Hm...So. I've been playing the game and reading fanfiction, which is basically spoiling everything for seeing as I DIDN'T finish it yet. However, I couldn't just walk away from the need to at least attempt at writing one so...here goes. I'd like to know if anything about the characters is wrong, since...I'm not sure how to protray them. I tried my best. ^^

Disclaimer: Don't own the game. Ostensible.

"I'm looking for the boy with green hair and silver eyes," she said with a grin, bringing a hand to her mouth when she realized what she just said. "I mean, the boy with silver hair and green eyes."

Nora smiled, "Would that be…that one?" She pointed to a boy down the hall. "The one with the face?"

Vanille beamed, slapping her cheeks while trying not to smile. "I wonder what gave it away…"

The older woman tapped her chin thoughtfully, and Vanille looked at her carefully. A small smile graced her lips, and Vanille could see the imaginary light bulb glow above her head. "It was definitely the face."

The young girl giggled, this time squinting her eyes shut. When she opened them, she could see the boy making his way towards the open door. He was wearing navy blue slacks with a short-sleeved white button down shirt and tie. He didn't bother to tuck it in.

Vanille almost yelped.

"Hope!"

He smiled. "Hey! You ready to go?"

She nodded enthusiastically, almost frantic. Hope laughed. He loved Vanille happy. It was the immediate cause of their friendship—he needed the positivity. "Alright, let's go then."

"See ya, Nora!" Vanille waved as she walked off with a hop in her step. Nora smiled.

"Same as always, hm?" She looked at her son, who watched as the cherry-haired girl walked off. Hm. Not cherry. Maybe strawberry…

"And she'll never change." He turned to his mom, and pecked her cheek. "See ya later, ma!"

Nora waved, and Hope Estheim walked towards the sauntering girl with pent up excitement. Today was his first day of high school, Vanille's second year of attending, and their first year of going to high school together. Vanille hummed a familiar tone, Hope's excitement turned into nervousness, and the school was getting closer.

Or they were.

Either way, he wanted out.

Veil.

"Nervous?" Vanille asked when she saw him playing the straps of his book bag.

He tapped them repeatedly. "Eh…sort of."

She slapped the air, and Hope heard her suck her teeth. "There's not much to be nervous about."

"Yeah, but it's not like going from elementary to middle school." He groaned. High School was completely different from middle school; he knew that for a fact. Even if his only foretaste came from Vanille, which didn't seem all that bad coming from her. But of course, he had thought logically. Although most of her news was positive, isn't freshman year always positive? Most of the time?

Maybe for Vanille. But for Hope? Not so much. At least he didn't think so. People act a certain way to get others to like them, once the first year is gone, the second year comes and that person you thought you knew was completely someone else. They get too comfortable, act differently, and you might not like that. That's his theory. And Hope agrees to that.

Hope knows he doesn't like that.

Definite.

She laughed, ending his spiraling thoughts. "You'll be fine, trust me. You have me, don't you?"

Hope shrugged. He felt a knot in his stomach. "I guess…"

Vanille made a noise that sounded like she was offended. "What do you mean, 'I guess'?"

An exasperated sigh. "You know what I mean, Baby V." He winked, earning a small laugh from her. It wasn't so hard to make Vanille laugh. Actually, it was pretty simple. She'd laugh, just so you won't feel bad.

"You'd better hope so, no pun intended." Vanille looked ahead, stopping abruptly. "Well, we're here."

"Wha-?" He looked in front of him to see a grand building, almost like an old castle, sitting in front of them. The bricks were pale and withered a sickly grayish color. The path they walked on eventually led to smoothed cobblestones, which gave off an even more antique look. The people walking around the campus were wearing similar uniform like his and Vanilles': A navy blue bottom with a white button down shirt and tie, and an optional sweater.

Homogeneous.

"Holy sh—"

"C'mon!" Vanille grabbed his wrist and pulled him towards the entrance. The door wasn't really anything fancy unlike the school's superficial appearance. It was just a glass door.

The noise inside the academy didn't get much quieter, but Hope couldn't help but admit to himself that he enjoyed the atmosphere of routine again. Being in school and being a student and following routine. He liked that.

Hope pulled out folded paper from his pocket.

Locker 45, Class 1-2. He looked at the second folded paper, assumed it was his schedule, and slipped it back into his pocket. He turned towards Vanille, "What's your locker number?"

"Umm…" She searched for the paper inside her bag, and pulled out a small sheet of white paper. "Locker 132, Class 2-3. Yours?"

"45, Class 1-2."

She laughed. He blinked. "What?"

She jabbed a finger at his chest. "You're a freshman." Vanille giggled again.

Hope scoffed, "Are you embarrassed hanging around me, Ms. Vanille?"

"Are you embarrassed hanging around me?" She countered with forged scorn.

"Heh, you bet I am." She gasped. "I mean, you're great…yay…?" The last few words were so weak and pathetic, that Vanille just shook her head and smiled.

Flippant.

"Well, I'm going to check out my classes, which pretty much what everyone's doing now. Find the route, and get to class. Now, shoo! You need to find where your classes are so you won't get lost when classes actually start." She turned around, but not before giving Hope a mischievous grin, adding freshman, and walked off like her happy usual self.

He sighed, pulled out the folded paper he assumed was his schedule, unfolded the assumed schedule, and wanted to shoot himself right afterwards for assuming at all.

He didn't bring the damn schedule.

He brought the fucking Summer Reading List.

Idiot.

It's not my best...I haven't been writing in a while, but...review and let me know what you think. Too short? Too much dialouge? Undescriptive? :| Anything to help improve. :) Thanks for reading! :D