FURINKAZAN ~ A WBW Production [it starts!]

[Weasel Overlord]

FURINKAZAN

風林火山

a WBW production [hurrah]

Furin Gakuen - motto: “move swift as the wind, stay steady as a forest.”

Kazan Gakuen - motto: “attack fierce as fire; immovable defence like a mountain.”

Akaikami
=====
The school at night. Such a scenario is always a constant source of rumours and myths about demons, ghosts, and various supernatural events that keep some of the most courageous students from entering the building at night. Typically these rumours are nothing more than rumours, but for these particular nights something amiss has been happening. Somewhere, among the school, there is a presence; a being, waiting, plotting, counting down the days till...
The being stood firm behind a window pane, looking down at the school grounds from his room, several stories high aloft the school. The moonlight shone brightly onto his tall and broad figure, but was cut off slightly before reaching the neck, leaving the rest of his face hidden in darkness. In spite his unseen face, it can be felt; he was smiling, laughing, silently, waiting ultimately, for his time.
"Master."
The man turned around to find a young girl bowing down before him. Her face was covered by her lustrous red hair, which seemed to glow and eerie red in contrast to the darkness around them. She did not move from her position; she merely waited for her lord's response. The man looked onto her approvingly.
"How is the situation?" He inquired in a deep, hoarse voice.
"The observational state has been completed; the activation state is well under way." Akai replied without lifting her head once.
"Ah, I have noticed. The murder of the three Furin students has caused quite a stir between the two schools; I'm sure your source of power has grown significantly because of that. However, are you sure this enough...?"
"The activation state has not been completed yet." Finally, Akai stood up, and summoned a clear, luminous orb which soon presented the image of an unconscious

"So he was the one... are you planning to use him once again?" The figure folded his arms as he watched on with satisfaction.
"Yes." The image in the orb quickly changed to a dark area outside on school grounds, where the sound of footsteps can be heard emanating from the mysterious sphere. "It is a pity such a useful puppet must end like this, but... things that must be done, must be done, right... Mishio?"
The orb presented the image of what appeared to be a young Furin girl. "Senpai...dead...Senpai...dead..." She chants, over and over again. As she approaches the unconscious body, a mysterious and unknown object begins to apparate into her hand...
=====
The next day, the dead body of Tatsuo was found in the Kazan school courtyard. Spread all over the body was the words "Death to Kazan" in the victim's blood. No evidence could be traced back as to who was the culprit or how it happened, merely that it appeared to have happened overnight. For the entire day, the school courtyard was closed down to look into this dreadful matter.

The murder of three Furin students.
The death of the Kazan murderer.

With this the circle was complete.

=========
Few random other things.

1. When getting your powers, please be aware (note these are only estimates):
20% of your school is completely anti-theotherschool. These 20% are usually the loudest in the school and thinks that you should use your powers to blow up the other school.
75% of your school is scared to hell what's going on right now. Any presence of power they sense will send them running away as far as they can from you.
5% of the school is not mentally sane and don't care about your opinions and will befriend you no matter what. Consequently, it can be confidently said that 99.9% of the RPGers in this RPG fall into this category.

What can you learn from this? It means you can have about two opinions of your powers once you get them:
A) Go through some psychological emo fit about how your school life is screwed now, or screwed even more than it was before, or
B) Do it the Gurren-dan way and try to be a hero.

AFAIK those are the two logical suggestions. You can describe your awesome powers coming into your hands as originally as possible but do be aware that the statistics of "being cool with powers" is against you.

2. Death. If I tag you with Akai-chan and you do not reply or give me any notice (PM, IM, Lounge, via WO or ChikoSai, or if I just know your habits *coughcough*) in approximately 5 days, you can guarantee that you will be dead. Consider this your last warning about death.

3. In the event that it is your turn to release your power and Akai-chan is preoccupied with other...things at the time, feel free to have your own random hormone-raging student turn himself/herself into a monster and combat your character. Akai-chan is that awesome, after all.

4. Two people will be awakened per RPG day, but here’s the catch. The only way you will know who is awakened is to read the RPG. Your wonderful hosts will say who is awakening for that particular day in their posts, so you’d BETTER KEEP UP! MWAHAHAH!! ahem.

Cast List

FURIN

Water:
Pisces - Inoue Hotaru, Weapon-user, played by Weasel
Scorpio - Kuchiki, Naoko, Magic-user, played by Toxicity
Cancer - Kazeji Yuko, Familiar-user, played by Crazy Elf Boy

Air:
Gemini - Satou Rika, Summoner, played by Crystal Tears
Libra - Tsurugi Touma, Familiar-user, played by Kalad
Aquarius - Mizukazi Ryuu, Weapon-user, played by Outlaw JT


KAZAN

Earth:
Virgo - Sakamoto Dai, Summoner, played by Emo-sai
Taurus -Gou Ushitaros, Familiar-user, played by Prof. JB Wolf
Capricorn - Mihana Ami, Magic-user, played by Shizo

Fire:
Aries - Kasai Akio, Magic-user played by Bulbie
Leo - Itou Cho, Summoner, played by classy_cat18
Sagittarius - Keto Satoshi, Familiar-user, played by Dr McNinja

ADDITIONAL

Ophiuchus - Akaikame, played by EngiMatikul
Thomas Reusbucks - Played by EngiMatikul
Sakamoto Aria - Played by EngiMatikul
Doumeki Yumi - Played by Emo-sai
Domeki Kazujo - Played by Emo-sai
Kalah Byquest - Played by Bulbie
Makoto Sayuri - Played by Weasel
Sakaki Hideo - Played by darktyranitar
Gou Ookami - Played by Prof. JB Wolf
[nameless] - Playedby EngiMatikul

ps: SORRY IT'S SLIGHTY LATE!! Weasel post will follow soon (ie: tomorrow/le weekend)
For now, no-one is awakened. Just await a post from one of the hosts. ^_^

[EngiMatikul]

HI I'm one of your hosts.

Let me add on a few details so everyone can begin.

A.) classycat and McNinja You two are up for the first day of awakenings. It doesn't matter who awakens first, or in whatever style, you guys can decide how you want to awaken. If you want to wait for Akai-chan to tag you first that's fine too, but be aware that when I tag you have 5 days (unless I have notice) to post or you're screwed.
B.) Awakenings do not always need to be huge battles! If you want to suddenly realize you have a power/pet/weapon/giant mech in your backyard and have nothing exciting occur, that's fine too.
C.) Post your character you're using here, but not your NPCs. All NPC forms will soon be available in the lounge for convenience. Any new NPCs made should continue to be posted in the signup topic for organizational purposes. In the future if you're going to switch and use a former NPC as your main, then you can post it here.
D.) Try not to spend too much time explaining a scenario that only happened for like, 10 minutes. Include, for example, your first post your entire morning or if you want to focus on a scenario, make sure when you move on you're well into the afternoon so we don't have 90 posts about the first 3 hours of class. If desired, put a time stamp (in RPG time of course) on your post.
E.) For those who are confused what the hell is going on, 3 Furin students died about a month ago, and now this morning you wake up to a fresh cup of murder! A Kazan student (the murderer of the Furin students) has died.

My previous character which WO posted:
Name: Akaikami (A combination of "red" and "hair", which is usually the one significant feature people see in her- use 'Akai' for short, Akai-chan!)
Age: Appearance as 16 years old
Gender: Appearance as Female... Actually scratch that YES SHE'S A GIRL
Appearance: A dark, forboding character shrouded in mystery. Her outward appearance is that of a normal human girl, standing just around 5 feet tall with a slim, agile figure suited for appearing and disappearing in the blink of an eye. Her most noticable feature is hair, extending noticably down to her waist and having a bright red color, the color of fresh oxygenated blood from a deep wound. Her bangs are just long enough so that it can cover her eyes from the upper angles, and indeed most of her appearance in the first part of this RP will have her eyes hidden beneath her bright colored hair. Her eyes are of a dark ebony black color, and looking into them gives the feeling of a deep, inpenetrable abyss. Her youthlike figure is enwrapped in a tight suit not unlike that of a one piece swimsuit, which I swear isn't for fanservice reasons but to make her movements more agile and less likely to be noticed. She wears a long black manteau which, when fully covered, causes her to disappear within the shadows. She has long black leather gloves and boots. Attached to the center of the manteau where it brings the cape together is a bright red jewel that has the appearance of a serpent eye.
Personality: Probably best described as quiet, but only because that is the best course of action for most of her job. Being a secretive and deceptive character, it suits the situation much more conveniently for her to work without words instead of mouthing off all her plans like some incompetent villians do. She is cunning and serious, though may make a sarcastic comment once in a while. She does whatever she thinks is the best option to go with and complete her mission, and most of the time, it IS the best option. She does not purposely use her powers for her own pleasure, though its true she does enjoy her job of tormenting other humans. She seems to have particular goals in mind with her actions, though many people do not know of her existance, much less what intentions she has for the two schools.
Initially, anyone who would happened to have "accidentally" noticed her would at most remember her bloodred hair. Anyone who thinks they see more than just her hair early in the RP will die a quick and sudden death. :V
School: She doesn't go to school, but she can certainly fit in if you give her a school outfit!
Zodiac Sign: Ophiuchus
Power: * (see below)
Power Description: Rather than having a specific power for herself, She instead seems to be able to give other otherwise normal student fake Zodiac powers, releasing them in a similar way only usually they are released due to emotional stress. She targets those who have strong negative emotions of sorts, whether it be fear or anger, and converts it to a power, a familiar, a weapon, or something that makes the host weild dangerously and incontrollably for however she long she wants them to. This, obviously, is not the extent of her powers. Being the main antagonist she has additional powers to be revealed as the RP progresses, but for the time being...

for those who went tl;dr, she turns kids into monsters.

Background: you don't know, lol?
Other: For those who remember me as Nagi in the Mai Hime RPG, I will similarly be hopping around with this character making a scene for you guys to show off your stuff. If you don't reply in a timely matter however I will not be hesitent to kill you off (as I'm sure she wouldn't be) so don't delay post today!

My current character!
Name: Sakamoto Aria
Age: 15
Gender: Female
Appearance: 4'11, young and blooming. Her general appearance seems the essence of brightness in what appears to be a dark and sadistic world. She has long silverywhite hair held back by a simple band and a tinge of bright yellow in her eyes, not unlike her brother's. Her pure white skin seems flawless by nature. She wears the same school uniform in the same fashion as everyone else, a simple blazer, tie and skirt, as well as white stockings; however, she still seems to stands out as an angel almost in a crowd of students. Her casual outfit is typically a simple sundress of pink or yellow color, or if its too cold a sweater with a nice puffy winter coat to keep her warm (mittens too!).
She possibly has a set of small-sized earrings that she constantly wears because she was given them from someone she admires. Most likely her brother. Maybe someone else. Actually it probably is her brother. I'm just typing this so it looks like a longer signup.
Personality: Though understandably a bit frightened at the whole situation, she's the type of cheerful character that keeps a smile and acts polite and optimistic at every moment. She's not oblivious to the dangers around her and does worry about her friends and brother, but generally she has a lot of trust even to strangers and always tries to lighten the mood with a snack or two.
Her personality towards her brother and a few of his friends (note: Hotaru) is significantly more critical than her general attitude towards strangers. She's a bit annoyed at her brother's lack of backbone and significantly worried about the "advances" that some of his male friends makes towards him, moreso than her brother worries about random guys making advances towards her (could you possibly say this is JEALOU nevermind). However, she is fully confident that her brother and his friends are trustworthy and will not take the situation too far... at least not yet. :V
School: Furin. By some random luck (or very strange parents) she and her brother ended up going to different schools.
Zodiac: Doesn't have one but she can be cool like them too. :<
Power: Cooking
Power Description: Has the master ability "Taste Satiation" and is able to satisfy even the most demonic of picky niteaters into eating their vegetables. Those that have ever made her acquaintance and tried any of her meals understands the remarkable strength of her unique talent, able to turn even the most normal of anpan into the utmost Japanese cuisine that would fool anyone into thinking it's a work of art. Her family is truly blessed with the fact that they are able to enjoy her masterpieces night after night, and shrudder with dread at the thought of eating out for ANY reason, ranging from forgetting their lunch to Aria getting sick.
*Note: The last two sections should not be taken seriously.
Background/History: Will need more development later. Suffice to say that Dai is her brother (which she respectively calls him Ani-sama) and she is very good friends with Dai's friends.
Why does she go to Furin? Well first off, leave it to the parents to not understand the situation the students are in for both these schools. It's not that they're blind to what's going on, but it most likely involves a past issue with the parents going to their respective schools. Very likely in the past one of the parents had gone to one school while the other has the opposing school, possibly have a great amount of events occur which we do not know and we may not want to know, and ended up together. Therefore whether its an adapted tradition to be going to different schools or because the parents are just sadistic, the siblings go to different schools.
At first both siblings protested, especially with the situation the school is now in. However, Dai realized (possibly wrongly) that at the very least his good friend Hotaru would protect any type of harassment if she goes to Furin. Therefore, Aria goes to Furin with minimal troubles under the (relative) protection of Hotaru, in exchange for..."tolerating" his tea club activities.
Also, every morning she visits a small little shrine accross the street from a bigger shrine. She seems to find that shrine more homely. She's good friends with the shrine priest there.
Other: She usually goes to the cooking club after school. In the sad case she does not have club activities while Hotaru does... well... you'll see.

ON TO THE EXCITING PART: THE POST!

Aria- Sept~9, 6:49 AM.
=====
It was a cold breezy morning that morning, as Aria slowly walked up the gray and worn out steps up to the small shrine. The gentle, crimson-colored leaves fell steadily from the ever emanciating trees which camlouflage the view of the shrine, the Torii gates matching the color of the wilting leaves. Aria approached the temple of the shrine, offered incense and prayed. A common ritual, like any other morning for her.
A few minutes later Aria heard a familiar voice lamenting the peaceful scenario that she was admiring so much.
"...*yawn*...damn leaves falling so early in the year... what's wrong with these trees, anyway? Why aren't the trees in the OTHER shrine falling yet?...yes yes, mourning the deaths of our beloved students, so I can rise bright and early to clean up their bloody remnants... yes I know trees don't have blood you don't have to remind me..."
Aria turned around to greet her talkative shrine priestess.
"Good Morning, Yuu-chan. I see you are doing well..."
"If you call a night without a wink of sleep 'doing well'..." Priestess Yumi yawned again, gave a sharp glance at somewhere off to the side, then directed her attention back at Aria. "Morning, Aria-chan. Probably not a good morning, for various reasons, but a morning it is."
"Oh, are you referring to the..." Aria looked a bit worried.
"Suffice to say is a new resident of the underworld, my fair lady. ...What he hasn't come in yet?" The miko again looked over to some area of nothingness, then looked back onto Aria.
"Hmmm... I wonder if Ani-sama will be all right..." Aria mumbles with a tone of anxiety.
"Naah... I'd be more worried about you, having so many interconnections between schools. You should be careful these coming days. Speaking of which, I should probably change and head out... No I DID rake up more than 3 leaves you blind moron... oh I don't mean you Aria."
Aria giggled. "Oh! Before you go, I have some strawberry shortcake that I baked last night, I was wondering if you might--"
"AS I ALWAYS SAY, DONATIONS TO THE SHRINE ARE ALWAYS WELCOME. ...You can't even eat, I don't understand those who always put food next to your graves when if you guys never eat them... NO I'm not the one stealing your friend's food..."

=====7:54 AM=====
Aria arrived at school a few minutes before class began, running hastily to prevent herself from being late. She hadn't noticed the suspicious stares as she runs by, the Furin student with a Kazan brother... Aria had been so preoccupied with getting to class that she mistakenly bumped into a tall girl along the aisle of the stairs, causing the the student to tumble down several stories and leaving her spinny eyed and unconscious.
"Ah! SORRY, KALAH SENPAIIIII~~" Aria shouted as she ran to class.
-----8:01 AM-----
"Whew!" Aria gave a breath of relief as she entered the class. Although most of the class gave no attention to her, a few continued to eye her warily...
"Good morning, Mishio-san!" Aria greeted to her neighbor as she sat down at her desk. Mishio gave no reply, but merely stared uncomfortably back.
And, in spite of all incidents, Aria's morning was fairly normal aftewards.
======

OOC: Organizational Skills >> RPGing. yes. I'm sorry.

[Toxicity]

Name: Kuchiki, Naoko/朽木 直子
Age: 16
Gender: Female
Appearance:
Naoko is a relatively petite girl; at a straight posture, her height only barely exceeds the 5-foot mark, with her well-proportioned build just as slender. Her coal black hair is kept relatively neat, falling in slight layers down to her collar bone, often wearing a barrette in her hair to hold her cowlick - formed by a slight widow's peak - to the right side; this color still manages to complement her pallid, lightly tanned skin. One can easily imagine, however, that she's only a child; this is, of course, until they see her eyes; twin whirlpools made from dark ink, constantly twisting like her own mind and almost tired of living. This is easily shown in her habit of making direct eye contact when asking a question.

Naoko's school attire is typical of the Furin girl; her blazer, blouse, tie, and skirt are all without personal modifications. Despite her personal loathing of skirts, she sees clothes as clothes and will wait to change. Outside of school, she will wear shorts or jeans with tees, although she has been known to wear flannel and "bleeding Madras" quite often. Aside from her necklace made from hemp rope bearing a cross and a bracelet on her left wrist of puka shells and hemp, Naoko isn't fond of accessories. She also goes interchangeably in wearing her hair down or tying it back away from her face.
Personality: As a water sign, Naoko's emotions will sway at random and vary under different conditions; however, much like the weather under the Scorpio sign (at least in the northern hemisphere), she has also been known to appear icily withdrawn from her peers. Often quiet and keeping to herself, Naoko tries her hardest to not think of herself and how distant help seems to be. Her friends now gone, she feels like a lot of her ideas have gone to waste, especially amongst the peers that feel a constant need to ridicule her for no given reason; her attempts of defending herself had "poisoned" these peers into thinking she's insane. As a result, Naoko has been forced into holding onto a low self-esteem and has since become highly self-conscious, questioning why she was bound to feel the way she does. For now, her main concern is getting out of school alive and reuniting with her friends before it all ends up getting the best of her.
School: Furin
Zodiac Sign: Scorpio
Power: Magic
Power Description: *currently numbered until I/Naoko come up with names*
1 - if her concentration is fixed on a body of water long enough, Naoko can derive "visions" from waves or ripples, details becoming more obvious with size. [based off of water divination; I'll remove this if any of the hosts think it's too silly]
2 - Naoko can manipulate and/or freeze small pools of water at her own will, using this often as a mechanism for both offense and defense.
3 - Purifies water to replenish health or to cleanse the body of toxins or poisons [such as a nasty scorpion sting]; weak at first.
Background/History:
Naoko's life had started relatively normal, the second and youngest child of a middle-class family, father in the medical field and mother teaching art at a nearby university. Because of the exposure to such knowledge, Naoko's parents cultured both she and her older sister of 9 years to be talented, having high expectations as their way of wishing for the best for their two daughters. Time went on with this upbringing, though, and Naoko's sister began to fall into a depression for reasons still undefined; almost every day was a "sick day" for her. Although she managed to play it off as if she were okay, she later committed suicide by hanging herself in her own room to first be discovered by an eight year-old Naoko.

Following the death of her sister, Naoko's parents developed an iron grip on their remaining child, as if fearing that she would do the same. The emotional pressure to be perfect grew, and sometimes turned into emotional abuse that involved physical assault and going as far as blaming her for the death of her own sister. Because of this, she began to seek solace in friends she had made from school, most of which were boys two years her superior; her intelligence and talents apparently attracted them to her. Her family moved for monetary benefit and placed her in Furin, resulting in distance between her and her small group of friends; this includes one who promised to try and help her out as soon as he could. Struggling to find a place in a new school and being haunted by visions of what has happened and what could happen, all Naoko can do is dream of a way out.
Other: Being new and so far socially outcasted on the most part, Naoko does she know too terribly much about the Furin-Kazan rivalry other than that it's existent, nor can she find a footing in a club or an organization, despite the occasional pressuring from a classmate - "Inoue HG" is the joking name she uses to refer to him. She has also had some friendly exchanges with Yuko Kazejii and Rika Satou.

~<v>~Naoko Kuchiki - Furin Scorpion~<v>~

Her hair was swept delicately by a chilling breeze; Naoko took this natural gesture as relief from the recently humid air that seemed to infest the entire prefecture with a sense of insecurity and restlessness. To her, there seemed to be a grave feeling that sent shocks down her spine, something not felt since the news of three students at Furin just weeks earlier.

"Glorious Furin; may Amateratsu shine her delight upon thee! Keep thy perpetual windy motion and forest-like steadiness as long as She shines!"

A sarcastic remark like that could only be spawned from a pride much like nationalism following the deaths of her schoolmates; she did not personally know them, given her relative "new"-ness to the school, nor did she really long to have known. The only thing that Naoko knew from a hearing perspective was that Kazan would eventually need to be stopped; this rivalry struck her as too romantic to follow. Had something other than murder been the fuel, and the student body less cruel, she could have possibly conformed to the standards.

The walk remained relatively quiet and much to the norm until she crossed within the school gates; students everywhere seemed to ignite a spiritual fire within the chilly atmosphere, as if some major victory had just taken place...

*-*-*-*

"Bastard deserved it!" was the first proclamation Naoko heard upon opening the door to her homeroom class. Shutting the door without turning, she stared almost wide-eyed and confused at her classmates, some of which turned to glance at her within the sudden silence.

"Didn't you hear?" Masami-san asked, his articulation and volume almost reminiscent of a Christian sermon. Naoko only shook her head once without words, causing her classmate to stifle a quick laugh. "The punk that murdered three of our students wound up dead just last night!"

"Oh, well..." she answered, almost at a loss for words as she took in this news. "Thanks anyway." Drowning out the sound of the discussion, she walked quietly to her desk and sat, eyes blank within her own realm of memories and fantasies.

Brisk post was brisk.

[Emotional Faun Chiko-sai]

Doumeki Yumi

赤い月に吠える夜

9/9. The witching hour. Small shrine.

"What a nice, round, red moon," said Doumeki Kazuko, pouring out a cup of tea for her grandmother. They were seated out on the verandah of the shrine, it being a warm night with clear skies. Both women kept odd hours; on occasion, extremely odd hours.

"Harvest moon," muttered Doumeki Akiko, accepting the cup. She was not in her dotage yet, being somewhere in the late sixties, but she had had a lifetime of being possessed, petitioned, and otherwise harassed by spirits, and her thoughts, if not senile, were disjointed at best. She expressed herself in short, succulent phrases, emerging from her vocal chords like inexpertly fired grapeshot. "Not exactly round yet, though, no."

"In about six days it will be." Kazuko stirred the leaves with the grace of one who had done it for the thousandth time and more.


"Where's my other grandchild got to? Two is an odd number for us to be sitting down to tea."

"With Tadanobu," and, added as an afterthought: "said she had an errand to run - so, with Tadanobu, and those boys."

"Tadanobu don't count. So it's three, is it? It's always three. Really," said Akiko, as gravely as if she were a magistrate in court pronouncing judgment, "she ought to be three, with us, having tea."

"Well, granny, three's a powerful number everywhere. She'll be fine."

"Never said she wouldn't be fine. Never did. It'll be full moon soon. It'll be dangerous."

"A nice, round, red moon."

"In a manner of speaking. Mmyes."

9/9. Approximately the witching hour. The morgue of the local police station.

It wasn't chance that they'd waited so long for this. It was a carefully thought-out, extensively researched plan of campaign. Most definitely, if they had had the ability to go at it earlier, they would have. Fresh corpses were better for the purposes of information collection; the previous inhabitant of the body would be more likely to be still trailing after its earthly raiment, lamenting the tragedy that had befallen it.

In such cases it would not have been necessary to bring Tadanobu, but Yumi had occasional brilliant flashes of clairvoyance and one such flash had recommended the tagging along of the fox spirit.

As was being said, however, the local police force was a fine body of men with an astute sense of duty and since what the three permanent members of the Enigmatic Cube Detective Agency were currently doing was technically a breach of the law, the leader and founder of the agency had chosen to wait till it was training night for the newly inaugurated guards on security duty. T. T. Reusbucks, he of dubious ethnicity and equally dubious scruples, did not leave things to mere chance.

They had broken into the morgue. Or rather, Thomas had hacked their way into the morgue a few minutes previously, and they had shimmied in with only the slightest clumping of Gou Ookami’s (hitman in stickier situations, self-styled Guardian of his redoubtable companions) boots.

Tadanobu, having walked right through the walls some seconds earlier, was poking about the room in a slightly confused manner. Seeing his mistress, he reverted to his regular insouciance, leering freely at the two boys who could not see him, much less sense him.

“Your bodies aren’t here, miss. Not if you’re looking for, specifically, young adult males, of and around the ages of fifteen to seventeen? Well, of course, there’s a couple fitting the description pottering around here at the moment. But they are most significantly alive-”

“Tadanobu says the bodies we’re looking for aren’t here,” repeated Yumi aloud for the benefit of the spiritually challenged, cutting the fox’s insinuations short. Her brow creased as she echoed the fox’s words further. “And… not to be a damper or anything… there isn’t anything of such description in the entire police station…”

Thomas raised a thin eyebrow. From where he had been starting to search among the cold chambers, Ookami started. Ookami being Ookami, when he started, the door of the chamber he had been holding open closed with a hollow clang.

Thomas raised his other eyebrow. Ookami and Yumi exchanged a look commonly classified under the category of “OH SHI-“.

To their credit, or the police station’s capacity for dramatic effect, there were almost five seconds of peace before all hell broke loose. With a vengeance.

The clang was enough to set off a load of other noises, not least including shouts of “There’s someone in the morgue!” and “SECURITY!” For, while you can hack the CCTV system, the computerized access card system, and pretty much anything else based on technology, you can’t hack the possibility of your entire operation going completely pie-eyed. A sad thing, but there it is.

Into each life a little rain must fall, and a considerable amount of rain was about to fall into the lives of the Enigmatic Cube Detective Agency.

Tadanobu snickered. Yumi kicked him, and then transferred her attention to a junior member of security who had had the ill luck to reach the morgue first. She kicked him as well, in a place quite vital to his marriage prospects. Ookami handled a couple more with the bokuto he’d brought along for just such an emergency.

There was, quite suddenly, a cube-shaped flash and rather a lot of smoke. It was smoke the both of them had seen before, and it was good cover, as well as a signal to bolt. Their leader was already nowhere to be seen, having done his duty and making sure his troops had ample opportunity to escape.

Later, at the torii gate leading to the Doumeki family’s shrine, there was a short conversation before the party dispersed.

“So. The police faked evidence.” The astute Mr Wolf, restating the facts of the case for posterity.

“I don’t think they’re actually allowed to do that. Can we press charges for our clearly misplaced belief in the integrity of the police force?” Doumeki Yumi, in her choice of profession as shrine maiden, a great loss to the ranks of lawyers everywhere.

“Yes, and then they’ll ask us what we were doing in the police station at midnight.” Mr Wolf, the wary possessor of a (wrongfully accused) juvenile criminal record, was being sensible in his apprehension of anything related to the police.

“But they broke the law before we did.” Doumeki Yumi did not like wasting her time, and she was at the moment taking it out on the aforementioned police.

“This will require further research. The problem posed, although originally a relatively simple one, has… evolved.” T. T. Reusbucks, always in command of the situation, changing the subject back to something germane to the issue at hand.

“Oookay. So we can go home now?" Yumi stifled a yawn.

"You're already home." Incidentally, Gou Ookami happened to live farthest away from the shrine.

"Mr Wolf needs his beauty sleep or he’ll come in late again and this being the third time he’ll be coming in late this week he’ll probably get detention. Again.” The comeback was instantaneous.

“H-Hey! It’s not my fault the alarm clock never rings loud enough!”

“Yes, if you even remember to set it.”

“And it would take nothing less than an earthquake to wake YOU up.”

“…Grr.”

Yumi stretched. “I have to get up at four bloody forty-five am, so: GOOD NIGHT, ALL, go away, all you buggers, I don’t want to listen to your bellyaching this late at night.” This last directed at the ghosts swarming her.

“G’night.”

“…good night.”


Okay for everyone who did not get my post, you can totally ignore it since there is only a single line in the entire rigmarole that concerns the plot. Shouldn't be too hard to figure out which one. The entire post happened in the midnight/early morning of the current day [the 9th of September], btw.

For people who are awakening: go ahead, get emo! Or get Akaikami'd.

For people who are not: Have some fun (while you can) doing normal high school things, interacting, blahblah.

And do remember even if you ARE already awakened you can still die if you’re inactive.

[Crystal Tears]

Rika Satou

Early Morning – Before School

“No...”

She gulped, leaning forward, her body also at such an angle she was going to fall completely out of the beanbag chair she had chosen to snuggle into.

“No… NO…”

The television screen flashed, showing an overwhelming amount of light before it darkened back to the battle scene she was currently swept away in. She clenched the black, PS controller as suddenly the giant beast she was battling turned its sight on her main party member. Everyone else had died; she didn’t even have anyone in reserve! Rika watched in horror as her last fighter fell to the ground, obliterated in a single, decisive blow.

“NO!” She cried; tempted to throw the wireless controller at the game console she was using. The screen flicked the ‘Game Over’ sign before faded out to the main screen again. Rika, who had been quite confident in herself, had been defeated by a damned monster. “Oh, damn that monster to hell.”

“You lost?”

Rika turned, staring coldly at the man in her doorway. He leaned there, so casually and with an air of over-confidence around him. She boiled underneath her skin; her brother was someone who she couldn’t stand. No matter how hard she tried, he would always find a way to royally piss her off. With huff, she looked away from the clean-cut, nicely dressed boy and went back to staring at the game over screen.

“What do you want?” Rika growled, she was fully dressed in her school attire, and most students would be trying to get to school by now. However, the Satou family only lived about five minutes away from the school. She didn’t need to get there early; she could arrive precisely when she wanted too. But, who was she kidding? Rika would go there early anyways, not risking being late to any of her classes. “Don’t you have Matsu to bother?”

“He’s already headed off for school.” Her elder brother, Yuki smiled slyly. “So, you’re all that’s left.”

The girl let her hand clench the controller tighter, before gently placing on the ground in front of her. Yuki moved into the room, switching the PS3 off, and than the television.

“You know mother hates it when you play that thing in the morning.” He snorted, helping her out of the baggy, lumpy chair. Rika hopped to her feet, giving him a smile.

“She’s never home.”

Yuki was silent, staring at his sister with a cold gaze before he moved out of the room again. Fixing his jacket as he did so, he tried to take his attention off of his sister. Though in truth, they weren’t really family (let alone related) to begin with. Yuki was adopted, than, about five years later, Rika was born. He had still gotten attention, but the family having their own child, a daughter, who both of them had said they were hoping for, made him feel out of place. Rika was their star child, and soon enough everything had focused around her. Yuki had tried to get along with his new ‘sister’, but that gap of non-relatedness remained.

The gap only got worse when Matsu, Rika’s little brother was born four years later. Yuki was forced to look after Rika as their mother was busy and father was never home due to work (and Yuki also assumed affair). At least Matsu had been a boy, another girl and he would’ve gone insane.

Now, with Rika being seventeen, himself twenty-two, and Matsu turning thirteen in a week, their mother had vanished as well. She had also gotten a job, and like their father, became wrapped up in it. Yuki mentally hoped that he would never become like either of his parents.

“Are you going to work?”

“No.” Yuki answered, slightly colder than he had intentioned. “I’m going to the market, mother asked me to pick up some dragon fruit.”

Rika was silent, she stared at her brother. Not knowing what to say, deep down, she knew he hated her. And that hurt, especially because she know why he loathed her so. “… Okay…”

“Get to school on time.” Yuki called, as he disappeared down the hallway. “Or I’ll have your head.”

Rika stared at the empty doorframe.

“Okay…”

Morning – Brother, and Kazan

She was quiet, silently mulling over a couple of pictures she had doodled in her sketchbook as she enjoyed the morning light. They weren’t the happiest of sketches, with a sort of darkness around them. Of course, there were a few ‘good’ ones with no sort of impending doom tied into them. You could say they were filled with sorrow, but she had drawn them with such a style where it looked beautiful and barely anyone noticed the sadness. Rika did of course; she had seen the sadness in her sketches first hand. A couple were of Yuki, sitting in his armchair, reading a book, or just staring out into space. She didn’t understand why he always looked so miserable.

Maybe I should spy on him… She mused, the thought bringing a slight smile to her face. Maybe he smiles when he’s at Kazan, away from the house, Matsu and me.

She looked up, smiling and waving as a couple of the students took notice of her and waved. They kept going of course; they wanted to probably go play some semi-active game before school started. Rika looked down at her watch; she still had about thirty minutes before class started. Silently, she went back to her sketchbook and flipped the page to a picture of Matsu, playing with his friends in the backyard.

At least Matsu is happy… She thought with a warm smile, flipping the page again to find a sketch of a seagull that had chosen her home’s backyard as its domain. And this bird…

Rika sighed, closing the book quietly at and slipping her bright, funky earphones over her ears. As the happy-go-lucky began to infect her mind, she leapt to her feet, slid the sketchbook into her bag and scurried up the steps. She didn’t want to be late to class, and it was always fun being in class early. At that point, where there was only her in that room, she could think.

Those thirty minutes, when you’re not really paying attention, tend to fly faster than you’d ever believe. Rika was surprised when a small group of students entered the room after her, loudly talking about the recent murder of a Kazan student. She looked over her shoulder at the group; they smiled at her and waved, like the others had. She smiled faintly and nodded towards them.

“Did you hear about it?”

Rika turned; startled somewhat to see the group around her desk.

“The murder?” She questioned, slightly dumbfounded. “Only from other students, why?”

“What do you think about it?” The girl spoke up.

“It was a Kazan, bastard deserved it.”

“Um…” Rika murmured. “I…”

The really didn’t much about her opinion, the group wandered off to the back of the room. Rika felt completely alone for a brief moment. Did that Kazan boy really deserve it? She didn’t believe so; no one deserves to have their life stolen from them. Who knows where he could’ve gone? Rika almost growled in frustration. This damn school war was nothing but annoying, and now it had escalated into murder.

Lost in thought, Rika prayed that the violent war now beginning to form around the two schools wouldn’t include Yuki. He may hate her, and she may act like she hates him. But deep down, he’s a good person, and deserves to live his life.

[classy_cat18]

Itou Cho (see sign-up thread for profile)

"Okaa-san! Where's my lunch?" Three seconds later I yelled again. "Found it!" I ran for the front door with my school things before Mom stopped me.

"Cho...could you look at something for me?" she asked me. Her voice sounded shaky but I ignored it.

"Sure!" I walked to her studio and gaped at her latest piece of work, a beautiful woman in warrior dress. She crouched in a fighting stance, a sword with a scarf tied to it in each hand. "She's beautiful..."

She smiled proudly. "Thought she would be. I've been at this painting for three weeks. I may never let this one go."

"I guess we could always sell copies."

I turned to leave again when she grabbed my shoulder. "I want you to be careful at school. It's been getting dangerous again."

I nodded slowly and left the house. A Kazan student dead, the one that supposedly murdered three Furin students last month. It would be the talk of the school for a long time. Unfortunately, it would make the feud worse. I already was having a hard time coping with it.

I was so preoccupied with my thoughts I didn't see who I bumped into. I looked up into a pair of familiar blue eyes. "Ry..." I bit my lip to avoid finishing. My face was starting to get hot.

Why did I have to meet him on my way to school? That never happens! Two other Furin students stopped at the sight of the two of us. And I was still standing there! I forced myself to take action. "Watch where you're going, baka!" I yelled before stomping on his foot. Ryuu hissed in pain. I ran off, not bothering to look back.

I'm sorry, but they can't know. I wiped away a tear that had managed to escape. It felt like the warm feeling wasn't going away. I didn't slow down until I reached my homeroom and almost crashed into Akio.

"Whoa!" we said together. I skidded to a stop right in front of him.

I staggered to my desk and sat down heavily. "Cho? Something wrong?" Akio asked me.

I quickly smiled at him. "Just thinking. You know, about that murder. Do you think this place is haunted now by that student? Ooh, that would be so interesting!" He wasn't able to fit in a word edgewise, but I kept talking. "Akio-kun, you have to see my mom's new painting! It's of a woman...and she's like this..." I crouched on one leg and stretched out the other.

Akio let out a small laugh, slightly relieving me of my tension. My temperature was starting to go down. "A Kazan student got murdered...and you want to see his ghost?"

"Mm-hmm." I reached up and brushed my fingers down a lock of his hair. "Can I cut off a little? You know, for a good luck charm?"

He was about to protest for the hundredth time when the teacher entered. I sat in my seat, sighing once Ryuu's face appeared in my mind. This definitely wasn't getting any better.

[Outlaw JT]

Name: Mizukaze Ryuu
Age: 16
Gender: m
Appearance: Short brown hair. Sparkling blue eyes. Athletic figure. Ryuu wears the typical Furin uniform with the pin for the Furin martial arts team on his lapel. His tie in uniform is a silver color with a metallic blue chinese dragon on it. His blazer has blue trim which makes him stand out a little in uniform. When not in uniform he is usually seen in a black tai chi gi that has a blue collar and a blue chinese dragon stitched across the chest.
Personality: Gentle as the breeze with the torrential power of the whirlwind. Ryuu is one of the calmest coolest individuals you'll ever meet. He's often perceived as a quiet person but really he is just selective of the people and/or times he decides to be vocal. He's very observant of other people and acts accordingly to reduce conflict. Despite his unshakable calm demeanor, he can become violently swift when someone he cares about is threatened. His manner and speech will never waver but his actions rapidly become aggressive when someone he cares for is hurt or threatened.
School: Furin
Zodiac Sign: Aquarius
Power: Weapon
Power Description: An ornate staff 6 feet in length, it is intricately etched depicting a blue Chinese dragon coiling through the clouds for it's entire length. Capable of creating powerful gusts of wind that are controlled by the movement of the weapon. Can be used to form a shield of air by rapidly spinning it, or powerful aimed blasts of air with jabs and swipes. Eventually will allow flight as spinning it over your head rapidly provides lift (ala helicopter) and the dragons mouth can be triggered to spew forth a small cloud which the wielder can stand on and direct similar to a skateboard. Mastery of the staff will allow the forming of a bubble of wind shielding the wielder from all directions as the staff is carefully spun rapidly in all directions around him in an elaborate delicate fashion.
Background/History: Ryuu had a fairly normal childhood. When he was 11 his parents divorced. Originally he stayed with his wealthy father but when his father remarried two years later he moved back in with his mother as his father no longer had time for him. School life also went fairly normal until he met Cho. During a martial arts competition between Furin and Kazan early in his second year he met her and the two of them have been meeting in secret ever since. They have been trying to keep their love secret for fear of what their respective classmates might do but it has become increasingly difficult to keep meeting with the growing hostilities.
Other: Ryuu is in love with Cho. They do their best to keep their relationship hidden from their classmates. Ryuu dislikes having to maintain the secrecy but would do anything to protect Cho even though she doesn't normally need it.

Mizukaze Ryuu
~The Scent of Danger in the Breeze~

A breeze flows through the trees. Some winds are heavy, other light. Some winds bring nothing but air, some carry more than anyone can perceive. This morning's breeze flowing gently through an open window with the first light of dawn carried an invisible scent. It is this scent that woke Mizukaze Ryuu. The scent of danger to come.

From the first Ryuu could sense something wrong in the air. Nothing tangible. Nothing he could assign quantity or value to. Just an uneasiness that hung about the breeze as if something horrible were coming.

This feeling persisted all through the early morning as Ryuu made his preparations for the day. So unsettling was this feeling that he was unable to eat any of his breakfast. So out of rhythm did it take him that he forgot all sense of the world around him and suddenly clung to one thought. Ryuu had to see Cho! He had to know that she was ok. On any other day he would have the sense to remember that meeting her in the open was dangerous for them. The scent of the breeze made him take leave of them, however.

He knew the way even though he could never walk the path. He walked it this morning with single minded purpose. The breeze lingered and followed him the entire way. Not until he rounded the last corner did it fade from his mind.

Relief was instantaneous as Ryuu found himself diving into a deep beautiful pair of eyes. One blue, one green; a uniqueness that has drawn him in helplessly since the moment he met Itou Cho. After that brief instant both of their faces started to shade a light crimson. Fortunately, Cho was in full possession of her senses and she reacted quickly and sharply as a pair of Ryuu's classmates suddenly came into view.

"Watch where you're going, baka!" she shouted suddenly, stomping on Ryuu's foot for emphasis.

Immediately he took note of his classmates and turned to them as he clasped his foot. Thankfully the path to Furin and the path to Kazan diverged here so it was easy for Ryuu to place himself between them and Cho. They looked displeased by the display.

Baka.....I really am an idiot. What if they'd seen something? Thank you Cho! he thought as he limped lightly to his classmates.

"You gonna take that from one of those Kazan snobs, Ryuu?" one of them said in a thuggish voice.

"Just chill guys. She's on the Kazan martial arts team. You know if we fought her outside a tournament we'd get suspended from the team," Ryuu expertly played it off as his limp began to fade.

A twinge of dismay crept into him at the thought that he was getting to be an expert at deflecting suspicions. More than anything he wanted to shout to the world his feelings. The world didn't want to let him, though, so Cho and he were forced to live one life in public view and another they shared only together.

These thoughts distracted Ryuu and carried him through his morning classes. His mind no longer dwelt on the uneasiness he had felt earlier. Sadly, even though it had now escaped his perception the scent of danger still carried on the breeze.

[kalad1]

Tsurugi Touma

I sighed as I approached the school, more than a few of my fellow students had approached me already, asking if I knew anything about the 'murderer's death, several asking if I'd been the one to do it. THAT got to me, I mean it was one thing to beat the teeth out of a few punks who deserved it, or to have a good brawl with someone tough... but to kill someone in revenge? That just didn't seem right.

Death... wasn't something to spread lightly, but a number of my fellow students seemed rabid, delighted with the idea that someone had died. I scowled at the thought as I walked through the school corridors, not noticing that the act of doing so made many of my fellow students look at me worriedly. Revenge wasn't a just or honorable thing. Even if the guy really had murdered the three, to kill someone was wrong, unless it was the only immediate option. It would have been much better to have them stew in a cell for a while.

I was shaken from my reverie by a fellow student, one of the rabid punks that I didn't like, I couldn't remember his name. He came up to me excitedly, stating, "Hey, Touma, buddy, me and some friends were thinking of getting a group together and striking at Kazan, before they do, you know, make 'em suffer a bit. Maybe inflict some casualties to even the numbers."

His final words made me snap, and suddenly I was seeing red, I grabbed him by the collar, swinging him around and slamming him into the wall, HARD. I then spoke, very angrily, "You do ANYTHING of the sort, and I will track you down and beat the ever loving CRAP out of you before handing you over to the police. No one deserves death. Not the Kazan or anyone else."

I then lifted him again, throwing him to the ground and walking off through the shocked, murmuring crowd of students that had witnessed my display of anger. I stewed as I walked, this was turning out to be a REALLY bad day...

[Weasel Overlord]

Inoue Hotaru
この青い世界
Midday [at] Furin Tea Ceremony Club

”Midday! It’s time for some tea!” Inoue Hotaru almost skipped out of the Japanese History classroom in his eagerness to get to the Tea Ceremony Club, which he had fondly nicknamed the TCC.

He flung open the doors dramatically, and flounced inside to flop on a handily placed corner sofa, laden with squishy cushions and surrounded by footstools and poufs*.

Picking up a magazine off the coffee table, Hotaru leafed through it impatiently; the waiting for the club members always managed to grate on his nerves slightly. What if no one turned up? Not that no one would turn up. Ever since Hotaru had become the Chairman, the Tea Room had been packed out thrice weekly with avid members of the Tea Ceremony Club, despite the fact that no tea ceremonies ever took place. In fact, you could say that the Furin Tea Ceremony Club was more of a nest for fangirls.

A certain fangirl going by the name of Makoto Sayuri was the epicentre of this nest, and her (much less obvious) partner in crime (and moe), Kalah Byquest, the exchange student. Hotaru wasn’t entirely sure he approved of the exchange student, having caught her trailing himself and his Kazan friends on numerous occasions, but she was a friend of Sayuri’s, and she was… well, a permanent member of the TCC. Much more permanent than Akio and Dai, that much was for sure. Although to be fair, they were members of Kazan Gakuen, and therefore certainly not welcome at Furin these days, despite Hotaru's many attempts at sneaking the pair in to the TCC.

Thinking of his Kazan friends made Hotaru miss them slightly. What with all the hoo-hah going on between schools right now, meeting up with them had to be done after school, and while none of them were in uniform, and it had to be out of the public eye, and to be frank, all of the precautions made Hotaru feel like he was hiding out from paparazzi or something.

He flung the magazine down with a sigh, then nearly jumped out of his skin as a heavy hand landed on his shoulder, complete with a loud, breathy moan in his ear.

“Argh! What the…” he turned swiftly to find Sayuri leering over his shoulder. “Must you do that every single time you come in here?”

“I’ll stop doing it when you stop being so easy to frighten, Taru-chan! You wanna be more careful. I could have been one of those Kazan murderers or anyone!” she made a grim face, then vaulted over the back of the sofa to sit next to Hotaru.

“I’m not afraid of Kazan murderers, Sayu-san, and nor should you be.”

“Whyever not? Come on, Taru-chan, don’t be complacent. Just cos you’re the Chairman of the TCC doesn’t mean they can’t slaughter you, too.”

“Oh, slaughter. Lovely talk for tea, thanks Sayu-san,” Hotaru said, sarcastically.

“Well, someone has to look out for you, Taru-chan, since you’re obviously incapable of doing it for yourself!”

“How rude! I’ll have you know, I could… throw a teapot full of hot tea at any murderer coming my way and then we’d see who’s incapable!”

“Hah!” Sayuri snorted with laughter and slapped Hotaru on the thigh. “Right, right, you’ll save the world with tea! Our hero Ho-sama and his deadly tea of doom!” Hotaru tried to look menacing, but merely succeeded in looking as if he had a bad bout of wind. “So speaking of tea, Taru-chan, when’s everyone else getting here?”

--

ANY TEA CLUB MEMBERS FEEL FREE TO TURN UP NOW!! *not-so-subtle tag with a flying teapot full of tea, Ho-sama style* XD
Ugh, I am out of practice at this RPGing malarky. 'pologies for shortness of postness. I shall whip myself into shape over the next few days.

*Poufs: those squishy things you can sit on. NOT puff/poof: an insult for gay people.

[Dr.McNinja]

Name: Keto Satoshi (Japanese order)

Age: 17

Gender: M

Appearance: http://kalandy44.deviantart.com/art/...quest-76240612 for his physical appearance. Ignore the clothes and add glasses. He wears a typical Japanese school uniform for guys, buttoned up neatly and well pressed and whatnot. He usually carries his book bag with him and is prone to adjusting his glasses at the slightest hint of an anime inspired reflection.

Personality: Satoshi is a nerd, plain and simple...or maybe not. He possesses both a natural talent for academics as well as a studious attitude that only amplifies that talent. He is extremely hard working and gives his all to any pursuit that he dedicates himself to. He usually shares number one in the class with Akio who’s natural ability to get good grades mystifies him though he does not resent the go-getting youth, rather using his success to motivate him to do even better. He tries his best to get to know people and make friends but he can be awkward, not knowing how to deal with many social situations and especially so in tense situations that require a delicate hand.
Sometimes he can come across as arrogant or a know it all however this is usually due to him trying to explain something or sharing what he knows but forgetting that not everyone has the experiences he has had or really cares about his subjects of interest. He is quite apologetic in such situations when he realizes the effect it has on people. Finally, Satoshi is hopelessly clumsy much of the time. He has trouble focusing and is often the target of teasing and bullying. As a result, he is somewhat skittish.

School: Kazan

Zodiac Sign: Sagittarius

Power: Familiar

Power Description: Alrighty. For how the familiar looks check this out:http://www.ffinsider.net/final-fanta.../shemhazai.jpg
and for a good view of the entirety of it watch this: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h_gkb...eature=related

In its normal state, Satoshi’s familiar is only the “person” part of what you see there. At it increasingly accesses its powers however, the horse/carriage section forms as something as a “battery” for the power needed for his moves. At first, the familiar forms as something of an exosuit on Satoshi, only a few feet larger than Satoshi himself. With the addition of more material however, it can grow to larger heights, limited mostly but the material available though there is an upper-limit (far below the Empire State Building ;P). The familiar itself forms from material around Satoshi when he activates the power, the materials seeming to quickly burn up in a reddish fire as the suit forms. The materials return to normal when the familiar is deactivated none the worse for wear though while he maintains the familiar someone might have to go without a desk, car, house, etc depending on the size. Nothing vital to the story (the evil man’s base/his own armor) will ever be absorbed to form the suit for obvious reasons. In a perfectly empty field/desert, Satoshi could probably find enough material to form the basic suit and over time gather enough to increase the size but, as indicated by this situation, the less he has to work with the less mass he can add to the familiar.

Power-wise, the familiar utilizes its arms to project energy attacks as they are quite gunlike as shown in the image. The side attachments are sharp and they can be used as bladed weapons as well, charged with energy they can cut through most anything. In extreme situations, Satoshi can combine the arms into a bow-like weapon and fire incredibly powerful attacks though each such shot drains his energy store. The familiar is faster than it is tough though it can obviously absorb damage to some extent. The suit has the ability to manipulate energy in other ways other than just bolts to attack but not at first, and not as a primary method of operation (it’s more improvisational when he does it)

Satoshi has/will name the suit Tenma Chuushin

Background/History: Satoshi lives with his grandparents as his parents are both off on separate work-related exploits. His mother is a government translator and spends most of her time away on business with various members of the Japanese government. His father is a world-renowned Doctor who maintains a teaching position in America at the moment as well as his own work at the medical school’s hospital. Both visit from time to time but never for a long period. Satoshi feels the pressure of having such prestigious parents and most of the time uses that pressure to drive him to succeed more though it still gets to him time and again. His grandparents mostly let him do as he pleases, his grandfather is a Shinto priest at the local shrine and his grandmother maintains the shrine as well, the entire family living on the shrine grounds. Overall his life is normal, if somewhat colorful due to his grandparent’s profession (at least one person should have both parents in good standing and a normal houselife neh? ).

Other: HE LOVES TEA.....er...yeah, he likes it

~Keto Satoshi~

Keto’s morning was the same as always. Wake up, clean the shrine, eat his morning meal, gather his school items and depart. School was no different, at first, either. A class, a second class, and the uncomfortable time before classes where he conversed with those he had managed to befriend (tag anyone?) and avoid those seeking retribution. His second class and the test that ensued heightened the odds of the latter and a stumble and gust sealed his fate. (Nice and brief neh?)

Late Morning Day: 1

“What’s wrong Keto?”

Satoshi cringed at the words, so full of irritatingly obvious sarcasm that it was obvious the speaker meant not a syllable of it. If he dared to raise his head he would shoot that speaker his most withering glare but to do so would be akin to suicide at this moment. They were standing in front of him, their uniforms unbuttoned halfway, their pants loose and cocked on their hips. He had chased his paper across the yard, spilled in one of his countless stumbles throughout the day, and when he had finally corralled them far from prying eyes, they had shown up, the isolation of Satoshi fuel for their intentions.

“Scared Keto? What do you think we’re going to do to you? Huh?”

Satoshi didn’t bother answering. If he kept his eyes down and his mouth shut they would rough him up and leave him be. If he spoke, to reveal the absolute absurdity of their insistence at proclaiming superiority in such a small stage as High School they would do far worse. A sharp slap sent his books and papers flying again, but he didn’t cringe, he focused on the scuffed surface of the shoes in front of him, his mind working furiously, raging internally at the power that these few had over him. He did nothing against them, one in his position learned quickly not to make much of themselves unless they were either stupid, in which case those with other strengths quickly destroyed them, or charismatic enough to avoid the anger of others. No matter what one did however, there were those who saw one’s strengths as an insult against themselves, and those who did inevitably wanted revenge for these perceived slights.

“What the crap are you doing to us Keto? Making us look bad? You think your better than us just cause you know the crap the teachers are tellin us? Who do you think you are man?”

The shoves were against him this time, sharp and violent. They were not going to leave him alone Satoshi realized. Away from prying eyes in this corner of the yard, bolstered by their numbers, this would end bad. Satoshi’s stomach roiled, he did not want this, he did not want others to hate him for being good at something but he did not know how to make them understand. His mouth dried up as he tried to explain it, his feet tangled themselves, at least with those who did not understand. A shove threw him up against a well-crafted stone wall and his gaze finally lifted to their sneering faces. Their leader threw back his spiky black hair and spat at the ground as Satoshi spoke, his voice low and quiet.

“I’m not...anyone. I’m just trying my best...”

The punch bent him over double, the jeers replying haughtily.

“Damn straight you aren’t anyone! You ain’t nothing Satoshi. Some damn kid who’s not going to do a damn thing, so your dumb-ass brains don’t mean nothing!”

A hot flush came to Satoshi’s face, anger tinging his fear and doubt. He would punch them right back if he could. Watch them vomit on the ground, watch them bleed helplessly under his own anger. But he couldn’t, he was one person, and it was almost as if this was his place to be, his payment for what he could do. The crunching of footsteps caused him to cringe in anticipation of the next blow. His mind recalling a dozen more instants before the pain of blow struck him.

“Damn nerd.”

“Worthless piece of...”

“Haughty bastard.”

It was the sudden gust, hard and cold and unusual for the time of year that cooled his anger. A soft noise, unnoticed before, echoed in his ears like the fragment of a shout and the sudden silence that greeted him confused his senses. The shoes were gone from in front of him and no more blows rained down upon him. A single voice, soft, quiet, and female, caused him to raise his pained eyes.

(Tag Engi, and may god help me for what I’ve brought upon poor Satoshi)

[EngiMatikul]

THANKS TO MCNINJA I CAN DEAL WITH TWO AWAKENINGS WITH ONE POST. :V
So while Furin is having tea time...


Akaikami
=====11:50 AM=====
Anger. Fear. Sadness. Pain. It was all growing, steadily, slowly. It was slow for them. It seemed unreal, too far off, no chance in hell it will happen to them... well... Now they're in hell, and now there's a chance. Akaikami hid in behind the foilage of a large tree and watched the students at Kazan. She can feel the negative energy perfusing throughout them, growing ever so slowly... so slowly... so slowly. It was still not enough. Many of them still feel as if nothing had truly happened, perhaps too shocked to think any of it was real. But it is real. And soon, a catalyst will cause a chain reaction and release more negative energy until...

Until the true powers are revealed.


Akaikami shifted her eyes from window to window, observing the situation. It was apparent that her previous attempts were too subtle, too cautious for the students to fear what was going on. A more catastrophic event must occur... but, Akai wondered, how will she do it? It will be much more difficult using her full powers without the risk of being seen...
Suddenly, she saw it.
It was a familiar scenary. One she had seen before, and used to her advantage. History constantly repeats itself... or does it? This time, there was something different. There was a swelling of power within this young man, yet Akai had done nothing. He was one, Akai realized, and it was beginning. It was beginning, finally, after much observation and caution, she can finally begin on her next step...
But, the power was hesitant. It would not come out without help. Akaikami sighed as if it was her responsibility to let the child blossom.
"However..."
However, to catalyze the negative atmosphere as well as activate a zodiac power... a bit of action is a small price to pay for a better reward.
Akaikami held out her hand and summoned a small orb, bright white on the peripheral while a deep swirling purple in the center. The small orb floated out of her hands and meandered in through the windows. It escaped the views of several students and swiftly made its way to its target: a young boy by the name of Satoshi.
The effect was immediate. Akaikami did not need to force much power into him, not like the other students; rather the power came out by himself. The boy transformed, in a glowing red light, as plates of armor begin to materialize onto his arms, his legs, his body, his face; the boys that were surrounding him stepped back in fear of what was happening, at first paralyzed but then, realizing the situation, ran for their lives.
Chase them, Akai whispered, and the being flew after them, flailing attacks at random and missing his target completely. Akaikami was not concerned of this, since she was not using her full power to control him in any sense and it was more effective for him to create a scene rather than to swiftly kill off his classmates. The chase continued for a while, causing large clamor within the school as students quickly moved away from the path of the rampaging zodiac, until...
Stop.
The zodiac stopped abruptly as if it had been restrained. Beside him, was, a Kazan schoolgirl who had just stepped out of a classroom to see what was going on. Her antennae-like hair stood out as she saw the large being loom over her, trembling as if barely maintaining control. He could sense it. Akai could sense it. It was another one of the same power.
Well, aren't we lucky today? Attack.
-----

Same rules, classy gets tagged, yada yada classy if you do reply don't kill off poor Satoshi of course. :3

EDIT:

To make things more obvious.
CLASSYCAT YOU ARE TAGGED AND MUST RESPOND IN 5 DAYS. :V

[Dr.McNinja]

Am I allowed to reply at all before Classy?

[EngiMatikul]

Hmmm... you can, but you won't be able to announce the outcome of the battle until classy posts it, or 5 days has past which then you can be allowed to finish her off if you want to write it.

Although it wouldn't give classy much to post if you posted the entire battle scene. :V

EDIT: OR YOU CAN MAKE A NEW CHARACTER AND POST FOR HIM/HER

[Bulbasaur4]

Pardon me if I post anything incorrectly! I'm trying to type fast (the euro clock is ticking in this internet cafe...) but I couldn't BARE not posting for three more days! ;_; Akio MUST be broughten justice! XD




Name: Kasai, Akio (means Fiery Bright Boy!) but he goes by a fake last name, "An" which seems odd.
Age: 16
Gender: M
Appearance: He’s like Maguri from Gentlemen’s Alliance! SHAMELESS STEALING! If you don’t know what that looks like, look at these pictures. Picture 1 Picture 2 and Picture 3! His hair is not blonde however, but a fiery red color- think Renji but more vibrant! XD Same golden eye color however and he has a knack for wearing splotchy camo beneath his school uniform. He has a regular toned build, with a slightly sun-ripened hue to his skin that radiates his inner fiery glow. He stands about 5'9 and his noticable bodily feature is his strong shoulder line and sloped waist. His regular school uniform is all black, but because he’s on the Student Council he wears a white overcoat/suit jacket-styled uniform with black trim. He always wears his collar slightly open, just because he hates the feel of it against his neck. And that white band around his head? He usually sports that after school but sometimes during school if he forgets.
His after school wear usually are khaki-colored pants, a tight-fitting black shirt with a air-breathing, light-weight olive green jacket over it.

Personality: On the outer shell, Akio is known for being a ‘go-getter’ and seems extremely confident in himself. He is not arrogant, but rather when he puts his mind to something he’s quite sure that he’ll do alright at it or… at least positive about it. He tends to get bored with things easily however, and has a knack for doing something one minute, getting bored and then leaving it to do something else. (with out an ADD quality, mind you.) He is quite animate which makes him highly amusing in stressful situations and he tends to overreact to other people’s comments if they show a slight hint of disapproval. If he does something wrong, he’s very quick to be a mopey puppy about it and very apologetic the point of overkill. However, his temper can flash in an instant in a rather comedic way if someone decides to snark at jab at him.
Deep down he feels a lot of pressure due to his family lineage and the expectations his family has placed upon him. He usually doesn’t reveal much of his inner emotions to others and rather seems quite oblivious to anyone who might have interest in him at first. There’s more to him than that obviously, but that’s a brief definition.

School: Kazan
Zodiac Sign: Aries, RWAR!
Power: Elemental Fire
Power Description: Akio’s powers stem directly from the elemental power of fire, since his sign IS the Cardinal direct of the fire signs. However, Akio has found that controlling such a wild element of fire is quite difficult, especially if his temper flares up. He can manifest the element so that it bends to his will, but the strength and quantity at which it does so directly depends upon his state of mind. This creates problems when he is angry, for the fire conjured is a bit too much and also when he’s mopey, because the fire is too small. Abilities he can do with his fire range from surrounding himself on fire without pain (sometimes with, depending on the situation… XD) for protection or hurling simple fireballs. He cannot do this yet, but eventually will learn how to use fire to create wall-like barriers to burn things that try to pass through it and such. Despite being a fire element user, Akio shows visibly no fear of any element- a sign of his Aries sign.
Background/History: Akio is from the Kasai family, which is one of the more wealthy and influential families within the area. However, Akio has kept his last name much of a secret and so has the family, due to the fact that the Kasai family is generally secretive in nature and has been often the subject of doing rather questionable things and pushing their weight slightly. Akio rather enjoys not sporting his real last name, and using his fake one that he created himself. A few people point out the odd naming, but no one really mentions it directly to Akio due to his personality.
Akio’s mother and father are generally too busy to be around and Akio grew up being the subject of many other family members who visited his house. Generally he was brought up by the family hires. Despite this, Akio is filled with a tremendous amount of pressure from his family to succeed in his schooling and go on to head the Kasai family. He doesn’t particularly enjoy this much, because he’d rather goof around and do what he likes.
Now that he’s apart of the school, he’s got a bit of a reputation as being someone you want to avoid. Not because he’s violent or gets into fights, but rather because the sheer aura and charisma around him makes people think he’s probably got some fighting power in him. (which is only enhanced when his powers surface.) Akio, ironic enough, doesn’t seem to care much about the little ‘rivalry’ between the two schools despite his friends many attempts to drag him into the fights and pressure from the Student Council. (dum dum duuum!) There are rumors he’s good friends with people from the neighboring school.
Other: Despite his sometimes goofy and rather comical moody nature, Akio gets excellent grades which comes to a shock to many when they are released. :3 Also he is the Vice President of the Student Council, so fear him. XD XD He's been grade school friends with both Inoue Hotaru and Sakamoto Dai, and those two are probably the only ones who get the inner workings of Akio's personality, which may or may not be a good thing. XD
ALSO... Akio has a weird, loving addiction of Mochi Ball ice cream. (Mochi ball ice cream is where pounded rice is made into mochi and wrapped about flavored ice cream. His favorite flavor is green tea and strawberry.)

Kasai Akio
|Kazan | M | 16 | - Currently Chasing Cho AKA CCC |

MUSIC: "Ichirin no Hana" - Bleach

Like usual, as most days, Akio found that everything was rushing around like a whirlwind. Of course, such a whirlwind did not alarm Akio nor did it rouse any pangs of longing for the time to slow down. Akio always was the type to twirl with the flow, although he much prefurred to perhaps soar over it in the same direction.

MORNING - BEFORE SCHOOL
"Ehhhh... Akio-sama!" Taiguri-chan piped up, her rather short head appearing above Akio's bed. She was a short girl- one of the little daughters of the head maid whom Akio was rather fond of, due to the fact he was a sucker for children. That, and sweet-faced women. And sweet-faced men. And anything that ever, ever resembled a fluffy, cute-cuddly animal. Although, Akio would never admit to such things, although he was teased constantly by Dai or Inoue.

Akio slept rather soundly in his plush, rather large European canopy bed that was lavished with egyptian silk in the deepest sanguine colors. His large, rather western-styled house was filled with various trinkets from Europe, America and Africa. An odd combination with a Japanese flair, it was often a place to behold when one was not accustomed to entering the mansion.
"Akio-sama! Please wake up!" Akio stirred to the little voice, finally opening a rather gold-flecked eye of blazing yellow, to stare straight into the face of Taguri.

"ACKWHATAREYOUDOINGINMYROOM?HOLYCRAPWHATTIMEISIT?! IGOTTAGO!"
Akio leapt out of the bed like a frightened cat, causing Taguri-chan to scream and run out of the room. Akio realized what he had done, and quickly chased her down the hallway (practically in the nude, no-less" frantically yelling appologies. It wasn't until the two dashed by the kitchen that he was yelled at by the cook to get some clothes on. Akio then promptly stopped, blushed, and ran back to his room, all the while yelling more appologies.
While Taguri was quite frightened, the rest of the household merely chuckled at the uproar. They were quite used to Akio's unique personality.

No sooner than later, Akio had adorned upon him his black school uniform. However, the last few buttons upon the neck were undone in a rather ruly manner due to Akio's extreme distaste for anything binding his neck. (He saved those such tastes for later... ahohoho! Was that too brash?)
Akio quickly grabbed some daifu to go and quickly was given the 'once over' by the butler, who reminded him of the importance of his studies and how he was the heir to the family and all the usual pressure-inducing things that his parents would have said. Rather quickly after, Akio ran out the door, grabbing his cleanly pressed student council jacket as he did so. (And uttering yet another appology to Taguri).

SCHOOL: RIGHT BEFORE

"Greetings Akio-san..." Satoshi had uttered in Akio's direction, giving a short bow which was proper to the Vice President of the Student Council. Akio had red bean daifu in his mouth, so he mumbled a rather rough hello which no one really understood. His white, black-trimmed jacket was neatly put on (of course, the collar was tastefully left open. A key note.) and it flowed behind him to give him an even more dominant aura. It was quite ironic, to anyone who truly knew Akio, for his dominant aura was something that naturally flowed with HIM but definatelly was not an ingredient in his everyday personality.

Akio made a mental note to chat with Satoshi later, perhaps after school. (The two of them were friends, perhaps not as good of friends as Dai, Inoue and Cho... but definately next perhaps? Akio was never good with inner rankings.) He noticed that Satoshi was a little edgy... a little more nervous than normal. And especially around Akio himself! (Again, Akio was rather ... blatantly oblivious to the fact that his position and Satoshi's position were rather far from being close together, in a social manner.)

"Ahhhh ahh ahh ahhh! Cho-chan!" Akio beamed brightly, but he noticed that she seemed flush as if something was bothering her. SHe quickly turned the subject to something else, and while Akio accepted this and went with it...he couldn't help but be slightly offput. He knew that Cho was doing something perhaps she shouldn't- her shifty gaze, her fidgeting toes- he noticed little things like that and recognized she did that as peculiar times of nervousness or something. STill, Akio didn't press. He assumed that 'good friends' did not press matters that didn't seem life-threatening. Besides, Cho could tell him if she really wanted to.

SCHOOL: IN CLASS

"Hmm..." Akio pondered further, absently wondering what Dai-kun was doing in his English class, and Inoue over in Furin. The teacher was droning on about something, which Akio didn't bother taking notes on. He had a few books back at home that said the exact same things the teacher was saying...but better.

The murders that Cho had talked about before class were also upon Akio's mind. Who was the murderer? Many believed it was the conflicts between school, others believed it was a rogue student who was getting back at both. Some people even thought it was a monster...which was odd. Akio ruled that out. Monsters. Bah! There definately would be some sort of Student Council meeting, in which he would offer his opinions on the matter. THere were a few rumors that the current Student Council President would be stepping down (some transfer thing, he was going to go to America or Europe or something...) and thus Akio would become President. More pressure.

"Psst!" Akio recieved a nudge from another classmate, and he blinked and looked over. A note was passed his way, by one of the blonde-haired females who dyed her hair a few weeks ago. Akio forgot her name... it was something... and perhaps it was important..
She made googly eyes at him often. It made Akio a little worried.
"You look all scary when you're so focused! Smile! ^_^ Also, don't forget about the Student Council meeting after school!"

Akio was further frightened. He did not know her name and yet she was... sending him reminders? Telling him to smile?
"Oye... Cho... Cho!" He whispered (the teacher had left the classroom for a moment.)
Cho was gone.
Blinking, Akio looked about and noticed that she must have left the classroom. Instinctively, he peered out the window to see her figure dashing by one of the bushes.

Now, while Akio wasn't one to look at Cho in the way that many men perhaps would... he WAS quite fond of her sweet-faced appearance. In their few years together, he had grown fond of her- almost protective in a way. It caused many rumors at school, which oddly Cho did not seem to mind. Usually. Unless she was really focused, on which she'd give him a sharp elbow jab.
"Tssk...Cho, what are you doing now." Akio muttered, rising from his desk which caught a few more eyes.
"Ano... bathroom!" He said, swiftly walking out the door and closing it on the growing whispers of the classroom.

Akio began running down the stairs and quickly pushed the glass doors open.
"Cho! Cho!" He called, looking about anxiously. It wasn't until then that he heard a tremendous yell followed by a rather eerie scream.
"Cho!"





[ I'm not too picky. Either someone can stop Akio before he finds Cho and Satoshi, or you guys could have him stumble in. There's just one thing to remember: in any serious situation, Akio goes from a lovable goof to really, actually eeriely confident and calm. A sexy sort of confident, not-overly-commanding way. (Think of the Emperor from Gentlemen's Alliance or something of that sort.) I mean... he is a VP afterall. XD ]

[classy_cat18]

I won't kill Satoshi if Satoshi promises not to kill me!

Itou Cho - WTF?

It really didn't get better as the day went on. Not only did I feel guilt for acting the way I did to Ryuu, I also had the creeping suspicion that someone was watching me. I repeatedly looked up and around at my classmates but everyone seemed to be more interested in their lesson. I couldn't even concentrate on my classwork. On top of that, the slightly warm feeling that I felt from bumping into Ryuu came back stronger.

I waited patiently for the teacher to go out for his inevitable bathroom trip. Seeing that everyone else was either doing work or on the verge of going to sleep, I silently slipped out and hurried outside. I was only a few minutes away from the Furin campus; I could sneak in and find Ryuu's locker easily. Once more I felt a pang of guilt, followed by that weird feeling of someone's eyes staring at me. "I'm more messed up than I thought," I said to myself.

"AHA!" The voice that seemed to freeze students instantly rang in my ears.

I turned around and faced Zenigata with my best smile. "Zenigata-san!"

"Don't give me that look, Itou! You're out of class without permission! And you're a repeat offender!" He lightly tapped my head with the stick he always carried around. "Now don't try that whole 'I-felt-sick-and-needed-fresh-air' excuse!"

"Ano..." I looked around for anything that could serve as a distraction.

"MONSTER!" a Kazan student screamed as he ran past us.

Luckily Zenigata seemed to think this was more important than a truant. He promptly chased the student across the field, leaving me alone. That was too strange. But what was that about? There couldn't be a monster!

A chorus of screams followed by a loud roar broke me out of my reverie. Logic told me to run and hide but my curiosity got the best of me. I stepped out of the bushes to see something large and metal walking towards me. "Nani..." My eyes scanned the rest of the figure, making it out to be human shaped. "A suit of armor?"

The armor was trembling, its large arms twitching like it wasn't in control of itself. My own body was out of control as well, but it didn't want to move at all. Finally the armor made the first move, raising an arm to spear me.

"MOVE!" someone shouted.

I suddenly made a move to dodge the arm, jumping back just as it pierced the ground. "It almost killed me!" I yelled in disbelief.

"Cho-chan, over here!" Akio-kun shouted from the sidelines. I stepped towards him only to find the armored head tracking my movements. Akio-kun started to run to me.

"No!" I said to him, holding up a hand to stop him. "It doesn't want you!"

My attacker wasn't finished. The same arm it tried to impale me with opened to reveal what I knew to be a gun. And it aimed the thing right at me. I backed up as the mouth of the gun glowed. It really wanted to kill me. That gun wasn't aimed for anyone but me. Why me? "Someone help me..." I whimpered.

My eyes closed. Ryuu...

"Get down!" My eyes snapped open when I heard an inner voice unlike my own.

Akio tackled me to the ground before the thing fired. I could feel the energy shoot past us, could hear the beam punch through a wall. Something wet dropped on my arms: my own tears. "Akio-kun..." I looked up to see him dazed, close to unconsciousness. I squirmed out of his hold but stayed low.

A weight on my back kept me from moving again. That feeling was strongest now. What is this?

The voice inside my head spoke again. "Stand up."

"Why?"

"Fuu will protect you!"

"Fuu?" I mouthed.

The gun arm slowly lowered to my new position. Something was keeping it from moving faster. The weight left my back and I immediately knew what to do. I stood up and stood between the armor and Akio. "Now what?" I asked the invisible voice.

"Get your friend away from here." I nodded and pulled Akio to his feet. My friend groaned but let me walk him to the bushes. Something rode on my shoulder and then jumped in the grass after I set Akio down. Now I knew something invisible was with me; the four imprints in the grass said so.

"Um...Fuu?" I guessed.

"Fuu!" it replied. A housecat appeared in a small burst of fire. Two tails swished behind it. My first reaction was to yelp in surprise and almost trip over Akio while backing up. "Fuu" blinked at me like I was acting strangely.

The armor looked down and aimed both guns at the two-tailed cat. Fuu bristled and let out an angry "Fuu" in defiance before running away from us, only to circle around and run back. "Hey! Where are you doing?" I shouted while running in its direction.

"Fuu can't fight here! Run with Fuu!"

"But..." My protests stopped when the cute little kitty changed into a not-so-cute big kitty. It didn't give me warning, just nudged me onto its back backwards and ran off with me. This left me with a good view of the attacking armor and the beams it was shooting at us. I had no idea where we were going.

I held on for dear life while riding bareback on a big cat and staring at an evil suit of armor that shot at us. "I'm...glad...no...one's...watching...meeeeee! " The last part was screamed as Fuu skidded to a halt and I was thrown off. I tumbled onto the baseball diamond on the outskirts of the campus. It brought me here so it wouldn't hurt anyone.

Fuu's tails lashed angrily as they were consumed by a white-hot fire. One big swing released two sickles of flame that hit the armor square on the chest. It staggered back but stayed standing. Two bigger fire attacks knocked it on its back. "Is it over?" I asked Fuu.

The cat spoke in a deeper telepathic voice, sounding like a grown woman. "Fuu tired it out before attacking. Magic is tiring when first used. You should rest too, so Fuu can rest."

I tensed as the armor twitched again, but was suddenly too tired to run. Darkness fell over me, and I welcomed it.

[Crystal Tears]

Morning – Oko-tan and the break

Rika was quiet, her headphones blaring western music into her ears as she watched her fellow students pass by. Today was different from most, something about it made her shiver and be slightly on edge. But besides the occasional shudder, everything else was normal. Which was more or less why she was so bored, Rika wanted excitement, something to lighten the mood around this school up. Everyone was so focused on the murders and revenge that no body tended to look on the bright side anymore.

The almost tranced girl snapped out of her state when a light tap on her shoulder brought her back to reality. Rika smiled, it was Naoko. If Rika remember correctly, she was one of the new students that Rika had met a little while before at some point. Though she didn’t exactly remember where… Rika had a talent for forgetting important facts, though usually only involving people.

“Hiya.” She greeted, moving over on the cement ledge so her friend could sit beside her. Naoko smiled only slightly before sitting next to her. “How were your classes?”

“Oh…” The girl murmured. “Alright I suppose.”

“Anyone picking on you?” Rika questioned. New remembering exactly how the two had met. Naoko had been the target of three students who were particularly nasty. Miss Satou had stepped in, using the power of persuasion and ‘subtle’ threats to ward them off. “I’ll kick their asses if they are.”

Naoko smiled, and even chuckled. “No… They left me alone.”

“Good.” She grinned, though noted when a couple of students walked by, her friend tended to lower her head and avoid them completely. “You know, you don’t gotta be afraid of them. I bet you could take them easily.”

The shy girl looked at Rika with disbelief. “Really?”

“Of course.” Rika nodded, “most of them are just pushovers, if you stand up to them, they’ll leave you alone.”

“I tried that… I think it made it worse…”

Rika held in a sigh and decided to look straight ahead of them. Naoko didn’t deserve to be picked on, she was nice. If Rika had it her way she would devour those who decided to victimize her right there and then, but… She would probably get expelled, and no doubt the dean would seek to expel Naoko, just because it was possible. She finally let the sigh out, drawn-out and soft; she looked back over at her friend.

“Don’t worry about it Oko-tan.” She smiled, softly nudging her. “If they come after you, call for me. I’ll come and help you.” Rika smiled warmly at her friend, who smiled in return. “Alrighty?”

“…Alright.”

Oko-tan: Rika’s little nickname for her friend. Typically, she supposed she should have picked Nao-chan or something along those lines, but Oko-tan sounded better, even if it were a bit childish. Rika wasn’t normal however, and because everyone well enough liked her, she could get away with it. Even if other students didn’t like it, she never really cared much about their opinions anyways…

~ * ~

Tag Toxicity ^_^

[EngiMatikul]

MY SECOND (or possibly 3rd. Actually maybe 4th.) ATTEMPT FOR A BETTER RP POST. Also, so we're not stuck in the morning anymore.


Aria
=====2:52 PM=====
Aria tapped her foot impatiently.
She had never enjoyed waiting for Hotaru to finish up his club activities, especially when it meant that she had wait IN the club where EVERY member seems to act as if she were one of their guests. In spite of being there hundreds of times, rejecting them from approaching her every single time...
She was seated on a large, velvety purple victorian style couch (one would wonder why such a couch would be here, in a tea ceremony club room), arms and legs crossed, with an irritated look on her face. The room was full of happy, eager (and drooling?) fangirls being serviced by the prettiest of pretty men, men who had sacrificed their dignity just to be hapless romantic slaves to their honored guests. Normally, in times like this she would agonizingly tolerate the club "activities" until Hotaru was finished, but with the recent murder and Dai's life potentially in danger, she would much rather face a horde of Kazan gang members to meet up with her brother rather than stay here, waiting for for her brother's stupid, flirtatious, whimsical--
"Would you like some tea, young lady?" A club member who is, for whatever reason, wearing a suit and serving a European style teacup on a sparkling silver platter, had walked over and working his bishonen charms on a very agitated Aria. "Or... would you perhaps like some other types of service?" The young student grinned mischeviously.
"Mouuuu!!!" Aria got up suddenly which caused the student waiter to lose his balance, stumbling a bit before falling over and having the tea spilt all over his suit. "HOTARU!! Where are you, HO!! TA!! RUUUUUU!!!"
"My my, is my dear younger sister-in-law calling for me?" The romantic appeared as if he had come out of thin air, startling a few of the guests that were present but not Aria.
"I am NOT your sister in law!" Aria threw her briefcase at him, but Hotaru merely stepped aside playfully and shrugged. "Why are we still here?!?! We should be meeting up with Ani-sama already!! I thought we were to leave as soon as school was over today!!" Aria shrieked. Several students stared at her, wide-eyed and surprised. It wasn't often, after all, that the calm and friendly Aria would express such anger like that.
"Umm... Aria-chan, why not just wait a while longer? Being a Furin student, going to Kazan right now is suicidal and it might be better to wait until most of the students are gone to see your brother anyway..." Sayuri whispered to Aria's side, hoping to calm the little sister down.
"It's BECAUSE Kazan's such a dangerous place that I want to leave NOW! Hotaru!! Aren't you worried about Dai at all?!?" Aria pointed as if he were some criminal in a trial.
"My dear dear Aria, you know how much I'm worried about your lovely brother, but alas, at the moment we have a full house and I cannot do anything about it! Look, now, I'll try to close up as soon as possible--"
"YARGH!! You're USELESS!!" There was more truth to that insult than one would imagine. Coming to Furin alone (before such incidents) was not particularly nerve-racking despite the occasional ominous stare, but having Hotaru around as a "guardian" proved to be more trouble than Aria could handle. She sometimes wondered if he was the guardian of her, or if she was the guardian of him. "That's it, I'm leaving!" Aria picked up her back (which she had thrown several feet accross the room) and began walking out the club door.
"Wait! Aria, don't leave ye--!"
Before Hotaru could finish, the sliding door slammed shut she left the school.

[darktyranitar]

Ah yeah, my first (actual) RPG post for this year! (sans sign ups forms, that is)

9/9/??
Sakaki Hideo
[Busy doing nothing]

Today is better than yesterday.

Well, sans the fact that someone from Kazan has just been murdered last night, Hideo was feeling pretty good today; after months of careful experimenting, he was very happy to see note that his postulate was true after all. There were indeed here – and they are coming!

Alas, no one was really interested in his finding. Everyone is talking about the dead Kazan student – which Hideo found to be rather intriguing. Initially, he was not interested in such topic – for he believed that this was yet another stain in the never-ending rivalry between Furin and Kazan – but it was the circumstances of the student’s body caught his interest.

The words “Death to Kazan”, spread all over the boy’s body – written in his own blood. While one would dismiss it as just a terrible case murder from a particular embittered individual (or perhaps individuals) from Furin, Hideo believed that, somehow, elements of occults can be found somewhere in between this whole thing.

Someone had posted the said picture in a blog. Hideo have seen them early this morning, and he has to admit that the power of the Internet is truly amazing, and at the same time, terrifying.

Some time before afternoon/Hideo’s ‘office’

Fortunately for Hideo, there was indeed someone else who would rather discuss something else beside the murder affair: one Kalah Byquest, a transfer student who is also a journalist of the school’s newspaper. Originally, she approached Hideo to ask his opinions regarding the murder, but from there, they then talked about magic, demons, and everything else that are related with occultism.

Hideo always enjoyed talking with Kalah. He is pleased with her cheery and good natured character (although he does pity her clumsiness; take her mishap with stairs, for example), and the fact that they are discussing the subject that he is very interested with only makes it even more pleasing. In addition to that, she can converse fluently in English. This was good, for Hideo could use some refreshing his English skill, lest he becomes rusty in the usage of the language.

They were now in Hideo’s office (if you want to call it that), which is really an otherwise plain storeroom that is carefully decorated to compensate the lack of space. The office is a blend between Western and Eastern element: with the water painting, scrolls, table and a bookshelf of Japanese books at one side of the room, and drawing of various mythical symbols, a round table, a rocking chair and a bookshelf of English books at another side of the room. Tatami is laid across the floor (with the words ‘Made in Taiwan’ printed on one of its corner), with everything else crammed somewhere in between the two seemingly contradicting side. Hideo was seated cross-legged on the floor, whereas Kalah was now getting her hand on everything inside the room, her curious eyes darting here and there.

“And so, it is safe – no, it is absolutely true – to say that elements of the occults still exist today, and the said elements is also present near the vicinity of this country,” said Hideo, who doesn’t seem to be aware that he was now left to talk with the walls.

“Ooh… wahhh…” Kalah exclaimed at the sight of the many paraphernalia that lies in the office.

“But the element of occults in Japan – as well as other Eastern countries, such as Thailand, Indonesia, and Malaysia – are said to be very different with those that can be found in the West.”

“Wow, I wonder how much this… uh. Yeah, it’s really as heavy as it looks. But it look so shiny! And pretty!”

“Although I have yet to experience an encounter with – DON’T TOUCH THAT, KALAH-CHAN!”

“Eh?” Kalah replied, and before long, the said item was then in Hideo’s hand. It was a figurine of a cat (approximately 1/10 of the size of a normal cat) made from what appears to be silver. Two aquamarines gems filled the cavity of the figurine’s eye sockets, and the figurine stood on a round grey metal plate that was engraved with various lines and patterns carved on it.

“Ah. Good thing it’s still all right…” Hideo muttered, observing the figurine intently.

“Whazzat, Hideo-san?” Kalah asked curiously.

“Something nasty…” Hideo said darkly. “Something that is really, really nasty…”

Kalah raised an eyebrow. “It sucks the soul of others?” she hazarded.

“Oh yes, absolutely! HAHAHAHA… ahem.” Hideo cleared his throat. “Right. Actually, this thing here is used to detect the presence of any occult elements… be it sorcery, magic, mythical creatures, demons, etcetera. But it only can detect their presence once – and then it won’t react to said occults element.”

“Has it ever worked before?” Kalah asked sceptically. “Well, since you did mention it can only detect their presence once. What if… what if there are indeed some occult things in our school? I think that’ll be cool though.”

Hideo shrugged. “Maybe so, but I never saw it working. It’s so sensitive, that it can detect their presence from as far as five kilometres from here. Or so it is said. I do not know.”

“Sughoi. So, how do you use it, actually?”

“Well, you just take out this figurine here, and… well, wait for something to happen.”

“Such as?”

“Well… something. Actually, I haven’t had any prior experience handling this… thing. So, I don’t know. Something significant, I suppose. Something like…”

Whoosh… boom. Eeeee… ta-ta-ta-ta… Whoosh – boom. Poof.

Both Kalah and Hideo exchanged glances, before they turned their attention on the figurine – which was now embedded into the ceiling, after it had flew out of Hideo’s grip, with the speed that is normally associated with bullets and speeding train. And to make things even weirder, the figurine lodged itself after the first impact, before it struck the ceiling for the second time, where it then remained silent.

“Ano… something like that?” Kalah asked after a good two minutes of silence.

“Yes…” Hideo said cautiously. “Something like that, I think. Yes.”


(The said conversation is allegedly spoken mostly in English)

[Bulbasaur4]

(This post might be short, due to the fact that I got the crappy internet cafe computer!)

Kasai Akio
| Kazan | M16 | STATUS: Currently aiding Cho|

MUSIC: "Space Between - Goo Goo Dolls"

"Always... gotta... be... the tough... one..." Akio muttered to himself, his arms wrapped about Cho's waist as he slung her over his shoulder and headed to the nurse's office. Strangely enough, Satoshi was ... or appeared to be... the one who was in the armor, although most of the students didn't see that exactly.


Akio was perhaps the only one looking directly into the fray, and he did see the strange cat Cho summoned and the magic that surrounded it. At the time, he was quite shocked and surprised by what was happening in front of his very eyes. Yet at the same time, he realized that he was also eeriely calm.. noticing that he was not freaking out or running the other way. In fact, unlike the screaming people who had run away, he was quite comfortable with the idea of Cho with a magical cat. The only real worry or semi-freak out he was having, was of Cho herself and her saftey. He wanted to run out there and tackle that mec! But... well... common sense came to his aid and told him that it would NOT be a good idea. He also felt a sneaking sensation of 'proud' towards Cho and her actions. It was very... well, very something positive and excellent and good for her! (he failed to think of a word at that point, for he was dodging a few beams and wincing slightly as he did so.)
He also saw as both Cho and the armor seemed to run out of energy and the cat seemed to leap into the bushes and disappear. The armor, well, like a metallic goo it shimmered for a while before vanishing and reaveling a slumped Satoshi upon the ground.

Using his outstanding diplomacy, Akio found a passerby who had run towards the fray in hopes of seeing the fight or the noisey ruckus, but had failed to see anything. He then barked at the man to pick up Satoshi and follow Akio. (he looks rather muscular anyway, Akio assumed he could carry a light-weighted satoshi).


About fifteen minutes later, Cho was resting in a bed and Satoshi's body was also in another bed. The nurse was puzzled, but it appeared that only Cho had a few scrapes and the two were merely exhausted with a side of dehydration.
"Now, Kasai-san, let me see your back..." The nurse persisted, to which Akio bit his lip and attempted to thwart her from tending to his own wound.
Upon knocking Cho to the ground, the beam that fired from the suit of armor-mech-thing had grazed his own back. While it merely grazed, the beam itself was quite powerful and managed to not only singe through his jacket AND his uniform, but it left a very nice, red, peeled burned slash upon his back.
"Aaaahhh... it's okay! Really! No need to see it!" Akio continued to plead, for he wasn't one to want attention of the nurse/doctor-sort. But, as if a switch was flicked on, the nurse's eyes suddenly grew far more fearsome as she seemed to almost tower above Akio.
"KASAI-SAN, LET ME TEND TO YOUR WOUND."
"H-h-hai!"

No sooner than later, the nurse had stripped Akio of his jacket and his uniformed shirt. Akio sighed as he sat in a chair and placed his elbow upon his knee and rested his chin within his hand. Her muscular back exposed as he let her apply a few disinfecting wipes and various other things to his back. The only thing he insisted was that she did not bandage it. (The bandages had only made the wound sting more and itch and all sorts of uncomfortable feelings...)
"But Kasai-san... your clothes might irritate it as well and-"
The nurse began, but Akio smiled brightly and nodded.
"I shall wear no shirts today!"
The nurse seemed to pale in the face and sweatdrop, as she muttered about school policy and rules and such things that Akio seemed to occasionally'forget' and 'get away with' now and then.

Just as that was mentioned however, a few murring noises entered the air as both Cho and Satoshi seemed to stir at Akio's rather loud exclamation. It was actually, quite eerie how the two both awakened almost at the same time.

"Ah! Good to see the both of you awake again!" Akio said happily, his bright golden-yellow eyes looking back and forth at the two as the nurse finished putting ointment upon his back. He had already made a mental note to 1.) Not mention the odd magical powers or strange weird powers or whatever you call them powers that the two seemed to use or 2.) Goosh over them.

(Yay interactions!! Man, I knew i'd love playing Akio... he's so much fun! XD)

[Outlaw JT]

Mizukaze Ryuu
~Signs of Battle - Past, Present, and Future~

By early afternoon Ryuu had completely forgotten the uneasiness the morning breeze had carried. Despite his momentary idiocy he had seen that Cho was fine. He was quite looking forward to apologizing when they met later after school in their secret spot in the woods between Kazan and Furin.

Just as soon as he was settled perfectly into the daily routine of school, cool as the breeze, calm beyond compare among the students of Furin, the fates decided to remind him what he had been feeling all morning. Walking between classes he happened to look out the window in Kazan's direction just as a stray blast of energy crested the tree line. A laser of some kind fired into the air. Ryuu froze as he scanned the area it had come from and another colored beam emerged. And then there was smoke.

"Hey Ryuu. What.....ummm....are you staring at?" a classmate named Kalah tapped him on the shoulder as he seemed frozen in place.

"Nothing Kalah-san. Just enjoying the view between classes," Ryuu replies, as calm and pleasant as you please. "If you'll excuse me, I have to get to class."

On the outside Ryuu smiled pleasantly and calmly gave a slight bow before casually walking to the stares at the end of the hallway. Inside, Ryuu was recalling that scent on the breeze and growing frantic. Normally he would now turn left and head to Physics. Ryuu, however, turned right and exited the building as if he was going to the football field.

He hesitated only one minute outside. The second the bell rang announcing the start of class he was off like a shot. He wasn't on the track team but anyone who was watching, which he hoped to be no one, might easily mistake him for one given the advanced speed he was moving.

Through the trees Ryuu ran with near flawless agility. Dodging under branches and in between protruding tree roots. He moved blindly but as if he knew every inch of the forest. He was determined and driven by the fear for Cho that had gripped him this morning.

As he grew near in record time he changed direction to follow the sounds of chaos, staying to the trees to avoid being seen. He reached their moving source just as it seemed to climax. He saw Cho standing bravely before some armored monstrosity as a large impossible fiery feline attacked the thing, knocking it prone.

"Cho....." Ryuu whispered to himself as she suddenly fell.

Ryuu immediately began to run to her but after only four steps he saw a Kazan student was moving to her and he was closer. He wanted to go to her more than anything but he recognized the person. Kasai Akio was one of Cho's friends. Quickly he reversed direction and hid in the safety of the trees. A Furin student seen on Kazan grounds amidst the recent chaos would be a very bad thing.

He followed silently, his eyes never leaving Cho's unconscious form. If he didn't know better Ryuu would swear his heart was stopped. Akio took Cho into the main Kazan building and Ryuu followed around on the outside. Fortunately he knew where their infirmary was from competing in tournaments between the schools here. Fortunately it was on the first floor, had large windows, and large bushes outside of them.

Ryuu found the window just as Akio carried in Cho and someone else carried in another slumbering student. Ryuu positioned himself silently and carefully to keep a watchful eye without being easily seen from anywhere except the bed Cho was placed on. There he waited, anxious to see that his love was alright.

The nurse tended her and the other unconscious student. Once she was satisfied she turned her attentions to Akio who also seemed to be hurt. Ryuu continued to wait and watch patiently until Cho stirred. She didn't quite get up yet but he could feel his heart resume beating seeing that she seemed to be ok, if a little scraped. To capitalize the moment Cho suddenly sat straight up and her eyes immediately found Ryuu's as a loud voice from behind him drew attention to the window.

"There's a Furin spy!" someone shouted from a short distance off and Ryuu knew he had been seen.

BAKA!!! he thought furiously to himself as he ducked into the bush before anyone else in the nurses office could see him. Twice in one day.......

Ryuu marveled at his uncharacteristic lack of control today as he quickly ran through the bush along the side of the building in the direction of the forest. They may have spotted his Furin blazer but they hadn't seen who he was yet. He had to keep it that way.

He sprinted for the tree line the second he ran out of bush. He could hear two or three students shouting after him in pursuit but thankfully did not recognize any voices. They were close but Ryuu was faster than them. Well, most of them anyway. One pair of pounding steps did seem to be closing ground on him.

Ryuu reached the trees before his fastest pursuer could reach him but not by much. He continued running and the other students sounded to have given up but the one kept getting closer. He hoped once he was a ways into the forest they would give up as well but they seemed relentless.

Ryuu barely had time to react as a kick was suddenly heard sailing towards him from behind. On instinct Ryuu stopped and ducked while twisting to the side as his pursuer flew over him. They both spun into place taking up fighting stances and Ryuu's spirit sunk as he recognized Ikado Akaryou, captain of the Kazan martial arts team.

"I never suspected the cool and calm dragon of the Furin team would be so devious," Akaryou said slyly as the two began circling.

"I wish for no trouble Akaryou-kun," Ryuu states calmly, trying to circle around Akaryou to resume his flight.

"Yet you skulk around Kazan so soon after some form of attack and the recent death of a Kazan student," Akaryou grinned maliciously at him. "One would think you were involved in the troubles plaguing Kazan given the observed facts."

"I simply wanted to investigate the source of the light show, Akaryou-kun. Please allow me to pass," Ryuu replied, still with an icily calm exterior.

Akaryou responded this time with action as he lunged forward, palm flat. Ryuu's weight shifted and his forearm glided up to deflect the blow. Quickly his wrist twisted down to try and catch the blocked arm but Akaryou slid to the side and spun his other arm around in a second strike. Ryuu leaped back quickly to dodge the attack and slid back into his defensive stance.

Akaryou pressed the attack, moving forward and striking in rapid succession. Ryuu dodged and blocked and deflected but remained on the defensive, finding little room to deliver an effective counter strike. Akaryou was lightning fast and it took all of Ryuu's speed to stay ahead of his blows. The only openings presented would have been only glancing blows and left Ryuu open to devastating attack.

The dance of battle continued for a few minutes until the sound of footsteps approaching came from opposing directions. Ryuu used the sounds as an excuse to flip backwards away from his assailant. He reformed his defensive stance but slowly edged away from Akaryou.

"It would seem we are interrupted. Enjoy the repriece Ryuu-kun. We shall have to revisit this discussion soon," Akaryou's malicious grin hesitated for a moment and then was gone.

Ryuu sighed relief before vanishing himself. It was best that no one else from either school found him here.He had caused enough trouble as it were already.

[Emotional Faun Chiko-sai]

Sakamoto Dai

We are not amused.
- Queen Victoria

9/9. Afternoon.

"Excuse me," said Dai, with a horrible sort of calm, "my sister is being detained in the basement of the student council's bloody shed, pardon my language, I meant: in their dungeon? Why did this happen? Do tell."

The flunkey, seeing an immense amount of dark energy coalesce and coagulate into demonic horns somewhere behind the vice-captain's head, quailed. He had never liked the kendo club. What era did they think they were living in anyway, the Bakumatsu? And the vice-captain was the scari- worst, what with that glint in his eyes that belonged more to some manner of ferocious creature. In a sort of panic, he turned to the captain. Or rather, looked down at the captain.

...Which wasn't such a good idea, considering the circumstances.

"Indeed," said the captain, hefting a shinai onto his shoulder. "What manner of disturbance is this? My delinquent of a brother, taken as well? What crime has he committed this time?" Ushitaros cracked the knuckles of his free hand. Small as he was, being about a foot shorter than his deputy, the sound made was very loud.

"We are all agog, Kotani-san," he added, giving the flunkey the full benefit of a Stare.

At this point, the corners of Dai's mouth turned up in a smile that contained no trace of mirth whatsoever, all the better to expose his teeth, which in the flunkey's mind seemed to be elongating and morphing into fangs.

The flunkey gave up. There were many things he wanted to do before he died and he hadn't even completed a hundredth portion of them. I'll let Zenigata deal with this. Better him than me.

"I'll bring you to the proctor," he said, trying to keep the quiver out of his voice. "He'll explain everything."

9/9. Afternoon, latter part.

Dai had been having a good day; as good as his days ever got, in any case. This was because Hotaru had not, as he too often did, snuck over to Kazan during the course of the day to attempt to persuade him to drop by the Furin Tea Ceremony Club. He had supposed, at the time, that Hotaru had had a rare flash of good sense and stayed prudently away from Kazan grounds due to the prevalent hostility following the all too recent deaths. And perhaps Hotaru was actually fulfilling his promise to look after Aria.

Yes. He could rely on Hotaru. Flighty as the boy was, he was definitely all right on the inside. Hotaru wouldn’t fail him, and nor would Akio. They had a pact.

(For those wondering, Dai was still young and idealistic. Please excuse him for having such a rose-tinted view of the world.)

He had gone to kendo practice with a clear mind. Kendo took place in a relatively isolated outbuilding, so the events of the afternoon did not reach the ears of the kendoka till the arrival of the flunkey (Kotani Keisuke from 2-C, but in Dai’s mind, all flunkeys were flunkeys). Upon which news of his sister sent his blood pressure rocketing up to roughly the level of his ears.

They stomped off to the student council building. Dai had not been exaggerating when he had called it a shed; it was indeed little more than a glorified ex-repository for gardening tools and random plants. In appearance it resembled a greenhouse more than a shed, being liberally panelled with glass and its structure consisting of cast iron. There had been a basement constructed for it, presumably during the years of the Second World War when bomb shelters were necessities of daily life, that now served as a detention room for such students as Zenigata Keibu (Keibu was not his real first name, but a nickname given to him by bitter students, ex-detainees all) deemed fit to apprehend.

Pushing open the doors, Dai stalked into the former greenhouse, closely followed by his captain; and tailing them, the flunkey. Downstairs, Zenigata was conducting interrogations directed at his sister, who was positioned in front of a height scale and being made to hold a board with her name and offence written on it. Next to her, a large male student in a tattered gakuran was arguing furiously with a stern-looking flunkey. The student council president, with not a hair out of place, was seated at a table nearby, apparently engrossed in a book.

Zenigata was not in the best of moods. The two students implicated in the recent extraordinary brawl (exosuits? Fire-breathing cats?!) were still in the infirmary, along with the vice president, who had banned him from questioning or manhandling them till they were fully recovered. He had always known the vice president's judgment to be on the liberal side, but there were so many queries left unclarified, and he could not help but feel that Kasai - or An - was being much too lenient on two individuals he could not help but classify now as delinquents.

Therefore, he was now taking it out on a relatively innocuous Furin student who had trespassed into school grounds. Her name was Sakamoto Aria, and she claimed to be the sister of a third-year student in the kendo club. Their resident Chief Delinquent, Gou Ookami, was also in this afternoon, as he was about four afternoons a week.

"You state that you are the younger sister of one Sakamoto Dai. Can anyone in this school vouch for this?"

"The miko - er - Doumeki Yumi-san - knows me-"

"And a witness that your alleged brother is in school today?"

"I-"

"Zenigata," came a growl from almost directly behind the orange-haired proctor, so close that the breath expelled by the speaker made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up, "What the hell do you think you're doing to my sister?"

To his credit, Zenigata rallied admirably. He did not squeak, squeal, scream "YARGH!" or show any sign of surprise apart from the very smallest jerk of the shoulders. There was, however, a slight stammer to his voice. "W-well, I am, of course, interrogating the suspect. She asserts that she is your sister."

"She IS my sister. Come here, Aria, ignore the annoying policeman."

"Stop! This is against council regulations! Kaichou-" Zenigata suddenly became aware of a pointy object lodged between his shoulderblades. The pointy object poked him, once, in a pardon-me-I-am-trying-to-get-your-attention way.

"My brother," said a staid, polite voice. "My delinquent of a brother is in your custody."

Zenigata turned around. And looked down.

Ushitaros stared up at him unblinkingly. He had removed his shinai from Zenigata's back, and it now rested quite harmlessly at his side. Nevertheless, with the hard look in Ushitaros's eyes, it was clear that this was only a temporary truce. In this case, however, it was entirely possible that the anger was not directed at Zenigata, but rather at the errant brother, who had stopped trying to pick a fight with his personal flunkey and was now glaring defiantly back at the kendo captain. There was lightning crackling in the mutual stares. It could have electrocuted any species of small furry rodent on the spot.

"Why am I not surprised to find you here, aniki?" said Ushi, with steel in his voice.

Ookami folded his arms. "Ain't my fault."

"It is improper for a true warrior to defy authority with such appalling regularity. You know Father would never have condoned this. The code of the samurai is particularly clear on the virtues of fealty and obedience to..." The kendo captain began to veer off on one of his never-ending diatribes on bushido, with his brother putting in the occasional brusque remark. Dai had taken charge of his sister; they were on the way to the door when Zenigata pulled his trump card: waving his proctor's baton and shouting in stentorian tones.

"STOP ALL THIS AT ONCE! Kaichou! They are in direct violation of the official credo of the Kazan Student Council, and it is within your power to stop them! KAICHOU!"

Admittedly, it was an overly dramatic speech. But at least it got the student council president to look up from his book.

"Hmmm? What is it, Zenigata-san?"

"Kaichou," Zenigata blustered, "they... they are in violation of the school rules!"

Thomas Reusbucks closed his book and put it down carefully. He raised a languid hand to his glasses, pushing them up in a habitual gesture of his; he glanced round at the company emotionlessly. Dai caught himself thinking that the student council president could very well be an android, what with the unnatural hair colour and the general mien of omniscience. He bristled, just in case Reusbucks was going to even think of trying to stop Aria from going home with him.

"I have it on the very best authority that these two are siblings," said Reusbucks, the look on his face not changing one whit even as Dai gave him his very best scowl. "Doumeki Yumi is a friend of mine. As for whether he is in school today, he's right there in front of you. And with regards to Gou Ookami -" here he inclined his head towards the feuding brothers, his mouth twitching in what could have been the barest hint of a smirk - "I had him running errands early this morning. Hence his tardiness today. It is all perfectly in order, and I see no problem here."

If he had been a lesser man, Zenigata would have frothed at the mouth. No policeman likes to see his potentially guilty and dubious-natured suspects slip away from right under his nose. It seemed that higher authority was determined to foil him at every step of the way. Not for the first time, he mentally cursed the vagaries of his superiors, who saw fit to allow criminals to run riot in his school. His school!

Dai acknowledged their release with a lessening of the scowl, and shepherded Aria out into the open. "I thought Hotaru was supposed to walk you to the junction! At half past five, after tea club! What happened?!"

"I was worried about you, Ani-sama - you could have been the next one murdered, and Hotaru didn't seem to care, so I came by myself."

"Bugger Hotaru. He knew I'd be fine. I'm not going to die so easily-"

They cannoned into a slim body. The owner of the slim body flung its equally slender arms around Dai, who, for a split second, had a what-the-fucking-HELL look on his face, before his eye nerves connected to those of his memory cells and he recognised Hotaru, upon which his face morphed into a carefully deadpan expression.

"Dai-chan! You're all right! Aria here was absolutely convinced you were about to become the next corpse bloodily spread over the grass of Kazan! I tried to stop her, but she simply dashed over here before I could even move!"

"Hotaru. Stop clinging to me."

"Yes, Hotaru, STOP MOLESTING ANI-SAMA."

"But I simply must make sure you're okay. Functioning. Running on all cylinders." Here, Hotaru began to stroke his friend's hair.

"Whatever. I'm alive, as you can see. Let's get out of here. No, Aria, don't hit him with your schoolbag, I can disengage him myself." Dai proceeded to forcibly remove Hotaru's hands from his chest and head, and the smaller-sized boy settled for linking arms, pressing his exquisite lips together in a moue which would have earned him many fangirlish shriekings from the girls in the tea ceremony club. "Let's get out of here. It's dangerous for you Furin students to hang around, with Zenigata prowling the grounds."


blahblah Thomas saves the day blah, Dai is angry, what else is new. Tag Kirkle, sorry I made you rewrite your post - you can write BL hinty scene if you want bearing in mind Dai is convinced he is completely straight. For anyone interested to know the history of PJBW's character(s), you can go refer to the NPC master list in the Lounge where I edited it into the profile of his NPC (Gou Ookami). All other NPCs to date have been edited in as well.
...I'm very sorry for the delay but I was playing Daihinmin. *runs away*

[classy_cat18]

Itou Cho - Here kitty kitty kitty...

I had better days. I woke up to a shirtless Akio who spent a whole minute being calm about the whole ideal before enveloping me into a bear hug (still shirtless). Satoshi lightened up a little at the sight of me stopping Akio's assault by slapping his wound and then scolding him. After seeing some of our other friends stop by, the nurse released us after suggesting that we take it easy the rest of the day. Luckily that meant that I was excused from practice. Unluckily it also meant that Zenigata had an open shot at me.

"Answer the question, Cho!"

"I told you before, Zenigata-san," I said as calmly as my short temper would allow. "I don't know where the cat came from. And Satoshi cannot tell you either."

Keibu growled. No way was a rebel student going to get away from him now. "That cat carried you to safety and defended you! You two have some sort of relationship!"

"Didn't An-san tell you to leave me be?"

He smirked. "Until you fully recovered! I see you were released!"

I groaned and wiped some of his spit off my cheek. "I need to go home immediately, sir."

"Oh, no you don't!"

"Zenigata-san!" Akio unexpectedly walked up to us and waved at the proctor. "Did you come to check up on our well-being?"

The wide smile on Keibu's face wavered but didn't vanish. "I came to interrogate the two witnesses about today's incident." His look dared Akio to deny him. I looked up and saw that Akio had a calm smile, something he always uses for the proctor.

"Ah. Well, Keto-san has already left for home. Did Itou-chan say anything about it?" He patted my head, making sure that he avoided my "antennae".

"She says she doesn't know about the cat."

"And there you have it. Itou-chan has been interrogated well!"

That's when Keibu's grin disappeared. "But..." he started.

"I'll make sure she returns home safely! Come along, Cho!" He nudged me along, completely ignoring Keibu's protests.

"Bye, Zenigata-san!" I called over my shoulder.

I waited until we were outside before sighing in relief. "Man, what an ass!" I exclaimed.

"I'm secretly waiting for the day you finally give him what he deserves," Akio said. He wore his jacket loosely after the nurse protested about him walking home shirtless (and after me slapping him in his weak spot).

My eyes wandered to the forest that stood between the Furin and Kazan schools. Ryuu would probably be waiting for me, especially since he saw me in the infirmary earlier. Akio was most likely going to wait for Satoshi. "I'll see you later, Akio-kun."

"Where are you going?" he asked me as I started to walk to the forest.

"To look for that cat!"

"I don't think you should be going alone!"

I stopped and turned to him. "Keibu-kun knows that you were lying about Satoshi-kun!" I sang to him with a sly grin.

He stared at me with a clueless look before running back in the school. I giggled and turned, immediately stopping as soon as my vision was filled with another Kazan school uniform. "Itou-chan."

"Ikado-taichou," I returned. Not another ass.

"I was not aware that your home was in this direction." I backed up and shook my head. "You are not in a condition to go wandering on dangerous ground, Itou-chan."

My fists clenched as I fought away the urge to punch him (or at least try to). "You know I can take care of myself," I said through clenched teeth.

"I caught a member of the Furin martial arts team sneaking around. Around the infirmary, no less." He narrowed his eyes, hoping to catch an interesting reaction.

But I stayed calm, although my anger flared for a short second. "I can handle Furin but I'll leave if you insist. Good day, Ikado-taichou." I bowed to him.

"Itou-chan." He seemed to look down his nose at me.

I hurried away from him. Damn! Ryuu's not going to see me today! I pictured Fuu chasing my captain around the field, a piece of his uniform in his teeth. A strange feeling raced down my right arm and released. I stopped and looked down at the cat.

"Do you want Fuu to attack the mean boy?" she asked me with wide feline eyes.

I blinked and looked around to make sure no one saw us. "You could read my thoughts?"

Fuu yawned and stretched. "You gave Fuu command to bite Ikado and chase him around. Do you still want Fuu to do that?"

"No! I could get in big trouble!"

"Aw, Fuu came out for nothing!"

I pulled out the note that I was going to deliver to Ryuu before Satoshi the Mech crashed my plans. I wrote more on it as Fuu climbed to my shoulder and watched. The note also read that Ikado stopped me from meeting him and that Ryuu should watch out for him. "There should be someone named Ryuu in the forest. Give him this note and you can sleep." I folded the note and held it up to her.

"Fuu can be invisible and bring it to Ryuu!" She snatched it in her mouth and jumped down, invisible by the time I looked back.

Crap. The paper's not invisible! By the time I said that, the paper also vanished. I smiled and walked on home.

[Dr.McNinja]

Satoshi watched from the side hallway as Cho left the school, his eyes following her curiously. She had shown something as well, different from that which had entrapped him yet still a power unlike any he had seen so far, no matter what powers his grandfather told him were all around him every day. He could feel that power in him still, ready to leap out of him at any moment. Control was his now however, unlike that first burst of power where the voice in his head commanded him and he followed without question. He held up his hand and, oblivious to the tiles beneath his feet that seemed to burn up in a sudden green flame, watched a metal fist form plate by plate over his hand. He shivered at a sudden chill down his spine, what -was- this? It defied any attempt at explanation and it fascinated the youth while, at the same time, it frightened him on a level deeper than anything he had experienced before. He was already something of an outcast, what would this bring to him if people found out about it. It would....

“Satoshi-san! What are you doing? I make sure no one finds out and this is how you repay...put that away!”

The tiles flared back into existence as the armor melted away as if it had never existed. Satoshi turned with a grimace to find Akio peering at him with a disgruntled look on his face, his eyes accusing. Shrugging, Satoshi pulled on his bag and began walking past the youth, “Thank you Akio-san, I appreciate it.”

Akio began walking with Satoshi, much to Satoshi’s chagrin, “Of course you do, but what are you going to do now?”

Satoshi frowned behind his glasses, “I’m not sure...try to understand it so what happens does not occur again most likely.”

Dodging neatly around a stray trashcan, Akio pushed open the door to the outside, the breeze blowing both youths’ hair artfully, “Really? Well you probably shouldn’t let people see you doing it...hey you live at a shrine! No one ever goes there...except during services I guess....and weddings...and...”

Satoshi interjected, “I will be careful Akio-san thank you. I’ll see you in class tomorrow?”

Akio laughed at the youth, “Yeah right, I’m going to make sure you get home okay.”

Satoshi stopped suddenly and turned to face Akio, his brain working furiously to prevent this tragedy from happening, “Um...I must go to the store first Akio-san.”

Akio smiled happily, “Well I’ll come with you then! I can get some melon-pan for the walk home!”

Satoshi frowned, “Then I must...stop at the bathhouse.”

Akio smiled happily, “Great! All that excitement got me all sweaty, I could use a bath!”

Satoshi’s frown deepend, “Then I must...”

Akio smiled happily.

Satoshi’s eyes began darting around as he though, “Well I have to...”

Akio smiled happily.

A sigh escaped Satoshi, “Fine..c’mon.”

Akio smiled happily and began walking once again. Inside, Satoshi’s mind continued to twist over the profoundly strange things that were happening to him...as if he needed any more trouble.

[Crystal Tears]

*confuzzled* We’re suppose to be moving on to evening and night now…. Right? Maybe? lol.

Evening – Furin versus Kazan Part I

It was awfully quiet in the Satou residence. No one said a word; no one even looked at each other. They all just went about their business without as much as a second thought to everyone else. With the quietness looming over the entire family, they all gathered around the small, dark wood dinner table. Rika dared to look up, Matsu, her little brother was playing with his food rather than eating it, Yuki appeared to be in deep thought, and their parents were just looking down and quietly eating.

Was this what her family had degraded to? Actually, it was somewhat surprising that mother and father were even here, usually it was just Matsu, Yuki and her sitting at the table brooding about each other (Well, maybe not Matsu but Yuki and Rika). At least then; they would have a discussion, perhaps heated, somewhat violent discussion. But hell, they were at least talking to each other. Rika sorted resented her parents in that respect, when they were home, no one dared speak because it was awkward. Their parents were more like strangers, though they spoiled Rika and Matsu whenever they could. Rika fumbled with her chopsticks as a thought came to mind. Yuki had never been spoiled; in fact, everything was always dumped on him.

“Are you alright?”

Rika snapped out of her thought and looked up, her mother’s tired face was watching her fumble with the sticks again. She smiled sheepishly and began to blush.

“Oh yes, just thinking.”

This would’ve been the part where Yuki made some smart comment, but he didn’t. Instead he just looked at her with semi-curiosity before going back to eating. Her mother smiled, though it seemed cold and devoid of any emotion save for the ones a workaholic feels. Her father didn’t even look up; he was eating and reading some strange paper.

“How was Kazan?” It was the way their father said that which made Yuki seethe inside. The eldest sibling looked up from his food and matched his father’s harsh stare.

“Fine.”

“Anything new happen?” Matsu’s question was innocent enough; he was oblivious to the hatred now looming over the table.

Yuki faltered only for a second, his mind going back to the strange noises and rumours that had consumed his school in an instant. Telling Matsu would make him curious and no doubt he would go and see, putting his life in danger. Kazan students didn’t know Yuki and Rika were siblings, but some might know Matsu was her little brother and choose to act upon it. He didn’t like the kid at all, but he shouldn’t go putting him in danger.

“We had a Furin trespasser.” He spoke than, and the tension in the air disappeared. “That’s it.”

“Oh cool!” Matsu exclaimed, Yuki looked at him, somewhat dumbfounded. Did this kid know nothing of the rivalry of these two schools? “Was he like… A Spy!?!”

“Matsu.” Their father’s voice boomed over the table and Matsu winced, looking down. “Furin students are not spies.”

Yuki and Father had one last cold staring contest before both parents up and left, disappearing into their separate offices. The three children looked nervously at each other before continuing to eat. Rika and Yuki glanced at each other, possibly either one trying to figure out what to say. However, it was Rika who stood up, her meal only half finished.

“I’m going to study…” She murmured; she looked at Matsu. “It’s your turn to clean up Matsu, don’t make Yuki do it.”

The little boy nodded and smiled, oblivious to the fact it was actually Yuki’s day today but Rika had let him off. Sparking some curiosity in her usually aggressive brother, he knew it was his turn, but because the little brother was so anxious to help, Yuki let it slide. He quietly went back to eating his dinner.

Night time – Secrets

Rika’s room was moderately sized, though most people would consider it small. To Rika it was the perfect size, enough room for her computer, bed, bean bag chair, PS3 and television. She highly doubted that anything else could fit into this space and the room still look relatively clean. She sat quietly in her bean bag chair, her eyes drooping with the sudden onset of tiredness. With a yawn she turned over in the shifting, strange chair and closed her eyes. It was warm, this chair. Something she relished, it was kind of like a hug really, absorbing you and keeping you warm while you just enjoy the feeling. Rika hadn’t received a hug in quite a while, her mother used to hug her a lot before she disappeared to become a workaholic like father. Rika had been ten when mom stopped coming home until ridiculously late. Yuki had been the one to take care of her and little Matsu.

“Hmph…” She murmured in a slight daze. She didn’t know exactly what she was miserable about. Today had been a good day, she spent most of the day paying attention, and in the breaks she had hung out with Naoko until the day had ended. Perhaps Rika was a bit disappointed about what she had to come home too, a family which completely fell apart a long time ago.

“Do you know anything about it?” Yuki’s voice came from the door, Rika didn’t even turn over.

“Huh?”

“The Furin student on Kazan grounds… Do you know anything about it?”

“Nope.” She replied, with a smirk on her face. “Even if I did, I wouldn’t tell you.”

“You suspect I’d tell?” Yuki crossed his arms and slowly entered the room, Rika turned over, tired and irritated.

“I know you’d tell.”

“I think you’re greatly exaggerating my dislike for Furin.” He countered, wandering around the room. “By the way, you have to be at level seventy before you even try to beat that fiend.”

“What?” She blinked, caught off guard. “Oh, this morning?”

He nodded, looking out her window. Rika frowned; she had to train more… She absolutely despised training in video games, even if it were necessary. She stared at him in confusion, not knowing exactly what he wanted.

“Would you, um…” She paused, as he turned around, leaning against the wall. “Like something?”

“You don’t think the Furin ‘spy’ is all I came here to talk about?”

“Not really… No.”

He smirked, stifling a chuckle before it could properly escape. Rika was surprised that he was even smirking. His expression to her was always this sour looking gaze that made her feel like the most worthless thing on the planet. Her suspicion was slowly mounting in this situation.

“Do you know what happened at Kazan today?”

Rika thought about it, but nothing came to mind. “Someone… failed a test?”

“If I tell you, you have to swear not to say a word to anyone else.” Yuki answered, turning Rika’s suspicion into a sea of curiosity, she nodded, promising never to tell a soul. “There was a…”


The story itself seemed far fetched, but Yuki wasn’t one to lie about such things. He stared at her, waiting to see her reaction. All that she really did was try to wrap her brain around what he just told her. Was what he said even possible? A giant mechanized thing? Seemed completely out of this world, but Yuki’s voice seemed so sure and confident in what he was saying, how on earth could he be wrong?

“That’s what you were thinking about at the table…” Rika thought out loud, he nodded. “Didn’t want to tell mom and dad?”

“And call me a liar?” He mused, “They’d probably send me off to a ward to live out my life in complete isolation.”

“But the walls would be soft and bouncy.” Rika grinned, Yuki just stared at her. “Besides, don’t you live in complete isolation anyways?”

Yuki sighed. “No, I don’t. I live with this family, and I do have friends…”

“This family?” Rika countered, smirking. “Not good enough for you?”

He didn’t reply, just shrugged and headed for the doorway. Rika watched him with only the slightest bit of annoyance. This family wasn’t much of a family anyways.

“Maybe not,” he replied with a hint of slyness in his voice. Rika smiled. “If I did decide to live my life out in isolation, no one would notice.”

“I’d notice.”

Yuki stopped, and looked over his shoulder at his sister. As he turned and walked down the corridor, a small, warm smile appeared on his face.

[Weasel Overlord]

Inoue Hotaru
私達は甘い声でささやく
Aprés midi [on the way to] & [away from] Kazan Gakuen

“Ariaaaaa come baaaack!” Hotaru yelled after Aria, as she ran towards the relative safety of her big brother’s school. “Don’t you know about the murderers and rapers and pillagers at Kazan!? They’ll murder you! And rape you! And pillage you! And it’ll all be Hotaru onii-sama’s fault and then your brother will kill me and everything and he’ll never talk to me again and oh shit, she’s really gone.” Hotaru slapped his forehead sharply with the palm of his hand and slumped to the ground.

“It’s probably too dangerous to go to Kazan, but if it’s too dangerous for me, what’s it gonna be like for Aria? She’s only fifteen, oh god,” he stumbled to his feet, a look of determination on his face. “Right. I guess it’s off to Kazan for me, then. No need to mention anything to the TCC, Sayu-chan will take care of everything while I’m gone. At least… I hope she will…”

---

Hotaru had been taking the long route to Kazan in a desperate effort to keep himself safe and out of sight of and away from rapists and murderers, but it wasn’t long before he heard what sounded like a scuffle coming from not too far away. There were soft grunts and noises of combat, complete with slightly raised voices and rustling of the surrounding leaves.

Deciding to investigate, Hotaru crept forward slowly, but being unused to stealth in forests, he made a whole lot of noise - twigs snapping and the like - and before he knew it, the sounds of combat had ceased, and sounds of escape were much more rife. Padding forward more carefully, he peered around the thick trunk of a tree, then attempted to dash across to another one, head down, when he collided rapidly and painfully with a hasty figure dressed in Furin colours.

Both parties went down with a thump and a yell. Hotaru blinked forest dust out of his eyes and gaped at the scowling face of Mizukaze Ryuu, a member of the Furin martial arts team and a year below Hotaru in school.

“Hi Ryuu! What are you doing lurking around in the forest at a dangerous time like this?”

“I could ask you the same thing, Inoue-senpai. It’s ok for me, I do martial arts, but what about you? Gonna throw tea at a Kazan murderer?”

“What is with everyone’s obsession with me throwing tea at people?” Hotaru looked annoyed. “I’ve never once thrown a teapot at anyone. I wish people would stop saying that.”

“Okay okay, it was just a joke.”

“Was that you fighting a bit ago, Mizukaze-kun?” Hotaru stood up and offered a hand to Ryuu.

“Yeah…”

“Well, just be careful you know? These forests are probably teeming with Kazan murderers, all about. Anyway, I must dash. My sister-in-law’s run off again and I have to go find her, you know how it is,” he dusted a few leaves off his blazer, flashed a brief grin at Ryuu then dashed off towards Kazan, where Aria was probably being murdered and pillaged and everything.

He skidded around the corner and into a pair of soft people who somewhat resembled the pair he had set out to find - one Sakamoto Dai and runaway sibling Sakamoto Aria-chan.

Once Hotaru was satisfied that no-one had murdered, raped or pillaged his precious Dai, he linked his arm firmly through Dai’s and set off at a swift march in the direction of the Sakamoto residence.

“Aria-chan, I think that since you made your poor Hotaru onee-sama worry so much, you should cook me dinner! A big slap-up meal, what dya say?”

“Taru-san, don’t monopolise my sister like that! And anyway, who said you were coming for dinner?”

“I just did, my dearest Dai-kun, weren’t you listening?” Hotaru giggled at Aria’s scandalised face. “If you pull a face like that, the wind’ll change Aria-chan, and you’ll be stuck looking like a shocked fish for the rest of your life, which isn’t a very good look for a fair maiden like yourself.”

He dodged nimbly out of the way of her swinging schoolbag and hid behind Dai.

“Hey, no using me as a human shield ‘taru.”

“But you make such a good human shield, Daiii. See,” he squeezed Dai’s arm appraisingly. “You have such manly muscles! You’re a perfect meat shield. It’d be a shame to let that all that meat go to waste, and besides, no girl with eyes is ever gonna try and hit me through you, it’d be scandalous abuse of your lovely body.”

Dai patiently picked Hotaru’s groping hands off his arms and shoved him ahead. “It’ll be morning by the time we get home if it’s anything to do with you,’taru. If you want to eat Aria’s food, you’d better hurry up!”

[Emotional Faun Chiko-sai]

Doumeki Yumi

“I spent the afternoon musing on Life. If you come to think of it, what a queer thing Life is! So unlike anything else, don't you know, if you see what I mean.”

9/9. Late afternoon to almost suppertime.

Yumi hopped down from the tree she had been perched in, like a large and wingless bird, and poked her head in through one of the open glass panels of the student council building. Having ascertained that Zenigata was out of the way and only the quarrelling brothers remained, aside from the student council president, she proceeded to climb in.

"I see Ushichibi is giving a discourse on 'Bushido and the Western Influence: Erosion and Decline'," she said to Thomas upon entry to the basement. He had resumed perusal of his book. "What do we do, Rippou-kun? We are doing something about this magical power battle thing, aren't we?"

"We interview either one of those involved for more information." Thomas turned a page.

"Satoshi's my neighbour. We could probably lie in wait at the sunny shrine."

"That was my intention."

"Are we bringing Mr Wolf? Of course we are. We should do him favours from time to time."

"I'm sure he would welcome it. Rather than have to sit and listen to his brother's lecture for another hour or so."

"Right then. Ushi-kun," this addressed to the pint-sized captain of kendo, "I'm very sorry for interrupting your no doubt most deserved chastening of your unworthy, useless and rule-breaking brother, but can we borrow him for a bit? We'll return him by tonight. Detectoring calls."

"Well," snorted Ushitaros, "I don't see what help Aniki would be in any line of work that involves thinking, but go ahead. Bear in mind, Aniki, that I will not cover up for you if you miss Father's midnight training session, though."

As soon as his brother left the area, Ookami began grousing. "Bah, annoying chibi. Always has to go on and on about honour and duty, as if I don't try to do all that already. Did you HAVE to use three degrading adjectives while trying to butter my brother up? ONE would have been enough."

"Three's a good number, you know. It's lucky."

"Yeah, yeah. Is Mr President ready? Can we set off for the sunshrine now?"

Pindrop silence prevailed. Yumi would have twitched, if she could. Even Thomas's reading had halted, a finger frozen in mid-air where it had been about to flip the page.

"WELL, I THOUGHT IT WAS A GOOD PUN!"

*

Sunset came creeping over the rooftops of the city. It turned the facade of the main shrine an impressive-looking golden-red, befitting that of one dedicated to Amaterasu, but when it came to the little shrine at the side, it wavered. It considered, once or twice, piercing through the little shrine's protective huddle in the shadow of its more prominent sibling. When it reached the grinning foxes on either side of the torii gates, it extended cautious tendrils onto their scarlet bibs, and then, daring not to go beyond the tips of their muzzles, darted back to its territory on the larger shrine.

The Doumeki jinja, set in a shallow hollow, was habitually cloaked in shadows. There were elderly, densely-leafed trees in its courtyard, far too densely-leafed in Yumi's opinion as there were always leaves to be swept, and these crowded around the wooden structure of the shaden proper, as if to hide it from view. The shrine itself was hodgepodge, consisting only of an ancient haiden and a honden containing relics to a number of kami. Presumably, if you prayed hard enough, at least one of them would hear.

ECDA had retired to one of the inner chambers of the shrine after about two hours of waiting for the return of their target on the front porch. They had had dinner, which Yumi said she would charge them for later since Ookami had put away the equivalent of two pots of rice without so much as blinking an eye. Thomas was ingratiating himself with the locals by playing go with Yumi's grandmother. So far both were at a dead heat.

Just as Tadanobu began to remark upon how long it took one studious doctor's son to make a direct trip home from school like he usually did, and Yumi saying no, this particular doctor's son did not usually make direct trips home but generally ran errands first, and Ookami going whatever it was they still had to bloody well wait anyway so stop the pointless jabbering, and Tadanobu beginning to make for Ookami with a malicious look on his vulpine face, not that the boy could see or hear him, the wind-chime on the sliding door rang out a little solo, despite the lack of wind.

"He's back." Yumi got up from her seat and stretched, like a cat. "Got the tea?"

Ookami proffered a small clay canister. It was full of some sort of top-grade tea, and had cost them a pretty penny. Nothing that Thomas couldn't take care of, though.

Thomas excused himself, and they set off, a trio of misfits. Passing through considerably more impressive torii gates, Yumi led the other two round the compound of the 'sunshrine', finally halting in front of a smaller, clearly residential building and sounding the knocker.

Keto Satoshi opened the door. Keto Satoshi very likely stared at a motley assortment of forms and faces, notably the large, buff and intimidating frame that belonged to one Gou Ookami and the deadpan features of the student council president, paid not much heed to the relatively harmless countenance of his odd neighbour, weighed up the options in his remarkably quick brain, and shut the door.

Yumi was quicker, however, and jammed a foot in before the door could completely close. "Aaah! Satoshi-kun! It's Yumi from next door!"

"O-oh. Good evening, Yumi-san."

"It's all right! It's only Rippou-kun - er - Thomas-san and Ookami-san. My foot is hurting, could you open the door?"

"Why don't you try slamming the door on i- OW!" This from Ookami, the last utterance due to a sudden elbow in his gut.

"Only the student council president and the school delinquent. Sorry, Yumi-san, could you take your foot out of the doorway?"

"No, I could not. We are on a social visit, cough cough, and we come bearing gifts - give me that tea, Mr Wolf - right, gifts. See this canister? See the label on it, right there?"

"Gyo-ku-ro - GYOKURO?!" Satoshi almost choked. He adjusted his glasses nervously, peering keenly at the container. "H-Highest grade tea!"

His grip on the door loosened. Yumi removed her foot from the opening, plopped the tea canister into Satoshi's hands to keep them occupied, and at the same time sidled in with the other two. "It's good tea, isn't it? Will you talk to us now?"

"It is a matter of importance," said Thomas gravely. "Our deepest apologies for the intrusion."


ECDA = Enigmatic Cube Detective Agency. Jinja = Shinto shrine, shaden = permanent structures within a Shinto shrine, haiden = main building open to public, honden = place to keep the 'body' or 'relic' of a kami, according to wikipedia. All not very relevant.
Tag Mcninja... basically Satoshi is going to get asked a lot of pesky questions about his exosuit and related events and you can uh make up the rest ^^;

[Bulbasaur4]

Kasai Akio
| KAZAN | M | 16 | CURRENTLY: SHOPPING WITH SATOSHI |

MUSIC: Little Things Give You Away - Linkin Park

"Oh oh oh, let's get this too!" Akio exclaimed enthusiastically, grabbing a box of Mochi Ice Cream and eagerly throwing it into the large bag that Satoshi was holding. He sighed, gazing away as Akio seemed to fluidly move up and down the ails- all the while throwing more various foods into the bag.
"A-a-kio-san... this... is..." Satoshi struggled to hold the bag up, its weight building against the bottom- threatening to burst.
"Oh, is that a little too much? We should probably head to the counter now and pay. I think that should be enough for a picnic."
"A... picnic?"
"Why YES! It's a great day outside and I owe you."
"But.. Akio-san.. you don't owe me any-"
"Let's go!"
Akio pushed Satoshi to the counter, where he began emptying its contents onto the belt as the cashier began scanning the items.

A long, shiny black elongated car pulled up alongside the grocery story. Hito Kasai had been driving home when he saw his son enter the grocery store. It was almost a little too convient for his taste, but perhaps a drive home with Akio would give him more time to analyze his son.
"Pull up here." Hito ordered, the driver nodding as the car pulled to the curb and Akio's father stepped out of the car. His adjusted his tie for a moment- a perfect black tie matching his formal sable business attire. Calmly he walked through the grocery doors and walked directly to cashier station number four, where there his stand-out blazing-haired son was standing. He was emptying contents, an aweful lot of contents of food with another student. Hito Kasai had no idea about any of Akio's friends, except perhaps for two.
"Kasai Akio."
Akio practically leapt from his position, dropping a melopan upon the floor. His golden eyes widened in shock as his gaze met his fathers. Satoshi's eyes also widened a bit as it seemed for a short moment, the grocery story was dead silent.
" Otosama... You... what are you doing back so early?" Akio's shock swiftly vanished as his composure soon melted back to its confident, dead-pan seriousness thta usually only came out in perhaps life-threatening situations. It was eeriely similiar to Kasai Hito's.
"I'll explain it on the way home. Follow me. Now."
Hesitating for a moment, Akio calmly turned to Satoshi.
"I'm sorry Satoshi-san, it appears that business has come up. I will have to pay you back for my rudeness. Please excuse me." Akio then walked calmly away, leaving Satoshi in his own shocked state- perhaps from Akio's own seriousness but most importantly, in learning Akio's real last name.
"Ka... sai..."
(Little did he know, Akio's absence left him with also paying for the food. ... Ooops.)



"I'm leaving in an hour, so I'll make this quick." Hito spoke calmly, leaning against the bookshelf with his arms crossed as Akio and Hito stood in the main office.
"An hour? So you come back in a month unexpectantly only to leave in an hour?"
"Akio, you know how it is. Don't start something."
"Of course not."
Silence ensued between the two, as Akio casually poured himself a glass of water and began gulping it down. His father sighed as he began organizing a few papers on the desk.
"I want you to be quiet in school." His father said cooly, staring intently at Akio. Finishing the glass, Akio placed it upon the coffee table.
"I am quiet already..."
"Hai, hai... but being that you are Vice President, you must be careful. You are a prime icon for the students of Furin. Make sure you are not attacked and by the very slim chance you are, I want you to negotiate yourself out of it. Do not fight. "
"I wouldn't f-"
"Is that clear Akio-kun?"
"Well yes bu-"
"Good. I'll be on my way then." Hito Kasai picked up his briefcase and began swiftly heading out the door at the sound of a car honk. Akio absently bit his lip as he suddenly turned around. With an ice-cold stare, Akio's words cut into Hito like shards of glass.
"Make sure to keep looking out just for yourself, Father. Seems you do that very well these days."
The door slammed shut.





The clock that ticked in the living room seemed to be louder than the television set which Akio had on. Sighing, Akio absently flicked through the channels but as the sun began to set, the large mansion seemed more and more like a cage. He was restless- his appetite growing to that of a Lion. It continued to progress to the point that Akio could not stand it any longer. Grabbing his casual jacket of olive green, he slide it over his shoulders as he walked out of the house. Akio looked a little different outside in the evening air, his kahaki pants matching his tight-fitting black shirt nicely and the entire outfit made his hair stand out in the night air like a beacon of fire.
The air was cool compared to his house and Akio's mind was wandering. Flashes of memory about his father bothered him slightly, although he did not show it. He simply continued to walk along various paths and sidewalks until his wandering mind came back to the present. Looking around, Akio saw the glow of a shrine before it occured to Akio that he was near Dai's address. A twinge of guilt hit Akio- he had never invited Dai or Inoue to his house for the sake of his name.
"Stupid..." He whispered to himself, before shaking his head and forcing his contemplative mood to leave him.
"DAAAIII!" He suddenly yelled happily, although he was several blocks from the shrine. Still, that never seemed to stop Akio from expressing enthusiasm.

[EngiMatikul]

AkaiKami
===== Friday, 9/10, 2:42 AM=====
Once again night falls upon the land with two schools, and while the author would have liked it if he could perhaps fabricate lengthy and creative imagery expressing the dark, sinister mood of the notorious business being conducted on school grounds, alas it seems impossible to replicate the remarkable description of an earlier sunset at a significant (and insignificant) shrine. Therefore, in order to minimalize the reader's valuable time for those who actually bother reading pathetic posts like these word for word, suffice to say there was the same man from the night before standing beside the same large window with the same long shadow casted by the same moonlight. Also, note the figure with a vividly colored crimson top that many will often acknowledge as the main villian, standing by a wall in the room looking particularly bored.
And yes if you noticed that the previous paragraph was remarkably rediculously written, blame it on the author for again attempting to change his style of posting. Let us continue with actual plot-related material.
"I was disappointed in your performance today," the man stated factually, without looking at any direction in particular. Akai did not respond, nor show any facial changes. Rather she seemed focused on other things, very likely preparing a workable plan for the next day. Perhaps, she thought, the small brawl she had spotted shortly after the awakenings... perhaps they may be used for some purpose... both seem to have some form of power within them, power that can be used and manipulated...
"The first awakenings were poorly organized. The chaos which resulted appeared to the public to have been within school rather than between schools." The man turned to the side. "Have you anything to say about this?"
"Many apologies, master. I will ensure the following incidents can and will be blamed on school conflicts, including the awakening of the zodiac powers..."
The man gave a small smirk, put his hands in his pockets, then began walking towards a desk hidden in the darkness. He sat himself comfortably down on large chair, put his elbows onto the desk and folded his hands in an authoritive-like position.
"Well, what's done is done. The benefit from all this is the discovery of two zodiacs; we must keep note of them. But of course, we're still searching for others... this can all be handled by you with minimal problems, isn't that right, AkaiKami?"
Again, Akai did not say anything. Her opinions seem as shrouded and opaque as the darkness around them. the man inferred that Akai was merely agreeing silently to his entire discourse.
"But of course, you are not without help..."
From the distance the steady pacing of footsteps can be heard. The footsteps grew louder until it reached the door just outside the room. Two firm knocks signalled the arrival of another man not seemingly much different from the one Akai had been talking to. The figure let himself in, the large door making a loud echoing creak as the door opens and an even louder slam as the door shut behind him.
"Ah! Kasai-sama, it is an honor to have you visiting us at such a busy time! I hadn't imagined you would stop by to accept our thanks from keeping much of the local happenings here away from the public..."
"Think nothing about it. For a friend and his reasons, it is a pleasure." The man bowed in return to his greeting. "The preparations should be perfect. Even if one were to speak of the events occuring here at the schools, no one would believe such outrageous tales... Hah! It's because all of this seems so outrageous that it has made my job easier..."

Akai in the meantime slipped into the shadows and disappeared. Her conversation with her master was over and his master had other things to attend to. Akai herself must begin preparations for the next day...



======
SO THE NEXT DAY ARRIVES! Again my infamous informal notes to everyone:
1. You can still post for the day before but of course, you might want to finish up so we can begin the next day.
2. We have Outlaw JT and Crystal Tears up for the next awakenings! Have fun, make my life easy by just awakening yourselves so I don't have to post for Akai. :>

[Outlaw JT]

Mizukaze Ryuu
~Beginnings in Battle~

The rest of the day proceeded as poorly as it had began. Instead of meeting Cho at their secret spot he was alone. He waited for some time before suddenly noticing a small folded sheet of paper at the edge of sight that he could swear was not there before. She was unable to meet him because of all the commotion and Akaryou-kun's newfound suspicions. She apologized as well which made Ryuu feel especially horrid as it was his fault for placing them in the situation to begin with. He would apologize fully in return when they met at lunch tomorrow. His culinary skills were modest but he knew a few things and one of Cho's favorites was hard to acquire.

Classes the rest of the day passed with complete lack of speed. More than one student eyed him suspiciously. His short absence just past midday had not gone unnoticed and rumor surfaced quickly about him being the student who had crossed over to Kazan amid whatever chaos had ensued over there. Many students encouraged the perceived behavior to Ryuu's great dismay. Many more shied away nervously.

After leaving the forest Ryuu took a long detour on the path home. There was a small out of the way market that carried a rare and diverse selection of spices and ingredients. He had to make something exceptional by way of his own apology and this was the only market in the region where one could get the proper ingredients for what he had in mind.

Reaching home uneventfully Ryuu went through his normal evening routine but with accentuated haste. He performed his exercises, completed his homework, read the next chapter of his history text. Immediately upon finishing his evening meal he retired to his room and promptly went to bed. He had to get up early if he was going to prepare the special lunch he wanted to for Cho.

The following morning Ryuu woke up very early, before the sun had risen. He began working on Cho's lunch with focused determination. His first attempt was a failed effort. It was a complicated dish he was trying to create for her. His second effort, however, proved to be almost perfect and was finished just in time for him to throw something together quickly for his own lunch.

He was out the door and on the way to school at exactly the time he should be. Today there would be no detours without significant cause. Today would go well and peacefully and he would not cause Cho any more trouble! Today he would make up yesterdays disasters to her as much as he possibly could in a single day.

The morning was decidedly more pleasant than yesterday. He had a pleasant conversation with Rika between classes. Ryuu aced a pop exam in Physics. The entire day seemed to be unfolding perfectly; a complete contrast to the events of yesterday.

At lunch, Ryuu cautiously slipped away from the school unnoticed. He didn't need more rumors circulating about his forays into the woods between the rival schools. He made his way to that special small clearing and sat down to wait patiently. He did not have to wait long for the tone of the day to change entirely.

After only two minutes he heard rustling through the trees. Immediately his heart sped up in blessed anticipation. It promptly sank at the sound of two voices. Two decidedly male and vaguely familiar voices. Ikage Ushida and Hideo Tahashi, senior members and 2nd and 4th seat of the Kazan martial arts team. Unlike their captain these two individuals were not polite or bound to social graces. They were also easily provoked and often sought to provoke others. Ultimately, near the last two people Ryuu would ever want to run into.

"Well, well.....it seems Akaryou was right!" Tahashi rasped with a wolfish grin.

"When he said we could catch one of you Furin martial arts pups alone out here in the woods I have to say I had my doubts. However he knew you'd be here I have to thank him later," Ushida said as he started cracking his knuckles.

Ryuu stood slowly, watching the two Kazan students carefully. Slowly he slid the lunch he had prepared for Cho into his bag, sliding the strap over his shoulder. As the two started to split, walking around him deliberately, Ryuu started to back away cautiously.

"I wish for no trouble. I merely sought to eat my lunch in quiet solitude," Ryuu continued backing away cautiously, bowing respectfully. "I will take my lunch elsewhere so as not to disturb y......."

Before he could finish his sentence or reach the edge of the clearing the two martial artists made their move. With a sudden burst one came out him directly, forcing him to dodge to the side. The other pointedly jumped past to block off his escape to Furin grounds.The two of them were fast and attacked in concert. Ryuu was faster and not the least bit interested in confronting them directly.

Their blows flowed at him with clumsy force. Tahashi and Ushida were more power than precision. They were two against one, however, and very skilled at fighting as a pair. Deflecting one blow left scarcely enough time to evade the next as the two orchestrated their assault in near perfect symmetry. In the open even someone of Ryuu's skill would have been overpowered quickly by their combined assault.

Ryuu had the advantages of speed and terrain, however. A series of attacks led him around a tree. Deftly ducking under one blow he pulled down a branch and let it snap back up across the extended leg of the next blow. Using the opening, Ryuu twisted in place and brought his open palm up to meet the chin of a rushing Tahashi.

"grrraAAAAAAAAAH" Tahashi shouted as he stumbled back clutching his jaw. "You're not going to beat US!!!"

A strange fire suddenly took hold in Tahashi's eyes. For the briefest of moments Ryuu could swear the fire was not in his eyes but something red flashing through the trees that Tahashi's eyes reflected. He didn't have time to search for the source of the flashing red hair he thought he saw as Tahashi rushed at him, suddenly faster. Caught off guard by the previously unexhibited speed Tahashi grazed his hand across Ryuu's chest.

Searing pain burnt it's way across his chest and Ryuu looked down to notice four long gashes across it through his uniform which was no slowly staining red. When he looked up he no longer saw Tahashi and Ushida. In their place were monstrous creatures barely still in human form. Clawed tiger-like creatures haunched upright on two legs almost like men. Creatures that wore the uniforms of Tahashi and Ushida.

Their attack resumed before the burning in his chest could fully register. Ryuu ducked under clawed swipes and turned to begin running. The fight had gone from dangerous to deadly and he was ill equipped to fight monsters.

Running seemed more of a game to the creatures than anything, however. Quickly they'd outflank him and force him to change directions until Ryuu lost all sense of it. He couldn't say how long he ran but his lungs were burning like fire when they finally decided to stop toying with their prey. The cornered him in a dense cluster of trees and were on him swiftly. The first attack he slid underneath, twisting sideways to try and evade past them. The second attack grabbed his wrist in a crushing grip.

The creature that had formerly worn Ushida's uniform spun him around above it's head rapidly like a bola before releasing, sending Ryuu crashing through the trees. The flight felt like forever as countless branches and tree limbs broke free as his back sailed through them. When he landed Ryuu didn't even notice the distinct building behind him; Kazan's gym at the far edge of the forest from Furin. His vision blurred and his head swimming.

Ryuu could barely make out the two striped forms rushing towards him and his mind spun frantically. He need a weapon. Something to defend himself or those monsters would rip him limb from limb. He reached over and his hands came to rest on a long tree branch that had crashed to the ground with him.

Just as the first of the two creatures came within reach he swung the branch up suddenly and it caught the Tahashi creature flat across the stomach. The branch seemed to shatter on impact, sending wood shrapnel everywhere. The force of the blast seemed to knock both creatures back unexpectedly.

As he struggled to his feet Ryuu realized that his hand still gripped tightly around something. His eyes slid down the surface of a perfectly carved and crafted staff. A shimmering blue coiled through brilliant white, a blue dragon flying through the clouds. The beauty of the staff was captivating and inspiring. It's smoothly etched curves were a sight unrivaled among any weapons Ryuu had ever seen. As his other hand slowly wrapped around the staff and his grip firmed in both hands the pain immediately faded away. His vision suddenly returned to crystal focus and he could see the two tiger-like creatures now recovered charging at him.

As if he had practiced with the staff his whole life it swung into action almost as if of it's own accord. A low sweep and the Ushida beast was tripped. As it fell forward off it's feet the back end of the staff whirled around to catch it across the jaw. Continuing the fluid motion of the ever-moving staff Ryuu charged forward with the swing, catching the Tahashi beast square across the chest. As it paused, clutching it's chest for air, Ryuu suddenly leveled the staff with him and thrust the tip forward. Somehow the blow seemed to blow the creature back before even connecting. The beast flew back as if it had been hit by a truck.

As the Ushida beast recovered Ryuu arced the staff back over his head and lanced it into the ground as he flipped upward, vaulting himself over his assailant. As he lands the staff flicks upwards catching Ushida beast under the arm. A twirling motion as Ryuu sidesteps sends it flying just as it had the Tahashi beast. The two forms lay on the ground twitching a good distance away from him.

Suddenly Ryuu realizes he no longer has his satchel slung over his shoulder. He couldn't lose it, couldn't lose the lunch he had prepared for Cho. This thought blinded him to the fact that all strength seemed to be leaving him.

As his vision began to blur again and the pain once again began to creep over him his eyes came to rest on his bag. As quickly as he could, leaning heavily on the staff, he walked over to it. Without realizing it Ryuu slid to his knees as he reached for the bag. His vision blurred more as his hands dug urgently through the bag until they produced a simple but elegantly wrapped box lunch with a note on top of it.

"Thank god! I thought I may have lost it in the fight....." Ryuu whispered with a cough through his blood soaked shirt.

Suddenly Ryuu collapsed to the ground, the world going pitch black. One hand clutched the staff with a deathly grip. The other hand gripped the box lunch even tighter, the note facing up expectantly hoping to find it's intended recipient somehow.

'My love, I apologize for my reckless actions yesterday. The incident yesterday morning was my fault and I am sorry I made you feel you had to apologize for my foot. Your Captain was also my fault. When I saw the lights at Kazan I was horrified that something might be happening to you and I had to see that you were alright at any cost. He caught me and from his behavior towards both of us I think he suspects the truth and intends to make a game of it somehow. Please accept my apology and I hope you can forgive me. I hope you enjoy this lunch I prepared. I know it's one of your favorites. Love eternally, your Dragon'




OOC: The intention wasn't to kill those two Kazan students but I leave their fates in the hands of those to post after me. I hope I left the note at the end sufficiently vague. Ambiguous enough so it doesn't immediately give away any names (other than Ryuu's as he is holding it when it is found) but does provide some clues for the mystery lover to try to piece together.

[classy_cat18]

To those who think this is too short...XP

Itou Cho - Living in a Mad World

I couldn't get my mind off of the day's events so I figured that I should at least ease my mind a little. The research I did on Fuu might've made it better, but some things I read didn't sit right with me.

"Nekomata." The word felt strange coming out of my mouth as I headed to school the following morning. A cat with a forked tail and supernatural powers, including the ability to stand on two feet, speak the human language, and reanimate the dead.

That last one was the part that didn't sit right with me. Could Fuu bring fresh corpses to life? I shook that thought out of my head. Why would I want her to create zombies?

"Satoshi-kun! Akio-kun!" I called out to my friends as I reached the campus. Both of them smiled and waved to me. I looked up at Satoshi, noting that he looked tired. "Are you feeling better? We tried to keep Zenigata-san away from you!"

"I got questioned," he replied dully.

I cocked my head to the side. "Hm? By who?"

He just groaned, meaning that he really didn't want to talk about it. Akio patted his shoulder and gave us both a big grin. "Don't worry about it! If they bother you again, Cho-chan can scare them away with her fists!"

"Hai!" I agreed, mimicing Akio's grin. It was a relief that Akio wasn't bringing up yesterday's incident. "Hey, where is Dai-kun? I didn't see him yesterday."

"I visited him after school. He might still be annoyed that I ruined his evening."

I glanced at Satoshi. Poor guy was still on edge. Everyone was on some level, and I really couldn't blame him after what had happened yesterday. I wasn't familiar with him though. He was a little closer to Akio. "I have made a peace offering with Satoshi-kun!" I announced loudly.

"Huh? You never made me a peace offering!" Akio complained.

"I never needed one for you." I pulled out a tied-up cloth from my pack and showed it to Satoshi. "Homemade onigiri! I made it myself!" Both guys gave me a strange look. Akio knew that I rarely cooked, but I did when I had to.

"Ano...arigatou..." Satoshi said quietly as he accepted my gift.

We walked to our classrooms, first stopping at Satoshi's. "Have a good day. If you need something to get you through class, I recommend rubbing Akio-kun's hair for good luck!" I said brightly.

"Cho!" Akio shouted, his face the same color as his hair.

I ignored him. "One time I rubbed his hair before taking an exam. I aced it! Can you believe it?" I went on about the subject, Akio pulling me away as soon as I offered Satoshi a lock of it.

"Cho-chan, how many times have you asked me to give you some of my hair?" Akio asked me. I jokingly started counting on my fingers. He laughed. "Never mind."

"Okaa-san told me someone wants to buy that painting that I told you about yesterday. The woman said she'll pay top dollar, but okaa-san is still hesitant on letting it go. What was her name again? Um...uh...Kasai!"

The only reaction from Akio that I noticed was a small gasp. But I let it go, seeing as the Kasai family was pretty important. "Such a beautiful day. I wish I didn't have to spend it indoors," I commented as I looked out the window. It was almost time for class to start so I didn't try leaving the campus yet. I'll have to wait until lunch period. The risk is high but I need to go. Ryuu is worth that risk.

"Itou?" I looked up to see Satou Yuki, a helper for the Kazan teachers. "I have a note for you from Ikaryou."

I took it and thanked him before he left. My good mood was smashed to pieces seconds after I started reading. Practice during lunch break to make up for yesterday? He never does that! My fist clenched tightly, ready to punch the nearest thing. "Damn him..."

"Are you okay?" Akio asked me.

I calmed down, my angry expression dimming to a depressed one. "Akio-kun..." I couldn't take this much longer. I had to tell someone about me and Ryuu. Akio would understand. "There's something I have to tell you after school. In private."

He nodded. The teacher came in, signaling the start of class. Time went by slowly as I faded in and out of the real world. If I can hold out until after class, I would be okay. My sanity would remain in one piece. Okay, maybe that was a little too dramatic.

Lunch period finally came. I waited in the gym after changing into my uniform for Ikaryou to show up. When he did, I raised an eyebrow. Two of the students were missing. "Where are Ushida and Tahashi?" I inquired.

Ikaryou gave me a cold stare, annoyed that one of his underlings would be so insolent. "They have other matters to attend to. You'll be able to eat after we run through our drills."

"Hai." I got in line with the others and started practice.

Ikaryou looked over us like the general he thought he was, finally locking eyes with me. "You seem...distracted," he observed. I stayed silent and tried to keep up with the others. He smirked. "Would this have anything to do with yesterday?"

My kicks and punches became harder. Does he know? I can't let him get to me!

"FURIN SPY!" someone yelled from outside.

Everyone stopped at the same time and rushed out the gym. One of the team members had apparently stopped to take a breath of fresh air when he spotted him. He had a bleeding wound on his chest, like something slashed it. "This Furin student is..." the Kazan started.

"Ryuu." I finished quietly.

"He'll be expelled for sure for this," Ikaryou said grimly. He was definitely loving this.

"Geez, what got him? You think it was that cat I heard about?" my teammate Ken asked. He looked up and gasped. "Hey, it's Hideo and Ikage!"

The two missing students were lying a few meters away from Ryuu, also in bad condition. "Get them to the infirmary!" Ikaryou commanded two students.

I was too rattled to even try to piece everything together. What had attacked those Ryuu? Was it the same person that fought the other two victims? It looked bad; it was certain that it was going to look like a fight between schools.

"Taichou, what about the Furin?" I calmly asked even though I could feel tears coming.

He shrugged nonchalantly. "What about him?"

"His injury is severe. He needs an ambulance!" I yelled the last bit for all to hear.

"Oh, let him bleed," Ken grumbled as he pulled one of his fallen classmates to his feet. "Who knows what he might have been up to over here?"

"Are..." I bit the inside of my mouth to keep myself from saying any more. Now Furin students were gathering outside, and it didn't take long for one of them to discover Ryuu.

The first one to reach him was Takiri Kei, the captain of the Furin martial arts team. He and Ikaryou went into a glaring contest before Kei and another Furin student picked him up. Tsurugi, my memory told him he was. He and I exchanged glances, and I gave a slight bow and left.

"Cho, where are you going?" Ken called after me.

"To eat lunch," I replied while still walking. I changed in the locker room and began the trek back to my classroom.

"Cho-chan! I wanted to see you but I my hands got full!" To my surprise, Akio was standing in the hallway with his usual smile. "It looks like your blood has stopped pumping! Do you need someone to punch?"

I sighed and slumped against the wall. My energy had been zapped again, but this time I was more mentally tired. "I just need lunch."

"Ah." He dangled a cloth-wrapped bento in front of my face. But it wasn't mine. I took it though.

I untied the knot and opened the box to a most welcome smell. "Sushi?" The box was filled with hand rolls. "Is this yours, Akio?" I looked up at his now solemn face.

"Iie...it's yours. It came with this." He handed me a note and stood beside me while I read it.

The next minute, my fists were once again shaking. The tears finally escaped. He had found the note and the lunch next to Ryuu but had told no one about it. "You read it?" I managed to force out.

"Sumimasen."

"How did you know?"

"I notice these things."

I smiled a little, despite the pain. "The worst thing is that I can't cry about it. I can't cry because I won't stop crying. And they'll all know." I wiped my eyes on his sleeve. "Akio-kun, are they crazy? Do they want each other to die? What's going on here?"

He rubbed my head amiably, being quiet again. It was strange; although he's usually cheery and bright, I found that this was what I needed. I smiled again and pushed his hand away. "This food shall not go to waste," I said boldly as I entered the classroom.

[Emotional Faun Chiko-sai]

I apologise if I played Akio wrong. But I could totally see him doing it T_T I WILL ADD MORE STUFF IN LATER (maybe post after Kirkle does), RIGHT NOW I NEED SLEEP. excuse the cheese in this post. I know it all goes downhill after the curry sauce. need sleep.

Sakamoto Dai


"He looked more like Macbeth, seeing a couple of Banquos."


9/9. Dinnertime.

Dinner at the Sakamoto residence was usually a highly anticipated occasion. This was because their resident cook was an excellent one. Mrs Sakamoto had officially hung up her apron and ladle (as well as various other kitchen utensils) once her daughter had started showing signs of culinary skill, along with that hallmark of the true cook - Aria enjoyed cooking.

Almost everyone at the dinner table was happy. Mr Sakamoto was happy because Aria had decided to make proper curry, his favourite dish ever since he had spent several throat-scorching years of his youth in the Indian subcontinent. Hotaru was happy because he got to eat his sister-in-law's cooking as well as attempt to play footsie with Dai underneath the table. Aria was happy because she hadn't noticed Hotaru attempting to play footsie with her brother underneath the table. And Mrs Sakamoto was happy because she had noticed Hotaru attempting to play footsie with her son underneath the table.

Due to a combination of one or more factors, Dai was not happy, not least because he was ticklish and kept dropping his chopsticks every time Hotaru ran his toes against the underside of his foot and also because he kept missing Hotaru when he tried to kick him to a halt. No one was bothered much about this because Dai quite often looked not very happy about something or other and as long as he didn't voice his annoyances out loud it was pretty safe to assume that it was nothing life-threatening.

Despite all this, however, his sister's curry was truly aromatic and he had just begun on his second helping when he heard it.

"DAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIII!"

Dai choked on a potato. It took a lot of green tea from Aria and a lesser amount of curry sauce from Hotaru to dislodge it from the opening of his esophagus.

"DAAAAAAAAAAA~~IIIIII!!"

The voice was unmistakably Akio's. Dai put down his bowl and excused himself from the table, remembering his manners while his parents were around and only beginning to stomp really hard once he was out the door.

"Another one for dinner?" said Mrs Sakamoto, smiling demurely.

Hotaru waved a fond farewell. "Bring dear Akio back safe and sound now, darling!"

Dai did not deign to answer.

He found Akio strolling, apparently aimlessly, a few blocks away, nearer the shadowed shrine than his house. At the sight of his friend, Akio leapt upon him and enveloped him in an overly enthusiastic bearhug. "Daaaaaiiii! You came to find me!"

"Yes, you were being rather... loud." Dai experienced slight deja vu as he unpeeled Akio's arms away from his shoulders. keeping a straight face all the while. "Next time you want dinner, please do it the normal way and ring the doorbell."

"But I was lost. Sort of. Ummmm. Maybe not." Akio seemed to ponder for a moment. Just as quickly as the weather changed in Britain, the pondering look on his face was replaced by the look of one who had suddenly got a most wonderful idea. "Daaii! Piggyback ride!"

"No-" Dai checked himself, for he had seen something he had not seen for a while, hidden behind the smiling facade of his friend. "...well. This is the last time." It's only a short distance, anyway... and you can run all the way home... no one will see...

"Thank you Daaaiiii!"

Back then he thought he had seen the faintest flash of fear in Akio's eyes. The fear, he thought, was of rejection. There had also been a sort of forlorn hope. That, he was not entirely sure of. Perhaps he wanted to feel as if he had a family. From what he gathered from Akio very carefully not mentioning his family in conversation, ever, he had concluded that Akio did not have much of a life at home.

The weight against his back was a burden, especially whenever Akio turned to look at a stray cat or a particularly interestingly shaped lamppost. There were many burdens in Dai's life. One more probably wouldn't hurt.

Sometimes Dai was more sensitive than he appeared to be.

[Weasel Overlord]

DONE WHEEE!!

Inoue Hotaru
白い花に囲まれてゆく*
morning [at] Furin Gakuen

It had been late in the night before Hotaru had realised that it was, well, very late at night. And what with the murdering and the raping and the pillaging (okay, maybe not so much raping and pillaging), Hotaru was somewhat afraid of walking home on his own. And so, after spending a full half an hour persuading and prodding and poking at Dai-kun, Hotaru finally got his way and smugly settled down to sleep on the cosy floor of Dai-kun’s bedroom, a big smile plastered on his face.

No one can ever say that Inoue Hotaru is not scheming, oh no.

A shame he cannot seem to manage to scheme his way out of walking Aria-chan to school…

“Well, at least there’s strength in numbers, eh Aria-chan?”

“Yes, yes, whatever you say Hotaru, can we just hurry please? I always visit Yumi-chan’s shrine before I go to school, I can’t miss out just because you’re walking me there for once.”

“To the shrine?” Hotaru looked dubious. “Are you sure that a detour like that is safe, Aria-chan?”

“I’m quite sure that there won’t be any rapists and murderers at the shrine, Hotaru-san.”

“Persuasive as your argument is, sweet onee-san, I’m afraid I’ll have to drag you straight to school today.”

“No, Hotaru,” Aria shook her arm out of Hotaru’s firm grip and faced him haughtily. “I’m going to the shrine!”

“Your big brother put me in charge of getting you to school safely, Aria-chan, and I mean for that to happen.”

“Nothing’s going to happen, Hotaru! It’s just the shrine, that’s all.”

“If it’s just the shrine then it can wait until this evening! I will personally bring you to your damn shrine, wait with you until you’ve finished your business, whatever that may be, and then escort you back home.”

“You just want to get a chance to sleep in Dai’s room again!”

“Oh you, you’re so observant Aria-chan! Come on, we’d better get going. If you get murdered, it’s my head that’ll be on the plate.” Hotaru set off walking, cheerfully tugging Aria along by her arm.

“I am not going to be murdered!”

“You’re right, if they get wind of what your cooking’s like, they might kidnap you instead, Aria-chan. And then just think of what the world would be like if only Kazan students got to taste your cooking! Actually, that might stop all the murders…there’s a thought…”

“You are not letting them kidnap me, Hotaru.”

“Who says?”

“My lovely onii-san!”

---

“So then my tea-loving sweetlings, what exactly are we going to do about these murderings?”

“Who says we can do anything, Taru-chan?” Sayuri looked doubtful over the rim of her powder-blue porcelain teacup.

“Someone has to do something, Sayu-san! If not us, then who? We’re perfectly situated for a coup, no-one will ever suspect!”

“Who said anything about a coup?” Kalah looked disapproving at Sayuri’s side, her legs crossed in a business-like manner. “We’re not revolting against a corrupt government, Hotaru-san.”

“Well okay, maybe not a coup. A resistance?”

Rika shook her head. “Too violent-sounding.”

“Inquisition?”

“Definitely not.” Hotaru sank his head into his hands, deep in thought, then looked up sharply as a flash of inspiration arrived. “Investigation Committee!”

“Well, that’s a bit better I suppose.” Sayuri still looked doubtful, but Rika chirped up a little at the suggestion.

“I like it!”

“Well then it’s settled! We shall be the Furin Investigation Committee! I think we should find someone to interrogate!”

“What is with you and wanting to interrogate people?” Sayuri now joined Kalah in looked disapproving. “No interrogation, Taru-san.”

“Oh fine the- Rika? What’s the matter? You look like you’ve seen a ghost!”

“Maybe not a ghost… something feels… I don’t know…”

“What do you mean?”

“Something’s happening…” she looked around the room wildly, as if she would find the source of her distress lurking in a dark corner somewhere. “MATSU!” she shrieked, suddenly, the pitch of her voice enough to make Hotaru nearly fall off his chair in shock.

“I have to…” she stood up, swiftly, then set off at a dead run, flinging open the doors of the TCC without a care.

“Rika!” Hotaru shouted after her. “Sayuri, Kalah, could you stay here and look after the club? I’ll go see what’s wrong with Rika!” Hotaru dashed off out of the room before either Kalah or Sayuri could reply, hot on Rika’s heels to wherever she was headed.

---
* ALL Japanese characters in my titles are lyrics from songs by the marvellous Gackt.

[Crystal Tears]

Gemini Act I

Your brother’s voice shall fall silent…

Matsu hit the ground, hard. In truth, he supposed the three students could’ve flung him into a tree, or drown him in the river. But at least than, he’d have more of a chance of falling completely unconscious instead of feeling all this damned pain. With a heavy groan the thirteen year old looked up at his attackers with a weak, but angry glare. They were laughing, all laughing. He was a Furin potential, sister to one of the enemy. And for that he was damned to suffer at their feet. Lanky as he might be, his sized did nothing for him. These men knew how to fight, they knew what to do. And that would no doubt be the boy’s true downfall. He could not fight back, no matter how hard he tried.

“What’s the matter?” One taunted, he was the big, fat ugly one. These three were almost stereotyped villains. One was fat, another, tall and lanky, and the other was fairly normal. The fat one bellowed like a beast as he laughed. “Can’t fight?”

Slowly Matsu got to his feet, only to receive a swift punch in the face. Okay, they weren’t the most elegant of fighters, but they were stronger, and outnumbered him three to one. Matsu let out a startled cry when the lanky one struck in him the stomach with a kick and caused him to tumble back on the ground. Bringing his hands from his face, the boy found his fingers covered in blood. It dripped slowly off onto the ground before his reality was sent spinning by a kick to the head.

And in the darkness shall he lie…

Rika probably could’ve beaten any athletic team member at the speed she was going away from the tea-house. The wind rushed against her, and the feeling of pure helpless and dread was building up to a point. Matsu was in deep trouble, and Yuki wasn’t there. The trees were coming up, a dark green blur that lined the field she was sprinting through. A log lied right in her way, and deep down she knew she couldn’t jump it. The school was supposed to have removed it long ago, but of course, they hadn’t. Why not just leave it there? Let’s put even more obstacles in the way of the girl racing against time to save her brother.

She leapt, the wind suddenly picking up with such force it practically threw her over the log and into the forest. In her daze, Rika glanced over her shoulder to see Hotaru nearly tumbled into the same log she had cleared completely. But her attention was drawn elsewhere, the voice, that eerie call in the back of her mind was haunting her. It had spoken her name and suddenly that horrible feeling had arrived. It was a warning, Rika was sure of that. A warning that Matsu was in trouble, and if it was those Kazan bastards…. God help them if she found them.

The youngest will perish alone…

‘The hell he will!’ She snarled in her head, breaking onto the path with such force she nearly tumbled to the ground. Her shoes skidding on the dirt ground and she found herself standing a mere ten feet from her bloodied and bruised brother. He looked up at her, his eyes glazed over and his expression that of pure confusion. “Matsu!” Rika raced to his side just as Hotaru broke through the trees after her, obviously confused. Her younger brother smiled.

“How did you know?” His smile was weak, but at least it was a smile.

“Let’s call it instinct.” Rika lied, putting on a grin. The feeling had dimmed, but it was still there. Rika was waiting for the voice to say something morbid and creepifying, but alas… Nothing… The girl glared at the Kazan students, noting how a slight breeze suddenly came about. It was frigid and chilling to the point of almost being unforgiving. She growled softly, her hands turning white from being clenched so tightly.

“You…” She snarled, “You will all pay for this!”

They laughed, and the wind continued to worsen, turning into a mild gust that was spreading all around. The wind was carrying its chilling attitude to anyone and everything within a five mile radius probably. Rika didn’t really think about it much, but the wind was fuelling her rage, making her all the more unforgiving.

“What’re you going to do?” The main guy snickered with a light shrug. “Slap us around a bit?”

A hefty gust blew everyone but Rika and the main Kazan student over. So many thoughts were surging through her head, and all involved that boy dying the most horrible and painful death that could happen. His face was beginning to change from cockiness to worry, why was it any time that girl got angry the wind worsened? Some of the smaller trees were beginning to snap under the pressure, and leaves were being torn from their branches.

I feel a lust for blood here and now…

It came so sudden it even caught Rika off guard. An orb of darkness slowly rose up from the ground, blending and melding the light around it into an aura of dark purple, ebony, obsidian and pure black. The entire entity of light was probably six feet in diameter, if only a bit larger. With a creepy sort of grace it rose up until it was about fifteen feet into the sky, and extending from the left side were two wings that resembled a bats. The webbing however, was slightly torn and the claws looked extra sharp.

Everyone attempted to stare at it, but only Rika managed to do so. Everyone else had to look away, and even so, her eyes burned as they tried to see into the darkness. She was dazzled, and slowly felt her rage boil into the intent for murder. She glared at the Kazan students, gritting her teeth as the wind picked up again, snapping branches off of the trees and spreading the gusts all over. Everyone should feel her rage; everyone should know what these boys did, and how it made her feel. Rika couldn’t really understand it, but she was relishing in the anger this entity brought to her.

Massacre…

The boys felt sick now, tired and wearily they watched bewildered as the wind was finally at its most powerful state. Black feathers wisped by everyone, dancing on the wild current that was forcing everyone but the girl to the ground. The gust ran around in a sadistically playful manner, until it finally focused itself on a single object. It was a fair sized tree, which was slowly beginning to crack under the vast amount of pressure it was taking. In a final powerful sweep, the treacherous wind snapped the tree from its roots and carried it with such ease it was unbelievable.

Hotaru was forced to dive to the ground again as the trunk blew by him and missed by probably an inch. Rika didn’t budge; the wind would carry it around her. She knew that much, she could here the soft whispers from the entity. Not so pronounced as the darker thoughts, it was assuring her she was safe. Rika smiled evilly at the Kazan student as he watched the on coming tree with a face full of horror.
It was quick, and it was painful. The trunk smashed into the boy’s head and than neck, throwing him several feet before he landed and the tree on top of him. Rika watched, the smile now disappearing as the several cracking sound that he had emitted. The fat one got up to run, but the wind tore several branches from the surround trees and pelted him over and over again. The ground was beginning to turn red from the violence taking place here. Hotaru called out to Rika but exactly what he said, she could hear over the whispers in the wind and the howling the pig Kazan was making. One of the branches slapped against his throat, causing him to kneel over as he cough.

She didn’t even try to look away as the trunk that crushed the over boy landed with a heavy thud onto his back. The boy collapsed, the smaller branches falling roughly on his body.

I want to tear, I want to bite and shred flesh

The last of them was the lanky boy, who watched nervously as the wind picked up again. He felt so sick, so tired, and what was happening made his stomach curl. In a desperate act of survival, he dived towards the ground, a black feather brushing across his face as he did so. The pain he felt was so immense, that he blacked out before the rest of the trunk slammed down onto his head.

Rika looked at the sight before her, and suddenly her heart stopped. Matsu, the log, it was… What had happened? Emptiness was left in her mind as the wind turned from horrendously strong to a breeze, and that entity, it vanished, turning into nothing more than black feathers on the ground. She attempted to run forward, but her legs trembled and the rest of her body was numb with tiredness. She stumbled over her feet and fell to Matsu’s side; his eyes were open slightly, with a glazed, abandoned look about them.

“Matsu?” She gasped; the world around her was spinning out of control. “Matsu are you alright?!”

He didn’t answer, only continued to stare off into complete nothingness. Rika began to panic, what had happened? What had she done? Why couldn’t she remember? She turned, looking up at Hotaru who was pale and looked rather cold. Tears fell from her eyes as she stared at her friend.

“What did I do?”

~ ~ ~ ~

Righty so, anyone in a five mile radius of that pathway close to Furin and that potentially also leads to Kazan would’ve felt the immense wind. Side effects include: anger/rage, irritation, fear, dread, and helplessness. You also might see black feathers here and there.

[Emotional Faun Chiko-sai]

I am sorry for posting so frequently but I am merely doing what I can while I can, while I still have access to the wonder that is a laptop with Internet access.

Kitsune Tadanobu, Sakamoto Dai, Doumeki Yumi


Ora pro nobis


10/9

Tadanobu walked the stones of the path, and they told him that the girl he was looking for was not too far ahead. There was a shudder in their grit, as if they were afraid. He dismissed it, at the time.

Tadanobu kept close to the shadow of the wall, from force of habit, though it had been centuries since humans could see him when he did not wish to be seen. He lengthened the distance of each step he took, so as to be quicker on his way. The errand he was on was a minor one; the girl was accustomed to coming to their shrine in the mornings, but on this morning she hadn't, and his mistress was curious to know what the reason could be. A small matter of strawberries was involved.

Tadanobu lost the girl's trail somewhere about the turning that led to her school. The trees, wind, stones, all would not show the way, and he wandered on into the school by himself. He tried plying the threads of the souls in the area for hers, but was prevented by a most abrupt rustling.

An eye, ruby-red; coil, upon coil, upon coil; the iridiscence of scales, and each scale large enough that his face was reflected in full in any single one of them...

He spat, for there was the taste of venom in his mouth. He was dreadfully mazed.

When he went home, he conferred with his mistress, and with his mistress of years past, and they agreed upon one point and one point only.

"Orochi?" said his mistress, her eyes narrowing as they did when things, that she did not quite approve of, were afoot.

"Orochi," said his ex-mistress, nodding her old head so fast that she resembled one of the dolls they used to make in the villages, to sell to foolish foreigners.

"Not a picture," agreed Tadanobu, straightening his hakama, which had become disarranged in his haste.

*

It wasn't a recurring habit of Dai's to be late for class, but this particular morning, he was taking no risks. If Hotaru did not accompany Aria all the way to Furin, and if he wasted time while doing it, he was going to be very angry. Last night had been relatively eventless but he had had to stand Hotaru's fanboying over spending a night with his beloved Dai-kun and that he was so disappointed that Dai-kun had not taken advantage of him but then again he had known that Dai's noble and cavalier spirit would shine through and he would never do anything to Hotaru that Hotaru wouldn't like, barring the fact that Hotaru would have loved anything that Dai-kun did to him...

Dai pinched the bridge of his nose, and let out a long breath, that turned into a sigh. Well, Hotaru had done his job this time, at least. Once he'd seen them enter the gates of Furin, he slunk silently out of the shrubbery and, shouldering his bokken, began the walk back to Kazan.

On his way he became an incriminating witness with incriminating evidence, that is, if he bothered to mention the incident to the student council, an event that was highly unlikely given his distrust of student councils in general. He saw someone he recognised as the captain of the martial arts team - Akaryou, was it - and two people he vaguely recognised as being on the martial arts team.

"-member of Furin martial arts-"

"-probably sneaking in sometime today-

"-no, really, chief?-"

Dai rolled his eyes. He did not like the martial arts team, although some were more bearable than others, and thought Akaryou a slimy git. So they were setting a trap for some poor Furin bastard? He wanted no part of it. So long as it wasn't Aria, or Hotaru, and it could be neither of these two they were targeting since their victim was on the opposing school's martial arts team, it wasn't any of his business.

Class that day went on much as usual.

*

After school hours, in a deserted corner of the compound, the Kazan Ouendan practiced, or rather, attempted to practice:

"...Oi, Yuu-han," Ookami started, his tone escalating to an exasperated snarl as Yumi almost fell off the wall she was sitting on in her mirth, "can you STOP laughing every time I give commands to the Ouendan!"

"But it's not an Ouendan," Yumi managed to croak, before dissolving into another laughing fit and only halting when Ookami grabbed hold of her shoulders and shook her to a stop. "I-it's just, hahah, you, the dan-hahahahahah-cho, me, and I freely admit that I come here for the express purpose of entertaining myself, and Mr Onii-sama, who's not even a permanent member."

Dai shrugged. "She's got a point. And I should be getting back to the kendo club. Knowing him, Taichou is probably treating the poor kendoka to a long talk on the detrimental influences that have attacked our fair land of Nippon since the arrival of Admiral Perry."

"That is not the point of the Ouendan! The Ouendan exists to give hope to people who have given up on hope! We kick reason to the curb! We inspire people to believe in us who believe in them, if they cannot believe in themselves!" Ookami struck a pose. Yumi saw the fiery aura of his spirit flare up and down, and her mouth twisted in a lopsided grin.

"Of course, Mr Wolf, you as the dancho must uphold these values, since I doubt neither I nor Mr Onii-sama will. Hey, I should be heading to archery. I haven't been to practice in yonks. Wonder if I can still draw a bow-" Yumi paused suddenly, in the midst of her pump-action chatter. A breeze whipped up; it grew stronger, much too quickly. "- Oh."

"Something the matter?" Ookami asked, for the grin had disappeared, and the sometime priestess now stared vacantly at nothing the other two could see. Dai reached out, suddenly, and caught something in his hand.

It was a black feather.

"Hey, Mr Onii-sama. Could I have a look at that?" The sharp look in her eye brooked no argument. She ran her fingers over it, and read what she could.

A brother in pain. The boy is called Pine; he is younger? Whose brother? Where? Judging by the direction it came from, Furin business? Anger and a deep-rooted fear, and anger because of... the fear?

"It's from Furin, I think. Someone somewhere is angry. The wind is part of it. Something about a boy named Pine, er, Matsu? Maybe we should investigate, Mr Wolf, Thomas'll tell us to anyway - oh - where are you going, Mr Onii-sama - he's gone."

"How touching, the devotion of one sibling towards another," said Ookami, uncommonly drily. A window opened, and the pleasant tones of Satou Yuki, teacher-in-training, rang out, shortly followed by the well-formed features of the young man himself.

"Ah, the Ouendan, I see. I wonder if you know why there're all these black feathers floating into the teacher's lounge..."

Yumi saluted, offhandedly. "I'm sure we don't know. Not our fault, Satou-san. Though if you know someone called Matsu from Furin, someone's younger brother, you might find out. Oh look, Mr Wolf, that was fast. I didn't know a body could disappear so quickly. Everyone's running off to Furin. Shall we be going, then? Can't be depriving the master of his information."

Ookami gave a mocking bow. "After you, dear lady."

[Dr.McNinja]

(Sorry for the delay)


Satoshi stared down at the onigiri...this didn’t happen to him. People didn’t randomly give him gifts, even if they noticed him in the first place. He smiled slightly as he sat in his seat, perhaps this entire exosuit thing hadn’t been totally bad...even if it had led him to at least an hour of questioning at his house. They hadn’t got a confession out of him, the wall that he put between him and those who picked on him at school at worked well enough at not revealing anything to them but his nervousness and the obvious discomfort at their presence must had left them with some questions as to involvement. Thing would become complicated before long he thought. Glancing around he felt a small pang at the fact that this was one of the few classes he did not share with Akio-san he could use a feeling of good luck right now, though he was sure Akio-san would not appreciate him rubbing his hair. A soft chuckle escaped Satoshi as he sat in his seat. Class would not start for a few minutes and he opened up the small package. Was Cho trying to make apologies or truly extend her friendship to him. He felt his stomach twinge a little, he didn’t know how to act around girls, even just as a friend. The onigiri was good however, and Satoshi realized that perhaps he should extend his apologies to Cho as well, it had been him who had attacked her in the first place. A part of him wondered now if this entire friends thing was a good idea, no doubt it would be distracting....another soft smile appeared on his face, he was so scared of the idea he was doing his best to rationalize avoiding it. What a shut-off nerd he had become. He reached into his bag and removed his notebook and pencil, he would have to think of what an appropriate return gift would be.


Later


Satoshi was back in the same classroom, a book open on the desk in front of him, his pencil scratching rapidly across a sheet of paper. He had nowhere to go today so he had decided to make the best of his time and finish his homework before heading home. His pencil scratched out scientific formula, pieced together math problems, and etched essays on history and language. Once he began to work his pencil almost never stopped, pausing only to pull in a new sheet of paper or open a new book. He had become practiced at homework, it being one of his main activities. He pondered searching for Akio or Cho after he finished and hoped silently that they would still be in the area. What could he say to them to begin conversation however? The thought eluded him...maybe they would say something to him....that would solve the prob...he stopped his thoughts suddenly as a single black feather fluttered lazily onto his paper. What in the...

The wind scattered his things even as it blew his carefully tied hair into a frenzy and caused him to shut his eyes against the sting. Something else came with the wind however, something that even closed eyes couldn’t protect him from. Satoshi doubled over as the wave of helplessness roiled over him.

Worthless, out of your league, who would want to be friends with you? You’re a robot, just like that damnable suit you used to attack your classmates, you have no personality, no interests, no likes that anyone would find useful!

The feeling passed quickly however, leaving Satoshi sweating and gasping in his seat. He straightened slowly and stared out the window at where the wind had come from. Standing, he carefully closed the glass as if that would ward off any further attacks. It was when the glass clicked into its holder that Satoshi realized that his hands and lower arms were covered in metal, the metal of his armored suit. He blinked at them for a while, feeling the multitude of controls that lay at his fingertips within the gloves, tiny pressure sensitive buttons that he somehow knew instinctively what they did. He took a staggering step back and shook his head, sending the armor shattering into fragments even as the desk next to his sprang back into existence. Shuddering, he picked up his papers and bags and hurried from the room. He had to find Akio, whatever was happening obviously wasn’t restrained to him or Cho.....

[Weasel Overlord]

Makoto Sayuri
“WHERE’S THE BOMB!?”

“WHO’S THE MURDERER!?” Mizukaze Ryuu, investigatee of the newly formed Furin Investigation Committee shook his head in resignation. Yup, they were all crazy. Every single tea-guzzling one of them, and this Makoto Sayuri was no exception. She’d probably learned from the best - the former Furin Tea Ceremony Club’s Chairman, Hotaru, who was, Ryuu was certain, bound to throw scalding hot tea in some poor Kazan-goers eyes sooner or later.

“I’ve told you, I have no idea who the murderer is. And there’s really no need to shout in my face so loudly, Makoto-san.” He wiped a strand of saliva off the end of his nose with distaste and Sayuri glowered at him from her elevated position on top of a table (Ryuu-kun was strapped quite neatly and firmly to a chair with the help of two slender brown belts).

“You must know something, Mizukaze-san! You,” she prodded him in the chest with her interrogation stick, “you, Mizukaze Ryuu-kun, were a part of an attack! So how can you tell me that you don’t know who the murderer is?”

“Just because I was involved in a scuffle, doesn’t mean that I know who the murderer is. And could you not poke me with that, please?”

“This is my interrogation stick, Mizukaze-kun, and I am interrogating you! So no, I can not not poke you with it.” Sayuri looked slightly confused, then looked at Kalah for the ok. “Does that make sense, Kalah-chan?”

“Whether it makes sense or not, weren’t you the one who told Hotaru that there wasn’t to be any interrogation?” Sayuri looked slightly shifty at this, then shrugged elaborately.

“Oh well!” she said brightly. “Hotaru’s not here. And he left me in charge! And Mizukaze-kun is clearly guilty of something,” she prodded him once more in the chest. “We just don’t know what yet, that’s all.”

“Your methods of interrogation don’t seem to be working too well, Sayu-chan. Have you thought about trying a… different approach?”

“Hm? Different approach? You mean,” her eyes gleamed wickedly, “the thumbscrews?”

“Thumbscrews?” Kalah looked scandalised. “What is this, the Spanish Inquisition!?”

“Okay, maybe not the thumbscrews. What did you have in mind, Kalah-chan?” Sayuri jumped down from her position and bounced over to Kalah, who was inhabiting her usual squishy armchair. She bent down so that Kalah could whisper in her ear, then glanced at the bound Ryuu with glee.

Strutting over to where he was tied, Sayuri prodded him one last time in the chest, for good measure, then bent down to his ear level.

“We’re gonna use…the yaoi,” Sayuri smirked at his horrified face, and Kalah sniggered from her chair. “The best stuff we have, too. Lots of lovely, lovely men, Mizukaze-kun, each one in a compromising and revealing position. How would you like that? Kissing and groping and fondling and moaning and screaming and pene-”

“OH GOD stop it, I’ll tell you!” Sayuri grinned, and twirled her interrogation stick in victory.

“All right!”

---

WARGH that colour is brighter than I thought it would be! Just a bit of fun, there. Hope that's ok with you, JT.

[Outlaw JT]

OOC: Ryuu losing his cool aside (the ONLY thing that would make him lose his calm is the threatening of Cho) that was done very well. Not much incentive for forming friendships or sharing, though...... Let the dice fall where they may.....

Mizukaze Ryuu
~Suspect and Suspicions!

Ryuu looked over his 'captors' with a blank expression. Somehow their behavior failed to elicit his usual casual smile for his fellow classmates. He was half a breath away from being sent to the hospital, or so the Furin school nurse had told him. He had somehow managed to make a near full recovery during the afternoon classes, however. Still, not five steps outside the infirmary he was 'encouraged' to allow two of his fellow martial arts team members to 'escort' him to the tea club of all places. Ryuu wanted to raise an objection but wasn't in a hurry to go anywhere and didn't need to raise even more suspicion about him. So, he went along peacefully. He didn't even object when they began tying him to a chair, although he did share a disapproving glare with them.

Their methods were rather mixed and confused. It almost begged the question of narcotics abuse in Sayuri but Ryuu kept his calm vigilantly. Aside from the obvious rumors they clearly knew nothing of the actual events or the situations surrounding it. Time passed slowly as Sayuri-san's methods became increasingly erratic. Soon enough Cho would be getting out of practice. He would have silenced the tea club sooner but he had nowhere to be until she left for home. It was time to still the crazy musings of the TCC.

"There is nothing of great importance to tell, Makoto-san," Ryuu looked at her reproachfully. "I was not party to any form of attack on Kazan. I do not support any anti-Kazan sentiments. I was in the forest to enjoy a quiet lunch as it is hard to enjoy silence here on school grounds and for whatever reason two Kazan students accosted me. During the ensuing scuffle their combined attack managed to direct me to Kazan grounds. In my defense I picked up a tree branch to fend them off and eventually managed to subdue them but not before sustaining sufficient injuries to render me unconscious when the adrenaline ran out of my system. I have no knowledge, whether first hand or from other sources, of any of the other events surrounding both Kazan and Furin and hence have no information regarding your frequently referenced murderer. Now, if you will excuse me I have a personal matter I must attend to. I pray that your misguided witch hunt does not lead to the injury or even the severe inconveniencing of another student. Especially not injury and I reiterate, not even the inconveniencing of another student unless you are able to produce reasonable proof of their suspected guilt before proceeding with your witch trial. Good day, my studious Furin residents of Salem."

The seemingly neurotic TCC was left in stunned silence as Ryuu quite easily slipped his arms free of the bonds they had sought to restrain him with. As he got up they all remained in silence. Ryuu bowed politely, resuming his normal casual smile although a twinge of satisfaction made it's way into the grin. It was especially pleasing that not once did he resort to lying. Sure, he had withheld a crucial detail about his lunch in the forest. He failed to tell them he was there to meet Cho. He didn't lie to them, however.

Quite pleased with his continued calm he back out of the TCC and shut the door quietly behind him. By his second step down the hall he could hear them erupt into a quick flurry of conversation that was completely unintelligible to anyone passing by. He hadn't meant to upset them so much as he suspected he might have but they had been acting with a fair bit of lunacy.

With measured haste Ryuu made his way to Larkin Dr. It was the smallest and least trafficked street between Kazan and Cho's residence. They weren't supposed to meet after school today but having missed lunch together and with everything that was happening he had to see her. He had to tell her about everything that had happened and that strange staff. He remembered it perfectly but was told there was nothing on him when he was found.

There was an alley off of Larkin Dr that Cho passed every afternoon. Ryuu waited there patiently even though patience seemed hardly required. He knew Cho was coming almost before he saw her from the shadow of the alley. As she passed he reached out and pulled her into the alley.

"Hey! What's the big id....Ryuu....."Cho stopped herself mid-swing as Ryuu stepped from the shadows.

"Cho," Ryuu said softly as her fingers traced the long slash marks through his school uniform. "I'm sorry. I know we weren't supposed to meet now but so much has happened and....and I just couldn't wait till tomorrow to see you. I couldn't make lunch today because......Lunch....I almost forgot. I'm sooo sorry. I made you a special lunch today and I think I must have lo..."

Ryuu was silenced as the entire world disappeared from existence. Cho's lips very suddenly found his mid-sentence and then there was nothing else. There was Cho, there was Ryuu, and nothing else mattered! All of the weariness, all of the worry over everything that had happened just faded away to nothing as the two embraced for the first time in what now felt like forever.

As their lips slowly pulled away some time later, twinged mildly with regret for not being able to hold in that moment, their eyes slowly reopened. The rest of the world slowly came back into existence and Ryuu tensed at the sight that they were suddenly not alone. Cho placed her arm on his to show it was ok.

"Ryuu, I'd like you to meet my friend Akio," she said quietly.


ooc: hope that's ok.

[Bulbasaur4]

Kasai Akio
ACCESSING INFORMATION: Kazan Student | M | 17 | Currently: Eating with Cho
MUSIC ACCESSED! --> "Leave Out All the Rest" - LP

Akio had a very wonderful night after he left his house. Getting a piggyback ride from Dai was one of the glorious highlights in which for the rest of the night, Akio felt many warm-fuzzies spiraling about within his chest. He even had the privilege of sitting next to Hotaru, which in itself was a wonderful feeling. Akio felt as if he had not been able to see his dearest childhood friends for quite some time. Dai was always busy and his class schedule was different than Akio's, and well... Hotaru going to Furin was always troublesome. But tonight, sitting with Dai's family and feeling the strange yet comforting aura that Hotaru emitted... it was extremely pleasurable.
Akio felt a twinge of sadness when he had to leave, although it was so faint a tinge that Akio himself barely could trace it in his thoughts. Waving goodbye, he made a mental note to remember seeing Hotaru standing next to Dai, waving to him as he left.


Many things happened the next morning. Akio's Student Council jacket was repaired and hanging on his doorway- to which Akio thanked Teguri-chan. Upon heading out the door, Akio had the random impulse to go out of his way to walk by Satoshi-kun's shrine. He then had walked with Satoshi, appologizing for the food that he had left Satoshi-kun with (Satoshi said he had merely walked out the store and not paid). The two of them continued, before Cho-chan had caught up and given Satoshi some wonderfully home-made food as a peace offering. (Akio had pouted after she left, wishing he had some delicious home-made food).

The rest of the day had Akio's mind in a daze- like usual. However, Akio was thinking about poor Cho-chan. Deep down he knew what she wanted to talk about... he had a sneaking suspicion about her relationship with a Furin student. However, now the lunch thing had furthered that. Yet, Akio had sensed Cho's mood and merely had quieted himself down to be more of a pillar of strength than a cheerful friend.


"Akio-san..." Cho had begun as the two of them met in private outside, far away from other students upon the grounds. Akio smiled, patting her upon the shoulder.
"Is it truly necissary for you to speak? I understand... it doesn't matter who he is, as long as he treats you well like you deserve." Akio said with a smile, the two of them sitting upon a bench. Cho-chan turned and stared at him for a while, before a smile came to her face as she reached out and ruffled Akio's hair. Akio twinged in protest, which only caused the two of them to end up laughing.
"Thank you Akio..." She said, staring out at one of the playing fields. "Come with me." She said, grabbing Akio by the arm. Akio's face filled with confusion, "Eh?" He said as Cho shook her head. "Come with me."
Akio nodded and just as the two of them turned to head out, a sudden gust of wind caught the two of them off guard. Akio instinctively put his body in front of Cho, shielding her from the gust of wind as he felt a few stabbing pieces of rock hit his back.
Dark thoughts entered Akio's mind as the wind blew, but Akio's inner fire fizzled it out so that only a slight aftertaste of the wind remained. A shove from Cho caused Akio to let her go, her face red.
"It was just wind!" She said flustered, as Akio laughed in his usual way and absently rubbed the back of his head.
"Gomen... I just wouldn't want you to get hurt!"
The two of them quieted for a moment and then Cho's eyes moved beyond Akio. He turned about to see Satoshi, who seemed to be a serious trance of thought.
"Did you two... feel that wind?" He asked gravely, and Akio nodded as did Cho.
"It was... something else..." Cho echoed, the three of them looking towards Furin.
"Should we do something about it?" Satoshi asked, his gaze fixated upon the direction of Furin.
A large, firm hand grabbed Satoshi's head and pulled it into eye-level with Akio-kun.
"Excuse me? Are you a little crazy?" Akio said, looking at the two of them with a sigh. "If you two were to go off... and if you were seen by yet another disaster scene... I doubt even my position at the school could save you."
The two of them were left in silence, but by the momentary pause Akio could tell they understood. Akio smiled brightly, "I'm sure Furin is handling the incident extremely well!"
The two of them sweatdropped.


"Well, I should be going... " Cho said, waving goodbye to the two of them as she began to head off.
"Wait!" Akio-san called, waving his hand frantically. Akio excused himself from Satoshi, explaining he had some intricate plans with Cho-chan, and also added that he stilled owed Satoshi a very large, extravegent picnic for abandoning him twice now.
Akio ran and caught up with Cho, smiling with a breathy gaze as she shook her head.
"You don't have to come with me... it isn't a b-"
"Yes it is!" Akio cut her off, a bright smile upon his face adding to the illumination in his golden eyes. "You special, Cho-chan." He simply said, walking by her side.


== DRAMATIC ENTRANCE! ==

Akio felt a very slight pang of embarressment upon seeing Cho-chan kiss the mysterios 'Ryuu' man. It wasn't that kissing was something he was uncomfortable around - in fact, there was literally nothing at Akio felt uncomfortable around. However, he did feel as if this was supposed to be a private ordeal. But, he did not dwell upon it. He seemed to have a knack for being in 'surprise' situations.
"Greetings!" Akio said brightly at Cho-chan blushed severely at introducing this new man. Akio extended a hand in greeting, warmly shaking and learning of Ryuu-san's name. He seemed to still be in a slight daze, but was out of it.
Despite everything contrary to Akio, there was a bit of a masquerade at hand. And Akio was the king of such an intricate dance.

[EngiMatikul]

Aria
====2:43 PM====
"Mishio-chan?"
The school bell had just rung, and for some that meant for them to go home. For others such as Aria and Mishio, it meant club activities. Regardless, for all it meant escape from the monotonous and static atmosphere of the classroom, where many believed they would sooner die from boredom than from some rampaging monster appearing on school grounds. As Aria began packing her belongings she noticed that Mishio had quickly got up and left the classroom, which prompted her to pick up her good faster and run after her.
"Mishio-chan! Wait up!!" Mishio stopped and turned sideways, once again appearing quite uncomfortable and Aria's remarkable friendliness. She had liked Aria ever since they had began as classmates but due to more recent events she had preferred to stay unassociated with her. Aria, however, seemed making her and keeping her a friend. After all, being in the same class and in the same club, why wouldn't they be friends?
(Well in actuality with many of the catastrophes going on there are many reasons, but for the most part Aria wouldn't know about them.)
"Mishio-chann that's so mean, why don't you wait for me since we go to the same club anyway???" Aria pouted. In actuality it was a common occurance for Mishio to walk off before Aria was ready to leave, but Aria complained anyway.
"...well it might be because you drag the entire male population behind you," Mishio said quietly.
"What?" Aria looked behind her and saw nothing. When she turned back, a few peeping heads could be seen and was seen by a stoic looking Mishio.
"Nevermind. Since you're here anyway, we might as well head towards the clubroom, then."
"Yes, let's!"
=====
In the Furin school, there are two clubs worth noting by the students. One that is frequently in conversation with the female occupants of the school is the pronounced Tea ceremony club, where most of the more handsome population of males volunteered their time into serving their frequent guests which arrive at the club. The other which is more heard about among the male students is the Cooking club, and while the cooking club does NOT welcome guests of any sort, there is always a considerable amount of students which just "happen" to be around the room when Aria begins to cook. Here, a Furin student can satisfy both his visual and olfactory senses, only wishing he can satiate his oral chemoreceptors as well by obtaining some of Aria's concoctions...
"...I think you're skinning the potatos a bit too deeply, you should probably try to be more gentle so we can get more pieces," Aria continues obliviously, not noticing the significant amount of attention she is recieving.
"...okay." Mishio DOES seem to notice the attention, but for the most part, ignores it.
Aria takes a sample of the stew being cooked and analyzes it properly. "Hmm... it might need more spices, its a bit bland... then again since we had curry last night perhaps a lighter variation wouldn't be so bad..."
There was a pulse in the air. Aria seems to have not felt it, but seeing Mishio suddenly collapse to the ground as if her body was weakened, quickly dropped the ladle and helps her accordingly.
"Mishio-chan?? Mishio-chan, what's wrong???"
There were convulsions in Mishio's body. For a short moment, Mishio grasped Aria's shoulder with all her might in one hand, and seemed to have some glowing object appear in another. Aria did not notice the weapon in her other hand materialize and dematerialize alternatingly, until Mishio regained her composure. Had Aria noticed something was in her hand earlier, it would have been gone now.
"Aria-chan," Mishio stated, panting quite heavily. "I... think its better if you didn't worry so much about me."
"What?" Aria had a somewhat puzzled look on her face, then thought for a bit before smiling serenely. Aria had always noticed Mishio seemed somewhat lonely so she had tried to befriend her. For some time this had seemed good and well, until the murder of Mishio's one admiree plunged Mishio into a state of dispair. Aria, while wanting to cheer her up, also recognized her need for aloneness to regain her composure. Aria figured this was another one of those times.
Aria bowed before stepping back. "If you feel you need some time to rest, I will take you home or leave you..."
Mishio got up and then brushed herself off. "No, nevermind. I appreciate your kindness. Just... try to stay safe, these schools are getting dangerous..."
"ITS OVER THERE!!" From outside they can hear a clamoring of footsteps running accross the hallways. Apparently some large event has occurred and many were rushing to see what was going on. For Aria and Mishio, however, they seemed not to have the curiosity nor the desire to know what was going on, and merely stood silent for a few seconds.
"So," Aria began again, "Shall we finish this--"
"ARIA!!" The door suddenly opened and a rather angry looking Ani-sama was staring back at the students. "We're going home. Now."
"Ani-sama!!! What are you doing here?!?!? What if someone sees you?!? What if HOTARU sees you?!?!" For some reason, Aria seems to be getting her priorities wrong.
"Everyone seems to be busy with the incident, so I thank god you're still here. We're leaving, its too dangerous to leave you here at school right now."
"What? Incident? But I'm in cooking club right now! I can't just leave Mishio here alone!"
Dai gave a glance to Mishio, who had been glaring at the brother rather frighteningly. Dai was quite unsure, but he swore she seemed to have the word "kill" written in her eyes which prompted him to hurry her sister up even more to leave, but Aria wouldn't budge.
"...go ahead and leave before the guys come back." Mishio finally averted her gaze, then looked back at Aria. "...be careful." She smirked slightly.
=====
"Ani-sama!! A-ni-sa-ma!!! You don't need to run, why are we running?" Dai finally stopped so Aria can catch her breath. Dai looked around a bit anxiously.
"Hmm... I sense that someone's been following us..."
"What?" Aria looked around, and indeed, it now seemed as if they were surrounded. They could hear faint whispers, as Aria tries to make it out...
"A Kazan student is stealing one of our students!"
"Of all the students, they're trying to take away her!"
"We can't LET HIM!!!"
The two felt something like a strong force surround them as, emerging from behind trees and within bushes, strange humanoid like creature resembling students but somewhat not resembling students came out, growling menescingly. It looked as if a terrible scientific experiment in the attempt to recombine human, rat, and wolf DNA had gone wrong with these students, and Dai and Aria were not particularly interested in knowing the consequences of such a failed experiment.
"Ummm... hmm? They look somewhat familiar..." Aria tried to recall the distorted faces of their attackers.
"Aria this is probably not the time to be reminiscing," Dai said as he pulled out his kendo sword. He estimated that he wouldn't be able to take them all, but there is no chance in hell he'd be giving up his sister to the likes of them....
=========

SO... FYI CHIKO-SAI CAN'T AWAKEN YET, SO WE WOULD NEED A HERO TO RESCUE THEM.

Or else they die.

And everyone would be sad.

Even Hotaru.

So it would be nice if someone can rescue them.

(Actually if no one rescues them that's just fine too there will be other heroes. :3)

[classy_cat18]

Itou Cho - Among Friends
Currently listening to: Houki Boshi - Bleach

It felt awkward to have Ryuu and Akio in the same space. Akio was the only true friend that I had in Kazan for a while, and was now my best friend. And I loved Ryuu. But I finally exhaled once the two exchanged greetings, Akio being his usual bright self.

"I almost didn't make it here. The TCC captured me in an attempt to interrogate me," Ryuu explained with a roll of his eyes.

"I hope they didn't threaten you with something strange," Akio told him.

"Depends on whether you think yaoi is strange."

I laughed and hugged Ryuu. "Poor Ryuu-kun. You shouldn't have to endure that torture for me. By the way, the lunch was great. I'm glad to be secretly dating a chef." I stood on my tiptoes and kissed his cheek.

Akio pouted, probably biting back a comment about him not getting any delicious food. Then he grinned. "Had to get it away before someone stole it," he told us.

"I hate to ask, but what happened with you and my two teammates?" I asked Ryuu as soon as his blush went away.

My boyfriend briefly froze before carefully explaining. "They said Akaryou sent them to attack me. I think he knows, Cho," he finished grimly.

"It'll be dangerous for you two to meet on campus," Akio warned.

I bit my lip then voiced my decision. "Then we won't do it." Both looked at me with surprise. "Think about it. They'll have others watching us, even tailing us after school. But with all this crazy stuff going on, we'll need to meet anyway."

We shared a moment of uncomfortable silence that was broken by an unearthly cry. I instinctively moved closer to Ryuu. "What the hell was that?" Ryuu asked.

"Sounded like a mix between a screech and a howl," Akio guessed.

A rush of adrenaline coursed through me, convincing me to start running before Akio or Ryuu could yank me back. I could feel it, the same vibes that had been bothering me the morning I got my powers.

Ryuu and Akio caught up to me easily. "Next time give us warning before you run off to certain doom!" Akio scolded.

"What, afraid you couldn't catch up to a girl?" I joked. I released the fiery energy that built up while I was running. A fireball flew by my feet then poofed to reveal a running Fuu. "Fuu, I think there's something bad up ahead!"

"Fuu can sense it!" She grew to her larger size and ran ahead of us into the park.

"Fuu, huh?" Akio asked me as we followed her.

A glowing sphere appeared in Ryuu's hand as he sped up. The sphere lengthened and formed a beautiful blue staff. I laughed despite the danger we were headed to; the weapon suited him perfectly.

We definitely knew the problem when we came across it. A group of creatures -- wolves crossed with rats or whatever -- had surrounded a couple of students. A strong guy wielding a broken kendo stick and a girl my height. Fuu already had her teeth sunk into the leg of one of the rat creatures. Another one was knocked out with a bump on its head. "Dai-kun!" Akio yelled.

"Aria-san!" Ryuu called out as he slammed his staff in the nearest rat creature. The rest of them put some distance between themselves and the humans they had tried to attack.

"They look like Furin students," Ryuu observed.

So no killing, Fuu. Fuu nodded and resorted to tackling a creature that got too close to her, then hitting another with a weak fire scythe. Ryuu took down the last one with a strong gust of wind that knocked it into a tree.

Akio ran to Dai and gave him one of his patented bone-crushing hugs. "Dai-kun! I trusted you to be safe for one day and this is how you repay me?"

"Do you think I asked for this?" Dai said in an irritated tone. His face almost looked blue.

"Akio-san, my brother can't breathe!" the girl named Aria shouted angrily.

Fuu walked to Ryuu and me to take a better look at Ryuu's scythe. "Another piece of magic. Fuu needs to remember it." She purred as I scratched under her chin, then disappeared in a puff of smoke.

"Nice cat," Ryuu commented.

"Nice staff," I returned.

Aria finally got Akio to completely let go of Dai. Dai calmly walked to Ryuu. "Mizukaze Ryuu, I presume?" Ryuu nodded. "You were the one that Akaryou was targeting. I happened to listen in on his conversation with the second and fourth seats."

"Damn. I guess the third seat's going to have to keep an eye on them," I said proudly. Not as strong as those two, but I had enough speed to dodge what they threw at me.

Aria broke up the conversation by dragging Dai away. "Come on, Ani-sama. We can't stay here long or someone will find us together."

"She's right," I agreed. "I should get home before okaa-san goes postal." That gave me an idea. My mother didn't seem to understand the rivalry between the schools. She wouldn't mind Ryuu visiting one afternoon! "Hey, we should hang out there after school tomorrow! You know where it is, right?"