The auditorium was packed to the brim with students. Even as grand as the auditorium was, it could be even be larger and it still would be cramped! Seth shifted uncomfortably in the plush seat and looked around at the sea of faces close by.
There's so many students here...Was it packed last year too? The raven black haired student thought to himself. He saw a few familiar faces around him, some classmates that were in his first year classes from before, and wondered if his friend was still attending the school this year.

The room hushed as the Headmaster took the stage...

...Thankfully it was a relatively short speech and soon enough, he was out of his seat. Friends were excitedly chattering with each other, gossiping on the hottest new rumors and catching up with their lives. He followed the crowd shuffling towards the exit, listening on some of those conversations, a small smirk on his face and a single word in his mind.
Content...

Meadow Ridge Institute. . .

It was nice to walk through campus again after what felt like such a long break. The campus was alive with students, a soft breeze rustled the returning leaves and the blossoms on the trees. The air was the perfect temperature: not too hot yet, but not as cold as the winter had been. The weather was a nice middle ground between the two seasons. Hanae took her time as she headed towards the Blossom Auditorium. Her head was tilted towards the sky, a peaceful smile on her face as the sun warmed her cheeks.

This was her favorite time of the year. She was going to begin new, exciting classes. She was no longer a 1st year student now, so she had more liberty with her class schedule. She was also extremely excited for soccer season to begin. She'd practiced all summer, and even took up running to stay in shape. She was determined to crush it on the field, and she was also secretly hoping to become soccer captain in her 3rd year. It would also be nice to see all of her old soccer friends again.

She was nearing the auditorium now, but she slowed to a stop to enjoy one more moment outside. She didn't plan to stay long at the meet and greet, but she would walk through to say hello to her old friends and teachers. Then she'd go to do one of her favorite things on campus. Read. They had an entire day to themselves before classes started and Hanae intended to catch up on her latest novel before her schedule didn't allow as much time to do so. She'd go to one of her most peaceful spots, and spend the entire day hidden from the rest of the campus. Well, hopefully.

The auditorium was packed as she walked in, but she managed to find a seat towards the back of the room. She nodded a polite hello to the students around her before she settled in her chair. She hadn't recognized anyone so far, but everyone she knew had grown a little over the summer. She certainly had. Her hair was longer, and she had definitely grown an inch or two. Other areas had grown as well, but she hoped that it didn't draw too much attention. She found herself subconsciously tugging her skirt down her thighs.

Thankfully, the speech that Head Dean Ichikawa gave the students was short. Hanae stood, shuffling out of the auditorium doors with the crowd. She almost considered skipping the meet and greet entirely until she noticed the table for the girl's soccer team. Two of her favorite teachers were standing behind it, and Hanae brightened at the sight of her coaches. She approached the table, giving the two women a friendly smile and wave.

"Ohayō gozaimasu, Naya-sensei, Hatano-sensei!"

If there is one thing that Hideo cannot stand, it's getting up out of bed, especially if he doesn't want to. And the first day back to school is a time where he doesn't want to. New video game? Hell yeah! Volleyball practice? Meh, he'll play it by ear. School? Hell no. It just wasn't something he was interested in. To be honest, there wasn't a lot of things he's interested in aside from video games and volleyball. Even that was stretching it.

However, he woke up like he usually did, earlier than necessary so he could get in a few more levels on his handheld. Soon, though, time got away from him and he ended up having to quickly scramble around for his backpack and items that were needed in order to survive the school day. Hideo was out the door in less than 10 minutes and rushing to the train station. A few of the guys from the team were already there waiting for their setter and let out a sigh of relief as they all made it onto the train in time. As soon as the setter sat down, he pulled out his game and began paying again, only sparing them a glaring look when they tried to interrupt him for a friendly morning conversation.

The train ride was a quick one, he didn't live that far - but it was better to take the train than any other way. His first day at Meadow Ridge. He had already taken a tour of the campus ahead of time and with all the practices he's been doing with the volleyball team he felt like he was already home within these walls. Well, as close as he could be with not caring or liking the idea of a structured institution.

The other players had already taken off and were making their way to the Blossom auditorium where there was supposed to be an assembly by the
Headmaster. Hideo just followed along blindly, his gaze still focused on his game than on anything else. Eventually making it to the auditorium, he plopped himself in a seat towards the back where the exit was located. He didn't want to be caught in the onslaught of students rushing out and him being trampled. That would just be a nuisance. The welcoming speech didn't take nearly as long as he thought it was going to, for that he was thankful - however it did limit his game time. 'Ugh, it is what it is,' he thought to himself as he stuffed the handheld back into his pack and was the first one to dip out into the hall.

It was there that he encountered a lot of the upper class-men and their teachers, sitting or standing next to make shift, pop up stands and tables. Most likely for the clubs and other extra curricular activities that the institute provides. He noticed his volleyball coach, Ukai, speaking loudly - as he came to learn is his coach's normal octave - with a student with sharp teeth. Hideo couldn't help but stare and wonder how the hell he was able to have such sharp teeth.

Since his sensei was busy, he decided he was just going to wander and take everything in. It wouldn't kill him to be social every now and then. Right?

Mornings always started with a run. It wasn't a question of if he wanted to or not. He didn't get that luxury. Not if he wanted to be the best and make it to the Olympics. Rin wouldn't stop until his goal was reached and in order to get there he needed to run. Building up hiss lung capacity, strengthening his legs and calves, flexing hiss core - all necessary on land as it is in the water. Rin made sure to streamline his body in every way possible. There are no shortcuts for him.

He returned back to his home after an hour of running around in the early morning darkness. He showered and changed before making himself some breakfast. Something small - bacon, sausage, eggs, toast lathered in butter and jelly and of course a glass of milk. In record time he had inhaled his breakfast and was soon biding his sister and mother a 'goodbye' and heading off to catch the train bound for Meadow Ridge.

While aboard he noticed a lot of the other passengers were also Meadow students, new and old alike. Rin couldn't keep his grin to himself as he scanned the car of all the people there. He could spot the new ones with how nervous or anxious they seemed, fidgeting with their newly pressed uniforms, adjusting the straps on their bags. While he and the other returning veterans were spaced out and just enjoying the relatively quiet ride to school before it all became too real. This was their last year. His last year. Before moving on to university levels. And that much closer to his life goal. If his run didn't get his blood pumping this routinely thought did the trick and as soon as those train doors opened up for the Meadow ridge platform, he was out of there, bolting down the concreted pathway towards the front gate.

Checking over the flyers posted along the walls - both inside and outside of the institute - Rin had made his way to the auditorium for a brief moment, listening to Headmaster Ichikawa's speech, before ducking out and strolling around until he came across Coach Ukai - the men's coach for gym and sports in general. Poor dude was pulled in all directions. Walking up to the man he raised a hand in greeting, the other still snug in his pocket, "Yo!"

"Oh," Ukai turned, blank registration papers in hand, before setting them on the table and greeting the young man in return, "Rin! Great to see you again. Ready for the new swim year?" A beaming smile towards his swim captain. He knew that Rin held the potential to go all the way, but he also knew that the kid needed to relax and enjoy himself a lot more too.

"Heh, you know it, Coach!" His big toothy, shark like grin making an appearance. Glancing around at the now sudden noise he turned back to the older male, leaning against the wall behind the tabled booth, "You'd think with as successful as Meadow is, they could afford to give you a break and hire another coach - even just one more person, ya know?"

Ukai just chuckled at his student and ran a hand through his hair, "Who knows kid, maybe they'll throw me a bone this year. One can only hope." And with that, Rin was off checking out the booths, watching the new students faun over the older students with heart filled eyes or scrambled to go join up with clubs before they filled. It brought back fond memories and he didn't even try to hold back his chuckle.

This was going to be his year.

---

Collab with @Mistress Dizzy

---

Igarashi Akio looked out over the city from the mountain he’d climbed, a bright smile on his face. True, it may not be quite as wild and rugged as back home, but this wasn’t too bad. If nothing else, he could say for certain that this spot let him see a hell of a sunrise.

Yep, not too bad at all…

That being said, part of him worried that he might not get much chance to see it again. Due to a combination of his farm boy childhood and excitement for the coming day, he’d had a pretty restless sleep, and eventually gave up on it just before four. After a large, hearty breakfast, he’d decided he might as well spend his free time exploring, which had led him to his impromptu hike. He’d made it to a good position just as the sun was coming up, and he had been sitting there ever since, enjoying the view with a snack he’d prepared before leaving.

And then he was distracted by a ringing in his pocket, and he pulled out a small, battered flip-phone that looked almost comically small in his hand.

“Yo, Aka-nee!” He said cheerfully. “Aint’cha up a little earlier than usual?”

“Well, I figured I’d better check up on you, make sure you hadn’t seen something shiny and chased after it instead of going to school.”

“Oh, yeah, I guess that’s pretty smart. I’m not even there yet, I’m up on one of the mountains!”

There was a moment of silence as Ki waited for his sister to say something, the only sounds being those of the wind and the morning birds.

“Are you serious?” An unsettlingly quiet voice came from the phone. “Ki, you have to be at school by 8:45.”

“What time’s it now?”

“8:05!”

“Huh, so the odds of me gettin’ there on time ai-”

“Aren’t great, no. You might be able to make it if you run, but please, for gods sake, don’t run down the mounta-”

“Sorry Aka-nee, I’m gonna need to hang up if I wanna get down fast enough! See ya!”

Any further protests were ignored as Akio closed his phone, stuffed the remaining piece of toast in his mouth, and started sprinting down the hiking trail as fast as he could. It was only a lifetime of practice that kept him from tumbling over and rolling down the rest of the mountain. By 8:25, he’d made it back into the city. Thankfully, it shouldn’t have been too far from there to the school. He’d just need to turn right at the coming corner, and then it should be a straight run to the sch-

And then he was face down on the ground, toast gracefully gliding away from his mouth to land in a nearby puddle. For a second, he thought he’d been hit by a cyclist, something that had actually happened a few times since he first arrived a few days ago, but something about this felt… heavier.

"Oh god, he's dead."

Of all the things to happen on their first day of new school, murdering a pedestrian was not on Jin's list.

Early that morning, Jin was up and in their uncle's garage as usual. Their pants and blazer hung pressed and waiting on a hanger. Their tools were spread out neatly on a cloth, and their neighbors ancient PC sat on the table in front of them. “Come on, you old bear. I have to get you working now, otherwise I don’t get paid.” The innards of the PC had been carefully removed, cleaned and scanned for viruses. So many viruses. Now all that was left was to get the darn thing up and running.

“I swear, you are worse than a fax machine.” Jin spoke to the computer as they worked, putting back one part after another. “Why the Tohsaka’s can’t just get a new damn PC is just beyond me. You are probably older than I am.” All the parts were now in place, power was running, but the monitor screen stayed dead.

“Ohh, no you don’t.” With one hand, Jin applied a judicious amount of percussive maintenance. In other terms, they gave the computer a solid thump with the heel of their hand. The old fan whirred to life and the computer began it’s booting process, leaving Jin relieved and grinning.

“Jin, you are going to be late.” JIn’s uncle Takumi passed by the garage, also preparing for his day. “It’s your first day, you have to make a good impression.”
“I am not going to be late. It’s 20 minutes tops, by bike.” Jin did get up though, yanking their uniform from where her aunt had hung it so carefully. They took ten rapid steps to their room, closing the door and getting dressed as quickly as possible. Then they stepped out with a suitcase, looking for anything they might have missed while packing. Sunday clothes, toothbrush, this years copies of Electronics Monthly, laptop, everything seemed to be in place.

“I worry about you on that old thing. Don’t take any major highways.” He said with a little huff. The argument about the bike was a longstanding one, but nothing either of them could get into now.

“Yes, Uncle.”

Now it was Aunt Akemi’s turn, as she tied Takumi’s necktie as she had every day for 35 years. “Try to make friends this time, Jin.” She admonished gently. “No fighting.”

“Yes, Auntie. But I can’t promise no fighting. I won’t start any, but I’ll end ‘em fine.” Jin’s eyes narrowed as they struggled with the uniform tie.

“We love you very much, dear. Be careful not to let your reputation follow you.” Akemi stepped over to help her sister’s only child, swiftly doing up the necktie with ease. “No one can know you were kicked out of your old school. Think of what they’ll say?!”

“Yes, Auntie.” Jin said dutifully, trying not to groan. [color=92278f]“I’ll be as good as I can be.”[color]

Takumi huffed again, but smiled briefly. “Close enough.”

Goodbyes were said, tears were shed, and then Jin was off, suitcase tied to an old 1970’s mini bike. Everything seemed fine for the first ten minutes, until one of the straps holding the suitcase in place snapped free. Jin swore and twisted back in the seat, trying to hold it in place. Suitcase and student wobbled, and then before they could fall-

Jin hit someone.

"Hey, big guy!" Jin got off their bike with no small amount of panic, lifting their riding goggles. [color= 92278f] "Are you alright? Please be alright, I am so sorry, my brakes are slow and I couldn’t reach the horn in time…" [/color]

“I’m up!” Ki shouted suddenly, sitting up at an almost inhuman speed as a small amount of blood started flowing down the middle of his face from a gash on his forehead. “”I’m fine, I’m good, I’m up!”

He looked around from his spot on the ground, and eventually saw the person who hit him with their… Oh wow, he got hit by a motorbike this time… That was a new one.

“Ah, hey!” He said, giving them a wave. “Sorry about that, I wasn’ really lookin’ where I was goin’, ‘s your bike ok?”

Jin exhaled with relief as the large boy sat up and started talking. And bleeding. "The bike has been through worse, I promise." They returned and righted the vehicle, yanking a thankfully clean buffing cloth from the back case.

"Here, don't get blood on your shirt." Only then did Jin realize that they were wearing the same blazer. "Wait a minute, don't tell me you go to the Meadow Ridge Institute?" Imagine their luck, running into ( literally) a fellow student before the day even began. There went trying for a new reputation. They had gone from delinquent first-year to vehicular manslaughter!

“Hmm? Oh!” Akio said as the… maybe girl… handed him a cloth of some kind to help wipe up the blood, which had begun to try and leak into his eye. ”Thanks! Dunno if it’ll get all of it though, head cuts bleed a heckuva lot, even when they aren’t that bad.”

As if to demonstrate this, the attempts he made to dab the blood away seemed to do little to nothing to stop the blood from flowing. Eventually, he just decided to fold it into a thin band, tying it around his forehead to cover the injury. The blood was still visible as it seeped into the fabric of course, but at least it wasn’t flowing down his face like it had been before.

”Uh, you wouldn’t mind if I borrowed this for a bit, wouldja? If I went into school with blood pourin’ down my face, they might think I’m some kinda bad guy or somethin’.”

And then she noticed his uniform and asked if he was also going to meadowridge, causing a grin to stretch across his face when he came to the same realisation.

”Oh yeah, you’re right! Looks like we might be classmates!”

He held out his hand to shake.

”The names Akio! Igarashi Akio! Most’a my friends call me Ki though!”

However, before their conversation could continue, Akio’s eyes widened.

”Wait, school! Late! I’m runnin’ late! We’re runnin’ late! We’ve gotta hurry, or else me lookin’ like a hooligan’ll be the least’a our problems!”

“Takahashi Jin!” Jin shook his hand, and then realized the time as well. Igurashi-san was right, they needed to go. Jin righted their bike and gestured to the back. “Hop on! I promise I’ll go slowly, but it’ll still be faster than walking.”

Jin was genuinely surprised that the boy was not making a huge deal of things. They were relieved, too, because there was no good way to explain to Auntie and Uncle that they’d been dumb enough to hit a pedestrian. That would mean no bike, and no bike meant no freedom.

“Thanks for not freaking out on me. Now let’s get to school on time!”

“Sounds like a plan, let’s get goin’!”

As he spoke, Ki jumped onto the back of the bike, and was pleasantly surprised when the vehicle barey seemed to lower under his weight. Guess he should just expect stuff like that from big city engineering, huh?

It took just a couple of minutes for the two to make it to the school, but he waited around while Jin made sure nobody could steal it, hopping nervously from foot to foot. Part of him said he should have just run to the assembly, which they were currently missing considering his phone said it was 8:55, but he would’ve felt too guilty if he’d left her behind, especially considering he was the reason she was late in the first place.

As soon as she was done, he started running again, but slowed to a stop almost immediately when he realised that, even if he made it to the assembly, it’d practically be over.

“I… I think we missed it.” He sighed, and sure enough, he could already see students leaving what he was guessing was the auditorium. “Well, thanks for gettin’ me here so quick!. Sorry that I kept ya from gettin’ here on time though. I owe ya.”

He looked in the direction of the other students.

“Anyway, I guess we’d better get to minglin’! Sign up for some clubs an’ stuff, ya know? You just come find me if ya need a favour, an’ I’ll do what I can to help and repay ya for today! See ya Takajin!”

And then he finished dusting off his clothes as best he could and ran over to the crowd. He’d noticed some pretty interesting clubs on the schools list, and damn it, he wasn’t gonna miss out on any of them if he could help it!

Takajin?

Jin was about tell Igarashi-san that they were the one who owed him a favor, but the boy had already vanished into the crowd. “Oh well. Maybe later.”

Looking out at the sea of students, Jin quelled a nervous flutter. Was this going to be like their last school? Maybe things could be different here. Still, it didn’t hurt to be ready for a fight. So, shoulders squared and head held high, Jin entered the crowd.

It was overwhelming. Noise all around, students greeting each other from last year, teachers from clubs welcoming them back – purple everywhere. Jin was too short to really see above the crowd, so they made a beeline for the outskirts and popped out near a club table.

Archery. Just thinking about it gave their stomach a twist. They hadn’t held a bow since getting kicked out of the archery club last school year. They had been a shoo-in for captain, if not for a certain incident leading to their expulsion.

“Leave my reputation behind me, huh? Why not.” Jin approached the table.

“Excuse me, I’d like to sign up!”

---

---

Izumi was up with the sun. An old habit that would never end up dying on the hill she took her stand on. It was too ingrained in her psyche and she honestly didn't mind it that much now that she was older. Stretching her limbs after she was dressed, the eldest Niijima girl made her way down the elegant iron and marble staircase to the large dining hall, taking a seat at the head of the table and calling for someone to bring her her morning tea and breakfast.

While she sat there eating her morning delicacies, she was scrolling through her phone, the sunlight streaming in from the large bay windows around her. And if she listened carefully, she could hear her twin punching something outside. Izumi rolled her eyes, "Typical Kashi~," before taking another sip of the porcelain cup.

The morning passed by without so much as a thread out of place. All of her supplies and necessities that would be her life source for the next semester or so were already packed and being loaded into the black car waiting at the front door of her family's large home. Turning to one of the maids bustling about on the first floor, Izumi called to her, "Make sure my dear sister is awake at a decent enough hour to make it to school on time," then she began to dig around in her own bag, speaking more to herself than the maid that was still standing near the Niijima girl, "Especially since it's her first year..." Noticing the maid hadn't moved from her spot she rounded on her with a tone that was less than inviting, "Well? What are you still doing standing here? Go wake her up."

Izumi rolled her eyes as the poor woman bowed lowly before scurrying up the stairs, disappearing into one of the many rooms to complete her assigned task. Shaking her head, Zuzu headed for the car. She had waited long enough for her other siblings to ride with her and she was ready to leave. Did they not realize the responsibilities she held this year? They could honestly be so self absorbent.



The ride was a short one, or at least that's what she told herself. It was no surprise to anyone that knew Izumi that she despised car rides - long or short. Rather, any sort of traveling that didn't have some sort of air blowing on her at all times. Motion sickness was the devil. And she just happened to be one of it's victims.

Once she was able to plant both feet on the concrete, sucking in the natural air around her she was immediately feeling better. Straightening out her uniform and giving the orders for them to bring her items to her dorm room, Izumi began her trek to the front office. She was able to skip the assembly in favor of helping the other teachers and upperclassmen set up their club booths. Being the overachiever that she was, Izumi had been coordinating with everyone to get the flyers and sign up sheets prepped and ready to go since the middle of the break. She took it very seriously, and the upperclassmen definitely appreciated the help.

As she was busy scurrying around she couldn't help but get distracted by the noise of some of the late arrivals. Glancing at her watch she rolled her eyes, blowing a strand of hair out of her face, the assembly was practically over at this point! 'Ughh.'

It didn't take long for the halls to fill with the sounds of students, new and old alike, to be chatting it up with one another. Getting the feel of the lay of the land as it were. Getting to know one another as they would all be living with each other for the next couple of months. The halls became extremely crowded and although it normally wouldn't bother the eldest Niijima girl, this time it did. She was carrying armful of supplies to be distributed to the different booths and tables. It didn't help that a lot of the items disrupted her sight, on top of the paths being crowded and cramped, with people pushing up on one another. It was all too much.

It really didn't help her mood when she ran smack into someone sturdy, causing her to fall backwards on her ass, supplies littering the ground around her. Growling she barked up at the person, or object, that caused this mess. Cause honestly, she could have run head first into a fucking pole they were so sturdy. She wasn't even going to comment on how the entire process of falling over on her ass was entirely her fault. "Ouch! Watch where you're going." Izumi rubbed her head with a free hand as she continued to sit there on the ground like an idiot, waiting for the world to stop spinning. When her vision finally came to, she was able to take in the sight of the person she ran into - but totally wasn't taking the blame for.

@KZOMBI3

---

"Hmmm?" Akio said, feeling something lightly tap against his side as he explored. He wasn't entirely sure what it was at first, but the number of boxes, papers and other small objects that collapsed over him suggested that someone may have bumped into him. Or maybe he bumped into them, but considering he hadn't been walking sideways at the time, he thought the first option was the more likely. He was thinking about this too hard. He should help.

He felt like this sentiment was confirmed when he heard the person he bumped into snap at him to watch where he was going, so he turned to look down at the girl, an apologetic grin on his face.

"Oh hey, sorry 'bout that!" He said, deciding not to mention that she'd been the one to bump into him. "Guess I jus' got too caught up in explorin' and wasn' really lookin' where I was goin'. Lemme help ya up."

And with that, he bent down and grabbed the girl by her shoulders, before quickly lifting her off the ground entirely and placing her back on her feet.

"So yeah, how're ya doin'? Ya ain't too dizzy or anythin' are ya? If ya need to go to the nurse's office or anythin', I can... uh..."

He paused for a moment, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly.

"Well, I don' actually know the way yet, but I reckon it shouldn' take too long to figure it out! I ain't particularly good at much, but I'm pretty good with directions, ya know?"

And then he looked around him at the mess of fallen papers and pamphlets from inside the boxes.

"An' if you are ok, I'll just give ya a hand packin all these up! Shouldn' take too long with the two of us workin' together, right?"

The early hours of the morning of the first day of school found Hidomi Toga running around the streets, backpack slung about her shoulders, key chains and other bobbles swinging precariously from the zippers, headphones secured snugly as the fast, upbeat noise assaulted her ears in the best way possible. Toga couldn't stop herself from dancing and singing along to the song as she continued her trek to nowhere. Along the way stealing a candy bar - or two - from a nearby kiosk, flashing a charming smile to the handsome man still setting up shop.

The sun was already poking it's rays across the city by the time she eventually made it to the front gate of Meadow Ridge. Sighing as she took the last bite of her candy, she crumbled the wrapper and tossed it into the nearest trash bin, before lowering the volume on her phone and turning the music off completely. It was such a stark contrast once the music was removed from her ears. The world stirring around her; finally making noises. She didn't mind the silence that the world would offer up in it's darkest moments - but she would be remiss to say she enjoyed the silence. The opposite was too true. She needed the loud and the annoying that would normally offend most others. It gave her something to look forward to. And Toga was anything but an idle person.

Stretching, with both arms out stretched, fingers interlaced with one another, back and arms popping she sighed in content and settled into herself as she strode through the opened gate, where a few early birds were busy bustling about. "Hmmm~" she hummed to herself as she examined the warm bodies around her. She would have to double down and fully admire them later as she continued on her way past the booths and tables being set up and found herself entering the front office, where she was to speak with an adviser about her scheduling and what to expect as a new student.



In the time it took to actually get in touch with the adviser and go over all the useless information - seriously? How would it be different than any other educational institute, but go off? - Toga ended up missing out on the welcoming assembly. "Wouldn't that have been a much better use of my time than sitting in a damned, stuffy room?" she complained as she unbuttoned the top few buttons of her uniform blouse, fanning herself, leaving her loose tie alone for now. The stares she gained from the simple action didn't go unnoticed. In fact, she made more of a show of her motions in order to get a feel for who exactly was paying attention.

She ended up stretching one more time before deciding to move on to the booths that lined the halls, mingling with people and eventually, hopefully, meeting up with someone who shared... similar interests~ Toga couldn't help but squeal in delight and anticipation, "This is gonna be sooo much fun~!"

"Ah, Hanae! Welcome back!" Asami Hatano cheerfully greeted Hanae, her cheeks pushing her glasses up her face as she grinned. Her cheerful disposition remained ever present, even after a long break between soccer seasons. Hanae knew she could always rely on Hatano-sensei's support. She was the team's very own cheerleader.

"Hello, Hanae! How was your summer?" Hisa Naya chimed in as she laid out a stack of parent permission slips on the table. "I hope you've been practicing over vacation."

Hanae nodded her head, smiling sheepishly at her mentor. Naya-sensei was her favorite coach, but she would never admit it out loud. She was the coach that pushed students to do better; the one that would stick around past hours to work through an issue they were having with their technique. Hanae looked up to her with the utmost respect. Even though Naya-sensei was never disappointed in her students, Hanae always tried her best to exceed her expectations.

"Yes, Naya-sensei. I've gotten especially good at my offensive moves."

Out of the corner of her eye, Hanae could see a few students making their way towards the table. She could tell they were first year students; the way they shyly whispered to encouragement to each other was a tell-all. Hanae remembered whispering encouragement to herself when she first approached the stand.

With a small nod towards the new students, Hanae gave Naya-sensei and Hatano-sensei a signal that she was going to leave by bowing her head. "I'll see you at practice!" The two instructors each nodded and said goodbye before turning to greet the two newcomers.

Hanae smiled reminiscently as she watched the two speak with the women's coaches, and then turned to be on her way. She began to make her way back towards the entrance to the room. On her way she saw a few of her old classmates from last year. She bowed her head, smiling and waving at them. They didn't stop to chatter. They knew that she wasn't one for huge social gatherings aside from parties and soccer games. So, they respectfully moved onward. So did Hanae.

She could see the entrance in the distance, but she still had a bit of crowd to move through to get there. Soon, she would be in her new dorm room with her books. Maybe she'd go one of her secret spots later to get a bit of writing in. She was feeling inspired by all of the new and old faces around her. The seasons were changing, and she was changing with them.

---

---

Rin was just completely caught off guard as this tiny, timid... student - he was like 75% sure this was a student and not like a child - came up to him, practically thrusting a box of freshly baked goods in the direction of his nose. He couldn't deny that the muffins smelled heavenly~ and he'd be an insensitive asshole to just let her wander around aimlessly. Especially since he did know what it was she was looking for.

"Hey!" He flashed her a sharp tooth grin without thinking - he wasn't trying to terrify her. 'Oops, too late now', he supposes. Rin reached out to grab the tub that she presented to him, his hands lightly grazing over her own fingers and he could have sworn she jumped like 10 feet in the air.

"Yeah, newspaper, huh? This is where the sports and sports medicine is set up shop," he gestured to the lined row of booths and tables with quite a few slew of different shaped and sized students were lugging around duffel sports bags and some even carrying around their sports equipment.

Rin was smelling the muffins again when he spoke again, "Newspaper, StuCo, Photography and Art stuff is gonna be along the back walls," he was going to leave it there but thought better of it. Chances are she didn't even know what the fuck the back wall was, ""Ya know what? I'm actually heading that way. C'mon.."

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Izumi couldn't help but just stare incredulously at the large male towering above her. She ran into him and he was being sweet and helpful about the whole situation? 'Is that blood?! Was that from me?!' She didn't have much time to process it all however, as he reached down to her and quickly hoisted her off of the ground completely before placing her back down on her feet. She had to reach out and balance herself on his forearm though, the the complete lack of balance on her part being extremely embarrassing.

Pushing the furious blush from her face by sheer willpower - at least she hoped it wasn't present - she looked up into the face of her obstacle. He was babbling about the nurse's station or some such thing. It wouldn't be a terrible idea for him to visit the nurse and get that blood touched up. Though, she supposes she should be the one to take him - it's only fair seeing as she most likely caused the damage... or something.

If she were to be completely honest... Izumi couldn't be bothered to pay attention seeing as her gaze was too focused on all the papers that littered the ground around their feet. Mumbling to herself in a more than exasperated tone, she bent down to collect the items, tossing them back into the box on her side, "Waste of time... everything is off schedule now... can't believe... too nice!" Completely negating her typical persona she nodded silently along to his questions - at least she was pretty sure he'd asked a question or two as she was absentmindedly grabbing at the papers.