Okay so this is my second fic. Um, not much to say. It's alternate universe with some adult themes but nothing I would deem M-rated…though that might change later. I'm taking this at a slower pace. There are no immediate romantic feelings between Natsuki and Shizuru.

Warning: near the end there's IMPLIED somethin' somethin' that would probably be M rating worthy if I got graphic, which I didn't. But I'm warning you anyways.

Disclaimer: I do not own Mai HiMe nor it's awesome characters, Sunrise does. I also don't own the song 'Monster' by Meg & Dia. But it's an awesome song so go buy it off iTunes!

Chapter 1!

Natsuki Kuga stood before large wooden doors. She sighed, "Oi, will you idiots let me in?" She yelled as she banged a fist against one of the sturdy doors. A little too hard, apparently, since her knuckles began hurting. "God what the hell are these doors made out of…," she muttered.

"Who goes there?" A dark haired girl appeared, and stuck her head over the wall of the fortress. She was high up, but Natsuki could tell she was rather handsome for a girl. Very boyish looking.

"Kuga. Kuga Natsuki. I'm here to apply," Natsuki yelled up towards the girl above her.
"How do we here at Garderobe Military Academy, know you're not spy scum from Fuuka Military Academy?" the handsome girl asked as if she were suspicious.

"Well if I were, would I tell you anyways?" Natsuki responded, now getting bored. She had run off in the middle of the night from her warm comfy bed to get here, she damn deserved to at least have a chance to apply.

"God, Chie, just let the girl in already!" Natsuki heard a higher pitched voice call from the other side of the large doors. She looked up the wall; the dark-haired girl was now looking over her shoulder and something below her. Something like a frown appeared on her face.

"Fine, Aoi. You can never be too careful!" the girl named Chie said as she disappeared from the wall.

Suddenly, the large brown doors opened. Natsuki yawned again, and then made her way in. The doors opened to a small courtyard. There were iron gates on the left wall, and an iron gate on the right wall. There was also a door leading into the stone fortress walls and another large door at the end of the courtyard. On either side of this opposite door were two pillars. Chie, who carried a rifle on her back, made her way across the mini courtyard (she had exited from the door leading into the fortress walls) and ended up leaning against a pillar. Chie watched her friend Aoi approach the blue-haired new-blood with amusement in her handsome eyes.

"Not so fast," said a brown-haired, blue-eyed girl, her arm outstretched with her palm facing Natsuki. "We have to check you over for any weapons before you enter the Council Room."

"Like hell that's going to happen," Natsuki growled. "If you touch me, I reserve the right to kick your ass."

"Like you could," Chie said from her comfortable position against the pillar. The handsome girl tapped her rifle. "One shot and you'd be down for hours." It was a high school after all, their bullets were only meant to tranquilize, not kill. Well at least the student's rifles.

Aoi nodded in agreement, patting her own rifle. "Not to mention this is a military school. When we're not in a classroom we're training our bodies to take down an opponent. You wouldn't stand a chance. Now will you let me search you or not?"

"It's really quite fun," Chie said with a wink.

Natsuki clenched her teeth. "I have a thing with being touched." Her hands balled into fists.

Chie snickered as she eyed the girl. "Too bad, you're really quite beautiful. I know I'd love to touch yo—"

Aoi's eyes narrowed. She turned around and glared at Chie, "What the hell, Chie?"

Chie blinked, and approached Aoi with waving hands and a dazzling smile. "Not saying she's more beautiful than you! Or that I'd like to touch her!" Chie managed to wrap her arms around the fuming brunette, who was making a totally fake attempt to fight her off. She even giggled.

Natsuki blinked then rolled her eyes at the affection the two guards showed for each other. Natsuki took a step towards the embracing guards and gave the brunette a strong shove from behind. Aoi fell onto Chie with a yelp. They landed with a loud THUD. Natsuki then made a run for it. She turned around and winked at them before she hastily opened the other set of doors that were opposite the entrance.

"H-hey!" Aoi yelled trying to untangle herself from Chie.

"Stop her!" Chie said with a sad attempt to fling off a still pissed off Aoi. If Natsuki had turned around instead of opening the doors in front of her, she would've seen a rather frisky Chie purposefully making it difficult for the two of them to get up.

Natsuki found herself in a dark, circular room. She shut the door behind her quietly, letting out a relieved sigh. Now to get to the Council Room and ask to become a student before twittle dee and twittle dumb catch up…

"Ara…what do we have here?" asked a honey-coated voice.

Natsuki spun around, only to realize she was in the Council Room of Garderobe Military Academy. Five pairs of eyes stared down at her from behind on rather long wooden desk. The desk was higher above the floor. Natsuki noticed a small set of steps leading up to the seats from either side. It reminded her of some type of Judge Show…but with five judges.

"Come to the center of the room so we can see you," a rather annoyed sounding voice demanded.

Natsuki took a step into room. Then another, then another, until she was in the center of the large room. The blinding light shone right on her like a spotlight. She was close enough to see the owners of the five pairs of eyes.

Starting from the left, was a mousy girl. She looked to be around 20, with brown hair and glasses. Natsuki's immediate thought was 'nerd.' She gave Natsuki a warm smile. Definitely a nerd.

The next was a handsome, black haired, 20 something year old. Natsuki's first thought was 'Mr. Perfect.' She was instantly annoyed with the smug smile he wore. No one was that happy on a Monday morning. And if they were, Natsuki was always the first to fix that.

Next to him was a bored looking blonde woman. She was pretty, but looked impatient, and more than a little annoyed. Natsuki definitely knew that she had been the one to call her forward. She looked powerful. Natsuki then noticed for the first time they all wore very similar green military uniforms, though the blonde's had many more patches and badges than the others.

Next to the blonde was...well, a very beautiful woman. She seemed to be the most relaxed, as she sipped her tea. It was her strange crimson eyes that Natsuki first noticed, however. They had a hint of amusement in them as they watched Natsuki with interest. When the tea cup was lowered, Natsuki noticed the woman's lips were curved into an amused smile to match the glint in her eyes. The woman leaned forward, as if to get a better view. Natsuki tilted her head a little to better examine the woman's expression, yeah it was definitely amusement on that girl's face. What's so damn amusing? Either that tea is really good or she is laughing at me, Natsuki thought.

Next to the crimson-eyed beauty was another beauty. She had short brown hair and an absolutely predatory gleam in her bright blue eyes as she looked at Natsuki up and down. She licked her lips and was the first to speak. "Well first time all day I've seen a possible recruit look so delicious."

Natsuki blinked. Her cheeks turned bright red as she watched the strange beauty on the end stare at her like she was something to eat. God was every girl at this school into girls? Natsuki gave them each another quick look over. They all seemed to be rather young for running a school. They couldn't be over 25.

"God, Anh. Can you not hit on every girl that comes in here?" the blonde girl barked with a glare at the grinning beauty on the end.

Anh shrugged. "It's not my fault. How was I supposed to know all the girls from Fuuka are this pretty?" She pouted, though her comment earned her the annoyed glares of her colleagues.

The blonde girl rolled her eyes then set her gaze on Natsuki, who was standing quietly. "Okay, we'll start from the first on the right, which I guess is your left. That's Captain Yukino Chrysant. Lieutenant Reito Kanzaki. Me, Sergeant Haruka Suzushiro. Lieutenant Shizuru Fujino. And second in command, Colonel Anh Lu. We're your superiors in every way, also known as The Council. We demand respect and obedience here at Garderobe Military Academy. Now, who are you and what makes you think you can get into our prestigious school?"

Natsuki shrugged. "I'm Natsuki. Kuga Natsuki. Age 17. And I have nowhere else to go," she said nonchalantly.

Haruka frowned. "Oh so we have to let you in as a pity thing? Lt. Fujino, pull up the girl's file. Where are you from, Kuga?" This girl is a little young for this intense school…

"Fuuka," Natsuki replied. She instantly regretted admitting that, because the second she said it the entire Council flinched.

"So you're a spy then?" the man spoke. Kanzaki was it?

"I ran away from Fuuka. I never attended, nor know anything about, Fuuka Military Academy. Just the regular public school," Natsuki said.

"Ara…," the beautiful woman named Shizuru murmured. Natsuki turned her emerald gaze on the woman, wondering what her file must say to make the woman say 'ara' like that.

"What is it, Shizuru? Spit it out," Haruka barked.

Natsuki raised a brow as Shizuru blushed slightly. "Kuga-san has…quite the records from her old school," Shizuru turned to look at Natsuki before she began reading off what was in front of her. "Multiple reports of criminal activity. She's been very violent at her school…many boys and some girls filed complaints about her. She rarely attended class, however, her grades were very good until…recently this year. They dropped significantly, and her violence seemed to pick up at the same time. Overall, Kuga-san is…was a very talented student. She was head of her last schools track and archery teams until recently dropping out. Judging from her most recent teacher's notes…he'd label her, 'quite the clever delinquent." Shizuru looked at Haruka as she finished. "That was a direct quote. 'Quite the clever delinquent.'" This girl needs some guidance. I wonder what caused her to stray so far from her original path.

Haruka snorted then turned back to the now smug looking Natsuki. "You seem like you started off well…and went downhill. What happened recently to make your behavior change so much?"

Natsuki's smug expression disappeared, her face darkening. "None of your business," she replied coldly.

Shizuru placed a hand on her blonde friend's shoulder to prevent her from jumping over the desk and beating the girl to a pulp. It's happened before. Shizuru cleared her throat when Haruka nodded at her, then turned to the girl in the center of the room. "I think she'd make an interesting contribution to the school. Her reports said she was quite athletic, so she should have no trouble with training. The names listed of people that filed complaints against her are almost all men." Shizuru looked down at her desk. "If maybe we listened to Kuga-san, we would learn that she was only acting in self-defense? After all, she is attractive, so it wouldn't be surprising that she had to be so violent towards—" Shizuru's case for letting the girl in was interrupted…by the girl herself.

"Actually, only about two of the names on that list were boys that had gotten rough with me. The rest just caught me on a bad day," Natsuki admitted. She knew the list probably had the names of 20 guys on it. No sense in lying about it. She glanced at Reito, knowing that if he had been a boy at her school, his name would be on that list.

Shizuru frowned slightly. She was trying to help the girl get into the school! Kuga wasn't helping her case by admitting she beat up these guys for the hell of it. Shizuru looked over at Haruka who was now grinning a little. Maybe it was helping? Ara this girl sure would be interesting.

"Well, you've got guts that's for sure," Haruka said. "But being athletic and having guts won't cut it. You've got to be cunning, strong-willed, and cautious if you want to be a student and a recruit here at Garderobe. Plus we don't need a delinquent like you in our school. You probably won't follow the rules, and a soldier needs obedience. I vote no to your entry."

"I'd follow the rules," Natsuki lied. Just not, you know, the dumb ones. (Which to her meant most of them.)

"I'm afraid I have to agree with Sgt. Suzushiro on this one," Reito said somberly. "While Lt. Fujino brings up good points, for example: you do seem to show promise in fighting skills. You're still too wild. How do we know we can control you here at Garderobe? We don't take things lightly; students are known to die here for their incompetence."

Natsuki frowned and was about to argue when the doors behind her burst open.

"THAT GIRL!" Aoi yelled running in and grabbing Natsuki's arm. "She attacked me and Chie!" Natsuki stared down at the physical contact between her arm and the guard named Aoi.

Chie pulled off her rifle and aimed it at the now bored looking Natsuki. "We apologize for letting her get by us, Council members," Chie said propping her rifle tip under Natsuki's chin.

Natsuki practically snarled. "Get that thing out of my—"

"Is that true?" Haruka asked. "Did she really get by our guards? Are you two really that stupid?"

Natsuki got immense pleasure from watching their shocked expressions.

"W-well…," Chie said lowering her gun and scratching her head. "You see…"

"I just pushed this one," Natsuki said wiggling her arm to show Aoi, who was still latched onto it. "They were distracted by each other or something, and she fell onto the other one and…I ran in here. They were giving me a hard time," Natsuki muttered glaring at the two girls.

"Ara…just a push, Aoi?" Shizuru asked. They really need to employ new guards.

"U-uh…well…it was unexpected! We were going to frisk her for weapons but she refused. Some lame excuse about not liking being touched blah blah," Aoi explained.

"So what you're saying…," Reito started.

"Is that she hasn't been frisked for weapons yet?" Anh finished.

Almost instantly the entire Council pulled out a weapon and aimed it at the now worried looking Natsuki, who ripped her arm away from Aoi and held up her hands in surrender. "Hey Hey! No need for weapons I'm not armed."

"Then why won't you let someone check you for weapons?" Yukino asked, holding a pistol firmly aimed for Natsuki's torso.

Natsuki sighed. "As I said, I have a thing with being touched. I don't like it unless it involves bashing someone's face in. I will gladly show you I have no weapons."

Anh Lu lowered her weapon. "Oh great, a strip show! This has been the most fun application process I've had this year." The rest of the Council members glared at her.

"Continue," Haruka muttered, though none but Anh Lu lowered their weapons.

Natsuki shrugged. She first pulled off her dark blue jacket, dropping it to the floor. She glared when Anh Lu whistled. She rolled her eyes then peeled off her white tank top, revealing toned abdominals (Anh Lu, drooled, the rest of the Council zoomed on in). She looked up at them. "You don't need me to remove my bra too right?"

Shizuru, who managed to pull her gaze away from the abdominals, slowly shook her head. "Bra stays on. Pants go." Anh Lu could be seen pouting from the corner of her eye. That woman needs to get in control of herself .Ara, this girl is just a kid! To be swooning over her or making suggestive comments like that is so inappropriate for a Council member. Shizuru thought as she examined the partially naked girl for hidden weapons.

Natsuki rolled her eyes again. "Whatever." She bent down to untie her converse. Chie bended backwards a little to check out her ass, until of course Aoi gave her a nice whack on the back of the head and a glare. Natsuki wasted no time in unbuttoning and then unzipping her jeans. She pulled them off rather quickly and kicked them a little to the side. She was standing there in just matching bra and panties. A light blush came to her cheeks as she glared at the Council members. "Satisfied? I'm completely unarmed." The Council members, while noting that indeed she was unarmed, also noted that the girl was in great physical condition. Her body was toned, and clearly strong but not overly muscled. She definitely would have no trouble keeping up with the other girls during training sessions.

Haruka nodded. "Alright you're weapon-free. Put back on your clothes before Colonel Anh Lu and Private Chie over there drool all over my Council Room."

Shizuru giggled a little, and gave the partially nude girl a quick look-over as she put her clothes back on. She then turned to Haruka. "What do you think, Haruka? She has a strange past…good student to poor student. But I think she may have athletic promise," Shizuru whispered.

Haruka sighed. "I like her style…but we don't know how well someone like her would do here. She might be a bad influence on the other students. Maybe we should give her the test?" Haruka responded. A somewhat scary glint in her eyes.

Natsuki finished re-dressing, and she looked back up to the Council members who had begun to whisper amongst themselves. She looked up in time to see Shizuru gaping at Haruka and then shaking her head furiously. What's that about? Natsuki wondered.

"Okay, Kuga. The Council seems pretty torn when it comes to admitting you to our prestigious academy," Haruka said, again the bored tone in her voice, as if she's been doing this all day. Well actually she had. None that had come in yet today had gotten admitted though. They were all so…boring, Haruka mused.

Natsuki looked over the Council, trying to determine who was for her and who was against her. Her eyes landed on Shizuru's for some reason. The older girl was weird that's for sure…the look she was getting from the older woman was strange as well. Like it had a message.

"And so, we are going to give you a test," Haruka finished. Natsuki looked at Haruka…test? Yeah I don't do tests.

"Test?" Natsuki asked weakly, her eyes falling on Shizuru's again. She was never too good at tests after…well…that night. The look in Shizuru's eyes seemed to be telling her something again. Almost like an urgent message.

Be prepared, Kuga-san. Shizuru thought. She tried to convey this desperate message through their locked eyes. Though she knew it would be a miracle that the girl actually undertood. She didn't want to see the girl killed…which is the usual outcome for this test. Few passed, and if they did, it was just barely. Haruka herself had barely passed when she first applied for entry.

"Yes, a test," Haruka said flatly. "Ready?"

Natsuki slowly nodded, and slowly peeled her gaze away from Shi—

Zing. The sound of something slicing through the air reached Natsuki's ears. She saw something shiny speeding towards her and instantly closed her eyes, putting her hands up automatically to block whatever it was.

Natsuki slowly opened her eyes…the silver object never collided with her? She stared at the shiny metal thing…it was inches from her face…caught between her pointer finger and thumb. And it was spikey. Very spikey. It was like a mini razor blade! "W-what the hell is this?" She asked, an incredulous look on her face as she held the item up to the Council. "Did you really throw this thing at me? Are you crazy?! It's like a damn ninja star! I could've been sliced in half right now!" The girl yelled at the blonde.

The Council merely stared at her in shock. She…she caught it? Was their simultaneous thought.

"Y-yukino…?"

"Y-yes, Haruka?"

"Did…did she catch it?"

"Y-yes."

"Not dodge…caught?"

"Haruka," Reito said quietly. "She didn't dodge it. It didn't hit her at all. She caught it."

Haruka blinked…it dawned on her and she practically jumped over her desk. "WHO ARE YOU? You're a spy from Fuuka Military Academy aren't you?! No one has ever caught that before!" Haruka bellowed.

Shizuru, who managed to snap out of her amazed trance, pulled Haruka back down into her chair. "Ara…that was…unexpected."

Natsuki stared at them. Whatever she did must've really impressed them. She smirked. "Didn't you guys say to be cautious?" Of course she had no idea she would be so lucky. It was all reflex that saved her ass, but she could at least parade around as if she were really that cool. Damn right I caught your lame ninja star.

"Who told you to expect that?!" Haruka continued yelling.

Natsuki blinked. "No one…," she muttered, but she found herself staring at Shizuru as her answer to Haruka's question.

Haruka followed her gaze. "Lt. Fujino told you?"

Shizuru blinked in surprised. "Ara…me? I didn't do a thing." She flipped her confused face back from Natsuki to a very angry Haruka. "I didn't tell her anything, Sergeant Suzushiro," Shizuru even saluted the blonde beast just to calm her down. Why did that girl look at me for that? I didn't tell her anything.

Haruka eyed Shizuru suspiciously before turning back to Natsuki. "Okay that was…impressive, Kuga-san. You beat our idiotic guards, have an impressive physical record, are from Fuuka but not from their military school, and you managed to pass the reflex test…which no one has passed that well before. I change my vote. You're in," Haruka said saluting her.

"I agree. She shows lots of promise," Reito saluted her.

Yukino simply saluted with a nod.

Anh Lu winked, blew a kiss, and then saluted the now blushing Natsuki.

Shizuru eyed Natsuki. The girl was very interesting to say the least. She saluted her as well.

"It's settled then. Private Natsuki Kuga, I welcome you to Garderobe Military Academy, Lt. Fujino will show you to your room," Haruka said to the beaming Natsuki. She turned to Shizuru, who was gaping at her. "What?"

"Why do I have to show her to her room? I didn't even finish my tea yet…," Shizuru pouted. She really was just too comfortable to leave, not to mention the new recruits always had 100 questions.

"You don't have the authority to deny me, Lieutenant," Haruka said with a smirk. "Room her with Yuuki…didn't her roommate just get killed or something during training? And…Shizuru?"

Shizuru began standing up, "Yes?"

"Watch her closely. She has talent for someone whose never been to a Military school before," Haruka said quietly, but sternly.

Shizuru saluted. "Yes, Sergeant." She then stepped beside Anh Lu (who was pouting and asking to take Natsuki to her room.) and walked up to Natsuki. She held out a hand. "Lt. Shizuru Fujino."

Natsuki looked at her hand warily. "S-sorry. I don't do touching."

Shizuru looked at her lone hand and sighed. "Right I forgot…well, this way." She lowered her hand and exited the Council room through a door near the right of the large room. Natsuki hadn't even noticed it before.

The second they stepped out of the door, Natsuki had to stop. Shizuru turned around when she didn't hear the girl's footsteps behind her anymore. She watched Natsuki who seemed to be in a daze. "What's wrong?" Shizuru asked.

Natsuki blinked. "Did we just step into Narnia or some shit? Didn't I get here through a door?" Natsuki asked looking behind her towards the door they just stepped out of.

Shizuru giggled. "No, not Narnia. This is the school campus," Shizuru replied.

The school campus went on for miles or something. There was a tall stone wall surrounding the whole entire place, yet it didn't give the feeling of it being closed in at all. The stone walls were definitely connected to the first one Natsuki had come through, the one Chie had been standing on top of and looking down on her from. There were a ton of little tents in the direction they were heading. Dorms…our dorms are tents? Natsuki wondered. Near the dorms were fields. Training fields. There were running tracks, obstacle courses, things that looked like sparring cages, shooting ranges, even a pool! Near the Training Area was the actual classroom part of the school. There was one big stone building, which Natsuki assumed is where all the academics were taught. Students could be seen either in training classes or filing into the big stone building for academics. There were also about three watch-towers, two of which were built into the surrounding stone wall. The one lone one stood near the dorm area. On top of that, there were a bunch of other buildings Natsuki didn't see any clear sign of what they may be on.

"Wow," she whispered.

"Ara, is Private Kuga-san impressed? It is one of the best military schools in the country," Shizuru said as she gestured for Natsuki to follow her.

"Why are you people so uptight about the Fuuka Military Academy? I mean I know you too have a rivalry but would they really go as far as to send spies to your school?" Natsuki asked as she followed the older woman.

Shizuru shrugged. "Occasionally Fuuka will send over some of their students to attack our own. We agree to it because it serves as good practice for our students…the bullets used are obviously not real, but some of the students take it so seriously. Well, I suppose it's a serious thing. We don't like our students getting shot at, tranquilizers or not. It's also a blow to this schools reputation if we lose a battle on our own grounds. We encourage it, however, because it's like an ambush training session even the teachers don't see coming. It's good to prepare for actual missions the older students receive."

"Oh that brings me to another question. You're sort of young to be running a school aren't you? I mean all of you. You all look like you're in your twenties."

Shizuru turned around to smile at the younger girl. "I'm 21. And you learn most of what you need to know by 19. Exceptional students run the school…and are usually replaced the next year."

"So you'll be replaced next year?"

Shizuru sighed. "It depends if I get sent on a dangerous mission or not. Well if I survive the mission. Most Council members don't make it past their first year. We're the most valued and talented students of the school…so our superiors give us the most difficult missions. It may be a military school but once you hit 19 or are deemed worthy of going on missions, you get sent on real government missions." Garderobe was known for producing some of the country's top military leaders.

Natsuki shuddered. "That sucks…will I get to go on actual missions?" That's like knowing you're going to die soon.

Shizuru giggled as they neared the tents. "You're only 17…and you just started. Not to mention you're already pretty young. Most first year students start at17 or 18. Unless you were incredibly talented, you won't be getting any real action until you hit 19."

"That sucks, well I'll be 18 this year," Natsuki murmured as she looked at the ground passing below her feet. She wanted to do something reckless, something dangerous…anything to take her mind off of home.

They were walking side by side now, Natsuki no longer trailing behind the older girl. Natsuki stared at the ground below her feet. Shizuru stared at the strange girl in her peripheral vision. She's rather tragic looking for such a young pretty girl. Shizuru noted.

They appeared in front of a tent. The flap was zipped closed. Shizuru unzipped it and gestured for Natsuki to enter first. She did.

The tent was pretty big. It was definitely bigger than a college dorm anyways. On the right side were an empty armoire and an empty bed. On the left side was…a mess. Posters, clothes everywhere, messy bed, rug next to the bed…Natsuki's roommate was clearly a slob. Natsuki instantly walked over to the right bed. She placed a hand on the bare mattress. This is my home now.

"If you don't mind me asking," Shizuru said as she watched the younger girl. Natsuki turned her head up. "Why don't you have any bags with you?" It was strange. Most kids who came to apply usually came with bags packed, as if they were expecting that entrance into the school would be oh-so-easy and they could move right on in.

Natsuki gave her a sheepish grin. "I don't have anything…well, I do, but I had to leave it."

Shizuru was instantly intrigued. "Ara, why?"

Natsuki frowned. "I didn't want to carry anything…it would make too much noise."

Shizuru nodded, she now understood. "Someone didn't want you coming here did they?"

Natsuki leaned against the bed. "Want? Didn't even know, more like it. But…no he wouldn't have been okay with it."

Shizuru's interest peaked. "Boyfriend? Father?"

Natsuki winced…and Shizuru noticed. "I-it doesn't matter does it? You ask a lot of questions." Natsuki avoided eye contact, and stared at the floor.

Shizuru opened her mouth, then closed it, then opened it again. "I apologize. I didn't mean to pry."

Natsuki waved it off. "It's fine, it's not important anyways, it's the past."

Shizuru noticed Natsuki's wrist as she waved the apology off. There was a purple ring around the girl's wrist. What is that? A bruise? This girl had a past. A past she was running from.

"Are you okay…?" Natsuki asked the chestnut-haired lieutenant. "You look a little…dazed."

Shizuru snapped out of her thoughts. "Ara, I apologize again. I'll get going and allow you to get comfortable. I'll bring you a uniform, PJs, and some bedding later on. Oh and your roommate should be returning from training any minute now."

Natsuki smiled. "Thanks, Lt. Fujino." I like her. She seems like a nice, sane person…which I heard is rare here. I wonder what my roommate is like. Natsuki gave her a salute. Man I can't tell if I feel lame or cool for saluting.

Shizuru smiled back and saluted before exiting the tent. That girl sure is mysterious. Though I don't think she's a spy…she seems to have no idea how things work around here. I wonder what she's running from.

Natsuki stared at the tent's open flap for a few more seconds before jumping onto her bare mattress and pulling out something she had brought with her. Her iPod. She slipped on the ear phones and pressed play.

Monster,

How should I feel?

Creatures lie here.

Looking through the window…

That night he caged her.

Bruised and broke her.

He struggled closer.

Then he stole her.

Violet wrists and then her ankles.

Silent pain.

Then he slowly saw their nightmares were his dreams.

Monster.

"Oi, who are you? And why are you…are you crying?" Asked a girl Natsuki automatically assumed to be her roommate. She was a red-head, with lime green eyes in contrast to her emerald ones. She was, well, pretty. Really pretty. And she looked confused.

Natsuki pulled her ear phones out of her ears, then wiped at her eyes. "W-what? I'm not crying." Shit I was crying? I've got to take that song off my iPod.

The girl tilted her head and watched the cobalt-beauty intensely. She shrugged. "Whatever, I don't care either way. I just don't want another wimp for my roommate."

"I'm not a wimp," Natsuki declared sitting up and throwing her legs over the side of her mattress.

Her roommate looked amused as she began unbuttoning her uniform. "That's what they all say. I'm Nao by the way. I'm sure, despite all logic, your name isn't Wimpy McWimp right?"

Natsuki glared at the redhead, though she had already started liking her. "Natsuki. Natsuki Kuga." Oh good she doesn't want to shake hands. She looks like the kind to make fun of someone for something like a fear of touching.

Nao nodded. "Nice to meet you, Kuga. Well, kind of. Just stay out of my way and THEN it'll be 'nice to meet you.' If you get in my way, however," She winked, "I will end you so fast you won't even see it coming." Nao finished unbuttoning her uniform top and flung it onto her bed. Natsuki looked away. "What? We're roommates and I need to shower…get used to seeing some skin. You see a lot of it around here. Uniforms always ripping from training sessions and what not."

Natsuki blushed. "Hey, I noticed something when I walked in here today. Are a lot the girls here…into other girls or something?"

Nao snorted. "You must've met Chie…and," Nao looked Natsuki over, yeah she qualified as a super hottie, aka Colonel Lu's favorite type. "Ahn Lu probably hit on you too."

Natsuki blinked. "Y-yeah…," she stuttered.

"Not all the girls, no. But there is a fairly large population seeing as how the boys here are rare. Or just plain stupid. Most of the boys go to Fuuka Military Academy. Doesn't stop us from kicking their asses though." Nao seemed to see something of interest on the other girl, as she leaned her head forward a little, squinting her eyes. "Hey, do you have a boyfriend?"

Natsuki shook her head, a confused expression coming to her face. "Nope, I don't have time for relationships."

"So you're a slut then?"

"…No." Natsuki stared at Nao as if she were nuts.

"Then what's with the hickeys all over your neck?" Nao asked with a smirk.

Natsuki's eyes went blank as a hand absentmindedly rose to her neck. She winced. "I don't know…," she lied.

Nao eyed her roommate suspiciously before shrugging it off. "Whatever, Kuga. Listen we have class early tomorrow. If you were put into a dorm with me that probably means Lt. Fujino is your teacher as well."

Natsuki nodded, relieved the topic changed. "She's so young to be teaching."

"I wouldn't be talking, Kuga. You look pretty young yourself. Besides, Fujino knows what she's doing. She's on the Council after all. Those Council members, I swear it's like they all have their own mini army of fans," Nao, who had nothing but a towel wrapped around her and some clothes under her arm, headed towards the door. "I'm going to shower. Training got all sweaty today. But I'll see you later and we can," she snorted, "BOND or something stupid like that. Hah, yeah right." With that, Nao exited the tent, leaving a very confused Natsuki behind.

Natsuki fell back onto her bare mattress. "This school is definitely going to be interesting."

Lt. Fujino made her way back to the Council room. She sighed as another possible recruit was in the middle of being interrogated by her blonde friend and superior. I'm gone for five minutes and already Haruka looks like she's about to pounce on some poor kid. She passed by a bored looking Anh Lu and took her seat.

"YOU RUDE, UNGRATEFUL LITTLE…DO YOU KNOW WHO YOU'RE TALKING TO?" Sergeant Haruka bellowed, nails digging into her desk.

Shizuru patted Haruka on the arm. "Relax," she cooed. She and Yukino were very often the only ones to pull Haruka back from a raging tantrum. Haruka had been the perfect choice for leader of the Council. She was rough, tough, mean, powerful, and knew how to control people and give bark orders.

Haruka eyed her lieutenant before exhaling slowly and rubbing her temples, eyes fluttering shut. "I'm sick of these pompous jackass kids thinking they can easily gain entrance into our school," Haruka muttered.

Shizuru nodded, and looked at the frightened kid in the center of the room. It was a boy. They didn't have many boys. Most kids grew up in a nearby town called Fuuka. They more than likely went to the Fuuka public school unless they wanted to get military training, then they'd pick between Garderobe and Fuuka Military Academy. Fuuka was closer to the town and not as selective, an easier choice for boys to make. However, the girls liked a challenge, and almost always tried out at Garderobe first.

The two schools were rivals, but were ultimately run by the same higher-ups. They allowed the kids to put their training to the test in occasional random battles against each other or competitions. One school might send over a troop of their students to ambush the other school. At the end, unconscious bodies were counted. Whatever school had more students sleeping, lost. So far Garderobe was in the lead, but Fuuka was stepping up their training and Garderobe was worried. The next attack could come at any time. The teachers themselves didn't even know when they would occur.

"Um," The boy squinted through the harsh lights. "So am I in?"

Haruka lost it again. "No! Though I'm sure Fuuka Military will take an arrogant piece of shi—"

"Haruka," Shizuru again reeled her friend in with a light tap on the shoulder. Shizuru turned a warm gaze on the boy. "We're sorry but here at Garderobe Military Academy, we only accept the best," Shizuru said.

The boy lowered his head. "A-alright," he muttered as he turned and exited through the large doors he had come in through.

Haruka let out a sigh. "If I don't have any more possible recruits to interview today, I would be eternally grateful."

Yukino giggled. Anh Lu was doodling naughty pictures on her notebook of that blue haired girl from before, Shizuru was exiting the boy's records from her laptop, and Reito was quietly dozing. They were only 20 something after all.

Natsuki sat on her mattress, still examining the purple bruises over her wrists. She stared at them, willing them to disappear. She lightly tapped the broken skin on her right wrist, and instantly regretted it. "Ow," she muttered.

"Don't tell me you're one of those depressed kids," her new roommate said as she re-entered their tent with now wet hair. She was fully dressed in what looked like normal clothes. She saw Natsuki staring so she decided to explain. "After classes and training we can wear whatever we want. Anyways those look nasty," she said nodding in the direction of Natsuki's wrists. "Did the guy who gave you those hickeys get a little too rough?" Nao asked with a smirk as she leapt backwards onto her bed and sprawled out over the furniture. "Or were the wrist bruises and hickeys from two different guys? You really are a slu—"

Natsuki pulled up her sleeves to cover her wrists. "Shut up," she grumbled. "Hey do you know if there's a track around here? I like to go running every morning." Natsuki got up off the mattress and stretched a little.

Nao watched the girl stretch with interest. She was definitely in possession of an athlete's body. Her body was toned, not overly muscled, but you could see them and they gave her a sexy sort of appeal. Nao yawned, and then tapped her long nails against her chin. "Yes it's in the training area. You probably saw it on your way in. If you just make a right out of this tent and keep walking you should see it eventually on your left." Nao rolled onto her side and stared at her new roommate. "But we have class early tomorrow. You'd have to wake up at 5am. Run for 50 minutes, shower for ten, leave for class by 6:01am, get to class by 6:10am."

Natsuki blinked then groaned. "Damn," she ran a hand down her face. "Fine. 5am it is," Natsuki said as she began clicking on her watch. Natsuki was a dedicated runner. A good run in the morning always got her mind thinking clearly, getting rid of the fuzziness she usually felt after a nightmare. She didn't have dreams anymore.

Nao glared at her. "You better pray your alarm doesn't wake me up in the morning, pup."

Natsuki shook her head. "It won't. I wake up pretty fast if I do end up actually sleeping so if I don't stop it before it goes off, I'll stop it after one ring."

"Ara…the two roommates have met. Well Private Yuuki. How do you like your new roommate?" asked a honey-coated voice. Both privates looked up to see a Lieutenant carrying sheets, a pillow, PJs and three uniforms in her hands. She walked over to Natsuki's empty mattress and dumped the contents on to it.

Nao stood up from her bed and gave Shizuru a lazy salute before saying, "She's okay so far. Hasn't pissed me off yet, though I'm afraid she might be a wimp since she was cry—," Nao noticed Natsuki had given her the famous Kuga death glare. She blinked and shook her head. "Never mind…," she muttered.

Shizuru stared at both the girls then shook her head. "Well at least you're getting along," She said, trying to keep the shock she felt from showing through her voice. Yuuki Nao doesn't have anything bad to say about the new girl? She shook the weird thoughts from her head and pointed to the uniforms. "Okay, Private. These are your uniforms," Shizuru said. "And over here are your PJs."

Natsuki looked down and smiled. She rather liked the color green. Sure the uniforms were a bit boring, but she had seen students wearing them earlier, and they did look sexy in some weird way. I wonder if I have a uniform fetish. Hah, kidding, Kuga, kidding.

"And these are your bed sheets. They've been cleaned and should be pretty comfortable."

Natsuki nodded. "Thanks, Lt. Fujino. Um, so you're my teacher right?"

Shizuru watched the younger girl finger the cloth of her new uniform. "Yes, starting tomorrow you will have class with me and training in the afternoon."

Natsuki pulled up the uniform top and held it against her. She gave her teacher and then her roommate a sheepish grin. "How do I look?"

Shizuru smiled. "Very professional, Private Kuga."

Nao smirked. "Not as good as me," she winked.

They all laughed a little and then with a wave Shizuru left the two roommates to bond. Shizuru walked away reflecting on how weird it was for Nao to be friendly to someone on their first day. Maybe she heard Natsuki had done something not even Haruka had done? No one had ever caught that ninja star. Haruka dodged it. I didn't have to take it as I was immediately allowed entrance to the school. Shizuru smiled to herself, Haruka must be a little envious of the girl fast reflexes.

Natsuki placed her uniforms in the empty armoire then pulled off her clothes and changed into her PJs. She crawled under the covers of her newly made bed and sighed happily. She had finally made it. Finally, she was free.

"Going to bed already?" Nao pouted.

"Do you know how long it took me to get up that mountain in a motorcycle? There was a cop behind me the whole way, I couldn't speed."

"A motorcycle, huh? Your cool factor increased. Keep going, and I might actually sit with you at lunch tomorrow."

Natsuki grinned and turned her head to face her redheaded roommate. "Yes, it's a Ducati. It's my fath—…it's mine now." He's going to flip when he finds out it's missing. Er, well, both me and the bike are missing. Oh well.

Nao whistled. "Sexy! A Ducati huh?

Natsuki nodded, and the two girls found themselves talking the rest of the night before going to sleep.

-Dream-

Natsuki was back home. Lying on her bed staring up at the ceiling, more specifically a poster of the latest Ducati models. She had had a good day at school as usual. She had gotten a test back, a 96%. Not bad. She let out a sigh and was about to go to sleep…when there was a low knock on her door.

"Nat-su-ki? Princess?" Came the voice of her drunken father.

Natsuki sat up instantly, watching her bedroom door slowly creak open. "D-dad?"

The door opened fully, revealing her disheveled looking father leaning against her door frame for support. Natsuki swallowed hard as he lifted his head to stare straight at her, though his eyes were rather unfocused and groggy looking.

"Dad what do you…maybe you should go lie down…" Natsuki said, still not moving from her spot. Her father often turned scary when drunk.

"Saeko…" he whispered her mother's name. He reached a hand towards Natsuki from across the room. "Saeko I can see you."

Natsuki inhaled sharply, a tear rolling down her cheek. "I-I'm not mom, dad."

Her father pushed himself off the doorframe and stumbled his way onto Natsuki's bed. He gave his daughter a goofy grin, and peeled the covers back.

"W-what are you doing?!" Natsuki yelled as she tried jumping out of the bed. Unfortunately, her dad was too strong, too drunk, he pulled her back down.

"You look just like your mother, honey," he whispered into her neck. "I miss your mother so much…"

Natsuki was frozen, pinned under him and not sure how to escape. That's when he started.

-End Dream-

Natsuki bolted upright in a cold sweat. She hugged herself with her arms, panting and staring around her new tent furiously. When she remembered where she was she slowly lowered herself back into bed. I'm safe here, no one can hurt me. He can't hurt me. I'm here. No one knows I'm here. I'm safe. No one can touch me here.

She turned her head slowly, the alarm clock on Nao's end table read 4:57am. She clicked off her watch alarm before it ever went off and got up to get ready for a morning run. She really needed one this morning to help get her mind off the horrible past. Goddamn nightmares.

So that's my first chapter for my newest (and second) fic "Monster." I'm not sure if I'm allowed to use song lyrics (I'm only using them for this one chapter, they were a hint to Natsuki's past) but if I'm not will someone let me know so I can change it? I don't know if this counts as a songfic since this is the only time I'm using the lyrics, plus the title is named for the song. Oh and should this be rated 'M'? I wasn't sure since there's nothing explicit in this.

So yeah, hope you guys are at least interested in where this is going...please review and tell me I've at least got some of you curious! OH And yes this is ShizNat, a teacher-student fic. I always thought those were cute. I wonder if that's twisted lol, probably *sigh*.

Anyways just to clear some things up, because I'm sure the school system is pretty confusing.

(I recommend reading this if you got confused at all)

So there's the town, Fuuka, and near Fuuka is the military school "Fuuka Military Academy." Fuuka Military Academy is not as selective as Garderobe, thus it gets more applicants and has more recruits. Farther away from the town of Fuuka is a more private school called Garderobe, it's also a military school. Basically, the two schools are run by the same old people BUT are more directly run by the oldest and most talented students, AKA the Council. The Council do most of the teaching, training, and organizing of events. They also host things like competitions etc. The schools are very competitive, and so are the students. For some fun, both schools launch fake-attacks on the other school. For example, Natsuki, Chie, and Nao could be eating lunch outside, and all of a sudden an alarm will go off. Everyone will know that some Fuuka academy kids are attacking so they all go get their guns and run to help out. Sometimes the rival students get away, sometimes they get "captured" by the school they invaded, sometimes they get shot and fall unconscious for hours. The students also get guns, but only the older students that actually go on real missions get REAL bullets. The schools train kids to get ready for missions that actually involve danger. Receiving a mission is like the biggest honor someone can get. It's usually an older student and a talented younger student who gets to go as well, probably as a prize for winning a competition or something. Umm let me think….Natsuki is from Fuuka, but she went to the public regular high school not the military school. She also doesn't like being touched, physical contact is only okay if she's beating up someone.

And that's it really. If anyone is confused about anything let me know. I hope I didn't confuse you even more haha. I'm not sure if it was 'Ahn' or 'Anh' Lu soooo eh?

Um there are no romantic feelings yet between anyone except I guess Chie and Aoi but that's not really surprising. I guess that's it?

Okay so as I said. Hope you enjoyed this, and didn't get too confused. I'm sure it'll all make sense as you keep reading.

Next Chapter:

Natsuki gets ready for her first day of school. After class she gets to meet one of the "most promising" recruits during training. Her name is Tomoe, and she instantly doesn't like Natsuki. There also may be a surprise attack from a bunch of Fuuka Military Academy students! How will Natsuki do during her first school vs school battle?

[If it helps at all, you can sort of think of the rival schools like two rival gangs from the Mai Hime destiny verse, where it was totally normal for students to be attacking each other in broad daylight with weapons]