The New Student of Shibusen

***

Fate exited her apartment after a good sleep and started walking towards the academy; she wasn't sure if she wanted to attend school, but she couldn't do anything about it now.

	It's been almost two years since the last time I stepped foot in a school, she thought. Well, if it's like Maka said, then it shouldn't be so bad.

	The city looked rather peaceful during the day; a lot of the shops were open or were starting to open, and Fate saw some teens exiting their houses. They were probably students of Shibusen, too.

	Heh... too...

	She arrived at the long stairs that lead up to the academy and started to walk up them, seeing a lot of boys and girls who were doing the same thing, and when she reached the top, she saw that there were a lot of people near the entrance of the academy, so she decided to take a look. She noticed that everyone was looking up, so she did the same, and she saw a boy standin on the tip of a spiked structure of the building. She half-closed her eyes to see him better, and she could see that the boy had spiky blue hair and was wearing a ninja outfit.

	The boy pointed to the sky. "LISTEN UP, SHIBUSEN!" He shouted. I KNOW THAT YOU ALL ARE WORRIED ABOUT THOSE BLACK MONSTERS, BUT YOU DON'T HAVE TO WORRY BECAUSE I, BLACK*STAR, WILL DESTROY THEM ALL!"

	Fate stared at him with wide eyes, but an amused smile pulled at her lips. Looks like she had some competition in the Obumbratio hunt. Despite her interest in the boy, the other students around her had bored looks on their faces.

	"That idiot is doing it again..."

	"Let's just ignore him like always..."

	After that, the crowd started moving into the academy and Fate did the same, crossing through the front door; Kid and the Thompson sisters caught sight of her.

	"Fate, over here!" Patty called out, waving her hand frantically.

	Fate saw them and made her way over to them. "Hey, good morning!"

	"Good morning," Liz yawned.

	"Well, if you're ready, we will lead you to your class," Kid said.

	Fate nodded. "Yeah, let's go."

	They started walking towards the class. Fate started to look at her surroundings, trying to memorize the place; she saw some sort of bulletin board and there were some students looking at it, and as they walked, she could overhear a conversation betwween two girls.

	"Did you hear the rumors?"

	"No, what happened?"

	"I heard that there was another attack yesterday. Those monsters attacked a woman that was alone in the streets."

	"Oh no... what happened to her?"

	"Nothing! Someone destroyed those creatures and saved her!"

	"Wow, I wonder who it was..."

	Fate was surprised at how people already knew about her fight last night, and Kid leaned close to her.

	"It looks like your fight didn't go unnoticed," he whispered.

	Fate let out a light laugh. "Yeah... maybe I was too noisy?"

	Kid laughed as well. "Well, sooner or later, the entire academy will know that you're here, so you won't have to worry about being discreet."

	Finally, they arrived at the door of the class.

	"Here it is," Kid said. "Class Crescent Moon - this will be your class. We have different teachers, but the main one is Professor Stein. Look, here he comes."

	Fate turned to see someone coming down the hallway in an office chair; he had silver-gray hair and was wearing a doctor's lab coat, but what stood out most was the large screw going through his head.

	"Well, who do we have here?" The man asked, looking at Fate."

	"Hello, sir, I'm-" Fate began, but was interrupted by Stein.

	"Fate, right?"

	"Uh... yeah."

	Kid patted Fate's shoulder. "We're going to go inside, see you in there."

	"Alright," Fate answered, and then she looked at the man in the chair again.

	"Finally, I get to meet you," Stein said with a smile. "I'm Professor Stein. It's a pleasure."

	"Likewise," Fate said, returning the smile. "Kid told me that you would be my teacher while I'm here."

	"Ah, yes," Stein began. "Shinigami-sama told me the reason of your visit, but first let me say that you did good work yesterday."

	Fate looked at him in disbelief. "You know?"

	Stein found her question funny. "Yes, Shinigami-sama told me. He's always aware of what is happening in the city."

***

	While Fate and Stein were talking, the students of Class Crescent Moon were doing the same; a certain girl with two pigtails was reading a book.

	"What are you reading now?" Soul asked with curiosity.

	"I found this book in the library. It talks about magic users who aren't witches," Maka replied. "I'd like to know more about the poerson who is going to help us."

	"You sure are excited about it, Maka-chan," the girl next to her commented. She was tall and had black hair that was tied into a long ponytail.

	Maka chuckled. "Well, it's the first time that someone so powerful is coming to Death City, so it's normal that I'm a little curious. Aren't you curious, Tsubaki?"

	"Yes," Tsubaki admitted. "I wonder if she's as young as us."

	"If she's strong, I'm going to fight her," assured a boy who was sitting next to the girl with black hair. He was the one who was giving a speech outside the academy.

	"Told you..." Soul whispered to Maka.

	"Do you really need to pick a fight with everyone in the academy, Black*Star?" Maka asked, annoyed by the boy's attitude.

	"Only if they are strong enough to fight me," he responded with a grin. Tsubaki sighed at hr friend's behavior.

	Soul decided to change the topic before someone got Maka-chopped. "Did you three hear about the attack last night?"

	Maka closed her book and looked at Soul. "Yeah, it sounds like a woman was attack by some Obumbratio, but thankfully, someone saved her in time."

	"Do you think Kid, Liz, and Patty were the ones who saved her?" Tsubaki asked.

	"Well, why don't we ask them ourselves?" Soul asked, pointing to the door where Kid and the Thompson sisters were entering the classroom.

	They went to sit near their friends.

	"Hello everyone," Liz greeted as she sat down.

	"Hi!" Patty greeted cheerfully.

	"Hey Kid," Maka addressed the Shinigami.

	"What is it?" He asked, looking at her.

	"We heard that some Obumbratio attack a woman last night," she explained. "You three were patrolling the city, right?"

	"Yeah, we were watching over the city last ight and saw the Obumbratio," Kid said. "But we weren't the ones who saved the woman."

	Soul grew curious. "Then who was it?"

	"The girl that my father talked to us about," he responded with a smile. "She arrived yesterday evening."

	None of them expected that answer.

	"She's here!?" Maka asked in surprise. "I thought she was going to arrive today."

	Liz smiled at Maka. "Well, it seems that she arrived sooner than expected, and I'm grateful. Thank to her, we could finish sooner."

	"What's she like?" Tsubaki asked.

	"She looks younger than us, but she's about fifteen years old," Kid answered. "She had silver hair, blue eyes, and she wears a yellow sweater."

	Maka had a pensive look on her face after hearing the description, and Soul noticed

	"What is it, Maka?" He asked.

	"That description... it reminds me of-" Maka began, but was interrupted by the sound of someone opening the door to the class.

	Professor Stein had just entered the class followed by a girl, and when Maka saw the girl, she was surprised to see that it was the same one she met yesterday after buying dinner.

	"Listen up, kids!" Stein called out, trying to get his students' attention. "As everyone should know, dark monsters called Obumbratio have been attacking the city recently. Shinigami-sama decided that it was necessary to ask for help from outside, so this girl here is the one who is going to help us. She is know as the Sapphire Warrior..."

	Upon hearing this, the students began to whisper.

	"What the hell? She's barely any older than us."

	"She looks pretty cool, though."

	"And she's kind of cute..."

	"Please, you will have time for that later," Stein said, interrupting the chatter. "As I was saying, this girl's magic - no, she is not a witch - is the only thing that can make the Obumbratio disappear, so she will be staying with us for a while. I hope you can get along with her and don't cause her any trouble, okay? Now, we'll begin with the class."

	Fate went to sit down next to Kid. "I guess I'm no longer a secret."

	Kid chuckled at her remark. "It's better this way, although students are going to get curious."

	The class began and everyone was listening to Stein, but Fate noticed that Maka was looking at her, so she turned her head a little to look at her and gave her a smile.

	When the class ended and some of the students had left, Kid turned around to introduce Fate to his friends.

	"Guys, I'd like to introduce you to-" Kid began, but was interrupted by Maka.

	"Fate," she remembered.

	"Wait, you two know each other?"

	Fate let out a chuckle. "Yeah, I met her yesterday, right after I entered the city."

	"Why didn't you tell me that you were the Sapphire Warrior?" Maka asked, crossing her arms and pouting.

	"You never asked," Fate replied, shrugging with a grin on her face and making the others laugh.

	"Well, now we know your name, so it's our turn," Soul said, and he extended his hand. "I'm Soul Eater, it's a pleasure."

	"That's a pretty cool name, Soul," Fate said as she shook hands with him.

	Then a girl behind Soul walked next to Fate and bowed. "I'm Tsubaki Nakatsukasa. Thank you, Fate, for helping us."

	Fate was a little taken aback at her bow. "Nice to meet you, Tsubaki, but you don't need to act so formal towards me." Then the blue-haired boy next to Tsubaki was about to introduce himself, but Fate cut him off. "You must be Black*Star, right?"

	The others had a surprised look on their faces when Fate said that.

	"You know me?" Black*Start asked, and then started to arch his back while laughing. "See guys, the great Black*Star is known all around the world!"

	"Actually," Fate spoke up. "I saw you before entering the academy today. You were giving a speech about how you were going to destroy all the Obumbratio, if I'm not mistaken."

	Black*Star stopped laughing and sweatdropped while the other sighed.

	"You'll never change, Black*Star," Soul said.

	"What an idiot..." Maka muttered.

	Black*Star then straightened up and pointed at Fate. "Fate, let's fight!"

	Kid sighed. "Here we go again."

	Fate was a little surprised at this. "Wait, why do you want to fight me?"

	"If you're going to protect the city from Obumbratio, then I'll have to see if you're strong enough," Black*Star said with determination.

	Fate crossed her arms and closed her eyes to think for a moment, and she thought that Black*Star was right, so she decided to accept his duel.

	"You have a point there," she said. "Okay! We'll fight, as long as your partner agrees, too."

	"Alright!" Black*star cheered. "What do you say, Tsubaki?"

	"Well, if Fate agrees to fight, then I'll be at your side," Tsubaki agreed.

	"If you're going to fight," Stein spoke up. "Then do it outside in front of the academy. I'll be the witness, come on."

	Kid sighed in defeat as the Shibusen students began to follow their teacher. "This is exactly what I didn't want to happen."

	"It was inevitable, Kid," Soul said. "The only thing we can do now is watch the fight."

	"Yeah, remember that you fought Black*Star voluntarily, too, when we rolled in the academy," Liz reminded him.

	"Yeah, but he was fighting with a partner who was incompatible with him," Kid said, referring to Soul.

	"And it was a disaster; I don't think I could stand seeing another "Friendship Combination"," Maka said, smiling at Soul.

	Soul groaned. "Thanks for making me remember that..."