Prologue

I remember the first time I ever saw Hitachiin Kaoru. I was seven, and observing the inner workings of the hospital that my family ran. The sallow faced woman behind the nurse's station who was charged with watching me while my father was in a business meeting was preoccupied with the current chart pile up the retching man on the floor above us. Any normal child would have taken this opportunity to sneak off and cause ruckus, yet I, as an Ootori, simply stood and watched people.

An old man who seemed to be missing all his teeth, along with his left leg, was playing checkers with a young nurse; a married couple were sitting in the waiting room chairs, grouching about the small cut on the husband's cheek; a small blond boy was holding his wrist as his father, a strict looking man, explained to the attendant that his son had fractured it while practicing martial arts. Two women were conversing in thick Russian accents while a third stood off to the side, trying to translate the rapid fire speech to a confused looking doctor.

Although the seats were half filled, the noise level was surprisingly low; the time seemed to trickle by in sporadic periods. Some times, I would glance at the clock and see thirty minutes had passed. Other time, barely seconds had elapsed. No matter how much I pretended to enjoy the time I spent here, I found this branch of the hospital completely and utterly boring.

"Ootori-sama," I jumped as the nurse acknowledged me for the first time since I'd become her charge. "Your father is going to be a little longer in his press conference. He wishes for you to stop dawdling around the station and put yourself to good use."

Politely, I dipped my head and slid off the swivel chair I'd been occupying for the last three minutes.

Honestly, there was no real reason to explore the hospital; I knew the grounds and floors by heart and I could recite the top clientele's names off the top of my head, so there was no reason to acquaint myself with the patients, either.

Instead, I settled for wandering. It was wandering, but not aimlessly, for my family never did anything without there being a secret meaning behind it. I was simply taking a walk to clear my head, allowing my feet to do all the activity required to keep myself from running into anything.

My train of though, no matter the subject, was suddenly cut off as I heard a scream. It was a high pitched, loud note; like those cries of mother's who'd lost children to various, preventable things…Only…this one sounded younger.

Rounding the corner I found myself staring upon a strange sight.

A small, red headed boy was sobbing onto the linoleum tile, while a nurse tried to calm him. What appeared to be his mother and father stood a few feet away, sobbing into each other's arms as the beeping sound of a monitor chirped mournfully from a room of to the right.

"No!" The smaller boy was screaming. He pulled his knees up to his chin so he was sitting on his shins before biting a clothed kneecaps and screaming. "No!! No, no, no, no, no!! You're lying!!"

The woman's crying intensified and she knelt down to grip her son. "Kaoru, Kaoru honey…it's over. We have to go home now."

I watched as the boys stopped crying only to choke on his own tears, doubling over and coughing on the floor. He looked…so pathetic and helpless. I watched as he was picked up by his father, and as the three retreated towards the exit, still screaming and crying.

I watched until they were out of my site, then I listened until I could no longer hear the boy's sobs. The nurse retreated to her other patients and two doctors emerged from the room, looking emotionless.

The beeping continued as I inched forward, pressing my ear to the door, cautious of any activity. There was nothing. I pressed my hand to the door, about to push it open, when I heard a voice behind me.

"Kyouya," my father's stern tone made me freeze, turning slowly until I could see him. His face continued to face forward, towards the diamond patterned window that I was too short to see though, but his eyes were looking into mine. "You have no business in that room," he told me, gripping my shoulder tightly and pushing me slightly towards the exit.

Being naïve was one of my adolescent qualities; I would later grow out of it, never asking questions unless I already knew some form of the answer, but at the age of seve, I knew no better.

"Who was in that room, father?"

He looked…sad. Not his usual powerful, touch-me-not-or-I'll-sue-you demeanor, nor his emotionless posture. The hand on my shoulder tightened somewhat as we both looked over our shoulder at the hospital's front door. The bright sunlight glinted off his glasses, attracting my attention again.

"That was the older of the Hitachiin twins," he said gravely. "The boy you saw in the hallway was his younger brother. The man and woman were their parents."

"Yes, but what happened to him?" I asked, bringing my right hand up to chew on the nail. My father slapped my hand away from my mouth, eyes cold and emotionless again. He stood up straighter.

"The boys were attempting to climb a three story tree, and the older fell." I felt myself shrink. "He is in a coma and may never wake up. Legally, Kyouya, he is brain dead."

Okay, so just since I'm starting this, don't think that I've abandoned I Bet or Until It Becomes A Pumpkin. I already have the first three chapters (well, four if you include this one) of Phycotic written, so my energy will be taken up with the other stories.

So, ya'll are aware of the author's food and drink, I suppose. No? Why, it's those little bits of writing called 'reviews'. Now, I'm starving over here, so please; donate some reviews!! puppy eyes