I'm introducing the characters to each other in the first few chapters, just to experiment. Bear with me, please ; )

Tsubaki, Blackstar, Soul

Ah, school.

I walked up the steps leading to the DWMA, feeling a bit self-conscious in my forest green and brown official uniform. No one else was wearing them. Then again, other people probably had enough money to buy their own clothes. I sighed, then shook away the thoughts. I was enrolled at Death Weapon Meister Academy, something I'd always dreamed of. That meant more to me than any fancy wardrobe.

Quickly, using the senses I had honed back at my village, I picked up on the sound of a commotion, and hastened to make it up the stairs. There were a lot of people outside the Academy, all circled around some loud boy standing on a tall statue of Lord Death. He was well-built, with impressive muscles and deeply tanned skin. The clothes he wore looked a little strange, but on closer observation I noticed that they were made of a light, supple material, good for lots of movement, and good for being silent. That kind of material, no matter what it brushed against, never made a noise.

Much like Tsubaki, a camellia blossom, was a flower that held no fragrance. This was the blossom I was named after, although at times that still stung. Having a name to represent that which is undetectable but for sight and touch. No fragrance, nothing special. But I had learned to overwrite this.

The boy flipped on the statue, holding himself up with one hand, still talking loudly and rapidly. Something about how big of a guy he was—not really, he was about average height—and how someday he would surpass God. My, but he was a bit arrogant.

His blue hair was long and stuck up all over the place, reminding me a bit of a startled cat. His eyes were dark, too, very dark blue. And on his bicep was the white outline of a star.

People started trickling away, muttering about how arrogant the boy was, how stupid, how utterly obnoxious. More students fed the trickles until it was as though human rivers were streaming away from the over-confident, blue-haired, wannabe ninja. They kept going, and going, until I was the only one left to witness him as he made both an ass and a fool of himself. And yet, something about his behavior was strangely endearing. Much the way a young pup thinks that the world belongs to it, and thinks that it can do anything, completely unafraid. So, when he finished his long monologue, I smiled and clapped. He looked down at me coolly, as if wondering if I was mocking him. Then he smirked and jumped down with his hands in his pockets.

"I think you'll do it," I confide. He cocked his head curiously. "Surpass God."

He threw back his head and laughed.

"You bet I will!" He looked me over again, then held out a hand. "My name's Blackstar. Biggest meister around here."

I smiled and shook his hand; it was warm and calloused, and almost twice as big as my own.

"Tsubaki Nakatsukasa. Dark Arm."

Blackstar let out a low whistle.

"Damn, I heard the rumors, but I didn't believe them." Now it was my turn to cock my head. "Did you know that you've been stealing away attention from me from the second you enrolled?"

I laughed quietly. "I'm sorry, I never meant to."

Blackstar huffed. "Yeah, well you did. But, I'm not one to hold a grudge. Tell you what, how 'bout you be my weapon, then any attention you get will bring it straight back around to me."

Again I laughed, but I nodded and gave his hand a final shake. "Sounds good."

Blackstar cracked his knuckles, then his neck. "Just imagine what they'll say about me now! Blackstar, the greatest assassin ever, in possession of a Dark Arm!"

I rolled my eyes but smiled, following Blackstar inside as he boasted of his greatness. This will be an interesting partnership. I thought dryly.

…..

"Yo, Soul!" Blackstar shouted across the classroom. I followed his gaze and saw a white-haired boy sleeping at his seat, a small bit of drool oozing down his chin. However, when Blackstar hollered, the boy, Soul, immediately snapped to attention, looking around. I felt goosebumps rise on my neck and arms. Soul had large, bright, blood red eyes, and when he smirked, it showed a set of teeth shark-like in the respect that they were pointed. I couldn't help the shiver that ran through me, although I should know better than to judge by appearances.

"Yo, Blackstar!" Soul answered, standing and stretching. He walked over to us, his eyes—those bright red eyes—grazing over me as he did. The boys slapped hands, then turned their attention to me.

"You new?" Soul asked. I nodded meekly. He turned to my new meister. "Damn, man, why couldn't you give me a shot? She's hot!" My face was hot, and I knew I must be blushing a rather unattractive shade of red.

"Tch, why? You're both weapons anyway; not like you could pair up," said Blackstar superiorly.

Soul raised his eyebrows.

"You're a weapon?" I nodded again. "What kind?"

Then, before I could answer, Blackstar cut in. "A Dark Arm! How cool am I, to have a Dark Arm weapon?"

Soul sucked in a breath. "Pretty damn cool. But, Blackstar, have you even tried holding her in her weapon form? You always say you found a weapon, but then your soul wavelength doesn't match up with theirs. Ever."

Blackstar barely paused.

"Well, no, not yet, but come on. She's a friggin Dark Arm! She's a ninja weapon—she was made to be my partner!"

I frowned. "Hey guys, I'm right here," I reminded.

Soul glanced over. "Sorry,"

"So, I take it you two are friends?" I asked, trying to push the topic away from me.

Instantly they replied, in perfect unison: "Brothers from different mothers!"

"Known him since I could walk and talk," said Soul. "Not sure if that's good or bad, though… He rubs off on you…"

"Psh, whatever!" Blackstar said indignantly. "You wouldn't be half as cool as you are now if it hadn't been for me teaching you the ropes!"

I started to regret my tactics. They bickered like that until the bell rang, signaling the start of class, and Blackstar dragged me to his seat, where I joined him quietly on his right side. I watched Soul trudge back to his seat, hands shoved in his pockets. He plunked down and stared moodily into space. I leaned over to Blackstar, who was already zoning out.

"Does Soul not have a partner?" I whispered as a tall, lithe man rolled in on a rolling chair. He wore a long white lab coat with a stitch pattern over it, although I couldn't see anything he would have needed to sew up. The strangest part, though, was not the stitches on his coat—on everything he wore, actually—but the giant screw that penetrated his skull.

"Huh? Oh, nah. Doesn't like anyone here enough." Blackstar shrugged, unconcerned.

"Oh…" I said softly, looking down at Soul in the row below us. He had a brooding expression, only enhanced by his blood colored eyes.

Choosing not to have a partner? That must have been lonely…