Cassiopeia Elegy Argyris's Story

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"Keiko.. Keiko is happy to make your acquaintance!" Bishop smiled kindly to Keiko finding the odd way she introduced herself to be rather funny, which intrigued the blonde haired boy even more. He grew a little curious about Keiko wondering if that was on purpose or maybe it just slipped out. She seemed to get lost in thought which made Bishop wonder even more. <This girl is curious...> He started to think heavily as well and before long he had succumb to sleep, the silent killer.

Bishop and slowly opened his eyes seeing students already getting up to leave the bus. "Wha-?" He would jerk to a sitting up position and looked around seeing Airdalen in front of his window and sighed rubbing his head. "I don't know when I fell asleep..." Suddenly he felt a mental smack on the head hearing his mother scold him from somewhere out in space. "Japanese!! You'll never get better at it if you don't speak it Bishop." The junior grimaced again and tilted his head down scratching his head feeling an itch. "Right Japanese..." He mentally faced palmed himself. "I mean... Japanese...Aahhh..." In his mind, he could see his mother crossing her arms holding a ladle and nodding her head. "I need some sleep..." Bishop moved to stand up and in thinking of his own faulty speaking skills, he forgot about the low head room right above the seats in the fancy charter bus and smacked his head on the hard plastic. "YOWWW!!" Bishop immediately collapsed back into his seat and shut one eye in pain rubbing his head. "Fine, i get it mom! More Japanese, ugh..." Bishop scooted out of his seat, then carefully got up to leave.
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Back at the Trander residence Kimiko, Bishop's mother was setting down with some juice watching the news. She would suddenly have a violent sneeze knocking over the glass and rubbed her nose. "Oh my... It appears someone was talking about me." She would giggle effeminately while covering her mouth with a hand. "It appears the universe is on my side yet again... A mother always knows." She giggled again, somehow knowing her son was scolded without actually being.... Scolded, about practicing Japanese.
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Bishop grumbled stepping off of the bus and winced seeing the bright light on the beautiful sunny day. He stepped over to where the bags were, and suddenly regretted having brought his surfboard. He grabbed the huge piece of.... Whatever surfboards are made of, and headed into the main school building. Walking through, he got several looks from people. One, he was in a rather un-kept and dirty looking school uniform since he forgot to pack another change of clothes except for his trunks, and a tank top. on top of that, carrying a surfboard wasn't all to common in school. He walked by two people he had never seen before, two seniors it seemed to be. One was an elegant looking male with a deep purple hair and the face you swear you saw before. Where again? Oh!! Mr. Swato! Yeah like a young much more intimidating and handsome- maybe even beautiful, Mr. Swato(Aeon). The other was an extremely lovely looking girl with silver hair, and red eyes that captured the attention when you looked at her face (Cassiopea..... C-Cassiopeia. I think i got it right :S) who was, well.... Talking the fellows ear off.

"Excuse me..." Bishop tiredly called out to the silver haired senior (Cassiopeia[?]) He scooted by the senior making sure to not have his surfboard scratch the girl's arm and moved on his merry way. He would glance back to make sure he didn't nick her arm at all with an apologetic smile before turning back around. He wondered around not entirely sure where to go until a hand grasped his arm forcing him to stop. "Bishop Trander?" "Hmm?" He turned to see another senior looking down at him. The person was lean, had a swimmer's body and smiled genuinely to him. "You're the new scholarship swimmer from Okinawa right?" "Uhh, yes." Bishop perked up a bit, fully facing the young man standing before him to be polite. "I'm Kenshi, I'm the swim club's president... Or rather, I'll be running for it once again this year. I just wanted to find you and let you know that we have a club meeting on Monday. We're expecting to see you there. I wanna see how good you Americans are in person." The man chuckled along with Bishop, the friendly yet competitive vibe growing around them. Bishop liked that a lot, it built group morale and was fun to be around when everyone was pushing at something they all had a common interest in. "You'll see me there! Guarantee it!!" Bishop winked and gave Kenshi a thumbs up. "Good, see you around then." The too waved good, and departed their own separate ways.



Bishop walked around not entirely sure where to go, but found a steady stream of Juniors heading to one room and decided to follow the school of students as they funneled into a single large classroom. <I don't know how everyone is going to sit in here..."> Bishop did the dance of a thousand pleases (That's tip-toeing precariously around people trying not to stomp anyone's feet) holding his surfboard close now feeling rather foolish. He eventually managed to go tot he back of the class, and leaned it against the wall finding a seat much to his relief. He sighed reclining back as he waited for the nominations to be announced so he could get out of here and go to bed. But he had no idea that fate would be thrusting an interesting opportunity to him in his near future.

---

The obvious reaction from such a curt and brief answer of Aeon was a pout. Cassiopeia even when to the lengths to cross her arms over her chest. It is true that he was not the type to speak in over-elaborated words when he can make it short and straight. However, it would not kill him to add a more sense of emotion behind his words from time to time. This would make him more approachable and even have fun at this school. Although, she had no right to complain. It is because he is like this that she had agreed and so did he. Looking at him who walked away towards the classroom where the nominations would be held, she released a huge sigh and shrugged her shoulders. In the end, she could only follow him.

But before doing so, a boy (Bishop) carrying a surfboard passed her with a proper excuse me. Instinctively, she let the person go through with a smile. However, her eyes were rather glued on the surfboard being carried. It was not because she had never seen one. This is more like she had never been on one or done surfing of any kind. Through her frail condition, she was not allowed to do such tiring activities that would be considered dangerous. As such, her eyes had a shimmer of admiration for the boy (Bishop) who had a surfboard. He must be incredible in it. She was about to follow the boy (Bishop) to ask about surfboards when Aeon's voice penetrated her senses. Regrettably, she would just have to meet the boy (Bishop) another time.

Following Aeon, she walked beside him and released another sigh. "I'm not that weak you know." She reminded him and had a very stern look on her face as if scolding the towering man near him. One could say that Cassiopeia was truly candid in her feelings more than anyone else probably. For the remainder of the walk to the classroom they were assigned to, she had kept silent but her eyes would often wander around to the other people in interest. At times, she would greet them with a bright smile on her face and asked about various things before Aeon would cut her off rudely in her opinion. Anyway, they had finally arrived at the classroom where she found that the teacher was still nowhere in sight. It was good they were not that late. If they were, she would have felt very bad about it since Aeon doesn't like tardiness.

Anyway, she looked at the students inside the room and found a couple of them already there. There were two (Kei and Akira) already at the back and it seems Aeon wanted to be at the back as well. For her, she wanted to seat at the front. There was only one student at front and he (Silas) did not seem bad or part of a syndicate. So, he must be good to talk to. It would be more fun to be there in her opinion. However, she did not want to cause more trouble for him. So in the end, he released s huge sigh and followed Aeon at the back sitting beside him. After doing so, she looked at their seatmates (Kei and Akira) with a pleasant yet energetic smile of hers. "Hello! My name is Cassiopeia and this is Aeon!" She pointed at the rather expressionless guy beside her. "It's nice to meet you! I wonder who would be Class President!"

Akira had almost given into sleep as she heard the rustle and bustle of shoes hitting the floor, students shifting themselves to their seats, and the dramatic whisper of gossip from one teenage girl to the next. She let out a soft sigh before she inevitably lifted her head up as people began pouring in. If she got caught slacking in class after her most recent confession she'd possibly be expelled from the school entirely. She had to be on her best behavior for the remainder of the year. She noticed that Silas was up front, sighing to herself. She also noticed that her surname, being dangerously close to Kei's, brought them even CLOSER together at the least favorable timing. Why do I get stuck with him after we have a spat? Bah! Senior year! A load of bollocks! This isn't exactly what I would call the best year of my life! Do adults lie about everything?

She noticed a face she'd never seen before. A new student? They seemed to be pouring in quite abundantly this year.. She looked the girl over, noticing that she seemed to be hooked around one of the guys she'd noticed conversing with Silas on the bus after the seating arrangement. She smiled a bit, holding her hand out to the ivory haired young woman, "Nice to meet you.. I'm Akira." she blinked, wondering if Cassiopeia would mistake her for a boy as well. Everyone else had so far, so she wasn't going to be offended if her or her companion Aeon mistook her gender. She was infact in a male's uniform, so if they did, it was definitely an honest mistake. She tapped her chin, shrugging her shoulders slowly, "Varthur would make a good senior class president in my opinion.." The black haired boy hadn't been rather happy with her previously, and had been quiet rude to her the day before, but it didn't effect her view of him. He was still a very responsible person outside of a party setting. She was voting for him, "He's got my vote." Akira laughed before turning the conversation back to Aeon and Cassiopeia, "Are you two new here?" She asked, having never seen them around before. She needed to work on her first impressions.. she desparately wanted to make friends. She desparately needed them, "It's nice to meet you as well.." Akira smiled over to Aeon, "I'm Akira, as I told your.." and she trailed off, blinking innocently. She then began to wonder about the relationship between the two teenagers (Aeon and Cassiopeia), "Friend?" She asked curiously, not trying to offend anyone. Her expression was clueless and a little embarrassed, "Sorry.."

Before answering anything, Cassiopeia leaned closed to Akira with a rather astonished expression. Their faces were just a hairbreadth away. She heard everything that was said but, she was more interested on how Akira look at the moment. "Amazing... You are really beautiful!" Those words were said with the sincerest feelings and without any kind of underhanded meanings. A bright smiled was on Cassiopeia's face as she turned to Aeon. "Isn't she beautiful? She must be more pretty in feminine clothes right?" Not waiting for an answer again, she looked at Akira and clapped her hands happily. "Ah, yes you would be more beautiful." This time there was the touch of warmth in those tones and her eyes of vermilion held a gentle gaze before returning to the original topic at hand.

"Varthur?" Cassiopeia spoke while tapping a finger on her lips. She was trying to remember if this Varthur person was seen by her in any occasions. Well, think hard she might, she could not recall. It was even seen through her face plastered with disappointment. This might due to her rather long leave of absences from school. She barely interacts with her fellow Senior and other schoolmates. Hopefully this time, it would not be that case. "Then, I'll vote for him too!" She declared without any hesitation. "Aeon won't be joining in anyway. If he did, my vote is on him!" Glancing at Aeon with a small smile and then returning her attention to Akira with great exuberance.

That's right, she hasn't met Akira and the others. So, it might seem that she is new in that aspect. Well, she just did recently transferred. "I'm a foreign exchange student. I just transferred here but, I was supposed to join you all earlier." Cassiopeia had an apologetic expression as she also gave a bow with the head to emphasize this. "Sorry, something prevented me from coming to school at the right time." She did raise her head once more and those silver-white locks followed her every slightest movement remarkably. "As for Aeon..." She trailed while looking at the said male. "He has been studying here for a long time, I think." She then leaned close to Akira as she whispered the next words. "He's really shy that's why he gets under the radar." Then, she returned to her former position and winked at Akira.

Then, there was the question about the plausible relationship between her and Aeon. Cassiopeia answered with a brilliant smile. "No need to say sorry!" She then grabbed hold onto Aeon's arm and had a very excited and her smile grew even more vivacious and wider if that was even possible. "He's my fiancé!"

Akira felt herself stop breathing as Cassiopeia leaned in closer, did her breath smell? Did she notice a pimple on Akira's face? The brunette couldn't help stressing as the gorgeous light haired girl got a closer look at her. I'm pretty sure I brushed my teeth, I'm positive.. but what if breakfast made my breath smell bad? She let her dark brown eyes gaze upon the other girl curiously, and appearing slightly anxious. Then she leaned backwards after words finally came from Cassiopeia's mouth. E-eh!? She called me beautiful? Her cheeks slightly flushed and nervous laughter followed instinctively, "T-thanks, but I'm not, really." she insisted, "The school thought I was a boy rather than a girl this year and now I'm Roselle's lap dog." she told Cassiopeia. Then she stiffened a bit. Why is she asking Aeon if I'm beautiful or not!? Akira sweatdropped a bit, putting both hands up in surrender. Did Silas already tell the violet haired male (Aeon) she said he was attractive? She didn't want Cassiopeia to find out she'd said it, it was merely harmless. Silas practically ripped it from my thoughts! Honest! She felt the stress building up inside of her head. Then Cassiopeia mentioned feminine clothes, making her cringe a bit. Akira had always hated dressing girly..

"I guess we'll find out tomorrow.." she laughed a bit, "My uniform swap is tomorrow." she rubbed the back of her neck gently.

Akira nodded when Cassiopeia spoke Varthur's name, looking around the room for him, had he arrived yet? Then she remembered that Cassiopeia also addressed Kei in her introduction, looking over to the brunette male before looking back to her, "In case he's day dreaming or something, that's Kei." She ushered her thumb to him with closed eyes. She didn't have a hate filled tone, it was flat and uncaring, but no venom behind her words. I don't want to start anymore fights.. but I can't just forgive him so easily.. plus he's in cohorts with Devone now. I'm not sure I can trust him if I ever needed him. She placed her elbow on her desk, cupping her chin in her palm, "Varthur is the most reliable, mature guy I know... if mature wasn't on the roster, Silas
over there would be perfect." She ushered to him with a giggle, "He's loyal and dependable, but definitely not mature enough to be on student counsel." Her tone was more friendly as she spoke of Silas, but she turned her attention back to Cassiopeia and Aeon before even more people discovered her crush on her best friend, "You will?" she asked Cassiopeia, before nodding, "I'm sure he'll appreciate it." she smiled sincerely. Varthur was mad at her, and she wasn't sure why, but he didn't do anything to deserve her ruining his campaign.. so why not promote? She giggled when Cassiopeia mentioned she'd vote for Aeon if he'd of joined in on the ballot, " I'm sure he'd do well." she added with kindness. Aeon did seem to emit a leader's aura.

"Ah I see, I came from Britain my junior year." She gave Cassiopeia a thumbs up, "I understand completely." She blinked when Cassiopeia bowed her head, tilting her head aside. Akira was half japanese, but aside from the language, she was still a little rusty on their culture and day to day life. Her gaze moved back to Aeon, nodding at Cassiopeia, "I see." she replied blinking, "Yeah.. I got drug around to a lot of parties last year and between sports and those, I didn't get to meet anyone who didn't attend one of the two functions.." She sweatdropped, remembering, or rather, not remembering much of her junior year. After she met Silas, her junior year only came in bits and pieces, most of it blacking out for large quantities of time.

"F-fiance`?!" She blinked, going wide eyed when the word crossed Cassiopeia's lips. She took a moment to take it all in, they both were so young! How did they know that they wanted to be together that long? To have children together? She shook the thought off after looking at the two again. Well.. they would have beautiful children, and they'd definitely be well mannered kids. Both of them just define excellence just by looking at them..

Akira noticed Silas had been talking to Devone for quite some time out of the corner of her eye, but besides her shoulders stiffening, she showed no sign of acknowledgement. She wasn't going to look, because if she did, someone would notice. Devone could possibly draw enjoyment from her discomfort if she caught on to it and Akira was determined to have a fight free day.

So despite herself she looked over to Kei, "You're quieter than usual, say hello?" she tilted her head.

Akira noticed that she got at least a vital sign out of Kei, closing her eyes and sighing. She was still exhausted and hungover as well, but she assumed Kei never got into the alcoholic scene before now.. which brought memories to her first party she attended at Airdalen. Silas persuaded her into attending... and she got sick as a dog. She'd drank before back in Britain, but she'd never gotten drunk like she'd gotten that night. Akira shook her head when Kei finally spoke, turning her brown eyes back to Cassiopeia, waiting for her and Aeon's reaction to everything that had been said. The brunette for once held her tongue, allowing the other brunette in their little group of four have his turn in the conversation. Besides, even Akira knew by now.. If she was talking excessively, she only got herself into more trouble in the long run. Then she nearly jumped out of her skin as she felt something moving in her pocket. She calmed when she remembered she had set her phone back on vibrate however. Akira dug into her pocket and looked at her phone as it vibrated violently. The screen said "Reminder: Work Today!!" She went wide eyed and facepalmed. I completely forgot I have work this evening! She thought with a sense of dread. She let out a troubled sigh, turning off her notifications and shoving the device back where it belonged. She was so glad she programmed her phone to remind her, if she hadn't she'd of gotten fired long ago for bad attendance. Akira turned her gaze back to Kei, then to where his gaze had met..

Akira noticed Devone was speaking to Silas still, causing her smile to fade without her notice this time. Why is she still talking to him..? What are they talking about? The anxiety built in her stomach like a ball of rubber bands, tight and constricted. She looked away for a moment, deciding to not grant Devone the amusement of knowing it was bothering her. Pretend you never saw it Akira, I'm sure there is a logical explaination.. Though she was still peeking out of the corner of her eye.


The more Devone and Silas talked, the more Akira thought about her blonde friend and worst enemy's kiss and the more it brought devastation to her mental stability. She was clenching her jaw, trying to ignore them, trying to not let Devone or anyone else realize that even now, without effort, Devone was still getting under her skin. She did pretty well other than her clenched jaw until she saw Devone touch Silas out of the corner of her eye, touching his face, then his lips. The mental picture of the two kissing returning freshly to her mind again. She swallowed hard, trying to ignore it. Akira succeeded in not staring, but the shock and somewhat hurt in her eyes was becoming obvious to anyone looking. The cause, not as obvious unless they knew about her crush on her best friend, but it seemed everyone was catching onto it these days.. Her mind was zooming in a million directions, she only hoped that no one had spoken to her during her moment of weakness. She couldn't hear anything other than the buzzing of everyone's voices mixing together like white noise. She was trying to draw her attention away, but to no avail, until she heard Kei ask her a direct question. She turned her attention back to him, still shaken up, "I'm feeling worse than I was earlier, but I'll manage." she replied back, a small half smile crossing her lips. She ruffled her own short untamed brown hair, trying to get the images of Devone and Silas out of her mind. Of course he'd be attracted to her. She's mysterious, rich, and she's just as confident as him. She's beautiful, she's everything a woman should be. She felt her jaw clench again as her thoughts became more and more destructive. Sera, she's got me beat even if Devone wasn't creeping into the picture. She's just as womanly as Devone and then some, confident, exotic. Why did I even think someone like me could have a chance? Sure, I'm not flat chested either, quite a distance from it.. but I don't suit the part of a girl. I like running, jumping, climbing trees. Sports. I hate dresses and bikini tops. I hate dancing and acting slutty. I lost my first real kiss to Bishop of all people! I've never been intimate with a boy and I've never been asked out before.. I'm not cut out for it. Her eyes lowered to looking at the floor as she mentally came to the realization that she was losing the battle no matter how she looked at it. Honestly, she doubted she ever was even considered a threat to begin with.


Friend.


I hate the word. That's all I'll ever be.

Huh, Varthur's late. That's odd. Akira thought to herself in a blank manner. Akira would've pointed out Varthur as he entered the building, but between her visual of Devone and Silas and her own destructive criticism, she felt to beaten down to even look up, let alone talk some more. Especially about someone else who seemed to hate her guts at the moment. Let's fill the room with everyone who is; scared of me, hates my guts, or thinks I'm insane. Oh wait.. we would require a larger room.. She thought pessimistically.

Akira was shaken when she heard a loud voice. She frowned as Mr. Drone was the cause of her mini heart attack. I will have a lawsuit on this man before graduation. She rolled her eyes bitterly. She listened in and since Silas volunteered Varthur before she got the chance, she made another choice before anyone decided to spout Devone's name from their lips. I'd rather rot in hell than have her as a class president. She raised her hand, her fingers set in a peace sign gesture, "I nominate Kei." and she jabbed her thumb in the boy's direction. Hell, it could be amusing. She was rooting for Varthur, but Kei was definitely one of the more mature of the group, and could use the spotlight for a change, "You're welcome." She yawned before leaning back in her seat. I just want the bell to ring so I can go to work and forget about every single bit of all this.


Maybe I should move on..?

But...How..?

---

Looking at Kei, Cassiopeia cannot help but smile brightly. She reminded him of her brother who was always sleepy or rather had a seemingly nonchalant demeanor. Although, she was pretty sure that her brother did took everything in a very serious light. She wondered if this Kei guy was the same. "Hello! I'm Cassiopeia!" She greeted while waving her hand in the process. Kei seemed to have apologized by his rather distant or dozing off presence. "No, it's fine. Once, we are done here. You should get some sleep!" She noted with a rather cheerful tone as she looked at Aeon. "Isn't that right?" Of course, he ignored her attempt for a casual conversation once more. It would not hurt for him to be more sociable to others. There is more to life than business matters really.

Anyway, the talk continued on until she had introduced Aeon as her fiancé. That is the absolute truth and somehow it surprised Akira. It made her wonder if engagements are not normal in Japan. But then again, Akira came from Britain as she stated earlier. So, it was not about the culture. May be, it was because of the current look of society. Akira must be thinking that this was a bond created out of love. How wrong it was. This was an arrangement that would benefit both parties, Aeon and her. In the end, she only smiled while Aeon did not say anything nor rejected her touch. Thinking about it, he never did and she was thankful for that. Aeon was doing his end of the bargain. So, she was really happy for that.

Before the talk could proceed, a teacher entered with such a loud voice and probably had aspirations to be rapper sensation in the future. Although, it made Cassiopeia laugh which she did without much restraint. She has no qualms showing whatever she is feeling. As long as she is feeling it, then it will be shown without any pretenses. Soon, she was able to calm herself when she heard a name for nomination. Varthur was called out. The one that Akira told her about. So, she will be voting for him. But, she was rather confused Akira nominated Kei. Why was that? She looked at Kei and then to Akira. "Now, I don't know who to choose..." Cassiopeia said in a rather childish and undecided manner. It was rather adorable when she did it with her lips forming a pout.

But before she could receive any answer, Aeon had already declared he was going to leave. Without further ado, he stood and went on his way. "Wait for me!" Cassiopeia instantly stood and looked at Kei and Akira. "It was nice to meet you! We're friends, right?" She chimed happily while waving with such energy. "See you later!" She then went after Aeon who had already left her behind. As she exited the room, she noticed a figure leaning on the nearby wall. It was a beautiful girl with black hair (Devone). In Cassiopeia's case, she was unaware that she was also a beauty to be considered. "Pretty..." She let out that word slip out of her lips when she suddenly felt a sense of nauseousness. "Aeon..." She whispered as she turned to another direction where she judged Aeon would be.

Her vision was blurring. It can't be. Not at this time, she did not want to make a scene here at school. She soon saw the figure of Aeon. Reaching out her hand to him, she called out his name in subtle desperation. "Aeon..." He must have heard her as she felt herself falling forward but arms wrapped around her form. She felt being embraced as she finally lost consciousness but not before saying an apology. "Sorry..."

Dark... Yes, it was so dark... This kind of scenery was normal. It was something she had gotten used to. This means, she had another fainting spell. With that thought in her head, she knew that it was time for her to wake up which she did. Her eyelids slowly fluttered open revealing those ruby red eyes. Actually, she was expecting the sight of the ever-normal white ceiling which would usually accompany the infirmary or hospital. But, it was the sky which welcomed her vision. It was also when she finally realized that the cushion which means she was on a bed was replaced by the tickling sensation of prickling grass blades. So, she was outside? This was definitely odd. She sat up and looked to her side which she expected where Aeon or even Hotaru would be with their concerned expressions. But, she was disappointed. No one was with her.

"Aeon?" She called out in question and then began to look around her. "Hotaru?" Her voice was bit louder now. But, there was no answer. Somehow, she was feeling fear creeping into her. Something was not right. She remembered feeling dizzy and Aeon was there with her. So, why would she be outside? Shaking her head, she stood from her position and decided to take a look of her situation more carefully. "Hello??? Aeon? Hotaru? Anybody?" She called with more definite and louder voice as she began to walk around. It would appear that she was at the soccer field. Well, she did like watching athletic events since she can't participate in them. But, there was no way that would be a good enough reason for her to sleep on the field itself.

Everything was not making sense as she released another sigh. Well, there was no use thinking about it too much. She took out her phone from her skirt pocket. At times like these, it was best to call a friend to help out. But, what welcomed her was the warning from her phone screen. "Low Battery." Then, it just turned itself off. "Eh???!" She was utterly confused why was that so. As a result, she tried to open her phone but to no avail, it won't power on. She stamped her foot on the ground in annoyance and bit her lip. This was just her luck. Fumbling with her phone, she soon gave up and put it back inside her pocket. She had another option make her way back to the main building. Well, that was the only choice she has at the moment.

Soon, she made her way towards the school building. It was so quiet which was rather weird. Well, she knew Aeon would be pleased with such atmosphere. But, this was not how it is at this school. "I wonder, where everyone is...?". She spoke to no one in particular when suddenly she thought of something plausible. "They must be having a tea party!" Yes, she was not the brightest tool when it comes to people interaction and all. But, she believed that as her step had an added skip to it. It was then that along the way she passed the soccer members' changing room. Hearing some rustling sounds and even groans inside, she stopped before door with a curious look. "Hmm? Is someone inside?" She thought to herself as she approached the door and gave a soft knock.

"Excuse me! Is anyone in there?" She asked from beyond the door. However, there was no reply. "Is anyone hurt inside?" She asked once more and tried to knock once more. This time it was a bit stronger than earlier which made the door creak, as it opened slightly. "Eh?" Her inner voice told her to run right now. But, she was more concerned about anyone being inside and hurt. She could not just abandon that person because, she had a the jitters. Taking a deep breath, she fully opened the door and entered. "Excuse me? Anyone here?" There was still no answer as she continued deeper inside the room.

There it was again, a groaning sound accompanied by a squishy sound. "Hello?" She called out and soon heard water. It seemed to be in the shower rooms. Someone must be taking a bath. Taking a deep breath, she went to it. "Please excuse my intrusion, but is everything all right?" She announced before entering the tiled room and there her eyes widened in great horror and disgust. There was blood everywhere and even as the water continued to fall down from the shower heads, the blood continued to flow on the white tiles. She felt her entire being frozen by the sight. Various entrails were scattered about and more horridly. There were people around that mutilated body, they were eating it as if it was the sweetest dessert ever. Judging by their attire, they are students of this school too. "N---No..."

Her voice was so soft and low, almost like a whisper. It seemed that even her voice was caught up in the full onslaught of fear flooding her system. It was then one of those students who appeared as if stepping out of a horror movie into the real world took notice of her presence. Those eyes looked at her with such emptiness yet at the same time ferocity of desire. Yes, the desire to eat. The said monstrous student stood which was followed by the others. They now began to advance towards her. She has to run... Yes... she has to run... She willed her limbs to move and stopped from being frozen. Because if now, she will be just like that person being eaten. She did not want to die . With that, she released a terrifying scream. "Someone help me!" As, she screamed at the top of her lungs.

Eyes tightly closed, as if everything scary and dreadful would disappear. If this was a dream, she wanted to wake up right now. But if it wasn't, then she would feel an excruciating pain soon enough. Then, she would die. She really didn't want that at all. That is why she screamed for help. She wanted someone to save her. Aeon. Hotaru. Her Father. Her Mother. Her Brothers. Her sister. Someone. Someone, just get her out of this nightmare. She was still not ready to die. As if on cue, she heard a voice so loud which matched her own earlier. Her eyes opened immediately and what reflected in those crimson eyes of her was an image of a girl with pink hair (Momo). She has no idea who the girl is, but she was truly grateful for coming to her aid.

It was then she noticed something coming towards her. Something shiny. Something square. Something known to her. It was a mobile phone which probably belonged to her savior. She quickly picked it up and held it closed to her. As if, it was the only thing that could determine whether they both live or not. Soon, the fear the paralyzed her body was losing its hold on her. Her eyes, which was filled with great terror was now being replaced by sheer amazement. It was unbelievable in more ways than one. Well, there were the zombies surrounding them. It was like something out of a cheap horror film. But what amazed her more was the pink-haired girl (Momo). She was like a ninja or a master swordsman with those.... Narrowing her eyes to determine what the girl was holding exactly. Oh, it was poles... Wait, poles?

That was surprising indeed, but to be expected in their current situation. In any case, she was actually amazed how strong and energetic the girl (Momo) is. She was vibrant, lively, and healthy. She wished she could be like that, but she was feeling a bit faint. Her constitution was not suited for too many stressful physical endeavors and what was happening was a prime example of such endeavors. Anyway, she felt the phone in her hand vibrate as she looked at it. There one the screen flashed a new message from someone named Kei. Wait... Kei? Somehow, she knew the name. Where did she hear that name? While thinking, it was then a zombie saw this as a means of a surprise attack, but it failed utterly. Well, the zombie was approaching from behind and she was still in deep thought. During that time, the girl (Momo) seems to be finished.

"Uhm... Thank you very much!" Cassiopeia stated immediately when it finally settled down. She ran towards the girl (Momo). At that exact moment, she was able to dodge an attempted attack and the zombie unwittingly hit the stacked lockers which soon shook and came tumbling down on the zombie student. She was unsure of what happened and looked at the commotion weirdly. After blinking a couple of times, she faced the pink-haired girl (Momo). Seeing her now upclose, the girl was very cute. "Thank you very much for saving me." She spoke with such gratefulness as she bowed in appreciation. Raising her head once more, she introduced herself properly. "My name is Cassiopeia." She then handed the phone back to the girl and gave a gentle smile. Judging from the light, she looked much like a ghost because of her white hair, red eyes, and pale skin. But, she was not the scary kind rather the mystfying one.

"What's your name?" Cassiopeia asked and before hearing the answer. She remembered that there was a text message on the phone which she held earlier. "Oh, you have a message from Kei." Saying that name again, she thought about it again. Where did she hear that name? It was so familiar. But, she could wory about that later when she is certain that they were all safe. Name-hunting can wait. Right now, it would be better for them to leave the area and find some place they could be confident enough that they will safe."Uhm, do you have any idea where we could go and be safe, and then think what happened to our school?"

"Damn." Was the first word that left Raiden's mouth as he awoke with unclear, fuzzy dizziness. The worst part was that he couldn't remember how he ended up in such a state. He wriggled his fingers and toes, trying to recollect his senses of touch, smell and hearing since sight was taking a while to settle and had managed to deduct that he was lying down on cold, hard ground.. consisting of tiles, perhaps. He attempted to get up but the world would spin around more and the best he could do, was sit up. He placed the palm of his right hand against his forehead and closed his eyes trying to regain focus but the contact established between skins felt wrong. He didn't feel clean for some reason. There was a kind of liquid covering his hand and being smothered against his forehead that he couldn't identity simply from touch, so he was forced to rely on his blurry vision. It was enough to provide him an answer, as well as more questions to come.. for it was red.. and he naturally deducted it to be blood. It's still..warm. He opened and closed his hand and the red became more clear as his vision normalized. It wasn't exactly the best sight, but it was sight and he was glad for that. As he stood up and started scanning his surroundings, he expressed his thanks aloud in brief mutters, "I'd hate to be a cliched forum moderator with glasses---" He paused as he finally grasped the magnitude of the situation and his heart rate quickened in pace despite his deceivingly calm composure.

"What. the. fuck."

Raiden loved playing violent video games but seeing the glory of guts and blood in real life was a bit too much for his taste. It was only now that his sense of smell had picked up on the stench of something rotting. Pinching his nose, he turned his head around to discover a rotting corpse whose limbs had disappeared to who knows where or had been removed by who knows what. The whole room he was in was decorated in blood and guts that it was hard to even differentiate what was what besides parts of a once living organism, a human being. Raiden conducted a pat down check to make sure none of those hideous displays came from him before heaving a breath out in relief. He was in one piece, at least for now. Raiden swiftly moved out of the room to find he was in a hallway and one that he could recognize. It was a hallway of Airdalen High. He remembered it from a tour he took last week but couldn't remember how he got there. Raiden started walking down the hall and discovered a few locker rooms that looked in as bad a shape as the room he was in originally... some even worse. Well this school sure is fucked up.. maybe I should have put more effort into not being kicked out of my old high school. Just when Raiden thought he was alone, he spotted a familiar midget-sized body lying ahead of him and started running towards it. So it's not just me, but Mai too?! Raiden immediately crouched by his unconscious cousin and started shaking her shoulders. "Mai, Mai.. wake up! Come on you little midget or I'll pinch your cheeks and make you cry!" he joked but his voice was very firm and serious. He worried that he might have been too late to save her and started checking that she too, was in one piece. "No blood.. no body parts missing..and you still have your bizarre eyeballs so get up." he shook her one more time before turning his head at the sound of female voices coming from a room two doors away.

"Uhm, do you have any idea where we could go and be safe, and then think what happened to our school?" Raiden's head moved back and forth before he decided to give his cousin Mai a free piggyback until she gained consciousness. He carried her up to the door where the voices were coming from before taking a wary sneak peek at who was in the room. The voices appeared to be coming from two females alright, but more specifically from students of Airdalen High who also seemed as confused as he was. His eyes lowered as he noticed one (Momo) was holding two metal rods of some sort that was covered in blood. Is she responsible for this? He turned his head back a little to check on his cousin whose weight was starting to get to him. I don't mind getting my hands dirty if they weren't so occupied at the moment. "Oi oi Mai." Raiden quietly mumbled while flexing his shoulders in an attempt to stir his cousin awake. He wasn't sure what was going on and what was going to happen if he approached the two, but he knew that if he was to do anything his cousin should be alert, up and ready to run should trouble befall them.

Mai

It was dark and only dark which scared her for a moment as she couldn’t see. Mai could feel something cold underneath her body and around her, it’s so cold, so cold and dark. Even if they were only her thoughts they were sluggish and it hurt a bit to think. Suddenly that cold feeling disappeared as warmth touched certain parts of her body. There was a strange sound coming from somewhere and she noticed just the tiniest bit of light in her vision. That little hole was the source of the strange sound and as her ears were finally getting accustomed to the world around her she realized it was most definitely a voice, a familiar one too.


The warmth from before disappeared just for a brief moment as did the rocking of her body. It came back of course which she was grateful for but that cold feeling she felt on the underside of her body disappeared and moved to her back as her cheek rested against something soft yet firm. Scrunching her eyes a bit, Mai disliked the sudden change and hugged her arms closer towards the source of warmth. Then an odd movement began happening at her chest and arms as if it was shaking her while she slept. That voice came back, calling her name at least she assumed it was as she was still a bit hard of hearing. Then it clicked, the voice, the warmth, the odd movements, her name, Raiden was trying to wake her up! But why would he do that, she was never one to initiate a conversation but when she was with Raiden it got a bit easier to do just that.


Nuzzling her face into the crook of said soft yet firm spot, Mai mumbled and regrettably opened her eyes. She blinked a few times waiting for her vision to come back and she was thankful for the onslaught of colors even if they only caused a headache now. But there was one color that stood out the most, the color red, it was everywhere. Confused Mai pushed away from the warmth that held her and she realized what had been happening. She caught Raidens eyes with her own and a blush rose to her cheeks. "W-Wha-. . ." Mai looked away and figured out that her bigger cousin was giving her a piggyback ride! Once again that look of bewilderment crossed her face and she pushed back away from Raiden.


This however didn’t go all too well as she fell out of Raidens hold. Landing on her rump, Mai let out a small nearly inaudible yelp and placed her hands on the ground to get herself back up. That’s when she touched it, it was wet and slightly warm. Even more confused Mai lifted her hand and could feel the semi-warm liquid fall away from it. Moving her to the front of her face, the color in her face drained but it was a bit difficult to tell considering her tanned skin tone. The semi-warm liquid on her hand was red, red which meant blood and she's been seeing a lot of red in the last minute or two. Her breathe came in quick as she tried to calm herself to not hyperventilate and she put her hand back on the ground making sure to avoid the pool of red that was there. Using the wall instead, Mai slowly got up on shaky feet and she jumped when she noticed the wall too had smears of red.


Fear became apparent on her face as she looked to her cousin to figure things out. "R-Rai-d-den?" her voice quivered and it was a bit scratchy. Then something caught her eye, orange met red but what it saw was something Mai had trouble understanding. Down the hall from them was a body. It wasn’t moving and the positions of its appendages were at angels they should be at. Not only that but she only saw the back half of the body while the upper body was hidden behind a corner. Raising her arm shakily, Mai pointed to said split body then shook her head not wanting to know.


Standing up a bit straighter, Mai walked on shaky legs closer to her cousin and simply put one hand on his arm as she grabbed a bit of sleeve. Signifying she was done freaking out and for him to lead the way. Lifting one hand, the one not covered in blood, she placed her finger to her mouth as she began to nibble at the tip of her finger. Shaking her slightly her messy hair fell over her eyes a bit. Now Mai was back to normal, well if you could call it that. For now she hid behind the comfort of her hair as well as her cousin’s larger body, nibbling on her finger helped her calm down it was an odd habit but one she had trouble breaking.

When Momo was done dealing with the zombie onslaught, she bit her tongue and covered her mouth in surprise. Did I really just scream the word ‘scum’? "Uhm... Thank you very much!" Momo turned her head, eyes widening as she noticed there was still one more zombie to go. “AUH—“ she was about to warn her new acquaintance but as luck would have it, the silver-haired girl had unconsciously dodged the attack with the zombie ending up trapped under falling lockers from a domino effect. Phew.. Momo wiped her brow with her forearm, only to glance back at her messy self and the messy state of the locker room. There was no way she would get used to the stench and sight of splattered guts. It took all her self-control not to puke. "Thank you very much for saving me." The girl bowed to which Momo blinked confusedly before smiling. "My name is Cassiopeia." “Cah-ss-ee-oh-pey-ah?” Momo attempted to pronounce or clarify her name with a head tilt. It was one of the longest first names she had ever heard of but it sounded beautiful. Analysing her new company, Cassiopeia looked very foreign and surely not Japanese which helped explain the unique name She appeared really pale in complexion, as if she was not used to the touch of the sun’s rays and had been raised indoors for the most part of her life. Momo snapped out of her thoughts as the girl returned her mobile phone. She seems okay but I’ve never seen her before.. is she a transfer student?"What's your name?" "Oh, you have a message from Kei." Momo’s head started to spin as she realised there wasn’t really any time for pleasantries and small talk. Sera could still be trapped in an elevator, and there was still the reality of zombies to face.”I’m Momo.” The junior said in a rush as she pressed a few buttons on her phone to access Kei’s message: 'Momo, it's Kei, I'm hoping you're okay. I'm at the sickbay with a few others.' "Uhm, do you have any idea where we could go and be safe, and then think what happened to our school?"

“Yes..” Momo replied then immediately started getting teary eyed as her thumbs went to work on her reply: ‘I’m okay. I have another survivor with me named Cassiopeia…’ Before she could continue texting, she dropped on her knees and started rubbing her eyes feeling like a baby. Momo just couldn’t stop crying. She was so relieved that her senior and whoever the few others were, were okay. Momo had been holding up a tough act ever since she woke up to the horrors of the walking undead but now that she had a moment to really sit and think about it, she was bawling. “I’m sorry..” she apologised to Cassiopeia for having to see her cry. She wasn’t used to crying in front of others. In the past, back at elementary, she would hide or deny her tears to the point of seeming emotionless just so the bullies wouldn’t get any pleasure of seeing how hurt she was. Airdalen, making friends, attending a party for the first time and really belonging with everyone had changed that. She sniffed the last bit of her waterworks and continued texting, ‘Is Sera there? Has she been rescued from the elevator? We’ll head over now. Take care.’ Momo pressed to send, stood up again and flexed her shoulders before tossing her mobile phone back to the girl. “Cassiopeia, I’ll fight the zombies okay? Can you promise me you’ll hold onto that?” Momo asked politely as she turned to gaze at the girl. She was taller than Momo so it felt strange for Momo to be leading. “You’re probably older than me. I’m sorry if I seem bossy.. I do respect my elders but I’m just really eager to be united with my friends and think we’d stand a better chance as a group too.” Momo picked up her dual poles before rubbing the back of her head apologetically.

Momo was alerted to the sound of something, or someone falling with a thump and had taken a new stance and attitude, turning her full attention towards the door leading out of the room. “We’re not alone..” Momo’s expression became serious, her eyes sharpened and her grip on her twin poles tightened preparing to launch an attack. It was just like in the movies. When chaos had settled down, hope been delivered, there would be an attack. Of course.. Momo without warning leapt out of the room and swatted the first thing she saw hard where the head would be located. When her adrenaline rush had faded, she realised she had made a mistake and attacked a non-zombie male (Raiden). “Oops..” Momo’s grip on her poles loosened out of guilt before she turned her head to see another girl with orange eyes and white hair (Mai) who seemed to know the boy she had just whacked. “Uh.. I’m sorry!” Momo apologised immediately, jumping aback as someone had witnessed her error which could start a misunderstanding. The last thing she’d want would be to upset or make enemies with the living right now.

The girl who now identified herself as Momo. It was a cute name really. Something you would name a very adorable and cuddly teddy bear. She likes it very much and her thoughts were disturbed when she noticed the girl having a hard time pronouncing her name. Well, her name was really a mouthful. "You can just call me Cassie for short." She offered with a warm smile. It was the least she could do as the girl who let alone smaller than her saved her from such a twisted and gory end. Glancing around her, she could not help but feel a bit of twitch inside her stomach. She could feel that whatever she had eat beforehand about to spill forth her mouth, but, she managed to settle it down. There were enough disgusting entrails about the room to add more.

Actually, she wanted to get out of this horrid room, but, didn't want to imply. It was then she heard Momo's fingers tap through the cellphone's buttons. It seemed that Momo was replying to Kei. The name is so familiar, why is that she can't remember? She was really not good with names, but she's really good with faces, that much is certain. Well, she waited patiently for Momo to finish answering the text message, but, she noticed those eyes of Momo were watery. Was she crying? Did the text message said something terrible. Cassie immediately lowered herself to the ground as she followed Momo who fell to her knees. "Momo, what's wrong?" She started with such sincere show of concern and everything that Cassie does is nothing short of genuine.

Cassie was really not sure what is happening, but, she simply can't ignore this as she placed both of her hands on Momo's shoulder."Everything will be fine. Just you wait." She said with the most soothing voice any one could ever hear. She then pulled Momo into a warm and comforting embrace. After a few minutes, she released the pink-haired girl (Momo) while she smiled brightly. Momo seemed determined than ever, standing up and then throwing the cellphone back into her hands. Cassie looked at the device and stood as well. Momo asked her to hold on to it. She looked at it and then back to Momo with a very determined expression. "I promise!" It was rather odd for Cassie to depend on someone who seemed a bit younger and even smaller than her, but, really appearance and age means nothing. It is all about what you can do, and Cassie accepts that she is remotely useless in a fight unlike this girl who was a lot braver and stronger than her.

Momo apologized if she comes out as bossy and said she respects her elders. Cassie shook her head at this and smiled warmly at Momo. "I don't mind really!" She gave a thumbs-up and continued on. "Age doesn't matter when it comes to friendship, right?" Cassie stopped at this and looked at Momo shyly. It seemed she went ahead again which Aeon warns her about. "Uhm... We are friends now, right?" But, the answer to that was never heard as there was a sound coming from an area close to them. Cassie immediately tighten her hold on to the cellphone and swore she'll keep it safe no matter what. She followed closely and soon without much of a doubt, Momo delivered a blow, but it was followed with an apology. Cassie took this chance to look and saw two new people. One was a man (Raiden) and another girl (Mai) with white hair which was similar to hers.

More importantly. it seemed that Momo hit the male (Raiden). Cassie stepped forward and quickly placed herself in between Momo and the new people. "Please, don't be angry with Momo!" Cassie bowed with great apology. "She didn't mean to hurt you. We were attacked by zombies and... we thought you were one... and..." She stopped there and somehow, she wondered if that was a good thing to say... The guy (Raiden) might get insulted because he was mistaken as a zombie. Cassie raised her head and had a very apologetic expression on her face. "We're very sorry!" She said in a very sincere manner as she then finally noticed the other most important part. "I'm very happy to know that there are still humans alive. I'm happy you two are safe really..." She said in a very warm manner and worry, which was odd as, she hardly knew them (Raiden and Mai), but, this is Cassiopeia, and that is simply how she is.

"W-Wha-. . ." She's awake.. Raiden thought with a sigh as his cousin overreacted with a blush followed by pushing away from him. "Ey hold on--" Raiden sighed again as his piggyback grasp eventually came loose from the tiny girl's fussing and Mai fell to the ground, fortunately landing on her bum. Honestly, we're cousins.. His hand messed up his hair as he watched Mai look around and get even more startled from the scenery than from being in contact with him. Could have been avoided if you fussed a lot less and stayed put.. Raiden found himself coming up with more and more sentences of lecture-worthy material the more his younger cousin moved about but he really couldn't blame her. He barely understood what was going on himself and had a similar reaction, if not, just more withheld. "R-Rai-d-den?" He turned his gaze back to his cousin in time to see her gesture behind him. Raiden turned in order to understand what Mai was looking at, only to sigh again at the dislocated dead body . She's going to have nightmares for a long time and like a little baby, maybe ask for company on the way to the loo. Just my luck. Despite his thoughts being complaints, he was genuinely worried for his cousin's wellbeing. He didn't understand where they were but wherever 'here' was, it was far from ideal and safe. "Huh?" Raiden turned back to where he had last seen his cousin only to find she wasn't there. It was a short-lived panic as he felt something or rather, someone tug his sleeve. He sighed again and put on an encouraging but fake smile as Mai started to nibble on her finger. "You little runt." Just as his hand was reaching down to pat Mai on the head as a sign that everything was going to be okay, something or someone had hit his head with a Clang!. In his confusion and dizzy state, he shakily tried to compose himself only to hit his head again but against the wall next to him instead. Ow.

“Oops..” Raiden gritted his teeth as he attempted to stand upright, "A big oops alright!" he yelled angrily only to nearly fall backwards as the pain to his head wouldn't stop throbbing. "Damn." He placed his hand on his head where he had been hit and leaned forward before making an effort to observe the people he was speaking to. Oh, it's them. “Uh.. I’m sorry!” The pink-haired girl (Momo) holding two poles in her hands apologised, followed by the other female (Cassiopeia) with her who had a more mature aura backing her up."Please, don't be angry with Momo!" The silver-haired woman (Cassiopeia) stood in front of the smaller one and bowed at him, causing a light blush to reach his cheeks as he turned his head away to hide it. The bow had just reminded him of the behaviour of waitresses at maid cafes with their "Welcome home, master" greetings. "She didn't mean to hurt you. We were attacked by zombies and... we thought you were one... and..." The female paused in speech and at a good time no less as Raiden raised an eyebrow. "Zombies?" "We're very sorry!" She continued to apologise. "I'm very happy to know that there are still humans alive. I'm happy you two are safe really..." Raiden tilted his head before taking a few steps closer to the woman talking to him that there was barely any space between them. "Do I know you?" He asked as the silver-haired one appeared genuinely worried for him and Mai but he didn't recall her at all. Raiden's eyes eventually drifted to the girl she referred to as 'Momo' hidden behind her. "Well I'm Raiden, the girl with me is Mai.." He jerked his thumb in his cousin's direction before taking a step back and continuing. "And we're freaking lost. We're new students and I don't really remember anyone notifying me beforehand that the orientation would be this horrifying. I guess that's highschool.." He shrugged in a cool manner when inside he was full of doubt and alert. Can I even trust these two?

Mai

Mai shrugged at Raiden’s nickname for her, she was well aware that she was rather small for her age but that was to her advantage. With being so small, most people often overlooked her due to that and often mistake her to be in junior high if she’s lucky. ”Huh?”, Mai thought of tugging on his sleeve again but it looked like her cousin had found her thankfully. Never in her life had she met someone who panicked over her disappearing, even if for a moment.

Suddenly a body jumped out from behind a darkened doorway and with some sort of object in their hands whacked Raiden on the head. She did her best not to get in his way but also tried to help him stand least he fall over and hurt himself even more. I wonder if I could even support him? Mai had let out a small squeak at the sudden attack but calmed down if just a little at the sight of other people. Students to be exact; the one with the pink hair (Momo) was carrying poles in her hand while the other (Cassiopeia) with relatively white hair stood behind her. Mai peeked out from behind Raiden at the girls and shook her head at how sincere the other girl (Cassiopeia) was apologizing to Raiden.

Her brow came together in confusion at the word zombie. In the time that Raiden had introduced and explained their situation to the girls, Maui had figured out what may have been the reason behind all the blood and dead mutilated bodies. It’s just like she said, all this is the work of zombies. Is there some sort of infection within the school? What a great way to be welcomed to a new school. A small frown appeared on her lips as her finger once again went back to her lips to nibble on. Returning back to reality from the way Raiden was handling the situation he seemed pretty cool about it unlike her own reaction to the whole welcome. And like Raiden she questioned the two girls and whether or not they could be trusted. For all she knew they might be planning on using her and Raiden as bait for whoever did all this.

OOC: I'm so happy.. I can get fancy text uwu


"A big oops alright!" The male she had hit on the head was definitely not amused at her accident but Momo’s attention started to drift because he had yelled it. As far as yelling went, Cassie had yelled and Momo had yelled and that action alone would attract hordes of zombies. "Please, don't be angry with Momo!" "She didn't mean to hurt you. We were attacked by zombies and... we thought you were one... and..." Momo’s attention returned to the group with a bit of surprise. Cassie gave off the impression of someone who was fragile yet she possessed the courage to stand between them should a misunderstanding form, to defend her. "We're very sorry!" "I'm very happy to know that there are still humans alive. I'm happy you two are safe really..." Momo stared at Cassie’s back in front of her, the girl being taller than her and smiled. She had only just met this senior but Cassie really seemed like a genuinely good person. It wasn’t every day that someone she barely knew would defend her so easily and without hesitation. It was admirable, really. "Do I know you?" The male student met eye to eye with Cassie, and Momo started to feel uncomfortable because he appeared to be analysing them. Who is this guy? She caught the male glancing at her afterwards before introducing himself. "Well I'm Raiden, the girl with me is Mai.." "And we're freaking lost. We're new students and I don't really remember anyone notifying me beforehand that the orientation would be this horrifying. I guess that's highschool.." Raiden talked indifferently despite their mention of zombies but Mai’s reaction of a frown forming and starting to nibble on her finger lead Momo to assume they hadn’t seen one yet. Raiden was also ill-equipped for such a threatening life and death situation. Even if he was male, she doubted he was strong enough to take on hordes of zombies without a single weapon in hand. Mai reacted more than Raiden to the topic, but she didn’t appear to have anything to say about the incident or about meeting as she continued to keep to herself and close to Raiden.

“Okay..” Momo scrunched her forehead in thought as she closed her eyes for a bit to concentrate. She remembered that Sera was in an elevator in building A, and she remembered Kei’s text message that basically said him and a group are holding up in the school’s sickbay which was in building A too. Right now, they were nearest to Building E which meant they were the furthest away possible from their desired destination. Plus there were zombies to make the trip more difficult and Raiden had yelled so chances were high that zombies would be arriving at their location at any moment. She opened her eyes feeling refreshed having clarified a goal and shared it with the new team. “Look guys, I have friends who are in Building A who need help and who are also in a group of their own so my plan is to head there. Plus this idiot—“ Momo daringly pointed at Raiden’s face with the end of one of her poles. “Yelled… so zombies will be here any minute. I suggest if you can fight, find a weapon.. actually even if you can't fight grab something just in case, anything that can harm, sharp and get ready to ditch this joint. I plan to move fast so keep up.” She smirked cockily, honestly liking the feeling of being in charge. She knew she wasn’t voted to be a possible leader unlike the nominations but there wasn’t really any other way it could go right now. Cassiopeia, Raiden and Mai seemed very clueless on the current situation and she had a plan that was better than being idle. It may have been because she was used to feeling powerless back in elementary that she started to seek some power and authority in high school, but even still she knew she had good intentions. Momo’s smirk faded and her pole lowered at the sounds of familiar groaning in the distance of the hallway. “Everyone, hurry.” She whispered quietly but urgently.