I'd like to request Servamp + the high school prompt please!
(if someone requested Servamp + the vampire prompt i wonder how you would've done it hahaha)
You make such a good point - if someone had requested that, it really would have been a fun time trying to come up with some vampiric twist! I love high school AU's though so this was a fun one to write and I hope you'll enjoy! I honestly think this is the longest thing I've ended up writing in a while but the idea for the story and the universe really got away from me.
Welcome to Servamp Academy (sue me, dear readers - I suck at naming things so bad)! It's not just a high school, but a boarding school for high school students. And not only is it a boarding school, but one with a very old, storied (and lately a little fearsome) reputation.
It was established far before anyone can remember, and for the past twenty years, it's Headmaster is a man only known to the public world as Sensei. He was very famous, but in recent years, the last five years or so, nobody has seen him in public. Though the school has remained voiceless about its Headmaster, truth be told, he hasn't even been seen by the school's staff for at least that long, with emails being the only way he communicates with his staff anymore, giving them his orders, which they still faithfully follow.
Servamp Academy accepts only the best and the brightest of students. In fact, it's normal class size is at most 15 students per year. These students are prodigies, geniuses, children of elites - in short, the top 1%. But in every first year class, there's one student who gets in via a public lottery. It's a really big deal, as the school is known not only for its high tuition costs but also for churning out the future leaders, artists, celebrities, and movers and shakers. All of its graduates go on to live almost impossibly charmed lives.
However, there's a shadow over Servamp Academy this year as the school opens its door for the school year again. At the last of the year, Servamp Academy had to close its doors for the summer vacation early and under horrible circumstances. One of its students, Ophelia, the daughter of a foreign ambassador and someone who was making a name for herself as a model UN representative and a leading actress in many school plays, went missing near the start of summer break, with her room found ransacked and bloody. The police investigated but could not find any trace of her…until her body was found over summer break, hanging from the Academy's clock tower, while all the students and staff were supposed to be on vacation. There are many rumours regarding her death, with no exact cause of death or any leads being found by the police, and Servamp Academy is opening its door for the new year with those frightening rumours haunting everyone's minds…
So, there is another weird thing about Servamp Academy. All of the incoming first year students have mandatory 'buddies'. So, the way it works is that after graduating the first year, the best of the second years are chosen to mentor and lead the new first years. The remaining second years, if there are any, play back up mentors and also step in to help and guide the first years. According to the school's guidelines, this is to help the students learn leadership skills that are necessary for success in life. These buddies live with their assigned first years, and the remaining second years, if any, live on an additional floor above the first years in their dormitory so that they can be close at hand. Once students have graduated to the third year, they learn the coursework they would have normally learned in the second year, and then graduate on to the fourth year, their final year before they graduate the Academy. The Academy also has an affiliated university for those students wishing to go on to higher learning.
This year's lottery winner for the first year is one that drew a lot of attention. There's a lot of rumours already around this first year, people outraged and crying school favoritism. That's because this year's lottery winner was the child of one of the school staff members. In particular, the school's student counsellor, Tooru Shirota. His nephew, who he's legal guardian of, won the lottery to get into the school. While the school does pay its staff well, their staff can't afford the tuition on their wages, not without being independently wealthy themselves, and it's only ever happened once before, the previous year, and though the school gave all the public assurances, it's widely known among the staff and even the students that that one was definitely school favoritism.
Mahiru was initially really worried about winning the lottery. It seemed simpler to just go on to a normal high school but once chosen, he figured it would be more trouble than it was worth to refuse the lottery win. Besides, his uncle works lots of long hours at the school so he figures it would be nice to have the opportunity to spend more time around his uncle. He's even able to pretty easily shrug aside the nasty rumours and the student death of the previous year. It has nothing to do with him and he's sure the school is perfectly safe.
Mahiru arrives at the school to find even more luck on his side. He'd been best friends with Sakuya Watanuki since the two of them were in the sandbox together. Sakuya had moved away the prior year, after some family tragedy that Mahiru never got the full story on, and it was really hard to lose his best friend. So imagine Mahiru's surprise and joy to find out that Sakuya, a prodigy at reading people's body language and facial expressions to the point that he'd been called a human lie detector by some, had been scouted by Servamp Academy and was also a fellow first year. While the Sakuya Mahiru re-met was more somber, a little different and more withdrawn than the one he'd always known, the bond of friendship was definitely still strong and both boys were just glad to see each other, to be together again.
Mahiru's 'mentor' was supposed to meet him at the gate when Mahiru arrived for orientation. However, his buddy was nowhere to be found and it was actually lucky that he saw Sakuya. Sakuya and his 'buddy' guided Mahiru as to where to go for orientation and it was while waiting for orientation to start that Mahiru first met his buddy…who was being forcibly dragged, complaining all the way, towards Mahiru by another first year and their buddy. Mahiru's buddy? Kuro, whose genius was only surpassed by his complete and utter laziness. This whole mentoring business? Way too much work and way too much trouble in Kuro's opinion but the staff insisted and the two were forced to find ways to live and work alongside each other. They end up bickering a lot but Mahiru soon finds out and continues to find out through the story that, when push comes to shove, Kuro is a surprisingly good buddy, someone who will have his back and help him out.
Sakuya's buddy? It's a second year by the name of Tsubaki, a supposed genius. Mahiru doesn't know a lot about Tsubaki, but truth be told, neither does anyone else, even his fellow second years or the upper classman. Tsubaki is prone to odd, eccentric behaviour and speeches but there's hints given throughout the story that despite his apparent eccentricities (most people avoid him because he seems crazy and kind of gives them the creeps), Tsubaki knows a lot more about the school and about the former year's tragedy than he's letting on…at times in the story, you would almost wonder if Tsubaki and his group didn't have something to do with it.
Mahiru in particular finds it really hard to trust Tsubaki, though he does try to befriend him for Sakuya's behalf at first. It really puts Mahiru off though that Tsubaki is almost possessive of Sakuya, separating Sakuya from the other first years whenever possible and Tsubaki seems almost bound and determined to stop the rekindling of Sakuya and Mahiru's friendship. There seems to be a past between Sakuya and Tsubaki though, something that occurred in the year he and Mahiru were apart and it's got to be something major though because Sakuya tells Mahiru flat out that he's very loyal to Tsubaki and would trust him with his life.
Sakuya and Tsubaki are almost always together…if Tsubaki himself cannot assure that Sakuya is with him, than one of the others in the group of students who surround and almost worship Tsubaki is with Sakuya. This includes fellow second years Berukia and Otogiri, third year Shamrock, or fourth year Higan. There are dark rumours around both Tsubaki and the others in his group and people do their best to steer clear of these students, even school staff at times.
Now, you might be wondering about that first year and their buddy that dragged Kuro to meet Mahiru. That first year was a boy by the name of Misono Alicein, the heir to Alicein Corporation (in this universe, I see it being a company very much like Disney - they seem to own almost everything entertainment related). Though prim, proper, and a little awkward, Misono is a kind boy and him and Mahiru grow a friendship really quickly. Misono's buddy is almost his exact counterpoint. Lily is recognizable right away, a teen model who has already garnered a fair amount of fame and celebrity. The two of them are almost the model first year and mentor pair and when Kuro and Mahiru have a hard time really getting along or getting the hang of the school, it's Misono and Lily who help them out and guide them.
Surprising Misono though, he's not the only Alicein in the first year. Mikuni Alicein also shows up as a first year student, despite being older than the other first years. He held off on attending high school, busy exploring the world, and since age is not a requirement the school holds too strongly to, he was accepted in. The problem is that things between Mikuni and Misono are not great, to say the least. Mikuni himself is a genius and a prodigy but rumours abound as to why, at the age of ten, Mikuni was emancipated and disowned from the Alicein family. The family themselves and the staff in the household are forbidden from ever even mentioning him and Misono has no idea as to why. He knows something happened and there are vicious rumours among the uppercrust society, but what he does know is that he feels he hates his brother…feels abandoned and untrusting towards him. Meanwhile, Mikuni sees this attending school together to reconnect with his brother, only to find himself rebuffed at any second.
Is it only his brother that Mikuni is there for though? It's heavily hinted that there's a lot more to Mikuni than his outgoing, silly personality implies. What all he knows and why and how much of a hand he has in the story's events? Not even Mikuni's 'buddy' knows.
And speaking of Mikuni's buddy, it's a boy named Jeje. Jeje comes from a famed family of artisans known for their skill in making masks. Jeje himself is no exception. The masks he makes are highly sought after, exquisitely beautiful. Jeje, a quiet and imposingly tall boy, wears a different mask, each handmade by him, every day, something that does not lessen the fear and unease his fellow students feel around him and he is normally quite avoided on campus.
The only person routinely seen around Mikuni and Jeje both is a third year student by the name of Johannes Mimir Faustus. Johannes is the creator, leader, and one of only two members of the school's Science Club. Johannes is a famed inventor and scientist already at his young age and there's rumours about just how far the boy would go to learn, grow, and advance the world's scientific knowledge - possibly even all the way to downright murder and experimentation on a human body. However, those are only rumours, though the boy's not really behaving like he's playing with a full deck, if you get what I mean. Johannes himself is very unconcerned with the rumours. Everything he does, he does to learn new things and as such, he's perfectly willing to align himself with whomever will grant him the best opportunities to learn something new and interesting.
Another first year that Mahiru soon gets friendly with is a boy by the name of Tetsu. Mahiru stumbles across him after orientation. Tetsu's trying to look for and refind his 'buddy', something that occurs frequently throughout the story as the two seem to constantly be getting lost or separated from each other. Tetsu is the youngest of the first years, the most unsure of how to navigate the school and its rules and quirks. He's known as the world's strongest boy and made a name for himself as a tweenage wrestler, but honestly, he's a gentle giant who just wants to make friends and have a happy school life.
His buddy is a second year student named Hugh, a perfect match for Tetsu as Hugh is also a child prodigy and much younger than the other students, both the first and second years. A literal child, Hugh hardly acts it. He's prideful and boastful and a little annoying at times, but most of all, he's very secretive…he definitely knows things that he won't tell, that he shouldn't know, and the only one to trust him fully throughout the events of the story is Tetsu himself.
Another first year is a girl by the name of Izuna Nobel. She's a genius inventor and mechanic, known for making waves in the field of robotics. Izuna's a really kind girl but I don't see her making really close friends with most of her fellow first years. To be honest, inventing is her biggest passion, her hobby, and what she spends most of her time doing when she doesn't have to be in class. So she doesn't really spend a lot of time with her fellow first years and she's definitely only really close to her 'buddy' but I still see her really helping out the others and still being kind to them throughout the story's events.
Izuna's buddy is a second year named Freya. Freya is a wealthy heiress, an heiress to a Russian crime family if you believe the rumours. Honestly, most everyone in the school is terrified of her, especially given her 'resting bitch face', with only a few chosen people having gained friendships with her. Her and Izuna are almost always together, together with another second year who is really close to Freya, Gilberto Weasel and a third year who was Gil's buddy the prior year, Rayscent Crazyrabbit.
The first year that gets the least attention though and almost seems to fade into the background a lot is a quiet boy named Niccolo Carpediem. The son and heir of the largest family in the Italian mob, Niccolo is somehow still very much a nonpresence, a very quiet boy who seems almost invisible at points given how little people notice him. It's actually a skill in its own right though and don't mistake his shyness for weakness because Niccolo didn't get accepted into Servamp Academy just due to his wealth - he's more than capable in his own right.
Completely the opposite of Niccolo is his 'buddy', Ildio, a loud and brash second year and master chef who won some amount of celebrity for his overwhelming victory on a children's cooking competition show. They appear to be complete opposites, the quintessential odd pair, but surprisingly, Ildio and Niccolo get along really well and have the least amount of quarrels or hesitation working together out of all the first years and their buddies.
But the first year that gets the most attention? That's easy because it's not just the first year everyone is studying, but their second year buddy. The first year is a famous piano prodigy, Licht Jekylland Todoroki, who has already played major concerts throughout the world, though they've temporarily retired to attend school. Honestly, Licht only agreed to attend Servamp Academy because his part-time manager and promoter, the better of the two he has, Rosen Crantz, also chose to attend the school and is in his third year. Licht hates the idea of the buddy system right from the get-go though and is always at odds with his 'buddy'.
And who is his buddy? Oh, his buddy is absolutely famous, both by his own merit and by his very close connection to Ophelia, the dead student at the center of last year's tragedy. Lawless is a famous child actor who took a hiatus from the silver screen and the stage to attend Servamp Academy. While there, he became close to Ophelia and the two of them starred in the many stage productions the school put on. Everyone knew them to be almost inseparable. Rumours are swirling that Lawless had something to do with Ophelia's disappearance and death, that he has to know something.
Lawless absolutely refuses to believe any of the official stories being stated about Ophelia, either from the school or the police, who believe one of their former teachers might have had a hand in it, that Ophelia and the teacher had been having an affair and that her death was a crime of passion, given creedance by the fact that the teacher in question disappeared around the same time, assumed to be on the run. He knows Ophelia too well to believe anything like that about her and is bound and determined to get to the truth of her death. He has absolutely no time for this buddy shit and he makes it clear to his buddy from the beginning. He's begged and pleaded and even tried to blackmail his fellow second years into helping him with no success…The only people he can seem to get to listen to him are his best friend, a fourth year called Guildenstern, whose the Acting Club's lighting director. Oh, and Syuhei Tsukimitsu, the son of the disgraced teacher, who accepts a menial job as the janitor of the first year dormitories in order to infiltrate the school and try to clear his father's name.
Other important characters include a gang of second years who aren't buddied with any particular student. They can be helpful or completely apathetic, often bouncing in between the two, seemingly guided by their own desires and wants. However, one of those second years is particularly famous, given that he's the only other student to win the lottery that has a parental figure working in the school. That second year is, of course, Tsurugi Kamiya, the adopted son of the school's assistant headmaster (so, for all extents and purposes, with Sensei not being seen, the one running the day to day and making all the rules), Taishi Toma. Tsurugi is joined by his two friends - a genius by the name of Junichirou Kurumamori and the youngest son of an insanely wealthy family, Yumikage Tsukimitsu.
Also among the staff members are its literature teacher, Iori Tsukimitsu, the heir to the Tsukimitsu family and his sister, Miyako Tsukimitsu, the art history teacher.
Formerly the physical education and survival teacher, Yoshimasa Tsuyuki has been missing since the day Ophelia went missing.
Through the story, I do see the first year's getting sucked into this whole investigation, along with their buddies and the other characters, and they're all trying to solve the mystery, as well as uncovering the many secrets of Servamp Academy, including the one surrounding its very mysterious headmaster.
And to anyone wondering, Koyuki and Ryusei, though they didn't get into Servamp Academy like Sakuya and Mahiru, they still routinely write, email, text, and Snap their two childhood friends and are super proud of their friends for getting into Servamp Academy.
