Vigil of the Fates Chapter 4
Transfer Student
By PeterEliot
The diminutive cadet ran breathlessly down the second floor hallway, drawing stares from others. What an absolutely peachy way to begin a day this important, she screamed in her head. First I get the schedule mixed up, and then I get lost in this dang huge complex... oh! “Rm 28D This Way”... that has got to be the room! I just need to take a right turn at this corner... Oh, no, I’m late, I’m late, I’m so WAY late!
CRASH!
“Oww....”
Flat on her bottom, the girl looked up from the floor at whomever it was she had just run into. Before her stood the figure of a boy in black who, despite not wearing a uniform, was clearly recognizable as a cadet. Looking a little discomposed himself, the cadet simply stood there gazing down at her, not attempting to say anything. What was up with him? But no matter, she needed to get going fast. With a bounce the girl picked herself up, leaping back to her feet.
“Tee-hee, I’m fine,” she said cheerfully. “Terribly sorry to have run into you! I was in such a hurry to get to my class...” She then took a second look at the boy and the direction that he had apparently been walking from. “Wait a second—did you just come from that home room over there? 28D?”
He nodded his head. This was bad. This was very, very bad.
“Um... does that mean the class is already dismissed?”
He nodded again. Booyaka!
“Oh, gaawd, no...” she groaned. “I was supposed to report there, but then I confused my schedules, and then I got lost, and this place is sooo much bigger than my last Garden!”
“You didn’t miss much. SeeD candidates are to assemble at the front foyer at 1600 hours to leave for the field exam. The rest stay on campus for self-study, because a lot of the instructors will be gone as well.”
“Oh, I see. That’s good to know... thanks much!” she said in relief. Then, a brilliant idea seized her. “Oh, hey, hey. Maybe you could help me out here a little. I just transferred here, and I’m getting lost left and right. Do you think you could give me a quick tour of this Garden, if you’re not too busy?”
The unknown student did not captivated by the request. Undaunted, the girl looked to him with expectation twinkling in her green eyes.
“I’m rather busy this morning,” the boy said after a few moments. “But I am on my way to downstairs, and I could show you the campus directory at the foyer. It should have all the information you need.”
“That’s just what I need! Woo-hoo, then! Let’s go!”
Seeing the girl’s explosive enthusiasm, the boy looked suddenly unsure of his own decision.