My School Spirit

by Ravenhale1

This is the seventh installment of the AU recreation of Rosario Vampire told through Kurumu's POV. This story covers the second month of the second term (September 26th - October 31st, 2005), including second season's Chapters 23, 17.5, 15, 16, 25 & 24 before going back to cover the cultural festival craziness of first season's Chapters 29-38. Not strictly canon.

20. Important Sessions

Salutations from Kaigan!

It's Wednesday, the twelfth of October, and I'm studying for my English and Algebra retakes tomorrow. I figured I would write to everyone before I get started and let everyone know I'm still in school.

Rewind about a week ago. I can't remember if it was Monday or Tuesday, but I finally got up the nerve to tell my parents about the possibility of dropping out if I did poorly on the exams. Mama seemed to be cool with it but Papa was mad. Like real mad. Told me I could drop out when I moved out. Said if I was that concerned with the family finances, I could leave their lives and never come back.

So since I'm too broke to move out and would never be able to write to anyone if I became homeless, I'm still in school. Papa has been real tough on me since then. He drops me off at the school every morning. Says if he hears anything about me skipping classes, he'll toss my stuff out the door.

Like what would be the point of skipping classes if I'm already at school. But I am staying awake which I normally didn't try to do. Maybe my grades will improve.

I bombed my midterms last week. Scored a 360 which is several points lower than what I did at Yokai. Papa was pissed. Thought he would throw me out yesterday, saying I did it on purpose. Which wasn't true at all. I can't make up a whole month of depression in two or three nights of studying while I'm scared shitless of losing my home.

Papa said I can't go to your cultural festival. Says it's my punishment for being bad at school. Yesterday was really hard. Cried a lot. Had to get my stuff out of the yard. He broke my CD player and one of my Miss Monday CDs. Shattered when it hit the dirt. It's okay. I didn't like that one that much but it had a really cool song with Sowelu on it.

Can't say much has happened since I wrote to you two weeks ago. Just midterms and Sports Day. And I didn't even attend Sports Day. I wasn't in any events and Mama talked Papa out of making me go.

I'm still not in any clubs. None of the teachers have pressured me to join one. I don't know if they even know I'm here. I've never been called on in class. I guess I do sit in the back and I was sleeping in class almost every morning last month. Maybe they used to call on me.

I can't say anyone at school has talked to me. I didn't see Kagayaki or Ameuma at all. Hell. I can't say that my brothers have even talked to me since Papa blew up at me. The whole family is on edge. Nobody says a word at the dinner table. I feel like Mama is the only one I got now.

I got three letters last weekend. One from you, Satsuki and Mizore. I was happy to finally hear from those two. The highlight of my last two weeks.

I guess you've told Satsuki and Mizore about my thoughts on dropping out. Holy fuck did Satsuki go on a rant about how dumb I am to consider doing that. Like there was a whole page about my stupidity. She brought up crap I did in junior high before we were even friends.

She mentioned her weekends with Ms. Sawayaka and Ms. Meirowasa. I don't remember much about that assembly where those two teachers died. I was more absorbed with Mr. Morioka's hand placement. Wishing I could feel him touching my legs and butt. I know that sounds weird, but I often thought about that when guys would carry me around those last days at Yokai. I wanted to feel something. Anything.

I can't say I've ever met Ms. Sawayaka. Maybe you could send a picture of her?

As for Ms. Meirowasa, I do remember her. She's that girl with the pervy little brother that wouldn't leave us alone when we were drinking at her home. She was kind of like Satsuki. She would only participate if she had to. She slept on the bed that time we all studied together for midterms.

She's like another Ms. Sakamori. I talked to her a couple of times because we were at the same events, but I didn't really know her. The longest talk I had with her was at the hospital two days before Satsuki's birthday. She was worried about her family.

Satsuki suggested living with her. It was a random comment at the end of her rant which I don't know if she meant as a serious offer or not. I don't know if they'll let me live in the dorms with another girl and I doubt they would give me my room back for free.

But I probably could live with you or Mizore. I'm not saying I'm planning to run away or anything. But if I do get thrown out, it would be nice having a place to stay. I don't want to show up in Mononoke only to be turned away. Let me know if that's even an option.

I hope things are working out between you and Mizore. I'm unsure how I feel about the letter she sent me. She was apologizing to me like it was her fault. She even said it would have been better if she had been the crippled one. It's like reading something Chisa used to send me back in junior high.

Mizore called herself a murderer and that she should have died. I've always known that she has issues but that was unexpected. Her diary was not a pleasant thing to read so I guess I should have expected her to write heavier. She was always careful to not get too emotional when she talked to me in person.

Does Mizore even understand what it's like to be happy? She was thrust into this arranged marriage like seven years ago. Before she was even ten. I guess Chisa was a miserable ten year old after I moved away, but she wasn't writing about killing herself. She was almost thirteen when she started down that dark path. I wonder how long Mizore has been like this.

And by the way, I told you about Chisa's birthday at least twice. When you interviewed her for your track article and in my first letter to you over the summer. I'm not apologizing for you being an airhead.

I didn't get a letter from Chisa last weekend but I did get one the weekend before exams. She told me about her family coming to Sports Day to meet his family. I hope that all worked out well.

In all of the letters I sent to her over the years, I never could convince Chisa that she was a good person worthy of being loved. I'm so happy that Mr. Kitamori has given her a new perspective on her life.

I believe Mizore will need the same kind of intervention. I'm not saying it has to be Mr. Aono, but it most likely will take a guy's love to turn her heart around. It's not something you or me can do for her. And I think I get it now. It's like hearing encouragements about my crippled state. It's hard to value the opinion of someone whom won't be by your side. And parents don't count because I never wanted to spend the rest of my life in their home.

You better send me a proper copy of your next paper. I want to be able to read Mr. Aono's article about my astronomy club without a telescope.

Thanks for all of the pictures. I cried a little seeing Satsuki and the others. It makes me miss being at Yokai so much. Strange. I was only there for four months. I wish I was still there. I know my problems wouldn't go away, but it sounds like so much more fun than being here.

I don't have any opinion about this guy from the mafia or your efforts to split up Ms. Akashiya. And I don't understand what you guys are training for. Maybe I'm dumb but I read over your letters and can't quite figure out what this is about. Lord Chiki is gone, right? And those killers are all dead. So is this like training for the sake of training or something? I don't get it.

I'm glad that you're letting people know the truth about your mother passing away. I also agree that it might be good for you to get a boyfriend. Maybe not like super serious, but a guy to hang out with. I'm sure that would help you get over Mr. Aono.

Are there any guys you would be willing to date? The only guy that pops into my head is Mr. Umizake, but he was dreadfully boring. He'd make a terrible boyfriend even if it wasn't serious. I remember Mr. Burumoto was sweet on you, but he was way too tall. Are there any cute guys in your homeroom? I can't remember any guys from your class.

I'm worried about writing to this Ms. Kiyoshi. I know you want me to go to your cultural festival, but I feel like if I did that, it would end up a one way trip. But she is a succubus and you said your kind can make people do things. Maybe she could make my parents let me go. I don't know. I'm scared to ask.

Anyways. I've got two more letters to write and some studying to do. If I don't see you, I'll write to you.

Hugs and kisses.

---

"Ishikure! Wait up!"

The silver haired gnome turned upon hearing her voice. Dressed for school in the green jacket and red bow, Ishikure absently adjusted her pink pair of cat eye glasses resting upon her tiny nose. She had left her hair down today, allowing her wavy tresses to rest upon her shoulders. The girl stopped with a smile, prompting her three companions to cease their walk down the smooth jogging path.

The guy with the slim squared green glasses with the short silver locks was likely Ishikure's brother. He was usually eating lunch at the computer club table with the ashen haired Ganjou whom was sporting his usual black pair of wide boxy glasses. Both had donned the green jackets and red ties of the school.

Their fourth was Anko whom had also left her obsidian tresses down. Wearing her blue rimmed aviators, the gnome waved at Kurumu's group. Anko was dressed identically to Ishikure and Yukari.

"Ms. Kurono."

Thanks to Sports Day, Kurumu had a clean uniform to wear this morning. Letting go of Yukari's hand and leaving her other hand in her pocket to hold her phone, Kurumu jogged up to the group.

"I thought it was you. I haven't seen both of you with your hair down in weeks."

"Somebody let me sleep in so we were late to breakfast."

Ishikure chuckled softly at Anko's huff, pushing a strand of hair behind her tiny ear.

"It's not my job to wake you up."

Kurumu grinned, glancing back at her own group. A few steps behind Yukari was Kokoa and Nagisa. Like Kurumu, the undine had left her jacket open and her hair down. Knowing she would attend the meeting this morning, Nagisa had brought over a spare uniform last night.

Since everyone else was doing it, Kokoa had also left her hair unbound and had tied her familiar about her wrist. The young vampire had pulled a sweater over her school blouse. She had also not bothered with the red bow which her sister and Yukari were sporting with their green jackets.

Doing a poor job of not looking like a couple, Moka and Tsukune walked together in the back. He was actually wearing his school outfit from yesterday, having stuffed it into Ms. Hitori's bag. The two kept exchanging quick glances, having not spoken much since leaving Moka's suite. Moka was still glowing over his compliments for the omurice that Kurumu had helped her make.

"So is this your brother?"

"Yes. Ishikure Yama and manager for second year class seven."

"And this must be Mr. Ganjou. We've never officially met."

"A pleasure to meet you, Ms. Kurono."

"We should hurry. Mr. Kaneshiro said this was first come, first serve."

Kurumu smiled, nodding at Yukari as the witch joined them. They all resumed walking down the path.

"This will be the first time I've actually attended one of these."

Anko huffed with a shrug of her shoulders.

"It's not like you're a class manager."

"Would you be willing to have lunch with me in my suite, Ms. Ishikure?"

Ishikure glanced at Anko before turning a polite smile upon Yukari.

"I suppose I could."

"We need a longer DND session today if we want to make substantial progress on your quest. Rubi can provide us a meal while we have our adventure."

Both boys chuckled as Iwa blushed and a flush Anko hastily looked to the woods.

"I don't know. We do have an auto club meeting at two."

"It's not like Mr. Doroishi expects anything from you girls."

Ishikure pouted at her brother.

"But I shouldn't blow it off."

"I could tell him that you're busy with Ms. Sendou."

"That would be nice of you, Ms. Anko. I hope we can adventure with your group soon."

Anko blushed darker as the boys continued to chuckle. Ishikure smiled politely.

"I will have to go back to my room to gather my things and change clothes."

The forest receded as they neared their destination. A two story building stood near the intersection of the jogging path and another trail on their left. This other trail had two short flights of paved stairs before it carved a diagonal route through the woods which eventually led back to the school. Parts of that trail were lined with a perimeter wall similar to the one flanking the school's front entrance.

"I almost never walk down this trail. When Yukari did your article, it was the first time I had been this far down the jogging path in months. We always take the road to our flying spot."

"We sometimes take the road to our weekend club meetings. It's not much longer."

A single story gazebo was attached to the white paneled building coming up on their right. It wrapped around the side with a sliding door facing the jogging path. It appeared to be the only entrance.

The structure consisted of two wings with a shorter central section. The wing facing the path had two slight projections lined with six pane windows flanked with green shutters. The first floor windows had decorative arches swept over the tops while the upper level windows lacked such features. A tiny balcony was atop the far projection which had smaller three pane windows on the diagonal sections.

Ishikure's brother held the door open for them. There was a bench on the left and a shelf for shoes built into the wall near the opening into a hallway. Ishikure and Anko removed their loafers and placed them in one of the empty slots before stepping up into the corridor.

"So what was the original function of this building?"

Ishikure's brother shrugged as Kurumu removed her shoes.

"Hard to say. It might have been a small dorm."

Kurumu nodded as Yukari put her shoes in the same slot as hers. She stepped up onto the tatami flooring which lined the narrow corridor. Ishikure and Anko lingered at an intersection a few steps down the hall.

"There are eight bedrooms on each wing. Four upstairs and four downstairs. Each room has two beds."

The girl turned and wandered backwards a few steps while gesturing to Kurumu's right.

"There's a spiral stairway behind that door and another one at the end of the hall."

Ishikure twirled about and continued down the hall.

"This will take us to the main living and dining room. There's a small kitchen behind it but there's no plumbing or electricity here."

She gestured at one of the black iron wall sconces lining the corridor.

"These lights are gas fueled."

They arrived in a large domed room at the end of the corridor. Several students were already gathered, some seated at the circular table dominating the center of the room. This table was open in the middle in which the student council president, Kaneshiro Hokuto, stood.

The student council secretary, Komeichi Junko, was poised in front of a green chalkboard. The tanuki senior was the daughter of the mayor of Aserutani and possessed the usual glossy black hair with a cowlick. A wooden door behind the chalkboard was likely for the kitchen. Another opening was on the other side of this massive room, marking the start of a corridor that led to the other wing.

"Excellent. More first year class managers have arrived."

Kurumu absently took Yukari's hand as the witch settled in beside her. She wandered to the bottom of the table, offering a wave to Herikuda whom was seated there. The fashion club senior waved back with a wide grin. Her buxom friend, Kunahiyo, lingered beside her.

"And Ms. Kurono. I would offer a seat but these meetings are always standing room only."

Several of the seated students chuckled. There were a dozen white wooden chairs positioned about the white topped table. These chairs had open backs and a thin cream cushion upon the seat. The front legs of these chairs curled towards the black cabinetry which supported the ringed table.

Utsutei Mikado stood on Komeichi's right while Okumatsu Sen was on her left. The student council vice president was almost as tall as Kaneshiro and had short, golden brown locks which were feathered, betraying his tengu heritage. The treasurer was not much taller than Komeichi and had black, ruffled hair which hung over his eyes and a perpetual toothy sneer.

Seated at the head of the table between Kaneshiro and Komeichi was the proud, stocky guy with the bluish white locks she had seen in the balance race. On his right was a silvery haired guy with a ponytail whom was perched on his seat instead of sitting.

"Good morning, Mr. Aono. It's unusual to see you not in the company of Ms. Nazohashi."

"She went to Mononoke with the other first year PSC girls this morning."

"Of course. Lady Hineri mentioned that she had something planned for the PSC this weekend."

Sabaku huffed from the corner of the room where he stood, looking formidable as always.

"It's training, Mr. Kaneshiro. Those girls are very green."

On the right of this ponytailed guy was Doroishi from the auto club. Standing behind him due to the lack of chairs was the blond Jishin and the freckled Makenuki. Tsuchiyama's brother waved at Kurumu.

"Are you not in the tennis club, Ms. Taniguchi?"

"Yes, Mr. Utsutei. I asked Coach Yaisoku for permission to be here with Ms. Shuzen."

"If there are no objections, I'll start asking for your class projects."

Murmured indifference answered Kaneshiro. On the right of Doroishi was the small girl with the sky blue hair pinned back with a pink heart barrette. Since she was seated by the pink, curly haired Hidaka from the archery club, this girl had to be Okutomo Sana from the greetings club. The lady with the long, silky black hair sitting in the next seat was Shikikawa, the other archery senior.

"Mr. Ishikure. What can we expect from class seven this year?"

"We have decided to do a cake walk."

"And here I was hoping to make that an alternative to the many proposed cafés."

As Komeichi jotted that onto the chalkboard with noisy vigor, Kurumu noticed a sandy blond haired kid grinning nearby. His wavy tresses rested upon his shoulders as he looked upon them with amusement.

"And what can we expect from the first year class ten?"

"We were thinking of running a shape cutting workshop like my brother did last year."

"And will you also be doing gift cards at local stores as your prizes?"

"It worked out nicely for them."

"I'm sure that my sister's attempt will be more profitable than ours."

Three of the remaining five seniors at the table were from band. The tanuki guy seated to the left of the broad guy at the head of the table was Sagimori Haruki from Aranoiji. The young man with the wavy, shoulder length cerulean locks seated next to Sagimori was Kawakuchi Chifu from Aranami. These two class managers were captains of the band.

The short haired platinum blond on Kawakuchi's left was Tobikomu Taiki. The sylph from Hateshinai was not a class manager, though he had been nominated for the popularity contest. As his homeroom's manager was Shiruba from track, Kurumu suspected that he was the vice manager.

"And Ms. Anko. What will the first year class four be doing?"

"We wanted to do a haunted house."

Several chuckles answered that statement. Komeichi hesitated to add this to the board.

"That is the fourth haunted house."

"What other classes were wanting to do a haunted house?"

Herikuda turned in her seat and grinned at Kurumu.

"That would be mine."

"And mine."

Kurumu smiled at the sandy haired guy grinning at her.

"And you are?"

"Ueshiba Mizuki, vice manager for class five."

Kosai snorted from her seat next to Herikuda.

"Practically manager. It's not like Ms. Udetama ever comes to these things."

The last seat at the table between Kosai and Tobikomu was taken by Fukuda. Unlike everyone else in attendance, the dark haired girl was sporting a black jacket and black slacks instead of school attire.

Several members of the fencing and kendo clubs stood off to the side behind Tobikomu. The tall young man with the golden, braided tail was Kogane Hiji, captain of the kendo club. He was wearing a royal blue robe with a belt and scabbard for his wooden kendo stick. Towering beside him was the older Tokeru brother with short magenta curls.

Akegawa Atsushi and Hosokoun Habiki stood behind their seniors. Atsushi had the same cherry locks and pistachio eyes as his sister. He was a little taller than the captain. The valedictorian Hosokoun was the shortest of these guys and had his sable hair braided and slung over his shoulder.

"Add it to the board, Ms. Komeichi. We will let the committee decide if it must be changed."

Komeichi nodded at Kaneshiro's statement, filling in the space beside the homeroom designation.

"Ms. Sendou. What activity does your homeroom plan to do?"

Yukari wiggled her hand out of Kurumu's before stepping forward.

"We decided to host a maid café."

Komeichi sighed heavily as several students chuckled about the table.

"And that's our ninth café proposal."

"Yes. We may want to reject some now."

"But this is a maid café with Ms. Kurono."

Kaneshiro smirked at Herikuda.

"I don't think we should base our rejections on whom is in these homerooms."

"But she isn't wrong. A café with Ms. Kurono might be more profitable."

Kurumu shivered at the lechery Okumatsu favored upon her.

"We will need menus and budgets from our café proposals to better decide which ones to reject."

"Please reject my Cuddle café."

Kurumu had to laugh at Sagimori's request. She had no idea what a cuddle café would serve and was not brave enough to ask.

"We won't be rejecting anything. Those decisions will be made by the festival committee. All we are doing today is gathering proposals. But please understand that the committee might reject ideas that are identical. So you may want to have a second activity in mind, Ms. Sendou."

The Akebara sisters, Asakira, Naratoki and Nemoto were all gathered together behind Kosai and Fukuda. Shikichi was also here, standing off to the side with a short haired guy with peppered, feathered locks. That was Noboru Kuroi.

"And what can we expect from first year class nine?"

Kokoa grinned, holding up a fist.

"We will be having a contest of strength!"

"How will that work?"

"We will be having people arm wrestle against Ms. Shuzen and Mr. Hazama."

Kaneshiro stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"I must warn you that this is a three day event. It will start with a brief fireworks display Thursday night and will conclude with a bonfire dance Sunday night. That's a lot of hours for two people to cover."

"Don't worry! I can do it!"

Nagisa giggled, resting a hand on Kokoa's shoulder.

"We might need others to help us cover all of the hours. Mr. Miyamoto has offered to lend us a hand."

"And what sort of prizes do you plan to offer?"

"We haven't thought that part out yet."

Komeichi perked up, tapping the board where she had written down Kokoa's idea.

"There's several things you could do from local store credit to homemade gifts. Make sure to write up a plan of how you will do this and any costs you might incur."

"Good morning, ladies! We'll get to you in the order you came in."

Kurumu smirked at Kaneshiro's greeting for the arriving trio. The silvery blue haired Uta was in the company of the golden haired Amatsu from choir and Amatsu's cousin, Heniki. The golden haired boy from Akari's homeroom could easily be mistaken for a girl.

"Back to the matters at hand. What activity does your homeroom want to do, Mr. Aono?"

"Well we had a bunch of ideas but we decided to go with the goldfish scoop. Ms. Nekonome was very insistent that we do it since it will be her last festival."

Some students looked up with concern but Kaneshiro smiled warmly.

"Indeed it might be. I understand that she has her wedding scheduled after term exams."

"Wait?! Ms. Nekonome is getting married?!"

"When did this happen?!"

"I didn't even know she was engaged!"

Herikuda huffed as the younger girls reeled from the revelation. She toyed with her sable locks with crimson highlights.

"She was supposed to get married over the summer of my first year. Is it the same guy?"

"I understand that it is. She has already put in her resignation."

Kaneshiro's calm response caused Herikuda to stop fooling with her hair.

"That was very kind of your homeroom, Mr. Aono."

"Yea. Now our only concern is how we're going to get the fish."

Uta laughed pleasantly.

"And a tank. Though I'm sure yours won't need to be as big as ours."

"If she is retiring, do you think she can do a speech for us?"

Kaneshiro grinned at Herikuda.

"It would be a nice sendoff."

"Did you two have homeroom with her?"

Herikuda turned a smile on Kurumu.

"No. I had Mr. Sawayaka while he had Ms. Houkai. But we both had Ms. Nekonome for history."

Utsutei chuckled, grabbing the hems of his jacket.

"We can save this banter for later."

"Yes. I still require Ms. Akashiya to share with us her homeroom's plans for the festival."

"We are going to read fortunes."

Several chuckles answered Moka's response. Komeichi smirked as she wrote down the idea.

"Is this going to be like the séances Ms. Shikichi's class will be holding?"

"I don't believe so. We'll be reading palms."

"That sounds like it will be different."

"Indeed it does. So what does class four have in store for us that needs a large water tank?"

Uta giggled at Kaneshiro's prompting.

"We want to do a dunk tank."

"A dunk tank?"

"You know the kind where you throw a ball at a lever. If it hits hard enough, it knocks a person into a tank full of water."

Kaneshiro paused with a thoughtful expression.

"That seems difficult to pull off."

"And potentially destructive. We don't want people throwing projectiles inside the school."

"We know that we'll need to grab a bunch of padding from the gym to protect the walls and windows."

"Is this going to be real messy?"

"Most of the kids in our homeroom have a strong affinity with water. We can keep things tidy."

Kaneshiro nodded slowly, turning his attention to Komeichi.

"Put it down. We'll need a detailed description of what you are doing and how you will do it."

"And how it will make money. Will you be giving prizes for this?"

"Isn't getting to dunk someone the prize?"

"You'll need to talk that over with your class, Ms. Uta."

Kaneshiro paused, turning a smile upon Amatsu.

"What is class nine planning to do for the festival?"

"We were hoping to do a ring toss."

Komeichi tapped the chalk against the board.

"My homeroom is also doing a ring toss. Is this hoops onto bottles?"

"I think so."

"One of you should do a coin toss instead."

"What's a coin toss?"

"You use some sort of buckets and toss coins at them. If a person lands the coin on the rim, they get to keep all of the coins in that bucket."

Kaneshiro nodded thoughtfully at Okumatsu's explanation.

"Intriguing. Perhaps you two ladies can take this back to your homerooms for discussion to see if they are open to this idea. It has merit."

Komeichi nodded as she added Amatsu's idea to the blackboard. As Kaneshiro turned to Heniki, Unsei and Yokokara from Tsukune's floor arrived.

"And what does Mr. Heniki have planned for first year class eight?"

"We were hoping to be allowed to put on a play."

Kurumu smirked, having heard the details from Hotaru and Hikari.

"A crossdressing play."

Kaneshiro chuckled as Heniki blushed.

"Something you have experience with."

Several students chuckled as Komeichi added the play to the board.

"We will need estimates on how much time you need and how much it will cost for you to make props and costumes. The stage will be cut up into ninety minutes slots. If it's too short, you will have to share a slot with someone else."

Kaneshiro paused to look over the entire group.

"Stage time is limited and clubs have priority. Be aware that you might get asked to host your play in your classroom if we don't have an open slot for you."

"My fashion show can be stretched out for a whole hour."

"How? Aren't you just walking out and showing off dresses?"

Herikuda turned a grin upon Kurumu.

"This is a pageant, Ms. Kurono. We will be doing talents in our dresses. And with there being twelve of us, I know we can put on an hour long show."

Kaneshiro chuckled, gesturing to the proud guy seated at the head of the table.

"Yes. And Mr. Yakedo has made similar promises for his drama club."

"I know Ms. Tomarigi wants the choir to put on a performance."

"Yea. And Mr. Tagami wants the band to reprise last month's concert."

"Those teachers have already approached the student council. So has Mr. Agano on behalf of the music club. They want to put on a concert longer than the one they did in July."

Kaneshiro nodded at Utsutei's comment.

"I can only hope that more club presidents come forward soon. I have already heard from the track club whom intend to put on some sort of dance number like the cheerleaders often do."

"Are the cheerleaders partnering up with the dance club again?"

"I haven't heard from either of their club presidents as of this time."

Komeichi tapped the blackboard.

"We are only missing three homerooms. Second year classes one, six and eleven."

Kaneshiro nodded, turning a grin upon the two young men lingering at the start of the hallway.

"Mr. Yokokara. I have already heard from Ms. Shuzen about the plans for the strength contest. And Ms. Nemoto has told us about the café for your homeroom, Ms. Unsei."

"I'm the son of the Sadou club advisor. I had to suggest the café."

"Nobody is questioning your decision. Though it may change if the committee votes against it."

Kurumu grinned upon seeing another pair of guys step up into the hallway behind Unsei and start towards them. Both were about Tsukune's height and had short, wavy hair. The guy with the faint, greenish hair was Yamashita from class twelve. The blond was the guy she was being teased over.

"Mr. Amesuki is here."

Nagisa favored Kurumu a smirk so she responded with a tug down on her eyelid and a quick tongue.

"Good morning, Mr. Amesuki. Mr. Yamashita. Ms. Akebara has already told us about your café plans."

Yamashita nodded as Amesuki settled in beside Nagisa. They exchanged a murmured greeting.

"So what can we expect from class eleven?"

Amesuki sighed, absently brushing a wavy lock of faint blond hair out of his eyes.

"The girls voted for a kissing booth."

Kaneshiro chuckled, shaking his head.

"We can't do kissing booths."

"But a cuddle café is okay?"

"Please, Mr. Sagimori. I have already expressed that we aren't rejecting café ideas at this time."

"Why would the girls want to do a kissing booth?"

Amesuki shrugged with an uncaring expression. He looked so much like his sister though he was stockier and taller. His frame was more like what Tsukune's had been before he had toned up from training.

"The girls have it in their head that this would make Mr. Kyuushutsu feel better."

Kurumu chuckled, mildly surprised that Miyamoto had not mentioned this last night.

"Has that boy come back to school?"

"Thankfully not. Watching that fool do as he pleases with the girls in class is very distracting."

"We can't do kissing booths. There is actually a rule against that."

"I will be more than happy to inform my classmates that the idea was rejected.

"Have your class vote for a new project and turn it over to the committee on Monday."

Another short pause followed and Kaneshiro let out a sigh.

"I know Mr. Machida from class six will be late. He always is. Do we know whom will be showing up from class one? Ms. Genzaimuta is at her tennis meet and I don't recall whom her vice manager is."

"That would be Mr. Todoro. He may not be aware that he's supposed to be here."

Kosai huffed at Jishin's announcement.

"If he's anything like his cousin, I wouldn't count on it."

"I suppose we can start without those two. I want to thank you all for coming and sticking around. There isn't much on the agenda today. We've already collected ideas for a majority of the homerooms for the committee to review."

He paused, gesturing to the board.

"As stated before, the festival will open with a brief fireworks display on Thursday night. Some of you may have family in town on that day and I encourage you to make them aware of it so that they can attend. It will only be a half hour long and will be handled by Tourou as it has been every other year."

The student council president smiled warmly.

"There will be an opening ceremony in the auditorium on Friday morning at nine. If some classes desire, they can open their activities at this time. The cafeteria will be closed. Many of the local restaurants will be setting up food booths on the premises. We will need your menu choices soon so that we can decide which items have the best chance of success at the festival."

Kaneshiro paused again, looking over the group.

"The stage will open at one on Friday. The stage schedule will be arranged in ninety minute slots so there will be five slots in the afternoon and two slots in the mornings. The last stage event on Sunday night I have already promised to Mr. Tashikana, whom plans to have a DJ dance which will start at seven. The bonfire and closing dance will take place around eight thirty and will be held on the soccer field."

Kaneshiro grinned, adjusting his glasses.

"So needless to say, it would be best if everyone can wrap up their activities by eight every night. We don't need anyone hanging out in the school after ten. You can open your activities whenever you like, though I doubt you will have much traffic prior to eight. I hope that helps you first years understand how many hours you need to cover."

Kaneshiro wandered closer to Herikuda, placing his hand on the table.

"And now for the other thing I'd like to discuss. The proposed members of my festival committee."

The student council president knocked upon the table with his fist.

"As I told Mr. Tashikana, I wanted the approval of my class managers for these names. If any of you have objections, I encourage you to speak up now. You might know these candidates better than I do."

Kaneshiro walked off, turning his back to Herikuda.

"My intentions in selecting these people was to create a greater experience for all students. I avoided talking to anyone involved in the more recognized clubs or athletic groups, not wanting their opinions to be swayed by majority interest."

"I wouldn't say that my club is obscure or unknown."

Kaneshiro chuckled at Kosai's objection.

"No disrespect, Ms. Kosai, but your fencing club is possibly the least known of the athletic options available to young women. There are more girls in cheerleading and gymnastics than fencing."

"And you don't see a single cheerleader or gymnast in these meetings."

"Quite true. Since Ms. Kosai is being quite vocal, I should reveal that the first of my candidates is Ms. Fukuda Ikuyo, whom has joined us today. I doubt anyone has an objection to her."

Fukuda nodded when he gestured to her. He paused, allowing the group time to speak. He smiled in the ensuing silence.

"And since I wanted someone from the PSC or kendo club involved in this committee whom would be involved in the security of our event, I have also requested Hamanaka Isamu to join our ranks."

Kogane glanced at Tokeru. With a slight smile, he shook his head.

"I'm still unsure why you requested him. He's the least dependable of our seniors."

"Though skilled with the blade."

Kaneshiro grinned at the kendo seniors.

"Mr. Hamanaka shared gym with me last year and he is currently in Ms. Komeichi's homeroom. I think he will manage fine with simple committee work."

"I have no objections if you think he'll work."

"Anyone else? He is in your homeroom as well, Mr. Kawakuchi."

"I have no opinion on the matter."

Kaneshiro nodded, walking over to stand between Mr. Yakedo and the silvery haired guy perched on his chair. The student council president gestured at Mr. Yakedo.

"Very well then. I have also invited Yakedo Migoto, president of the drama club, to be on the committee. He shares my homeroom and expressed interest in helping with the cultural festival. As our class activity won't require much labor, he will have much free time."

Kaneshiro paused for a long moment. Hearing no objections, he gestured to the other guy.

"This is Suriza Haiiro, president of the billiards club. He was recommended to me by Mr. Utsutei whom he shares homeroom with."

"With our homeroom's decision to put on a play, he will also have plenty of free time."

Suriza hissed, betraying a forked, black tongue for a moment.

"My club has shown no interest to do anything for the cultural festival. I'm at your full disposal."

"Are there any objections to Mr. Suriza being on the committee?"

Kaneshiro waited for a reaction from the group. The only response was murmured indifference.

"Excellent. Before I even started making my list, the Headmaster approached me and asked that I include this next candidate. As has been done in past years, we usually try to include some students from the younger grades. Mr. Aono was requested to represent the first years. Any objections?"

Unsei chuckled, shaking his head.

"I doubt any of us present would. It's just a committee spot."

The other first years muttered similar sentiments.

"Well if there are no problems with this, I'll move on to a spot I haven't filled. I need someone to be the representative of the second years."

"I would be honored to have that position."

Attention shifted to the grinning sandy haired kid.

"I might have to object to Mr. Ueshiba."

"What's the issue?"

"The issue is Ms. Udetama. If he takes the position, there won't be anyone running his homeroom."

"Don't worry, Mr. Kaneshiro. If I inform our class secretaries of my new position, I'm sure that Mr. Genkidzukeru and Ms. Zoushiki will step up."

"Mr. Genkidzukeru is on the tennis team. You can't put this on him."

"I will withdraw if Ms. Zoushiki says she can't handle the haunted house without me. It's not like Ms. Kitamura is going to make the calligraphy club do something for the festival. I'm relatively free."

Kaneshiro stroked his chin thoughtfully.

"I would prefer the representative to be someone that attends these meetings. What about you, Mr. Amesuki? I'm sure that your club won't have a separate activity for the festival."

"No way. Mr. Kyuushutsu is my vice manager. Do you really want him running my homeroom?"

"You have Mr. Kyuushutsu as your vice manager?"

Amesuki sighed at Kurumu's amusement.

"It was a classroom vote and for some reason he wanted to be the vice manager. You should all count yourselves lucky that he didn't want manager."

"Very well then. Would you be interested to take the spot, Ms. Amatsu?"

"My vice manager is Mr. Kanri and one of my secretaries is Ms. Katsukara. Both are from the tennis club and they are practicing after school every day. I'm already resigned to running this on my own. And Ms. Tomarigi wants to do different songs for the cultural festival, so I'm also tied up with choir."

"Well if Mr. Ueshiba is the only one stepping up, I'm going to go with him."

"You'll hear no objections from me. I'll have my hands full with running a café."

Jishin snickered at Makenuki.

"Assuming you get it. My homeroom has a better café idea."

"Who would want to get food from people being rude to you?"

"And who wants to see you in a swimsuit?"

"No squabbling, please. If neither of you want it, we shall leave it in Mr. Ueshiba's capable hands."

Ueshiba grinned ear to ear.

"Thank you, Mr. Kaneshiro. I promise not to disappoint you."

"I have five more candidates to discuss, none of which are present. Two are from class three, whom I hope Ms. Kunahiyo can comment upon their necessity to run their café. These two are Ashimizu Kiniro, president of the bowling club, and Odayakana Musashi, president of the chemistry club."

"I'd rather not have Mr. Odayakana involved in our café. He's likely to tamper with our wares."

Kaneshiro chuckled, crossing his arms.

"Fair enough. Does anyone object to him being on the committee?"

"I can't say that I know the guy that well but I don't see the harm in giving him a seat on the committee."

Uta giggled, nodding at Amesuki's sentiment.

"I know I wouldn't drink anything that guy serves me."

"Why are we offering this guy a spot on the committee?"

Kaneshiro smiled warmly at Herikuda.

"This is a top twenty student we are discussing here. And he is the president of a club that has been around for more than twenty years. Both the chemistry club and bowling club should be represented."

"I had Ashimizu in homeroom last year. The guy doesn't stand out."

"Maybe so, Mr. Tokeru, but the bowling club rarely does anything for the cultural festival. Unless class three needs him for their café, he should have plenty of free time for committee work."

"We can manage without him. But there's no way the chemistry club doesn't try to do something."

"So you'd rather have his help with your café?"

"No. You can have him. But I'm sure that he will have other commitments."

"I have already spoken with Mr. Odayakana. His club does intend to ask for a classroom to host a shop. But he doesn't feel his presence will be required to run it."

Herikuda nodded with a glance at Kunahiyo.

"I don't think we have an issue with either of these guys holding a seat on your committee."

"If everyone else feels the same way, shall I introduce my next pair?"

Kaneshiro paused, waiting for any signs of unrest.

"Very good then. My next two come from Mr. Tsuchiyama's class nine whom are tentatively planning to put on a play. The first is Takumashi Shiro from the wrestling club."

"But he isn't the club president."

Kaneshiro smiled at Tsuchiyama's amusement.

"I am aware of that. But as I had already been approached by the Headmaster about including Mr. Aono, I felt it would be best to avoid Mr. Rikishi. I understand the two had an issue in the past."

"Many months ago. I do appreciate the consideration, Mr. Kaneshiro."

"Well we might need Mr. Takumashi as a stagehand on the day of. Prior to that, I'm sure we can spare him. If he's on the committee, we won't have to worry about giving him an acting role."

"I do have a minor issue with this."

Kaneshiro frowned at Herikuda.

"Is there some reason why you disagree with Mr. Takumashi being on the committee?"

"I'm more worried about the total lack of women on the committee. While I get why you avoided a lofty and prestigious club like my own, I don't understand why you seem to have avoided numerous clubs that I know are run by girls. Mr. Ueshiba's calligraphy club for instance. Or Ms. Okutomo's greetings club."

Kaneshiro chuckled with a nod.

"My next candidate is a young woman. Hisomeru Nise, president of the origami club."

"That girl is far too shy for us to use an actor. You are quite welcome to her."

"Strange response for a girl that your homeroom nominated for the popularity contest."

"Ms. Michi is in my homeroom, Ms. Sendou. I imagine most of my classmates voted for her. And since the other girls in my homeroom are forgettable, I suspect that Ms. Hisomeru barely slipped through."

"Hey now. I have two choir seniors in your forgettable homeroom."

"Of course. Of course. What were their names again?"

"Ms. Yanagisawa and Ms. Kawano."

"Never heard of them."

Amatsu stuck her tongue out at Tsuchiyama.

"I think it would be sweet if Ms. Hisomeru is on the committee."

"I agree with Sana. Give the girl a chance."

Suriza hissed with is forked tongue slipping out for a moment.

"Yes. Give Ms. Hisomeru a spot on the committee. I've known her since junior high in Zakimiya. I would enjoy working with her once again."

"One hundred percent on board with her. Now tell me that you have someone from one of our many female led clubs like dance, ikebana or sewing. The literature club is as old as the library."

Kaneshiro smiled warmly at Herikuda.

"I'm sorry to disappoint you, but my final candidate is Jiseki Kowa, president of the cycling club."

"Sheesh. Fifty percent of the population and we don't even get twenty five percent of representation."

"I was hoping that one of the second year ladies would pounce on the spot I left open."

"Whatever. Enjoy your delusions of male dominance."

Kaneshiro chuckled, glancing over the group.

"Do I have any objections over Mr. Takumashi or Mr. Jiseki as individuals to sit on this committee?"

"I'm mildly curious why you want Mr. Jiseki."

"He would make an excellent gopher for the committee, Ms. Shikikawa. He's highly energetic and told me that his cycling club had nothing planned for the festival."

"I suppose we don't particularly need his help with our art exhibit."

"Excellent. Do I have any objections to my proposed festival committee?"

"There's not enough women on it."

"Any objections about the people I suggested and not the genders or races not represented?"

Kurumu had to chuckle at his smooth response to Herikuda's halfhearted complaint. There was a good half minute of silence before Kaneshiro clapped his hands.

"Good. That was all that I had for today. I need you to get your activity budgets to the festival committee as quickly as possible. You are dismissed though I insist that the student council and festival committee members stick around until lunch for any club presidents whom may show up with proposals."

As students got up from their chairs, Kurumu hopped over to Tsukune's side to playfully swat at his arm.

"Sounds like you are being held hostage."

"Yea. Lucky me."

"I didn't know you were going to do a goldfish scoop."

Tsukune grinned at Moka's pout.

"Ms. Nekonome insisted. Your other self said nothing about doing palm readings."

"Would you like me to read your palm?"

Tsukune blushed, holding his hand out to Moka.

"Uh… sure."

Kurumu grimaced, backing off from the pair with hopes of finding a distraction. Yukari was chatting with the four gnomes they had arrived with. Most of the fencing club girls were heading out with the band seniors, leaving Kosai and Fukuda behind.

Kokoa was lingering beside Nagisa as the girl giggled over something Amesuki had said. Feeling worried that it might have to do with her, Kurumu sashayed over to the group.

"So what are we talking about?"

"I was informing these boys that you are part undine."

Amesuki smiled at her. He had the same periwinkle eyes as his sister.

"That is the rumor going around."

"I am not related to Ms. Okimune."

Both boys chuckled at her response. Yamashita gestured at her hair.

"Your hair is strikingly similar to hers."

"Are introductions needed here?"

Kurumu smiled softly, shaking her head at Nagisa's amused inquiry.

"I've met your sister."

"That would be whom we heard the rumor from."

"I also heard that you are a top five student."

"I am. Sharing that honor with four others whom were present."

The older auto club members had already left along with Amatsu and her cousin. The room had cleared out fast, making it so much more obvious that Tsukune was enjoying his palm reading far too much.

"What club are you in?"

Nagisa giggled, draping an arm over Kurumu's shoulder and leaning into her.

"Mr. Amesuki and Mr. Yamashita are members of the math club. They also have two more first years from Aranami in the club. Mr. Akenuma from class ten and Mr. Takanuma from class eight."

"Are you looking to do an article for our club?"

Kurumu laughed at Yamashita's inquiry, shaking her head.

"No. I'm tied up with other clubs right now. But maybe one of my friends could do an article."

"I wouldn't trouble yourself, Ms. Kurono. It's a small club with only seven members. I only joined last year because I knew the two seniors and they needed members to stay a club."

"We only have one senior this year. Mr. Hokusuna."

"I'm guessing that he's your club president."

"Yea. And Mr. Amesuki will be taking over this year."

"I have not accepted that responsibility."

"Come on. You can't give the club to Mr. Yokan."

"Mr. Yokan? That girly looking guy you did the wheelbarrow race with?"

"He's a member in name only. He's also a member of the English club."

"Why would anybody ever want to be in a club like that?"

Amesuki chuckled at Kurumu's displeasure.

"His brother is the club president. I believe Ms. Koe will be taking that club over next year."

Kurumu nodded, having no clue whom that was.

"Whom are the advisors for these clubs?"

"I believe Ms. Kuwabara is in charge of the English club. As for my club, that would be Mr. Hino. As he was my math instructor last year, he also encouraged me to join his club."

"Whom would you prefer to take over your club?"

"I'm not opposed to giving it to one of the first years."

"Well I don't want it."

"I was thinking Mr. Boyogaro would do just fine."

"He's not a very active student in our homeroom."

"It's not like the position will require anything special from him. And since we don't do anything, we don't request for funds. It's just a name to give to the student council to keep our standing as a club."

Kurumu mildly wondered which guy in Nagisa's homeroom was this Mr. Boyogaro.

"If the position doesn't require much, why don't you take it?"

"I'd rather not take a position and do nothing with it. I'd feel compelled to at least do something."

"Which is why you should take it. We don't do anything."

"You have never expressed a desire to do anything."

"Yea but that doesn't mean I want to do nothing."

"I will be a senior next year. And most likely a class manager. That is more than enough for me to juggle with my studies. Claiming to be the president of a club that did nothing would be more harmful to my reputation than just mentioning I was a member."

"Are you that concerned about your reputation?"

"Of course. Are you not ever concerned with yours?"

Kurumu paused, supposing he was being reasonable.

"Would you feel embarrassed about your sister being a cheerleader?"

"I can't say that I would. Why do you ask?"

Kurumu hesitated, sharing a glance with Nagisa.

"Manami thought you would be. That's why she joined the gymnastics club."

"It would not be the first time Manami has used me as an excuse not to try something."

"She's probably more worried about embarrassing herself than her brother."

"Her close friend, Ms. Watakoma, is cousins with Ms. Tanigawa, a senior on the squad. I'm sure that they would have taken good care of her."

"Those girls are in the gymnastics club with Hikari and Hotaru."

Kurumu laughed at Kokoa's sudden remark.

"Yes, Milady. His sister and Ms. Watakoma are. Where have you been?"

Kokoa sucked in a breath, grabbing Nagisa by the arm and tugging.

"I need to go home and change. You better not forget to do my laundry again."

Nagisa giggled, allowing Kokoa to pull her away.

"It seems I must leave you. Be good to Ms. Kurono."

They watched Kokoa and Nagisa depart down the hallway. A husky boy with greasy dark locks styled in a crew cut was approaching them.

"Mr. Machida has finally decided to join us."

Kurumu smiled, glancing about. Yukari was now clinging to Moka's side as the vampire chatted with the gnomes. Tsukune was over by the blackboard, interacting with the student council.

"I'm thinking it's about time for us to get going too. Would you two care to walk with us?"

Amesuki shared a glance with Yamashita before both boys shrugged.

"It's not like we have any plans."

"Mr. Machida! Glad that you could make it! What activity does class six plan to do?"

"How do you feel about mahjong?"

"I believe that would be gambling."

"This is a festival, Mr. Kaneshiro. Half of last year's ideas involved some form of gambling."

"Isn't your homeroom doing a lottery?"

Kaneshiro chuckled at Utsutei's amused inquiry.

"I concede the point. Bring a detailed proposal of how your homeroom wants to do this, Mr. Machida."

"I shall. Is there anything else you require from me?"

"Not at this point, Mr. Machida."

With a grunt, Machida retreated back down the hall. Amesuki chuckled, shaking his head.

"Typical Mr. Machida. Wants the position but not the work that goes with it."

Kurumu breathed in deep, managing a smile. She started off towards Moka and Yukari.

"Come with me."

---

"I don't know about you, but the school seems kind of spooky at night."

"Don't say that!"

Kurumu chuckled at Hikari's distress as they neared the school gate. The moon was almost full, shining brightly in the cloudless night. Numerous stars dotted the sky.

Kurumu walked alongside Ishiko and Yukari. The witch was sporting her white and black tee which came with a matching pant while the gnome had on a cherry red shirt with yellow lettering. A pair of bright yellow track shorts with white stripes down the sides completed her sleepwear. Like most of the girls present, these two had changed after the dinner Kurumu had prepared for Kokoa and her friends.

Kurumu had pulled on these gray leggings for the first time in months to wear with her long pink shirt shortly after her pleasant walk with a potential boyfriend. He was much more laid back than Kurumu had anticipated, somewhat reminding her of Shiname. He was not nearly as playful or flirtatious, but it was not like he looked down on her. He had even complimented her on her improving grades. Thankfully Yukari had waited for him to leave before inquiring about Kurumu's motives.

"We've been doing this for days now. You should be used to it."

"It's different when it's a weekend night."

Kokoa walked in front with Hikari and Hotaru. The vampire had on that sleeveless pink shirt with the matching pant with the cherry red drawstrings. She was holding Hikari's hand. The salamander was wearing that lacy cream camisole and matching shorts.

"We're more dangerous than anyone we might come across."

"I don't feel that way."

Hotaru snickered, thrusting her hands into the pockets of her faded black sleep pants. A black and dark green camouflage tank top barely contained her bosom. Her beige curls were unbound and dancing along her back.

"If anyone tried to attack you, you could flame on and roast their ass."

"I would be naked if I did that."

Kokoa had brought her girls back to her suite after their gymnastics practice to listen to music and read the second volume of Hellsing. She had allowed Kurumu to finish up with the laundry before pushing for dinner. Having nothing better to do, Yukari and Rubi had joined their meal.

"I wonder what Tsukune had for dinner."

Moka trailed behind Kurumu, walking with Nagisa and Rubi. The pink haired vampire was wearing her long, silky black chemise with a pair of gray sleep pants beneath it. Like Kurumu, she had spent the entire day in this attire.

"Probably a little snow girl if you catch my drift."

Nagisa smirked, having teased Kurumu the most about Amesuki while she prepared dinner. The undine was wearing her puppy patterned tee and matching sleep pant made of fleece.

"That's not the same thing. While he does need her blood, he still needs normal food."

"I wonder where she is. She better not have tried to visit his dorm room."

Yukari huffed at Kurumu's remark. Before heading to the school, Yukari had magically entered Mizore's suite to confirm the snow girl was not there.

"She's probably stalking him. As always."

"Maybe you should put a tracking spell on the locket she always wears."

"Why should I bother?"

"That's a good idea."

Yukari sighed dramatically.

"I guess if Moka wants me to, I will."

"I hope he gets his fangs soon. It seems so impersonal to give him my blood in a bottle."

Rubi was the only one present whom did not look like she was about to attend a slumber party. She was wearing the black crop top and ruffled brown skirt ensemble.

"It does have perks. Especially with the way Kokoa does it."

Ishiko nodded at Nagisa's remark.

"Imagine like success."

Kurumu smirked, aware that success and intercourse sounded very similar.

"It's Hikari's turn next."

Kokoa nodded as Hotaru bounced forward to open the front door for them.

"It is. But I should wait until Monday or Tuesday to take her."

"I'm always ready for you."

Kokoa huffed at Hotaru's wide grin.

"Don't push your luck."

As Kurumu entered the school, she noticed the trio of PSC girls lingering at the foot of the stairs in the main foyer. All three were dressed casually with Tora sporting a black polo and textured dark slacks. The other two were wearing blue denim jeans. Tokori had on a white tee with black short sleeves while Satsuki was wearing a simple black tee.

Mildly curious over why they were hanging out like that, Kurumu made her way over to her aisle. She lifted up her feet to remove her shoes one at a time. Stuffing them in with her slippers, she walked barefoot over to the trio.

"Why are you three waiting down here?"

"The Headmaster is having a meeting with someone."

Kurumu nodded at Tora's response, gesturing at Satsuki.

"Did you take that maid café job?"

Satsuki sighed as Yukari and Rubi joined them.

"Tokori had me swing by the place today."

"It was a surprisingly nice establishment. Not that far from the theater."

"They don't need to know where it is!"

Tora smirked at Satsuki's reaction.

"Ms. Unari agreed to take the job."

Satsuki scowled as the rest of the girls arrived.

"Well Nerume said I should and it was hard to tell that blond brat no."

"Blond brat?"

Tokori grinned as Satsuki turned aside with a huff.

"Bunii. I've known her for years and I still have difficulty telling her no."

"So are you starting work tomorrow?"

"She has to get fitted tomorrow. She'll start work next weekend."

Satsuki wagged a finger at Tokori.

"And only that weekend. We have the cultural festival after that."

"Mr. Okada knows that. He won't even bother being open that weekend."

"In good news, it sounds like Ms. Genzouyaki isn't dropping out."

Kurumu smiled softly at Tora.

"I don't know if that's good news."

"Yea. Sounds like the brat got on her dad's last nerve."

"So where's Deshi and the Hineri sisters?"

"We parted ways with them after the movie."

"What movie did you guys watch?"

"These two watched that Fantastic Four movie with Ms. Sawayaka. I watched Charlie and the Chocolate Factory with the other girls."

"What did you guys think of that movie?"

Satsuki and Tokori both shrugged at Kokoa's enthusiasm.

"It was okay."

"Yea. Doubt I'd ever watch it again."

"What was that Chocolate Factory movie like?"

"I think it's a remake of a very old musical. I only watched it because I saw it was directed by Tim Burton. I loved his Nightmare Before Christmas. There's another movie like it coming out soon. Corpse Bride. I definitely want to see that."

"What have you been up to all day?"

Kurumu shrugged at Tokori.

"I did laundry after we wrapped up our DND session around three. That game takes up a lot of time."

"Only because you two keep getting sidetracked."

Moka pouted at Yukari.

"I'm enjoying the story."

"Yukari has the strongest magic missile in existence. She keeps empowering it instead of learning other spells when she levels up."

"The best weapon is the one you only have to fire once."

"So how strong is your spell?"

Yukari puffed up proudly under Tora's inquiry.

"We ended our session upon achieving level four. I'm supposed to have ten spells, so I'm rolling ten dice now for each attack."

"And these are six sided dice instead of the four sided ones. She was supposed to get a second magic missile at level three but convinced Ishikure to let her use the bigger dice instead."

"I asked for the eight sided but she said that would be too much. It made no sense. If I'm combining two magic missiles, it should be twice as strong."

"I think Ms. Ishikure is being kind in letting you have such a strong spell to begin with."

"It is nice having a spell that is guaranteed to do twenty damage."

"Twenty? Don't you mean ten?"

"The spell has an automatic plus one to every die rolled."

Tora smirked with a slight shake of her head.

"I sense Ms. Ishikure will be displeased if you one shot her boss at the end of your quest."

"I doubt that. Half of our adventure thus far has felt like a running gag. Kurumu's fairy is completely useless and Moka's paladin is only good at being a distraction."

"My fairy is not useless."

"Your healing is pathetic. We have to spend most of our gold on healing potions."

"Maybe if you cast a shield or protection spell on Moka, we wouldn't have to use potions."

"You're supposed to be the healer."

"I'm trying my best. You'd think someone with her stats would not get hurt so much but Moka finds a way to make this difficult."

"Hey! I'm the one you two keep sending ahead."

"Does she need better armor?"

Yukari sighed dramatically.

"No. Better armor would reduce her dexterity bonus. We need a better healer."

"When I get level five, I'll have better healing spells and that resurrect talent I wanted."

"You guys are all a bunch of dorks."

Kurumu stuck her tongue out at Satsuki's smirk.

"So playing DND and laundry is all you did."

"I made dinner for this brat. All she did was read comics and hang out with her girls."

"Do you have a problem with that?"

"Ms. Kurono was flirting with Mr. Amesuki at the meeting."

Kurumu pouted at Nagisa's remark.

"I was only talking to him."

"I'm starting to get curious what this guy looks like."

"Just think of a taller, stockier version of his sister."

"That doesn't help at all. His sister is frail and tiny."

"She's generalizing, Ms. Unari. He's about Tsukune's height and build. Only his hair and eye color are the same as his sister's."

"The shape of his face is similar too."

"I suppose so. She asked him to walk with us when we left the meeting."

"And we just talked. Moka can back me up on this. It was not anything serious."

"You did ask to call him by his first name."

"Only if I was in the company of his sister."

There was a pause as everyone stared at her. Tora sighed to break the silence.

"Well I can't say that I know Mr. Amesuki beyond his reputation. We never spoke to each other in the class meetings I attended."

"I've known him for a couple of years but the only thing that stands out about the guy is his dedication to his academics. I've never even thought of him as dating material."

"Do you address him by his first name while around his sister?"

Nagisa smirked at Kurumu.

"No. I still call him Mr. Amesuki. I often call Manami by her first name so there's no confusion."

"What do you call him while with his parents?"

"I've only met his mother on Parents' Day. We don't come from the same community, Ms. Kurono."

Blushing, Kurumu fidgeted with her hands.

"I forgot about that."

"So what other harmless banter transpired between you and Mr. Amesuki?"

"She talked about his sister's birthday and asked about his. July eleventh. He also aspires to become an engineer for Meiji Holdings, claiming it is the largest confectionary in Japan."

"I guess that explains your interest in the chocolate factory movie."

"No! That's purely coincidence!"

Kurumu wrung her hands at Tora's smirk, honestly having not thought about the connection. She had no clue what an engineer would do or what Meiji Holdings was until Amesuki had explained it for her. She had only asked because it was a common question for her interviews.

"Should I warn Manami that she'll have a sister in law soon?"

"I was only being sociable. I asked Mr. Yamashita the same questions."

"Playing the field."

Kurumu pouted at Nagisa's grin.

"Oh stop. I don't even know if I want to have a boyfriend right now."

"I certainly won't push you. Can't have you cheating on Mr. Burumoto so soon."

"What are you all standing around for?"

Lady Hineri strolled over to them with an intrigued smirk on her thin lips. The silky black haired girl was clothed in a sleeveless, black pleated dress which fell to her ankles.

"Waiting for everyone else."

Deshi and Kumiko moved to join them. Deshi carried her staff as always but her attire had been changed to a sleeveless, black silk shirt with a white mandarin collar and hem along the waist. A matching pant closely hugged her legs down to her calves. Kumiko had kept it simple with a black tee and khaki capris.

"That's just silly. You should be changing into your gear."

"The Headmaster is in a meeting right now."

Lady Hineri frowned, glancing over as Sabaku approached. The big guy was swathed in a stretchy red top which defined his muscles and nipples. This top was smoothed over a pair of denim jeans which were shredded below the knees.

"Strange for the Headmaster to have a weekend meeting. What do you think, Mr. Sabaku?"

"I think we should take our waiting upstairs. No reason to be down here where people might question what we are lurking about for."

"Right. Come along, ladies."

As everyone followed Lady Hineri, Kurumu settled in with Kumiko and Sabaku a few steps behind the other PSC girls. Kokoa trailed a couple steps behind her, holding Hikari's hand while Moka remained in the back with Yukari clinging to her side.

"So where did you guys go after your movie?"

Kumiko huffed at Kurumu's inquiry.

"We had dinner with the student council."

"Lady Hineri and I were invited. These two simply tagged along."

Kurumu smirked at Sabaku.

"With all the time we spend in training gear, I'm surprised you put on a skin tight shirt for the weekend."

"I like the way it feels on my skin."

"You're going to scare away all the girls looking like that."

"I didn't join the PSC to get girls."

Lady Hineri arrived at the top of the stairs and started walking along the balcony towards the next flight of stairs which led up to the Headmaster's chambers.

"Are the teachers waiting for us?"

Tora paused with a frown, slowing her step. She glanced back at Tokori.

"I honestly don't remember."

"We were turned away."

"Turned away? By whom?"

Satsuki's brow furrowed in thought as everyone came to a stop.

"Don't know. Was that a teacher?"

"Wasn't it the Headmaster that told us to wait downstairs?"

Tora shook her head.

"I can't remember. I feel like we were asked something."

"Yea. It was a teacher wanting to know why were up there."

"I don't recall that."

"Me neither."

Satsuki frowned, rubbing her temple.

"I think that happened."

"Whatever the case, we need to at least check on the Headmaster."

Kurumu frowned as they resumed the walk to the stairs. Something felt off about three of her friends not knowing why they were down in the foyer waiting. In anxious silence, they headed up the stairs.

"Oh dear. It seems I won't be getting a visit with the Headmaster after all."

"And whom might you be?"

As Kurumu came up the last steps, a young woman stood up in response to Lady Hineri's inquiry. This lady had pale skin and ebony tresses which were pulled up in twin buns while her bangs had a traditional hime cut. A fragile, oval pair of glasses rested upon her tiny nose.

The conservative black frock which hung upon this woman's frame could not hide her bountiful assets. White cuffs marked the end of the long sleeves and a white collar piece covered the shoulders of the dress and rested upon the swell of her intimidating bosom.

"Is it not custom to introduce yourself first?"

"Hineri Keito, leader of the PSC. I see no reason for everyone else to introduce themselves at this time."

The woman smiled as she glanced at Kurumu. Kurumu could feel the charm dwelling within those soft mint eyes. She was not much shorter than this woman whom stood about Satsuki's height.

"Suukei Miryou. And this is my brother, Ensou."

Kurumu flinched upon seeing a man in the direction of Ms. Suukei's gesture. Standing silently in front of the nearest door to the student council room, was a slender man roughly the same height as Tsukune. His sudden appearance startled Lady Hineri and the other PSC girls.

Like his sister, he had ebony locks and mint green eyes. The stoic man was garbed in a long sleeved black shirt and black slacks. His outfit also had white cuffs and a white collar, though not as pronounced.

Sabaku stepped over to the man, crossing his arms. He was thicker and taller.

"Odd. I didn't sense your presence a moment ago."

"Most don't notice him."

"Is there a reason why you are here, Ms. Suukei?"

The woman folded her hands neatly on her navel as she smiled pleasantly at Lady Hineri.

"I wished to see the Headmaster to discuss the enrollment of a certain student."

Kurumu shivered, glancing back at Moka as the group gathered at the top of the stairs.

"The Headmaster doesn't usually have meetings on weekend nights."

"There are some meetings that even Headmaster Mikogami cannot avoid. His current guest outranks me, so I must wait my turn."

Sabaku huffed and started down the corridor.

"That might be true but we have scheduled business with the Headmaster."

Lady Hineri bowed politely to Ms. Suukei.

"Please excuse us."

Kurumu was about to follow the other PSC girls when Ms. Suukei sighed in an inviting manner.

"Perhaps I shall chat with you directly, Ms. Akashiya."

Her voice demanded their attention, causing everyone to stop.

"I'm sorry. I don't know you."

Ms. Suukei straightened up with an alluring turn of her head.

"I am here on your father's behalf."

Kurumu stepped in front of the woman to break her line of sight with Moka.

"Was it her enrollment you were wishing to discuss?"

"Lord Zensa wished for me to reason with Headmaster Mikogami."

"Don't you mean charm him?"

The woman smiled in a disarming way, easing Kurumu's worries.

"We cannot help what we are, Ms. Kurono. I am following orders."

"I have no intentions of leaving Yokai Academy."

Ms. Suukei pouted, taking a step which Kurumu promptly matched. Smiling again, the woman glanced down at the floor.

"Please understand, Ms. Akashiya. Your father only wishes for your safety."

"My father is being misguided by Lord Fujisaki."

"You have your answer. You can go."

Ms. Suukei took in a deep, exaggerated breath. She looked up at Kurumu and nodded.

"For tonight. The devil whispers in all of our ears, Ms. Akashiya. Don't mistrust your father over this."

"Aren't you one of Mother's succubi agents?"

Ms. Suukei grinned, causing Kurumu to hold still while the woman stepped around her to address Kokoa. Ms. Suukei gently caressed Kokoa's cheek as the vampire frowned.

"I am, little princess. Your father would also like you to come along. Your sister needs you."

Moka stepped over and grabbed Kokoa, pulling her sister close.

"My sister isn't going anywhere."

"Of course. You're all training for this big threat that is coming."

The woman paused with a sly grin.

"But the devil is already here."

"You're working for Lord Fujisaki!"

Ms. Suukei instantly waved a dismissive hand.

"No, no. I told you already. I'm here on Lord Zensa's behalf. He wants to save you from the devil's plans."

"Wait. I'm confused."

Ms. Suukei giggled in a manner which made Kurumu feel at ease.

"You must stop thinking about things as if there are only two agendas. Everyone has different goals."

"But our father has clearly sided with Lord Fujisaki."

"Yea. He wants me to become Kahlua's servant."

The woman smiled and gestured to her brother.

"We should not keep you longer from your training."

The man wordlessly slipped through them and started down the stairs.

"One last thing before I go. Belmont is not the only tool in Headmaster Mikogami's possession that can bypass your seal. He also has a mirror that belongs to the teacher I brought here."

Kurumu shared a confused glance with the others as Ms. Suukei retreated down the stairs. After the woman disappeared around the landing, Kurumu shivered from the absence of her influence.

"We should warn Mother about her."

"I don't know, Kokoa. It could be possible that Father has different plans for us."

"I'm not becoming Kahlua's servant."

"That was so weird. I felt like I had to do what that woman wanted."

Tora nodded at Satsuki's remark.

"And scary. I've never felt that way around Kurumu."

"Maybe Kurumu will be like that when she gets older."

"No. I've been around other succubi. Sho and Ms. Fukuda are never that willful."

"Ms. Fukuda from your fencing club?"

"No, you dummy. There's a Ms. Fukuda working for Mother in the Kyushu region."

"What do you think she meant by the devil is already here?"

Kurumu shivered at Nagisa's question.

"Regardless of what she meant, we shouldn't keep the Headmaster waiting."

Lady Hineri gestured for them to follow her. Sabaku snapped out of his trance and knocked on the door.

"Headmaster! Permission to enter!"

Sabaku opened the door and gestured for them to enter. Alongside Kumiko and Deshi, Kurumu followed Lady Hineri and the other PSC girls into the large chamber. The Headmaster was seated behind his desk with his face hidden in the depths of his hooded robe.

Mr. Maruyama stood behind the Headmaster on his right. The large man had a soft blue polo pulled over his huge frame and a pair of dark slacks. Lingering at the side of the desk on the Headmaster's left was Ms. Kiyomizu. The dark haired woman was swathed in an ivory gown which hugged every curve before billowing out at her hips. The hem of the ruffled dress brushed upon the floor.

Their last instructor was seated upon one of the black chairs between the Headmaster's guests. Sporting a black halter top and denim jeans, Ms. Hitori lifted up and nodded at their approach.

"About time you showed up."

"You have my thanks for scaring off that troublesome woman."

The man to the right of Ms. Hitori was familiar due to Kurumu's time inside Lord Chiki's memories. This auburn haired fellow sporting the black, Fairy Tale uniform with golden buttons and golden tassels was Kenmei Akira, commander of the Chubu region. The man got to his feet, standing taller than Sabaku.

"Indeed. We were running out of things to talk about."

The Headmaster chuckled darkly, relaxing back in his seat.

"Nonsense. Old friends like us have plenty to chat about."

Moka gasped upon noticing the last figure in the room.

"What is Ms. Ishigami doing here?"

The woman with the blond braids on Ms. Hitori's left promptly got to her feet. She looked so different in a pinstripe blouse and long black skirt. The woman bowed slightly.

"Hopefully getting my job back."

"I doubt any introductions are needed for Ms. Ishigami. This respectable gentleman is Lord Kenmei Akira, Fairy Tale commander of the Chubu region."

The elder kitsune bowed stiffly to their group.

"Why is the region commander here?"

"That young lady is Hineri Keito, leader of the PSC."

"So you are the young woman whom has taken over our Prince's duties of security."

"And this young man is Sabaku Akira, her successor."

"A strong name to live up to. To answer your question, young lady, my presence here is obligatory. Due to the mysterious suicide of prefectural officer Lord Chiki, I am required to make an investigation."

"Lord Chiki is dead?!"

Several girls echoed Lady Hineri's surprise as this was not something Kurumu had shared with everyone.

"He is. While I would have liked to handle this quietly, Yokai Academy has been under much attention this year. When news spreads to the parents about Lord Chiki's death, I will undoubtedly be flooded with more requests demanding Headmaster Mikogami's resignation."

The Headmaster chuckled darkly.

"Assuming there aren't demands for a murder trial."

"I wish you would take this situation more seriously."

"We both knew the possible outcome of Ms. Shikaru coming here to get your colleague to back down."

"I had no love for the man. We will be releasing the names of the three orphans Lord Chiki raped and murdered. That should encourage my other officers to drop their calls for justice. But it's time, Tenmei. I can only hold off selecting Lord Chiki's replacement for so long. A year at best. Don't force my hand."

"Yet you are forcing my resignation from the school I built."

"You won't have a school for long. Someone donated a huge sum of money to the Headmaster of Hisoshi High for the development of his school. It's enough to build new student housing and remodel their cafeteria and auditorium."

"But they won't be able to host your precious athletic program."

"Maybe not right away. But in two or three years, you might not have any advantage over them."

"And the parents complaining won't be a problem by then. We've done this song and dance before with Mimori High, Akira. I don't care if you give another school the prefectural status."

"Times are changing, Tenmei. I'm giving you the chance to name your successor. One that you know will uphold your lofty ideals."

"And I have an arrangement with Mrs. Shuzen to watch over her daughters. How do you expect me to retire before they graduate?"

"Your arrangement with a vampire is not my business."

"My mother is your president."

Lord Kenmei turned, favoring Kokoa a smirk.

"For now. It seems quite likely that Lord Fujisaki will be holding that position come next October."

"I suppose I can humor your request with a list of candidates."

"I'm not saying you have to leave Mononoke. You can remain as an advisor. But Yokai Academy needs a new Headmaster to make the parents feel more at ease."

"And this will stop Headmaster Sugahara from improving Hisoshi High?"

"Now that is ridiculous. You'll have to get used to the idea that you might end up competing for your prefectural status like Shirosei Academy and Joukuu High routinely do."

"I won't have to get used to anything, Akira. I'll just be an advisor."

The three old men shared a chuckle. The wheeze from Mr. Maruyama was almost painful to hear.

"If you two are done discussing retirement plans, I'd like to know whose idea it was to let Ms. Ishigami back on school premises."

The Headmaster chuckled at Yukari's displeasure.

"Consider her a gift from the young woman you spared me the trouble of dealing with."

"We've been killing some of the time to determine how extensive Ms. Ishigami has been rehabilitated."

Ms. Ishigami bowed deeply to them.

"I'm truly sorry for what happened in the past."

"What do you mean by rehabilitated?"

Ms. Hitori placed a hand on the former art teacher's shoulder.

"Hitomi has been wiped of the matter. It seems that woman took away every memory Hitomi had about the guy she was dating for over a year."

"How is that even possible?"

"The ability to charm men with their sexual appeal is not all a succubus can do, Mr. Sabaku. With the power to rewrite history as they see fit, we at Fairy Tale utilize them with extreme care."

Ms. Ishigami smiled weakly.

"I know that I must have done something horrible to be terminated from this job that I loved so much. I promise that I will never allow my emotions to dictate the way I conduct myself around my students in the future. I only want to encourage students to express themselves creatively."

"I don't have a problem with Ms. Ishigami returning to her role as art instructor. Maybe she can deal with Mr. Kyuushutsu better than Ms. Sano does."

"Maybe you don't, but what about Kana?"

Moka smiled at Yukari's dubious expression.

"I'm sure that Kana won't mind."

"If Ms. Ishigami can endure the rumors that undoubtedly will be muttered about her return, I don't have an objection to her resuming her position. I have Ms. Sano as my English instructor and would prefer her to have more time to attend to us seniors."

"How can she learn from her mistakes if she has no memory of it?"

"I was told what happened, Ms. Sendou. While I have trouble believing I did something so stupid over breaking up with a man, I know now to be more on guard. I will concentrate my focus on the students. No men this time."

Ms. Hitori chuckled, giving the art teacher a shake.

"The man in question was one of your students, Hitomi. So don't get too close this time."

Ms. Ishigami blushed, wringing her hands.

"Oh. I didn't know. Which student was it?"

"A local kid that graduated in 2003. He broke up with you because he found a job outside of Mononoke with a friend."

The art teacher frowned.

"Mr. Nakayama? How did I ever-"

"It's not important, Hitomi. What matters is that you're over it and won't do anything stupid again."

"No promises there but I certainly won't fraternize with my students in such an unacceptable manner."

"I will allow Ms. Ishigami to return to her duties on a provisional basis. She can work alongside Ms. Sano until the cultural festival. If we have no issues, she can be reinstated as our art teacher."

"Thank you so much, Headmaster Mikogami."

There was a pause in the conversation.

"Headmaster. That woman in the hall works for my father."

"We are aware of her identity, Ms. Akashiya. Her presence here was unexpected."

"I was lucky you came to visit today. She is suspiciously interested in Lilith's Mirror."

"Lilith's Mirror? That woman mentioned a mirror could get around the power of my seal."

"I've been searching many years for a solution for your condition, Ms. Akashiya. I acquired the mirror from Ms. Ishigami with hopes that we could use it, but it proved too risky."

"In the myths about the origins of the succubi race, Lilith is the name of the woman whom gave birth to the first succubus. I'm curious what this mirror does."

"I doubt it has anything to do with succubi, Ms. Sendou. The mirror is an heirloom that has been in my family for generations. In terms of psychology, it strips away the ego and superego of any person caught in its reflection. It was a fun thing to pass around the girls but dangerous in the hands of men."

"What makes it so dangerous?"

"It seems that men only have two impulses. If they're hungry, they want to eat. For monsters, this might mean devouring another monster. And if they're not hungry, they want to mate. I doubt I need to explain this further."

"Wouldn't that be the same for girls?"

"It depends on the race, but most females lack the strength of their male counterparts. They're not likely to eat another monster, even if it is a weaker one. And when it comes to mating, they are more selective about their partners. Men seem willing to try and impregnate anything unable to get away."

"Hey now. Kitsune have always been selective in their partners."

"No disrespect, Lord Kenmei."

"And the effects are only temporary, lasting an hour at most. It was not reasonable to allow Ms. Akashiya to carry around such a dangerous item."

"If you have no use for it, I would like to return the mirror to my family."

"Make arrangements for someone to pick it up during the cultural festival and I will surrender it to you then. As for now, I suggest going home."

Ms. Ishigami smiled sheepishly.

"I don't have a place to stay. And I doubt Mr. Nagamushi would appreciate me dropping in this late."

"I'm sure you will be safe with Akira. Kitsune have always been selective in their partners."

Lord Kenmei smirked at the Headmaster.

"Why doesn't Suzaka take the young lady in for the night?"

Ms. Hitori patted Ms. Ishigami's shoulder.

"I already have one house guest and have other plans for this evening."

Lord Kenmei glanced over the group before turning an amused expression upon the Headmaster.

"Is this something I should know about?"

"That depends on if you want to take a strong position against Lord Fujisaki."

Lord Kenmei uttered a long groan as he looked the group over again.

"I rather enjoy my neutrality in this political mess. This better not cause more trouble with your parents."

"Oh we can't have that. Will I have to resign twice?"

Lord Kenmei smirked as the Headmaster chuckled. He started for the door, gesturing at Ms. Ishigami.

"Come with me, Ms. Ishigami. One of the benefits of my position is that I always get the presidential suite at the hotel. You won't have to sleep on the floor or share my bed."

"Thank you, Lord Kenmei."

The woman hurried to catch up with him. In moments they were gone.

"Are you going to retire?"

Kurumu laughed at Yukari's sudden inquiry.

"Perhaps I will. I'm sure Lord Sendou might be willing to take my job."

"My Grandfather? He left because he hated it here."

"As Lord Kenmei stated, times have changed. Kuyo had more to do with Lord Sendou's resignation than his discontent with the school. I'll ask him personally to attend this year's cultural festival."

"Was that Ms. Ishigami I just saw?"

Kurumu grinned as Tsukune arrived with Mizore, Miyamoto and the other PSC guys.

"That is only the start of what happened."