***(?)
She looked like any other normal girl save for the lavish and overly decorated throne she sat on. Her fingers were thin like chopsticks but also seemed to possess the perfect amount of fat to become soft and silky at the same time. She had straight black hair that reached her back, with a decent portion of it tied into 2 braids on her left and right.
Her throne boasted a composition of pure gold with a 4th dimensional magic circuits embedded into it to prevent its erosion. It was not an exaggeration to say entire countries would fight to the point of destruction for such a throne, as it also possessed the ultimate physical and magic defense, coupled with granting its user immortality.
All of that for a single plain looking bookworm laying atop it's expensive seating. The gold was mainly for the look, the value lay in its one of a kind magical properties. In other words it was a Stick, a unique magic item. One that was far above any other Stick in existence. Not to mention the stunning beauty who sat on top of it. Though, she's not the object to be stolen, in fact she had strength and power far above her throne. Power that most people can't even comprehend.
She wore a white buttoned blouse that had perfectly straight and neat sewing from the collar to the sleeve, the sleeve puffs up and ends at her back arms. At her waist was a black leather belt paired with a few cloth and leather straps, following a short office skirt below it. Unusual for magical girls, she had no leggings, tights or socks, exposing her pleasant fair legs that shone under the light reflected from the throne. Her legs crossed and she lay on one of the arm rests, her high heels hanging on her toes.
If anyone saw her right now they would be disillusioned. After all, she was none other than T-...
"How troublesome. I'll only lend my city for 3 days." (?)
Her expression of pure disgusts would make some people wish they were the air in front of her. Her fingers lightly tapped on her throne in displeasure as she sulked.
***(?)
A tall but unintimidating stone wall was spread out as far as the eye could see, forming the far off horizon itself as it encapsulates everything within. Stalks of utter grey drowned the sky as a cacophony of artificial noises bathed all there is, in this joyous colony. It was a city, a modern city packed with cars, highways and high-rise buildings. Not a single thing was lacking as the areas were divided equally to form 5 segments.
The first area had agricultural technology and golden blankets that submerged the eyes, a gentle torrent brushes past the bountiful and widespread crops of gold, white diamonds, rubys, sapphires and amethysts. The fruits veggies were simply so shiny they were likened to gems that bore under the sun as crops of man. There were also many natural range areas where animals and livestock habited.
The second area was the residential area that spanned countless rows of apartments and joint flooring on the upper floors, it looked like a utopia of flying cars and levitation as the glass floors between the higher floors of every building perfectly revealed everyones abode. In between such buildings also held countless schools of various different education systems. Anyone could choose where to go and what they wanted to do.
The third area was the commercial area, the central hub of the city which boasts all the latest products and the freshest produce. Anyone who went inside there wouldn't ever want to get out, services ranged from the most exotic chiropractice to the most obscure musical performers. Restaurants also reside in this area, executing the widest coverage so every single citizen could have a taste of the finest cuisines.
The forth area was the aquatic area with around 10 beaches with pure and fair sand that seemed to look like snow, and a completely sustainable fishing industry. There were also aquariums built underground to observe the fish in their natural environment, though there are no labels as the fish come and go as they please.
The final area was the industrial area, where all products are produced and all foods are processed with the highest standards. Every factory was outfitted with the latest technology, paired up with state of the art research laboratories, finding ways to make production more efficient. Working conditions were so good that there was no shortage of workers.
It looked like a complete utopia with no homelessness nor poverty. Dead in the centre was a single spiraling tower with no more than 5 meters of diameter. The only downside... Is the constant noise and buzzing joy of the city. The incessant chaos of driving cars and chatting citizens, it fills every nook and cranny of this place.
"... So annoying... How is nobody else bothered by it?" (Kaori)
"You have to go soon or you'll be late for school!" (?)
A distant echo familiar to the mind, a sweet voice seeps into my heart to calm it down with soothing gasps. When I first heard it, it felt like someone was clutching at my heart. But the more I thought about it, it seemed that I was likely just sleep deprived. The sleep deprivation must have caused unnecessary strain on my heart, living in this utopia, nobody would be used to such strain.
"Alright mum!" (Kaori)
Yeah, she was just my mother. I wonder what I've been doing just now. I push pass these meaningless thoughts and through the door of our home. Waiting outside was a familiar twintailed girl. The school we went to allowed her to keep that hairstyle, but sometimes I was envious she managed to steal the attention of everyone else with it. Maybe it was the boys, a minor sense of discomfort always welled up in my chest then.
"Come on! Let's go." (Myuu)
She grabbed my hand, it felt like a tingling electrical shock shot pass my wrist and into my spine. My shoulders shivered by I grabbed tightly onto her palm as she dragged me along with her jog to school. For some reason, tears had welled up at the corners of my eyelids. This palm... This sensation...
What was so weird about it?
We've always held hands since we were young. And now we're in our third year of high-school. We would be graduating soon and may perhaps branch off to different career fields... Was I just being reminiscent? Despite these events not having past yet... I wiped my tears off immediately right as she turned around. Her cheerful demeanour and upbeat voice filled me with life and the necessary energy to start off the day.
The school building was very close to our homes, unlike the offices in the industrial area. Our homes were allocated randomly through the residential area upon birth, but we happened to get chosen to live near each other. One could say we were childhood friends as our memories go as far as possible since I remember gaining awareness.
There was always that age around 3 to 4 when a person finally gains their sense of self after a gradual process of learning about the world. Our kindergarten was the same, our elementary school was the same and now our high school was the same. It felt like she had been in every part of my life up till now.
When we reached our destination, it was a circular building akin to a giant marble pillar, it gleamed in blinding white as it stood out against the dull grey homes of everyone. This was how we differentiated the school building, it was built this differently after all. Entering the first floor was the reception area with the receptionist in the centre, the elevators in the back and left, doors in the front and right side of the building.
This was the high school third year building, every single building only housed a single level of education and the levels were spread throughout the residential domain. The walls inside were clean and neat while brightly illuminates. The floor was a cozy ashen red wood and the walls were filled with large white talks with countless black boards held up.
On the blackboards were plenty of papers and memorandums for any external events that the students might be interested in. They weren't seperated in any particular way, they were pasted randomly across the numerous blackboards. There were also some posters taped to the walls with free space, those were usually the type that presents general information like methods of recycling rather than events. Overall, there didn't seem to be a lack of activities for the students to do. Even job internships made it onto the boards of high school and middle school buildings.
The light taps of our footsteps clacked against the wooden ground, the familiar scent of papers and chill air permeated our noses as we entered the building. We made our way around the circular receptionist counter in the very centre of the pillar building and entered the elevator.
After pressing the right floor button, I leaned onto Myuu, taking a little whiff of her emanated scent. It always manages to calm me down before class. Myuu in turn, patted my head. Her warm comforting touch forces me to resist from nuzzling against her like a pillow, there was also the possibility of her finding it weird.
The pillar building has a radius of 100 metres so it fit around 12 classes on each floor and boasted 80 floors in total. The final floor was where the cafeteria is, where students go to enjoy their meal in between classes. We stepped into our class and....... Went to our seats. The chair creaked clamorously as I pulled it out of its shell. I sat on it with a thud and adjusted my school issued skirt. Surprisingly, I havent changed sizes in the 3 years I was in high school, so I had been using the same 2 sets for the entire 3 years I've been here.
There was not much wind with sealed windows and doors, the stale cold air converges on every breath. There was no meaning in hard work as everyone gets allocated a job in the end, though there are those that still strive far and certain options had higher requirements. I fiddle with the pen in my slim fingers, they wrap around it nearly as thin as the pen. The brushing if paper and clicking pens resounded chaotically as the teacher moves on to the next topic.
They rush their wrist and tense their fingers with all their strength, writing as furiously fast as possible. Their hearts beat in fervour as they exert their energy. There were also many others like me, who have chosen to learn as is instead of taking down scratch notes. For me, I simply thought it would be more effective to take notes when I'm not rushed to bits and my energy is not drained until it dried up. For others, there may have been other reasons. In the end, I was still indulging in my own sloth.
If there was a right and wrong to this, I would rather not know. The teacher uploads the content online for all to see, these people want to be slothful as well when they reach home, so they rush their note taking here. I would rather be relaxed all the time, so I maintain my sluggish attitude from school until I reached home. Even then I wouldn't rush it. We all had different ways and approaches to this, the matter of efficiency assumes you have a specific goal in mind. Perhaps we all just had different goals.
I leisurely wrote what I thought I would forget, and things that may not be uploaded online. There was always such useful information that for some unknown reason only the teacher held by the content syllabus didn't. It was infuriating, but at the same time it gave me something to do in class. Myuu was sat on the other side of the classroom near the top right, while I was around the bottom left and near the middle. We were seperated by 2 rows of table both horizontally and vertically.
I've survived with my own approach all these years, no... Maybe surviving wouldn't be the right word since I didn't have any particular pressure on me for high results. I was also not struggling financially. I was simply going with the flow, my scores were average to below average. Occasionally I would score above average, then I would boast it to Myuu with a large smile. Myuu was the opposite. Despite being similar to me in class, she works extremely hard when not in class. She simply disliked the class environment, so she still studies a lot at home.
Break was coming soon, and an odd feeling wouldn't stop plaguing me. I couldn't tell what I was feeling nor how I was suppose to deal with it. The best way was to simply ensure it until I had the time to address it. Myuu turned her cute hear around, flashing a dazzling smile with a sharp wink. I nodded back and gave a thumbs up. That was our daily routine, a way to check on each other persay. It caused my heart to beat much faster, causing me to hope nobody can hear it...