Sorry it took so long to update. I've been on vacation, and I kind of got sidetracked … Anyway, I'll start updating quicker now. Much, much quicker. I probably should have though more about the plot before I started it. Oh well, I guess I'll just have to try harder. At least this chapter is semi-longer. Sorry if the characters are slightly … or extremely … out of character. I tried my best to keep them in character.
I'll answer ... err, more respond to the reviews now.
Shadowdragonlady – Yay, you were my first reviewer! Thanks, I really like the pairing too.
StarFire and Sakura – I've seen it explained very often that no one makes the connection because of the attitude, but I know really …
KishLover123 – Glad to know you thought it got interesting so early. I'm trying for an original plot line.
Calophi - Yeah, I guess I made that a bit obvious ... lol. But it will probably be a while before I do that.
Rune-Spirit - Of course, I would love to be part of the C2 community. Although I must admit I don't know if I have to do anything.
KUP - Here you go! Sorry it took so long.
Pai stretched his arms reluctantly. He glanced over to the clock on his right; it was still early, 4:00am actually. Kish had insisted on him making a clock set to Japanese Standard Time, the time zone in which their rivals lived. So that whenever we attack, they will be most prepared, he thought bitterly. But, even with such thoughts, he had agreed, and quite easily made the timepiece. It would hopefully keep the other two aliens at least partially structured. They basically had the same daily schedule as most Japanese people, except that they didn't go to school or work during the day, and they did attack five teenage or younger girls later on, occasionally.
He went towards the kitchen and prepared himself some somare, which was peculiarly like coffee; it had a stimulating substance and everything. He entered his computer room – he considered it his even though it was technically Kish and Tart's as well, but he was the only one he could operate the computer worth a damn – and opened up the Mew Mew File.
He regarded the file with aversion. The file was hardly the tactical help he had originally planned it to be. It included everything the aliens knew about the Mews, which up to that point was, Pai reluctantly admitted, minute. As of yet it merely included what the girls were infused with, weapons, names and a couple other miscellaneous facts.
He opened up a page and, easily corresponding to a relatively close telecommunications satellite, went to a search engine. He was on the Internet, a mission on his mind. Quickly he typed in a couple of words, and hit the equivalent to 'enter'. Instantaneously a page appeared, showing the first 20 web site of a few hundred thousand. Apparently Fujiwara Zakuro was quite a popular web site topic. News articles, fan sites, 'model' sites – Pai didn't know what a model was, and didn't bother finding out – and other arbitrary pages greeted him.
Rapidly he narrowed his search, and was soon greeted by a couple of welcome hits. One of them was a student directory – it showed what school she went to. Pai went onto the site, and, after hacking through a few meek securities, ended up on an administration page. He already knew what school Zakuro went to, which was what he had wanted to add to the Mew Mew File, so he speculated as to why he was still researching. While scrolling down the long page, he came upon a link to a registration sheet.
He opened the page without hesitating. He had no idea what he was doing, something that did not happen very often. He regarded they page with a mix of surprise and anxiety, neither of which he felt very often. It was a page restricted to principles and above; one could choose what school one wanted to sign a student up for.
An idea snuck into Pai's mind that should never have come remotely close. I could sign up for one of the schools. I could find out what they are learning now. Pai had pondered what the Mews were learning in school. He doubted they were learning battle tactics, although the Mews were fighting, the nation itself was in a state of current peace.
Pai scrolled through the possibility of schools that could be signed up for. He tried to convince himself that he would pick a random school, but he knew that there was a specific one that he was searching for. Finally finding it, he selected it. It was, unsurprisingly, Zakuro's school. If ever we are in such a desperate situation that we must attack the girls separately and in surprise, this will give us a great advantage. Pai successfully convinced himself that this was the main reason as to why he had made such an uncharacteristically rash decision, although he hoped the aliens would never have to sink to such low depths.
Slowly, carefully, he filled out the remainder of the form. He had applied for the highest grade there – grade nine. When needed, he made up information, which was exasperatingly often. The address was by far the most aggravating. He had found a suitable street, and had been forced to give the address of a derelict building. It was at the very edge of the district, and he hoped none of the administration knew of it.
Before he could convince himself to give the entire scheme up, which a large part of him wanted to do, he sent the information. It was processed immediately. What did I just do? He thought, for once confused. Why did I just apply for a human school? It took all of his willpower to finally convince himself again of the reasons why he had chosen so bluntly to go to a school.
I'll start today. The form should have been registered immediately. I've already done far more asinine actions than usual, may as well continue. The undesirable thought slowly took over, and Pai reluctantly accepted the notion.
After Pai walked around the ship for about an hour, consumed in his thoughts, he decided to get prepared for his first day. He teleported to an empty alleyway close to downtown Tokyo; he had been there a few times before on the rare occasion that he took a walk. He took a different route than usual, looking for a place to purchase the necessities of school.
Needed: A qualified person who can assist in the re-working of a new computer program. Apply inside. Good pay.
The small sign caught Pai's eyes. He couldn't believe that he had forgotten something as obvious as money. He knew that rarely are things in life are free, and what people argued is always the cheesy emotion – namely, love. Quickly removing his mind from such corny thoughts, he decided to apply for the job. He was certainly qualified.
The building that he had seen it on was a relatively small, brick building. It was three stories high, but took up a small area. He regarded the area around the door inquisitively. Knocking seemed like a bad idea this early, dawn had only just come less than an hour ago, but he would need some sort of payment immediately. He saw a small button and instinctively touched it. As soon as he put a bit of pressure on it, he heard a small ding sound come from the inside of the building. The small button must have triggered it. How convenient. I hope someone is currently occupying the building.
After waiting a moment, he pressed the button a couple more times, hoping to awaken anyone that was inside. Finally he was greeted by an annoyed grumble before a man who appeared to be a small ways older than Pai, but still relatively young, opened the door.
"What do you want? It's not even 6:00am yet!" the main said, obviously frustrated that he was awoken so early. He must use the building as house and office. Pai absentmindedly wondered what the rest of the building was used for.
"I came to apply for the job you have posted on your door. I believe I can be of great service." Pai knew that he probably didn't seem like the ideal employee. He had not seen many toques in Tokyo –admittedly he had seen none. He was also young, but he did not think that that would affect an opinion too drastically.
"You come to my house and office just after dawn, and request a job? I'm not one to turn people down instantly, but you certainly haven't given me a very good first impression." He said the last part while looking up and down at Pai. But quickly his expression softened.
"But, I suppose I can give you a chance. You have already awoken me as it is. Who knows? Maybe you are some super genius that can help me out. Come in, come in." He ushered Pai in hastily. The action surprised Pai; he wasn't expecting such a quick change in opinion.
Following the order, Pai followed the man in. He was led through a couple rooms before he entered a relatively small room, with a computer in its centre. Pai examined the room with curiosity. He glanced from the monitor to the computer. It seemed to be relatively the same design as his information processor.
In the small confines of the room, it seemed like an eternity before the computer was finally ready to be used. The man seemed embarrassed at the length it took for the computer to become functional. As he should be, mine takes merely a fraction of a second.
"I just wish that this computer would hurry up! I suppose this is what I get for storing so much information on it." The man sighed, only to be lightly, yet forcibly, pushed away by Pai.
Pai looked at the monitor. It would be easy to fix the man's problem, and hopefully that would gain him some trust and respect. Pai opened various programs, and did so many different actions so rapidly that the poor man regarding Pai with interested eyes was left dumbfounded.
After a few soundless minutes, Pai let out a satisfied sigh.
"You're problem is fixed. Your computer will run as good as it ever as. I just shrunk the extra information, which was most of it, into a large file. It can be easily recovered, but it won't get in the way anymore."
The man, who had still not given his name, quickly went onto the computer and opened various programs. It seemed that he was overjoyed at the new speed his computer was reaching.
"Spectacular! How did you do that so fast? Never mind that. You're hired! Here, let me explain what I need you to do." The next few minutes were spent showing Pai the new program that was being developed. It was the program for a microchip for a new cell phone that doubled as an MP3 player, an address book, and a camera, among other things. It had to be compact and high quality.
"I'll have it finished as soon as I can." Pai said, after he was handed the disc containing the information.
"Now in terms of payment, I need some money for necessities." Pai said it bluntly, but he did need it abruptly.
"Of course! You can have 20 now and the rest when you finish, if it is up to standard." The man left and promptly returned with ten ¥5,000 bills.
"It is ¥50,000, so you had better be very careful with it," he said, as he ushered Pai out of the door.
"I believe I have yet to learn your name. I am Pai." Pai needed to know the name of his employer.
"Of course, I am so sorry! My name is Mr. Unzari. Now I think we can both do with a bit of extra sleep. Good bye!" The man ended over-energetically.
Pai left the building, feeling oddly confused. He could easily complete the needed task, and now he finally had money to spend on supplies. He looked down at the papers in his hand, and failed in his attempt to find anything too special about them. What makes these papers worth so much? He believed that it was genuine money; if the man wanted the job done he would have to pay with authentic currency.
After a short period of time, Pai found a store; it appeared to have all the supplies he required. He had printed off a school supply list from the site. But, to his dismay, a sign posted on the door informed visitors that the store did not open until 8:00am. The same time as the school day began.
Although Pai hated to be tardy, he hated even more to be unprepared. So, deciding that he would buy the supplies before going to the school, he teleported back to the ship to await the opening of the store.
Zakuro raised her arms resignedly. Last night's memories still lingered in her mind. The sudden urge to stay out late, followed by her going into the clearing, and finally being approached by that odd boy still confounded her thoughts. She usually didn't act like that, up until to the sarcastic response. She was still suspicious of the boy's motives. It seemed that he was just trying to be nice, but still Zakuro wasn't sure.
Quickly she brushed away her thoughts of last night. She got ready for school, and did all the necessities – shower, deodorant, brushing of hair and teeth – before going downstairs for breakfast. She realized that there was still plenty of time before school began, and so took her time eating the bowl of cereal that she had prepared for herself. She also had a cup of coffee; even though most people her age didn't drink coffee on a daily basis.
Finally taking the last sip of her morning drink, Zakuro put on her shoes and walked out the door, knowing that she was still the only one awake. Closing the door, she looked around the small garden that she had planted to see a few subtle hints of the various fruits and vegetables she had sowed. She didn't know why she had planted them; it was very impulsive, very unlike her. It was a beautiful day, about 25° she guessed, with the sun shining brightly.
The walk to school was an uneventful blur, as usual. While nearing the school, she noticed a small group of people that were in her class. Not in the mood to talk, she quickly walked by them and into the school. She took out her necessary binders, and went to her first class, algebra.
Ms. Akuba, her algebra teacher, ushered in the class hurriedly. She wasn't a morning person. Hastily taking attendance, she asked for everyone to take out their homework from last night and quickly go up to show her that it was completed. There were the usual few boys who did not do it, and this seemed to almost please her that day.
"For all the people who did not complete the homework, please come to the front of the room to receive a slip of paper for your parents to sign." This raised a collective gasp from around the room. Having to get your parents involved for not doing work was quite serious there. The boys grunted and aversely and went up to receive the slip of paper.
Ms. Bunmei failed in her attempt to conceal a smile as the boys loathingly returned to their seats. Hopefully that would get the boys back on track for their work. School was too competitive here for children to slack off.
"For all those who did complete their homework," she said this with just enough venom to conceivably convince the boys that doing work was a good idea. "Please exchange it with a person next to you."
Zakuro exchanged her page with that of Haguro who sat to her left. Haguro was one of the atypical people in her class that she could stand, even if she could occasionally be too talkative.
Before Ms. Bunmei could commence correcting the work, the principle walked in. They had a whispered conversation, which Zakuro couldn't hear, even with her better than normal hearing. However, she could make out a figure just outside the classroom.
Once the short conversation ended, the figure walked into the classroom and was directed towards the front and centre. Instantly, Zakuro recognized the character. What is he doing here? Zakuro wondered, surprised. It was late in the school year; she had never seen anyone join a new school so belatedly. He was dressed in the normal school uniform – nothing special there. But what was unusual was the toque he was wearing. At this time of year, nobody wore a toque. It was too hot out for it to make any sense.
He stood there uncaringly while the teacher gave the usual new kid speech; she told everyone to treat him nicely, not care that he was from a different culture, etc. Apparently he was from Canada.
"His name is …" She had finally reached the actual introduction, but lingered long enough to indicate that she wanted him to introduce himself. Perhaps she didn't even know his name yet.
"Pai."
Pai lazily looked around the classroom after stating his name. He was slightly surprised when his eyes fell upon a girl sitting in the back, with purple hair. He had purposely chosen her school, but had not fully expected to be in her class.
He had bought the school supplies in a matter of minutes with the assistance of a dazed worked. Once he had arrived at the school, however, he was told that he had to change out of the clothes he was wearing. He had bought those recently as well, knowing that he couldn't walk around casually in the garments he wore while fighting his female foes. He had to expend a bit more of his recently acquired money on buying the uniform, and changed while the principle checked the registration form he had probably been surprised to receive some time that morning.
The fact that he was from Canada was obviously another one of the lies that he had integrated. It could affect their opinions based on what they thought his opinions were of them. They might think he had some sort of superiority complex for whatever reason.
Not that that is exactly a bad thing, he thought complacently. Undoubtedly he was more intelligent than anyone in the school in perhaps every subject, and equally advantaged in terms of physical strength. Except for Zakuro, he thought apprehensively. All of the Mew Mews had shown numerous times that they were more than enough for himself and his two comrades, along with whatever the Kirema Anima of the day was. .
The teacher finally requested him to take a seat in the back – the one in the corner, by the purple-haired girl. She told him her name was Zakuro; that was a detail that he already knew, but probably shouldn't have. He gave a nod of understanding and walked towards his new seat.
After a few moments of Pai sitting silently in his seat, the teacher called him to the front again.
"I don't know what the rules are where you are from, but here no hats are allowed to be worn on school premises. Please remove it and give it to me." The teacher was understandably irritated, for Pai knew perfectly well that hats weren't allowed in class; he had already seen a list of rules.
Already knowing the rules, he had made up an excuse as to why he could not remove his hat. He anticipated that the teacher would accept the excuse without too much need for further confirmation. The note he had handed the teacher read:
Please allow Pai to keep his hat on inside the school premises. He was recently in an automobile accident, and his newly healed scalp is still tender. Curiosity from other students could result in reopening the wound. Thank you for your understanding. Sincerely, Dr. GansakuDr. Gansaku
As the teacher read the note, her face turned from impassiveness to alarm, and Pai had to assure he that he was fine, save for a couple of injuries that he could still occasionally feel. She promptly wrote him a note to give to any other questioning teachers, and guaranteed him that he would not be forced to remove his toque until his scalp was fully healed.
Pai suppressed a smile as he walked back towards his sheet. She had not even checked to see if it was a real doctor. Once he returned, he sat down and looked the lone page on his desk.
He considered the sheet. The work was far below him; it would take barely any time to finish it. He had a pair of options; he could finish the work immediately, or he could take his time, and feint only being slightly more intelligent than the rest of his class. He had no reason to even consider the latter; there was no way he would pretend to be any less intelligent than he actually was.
Pai finished the page with unprecedented ease, and relaxed slightly. The teacher had finally managed to calm the class again, and she finally began reading off the answers, far slower than Pai would have preferred. Naturally, he got every answer correct.
Zakuro had gotten all the answers correct, which she did as often as she did not. Haguro had gotten all save one correct, which was still very good. Zakuro waited idly for the teacher to ask what Haguro had gotten, and responded impassively when she did.
Class ended quietly; it seemed everybody was surprised that it was over already, although not necessarily sad. As soon as the class left the room, they erupted into conversation. The distasteful glares earned from the adjacent teachers accomplished nothing to silence the boisterous teens.
The next class was English, which was far too often a bore for Zakuro. Ms. Usugurai was a good teacher, but she could not challenge Zakuro in the least. Her attempts to challenge her failed because Zakuro was equally fluent. She stood out in that class; her peers could only have staggered, small worded conversations among themselves.
"Please sit down quietly class", the teacher said in English. She had been saying that in the opening of every class since the beginning of the academic year, and it was imprinted in everybody's mind, or at least it certainly seemed as such. The teacher stopped Pai, apparently not knowing who he was. Zakuro found it odd that the principle would not have informed all the teachers in advance that they were receiving a new student.
After a brief conversation, and after Pai showed a piece of paper, the teacher began teaching the class and Pai walked towards the back, sitting next to Zakuro again. She had watched the mysterious teen walk towards the back, and noticed that certain parts of his facial features looked anomalously like the only other Pai she knew – the extraterrestrial one. She swiftly discharged the similarities as wishful thinking. Then she caught herself. It wasn't wishful thinking, that would imply that she wished -
"Hello. I was informed to converse with you, as we are the only two who can speak English fluently enough to have no need for the current lessons."
Zakuro was surprised, although nothing registered on her face. She was glad that something had interrupted her train of thought. But, to her dismay, before long she found herself comparing his voice to the alien Pai's voice, but failed despondently. She realized that she had only heard the alien Pai talk on rare occasions.
"That makes sense." Somehow, Zakuro was actually at a loss for words. She knew next to nothing about him, and could not think of a suitable subject of conversation. To her relief, he ended her short confoundedness and started the conversation himself.
"What does everybody do outside of school around here?" He asked the question unemotionally.
It was an odd question – did he think that Japanese pastimes were so different from anywhere else? But it was a question that could initiate a conversation, so she answered.
"Mostly the same as anywhere else in the world. Go shopping, see movies, and hang out with friends; that isn't too much different from Canada, is it?" She replied just as unemotionally, except she said the last part coldly.
She hoped to strike a nerve and get some sort of expressive response, but again received only an inexpressive response.
"I suppose you are right," he stopped abruptly, evidently thinking of something else to say. Zakuro was also still trying to think of something, actually becoming slightly uncomfortable in the awkward silence. Obviously that topic was not stemming into something to talk about.
"Where did you lean to speak English so fluently?" So engrossed in thinking of something to say herself, she was surprised when he spoke. She thought about her answer for a second. It was a legitimate question, but something in the way he asked it made her suspicious. But she figured it was just her cynical outlook, and answered calmly.
The rest of the class the two talked, subjects varying from Zakuro's English tutor, to questions about their classmates. Zakuro noticed idly how whenever she tried to shift the conversation towards Pai's past, or anything about him, he quickly but tactically changed the subject. But she just assumed it was because he was like her, whenever he tried to shift the conversation towards her life she usually changed the subject. She did talk about her English tutor, but that did not reveal anything about her.
Pai grimaced internally. He was glad to have the chance to have the talk with Zakuro, although he did not quite phrase it in that way when he told himself that. He had hoped to learn something about Zakuro during their short discussion, although he made up the most asinine reasons to himself as to why he was seeking out the information.
Following the other kids to the next class, what it was he didn't know, he thought again about what exactly he was doing there. He cursed silently as he finally acknowledged the reason as to why he was walking down the loud, bright hallway. The reason he was there was, of course, because of Zakuro, but he groaned inwardly as he confessed to himself that it wasn't to 'collect information' as he had so conveniently told himself.
He then swore, a lot louder this time, as he realized he full implication of his new revelation.
Finally done! I'll have things actually start happening next chapter. Said that before, lol.