There's always been a niggling voice at the back of my mind.
A voice that was similar to mine, almost exactly the same even, except for the fact that I have no memory of uttering those words.
The voice always wanted the same thing.
To find someone.
And to save them.
Every time I close my eyes a flash of purple dances away.
The remnant of a far-away girl reminding me of my distant promise.
Someone I want to protect.
Someone important to me.
Someone I never thought I would lose.
If I don't want her to cry anymore...
I have to take her hand and lead her to a place in the sun,
So I should do it now.
Golden eyes snap open; causing the fleeting memory to dissipate into the morning. As they blink wildly to get rid of the last vestiges of sleep, Shirou Emiya awakens to a bell ringing, signalling the start of the first day for the new starters at the Shinigami Academy. After getting ready, he leaves the room and starts to head to the cafeteria only to spot a mop of strawberry blonde following a taller boy with a mess of silver approaching him.
"Well this is surprising", Gin Ichimaru starts "You usually wake up way earlier than this" .
"Well, now that we have an actual area to get food, I don't have to cook for you two slackers anymore", Shirou replies whilst adjusting his new uniform and Asauchi.
"But that doesn't mean that you won't ever cook for us again though right?" Rangiku Matsumoto asks with a hint of hope.
"I don't know, you two do often say that it's okay for me to act a bit more selfish", His words causing a panicking Rangiku to quickly spit out how, of course, that is important but, this and that are different things.
Of course, he doesn't really mean this considering cooking is one of the few hobbies he has where he can actually relax and enjoy, but teasing Rangiku has also slightly become a favoured past time between him and Gin and, whilst he is nowhere near as bad or does it as often as Gin, he can't help but feel a sense of familiarity when doing this; almost as if he was used to dealing with the little sister types.
As the trio continued to bicker throughout their breakfast (which desperately needed more seasoning) and began to head to their first lesson after, Shirou couldn't help but wonder what it would be like. Unlike his two friends, he wasn't born in the Soul Society but instead is a spirit that had lost their life in the living world. Whilst it means that he doesn't have any solid memories of his past, he does have a faint inkling of what school should be and the already apparent differences have piqued his interests. When they arrived at their classroom and took a seat, waiting for the rest of their classmates to finish trickling in and finally settle into place, a large bald man with glasses enters their room and firmly speaks
"Welcome to the Shin'ō Academy, I am Gengoro Onabara and I will be the Chief Instructor for this class. Before I begin however, I should congratulate all of you for you are all in class 1. Class 1 is the special accelerated class for those that displayed a high level of Reiatsu and good control over it. What this means for you lot is that you will be provided the best of the best treatment in the hopes that, one-day, you will become the beacons of justice and law that governs over the Soul Society.
That being said, do not over value your existence. Here at the academy we do not teach you how to fight for your family and superiors, but instead how to die protecting your friends and humanity. I understand many of you may not understand this line of thought but, after your six years here, I can assure you they will no longer be just words, but a creed you will all live and die by. Now, for the basics on Reiatsu and spiritual power."
And as he begins his lengthy lecture about the proper usage of Reiatsu and the four major forms, Shirou can't help but think about the words of his new lecturer.
"How to die protecting your friends and humanity"
For some reason the words seemed to resonate with him strangely, as if he was prepared to accomplish this feat for anyone despite just learning this line of thinking.
Yet stranger still, underneath that zealousness, was another feeling he strongly felt. If the feeling before offered comforting familiarity, this feeling felt as if it would tear up his body from the inside. As he tries to place the sudden and intrusive feeling, another voice, different from the usual one; older, more gruff with a hint of cynicism gives him the answer.
"What you're feeling right now, all the shame and frustration? That's guilt, guilt over throwing away a hypocritical dream"
And just as quickly as it spoke it returned to silence, leaving Shirou Emiya looking around in confusion, wondering if the appearance of another voice was significant or not.