Not Unlike You
Chapter 4
Centorea awoke feeling refreshed after a day of digital adventuring with her Master. Truly, she had never given much thought to video games before the day prior. Though she was a fantastically strong knight in her own regard, she would admit to the thrill of stepping into the shoes of other adventurers to be quite fun.
Stretching her upper body left and right to loosen up, she saw what looked like a lumpy blanket on her hindquarters, slowly moving up and down with the breath of a living creature. Curious, she lifted the blanket to find Adam laying lopsided upon her lower back. Blushing up a storm, Centorea began to panic, thinking back to her rude awakening yesterday, courtesy of Yukino shoving an ice pack down her blouse. Not wanting to incur the wrath of her hostess by accidentally being in intimate contact with Adam once again, Centorea reached for her sword, hoping that poking him with the sheath might rouse him from his slumber. But before she could enact her plan, the blanket stirred lower, revealing Gregory as he popped his head out to greet the day. This gave the embarrassed centaur an idea.
"Sir Gregory, while I am not adverse to such contact with my Master, I'm afraid that Lady Hazama may find our current position to be...less than appropriate. Would you know of a way to wake and move him quietly?" The Akita tilted his head adorably before standing and getting to work. With all the grace of a bulldozer, Gregory ran a full circle around Centorea before headbutting Adam off her back, his head landing dangerously close to her butt. The situation was only made worse when Adam didn't wake up. Rather, he groaned before snuggling up with her left flank, his arms tightly grasping it with his cheek using it as a pillow.
Thoroughly more embarrassed than before, Centorea decided to go with her first plan, but never made it before she felt a pair of teeth sink into her supple buttocks, causing her to jump up, launching Adam up before he released her and had his head knock against the floor, causing him to sit up with a pained moan. "Ow...I hate falling dreams."
Surprisingly enough, today was one of Yukino's days off, and she slept like a log more often than not, so the ruckus hadn't woken her up. This left the task of making breakfast up to Adam, as he had more experience in the kitchen than Cerea. Plus, Gregory didn't have thumbs, so he was right out.
As Adam washed some fruit in the sink, he thought about getting fancy with the presentation, hoping to impress Cerea. His hands halted as he went to grab a knife. "Where did that come from?" He pondered. "Why would I feel the need to impress her? Hmm. Well, I don't have many friends, so I guess it would make sense that I would want to enthuse her in order to maintain a solid friendship. Yes, that must be it."
At the same time he was saying all this, Centorea was sinking into the tub, and as the water reached above her navel, she sneezed, throwing her head forward and smacking the water. Off to the side, Gregory had joined her again, and one could almost say he was laughing on the inside at such a funny sight.
The trio reconvened to the living room after finishing their morning tasks, feasting on bowls of fruit salad with a small topping of whipped cream and a cherry, with Gregory eating gourmet canned food instead of his usual dry food. The news was covering the usual topics before switching over to a headline about the Cultural Exchange Program. While it was a hit in Japan, it wasn't widely accepted by everyone in or out of the country yet. Interviews came from people who were hosting, and those who saw it all as a subtle "invasion" to take over the world. Adam scoffed at the naysayers. "Fools. Had other species wanted to overtake humans, they would have done it a long time ago. But I guess we can't expect total acceptance so soon."
Cerea nodded in understanding, knowing that if any human could empathize with the plight of acceptance amongst an entirely different culture, it would be her Master. Before she could bring up a thought she had while soaking in the bath, she saw that his eyes were glued to the TV, even more so than before. On the screen was a tall, rotund individual who appeared to be of Orcish heritage, with the biggest differences being his prominent tusks, a bushy mustache, and a gentlemanly attire finished with a bowler atop his head.
"So would you say that you have faced any discrimination since your arrival, sir?" The interviewer asked. The large porcine fellow just laughed jovially. "Oh ho ho! Well I have been the target of stares and murmurs here and there, but who hasn't in their lifetime? Human or otherwise, if you look different in some small capacity, you're bound to get the odd look every now and then. The trick is to accept your difference, and wear it like a badge of courage." Adam gasped audibly, causing Cerea to look at him in worry.
"Master, what is the matter? Do you know this Orc?" Adam just stood still before shaking his head fervently, bringing himself back to his senses. "I...I'm not sure. But what he said was familiar, and gave me an idea!" With haste, Adam brought his bowl to the kitchen before running upstairs to grab something. Gregory looked from his food bowl to Adam as he came back holding a strip of black cloth in his left hand, his eyes filled with determination. "Centorea, my good knight, we're going out!"
Shortly after they left, Yukino walked downstairs to find a bowl of fruit salad waiting for her on the kitchen counter, with a sticky note sitting next to it. It read as such:
Dear Sister,
If you are reading this, then you have found the fruit salad I left you. Also, Cerea and I are going to be out for a bit, so just relax and worry about yourself today.
Love,
Adam
P.S. If Smith comes around, I left a pod ready in the brewer for her coffee.
While shocked, Yukino couldn't deny that this was the fastest she'd seen him recover before going back out. Minus the one incident back when he was in High School that left two older kids hospitalized, but that was a whole other can of worms. Smiling at her trip down memory lane, Yukino picked up her bowl and went to sit in her spot on the couch in the living room. "He may not notice it, but that girl seems to have worked some magic on him. But just to be safe, I better call Smith."
A casual stroll is therapeutic. Just letting your mind wander while you let your feet carry where they may. Centorea however, found this walk to be a little out of the norm. Adam had blindfolded himself before the three of them left the house, with Gregory leading him with a leash. While odd, she decided to just roll with it for now, as long as no problems came of it.
Which only lasted for a short while before his "eccentricities" came into play.
Having denied himself of sight, Adam's other senses went into overdrive. Sudden loud noises made both himself and Gregory turn their heads every direction at a moments notice. Delicious smells made Adam put his nose to the air, trying to identify each one.
It was a testament to her strength that Centorea didn't reach over to pet his head, as she found this behavior somewhat adorable. She also noticed that while they were getting plenty of stares, none of it seemed to bug Adam in the slightest. A strange idea, to blind oneself to ignore the looks of others, but the results spoke for themselves.
While passing by a music store, they heard a sudden gasp, but ignored it to continue on their way. That was when Adam's day went from great, and turned into something he'd rather not say out loud. "Holy shit! What the hell? Is that a horse-woman?!" That voice was familiar to Adam, but he kept on walking. "Hey babe, do you think she's got a pussy like a horse or what?!"
This vulgar statement was followed by a nasally, obnoxious female's voice to respond. "Ew, what? Fucking gross! Do you think that beanpole is doing her?!"
Suddenly, Adam stopped. Cerea ignored the couple, but at her Master's halt, she stopped too. Growling was heard, but Gregory looked passive, looking up at his friend. No. The growling was coming from Adam, his left cheek twitching, nostrils flaring, and teeth bared only slightly. Taking a deep breath, Adam turned to the couple and walked up to them.
What happened next was unexpected. She didn't hear what he said, but Cerea definitely saw the offenders get pissed off about something her Master said. While this was going on, the couple were unaware that Gregory was circling their feet, wrapping his leash around their legs. Just as she saw the punk about to punch her Master, Gregory grabbed his end of the leash in his jaws while Adam pulled the other end. The result was the rude couple getting wrangled by the legs, followed by Adam flicking the guy in the forehead, causing him to fall over, taking his girlfriend with him.
Unhooking Gregory from his leash, Adam turned and was led back to Centorea's side. "Amazing how volatile one can be when their lack of intelligence is made obvious." Adam said to himself. "Cerea, could you take my hand? I'm afraid that in my haste, I sacrificed Gregory's leash, so you'll need to guide me." Without a word and shaking like a cooking bag of popcorn, she took hold of his left with her right before continuing their walk, Gregory padding along next to his friends.
"Are you cold, Cerea? You're shaking like a leaf."
Not too far from where the altercation happened, a tall and round individual stroked his mustache in thought as he watched the three friends walk away. "Well Ms. Zombina, I think we can look the other way this time around. Wouldn't you say?"
From the bushes, the undead member of MON stuck her head out. "Damn it, Ed! Would you stop doing that thing you do? I can never be sneaky when you're around!"
"Oh ho ho. My apologies. But I can't help being sensitive to smells, just as much as you can't help teasing poor Manako about her body. Speaking of: I believe our secondary goal today was to get her an apology chocolate for the latest prank you and Doppel saw fit to pull on her and Smith."
The redhead groaned at her elder having such a good memory before climbing out of the bushes, her walk now sullen as she led the way to the nearest confectionery.
A little ways away, Adam sighed in frustration. Sensing her Master's mood drop, Centorea probed for an answer. "Master, were you truly bothered by what they said? Twas mere ignorance that came from their filthy mouths and nothing more."
At first, Adam contemplated what to say, but everything he wanted to say sounded wrong for some reason. "Is there a place we can sit somewhere out of the way? I can articulate better when I have a good seat to think on."
Turning down an alley, they found a small bench next to some vending machines. Retrieving drinks for them, Centorea angled herself where she could sit comfortably in front of Adam, with Gregory taking up a space next to him on the bench. Adam hummed and thought as he drank his can of fizzy lemonade, pondering on what to say about what happened. Seeing no progress in the current situation, Centorea decided to start with her own input and query. "Master. Ever since the signing of the Exchange Between Species Bill, I have heard countless mutterings, and not all of them were too flattering. But I held my head high, because I knew that humans who knew nothing of my culture were just curious, even if not for all the right reasons. So I turned the other cheek and kept walking, because words were just that, and they held no power over me. But those two from before...why did you become agitated by insults not aimed directly at you?"
Sighing once more, Adam lifted his blindfold from his left eye so he could look at his knight. "When I was in High School – back in America – I was unexpectedly popular with a few people, and I had unknowingly made a good number of friends. Unfortunately, a number of those friends had been labeled as social outcasts, so they were ridiculed and bullied regularly. As someone who never had many friends growing up, I felt like I wanted the ones I had to stick around, so like all men of the Belmont Family, I jumped in head first to defend them, whether with logic or fists, I always came out on top." With little warning, Adam tilted his head back and chugged his drink like a seasoned drunk. "My efforts kept them safe, and being only 12 at the time, it surprised quite a few people. Fast forward a year. I was 13 and a senior, and my best friends were moving after graduation, so we decided to celebrate the good times at a local pizza parlor. One last hurrah for me, Brian, and Rachel. Out of all of the friends I made, they were the most memorable."
Tears started to roll down his cheeks. "Zack may have taught me how to wield a sword, but Rachel helped me to refine what I knew into something that was entirely mine, and Brian was always trying to make a joke in the weirdest of places and situations. Had I known what came next, I would have asked them to stay at my house for the night, but I didn't, and it still hurts." Centorea wanted to ask so many questions about who these people were, but kept her silence, recognizing that her Master wasn't quite done with his tale.
"I didn't know at the time, but after graduating, Brian proposed to Rachel, and she said yes. This made what happened bittersweet, in my opinion. As Brian was driving Rachel home, he was run off the road and into a deep ditch. Rachel broke her left arm, and Brian was knocked unconscious. I found out later that it had been set up by a member of the football team that had been obsessed with Rachel. The guy was put on trial, and I was the one whose testimony put him away. Justice was done, but Brian was left in a coma, and he hasn't woken up since. It's been four years now, and Rachel keeps going to his bedside, talking to him, reading books, and just keeping him up to date on how everyone is doing. Even through all that, she still loves him, and she's waiting for the day he opens his eyes and makes a crack about one heck of a hibernation. So...I know we haven't known each other long, but I think you're cool, considerate, and fun to talk to. Just like my oldest friends in America, I want you to stick around, which sets off some old habits from my school days, I guess."
Hearing all this, Centorea felt honored that her Master viewed her as more than just a knight. "Master. You have no need to defend me from mere words. Let the ignorant spout their nonsensical drivel! For in the end, it is those like you that stand at the pinnacle, with a kind heart, and wisdom beyond your peers! And I shall be there next to you! Protecting all you hold dear, my sword shall ring true!"
Her proclamation was followed by a dramatic pose. Adam couldn't help but smile at her enthusiasm, as it was quite infectious. "In that case, come what may, I'll count on you to help me. I'm sure that we can handle anything the world throws at us, right?" And in that moment, a shiver ran up his back, signaling that he had probably just tempted fate in the most painful way possible.
After another hour of casual exploration around the area, Gregory had signaled that he was hungry, leading Adam to believe now was as good a time as any to head back.
Upon their return, they saw a government limousine pulling away from the front of the house. Curious, they entered the house, and heard Yukino talking to someone in the living room.
"-which brings me to the last thing. I may be registered as your primary host and caretaker, but my job keeps me from home most days, so my brother will be in charge of your well-being when I'm away. And speaking of which: Adam! Come and and meet our new roomie!"