I've been wanting to write an oc/si for a very long time. But I've always had the 'perfectionist' drill to do it and always wanted it to be enjoyable to readers. That's my biggest flaw. I think of what other people will think and want, not what I want to think and want. Because of that I never really published anything due to my own self-doubt.

So for once, I'm going with what I want, which makes me want to actually write. There will probably be spelling mistakes, errors, maybe even a few plot holes. But this is how I want to write, and not screw myself over by over thinking about expectations.

I don't expect any reviews or faves or even alerts. I don't expect any of that-and I mean it. I'm doing this for my own enjoyment and I do intend to finish it. Not that feedback isn't welcome, I just want to make it clear I'm not going to beg anyone to review me. I just hope that maybe someone will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

But anyway, enjoy!

)()()(

I have always been attached.

Some could even say it was unhealthy-perhaps even sickening with the way I was always glued to her hip. But I didn't care, as long as I was near her.

She was my idol.

There was nothing negative I could say about her. Every time I looked at her, she practically glowed with perfection.

She is the most beautiful and talented person I've ever met and I am so happy to call her my sister. There was nothing I wouldn't do for her.

However, that was a very long time ago.

She did something that should have left me traumatized if I was a lesser person. But I guess because I was more of an accepting person...it fit a lot better with the circumstances my sister stuck us in. That was only the starting point before she screwed me over.

But, I'll get to that later.

For now, why don't we start from the beginning?

So get comfy, this is going to be a long story.

)()()(

It started off as any other normal day.

I managed to slave and grind my way through school, drilling my way through book work, one piece after another. The only downfall was managing to cut my hand open with a pair of scissors, which resulted in a trip to the nurses office to have it cleaned and bandaged up.

That was followed up by a firm scolding about 'how I should pay more attention to what I'm doing', though, in all honesty, I was concentrating pretty hard, perhaps a little too hard that I had slipped up when holding the evil piece of metal.

Now all I was left with was a throbbing hand, which left me in a depressed mood because I couldn't continue my art piece. Art was literally the only fun thing about school, everything else was just gruelling.

I huffed, blowing a stray strand of hair out of my face and leaned heavily onto my undamaged hand, slumping forward onto my desk while my knees irritably bounced up and down.

lazily, I listened in to the other students in my class, picking up random snippets of conversations.

"...It...awesome!"

"...Birthday...sure...love to."

"I'll be...age...Tuesday..."

"...eight already...woah...cool..."

I huffed again, wishing there was something more interesting to listen to. Or at least a piece of gossip. It was at times like these that I wished I was more sociable, instead of shying away from any form of communication. It wasn't that I was anti-social, it was the fact that I didn't know how to approach other people-especially my age.

Maybe when I'm older I'll be more confident, like Lara, my sister.

I really hope I do.

A gentle tap on my shoulder brought me back from my sulking and I twitched in fright, swivelling to see what had touched me. I was met by the goofy face of one of my classmates.

His hands were shoved deep in his pockets and he had a large grin slapped across his face, revealing a single missing tooth on the right side of his mouth. His brown hair was messy and tousled and his cheeks were dusted a light pink.

"Hey there, Emi," he spoke nervously. I bit my tongue, no one calls me by my nickname besides Lara and I didn't exactly give him permission to use it. He cleared his throat and continued. "I was wondering if you wanted to come to my birthday party next Tuesday..." his hand retracted from his pocket and carefully held out the content in front of me. "I'd really like it if you'd come..."

I eyed the pink envelope suspiciously. No one ever invited to me to their birthday parties, not that I was bothered by it, I liked it that way. But somehow, I felt slightly happy that he offered.

Gingerly, I reached up and plucked it from his hands and ran my fingers over the surface of the envelope.

"I'll..." I swallowed, forcing myself to speak up "Maybe...I'll ask my mother." I offered him a small smile.

His cheeks grew darker and his grin widened. "Great!" he beamed "'Member, I gonna be eight if you didn't already know. I'll see you around, Emi!"

With that said he bolted off to join his other friends. I cocked my head in his direction, watching as he peeked back at me and offered a small wave.

It was so weird.

No one has ever really paid particular attention to me in class.

I shrugged my shoulders, pushing the thought out of my head. I had no reason to dwell on it.

)()()(

Before I left to meet my sister at the front gates of the school, I was pulled up by the teacher with a concerned expression. I blinked at her, noticing the large black bags under her eyes for the first time that day. It was strange seeing her this way, usually she was quite cheery and her skin always looked vibrant-I should have noticed before, but I was too focused on the fact I had cut my hand of a pair of stupid scissors.

I watched as she cleared her throat before speaking.

"Emily, I know you had your turn three weeks ago but I was wondering," she swallowed "I was wondering if you could take the guinea pigs this weekend. I would really appreciate it if you could."

"Uhm...what about the other students? Isn't it Jessica's turn this week?" I cocked an eyebrow at her ashen complexion, she seemed to grow paler by the second. Is that sweat I see?

She offered me a nervous chuckle as she knelt down to my level. I really hated being short, but what can I do? I'm only seven.

"Well, you see-Jessica, she..." she licked her lips "Jessica, as it turns out, is allergic-" conveniently "-and none of your other classmates are willing to look after them, which left my only option with you. I know it's a lot of trouble, but I can't take the guinea pigs this weekend, I have a lot going on. Please, Emily, it would mean a lot to me and the whole class." I could practically see her eyes begging me. I resisted rolling my eyes.

After a moment, I slowly bobbed my head, agreeing.

The automatic response of my teacher was a large sigh of relief. I personally think she's lazy and can't be bothered with the small rodents. But I wonder what's got her head in a spin, she's usually so composed, it was almost unnerving. A teacher should never show weakness, because children will take advantage of it. I guess I got some dirt on her, but I doubt I'd be sharing that with anyone any time soon.

A large smile blossomed across her face. It almost hurt to look. How can a person smile that largely?

"Thank you so much Emily!" I received a pat on the head, which I wanted to shy away from. I didn't particularly like physical touches. "Now run along and collect the cage and supplies, I'll also make sure to put a good note in for positive behaviour," she winked at me and I scowled "You'll definitely be in the running for head of your year."

I continued to scowl, though there was a small spark of appreciation.

Maybe owning the title of head of my year, I could impress Lara.

Because what are good grades when I can easily have the position of top dog in my class?

)()()(

"What took you so long, Emi?" Lara called over to me as I exited the school building, cage in hand while carefully manoeuvring my way around the door, making sure not to startle or jostle the class guinea pigs. I really resented the fact that they were skittish, I just wished the would stop acting like children were monsters. Well, they actually are, but still.

But then again, I am a kid too. But that's not the point.

I glanced up at my sister, forcing myself not to grimace. She wasn't in her usual school uniform and she looked a little bit dishevelled, like she had ran all the way here.

She skipped school again.

Lara had been skipping a lot lately, though I'm not entirely sure why. She wouldn't tell me. I would really like to know where she had been going though.

I shook my head, pushing the thoughts out of my head.

"Sorry, I kinda got stuck with animal daycare," I made my way over to the gate where Lara was leaning against a wall, I stopped when I was a few feet away. "Then I had to get my bandage replaced and my cut cleaned." I lifted a hand to show her my injury.

Lara raised a delicate eyebrow but said nothing.

"Alright." she coughed before shaking her head and pushing herself off the wall "I'm going to take the long way home, you don't mind, right?"

I scrunched my brows together. Usually Lara was in a rush to get home to catch up on anything she'd missed (or more importantly, her anime and manga) before locking herself up in her room to read for hours on end. Truth be told, she never actually told me what she was reading, no matter how much I nagged her.

I straightened up. "But, isn't the path through the forest dangerous? I heard my classmates whispering about wolves being in there and bears. We could get hurt." I could feel myself pouting. "I also read in a book that we can get psoriasis from being hit by branches or even falling and scraping our knees. There's also a lot of other nasties and germs in the forest. Have you ever felt the protective liquid that coats a pine tree? It stinks and trying to wash it off is horrible, it sticks everywhere."

Lara only laughed, scratching her cheek awkwardly in the process. "Are you sure you're only seven years old?"

I blinked at her.

She blinked back before letting out a heavy sigh. "You're way too mature, y'know that?"

I smiled, taking it as a compliment. "Thank you!"

Lara rolled her eyes, waving it off and carefully placed my injured hand in hers to begin our walk home.

"And for the record, wolves haven't been native here for a very, very long time and that goes for bears too. The only bear you'll find around here is in a zoo, and those bears aren't even native."

I pouted at her response.

)()()(

I hadn't noticed it before, but I should have been paying more attention to things around me.

Maybe I was just having an off day. Everyone has them.

As soon as we stepped foot on to the small cobblestone pathway that led into the forest, I noticed the air seemed to grow thicker. I instinctively gripped tighter onto Lara's hand all the while I ignored the growing throbbing in my hand.

The guinea pigs began to chirp quietly, digging their way under a pile of hay inside their cage. I frowned, inching closer to my sister. If anything happened, she could protect me.

It wasn't just the air that seemed to grow thick, I could visibly see mist beginning to set. It was eerily like the beginning of a bad horror movie where you could practically see where the smoke machines were. The mist came in from both sides, as if it were a solid wall of white about to crush the both of us.

"Lara," I whispered, feeling the cold bite of the mist circling around my ankles. "What's going on?"

I could rely on my sister. I knew I could. She had the answers for everything. Her grip on my hand tightened and I flinched at the shot of pain the ran up my arm.

I received a clipped response. "It's fine."

I hesitantly nodded, but I didn't feel reassured. But if she said it was fine, then it will be fine. Everything will be okay. My sister wouldn't lie to me.

Lara dragged me along at a quick pace, my smaller form had to jog to keep up. This only proved to aggravate the guinea pigs, their chirps loudened and became more fast paced. They didn't like what was going on any more than I did. Something felt off.

I glanced up at my sister. Her lips were pursed and her brow was narrowed, her blue eyes growing colder. It confused me. I had never seen her look so serious before. I swallowed hard, turning back to the barely visible path in front of us-does mist even move that fast? It was already increasingly growing thicker. It was unsettling.

I felt my heart speed up while I was forcing myself to calm down.

My breaths slowly began to become more haggard and I was soon panting for air. A beads of sweat began to form on my brow. There was something wrong, but I couldn't tell what.

"Lara..." I heaved out "...Slow...down!"

She ignored me, continuing to drag me forward. I stumbled a bit and my eyes flew to the ground, of which I could barely make out, however, I did make out a splash of red. Was that paint? I shook my head, deciding to ignore it.

Her speed continued to intensify and my chest tightened with my jog turning into a run. I felt Lara's hand begin to shake. Was she scared? No, that was impossible, she's not scared of anything. Maybe it was me that was shaking, I was never really good at doing anything physical-my weakness, you could say. I'm not athletic in the slightest, only book smart.

The strangest thing happened next.

It was sudden, so sudden that if I hadn't been concentrating, I may have missed it within the blink of an eye.

There was a rush of cold air, brushing against my heated body. I shivered involuntarily, my eyes staying trained on the thick mist in front of me. I couldn't even see the trees any more and it surprised me that I hadn't tripped and broken something.

I panted, but before I could complain any further about my tiring limbs, there was a sudden flash. It was almost like lightening, yet there was no sound. It was blinding for a moment and I had to squint to see through the blinding light. Where had it even come from, anyway?

My gaze flashed up to Lara, who was staring off into the distance as if in some daze. There was a small smile on her lips.

What?

I tried to call out, but I was stopped when a deep rumble had caught me off guard. The earth beneath my feet shook and my eyes widened.

An earthquake?

It didn't stop Lara, she was now running at full speed with me in tow. Her grip on my hand had caused it to go numb. She wasn't even blinking, her smile only widened and for the first time, she was beginning to scare me.

I choked out, my eyes watering and my vision blurred slightly. I didn't like what was happening.

But it was over before I could properly register and understand what was going on. Within one moment, the mist was there and the ground was shaking, the next moment the mist faded into the air and the ground grew still. My whole body was shaking at this point.

I completely terrified.

Things like this doesn't happen. Not without reason.

I was quickly pulled from my fright when I heard Lara laughing. I gaped at her.

How can she be laughing at a time like this?

She also hadn't let go of my hand.

"I can't believe it worked!" I heard her puff in between her laughter "I can't believe it actually worked! I'm actually here!" she squealed loudly.

what worked?

"Lara?"

My voice caused her to freeze, causing her laughing to cease. Slowly, almost robotically, she turned her head toward me-shock coated her features and her jaw hung slack as if I had grown another head. I frowned. Was there something in my hair? Lara seemed to visibly pale, her eyes widened.

"Emily?"

It was my turn to look shocked. She hadn't called me by my whole name in a long time.

"How are you alive?" her voice shook and I felt her let go of my wrist, automatically the blood rushed back and the dull throb from earlier returned, pins and needles were already forming. She took a few steps back, looking me up and down like I was some mythical creature.

"What?" my eyes narrowed "Why wouldn't I be alive?"

"You were supposed to... no, something must have gone wrong. I did everything correctly, but why..." Lara began to ramble, grumbling to herself with a serious expression.

Confused, I straightened up to see where we were, or more specifically, how far we were from the main road that would lead us home. Unfortunately, all that I was met with was the same cobblestone path that was lined with thick trees that seemed to tower over us, streams of sunlight breaking through the canopy above.

I sniffed and wrinkled my nose. I really hated the woodsy smell that coated the forest, it was thick and made my nose itch. Did it smell this bad this before? Because if so, I never noticed. Pine trees are still the worst smelling. Ick.

How long would it take to get out of here anyway? It was normally a ten minute walk through the forest, on top of an additional fifteen minutes to make it through the main roads and a few streets-since we were going the long way. Though, it would have been a simple ten minute walk it we took the short cut.

Why did I agree to go the long way again?

"The guinea pigs!"

Lara's screech caused me to flinch and my head snapped in her direction. She was pointing at the cage that I still had a hold of.

Guinea pigs?

"What-?"

I glanced down, only to notice the sleeping forms of the two medium sized rodents huddled together. For a moment, I had totally forgotten about them. When had they stop yapping? I scrunched my brow and set the cage down carefully onto the ground and kneeled in front of the cage, gingerly open the metal hook to the entrance.

I placed my hand inside, lifting out the small brown coloured animal to inspect it. It didn't even wake or stir from my touch.

Strange.

Especially for a guinea pig, they're very flighty and usually poop or pee every few minutes. My gaze flickered to the cage, there was hardly any faeces lying around and the sawdust didn't look very damp. Even stranger...

I poked the belly of rodent and expected a response, but I was met with nothing. My frown deepened.

"It's not responding." I spoke, placing my hand on the upper area of the stomach. I didn't feel anything, there was no elevation from the chest. I couldn't even feel a heartbeat. My throat constricted. "It's not..." I managed to choke out.

I'm going to be in so much shit.

Lara decided it was her turn to inspect the other guinea pig. She knelt down slowly, carefully picking up the matching coloured rodent and pressed it to her ear. I waited, holding my breath. It's not like they could have magically died-wait.

They could have gone into shock when passing through the abnormal part of the forest. The small creatures were scared easily, it would make sense. But that wasn't what bothered me the most, it was why the forest thought it would be fun to have an earthquake and shroud us in mist.

"This one isn't responding ether..." muttered Lara, placing the guinea pig back in the cage.

I copied her and placed the animal in my hands next to the other before closing the hatch to the cage. I quickly stood up and looked toward my sister, who was frozen on the ground, staring intently at the cage housing the two unresponsive animals.

I didn't want to believe they were dead.

I coughed. "Maybe mother will be able to do something." I insisted "If we hurry now, we can catch her before work and-"

Lara cut me off.

"-No." she turned her head to meet my gaze "We can't got to her. Never. It's impossible."

I rolled my eyes. "I don't think she will be mad, if we just explain to her what happened then maybe-"

"-You don't get it!" she snapped, standing sharply and grew closer to me. I looked up at her in confusion. "We can't ever see her again, it's impossible!"

"I don't understand what you mean."

Lara huffed in annoyance and placed her hands on her hips. "We're nowhere close to home and I can't undo the spell-"

"Spell?"

She waved her hand, ignoring my comment. "We're not even in our home world any more." she added, scratching the back of her head "You weren't even supposed to end up here with me. I thought for sure I did everything right. Dad's journal had specific details..."

My eyes widened, snapping to attention. "You found dad's journal? Where did you find it? I didn't even know he had a journal..."

"It was in a locked box in the attic, I managed to pick the lock and found it. He wrote down how to get to a specific place but I changed something so I could come here. It's been my dream and I finally did but you were supposed to..." she bit her lip, stopping herself from continuing.

I shook my head and took a step back, taking deep and steady breaths, clenching and unclenching my suddenly clammy hands. "You also mentioned home world, I don't understand what you mean. It's not like we-you-can jump planets with the click of your fingers. It's impossible. Is this some kind of occult stuff? Because it's starting to freak me out." I gulped, noticing her demeanour changing into amusement.

She laughed. She actually laughed.

"No, silly," she giggled. I almost cringed. "But now I'm in my dream world! Isn't that great?"

She's losing it.

"All I see is a forest, I don't see how this is a different world." I deadpanned. "Maybe we should get you to a hospital."

Lara continued laughing, completely ignoring me. Her blue eyes were glowing and twinkling with excitement, the likes of which I had never seen before. Sure, I had seen her happy but this was completely unadulterated. She was practically vibrating on the spot.

"I'm going to be a ninja! I can't wait! Now all I have to do is make my way toward Konoha, but which way would it be..."

I face palmed. That stupid anime must have knocked a few screws loose. Did she bump her head on the way through the mist? What was the anime called anyway? I knew she was obsessed, but to be obsessed to the point of thinking she was in a fictional world? She really needed help, and fast.

I decided to humour her.

"Lara," I spoke seriously, causing to stop her mid-cheer. she turned to me with a raised brow. "If we are actually were you say we are. How do you expect to get into Konoha? From what you told me, the village is very tight knit, I doubt they would let any outsiders in."

She snorted. "As if they could refuse me," I frowned at her obnoxious tone "Besides, once they see how much potential I have, they'll have no choice."

Was she hearing herself properly? It doesn't go that way.

"But you have to be prepared for the possibility that you will be seen as a threat. They don't just welcome random children in without proper protocols."

She waved it off. "Stop being so serious, once we get to Konoha I'll deal with it. Trust me on it. In the meantime I'll have to think up some back story for you, since I hadn't planned on you coming along..."

I rolled my eyes. Once we get to the main road, maybe then she will see reason. But for now, I'll indulge her.

What's the worst that could happen?

)()()(

You may think it's a sweet start and that everything is going to go 'swimmingly' and perhaps even a tad Mary-Sue-ish, However, it's anything but. Just saying!