Shima's Light

Chapter 1: Akari Ferin

     Akari followed Yukio Okumura, her new homeroom teacher, down the long hallway of the cram school. She watched the ground, her mind ticking with every step. She remained unsure of her decision to join the cram school and become an Exorcist. 

     Akari had received her temptaint only a little under a year ago. She was terrified of the demons she had started to see daily, mainly because her temptaint had nearly killed her. She was offered a place in the cram school by Sr. Pheles himself, but had taken a year to think about it. Finally, she forced herself into action and accepted the offer, though it had already been a full semester of classes. She knew she would have to do a lot of catch up work, but was more worried about if she were capable of earning the Exorcist title.

     As a skinny girl with shirt brown hair and focused eyes, Akari had no obvious talents when it came to fighting. As far as she knew, she was just a straight A student who devoted herself to her studies and her future. But after the night she had received her temptaint, she struggled to even think about studying and preparing for another school year. All she could focus on now was demons. She kept her second-nature of always wanting to know everything and took up the cram classes to learn more about demons.

     Yukio suddenly stopped, causing Akari to snap out of her troubled thoughts. He turned to face her, his eyes were soft and gentle. "There's no reason to worry, everyone will loosen up to you and you'll fit in in no time. I'll figure out a private study for you to catch you up on everything you've missed. In the mean time, just do your best and try to make some friends. You won't be graded on work until I know for sure you are all caught up."

     Akari hesitated then nodded, "Right....Thank you, teacher." She relaxed a bit and gave a soft smile, she couldn't have asked for a better homeroom teacher. She prepared herself as Yukio entered the door they had stopped at then stepped in behind him. She focused in front of her, trying not to act shy as she felt the other student's eyes on her. She stopped beside Yukio and lifted her head boldly to scan the other students. She stifled her surprise to see how few there really were. She had been told by Yukio that there weren't many, but she had expected almost a full room.

     "We have a new student joining us today. She is now fully enrolled and will be attending classes from now on." Yukio started off the introduction then looked to Akari to finish it.

     Akari gave a bow in front of the class then stood straight again, "my name is Akari Ferin, age 15. It is nice to meet you all." She spoke confidently as she gazed over her new classmates. 

     A moment of silence passed before a male student at the front of the class with black hair jumped to his feet and held up his hand. "Welcome to the class, Akari!" He said loudly and grinned.

     Akari blinked in surprise then returned his grin with a soft smile. She relaxed as the rest of the class broke in and gave her a steady "welcome" as well. 

     Yukio nodded and looked at Akari, "go ahead and pick your own seat." He invited then moved to gather his papers for todays class.

     Akari nodded to Yukio then walked forward. She picked a seat at the very back center of the room. She took one of the two chairs and centered it under the table before sitting down. She couldn't help but notice that the pink-haired male student, who sat only two seats away from her, had his eyes trained on her. She fought herself not to look his way and focused instead on Yukio as he began class. 'What's his deal?' She thought to herself.

     Akari continued to feel the same pair of eyes on her throughout the day. She kept herself focused on the teacher but couldn't help but get nervous near the end of the day. 'Who is he and what does he want?' She asked herself as she gathered her things up early, slightly eager to leave and go home. Once Yukio dismissed the final class, she stood up and calmly made her way out of the room. She cast a glance up at the back corner where the pink-haired student sat only to catch his gaze right before she left the classroom. She paused briefly then shook her head and continued on, leaving the cram school and starting her walk home.

     It was no longer than two minutes that she heard jogging footsteps behind her. She ignored them until she heard her name. "Ferin! Hold on." Akari stopped and looked behind her, not surprised to see that it was the pink-haired student who had been keeping his eye on her. She blinked slightly in surprise as he stopped about five feet from her and panted a little heavily. 'How long has he been running?' She asked herself.

     The pink-haired male caught his breath then stood straight and gave a grin, "I never got a chance to introduce myself. The name's Renzou Shima, age 15."

     Akari studied Shima for a moment then turned to face him, "It's nice to meet  you, Shima." She said calmly. She was still unsure of him, even though he seemed kind.

     Shima smiled at her, "where were you going in such a hurry? I had to jog to catch-up to you, hopefully not looking like an ex of yours in the process."

     Akari paused then smiled softly, relaxing a little. 'He's a little funny, isn't he? Especially with that pink hair.' She blinked away from her thoughts and spoke. "Well, since you ran so hard to catch up to me, you might as well join me." She invited and grinned.