bakerstreet | High school au

High school au

high school au meme

1. Post with your character with their name and series in the subject line.

2. Roll 1-19.

3. ???

4. Play out high school AU times.

1. first day

Catch up with old friends, brave new teachers, fight your way through the sea of students, and hope you're in the right classroom. Oh, you're the new kid. Well, that's okay as long as you've got more than enough summer vacation anecdotes to fill ten pages of Times New Roman size 12, single-spaced.

2. first period

You're gonna be late! Or are you already there? Class hasn't started just yet, so chat it up or copy your classmate's homework before the teacher gets here.

3. lesson proper

You're probably diligently taking notes, looking out the window daydreaming or reciting in class, much to your teacher's delight - or dismay. Try not to be too obvious when counting down the minutes and pass that note as discreetly as possible.

4. faculty

Have a bone to pick with your terror math teacher. A crush on the cute chemistry teacher? There might be something you want to ask your homeroom teacher about. In any case, you plan on seeing a faculty member today. Or maybe they plan on seeing you!

5. lunch break

Man, you are starving. Hopefully, today's menu has something good. If the crowded cafeteria's not your thing, try the rooftop.

6. hooky

One of you is skipping class. You should try talking them out of it if that's your thing.

7. detention

What on earth did you do to get this? Oh well. Detention can't be that bad when you've got all these very nice, approachable model students around to talk to.

8. p.e.

Baseball, basketball, dodgeball - no matter the sport, just remember: you are the star. It's you. At least, you hope it is.

9. home ec.

Sewing! Cooking! ... Try not to burn the school down!

10. lab work

Frog dissections! Explosions!

11. school fair/festival

Every school has one of these. What's your class doing this year?

12. theater

Oh boy, oh boy, being the star of this play is your dream. It isn't? Oh. You're still helping with the props and costumes, right?

13. library

If you need to look something up or just want some peace and quiet, this is the place. Whatever you do, shh, people are trying to read.

14. bully

Whether they take the form of Nelson Muntz or Regina George, if you choose to meet them at the gym at four o' clock or else, be ready to face the consequences... or maybe you don't have to. Not when someone's here to help you out. (This can go either way - one of the participants can be the bully or someone helping the victim.)

15. tutor

You're having trouble with a class or you're trying to make up for the days you were absent. It's a good thing someone was nice enough to offer their assistance.

16. clubs

Assuming that you actually have one. Are you writing for the school paper? Part of the student council? The marching band? Maybe you're a member of one of those weird occult clubs or something...

17. prom

Do you have a dress? A date? Who are you voting for prom king? Is being on prom committee is driving you crazy? Do you even care?

18. graduation

Well, it was fun while it lasted. It's time to say those last words, settle those scores and get ready to grow up.

19. roll again/make your own scenario

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Edited 2026-01-15 10:09 (UTC)

[ What was the point of graduating, he'd said. It's not like he was gonna go to university. It's not like he was gonna get a corporate job. He was just gonna cook somewhere, or do some labor, and it'd be fine.

Mitsuru had leveled a look at him. A look that didn't allow any kind of room for arguments. A look so firm and resolute and authoritarian that, he thought, she'd pulled off even better than her father ever could. And suddenly Shinji had to get a diploma, or else. He didn't ask her what "else" meant.

He managed to refuse the tutors, at least. Mitsuru said she was going to pay for it, but that wasn't the point. He didn't want a bunch of strangers prattling on at him about formulas and theorems and poetry and dates, when none of that would ever be useful to him in the real life. Makoto was the next best option, but Makoto didn't have the time to waste on Shinji, not when she had university and the police force to deal with. Everyone else was just as busy, with their own futures to worry about. So that leaves Shinji here, shifting uneasily in a chair too plush for his liking, in a room that feels like a whole other world. It reminds him of the Kirijo mansion, in its high windows and ceilings, in its plush curtains and expensive incense.

They couldn't go to his place. There was no way Shinji was going to take Haru to his place. The library was an option. He probably would have preferred the library, if it didn't mean there would be others there, staring at the two of them and wondering what someone like Haru was doing with someone like Shinji. There were glances thrown their way, and barely audible whispers into the still quietness of the library. And Shinji couldn't concentrate on a thing outside the thought to tell the gawkers to fuck off. That would have been worse for Haru, probably, and he couldn't do that to her. Not when she'd insisted on sparing some of her free time on this thankless job.

So he's here, in her pastel colored room, sitting in her plush chair and doing his damnedest to cram formulas into his head. The smell is distracting, and he can't shake the way her maids looked at him when he stepped in past the entrance. ]

Maybe this is not such a good idea, [ he says, sighing with some frustration, a lot of it with himself. ] Maybe we can borrow LeBlanc or somethin'.

[ Why hadn't he thought about LeBlanc? It's nice. It's quiet. Amamiya makes great coffee. And most importantly the people there probably wouldn't care about Shinji, or what he was doing with Haru in the first place. Something so futile such as this... ]

Like I said, you don't have to do this. I'm probably not gonna get it regardless.

Edited 2026-01-15 18:01 (UTC)

[Had she simply approached her father and said that she wanted to tutor Shinji - or anyone, really - the answer likely would have been a resounding no. Such things are beneath her and could damage the family's reputation (although she really doesn't see how), she should not be spending time one-on-one with a young man when she has a fiancé (although she really hates him and would much prefer to call off the engagement), and so on and so forth.

But, when the suggestion comes fromn the heiress of the Kirijo group... even Haru's father would be hard-pressed to say no. So it's allowed, despite the side-eyeing from the maids, and despite the stern warnings not to do anything inappropriate. It is a study session, she had protested. What inappropriate things could we possibly do?

Anyway, this happening in her room is as calculated as anything else her father has ever done. In here, they can't be seen by other people. Which means so long as the maids keep their mouth shut, nobody will know she's meeting with a boy her age. There's no chance of word getting back to Sugimura and threatening the engagement.

(She almost wishes it would.)

Leblanc would be a nicer option, but she's aware her father won't be happy about it if she's spotted there on what looks like a date, even if it's not and even if they're there with textbooks and homework and everything.]

That would take a bit of convincing, I'm afraid.

[But what she wouldn't give for this to feel a little less awkward. It does seem like Shinji doesn't particularly want to be here, which is a shame, because even if it is just for schoolwork - she does enjoy spending time with him. He's gruff, and he's not always the kindest to himself, but she admires the way he just says things, sometimes.

He often asserts himself in a way that she wishes she could.]

And, well... no. With that mindset, you won't. [She purses her lips.] Aragaki-san, you're capable of learning this. I do wish you would stop telling yourself that you aren't.

[ But Haru, it's Shinji, Negative Nancy.

It has been far more than reasonably difficult to disappoint people. His own friends, sure, with their history and bias, Shinji has given up on distancing himself. Others, he thought, should have been easy enough. He didn't betray anything that could have given the impression that he was worth a dime. He kept them at a distance. The most interaction he'd had with them were missions and fights, and even there he was no more than average.

(Was it the food? The parties? It was probably the parties.) ]

I'm being realistic. [ Idly, Shinji taps his pencil against the page and avoids looking at Haru's face. It's particularly difficult somehow, looking at her, out of everyone. She was closest to Mitsuru in status, but more similar to Fuuka in demeanor. It's the worst of both worlds, where he's concerned about hurting her status and hurting her feelings all at once. ]

It makes sense for the rest of 'ya, not me. I-

[ -wasn't supposed to be alive in the first place. So he hadn't really thought about the future. He hadn't thought about what he would do after school. Hadn't thought about anything beyond Tartarus. Now that it's gone, he feels... oddly bereft, despite the fact that his debt's been paid. ]

--whatever. Keep going.

[ Shinji may be a lowlife (in his opinion), he still isn't the kind that bites the hand that feeds it. The fact that Haru is taking time out of her day to help him with this looms heavily in his mind. An effort - that's all he's gotta give, right. What else was he gonna do with this life he didn't think he'd have? ]

[Haru raises an eyebrow at that.]

That's a matter of opinion.

[Realistic, her foot. He won't really know until he's tried, and they've only just recently begun having her tutor him; she has seen him accomplish plenty of things that others wouldn't ever be able to manage. Sure, they're different from studying and taking tests, but that's fine. Everyone has their own skills.

If what their teachers are covering in classes aren't helping, then they just need a different approach.

So she nods when he tells her to keep going, and launches into what she hopes is a reasonable explanation of one of the formulas they're expected to be covering on their next set of exams. She breaks it down step by step, leaving space for him to ask questions if anything doesn't make sense before moving on to the next part, and as she's finishing up, she slides a worksheet with a few practice problems on it toward him.]

...and that's how you solve for it. Here, give it a try.

[He may be avoiding looking at her directly, but she is watching him. The expression on her face isn't judgmental, at least. It's not expectant either, exactly - but it is the sort of expression one would find on the face of someone who believes wholeheartedly that what she's asking him to do is within his abiliy to do.]

[ A not-insignificant part of it is the fact that it's Haru. It's the fact that it's someone he knows, someone he respects, that forces him to put real effort into paying attention. The fact that he has absolutely zero interest in the subjects makes it doubly difficult, but at least he's... trying. More than he would sitting at a desk at school. The way Haru explains the concepts is different too. She tries to use analogies that have to do with things that were more relevant to Shinji, rather than staying in the abstract.

He tries the problems. They're not easy, but surprisingly he thinks he understands the ways to solve them after thinking for a little while. For a few minutes there's only the quiet scratching of his pencil on the page, and when he's finished he slides the notebook back to her without a word.

A knock comes at her door then, and a maid's voice speaks up from beyond it. She's brought snacks, she says, and insists that Haru receives at the door. It's odd. Snacks have been brought to them multiple times now since Shinji's been here. They have a full plate of biscuits sitting on the desk. He's starting to think they might actually be trying to make sure nothing untoward is happening, especially after a quiet spell. ]

Edited 2026-01-18 21:30 (UTC)

[Individual attention works much better for teaching than generalized group instruction. Haru knows this well enough from her own lessons growing up, so it's no small wonder that one-on-one tutoring had been the option Mitsuru had insisted on for Shinji. And it seems to be working; she looks satisfied when he buckles down to work on the practice problems.

When he slides the notebook back, she picks it up to go through them to check for accuracy - only for the knock and the maid's voice to come from the door.

She outright frowns at that, tucking the notebook into the crook of her arm and opening the door to meet the maid face to face.]

Pardon my saying so... [she says politely, but firmly.] ...but I am not certain how we are meant to get any studying done with these constant interruptions.

[She steps aside so that the maid can see into the room and indicates the desk, where the plate of biscuits is still very obviously full.]

As you can see, we are still working on the last batch. If we want more snacks we will call for you, but I must insist that you leave us alone.

[She moves to shut the door then. Goodbye, maid.]

[ Less like Fuuka now, Shinji muses, while listening to the maid's weak protests. It's not like the blame's on her. The order likely came from Haru's father, who held the ultimate authority in this house. It's not the same as the Kirijo house, where Mitsuru had her father's implicit trust. ]

Must be tough. [ He says, after the door is closed and Haru is back at the desk. He's heard about her engagement, which is no new concept to Shinji. Mitsuru's fiancé had been something of a jackass, which makes Shinji wonder a little about this man Haru is engaged to. ]

Would it help if we kept the door open? [ as a concession. It might be more reassuring than keeping the door closed. ] I know you got a fiancé and all.

...no.

[That's not entirely right. It might help if they kept the door open, but Haru thinks it's a little ridiculous to insist upon it. Either she's trusted to behave herself, closed door or no, or she isn't. And if she isn't, then why...]

If he believes that I am so immature as to cause trouble if a door is closed, then he really has no business arranging my engagement to anyone.

[It's sort of a silly point to prove, but it's not like she can outright rebel against the engagement itself. With a sigh, she finally opens the notebook to look through it, nodding a little to herself as she reviews his answers.]

...well, look at this, Aragaki-kun! You got each of these problems correct. Good work.

[ Huh. How about that. ]

You sure? [ It's a little unbelievable. Even before everything else, he still wasn't a good student by any means. He was average, went through the motions. And he was only thinking about the power that set him apart, that made him feel special, made him foolish. There might be a tiny, minuscule little sense of pride somewhere in Shinji's chest, but it's snuffed out as soon as it makes its presence known. ] Thanks to you, I guess.

[ One step at a time. Shinji doesn't think he'll make it in time for the regular exams, but there are tests he can take after. He still remembers when Mitsuru has drawn out a whole schedule of subjects and timeline and when she believed Shinji would be ready for them all. It's quite daunting.

Speaking of Mitsuru... ]

Mitsuru was engaged once. [ He looks over at Haru, and notes the cloudy expression on her face. ] Apparently guy was a pissant.

[ How about yours? - he wants to ask, but doesn't. ]

Either you did, or we've both gotten it wrong.

[It would actually be pretty funny if Haru not only goofed the practice problems but also taught him the entirely wrong method. It's not what happened, but it would have been funny.

Anyway, it's a marathon, not a sprint. Little by little, as he learns this, he'll inevitably find ways to apply the methods he's being taught to other problems he encounters on his later exams. Haru is certain that he'll be just fine once push comes to shove; it's just that it had needed a different explanation to really make it stick.

She glances at him when he brings up mitsuru and her engagement.]

"Was" engaged? I'm glad to hear it's in the past, then, if he was that bad.

[He's awful, She wants to tell him, but also doesn't. Perhaps I ought to ask her for tips on how to end the arrangement?

Even if that's what she wants, it wouldn't work anyway. What matters here is not her own desires, but rather, her father's hopes for what he can get out of it. She's well aware of that.]

Yeah, she called it off. Kinda wish I'd been there to see it.

[ A tiny, almost imperceptible smile tugs at the corner of Shinji's lips. He's not privy to the details. Mitsuru has always been rather private about that side of her life. He's only found out when she mentioned it in passing later, and they all had toasted to the good news then. She'd looked so free, so full of life.

He was happy for her. ]

How's yours? [ He asks, finally. ] Any good?

I'm happy for her.

[What must it be like, to be able to say no to an engagement and have that no be respected? Haru can't even begin to imagine, and as glad as she is that Mitsuru doesn't have to go through with it, she can't help but feel a little jealous, deep down.

Even if she refused, even if she begged and pleaded with her father to not proceed with the arrangement - it wouldn't change a thing. He would still do as he pleased, for the betterment of the Okumura family. It doesn't matter to him that the man is much older than Haru, or that he says and does things that are reprehensible, or that the way he looks sometimes at her makes her skin crawl.

But that's not something she should be unloading on Shinji, either. She purses her lips, contemplating the best way to describe him.]

We do not know each other very well yet... my father feels that he will make a good match, though. [For the family, not for me. She doesn't say that.] I am sure he must have many admirable qualities that I am not yet aware of.

[Deep down. Very, very deep down.]

[ The reprehension in Haru's voice is palpable, and Shinji's not sure how much of it is because the man is not a good man, or because she's not excited about the concept of being promised to someone else irrespective of her own desires. Mitsuru was the same, engaged for the sake of the company until she decided that she needed to do what was good for her, that she was absolutely capable of holding up the company without compromising herself. ]

So you don't know him at all. [ There's a bit of pity in Shinji's voice. It's still not his place to say anything. Maybe what she says is true - maybe this man is a better person than Mitsuru's fiance had been, but... what are the chances of that? ]

Look, I dunno what you want or your situation, but... [ Should he even say anything? He should just keep his mouth shut. But there's something in Haru's expression that softens him, just a little bit. ]

Sometimes it's good to put yourself first.

I'm alright. [She says this quickly, with a light, easy smile that does not quite reach her eyes; on some level, she's probably aware that it doesn't, because she tilts her head to look down at the study material.] I want to be of help to my family.

[If she tells herself that often enough, surely it will become true? Her father's desires will become her own desires, and then it won't hurt so much.]

Hmm... Let's move on to the next formula. It's a little simpler than the last, so it should be easier to commit to memory.

[ What else could he say to that? There's a lot of words like does your dad even care about how you feel or you're not the company or who gives a shit about the company if you're gonna be miserable, but in the end Shinji couldn't possibly understand Haru's position. He can't put himself in her shoes (and doesn't want to), so there's no place for him to say anything. Maybe Mitsuru might be able to. ]

Sure. [ He shrugs, dropping the subject and refocusing on the textbook. Just focus on the task at hand. Maybe he'll even forget about the look on her face given enough time.

Time goes by quickly when you're immersed in something. Shinji eventually finds himself not hating this whole learning thing so much. It helps when he can see himself making a little progress here and there, and the problems are not an unsurmountable hurdle. Eventually they reach a stopping point just when the sun is starting to set on the horizon. It's only when Shinji is packing up his things that he remembers something he'd brought. ]

Here's the fertilizer you asked for. [ A bag is placed on the table. ] It's mostly food scraps and and mulch, there shouldn't be too much of a smell. Feed the plants once a week in the spring.

[The rest of the tutoring session goes reasonably well. It's easier for Haru to shake off the gloom that comes with thinking about her fiancé when she immerses herself in a task, and she finds that she really likes working with Shinji. He's making progress - he's trying - and it's rewarding to see how far he'll go.

When he stops his packing up to set that bag there, her eyes widen -]

Oh!

[And her expression softens with a smile a moment later.]

Thank you, Aragaki-san. I really do appreciate it. [She examines the bag with interest, then nods.] I'll be sure to save some of whatever I harvest for you.

[Fair's fair! If he's helping her with the fertilizer, then he can get soem fresh vegetables in return.]