(Later)

Aika was now opening up presents that everyone bought for her. Haru had gotten her a new phone, Sakura had brought her an Ipad, Botan had gotten her a Nintendo switch. She then opened the present that her mom got and saw that it was a new dress.

After a while Aika made it through all her presents and it was soon time for cake. So Sakura and Himari brought it to the table and lit the candles on the cake. Once they were done with that everyone sang the Happy Birthday song for Aika.

She was really happy with this as it's only ever been her and her mother celebrating her birthday and now she was doing it with her real friends.

Soon after having the cake the party ends after a few hours and everyone packs up to go home. Aika and Himari waved goodbye to everyone hoping to see them again soon.

However before Asahi left he went up to Himari and said "Um Himari if you want to, would you like to have some coffee with me some time?"

"Hmm? Sure I'd love to, it'll be a few weeks before I have to go back to work again so I might as well." Himari said with a cheerful smile on her face.

Asahi smiled happily to hear Himari's answer, he then glanced at Aika and saw that she was looking at him with a blank stare. He thought she was glaring at him so he told both her and Himari to have a good night before getting into his sister's car and leaving with her and his nephew.

Himari then looked at Aika and saw that Aika was lost in thought and her face looked like she was glaring at someone. Himari then gently put her hand on her daughter's shoulder snapping her out of her thoughts.

"Aika you alright? You zoned out dear and you rarely ever do that." Himari explained.

"Oh Yeah I'm fine... actually mom I have something I want to tell you." Aika said.

"Oh really? What is it dear?" Himari asked.

"Can we go inside for it please?" Aika asked.

"Of course dear, anything that will make you comfortable." Himari said before leading her daughter inside.

When they were inside Himari sat Aika down on the couch and asked if she wanted any tea.

"Sure I think some tea should help me out." Aika said.

"Alright I'll get it started and we'll talk while it's brewing." Himari said then went into the kitchen to make the tea.

Aika then pulled out her diary and flipped through the pages and read a few of them. The more she read the more upset she felt reliving all those painful moments that she went through with Amaya and the Cheerleaders.

"Should I really tell mom about this? What if things only get worse. What if Amaya and the cheerleaders bully me even worse than before?" She questioned herself.

However she then remembered what Sakura said earlier that day so she knew that she had to tell her mom now or things are just going to stay the same and her depression is going to get worse.

"Aika are you alright?" Aika was then snapped out of her thoughts as she heard her mother asking her a question.

She looked up and saw her mom staring at her with a concerned look on her face.

"Aika, what's that you got there?" Himari asked.

"*sigh* It's what I wanted to talk to you about mom, there are some things I've written here that I didn't want you to find out about. However my friend Sakura found it and read some of it, she then confronted me about it and suggested that I talk to you about it." Aika explained.

"Oh really? What's wrong sweetheart? You know that you can tell me anything. I'm your mom and I will be here whenever you need me. I love you more than anything Aika and I will help you with whatever is going on in your life." Himari explained.

"*sigh* Okay well my Diary entries says it all. Here read some of them and the ones from May 20th and 21." Aika explained before handing her mother her diary.

Himari looked at Aika confused for a moment before she began reading the Diary. The more she read the more she felt her heart ache as she read her daughter's diary and saw all the pain she went through alone.

However she wasn't just sad by this but angry at the girls who were doing this to her only child, who ever gave them the right to treat her precious daughter like garbage. Himari then closed the book after she was done reading it, she then put it on the side table and hugged Aika tightly.

"Oh Aika why didn't you say anything to me sooner?" Himari asked.

"I... I didn't want you to worry, let alone have another burden on your shoulders. After all, you have to pay all the bills by yourself, work, take care of the house, and most of all you need to take care of me. I didn't want to burden you with another problem to deal with, so I kept the bullying and my depression to myself." Aika explained.

"Oh Aika I don't have any burdens, all I have is blessings from god, and you're the greatest gift I have. As long as you're happy then I'm happy and Aika, if something like this is happening to you and you're not happy, never ever be afraid to tell me Okay?" Himari asked.

Aika started to tear up and said "Okay Mom I will tell you these kinds of things from now on. But what can we do about Amaya and the cheerleaders?"

"Don't worry I'll take care of everything sweetie, and if you want I can even have you transfer to a new school away from those girls." Himari suggested.

"Really? Well then yes I'd like to do that. I think I need to get away from them if I want to recover." Aika said.

"Alright then the first thing is tomorrow I'll take care of those girls and let their parents know about their behavior. Meanwhile, why don't you and your new friends spend some time together tomorrow? I feel like you spending time with good people will be a great help to your mental well being." Himari suggested.

"Yeah you know what I like that idea so I'll do that." Aika said.

"Great dear, I'm so glad that you met them, they're really good friends!" Himari exclaimed happily.

"Yeah me too." Aika said with a small smile on her face as she felt like a huge weight was just lifted off her shoulders.

The two then heard a whistling coming from the kitchen, so Himari got up and went into the kitchen. She soon came back with some freshly brewed green tea in the new tea seat they got that day.

"Oh who gave you this mom?" Aika asked.

"Oh this? It was a gift from Asahi. He was rather nice, he also asked me if I'd like to have some coffee with him sometime. I think I'll take him up on that request tomorrow after I have a chat with those girls' parents." Himari said.

"Really? Well that's good I hope you have a good time with him." Aika said.

"Thanks Aika and I'm sure I will." Himari said.

After that the two chilled in the living room watching a movie till they got tired and headed to bed.

(The next day)

When Aika woke up she felt much happier than she did yesterday. After the conversation with her mom she felt amazing.

"Man, I guess Sakura was right, letting it out really did help me feel better. I should thank her when I see her today." Aika said to herself.

She then got up from her bed and opened her window curtains. She was then blinded by the sun for a moment before her eyes adjusted to the light and she looked out at the beautiful sunny sky outside. Aika smiled and continued to look out the window for a few minutes before going to her wardrobe and getting out her dress, stocking, and shoes. She then went to the bathroom and got a shower before putting out her clothes and going down to the kitchen. When she got there she saw her mom making some breakfast.

"Hey mom, oh that smells good, what-cha making?" Aika asked.

"Oh I'm making your favorite sweet Japanese Pancakes." Himari explained.

"Oh thanks I love those!" Aika exclaimed excitedly.

"Oh and Aika, I called up Ichika and asked her if Sakura and Botan could come by and spend the day with you, and she said yes. Botan will be arriving with Sakrua and Haru later after breakfast." Himari explained.

"Oh really? Well I hope we'll be spending some time in town today as there is not much to do here." Aika said.

"Oh that's the plan, cause I'll be having a meeting with Amaya, and the other Cheerleaders parents here today and I don't want them going near you after learning about how horribly they've been treating you." Himari explained.

"Oh really? Well I hope things go well then." Aika said while sitting down at the table.

Himari smiled before finishing up the food and giving it to Aika. Aika smiled and began eating her breakfast. Soon the two were done eating and Aika stepped outside to wait for her friends to come and take her into the city. Soon she heard a car engine coming up to the house and when she looked, Aika saw Botans car driving up to her house. He then parked and Sakura ran out and bear hugged Aika.

"Ack! Sakura what the hell!" Aika exclaimed while stumbling back from the force of Sakura's hug.

"Sorry Aika, it's just that I overheard the conversation our moms had on the phone and I'm so happy that you told her about what was going on!" Sakura exclaimed happily.

"Wait really?" Aika asked.

"Well yeah I'm your friend so of course I'm happy this means that you're on the first step of recovery!" Sakura explained.

"Huh? Yeah I guess I am." Aika said while smiling.

"Hey sis come on let's go! There's this convention going on down in Tokyo city and I don't want to miss it, after all the tickets cost me over 3000 yen each and I got four!" Botan explained.

"Huh? What Convention?" Aika asked.

"Oh you didn't know? There's an anime convention going on and some pretty famous manga artists are going to be there! So let's go. I wanna see who's gonna be there and see if I can get my favorite manga artists to sing my favorite Manga book!" Sakura exclaimed.

Sakura then dragged Aika to the car and threw her into the back seat before going back up to the front seat. It all happened so fast that Aika felt her head spin as Sakura threw her into the car so fast that she had to take the time to allow her brain to catch up with her.

"Hey Aika are you alright?" Haru asked.

Aika looked over and saw that Haru was sitting next to her.

"Oh yeah I'm fine Sakura was just really fast and strong that my brain didn't have the time to catch up with the rest of my body." Aika explained.

"Heh Sorry Aika I'm just so excited for this event that I want us to get there as soon as possible!" Sakura explained.

"It's alright I understand, and besides I've never been to one of these before so I can't wait to see what it's like." Aika said.

"Okay well let's get this show on the road!" Botan exclaimed and drove off to the event.

(Later)

Botan parked the car outside the building where the convention was taking place. The four then got out of the car and headed up towards the building.

"Wow this place is so big. I wonder what it'll look like on the inside?" Aika asked.

"Oh you'll see when we get in and I promise you Aika you're going to love it!" Sakura exclaimed excitedly.

Aika smiled at Sakura's enthusiasm before getting out of the car along with the others. The group then went up to the entrance, showed the guards their tickets, got their badges, and went in. When they got inside they saw the whole building had anime, mangas, and singing auctions all over the place.

"Wow I've never seen something so amazing before!" Aika said, amazed.

"Well we've got a lot to show you! So come on, let's go WOW!" Sakura exclaimed excitedly before running off.

The rest of the group followed her and started looking around the place. As they explored the convention they stopped by to either buy a comic book from one of the stores, or get their regular notebooks signed by their favorite artists. After a few hours the group was tired so they sat down and talked about how much fun they were having.

"Wow today has been the best day ever, well aside from my birthday yesterday." Aika said.

"Yeah I know, I'm so glad you came with us Aika!" Sakura exclaimed happily.

"Yeah I'm glad as well, you're a good friend." Botan said.

"Thanks guys, that means a lot to me." Aika said.

"Hey, what are you guys talking about?" The group heard someone ask.

They looked and saw Hinata standing not too far away from them.

"Oh hey Hinata, how are you doing?" Haru asked.

"I'm doing fine, what about you?" Hinata asked.

"We're just talking about our time here, and I didnt know you were into anime and Manga." Botan said.

"Well I am, one of my favorite manga artists is Fumihito, the creator of the horror manga series Angu Masa." Hinata said.

"Oh hey I like that series too, it's amazing!" Aika said.

"Really? Cool the series is really cool and I really like a lot of some of the gruesome scenes in the manga." Hinata said.

"Um I don't know what that series is, can one of you explain it to me?" Haru asked, confused.

"Yeah, what is it? I haven't heard of it either." Sakura said.

"Well it's a horror series, following the tale of a girl named Angu who has a horrific journey through the spirit world inorder to get back to earth." Hinata explained.

"Yeah, but that's not the only kind of Manga he makes, however I heard that he went missing a few months ago." Aika said.

"Oh yeah that's why he sounds familiar, dad's working on the case of his disappearance." Botan explained.

"Yeah I've heard him talking about it with some of his colleagues when they came over to discuss the investigation." Sakura explained.

"Well I hope they find him soon. He sounds like a great artist and I wanna give some of his Manga's a try." Haru said.

"Yeah they are really good... hey why don't we take this discussion to a cafe I like to go to." Hinata suggested.

"Sure I could go for something sweet to eat!" Sakura exclaimed.

Hinata smiled before saying "Okay follow me."

He then led the group to the cafe he was talking about and brought them to a table in the back.

"This place looks nice." Aika said.

"Yeah it is, it's also the only coffee shop that serves my favorite kind of coffee." Hinata explained.

"Ohh look at this strawberry sundae they have!" Sakura exclaimed while pointing at the dessert menu.

The group looked at the menu and saw some delicious looking desserts there as well as some tasty coffee. After a while they all decided on what to order, Aika choose a chocolate fudge surprise sundae, Sakura choose the strawberry sundae, Haru ordered a iced vanilla latte and a jelly filled donut, Botan ordered a hot caramel coffee along with some american waffles, Hinata order a espresso with extra sugar, carmel, and he order a vanilla surprise sundae with chocolate sauce, and extra whipped cream. Soon a waitress arrived at their table and took their orders before heading back to the kitchen.

"So um, what do you all want to do with your lives?" Hinata asked, trying to create a conversation.

"Oh well I know I want to open up my own bakery and sell delicious pastries to everyone who comes in!" Sakura exclaimed happily.

"For me I know that I want to be an FBI agent like my dad." Botan said.

"Well I want to help my aunt run her restaurant and even own it one day, as she can have her own kids due to an accident she was in when she and my mom were kids." Haru explained.

"Oh that sounds nice that you want to help your aunt out like that, what about you Aika?" Hinata asked.

"Hmm I don't know I've been so focused on the present that I haven't thought about what I want to do with my life." Aika said while looking down at her notebook.

"Hmm well your drawing skills are quite impressive so why don't you try making Mangas?" Hinata suggested.

"Hmm well I've never thought of that, but do you think that I have what it takes?" Aika asked.

"Sure you do Aika! Your drawings look amazing! I know you can do it as long as you work hard and improve your skills!" Sakura exclaimed happily.

"Hehe thanks Sakura, that means a lot to me... normally my mom tells me that what I draw is good. I never hear it from anyone in school." Aika said sadly.

"Well hey you have us now, and I always thought your drawings were cool I'd just never had the confidence to tell you myself." Haru said.

Aika smiled before hugging Haru warmly, Haru smiled and hugged her back. Soon the group's orders came and they began eating. As they ate, Aika got out one of her copies of Angu Masa and began to read it.

"Ohh is that the manga you and Hinata were talking about earlier?" Sakura asked.

"Yeah it is, this is one of my favorite parts in the series." Aika explained.

"Ohh that's one of my favorite parts in the series as well!" A girl said from behind them.

The group looked and saw a girl with blond hair dyed pink at the ends. She was also wearing a pink skirt, magenta turtle-neck sweater, and dark pink shoes.

"Huh I didn't think you'd be into this kind of series." Hinata said.

"Well yeah I get that a lot, but like they say don't judge a book by its cover. I might like the color pink and wear it, but even people like me have delve horns hehe." The girl laughed cheerfully.

"Well Um who are you?" Botan asked.

"Oh right how rude of me I didn't tell you all my name, I'm Kowai and it's nice to meet you all." Kowai said happily.

"Well it's nice to meet you Kowai. If you want to, you can sit with us." Haru offered.

"Of course I'd love to! I love making new friends!" Kowai said and took a seat across from Hinata.

"Wow Kowai, your hair looks amazing. What are you using in it?" Sakura asked.

"Oh I'm using a special strawberry scented shampoo in it. I'll lend you some if you'd like to try it out." Kowai offreed.

"Thanks, I'd like to give it a try!" Sakura exclaimed.

Botan's phone then started ringing and he picked it up to see that it was his and Sakura's father calling.

"Hang on guys, my dad is calling and I'll be right back." Botan said before getting up and heading to the bathroom.

"I wonder what your father's calling for?" Aika asked Sakura.

"I don't know it's most likely something to do with Mr. Fumihito's disappearance." Sakrua explained.

"Oh yeah I heard that I hope he's alright." Kowai said.

"Yeah same here he's a good man and didn't deserve to disappear like that." Hinata said.

"... hey are you alright?" Kowai asked.

"Yeah I'm fine, why?" Hinata asked.

"Well you just look really tired, you've got dark circles under your eyes." Kowai explained.

"That's just my makeup." Hinata explained.

"Oh okay it looks good!" Kowai said.

"Thanks I try my best with my makeup." Hinata explained.

Botan then came back and he had a serious look on his face.

"Hey Bro what's up?" Sakura asked.

"Dad told me that the meeting with M will start soon so he let me know so I don't miss it." Botan explained.

"Um, who's M?" Aika asked, confused.

"Yeah who is that and why is your dad telling you about a meeting with him?" Haru asked.

"M is one of Japan's best detectives ever. He was able to solve cases that the FBI couldn't solve for months." Botan explained.

"Oh yeah I know about him, he's incredibly smart, and the most interesting thing about him is that no one knows who he is, no one's ever seen his face or his real voice as it's apparent he uses a voice changer." Sakura explained.

"Oh interesting... hey Um, your dad wouldn't mind if me and Haru came along would he?" Aika asked.

"Yeah I'd like to see how this meeting will go." Haru said.

"I'm sure dad wouldn't mind if we brought some friends along, what about you Hinata would you like to come as well?" Botan asked.

"Sorry I can't, my mom will be expecting me home soon. After my dad disappeared she's become more and more paranoid about my own safety, so I better get home before she starts blowing up my phone with worried messages." Hinata explained while getting up from his seat.

"Okay we'll have a good day Hinata." Haru said.

"Thanks, Iets go pay for our food and go our separate ways." Hinata said.

"Hey guys wait before you all go can i give you all my number! I want to hang out with you all again so um." Kowai said nervously.

"Hehe Sure thing Kowai I'd like to hang with you again!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Same here, you're quite the character." Botan said.

"Yeah you seem like a nice person so why the hell not?" Aika said.

"Yeah I agree with the others." Haru said.

"Aww thanks guys... Here you go!" Kowai exclaimed and handed the group her number, however when she tried to give Hinata her number he turned it down.

"Sorry, but I'm not sure my mom would want me to have the number of a complete stranger, Like I said she's been paranoid after dad disappeared." Hinata explained.

"Okay well I hope to see more of you soon!" Kowai said cheerfully.

"Yeah, same here." Hinata said before going up to the counter and paying for the food and leaving.

The rest of them all did the same thing before saying goodbye to Kowai and heading to Botan's car.

"Hey guys I just thought of something!" Sakura exclaimed.

"What's that Sakura?" Aika asked.

"Well now that we're all a team together we need a team name, but what could it be?" Sakura asked.

"Well we all like anime." Aika said.

"And we like to draw." Haru said.

"Hmm Anime artists." Sakura whispered.

"What did you say sis?" Botan asked as he unlocked his car.

"The Anime Artists! That can be our team name!" Sakura exclaimed excitedly.

"Hmm I like it, it has a good ring to it!" Aika said.

"Yeah it does and it describes us well" Haru said.

"Alright The Anime Artists it is then!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Alright then let's go! I don't want to miss the chance to actually talk to M. It's gonna be so cool!" Botan exclaimed excitedly.

"Hehe Sakura, your older brother is as excited as a child on Christmas morning." Aika commented.

"Hehe well yeah that's how he is when it comes to stuff like this." Sakura said.

Everyone then got in the car and drove off not noticing a dark figure stalking them from the shadows.

"Hehe so M wants to find me and my precious Fumihito well then he has another thing coming. And what's more interesting is that those four seem to be involved in this little game as well. Hehe, so I'll kill five birds with one stone, as I'll take out M and those four and win this game in no time!" The figure said before getting into their car and following them from behind.