Prologue

It was a sunny, sunny day. They were at a park, where a picnic table had been set up. It wasn't a park which average, middle-class people could frequent. This park was for the most elite of the elite, a place where they could escape from the paparazzi for some time, away from the judging eyes of the people.

Needless, to say, it was expensive. But the two families seated there didn't seem to care about that. Money was the least of their problems, and right now, all they cared about were the two children whose birthdays they were celebrating.

It was a private affair, one meant particularly for security from what they knew was a harsh and ungracious world. The responsibilities resting on their heads, from the societal pressure of raising a child perfect in every possible way, they wanted to shield their kids from it as long as possible.

The children in question were oblivious to the burden resting on their parents' heads. They were turning four today, and right now, they were playing tag with maids' kids, chasing each other around all over the park.

The first kid was a boy, with platinum blond hair and a face that looked like Xi-Shi herself had sculpted it, perfectly complemented with light grey eyes that still held their childish innocence.

The second kid was a girl, a brunette with doe-like brown eyes, that sat on a face which possessed a beauty that could rival the most beautiful of all the actresses and models. Her eyes had a twinkle to them, and her face had an almost ethereal glow to it.

Their faces were flushed, and they were tired from running.

The parents saw the kids wheezing, and decided to call them back.

"Mingzhu, come back! Time for the cake-cutting ceremony!" Eto Mingzhu's mother, Eto Xiang, called out.

"You heard what she said Tadeo, come over for the cake-cutting!" Liang Tadeo's mother, Liang Lijuan, shouted, calling them over.

The kids looked up at the mention of cake, and ran over, laughing.

"Thwake!" The girl squealed, laughing. Eto Xiang smiled. Eto Mingzhu looked so...pure, like the criminally harsh world of the elite had still not sunk its claws into her.

Eto Xiang glanced over at Liang Tadeo.

He was ruffling Mingzhu's hair, giggling and laughing when she squealed, "Leavth my thair!" Tadeo smiled. "There, there. Down't bhee angry!" He said, making her sit down and braiding her hair up again.

"Okay kiddos, time to cut the cake!" Liang Lijuan said.

The two kids stood in front of the cake, giggling and smiling with a plastic knife in their hands. The cake had been hand-made by a cake artist in France, with two different flavors for the two halves of the cake. Chocolate for Mingzhu, and black currant for Tadeo.

Mingzhu cut out a piece from the cake in a way that it had both the flavors on either side. Tadeo carefully picked the piece up and fed some to Minghzu. Then he turned around and fed some to his parents.

Meanwhile, Mingzhu cut out a similar piece and did the same.

The maids brought out a smaller white cake, and Mingzhu turned to her uncle, a devilish grin on her face.

"Shūshu, is this what I think it is?" She said, giving him a mischievous smile. Her uncle, Eto Bao, grinned back. "Affirmative, my adorable niece. Let's show them what the Eto clan can do." Mingzhu's eyes lit up.

"Thwake fight!" She yelled and launched herself at Tadeo, hands full of cake. "No! Tadeo screamed, trying to move out of the way, but failed. His silver hair turned white, and with his face smothered in cake, he looked quite like a clown.

"Ming-Ming!" He shouted, turning towards the cake and picking up a handful, "Come bhack here right nyow!" He said, running after her.

Eto Xiang and Liang Lijuan observed them from a distance.

They both had only one thought in their mind.

Oh, how they wished this happiness would last.