Colorful Sight

(Track 3 of Colorful Sight) "One day my mindless routine at the Academy was broken when I saw someone I didn't know in the staffroom.  The enigmatic newcomer had an unusual vibe which immediately attracted my attention and my curiosity.  Somehow, she kind of reminded me of an old friend...a special person from my past.  Then I recalled that she was a new member of the faculty.  Coworker A.  I paused, as perplexed as I was fascinated, wondering what to do next.  And then she turned and Looked at me.  Not a glimpse, but a level Gaze that went right through me to my very soul.
I felt a strange sense of...familiarity...that terrified me, and yet fired up my curiosity at the same time.
And the world began to change."
(From The Academy Annals)

Sudden Engazement

(Track 10 of Colorful Sight) "The Mentor was a veteran teacher who started at the Academy the same year I did, and for over 20 years he and I got along really well, almost like friends.  (Almost.)  He was a tall guy and athletic, but also a gamer nerd.  Ostensibly neurodivergent, he had a strong sense of responsibility and got irritated if things weren't done the proper way (in his view).  He liked to help people, and was a good man in that respect, but was famously self-centered and not known for empathy or social skills.  He was also a notorious womanizer and was especially fond of chasing the young, new teachers.  When Coworker A arrived, she was put in the new grade team he headed, and since she struggled, he took her under his wing and mentored her like a big brother.  There was a lot of dark muttering about his true intentions, but for the first few years at least his behavior toward her was perfectly innocent.  She came to trust him deeply, and while shy and withdrawn among other teachers, she opened up and became very talkative and animated in his presence.  During that fateful year, it didn't take long for me to notice that, in her bubbly staffroom chats with him, my name got mentioned a lot.  But while he patiently responded to her constant questions and observations about me, I could sense the rising tension.  After a while, his attitude toward me became colder and eventually turned into open resentment...to the point that faculty and administrators alike advised me to stay away from him.  Sadly, that grudge appears to have continued to some extent to this day."  (From The Academy Annals)

The Mentor

(Track 1 of Colorful Sight) "This is the beginning of a story most complex, convoluted, and strange...especially because, for me at least, it is true.  Please listen as I tell my humble tale." (From the Academy Annals)

Reluctant Reminiscing

(Colorful Sight Track 2)  "Ye Olde Academy was a somewhat prestigious Japanese private school, grades 7 to 12, in a somewhat isolated location atop a granite hill in a former Shinto shrine forest not far from the sea.  I had already been teaching there for around 20 years when Coworker A joined the faculty.  Quite a number of teachers had come and gone while I was there, so her appearance went largely unnoticed by me, though I did overhear some talk that she was unusual.  But since she was assigned to the junior high section, while I worked mainly in the senior high section, I all but forgot about her.  That soon changed rather suddenly."  (From the Academy Annals)

The Academy - Intro

(Track 5 of Colorful Sight) "By her third year at the Academy, Coworker A was really starting to irritate me.  The positive rush brought by her cheerful greetings failed to make up for her otherwise unfriendly and even rude behavior.  The fact that she reminded me of an old friend made it worse.  I came to the knee-jerk conclusion that she was treating me like scum for reasons of racism.  I figured two could play that game, so I vowed not to have anything to do with her (except polite greetings) even if my job called for it despite protests from other coworkers that she was really a kind and friendly person, just shy.  But her behavior toward me still wasn't making sense.  As certain truths began to dawn on me, I realized that the others were right, and she really was just terribly shy.  Then I started to feel guilty.  (From The Academy Annals)

What Am I To You

(Track 4 of Colorful Sight)  "I was intrigued by Coworker A.  She reminded me of a couple of old friends and felt like a kindred spirit, so I really hoped that we could become better acquainted.  Unfortunately, I was rebuffed.  Though she always greeted me pleasantly, she made it plain that she wanted nothing at all to do with me.  Attempts to engage her in conversation failed.  Sometimes she went out of her way to avoid me.  And yet there were times when her behavior toward me didn't add up.  I kept encountering her in unlikely places, as if she'd been following me, and during assemblies or school events she tended to be in my vicinity a lot.  I also saw her on occasion standing in the hall watching my lessons through the open door.  Was she avoiding me, stalking me, or both?"  (From the Academy Annals)

The Mentor

The Moody Minstrel