Author's Note #1: So I don't own Soul Eater, surprise! This story could almost be seen more as a collection of short one-shots, but I think there's going to be an overarching plot, I just don't know what it's going to be yet. So I know Maka and Soul become partners when they're like, 11 or so, but I wanted to make them like 14, so that when I do the romance, the actual romance bit, I don't feel weird and stuff, and don't have to do really big time jumps and stuff. Also, I read somewhere a story about a girl getting her period at a late age, so that's what I've decided here, plus a certain part of me says that Maka really didn't get her period until later on in life.

Normal
by: Setkia

"Soul, do you just walk around carrying pads?"

Blood. There's so much blood …

Why?

"OI, MAKA YOU'RE TAKING FOREVER, WE'VE GOT CLASS!"

She isn't panicking. Really, she's not. She just wasn't expecting this, she isn't as prepared as she thought she'd be when this happened, it's not her fault, not really, because the world works in weird ways and the universe decided that the day she got her first period would be a day she was unprepared and her very male partner was trying to hurry her up to get to a class he'd probably sleep through anyway.

Okay fine. She's panicking. Just a little bit.

Maka's fingers have blood on them from making sure she hadn't accidentally wet herself in her pink underwear that she's sure Soul would make fun of her for, if he ever saw them. She takes some toilet paper to wipe off her hands-

"CAN YOU HEAR ME THROUGH THAT THICK DOOR?" Soul demands.

In her surprise, Maka drops the toilet paper into the toilet. And that was the last of the roll.

She clenches her fist, and frowns. Blood doesn't disturb her, it's just that it's her blood, and not from a wound or anything.

"CAN YOU GET THE NURSE?"

"THE NURSE?" repeats Soul and Maka wants to hit him with her book, but that would mean touching her book with her dirty, bloody hands because goddammit, no one keeps an extra roll of toilet paper in the bathroom? "WE DON'T HAVE TIME FOR THAT, WE'RE LATE ENOUGH AS IT IS-"

"GET THE FUCKING NURSE, SOUL!"

He's really testing her patience. She doesn't want to make a big deal out of it or anything, because this is normal. She's a bit of a late bloomer, which is how she went so long without a period, but this just says she's healthy, and she'd really appreciate if her stupid weapon would just get the nurse like she asked. She knows she should've gotten a female partner. She wipes her bloody fingers on her leg, wondering if it's too late to ask Lord Death for a new partner.

There's silence and Maka thinks Soul has done as she's told him (finally) when-

BAM!

The door to the girl's bathroom is forcefully kicked open and she can recognize Soul's shoes anywhere.

"MAKA? ARE YOU OKAY?"

His words echo around the bathroom and she flinches. He's too loud sometimes.

"I'm fine," Maka grumbles. "I told you to get the nurse, not kick down the door, are you ever going to do what I ask you to?" It's nearly been two month since their partnership and yet Soul has never shown her his weapon form. That might just be because he doesn't know how to control it, or maybe he doesn't feel comfortable with it, but if they're going to make any progress, he has to do it eventually and a part of her kind of wishes he used his weapon to open the door.

"You swore, you're totally not fine."

"I think I know when I'm not dying, Soul-"

"Shit, is that blood?"

"I'm just bleeding," Maka says when the door to her stall falls to the ground and she sees it.

Soul's weapon form.

Well, his arm has become a weapon. It's a beautiful red and black scythe, and it's really amazing, so amazing she almost doesn't yell at him for destroying her one barrier of privacy, and reminding him that he, as a male, should not even be in the girls' bathroom in the first place.

"TURN THE FUCK AROUND!"

Soul does as told immediately and growls. Maka is pretty sure if she could see Soul's face, he'd look very much like a dog with his teeth and the sound coming from his mouth.

"Don't peek-"

"Like I'd want to peek, you've got such tiny tits, I'm surprised you've even gone far enough in puberty to get a period," Soul snaps. His arms are crossed and he's tapping his foot, waiting.

Maka has to think fast.

Maybe if she puts her sweater around her waist, it'll hide her until she's able to get what she needs?

"Oi, how long does it take to put on a pad?"

"Well I wasn't really expecting it-"

"You're telling me you don't even have a pad?"

"It's not that easy, you idiot! You have it easy, I doubt you've ever bled out of your uterus," Maka snaps. She's really glad no one else is in the bathroom, they're breaking so many rules right now.

Soul holds up his arm and Maka thinks he's signalling his decision to leave, when she realizes he's holding up something.

"What is that?"

"What does it look like?"

Maka blinks. It still looks the same.

"It's a pad."

"Bingo."

"Soul, do you just walk around carrying pads?"

"Are you stupid? Of course I don't! I just thought you, being the type of person to forget to sleep might forget to carry around a pad, and it seems like I was right." Soul thrusts it at her. "Don't get all excited, it's the cheapest one, and I can never go to that convenience store ever again. It'll cover you until then. You can't go to that convenience store either, cause if that woman ever finds out that you know me, she's probably going to tell her coworkers about the flat-chested girl and her cool boyfriend, which is totally not what this is, and I can't have that ruining my reputation."

Maka gapes.

"Fucking take it, or are you deaf?" Soul demands. "Do you like bleeding everywhere?!"

Maka grabs it from him and hurriedly puts it on. Her underwear feels a bit uncomfortable, the pad slides around and plus, they're wet from the initial blood. She squirms and washes her hands at the sink, lifting her leg up to wash the blood off her leg.

"Don't freak me out like that, it's not cool to panic over period blood," Soul says, his arms crossed. "Now let's get going to class, we've already ruined your perfect attendance, let's not screw it up more."

Maka is quiet. She doesn't move, can't find it in her to move.

Soul grins. "Oh, you gonna skip? I'm all for it, I know this place we could get a burger-"

"I'm not skipping you idiot," Maka snaps. Soul's grin slips off his face. He leans against the bathroom wall and crosses a leg over the other. He's clearly waiting for her to pick up the pace if she doesn't plan on skipping. "I just … thank you."

Soul scratches his neck, a blush taking over his face that's impossible to hide given his pale skin. "Don't mention it. Ever."

"You're not going to tease me about this, are you?" Maka asks quietly.

Soul's nose crinkles. "Why would I tease you about it?"

Maka shrugs.

"Cool guys don't tease girls just because Mother Nature decided to fuck them over, idiot," Soul says, ruffling her hair. "Now let's get going."

"But what about the stall door?"

Soul glances back at the stall door that's had his hinges cut, his eyebrow raising, his mouth opening in surprise, as though he's forgotten the damage he caused. After a moment, he shrugs. "Someone'll fix it, eventually."

As Maka walks to class, Soul at her side, she looks over at the slouching, white haired boy with the bored red eyes and smiles.

She knows now she made the right choice.

Soul gives her a sideways glance.

"Why are you smiling like that? It's creepy."

As Maka dusts off her book and Soul winces, complaining about partner-abuse, she knows there are some kinks they have to work out in this partnership, but taking a chance on Soul is a decision she can't bring herself to regret.

Author's Note #2: The thank-you!

Crescent Reaper: I don't know how long these things are gonna be, cause I don't want them to drag on and stuff, they really are more or less all scenes that happen in the same instance, without much change of where things are happening, or time changes, they're like little moments, so I don't know. But I do agree, they are much shorter than what I usually right and that does annoy me slightly.

Anyway, I hope you guys like the chapter, I really liked writing it. Please review, if you feel like it.