Interlude 6 - What she sees... (Part 2)


Built to benefit IS pilots, the Gym of the IS Academy was a large complex with just about every exercise machine or routine area available. There was a rock climbing wall, sets of weights and barbells, even an obstacle course to test one's reflexes! If someone needed a specific workout routine done, they could very well do so in the Gym itself. If one wanted to workout via swimming, the school pool was just a short jog away, and if one was a tad bit too shy to jog outside in the island itself, then there were treadmills available for use.

"Whoa..."

With instructors on hand to help with newcomers, the Gym was frequented by students and staff alike. It wasn't uncommon to see teachers lifting weights next to students doing reps. Many of the students themselves entered the gym to work out in order to try and see a glimpse of the vaunted Chifuyu Orimura work out!

"Sweet mama, look at those muscles work~"

And with the most recent additions of the IS Academy, that attendance skyrocketed.

"Come on, Ichika, just a few more pulls and you got your 3rd rep!"

"Here I...go..!"

Honne Nohotoke watched with a lazy smile as the three boys did their own workouts. Originally, it was five, but Charles and Ryo had decided to go on a jog around the island, leaving the other three in the gym. The Byakushiki pilot was doing some lat pulldowns, face set in determination as dribbles of sweat fell off in his exertion. Off to his side, Davion was cheering him on, being the younger boy's spotter and occasional trainer whenever the two met up at the gym. A few meters away from them, the Gold Frame pilot was doing a series of pull ups, having barely broken a sweat in the hour they've been in the facility.

Now the pinkette was no voyeur, but when there were three boys that were working out and displaying their physical prowess, the woman within her couldn't really help but look.

"Man, I kinda wish I had muscles like those..."

And apparently, so can't the others that frequent the gym.

Nearly over a dozen girls had stopped their own workouts to stare, more like ogle, at the boys. Their expressions ranged from awe to downright thirst. The former was mainly at how the muscles of the three boys bulged and strained with the effort they put into their workout regimens. Most of the weights they lifted were heavier than what the girls were capable of, even to the most athletic and strongest of them. Not only that, but the blonde of the three have been doing 100-long pull up repetitions in the past hour they've been in the gym. The latter...well, it wasn't that hard to imagine why.

Davion was all-round jacked. The sleeveless nature of his muscle shirt exposed the strong deltoids, biceps, and triceps of the grey-eyed teen. With each movement of his arms, the muscles bulged and relaxed, the sight only enhanced by the light sheen of sweat. The fact that he had faded scars on said arms brought an aura of 'wildness' to him that tickled the love of danger, or those that brought danger, within many of the girls. This was juxtaposed with the cheery and bright attitude he had, which only made it all the more endearing. Honne was sure that when he somewhat effortlessly deadlifted that heavy looking barbell with a guttural grunt, a fair few of the girls almost swooned.

The hugging nature of Ephraim's long-sleeved compression shirt left little to imagine, with his muscles being as defined as one would find on a statue. Many pairs of eyes were locked on to his form as he pulled his chin over the bar, more specifically at just how solidly built his back musculature was. Broad shoulders, a firm back, and eye-catching glutes, the blonde was the epitome of fitness if it was condensed into a man. The manner of which he let out those short huffs of exertion was also very...suggestive.

"87...haaah...88~"

...The pinkette was sure that the Sahaku Clan member was doing it out of pure fanservice.

And lastly, there was humble Ichika, who always tried his best when working out. The girls have been watching him ever since he first entered the gym all those weeks ago, and there was visible progress to his efforts thanks to it. From being initially scrawny-like, he was now developing solid muscles. With the help of the Astray pilots, who each had their own regimes they put him through with the approval of the elder Orimura, he was getting gains. It was only a matter of time before he would be able to fill out the shirt he was wearing, and some of the girls eagerly awaited that day.

"And...fifteen!"

"Nice form! Now let's go on a short 5-minute walk around the gym before going at it again! This time with 5 more reps!"

"Oh god-"

Honne snickered as she returned to doing her own workout routine, somewhat hyped up by the boys' own energy. Not having a personal unit was no excuse in slacking off on your body's fitness! Placing her elbows underneath herself, the pinkette took a deep breath and did another minute of planking. Taking one last glance at the boys, she found Davion and Ichika taking a break walk around the gym, while Ephraim had finally finished his pull ups and was now drinking from the water jug that he brought with him.

"Heyooo~! Morning, Ichika! Morning, Davion!"

"Oh, morning, Rin! Morning, Houki!"

"...Morning."

"A good morning to you, Sir Sahaku!"

"Hmm? Ah, a pleasant morning to you too, Lady Alcott."

'And the girls are here.' The pinkette mused as she tried to keep her focus on her own workout rather than gossip. There were a lot of rumors involving the boys and the specific set of girls that just entered the gym, most of them unfounded. This was dating that, she was banging him outside the school, typical hearsay one would expect for an all-female student body. The girls had denied everything with varying states of disapproval, most especially the younger Shinonono when the gossip of her dating Ichika entered her ears. She had vehemently denied that fact and went on to label the boy as 'dumb and dense', all the while blushing.

'...Heh.'

Her arms began to shake as her core started to strain, and Honne had to stop the plank to take a few breaths. Flopping on the matt with a quiet whine, she panted as she tried to recover her stamina.

"Hey, you okay there?"

Turning her head, her yellow eyes looked into concerned green. Immediately, her face flushed as she rolled to her back and sat up, waving off his concern nervously. "O-Oh, I'm fine Murakumo-san~!" The pinkette looked around briefly, spotting the Frenchman conversing with Ichika, Davion, Rin, and a reluctant Houki. A fair few of the other girls were watching the two of them, and she felt her heart flutter from nervousness.

She didn't expect them to return from their jog so soon, and for him to approach her was-!

The courier merely raised a brow before shrugging. "If you say so." He then handed out an energy drink, one of the few from the nearby vending machines, with an easy-going smile on his lips. "Here, I originally bought it for Ephraim but he's still got his water, so I might as well give it to someone who looked like they needed it."

Her cheeks burned a tad bit more and she fanned herself to disguise it as her being tired. "O-Oh, thank you..." Somewhat hesitantly, she took the cool drink from his hand, nearly jolting when their fingers brushed against each other. Ryo grinned as he gave her a two-finger salute. "Well, don't hurt yourself too much in working out, Nohotoke-san. You'd worry your sister and the rest of the Student Council." With those parting words, the track suit-wearing teen walked over to his group of friends, running a hand through his somewhat sweaty hair.

She watched him walk away, holding the cool bottle up against her cheek, trying to calm herself down.

'How embarrassing!' Honne chided herself for appearing so uncool in front of the courier. The pinkette wasn't crushing on Ryo or anything, it was more on trying to look a bit more dependable! She and her older sister worked with him in the Student Council and the way he was so methodological and just how in sync he was with Sarashiki-kaichou was kind of...well, it made them feel a bit inadequate. So the Nohotoke siblings made it their mission to look more 'mature' and 'cool' in order for Sarashiki-kaichou to lean on them as well!

Opening the bottle and taking a sip of the energy drink, she let out a long sigh as she looked at a vacant pulldown machine. She also needed to build up her strength so she could lift all those document boxes...

"...Man, being dependable is hard work..."


.

.

.


Sparring class was always a mixed bag for the students of Class 1-1.

On one hand, they got to see their 'Orimura-sama' participate in some matches, instructing proper form and occasionally toss a student down, much to said student's masochistic delight. The former Brunhilde was as deadly as ever, her moves barely trackable to the naked eye, and her footwork absolutely perfect. Many of the girls took to her lessons with fervor, wanting nothing more than to please and to be just as good as her.

On the other hand...well, there were a select few of them that took to hand-to-hand combat like a fish to water. When faced with these opponents, most of the girls simply tried their best despite knowing that they would end up on their back on the mat. Among these select few was the assistant of Chifuyu Orimura, who had been tasked as the sparring class 'dummy' in his first day. Meaning, the girls had to face Ephraim in the ring at least once, and suffice to say, the blonde fought with a killer instinct that left many of his opponents winded after being slammed down.

This had been the information gathered by one Laura Bodewig over the two days since her arrival here in this academy. How one blonde without a proper background, without proper training, without even proper education, became her mentor's assistant was beyond her. However, today was the day that it would all change...

"Hmph!"

The sole red eye watched as Ephraim exchanged blows with the other blonde in Class 1-1, Cecilia Alcott. The taller blonde was blocking and parrying the fists and legs of the shorter woman, a confident smirk on his lips that prompted the Brit's own to frown. The purple-eyed teen suddenly grabbed her right fist, which was in the middle of a jab, and caused the noblewoman's eyes to widen as all her momentum just seemed to stop. In that moment of surprise, the half-German suddenly tilted back, bringing the Blue Tears' pilot forward and over him as he rolled on his back.

"Oof!"

Impacting the matt with a heavy thud, Cecilia barely let out another sound of surprise when Ephraim went with the momentum and rolled on top of her. The taller blonde then brought his legs around, pressing them on her other arm to pin it down while he still held on to her fist which was between his legs.

"And match." Chifuyu called out, raising a hand as both fighters untangled themselves from one another. "You're improving Alcott. Sahaku, that was a decent armbar technique."

Cecilia smiled her thanks but sighed either way. "Orimura-sensei, I think facing against Sir Sahaku is becoming...discouraging with how he trounces any opponent set up against him."

The aforementioned blonde's cheeks flushed lightly, rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment. It was the expected result, of course, if you placed a super soldier specifically designed to be a fighting machine to be your opponent in spars. But hey, if that meant helping the deadly beauty with her classes, then he wouldn't complain much.

Said beauty merely raised a brow, crossing her arms as she stared into those ocean blues. "He isn't invincible. You've all seen that I can take him down easily."

'Because you're on a whole different league compared to us, sensei.' Was the collective thought of the class.

As if reading their minds, Chifuyu rolled her eyes. "Whatever. Any volunteers for the next match? Because Sahaku-"

Laura immediately raised her hand. "I volunteer, mentor!"

"-will be replaced with Guele." The teacher finished with a dry look at the albino. Davion merely perked up, pointing to himself in question before he looked over to who his opponent was. Almost instantly, his demeanor changed, the confused frown turning into a hostile scowl that caused the girls near him to take a step away.

The German returned the scowl with a sneer as she stepped into the ring. Fixing the full contact sparring gloves on her hands, the gi-clad albino settled into a basic jiu-jitsu stance as she stared hard into the steely grey of her opponent. Davion merely kept his scowl as he entered the ring, his own sparring gloves audibly straining from how hard he clenched his fists.

"Sensei," Ryo spoke up beside the teacher, having inched closer the moment Laura had raised her hand. "Are you sure this is wise? I would highly suggest that we don't proceed with this. Davion's been simmering with anger after what she said on Monday, especially after insulting the Astrays."

"She volunteered." Chifuyu shrugged, already well aware of the outcome of the match. "Besides, I think she's long overdue to get knocked down a peg anyway."

The courier couldn't really say anything to that. She was right though, the German dug her grave the moment she turned an entire class against her.

He still hoped that his friend wouldn't go too far and bury her.

Laura then let out a short, mocking laugh at the taller boy. "This'll be easy. Idiot over there's all brawn and no brains from the looks of it."

"I can hear you, dumbass." Davion snarled, causing many of the girls' brows to rise in unison. The mechanic barely swore out loud, and when he did it was more of an exclamation of surprise than anything else.

"Ha! Good. That just means you have some brain cells between those ears of yours."

"Lords below..." Ephraim groaned from his position beside his superior. "Let's just get this match started. Most of us have other classes after this."

With a sigh, the teacher inclined her head. "I don't want this to devolve into a grudge cage match. First one to get knocked out of the ring or the first one knocked down is the loser. You will stop once that happens, or else you will have demerits. Is that clear?"

"Yes, mentor."

"Crystal."

"Alright. You two can begin."

Red and grey glared into each other as the two waited for whoever made the first move. Davion stood without a stance, his clenched fists by his sides as he glared death into the shorter girl. This alone brought warning bells in the albino's head, as there was no way someone was going to be this open in their defense.

The air was tense as the whole class waited for the first blow, their breaths held as the palpable hostility between the two was felt. Ryo carefully watched his friend's moves, ready to intervene the moment any lethal action was taken.

Ephraim, meanwhile, yawned.

After seconds of glaring at each other, someone finally made a move.

Davion lifted his hands, clenched fists audibly straining his gloves, and..!

He spread them out invitingly, a mocking smirk on his lips. "I'm going to make this a little less pathetic on your ass. You can have the first hit."

Laura narrowed her eye as her own fists clenched. "I don't need your charity, you hack!"

"Come on. Hit me, pipsqueak." The mechanic continued to taunt. "I doubt I'd be able to feel it anyway. Little miss scrawny bitch-"

"Guele." Chifuyu growled amidst the snickering of her assistant, who she sent a stern glower to afterwards. The blonde merely covered his mouth to try and stifle his laughter, shoulders shaking as he did so.

(BGM Start: It has to be this way - Jimmy Gnecco)

However, the sheer amount of derision in the boy's words was just the perfect match to light the powder keg that was her patience. In the past few days, she had been scorned by Class 1-1 and Class 1-2, continuously smirked at by the smug blonde, given the cold shoulder treatment by the courier, and outright sneered at by the mechanic.

Enough was enough.

It was time to show all these weaklings that only she was worthy of being in her mentor's presence.

With an explosive lunge, the albino launched herself into a sweeping slide to take out his legs-!

THUD.

-only for her eye to widen when her attack did nothing to her opponent's legs. Her feet were firmly planted against his shins, when they should have caused him to tip forward from having his footing be disrupted. In the next second, she twirled around with another sweeping kick, her shin impacting his calf with a solid and meaty thump.

Once more, it did nothing.

Davion yawned, bringing a hand up to cover his mouth before he looked down at her with a raised brow. "Are you gonna hit me or not?"

Gritting her teeth, she got to her feet with a windmill spin, using the momentum to deal another sweeping kick to the side of his knees this time. Once more, her shin impacted his leg with a meaty thump, and once more the mechanic barely flinched at the blow. Audibly growling, she launched a fist into the space just underneath his sternum.

Thud.

Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Her hands were a flurry, her sole red eye practically flaring as she sent fist after fist into his abdomen. The boy barely moved amidst all her attacks, and this only prompted her to use more force, to use more speed just to prove that she will get what she wanted!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Snarling, she pulled back her right fist before bringing it up in an uppercut.

THUD!

Panting lightly, she slowly looked up to see what kind of pained face her opponent was making-

Davion smirked, having no sign of being hit on his chin.

Her sole eye bulged as she took a step back in shock. Her fists throbbed from all the impacts and her disbelieving stare turned to where she had been hitting just seconds prior.

Her opponent's gi was ripped and torn, displaying just how hard she was hitting. His skin at the impact site was starting to bruise, dark spots amidst the muscles and previously faded scars. With a small laugh, the mechanic shrugged off the damaged top, letting his upper body be bare for all to see.

As stated before, his body had plenty of faded scars from cuts and remnants of deep bruising. They mainly focused around his torso, and they were barely visible if one wasn't paying attention. Around his forearms were some of the more well-known scars that he had, ones that he admitted were from knife wounds he took while he grew up in the bad part of Italy. There was one scar, however, that stood out among the rest. A large jagged cut, one that looked like it was from some sort of savage piece of metal, that stretched from his right pectoral to his right clavicle.

Rubbing his stomach, his fingers brushing against where she had struck, the grey-eyed teen snorted. "Was that it? That felt like a mosquito-"

"RAAAAAGH!"

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud! Thud!

Laura roared as she sent flurry after flurry of blown on his whole torso, specifically aiming for old wounds this time as her anger reached its peak. This would be the last time this damn mechanic would taunt her, this would be the last time she would be looked down upon!

Red glared up into grey as they crinkled in cruel amusement.

'He's still standing..?!'

With a guttural snarl, she resumed her attacks as more and more of her superhuman strength fed into her muscles. Each blow was faster, each hit harder, and each was aimed repeatedly at the ribs or the sternum. Even then, even after this harsh assault, he was still-!

"WHY."

THUD!

"WON'T."

THUD!

"YOU."

THUD!

"GO."

THUD!

"DOWN?!"

With one last scream, the albino wound back and then sent a straight jab that she hoped would go right through his chest-!

(BGM End: It has to be this way - Jimmy Gnecco)

And then Davion moved.

(BGM Start: $uicideboy$ x RAMIREZ - Sarcophagus III)

"Fuck you, that's why."

Bobbing to the right of the jab, his left hand grabbed the wrist of the outstretched limb before pulling her in and behind him. His right hand, clenched in a fist, soared in a cross not too long after. Her single red eye barely registered the sheer speed of the strike before his fist met her face, and since she was coming in with her own momentum, the two clashing forces met in a harsh but oh-so-very meaty slam that got her seeing stars.

SLAM!

She was almost knocked off her feet, her lower body's momentum being preserved as her upper body reeled back, were it not for one little thing...

His hand refused to let go of her wrist, his grip actually tightening even further, which prompted him to send more jabs and crosses into her face each time he pulled her in. He mixed up the flurry with sharp knees to her solar plexus, causing her to wheeze and cough spit out as the air was forced out of her lungs. In the midst of the pounding, she tried to free herself, but each attempt was met with an uppercut or a blow to her temple, dazing her even further.

SLAM! SMASH! CRASH!

SLAM! SMASH! CRASH!

SLAM! SMASH! CRASH!

After a particularly nasty straight, she was pulled back in. Her free arm quickly shielded her face when she saw the fist coming in.

Woosh!

Her sole eye widened when the fist whiffed, blasting past her just inches from her bruised nose. The elbow followed-!

Smash!

-and it impacted her cheek with a harsh blow, actually generating enough wind to blast her hair back. Reeling back, she felt a cut open up due to the hit, and the albino tried to get her bearings straight. She felt his grip loosen and actually let go, and she made for a desperate jab-!

Crash!

-only to crumple when a harsh double-hammer blow landed on the back of her head. She saw nothing but darkness for a quick moment, her brain rattling in her skull at the strike. Right after, the same leg that smashed into her stomach previously rose in a flying knee that crashed against her nose, sending blood splattering as he finally exploded into action from his unmoving position.

CRUNCH!

The smaller, and lighter, girl flew across the ring from the sheer force of the explosive end of his combo. Seeing stars, out of breath, and most likely concussed from the blow to the back of her head, Laura could barely even move as she landed on her back with a heavy thud. In those last moments before the knee met her face, she swore she saw a glint of crimson in the gunmetal grey of her opponent.

"How's that for second-rate, huh?!" Davion snarled, taking his right sparring glove off with a look of disgust. "Don't you dare insult my Astrays, you ankle-biter."

(BGM End: $uicideboy$ x RAMIREZ - Sarcophagus III)

"Oh my God..." She could barely hear Ryo's horrified voice amidst the pounding in her ears. "Please, please, tell me that you didn't kill her!"

"Sahaku, get the first-aid kit and check on her." Her mentor's voice seemed so distant now...

"I'm not a certified medic, but...will do."

Laura jolted at the words, not wanting that disgusting gnat to touch her.

"Oh my God, Davion...what the heck was that?!"

She wouldn't let him even get near..! She could still fight!

"It's what she gets for insulting us, Ichika! The Astrays are not copies of the IS, damn it!"

She wouldn't...She could...

"My goodness, Guele-san! I didn't expect such...such blood sport!"

She...wouldn't...She...

"I..! W-Well, maybe I let my anger..."

And then it was darkness for her.


.

.

.


The incident in Sparring class was still fresh on everyone's mind in Class 1-1, though many of them were quick to move on. Laura Bodewig was not well liked amongst her peers, and it was mainly at her own fault. So in the day after, they barely gave a second glance to her empty seat and instead had a more wary outlook to the normally comfy mechanic.

It was always the quiet ones that one had to look out for.

While most of the class quickly returned to status quo, there was one in particular whose feelings only heightened.

Houki.

She didn't trust the three boys in the slightest, not only because they were in contact with her older sister, but there was just this niggling feeling that they were hiding a lot from them. It didn't help that they were quite tight-lipped about their pasts, and the blonde among them said that he couldn't remember anything concerning it.

Absolute horseshit.

The younger Shinonono didn't buy anything that came out of their mouths. They were most likely agents of her sister, probably sent to spy on her after she told her to leave her alone so many times in the past. Even worse, they were probably there to promote her sister's damn genius by showing off those shiny new suits of theirs!

"Hey, Davion, you ever got started on that request of mine?"

But the absolute, most disrespectful, and utterly unforgiveable thing that they've done...

"Yeah, I encountered some problems on that front, Ichika. Suffice to say, I can't do that. Would you like the long version or the short version why?"

"Uh...both?"

Was that the boys were taking her precious time with Ichika!

Houki narrowed her eyes at the table occupied entirely by the quartet of boys, her childhood friend having wanted a 'guy's lunch' just for today. Which meant that she, Cecilia, and Rin had to share a table nearby to eavesdrop- to answer any questions the boys wanted to ask from them. Charles was notably absent from their gathering, having had to answer a call from the Dunois Corporation, and thus had to bow out.

The Byakushiki pilot was eating some portions from the most recent dish Ephraim had made in his ongoing competition with Haku Emiya, a hotpot that held an assortment of meat from both pork and mushrooms, with a sprinkling of herbs and vegetables. It was still fresh so the scent even reached their table a few meters away, causing the blonde noblewoman among them to stare hungrily at the pot.

"Alright, long version first." Davion raised a finger, the other hand holding a half-eaten onigiri. "As your request involved something IS-related, I had to ask up the chain if I had the permission to modify it. Yamada-sensei gave her approval, which meant that the IS Academy had their approval of my action. However, since the Byakushiki is inherently tied to the Japanese Government, I had to ask them for permission."

"Hold on, you need to ask the monkey suits permission?" Ryo interjected, finishing a slice of meat he was munching on with a quiet slurp. "What about Sarashiki-san's Uchigane? Aren't you doing stuff to it?"

"That's an exception and a loophole." The mechanic provided with a smirk. "Since the Uchigane was handed over to Sarashiki-san, that made it her personal IS. However, she began to customize it to her specifications all by herself, not by a corporation or a country. Meaning, any tech or data relating to it is owned by her and her alone, and to me by proxy since we're working together. That also means the Japanese Government isn't involved in anything concerning it. Sarashiki-san may be their Representative Candidate, but her suit and any upgrades pertaining to it is all in-house. They'll get nothing out of her, since everything done falls under the 'field-testing in the IS Academy' clause of the Alaska Treaty."

"I've raised you well." Ephraim's proud voice preceded his short round of applause, a smug grin on his lips as Davion laughed.

"Anyway, back to the topic at hand." The grey-eyed teen took a bite from his onigiri. "I asked the Japanese Government for permission about modifying your pilot suit and got a big fat 'NO'."

"Wha-Why?!" Ichika recoiled in his seat, almost dropping the mushroom slice in his chopsticks' grip. "I would've thought that they'd jump on the chance of working with the Professor's new tech!"

"And that's where the short answer comes in." Davion gave him two finger-guns, the rice meal still in his hand and a hollow grin on his lips. "Fanservice."

"...Fanservice?"

"Fanservice." Ephraim muttered audibly, a frown on his lips. "Of course. If Davion got his way in upgrading your pilot suit, it would resemble our own g-suits. All concealing and practical."

Ichika leaned back on his seat, running a hand through his hand. "...Oh...Aw, that's scummy of them!" The IS pilot then groaned as he realized their point. He was being sexualized, of course!

"It's the government." Ryo sighed as he cleaned up his plate. "They're always scummy."

"If I do try without their permission, I might get punished for it." The mechanic shrugged. "But if I don't, then you're gonna get chaffed to high hell."

"Oh, c'mooon!"

Houki tensed her jaw as the four boys interacted, feeling a burning feeling within her as she watched them talk and laugh.

'It should be me and Ichika laughing and getting along like that..!'

The moment the boys had arrived, Ichika wasted no time in trying to hang out with them. Even though she tried her best to make it clear that she wanted to hang out, he almost always wanted to invite Murakumo or Guele, or even Sahaku!

Sahaku!

The one boy that didn't like Ichika who apparently was now starting to warm up to him!

"Grr..." The swordswoman almost snapped her chopsticks in half as the boys' conversation devolved into assignments and lessons. Rin merely glanced at her as she enjoyed her dumplings, a brow raised before she looked back down to her dish. Cecilia, in the meanwhile, seemed to be silent as her ocean blues locked on to the scarred blonde. It's something the younger Shinonono noticed these past couple of weeks, that the noblewoman often looked at the taller blonde with furrowed brows or a small frown. It was odd, since their usual interaction has been nothing but cordial and friendly. What spurned this sudden negativity all of a sudden?

...

'Those guys just can't stop getting their fingers in the pies that I have, huh?' Was Houki's hostile thought, causing her to bite down into the hash brown rather harshly. 'First, it's Ichika, and now it's my friends..!'

With a clenched fist, the ponytailed girl tore her eyes away from glaring at the boys. Taking a few deep breaths to calm herself, she finished her lunch diligently.

'Damn it, be patient Houki! You'll get your chance soon enough...'


.

.

.


"Your eyes... I never actually got over how beautiful they looked when I met you in France, even with your 'Charles' getup."

Charlotte slapped her cheeks, startling a few of the girls around her from their studying. Giving them an apologetic smile, the Frenchwoman in disguise lowered her head behind the propped up book. The burning on said cheeks refused to die down as she quietly groaned, covering her head with his arms in embarrassment.

'Why did I have to suddenly remember that line?!'

Her heat thumped against her chest, thankful that she chose to sit down at a table in a more quiet corner of the academy's library because that meant she had a bit more privacy. It also meant a chance to avoid the courier if he ever popped up here for some reason...

"Mon dieu, now that I look back, that was quite..." She mumbled, face flushing as she remembered the feeling of his hands on her face, the way his breath washed over her from how close they were, and the heat and scent of the clothing he lent her-

With a quiet whine, she kicked her legs about, thankfully not hitting anything or anyone. The blonde attracted a few glances and stares, but otherwise was ignored by the few girls around.

"Anyone deserves kindness, and even if there was a line wherein you or someone doesn't deserve it anymore, you're far from crossing it."

With an angry blush spreading on her cheeks, she stopped herself from letting out a loud groan. Everything about that afternoon was just so...so..!

'Merde, did he have to be so cool?!'

Her perception of Ryo had flipped upside down after that day, from seeing him as nothing more than a good friend and conversation partner to...

To something maybe a bit more.

The girl buried underneath the mask of 'Charles' was beginning to resurface, and she had noticed the comely courier. Even now, her heart pounded at the mere thought of that kind smile or that roguish and confident grin as he held her. Her mind kept on repeating the times they spent together, from running away from the wild packs of girls in her first day in the Academy, to the peaceful moments where they simply relaxed on a bench in one of the many recreational parks in the island or out on the docks.

It was...warm.

"Then get it without all this subterfuge and the lies. Don't make enemies when there are none to find."

"Gaaaaah!"

A high-pitched squeal, which was more of a squee really, escaped her lips. The girls around her stared deadpan at the flummoxed blonde, beginning to ignore whatever sound she would make as they focused back on their studying. Some of them even plugged in their earbuds to drown out the whimpers and mutters of the disguised Frenchwoman. A few actually took photos to add to the 'Charles' collection of the black market...

And so, Charlotte Dunois spent her Thursday afternoon fangirling over what had happened on Monday.


.

.

.


Fyoom!

A bright green glow encompassed the whole arena for a moment before a large lance of emerald light pierced through the bullseye of a hard light target. It continued on its way before impacting the shielding of the arena grounds, visibly causing the entire energy construct to ripple and bulge out at the impact site at the sheer kinetic force of the shot.

"...Well, am I glad that I aimed for a flying target."

The Astray Gold Frame lowered the sniper rifle, head tilted up as its pilot watched the rippling of the arena shield slowly crawl to a stop. The sniping sensor over his left shoulder collapsed into itself before folding back into where it came from.

"Goodness, Sir Sahaku, that...that's a bit powerful, don't you think?"

Glancing to his side, he saw the shocked expression of his shooting partner for that Friday afternoon. Cecilia Alcott held her Blue Pierce in a somewhat loose grip, having been effectively cowed by the latest creation of the Astray's mechanic. Said mechanic was off to the side, fingers frantically tapping away on his laptop's keyboard which displayed the status of the Gold Frame.

"I can lower the beam intensity if you want, giving you more shots before you need to replace the battery pack." Davion spoke up as he noted down everything when the Gold Frame fired the weapon. It was originally made for the Blue Frame, after all, and thus had a different zeroing method. His friend preferred to eyeball his shots, and thus the tinker will have to recode the programming in order to fit the blonde's fighting style. "Currently, the Sniper Pack gives you 4 more shots. Do you want me to increase that?"

"I think I'm good with 5." Ephraim sighed as he accessed the Range program for the arena. More and more hard light targets materialized in the air above them, surrounding the blonde duo as the dark haired mechanic continued to focus on his monitoring. "I'm confident enough with my aim to not warrant more wasteful shots."

"Ohooh~? Is that a challenge I hear~?"

"Perhaps it is, Lady Alcott."

"Well, ask and you shall receive!"

As the two prepared for their impromptu shooting match, several of the arena attendants, students who were doing their own practice for the upcoming tournament, made sure to steer clear of their end of the grounds. A fair few of them stopped whatever they were doing to watch the show, heading over to the bleachers to watch and note down possible weaknesses of the two blondes in the chance that they would be their opponents.

In a shadowy corner of the arena, a sole red eye glinted as she observed...


"Clarissa, have you finished what I asked you to do? What have you found out about those three schweine?"

"Ja, Leutnant, I have. It wasn't easy avoiding all those security methods, but I've done it. However, the information was scattered and those three know how to be elusive, so I compiled everything about them from the numerous databases of the EU and those Amerikaner. Sending the data packet to you now."

Laura watched with a frown as she watched the Gold Frame and the Blue Tears began to aim up at the targets around them. She watched the subtle movements of the Astray, noting that there was none of that hesitation or sloppiness present. Movements that should be inherent to those that were not used to weapons, movements that differentiate between civilian and soldier. The Blue Tears' pilot had faint traces of it, but overall was more on the latter category, given that she was trained by her nation's military.

But the Astray pilot...

'There's no mistaking it. The movements of that half-breed lack any hesitation to shoot. Just what kind of training did he go through with the Professor?'

It was suspect to see what had obviously been a civilian suddenly display the killer instincts of a combat veteran, and from the data her squad mate had gathered, the tall blonde had definitely been nothing but a civilian.

'Ephraim Aznable, now Sahaku, age 18 with an unknown origin. Facial recognition does match that with the late Mina Sahaku alongside with some Central European features. Was a temporary sous-chef in many 3 to 4 star restaurants around the world in the past year alone and...' A flash of disgust washed over her face. 'Apparently was seen accompanying several older women to love hotels in the same amount of time.'

To find out that her mentor's assistant was a womanizer almost made her act rashly. Her mentor, her shining beacon, should not have someone as vile and tainted at that half-breed next to her!

'He's a schlampe. A disgusting horndog that deserve nothing less than imprisonment.' The albino clenched her fists as she glared at the Gold Frame. The Astray was taking its time in its shooting, as opposed to the Blue Tears which was racking up point after point. A few of the targets moved rapidly and erratically, crossing each other as-

Fyoom!

-and with one accurate shot, the golden suit broke three of them right through the bullseye. Some of the audience clapped at the display of marksmanship, talking animatedly with one another at the act.

The sole red eye glanced over to the other boy in the arena, who was busy typing away on his laptop. Her nose throbbed even from just looking at him, and she glared with all her hate at the one responsible for knocking her out for a whole day.

'Davion Guele, adopted son of the long-missing Lowe Guele, age 17 as of the rampant test machine incident. Features do coincide with his apparent nationality of Italian. Worked as a mechanic in some no-name garage in Chiba before being enrolled. Has been involved in several scuffles with local gangs and delinquents both in Italy and in Japan, always evading jail-time due to witness testimony of him defending them from the violence in the first place.'

Her brow twitched.

'Clarissa believes that he is connected to the underworld in some form or the other. She has observed him frequenting locations where rumored fight clubs were held in the data gathered. Perhaps he is a criminal, with that brutish and barbaric strength he has.'

Fyoom!

"Well! I believe this is my win, Sir Sahaku!"

"Indeed it is, Lady Alcott. A good show, nonetheless."

"Ufufufu~ Now I believe you owe me dinner~!"

"...When did I say that?"

"Isn't it customary for the winner of duels to have concessions from the loser?"

"Wha—we were dueling?"

Ignoring the banter of the two blondes, the albino pushed off from the shadowed corner and made her way to the exit. She had better things to do than watch the two subjects of her ever increasing ire. As she made her way to the exits, she ignored the pointed stares of those she recognized from Class 1-1. They weren't worth her time and attention, they weren't Representative Candidates.

"Kaichou, aren't you supposed to be practicing as well?"

"But that's booooring, Mu-kun~!"

Red met green in mutual surprise.

""Ah."" Both Ryo and Laura let out at the same time.

A head of blue hair leaned out from behind the courier, rubies locked on to her sole carmine in curiosity. "Ara~? Is that the new transfer student I see? The same one that's been so elusive from the Student Council?"

"The very same one, I believe." The green-eyed teen grumbled, stepping to the side to give way for the German. Him and the President had been ascending the staircase so they could watch ongoing practices, though for the former it was more on keeping watch on Ephraim and Davion. Those two were the most inclined to conflict between the three of them, and with blood heating up due to the excitement of the coming Class League, there would have been no shortage of challengers for the two.

"Tch." The albino clicked her tongue as she shoved past, inciting a 'Rude!' from the bluenette as she went down the stairs.

"Well, now that wasn't nice! I was going to ask her to-!"

"Forget it, Kaichou. Bodewig is...troublesome."

Gritting her teeth, the aforementioned girl ignored the conversation as she made way for the exit of the arena. Her mind worked amidst her rage, sifting through the data her second in command had given her.

'And then there's that self-righteous vagabond, Ryo Murakumo. The one that was the cleanest of the three, disgustingly so. Aside from a few trespassing incidents where the scheißkerl parkoured his way through a shorter route in his deliveries, there is no solid crime report that he has done.'

The way he confronted her on Monday made her seethe, with that utterly confident and unflappable tone of his..!

It was like she wasn't a threat!

Her!

"One of these days, you three..." She snarled as she stormed out of the arena exits. Students made way for her, though not without giving judging looks or second-glances.

"You will have your comeuppance..!"


AN:

Hey, hi, it's been a while, eh?

Sorry I couldn't make a New Year special, been a bit busy with a lot of family stuff and friend-group related things, as well as academic matters. Speaking of, since Christmas break is coming to a close, once more updates will be sporadic. University is hell, with recent internet issues making it hard to do online classes.

This is the second part of 'What she sees', the perspective and views of the characters around the Neo-Types.

And in case you haven't checked it out, I revised Episode 6 with the help of a friend.

Anyway, on to the review that I promised I would address...

KnightofZaku: Hey, thanks for the review and cheers! For the mobile armors, to be fair, Tabane's Golems are basically this world's parallel to SEED's MA's. But you're asking for the SEED MA's in the first place and...well, I'll try not to spoil too much but there is a spider-like IS in the second season. By then, Tabane would have a few...advancements in her tech thanks to some incidents.

As for Ephraim piloting the Gold Frame only, well I do have some ideas on what suits he can switch with. Since Ryo and Davion will switch suits eventually to complete the Murakumo-Blue and Guele-Red theme of the Astray manga, Ephraim at least deserves something to switch with so he wont be left out. Let me just say that the Gold, Red, and Blue Frames aren't the only Astrays present in the world...not that they know, they simply assumed that their boss sent them only three which they were to pilot.

And of course, assuming something isn't necessarily the same as knowing something.

With that, Cipher out!