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Chapter 1:- First Day
Staring up at the magnificent iron gate, Tamami felt her body twitch. She had anticipated this day for weeks, and now finally she was here. Another step, and she would enter Saint Spira Catholic Girl's School. Not just an ordinary school, her grandfather had told her, but a prestigious school that only a few girls entered every year. Here she would meet the best and brightest girls from around Japan, and she would be taught all the things she needed to know to succeed in life.
Her fingers twitched in nervous delight. Tamami hoped she would fit in and make lots of friends. She wondered what the girls were like here.
Lifting her foot, she carefully slid it forward, then planted it onto the path. Smiling, she walked through the gate and into the school. Trees lined the pathway, guiding her deeper into the campus. From them she emerged to find herself nearing a baseball field. Squinting her eyes, Tamami spotted someone practicing alone.
Afraid to approach, she kept out of sight, sneaking closer and closer. As she drew nearer, the figure became more defined until she was just a few meters away, separated by a short chain-linked fence. A girl stood, gazing into the outfield, a thick wooden bat in hand. Sitting on a tee was a baseball.
Tamami couldn't help but admire the intensity in her brown eyes, and the way her short, auburn hair waved freely in the breeze. Then she readied her bat and took stance. She flicked her wrists and seemed to effortlessly hit the ball, sending it flying into the air. It clunked off the top of the low wall far in the outfield.
Her heart racing, Tamami clutched her chest. She never watched sports much before, but found herself in awe of this girl, who continued to launch balls far into the distance. The graceful way she moved tantalized Tamami.
She looked like perfection in motion.
Tamami let out a cough, though she tried to muffle it with her hands to no avail, as the girl, wiping sweat from her brow, turned around and spotted Tamami. Feeling embarrassed, she scurried away, hoping she didn't disturb the girl, or seem weird. She shouldn't have stopped to watch in the first place, she scolded herself. She was supposed to be meeting the leader of her class.
As she approached the main area of the campus, the number of girls swarming about grew. All dressed in their school uniforms, Tamami felt out of place with her normal, if not plain, clothing on. She wanted to strip out of them and don one of those cute uniforms walking by her.
She shook her head; she needed to focus. Reaching into her backpack, she pulled out a wrinkled map, and made sure she was on the correct course.
Arriving at her destination, a large fountain in the center of a circle around the school buildings, was hard to miss. A number of girls were hovering around the magnificent statue of the Virgin Mary. Water poured from the base around her.
A hand on her shoulder startled Tamami. She spun around, greeted by an equally surprised look by a girl with long blue hair. Her blue eyes were staring intently at Tamami for a second, then she smiled.
“Sorry to scare you,” she said to Tamami, then bowed. “I am Yoshikawa Minase, Senior of Sky Academy. Welcome to St. Spira.”
Tamami bowed profusely. “Thank you! I am Okano Tamami. Please to meet you.”
Noticing another girl walk up to her and Minase, Tamami became increasingly nervous.
“Good morning, Minase-sama. Is this the new student?”
Minase nodded. “Yes it is. Okano-san, I want you to meet Fukushi Miwa-san. She is a third year student, and a representative on our council.”
“Nice to meet you,” said Tamami, bowing again.
She wasn't sure about the student council here, or how they worked, but she knew they were important.
Questions were quickly set aside when Minase started to lead Tamami around the campus. The first building she saw was the chapel, which stood at the south end of the circle. A stone angel stood beside the entrance triumphantly, hoisting a horn pointed towards the sky. Tamami caught herself gawking at the old gothic style the chapel was built to mimic, and fell behind Minase.
Following the chapel was a large building that kind of looked like a spiral to Tamami. Minase explain this was where all the classrooms were. The thought of all her new classes made Tamami feel both excited and anxious at the same time.
Then they came to the dormitory for the Sky academy girls. Tamami was excited to have a new room and meet her new roommate. She hoped it was someone who matched her well, and someone she could become best friends with.
“I suppose it would be prudent to tell you more about our school,” said Minase. “Though there's more to tell than one day can hold.”
Miwa laughed. “You got that right!”
Minase stopped walking. “If you don't know already, St. Spira is divided into two divisions—Terra and Sky. We focus more on the arts and tradition. Terra has St. Spira's sports teams, and center on the sciences.
Tamami quelled on her explanation for a moment. She was in Sky.
Minase continued. “Please be mindful of your fellow students, and make sure to say your prayers and give thanks to God.”
“Oh, yes of course!”
Miwa snickered. “Don't mind too much. Minase-sama is a stickler for the rules.”
Minase glared at Miwa before she began walking again. Tamami realized they were heading away from the Sky dorm and towards another building.
“Excuse me,” she said meekly. “Aren't we going the wrong direction?”
Minase looked back, then brushed her bangs aside. “I forgot to mention, that due to circumstance, there are no more rooms available in the Sky dorm right now. And since you've come three days later than everyone else, we have to place you in the Terra dorm temporarily.”
Not knowing how she should feel about being in a dorm full of girls she wouldn't have classes with, Tamami just kept smiling.
“We'll try to get you into a room at the Sky dorm, but it may take some time,” said Miwa reassuringly.
“Thank you, Fukushi-sama.”
“Please, Miwa is fine.”
Tamami smiled. “Okay, Miwa-sama.”
Standing at the entrance of the Terra dorm was a girl with flowing black hair. She stood leaning against the wall, one hand wrapped around her waist. When she spotted Minase, she perked up and approached.
“Good morning, Minase-chan. Is this our new student?”
Tamami noticed Minase hesitated to answer, then gestured towards her. “Yes, this is Okano Tamami.”
The girl winked at Tamami. “Pleasure to meet you. I'm Horikita Rika, Terra Senior. I hope Minase-chan hasn't lectured you too much on your little tour.”
Minase folded her arms. “I hope you have a room ready for her, Horikita-sama.”
Scoffing, Rika shook her head. “I'm not that irresponsible. I can take her from here.”
Minase and Miwa bowed to Tamami and went their separate ways. A hand patted on Tamami's shoulder.
“I'm sure you're feeling a bit overwhelmed right now,” said Rika. “Why don't I just take you to your room . . . Tamami, right?”
“Y-yes!”
Smiling, Rika snapped her fingers. “Alright! I'm usually bad with learning names. Being the president of an academy, you have to remember so many it's a bit difficult sometimes.”
The difficulty of Rika's job mattered not to Tamami, as she was too enthralled with meeting both her and Minase, St. Spira's two Seniors—all barely after she arrived! She felt her head spinning as the hand on her shoulder led her into the dorm.
Never before had Tamami stayed in such a fancy place. When she lived with her father, they lived in a cramped apartment, usually messy with clutters of papers, cassette tapes, and dirty dishes. Then when she moved in with her grandfather, she lived in a small house secluded from civilization, naturally because he made his living as a farmer. It, too, was not at all elaborate.
But here, in the Terra dorm, everything seemed so spacious and ornate. From the plush carpet on the hallway floor to the intricate carving on the railway of the stairs, Tamami was amazed.
Before she knew it, she was on the third floor of the dorm. Rika stopped at the last door to the left, inserting a key into the lock, and opened the door.
“Here's you're new room, Tamami-chan,” she said, pointing. “And I'm happy to say you're luggage has already been delivered.”
Peeking her head inside, Tamami surveyed the room. It was definitely spacious, but not nearly as much as the other girls' rooms. It also perplexed her as to why there was only one bed in the room.
“Your accommodations are a little different than everyone else's.” Rika answered Tamami's unspoken question. “Since Minase-chan didn't give me much time to find you a room, we had to convert this into a dorm room. At least you have it all to yourself.”
Looking down at her shiny silver watch, Rika tapped her finger against her cheek. “I'm sorry to have to leave you so soon, but I have to be at class myself. Feel free to take the rest of the time until dinner to unpack and set up your belongings as you want. I'm sure you have lots of cute stuff.”
Tamami felt a little unnerved by Rika's wink, but remembered her manners. “No, no, thank you Horikita-sama.”
She smiled. “No need to be so formal. I'm not Minase-chan. I won't get bitter over a little bad manners.”
Tamami just laughed, unsure of what to say or do. Instead she silently watched Rika leave.
She sighed, and plopped herself on the naked bed. Wishing she had a roommate, unlike what Rika believed, Tamami stared at the blank wall. She had spent most of her life by herself.
She was ready to be with a friend.
Eventually she got up since she needed to unpack. Lifting her weighty suitcase onto her bed, she opened it up and started organizing her clothing. Opening up her closet, she hung up her shirts, pants, and skirts. On the walls she hung up her posters. Above her desk was a small bookshelf, where she put the sappy romantic novels she loved to read, but always felt goofy for enjoying so much.
By the time she finished rearranging her room and tidying up, it was time for dinner. She recalled Minase stating the cafeteria was in the main hall, starting promptly at five o'clock. Glancing at her watch, it was ten until five.
Tamami yelped!
Rushing downstairs, she hustled for the door. She stumbled out of the dorm, though she got lost on the way, made it to the large spiral building mostly in time. Following a few girls in uniforms like she saw Rika in, Tamami entered the dining hall.
It was lined with long tables. Girls were getting their food from the many stations set up along the perimeter of the room. Wondrous aromas filled Tamami's nose, causing her stomach to gurgle. Quickly she went from place to place, taking a sample of food from each onto her plate until it was overloaded.
It was then did she realize that there was a definite difference among the two sides of the cafeteria tables. On each side was a unvarying sea of uniforms, different from the other. Tamami wasn't sure whether she should sit with the uniforms of the Sky academy, which she was apart of, or with the uniforms of the Terra academy, which dorm she lived in.
She belonged to neither.
Looking at her own plain clothing, she belonged to neither group, nor did she even know anybody in either of them.
She found an empty section at the end table furthest from the entrance and sat down. Only a few moments later did she hear a voice asking for silence. She glanced across the room and saw Minase standing before the hungry crowd of girls.
“Please bow your heads,” she said, then bowed her own head. “Bless us O Lord, and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive, from thy bounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.”
A low rumble of agreement replied from the numerous girls, and they quickly begun eating and chattering.
Not Tamami.
She sat quietly, staring at her food. Her appetite suddenly left her, and she only picked at the food on her plate, instead watching the girls around her talk and laugh.
When dinner was over, she walked back to her room. Turning on the lights, she sat down on her bed, looking out the window. The night sky was overcast, and the ground below was shadowed. Now would be a good time to have someone to talk to, but she was by herself.
She shook her head and slapped her cheeks. Tamami refused to let herself get discouraged. Her grandfather had told her it might take some time, but that she would make many friends.
A sudden knock on the door startled her. When she opened it up, standing outside was Minase.
“Yoshikawa-sama,” she exclaimed.
“Good evening, Tamami-san. I'd forgotten before, but I brought your uniforms.”
Tamami stuttered her thanks and let Minase into her room. In her hand were three sets of the uniforms Tamami saw the girls from Sky wear. She felt so excited goosebumps tingled all over her skin.
“Please make sure to keep these as clean as you can. Laundry is done by the housekeepers only once a week, so keep that in mind.”
“Oh, of course. Thank you.”
Minase nodded. “If you have any other questions, please let me know. If I'm not in my room, which is #7 on the first floor of the Sky dorm, I may be in the Aerie.”
“The Aerie?”
“Yes, it is in the tower of the chapel. The Sky student council meets there. If I'm not available, one of the representatives can help.” Minase took a step back to leave, then stopped herself. “One more thing. Tomorrow is the official council presentations to all the first-year students. It will be at the chapel in the afternoon once classes are over. I'll be there, as well as Horikita-sama of Terra.”
Tamami shivered with excitement. It sounded like a great opportunity to meet her fellow classmates.
Once Minase left, Tamami giggled with glee. She felt happy again, and couldn't wait for the new day to come.
Staring up at the magnificent iron gate, Tamami felt her body twitch. She had anticipated this day for weeks, and now finally she was here. Another step, and she would enter Saint Spira Catholic Girl's School. Not just an ordinary school, her grandfather had told her, but a prestigious school that only a few girls entered every year. Here she would meet the best and brightest girls from around Japan, and she would be taught all the things she needed to know to succeed in life.
Her fingers twitched in nervous delight. Tamami hoped she would fit in and make lots of friends. She wondered what the girls were like here.
Lifting her foot, she carefully slid it forward, then planted it onto the path. Smiling, she walked through the gate and into the school. Trees lined the pathway, guiding her deeper into the campus. From them she emerged to find herself nearing a baseball field. Squinting her eyes, Tamami spotted someone practicing alone.
Afraid to approach, she kept out of sight, sneaking closer and closer. As she drew nearer, the figure became more defined until she was just a few meters away, separated by a short chain-linked fence. A girl stood, gazing into the outfield, a thick wooden bat in hand. Sitting on a tee was a baseball.
Tamami couldn't help but admire the intensity in her brown eyes, and the way her short, auburn hair waved freely in the breeze. Then she readied her bat and took stance. She flicked her wrists and seemed to effortlessly hit the ball, sending it flying into the air. It clunked off the top of the low wall far in the outfield.
Her heart racing, Tamami clutched her chest. She never watched sports much before, but found herself in awe of this girl, who continued to launch balls far into the distance. The graceful way she moved tantalized Tamami.
She looked like perfection in motion.
Tamami let out a cough, though she tried to muffle it with her hands to no avail, as the girl, wiping sweat from her brow, turned around and spotted Tamami. Feeling embarrassed, she scurried away, hoping she didn't disturb the girl, or seem weird. She shouldn't have stopped to watch in the first place, she scolded herself. She was supposed to be meeting the leader of her class.
As she approached the main area of the campus, the number of girls swarming about grew. All dressed in their school uniforms, Tamami felt out of place with her normal, if not plain, clothing on. She wanted to strip out of them and don one of those cute uniforms walking by her.
She shook her head; she needed to focus. Reaching into her backpack, she pulled out a wrinkled map, and made sure she was on the correct course.
Arriving at her destination, a large fountain in the center of a circle around the school buildings, was hard to miss. A number of girls were hovering around the magnificent statue of the Virgin Mary. Water poured from the base around her.
A hand on her shoulder startled Tamami. She spun around, greeted by an equally surprised look by a girl with long blue hair. Her blue eyes were staring intently at Tamami for a second, then she smiled.
“Sorry to scare you,” she said to Tamami, then bowed. “I am Yoshikawa Minase, Senior of Sky Academy. Welcome to St. Spira.”
Tamami bowed profusely. “Thank you! I am Okano Tamami. Please to meet you.”
Noticing another girl walk up to her and Minase, Tamami became increasingly nervous.
“Good morning, Minase-sama. Is this the new student?”
Minase nodded. “Yes it is. Okano-san, I want you to meet Fukushi Miwa-san. She is a third year student, and a representative on our council.”
“Nice to meet you,” said Tamami, bowing again.
She wasn't sure about the student council here, or how they worked, but she knew they were important.
Questions were quickly set aside when Minase started to lead Tamami around the campus. The first building she saw was the chapel, which stood at the south end of the circle. A stone angel stood beside the entrance triumphantly, hoisting a horn pointed towards the sky. Tamami caught herself gawking at the old gothic style the chapel was built to mimic, and fell behind Minase.
Following the chapel was a large building that kind of looked like a spiral to Tamami. Minase explain this was where all the classrooms were. The thought of all her new classes made Tamami feel both excited and anxious at the same time.
Then they came to the dormitory for the Sky academy girls. Tamami was excited to have a new room and meet her new roommate. She hoped it was someone who matched her well, and someone she could become best friends with.
“I suppose it would be prudent to tell you more about our school,” said Minase. “Though there's more to tell than one day can hold.”
Miwa laughed. “You got that right!”
Minase stopped walking. “If you don't know already, St. Spira is divided into two divisions—Terra and Sky. We focus more on the arts and tradition. Terra has St. Spira's sports teams, and center on the sciences.
Tamami quelled on her explanation for a moment. She was in Sky.
Minase continued. “Please be mindful of your fellow students, and make sure to say your prayers and give thanks to God.”
“Oh, yes of course!”
Miwa snickered. “Don't mind too much. Minase-sama is a stickler for the rules.”
Minase glared at Miwa before she began walking again. Tamami realized they were heading away from the Sky dorm and towards another building.
“Excuse me,” she said meekly. “Aren't we going the wrong direction?”
Minase looked back, then brushed her bangs aside. “I forgot to mention, that due to circumstance, there are no more rooms available in the Sky dorm right now. And since you've come three days later than everyone else, we have to place you in the Terra dorm temporarily.”
Not knowing how she should feel about being in a dorm full of girls she wouldn't have classes with, Tamami just kept smiling.
“We'll try to get you into a room at the Sky dorm, but it may take some time,” said Miwa reassuringly.
“Thank you, Fukushi-sama.”
“Please, Miwa is fine.”
Tamami smiled. “Okay, Miwa-sama.”
Standing at the entrance of the Terra dorm was a girl with flowing black hair. She stood leaning against the wall, one hand wrapped around her waist. When she spotted Minase, she perked up and approached.
“Good morning, Minase-chan. Is this our new student?”
Tamami noticed Minase hesitated to answer, then gestured towards her. “Yes, this is Okano Tamami.”
The girl winked at Tamami. “Pleasure to meet you. I'm Horikita Rika, Terra Senior. I hope Minase-chan hasn't lectured you too much on your little tour.”
Minase folded her arms. “I hope you have a room ready for her, Horikita-sama.”
Scoffing, Rika shook her head. “I'm not that irresponsible. I can take her from here.”
Minase and Miwa bowed to Tamami and went their separate ways. A hand patted on Tamami's shoulder.
“I'm sure you're feeling a bit overwhelmed right now,” said Rika. “Why don't I just take you to your room . . . Tamami, right?”
“Y-yes!”
Smiling, Rika snapped her fingers. “Alright! I'm usually bad with learning names. Being the president of an academy, you have to remember so many it's a bit difficult sometimes.”
The difficulty of Rika's job mattered not to Tamami, as she was too enthralled with meeting both her and Minase, St. Spira's two Seniors—all barely after she arrived! She felt her head spinning as the hand on her shoulder led her into the dorm.
Never before had Tamami stayed in such a fancy place. When she lived with her father, they lived in a cramped apartment, usually messy with clutters of papers, cassette tapes, and dirty dishes. Then when she moved in with her grandfather, she lived in a small house secluded from civilization, naturally because he made his living as a farmer. It, too, was not at all elaborate.
But here, in the Terra dorm, everything seemed so spacious and ornate. From the plush carpet on the hallway floor to the intricate carving on the railway of the stairs, Tamami was amazed.
Before she knew it, she was on the third floor of the dorm. Rika stopped at the last door to the left, inserting a key into the lock, and opened the door.
“Here's you're new room, Tamami-chan,” she said, pointing. “And I'm happy to say you're luggage has already been delivered.”
Peeking her head inside, Tamami surveyed the room. It was definitely spacious, but not nearly as much as the other girls' rooms. It also perplexed her as to why there was only one bed in the room.
“Your accommodations are a little different than everyone else's.” Rika answered Tamami's unspoken question. “Since Minase-chan didn't give me much time to find you a room, we had to convert this into a dorm room. At least you have it all to yourself.”
Looking down at her shiny silver watch, Rika tapped her finger against her cheek. “I'm sorry to have to leave you so soon, but I have to be at class myself. Feel free to take the rest of the time until dinner to unpack and set up your belongings as you want. I'm sure you have lots of cute stuff.”
Tamami felt a little unnerved by Rika's wink, but remembered her manners. “No, no, thank you Horikita-sama.”
She smiled. “No need to be so formal. I'm not Minase-chan. I won't get bitter over a little bad manners.”
Tamami just laughed, unsure of what to say or do. Instead she silently watched Rika leave.
She sighed, and plopped herself on the naked bed. Wishing she had a roommate, unlike what Rika believed, Tamami stared at the blank wall. She had spent most of her life by herself.
She was ready to be with a friend.
Eventually she got up since she needed to unpack. Lifting her weighty suitcase onto her bed, she opened it up and started organizing her clothing. Opening up her closet, she hung up her shirts, pants, and skirts. On the walls she hung up her posters. Above her desk was a small bookshelf, where she put the sappy romantic novels she loved to read, but always felt goofy for enjoying so much.
By the time she finished rearranging her room and tidying up, it was time for dinner. She recalled Minase stating the cafeteria was in the main hall, starting promptly at five o'clock. Glancing at her watch, it was ten until five.
Tamami yelped!
Rushing downstairs, she hustled for the door. She stumbled out of the dorm, though she got lost on the way, made it to the large spiral building mostly in time. Following a few girls in uniforms like she saw Rika in, Tamami entered the dining hall.
It was lined with long tables. Girls were getting their food from the many stations set up along the perimeter of the room. Wondrous aromas filled Tamami's nose, causing her stomach to gurgle. Quickly she went from place to place, taking a sample of food from each onto her plate until it was overloaded.
It was then did she realize that there was a definite difference among the two sides of the cafeteria tables. On each side was a unvarying sea of uniforms, different from the other. Tamami wasn't sure whether she should sit with the uniforms of the Sky academy, which she was apart of, or with the uniforms of the Terra academy, which dorm she lived in.
She belonged to neither.
Looking at her own plain clothing, she belonged to neither group, nor did she even know anybody in either of them.
She found an empty section at the end table furthest from the entrance and sat down. Only a few moments later did she hear a voice asking for silence. She glanced across the room and saw Minase standing before the hungry crowd of girls.
“Please bow your heads,” she said, then bowed her own head. “Bless us O Lord, and these thy gifts, which we are about to receive, from thy bounty. Through Christ, our Lord. Amen.”
A low rumble of agreement replied from the numerous girls, and they quickly begun eating and chattering.
Not Tamami.
She sat quietly, staring at her food. Her appetite suddenly left her, and she only picked at the food on her plate, instead watching the girls around her talk and laugh.
When dinner was over, she walked back to her room. Turning on the lights, she sat down on her bed, looking out the window. The night sky was overcast, and the ground below was shadowed. Now would be a good time to have someone to talk to, but she was by herself.
She shook her head and slapped her cheeks. Tamami refused to let herself get discouraged. Her grandfather had told her it might take some time, but that she would make many friends.
A sudden knock on the door startled her. When she opened it up, standing outside was Minase.
“Yoshikawa-sama,” she exclaimed.
“Good evening, Tamami-san. I'd forgotten before, but I brought your uniforms.”
Tamami stuttered her thanks and let Minase into her room. In her hand were three sets of the uniforms Tamami saw the girls from Sky wear. She felt so excited goosebumps tingled all over her skin.
“Please make sure to keep these as clean as you can. Laundry is done by the housekeepers only once a week, so keep that in mind.”
“Oh, of course. Thank you.”
Minase nodded. “If you have any other questions, please let me know. If I'm not in my room, which is #7 on the first floor of the Sky dorm, I may be in the Aerie.”
“The Aerie?”
“Yes, it is in the tower of the chapel. The Sky student council meets there. If I'm not available, one of the representatives can help.” Minase took a step back to leave, then stopped herself. “One more thing. Tomorrow is the official council presentations to all the first-year students. It will be at the chapel in the afternoon once classes are over. I'll be there, as well as Horikita-sama of Terra.”
Tamami shivered with excitement. It sounded like a great opportunity to meet her fellow classmates.
Once Minase left, Tamami giggled with glee. She felt happy again, and couldn't wait for the new day to come.
