Chapter 1

She rested in the standard seat located in the third row of the large plane, gazing out the window to the blanket of clouds hovering just below the large mass of the vehicle. The flight to Japan she knew wouldn't be a short one, but she didn't mind much because it gave her more time to mentally procrastinate with the confrontation of her fresh, bitter-sweet emotions as she ate the over priced animal crackers that she bought from the pretty flight attendant near by.

Kamiko Horikishi had lived in the United States for the majority of her lifetime and was now returning to her homeland of Western Japan. She was to land at a large airport in Tokyo, even though she would be residing pretty far from there. The only reasons that caused her to land at such a distant place was because her aunt Ami was attending the University of Tokyo and offered to accompany her from the landing site to the train station. She was to live in Sakaiminato, known for their history of being the hometown of a famous manga writer and is where her father's grandparents live. It is located in the prefecture of Tottori.

She heard the booming voice come on through the speaker above her head announcing that the plane was coming close to it's land. As far as languages go, Kamiko had grown up with her parents always speaking fluent Japanese around her until she started going to an American academy because they didn't want her to be stressed out or confused about having to switch between languages every time she leaves her home. However, she still insisted on remaining with her original culture and holding on to what she could from it so she would continue to encourage them to help her with it. Therefor, she didn't have much trouble now at the age of 15 with plenty of practice. But of course, she was still nervous.

She was broken from her hazed thoughts as the sound of the rustling of her fellow passengers caught her attention. They started getting up around her, most of them tourist surprisingly enough. The person whom she shared a seat with got up which lead her to believe that she better start getting her carry on and the rest of her smaller luggage together.

As she stood up and made her way out of the plane, she pulled out her newly received phone to pull up a picture of the aunt she knew so little of. In the picture she had obtained, the woman had long, dirty-blonde hair with dark and obviously natural roots. She made it off the plane and found her self waiting t receive her luggage when she looked up from her device, now searching for her.

Her eyes shuffled through all the faces of the strangers who surrounded her once again when someone caught her eye. Though it was only for a second, this boy dressed in dark street ware made brief eye contact with her. There was something intimidating about him to Kamiko, but she couldn't quite put her finger on it. She looked away for a spilt second then turned back to examine him just once more. Still looking at her, she noticed he had the brightest pure white highlights which contrasted against his midnight black origins. It was different from that of her aunt's subtle look, it was so striking and truly surprised her when she realized it hadn't grasped her attention during her first glimpse.

Once again being torn away from imagination, someone had came up behind her and gently shook her coated shoulder. Startled, she turned to find the lady identical to her image.

"Hey! Sorry to frighten you, you're my niece, Kamiko Horikishi, correct?" She assured. Only to be expected, she spoke in Japanese. She had considered attempting to speak the little English the she actually knew to her, but concluded to the safe option of speaking her native one instead.

Kamiko then responded. "Oh yes, that's me. Thank you so much for volunteering to take me to the train station. I hope it isn't too much of a pain for you."

"Yeah, of course! I've been longing for a chance to catch up with you and this just seemed like a perfect opportunity."

To Kamiko, she seemed like the kind of fun aunt that everybody seems to have that's looks younger than she really is and likes to go out on dates and to parties. The fact that she seemed to resemble one of these stereotypes gave her a sort of comfort in knowing she wouldn't have to do much to keep the conversation from getting awkward and would already be fueled with topics for her to respond to.

They collected what was left of her stuffed luggage and they strolled the bags out from the still crowded room into a more open and fresh campus, steaming with the ending heat of the summer. As her aunt made her way leading Kamiko to the taxi. It was just before noon and there was a cool breeze that brisked along through the air into the car as she opened the back seat door and trunk to safely restore the luggage once again.

The city was unfamiliar to her and every building on every angle of it piqued her interest even more. The rooms of each structure had so much story and detail and it made her envy the people that were blessed enough to spend their daily lives here just like her aunt. She had always loved the idea of metropolises rather than rural homes.

Once her Ami situated her possessions into the black and dark green taxi, Kamiko sat in the back and buckled her seat belt instantly while holding on to a small and pastel cross-body purse that looked brand new. It had only her phone, a kawaii lip balm, and a mini wallet inside of it. Ami jogged to the opposite side of the car and hopped in enthusiastically.

Now, the driver seemed a bit odd, nothing specific, at least that Kamiko could tell, but she believed that his demeanor felt unusual.

"Oi, hello there, ladies! Where to?" He questioned.

"Hmm, Kamiko, what was the station name again?"

She honestly had no idea and all she was told was the city and prefecture of her new home. "Oh well, I think you should be able to just drop me off near the front of the main station of the city." When she said this the driver looked relieved, maybe because he was afraid he would end up having to take her all the way to the city borders of the place she was headed.

The engine fired and roared at the ignition and both women in the back relaxed as the vehicle pulled out of the crowded side road next to the overflowing and busy airport. It wouldn't be a long ride, in fact, she probably could have easily walked to her train or have taken a bus, but she believed that her aunt wanted to seem more vital to the situation by accompanying her until she would be forced to say goodbye after their short time together.

After about ten minutes of struggling on through the traffic, the taxi finally came to an abrupt stop, now facing another place of transpiration that suggested to be just as, if not more, crowded as the last one she visited. They both came out and the chaperone bid them a farewell, for Ami would be on her way as well, walking to her university.

The suit cases had been handed to Kamiko once more as she hunted through her carry on for the plane ticket that had been forwarded to her just days ago. After a solid three minutes she found it and was ready to continue on her preset path.

"Are you sure you'll be okay from here on?" Her aunt worried for her.

"Yeah, but thank you so much for taking me, even this far, it's really been a big help." She assured her.

"Of course, sweetie! I know we didn't get too much time to bond this time around but feel free to call me up anytime and I'd be happy to chit chat for a bit.

And from there they concluded their goodbyes and Kamiko turned and went on to the ticket booth to confirm her pass to transport. Soon after she was deemed with valid entry, she walked towards the cutely decorated train car that was said to be the one she was to ride upon. The small car wasn't particularly crowded as the other places had once been and it made her feel relaxed and ready for this long journey.