Dark… monster…scary… help…

These were the only thoughts she had when she faced the hideous giant materializing behind her back. It was the first time she had ever seen one that big for its kind and had foolishly rushed right into its trap. It bared its white fangs at her and instantly went for the kill, swiping its dangerously sharp claws towards her direction. Her eyes widened in horror, realizing the fact that it was too late to clear the path. With lids squished shut, she let out a silent prayer; Help me…

Whoosh! A blast of icy wind greeted her and she felt herself being pushed behind by strong hands before hearing the sound of a blade clashing against rock. Confused, she opened her eyes only to find herself staring up at the back of a white cloak embroidered with the character 'ten'. "Really, you can be a handful sometimes!" the voice belonging to the owner of the cloak rang in her ears.

She let her gaze move up higher, only to be received by the pair of a brilliant shade of turquoise. His beautiful snow-white hair was spiked up at the ends and they wavered lightly in the wind while his body was half-turned, one side facing her and the other with the hand clenching a blade paring the monster's attack. His eyebrows furrowed in concern as he watched her tremble in fear, "Karin, you ok?"

…...

Karin immediately woke up clenching at the bed sheets in cold sweat. Looking around at the familiar surroundings of the room, she sighed in relief realizing that it was all a dream. Strange, she thought to herself, why on earth did I have such a dream? Drawing back the curtains that revealed daylight, she stretched herself before the window that looks down on the amazing view of the steampunk buildings of fire country, Yang.

Forgetting her troubles, Karin quickly washed up and donned herself in a signature black dress uniform with red highlights at the hues and a elegant brooch of a Victorian crescent resting slightly above her left breast pocket which revealed her identity as a student of one of the most prestigious schools in the country, St Maria institution for sorcery arts. In this era, magic was highly valued as the supporting backbone of a successful developing country and sorcerers, wizards, witches were seen as respected, powerful beings.

Karin herself was a witch in training, privileged enough to have been recognized for a talent for sorcery, being able to cast spells at a young age, like the rest of her family she was deduced by many to be a said genius in the area for the black arts and was immediately offered a place of enrollment in the academy. However, Karin herself was much very like any other girls her age at 15, being at the academy for three years, she could express comfortably her true juvenile character of being childish among friends and inquisitive and curious among the adult world.

As she left her apartment for school, Karin could not help but notice the morning papers strewn carelessly over the doorway. She sighed in slight irritation and with a flick of her finger, the papers picked themselves up and neatly stacked themselves into a pile on the table. An article on the front page caught her eye and she scanned through the headlines: "Prince of the Yin Country disappears, the people of the ice are left in distraught!"

Apparently she thought to herself, the Yang Country officials would most likely take advantage of this commotion to corrupt the Ice Country of Yin's own government seeing that there is no longer a ruling figurehead to guide them anymore. Sooner or later that poor country would collapse only to be taken into control by the power-greedy Yang. She clicked her tongue in disgust and shame for her own country before setting the newspaper down, turning to leave through the main door.

St Maria had a relatively rich background and extravagant school facilities catered to every student on campus. Everything about it was grand, even ranging from the designer bathrooms to the gold-coated school gates. Karin took precaution of not appearing through the front gates and attracting unwanted attention of both envy and gossip for being a recently promoted honours student at only at her third year, by entering a secret passage way she had mischievously created with magic that transported her to the rose garden located at the back of the academy grounds.

When she closed up the passage, Karin spotted her best friend Ururu not far off in the distance. "Ur-chan!" she called joyfully running towards the petite girl. Ever since she could recall, both Karin and Ururu had been friends even on the very first day of school. Despite the huge difference in their personality and physical form, Karin being more outgoing and tom-boyish in style with her short cropped black hair, Ururu having nervousness in front of people easily and would rather hide her face in the two pigtails she ties in her hair everyday, they were always seen together in the campus.

"Karin, you're here pretty late today." Ururu inquired with raised eyebrow.

"I know, im sorry, something cropped up at home, you know with my dad and brother out and everything, me being home alone for the last whole month." Karin rambled on with excuses.

"Fine," Ururu replied with a pout, "just inform me before hand, I can't always be waiting here for you every morning." "Hehe.."Karin dropped her friendly arm over Ururu's shoulder leading her towards the classrooms. "That's why you are the best Ur-chan, always looking out for your own best friend." "Hmph..."

The first lesson of the day was about magic history and as always Karin found it boring and had to rub her eyes continuously to prevent herself from falling asleep in class. The professor's monotonous voice droned on and on and Karin willed time to speed up.

For the next half of the day, Karin suffered internally. The last lesson was one Karin finally looked forward to, broom riding. Being a natural, she often excelled at the obstacle courses the instructors assigned the students to and it was not surprising that that was the fateful day she would participate in the final examination of mastering the skill of broom riding two years earlier together with the other final year students.

The exam task required the applicants to travel on their broomsticks around the Glacio mountains located at the boundary of Yang not too far off in the distance, braving the cold while agilely speeding through the icy winds in the fastest timing possible to return back to the finishing point, the academy grounds.

Karin clutched her broom nervously in the waiting tent as felt the intimidating aura the seniors had around them whenever they looked in her direction. This year, there were a total of 15 successful applicants including her own self and it was obvious to Karin that they had no intention to lose against the caliber of a younger student's skill.

The bell sounded, alerting the 15 to move to the starting line outside. As she exited the tent, she felt herself trip against someone's foot and instantly glared up at the boy who smirked in glee. " Watch it little miss." He jeered before walking off casually. "What the heck is his problem?" Karin muttered under her breath, she stomped off in frustration to her own starting position.

"There will not be any forms of foul play like shoving and use of unauthorized physical magic to harm others." An instructor's voice sounded through telepathy in everyone's head. " With that I wish you all luck," everyone including Karin tensed up on their brooms, awaiting the command, " three…" someone coughed "two…" Karin sweatdropped "ONE!" In second all took off on their brooms and sped away leaving a cloud of dust in their wake.

Karin never felt this much alive, she was full of exhilaration as the world blurred past her in a flash. She expertly maneuvered through the slicing wind, careful to keep her balance and in a flash she easily overtook most of the seniors until there was only one left in front of her.

By a terrible coincidence, the senior in front of her was no other than the rude boy from the earlier incident. Karin felt the aggravation from the humiliation build up in her and she battled with him for the lead all the way until half-past the mountains leaving the rest far behind. Soon they were the only ones having made it to the strange climate. Unlike other previous experiences, Glacio mountain's icy and snowy winds were violent and it tugged into her thick clothes, pricking at the skin underneath. Karin's teeth chattered and she desperately tried to warm herself by casting a heating spell on her body.

Unknowingly, she had lost the sight of the boy in front and was blindly forcing her way through the elements. All of a sudden, a huge blast of torturing wind hit her square face, Karin could almost have sworn that the frozen wind was in a shape of a dragon as she tried to regain her composure.

"K…Karin…help me…" (a faint distraught voice called out to her…)

Karin snapped her head up and gazed out into the white darkness, "What…what was that?"

A shrill scream ahead pierced her thoughts. Startled, she concentrated on hurling herself forward towards the cry. Karin made out the silhouette of the boy in front having fallen off his broom and frenziedly clutching at it, apparently in a life or death situation. For that moment being enemies had nothing to do with what Karin had to do. Without a moment to lose, she willed herself against the aggressive wind and held out her hand to the desperate senior.

He managed to grasp her with his free hand. With her remaining strength she hurled him up his broom. By then they were both furiously panting in both exhaustion and fear. " The… thanks for saving me, your Karin right? The name's Ino, sorry for being so particularly mean to you before." he wheezed through his breath, giving an apologetic smile partially hidden underneath his brown bangs. For some reason Karin felt a sense of accomplishment.

Just as she was about to accept his thanks (and call him an idiot), the second blast of brutal wind caught them off guard. This time the boy, Ino managed to hold on his front while Karin unfortunately was blown off her broom completely senseless.

She screamed as she spiraled down the mountain, the last having heard her name distressfully being called and seeing a white mass meeting her below before she blacked out.

"Karin…wake up." That same voice again! She groaned and opened her eyes only to find herself in total darkness. Feeling achluophobic, Karin casted a light spell, casting her surroundings in a faint glow of light. It has seemed that she had fallen through a crevice into a cave in the icy mountains.

" Is there anyone there?" Karin's shout echoed up and down the empty cave. The only thing that responded was the sound of her ear-deafening breathing. This sucks…She curled up into a ball, clutching the remains of her broom, feeling a sense of lose and bewilderment.

"Karin."

"Who's There?!" Karin turned towards the voice in a mixture of annoyance and pure terror. She was met with a brilliant white light at the opposite side of the cave. It stunned her temporarily before dimming to reveal a shimmering silver form of a dragon. "Karin." Its intelligent red eyes followed her movements.

"You were the one from before. Was it you, the one who had been calling ever since I flew by the mountain?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

(an awkward silence…)

"C'mon, answer me already!" Karin screamed in frustration

"It seems that you no longer remember… well it can't be helped seeing that my master also has forgotten…"

The silver dragon turned away from Karin eerily floating down a passage that was not there before, leaving shards of ice in its wake. "Wait! What master? What are you anyway? Where are you going?" Karin followed the dragon's ice trail down the narrow path.

Suddenly she burst through into another cave bigger in size, only to be met again with an icy draft and she huddled deeper into the warm parka she materialized from the snow. Karin found herself stopping dead in her tracks before the silver ice dragon surrounding a body. Without warning the dragon shrank itself into a form of a long sword and clattered to the ground revealing the person beneath it once shrouded.

Despite being hidden underneath excessive rolls of bandages, she could make out some distinctive features the unconscious mysterious yet somehow familiar person, had.

White hair sticking out and a katana with a star-like shaped tsuba. Karin's eyes widened in recognition.

This person couldn't be….

TBC?

…...

A/N:

Haha, another fanfic (sounds cheesy for some reason:P)

Pls rate and review:D