[i]Nobuyuki Ueda, Third year, Friedreich's ataxia[/i] he had told her, [i] An odd upper classman with a tendency to get caught in the whirlwind of an intellectual's mind.[/i] He was a cynic, someone quiet the opposite of her and yet also quiet like her. Odd. That was the single word she would use. Just as mysterious as she might appear to him, he was to her. Puzzling, indeed. He saw her as just another puzzle, and she saw him as a mystery that would unravel if given enough effort and time. 

"Ueda-sempai," she bowed gracefully to him, lunchbox and white cane in her hands, "As any optimist might say, I hope you have a relaxing and pleasant rest of your day. And if we might meet again, I hope we will have more time to pick apart one another." She straightened up her back in that regal kind of way, even for her delicate small form. Giving him that softest and most gentle of smirks, as if she knew more than she would tell, she nodded to him, dismissing herself. Just then the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch break. Her timing was unusually good, like always. And with that, Tomo went back inside.

_______________________________________________________________

Several days had passed since the odd conversation she had with the upperclassman on that first day. Though it hadn't even been a week yet, Tomo moved throughout her new average school life with ever ease and poise of someone from an old family might. Nothing seemed to challenge her, except perhaps gym and sports. Intellectually she was out standing. Her marks were always in the top portion of the class, but she never bragged or paraded about. Most of her classmates just knew she was smart, and that was it. But what else was expected from someone of the Mizukimura clan? And the little doll of a well-bred girl lived up to expectations. It was how she had been raised. Though she did seem to have a bit more trouble finding constant and close friends, which disappointed her.

She even knew a few names of students from her class, able to pinpoint them in crowds just by their habits, smells and sounds. Like Kyle Parker, a tall rowdy boy who always seemed to be a bit late to class and had a hard time paying attention. His voice was one of the more distinctive voices. It wasn't his bare hint of accent, but rather the way he spoke. It was... charismatic in an interesting kind of way. Like sunshine. Perhaps it was why she always perked out of her daydreams to pay attention to the lectures he earned. 

And there was also Todoroki Fuyuki. His voice was replaced with the electronic sounds that proceeded the tapping of fingers on a machine. But he had a particular scent. A kind of sweet and feminine scent, mingling with something distinctly male. Most spoke of him as if he was a girl. She wondered if he looked feminine as that scent of his. Perhaps he wished to be as such. Tomo didn't know, but she knew the difference between a boy's scent and a girl's scent, as odd as it was. She sort of wondered if she should just call him Fuyuki-chan... Perhaps Fuyuki-san would be acceptable. It gave no illusion to male or female. 

As for other, she wasn't as interested or attentive. Tomo had also heard that Parker-kun had yelled at a girl in a more frightening manner the first day during lunch, which had earned him a bit of a negative reputation. She wasn't quiet sure if it was all true or if he had earned such fear among the masses, but with a voice like his... It was hard to believe in rumors completely anyway. There were more than enough about her, and most of them were ridiculous. Like having a helicopter pad in her back yard, or better yet a an indoor swimming pool that was two levels deep. Gossip was a natural way for people to entertain themselves, but sometimes, like in Parker-kun case, if could be rather harmful and even hurtful. It was why she didn't put much stock into what some people whispered about. 

[center][i]"Parker? Parker!"[/center][/i]

The sensei was yelling at Parker-kun to get his attention. Tomo also blink out of her own daze. Her zoning out was a bit more delicate and unnoticeable than most seeing people's zoning out. With unreadable eyes like hers, most people could hardly tell if she was even listening when she truly was concentrating very hard on the lesson. So it was a bit easier for her to get away with it, than say Parker-kun or Fuyuki-san. Listening to the teacher after he was finished scolding Parker-kun, she realized that they would have to do group work. Biting the inside of her cheek, she couldn't help but feel a bit excited. It would give her more of an opportunity to make friends!

The sound of the teacher writing on the board in front of him, Tomo tilted her head slightly, listening intently as he listed of assignments. Group assignments! She appeared to be a lot more enthusiastic than those who were moaning and groaning about it around her. Her group... Her group... Ah! He finally said it out loud. Group One: Parker-kun, Fuyuki-san and Hanari-san! Tomo smiled happily, sitting straight in her chair exuding a kind of bubbling cheerfulness even in her subtle graceful way.

As Mutou-sensei finished listing off the groups and letting them move about, the sound of a dozen desks being dragged around was all that could be heard as groups began setting up. Unfortunately Tomo was at a bit of a disadvantage. She couldn't see her partners. But she knew a few of them by sound and habit. Tilting her head and closing her eyes she listened carefully. Chairs and desks were screeching about in a piercing kind of way, which was a bit annoying and mad it hard to concentrate. But then a chair and desk slightly bumped into her own. Her lavender eyes opened, that slight frown of irritation gone and replaced with a relieved and gentle smile. Well, that took away the discomfort of her trying to find people on her own.

"Hello," she turned her head to the direction of the person or maybe even people who had moved closer to her, "I am Tomohina Mizukimura. Pleased to be grouped with you."