Hi everyone. I'm back again... I think it was two weeks this time, but I've been super into writing, hence why I decided to double-post this time.
It's Keima's birthday, so why the hell not? :P
So recap of what has been going on - Haqua is making a potion for Keima which should hopefully get rid of his refractory period, though in the process, her and Minami talk about if they'll be taking their private tutoring sessions. Meanwhile, Tenri has made a startling discovery about Diana splitting from her body, and has to decide what to do about it. Meantime, Tsukiyo seems to be burrowing herself deeper into the closet, but is there light at the end of the tunnel? Also meanwhile, Kanon and Nanaka trade angry words, but before Nanaka can leave for real, Ayumi and Yui hear her confession and convince (aka. kidnap) her to come back and talk to Kanon... and I think that's all you need to know :P
Anyhow, I hope ya'll enjoy this chapter, and I'll see you all at the bottom for the author's notes.
"It's here!" Haqua cheered as Rimyuel landed with a large contraption which was bigger than her. It took a little bit of setup which Haqua and Eri dealt with, while the last devil fashioned her hagoromo into a massaging chair.
"This is pretty convenient, isn't it?" Minami stroked the velvety surface, "can your raiment be anything that you want?"
"Some rules and restrictions apply," Rimyuel shrugged, "you can't make food out of it… you can't teleport or travel in time with it… you can use it to see into the past, but not the future. It can be used to make a person or thing invisible… things only stay in their form for about 8 hours."
"Ah…" Minami smiled, "so it's convenient but not perfect," Rimyuel nodded.
"It's working," Haqua suddenly spoke, to swimmer's alarm, "you can come have a look, Minami."
The swimmer moved closer to the machine, which seemed to be an oversized microwave over with a single knob.
"This is an insta-cooker," Haqua patted it, "as the name implies, all things prepped inside can cook in an instance… it has somewhat of of a learning curve."
"Hmm," Minami looked at the knob, which had short unfamiliar strokes, "are these supposed to be numbers?"
"Yep," Haqua popped the 'P', "in Hellian… though those indicate multipliers, not minute intervals or anything."
"Ooh… like if something would take five minutes, you can put it in a 5x multiplier setting and it'll be ready in a minute?"
"Someone catches on fast," Haqua smiled, "once it's airtight, it basically has its own passage of time, and the knob controls that…" she leant down to turn the knob, "bring your wet clothes and your phone, please."
She followed through with the request, but she was baffled at how something like this would fix a phone. The damage was already done, so being able to speed up time wouldn't really do much. She asked that much on her return, but Haqua just smiled mysteriously.
"Oh ye of little faith," she shut both items into the the contraption, "why would you think that this can't go back in time?"
Haqua turned the dial back to a number which must have been below 0 and pushed the knob in, starting an incessant whirring sound.
There wasn't much to see through the door, but Haqua pushed the dial in once again and the whirring stopped, followed by the sound of a plunger being pulled off something. She made a face at the sound, but opened the door, pulling out her neatly folded uniform and phone, like they'd never gone for a dip in the pool at all. Haqua opened the phone, and the familiar trill made Minami's heart leap.
"The time is a bit off on the device, but you should be able to fix it," Haqua passed her flip-phone over, but Minami bypassed that, glomping her in relief.
"Thank you thank you thank you…" Minami gushed, "I really didn't want to explain to my parents what had happened to my phone."
"You're very welcome," Haqua smiled warmly, "least I could do, considering how it happened."
"Actually," Eri piped up from the side, "what happened which got your uniform wet, Minami-san?"
She hesitated for a moment and looked at Haqua questioningly, who shrugged.
So she could say whatever she wanted…
What is with you minimising everything about yourself?
Minami paused a moment longer then sighed. This kind of behaviour was what Haqua was getting at.
"The truth is…" she rubbed her wet indoor slipper on the floor, "someone was drowning in the pool and I jumped in to save them," Eri's mouth formed a circle and Minami blushed.
"That's amazing!" Eri exclaimed, a bit louder than the shy girl would have wanted, "like a hero!"
"This is why I didn't want to tell her," Minami turned to Haqua, red-faced. The devil smiled.
"She's calling it what it is," she responded, "even if you think that was the only natural response, very few people would have done what you did, and you should be proud."
Eri grabbed her hand and Minami had to hug her clothes and phone to her chest to stop it from falling.
"Nii-sama will be so happy to hear how brave and mature you've become!" she jumped. Minami stood in shock, her lips trembling slightly.
"Wai-wai-wait, what did she do?" Sumire asked, curious about the loud voices. Minami panicked, seeing at least a few other people starting to approach them.
"Minami-san jumped in after someone who was drowning," Eri explained, "that's why she'd changed into a tracksuit…"
"Whoa, that's nuts!"
"Why didn't anyone tell us that this happened!?"
"Swimming club members are great, being able to save people like that!"
"You did good, lil' shrimp," someone mussed up Minami's hair, and in her panicked state she didn't notice who.
All she could tell was most of the people were looking at her. She could tell that their expressions were probably admiring, but she really didn't like being in the centre of attention, and she just wanted to shrink into the floor.
A hand clapped on her shoulder.
"That's rude, you know," a male voice spoke, "Minami's no shrimp – if anything, she's a dolphin."
The crowd around her moved away a bit and she turned around, where Keima was watching her with a warm smile.
"And she's a brave one, just like how I know her to be…" Minami started tearing up and she threw her arms around him. Keima froze, but all the girls around him smiled and drifted off. Chihiro caught his eye for a moment and mouthed, "better praise her for us all," before turning away. He rolled his eyes.
He glanced down at the small girl in his chest and stroked her hair. He didn't need telling.
Keima realised Minami was still a bit uncomfortable talking about what happened, so he left after giving her a few kind words that it was fine to be herself… even if herself was an awkward potato around her older peers.
Still, Minami was positively skipping as she helped putting the things together for the potion. That hug from Keima had energised her, and she bet she might even be able to talk about what happened if anyone asked now – though for now, it seemed like most had gone back to their own conversations. Now it was just her, Haqua and Eri, who were weighing out the items.
"So we need to crush half an apple with the rock salt, and mix it with water…" Haqua mused as she looked around, "wasn't there more water in here before?" she stared at the jug, which had been sitting on the table. Eri got a guilty look on her face.
"Sorry, sorry…" she scratched her head, "the chocolate Sumire-san gave me got me a bit thirsty," she quickly grabbed it, "I'll go get some more."
Haqua laughed and motioned for Minami to start crushing the items while they waited, which she did.
"Um… Haqua-san," the swimmer spoke up, "did you decide what you'll do with Katsuragi-senpai when you do your individual tutoring?"
"W-w-what makes you think that I even want to do that?" Haqua stammered.
"You love him, don't you?" Minami didn't beat around the bush. Haqua turned pink, "you don't have to tell me anything… you should just tell him, at least."
"It's easier said than done," Haqua sighed, "he's always been able to break my guard, but I've never let it down on my own."
"Then maybe you can try that," Minami pressed down on the apple chunks with a pestle, "it can be your lesson to learn today."
"I guess you're right," Haqua agreed, "it would be nice to not be embarrassed and snap back for once."
"That's the spirit!" Minami grinned, "he'd probably like that as well… not being hit, I mean."
"Yeah…" Haqua looked a bit crestfallen, "but what can I even do for him? We didn't really have sexual education at school, and it's not like I'm all that much of a looker…" her eyes drifted down to her paltry chest.
"I'm pretty much the same, you know…" Minami laughed, squeezing her own B-cups, "but I'm not going to sweat the details… I'm sure things will fall into place as it goes."
Eri arrived back from her self-imposed chore then, so neither of them mentioned the conversation from before… well, kinda.
"Though it's interesting that devil's school doesn't have sexual education," she mused.
"It's because devils aren't conceived the same way humans are," Eri responded, matter-of-factly. Minami's eyes widened.
"Devils don't get pregnant?" she asked. Haqua nodded.
"Biologically, the egg is protected by too many layers to be fertilised naturally," she explained, "most devils get an egg removed and implanted in a sustaining caccoon which has nutrients fed into it, and then when they're ready, they cut the skin and let them out to be cared for by the parents."
"I see," Minami grinned, "with humans, there's always a risk of falling pregnant through having sex, but you guys don't have that risk."
"It's just her," Eri indicated to Haqua, "I'm fully human, so this is something I'd need to know," she sighed, "I was really shocked to find out that babies are made in that way…"
"Hmmm…" Haqua mused, before noticing that both Eri and Minami were smirking at her, "w-what?"
"We know what you're thinking about…" that smirk got wiped off as Haqua pointed the scythe at them.
"Shut up…" she hissed, "this potion won't make itself, you know…"
Both girls complied, but Minami glanced at her uniform which was sitting on a chair. She should probably change and get her butt home before she got in any trouble.
Still… she wanted to feel Keima's warm embrace once more before she went.
Once things were on its way and Haqua and Eri were well on their way to finish the potion, Minami took a deep breath and went over to Hinoki, who was thankfully on her own.
"Umm… Hinoki-san," she could feel herself shaking a bit in the presence of the woman who was as tall as her just sitting, "c-can you give me some tips about something, please?"
"Of course," Hinoki said encouragingly, "what is it?"
Minami felt herself get hotter.
"C-c-can you tell me how to give a good strip tease?"
"A strip tease?" Nikaidou's eyes widened, "In public… are you sure about doing that, Ikoma-san?"
"I'm sure, Sensei," Minami clenched her hand in hopes of quelling her nervousness, "H-Haqua-san and Hinoki-san have been helping, but I was the one who wanted to do it…"
The taller woman hesitated. It didn't take a genius to tell that the young girl wasn't confident with the idea, but at the same time, she seemed really determined to do this.
"Can I ask why?" Nikaidou ducked herself down so she was at eye level with Minami, "I didn't think something this open would be your style."
Their eyes met and Minami visibly gulped.
She knew… she knew this wasn't her style… Hinoki had told her that much when she'd asked for help… Haqua had enough tact not to remark on that when she'd gotten involved in their planning, but she'd managed to convince them both of her resolve.
Minami wanted to be brave… she wanted to do something with which Keima wouldn't forget her… she wanted to let loose and have fun…
Just, how was she going to convince the scariest person in the room when she could barely get her jaw unstuck.
"I-I…" she swallowed, "I want to have fun."
"And I'm certainly not stopping you from that," Nikaidou responded, "if you did this privately for Katsuragi-kun, I'm sure he'd be more than happy, and you wouldn't be forced to ask me anything…"
"I-it's not that…" Minami let out a sharp breath, "I want to be able to do it around everybody…"
That was it, in the end… she was done with changing in the toilet stalls in the bathroom… she wanted to have the courage to not make a big deal of anyone seeing her body… she didn't want to be self-conscious of it anymore…
While she wasn't completely comfortable in this room where everyone was older than her, she still wanted their support and comradery.
"Aren't you scared?" Nikaidou asked, and Minami nodded without hesitation.
"I-It's because I'm scared that I have to do it," she nodded incessantly, but she could feel water forming at her eyes. For all the concise explanations she had in her head and what she'd been practicing for this talk, she wasn't explaining herself very well. The teacher paused before responding.
"If that is the case… it sounds good," Nikaidou placed a hand on top of Minami's head, "you have my permission. Just let me know when you intend to start."
Minami was a little confused as the teacher walked away, but she smiled and walked over to Hinoki.
"I take it that she said yes," Hinoki inferred, and Minami gave a thumbs up, "that's great… Haqua-san has heard the song so she's got her light show all ready… and why do you look like that?"
"Sensei was worried that I might be too scared to want to do this in public… I didn't really convince her, but she still said it was okay."
"Oh no, you convinced her," Hinoki smiled, "you could have easily asked Haqua or I to go talk to her, but you went yourself…"
"R-really… that's hardly any show of bravery…"
"I think you've got it wrong, Minami-chan," Hinoki ruffled her hair, "a brave person isn't one who isn't scared… it's one who still acts, despite being scared," she gave Minami a hug, "if anything, you might be the bravest one of them all."
She smiled as she felt Minami's cheek heat against her side.
Nikaidou sighed as she walked over to her bag… she shouldn't stay for this part. For both moral and legal purposes, being in the same room as a naked fifteen-year-old was a bad idea. She didn't want to stop Minami as the swimmer seemed to have her own plan to see through, but this did put Yuri in a bit of a bind. She placed her bag on the desk, wondering where she could go for the few minutes.
"D-Do-chan…" she heard Tenri walk up to her, "can I talk to you about so- rather, are you going somewhere?"
"Just for a few minutes…" Nikaidou sighed, "why isn't Jun back yet, goddamn it?"
Of course, there was no response, and Tenri didn't know, so Nikaidou shook her head.
"So what is it that you want to talk about, Tenri?"
"There's something weird going on… with Diana and I," Nikaidou nodded, urging Tenri to continue, "since a little bit earlier, she's been able to leave my body and manifest on her own."
Nikaidou thought about that for a moment. She hadn't anticipated things having an effect on the goddesses but considering that this whole lesson was dealing with eros, which was a kind of love, it could just mean that Diana had just gotten stronger from before.
Nikaidou nodded.
"I don't think it's too much to worry about – Diana has likely gotten stronger, so she probably has the strength to survive without a human host."
"R-really?" Tenri's eyes widened, "so she might be able to return to heaven if she wanted to?"
"I-I can't really say," Nikaidou responded, "her sisters are here, so they might only be able to return when they all are together."
"Okay," Tenri murmured out loud to herself, "but why did Diana get stronger now?"
Nikaidou raised an eyebrow. It took a moment for it to process in Tenri's brain, but she turned away, her face suspiciously red.
"Bingo," she smirked, "so is that everything you wanted to know?" Tenri nodded and scuttled off. Just as well, as a certain blue-haired demon approached her.
"Is this your phone?" Haqua indicated to a flip phone in her hand, "it's already rung once…" Nikaidou shook her head.
"I wouldn't worry about that," Nikaidou shrugged, "next time they call, you can answer… it's likely someone's mum," Haqua paused, looking at the screen.
"It must be one of the girls then…" she sighed, "thanks anyway."
Haqua turned to Tenri with the same question, but she shook her head as well. As Haqua went asking around, something caught the human's eye… Nanaka packing her bag and shuffling off to talk to Nikaidou.
Tenri felt a little bit of a sting as she thought of how little she'd actually talked to Nanaka throughout this afternoon. Although her friend was extroverted and easy to get along with, she should have been keeping an eye on what she'd been doing throughout the time.
From the distance she was at, Nanaka's eyes were covered by her fringe, but her confused movement and nearly running out of the room hinted to something very troubling.
What was it?
So there you have it. A fairly T-rated chapter of more people talking. And what a way to celebrate Keima's birthday - only letting him appear once in this whole chapter.
But nevermind that. We have developments! Minami is able to get out of the shyness in her head and tell people about her heroics in the pool some chapters ago... she's also decided that she does want to do something with Keima... and it's a strip tease... in front of everyone! Is this being brave, or is she just insane?
Otherwise, we see Tenri talk to Nikaidou, and figuring out that it was her own actions which separated her and Diana. Probably something the other goddess hosts should learn about, huh? Also, Nikaidou is outta here! What spicy things lie in store for our protagonists? I guess you gotta wait till next chapter.
Except there's no wait! I bamboozled you! :D
Review responses coming up - if you don't care, I'll see you in the next chapter :)
GhostMan: Wow, you seriously went ham with this LM, PM skit. I really like it, because this feels like my brain while writing this god-forsaken story. On one hand, I want my wholesome couples to learn new lessons and grow up... on the other hand, there's me being that "now kiss" meme from ten years ago... it's been really enjoyable working on this story, so hearing your commentary on the events from the mouth of those two was really fun.
Also it's canon that pervy mind = logical mind :P
Thank you for this review, and as always, I hope you enjoy this and the next chapter. PM will definitely have something to say soon enough ;)
Xellos540: I missed you too... if you mention that you get a specific feeling from my intro messages, then I get the same from your reviews... they're always comforting and relaxing to read, so I always try to read them when I'm relaxed.
And yes... the amount of lesbians and bi people I want in this story is... every single person I can get my grubby fingers on. This chapter might be the straightest thing I've written in a while, actually :P
Though I do feel bad for Shiori and Tsukiyo. They're both stuck in their head and trying to navigate how they can be close without getting too greedy. What they need is just not to think and just act how they want to. Who knows, maybe a certain author-san will throw a bone at them.
Thank you very much for the review, and I hope you enjoy the incoming developments :)
Mint-Car92: Yay, you're here again! I really appreciate the review.
You know, I think you basically hit every main point there was to take from each part - Haqua has the added perk of appearing human without having the drawbacks of being a human girl. Nikaidou gets to talk to Tenri this time and gives her a pretty good idea on what happened. Shiori has plenty of things which make her curious about guys and girls, and Nanaka better come back and confess like a good girl.
Unfortunately, it will be a bit more of a wait for this. In the meantime, I hope you're enjoying seeing the other girls in this and the next chapter.
Yep yep, onto the next chapter.