Fandom ( it takes all the stars to align ) ••• starfallen.txt & redrobinwing

[Redrobinwing]

Guitar was cool. He'd always wanted to learn how to play an instrument, but it had always seemed like a difficult thing to pick up. Maybe, now that he knew someone who played, he could ask for some tips or something. His thoughts were interrupted by the loud chime of the bell. Hisao looked up in surprise as it rang. The schedule still felt alien to him; his old school had a longer lunch period. Ignoring the mild disappointment he felt, he looked to Hoshiko and gave a small smile and wave. "Yeah, it's been fun. Maybe we can get lunch again another time." With that, he picked up his tray, tossed his food scraps, and headed to his next class.

As it turned out, his next class was a free period. Something to do with having completed the necessary number of credits in one of his subjects, or something like that. Since he didn't have a lot of homework yet, he decided to explore the school a bit more, just to familiarize himself with the campus and everything. During his self-guided tour, Hisao noticed a small group of students hanging up what looked like decorations of some kind. As far as he knew, there weren't any holidays coming up. Curiosity got the best of him, and he approached the group just to try and figure out what event was coming up.

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

"Just a little bit higher, Kazumi! ...Perfect, perfect!" The voice came from what seemed to be the wheelchair-ridden girl, who wasn't putting up any decorations for obvious reasons. "Okay, I think we need more stuff on this side, so can someone get on that? ...Alright, perfect. I think we're done for now...? At least take a break, everyone!"


The girl wheeled herself towards the shade of a tree, sighing softly. She almost felt bad, not being able to help with putting up the decorations, but she wasassigned by her teacher to supervise. Mai leaned back against her wheelchair, deciding to cool down in the shade. It was really starting to get hot, huh...


Hm?


She had only now just noticed the boy who had approached their little group - he seemed to be curious about what they were doing. "Hello," she called out, giving him a little wave.

 

[Redrobinwing]

A voice broke Hisao's concentration on the decorations. He looked around, searching for where it came from, until he saw a young woman sitting under a tree. For a split second, he started to wonder why there was a random chair under a tree, until he realized that she was sitting in a wheelchair. He resisted the urge to facepalm at just how dull he was, and slowly walked up to meet her in the shade. He offered a wave of his own. "Hi." Turning back one last time to eye the decorations, he finally gave his full attention to the girl in front of him. "Sorry if I was in the way or anything, I was just getting a look at the decorations. Is there an event coming up soon?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

"Oh no, it's okay! We're putting them up for the festival. The one at the end of the year, you know?" Mai tilted her head, not really understanding why he wouldn't know about it. He looked about as old as her, if not a bit older - he should know about it, right? But then again...

Oh, right! She had heard from some of the other students that there was a new kid today. Putting two and two together, Mai asked, "Wait, are you the new person? What was it, uh... Nakai, right?" She had decided to use his last name for now - she wasn't sure if she should call him by first name yet, after all. It was just more polite this way.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Yet again, Hisao was taken aback by a girl he'd only just met. It was starting to seem like this was just a thing that happened at this school. He didn't mind of course, they'd all been cute girls, and everyone had been nice so far, but the fact that she remembered his name was insane. He could barely remember the names of all his family members, let alone some random new kid. In fact, he was a little flattered, but he chose to assume that she was just that sort of person. Focusing back on the girl, he nodded. "Yes, I'm the new person, and yeah, my name is Nakai. But please, call me Hisao." The thought of someone calling him by his family name sent shivers down the boy's spine. A lot of people did that with his father, and even then he still thought it was kind of weird. He gave another friendly smile to the girl and took a couple of steps towards her, then held out a hand for her to shake.

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

Ah, so she was right!

"Oh! I apologize," she said in reply to the correction. An honest mistake, really - she was only trying to be polite, after all. "My name is Mai Aihara, but you can just call me Mai." She smiled, even bowed a little bit despite her sitting down. Maybe she was being a bit too polite right now, but that was only because this was someone she just met. It was always important to be polite.

"Would you like to watch us set up more decorations?" she offered. "We still have a few boxes left, too, if you'd like to help." Mai gestured towards the couple of unopened boxes filled with streamers and ribbons and the like. "You don't have to, of course."

 

[Redrobinwing]

"Oh, um, there's no reason to apologize. It's nice to meet you, Mai." Now he felt bad. He hadn't meant to seem upset or anything, he just wanted to be a bit more casual about things. When she bowed, he did the same, figuring it was best to match politeness with the same politeness. He looked towards the remaining boxes and nodded to her offer. "I was actually just exploring the school a bit, but sure, I'd like to help." It was probably best to meet some more students, he could always check things out later. Plus, maybe he could find someone to show him around a bit by helping out. "What should I start with?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

Mai wheeled herself back to the spot she was in earlier, taking a good look at the decorations. It looked good, but now that she took a break from staring at them for half an hour long, there was something missing. She thought about it for a second, before nodding to herself and pointing towards one of the unopened boxes. "There should be some garlands in there; just take some and put them where you think it looks nice. It looks a bit empty to the right over there, so maybe put some there?"

She looked towards the other students in her little group, who seemed to have stopped taking a break and have started to set up more decorations again. It was almost done, she thought - just a few more on this side, and then... they'd have to move on to the other side. Judging from the looks of everyone's faces, maybe it was best to move that to tomorrow, instead. They had a whole week left, anyways.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao followed the girl to the unopened boxes and began unpacking them. He had never really decorated much before. There had been a few events in primary school where helping out with decorations was mandatory, but that was about it. Student council wasn't really his sort of thing, and there weren't many clubs he'd been interested in either. Nonetheless, he figured he'd do his best, even if it was just to meet some new people.

As he started hanging the garlands up, he attempted making some conversation with Mai. "So, Mai, have you been going to Yamaku for very long?" She seemed like an experienced student, especially since it looked like she was the one directing the actions of rest of her classmates. He had to admit, she was kind of cute, but so were most of the girls he'd met today. Now that he thought about it, it was a little weird that he'd really only met girls on his first day. Not that he was complaining of course, but still, odd.

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

"Ever since I started high school, yes," Mai replied. "It's much better here than anywhere else. At least, for someone like me. Everyone's nice here." She chuckled to herself - probably remembering something from before her high school days. "The garlands look nice, by the way."

But would that be enough? She thought about how much time they have left, and how tired everyone else must be. But then again, they all just took a break...

Deciding to just clear her thoughts for now, Mai focused her attention back on Hisao. "So, what was school life like before Yamaku? If you don't mind me asking."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao smiled to her when she complimented the garlands. "Thanks." When she asked him about school, it took him a few moment to think of an answer. School life was... pretty boring if he was being honest. He did his work, went home to a normal family, and sometimes he would hang out with his friends, but that was about it. Nothing particularly interesting. "It was fine. Pretty normal I think. Definitely a little different from what it's like here." Yamaku was kind of cool so far. It was different for sure, but that was kind of nice coming from the monotonous high school that he came from. "The people here seem very nice. I haven't met a single person who hasn't been polite or kind to me." Maybe it was because he was the new kid.

...Yeah, that was very possible.

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

"Well, yeah, everyone's friendly here." Mai smiled, tilting her head a little bit. She was really starting to enjoy his company. Then again, she enjoyed everyone's company, but some just a little bit more than others. It'd be safe to say Hisao was classified under 'some'.

"Are you planning on attending the festival? It's optional, but it's always pretty fun, you know?" Maybe it was a bit weird to say it out of the blue, but the girl was honestly just curious. Besides, it'd almost be waste not to attend.

 

[Redrobinwing]

He gave the question a bit of thought. "Maybe. Probably. I'm not really sure yet; still trying to get used to things." From the decorations that had been hung up so far, it seemed like the festival was pretty cool. He hadn't heard much about it so he didn't really know what sort of stuff would be there, but if it was like any other school festival, it'd at least be fun with friends.

Once he finished his part of the decorations, he looked back towards Mai. "Do you think I should go?" Asking her probably wasn't the best idea; she was obviously going to say yes since she was helping out with it. Still, she seemed like she'd give him an honest answer, and maybe he could learn a bit more about the event.

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

"Of course!" The girl grinned, swaying back and forth a little bit in her wheelchair. "There's lots to do! One of my friends is gonna play the koto, and there's always some nice food and games..." Mai giggled, clearly excited for the festival. It was obvious what she felt about it - it was one of her favorite times of the year, not to mention the last school festival she's going to be able to attend. She was going to make this last one count, no matter what happens.

"I mean, of course, it's your decision and you don't have to go if you don't want to!" A lighthearted smile graced her face.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao started putting any left over trash or scraps into the garbage to help out a bit with the clean-up effort. From the looks of it, it didn't seem like there was too much more to do, at least in this section. The festival sounded pretty cool, at least from the way Mai described it. He wondered what sort of food and games would be there. From what he had gathered, it was mostly student-run, which could either be really good or really bad, depending on how much effort went into everything. If Mai's enthusiasm was anything to go by, it was going to be the best festival the school had ever seen. He offered the girl a smile. "That sounds pretty fun, actually. You may have just convinced me to check it out."

 

[starfallen.txt]

WHISPERING WORDS
of long-lost lullabies.

Mai would have done a little jump of victory - if she could without failing horribly due to the state of her legs. "Awesome! You won't regret it, I promise! And if you do, uh... just don't hate me." She giggled again, holding a hand up to her mouth. She had jokingly said that last part, hoping he would at least be kind of amused by it. Maybe she was trying too hard.

She was about to say something else until she noticed just how close it was to the end of their free period. "Ah, it's almost time to go... Thanks for helping, Hisao. It's been nice talking!" She gave him a little smile, before starting to wheel herself away, towards her own classroom.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao responded with a small smile of his own added a wave. "No problem. Hope to see you again soon Mai!" He paused and reconsidered his word choice. Maybe that was a bit much... He thought to himself as that ever-familiar awkwardness began to creep back in. Then again, Mai probably wouldn't think too much of it. They'd only just met after all, not like there was any reason to think otherwise.

A few boring classes later, Hisao finally had the time to explore the town a bit. Luckily, it wasn't too far from Yamaku so the walk wasn't very long. It wasn't a particularly large place, but it seemed like there was plenty of stuff to do anyway. As he considered what exactly he wanted to check out, a low grumble escaped from his stomach and told him exactly where he needed to go.

 

[starfallen.txt]

DANCE WITH YOUR LIFE ON THE LINE
the risk is what makes it beautiful!

Inside a convenience store conveniently located right next to the path to the town, there stood two girls from Yamaku, locked in the eternal struggle of object-a-bit-too-high-on-the-shelf. The slightly taller of the two currently had her arm stretched as far as she can, eyes fixated on the bag of chips sitting so close, yet so far away from them. Determination was written all over her face - she was not going back to Yamaku without this particular bag. She must have it.

"Are you any closer to reaching it?" the shorter girl piped up beside her. "Tap my shoulder once for yes, twice for no." She waited a little bit, and when the first tap came, part of her mind had hoped there would be no second tap.

About half a second later, the second tap arrived, and Chika Ryuumine felt part of her soul fade away.

The only-slightly taller girl pulled out her phone and opened up a text-to-speech app, typing something in that would soon be relayed out in a monotone voice from her phone's speakers: "I don't think we can get this one, Chika."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao opened the door to the convenience store and triggered the ringing of the same bell that seemed to be present in every convenience store on the planet. The cashier behind the counter looked up from his newspaper and gave a small nod to the young man before quickly turning his attention back to whatever article he was reading.

The selection of food on display was mediocre, but that was to be expected from a convenience store. Really, pretty much anything would satisfy Hisao's hunger, but there wasn't much that sounded very good. He weaved his way through each of the different aisles, and just as he passed by one, he saw something that almost made him laugh out loud. Two girls were standing in front of a shelf filled with chips, one of them trying desperately to grab a bag from the very top. A part of Hisao told him to just wait and see what would happen, but his good-natured side told him that he should help out. He approached the two girls and spoke up. "Um, excuse me, would you like some help?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

DANCE WITH YOUR LIFE ON THE LINE
the risk is what makes it beautiful!

"Eh?"

Chika swiveled her head towards where she thought the voice came from. "Um, yes, we would like help, but who are you?" she asked, tilting her head to the side.

Before he had a chance to reply, the girl beside her had already started typing something out on her phone. She had noticed the familiar uniform, though the unfamiliar face made it kind of confusing. Unlike most of the other students in Yamaku, it seemed like these two haven't heard of the new kid. "It's someone from Yamaku," the monotone voice played. "Don't know who, though." Either way, the girl stepped aside and pointed up towards the bag they were both trying to get.

 

[Redrobinwing]

Huh. Definitely the weirdest interaction he'd had with any of the students so far. Not that they were being rude or anything, he was just a bit caught off guard by their interaction. He figured that the shorter of the two girls was blind, but he wasn't sure if the taller one was deaf or just mute. It didn't matter of course, but the fact that she didn't use sign language was a hint that she was just mute.

Nonetheless, he nodded to them and slowly approached the chips. "Yes, I'm a new student from Yamaku." He reached for the chips and, admittedly, it was a little higher up than he'd initially thought, but nothing that was out of his reach. He pulled them down and handed to the taller girl. "Hisao Nakai. It's nice to meet you both."

 

[starfallen.txt]

DANCE WITH YOUR LIFE ON THE LINE
the risk is what makes it beautiful!

The taller girl gratefully accepted the bag of chips, soon placing it in the plastic basket Chika was holding. Chika, in turn, replied with a sudden, "Thanks!" She grinned, then performed a little bow. "Chika Ryuumine, local blind shrine-maiden-in-training. And this," she gestured to her right, "is Mirai Iseri, very cool best friend."

A little tap on Chika's left shoulder indicated that the aforementioned best friend wasn't on her right, but was instead on the other side.

"Oh. Oops. Sorry." She quickly fixed her mistake, this time pointing to her left.

Mirai did a small wave, giving Hisao a nervous smile. She then started typing on her phone, thumbs pressing on only a few characters on the digital keyboard. "Hello."

 

[Redrobinwing]

A small chuckle managed to escape Hisao's lips. They seemed like nice girls, funny too. Their shenanigans only added to the amusement he got from them. They were much more... casual than everyone else he'd met so far, though maybe it was just Chika who gave off that impression. "No problem, I'm glad I could help." His stomach grumbled once again, the sound rather obvious to anyone in a near vicinity. Hisao blushed slightly in embarrassment and silently hoped that no one had noticed. Now remembering why he came in the first place, he quickly grabbed something off of a nearby shelf. "Was that the last thing you guys were going to get?"

 

[starfallen.txt]

DANCE WITH YOUR LIFE ON THE LINE
the risk is what makes it beautiful!

Both girls didn't seem to notice the sound of his rumbling stomach - which was a good thing, because Chika was pretty sure you weren't supposed to hear someone else's stomach grumble. "Nope! We're just gonna get some drinks for the road. You wanna walk home with us?" she offered. "If Mirai doesn't mind, at least. You don't, right?"


Mirai shook her head in response, adding a robotic, "I don't mind."


The blind girl grinned, placing her hands on her hips. "She never minds as long as it's a cute guy walking with us. Just saying." If she could see where Hisao was right now, Chika would definitely give him a little nudge.


"I heard that..."

 

[Redrobinwing]

Hisao wasn't sure whether to chuckle, thank her for the compliment, or just let it go. In the end he went with the third option, and decide to simply respond to her offer. "Sure, that sounds good." It'd be nice to have some company on the walk back, even if it wouldn't take them long to get back.

Once they had all grabbed everything they wanted, Hisao went up to the cashier and purchased his items, then waited for the girls to do the same. After they finished, he followed them out the door and headed on the path back to school. "So, how did you guys meet?"