The Begining [open!]

[Meiko Tanahashi]

"Is there anything else I can do for you, Ms. Tanahashi?"

Words from the mouth of a taxi driver fall on deaf ears, his rich baritone echoing in Meiko's subconscious was not enough to stir her from her deep slumber. Slumped over in her chair and seemingly lifeless, suspended by her seatbelt, the young lady on the last leg of her journey appeared worse for wear. The taxi driver looks back to inspect his passenger, reaching back and gently nudging the girl to no avail.

"Ms. Tanahashi? … Ms. Tanahashi!"

The taxi driver spoke with a thick Haitian accent that was rather pleasant to the ears, and judging by his butchering of her name, he had little experience with Japanese people. The exclamation in the last repetition was enough to jerk her to consciousness with a gasp, leaning against her seat. Almond shaped eyes dart back and forth before settling, looking left… then right… out the window to the grey winter atmosphere of the Vermont mountains. The overcast sky let through little light, even though it was midday. It looked cold, and she could already feel the chill emitted from the chilly window. So this was the United States of America.

Meiko took a moment. Perhaps too long.

"Ms. Tanahashi? Are you okay? We have arrived at the Institute."

Meiko looks to the taxi driver, noticing his name tag which said "PIERRE" simply in bold print. She nods, giving him a slight smile before letting out another yawn. She wipes what she thinks is drool from the corner of her mouth with the bottom of her sleeve and exits the old yellow vehicle. Letting out a groan she mutters something to herself.

"Sore wa nagakatta tabi…"

Pierre exited his car as well, popping the trunk and retrieving her two suitcases, but he did over hear her muttering. "What was that miss?" He asked politely, bringing her the heavy bags, setting them on the sidewalk with a gentle thud.

"I said it was a long trip."

She tried to sound as friendly as possible after a twenty day boat ride on a cargo ship--a less than pleasant experience for someone who is terrified by water. The Hammel Institute prepared a makeshift room in a crate, which she spent most of the past month in. But she did suppose it was the best way for someone who cannot fly to travel. Never the less when they hit land in Portsmouth, MA, she dropped to her knees and hugged the cold cement, missing the stability of solid land.

Meiko shuffles through her backpack retrieving a wallet from its front pocket, grabbing a handful of cash and quickly counting what she thought was a valid tip for a three hour drive. She folds the cash and hands it to the much taller man, respectfully giving him a slight bow before moving to the task of dragging her bags into the first floor of the dorm hall. Before getting back into the car, Pierre counts his tip, roughly 470,000 yen, approximately five thousand dollars… not that he knew that immediately. He only shrugs and gets into his car, pulling off.

Her slender fingers felt as though they war going to break, kissed by the frigid cold and dragging heavy luggage, she was relieved to get inside to the warmth of the door, which hit her like a wall when she stepped inside. Placing her bags against a wall she checks in at the front desk and moves to the lounge area, waiting for her name to be called… and she begins to doze off again.

A MIDI tone version of the song "Clock Strikes" by ONE OK ROCK shakes Meiko from the edge of her dreams, she shuffles through her bag to retrieve her cell phone, answering without looking at the caller ID.

"Moshi moshi?"

"Gogo-chan, you should really be practicing your English in America, you know."

A groan escapes her throat and she is quick to hang up on her father, throwing the phone back into her bag as her name is called. The woman at the desk was a plump, jolly looking caucasian woman. Meiko seemed almost perplexed by her, though her impolite staring was interrupted by the woman's voice.

"Meiko Tanahashi? I'm so sorry but you're room assignment isn't ready yet… Would you just have a seat over there until we have your room ready? Thank you, darling!"

Her thick New England accent was difficult for her to initially understand, but Meiko processed the request, and moved back to her spot on the couch.

Great. More waiting.

[Madison Bane]

The best place to write new characters, was in the welcome centre. Most of them were too young and nervous to notice someone lurking, writing a small sketch of what they were like, and who they would become. Madison always found it interesting to see how similar the real person was to his character as they progressed through Hammel. Of course, Madison didn’t really get the chance to see everyone bloom, because doing so would require a lot of stalking and would take away from his writing time, and he couldn’t sacrifice that. He cared more for the characters than real people.

Today’s victim, er, character, was slight in height. She had an angular face and interesting eyes that Madison couldn’t stop looking at. He too, was sitting in the office, overhearing much of what was being said, but that didn’t really mean much considering he couldn’t understand most of it. The girl seemed to be frustrated at the very least, and that was all he needed to start making a new story.

In his notebook, Madison put pencil to paper, pushing his glasses up the bridge of his nose. Everything about her was dark – hair, eyes, mood – it was perfect. He glanced over to her again, doing a bit more studying. Her lips looked like they were constantly pouting, and he was having a hard time envisioning her smile, though he imagined her eyes would crinkle when she did so.

Looking back to his paper, Madison’s lips tugged upwards, the thoughts coming to life as he scribbled away.

They thought I, Kiaro Matsumuri, had a super power, but they were mistaken. A princess like me can’t be a fake like that. You can’t rule people by force, by power, only with integrity. Today was my first day at the meta school I transferred to from Japan. How can I have a super power? It’s impossible to believe, and yet, here I am. Already I’m missing my family, my kingdom. I don’t think I’ll be able to relate to anyone here...

Taking a break from his work, he looked up to see what Kiato was doing. Had anything been resolved? Did she have a room here yet? Madison glanced at the bags she had with her, and if the moment seemed right, he would offer to help her to her new dorm. The secretary behind the desk glanced at him, as if nonverbally volunteering him for such a task.

[Meiko Tanahashi]

"Meiko? Meiko Tanahashi?"

It seemed as though her own name was always what snatched her from the verge of slumber. The woman at the front desk was calling her name again… hopefully with her room assignment. How long had she been waiting? In her mind she had been waiting for two hours… which was really nothing in the grand scheme of her journey to the U.S. Meiko looks down at her backpack once more to retrieve her phone, squinting to inspect the time…

Only twenty minutes lost. Not bad.

Collecting her backpack, Meiko heads over to the front desk. She takes a moment to survey the waiting room, relatively empty aside from herself, the stout woman with the thick New England accent at the desk, and a young man, probably a fellow student, lurking in the background furiously scribbling with pad and paper.

She didn't know what to make of this guy… most of his facial features were hidden behind those oversized glasses… they weren't like the ones she was wearing. His were of course, real. And he was skinny. He might weigh less than even her… well… few people weighed as much as she does… Even past those glasses Meiko could see his brief glances. She simply shrugs it off, and moves to the woman who had called her.

"Ms. Tanahashi, you're room is ready." The woman says with a smile, pushing her glasses from the tip of her nose with her index finger to eye level in order to examine her paper work, "Here's your key… your flex pass and your room assignment."

Meiko bends over to inspect the tiny yellow slip which had her name and her room number scribbled in tiny handwriting.

"Room… 204?" Meiko says as she struggles to read the messy script, tilting her head and looking up at the woman for verification.

"That's right. Room 204 of the Co-ed Dormatory. And these are your roommates."

The woman hands her another sheet of paper along with a bright red folder labeled "WELCOME!". Co-ed? She hadn't expected the United States to be quite so liberal. Japanese boarding schools would never allow anything like this… then again a Japanese boarding school would be unisex. Not that she was complaining. Meiko quickly glances over the names on the list. Declyn… Nick… Madison…

Now she wasn't entirely familiar with American names… but Declyn and Nick were boys names, so it was safe to assume that herself and this Madison would be the girls in the room… right?

[Madison Bane]

His glasses weren’t actually real, he wore them just to see if anyone would react to them. Madison believed he looked much more attractive without them on, but no one was really asking for his opinion at the moment.

When they did look each other in the eyes, Madison only smiled briefly and went back to writing. Sometimes he could be too critical, and there was no denying that she was wearing fashion glasses because it was the cool thing to do. Madison didn’t subscribe to such mediocrities.

Madison had stopped paying attention until the ‘room 204’ was heard. His eyes travelled lazily to where she was standing. How, ironic, that he would begin writing a story about his roommate, who was a princess no less. While she glanced over the Welcome folder, Madison closed his notebook and stood up.

“Meiko right?” He asked, leaning against the secretary’s desk, his notebook under his arm. Her features were even sharper up close. “I’m Madison. I was told we were getting a roommate and was asked to show you around.” The secretary gave him an odd look and he only smiled at her. So what if he was lying? This was too coincidental to not do something about, and Madison wasn’t going to let the opportunity slip away. Plus if they had to deal with each other, he could at least try and get to know her. Or something.

“Do you need help carrying your luggage?”

[Meiko Tanahashi]

The welcome folder was extensive to day the least, even after just a cursory glance at its contents she noticed a map of the school, class guide, campus attractions, and something that said "Interacting With Classmates". Meiko looked around to make sure nobody was watching before folding the top corner of the page… that could be important, right? She told herself she could use all the information she could get in this brave new world.

Her initial glance of the welcome folder would be interrupted as the boy lurking in the background of the waiting room stood up and approached her. She immediately took his words as truth, having already forgot that the woman at the desk had called out her first name for the world to hear--who would lie about something so logical anyway?

As he approached, she could get a better look at him than she did in her initial scan of the room. Maybe she needed real glasses, because his were fake as well, and behind the dark rims were actually some semblance of a handsome face. He introduced himself… Madison?

Be nice. Be nice… It was too early to have people disliking her, and despite her guts telling her to comment on the fact that she had thought he had a girl's name, making an enemy out of her roommate was ill advised. Besides, it might make for a funny anecdote AFTER they become friends. So she bit her tongue, in a surprising show of self control from a girl who usually couldn't hold anything back.

"Meiko," she introduces herself again through a smile, reaching out to shake his hand. Thats what you do in America… or at least that's what her dad told her. Shake everyone's hand you meet. And look them in the eyes. For that reason, her handshake and eye contact may have been a bit more intense than they should have been.

"It is nice to meet you, and thank you very much."

This smile was not forced at all, her weary bones needed a break from dragging her overpacked bag. Sure, she could have probably made them lighter, but she wasn't one to go around showing off her 'super powers'. She hands him one of her heavy suitcases and thanked him again.

"So where to?"

[Madison Bane]

Madison remembered when he had received a similar welcome package his first day here. The stupid thing had found itself lost amongst the contents in his closet. He had never needed it in the end. And who indeed would lie about something so logical.

She seemed so timid at first, like it didn’t make sense for someone seemingly random to come and introduce themselves. Madison liked to call it fate, something that could only be written but was oh so sweet because it was real life, and he was curious to see where this would take him.

Smiling as she stretched her hand out, Madison obliged. People really didn’t do that here, but he didn’t mind, at least she was being polite. And she was going to have to like him, she might as well start here. “Nice to meet you, you’ll be stuck with me for a while.” It could be taken as a warning, but Mads would play nice for now. Until she really did start speaking her mind, then he would speak his. But he liked intensity.

Taking the bag offered to him, Madison gestured with his free hand to the door. “Out of the office, just, give me a second.” He said, righting the bag before going back to his chair and collecting his own backpack, putting his notebook away. He would have to pay close attention if he was going to get good character ideas from this encounter.

“I’ll show you where your, our, room is,” he said, taking the luggage once more, “and maybe a campus tour if you’re lucky.” Madison headed out of the office, not bothering to hold the door open for her as she approached. Madison looked back at her, pulling his jacket back onto his shoulders. “But you’ll probably want some time to unpack.” And he would probably want some time to keep writing his story.

[Meiko Tanahashi]

"Or is it you who is stuck with me?"

Meiko says with a smile, dragging her bag to the forefront as she patiently waited for him to tuck away whatever notebook and pen on which he was scribbling. If she were more comfortable with this social setting she would have asked about what he was writing back in the waiting room… but that might be too intrusive. She didn't need the entire student body despising her before they got a chance to get used to her.

Back at Eisai it was quite simple really. When a new student arrived, the other students would simply ask them Shokugyo wa nanidesu ka?, or What do you do?, but she didn't want to pry… surely she would find out more than she wanted to know about her roommate soon enough. Making her way to the door, the wheels of her bag squealed under the immense weight that it carried.

Be nice. Be nice. Be nice.

She repeated this mantra in her head, but her nosiness got the better of her as it so often did. One question wouldn't hurt, right? One question wouldn't be an interrogation… it wouldn't offend… just simple curiosity.

"So… what was it you were working on back there?" She couldn't tell from simple glances, was he an author? Or maybe an artist? Either way, she wanted to know more. To squash these feelings of insecurity and establish a solid base here. Thats what was most important, of course when starting someplace new. She began walking towards the direction of the room he mentioned, counting the numbers down until arriving at their destination.

"201… 202… 203… Here we are?"

[Madison Bane]

A devilish smile crossed his face and he shrugged, closing his eyes momentarily in the process. “I guess we’ll find out and see,” he said, genuinely curious to find out where this new relationship would lead. Madison usually kept to himself, and unless he thought something would turn into a good story, he was usually tucked away in his room, creating or playing games.

“A story,” he said, glancing over at her oriental features, “I’m always working on a story...” he said, at a loss for words. Madison cleared his throat, trying not to feel distracted. He didn’t usually get this way. Ah well, he could probably blame his reaction to a general lack of associating with other human beings.

“Yes, looks like we’re here already,” Madison said, pushing up his silly fake glasses and unlocking their dorm. Hauling himself and the luggage through the door, Madison made a grand gesture around the room. “This is the common area, we all have access to it. You’ll probably meet everyone else later.” He said, continuing down the hallways, past the kitchenette and bathroom. He was sure she could figure out what those rooms were for.

Passing his room, Madison didn’t bother shutting the door on the biohazard. He collected everything of importance or that which was muse making. He looked back over his shoulder, wondering if his princess was still following. “Your room’s here, at the end,” he said, opening the door to a white room with barely any furniture. “Maybe it’s a good thing you brought so much crap,” he said, setting the luggage down in the middle of the room.

[Meiko Tanahashi]

Ah, so he was an author of sorts, and she was right to assume so. Interesting… Meiko was never one for reading anything deeper than comic books and the occasional light novel, but she admired those with the attention span to sit around and put pen to paper. Sure, she preferred the moving pictures to the written word, but there was simply something romantic about someone alone with their creativity creating imagery through words… Pictures always helped, though.

Upon entering room two hundred and four she was pleasantly surprised with her new living arrangements. Due to limited space and an abundant student population, the Japanese school was crowded, many of the students were delegated to four person dorm rooms with little more than bunk beds to sleep on. This however, was like an apartment--she thankfully would not be forced into extremely close quarters with three boys she was unfamiliar with.

She drifted from her tour guide to inspect the bathroom, which was small but functional, and then the kitchenette, which actually excited her, a slight gasp escaping from her lips--the words "totemo yoi" are heard slightly above a whisper as she rushed over, nosily poking around the cabinets and tampering with the stove. Meiko learned to love the therapeutic nature of cooking. Despite her families wealth, in a feeble attempt to keep some sort of work ethic to the Tanahashi name, the children were assigned a single chore to tend to, and Meiko's was cooking.

She was infamous for her ability to make edible meals from sub par materials, a half used pack of dehydrated ramen along with a few leaves of spinach and cheese dip became a tasty, cheesy, unhealthy fried dish. Well… at least tasty to her… her parents had a chef cook for them, usually…

Meiko couldn't help herself but to peek through the opening into Madison's room. It was cluttered, to say the least, not that she could necessarily look down upon him for it. Her pristine white floors would be blanketed by laundry and sheets before long, after all. Without hesitation, she tossed her bag into her empty room which hit the ground with a thud before she entered her new home herself.

Running a finger across the white walls, Meiko inspected more closely. A bed for sleeping and a television for video games. She couldn't ask for much more than that. "I'm sure I'll fill it out nicely, though these rooms are much bigger than those at Eisai. I'll feel spoiled here." Madison was right… it was awfully empty in here… like solitary confinement. Though that was nothing a few posters and pictures wouldn't fix. It would be home in no time.

"So is that all you do? Write stories, I mean? Surely theres more to do at this school than sit around in your room all day!" She says with a smile, bending over to look under her bed, but returns disappointed only to find storage bins and wooden stands.

[Madison Bane]

He was an author of something alright. Usually half way through a story, he would deem his work utter shit and it would turn into drawings instead, something his power was quite useful for. Sometimes he couldn’t control it either, he was working against his power, not with it, and it was fighting back. Madison was working on a comic with a friend of his, and he was more than happy to make drawings for it, deeming them useful for the sake of the story and not in and of themselves.

Curious. His princess was definitely curious. Naturally she was a warrior princess, her people had to respect her for a reason, and most didn’t take kindly to words without action. No, she was a woman of action, brave, beautiful, and bold. A smile caressed his lips as he thought of her attributes. Upon her fascination with the kitchen, Madison stroked his not there beard, and hummed. She was definitely a favorite of the homeless.

The situation Madison found himself in was subpar at best, and beyond what he called ‘living like a bachelor’. Certain lines had been crossed and he was living in a sty.

Madison nodded, only half listening after she mentioned a place called Eisai. That would be the name of her kingdom. About to leave and write down his thoughts since the computer in his room was calling to him, he stopped in his tracks on the way out the door. Looking down at himself, he wondered if she was partially blind. Did it look like he went outside at all? He was basically a vampire.

Leaning in the doorframe, Madison shrugged. “I don’t know. Maybe there’s more.” Obviously he wasn’t interested, but he wasn’t being very helpful, was he? “There’s some clubs you can join, if you like that kind of thing.” The sentence was ended with a sour face. He was above needing to socialize. He had all the things he needed in his brain to keep him occupied.

“What are you into?” He asked, since she didn’t seem too keen on unpacking just yet.

[Meiko Tanahashi]

Meiko was already elbow deep in her first suitcase, throwing clothes and belongings into messy piles for sorting later… if she ever got to it of course. Piles of jackets, pants, socks, and underwear that looked as though they had never been folded since they left the shelves of their respective stores--a combination of humidity from nearly a month at sea and the fact that she did actually just pile them in her bag for transport was responsible for their horrid state. She might need to wash and dry them again before even attempting to iron them.

"What am I into?"

She repeated his question without looking up from her task at hand as she continued to draw from a seemingly bottomless pit of clothing and accessories. Before actually answering the question she stops to consider, as if it were a loaded question. In reality, she didn't really know what she was into when it came to extracurricular activity.

"Well I guess my dad made me join the kendo club at my middle school… I was pretty good at that… though I doubt they have a kendo club here…" She touches her chin with the tip of her index finger before moving over to her next bag, which was lumpier than the previous one, harsh corners poked pushed the cloth material outward. After unzipping, the bag reveals its contents, a laptop which she places on the desk built into the wall, some plugs and cords, and two gaming consoles, a Playstation 3 wrapped in towels and a Nintendo Wii covered in colorful stickers. She places the games behind her TV and tosses the cords messily to the ground.

Under her electronics were a collection of various manga and light novels which she began tossing on the bookshelf. She stood up and took a step back to admire her room thus far… it was a mess--her mess.

"I guess I don't do much either… Where's a good place to get a drink--?"

She tried to bite her tongue before the words escaped her mouth. Too early! She could hear her mother already in the back of her head, Ladies only drink socially, and never to intoxication! Ugh… even though they were on the other side of the planet they continued to haunt her in he conscience.

[Madison Bane]

Madison watched as his new roommate began making piles out of what she’d brought with her. Did she notice the faint odour coming off of them? How long had they been stuffed in that suitcase for anyways? Madison didn’t ask, though he suspected the wrinkles meant: quite a long time.

Simply nodding and waiting for an answer, Madison wondered if she had something to hide, since she was taking so long. “You could always start a kendo club,” Madison suggested, even though he had no idea what it was, there were probably others who did. It wasn’t like Princess was the only person who had transferred here. Excuse me, Warrior Princess.

Smiling to himself, Madison pushed up his glasses. “You game, that’s something.” Thank you, Captain Obvious. He couldn’t believe how much of an idiot he sounded like sometimes, but she had made herself out to be boring. And she was into manga? God this girl was practically perfect. It would be stupid to ask to play something together some time, he always liked gaming with fellow students. So long as they didn’t like talking during the game.

Madison’s brow rose. “Well, depends what kind. The cafeteria has pretty killer orange juice,” he stated, although deep down inside he thought she knew what she meant. “Unless you have a fake ID, you’ll have a hard time getting anything else.” She was small as it was, and he seriously doubted she could waltz into a bar and order a screwdriver without someone being suspicious.

[Meiko Tanahashi]

"Unfortunately, I do not think I am sociable enough to start my own club… especially not this soon."

Meiko lets out a half hearted chuckle without really looking up from her unpacking at the thought of her being so outgoing so quickly, especially when she was trying so desperately to mind her 'p's and 'q's. Not to mention Kendo wasn't necessarily her favorite thing in the world, just something she happened to be decent at. More often than not she found herself scolded by her instructor for swinging wildly and going for kill shots mimicking old samurai movies.

"Game?" She didn't initially understand the colloquialism, but upon realizing that he was referring to her impressive stack of electronics she nodded. "Ah, video games… Yes I do, thats why I have these…" she says slyly with a smile. Meiko was definitely being nice--there tends to be a far steeper sarcasm penalty for those who point out the obvious, but she liked Madison, he seemed genuine, and she appreciated it.

"Do you?" Having unpacked everything from her suitcases, she began the slow and tedious process of unloading her piles of wrinkled clothes into the wooden drawers with seemingly little method to her madness--she didn't even bother folding, not seeing the point in doing so at this point. "I guess that's something I'm into… I do a lot of that."

Meiko lets out a chuckle at his answer to her question. "Actually, I was more in the business for some freshly squeezed apple juice," she laughed it off and left it at that. Of course she was talking about alcohol--Eisai was so isolated, most of the students not actively involved in the various clubs had very little else to do, and she assumed it was the same here. A fake ID? Not a problem. The legal drinking age in Tokyo is twenty, so she's had a falsified identification card for maybe two or three years. Not to mention it was completely in Japanese--unless she came across the one Japanese liquor store owner in Vermont.

If that were the case, than the heavens were monitoring her blood alcohol level. She shuddered at the thought.

[Madison Bane]

Madison scoffed. “You don’t need to be sociable to start a club. People who like reading books aren’t always sociable.” Mostly they were quiet and shy and kept to themselves. A club just meant that you did similar things as other people, and your similarities brought you together. It wasn’t about being popular.

She would do better telling him what her favorite thing in the world was then, since if she were truly passionate about it, she’d probably want others to see it. Whatever it was. “There’s a gaming club,” Madison said deadpan. It wasn’t Hammel official, but she didn’t really know that, and any true gamer would be interested. It wasn’t like they did anything illegal, so what was the harm. Madison wanted to see just how dedicated she was. “I’m a part of it,” he said coolly. It was nothing to boast about, at least, not until she saw his gamerscore.

Something about the way she laughed irritated him, it was like there was so much more hidden in it. Maybe the people in her story didn’t love her as much as she thought they did... Madison shook his head a little, trying to remain in reality. His lips twitched up at her sarcasm, and he laughed, glancing at the ground and then looking her over. “Great, there’s a specialty place downtown with all kinds of, apple juice.” Talking in code was fun, it was basically like role playing.

“You want me to come with you? I’m not that strong, but I can run for help if anything bad happens,” he said, watching as small balls of clothing were shoved into her drawers. Good, he wasn’t the only one who didn’t care about such mundane things such as keeping clothing in order. Madison looked over at Princess Kiaro expectantly – he’d forgotten her real name.