"I'm tired ... So tired of it all ... The rules, the orders, the restraints. Tired of adults acting like they're better than me. Tired of the judgment of my peers, expecting me to conform to what they want. Well, I won't. I refuse. I'll no longer be what you want me to be. This is the way I am. Got 'ah problem?"
...
The students of Seiyo Academy often expect new classmates throughout the year, but they instantly recognized one walking past them before classes began one morning.
"Is that the new student over there?" one girl inquired, pointing.
"Yeah, it is," answered her friend who was responsible for the gossip. The new student's blue eyes met the girl's through a pair of black glasses. The girl's gaze was held for a while before turning back around and continuing. The girl stood stunned with pink flushing over her cheeks.
"Hey, the transfer student is pretty cute, huh?" she whispered to her friend.
In Class Star, the question of who the next transfer student will be was soon answered.
"Ah, so, as you all know," Nikaidou-sensei explained. "We have a new transfer student today. Please give a warm welcome." Everyone waited with anticipation as the sensei gestured for his new student to enter. A somewhat tall boy came through the doors. He was long-limbed and slim with an almost feminine build.
His eyes were ocean blue, he had a plaid scarf with dangling earbuds around his neck to match, and he had short, messy brown hair that brought out his dark blue star earrings. He wore glasses that somehow made him look cuter. He turned to the class and pushed his glasses up his nose.
"The name's Akira Kaminari," he casually claimed. The girls whispered among themselves and the boys looked annoyed.
"As if there wasn't enough trouble with Tadase around. Now we have another pretty boy," Amu heard someone say. She had to admit the boy was indeed pretty. He had long lashes and an angular face, but she was pretty sure that he was a guy. He was also wearing casual clothes, consisting of jeans, and a plain jacket.
"As you can see," Nikaidou-sensei clarified. "Kaminari-san has yet to receive the Seiyo uniform, so for today, please excuse her appearance…" It took Amu a second to process the sensei's words properly.
"Wait... 'Her?'" someone spoke up. All the attention in the room turned to Akira. She was busy examining her nails. When it grew silent, she looked up.
"Yeah, I'm a girl. Got 'ah problem?" she announced.
After that little shocker, Akira was given a seat next to the window on the other side of Amu than Rima. She sat down and prospered her brown messenger bag against her desk leg before pulling out a notebook. When Amu glanced over, she would see the boyish girl. She had to remind herself, doodling, or taking notes. Akira mostly stared out the window, uninterested.
During break time, Akira didn't move and continued to doodle and zone out. The more Amu looked, the more Akira appeared girlish. She could make a very pretty boy or a very boyish girl but on closer inspection was definitely female. Ran squeezed out of Amu's bag and floated up next to her.
"Amu-chan... I feel a presence from that girl," she cautioned with uncertainty. Miki and Su floated out as well, both with equally concerned expressions.
"Is it a Chara?" Amu asked. Miki looked thoughtful.
"It feels similar, but it's too..." she trailed off, unable to come up with the correct wording.
"Dark," Su finished, shivering.
"An X Egg then?" Amu asked. Her Charas looked at her and shook their heads.
"We're not sure," Ran answered. "It doesn't really feel like one or the other."
Amu felt pensive. Not an X Egg or a Chara? What could that mean? It wasn't a Mystery Egg, was it? After school, she had explained all she knew to her fellow Guardians and they had discussed what it could be. Finally, they had come upon a theory. However, as Akira had already left the school grounds, there wasn't any way to confirm it.
Amu walked home wondering what to do. Her head jerked up as she sensed a familiar dark, depressing aura. An X Egg. She took off with Ran, Miki, and Su trailing behind. They dodged along streets and sidewalks heading towards the source, then stopped when they reached a wall of bushes. Amu wanted to hurry but was stumped.
"You guys think I can make the jump?" she asked her Charas. Miki looked around and spotted an alternative.
"I see the entrance over there-" she informed but was cut off.
"Yeah!" Ran exclaimed. "Go for it! You can do it!"
"It's worth a try-desu," Su added.
"Okay, but don't laugh." Amu decided. Miki shrugged and sighed.
With a Character Change, Amu's X hairclip switched into a pink heart as Ran gave her the optimism and athleticism to be able to jump over.
"Hop, Step, Jump!" Ran chimed.
Amu leaped into the air almost completely over the bushes, but her shoelace was caught on a branch. Her hairclip quickly switched back to an X. She screamed and burst through the wall of bushes, crashing at the bottom. Her Charas hovered above her to check if she was alright. She moaned and slowly raised her head in shock to reveal what was behind the barrier. The scene before them was far from what any of them were expecting.
Akira, with her short brown hair glinting in the sunset, sat in front of a bunch of X Eggs. Amu dashed forward, thinking she was in danger, but stopped when she saw why that was happening. Akira, with her glasses set next to her and bright blue eyes shining, was laughing. Amu stopped short again when a small figure hovered next to Akira's head. It really was a Dark Chara. Akira seemed to have heard something and her head whipped around to face Amu's direction. Her eyes narrowed and she rose, picking up her glasses and placing them in a pocket.
"What do you want?" she asked. Her stance was cautious and it almost seemed that she was trying to shield the X Eggs behind her from Amu's view. Amu put her hands up in a placating gesture after brushing off from her tumble.
"I was just stopping by, but ... What are you doing?" she asked as her eyes drifted towards the X Eggs and the small Chara next to Akira's head. Akira raised her chin.
"It's none of your business," she stated with a stone-hard tone. Amu flinched.
"Um, you do know what those are, don't you?" she precautioned, motioning to the X Eggs. Akira's eyes narrowed again and she gave a stiff nod.
"And... You're a Chara bearer?" she asked, prompting Amu's Charas to reveal themselves. Amu continued with her gaze that wandered towards the tiny figure, an X Chara named Mega.
She nodded a greeting with a relaxed but vigilant face. She wore dark blue star earrings crossed off with white X's, and a plain but warm bluish suit including a timber green muffler that was covered with an X pattern. Her hair was short, brown, and messy, not unlike Akira's but a bit longer. Her eyes were black and slanted with glasses also like Akira, and her pupils were replaced with white X's. Amu gasped after a realization.
"So we were right," she muttered. Akira wasn't pleased. She placed a light hand on Mega's head.
"What do you want?" she asked again with a voice that was anything but friendly. Amu wished that the other Guardians were here, but supposed that she'd just have to manage on her own.
"If you know what those are," she argued. "Then you should know that they need to be cleansed. You and your Chara, too. Your heart is black." Akira's gaze somehow grew even colder.
"These guys here are fine as they are," she defended. "You wanna know why? They have no place to return. There's no point in purifying them. The owners have already moved on."
"And as for me," Mega landed and stood confidently on the hand Akira offered. "I'm fine the way I am." Akira's eyes warmed as they fell on her X Chara. Amu's mind swirled.
The fact that her Chara looks like that meant it turned into an X Chara right when it hatched, Amu thought. What happened to her that made this happen? She shook her head and turned her attention to the X Eggs. If what she said was true, Amu wasn't sure if purifying them would be the best option. They also seem... attached to Akira. The usual cries of "Impossible" weren't there. They were just quietly hovering behind Akira. Amu was immensely confused but continued.
"I think we should purify them so they can be free!" she exclaimed. Akira's face became clouded with a mixture of regret, reluctance, and defiance.
The X Eggs seemed to understand Amu and immediately rushed to hide behind Akira. Amu was even more confused. Akira shrugged.
"They don't want to," she stated, sliding one foot back and relaxing into a less defensive position. "If you push the matter, I won't hesitate to stop you."
"For X Eggs, they aren't very menacing," Su sympathized. "They look scared-desu."
"Watch out, Amu-chan," Miki warned. "They could be playing a trick."
Amu wasn't sure what to do and wished more than ever she had the tactful Tadase next to her. It's my job as the Joker to cleanse X Eggs, she thought with a spark of determination entering her honey eyes.
"Ran," she called. Ran floated up beside her.
"Right!" She cheered. They looked at each other and nodded.
"My Heart: Unlock!" Amu chanted. As Ran popped into her egg, a pink light shone around Amu and her clothes transformed. When the light dimmed, she was wearing her pink cheerleader outfit "Character Transformation: Amulet Heart!"
Akira motioned for the X Eggs and her Chara to stay behind her. Can she not Character Transform or does she not want to? Amu thought but decided that now wasn't the time. If I can just lock onto her Chara... She made a heart with her hands and began the familiar chant.
"Negative Heart: Lock O-" but she was disrupted. Faster than she would have thought possible, Akira darted forward and punched her in the gut. Amu gasped for breath as the wind knocked out of her. She slumped and Akira caught her.
"Sorry, but I like the way I am now," she declared.
She took me out while I was in my Character Transformation without even transforming herself... How is that possible? That was all Amu could think of as the darkness became the edges of her vision before she blacked out.
…