A Nerd at Youki

When my parents told me I was switching schools, the very last thing I was expecting was to end up at Youkei. Well, other than the sudden transformation into a fricking Dragon! Man, this is going to be a long year.

This is a story I've been musing over for a while, trying to decide whether or not to post it. Now, since your reading this, I clearly desided to do so since I want a break from my Black Zodiac series for a bit. The main character is based, somewhat, off me, although I can't speak Japanese and I'm not a dragon. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

"How in the word did I end up here again?" I muttered, looking out of the window of the bus that was taking me to my new school.


"I'm sorry, could you say that again?" I asked, not sure whether I'd heard my Mum correctly, "I could have sworn you just said I was changing schools."

"You heard me right," said Mum.

"Why? Whats wrong with my current one?" I asked.

"Nothing, but your Father and I feel that this new one will better suit you," answered Mom.

"Do I get a say in this?"

"Nope."

"Fine, whats the name of the school?"

"Youkai Academy."

I spat out the mouthful of tea I had just taken.


Oh yeah, thats how. When Mum had told me the name of the school I genuinely thought she was joking or at least that the school just so happened to share the same name as 'that' school but that hope was quickly dashed when I was caught the bus and was greeted by the terrifying driver with glowing eyes.

"Your Mark Read, correct?" asked the Driver from around.

"And your the creepy ass busdriver," I replied.

I tend to get snarky when scared out of my wits.

"Thoughts so. I hope your ready for this, Youkai Academy can me a reeeealy scary place."

"Don't you think I know that already?" I grumbled, "So whats the deal exactly? If you know who I am then you probably know what I am, right?"

"Yep," said the Driver, "The question is, do you?"

I frowned at the odd question, but before I could ask the bus stopped and allowed a very familiar weakling to get on. Then again, its not really like I can say anything about being weak, now can I?

"Hey there," said the boy in japanese, "Are you going to Youkei to?"

I looked down at my green uniform and shot him a look that made him cough and rub the back of his head.

"Ah, stupid question."

"That is was," I said.

Tsukune gave me an odd look. I could speak Japanese fluently, but I did have a bit of an accent.

"I'm a Brit," I said before he could ask, "My parents signed me up for this school, but I have no idea why since my old one was just fine."

"Huh, thats weird," said Tsukune, "I'm Tsukune Aono by the way."

"Mark Read," I said with a smile, "I hope we can be friends."

Tsukune returned the smile and nodded. The Human boy looked exactly how I expected him to

"Hey kid's, you should brace yourselves," said the Bus Driver, "That tunnel up ahead is the entrance to the School. You especially Mr Read. This is where everything changes."

I blinked and opened my mouth to ask what the hell he was talking about just as we entered the Tunnel. Almost immediately, my body began to burn.

"W-what the hell?" I gasped as I grabbed my chest as my ribs felt like they were about to burst.

"Hey, whats wrong?" asked Tsukune worriedly, "Are you feeling OK?"

"M-my bodys burning," I gasped, "I-I feel like… GAH!"

I toppled off my chair, gasping for breath as my throat burned, my skin crawled and my shoulders throbbed like something was trying to get out. Than, all of a sudden, the sensation vanished and I sucked in a deep breath of air.

"What...the hell was that?" I demanded.

"Hehehehe, oh, you'll see," chuckled the Driver, "We have arrived."

I growled under my breath and got to my feet.

"Are you OK Mark?" asked Tsukune, "What was that?"

"I have no idea," I grumbled, "But I'm OK. Come on, lets go."

I reached up and pulled my bags off the rack, only to nearly fall over backwards as they came down much easier than I was expecting. I narrowed my eyes at the bags. When I had got on the bus, I could barely lift the damn things yet now they seemed to weigh no more than a feather. Something very strange was going on.

I followed Tsukune of the bus, stepping neatly around him when he froze at the sight of the dead trees and blood red ocean.

"W-what the hell?" he spluttered, "Where are we? Its like we entered an entirely different world!"

"Not a clue, but we should get going," I said, pointing in the direction of the campus proper, just as a flash of lightning lit the place up.

"I wanna go home!" whimpered Tsukune.

"Eh, its not that bad," I said, trying to ignore the fact that yes, yes it was that bad, "Besides, the bus has left."

I pointed at the retreating lights of the one way out of the School. Tsukune fell to his knees.

"Noooo, I wanna get out of here!"

"Oh man up kid," I grumbled, "Now come on before we're late!"

I pulled Tsukune to his feet and dragged him in the direction of the school. It didn't take long for him to start walking under his own power though and before we knew it, we were making our way through the forest towards the school. I was a little tense, not really wanting to get hit by Moka, both because it would hurt and because I didn't really want to fuck up the chances of Tsukune and Moka getting together.

"Look out!"

Without even looking, I took a step to the side and allowed Moka to plow straight into Tsukune.

"Are you two OK?" I asked as Tsukune realized he was groping Moka and rocketed back with a nose bleed.

"Oeeww, I think so," groaned Moka, before gasping at the sight of Tsukune's blood, "Oh...blood…"

I sighed and shook my head as she bit into Tsukunes neck, causing the teen to freak out.

"O-oh, I'm sorry," she said, "I couldn't help myself! I'm a Vampire you see. My name is Moka Akashiya."

"I'm Mark Read," I said, "And that guys Tsukune Aono."

"W-wait, did you say you're a Vampire?" spluttered Tsukune, looking like someone had just slapped him with a fresh haddock.

"Yep, and I have to say that your blood is delicious!" said Moka, blushing, before looking nervous, "Um, do you not like Vampires?"

"I like Vampires just fine, so long as they don't sparkle," I said.

Moka scowled.

"Please don't remind me about that horrible book!" she said.

"No arguments here," I muttered.

Tsukune shook of his shock and fear at the reveal of Moka as a Vampire enough to answer her question.

"A-ah, no I think Vampires are fine," he stuttered, clearly out of his depth.

"I'm glad!" said Moka with a smile, "So does that mean we can be friends?"

"Sounds like fun," I said with a grin.

Tsukune nodded with a smile and we all headed into the school for the entrance ceremony.


After the ceremony, we headed to our classes. Surprisingly, I wasn't in Moka and Tsukune's class, instead I was in the one next door. I entered the classroom and glanced around, immediately spotting everyone's favorite chibi witch and her distinctive outfit. It also seemed that the idiots were getting of to a fly start as she was already surrounded by those three Lizardmen who picked on her.

"What are you doing here brat?" hissed the leader, "And why are you wearing that? It's not school uniform."

"I'm Yukari Sendo," said the girl, "I earned my spot here! And what's wrong with my clothes?"

I stepped up before the Lizardman could respond.

"Oi, leave the kid alone," I said.

The Lizardmen turned to face me, scowling.

"Well, lookie here boys, we got ourselves a hero," sneered the leader, "I suggest you get lost if you know whats good for you."

I swallowed. That might not have been such a good idea since I didn't really have any way to defend myself. Still, I couldn't leave Yukari to get picked on if I could do something about it, so I steeled myself and returned the glare with one of my own.

"Its pretty low to pick on a little girl, isnt it?" I said, "Doesn't something like that make you the laughing stock at the Asshole Anonymous meetings?"

"Why you..!" snarled the leader of the Lizardmen, lashing out with a suddenly clawed hand.

My harm instinctively moved to block, but before he could hit me, his hand was grabbed and stopped in its tracks.

"What the…"

"No fighting now," said my saviour with a smile.

It was clearly our teacher who I recognized as the Maths teacher, Ririko Kagome. She had short, dark brown hair, light brown eyes behind circular glasses and was wearing a white v-neck shirt with a wide collar that reveals some of her cleavage and a dark skirt.

"Also, its against the rules to reveal your Monster Forms for any reason. Please see me after school for detention."

The Lizardman scowled and yanked his arm from her grip, shooting me a glare as he and his friends stalked off.

"Are you OK young man?" she asked.

"Yeah, you stopped him before he could hit me," I replied.

Miss Kagome raised an eyebrow.

"Are you sure? Looks like he hit you to me."

She indicated to my sleeve and I was surprised to see that it had been shredded. I tugged my sleeve to one side to make sure I wasn't hurt, only to find that I didn't even have a scratch. In fact, the only thing I could see was a rapidly fading silvery grey colour.

"Huh, thats interesting," I muttered,

"Well, if your not hurt then take your seat," said Ririko, pointing to the seat next to Yukari.

I took the indicated seat.

"Guess we're nabourse," I said with a grin, "I'm Mark Read, a pleasure to meet you."

"Yukari Sendo," said Yukari, not taking her eyes off me, "Why?"

I blinked and glanced at Yukari.

"Why what?"

"Why did you help me?" she asked.

"Because it was the right thing to do," I said, "I know a bit about bullys and I know what its like to face them alone, so I decided to help anyone I came across in the same situation. I'm guessing that you skipped some grades, right?"

Yukari nodded, not taking her eyes off me.

"And, judging from your clothes and wand, you're also a Witch. Not a good combination in a High School of monsters."

The girl flinched and looked down.

"Hey, don't worry about it," I said, "I don't know how much help I'll be, but I promise I'll try and help when I can, K?"

Yukari was silent for a moment, before…

CLANG!

A large pan slammed into my head.

"AHAHAH! Why would I need your help?" laughed Yukari, "I'm the smartest person in school! I don't need a dullard like you!"

"Damn brat," I growled, probing my smarting head.

I should have known that would happen. I mean, being smart enough to skip multiple years likely would manifest an impressive amount of arrogance. She probably thought she could handle anything that came her way.

"Fine, but my offer remains open," I said, "If you ever need help, don't hesitate to ask."

Yukari stuck her tongue out at me and turned back to the front of the class as the teacher started Homeroom, explaining the rules and the likes.


After class, I met up with Moka and Tsukune, who looked like someone had slapped him with an entire shark.

"Whats up with you?" I asked.

"Oh nothing much," whimpered Tsukune, "Just reevaluating my place in the world…"

"Come on you two, lets go exploring!" squealed Moka, dragging Tsukune through the halls by the arm with me following at their heels.

I hid a smirk at the look on Tsukunes face while doing my best to ignore the many Monsters who were trying to drill holes in our backs.

"Hmm, such a pretty one."

I looked in the direction of the voice and scowled when I saw that it was the bastard known as Saizou Komiya.

"Your Moka Akashiya, correct?" he asked, "I'm your classmate, Saizou Komiya. By the way…"

He suddenly grabbed Tsukune and I by the collars.

"Whats a beauty like you doing hanging out with scum like this?"

I gritted my teeth as I felt something inside me rear up and let out a roar of fury at that. Who did this lowly creature think he was, calling me scum?! My hand jumped up and grabbed Saizou's wrist, squeezing hard enough to make him wince.

"Huh, maybe you're not as weak as you look," growled the Monstrel as he let us go, "Even so Moka, you should be with a real Monster, like me."

He gave what he probably thought was a charming smile, but was actually a leer and swaggered off.

"Prick," I muttered.

"U-um, Mark," said Tsukune, "Your eyes are glowing."

I blinked and glanced at my reflection in the window next to me. Sure enough, my normally grey eyes were glowing a bright, sapphire blue which faded as I calmed down.

"Huh, thats weird," I muttered.

"Are you alright?" asked Moka, "That big lug didn't hurt you did he?"

"Nope, I think he was going for scare rather than hurt," I said.

"I'm fine," said Tsukune, "But...why are you so friendly to someone like me? I mean, I'm just a worthless…"

I cut him off with a slap around the head.

"Idiot, never refer to yourself as worthless," I said, "Everyone in this world has worth."

"Marks right Tsukune," said Moka, "Your not worthless or anything! Besides…"

She blushed.

"We're on bloodsucking terms!"

Tsukune collapsed to the ground.

"You should be proud. Your blood is sooo delicious, much better than any I've had from transfusion packs!"

"WHAT AM I, FOOD?" yelled Tsukune, shooting to his feet.

I bopped him on the head.

"No need to yell," I said.

"Oh and Tsukune," said Moka, shuffling her feet as she blushed brighter, "You were my first… and a girl never forgets her first time."

Their was a moments silence.

"M-Moka," mumbled Tsukune, his face going red.

CRUNCH!

"Oh, I'm so embarrassed!" said Moka, "Come on you two, lets go explore some more!"

I tugged Tsukune free of the wall where he'd been shoved.


Our next stop was the dorms that, although they looked horrible on the outside, were actually rather comfortable on the inside.

"By the way, what kind of monsters are you two?" asked Moka suddenly.

Tsukune froze and started sweating, while I stopped and wondered what to say. I may have been human when I got on the bus to come to school, but it was very, very clear that something had changed. That burning sensation as we had entered the School's Dimension and the pain I'd felt, as well as the fact the Lizardmans claws hadn't hurt me and I'd been able to hurt Saizou when I shouldn't have been able to even tickle him all pointed to me no longer being Human. So that left the question of what the hell was I?

"OW!"

I was shaken from my musings by Tsukunes cry of pain and I looked to see Moka feeding from him again.


That night I was stood in front of the full length mirror in my Dorm room, wearing only my boxers as I examined myself. I wasn't normally the type to stand in front of mirrors like this, but I think I can be forgiven in this case considering the fact something had changed but I had no idea what. At first glance, I looked the same, same pale skin, same skinny build, same shaggy, dark brown hair and grey eyes behind black framed glasses. A second look however showed a slight change in how I held myself. Normally I slouch slightly, a side affect from spending so long hunched over a book or computer, but now my back was straight and I seemed to be holding myself with a confidence I had never really felt. A closer look also revealed that my eyes were now shot through with lines of pale blue and a small amount of muscle definition I hadn't had before.

I held up the arm that the Lizardman had hit and examined the skin. I was sure that he had missed me completely, but my torn sleeve said otherwise and I was pretty sure that those claws would have made short work of my weak, human skin. Then their was the incident with Saizou. I wasn't the sort of person who normally had thoughts like that and the fact I had been able to hurt him with my grip was really surprising.

I was broken from my thoughts when I felt a strange tingling sensation in my arm. I looked down and was startled to see my arm transform into a draconic claw covered in metallic scales.

"Holy..!"

I bit off my startled shout as my hand shifted back to normal.

"What the bloody hell is going on?"

And thats the end. Hmm, maybe I should retitle the idea of it being self insert…

As to how this world works, its pretty simple. Since Youkai Academy is located in a pocket dimension, you can access it from any world, so long as you have the ability to pass through the Wards, which is limited to the Bus Driver and a few others. As for how Mark turned into a Monster when he passed into the Pocket Dimension, I'm saving that reveal for later.

Anyway, exactly whats going on will be revealed later, as will what Mark is. Until next time!