“7:30?! Arghhh—!” The scream that echoed through the Minamoto house could have awakened the dead. Which, ironically, might have been appropriate.

  Akari shot upright in bed, hair sticking in every possible direction like she had wrestled a thundercloud in her sleep. Her arm clock blinked accusingly at her.

  7:30 AM.

  School started at eight.

  She let out another scream—louder this time—then rolled off her bed dramatically, nding in a heap of bnkets and limbs.

  “I’m te! I’m te! I’m aaate!” she wailed, sprinting into the hallway with one sock on and one mysteriously missing.

  Across the hall, Irisa Dragov—soon to be publicly known as Irisa Minamoto—had already been awake for an hour.

  She stood at the entrance, fully dressed in her crisp uniform. The white blouse fit neatly under the dark bzer. The skirt fell perfectly. Her silver hair was smooth and straight, catching the morning light filtering through the window. Her green eyes were calm.

  She looked like she had been ready since dawn. Which, technically, she had.

  Akari thundered down the stairs like a runaway bowling ball.

  “You!” she snapped the moment she saw Irisa standing by the door.

  Irisa blinked once and lightly pointed at herself. “Me?”

  “You…” Akari defted immediately. “Never mind. It’s my fault.”

  Irisa tilted her head slightly. “Yes.”

  Akari gaped. “You’re supposed to deny it!”

  Irisa considered that. “I can deny it if you prefer.”

  “No, that’s fine,” Akari grumbled, shoving her shoes on in a hurry.

  Irisa adjusted her bag on her shoulder. “Shall we go? We are te, correct?”

  Akari paused mid-ce and stared at her.

  “Thank you for waiting for me…”

  “I have no choice,” Irisa replied evenly. “Today is my first day.”

  Akari locked eyes with her. That calm face. That unbothered tone. That unfairly perfect hair. “You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?”

  “I am not,” Irisa said. Which somehow sounded like she absolutely was.

  Aina appeared from the kitchen doorway, smiling fondly. “Have fun, you two.”

  Irisa bowed politely. “Thank you.”

  “We’re going!” Akari shouted, already halfway out the door.

  The moment they stepped outside, Akari bolted.

  “We’re gonna be te if we don’t run!” she yelled over her shoulder.

  Irisa followed easily, her strides long and effortless. She didn’t look like she was rushing. She looked like she was strolling briskly through a park.

  Akari, meanwhile, looked like a dehydrated squirrel fleeing for survival.

  Halfway down the street, Akari puffed dramatically. “Hey—I know—you’re hiding it—but—you can fly, right?”

  “I cannot,” Irisa answered calmly.

  “Why are you so petty?!” Akari gasped between breaths. “Just show it and help me! I’m dying!”

  Irisa gnced sideways at her.

  Akari’s tie was crooked. Her bag was bouncing violently. Her expression was somewhere between panic and melodrama.

  It was… entertaining. A small, unguarded giggle escaped Irisa’s lips.

  Akari froze mid-run.

  “Why are you ughing?!” she accused.

  “Your face,” Irisa replied honestly.

  Before Irisa could react further, Akari suddenly grabbed her arm.

  “Up!” Akari commanded.

  “What?”

  “Fly! Go!” Akari leapt onto Irisa’s back with zero warning.

  Irisa stumbled one step but quickly regained bance, catching Akari securely by instinct.

  “You're insane,” Irisa murmured under her breath. Still, she adjusted her grip and continued running.

  Carrying Akari felt… easy, but she moderated her speed carefully, blending into what would appear humanly possible.

  They reached the bus stop just as the bus doors were closing.

  “Ahhh—wait! Waitttt!” Akari shrieked dramatically, one hand stretched forward like a tragic heroine.

  The bus drove away. They were five seconds too te.

  Akari slowly slid off Irisa’s back and colpsed onto the bench like her soul had left her body.

  “I can see my ancestors…” she wheezed.

  Irisa stood beside her, breathing slightly heavier than usual, but only slightly.

  After a moment, Akari pushed herself upright and bowed her head. “I’m sorry… We’re going to be te.”

  Irisa looked at her quietly, then she reached out and gently patted Akari’s head. “It is fine.”

  Akari blinked up at her in shock. The touch was warm, not cold, not undead. Before she could process that, Irisa leaned closer.

  “What are you doing?!” Akari squeaked.

  Irisa pulled a small mirror from her bag and held it up.

  “Your hair,” she said ftly. “It is chaotic.”

  Akari stared at her reflection. Her hair looked like it had survived a typhoon.

  “Oh...”

  Irisa calmly began smoothing it down with careful fingers.

  Akari’s brain shut down.

  There were people at the bus stop, students, neighbors and they were staring.

  Not at her, but at Irisa.

  Whispers floated through the air.

  “Who is she?”

  “She’s so pretty…”

  “Is she a model?”

  “That silver hair looks unreal…”

  Akari slowly turned red.

  Irisa, completely unaware of the attention, continued tidying Akari’s hair with focused seriousness.

  “You still have bed hair,” Irisa noted.

  “I know!” Akari hissed.

  She tried fixing it herself but accidentally brushed Irisa’s fingers.

  They both froze.

  Green eyes met wide amber ones.

  For half a second, the world felt oddly quiet.

  “I—I can do it myself,” Akari mumbled quickly, face burning.

  Irisa withdrew her hand. “Understood.” She held the mirror steady instead. “I will assist indirectly.”

  Akari swallowed and adjusted her bangs, trying to ignore how steady Irisa’s presence felt beside her.

  Compared to Akari’s frantic energy, Irisa looked like a calm pilr in a storm. Even after running, even after carrying her.

  Not a strand of silver hair was out of pce. It was deeply unfair.

  Akari gnced sideways again and that was when she noticed it fully. That every single person at the bus stop was still staring at Irisa. Boys, girls, even an elderly woman looked impressed.

  Irisa stood tall, one hand holding the mirror, posture straight, expression composed. Like a prince disguised in a school uniform.

  The next bus arrived.

  Akari slid into a seat by the window and immediately buried her face in her hands.

  “This is bad,” she muttered.

  Irisa sat beside her. “What is bad?”

  “You.”

  Irisa blinked. “Me?”

  “You look too cool.”

  “I am wearing the standard uniform.”

  “That’s not the point!”

  Irisa tilted her head slightly. “I do not understand.”

  Akari peeked at her through her fingers.

  Silver hair glowing under the morning light.

  Calm green eyes scanning the passing scenery. Tall frame rexed but composed.

  “You’re going to cause chaos.”

  Irisa considered that seriously. “I will attempt not to.”

  “That’s what you said yesterday!”

  The bus rolled toward their stop.

  Akari straightened up, trying to regain her usual bold composure.

  “Okay,” she decred. “Listen carefully. At school, you are my cousin. You are normal. You are not cool. You are not supernatural being. You are average.”

  “I will be… average,” Irisa repeated thoughtfully.

  “Yes.”

  “Is that difficult?”

  “For you? Yes.”

  Irisa gave her a calm look that said nothing and everything at once.

  The bus doors opened. Students flooded out. The school building loomed ahead.

  Akari inhaled deeply. New day. New chaos. New vampire cousin. She gnced sideways at Irisa. Irisa looked at the school gates with quiet curiosity.

  Akari huffed. “This is going to be a disaster.”