Wow, this chapter is long. I did not plan for it to be, but it sort of took on a life of its own so I just kept writing until I reached the spot I wanted to end at. So many people cause the chapter to expand so much. It has a lot of slice of life writing along with the formation of real plot. Sorry the chapter was later then my normal release schedule, I was really busy last week and went camping last weekend. Yes, I have a life and friends.

Sadly, there are reasons I am not giving shout outs on this chapter, but I promise to next time. I did however, was able to use several ideas people gave, not because I'm pandering, but because it set up opportunities for things I wanted to do.

I hope you all enjoy the chapter and that the wait was worth it.

Disclaimer: I do not own Toaru Majutsu no Index or any of the characters. Reading this story may cause you to burst out in laughter or yelling at fictional characters. This may cause nearby people to assume you have gone crazy. Please read responsibly.

Touma had no idea how this happened but, with everyone standing in the hotel hallway, now it looked like a fight was about to break out. There was a momentary lapse of seriousness, as everyone watched Touma get bitten by Index. When it ended though, everyone went back to their previous argument. Mikoto, Misaki, and Shizuri were glaring daggers at each other with murderous looks in their eyes. Touma saw, out of the corner of his eye, Kuroko was alternating between looking at Mikoto and glaring at him with murder in her eyes too. Motoharu, Accelerator, Jason and Worst were just leaning against a wall watching this spectacle with amused looks. Frenda's face was bright red and she was speechless at Shizuri's confession of the hotel room. Saiai wanted to nudge Frenda more, but was too busy watching Shizuri argue with Mikoto and Misaki. Ruiko and Kazari were just stunned by the sudden confession from Shizuri and the, seemingly unavoidable, fight between high level ability users. Last Order and Index were confused at why everyone was fighting, so it took an unexpected, but thinking back quite obvious, individual to try to solve the problem.

"Stop arguing," Komoe said stepping in between them and causing all eyes to turn to her. "There is not going to be any fighting. You are all old enough to be able to choose your rooms in an adult manner. Naturally, the four boys will be together, so that leaves the other three." Touma was extremely glad she had come along on the trip.

"Just let the hero sleep in his own room," Accelerator said in a bored tone, but his face still showed an amused expression. "Then let whoever wants to room with him go too. Otherwise, the rest of us are going to be bothered when those girls come to see him." He motioned to Mikoto, Misaki, and Shizuri.

"There's an idea," Motoharu agreed. "I think that would work too."

"No," Komoe said stamping her foot in a 'this is final' way. "It is completely inappropriate for boys and girls your age to share a hotel room." Touma breathed a sigh of relief as everyone reluctantly agreed with her and started breaking up into groups.

Naturally, Mikoto, Kuroko, Ruiko, and Kazari formed one group and Shizuri, Frenda, Saiai, and Rikou formed another. That led Misaki, Worst, Komoe, Index, and Last Order to share the final room. Index and Last Order had volunteered to share which Komoe agreed was fine. Worst wasn't that happy, it would be harder for her to annoy Accelerator from another room, but she was nowhere near as unhappy as Misaki. She was experienced at concealing her emotions, but inside she was quite displeased with the arrangements. First, she didn't get to room with Touma, which was her initial plan even if they wouldn't share a bed, but now she had to share it with four people she didn't know. She was not easily discouraged though and immediately started thinking about her next move as everyone entered their room to unpack.

The only two remaining girls were Itsuwa and Agnese who were still in shocked over what just happened. They had been ignored by everyone as soon as the argument started. They looked at each other and Agnese broke the silence. "How did that boy convince all those girls to come with him and not have a grudge match start before now?" She didn't want to admit she had been slightly jealous at the way those girls could convey their feelings honestly.

"I don't know," Itsuwa said shaking her head slightly depressed. She really liked Touma and did not know a lot of the other girls from Academy City liked him too. I need to work hard to get him to fall for me, she thought to herself as a fire lit into her eyes and made a determined fist. "But that does not change anything."

"What's gotten into you?" Agnese asked as they started walking to their room.

"Nothing," Itsuwa replied quickly. She didn't want to tell Agnese about her feelings, the only others who knew were some of the other Amakusa forces. They tended to keep trying to get her to confess. Itsuwa believed Agnese had feelings for Touma ever since he rescued her from the Roman Catholic Church. Agnese would pretend to talk harshly about him, but there was a sort of fondness when she said 'that boy' to someone.

Agnese looked at her curiously and they walked the rest of the way to their room in silence.

Misaki had only been unpacking for less than ten minutes and she wanted to pull her hair out. Index and Last Order were just small bundles of energy while being extremely loud and irritating. Last Order seemed to bounce of the walls and Index would talk nonstop. It didn't help that Worst was constantly antagonizing them and causing them to yell way more than necessary. Komoe was the only sane one, but her taste in clothes was just as bad as Mikoto's. Misaki was sure she saw a bunny pajama suit in Komoe's bag.

"Why can't MISAKA room with Accelerator? asks MISAKA as MISAKA uses her childish voice to try to get the desired results."

"Because," Komoe explained. "It is not appropriate for a boy and girl around your ages to sleep together alone in a hotel room."

"Especially since he is a lolicon," snickered Worst. She started to whistle innocently when Komoe glared at her.

"What's a lolicon?" asked Index.

"It's an inappropriate adult way of saying a person who is watching a kid MISAKA explains as MISAKA shares her information gathered from Worst and Accelerator." Index nodded in understanding while Misaki face palmed and Worst laughed clutching her side. Komoe just sighed, and continued to unpack.

Well, Misaki thought to herself. It's not completely wrong in some ways and it is probably the best if they continue to think of it being inappropriate. She wasn't entirely sure how long she was going to last rooming with them. However, her thoughts now moved to her plan to monopolize Touma this week. Starting tonight I'll….

Mikoto on the other hand was in a slightly better position than Misaki, but even she wasn't completely satisfied. She was glad Misaki did not get a chance to be in the same room of Touma but, deep down, she kind of wanted to room with him. She doubted she would have had the courage to admit it out loud, but she could tell she wanted to. Mikoto sighed and continued to unpack her things she would need for tonight and tomorrow. She glanced over and saw everyone else was doing the same. Naturally, they started talking about what just happened, something Mikoto was not keen on discussing.

"I can't believe how bold Shokuhou-san is," Kazari said slightly red faced.

"She knows what she wants," Kuroko agreed. "I don't know why though."

"Shirai-san," Ruiko said shaking her head. "You're the only one who doesn't like him. Is it just because he hangs out with Misaka-san?"

"It's not only that he is trying to defile onee-sama…" Kuroko tried to explain again, but was interrupted.

"Will you quit saying defiled!?" Mikoto asked loudly. "He's really nice to all of us, even you, which surprises me because you insult him all the time."

"He's still an ape," Kuroko huffed and continued. "He's uncivilized, plain, and not very smart. His only redeeming quality is he is willing to help anyone, but he is not a match for onee-sama. She needs someone who is as smart, beautiful, and talented as her by her side." Mikoto face palmed as Kuroko once again kept talking her up like she was some kind of celebrity.

"Like you?" Ruiko asked grinning slightly.

"I am working hard to make sure I will be the best possible partner for onee-sama," Kuroko said proudly. Mikoto face palmed and Kazari tried to smile, but it looked forced. Kuroko pretended to be confident, but she did have a lot of questions on her mind and wasn't sure how to ask them. She had noticed Worst and Last Order looked a lot like Mikoto. She wanted to know if they were her sisters and why they were with Accelerator. However, Mikoto did not introduce them as her sisters, so Kuroko was wondering if something happened Mikoto didn't want to talk about. I'll wait till she is willing to tell me.

"I'm looking forward to this trip though," Mikoto said ignoring Kuroko's declaration. "It should be fun… even with some unexpected guests. We are going to have a relaxing day at the beach tomorrow."

"It will be good to get some sun," Kuroko said staring off into the distance. "Onee-sama… in her swimsuit…" Mikoto wanted to shock her, but resisted the urge because she didn't want to knock out power in the hotel.

"I'm just glad Uiharu is finally stuck here with nowhere to run," Ruiko said mysteriously.

"Huh!?" Kazari asked as she turned to look at her eyes wide in shock. "What do you mean by that Saten-san?" Mikoto and Kuroko watched Ruiko walk up to Kazari and put her arm over Kazari's shoulder.

"Now you are finally going to tell me how far you have gotten with Jason," Ruiko said grinning. "You always avoid the subject." Kazari's face got red and Mikoto sat on her bed watching her with an interested look. Even Kuroko looked interested, but she tried to pretend not to care. "You are going to tell us everything."

"WHAT!?" Kazari yelled out in surprise as she turned scarlet, but this time there was nowhere for her to run as all her friends stared at her expectedly.

"How could you say something like that Mugino!" Frenda asked waving her arms in frustration.

"Hmm?" Shizuri asked innocently. "Wasn't that the truth?"

"Basically, you still don't say it like that!" Frenda continued frustrated. As soon as they all got into their room and started unpacking, Saiai and Shizuri had been needling Frenda about her reactions. It was one of their sources of entertainment when they didn't have much to do.

"How much did he feel?" Saiai asked interestedly.

"Basically, it's none of your business," Frenda replied angrily. "Besides when are we going to get revenge on Kamijou's friend?"

"That is a super good question," Saiai added looking at Shizuri. "Wouldn't this trip be perfect to super take him out and make it look like an accident?"

"Possibly," Shizuri said frowning as she thought about it. She really didn't have any professional reason to kill Touma's friend Jason, it was purely emotional. She was pissed about the way he acted when he escaped from her. The problem was Jason was a friend of Touma. If he was killed, Touma would be upset and possibly never contact her again if he found out. She supposed she could forgo her revenge, because Jason did not appear to be willing to talk about meeting them. He had acted as if it was their first meeting, so she knew he must have worked for the dark side of Academy City at some point. Now, she was more focused on enjoying herself, and exploring these new feelings she felt for Touma. "Nah, he's not worth it. If he interrupts us again we can but, for now, let's just enjoy ourselves."

"…That's unusual," Rikou commented as she crawled into bed.

"Even I want to relax now and then," Shizuri snapped at her. Rikou stared at her for a moment longer, and then disappeared under the covers.

"Well that's good," Saiai said turning back to Frenda. "You should super sneak into his room tonight and sleep with him."

"As if I could do that!" Frenda yelled embarrassed.

"That sounds fun actually," Shizuri said thoughtfully. "Imagine how the third and fifth would react to that. I agree. You should do it. If you don't, I guess I'll do it." Frenda and Saiai stared at her wide eyed. Shizuri realized she had mixed feelings about her advice, but the entertainment value alone was worth it. Also, she didn't think Frenda or Touma would be bold enough to do anything.

"B-basically," Frenda stuttered. "He's too pure. What if he doesn't like it if I do it?"

"No guy alive would super hate waking up next to an attractive girl," Saiai said grinning. "You may not be as hot as me, but you are still above average. If he doesn't like it, he might be gay."

"I'm way hotter then you," Frenda argued. "Basically, my legs alone are higher quality then your entire body."

"Oh," Saiai replied angrily. "You think you are all that just because you super fell in…" She stopped when Shizuri smacked her in the back of her head along with Frenda.

"Both of you shut up," she said. "I'm tired and I'm going to read a bit before going to sleep. Frenda, I recommend waiting about an hour or so before sneaking in." She changed into her pajamas, grabbed a book, and then ignored everyone as she sat in her bed. Saiai shrugged and followed suit as she grabbed one of her fashion magazines. Frenda was embarrassed as she looked at the other girls, but still made a determined fist.

I can do this!

"So Kami-yan," Motoharu said giving Touma a thumb up. "You seem to be doing pretty well with your harem. They haven't kill leach other yet and they are all together. That's a pretty high level of skill."

"Shut up idiot," Touma said. "I knew the level 5s have a rivalry, but they just seem to be at each other's throats all the time."

"Are you really that stupid?" Accelerator asked him incredulously. "Of course we have a rivalry as level 5s, well they do. I don't consider anyone my rival. But they are obviously fighting for a different reason."

"All three of them are madly in love with you Touma," Jason finally explained. "It's fine being dense and all, but your level is way beyond that."

"There's no way Mugino likes me," Touma said shaking his head. "She's almost as bad as you guys in messing with me." He knew Mikoto and Misaki had feelings for him but, now that Accelerator and Jason told him why they fought, it was obvious. "Plus she will probably kill me if I piss her off by accident."

"It's called a yandere," Motoharu explained. "So you brought an interested collection of girls with you, yandere, tsundere, obsessive, normal, teacher, and a sister. You're harem is growing fast."

"I don't have a hare…" Touma tried to say.

"Don't you spout that bullshit," interrupted Accelerator. "After what we just saw, you obviously do. Just accept it hero."

"I think what Accelerator is trying to say," Jason paused pretending to decipher his words. "He is happy for you and wants you to enjoy yourself?"

"If you put words in my mouth again I'll kill you."

"Anyway," Jason said hastily changing the subject. "If you use your harem powers to attract Kazari, I'll cut off your manhood with a rusty blade." He grinned, but Touma felt a dark presence behind his eyes. He also noticed Jason was still pretty green, like he was going to throw up any moment.

"I wouldn't try to take anyone's girlfriend," Touma replied defensively. "Are you sure you are ok though? You have looked bad ever since we arrived."

"Yea," Jason said waiving his hand dismissively. "I bet it is the lack of sleep from last night and jet lag today. I'm sure after we relax at the beach, I'll be fine." He reached and started fiddling with a camera while Touma continued to unpack everything he needed for tomorrow.

"Hey nice camera," Motoharu said looking at Jason.

"Thanks," Jason acknowledged. "It cost a lot, but should be worth it. Waterproof, scratch proof, can drop it off a twenty story building and it won't break, resistant to electrical shocks, and can store thousands of pictures along with taking short videos. I figure the last test is giving it to Touma for an hour and see if his luck will break it. It not, then it's the best camera around." Accelerator and Motoharu both laughed at this.

"I can hear you," Touma said irritated turning to look at Jason.

"Does that mean you will test out my camera?" Jason asked grinning. Touma rolled his eyes and made a rude gesture. It did not escape his notice however, while everyone was making fun of him, they all looked tired. Accelerator was the first one to actually get in bed and sleep, after threatening to kill them all if they woke him. Motoharu and Jason went to sleep soon after. Touma turned off the light and he found himself lying in bed staring at the ceiling and thinking.

There's no way Mugino could like me, he thought to himself. He knew Mikoto, Misaki and Ruiko had feelings for him, but he wasn't sure how to proceed with accepting or rejecting them, which made him feel like garbage. It's like I'm toying with their feelings. He had a slight feeling Frenda might be into him too, but he wasn't good at reading those kinds of signals. It took someone to tell him outright if they liked him or not for him to be sure. Eventually, his exhaustion overtook his thoughts and he fell asleep.

The guys were deep asleep so they didn't notice anything strange, but there was a slight buzz and the door to their room opened. A small girl with brown hair and an ahoge started moving silently across the room. She climbed into Accelerator's bed and snuck under the covers next to him. She smiled pleased at herself and fell asleep. She had used her electrical ability to short circuit the lock. The problem was the door would not lock again and the door could be opened by anyone from the outside. During the night, the door opened three times and three different people passed through with nothing to stop them.

Far away from England, two men were walking through an underground passageway in Europe, more specifically the catacombs under St. Peter's Basilica. It was the world's largest cathedral and the greatest Roman Catholic stronghold. Night had fallen and the tours were no longer running. These two men, however, were going deeper the any tourist was allowed to go and talking with serious expressions.

"Our plans are falling far behind schedule with the interruption of The Fallen," the first man stated as if this was a minor annoyance. He was a young man with a lanky physique, golden eyes and fiery red hair, who wore a simple red suit. His face was calm and seemed to hold a calculating expression while he was smiling slightly.

"Interruption?" the other man replied harshly. The older man has tea-colored hair, and his face was straight-lined, which made it look like it was chiseled from stone. His muscular look was not the ones that a body builder has, but of someone who has gone through many battles. He was taller than the first. He wore a shirt that looked similar to a polo shirt with blue as the base, as well as blue pants. "That organization has cause untold destruction to the Vatican. We managed to keep it from leaking out but, if this goes on for too much longer, the rest of the world will know soon."

"It matters not," the red haired man said still walking while the other man followed him. "I can handle them as long as my hand holds, but we need to complete our main objective."

"Vento is still weakened and Terra died to the one who called himself Adam," the second man said beginning to grow annoyed with the overconfident attitude of the first. "Our comrades are falling, our religion is under attack, and all your care about is the Imagine Breaker."

"You are mistaken," the first man replied simply. "I am going to show you the reason why both of these goals coincide." At the bottom of the catacombs, they came to a stone wall. The first man put his hand on it and whispered something under his breath. The wall shimmered and vanished leading only a spiral staircase leading deep under the city. He started walking down the stairs and the second man, after frowning slightly, followed. They walked in silence down the stairwell until they came to a wooden door. The first man opened the door and they walked in. "We are God's Right Seat and now our worst enemy has arisen."

"What do you mean?"

"The Fallen are trying to bring Lucifer back into this world," the first said simply and the second man's face darkened. They stopped in front of the only objects in the hidden room. Two ten foot tall stone statues depicted two twelve wing angles in combat. One of them wielded a sword, the Archangel Michael, and the other one was being struck by the sword, the fallen angel Lucifer. "Our goal is to save mankind and stand next to God. Lucifer is God's enemy, therefore, he is ours. The organization is also after the Imagine Breaker, but instead of saving the world, they want to destroy it along with God. As you see, our goals are one and the same."

"Why is this room here?" the second man asked. "What secrets are you keeping?"

"This room is only told to the leader of God's Right Seat," the first man explained. "It is to remain secret, until the time Lucifer tries to reenter our world. Look," he pointed to the statue of Lucifer. "In the chest, that is what they are after." A dark blue gem was set in the stone chest of the statue.

"What is it?"

"When Michael struck down Lucifer from Heaven," the first man continued. "He removed Lucifer's wings of light to prevent him from being able to ascend back to heaven. One of the wings was hidden here to protect. It was the reason the Vatican was built here and St. Peter wanted to be buried over it. He wanted to increase the protection of the wing."

"So while we still have this wing," the second man said out loud to make sure they were on the same page. "We need to obtain the Imagine Breaker before they do."

"Precisely," the first man confirmed. "I have received information he has gone to England so he is no longer under the protection of Academy City."

"Then I will go retrieve the Imagine Breaker," the second man said.

"He is accompanied by the Anglican Church," the first man continued. "Are you willing to walk into their stronghold and make enemies of them all Acqua?"

"No matter who the enemy may be, what I must do does not change," he replied simply, yet his tone was deadly serious. "When I return, you will tell me everything of your plans Fiamma." He left the room and went back up the stairs, not bothering to listen to Fiamma's response.

Touma woke up early, well early for England's time but pretty late for Japan. He glanced out the window and the sun had not started to rise, but the sky was just beginning to get lit up. He had been in a deep sleep and actually felt well rested for the first time in a while. The pressure from his exams and all the Kami incidents last week kept him worrying about a lot of things. It's good to be on vacation. All I have to worry about is some of my friends fighting. He was going to get up to make breakfast, but realized they were at a hotel and he didn't need to. He was lying in bed trying to decide what he should do, since he didn't want to go back to sleep, when he felt something move under his covers. He felt sweat on his brow as he suddenly worried Index had somehow snuck into his room. He used his right hand, and pulled the covers off him and nearly had a heart attack.

Lying on top of him, she was really light so he almost didn't notice, was Agnese. Best…worst of all was she was naked except for her underwear, which was pure white. He might have been able to do something about her, as the first night he met her she had done something similar, if it weren't for two other problems. To his left, clutching him tightly like a body pillow was Misaki. She was wearing a bright pink nightgown that was almost see-through. To his right, Frenda, who was wearing a dark blue night gown, was leaning her back up against him and was facing away from him. Two thoughts had crossed through his mind as he saw them.

Is this real and am how do I get out of this?

His first action was to pinch his cheek to make sure he wasn't dreaming. He still remembered the Sloth incident. The pain told him it was not a dream, so his thoughts changed to how to get out of this before someone caught him. He tried to slowly pull himself up with his arms from under Agnese and out of Misaki's grip, but that didn't work. Agnese muttered something in another language, and Misaki muttered incoherently and gripped him tighter. Frenda hadn't moved, which he took as a good sign, but he had no idea what to do now. If the other guys wake up now, I'm never going to hear the end of it. Plus, Mikoto will probably kill me. She really gets jealous, but it's pretty cute. He realized what he was thinking and his ears burned. He was going to try to gently get Agnese off of him, when movement caught his eye.

Motoharu had sat up and was stretching soundlessly, and Touma's heart stopped for a moment. Motoharu got up and was heading to the bathroom when he glanced over at Touma and froze. Their eyes met and Touma knew this wasn't going to end well, but he was running out of options. Help me, he mouthed soundlessly to Motoharu. Motoharu looked at him for a moment, nodded, and turned around. He walked over to where Jason was sleeping and took the camera off his nightstand. He moved a little closer to Touma, took a picture, then put the camera back down. Touma couldn't get up to punch him, so he settled with mouthing some very inappropriate words at him. Motoharu grinned, gave a thumb up, and went into the bathroom. Touma was really pissed at his friend and had to go back to thinking of what to do next. He didn't want to admit it, because he felt like it made him a bad person, but he was really comfortable, even with three other people in the bed. Then the door opened and he was forcibly reminded of how his luck worked and how much the universe hated him.

Index had stumbled in holding a pillow. Why she had waited this long before finding her way in, Touma never did find out. All that he knew was he was about to be very sorry. Index had walked in and stood at the foot of his bed looking at him and the three girls. She shook her head and looked again. "Ah," she said sleepily. "I must be dreaming. There is no way Touma would do something like this. Because this is a dream, I can take out all my frustration out with no consequences."

"Wait Index," Touma pleaded softly raising a hand towards her as her teeth appeared. He might have been able to stop her, with all the experience he had, but Misaki opened an eye and spoke up.

"Ah Touma," she purred sleepily. "Can we stay like this a little longer?" That was the last straw for Index who pounced.

"AHHHHHHHHH!"

Mikoto had woken up a little earlier and was staring at the ceiling when she heard someone yell. That sounded like Touma. She bolted out of bed, glad she her green pajamas covered herself completely, and ran toward the door. His scream woke up everyone else who sat up groggily. Kuroko and Kazari, who were part of Judgement and used to emergency situations, were up first and following Mikoto. Ruiko had gotten up and was trying to pull on some pants before following them. They met Komoe and Saiai who had rushed out into the hallway to see what happened. Worst was walking out of the room, not in panic, but in interest. Komoe did not, but Worst did, notice Index, Last Order, and Misaki were missing.

"What happened?" Komoe said and Mikoto had a sudden thought of 'cute' when she saw her in pink bunny pajamas, but shook her head because of the seriousness.

"We heard someone scream," Mikoto replied. "I think it was Touma." The girls headed toward his room and, Mikoto was just reaching for the door handle, they heard loud voices and stopped.

"Index, get off of me!"

"Just accept it!"

"Ahhh, it hurts."

"Quit trying to run!"

"I'm too young for this!"

"Stop trying to run away!"

"You're biting me to hard!"

"What the hell is that idiot doing?" Mikoto fumed as she grabbed the handle and threw open the door. She was surprised the door was unlocked, but she was planning to use her ability to open it anyway. "Weird, the lock is broken." Everyone in the hallway peered in through the open door to see what was happening. What they saw was Touma standing up with Index clamped firmly to his head as he tried to pry her off him. Misaki and Frenda were sitting on a bed and watching the spectacle. Agnese was too, but she had wrapped herself up in a sheet and her face was bright red. Motoharu was leaning up near the doorway to the guy's bathroom watching too. The lumps on Accelerator's and Jason's bed didn't move, so they probably didn't care or were still sleeping. Finally, Touma got her off of him and turned to look at Mikoto.

"I can explain," he stated instantly raising his hand in case Mikoto started to discharge.

"What are you doing in here?" she demanded pointing, but she was not talking to Touma or Index, but to Misaki, Frenda, and Agnese. Agnese and Frenda looked away, but Misaki was able to look her directly in the eye.

"Sleeping with my beloved Touma," Misaki said unashamed. "It was dark and didn't know those two had the same idea." She frowned as she glared at Frenda and Agnese. I had a feeling that braided girl had feelings for Touma. She was debating on what to do about her now.

"I just wanted to hang out with him," Frenda shrugged as she pretended to act nonchalant about the entire thing, even as she was quite embarrassed. "Basically, I must have fallen asleep."

"Nice job," Saiai said giving her a thumb up.

"I think I was sleepwalking," Agnese said rubbing her head. "I apologize for any inconvenience." She might have been able to pull off being nonchalant about the whole thing too, if she hadn't wrapped the sheet tightly around herself.

"It doesn't matter your reason," Komoe protested. "You can't be sneaking into the guy's room at night."

"This is why we wanted the damn hero to have his own f$%^*# room," Accelerator grumbled as he pulled the covers over his head. "We knew this would happen."

"Yea," Jason muttered imitating his action. "It's too damn early. I'll make fun of Touma and his harem later."

"That's pretty funny coming from tou-san," Worst said leaning up against the door peering in and smirking. "Because the fact is the brat snuck in first." That comment caused Accelerator to stick his head out to look at everyone. He pulled up the covers and noticed something because he frowned. He unceremoniously threw Last Order out of the bed on her butt, and then went back to sleep. Last Order shook her head and looked around confused. She didn't know why everyone was there.

"Let MISAKA back in MISAKA cries as MISAKA tries to get back under the covers." Accelerator manipulated vectors to keep the covers from moving so she couldn't get in. Komoe had to walk up and take her hand to drag her away.

"You too Last Order," Komoe scolded her. "You can't be sneaking into guy's beds."

"But…" she tried to protest but Komoe wouldn't hear any of it. Everyone thought it was pretty funny because Komoe was about the same size as Last Order, but there was a big difference in their maturity. Even Jason stuck his head out to watch.

"You should all follow her example," Misaki pointed out which immediately angered Mikoto.

"Don't get to comfortable," Mikoto glared grabbed her wrist. "You're coming too. I need to talk to you privately."

"So Last Order broke the lock?" Ruiko asked looking at the door.

"MISAKA is sorry MISAKA says as MISAKA admits to not controlling her power."

"No one was blaming you," Kazari said kindly. "Accidents happen. But you really shouldn't sneak into other people's room. Komoe-sensei was worried about you when you disappeared." Last Order nodded.

"Let's get out of here onee-sama," Kuroko said tugging on Mikoto's sleeve, who didn't let go of Misaki. "You can tell how much this room stinks with all these guys in here."

"Hey," Touma said feeling slightly insulted. He finally got a word in since all the girls had barged in. Accelerator was use to noisy people, so he wasn't fazed too much by the noise. Jason, however, was getting annoyed because he wanted to sleep and everyone was still talking loudly.

"You people aren't going to let me sleep are you," Jason muttered as he sat up and knocked off the blanket. "Sorry we haven't sprayed mass air freshener around the room Kuro-chan." Kuroko opened her mouth to snap at him but stopped. Jason didn't have any clothes on, except some boxers. The girl's faces turned red and many of them covered their eyes as a reflex. The only two who didn't was Shokuhou, because she only had eyes for Touma, and Kazari, who was peeking through her fingers.

"That's it!" Komoe yelled loudly as she started pushing everyone. "Time for everyone to leave now!" She finally managed to get all the girls back in the hallway and shut the door behind her. Agnese quickly rushed toward her room, still in a blanket, to get her clothes. Mikoto was dragging Misaki to her room to question her while Kuroko, who was still red faced, followed. Ruiko was poking fun at Kazari about her reaction as they followed their friends. Komoe took Last Order and Index back to their room while Worst followed them still chucking to herself. Saiai on the other hand put her arm around Frenda and grinned.

"So," she said. "I need you to super tell me what all happened."

Itsuwa had visited all of them shortly after this scene and was surprised everyone was already up and moving about. She did not know when they would be up but, if they were, wanted to let them know the hotel was going to be serving breakfast shortly. While the girl all seemed to be tense, the guy's room, when she was allowed in, seemed to be in high spirits. She saw Motoharu putting Touma in a head lock while Accelerator and Jason were looking at a digital camera's pictures. She found out what happened, over a protesting Touma, and nodded in understanding. When she left the room, she thought, I'm really far behind everyone else.

Back in the guy's room, Touma was relieved he managed to get out of that situation alive. During that entire scene, Motoharu had remained silent and watched it with amusement. Jason and Accelerator were laughing at the picture Motoharu took and Touma had enough for this morning and decided to go eat breakfast. It was still early in the morning, but the sun was at least visible now. He took the elevator down and headed to the dining area. There were only a couple people there and he was surprised to see Shizuri sitting there drinking tea. That's right, she wasn't there this morning. He grabbed a plate of eggs and some toast, thought about it, and decided to join her. She looked up when he sat across from her.

"You're up early," she commented sipping her tea and looking at a magazine.

"Most of us are," Touma sighed. "Kind of an eventful morning."

"Oh?" Shizuri replied raising an eyebrow. "How long did you sleep with Frenda?"

Touma coughed on his breakfast. "H-how did you know?"

"I gave her the idea," she answered the corner of her mouth twitching in amusement. "She was a little jealous of the other girls."

"Why would she be?" Touma asked confused. Shizuri face palmed.

"I realized you were stupidly pure," she said annoyed. "But your friends are right, you are dense too. She likes you, just like most of those girls up there. Seriously, I don't know how you attract every girl you meet."

"Hey," Touma said becoming annoyed himself. "I don't attract every girl. I mean, you aren't attracted to me." She didn't say anything to this and just raised an eyebrow. Touma realized what he said and smacked his forehead with his hand. "Ah sorry," he apologized. "I didn't mean that. It was a rough morning and my friends are jerks. Out of curiosity, why are you down here so early?"

"I tend to go for a morning run," she said simply going back to sipping her drink. "It keeps me in shape." There was silence between them for a moment as they continued their breakfast. "Let me ask you something now."

"Hmm," Touma said with his mouth full. Shizuri grinned.

"What would you do it I said I've fallen for you too?" His reaction was just like she imagined it would be. She hadn't known him as long as the others, but she could easily read someone like him. The only thing that still puzzled her was the strength he wielded when protecting someone. She was brought back to reality from her thoughts when Touma was finally able to speak up.

"You're messing with me," he said annoyed but red faced, and then taking a long drink. "There's no way a beautiful girl like you could be into someone plain like me." His eyes were closed so he didn't see a very light pink tinge on Shizuri's face, but it disappeared quickly. Before she could reply, they were interrupted. She became pissed as Mikoto and Misaki appeared behind Touma.

"Hey Touma," Mikoto said more cheerfully then he expected. He noticed Misaki seemed to be a little less happy, so he assumed Mikoto had gotten her way with something. "We wondered where you gone off to."

"What are you doing here?" Misaki said narrowing her eyes at Shizuri. She still hadn't forgiven her for her actions yesterday.

"I was actually just leaving," she said irritated. She did not enjoy the company of those two. She turned to Touma. "Maybe I am, and maybe I'm not." She left without another word and Touma stared wide eyed after her.

"What were you two talking about?" Misaki asked.

"And why were you sitting together?" Mikoto added.

"She was the only one I knew here this early," Touma said shrugging. "It was just small talk I guess, nothing big." There was no way he was going to tell them it was Shizuri's idea for Frenda to sneak into his bed, or tell them what she had said. They both stared at him and had the same thought.

He's hiding something.

They couldn't be sure what it was though and let the matter drop while they went and got breakfast. They were soon joined by everyone else and they pushed several tables together. Everyone started talking and, of course, Touma's friends brought up the subject of this morning. Several of the girls had red faces as they remembered the morning, and most couldn't look at Jason who seemed to be busy trying to get Kazari to talk to him. She was looking away from him with her face crimson. Accelerator had only come down for food, but Last Order dragged him to sit with everyone else. At least the conversations are moving away from this morning's misfortune. The talks began to gravitate toward the beach they were going to go to today.

"Hello everybody," Itsuwa said as she and Agnese joined them about halfway through. Touma noticed Agnese was also quite red and purposely avoided looking at him.

"Good morning," Agnese said quickly to everyone. She was still embarrassed about last night and she could feel the intense glares from Mikoto and Misaki on her.

"Itsuwa-san," Ruiko asked. "Which beach are we going to?"

"We were planning to take you all to Botany Bay," Itsuwa replied. "It's on the east side of Kent. It's not the largest beach, but it really is quite nice. It is backed by white cliffs in the distance."

"Oh," Kazari said turning to look at her. "That sounds beautiful."

"It also looks like the weather is going to be nice today too," Agnese adds. "The rain got pushed to later this week."

"That's weird," Accelerator said. "With the hero's luck, I expected a tsunami."

"That just means something horrible will happen later," Motoharu said grinning which Accelerator smirked in response.

"I'm glad my luck is your favorite kind of amusement," Touma sighed.

"Frenda super wants to show off her swimsuit," Saiai piped up as she volunteered the information.

"Shut up!" snapped Frenda.

"I got a new one," Misaki said as she leaned up near Touma. "I hope you would give me your opinion on it." Touma turned red and had to look away.

"I can't wait to see onee-sama in her new swimsuit," Kuroko said gazing up at the ceiling drooling slightly. "Her grace will shine…" She was cut off abruptly as Mikoto smacked her in the back of the head.

"Enough of your perverted fantasies," Mikoto said.

"MISAKA has a new swimsuit too MISAKA adds as MISAKA adds to the collection of new clothing."

"I only have one," Index said wistfully.

"I'm sure it will look fine," Komoe said patting her on the back.

"I hope tou-san turns into a tomato," Worst said snickering. "I would love to slap him when he's burnt raw."

"Go to hell," Accelerator snapped.

After breakfast, everyone started heading back up to their rooms. It was still early and Itsuwa had informed them the bus would not be here to pick them up for another two hours. Touma was able to shake off Mikoto and Misaki and continued to converse with Itsuwa and Agnese, since he couldn't really talk about their professions in front of the others. "So Agnese," he asked. "How have you been since… the Italy incident?"

"It took some adjusting," she shrugged nonchalantly. "But the Anglican Church has been pretty accepting of us." She glanced at Itsuwa who nodded. "I know some of my forces want to thank you in person if they see you boy, so you might get a little overwhelmed when we tour London."

"Great," Touma said sarcastically thinking how Mikoto and Misaki were going to react seeing a bunch of nuns around him. Itsuwa noticed his tone and giggled.

"We will make sure they keep it civil," Itsuwa reassured him and he smiled at her. He forgot how kind she was. When they first had met, he had been part of Agnese's forces trying to defeat the Amakusa, the group Itsuwa was part of. In the end, Touma was forced to fight Agnese in order to save another person. They later had all teamed up against the Roman Catholic Church when he rescued Agnese in Italy, who had been taken hostage. Funny enough, Itsuwa tended to offer him a hot towel a lot and he didn't understand the significance of it.

"I have a question I've been meaning to ask you," Touma said looking at them. They both watched him with a curious expression. "How come you two were chosen to act as our guides?" They both looked surprised and he immediately put his hands up apologetically. "I don't mean I'm not glad to see you, but isn't Agnese from outside of England and Itsuwa travels around with the Amakusa a lot? Wouldn't someone native and lives here most of their life be a better choice?"

"We actually thought that too," Itsuwa admitted.

"The fact they chose us shows the higher ups are worried about something," Agnese explained. "But you shouldn't need to worry. I doubt that organization would be stupid enough to attack us here."

"By that organization," Touma said. "You mean The Fallen group?" Agnese nodded solemnly. Itsuwa noticed the sudden change in tone the conversation moved towards.

"As she said," Itsuwa hastily added. "You are on vacation and shouldn't need to worry. I believe they also chose us because they figured you would be more comfortable with people you knew." She smiled at him and Touma's heart skipped a beat. Touma knew Agnese was a little harsh most of the time, but she was a good person. Itsuwa, on the other hand, was always kind to everyone and, he noticed, especially to him. "If you need anything or want to do something, please let us know."

"I will," Touma nodded. "Thanks Itsuwa, Agnese."

The bus had arrived to take them to the beach about two hours later but, to Touma, it felt a lot longer. Jason was sitting in the chair next to him and he looked almost as tired as Touma felt. Touma was sure Jason had caught something, but Jason just kept saying he was fine. Accelerator was actually looking forward to finally leaving too, but for a completely different reason than Touma. Touma was looking forward to getting some fresh air and sun, plus seeing the girls in swimsuits. He was a high school guy after all, even if he wouldn't allow himself to take advantage of anyone. Accelerator, who was behind him, was getting fed up with Last Order running saying how excited she was since it would be her first beach adventure. Motoharu, who was next to Accelerator, was just being himself and was quite happy to be heading toward a beach to admire girls in swimsuits.

The girls were quite excited. Mikoto, Kuroko, Kazari, and Ruiko loved the beach and were talking excitedly about their plans. Kazari admitted she was going to spend most of the time with Jason so Ruiko needled her a bit about her new swimsuit. Kazari counted by reminding her on what she should be doing during the trip and Ruiko's face turned red. Mikoto was curious about what they were talking about, but Kuroko kept distracting her. She had noticed Kuroko had been a lot less forward in her advances, like grabbing her chest, though Kuroko hadn't stopped trying to spend as much time as possible with her. I wonder what got into her.

Frenda and Saiai were talking about the beach too, but with a magazine in hand. They were debating on the best types of swimsuits for them. Because the trip had been rushed for them, they didn't get a chance to get new swimsuits. Instead, they were just debating what they would get the next time they went to one. Of course, Saiai would constantly imply Touma would like certain kinds of swimsuit to enjoy Frenda's reactions. Shizuri was just staring out the window thinking, while Rikou was looking at a magazine next to her. Shizuri was annoyed at herself for what she let slip to Touma this morning. She had constantly told Frenda she needed lot be more assertive, but Shizuri just acted like she was joking with Touma. How should I proceed?

Last Order and Index were pressed up against the window trying to be the first ones to see the beach. Komoe was trying to keep them in their seats for safety purposes, but she was not having luck. Worst was egging them on and then calling out to the bus driver to suddenly slam on the breaks. Of course he didn't, but Worst continued to try to persuade him using threats, bribes, seduction, and blackmail. Agnese and Itsuwa were near the front talking and pointing to a list Agnese had in her hand. Index suddenly called out.

"I can see the cliffs!"

Everyone else looked out the windows and they saw the tall chalk white cliffs. The bus parked near the end of the beach and Itsuwa turned to face the group. "The changing stations are over there," she informed them pointing. "We got here early, but it will get pretty busy later on so if you want to rent any beach towels or an umbrella, now's the time. Anyway, it is your vacation, so I hope you all enjoy yourselves. If you need anything let us know."

The girls started to rush off and the guys were the last group to leave because they were in the back. Of course, they were stuck grabbing and renting the towels and umbrellas from the nearby shops. After grabbing the items the girls requested, Accelerator grumbled about it the entire time, they headed toward the changing room. There were a few guys there, but otherwise it was pretty empty. Without much to do, they began to talk as they changed.

"Wearing dark blue swimming trunks Touma?" asked Jason, who was wearing bright yellow ones. "What are you going to do about your luck washing your trunks away when you go swimming? You will never find it."

"Accelerator has black and white ones," Touma pointed out. "Why don't you make fun of him?"

"Because my luck isn't bad enough not lose them." Accelerator stated.

"Once again you try to deflect jokes and fail," Motoharu said laughing as he put on his green trunks.

"Why don't you hide that mark," Touma asked pointing to Jason's forehead while trying to keep the topic off his luck. "You hide the rest of them."

"For some reason I can't," Jason said frowning rubbing the mark of Pride on his head. "So I just use my hair to hide it."

"Hey Accelerator," Motoharu asked. "What's with the hoody? Won't you be hot?"

"Tsk," Accelerator said irritated. "My vector manipulation ability causes me to have this androgynous appearance. I automatically deflected ultra-violet rays so my skin hasn't built up resistance. Now, with my condition, I don't deflect it automatically anymore. So I burn easier than most. F#^$, this is such a hassle."

"I guess there are downsides to being too powerful," Jason commented while Accelerator gave a curt nod.

"We should hurry," Motoharu said as he stretched. "We can't keep Touma's harem waiting to much longer or they might come in looking for us."

"I doubt they would do that," Touma said, but thinking Misaki might if Mikoto let her. "Wait, I don't have a…"

"You're right," Jason agreed cutting of Touma's denial. "But don't lie to us. You just want to see the girls in swimsuits."

"I never said I didn't" Motoharu replied and they high fived.

"Bunch of idiots all of you," Accelerator grumbled turning to leave.

"Don't keep your loli waiting," Motoharu and Jason said together which caused him to turn around in anger.

"I'm going to kill you both."

Touma was torn between stopping the fight and the amusement of watching their argument that did not involve him. "We should get going though," he finally said. "The girls are going to wonder where we went." Everyone looked at him, shrugged, and followed. They got to the beach and looked around, but they did not see the girls. Accelerator was annoyed at lugging all the stuff around, so he just found a spot and started throwing what he had up. Jason looked around a bit more and started setting up too, then threw himself down on the ground under the umbrella. Touma and Motoharu followed their example. Touma had to admit the beach was pretty nice, gold sands, clear water, and white cliffs. He was admiring the scenery when Motoharu nudged him in the side to get his attention and then pointed. Touma looked where he was pointing and his eyes widened slightly.

Mikoto, Misaki, Kuroko, Kazari, and Ruiko where walking toward them carrying ice cream. At least we know where they went, he thought. Misaki and Mikoto were arguing, each holding two ice cream cones along with Kazari and Ruiko. Touma, however, was too busy focusing on their clothes. Mikoto was wearing a bright yellow two piece and, although it wasn't completely revealing, it showed off more than her last one. Kuroko, who was walking next to her, was wearing her maroon two piece that really didn't cover anything and was receiving a lot of stares from other people. Ruiko was also wearing the same swim suit she wore last time, her sky blue two piece. Kazari was wearing a flowery designed two piece, which surprised Touma, but he looked over at Jason who had his eyes glued to her and Touma smirked. Then he saw Misaki and his mouth almost fell open. It had been awhile since he saw her in a swim suit, but this time she was wearing a golden two piece that highlighted her well-endowed chest and curves.

Behind them Last Order, Index, Worst, and Komoe were walking together. Last Order was wearing a blue and white polka dotted one piece, which looked similar to her normal dress she liked to wear. Index was wearing her pink-purple one piece and was enjoying her ice cream. Komoe was wearing a bright pink one piece and seemed to be reprimanding Worst about something, but she just seemed to find it amusing. Worst was wearing a striped blue and white two piece. Touma remembered she was supposed to be an older form of Mikoto and he had to look away when his mind started focusing on Worst's curves, which were highlighted by the style of her swim suit.

"We brought ice cream," Kazari said as they got close and handed Jason one of the cones she had and sat down next to him under the umbrella.

"Here you go," Ruiko said handing Motoharu one and he looked surprised. When Ruiko had seen everyone else getting cones for the guys, she felt like he would be left out if he didn't get one. Touma began to get an inkling of what Misaki and Mikoto were fighting about now.

"Touma I brought you an ice cream cone too," Misaki said cheerfully holding out a vanilla one.

"Unless you prefer chocolate," Mikoto said holding out the second cone she was holding. Both of them were standing right in front of where he was sitting, each of the holding out a cone. Out of the corner of his eye, Touma saw Jason, Motoharu, and Accelerator watching him with amused expressions on their faces. Kuroko didn't say anything, but glared at him as if daring to take Mikoto's cone. Touma looked at both their faces and thought the best option was just to be honest.

"Thank you both," he said but reached for Misaki's. "I actually prefer vanilla." Misaki glanced at Mikoto with a triumphant look on her face. Mikoto looked a little disappointed, but then did something he didn't expect. She walked over and handed the chocolate cone to Accelerator.

"Here," she said thrusting the cone into his hand. He was actually so shocked he took it my reflex.

"What the…" he sputtered. "What's this third rate?"

"I'll let Last Order explain," Mikoto said shaking her head and looking at her.

"MISAKA wanted to bring you ice cream MISAKA says while MISAKA hangs her head in disappointment. After MISAKA bought ice cream and was heading back, Worst knock it into the ground MISAKA cries as MISAKA points angrily at Worst."

"Misaka enjoyed it," Worst said laughing at Last Order's expression.

"I scolded her," Komoe added still looking at Worst, who turned away and whistled innocently.

"I can't believe she would waste perfectly good ice cream," Index said shaking her head. Touma had a feeling Komoe had to stop her from eating the ice cream off the ground.

"We figured whichever Touma didn't want you could have," Mikoto continued. "None of us knew your preference."

"I don't want the damn hero's leftovers," Accelerator snapped.

"But MISAKA wanted to enjoy ice cream with you MISAKA said as MISAKA lowers her head sadly." Accelerator looked at her sad face, glared at the other guys as if daring them to say anything, then actually started eating the ice cream. Last Order's face suddenly changed from sadness to happiness and she sat down beside him followed by Index. Misaki and Mikoto sat down on opposite sides of Touma. Kuroko sat next to Mikoto. Ruiko sat on the other side of Kazari. Worst sat down next to Accelerator, while Komoe sat down under her own umbrella. Touma was informed Agnese and Itsuwa had received a phone call and they had said they would meet up with all of them a little later. They all started eating ice cream and discussing their plans for the day when they finally saw Shizuri's group heading toward them. Touma didn't know why they were late, none of them had ice cream, but he got another eyeful as he was reminded of what high school girls look like.

Rikou was wearing a tight pair of black shorts and a pink sleeveless shirt. It really wasn't a bathing suit, but she could still swim in it. Touma was really shocked to see one thing. Since she wasn't wearing a track suit anymore, he realized she had a really large chest, even bigger then Shizuri or Misaki. Saiai was wearing a shoulder less white two piece with just a strap around her neck. She really didn't have a chest, so it wasn't as erotic as if other girls wore it. Frenda's swimsuit was on the same level as Kuroko's. It seemed to be an orange-red strap that wrapped around her neck and just over her chest as it wrapped around her back into her lower half. It covered just enough, barely, to be called a swim suit. However, it was Shizuri that made his jaw drop.

She was wearing a black two piece with a cloth wrapped around her lower body covering the bottom half. The suit design was pretty simple, compared to Frenda's or Kuroko's, but she filled it out so well. Misaki might have had a nice figure, but Mugino was filling out her swimsuit like a professional as it wrapped around her curves. Touma was watching her closely while they approached until he felt two fingers jab him from both sides. He looked and saw Misaki and Mikoto glaring at him. They obviously saw what he was staring at. From a distance, it looked like Mugino was watching him, but he couldn't be sure.

"Well," Shizuri said looking them over as they approached, he eyes lingering on Touma slightly longer than the others. "So what are you all up to?"

"Waiting for you four," Mikoto said glaring at her.

"Nice of you to keep us waiting," Misaki added. Touma noticed they only seemed to be allies against Shizuri. Shizuri grinned.

"We had… things to take care of," she replied mysteriously, but seemed to focus on Mikoto who frowned.

"Kamijou," Frenda said. "Want to go swimming with me? I love the water."

"He's already going to hang with me," Misaki said interrupting Touma before he could say anything.

"You also seem to be mistaken," Mikoto added. "He's hanging out with me."

"Noooo onee-sama," Kuroko pleaded as she grabbed Mikoto's arm. "Hang out with me instead of the ape."

"Get off," Mikoto muttered shaking her. "Stop calling him names too."

Frenda, Misaki, and Mikoto glared at each other then turned, all at once, to Touma. "Who are you going to hang out with?" Touma did not expect them all to join forces against him all of a sudden.

"He's going to hang out with me," Index declared. "Right Touma." She looked back at him and Touma gulped slightly as he realized what would happen if he didn't spend at least part of the day with her.

"Umm," he said hesitantly. "We are going to be here all day, so there's no need to fight."

"The savior sure is popular MISAKA comments while MISAKA watches everyone try to interact with him."

"Shut up," Accelerator snapped. He found himself annoyed for some reason. He was enjoying watching the hero get put on the spot from the girls but now, when Last Order spoke up, his good mood faded away.

"Aw," Worst asked nudging him. "Is tou-san jealous?"

"Go to hell," he growled.

"When do you think he's going to finally admit it?" Motoharu asked Jason.

"I think he will keep denying it for a while," Jason replied as they both watched the sight in front of them with amused looks on their faces. "I think it would be easier for all of them if he just did."

"What are you guys talking about?" Ruiko asked leaning closer interested.

Motoharu grinned. "Just something we talk about in class," he answered. "But it's kind of a class secret, so we can't go into details unless we get really bored." Jason nodded while Ruiko looked confused. Before she could ask anything Kazari leaned close to her.

"You know," she whispered. "You need to try to spend time with him too if you want to get anywhere."

"But how am I supposed to get involved in that?" Ruiko whispered back pointing a figure at Frenda, Mikoto, and Misaki arguing while Index was pulling on Touma's arm. Shizuri and Saiai were watching with amused looks similar to the rest of the guys besides Touma.

"We need them to stop fighting," Kazari said thoughtfully as she looked at them. "Maybe some kind of distraction?"

"On it," Jason said who was next to them and overheard their conversation. He stood up and stretched. Without warning, he reached down and lifted Kazari up in his arms in the traditional princess carry. Kazari squealed in surprise and wrapped her arms around his neck for balance, which caused everyone around them to turn and look. Jason nodded in response to their sudden attention. "These conversations are fun and everything, but the day is short and I need to throw Kazari into the water. See ya." He turned and walked toward the ocean.

"Ah, nooooooo!" Kazari yelled struggling slightly as she was carried off. Everyone was silent for a moment, then burst out laughing at Kazari's red and shocked face. Ruiko had to admit, Jason's plan worked well and everyone had stopped fighting.

"Fine," Misaki said turning to Frenda, Mikoto, and Index. "He's right. The day won't last forever, so let's split up the time." The others nodded and they walked a little way from the group. Touma noticed they were talking quickly and, by the looks of it, arguing a lot as someone would shake their head or stomp their foot. It didn't last too long though and they came back and stood in front of Touma. "Ok," Misaki said quickly. "In order to avoid any argument, we agreed we are going to split the time so there won't be fighting. You are going to hang out with each of us for an hour. You will be with me until lunch, Index-san after, then Frenda-san, and finally Misaka-san." The other girls nodded, none of them seemed completely happy, but they appeared at least satisfied. "We left time afterwards because you may want to hang with your friends."

"Wait," Touma asked as he was being told what he was going to be doing. "Don't I get a say in this?"

"No," they replied in unison. Misaki grabbed his arm and pulled him after her as they headed into the beach. Mikoto, Frenda, and Index glared after them for a moment, but then turned to their groups. Index left with Komoe to go play in the water. Komoe really just wanted to make sure Index would not get lost.

"Let's go swimming," Frenda said to Saiai and Rikou. They nodded and all three of them headed to the beach. Shizuri on the other hand moved a blanket out from under the umbrella and laid on it to bask in the sun, drawing a lot of attention from passing guys.

Saiai put her arm around Frenda. "We can super discus what you should do when it's your turn."

"Basically," Frenda said loudly. "I know what I want to do." Saiai grinned.

"Onee-sama," Kuroko said tugging on Mikoto's arm. "Let's go swimming."

"Ok Kuroko," Mikoto sighed giving one last look at Misaki and Touma. "As long as you don't try anything funny."

"I would never," Kuroko said innocently and Mikoto glanced at her suspiciously.

"Ok then," she said then turned to Ruiko. "Want to join us since Kagere-san seemed to have kidnapped Uiharu?"

"Ok," Ruiko said cheerfully. She was hoping she could spend time with Touma in the afternoon but, for now, though she was going to have fun with her friends on the beach. All three of them left for another part of the beach.

"Well," Motoharu said to Accelerator. "I'm going to try to hit on some girls."

"Like you could get anyone," Accelerator laughed slightly.

"Oh," Motoharu replied. "1000 yen says I can."

"1500."

"Deal." Motoharu looked around and headed toward a side of the beach with the most girls.

"Misaka wonders what mischief Misaka can pull while we are here," Worst said grinning mischievously. "Maybe start with stealing some ice cream and…" She started mumbling as she walked off into the distance.

Accelerator shook his head and pulled out a strong sun block and started applying it on himself. If he wanted to go out into the sun for any length of time, he needed it. It was one of the reasons he tended to be a night owl and shop later at night, at least till he was forced to go to school. He looked up and saw Last Order staring at him with a slightly nervous look on her face as she fidgeted. It was obvious she was trying to hide the fact she wanted to ask him something. "What?" he finally asked.

"MISAKA will help you apply sunscreen to your back MISAKA volunteers as MISAKA grabs the bottle."

"No," Accelerator answered immediately as he reached for the bottle but wasn't quick enough to grab it before her.

"Please MISAKA begs. MISAKA wants to enjoy her first time at the beach with you MISAKA adds as MISAKA begins to develop tears in her eyes."

Damn it, Accelerator thought as he looked at her. He glanced at Shizuri who was nearby, but she didn't appear to be paying any attention to him. She was lying on her front sunbathing. "Fine," he spat out. "But make it quick."

"Yay!" Last Order cried as Accelerator laid down. Instead of kneeling next to him, like any normal individual, she sat on his hip with her legs on both sides of him.

"What the f#$% are you doing?" he demanded.

"MISAKA is small MISAKA explains. MISAKA needs to be on top to reach everywhere MISAKA adds as MISAKA spreads the sunscreen." Accelerator flinched slightly as she rubbed it on his back, but refused to say anything more. Those idiots and the brats better not see this. He moved his head slightly and, to his dismay, saw Shizuri looking at him and grinning.

"What?" Accelerator snapped at her.

"You look like you're having fun," Shizuri responded.

"I hope you die," he retorted. Shizuri just smirked in response.

Touma had spent time with Misaki before, both as a male and when he was transformed into a girl. This was the first time he was on a beach and alone with her as a male though. They walked on the beach and talked as Misaki held his arm tightly and leaned close to him. He could feel a lot of jealous looks as they passed other guys, but no one interrupted them. I guess they are used to seeing people walk together here. He turned to her. "Do you want to go swimming?"

"Oh my Touma," she said after a slight hesitation. "Did you want to see me all wet? You have such a dirty mind."

"W-what?" sputtered Touma. "I didn't mean like tha…."

"I know," giggled Misaki. "You fall for it every time."

"Maybe I'll do what Jason did to Uiharu-san," Touma grinned back at her. Misaki's eyes widened in fear and she took a step back.

"You wouldn't," she said nervously.

"Probably not," admitted Touma. "But why are you so… Hold on. Don't tell me you can't swim."

"W-what are you talking about?" This time it was Misaki's turn to stutter. "O-of course I can swim."

"Oh really?" Touma asked changing directions and walking into the water. "Then of course you wouldn't be scared to follow me right?"

"When did you become so bold?" Misaki asked standing hesitantly near the end of the water.

"I'm spending too much time with Accelerator and Jason," Touma answered shrugging. He took a couple more steps into the water. "So are you going to follow me?"

"Y-yea," she said and took a couple steps in. A wave came in and knocked her in the knees and she wobbled. "Fine you win. I can't swim you happy?"

"A little," Touma said grinning as he walked back to her and she grabbed his arm while they were still standing in ankle deep water. "You know it's not deep, you don't have to hold on so tight. Come to think of it, when we were at the beach before, you never entered the water."

"I'm not good in water," Misaki admits clutching him even tighter until they walk out of the water.

"I can teach you how to swim if you would like," Touma offered.

"I don't want others to know I can't swim," Misaki added. She was suddenly reminded of the time she met him long ago and she couldn't swim then either. It has been awhile since I've tried swimming. I usually make an excuse or use my ability to get out when we have swimming in gym class. Maybe I can learn now.

To respect Misaki's wishes, they walked to the end of the beach and found a small pathway between the white cliffs. The pathway opened up to a small cove on the beach and would block them from the other's sights. The water was clear and there weren't a lot of waves right now as the wind died down or was blocked by the cliffs. Touma knew people had different proficiencies at swimming, but Misaki's skills were about as good as his everyday luck. They were going to practice in roughly meter deep water, so if things went wrong she could just stand up. Somehow, even while holding onto him, she started sinking and panicked. He tried to help her and she grabbed on to him and pulled him under. They struggled for a few seconds and he finally pulled her to her feet, but now she wouldn't let go of him. He sighed and dragged her back to shore until she caught her breath and calmed down.

"Don't tell anyone about this," Misaki said sternly at him.

"The drowning?" he asked to clarify. "Or the drowning in the meter deep water? Ouch." She had hit him in the arm. "I won't don't worry, but only if you keep practicing."

"Do I have to?" she asked. And he nodded. She sighed, but she really enjoyed their alone time and the fact he was trying to help her with something she was not good with. I wonder if he felt this way when I helped him with school work. They practices until they had to meet everyone for lunch.

Misaki never did get better.

They all met up for lunch at a nearby restaurant and Agnese and Itsuwa had joined them. They apologized for being away but, since everyone was having a good time, no one was mad at them. Touma looked around and listened to other's conversations after Mikoto had grilled them on what he did with Misaki since she lost track of them. Touma said they walked around the beach and went swimming a bit, which was technically true. Misaki managed to swim about five seconds before beginning to drown. Misaki also agreed and didn't add anything to pretend something more happened. Which, because of Misaki's usual reactions, Mikoto found suspicious.

It turns out Jason had actually thrown Kazari into the water. From what Touma heard, he carried her into the water till about his belly and dropped her in gently. By the way he was laughing; Kazari had gotten upset and had started splashing him for a while. Mikoto, Kuroko, and Ruiko had been swimming around in the beach. From what Ruiko had said, they had been hit on a couple times, but Kuroko had chased the guys away. Index and Last Order had been building sand castles while Komoe and Accelerator watched them. Touma noticed Accelerator seemed slightly red, but he didn't want to say anything after a quick glare from Accelerator. There was a rumor going around someone had been knocking down sand castles, pushing people, stealing food, and causing people's chairs to break and everyone knew who that was. Frenda, Saiai, and Ruiko had been swimming, and Shizuri had been sun bathing. Shizuri had mentioned something funny involving Accelerator, but he had flicked his choker on and was about to bury them all with sand so Touma never did find out what it was. Motoharu's face looked red as if he had been hit a lot, but still appeared to be in good spirits as he talked to Accelerator about a bet.

He looked over at Itsuwa and Agnese wondering what they had been doing. He figured it was probably for the church or magic side so he didn't want to question them too much. Itsuwa was wearing a bright orange one piece with the back removed and it showed off her very prominent chest which several of the girls, mainly Mikoto's friends, looked at in envy. Agnese was wearing a red and white stripped two piece, but her chest wasn't nearly as prominent. She seemed a little more tense then Itsuwa. She looked up. "What?" she asked.

"Huh?" Touma asked confused as he didn't say anything.

"You've been staring at us boy," Agnese said. "Did you want something?"

"Oh no," Touma replied quickly. "I just thought you two looked nice." He couldn't ask what he really wanted to in a public place like this. He also didn't know the impact or the consequences of his words.

"Oh," Agnese said looking surprised and a pink tinge appeared on her face. "Thank you."

"T-thank y-you," Itsuwa said nervously not expecting his response.

"You seem to be giving out compliments to everyone," Shizuri remarked mildly from across the table and Touma felt a shiver run down his spine. It didn't come from her, though she was watching him coolly, but from Mikoto and Misaki.

"She has a point," Misaki commented. "I can understand you being kind to everyone, but still."

"You seem to get quite friendly with everyone too," Mikoto added.

"He's just a player," Kuroko sniffed.

"Don't make me sound like a guy who just tries to flirt with girls," Touma replied indignantly.

"Yea," Motoharu agreed and Touma felt a rush of thanks to him until… "He doesn't try, it happens unconsciously." Accelerator, Worst, and Jason snickered.

"That makes sense," Saiai said thinking back to when ITEM met him. "So that's what happened." Most of the girls, except Index, Last Order, and Shizuri turned to look at her while the guys, besides Touma, laughed again. Touma slammed his head onto the table as everyone seemed to gang up on him.

After lunch, it was Index's turn to have fun with Touma. Misaki stared wistfully after Touma as he and Accelerator followed Index and Last Order. Everyone else slowly split off to do their own plans. Itsuwa looked around after everyone left and decided to follow Touma. She didn't get many opportunities to speak with him. When she caught up with them, Index seemed fine with her being there and didn't voice any complaints. She and Last Order were running along the beach looking for sea shells well Itsuwa, Touma, and, occasionally, Accelerator talked.

"So what were you and Agnese-san doing this morning?" Touma asked as he kept his eye on Index.

"The church sent us an updated message," Itsuwa replied. "Originally, we had planned to bring you all to Buckingham Palace, since there are some public tours, and a chance to see the royal family tomorrow, but it appears they have been delayed. So we were going to give you a tour of London, allow everyone to shop if they choose, and, if desired, you can see our church. Index told me she wanted to visit."

"Sounds good," Touma said nodding. "I know a lot of them will be happy with that plan. I was worried it might have been that organization." Accelerator, who was nearby, gave a very slight twist of his head to Touma's words.

"So far their movements have been limited," Itsuwa told him, but she gave a quick glance at Accelerator.

"It's ok," Touma reassured her. "He knows about magic and can keep a secret." She nodded.

"They seem to be attacking the Roman Catholic Church if our spies are correct," she continued. "But their church is quite powerful and so far it looks like the siege has failed. It's been officially called a terrorist attack as a cover up to keep a lot of the public away."

"I hate the fact those guys will involve innocent people," Touma muttered clenching his fist.

"There's no use worrying about it," Accelerator said and they turned to look at him. "If we see them we crush them, until then, we do what we want."

"He has a point," Itsuwa conceded. "You are on vacation, so just relax and have fun."

"Ok," Touma relented, but part of him was still worried about what the organization was going to do. They are right though, I am going to have fun on this vacation with everyone. He was lost in thought and didn't notice Index come up to him.

"Touma look at this," she said holding up a sea slug right up to his face.

"AHHHH!" he yelled and fell backwards as Accelerator, Itsuwa and Last Order laughed.

Afterwards, Index and Last Order noticed Kazari, Komoe, Ruiko, and Jason playing with a beach ball and ran to join them. Touma shrugged and followed. He and Itsuwa joined in, but Accelerator refused to, even after Last Order tried to fake cry to get him to. Jason winked at Touma and knocked the ball toward Accelerator, hitting him in the face. Accelerator didn't take it lightly and Touma watched him chase Jason around the beach as Accelerator tried to kill him. Kazari and Ruiko were laughing. Last Order and Index thought it looked fun and chased after Accelerator. Touma looked around and found himself having a good time.

"Is she ok?" Touma motioned to Rikou who was lying face down in the water and floating. He was standing in chest deep water watching her float by.

"That's how she relaxes," Saiai said as she passed him. Rikou looked up at him, nodded, and went back to floating. "Besides," she said nudging him in the side. "Shouldn't you super be paying attention to Frenda?" She gestured a little ways out were Frenda was swimming effortlessly, clearly enjoying the water and showing off in front of Touma. Touma swam over to her.

"Enjoying yourself?" Touma asked her as he treaded water.

"Yep," she said stopping next to him. "I love the water, but I rarely get to leave Academy City. Basically, I only get to swim in a hotel pool occasionally."

"Want to race over to that rock," he asked gesturing.

"Sure," she grinned. "Want to make a bet on who wins?"

"No," Touma said shaking his head. "I've gone down that route before. Not happening again."

"Basically," she said smirking. "You are scared."

"Yep," Touma acknowledged. "With my luck an octopus will grab my leg and pull me under halfway through the race." They both laughed and did a couple races while enjoying the water. The beach was getting crowded and more people were slowly going into the deeper water so they couldn't race much longer. Touma was athletic, mostly from running from people who wanted to beat him up but he had gotten in quite a few number of fights before. In the water, Frenda was a lot better than he was. She beat him every time, though a couple of the races were close. Eventually, they moved into the shallow area to rest.

"So why is Mugino-san not joining you three," Touma asked Frenda as he looked towards Rikou and Saiai.

"She doesn't like swimming I think," Frenda said tapping her head and looking at the shore were Mugino was lying. "She said she wanted to work on her tan." She shook her head. "Those guys are idiots. They are lucky we are outside of the city or she would have killed them all already." Touma looked over and saw four guys surrounding her. She had sat up and, even from his location, Touma could see she was not amused. Touma sighed and knew what he should do. He left the water and walked up towards them as Frenda, Saiai, and Rikou watched.

"Sorry I took so long," he said pushing through two of the guys and reaching for Shizuri's hand. "You said you wanted to go swimming right?" Shizuri raised an eyebrow at him, but she knew what he was doing. The other guys surrounding her started mumbling and two of them opened their mouth to tell Touma off. Touma didn't think it would work, based on what he knew about Shizuri, but he received a shock.

"I thought you got lost," she said smiling, but Touma could tell from her eyes it was more of a smirk. She reached out her hand, grabbed his, and got up. She held on to his arm and turned to the other guys. "Sorry boys," she told them. "I'm taken." She walked off and Touma was pulled along, while the guys looked disgruntled and left. "About time I got rid of those losers," she hissed under her breath. "I was this close to shooting them all."

"I'm glad you didn't," Touma muttered. "It would have ruined the trip." She leaned over and blew in his ear and an involuntary shiver went down his spine. He didn't want to admit it, but it still felt good.

"Aww," asked Shizuri. "Are you worried about me or just wanted to spend some alone time."

"Stop trying to mess with me," Touma whispered back exasperated as they headed towards Frenda, Saiai, and Rikou. Shizuri laughed at his expression and when they got close she motioned Frenda forward to grab his other arm. They dragged him across the beach to a shaved ice stand, purposely acting flirty towards him in front of other guys. Touma felt like he was actually getting use to Shizuri's antics and found they didn't bother him much anymore.

"Really?" Mikoto asked as she and Touma walked along the beach. "Mugino actually did that?"

"She really enjoys messing with me," Touma sighed. "I can't understand why people find it fun."

"Ask Jason," Mikoto suggested and they both laughed and turned to look at their friends. Jason and Tsuchimikado were playing beach football with some other guys while Ruiko, Kuroko, and Kazari sat on the side lines watching. The only reason Kuroko was not bothering them was that Mikoto told her if she even got a hint of her tailing them, Mikoto would make sure they wouldn't be roommates. After many tears and groping she finally got away. "Shokuhou-san didn't do anything inappropriate did she?"

"What do you mean?" Touma asked innocently trying to avoid looking at her and her face turned slightly red.

"I-I m-mean…" she started to stutter and Touma laughed.

"I know what you meant," he said. "We just went swimming and…ouch!" He started rubbing his shoulder where she punched him. "What was that for?"

"Not funny," Mikoto said looking at him. "I'm tired of her trying to steal…" she quickly shut her mouth.

"Huh?"

"Nothing," she said quickly. "You know I think this is one of the few times we have been alone since the d-date at the carnival." It was the first time she brought up their date and her face went red again. Touma also felt his ears turn red. He remembered that day and the fun he had with Mikoto.

"It has been a pretty busy week," he remarked. "You were like a gentle kitten then."

"What do you mean by that!" she said loudly her face scarlet. Touma looked at her for a moment and remembered the picture.

She seemed to be weak against surprise attacks, he thought. He reached his arm over and put it over her shoulder and pulled her close. He didn't feel any resistance as she fell against him. He felt his heart beat speed up when she fell against him.

"W-what are you doing?" she asked but her voice came out like a whisper.

"Sorry," Touma said looking away. "I think I spend too much time with Jason."

"Idiot," she answered. "I never said I didn't like it." That surprised Touma as they continued to walk with his arm around Mikoto and she continued to lean up against him. He thought about how much Mikoto had changed, from the girl who chased him around the city shooting lighting at him to the girl he knew now. He didn't really know what to say, but he enjoyed the silence between them as they leaned up against each other.

"Hey babe," a guy said from behind them and they turned around. Touma didn't understand English well, but he knew enough to be able to piece together the words he knew and the way the guy acted. "Why don't you ditch this loser and come hang out with us?" A couple guys, either late high school or early college, were standing behind him also looking at Mikoto. Touma felt Mikoto stiffen slightly in anger, so he took a step forward before anything escalated.

"She's with me," he said with an arm out stretched in front of Mikoto. Not only was he annoyed at the guys, he didn't want Mikoto to shock them all. Since they were outside of Academy City, she could get in a lot of trouble if she used her ability.

"I didn't ask you," the guy in the center said. He appeared to be the leader of the group. "Obviously a girl like her wouldn't want to hang out with a two timer like you."

"Huh?" Mikoto and Touma said at the same time.

"This guy was hanging out with some blonde this morning," the guy continued as his friends shook their head. "Then he was with another group of girls not too long ago. Why don't you come hang out with me? I'll make sure to treat you right." The other guys began to laugh, but they constantly glared at Touma as if daring him to try anything.

I hate guys like these, Mikoto thought. I can't really shock them either. They have to be referring to Shokuhou and Mugino's group, but why would they bring it up. Are they acting jealous? Guys are weird. His friends just seem to make fun of him when he's around a girl. She turned to Touma. "Let's go, there's no reason to escalate this." Touma nodded and they turned to leave.

"Not so fast," the guy said reaching out and putting his hand on her shoulder. Mikoto was about to shock him when Touma acted first. He grabbed the guys hand with his right hand.

"She's not interested," he said loudly. What surprised him was the sudden sound of breaking glass, which Mikoto heard too. My hand negated something? The guys shook his head and looked at his friends.

"Let's go," he said. "It's not worth it." He looked a little confused, as did his friends at his reactions, but they all left.

"Why did my hand react?" Touma muttered out loud staring at it.

Mikoto didn't answer him, but her eyes started darting around the beach as she knew what caused it. Where is that witch, she thought. The beach was really crowded and she couldn't see the person she was looking for. She doesn't want me to have a peaceful time with him. If I see her, I swear I'm going to electrocute her. In order to piss off her rival, she went back to leaning against Touma. "T-thanks for protecting me," Mikoto said softly her face red.

"It was no problem," he said looking away his face red too. "Though I think I was protecting them more then you."

"Beast," she said jabbing him sharply in the side with her finger. "I wouldn't shock normal people out here." They both laughed and continued walking down the beach. Mikoto, however, kept her eyes open for the girl who tried to mess with her alone time with Touma.

After they had hung out for a while, Touma met up with Jason and Motoharu, while Mikoto marched off looking a little annoyed. They were still playing beach football and he was able to join in. They played for another hour or so until everyone was getting tired. The game had gotten pretty big with the number of people who joined and they took up a large section of the beach. Touma saw most of his friends in the audience, the only one he didn't see was Worst. It was early evening, when Touma noticed a crowd starting to form in the distance of the beach. He called out to the others. "What's happening over there?"

"No idea," Motoharu replied wiping his forehead. "Let's check it out." Their group didn't have anything else to do. They weren't planning to get any supper for another hour or so. They wondered over when someone with a portable amplifier shouted out.

"Welcome everyone," a guy with sunglasses and spikey blonde hair called out from a makeshift stage. He looked like he may have been in college. It appeared some people set it up during the day because Touma knew it wasn't there that morning. "We are going to see who can win today's swimsuit competition."

"Yes," Motoharu said fist pumping. Touma didn't make any noticeable reactions to the news, because he felt several pair of eyes from behind start staring at him.

"Some of you know we have been doing it every day this week," the guy continued. "Today is the last day my crew and I will be here though. We leave tomorrow." He paused while a large number of people booed. "Now now," he continued. "Let's make this a memorial finale. We have a special prize today for whoever wins." He pointed to another college aged girl who was holding up a black and white frilly swimsuit. "Today's winner will receive the Mythic Spider Web Maid Swimsuit, guaranteed to attract any boy you desire." The crowd burst into cheers and questions.

"I want that," Touma heard Misaka whisper from behind him. He remembered her gloves and stockings tended to have the spider web designs on them.

"Any guy Frenda," Saiai said nudging her. "You should super enter." Rikou didn't seem to care either way. Saiai thought Shizuri would say something, but she just stayed silent looking toward the stage. Since this was only a private group outside of Academy City, she knew they could participate without making their faces known to groups that opposed ITEM.

"I am," Frenda said puffing out her chest.

"Onee-sama," Kuroko said turning to her and drooling slightly at the image of Mikoto wearing it. "You should enter."

"Don't put me in your sick delusions," Mikoto snapped back instantly. Her thoughts however, were going in the exact opposite direction. I wonder if Touma would like it. She looked at him and he was looking at the swimsuit. She also noticed the other guys were looking at it too.

Itsuwa also noticed Touma looking at the swim suit. I'm going to win it, she thought and a fire of determination lit up in her eyes.

"Hey Uiharu," Ruiko said turning to her friend, only to find her hiding behind Jason. "I was just going to suggest we should enter too, for fun." Kazari shook her head and slinked further behind Jason.

"I don't know why she is hiding behind me," Jason commented. "I want her to enter too." Ruiko and Jason both laughed and then high fived. Kazari poked him in the back and he wrapped his arm around her.

"MISAKA will enter MISAKA volunteers as MISAKA expresses her desire to win the swimsuit." Before she could run forward a hand grabbed her. She looked up and saw Accelerator looking down at her.

"No."

"I don't see why people want that outfit," Agnese said shrugging. "I've never been big into swim suits, but I suppose I could enter." She had glanced over and saw Touma staring at the swimsuit.

The announcer said anyone interested had to line up near the stage. A panel of judges sat on the other side and the top three would have a face off. After some arguing and pressuring each other, Ruiko, Misaki, Mikoto, Itsuwa, Agnese, Frenda, Rikou, Saiai, and, to Touma's surprise, Shizuri. Last Order sat on the ground pouting at Accelerator's refusal to let her enter. Index and Komoe were also sitting down watching. Neither of them had any desire in that outfit and decided to cheer the others on. Everyone else was standing together watching and talking as they waited for the event to start.

"Looks like some stiff competition," remarked Motoharu to Touma.

"Yea," he nodded and then he felt Kuroko's death stare.

"Onee-sama is going to win ape," she said. "I don't like you, but you better support her."

"I don't think she's going to win," Jason said looking at the line of females, and then the judges. "The judges look like they are all in college."

"They will be captivated by onee-sama's charm," she snapped back.

"I was thinking they would be looking for something el…" Jason started to say then stopped. "Never mind."

"I'm prepared to bet she will win," Kuroko said confidently. Jason took the challenge up in stride.

"What's the bet?"

"If I win," she replied. "You have to wear a monkey costume and a shirt saying you are a loser in Academy City."

"Sounds doable, but oddly specific," Jason commented. "If I win then, you need to do something for me when we get back to the city."

"What thing?"

"I don't know yet," he admitted. "I'm sure to think of something though. I think I'll choose her." He pointed to a girl and Kuroko nodded.

"Deal." They shook hands and glared at each other, well Kuroko glared, Jason just looked amused.

"What are you going to make her do?" Kazari asked. "Nothing bad right?"

"Nah," Jason said. "Something a little embarrassing, but nothing real bad. She is our friend." Kazari smiled at this and held his hand. Touma shook his head and turned back to the competition.

"Speaking of bets," Accelerator remembered. "Remember to pay up when we get back."

"Fine," Motoharu said, but he didn't look disappointed at all.

"What bet did you two do?" Touma asked.

"Just that he didn't have skills," Accelerator said smirking.

"You shouldn't be gambling," Komoe reprimanded them all.

"It's all in good fun sensei," Motoharu said laughing.

The competition started and they all turned their attention to the stage. There were about 50 females participating, from middle schoolers to college girls and a couple of women around their late twenties. There were all kinds of swimsuits, two piece, one piece, string, slings, micros, strapless, neck wraps, and more. Touma noticed the judges seemed to give the more well-endowed girls higher scores and he understood what Jason was originally commenting on. He probably stopped so Uiharu didn't get upset. He glanced over to see Kazari looking slightly depressed at some of the girls and Jason talking to her to cheer her up. Accelerator was next to them and he appeared to be bored, but Touma caught him looking at a few of the girls. Motoharu was watching each girl closely.

The funniest thing that happened occurred about halfway through the competition, Last Order had run up onto the stage when Accelerator wasn't looking. Of course he was pissed, but everyone else found her adorable. The judges even scored her. Her score was actually fifth overall of the girls who had gone so far. Last Order was quite pleased with herself and left the stage so they could continue. She then bragged to Accelerator about how attractive she was, but he just ignored her.

Touma clapped along with the others as their friends participated. Ruiko, Mikoto, Saiai and Agnese were greeted by applause and placed in roughly the middle. Kuroko was furious the judges didn't recognize Mikoto's greatness and she despised the smug look on Jason's face. Touma knew why they scored them as such, but he didn't want to die if he said it out loud. Frenda got more cheering, but it was mostly because of her revealing swimsuit. Misaki and Rikou both placed high, and Touma knew why but he applauded loudly with everyone else. Surprisingly, Itsuwa was greeted with enormous enthusiasm. She had an embarrassed, innocent look that seemed to appeal to a wide audience and she had the curves and chest to attract the others. When Shizuri strutted out on stage, there was silence for a moment before everyone burst out into cheers and yells. She was attractive enough her swimsuit didn't need to be that provocative, she still had the black cloth wrapped around her lower half, but it still revealed to everyone a view of her thigh. She also carried herself gracefully, which probably added to her charm. There were only a few more people after her and then the announcer guy came back on stage after talking to the judges.

"We have narrowed it down to the final three contestants," he told them all enthusiastically. "I will point to the top three and they need to come up on stage. Then you the audience will decide who wins. Whoever gets the loudest cheers wins." The crowd yelled in excitement. The guy grinned and pointed to a black haired girl with a silver two piece that had one of the biggest chests of the competitors, Touma saw how she got in, and then he pointed to Shizuri and Itsuwa. Touma was surprised two of his friends were chosen, but he cheered with everyone else. He did notice Misaki looked really upset.

"You ok?" he asked her softly.

"I really wanted that swimsuit," she sighed. "I should have used my powers."

"I'm glad you didn't," he said. "You shouldn't need to cheat to win. I mean, you are quite attractive already." He couldn't look at her as he tried to cheer her up. She smiled at him slightly red faced. Touma was glad no one else heard it because it was embarrassing to say.

When all three contestants were on stage, the announcer went one by one and monitored the cheers of the crowd. It was close, but in the end, the winner was Itsuwa, who accepted the swimsuit price as her face glowed red when the crowd applauded. Everyone began to disperse after that and Touma's group started heading toward the nearby restaurant to grab dinner.

"Looks like I won," Jason said smirking at Kuroko.

"Arg!" Kuroko yelled.

"What happened?" Ruiko asked.

"They had a bet on who would win," Kazari explained.

"What were the bets?" Misaki asked interested as she walked next to Touma.

"If Shirai-san won," Kazari answered. "Jason would have to wear a monkey costume and a shirt saying loser back in Academy City." Everyone nearby laughed as they imagined that. "She wanted Misaka-san to win. If Jason won, Shirai-san would have to do something for him back at the city, and he said Itsuwa would win."

"Really," Itsuwa asked surprised. "Thank you for your confidence."

"This can't be good," Mikoto groaned. "Those kinds of bets never end well."

"Tell me about it," Touma muttered smirking and Mikoto poked him in the side, while glaring at him as if daring him to say anymore.

"Speaking of which," Jason said pulling out his phone. "I may know what I want to happen now. Hang on." He dialed and held it up to his ear while everyone looked at him. "Hey, sorry this is really late for you." Silence. "Yea, trips going well." Silence. "Yep, Touma's doing what he does best." Touma got annoyed, but wasn't sure why. "I wanted to know if you still have that thing you ordered last week." Silence. "Yep, that's the one, perfect. Do you remember the pigtailed girl who confessed her love in front of Touma a while back?"

"DON"T EVER BRING THAT UP!" Kuroko roared. Mikoto, Ruiko, and Kazari all hid their laughs behind their hands. Touma didn't laugh because he almost died that day.

"Do you think it will fit? Awesome. When we get back to Academy City I need to borrow it. Sure, you can have one. Thanks a lot Aogami." Touma's eyes went wide when he knew who Jason was talking to.

"I'm going to apologize ahead of time Shirai-san," Touma said.

"Huh?" Kuroko looked at him confused.

"Wow Jason means business," Motoharu added impressed.

"I even feel sorry for you brat," Accelerator said speaking up for the first time in a while.

Kuroko felt the color drain out of her face as she thought of what horrible thing was going to await her that made even Accelerator feel bad for her. Mikoto, Ruiko, and Kazari all looked at each other wide-eyed then turned to Jason, but he did not elaborate. Misaki knew who Aogami was because she knew most of the people around Touma, but she didn't know exactly what made him scary.

After dinner they headed back to the hotel. Everyone appeared to have fun at the beach and several people looked sunburn, especially Accelerator. When they had met up for dinner, they met Worst who had a bag of collectables she said she had 'found' on the beach. Touma was sure they were taken without the consent or knowledge of the owners. The talk was a little subdued, as some of the girls were disappointed they didn't win the swimsuit, but most people were pretty tired after the eventful day. When they got back to the hotel, the girls left quickly to get cleaned up and changed. The beach had changing rooms, but the showers were not the best. Touma, however, hung back and grabbed Jason by the shoulder.

"What's up," Jason asked.

"You aren't planning to do anything weird with your bet to Shirai-san, are you?" Touma asked.

"Really?" Jason replied. "That's what you asked? Not, Jason, what were you planning to do with those twenty sea slugs you collected on the beach?"

"Don't do anything that will be really…" Touma stopped. "Wait, was that why I thought your bag was moving slightly?"

"No," Jason said quickly. "I planned something a little embarrassing, but nothing really bad. Kazari would be mad at me if I did."

"Sometimes I think she is the only one who can keep you in line," Touma groaned and Jason laughed. "Oh, one other thing. What is really wrong with you? You disguised it well during the beach, but I can tell you are still sick since we arrived."

"Perceptive," Jason remarked. "Jet lag and too much sun probably."

"Bull," Touma said. "There's something else. Is it those sin marks?"

"What are you my mom?" Jason snapped then rubbed his head. "Sorry. I don't think so. I just haven't been feeling right since we got here. While we are here, I plan to sneak away for a bit and have someone investigate these marks. Tsuchimikado is planning to introduce someone to me. If we disappear, just try to make an excuse for us so no one else worries."

"Ok," Touma agreed reluctantly. "Just let me know if you need help." Jason nodded and headed back into the hotel. Touma shook his head and followed. When they approached their rooms, Touma head some girls arguing.

"I can't believe you tried to sabotage my time with him!" Mikoto yelled.

"It was your fault in the first place!" Misaki replied back.

"I didn't do anything, you always interfere with me!"

"You sure are popular," Jason laughed. "I would advise staying out of the hotel until things calm down." Touma nodded and took the elevators back down.

What am I going to do now? He walked out the back entrance of the hotel and felt the cool evening air. The sun was just beginning to set and it was quite pleasant outside. He looked and saw what might have been a bike path leading away from the hotel. I'm not really tired; maybe I should just go for a walk to kill time.

"Touma," a girl called out. "What are you doing out here?" He turned around and saw Ruiko sitting at a table looking at her phone.

"There are… reasons I can't go back to my room now," Touma explained. "I was going to kill some time and go on a walk. Want to join me?"

"Ah yes," Ruiko said surprised and quickly put her phone away. "Sounds like fun."

They took off and just enjoyed the evening as they talked. They talked about their day at the beach, since Ruiko didn't get much time with him, and about their friends. They had a fun time guessing what Jason was going to have Kuroko do but, no matter their idea, they did not have any solid leads. Touma always enjoyed hanging out with Ruiko. He felt that between all the other girls, she was someone who he could talk easily with about anything. Misaki and Mikoto were good friends, but he found it harder to talk to them about normal everyday things. Their topics moved to school work where they both had fun talking about how badly they failed tests and homework. Touma found himself watching her more the longer they talked.

Ruiko was having fun talking to Touma too. She missed the fact they hadn't spent much time alone together recently. Now, she was alone with him and talking about completely normal things instead of anything with being kidnapped or magic. I should take the chance to tell him how I truly feel. She normally wasn't a timid person and usually tried to get her friends to talk about getting boyfriends. When it came to actually confessing to Touma, she always had a hard time trying to say she liked him. They talked and laughed for easily a half hour and the path they were following had a valley on one side and thick trees on the other. There was a guard rail to protect people from falling into the valley and she noticed it would be a great place to watch the sunset. This is perfect.

"Hey Touma," she said a little timidly as she stopped. Touma stopped and turned around.

"What's up Ruiko?"

"I wanted to tell you something important."

"Sure," Touma said and he suddenly felt nervous, but was not sure why.

"You see," she said hesitating slightly, but then she took a deep breath and continued. "I wanted to tell you I really li…" There was a loud boom and they both turned around in panic. "What was that!?" she yelled in shock.

"I don't know," Touma said and he ran to the guard rail and looked down into the shallow valley. He saw what looked like a carriage. The carriage appeared to be highly decorated, having gold and other precious metals on it. It was large and he thought it was the perfect picture of a carriage from a fairy tale. It looked like the front wheel was blown off and the carriage crashed to the ground. The horses pulling it had fallen and where unable to get up. The door of the carriage burst open and two knights, in full armor, emerged from it while drawing swords. A female followed them, but she was not wearing armor.

The women appeared to be in her upper twenties with blonde hair, tied in the back. She wore a red dress composed of bright red leather, which gives off an impression of bondage-related clothing, with a long skirt. Her ensemble also contained red gloves that nearly reach up to her shoulders and she wore a golden crown. She appeared annoyed and was yelling what appeared to be orders at the knights around her.

Touma then noticed the carriage was surrounded by about ten cloaked men, each of them carrying a long spear. Shit, what's happening? One of the knights had rushed forward to confront two of the spear wielders. The knight dodged the spear of the first one and swung his blade at the second. The second guy parried the blade, giving the first guy a chance to jab the spear again. The knight moved to the side to just avoid the spear, which hit a tree behind him. The base of the tree exploded and fell over. Those spears are infused with magic and looks like one hit would be fatal. They are in trouble. The knight's sword moved upwards as he dodged and the hood of the second guy was cut. Touma's heart froze when he saw what was underneath it.

The man was wearing a golden theater mask of a sad man.

"What should we do Touma?" Ruiko asked turning to look at Touma. To her surprise he was halfway over the guard rail having leaped over it and he was running down to where the fight was taking place.

Motoharu: So Touma's going to get another girl to add to the harem?

Me: Probably, you know what he's like.

Jason: Hey, it's the author, haven't seen him in a while.

Touma: What do you mean what I'm like?

Accelerator: He means how you attract every girl around you.

Me: I feel like I let you guys comment on the chapters down here more than the girls.

Accelerator: That's because the readers like us more.

Jason: I doubt that. I bet they like the girls in swimsuits more than us.

Me: To be fair, everyone wants to see Accelerator's harem.

Motoharu: Yea, but I think you implied we wouldn't see it till Academy City.

Jason: Or if Saiai ever makes her move. Where you going to do anything with that?

Me: Not sure.

Accelerator: Why would I want anything to do with a shrimp like her?

Touma: She has a lot of similar traits as you.

Accelerator: There's a long reason for that and I don't want to talk about it.

Motoharu: And he's a lolicon so he probably wants her.

Accelerator: I'm going to bury you outside the hotel.

Me: That's it, next chapter is going to be a girl's only chat down here.

Feel free to leave a review, comment, suggestions, or ideas, I love reading them.