Allelujah dodged a group of students as he sped down the corridor. Throwing his head back to mumble an apology that went unheard he ran faster and cursed his luck. He was late for class which was bad and the teacher was Graham who made it positively worse. He fled down a flight of stairs, his feet a blur of speed, turned a corner (nearly colliding with a wall), clutched his bag under his arm to run faster (and almost stumbled on a patch of wet floor), and came to a sudden and breathless halt just in front of the classroom door. He took a second to steady himself and to wipe some sweat off his brow before stepping in.
"Allelujah Haptism, sorry to be interrupting, sensei!"
Red eyes blinked at him from beyond spectacles. Allelujah blinked in return, surprised to see a new student standing before the black board.
"You are late. Sit down, Allelujah."
Allelujah stood put, his mouth agape, hardly hearing Graham's stern command. Instead he stared at the pretty boy that he had never seen before. He was slim and lithe, the dark blue uniform adhering to his body in a simple yet revealing manner. Purple hair trimmed in a longish way swayed around a small face upon which delicate features spelled extreme annoyance. Allelujah could see barely concealed anger gathering in the depths of those strange blood tinted eyes and it fascinated him in a way that he could not explain. Maybe it was the graceful way in which the boy held himself, an almost feminine gait in his stillness.
Sudden pain brought him back to the here and now and Allelujah winced as professor Graham twisted his ear and proceeded to drag him to his seat.
"What kind of example do you think you're giving our new transfer student?"
Allelujah forced his feet to keep up with Graham's striding pace lest his ear be ripped apart. Just before he lost sight of the strange boy he got the impression that he was faintly smiling.
"As I was saying before I was rudely interrupted by a certain student," On his seat Allelujah felt himself blush and squirmed slightly, suddenly aware that around him people were chuckling softly "This is a new student who just transferred. Tieria Erde. He was the top student at his former school so you people better keep up with his grades. Got it?"
Allelujah was glad that he could now stare at length without further embarrassment. Graham turned to Tieria and smiled at the boy who picked up some chalk and wrote his name, his calligraphy very neat and almost drawn.
"I hate having you seat next to a slacker but maybe you can teach Allelujah a few things about discipline."
Tieria did not say a word but quietly sat next to Allelujah who nearly jumped at the suddenly being so close to the silent boy. Tieria sat dejected and unreadable.
"Hi, I'm Allelujah Haptism. Nice to meet you."
Allelujah tried smiling his best smile but it did not cause any reaction.
"So, anyone want to try to solve this problem?"
Allelujah had nothing against Graham sensei, normally he was a great teacher if somewhat stern (as he could tell from his still aching ear) but right now he wished that sensei would just shut up so that he might talk to Tieria. Allelujah's shyness seemed to give way to a curiosity that he could not quite understand.
Without a word Tieria got up and walked up to the blackboard again.
"Great to see a new student showing initiative. That's what I expect from all of you and-"
Graham blinked rapidly, surprise making the pretty blonde man look almost comical, as Tieria resumed his seat. Graham turned to the board and gaped as he realized that Tieria had just solved the problem in a matter of seconds.
"Great job, Tieria."
Allelujah looked admiringly at Tieria, it was not every day that someone as demanding as Graham sensei actually granted a compliment. He fumbled for something to say but could think of nothing. He was beginning to despair when Tieria addressed him, his voice much lower and stronger than what one would expect from such a delicate looking boy.
"Do not talk to me. I have no business with you. Being stuck in such a basic course is already torment enough without idiots such as yourself intruding in my personal space."
Allelujah recoiled, stung. He noticed that Tieria's hands were clutched in fists and that the anger he had first perceived was more visible now, just below the surface of those red eyes. And despite the overt hostility Allelujah could not help but want to learn more about this mysterious genius who looked so much like a pretty girl.