12Author's Note: Konnichi-wa minna-san! In case you're wondering why I'm starting a new story, this idea's been rolling in my head since I listened to a certain song from the Gunslinger Girl series and reading the 3rd chapter of Ballad of a Shinigami volume 2. This story will be shorter than all my other stories and this will definitely be a children's story...well, sorta. School starts tomorrow which I HATE! I probably won't update as much as I did, but I'll try my best to update! Anyway...I present to you all...The Princess of the Land of Snow! And NO, this ISN'T a cliche fairy tale story either! Read and review please! NO FLAMES!
PAGE 1: Snow Chapter I
Looking up, there was the ash-grey sky, blocking the sun's golden light. Looking down, a pure white world spread out below. Looking left, a clan of leafless, glass-like trees reaching up to the ash-grey sky. No leaves were present as they were all white and encased in wet but solid ice. Looking right, three or four snowmen with nothing on them stood through the passing wind. No eyes, no sticks for arms, no scarves, no carrots for noses, nothing. They were just piles of medium-sized snowballs.
The pure white snow fell onto the pure white world like angels spreading their tiny orbs of light onto heaven. This place was like heaven, only it was just a pure white land. There were no residents of this world. There was nobody there...
...Or so we thought.
The pure white silhouette of a young girl appeared.
The girl stood in an empty part of the pure white world, knowing that nothing was there. She had short, light brown hair that went to her chin and blue eyes like the ocean. Her hair glowed brightly, creating light for this mysterious world with the ash-grey sky. She looked to be about 10-11 years of age. She wore a sleeveless, pure white top along with matching shorts that went to her knees. She also had soft, pure white socks on her small feet and a tiny, white ribbon in her hair.
The girl continued to gaze into the horizon, watching the gentle snow fall onto the white world spread out below. She was like an angel gazing up in heaven, pure and white, but without a golden halo or wings. Her expression seemed very sad and lonely, like she was about to cry.
What should I do? What can I do? Please let me be free without having to feel pain. I wish to leave this world of mine, but every time I do, I suffer more pain than I ever did. How can I go out into the world without having to suffer or be hurt by those who are unfamiliar with me? Someone...someone...I wish to find my promised someone. My special someone. Someone I don't have to suffer from. Someone whose shoulder I can cry on. Someone who has a warm heart and a kind personality. Someone who likes me for who I am. Someone...I can accept...
Everything vanished into a flash of white light.
There is a girl,
Who resides in her own world.
This world is her own.
This world is her special place.
This world is where she can live peacefully,
Where she can express her feelings and emotions
This small, isolated world is where she lives,
Waiting, waiting for someone she can accept as her own.
The ash-grey sky, the pure white world spread out below.
The trees trapped in ice.
the snowmen with nothing on them.
The gentle, falling snow.
This girl, the girl like in angel.
She is the princess of the land of snow
It is currently a beautiful, kind of cold, but sunny day in a tiny city in Hokkaido. The sun was shining, the birds were singing, the snow on the ground was glittering and reflecting the sun's bright rays. Children were happily playing in the snow. This wasn't the only thing about winter that made children happy. What made them happy the most was that Christmas was coming up and this was a common favorite holiday for children of all ages.
One house was covered with a bit of snow. Icicles were hanging from the roof. One BIG one was hanging from the corner of the yellow house. The house was average-sized, but kind of big. The name plate on the door read Izumi, so the family who owned this house were the Izumi family. In one bedroom, it was a normal young girl's bed room. It was medium-sized with a bed, a shelf above the bed which had books and some stuffed animals, a small, white night stand with a tiny clock on it that read 6:56 AM, a black bureau, and a shelf on the side of the room that had DVDs. The calendar on the wall read December 20, 2008.
A young girl began to wake up from her sleep. The girl, as she woke up, rubbed her eyes with her hands so that she could see better. She had light brown hair that went to her chin with the ends looking a little messy and had blue eyes like the distant ocean on a summer day. She wore long sleeved, dark blue pajamas with pictures of white snowflakes on them. The shirt had two buttons on them. In her hand was a small stuffed toy. It was a little white ball with tiny angel wings, black eyes and pink cheeks and a red mouth (Yep, this is the angel imp from Gaia Online). The girl held her little toy up and smiled at it. The girl looked to be about 10 years of age.
"Good morning, Popo-chan" The girl said in a high-pitched, gentle and soft voice. The girl, referring to her little angel imp toy as Popo, got out from bed and began walking to her bureau to get changed.
A few minutes later, she was now wearing a long-sleeved, light pink shirt with a picture of a blue hummingbird on it along with black jeans and white shoes. She also had on a maroon jacket and a pink scarf with white and yellow stripes. She picked up a small red purse along with her pink backpack that had wheels and that could be dragged around. She walked into the dining room where she saw a lady in the kitchen that was right next to it. The lady noticed the girl and smiled.
"Good morning, Towa-chan!" The lady exclaimed.
The lady looked to be in her mid-30's and had long, dark brown hair which was tied into a french braid and blue eyes, only darker than the girl's eyes. She wore a long-sleeved, white turtleneck sweater and light blue jeans.
"Hi mama" The girl, Izumi Towa, replied shyly.
"I'm making toast right now, sweetie" The lady replied when someone else came into the room.
"Hey Towa-chan! Sasami! What's new today?" A man asked.
The man looked to be in his mid-40's. He had messy black hair and light green eyes. He had a white, rope-like headband wrapped around his head. The man wore a plain white T-shirt and dark blue shorts. He was barefoot. The lady, Izumi Sasami, was surprised to see him there.
"Yukihiro! Haven't I told you not to shout in the morning?" Sasami said to the man, Izumi Yukihiro. Yukihiro noticed this, laughed ruefully,
and rubbed his head with his hand.
"Oh. My bad. Sorry 'bout that!" Yukihiro told her.
A few minutes later, Sasami prepared breakfast for her husband and daughter. For Towa, she had light toast with butter and pieces of a cut banana. For Yukihiro, he had scrambled eggs with pepper on them. Sasami prepared herself some scrambled eggs, but with some orange juice along with fresh bacon. All of them happily ate their breakfast. A few minutes later, Yukihiro was now fully dressed in his work clothes, which consisted of a long-sleeved, white shirt and black pants along with black shoes, a black tie and a black hat. He put on a light brown winter jacket so that he wouldn't be cold.
"I'm leaving everyone!" Yukihiro announced. Sasami and Towa ran up to him.
"Have a good day at work, honey. Let's hope you don't get stuck in snow again" Sasami told her husband as she kissed him on the cheek. He then kneeled to Towa's level and gently kissed her on the cheek.
"Goodbye. Love you, papa" Towa told him.
"Love you too, Towa-chan, Sasami. Oh! I better skedaddle!" Yukihiro exclaimed and stormed out of the house. He jumped into his black van and drove away to work. Meanwhile, Towa began to put things in her small, pink backpack, which had a long handle and wheels. She then grabbed a small, dark blue purse and put it over her shoulder.
"Towa-chan. Are you ready? Winter break in a couple of days" Sasami asked.
"Yes, mama. I'm ready" Towa said as she pulled the handle of her book bag and dragged it while walking out the door. Sasami followed. The two then arrived in a black BMW car. Sasami decided to drive while Towa sat in the back seat, clinging to her items.
A few minutes later, they arrived at a school which was called Eien Middle School. The school was a little small, but it was very wide and only about two stories high. There were a lot of kids playing on the blacktop. Towa left the car and took her stuff with her. She waved goodbye to her mother and quickly ran off, dragging her backpack along. Meanwhile, in the car, Sasami looked a little sad.
'Towa-chan...I hope that Hiroaki kid doesn't pick on her. She's autistic for Pete's sake. What did she ever do to him?' Sasami thought as she started the car and began to drive away. A few minutes later, the bell rang, which meant it was time to come inside. Towa and a few other kids ran into Room 16, her homeroom. Towa sat in a desk which was at the front of the class. She placed her bookbag next to her, put her blue purse on the desk and took out a book when a voice called out to her.
"Towa-chan!"
Towa turned and saw a girl next to her. The girl looked to be slightly older than Towa, by one year. She had light brown hair tied into two small pigtails with black ribbons along with matching brown eyes. She wore a dark brown dress along with a long-sleeved white shirt under it and had black shoes and white socks that went to her knees. Towa smiled at her arrival.
"Karin-chan!" Towa exclaimed happily, recognizing the girl as Karin. Towa happily gave her a hug. Karin smiled and returned the hug, then let go.
"School ends in a few days. I can't wait for Christmas to come!" Karin said cheerfully and with a smile.
"What do you wanna get, Karin-chan?" Towa asked.
"I've always wanted those new pencils that glow in the dark! I hope I get them" Karin replied. Towa was confused.
"Glow in the dark pencils?" Towa asked.
"Yeah! You never saw them? They're very cool! They're many different colors and their erasers glow in the dark! Even when its exposed to light, the glow never goes away! Isn't that great?" Karin explained. Towa smiled when suddenly...
"Ow!"
Some pencils were thrown at Towa! Karin turned and got mad.
"Hahaha! Got'cha you little baby!" A naughty boy laughed while pointing at Towa while two other boys were behind him, also laughing. The boy had messy, dirty brown hair and darker brown eyes. He wore a gold basketball jersey over a long-sleeved, white shirt along with black jeans and black sneakers. His jersey had a number 30 on it. Karin got angry and walked up to him.
"What was that for, Hiroaki!? Towa-chan didn't do anything!" Karin yelled, referring to the unruly boy as Hiroaki.
"Shut your mouth, Himemiya! Why are you even friends with that little wimp? She's just stupid!" Hiroaki yelled until...
SLAP!
Himemiya Karin angrily gave Hiroaki a loud and good slap in the face. Hiroaki almost lost his balance, but his two lackies helped him up. A large, red mark was on his face.
"Towa-chan is NOT stupid! You're the one who's stupid! Towa-chan is a good girl! She follows the rules, doesn't disrupt class, and she doesn't like mean people! What did she ever do to you that was bad!?" Karin yelled.
"That's what makes her stupid! She's too much of a goody-goody!" Hiroaki yelled back at her when...
"Alright! Hold the phone! What's going on here?"
A girl's voice echoed through the room as she walked to the scene. She looked to be the same age as Karin and Hiroaki. She had black hair with a bit of dark blue tied into two small braids and dark pink eyes. She wore a long-sleeved, dark green shirt with a hall monitor's sash over it and light blue jeans. She also wore black shoes and had a light blue bracelet on her left wrist. Karin and Towa were shocked to find her in the room.
"Megutan!" Karin exclaimed. The girl walked up to Hiroaki and stretched his face with her hands.
"Kanda Hiroaki! You need to stop this bullying at once! I, Tabata Megumi, the hall monitor of Eien Middle School, dislike all forms of bullying! I don't like it at all! I'll see you during lunch, Kanda!" The girl, introducing herself as Tabata Megumi, pulled out a small notepad and began writing in it. Kanda Hiroaki got angry.
"You can't do that!" Hiroaki screamed angrily.
"I'll also report you to the teacher later on" Megumi told him when she turned to Karin.
"Himemiya Karin! What you did for Izumi-san was brave of you, but violence is not permitted in this school. You may be the top student in this class, but that doesn't mean you can go around hitting people as you wish. This is your warning" Megumi explained to Karin. Karin was a very smart girl and is always the top of the class. She came from a wealthy family and is a kind, polite and optimistic girl who always cares for people she loves, even if it means beating up the bullies.
"Izumi Towa!" Megumi yelled. Towa was surprised and slowly walked up to her.
"Yes, Megutan...?" Towa said shyly.
"Himemiya-san is right about you also being good and following the rules and keeping your grades up, but you need to stand up for yourself once in a while. You can't just be hiding behind people's backs all the time!" Megumi told her. Towa felt a little scared and ran back to her desk. Karin looked sad. When Megumi said that, she herself didn't seem happy.
"Megutan...don't blame Towa-chan. She's autistic! You know that, right?" Karin asked.
"Honestly I don't care what she is or what her weaknesses are. She needs to learn to overcome them and grow up like any other girl! She's just weak" Megumi said. This made Karin mad.
"Towa-chan is NOT weak! Besides, Autism isn't a fake act that someone uses to get attention! It's a developmental disorder that sometimes affects communication and socialization! It takes her longer to do those things!" Karin explained. Megumi sighed in distress.
"Just drop it, Himemiya. That girl needs to grow up or be a wimp for the rest of her life, or else!" Megumi snapped and walked away to her seat. Karin felt bad and turned towards Towa, who looked like she was going to cry.
"Towa-chan..." Karin murmured to herself when someone tapped her on the shoulder.
"What's wrong, Karin?" A girl asked. Towa turned around and saw someone behind her.
The girl behind her was the same age as her, Megumi and Hiroaki. She had short, black hair that went to her chin that had a hairclip which was a ladybug in it. She also had gold eyes like jewelery. The girl's expression seemed a bit aloof and emotionless. She wore a long-sleeved, light purple dress with 3 buttons on the chest part along with white socks and brown shoes. On her chest seems to be a brooch in the shape of a purple flower with green leaves under it. Karin recognized her.
"Usui Hotaru-chan!" Karin said, recognizing the girl as Usui Hotaru. Hotaru removed her hand from Karin's shoulder.
"Did Megumi-san be mean to Towa again?" Hotaru asked in a soft, quiet, but high-pitched voice.
"Yes...why does Megutan do this? She's the hall monitor! She's supposed to help people who are being bullied, not look down upon them and think she's better than everyone else!" Karin replied.
"Megumi-san does have a tendency to think she's superior...but this is normal. They'll assign a new hall monitor when we start 6th grade in the Spring" Hotaru explained.
"Oh yeah! How are things with you and Shinji?" Karin asked.
"Nagisa Shinji has been very annoying. I'm thinking of breaking up with him" Hotaru replied while her expression looked a little scary like she was mad when suddenly...
"Hotaru-chaaan!"
A boy leaped onto Hotaru! This boy was one of Hiroaki's lackies who picked on Towa recently.
"Shinji...haven't I told you not to jump on me?" Hotaru asked.
"Come on, Hotaru-chan! I'm lonely! Let's go play!" The boy, Nagisa Shinji, exclaimed happily and dragged Hotaru away from Karin. Karin saw this and sighed.
An hour later, it was time for one of their classes. This was math class. The teacher, Maeda Kawako, was teaching the children. She had long, blonde hair that went to her hips and dark green eyes like a forest. She looked to be in her mid-20's. She wore a long-sleeved, dark purple sweater over a white shirt and dark blue jeans along with black shoes.
Towa was trying to copy down what the teacher was writing on the whiteboard. Her writing is very fast, but she tried to make sure to keep her hand-writing readable. She looked up a few times, then continued to write everything down.
'I have to pass! This next test is coming up and I have to pass it! I have to! I gotta keep my grades up! I know I do good in my other subjects, but math seems to be my enemy. I HAVE to pass this next test! I have to!' Towa thought when...
"Izumi-san!"
Mrs. Maeda was in front of Towa's desk looking right at her with a stern face. Towa got startled, but looked up at the teacher.
"Y-Yes, Maeda-sensei?" Towa asked shyly.
"Just because Christmas day is coming up, doesn't mean you're allowed to slack off in class, Izumi!" Mrs. Maeda said sternly.
"N-No! I wasn't slacking off! Really! I'm taking notes! Really!" Towa said. Mrs. Maeda picked up her notebook and scanned it a little.
"Hmmm...seems you're doing well. But don't think I'll go easy on you! And don't use your "autism", as you call it, as an excuse either! I don't like kids who get attention by faking something ridiculous as that!" Mrs. Maeda said and slammed the notebook on the desk, which scared Towa a little. Karin, who sat next to Towa, decided to speak.
"Maeda-sensei. You know Towa-chan tries hard. She doesn't use anything for an excuse. It takes a bit longer for her to understand and learn things a bit. But at least she makes good effort to pass her quizzes, homework and tests! I don't understand why you act all mean and stuff" Karin explained. This annoyed the teacher a bit.
"Kids like Izumi need to suck it up and do it! Don't use that tone with me, Himemiya! Just because you're a good student! Besides, I don't believe in developmental disabilities! Going back to the subject here..." Mrs. Maeda yelled and went back to the whiteboard to teach. Karin looked at Towa who looked like she was going to cry again. Karin felt sad.
A few more hours later, it was time for reccess! But since there was some snow outside and that it was a bit cold, the school decided to keep the kids inside for reccess. Towa and Karin were talking at their desks.
"Towa-chan...I don't know why, but I don't like it when people look down on you like this! Even Maeda-sensei for that matter! I know it's hard for you because of...you know. I understand that truly. You know I'll always stick up for you, Towa-chan" Karin told the girl while putting her hand on Towa's small hand. But Towa didn't smile. Instead, tears began to form in her sea blue eyes.
"Am I...am I a bad girl? Did I do something wrong? I...I don't know! What did I do? Why doesn't everyone...like me?" Towa asked with cascadic and clear tears beginning to stream down her face.
"No! You're NOT a bad girl! People are just stupid! Like Hiroaki and Megutan! They don't realize the seriousness of your...you know what. But I'll always be here for you, Towa-chan! People just think kids like you are bad kids who weren't "disciplined properly" or "raised the wrong way" or "uncared for by their mothers" like everyone says! But it's not like that! Your family loves you and cares about you for who you are! Anyway...let's play go-fish, shall we?" Karin explains. Towa dries herself off, picks up a stack of playing cards, and smiles a little at Karin.
"Yes. Sorry, Karin-chan" Towa replied.
"Why are you apologizing? You didn't do anything wrong! Oh! I got a new video game! It's very cool! Hey! Wanna come over my house when winter break starts?" Karin asked. Towa's face immediately lit up.
"Really!? Yay! But I'll have to ask my mama first" Towa replied.
"Okay. I understand" Karin said with a bright and happy smile.
The girl who lived in the pristine white world Was not accepted by those outside.
They misunderstood her,
Only thinking of her as a "bad girl"
Only thinking of her world as an act to get attention.
The outside was the place where her feelings were thrown away.
The outside was the place where others thought the girl would Just be better off dead.
The young princess's heart was shattered.
It was shattered every time she went out.
She continues to hide herself away.
She continues to confide in her land of snow.
The princess of the land of snow cries gentle, clear tears of sadness.
A few more hours later, the bell rang, which meant it was time to go home. Towa waved goodbye to Karin and Hotaru as she ran to her mom's BMW. A few minutes later, Towa and Sasami arrive home. Towa immediately ran into her room and grabbed Popo, her toy angel imp and ran back into the kitchen. Sasami began to cook up some chicken noodle soup for Towa, considering it's cold.
"So, Towa-chan, how was school?" Sasami asked as she opened a can of soup and put it in a pot. Towa sat at the dining room table with her angel imp cradled in her tiny hands. Towa's smile dissolved.
"N...not very good. Hiroaki threw pencils at me..." Towa replied shyly. Sasami became shocked.
"What!? That boy! I wanna call his parents!" Sasami shrieked with anger.
"Megutan wrote him up...but she called me a wimp. Karin-chan stood up for me, but..." Towa explained again. "...Maeda-sensei thought I was slacking off and looked at my notes. She yelled at me, thinking my disability is nothing more than an act to fail math class. I...I try really really hard! I know I have to pass the test that's coming up! I..." Towa said when her head fell to the table. Sasami got really mad.
"I'm so sick and tired of this! Why can't Maeda-san understand!? Does she NOT read your IEP!? That's it! I'm calling her, the Kandas and the Tabatas tomorrow!" Sasami yelled when a beeping noise became heard.
"Oh! The soup is ready!" Sasami said with a smile and removed the pot from the top of the oven. She then grabbed a small, white bowl and slowly poured the soup into the bowl.
"I made your favorite! Chicken noodle soup with spiral noodles!" Sasami exclaimed with a smile as she placed the bowl of fresh, hot soup in front of Towa. The warm scent and the steam rising from the orange liquid make her smile.
"Yay! Thank you mama!" Towa exclaimed happily when she grabbed a small, silver spoon, scooped up a bit of the soup which were a few spiral noodles, gently blew on them to cool them off, and took a bite. She smiled, then gasped a little.
"Oh yeah! Mama, Karin-chan asked if I can go over her house when winter break starts. Can I go over her house?" Towa asked shyly. Sasami let out a bright smile.
"Of course! Karin-chan is such a nice girl! She always looks out for you! Tell her I said yes" Sasami replied. Towa smiled and squealed with delight.
"Yay! Thank you mama!" Towa exclaimed happily as she continued to sip her soup.
"Oh! Towa-chan, you and I have to go to the mall today. The item I've been trying to find is finally out and I need to get my hands on it" Sasami told her.
"Okay. Towa will go with mama. I take Popo with me!" Towa replied as she pulled out her angel imp. Sasami chuckled a little.
"You take that thing everywhere with you. Well, except for school" Sasami said.
A few minutes later, Towa finishes eating her soup and feels warm again. She places her backpack next to her bed and runs up to her mother, who was ready to go to the mall. Towa follows Sasami into the car and Sasami drives away. A few more minutes later, they arrive at a VERY large and wide mall. They go into one of the doors in front. Sasami and Towa walked around for a while. They arrived in an area that had many stores in it like clothing stores, book stores, toy stores, shoe stores, and video stores.
Towa and Sasami continued to walk through the large building to look for what Sasami was looking for. They walk into a small clothing store when Towa notices a little book store on the other side. Towa's face lit up and ran to see it. But what she didn't know...
Was that she let go of her mother's hand.
Towa scurried into the book store and stormed to the shelves that were further away. She saw three shelves full of manga. She looked at it with a big smile. But her smile began to dissolve when she sees that the manga that she was looking for was not there.
"Awww. Volume 3's not here. Oh well. Mama, can we...?" Towa said when she turned around and noticed...
Her mother wasn't with her.
Towa began to get worried. She ran out of the book store to find her mother. To her horror, she wasn't in the clothing store anymore! She was surrounded by people who didn't know she was there. She began to get scared.
"Mama? Mama? Where are you? Where's mama? Mama? Mama!?" Towa cried out as she was getting more and more scared by the second. She couldn't find her anywhere! She ran into every store near her that she could find, but her mother wasn't in any of them. Towa started to cry.
"M-Mama...where did she go!? I shouldn't have ran off! Mamaaaaa!" Towa cried out as she hid under a small table that was in the middle of the store, crawled into a ball and cried.
"Mama...I'm so stupid!" Towa screamed at herself for getting lost.
Meanwhile, Sasami was about to leave the store as the entrance was up ahead.
"Towa-chan, why don't you walk next to me? You don't have to-WHA!?" Sasami said when she turned around and noticed...
Towa wasn't with her!
She began to panic.
"Oh no! Towa-chan! Did she get lost!? Oh no! I gotta find her!" Sasami cried and began running through the mall, panicking.
"Towa-chaaaaaan! Where are you!?" Sasami yelled out for her young, autistic daughter. But she didn't come out. Sasami began asking various people if they've seen her while showing them a picture of her that she brought with her. Sadly, they all haven't seen her, but they told her that if they saw Towa, they would escort her to Sasami. Sasami began to panic more and more.
"Towa-chan! She doesn't know her way around! I have to find her before something bad happens! Oh no! Yukihiro's gonna maul me if he finds out about this! Towa-chaaaaaaaaan!" Sasami cried out while she was consumed in nothing but worry and panic.
Meanwhile, Towa continued to hide under the table, sobbing and sniveling while clinging to her toy angel imp. She did not come out because she would be even more lost. Tears continued to fall down her cheeks like waterfalls.
"Mama...please come get me...I don't know where anything is...mama..." Towa murmured to herself as she continued to cower under the small table and clench her toy angel imp plushie.
The princess had wandered into an area she didn't know.
The girl did not recognize it.
She could not find her way back to her world.
The area she was in, it was pure, pristine white.
But it was only that. Nothing was there.
The white snow danced onto the ground.
The girl began to panic. Soon, she cried.
She sobbed and cried crystal tears.
She didn't know where anything is.
She couldn't find anyone, anything at all.
She fell to her knees, cried and cried.
Knowing she doesn't know where to return...
What she didn't know.
Was that in the dark, ash-grey distance,
As the snow began to dance and masquerade in the sky.
A black silhouette of a person saw her, sobbing in fear.
The black shadow was tall, taller than the girl.
The black shadow slowly began to walk towards her.
As the girl heard his footsteps and looked up,
What she saw the figure do was unbelievable.
The black shadow offered it's hand to her...
"Ummm...Are you alright?"
Towa heard a voice right in front of her. As she crawled out of the table to see who it was, she was surprised.
A young, teenage boy was looking at her.
The boy looked to be 15-16 years of age. The boy had pure, soft black hair that was part down the middle, revealing his white, androgynous face. He also had dark green eyes that shined like morning dew on the green grass. He had on a black trench coat, matching black pants and black shoes, a dark brown turtleneck sweater underneath his coat, and a white and light green scarf wrapped around his neck like a snake. Towa was stunned by the boy, but didn't talk to him.
"Ummm...is your name Izumi Towa?" The boy asked. Although he was 16 years old, his voice was strangely high-pitched. Not high-pitched as in squeaky like a little girl. His voice was nostalgic, but sounded like he was still a young boy. But he spoke gently and softly, as to not scare the girl. Towa dried herself off.
"Y-Yes. I'm Towa" Towa replied, introducing herself.
"You're lost? Your mother approached me, asking where you were. It seems I found you" The boy told her. Towa heard this and became surprised.
"Y-You know where my mama is!?" Towa asked.
"Sort of. I can take you to her. Follow me" The boy said as he offered his hand out to her. Towa was surprised and a little shy. Nobody except for her family and Karin ever held their hand out to her. Towa hesitated a little, but then decided to reach out a bit.
The boy's hand held gently onto the girl's tiny hand.
The black shadow revealed itself as a young man.
The boy's face was very girl-like.
His eyes were kind and gentle.
The girl finally placed her hand onto the boy's palm.
The boy smiled and gently held the girl's hand.
He began to escort her back to her area.
The girl dried away her tears and began to follow the unfamiliar boy.
Meanwhile, Sasami was still consumed with fear and worry. She looked into the book store where Towa was earlier. She was in front of the counter talking to the lady.
"Ummm...I'm sorry to bother you, but have you seen this girl? She's my daughter and I can't find her at all!" Sasami told the female clerk and showed her a picture of Towa. The clerk took a good look at the picture, then responded.
"I think I saw a child like that here a few minutes ago. She was looking for a certain manga then went out crying for her mother" The clerk replied. Sasami found a tiny bit of relief.
"At least SOMEONE knows that Towa was here! I have too-" Sasami yelled when she turned to the entrance. When she did, she was so shocked and surprised to find...
Towa and the androgynous teenager at the entrance!
Sasami and Towa cried tears of joy and began to run towards each other.
"Towa-chaaan!" Sasami cried.
"Mamaaa!" Towa cried and finally hugged her mother.
"I-I'm sorry! I..." Towa said.
"It's alright, Towa-chan. But please don't run anywhere without asking me where you want to go. Promise?" Sasami told her.
"I promise! I'm so stupid!" Towa replied.
"Don't EVER say that! Anyway, who was it that brought you here?" Sasami asked.
"Oh! That young man came and helped me...huh?" Towa exclaimed when she turned to the entrance to show her the boy who helped her find her mother, but to her surprise...
He wasn't there anymore!
Towa was confused.
"Wha? He was there a minute ago. I wonder if he left?" Towa said to herself.
"I guess he went on his way. Anyway, let's leave for today. I got what I wanted" Sasami told her.
"Okay mama! Let's go home" Towa said, held onto her mother's hand and followed her as they decided to leave the mall. A few minutes later, Sasami and Towa arrive at their car. Sasami goes in first while Towa goes into the back seat. Sasami starts her car and proceeds to leave. As Towa looks out the window and the car is driving away, she saw someone familiar.
It was the young teenager!
He was looking her way with a doll-like, emotionless stare. But Towa didn't notice it. She was surprised that she saw the young man from before again.
'I wonder who that is? He helped me find mama. I...I wish I could see him again...' thought Towa as the car began to drive away. She was going to miss the young boy who saved her from being lost in the mall.
About a few days later...
It was Christmas Day!
The fateful day has finally come! All the children in their houses eagerly awaited for this day. They were eager to run to their Christmas trees and open their presents and see if Santa Claus ate their cookies and milk. In the Izumi house, Towa was in her dark blue, snowflake decorated pajamas as usual and ripping open the wrapping paper from her presents. The box she was holding was small and rectangular shaped and she made an effort to open the cardboard one. As she finally did, she turned it upside down to see what was inside.
To her surprise, a toy bunny fell out! It was a small, light pink bunny plush with light blue eyes and a cute, red bowtie on it's neck. Towa squealed with ecstasy and hugged the toy while hugging Popo at the same time.
"Yay! Thank you papa!" Towa squealed happily as she hugged (and suffocated) her bunny and angel imp toys. Yukihiro smiled at the event. Every parent wishes for their child or children to be happy. Yukihiro was standing next to the living room TV which was showing the famous movie "A Christmas Story" (my mom LOVES this movie in case you were wondering). Sasami came into the living room, which was almost covered with wrapping paper. She had a plate of buttered toast and small pieces of bananas in her hands.
"Towa-chan! Breakfast is here!" Sasami exclaimed as she set the plate of toast and bananas next to her happy young daughter.
"Thanks mama!" Towa exclaimed and began scarfing down her breakfast. She was way to eager to wait to open the rest of her presents. Since she was an only child, she got the most of it. As she finished scarfing food down her throat, she found a small, cube-shaped present in front of her. She grabbed it and looked at the sticker that was on it. But what was strange...
Was that even though it was for her, it didn't say who it was from!
She was confused.
"Papa. Mama. Come look at this" Towa said. Her happy and cheery expression disappeared when she saw the tag on the present. Sasami and Yukihiro responded and took a look at the present's tag. It didn't say who it was from.
"Someone gave this to me, but it doesn't say who" Towa said. Both Sasami and Yukihiro got a little confused.
"This is strange" Sasami said.
"Maybe it's from Koto-chan! She usually forgets to sign her name on presents she's giving to someone" Yukihiro said, not really thinking much of it. Koto was the name of Towa's older cousin who does live in Hokkaido with relatives, but in a different town.
"Maybe you're right, papa!" Towa said and proceeded to open the present. But it wasn't a stuffed animal or a manga or an anime DVD.
It was a small music box.
It was tiny and blue. It had some white decorations and some shiny gems on it, making it pretty. Towa opened the box and it began playing Pachelbel's Kanon in D-Major in a soft and tiny melody. Towa was happy with it.
"Ooooh! Pretty!" Towa exclaimed happily. "I better put this in my room along with my other presents!" Towa said as she began gathering some presents that she already opened and scurried off to her room to put them away. Sasami and Yukihiro watched the girl with smiles on their faces.
"I'm glad we have Towa-chan as our child" Yukihiro said.
"Yes...I agree. But it seems the rest of the world doesn't think of Towa-chan as a good girl. I tried calling the Kanda and Tabata families last week, but they denied everything. I managed to get a meeting with Maeda-san for the beginning of January" Sasami said with her smile disappearing and looking sad. Yukihiro stood up.
"I know! Those kids need to stop picking on Towa! I don't see a reason why they should take advantage of her like that! The teacher too! She thinks Towa's just doing this to fail class! She doesn't believe Towa is a hard-worker! Besides, she usually gets good grades in all her ither subjects!" Yukihiro explained with a little anger.
"I understand, Yukihiro-san..." Sasami replied.
Meanwhile, Towa was changing out of her pajamas and into some clothes. She put on a long-sleeved, milky white turtleneck sweater with pink and red diamonds on the chest part and dark blue jean pants. She also put on her white shoes and scooped her toy angel imp into her hands.
"Let's go play in the backyard, Popo-tan! Let's make a snowman!" Towa said to her toy and scurried off to find her maroon jacket. She found it and ran to the door that was in the back of the kitchen. As she opened it, her backyard was already a pure white world spread out before her. The big tree in the back was now encased in wet but solid ice. There were no leaves on it.
"Wow...so pretty...huh?" Towa said to herself, excited by the beautiful sight when a cat ran out the door. The cat was beige and had some black and white spots on it. It also had brown eyes. It ran into the snowy backyard and was about to run out the back gate.
"Ah! Nyanko-chan! Don't go out there!" Towa cried out for her cat, Nyanko (Nyanko is another word for cat), who was beginning to run to the back gate. She ran out the gate and Towa was trying to follow her.
"Nyanko-chan! Come back here-Ahh!" Towa yelled out for her cat but she bumped into something...or someone.
"Gah! I...I'm sorry! I didn't mean to..." Towa apologized to the person she bumped into, but as she looked up, she was shocked and surprised just like she was before. The person she was looking at right now...
Was the young man who helped her at the mall!
"Oh...it's you...Izumi Towa-san..." The young, androgynous teenager whispered to her quietly. Towa kept looking up at his sterling green eyes. She bumped into the boy who helped her find her mother!
'It's him...it's him!' thought Towa. She couldn't believe her very eyes. She and him were stuck in the small path, caught in the land of snow.
Author's Note: Yay! I finished up the first chapter! Sorry it got complete so late. School's been bugging me and I NEED to bring my biology grade up! Yeah, my mom LOVES the movie called "A Christmas Story". She'll watch it 24-hours a day during Christmas when it comes on! Anyway, I better go now. I need to start on my book project. Hope you like my new story! Read and review nicely! NO FLAMES! Bye-bee!