Yep, this story is now officially off of its hiatus. This isn't the most exciting update to have, admittedly, but I am still re-acquaintancing myself with the plans I have for this story and all that, so since I'd been thinking of putting a Recollections chapter in around this point of the story I figured that now was the best time for it as a way of easing myself back in. Also yes, I am now cross-posting this on A03 as well!

Anyway, thanks for bearing with me all this time! Hopefully I'll be back to alternating semi-regularly between this and And So It Begins now (well, unless I discover another CB I end up loving so much I have to write another long fic for it...). Hope you enjoy this!

Teiichi

I'd managed to make it through arriving here. Okay, so I'd barely managed to register at reception without stammering and blushing through it, and I'd sat by myself during the entrance ceremony, and I was clinging to the map a little too tightly right now as I headed to the classroom. But I was managing, I was okay.

There was just the thought of actually talking to my new classmates.

Ah, come on, get yourself together! I shook my head, though only slightly so I wouldn't be stared at, and stared down at my map. Thankfully, the classroom that had been designated as 78-B wasn't far, and all I had to do was walk down a corridor and turn a corner. I thought of my parents' excitement back when I had received the letter, the flurry of adorable GIFS that Sarang had sent me this morning as encouragement, and the fact that all I had to do was get over this hurdle. Once I knew everyone, and was used to this place, I would be fine.

It was hard to tell who was new and who wasn't as I walked that short distance, observing the different students. I wondered if any of them felt like me, or if they were more confident that I was. Surely, I couldn't be the only one? Seeing the '78-B' sign hanging over a door, I sped up quickly, then paused as a tall boy with green hair headed through the door. Once he was through, then after another pause to make it not look like I was following, I headed in.

In the classroom, there weren't that many people-just the boy, who'd retreated to the back of the classroom to read the orientation pack more closely, a daydreaming girl wearing what looked to me like a qipao, and two girls sitting together quietly chatting-both were slight and pretty, one blond and blue eyed and the other with her long brown hair in a side-bun with a flower pin. There was something about the two of them that made me wonder, but I didn't want to ask. Not least because I knew it was presumptuous. Even though I didn't look even vaguely foreign, I knew that all too well. But there wasn't anyone about to look up and start the conversation, so I decided to sit at a desk and do what the other boy was doing. It'd at least pass the time until everyone came.

…

Kiran

Checking the time, I realised that I should probably head up to homeroom to meet everyone for the first time. There'd be plenty of time to finish off exploring later, or so I hoped. Maybe by then I'd have already made a friend. I certainly hoped so in any case. I knew that Hope's Peak was colourful and used to people who were different, but I wasn't sure if maybe I'd be too different, because Hope's Peak was supposed to be about people who could do things well, and yet even though I could, there was just as much I couldn't do.

That kind of thing, I worried about sometimes. But not that much, not really. Mostly, I was really just looking forward to starting my time here. There were even two hāfu kids like me that I'd met during the entrance ceremony who were in my class, which was nice. I wondered if they'd headed to class already or not.

Weaving between a few taller people as the corridors filled with more people scrambling to get to homeroom, I ducked through the door I knew was my homeroom. My legs went wobbly for a moment, but I was able to get myself steady.

"Nanakai-kun!"

I looked up to see one of the girls I had met-one of the hāfu ones, with soft orange-gold eyes-wave at me. It took me a moment to remember the name she'd said she'd wanted to be called, but once I did I smiled back.

"Hi again, Sadie-san!" I said.

"Have you finished exploring?" she asked.

"Ahhh, not really! But, I didn't want to be late!"

"No, of course!"

I beamed at her and the other girl-Friede-and was about to bound over to them when I noticed that someone was watching. Peering over his orientation pack with concerned eyes, the boy was sitting by himself and not talking to anyone at all, while now everyone who was in there was at least talking to someone. Though, it did seem like the girl with the butterfly on her face and wearing a really pretty qipao was mostly just sitting with the two boys who were talking near her. But still, regardless, the boy was the only one who seemed lonely.

At that moment, he blinked, and made eye contact with me. The moment he did, his eyes widened and he blushed, trying to duck his head. Which decided it for me, really.

…

Teiichi

I couldn't undo being noticed, and I knew it was rude to pretend that I hadn't seen the small boy who was now coming over to me with a smile that seemed too big for what was admittedly an adorable face. While he was short, he wasn't so short that he didn't look like a teenager like me, but at the same time he did seem so very young. His dark eyes were wide and doe-like and his hair was soft and dark, and just like the girls, I had a suspicion he was mixed.

"Hi!" he said immediately. "Are you okay there? I saw you didn't have anyone to talk to, so I thought I'd come to talk to you!"

"Oh, um…hi…"

I felt myself going red, and tried to take a deep breath. The boy looked at me slightly quizzically and then gave me another adorable grin. Kittens, puppies and other adorable animals came to mind and I wasn't sure whether that was going to hinder my efforts to try and get through this conversation or not. I took another breath and nodded.

"Hi, I'm Teiichi Kazama, the SHSL Rock Climber."

I'd practised this in front of the mirror, and I felt pretty pleased that I'd managed to say it without completely making a fool of myself. The boy nodded at that, and though he clearly understood it took him a moment or so to respond.

"My name's Kiran Nanakai!" he said. "And I'm the SHSL Museum Tour Guide…oh, and if you're wondering, I'm hāfu. My first name's Indian, if you're wondering."

"Really? I'm hāfu too!"

The words burst out of me before I knew what I was doing, and I immediately cringed. But rather than looking surprised or confused, or trying to tell me I couldn't possibly be, he nodded.

"Sadie-san and Heiwa-san are too," he pointed to the two girls I'd noticed, who were now looking at us. "Come, I'll introduce you and then we can be friends."

I couldn't avoid blushing again, and with two extra pairs of eyes on me I wanted to shrink into my seat again. But at the same time, I couldn't help but feel excited. So I nodded, and got up to follow Kiran.

…

Kiran

I was pleased that Teiichi wanted to talk to me, and I was so excited to introduce him to Sadie and Friede that my words almost fell on top of each other as I eagerly explained who he was to them.

"This is Teiichi Kazama, he's the SHSL Rock Climber and guess what, guess what? He's hafu too, like us! We're like a club!"

"With four of us we certainly could form a club, couldn't we?" Friede said thoughtfully. "Anyway, it's nice to meet you, Kazama-san. I'm Friede Benbow, but you can call me 'Heiwa' if you prefer. It's my middle name and I basically use it as my Japanese name."

"Ah, you don't need to be formal, Kazama or Kazama-san is fine," Teiichi said. "And it's nice to meet you too. What's your Talent, if you…erm, don't mind me asking?"

Teiichi went a little pink again, but Friede just nodded and answered.

"Interpreter, oh and Sadie here's the SHSL Yosakoi Dancer."

"Yeah, that's right," Sadie said with a cheerful smile that she aimed at Teiichi. "Sarah Mai Hashiri, technically, but I have always preferred Sadie. In any case, I'm half Lebanese, and I think Nanakai-kun told you already he's half Indian, right?"

"Mhm." Teiichi said. "I'm half Korean."

"And I'm half white. American with Germanic roots, to be precise." Friede finished. "We're quite a mix, aren't we?"

"Mm…mmmm." Teiichi nodded hard. "That's really cool. I was wondering, whether I'd be the only one…"

"Oh, I know what you mean," Sadie nodded earnestly. "I'm already a little nervous being here anyway, because apart from yosakoi competitions I've never actually lived in Japan before-I was born in Brazil, you see. So…"

"Ohhh, I see."

Teiichi nodded, and I beamed at all of them, excited enough to burst.

"Well, now we're all friends, right? And I'm sure we'll make friends with everyone else quickly too! So I'm sure we'll all settle in in no time."

And as they all agreed, and then we started talking about other things, I knew that I would be right.