"So you had a... vision? Hallucination?" Rai-chan asked. "Of a severely wounded Natasha?"

"Y-Yeah. It was like a daydream. But I just snapped back to where I was, and it all seemed like it happened in a split second," I explained. My breath came out ragged as I rushed down the main walkway, cutting through the green gardens of St. Antonia's campus.

"That's so weird... I've never heard of anything like this," she said. "I mean, there is divination magic, but the results usually aren't as clear-cut as that."

"I dunno either. It just came over me," I replied.

"Are you feeling okay now?"

"Not until we can say it was nothing."

I was going to make sure. That wasn't the type of vision or premonition that you can just shrug off. Especially not when it involved the safety of a friend. The time in the vision was eleven minutes from now.

The last time I could recall something like this happening was immediately before the Chaos Event. When Spencer had been showing me the Raiju project. It'd been a strong sense of deja vu - where it felt like he'd repeated the same thing to me twice, word for word, almost like an out-of-body experience. Like time had rewound by one minute.

And then minutes later, rifts started opening everywhere outside of the city's negentropy barriers.

I couldn't just write this off, especially because of how real and vivid it was.

I could still feel the blood on my fingers. I could smell the metallic stench of copper in the air. I could hear the sounds of students milling about the halls. It felt as real and as clear as the world around me. If what I had just experienced was real, it was a matter of life and death.

I sprinted down the gardens with my backpack in tow,

I rounded a corner and stepped onto a stone pathway, the sound of my footsteps echoing on the pavement beneath me.

The presence was back. I felt a tingling in the air again and my heart pounded.

Something was nearby.

As quickly as it'd come, the sensation vanished.

"Rai-chan, did you sense that?" I whispered to myself.

"I felt it, yes," she said. "Your pulse skyrocketed again and I could sense something was nearby."

"I'm not crazy, am I?" I muttered. I knew it sounded silly, but it felt good to hear someone say something.

"No, you're definitely not," Rai-chan said. Her voice was firm. It made me feel a little better about myself.

"Thanks, Raiko," I said.

She giggled.

I rushed through the school grounds, my eyes scanning the crowd.

There.

I'd never actually gone to the music hall, but it was eerie how the winding paths matched my vision from before. I stepped through a small stone archway that connected the central courtyard to a narrow corridor. The presence was here.

I was certain.

I turned left down the narrow path, my eyes scanning the surroundings.

It was almost identical to the path I'd gone down in my premonition. But... there was no sign of the storage room I had seen in the vision.

I walked up to a stone wall and ran my fingers across it.

It was... just a blank wall. No sign of an opening. No sign of anything out of the ordinary.

However... I'd never been down this way before. How could I have a premonition of a place I'd never seen?

Apart from the lack of a door, it was all there. Down to the little details. Even the smell.

Suddenly, I heard the sounds of voices coming from further up the passage.

I paused, listening carefully.

Multiple voices. One of them, sounded like it could be Natasha.

But the voices weren't talking. It was like they were trying to shout over each other, but they weren't loud enough to be heard clearly.

I stepped away from the stone and jogged up the hallway, passing some neatly trimmed plants and hedges, and slowed down as I rounded a bend. I could make out a group of students, all in uniforms, standing around the corner.

"Stop it!" I heard an unfamiliar high-pitched voice cry.

"Oh? But the little rat decided to be a good samaritan. The little charity case can't handle the truth," I heard a girl with a more haughty, refined voice say.

I slowly peeked my head out over a hedge.

There were four figures, all dressed in St. Antonia's uniforms. They were all taller than me and I recognized the badge designs as a year above mine. Three girls and one boy.

There was a boy holding down a short and petite girl with light-pink hair tied in pigtails, holding a fistful of her uniform in one hand, and her collar in the other. His face was twisted in an expression of contempt and malice. There was a glowing green circle with fractaling patterns around the pink-haired girl's hands and legs. She was struggling, kicking and thrashing and trying to free herself, to no avail. Her eyes were shut tight and she was whimpering.

The three girls were standing around a pole that was connected to an overhanging scaffold. And hanging by her arms halfway from the top, was Natasha. She looked like a mess.

Her slate-black hair had some kind of adhesive all over it in it. and she was bleeding from the corner of her lip. But she was glaring daggers at the other three students. The same magic circle that bound the petite girl with the pink hair, was wrapped around Natasha's arms, neck, and hands.

I coiled myself up and almost rushed in out of instinct, but Rai-chan hissed in my ear.

"Wait.." she said. "If you rush in now, you'll be at the mercy of those girls. You don't have the power to fight back if things escalate, Ikki."

"Dammit..."

She was right.

The girl with the blue hair was being held down through some kind of magic binding spell. I didn't know if it would be smart to get into an altercation with students that had that kind of power. I needed a plan.

The girl who'd been talking to Natasha was a tall blonde girl with her hair tied into a pair of buns and a large red ribbon at the back. She had sharp green eyes that were like a predator's. She was wearing what looked like a designer jacket and she had an athletic, shapely figure.

"Awww what a shame. The poor little orphan rat is trying to act all noble. Don't you have anything to say?"

I saw Natasha grit her teeth. She opened her mouth as if she were about to say something, but she held her tongue.

"You know, you're quite the boring one. You hardly make a fuss when you're hit and beaten. I thought I'd at least see you cry or something. How utterly dull."

She turned her attention to the smaller pink-haired girl that was being held by the male student.

"What do we do with the pink-haired bitch, boss?"

The girl with the blonde twin tails laughed.

"This poor little girl, she has such a pretty scream. What do you think?"

That got a reaction out of Natasha. I saw the rage in her eyes as she bared her teeth at the taller girl.

"Let her go!" she yelled.

"Oooh~ is that anger in your eyes? You don't want to see your new 'friend' get hurt, do you? She seems like such a nice girl. So cute, so pure. But, I bet her bones make a wonderful sound. And you know what? It's your fault for sticking your nose into other people's business."

"If you want to hurt somebody, do it to me! Just don't touch her!"

The blonde laughed again. It was cruel and heartless. Like a hyena.

"You're in no position to be making demands. I suppose you'll have to learn your lesson the hard way, won't you? You're developing quite the reputation for sticking your nose into other people's matters."

My mind raced. I could see Natasha struggling against the binding magic that was holding her down.

The blonde girl's back was turned to me, as were her friends and the guy holding the petite girl. But if I tried to free her from the bindings, I would be spotted and probably beaten to a pulp. And I would be defenseless against any magical attack.

"Rai-chan... send Midori and Dior a ping, won't you? Hopefully one of them is nearby. Tell them I'm in trouble near the music hall."

"Understood," she whispered.

I needed to do something, anything, to stall them until help could come.

If Dior could even sense what was going on here, I knew she would rush over as fast as possible. As moody and withdrawn as she was, I knew she was an honest-to-god real life superheroine. There was no way she'd sit around and do nothing. The tiny girl was frankly, a badass. Even without her transformation, I had a feeling she was a complete menace.

But, I knew next to nothing about her capabilities. And it wasn't a guarantee that either her or Midori were nearby.

The blonde raised her arm and the male student kicked the small girl in the ribs, eliciting a loud gasp.

Natasha thrashed, kicking and trying to get free, but she couldn't escape her restraints.

One of the other girls sneered, and then I saw her raise her leg to kick the blue-haired girl, who was coughing and wheezing on the floor, trying desperately to get away.

"Not even you can get away with this, Chelsea. If you hurt her..." Natasha growled, trying to keep herself under control. But her eyes were filled with anger.

"Oh really?" Chelsea said mockingly. "You know how this world works, little rat. The weak serve the strong. The rabble like you don't get to be picky and choosy about the rules."

Natasha yelped as the bindings seemed to loosen just slightly, and she slid down the pole with her wrists still tied together. Her face was contorted in pain, and her eyes were clenched shut.

Chelsea flipped her hand, causing Natasha to rotate 180 degrees to face her, still hanging by her arms.

"I'll let you take her punishment. This time. I'm not a heartless bitch," Chelsea said, the sneer in her voice clear as day.

She grabbed Natasha by her shirt, lifting her up and bringing their faces inches apart. Natasha winced, but she met the bully's eyes defiantly. Her eyes were narrowed in contempt and disgust. She was in pain, but she wouldn't give her captor the satisfaction.

Chelsea glowered. Her eyes narrowed, her nostrils flaring.

"Your attitude. It disgusts me. I couldn't touch you when you had the clan's protection. But now?"

She slapped Natasha with the back of her hand. And Natasha didn't respond. She didn't make a sound, just kept her eyes closed.

I could feel my heart race. I could feel the adrenaline pumping. I had to do something.

I had to stop this.

But what could I do?

Chelsea spat. "Your little act is getting tiresome. What? Can you not admit you're just like the rest of the rabble? Without the Void lineage serving as your patrons, you have nothing left. You'd have ended up in the slums just like all the rest of the orphans. And now? Your little family's name has been dragged through the mud. And I don't blame anyone for what they think of your little family, because look at what happened. They were stupid, greedy fools. Of course your allies would desert you."

That seemed to get under Natasha's skin. Her expression changed, and she bit her lip. I saw her eyes glisten.

"You don't get to talk about my family," Natasha hissed. "Not you."

"Oooh~ finally, a real reaction. A little rat that still bares its teeth. It's adorable. You've been such a killjoy this whole time. I guess there are things that you care about after all," Chelsea said, grinning. "And the little charity case rat is getting cocky. What will she do? Go running off to cry to the teachers about how mean ol' me hurt her feelings?"

"Listen, you stuck up, spoiled little bi-" Natasha began.

She was cut off as the bully punched her in the gut with a big swing over her head.

Natasha cried out as she tried to clench up, but she was tied upside-down. The air was knocked from her lungs as her stomach heaved, and she wheezed, gasping for breath.

"I didn't know you were a fighter. This is fantastic!" Chelsea said.

I needed a distraction. Or a weapon.

I looked around. I didn't have anything useful on me, except for a phone and the textbooks in my backpack.

There was only one thing I could think to do.

"I'm gonna try and distract them. Stall for some time," I whispered.

"What are you thinking, Ikki? Hey. Wait!"

I stepped out into the middle of the passage, my heart hammering in my chest. I felt a cold shiver run down my spine. But I kept a lazy expression, trying to feign ignorance.

"Man... what a morning," I muttered, stretching my arms in an exaggerated manner. I was making no attempt to conceal my footsteps. "Aristotle this. Plato that. Bunch of crusty old geezers. Sheesh."

The two other girls and the guy turned around in alarm, seeing me strolling out from around a corner like I didn't have a care in the world.

Chelsea's face went pale for a brief moment before she regained her composure, slowly tilting her head back to look at me. I took it for the display of dominance it was, and did my best to keep a poker face.

"What are you doing here, street trash? Get lost."

Natasha's face paled as she saw me, her eyes widening. She looked worried for my safety. It looked like she almost called out my name, but she paused and kept her mouth shut.

I ignored the blonde bully, walking up to them casually with my backpack on my shoulders. The two cronies, one of them with long, silky blue hair that went down her back, the other a deep, unnatural chocolate brunette with a short, stylish haircut and milky white skin, stepped aside and gave me a clear view of Chelsea. They had their arms crossed.

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"Trash, huh? Oh. I was just wandering. I was trying to look for the library," I said.

It was the worst lie in the world. I had an actual map of the campus grounds in my pocket, and there were plenty of signs around.

Chelsea glowered, her lip curled up in disdain. She glanced at me from head to toe, as if sizing up a bug.

The boy holding the petite pink-haired girl, looked at Chelsea nervously, before glancing back at me.

"Who the fuck is this guy?"

"Fuck if I know," the brunette said.

I saw Natasha wince, her face pained. I wanted to rush to her, but I held back.

"Sooo, what's going on here?" I asked.

Chelsea turned her attention back to me, her brow furrowing in irritation.

"You're the charity case from Earth, hmm? You have some balls showing up and interrupting us," Chelsea spat.

"Oh. Cool," I said with a grin. "It's not nice meeting you."

"Piss off. And don't show your face to me again if you know what's good for you."

I glanced at the two girls and the guy.

"So... is this some sort of... like, a weird ritual? Are you gonna sacrifice the pink one?"

I couldn't push too hard or too fast, or I could end up like the girl on the floor. I needed to buy as much time as possible.

"Ha...ha..." the guy with the slicked back blonde hair laughed nervously. He shot a nervous glance at Chelsea.

Chelsea's brow twitched, her expression growing darker.

"You're this little peasant girl's new friend, aren't you? I remember seeing you at orientation," she said. "Well, you're a funny one. You know, you're new here. And I can tell you're not exactly the brightest one. You're a nobody. Do you want me to teach you your place today, you filthy little mongrel?"

I had a sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach.

In for a penny, in for a pound.

I'd gotten too far ahead of myself.

I should've waited until I had confirmation that help was coming. But, no matter how bad things were right now, the consequences would be a lot worse if Natasha ended up dead. I couldn't let that happen. I had to buy some time.

"Well, you've got me pegged. I'm just a nobody. A simple, ignorant country boy. Just a simple, poor kid from a ruined world and country, y'know? I'm don't have any fancy clothes or anything," I said, trying to keep venom and glib out of my words. "But... I dunno, it seems like bullying other girls for no reason is kind of, like, lame. You should probably pick on people your own size."

Chelsea's expression grew cold. The temperature dropped and I felt an intense aura of hostility coming from her.

She was seething. I could feel it. Like I had poked a bear.

I saw the cronies around her tense up, as if preparing themselves to defend her from a physical assault. I was at a disadvantage. I couldn't defend myself against a coordinated group of magic users, and they could do whatever they wanted to me if they decided to attack.

Natasha was looking at me in morbid horror, her expression pained, like I had done something horrible and she couldn't do anything to stop me. But she had her own worries to deal with, as her wrists and arms were bound in some kind of magic.

I needed a miracle.

"Y'know... I don't know much, but this isn't how we should be treating people," I continued.

I heard a scoff, and a voice from the left side of me. It was the smaller girl on the ground with the pink hair.

"Don't do this..." the pink-haired girl said to me. Her voice was soft and delicate. I felt like she was trying to help me.

I glanced over to see her still struggling to free herself from whatever spell was binding her.

"Don't worry," I mouthed to her. I gave her a thumbs-up and smiled.

I didn't want to look too cocky or arrogant, but I didn't want them to know that I was terrified of what would happen next.

"Shame. It's really sad, y'know. That you're so desperate for validation you need to step on other people," I said.

Chelsea's face contorted into a scowl.

"I'm trying to be nice, peasant boy. I was going to let you leave unharmed, and yet you have the gall to disrespect me," Chelsea said. Her tone was dangerous. I could tell that she was angry, and that my words were hitting a nerve.

I could hear the anger in her voice, the contempt in her eyes.

She raised one hand, creating an array of floating green magical circles around her.

My heart sank. This wasn't going well. She was too quick to escalate.

"Hey, calm down," I said, raising my hands in a placating gesture. "Let's not get violent here."

Chelsea snorted.

"You think you're in a position to negotiate?"

"I'm just trying to talk sense here. This is all very silly."

"Are you mocking me?"

"I'm not mocking you," I said.

"A weasel from a destroyed planet. A nobody lucky to even lick the scum off our boots. You're a nobody."

She took another step forward.

"And yet you have the gall to mouth off to your superiors. Your betters," she spat. "You know what I think?"

I was in over my head again, and I knew it. My hands were trembling.

But, it wasn't just the adrenaline.

Suddenly, I felt the presence, again. It felt stronger than ever, like it was right next to me, like it was watching me from just over my shoulder.

And then Natasha screamed.

It wasn't a scream of distress or of pain, it was an enraged battle-cry. It wasn't a sound I had heard before from her.

I watched as Natasha's bindings suddenly dissipated into golden motes, causing her to drop straight to the ground. She landed almost directly on her head, before tumbling onto the floor and rolling.

"What? How?!"

Chelsea had no time to react, and the bully was slammed into with a picture-perfect double-leg takedown, knocking her over and slamming her to the ground, flat on her back.

It was almost comical. Natasha was probably around five feet four inches tall, and Chelsea was taller by a good head or two, but that didn't stop Natasha from pinning the bully under her.

I had no idea what happened to the magic binding, but all four bullies were currently distracted.

I threw my leg back, and threw all my weight into a soccer kick that slammed directly into the male student's head, knocking him clean off his feet and tumbling down into a row of hedges.

"Fuckin-!" the blue haired bully cried out, raising her hand at me and conjuring a series of blue magic circles.

I dove behind a tree.

A beam of blue energy slammed into the trunk, sending out a spray of bark and wood, narrowly missing my arm. I was still in the open and I had no idea where to run. The other crony, the brunette girl with the stylish cut, started sprinting at me.

And then she sped up in a blur of light and a burst of wind.

I breathed, synchronizing with Rai-chan as my perception of time slowed down. Just in time to see the girl's fist was coming at my face at blinding speed, and I barely had any time to think.

But, I didn't need to. I had trained to react, not think. And the brunette girl's movements were telegraphed and clumsy, even if they were fast.

I ducked and twisted my torso, letting the girl's punch graze over the side of my head and slamming my palm upwards, into her sternum and just above her diaphragm to meet her momentum. The air was knocked from her lungs, causing her to stagger, but she quickly recovered and swung again, this time with a low hook towards my stomach as I struggled to regain my footing. But she was way too slow, and way too sloppy.

Her movements were clumsy, telegraphed, and I had seen better footwork from the most inexperienced kids at Blake's self-defense seminars.

She had experience - I could see that, but the sort that came from a family that didn't let her get hit a lot in sparring. My body felt like molasses when I was in this state of hyper-focus, and it took everything I had to keep my muscles loose.

Her eyes widened in surprise as her lightning-fast punches were casually slapped away and redirected.

And then she lunged forward, and the world seemed to move faster as she reached to grab my shirt. But, she was way too obvious with that move.

I wasn't the best fighter by any stretch. My father had taught me a lot, as had the men around him. I'd just learned enough to get by.

Unfortunately for her, I'd had to use it in the past.

I slipped under her extended arm, twisting my body into her space and wrapping my arm around her waist in a classic body lock and side drop, quickly dumping her to her knees on the grass.

The girl was stunned by the sudden shift in balance, but before I could capitalize on my superior position, I saw another series of blue circles in the corner of my vision.

The girl with long blue hair was standing a dozen yards from me, pointing her palm towards my face. The brunette in my arms tried to twist herself free from the hold, but she couldn't. The girl looked surprised and slightly embarrassed. It was a simple, fundamental move, and she'd been completely overwhelmed and overpowered by someone without any magic.

I dove to the side, using my opponent as a shield and letting her go, but she wasn't quick enough. A lance of blue energy shot from the other bully's hands and struck the brunette square in the back of her neck. She fell over on her knees and screamed. The sound of her cry was like nails on chalkboard to me.

"Hey, you shot your frie-" I yelled out.

A blast of blue energy slammed into me before I could finish, knocking the wind from my lungs.

My eyes widened and my vision darkened. I gasped for breath.

The pain was sharp, intense, and my muscles felt numb and unresponsive. I tried to stand up, but I was hit in the back by a follow up attack, and collapsed on all fours, panting heavily.

My whole body was on fire. I could feel the pain shooting through every inch of me, burning through my veins like acid.

But I was still alive, and I needed to move.

Except my body wouldn't obey.

"Ikki!" Rai-chan yelled. "She's hit you with an electrical discharge! I'm suppressing the signals running through your nervous system right now. Hold on!"

I felt the sensation in my limbs return, and I forced myself to stand. My entire body was aching, my head throbbing.

The blue-haired bully looked shocked that I had gotten back up. "What? You shouldn't be able to stand!" She said.

I looked back to Natasha to see her in a ground fight with the blonde girl, but what I saw surprised me.

It wasn't like any groundfight or submission fighting that I knew.

They were grappling on the floor, but also trading sparks of magical discharge the entire time. I saw Chelsea's fists flickering with glowing green runes, but whenever she tried to swing at Natasha, a translucent bubble of golden energy would shimmer and block the attack.

I'd gotten the sense Natasha dabbled in some magic, but I'd never actually seen her in action. Whatever she was doing looked basic in comparison to Chelsea's glowing green magic, but it was still incredible. Chelsea was taller, more physically developed, and clearly more built than Natasha, but the smaller girl was holding her own in the ground fight and deflecting blows. She even maintained a top position. It seemed she was triumphing over Chelsea's magic with pure efficiency and even counterspelling and dispelling her attempts before she could even start.

But then Chelsea let out an enraged yell and pushed Natasha away. The blonde bully jumped up and slammed her palm into the ground. A wave of energy burst out from her in every direction. It sent Natasha stumbling away, and I stumbled a bit too, losing my balance and falling back.

I barely had enough time to recover, and the girl with blue hair was standing in front of me again.

"I don't know how you got up from the stun blast. But it won't matter, you'll stay down this time!"

I saw her hand raise to strike, and I braced myself, trying to get my arms up in time. I knew what was coming.

And then she let loose another bolt of energy.

But a moment later, the blue-haired bully's expression shifted from surprise to horror, her face draining of color. The air around us rippled. And I saw something come from the side of my peripheral vision, and then the bolt of energy exploded and deflected off something that intercepted it in the air.

The girl with blue hair stared at the object in shock as it landed next to me.

It was a... metal thermos?

"Man... I was having such a nice break on the grass too," a girl said from close by, sounding uncharacteristically annoyed.

The blue haired bully spun around in shock, as if she had seen a ghost.

"H-How?!"

Soft footsteps approached. The girl with the blue hair took a few hesitant steps backward, looking at me and then at the approaching footsteps.

I turned around to see soft raven locks loosely billowing in the breeze. A pair of eyes, blue - almost turquoise green, narrowed in annoyance. Midori, dressed in a school uniform, was walking up to us.

And, the look she had on her face. She was... pissed. I'd never seen her that way, but she looked positively murderous.

Midori glanced at me, before turning back to the bully. She looked down at the metal canister that had blocked the magical bolt. She bent down, picking it up, before dusting it off and shaking her head.

"Hey... sorry I'm late, Ikki. What's the—"

I blinked in surprise as Chelsea suddenly screamed out in pain.

I hadn't seen what happened, but Natasha was now standing on the feet with her, and the bully was holding a bloody nose.

Midori's gaze snapped towards the blonde bully.

"Oh. I see."

And then, in a flash, the world around me was moving in slow-motion again.

Midori was a blur of black hair and blue fabric, her skirt fluttering as she moved. She crossed the distance in an instant, slamming into Chelsea and spinning her to the ground in a clean leg reap.

I saw Natasha staring, wide eyed, at Midori, and the blonde bully was now on the ground with a bloody nose.

"Y-You're..."

Midori's eyes flashed with cold fury. The temperature around me dropped.

"Hi. I'm assuming you know who I am? Good."

Chelsea tried to raise her hand in self-defense.

"I didn't—"

The bully tried to get up, but Midori grabbed her arm, pulling the blonde to her knees.

"Don't even try to move."

"Wait! You don't know who you're dealing with!" the blue-haired bully screamed out.

I saw a flash of something. A flickering, glowing object that materialized in her hand.

Midori spun around and threw her metal thermos at the other girl again, who let out a yelp and dropped whatever was in her hand. It fell to the floor and dissipated in a sparkling whoosh. The thermos rebounded off the blue-haired girl and spun back towards Midori.

"I'm dealing with some spoiled brats who decided to pick on people that can't fight back," Midori said coldly. "I know exactly who I'm dealing with."

She turned back towards Chelsea, and the bully's expression shifted from fear to anger.

"You stupid, uppity bitch! Who do you think you are?!" Chelsea snarled. "My father is one of the most powerful men in Europe! You can't do this to me. Do you know what'll happen to you if I—"

Midori's expression didn't change, even as the blonde girl's face turned red from shouting. She simply looked down at the blonde and smiled. And then, she leaned in, grabbing her by the collar of her shirt with her left hand.

"Okay, I'm only going to say this once. So please, shut up and listen. Are you ready?"

Chelsea tried to struggle, but her efforts were in vain.

Midori tightened her grip on Chelsea's collar, pulling her up so their faces were inches apart.

"I don't. Care. Who your father is. Or who he thinks he is," she hissed, enunciating each word slowly.

Chelsea's eyes grew wide. The blood drained from her face as Midori held her in an iron grip. I could see the look on Midori's face. There was no trace of emotion, but her eyes were burning with anger and rage.

"You are going to listen to what I'm going to say, and you are going to understand it," Midori continued, her voice calm and cold as ice. "I don't know what makes you think you have the right to treat other people like dirt, but I'm not having it. Miss Chelsea de Mornay - second child of Count Edmond de Mornay. You will remember this moment for as long as you live. Do I make myself clear?"

There was silence for a moment, before Chelsea nodded meekly.

Midori released the blonde's shirt and pushed her backwards. Chelsea fell on her rear end with an undignified squeal.

"You dishonor the sacrifices of your forebears," Midori spat. "You are pathetic and disguting."

She glanced at me. Her eyes widened for a moment as she looked me up and down. I could tell I looked terrible. I was covered in grass stains and my uniform was a bit torn and ragged from where the blasts had struck me.

Midori then turned to look at Natasha, who was still in shock at the turn of events, before turning back to Chelsea.

"To think you'd stoop to such depraved lows," she said. Her eyes narrowed dangerously, and she spoke in a quiet voice. "You invoke your father's name, the name of your House, and you do this?"

Chelsea's face went white as Midori leaned in again.

"If I catch you doing anything like this again, I will ruin you and everything you love. Your family, your friends, your life, everything you've worked for and cherish will be gone. In an instant," Midori said, looking down at Chelsea with an expression of utter disgust.

I watched in silence, too stunned to speak. I had no idea how much of that was an empty threat or if she actually meant it, but the girl's words cut like daggers. Midori had come off like a cool older sister type, but she was channeling every bit of the frosty swordsman she'd told me she used to be. It was like a hidden personality, or a different person, that I'd never expected to see from someone who came off so relaxed.

Chelsea stared up at her, her face twisted in fear.

"Do. You. Understand?"

"Y-Yes."

"Yes what?"

"Y-Yes ma'am!"

Midori looked over at the two other girls, and then back to the bully on the ground. She grabbed her by the collar and yanked her up to her feet, shoving her back.

The girl with the short brunette hair was on the floor and slowly recovering from the pain. The boy I'd kicked in the face was slowly staggering back onto his feet, clutching his mouth. The bully with the blue hair was holding her wrist and nursing what looked to be a fracture or nasty bruise.

"Now scram."

Midori said that one word. That simple, one-word command, and Chelsea flinched.

"G-Girls, let's leave."

The blonde girl and her cronies, along with the male student, turned around and scampered away, running down the corridor and disappearing around the corner.

I stood there in silence. My mouth hung open in disbelief as Midori finally sighed and let herself relax.

Midori slowly walked up to the girl with pink hair and gently lifted her to her feet.

"You okay?" Midori asked.

"Y-Yeah... I think," she said. Her voice was shaking and her eyes were filled with terror.

Midori gave her a gentle pat on the shoulder before turning back to us.

She looked past me towards Natasha, and then at me, and gave us both a soft, warm smile.

"And Ikki - sorry, you probably look like hell. I'm not the best at medical treatment, but I'll give it my best shot, okay? We should get you three to a nurse."

I looked over to Natasha, but she wasn't paying attention. Her gaze was fixed on Midori, her expression a mixture of horror and sadness. She seemed almost scared.

"It's been a long time, Nat," Midori said softly.

Natasha looked up at the older girl and nodded.

"It has, U-Midori," she said, her voice barely above a whisper.

She turned away from the older girl, looking down at the floor. Her eyes were wet with tears. She looked... sad.

It felt like they were sharing some unspoken conversation between the two of them. Something that only the two of them knew about. At this point, I wasn't surprised at all that they somehow knew each other.

I froze as I took in Natasha's injuries. She had a gash on the side of her head that was bleeding, and her hair and uniform were all messy and covered in blood. She was bruised everywhere else, but she looked to be mostly intact.

But what really sent chills down my spine was how much she resembled the Natasha I'd seen in my premonition. She even had friction burns around her neck, just like what she had in the vision. However, that Natasha had seemingly fallen from the ceiling of a room that didn't exist here. So, this was clearly a different event and situation. But the injuries were close enough.

What in the world...?

What did that vision mean? What had it been showing me?

Natasha balled her hands into fists, looking down at the ground. I saw tears run down the sides of her face, dripping onto the stone.

I had no idea what to do. What could I say? What should I say?

And then, she suddenly turned and sprinted off in the other direction, towards the central courtyard and the main academic buildings.

"W-Wait!" I called out, but she was too far gone.

I stood there in silence, dumbfounded and confused. Midori walked up next to me and gently placed a hand on my shoulder. She looked at me and shook her head sadly.

"Let her be," Midori said. She sounded tired, almost defeated.

"But, why? What happened back there?" I asked.

"Let her go, Ikki. Just let her go."

And so I watched as Natasha vanished into the distance, disappearing behind the corner of a building. And then she was gone, leaving only a trail of blood in her wake.

Midori let out a long sigh and put her hands on her hips. I turned back to her, still confused by what had happened. I didn't know what to do or say. My head was spinning, my heart racing. I was still trying to process everything that had happened, everything that had led to this moment. The premonition. The attack. Natasha's reaction.

Midori gave me a gentle pat on the shoulder again.

"It's a long story. And deeply personal. Let's get you two fixed up."

I couldn't find the words to argue. I was too exhausted, too drained, too numb to think straight. So, instead, I simply nodded in agreement. The adrenaline was wearing off and I could feel the pain starting to return. The petite pink-haired girl had been completely silent the whole time, looking between the both of us with an unreadable expression. She had matching red eyes, like a set of rubies. She looked to be a freshman, maybe even younger than me. The pink hair made her stand out.

Midori walked back to her original spot and grabbed her bag and books, stuffing them into the leather pack. She picked it up, slinging it over her shoulder, before turning to the both of us with a sunny grin. The cold, melancholic girl who'd been there moments before was gone.

I shared a look with the stranger. Her eyes were a bit red, like she'd been crying. She still had a bruise on her cheek, and her hair was disheveled and messy, but she seemed to be okay.

She looked at me curiously.

"U-um. Thank you for helping me... w-who are you?" she said in a soft, quiet voice.

"Ikki," I said. "Just a... friend. Kinda. I'm new."

I extended my hand, and she took it, shaking it with a shy smile.

"Kordelia," she said, introducing herself.

We were both startled as Midori cleared her throat.

"Alright, you two, come along now."

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