Prologue

1990, at the Feng residence…

“Xiu, time to get up for school!” Xiu’s mother called from downstairs; she was frying some eggs in the kitchen for her daughter’s school lunch. Meanwhile, Xiu was on her bed upstairs, lazily hanging one leg off of it and breathing deeply. She opened her sapphire blue eyes and got herself out of bed. “Ugh, waking up early again! I can’t wait for the weekend!” Xiu moaned; she ran her fingers through her jet-black hair. She then went over to her vanity in the corner of her room and picked up her hairbrush; she ran it through her hair a few times, careful to untangle the knots she got from sleeping in it.

She heard a soft meow from the door, whining for attention. “Honey! You are up! Did Mom feed you?” Xiu asked, although she knew perfectly well the brown and white tabby cat couldn’t answer her back. The cat just cocked her head and stared at Xiu with her bright green eyes, as if she had no idea what the girl was talking about.

Xiu sighed. "It would be cool if you could talk! Like the cats in those TV programs!” She said the cat just turned around and went in the hallway, not caring about Xiu’s ranting whatsoever. “Hey! You could at least try to listen!” Xiu whined.

“Xiu, stop annoying the cat and get ready for school,” Xiu’s mom said from downstairs. Xiu could still hear oil sizzling on the pan; she sighed and picked up two pink hair clips. She got them from a night market she went to with her friends; she clipped them in her jet-black hair and ran her hands through it one last time.

She wasn’t even confused about what to wear; she had her favorite outfit ready on her bed. For her shirt, she had a white T-shirt with two words in big bubble letters: Chuudream. Chuudream was a cartoon she loved; it was about these girls who had magic powers, pretty similar to most typical magical girl shows. She wore some long baggy jeans that were a few sizes too big, but they fit her comfortably. She cinched them on with a leather belt and stood in front of the mirror. Proud of her fit for the day. She propped her leg up and held it with her right hand like models did sometimes and smiled.

She then went downstairs to the kitchen, following after her cat Honey. She kneeled down on the steps and patted her on the head a few times. Honey meowed in satisfaction, and Xiu giggled a bit at her cat’s satisfied reaction. "Are you finally done? I swear you took forever,” Xiu’s little brother, Haoyu, said. He was sitting on the counter as he and Xiu’s mother cooked, swinging his legs off of it lazily.

“Shut up, Haoyu!” Xiu said, narrowing her eyebrows at him. “Kids be nice! Also, breakfast is ready!” Their mom said, turning off the stove, and then used a spatula to scoop the eggs onto some ceramic plates. “Take your plates to the table, please,” she continued as she untied her kitchen apron and hung it on a nearby shelf.

Haoyu and Xiu picked up their plates gently from the counter and took them to the table. They sat down, and Xiu stared at the eggs on her plate with a hungry look in her eyes. “Let’s eat!” Xiu said enthusiastically, stabbing the eggs with a fork and shoving a forkful of them into her mouth. “I don’t understand why you like eggs so much; they taste like paper,” Haoyu said, sticking his tongue out. “Be grateful you even have food,” their mother said, crossing her arms at Haoyu. Xiu stifled a laugh and continued eating her eggs. “I packed your bag, so you can just take it and head out to school. I will take Haoyu to his elementary school,” Xiu’s mother said, zipping up Xiu’s bag near the entrance. Xiu quickly gobbled down the rest of her eggs and stood up from her chair.

She walked down the narrow hallway and over to the entrance; she slung her backpack over her shoulder and gave one last pet to Honey before leaving. “Bye, Mom! Bye Haoyu!” Xiu said excitedly.

She then swung open the oak door to her house and ran out into the light of day.

7:40 AM, Emei schoolyard…

Xiu stood in the middle of the schoolyard, her black backpack slung over her shoulder as she gripped the handle tightly; her long hair blew in the wind, and she stared at her feet as everyone met their friend groups and talked with them in the morning.

“Hey Xiu!” A girl said she was the complete opposite of Xiu; despite Xiu’s boundless enthusiasm, it wasn’t as much as Nami Takada’s, the new student that came from Japan. Everyone got along with her, including Xiu, who was her best friend. Nami had orange hair in a short bob cut; she wore a pink button-up cardigan over a white t-shirt, and she wore a pink skirt and long tights underneath.

Nami skipped towards Xiu eagerly, smiling at her best friend. “Hello,” another girl said, coming near the two; she had black hair in two ponytails, and she wore red glasses. Unlike the two other girls who wore casual clothes, she wore a dignified school uniform; this was Mei Weng, one of the most studious students at Emei Middle School.

“Hey, you two want to come to the dumpling restaurant near my house? I have an idea for a game we can play,” Nami suggested. “Sure, why not?” Mei asked. "I'm down,” Xiu agreed, nodding her head up and down.

Then the bell rang, and it was time to go in the school. “Stop dawdling around, girls; it’s time to get to your classes,” the principal of the school said, ushering the girls to the entrance.

Both Nami and Mei were in the gifted class, while Xiu was in the regular class, so Xiu separated from the girls to reach her regular classroom, which was…full of idiots.

“Hey Zee—you!!!" A boy teased, exaggerating Xiu’s name as she walked in the class; he threw a piece of crumpled-up paper at her face. Xiu turned away in shock and sighed.

“Ugh, Hyeon, do you really think I need this right now?” Xiu asked, throwing the crumpled-up paper ball on the floor in anger. “Well, I need it; the look on your face was priceless!” Hyeon said his stupid friends were laughing and clapping, as if Xiu getting hit by a paper ball were some huge accomplishment. Hyeon grinned at Xiu, putting his arms on the back of his chair and sitting down on it, leaning it over just enough so it was slightly off the floor but it didn’t fall over.

Xiu looked at the clock ticking on the wall, wondering how much longer she’d have to endure this stupid class before she could meet Nami and Mei at the dumpling place; she really did wonder what that game Nami suggested was.

The class was hot; unlike other schools near it, Emei wasn’t prestigious, just a local school that was free for all, so kids who weren’t rich like Xiu and Nami could easily join, but Mei is a different story. She is rich, so she could have gone to a higher-class school, but it is said that she actually got expelled for a cheating scandal at her private school. Xiu didn’t agree with that though; imagining Mei being a cheater was ridiculous. Mei was always a strict rule follower.

Anyway, since the school was low-funded, it did not have much cooling system, and in September, that was bound to be scorching hot. “Are you boys gonna keep tormenting Xiu? Or will we actually start the math class?” The class teacher asked, putting her hands in the air and sighing; she just walked into the class, and by the look on her face, she looked like she wanted to leave already.

“Sorry, Teach!" Hyeon said, leaning further back in his chair, putting his arms behind his head to look cool, just as his friends (minions, as Xiu thought) were about to praise him as always, his chair slipped out of control, and he fell back on the floor. Xiu slapped her forehead, and the teacher laughed a bit, despite trying to control herself.

“I am fine,” Hyeon said, giving the two of them a thumbs up while he lay on the floor, breathless.

The teacher then went to the front of the class, and it started. It was a boring math class, but Xiu couldn’t focus because she was wondering what that game Nami wanted to show them was. Xiu tapped her pencil on the desk, bored out of her mind; the day seemed to drag on forever, but finally it ended.

Nami, Mei, and Xiu were walking together outside the school, the three most popular girls all together. People whispered outside as they saw them walk past. Mei was popular for acing her tests and being in the gifted program; Nami was popular for her bubbly personality, and Xiu was popular for being friends with the two.

All three of them ignored the whispers and glances because they were looking forward to some dumplings and a fun game planned! Fall was starting; leaves were falling off trees and turning shades of orange, red, and yellow. Nami picked one off the ground and glanced at it closely. “Fall is truly starting,” Nami said, smiling. “Yeah, although it’s still very warm outside,” Xiu said, still thinking about that stifling hot math class spent with Hyeon and company. “I agree, it is quite hot today,” Mei said, nodding along to Xiu’s statement.

The girls kept walking along the cobblestone road; they observed squirrels passing by, glimmering streams, and birds floating above, squawking loudly. Nami was eager about everything, skipping past quickly, as the other two girls trailed behind her.

Finally, they saw the Chinese sign saying “Dumpling heaven!” And the entrance to the shop. The shop was small, not that popular; not many people were there except a young couple who seemed like they were going on a romantic date. A chef stood behind the counter, chopping vegetables and filling dumplings with them; the smell of steamed dumplings filled the air, and the girls all walked inside. Chinese music played over the radio, and warm lighting filled the atmosphere.

“Oh! Teenagers! I have never seen you three before; what school do you come from?” The chef asked, "The name written on her chef outfit was Yu."

“We come from Emei,” Nami said casually, putting her arm on the counter and glancing at Yu. “Oh, THAT school…” Yu said. It was safe to say Emei didn’t have the best reputation compared to other schools in the area.

“My name is Nami Takada; these are my friends Mei Weng and Xiu Feng,” Nami said. Xiu and Mei were just nodding along to her words. “Lovely! What dumplings would you like?” Yu asked, cutting to the chase. “Two plates of chicken dumplings and one plate of vegetable dumplings for Xiu,” Nami said. She then pulled out her wallet from a small purse she had.

“We can pay for our own!” Mei protested. “No, I insist; I am treating you two after all,” Nami said, smiling at Mei and Xiu. She then handed the sheets of yuan to Yu.

“Let’s find a place to sit shall we?” Mei asked. Xiu nodded, and the girls found a nice spot in the corner of the restaurant. “So, I need to show you both my game; it’s amazing, just wait,” Nami said eagerly. She took her backpack off her shoulder and started unzipping it. Mei and Xiu were looking at the backpack with anticipation, then Nami proudly said, “Ta-da!” And pulled out something from her bag. Mei and Xiu looked at it quickly but were shocked when they figured out what it was.

“Are those…fireworks?” Xiu asked, confused, and tapped her chin, "Why would Nami bring fireworks to a restaurant?" "Yeah, Nami…what’s this game?” Mei asked, just as confused. “Well, I decided we should set off the fireworks here; that would be fun, right?” Nami said, winking at the other two girls. “What do you mean that’s fun? That’s a bad idea! It might get us hurt!” Xiu whisper-shouted. "Please, Xiu, I know how to use these!” Nami said. “Ugh, fine, but I am not a part of this,” Mei said, putting her hands up. “Mei, if you dare quit, I will bring back that cheating scandal and make sure it follows you until HIGH SCHOOL!” Nami said, crossing her arms impatiently. “Hmph…fine, do it, but don’t blame me if we get in trouble,” Mei said, shrugging.

“Finally! Let’s do this!” Nami said it; she pulled out a matchbox and started to light the fuse. She rubbed a match on the fuse area; the two other girls couldn’t look. They were secretly wishing she failed it so they wouldn’t get in trouble.

It was perfectly silent for a few seconds until the girls saw a blaze form. Nami smirked, eager for her plan to work. “What?” "Yu asked," noticing the blaze from the counter; she looked confused and surprised. The blaze was growing bigger and bigger; it was a bright shade of orange now. It was going normally until— "Ouch!" Mei shouted. The blaze caught onto her uniform sleeve; it was slowly climbing up.

Nami gasped and held her mouth in shock; the smoke was overwhelming now. Xiu was struggling to breathe. Xiu kept coughing; she tried to stand up, but when she brought herself to her legs, she fell on the floor. Yu ran out of the building as fast as possible, not caring less about the restaurant. Xiu tried to get up, but the smoke and fire were suffocating her. Xiu felt her eyes close, and then…it was all dark.

“XIU!!!!!!! XIU!!!!!!!” Nami screamed; she had dragged Xiu out of the restaurant after the fire was blown out. Xiu’s clothes were burned, her Chuudream shirt was covered in ashes, her hair was tangled and reeked of smoke, and she was lifeless. Nami and Mei could barely hear her breath. “She is dead; she has no chance of survival, all of this due to that 'game,'" Mei said regretfully, and this time Nami didn’t try to fight back.