Title. Downwards

Part. prelude / -

Part Title. New School

Authour. ~sushisama~ ([email protected])

Warnings. This fic shall contain yaoi couplings later on.  And some het, as well.  This fic will not go above an R rating, and if there are any lemony scenes that I decide to have, they shall be in another fic altogether.  About time I stopped writing so many lemons, ne?  ^_^;

Disclaimer. Fushigi Yuugi and all of its characters belong to the talented Yuu Watase.  Don't bother suing – though I have money, it isn't very much.

Notes. I've been wanting to write an au fic for some time now.  So, I finally wrote one!  Yaya!  And with my one of my new fandoms, FY.  Squee.  This fic takes place in the Suzaku Southern University, which is a boarding-like-school thingie.  Yes.  And, if any of it doesn't seem like a real school to you, then, er...  Pretend?  ^^;  Characters may be a little ooc, please forgive, my first FY fic.  *nodnod*  Read and review, please!

/ thoughts /       [ dreams ]       ( flashbacks )

::*~~*::

            Tasuki stared at the building in front of him in near disbelief.  He blinked at the sign in front of it that read Suzaku Southern University, over and over again.
            "No way," he muttered to himself.  "This place is so... so big..."  The red-haired teen gazed in wonder at the castle-like school that he was soon to live at.
            "How the hell did mother afford this!?" he asked no one.  He finally let out a sigh and began the track to the front door.  He shifted his guitar case uncomfortably on his shoulder as he made his way through the courtyard's garden, riddled with topiaries and the like.
            / I am not nervous, / he scolded himself.  / This may be a new school, a new world, but I am not nervous.  No reason to be, right?  Just people, only people... /
            Tasuki gulped as he stopped before the large double doors, his fingers grazing the metal of the handles.  / Always judgmental people... /  He shook his head furiously, gaining a sudden determined look.  / No, this won't be like last time.  Not at all, right? /
            He grinned to himself.  "Right."
            With that, Tasuki walked into the new school, greeted only with empty halls.  He looked down at his watch: 9:33.  Class was probably in session.  He shrugged and started to wander down the hallway, heading towards the attendance window.  True, he wasn't sure where that was, but that didn't matter to him.  It had to be somewhere near the entrance, right?  Besides, it gave him an excuse to go exploring the school.
            The youth stopped suddenly when he heard someone sobbing.  He wondered briefly if he should just ignore it and continue on his way, but, inevitably, his conscience made him seek out the source.
            He turned a corner to be met with a hallway full of doors, to close together to probably be classrooms; so he figured he was in a dorm area.
            Down near the end of the hall, a lone figure sat with its knees curled closely to its body, hugging itself.  The choked sobs and sniffles came from that general direction, so Tasuki approached whoever it was.
            Upon further inspection, he discovered that it was a girl with long purple hair done up mostly in a bun, wearing a blue and gray cheerleading outfit.  She was crying softly, her head hung.
            Tasuki stood beside her for a moment, gathering up his thoughts as to what to say to her.  One would think that after living with a mother and five sisters his whole life, he'd know how to talk to women.  That, however, wasn't exactly the case – he rather hated talking to girls and avoided real confrontation with them most of the time.
            "Ne, kanajou..." he muttered finally.
            The girl started and violently twisted her head to see whoever was talking to her.  Her violet eyes were red from crying and were wide.  "Wh.. what do you want?" she asked in a dry voice, wiping the tears away with the back of her hand.
            "Just... wondering what was wrong," Tasuki replied. 
            "I don't even know who you are.  Why should I tell you anything?"  Her voice has a forced sense of anger.  Like, she was trying to be mad about someone bothering her, but was too tired to honestly care...
            "You need a sympathetic ear?" he defended weakly with a shrug.  "My name's Tasuki.  Just started 'ere."
            The girl stared at him blankly for a moment, before turning her eyes to the wall opposite her and muttering, "Nuriko."
            "Well, Nuriko," Tasuki began as he sat down his guitar case and his bag, taking a seat next to the girl, "now that we've met, care to unload?"
            Nuriko sighed heavily.  "Why not?  I bet the whole school knows by now anyway..."  She let her head rest against the door she was leaning against.  "I fell in love with someone...  And I wasn't too closed about it, either.  I always showed him how I felt.  I didn't want it to go unnoticed..."
            "How'd he feel about you?"
            She paused for a moment, closing her eyes.  "I knew he didn't like me, but...  I guess I was always hopeful 'cause he never actually told me, you know?  But this morning, before class started, he told me... told me..."
            Tasuki saw the tears that were forming at the corners of her eyes.  He was going to wipe them away, but decided not to, thinking that may not appreciate the action from a stranger.  "Told you...?"
            "He loves someone else...  And I'll never get a chance with him.  Never..."  Nuriko's tears started anew as she sobbed loudly.
            The red headed teen just sat next to her, unsure of what to say or do.  He waited until she had gone back to gentle sobs before even trying to say anything.  "I... I'm sorry to hear it..."
            He was startled by a bitter chuckle from Nuriko.  "Eh... what's so funny?"
            "You must think I'm pathetic, to get so work up over all this," she answered tonelessly.  "All of this affecting me...  How..."
            "You can't help the way you feel," Tasuki added in, without much thought.
            Nuriko turned to him briefly before looking straight ahead again.  "No, I guess not."  She sighed.
            "Nuriko, as fun as this is," Tasuki said, "I really must check in."  He stood up, shouldering his bag on one arm, throwing the guitar case over the other.  "Maybe... we can talk some other time, right?"  He smiled sincerely.
            "I... guess," Nuriko replied half-heartedly.  "Maybe we'll have some classes together."
            "Yeah..."  Pause.  "Well, um... jaa.  It was nice meeting you."  He turned around and started to walk off.  Then he stopped and turned again.  "Oh, Nuriko?"
            "Yes?"
            "Where's the attendance office?"  He chuckled dumbly, rubbing the back of his head.
            Nuriko stared at him blankly before giggling softly.  "Down the hall, to the right, four doors.  Relatively near the entrance."
            "Thanks!" Tasuki chirped, turning and going down the hall once more.
            / Sounds like her life is a soap opera, / Tasuki thought.  / Hope it isn't always like that around here... /

Lame beginning, I know.  But, that is the affect of writing at two in the morning.  You should see my writing at four!  *idiotic grin*  There shall be more to come, trust me.  This shall be an on-going fic, and I've no real plan of ending it anytime soon.  Squee.  Suggestions are welcome.  Review if you'd like to see more~! ^_^