The new student

The morning had started peacefully. Omnyou Academy’s students filled the classrooms after breakfast. Fuyume stopped in front of the door to class 1-2, watching the other girls pass by her, fists clenched nervously.

‘With everything that happened yesterday with that pervert, I almost forgot...’ She looked down, trembling like a leaf. ‘I don’t know anyone... Who am I going to sit with? What do I say to my classmate? I’m not even sure if I look presentable!’ She raised her hands to adjust her tie. ‘Come on, Fuyume, you can’t put this off any longer. Be brave like when you faced that degenerate, twice...’ she entered. Akina, Haruna, and Masami arrived together from the dining hall, chatting calmly among themselves as if yesterday’s events were a distant anecdote, despite only a few hours having passed.

‘Hey, watch out!’ Masami called out, and Fuyume turned in surprise only to bump into Aki. The redhead fell to the ground, prompting laughter from her sister.

‘You’re so clumsy, Aki!’ Haruna mocked.

‘Shut up, Haru!’ Aki shrieked at her sister before glaring at Fuyume. ‘And what’s wrong with you!? Get out of the way!’

‘Oh...’ Fuyume reacted, bowing repeatedly. ‘I’m so sorry...’ she repeated anxiously.

‘Well, well...’ Masami intervened, helping her friend up. ‘It’s not that bad.’ She glanced quickly at the young silver-haired girl. ‘Oh, it’s you! Thank you so much for saving us yesterday; I thought Serizawa and Ayu were done for.’ Fuyume looked confused.

‘Serizawa? Ayu? What?’ Akina passed by with a frown.

‘Be more careful next time,’ she grumbled. Fuyume turned towards them.

‘Y-yes, I’m sorry.’

‘You should be more careful yourself.’ Haru acknowledged, following her sister, who turned back to her.

‘Shut up!’ Akina called out.

‘Don’t mind her...’ Masami resumed before letting out a slight laugh. ‘I also don’t want to see my friends humiliated by the girl who took down the vice-principal.’ Fuyume looked even more perplexed.

‘Yesterday I defeated the vice-principal? What just happened?’ The silver-haired girl remained lost in her thoughts after that confusing exchange.

‘Huh?’ The blonde raised her index and middle fingers to her forehead, winked, and beamed. She continued on her way into the classroom.

‘Is something going on?’ Haru looked at her friend. Masami walked past her.

‘Oh, nothing, just another fascinating person.’ She was earning a glance from the twins.

‘You’re weirder than a green dog sometimes.’ Aki remarked, still somewhat annoyed.

‘Speaking of interesting people...’ Masami paused as she saw Hiiragi. The girl with burgundy hair sat quietly in one seat, deep in thought, with a grim expression. Bandages peeked out from under her arm, leg, and around her head. The twins moved closer, still chuckling, before stopping to look at Masami.

‘Is something wrong?’ Haru asked her friend. Masami became serious and walked towards Hiiragi, followed by the twins’ gaze. Hiiragi’s mind drifted back to the fight with Yumiko, and how she could have been killed without a second thought.

‘I didn’t know they were admitting mummies to the academy now,’ Masami ridiculed as she approached Hiiragi, flashing her out of her reverie. The blonde offered her a smile. ‘Feeling better?’ The twins exchanged confused glances.

‘Sakai...’ Hiiragi mentioned, looking at the bandages on her arm and leg. ‘It still hurts; I couldn’t train today.’ Masami burst out laughing, and the girl with burgundy hair looked annoyed. ‘What’s so funny?’

‘Oh, nothing, nothing...’ Masami snickered, sidestepping and sitting down beside her.

‘Is she your friend, Masami?’ Haru scrutinised Hiiragi.

‘We met yesterday; she’s the girl I told you about.’ Masami leaned back in her chair, balancing it on two legs.

‘Oh, the samurai girl!’ Haruna and Aki surrounded Hiiragi’s table.

‘Masami told us you stood up to the demon president...’ Aki dropped the sentence after her sister.

‘Demon president?’ Hiiragi looked at Masami.

Hurried students rushed down the hallway. They momentarily glanced at Fuyume oddly, as she remained frozen in place with a distressed expression.

‘How am I supposed to defeat the vice-principal!? I’m hopeless!’ Her face paled as she recalled Mitsuko’s image. Something snapped her out of her trance, and her head was gently bumped by a portfolio. Fuyume let out a cry, earning attending to everyone. Yuuko quickly removed the portfolio from the girl’s head.

‘I-Is everything alright?’ Yuuko looked bewilder.

‘Eh?’ The silver-haired girl blushed in embarrassment under the scrutiny. She turned towards Serizawa. ‘I’m sorry!’ she managed to speak through tears. Yuuko looked embarrassed as all eyes turned to her.

‘C-calm down, nothing happened...’ she tried to calm her.

‘Y-yes!’ Fuyume hurriedly entered the classroom. She glanced over at Hiiragi, the twins, and Masami on the other side of the room. The blonde girl’s gaze met Fuyume’s, and she smiled and waved. Fuyume blushed and looked down. Yuuko glanced towards the classroom entrance with a ridiculous expression.

‘Starting the semester off well...’ She closed her eyes and took a deep breath before entering.

‘¡Okay, girls! Coffee break’s over.’ The teacher announced cheerfully, quieting the murmurs as she reached the blackboard. A piece of chalk hovered in the air, writing Yuuko’s name on the board. ‘I’m your language teacher and the teacher assigned to the class. Also teaching runic arts, Yuuko Serizawa. I didn’t want to start abruptly. In fact, we have another plan, but because of unforeseen circumstances, we’re already a day behind...’ Fuyume looked pensive.

‘Did she say Serizawa?’ She remembered Masami’s words about the vice-principal. One student raised her hand.

‘Yes?’ Yuuko nodded towards her student.

‘Is it true you fought with the vice-director yesterday, and that’s why classes were suspended?’

‘Oh, well…’ Yuuko let out a nervous laugh. Hiiragi and Masami exchanged a knowing look, having witnessed what had happened. Fuyume’s face was a picture.

‘I heard she had a fight with Miss Saruyama, the PE teacher.’ She raised her voice again.

‘This…’ Feel discomfort washed over Yuuko. ‘How the hell did they find out!?’

‘You’re quite the troublemaker, aren’t you?’ Another of the girls reproached her.

‘If she hasn’t been kicked out, it’s because she’s friends with the principal…’ another girl dropped. Hiiragi scowled and stood up from her seat and banged on the table, gaining attending the rest.

‘We’re in class, not a tabloid gossip session…’ There were some murmurs among the other students.

‘Come on, come on…’ Yuuko tried to calm things down. There was a knock at the door, and everyone turned to the door with curiosity. Serizawa was dumbfounded, frozen in place, just glimpsing Natsume and Ayumu through the window.

‘What’s going on?’ The girls repeated to themselves. Natsume walked in first, greeting Yuuko.

‘Hey, Yuu!’ Fuyume stood up.

‘What’s Aunt Natsume doing here?’ Her reaction drew all eyes, and Natsume turned to her niece.

‘Ah! Fuyu, you’re here too. Are you feeling better from your bump on the head?’ Natsume exhaled. The rest of the girls were a bit confused. ‘Imagine slipping on your own spell!’ A few giggles escaped the girls. Fuyume’s face turned red.

‘It’s not what it looks like!’ She whooped. Her aunt shrugged.

‘Whatever…’ She turned back to Serizawa, who was still pale-faced and frozen, staring at the hallway. ‘What’s wrong with you? You look like you’ve seen a ghost…’ The boy’s face reflected a lot of insecurity. Natsume looked back at the door. ‘Ah well! He’s in your class too. I don’t know why you’re surprised…’

‘But what the hell…!?’ Yuu reacted, turning to the principal.

‘What’s the matter? Haven’t you been informed?’ Natsu was confused. ‘The administration leaves a lot to be desired…’

‘You’re the one mainly responsible for the administration!’ Yuuko counteracted. Natsume let out a nervous laugh.

‘Yes, well… I apologise for that.’ She turned to the rest of the girls. ‘Girls, as you can probably tell by my presence, this is a bit of an unusual situation, but let’s try to carry on as normal…’

‘Wait, wait!’ Yuuko halted her again. Natsume turned to her. ‘Can we go outside and talk about this?’ Yuuko turned to the students. ‘It’ll just be a moment…’ Yuuko started pushing Natsume out of the classroom and closed the door behind them.

‘What?’ Natsume acknowledged.

What do you mean, what? Yuuko asked, annoyed. Natsume exhaled before arguing.

‘It was you who asked me to help him, wasn’t it? Besides, we’d already talked about this…’

‘Yes, and I told you this is a girls’ academy, and for witches! I agreed with Mitsu that we couldn’t admit a man!’ Yuu snorted and looked at Ayumu.

‘I’m sorry. I’m not very convinced about this either, but until Mrs Himemiko sorts it out…’

‘No, no, it’s not your fault…’ The teacher played it down before turning back to Natsume. ‘Your decisions are going to get us into a lot of trouble! I don’t think the parents of the academy students are going to take kindly to having a man here.’

‘You’re a specialist in trouble, aren’t you? Just one more…’ Natsume mocked her friend.

‘What do you mean, just one more!?’ Yuuko was indignant. ‘It’s you two who are getting me into this kind of trouble!’ Yuuko made a sweeping gesture. ‘Besides, the other houses wouldn’t find out, wasn’t it? I remind you that many of the students belong to the Himemiya and Tsukihime clans!’

‘Everything will be fine, relax… Aki is taking care of it. Give him time. In the meantime, we couldn’t leave Ayu without attending school… What kind of example would we be setting?’ Yuuko looked at Natsume suspiciously.

‘Natsu, you’re only doing this because you think it’s funny and because the ladies of high society drive you crazy, right?’

‘W-what nonsense are you talking about? I have a lot of respect for… those honourable…’ Natsu lowered her voice. ‘Despicable.’ She raised her voice again, ‘Chief Ladies.’ Yuuko raised an eyebrow. ‘Alright, alright! We are responsible, on paper, for the boy’s education, aren’t we?’ Yuu thought for a moment.

‘I suppose so, after all, if they haven’t kicked him out… he’s still a student at the academy.’ Yuuko looked at Ayumu. ‘I’m sorry we’re getting you into a mess. I can’t offer you any other alternative, anyway.’

‘Oh, don’t worry, Miss Serizawa!’ Ayu noticed somewhat self-consciously.

‘It’s not you who I’m worried about…’ Yuuko glanced out the window. The girls were whispering to each other.

‘Well, matter settled, you’re in charge. See you later.’ Natsu raised her hand. Yuuko turned quickly.

‘Eh!? Wait…!’ Natsume raised her hand in farewell and disappeared in an instant, leaving her speechless. Yuuko and Ayumu looked at each other. The teacher gave a nervous laugh before sighing. ‘Why does this always happen to me!?’ Both exchanged a knowing glance. Yuuko turned to the door and took a breath before placing her fingers on the slit. A cold sweat ran down her back. ‘What the hell am I going to tell them!?’ She pursed her lips before opening the door. The girls fell silent. Streams of sweat ran down her forehead; she raised her hand in greeting before sliding into the classroom with stiff movements until she reached the middle of the blackboard. She cleared her throat under the expectant gaze of her students. ‘Eh… we have a new classmate… well, he’s not that new because he was already on the lists…’ The students looked at each other in confusion and a brief murmur arose.

‘And why all the fuss, Miss Serizawa?’ They dared to expect.

‘Well, I can’t think of a better way to explain what happened…—Yuu turned to Ayumu and nodded. The boy swallowed hard before walking and entering the classroom, to the surprise of all the girls. There was a fervent silence that invaded the room. Upset: Hiiragi, Masami, the twins and Fuyume got up from their seats. The shouts of all the girls mingled, silencing Yuuko’s nervous laughter. Ayumu stood rooted to the spot, completely disoriented by the annoyed stares of his classmates. ‘Alright, silence.’ She tried to silence the girls with no success. A histrionic cry finally made its way through the annoying voices mixed with the impressed students.

‘Miss Serizawa!’ Yuuko’s eyes fell on the door, meeting another of the teachers, somewhat annoyed by the noise. ‘Please control your students! This is not a Zoo…!’ The woman was also petrified. Ayumu’s eyes met hers. ‘What on earth is going on here?!! What’s a man doing in Omnyou!?’ Yuuko put on a disgruntled expression as the woman approached Ayumu. Serizawa stepped in front of her ‘You have better have a good explanation!’

‘This…’ The commotion was growing and attracting the attention of more teachers, ready to protest, and other students who, annoyed, ended up surrounding Yuuko and Ayumu, generating more noise. ‘We can all calm down…’ Serizawa herself tried to speak. ‘Natsume, I’m going to get you for this!’