I suddenly woke up. I looked around, seeing exactly what I didn't want to see. My room. That meant it was all a dream, nothing had changed. Sunlight casted golden rays across my floor and face. I could hear birds outside, chirping a lovely spring song. I stood up, and opened my window. I let out a long sigh. Outside was a cherry blossom tree, in full bloom. It was beautiful. On each branch was a bundle of the softest pink blossoms you could ever see. They fell slowly to the ground, though one went didn't. The wind blew it up, up, and up, until it drifted just out of reach. I quickly leaned over the grabbed it. I opened my hand and looked at my palm, careful not to break the fragile petal. I leaned my head down and gave it a kiss. I walked over to my dresser, and put it next to a photo. The photo had a white, whispy frame. It was a picture of a girl, no older then twelve. She had black hair that ended near her shoulders. Her eyes were a piercing blue. Standing behind her was a woman, with long, flowy black hair that reached her waist. She had emerald green eyes, and the kindest smile you would have ever seen. She was my mom, and beside her was me. Looking at that photo filled me with so many emotions, it was hard to explain. It made me happy, but hurt my heart to an unbearable point. It had been nearly three years since she passed away. "I love you, mom." I whispered as I clutched the photo to my chest. I set it back down carefully and looked at it. I smiled.

Today was going to be a good day.

I walked downstairs to the same sight I saw every morning. My dad sitting at the table drinking coffee and reading the paper, and Honda dusting the house. Honda was the person who cleaned all of the houses, though she favored my house over the others. When I asked, "Ms. Honda, why do you always stay at our hourse for hours a day?" She would always reply with, "My dear, you have a lovely house. I want to just, erm, always clean it!" She would say, flustered. But that was a stupid excuse of a lie, I knew why she was here. She and dad were dating, and acted like it was all a big secret. But I knew, he was a terrible liar. I didn't like the idea of having a mom other then my real mom, even if she wasn't with us anymore. Honda was nice, but I don't want her as my mother. End of discussion. So I shrugged and opened the fridge and grabbed some toast. I sat down next to my father. "Hello." he said, not a smile cracking his face. "Hi-?" I replied. Ever since..."it" happened, he's been acting different. He isn't as lively as he used to be, and he barely smiles anymore. I finished breakfast and walked outside. Our yard was quite pretty, it had many plants, and even a pond. Tokyo was a beautiful city, but it always felt like something was missing. Especially after Emperor Ankoku came into power. He banned all music, festivals, and practically everyone's freedom. Each person in his kingdow was required to act a certain way or talk a certain way. But of course, with every new ruler comes a new rebellion. There was a group of people against Emperor Ankoku, called the MATEs. MATE standed for Musicians Against The Emperor. They were a few people who held secret meetings to plot against the Emperor. And they did one thing besides rebelling: they played music. The songs they played were so beautiful, it could nearly control anyone who listened. But I didn't just know about them, nope. I was one of them. I hated the Emperor, with every part of me. He was the most despicable person in the whole kingdom. That night, I waited until I could hear the soft snores of my dad coming from his room, and Honda breathing quietly from her room. I put on my hoodie, and slipped a mask into my backpack. I opened the window silently, and carefully put one leg, then the other, over the ledge. I had managed to sneak out of my room, and now I was on the roof preparing for my daring escape. I tied the rope to the chimney and started edging my way down the side of the house.

It was showtime.

I ran silently through the night, my feet barely making a sound. I entered the forest and walked a little while, before coming to a clearing. There was one tree in particular I was looking for. The secret hideout for the MATEs. I looked around to make sure I wasn't being followed, then I stepped up towards the tree. I lifted my sleeve and touched my arm to the tree, and then a quiet whirring could be heard. A hole in the tree opened up, and I gave one final look behind me before jumping inside.

I landed on the ground with a thud.

There were about 10 people in the room, all with black hoods covering their faces. They quickly drew their weapons and pointed them to me.

"Who are you?" Someone stepped forward. They walked towards me and lowered my hood. Their faces changed when they saw me.

"Oh." 

They all lowered their weapons and took their hoods down.

"It's only Mai." Rikuto

So we got to work.