94Serena, you're up!
Serena: *sigh* Fine. Cat does not own Ao No Exorcist, because if she did, I would be real!
Me: Good job.
Serena: Thanks. *whisper*did I say that just like you wrote it?*whisper*
Me: *facepalm*
Chapter 1: Meet Serena
I shift my katana on my shoulder, and its familiar weight brings a sense of relief. I grab the doorknob before I can chicken out. Beyond this door lies a classroom full of students who will be put in danger by my mere presence. Bile rises at the back of my throat, but I swallow it down and tug open the door. Cautiously, I step inside, and the teacher suddenly stops mid-lecture.
"Ah! Good morning, Hayatashi-san. Sir Pheles called ahead to say you were coming," he says. "I am Okumura Yukio, your Demon Pharmaceuticals teacher." I nod and give him a gracious smile.
"Morning, Okumura-sensei," I say, ducking my head and blushing as I suddenly notice the nine faces staring back at me. Okumura-sensei ushers me forward, and I stand in front of his desk, feeling self-conscious.
"Attention, class, this is Hayatashi Serena, a new student here," Okumura-sensei introduces me. For a moment, I stare at the floor, mustering up my infamous badass attitude. I take a breath and raise my head.
"What's up?" I say, acting cool and collected. I flash a dazzling (read: fake) smile, hoping I'm making a good impression, but my chances are slim. I probably seem weird and rebellious to them, with the cherry-red streaks in my long and curly black hair, boy's uniform pants, girl's button-up shirt, and combat boots. With my life, I tend to dress practically. My sharp, pointed canine teeth and pointed ears most likely don't help my case any.
"As Okumura-sensei said, I'm Serena. I was born here in Japan, but I grew up and attended cram school in America, so I'm already an Exwire."
I pause a moment, letting that sink in.
"Anyway," I say, the corner of my mouth uplifted in a smirk, "it's nice to meet you all, I look forward to learning with you, and all that other bullshit that new students say and don't mean."
This draws some laughs, albeit some nervous ones. I move to sit down, then stop and stare somberly at each student in turn.
"By the way, don't worry," I assure them seriously. "I don't bite." I flash a wicked grin, showing off my pointed canines. "Much." Then I take my seat, not even paying attention to the class's reaction.
I groan quietly and slump down in my seat. Why did I try to make them laugh? They're in danger!
I heave a sigh. I am totally gonna fuck this up. I always do, one way or another...
-Satan'sStepdaughter-
After hours of sitting through boring classes, listening to teachers drone on and on about fascinating facts about demons that I learned when I was five, thank you very much, lunch arrives. I stand up, sling my katana and bag over my shoulder, then head out the classroom door, ignoring the other students. That is, until I brush past a girl with purple hair and some fucked-up eyebrows, and she looks down her nose at me.
'Oh, so you wanna play like that?' I think to myself.
I glare pointedly at the girl, my lip curling into a snarl. Then I roll my eyes and continue on, like "you're not worth my time."
I plop myself down underneath a huge, leafy tree in the courtyard and pop open my lunch, a simple meal of stir-fried rice, meat, and vegetables. I eagerly dig in, savoring every bite. As I'm eating, I casually glance over at the other students. They're all seated by the fountain, and right now, they're having a laugh at the expense of a pink-haired boy. I smile sadly, and a feeling of loneliness threatens to overwhelm me.
Then I remind myself that it's safer for me, and even safer for them if I don't make connections.
I sigh and continue my lunch. Then suddenly, a guy plops himself down next to me, and I nearly spew rice in surprise. "Hey," he says, and I regain my composure.
"What the fuck do you want, man?" I ask in a tone of voice that would scare most people shitless. He doesn't even blink. He sizes me up, and I do the same to him. I can't deny he's cute, with hair so black it looks blue, and sapphire eyes, but still. Do not invade my personal space, ever. Let that be a lesson.
"I'm Okumura Rin. Serena, right?" the guy asks, extending his hand, a smile on his face.
"Yeah, that's me," I grumble, ignoring his hand. He drops it, along with his smile. "You never answered my question. What the fuck do you want?" I demand again. Rin scowls.
"To ask you out on a date," he deadpans, and I blink, then am startled into a laugh. "There we go, mission accomplished," Rin says, grinning.
"What mission?" I ask, quickly sobering.
"Just trying to make you smile. That one in front of the class was so fake, a blind guy could spot it a mile away," he says, and I chuckle despite myself. On the inside, though, I'm having a mental argument with myself. Just making one friend couldn't hurt, right?
I sigh lightly, making a decision.
"Listen, Rin," I begin. "Sorry for before. I'm just in a really shitty mood. What say we start over?" Rin shrugs.
"Sure," he says. He holds out his hand again, and this time, I take it. "I'm Rin."
I grin. His smile's quite infectious. "Serena," I say.
"Well, well, well," a voice calls tauntingly. I look around wildly as I release Rin's hand, my shoulders tensing, and my feet curling underneath me in case I need to run. My eyes finally locate a pissed-off looking dude I vaguely recognize to be one of my classmates, and I relax just a tiny bit.
"What have we here?" the guy continues, and I noticed he's flanked by two guys: one short, bald kid with glasses, and the guy with pink hair. "Haven't you already flirted enough today, Okumura?" My lips form a snarl, an insult ready to fly out at this guy, but I wisely restrain myself.
Rin whirls around, a glare on his face. "I'm not flirting! So fuck off!" he shoots back. Yeah, I'd definitely make things worse, especially with my rather aggressive personality.
"Oh, so you've already decided she's your girl, huh? Or can I have a shot at her?" the guy says, smirking and cocking an eyebrow.
Oh, that does it. I shoot to my feet, my fists clenched tightly at my sides. "Alright, dickwad, howsabout you turn around and fuck off so I don't have to look at your ugly face anymore?" I shout, and four shocked faces stare back at me.
"Yeah, that's right! I said it! And no one here can 'have a shot at me'! Got it? Good," I say, grabbing my stuff, then storming off, leaving four terrified boys in my wake.
Jeez, if this is just lunch, I can only imagine what P.E.'s gonna be like...
Well, there it is! Tell me what you thought!
