He wore white fur; so shiny and gleaming that it hurt his eyes just to look at it. From the place where he stood he couldn't tell which animal the fur was taken from, but it was obviously real. Even a little kid like him could tell that. The fur covered his loins and his shins, hugging his hips and legs in an almost hypnotic way. He was not wearing a shirt, but a cloak made from the same fur covered his shoulders and arms.

     Syusuke stared at him, the boy's blue hair blowing in the wind. Never in his life has he felt more fascinated by the sight of another human being. Minutes or hours or maybe days he stood there and held the kid's gaze, losing track of time.

     In reality it lasted only a couple of seconds, that moment. A few seconds, and then another boy appeared and broke the spell Fuji was caught in. The other boy wore the same fur as the blue-haired boy. Fuji guessed he was older by the way he looked. His hair was silver and the way it gleamed under the moonlight was almost unrealistic; was almost magical. He had a stern look on his face, and the one glance he sent at Fuji was of complete disdain. Then he talked to the other boy. "We are going," he said, and with these words turned around and started marching the way he came, disappearing into the woods.

     The young boy looked at Fuji for another moment before going after the silver-haired guy. Syusuke didn't see disdain in his blue eyes, nor did he see any other feeling. The boy's face was simply emotionless. It was blank.

     When the brunette's mother came to pick him up from the playground about thirty minutes later, she found him standing next to the swings and staring at the forest. When she asked him how was his day, he shared with her what he had learned in school and what he and his friends did and what his friend's mother cooked them for lunch. He did not say anything about a blue-haired boy around his age with empty face and navy-blue eyes.

Chapter One

The last thing he heard before everything went black was Chaiki's voice calling his name with horror. He saw nothing. He felt nothing. Somewhere in his mind he knew he had got hurt, but he couldn't tell just what had happened.

     And then came the pain; sharp and strong and so sudden he almost lost consciousness again. After the pain returned the voices and they were all too loud and too high. They only increased the ache. Then came the taste, the metallic taste filling his mouth.

     By the time he gained his vision he figured out what had happened. Chaiki was kneeling next to him, her face covered with tears and full of fear. Her lips moved and he could hear her voice, but he couldn't put the words into a sentence. Somewhere in the mess of words he heard "ambulance" and "help". He waited. He tried to breathe. He felt a hand on his face and another hand holding his own; Chaiki, there with him.

     And then everything faded away again. Everything went blank.

Fuji woke up in a small room with white walls. Infusion was connected to his right arm and he was wearing an ugly green hospital uniform.