"Come on Aiko! You can do it!" yelled a brown-haired girl with brown eyes as she cheered for her two-year-old sister as she tried to walk. "If you can already talk, then I know you can walk!" 

"Woah!" yelled a girl with short brown hair as she fell for the tenth time. 

Aiko Okiayu is Tamaki Okiayu's little sister that's basically a prodigy. Aiko has dark brown hair that's usually held up in two small pigtails. What usually keeps them held up are Aiko's white pomp-pomps.

"That's alright Aiko! No pain no gain!" yelled Tamaki as her eyes twinkled with determination. 

"But pain hurts s-sometimes," sniffed Aiko. 

"Well, you know what makes me feel better when I'm in pain?" questioned Tamaki. 

Aiko looked up at Tamaki and waited for her answer. 

"Oh, you were expecting an answer?" giggled Tamaki. 

"Tamaki!" yelled Aiko as her eyes welled up with tears. 

"I'm kidding Aiko!" exclaimed Tamaki with a big smile as she hugged her little sister, "Hugs make me feel better! Most of the times I hug myself which is kinda weird, but it helps!" 

Aiko's frown turned upside down as she giggled. 

"Is that because you're a lonely loser?" asked Aiko. 

"No! I have lots of friends ya know!" yelled Tamaki. 

"Then why don't they hug you?" asked Aiko. 

"W-Well, most of my friends are guys and they're tough, so they're not into hugging girls. Besides, I don't need any mercy from anyone because I'm gonna be the best shinobi ever!" exclaimed Tamaki as sparkles appear in her eyes. 

"I'm gonna be the best shinobi ever too, just like my awesome sister!" yelled Aiko as she pushed away from Tamaki and stood up, "Just watch me!"

Aiko started to walk, then her walking soon became running, and her running turned into jumping on Tamaki's back and causing Tamaki to fall to the ground. 

"Ow ow ow! Aiko! That hurt!" yelled Tamaki.

"No pain no gain!" mimicked Aiko. 

"What! Get off!" whined Tamaki as she laughs. 

Tamaki and Aiko's parents walked into the room with another girl that could be about Tamaki's age. Aiko got off Tamaki and stood up straight as Tamaki did the same. They both bowed and gave their parents a smile. 

"Hiya mom and dad and random stranger!" yelled Tamaki as she waved. 

"Hi mommy and daddy and girl!" yelled Aiko as she smiled. 

"Good afternoon sweethearts!" exclaimed their mother. 

"Welcome your new sister!" exclaimed their father as he stepped aside to reveal the timid girl behind him. 

"H-Hi..." mumbled the girl.

"Hi!" yelled Tamaki as she jumped off the ground to hug her. 

Aiko copied Tamaki and found herself latched upon the girl. 

"Now now girls, give her some space!" giggled Mrs. Okiayu. 

Tamaki and Aiko backed up and introduced themselves. 

"I'm Tamaki Okiayu and I'm gonna become the best shinobi ever!" exclaimed Tamaki as she gave the girl a huge smile.

"I'm Aiko Okiayu and I'm gonna become the best shinobi ever just like my big sister!" exclaimed Aiko as she gave the girl a huge smile that's similar to Tamaki's.

"W-Well I'm Emiko... I'm not sure what my clan's name is..." mumbled Emiko. 

"Silly! You're an Okiayu! Did you already forget?" giggled Tamaki.

"O-Oh... okay," mumbled Emiko as she shifted from side to side a little. 

"Well, we're going to whip up some dinner kids, Tamaki, Aiko, why don't you kids show Emiko around the house!" exclaimed Mrs. Okiayu. 

"Yes ma'am!" saluted Tamaki and Aiko. 

Mr. and Mrs. Okiayu walked off to the kitchen and left the kids to roam around the house. Tamaki and Aiko showed Emiko their parent's room, Tamaki's room, Aiko's room, all the bathrooms and hiding places. 

"You wanna go to my room?" asked Tamaki.

Emiko shyly agreed and the three of them had made their way to Tamaki's room. Tamaki showed Emiko her bed, desk, books and other things that add character to her room. Tamaki noticed Emiko's interested in a specific book in her bookcase. 

"You can have that book if you want, consider it a welcoming gift!" exclaimed Tamaki with a smile. 

"Th-Thank you!" stuttered Emiko as she pulled out the novel and held it tightly to her chest. 

"Ah, The Pyro, that's a really good book. It's about this shinobi that has fire powers and has good intentions, but his power derives from an evil being that granted him powers without consent. So he tries to use his new profound powers for good, but these powers slowly consumes his pure soul and cause him to do horrible things such as burning down villages and forests. I won't spoil the ending, so have fun reading it!" explained Tamaki as her smile shined brightly, causing anyone, even Emiko, to feel warmth. 

"It sounds quite interesting. Speaking of fire powers I uh.. I have them," Emiko said as she held up her hand to reveal a small flame coming from the palm of her hand. 

"Wow! That's so cool Emiko! Wait 'til my friends get a look at you! They're gonna love you!" exclaimed Tamaki with awe. 

Emiko shyly thanked Tamaki as Aiko also stared in awe. Emiko had put out her flames and the tour is continued. Eventually, Tamaki showed Emiko the room she will reside in. Emiko is ecstatic at the fact that she has been welcomed and is under a good roof of people. Once the tour is finished, dinner has been prepared and it is time to feast. Tamaki discussed the wonders of school such as what will be taught, when lunch is, when training occurs and more. Such wonders had interested Emiko, luckily enough, Tamaki's parents- now hers- had already registered her for the academy and her first day of class will begin the following day. After dinner was finished, the girls had gone to bed, Tamaki and Aiko excited with the fact that they both have a new friend to boast about while Emiko is thrilled with the fact that she will make more friends. 

. . . 

"Show 'em Emiko!" yelled Tamaki excitedly as she awaited for her new sister and friend to show her classmates her incredible gift.

Emiko held up her hand to reveal a small flame in the middle of her left palm. Those within the class wowed with awe as they analyzed the fire that sat cozily on Emiko's hand. 

"Does it hurt?" asked Snow hesitantly, who wondered if he could interject in this conversation even though he barely knew anyone in the class due to being an outcast.

"No, it honestly doesn't. I believe my clan could have been fire wielders," stated Emiko. 

"That's quite interesting," noted Dramacus as he analyzed the fiery flames. 

"Thank you," replied Emiko shyly.

"It's pretty lit in my opinion!" exclaimed Tamaki as she wiggled her brows and waited for others to laugh. 

"I'm so sorry that you live with this," apologized Takashi. 

"Shut up Takashi! You know you love my punny yolks!" laughed Tamaki. 

"We're not even talking about eggs now!" yelled Takashi with exasperation. 

"Yolkay!" giggled Tamaki, which caused Takashi to sigh.

"It's all too painful, end me now," stated Takashi.

"Alright class! Let's get settled down! It's time to go over shinobi tactics! Pull out your books and turn to page fifty-three please!" exclaimed Michio-Sensei with a smile. "Emiko, you can find a book inside your desk- just in case if you weren't aware."

"Th-Thank you, sir!" exclaimed Emiko as she pulled out her own book from her desk and followed the teachings of Michio-Sensei. 

Having Tamaki close by, creating new friends, getting a better education and so much more opportunities made Emiko overjoyed. She had never felt this sense of happiness until now. 

. . . 

"Emiko, are you okay? You've been acting weird the past few months," asked Tamaki with concern. 

"I'm fine, you're the weird one," snapped back Emiko as she laid under her covers during midday.

"Okay, whatever you say sis. I'mma go and get some bread from the market. You want anything?" asked Tamaki. 

Silence was all that pervaded the atmosphere, informing Tamaki that Emiko did not want to speak once again. Tamaki grabbed the money her parents provided for the bread and she ran out the door and yelled, "Love ya mom and dad! You too Aiko and Emiko!" With that comment, she was gone and had sprinted toward the market. 

. . . 

As Tamaki made her way back to her clan's area, she smelled smoke. Her eyes scanned the area and are met with dark, grey smoke that flowed through the air. She analyzed the smoke and realized it was coming from her clan's area. Carefully without the bread being squished, Tamaki held on to the bread and ran as fast as she could to her clan's area. Tears filled her eyes as she got to the entrance to find structures burned and tattered. Some were not even standing, but now considered dust or ash. Tamaki dropped the bread in haste and ran to her house. She prayed that her parents and siblings made it out safely. She prayed that everyone in her clan were alright and already evacuated. Once she got to her house, Tamaki's eyes laid upon the sight of her house in ashes. There were two figures, charcoaled, representing her parents who burned to death. Aiko's body could not be seen as Tamaki ran around the ashes of her old house, so Tamaki assumed Aiko's body was small enough to turn into ashes easily. Tamaki fell to the ground in tears and sobbed like there was no tomorrow. She screamed and cried at the clouds, asking why would such an event occur.

"How does it feel? How does it feel to finally feel the loss of loved ones?" mocked Emiko as she stared down at the helpless child from an Okiayu Clan pedestal.

The orphaned Okiayu turned to glare at her adopted older sister.

"How could you do this Emiko? We took you in and cared for you after your family perished!" yelled the lone survivor of her clan's slaughter as tears streamed down her face.

Emiko only grinned at the Tamaki, helpless as ever, and vanished, leaving only a cloud that slowly dispersed. Many people arrived to the scene to find the lonely Okiayu crying to herself. One of the first of many people to arrive was Rinn, a former teammate of her parents. The young man pulled Tamaki into a hug and patted her back.

"It'll be alright, Rinny's here to protect you now."

. . . 

Tamaki awakened to find herself in a setting other than The Okiayu's Clan's Area.

"You're awake," stated a familiar voice. 

Tamaki moved her head to the sound of the young man's voice and found Rinn, her parent's former teammate, sitting in chair next to the bed she laid in. 

"Why am I here? I should be with my parents." 

"Tamaki, I know this was a traumatic event, but you should be aware by now that your whole clan perished in a fire about a month ago."

Tamaki remembered the tragic event and cried herself to sleep once more. 

. . . 

In the depressing rain during night, Tamaki laid eyes upon a girl with black hair and blue eyes sitting against a brick building. 

"Hello, are you lost?" asked Rinn as he knelt down to the young girl's height. 

Only sniffles were heard, followed by shuttering and the chattering of teeth. Rinn picked the girl up and made his way to his house with Tamaki who followed closely behind. Once they arrived to their destination, Rinn placed the girl on the couch to fetch blankets while Tamaki brought her a pair of pajamas for her to change into whenever she was ready. The girl hesitantly took the new clothes and analyzed its features the same way Tamaki analyzed her features. 

"Why were you out there in the cold rain?"

"I ran away from home... abusive."

"What's your name?" continued Tamaki. 

"Kichi Joten."

"Those blue eyes looked somewhat familiar. They're of the Joten family!" exclaimed Tamaki, proud that she was knowledgable of other clans in Shizen.

"Cold, icry and harsh blue eyes," hazily stated Kichi. 

"Your eyes make me think of an ocean, salty, yet beautiful and full of potential," stated Tamaki with a huge smile, warming Kichi's cold and battered heart.

Kichi sat there and pondered. 

"Thank you," replied Kichi with a small, yet genuine smile.

. . .

"You leave Snow alone! I'm sick of your bs Kemie!" yelled Tamaki as she and Kichi stand in front of Snow, which created a barrier between snow and three bullies. 

"Well I'm sick of you! Orphan loser and ugly tramp! Y'all would go nice with Yucky loner over here!" laughed Kemie, the main bully as the two other boys present by his side copied him and laughed as well.

In the end, Kemie and his two friends got beat up by Tamaki and Kichi, which led to Snow apologizing for such inconveniences as tears poured down his cheeks. Tamaki and Kichi hug Snow and ensured him that it was not inconvenient, which caused Snow to cry more, but with tears of joy.

"Stick with us Snow," said Tamaki with a huge smile. 

"We'll stand beside you and make sure to not show mercy to those who stand against you," replied Kichi as she also smiled.

Snow hesitantly agreed, but with that response, a new friendship was born. 

Tamaki had found her light. She found her way out of the hole that she dug herself into. At the end, Kichi and Snow pulled her out and gave her a reason to keep fighting the darkness. Tamaki was afraid that such freedom would lead to her being found in the hole one again, but she put that thought on hold and focused on the presence, cherishing every moment she had with her friends and soon to be teammates.