of them smiled happily and continued to walk to the cafeteria, where the others were already there waiting for them. Momiji waved excitedly at them as soon as he caught a glimpse of them, and they went to sit together at their table.
All of them had an enjoyable recess time chatting with each other while eating.
"Yuki-kun, are you starting to get busy with your student council activities?" Tohru asked over the table.
Yuki swallowed his mouthful of food before replying, "No…but I'm thinking of who to choose for the place of treasurer, since the former treasurer had graduated…"
Suddenly, Tohru clasped her hands together, planning to do a little bit of matchmaking between Yuki and a girl in Momiji's and Haru's class. Everyone at the table glanced curiously at her, and she laughed.
"Oh…it's nothing, I just thought that maybe Machi-chan would be very suitable for the position of treasurer, Yuki-kun," she nudged Momiji silently, hinting at him.
"Oh yes, Machi-san is also the treasurer in our class," Momiji interrupted excitedly, "In fact, she is very hardworking and responsible too…I really think that you should pick her for your treasurer, Yuki-kun."
Before waiting for his agreement, Momiji signalled at Machi, who was eating at a nearby table and motioned for her to come over. Questioningly, she came over and blushed when she saw that Yuki was at the table too.
"What's the matter, Momiji-san?" she asked while staring at the grounds.
"Ah, Machi-san, Yuki-kun was wondering whether you would agree to be the treasurer of the student council this year…" Momiji grinned at Yuki, whose eyes were flashing at him across the table.
Machi was startled, and glanced at Yuki.
"You would really accept me to be the treasurer?" she asked shyly.
To ease her uneasiness, Yuki smiled kindly at her, and replied, "I would be glad if you would agree to accept the position, Machi-san."
To Machi, it was like a dream come true, for she had been rather attracted to the pale-skinned, handsome Yuki for quite a long time, and she nodded happily. The others, including Yukina, were watching the charade with interest, quite aware of what was going on.
"It's great…Yuki-kun has somebody that he can be happy with…" Yukina thought to herself, relieved.
After a while, the bell rang, and all of them went back to their respective classes to continue their studies.
In this carefree, trouble-free style, the days passed one by one for Yukina and the others, and finally, the day that Yukina promised to lift the curse from the cursed Soumas had arrived.
