Her light brown hair was cut evenly about shoulder length and at the sides of her face were two braids each with three beads, two blacks with a white in the middle. She wore a black sailor school girl uniform, unlike the brown uniform all the other girls were wearing; as it was custmary to wear the uniform from your past school until you get the new uniform. Slung on her back was a brown purse/backpack. The two treasures she always kept with her were a thin head band with a crystal attached (a gift from her long dead mother) and a spiral seashell on a piece of string that she wore like a necklace.The shell she found on Japan's east coast beach was a memory of her being just a normal girl.
On the otherside of the courtyard a group that could be found at almost every school sat on their own private benches under the cherry blossom trees,that are yet to blossom at this time of year. They were the popular kids who
everyone respected, or more like had to respect.
The leader of the bunch, Reiko stood up. The wind blew her long blonde hair that she had brushed for nearly half an hour to ensure there would not be tangles. "Let's make known to her so that she knows we are far better than her," Reiko spoke; the others listened.
Reiko and the in-group, as they came to be known, strode over to where Urei was sitting.
Reiko cleared her voice loud enough for Urei to hear; Urei did not look up.
"Hey, I bet you want to talk to us," a member of the group spoke out of turn, which she recieved a look of disapproval from Reiko.
This time Urei Yatsuma looked up.
"Much better," Reiko said while having a smart aleck smirk on her face, "Since you are new here, we will forgive you for not bowing to us. You are more than welcome to do that now." "I'll pass," Urei commented.
"What!" Reiko's face was almost as red as her lipstick from anger. "We are much better than youuu!" She pointed an accusing finger.
Urei shrugged her shoulders, and went back to staring at her black shoes as if they were more interesting than Reiko and the in-group.
Reiko turned her back to Urei and walked away. The others followed at her heels like dogs to their master.
Reiko went over to the champion weight lifter of the school, "I need you to teach her a lesson." Reiko pointed to Urei. "A lesson of respect."
"Sorry miss, but it's my policy not to hit girls," he grunted.
"Maybe this will change your mind." Reiko gave him five thousand yen.
The weight lifter gladly took the bribe, "Sorry, my policy stays the same."
Reiko was outraged. Then she gave the weight lifter a kiss on the cheek. "Does this change your policy?" Reiko said in the sweetest voice she can conjure up.
"Miss, we got a deal." He gave Reiko a hug that nearly crushed her bones to powder before walking away to confront Urei and her disrespectfulness.
Reiko was spitting and searching for the water fountain out of disgust of kissing the weight lifter guy, even if it was just on the cheek. Just the thought of being touched by someone of lower status than herself; to her,everyone was a pauper and she was the princess.
The weight lifter walked over to where Urei was sitting. Walking was not quite the word, stampeding and crushing the earth below his feet was what fit the description more. "Miss, we gotta talk," he said to Urei.
"What's on your mind?" Urei asked knowing perfectly well what was on his mind, nothing.
"Some girl told me to...put you in your place. I'm here to teach you a lesson." The weight lifter punched his other palm to exercise his fists and show that he was serious.
"Now you wouldn't do that, would you?" Urei said sweetly. The weight lifter saw a spark in her eye, a dangerous spark. He stumbled backwards.
A crowd was starting to gather around the new girl and the weight lifter,blocking off all exits. "I think he is scared of a girl," a spectator whispered to their friend.
"NO ONE MAKES A FOOL OF ME!" yelled the weight lifter. He swung his tree trunk fist, but hit only air. Urei Yatsuma was nowhere to be found.
"Huh? Where are you?" The weight lifter felt like he was merely talking to the air.
Urei was standing on the weight lifter's head. When he looked up, he recieved a swift kick to the jaw causing him to topple over backwards. Urei jumped to the air and did back flips on the spectators's heads so that she can get out of the crowd. Safely back on the ground, and away from the crowd, Urei
began walking to her first period class since the bell just rang.
A boy with short light brown hair was walking with his group of friends. He took a glance back to see if he can find the new girl, but she was nowhere in sight. Something about her, something, he thought. Did he just fall for a girl that he did not know? He was pretty sure of the answer.
"Hey, who are you looking for Koji?" His friends inquired.
"It must be that new girl, he likes her," one of his friends mocked.
"As if there isn't enough people who can beat Koji up," a friend cruelly jocked, which made the others laughed.
"Shut up!" Koji yelled, knowing perfectly well it was true. He blushed since his instant attraction to that girl was so noticeable, hoping that the others did not see his face become a rosy color.
Koji snuck around the courtyard of the school during lunch time. He ducked behind bushes, took shelter around corners, and scattered to the cover of trees. He did not want his friends to find out where he was; he did not plan to have
lunch with them that day. Hopefully not ever again, not because they were not the best friends one can make, but he planned to spend this time having lunch with the new girl. "Hey Koji!! Where are you?" His friends called out.
Koji looked for cover, but he was standing in the middle of the courtyard. There were no trees or bushes to take cover behind. There were only tables that people sat at. He rolled under one just as his friends walked by.
Hey, there's some guy under our table!" A girl yelled.
"He must be trying to look up our skirts!" Another shrilled.
"Ewww. Disgusting. Kick him!" The third yelled.
They began kicking Koji who tried to block his face with his hands as he scrambled from under the table.
Once up from under the table, he was dazed and confused from taking all the hits. Stars did a little dance about his head, before falling on his head causing his newly gained headache to progress from bad to worse. He stumbled like the town drunkard.
"Get away!" Koji looked at the girl. To Koji, she looked like she had three heads.
"Stop looking at me!!!" She threw an apple at him which hit him square in the forehead; the other girls at the table followed the example and began chucking their lunch at Koji who in turn fled in the not so much graceful fashion. Disoriented, and swaying to and fro, it was like the town drunkard being chased out of town.
Koji rubbed his head to ease the pain, to no avail. What a great day, he thought. "Are you alright?" A voice said to him.
Koji looked up and forgot all about his aching head; the voice belonged to the new girl. His heart raced, his forehead was dripping with sweat, and he was at a complete lost for words. "I, uh, I..." Koji tried his best to form even a
simple sentence.
"You are not sick, are you? You don't look too well," said Urei.
Get it together Koji. Just put on that old Koji charm of yours, he thought as he tried to relax. "Hey good looking, looks like you need some company." Koji even put on a smile that would likely frighten girls then win them over.
Urei was puzzeled. Was she dealing with a nut?
Koji saw the confused and worried expression on her face. I just had to go and ruin everything with his sentence to her, Koji was embarrased for making a fool of himself, and saddened by that he ruined his one chance. "I mean do you
want to have some lunch." He held out a boxed lunch with rice, onirigeti (rice ball with seaweed wrapped around it), and a small piece of okinomiaki (Japanese pizza) as dessert.
"I already ate my lunch," Urei said and picked up the book she was reading earlier.
"We can share this. I have an extra set of chopsticks you can use."
"Arigato." Urie smiled. Koji would give his whole lunch away to see that wonderful smile again.
Koji began eating the rice. He looked up and discovered that all the rest of the food was gone. "Wow, you eat a lot," Koji commented.
Urei got that look of puzzlement on her face.
I just had to go and do it again, mess up things. Now I just insulted her. What else can go wrong, Koji thought. "I am..."
Koji was not even done apologizing for his comment when three large guys from the weight lifting team walked up to where Urei and Koji were having lunch.
"We don't know who you are, and we do not care, but when you mess with one of us, you are messing with all of us. Got it?" One of the men, whose arm had more muscles in it then Koji's entire small frame body has, threatened.
Koji was frightened. "We got it. We got it."
"No, I don't think you do," the wieght lifter corrected.
"Yes, we do understand," Koji repeated.
"No. I say you need a lesson, because you don't seem to understand."
"Yes, we do understand perfectly well."
"No. I say you don't. We have nothing with you little runt. Our problem is with this girl over here. So stay out of it!!"
"Then you will have to get pass me," Koji whispered.
"I did not hear you, speak louder!"
"I said, then you will have to get pass me." Koji repeated. What have I gotten myself into. Say sainora Koji and it's been nice knowing you, Koji thought.
Urei burried her face in her hands, this was not going to be a pretty sight. Urei pushed Koji aside.
Koji saw his chance to be a hero, he jumped in front of Urei. He can just imagine himself knocking over all the weight lifters with one good swing of his fist, and the best part of his fantasy was the new girl saying, "My hero protected me." Then of course, like all fantasies and fairy tales alike the
hero recieves a kiss.
One of the weight lifters grabbed Koji and tossed him aside as if it was nothing. "Now it's your turn," was the battle cry of the weight lifters.
Urei flipped over them and delivered a roundhouse kick before they knew what happened. They all fell over, but quickly got up.
"A little persistent aren't we," Urei laughed which infuriated the weight lifters more.
Urei kept knocking them over with lightning fast kicks and flips.
A crowd gathered; a crowd always gathered no matter if the fight was just a push, shove, and talk big fight.
Urei grew bored of this. She did not enjoy being different; whenever her fighting skill was discovered there was always somebody who challenged her. Urei lifted her palm to the air. A small orb of purple swirling clouds formed.
The orb grew slightly larger, but not by much, when she tossed it at the weight lifters. The orb exploded with a fearsome blast that shot a ray of purple color up from the ground.
Bruised, the weight lifters knew when to give up. Then ran away. "Mommy,"one cried as he ran away.
"No dignity, no dignity at all. That's what they have, or more like what they don't have," Urei commented.
The crowd of onlookers dispersed before she knew they gathered, except for one person. That one person who did not leave was Reiko. "You will make many enemies if you keep up that attitude of yours. Remember your place in the high school status ladder, you amount to nothing." Reiko stormed off.
Urei said to herself, "Like I don't have enough enemies already before even coming here."
"Huh?" Koji, who was brushing himself off after the fall he took, overheard what Urei said.
"Oh nothing. I guess you want to go now since I am completely different from everyone else. Who else do you know can shoot purple fireballs, or for that matter, any fireballs?"
"I'm Koji Taro. Sorry for that comment about the food and all. Can I walk you home after school?"
Urei looked up. I wasn't rejected, even though I am different. "I am Urei Yatsuma. I will be delighted if you walk with me home."
Urei sensed somebody spying upon them. Did they find her? She wondered,but all will be revealed to her soon enough.
