Walking into the huge Academy, one quickly realized the building was designed to impress. Huge domed archways curved far over head to meet between intricate paintings that spread over the ceiling. Large windows, both clear and stained glass, sparkled against the morning sunlight. The noise of the countless students as they settled into their classes echoed over the stone walls.

The blue-eyed gentleman had seen many impressive school, yet still his eyes widened behind his glasses.

"The office is this way, sir. The headmaster's been waiting' for you." The gentleman jumped, and turned to look at the speaker- a tiny girl with brown hair that curled practically to her waist in a heavily-patched dress that must've once been white. Despite the state of her clothing, the girl smiled shyly and curtsied.

"Miss Tamia, there you are!" A soft, exotic voice echoed down the hall way, and the gentleman looked up to see a tall young woman dressed in deep green coming toward them. Her raven black hair done in a simple bun on the top of her spoke of the same foreign heritage as her voice. Seeing the gentleman, the woman paused, then smiled.

"Hello, sir. May we help you?"

"Ah-"

"Tamia must've heard about there being a visitor. Are you looking for someone?"

"Yes." The gentleman smiled gently at both females. "The office?" He hesitated, then looked down at the little girl. "Would you like to accompany me, my lady?" he asked, smiling. Tamia giggled.

"Miss Ishyama and Miss Stones said we shouldn't go with strangers, sir."

"Your young friends must be wise, then." The little girl looked up at the tall woman, giggled again.

"Yumi! There you are, I was going to ask you-"

Another female voice echoed toward them, and the gentleman turned. His eyes widened and he almost dropped his bags.

A pink haired woman dressed in black strode toward them, one eyebrow already raised. "I thought you-" seeing the gentleman watching her, she fell silent. Then smiling slowly, she curtsied. "Forgive me, where are my manners? Welcome to Kadic Academy, sir, how may we help you?"

It had been no trick of the light, the gentleman realized numbly, stunned. Pink as the morning sky had been earlier, her hair curled down on either side of her face despite the small shimmering pins attempting to tame it.

"I...I..."

"We were going to help him to the office, mum," little Tamia told her brightly over the gentleman's stuttering. "He said he was going there. Then his face got all red when you came down the hallway. And now I'm not sure where-"

"Alright Tamia," interrupted the tall woman said, held back laughter quivering in her voice. "We should go back, and you need to finish your piece." She looked pointedly at the pink-haired woman, who looked back at her, then back to the gentleman.

"Pardon us for the interruption, Mr-"

"Belpois, Miss. Jeremie Belpois." The gentleman seemed to pull himself together, and swept a bow that had even the tall Yumi blushing slightly. "And it's been no interruption, but a pleasure."

"Belpois?" The pink-haired woman's eyebrows shot up, looking utterly unimpressed with his chivalry "As in Professor Belpois, the new teacher of science and mathematics?"

The gentleman nodded, somewhat surprised by her reaction. Had the staff not been aware of a change in teachers? "The very same, Miss. I was wondering, do you know the Professor who is currently in charge of the subjects? I'd like to confer with him on how to have the smoothest turn over." He smiled, but the stunned look on the woman's face slowly melted into a cool stare. "I understand the honor of teaching at a school such as this."

"Him?"

The two woman glanced at each other over Tamia's head, then the pink-haired woman nodded, her eyes narrowed slightly. "I will certain let the science teacher know, sir. Please follow me."

Mr. Belpois bowed once more toward Yumi and Tamia, then picked up his bags. When he looked up again, the other woman was already halfway down the hallway.

"Please- Miss-"

By the time he caught up with her, his breath was hissing out of his lungs painfully. How could someone who barely reached his shoulder walk so fast?

"You said you knew the science professor here, Miss?" A flash flickered in her green eyes as the woman looked at him. She nodded slightly before looking away, her eyes back the empty air ahead. Jeremie wondered vaguely what he had done to cause this woman to seemingly despite him in under five minutes. "Is he-"

Anything else he was about to say was cut off as a huge bell sounded, echoing through the corridors. Jeremie jumped, although the woman had no reaction.

"It's the timepiece of the school, Professor," she informed him, her voice as cool as her expression. Why did it sound as if she was using his new title like an insult? "It's more than a few minutes late, but it works all the same."

"Can't someone fix it, miss...?"

"No." The woman apparently ignored the gentle inquiry towards her name, and simply shook her head. Then she stopped dead in her tracks and guestered towards a door to their left. "That is the office, Sir. I trust you can find your way from there?" She turned, and looked at him. Any thought in his brain seemed to turn to sand.

"Well, I- uh-"

Just then the door to the office flew open, and a big man bustled out. Seeing them, he boomed a laugh, his arms opening as if to embrace them both.

"Professor! Finally. Good you two have met. Come in, come in! We will discuss everything!"

Confused, Jeremie followed the man in, the pink-haired woman coming in after him. Her expression had gone from cool to positively stony as she stared at the man.

"Headmaster Delmas, I hardly think I'm necessary in the proceedings-" She started, her voice polite as she tried to take a step back out of the room.

"Nonsense, Miss Stones. You and the Professor must discuss the transition of your subjects. You see, Professor, Miss Stones here has been our instructor for the mathematics and science classes for many years now."

"Over a decade, sir," the woman said quickly, shaking her head. "It's better for him to get a fresh start, sir."

Jeremie stared at her. This woman was the teacher? Blinking in surprise, he gasped mentally. No wonder she had been angry with him, he had assumed the teacher he was replacing was a man. And thus insulted her. Shame rushed to a blush on his face as he started to stammer an apology.

"M-miss St-tones, please, I-"

"Now, now Professor, time for introductions is later. I believe you two have much to discuss. Your things are being put up in the staff dormitory as we speak, of course." Delmas rolled from foot to foot, beaming at both of them like they were his children. He slapped Jeremie hard on the back, chuckling. "Come, Miss Stones, show him to the room, the class should not start in perhaps-" he glanced an ancient clock on the wall. Coughing at the blow to his back, Jeremie wiggled his glasses back into place, then peered at the clock.

"Oh, bloody goose, the clock has been a half-hour late for half a century," the headmaster muttered, shaking his head. "No clock-maker in the city can fix the thing."

"Or the bell tower timepiece, for that matter, apparently," Jeremie said, then winced when Miss Stones's eyes flashed again. Trying to make amends he smiled warmly at her despite the icy expression on her lovely face. "Professor Stones informed me so."

"Professor Stones?" The headman once again burst into laughter. "Ha! That's an interesting joke, there, Belpois. Off with you, I will see you eventually, sir."

"Yes, headmaster." JEremie bowed again, then started to follow Miss Stones back out of the door. He paused then glanced back at the clock. "Sir, would you allow me to take that with me? I will return it to you, of course."

Delmas blinked, glanced from the broken clock then back to the two teachers stand in the doorway. "Well, I suppose so. Do you dabble in clockworkery, Professor?"

"I do, sir." Jeremie smiled slightly. "In my own fashion."

"Good." After some slight muttering, Delmas unfixed the clock from the wall and handed it gingerly to Jeremie. "I'll be interested to see what you do with it, sir!"

"Thank you, head master." Bowing once more, Jeremie left the room.

Glancing about, he once again saw the pink-haired woman striding ahead of him.

"Professor Stones!"

The woman slowed, then stopped. "The headmaster told you not to call me that." Her voice was cool again, calm. Slightly musical.

Musical? What a foolish thing to say. Jeremie shook the thought out of his head.

"No, Miss, he said it was a joke. But I do not find it amusing." Finally, the woman turned. One pink eyebrows raised.

"You do not, sir?" Despite her anger, a small wry smile curved her lips. "What a strange thing for a man to say."

Jeremie shook his head, coming toward her slowly. Despite the obvious strength in emotion she showed, it seemed as if he approached too quickly, she'd back off, like a frightened deer. Her eyes were certainly as wide as such an animal.

"Perhaps I am rather strange, Miss," he replied, smiling. "After all, I hear that strangeness in itself fits this place."

The woman took a step back, the smile vanishing from her face. "That's nonsense. This is just a school, like any other, sir. Strange is-" She paused, an odd hidden look moving into her eyes.

Taking advantage of her stillness, Jeremie took another step forward. "Please, Miss Stones, at least allow me to apologize for the insult I scored you earlier. It was foolish of me to assume such a thing."

The woman blinked in surprise, and the haunted look left her gaze. "You are not the first to assume such, sir. It is a male dominated field, the one of science and mathematics." She hesitated, then sighed slightly. "And since it seems we will be working together, please call me Aelita. It is my given name, and far easier to remember."

A strange name, as strange and lovely as she was. Jeremie ignored the thought, but smiled.

"Then please, call me Jeremie. As we are going to be working together." Instead of bowing, he held his hand out to her. Aelita stared at him, and he smiled. "We are colleges, Miss A-Aelita." Cursing the awkwardness of his stutter, the blush that once again heated his cheeks when she met his gaze, he stubbornly waited to see how she'd react. Aelita hesitated when that hidden look came back into her eyes again. After a second, it vanished. For a moment, a true smile winked out, and Jeremie felt the breath in his lungs shutter slightly.

"Yes, we are, Mr. Jeremie," she replied, and gingerly shook his hand with her own.

A shock tingled over his fingers, up his arm, and Jeremie jerked slightly, his eyes wide. What on earth?

Aelita moved back, her grip weakening. Without thinking, Jeremie took her hand again and brought it to his lips.

"Will you accept my apology, Miss Aelita?"

Aelita stared at him, her green eyes wide with shock. After a second, those eyes narrowed, and she quickly tugged her hand from his.

"I said you weren't the first man to assume that women could not teach mathematics and science, sir." If she had felt the shock when they had touched, she didn't show it. "But, you are the first to apologize."

With that, she strode down the hall, and left Jeremie standing there, his hand still out stretched.