Dramatis Personae:

Shibusen Faculty:
(Canon)

Shinigami – Lord Death, Headmaster, DWMA
Mira Nygus – Nurse, Weapon, Combat Knife
Spirit – Shinigami's personal Death Scythe, Scythe
Franken Stein – Meister

(OC)

Izumu Garrot – Teacher, Lone Comet, Meister
Morgana La Fay – Teacher, Setting Sun, Weapon

Students:

Sarah Silverstein – Meister, Arm Blades
Nom – Weapon, Arm Blades
Mina Harker – Meister, Tool
Larsen Miles – Weapon, Tool
Art Tannin – Meister, Shield
Celt – Weapon, Shield


Ch 2: Nom, Pre et Sur

"You. With me. Now!" Professor La Fay ordered Sarah

"Um, Ma'am?" Mina intercepted the teacher. "Before taking her anywhere, shouldn't you get changed?"

Morgana La Fay looked down, observing her purple robe, or, more precisely, her lack of clothing underneath. "Bring me a towel," She ordered, collecting her long hair onto her head. "I will not get my shirt wet. As for you!" She glared at Sarah. "Don't. Go. Anywhere. Understood?"

Sarah nodded as Mina rushed back with a towel, and La Fay went in to get changed. As soon as she was out of sight, Mina immediately started shooting off questions. "So, who is he? Where'd he come from? What's his name?" She pulled Sarah outside of the bath, away from the other girls.

Sarah barely stifled a laugh, "I don't know, we just met."

"Well, ask him, silly!" Mina insisted

"Right." She concentrated on the link between their souls, establishing a mental connection. 'Hello?'

'…you're not going to hurt me, right?' he asked timidly

'No. Don't worry.' She told him. 'I'm Sarah, what's your name?'

'Name? I'm…I'm…' He gave a frustrated whine 'I can't remember!'

'Can't remember?' She could feel his frustration at not being able to answer. 'What can you remember?'

'I remember, waking up. I opened my eyes and…you were there.' He began to panic at his lack of memory. 'Why can't I remember? I don't remember!'

'It's alright, don't push yourself' she ordered, calming him down

"Anything?" Mina asked

"He can't remember. His first memory is waking up here." Sarah answered, dredging up the entire extent of his memory banks.

"Oh, really…?" Mina was forlorn for a moment. "Well, what are we supposed to call him? He has to have a name."

"What can we call you…?" Sarah asked, not really directing the question at him

'A name…' He thought for a moment before transforming, much to their surprise. "Nom! Call me Nom!" He looked down as he hid behind Sarah again, shuffling his foot. "It's French. It means "Name"."

"How do you know that?" Sarah prodded, gently.

"I just…know." Nom fidgeted slightly, trying to stay out of Mina's sight

Sarah looked back at her before speaking. "Nom, this is Mina. She's a friend, she won't hurt you."

Mina offered her hand and Nom tentatively took it, barely grabbing hold and quickly letting go. "Charmed" She said

They had no time for anything else as they heard Professor La Fay on her way. "Where are you?" Nom jerked his head before changing right as she rounded the doorway. "Oh, there you are. Now let's going" She reached out to grab Sarah's arm before thinking better of it, deciding instead to indicate that Sarah should follow.

"Sorry, guess the bath will have to wait" Sarah apologized

"Oh, well. At least you got a partner out of it, unlikely as it seems." Mina shrugged.

La Fay paused briefly, looking back at Mina before stating "He has to be registered first." She gave no other complaint, striding forward as she added: "Assuming, of course, that we can register him"

Sarah followed dutifully, answering La Fay's questions to the best of her ability. There was very little to go on and La Fay soon knew as much as Sarah. They walked in silence for a while before Nom asked a question of his own.

'Sarah? Where are we going?'

'Um, back to school, I think. Give me a moment.' She relayed the question. "Professor La Fay? Where are you leading us, exactly?"

"To Shinigami-Sama, in the Death Room." La Fay answered without pause.

"Oh, ok." The Death Room! Really! That's the headmaster's personal chamber!

'Sarah?' Nom sounded tired

'Yes?'

'I'm… I… hurt…' He managed before dropping out of his weapon form.

"Professor La Fay!" Sarah yelled in alarm

The Teacher was over in an instant, quickly looking him over. "He's bleeding a little bit," She sighed, "The Death Room will have to wait; we'd better head him to the Dispensary. If I had known…" She lifted him and began a timely march; Sarah had to struggle to keep up. La Fay was muttering to herself "Must have gotten them on impact… Hiding, couldn't see… Why did no one tell me?" No-one, of course, meant Sarah.

"I'm sorry…" Sarah gave a weak reply

La Fay jerked her head, pulled out of her own thoughts. "Oh, no, no. It's not your fault. I didn't bother asking, just grabbed you up and dragged you along." She thought a moment before continuing. "I've been acting like a real b-" She caught herself. "A real brat. My apologies."


Sarah was leaning on the wall next to the Dispensary, waiting. Finally La Fay exited, Nurse Nygus shutting the door after them. Sarah jerked to her feet. "How is he?"

"He'll be fine. All he had was a pair of large cuts on his forehead and nasty bump on the back of his head. No broken bones, despite the fall" Nygus reported.

"Considering the landing, I'm surprised it isn't worse." La Fay added

"Why'd he collapse?" Sarah asked

"Most likely shock from the incident combined with dizziness from the blood loss. He's stable and will make a full recovery." Nygus informed her

"Can I see him?"

La Fay glanced at Nygus, who nodded. "That should be fine."

Nygus opened the door and Sarah entered. She pulled back the curtain and walked to the bed.

It was empty.

"Umm… Nygus-san?" Sarah began before being tapped on the shoulder. She turned, straightened, and for a split second thought that Nygus had lost her bandages.

Not that Nom really looked anything like Nygus. "Hi." Nom said, head wrapped.

"Yes?" Nygus entered and Nom disappeared. Noting the empty bed and the weapons on Sarah's arms she put two and two together. "You shouldn't be up." She chastised the blades on Sarah's arms.

"I-I'm alright." Nom stated, reflection quickly disappearing from sight.

"You shouldn't even be conscious" Nygus said

"But since he is…" La Fay entered unbidden, pulling back the curtain. "Time to report to Shinigami-Sama. If you'll come with me," She motioned for Sarah to come. "Provided you have no major objections, Nygus?"

"I would prefer it if he stayed here for observation, but… If you feel this is best, then go." Nygus gave her permission. "You'll bring him right back if there's any trouble, of course."

"Certainly" La Fay promised as she left.


"So, so, that's how it is, hmm?" Shinigami mused at La Fay's explanation

Sarah was both excited and scared at the same. To be taken to the center of Shibusen's power, the personal chambers of arguably the most powerful being in the world. Sarah noted Professor La Fay's perfect posture and immediately straightened.

La Fay nodded to him before continuing, "Yes, sir. It seems he has no memory before the incident"

"Alright, alright." He thought for a moment. "Well, what would you suggest?"

It seemed to Sarah that Professor La Fay straightened even further, if that was even possible. "I believe he should be kept under strict surveillance, and what better way to keep an eye on him than to register him as a student and pair him with a Meister. To that extent, I recommend Miss Silverstein."

"Sounds good, sounds good. Miss Silverstein?" Shinigami turned to her

"Yes, Sir-Lord-Death-Shinigama-Sama?" She piped, her surprised voice pulling a Larsen

"I would like your opinion on this. Are you willing to undertake this assignment for the DWMA?"

She gave a salute "Yes, sir, Lord Death"

"Take a deep breath, relax" La Fay placed a comforting hand on Sarah's shoulder, keeping her posture.

"Yes. Now, if it's not too much trouble, I'd like to speak to the Weapon himself." Shinigami requested

"I'll try, sir." Sarah promised. 'Can you please come back out? We need to talk to you.'

'…Do I have to?' Nom asked

She thought for a second before replying, 'Yes.' Nom sighed, but did as asked, hiding behind Sarah the moment his human form appeared. "Don't worry, I'm here." She comforted

"There's no need to worry." Shinigami confirmed "I assume you heard our conversation?"

"Yes" Nom peeked around Sarah

"Well then, how about it? Are you willing to become a student of Shibusen?" Shinigami cocked his head to the side.

"I get to stay with Sarah?" Nom moved a little closer, less afraid of him than of the loud teacher he had met in the baths

"That would be a requirement of your enrollment" Shinigami told him. "You would be her partner. And she would be your Meister. In short, where ever she goes, you would have to follow."

Nom smiled, no longer feeling afraid. "Yes, I would like that! Just one thing: What is a Meister?" He looked at each of them, even the scary lady, waiting for an answer.

"This is going to take a lot of review lessons, isn't it?" La Fay asked, sighing into her hand

Sarah couldn't keep herself from a short giggle "No problems, I'll make sure to help him out."

"But, what is it? It sounds important." Nom scratched his head

"I'll put together a basic package of what you need to know. So then, off to the Library!" She began to push him out before stopping. "Umm, if there's nothing else, Lord Death?" She couldn't believe that she had almost walked out on Shinigami in such a rude fashion.

"I see no problem. Professor La Fay and I will see to your living arrangements, tootle-loo!" He waved them off

"Wait! Silverstein! Just, stay in the Library so I know where to find you!" La Fay demanded, unable to believe that she had suddenly gotten stuck with so much work. And on her day of relaxation, no less! It was hardly a wonder that she had been so annoyed the entire day. She would have objected, but there was no way she would do such a thing, not when it was Shinigama-Sama giving the orders. "And, Bladed-Weapon Nom! I expect a copy of Sarah's lesson plan so I can fill in the curriculum." It was obvious that he would wind up in her classroom, and she fully intended for him to reach, if not exceed, the level of the rest of the class.

"Yes, Ma'am!" They said as one as Sarah rushed off, dragging Nom along.

"Well then, time to get to work." Shinigami commented after watching them run off

"Yes, sir!" Morgana let no irritation show, neither in her voice nor body language, before doing as tasked.


Sarah woke to a strange smell. She panicked for a second, not used to the unfamiliar room she found herself in. It took a moment for her to remember where she was, in her new room, and the reason behind her new room, namely her new partner. Speaking of him, what was that smell? She pulled herself up and out of her room, finding Nom scrambling eggs. "Nom?"

He glanced over. "Morning!" He finished dishing out the eggs and offered her the plate

"So you know how to cook?" She took the plate and sat

"Not really. I mean I didn't add anything but cheese, all I did was make sure that it didn't burn."

Even plain, it was pretty good. "Good. Any salt or pepper?"

Nom smiled "If I had found any I would have put a little on."

She nodded, at least he was as lost as she was.

He sat across from her, two hairs sticking up in front like a pair of antennae. "Nom?"

"Hmm?" he looked up, egg halfway in his mouth.

"Do those hairs always do that? I didn't notice them before" She asked

"Hmm?" He gave a concerned grunt, straining to see. "I don't know. All I did was take a shower this morning." In that case it was definitely natural

"Well then, never mind." She finished the eggs and got dressed. By the time she got back out Nom had already cleaned up and was starting on the dishes. "Nom, forget that, we've got to get to school."

"Already?" Nom's hair antennae seemed to droop a little. "Can't I just stay here?"

'Oh boy, he's getting scared again.' She thought, shaking her head. "No you can't. I'm your Meister, you have to go where I go, that was part of the deal, remember." He still looked worried. "You need to go; I want to introduce you to my friends."

His hairs perked up "Friends?"

"Yes, none of them will hurt you. And they're certain to want to meet you." She insisted.

He nodded as his only response.

"Good." They left for school. It wasn't until they had arrived that Sarah thought about his injuries. "Oh! What about your head? How's it feeling?"

"I feel fine." He was glad for her concern

'I'll take him to the Dispensary after school, just to make sure.' She thought as they entered the school


They entered the classroom early, taking seats in the center of the back row. It wasn't long until Art bounced in, Celt not far behind. Art immediately noticed Nom. "Yo! Who's the new guy?" Art asked as he leaned towards Nom from the second row down. Nom recoiled from Art, scared of the excited boy. Art, seeing this, backed off immediately. "Whoa, no problems, dude. I dun' bite." Art held up his hands.

Celt raised an eyebrow, but took the seat next to Art, remaining quiet, as usual.

"This is my partner, Nom" Sarah informed them.

"Nom, nom, nom!" Art mimicked eating, sporting an orange bandana today.

Sarah glared and he immediately stopped. "Anyways, this goof is Art"

"One goof reporting, sah!" Art gave a sloppy salute and just as sloppy British accent

Sarah ignored him "And this fine young man is Celt. He may be big, but don't worry, he's the strong, silent type." Celt turned around, blushing slightly

Professor La Fay marched in, right as class started. "Morning, morning." She realized that she was starting to sound like Shinigami. Shaking her head she started the lesson.

Nom was originally jittery in class, but soon got used to the presence of other students. It helped that they were seated in the back row, but Professor La Fay still made him nervous. 'It's just the first day, he'll get used to her.'

Then it was lunch, time for the rest of the introductions. Mina was first to arrive. "Hey!" She welcomed them as she sat down on the other side of Nom.

"Mina, you know Nom. Nom, you remember Mina." Sarah reintroduced them.

"Hi." Nom gave a small wave.

Mina nodded "How's your head? Show me." She demanded. Nom stiffened, all the way up to his antennae, turning his head as ordered. Mina tilted it, observing his forehead. "Ouch. That's going to leave a mark." She gave a snort. "At least the scars will be symmetrical. It'll actually be kind of hot."

"Huh?" His eyes widened as the two hairs stood straight up on his head in alarm.

Mina gave a seductive giggle as Larsen arrived. He gave one look at Nom before narrowing his eyes.

"Who-Are-You?What-Do-You-Think-You're-Doing?You're-In-My-Seat-Move." The small greenette was furious at the sudden change in seating, towering over Nom despite the difference in their heights

"Ahh!" Nom was immediately overwhelmed, sinking under the table in an attempt to escape.

"Yo! What's the problem, dude?" Art would have reached around the table, but Mina was closer.

"Larsen!" Mina was shocked at his extreme reaction. She grabbed him by the collar, swinging him to the other side. "What is wrong with you?" She held his face level to hers, preventing him from looking away

He hung his head in shame, assuming the look of a beaten puppy. "I'm sorry. Overreacted." He gave a weak excuse

"Good, you better be sorry. Now, this is Sarah's partner, Nom." Mina set him down, turning to her meal, obviously still irritated. Larsen peeked over at Nom, who was starting to crawl out from under the table, Sarah helping him up. Mina gave him a warning glare "Behave."

Larsen gave a nod, walking over to Nom, who immediately made an action to crawl back under the table. Sarah stopped him as Larsen apologized. "I'm-Terribly-Sorry.I-Was-Being-Rude,Welcome." He extended his hand as he bowed. "My-Name-Is-Larsen-Colbert-Erin-Miles-It-Is-A-Great-Honor-To-Meet-You."

"Much better." Mina told him.

"Thank you, Larsen." Sarah replied

"Dude, what was with that? Actually," Art changed subjects under the combined glares of Larsen, Mina, and Sarah. "More importantly, how many names you got? Twelve? Hmm, Colbert?"

Larsen turned red as the rest of the group (excluding Nom and Celt, of course) laughed.

"I-Only-Have-Four-Given-Names,One-Middle-Name-For-Each-Grandfather,Don't-Ever-Call-Me-Colbert-Again!" He took the opportunity to steal one of Art's carrot sticks.

"Hey! No wait, never mind, I can take it." Art sank back, coolly biting into a carrot with a loud snap. "Golden Rule, don't dish out what'cha can't handle."

"That's just common sense fighting, Arty." Mina said as she put a bottle to her lips

"Arty? Hmm, no one's ever called me Arty before." Art sat up, thoughtful

"You've obviously never had a nickname before. It doesn't bother you, does it, Arty?" Mina finished the bottle

"Naw, it's coo'. I can dig it." Art went back to playing with his carrots, eating them in various creative ways.

"Don't worry. They're ok, just a little insane. They'll grow on you." Sarah told Nom

"Right…" Nom sounded doubtful, antennae drooping

"You'll be fine." Celt reassured him

Sarah noted Nom cheer up in response to Celt as Larsen and Art started stealing carrot sticks, each of them determined to eat the other's carrot supply.


Nom showed no medical signs of trauma and was healing faster than Nygus had expected, much to her pleasant surprise. She cleared him for full physical activities and told them to come back if he had any pain, which they promised to do so.

The days passed by and Nom was quickly getting used to others, no longer cringing and even answering Professor La Fay when called on. He had been learning the basics of Weapon-Meister partnerships, but still had a lot to learn before catching up to the rest of the class. Neither Sarah nor La Fay were discouraged, pushing him forward. Eventually Mina and even Larsen (after being pressured by Sarah and Mina) pitched in, tutoring him in various styles during lunch. He was learning, but it was still agonizingly slow.

Surprisingly, it was Art who discovered the most efficient way of teaching him. "Dudes, you're burying him! I mean, he needs, like, a break, you know? Time to soak it all in?" He grabbed a random page from Larsen. "Here, gimme that."

"Hey!What-Do-You-Think-" Larsen began before Art cut him off

"Trust me." He turned to Nom. "A'ight, review time. For every answer you get right, you get a treat, dig?" He tossed a few colorful candies in his right hand

Nom sat up, paying attention. By the end of lunch he was answering nearly half the questions right, a small pile of candy on the table next to him.

Mina was amazed. "Genius" she told Art

"Neh, sweets like, nev-ar fail." He downed his last remaining candy. "Simple reward system, gotcha? I prescribe treatment for two weeks to the rest of your life, as needed, A'ight?"

Nom nodded as he snacked, enjoying the various flavors as Larsen watched covetously.

Sarah noted this and took one, offering it to Larsen. "Want one?"

"Oh-no-no-no-no-no!" Mina quickly stopped Sarah. "He's not allowed to have sugar, ever."

"This is true. My-Parents-Have-Banned-Me-Since-Age-Six-When-I-Destroyed-Half-The-House." Larsen sighed, "That was fun…"

"Umm, hi? Class? You know, that thing when we sit an listen an the teachers bore us outta our skulls? Yeah, that be now." Art informed them.

"Huh?" Mina and Sarah asked at the same time.

"Class." Celt restated for Art

"Oh, well why didn't you just say that instead of going on and confusing us?" Mina brushed Art off as she walked.

"Yo! Cold!" Art shook his head before turning to Larsen. "You un'erstood me, right man?"

"Yes, Of-Course."

"I just dun get her sometimes. Good ta know you got my back, dude. Laters," Art gave Larsen a high five before going off in their different directions. Celt simply shook his head and walked off.


Morgana La Fay exited her classroom, bright red braid swinging behind her. She stopped, Silver eyes narrowing at the straw haired teacher leaning against the wall before her. She placed a hand on her hip, demanding, "What do you want?"

Izumu Garrot, the source of her displeasure, opened his dark red eyes, stretching his neck, trapped in his dark blue turtleneck. "Oh, nothing much, Morgana. I'm just here to make sure you get to the Death Room, Shinigami-Sama is waiting for us." He offered her his arm keeping his thumb hooked to his pocket, inviting her to walk with him. "Shall we?"

She ignored the extended elbow, striding past him. "You should have told me sooner." She shifted to the subject of the meeting "Any idea why?"

Garrot effortlessly caught up, long legs keeping pace with ease. "Sooner? I caught you right outside of your classroom, how could I possibly have told you sooner? As to the why… Well, I'm sure you can guess."

She continued both conversations "You could have told me before I had a chance to say anything." She paused "And you're probably right, I can guess."

"I apologize for my lack of psychic ability." He lapsed into silence for a few moments as they passed by a few students. He made sure they were out of ear shot before continuing. "This has to be about the Kishin, we both know it."

"Do you think we've found him?"

"I don't know, but whatever it is, it's important."

They entered the Death Room, where Franken Stein, and Spirit Death Scythe waited on either side of Shinigami. Both Izumu and Morgana bowed respectfully to them.

"I hope we haven't kept you waiting." Morgana addressed them

"The meeting's mostly over, everyone's been given their assignments except you." Spirit spoke, hands in pockets

"We arrived as soon as possible." Izumu informed them

Morgana's eye twitched as she turned to him, smile plastered to her face as she spoke through her teeth. "Are you trying to imply this is somehow my fault?" Her eyes narrowed, making her smile seem dangerous "Are you?"

Izumu raised an eyebrow at her, still facing the rest of the group. "What are you going on about? How could we being late be your fault?"

"It's just that you were implying that we're late because you had to wait for me to leave my class." Her death aura was leaking towards him. 'How dare he try to embarrass me in front of Shinigami-Sama!'

"I never said anything like that. Seriously, you're making things up." He closed his eyes, preparing for the oncoming argument. 'What did I do this time?'

Stein intervened before she could say anything else. "Don't worry; it's not that you're late. It's just that everyone else was early, so we didn't waste any time." He looked over at Morgana, finishing his cigarette. "We know what time classes get out and prepared the meeting accordingly."

"Of course." She straightened, planning to deal with Izumu later.

"Anyways, allow me to catch you up. As you both know a new Kishin has appeared. I needn't tell either of you what this means to the world if left unchecked." They nodded, and Shinigami continued. "So far, our attempts at finding it have been unsuccessful, hence the purpose of calling you here."

"Do you need us to help search for it?" Izumu asked, sounding almost bored.

Morgana remained straight and silent, waiting on Shinigami's word. At his order she would break the sound barrier, if need be.

"No, that's what the other teams have been assigned to do." Spirit informed them.

"Indeed. So far, this is still secret from the population at large, including the students. But that can't last forever." Shinigami leaned forward, towering over them.

"That's where you come in." Franken took over the explanation. "Your job's simple. Keep the students in the dark while simultaneously preparing them for the truth."

"That's it?" Izumu asked, his blinking betraying his surprise.

"That doesn't seem very different from our ordinary job, sirs." Morgana added.

"Oh that's what'll make it easy, my naughty teacher." Spirit flirted. "If you'd like, I'll come over and help you out with a private lesson." He was drooling as hearts floated from his eyes.

"Shinigami-Chop!" Shinigami cracked his skull, leaving him bleeding on the floor. "This isn't the time to be flirting, if you don't cut it out I'll have no choice but to Shinigami chop you!" No one bothered to correct him. He turned back to Morgana and Izumu. "I know you may not feel like it, but your job is absolutely essential. Should the students learn of this new Kishin, it could lead to a wide-spread panic."

"We merely need you to keep control of the situation, either until it's resolved or until they're ready. Can you handle this?" Franken asked

"Yes, sir!" They answered simultaneously.

"Very well, that is all." Shinigami dismissed them

Morgana gave a salute and began to leave as Izumu asked a question. "Excuse me, Shinigami-Sama, has my partner, Sonoma, been given an assignment?"

"Yes. He is searching for the Kishin with Sid-Kun" Shinigami answered.

"Thank you." Izumu bowed before leaving with Morgana.

They exited the door before Morgana finally stopped keeping her cool. "Honestly, that Death-Scythe! 'Private Lesson', oh I'll give him a 'private lesson', all right. A lesson on how to bleed!" She crossed her arms, furious

"While I admit the timing and nature of his affront was completely unprofessional, you really can't blame him too much." He glanced over at her, thumbs hooked in his trench coat pockets again. "I mean, you are a rather attractive woman."

"I wear men's clothes! They don't show off my figure at all and-" She suddenly registered what Izumu had just said. "Have you been staring at me?" She asked, outraged. "Watching me as I walk? Imagining me in bed? I bet you've been just dying to see me without my clothes, haven't you!"

He sighed, shaking his head as he walked off. "There you go again, putting words in my mouth…"

"Hey where do you think you're going?" She hurried after him, determined to berate him. "Death-Scythe is one thing, but you on the other hand…"

Izumu simply listened, preparing himself for the mental challenge that now faced him.


Author's Notes: Well, here's Ch 2. As you saw, I added a Dramatis Personae (Character List) to the top. I figured that it helps me keep track of people, so it should help you figure out who's who. If you can think of a way to organize it that would be better (Such as Students before Faculty) or additional information that would really help you (Such as partners), tell me and I'll try to make it better. I think it's pretty simple, but I've been wrong before. I'm thinking of putting it in the beginning of each Chapter, but if you don't like it tell me. Anyways, time to get working on Ch 3, Thanks for reading and reviewing! ^_^