Outsiders
By XxRoByNxX78 and Tigersparade
Chapter 1Blood was sprayed across the wall.
Furniture scattered across the floor--broken.
Plates shattered on the floor.
In the midst of it, two bodies lay still.
"Mama! Papa!" A girl screamed and charged into the house, her dress ripped to shreds, barely hanging on her thin frame. Her hair was matted with dry, dark red blood. Seeing the bodies, she ran towards them, tears running down her face and breathing becoming increasingly irregular as she kneeled down between the two of them, checking their pulses. Nothing. She tried again. Still nothing. "Wake up!" She shouted, taking both of her father's shoulders in her hands and shaking him, trying the same with her mother. Again, she was met with nothing. "You can't leave me, wake up!" She pleaded, hitting her father in the chest weakly with a balled fist.
"P-Please wake up." She begged, resting her head on her father's chest, sobbing into it as she reached for her mother's hand, taking it in her own.
Slowly, a slim figure approached the girl and placed a gently hand on her shoulder.
"Please save them." The girl sobbed, not removing her head from her father's chest. She refused to show her tear-stricken face to her friend. But when met with silence, she knew the answer. "They're already dead, aren't they?" The girl murmured slowly. She lifted her head up and wiped away her tears before facing the figure behind her, looking at her apologetically.
"Your sister."
The girl instantly jumped up from her spot, dashing towards the bedroom she shared with her sister.
The door to the room was broken and hanging off the hinges, a large scratch violently slashed onto it. The girl's breathing hitched.
Was her sister alive?
She gingerly approached the room and pushed what was left of the door open, revealing crimson bloodstains on the once-pristine white walls. The wardrobe lay fallen on the floor. The windows were no longer there, their glass shattered around the room like mines. Her bed was torn open. The girl sank to her knees in despair. There was no way her sister was alive. It simply wasn't possible.
But then she heard a whimper.
A small one, filled with pain.
It came from behind the bed.
The girl dashed towards the sound, frantically clambering over the bed.
She was rewarded with the sight of her younger sister, holding her head with one hand and the other pressing a large open gash on her stomach. The elder sister was still for a moment, before cradling the figure collapsed on the floor and running a hand through her sister's jet black hair. Her younger sister--although in pain--did her best to look at her sister, who was always reliable, even now. She gazed at her sister and admired each feature of her face, taking in the sight. She was blessed, she thought, to be able to know such a strong person. She used what was left of her strength to lift up her arm and reach out her hand.
She placed a bloodied hand on her elder sister's face and gave a tearful, bittersweet smile before letting it fall limp.
Everything turned murky, and out of the darkness rang sister's voice, resolute and firm.
"Save her." -------------------------------
Monday morning was rather dreary. Rain had taken over, pouring down from the sky and becoming a nuisance for the students who had forgotten umbrellas and coats. Even with an umbrella, strong gusts of wind rendered them useless.
This, however, was not a problem for any of the students that had already made it to class, including honour student and student council treasurer Akimoto Manatsu, who was attempting to hold a conversation with her friend. The said friend was staring down at her note pad, drawing something that was a circle with legs. Manatsu was pretty sure it had a name, but nothing came to mind.
"The new transfer students are coming today, Nanamaru," She said, only to be met with a hum from her friend Nanamaru (aka Nishino Nanase), who seemed to be more engrossed in her drawing than talking to her friend. Although used to this, Manatsu pouted, wanting her friends attention but it was no use. Even after poking Nanase's face, the other girl would not look up.
The door to the classroom slid open with a bang, revealing the ponkotsu student council president: Sakurai Reika, soaking wet and dripping water. She dashed towards her desk, water trailing behind her. Unfortunately, she slipped on a puddle of excess water and shot towards her desk. Somehow, she managed to stop herself and the desk from toppling over as she collided with it.
"Yes, I made it! With ten minutes to spare!" She declared triumphantly. Neither girl bothered to glance at the clumsy girl, already used to her antics after two years. Sakurai smiled and stretched, tossing her head a little, trying to shake off the rain water. She placed her bag at the side of her desk and opened it up, pulling out a blank worksheet. "Manatsu! Let me copy your homework!" Sakurai begged.
Manatsu sighed. "Do not--I repeat--do not copy each answer down correctly like last time. I am not getting in to trouble again because of you." She pulled out a completed worksheet and handed it Sakurai who engulfed her in a bear hug.
She pushed the sopping girl off of her and tapped the homework with her index finger. Sakurai smiled sheepishly, taking a pencil from Nanase's pencil case.
"So, new transfer students today." Spoke Sakurai, expertly copying down answers like she had done many times before. Manatsu inwardly debated on whether or not to reply. She didn't to sit in silence until class started, but she didn't want to disturb her friend while working. Luckily, Sakurai seemed to answer the dilemma for her, sneakily attempting to swap worksheets with Manatsu. Distractions be damned, who cared if Sakurai did not complete the homework.
"Three of them." Said Manatsu, keeping a sharp eye on Sakurai's wandering hands that were a little too close to her homework. The transfer students had been a topic of conversation for around a week now; everyone was anxious to know what they were like, especially since they were transferring in at such a odd time.
"I wonder what they'll be like. Hopefully nice, right Nanamaru?" Sakurai grinned and looked over at Nanase, who merely nodded once more.
"Don't you think its odd though coming in at this time of the year?" Inquired Manatsu, resting her head against her palm, her eyes still firmly focused on Sakurai. Sakurai shrugged, not really caring that the three girls were coming in at such a point in the year; she was honestly just looking forward to making new friends. That may or may not let her copy their homework. Of course, that would just be a bonus.
"The same class too. I wonder why they didn't split the three." Manatsu mused. She noticed the door slowly slide open and signalled the arrival of the teacher to Sakurai, who jumped up and dash to her desk, whistling innocently.
The teacher, Himura, noticed this, but shook his head, having gotten used to the girl. He motioned for the class to settle down, then called for three girls to enter the classroom. The students watched as three girls entered. One was tall and beautiful, with dark chocolate orbs and long brown hair that cascaded down her back, punctuated by a freckle above her lips. Behind her was a girl with medium length hair that touched her shoulders, curled ever so slightly, smaller than the girl in front of her, with big brown eyes and an aura that exuded innocence and almost princessly about her. Then came a girl with a high bridged nose, brown eyes and short brown hair.
"Please introduce yourselves, girls."
Nanase, at this point, had finally moved her eyes away from her notepad to look up to the transfer students. Almost immediately, her eyes met the tall one and the two settled into a staring contest.
"I'm Hashimoto Nanami, please look after me." The short haired girl bowed to the class, smiling at them all.
"Ikuta Erika, I hope we can become great friends." Piped the black haired girl, who also bowed as well.
"Shiraishi Mai, I hope we can get along well." The tall girl introduced. While she didn't bow, she smiled pointedly at Nanase, who blushed as their eye contact continued.
"Any questions for the girls? Ah, yes, Sakurai go ahead."
"Do the three of you know each other?"
"We do, the three of us are cousins. We live together due to both Mai and Erika's parents going abroad. Since our grandmother fell ill, we moved here to look after her." Nanami explained.
The questions continued for another five minutes before finally being stopped. "If I call your name, raise your hand." Himura stated. "Noujo Ami. You will be sitting at the spare desk beside her, Ikuta." Erika nodded andmade her way to the desk, quickly striking up a conversation with Noujo. "Saito Asuka. Hashimoto, you will be sitting at the desk beside her." Unlike Erika, Nanami ignored Saito's attempt at conversation, opting to sit down quietly instead. "Nishino Nanase. Shiraishi, you will be at the desk behind her."
Mai smiled at the man and made her way down the aisle. As she walked passed Nanase, she glanced down at the girl's note pad. A look of confusion settled on her face, soon replaced by an amused smile as Nanase, blushing with embarrassment, blocked the drawing with her hands.
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The students took a small break before resuming lessons, and it seemed that nearly everyone in the class had decided they were going to spend it with the transfer students. While this proposition delighted one, the other two could not say the same. Nanami tried to fend some people away, since they got a little too close for comfort. Frankly, for her, touching was a no-go. Mai began to feel claustrophobia-inducing space her classmates had cornered her into, because apparently personal space was not a thing. On the other hand, Erika reveled in it, as she was a people person, and answered anything that she was questioned about.
Mai stood up abruptly, causing the students to move away, and approached the desk in front of hers. There were three students surrounding it--one its owner, the other two she assumed were friends.
"Excuse me, would the three of you be able to show us around?" She asked. The three girls heads shot towards her and a grin was soon formed on one of their faces. Another girl stared down at the desk while the other gazed curiously at Mai.
"Of course we would be happy to, though we should wait for lunch time, since break is almost over. I'm Sakurai Reika, the student council president. This," She motioned at Manatsu. "Is Akimoto Manatsu, the student council treasurer. And of course, you know Nanamaru; she's shy, but she will speak more once she gets used to you."
"Shiraishi Mai, its a pleasure to meet you. I do hope we can get along." Replied Mai, holding out her hand for each to shake. She went around, but nobody noticed that Nanase and Mai's hands remained interlocking. "Thank you for accepting to showing us around. Now if you will excuse me, I have to go save Nanami." As she stepped away, she noticed her hand was still firmly held in Nanase's grasp. She gently tugged on the other girl's hand to avoid embarrasing her. A blush blossomed on Nanase's cheeks as she retracted her hand, lingering for just a second more.
"Calling it now, but there's something weird about them." Manatsu's gaze followed the retreating figures out the door.
"Why are you so skeptical?"
"Why aren't you?"
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"Cousins?"
"I had to say something."
"I'm not complaining, but it's amusing to see all these girls so eager to show us around on a tour."
"Do you think they have it supplied here?"
"Probably not, but we have prepared for any outcome, so it will be fine either way for now. Relax and have some fun, you need it just as much as Erika."
"And you?"
"I'll relax when I know Erika is safe."
"Then I guess if you don't relax, I won't either."
"We'd better get back in to class--here comes our teacher."
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"Here is the student council room. It can only be used by faculty and student council members. If you need anything or need to go inside there, please inform faculty or student council members," Explained an ikemen-looking girl, who was introduced by Sakurai as Wakatsuki. She asked them to call her by "Waka-chan" or "Yumi-chan," whichever was more convenient. Wakatsuki had taken over the tour of the school roughly five minutes ago, since Sakurai was incompetent, Manatsu was too focused on the work in hand, and Nanase was too shy to talk, opting to just walk beside Manatsu instead.
"So... the school has a clinic correct?"
"Yes, I'll show you now. It's on the way to the canteen."
The seven girls walked down the hall way in silence, other than the accessional mummer from Manatsu who was focused on her work, before stopping in front of the clinic.
"So what exactly is stored in here?" Nanami inquired. Noticing the questioning gaze from Manatsu, she explained herself. "Erika here is clumsy, you see," she lied.
"I know what you mean," Wakatsuki nodded. "Sakurai is always hurting herself. They keep the usual stuff in there though, nothing drastic." Nanami was about to ask something else, but a tug on her arm alerted her. She turned her head to see Erika looking downwards at the ground, her grip on Nanami's arm tightening. She nudged the younger girl ever so slightly, making Erika look up and reveal black orbs.
"Mai." Nanami whispered, knowing Mai would hear turn around. With a glance at Erika, Mai got the message.
"Perchance Wakat-"
"Ehem."
"Excuse me Waka-chan, would we be able continue this another time? It seems I have just remembered we need to see the headmaster. Now, if you'll excuse us." Mai quipped, dragging both Erika and Nanami down the hall in the opposite direction.
"That's not the way to his office!" Wakatsuki called out, to no avail. Manatsu frowned.
"I'm telling you, something is weird about them."
"Why are you like this Manatsu? They seem nice right, Nanamaru?"
"Y-Yes, really nice."
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"Let's get out of here for a while; Erika needs to feed."
TBC ....A/N: Hey everyone thank you for reading please do comment and tell us what you think! A very huge shout out to our two betas who we are very grateful for
Weirdasspotatoe and
Akbdaisuki48 we hope you all look forward to the next chapter!