It has been a month since I moved to Japan and I still haven't been accepted. I sighed as I sat in my new room I was renting from Kiku, so far the school week started rough. No one wanted to become a friend with a 'stupid American', I had more homework than I was used to and I struggled to keep up. I soon got into the rhythm of it and the one person I did meet was too busy talking to her swim club to talk to me, I did get her number and was soon harassed by her or someone had her phone. I checked my phone Alfred gave me before I left, no new messages or new calls. I fell back onto my bed once more staring at the white ceiling thinking, 'why don't people like me?'

I sat up when my phone rang and a picture of Gou popped up, I smiled a little and picked up, "Hello?" I heard her fumble with her phone and then the splash of water and she answered and said, "Oh Liberty sorry for not talking to you today but I'm manager of the swim club and well I had to talk to them about their next met!" I sighed through my nose and said, "It's okay G..." I could see her worried face from her tone and she asked, "Are you okay? Some of the guys heard rumors about you being a bad person..." I groaned and said, "There are two Ana's in the school and they always mistake me for the other..." I heard her sigh and she said, "Meet me at the pool out back...I heard you swim so I wanna see...if that's okay..." I smiled and my heart warmed and I said, "Sure! I'll be over there soon! Bye!" I gathered my backpack for school, my sketchbook, other drawings (orca), and slipped my phone into my back pocket sliding my black jacket on along with my beanie.

I looked like a guy if you didn't pay attention and I liked it that way, once I arrived in Japan I cut off some of my hair so I could swim and not have to mess with it that much. My hair also changed colors because I was mature and it turned its red color instead of blonde, I smiled at the color and caught the train to Iwatobi high school. I walked around back near the bleachers to watch Gou do her thing along with the guys practice, I smiled a little at them bickering again. The guy with bright red hair spotted me with his ruby red eyes and opened his mouth to reveal his shark-like teeth, he asked, "Hey Kou! Who's the new guy?" I looked at him but took another step back into the shadows but Gou noticed me right away and made her way to him as he motioned to me, she smiled and clapped her hands together and she said, "Guys I brought one of my friends who might be interested in joining the swim club...questions guys. Would you allow any genders to join?" Rei looked at her and said, "Yeah...we should be open to both." I sighed through my nose as she walked to me and asked, "What you waiting for?" I looked at her and said quietly, "They won't hurt me right?" She looked at me shocked and said quickly, "They wouldn't hurt a fly!" I giggled a little and she asked, "You wanna go change while I tell the guys?" I nodded my head and left the locker room where I changed and slipped on my special contact goggles so I could see. I had my checkered jacket still on my shoulders and my towel in my arms.

I took a breath and asked, "G?" She looked up at me giving me a smile before walking to me and I asked cocking my head slightly, "Are you gonna swim? Against me?" She looked at the guys before smiling at me and said, "Sure! Wait here...I'll be back in a bit." Walking into the locker room she left my line of sight leaving me with the guys, I walked over to the bleachers and opened my bag and got out my sketchbook starting to finish the final touches of a picture of Gou.

I smiled at it and put it to the side and with one movement I stood and looked at the guys and asked, "Who wants to race?" They looked at each other and blonde short guy looked at me and said, "I'll race you!" I smiled at him...he reminded me of Feli but with Gilbert's strange voice, nodding I stood there with him on the blocks and he said, "You can pick which style." I thought about it and then smiled at him and said with a slight glint in my eyes, "Backstroke...100 meters if you don't mind..." He nodded and said, "Uhh sure! Hey, Haru you can tell us when to start!" I saw the guy with dark bluish black hair with striking ocean blue eyes look at us and he nodded and as we got ready I spotted some other people come through the door. I didn't care about that...all I cared about was making friends and stuff, we were off with a simple "Go!" The blonde guy and I shot back off the blocks with my arch perfect as I hit the water, I became one with the water just like I was one with the ice back in England. I pushed myself as I saw the blonde struggle but keep up with me but as we hit the wall and turn back I let myself go as I pushed hard and with all my might I surged through the water like a blade cutting the water and I was half a body in front of the blonde and I hit the wall and waited for the guy.

Once he got there he was looking at me with big eyes and I leaned on the lane dividers and said, "Not bad duckling...but don't over complicate things in your head..." He gave me a confused look and asked, "What? How was I over complicating things...I was just swimming..." I looked at him and said, "I know...that's where you went wrong." I held my breath as I swam underwater and surfaced again this time in his lane looking into his magenta eyes and said, "You can't just swim..." I took his hand and gently placed it on his heart and said, "Swim with your heart...always and you can never be beaten...trust me duckling." He looked at me with those big eyes of his and I said, "You've got a spirit I can feel a mile away...put it in each stroke...every kick...every turn...and you become unstoppable. What's your name duckling? I have a feeling we're going to be great friends..." He smiled at me and said, "My name's Nagisa Hazuki...why do you call me duckling?" I giggled at him and said, "You remind me of one...gentle yet determined...more like a penguin by the way you swim." He smiled at me as we lifted ourselves out of the pool sitting on the blocks, glancing at his friends I knew they instantly respected me as I looked at duckling once more glancing at me he asked, "What's your name? Are you new?" I sighed and let my shoulders tense as I placed my towel into my lap, "Yeah" I replied as I stumbled on my words a bit, "My name is Liberty Kinder...call me Ana, I'm originally from America but my parents or my guardians live in France and England." I looked at him and said, "So yeah I'm new here...who are your friends here?" He looked at his friends and smiled getting up and holding out a hand saying, "Come on I'll introduce you to them...they're strange sometimes but we're friends...and competitors." I looked at his hand and then smiled taking it was he helped me stand...I laughed a little at our height difference and said, "Duckling...can you get any cuter?" He blushed a little and said, "I'm not sure...but I can try!"

He then tried to waddle like a penguin to the guys making me let out a laugh for the first time in weeks, I laughed because of him and his personality...I felt almost at home. I heard Gou gasp because she thought I was always clammed up, I turned and looked at her smiling brightly and said, "Come here Gou..." She came by my side and I gave her one of my famous hugs and she gasped again with a huge smile on her face as I said, "I think I'm going to like it here in Japan after all..." She squealed and hugged me back and then ran circles around me in talking rapidly in Japanese making me look at her confused with a hint of fright, she then stopped and looked at me and I said, "G if you asked me a question I don't really understand Japanese..." She gasped and began apologizing and I laughed again holding her hands by her wrists and said, "Chill G...it's okay! What were you asking me?" She looked at the team and then me and asked, "Will you join the swim club?" I looked at her and gave her a toothy smile and said, "Can I is the proper question." She nodded only pausing to look at the guys who were now sitting on the ground in only their trucks and towels, one by one the guys nodded and then she turned back to me with expectant eyes and she said the words that finally made me accept, "We'll be your family...please..." I looked at her and smiled once more and said, "Do you even have to ask G?" She squealed and hugged me and tried to lift me but her height proved to be a disadvantage at a height of 5'3". I giggled once more at her persistence and lifted her up instead spinning her around. When I set her down she told me to get dressed if I wished and I nodded sheepishly and made my way back to the plain locker room with grey lockers and got dressed in my spare outfit after taking a brief shower washing the chlorine from my hair. After changing I walked back out only to see them bickering with my backpack on the ground with everything scattered, I saw a glimpse at my sketchbook near the water and I ran and got it just before it was going to land in the water.

The guys stopped bickering once they saw me clutching my sketchbook to my chest and they helped me gather my things, I put them back into my backpack and the purplish blue haired guy with glasses looked at me and said, "I'm sorry for causing this mess...I was utterly fascinated by your schedule to see if we had any classes together." I blinked at him and said, "All you had to do was ask Einstein." He looked taken back at my nickname for him and I asked, "Now what's your guys' names before I give any more nicknames?" I saw them glance at each other and the brown haired guy who was taller than everyone with striking forest green eyes and a cheerful personality walked to my side and said, "My name's Makoto Tachibana, nice to meet you!" I smiled at him bowing my head in response as the other guy with the blackish hair looked at me and said, "Haruka Nanase", the guy who was looking at my schedule with the glasses glanced at me bowing with his upper half and said simply, "Rei Ryugazaki". And lastly, the guy that looked related to G...the guy with the shark-like teeth that first spotted me here gave me a toothy grin and said with his ruby eyes locking on my turquoise ones, "Rin Matsuoka...what stroke do you prefer?" I looked at him and gave him my sly smile and said, "I can beat anyone at backstroke...that is my preferred one but I guess freestyle is okay too."

He nodded and as we chatted we got closer...G saw that we meshed well and she asked, "What's your favorite animal, Ana?" I looked at her and said, "Well I mostly like ocean creatures...sharks...penguins...dolphins...but my absolute favorite animal in the whole world, has to be orcas!" I heard Makoto gasp and he asked, "Really?!" I laughed and said, "Of course! They've been my favorite for a while now...here I'll show you..." I then fiddled with my sketchbook and showed him one of I sketched recently. He blushed and the others marveled at it as if was better than something hanging in the museum, Rei was the first to recover saying with a smile, "This is a masterpiece...purely magnificent! Beautiful!" I smiled and said, "Thanks...my dad..." I trailed off with a slight frown and shook my head and said laughing slightly saying, "Is it just me or do you feel as if we've been together forever..." I saw the others smile as they nodded as well, I laid down with my head on Rin's leg as I closed my eyes and I continued saying, "Normally I'm not this open with new people but I feel as though I was meant to be with you guys...you too G!" I heard an aww and something placed over my body, I opened my eyes to see Rin had placed his swim jacket over my body so I stopped shivering. I smiled at him and said, "Thanks, Rin...hey G did I ever tell you the time when I got the catch of a lifetime back home?" She shook her head and laid on the ground on her stomach swinging her legs resting her head in her hands and said excited, "Tell us, Ana! Your stories are the best!" I chuckled at her and started to tell my story making all of them laugh along with myself, and that evening as I laid in bed holding Rin's swim jacket he MADE me keep I smiled to myself and thought, 'I think I found a home away from home...my new little family...'

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I do not own these beautiful pictures PLEASE GIVE THESE ARTISTS SOME LOVE!

I will continue updating as soon as I can! Love you guys! <3