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Chapter One
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A/n: so I felt like writing some MioxRitsu after reading the famous 'No, Thank You!' fic, which I still have to finish so no spoilers pl0x =D hehe but anyhow, I got really fired up for some lovely MioxRitsu fluff, way opposite of 'No, Thank You!', but I don't care. It'd have some angsty parts, but not nearly as much as 'No, Thank You!'. And not in the first chapter anyway. I'm not that good at writing angst xD I will try to stray from my usual, most used plotline for a bit (they fall in love, they kiss, they end up happy after some struggle) so I hope I can pull it off in this series. It will be a multichap yes, but I guess the chapter count will stay around 10/15. Not too much. I don't think I could do that, anyways.

Hopefully the K-ON front needs more fics, cause I will spam it with mine! Anyways, like I've said, MioxRitsu, but also side pairings. Go read!
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Prologue - Welcome to Sakuragaoka!
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"Have a wonderful day today, sweetie. Make sure you are nice to your new classmates, okay? Respect your teachers and please don't try to do anything stupid. Oh, and don't forget your lunch!"

"Okay mom, see you later~!"

The silent Monday morning was disturbed by the slam of a front door, and a relatively short girl with sandy hair rushed through the narrow suburb streets moments later, toast still hanging from her mouth, her high school uniform crumpled up. Her footsteps echoed through the street as she ran past numerous pedestrians, some of who faintly smiled at the energy of the youth.

Birds flew across the sky in flocks, but the girl was in too much of a hurry to notice. She barely even knew where she was going, her feet just automatically took her to where she thought she needed to go. Luckily she saw some girls with similar uniforms travelling the same street she was running on, making her feel way more confident. The girl's whereabouts became even more clear when she saw the big building of the famous Sakuragaoka dooming up in front of her. She halted in her steps, looking up in something that nearly resembled awe as she took the sight in.

It was pretty huge. The white building looked very prestigious, strikingly in contrast with the clear blue morning sky. The sandy-haired girl sure saw where the school had gotten its name from: the path to the front entrance was lined with cherry blossom trees.

Finishing her last bite of toast, she took a deep breath and walked onto school grounds, taking in as much of the atmosphere as she could possibly get. Students frolicked all around her, some looking rather distressed, dragging along piles of books, but the most looked rather at home, chatting animatedly with one another. The girl guessed most of the students were already inside, since she was running late herself anyway.

Great job! Late on your first day. I'd better hurry.

She waltzed through the double entrance doors, right into the bustling stream of students on their way to class. The amber-eyed girl bumped into several other girls before reaching the reception. She dramatically held onto the counter and peeked over it, only to be staring back at a bespectacled brown-haired girl who instantly put up a friendly smile.

"Can I help you?"

"Yup! I'm the new transfer student, Tainaka Ritsu. I believe I am expected." said girl replied with a grin plastered on her face. She swung her arm lazily over the counter.

"Ah, I see," the girl said, pushing up her glasses, "well, welcome to Sakuragaoka! If you'd have a minute, I have to print out some forms for you and then we can proceed, okay?"

Ritsu nodded and slumped back onto the countertop, letting her eyes drift across the hallway. It was very bright because there were a lot of windows, making the school look and actually feel warm. The wood was dark and the paneling on the walls white, giving the hallway a certain homely and comfortable look. It even smelled of old wood and books somehow. Students still walked around in the long corridor, their uniforms neatly cleaned. Ritsu quickly glanced down at her own crumpled one and stuffed her blouse into her skirt with a frown.

In the few minutes that passed, Ritsu briefly remembered how she and her family had gotten to move here. Though she herself and her parents were both born in Japan, they had moved to Europe for eight years, and young Ritsu had no choice but to go with them, leaving her childhood friends behind. She was nine years old at the time, so when she moved back to her homeland, she had to go back to school as quickly as possible. Ending up here, at Sakuragaoka.

She'd liked Europe for as long as it lasted, but once they'd gotten back to Japan again Ritsu realized how much she actually loved it. Though she'd grown used to the Western manners and regulations, she liked how traditional Japan felt again. As if she had never been away. Sure, Ritsu missed Europe in the beginning, but all she could think of after a while was that she had been given a wonderful experience. After returning, she had gone back to her old friends, but they had either completely forgotten about her, or moved away. That's why Ritsu planned to get her hands on anything she could find here at her new school. It was a fresh start.

"Are you ready?" interrupted the sweet and gentle voice of the girl behind the reception, and Ritsu nodded, following the bespectacled girl through the hallway.

"So, Tainaka-san-" the student began, only to be cut off by a grinning Ritsu, "Aww, please don't be so formal, just call me Ritsu." she said, causing the other girl to blush a bit.

"O-okay, Ritsu-san," she said, her eyes darting to the forms in her hands behind her red glasses, "so, do you already know in what class you are?"

"Nope. Just followed the instructions my parents gave me to get to here. I know nothing about the school, classes or curriculum." Ritsu admitted a little guiltily, scratching the back of her head as she watched the student's eyes grow wide out of surprise. "Sorry."

Ritsu had spoken nothing but true words: her parents wanted her to go to school as soon as they had set foot in Japan again, so they'd already got her into Sakuragaoka before she knew the school even existed. Even before she'd gotten home. Not to mention that the brunette had been homeschooled for nearly seven years, had missed the first day and few weeks of school due to a major project delay at her father's work and the fact that she had no friends at all, so she was now stepping into a whole world unknown, just thrown in without any safety lines to guide.

"Well... that can be fixed, I think. Would you care for a little tour first then? Just so you know how to get around in here. I'd recommend it." the girl asked rather cautiously.

"If you insist," Ritsu winked, "so what's your name anyways?"

Ritsu quickly found out that the student was Manabe Nodoka, the president of the student council from her year. Nodoka seemed like the sweet, quiet girl, her red glasses instantly giving the right impression of perfect student. She had shown Ritsu the way to most of the important classrooms, lockers, the teachers room, the cafeteria and the library. She'd also explained a lot about the different club activities at Sakuragaoka. And it surprised Ritsu how much there were. You had the tea ceremony club, the archers club, the horror and occult club, jazz club, chess club, knitting club, the well-known cooking club and lots and lots more. But most famous was the school orchestra.

Nodoka told Ritsu how it had grown more popular over the years, and now the majority of the students spent their time after school to rehearse, the member-count almost hitting 65 plus. The orchestra was well-known, performing and giving concerts on regular basis. Ritsu didn't specifically care for the orchestra. The other clubs seemed nice, but classical music was not her thing. The brunette had been playing the drums for over three years now, finding a lot more comfort in a steady beat than in an arpeggio on an expensive violin.

A few students interrupted the tour by asking question to Nodoka from time to time. It seemed that the latter really did a lot for Sakuragaoka and knew tons about it too. She'd even given Ritsu some truly interesting historical background stories on different rooms or points in school. It once again stood out to the sandy-haired girl how different the school system was in Japan. Though she hadn't been to high school in Europe, she'd heard stories and such. It didn't surprise her the least that Japan had the best educational system, seeing the way this girl had such a passion for her job as student council president.

Smiling all the way through the tour, Ritsu actually enjoyed it... and secretly she thought the more time away from actual class, the better. But that wasn't the most important.

At one point they walked straight past an impressive looking staircase, and Ritsu halted in her steps to admire the old wood work. Nodoka followed her gaze and chuckled. "Ah, I see you've noticed our little pride and joy?"

Ritsu nodded. "Where does this lead to?"

"To the light music club room. But it hasn't been used since our orchestra became more important. I think the last band to actually occupy the room has left about a year ago." Nodoka explained with a small shrug, as if the club hadn't been of any importance at all. Ritsu frowned and walked up the first few steps, her hand resting on the wooden railing, fingers trailing along the veins.

"Can I take a look?" she then cautiously asked, turning her head to Nodoka. The latter nodded and Ritsu smiled, nearly sprinting up the stairs. On the way she noticed the bronze little figures of a hare and a turtle on the staircase railings, lingering to look at them. She then walked up the last few flights of stairs, ending at a single floor with only one door. The sandy-haired girl took a deep breath, and she could smell the dust that gad gathered over time. Her hand closed around the cold copper doorknob, and it opened in a swift movement.

Stepping into the room, Ritsu wasn't sure if it was the smell, or the fact that this single room was so secluded from the kind of strict parts of school, she felt comfortable just standing here. The room looked a little sober: a table with four chairs stood at the back, and only one blue couch, a whiteboard and cupboard graced as decorations.

It's like I can almost feel the energy floating around this part of school, in this room. Why have they stopped using this room as a club?

Ritsu walked in a little further, feeling a wide smile playing on her lips as she looked around and imagined herself playing here with her own band. That was the thing Ritsu had always desired the most. And this time, her dreams might just come true.

"Say, Nodoka-chan, do you think they'll let me use this room?"
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A/n: alright! As the title says, this is just a little prologue. I tried to explain the whole situation here as much and good as I could, with Ritsu being a transfer student from Europe and Sakuragaoka being a little more different than in the original anime/manga. More strict so to say. You'll see more changes in other chapters. I just figured that this would be enough for now, describing the story as for how it begins good enough.

As for the update: Ritsu will meet Mio and the others in the next chapter, and that one will be a little longer, seeing as this is just the prologue. I'll try to get it done as quickly as possible, but school's an ass so I might be a little slow. Let me know what you guys think of this so far! Read&Review please!
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Disclaimer: I do not own K-On!
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