Chapter 11

Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the OCs.

Tsukune Aono could honestly say that he was utterly baffled. Ms. Nekonome had not shown up for homeroom, and neither had their classmate Wylfred. Once homeroom had ended, he decided to ask his sensei's assistant on the whereabouts of said teacher. "Excuse me, Copilli-san? I had something to ask you."

The young woman turned around to look at him. "Yes, Mr. Aono? What's up?"

"You wouldn't happen to know where Neko-sensei or Wylfred-san are, do you? I have not seen them at all today." He asked her with some trepidation; one never knew how new people would act, after all.

"As a matter of fact, I do know. Ms. Nekonome had a small family emergency that needed to be taken care of, but she'll return tomorrow. As for Wyl, he's been excused for the day seeing as he fought some unknown entity and needs time to recover. He ought to be well enough to attend class tomorrow. Actually, I'm glad you stopped to talk to me, Mr. Aono. There's something we need to discuss in private. When classes are over, meet me in the forest to the north of here. Bring your friend Moka, 'cause it concerns her too." Copilli looked serious, so it was obvious she wasn't kidding.

Tsukune looked at her questioningly. "Of course, Copilli-san. Thank you for the information." He shuffled out to meet with his friends and to tell them of what he learned.

Back in the classroom, Copilli grimaced. "I never knew that Ms. Nekonome actually KNOWS those guys. This could be trouble. If they're here, that means they're after new recruits. But why didn't they try to take Wyl..?"

"Maybe they don't feel that he's ready. He's no longer injured, but he IS still weakened from that battle. Or maybe they've just gotten lazy." Lee-Roy made himself known to her with his statement, a large smile on his face.

The young interdimensional traveler smirked at him, clearly amused by the thought. "Hey, Lee-Roy. What's up?"

"Nothin' really, I just wanted to see how my baby girl was holdin' up at her new job." He shrugged casually as he said that. "Is that so wrong?"

"No, what's wrong is dropping in unannounced while I'm thinking to myself. Asshole." There was absolutely no sincerity in her angry words. Probably due to the large smile adorning her face. "So, didja check up on them?"

The blue-haired man nodded in the affirmative. "Yeah, they're doin' fine. I don't believe it. The new guy was literally smashed into a tree, yet he doesn't even have any scars! And the cat-lady was cryin' her eyes out, but immediately cheered up when work was mentioned! I don't get these guys at all."

"Me either. But we're not here to understand anything anyway. You know why we're REALLY here, right?"

Lee-Roy couldn't hide his impish grin. "Oh yeah. Making good and raising hell. THAT'S WHAT WE LIVE FOR!" as he said that he and Copilli met in a high-five that soon turned into a full make-out session. That move caused several students to blush furiously while causing others to rocket back from a gusher-level nosebleed.

(Mikogami's Office, earlier that day)

Wylfred gulped nervously as he fidgeted in his seat. The things he'd been told about the Headmaster were true; the man was terrifying on an easily visible level. The man's eyes glowed malevolently as he spoke to the ex-mercenary. "I understand that you were outside of your dormitory when the incident happened. Now, tell me the exact details, and don't dare to leave anything out."

Any reservations Wylfred had were only magnified by the implied threat. At that time, he believed that honesty was the best policy. "I was outside in a clearing to train. I had been there for a while when I noticed that Lady Nekonome had fallen out of a nearby tree. I raced to catch her, and when I questioned her about it, she said that she was worried about me…" Mikogami motioned for him to stop, which he did.

His attention then turned to the neko standing next to the ex-mercenary. His eyes flickered in amusement as he spoke to the teacher. "And what, if I may ask, were YOU doing out that late, Nekonome-san? You know that it is our duty to watch over our students, but that you were doing would qualify as stalking. And please, be honest." His tone was warm and approachable, but there was an underlying tone that warned her not to lie.

"Ah, w-well you see, I was…" she stuttered so badly it was difficult to understand what she was saying. Finally, she chose to simply remain quiet, though she knew of the penalties for doing so. She'd never admit to what she was REALLY doing and for what purpose. The Exorcist merely smiled evilly before speaking again.

"It is fine; you do not have to answer that question at this time. Ms. Nekonome, due to your recent actions against threats to the peace, you may take the day off. Be warned, however, that refusing an order again may cause something truly HORRIFYING to happen. Now if you please, you may continue with your story, Wylfred-san."

The silver-haired man nodded and gulped inaudibly before continuing. "Soon after I confirmed she was okay, a strange man attacked us. He wore a black cloak to conceal is features but seemed to hold some sort of grudge against my instructor. When he revealed who he really was, she shifted into her true form and attacked him. He changed too, and in the end, Lady Nekonome won. But as she prepared to finish him off, another cloaked man appeared and took him away. After that, Lady Nekonome began to cry, so I took her to my dormitory, where she spent the night. And that is the truth."

"I see. Did they tell you anything aside from their grudge with your teacher?"

"Their names. The one who attacked my teacher was named Weiss, and the man who spirited him away went by the name of Adrian. They said that they were here to observe possible recruits, but didn't say anything else." He hoped that the Headmaster would know who they were.

"Hm, interesting information. Thank you for telling me this, Wylfred-san. Rest assured that I will look into this. The both of you may go now. You have the day off." As soon as he said that, Wylfred practically bolted out the door. Shizuka turned to leave, but stopped when Mikogami placed his hand on her shoulder. "I know of how you feel about him, Nekonome-san. If you intend to pursue him, be discreet."

Not for the first time, Shizuka Nekonome's eyes widened in horror. He knows?! She then left his office in a hurry, leaving behind a darkly-laughing Exorcist.

(Nekonome's Office, later that day)

Ms. Nekonome swallowed nervously; she had been completely unprepared for what the Headmaster told her. He had known about her feelings all along; did that mean he intended to use that information? For a few moments, she believed that he would; the Exorcist was a completely enigma. On the other hand, he'd waited until Wylfred was out of the room to tell her-maybe that meant he was okay with it?

She soon became dizzy from all the thoughts going through her head, so for the first time in her life she chose to sleep in that night. Soon she was fast asleep, a content smile adorning her features.

(Forest, late afternoon)

Tsukune walked alongside a nervous Moka as they arrived at the appointed place that Copilli had told them to go to. Soon they came upon a clearing, where they saw the person in question waiting for them. "Took you guys long enough. I was startin' to think you wouldn't show up at all." Her tone was serious, but the smirk on her face ruined the effect.

"We're sorry Copilli-san! Please forgive us!" this time it was Moka who spoke up. She clearly didn't want to disappoint her sensei's assistant.

"It's all right. At least you showed up. Now, on to business. I know that you're actually a human, Tsukune-san." That statement caused said boy's eyes to widen in terror and caused Moka to glare at her suspiciously. Copilli waved it off. "Relax. I'm not gonna hold that against ya. That's actually what I wanted to talk about. See, I know all about the adventures you've had here, and I gotta say I'm impressed. There aren't many humans who could last as long here as you. That being said, you're still at a serious disadvantage; and you can't rely on Moka-san and the others to keep bailing you out forever. So tell ya what, I'll teach ya how to use your ghoul powers while in your human state."

Tsukune gaped; this was the first time someone offered to help him control his powers without an ulterior motive. Still, he had to be cautious. "If you don't mind me asking, Copilli-sempai, exactly how do you plan to do that? I have been training on my own to control it and I've only gotten so far; it is still so wild."

His questioning gaze met the young woman's cheerful one. "Simple. Easy. Piece of cake." As she said that, she began to crack her knuckles, making Tsukune's eyes pop out in alarm.

"Y-you can't mean to do that…"

"Oh yeah. I totally mean to do that. Your ghoul powers come out only in a life-or-death situation, right? So that means I've gotta put you in a life-or-death situation! Fight me as hard as you can, I'll be fightin' to kill! Come on!" With that, she charged at them with speed that only certain youkai could match.

Both Tsukune and Moka knew that they stood no chance against her in their current state, so after somehow dodging the woman's attack, the young human accidentally removed the Rosario around Moka's neck. Instantly there was a burst of powerful youkai as the sky and moon became a bloody red. Moka herself transformed as her assets vastly improved, her hair became silver, and her canines elongated into fangs.

"Hm? Why did you arouse me from my sleep?" asked the smooth, sultry voice of the one that Tsukune knew quite well. He slowly pointed at the violette, who had a surprised expression on her face. The vampire gazed at her with no small amount of disdain. "Are you serious? You awoke me to fight her? She does not look like a worthwhile challenge."

A tick mark appeared on Copilli's head. She absolutely HATED being simply brushed off like she was nothing. Still, she maintained her calm composure. Her adoptive father had taught her the importance of maintaining one's cool in battle. "Well, I didn't expect to have to fight YOU. Moka-san was just here to prevent things from getting out of hand. But if you wanna fight, who am I to say no?"

Copilli smiled widely before assuming an odd stance. She curled her right hand into a fist and bent her right elbow so that it was horizontal against her torso. Her left arm was held perfectly straight at her side. She swayed slowly back and forth, her feet remaining perfectly still. Her blue eyes lit up with determination as they met the vampire's red slitted eyes. Moka merely sneered at her before assuming a loose stance of her own.

The whole spectacle made Tsukune very nervous. First his sempai had threatened to kill them (not with those words, but the intent was the same), then Inner Moka appeared and finally, it seemed that the two were going to fight. He tried to step in when he noticed someone holding onto his arm, preventing him from coming any closer. "Don't even think about it kid. When she's fired up like that, heck, not even the gods'll be able to stop her. Trust me, I know."

Tsukune turned around to see who had held onto him. His brown eyes met a pair of brilliant red ones that were lit up in excitement. "Who are you?"

"Me? I'm Lee-Roy, Copilli's boyfriend. I'm just here to watch the show. Just sit back and watch, kid. It'll be great!" the now-named Lee-Roy pulled out a bag of popcorn (where'd he get that from..?) and promptly sat down, motioning for Tsukune to follow his lead.

The young human merely let out a sigh before he joined him. "This is not going to end well, is it?" he asked wearily.

His companion shrugged. "It might, or it might not. What counts is that you enjoy yourself while you can." Tsukune said nothing as the two combatants suddenly charged at each other.

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