Enveloped in darkness, something sat silently. It had waited for eons… and it bided patiently. But ever since its stay in this arcane plane, plans for its absolution were drawn in vain. Before moments had begun thinking and clocks had begun ticking, its life and its plans had begun fervently kicking. Before wine glasses began clinking, and sand began shifting, and hours began beginning, it lived unblinking. All it desired was its release from captivity.

Desires...

And in desolate silence, with a guttural roar, it slowly waited once again.

Blink.

Already in his seat, he saw the hazed view of a classroom. He rubbed his eyes, trying to free himself from his grogginess. Slowly, his senses came to him in little, dizzying specks. A couple blinks later, the spots faded away into nothing but a distant memory.

And the loud growling, he realized, was the sound of his stomach.

Noticing that a couple of his classmates were staring at him, he explained, sheepishly:

"I… didn't eat breakfast."

His classmates gave him a funny look, before turning around, and he held in the urge to sigh. The classroom was still bare, and soon, everyone turned away as their interests waned.

What a great, first impression... perfect.

He didn't plan on drifting asleep. His... errands last night were longer than usual, and daybreak approached rapidly. To avoid being late, he had rushed on campus, but exhaustion hit him harder than a dump truck in an isekai novel. And once in the classroom, he hit the desk like it was the softest pillow in the world.

Whoosh... The autumn wind continued to blow as the chatter of the students grew more distinct. They were introducing themselves to each other. For most, it was a meeting in their lives marked by new friendships and tender relationships.

As if on cue, a voice sounded out.

"Alright, class. Settle down.", a female teacher enthusiastically called out as she walked in. Her chestnut brown hair, highlighted in the sunlight, was tied into a makeshift bun, with a few strands hanging loose. Her eyes, the same color as her hair, were vividly warm. Effortlessly pretty. It was safe to assume that she normally wouldn't be teaching a "dingy" day job at a school.

Dingy. Most schools were. At least, this one wasn't. He knew and that's why.

"I'm your homeroom teacher, Ms. Happi. H-A-P-P-I. I don't know why everyone misspells my name all the time, but it's okay. If you want to call me Ms. Happy with a 'y', I'll understand."

The boy, whose stomach had growled "Grrr!" could only remark "Um" as in 'Um…' He wasn't sure how to react. Nothing which came after the "Um" could succinctly capture his feelings to such a.. happy name.

Happiness...

"Anyways, I'm here to take your attendance! So kindly raise your hand, and say 'here!' when you're called upon, but not too loudly or softly." Her voice was nice, vibrantly clear as if setting an example for the students. "I'll log the attendance into the database as soon as possible." She swiped her desk, and a torrent of light flashed and materialized into a thin panel with all the students' names.

While Ms. Happi droned on with the mindless attendance, the boy lost connection to reality.

And so, sleep overtook him, leaving Ms. Happi to react to the contiguous events that would occur.

. . .

"Let's see" Ms. Happi looked down. "Alicia Augustus?"

"Here," Alicia elegantly raised her hand. Like a character straight out of a storybook, her curly golden locks only enhanced her pristine, princess image.

"Zephyr L. Augustus?"

"Here," a blonde-haired boy answered. Through his soft, locking curls, his sky-blue eyes peered out, before he turned his head once again. He and Alicia donned matching eyes, eyes that looked like sapphire gems on a heliodor cradle... like he was Prince Charming.

"Ember Burns?" Ms. Happi read out.

"Present" a teen with flaming red hair and burning eyes uttered out. Like a walking representation of fire, the air around him seemed to flicker and change. With a blink, nothing seemed to happen, so she lowered her gaze. If anything, his name was perhaps the biggest burn his parents gave him, so she didn't need to give any more.

"Call Charleston?"

"Here," Charles muttered. Despite having simple brown, tousled hair and coffee-brown eyes, something about him was not normal. Not to call him out or anything, but naming a child "Call" would definitely lead to some name call...ing.

Ms. Happi knew this wasn't right, as a teacher, she shouldn't be engaged with so much play, but the words were on the deck, and she played with wordplay. Would it be misleading if anyone thought she was an English teacher? With a neutral expression on her face, she simultaneously tapped the screen.

The brown-haired teacher looked down at the next name. With her insides churning, with her heart racing, and with her mind thinking, she somehow managed to keep her composure. She swallowed her increasingly chaotic witticisms, and read out the next name, hoping he would reply quickly.

"Zero Dreams?"

"Yeeeep." He slowly answered, which was met with a couple of innocent laughs. But when he looked back with his dark, wine-red eyes, they all quieted down. His white hair and pale skin flickered in the sunlight like a ghost. He didn't seem to belong to this sober world.

"Yeah." Zero explained matter-of-factly. "My dad was drunk when he named me."

This didn't help the situation at all, and the classroom burst out into laughter.

Ms. Happi coughed. She moved onto the next name.

"Ai… Ai-than? Aithein Eithersen? Is that how you pronounce it?"

"Yes," answered Aithein, a boy who would enthrall anyone with one glance. Like murky water, which shifts in gradients and saturation, the strands of his hair danced with a tapestry of stars. In the endless universe, the only thing that aptly described his looks was… well, the universe.

That's when Ms. Happi realized that the endless universe was against her. After all, a quick glance at the attendance list later, she quickly realized that she worked hard, but the universe worked harder.

No… she couldn't. Her dignity as a teacher would not allow it. With crisp composure, she continued:

"Wynter Froste?"

"Here..." a boy with a snow-white complexion replied. Wynter's hair was icy blue, and his eyes were startling cold. Looking at him was like walking into a blinding blizzard unprepared. But no matter how… cool… Wynter looked, it took all Ms. Happi had to not comment on such a… chill name.

It didn't get better.

"Kari Falafel?"

The name was… tasty. So tasty that as the brown-headed, colored complexion, Kari replied "Here," the sleeping, stomach-growling boy stirred in his sleep.

Ms. Happi droned on: "Demi Godiva?"

"Here," Demi answered. She swirled her mesmerizing black hair between her fingers, while some of the locks softly rested on her shoulders. Even though she looked human, she was actually a chocolate brand.

As if the black-haired girl knew what everyone was thinking, she addressed the room:

"I'm not a chocolate brand."

Ms. Happi was about to continue when Demi started again.

"And for legal reasons, I can't even use my name in any commercial way because it's trademarked." Demi sighed.

"T-There, there." Ms. Happi weakly vocalized. "You can still start a successful business!"

She wasn't sure if that was an empty lie or not, but she had to move on. As a freshmen teacher, there are things to prioritize more, and the post-school aspirations of students are not one of them.

"Okay, then," Ms. Happi carried on, hoping it would not be her problem later. "Let's see.. next up is Aurae C. Hunter?"

"Here," Aurae replied before his focus resumed on watching out of the window. The scenery outside the window was quite interesting with two birds fighting for gleeful dominance.

Ms. Happi moved on, hoping her student wouldn't act like this throughout the entire school year. She rehearsed her newly enlightened mantra 'Don't question it' and reminded herself to not question it.

"Duke Wynn..." Her voice trailed off at his middle name, before she resumed.

"...Inkubus."

She breathed in and recited her mantra. Below the table, hidden from sight, her fingers were snapping with increasing intensity, as if trying to snap out any hurrying thoughts. Ms. Happi looked the other way but noticed that the kid in the corner of the class sank further into his chair.

"Here..." Duke blushed. He pulled his hoodie over his head.

Ms. Happi felt bad, but she had to say what any normal teacher would say in a situation like this: "No hoodies in the class, Duke. Sorry, it's a school policy."

Slowly, Duke pulled off his black, cotton hoodie, revealing dark hair that glimmered in the sunlight. He looked pretty normal...

She paused.

… but mostly the pretty part. Mmm, actually... just the pretty part. Yep.

His eyes shimmered like a psychedelic kaleidoscope, changing through varying angles. His skin was pale, but a fluffy blush crept up his neck. And so, he quickly hid underneath his arms.

Ms. Happi, who didn't want to trouble the kiddo anymore than she already had, moved onto the next name.

"Floresca Jyorf?"

"Here," Floresca raised her hand, possessing a kind smile. Her skin was like that of a rich oak tree. She had a few pink flowers braided into her mellow green, wavy hair. On a closer glance, her hair had a grassy quality to them. If plants could move, she could probably pass off as one.

Ms. Happi blinked, and in that split second, realized that some of the flowers seemed to have moved. She let out a breath and read out the next name.

"Jackal P. Jinx?"

The only thing audible in the classroom was the sound of crickets chirping. Metaphorically, a convoluted manner of describing awkward silence.

"Um," She called again, "Jackal?"

'Ohhhh, sorry," Jack hurriedly replied. "I'm here." Dirty-blonde hair covered his head featured by his wrinkled clothes that seemed to barely fit him.

The brown-haired teacher wanted to say something, but refrained, as teachers like her were not supposed to teach life skills. So, she called out the next name: "Samjo Kamagwi?"

"Present," Samjo's dark eyes glazed over, before returning to his surroundings. His inky, midnight hair had a quaint texture, similar to that of wild fowls, but not quite.

Ms. Happi knew this texture all too well. It was the texture of cute, fluffy chickens.

Samjo would not have appreciated this comparison, but luckily, no one in this class was able to see what she was thinking.

She read out the next name: "Nekko Kyattoyashi?"

"Nyaa-" Nekko answered. Immediately, his face flushed and he lowered his head. The black-haired student slammed his fist onto the table, then muttered, "Damn it. I meant… here."

"Lucius Lancelot?"

"Here," he quickly called out before going back to banter with the friend next to him. The boy, who had warm, honeysuckle eyes and sunny, messy hair, was currently flicking his friend. Since he gave off the impression of being made of gold, there were those who wondered if actual bars were in his nares. Though, like many inquiries of the mind, not many would actually try to dig for gold in such dangerous double cannons.

"H-hey, don't bother your... friend." Ms. Happi lectured.

"Soz, teach." Lucius apologized carefreely.

"Sage L. Magnus?"

"Here," Sage stated numbly. His navy blue hair was almost black, complementing the eyes that were like a captivating void. His tinted glasses only enhanced his scholarly look, but who knew if he actually read books...

'Books,', Ms. Happi thought to herself. She remembered reading them back when she was younger, but it had been a long time since she had picked up one. They still had a library at the school, to store the physical copies of the books, but not many students or faculty members went there anymore.

"Melody Nulle?"

A quiet, dark-haired girl raised her hand. She didn't seem to want to speak, so Ms. Happi called out the next name.

"Jin Park?"

"Here," Jin answered. He had brown hair, but his other features were hidden by his long matte coat, scarf, and sunglasses.

"N-" Just as Ms. Happi was about to remark that sunglasses weren't allowed in the classroom, she realized that right next to his profile, a special note was written: "Sunglasses for safety reasons."

What does that even mean?

"Lan Qilin?" Ms. Happi looked around.

Lan raised his hand, which was decked in enchanting gold and azure scales. His hair, mostly blue, still had strands of scarlet and gold scattered about.

"Sad..." She paused. "Sad Ramen?"

"Here," the fig colored boy answered.

As if on cue, the class turned around to look at him.

Sad wasn't sad.

...Although he wasn't too cherry with everyone gazing at him.

Sad wore a coconut white turtleneck. He had curly plum-colored hair accented by fruity orange eyes, and displayed a berry nonchalant smile. Naturally, his name wasn't something worth going bananas over. The only noodles were in his head, not his stomach, and he really wanted to tell his inquisitive classmates to turn their peachy heads around, but he didn't want to be prune... And he really wanted to declare that he had a pear of strawberry jam toast for breakfast and not a bowl of ramen. On his face, none of the rambling thoughts were shown, and soon, the students turned away.

"Tasnim Radha?"

"Here, " Tasnim replied. Her coily hair reached the floor and would have touched the floor if she didn't carry a fluffy bundle of the hair in one arm. Radha's hair featured streaks of tangerine and umber, creating a grill pattern that made her hair look-

Delectable, but it really isn't recommended.

To eat.

Hair. In fac-

At this moment, a growl rumbled through the room.

Ms. Happi turned around to notice the boy in the corner, unsteadily propping himself up.

He had been jolted awake.

At first, he had been swimming in a warm bowl of ramen. He was surrounded by squiggly naruto's, and piquant green scallions, and lustrous wheat noodles. Suddenly, the broth began bubbling, and he looked down to notice he was on a grill. And he realized… that he was being broiled on a charcoal grill! He needed to save himself, but he didn't see anywhere to go. Like the choke of an artichoke served with over-boiled eggplants, despair quickly set in. Just at that moment, his stomach started growling, waking him up from an impending finger-licking end.

It hit him. He discovered that his spicy, peppery vision must have been a dream since grilling ramen was akin to microwaving marshmallows... and who would do that? Once again, he lowered his head down, but briskly stopped himself.

Oh. He seemed to be forgetting something.

"Hi," Ms. Happi cheerfully asked him. "How are you?"

"I'm fine and you?"

"I'm a," Ms. Happi answered. "Fine teacher...but you don't seem fine, you seem hungry."

"Yeah, I didn't eat breakfast…"

"Mhm."

Ms. Happi pulled some peanut buttered, almond cookies out of her pocket ring that she used to store her snacks. The cookies were still perfectly crumbly and toasty, as if freshly baked. She proceeded to fling one to the hungry boy.

Instinctively, like a puppy eagerly waiting for a biscuit, he caught the cookie with his mouth and in one big gobble, ate it all.

''Oh, that's interesting,'' Ms. Happi thought out loud. She proceeded to throw more cookies like how she would throw a frisbee, and amazingly, not a single touched the floor.

"Here, " he called out. "You can call me Steven."

Ms. Happi looked down at the attendance list.

"How did you know I was gonna call your name next?" Ms. Happi laughed, forgetting to reprimand Steven for sleeping, eating, and breathing in class.

"I might be psychic," he murmured.

"Really?" Ms. Happi's eyes opened wide.

"No," Steven replied.

Ms. Happi looked down again. "Wait, but your name says-"

"Oh, it's a typo." Steven sheepishly smiled. "Can you change it, right now?"

"Yeah, of course. I'm sure the administration won't mind. Steven, right?" Ms. Happi added a letter into the database.

"OK! Next name is… Owen Sovatmavy?"

"Her-" Before the tawny-haired girl with glasses could finish replying, or even be introduced properly, she was bluntly interrupted.

"Hey, how come only Steven gets cookies." the blonde-headed Lucius asked.

"I want cookies..." Tasnim raised her free hand.

"You can't eat in class." Ms. Happi conveniently remarked. "Steven was…"

"I'm hungry too," Nekko purred. His voice was the deep, crackly growl of an adorable stray kitten asking for food.

Immediately, before she knew what she was doing, she took out more cookies. This time, the scent of chocolatey, chippy goodness pillowed into the air.

"Alright, alright." Ms. Happi sighed, defeated. "Come up, and get a cookie and sit down. Do not tell the principal...I kinda like this job."

"Noted," Lucius agreed. "We won't tell the principal you like this job."

He proceeded to grab a cookie. As the class rushed forward, the rest of the cookies were gone in an instant.

After the clamor died down, Ms. Happi read out the next name to the best of her ability:

"Sinclair die Schlange?"

"Here," Sinclair replied. "It's pronounced dee-ss-lahng-uhr. Just means snake." His hair and eyes were suffocatingly turquoise, his grin… dangerously venomous. He also had cookie crumbs in the corner of his mouth, which he proceeded to lick away.

"Oh, cool… Usui Tanuki?"

"Here." a boy with laid-back dog ears replied.

Ms. Happi couldn't put her finger on it, but she was specifically reminded of a raccoon dog. She had met one before and they were usually tricolored with predominantly caramel coats, creamy beige fur spots, and black hinges. Although he had monotone blonde hair, he had slightly hyperpigmented skin around his eyes. The discoloration highlighted his green eyes which sparkled like dew on grass.

"Nefasi Tyrone Toure-Uduike?"

"I'm Nefasi" he introduced himself. "But you can call me Tyrone, I go by that." Even though his skin was chocolate brown, he had captivating green hair and eyes. Like the sturdy bark of a mahogany tree with wind drifting through its leaves, he basked in the warmth of the sun.

"Kitsune Udon?" Ms. Happi called out.

"Present," Kitsune answered. She had half nape length hair that didn't even meet her chin, with bangs that just reached the bottom of her ears. Accentuated in the light, her eyes were a nice shade of brown, more like caramel and gingerbread than chocolate, and were mesmerizing to look at. Kitsune was… handsome.

"Wait… are you part of THE udon family?" Ms. Happi excitedly asked.

"Yeah." Kitsune smiled charmingly.

"Wow!" Ms. Happi beamed. "I went to your family's restaurant over the summer, and it was a great experience. There was a huge line!"

She demonstrated with her hands how long she had to wait.

"Oh, and the noodles were stupendous!"

"Thank you." Kitsune divulged, "To be honest, I was helping out over the summer..."

"You must be a great cook!" Ms. Happi complimented.

"Uh-hum" Ms. Happi cleared her throat and whispered. "Anyways if you want to cook, feel free to cook for me."

"Sure!" Kitsune unabashedly complied.

"Great!" Ms. Happi continued on. "Aphrosite Velluto?"

"Present," she replied casually. Her hand ran down her hair, velvety tresses fell down from her shoulders. Rosy lips and translucent pink eyes were endowed upon her face. She wasn't trying to look pretty, but she just couldn't hide it.

"Dew Wata?"

"Here," Dew softly responded. Her voice was clear, but also a bit soft like early morning rain. She was a tad bit tan, with ocean blue eyes. Her hair, like a waterfall, flowed behind her.

"Myosotis Xion?" the brown-haired teacher inquired.

"Here."

"Myosotis?"

"Here," Myosotis said.

"Hmm... that's weird. Is she not here?" Ms. Happi muttered to herself.

"I'm here!" Myosotis cried out. "It's Mi-yo-sai-tis. Just call me Miyo, if you can't pronounce my name..."

"Mayo?" Steven couldn't help but remark.

"Mayo?" Ms. Happi remarked.

"Mayo?" the class remarked.

"..." Mayo remarked, realizing that this would forever be her nickname.

"Oh sorry, Mayo," Ms. Happi quickly marked her down, as if she stepped out of a trance. "For some reason, you're just very forgettable."

"That's not something you're supposed to say to a student," Call called out.

"Oh oops," Ms. Happi sheepishly announced. "It's like talking for a second and then forgetting... What I was doing. Huh."

She scratched her head.

"The attendance." Mayo softly reminded her. "Please mark me down."

"Oh…" Ms. Happi marked her down before she forgot again. "Next is Tai Yama."

"I'm here," Tai answered.

Framed by ebony black hair that led down to dark eyes, he wore an oddly soothing smile... His eyes were mysterious…. As mysterious as the dark side of the moon... So dark, he didn't seem to have pupils… So dark, yet had two pupils in each eye... And because two plus two equals four… four it meant... It meant Tai had four pupils!

Ms. Happi inwardly sighed.

Did the school staff seriously let the homeroom teacher with the weird name have all the students with a weird name? Ms. Happi mulled to herself. How was that fair? Mmmm, at least she was self-aware.

It was beginning to look like a long day.