Double Your Stars [KH/FF]

[I] Arrival

                                                                                         ——☆✮- - - -  

       Finally entering the kingdom, you saw beige houses topped with either orange or purple rooftops and shops surrounding what you thought to be the central square. Four sets of stairs led into and out of the boxed in center itself, outlined by four curved strips of grass that held four trees each. Lining the inside were hexagonal garden beds that held a strip of yellow flowers, another of white, and a third of red. At the center was a symbol of some sort: diamond-like with something resembling a wide cross in the middle. A circle rested at each point with one in the middle of the cross. With it's location you guessed this might've been the kingdom's crest.

     'Maybe I'll actually learn how to take care of plants while I'm here,' you thought to yourself as you gazed at the flowerbeds. It was a little known fact you were not the best in taking care of anything that involved watering. Your mother made it seem so simple.

     All around were people walking to and fro-- on their way to their jobs or casually shopping. Some tourists were stopping to take pictures at every scenic spot they could find while those with higher priorities left in crowds to check into their hotels or motels, whichever this place had. You however, could not do this just yet. This was primarily due to the fact that you were unsure of where exactly it was that you would be staying. While your parents had set up living arrangements with an old family friend, they'd forgotten to give you a key or even an address. With a sigh, you found a place off to the side to retrieve a map that had been given out on the ship and quickly scanned it in search of the school. A look of confusion crossed your face when you found it marked with a star and labeled as two separate things. "That's weird. And it's...straight ahead?" Looking up, you saw that across a small bridge and through yet another silver gate were countless steps leading to the magnificent castle of the world. A castle which, on your map, was also labeled as Radiance Academy. "Oh God no..."

     It was at least a 30 minute walk to reach the center as the bus that transported new arrivals to the gate was full and, being impatient as you were, didn't want to wait for it to make another trip. It would take maybe another hour to climb all of those stairs. As badly as you wanted to take a break, time could not be wasted on your first day. With much reluctance, you took a deep breath and began walking once again-- making a mental note to search for short-cuts when school ended.

                                                                                       ——☆✮- - - -

     It was a little less than halfway when you'd finally decided to sit down and take a break. Now you wished you'd stopped to buy a drink when the opportunity could be had. Your throat was dry and at this point your stomach surely held a newly found hatred for you. On the other hand, at least you'd taken to wearing comfortable shoes that could handle this amount of walking, though that was hardly an upside at the moment. "Why did it have to be the castle? It's a nice idea, but really?"

     "I take it you're a transfer student."

     You turned your attention to the smooth voice laced with an underlying tone of cockiness. What you were met with was a tall, lanky teen that surely had to be a Junior at the very least. He had an inverted triangle shaped face and light sun kissed skin. His eyes looked to be a lovely emerald green with small, lightly faded purple teardrop-like markings underneath. You assumed they were tattoos, but who really knew nowadays? What stood out most, like a stylistic signature, was his hair. A fiery red that couldn't be natural, spiked behind him in a manner that reminded you of a wilting flower.