“Minoru-san?” a voice thin as ice said threateningly.
The only response he got was a louder snore from the young boy at the back of the classroom. This caused a small commotion in the class, stifled giggles coming from his classmates. The tall man at the head walked down the row of desks, coming to Minoru's in only a few short strides. He stood over the boy for a few moments, the young student snoring away peacefully, completely oblivious.
He was woken with a start as his teacher's hand came down on the table hard. “Minoru-san!” he shouted, the white haired boy sitting up quickly, unaware of the thin line of drool at the edge of his mouth. “I'm glad to see you're back with us. Now, could I continue on with my lecture? Without distractions?”
Minoru smiled sheepishly at the man. “Of course, sorry,” he replied happily. Though, as the teacher walked away, it didn't take long for the boy to slowly drift off back to sleep.
Which was what brought Minoru to the present, walking down the long hallway towards the headmaster's office. Unlike most school's, his was fairly lenient with him so far. This happened at least once a week for him, but he never got more than a light scolding from the headmaster. His grades proved a scolding to be unneeded.
However, today was a little unusual. For once, he wasn't the only one in the hallway. On top of that...well, the only other person in sight was positioned on a skateboard, something not typically allowed in the hallways of the school. “Finally found you...” the boy growled.
“...Er...do I know you?” the boy asked hesitantly. He didn't really get an answer, though. The boy was already skating towards him, jumping his board up just as he got close to try and clip Minoru in the head. Thankfully, his reflexes weren't that bad, diving to the side quickly and turning back to face his attacker. “Woah, what did I do to you!?”
“Don't act like you don't know!” the other boy growled, charging once again. This time, he saw the faint red spark bursting from the wheels of his skateboard. That...couldn't be good...
Minoru quickly turned around and ran, sprinting down the hall as fast as his legs could carry him.

She didn't think they'd be this open about it.

But Keiko's surprise was marginal. After having watched the kid for awhile, she knew that they'd come chasing after him as soon as they had the chance, but she didn't think the big guy would risk stepping right into the school. It was bold, to say the least; and mildly stupid, to be honest.

Deciding it best to interrupt the little union, Keiko, stepped into the hallway. She felt the boy slip past, before she turned to face his chaser.

"Subtly, they name is not you," she joked, before letting out a piercing scream. The sound wave was amplified, rushing through the hallway, breaking various windows, and finally smacking into the boy's chaser.

Minoru didn't know what was going on. He heard the loud shriek, though, and the boy chasing him felt it. His skateboard wavered before he tried to skid to a stop, loosing his footing and falling off, the skateboard clattering away from him.

“God damn it!” he growled. “What the hell are you doing, getting in our way?”

Minoru had stopped, turning back to face the unlikely pair. The woman seemed to be a bit taller than the boy and, if he was honest, was quite pretty. Truthfully, he wasn't sure how he felt about seeing this woman about to fight the younger boy. Instinctively, he wanted to step in. He knew he'd be no use against this one, though. He'd seen people like him in the city before. Not just that, his crimson red jacket and red bandana signaled him as one of Homura, the local gang that terrorized the town.

After a moment, his decision was made. He wasn't moving down the hall anymore, he was moving towards her. Grabbing her wrist, he tugged her in his direction. “Come on, you shouldn't fight him,” he said, trying to get her to come with him.

The boy saw his chance at this. Dashing forward, he grabbed his skateboard as he went, jumping back on and shooting at the two with a surprising amount of speed. As he was closing the distance, though, he skid to a stop, hopping up and letting an odd red energy spew from the end of his skateboard, almost like flames. They lashed out, racing towards the two of them.

"Pissing you off, maybe doing some justice," the girl said, balancing on the balls of her feet. "You be the judge, skate-boy."

She turned as she felt the boy yank her wrist, than quickly back as they were attacked. Keiko pushed Minoru back before flinging herself backwards, the fire just singing the edge of her hair. She rolled, and got back at her feet, glaring at the boy.

"You Son of a-" she growled, before clapping her hands. The sound wave smashed through more of the hallway before slamming back into the boy, echoing like a sonic boom. Than, grabbed the running boy's wrist, and ran.

Minoru didn't know what to think. First the flames came from the skateboard and then...this girl made a shockwave? What the hell was going on here? As he ran behind the girl, he glanced back towards the skater and realized that he...wasn't there?

Letting out a breath he had been holding, he skid to a stop, pulling after the girl who had saved him to make her go down a side hallway with him. He knew the school floor plan like the back of his hand. He knew where to go to hide away from others and how to get in an out without using that annoying identification system at the gate. He just had to create some distance from the boy who had been chasing him. He'd figure things out from there.

Though, now he had a companion. A terrifyingly powerful companion, at that. He hadn't seen powers like that before. He didn't really know how to process it. Smiling at his savior, though, he tried to fight down his uneasy feeling. "Th-thank you for saving me..." he said softly. Then he realized he was still holding on to her hand, trying to pull her along with him so she wouldn't get left behind. He let go quickly, scratching the back of his head. "I don't really know what's going on here. I know a way out of the school, though. Are...you planning to come with me? That guy seemed kind of strong..."

Keiko ran along side him, contagious grin having yet left her face. As he skidded to the left, she dived into the indicated space, pinning herself to a wall. All seemed to calm down around them, sans several people rushing to see what damage she did to the walls and windows. She chuckled, before turning back to the boy, nodding her head.

"No worries," she said. "He attacked a bystander, so I intervened."

She thought over his offer, carefully, than nodded her head. "More than likely it's better for me to leave before anyone sees that I don't come here. They'll need someone to explain those damages, and I don't wanna be around for that."

Minoru scratched the back of his head and gave a nod. He darted down the hallway, heading through the door at the end. Once she was through as well, he started down the stairs. "This is a maintenance passage. It gets us out without having to go through the whole security check," he explained with a small grin. "I forget my I.D. a lot. So I need to use this way sometimes." He kept moving quickly, getting to the bottom of the stairs and opening the door through.

As the two came out into the entrance way, he started out across the main campus, heading towards the one bridge that led in and out of the school's campus. The school itself sat on an island, slightly off from the main city. "Uh...well, I could walk you back to your house...I think I'd rather be in town than around that psycho anyway..." He gave a nervous grin, scratching the back of his head again. He didn't really know what was going on. He had no idea what was the right procedure to go through after being attacked by that guy.

"Oh, you don't have to," Keiko said. "I can handle myself just fine. You could, if you wanted, though it'd be dangerous."

She stopped him from walking with a hand on his shoulder. "Look, let me simply things, I bet you're confused," she said. "My name's Keiko;; and you can consider me a bit of an outsider. The guy that just attacked you is part of a gang in town that likes to cause trouble; one of their big fish too."

She shrugged. "You seemed like a civilian to me, not their normal targets, so I rescued you."

Minoru looked confused for a moment, but then his eyes lit up with understanding, nodding. "So...that guy's part of Homura? I heard about them. Though, I thought it was just rumors that they had...powers..." He looked back towards the entrance to the school and shook his head. "Either way, why would they want me? They're usually fighting those police guys." He scratched the back of his head, trying to think it over. It was true, it was rare for Homura to fight outsiders without reason. Usually, it had to do with wronging someone they looked out for or being involved with the special police force.

After a moment, he gave a shrug, not seeming too worried. "Well, whatever. No point worrying about it. I'll just try to avoid it," he said with a smile.

"That's the spirit!" Keiko grinned. She paused, tilting her head to the side. "Hey, did you want to head home, or my place? I figured if they're gonna come fater you once, they may do it again. Might be a good idea for me to stick around, at least for a day or two."

She smirked, putting her hands on her hips, thumbs hooking into the pcokets of her short-shorts. "Unless you'd rather not have me hang around; I understand I can be...off-putting."

Minoru looked confused for a moment, but then blushed slightly and turned away from her. "Well...uh...I guess my place. I don't want to impose on you. You've already done a lot for me," he explained. "I don't know, though. I don't want to cause more problems for you. I...uh...should be able to handle myself." He didn't sound very confident in that. Truth was, though, he wasn't sure how appropriate it was. He hadn't really had friends come to his room that often, let alone women...or a strange woman that could break glass with her voice, for that matter. He didn't want her to feel uncomfortable. He knew he might feel a little awkward himself, having an attractive woman over.

If she insisted, though, there was nothing for it. It was her choice whether she thought she should stay close to him or not.

Minoru looked confused for a moment, but then blushed slightly and turned away from her. "Well...uh...I guess my place. I don't want to impose on you. You've already done a lot for me," he explained. "I don't know, though. I don't want to cause more problems for you. I...uh...should be able to handle myself." He didn't sound very confident in that. Truth was, though, he wasn't sure how appropriate it was. He hadn't really had friends come to his room that often, let alone women...or a strange woman that could break glass with her voice, for that matter. He didn't want her to feel uncomfortable. He knew he might feel a little awkward himself, having an attractive woman over.

If she insisted, though, there was nothing for it. It was her choice whether she thought she should stay close to him or not.

"Oh I wasn't implying you couldn't, " Keiko said, putting a hand just above her chest. "Look, I consdier it my personal job to keep people not involved in their spats as far from them as possible, and protect those they to to drag unwilling in. I just want to make sure they don't come back in hopes of having a little revenge."

She marched up to him and looped her arm through his, winking her left eye.

"So, lead the way then?" she said. "Minoru, right?"

Minoru didn't know how to react to that. His blush returned in full force at the contact and his spine stiffened as he stood entirely straight. "Y-yes, ma'am, he stated. His legs started to move on their own, heading to the residential area of the campus.

"Sorry if it isn't that clean. Its kinda small," he stated. "I live there by myself."

Minoru didn't know how to react to that. His blush returned in full force at the contact and his spine stiffened as he stood entirely straight. "Y-yes, ma'am, he stated. His legs started to move on their own, heading to the residential area of the campus.

"Sorry if it isn't that clean. Its kinda small," he stated. "I live there by myself."

"No worries," Keiko said, sitting down on one of the many small chairs. "My place isn't any better. I find it a bit more homey to be honest."

She sighed, and closed her eyes, crossing both arms over her chest. "I'm sorry you got dragged into this," she said, opening one eye. "I'm hoping it ends at just a random attack. Then, if it looks safe, I'll be out of your hair."

Minoru offered a shrug. "It's not like it's your fault. I'm sure there's a reason for it," he explained with a smile. He walked over to the table set up beside a very small kitchen area. The room wasn't overtly small, but the entire place was the size of little more than a dorm room. He picked up a remote, pointing it at the small television past the futon.

As the screen switched on, the news was running. It was talking over the incident at the school. A dramatized image of Keiko flashed over the screen. Then it cycled through, showing the boy and then Minoru. This caused him to frown lately. "I hope this is settled soon," he commented.

Before he could say any more, the screen seemed to get messed up, static drowning the newscaster. A video began playing and Minoru's eyes widened as he recognized himself. He was laughing as he leaned on a iron bar, talking to the cameraman. "Do you realize who you talk to?" he asked in a malice filled voice. The boy said something incomprehensible, but Minoru just smitked, pointing a gun at him. The shot rang out and the camera was dropped. One last thing was heard before the video was cut.

"I am the Colorless King."

"Maybe, or so they claim." Keiko sat herself up, and finally got to her feet. "You see, most of the time, the red gang and blue police usually stick to sticking their powers to each other. I'm fine with that, but occasionally their antics put people in trouble that don't belong to either. I just try to get them off the battlefield."

She frowned, looking down. "I usually tell myself that they don't attack without some kind of reason, but I can't see anything about you that would constitute as a threat. It's confusing-"

She stopped when she heard the static. The Banshee turned her head in shock as the gunshot echoed on the screen, and the very face she had rescued was staring into the camera. When the series of disturbing images failed, she turned a cool stare on Minoru, and crossed her arms.

"Now would be a good time for an explanation," she said in a cold voice. "Talk; now."

Minoru's eyes were wide, but he looked more shocked than anything. "What the..." he murmured under his breath. Then he snapped out of it, seeing Keiko's hard stare in his direction. "I...don't know what to tell you." He truly didn't. He had no idea what the video was and didn't remember being part of it. The more he tried to remember, the less sure he was of himself. "I...I don't remember. I haven't killed anyone!" He brought his hand up to his hair, looking incredibly nervous and worried. "I don't know what to say. I've never held a gun in my life, let alone shot one. I don't know what that video was...but I don't remember it."

While there was a lot of evidence against him at this point, he seemed incredibly confused by all this. Though, even with that, he could just be a good actor, for all she knew.

However, there was a distraction again as the image of Minoru firing the gun came on screen. The new caster was talking again, seeming rather confused himself by the interruption. "It seems there is a cash reward for anyone who finds this man and brings him to justice," he stated, unsure if he should keep going with the report.

Minoru just lowered his head into his palms, trying to fight off an impending headache. "Gods...what is going on here...?"

Keiko narrowed her eyes in suspicion, turning her head back to the tv. He didn't seem like the type who would kill someone; after all, he was about as frightening as a do. An yet that image couldn't be taken off her mind for all the money in the world.

Still, it wasn't as if she was defenseless. She shrugged, and crossed her arms again.

"I'll trust you, if only that I don't exactly care about my own survival," she said. "But I'm watching you."