---

It was safe to say that Midori wasn't expecting the girl to grind her bike to a halt so suddenly, and now all of a sudden she was afeared that she might've startled the poor girl into bolting the other direction. If that were to happen, then there was no way she could catch up. Realizing that she'd have to run after all, Midori took off after the brown-haired girl, only to be forced into stopping just as abruptly, lest she run straight into another boy. Thankfully the collision didn't actually come to pass, but still...

"Hey, watch where you're...!" Midori turned to face the boy, only to find that he'd already walked all the way around her, and most likely into the store, without much of a second thought, 'Jackass.'

Now that she thought about it, that boy was wearing a very similar uniform to Midori's, and he looked to be about the same age. No doubt this meant the two of them would in the same school, which wasn't surprising since there was only one high school Kurosuoba even had. But it was also very possible that the two of them would be in the same class as well, much to Midori's dismay.

In any case, catching up to the boy so she could have a few choice words with him wouldn't be a difficult task for Midori at all, but for now she turned her head back around and kept going, managing to finally catch up to the brown-haired girl just as she turned her bike around. She fell to her knees and was wheezing heavily by the end of her run, and had been clutching her chest as though she'd already suffered from a heart attack. Midori looked towards the girl with eyes wide open, as if to portray that she was in agony.

"You need to not... make me run down... this entire way... ever again... for one thing..." Midori said through her panting, desperately trying to get a deep enough inhale before feeling the need to exhale again.

...

Eventually, Midori was able to stabilize her breathing, and found the strength to stand up again. Her knees may have looked to have taken a hit from her sudden collapse, but the injuries to them were minor at worst. The only real way Midori could've been hurt was out of embarrassment, for the fact that she couldn't even run a single length of footpath without her legs caving in like that, but even then, this girl had never given the slightest hint that she was of the judgmental type... well, at least not as far as Midori recalled.

"Oh my god, why would people torture themselves like this?" Midori asked, almost forgetting for a second that the girl she was trying to talk to was right there, "Actually, before you answer that, I wanna ask you something else. My dad's coming over to visit us for a few days, and my older brother and I are trying to find somewhere for him to stay. Do you think there'd be a room free in that ryokan that you and your mom work in? I'd greatly appreciate it, miss... uh... Kinuye, I wanna say? Kaede? Kazue? Something else along those lines that I'm sure I'm missing...?"

Midori snapped her fingernails a few times, trying to come with more names that she could spitball in hopes that they'd match the face. She knew that the girl's first name had three syllables in it and that it started with a K. But it was evident that Midori was drawing a blank...

---

"Well, then I'm glad." The thin teenager in glass replied. He was about to step in, but the situation resolved itself anyway.

"I'm Amari. Hatsu Amari. Like he said, I'm kind of a math person, so it gives me an edge. And here's someone who's the master of everything else." Amari introduced to Renzo before looking over to his best friend with a straight face. "Including meteoring his opponent's soul online. You know I haven't screwed you in that card game for a while. Let me revise my deck after school today and let's battle again, shall we?"

Knowing the comment didn't really make any senses to a stranger, and especially to a non-gamer if Renzo turned out to be one, Amari quickly turned over to him.

"Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you Igarashi-san." He had his hands out, offering a shake "And we can take our time. As long as we don't screw around somewhere else, we can arrive there at around..." He halted for a second, doing the calculation in his head. "Six forty seven. With traffic, probably six fifty seven." Then pouted his lips "Three minutes is still early..."

Nevertheless, Ryuuto was right. They should pick up the pace.

@Raging Fenrir@Rabidporcupine

---

Juno replied moments later after Miyuki greeted him. Unlike his formal demeanor back in the convenience shop, he appeared to be surprised with Miyuki's sudden approach. The blue-haired girl tried to figure out how to continue the conversation, but Juno once again took the lead, saying that he was not expecting her to enroll in Fujioka awkwardly. At this moment, Miyuki wondered that her sudden warm approach to Juno could be too much for the introverted boy.

"Yeah!" She maintained her cheerful expression. "I guess Kurosuoba is a small town after all. At least I have some familiar faces to go around with."

Before the conversation could continue on, Miyuki heard a girl's voice calling out their names.

"Tatsujin-kun! Ishihara-san!"

She turned around, noticing that a blond-haired girl was dragging an annoyed brunette. The voluptuous blonde then introduced herself as Shimizu Ichika, though the other, shorter girl merely greeted them. Miyuki felt familiar with Ichika, but she could not remember where she met her.

"Good morning, Shimizu-san!" She bowed to Ichika, before doing the same to the annoyed girl with a red sweater. "Good morning! I'm Ishihara Miyuki. It's nice to meet you!" She greeted, with a polite introduction of herself.

Once she was done, Miyuki placed her gaze at Ichika, trying to remember where she met her.

"Have we met before, Shimizu-san?"

Then, she raised her amber colored eyes.

"Wait a minute... Aren't you the one with a bicycle who works at the French café?"

Both Ichika and Miyuki got acquainted due to an accident which happened near at their workplace. Fortunately no one got badly hurt, although Miyuki was unsure how badly damaged Ichika's bicycle was.

"Are you okay, Shimizu-san? I hope you didn't hurt bad from the accident..."

Miyuki asked with a concern.

---

@Hero
@Althiel

---

---

The sun had barely begun to peek over the horizon as Mari made the jog back to the Tsukimi residence, practically skipping through the front door after a quick morning run around the neighbourhood. Up by five, out by ten past, run until half past and back home by quarter to. A simple exercise to build up some much needed energy for the long day ahead, and Mari was already brimming with it not even before the clock struck six. Crisply ironed uniform, check. Stupidly intricate skincare routine, completed. With the addition of eating toast, salad and chopped fruits from a bowl for breakfast and the TV in the living room blaring out the household silence, it was just like the usual school morning for Mari.

However, what was different was that this was a new house, a new school, a new city. Fujioka Senior High was unfamiliar territory with unfamiliar people, but nervousness wouldn't overcome the young girl on her first day. Enthusiasm, butterflies, every excited emotion under the sun, it was all Mari could think of all night. Being able to start anew in a different place where she knew hardly anyone; it was all she ever wanted. But first days meant first impressions, and so Mari wanted to make them good.

5:55, she was already prepared to head out. Before she did, Mari slipped into the bathroom one more time, getting a good look at her reflection. Just one more look in the mirror.

Mari had to reassure herself. Doubts, unease, she was forcing it all to the side. She knew that the past was truly be behind her now; she wouldn't have to worry about it anymore, wouldn't have to think about it. Perhaps leaving the bustling Tokyo metropolis was a great idea after all, even if the totally silent neighbourhood street corners would take some getting used to. This was the next chapter, the next stage, Mari didn't want to ruin this for herself again. Anger, negativity, she wouldn't let it get that restrictive hold on her mentality. She had to change and this would be the best time to do it. This was a new beginning, a new year, and Mari was rearing to go.

Mustering up a smile, Mari wanted to make sure she left the house looking in a cheerful disposition. Stepping outside once more, she murmured a swift goodbye, as she always did.

And as always, there wasn't anyone to hear it. Her mother had long left during her short run.

---

---

Hearing the wind rush past her ears as she biked down the hill was a satisfying sound to Mari. The faster she went down the louder it got, and the more she felt that exhilarating thrill in her veins. Riding down the many secluded slopes it took to get to the main road definitely kept her awake.

6:35. She was going to have to speed things up.

---

Interactions: Ishihara, Miyuki @ES | Shimizu, Ichika / Himawari, Shiori @Hero

---

To be able to converse with her in such an oddly warm and casual manner, as if they were more friends than acquaintances, was another surprise he wasn't anticipating from the usually tranquil Miyuki. Perhaps she wanted to fully embrace and experience the high school life, like most others. "Heh.. I guess so." Juno looked away, hiding his half-assed, dispirited expression.

"..don't expect much from me, though." He silently expressed.

"Tatsujin-kun! Ishihara-san!"

Juno's eyes followed the source of the rather peppy voice, aware of their identities. A blonde called out to them, complete with a waving gesture. Her outward appearance gave off the impression of being Miss most-popular-girl-at-school and with merit, if the males' varying glances behind her were any indication. And accompanying her was a brunette; someone he was oh-so familiar with.

"Er.. Mornin'." He forced a smile in regards to the blonde's cheery disposition. She introduced herself as Shimizu, Ichika. Immediately, he noted the stark contrast between her and the girl she's with. "..Juno. Tatsujin Juno. Though it looks like Himawari-san already told you about me." He replied, scratching the back of his head.

The blue-haired female beside him seemed to know who she was, and so he excused himself from their mano a mano. In truth, he was feeling a tad uneasy being around them. The last thing he hoped for was being approached by others, let alone females. Passing by them, Juno acknowledged the irritable brunette's presence, sulking a few feet away by her lonesome while the other two conversed. He sighed. It would be rude to just outright ignore her after they shared their forced greetings earlier.

"To think you had a friend.. Huh." He approached her with a quite a derogatory remark, though in her case it was a playful one, considering this is how they usually chew the fat at work. Compared to Miyuki and Ichika, he was more comfortable talking with her, his fellow co-worker whom he shares the post with almost every day of the week these past few months.

@Raging Fenrir@Conscripts



Ren's posture visibly relaxed when Ryuuto forgave him, although he did let out a little sigh when he decided to call him Igarashi-san.

"Well, I guess that's fine too." He said. "'s long as we can still be friends, you can call me whatever ya want!"

He chuckled a little when he suggested that, should he be in their class, a top score in maths would be out of his reach.

"Well, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret, you could put me in a class with a couple'a rocks an' a chicken, an' I'd probably still be at the bottom if we're talkin' about maths! Me an' maths go together 'bout as well as kappa an headstands, ya know?"

He then quickly turned to the now named Amari, Ren's own massive hand wrapping around his to shake it vigorously.

"'s nice to meetcha too!" He said cheerfully. "No idea whatcha just said, bein' honest, but if it's somethin' to do with videogames, then I'm excited ta learn! Never really had 'em back home for the most part, so I've been lookin' forward to tryin' some of 'em out!"

However, once his two new friends began to talk about how they needed to get moving, he remembered his panic from before. He almost took off running again right then and there, the reemerging panic blatantly obvious on his face. However, Ryuuto and Amari seemed calm enough about the whole thing, and considering that a decent chunk of the previous conversation had been about how much better with numbers they were than him, he decided he should be safe to trust their judgement.

"Well..." He said slowly, a small frown on his face. "If ya really reckon we can make it in time without too much rushin', then I guess it should be fine. Let's get movin' then, I guess! This towns pretty big though, so I'm countin' on you guys to make sure I don' get too turned round or anythin!"

And so, with one last salute to his fallen companion Sandwich-kun, may he rest in peace, he began walking in the direction that he was pretty sure led to the school.

It was a mere five minutes or so later before he walked around another corner, and found himself being thrown to the ground by a sensation that had begun to feel all too familiar over the last few days.

He'd just been hit by another bike, hadn't he?

Slowly tilting his head back up, his suspicions were confirmed, seeing a short haired girl in another Fujioka uniform.

"Hey..." He wheezed from his position on the ground. "s your bike ok?"

---

---

"SHIT—"

Mari was too late to react properly to a person coming out of nowhere as she cycled down the hill at breakneck speed. First, she braked her bike. Second, she felt the hard clash on the other end of her bike. And third, the dangerously sudden stop sent Mari flying off her bike; had she not thrown herself off upon impact, whatever injuries she could have come out with would have been much more severe.

"You've gotta be fuckin' kidding me..."

Mari didn't have time to think as she mumbled and rubbed her head; in that short moment she wasn't in the right mind to deal with the accident quietly. She felt the leftover adrenaline cause her blood to boil as she stood up and threw her bike up back on its wheels with her right arm. Her face scrunched up into expressions of anger, reconsideration and realisation in the few too many seconds it took for her to not only calm down, but to realise that the collision was, pretty much, her fault.

"Look… _crap, you okay, man? Forget about my bike, I could've messed you up, like, really bad!" Mari exclaimed. "I'm so sorry about that, I was cycling down that hill way too fast and then you kinda just... popped up outta nowhere."

Mari attempted a smile as she crouched down to extend her hand. Though she had managed to retain her calm, she wasn't sure if the boy was feeling the same. She had just crashed into him with her bike, after all.

It was when she finally noticed the familiar uniform he wore that she felt an awkward churning inside her gut.

Mari swore under her breath. This was not a good first impression.

@Rabidporcupine

---

Tachibana Kotone. So that was the brown-haired girl's name, huh? Midori had not heard the name Kotone for so long, that it had evidently escaped her completely. Midori couldn't help but emit a sheepish laughter at the revelation.

"Egusa Midori. I'm glad we were finally able to introduce ourselves properly this time around," she offered her hand as she said this.

...

Afterwards, Midori looked down at her phone. She saw that Atsumori hadn't texted her back yet and asked where she went, but that wasn't too surprising for her. After all, it was entirely possible that he started a conversation with the woman that worked behind the counter and, knowing Atsumori, he had a tendency to continue dragging such conversations on for longer than necessary. In any case...

"We've still got plenty of time," Midori mused to herself, before looking back up towards Kotone, her curiosity somewhat piqued, "Now what were you gonna say when I went on that tangent again? About that whole running thing?"

---

Ichika soon earnestly replied to Miyuki, although it was obvious that she was surprised when Miyuki asked how well she was doing after the bicycle accident. At this juncture, the blue haired girl realized that she had kicked off the conversation in an awkward way. Then again, the accident was the only thing that she could remember on how she got acquainted with Ichika. Miyuki smiled alongside with Ichika as the best she can, while hoping that she did not set off any alarms. Despite being a rather stoic person, Miyuki was afraid of giving people the wrong ideas.

"Glad that you're okay, Shimizu-san!"

Then the blonde proceeded to express her surprise when she realized that Miyuki is attending the same high school as herself, while gently smiling.

("Uh oh... I blew this conversation up, didn't I?")

Miyuki smiled in response as well, hoping to salvage the awkward conversation between them. The bespectacled girl began to think on how to steer the conversation. Then she remembered on the spunky girl that walked alongside with. With that in mind, Miyuki continued on.

"Yeah! Seems Kurosuoba is actually quite small than I expected!" Miyuki lets out a chuckle. "I hope we can get along well!"

Then she steered the conversation towards to Shiori, the one who walked alongside with Ichika earlier on.

"By the way, the girl who walked with you just now... Is she your best friend?"

Miyuki smiled, hoping that by giving Ichika the lead will make the conversation less awkward. What a way to start off her first day in school, is it not?

@Hero

---

Tsubasa was genuinely surprised by Kazuto's reaction to her antics. She was certainly aware that her grown up skills weren´t the best, but to end up no better than she started? It was a huge mistake, one that would have to be fixed immediately. Her mind exploded in a fury of possible strategies and solutions to save face among her new roommate. If any of the adults in her life could peer into her brain, they'd be flabbergasted at just how much passion she had and how absolutely none of it was being funneled into studying. They'd probably also complain about whatever flavor of the month pop song was looping endlessly in her head, but that's besides the point.

"Eh, sorry Kazuto!" she said. Starting her sentences like this was a calculated move that had since grown out of control and rooted itself with the rest of her habits. Upon seeing her cousin on the finishing stages of getting ready she gobbled her last bits of breakfast and took off towards the bathroom. There was no way she´d let herself be the last one out.

Analyzing her face with the spirit of an idol critic solidified her concerns over appearances. A messy blob of hair, a crooked bow and collar, flaw after flaw was added to her to-do list. Anyone seeing her both now and until she was finished would have mistaken her for a regular girl out of the lack of accessories outside of a good luck bracelet.

Tsubasa´s past and frequent encounters with authority figures had made her compliant in the rules surrounding student uniforms, with the exception of her hair. A single ponytail, tied to the side of her head as a silent sign of defiance. It was a visually interesting hairstyle that was simultaneously normal enough to get away with. She took one last look at herself in the mirror before rushing to the entrance of their house, where Kazuto was no doubt already suited up and waiting for her. "Wait for me~!" she shouted.

---

Fujioka Senior High, Kurosuoba
April 3rd, 2018 | 6:57 AM

Interactions: Himawari, Shiori @Hero

---

"That so..?"

Juno glanced at the chipper blonde once more, then back to Shiori's glum, grumpy disposition. "Funny contrast," He remarked. Reaching into his pockets and opening his flip phone once more, he checked for the time once more, followed by a groan. "Really wish I could buy myself a watch right now..." The clock finally striking seven sharp, his attention turned towards the school gates, where a female teacher had finally dragged them open. Right on cue. The students marched in like a herd, noisier than they were earlier.

"Ugh. Later." Without paying further heed to the brunette, Juno went on ahead by his lonesome, walking in tandem with the swarm.

---

"Well, I was trying to say that I don't see running as torture... Sure, you might feel exhausted, but running has various benefits, like helping improve your mood or reducing the risk for heart disease," while she wouldn't want to admit it, that was not what Midori wanted to hear. It sounded as though Kotone was completely unaware of how much harder it would be for Midori to try to get herself fit. Midori felt as though she needed to say something, but what could she say? She'd lost friends before over clashes of opinion before and, considering she rarely came across any to begin with, that was the last thing she needed.

"Well... you've seen how I was at the end of it, alright?" Midori said in a tone of depression, "Just try to look at it from my perspective. Please."

With that, her head sank low. Midori had no idea that Kotone would take an interest in running, and now that she'd known, she was quick to feel bad for what she said earlier. She was still skeptical about the idea of her mood being improved by running, and she was adamant that she was past the point of no return when it come to looking after one's health. But perhaps that was because she had the wrong mindset entirely...

"I... I have to get going, okay?" Kotone stated, "If I see you at school, we can talk later... maybe at lunch, or something."

"Hm?" Midori wondered, looking down at her phone again, then back up towards Kotone, "Oh yeah; sure! I'll see you around."

That reminded her. She had to get back to the convenience store so that she could get her snacks off of Atsumori.

...

Sure enough, Midori arrived at the school gates with a significantly improved mood. She had gotten a packet of pocky, a couple bottles of soda and... a large percentage of her money back. Atsumori must've assumed that what Midori really wanted was to raid the convenience store, much to her dismay. But she was thankful that she got some more food out of the ordeal at the very least.

Of course, it was safe to say that Kotone would've arrived several minutes before Midori had. She did have a bike after all, and unlike Midori, Kotone wouldn't have had to stop by at the convenience store for any particular reason.

'I wonder where Miyuki is,' Midori kept watch on the streets. After all, there were others that had yet to arrive...