Friendship

Charlotte and Chloe burst through the change rooms dripping wet while cautiously searching around. There in front of them were the two males from yesterday. "Benjamin and Everett I'm not surprised." Charlotte's voice was filled with sarcasm. "I'm used to Benji being here but why are you here too Ever?" This time Charlotte used the familiar nicknames as she addressed the two males in the female change rooms. Chloe noted that the male who had commented on her intelligence with russet coloured hair and violet eyes was Benjamin or better known as Benji. The other who was onyx haired and sparkling cobalt eyes was Ever, short for Everett.

"Well you see Char, umm well." Benjamin was stammering unsure how to answer the still waiting Charlotte. Both guys were beating around the bush as they stared anywhere but at the girls.

"Since both of you were taking a bath we are just going to leave now." Everett grabbed Benjamin as they scurried out of the deserted change room. Charlotte let out a giggle and Chloe caught on. They were still only clothed in towels so the guys managed to escape without answering!!

"Hey Charlotte was it that idiot Benjamin again?" An unknown voice called out through the steam from the baths. As Charlotte returned she nodded in response.

"Does that happen often?" Chloe asked confused. Charlotte sighed and Chloe just took it as a yes. Both girls returned to the warm water. Once the two were clean and drying up they were dressing. Chloe's tattered wool coat and winter gear was placed gingerly into the cubby labeled with her name. Now she dressed into a slightly loose flexible pair of trousers that were stark white. Matched with the same flexible material in black were combat boots that laced up to her knees and a black top with a shallow dip at the collar. In contrasting tones stripes and lining were all over the clothing. Chloe noticed that Charlotte had a similar outfit as her in the white and black contrast. "Does everyone wear this similar type of outfit under their Finder's cloak?" Chloe asked curiously.

"The material is a special type developed by the Science Department. Only some of the Finders are chosen to experiment it so not everyone wears this type of clothing underneath their cloaks. This is how the Science Department determines which designs and materials are ethical and durable. They make the outfits for the exorcists." Charlotte had obviously lent Chloe the clothes because it seemed these clothes were for the more experienced Finders. After braiding her toffee coloured hair into two separate mini braids Chloe was still dissatisfied with the lack of colour in her appearance. Chloe searched through what little possessions she had and decided to wear her now fingerless gloves. Before the gloves had been whole but it was not very easy to utilize. The gloves were striped bright sherbet, lemon yellow and rosy red.

"Maybe you should show me around after breakfast." Chloe suggested to Charlotte as she waited for the brown eyed girl. Traveling through more sets of hallways the girls reached the huge dining hall. Since they were a little late not too many people hung around. Following Charlotte Chloe noticed that food was served through a window.

"We used to have this amazing cook named Jerry. Although since he was so good at cooking he moved to Headquarters with Chief Komui to the other side. So we only have temporary cooks right now because everyone has been taking shifts." Charlotte stressed on the word 'other' which sparked Chloe's undying curiosity.

"What do you mean by other side?" Chloe posed the question carefully. Charlotte seemed surprised to the point where she was shocked into silence. The scene was odd as the girls stood in front of the food counter without ordering. Charlotte quickly ordered randomly two sets of food. As she grabbed one tray she grabbed Chloe with the other hand. Chloe managed to grab the other tray as she was dragged to a secluded corner of the hall. The two sat down and Chloe had confusion written across her face.

"What do you mean you do not know about the other side?" Now Charlotte stressed upon this mysterious place named the 'other side'. Searching for any signs of recognition she sighed as Chloe's face was blank. "This other place is the world that all the Finders are from originally. We were transported by free will to this academy by Noah's Ark. You had to have traveled through the ark to get here. So you entered the ark through mysterious means. That's why when we offered you a place here we were all very tense. We were unsure if you were an Akuma in disguise or simply a spy. Luckily you accepted otherwise we would have had to have disposed you." Charlotte cringed at mentioning the very closeness that Chloe had avoided death.

"So what exactly is an Akuma?" Chloe had never really understood the term when the Finders spoke about these demons.

"Akumas are the souls of the dead merged with machinery creating perfect 'live' weapons for the devil. They gain experience by killing and that is how they evolve. They are programmed to do nothing but kill people." Charlotte explained in a way as if she constantly explained this concept to many people often. "Then I am guessing Chloe that you do not know what an exorcist is." Chloe nodded yes. "Exorcists are members of an anti-Akuma group that consists of Holy Priests. They all bear this insignia." Charlotte had reached into her pants pocket to reveal a picture. The picture was of the rose cross that Lavi and the older man had on their coats.

"Lavi is an exorcist?!" Chloe exclaimed rather loudly. Charlotte was once again confused by Chloe's comments.

"So how do you know Lavi? You are speaking of Bookman Junior right?" Charlotte inquired.

"Well I only know one Lavi. He was the one that saved me from an Akuma. Well at the time I didn't know it was one but now I understand why Lavi did that." Chloe continued on and began to ramble. Information was beginning to fall into place. "Though Charlotte, could you explain a bit more on the whole Noah's Ark bit." Chloe still didn't understand how she traveled from her hometown through storms to find herself in Crystal Sanctuary Academy.

"Well the ark is a type of transportation that has doors leading to many different dimensions. Right now in this dimension there is nothing but the school and the land surrounding it. We come here to train because this world has virtually no Akuma and is ideal for beginner Finders and Exorcists. Miranda Lott came here to train her Innocent recently." Charlotte received another blank gaze from Chloe. "You do not know what Innocence is?" Charlotte asked not too surprised anymore. Chloe nodded slowly feeling rather foolish about this 'common' knowledge. "Well Innocence originated from a cube nearly a century ago. A message was left, "We won against darkness, and some were destroyed. As you travel along, trouble will surely arise, to prevent this trouble, we leave you with this message." Charlotte paused as she decided how to phrase the rest of the explanation. "The cube that was found the substance was named God's Crystal. Our school has been named after this exceedingly rare substance. The substance has a special power; it has been named Innocence. The Anti-Akuma weapon transforms the Innocence into weaponry. In the past the creator of the cube won in a fight against the evil named Millennium Earl. It has been recorded in history as Noah's Great Flood because the result was the destruction of the Earth approximately 7000 years ago. Prophecies have revealed that we will experience three days of darkness once again." Charlotte also explained more about the past of the mysterious cube.

"So is there anyway to prevent the prophecy from drawing to a close?" Chloe asked.

"Well all we can do is search for people who are compatible with the Innocence otherwise the power cannot be utilized. But because of Noah's Flood all of the Innocence has spread throughout the world. It is nothing more than a race to gather all the Innocence and building an army against the Akuma the Millennium Earl has created. Unfortunately for us the Innocence has weird unknown requirements that only a small amount of people have." Both girls were finishing up there meals and the topic lingered over their heads leaving a trail of silence in its wake. "So I'll show you around the complex." Leaving the plain benches and dumping their dishes into a labeled bin the girls entered another plain hallway.

"Why do all the hallways look identical?" Chloe raised the question from her thoughts. It was odd because all the hallways were open, airy and usually had large windows depending where it was located.

"Well as dumb as this sounds when Chief Komui visited he was lost constantly so we not only changed the bathrooms to his liking we changed most of the original layout. Now our building is almost identical to Headquarters." Charlotte sheepishly scratched the back of her head. "Though for awhile Chief Komui worked here as a teacher before getting promoted to Chief though I think his actual title is Supervisor. So the main rooms in Headquarters are now identical to here such as the Sanitarium, Cafeteria, Training room, lounge and library. He likes to change things to his comfort which sometimes has the rest of us stressed out." Charlotte listed the group rooms as they passed through them. The Sanitarium was where Chloe had awakened in yesterday or early morning to be exact. They had just left the Cafeteria which had been filled with long tables and benches. Candles lit the room with odd paintings hanging around the room. Chloe admired the training room on the third floor for its high vaulted ceiling and arches. The room was empty but light filtered through the windows. Striped couches and coffee tables were placed in the lounge. Last was the library, filled with books from the floor to the super tall ceiling. As Chloe shifted her gaze upwards she saw balconies that held more shelves. Even the railing of each balcony was used as a shelf for books had been placed in the openings.

"Wow this place is amazing." Chloe flashed a wide smile. "Though shouldn't I be learning the ropes for being a Finder?" Chloe was sure that the place didn't come without a price.

"Yeah I'm taking you to a very special teacher." Charlotte had a rather frightening grin that closely resembled the grin of a shark. Chloe sighed and was unsure if she should be rejoicing or cowering in fear.

"Should I be worried?" Chloe exasperatedly asked. She was very tired from all the new information and asking questions. Charlotte chuckled quietly as they entered a room. Seated on top of what appeared to be a desk was a fully clad red-headed exorcist. Hopes arose as she spotted the bright red hair. Unfortunately her eyes met with another stranger. Unlike Lavi's shorter hair this man had long hair. Adorned with the rose cross he sat with a golden coloured golem. With matching crimson eyes framed by glasses, stubble on his chin and a white mask that covered his right eye he was somewhat intimidating even with his mild expression

"This is general Cross Marian. He will be teaching you until we have some Finders complete the course. All the classes are entirely filled to the brim." Charlotte still had an amused grin across her face.

"So why am I getting taught by an Exorcist let alone a General?" Chloe assumed that he held a higher ranking than simply an ordinary exorcist. It was absurd shouldn't he be searching for more Innocence and compatible people.

"Well from what knowledge we know about you, there is a possibility that you may contain an Innocence." Cross directed to Chloe with eyes that searched for signs of extra abilities. "You arrive to the academy when there is no other entrance except through the Ark and I have seen exceptional potential in you." He answered bluntly.

"Potential?" Chloe asked stunned, "I have not done anything yet." Her comment echoed in the large room. She couldn't remember having done anything spectacular in the past twenty-four hours or as a matter of fact for the past seventeen years. Charlotte couldn't help but giggle at the shock on Chloe's face.

"Well it does not matter Chloe because if you want to be a Finder than you will just have to learn from General Cross. But I must go I am late for class!!" Exiting the room Charlotte left with a pleasant smile and a nonchalant wave. Chloe muttered some incoherent phrases under her breath.

"Since I am not fully qualified to teach you as a Finder I will just teach you as if you were an Exorcist." Cross' voice was muted as if he were aware of her fear and that if he spoke any louder she would shatter. Chloe did not fear Cross himself she feared what the man would teach her. Akuma were frightening and Exorcists fought them off daily. If she were to be able to defeat them then that would be fine with her, but facing them was just another story. Gathering courage would be difficult and immense power would have to be summoned from within because with her current abilities she wouldn't last a day. "Your training will be mild until we discover your Innocence." He had an odd smile and was bent on the idea that Chloe had been chosen by Innocence. Sighing she didn't even attempt to mention that there was no way that was going to happen. "Though we should probably start off with the basics and at least try to stick to the Finder's program." He rolled his eyes as if he was reminded of some other instance.

"Yeah I'm Chloe Philips. Just call me Chloe." She shrugged as she introduced herself. "What will I be learning first General Cross?" Chloe was now genuinely interested now that there was no way of backing out.

"Just call me Master that's what my other disciple calls me. We will be learning a great art that all Finders must know." Cross had an unmistakable grin across his face and Chloe was just enjoying this day more and more.

To Be Continued…