Decisions which have to be made

Chapter 5: Kazuho Yoshida

A/N: tiggerpal07 - thanks for the reviews! This chap is a bit longer than the ones before, just like you asked.

"And this is the junior block," Carl said, pointing at a two-story building. He had volunteered to showing Harry around campus. "That's where you'll be living in until you finish basic training. And this over there is the medical center. That's where you have to go now."

Harry grimaced. "Will it be bad? Will they make me run thirty laps every day?" Carl had told Harry a bit how it had been when he'd come first to campus. He only had one month before basic training, so things had been a little bit tight to get all the fat off.

"Depends," Carl shrugged. "You still have one-and-a-half years left to get fit. It probably won't be that bad. Maybe you'll get vaccinations in a few days, but it's only a check up today. So don't worry about it."

The appointment with the doctor turned out to be OK. Doctor Kessler was quiet nice.

"You need muscles, boy," the doctor said, looking sceptically at Harry who , only wearing his boxers, sat on a table. "You're too skinny. With your stick legs you won't be able to get that far, but once you've got them built up with some more muscles you'll be OK in basic training."

"Do I need any vaccinations?" Harry asked worriedly. He hated needles.

"No, not yet, but next month you'll get an injection against Tetanus and Tuberculosis."

Next was a dentist appointment.

"Hm. Your teeth are in a good state, well done for brushing them so good," the dentist told Harry who was dressed fully again. "Quiet a few boys your age come to me because they didn't brush their teeth regularly and because they ate a lot of chocolate."

After the dentist appointment Carl showed Harry his new room.

"Hi!" two eight-year-old boys greeted as they entered. "You're Harry?"

"Yes," Harry replied, feeling nervous. It was a Sunday, so no-one had lessons to go to.

"These two devils are Cieran Crystal and Hilary Burton," Carl said, laughing as the young boys made some cart wheels, bumping into each other as there wasn't much space in the room. "They were recruited a year ago, Harry. In a month's time they'll both be nine, meaning that they'll start basic training together with you as you'll be nine in July. I'll have to go now Harry. If anyone bothers you, just tell me. And be aware of the campus bully, Kazuho Yoshida. You'll recognize him by his sumo-like body. If you get on his wrong side, he'll squeeze you to death, Harry."

"O - OK," Harry stammered, watching Carl leave.

"Carl's right," Cieran said, his face blank of any expression. "There are rumors that Yoshida broke a fox's neck like you'd break a twig. That fox had found its way here from a nearby forest, and it was unfortunate enough to be found by him first."

"Yeah," Hilary agreed, shivering in fright. "Saw its dead body with the neck twisted. That had been last summer. Large had made me go and get some equipment from the tracks that he'd forgotten the day before, and that's where Yoshida had killed that fox. Most horrible sight, Harry. When I told Mac, Yoshida had gotten grounded for a whole month, had to give his pocket money for that time away in order to pay for a small funeral, and on top of all he broke my arm, leaving him with another two week's inside his room. Broke it like he'd broken that poor fox's neck."

Harry grimaced. "Why don't they throw him out?"

"He's gonna go this year anyway," Cieran shrugged. "Anyway, they need him to do some small jobs, like teaching red shirts like us not to be scared of heights and so on. No-one's better at it than him, which is frightening news as his tactics involve partially pain."

"However," Hilary added, "after he broke my arm he got threatened that if anything like that happens again he'll get thrown out for sure."

"So... what do you usually do on Sundays?" Harry asked to change the subject. He didn't want to think about what this Kazuho Yoshida could do to him.

"Well... either we go swimming, do our homework or play with the other kids," Hilary answered. "What bout we introduce you to our friends?"

"Sure, why not?"


"Good day, Mac," Carl said, entering the chairman's office. "You wanted to talk to me?" He glared at Kazuho who sat in front of Doctor McAfferty's desk.

"Yes, Carl," Mac said. "Sit down, sit down. It's about Harry."

"Then why is he here?" Carl asked, hardly being able to resist the urge to call Yoshida idiot. Kazuho grunted in reply.

"Because I need both of you," Mac explained. "You, Carl, have to teach him how to swim, and you, Kazuho, have to help him overcome his fear of heights."

"Can't you appoint someone else!?" Carl exclaimed, standing up. "He'll kill Harry!"

"Carl, calm down. Kazuho will not kill Harry. I already talked with him. He won't do anything except doing his job. He's done it before, remember, Carl?"

He gritted his teeth, remembering how he'd been taught to overcome his fear of heights by Yoshida. It had been painful and hard. Carl knew that Harry was nowhere near being strong enough to last through it, but he also knew that it was a good way to prepare for basic training.

"Mac, please," Carl tried a last time. "Think about Harry's conditions. He's not exactly strong, doesn't know what real pain is -"

"I'll teach him," Kazuho smirked, rubbing his left fist with the palm of his right hand.

"- and is too scared of Yoshida. He won't be able to overcome his fear if you try to teach him this way. It won't help but make him fear even more."

"It helped you," Doctor McAfferty pointed out.

"Mac, come on! I had been three years older, had experienced more pain and my fear was probably half as worse as his! I mean, when we walked by the junior block I saw him gulp and stare at it in fear, what d'you think he'd do if you'd tell him to jump down from there? How do you think how he would react -"

"Carl, it's enough," Mac cut him off. "Decided is decided. Kazuho will teach Harry as soon as he becomes nine."

Carl sank back into the chair, sighing. He'd done everything to prevent this. Now he had to do even more to prevent serious damage done to his friend.


"This is Caroline Heinz - she's Carl's sister - , Ronald* Jackson, Yvonne Palmer, Corey** McLanahan, Ulla Porter, Eileen** McFurrin and Fergal** Tulley," Cieran introduced his friends to Harry. They were standing in front of the junior block. Although it was only April the temperatures went over 30 degrees, and most staff members and agents were inside or in the swimming pool. "Caroline, Ulla, Eileen and Fergal are nine already and start basic training with us; Corey, Ronald and Yvonne will do it after us as their tenth birthdays is while we're on our forty-third day in training."

"You counted?" Harry asked astounded.

"Sure," Hilary said. "None of us can wait to start, so we count every single day until it's time."

"So, what are we gonna do?" Fergal, he had a bit of a squeaky voice, asked. He had huge round glasses and looked just like a nerd. His parents had been mathematicians and scientists, but they died in one of their experiments, leaving him, as he didn't have any relatives which could care for him, in a home where he'd later been recruited to CHERUB at the age of five.

"What about swimming?" Corey questioned. With his round face, big brown eyes, tanned skin and ruffled dirty-blond hair he looked a bit like a farmer's son.

"Yeah!" Ulla and Yvonne exclaimed. They looked like twins with their auburn, shoulder long hair, bright-green eyes and freckles spread all over their faces. They even had the same height.

"Er... guys?"

"Yes, Harry?" Eileen said, smiling. She was a cute little girl with wavy, hazelnut-brown hair, clear-blue eyes and oval face. She thought that Fergal was great, and he in return had a crush on her. Wherever she went she always had a book about botanic with her, though she still didn't understand some parts of it after reading them over twenty times.

"I - I can't swim," Harry confessed, blushing.

"Harry!" Carl yelled, approaching them. "I need to talk to you!"

"Carl! Didn't you have to go somewhere?" Harry questioned.

"Yeah, Mac wanted to talk to me," Carl answered. "Just come listen to me. This is serious. Serious crap."

"What's the matter?" Fergal asked, pushing his glasses back onto his nose. They kept falling forwards.

"Mac wants that Yoshida "helps" Harry overcome his fear of heights," Carl explained.

"What!?" Corey exclaimed. He'd had one encounter with the Japanese bully three months ago. It had been in the dojo when Yoshida had been appointed to help him learn material arts. The sumo-like body of the seventeen year old had nearly crushed every bone in the boy's body.

"I tried talking him out of it, but Mac wouldn't listen. Harry, you've got until the end of next July to overcome your fear on your own. If you don't, then pray to God," Carl said. "Luckily I was appointed to teach you to swim, so that won't be too bad."

"Wait - I have to overcome my fear of heights?" Harry gasped, paling rapidly. He couldn't stand being only ten meters above the ground. It was just too scary for him.

"What did you think?" Caroline asked. she was more than skinny, and looked more like a boy than a girl. "If you don't you'll never be able to pass basic training if you're scared of heights."

"But... how should I do that in three months? That's impossible!" Harry exclaimed.

"Harry," Eileen and Fergal said together, blushing lightly as they noticed.

"Of course we'll help you," Corey finished their sentence. "We'll help you whatever it takes."


* He is NOT Ronald Weasley

** If you know Back to the 80s, these characters might be familiar to you.