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Attending Hope’s Peak Academy in Japan has given Princess Sonia Nevermind of Novoselic many freedoms that she was not allowed in her home country. She’s been able to dine on cheap food made quickly (she’d never had a cheeseburger before, and now she will ask her friends to go out for them any chance she can get). She’s been to fashion districts and shopping malls without an escort— just her friends. And the most exciting to her? Dating.
In Novoselic, Sonia could only be involved with suitors whom her parents deemed acceptable. She would dance and dine with these high society boys, but none seemed to want to go through the effort of truly courting her. Sonia yearned for romance, and being an ocean away from her family meant she was free to pursue whoever she wished. The only approval she needed was her own.
She’s been on at least one date with almost everyone in her class. At the end of a majority of those dates, she realized she would rather have them as a friend and not as a partner, and everyone has been very accepting of her decisions. She loves her class, yes, even Kazuichi, but she just isn’t in love with any of them. Especially not Kazuichi.
Today, however, Sonia started her second year at Hope’s Peak. She was excited to be a student chaperone for the incoming 78th Class. Each member of her class would be paired with a student from the incoming class who had a similar talent, and they would show Class 78 areas of the school that would be important to their studies. Sonia saw her name on the assignments sheet and looked it over to see who she would be paired with.
Sonia Nevermind- Ultimate Princess … Mukuro Ikusaba- Ultimate Soldier
Sonia clapped her hands in delight when she saw Mukuro’s talent. They definitely have things they could talk about. Little did she know what was in store for her.
She and her classmates waited in the gymnasium, holding signs with their underclassmen’s names on them. As Class 78 entered, Sonia looked at all of them and tried to parse out which one was Mukuro. To her surprise, two girls approached her. One had short dark hair, and the other had voluminous strawberry blonde pigtails. “Hm. Looks like we’re being separated,” the blonde one remarked with a dramatic pout.
“It seems so,” the dark-haired girl replied.
“Whatever. Bye, loser!” And with a wave, the blonde girl pivoted and walked away, the high heels of her boots clacking on the polished wooden floor.
Confused by those two’s dynamic, but not wanting to make a bad first impression, Sonia reached out her hand to whom she presumed was Mukuro and introduced herself. “It is so nice to meet you! My name is Sonia Nevermind.”
The girl took her hand and gave it a firm shake. “Mukuro Ikusaba.”
Her curiosity got the better of her. “You do… You do know her, correct?”
Mukuro sighed. “Yes, that’s my twin sister, Junko.”
“Oh! That must be exciting: both you and your sister being accepted into Hope’s Peak.”
Mukuro’s lips curled into a small smile, and Sonia felt warm all over. Mukuro’s smile makes her grey eyes sparkle, and the freckles on her cheeks are more defined. She’s cute. “I don’t think I would’ve enrolled if Junko wasn’t also accepted.”
“That is very sweet,” Sonia said, trying to ignore how Junko called her sister a loser. “Shall we get going? I bet you are excited to see the campus.”
“I am.”
Taking a risk, Sonia extended her arm, offering it to Mukuro. And after a moment of hesitation, Mukuro linked arms with Sonia. “The uniform looks darling on you, Mukuro,” Sonia said, hoping to flirt.
“Me?”
“Is there another Mukuro around?” Sonia teased.
Mukuro’s freckles were now coated in a rose tint. “Oh, thank you,” she chuckled, “I didn’t think so since Junko told me I looked bad this morning.”
Sonia furrowed her brow. She’s an only child herself, so she doesn’t know the ins and outs of being a sibling, but that didn’t sit right with her. “She was probably just teasing you. I think it suits you.”
The first places Sonia showed Mukuro were the important rooms and facilities on the first floor. She showed her the academic classrooms and the nurse’s office, and then she took her to the residential wing, where they visited the cafeteria, dorms, and other facilities that may be of interest, like where to do laundry and take out trash.
“If you ever need to unwind after classes,” Sonia began as they approached the sauna, “you can come to the sauna and bath house. And if you need someone to go with you… I can give you my phone number.”
“You… you want my phone number?” Mukuro asked, sounding surprised.
“Is that so hard to believe?”
“It’s just… you’re… you’re so—“
“I am so what?”
“You’re pretty,” Mukuro admitted.
Sonia laughed, “Oh, thank you! Why does that matter?”
“Well, um,” Mukuro started wringing her hands together, “When I, um, came out to Junko, she told me I’d never go out with a girl because I’m not pretty enough.”
Sonia had a bad feeling about Junko before, but this sealed the deal on Sonia’s distaste. “Well, Mukuro, I think you’re pretty. And I would like to get to know you. So please, take my phone number?”
She decided she didn’t want to tell Mukuro how she feels about Junko at this moment. It probably isn’t appropriate to badmouth someone’s twin sister the same day you met them. Mukuro reached into her blazer’s pocket and pulled out her cellphone. She handed it over to Sonia, and Sonia entered her number into Mukuro’s contacts. “Thank you,” Sonia said with a smile, “Now, let me show you the places where you will hone your talent. How did you come about becoming the Ultimate Soldier?”