The first day of school is usually the worst. That was amplified if you show up about two months into the school year. Everyone is already set in their classes, in their clubs, in their cliques. It's nerve racking to not have a place. Well, for most people it is. But one du Couteau offspring was not like most people. Cassiopeia, even without a place in the school's society, was bubbling. She was the social butterfly of the three of them, even in France; Talon and Katarina had prefered to stick with each other long before moving to the U.S. "Their world is their problem," Cassie thought as they all three went to guidance counselor.

Dr. A. Atrox was and intimidating man. He was all dark and lean muscles wrapped in work attire. Cassie and Katarina had to acknowledge that dark attraction that surrounded him. "Dr. Atrox," Talon supplied for his sisters, "we need our schedules."

Dr. Atrox scowled, and Talon returned it. He waved them back into his office and searched for the papers. When he found them, he handed them to Talon to sort out. "Now, to deal with your club membership."

"What do you mean?" Talon asked.

"Club activity is required for graduation. As as seniors, you need to be signed up for at least one club today. The sophomore can choose relatively soon." The doctor sounded bored. It was obvious that he didn't plan to spend his life signing teenagers up to be part of school clubs.

"What clubs are there?" Cassiopeia said as she found her voice.

"Take a look," said the older man, sliding over a paper of sports and clubs.

"Sports count as a club?"

"Clubs are used as a 'team-building exercise'. Sports count."

Talon grabbed the paper and skimmed over it. He didn't want to partake in any of them, but at least he could decide in a minute or so. Cassiopeia would take forever. "Chess," he said, and Dr. Atrox put him in the roster on the club and let him know the meeting time. Katarina looked over as well. She would be quicker than Cassie.

"Uh, I can join foot-ball?" Wow, her accent was strong. The counselor gave her a strange look. She looked to Talon. "Je veux jouer au foot."

"She wants to play soccer. You know, actual football." Surprisingly it was Cassiopeia who offered the clarification. The sisters weren't as close as they were from the stories pre-Talon. Katarina looked to Cassie who only looked at Dr. Atrox. "And I'll take a few days to think this over."

"Alright," the older man spoke as he went through the same steps for Katarina. Then he wrote them passes and sent them on their way, glad to have an empty office.

Cassie was not in the best mood following her trip to guidance. Her grip on the pamphlet tightened, crinkling the paper. It was stupid, these feelings. Those two had always excluded her, even since Katarina's change. Well, she wasn't the only one to play cold.

Cassiopeia angrily shoved the activities paper into her purse and pulled out her lotion, slathering it viciously over her skin. She dared not to look at it. She hated that she was like this. She hated that her sister and brother excluded her. She hated her mother that fled after she was born.

"Mother…" the girl whispered as the tears from her rage rolled down her cheeks. She rubbed at her eyes, carefully as to not irritate her delicate skin. This was no way to spend a first day of school. At least she didn't have a class with her siblings, thanks to her being the youngest. But now, she didn't feel like being around anyone. Her bubbles had all popped. She could practically hear them. As the sounds became louder, Cassiopeia realized them to be the clicking of heels. A teacher, no doubt. She'd be written up if she was caught skipping. Not to mention it was her first day.

Without looking around, she entered the closest open room without a class. She waited by the door, almost paranoid of being caught. When she was out of danger, she released a breath and examined the room she was in.

It was dark, but she could see that it was a science lab. There was all sorts of things that never really interested her laying about in a way that prevented hazards. There was a quiet warning in her head that this should be in use, but she ignored it. Upon closer inspection, it seemed if the equipment was slightly outdated compared to the rest of what she had seen at the academy. Though, her heart stopped when the lights came on.

Turning slightly, she saw a boy with a white mohawk, a nice contrast to his warm cocoa skin. Her mind instantly associated him with a comforting cup of hot chocolate. He didn't appear to notice her, as his headphones blasted dubstep-esque music that even she could hear in clarity. Once he was done securing the door, he looked in her direction and froze, though it was only a second before he smiled.

"Heh, sorry," he said just slightly above indoor levels, "didn't notice ya' there!" His eyes crinkled with his smile as he removed his headphones. "I'm Ekko."

"I'm Cassiopeia." The girl saw no reason to withhold her name. Besides, it seemed as if she were the one invading his area.

"Wow, that's a mouthful," he said with a light voice. "Usually no one comes here, so I practice my independent studies."

"Oh, I'm sorry. I just… I didn't want to return my class, and I was scared of getting caught. I can leave so I don't disturb you."

"You don't have to. Besides, as the resident title-holder for most skipped classes, I won't rat on you."

Her eyes widened a bit. "It's only been two months, right? How often do you skip?"

Ekko smirked as he collected some of the equipment he would need. "I would tell you, but I'd have to kill you." Cassie had to give a small chuckle. She couldn't go back to class now, Ekko was actually making her feel better than she had felt in years.

Katarina hated her French class. She knew the language inside and out, but she didn't want to be stuck in a Spanish class. So, here she was, sitting next to a slab of a man, who was supposedly another senior.

His voice was gruff whenever he spoke, and it gave off the impression that he was always angry. (Unlike her, who was actually filled with such wrath.) But, the way he spoke her language was better than any other student she had heard. Katarina found herself watching him to save herself from the boredom. He would meet her gaze from time-to-time, and harden his eyes. She returned the cold treatment. It was her natural action. Push everyone away. This guy was no match.

It wasn't long after that the bell rang. She was looking down when the male from the next seat over stopped in his desk. "Parlez-vous bien l'anglais?" It was gruff and demanding, much like how he spoke in class. Katarina didn't answer and tried to get through him. He didn't budge. "Permettez-moi de vous tuteur."

The red-head lifted a hard gaze to him, a single jade colored iris peering into him. "Pourquoi? Je ne vous connais même pas."

He smirked. "You will. Welcome to the town." After that, he left. She went on as well, unknowing of the cryptic message.

It was nothing out of the ordinary for last minute things to appear in Talon's life. It had been that way since he ran away at 9 years old. So when he saw that the chess club was meeting today, he called up Marcus and explained to him the situation. It was alright with the general, so it was full steam ahead.

He definitely didn't fit the image of most of the people there. That was all fine by him, he just needed to be there so he could graduate.

He smirked after the meeting. Marcus noticed it right away. "Tu regardes heureux. Quelque chose de bon arrive à la réunion?"

Talon shrugged, not yet adopting his poker face. "Je bats le leader du club dans le premier match."

Marcus clapped his hand on Talon's shoulder. "Je suis fier de toi, fils."