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Description
Chapter 1: Seven Years Ago

It was a truly beautiful Christmas Eve in Kyoto, Japan.  It was snowing gently like falling crystals, and the Shinjiko family just came back from their Christmas party, heading to their final destination.  However, it was not as beautiful as it should be.
Mikara Shinjiko was sitting in the back seat with her entire family.  Several cars behind them were their family along with the other cars that were not related to them.  Her parents were arguing about her education, and how she should just go to a private school instead.
"Going to a private school will be difficult for Mikara!  Sure, she has straight A's and 100%, but how do you know that she will survive in a strict and stressful school?" her father said.
"She needs to be challenged," her mother said.  "Otherwise she won't be able to tackle them."
They continued arguing as they drove over the bridge.
"She needs a challenge, how many times do I have to say this?" her mother shouted.
"I told you, she might not do well in a private school!"
Mikara had had enough.  "STOP FIGHTING NOW!"  she screamed.
Her parents stopped quibbling.  Mikara seized her chance.  "I don't want fighting before Christmas, and I know that Santa Claus won't give any of us any presents if we keep fighting!"
There was a stunned silence.  Mikara rarely ever shouted before, and she hated it.  She was a quiet, crimsoned hair girl with blue eyes.  She was slightly pale even against the heat of the summer.  Now that it was winter, she was paler than ever.  She was small, even for a person with loud voice.
She clutched her new stuffed animal she received for Christmas.  It was a white teddy bear, with a brown nose and dark eyes, and it was wearing a green scarf and a red hat.  It was as soft as snow.  She then touched her Christmas pendant which came with the toy.  It had red and green stripes sliding diagonally down the heart shaped pendant.  She tried to open it; but then she saw that she needed a key.  But where could she get it?
Five minutes passed and they still haven't crossed the seemingly elongated bridge.  Then, as though her animal senses were lit up (although she didn't have any animal senses), she knew somehow, that everyone's fate was to be sealed.  But then again, her instincts could be wrong.
Suddenly, a crazy driver was driving at immense speed that sent the cars behind them spinning.  "Mom!  Dad!" she yelled.  "LOOK OUT!"
But it was too late.  The deranged driver hit them from behind and sent their car doing a double horizontal flip; then landed upside-down.  Mikara was instantly injured.  She got a cut on her left arm where it was bleeding severely, and a several cuts on her cheeks.
Cars spun wildly like a clock rotating rapidly.  They screeched on the roads as they tried to stop but the ice on the bridge was too slippery and caused them to hit Mikara's car.
Everything erupted in flames quickly.  "Mikara!  Get out of the car!" everyone said.
Her older brother and sister, her mother and father, were on fire.  Her left eye was practically burning.  Mikara unbuckled her seat belt and kicked the door open.  She got out and preformed the stop-drop-and-roll to get her out of the fire.  The fire was gone, but the pain lingered.
Her elbow-length hair was burnt at the ends, her green and red elf costume ruined.  But that wasn't the worst of it.
The remainder of her entire family were in their cars, unable to get out.  She heard the screams in agony.
"NO!  MOMMY!  DADDY!  HAMIKO!  SITIKA!" she screamed out to her parents and siblings.
Two minutes later the ambulance came, taking in what was once her family now black corpses.  Someone held her shoulder and said, "I'm sorry, but your family is dead." and handed her an oxygen mask to breathe in.  Tears swam in her eyes, and Mikara knew what she had to do.  Everything fell into darkness as she stared at the star-filled sky accompanied with a full moon and snow...
Mikara woke up abruptly, balls of sweat running down her thin face.  This wasn't the first time she had this dream, and she knew it wouldn't be the last time either.  She held her now worn bear to herself, then reached for her pendant, which wasn't there anymore.  For seven years this has haunted Mikara's dreams, ruined her innocence and made her unforgiving.  Now, fourteen-year-old Mikara knew that whatever had happened, she would never forget the screams of her entire family being burned.

Chapter 2: A New Day

Mikara woke up early in the morning and looked straight out the window.  The last burst of soft flurries fell gently down the tiny circular window in her room, or what was more of an attic.  Broken wooden desks and chairs littered the attic, and in the center of the mess were emptied cardboard boxes.  Mice infested the area, and at the far corner of the attic was a pile of cotton and stuffing, and that was where Mikara slept.  At least the mice didn't bother her.  On the contrary, they seemed to comfort her everytime she felt sad, which was, all the time.  Only that it never worked.  The good thing was that they tried hard.
She moved out of her den and changed her clothes.  She was supposed to be at school as there was a soccer game going on.  Bikuroko, her rival, was the best player of the team.  She dispised him; ever since kindergarten Bikuroko pushed her into the mud on the first day of school.  It was raining hard at the time.  Bikuroko laughed heartedly, until Mikara threw mud onto his face.
Since then they hated each other.  Mikara didn't hate him as much as Hagisha, her master she thought angrily.  It was because of her Mikara had to sleep in the disgusting attic.  It was because of her Mikara had to work like Cinderella and Snow White.  Mikara dreamed of a handsome prince to come and rescue her, but she knew the time would never come.  No one wanted an ugly girl like her, Mikara thought.  It was horrible to be negative, but that was how Mikara lived since the death of, no she couldn't think of that now, not while she had to get prepared for school.  Or at least, that was what she said to her master.  Stupid hag, she thought.
She put on her school uniform (a black skirt with a white sleeveless shirt bearing a spirited logo) and her thin, knee-length jacket, along with black gloves.  It was all she had for warmth other than her uniform clothes, and rags.  Then she took her school bag which hung onto one of her shoulders and diagonally went down her body like a Miss-Kyoto banner around a beauty contestant.
Mikara left her den and went to the bathroom to cleanse herself.  She had to be hygenic otherwise that old hag will complain.  That was the only good thing about Hagisha; she cared about her servant's hygiene.  And she fed her servant otherwise she couldn't work.
Ten minutes later she left the bathroom when her step-sister stopped her.
"Where are you going you dumb girl?"
Mikara gave her a dirty look and left her alone, going down the stairs.  She went to the kitchen to find her meagre breakfast on the table: a slice of bread and a cup of water.
"Come on come on, eat up!  And don't you dare be late for school and flunk your test; your lowest mark was 97 percent!  You can do a lot better than that you know.  Next time I get your test it had better be a hundred or you're not going to be fed for one entire day!"
She snatched up Mikara's plate and cup and bustled towards the sink.  Mikara picked up her bag and left the kitchen, put on her black school boots and left the house; her school shoes were at school during the winter.
She walked out of the house and met a cold gust of air blowing against her.  Spring didn't seem to come, but if it was trying to, the winter certainly wouldn't let them come.
She got to school in fifteen minutes' time.  She looked at the sacred tree in the front of the school.
Something beckoned her to come closer to the tree.  It was a strange feeling, it was like she was being possessed to come closer, to get a better look at it, to touch it, to stroke it for knowledge...
"What the hell are you doing you rat?" said a rude, male voice.
Mikara turned around to see a spiked brown-haired boy with bright brown eyes.  He was wearing a pair of black pants and a dark blue jacket.  In his huge gloves he was carrying his soccer gear.  Mikara could see his shoes poking out as though they were going to get air.
"Well?  Man, ever since after the Christmas holidays over seven years ago you just stayed quiet.  What's wrong with you?"
"Why do you even care?"
Bikuroko Takonotae snorted and left in a huff.  He loved to torment Mikara, although he hated it most when she answered in a calm voice.  As many times as Bikuroko tried, it seemed that he would never learn to stop.
"Mikara?" asked a sweet voice.
Rikki stood there, watching Mikara with a worried expression.
"You know, Bikuroko is acting a little strange."
"He always does.  He's a sweetheart – in a way."
"More of a sourpuss than anything else, right?"
It was true.  Bikuroko was so horrible to Mikara that the most sourest thing on the planet would never match up to his cruelty and hatred towards her.
"Let's get to school.  You must be cold in those thin clothing you're in."
Mikara nodded her head and walked to where she could call home.

Description
Chapter 1: Seven Years Ago

It was a truly beautiful Christmas Eve in Kyoto, Japan.  It was snowing gently like falling crystals, and the Shinjiko family just came back from their Christmas party, heading to their final destination.  However, it was not as beautiful as it should be.
Mikara Shinjiko was sitting in the back seat with her entire family.  Several cars behind them were their family along with the other cars that were not related to them.  Her parents were arguing about her education, and how she should just go to a private school instead.
"Going to a private school will be difficult for Mikara!  Sure, she has straight A's and 100%, but how do you know that she will survive in a strict and stressful school?" her father said.
"She needs to be challenged," her mother said.  "Otherwise she won't be able to tackle them."
They continued arguing as they drove over the bridge.
"She needs a challenge, how many times do I have to say this?" her mother shouted.
"I told you, she might not do well in a private school!"
Mikara had had enough.  "STOP FIGHTING NOW!"  she screamed.
Her parents stopped quibbling.  Mikara seized her chance.  "I don't want fighting before Christmas, and I know that Santa Claus won't give any of us any presents if we keep fighting!"
There was a stunned silence.  Mikara rarely ever shouted before, and she hated it.  She was a quiet, crimsoned hair girl with blue eyes.  She was slightly pale even against the heat of the summer.  Now that it was winter, she was paler than ever.  She was small, even for a person with loud voice.
She clutched her new stuffed animal she received for Christmas.  It was a white teddy bear, with a brown nose and dark eyes, and it was wearing a green scarf and a red hat.  It was as soft as snow.  She then touched her Christmas pendant which came with the toy.  It had red and green stripes sliding diagonally down the heart shaped pendant.  She tried to open it; but then she saw that she needed a key.  But where could she get it?
Five minutes passed and they still haven't crossed the seemingly elongated bridge.  Then, as though her animal senses were lit up (although she didn't have any animal senses), she knew somehow, that everyone's fate was to be sealed.  But then again, her instincts could be wrong.
Suddenly, a crazy driver was driving at immense speed that sent the cars behind them spinning.  "Mom!  Dad!" she yelled.  "LOOK OUT!"
But it was too late.  The deranged driver hit them from behind and sent their car doing a double horizontal flip; then landed upside-down.  Mikara was instantly injured.  She got a cut on her left arm where it was bleeding severely, and a several cuts on her cheeks.
Cars spun wildly like a clock rotating rapidly.  They screeched on the roads as they tried to stop but the ice on the bridge was too slippery and caused them to hit Mikara's car.
Everything erupted in flames quickly.  "Mikara!  Get out of the car!" everyone said.
Her older brother and sister, her mother and father, were on fire.  Her left eye was practically burning.  Mikara unbuckled her seat belt and kicked the door open.  She got out and preformed the stop-drop-and-roll to get her out of the fire.  The fire was gone, but the pain lingered.
Her elbow-length hair was burnt at the ends, her green and red elf costume ruined.  But that wasn't the worst of it.
The remainder of her entire family were in their cars, unable to get out.  She heard the screams in agony.
"NO!  MOMMY!  DADDY!  HAMIKO!  SITIKA!" she screamed out to her parents and siblings.
Two minutes later the ambulance came, taking in what was once her family now black corpses.  Someone held her shoulder and said, "I'm sorry, but your family is dead." and handed her an oxygen mask to breathe in.  Tears swam in her eyes, and Mikara knew what she had to do.  Everything fell into darkness as she stared at the star-filled sky accompanied with a full moon and snow...
Mikara woke up abruptly, balls of sweat running down her thin face.  This wasn't the first time she had this dream, and she knew it wouldn't be the last time either.  She held her now worn bear to herself, then reached for her pendant, which wasn't there anymore.  For seven years this has haunted Mikara's dreams, ruined her innocence and made her unforgiving.  Now, fourteen-year-old Mikara knew that whatever had happened, she would never forget the screams of her entire family being burned.

Chapter 2: A New Day

Mikara woke up early in the morning and looked straight out the window.  The last burst of soft flurries fell gently down the tiny circular window in her room, or what was more of an attic.  Broken wooden desks and chairs littered the attic, and in the center of the mess were emptied cardboard boxes.  Mice infested the area, and at the far corner of the attic was a pile of cotton and stuffing, and that was where Mikara slept.  At least the mice didn't bother her.  On the contrary, they seemed to comfort her everytime she felt sad, which was, all the time.  Only that it never worked.  The good thing was that they tried hard.
She moved out of her den and changed her clothes.  She was supposed to be at school as there was a soccer game going on.  Bikuroko, her rival, was the best player of the team.  She dispised him; ever since kindergarten Bikuroko pushed her into the mud on the first day of school.  It was raining hard at the time.  Bikuroko laughed heartedly, until Mikara threw mud onto his face.
Since then they hated each other.  Mikara didn't hate him as much as Hagisha, her master she thought angrily.  It was because of her Mikara had to sleep in the disgusting attic.  It was because of her Mikara had to work like Cinderella and Snow White.  Mikara dreamed of a handsome prince to come and rescue her, but she knew the time would never come.  No one wanted an ugly girl like her, Mikara thought.  It was horrible to be negative, but that was how Mikara lived since the death of, no she couldn't think of that now, not while she had to get prepared for school.  Or at least, that was what she said to her master.  Stupid hag, she thought.
She put on her school uniform (a black skirt with a white sleeveless shirt bearing a spirited logo) and her thin, knee-length jacket, along with black gloves.  It was all she had for warmth other than her uniform clothes, and rags.  Then she took her school bag which hung onto one of her shoulders and diagonally went down her body like a Miss-Kyoto banner around a beauty contestant.
Mikara left her den and went to the bathroom to cleanse herself.  She had to be hygenic otherwise that old hag will complain.  That was the only good thing about Hagisha; she cared about her servant's hygiene.  And she fed her servant otherwise she couldn't work.
Ten minutes later she left the bathroom when her step-sister stopped her.
"Where are you going you dumb girl?"
Mikara gave her a dirty look and left her alone, going down the stairs.  She went to the kitchen to find her meagre breakfast on the table: a slice of bread and a cup of water.
"Come on come on, eat up!  And don't you dare be late for school and flunk your test; your lowest mark was 97 percent!  You can do a lot better than that you know.  Next time I get your test it had better be a hundred or you're not going to be fed for one entire day!"
She snatched up Mikara's plate and cup and bustled towards the sink.  Mikara picked up her bag and left the kitchen, put on her black school boots and left the house; her school shoes were at school during the winter.
She walked out of the house and met a cold gust of air blowing against her.  Spring didn't seem to come, but if it was trying to, the winter certainly wouldn't let them come.
She got to school in fifteen minutes' time.  She looked at the sacred tree in the front of the school.
Something beckoned her to come closer to the tree.  It was a strange feeling, it was like she was being possessed to come closer, to get a better look at it, to touch it, to stroke it for knowledge...
"What the hell are you doing you rat?" said a rude, male voice.
Mikara turned around to see a spiked brown-haired boy with bright brown eyes.  He was wearing a pair of black pants and a dark blue jacket.  In his huge gloves he was carrying his soccer gear.  Mikara could see his shoes poking out as though they were going to get air.
"Well?  Man, ever since after the Christmas holidays over seven years ago you just stayed quiet.  What's wrong with you?"
"Why do you even care?"
Bikuroko Takonotae snorted and left in a huff.  He loved to torment Mikara, although he hated it most when she answered in a calm voice.  As many times as Bikuroko tried, it seemed that he would never learn to stop.
"Mikara?" asked a sweet voice.
Rikki stood there, watching Mikara with a worried expression.
"You know, Bikuroko is acting a little strange."
"He always does.  He's a sweetheart – in a way."
"More of a sourpuss than anything else, right?"
It was true.  Bikuroko was so horrible to Mikara that the most sourest thing on the planet would never match up to his cruelty and hatred towards her.
"Let's get to school.  You must be cold in those thin clothing you're in."
Mikara nodded her head and walked to where she could call home.