A/N: This story is loosely based on the concept from the book, "The
Chocolate War", but you don't have to
know the story in order to get the fic. AU.
Disclaimer: I don't own Kodocha. I also don't own 'The Chocolate War'. Big suprise there...
~Crossroads~
By Burnt Rice
Chapter 1: The Assigner
"I hate you." Sana Kurata's narrowed eyes bore into the man standing before her. The man's sweat trickled down his temple, his breathing shallow, broken. He was backed up against a wall, and the 16 year old girl stood before him, hunting knife in hand. She walked up to him, and drew her face close to his. "Do you fear death?", she whispered. Her voice was tender, as if she were his only friend. Her voice changed again. It sounded menacing now, almost insane. "You're about to experience it." She softly chuckled. The man, on the verge of tears, shook as he spoke. "No!! Please, no! I beg your forgiveness! I'll do anything, anything at all!!" Sana lifted the knife. "Do you honestly think that I would forgive you just like that? Think again." The knife flew and stabbed the man square on the heart. He gave a strangled cry, and slid down the wall in a heap. Sana looked at the man in distaste, blood staining the floor. "Traitor."
Silence.
"CUT!!" The man who had been dead a few seconds ago got up. "Good work, Sana!!", called the director. "And that's a wrap!!" Cheers could be heard coming from all corners of the studio. Sana Kurata, teen actress, sighed. She had worked really hard on that last scene. It was really hard getting herself to stab Todo-san. Usually he was so light-hearted, a nice man, really. She kept resisting the urge to laugh during the take. But now she was tired. She felt as if this movie was going to be her best yet, maybe even better than 'Mansion of Water'.
Rei Sagami, Sana's manager, (poor guy, he tries so hard), cautiously walked up to Sana. She noticed his strange actions. "What, Rei?" He cleared his throat. "It's just that, uh, you were so convincing. You kind of, well, scare me sometimes with how genuine your acting is." He cleared his thoat, obviously embarrassed that he had let Sana intimidate him. Sana laughed. "And that's it?! Well. I guess I'm going to have to be less convincing, otherwise poor baby-waby-poo here is gonna pee in his pants!!!" At that, she took out a picture of a baby lying on a bear-skin rug, his little naked baby butt prominent. She tauntingly waved it in front of his face. "W-where did you get that?!!", cried an apalled Rei. "Oh, I just called your aunt and she told me the cutest little baby stories about you!! Is it really true that you ate some mothballs and had to have your stomach pumped when you were three? How about how you used to have scary dreams about Mr. Snuffles?"
"Sana..." Rei walked towards her, vein popping out from his left temple. Sometimes it twitched. How could she be so mature on set, yet so childish concerning everything else?
Oh-oh, Sana thought. Rei's starting to look scary.........."WAH!!!!"
So Sana ended up being chased around the studio by a raging manager who had a thing with mothballs. And that's usually how she spent her days. Not being chased by her manager, but by causing some little diversion to break the tension of the people around her. Or just for fun. He still didn't know that the vein on his left temple twitched and throbbed whenever he was stressed. Lots of people, incuding her own mother, liked to watch it and see how big it could get.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A young man with sandy blond hair and cool amber eyes sat in the center of a group of people. They formed a circle around him, each of them facing the young man. There was a flickering light bulb in the corner of the small, crowded room. The place felt damp and stuffy, and cobwebs frosted the corners of the room. A faint scent of sweat hung in the air, making the group experience an unnerving atmosphere of discomfort. That was exactly how the young man wanted it, he didn't want anyone to get too comfortable whenever they associated themselves with him. There was a guy standing in front of the young man, also in the center. He was shaking, his eyes wide with anticipation. It seemed as if wrong doings were underfoot, and in a way, they were.
"Name?"
"J-junichi Katagawa."
"Well , Junichi. Do you know why you are here?"
"Yes."
"Yes what?"
"Y-yes sir."
"Do tell. Why are you here, Junichi?"
"For an assignment, sir."
"Very good.", replied the young man. He answered as if he were rewarding a dog, or a very young child.
"You realize that there is nothing personal about the assignments we give at Crossroads Academy."
"Yes."
"And you know that this is a tradition at Crossroads, nothing more."
Junichi shifted his leg. He had the look of someone who was ready to accept his fate. He had the look of a loser.
"Right."
"Good." The young man leaned back into his chair. He liked to leave people hanging, feeling the tension build up in the air. "Here is your assignment." He could feel the heightening of interest in the room. Everyone was eagerly awaiting to hear what great idea, no, piece of art, that the young man was going to come up with next.
"Doors." he said.
"Doors?"
"Doors. How are they held?"
"Uh....b-by hinges?"
"Very good. Have you noticed the the last stall in the boy's bathroom in the english hallway?"
"The one with all the graffiti about Mrs. Haneoka?" Everyone (at least all the boys) knew about that stall. It was filled with obscene things about the young teacher. She was beautiful, and practically all of the males at Crossroads were in love with her. The door was crowded with scribbles, anonymous tid-bits that told all who read them things that would be too apalling to say to Mrs. Haneoka's face.
"Right. Now, after school ends today, I want you to take that door off it's hinges."
"You mean like steal?"
"Not steal. The school will be getting it back soon enough. You run the camera for the morning announcements, do you not?"
"Yes."
"Now, tomorrow, during the announcements, the students at this school won't be hearing their lunch menus."
"They won't?"
"No. Tomorrow, for lunch, they're going to be getting that door." The young man waited. A sudden look of apprehension dawned on Junichi's face. As the idea finally sunk in, sniggers could be heard from the group of people. The young man glanced towards another, Naozumi Kamura, who had a gavel in his hands. Naozumi was the president of the Vigils. He was was the most important person, except for, of course, the assigner. Naozumi usually exerted control over the others if things got out of hand. He also made sure that the tasks were completed and that everything ran smoothly. He banged the gavel against a desk. The sound cut through the silence of the room. "The box, Tsuyoshi."
Tsuyoshi Sasaki brought forward a black box. In the black box were six marbles, five of them white, and one black. The young man, known as the assigner, stood up. He looked bored. He stuck his hand into the box, and drew out a marble. The marble was clenched in his hand, so no one could see it's color. It was a concept thought up by the students years back, when the school was first built. If the assigner got a white marble, then the task would stay as is. But if he or she picked a black one, then the assigner was to do the task he himself had given. It was created to make sure that the assigner would not go too far. Insurance, if you will. The assigner gave a mocking smile, and without looking at it, held it out for all to see. White.
The gavel was pounded against the desk again. "Dismissed.", said Naozumi. The vigils filed out of the room, leaving Naozumi, Tsuyoshi, and the assigner. Tsuyoshi also had an important role concerning the vigils. He owned a notebook, which contained information on every student that attended Crossroads. It was more detailed than the school's own records. That's how the assigner chose his next....target. Almost everyone at Crossroads knew about the Vigils. All the students, guy or girl, also knew that it was fruitless to refuse the Vigil's wishes. They had too much power, too much influence over the students. Even the teachers knew, but they more or less left the Vigils to their own devices. They knew that the Vigils may as well be the ruin of the the school, if they chose to do so. As a result, as long as none of their activites bothered the flow of Crossroads, and that no one got injured, they pretty much ignored the Vigil's existence.
Naozumi shook his head in disbelief. "How'd you do it again, Akito?" Akito shrugged. "I mean, how do you keep coming up with these things, and yet you somehow never get the black marble?" Akito looked indifferent, and yawned. "I'm tired. And hungry. Tsuyoshi, are they serving sushi today?"Tsuyoshi adjusted his glasses while flipping through his notes. "Yeah. And tomorrow shrimp."
"Right.", answered Akito. It was amazing how he kept his voice so calm, void of any traces of anger or fear. "Any news?", he asked. Tsuyoshi flipped thruogh his notebook once more. "Actually, there is. There's going to be a new transfer student at Crossroads starting tomorrow. Sana Kurata. She's that famous actress. Been on commercials, stars in a television series, just finished her third movie. Born March 7th. 16. She was abandoned as a baby, adopted by a female writer."
"Actress, huh?" Akito let the fact hang in the air, thinking of the possibilties for future assignments. Naozumi spoke up. "Are you absolutely sure that you want to give her the next assignment? She's famous, you know, with lawyers and all. She might not listen to us."
Akito smiled, something he did not too often. "She deserves to know her place.", he said. "Actually, the fact that she can act makes it worthwhile. A challenge." He walked out of the room, calling back to Naozumi and Tsuyoshi."C'mon. First hour starts in five."
No one messed with Akito Hayama.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"You know, Rei, I've been thinking." Sana stared up at the ceiling of the car. They were heading to a
photo shoot.
"Always a good sign.", he replied.
"Since I've finished my movie, and my schedule isn't too tight for this month, maybe I should go to that
school back in Tokyo we were discussing." She furrowed her eyebrows. "What was it called again?
Crimson High, wasn't it?"
"I'm glad you mentioned it, because I was thinking that same exact thing. Except Crimson High isn't
taking any more applicants. I checked last week."
"Awww......I wanted to go back! You know, make some friends, join a club, take notes.....I get lonely
with my tutor...." She sat up, and brought her knees to her chin.
"Well, if you don't mind, I did find another school in the same area..."
"WOW!! REALLY?!!! THAAANKS!!!!!!"
"....if you don't mind co-ed. I mean, I know you're used to all-girls schools, but this was the best school
in that area...."
"WHO CARES??!!" Sana was ecstatic. She hadn't been with people her own age for months. She started a long rap about how cool procrastination was and about how gym socks smelled (although that really had nothing to do with the current subject), and then suddenly stopped. "What school am I going to?"
"Crossroads Academy. You start tomorrow."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Woohoo!!! What's going to happen? Even I don't quite know yet.....*shudders* Anywho, there's my first chapter, what do ya think? I don't even know how how long this fic is going to be!!!!! Ah well, at least there's something for me to look forward to. Ok, bye for now!!! AND REVIEW!!!!!!!!!
Disclaimer: I don't own Kodocha. I also don't own 'The Chocolate War'. Big suprise there...
~Crossroads~
By Burnt Rice
Chapter 1: The Assigner
"I hate you." Sana Kurata's narrowed eyes bore into the man standing before her. The man's sweat trickled down his temple, his breathing shallow, broken. He was backed up against a wall, and the 16 year old girl stood before him, hunting knife in hand. She walked up to him, and drew her face close to his. "Do you fear death?", she whispered. Her voice was tender, as if she were his only friend. Her voice changed again. It sounded menacing now, almost insane. "You're about to experience it." She softly chuckled. The man, on the verge of tears, shook as he spoke. "No!! Please, no! I beg your forgiveness! I'll do anything, anything at all!!" Sana lifted the knife. "Do you honestly think that I would forgive you just like that? Think again." The knife flew and stabbed the man square on the heart. He gave a strangled cry, and slid down the wall in a heap. Sana looked at the man in distaste, blood staining the floor. "Traitor."
Silence.
"CUT!!" The man who had been dead a few seconds ago got up. "Good work, Sana!!", called the director. "And that's a wrap!!" Cheers could be heard coming from all corners of the studio. Sana Kurata, teen actress, sighed. She had worked really hard on that last scene. It was really hard getting herself to stab Todo-san. Usually he was so light-hearted, a nice man, really. She kept resisting the urge to laugh during the take. But now she was tired. She felt as if this movie was going to be her best yet, maybe even better than 'Mansion of Water'.
Rei Sagami, Sana's manager, (poor guy, he tries so hard), cautiously walked up to Sana. She noticed his strange actions. "What, Rei?" He cleared his throat. "It's just that, uh, you were so convincing. You kind of, well, scare me sometimes with how genuine your acting is." He cleared his thoat, obviously embarrassed that he had let Sana intimidate him. Sana laughed. "And that's it?! Well. I guess I'm going to have to be less convincing, otherwise poor baby-waby-poo here is gonna pee in his pants!!!" At that, she took out a picture of a baby lying on a bear-skin rug, his little naked baby butt prominent. She tauntingly waved it in front of his face. "W-where did you get that?!!", cried an apalled Rei. "Oh, I just called your aunt and she told me the cutest little baby stories about you!! Is it really true that you ate some mothballs and had to have your stomach pumped when you were three? How about how you used to have scary dreams about Mr. Snuffles?"
"Sana..." Rei walked towards her, vein popping out from his left temple. Sometimes it twitched. How could she be so mature on set, yet so childish concerning everything else?
Oh-oh, Sana thought. Rei's starting to look scary.........."WAH!!!!"
So Sana ended up being chased around the studio by a raging manager who had a thing with mothballs. And that's usually how she spent her days. Not being chased by her manager, but by causing some little diversion to break the tension of the people around her. Or just for fun. He still didn't know that the vein on his left temple twitched and throbbed whenever he was stressed. Lots of people, incuding her own mother, liked to watch it and see how big it could get.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
A young man with sandy blond hair and cool amber eyes sat in the center of a group of people. They formed a circle around him, each of them facing the young man. There was a flickering light bulb in the corner of the small, crowded room. The place felt damp and stuffy, and cobwebs frosted the corners of the room. A faint scent of sweat hung in the air, making the group experience an unnerving atmosphere of discomfort. That was exactly how the young man wanted it, he didn't want anyone to get too comfortable whenever they associated themselves with him. There was a guy standing in front of the young man, also in the center. He was shaking, his eyes wide with anticipation. It seemed as if wrong doings were underfoot, and in a way, they were.
"Name?"
"J-junichi Katagawa."
"Well , Junichi. Do you know why you are here?"
"Yes."
"Yes what?"
"Y-yes sir."
"Do tell. Why are you here, Junichi?"
"For an assignment, sir."
"Very good.", replied the young man. He answered as if he were rewarding a dog, or a very young child.
"You realize that there is nothing personal about the assignments we give at Crossroads Academy."
"Yes."
"And you know that this is a tradition at Crossroads, nothing more."
Junichi shifted his leg. He had the look of someone who was ready to accept his fate. He had the look of a loser.
"Right."
"Good." The young man leaned back into his chair. He liked to leave people hanging, feeling the tension build up in the air. "Here is your assignment." He could feel the heightening of interest in the room. Everyone was eagerly awaiting to hear what great idea, no, piece of art, that the young man was going to come up with next.
"Doors." he said.
"Doors?"
"Doors. How are they held?"
"Uh....b-by hinges?"
"Very good. Have you noticed the the last stall in the boy's bathroom in the english hallway?"
"The one with all the graffiti about Mrs. Haneoka?" Everyone (at least all the boys) knew about that stall. It was filled with obscene things about the young teacher. She was beautiful, and practically all of the males at Crossroads were in love with her. The door was crowded with scribbles, anonymous tid-bits that told all who read them things that would be too apalling to say to Mrs. Haneoka's face.
"Right. Now, after school ends today, I want you to take that door off it's hinges."
"You mean like steal?"
"Not steal. The school will be getting it back soon enough. You run the camera for the morning announcements, do you not?"
"Yes."
"Now, tomorrow, during the announcements, the students at this school won't be hearing their lunch menus."
"They won't?"
"No. Tomorrow, for lunch, they're going to be getting that door." The young man waited. A sudden look of apprehension dawned on Junichi's face. As the idea finally sunk in, sniggers could be heard from the group of people. The young man glanced towards another, Naozumi Kamura, who had a gavel in his hands. Naozumi was the president of the Vigils. He was was the most important person, except for, of course, the assigner. Naozumi usually exerted control over the others if things got out of hand. He also made sure that the tasks were completed and that everything ran smoothly. He banged the gavel against a desk. The sound cut through the silence of the room. "The box, Tsuyoshi."
Tsuyoshi Sasaki brought forward a black box. In the black box were six marbles, five of them white, and one black. The young man, known as the assigner, stood up. He looked bored. He stuck his hand into the box, and drew out a marble. The marble was clenched in his hand, so no one could see it's color. It was a concept thought up by the students years back, when the school was first built. If the assigner got a white marble, then the task would stay as is. But if he or she picked a black one, then the assigner was to do the task he himself had given. It was created to make sure that the assigner would not go too far. Insurance, if you will. The assigner gave a mocking smile, and without looking at it, held it out for all to see. White.
The gavel was pounded against the desk again. "Dismissed.", said Naozumi. The vigils filed out of the room, leaving Naozumi, Tsuyoshi, and the assigner. Tsuyoshi also had an important role concerning the vigils. He owned a notebook, which contained information on every student that attended Crossroads. It was more detailed than the school's own records. That's how the assigner chose his next....target. Almost everyone at Crossroads knew about the Vigils. All the students, guy or girl, also knew that it was fruitless to refuse the Vigil's wishes. They had too much power, too much influence over the students. Even the teachers knew, but they more or less left the Vigils to their own devices. They knew that the Vigils may as well be the ruin of the the school, if they chose to do so. As a result, as long as none of their activites bothered the flow of Crossroads, and that no one got injured, they pretty much ignored the Vigil's existence.
Naozumi shook his head in disbelief. "How'd you do it again, Akito?" Akito shrugged. "I mean, how do you keep coming up with these things, and yet you somehow never get the black marble?" Akito looked indifferent, and yawned. "I'm tired. And hungry. Tsuyoshi, are they serving sushi today?"Tsuyoshi adjusted his glasses while flipping through his notes. "Yeah. And tomorrow shrimp."
"Right.", answered Akito. It was amazing how he kept his voice so calm, void of any traces of anger or fear. "Any news?", he asked. Tsuyoshi flipped thruogh his notebook once more. "Actually, there is. There's going to be a new transfer student at Crossroads starting tomorrow. Sana Kurata. She's that famous actress. Been on commercials, stars in a television series, just finished her third movie. Born March 7th. 16. She was abandoned as a baby, adopted by a female writer."
"Actress, huh?" Akito let the fact hang in the air, thinking of the possibilties for future assignments. Naozumi spoke up. "Are you absolutely sure that you want to give her the next assignment? She's famous, you know, with lawyers and all. She might not listen to us."
Akito smiled, something he did not too often. "She deserves to know her place.", he said. "Actually, the fact that she can act makes it worthwhile. A challenge." He walked out of the room, calling back to Naozumi and Tsuyoshi."C'mon. First hour starts in five."
No one messed with Akito Hayama.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"You know, Rei, I've been thinking." Sana stared up at the ceiling of the car. They were heading to a
photo shoot.
"Always a good sign.", he replied.
"Since I've finished my movie, and my schedule isn't too tight for this month, maybe I should go to that
school back in Tokyo we were discussing." She furrowed her eyebrows. "What was it called again?
Crimson High, wasn't it?"
"I'm glad you mentioned it, because I was thinking that same exact thing. Except Crimson High isn't
taking any more applicants. I checked last week."
"Awww......I wanted to go back! You know, make some friends, join a club, take notes.....I get lonely
with my tutor...." She sat up, and brought her knees to her chin.
"Well, if you don't mind, I did find another school in the same area..."
"WOW!! REALLY?!!! THAAANKS!!!!!!"
"....if you don't mind co-ed. I mean, I know you're used to all-girls schools, but this was the best school
in that area...."
"WHO CARES??!!" Sana was ecstatic. She hadn't been with people her own age for months. She started a long rap about how cool procrastination was and about how gym socks smelled (although that really had nothing to do with the current subject), and then suddenly stopped. "What school am I going to?"
"Crossroads Academy. You start tomorrow."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Woohoo!!! What's going to happen? Even I don't quite know yet.....*shudders* Anywho, there's my first chapter, what do ya think? I don't even know how how long this fic is going to be!!!!! Ah well, at least there's something for me to look forward to. Ok, bye for now!!! AND REVIEW!!!!!!!!!