Miki turns about excitedly...

"Oooooohhhh, sorry Teacher, I didn't realise it was yours..."

Huh?

I pause as I was reaching over to touch it.  She turns back to organising her desk. "I used to have a pet cat, we're not allowed pets here though.  But your dog is probably ok."

I attempt to touch the wolf this time, but my hand simply grasps through it as if it is made of smoke.  "Why do you say that?"

Miki sits up straight, looking proud as she gives her explanation, "Because he's your power, can't you see?  Just squeeze your mind and try."

Squeeze my mind?

I am reminded of the headaches I received when I saw the information for the coffee I drank two mornings ago.  Regardless, I needed to see for myself.  I could always take some painkillers if a headache emerged and the headaches before never appeared to stay around for too long.

I attempted to do as Miki described.  I started to see flashes in front of me and my head began to ache, though not as badly this time as before.  Suddenly my vision was struck with far more information than I could handle.  Hundreds of labels detailed everything in the room causing my headache to intensify.  I pushed through quickly and focused on the beast in front of me.

[Kai Fukami's Wolf ‚’#i¤Ð!] - Level # #

"So it belongs to me?  Ok, but what is it?  I mean, it's a wolf-what?  What are the random characters?"

Miki, just shrugs at me with an innocent smile, "I duhnno."  She turns about in her chair giggling at my conundrum and continues to organise the stationary on her desk, humming in the process.

I sigh in response, I couldn't blame her for laughing.  It doesn't seem like this wolf thing will bother the class, but I normally wouldn't risk it regardless.

Unfortunately, that's not my call to make.  In fact, Akane informed me that unless fighting broke out amongst the students that we were to proceed with class no matter what.  She assured me they were using equipment to monitor us constantly wherever we went.

A boy and and a girl enter side by side and sit by each other at the front of the class.  The boy looks to be walking with an energy about him and immediatly lifts the lid on his desk, fiddling around with everything inside it.  Short blond spikey hair, slim and tall, his name is Raiden Takemoto, 12 years old.

The girl, Azumi Oki sits down against the wall furthest from the door.  She immediately takes out some sort of gaming magazine and raises it in front of her, reading intensively and keeping the doorway in her peripheral vision.  She seems very quiet on first appearances, her file indicates she has issues with malnourisment, she looks taller and skinnier than other girls her age, which is 13 I think; short dark hair, eyes that kind of look like she's always bored or tired and a very flat sounding voice.

Within half a minute, another 4 students enter, 3 boys and a girl.  Shugo is at the front with a grin on his face as he talks loudly with the others.  I wasn't certain what to expect from him today, but I had to be prepared to adapt.

The biggest mistake teachers can make with students who begin to oppose authority is to profile them too early, but at the same time, kids who are defiant at an early age will also profile you.  As a result they can throw all sorts of tests at you or make things chaotic just to try and elicit a bad reaction.  Most commonly, they'll point out flaws in everything they can, so you absolutely mustn't react pridefully.  In fact sometimes it's best to agree with their observations, then add a polite flourish or explanation, try to get them to agree with something little as a result; that is to say, walk beside them, not in front or behind them.

The reality is, we as humans can't help but put people into categories, maybe it's a natural part of human thinking and it often results in us being judgemental.  The key in teaching 'difficult students' is to be aware of the complexities of a student, but not let these things define the way we view them.  It sounds simple enough in theory, but in practice, there are many teachers out there who will preach this, but can't practice it, no matter how hard they try.

As he walks into the room, his bag hanging loose from one shoulder, Shugo stops abrubtly and points at the wolf.

"Hey Teach, the fuck is that thing doing here?  You scared of us?"

Now, of course when it comes to first impressions, you might think there's some secret method to talking with a kid who might be trying to get you riled up.  Ultimately though, it's just about respecting them, you've got to give respect first before receiving it right?

"Language Mr Okamoto!  As to your question, I have no idea."

"Pfft, lier."

When a student questions your integrity, it's easy to feel hurt.  With a flat tone and serious delivery, I look him in the eyes and respond.

"It haunts my nightmares"

"What?"  Caught off guard, Shugo has to hold back laughter.  If he laughs, it means he has conceeded on a certain level.  He and the others quickly change the topic and start joking between themselves as they head to their seats.  As they do so, another 2 girls and a boy enter with Toki trailing behind in the hallway.  That's all of them, 10 students in total.  Toki stops for a moment and stares in my direction, before he looks away and continues along.

"Class, I think that at Mr Okamoto's suggestion, we'll go to the Rec floor to do roll call and introductions.  Feel free to leave your things here if you like."

I smile, feeling a satisfaction I thought I'd lost...  This might be doable after all.