Chanse peeked her head in the already open dormroom door, cautiously. The room's occupant, a girl with really long light blue hair, was arranging things on a shelf, and had her back turned.

     "Excuse me... This is room 324A, West Dorm, right?" She asked.

     The girl in blue turned. "Sure is!" She answered brightly. "Come on in!"

     "What a relief," Chanse sighed, setting down her trunk. "I was starting to think I would never find the right place. This school is huge, compared to my old one."

     "Yeah, I had the same problem when I first started going here. You'll get used to it. You're my roommate, aren't you?"

     "Yes. I would have been here sooner, but they assigned me to the wrong dorm. My name's Chanse Melody."

     "I'm Alaska Winters. Nice to meet you." she said, shaking the hand Chanse had extended. "I hope you don't mind, but I already took the bed by the window."

     "It's okay, this one's fine." Chanse said, dragging her trunk to the foot of the other bed.

     "So what school did you transfer from, Chanse?" Alaska asked.

     "Corinth Academy." Chanse answered, opening up her trunk. "It's kinda small, and in the southwest. You may or may not have heard of it."

     "Actually, I think I have." Alaska said. "Wasn't there something in the papers about it recently?"

     Chanse blinked, surprised. "Really? The news about the new headmaster made it this far?"

     "Are you kidding?" Alaska giggled. "When a sorcerer as famous as Thorne Redmond is involved, the media tend to pay attention. He's powerful, he's rich, and he's handsome. Any idea why he bought the school?"

     Chanse shrugged. "Your guess is as good as mine. Corinth is just a small farming town. I've lived there most of my life, and I never thought there was anything really special about it. Kinda boring, actually. Maybe he just wanted to get away from the city?" It was hard for her to imagine someone getting tired of the city, when she had always dreamed of going there.

     "So why did you transfer here? Corinth is sure to get more exiting, with him around."

     "I thought about that, but I got offered a full scholarship to come here. I couldn't pass up the chance to study at the best magical academy in the world." The offer had come quite suddenly, and she had practically jumped at the opportunity.

     "Wow, you must be really talented, to get an offer like that!" Alaska exclaimed. "I guess no one could pass that up!"

     Chanse blushed, modestly. "I do my best, that's all..." She shrugged, and started pulling things out of her trunk. "Is this shelf taken?"

     "That whole closet is yours. The one on this side is mine, see?" She opened the door to reveal four rows of outfits hung neatly on hangers. "I like blue, can't you tell?" Alaska giggled.

     "Yeah, I guess so." Chanse smiled. Her own wardrobe was less than half the size of Alaska's, so it didn't take her very long to hang all her clothes up.

     "So, where are you from, Alaska?" She asked, pulling out bedsheets.

     "Up North, near the Blue Mountains. My parents own a bunch of ski resorts up there. Ice magic kinda runs in both sides of my family, so they're open year round."

     "You mean the Blue Winters Resorts?" Even in tiny Corinth, people often dreamed about going to one of those world-famous ski lodges.

     "Yep that's them!" Alaska laughed. "Have you ever been to one?"

     "No, but I've always wanted too..." Just never had the money, Chanse thought. She finished making her bed. Then, she unpacked her two most prized possessions: A flute, which was given to her on her eighth birthday, and her mother's sword, which she inherited when she was nine, after her mother's death. She opened up their cases briefly, to make sure there was no damage to either. The sword gleamed brightly, catching the light from overhead.

     "Hey, is that a samurai sword?" Alaska asked, noticing the flash of light. "Way cool! It's beautiful..."

     "Thank you. It was my mother's, and her mother's before that." She held it up for Alaska to see.

     "You know... This sword looks a lot like a friend of mine's," Alaska said, examining it closely. "His has a bird carved on it, too. It's a phoenix. Your sword looks like it's a bit smaller, and it has a thunderbird on it."

     "Really?" Chanse said, interested. Someone else with a sword like hers? "Who has it, I'd like to meet him."

     "His name's Fiore Masamune. He's only one of the smartest, nicest, most gorgeous guys on campus." Alaska sighed, dreamily.

     "Fiore? Yeah, I've met him. His brother, Jinx, kinda ran into me. He likes swords?" He seemed more of the quiet type, Chanse thought.

     "Yep, he's second only to Jerith Whitewind in the kendo club."

     "Jerith Whitewind?"

     Alaska sighed again, her eyes getting starry. "Yes, another gorgeous hunk... He's the student council president, captain of the kendo club, and the boy's martial arts club. His specialization is illusions, and they're very good. His younger brother's kinda cute, too, but he's a bit creepy. His name's Jacob, and he's a shadow magic user."

     "Shadow magic? He doesn't happen to mumble a lot and wear long black robes, does he?"

     "That sounds like him, all right..." Alaska nodded. "Don't tell me you've met him already, too?"

     "Yeah, kinda. I didn't catch his name before, though." A shadow mage... so that's what she had sensed. She had read about them, but had never met one before. It was a rare talent.

     Suddenly, their conversation was interrupted by a loud wailing noise coming from the room next door.

     "No, No, No, NO!!! I don't wanna take a bath!!! SUGAR RUSH ATTACK!!"

     There was an outraged scream, and the door to the bathroom that connected the two rooms flew open. A pink blur flew by Alaska, moving under her bed.

     "Come back here, ya little brat!" A girl with red hair yelled, heading after the blur. She was wearing a red tanktop with cutoffs, and was covered in what looked like cotton candy.

     "What the...?" Was all Chanse had time to say, before another girl popped her head into the room, as well.

     "Pyra! Candy! Stop fighting! It's not polite to just barge in on people!" The girl scolded. She had pink hair, and was wearing long white robes. They look like sisters, Chanse thought.

     "But she got me all sticky with that gooey spell of hers!!" The red-haired girl shrieked.

     "It doesn't matter, that's no excuse to be rude. Candy, you too, out from under Alaska's bed."

     The girl referred to as Candy crawled out, with a solemn look on her face. "But... I don't wanna take a bath," She sniffed. Her pink pigtails were coming undone, and her dress was wrinkled.

     "We'll discuss that later. Right now, I want you to apologize to Alaska and her roommate. You too, Pyra."

     "We're sorry..." Pyra and Candy mumbled, in unison. Then they trudged out of the room.

     "I'm really sorry about this... It's not exactly the best first impression..." The girl said, embarrassed.

     "There's no real damage," Chanse said. Except maybe to my eardrums, she thought.

     "Oh, how rude of me!" Alaska exclaimed. "Let me introduce you to each other. Chanse, this is Serenity Mystic, but everyone just calls her Ren. Ren, this is my new roommate, Chanse Melody. She's a new transfer student."

     The two girls shook hands and exchanged pleasantries.

     "Those were my sisters," Ren explained. "Pyra's the oldest, and Candy's the youngest. They always seem to be getting on each other's nerves. Sorry you both got caught in the crossfire."

     "I just hope it doesn't become a regular occurrence," Alaska laughed.

     "Me either," Serenity sighed. "Those two can be a handful, sometimes. They were just getting ready to have dinner with the boys... or trying to, at least."

     "I was starting to think about dinner, myself," Alaska said. "Have you been to the cafeteria yet, Chanse?"

     "No, not yet," Chanse said. She hadn't eaten since breakfast, and at the mention of food, her stomach growled, loudly. "Umm..." She blushed, "I guess I am pretty hungry..."

     Serenity smiled. "Why don't you both join us?" she offered. "I'm sure Jinx and Fiore won't mind."

     "It sounds like fun, but what about Pyra?" Alaska asked. "Won't she be jealous?"

     "She'll just have to get over it. What about you, Chanse?"

     "Sure, I'll go." I wonder what Pyra's jealous of? She thought. It sounded like it had something to do with Alaska, but what? It may be trouble, but she really did want to talk to Fiore about his sword.

     "Good," She smiled. "I'll go check on my sisters. They should be ready in a few minutes. If you like, you can go on ahead, and we'll meet you at our usual table, if it's free."

     "That's fine," Alaska said. "See you in a little while!"

     "Yes, hopefully, if there's no more fighting," Serenity said, heading for the door. "It was nice meeting you, Chanse."

     "You too," Chanse replied. She's so calm, just like her name, Chanse thought. And there's a power... radiating from her softly, like a gentle light. A power I've never sensed before. I wonder if she's a light wielder? It was another talent that wasn't very common.

     "Ready when you are, Chanse!" Alaska said, after Serenity had left.

     "Let's go, then, I'm hungry," Chanse replied.

...

     The cafeteria was fairly crowded, and the hum of many different conversations greeted Jinx and Fiore as they entered the door.

     "I'm starving!!" Jinx exclaimed. He looked at the students coming out of line with their trays. "Oh boy, they have hotdogs today!! And french fries! It smells so good!!"

     "I don't see the girls yet..." Fiore said, looking out at the tables.

     "Hey, there's Alaska and that weird girl we ran into earlier!" Jinx exclaimed, pointing towards the front of the line.

     "Oh, wow!!!" Alaska was yelling, "They have chocolate cheesecake for dessert!!! With little sprinkles!! My favorite!"

     The other girl- Chanse, Fiore remembered, was looking at the main courses. The pizza seemed to interest her, and she put a slice on her tray. Then, she headed for the salad bar.

     Her power signature, Fiore thought, makes me think of blowing leaves and flowing water. Could she be a wind/water elemental user? Double elementals were not very common.

     As if she sensed his thoughts, Chanse turned her head towards Fiore. Their eyes met, and she smiled and waved.

     Fiore was about to wave back, but someone from behind him latched onto his arm.

     "Hi Darling, we're here!" Pyra cried.

     "I hope you guys don't mind, but I invited Alaska and her roommate to join us," Serenity said.

     "The more the merrier!" Jinx exclaimed, still drooling over all the food.

     "It's fine with me, too, Ren," Fiore said.

     Pyra scowled. "But not with me! Why'd you have to go and invite that... that hussy!"

     "I like Alaska, she's nice!" Candy protested.

     "Who asked you?!" Pyra yelled.

     Candy stuck her tongue out at Pyra, and Pyra did the same to Candy.

     Serenity sighed. "Grow up, Pyra. Honestly, you really need to stop being so jealous."

     Pyra scowled, but didn't say anything to reply to her sister's comment.

     Fiore cleared his throat, uncomfortably. "Pyra, would you mind not holding onto my arm so tightly? It's starting to hurt..."

     "Whoops..." Pyra said, realizing exactly how much she was squeezing it, in her anger. She let go. "Sorry, Pookums..." she said, embarrassed.

     "I want pizza!!!" Candy yelled, when they finally reached the front of the line.

     "What about the hotdogs and the french fries?" Jinx asked. "They look good too!"

     "Yeah, and the cheesecakes!!" Candy added. "They even have pink sprinkles!"

     "Don't forget the vegetables," Serenity reminded them.

     "Aww, do I havta?" Candy protested.

     "If you want dessert, you do," Serenity replied. "Just because we're away from home doesn't mean we shouldn't eat healthy."

     The group finished selecting all their food, then they moved towards the table where Alaska and Chanse were waiting.

     "Hi everyone!" Alaska greeted them, as they approached. "I hear that you boys have already met my roommate, Chanse?"

     "Uhh, yeah we kinda bumped into each other in the boy's dorm..." Jinx said, setting his tray on the table, and plopping down in the seat next to Alaska.

     "H'lo, Chanse, I'm Candy!" She sat down next to Jinx. "Sorry if we bugged you before."

     "Yeah, I guess we did get a bit carried away," Pyra said, taking the seat farthest away from Alaska. Fiore sat down between her and Serenity.

     "It's okay, really," Chanse assured them. Her ears had finally stopped ringing.

     "Let's eat!!!" Jinx hollered, stuffing food into his mouth. The others watched, awed and a bit embarrassed by his lack of table manners.

     "So where did you transfer from, Chanse?" Serenity asked, over Jinx's slurps.

     "Umm... From Corinth Academy in the Southwest," she said, distracted by Jinx's slurping. What a sloppy eater, she thought. Guess I should try to ignore it, like the rest of them seem to be doing.

     "Corinth... yes I do remember reading something about it in the papers." Serenity replied, thoughtfully.

     "Yeah" Jinx said between slurps. "It's supposed to be pretty small. Sounds boring, too."

     "It is pretty boring," Chanse agreed, "But it's still home, I guess..."

     "Have you been into the city yet, Chanse?" Alaska asked.

     "Not yet, but I got a good glimpse of it when I flew up here." Aulderan City was the third largest on the Northern Continent. It was about a 30 minute ride away from the school on dragonback, or 20 minutes if you had a skimmer.

     "It's really, really fun!" Candy exclaimed. She had blob of pizza sauce smeared on her chin.

     "Uh, huh!" Pyra agreed. "There's so many places to shop!"

     "And lots of food!!" Jinx added, dripping chili from his third hotdog on his shirt.

     "The bookstores have rare magic texts, sometimes," Fiore said, wistfully.

     "And the theater! They usually have very good productions," Serenity said.

     "Did I mention the food?" Jinx burped, loudly.

     "Oh, Jinx, you're such a pig," Alaska sighed. "Still, I'm jealous that you can eat so much, and stay so thin."

     "My brother, the bottomless pit," Fiore teased.

     "Hey, I'm a growing boy!" Jinx protested.

     "Hmm... Well, if I ate as much as you did, I'd grow all right, but it wouldn't be taller..."

     "Oh, Alaska, you're not even close to being fat," Ren assured her.

     "I think you're pretty!" Candy agreed, holding her nose as she chewed her vegetables.

     "Anyway, back to what we were saying before, Aulderan city is the place to go on a weekend pass," Pyra said. "I just know my Fiore-kins will take me, the next time we get the chance."

     Chanse noticed that Fiore looked unhappy as Pyra said this.

     "He's not your property, Pyra," Alaska said, noticing as well. "He's just too polite to tell you to buzz off!"

     Pyra's face turned red, and her eyes blazed like fire. "THAT'S A LIE!!! MY FIORE-POO LOVES ME!!!" She hollered.

     Everyone in the cafeteria stared at their table. At that moment, Fiore wished that he could disappear like his brother, but unfortunately he didn't have that power.

     "Umm... do you really have to yell so loud?" Chanse complained. My poor ears. I'll have to invest in some earmuffs if this keeps up, she thought.

     Pyra and Alaska glared at each other.

     "Meow! Catfight!!" Jinx cried. "I just wish it was over me!"

     "Now girls..." Ren started, seeing that Mage War Three was about to take place.

     "How DARE you say something like that!" Pyra continued. "You just want my Dearest Fiore for yourself!!"

     "At least I wouldn't walk all over him the way you do!" Alaska retorted.

     "So, you admit it!!" Pyra fumed. "Tramp!! Floozy!!"

     "You take that back!!!" Alaska yelled. "You big... Bimbo!!!"

     "Girls... stop fighting!" Ren said. Poor Fiore, she thought. He looks so embarrassed. And Chanse doesn't look very happy, either.

     "Yeah, no fighting in school!!" Candy agreed.

     "BIMBO?!!!" Pyra screeched, aiming a fireball at Alaska.

     "Chill out, Pyra!!" Alaska retorted, putting out the flame with a crystal of ice she formed.

     Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to tag along with them for dinner after all, Chanse thought, wondering if she should help Ren break up the fight. A fireball whizzed by her head, and she ducked under the table to avoid it.

     "Fancy meeting you here," Jinx joked. He and Candy were already under the table.

     "Shouldn't we stop them, or something?!" Chanse asked. "It sounds like they're going to kill each other out there!" Pyra's insane laughter could be heard from above them.

     "Naah, this happens all the time," Jinx replied, calmly.

     "Yeah, at least once a month," Candy agreed.

     There was an explosion from above, and the sound of ice cracking.

     "But..." That didn't sound very good, Chanse thought.

     "It'll blow over, and they'll be the best of friends again, you'll see," He insisted.

     More laughter from above, this time Alaska's

     What a crazy school this is, Chanse thought. Then, she noticed something. "Hey Jinx, where'd your brother go?"

...

     I've got to tell her, Fiore thought, his bamboo practice sword in hand. It can't go on like this. But I don't want to hurt her feelings... she may act tough, but she's emotionally vulnerable...

     He had slipped out, unnoticed in the midst of the argument. He hadn't planned on walking anywhere in particular, but his wanderings had brought him to the kendo hall.

     He slashed the blade through the air, attacking an invisible opponent. If only all of my problems could be met as easily, he thought. Pyra... If she could see him simply as a brother, like she had before. Ever since he had saved her life last year, things had been different... and he only wanted them back the way they used to be. He had gotten around the issue during the summer as much as possible by doing volunteer work, which Pyra hated and avoided. He had hoped that, in his absence, her infatuation with him would die down. Unfortunately, it seemed as though the more he avoided it, the worse it got. He knew that soon, he would have to speak up.

     Fiore maneuvered the blade through a complicated fighting pattern, wondering exactly how he should break it to Pyra.

...

     Magnus Dragonflight's eyes glowered, taking reptilian form. I have to control myself... he thought, counting silently to ten.

     Alaska and Pyra stood in front of his desk, looking shameful and a bit scared.

     "Now..." He said, after he had calmed down a bit, "Would either of you two care to offer an excuse for your behavior?"

     The girls remained silent.

     "No excuses? Good. Because there is no excuse for what you have done. The two of you should be ashamed of yourselves. You know the rules about fighting. In addition to property damage, it sets a bad example for the younger students. You're just lucky no one was seriously hurt. Ren was kind enough to stay behind and heal the few minor injuries."

     He sighed. They were in here just about every month, like clockwork. He had hoped they would be able to get along better by now. "In addition to a ten page essay and four weeks of detention, you both must work together to clean up the cafeteria. There will be no more such outbursts between the two of you, or I will increase the punishment tenfold. Is that clear?"

     Alaska and Pyra nodded. "Yes, sir," they said, in unison.

     "Good. For the remainder of the day, you will confine yourselves to your rooms, to think about what you have done. And from now on, if you really insist on fighting, you will confine your fights to the designated battle areas, and have supervision."

...

     Chanse had found her own way back to the dorms. The Headmaster had shown up to end the fight shortly after she noticed Fiore was missing. One simple spell, and he had temporarily frozen the two girls in place. Chanse had caught a glimpse of the inhuman anger in his eyes, and was very glad she hadn't been the focus of his glare. Still, she worried about Alaska, who had not yet returned from the headmaster's office. She even felt a slight amount of sympathy for Pyra, who had also not yet returned. Unable to think of anything else to do, Chanse started playing her flute, softly.

     The door creaked open, slowly. Alaska entered their room, her head down in embarrassment.

     "Sorry..." she mumbled. "I really didn't mean for it to get that out of hand."

     Chanse couldn't think of anything to say, so she remained silent.

     "It's just that... Pyra makes me so angry, sometimes. The way she pushes Fiore around like that..." Alaska continued.

     "What is the story between them, anyway?" Chanse asked. "She's totally flipped over him, but he doesn't seem to like it very much..."

     "It wasn't always this way..." Alaska explained. "The Mystic family sort of adopted Fiore and Jinx when they were little. They used to act more like brother and sister, until early last semester. Something happened on one of the missions they were assigned to. I wasn't there, but from what I heard, Fiore almost sacrificed himself to save Pyra's life. She was quiet for a while after that. Still in shock, I guess. Then she started getting more and more clingy around him."

     Alaska shrugged. "I guess... she decided that she needs someone to protect her, and that Fiore is the best person to do it. Poor Fiore. He just doesn't feel that way about her, and he's to polite to hurt her feelings."

     "Hmm..." Chanse said, thoughtfully. When it was put from that perspective, it at least made a little bit of sense.

     "Anyway, I'm going to have to keep my mouth shut about the situation, at least around Pyra. I have enough detention as it is." She flopped down on her bed. "Think I'll turn in a bit early. All those ice spells took a lot of energy."

     "I'm kinda tired, too, actually." Chanse said. It had been a long flight to get here.

     The two of them changed into their pajamas, washed their faces, and brushed their teeth. Alaska braided her long hair up, to keep it from getting tangled during the night, and Chanse put hers up in buns. Both girls got in their beds, and turned out the lamps on their nightstands.

     What an unusual, exciting day this was, Chanse thought, closing her eyes. I got to see the city, even if just from a distance. I met some new friends, even though most of them are kinda weird. I'm even starting to get to know the layout of the school a bit better. It's definitely going to be an interesting year.

     The last thought Chanse had before drifting asleep was that she still hadn't talked to Fiore about his sword.

...

This story and its characters are © Chibi Ningyo (Cara V.), 2000.