Chapter One : First Day
Marigold Valley was a quiet town- a little suburb near the coast. The sun rises on a new school year, and sets on Sabrina Lightwood's summer vacation. She yawns- adjusting the straps of her backpack as she exits her apartment complex, down to cross the street and head to the bus stop.
The friends she made during summer vacation had kept her up the night before. While it normally wouldn't be a problem during the break, it had absolutely ruined her sleep schedule for school. The more she thought about it, the more she began to dread the return to school. Her classmates normally weren't as kind as those two...
She sighs- and that sigh turns into a yawn as she waits at the traffic light, taking in the cool morning air as cars drive past. Cass and Em had to stop keeping her up all night… As she waits for the light to turn from green to red, her mind wanders- and she lets out a soft giggle thinking of "revenge".
"I feel like I'm gonna be late…" Sabrina hops off the steps of her bus- of course, it had to run late today, of all days. She rushes onto the curb, down the sidewalk to the front gates of Marigold Elementary. Her feet carried her fast, so fast that she didn't even notice the other student standing in front of the gate.
They collide- or, more accurately, Sabrina collides and falls to the floor. "Oww…" She mutters- looking up to the student that had remained completely still. It was a girl older than her, with long hair. Her blue-eyed gaze was distant, as if she were asleep standing up- but she didn't look particularly bothered by the sudden collision. "Sorry. Are you okay?"
The girl hums- raising a fist, but proceeding to open her thumb and pinky in a shaka. "Mhm." A brief, quiet response. "Uh… You?"
Sabrina nods, bringing herself upright. "Yeah. I'm okay…" She mutters. And the girl gives a tiny little smile- a little tilt to her deadpan expression. As if she were saying "That's good". "Oh- what's your name?"
Sabrina extends her hand towards the girl- and the girl's head tilts. "Oh… Name? Mary." She cautiously taps Sabrina's hand, but then takes it in a firm handshake.
"It's nice to meet you!" Sabrina smiles. Maybe third grade wouldn't be so bad.
Aside from Marigold Elementary School, a fair walk away, a bell rang in the local Hubert C. Essert High School. The halls funnel with teens and young adults, trying to shift between lockers and rooms within the short passing time.
Alexis groans to herself- "Geez." She huffs. Her usual friends all had a different lunch period than her, it seemed. With another huff, she moves to the growing line to the kitchen, before it'd grow too long.
A boy from the front of the line grabs his tray with a smile- noticing an empty table with a pair of loners. Or, at the very least, they looked to be loners- not even looking at each other as they ate in silence.
"Morning, you two!" Julian's upbeat voice immediately grabs the attention of the two boys- one of them flinching nervously and the other barely turning. "This table's pretty empty. Mind if I sit here?" He asks, a smile on his face.
The one that flinched, Adam, he gives a vague shrug. The one that pretended not to notice, however- turns, and puts his hand under his lunch, in an attempt to find another empty table. Dimitri sighs, irate, upon his search turning up empty, but doesn't reply.
"Talkative bunch, aren't we?" Julian quips with a smirk, sliding into a chair and placing his tray on the table.
Across the cafeteria, a large, masked student yawns beneath the metal-esque cover on his face. "This school… has far too many humans in it." Kiske mutters beneath his breath in a deep voice. The tables filled up far faster than he could arrive. He spots one that looks fairly empty, and slings his bag over his shoulder to walk towards it.
The lines begin to diminish, and Hiro walks to attempt to find a table with an armful of chips and a can of soda. His seat- it seemed like someone took it while he went to the vending machine. He grumbles a curse under his breath, and turns on his heel- and his eyes lock onto a table quickly filling up. He manages to snag the last seat, just as Kiske and Alexis claim their spots.
Julian looks around the table- around the small crowd that gathered up, and smiles. "Well, well! Seems we've got a full posee today." His eyes glance around the table, and a smile grows on his face.
Alexis merely gives a shrug. "I guess so." She doesn't sound particularly enthused- especially since most of the students seemed on the… "stranger" side.
"I guess it's nice to meet new people!" Hiro seems about as cheery as Julian, pulling open the first bag of chips he scattered across the table. Adam awkwardly shifts his lunch away from the pile of junk food, attempting to shrink into himself as the others talk.
The masked Kiske seems to chuckle- "Hmph. Your kind never tends to take interest in one such as I."
"Ha, see! We're already making good conversation." Julian laughs as well. "How about we introduce ourselves? New year and all."
Dimitri's eye closes as he sighs. "I'd rather not." He growls out- only to earn another laugh from Julian.
"Come on!" Julian nudges him with his shoulders- finally getting a good look at him. His left eye was covered by a black patch, and his glare was shaded over by a mop of messy white hair. "I don't bite! I'll start- I'm Julian Evergarden."
"Dimitri Cozarch." His one-eyed blue glare is seemingly constant, as he bites again into his sandwich. "Leave me be."
"Fine, fine…" Julian sighs, turning to the rest of his classmates. "The rest of you?"
Adam swallows- a bit nervous- his green eyes darting from Dimitri to Julian. "Um… Adam… Kennedy."
Julian smirks- again nudging Dimitri with his shoulder. "See? That easy." He smirks- only for Dimitri to roll his eye and mutter something under his breath. "What about the rest of you, eh?"
"Ah, yup, right. Call me Hiro Tsunako." Hiro smiles, pulling open another bag of chips- and pushing a handful into his mouth. "Nice to meet you all!"
"Don't speak with your mouth full. Or at all, preferably." Dimitri gives an irritable sigh, as Hiro proceeds to shove another handful of chips into his mouth.
Kiske's eyes travel across the table, through the slit in his mask. "Hmph. My birth name cannot be pronounced by mortal tongue. But you may call me… Kiske Kynsward. Prince of Darkness."
Julian laughs at the introduction- "So dramatic! I kind of dig it, though." He grins, and his gaze turns to Alexis. "Last but not least…?"
She sighs- stranger side indeed. But, not without charm, she supposed. "Alexis Marsh."
The final bell rings in Marigold Elementary, and the halls flooded with students excited that their grueling first day had ended. Sabrina walks down the stairs of the main entrance, and walks to the gates- hoping to find that girl from earlier.
"Ah," She gasps when she sees the familiar baggy hoodie. "Mary! Hey!" She excitedly waves, as the girl stops and turns around. The look on her face was just as tired- if not moreso.
"Hm…" Mary gives another hum- before raising her hand and offering Sabrina a wave. She yawns as the girl catches up to her at the gate.
"Hey!" She smiles, repeating herself. "I was, uh… wondering…" Her voice lowers, as she grows nervous. "I was… wondering if you'd like to go to the park with me?"