Homura faced the tall wrought iron gates. Red brick laced with white mortar stood around the black metal. Students filed off the busses, out of cars, milling around. A man in a large grey coat, or was it a large man in a grey coat, stood at the front of the group. The second and third years had already formed into groups, making the first years look even more like a disorganized mob.
Which, in all honesty, was exactly what they were.
The grey coated man took a large breath, as though to suck all the air away from the students before him. It certainly sucked in their attentions. He gave a quick speech, something about another year at Yamaku, greeting and being nice to the new students, everything you'd normally expect from an impromptu talk about the start of the year.
Maybe everyone was early, and the gates were still locked.
The principal, as the grey coated man had identified himself during his talk, looked around puzzledly. He swung himself towards the gate, talking to someone slightly out of view.
Within a moment the gate creaked open on old hinges, black metal turning to orange. The crowd filed in. Second and third years moved knowingly, gravitating towards a large main building.
Homura looked around her. She was on the outskirts of the group, and had a good view of the lawn. Green led to another set of red brick buildings. Soft April winds that smelled of rain and trees traipsed past. They dragged with them the scent of freshly manicured grass and newly cleaned brick. Golden sunlight beamed down, illuminating the trees and topiary of the lawn.
Homura almost missed winter. Maybe it was because she spent the entire season buried within a book. Transported away. Far, far, far away, somewhere she hadn't spent the past two years in an orphanage. Somewhere she wasn't spending months in a hospital because, at only 15 years old, she had had a heart attack. Somewhere, far, far, far away, where her life hadn't just crumbled, no, been demolished, within the span of two years.
The group had now found its way inside the school building. Teachers shouted over one another to try and get their classes together.
"2-B, over here!"
"3-A, here!"
"1-A, right here!"
Homura quickly glanced at the small sheet she had received from Yamaku. The letter it came in contained her acceptance letter, along with the sheet now in her hands which told her which class she was in, and all the supplies she'd need.
What class, what class?
The numbers jumped out at her.
1-A
Where was 1-A? I thought I heard a call?
"1-A, is everyone from 1-1 here?"
Homura's head shot up. The majority of the group was gone, and she could see a black haired man holding up a sign with the numbers 1-A on it.
"Ah, wait for me!" Homura cried, sprinting towards her classmates.
"Is that everyone?" The teacher asked, "Alright, roll call."
He called out everyones name, one at a time, getting a small "Here!" or "Present!" or "Yeah!" with each one. Out of Homura, he gets a panicked "What?"
"Alrighty," He sighs, "That's everyone. Now then, this way."
Class 1-A's room was on the first floor, not too far from the entrance. It, like every classroom, had a white linoleum floor. It's walls were wood panelling halfway up, and then drywall with a manilla tint. One wall was dominated by an old green chalkboard, another a large pin board, and a third windows that let quite a lot of light in. In fact, if it wasn't standard school code to keep all the lights permanently on, it would be fine without them. Five rows of five desks, each sitting two people, were aligned in perfect rows, their grey surfaces devoid of scratches or graffiti. Something Homura found quite surprising.
Homura's deskmate was a tall girl, her short hair dyed blue. She looked horribly dejected at being placed with the raven-haired girl, continually eyeing up two girls halfway across the room, one with pink hair put into small twin tails, the other wearing her green-brown down.
"H-hi," Homura said, "M-my name's Akemi, Homura Akemi."
The bluenette didn't respond. She didn't even take her eyes off the two girls, who were now chatting and smiling. The green haired girl turned back, her own eyes looking at the Homura's blue-haired deskmate.
"H-hello?" Homura inquired, poking the girl's shoulder. She turned, looking at Homura as though she hadn't realized she was there. Out of the corner of Homura's eye, the pinkette laughed.
She's kinda cute, Homura thought to herself, her eyes wandering a bit.
The bluenette slid something across the table to Homura. Looking down, she noticed a small note pad in front of her.
"Hi, my name's Sayaka Miki. What's yours?" Is written on the pad.
"Homura Akemi." Homura wrote, sliding it back to Sayaka.
"I'm sorry we have to talk like this. Unless you know sign language?"
Homura suddenly felt a pang of guilt. She had been trying to talk to a deaf person. Oh god oh god oh god.
"If you were trying to talk to me earlier, it's okay. The teacher didn't put me with my translator. He'll learn soon enough though." Sayaka passed the note pad over with a triumphant grin.
Homura giggled when she saw this. "The pink haired girl over there?"
"No, the green haired one. The other girl's a good friend, though."
A loud cough from the teacher made Homura return her attention to the front of the room. Seeing this motion, Sayaka did the same.
The rest of the day passed mostly uneventfully. A small tour of the grounds, a brief description of the rules, the usual first day of school stuff. Except with more walking.
In fact, besides the fact that everyone stays on campus, Yamaku isn't much different from any high school.
Homura yawned as she made her way down the hall. Most everyone was already in their rooms. Sleepily walking along, Homura only made a basic note of what looked like a ball of gold gliding towards her.
Once she hit said ball of gold, then her perception of what it was changed. She also woke up quite a bit.
Clutching her head was a blonde girl, no older than Homura. She rubbed her scalp, hair the color of the sun rolling off her head, done up in two drills. She had one eye closed, the other like frosted brass. "Ow…" She groaned, her voice both hard and soft.
"I-I'm sorry, I'm so sorry!" Homura blurted out, "I-I didn't see you there, I was so tired and I-"
"No, no it's fine," The girl said, picking herself up, "There's no need to apologize." Her speech is very well bred, barely a step away from being formal.
Homura nods. "I'm sorry," She apologized one last time. There's a short silence as the girl straightens herself out, before looking at Homura. Or, no, she looks a few degrees off of Homura. "My name's Homura Akemi."
The blonde corrects herself, now looking directly at Homura. She smiles brightly, glowing like the moon. "Mami Tomoe," She said, her tone motherly, "It's nice to meet you." She glanced around, looking unsure of herself. "If I might ask, what room is this?" She tapped the door with a long white cane.
"Um, room 213," Homura said, nodding as though to reassure herself.
"Thank you," Mami beamed, turning and opening it, "Good night, Miss Akemi. I hope we might see one another tomorrow." With a small nod, she entered her room.
Homura turned to the other side of the hallway, the number 214 staring her down from the door. So many numbers today…
Homura opened the door, sliding herself into her room. Shutting and locking her door, she relaxed on her bed. The large red athletic bag sitting against her closet door begged to be done with. Homura sighed, getting to work unpacking. Most of the contents were clothes, uniforms, binders, notebooks, books, school supplies, and pills.
Homura smiled as she pulled out the last item in her bag. The only thing that did not fall into any of those categories. She set it atop her book case.
A small, red leaf, preserved in a frame, glass covering it. It, and a small note.
"Remember Homura, we love you so much." It read. A small piece of paper Homura had torn from a letter she had gotten, so many years ago.
Homura's smile dropped to that low smile, that meaningful smile, almost like a chuckle, but lasting longer.
I miss you two.