The trip is wrapping up and after this chapter we will begin to see how the other side is moving. I think this was a nice break for Touma. No life or death struggles, just embarrassment. It gave Mitsuko some screen time, so there's that. Some characters don't get a lot of love. The next week within this story is going to be jammed pack with stuff. I still have to have Kazari start her new job under Noukan, the guys' night which is sure to be pure stupidity, all the different factions' movement, and Touma wanting to live a normal high school life with a harem. He can no longer deny it's possible. The situation now is to accept or not accept it. Some girls won't take kindly to a no answer though and then he has to appease the ones who want him to themselves. It's sure to be a fun ride balancing life and death in slice of life and combat situations. Nothing else really important to say here, except thanks again to SilverFang88 for reviewing. We have to make him do something useful once in a while. Moving on to comments now.

ReyKingKaiser: That was the idea. She is staking her claim. I don't know what to have Pierce be yet. He could just be very mellow and go with the flow. Jason was just speeding things up for Touma.

Guest: Pierce is secretly a magic god of Otakus. There, I decided what he is now.

Guest: Jason will enjoy himself for sure. I'm more interested in trying to decide how to have Touma introduce himself to the group.

Handsomistic1: Nah, not that important. I could make up half a dozen reasons how he did it. Shoot, it could be an illusion he had Lessar teach him. It's not hard. The point was for him to have Touma not miss more days and score points with the teacher. I purposely avoided naming them for fun to make their first group meeting funnier.

general ironox: People are going to get hurt. Who will be the first casualty is up for grabs.

reality deviant: Private talks with Touma are always funny and or awkward. Someone usually gets embarrassed.

wildarms13: Nice guy he is. Touma should thank him, but you know he will complain instead. AC will be a battleground soon. I have the first main encounters planned. I like having Touma and Mitsuko interacting normally. Mitsuko is too proud to admit she can't do things most of the time, but she's pretty oblivious to a lot of things that will get her into trouble. Touma has to help her out.

Grendel3130: On your third time reading this? It's length has gotten pretty long, so it takes time to even reread part of it. SV has turned into something pretty nice too. Always nice to hear from people who enjoy reading them. Encourages me to keep writing.

Guest: Magic god for Otakus a better option? 1) Not anytime soon. I don't think she's even going to enter another combat scene. 2) Of course.

mervinr170: Pierce hangs around with Motoharu and Touma. He probably overhears a few things and just doesn't make a big deal out of it. That's not a bad thought, but Touma told Index magic didn't exist before he lost his memory. I suppose it's possible for Pierce to have encountered a magician on his own time. A female one of course that dressed weird would draw his attention.

Phoenix 7.49: England has three princesses for that reason. Jason is just helping Touma along on someone already affected. As for Touma's harem candidates… he's got an entire middle school to conquer. That is Junko, yes. She's good to put in the same scene since she's a little oblivious to their bickering.

The crack shipping guy: This story will not be rushed and thousands of things are happening at the same time. As for Thor, he decided to smack talk a magic god. What did he think was going to happen? He will be fine… probably. I'll make sure to mention his condition this chapter.

Sergio644: Mikoto might be able to win since Carissa if outside of England. Curtana's blessing isn't there. Touma's class knows Komoe loves Kamijou-chan. Learning Mitsuko likes him will be another huge shock and then he will realize she's been talking him up all the time. With Mikoto, Misaki, and Ruiko, there is a good chance Mitsuko would join.

Salishious: *Lots of misfortune.* You mean the entire WORLD. Princess interviews would be going global. Touma's mom is more powerful than a princess, yes. Maybe? Random girls can show up randomly haha. Misaki has been influenced by Touma. Since he's around her, she holds back a lot more. Triple date would be tough. Touma and Mitsuko, Jason and Kuroko, but who would Misaki go with? No, Kaori is too important. He has to do that himself. Accelerator will push *REDACTED* onto Touma. I thought I made it obvious?

Kami: Other arcs will give them a chance to shine.

Generation Zero: One guy in an ocean of girls is always fun. It's funny his confidence is a little better under the mask, yet he never gets conceited. Being anonymous does that to people. I actually wasn't going to do a lot with Junko. It's mostly because Misaki travels with some of her clique, I chose one who had a name in order to avoid saying 'this girl' or 'that girl.' Not sure if the combat will ever occur again. Mitsuko will get involved more though. Nah, plenty of level 5s as is. They all have a purpose. You know, besides being masked, all the time hanging out with Misaki, Mikoto, and the other girls really helped him be relaxed around them. Hmm, I bet some of the girls would be willing to help him better understand his ability, if they thought he needed it. He is a level 5 remember. The lunch part was more of his experiences tell him opening his mouth makes things worse.

Motoharu and Pierce will find out about the love letter. Guaranteed. I've been planning how Carissa could… persuade? Let's go with that. How she could persuade Touma to show her around AC without attracting attention. It's not easy, but it is doable. Heh, you touched on the important part. Many factions operating in the same area. Aleister has been silent, but he won't stay that way for long. Everyone has their own plans and some are bound to overlap.

Agent Nine: Slice of life scenes are important. Even if they are simple, death flags are everywhere. Remember after the cops and robber game? Kami and Touma were both listed on there. Touma and his friends used that as an excuse to say Touma was acting as a sub for the real Kami between fights.

Abel Roberts: Ruiko is the character Touma can just relax around. Once she makes her move, those times may not happen much anymore.

ThE AnCiEnT DeRuViSh: Glad you like my humor, not everyone does. Writing characters can be pretty tough and there are times I always feel I could have written them better, but I try.

Inacio: Never came up. She was never backed into a corner yet. Maybe.

FrodoFighter: I debated calling these chapters, Tokiwadai Brothel, but decided against it. Being the only boy in a female school is a dream come true. The girls were getting an education on the mysterious beings known as 'boys.' "Sure, does anyone here have clothes made by an ability?" Your perverted side is showing again, Frodo. Why would you want Touma to fuck with some pure girls who only want to know about boys? Death flags raised constantly. Fine, pervert. All girls can follow him into the bathroom. I'm sure nothing will happen there. There was a lot of casual hand touching there, now that you mention it. You and your Mikoto love. Joining Touma's harem is a punishment? That's a privilege. Yep, we all know Accelerator and the princess are getting it on. Ah, female dick measuring contests, good times. Oh, should say, Fuck You, saying Carissa is lame. You brought up a good point. How much fanfiction is there of Kami in AC? The lunch scene was one of my favorites. Touma didn't have to do anything except sit there. Touma was inside Misaki's body that one time. (Yeah, it does sound perverted.) A skeleton on the roof? Who's skeleton? You're lack of love for Carissa is disappointing, but I still like you.

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

Touma skipped out of the cafeteria as soon as he could.

The ominous aura radiating from Mikoto and Misaki was understandable, even if Touma didn't personally see why they would be so upset. Just because he received a love letter, he assumed it was one and hadn't had time to confirm it yet, it didn't mean he would accept the girl's confession. He didn't know her at all. What really caused him to leave the cafeteria was the atmosphere at other tables. Countless sets of eyes fell on him and they did not seem to be pleasant. He felt like a zebra surrounded by lionesses in the savanna. This was kind of appropriate as he was surrounded by females who were all much more powerful than he was.

Luckily, Mitsuko was accommodating and went with him, leaving Mikoto behind. She tried to get up and follow, but Misaki's friend asked her something and she was forced to stay behind. Mitsuko and Touma spent the rest of the period walking around in the back gardens of Tokiwadai talking. Well, Mitsuko was doing most of the talking; Touma mainly answered when she had a question. Nearly all of them involved the types of activities normal guys liked. These were a lot harder for him to answer, as most of his friends were perverts, insane, or reclusive. Luckily, he had read enough manga to give her a basic run down and hoped he avoided anything that would get a naïve ojou-sama in trouble. Whoever the guy was that Mitsuko was going after would probably treat her well, if her description of him was at least somewhat accurate.

Touma welcomed the tranquility, even if he noticed a few girls were spying on them. They tried to be inconspicuous, but ojou-samas were never really good at sneaking around. Mostly it involved standing or sitting together in groups while pretending to talk about other things. What gave them away was they kept staring at them and forgetting to talk. If Mitsuko looked at them, they quickly immersed themselves in conversation. It was thanks to Touma's mask that he caught them. Other than that, nothing else happened.

Until Mikoto came to meet them on the way to their next class.

"You… aren't going to believe this." Mikoto said, pausing slightly for breath.

"What happened?" Mitsuko asked immediately.

"It involves me somehow." Touma muttered and Mitsuko glanced over at him.

"Well, yeah…" Mikoto bit the corner of lip, but Touma couldn't tell what that meant. "A teacher asked me to drop something off at our next class and… well… it's probably better if you take a look." She sighed and rubbed the bridge of her nose. "I didn't think it would spread so quickly."

Mitsuko and Touma looked at each other in confusion and then followed Mikoto. The three of them reached their class and Mikoto opened the door. All it took for Touma to realize the problem was for the three of them to step in. One desk had a large pile of decorated envelopes high enough that some were about to fall.

It didn't take a genius to know whose desk that was.

"How… but… why?" Touma stuttered.

"What you mentioned this morning about receiving a letter must have been spread around." Mitsuko explained, tapping her chin with her fan. "I expected that much, but I didn't think many people would have had the opportunity to write one."

"It was because you received a letter in front of everyone." Mikoto sighed, in a mixture of frustration and embarrassment. "From the few conversations I caught, many of the other girls don't want to be left behind. I think a lot of those will just be thank you letters for attending, but then there might be others."

Mitsuko's face flushed slightly as Mikoto rubbed the bridge of her nose again. Mikoto wasn't really angry at Touma, but she was annoyed at the fact there was little she could do without publicly announcing a claim. She and Touma did not want that to happen here.

"Guess I don't have much choice." Touma tried to comment in a passive tone. "Looks like tonight will be rather busy for me." He started stacking up the letters neatly to place in his school bag.

"You're going to read them all?" Mikoto asked in astonishment.

"Everyone took the time to write these for me." Touma pointed out. "It would be rude for me not to at least read them." He shook his head. "I doubt I'll be able to return anyone's feelings if it does come to that."

"I think that's more than enough." Mitsuko told him. "I like the fact you are using your own advice you gave everyone earlier. By applying it to your own life, it shows me you understand how relationships work. I probably could not trust you if you said one thing and did another." She smiled at him. "Thank you again for all the advice earlier."

Mikoto tilted her head and looked curiously at Touma.

"Least I could do to repay all the trouble my visit is causing." Touma replied dismissively. "Hope things go well with him." Mitsuko hid her reddening face behind her fan while Mikoto raised an eyebrow.

When did he start being able to give people advice on dating? Mikoto thought annoyed. He only recently learned about my feelings! He should have responded to them much earlier.

The memory of chasing and trying to electrocute him didn't even register then.

"So what classes do you have for the afternoon?" Touma asked the girls, aware of a few girls peeking in from the classroom door. He pretended he didn't see them.

"Science is next period." Mikoto explained. "We just finished the respiratory system and we are starting a new subject today. Last class is Home Economics. This week is focusing on cooking, so I don't think you will have too much difficulty." She playfully elbowed him in the side. That was an understatement, as Touma's cooking skills far surpassed Mikoto's, not that he would ever brag.

"I hope your cooking skills can match up to mine." Mitsuko bragged and Mikoto raised an eyebrow.

"Should I tell him about the cake incident?"

"W-what I meant was," Mitsuko amended with a cough. "While my skills have improved by leaps and bounds since I first arrived at Tokiwadai, one can always improve."

"Better." Mikoto said with a smirk. Touma chuckled and the two of them turned to look at him, almost forgetting he was there for a second. He quickly coughed to try to hide the laugh, but it didn't fool anyone.

"Cooking is a lot like any profession, you have to keep practicing to get better." Touma explained, mostly to Mitsuko. "I pretty much do all the cooking for my roommate and myself. I've gotten pretty good at it, especially since they eat a lot."

"That's an understatement." Mikoto mumbled, thinking of Index. The two of them laughed and Mitsuko scowled ever so slightly at being out of the loop.

"You met Kami-san's roommate?" She asked Mikoto.

"A couple times," Mikoto replied, shrugging. "The amount of food they eat defies belief and they never put on weight."

She purposely made sure not to mention Touma's roommate was a girl. That was a can of worms no one else in the school needed to know.

"What's their secret?" Mitsuko asked, eyes wide. "You know how much work it is to keep my perfect proportions?" Touma flushed under his mask, but Mitsuko didn't seem to realize what she said.

"It's a mystery we still haven't figured out." He answered, dodging the question.

"Oh." She sounded disappointed.

The three of them turned when girls started filing into class. Touma, realizing he hadn't finished putting away the letters, quickly began to stuff them into school bag. He wasn't fast enough to hide them as the girls who didn't give him a letter stared. Giggles and hushed conversations surrounded him and all he could do was pretend he didn't hear them. The girls finished sitting down and the teacher entered the classroom a moment before the bell rang.

"Good afternoon, class."

"Good afternoon, sensei." They chanted back.

"I see our esteemed guest is here as well." She said, gesturing to Touma, who acknowledged her with a nod. "That may make today's lesson… a little unusual."

"What do you mean?" One girl asked after raising her hand.

"As you know," The teacher explained. "Last Friday, we finished up the respiratory systems. Before that, we finished the circulatory, digestive, urinary, nervous, circulatory, and immune system. The topic of our next subject is… a sensitive topic. I hope you remember the school you represent when we start. This topic is required to graduate and we shall be treating you all as adults."

The class leaned forward, Touma felt a sense of foreboding, and the teacher continued.

"We are going to be learning about the reproductive system."

"AHHHHHH!"

Most of the class jumped as Motoharu and Aogami cried out without warning.

"What's wrong?!" Komoe cried, picking herself off the ground. She had fallen from shock.

"I just felt like we all missed one of the funniest moments in history!" Motoharu yelled in anguish, grabbing the sides of his head.

"There will never be another chance!" Aogami agreed in equal distress.

"SHUT UP!" Seiri roared. "Class is not the place for your stupidity!"

The silence in that Tokiwadai class was deafening.

Not a single peep could be heard for nearly a minute.

Simultaneously, every girl's face flushed crimson and made sure their gaze was directed away from Touma. Even Mikoto refused to look at him. Touma's mouth fell open as his brain short circuited for a moment. No one saw this, as his mask covered his face. The teacher didn't look too pleased at the announcement either, but she was able to keep a mostly professional appearance.

"Yes," She continued. "This was planned in the syllabus at the beginning of the year… before our guest had planned to visit."

"Uhh..." Touma said, finding his voice and the entire class finally glanced back at him. "I could… well… leave? I… have had this class before so it wouldn't be a big deal."

This was kind of a lie. He had a health class, so he knew how sex worked. He also had a basic understanding of the reproductive system from a generic overview science class. With Tokiwadai being so advanced, this class would probably go much more in depth. He was just trying to spare these girls the embarrassment.

If he had less misfortune, that was just a bonus.

"We are supposed to treat you as a student." The teacher replied sternly. "With a few minor exceptions, you were to attend class and follow all rules as if you attended here normally. We hardly let students skip classes because the subject makes them a little uncomfortable."

"Wouldn't this-…" Touma tried to counter.

"Let me ask you a question, Kami-san," She interrupted. "You go to a coed school, correct?"

"Yes."

"And you mentioned you have covered this subject a few moments ago, yes?"

"I did." He admitted.

"Then the fact you are learning this side by side young ladies should not be a problem."

"I was thinking… more for…" He trailed off.

"Them?" she asked and gestured to the rest of the class. There was no choice but nodding. "I appreciate your concern, but as I said before, we are treating them like adults and this is an important system within the human anatomy. It is also the first class covering this topic, so the information will be rather generic as we cover the basics." She turned on the touch screen behind her. "Does anyone else have any questions or concerns before we begin?"

"No, sensei." The girls chanted.

"Then let us begin." The lights dimmed as the information began to appear. "First, let us discuss gametes. Gametes occur when a haploid cell fuses with another haploid cell during fertilization, also known as conception, in organisms that sexually reproduce. As you should recall, a haploid cell only has half the number of chromosomes so 23 instead of the normal 46 after they fuse. In species that produce two morphologically distinct types of gametes, such as humans, and in which each sex produces only one type, a female is any individual that produces the larger type of gamete called an ovum, That is commonly referred to as an egg. A male produces the smaller type known as the sperm."

Pictures of the two gametes flashed on the screen and the teacher talked about the different parts of each.

Touma sunk down into his chair.

This is so embarrassing. He thought and his eyes darted around the class.

For the most part, the girls were diligently taking notes, though many faces were still bright red. The thing was, every now and then, he caught a girl glancing back at him. They quickly looked forward, even if they didn't catch him looking, but the attention was draining him mentally. He was only taking notes to give himself something to do now. The thoughts of learning about reproduction surrounded by girls, many of who were incredibly attractive, were causing some problems. No matter what he did to keep the thoughts out of his head. He shifted in his seat and the girl in front of him scooted forward a little. Things only turned more awkward.

There were pictures of both reproductive organs on the slides, all the internal workings labeled.

The scribbling sound of students taking notes faltered.

I'm done. Touma thought and closed his eyes. He propped his head on his hand with his elbow firmly planted on the desk to make it look like he was paying attention. Think about anything else, like how my friends are going to make my life hell tomorrow. Yep, still better than paying attention to this topic. I won't be able to look Mikoto in the eyes for a month.

He blocked out the teacher's voice and began thinking about more important things; like how to get rid of that dungeon Lessar and Julunggul set up back home. Neither of those two would willingly let him.

"Kami-san!" The teacher's voice snapped him out of his stupor.

"Y-yes?" he asked.

"Were you paying attention?" she demanded.

"…yes," Touma lied unconvincingly. He was aware of all eyes on him. Mikoto and Mitsuko were looking at him with sympathy.

"Could you explain why you aren't taking notes?"

"Umm… most of this I covered at my school and I have notes back at my dorm." Touma made up on the spot. "I wrote down a few things as a refresher though."

"I see." She didn't look convinced, but she didn't feel the need to call him out on his lie as he wasn't a real student. The point that he was only a guest still stood. "Do you understand everything I'm covering right now?" She gestured to the screen and Touma's eyes darted toward it.

He froze when he saw what they were on.

I was daydreaming longer than I realized.

He had been thinking for almost half an hour and the topic progressed to the workings of delivery of the male haploid cells into the female's ovum.

In other words, sexual intercourse.

That explains why everyone is staring at me.

"Yes." Touma replied instantly to the teacher. "I'm familiar with all of this and how it works."

Faces changed from curiosity and embarrassment to shock.

SHIT!

He realized what his words just sounded like.

To confirm if he just shot himself in the foot, his eyes darted toward Mikoto. Her mouth had fallen open and she stared at him like he was some alien from space. Mitsuko's eyes were wide and her face was scarlet. Every other girl he could see had varying degrees of similar emotions. Though, there was a couple who looked at him almost admiringly. He figured he was imagining that. After a second of silence, the teacher nodded slowly.

"Feel free to ask if you don't understand something." She said and Touma wasn't sure if she didn't catch the unintended meaning or just didn't want to bring that topic up. "Everyone, return you attention to the diagrams."

The girls slowly turned forward and began to take notes again.

My friends can never find out about this. EVER!

Touma mentally berated himself constantly the rest of the class. Girls kept peeking at him when they thought he and the teacher weren't looking. Mikoto, on the other hand, refused to look at him. Mitsuko glanced back at him only once, but she didn't seem annoyed or upset at him. At long last, the bell rang.

"Alright, class. We shall stop there for the day."

Most of the girls took the opportunity to quickly leave the classroom, avoiding eye contact with Touma. Not that he could blame them. He wanted to do that too. However, there was no place he could go in Tokiwadai for privacy except that one bathroom and he needed Mikoto or Mitsuko near him. The three of them were the last to leave, Mikoto avoiding eye contact, her face still bright red.

"I have to apologize." Mitsuko said suddenly to Touma.

"For what?" Mikoto's face shifted slightly as she listened.

"Well, for having you sit through that class." Mitsuko muttered softly. "If I had bothered to check the syllabus today to see what we were going to cover, I would have warned you. The excitement of winning the contest drove it from my mind. I should have done my due diligence and checked to see if there were any classes I should have given you advanced notice of."

"I doubt it would have made any difference." Touma assured her. "You heard the teacher, I could have been excused, but I was supposed to be treated like a student. I think it was more embarrassing for the rest of the class having a boy there." His eyes glanced at a couple of girls whispering. When he drew near, they ducked into the bathroom. "I'm used to coed classes and my classmates are pretty… varied."

"I caught a glimpse of that during the raffle." Mitsuko acknowledged. "That does seem to be pretty fun."

"It can be." Touma admitted. "But there are just as many headaches because of that."

"I think Kuroko can attest to that." Mikoto added and Touma chuckled.

"Yeah, Jason can be a little…"

"Brazen?" Mikoto offered.

"Exactly."

"Jason?" Mitsuko mumbled. "Ah, that's his first name. I believe I saw him at the dorms once when he was waiting for Shirai-san. He also made an appearance during your little escapades at Tokiwadai High during the Cops and Robbers game. Little shorter than you and blonde if I recall?"

"That's him." Touma confirmed.

Somehow, it felt like the entire school knew about what just transpired last period. Sure, Tokiwadai didn't have the largest student body, but he figured it would take at least five minutes for the rumor to spread. Girls were shying away from him while others were opening staring at him with admiration.

"So," He said, looking for any topic to keep his mind occupied. "Next class is home economics?"

"Yes." Mitsuko answered. "I don't know what we will be asked to cook though. It could be a full meal or just a dessert."

"Shouldn't be too bad." Touma muttered. Unless they use a lot of weird ingredients. "I'm pretty confident in my cooking skills."

"We shall see." Mikoto mused. "Don't disappoint everyone."

"Here we are." Mitsuko announced and pushed open the door to the classroom.

Touma followed and admired the utilities. There were individual workstations lined up in rows with small gaps in-between. Each station had an oven with four stove burners. Each island contained two workstations, with them back-to-back. There was an area to cut and prepare ingredients and then a sink. Everything was stainless steel and sparkling clean. If his school had a home economics class, they would probably have used the school cafeteria for cooking. Again, he was astonished by the differences in wealth Tokiwadai had compared to his. Sure, he was a little jealous, but he had long come to realize there wasn't much that could be done in this situation. Some families simply could afford to send their children to private schools.

Some of the class had already arrived too and the three of them went over to join the group. Mikoto immediately threw up her school persona and began to converse with them. Mitsuko occasionally inputted her opinion on something, but Touma remained silent. He recognized one of the girls as the friend of the first girl to have given him a letter. When Mikoto and Mitsuko were occupied with the others, she leaned over and whispered to him in a hushed tone.

"Get a chance to read it?"

"No." Touma whispered back. "I was planning to after school."

"Please make sure to give her an answer." The girl told him. "She had to muster a lot of courage to give it to you."

"I promise."

"Thanks. She was right about you. You're a good guy." Touma didn't get a chance to reply before the rest of the class and the teacher walked in. She clapped her hands together to gather everyone's attention.

"Form up in groups of two, please." She stated. "Today's recipe isn't complicated, but the preparation can be a little time consuming."

Mitsuko pushed Touma to one station and the rest of the class formed pairs easily enough. To Mikoto's dismay, she wasn't quick enough in choosing a partner. The stations around Touma were filled up instantly and she and her partner were forced to the far side of the room. She could still see him, but there was no way to talk without yelling.

"Today class," The teacher announced, once everyone was situated. "We shall be making Miso Chicken with a side of Kale and Mango salad."

Touma was a little surprised Miso Chicken was the subject, since he just mentioned that this morning. Two girls in the back of the class grinned at each other. When Touma had mentioned he liked that dish, they asked the teacher if they could make it today. The teacher motioned to the board where she had posted three different recipes and continued.

"I put a few examples, but feel free to get creative. I will need to sample each dish when you finish, but you may eat whatever you make." She gestured to the refrigerators and spice racks along the wall. "You may use anything we have in stock. Please be respectful of other groups. Are there any questions?" No one in the class spoke up. "You may begin."

"Do you have any idea how you want to do this?" Mitsuko asked Touma, as they got in line with everyone else after washing their hands. Touma briefly imagined the insanity that would have occurred if this was his class. "I haven't made this particular recipe before, but I can make delicious chicken of course."

Touma wasn't sure if this was a lie, boosting, or an exaggeration.

"Can you grab the chicken and kale?" Touma asked. "I can grab the mango and everything else. If we work together, that should give us plenty of time to cook everything."

"Okay." Mitsuko agreed and the two of them managed to find everything without problems. They arrived back at the station and placed everything down. "What first?"

"Preheat the oven." Touma muttered, as he spun the dial. "It should be up to temperature when the chicken is ready." He looked at the recipes for ideas and quickly figured out the optimal process. "We need to wash the kale and mango first. While one of us is doing that, the other can start mixing the miso for the chicken."

"I can wash the ingredients." Mitsuko volunteered.

That was a simple task, as it mostly just required running the stuff underwater. She had picked that job on purpose because she didn't know the proper measurements for miso and would have kept glancing at the recipes. Since this was one of the most important jobs, she would rather leave it to someone with more experience.

"Let me know when you're done." Touma told her and pulled out a bowl from the cupboard below. He combined butter, miso, honey, rice vinegar and black pepper into a bowl and started mixing it. "Do you like miso a little sweeter or is regular fine, Kongou-san?"

"Regular." Mitsuko answered. "I've had a few too many sweet things recently." She laughed and Touma nodded.

"Got it." He took a small spoon and tasted the mix. That tastes fine.

"Done." Mitsuko declared and set down the still damp vegetables.

"Here's a roasting pan." Touma declared, as he set it on the stove. "Here's what we need to do next. Take some of the chicken and place it in the bowl, work the sauce into the meat, and then put them on the pan. Make sure they don't touch."

"That sounds easy enough." Mitsuko replied. "What are you going to be doing?"

"I'll start cutting up the kale and mango." Touma replied and pulled out a long silver knife. He took a moment to inspect it closely. "Tokiwadai really keeps their utensils in good condition."

"We are required to clean up after each class." Mitsuko pointed out. "Then the cleaning staff goes over everything. It would hardly do for someone to get sick due to dirty equipment."

"Make sense. You okay with preparing the chicken?"

"Yeah, I can't let you do everything." Mitsuko didn't fancy using the knife. It wasn't like she couldn't, it was just the final product always ended up in odd shapes. Glancing over at Touma, she was momentarily stunned at how fast he began to chop the Kale.

Wow, he's good. Focus! You have your own job to do.

The chicken was slimy in her hand when she picked it up. She dropped it into the sauce Touma prepared and then, after a moment's hesitation, stuck both her hands in it.

Gross! It's sticky as well as slimy now.

The honey in the miso sauce quickly got all over her hands, but she refused to back down. She worked the sauce until the piece of chicken was sufficiently covered and then placed it in the pan. She grabbed the next one and repeated the process. This continued until she finished all four pieces. The plan was the teacher would be able to taste one, and they each would be able to have one, with one extra in case something happened. She finished and started washing her hands immediately.

"Done." Mitsuko informed Touma. Her eyes widened when she saw how far he had gotten. "You got everything cut up already?"

"Heh, yeah." Touma confirmed with a small laugh. He pushed the chopped up Kale and diced mango out of the way as he set down a bowl. "Chopping is pretty easy once you know the trick."

"Can you show us?" One of the girls across from him and Mitsuko asked. Touma turned to her. "I'm having a hard time skinning this mango." She held up the partially skinned fruit.

"Sure, one second." Touma, having already agreed, turned to Mitsuko. "Do you think you can work this sauce into the kale?" He pointed to a small bowl after he dumped the kale into a large bowl. "It's lemon juice and oil."

"Do I just pour it on and mix it?" Mitsuko asked.

"Just a light drizzle and work it into the kale." Touma corrected her. "It soften ups the leaves. Just start mixing it up lightly." He glanced at the oven. "I'll put the chicken in the oven then."

"I can do that." Touma nodded at her, did his job, and then moved to the other side of the station next to the girls.

"Okay, how can I help?" He asked the girls. One of them was currently in the process of doing the same thing as Mitsuko, but the other girl looked like she was having a lot of trouble.

"The kale was easy enough to cut." She told him. "But when I try to peel, the mango, the knife keeps slipping." She held up the fruit.

"Ah, I see the problem." It only took one quick glimpse for him to see it. "You're trying to peel it horizontally in a spiral. Mangos are soft and it's a lot easier to do it vertically."

"Wouldn't that waste a lot of the actual fruit?" She asked.

"Only a tiny bit." Touma admitted. "But the fruit nearest to the skin usually is a little softer than the rest, so the knife cuts easier." The girl frowned and rotated the knife to take his advice.

"Is this right?"

"Make sure you cut on the far side from you." Touma reminded and stepped up behind her. He reached around her and moved her hands. "Now, just cut down and go with the flow." He pushed down on her hand with the knife and the blade cut neatly into the fruit, slicing off the skin without damaging the main part of it. "See, easy. Now just keep rotating it and you will be done in no time." The girl didn't move. "Hello?"

"Ah, yes," The girl spluttered embarrassed. "Thank you so much, Kami-sama."

"My pleasure." Touma replied and let go. She seems like a nice girl. Standing behind her, he completely missed her slightly disappointed expression at being let go.

"Can you help me figure out why this kale is still so hard?" The girl's partner asked him before he had a chance to leave. "I've been mixing the dressing in but anymore and it will get soggy." Touma stepped over by her.

"Looks like it's because you're just sort of moving the kale around rather than messaging the dressing in." Touma pointed out. Being a poor high school student, he knew all sorts of tricks to help prepare food and make even basic ingredients taste good. "It will take a lot longer for the dressing to soak in. You kind of want to gently push the liquid into the kale. Would you like me to show you?"

"Yes, please!" The girl answered immediately. Touma reached into the bowl and demonstrated how to do it. After a few seconds, she reached in and started copying him.

"Gently massage the kale." Touma explained as he worked. "Pressing it too hard will only break it. Then keep mixing it as you rub. You know you're finished when it's soft and just begins to wilt." His hands brushed the girl and she blushed hard. Touma missed it as he was focuses on the task. "Does that help?"

"Oh, greatly." She replied in a slightly higher pitch voice. "I can feel the difference already. Thank you so much!"

"It was nothing," Touma told her and then moved back over to Mitsuko. "Sorry I left you here to finish." He apologized.

He didn't notice all the glares from surrounding groups, mostly focused on the two girls he just helped.

"It's fine," Mitsuko reassured him. "I could hardly be upset; you're willing to help my classmates. That would be so petty." One girl across the room should have heard that, as she was glaring at Touma slightly. "I heard what you said and it made preparing the salad so much easier. I'm almost done."

"I'll prepare the dressing then." Touma volunteered and grabbed another small bowl.

"I thought I was adding the dressing already?" Mitsuko stated confused.

"That's a… weaker dressing to soften the kale." Touma explained. "This one will be a little sweeter and blend it all together. We add it at the end with the mango right before serving so the salad doesn't get soggy." He added honey, black pepper, and lemon juice

"Impressive." The teacher told them and he jumped. "Most students don't think of that and prepare the salad completely while the chicken is cooking. It leads to the sides being rather unappetizing. You seem to have a lot of experience in the kitchen, Kami-san."

"Practice and correcting a lot of mistakes." Touma admitted. "Failed more times than I can count and there are times when I was missing ingredients, so I had to get creative."

"Really?" Mitsuko asked. "You move like a professional in the kitchen."

"You learn a lot more from failures than you do from success." The teacher pointed out. "Kami-san, it's a pleasure to have you in this class and it was quite nice of you to help out others."

"I enjoy cooking," Touma replied with a shrug. "So it's not really a big deal to help someone out." A pair of girls looked each other and nodded in agreement. He finished mixing the dressing and tasted it. "I think this is fine." He said and pushed it over to Mitsuko. She tasted it and quickly agreed. "So now all we have to do is wait for the chicken to finish baking and flip it over once."

A sudden crash caused everyone to jump and turn toward whatever caused the sound.

A bowl of kale had fallen and spilled all over the floor.

"I'm so sorry!" One girl apologized profusely. "It was an accident!"

"It's okay, accidents happen." The teacher reassured her. "Go ahead and grab the broom from the closet." The girl rushed off while her partner picked up the bowl and placed it in the sink.

"At least it wasn't the chicken." Their teacher continued. "You should have enough time to remake the salad if you hurry."

"Yes, ma'am." The girl said with a nod and rushed over to grab some more ingredients. The first girl came back and swept up all the spilt kale and threw it away.

"I'm surprised you clean up messes yourself." Touma muttered to Mitsuko. "I would have figured cleaning robots or something with how high tech your school is."

"It's to learn responsibility." Mitsuko sighed. "Yes, robots would be a lot easier, but we wouldn't learn how difficult messes are to clean up. Though, classrooms still get cleaned up each night."

"Excuse me?" Touma turned to see the girl who had just finished cleaning up her mess.

"Yes?"

"I noticed you are Kongou-sama have finished." The girl told him. She cross her arms behind her back and twisted her foot nervously. "Because of me, we may not be able to finish in time with just us two. I saw how well you helped those two. Do you think you could help us?"

"That sounds like a great idea." Their teacher said before Touma could respond. "Why don't you give them a hand, Kami-san? You wouldn't mind sharing your experience with them, would you?"

"No, I suppose not." He turned to Mitsuko. "Do you mind…?"

He really didn't feel right about leaving her to watch their food.

"Go ahead." She said with a smile and waved him on. "I'll watch it and call you if something happens. They need help and it would be rude not to assist." She leaned up against the table. "Have fun, it gives me a chance to talk to the others."

"Thanks."

Touma followed the girl to her station, aware that many pairs of eyes were on him for some reason. He didn't get a chance to say anything before the teacher noticed and took care of it.

"Okay, everyone back to work. I see a couple of you haven't even put your chicken in the oven and many of you still need to work on your sides."

The girls quickly looked away and started working again, as she started to walk about them and comment or assist as needed. One girl kept watching, while massaging her own salad, and trying very hard not to release electricity.

They did that no purpose! Mikoto thought angrily and also slightly impressed. Her eyes narrowed as she saw the girls slap their hands together lightly behind Touma. He was cutting up the kale for them as the others girls prepared the dressing. That was genius, but how dare they trick him. Arg! I'm too far away to do anything!

"Misaka-sama? Are you okay?" She turned to her partner for the project.

"Of course." Mikoto replied confidently and smiled. "Sorry, was just concentrating."

"I figured, but I want to check." She smiled. "So, you have been staring at Kami-sama a lot. Any reason?"

Her smile was innocent and Mikoto felt her mouth grow dry. It wasn't like Misaki asking that kind of question. There was no ill intent, just curiosity.

"Guess I was just seeing if he was fitting in." Mikoto answered, trying not to sound defensive.

"From what I heard, he is." The girl replied and clapped her hands together. "Everyone who met him says he's a perfectly nice gentleman. I think he's really nice too." Mikoto made a noncommittal noise. "I'm really surprised he said he wasn't seeing anyone. Someone like him would be a perfect catch." Mikoto coughed while the girl put a finger on her cheek. "I wonder if there's some circumstance."

"Maybe he's just focusing on school and ability training?" Mikoto suggested, trying very hard not to scream out in frustration. She knew the reason and was still a little irritated that he hadn't answered. The reason was known to her, but that didn't stop the frustration. "Or maybe he's looking for someone particular."

"You mean like a prince looking for the princess?" The girl replied and Mikoto froze, not intending for her words to be taken that way. "Maybe Kongou-san learned more about what he's looking for. Do you think I would have a chance with him? If we find out we are compatible?"

Mikoto started coughing again.

"Would you like me to get you some water?" The girl asked with concern.

"No, I'm fine!" Mikoto straightened herself up. "Just a little something. I've finished so we just have to wait for the main course to finish cooking."

"Oh." the girl clapped her hands together again. "I should take this opportunity to talk to Kami-sama a bit then."

"I guess we can-…" Mikoto started to say, before she was interrupted.

"Misaka-sama?"

"Yes?" Mikoto responded instantly, turning on the spot, to face the girls at the workstation in front of them.

"We are having some difficulties." The girl said to her. "Would you be so kind as to help us?"

"…Sure," Mikoto answered after a brief pause. Her partner gave her a small polite wave goodbye and left to go chat with Touma, who was gathering a larger group around him. He's doing it again! I'm almost considering telling Shokuhou about this! She shook her head and addressed the girl asking for help. "How can I assist you?"

Meanwhile, Touma found himself the center of attention again, as everyone waited for their food to cook.

"Do you like a home cook meal?" One girl asked him. "Or do you prefer eating out?"

"I usually cook at home." Touma told her. "And I feel you can be more creative when you do it yourself. But sometimes it is nice to go out and have a nice meal."

"Do gentlemen normally like home cook meals?" Another girl asked.

"I haven't met anyone yet who would say no to one from a girl they like." Several girls squealed slightly and started talking in hushed voices.

"I'm not very proficient in cooking." One girl stated, her face scarlet. "I would be afraid I would mess up if I tried anything overly complicated."

"That's nothing to be ashamed off." Touma reassured her. "Food tastes better when it's made with love. I rather have a simple homemade meal by someone who cares about me than going out for a five star meal. Even if it's burnt, raw, bland, spicy, it doesn't matter; I would eat it." He laughed. "One of my friends mentioned his girlfriend made him cookies once and they were a little burnt, but he ate them all because they were from her."

Several girls swooned and squealed again.

How does he know this and can say it so shamelessly?! Mikoto roared internally. Yet he couldn't tell I liked him until I explained everything to his face multiple times! That information Touma gave was something she knew. He did tell her one time after she brought him food that homemade cookies were better than the store bought ones she had given him. And everyone is falling for his words. He really does have the ability to attract girls. To be fair, most of my classmates don't have experience with boys and they think he's single. It's only natural they want to ask him all these questions.

She sighed.

Wish he would spend time with just me soon. I liked walking back together after our moms left.

Time passed as the girls asked Touma questions, and then a few ovens finally began to beep.

"I think it's done." Touma announced to Mitsuko, after testing the chicken with a fork. The chicken was a perfect golden brown and Mitsuko was looking at them with sparkling eyes.

"It smells wonderful." She told him. So much better than what I usually make. "And now we just add the mango to the kale and drizzle the dressing over it?"

"Yep!" Touma confirmed and a few seconds later, their dish was finished. Together, they took it up to the teacher who cut a piece of the chicken. Touma could feel the girls behind him watching intensely.

"Chicken is cooked perfectly." She judged. "Firm, but not overly dry and fully cooked." She bit into it and nodded. "Delicious sauce and it's sweet. The honey was a good choice. Some recipes don't call for it."

"I always found original recipes still exist because they taste good." She nodded. "And Kongou-san here was the one who decided how much coating each piece required."

"But you made the sauce." Mitsuko pointed out.

"Then let's go with a team effort." Touma suggested and they laughed.

"It always warms my heart to see students working together so well." Their teacher stated and Mitsuko's cheeks turned a delicate shade of pink. "As for the salad…" She took a bite and nodded. "You mixed in lemon juice to counteract the sweetness of the honey?"

"Mango's a sweet fruit." Touma pointed out. "So I didn't want to overpower everything else."

"Can't fault that logic." She laughed. "And the kale is soft, but not overdone. Perfect score you two. Well done."

"We did it!" Mitsuko said cheerfully and clapped her hands against Touma.

"You could learn a few things from Kami-san for your future work." Mitsuko flinched slightly, as Touma laughed. "Feel free to eat the rest of your creation." They nodded before they headed back to their station in high spirits.

"Wow." Mitsuko complimented, after taking a single bite. "This is delicious. I mean, it looked good, but it tastes even better."

"A classic taste that never gets old." Touma agreed and then took a bite of salad. "I haven't eaten kale before, but it's not bad. Reminds me of some other sweet salads I've tried."

"Kale's gotten really popular lately." Mitsuko explained to him. "It's low in calories and high in vitamins, so it's quite healthy." She leaned forward slightly and her voice dropped in volume. "I also heard it gives your skin a healthy glow, but that hasn't been proven." There's also the rumor it can help grow chests, but there's no way I could say that to him. "I've noticed a lot more people eating it because of that."

"Kami-sama!" A couple voices called out and Touma turned around. There were two groups holding into plates with chicken and kale salads.

"Would you mind tasting our dishes and tell us what you think?" One of them asked while the others nodded.

Without a reason to say no, he agreed.

Even if the assignment was to make the same dish, each one he tried tasted different. Bolden by the first two groups, others began to step forward. The main differences was what they used as sauce and dressing. Even groups that followed the same recipe had differences in the quantity or composition. Some chicken was slightly over or undercooked, kale could be hard or mushy, and some of the salads had way too much dressing. Nothing was inedible and Touma tried to spare the girls' feeling if it wasn't perfect. Complimenting on what he liked about it and suggesting ways they could improve the other parts. Everyone seemed eager for his advice and Mitsuko was smirking at him because of all the attention. Class was beginning to end and they were just about to start packing, when he received another surprise.

"Here."

He looked up and saw Mikoto handing him a plate with her dish on it. She had a trace of embarrassment on her face, but it was nothing to her partner, who was standing behind her.

"You tried everyone else's." She continued. "Tell me what you think of ours."

"Sure." Touma agreed, even if he was rather full. An idea came to him and he smirked under his mask. "If you two try ours. We have a little left." Mikoto's and her partner's eyes widened slightly in surprise.

"That will be fun." Mitsuko added. "I would love to sample your dish, Misaka-san, and would be happy if you could try ours."

"Sounds great!" Mikoto replied with a smile.

After a moment of hesitation, her partner nodded. They were aware of the other girls staring at them with jealousy. Mikoto simply ignored them and her partner tried very hard not to look at anyone else. None of the other girls would complain, as they knew Mikoto and Kami had history and were both level 5s. They sort of looked at the exchange as something above normal people. Many were impressed, but no one knew how excited Mikoto was on the inside.

Yes! She cheered silently. I get to taste his cooked food. Ours won't be nearly as good as his, he has way more experience, but ours was pretty good.

She realized how much she underestimated him after one bite.

"Wow!" Her partner gasped. "This is sooo good. I didn't know Miso Chicken could taste like this." Her comment caused another round of jealousy from the onlookers.

"Yours is pretty good too." Mitsuko complemented her. "You and Misaka-san are talented."

"Still don't think it compares to yours." Mikoto mumbled. "I knew you were a good cook."

Her declaration was met with silence before she realized how her classmates would take it. Their shocked muttering only confirmed her fears.

"M-Misaka-sama… have you had Kami-sama's cooking before?"

"She does seem unusually relaxed around him."

"Maybe there's something between them…?"

"There's not!" Mikoto denied and Touma tried to help her deny it. However, a small smirk appeared on Mitsuko's face as she looked between them.

Ohoho! Maybe Misaka-san has a little crush on someone?

"The day's finally over." Touma groaned happily, as the final bell rang. The classroom had been cleaned up and everyone was beginning to leave.

"You didn't have fun?" Mitsuko asked, sounding a little insulted. "You got to spend the entire day with me."

"That's not it." Touma assured her. "You were great, very helpful. It's just being in an all girls' school with people asking me questions even chance they get."

"Ah, I could see that being a little tiring. I've been there when I attended some fancy gatherings with my parents." Mitsuko nodded in agreement. "If anyone is part of a club, they might have after school activities. Currently, I'm not part of any clubs, but Wannai and Awatsuki and part of the swim team."

"Then I suppose I should check in with the principal and then have you escort me off the school grounds then. I'm not supposed to dawdle here."

"I can tell her." Mitsuko volunteered. "I wanted to ask her something before we left. Can you wait here with him, Misaka-san?"

"Yeah, go ahead." Mikoto told her and Mitsuko left them outside the classroom. They just decided to wait there for her and a few girls bid them farewell as they left.

"Are you part of any clubs?" Touma asked Mikoto. "I'm not."

"Nah." Mikoto waved her hand dismissively. "Never saw the need. You can pretty much make a club for anything with a couple people to pursue some goal. But there was nothing I really wanted to pursue here. I found stuff in the city I'd rather see."

"Like shocking poor unlucky guys on the street?" Touma asked with a grin.

"Shut it!" Mikoto hissed and punched him in the shoulder when no one was looking. "You were a special case for being an idiot."

"True." He admitted. "I was and didn't notice the signs." Mikoto's face flushed and she looked away, her anger fading.

I know he doesn't realize he's saying things like that, but would it kill him to say it deliberately and mean it? Quick, change the topic.

"Kuroko usually has Judgement duties after school. Heh speaking of her, are you glad she isn't trying to murder you anymore?"

"I thought you told me she wasn't going to?"

"I… might have said that just to calm your nerves," Mikoto admitted and Touma turned to her. "She had a notepad with the title, Ape Elimination Plans."

"Gah!"

"It's gone now." Mikoto reassured him and he sighed in relief. "She threw it away."

"Finally." Touma muttered. "She doesn't see me as an enemy anymore."

"There's also the fact she's da-…"

"Miiissaakkaa! Kaaammmiii!"

The two of them turned to see Misaki and Junko reach them, the former waving and smiling brightly.

"Great." Mikoto complained in an undertone. Touma nudged her with his elbow and she smiled politely.

"I was hoping to catch you two before you left." Misaki said and then looked around. "Where's Kongou-san?"

"She had something to discuss with the principal." Touma answered. "As well as to tell her that we are leaving the school grounds."

"Well, Kami," Misaki said to him. "I was wondering if you wanted to spend some time with me and Hokaze-san after school. You spent all day with Misaka."

"Well," Touma replied. "I don't really have a reason to refuse, but I should probably check back with my friends about what I missed-…"

"I'm sure your friends took detailed notes." Misaki brushed off his worry. "Come on. You aren't going to turn down my request, right?"

"I su-…" He started to say.

"What about your boyfriend?" Mikoto interrupted and glared at Misaki. "What would he say if he found you flirting with Kami?"

Misaki's eyebrow rose slightly and Junko looked between the three of them, a little lost at what was happening.

So we want to play that game, huh? Misaki put on a false smile.

"My boyfriend knows how serious I am about him and would understand I was merely spending time with a friend." Misaki huffed. "Kami is friends with both of us, remember?"

"Then you wouldn't mind if I tagged along." Mikoto challenged.

"The more the merrier!" Misaki replied and giggled. "Aww, I knew you cared about me. Worrying about my status with my boyfriend. How kind of you." Mikoto clicked her tongue but couldn't think how to respond.

"They sure are close." Junko commented to Touma.

"Are you sure you and I have the same definition of close?" He asked her confused.

"Well the Queen isn't so open around the rest of us." Junko explained to him. "When around Misaka-sama, she's much more spirited. Before, they would rarely stay in the same room, and now they are willing to spend time together outside of class. Their friendship is rather strong. I wonder when it occurred?"

"I'm sure it was well before they met me." Touma joked. "They were arguing with each other when I first met them."

"Perhaps." She stopped there and looked at him. Maybe it was because of you? When I tried to bring them together before, they would rarely talk to each other. The awkward tension broken when Mitsuko returned.

"I'm back!" She announced. "Oh, hello Shokuhou-san, Hokaze-san. What's going on?"

"Just catching up with Misaka and hoping Kami was free to spend some time with us after school," Misaki answered with a smile, all animosity gone.

"Ah, well… then you might not appreciate this news." Mitsuko told her, a little embarrassed. This caused Misaki and Mikoto to raise an eyebrow. Touma was completely lost.

"What do you mean?" He asked.

"I talked with the principal and received her permission on... I guess it would be a sort of extending your permission?" Mitsuko explained. "You see, I wanted to know if you could visit our dorm before your visitation rights expired."

Touma stared at her.

Mikoto stared at her.

Misaki and Junko stared at her.

"I thought it would be fun and enlightening to have a gentleman's opinion on my room décor." Mitsuko explained quickly. Her face flushed and she used her fan to cover most of it under her eyes. Her tone remained steady despite this. "And I can hardly invite one over normally."

"How bold, Kongou-san." Misaki commented. "Inviting a boy to your room…" She let her words hanging and Mitsuko did not miss her intention.

"It will only be a short visit!" She protested, her face still hidden behind the fan. "And it's a one-time thing. You all are welcome to join us. We can go back together."

"That would be agreeable." Misaki said and turned to Junko, who quickly nodded in agreement. "What about you Misaka?"

"I… suppose," She admitted. Why does everyone have to come? "Kuroko is busy with Judgment and I don't really have any plans, but it really is up to Kami."

"Will you come?" Mitsuko asked Touma. "I promise it will be quick and you're free to go afterwards. Our dorm manager has been notified already, so there shouldn't be any surprises."

"I don't know…" He kind of trailed off, but the hopeful expression on Mitsuko's face weighed down on him. "If you really got approval, then I don't see any issues."

It's not like he hadn't been there before, several times. It's just this time he would actually have permission.

"Excellent!" Mitsuko said and beamed at him. "Then we should get going. You still need to check out at the entrance to the School Gardens."

"Don't want to forget that." Touma agreed.

The last thing he wanted was for the schools to think he disappeared inside the grounds. The five of them left together, with Misaki enjoying pushing Mikoto's buttons in ways that made it hard for her to argue back. Touma had to reprimand her to get her to stop and Mikoto gave him a smile. Getting out of Tokiwadai wasn't difficult, but the moment they left the building, they were descended on by a large group of girls. Most of which had phones out or paper in their hands.

"Kami!"

"Look this way!"

"Will you take a picture with me?!"

"Will you sign my notebook?!"

"Err…"

Touma had no idea what to do as the mob closed in. While they were girls and excited to meet him, since they considered him a celebrity, they were still ojou-samas. They kept a respectful distance of about five to ten feet and would not get closer without permission. However, Touma wasn't sure how to answer and turned to the others. His mask covered his face, but Misaki and Mikoto knew him long enough to know what he was thinking.

Help!

"Everyone needs to calm down!" Mikoto declared and when she stepped forward, all focus fell on her.

"Isn't that Mikoto Misaka?!"

"The Ace?!"

"Excuse me, ladies!" Misaki announced, once Mikoto's presence calmed down the group to a reasonable level. Her hand made its way into her bag and grasped a remote. A contingency plan if words failed.

"The Queen too?!"

"Three level 5s together?!"

"I'm so glad I came here!"

"Listen, I know everyone is excited to meet Kami." Misaki addressed them. "However, due to the rules of the contest, he is required to leave the School Gardens in a timely manner. He can probably spare a few minutes to take pictures and give his autograph, but we need to do this in an orderly fashion. Please line up and let's act in a manner befitting our schools."

"Wow." Touma gasped in a combination of shock and admiration at how easily Misaki took control. A line formed seamlessly.

"There you go." Misaki said proudly to him. "Hope this speeds things up."

"I'm actually surprised this didn't happen earlier." Mitsuko added.

"Guess I should get started then." Touma relented and stepped forward.

The one good thing he could say about the situation was it went smoothly. Sure, it was embarrassing, but his mask covered up his reactions. Most girls just wanted to get a picture with him, usually in groups of two or three. This kept the lines moving. When someone wanted something signed, they just presented a pen and the item in question to him. Kami was a short name and could be written easily in a different handwriting style so no one could match it with his. Mikoto and Misaki watched to make sure everything went smoothly and that no one tried anything. Mitsuko and Junko waited patiently off to the side, briefly chattering if they saw someone they knew. A few girls got a little touchy-feely during some of the pictures, but they let go quick enough.

He didn't notice the stars in their eyes.

The line eventually faded and the five of them were able to leave.

"That was a thing." Touma stated and Misaki laughed.

"I was hoping that wouldn't happen." She admitted. "But most of those girls were from the other schools."

"I'm sure they were told about the visit." Mikoto added. "But since you were going to be in Tokiwadai, they probably weren't reminded about etiquette."

"I'm not so sure." Touma admitted. "They kept their distance until I was ready, so they were still being respectful. A little embarrassing, sure, but manageable."

"It was rather nice of you to put up with their requests." Mitsuko told him. "But why would you be embarrassed? If this is rude, I apologize, but wouldn't you be used to it?"

"Heh, so you would think." Touma answered with a slight chuckle. He was aware the other girls were watching him with interest. "I keep my mask up so I don't have to deal with fans. I much rather be anonymous and be myself then some idol everyone expects to be larger than life."

He didn't miss Mikoto and Misaki smile broadly.

"I admit," Mitsuko said slowly. "There are times when I do desire some peace and quiet after certain events my family hosts. Being one of the level 5s, I'm sure you three have it difficult."

"You have no idea." Mikoto mumbled.

"As members of the Queen's clique," Junko said. "We do what we can to help ease that burden for her."

"Once people get used to you," Misaki points out. "They usually stop doing anything that would be considered embarrassing. It's just you, being a gentleman, is causing some excitement…"

"…because most of the girls here don't have a lot of experience." He finished and she nodded.

"We got through most of the day without incident though." Mikoto pointed out.

"Still have to read all these letters though." Touma reminded her.

"Letters?" Junko asked. "You received more after lunch?"

"I heard he received a rather large pile of them." Misaki explained with a smirk. "He is extremely popular."

"Don't remind me." Touma moaned and the girls laughed.

Once they reached the gate and Touma presented himself, they marked that he did indeed leave the grounds. From there, the five of them made their way back to the dorms. They decided to take the train, not because the walk was that long, but because three level 5s were going to attract way more attention than they were willing to deal with right now. The closer they got to the dorm, the more Tokiwadai students they saw. A few waved to them, Kami especially, but many looked at them in confusion. They expected him to disappear after the visit to their school, not go back to the dorms with the others. When they reached the dorm, Touma stopped, not sure what to do. Before any of the girls could offer a suggestion or advise him, a woman appeared at the entrance.

"Good afternoon." The dorm manager said, her glasses glinting.

"Good afternoon, ma'am." The girls replied, straightening up under her glare.

"I see you brought a… guest." She stated, unamused.

"I believe the principal should have-…" Mitsuko started to say, but was cut off as the dorm manager spoke.

"I did receive her call. Before I can permit this young man entry to these halls, I must go over the dorm rules with him in my office."

"I believe he already-…" Mikoto tried to explain.

"The school rules are different than the rules in the dorm, Misaka-san." Mikoto shut her mouth instantly. "Even if it's just a temporary visit, I refuse to let him enter without going over what is expected of him."

"I understand, ma'am." Touma said.

He was a little nervous under her fierce gaze too, but he was a little older than the others. It also helped that he wasn't subjected to her discipline over the entire school year.

"I'm glad to see manners do not escape you." The dorm manager said pleased. "Follow me and do not try to go off on your own. Everyone else can wait outside my office until we finish."

She turned and Touma felt himself match her pace instinctively. It was like his body refused to disobey her. The girls followed silently, afraid to say anything near the tyrant who ruled over the dorms. Mikoto had seen her take down Kuroko numerous times.

Touma tried to ignore the girls staring at him as he passed. A few who he had met earlier that day might have waved or greeted him, but no one wanted to approach them because of the dorm manager. A fierce aura surrounded her and there was no doubt to anyone it was related to Touma. To those who were not lucky enough to experience Touma during the day had quite a sight of seeing three level 5s together. Add in the fact one of them was a male in a dorm that forbid them. A crowd was beginning to form and following them at a safe distance.

"In here." The dorm manager ordered, after opening the wooden doors to her office. Touma stepped in and she turned to look at the others. Her eyes narrowed when she saw the crowd behind them. "I believe all of you have something more productive you should be doing?"

The group quickly disbursed. With one last look at Mikoto, Misaki, Mitsuko, and Junko, she closed the door with a bang.

"Do you think she's going to let him stay?" Mitsuko whispered to Mikoto.

"Since he has special permission," Mikoto replied. "I don't think there's a way she can say no if he hasn't broken any rules."

"Most likely she just wants to stress the importance of how he acts around everyone." Misaki stated reasonably. "Not that I think he will have any trouble."

"He was rather quiet at lunch." Junko added. "And was always polite in his answers when I asked him questions. Gentlemen really do come in varieties. I have met several who were rather rude."

"It's not like guys are robots and are exactly alike." Mikoto told her with a snicker. "Just like we are all different, they are too."

"And some are more charming than others." Misaki added.

"His advice is going to be really useful." Mitsuko reminisced. "I don't get to ask gentleman a lot of questions normally." She looked between Mikoto and Misaki. "You both have many of the same male friends, right?"

"Yeah, you could say that." Mikoto answered.

"We know a few." Misaki elaborated. "And they all have… colorful characteristics."

"Do you think you could introduce Kongou-san and I to them?" Junko asked. "I would love to have a couple gentlemen as friends." Mikoto and Misaki shared a look.

"I guess…?" Mikoto said hesitantly.

"It would be up to them." Misaki added. The truth was neither of them wanted Junko and Mitsuko to meet Touma. Not because they were ashamed of him, the exact opposite really. They were afraid those two would fall for his charms. "I can ask."

"That would be wonderful," Junko said to her sincerely with a smile. "Thank you, Queen."

The conversation ended as the girls stood around patiently. The minutes passed and they began to get worried.

"I wonder what's taking so long?" Mitsuko asked the others.

"We haven't heard any raised voices." Misaki pointed out. "But a review of the rules shouldn't be taking this long." Mikoto leaned up against the door and tried to see if she could hear anything. "That's not very ladylike, Misaka."

"You want to know too," Mikoto hissed and then held a finger up to her lips. "I hear something."

"Ahh…! Right there! Mhmm… yes!"

Mikoto's mouth fell open.

That was definitely the dorm manager, but… what's happening? It sounds like… but it can't be?!

Her shock and horror must have appeared on her face, because Misaki raised an eyebrow. The change in expression did not escape her and decided appearances be damned. She could erase Mitsuko's and Junko's mind of the incident later. Only she and Mikoto would know. Imitating Mikoto, she pressed her ear up to the door.

"How are you so good at this?" Misaki frowned as she heard the dorm manager. Mikoto's face just kept growing whiter.

"Practice. Someone I know…" There was a pause as the voices were too muffled to hear.

"Ah… harder!"

Misaki and Mikoto jumped slightly. The words weren't very loud, but full of excitement. It was like she was trying to keep her voice down and not succeeding very well.

"Keep going!"

"Almost…" They couldn't make out what else Touma said.

"Oooh, phew… that was great."

"You weren't kidding when you said it's been ages."

"I told you so. My work keeps me busy. Thank you for offering…." Mikoto and Misaki jumped back from the door and shook their heads frantically.

"What happened?" Mitsuko asked after a moments of silence, concerned at their interactions.

"Queen?" Junko asked alarmed. "You're awfully pale."

"It's…" Misaki took a deep breath and turned to Mikoto. "I'm sure we misheard."

"…ehehehe." Mikoto chuckled unconvincingly. "Yeah, that had to be it. No way would that happen."

The other two girls looked at each other in confusion.

"Has to be a reasonable explanation." Misaki agreed firmly. It sounded like she was trying to convince herself, rather than the others.

The door suddenly opened and the four of them jumped. Touma walked out and, as far as they could tell, he looked completely normal. He wasn't even flinching or walking stiffly under the watchful eye of the dorm manager. When Mikoto and Misaki saw her behind him, their eyes widened.

She was straightening out her shirt, which appeared a little wrinkled. Her face was also slightly flushed.

"I informed him about the dorm regulations and he agreed to follow them." She announced. "You have thirty minutes before he has to leave. Do be mindful of the time. I would hate to have to punish you all for tardiness."

She turned around and walked back into her office.

"I'm surprised you are still in once piece." Mitsuko said to Touma and then gave a short laugh.

"Eh… she's not that bad. Strict sure, she has to be, but she's not unreasonable." Touma shrugged. "So it seems like we don't have much time. Shall we go?"

"Ah, yes!" Mitsuko agreed instantly and gestured for him to follow.

"Was it just me?" Junko asked a frozen Mikoto and Misaki. "Or did she seem a little less scary after her talk with Kami-sama?"

Across Academy City, for a good part of the day, three females sat at an outdoor café, sipping tea, eating cookies, and discussing things while being heavily monitored by Academy City forces. These forces consisted of mainly two individuals, everyone else prepared was disposable. Aleister and Noukan were carefully examining the situation, waiting for a chance to make their move. The reason these two powerful individuals were forced to wait was the three girls at the table were anything but normal.

The first was the girl who was causing so much mischief in the city. Eve, wearing her long hair tied back in a ponytail, was wearing a simple sundress and was probably the most normal person among them. If she wasn't a wanted individual, no one would have paid her a second thought. The second girl was someone Aleister despised. Julunggul was sitting across from Eve, wearing a small cloth around her chest and blue denim shorts. Shorts were an understatement, as they barely covered anything. The final girl, around the same age as Eve appeared, had the most unusual outfit. She pretty much only had a long cape and a ribbon covering her. She wore an eyepatch and a tall pointed witch's style hat on her head.

The girl's name was Othinus or, as Julunggul called her, Othi-chan.

"So we are in agreement then." Eve stated. "Our actions should avoid interfering with each other as much as possible. Naturally, some external elements may cause our paths to interfere with each other, but we can work together as friends to avoid any messy outcomes."

"I'm fine with that." Julunggul agreed. "Both of your planss have very little to do with what I dessire."

"You do understand if I get my way," Othinus told her. "You may not have your target anymore." Her eye narrowed at Eve. "And we are hardly friends, human… though I use that term loosely for you."

"Don't be all tsundere," Eve replied cheerfully. "I even forgave you for smiting Adam."

"You forgiveness is meaningless." Othinus stated firmly.

"I know about your goal," Julunggul revealed with a nod to Othinus. "And I'm placing my bet you won't be able to follow through with it in the end."

"Then why did you call me here!?" Othinus demanded. "You said you found something that would be of use to me."

"I did." Julunggul confirmed. "But if I tell you now, you will russh off on your own without lisstening to my ssuggesstion."

"Your… suggestions usually involve sleeping with a man."

"It can be a woman," Eve added helpfully. "She's not that picky."

"Shut it!"

"I'm jusst ssaying it might make you feel better and ssee thingss in a new light." Julunggul explained. "There are a lot of interessting people in thiss world you haven't gotten to know. Maybe what you are sseeking for iss here."

"You just want to use me for your own goal." Othinus pointed out.

"If you wanted to help me turn a young boy into a man, that'ss your call." Julunggul sipped her drink. "But I wouldn't let you force it on him. No, I only give him the opportunity and sslowly erode hiss willpower. He will give in eventually; they all do." She smiled. "I won't deny he iss interessting and it was actually through him I encountered ssomeone who can help you."

"And what could this person offer me?" Othinus asked skeptically.

"From what I undersstand," Julunggul said slowly, enjoying the drama. "Thiss girl can manipulate the outcome of eventss."

"Hmm?" Even Eve looked curious and turned to give Julunggul her undivided attention.

"An example sshe gave wass if sshe flipped a coin, sshe can manipulate the outcome of head or tailss." Julunggul smile widened. "Her power workss on a large sscale too. If you usse her power at the right time…"

"Of course." Othinus actually looked impressed at Julunggul's plan. "You actually found something worthwhile. I was about to initiate my own plan which would have plunged the entire world into a war."

"That would be annoying on my end," Julunggul responded. "Sso I'm glad I could give you thiss option."

"You two are such good friends." Eve commented.

"We have a long hisstory." Julunggul laughed, but Othinus only crossed her arms in annoyance.

"And neither of you mind if I break into the Imagining Number District that exists side by side with this city, do you?" Eve asked.

"Nope," Julunggul answered. "Jusst don't erasse any of my target'ss candidatess."

"That might be tough." Eve complained and put her hands behind her head. "Some of them keep coming at me. It gets hard to hold back."

"You're powerful enough to deal with weak normal humans." Othinus stated. "But if we are talking about overkill, Julunggul. My subordinate you encountered…"

"Sshe'ss fine." Julunggul waved a hand. "Ssure, I took them, but the cursse will end on itss own." She giggled loudly. "I tied it to my target. Once he becomess a man, your ssubordinate will go back to normal. Her predicament is more for my amussement if anything. Well… and punisshment for trying to defy me."

"I figured," Othinus sighed. "You always do useless stuff like that."

"Maybe one day you can undersstand the fun of teassing people." Julunggul said sweetly, earning her a scowl.

"The current wielder of the Imagine Breaker is pretty funny." Eve agreed. "I haven't teased him lately, or his friends. I really should."

"Have fun." Julunggul said to her, as she stood up. Othinus followed her example.

"I think we are done here." she declared. "We all have our own things to do now."

"If Aleister doesn't try to interfere," Eve muttered. "His doggy is annoying and you know they were spying on us, those creeps."

"That'ss why I put up a little defenssive sshield for uss." Julunggul laughed. "Anyone who sspiess on uss hearss uss talk about underwear and our boobss." She put her hands under her ample bosom and pushed them. "I bet he enjoyed our converssation. He alwayss wass a huge pervert."

"Isn't that why he mastered Sex Magic so early?" Eve asked and the two of the burst out laughing. Othinus didn't care about their childish theatrics and left. Julunggul left in another direction and Eve was the last to leave. Her lips formed into a small smile after the first two were out of sight.

She had no intention of keeping her part of the deal.

Feel free to leave a review, comment, suggestions, or ideas, I love reading them. If you have a question you wish I ask and would like a quick answer, feel free to message me directly. I try to respond to those within a day or two. Comments, I tend to respond to in the next chapter.

So much I could have done with the classes earlier, but I had to consider the plot, character's actions, and not turn this into a pure crack fic. Though, that last one is kind of iffy now because of that ending.

One last reminder: All mistakes are SilverFang88's fault. When I told him he forgot to write a little remark down here, he told me to add, "Fuck you, Dark." Naturally, this gave me the last word. I had to remind him he has to buy me dinner first.