(A/N) And for those of you wondering about Tohru and her friends, you're in luck because they show up in this chapter! Along with another character...who is totally not going to be important in the later plot at all. No of course not why would he be...
As for you wondering if Kanae is going to end up with anyone...
Just keep reading.

I got kicked out of Kobayashi Preparatory school before first term even ended. I feel that this may have been an overreaction. It's not my fault that the Dean is a Sohma and his son is a bastard. Though nepotism had nothing to do with my entrance to the school, it oddly enough contributed to my removal. My behaviour wasn't conducive to the family's image especially since my marks were so good. I could honestly go to just about any school that I wished with my "dazzling" test scores.

So because of that, my deciding to go to Kaibara High is outwardly puzzling.

Misaki looked as if she was going to spit out her tea when I told her.

"What?" I asked innocently. "Four of zodiac children go there, it can't be that bad."

She coughed a bit, holding her tea cup out towards me as she cleared her throat. "N-no. It's just that," She cleared her throat. "I thought you never wanted to be so much as in the same building as that Yuki."

"…Yes. But three of that four are people I might actually be able to call friend. Mostly Haru, Haru goes there. Kyou's an idiot but we get along well enough. Momiji may be annoying, but he's still fun to be around."

She nodded, and spoke again. "You could go Namikawa with Kagura and Isuzu-san."

"Uh…no. Isuzu isn't really keen on me and there's only so much of Kagura I can handle."

"Ah."

"Yuki at the most will just piss me off. Provided he knows what's good for him and stays away from me."

Misaki nodded and sat forward in her chair. "Just promise me one thing." She held up a finger. "You must promise to be civil around him and not make a scene."

I opened my mouth to retort, but gave up, and decided to oblige her. "I will not unless provoked." I compromised.

She sighed with a strained smile. "I suppose that's all I'm going to get out of you." She reached up to ruffle my hair. "You go get 'em. I know that you're be happier there."

Voices and emotions formed a thick cloud around me as I entered Kaibara high for the first time. Girls glared and boys stared, nothing far from the usual. But there was something different about it all. Something utterly pissed me the hell off.

I kept hearing his name.

I knew my resemblance to him wouldn't go unnoticed.

I heard whispers as I passed. "Is that another Sohma?"

"Yeah, and she looks just like Prince Yuki!"

…

…Prince?

Oh no, the first one to call me Hime-sama or some bullshit—

Suddenly I found myself being jerked back to reality with a pleasantry.

"Hi, you're the new girl, aren't you, Kanae Sohma?" Oh god, not one of these guys. The peppy student council type. But in the spirit of upholding my promise to Misaki, I did my best to be pleasant. I gave him a simple enough polite smile. "Yes, that's me!" The boy was raven-haired, normal enough looking.

"My name's Tamaki Kyouhara." He smiled genuinely in return. "I'll refrain from the obvious queries, since I'm sure you'll get enough of that today." He said casually. "I mean, Yuki's pretty popular, so I'm sure you've already been bombarded." Oh god is that going to happen? Perhaps I've just been putting on a mean enough face so people have had the good sense to stay away.

"Yeah, I do get it a lot. I'm not his sister or anything, I'm his first cousin." And the lies begin...

"So are you related to the other Sohmas too?"

"Distantly. So distant that most of us don't even bother to keep track of it anymore."

"That's interesting though." Is it? Is it really? "So, what class are you in? Do you know the way?"

"Yeah, class 2-D, and I'm sure I can find my way, thanks." Most Japanese high schools were set up pretty much the same way.

"Okay, so, just let me know if you need anything, I'm in class 2-C, so hopefully we'll run into each other again." He smiled again, waving as he walked past me. There was no way that I could get a good fix on his aura in this crowd, but I was markedly curious. Bright shiny ones like him often had some darkness stirring underneath.

As I walked closer to the classroom, I began to sense something that bugged me. I wasn't even expecting anything to come through, since the auras around be were so jumbled. But, the aura was familiar, sickeningly familiar, yet I couldn't name it right off.

I turned around, fully surprised to see who was behind me. "…Yuki?" Normally I was able to sense his repugnant aura from several feet away, but I was surprised to find that it had...purified somehow. Maybe it was just the fact that he had been living outside of the Sohma compound for quite some time now.

"No honorifics huh?"

I scowled. "That was an emotionally scarring experience for me and you think you can make jokes about it?"

He laughed. Something that was so shocking that I only half heard what he said. It took me a moment to register that his lips were moving.

I blinked. "I'm sorry what?"

He laughed again. "I said I'm sorry, but it wasn't exactly a walk in the park for me either."

I gave a forced chuckle. "Yeah I'm sure it was. You didn't learn that you were unwanted and worthless that day." I tried to brush past him. I didn't want to be late for my first class here.

"Kanae-"

"There you go holding me up again." I said, my forehead twinging. "I'll talk to you later okay. I'm sure you won't let me escape." I said flatly, pushing open the door to the classroom. I soon found out that entering the class ahead of Yuki was a bad idea. The whole class took note. Much to my dismay.

A ditsy looking girl with dark brown hair was gaping like a fish. "Y-y-Yuki...?!" She managed to sputter.

"No, no, I'm right here Honda-san." Yuki said in a playfully exasperated tone.

"H-huh? But she looks just like you!" The girl continued.

"My name's Kanae and no I'm not Yuki's sister. We're cousins." I stated. Kicking a kid out of a desk that was next to Kyou.

Kyou acknowledged me with a grunt.

"Good to see you too, slacker." I said.

"A whole two years and you haven't gotten any less prickly."

"I wish I could say the same for you."

"Heh. I'm just glad you haven't gotten soft." He grinned.

"Same to you."

The bell rang, and Shiraki-sensei came in.

"Hey new girl, get up here and introduce yourself."

I complied with a groan. Trudging up to the front of the classroom. As I passed the noisy brunette, I almost stopped dead in my tracks. I was able to pick out her aura from the crowd because it was very peculiar. I could have sworn that she was a Zodiac child, I rarely felt a duality this strong beyond them, on the account of there being two spirits inhabiting their bodies.

When I reached the front, I met eyes with no one and did as was required of me.

"My name is Kanae Sohma. I just transferred from another school and look forward to getting to know you all." I bowed and returned to my seat, allowing sensei to continue.

When break came, I found myself surrounded by what almost seemed like a blockade.

"Would you look at this? Another Sohma, and a girl no less." Said a tall straw-blonde Yankee-looking girl. "What's the read on her Hana?"

"Strange, her waves are very different from the others, yet, I still have a similar kind of feeling." Waves? Is she an Empath too?

"That is interesting." She directed her attention at me, finally. "So you're name's Kanae huh? I'm Arisa Uotani." She stuck out a hand for me to shake. I took it automatically. "This here is Hana, and this one over here is Tohru." I was probably the only one who thought that name was fitting. A contradiction, just like her emotions. So this was the girl everyone was in fuss about. She was painfully average-looking, but, she had something to hide, something I would be very interested to know.

The others by now started looking at her.

Tohru still looked like a dying fish.

"Stop gawking Tohru, you look like a dying fish." Kyou said without turning around. I smirked

"I'm sorry!" She gave a swift apologetic bow. "It's just, I'm used to all the Sohmas looking so unique and to be honest when you came in, I thought you were Yuki in a wig."

"Yes Honda-san." I wonder how long Yuki was standing there. "Me and Kanae-are actually first cousins, not just distant relatives like the others." I'm sure he's a master of half-truths by now. A literal, half-truth actually.

"Oh well that explains it." She said, still seeming a bit dazed.

Yuki gave her a smile... Again, like, a proper one. It was all I could do to conceal my bewilderment.

The next period's teacher came in and began setting up. Signalling the students to return to their seats.

"Hey Kyou," I said turning to him. "what's up with that Tohru girl anyway?"

He shrugged. "Hell if I know. " he was hiding something. There was something very interesting surrounding that girl. I'd heard whispers of her of course. An outsider living in Shigure's house no less, and knowing the family's big secret. Akito must have something up his sleeve to allow this.

"Kanae-san?" Yuki joined me as I left the classroom.

Somehow the honorific made me even more annoyed. "What?"

"I was wondering if-"

"Just get to the point." My lavender-grey eyes surveyed him blankly. He was almost strange to me now.

"I would like to continue our conversation from earlier."

"What conversation."

"Any. We've never really had a proper one before."

I shrugged. "I don't really see the point." I still didn't want to be around him. Though his aura was purer, it was still unpleasant for me.

"I just..." He began, "I know, we haven't exactly been on the best of terms..." He looked away from me as we left the school. "I mean, I never had anything against you really."

I shrugged. Same with me, I just assumed that you wouldn't want to be near me at all."

"Now why is that?" I myself wasn't sure anymore. I used to be able to feel it, the aversion; but not anymore.

"Perhaps I was just being childish."

"Perhaps, but, I suspect another reason."

I raised my eyebrows.

"I also wanted to apologise."
"For what?"
"Well, I suppose I never fully understood your position. I suppose I just took it for granted." I looked at him quizzically. "I suppose I was jealous, and a little angry. You had everything that I wanted, and yet, you still couldn't be free."
I blinked. "I think I know what you're talking about." I began. "I think, at some point long ago, I was angry at you for a similar reason, but I soon learned, the horrors of being the Rat." I said sadly.

He seemed surprised. "How much did you know?"

"I saw you one time, in your isolation room. Rin was sick, so Haru got me to come." My eyelids lowered. "I saw, you looked like you were close to death." I cut myself off, looking back up at him. "I'm glad you got out, and you seem to be doing much better."

"Yeah, it sure was lucky when Shigure asked me to live with him, it was out of the blue, but I'll always be grateful."

I opened my mouth to speak, but something at the back of my mind stopped me. Haru helped Yuki out of selflessness, and never wanted credit. Then I realised that the nagging sensation at the back of my head was actually Haru approaching us. Not surprising, he'd be taking a similar route. I turned around and called out to him as he was just coming into view.
"Haru! I know you're there! Don't think you can get out of this!"

"…How?" Yuki said in surprise.

"Just because I didn't get possessed doesn't mean the spirits completely ignored me."

"Wait you-" I wonder why he didn't know, I thought most inner Sohmas did, Haru did.
"Yeah, I'm a Kiireji. Utaji specifically." I said bleakly.

"Right. Like the people who perform at the banquet every year."

"Yeah, exactly like that. I'll be singing again this year."

"Oh I-"
"No, you're not sorry you missed it. You can hear me sing other ways."

He just smiled, then turning to greet Haru as he reached us.
"It's a strange sight to see you two together." Haru said.

I rolled my eyes at him. "I can be civil you know."

"Yes, Haru, Kanae and I were just talking, like normal classmates." The way he said it made it seem like he was trying to assure himself more than Haru.

"You should get along, you are siblings."

"Half-siblings." I corrected.

"Three-quarter siblings." Haru rebutted dryly.

"I'm pretty sure I never heard of that actually being a real term."

"Just think about it. Yes you're half-siblings, but you're also first cousins, so you're basically full siblings."

I rolled my eyes. "Whatever you say, Haru."

He just stared at me blankly. Like he always did. And like always, I could feel my anger and irritation fade away. I perked up, skipping ahead a few steps, looking up at the sky somewhat wistfully. "I'm hungry. We should get something to eat." I turned around, seeing Haru nod almost solemnly, and Yuki smile a little nervously. "Sure," Yuki said, his smile warming up. "That sounds wonderful, Kanae-san"

I didn't really care too much, about any of it. I wished that I could be with them normally, and not be so reticent and distant. Even if it was almost impossible for me to function normally, I could at least try. I could concentrate, and block out the dark waves and echoes. I could focus on Haru's white-wash, and actually try to enjoy the company of my relatives. I never had anything against Yuki himself, but his spirit. Both of their spirits. They are often referred to as "Vengeful spirits". They are selfish and angry. Only caring about themselves. They exist still only because they couldn't bear to be apart. Over the centuries their love and devotion fermented into the blistering hate, and then dulled into the embers of spite. They rejected that their hosts could love anyone else besides the other zodiac members. They only wanted to stay together, to stay with their "God". It was that conflict that made my skin crawl. The spirits want so badly to stay the same and continue locked in this bond, while the hosts, all they want is to be free.

(A/N) Again, I'll remind you, I have the story planned out till the end, but I am gonna space out the updates to give me time to perfect things, and so that this story has the opportunity get the largest possible visibility, so please be patient! Even though I wanna do updates once a week, I can't seem to wait that long! I'm always so eager to hear what you all think!
So...leave a review, so i can actually Know what you think.

See you next time!