I'm having lots of fun right now and I'm having a lot of time for more writing. 3 days, 3 chapters. My new record!
Titanmaster 117 = Yes, and I was smiling like crazy whenever I think of that particular scene. I'll read your new one once I run out of ideas in this big amount of free time I have. Now I'm doing a slight alter in the canon's (light novels) timeline without straying far from it, look forward to see how it goes.
Some Private Time.
The cheers and shouts of glory of F-Class in the single hallway were exceptionally loud, loud enough to breach the soundproofing of C-Class's level, loud enough to be heard by the departing students outside the school. The lowest class had officially (and unexpectedly) defeated a class that was 2 levels higher than theirs, and the D-Class representative still hasn't recovered from shock. Celebrations rang all the while; friends high-fiving each other, praising the others for their good work, shaking their fists in the air while jumping—all a carefree celebration.
The Avatars that have not been un-summoned yet were just as triumphant as their masters, stimulating the victory in the miniature version of a victorious army. Besides cheering with their high-pitched chipmunk voices, they brandished their weapons in the air and shook them. Axe, club, mace, sword, stick, staff, shield, every miniature-sized weaponry best suited for battle was raised in the air in celebration to their victory. A selective few of them chanted with stomps and slams, a non-coherent phrase consisting of 2 syllables that could approximately mean 'Yuuji' or 'F-Class'.
Rino's avatar relished the nectar of sweet victory as best as he could where he would not leave any shares to his classmates. He back flipped, cartwheeled, and did even more unorthodox acrobatic moves that would have been impossible for human achievement. Demon adrenaline come in heavy doses, apparently. He even cackled, almost maniacally, had it been the deep, human voice just like the actual range of Rino's voice disguised under a low tone instead of its mediocre high-pitch, it would have disturbed lesser men and women. But still, it was the same pitch he had when he massacred the bodyguards, he is pretty much restarting the trauma on the defeated students.
Aimy was a bodyguard, disciplined and composed, she would not display such behavior at the sights of anybody, especially in front of her Mistress. She simply glared at his display of hysteria. While she has no sympathy for the enemy, she would admit that brutalizing them to the point of traumatizing the masters and mistresses was too much. But still, the fact that her Mistress's class had won was something worth celebrating over, especially if one of her comrades was an insane maniac that actually helped in delivering victory. Despite the collected attitude she was born to have, she expressed her own celebrations in the best way she could: she placed her fedora to her chest and smiled serenely, victory never felt so sweet. What her Mistress feels she could feel them, she was happy that her class won.
"WOOOO!"
"Sakamoto really is an awesome guy!"
"Now we can say goodbye to the tatami and the chabudai!"
"Ah, now that rotten stuff will belong to Class D!"
"Long live Sakamoto Yuuji!"
"That guy's not too shabby!"
"Three cheers for Sakamoto!"
"I love you, Himeji!"
Every F-Class student praised Yuuji in all directions, apparently surrounding him, asking to have his hand shaken and a group of males slightly apart from the mass had agreed to hoist him up in the air once they reach him. He had to say, he doesn't know how to react to all the attention around him. except for one that had a knife in hand.
The shouts and exclamations of praises are all directed to the F-Class Representative who had done the part of keeping the class alive and the strategy that brought them to victory. And for Himeji Mizuki for delivering the final blow to the enemy representative and F-Class can now switch their classes officially with D-Class.
The other 2 candidates, who had done their parts of the battle as well, were feeling just as victorious as the rest of them, no unfairness in their minds for the lack of praise they should be having for doing a number on D-Class; they know that Yuuji deserved it all. It was his strategy, and they got the win because of him. They express their glory of winning best fitting their tastes. Shina chanted some cheerleader lines to herself in the most active manner and Rino gave light applaud.
Their actions were the complete opposite of their avatars.
Rino was very happy, and impressed he is for his Rep. His tactics and planning brought them the win, an achievement placed in their names: The first class to start the very first ESB, and winning it. By all of Rino's honesty, he actually doubted the entire class to win. He gambled to himself if his class could actually win, especially if Yuuji was leading it. But with the ending resulting the opposite of what he half-expected, he warned himself to never doubt his Rep again. Maybe the class was alright to be with after all.
Shina looked over to Rino and the latter returned the stare. "High-five, Rino! We won!" Shina exclaimed, jumping to his space and raised a fair hand up for him.
Rino stared, perplexed at the gesture before returning it with an uncertain hand, only to be met with an enthusiastic smack, and it stung.
Rino stared at his hand, the sting from Shina's smack still lingering; the feeling of it was rather familiar, very, very familiar. Unexpectedly, it brought both a nostalgic feeling and a painful one. The memory relapse came and an image of one of his last friends came to his mind, his rambunctious Barkada that he fooled around with and likewise fooled around with him, the people that nurtured the First Side of him before it died the sooner he came to Japan. After (very) short moments of wistful flashbacks that felt like 10 seconds of passing but actually 3 seconds in actual, the relapse was washed away with reality, the black-haired girl with the scar on her forehead the last image he saw before blinking twice and meeting reality once again.
He actually missed them a lot, how could he forget about them?
"….I was still 11 since the last time I have done a proper high-five." He commented, flexing his fingers, actually liking the sting in a certain way, he remembered that his past friends tend to leave red marks on Apīrs. Hers was not even close to what they could give.
Shina raised an eyebrow and looked at him with surprise, completely weirded out that Rino doesn't do high-fives often, and his last one was when he was 11? How many years is that!? "Well, you're lucky I didn't let you forget how."
He huffed in amusement. "….Hmph. I remember you mentioning losing familiarity with handshakes." Reaching forward and patting her shoulder, he told her, "….Good work on the fight. How was your very first summoning battle?"
Shina smiled, the memory of winning against more than 10 opponents was another addition to her 'Beginner's Luck Wins' list. "Oh, it was SO awesome! It's like I was playing an RPG game or something, which…was exactly the thing's case, but I won! I beaten 13 or 15 guys on the first try!"
Rino nodded, quite impressed for her victory. "….I defeated the squad I was assigned into intercepting. All 7 of them were defeated, along with 4 others."
"Hehe! I got more kills than you!" She playfully smacked him in the shoulder.
He returned the smack in the similar manner, remembering that this was the second time he did that. "….May I see your little Avatar? The teachers are going to leave anytime." He looked around mid-sentence, confirming that the teachers present have forgotten to dismiss the summoning field and there're still a few imps idling about within the barrier, especially theirs.
"Sure." Placing a cupped hand beside her mouth, she called her, "Aimy! Over here!"
Rino raised an eyebrow, stupefied that his friend had just decided to name her own avatar. "….'Aimy'?"
"What?" She asked as if nothing is wrong with it. "Don't you think it's cute?"
"….I was not talking about that." He pointed out lowly. There was no point in naming them, he said it before, a student's and avatar's soul are virtually connected. They are basically 2 entities of the same kind, in other words: twins. Her avatar's name is technically (and actually) called Shina. If she called her Avatar 'Aimy', she's technically giving herself that nickname.
"Oh look, she's here." She apparently ignored him, her wondrous logic not going far into following his own.
Sighing in defeat he looked at where Shina was looking, looked down on the black toddler-sized figure and—.
Oh my.
To say that Rino was surprised is a heavy understatement, to say that he was astonished is even below that. He was beyond out of his mind at what he saw when he looked at the small being's even smaller paws. It was holding the 1918 Thompson submachine gun.
A firearm.
The rarest weapon in the summoning system's arsenal.
A weapon only the luckiest could have, not the privileged or the deserving. Not even the staff teachers had them.
And the outfit 'Aimy' wore is equivalent to the weapon, especially the appearance. The grey-blue eyes she earned from her Mistress were stony and hardened, a pair of eyes that had seen many living things die by her own hands or from other subjects for a long time. The calm and sophisticated poise it carried compliments how disciplined she was just as how the dark suit implies. The fact that she gave him, a human, a brief death glare before looking straightforward at attention spoke volumes how cool and confident the little creature was. She doesn't fear anything, either human or her own kind, she will fight both, all in order to please her Mistress.
She doesn't befit the role of guarding the Leader of Japan, she deserves a place as the Top-Class Bodyguard to the worst Crime Lord in the world.
As far as he could remember, nobody before ever had a firearm as a weapon. He asked the info from the principal and what he got was that it is a 'rare case' and there has not been one student who successfully managed to have one. Only a chance from 1000 to 1 can a single student (especially if that student is from F-Class) can get a firearm. Even pistols are proven to be more powerful than a bow and arrow; which was already tougher than close-range weapons. The reason why guns are so rare to be had is because they were overwhelming: they have unlimited ammo and the avatar is practically untouchable as long as it shoots, even with 1 as its score.
"….You are….unique." Was all he managed to say. The revelation of his sister befriending the valedictorian to his friend having an avatar with a gun were all comparably (almost) difficult to fathom.
"Pretty cool, right?" Shina puffed up her chest, very pleased with herself. 'Aimy' turned and faced him at attention, trying to appear approachable to the human who her mistress seemed to be close to, giving him a cool gaze instead of the glare seconds ago.
"….Yes, indeed." He agreed lowly, stepping forward towards the being and kneeling down in front of 'The Bodyguard', examining the little female imp closely.
Smirking behind his back and behind her palm as she covered her mouth, Shina ordered Aimy to do it and the latter snapped the gun barrel towards Rino's face in a gunslinger's draw speed and open fired, the bullet hitting in between the eyes, phasing through skin, tissue, muscle, bone and brain before phasing through the layers again in reverse order and the bullet came out behind his head, disappearing as it hit the barrier of the summoning field.
Rino did not expect any of it at all, he wasn't fast enough in jumping his body back to dodge the bullet, his rear hitting the floor. Had the summoning system granted the summoned beings privilege to touch physical objects and living things he would've been dead before he hit the floor.
"AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA!" The owner instantly broke out in a cackle, sounding far more ridiculous in a general sense rather than being disturbing unlike the grotesque guffaw of Rino's avatar, gathering the attention of most people to herself (not that she cared). Catching the no-nonsense Goth boy off guard and sending him backwards on his butt was too much for Shina to handle. Rino did a good job at not even yelping but it was still funny.
Snapping a spiteful glare in Shina's direction, he figured he should be a little immature for this one. Growling in his throat, he snapped his finger and a black blur jumped towards Shina's face, howling like a savage Tasmanian devil. That turned her cackle midway into a very embarrassing yelp, yet somehow she was able to dodge the flying black ball of leather by sidestepping.
Missing the target and landing to the floor with a roll, the little demon turned over to the blonde human who would dare pull tricks on his Master. Growling, loud enough to make the despicable human understand his intention, he snapped at her loafers with a claw, intentionally missing.
Shina pulled her foot back, doing so on the other foot when the little demon snapped again, avoiding the tiny claws that could obviously pierce through metal like a hot dagger to butter, completely forgetting that no way can the little beast ever touch her.
"Hey, Rino! That's not funny—Eeeeeeh!" Another ridiculous yelp after another snap missing her loafers by his claws.
Aimy simply stood still, watching the spectacle happening between her Mistress and the maniac apathetically.
Snapping a few times, with Shina typically looking at the dark demon like it was a wild Doberman and actually afraid of it, Rino maintained character with his familiar, keeping the image of a vicious dog up with every growl, snap and even a few bites, the sound of teeth snapping together very audible.
When Shina got her senses together, "Aimy! Stop him!" Almost forgetting about the 'No talk, only thought' mechanism of controlling, she willed Aimy to her defense and the Bodyguard dashed forward, shoulder-bashing the maniac away 2 meters away.
Using the momentum of his pushed body to roll on the ground into a perfect, crouching hunter position in one fluid motion, 'The Brutalizer' growled menacingly as he laid on all fours like a wolf facing a rival or a great bear. The Bodyguard pointed sights at the hostile who now had her in his sights. She knew fully well that she is inferior to the enemy in strength, along with ferocity and a reckless release of insanity in his advantage. But with careful prejudice, she could win.
Flicking a thumb claw against foreclaw, the Brutalizer initiated one of his special abilities the second time, 'Dash'. Upon taking a step forward, he was propelled right in front of her in the speed of a bullet, throwing a spiked metal fist straight to her face, sending her sliding across the floor, her gun flinging off her hands and hitting the cement with a clatter.
Shimuya Rino, F-Class; Modern Japanese: 333 points.
Kina Shina, F-Class; Modern Japanese: 211 points.
"Enough!" The Modern Japanese Teacher announced. The dark playing field shrinking to his hand, allowing the orange sunset to access the hallway and paint the walls with its orange glow, signifying that it's been getting late. The Bodyguard and the Brutalizer disappeared alongside the other summoned beings. "The Exam Summoning Battle is over, any more Shyoukanjuu conflict is now forbidden."
The two owners looked at the floor where their little demons disappeared before looking at each other. Shina's hardened face slowly became pensive, realizing what she had just done. "Crap. Sorry, I got carried away there." She apologized, scratching her braided golden hair.
Rino didn't really want the fight to end, he wanted to play around with his summoned being a little more. He wasn't in for a payback, he wanted to spar with the little gunwoman, testing if Shina got her controls right. Though he went a little too far on the first strike, he didn't expect it to do that much damage when he was going for a punch instead of grabbing her neck. Seeing that his friend is feeling sincerely sorry, he extended a hand for her to hold.
Smiling over the silent gesture of forgiveness, she took his hand and shook. As always it was cold, but she's getting used to it, she could actually feel the warmth in his touch. She received an extra patting on the shoulder by his other hand. After parting the handshake, Rino's other hand snaked its way across her back and rested it on the other shoulder and walked forward with her.
All is forgiven.
"Everyone, nice work kicking ass today!" Yuuji announced, his voice heard throughout. "Tomorrow we're replenishing our lost points so I'm gonna need everybody to head straight home and rest up! That's all."
Patting her shoulder the second time, Rino sped up his pace, getting ahead of Shina, his arm slipping off her shoulder.
"Let's go, Yuuji." Akihisa said.
"Yeah." Yuuji replied. When he felt a hand land against his shoulder, he turned to look and saw that it was Shimuya asking for a handshake just like the other boys earlier. "Oh, Shimuya. Good work on the war! Nice killing spree, by the way." He praised, hiding the wince from his voice because of the man's good grip. The cold temperature quite adds to it as well.
"I had to say that it was a bit too far." Akihisa mused, shuddering at the memory of their screams.
"….Thank you for the victory, Rep." Patting his shoulder one last time, he departed and limped back to the direction of F-Class, feeling very satisfied.
"Hey, boss. You gotta minute?" Shina asked while the other F-Class bypassed them. She's been having this question the entire time since her suspicions at the roof, it's time to get the answer, no more waiting.
"Hmm?" The redhead turned to her, "What's up, Kina?"
"Ano, Sakamoto-kun!" Mizuki's voice came in as well, a look of urgency on her face as she stood both beside her tall classmates. "I want to ask you something as well."
"Okay, but Kina should go first."
"Nah," She waved off the offer, "Let her go first, mine'd probably take all day."
"Huh? Um, is that really alright, Shina-san?" She asked, trying not to be imposing.
She ran a hand up her hair, not really believing Mizuki's personality as to even asked that when she was giving her full access. "It's fine, it's fine! Just ask what you wanna ask him."
"Oh, okay." She softly said before facing the class president, "Why is it that Yoshii-kun wants to defeat A-Class so badly?"
…Huh.
THAT was exactly what Shina had in mind. Forget about asking, she would just listen like a good classmate and leave once she has what she wanted.
Yuuji slapped himself in the forehead in mock horror, "Aw, you noticed!" He chuckled afterwards before going back on topic, "Yeah, I figured you notice. He brought it up saying that we should be getting better equipment."
"But why? I don't think he would say something like that."
"I thought so, too." Shina commented aloud, "Idiot would never win against a single A-Class student by himself. He didn't even look like the type of guy to even do any effort in studying. Why would he aim for something as ambitious as this ESB thingy?"
"Sharp." Yuuji remarked, quite impressed that Kina actually figured that out about him. "He wanted to beat A-Class so you two and Shimuya can get better facilities. F-Class is a dump sight, he said it ain't fit for people like the three of you."
""What?"" Two girls said in perfect unison. Very shocked over the information. The dumbest classmate of their class was the one who stirred up the ESB in the first place? All this for their sake?
"And you agreed?" Shina asked, frowning as she cannot bring herself to believe it. Pulling off something big just for people he either knew, or didn't knew? It's not possible, that would be too much effort for the likes of them.
"Well, I have some intention at first, but it was because that guy brought it up did I get even more interested."
"Eh, why would Yoshii-kun say something like that?" Mizuki asked.
"There has to be another reason." Shina pressed.
"Who knows? Maybe it was because of your circumstances. Maybe it was because of what happened in the placement test. Maybe it doesn't matter to him. I don't know the answer. All I know is that even idiots have things they want to do and they will do it no matter what." He pointed out, turning to Shina he added, "He may not look like it but he's got a knack for things like these."
Shina frowned even more, still not convinced.
"You'll understand soon, Kina." He said in finality. "So what was it you wanna ask?"
She shook her head, "Nah, I'm good. I got what I needed." She lowly mentioned, taking in all the information, letting her logic deal with her doubts. It isn't actually unfair for Akihisa like she first thought when she thinks about it. Plus she totally forgot that they can exchange classes when they win against higher classes. While it is for their sake, the class gets equal credit and gets the class for themselves as well. "Wait, did you exchange D-Class's room with ours?"
"Nope, but I gave 'em one condition so they could keep it."
Still stuck in the dust shed, huh? Shina had no problem with that, there is still bigger fish to fry. Add it with some good barbecue sauce and a few sprinkles of salt, it'll be a very tasty fish to fry. "A-Class is the final prize, right?"
"Yep. We'll take their good stuff away from them once we win."
The thought about it made her smile, "Well, that's really all I need to know. Thanks." She playfully smacked him on the arm and walked away, following Rino's direction. She's really gotta change her views on the idiot. He may have a small brain but he actually has a big heart. A heart bigger than his brain, that is. She's not complaining.
He's actually a really good guy.
When she noticed something on the floor at the corner of her eye and looked at it, she picked it up and inspected it closely. Looking at the trio behind her, she yelled out, "Who dropped this knife here!?"
~~~~~ « ҉» ~~~~~
"….We are not having D-Class's facility?"
"Yep," Shina answered, placing all her books and pencils inside her bag. "We're gonna have to be picky about ourspoils of war, Rino."
"We have to maintain our feelings of being fed up in this classroom." Yuuji explained matter-of-factly, having entered the classroom to get his bag as well, along with the rest of his circle. They sure seem to be present whenever he is. "Sorry to disappoint but I don't want our class to get used to D-Class's room and lose the motivation to fight."
Everyone else agreed, Rino was quite impressed (yet again) that Yuuji even thought that far, even when there is no war going on or a strategy meeting going on. This class president is something, that's for sure.
"By the way: Nice work, Kina, Shimuya, Himeji!" Yuuji said to the trio of dominating power with an appraising smile. "You did good out there."
"….Likewise as well to you, Rep." Rino returned with a nod, making final considerations to making him his friend. "….We won because of your strategy."
"Oh yeah! I totally kicked ass earlier!" Shina exclaimed proudly, liking the experience she had of fighting 13 at once and winning (with Hideyoshi's help, of course).
"Nice work, Himeji-san, you kicked Hiraga's butt for us." Akihisa commented, smiling to her.
Mizuki blushed at his words, "Uh, no, not really. It was thanks to everyone's help that we won." She said, a kind smile playing on her face.
"Good job too, Shimuya-kun, Kina-san." Akihisa turned to the taller A-Class candidates. "We got the edge thanks to the both of you as well."
"You too." Shina said out of reflex, she really didn't have any evidence to even give him any praises. But the fact that he was aiming to have her alongside Rino and Mizuki to be in A-Class by this ESB was a good enough reason to respect him.
"….I have nothing in particular to say, but I commend your survival the entire duration of the war."
"….…"
"He's complimenting you for not dying in the war, even though you had the worst scores! Geez, Akihisa!" Yuuji explained irritably, unable to believe just how his idiotic friend couldn't even come close to getting that. He is already dealing with Akihisa's brain not being able to understand serious words, now he has deal with Akihisa not even understanding compliments from somebody who would've ruled A-Class if he wanted to.
"Okay, I'm going to say it now," Shina steeled herself and faced the Goth boy seated atop his chabudai. "Your Avatar was too brutal, Rino. Where did you even get that thing anyway?"
"That's right," Minami agreed, "I might not be able to sleep tonight because of what happened." She commented, feeling her spine tingling at the thought that something (someone) similar to his merciless avatar could do the same thing to her if she walks alone at night.
"….Have some confidence, Shina-san." Rino assured to his friend, feeling flattered for hearing a description (that could only be a compliment to the imp) of his little familiar said out loud. Plus he was the one who was being brutal that entire time, his little demon was simply being controlled, it cannot move on its own without the owner's will. And if that was the case, he was the one being complimented, and he won't be afraid to admit it; he was flattered. "….Your avatar's weapon is stronger than mine."
"Yeah, but your little beast just clocked her in the face, and I didn't even open fire! I don't think that's supposed to make me feel any better."
"It should, Kina." Yuuji opposed, "The way I see it, a gun is the most powerful weapon in the school." When he mentioned before that Mutsurinii was managing surveillance, one of the subjects was Shina and her avatar was on screen. He watched her fight via surveillance cameras, courtesy of the 'Mutsurinii Company™'. He had to say: she was good, even for somebody who didn't do any training. If ever, he should give props to the Goth boy for giving her the proper training, and the results were quite good.
"Wait, Kina-san had a gun on her avatar?" Akihisa asked.
"I never heard anything about an avatar having a gun before." Minami commented.
"That means it's rare, right?" Mizuki asked, feeling herself shrink a little when they turned their stares to her, especially Rino. "I mean Sakamoto-kun said it's the most powerful weapon and Shimada-san said that she never heard of one before so it should be rare. Right?"
"….It is the rarest of the rare, there can be long range weapons which are already rare, but a gun is godlike in essence."
Shina nearly fallen over herself over what Rino just did. Did he just talk to Mizuki!? She remembered fully well that Rino hated Mizuki's guts so much that he would never even consider speaking with her. What happened earlier in the war that made him change his attitude around Mizuki, and weren't they walking together when they were about to beat up Hiraga?
Just what happened?
"Where'd the change of attitude come from, Rino?" She dared asking. The others had no idea what he was talking about, except him.
Rino huffed in irritation, glaring at the presumptuous blonde behind his bangs before turning it to the timid woman. Shina's getting the wrong idea. He wasn't trying to explain to Mizuki, he's just stating it out to all of them. All she did in the war was just kill the enemy representative, just one enemy while the others had defeated more, especially him. He could've just killed Hiraga's avatar ahead of her and be satisfied. He didn't held back out of consideration, he was just following orders. It was Himeji's role to defeat him; that was Rep's decision, he must abide, whether he likes it or not. He walked with her on that hallway because there was a game going on and he's not wasting it on petty hatred. Indeed, her doing the job did make him to stop hating her, but she doesn't receive any of his tolerance. None of it.
Finding no interest in answering Shina's question, he simply ignored her. Turning to his Rep, he asked, "….Rep, which class do we fight next?" He stood up, heaving his bag to his shoulder in one motion, intending to leave once he has his answer.
Instead of Yuuji answering, the front door slid open and the sound gathered everyone's attention to the ambiguous male at the door. "Is it over now?" Hideyoshi spoke, his voice sounding genuinely feminine and more female.
Wait….
Rino frowned, completely perplexed. Locking his head in place, making it seem like he was looking at the person at the door while his eyes looked over the room once again (his bangs make it not so obvious): there was the same Hideyoshi he met since morning sitting next to a chabudai on the right, and there was another Hideyoshi by the door wearing a girl's uniform. Rino's eyes switched to Hideyoshi again, then to the person at the door that had Hideyoshi's face. Doing so several times, he only had one thing to conclude:
Kalokalike?
"….Who are you?" Rino asked, the confused frown became demanding, wanting to hear the answer from the stranger than to trust his intuitions.
"Why are you wearing that uniform, Hideyoshi?" Akihisa was just as oblivious, "Could it be that you are finally submitting to who you truly are?" What Akihisa said wasn't really the best thing to say, Rino's body began to spike to a high temperature because of how idiotic that speculation was.
"Akihisa, I'm right here." The actual Hideyoshi corrected in a calm voice.
The idiot looked to the brunette, "Huh, why are there two Hideyoshi's?"
Again, Rino's body spiked to a deadly temperature rate and his body began to itch from so many places, he barely contained himself from moving. Akihisa's idiocy was completely beyond what he thought possible from a human being, much worse when it was coming from someone Asian. 'Two Hideyoshi's'? Where the hell did that come from!?
"That's my Aneue." The male Kinoshita stated.
"Hideyoshi is my Little Brother, younger by two minutes." The elder sister explained, then that neutral aura around her person suddenly vanished. A new aura came to envelope her person, and the feel of it brought a burning sensation inside Rino's soul the sooner he realized what it is:
Arrogance.
He didn't feel any aura of humble around this Kinoshita Yuuko, he felt arrogance. Crossed arms, furrowed brows, a lifted chin, a critical gaze in her identical green eyes: She was looking down on them. Who does she think she is? His class defeated D-Class, 2 classes higher than their own that some other F-Class could not even accomplish. Did she really think she could win against his class, or rather, Rep's class?
"I'm the ambassador of 2A-Class, Kinoshita Yuuko." The elder sister of Kinoshita Hideyoshi that was named Yuuko introduced herself to the F-Class, crossing her arms with a dignified air of superiority. "We of the A-Class hereby declare an Exam Summoning Battle on F-Class."
""""Whaaat!?""""
Everybody equally exclaimed in confusion and surprise, especially Rino and Shina, who were always composed in times that mattered (though they didn't show it). But not Yuuji, not reacting in the slightest, not even a lift of his finger or a lift of an eyebrow. He simply continued glaring at the ambassador of A-Class with calculating red eyes.
"What!? Why!? What did we ever do to you!? Why is A-Class declaring war on us so suddenly!?" Akihisa asked, still under shock over the news.
"Don't think we'll go easy on you since you're all in the worst class." She intensified her critical and superior stare at them, "We of the A-Class will teach you lowlifes a lesson. Do remember that." Leaving them with a bad message, she turned on her heels and walked for the exit, shutting the door with a slam that was louder than necessary, the impact leaving a deeper impression on the elder Kinoshita.
While everyone was shocked, Yuuji merely shot a smirk, unnoticed. Kinoshita Yuuko left seven students shocked, and two amongst them were seething to the point of murder.
Shina glared at the door, she didn't like the way that Kinoshita bitch looked down her nose on everyone here and the way she called her friends lowlifes was too much for her to take. If she ever sees that person again, she will have the bitch's ass handed to her in a gift basket. She wished she hadn't returned that kitchen knife, she could've thrown it right next to that brunette head at the doorframe just to spook her off.
Rino was not in the least pleased at the development. Personally, it was well appreciated to have another opponent to fight after having just finished one. But it cannot be said the same way when that Kinoshita Yuuko called him a lowlife along with everybody else. Just when he thought the impression of every other classes views on F-Class would change thanks to their victory, that woman had to break his hopes. And include the form of arrogance that woman displayed as she declared war on his class…..was not something he could tolerate so easily.
He. Can't. Have. That.
He reached behind his back to pull out the knife that was hidden in his belt, only to remember that he left it at home. But still, his motion did not stop as he pulled out an imaginary blade (the thumb outstretched, indicating the point), brought it to his carotid artery and sliced open his throat.
He will make Kinoshita Yuuko learn her place as a student.
He never liked the A-Class anymore.
~~~~~ « ҉» ~~~~~
Rino was not in the least jolly. The taste of the victory lost its sweet flavor like it was supposed to be. The kind of treatment he had expected as an F-Class student abruptly became true, and it was all because of a woman that was an A-Class student. Just when he was starting to think F-Class was about to become different, a person from the highest class ruined it for him.
Was that how A-Class was? They think they are mightier than us just because they have bigger grades than F-Class? It infuriates him even more when he realized that Meiko was among such people.
In between thinking about what Kinoshita Yuuko had just said to him to the thought of finally going home, he settled to keep his mind on the latter. He needed to rest his head and to look at the internet for some stress relieving, there was still stuff to download after all. Thinking about what that woman said is definitely a waste of time for him. Once the war between his class and hers begins, she will get a piece of his superior skills in controlling an avatar, even if she has higher grades than him. That woman didn't even summon her avatar the second time, she'll literally lose to him.
The hallway was quite empty, no surprise since classes had ended more than half an hour ago, and the war was still going on after that. This hallway that had once been packed with F-Class and D-Class students, alongside their familiars, screaming and ranting, barking and shouting, especially their loud footsteps as they ran from position to position ordered by their commanders, it was quite a loud war. Now the entire hallway was now silent and peaceful. It had Rino wondering just how fast for a battlefield to become this silent just under the passing of 3 minutes, but he wasn't complaining. The pure silence and lifeless surroundings were a nice place to be, where nature comes along to fill the silence and emptiness.
A pleasing sound that he could fall asleep to.
He sooner had his reverie put to a stop once he noticed that he just passed the area he was supposed to go.
Feeling stupid, he turned around and pushed open the door, entering the luxurious hotel that was the classroom of A-Class, still alight unlike the other classes that were currently empty and starting to darken by the setting sun casting a shadow, and he instantly spotted Meiko sitting at the coffee area staring back at him with a happy smile the sooner he entered. Beckoning her to come, she stood up from her chair and hurried straight towards him with little arms ready for an embrace. He lowered his body down a little to meet her height, she slowed to stop and jump for his neck in greetings.
He slipped his arms underneath her owns raised her up from her feet without letting go of her petite form and swung her little body side to side, her arms around his neck neither loosened nor tightened, she simply held on, focusing all her senses to feel his loving energies. Likewise, Rino did the same, adding a kiss to her head, her energies were pure and truly heartfelt.
Parting the embrace, he lowered her to the ground to look around. It would not have mattered to him but the emptiness of the room surprised him, there doesn't seem to be anybody else present in the room besides the two of them. It was a major thing: Meiko would always panic when left alone in an unfamiliar environment. Even if it's inside her own classroom, he didn't actually expect Meiko in a clean state; no swollen eyes of evident tears, no trembling legs, not even the usual act of keeping a hand held on to his wrist just to feel safe. Instead, she was just sitting at a recliner chair near the coffee table, fiddling with her hair in impatience, waiting the door to open, expecting her Kuya to enter and take her home.
How far did the advisor of A-Class actually develop the mute girl's confidence?
Whatever she did, Rino promised to change his impressions on the adult and thank her wholeheartedly. She did a very good job.
Let's go home.
She put a hand up to imply that he should give her a minute and she hurried back to the arrangements of cubicles, probably to get her bag. Another sign of development, going there on her own instead of taking him with her. He really need to give Ma'am his respects.
Returning with her bag in hand, he took her other hand and walked together towards the double doors and out the classroom, out the school gates and into the streets, heading straight for their home.
~~~~~ « ҉» ~~~~~
Another development came to present itself as they walked together to home, and he wondered if it was because of Ma'am again, or it was because she adapted: while she's still sticking close to his protective presence; having his arm over her shoulder (by her assertion), her arm around his waist was quite tight, and she was still tense, he might've thought that she was using the one-man carry as an excuse just to be nearby him, even though he told her he can walk on his own, but the fact that she was no longer hiding her face from the world was an entirely different case.
Another major sign of development.
It might be because the route they took was quite empty of human presence, not a single life seen in their surroundings (which struck Rino odd but ignored it) save for the retiring birds returning to their nests or the dozing cat lying atop the neighborhood walls, but her development was a wonderful thing. As her guardian, he should take it as something major.
Small things have big meanings after all.
But the one thing he suspected was that one of the meaningful words their uncle told the both of them long ago was most likely the sole reason she was toughening up against the outside world:
He remembered how philosophical his uncle looked when he listened in on the lecture. Said in a smooth and fluent English, he said these words:
"You can only be afraid once. Once you got the guts to face the danger once again, you should laugh at its face instead."
It finally made sense to him now. Going through life-threatening and fearful situations really does give one ingenuity and powerful insight about the dangers of nature and man. And it actually helped his little sister.
Meiko could take advantage of that, adapt to every frightening existent and become the one person she should have been all those 4 years ago:
A normal girl with just a voice problem.
~~~~~ « ҉» ~~~~~
From all the houses present in their neighborhood, the Shimuya Residence stood out the most, for its lot space wider than its neighboring houses. With an enclosure of 4-meter high walls surrounding the house, and a double-door gate, thick black steel serving as an entrance for a bus. A second gate, found beside the first gate, much smaller than the first, better served for people to pass by. The gates show no visual of the house within, especially the walls, white concrete or iron walls masking the lot in mystery to passersby. Security was secured all the same, with all the high walls, barbed wires rigged atop, and the pikes atop the gate, but Rino would sometimes question the gate's compatibility to hold out trouble.
The only open view available were the bars just in the middle of the small gate, low enough for Meiko to peek in, the very left iron cylinder of the set used as an anchor to chain the gate locked with a large padlock tightening the bonds.
Reaching inside his pocket, he pulled out the key, slipped it into the padlock keyhole and twisted, the padlock snapping open and the chains slipping off but not falling. He promptly pulled the chain off, causing a rustle before slipping his hand inside the bars, reaching for the even-stronger slide bolt lock inside.
Feeling the familiar handle, he pulled the bolt lock, pushed it aside and the gate opened. Meiko entered through the gate first, running straight to the bench at the porch of the house. Anywhere within the interior of the walls are exceptionally the only area of the outside world can she walk around without any worries. This house was her bunker, even the walls are high enough that other houses with windowed second floors can't see her.
Rino closed the gate with a loud clang and he chained the gate again, padlocking it. He also slid the covers for the barred window with an improvised wooden shielding, cramming it and holding quite well. Sliding the bolt lock and locking it with the extra padlock inside the mailbox afterwards, he had no reason to go out since shopping was not necessary for 3-4 weeks. The fridge was quite stocked since a few days ago so shopping is saved a later date. An actual 'later date', the fridge was practically crammed with so much food that everything might spill out had it not been arranged properly.
Turning his eyes to his house, he breathed the clean air provided by the nature of his yard. The resident building stood two stories high, its rooftop able to peek out from the walls in a distance view, appearing to be more of a dormitory or a lodging house more than a residential house. It would rather be a cross between a house and a dorm. Wide as 20 ft in an almost L-shaped style, two stories high and it had a balcony almost as wide as the house at the front portion, just above the porch.
While it was indeed a house, it was indeed once a dormitory for students a few years back then, even one of the former cohabitants had been students of Fumitzuki Academy that had went far from home. If Rino remembered right, those particular students came in at the time when Fumizuki Academy opened. They had probably reached their college years now. The house was a very livable dormitory than most, it held 8 rooms with bunk beds in each, good enough to house two people in each (most can accommodate 4). Air-conditioned as well, clean and efficient showers with the choice of hot or cold water. A big flat screen HD TV for a movie marathon when the occasion calls, a backyard with a good amount of space for a party.
All in all, it is a top-quality dorm.
But such a luxurious dorm demanded a heavy price if a student should ever live inside. But the heavy price was used for the correct reasons: every fee in the price of 15000 yen is used to improve the living conditions of the building, just so it can satisfy the stay of every cohabiting student within. It can sometimes be used to pay the bills, just a fair exchange for the wonderful living quarters they are privileged to have, not to mention really friendly owners to be with: Rino's aunt and uncle were really friendly owners, the cohabitants really liked them, down to the point where they started calling them 'Oka-san' and 'Otou-san'. The fees included the soundproofing of the rooms and even extra renovations for extra rooms. The last recent improvement was the final air-conditioner that is to be put in the master bedroom, belonging to Rino's and Meiko's parents.
The lodging management business had been shut down for a while. The last cohabiters that were possibly the last people to ever set foot in the building had the Man of the House furious and had potentially shut off the business. That left Rino as the current Man of the House. In other words, he owned this dormitory building now, and he will not plan to continue the dormitory business after what happened last time.
He approached the house, stepping over the dirt path with a limp that he did not notice was barely prominent unlike before. The grass on the path that was once there had long since been trampled over so many times that it no longer found the place doable for growth. Around him was a short grassed area, empty and open, occasional wires held up by poles to hang laundry, and the tree in the right corner of the backyard, a few meters apart from the wall to keep its roots from growing into the concrete, breaking the wall.
He reached over the porch, Meiko standing up from the Rattan chair found in the porch as he came and slid the door key in the keyhole. The door is pushed open and they both entered the very dim living room, the wide space barely perceptible through the darkness. When Rino expected to breathe very clean air due to leaving the air purifier open before he left for school in the morning, it wasn't there. Instead, he smelt really cold air and he felt it course to his brain, as if he ate a cool-flavored Mentos candy and he inhaled too much, getting a brain freeze. And when he stepped within, it was bloody COLD, as if something phenomenally created a blizzard inside the house and wreaked havoc.
The realization of his mistake struck him hard: the air conditioner was left on instead of the air purifier, brilliant. The electric bill would certainly bite him in the ass for this. Reaching for the remote that was always located near the door every time he left the house in case of coming home from a tiring P.E. activity, he clicked the 'Off' before throwing it into the darkness, right where the couch would be. Hearing a soft thud and no other noise following, he got lucky that the remote didn't bounce off the couch surface and hit the floor. That would be disappointing if it did.
He shuddered after a few seconds, the cold air won't be going anywhere for a few minutes.
Once he heard the door closing behind him and locking(?), Rino was suddenly grabbed by the hand, causing him to drop his bag to the floor, tugging him inwards to the dark room, careful not to aggravate his knee as he allowed himself to be dragged, fully familiar of what Meiko was trying to do. When the lights came turned on, in courtesy of his little sister passing by the switches whilst tugging his hand, catching him off guard, causing him to tighten his eyes shut out of reflex before slowly opening them, forgetting that he had bangs to cover them, too late to realize that she had dragged him to the couch and had pushed him down after he had his back facing the comfy furniture.
His back resting against the soft pillows, Meiko appeared half a second later in his view, her face shadowed by the fluorescent light behind her, placing a knee in between his own on the couch, her hands placed on both his shoulders, pinning him down gently, her other knee came next and laid beside his bad knee. Lifting up the knee in between his owns, she placed it beside his other knee and sat on his lap, her small arms capturing his head in a very tight embrace, her mouth grabbing ahold his cheek, his flesh in-between small lips and sucking. A form of a kiss.
She must've been frustrated.
He noticed how much she wanted to prolong that kiss when he arrived at lunch before, he felt it. His sensory ability never lies to him when it comes to her. Now that the two of them are all alone, no one is going to stop her, not even Rino.
He returned the hug, but it didn't feel warm to the heart—something is off with the hug.
Oh, yes. It burnt. The hug burnt because of his blazer, and not the nice way, even with the cold air still present; it was very uncomfortable, actually. Pushing her back just a little to give him space just for a bit, her lips popping off his cheek audibly, leaving a bit of wetness on his skin, he began unbuttoning his own blazer, trying not to appear like he was hurrying, wanting her to continue, because if she noticed, then she will not give him any mercy (he wouldn't appreciate it while wearing his uniform). The first button undone, another pair of hands began handling the remaining buttons at the bottom while Rino was about to begin with the second button.
His blazer quickly unbuttoned he immediately discarded it to his side. Before he even started, Meiko was already starting to unbutton his white shirt, his blue tie coming off first, pulled out of his collar and thrown on top of his favorite blazer before proceeding to unbutton the cursed shirt. While it was a wordless favor, it didn't stop his heart from throbbing to a certain feeling that he knew too well whenever things between him and her get a little….suggestive. Her undressing his shirt was something she never did before, and it made him feel a little hot on his cheeks.
When the white shirt came off as well, Rino's upper body was left with nothing but a plain black undershirt, the ebony quality made his pale skin stand out prominently, much whiter under the white fluorescent light unblocked by Meiko's small form, especially his slim arms, neck, and visible collarbone.
Returning the favor he undid her blazer as well so she can make her embraces feel nice, although he had one hand wrapped around her waist while the other unbuttoned the entire piece of warm clothing. Meiko's small hand, porcelain white even whiter under the fluorescent, practically reflecting the lights, held on to his working arm, not really pushing it back but it simply held on to his wrist passively. Down to the last button, he remove it from her person and placing on a separate side before returning to work on more of her clothing.
Except that his hand that was about to unbutton the first button stopped moving the sooner he found out that she wasn't actually wearing an undershirt underneath. Looking up to her face, her eyes were closed and she was not showing any sign of discomfort at all. There was no way she didn't feel her shirt being tugged, he knew that. Was she allowing him?
He thought better than to do that, he only undid her red tie and placed it atop her discarded blazer.
Through with removing the hindrances to any affectionate physical contact, he hugged her again and brought her close to himself, the slimness of her waist gone prominent now that the blazer was long gone. He moved his upper body forward, leaning off the backrest of the couch and drawing himself even closer to her. Meiko held either side of his face, small hands blending with the color of his colorless face and drew closer, her chest pressed against his, deliberately grinding both their groins together in the movement. Faces at a very close proximity, face to face, nose to nose, forehead to forehead, and just one inch away from becoming lips to lips.
The light brown orbs that belonged to Meiko stared back into Rino's own, only she could see them. All of him. His eyes, his emotions, his unseen side, a certain side of him that not even the adult friends her brother has could ever see. Everything beneath that black curtain was all of his expressions. The black bangs that shaded all emotion from showing on his face, it was very transparent to her. She can see ALL of him. When she brushed aside his bangs, his face shadowed by her form, it wasn't much different from what she expected. His stern face that he wore all times, from the moment he talked to Nishimura to the moment he talked to Takahashi, his face would automatically soften the sooner he stared back at her sister's loving gaze with absolutely nothing blocking his view, not even his bangs. He always does.
All because he loved her, and she knew that. Nothing made her happier more than the simple truth that she was loved by the most important person in her life.
He brought his face even closer to her own, feeling the electricity crackle across his lips as he brushed her own. In a wordless demand, he rubbed foreheads with her. Meiko slid her hands across and gripped his hair lightly, tugging, sometimes twirling the long black tresses with her finger. Lifting her knees up, she wrapped her legs around his waist and hugged from there, the embrace going tighter and passionate, deliberately shifting her hips against his own at the same time, the electricity in the specific area growing intense in every friction. Her childlike body was light, giving Rino no discomfort at all in his position. He would stay still for as long as he liked and let himself be hugged and kissed. Rino continued to stroke her back in a slow relaxing pace, sometimes turning into kneading, making her comfortable in her place, sharing emotional energies with the contact of both their bodies, the friction in their hips growing intense in every passing second.
Emotional energies.
It is something all humans could exchange and feel from other people without even noticing, Rino learnt how to notice them and taught his sister how. The advantage of learning how to decipher the emotion through touch is the ability to figure out the mood of the person. There are only two categories of signs that differentiate the positive and negative emotions apart. The feeling of rejection: the feeling of wanting to let go as if the person was repulsive; the feeling of acceptance: the feeling to never let go as if it is desirable to stay in such a state for all of eternity.
The feeling of never wanting to part with a hug, a handshake or a kiss, that feeling was comparable to a drug. And Rino was addicted to it. He may look like a man who wanted nothing to do with other people but it never hurts him to hold someone's hand and shake it. It was how he keeps his depression away, the smallest dose can even cheer him up without showing it. Shaking hands with Shina was good for him. His sweet little sister was an endless supply of them.
Rino and Meiko learnt to take advantage of the technique to feel a very strong feeling of affection that cannot be felt by presence alone, and it felt intoxicating like the drug it seemed to be. Forms of physical contact are ripe with warm emotions; Hug each other very tightly, rub foreheads, hold hands, and lastly, kissing. But Rino and Meiko never crossed that line, not yet. They were certain about it, kissing could be the most powerful exchange of emotional energies. If they were to kiss, not only would it feel so damn good, the exchange would be so massive that they could die from it.
But they both had reasons not to, but neither knows what the other's reason is, and they will never bother asking what and why, ever. Despite their better thoughts, they were always on the verge of doing the deed whenever they do these daily passionate escapades, but there was always the conscience to not do it and preserve their first kisses. In every urge suppressed, the yearning gradually grew stronger and stronger each time, and the restraint might not hold any longer in every passing variation. But they seem to agree on one thing without talking about it:
The moment must be perfect.
In minutes that passed neither counted nor noticed passing, he gave a long peck to the bottom of her lower lip, gesturing that it's time to stop. Her pout was quite cute to look at, but they both know they can't stay like this. They still need to take a bath, change clothes, and eat, then go to sleep after an hour or two of studying or fiddling with the internet.
With a disappointed sigh, Meiko returned an even longer and softer kiss to the bottom of his left eye, her last and final kiss for today. She rearranged his bangs back into place to keep the lights from burning his sensitive eyes before reluctantly removing herself from his lap, the lights quickly blaring down at his face as her small figure walked away, heading for the back end of the house, taking her discarded clothes with her. He followed her shortly, taking with him his unworn pile.
Carrying with them their blazers and ties and white shirt, they headed to the washing room just behind the kitchen, the Banyo. Seemingly like a cross between a laundry room and a bathroom with a screen door leading to the yard within, the location found on the lower part of the L of the house. Brown tiles filling the floor and walls, 4 round laundry pails in a neat pile in the left corner, and a very large bucket of water placed in the far corner. The dryer and washer located near the door. Gathering all the unclothed bunch of clothing in one hand and removing what remains of their upper clothing (save for the skirt and pants that were still in their person), they placed them inside the washing machine before walking over to their respective rooms on the second floor.
Rino's room was decorated with prized posters of metal bands on the walls, namely Cradle of Filth; Guns 'n' Roses; Attack Attack; Ozzy Osbourne; blessthefall; and his idol band, Motionless in White. He even included his greatest favorite, Kamikazee, the "Linkin Park" of the Philippines (to him, it is) placed prominently at one lone wall above the bed. The space of the room was larger than any other room in the house, allowing him to reach the end of the room with 7 steps; perfect with thick white walls that perfectly soundproofed the room; and a wide blue one-way window that was thickly covered with thick black cloth, completely barricading any sound from leaving the house, and completely keeping the sunlight from entering. A king-sized bed is set in the middle of the room against the wall. His desk lay in the corner, his black HP laptop laying over the surface and a few scattered papers and pens, written down guitar tabs that have been revised and left alone for a long while. His hybrid acoustic-electric guitar and amplifier with distortion lay in another corner near the door, held up by the tripod guitar stand.
He had left Anna Maria alone for a week, he needed to clean her up and soon. He didn't want her to rust and give his fingers a bad coloring every time he wants to jam.
Giving Anna Maria a caress of his fingers as he closed the door, causing her to hum, strings of E, A, D, G, B, e resonating to his touch, a fretless chord filling the soundproofed silence of the room, he took his towel placed atop his chair and walked back to the bottom floor for the bathroom, aiming to get rid of his blood-reeking trousers and renew his bandages.
A cold bath sounds like a good idea. Today had been a fiery day.