This chapter is for Reina.

College AU

The teenaged girl stepped through the door, gripping her backpack and suitcase. The outside had been bad enough, with slates missing from the roof and rubbish stacked in piles on the mangy lawn, but inside: mysterious burn spots on the carpets, walls and ceilings; ugly stains of every hue; old and ratty furniture and the unmistakeable smell and feel of damp.

She waited, just inside the hall, a clammy sweat beading on her skin under the T-shirt proclaiming the merits of a three-year old music festival. She checked the key in her hand even though it had opened the door: the address on its tag matched the house she stood inside.

'Isn't it great, Shuurei?'

The man that had stepped in after her was an unassuming sort, with a meek smile. His broad sandals squelched onto the carpet and he walked back out. His baggy clothing caught on the doorjamb as he cleaned the sandals with the iron scraper that appeared to be installed for people leaving the house, rather than entering it. His long hair was tied back, whereas hers was loose, but you couldn't deny the resemblance between them.

'They had three spare rooms, so we can all stay here.'

His beam would have been infectious if Shuurei hadn't already seen the state of the kitchen, visible through an open door. 'What is that?' She pushed it further open – a splintery table squealed as it slid a foot, before banging against the wall. As her companion sidled in through the door, somehow pulling the bags with him; she opened grotty cupboard after grotty cupboard and finally brandished a large packet of salt. 'Stand back, father; it's probably dangerous.'

She approached the corner of the conservatory-style kitchen, with the salt held menacingly high. 'We may need a lot more to kill this off.'

Her father walked up behind her and saw something that he never thought he'd see again: a soft and furry riot of colour in green, blue and pink. He dropped his smile and patted his pockets. 'I'll be right back. The shop's only thirty minutes away.' He pulled out a set of car keys. 'Actually, the supermarket's forty, but they'll probably have enough salt. How much do you think I should get?'

'Don't destroy it – that's Ryuuki's final year project!'

A buff young man had raced inside from the distinctly overgrown garden, which he'd been trampling in some sort of sporting endeavour. 'Hi,' he said, smiling widely at Shuurei, and then more respectfully at her father.

'It's hazardous,' stated Shuurei, still holding her weapon high.

'Probably,' admitted the buff man, 'but it's only for another week and if he fails this time, we could be subjected to something even worse.' He sighed, mopping his brow with the bottom of his T-shirt and making it slightly damper. 'We will be subjected to something even worse.'

Shuurei glanced at the buff man, looked back at the brooding mold and turned to her father. 'We still have time to find somewhere else.'

Her father nodded; but before she could move, he said 'I've paid in advance.'

Her face pinched. 'We'll get the deposit back once student services see this.'

He nodded again and immediately added: 'For the year. And I've rented out our house.'

While Shuurei stood there, not saying anything, just blinking and simmering; her father approached the young man and shook his hand. 'My name is Kou Shouka.'

'Shuuei. Ran Shuuei.' His handshake was firm and his manner was polite, but his T-shirt couldn't cover the numerous bruises on his collar bone.

'This is my daughter, Shuurei.' Shouka stood between the two others, allowing Shuuei to view her, but not leaving enough space for Shuuei to pass him and deliver physical greetings.

He waved meekly from a safe distance. 'Pleased to meet you, Shuurei.'

She answered with a scowl. 'Shuuei; myself and my father are going to leave our bags in...' The cloying damp reasserted itself and she paused, '...outside. If you and your flatmates don't have this place presentable by the time we come back, then student services will be called and the landlord will be prosecuted. I assume that he'll evict you. Good day.'

She marched out, her father following. He had a bit of difficulty keeping pace, since it took a few attempts to get through the kitchen door. Shuuei helped him, by yanking the splintery table out. It left deep wounds in the linoleum.

Shouka hurried to catch up with his daughter. 'You haven't even seen your room, Shuurei. It's pink. Seiran will be in the next door down and I'll be in the next door up.'

In the garden she stopped to confront him. 'Why on earth did you decide to come to college with me, father?'

'They've decided that someone in my position needs a degree, so I've been let go.' A light breeze ruffled through his hair and that was the only change in his cheerful demeanour. 'If I pass the librarian studies course, then I can reapply and I should get my old job back.. If not, then I'll easily get a job somewhere else, given the experience I've built up.' He gestured at the bug covered wilderness infesting the front garden. 'Should we leave our bags on the path, or risk the lawn?'

She wavered between offering sympathy and being disgruntled. 'What about Seiran? It seems an enormous co-incidence that both you and him wait to enrol until I go to college.'

Shouka remained placid. 'I offered to send him as soon as he left school. He turned me down, repeatedly. He felt that he wasn't entitled to my money, as he's only your foster-brother, not blood.'

'That doesn't make a difference!'

'I agree, but Seiran felt differently. We discussed it, but it was his choice to make. In the end, he went to work; saved and now he has enough money to pay for his course.'

She mulled this over, sucking at her teeth and brushing the moss from the cobblestones at her feet. The rusty gate at the end of the overgrown path rasped open and banged shut. She grasped her bags firmly, then left them down again. 'We can't abandon them to this place, can we? We should help.'

Shouka nodded.

'Besides, if we're here, it's more likely that someone will spill bleach on that thing.'

They found Shuuei inside, trying to work out how to clean a three floor house with one holey bucket, a sponge and ten year old bleach.

'AT THE NEXT JUNCTION, TURN LEFT.'

Muffled curses echoed into the kitchen from upstairs.

'ADJUSTING... AT THE NEXT JUNCTION, TURN RIGHT.'

More muffled curses joined a loud thumping that came down the stairs.

'That's Kouyuu,' explained Shuuei. 'He's a bit grumpy because he's in the middle of a doctorate.'

After a few more thumps and unmuffled curses a red-faced youth with greenish-blue hair came storming in. 'This thing is broken!' he shouted. 'The volume control isn't working and it keeps sending me to the bathroom!'

'You're not using it right.' Shuuei laid down his tools, took a device from Kouyuu's hand and started pressing buttons.

'Oh, are you finally getting rid of that monstrosity,' he said, nodding at the corner, then at the bleach on the table.

'Can't.' Shuuei gestured at Shouka and Shuurei, who were still in their coats. 'Cleaning up for the new people.'

'Why can't you?' Kouyuu replied, ignoring the half-hearted introduction.

'Ryuuki,' he replied, continuing to press buttons.

'He finished that course a week ago.'

'You've seen him?'

'No, but I've read his twitters.' Kouyuu pursed his lips, while going through the pockets of the white lab coat he wore. We'll need to dispose of it carefully.'

'Why on earth hasn't he done this himself?' exclaimed Shuurei.

Kouyuu stared at her as though she'd teleported into the room without ringing first. Shuuei just scratched his neck. 'That's Ryuuki. We only know he exists because food goes missing and post arrives for him.'

'What a selfish, no good jerk.'

Kouyuu recovered from his shock and suddenly saluted. 'Li Kouyuu, theoretical physics.'

'Kou Shuurei, politics and women's studies.' She smiled gently, as the others continued the thread.

'Kou Shouka, librarianing.'

'Ran Shuuei. I was studying law, but now I'm in Sports studies...'

'A soft course,' muttered Kouyuu.

'...which should help me since I'm on the football team and am going pro when I graduate.'

They smiled at each other until Shuurei broke the silence. 'So, can we kill it now?'

At the local hardware store, they managed to find several gas masks, a full array of cleaning supplies, hardcore bleach and more importantly, some good advice. The mold could not be destroyed completely, but was safely transplanted to a containment device, before being deposited at the university's hazardous materials storage room.

Luckily, no-one developed any symptoms that were on the list given to them by the senior lecturer and the kitchen was disinfected and safe to use within the week. Ryuuki remained at large although a basket of muffins was discovered on the table one morning, without a note.