Katie was bored. That usually did not bode well for the people around her, mostly those on the floor of her dormitory. She had a nasty tendency of making her own fun, to the detriment of the sanity of her company. Luckily though, she had promised herself a nice, relaxing day when she had woken up this particular morning and was hellbent on following through with that promise.

She strode outside in the glaring sun, wearing a tight black tank-top with a pink butterfly motif circling up from her hip across her chest and up one of the thin straps. Beneath that was a pair of tight jean shorts, the frayed edges ringed on the outsides with safety pins. She had a pair of thick books slung under her arm and set up beneath her favorite tree in the quad, a big, somber looking willow.

Plugging in her mp3 player to a pair of portable speakers, she cranked the volume as she leaned out into the sun and began to read, the book shaded by the shadow of the tree as her body soaked up a few rays.

Airi stared out of her window at the sunshine-flooded lawn, watching girls variously entertaining themselves. It was a pleasant sight, especially since the average student at Shokushu appeared to be at least decently attractive. 'I wonder what they did to end up here,' she thought to herself, glaring balefully at the still-packed luggage sitting in an unceremonious pile at the foot of her bed.

She briefly considered actually unpacking before deciding that it was too early to make herself at home- she was content to live out of her bags for the time being. Unfolding her long legs from the windowsill and standing to stretch lazily, she tugged her stretchy black shirt back down over her tight stomach, repositioning the iris done in shades of blue against the black fabric back over her center mass. With her new room key jingling in one of the many pockets of her low-cut jeans, she ambled outside and towards a promising-looking willow tree, intent on climbing it if it appeared sturdy enough, and taking a nap under it if not.

Approaching the elegantly draping tree, Airi realized that the owner of the music blaring out into the courtyard was sprawled in the sunshine in a very small and very flattering outfit consisting of a black tank top and frayed jean shorts, the lounging girl only teasingly visible through the languidly shifting tendrils of the willow tree. Striding forward and brushing the leafy veil from her path, Airi dropped to a comfortable seat a foot or so away, ignoring the threat of grass stains to her hiphugger jeans as she cocked her head at the speakers. "I like the music, but I don't know the band. Something American, I take it?"

Absorbed in her book with the music providing more than enough background noise to distract her, Katie jumped when she heard the voice at her side, giving an embarrassing little yelp as she did so. She blushed, squinting into the sun as she looked to the visitor.

"Yeah, actually, they're a band from Chicago called Alkaline Trio," she nodded to the speakers, placing her hand over her gaze to shield her eyes from the sun.

Pushing herself up from the grass, she brushed herself off, reaching out her hand to the girl with a smile, "I'm Katie, by the way. Nice to meet you. I haven't seen you around before, are you new here?"

She smiled, turning down the volume on the music and closing her book after marking her place in it.

Airi smiled back reflexively, taking the proffered hand and giving it a shake as she answered, "Airi Vuorinen, and I just got here today, actually. Spending the afternoon outside just seemed infinitely better than unpacking."

Flickering her eyes briefly over Katie's relaxed posture, she asked, "So, how long have you been here? What's this place like behind the parent-suckering brochures?" She said it with a wry smile, but annoyance edged her tone the moment she mentioned parents.

Katie smiled warmly as she felt the girl's delicate grip on her hand, shaking it before she leaned back on her elbows, enjoying the warm feeling of the sun on her skin. The girl was certainly cute, and while she didn't put much stock in the fact that she didn't recognize the band (not many people she met ever did recognize the bands she listened to) it was the comment that they were "something American" that she started to wonder where the girl was from.

"Airi Vu... Vuo... Vuori... Airi, it's nice to meet you," she laughed softly, "I've been here for a year, actually. And the school, well... it has its ups and its downs..." her voice grew a little dark and distant at that last part but she shook her head, casting it away. Those kind of thoughts had no place in the sun and warmth, "But the brochure was no bullshit, the facilities here are all pretty-much top of the line and the classes can be tough, but they're all pretty good, from what I hear from girls in other programs."

Airi chuckled at Katie's attempt at pronouncing her last name, saying it for her once more. "Vuorinen. It's Finnish, which is supposed to be quite difficult for native English-speakers to learn, so don't feel bad."

She paused briefly, considering the shadow that had passed over Katie's face and wondering if she could do anything to lift it. Airi never had been a master at soothing the hurts of others, however, so she decided the best she could do was have the decency not to pry about this girl's own demons. She seemed tough enough to take care of herself.

Glossing over the brief silence, Airi grinned and said airily, "At least it's a good school, then. I think I would go mad if I were stuck in a sub-par boarding college. If I decide to go to classes, they had damned well better be good classes." She finished the statement with a luxurious stretch and flopped full-length on the grass beside Katie, enjoying the scent of the soft emerald blades tickling her fair skin under the golden sun.

"Yeah, the classes are actually pretty good. All of mine have been, anyway, at least so far..." she shrugged, flopping back and closing her eyes as she relaxed in the sun.

"The workload can get absolutely awful, though. That's part of the reason I'm out here. Spent so much time indoors working on homework and the like for the past few days that it's a godsend to be able to just sit out in the sun and not do a damn thing, haha..." she grinned as she felt the heat beating down on her.

"So what are you planning on studying here anyway?" she asked, letting out a relaxed yawn.

Airi yawned as well, answering carelessly, "I don't really know. I've always been good at English and chemistry, but it's been a while since I've regularly shown up to classes. Do they have classes for advanced physical education- dancing, or martial arts, or something? Because I swear, if any teacher thinks they're chaining me to a desk all day, I will swim off of this island, and homework be damned."

Katie laughed at that, shrugging, "You know, I really don't know. I ditched my phys ed. courses after satisfying the requirement. I like to run and stuff to stay in shape, but those classes were filled with fitness tests and nonsense like that. Just gave me a headache. But yeah, if it's Martial Arts and stuff you're looking for it's probably better to find a friend that'll teach you. I hear a lot of girls on the island are pretty good."

She rolled over, checking the time on her phone, "Actually, speaking of swim, do you want to head down to the beach for a bit? It usually clears out around five, so there shouldn't be too many people there at this point."

Airi smiled in relief- the sun was beginning to beat down uncomfortably on her, and her dark shirt and hair were not helping. "A swim sounds perfect- just let me dig out my suit and some sunscreen. If I stay out here much longer without it, I'll be cooked."

"Just grab your suit, you can borrow some of my sunscreen," she pointed at the pale flesh of her legs, "God knows I've got enough to spare. It's like SPF one million or something, the sun usually fries me, haha."

She checked her phone for the time again, "Alright, want to meet me back here in about ten minutes or so? We'll head over to the beach from here..."

=================

Katie returned to the willow a few minutes later. She wore a dark pink bikini top spotted with little black skulls, her hair falling around her pale shoulders. A pair of tiny black jean shorts and black sandals rounded out the outfit, a light canvas bag slung over her shoulder.

"You ready to go?" she asked.

Airi grinned and nodded, slinging a bag of her own over her shoulder and apparently comfortable with crossing campus in only her black bikini decorated with silver stars, and a white school towel twisted around her hips. Only a few steps into following Katie, the tiny towel slid down her legs, revealing that the bottom of her bikini was marked with a shooting star trailing stardust across the curves of her bottom.

Giving an exasperated huff, she scooped the towel up and threw it over her shoulder along with the bag containing her clothes and hurried to catch up with Katie, who was waiting in her cute skull-print bikini with an amused look on her face. "I swear, they think they're supplying a primary school, with the size of those towels," she grumbled.

Katie just laughed and started walking again, Airi falling into step with her as she enjoyed the sun-warmed grass under her bare feet and the view of Katie, bikini-clad and hair swinging freely around her shoulders.

This place actually isn't so bad, thus far, she reflected.

"So, what's this beach like?" she asked, casting around for something else to discuss.

"Generally that's why I keep the towel in the bag," she grinned, pointing to the bag slung over her shoulder as they made their way down the quaint little cobblestone path that lead down to the island's white sandy beach, the trees gradually thinning and giving way to larger boulders and rocks as they got closer and closer.

"And I think you're thinking in the wrong direction, honey. The school issue clothing here looks like it'd be more at home in a strip club than a kindergarten," she laughed with a roll of her eyes.

"The beach is pretty nice. They've got some big flat rock formations up near the forest for sunbathing and the water's gorgeous. You've just got to be careful after it clears out for the day, but we've definitely got a few solid hours between now and sunset, and we should have the beach pretty much to ourselves, hehe..."

Airi raised an eyebrow at Katie's remark, feeling rather slow as the other girl pointed out that the tiny uniforms and towels and... well, everything... were more likely a result of an oversexed administration than carelessness in ordering sizes. "Is it common for the Headmasters to entertain themselves with the student body, then?" she asked. "I suppose if the girls in question were willing, parents would hear nothing and wouldn't be able to complain, and with this being a private island it would be easy enough to keep quiet..."

Still, if that were the purpose of the barely-there uniforms, you'd think that they'd allow me to bring my lingerie, she pouted, disdainful of the plain, white cotton undergarments she'd been given. Although I suppose if your fetish is schoolgirls, these give more of an innocent impression... Still, Airi scowled at the thought, only brightening as she heard Katie's description of the beach, wondering if the rocks she mentioned were any good for climbing.

"The beach sounds nice, at least. Do they have problems with wild animals, or something? Why do we have to 'be careful' once it clears out?" Wanting to test the insinuation she thought Katie had given, she added, "It sounds much more pleasant to have the beach to ourselves, after all."

"Ummm... I guess 'wild animals' would be a fitting description. It's... well... it's really kind of hard to explain..." she blushed a dark red, desperate to change the subject as they approached the beach, "Oh, look! Pretty much everyone's gone, we can set up where we'd like! Where would you like to take a spot, up near the ocean or a little further back? High tide shouldn't be for some time, so we should have our pick, hehe."

Katie had no intention of ruining this girl's impression of the island so early. Especially when it wasn't certain whether or not she'd meet the less savory denizens at all. Instead, she simply tried to brush her remark to the side, cursing herself for having even mentioned anything at all.