Nikuyoku - Chapter Seven | Commission

The day had finally come. Rin couldn’t wait to get there, she had heard such tales about Fukan Academy from her grandpa. He had gone there when he was her age, it had been where he had honed his skills to become the powerful wizard that he was today.

She had made it onto the train without issues, it was full to the brim with people, like the station that she peered out of the window into. Looking into the crowds, Rin searched for any sign of Mako. He had promised to wave her goodbye as the train left the station, but any minute now she’d be on the move.

The tall buildings of her home city, Serrulata, peaked over the edges of the station buildings. She was going to miss it, not as much as she’d miss her beloved grandpa. And he’d miss her to no end, he had already told her in length just how much he was going to miss her and how proud of her he was as they had made their way to the station.

A loud whistle sounded from the front of the train, followed by the calls of the conductors stationed at the door of each cart. They ushered the final few people onto the train and shut the doors, ready to begin the long journey - with a final destination, for a select few, of Fukan Academy.

As the train moved from a stop, each cart lugged the one behind it until they all moved in one smooth motion. Rin felt herself suddenly being pulled into her chair as the train began to accelerate. She continued to scan the crowds for Mako but couldn’t see him anywhere.

Finally, there appeared to be a break in the wall of people and Rin watched with bated breath. Mako emerged from the endless heaps of faces and luggage and peered up at the cart before him. Rin’s heart melted as she saw the elation on his face from finding her just before it was too late. He shouted to her as he waved, “Rin! I love you! Safe travels!”

Rin smiled back and blew him a kiss, opting not to shout inside of the much quieter train and having only barely heard his bellow through the thick glass. She waved at him and bowed her head as she did, the train beginning to move beyond the platform he was stood on.

Daichi was thrown across the floor of Rin’s backpack as the train began to move. The items Rin had packed in her carry-on luggage tumbled with him, threatening to crush him at any moment. He covered his head as her bottle of water fell from its upright position, narrowly missing him. 

For once, she had opted not to keep him on her person, but rather in her backpack with all of her other important items. Daichi had never questioned it nor specified a preference to her, he simply had woken up to her carrying him across the room before dropping him into her backpack. He had watched the light in the bag fade away as the zip moved up the fabric and sealed him in.

Mako and Rin continued to wave until they were no longer in sight of one another. Rin turned her attention to the inside of the carriage, everyone seemed to be around her age -  14, near 15. The car was mostly quiet, with a few more excitable passengers, she figured this car would be almost solely for Fukan Academy; it certainly seemed that way. 

As the journey continued on, Rin decided she’d have the apple Mako had given her to pack. She brought her backpack up onto her lap from between her legs and unzipped it. Light flooded into the backpack, causing Daichi to cover his eyes in pain from the brightness.

As his eyes adjusted to the brighter conditions, he looked over to see Rin blindly feeling around the cluttered backpack for something. In an attempt to get her attention, wanting out from the dark and boring backpack, he clambered across the various items to reach her.

Daichi dived onto Rin’s petite hand and wrapped himself around her fingers. He was thankful that she had left him at three inches, he’d have no chance of communicating with her if she had left him at his usual height of a centimetre. She seemed to love him at that size, perhaps it was the control she had over him? He wasn’t sure.

Rin felt Daichi throw himself onto her hand like a needy pet dog, she smirked slightly in response. Seemingly out of nowhere, a tall girl with dark features appeared beside Rin and smiled at her kindly. Getting a fright from the sudden attention she was getting, after having been sat alone, Rin jolted her hand violently in the bag to shake Daichi off.

Daichi could only watch in dismay, having been tossed aside, as Rin zipped the bag back up, sealing him in once more. He listened intently for any indication of why she had done it but he couldn’t hear too well through the backpack. He felt the bag Rin moving his backpack prison onto the floor between her legs, knocking the wind out of him as it landed harshly on the ground.

“Hey!” the girl said as she slid into the seat opposite Rin, her dark-red hair swaying as she did. Clearly presenting herself as the more outgoing, louder one of them, the girl asked, “I’m Sakura, what’s your name?”

“Hi”, Rin began, “My name is Rin, it’s a pleasure to meet you!” Rin’s nerves soon left her due to the friendly nature of Sakura, perhaps this would be her first friend!

“Oooh, a pleasure! Someone’s highborn!” Sakura teased, pointing her long, slender index finger at Rin accusingly. 

Rin was taken aback at the claim. She was highborn, of course, but she had assumed everyone at Fukan Academy would be also. “Well, yes. Aren’t you?” Rin asked, confused.

Sakura laughed at her confusion and explained, “Of course I am! Where I’m from, though, we live closely with your everyday people.”

“Oh I see, I suppose I have spent a lot of time with my grandpa - so I’ve probably gotten his vocabulary”, Rin said as she pondered if she really were that out of touch. Well, she had spent the last year working on her magic with Mako or using her magic on Daichi. There wasn’t much time spare to meet her ‘everyday people’.

“So what house are you in? Maybe we’re in the same dorms!” Sakura asked, her eyes bright with interest.

“Oh I’m... “ Rin began, she had just had her intro sheet on the desk in front of her. She looked around the seating area until she spotted it beneath Sakura’s foot under the table between them. “I think my intro sheet is beneath your foot”, Rin pointed out politely.

Sakura looked between her legs as she lifted both feet briefly from the ground. “Oh! Ha! There it is!” she exclaimed as she reached down to grab it. Bringing the paper to her face, she quickly scanned it and cheered, “Oh Kumaneko! I’m also in Kumaneko, and it looks like you’re room 243, I’m just across the hall!”

Rin smiled, her first friend here already?! She couldn’t wait to arrive at Fukan Academy and start her new life with her new friend, things were only just about to begin. The two girls continued to get to know each other, paying no attention to how long they’d been on the train nor how close they were to their destination.

They talked each other’s ears off... Or at least, Sakura talked Rin’s ears off. It didn’t matter, Rin was much happier this way, Sakura never once questioned her choice to be a little quieter than your average person. Time flew by and as Sakura was finishing up a story, the infamous Castle of Fukan appeared in the distance, causing Rin’s jaw to drop. “...and then we ended up just...” Sakura said before trailing off, noticing Rin’s sudden absence from the conversation. Realising what this could mean, she turned to look out of the window.

The Castle of Fukan had been much larger than the awestruck pair had anticipated. Monstrously high stone towers and halls littered an island that floated amongst the clouds, as if it were torn from the ground. “My Grandpa would tell me stories of this castle…” Rin said to the shocked, and for the first time silenced, Sakura. “I didn’t know how much of it to believe, I thought they were bedtime stories… Stories of a time before written history. He said it was believed there was a great war, and all the witches and wizards of the academy worked together to enchant the castle.”

“Why did they enchant the castle?” Sakura asked, never turning away from the marvellous sight to engage her friend for even a moment .

“He said that it was likely agreed that they couldn’t risk such an important part of history, filled with such knowledge, being destroyed in the war. It’s expected that they enlisted giants to dig it out of the ground and then they enchanted it to fly high above the clouds, away from the destruction so often caused by humanity on the ground. The enchantment will not allow just anybody to enter, nor can it be destroyed from the ground”, Rin explained. 

The train rolled into the station finally before slowing to a stop. A sharp hiss escaped the engine’s chimney, followed by the whistles of the conductors as they opened the doors. Fukan’s newest students flooded out into their personal station, eager to collect their things. “Well it looks like we’re here!” Sakura said, beaming at her friend.

“I can’t wait to see our dorms!” Rin replied cheerfully, feeling more confident now that she had a friend. She picked her backpack up from the floor between her legs as she stood up in the train car and strapped it onto her back.

Daichi shook violently in the backpack as Rin carelessly threw him and its contents over her shoulder. He squealed as the items clattered down onto his tiny form. 

Rin and Sakura made their way off the train before heading to where the luggage was being unloaded. They quickly grabbed their suitcases and made their way along the cobbles towards the dorms. The tall towers and cobbled streets, and lush, green plants and vines littered the walls. It was breathtaking.

As Rin and Sakura reached the dorms for Kumaneko, they were given their respective room keys and pointed towards a sign that read “Rooms 200-300”. The girls chatted and laughed as they walked along the tiled hallway, their loud suitcase wheels roaring in the echoey halls.

They soon made it to their rooms. Turning to Rin before heading into her room Sakura said, “I’ll meet you out here once I have freshened up! We can head to the Kumaneko Induction together!”

Rin smiled happily at her excitable, yet seemingly quite gothic-styled, friend. “Sure, that sounds great. See you shortly!” Rin replied, putting her key in her door and pushing it open. Shrugging her backpack into a more comfortable position, Rin pulled her suitcase into her room and shut the door behind her. 

She sighed blissfully. Her time at Fukan Academy couldn’t have started any better. All of her nerves were gone, and she had no feelings in her but happiness and excitement. Her new friend, Sakura, was a good fit for her. Unlike Sakura, she was often quiet and reserved - they could balance each other out with their contrasting social profiles.

Dragging her suitcase to its final position by her wardrobe, Rin allowed it finally drop down to the floor. She slid her backpack off her shoulders and carelessly threw it over onto the bed with Daichi still inside. 

While Daichi was trying to pry his way out from beneath the various items that had struck him, Rin headed into the bathroom to freshen up. A short time passed as he clawed his way to the top of the items, only to find that the backpack was still zipped shut. He clutched desperately at the zip’s teeth in an attempt to get it open.

Suddenly, he heard the door of Rin’s ensuite open as she reentered her bedroom. Daichi climbed against the zip of the backpack and tried to peer through the cracks, totally unable to see. He called out, “RINNNNN!!!”

Having used the bathroom and freshened up, Rin entered her bedroom and took it in for a moment. “Wow, Fukan Academy finally! So this will be home…” she said aloud to herself as she stroked her bed linen, barely a metre from her tiny, distraught brother. 

A loud knock sounded suddenly, followed by Sakura shouting, “RINNN, we have to get to our induction!”

Rin looked to the door suddenly, realising Sakura was waiting for her. She leaned over the bed and gripped her backpack before carelessly tossing it over her shoulder, as she had done so many times today. “Coming!” Rin shouted back as she made her way towards the door.