1
"Our Father which art in Heaven, hallowed be thy name."
The splash of water could be heard through thin wooden walls.
"In the beginning, there was the Word, and the word was with God, and the Word was God. The Word was in the beginning with God."
A faint knocking started along the walls and a soft creaking filled the room.
"All things were made by the Word, and without the Word there was not any thing that was made. In the Word was life; the Word was in the world, and the world was made by the Word, and the world knew not the Word. The Word came unto his own, and his own received him not. But to as many as who received the Word gave he power to become sons of God. Which were born, not of blood…"
"John!" The voice of a young woman called out. "Hurry, the ceiling is coming down"
Just then the wood began to warp and crack, caving in on itself and splintering outward.
Moments before it completely broke a second voice called out, loud commanding, and distinctly male.
"MOVE, MAI!" Only instinct saved the girl from colliding with a speeding body much larger than her own, as they tackled the motionless priest across the room and out from under the imploding wood, curling protectively around the smaller male and shielding them from any debris.
Then it all came crashing down.
"JOHN!"
When the dust settled, two bodies could be seen safely tucked away against the wall opposite to the entrance.
"John! John, are you alright?" Callous though it may seem, the moment she recognised the voice of the one who called to her, she knew not to worry for them and to instead let herself worry more for her new foreign friend.
"Calm down Mai, he's fine, and you should be more concerned about the amount of dust you just inhaled." The smooth baritone of the new arrival, rising from the rubble like a Phoenix from the ashes, a fairly tall young man with shocking orange hair, not much older than Mai, helped the still shocked exorcist to his feet and guided him back to the entrance.
"Come on, let's get out of here before the rest decides to fall too."
"Right."
Later when everyone gathered to assess the damage
"If Mai's friend hadn't got to me when he did, I would have been in real danger." John explained, nodding gratefully the red headed teen.
In the middle of the room, illuminated by flash lights, lies a pile of wood missing from the ceiling above being closely examined by a different teen dressed completely in black.
"Maybe it's best if we pulled out of here for tonight." He suggests peering up into the room that no longer has a floor. "Mai, you can go home."
"Really?" "Yes"
Words of agreement were exchanged by everyone.
The next day upon arrival to the old schoolhouse Mia and her friend found Naru, the teen who wears black, asleep in the trunk of a van filled with equipment and records.
"Naru! You slept out here? You're going to catch a cold!" Mia scolded the young man, surprised to find him in this state. Absently noting the slight shadows around his eyes.
He grunted, blinking blearily up at Mai. "Is that you Mai?" Naru raised a hand to rub at his eyes, glaring lightly. "What do you want this early in the morning?"
"M-morning? It's already past 11 o'clock."
"Hey there. What's up your lab?" A new voice called out. John and two others had just walked up. The tallest and the one to speak,Takigawa Hōshō, a buddist monk, waved lightly to the two at the van, the third stood a little way off, staring blankly at the schoolhouse.
"What is it, boy? Going to leave already?" The second person, Matsuzaki Ayako, a shrine maiden, asked rhetorically, condescension dripping from her posture.
"Yes I am." Came a monotonous reply, disregarding Ayako's tone and stature to answer honestly.
"You mean you're running away because you can't handle it? That can't be right."
"There's nothing there." A sudden voice, familiar to John, interrupted the exchange.
"Come again?" Ayako turned to ask, irked to be contradicted by someone she's never met. "And you are you, anyway?"
"My name's Kurosaki Ichigo, and there's nothing in the school house."