Requested by: Guest, DeliciouslyDangerous1

Request: Lou/Misako

Warnings: None

Lou looked up from the crumpled sheet of paper in his hands. The words "Ninjago City High School" were printed in bold lettering on the faded brick walls. He gulped, terrified that he would be a freshman in a sea of sophomores, juniors, seniors, returning students, and countless others.

Get it together, Lou, he told himself quietly. It's the first day of school, and there'll be plenty of other freshman here. Everyone's bound to be nervous! He took a deep breath, running a hand through his neatly-combed black hair, and walked quickly up the steps, swinging open one of the large doors and stepping inside.

It was pure chaos. Students walked quickly this way and that, shouting over the heads of others, crowding the hallways, shoving past each other to get to their first class. Even worse, they seemed to tower over Lou, and he felt as though he would collapse under the weight of their stares as he shuffled awkwardly around them to find the nearest wall.

He looked down at the class schedule in his hand. He was supposed to be looking for Room 176 B, but he knew he wasn't anywhere near there. He looked up and tried to get the attention of one of the students, but to no avail.

"Hey, um, can I ask you a question-"

"Look, I just need some directions to-"

"Can you show me where-"

He eventually gave up when it didn't seem like anyone would help him out. He looked up at a clock on the far side of the wide hallway he was standing in, which read 8:50. I only have ten minutes until class starts? He looked around frantically, panicking when he saw the hallways extending into other corridors here and there. But this school is huge! How am I going to find my way to class in time?

"Excuse me!" a voice called. Lou looked away from the clock to see a boy and a girl, both probably sophomores, running up to him, a concerned look on both of their faces. From the way they held hands, he guessed they were dating.

"We heard you were having trouble with directions," the redheaded boy said, his voice carrying an unrecognizable accent to it. "Me and Edna here were wondering if we could help you out!"

"You're a freshman, aren't you?" the brunette, Edna, asked. She carried an almost identical accent to his. "You should be a bit more careful with everyone bustling about to get to their homeroom! You could get trampled, and nothing good would come of that!" She turned to her boyfriend. "Ed, tell him he's gotta watch where he's going!"

Lou raised an eyebrow at the odd young couple before him, then shook his head. They seemed like they knew what they were doing, so it wouldn't hurt to ask for help. "Well, I need to get to Room 176 B, and I keep looking around at all these doors, and I'm not really getting any hints..."

Edna reached out a hand and dragged Lou after them as they navigated around the students and down the hall. "Then let's get going before things get really crazy!"

The other hallways weren't much better when it came to how crowded they were. All around Lou could see kids getting jostled this way and that, books getting accidentally knocked out of the hands of unsuspecting fellow freshmen, no one bothering to help the flustered students. The halls reeked of sweat and body odour, as though no one here had heard of deodorant, or soap, or personal hygiene in general. The glares he earned from older students didn't help much, either, and he felt as though they would leap at him at any given moment.

Ed and Edna, he couldn't believe those were actually their names, didn't seem to mind. They simply wove their way through the crowds as though they'd done it a million times before, all while glancing at each other lovingly from time to time.

At last the crowds thinned out, and Lou found himself standing outside a faded green door, a tiny window just above his head. Edna let go of his hand and gestured toward the door.

"Room 176 B, just like you asked!" she said, smiling proudly. "I remember when Ed and I first had class together in this room. Right, Ed?"

"I sure do," he replied. "Science, second period, second semester." He grinned at Lou. "It's where Edna and I first met."

Edna sighed happily, gazing into the distance fondly at the memory. "We were assigned as lab partners on the first day of school. It sure was something to remember." She laughed. "And it's thanks to Misako that we started dating, what with her helping you ask me out, Ed!"

Lou raised a bushy eyebrow. "Who's Misako?"

"I think they mean me." He turned around at the sound of the voice, and his heart nearly stopped at who he saw. She was probably the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen, her long brown hair tied back into a braid draping over her shoulder, framing her face perfectly, a pair of thin-rimmed glasses perched on the bridge of her nose, her green eyes warm but also displaying maturity. Everything about her was beautiful, he decided.

She stared at him in curiosity, then turned her gaze to Ed and Edna, smiling. "It's nice to see you both again," she said. Lou sighed. Even the sound of her voice was beautiful.

"It's good to see you too, Misako!" Edna greeted. "But I thought you graduated! You were a senior last year, weren't you?" She gasped. "Were you unable to graduate 'cause you failed a class?"

She laughed, which to Lou sounded more like a song than a laugh. "No, I'm just taking an extra year. I plan on being an archaeologist, so I need to take a few more classes." She looked back at Lou. "Who's this?"

"Oh boy," muttered Ed. "Oh gosh, oh golly, oh darn. We forgot to ask what his name was, Edna!"

Edna gasped. "Oh, that's right!" She grinned sheepishly at Lou. "We're sorry about that! What's your name?"

Lou gave a short laugh, shrugging and hoping he didn't look too awkward in front of Misako. "My name's Lou."

Misako smiled. "Well, then it's nice to meet you, Lou," she said, her green eyes shining again. "I'm Misako. I hope we'll see each other again soon." Before she headed off to her class, she turned to call over her shoulder, "If you need any help getting around the school, just ask!"

Lou watched her leave, knowing how pink his cheeks were turning. Ed and Edna noticed this, turning to smile at each other.

"She'll probably be helping out the other classes this year, what with being a returning student and everything," said Edna. "You'll probably get a chance to see her again, if that's what you're worried about."

"Oh, right," Lou stammered, snapping out of his lovestruck daze. "Thanks for showing me the way to class. Where are you guys heading?"

"Construction Tech," Edna said with a smile. "But it's on the other side of the school, so we have to hurry!" She waved to Lou as she rushed off, dragging Ed along with her.

"You should do the same, Lou!" called Ed. "The teachers here are pretty strict about punctuality!"

Lou was too distracted by his thoughts about Misako to pay attention to what they were saying, still blushing profusely. He knew it to be hopeless, however. I'm just a freshman, and she's a returning student, he thought. It wouldn't work out.

He looked at the green door, then back down the hallway. But that doesn't mean I can't go to her when I need her. He sighed, smiling. Even if we can't fall in love, we can still be friends. And I'll be as good a friend as I can be.

The bell rang at that moment, and Lou jumped, swinging the green door open and dashing into the classroom. He shrank under the glare of the teacher, who immediately demanded why he was late.

Ah, high school romance. It sucks for some people. But, as in Ed and Edna's case, not for everyone! At least Lou can deal with being Misako's bestie, right?

Thanks to Guest and DeliciouslyDangerous1 for requesting this pairing! Stay tuned!