Chapter Two

Warrior in Training

Kotoko almost had difficulty getting out of bed the next morning. It would be easy to stay nestled for a bit longer under the comfy duvets and forget her worries. All it took was a brief recollection of what exactly she had to worry about in the first place, i.e. her responsibility in saving the world, and Kotoko found herself leaping out of bed at a time much earlier than she usually did.

She packed some exercise into her sports bag along with her books for the day. She wouldn't really need the clothes if she transformed but Ripo had warned her to be prepared for anything, in case they could find no place to practice away from prying eyes. If that was the case then Kotoko could just don her normal clothes and do a regular workout.

She wanted to skip breakfast and head out early, determined to get a start on her new duty, but Oba-sama wouldn't hear of it, saying she had skipped dinner last night and needed her food for energy. Kotoko was reluctant but Ripo agreed, his voice echoing in her mind, and so Kotoko put her bag down and sat down at the table.

Naoki watched her as she put her bag down. "We don't have tennis practice today." He pointed out, taking a delicate bite of his toast.

"Awmph thm." Kotoko said through a big mouthful of food. She hadn't realised how ravenous she was. Yuki gave her a disgusted look, which she ignored, and swallowed her food. Kotoko reasoned she could be forgiven for her lack of manners, since she was still in shock over the whole heroine thing. Ripo didn't agree but she ignored him too.

She took a more restrained sip of juice and then gave Irie-kun a strange look. Surely he knew she had memorised the club schedule at the start of semester as a way of staying close to him. "I know we don't have practice," she said with a slight frown.

He raised his eyebrows nonchalantly. "Oh, I wasn't aware that you were in any other sports clubs," he said casually.

"I'm not," Kotoko said bluntly. Now that he mentioned it that sounded like a great idea. Joining a few clubs would be a good way to get fit, especially if she joined a martial arts club. There was only so much that she could do on her own. She started going off into a daydream about becoming a strong fighter and saving lives, forgetting her toast in her hand, halfway to her mouth.

Naoki just watched her in amusement, fully recognising her daydreaming expression, one that she used a lot around him. "What's with the bag then?" When she didn't answer and continued to daydream wildly about something (he swore he could stars in her eyes), he whacked her on the head lightly with the newspaper. She scowled at him and Naoki repeated the question. Oba-sama giggled at their antics, thinking that her son really does care about Kotoko a lot.

Kotoko grumbled, rubbing her head. "What does it matter?" she asked irritably. Usually Kotoko would relish the fact that Irie-kun was talking to her but right now he was being too nosey for her liking.

He regarded her coolly. "Just wondering what you were up to this time and whether it has anything to do with why you were so late home yesterday." She felt her eyebrow twitch in annoyance as Yuki watched them both curiously, interested in what Kotoko had to say. Damn Irie-kun!

Luckily Oba-sama spared her from answering Naoki by fussing over Kotoko and telling her not to make them worry like that again. Kotoko agreed heartily between bites of toast. She ate as quickly as possible then explained to Oba-sama that she wasn't sure what time she would be back today but would be sure to phone home if she was going to be late. Then quick as a flash, Kotoko excused herself, grabbed her bag and ran out of the front door without waiting for Irie-kun.

If she thought that would lose him, she was sorely mistaken. Barely five minutes had gone by when his voice came from behind her, making her jump.

"You're hiding something."

Kotoko gave a little shriek before turning round and glaring at him. Naoki stepped forward to walk beside her, hands casually slung into his pockets, smirking a little at her reaction.

"No, I am not!" she said stubbornly and perhaps a little too defensively. Even she wouldn't be convinced by that yet she hoped Irie-kun would believe it.

"Uh huh." His look of disbelief told her otherwise. Doh! "What are you up to really? I hope it isn't anything stupid."

She huffed. "Hey, just because you're a freaking genius and know nearly everything already does not mean you have the right to know everything. I'm entitled to keep things to myself." Kotoko turned away, face a bit red. Irie-kun always seemed to know when she was lying about something. Damn genius. Whatever, she was determined not to give anything away to him, this was too important!

Naoki seemed to sense that Kotoko wouldn't tell him anything as he didn't question her any further, but he still gave her assessing looks every now and again, as if her were searching for clues. Kotoko got the feeling that it was just a short reprieve for now and he would probably try again later. Once they got to college, Kotoko tried to get away from him quickly (imagine that, Kotoko running away from Irie-kun) whilst trying to make it seem that she had nothing to hide.

Kotoko didn't talk to Satomi and Jinko much in class and managed to slip away at lunchtime to sit outside by herself and mull over things. She sat outside for a while, wondering if she would have to keep her distance from her friends from now on. The rest of the day was uneventful and went pretty quickly, Kotoko was aware of the hours passing by as the time for her practice crept closer and closer.

After college Kotoko found herself going to the park once again. She was still afraid after what had happened yesterday but she felt compelled to have a look and remind herself what she was up against. When she got to the wooden structure she found that it and the craters had been cordoned off.

She felt a warm, faint buzz in her mind as Ripo let her know that he wanted to talk to her.

"Yes, what is it?" Kotoko asked. She felt the spirit sigh.

"First things first, we're going to have to practice you speaking to me telepathically," Ripo told her in his deep voice. "If you keep talking aloud like that then people will think you're crazy." Kotoko felt herself blush a little.

"Fine then". She tried to concentrate on the words in her mind. She felt Ripo buzz happily. "Better," his deep voice said in approval. That wasn't so hard, Kotoko thought to him. "Can you read my mind?"

"No. I can only read thoughts that you direct to me. However I can see and hear what you do, except when I am in my spectral form," Ripo explained.

"Spectral form?" Kotoko couldn't help say it aloud in her confusion. "What's that?"

As an answer, the key glowed white. A white mist poured from the key, descending to the ground. The mist seemed to become more solid, forming into an animal shape. Eventually Kotoko found herself looking at a white, softly glowing form of a dog. She recognised its breed as similar to that of a golden retriever, though apart from its piercing blue eyes, the only colour it showed was its ethereal white fur. Kotoko felt a bit apprehensive when she saw that the dog was as big as Chibi! However Chibi, big as he had grown, was a big softie and had helped her get over her fear of dogs. Ripo would have made quite an intimidating figure except his mouth was open in a doggy grin, his great doggy tongue lolling to the side as drool escaped his mouth. He sat, great tail wagging wildly behind him.

"Greetings Mistress Kotoko," Ripo said with a woof. "This is the form of the animal I used to be." His form glowed slightly.

"Aw!" Kotoko said, reaching forward to pet him without thinking. Just as it occurred to her that her hand might just go straight through the spirit, her hand connected and she felt a jolt as she felt his cool, soft fur.

"Woof woof!" Ripo barked happily. Kotoko laughed at him, and then looked around in worry. "What if someone sees you?" Kotoko asked.

Ripo shook his head, and then rubbed it a bit against her hand. "Only you and other magic users can see me," he informed her. He stood up straight, shaking his fur. "Well, let's not waste more time, I should start training you right away! You are the sole defender of this world for now after all."

"Eurgh, don't remind me," Kotoko mumbled.

Before they started with the mental and physical exercises, Ripo explained more about the Jinn and her own powers. Princess Mina had managed to use some of her powers to disrupt the doorway to this world, meaning that for now, the doorway the Jinn used could only lead to Japan, specifically, this region. Kotoko was grateful for this. She wasn't sure what she would do if she had to fight all over the world. Ripo said that she could manipulate her energy, enabling her to teleport but to avoid detection by the Jinn, it would be best to only do so over short distances. Although the doorway had been decreased significantly, the Jin could still chose different areas in this region to appear in and would most likely not appear in the same area twice.

The demons she had faced the other day were referred to as Harvesters, their sole being to harvest living creatures for their body parts and energy. Ripo went on to explain that the highest ranking demons were able to change form and part of their effectiveness in taking over worlds had to do with the fact that they could assimilate into the local population and learn about their prey's weaknesses. These demons were sly and powerful and had their own magical abilities. Kotoko hoped never to meet one of those kinds. Her guide went on to say that the Jinn invaded each world for their resources, and that they harvested living creatures too, for their energy. Kotoko shuddered at the mere thought.

Kotoko then discovered that her magical abilities could extend to more than just shooting energy orbs. As well as being able to communicate telepathically with the Princess, Ripo and other key warriors, with a little instruction from her guide, Kotoko found that she could understand animals!

Ripo had guessed this from the shape of her key handle. She was the Heart, Ripo told her, and her abilities lay in being able to understand living creatures. Kotoko hadn't been too sure of this until she had managed to strike up a conversation with a pigeon. The conversation was a little dull but proved Ripo's point. She was amazed by this and vowed to have a conversation with Chibi at some point. However at this point she wasn't very good at holding the conversations for long, she found it hard to concentrate her energy. Ripo told her that having the power of the Heart meant that animals would naturally be quite trusting of her. It made sense to her as she remembered how much Chibi had liked her even though she was afraid of him.

A useful ability that she also discovered she had was the ability to sense auras of both people and animals. Ripo was delighted by this as he found she could sense things on a larger scale than he could. He told her that she would be able to sense if there were a demon lurking around if she cast her senses and promised to teach her how to do this. He also said that although all magic users had the ability to manipulate energy to create energy force and to teleport, some were found to have their own unique abilities in addition. Kotoko's, it seemed, were the abilities to sense auras and communicate with animals. Both of these skills would need working on though but it made Kotoko feel excited for the first time since learning of her powers.

At first Kotoko thought having these powers was cool until she realised that the key form and her own energy attacks were the only thing she had as a defence against the Jinn. Ripo mentioned that some magic users could manipulate elements, something she was quickly found not able to do. And then he mentioned that since she had she ability to sense auras, she would be very useful in scouting potential enemy territories. Kotoko cringed at the thought of doing such a dangerous thing.

After this talk, Ripo set her some exercises to do. She pushed herself through three hours of hard exercise. Ripo had advised against diving right in, it wouldn't do if she had to face demons but couldn't move because of stiff muscles. He had made her do some stretches first before making her do a hundred sit ups and push ups. Then she practiced in her Key form and she practiced with the sword and shield. Kotoko still found them heavy to hold but she fared a little better than yesterday at least. Ripo had her chasing him, trying to get her to catch him. The very few times she managed, Ripo would become transparent and the sword would go through him.

After that they had practiced aura sensing and Kotoko had gotten to try out teleporting. It made her feel a bit nauseous but she managed to get the hang of it quickly, much to her surprise. Just as she thought that she would never have to take public transport again, Ripo warned her that demons would be able to sense large distance teleports as it required a lot of energy, which they would detect.

The energy orbs Kotoko could summon used different amounts of energy depending how big they were. She found that if she made them hollow, she could lift items in them and levitate them, much to her delight, though the ones she made were relatively small for now. Ripo had her practicing until she could produce different size orbs. It was exhausting work but she worked at it, seeing as it was her only defence against the Jinn.

Kotoko had phoned home to let them know she would not need dinner and to let them know what time she would be back. She was glad to see that they weren't all waiting for her when she got back, although it was only eight O'clock, nowhere near as late as yesterday. She missed Oba-sama's worried look as she went upstairs.

The next day she woke up aching and could hardly move her arms. She made a mental note to buy some of that heat warming cream from the pharmacists later. At breakfast she was surprised to see Oba-sama had already put a plate of food down in her place, full with a lot more food than Kotoko usually had. A small pile was an inaccurate way to describe the amount of food; it was more of a small mountain.

"Er, Oba-sama..." Kotoko began before she was swiftly cut off.

"Now, now Kotoko, don't be unreasonable," Oba-sama said swiftly. "You skipped dinner again yesterday and a young girl such as yourself needs plenty of food. She then stood and watched as Kotoko made herself eat the food. Irie-kun and Yuki watched with amusement as Kotoko struggled to finish it all. It was a very stuffed Kotoko that left for college that morning.

Kotoko wasn't sure how to act around Jinko and Satomi. She wondered if there was some sort of guide that superheroes followed. All Kotoko knew was that her new role was dangerous and it would be dangerous for her friends to get involved. She mentally asked Ripo what she should do and he told her that if she altered her behaviour so suddenly her friends would become suspicious and might come after her. He advised that she just act normally but she had to be aware that she would not be able to spend as much time with them now. Following that advice, she joined them for lunch this time and didn't act as aloof as yesterday. Having such a full breakfast, Kotoko just sat there with juice instead, happily talking to her two best friends.

At tennis practice Kotoko surprised Sudou-sempai by running laps as soon as she got to the courts, followed by sit- ups and push- ups, all without him telling her to do so. She still ached from the workout yesterday but every time she felt like giving up, Kotoko would just remind herself why she was doing this.

When she had finished her warm up, Kotoko practiced by herself, throwing balls against a wall and trying to hit them with her racket as they bounced back. Her throws and swings were harsh and she almost felt as maniacal as Sudou-sempai sometimes became. She missed a lot at first and got hit in the face a fair few times but eventually she managed to keep up a rally between her racket and the wall, much to her surprise and the surprise of everyone else. Ripo barked in her head, encouraging her in her efforts. Kotoko supposed that knowing during her fights she'd be playing with energy orbs rather than tennis balls did a lot to improve her aim.

Her breathing became harsh as she concentrated on keeping up the rally, getting really into her workout.

"What are you doing?" a familiar voice asked suddenly, making her jump.

At once Kotoko lost her concentration and didn't lift her racket in time to hit the ball. Just as she braced herself to get hit in the face again, Naoki held his hand out and deftly caught the ball in his hands. Some of the club members watching them still started squealing about how great he was.

"Irie-kun!" she exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing?"

He smirked. "I asked first."

Kotoko scowled at him again. "Practicing," she said simply.

"Against the wall?" Naoki questioned.

She shrugged. "The wall is very helpful and it's nice to me, because it can't talk and say mean things. All it does is hit me in the face if I don't hit the balls in time," Kotoko explained.

Naoki snorted. "Weird and delusional," he commented. She glared at him and opened her mouth to give him a piece of her mind when he started talking again. "Come on then, I'll help you practice."

"I," Kotoko began, about to yell at him when his words registered. "Eh, what was that?"

Naoki simply smirked. "I'll help you practice. I think the poor wall has had enough."

Kotoko turned and laughed sheepishly that the wall had a few shallow dents in it courtesy of her. "Oops," she said, a little guilty. "I hope nobody notices..." Naoki sighed and dragged her away from the wall.

She couldn't help the stupid grin that spread on her face as Irie-kun helped her, giving her pointers. Reiko's scowling face made it all the sweeter. They didn't work closely like she sometimes (often) daydreamed about, but Irie-kun would give her pointers in improving her serve and swing. To both their surprise, Kotoko managed to keep up a rally between them, though it didn't last long. Still, she managed to hit the ball back, and to Irie-kun of all people! Irie-kun gave her a rare, genuine smile when they finished and told her she had gotten better. Kotoko was on cloud nine for the rest of practice.

Naoki walked with Reiko to the station as he usually did. It was only when he got to the station that he realised that once again, Kotoko was nowhere to be found. He knew she had been following him, so where did she go now? Naoki checked his phone and found he had a message from her, saying she would be home late again. He was half tempted to go search for her and find out what she was doing but then Reiko was calling him. He gave an internal sigh. Well, he had no reason to worry...yet. Naoki would just go home for now and question Kotoko later.

When practice was over, Kotoko had wanted nothing more than to follow Irie-kun home and stay close to him. Ripo had other ideas however and so a reluctant Kotoko didn't go home after practice. She had started walking behind Irie-kun and Reiko before slipping away to find somewhere private. Venturing into the park, Kotoko cast her senses like Ripo had taught her too and detected that there were no people nearby. A quick glance at the dull, darkening sky told her why. She had been practising in her Key form for less than an hour when Ripo suddenly stilled, his spectral fur standing up on end as he lifted his head high in alertness. A low growl emitted from him.

"What is it Ripo?" Kotoko asked in alarm.

"Jinn," Ripo growled. "Only low ranks but there are three of them this time." Kotoko felt her stomach sink in dread. She had hoped that she would have more time to prepare before facing the demons again. "This time they are attacking civilians."

"What!" Kotoko cried. "Where! We have to get there at once!"

Ripo's form disappeared as he melded back into the key. "Follow my directions," the dog spirit commanded.

Kotoko transformed the key disappearing to form into the armour. Kotoko listened to Ripo's description of the area the attack was occurring and teleported as near as she could get. She ran the rest of the way, both her and Ripo feeling a dark aura increasing as they got nearer and nearer the source. The sound of sirens pierced the air. There were gunshots, and people screaming in panic.

Not wanting people to notice her yet, Kotoko teleported onto a building where she could analyse the situation and work out a plan. Hee, and people called her stupid. She cautiously looked over the side onto the usually busy main road below.

She recognised this road; it was a main road leading to the central shopping district. Buildings lined both sides of the road and there were no side streets branching off from the main road for quite a while. Good, less ways for the demons to move down. But as she took in the scene, Kotoko realised she wouldn't have to do any chasing.

At once she could see that the three Harvesters had dropped from the doorway smack down onto the busy road, the three enormous craters in the asphalt a testament to this. Most people had fled but some stood watching in the distance behind police barricades at either end of the road. She could see faces peering out from building windows watching the scene below, too cautious to come outside. The demons stood in the middle of the road between the police barricades, advancing on a group of unfortunate people who had not been able to escape on time. The police kept shooting at the demons but the bullets were having no effect they just bounced off the demon hide uselessly.

Kotoko saw bodies lying scattered about, most of them uniformed officers, but a quick scan with her sense told her they were alive, barely. She frowned. She had to move them somehow; otherwise they might get hurt when she went after the Harvesters. But what could she do? If she tried picking each one up, surely the demons would see her? Kotoko quickly did a count. Nineteen bodies. She chewed her lips. What should she do? Suddenly she came up with an idea.

She summoned her energy and wrapped each of the fallen people in an easy to form hollow orb, lifting her arms to push them as close to the police barricades as she could get them. The demons didn't even detect this use of her powers, well, not yet at least. Using as much strength as she could muster, Kotoko moved her arms and the orbs moved at the same time, lifting the victims into the air. There were several cries of surprise and the police stopped shooting momentarily.

The Harvesters spun round in time to watch their fallen prey being deposited down by the police barricades. Kotoko let her arms fall limp to her sides, letting a relieved sigh. Well, that was one obstacle out the way. She jumped to attention again when the demons let out an outraged howl that made the crowd scream in terror.

An unfortunate crowd of people had been unable to escape to the police barricades and had been under advance from the demons until just now. One of them, a middle- aged man, decided to use this momentary distraction and make a run for it. One of the Harvesters snapped its head round and bounded ruthlessly after its escaping prey. One reached forward with its ghastly claws, picking a man up with a crushing bruise round his neck. The man started choking in pain and fear as the others screamed. Kotoko grew more alarmed as she saw a white mist rise from the man and into the demon. The other two demons focused their attention on their remaining victims.

"Quick, act now, before the demons take their energy!" Ripo warned.

Kotoko summoned an energy orb and leapt from the building, throwing it at the demon holding the struggling man. It was a bit weak but it would do. The energy ball hit her target and she teleported before she could hit the ground, reappearing a little unsteadily on her feet in between the demons and the people. The demon howled, staggering and dropping his victim who scrambled back quickly, helped to his feet by the other people. The other two Harvesters swung their heads towards her with a sick crack.

"Run!" Kotoko ordered the remaining people, energy orb forming in one hand as she drew her sword. The demons snarled and advanced towards her as one. The people wasted no time in following her demands, rushing to safety behind the barricades.

Kotoko threw an energy orb after them without thinking and it lifted, twisting upwards and outwards to form a stretched screen of energy, shielding the people from further harm. Her actions were automatic and unconscious, she had not done that before but she somehow knew what to do, her magic flowed to her naturally. The shield wouldn't hold long, since she was still her powers were relatively new and untested so she would have to end this quick.

The Harvesters saw her throw the orb and took the chance to attack before she had the opportunity to form another one. Kotoko teleported as they leapt as one towards her. She appeared behind them as they landed on the spot she had previously occupied. Quickly she sprung forward and stabbed one, the magic of the key flowing through the sword and bursting into the demon. It shrieked, causing the other two to turn around in time to witness its demise. She threw another energy orb onto the other police barricade, shielding the people there too.

Kotoko again formed an orb as the demons leapt at her again. She threw it and it made contact with one. Unfortunately the other demon was untouched and she found herself staggering backwards as it swiped its claws at her. The claws didn't pierce her armour but she found herself falling back with a thud. This time though, she managed to keep a hold of her sword. As the Harvester advanced towards her, Kotoko could make out the form of the other one behind it, getting to its feet. She had to act fast.

Another energy orbed formed at the tip of her fingertips before she had even finished thinking of it. Quickly Kotoko threw it into the demon's eyes, blinding it. It howled in outrage and she swung her sword down on its neck just as a dark shape flew over her and landed with a heavy thud behind her. She didn't wait and watch for the vanquished demon to disappear before she swung round, pulling her shield out in time to block the vicious claws raining down on her.

The Harvester howled in outrage as Kotoko blocked it and shoved it forwards. It swung its tail towards her and she swung her sword in retaliation. Her sword chopped through the tail and it fell to the ground, twitching and flopping before it burst into smoke. The demon's eyes glowed bright red in malice and outrage and it was once gain leaping at her, coming again and again at her. Kotoko brought her shield up to block it repeatedly, trying to get a swing at it with her sword.

"Why didn't it disappear", she asked Ripo frantically. "I cut it!"

"You must either sever its head or stab it through the heart," Ripo told her. "It's the only way to kill them."

Kotoko wasn't sure how much longer she could keep this up. She was still tired from all the exercise she had done earlier and yesterday. She didn't dare drop her shield to make another energy orb. Out of the corner of her eyes, she could see the shields flickering as her powers waned. She wasn't going to last much longer. A bird flew overhead and she got a sudden, if insane, idea.

"Hey bird!" she called out mentally whilst blocking the demon's blows. The mental projection was a little weak but she could tell the bird heard it as it stopped in its flight, hovering. Bleh, another pigeon.

"Can you fly in front of this creature and distract it for a moment?" Kotoko asked. "Please."

"I don't likes it," the pigeon humphed. "It has a bad feeling."

"Please?" Kotoko begged. "You just have to fly in front of it for a moment. That's all." The bird considered and she was relieved when it made its mind up and dove towards her. The bird darted in between her and the Harvester before flying off. The demon was momentarily startled by the blurring shape and it was all Kotoko needed. She thrust her sword forward, piercing the demon's torso.

Kotoko breathed harshly as she took in the now demon free area, barely aware of the excited cheering from the crowd. She felt a WHOOSH as the shields fell and the energy flowed back to her. Dimly she heard the police talking through a megaphone but she couldn't comprehend the words.

She became aware of the sound footsteps behind her and was at once alert again. Kotoko swung around quickly, thinking that she had been careless and missed a demon. Instead she found herself staring into a camera held by a burly man, a TV reporter hovering beside him, barely containing his excitement. How they had gotten pass the barricade she did not know. She took a step back, not knowing what to do.

"Please, just a few words," the reporter begged, holding his microphone out to her. "Who are you? And what were those things?"

Kotoko looked straight at the camera and spoke without thinking.

"I am Heart, A Warrior of the Key. I was chosen to protect Japan, and the rest of the Earth if need be, from these demons. These demons have come from another world and their sole aim is to destroy this world. They are called the Jinn, and cannot be slain by normal weapons." The reporter and camera man both stared at her in awe and horror at her words.

She looked into the camera intently, bringing a hand to her heart and bowing her head slightly. "I vow to protect the people to the best of my abilities."

In the distance Kotoko could hear the crowd cheering. The reporter gaped at her and looked as if he wanted to ask more questions but Ripo gave her a mental nudge and told her to teleport away. Seeing some police officers come towards her with grim expressions on their faces, Kotoko followed his request.

Kotoko felt disorientated after the teleport, appearing in a thankfully empty alleyway. She quickly changed back to her normal form and ran the rest of the way home. When she eventually got into the house, she found everyone gathered around the TV. Kotoko felt herself jolt as she realised that they were watching TV coverage of the attack. She stood in the background, steadily regaining her breath as she drank in the report.

"This Heart figure managed to prevent any deaths and further casualties," the TV news anchor reported. "As you can see, this self proclaimed Warrior of the Key managed to kill the demons which were completely unaffected by the bullets fired by officers arriving at the scene. Officials have issued a statement thanking Heart for her actions and would like to speak to her further about these demons and her own powers."

Yuki snorted. "Yeah sure, talk. They'd probably just interrogate her."

"What!" Kotoko screeched, making some of them jump as they hadn't heard her come in. "Why would they do that? Didn't she save all those people?"

Naoki answered her question just as Yuki looked as though her were going to mock her lack of intelligence.

"The government obviously don't like that they are defenceless against these Jinn creatures," he stated, looking at her. "They would want to find a way to utilise the girl's power and use it themselves. At the moment they are dependent on this Heart, she is the only thing that can fight against these demons."

Kotoko leaned on the back of a sofa, bringing her head down near her dad's. "Jeez, that's horrible." It was. Like she didn't have enough to deal with as it was.

Naoki was looking at her still. "Where did you go after practice? You usually come straight home." They all turned to look at her. She didn't really notice their looks as she was still taking in the news coverage, slightly in awe as she took in everything that she had done. Kotoko particularly liked the scene the camera had captured of her leaping off the building before teleporting.

"Huh, what? Oh I was meeting someone," Kotoko said vaguely.

"Oh, what's this?" Oba-sama said curiously. "One of your friends?"

She nodded in vague agreement. "Yup. He's helping me to study." In a way Ripo was, just not with her academic studies. Kotoko didn't see Oba-sama and Naoki stiffen at her words, still engrossed with the TV as she was.

Kotoko felt happiness bubble up inside her, full of amazement and pride that she had managed to accomplish all that on her own. Ripo barked happily in her head, agreeing with her. She straightened up, stretching with a smile on her face.

"Well, I'm going to head up to my room. Let me know if you want help with dinner Oba-sama." They all watched as Kotoko all but skipped up the stairs, wondering at her cheerful demeanour. Oba-sama was visibly worried at the mention of this male friend who seemed to make Kotoko very happy. Although he didn't show it, Naoki was worried too and he vowed to pay closer attention to Kotoko the next day.

The next day at college, the talk all over campus seemed to be about the Jinn demons and the mysterious Heart, Warrior of the Key that had saved the civilians yesterday. It made Kotoko feel funny hearing about something she had done. She imagined what everyone would think if they knew it was her who had saved those people yesterday.

The cafeteria was buzzing with conversation about the fight yesterday. Yet, somehow, Kin-chan's voice managed to cut across the din and reach Kotoko, much to her embarrassment.

"Don't worry Kotoko, I'll protect you!" Kinnosuke exclaimed loudly, making Kotoko cringe. "You don't have to worry about these things hurting you."

Sure thing Kin-chan, whatever you say, Kotoko though dryly. If he knew that it had been her yesterday, he would probably have a heart attack. Out loud she said, "Why would these things ever want to attack me? What good would I be to them?" she pointed out, making Kin-chan pause in his declarations.

"I agree, why would they want you?" Kotoko sighed internally as she heard that familiar voice. Part of her felt happy to hear it, another part of her told her that the speaker only brought trouble.

"Irie-kun," Kotoko said a bit more dully than usual. Last night both he and Oba-sama had been ruthless in trying to question about her about her new male friend, not believing her when she said he wasn't anyone special. It seemed that her Irie-kun thought she was seeing someone else and that was why she was coming home late. She tried not to sob mentally at the unfairness of it all. Here she was saving people and Irie-kun thought she was dating someone else when her heart belonged to him. NOOOOOO!

Thwack. She scowled at Irie-kun, who had hit her with a book. "What was that for?" Kotoko scowled.

He glared at her. "You were daydreaming again. Someone had to stop you, you're holding up the queue."

She looked round to see that indeed this was true and that the people behind her were glaring and muttering darkly towards her. Heh, ooops.

"So where's this male friend of yours?" Naoki asked casually. She wondered why nobody seemed to mind he had just butted into the queue.

"WHAT?" bellowed Kin-chan. Kotoko felt herself retreat inwards all that little bit more as more people stared at them. "MALE FRIEND? WHAT MALE FRIEND?" She sighed. What had she said to herself the other day about eating outside? She really should follow her own advice.

Much to her chagrin, Irie-kun proceeded to tell a steamed Kin-chan and curious Jinko and Satomi about this mystery guy who had caused Kotoko to come home late the past few days. Kin-chan wailed and demanded to know who this guy was whilst her friends badgered her for details, wanting to know if this guy was her boyfriend. Seeing Irie-kun smirk at her for the trouble he had caused was the last straw and Kotoko uncharacteristically yelled at them to mind their own business before storming out.

She didn't know what to do. No doubt they would be following her from now on and she wouldn't even be able to teleport away if they were watching. And what would she do about this mystery guy they were expecting?

Kotoko stepped outside into the fresh air, sighing. With her eyes closed momentarily, she didn't notice the person in front of her until she collided with them.

"Oomph," Kotoko said, her hands coming up reflexively, only to feel the person's well defined muscles beneath their shirt. With a blush, Kotoko looked to see who she had walked into and to apologise.

"Ah, I'm sorry..." Kotoko began, faltering as she saw how handsome the guy was and how intently he looked at her.

The guy placed his hands on her shoulders, steadying her on her feet. He was handsome, with sparkling, bright expressive hazel eyes and tousled brown hair.

"Ah, Miss Kotoko Aihara, I'm Takendo Nakagawa, a freshman at the School of Law," he said with an open, honest and friendly smile.

She opened her mouth to ask how he knew her but he continued.

"Please, will you go out with me?"

Hope you enjoyed this chapter!