Same Story, New Path ch7

Chapter 7: On Your Own

Liam stifled a wide yawn as he walked through the entrance way of Shibusen, still tired from a night of studying. He, unfortunately, had to let Aimee leave before completing their studies, but he had faith that anything he drilled into her would stick and they'd pass their evaluation no problem. Granted, he wasn't certain what exactly they'd be getting evaluated on, he just knew if they failed, they'd be pushed back and suffering through daily remedial lessons. "Morning Li-kun!" Glancing over his shoulder, the dark haired teen allowed a fond smile to cross his face as Ayame skipped up to his side to walk with him.

"You're in a good mood today, Aya-chan." He mused. The girl nodded brightly, her pigtails bouncing. Today she was actually wearing part of the Shibusen uniform much like he was. She wore the school skirt with knee length black tights underneath, boots sporting a star on them, and a loose grey sweater over top of a not completely buttoned white shirt.

"Of course! After today I'll be able to start going on real assignments!" she informed, thrusting a fist into the air triumphantly. Liam chuckled, bumping his shoulder to hers playfully.

"Always as confident as ever." He teased. Ayame stuck her tongue out at him.

"You can't get anywhere assuming the worst." She countered with a huff. "Zeke and I are well on our way to being the best team in this school, you just watch!" There was a determined shine in her eyes that caused Liam to smile.

"Maybe." He hummed and laughed at the scowl sent his way. Ayame really had a way with making him relax. Even when they were younger there was something about her that made him let loose.

"Hey," He glanced at her as she looked up at him calculatingly. "Are things gonna change?"

"What?"

"You know, with all of us?" Ayame answered. "Our friendships. They're gonna stay the same no matter what, right?" she asked. Liam stopped and considered the question. Why would things change? Sure they were all going for the same goal but at the end of the day they had their own lives to live through with their partners as well. He then looked at Ayame who was staring at him expectantly. They had grown up together and even when they vanished for family trips and such, at the end of it all, the two of them and Zeke always came together as if nothing had ever pulled them apart.

"No, nothing will change." He answered finally. "I promise." Ayame looked at him apprehensively but whatever comment was cut off when an arm went around her neck and pulled her into a headlock.

"Morning, morning pipsqueak!" Zeke sang while the girl struggled against him. He was dressed similar to Ayame, but with a deep blue colored school blazer over top of his buttoned up shirt, accompanied with dark jeans. "What're you over here nagging Liam about so early in the morning?"

"Argh! Let go of me jerk!" Ayame yelled while he continued to laugh but obliged. "What're you so cheerful about so early in the morning?"

"I actually got a good night's sleep, that's what." Zeke answered with a knowing smirk before turning his attention to Liam, holding out a fist which the older boy pounded his fist to in response.

"You seem more than ready for today's activities." Liam chuckled and his best friend beamed back at him, giving a thumbs up.

"Of course! I figure so long as I can keep up with Star-sensei then I'll do fine… So I drank a couple cups of coffee!" Zeke answered causing Liam's eyes to widen and Ayame to tilt her head to the side in confusion.

"I thought you hated coffee?" she accused.

"I do, but I needed something and since mom and dad beat me out the door this morning I tried out coffee." Zeke answered with a shrug. Liam grimaced while Ayame wrinkled her nose in disapproval.

"I feel as though you could have done something a little more productive than coffee." Liam muttered, now getting a confused look from Zeke.

"What's more productive than coffee?" he asked. At this, Liam simply shook his head and sighed.

"Let's just go to class." He groaned. Honestly, was he always going to be the voice of reason within their little group?

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Soul leaned back in his seat and kicked his feet onto his desk as he flipped lazily through the file that had been awaiting him that morning. Across the room, Black Star was lounging on the small couch, head tilted back and newspaper over his face as he snoozed away. He really could have picked a less obvious way of napping. Clearly he was never reading the news paper to begin with. All the same, Soul ignored his best friend's snores and began flipping through the files that were clearly meant for the snoozing assassin to review before the upcoming evaluations he'd be supervising.

The evaluations took two different categories. One was paper based and the other was situational. To avoid the idea of favoritism, Maka, Tsubaki, and Black Star weren't permitted to test their own children or their children's partners. They'd be assessing students they had no ties to. It was all for the sake of avoiding other students making assumptions. Though Soul was certain that none of them would even think to give their children any leg up, precautions had to be made. Allowing his eyes to roam over observational notes from other professors of the students within EAT class, Soul couldn't help to allow his attention to stay on Rion's for some time. There was a good chunk of information missing from his records for before he entered Shibusen. The same went for Aimee.

He knew not everyone came into the school with a sparkling record, Liz and Patty for example, but at the same time, there were certain things that the school at least liked to know about one's background. In the case of these two, there was something hidden that would eventually, Shinigami forbid, blow up in their faces. Rion didn't even have a last name! Soul shook his head, flipping through a few other files. Some were students that were put in NOT class with EAT class potential.

"Star-sensei! Oh!" The girl that flung the office door open flustered when her eyes fell on Soul. "Good morning, Soul-sama… I, um… I was told to retrieve sensei for homeroom." She squeaked, cheeks reddening.

"Go ahead then." The white haired man answered with a careless wave of his hand. He watched as the girl shuffled into the room and towards Black Star. The girl stopped at an interesting distance and then cleared her throat.

"Star-Sensei!" she called. Black Star twitched and the girl called his name with more urgency, snapping the man from his sleep. He flailed about for a moment, leaving Soul to assume that students already had an idea of a safe distance to stand when it came to waking their professor from deep naps.

"Eh? Maya?" The assassin croaked, rubbing his eyes tiredly. "What's wrong?"

"Sensei, it's time for homeroom. I was sent to get you." The girl answered sheepishly at the azure haired man stretched groggily in front of her. Glancing at the clock above the office door, Black Star let out a defeated sigh, stretching his arms high over his head.

"So it is…" He hummed and glanced over at his best friend. "Will you be observing today?"

"Something like that. I can't call any shots though. Conflict of interest or some garbage." He informed and Black Star snorted in response.

"Makes some sense I guess. Well if you do come around, I'll be at The Spot." He informed. Soul gave a mute nod and turned back to the files in front of him as his friend trekked out of the room with the confused student following after him asking him what "The Spot" was. The assassin's cackle could be heard echoing down the hall as he told the now shocked girl she should be more concerned with passing her evaluations than the terrifying places they would be held.

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Crescent Room was filled with chatter and gossip as the students awaited the arrival of Stein of their evaluations. While some students were busy napping in their seats, some were doing last minute studying and reviews with their partners. Zeke sat next to Ayame, feet kicked up on his desk and book propped up, his eyes roaming the page while his partner taught Rion some strange game with a series of claps. The younger boy seemed to be getting more comfortable with them as each day passed, but from time to time, Zeke couldn't help but wonder if he ever really had chances to act like a kid.

"Here, let me try!" Ava requested, easily playing the game with Ayame and singing a song with the moves while Rion watched in amazement.

"Oh, I know one too!" Aimee chimed in. Liam rested his chin in his hands, a bored expression crossing his face as he watched the girls laugh and go about their complex game, Rion's eyes widening with an innocent excitement when he declared he understood and wanted to play as well.

"Don't you think you should be focusing your minds on the tasks ahead?" Liam finally asked, only for the girls and Rion to completely ignore him.

"Leave them alone, Liam." Zeke murmured, eyes scanning, half lidded, over the pages of the book in his lap. "Everyone has their own way of easing their nerves and this is theirs." He informed, eyes never leaving the page as his dark haired friend watched his thoughtfully.

"What about you then? Reading easing your soul?" Liam asked. There was a long silence before Zeke turned the page and finally spoke.

"More or less." He answered, marking the page and snapping the book shut as Marie and Stein entered the room.

"Morning class!" Marie sang out, catching everyone's attention as the students took their seats. "Today is your official evaluations that will determine whether you're ready to go out on assignments or not so I hope you've all prepared properly." She chirped before hugging the files she had with her close to her chest and looking to Stein expectantly. Taking a long pull from his cigarette, the silver haired man blew a long line of smoke before fixing the students with a serious expression.

"You've been told how serious this evaluation is and cheating isn't an option. Everyone stand up." The students stared at him uncertainly but obliged. "Meisters to the left and weapons to the right… Come on, we don't have all day!" he barked. Once they had gathered to opposite sides of the room, looking over at their partner's in confusion, Stein spoke again. "You won't be seeing your partner until the end of the exam."

"What?"

"No way!"

"Why?" Panicked chatter filled the room. Liam glanced at Ayame who had crossed her arms and scowled while Gabe stood beside her, hands shoved in his pockets and an unreadable expression on his face.

"There's no point freakin' out. Clearly the rules have been set." The messy haired boy muttered.

"We were told before to be prepared for anything." Added Ava quietly, though concern was written all over her face. Stein spoke up, immediately silencing all the complaints.

"You were told before that there will be moments where you won't have your partner with you. If you're completely dependent on one another, how will you function if your partner isn't around?" The man asked smoothly, causing the room to go silent. "With that said, I want to the meisters to follow Marie. All the weapons will be coming with me."

"Come along." Marie called, far more pleasant than her colleague. Obediently all the meisters began filing out of the room.

"And the rest of you are coming with me." Stein told the nervous group of weapons. A twisted smile crossed his face when the classroom door closed. "The evaluations start now."

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Sid watched as the group of meisters filed into the room, some looking anxious, some looking sick, and some unreadable. The room they were entering was completely empty, but surrounded by various windows. There were then three different doors that led off to another area. It really looked to be a room that led to other rooms to be observed. However, he knew better than that. Nygus entered the room accompanied by a woman with short pink hair and determined green eyes. Neither of them paid any mind to the students as the greeted the zombie pleasantly, whispering amongst each other with Marie.

"So, all these rooms are set for the evaluations then?" Nygus asked.

"Yup! Special magic that can is set to break once you open the door and pull them out." The pink haired woman answered with a wink. "Don't worry, my boy hasn't shown any sense of magical abilities so this should work just the same for him as well." She glanced over her shoulder, eyes falling on her son who was chatting it up with Ayame.

"Will you be sticking around to see what happens, Kim?" Nygus asked, but the pink haired witch shook her head.

"I'm with Tsubaki observing a few of the weapons. But I look forward to hearing results." She answered. With a nod, the adults turned their attention back towards the group of waiting meisters. "Good luck." Kim called over her shoulder as she left the room.

"Right, so I guess we can begin…" Sid informed, clearing his throat. "Adams, Ford, Star, and Henders, step forward." He instructed. The four teens stepped forward. One was a girl that sat towards the front of the class and tended to brag on her weapons abilities. She had long blonde hair that she wore in a low pony tail and amber colored eyes. She stood next to Gabe, looking less confident than usual. Ayame was on the other side of Gabe, the smallest of the four that stepped forward, and beside her stood a boy with deep red hair that laid sloppily on his head and in his eyes. He was quiet and rarely spoke in class from his spot off to the side in the middle row of the room. His partner did most of the speaking.

"Each of you will walk into this room and the first step to your evaluation will begin," Nygus explained. This will not end until you have either passed or failed. You will know when the door opens leading you to your next test."

"Professor," The blonde girl finally spoke up. "What do we do if we need help. We're without our weapons and we're going blindly into a situation."

"We'll know if we need to pull you out or not, Becca." Sid answered. "Now each of you stand in front of a door. You'll be starting us off." The four each stood in front of a door, their classmates watching them in silence. "You have ten minutes in there. Don't lose focus." He informed. Reaching forward, they each pushed open their doors and entered. Ayame cringed when a blinding light met her gaze and as the door snapped shut behind her, she wrinkled her nose and raise her hand to cover her eyes.

"Oh a little girl…" a male's deep voice broke through. Lowering her hand slowly, Ayame looked around the once bright room. It was no longer a room but the center of a village. Not only that, but it was night time and the moon hung high over the scattered trees and huts. She had no idea where she was, but could feel a pair of eyes watching her. "You're the last thing I expected to see." Spinning around, Ayame founded at the white haired man who was approaching. While she knew this was clearly some type of magic, she couldn't help but to freeze when her eyes fell on the star shaped tattoo on the white haired, tall ninja.

"Who are you and why are you part of my test?" she asked, cautiously taking a step back. The man titled his head to the side, his dark eyes watching her calculatingly.

"I don't know what you're talking about little girl… But I know Star clan blood when I smell it." He answered and held out his hand, a clear, blue soul in the center of his palm. "So beloved granddaughter of mine, are you ready to face the fate your father so naively abandoned?"

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"Good luck!" Those were the last words yelled at him before he and the other weapons stumbled forward into the secluded wooded area they were dragged into. Rion glowered as he glanced over at the others who were taking in their surroundings. Their task was simple. There were souls hidden throughout the area and they were supposed to bring back the appropriate kishin soul. If they couldn't differentiate between a kishin soul and one that was corrupted with a poisonous magic, they'd fail. He couldn't disappoint Ava.

"Well I guess there's nothing left to do but beat the rest of you to the punch." Aiden hummed, putting his goggles on. "We've got thirty minutes to find the proper souls or we fail."

"Sounds like every man for himself." Another boy added, cracking his knuckles and smirking. Zeke grimaced from where he stood off to the side, watching everyone else with his hands in his pockets. He muttered something under his breath and Rion watched as the white haired boy walked ahead and vanished into the trees. Aiden let out a triumphant hoot and took off running forward as well, leaping up into a tree and then vanishing.

"G-guys, wait!" Aimee called, running forward, a few others following her lead. Rion was certain people would be separated before they knew it. Pursing his lips, the younger boy ran ahead as well. There was no one ahead of him and he was certain that everyone had taken different paths. The question now was how exactly were they expected to find these souls?

"Oh you're a tiny one!" cooed a voice. Sliding to a stop, Rion spun around and looked up for his eyes to meet with the gaze of a busty woman with long wavy silvery blonde looking hair. She sat easily on the branch, one leg crossed over the other and leaning forward with a curious look on her face. "You're by yourself! Where's your partner at?"

"She's not here… Who are you?" he asked, turning fully. The woman pursed her lips slightly.

"Not with you eh? Well that's no good." She sighed and hopped from the tree, landing in front of the boy. "So you're an independent fighter, are you? That's not going to get you very far in this school." Rion frowned.

"I can defend myself." He snapped swiftly, The woman raised an eyebrow and slipped her hair over her shoulder as she cocked her head to the side.

"Oh, and what about that partner of yours?" she asked in a low voice. "If I were to, let's say, snap her neck here and now would you not be affected?" Heart skipping a beat, Rion clenched his fists at his sides and glared at the curvy woman in front of him.

"Don't go anywhere near her." He growled and the woman smirked.

"Or what? You're nothing but a little pipsqueak yourself. A brat who doesn't know what it's like to work with other people. Isn't that right?"

"Shut up. You don't know anything about me."

"So you're ok with being a freak?" The words struck him harder than he imagined they would. He was used to being called such, but at the same time, he couldn't help but to being shocked at being called a freak at a place full of people like him. "I know about the scars. I've seen them you know."

"Wha-" He chocked out and froze when the woman was suddenly standing right in front of him, hand cupping his cheek as he stared up at her with wide golden eyes.

"I don't blame you for not trusting people. The world is cruel." She said in a quiet voice. "Those bastards hurt you for being different… They used you and you're afraid to open up. I know how it can be, I've seen it." Her voice was so speaking to him in a low voice that put him on edge and at the same time, he was incapable of moving. "Tell me something, little one. Are you afraid she'll hurt you like they did?"

"N-no!" Rion croaked, stepping back and slapping the woman's hand away. "Ava wouldn't! I know she wouldn't! Sid-sensei told me that our souls called to each other for a reason… Ava and I were drawn to each other for a reason." He spoke swiftly. He remembered having a one on one discussion with the zombie professor one night. The man had proven to be a comfort to him and informed him it would do the boy some good to even have a talk or two with Star-sensei as well. Apparently coming to Shibusen with no one was a well known quality among some members of the staff. The silvery blonde took a step back and eyed him.

"Don't lose focus then, brat." She hummed and pointed ahead. "Your task is that way. Don't get distracted or you'll lose focus and disappoint and break that girl's pretty little heart." She teased and with that, turned on her heel, walking a few steps before vanishing into the trees. Rion stared off into the distance blankly. Who was that woman and why did she say those things to him? His shoulders sank slightly and he let out a slow breath. He was losing focus and that was no good at all.

"Oh ho ho lookie here! What a cute munchkin!" A hand flew out and wrapped around Rion's neck, slamming him against a tree as terrifying violet eyes gazed down at him. A long tongue slithered from a razor toothed, wide mouth. "Your soul's wavering… That's the most delicious type!"

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"It's started." Maka informed, looking at the screens set up in the office. She had a few files open and was in the company of her father, Asuza, and Kid. The evaluations they had set up were special, specifically for EAT class students. They wanted their students to be able to go out into missions with some type of knowledge with what was to come. While they were currently blindly walking into something, there was a point to the evaluation. Tsubaki entered the room and perked up when she saw the action on the screen.

"The meisters should be getting through their obstacle quickly shouldn't they?" she asked, handing Maka a cup of coffee and watching the screen as Ava walked out into the wooded area, looking around in confusion.

"They should… If they're some kind of in tuned with their weapons, when they entering The Spot then they should be able to pick up on any distress." Maka answered. Asuza reached forward, tapping the screen.

"Tsubaki, your girl is out with a vengeance it would see." She informed, watching as Ayame took off running at top speed through the trees. Settling down next to the older woman, Tsubaki smiled.

"She's just like her father…" she mused. "How have the students been doing?"

"Running into each obstacle as planned, though we're curious to know what each of the meisters were faced with in the rooms Kim set up." Kid answered as he leaned back into his seat. "Everyone looks to be out searching for the souls now." On the screens there were kids running through different parts of the woods, each faced with a different obstacle. "Let's hope some of them get to their partners on time…"

"Rion got distracted by the bait." Maka said quietly. A concerned look crossed Tsubaki's face as she watched the boy struggle under the kishin's claws.

"Is she out there in case it gets out of control?" she asked. Maka flashed a smiled at her long time friend. Leave it to Tsubaki to be maternal during such important evaluations. Asuza and Kid were busy scribbling notes on the different files in front of them.

"I wouldn't worry… She shouldn't have to do anything… Ava's on her way."