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Who: The Chitoku inaugural class.
Where: Chitoku campus, various locations.
When: Sunday, April 3, 2022, two days before the start of spring term.
What: The school has opened its doors.

After eight years of careful planning and preparation, the campus of Chitoku Academy for the Gifted was coming alive at last. Helpful staff members had been posted everywhere in anticipation of the crowd, and seemingly every variable had been accounted for in order to make the move-in and initial orientation go as smoothly as possible...

Save, that is, for the weather.

The sky had just opened up on several hundred students and their families. Boxes and suitcases were being hastily hauled to whatever shelter could be found, with the aforementioned helpful staff members now acting as guides to the most convenient locations, and clusters of people seemed to naturally form around them, waiting for the downpour to slacken so the day could proceed.

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The girl who flopped bonelessly into a seat a few spots down was next to impossible to miss, even if you wanted to.

Where most of those present had at least made an effort to look presentable, Shizuru had apparently missed the memo, with the trenchcoat over her shoulders half-hiding a shirt that was a size too small even on her skinny frame, and a pair of shorts that had probably been jeans a decade or so ago.

And then there was, of course, the hat.

Her duffel bag hit the floor a second later, and the plate she'd piled refreshments on hit the table a second after that. Clearly, she had taken advantage of the opportunity that had presented itself.

Miyume's eyes widened a bit as the girl sat down. She certainly did stand out to her with the way she was dressed and the shabby state of her clothes made Miyume feel a little less self-conscious about her own. The pale blue pinafore dress Miyume wore was one of the nicest ones she owned but the fabric was a little thin in places and its lace trim was a little frayed.

Her smile, while polite and friendly, was also a bit on the nervous side. Miyume didn't say anything, however, just picked at a bit of lint on her skirt and stole curious glances at the other girl and her food.

Shizuru was used to feeling eyes on her, though not quite as many as she had here. Not that it had ever really bothered her, but the atmosphere was... different. The adults seemed just that little bit more hostile, anyway.

One pair of those eyes belonged to the girl next to her, but they were showing curiosity more than anything. Cool. That was good by her.

"Yo." Raising one hand in languid greeting, she picked up a neatly-wrapped matcha cookie with the other and held it out, as if in an offering of friendship. "These are pretty good."

Not being one to reject offers of friendship, food, or much of anything else, Miyume took the cookie.

"Thanks," she said, clearly grateful, as she unwrapped it.
She bit into it delicately and chewed for several moments.

"You're right! This is really tasty."

" 's a ton of 'em down there," Shizuru noted with her mouth half-full, waving so vaguely in the direction of the refreshments that it was impossible to get any more information from the gesture than that.

She swallowed and leaned back in the chair, the front legs lifting a little precariously off the ground. "I'm Shizuru. Kasubata," she added, the last name an afterthought. "Second year. You?"

"Hazama Miyume, first year."

As vague as Shizuru's gesture toward the refreshment area was, Miyume seemed to comprehend it just fine.

"Where are you from?" she asked, lazily stretching out her legs. "I'm from Tokyo."

"Same. Shinagawa ward."

A boring, stuffy place like Shinagawa might seem a strange fit for someone like Shizuru, but there it was.

Again as an afterthought, she added, "Nice to meet you, Hazama."

At least it was half polite?

"Nice to meet you, too, Kasubata-senpai."

Shinagawa did sound like an odd place of original for someone with such a colorful appearance but who was Miyume to judge? Tokyo was home to all sorts.

"I'm from Sumida ward."

"Huh."

Shizuru was silent for a moment, chewing thoughtfully (or, at least, it might have been thoughtfully; it was hard to tell) on an apple. Once she'd finished the bite, she gestured vaguely with the fruit, even more so than before--it was hard to tell what she was actually indicating.

"So. What d'you think?"

Whether it was from the gesture or the question, Miyume's expression clouded over with confusion. There was a long moment of bewildered silence before she spoke again.

"About what?"

"Here. This."

She offered an odd sort of half-shouldered shrug that nearly dislodged her coat. With the way she was sitting, it really looked like it ought to have fallen off by now, but still it clung stubbornly on.

"Your coat? It's very nice. Very fashionable."

It wasn't until the words were already out of her mouth that it dawned on Miyume that maybe, just maybe, the older girl had meant the school instead.

"The school looks... nice? I didn't get a chance to look around before it started raining."

Miyume probably wouldn't have time to look around after it stopped either. At least, not until her mother left campus. As soon as her mother had finished interrogating her roommate and putting away all of Miyume's things, it would be off to the nurse's office to discuss health care options.

Well, if the rain stopped anytime soon.

Shizuru had a feeling that was all the answer she'd be getting. Boring.

The legs of her front chair abruptly clattered to the floor as she swung forward and up. Mid-stretch, she peered down at Miyume.

"Gonna check the rest out. Wanna come?" she hazarded, though she had a feeling the answer would be "no".

Mother won't approve.

Miyume's initial thought was quickly dismissed, though not without a strong twinge of guilt. And it was as she'd told her mother earlier, she felt fine. No pins-and-needles, no numbness, and no pain. Maybe she was a little fatigued but that was normal for a big day such as this, right?

"Okay," Miyume replied, rising from her chair and grabbing her cane in one fluid movement.

Huh. She hadn't expected the girl to actually surprise her.

She stuck her arms through the coat's too-long sleeves, peering down at Miyume through her perpetually half-lidded eyes. "You okay in the rain?" And then her eyes fell on the cane. "And with that?" she added, jerking her chin towards it, her arms being preoccupied at the moment.

"I'll be fine," Miyume reassured her with a sweet smile. "A little water won't make me melt."

She tapped her cane once on the floor.

"Oh, this? I don't always need to use this but my mother insisted I bring it."

Another twinge of guilt and another dismissal.

If Shizuru's looks were normally hard to read, the one she gave Miyume now was nearly impossible.

But it only lasted a few second before she shrugged, the coat shifting with her shoulders and highlighting the fact that it was really several sizes too big for her. "A'right. Let's go."

She scooped up her duffel bag and slung it over her shoulder, and without a second look she was off.

Miyume walked after the older girl, though at a much slower pace. She concentrated on simply keeping up with Shizuru the best she could. As long as she didn't push herself too hard, she should be fine.

(Continued in the dorms!)

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