Chapter 4.5: Sakura’s View: The Mysterious Student

"Good morning, Sakura!" My childhood friend, Sayuri, greeted me.

"Good morning, you seem excited early in the morning. Have you seen Eri yet?" I asked, feeling a sense of worry for Eri. I haven't heard from her recently. She always only wanted to talk about some girl from her childhood, but she was a kind and gentle person.

"No, I haven't yet. We will see her soon; we are in the same class after all," Sayuri replied, before heading to the gymnasium.

"Your right, she was probably just busy. She seemed really excited the last time I talked to her, saying something about seeing her 'Princess' again." I laughed.

As we were approaching the school's entrance, I saw an old man who looked like a butler step out of a limousine and open the door closest to the entrance. I couldn't help but wonder who could possibly be arriving in such a way.

"Hey, Sakura, isn't that Eri?" Sayuri spoke, motioning for me to look.

"Your right, didn't she always walk in middle school?" I asked, feeling perplexed.

"She did. She said something about needing to train her stamina or something," Sayuri giggled.

That was when a girl who had the elegance of a foreign Princess, and awe-striking beauty that came with it, stepped out of the car, taking Eri's hand as if it was only natural. She had a fluffy grey tail on her back and dark grey Fox ears on her head.

As they started walking, I could see everyone staring at that mysterious girl, making hushed whispers. Some were captivated by her beauty and elegance, while others snided her, thinking she was pulling some kind of prank.

She seemed to be really uncomfortable, like she could hear their words and feel the stares coming in from behind her. Then I noticed Eri grabbed her hand and pulled the girl in front of her to shield her from the stares. I also noticed a slight blush appear on the girl's face.

"Sakura...oi, Sakura, you there?" Sayuri spoke, waving her hand in front of my face, causing me to leave the trance I was in.

"Wha...what is it?" I asked.

"We need to hurry; the orientation is about to start," Sayuri replied, pulling my arm in a hurry.

Some time passed after we arrived, and the orientation began smoothly, at least until the Principal showed a mischievous grin and brought up the highest-scoring middle-school branch student and the highest-scoring transfer student.

I knew Eri would be making a speech, but this is the first time I have heard of a new transfer student making a speech as well. So that girl's name is Tachibana Hina. Wait, Tachibana, does that mean she is the principal's daughter or niece?

After they made their way to the podium, Eri made her speech, and then beckoned the girl to make hers as well. She seemed really nervous, reaching for Eri's hand. However, not long after, it seemed she calmed down and a different side of her appeared. She made a remarkable speech, even though earlier, it seemed she had nothing prepared.

The rest of the ceremony ended smoothly, and Sayuri and I made our way into the classroom. I could hear different classmates talking about how that girl seemed really close to Eri, and others talking about her ears and tail that seemed like they were real. There were others who didn't really show any interest or were too confused to say anything. When I looked around, I noticed there were two seats in the back by the window that were empty, and I didn't see Eri or that girl.

That was when the teacher came and told everyone to quiet down.

"Good morning, class, we will be doing introductions in a minute; however, I need to discuss with you all about the new students Tachibana Hina-sama and Takahashi Eri, who some of you may already know from middle school."

"Did the teacher just use sama when referring to a student? Just who is that girl you were with, Eri?" I questioned internally.

"Tachibana-sama's ears and tail are real, but I ask that you don't treat her any differently than you would another person. I would like for you all to treat her with kindness. However, with that said, everyone here should know that even though Tachibana-sama is the principal's niece, she will be treated the same as any other student. The reason I am referring to her with sama is not because of her relations, but because of her heritage. She is on the same level as a royal princess, and Takahashi-san is her servant, so please treat her with a certain level of respect, and don't mention what was spoken at this time to anyone.

I could hear murmurs of awe, of confusion, and even some of irritation from my classmates. To be honest, I was in a mix of those emotions as well.

"With all that said let's begin the introductions. Takahashi-san, Tachibana-sama, please enter."

With those words, all the class's eyes turned to the door, including my own, watching the two girls enter the classroom. Eri introduced herself first, and then it was the girl's turn.

"My name is Tachibana Hina; I...it is nice to meech yous all." She stumbled on her words and bit her tongue. She had a bright red face, and her ears were twitching as her tail swayed rapidly. She looked over at Eri with tears in her eyes.

In that moment, it felt like my thoughts, along with the rest of the class, were in sync yelling out in unison, "What the hell is this adorable creature?!"