Author's Note: I will try to update this story at least once a week, and will gladly receive any and all reviews, I merely ask that you refrain from cussing in the reviews. Thank you!

P.S. I refer to Kaneki's mother as Kaneki-san, since Kaneki is their last name. If there isn't a –san tacked onto the Kaneki, I am referring to Kaneki Ken.

P.P.S. I went back and rewrote this, and some of the chapters after it, so they're less… runny. Enjoy!

Prologue: Phoenix

A small girl, her mane of silver hair pulled into a messy ponytail and her grief filled eyes overflowing with tears, ran and ran and ran. She ran until she couldn't see Death anymore. And she kept running, until her small form collapsed to the ground in exhaustion and sorrow. The girl curled into a fetal position, trying to fight off the waves of memories from earlier that day.

Flashback

Aelin tightly gripped her Mama's hand, dragging the woman behind her as she barged into the bookstore. With a joyous expression on her face, she raced past the colorful children's books, instead skipping to the "grown-up section". Too impatient to wait for her Mama to catch up, she climbed the shelves herself to grab the books she wanted. By the time Aelin's Mama was at her side, the child's arms were full of books, ranging in topic from martial arts handbooks to suspense filled mysteries. Her Mama took on a wistful expression as the girl struggling to balance the pile of books, and with a chuckle she relieved the overburdened child of the stack. The two made their way up to the register, had a good laugh at the cashier's bewildered expression as he realized the novels were for the six-year-old, and began to return to their home once more.

Her Mama first noticed something wrong when she saw smoke in the distance. Dismissing it as coincidence that the flames were in their neighborhood, her Mama ignored them and continued until it was obvious that the inferno was their home. They reached their yard just in time to see Death stab her Daddy. Her Mama stiffened, shouting at Aelin to run. Doing so, Aelin glanced behind her as she finally reached the end of the street, only to see her Mama crumple to the ground to join Daddy. Death looked at her with a blank face and quickly strode towards her, rapidly closing the distance between them. Aelin's eyes widened in fear, and she turned and fled from the approaching reaper.

Flashback End

Trembling, she forced herself to her feet once more and unsteadily took off, tearing herself away from the smell of home. After all, it was gone now. Fire ate her house and Death stole her Mama and Daddy. Glancing over her shoulder, she didn't notice until too late that she ran straight into someone, crashing clumsily to the ground. Looking at the person in front of her, she scooted back in shock, wary of the stranger. He had blonde hair with brown roots and big brown eyes, and looked her age. Preparing to flee once more, she was surprised when the boy held out a hand to her, but hesitantly accepted the help.

As she got to her feet, the boy beamed at her and cheerfully introduced himself. "Hi, I'm Nagachika Hideyoshi, but everyone calls me Hide. What's your name?"

The girl hesitated, chewing anxiously on her bottom lip, then mumbled out, "I'm Aelin. But I go by Alli-chan."

With a bright smile, the newly dubbed Hide chattered excitedly to Aelin, while she trailed cautiously after him.

After what felt like forever, the talkative blonde stopped in front of a run-down house. Seeing the quizzical glance Alli-chan sent him, he rapidly explained.

"This is my best friend Kaneki's house! His mom helps everyone, so I'm sure she'll help you out too!"

Hide began thumping on the door, all the while yelling for "Kaneki" at the top of his lungs. Footsteps echoed on the other side of the door, and behind it stood a woman and a boy with black hair. The woman looked confused as Hide spewed information too quickly for Aelin to catch, then made a face of understanding as she ushered the two children inside. The black haired boy hid quietly behind his mother, though he seemed to relax a bit when Hide rushed up and embraced him. It seemed that the two were close, and Aelin's guess was soon proved correct as Hide introduced the other boy as Kaneki Ken, his best friend.

The woman walked up to Aelin and in fear the girl squeezed her eyes shut and hunched her shoulders, believing the woman intended to harm her, but against expectations the woman simply felt her forehead. Satisfied that the child didn't have a fever, Kaneki-san ushered the girl into the shower, leaving a pair of Kaneki's clothes roughly in Aelin's size outside the door.

Finally cleaned up, Aelin left the bathroom to find Hide. Not immediately seeing the rambunctious blonde, Aelin burst into tears once more, flinching away from Kaneki-san's attempts to comfort her. Aelin only dried her eyes when she saw Hide rush towards her, Kaneki awkwardly following behind. A fragile smile blossomed on her face as she watched Kaneki trail Hide everywhere like a little duckling, and Aelin's eyes lit up as she released silent giggles at the thought. Despite everything, Aelin decided, she just might be okay.