Chapter 2

Shiba Tatsuya awoke to the second day of his high school life, and it was quite ordinary. After all, even though he had started to attend high school, it didn't mean that the earth's rotation would stop. He made his way to the shared bathroom and lightly washed his face in the sink, he was heading out to the temple to train and after a hard session against his sensei he would no doubt come back covered in sweat and dirt, he would have take a shower to clean up anyway before heading off to school. Quietly making his way down the stairs and out the door, Tatsuya was careful not to wake Satsuki, she hated being woken up for no reason and he knew she would much rather continue sleeping in a warm bed than watch or join him in his morning training session at a place that could only be loosely described as a temple. She was a complete natural when it came to wielding magic and that natural proficiency seemed to also apply to other activities including physical athleticism and academics, with the strong exception of her horrid personality she could be an annoying perfect human being a lot of time... most of the time.

After warming up on his run there, his sensei did not hold back and a grueling training session later he made his way back home. He quickly took a shower and changed into his uniform before knocking on Satsuki's door to wake her up for school, at times like these he felt more like a mother than a guardian, perhaps the two weren't mutually exclusive. There was no response, he wasn't really all that surprised, she could sleep through a thunderstorm and wake up refreshed. Tatsuya opened her bedroom door and entered, he'd done so so many times now that it almost didn't process how inappropriate it was for a teenage male to enter a teenage female's room without an invitation.

Satsuki's room wasn't what anyone would picture when they first met her, or her lady like persona to be precise, instead of the grandeur that rivalled the royal palace she was rather minimalistic, stark white with dark walnut floorboards, aside from a large bed and a walk in robe there wasn't really anything in the bedroom. She did her homework in the living room, there were no toys, no clock, no laptop or a computer or even a mobile phone, the outside world had no influence here not even the passage of time was reflected anywhere but thorough the light that poured in from window. A large full length mirror however leaned against the wall, it was clearly designed to be hung up on the wall, something she never bothered to do. Her bedsheets were all white linen and Satsuki herself slept peacefully on the left side where the bed touched the far corner of the room against two walls. He'd noticed over the years that she was the furthest from claustrophobic as they came, actually liking cramped and tight spaces. He wondered why, what was the psychology behind it.

Tatsuya sat down on the right side of the bed and gently shook her awake. "Satsuki," he said in the usual warm tone that was reserved only for her. "Time to wake up." His stroked her cheek as he spoke. Satsuki groaned as she rolled over at his touch, opening one sleepy eye she looked up at him and smiled. Tatsyua smiled back.

"What time is it?" she asked.

"You have 40 minutes to get ready for school," he told her. Satsuki's smile turned into a pout as she rolled over facing away from him, not wanting to get out of bed. The first lesson was at 8am sharp and commuting to school would only take roughly 30 minutes, Satsuki always skipped breakfast and had an remarkable ability to get ready from start to finish in under 20 minutes. "Satsuki," Tatsuya gently poked at her shoulder. "Time to-" Satsuki's arms suddenly wrapped around him, pulling him down onto the bed beside her.

"Shhhh," she said quietly, her eyes still closed as she held him tightly against her chest like a teddy bear. Unlike most males his age, Tatsuya wasn't as affect by his proximity to her as they would have been but the effect wasn't entirely lost on him.

"Five more minutes then," he conceded, lying on the bed beside her and closing his eyes as well.

Xxx

Tatsuya watched Satsuki fiddle with the leather holder that she kept her smartphone shaped CAD in, the two sat in the small and linear two seated car linked to a central control system, called a cabinet, on their way to school. On her lap was a type of general mobile CAD with a thin strap that looped around her wrist, the most popular form was a bracelet, as the risk of dropping a mobile was considerable, however Satsuki had designed the strap and holder herself. Made from a lab developed nano-fibre designed for bullet proof clothing it mimicked the texture and feel of leather but was much stronger, the chance of it breaking was as close to zero as they came. The advantage of Satsuki's CAD was that it could be used with one hand, something she maximiser by keeping it in the sheath fastened to her forearm, a flick of the wrist was all she needed for it to slide down the inside of her sleeve and into the palm of her hand. Right now however, she'd rolled up her sleeve and was struggling to fasten the nano-fibre leather holder around her forearm, Tatsuya watched with an amused smile, it was a major design flaw, any practical design needed to be easily worn and removed. As he looked closer however, he realised that her difficulty with the fastener had nothing to do with the design but because she wasn't paying any attention to what she was doing, her mind was elsewhere. She clearly wanted to say something but was reluctant to do so. It was rare for her to not speak her mind, in fact it was sometimes downright impossible, especially when they were alone. For her to be so reluctant, it had to be something bad. Unable to take the unnatural silence, Tatsuya reached out and fixed the strap for her, what had her so worried? Satsuki kept her eyes on her left wrist as she spoke.

"Yesterday evening, I received a call from those people..."

"Those people? Ahh... by that, did my Father and the main branch do something to anger you again?"

"No, it's...well yes, those people, apparently they have been vigorously celebrating my school admission and..."

"Ahh, that's what you're talking about... it's the same as always isn't it?" At Tatsuya's words Satsuki clenched her fists, her nails digging into her palm and in the next moment the sound of her teeth grinding together in anger could be heard drifting out from under the long hair that hid her expression.

"I see... no matter how you look at it, I guess in the end it was a rather fleeting hope, hoping that they would change... they didn't even bother sending an email... those people, those..."

The temperature inside the car suddenly plummeted, activating the automatic heaters and a warm wind blew throughout the now silent cabin. Tatsuya intwined his fingers around hers loosening her clenched fists only to see how deep her nails had dug into her palm. They would bruise no doubt, covering them with his hand he held hers tightly in his.

"Calm down."

Satsuki struggled against an anger that could not be expressed with words, no matter how many times it happened Tatsuya remained amazed at how potent her interference magic was.

"...damn it." He watched as Satsuki took a deep breath in and out, after making sure that the uncontrolled flow of magic had stopped, Tatsuya loosened his grip but their fingers remained intertwined.

"I ignored my Father's wish of continuing to help with company work and entered high school. I didn't expect any congratulations at all. That much of his nature at least you should understand, right?" Tatsuya smiled at her, hoping to reassure her that he didn't care, because he really didn't. No ones opinion matter to him, not his father's, not his aunt's, only hers.

"For a parent to act so pathetically childish, it's infuriating." Satsuki snapped in response. "If he wanted to separate you from me he should have notified me and then Aunt first, but the fool didn't even have the courage for that... When will they stop thinking they can do however they please with you and treat you like a human being?" Tatsuya reached for her other hand and held them, he was touched at how much she cared, she was perhaps the only one who did. There was nothing to fear after all, he had no intention of leaving her side. Managing a cynical laugh he replied.

"No one has the courage to go against you," he pointed out, trying to lighten the mood. "Rather than seperating us I'm sure he and Sayuri-san are simply trying to find a way to make me useful. If you think of it as that they're relying on me, then it's not something to get angry over."

Satsuki just rolled her eyes, not buying it for a second, her sarcastic nature peaking through. "If you say so..." Satsuki held onto his hand, as if it was a lifeline. "Don't leave, ever... I can't lose you too, especially not..."

Tatsuya met her eyes, for the first in the longest time he saw fear in her eyes, but of what? Whatever it was he would protect her, for her sake, for his brother's, but especially for his own. Bring her close in a tight embrace he whispered in assurance. "Never, never ever..."

Xxx

There was a considerable sense of chaos, when Tatsuya entered his classroom. In a similar scene that was no doubt playing throughout the other classrooms, many of the students who'd met each other just yesterday had already formed small groups here and there and were chatting away.

Tatsuya sat at his own desk and set his ID card into the terminal and began looking through all the information available. From course and disciplinary regulations, to rules concerning the use of facilities and the curriculum for the semester, countless flashes of information scrolled through his head as he operated the terminal with just the keyboard. When he looked up, he saw the face of a male student looking back at him from the seat in front with wide eyes. "...It's not like I have a problem with you watching me, but..."

"Eh? Ahh, my bad. It's something pretty rare, so I ended up staring."

"Rare?"

"I'm pretty sure it's rare now, right? This is the first time I have seen someone only using keyboard input."

"If you're experienced, this method is faster. Although between this, visual pointers, and neural assistance, it's also the least accurate."

"Yeah. The speed is amazing. That should be enough to keep you comfortable for quite a while, right?" Without waiting for a response he added. "I haven't introduced myself yet. I'm Saijou Leonhart. My father's a half and my mother's a quarter, so while I look Japanese, my name is Western, and my specialty is Convergent Systematic Reinforcement magic. My desired course is to hone my body and become either riot police or a mountain corpsman. You can call me Leo." It was a lengthy introduction.

"I'm Shiba Tatsuya, but Tatsuya's just fine."

"Ok, Tatsuya. So, what magic do you specialize in?"

"My practical skills are severely lacking, so I'm planning on becoming a Magic Engineer." Magic Engineers, or Magic Artificers, referred to those who coordinated, developed and manufactured the machinery that amplified, strengthened and assisted with magic. In terms of social standing they were below that of proper magicians, but the demand for them in the industry was far greater. The income of a top Magic Artificer could readily surpass that of a top magician.

"I see... no wonder you look so smart."

"Eh, what's this? Shiba-kun, you want to become a Magic Artificer?" Erika remarked, appearing out of nowhere.

"Tatsuya, who the heck is this random guy?" Leo asked and pointed at her with some distaste.

"Wha, calling someone a 'random guy' all of a sudden? Not to mention pointing? How rude, how rude! How absolutely rude! This must be why you're not popular!"

"The hell? The rude one here is you! Just cos you're slightly good looking, don't get all stuck up!"

"Looks are very important y'know? Although I suppose someone as sloppy and wild looking as you wouldn't understand. And what's with that slang, that kind of thing is from the wrong century. Why don't you get with the times~?" Erika had a scornful sneer on her face, while Leo was speechlessly sputtering.

"...Erika-chan, please stop. You went a bit too far," Mizuki intervened in an attempt to dispel the volatile air.

"Leo, drop it. You're both wrong and further arguing will be pointless," Tatsuya added.

"...If Mizuki says so," Erika said meekly.

"…Got it," said Leo. "You must be a bitter enemy from some previous life."

"You were some bear ravaging the fields, and I was the hunter hired to get rid of you."

"Enough!" the usually patient and quiet Mizuki said firmly. As Tatsuya watched the two of them with their similar strength of mind and unyielding nature, he couldn't help but think that they were actually rather compatible.

Xxx

One of the reasons Satsuki and Tatsuya settled on First high school was due to their extensive catering facilities, Satsuki was a picky eater and had a small appetite at best, she already skipped breakfast despite his nagging so missing lunch due to the food not suiting her taste was not an option. The dining hall was considerably larger than the cafeterias found in most other high schools, but as it was the start of the school year and new students were still rather unaware and unsure, it was fairly crowded but Tatsuya, Mizuki, Erika and Leo were able to secure a table without any trouble. It only sat four, however Tatsuya hadn't forgotten about Satsuki, as they were facing benches they would probably be able to squeeze three of the more slender girls on one side.

When they were about halfway through their meals (with the exception of Leo who had finished eating and ordered seconds), Satsuki had arrived in the dining hall surrounded by a group of male and female students, in the crowded hall she stood out even when all she did was line up to order food. Carrying her tray, when she spotted Tatsuya she immediately made a beeline towards him, however that was where the dispute began. Satsuki was they type who would quickly refuse to interact with her classmates, however it wasn't just their fellow students who watched her, as a result she had no choice on the matter, but at the end of the day, for her, the top priority was simply Tatsuya. Only one more person could fit at the table. Whether to choose her classmates or Tatsuya was a matter Satsuki didn't even need to consider. However, Satsuki's classmates, especially the boys, were of course striving to sit with her. They had started off pretending to be polite saying that "it's pretty cramped" and "sorry to be a bother", but seeing Satsuki's unwavering determination, had gone on to say that it was unsuitable for a first course student to share a table with second course students considering the gap between them, and ended up telling Leo who had finished eating that he was to vacate his seat. At this selfish display of supreme arrogance, both Erika and Leo were on the verge of exploding.

Tatsuya tensed when he noticed the waning patience in Satsuki's demeanour, to him, she was clearly getting fed up with them. She would protect her kind and gentle image, wouldn't she? No, with a temper like hers, she probably didn't care about the consequences. People were watching her, those who had dictated their lives for so long continued to do so here. Be careful, he wanted to tell her.

"Satsuki, I've almost finished my meal, so eat with your classmates," he suggested. "I'm going to go and explore the research facilities anyway."

Satsuki met his eyes, she was angry, furious even but her posture was relaxed and she held onto that breathtaking smile of hers. "That's perfect, I wanted to go and see the facilities for myself as well!" That wasn't the response he was hoping for. She turned to her classmates and worked her full charm on them. "I'm not very hungry as it is and it would be terribly rude of me to suddenly leave halfway through a meal, so I'll join Tatsuya's group for lunch. I don't want to be impolite. You understand, don't you?" She asked in a calm and warm voice, but her tone gave no room for arguments.

"Of course," her classmates replied. However a few began to object.

"Satsuki, it's fine," Tatsuya said as he began to stand. She placed her tray down on the table and sat next to Erika, who immediately shuffled aside to make more room.

"Sit," she told him, it was a command not a suggestion and so Tatsuya did as she bide. "I'll see you after lunch in class then," she told her classmates with that all too innocent smile. They'd clearly been dismissed, slowly and reluctantly they found a table of their own and sat down.

Erika had a wide smile on her face. "I knew I liked you for a reason," she commented. Satsuki returned the smile with one of her own. Leo, being the only one at the table who had yet to meet Satsuki could only stare at her, he'd never seen anyone so effortlessly beautiful in his entire life. Noticing this Erika smirked. "Oi oi, what's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" she remarked. Satsuki gently elbowed the red head.

"Stop that," she told her, however Erika continued her taunts. "Enough," she said firmly but there was a smile on her lips. "It's a pleasure to meet you, my name is Satsuki, Hagakure Satsuki, and you are?"

Leo struggled to respond. "I'm muscle brains," Erika replied in his stead in a poor imitation of his voice. "Muscle brains egghead, nice to meet you too."

"Hey!" Leo snapped. However to his despair Satsuki found it hilarious and was laughing her heart out. Tatsuya silently watched this little interaction, it's been so long since he last heard that sound he'd almost forgotten it.

Xxx

That very same day after school they took action. After school, Tatsuya had been waiting for Satsuki to go home together, that was when her accompanying classmates had began to accuse him and Erika, Leo and Mizuki stepped in between them. Things quickly deteriorated. It seemed that Satsuki's classmates were determined to seperate them, he knew that in reality all they really wanted was her attention and he was just in the way but he couldn't help but notice the target on his back. Tatsuya didn't know whether to think of it as too quick or just par for the course. All he knew was that if it came to a confrontation or backing down, it would most likely be the former.

On his side Erika and Leo were bright and optimistic, and Mizuki seemed shy yet carefree, Tatsuya considered himself fortunate that they were his first friends in high school, fully aware of his own inclination towards cynicism and moodiness. It was nice that they hadn't backed down, but how would things turn out? Tatsuya calmly contemplating the matter.

Satsuki stood behind him in silence, lightly grasping the hem of Tatsuya's uniform with her fingertips. Her face as she kept her line of sight down and away from the other group was a mixture of boredom and embarrassment on their behalf.

"It's your fault, why do you have to be so desirable," he commented to ease the tension and reassure her, yet to his surprise she rolled her eyes in response, she wasn't worried it seemed, only annoyed.

"Yes yes, but... will you stop them?"

"...That'd be counterproductive."

"...You're right. Still, putting Erika and Muscle brain aside, for Mizuki to have that kind of personality was...unexpected, a welcomed surprise though."

"...I agree."

Directly in front of them were two groups of students glaring at each other with a hostile animosity simmering between them. One group was comprised of some of Satsuki's classmates, and the other was, needless to say, Mizuki, Erika, and Leo.

"Won't you all stop being such poor losers? Satsuki-san has said she wishes to go with Tatsuya-san. It's not the place of any one of you to say otherwise, is it?" The one who had lashed out first at the unreasonable behavior of the first course students was, surprisingly, Mizuki. Her opponent was a student from class A, one of the guys they had seen in the dining hall during the break, the particularly rude one. "Hasn't Satsuki-san treated you guys well enough already? If she wanted to go with you, she would have said so. What right do you have to try and tear those two apart?" While maintaining her polite demeanor, she slammed into them mercilessly. Even now as Mizuki argued against the first course student, her eloquence didn't give an inch.

"I have to admit though, to say that they're trying to tear us apart..." Satsuki muttered under her breath.

Tatsuya sighed, he distinctly felt that something was shifting rather decisively. "Mizuki-san, aren't you misunderstanding something?" Initially glancing at the two with the too good relationship in confusion, their friends, full of compassion, returned their attention back to their opponent and began to heat up more and more.

"We've asked her!" One of Satsuki's male classmates shouted.

"That's right! We're sorry for Hagakure-san, but we just want a little more time!" That was one of Satsuki's female classmates.

What was she, a drug? Tatsuya thought to himself. At their selfishness, Leo gave a hearty laugh.

"Ha! That's just self-justification. Pull the other, it has bells," he shouted back. Another archaic choice of words.

"If you really had asked, maybe you would've had her consent from the start?"Erika also retorted with a smile and edged sarcasm. "You've ignored Satsuki's wishes and didn't consult her or anything. That's harassment, there're rules against that. You're high school students already, don't you know anything?" Even Leo looked dumbstruck, things had escalates quickly.

"Erika-chan, don't you think that was a bit harsh?" Mizuki whispered. Erika's words and attitude, were designed to purposely offend the other party, and as expected they took the bait, one male student in particular.

"Shut up! Another class, much less Weeds, has no right to interfere in matters concerning us Blooms!" Due to its discriminatory nature, the use of the word 'Weed' was prohibited by school regulations. However it was a rule still gradually being learned, but even so it was not exactly a word to be used with so many people listening.

The one who reacted to this rant head-on was, whether to say unexpected or to be expected (probably 'to be expected' really at this point), was again Mizuki. "We are all the same freshmen. You guys are Blooms, but right now just how are you any better than us?" Her voice wasn't particularly loud, but it rang out through the schoolyard.

"...Well."

Thing's are going to get pretty bad, Tatsuya thought, while sighing under his breath. His murmur was drowned out by the angry howls of the first course students, only Satsuki who stood next to him heard.

"...If you want to know just how much better, I can show you."

"Hah, interesting! By all means, show us!" Leo responded aggressively at the first course student's threat. Having come this far, no other outcome than could be expected.

"Then I will!" The course 1 student replied as he pulled out a specialized CAD.

The only ones allowed to carry a CAD in the school were senior members of the student council and certain committee members. While the use of magic off campus was tightly regulated by law however, the mere possession of a CAD off campus was not restricted. There would be no point after all, although CADs were currently indispensable tools for magicians, but they are not essential for the use of magic. Magic could be used even without a CAD. On campus, students were required to leave their CADs at the office before classes started, and to pick them up upon returning home.

The two types of CAD were general and specialized. The general type placed a larger burden on the user but was capable of a wide range of up to 99 activation sequences, while the specialized type only contained up to nine activation, however this made it possible to invoke magic faster. By its nature, aggressive combat type magic sequences were generally stored in specialized CAD. To the screaming onlookers, the 'muzzle' of that specialized CAD, which was shaped like a small handgun, was thrusted at Leo.

That student wasn't just talk. The finesse with which he drew his CAD, along with the speed with which he took aim, were the movements of someone accustomed to fights against magicians.

"Idiots," Satsuki muttered under her breath, however even before Satsuki had finished speaking, Tatsuya's right hand stretched out in front to protect her.

"Ahh!" The scream came from the first course student aiming his CAD as the handgun CAD had been knocked from his hand. Before their eyes, casually swinging a baton that had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, in a relaxed manner, stood Erika with a confident smile on her face, she too was accustomed to fighting. "At this distance, the body moves faster," she remarked.

"I agree, but you were planning on whacking my hand as well, weren't you?" The one who replied was Leo, whose hands were frozen in the midst of a grab for the other's CAD.

"A~ra, I wouldn't do something like that."

"Don't laugh it off so unnaturally like that!"

Erika put the back of the hand holding the baton to her mouth and gave off an 'ohohohoho' sound, her deceptive laughter hide her real intentions.

Leo was nearing the end of his patience. "I'm serious. Whether you were going to engage or not, I can tell from your stance...Are you making fun of me? You're making fun of me right to my face?"

"That's why I said you look like an idiot, right?" Forgetting the 'enemy' before them, the two engaged in another comical confrontation, everyone was taken aback, but the one who recovered fastest was a female classmate of Satsuki's. She ran her fingers across her bracelet shaped general CAD, its inbuilt system started up, and began an activation sequence.

"Stop right there! Using attack magic on others for any reason other than self-defense is not just a violation of school rules, it's a criminal offense!" The expanding activation sequence of the female student was shattered by a bullet of Psions. Upon recognizing the owner of that voice, the female student who was intent on attacking Erika and company became pale, and not as a result of the magic. She fell into another female student, and they collapsed.

The one who gave the warning, and had fired the Psion bullet, was the Student Council president, Saegusa Mayumi. Her, as far as Tatsuya had seen, ever-smiling face, even now, did not have much severity in it. However in the eyes of someone capable in magic, her small figure was wrapped in an aura of Psion light far beyond that of any ordinary mage.

"You are students from 1A and 1E, aren't you? I will hear you out. Please come along." A hard, even cold voice, came from the girl next to Mayumi. According to the introduction of the Student Council during the entrance ceremony she was the 3rd year Public Moral Chief, Watanabe Mari. Mari's CAD held an already deployed and expanded activation sequence. It was not difficult to imagine what any form of resistance here would lead to.

Stepping up next to his classmates who were frozen by the atmosphere, without a trace of haughtiness or pride, neither downcast nor timid, Tatsuya walked with an even measured gait, followed by a bored looking Satsuki, to stand before Mari.

Mari cast a quizzical glance at these first years who had suddenly stepped forward. To her, these two had not seemed like involved parties. Satsuki met her gaze without flinching, and they stopped a respectable distance from her.

"We're sorry, the demonstration went too far," Tatsuya apologised.

At those unexpected words, Mari's eyebrows arched up."Demonstration?"

"Yes. Morisaki's quick-draw is famed, so I asked him to give a demonstration for future reference, but it became too lifelike and got out of hand."

The student who had confronted Leo with his CAD opened his eyes wide with surprise. While the other first years were at a loss for words, Mari glanced at the baton in Erika's hand, the pistol shaped device lying on the ground, then after giving the two students who had tried to illegally use their CADs a bloodcurdling look, turned back to Tatsuya with a cold smile. "Then why did that girl from 1A try to use attack magic?"

"She was taken by surprise. Being able to start up activation processes as a conditioned reflex is truly worthy of a first course student." Tatsuya's expression as he answered was deadpan, although his voice was somewhat shameless, Satsuki had to struggle to hide a smirk.

"Your friends were about to be attacked by magic, but you still insist it was a prank?"

"Even if you call it an attack, all she intended to fire was a flash of blinding magic. It wasn't on a level where it could have caused blindness or impairment." There was a collective intake of breath, the sneer turned into admiration.

"Hoou... it seems you're somehow able to read the activation sequence before it's deployed."

"I'm no good at practicals, but I'm confident in my analyses." As if it was nothing, Tatsuya dismissed the insane ability.

"...Your misinformation skills are also quite something." Her look was something in between an appraisal and a glare.

Satsuki stepped up to protect Tatsuya from bearing the brunt of the investigation, Satsuki, came forward. "As Tatsuya said, this was all really just a misunderstanding. We are very sorry for bothering you all, senpai." Tatsuya watched as she lied without giving away a hint of the slightest deceit, she was even more shameless that he was, he thought to himself as she gave a deep bow. As if the miasma was dispelled Mari looked away.

"Mari, it's fine already. Tatsuya-kun, that really was just a demonstration, right?"

When did she start calling me by name? Tatsuya thought, but he couldn't refuse the timely help from Mayumi. As he nodded with the same deadpan expression he had used up to now, Mayumi gave a somewhat triumphant looking smile. Satsuki raised an eyebrow at him, looks like he had some explaining to do once they got home.

"It is not prohibited for students to teach each other, but in terms of exercising magic, you are prohibited from executing it. This is taught in the first semester in the classroom. In terms of self studying the exercise of magic, it's probably best to refrain." Returning to her grave look after Mayumi finished her inspirational speech, Mari also gave a word on the matter.

"...Since the President has said so, I will refrain this time. I don't want there to be a second time." Without looking like bitter enemies, together they straightened and gave a bow. Mari turned around. But after one step, she stopped and asked a question with her back to them. "Your name?" As her head turned, Tatsuya's appearance was reflected in her long narrow eyes.

"First year class E, Shiba Tatsuya."

"I'll remember that."

Holding back his tongue just before he almost instinctively let slip a 'no problem', Tatsuya swallowed a sigh.

"...Don't think I owe you anything." After the committee members had gone out of sight, the one who had acted first, in other words the first course student whom Tatsuya had protected, glared at him.

Tatsuya's expression had a rather 'ah man' look to it. All his friends had one similar to his. Relieved that this normally needlessly excited character wouldn't play up here at least, Tatsuya returned the gaze of the course A student who suddenly grew a spine. "I don't think that at all, so don't worry. What got you off wasn't my glib tongue but rather Satsuki's sincerity." He could practically hear her roll her eyes.

"I came along because even though you're good at talking people down, you have problems convincing them," she replied.

"Indeed." His artificial look of reproach faded, replaced by a wry smile.

"My name is Morisaki Shun. As you thought, I am of the Morisaki house." Seeing the warm banter between them, his hostility faded somewhat, and he gave his name.

"Not honest are you?" Leo remarked. "Why don't you just say thank you and walk away? What are you an idiot?"

"Says the idiot who tried to grab a CAD with his bare hands," Erika scoffed.

"What did you say!?"

"Uhm... that really is dangerous. Psions produced by another magician's activation ritual would cause a rejection by your own subconscious..." Mizuki interjected.

"What she said. Got it?" Erika smirked.

"Erika-chan too, all right? Don't use your hands directly, you'd receive the interference 1000 fold."

"It's fine. This is shielded." As the talk between his friends, meaningful in its own way, finally shifted back in their direction, Tatsuya and Morisaki shared a glance without moving.

"I still don't acknowledge you, Shiba Tatsuya. Kagakure-san's place should be with us." On that note, without waiting for Tatsuya's reply, Morisaki left. He probably said it precisely because it was a line that didn't bear an answer, something his opponent was fully aware of.

"Suddenly calling me by my full name huh." Tatsuya muttered to himself.

Beside him, hearing his murmur, Satsuki remained quiet, aside from a few snide remarks and standing up to Mari she hadn't said much during the conflict. Even without her involvement, Tatsuya's knack for making enemies was a disadvantage for him. It been a long day and she had had enough of Morisaki's prejudices.

"Tatsuya, we're heading back?"

"Yeah, you're right. Leo, Chiba-san, Shibata-san, let's go." Sharing a feeling of mental fatigue, the two of them nodded at the others, and began to leave.

As if to cut them off, to make things worse, a pair of class A girls stood in their way, but their body language clearly indicated they didn't intend to do any more today. Exchanging looks with Satsuki, the moment dragged on. To get rid of them Satsuki was about to bid them farewell, but then the other opened her mouth.

"I'm Mitsui Honoka. I'm sorry for saying all those things earlier." She suddenly bowed, fully honest, and Tatsuya was rather embarrassed. This girl, who earlier wasn't hiding her elitism, to say the least, seemed to have gone about a complete turnaround. "Thank you for protecting me. Morisaki-kun waved it off, but it's thanks to you that it didn't become a huge issue."

"...It was nothing."

"I understand. But thank you very much!" A fierce conviction blazed in her eyes. "And so, um..."

"...What is it?"

"...Is it alright to go together with you to the station?" Nervously, but with a determined conviction hidden in her face, Honoka asked to accompany them. With a sense of surprise not so much at Honoka's words but the unexpectedness of the whole thing, Erika and Mizuki shared a look. Though even then those two, plus Leo and of course Satsuki and Tatsuya, had no reason to refuse, and indeed didn't refuse.

Xxx

At the end of an eventful day Satsuki brewed herself a cup of tea and one of coffee for Tatsuya, instead of waiting for her to finish and bring the drinks into the living room as he usually did, Tatsuya made his way into the kitchen where she worked.

"What's wrong?" Stasuki asked not turning around, she already knew who it was even if it wasn't just the two of them in the house. Tatsuya hesitated to reply, something he rarely did. "If you're just going to stand there and stare at me I don't mind," Satsuki remarked. "I'm something to be admired after all," he couldn't help but smile. "If you want to be useful I could do with a hug." Without hesitation he walked up towards her and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his forehead in the nape of her shoulder and taking in her scent. Satsuki shifted her weight slightly and leaned against him. "What is it Tatsuya, you don't have much of a pokerface you know." Only Satsuki would be able to say such a thing, to others it was impossible to discern his thoughts. Tatsuya tightened his hold, worried that what he had to say might upset her.

"Today, why didn't you do anything?" he asked, although he had a rough idea of the answer.

"Hmm!? Ahh, you mean after school?"

"Yes, you could have stopped it from escalating, very easily in fact. All you had to do was say so, and they would have obeyed no matter their personal feelings, that is the amount of influence that you have on them. What didn't you?" asked Tatsuya.

"Why do you think?" Satsuki asked as she poured milk into her cup.

"Because you wanted things to escalate," he replied. "No, in fact you provoked it, didn't you? I thought that your classmates were acting strange, even more hostile and unreasonable than usual, I couldn't figure out why at first but…"

"Yes, it's amazing what a few whispers here and a few choice words there can do to a group that is already taken over by mob mentality," Satsuki calmly replied. She put down what was in her hands and turned around to face Tatsuya.

"Why would you do such a thing?" Tatsuya asked as she draped her arms over his shoulders and around his neck, Satsuki raised an eyebrow and shrugged, telling him to figure out for himself. "You wanted them angry and riled up enough to attack. Enough to-" he paused when he saw the look in her eyes. "Ahh, I see, but why, why would you do so?"

Satsuki gently brushed his fringe with her fingertips. "Why? Isn't it obvious?" She met his eyes. "Cause they spoke poorly of you."

"That's all?"

"That's all," Satsuki gently stroked his cheek with the back of her hand. "If things went to plan those fools would have been suspended, if they went far enough they would have been expelled or maybe dropped to course 2. Wouldn't that be a laugh, one day they're acting all high and mighty and the next they're part of what they look down upon." She laughed, however it didn't soften the cold look in her eyes. "If spots opened up in course 1, you might have even transferred into my class." She pouted. "But none that happened, all because of you."

"I'm sorry," Tatsuya immediately replied. For me, she was doing all this for me. For my sake… he truly was loved.

"No you're not," Satsuki immediately retorted. "And that's what I like about you, you're so kind, even though you say you have no feelings, you're still kind."

"I didn't do it out of kindness," Tatsuya replied. In his eyes there was only her, she was all that mattered. It wasn't out of a promise or some flimsy vow, it was absolute, his absolute.

"Oh? Then why?"

"The entire incident happened because of me, I didn't want to cause you trouble," he said truthfully. He hadn't helped her classmates for the sake of helping them, but because he didn't want such an occurrence to be associated with Satsuki, he had to protect her, that was all.

"I'm glad, I was worried you were caring about other people," Satsuki confessed. She smiled and rested her head against his chest. "You're mine, remember that. Down to the last drop of blood, down to the last breath, you're mine." More than love, her attachment to him could be better described as an obsession.

"I'm yours," Tatsuya replied, echoing her sentiment. Then again, it was the same for him as well.