[IC] Malicious. Unintended. Super & Elegant (Muse) [VKAllen x Rhapsody]

[VKAllen]

Lann felt Emilia sitting down beside him as he enjoyed about the view of the marathon field and the mountains. It really was a hidden gem of the school. The place was serene, so quite that the wind would whisper into your ears the songs of nature. The trees brushed against each other, harmonious to the whistle of the wind. He closed his eyes and enjoyed every bit of it as much as he could. Emilia and Lann spent their breaks by just embracing the beauty of nature in silence before Emilia asked; "So, when did you move here?" Lann opened his eyes and leaned to look at Emilia unwrapping her food.

He smiled, before replying; "Well, I didn't move. But my old school did got damaged badly. Some boys did a prank that went horribly wrong." He returned to lean back to the wall again. "I didn't exactly enjoy studying there, but I didn't have the choice at the time. Only when it did burnt down they transferred me here. It was the closest other school around my area." He drank from his water bottle. "How about you? Been here since kindergarten?" Several sets of footsteps finally arrived to where Lann and Emilia was. When they turned, it was Sirius and Kat that came. Kat didn't exactly had the happiest expression on her face and Sirius was just chilled and relaxed.

The both of them sat down, Kat next to Emilia and Sirius sitting on the opposite side of Kat. "Glad that was over." Sirius said as he sat down and ate his food. "I didn't expect him to be so angry over being a tour guide, especially after seeing Lann there running off because of his zipper..." His eyes shifted to Lann where he perked up and defended himself, but was clearly embarrassed.

"Hey! It was an accident okay? I didn't know until she kept staring! That's why I ran!" Sirius laughed.

[Rhapsody]

As he told her about his old school, she blushed in embarrassment, remembering that he had said during his introduction that the all-boys school he had transferred from had not been far from here. She had not expected it to be that close. And now that he had mentioned it, she vaguely recalled having heard about somethign similar on the news not too long ago. "I didn't exactly enjoy studying there..." he said and Emilia wondered what had happened back then to make him say that, but she felt asking wasn't yet within her rights, since she had only just met him mere hours ago. "How about you?" he asked, after taking a sip from his waterbottle. "Been here since kindergarten?".

Emilia nodded let her eyes wander toward the scenery as she opened her mouth to answer him, but was interrupted by the arrival of Kat and Sirius, the former sitting down next to her with a miserable expression on her face and then leaning into her, head resting on Emilias shoulder with a deep sigh. Sirius sat down on Kats other side, relaxed as usual. "Glad that was over." he said in between bites of his lunch. "I hadn't expected him to be so angry obver being a tour guide, especially after seeing Lann there running off because of his zipper.." he went on, his eyes shifting over to Lann. Emilia followed them with her own, looking at a clearly embarrassed and defensive Lann with a raised eyebrow and question in her eyes. It seemed she had been right with her initial feeling that soemthing had happened between the two of them.

"Hey! It was an accident okay? I didn't know until she kept staring! That's why I ran!" Lann exclaimed, and Sirius laughed. "Wait, what exactly happened between with two of you?" Kat asked, murmuring a little but clearly interested despite not wanting to give up on pouting away for a while longer. Sirius chuckled in amusement, and took a bite of his sandwich, taking his time with answering. He threw a glance at Lann with a smirk, but shook his head as he answered. "Not gonna tell ya! Maybe later~.." Emilia was pretty sure it was only the smallest part compassion for Lann that kept him from deepening the matter and a huge part enjoying to tease Kat, who now really wanted to know, even sitting up to glare at him for a moment.

When he just grinned back, Kat gave up, apparently not in the mood for being stubborn and reached out to take a look inside Emilias lunchbag. She glanced up and back inside, asking: "Who made those? You or your father?" Emilia laughed. Her father tended to be rather simplistic about making sandwiches, not spreading the butter properly, and using a minimum of whatever else he used. She herself didn't care, she was happy when he took the time to do something for her, but Kat tended to be picky about food. "I made them." she reassured her and Kat nodded, grabbing the other half with a satisfied grin and unwrapping it to take a huge bite. "Yours are the best!" she told her, like always, and then went back to leaning against her shoulder, somehow managing to eat like that. "Thank you." she gave her usual reply, while she took a bite of her own, then reached out to grab her water bottle and take a few sips.

She turned to look at Lann, noticing now, that he wasn't eating, and had only brought a bottle of water with him. She scowled. "You're not eating? I've got an apple left, if you'd like." she offered him with a smile and a gesture towards the almost empty paperbag by her feet. Then she recalled that she had yet to answer his question. "Oh, right, I almost forgot to answer your question!" she exclaimed. "Yes, we, meaning Kat, Daniel and myself, have been here ever sine we can remember. If you go down the street some, there's the kindergarten we used to go to and the middle school, where Sirius went as well, is not far either."

[VKAllen]

Her lovely rosy pink cheeks was eye candy to Lann. Something about Emilia blushing made his stomach flutter with flowers that paced his heart faster than normal. Who knew that she could drive a man crazy with her blush? He purged these thoughts as he remembered that it was the first day he stayed here in Hill View High School. "That other girl was cute too. I wonder if she's friendly." His thoughts wandered as Sirius and Kat had their exchanges with each other-- Looking as though he was day dreaming.

"Wait, what exactly happened between the two of you?" Kat asked with murmured blabbering to Sirius, having her curiosity piqued at the matter between Lann and Sirius. So far, nobody realised that he was daydreaming. Sirius took the pleasure of 'fishing' Kat her curiosity and snickered. A swift bite of his sandwich and he gathered his words by looking at Lann with a smirk. His decision was made as he shook his head.

"Not gonna tell ya! Maybe later~" Kat's unsatisfied and frustrated glare lit to Sirius, but he did not gave a single care about it by throwing the grin back to Kat. She sulked in her defeat but turned her attention to Emilia. By then, Lann was clearly lost into his own world. Seemingly imagining a scenario between Emilia and the other girl having a harem fight over Lann. It was a boyish thing that happened in his old school where one would brag about a girl madly in love with them and another who believes the same, but with the same girl. Lann had always kept those thoughts close to himself because he knew better to not talk about it especially when he was crowded with a group of boys who think they own their girlfriends.

The only sober thing that he could do was uncapping his bottle again and drank another portion of his fresh springwater into his system, which refreshed his thirst and wiping his mouth with his arm before Emilia looked at him. "You're not eating? I've got an apple left, if you'd like?" Lann snapped out of his daydream and looked directly at Emilia with a rose-pink face, blushing over silly thoughts that he had. Sirius's eyes picked up the same look that he had when her sister was looking at him. The devil snickered and continued to eat his sandwich which startled and annoyed Kat immensely, jumping onto him and making a ruse out of Sirius.

"Tell me about it!!" She said as she mounted up to Sirius, attacking him with tickles. Sirius was caught in Kat's fire and was now under Kat's domination, laughing from her tickles but kept a strong resolve of not spilling the beans.

That aside, Lann's daydream had him a little nervous. He attempted to not re-enact the scene he had in his mind and returned Emilia's friendly smile while politely rejecting her offer. "Oh. Uh... I'm not hungry. I still got some of my breakfast in my stomach. It's okay." He remained to smile when he finished his sentence. "Not only is she sweet, but she too is caring..." He felt bad to have made a scene in his mind about Emilia.

"Oh, right, I almost forgot to answer your question!" Emilia exclaimed to Lann. His attention suddenly focused around her lips as she was about to speak of her and her group of friends. "Yes, we, meaning Kat, Daniel and myself have been here ever since we can remember. If you go down the street some, there's the kindergarten we used to go to and the middle school, where Sirius went as well, is not far either." Hearing about the kindergarten nearby made him feel strange. Something about it didn't feel right. His face soured a little, but it soon was covered by a neutral appearance that agreed with Emilia.

He explained. "Yeah, I saw the kindergarten on the way here. But... Is it weird that I had a feeling I went there when I was little too?" There was no clear evidence that he was there in the kindergarten where Emilia used to be. He couldn't even recall any names from said kindergarten and all that he could think of was himself and several teachers on the tip of his tongue. "I may be mistaken... I barely remember anything about it." His eyes drifted before arriving by Kat and Sirius again. He pleaded for Kat to stop, but she wouldn't let him go, intent on learning what had happened between the two of us. "I think I should just say it myself, before Kat kills Sirius with her tickles." He giggled, but seemingly attempted to joke with Emilia.

"Kat!" Lann exclaimed to her. She looked, ceasing to tickle Sirius before he 'limped' out and laid on the ground trying to catch his breath from all of the laughter. "If you're dying to know, I'll tell you what happened-- I mean, I'm embarrassed to say it myself, but I don't think its worth to tickle Sirius to death about it." Lann took a deep breath and hoped he wouldn't regret his decision to tell Kat about it. "My zipper was undone. And I didn't realise it until I saw Sirius's little sister staring at my undid zipper with a blush on her face. That's the reason why I ran... I was embarrassed." Lann allowed silence.

Several moments passed by and Sirius was finally awake. Although from the looks of it, Kat hadn't noticed. Taking this opportunity, Sirius threw Kat back and ticked her in return. "I got you now! Revenge!!"

[Rhapsody]

Emilia had almost asked him what he had been thinking about, that had made him blush such an adorable shade of red, but kept her mouth shut, smiling to herself, pretty sure he would not appreciate bein called 'adorable'. Once again she felt like he felt so much more familiar to her than he should. She scowled, staring off into the distance after telling him about her childhood and peeked up when he told her he had the feeling he had been there as well when he'd been little. She turned her eyes on him, staring intensely while trying to imagine him a lot younger, smaller and cuter. She could just not remember anything besides her two best friends from back them. Thoguh those memories might as well be just coming from the photos she ahd at home. She couldn't be sure, after all. She left that topic as it was for now, deciding she'd ask her Dad about it when he got home, though his memory had often turned out to be even worse that hers.

Her train of thoughts was interrupted at Kat and Sirius moroning around again, which she tended to succesfully ignore from time to time, but someone limbs where making impact with hers over and over, bringing her attention to them. They were a tangle of limbs, Kat tickling the life out of Sirius and she rolled her eyes at them, but couldn't help the smile tugging up her mouth. "I think I should just say it myself, before Kat kills Sirius with her tickles." Lann giggled on her other side and she turned to him with a laugh. "No worries," she told him, "they can do that for hours, though I have to say after a while it gets kind of scary and they really look as if they're dying." Emilia winked at him, grinning.

"Kat!" Lann exclaimed, making her friend look up and pause, giving Sirius a chance to get away and out of arms reach in a slow , painful looking crawl, desperately catching his breath. "If you're dying to know, I
'll tell you what happened-- I mean, I'm really embarrassed to say it myself, but I don't think it's worth to tickle Sirius to death about it." He took a deep breath, as if something really hard was coming and then said: "My zipper was undone. And I didn't realise it until I saw Sirius's little sister staring at my undid zipper with a blush on her face. That's the reason why I ran.. I was embarrassed." Silence followed.

Emilias smirk turned wider and wider but she didn't allow herself to laugh, not sure how much laughter he could take, since he already seemed plenty embarrassed. In the next moment, without either Kat or Emilia noticing Sirius was up again, jumping Kt and returning the favor. Emilia flinched as an arm got plenty close to her face and scrambled back a few feet, not realizing until she bumped into him, that she was practically crawling onto Lanns lap. Turning red, she sat to the side, away from the wall and Lann, though still pretty close to him and felt the heat rising into her cheeks. "S-sorry, I wasn't thinking." She cleared her throat, her smile apologetic as she glanced at him.
"I guess were even now." she added with a more humorous smile.

[VKAllen]

He sighed after the pause, seeing how Emilia was smirking with her hands covering her lips to pressure her laughter from escaping as Lann looked at her with a defeated sight. It was embarrassing and unprofessional of him to have forgotten one kryptonite that would spell perversion to a person. Time underneath our watches blessed us with its generosity, its passing was as sweet as flowing honey. Lann's first day was enjoyable by far and he loved it.

Nobody thought that Sirius would be up so quickly from such a brutal tickle attack from Kat but it seems though he had an edge for a sneaky attack. Sirius returned with sinister vengeance. Fingers like weightless feathers, it slid quickly along Kat's skin and sensitive areas where the tickles were most effective in making Kat stagger in laughter. Lann thought they were the two cats in the group, playing with one another endlessly until someone submits. Kat laughed till she cried, and tried to pry Sirius away from her. Her elbow shot to the side near-missing Emilia's face where she reflexively retreated her body away from Kat.

In the middle of the tension, Emilia sprawled over to Lann and he caught her mid-fall before he too was pushed to the side slightly from Newton's third law of motion. Everything calmed. Lann's hands were scattered along her arm, and Emilia practically was crawling over his lap. Both of them felt the heat rising between their cheeks-- Somewhat sheepish over the small sprawl again. She shuffled slightly away but remaining close to the side of Lann. "Wow... Emilia felt so... He imagined within his own mind. When her body heat met Lann's it felt as if he just took in something so addicting. It felt sweet and hot at the same time. Her skin was smooth and when her hair sprayed over his face, it felt as if he was in a garden of flowers.

"S-sorry, I wasn't thinking." The harsh crackling of Emilia's voice as she cleared her throat broke Lann's silence into another nervous grin as she glanced at him with pink cheeks and a funny smile. "I guess we are even now." Lann's eyes widened, before his sincere smile came and flashed over to Emilia remembering about the first time they met. How ironic.

The church bells of Hill View High School echoed again, sending its stunning pulse of sound into the student's ears giving them an unwanted dreadfulness as they began to stand up and make their way towards the school's hallways. Lann and his friends were still sitting about when they heard the bell ringing. "Time flies when you're having fun." Lann took another drink of his water before looking at Emilia. "And I sure am having a lot of fun here." He said as he stood up. His voice stammered as he rose up from the gravity that made his voice a little pitchy, before returning back to normal. He offered his hand again to Emilia seated on the ground.

Sirius who just finished ravaging Kat with his tickles quickly tried to finish his sandwich before hilariously choked on the sliced carrot he had that sent him out of breath before he could swallow. He breathed deeply and harshly as he pounded onto his chest. Kat was all worked up from Sirius's assault, but still had the energy to laugh at Sirius's struggle before she continued to eat Emilia's half of her sandwich. "Serves... You... Right...!" She scowled to Sirius with mouth full of her sandwich. Sirius could only gave Kat a hateful glare before rolling his eyes away. Before they knew, they were on the way back to class. "Hey Lann! This school that you went to before, what was it like?" Lann was surprised to see Kat back to be her loud and forcing personality so quickly, even after being attacked by Sirius.

When Kat asked that question, Lann could just about see Emilia seemingly irritated by what she had said. Lann looked at Sirius and he gave him a confused shrug. Lann curled the edges of his lip in annoyance as he tried to just explain about the school as brief as he could. He thought of the sentence, but didn't know if she would understand. "Put simply... If you weren't brawny enough, you'll be treated like trash. And that's what most people think that I'm like that." He walked with his hands in his pockets, this time seeing the seemingly invisible rock that he had tripped on. When he realised the sheer size of the rock he had tripped on, and failed to realise that it was there-- Lann's expression turned blue. "Aaahhh... How the hell did I miss such a massive rock?" He side stepped the rock and successfully avoided another fall.

"Most people?" Sirius added in his curiosity. Lann didn't give much expression when he heard Sirius. Sirius proceeded to apologise about bringing it up and Lann nodded.

"Let's just say that one day I decided it's enough." They arrived by the staircase and found Daniel lumbering by and turning around as he saw familiar faces before yelling at the group. Kat could only yell back at Daniel as they ascended up. Sirius and Lann looked as though they were apologising about it.

[Rhapsody]

Emilias cheeks were still burning when they got up, even still as they head back inside. She was unable to react to anything they were saying, as she still felt Lanns hands on her arms, holding her securely, keeping her from hurting herself. She had liked being so ohysically close to him, but admitting that to herself brought the heat back into her cheeks full force and she tried to tamper it down, squeeze the memory in the back of her brain, where she'd keep it until she was alone and noone would notice her red cheeks and dreamily glazed eyes. Her fingers reached up to touch her cheeks, checking for warmth. "Time flies when you're having fun." Lann had said as he'd gotten up, looking at Emilia during those words. She had to suppress a silly smile.

It was strange that Lann seemed so familia already. As if she'd known him for a long time. But that wasn't possible,.. was it?

Kat's voice intruded in her mind. "Hey Lann, that school you went to before, what was it like?" Emilia looked up, glancing at Lann before throwing Kat a full out glare, swatting her arm lightly with her open hand. "God Kat, show some manners!" she exclaimed, remembering what Lann had told her about his old school earlier. "I didn't exactly enjoy studying there, but I didn't have a choice [..." he'd said and what he was saying now, matched what Emilia had feared. "Put simply... if you weren't brawny enough, you'll be treated like trash. Ans that's what most people think that I'm like that." Emilia wasn't sure how to react. She felt there was nothing she could say that wouldn't overstep the boundaries of their short acquaintance But Lann changed the topic quickly, excaliming over the huge rock he'd tripped over earlier. She could've killed Sirius at that second for asking even further, but the guy seemd to have noticed on his own, apologising properly right away. Lann finished the topic, saying: "Let's just say that one day I decided it's enough."

Emilia didn't have time to think about that last comment as she ehard a familiar male vocie yelling at them from the top of the stairs. "Hey, there you are! You should've told me you would head to our usual place!" Daniel called out, not caring that most students around them gave him annoyed looks and some glares as they were hindered in passing by him by his wildly waving arms. Emilia raised an eyebrow at him as they made eye-contact. He grinned and gave a wink. Then Kat was yelling back at him. "You could've come, it was our usual place!" and they started bickering loudly until the group finally caught up to him and Emilia swatted them both when they continued to talk in the same volume, but didn't give them the satisfaction of commenting on it. Sirius did though. "Damn, you guys are seriously crazy! Maybe you should try getting some counseling or therapy or something." he told them. I all resulted in Emilias two childhood friends grabbing is arms from both sites and bickering around with him.

Emilia shook her head at the scene they were making and fell back a little, walking besides Lann. She glanced at him, thinking of what he'd said before. And bumbed her arm slightly on his to get his attention. "It'll be different here." she told him, looking forward, down the hallway, her voice calm. "You've got me." she continued, then realized what she'd said. "..Us. You've got us." she corrected ehrself hastily, her cheeks flaming red again in embarrassment. Her mind chose that moment to provide her with the memory of the feeling of his hands on her arms again, and her heart beat faster, leaving her blushing up to her ears.

[VKAllen]

He contemplated, the fact that he wouldn't ever resort to it. He wouldn't need to. It beat into his mind the thought of pushing everyone aside and moving forward as an individual, not a group. A concept that was destructive, created by the hearts of selfish people. Once a man had a taste of power, his true nature is then revealed. Half of that he understood, but his true nature would only be revealed in the future. "All thoughts aside..." He looked up to Daniel, showing a face of apology as Kat roared. The wild kitten she was.

"Hey, there you are! You should've told me you would head to our usual place!" Even after an apologising look Daniel wouldn't give it a rest. He was the one that assumed we were heading up to the rooftop and raced his way up there. Students gave him a hateful glare, but immediately looked away as they realised it was Daniel. Is he famous for being the loudest among boys? Lann briefly saw the wink, before he directed his attention to Emilia. Was he winking at her?

"You could've come, it was our usual place!" Kat shouted in full spirits. Lann was just amazed at the amount of energy Kat has. She was literally a walking power house. No struggles could chain her down and if God would put chains around her, I'd think that Kat would just break free like it was nothing. Amongst all of these thoughts, Lann couldn't assume.

"She must have her moments outside of her cheery self." Kat and Daniel now are at it. It was easy to imagine them as passionate husband and wife arguing about what they should eat for a dinner-night-out. Lann, Emilia and Sirius continued their ascent. Kat and Daniel were ahead of the three and their fiery argument only made their feet pace faster. They struggled to keep up and once they were on par, Lann noticed Emilia trying to tell them to keep their voices down but they ignored her entirely before Sirius casually butted in.

"Damn, you guys are seriously crazy! Maybe you should try getting some counselling or therapy or something." Sure enough, here comes Kat and Daniel towards Sirius. They forced their arms around Sirius and continued to argue whilst he was caught within the crossfire of no man's land. Emilia shook her head. It was understandable. Lann however, found it to be hilarious. His face then returned to the thought from before. Selfishness. It was the core value in his old high school that kept him alive and surviving. He wondered if he needed such brutality before receiving a nudge from Emilia's elbow. His head turned to meet her eyes before she looked onwards.

"It'll be different here." Her voice as calm as it could be among the crowd of muttering students. The way she said it... It was as if she had directly read Lann's mind. His slightly curling frown turned upside down.

"Yes it would be..." He thought to himself before he heard;

"You've got me." That sentence sent chills up his spine and butterflies up his stomach. His eyes glistened as he looked at Emilia. "... Us. You've got us." From the way she corrected herself, Lann knew what she really meant. He returned the nudge of her arm before looking forward with renewed happiness. Emilia was embarrassed again with her red hot tomato cheeks. Lann walked quickly forward in front of Emilia and turned around to her already flushed up appearance.

"Let's have a good year then!" There was a brightened grin over Lann's face before he began to walk in weird ways, taking light of the current time as they marched towards Mr. Collin's class. Little did they know that they were about five minutes late.

---End of the Day---

The same church bell rung again. Everybody sighed in relief as they heard the bell that concluded their school day. Mr. Collins who was writing the summary of the lesson was interrupted as students packed their bags immediately and helped themselves leave the classroom. Kat was speaking to Emilia and it seems as if Daniel had to go the moment the bell rung. He apologised to Kat, Emilia and Sirius before looking at Lann and did the same. Lann gave him his farewell and Daniel took off. Right after, Sirius behind him decided to leave also, something about organising an upcoming event during the weekend before saying his farewell to Lann, Kat and Emilia. Soon the people left in the room were the Clean-Up Group, Lann, Kat, Emilia and Mr. Collins. "And that's my first day." Lann declared with joy.

"You seem to be enjoying your stay here, Mr. Langley. Not everyday that students can say that, especially the boys that came from that school..." Something about what Mr. Collins said made him a little suspicious. What's with the sudden change of tones in his words? Lann decided that it wasn't his problem and gave Mr. Collins a generic affirmative response before he packed his belongings and left the classroom. The Clean-Up group quickly roudned themselves up and made a march towards the cleaner's storage room with little enthusiasm.

"So... Kat, Emilia... Are you guys leaving together?" Lann asked the two before he strapped his packed bag over his shoulders. "I guess I'll see you two tomorrow morning then?" Lann gave his wave before slowly leaving the classroom and entered the hallway. As he made it down the stairs, he waited by the adjacent wall wandering if Kat would leave without Emilia.

[Rhapsody]

"And that's my first day." Kann declared with joy, making Emilia laugh. Mr.Collins following comment had her scowling, though she managed to keep back her initial response of glaring at the man, whihc wouldn't have been too good, considering. But the teacher packed up and left without any further comment, but he left Emilia with a strange feeling in her stomach.

"So..Kat, Emilia... Are you guys leaving together?" lann asked as he strapped his bag over his shoulders. "I guess I'll see you tomorow morning then?" he went on before Emilia could give him a reply. He waved and slowly left the classroom. Kat took a look at her watch and gasped, grabbing her bag. "I'm late, the coach will kill me!" she exclaimed, and headed of in a run towards the maratho field, where the soccer training had begun some minutes ago.

Emilia left eh classroom alone and headed out into the hallway, hearing Kats hasty steps from down the hall. Going down the stairs, she noticed Lann stadning there, waiting. She smiled at him. "Kat has soccer training." she explained her being alone. "How'd you know?" she asked him ith a surprised laugh and went over to him.

"So, you have yet to have a tour of the school, right?" she asked with a grin, one hand gesturing about the hallway to their sides. "Shall I take on that job?"

[VKAllen]

He waited for a moment while pondering over the day. What a blast it was for a first day. He was reminded of his first day over at his all-boys school. The little reserved Lann going to school with his typical white shirt and red pants for a uniform. He remembered that same day he had his lunch stolen from him and somebody hid his bag by the janitor's room. It was complete hell for him, and he thought those kinds of scenario was what happened across all of the schools possible. Here, compared to that school was heaven and hell. He met a girl, and her friends that was supportive of Lann. Even though he had a really awful start-- They all disregard that fact and recognised Lann as who he was. He pictured Emilia again, and his heart beated in a different pace. He felt some feeling of lightheadedness.

"Where have I...?" Lann's memory failed him. It was a very nostalgic feeling that he had. Something about Emilia was awfully wrong yet... Right. The sudden rush of cluttering pans by somebody's feet raced down the stairs and they sprinted at the nearest corner. It crashed Lann's train of thought and looked over to see who it was, but found nothing. "Only Kat has that kind of energy. Wait, that means..." He leaned off the wall and waited as a softer descent could be heard. The lightest of touch, it was harps that played as she came down. Emilia arrived and noticed Lann by the side of the stairs and approached Lann with her cherry smile.

Lann returned her smile with his own and waved at her. "Kat has soccer training. How'd you know?" She looked at Lann with an accompanying laugh, as if believing that he knew of the future. He joined in the laugh but shook his head in response.

"No I don't actually... I was hoping that Kat had something planned." He continued to flash his smile to Emilia. He adjusted his backpack around his shoulder and tried to look just friendly. He didn't want Emilia to get the wrong idea... Since it is his first day. Or is it? It feels as though they've known each other. Somewhere in the gap of time... It's the tip of the tongue that is most annoying.

"So, you have yet to have a tour of the school, right?" Her smile transformed to a pleasant grin. "Shall I take on that job?" She offered to Lann so cutely, with her small hand gesture and sparkling eyes. We all have our tired faces after school. Emilia's face seems unchanged.

"Well... Yeah. I can use some help on that one. Will you please show me around?" Lann asked with an excited tone. The agreement between them led to the two walking around the quickly deserting school on their own. "Thanks for a really good day today Emilia. I'm glad I bumped into you today." He said as he hid his palms in his pockets again, looking up towards the fading blue sky. "Everything feels so nice here. The people are friendly. Attractive. Loud and serious. It's all kinds of amazing things."

[Rhapsody]

"Thanks for a relly good day today Emilia. I'm glad I bumped into you today." he told her as they headed around the schoolbuilding. He looked up at the sky, and she did the same, noticing it was slowly growing dark already, thought that was normal for a spring evening. She had the feeling school had gone by faster than usual thanks to Lann being there. She had glanced at him during class from time to time, noticing both Daniel and Sirius joking around with him when the teacher wasn't looking. Somehow it felt right for him to have joined their group. Emilia could tell the others felt the same way, but her own feeling of familiarity towards him was so strong, it was unbelievable.

"So you know the backyard already, that's generally where all the clubs take place, the field is shared by the outside-sports clubs, the swimming pool is in the building next to it, we'll have p.e. there from time to time. The gym is right behind the swimming pool building, you can't see it from where we were, but it's easy to find. As for the rest of the clubs, you'll have plenty of time to chose one the next weeks, if you want to do so. Most of the other club rooms you've seen as well already, there are signs everywhere inside, so you'll find whatever you might be searching for rather easily." she made a pause to let that sink, not wanting to drown him in new info and give him some time to ask a few questions of his own.

[VKAllen]

He continued to feel the early night's breeze. It was a refreshing cool air that welcomed the life of the night. Lights would soon turn on in perfect synchronization like a set of marching music ensemble. The place was quick to be silent. The whistle of a coach training his soccer team was almost like a professional artist performing an opera note in the distance. The skies were soon darkening. Lann opened his eyes and realised that she had been doing the same as Lann. Everything was about smiles with Emilia, so Lann gave her another of his smile before their tour finally continues.

Emilia began to point out certain features of the school including the hallway to certain places like the library, the school's office and the canteen. The two didn't necessarily went past it, since the place would probably be closed off by now and the two would get in trouble if they continued to be in the school. They continued to travel until they finally reached the backyard of the school, where the large rock stood that tripped him before. "So, you know the backyard already. That's generally where all the club stuff takes place. The field is shared by the outside-sports clubs and the swimming pool is in the building next to it. We'll have P.E. there from time to time." Lann made a quick observation of the group of buildings she mentioned as club houses, and then the field where the Kat was training.

It's funny, because out of everyone Kat stood out the most in the soccer training. She was the one who would always run the fastest, kick the hardest and seemingly flail her arms the quickest. You didn't even need to look hard. She'll do one of those things and you'll just realise it's her. Kat and Lann made eye contact from a distance. Seeing how Emilia and Lann was walking around the school together, she waved and teased the two by making a little heart sign with her hands before the whistle was blown and the coach suddenly pointing towards Kat. Lann was sheepish and his face flushed red over Kat's comment. "I'll get you tomorrow!" Lann shouted, hoping that Kat would be able to hear it over the sound of her coach directing her with instructions.

"The gym is right behind the swimming pool building, you can't see it from where we are, but it's easy to find." Lann turned his head towards the swimming pool building and nodded at Emilia. He tried to remember all of these places so that he wouldn't get lost tomorrow. Who knows, he might be wandering on his own accidentally. Emilia directed Lann's attention towards the club buildings directly across from them. "As for the rest of the clubs, you'll have plenty of time to choose one in the next few weeks if you want to do so. Most of the other club rooms you've seen already and there are signs everywhere inside, so you'll find whatever you might be searching for rather easily." Finally, Emilia gave her speech a rest, allowing room for Lann to process the information inside of his head. Lann gave her a thumbs up.

"So, the club stuff isn't gonna be available until a few weeks time? That sucks. Are you part of a club at the moment Emilia?" He curiously asked, looking at Emilia as he wondered. "I wonder what she likes... Maybe books? Reading? Or perhaps... Journalism? Fashion?" The questions that he had made him think a little over the top about Emilia. If he had to guess; "Perhaps modelling..." With a look like that, he knows he couldn't resist. Fingers crossed it would be an interesting club. If he likes it too, perhaps he'll join it so that he can support her. Or maybe just being close with her.

His phone rung momentarily, which made Lann check his phone. He had received a message from his father from work asking how his first day was. His smile did not disappear. "Hey Emilia, mind if I take a picture with you?" He asked and waited for a proper reply. As she agreed, Lann would set his phone to camera mode and took a picture of himself and Emilia together in one frame. "Thanks." He said, before quickly writing a message to his father and attaching the photo with it. Lann pressed the sent button and quickly placed his phone back to his pocket.

It was getting late. The purple darkness began to infect the orange sky. A time where night and day meet with one another for several minutes. The first set of stars gleamed in the sky and Lann pointed up into the sky and shared a time with Emilia together looking at twilight's twinkles. The stars looked like they were sparkling. The same feeling of familiarity came to him again as he pointed his finger into the sky. It feels as though Lann and Emilia had done it before, but he couldn't exactly remember when or where. Or if it was Emilia that was with him. "Oh yeah. It's getting dark too. We should go home now." He said before trying to find the correct words that wouldn't infer something that was horribly wrong. "Are you... Going to be okay going home by yourself?" Lann asked. "I mean... Like... It might be dangerous..."

[Rhapsody]

"So, the club stuff isn't gonna be available until a few weeks time? That sucks. Are you part of a club at the moment Emilia?" he asked his eyes seeming to study her as if trying to guess what kind of club she might be in. "I'm actually in two clubs, kind of. I sing in the school choir, we practice once a week in the aula, you can come have a look on Wednesdays right after school, if you want to. It's doesn't really take up time and it's not much work, so I decided I'd find another club to join this year. i'm not sure yet what it'll be though. I think volleyball sounds good, but then again I do really like to read.." she mused, her thoughts returning to what she'd had on her mind for a while now.

His phone rang and she pointedly looked away, not wanting to appear curious, though she had to admit that she was. For not reason though, cause he was rather open about it after all. "Hey, Emilia, mind if I take a picture?" he asked her. A little irritated, she nodded. "Sure... for whom?" she asked, leaning towards him and smiling for the camera as he took the picture. She waited for his answer as he added a message, going back to purposely not staring at his screen, which was getting harder and harder, her mind running a little wild.

When Lann spoke up again, she blinked, not realizing she ahd been in thoughts for a few seconds. ""Oh yeah. It's getting dark too. We should go home now." then he corrected his choice of words. "Are you.. Going to be okay going home by yourself? I mean.. Like.. It might be dangerous.." he asked. His concern brought another of ehr sweet smiles to her face. "Usually my father comes to get me when it gets too late, but he's been busy at work recently, so... Well, I'm not used to it, so I'm getting paranoid at every little thing, but I've never heard of anything serious happening in this neighbourhood, so it should be fine.." she told him, not wanting to actually say she was uncomfortable going home alone in the dark. She didn't want to sound like a scared child, she was almost an adult now and she felt like one as well, especially ever since her parents had divorced.She cleared her throat and glanced at Lann, wondering whether he'd picked up on her uneasiness.

[VKAllen]

Emilia asked what the picture was for and Lann turned to her. "My dad. I'm just showing him who my first friend of the school was." Lann was content with the image, but there was no further reply from his father which felt a little weird as usually he would reply right away. Perhaps he wasn't in one of his breaks so he had to continue working. The shadows were creeping, so they really need to leave the school now before it was really, really late. He waited for Emilia who blinked herself back into reality before smiling back to Lann. He was glad that she didn't take his concern in the wrong way. "Usually my father comes to get me when it gets too late, but he's been busy at work recently, so..." There was a break in between her sentence. Is she trying to hide her fear? "Well, I'm not used to it, so I'm getting paranoid at every little thing. But I've never heard of anything serious happening in this neighbourhood. So it should be fine..."

Lann was about to drop the subject there. He felt as though he was belittling her for asking about it. He became unsure but the sky was getting darker and darker. Time was not waiting for Lann. Even if there wasn't anything dangerous around this neighbourhood, should a girl really risk walking home on their own without somebody she knows watching? If something did happened to Emilia... Wouldn't then Lann feel as though he was responsible for whatever happened? He heard her clearing her throat and was hesitant. "What to decide..." Lann took a moment to think until he came with a thoughtless resolution. "I... I don't think I can just... I don't want anything happening to you." Lann commented. "And since you've given me a tour of the school, I think I should return the favour too..." Lann readjusted his bag again before walking with Emilia towards the front yard of the school. "Let me just get my bike and I'll walk you home." Finally, the sky was covered with darkness and clouds. The street lights were already lit, revealing parts of the road as he undid his bicycle before walking towards Emilia. "Let's get you home."

Emilia and Lann walked together along the night sky towards her home. Lann was following closely next to Emilia with the bike beside him. The road was quiet, although frequently a car or two would pass by. Not many people were around as most shops were if not closed, were closing. The placed looked different in the night, nobody was around. Lann attempts to ease the mood of the eerie night streets by chatting with Emilia. "Umm... So what do you think? Does Kat, Sirius and Daniel enjoy having me around?" Lann casually asked, the ringing of his bike continuing to fill the silence of the road. There were silhouettes of people along the road. For most part, Lann assumed that they were the shop keepers who were leaving for home finally or just some people who were stuck in the same situation as Emilia.

[Rhapsody]

She was touched at his words. "I.. I don't think I can just.. I don want anything happening to you." he'd said, giving her a warm, fuzzy feeling inside. A warm smile spread on ther face, one she was sure she wouldn't be able to type of for the rest of the day. She watched him get his bike and realized she'd noticed him him as he'd arrived this morning, but back then she hadn't been able to get a closer look and then the moment had been over and she'd walked inside with Kat and Daniel besides her. "Let's get you home." he said, so causally as if it was the most natural thing for him to do.

"Thank you." she told him earnestly, slightly hoping that this wouldn't be the last time he'd bring her home. He was quite the gentleman, she thought to herself as they were walking down the almost empty street, passing by the kindergarten they had been talking about during the break. She looked at it, remembering the layout of both the house and the garden and even recalling a few moments, like the picture of sunrays illuminating the grass in summer, or the garden going out back packed with snow. But the other childrens faces were fuzzy, except for Kats and Daniels.

They were soon farther down the street, a little eerie in the silent dark and she appreciated Lanns attempt easing that atmosphere. "Umm.. so what do you think? Does Kat, Sirius and Daniel enjoy having me around?" he asked, acoompanied by the silent noises his bike made as they went on. Emilia was a little surprised at the question, but she had thought the answer just some minutes ago herself and now repeated those thoughts to him. "I think they really like you. It's sounds strange, but somehow... it feels like you were supposed to be a part of our group the second you stepped into school." she tried to expalain her thoughts, then laughed. "So it was fate that you bumped into me like that, it would seem."

They rounded a corner, now on the street that would lead to the one her house was bordering on at the end of it, it was even darker here, the streetlights somehow not as illuminating as they should be and a little too far from each other to do hteir jobs properly anyway.

[VKAllen]

The expression that Emilia gave to Lann was expected. As the new guy of the group, it should only felt normal to be asking what his friends thought about him. That question would also be a good indicator whether or not Lann fits within the crowd of Hill View High School. Emilia had an answer in mind already as he saw from expression. Although she looked at me wildly before telling him what he really wanted to hear. "I think they really like you." That statement brought fulfilment in Lann. His new friends enjoyed his company. It felt good to be accepted with open arms. "It sounds strange, but somehow... It feels like you were supposed to be a part of our group the second you stepped into school." The statement caught Lann a little off guard. There was a brief silence between Emilia and Lann before she laughed and continuing to add to her comment that eased the situation a little from awkwardness. "So it was fate that you bumped into me like that, it would seem."

Lann giggled to Emilia's response until they turned around a corner. The street there was gloomier and far darker than the street he previously ventured. The streetlights were dim and some were flickering frantically before sometimes it would just turn off for a moment and on again. There were murmurs of people among this street and Lann couldn't help to tell Emilia to stay behind Lann. "Stay close... And hold on to me." He said before they attempted to cross the silhouettes of people passing by. He thought everything would went well, but the moment he attempted to pass through the three people, one of them cuts Lann off in front and another from the back. "Damn it." He murmured.

"Hey there pretty lady..." The guy prevented Lann and Emilia from moving on the street. He tried to avoid them by sidestepping, but they seemed intent on bothering them as they kept following Lann's movement until they were finally boxed in by the three guys, unable to go anywhere. "Well, well. Looks like we're also gonna be scoring tonight. Hurry up and hand your wallet over kid. And your bike too." Lann recognised the first mugger's voice. It took him a while to realise that it was a person from his old school. Most of the people there wasn't afraid to extort money from other students, so it would only seem natural that they were to mug people for stuff too. The two guys behind pulled Emilia away from Lann and subdued her by interlocking their arms to hers and stood back to see Lann's colleague trying to push Lann to hand over his wallet. "Come on kid... Unless you want your girlfriend there hurt, I'd suggest you pass your wallet and phone... And bike." Lann stood quietly, cursing at the three goons around him.

"You don't know who you're messing with. I suggest you just let her and me go before one of us would get hurt." Lann scowled at his colleague to try and talk him out of it. The end result was expected, he wouldn't let up.

"Oh no, no, no. I don't think so you little shit. Who do you think you are? The goddamn president? Now hurry up before I beat you up to a pulp and have fun with your girlfriend!" Lann's expression turned grim. He didn't want to do this but it seems there was no choice for him but to resort to his old ways. Even so, he still attempted to warn the guy to back off for his own good.

"I'm warning you... You let me go and nobody gets a broken bone."[/i] His warning was nevertheless disregarded by the mugger. From underneath the shadow Lann could tell that he was pissed off. He had a terrified look into his face but just as he saw the other two muggers that were with him, he knew that he'd win because of numbers. Lann's warning came out as a taunt to him, and his fists itched to just assault him until he submits.

"You just sentenced your shitty life to death, kid." Lann knew now that there wasn't a single reason not to resort to fighting. Lann let his bike go, sending it crashing to the ground beside him before the guy was in with the pocket knife trying to stab Lann directly by his stomach. A lethal move if Lann was careless. The darkness around was also fortunate. The mugger couldn't see where his hand was going but Lann could. He forced his wrist away from his body to the mugger's side and twisted his arm as hard as he could. The immediate reaction was the knife falling from the muggers hands. Lann let his arm go by pushing him away before the other guy who was holding Emilia back tried to attack him by yelling with a knife as his hands were in the air. Lann quickly dispatched him by holding the forearm where the knife was held and gave a knee kick to his stomach that winded him the attacker. As he struggled for his stomach, Lann held his neck with one hand and prepared his fist and punched his nose upwards that sent him flying for several inches before falling onto the ground. He was certain that he would have his nose bleeding.

The third guy was watching, but continuing his grip on Emilia and Lann walked right over to him. Of course, the guy was slightly scared but thanks to Emilia... "Lann! Behind you!" He quickly turned around to see the other man trying to get at him by running directly at Lann. He threw his fist downwards at Lann but Lann caught it and bashed his face as hard as he could before denting his chest with several more punches and a round kick to the neck, knocking him out. Finally, the last guy... Now, he was terrified. He debated whether or not he should run for his life or try his luck in fighting Lann. He was hesitating and scared so he let his arm go from Emilia and ran towards the direction Lann came from. He heard the jingle from his bike and saw that the guy with his nose bleeding trying to get away towards the same direction. Lann ran as fast as he could and threw himself at him, kicking as he was in midair sending the mugger off his bike several feet away because of Newton's second law. Two were out cold and the other was scared for his life.

And finally... Emilia. Lann's heartbeat softened a little after the fight and he breathed in much slower. He jogged over to Emilia to see if she was okay. "Are you hurt?" He latched on to her shoulders and looked at her directly by her face. His fingers inspected her neck and cheeks.

[Rhapsody]

Emilia certainly hadn't been prepared for what was awaiting them a few steps down the badly illuminated street. Lann apparently had caught on quick. "Stay close.. and hold onto me." he told her, while reaching out to put her behind him. She did as he told her, touched that he was protecting her like that. As she was just about to ask what was going on, she heard the voice and peeked over his shoulder now noticing the three silhouettes in the dark of the road before them, that were coming closer. "Hey there pretty lady.." she heard one of them say as they surrounded her and Lann and she scowled, feeling queasy at that slimy note in his voice. Her hands reached out to grab the back of Lanns shirt and she shuffled a little closer to him, staying like that as he tried to sidestep them. "Well,well looks we're also gonna be scoring tonight. Hurry up and hand your wallet over kid. And your bike too." Emilia was at a loss for words, her mind desperately trying to find them a way out of this, but she had never been in a situation like this before. Though she suspected Lann had, from what he'd said about his old school. She tried to get a look at his face, but in the next second, she was grabbed from behind, her hands janked off of Lann and pulled a good few feet backwards, away from Lann.

It took a second for her to realize things and she started to struggle, without much success though as they interlocked their arms with hers from both sides and forcefully stilled her movements. She tried to pull away a few times, to wriggle out of their grasp, but it was useless. If she ahdn't been afraid before, now she definetly was. "Just hold still until it's over, sweetheart." one of them whispered in her ear and a disgusted shiver went down her spine at the feeling of his breath on her neck and the light touch of his lip on her ear. She gritted her teeth and ignored him, her eyes fixed on Lann, who was now getting pushed to do as he was told by the biggest one of the guys. "Come on kid... Unless you want your girlfriend there hurt, I'd suggest you pass your wallet and phone.. and bike." he told Lann, who stood quietly.

Emilia wanted to speak up, wanted to tell him not to, that she'd be alright somehow when Lann said. "You don't know who you'r messing with. I suggest you let her and me go before one of us gets hurt." he said in a voice so confident, Emilia was astonished. The guy didn't care at all though. "Oh no, no, no. I don't think so you little shit. Who do you think you are? The goddammn president? Now hurry up before I beat you up to a pulp and have fun with you girlfriend!" She shivered, the guys holding her were chuckling and just the thought of it made her want to retch. She swallowed the answer she wanted to thorw at him, pretty sure that wouldn't do them any good in this situation and noticed Lann tensing up at the words, his expression turning grim. He warned the guy off again, but to no avail. "I'm warning you.. you let me go any nobody gets a broken bone."

Up until than Emilia had been sure Lann was just trying to get them to back off, acting tough and that very good. But now she wasn't so sure anymore that he was acting. From what he'd said about his old school she'd been sure he had been pushed around and mobbed by the other guys there, that he'd been unable to defend himself. He wasn't exactly bulky, after all.

While she mused on about that, something happened between Lann and the guy and she snapped out of her thoughts and back to attention at the sudden movement, the sound of the bike hitting pavement and the glint of steel. She gasped and reflexively tried to break out of the hold, to get forward and push Lann out of the knifes reach, but the guys only laughed at her attempt, pulling her a few more steps back forcefully. That was about the time she realized Lann was better at defending himself that she'd thought. In a blur of movements, Lann managed to get the knife out of the guys hands. All emilia could do was stare open-mouthed, trying to comprehend what was going on. Then, suddenly her left arm was free and the guy that had held on to it was charging Lann, but was send flying backwards and crumbling to the floor with a few precise movements.

The third guys grip got harder on her arm and she gasped, turning to push him away, get out of the painful grip when Lann came over and as she turned to lok at him, her eyes grew wide noticing the first guy come up behind him. "Lann! Behind you!" she yelled, wildly gesturing at the danger with her free hand. Lann turned quickly and a few of his crazy movements later, the guy was knocked out. Emilia blinked. Had she really just seen him do a round-kick?! Her arm was let go of and she watched as the last guy tried to excape on Lanns bike, ending up on the pavement as well with another of Lanns unbelievable moves.

He came towards her and she jsut stared at him for seconds as he grabbed her shoulders, fingers softly inspecting her skin, searching for an injury. "Are you hurt?" he asked her, his voice full of worry and she snapped out of it, giving him a gentle smile, reaching up to catch his hands and not letting go of them. "No, just a few bruises." she answered, still trying to catch up with the events that had just passed. "Thanks to you." she added, her eyes wandering. She tucked on his arm with a scowl. "Let's get away from here?" he asked him, motioning down the street with her head.

[ooc: not finished, but I have to catch my train! I'll continue this on my phone, since the biggest part is done already!]

[VKAllen]

Lann's world was shaken with worry as he placed whatever within him to Emilia. Something inside of him felt the need to know that Emilia was safe. He felt cold sweat dripping to the tip of his very chin that made the earth shiver. His suddenly tired expression was shadowed by the bright moonlight of the starry dark sky. The clouds dissipated beneath them and it revealed a full moon above. Emilia's face was bathed in moonlight, and smiled. He imagined the figure of a beautiful goddess in her appearance as he breathed relief that she wasn't hurt gravely. Slowly her own silky fingers enveloped Lann's rough and soring knuckles where he winced in pain a little. "No, just a few bruises. Thanks to you." Lann closed his eyes and quirked his lips in gladness. Emilia tugged onto his arm, inviting him towards the now calmer street ahead of them. "Let's get away from here?" The alluring voice riled his ear with energy and an instant nod followed his consciousness.

"Yeah." He answered. Under the serene moonlight, the road was clear. Clarity and devoid of fears and doubts. The goons had disappeared, perhaps leaving with they weren't looking. If they had remained to steal the bike, Lann was certain that he would hear the bell of his chimes. She directed her head towards the street and Lann's hands reached her shoulder for the second time. Deeply diving into the beautiful gleam of her eyes he gazed, as if afloat without gravity. His mind felt sucked out from all thoughts and he experiences a certain happiness. They... Floated, arms interlocked as one among the universe. It was a silly sight, as Lann shook his head before smiling yet again without saying a single word. He took his moment to pick up his trusty bike and stood by Emilia's side, continuing their journey not far anymore into her home. Lann glad he came. He certainly felt as if a part of his old-school was not all that terrible. "Not far from here, right?"

The rest of their walk was quiet. It wasn't the eerie kind of quiet. With a bright night sky and soothing moonlight. It was... The romantic kind. Normally, romance wouldn't be associated with a blue-ish atmosphere, but the night was cooler and far more enticing than before. What the two of them were seeing is the true beauty of the night, where it was just so silent. The only echoes of the road were the chatter among Lann and Emilia. "How was it when you first got to Hill View High School? Were you nervous? Was Kat nervous?" Everything was just... Different under the moonlight. Objects that are mundane... They appear more than just that. With the glistening of the moon it looked like pearls among the road. Trash cans on the side of the road and trash bags looked far more friendlier underneath the moon's caress.

Finally, they reached their destination. It was Emilia's home. "It's a big home..." Lann quietly thought in whispers. He wondered if anybody was home, since most of the lights were out. "Will you be okay now Emilia?" Lann asked by the front gate of her house. He didn't intend on going inside, since it was late already. "By late I mean 8 PM." He rolled his eyes away. "I guess this is the time where we'll split for today. I'm really happy to see that you're not hurt at all." It was not very good of him to end with such a stale note. He didn't want their departure to be in that state. He changed his tone a little and tried to cheer her up. "Let's have fun tomorrow again!" He smiled at Emilia.

[Rhapsody]

Emilia had noticed Lann wincing as she'd held onto his hand, but hadn't been able to get a closer look, even though she really wanted to know how badly he was hurt. Lann turned to get his bike, and she had to let go of his hands and even though she really wanted to, she couldn't bring herself to reach out again, not wanting to hurt him. The barely-lit street was flooded with moonlight. "Not far from here, right?" he asked and she nodded in agreement.

They were comfotably silent for the next few minutes, walking side by side towards her home. It gave Emilia time to catch up with what had just happened and she felt her gaze constantly drawn in by his face. He had really surprised her. She sunken in her thoughts, replaying the scenes she had seen in front of her inner eye, he almost missed his question and it took a second for her to be able to get the meaning of his words and come up with a reply. "A little, I guess. We couldn't be sure we'd end up in the same class, but it turned out alright in the end. We had each other and most of the students there went to the same middle school so we weren't absolute strangers with many of the other students." she answered him, but wasn't able to continue the topic, her mind reeling off into a different direction again.

When they reacher her house, Emilia noticed Lann inspecting it, wondering what he'd think of it. Letting him do that for a moment, she turned as well, first glancing at the driveway, then at the windows. The car was not back yet and the lights were out, except for the one outside, next to the door. Her father wasn't yet home, which she'd guessed, since he hadn't called her yet to ask where she was and why she was so late. "Will you be okay now Emilia?" Lann asked and she turned back to him with a warm smile. "I guess this is the time we'll split for today. I'm really happy to see that you're not hurt at all. Let's have fun tomorrow again!"

She laughed at that last part, since the description 'fun' didn't exactly apply to the last part of their day. She reached out, to carefully catch his bigger, and obviously uch stronger, hands in her small ones, making sure not to touch his wounds. "Wait." she said, her voice sounding weird to herself. She cleared her throat. "Erm.. I.." she glanced at her house, then back at him, somehow embarrassed at her own actions. "You're hurt." she observed, her eyes turning to his hands with a worried look in them. "My father isn't home yet.. If it's alright with you, would you let me patch these up?" she asked him, with the best of intentions but shy since her offer entailed him coming into her house and being alone with her. It was crazy how much she trusted him after only a day.

[VKAllen]

Lann was ready to ride his bike off home into the night. He smiled at Emilia before he took his leave, preparing his bike and was about to mount on to the seat before Emilia intervened. She held on to his hand gently. "Wait." Her fingers lathering over his hands, rough from the fight. There were rashes and scratch marks over his knuckles and some of them were bleeding in its slightest. Even so, it still was hurting. Emilia took heart when she held his hand. It was as if he didn't have those marks before. When she touched it, it didn't hurt. From the way she had cleared her throat, and the grateful eyes of hers, it felt as if she wanted to do something to return the favour... "Erm... I..." She looked at her house, then back at Lann. He waited as he too glanced back at her house then back at Emilia, wondering what she had in mind waiting for her to continue speaking. "You're hurt." She stated. Lann's first thought was that it was nothing. What made him think twice was what she said next that surprised him. "My father isn't home yet... If it's alright with you, would you let me patch these up?" It was a brave offer from Emilia, but did she really trusted Lann that much, especially on the day that they just met with one another?

Lann thought over it. No, it can't be that. He needs to get his mind out of the gutter for that matter. She trusted him to go into her house and let her fix his injuries, that's all. It's only their first day too. He can't break trusts like that. But he also thought about how good it would be... Before snapping out o fit again and declaring himself no better than those goons and the students of the burnt down school. Emilia was still holding his hand, waiting for an answer from Lann as she held them. Her eyes begged for him to at least let her do something that can help him but Lann was a little confused about it. "Uhh... Are you sure Emilia? Today is the first time ..."

"Or is it...?"

"... we met with each other..." He didn't want to deter her of her decision. She wanted to do something that can at least say that she had been helpful. Even though he didn't want to deter her, it was only natural that she would feel in such a way. People tend to think of the things they were introduced to, even though they were told not to think about it. Like the 'don't think about elephants!' and guess what's the first thing that comes up to mind? After he made a fingers crossed decision, he finally replied to Emilia with an answer. "Alright, just to patch my hands, okay?" Lann's smile remained with Emilia's before she finally unlocked the gates of her home. The two walked inside. The moonlight made her entire home looked like it was a goddess's grove. There was a well-maintained garden with flowers of serene colours with a small tree in the middle. She must really love this home.

They arrived at the front door of her house in the middle of the night. Second thoughts came to Lann's mind but he kept them at bay. He didn't want to break the trust between Emilia on their first day. Although something about it makes him feel like he was... Floating. As if he knows that Emilia can take care of him. The doors open and it was dark. Of course, her first reaction would be turning on the lights. Lann waited outside as Emilia entered, feeling along the walls hopinh that her fingers would graze over a button that would brighten up the room with white light. Moments later, she found the switch and flicked it on. Just as she did so, the lights flickered on. Revealing all underneath its white shine. The place was extremely neat and well arranged. It too was practical. The work of a man and a woman altogether at once. "A nice home you have..." Lann removed his shoes and felt the need to at least place them neatly by the shoe rack. He ventured inside and sat down on the sofa with an intrigued expression looking around the house and at every single little thing that he could identify thinking that it was awesome. The TV laid there. A large fifty-inch LED television. It was quite a privilege that she had, compared to Lann's forty-four LCD television. Maybe he should ask his father to get a new one.

He had the temptation to turn it on and just watch whatever was on the TV, just to test out what it feels like to watch a huge TV. Just as he picked up the nearby remote and pressed the power switch, all of the lights suddenly blacked out. From complete clarity to absolute darkness. "Was that my fault?!" was his first immediate thought. No, it can't be. "Uh, Emilia? Are you okay?" He raised his voice a little so that she could hear. "Where are you?" He removed his phone and turned its torchlight on, quickly brightening the view in front of Lann as he flashed it over the coffee table. He stood up and carefully navigated his way around to the moonlit front door. He looked outside, and the street lights were off. Her neighbour's lights were out too. He wondered if his house also lost power. He quickly made a phone call to his home, but the immediate result was a disconnected tone. It appears that it lost power too. He heard Emilia shouting out something too-- perhaps struggling to get around. Lann took his torchlight with him and tried to look for Emilia in her own house. "Emi?"

He could hear her voice, but cannot determine where she was. Perhaps it was better to just wait then getting lost in darkness? He saw a flicker of light. A white glint of light and immediately assumed that it was Emilia. He hurried over and turned off his own torch so that she wouldn't be blinded. "Ah, there you are. I was getting worried for a moment." He held on to her arm. "The power went out in the neighbourhood. My house too..." He added. "Should we get candles?"

[Rhapsody]

Smiling happily when he agreed to let her take care of his hands, Emilia turned around and opened the gates, leading him down the short path and to the door. She noticed him looking around with awe and his appreciation made her happy. When they arrived at the front door and she proceeded with unlocking it, she had to admit that she got a little nervous. No she told herself. He's not like that, he won't try anything. She felt a little disappointed at her own thoughts and when she noticed that she was shocked, scolding herself. You just met him today! At least wait a few days before you think of him like that! Her hand took a little longer to find the light switch than it usually woud have thanks to her mind distracting her like that.

She flicked the light on, "A nice home you have.." Lann complemented her and then took off his shoes, placing them neatly by the shoe rack. It made Emilia smile. She put hers in their place on the show rack and turned to see Lann wandering off into the living room, sitting down on the sofa. She was really glad she had thought of cleaning up the kitchen, that was bordering on one side of the living room, this morning. He eyed the TV, a thing her father had thought absolutely necessary to be so huge and expensive, so that he could spend his days off in front of it. She hadn't opposed him, he had earned it and as long as he was happy, she didn't mind. Though she always made sure to get him to go outside and get some fresh air regularly. Lann was now clearly itching to turn the TV on and Emilia wondered whether that was one of those guy-things.

Ah, right. His hands. she remembered, glancing at them. She went through the living room and into the hallway behind it, heading for the bathroom to the right and after flicking on the lights, she sat down in front of the cabinet, rifling through it, putting what she needed beside her on the floor.

She was almost done when suddenly, with a light 'click'-sound, the light went out. She turned to look at the hallway. No hint of light from anywhere. "uh, Emilia? Are you okay?" she heard Lann ask from the living room. "Where are you?" he added and she called back to him. "Over here, turn right in the hallway." She got up, to meet him halfway a little disoriented by the whole situation and promptly ran into the half-open door. "Ah! Damnit!" she cried out, holding her aching shoulder and cursing on for a bit silently. "Emi?" Lann inquired after her, having heard her struggle. Then she realized he had called her 'Emi'. She blushed to hear him shorten her name so cutely.

She noticed a flash of light in the hallway and, stepping around the door, went towards it. "I'm here." she told him, voice not raised anymore since she was pretty sure he was close by. She fumbled her phone from her pocket and tried to light the way with its weak display-light, which didn't help her much, but it seemed it was enough for Lann to find her. The light got closer and then turned off as his footsteps grew closer, hurriedly. "Ah, there you are. I was getting worried for a moment." He held on to her arm. "The power went out in the neighbourhood. My house too.. Should we get candles?" he asked her and she had to force herself to properly think, her mind not wanting to wander from the feeling of him so close to her, his hands steadily on her arms.

"..Erm.. well.." she forced herself to focus, plenty embarrassed that he might notice her reaction to his closeness amplified by the darkness. "Candles... I think I've got some in my room." she mused, a little unsure. She was pretty sure they hadn't bought any since their moving in a year ago, but she was pretty sure she had brought some with her. "Up the stairs at end of the hallway and the first door on the right." she told him, her hand searching for his in the dark, carefully wrapping around it, fingers intertwined. Emilia then turned towards the direction the stairs should be in, concentrating as she led him down the hallway slowly, not wanting to trip up the stairs.

Once they reached them, she guided his hand to the railing before heading upstairs. "Here, hold on to that." she whispered, not knowing why she was whispering. Just one of those things you felt compelled to do in the darkness, she guessed, taking step after step, counting them to know where she was. It wasn't a really bick staircase so after about 14 stairs, they had reached the top, the railing vanishing. She stepped forward, then turned to reach out for Lann, her hand finding skin and pulling back instinctively. "Sorry." She wasn't sure what part of him she had just touched, but made sure to let her hand gost along the railing to find his at her second try.

"This way." she told him when he was with her on safe ground and they shuffled over to her open door, where she had to stay and wait for a second, trying ot remember where she had put those candles. Finding them would've been hard enough with the lights on already, in the dark... She realized her mistake. "You had some kind of torchlight just now." she stated towards where she thought Lann to be, feeling silly for now coming up with that sooner.