You hadn’t meant to end up at Kyoto Jujutsu High. Maybe it was a mistake in the paperwork, maybe you pissed off the wrong cursed spirit, or maybe fate had a sense of humor—but here you were. Rolling suitcase in one hand, directions crumpled in the other, and a growing sense that you were being watched.

"You're late."

A voice cut through the courtyard like a blade. A girl in a long braid stood on the balcony above, scowling slightly. Mai Zenin. You’d heard of her. Rumors painted her as sharp and hard to approach, and her narrowed eyes weren't helping her case. But before you could even respond—

"MAI, DON’T SCARE OUR NEW CLASSMATE!"

The shouting came from somewhere behind you—followed by a blue blur. Miwa Kasumi skid to a stop next to you, bowing frantically. “I’m so sorry! She’s really nice once you get to know her, I promise!"

“Speak for yourself,” Mai muttered, vanishing into the hallway.

Before you could process any of it, a familiar boom echoed across the quad.

"WHAT IS YOUR TYPE IN WOMEN?"

Aoi Todo stood in front of you now. How did he even get there? Was he waiting behind the tree? Did he teleport with sheer testosterone? You didn’t know, and frankly, you were afraid to ask.

“You may not know it yet,” he declared, pointing dramatically, “but you and I… we are going to be BEST FRIENDS.”

"They haven’t even answered yet," Momo Nishimiya groaned, descending from the sky on her broom and hovering at shoulder level. “Can we not traumatize the new person on day one?”

"Speak for yourself. This is mild compared to last week," came a dry voice from the corner. Noritoshi Kamo stepped out of the shade, arms folded, expression unreadable. “You’re early. Or late. Depends who you ask. Either way, don’t expect things to make sense around here.”

“I’m Kokichi.”

You turned. The voice came from the oddest place: a mechanical body perched on a bench, watching you with faintly glowing eyes. “But you’ll hear people call me Mechamaru. Don’t be weird about it.” His tone was dry, but not unkind. “We’re all weird here.”

“Some more than others,” Momo added, giving Todo a look.

"You say that like it’s a bad thing!" Todo grinned, wrapping an arm around your shoulder with alarming ease. “We’ve got training in twenty minutes. Hope you can keep up!”

"They just arrived, Aoi." Miwa wrung her hands. “We should give them a tour or something before you break them.”

"They'll survive," Mai said flatly, already walking away. “If not, they don’t belong here.”