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Hello and welcome to the beginning of my latest Fanfiction. I got the idea for this one when I read this story a few months ago, and now I finally got to start writing it. Thanks to Leotrak for his valuable input and I hope you enjoy reading it.
Further critique is always welcome

Also for easier reference I added a chapter list:
Chapter One – A Girl Worth Fighting For
Chapter Two – A Whole New World
Chapter Three – Something There
Chapter Four – The Gospel Truth
Chapter Five – Poor Unfortunate Souls
Chapter Six – Snuff Out The Light
Chapter Seven – Trashin' The Camp
Chapter Eight – Let's Go Fly A Kite
Chapter Nine – Beauty And The Beast
Chapter Ten - Colours of the Wind
Chapter Eleven - God Help The Outcasts
Chapter Twelve - True To Your Heart
Chapter Thirteen - Zero To Hero
Chapter Fourteen - Can You Feel The Love Tonight
Chapter Fifteen - Supercalifragilisticexpialigocious
Chapter Sixteen - Circle Of Life
Chapter Seventeen - A Spoonful Of Sugar
Chapter Eighteen - Hellfire
Chapter Nineteen - One Jump Ahead
Chapter Twenty - Friend Like Me
Epilogue - Perfect World

Chapter One – A Girl Worth Fighting For
Tiredly I slap my hand on the alarm clock and turn around to lie on my back. In my head, fuzzy images of a moonlit night on the roof and soft lips kissing mine slowly fade away, to be replaced with the actual images of yesterday.

The school festival I spent together with Misha and Shizune - the plush cat, the roof, the fireworks... Well, no kissing yet but I have a good feeling regarding the future. It had been quite late when we finally retired to our rooms, so I'm not surprised to still feel sleepy. I turn my head to look at the alarm clock. Six-fifteen? Why the heck did I set my alarm to six-fifteen...

Abruptly I sit straight up. Of course. My morning runs! I better get ready, or Emi will have my head...

Twenty minutes later I arrive at the track, to find Emi already doing her laps. She cheerily waves to me and jogs over.

“Morning Hisao! I didn't think you'd be down here today. Most people stayed up quite late yesterday. Did you retire early?”

“Not exactly, but didn't you tell me it was important to stick to a routine, no matter what? Besides, I was afraid you'd rip my head off, if I skipped.”

Emi smiles sweetly. “I should tell you that I'd never do such a thing, but that kind of fear could come in useful in the future, so I won't.”

“By the way, what did you do yesterday? I didn't run into you once all day.”

“Oh, I had to help out with my class project. It was located in our classroom. Didn't get many visitors, because most attractions were outside. When my shift was over, I hung out with Rin at her mural for a while. What about you?”

“I was mostly walking all over the place with Shizune and Misha.” A frown from Emi. “Don't look at me like that. They're really not that bad once you get to know them. Anyway, we tried out most of the attractions...”

My mood darkens as I recall my less then glorious episode at the ball throwing stand. It just won't do to wimp out every time I have to do something as cheesy as that. One more reason to take those morning jogs more seriously.

With fresh determination I start on my first lap. Emi seems to have noticed something. Her smile disappears as she falls in beside me. “Did something happen? You seem to have something on your mind...”

I jog along in silence, while I try to decide whether or not to tell her. Well, she already knows about my heart, and she's in charge of my training schedule, so she should probably know. I take a deep breath – well as deep as me being out of breath from running will allow – and recount the events that led to me winning not two but only one plush cat.

When I finish, there's still the feeling of shame for being such a loser, but Emi doesn't seem to mind. She just smiles and keeps on running.

After two more laps, I start to breathe more heavily and Emi declares my training session over for today. I head back to the dorms to take a shower and get ready for school.

***

As I walk to the main building, the remains of yesterday's festival are still clearly visible. The skeletons of the festival stalls still line the walkways and there's litter everywhere. In a way, I feel sad that all the stalls we spent so much time to build will now be simply scrapped.

I enter the school building and go up to my classroom on the third floor. About half the class is already here, including Misha and Shizune. Shizune is apparently reading her notes from last week's lessons, while Misha is cuddling the cat I gave her. As I close the door behind me, she looks up and notices me.

“Hey, Hicchan!” she waves at me cheerily, then tugs at Shizune's sleeve. “Shicchan, Hicchan is here!”

She jumps up and runs up to me. A picture of her hugging me in front of the whole class comes unbidden to my mind, but she simply grabs my arm and drags me to my seat. “Thanks again for the kitty. It's just SO adorable!”

I feel half a dozen gazes converging on us. Great, now there are going to be rumours, before even I know whether or not they are justified.

I smile back at Misha. “You're welcome. I'm glad you like it so much.”

From the corner of my eye, I notice Shizune glaring at us. I hope she's not still mad at me for giving the cat to Misha.

It seems Misha has followed my gaze. “Don't worry, Hicchan! Shicchan is feeling all better today. Too bad she had to retire so early yesterday, though – she missed the whole fireworks.”

It's not like I was glad Shizune excused herself so early, but somehow I think that evening would not have been half as romantic if she had been around...

To be honest, I had my doubts regarding that 'headache', but I suspect bringing it up might cause a relapse. “Please tell her, I'm glad she's okay now.”

Shizune doesn't reply, but at least she stops glaring and turns back to her notes again. I'm not sure whether this is a good sign or a bad one.

While I'm still pondering this, Mutou enters the classroom and everyone gets seated.

“Good morning class. I hope you all had a good time yesterday and the projects you participated in were successful. You may have noticed the school-yard is still quite a mess, which is why for the next two hours you'll all pitch in to make it presentable again... Yes? What is it Mikado?”

“The student council has to complete the statements of revenues and expenditures by Wednesday. We have to collect the reports of the separate projects.”

“Of course, Mikado. You and Miss Hakamichi please tend to your duties.”

“But Hicchan is also a member of the student council.”

Mutou looks at me quizzically. “Well, in that case, he's free to join you, of course.”

In fact, he looks a bit relieved. He was probably worried about putting me to manual labour. I leave my bag at the desk and leave together with Shizune and Misha, while Mutou is handing out work assignments to the others. Student council work is not so bad after all, if it can be done during class...

Once in the office, Shizune hands me a list written in her distinctive, neat handwriting. Misha translates her gestures. “Hicchan, this is a list of all the projects of the middle school. Would you go and collect their reports? Misha will collect the reports of the high schoolers' projects. I'll stay here and prepare the forms – that is, Shicchan will, not me. WAHAHAHA~”

I take the list and look it over. “Could I do the high school projects instead? I know where their classrooms are. I'd have to search for the others.”

My objection seems to displease her, but she concedes the logic, and Misha and I switch lists. Inwardly I congratulate me on my quick thinking. This way I can probably prevent another confrontation between those two and Lilly...

***

I head straight to class 3-2's classroom and knock on the door. A female voice bids me to enter, and I do so.

“Good morning. I'm Hisao Nakai from the student council. I'm here to collect the finance reports from your project.”

The teacher - a tall and lean woman, maybe in her late twenties - smiles. “Ah, yes. I'm Miss Miyagi, the homeroom teacher of class 3-2. You'll want to talk to Miss Satou. She's the class representative of this class.”

“Yes, I know her, thank you.”

Lilly has already risen and is now coming towards me. Together we leave the room so as not to disturb the lecture.

“So Hakamichi did not come in person today and sent her lackey instead?”

Oops, seems she is still a bit mad about last week. I still don't feel like I have anything to apologize for, but maybe a bit of rebuilding bridges is in order...

“No, actually she was going to send Misha. Coming here was my idea.” She tilts her head quizzically. “Look...” I hesitate at the faux-pas, but decide to continue. “I know that filling out forms that are not in Braille is something that is not easy for you and your class. We still need to have all the paperwork ready by Wednesday, so I thought I'd come by and tell you first. I still have to collect from all the other High School classes, and that will take some time, as most classes are outside cleaning the school-yard. So I'll come back here once I'm done, and if you have the numbers by then, I'll help you put them in the form, okay?”

Lilly seems surprised by the offer, but quickly recovers and smiles at me. “Thank you, Hisao. That would be a big help. I will have the numbers ready in about an hour.”

“Okay, I'll see you then. Goodbye, Lilly.” She takes a small bow and returns to her classroom.

***

Two hours later, I am a bit closer to understanding why Shizune is in a foul mood so often. Badgering others to do their work is not something that will win you friends easily. But after much pleading, bargaining and being sent from one person to the next, I finally managed to collect all the forms and return to the student council office. Misha and Shizune are already busy transcribing the other forms.

Misha looks up as I enter. “Hey, Hicchan, you're back~! Did you get all the forms?”

I let myself fall on a chair at their desk and put the forms on the table. “Yes, but I feel like I had to run around the campus ten times to get them.”

“WAHAHAHA! Of course you do. It's always like that. I only got back ten minutes ago as well, so we haven't gotten very far... What? Yes, Shicchan, of course we'll help you.”

Shizune's glare could freeze water, and this time her foul mood certainly isn't from having to badger others. It's probably best to simply get to work, or it will get even worse...

Sighing, I grab a pen. “Okay, what do I have to do?”

***

After two more hours of tedious paperwork, Shizune has Misha call for a break and we return to the classroom. Funny how I consider going back to class a 'break'.

As we enter, I am surprised to see that the room is empty – empty except for Mr. Mutou, that is. He is sitting at his desk, reading a journal or something.

Shizune walks up to him, Misha and me in tow.

“...”

“Hello Mr. Mutou! Are the others still outside cleaning? I thought they'd be done by now.”

Mutou looks up, evidently confused to see us. “Mikado? Hakamichi? Nakai? What are you doing here? Why aren't you in your rooms?”

I look at my watch. “Well, it's still half an hour until lunch-break, and we have classes after that. Why should we be in our rooms? Where is everybody else?”

Realization seems to hit him. “Oh, you weren't here for the announcement... I'm sorry. I completely forgot to tell you.” He shakes his head and puts down his journal. “Well, afternoon classes are cancelled. If you followed the newspapers, I'm sure you read about the flu epidemic that is going around in Japan right now. Nothing serious for a healthy person, but we have many here who are not so healthy, and yesterday, there were a few cases not far from here. So the head nurse decided to have some doctors come in this afternoon to check everyone up and give them a flu shot, just to be safe. We've asked all students to return to their rooms for today to wait for the doctors.“

“Aww! Do we have to?” Misha's pouting is quite adorable. “I hate getting shots. It's like being in the hospital all over again!”

Mutou looks almost sympathetic. He probably knows something about Misha that I don't. “I know, Mikado, but this is for your safety and for that of your fellow students. Please bear with it, okay?”

Misha continues to pout but falls silent. I would really like to know more about that hospital stay, but I don't think Misha would appreciate me prying. I get the feeling she doesn't want to think about it too much, and I can relate to that. Instead I ask another question, that is probably 'safe'.

“Why don't we simply go to the nurse office to get our shots?”

“Several reasons. Mainly because this way we can get it all done in one afternoon, and if someone actually has the flu, they won't infect all the others waiting in line with them.”

Sounds logical. Shizune starts signing again.

“So the doctors are already here? Should we go to our rooms now as well?” Misha translates.

Mutou also glances at his watch. “ I think you still have time to grab something to eat at the cafeteria. That's why I dismissed class a bit early. But try to be in your rooms in about half an hour. I don't know where they're going to start.”

Well, that's a relief. The thought of going without lunch until the doctors are through is not a pleasant one. Misha seems to think the same way, as she hastily bids goodbye to Mutou and all but drags Shizune and me towards the cafeteria.

Chapter Two – A Whole New World

Half an hour later we are standing in front of the dorms, packed with sandwiches. The time was a bit too short to eat and make it in time, so we decided to take our lunch with us and eat it in our rooms.

In front of the dorms, the nurse is talking to half a dozen men and women in white coats, apparently giving instructions and handing out medical files. He notices us, smiles and waves for us to enter. Apparently we are not too late yet.

I say goodbye to Misha and Shizune and head to my room.

Kenji's door is closed as usual. From inside I can hear some muffled sounds that I don't care to identify. For a moment I consider knocking. Kenji probably hasn't left his room today at all, so he won't know about the examination. In the end, I decide against it, though. I'm hungry, and the doctors will manage to handle him somehow...

In my room, I wolf down my sandwiches and settle down on my bed with one of my books. There's no homework to do and no tests this week, so I can read without even having a bad conscience. The book is a fairly interesting one about aliens, time travellers and espers, so I don't even notice time flying by until I am startled by a knock on my door.

I glance at my watch. Almost two hours. They probably started at the lower floor. “Come in please!”

The door opens and two men in white lab-coats enter the room. One is a bear of a man – a good five centimetres taller than me and with shoulders twice as wide. He must be approaching 50 years, but his hair is still black, as is the beard that covers most of his face. I wonder if he dyes it.

The other man is younger – not much older than myself in fact. His right eye is covered by a black patch like in a pirate movie, and the end of a scar is just visible at its corner, but his mouth is constantly smiling.

I rise from the bed to greet the two. The older man reaches out his hand. “Hello Mr. Nakai. I am Dr. Kanzaki and this is my colleague Dr. Takakura. As I am sure you know, we are here to...”

He is interrupted by the younger doctor: “Come on, Kozo, I don't think we have to go the whole nine yards with this one. He has it. I could sense it as soon as we entered the corridor. Let me just...”

He is silenced by a glare from Kanzaki and his booming voice. “We WILL follow the procedure, Mr. Takakura. Please prepare the tests. False positives are nothing but endless paperwork.”

I'm a bit confused. How could he determine whether I have a flu from outside, without even having met me?

Takakura shrugs, then turns to me, still smiling. “Okay then, Mr. Nakai... Do you mind if I call you Hisao?” He doesn't even wait for an answer before continuing. “We will perform some simple tests, so just relax, Hisao.” He glances at the clipboard he is carrying in his hand. “So, you have a chronic heart disease... Ar... Arrhythmia? Sounds serious all right. Well don't worry, what we're going to do is not going to interfere with any medication you are receiving.”

Something is not quite right with these two. I've met my share of doctors in the past few months, and they are not behaving like doctors at all. He doesn't even know what Arrhythmia is? What are they...

Takakura turns to Kanzaki again grinning. “Oops, it seems he doesn't believe we're doctors. What do we do now?”

Kanzaki heaves an exaggerated sigh. “Okay Takeshi, you win. But if this turns out to be a false alarm, all the paperwork is on you.”

My confusion is rapidly reaching critical levels. I don't think these two are out to harm me, but what do they want?

Kanzaki motions to the bed. “Please sit down.” He himself sits down on the chair in front of my desk, while Takakura leans against the wardrobe. “You are right. We are not doctors... Well, I am a doctor, but not a medical doctor... And we are not here about the flu epidemic. We are here to scout Yamaku for students with... Special Talents. My young colleague here seems to be certain that you do possess these talents. If he is correct, we will offer to train you and help you refine them.”

Well, that explains some of the strange stuff about these two, but... “What exactly do you mean by 'Special Talents'?”

Kanzaki starts to reply, but is again interrupted by Takakura. “Interesting book you're reading there. I read it myself. Liked it. So what do you think about espers?”

I look at the both of them incredulously. They can't be serious. Is this an elaborate prank? If so, who put them up to it? The nurse? I wouldn't put something like that past his humour, but...

“I assure you that this is not a prank, and while I would not put such a prank past the head nurse either, he did not put us up to it... Well, he did organize this examination, but...” Takakura trails off.

My heart is starting to beat faster. Can that guy read my mind? How is he doing that?

“Yes, I can read your mind. Usually I refrain from doing so to respect other people's privacy, but I think this is the fastest way to convince you...”

He stops, his face tense. Like my chest. My heart is racing now and it hurts. My hand shoots up to massage the pain away.

“Uh, I think his heart is acting up. I called for the nurse. He should be here in a second.”

He hasn't finished speaking when the door opens and the nurse rushes in. How did he get here so fast? He shoots a venomous glance at Takakura. “Don't tell me. I don't need to be a Diviner to guess what happens here. Please stand back for a moment.” He motions for me to lie down and takes my pulse. “How are you feeling Hisao?”

His familiar face brings a semblance of normality back to the chaos of my thoughts. My heart starts to slow down gradually. “A bit better, I guess. What is...”

“Just lie back and relax for now. We will explain everything once you have calmed down.”

He continues to take my pulse and blood pressure for a few minutes, then he sits back and smiles at me. “Well, I guess you're going to be okay for now. I want you to drop by in my office later to do an EKG, though. You should look at the bright side: if a revelation like that didn't kill you, you'll probably live to a ripe old age.”

“So what they were saying about espers and mind-reading is true?”

“Well, we don't really call them 'espers', but yes, our young friend Takeshi here is a very talented mind-reader.”

Kanzaki turns to the nurse. “You should have told us about the severity of his heart problem. If I had known...”

The nurse looks chagrined. “Yes, that was my fault, but I didn't really expect Hisao to show up positive. He's only been at Yamaku for one week today.”

Two pairs of eyebrows go up at this revelation. “Really?” Takeshi looks excited. “I think his potential is the greatest of the six candidates we've found today.”

“You know, Hisao, Yamaku is located in a place where several leylines – streams of magical energy – cross. That's very conductive to the development of magical talents. It usually takes at least several months for them to manifest, though. Most of the talented students we find are third year students who have been here for at least a year.”

“So, there are espers...”

“We prefer to be called mages.” I am interrupted by Mr. Kanzaki.

“So there are mages among the students?”

The nurse shakes his head. "No, the last ones graduated this spring, but as Takeshi said, we already found some talented students today. Including you there are now seven potential mages at Yamaku. That's a lot. Usually we don't find more than three or four per year. We might have to bring in more teachers for so many...”

“The teachers are mages, too?”

“Only four of them, including me, but as I said, we might need to bring in more...”

“Wait, you're telling me that there's magic, and you can use it, yet we are here at this school for disabled people. Why don't you just use that magic of yours to heal them?”

The nurse looks at me sadly. “I'm sorry, Hisao, but it is not that easy. Magic can do a lot of things, but healing injuries or illnesses is not among them. We have to rely on completely mundane means for that.”

I slump down on the bed. For just one moment I had allowed myself to hope. To hope that there might still be a cure for my condition. But it would have been too good to be true. Still, my curiosity prevents me from being too deeply depressed. It's not like I'm worse off than before, is it?

“So what can magic do? I know you can read minds...”

“That's not entirely correct.” Kanzaki interrupts me again. “Takeshi can read minds, because he is a Diviner. Neither of us can do that, but let me start at the beginning. There are seven schools of magic. No matter how talented you are, you will be able to use only one of them, depending on your affinity.”

“And what is my 'affinity'?”

“The next step would be finding that out.” He produces a small item from the pocket of his lab-coat, and hands it to me.

Fascinated, I examine the thing. It is a ring, a simple band of silver with a single socket holding a plain grey stone. I look at Kanzaki questioningly.

“This is yours. It serves as a token of recognition among mages and it shows the affinity of its wearer to those with magical talent.” He smiles. “Go on, put it on your finger!”

I stare at the ring for a moment, hesitating. Then I look at the nurse. “What if I don't want to become a mage? Will you lock me up somewhere or erase my memory?”

Takeshi actually laughs at that. “You've been reading too many novels, haven't you?”

The nurse is unusually serious as he answers. “You can't 'unbecome' a mage, Hisao. You've got the talent. You may refuse our training. Some people do just that and continue to lead normal lives. Some try to make money off their talent and do petty tricks as stage magicians, but without proper training, they rarely amount to much. As for erasing memories... That is done in extreme cases, but it's not usually necessary. Who would believe you if you said magic was real anyway? That said, I really hope you accept our help, but the choice is yours.”

I stare at each of the three mages in turn, but they just regard me with solemn gazes. Then I take a deep breath and slip the ring onto my finger.

Instantly the previously grey stone in the socket changes into a glittering diamond.

Takeshi grins and turns to Kanzaki. “It seems we have found an Abjurer. The first one in Japan in... four years?”

The nurse continues. “And I guess that decides one of the teachers who are going to come to Yamaku, right Kozo?”

I have no idea what they are talking about, and my perplexity probably shows. In response Kanzaki holds out his hand – almost twice the size of my own - so I can see the sparkling diamond set into his ring.

“Well met, Hisao, I would be honoured to have you as my student.”

Please look forward to chapter three:
"Something There"

Oh I like this. What marvelous potential. Hmm, six other mages found; who could the others be?

I guess I shouldn't be too surprised at your twist on 'Throwing Balls' since my favorite is your least favorite…

Some editorial comments:

Mirage_GSM wrote:She jumps up and runs up to me. A picture of her hugging me in front of the whole class comes unbidden to my mind, but she simply grabs my arm and drags me to my seat. “Thanks again for the kitty. It's just SO adorable!”

By what’s said, this is obviously Misha, but I was momentarily confused because the previous line had Misha talking to Shizune and saying her name. Simply beginning with ‘Misha’ instead of ‘She’ would avoid any confusion.

Mirage_GSM wrote:but maybe a bit rebuilding of bridges is in order

Should be either ‘bit of rebuilding bridges’ or ‘little rebuilding of bridges’ for a more natural flow.

Mirage_GSM wrote:I still have to collect form all the other High School classes

This should be ‘from’ instead of ‘form’. Alternatively, substitute ‘forms from’.

Mirage_GSM wrote:“ I hate getting shots.

No space between “ and I.

Mirage_GSM wrote:here?Should

Put a space in here. You can use the one from the previous quote.

Mirage_GSM wrote:Sounds serious alright.

Eugh. I detest ‘alright’ as an abbreviation for ‘all right’, but I’m not going to turn the tide against this by myself.

Mirage_GSM wrote:we will offer you to train and refine them.”

‘offer to train you’

Mirage_GSM wrote:The nurse shakes his head. No, the last ones

Need an open double quote before ‘No’.

Thanks for the input. Fixed the typos and misplaced blanks.

griffon8 wrote:Some editorial comments:
By what’s said, this is obviously Misha, but I was momentarily confused because the previous line had Misha talking to Shizune and saying her name. Simply beginning with ‘Misha’ instead of ‘She’ would avoid any confusion.

I still think it's obvious who is talking, but if you were confused here, I'll take that as an additional bonus

Mirage_GSM wrote:Sounds serious alright.

Eugh. I detest ‘alright’ as an abbreviation for ‘all right’, but I’m not going to turn the tide against this by myself.

You learn something new every day. That's one not even my english teachers told me about. Fixed.

I guess I shouldn't be too surprised at your twist on 'Throwing Balls' since my favorite is your least favorite…

I still think "Throwing Balls" needs a choice point there

Mirage_GSM wrote:

I guess I shouldn't be too surprised at your twist on 'Throwing Balls' since my favorite is your least favorite…

I still think "Throwing Balls" needs a choice point there

Seconded! But we'll likely never see that happening unless there's suddenly a SECRET MISHA PATH ">_>

Anyway, my apologies for the things I apparently missed on my read-through ">_> Though, I use "alright" all the time, myself... Personal preference, really


Anyway anyway! Still a great read, this be ^_^ Looking forward to the rest!

Here's Chapter Three. Enjoy


Chapter Three – Something There
Half an hour later my most urgent questions have been addressed. Apparently, I am going to be an Abjurer - a mage who specializes in countering the effects of harmful magic. The nurse has left in the meantime to look after the other new mages, while Kanzaki and Takeshi do their best to satisfy my curiosity.

After a glance at his watch, Kanzaki rises from my chair. “Well, we should go now. You can rest for a bit, but please be at the principal's office at five - that is in two hours. You'll meet the other students and the new teachers then.”

I nod and they head for the door. As they step into the hallway, Takeshi stops abruptly. “Kozo... I think there is one more...”

“One more? You mean an eighth potential mage? Why didn't you notice him sooner?”

“Well, Hisao's aura was pretty strong, but now that I've gotten used to it, I'm able to tune it out.” He hesitates for a moment. “Who's living over there?” he asks, pointing at Kenji's door.

He has got to be kidding me. I don't even want to imagine Kenji with the ability to throw fireballs all over the place... No, he seems to be serious. “Uh, that's the room of Kenji Setou... But, you know, he is a bit...” I grope for the right word. “...eccentric.”

Takeshi looks at me with a puzzled expression.

“You'll see when you meet him.”

Kanzaki walks past us and knocks at Kenji's door. “Maybe you should stay with us. It might be easier for him to accept this, if a friend is around.”

Somehow I doubt that will be the problem, but before I can say anything, there is the sound of half a dozen locks being pulled back and the door opens just a tiny bit. “Who's there?”

“Hey Kenji, it's me, Hisao.”

The door opens completely. “Hey, bro, wassup?” He squints. “And who are those people with you?”

For a moment I hesitate, but this is Kenji for god's sake. “They are mages, and they are looking for other potential mages to train. They think you might be one and would like to do some tests.”

Both Kanzaki and Takeshi look at me as if I had lost my mind but Kenji grins. “I KNEW it! I bet they are fighting against the great feminist conspiracy and are looking for people to join the cause. I knew I couldn't be the last man fighting, or they would have won the war already.” He stops. “Although that means, I'm not the last sane man at all, which is quite a disappointment...”

I sigh in exasperation. Leave it to Kenji to simply accept something like that as if it were the most natural thing in the world. I tune back into Kenji's rambling.

“...Wait!” An expression of horror enters his face. “If you can do magic, then there have to be witches who can do so as well. Damn, that explains EVERYTHING!” He drifts off into incoherent mumbling.

Kanzaki turns to Takeshi. “I think that young man has gone into a shock. Please call for medical assistance again.”

“Don't worry. This is par for the course with Kenji. He's always like that.”

Kanzaki raises one of his eyebrows. “A severe case of gynophobia, is it? That could be a problem... Mr Setou?”

Kenji stops his mumbling to squint at Kanzaki. “Yes? So there are witches as well as mages, and you need my help to fight them, correct?”

“Not as such Mr. Setou. There are indeed female practitioners of magic, but we use the term 'mage' for both males and females. Also, there are rarely any fights...”

“No, no, NO! If they seem peaceful, that is only a ploy to deceive you. You have to get organized. It's a good thing you found me before it is too late... Maybe it already is too late. Aaargh. We can't waste any more time...”

Kanzaki shows the beginnings of a serious headache, and I can sympathize with that. “Well, I can see we will have a lot to talk about, Mr. Setou, but first let us find out what your affinity is.” He produces another ring from his lab-coat and explains its significance to Kenji.

Kenji grabs the ring and without hesitation slips it onto his finger. The stone in the socket changes into a deep black onyx.

I stare at the ring, waiting for the explanation. When none is forthcoming, I turn to the two mages. Takeshi has reached for the door-frame for support and looks close to fainting. Those parts of Kanzaki's face that are not covered by his beard have turned an ashen grey.

Takeshi fights to regain his composure. “This has to be a mistake. That ring is defective...”

“No, Takeshi, it is not, and you know it. We have to face the fact that this young man here is a Necromancer.”

***

After that, I am sent back to my room without further explanation. I try to get some rest like Kanzaki recommended, but I can't sleep. I didn't really expect that to work anyway.

I get up and head over to the auxiliary building. Might as well get that EKG over with before the meeting with those other future mages. I wonder if it's anyone I know? Someone from my class? Maybe – and my mood brightens considerably at the thought – maybe one of them is Misha.

Lost in thought, I arrive at the nurse's office. I just reach for the handle when the door is opened from the inside and I find myself face to face with Emi.

She jumps back a step. “H-Hisao, you surprised me.”

“I'm sorry, I just came here for an examination. I wasn't...” I trail off, as I notice something that wasn't there before. On her right hand there is now a ring. A plain silver band with a sapphire set into it.

Emi notices my gaze. Her first impulse is to hide her hand behind her back, but then I hold out my own hand. “Hisao! You're a mage, too?”

“I'll thank you to keep your voice down, Emi.” The nurse appears behind her. “We wouldn't want the whole school to know about that, do we? Well, there goes my surprise. I wanted to see your face when you meet him later at the principal's office...”

Emi pouts, but the nurse just waves her away. “You know that doesn't work on me, and now please go and find Mr. Nomiya. We don't want him to be late. You can talk to Hisao all you want later.”

Emi reluctantly agrees. “Okay. See you later Hisao!” She flashes me a huge grin, before she dashes down the hallway.

As the nurse ushers me into his office, I notice the ring on his hand. Earlier, I must have been too confused to notice, but it features the same light blue gemstone that Emi's ring had.

Guessing the question that's on my mind, he starts giving the answer himself. “Emi is going to be a Conjurer, like myself.” He grins sheepishly. “Although I never had that much magical talent. I can teach her the theory of course, but I wouldn't be surprised, if she surpasses me before this year is over. I'm not really here as a magic-teacher but for my medical skills. Still, Kozo... Mr. Kanzaki decided that I should teach Emi myself rather than sending another Conjurer to Yamaku. There are going to be enough new teachers already. Any more would be suspicious.”

“So what exactly can a conjurer do?”

He motions for me to take off my shirt and lie down on the bed. “Conjuration is a very versatile art. Of course there is the generic summoning... Rabbits from hats, doves from cloths and stuff like that. You've probably seen that on TV before. Real Conjurers rarely do that stuff, because those animals have to come from somewhere, and every time you do it, some little girl somewhere loses a pet.”

“The second school of Conjuration is Translocation.” He waves his hands and a set of electrodes rises from a pack on his desk and floats towards his hands. While he places them on my chest and connects them to the EKG, he continues explaining. “This includes simple forms of telekinesis as well as the ability to hover or fly or - for experienced mages - teleportation.” He pauses and turns on the EKG.

“I can do that only over very short distances, like a few metres, but it helped me get to you quickly earlier. I was lucky to be just on the floor below you at the time, so I just had to go straight up.” He stares intently at the lines appearing on his screen. “Summoning is actually nothing more than a very specialized form of teleportation where you cannot control the source of the creature or object.”

“The third and most difficult school is Creation. You create something from nothing. Nothing loud and flashy like an Evoker can, but with more control. I never had much talent for creation. I can create enough flame to light a candle or enough water to douse it, but a skilled Creator can produce complex objects, works of art or even large amounts of matter.”

He smiles at me. “You are going to be an Abjurer. Abjurers actually have techniques that are similar to Creation.”

“I thought Abjurers could only remove the effects of magic.”

“That's a part of it, but once your training is complete, you will also be able to protect yourself or others from the effects of magic. Abjurers can set up barriers of magical force that will stop most anything from harming you. You cannot create actual matter, but while a Creator could theoretically Conjure a wall of stone, it would take too long to be effective in battle.”

That's something nobody has mentioned yet. “Battle? You mean there really is stuff like mages throwing fireballs at each other?”

He grimaces and tries to evade the subject. “In every society there are law abiding citizens and there are criminals. Many Abjurers pursue a career in law-enforcements, but there are plenty of other avenues that are open to you. In fact, given your condition, I would strongly advise against trying to be a heroic crime-fighter.”

That actually makes me laugh, and his smile is back like it was never gone. “Now, you try lying still for a few more minutes, or the EKG will show some very strange results. Once we are done here we can go to the meeting together.”

***

It is a quarter to five and I am on my way to the principal's office. The nurse had to stay behind because of a last minute patient and told me he might be a few minutes late and I should go on ahead.

After I leave, I remember I've never been to the principal's office before, so I wander the hallways of the auxiliary building looking for the right place. Damn. I really should get to know this school better sooner rather than later. I am close to giving up and returning to the nurse's office for directions when I spot two familiar figures walking around the corner in front of me.

Misha spots me as well and starts to wave. “Hey, Hicchan, what are you doing here?”

“I'm looking for the principal's office. Do you know where it is?”

“The principal's office? Why do you want to go there? Don't tell me...” As soon as she starts translating for Shizune, I notice a flash of red on her finger, and it seems Misha has also realized the reason why I am here. She grabs my hand with her own and stares at my ring. “So you are also a mage? This is so cool! Now the whole student council will be powerful mages. Wahahaha~!”

“So you've got a red ring. What kind of mage are you going to be?”

“That Kanzaki guy told me it means I am an Evoker. It sounds cool, don't you think?”

I am reminded of what the nurse said about Evokers being loud and flashy. I have no trouble understanding how that could be Misha's affinity.

As I stand there wondering, I notice that Misha is still holding my hand. I feel the blood shoot to my face and try to pull my hand away, while Misha starts to giggle and tries to grab it again.

We are interrupted when two arms appear between us, pushing us apart. We look up to find Shizune staring at us angrily and signing with gestures fit to chop something apart. Misha stops giggling and translates “Stop fooling around. We're going to be late for the meeting. Yes, I'm sorry Shicchan.” The grin doesn't leave her face though.

As I fall into step next to the two of them, I take a closer look at Shizune's ring. It features an amethyst of a deep violet colour. “So, what about you, Shizune? What did they tell you about your talent?”

Shizune straightens her glasses and begins to reply. “I - that is Shicchan - am going to be an Enchantress. Enchanters can influence the minds and memories of others. Mr. Kanzaki didn't tell me too much yet, but he said it was an ability that requires a lot of control and responsibility. Well, Shicchan, it's perfect for you then. WAHAHAHA!”

She stops in front of a door and Misha knocks so hard I picture the door coming crashing down. A moment later Kanzaki's voice bids us to enter.

*******************

Please look forward to chapter four:
The Gospel Truth

Interesting premise you've got going there. Since you're just setting things up at the moment, I can't say much about the story. However, it's as good a way to present the obligatory infodump as any, so it's good that you're getting that out of the way. And on the technical side of things, you write quite well. Is English your second language? If so, color me doubly impressed, as you have a better grasp of it than many natives I've met.

I see potential here....

Kenji as a necromancer is... oddly enough amusing and worrying... "I SHALL BUILD MY OWN UNDEAD ARMY TO BATTLE THE FEMINISTS!"

Will be waiting for more Mirage, two thumbs up

Chapter four is going to be more info dump and the introduction of the last important characters (for now). The story is going to be more important in chapter five.
And yes, English is not my native language, but since I was fourteen, I've been doing most of my reading in english, and after some 250 novels (rough estimate) you pick up a thing or two...
Still, my writing experience so far was mostly confined to translation work, editing the texts of others and what amounts to a historical treatise for a fantasy campaign I was playing.
The stories in these forums are so far my first experiences with creative writing (except for two shorts I wrote years back in my native German) so I think there is still plenty of room for me to improve. Any suggestions to that end are very welcome.

Don't crossover. Ever.

Though this may be a bit late, wouldn't it.

I didn't crossover (not in this story anyway) nor do I intend to.
All characters in this story that are not from KS are my own. Similarities with other characters - real or imagined - are not intentional.
If you were referring to "Victory Days" then I have to plead guilty as charged...
I dislike doing crossovers just for the sake of shipping your favourite characters, but I don't want to rule out doing them in future stories for comedic effect.

Silentcook wrote:Don't crossover. Ever.

Did this even need to be said? Even if this was a crossover, I don't see what potential problems this would make unless it was a troll-post like that one Twilight fic. If readers aren't familiar with all the works involved then they'll... just not read it and the story will just fade into the shadows and not bother anybody.

To make things a little more clear:

-Crossover does not only refer to writing discrete already-estabilished characters together, but also to writing different settings or "worlds" together - even if only the characters from one of the two sides ever appear.
Joining two separate, contemporary highschool romance franchises is a crossover; so is joining a hard SF story with a supernatural horror story.
Perhaps I should have said "don't cross-genre-over", but I doubt it would have been better... I don't think it's even a word.

-There are no "potential problems" present anywhere here. I am merely responding to the call for suggestions to improve.

I'm recognizing a lot of Dungeons and Dragons terminology. Abjurers, Evokers, Conjurers, all specialist mages from 3.5 Edition.

Or am I off base?

I'm recognizing a lot of Dungeons and Dragons terminology. Abjurers, Evokers, Conjurers, all specialist mages from 3.5 Edition.

Or am I off base?

Yes, the names of the magic schools are the same as in AD&D, but don't expect the characters to make a visit to Faerûn anytime soon. The magic they're using is distinctly different from AD&D, and this is not a crossover with any pre-established setting.
My apologies to SC, though... It really is too late to remove the fantasy elements from this story...
Whether or not this is a bad thing is - in my opinion - a matter of taste. I've read or seen stories that did very well mixing Fantasy and SciFi (Scrapped Princess comes to mind) and others that failed horribly (the Rayearth OVA)...
In this case - and I know that is but a technicality - I didn't even mix two settings. I changed the KS-setting to include Fantasy elements. The genre will remain focussed on romance for as far as I have planned ahead until now, so this is going to be a Fantasy Romance like for example Shuffle.

And while I'm at it, I might as well post chapter four:

Chapter Four – The Gospel Truth
We enter a large office that obviously doubles as a conference room. There's a huge desk against the opposite wall, which is empty except for a few neatly stacked piles of paper. A few shelves line the wall behind it.

The rest of the room is taken up by a huge conference table with room for about twenty people. Kanzaki is sitting at its head, reading some files spread out in front of him. Takeshi is sitting at his right and Kenji at his left. The latter looks sufficiently cowed. I don't know what he did to get him quiet, but he has to teach me the trick...

At the window overlooking the school-yard, Mr. Mutou is talking to Ms. Miyagi and a young woman with red dyed hair. Ms. Miyagi is holding a lit cigarette in her right hand and a small portable ashtray in her left. Mutou nods to me absently.

“H-Hisao!”

I turn around and see two more people standing in the corner. “Hanako, Lilly! You're here as well?”

Hanako doesn't reply, but Lilly turns our way. “My my, Hisao. So you are a mage as well?

“Yes. I'm here with Misha and Shizune. Emi is going to be here as well, and... Oh yes, Mr. Kanzaki, the nurse had a patient to care for. He said to start without him, if he couldn't make it in time.”

Kanzaki looks up and greets us with a smile. “Ah yes, that won't be a problem. I think everyone here knows him, so he won't need any introductions...”

The door flies open and Emi storms into the room, followed by Rin and an elderly man with grey hair and a garishly coloured blazer. I've seen him around the campus once or twice. He has to be a teacher, probably that Mr. Nomiya she was supposed to find.

Kanzaki closes the file he was reading and rises. “It seems everyone is here now, so we can begin. Everybody please take your seats!”

I sit down next to Takeshi, and Misha plops down next to me. Shizune is across the table from us, probably so she can see Misha's translation of what is discussed.

When everyone has found a seat, Kanzaki speaks up again. “I welcome you all to this year's inauguration of magic students. My name is Kozo Kanzaki, and I am very pleased that this year is the largest class since the foundation of this school, and it is also one with a very wide range of talents, which is why we decided to bring in a few more teachers.

“As you know next to nothing about magic, I will start with a brief explanation of the schools of magic and introduce your new teachers along with their subject.”

He clears his throat and continues. “The ability to use magic is something you are born with, though it is not hereditary. In most people it lies dormant for their whole lives unless it is awoken by something.” He looks at me with an undefinable expression. “In your cases that would be you living in Yamaku for an extended time, because Yamaku is a place where several ley-lines – streams of magical energy – cross.”

“The art of magic is divided into seven schools. Every mage can use magic of one school only, regardless of talent or willingness to study. Those schools are Abjuration, Conjuration, Divination, Enchantment, Evocation, Illusion and Transmutation.”

“The most common school is Conjuration. Almost one in four mages is a Conjurer, although Conjuration has a very broad range of abilities, and only very few master them all.” He continues his explanation, but I tune him out, as the nurse already told me about this. Instead I wonder why he said seven schools. Didn't he say earlier that Kenji was a Necromancer – whatever that means?

My attention comes back to what Kanzaki is saying. “There is only one Conjurer among you students. Ms Emi Ibarazaki.” Emi flashes a wide grin. “She will be taught by Mr. ...”

The door opens and the nurse enters the room. “She will be taught by me. Good evening everyone, and I'm sorry I'm late.” He sits down on one of the empty chairs.

When everything has quieted down again, Kanzaki continues. “Next there are Diviners. Diviners have the ability to read minds, send mental messages, scry faraway places and in some cases they can see across time into the past or even the future. This young man is Takeshi Takakura, a very talented Diviner and himself an Alumni of this school. He will be the teacher of Ms. Lilly Satou.”

Takeshi grins at Lilly. “I'm sure you will find that Divination is a great compensation for not being able to see with your eyes.”

Lilly smiles but doesn't say anything, so Kanzaki continues. “Evokers are the third kind of mages that are quite common. They are able to manipulate energy and the forces of nature. As such their abilities are best suited for magical combat should it be required, but there are also a lot of more peaceful professions open to them. I don't have to introduce Mr. Mutou, as all of you already know him. It will be his responsibility to teach Ms. Shiina Mikado to be a responsible Evoker.”

I don't have to be a Diviner to hear the mental groan emitted by Mutou at that declaration, but Misha just flashes a big grin at him. “I bet this is going to be a lot of fun. I'm going to give it my best!” Mutou rubs his temples with both hands, obviously fighting the beginnings of a headache.

Suppressing a grin, Kanzaki turns to Rin. “Illusionists are less common among mages. They can create images to either entertain or deceive onlookers. This may seem trivial, but powerful Illusionists learn to influence all the senses of an individual. They can lock someone up in a completely imaginary world of their own creation, and it takes a very strong mind to tell Illusion from reality. Mr. Shinichi Nomiya is Yamaku's resident Illusionist and will oversee the education of Ms. Rin Tezuka.”

Rin merely nods in acknowledgement. I'd very much like to know what she thinks about this whole magic stuff, but in all likelihood, I wouldn't be able to follow her thought processes anyway.

“Enchanters have power over the minds of other creatures. They can force others to do things against their will. Obviously that is an ability that is very prone to exploitation, but there are many benign applications, ranging from domesticating and training animals to assisting the police in defusing hostage situations. Ms. Ayaka Aikawa here,” he motions to the young red-haired woman, who was talking to Mr. Mutou and Ms. Miyagi earlier, “usually works as a social worker helping criminals to reintegrate back into society.”

Shizune's face clouds over at that statement, but Kanzaki continues before she can explode. “We chose her as a teacher for Ms. Shizune Hakamichi, because she is also proficient in sign language which will facilitate their lessons considerably.”

Ms. Aikawa flashes a few signs to Shizune, grinning broadly and to my astonishment, Shizune deflates immediately, a surprised expression on her face. I look at Misha questioningly, but she just shrugs. Maybe she was looking the wrong way to catch the gestures.

“Transmuters are quite rare and have a wide range of abilities. They can alter the form and makeup of matter. They can shape stone using only magic and quite literally change lead into gold. Transmutation of living beings is also possible but mostly used on the Transmuter himself for changing into animal form or growing protective scales. Transmutaion of others is very dangerous and often causes accidents. It is considered a crime to transmute another human against his will.”

He looks sternly at Hanako, who tries to sink even deeper into her chair in response. “Ms. Hanako Ikezawa, your teacher will be Ms. Mikoto Miyagi, also a teacher at your school.” Lilly grabs Hanako's hand reassuringly and whispers something in her ear, which causes Hanako to relax somewhat. I am glad that she won't have to study under Kanzaki. He seems to be a nice person, but I can see how his stern manner would terrify Hanako to no end.

As if noticing me looking at him, Kanzaki turns to me. “And finally there is the seventh school of magic: Abjuration. While all mages who are properly trained and who aren't careless have the ability to undo their own magic – and to a limited extent the magic of other mages of their school – Abjurers are the only ones who can suppress, remove or undo the effects of all schools of magic. Abjurers are very rare. Only about one in a hundred mages has the talent to be an Abjurer, and they are much sought after as bodyguards of important politicians, or to remove the effects of magical accidents like failed transmutations.”

“I will enroll at this school as a new history teacher to handle part of his training myself.” I look at him, surprised at the 'part of'. He smiles at me. “As you are going to have to deal with all schools of magic, a large part of your training will be together with the other young mages here. In fact, you are very lucky to be able to practice your skills together with students of all other six schools.”

The room falls silent for a moment. Fourteen pairs of eyes converge on the one person in the room that has not been addressed until now. Kenji fidgets on his chair nervously.

After a while Kanzaki speaks up again. “Which brings us to Mr Setou here...” He takes a deep breath. All the adult mages are wearing very solemn expressions. “I told you before that there are seven schools of magic. That is not entirely correct. In the past, there used to be an eighth school of magic – Necromancy or Dark Magic as it was often called. Necromancers had terrifying powers, powers that could control life and death. They are the source of numerous legends that survive to this day, the best known being that of Count Vlad Dracul.”

Several gasps are audible at this statement, and I can feel a shiver running down my spine. Then I feel Misha grabbing my arm and clinging tightly to it, and I hope Kanzaki has even more frightening stories in store for us. He doesn't disappoint me. “Other Necromancers were responsible for the Death of the Egyptian Firstborn around 1600 BCE, the assassination of Alexander the Great in 323 BCE, the outbreak of the Black Death in Europe in 1348 and the Zombie Plague in Haiti in the 19th century.”

“The last known Necromancer was killed in 1879 in China after causing a famine that killed 13 million people. He was brought low by a team of two dozen powerful mages and half of them lost either their lives or their sanity during the battle.”

Kanzaki's gaze drifts across the room, lingering briefly on each of us, noting our reactions which range from fear to loathing. “Now, you may wonder why we don't simply lock away an individual who is potentially that dangerous and throw away the key. I am sure there are going to be mages advocating this course of action rather strongly. The reason lies in a question young Mr. Nakai here asked of us earlier today.”

Everyone's gazes shift to me and I squirm uncomfortably, while trying to remember which question he could be referring to. “He asked why we don't use our magic to heal the illnesses of all the students here. The answer was that this is something magic cannot do, and until three hours ago we believed it to be true. None of the seven magic schools can restore sight to the blind, regrow lost limbs or fix defective organs.”

“But as I told you earlier, according to the ancient reports, a Necromancer has power not only over death but also over life. It is entirely possible that all this could be possible for someone like Mr. Setou here.”

He pauses for a moment to let his words sink in. “So before this meeting, I contacted the council – that is the ruling body of the mages – and convinced them to have Mr. Setou educated to be a full fledged mage. Obviously his progress will be carefully supervised, and even more obviously there isn't any Necromancer around to teach him. That is why I will be responsible for teaching him as best as I am able. As an Abjurer I have at least trained the basics of how to counter Necromancy should those skills ever be needed again.”

I try to picture Kenji as a great benevolent healer but fail utterly. I fear that, should his powers ever get out of control, men might soon find themselves doomed to a solitary existence. Would a potential cure for my affliction and those of all the others here really be worth that kind of risk? I resolve to talk to Kanzaki about my misgivings later, but for now I just listen to what else he has to say. The rest of the meeting is not very interesting, mainly focusing on organisational matters like how to fit our extracurricular lessons into and around our class schedule and club activities.

After one more hour, Kanzaki dissolves the meeting, leaving each of us to our own devices. For my part, I am completely exhausted after a night of too little sleep and a day full of surprises and revelations. I return to my room and quickly fall into a deep and regrettably dreamless sleep.

********************

Please look forward to chapter five:
Poor Unfortunate Souls