Lupa set off, and the video feed split into two, one feed following her and the other staying with the group of Lyle, Marla, and the twins. Z-29 tapped at the console a few times, fast forwarding through Lupa's walk to her destination, which turned out to be another school: bigger than the middle school she had just left, and the older-looking kids milling about as she fast-forwarded had her assume that it was the high school. The feed showed Lupa walking into the building, making her way to the library, and then meeting a group there with…

Hmmm. Well, this was an interesting group here. Z-29 hadn't really had a chance to look at these two, especially, since she had arrived…maybe now would be a good time? Instead of playing Lupa's feed, she rewound the video, focusing instead on the feed that stayed with the other girls she had met up with.

...

"Okay, Terr…go ahead and start from the beginning, if you could."

"All right, love…so, it all started about two weeks ago, when…"

"Strike that." Lyra rubbed her forehead, as she could feel a migraine starting to come on. "I actually don't need quite that much backstory. When I said, 'the beginning', I was actually hoping for something a bit closer to…y'know, today. Start there, instead."

"Hah? Oh…right, right, I follow ya." The girl sitting across the table from her nodded. Compared to Lyra, wearing her regular, modest-looking purple jacket on a white shirt and jeans combo, this girl seemed to be trying to rack up as many dress code violations as she could cram into one ensemble: A cut top that showed off all of her midriff, a mesh undershirt, and short-shorts that didn't make it down her upper thigh. "If we're starting with today, then I guess it started when I saw the janitors take out that big ol' bag of recycled bottles. And I just felt inspiration hit me, like BANG! Y'know?"

"Yes, Terry, I DO know how most of your moments of inspiration come with a 'bang'." Lyra's facial expression made it look like that migraine was sticking around. "But from my point of view, that 'bang' is the whole problem, isn't it?"

Terry blinked at Lyra, with a somewhat oblivious look on her face. After saying silent for a bit, she leaned to her left, asking the girl who sat there, "Hey, Lib, what's…"

"She means that the 'bang' you're describing is like an explosion." Liby, sitting on that side of the table, answered instantly, without even looking up from the numerous books and papers that surrounded her like a mini-fort. "And, like explosions, your bad ideas tend to leave a lot of destruction in their wake, which someone, USUALLY Lyra, has to clean up."

"Right. That's exactly it. Thanks, Liby." Lyra pointed her finger toward her sister behind the book barricade. "By the way, Lib, don't feel like you have to stay here with me. Liena went home early to get working on the party prep, so you can go too if you want."

"Are you kidding? Do you know how often I get a few minutes alone to use the 7e sourcebooks the library has without someone asking me to help them with their English homework?" Liby quickly replied, before a smirk curled across her face. "So tough luck, but you won't be DRAGON me outta here anytime soon!"

Liby's laugh at her own joke was met with groans from the rest of the girls at the table with her. Before she could ask the question they all knew was coming, Lyra spoke first, saying, "Yes, Liby, we get it. If you're fine waiting for us, then that's okay."

"Also, doesn't the library have newer D&D books?" Terry asked. "Can't you use those too?"

"Sure, if I wanted to fill a campaign with TRASH, I could." All traces of joking were gone from Liby's voice as she responded to Terry's inquiry. "Everyone knows that 8e and 9e are major steps back from 7e. It's almost offensive to even call those systems D&D."

Terry glanced over to Lyra, who simply shook her head, as if telling her sister that she did not want to continue with that topic. "A…alright, whatever you say, Lib. So…er, where were we…?"

"The recycled bottles." Lyra reminded her.

"Right, of course…so, inspiration hits me. See, for my next video, I'd been planning to grind down those big rails, the ones on the stairs between the school and the football field, y'know?" Terry started to explain herself. "But it always felt like it was missing something. There's plenty of big rail-grinding vids out there, mine needed something extra to make it POP, you know? Well, what could be a better way to do that then by ending my grind with a kickflip over a big pyramid of bottles?"

"Yes, what could be better?" Lyra's reply was dripping with sarcasm.

"Right?" Said sarcasm naturally bounced off of Terry's thick skull. "Anyway, the plan was to grab a bag or two of the bottles, set up the pyramid, get filmin' and record the trick during lunch. And it would have gone off without a hitch, except…well…"

"Right…gonna stop you there, Terr." Lyra turned her head to the left, asking the girl sitting there, "So, why didn't it work, Sonnette?"

The seat on the last side of the square table was occupied by a girl with long black hair, and an attire that was every bit as ridiculous as Terry's, albeit in different ways. She wore a floral-pattered Japanese top over a tracksuit to go with the mask on her face. Earlier in the day, the mask had a cute, cat-mouth design on it, but, following the day's events, she had switched to an angry demon-teeth mask instead. She had been glaring at Terry ever since this conversation had started, and even after Lyra had asked her the question, she continued to glare as she answered, "彼女はばかだったから."

"Mmhmm." Lyra sighed before turning back to the book-fort. "Hey Liby, can I get a translation?"

"She said, 'Because she was an idiot'." Liby again didn't look up as she replied.

"Thanks." Lyra turned back to Terry again. "So, how were you an idiot this time, Terry?"

"Hahaha…weeeell…" Terry bashfully scratched the back of her head. "Apparently, the bag we grabbed wasn't full of recycled bottles? It was actually, er, new bottles. That were…full of water and OJ and energy drinks, and…you know. Which was heavier than we expected, and so we dropped it. Pretty hard. And after it hit the ground, the bottles may have…spilled. A little bit."

"You flooded the entrance at door #6, Terry." Lyra interjected before Terry could continue. "And you got Sonnette soaked."

"羽織を脱いでよかった." Sonnette added as she clutched her patterned top.

"Yeah, good thing you had taken that haori off, Sonnette, or it would be as gross as the rest of your clothes right now." Liby replied to Sonnette, who nodded sadly.

"Aw, it wasn't that bad, was it?" Terry tried to defend herself a bit. "I mean, come on Sonnette, we've been through worse, haven't we?"

"うるさい、ばか." Sonnette's quick reply had plenty of obvious venom in it, even for those who didn't understand the Japanese to get exactly what she was saying.

"Whether you've 'been through worse' or not isn't the point, Terry." Lyra picked the conversation back up again. "The principal was rather furious at you for this one. He was still really unhappy when I met with him before last bell."

"Y-yeah?" Terry kept up a strong front, though her nerves were showing a bit. "Why, what did he…"

"After-school detention for the next two weeks." Lyra cut Terry off as she answered. "During which time, you'll be helping the janitors clean the whole school to make up for the mess you made."

"What? Aw, come on, Lyra!" Terry bolted up out of her seat. "That's way too much! Can't you do anything to help…"

"I already did. That's what you got AFTER I argued down your sentence." Lyra's response was sharp once again. "Otherwise it might have been two months, not weeks."

"Oh, man…that suuuucks." Terry slid back down into the chair. "There's really nothing you can do?"

"The most I could do was to have your punishment start tomorrow, so that you can attend Lulu's birthday party." Lyra sighed. "Other than that, you're out of luck, I'm afraid. Best to just keep your head down and avoid making Principal Kean mad again for the next few months."

"Aw maaaaaan." Terry slumped forward, laying her head on the table. "I had so many plans next week. Hanging out with Gaby, skateboarding with Tim, chilling with Cecelia…"

"If you think that's going to make me feel bad about the situation you find yourself in, it won't." Lyra replied coldly to Terry's plight. "You'll have to reschedule whatever sinning you had planned for later, I suppose."

"Yeah, and it was gonna be such sweet sinning, too." Terry mumbled on as yet another poke at her went straight over her head. "So lame, man…"

"Yes, we've heard. Anyway…" Lyra tried to move the conversation along. "Don't you think it's about time you apologized?"

Terry didn't budge for a moment, until she poked her head up slightly and asked, "Whuzzat?"

Lyra sighed deeply once more, until she pointed to her left. Sonnette was, indeed, still sitting there, still keeping up the harsh glare she had been shooting Terry's way since they sat down in the library.

"…oooh." Terry got the message, as she sat up straight in her chair. Turning to Sonnette, she bowed her head respectfully and said, "Sorry, Sonnette-sensei, for ruining your clothes. I promise I will make it up to you in the future."

Sonnette's glare didn't waver just yet. She continued to stare a hole through Terry until she finally grumbled, "本当に約束しますか？"

Terry kept her head bowed as she called out, "Hey Lib…"

"She said, 'Do you seriously promise?'" Liby replied in an instant.

"Right…yeah, of course I do." Terry looked up and nodded at Sonnette. "You know you can count on me, right sis?"

A beat hung in the air for a moment before Sonnette finally softened her expression, sighing as she mumbled, "それでいいよう," and flashed Terry a thumbs up.

"Alright, cool." Terry lifted her head, then raised her arms in a hug-beckoning motion. "C'mon, sis, bring it in."

"ハグはだめ." Sonnette appeared to back off, but Terry got up and hugged her anyway. The look on Sonnette's face seemed to indicate annoyance at first, then eventually shifted into resignation.

"Well, once you're done hugging it out, maybe I could move on to the next topic I've been asked to bring up today?" Lyra looked over to the hugfest going on to her left.

"Sure, sure." Terry gave Sonnette one last squeeze before letting go and turning back to Lyra. "So, what's next on the docket, boss?"

"This one is for Sonnette, actually." Lyra glanced over to the masked girl. "Several of your teachers have inquired as to when you intend to start speaking English again, Sonnette. Adding, I might point out, that keeping up with your insistence on only speaking Japanese is starting to exhaust them, and they would prefer it ended sooner rather than later."

"えええ～、なんで？" Sonnette's tone was clearly complaining. "私はまだ宿題をしている."

"Sonnette, just because you're still doing your work doesn't mean it isn't a pain." Liby cut in, closing one of the books in front of her and adding it to fort as she spoke. "Not just for your teachers, but for me too. I keep getting pulled out of my classes to help translate for you, since they don't know what else to do."

"See? It's causing trouble for everybody, and your teachers really want you to cut it out." Lyra continued. "Now, I know you told me you're doing it to improve your Japanese skills, and I'm totally supportive of that, but you've got to give a little ground here, alright? Just go back to English during your classes, at least."

"はああ～...わかったよ." Sonnette let out a sigh before she answered with a nod.

"Okay…" Lyra glanced over at Liby, who gave her a thumbs up that, indeed, that was a 'yes' from Sonnette. "Good, then. I suppose that should satisfy them. Though they are curious as to what brought this about and all…"

"Oh, I can answer that." Liby jumped in before Sonnette answered. "She told me she reeeally wanted to watch her favorite manga's anime adaptation without subtitles, so she could enjoy it without having to keep an eye on the bottom of the screen. So she decided to sharpen up her Japanese before it airs in a couple months."

Lyra glanced over to Liby, not saying anything right away, before looking back to Sonnette and asking, "…that's it?"

Sonnette didn't reply right away, thinking about it for a moment before she finally nodded and said, "魔法少女プリズムちゃんは本当にすごいです."

"I mean, you're right, Magical Girl Prism-chan is really good, but speaking only Japanese for months to prep for it is a little over the top, Sonnette." Liby replied as Lyra brought her hand to her forehead. "I mean, talk about getting 'lost in translation'…hah? Get it?"

Another groan escaped from the other girls assembled. Liby continued to look around for a good reaction, and eventually Lyra replied to her hopeful look by saying, "I'll overlook that one, just because I'm grateful that you learned Japanese a while back to play that imported RPG Dad bought. It's made all our lives quite a bit easier these last few weeks."

Before anyone else could say anything, the girls heard a beeping noise…quiet, but audible. Lyra checked the watch on her wrist, which displayed a message for her, and tapped it once, silencing the beeps. "Well, that's my cue…I've got to go, girls."

"Running errands for the party tonight?" Liby asked as Lyra got up from her seat.

"Something like that, yeah. Speaking of…" Lyra slid her chair back under the table after she got up. "If you girls don't have anything else to do, would you mind heading to our house? I'm sure Liena could use a hand before things get started, and you're both better cooks than I am."

"Yeah, sure, no prob." Terry nodded, as Sonnette flashed Lyra a thumbs up. "Sides, I'm pretty free. Kept my calendar clear for fun times with Double Lu, you know?"

"Alright, thanks girls." Lyra smiled as she picked up her bag from the table and slung it over her shoulder. "Liby, don't get so absorbed in those books that you forget to go home until late, okay?"

"Don't worry, I won't forget…uh, again." Liby waved Lyra off.

"Okay then." Lyra turned to walk out. "I'll be leaving now. Girls, if you need anything, you can always reach me, I've got my…"

"Your phone."

"Gah!" the girls still at the table jumped a bit from the sudden voice piping up from behind them. Lyra, however, managed to keep her composure…enough experience had helped her deal with Lupa's pop-up-from-nowhere trick.

"Lupa…what are you doing here?", asked Lyra. "I thought you were going straight home after…"

"Like I said. Turn. On. Your. Goddamn. Phone." Lupa's voice was lacking in any of her usual playfulness as she pointed her finger at Lyra. "Do you have ANY idea how much bullshit I've been having to put up with because no one can reach you right now?"

"LANGUAGE, Lupa." Lyra admonished her sister. "I'm sure whatever it is, you don't need to be so…"

"Yes I do! Because unlike you, I actually have a FUCKING CLUE what's going on!" Lupa did not back down in the slightest, her voice actually raising despite her surroundings. "So why don't you just goddamn listen and turn on…"

"Alright, just keep your voice down!" Lyra shushed her sister again, as their little spat was starting to draw eyes from around the library, including from the librarians. She reached into her pocket and pulled out her phone, muttering to Lupa as she did so, "Honestly, I can't see what…"

The moment Lyra's phone was on, it started buzzing wildly. Fortunately, Lyra had the ringer off, so it was just vibrating in her hand.

"Lina?" Lyra's eyebrow arched as she looked at the caller ID before glancing to Lupa. "Why is she…"

"Hey, wanna know a FASTER way of finding out other than asking me?" Lupa immediately cut her sister off. "ANSWER IT."

Lyra rolled her eyes. Admittedly, she walked into that one. She tapped her phone and put it to her ear, saying, "Hello, this is Lyra Loud, how can I..."

"LYRA! Oh, thank goodness I finally got through to you!" A chipper voice on the other line, one that clearly did not belong to Lina Sharp, came through the line before Lyra could finish her opening spiel. "I tried calling a few times, then Lina tried, then I tried again, then we called Lupa, and she picked up, and then I called her again to make sure she was…"

"Whoa, whoa…Gloom? Slow down for a second." Lyra had to pull the phone away from her ear for a moment as Gloom's voice blasted through. "What exactly is…"

"…and THEN I tried calling again, but Lupa was being all mean, you know how she gets sometimes, but I didn't let that bother me and talked a little more, but then she hung up, so I had to call again…" Gloom continued to ramble away, undeterred.

Lyra sighed, pulled the phone away from her ear again, then glanced at Lupa and asked, "That 'bull' you mentioned…would this be it?"

"She called me seven times." Lupa grumbled as she grabbed the chair Lyra had been in and slumped down in it. "Seven. In a five-minute walk."

"Mmhmm." Lyra nodded. "All right, I suppose I can overlook the cussing this time. It was deserved."

"…and then she hung up for the THIRD time, and I thought well, this isn't really doing anything, so maybe it would be better to try calling you again, and then you picked up!" Gloom finally finished her spiel, taking a breath at last. "I'm so glad you're finally available, because we could really use your help, Lyra!"

"Yes, of course Gloom…but first, let me ask you something." Lyra finally brought the phone back to her ear. "You mentioned Lina…is she there with you?"

"Oh…yep!" The cheerful reply came back. "She's right here with me right now. She handed me her phone while we were running, so that's why I…"

"Great, great…so, could you please…" The tone of Lyra's voice shifted to a commanding one as she continued, "…PLEASE put Lina on the phone?"

"Sure! Of course, Lyra," was the sweet reply, oblivious to her sister's menacing tone. "One sec!"

A moment of muffled voices and noises came from the other line, until finally a new voice came through. "Hey Boss. First off, sorry about that, I was a little busy and…"

"No worries, Lina. But let's learn from that and make a rule to NEVER give Gloom the phone during an emergency again, okay?" Lyra answered. "Now, could you please explain what's going on?"

"Right…well, the short of it is Lemy's in trouble," was the reply from Lina.

"Hah…of course." Lyra sighed. "Which is different from other days how?"

"Because most other days, he isn't getting chased by a giant Russian chick who can hoist him up with one hand," said Lina. "A giant Russian chick who was asking about DAD, I should add."

Lyra's eyebrow arched. Before she replied, she pulled the phone away, glanced back over to Lupa, and asked, "A giant…Russian chick?"

"Hey, don't look at me. I had nothing to do with this one." Lupa replied with a shrug. "You want answers, you've got the girl with 'em on the phone right now."

Lyra nodded, bringing the phone back to her ear. "Okay, Lina…I'm gonna need you to start at the top. Tell me everything."

Lyra listened quietly while Lina explained the whole story. The girls still at the table exchanged nervous looks until Liby finally looked over to Lupa and asked, "Hey, what's going…"

"Nope. I'm done with it." Lupa threw her hands behind her head. "For once, I'm deciding not to mess with this beehive. I've passed it on to the boss, so my job? Done."

Liby frowned, but she knew the futility of trying to pull something out of Lupa when she got like this. Fortunately, she wouldn't have to wait long, as Lyra picked back up in the conversation on the phone. "Okay, I think I have an idea. What we need to do is get Lemy somewhere we can help him. Lina, is there any chance you can let him know where to go?"

"Uh…maybe?" Lina replied, unsure for a moment. "Yeah, I think I can figure something out."

"Alright. Get Lemy to start heading towards Pages and Pillows," explained Lyra. "I'll meet you guys there."

"…P and P?" Lina was hesitant. "Lyra, you know that Lemy and…"

"Yes, yes, I know. I was actually about to head there anyway to try and resolve that very situation." Lyra smirked a bit. "Think of it as killing two birds with one stone. And making Lemy clean up his own mess."

An audible sigh came from the other side of the line until Lina replied, "Alright, I'll try to send him that way. I'll meet you there when I can."

"Same. Thanks, Lina. Bye." Lyra ended the call and put the phone back in her pocket.

"Is everything alright, Lyra?" Liby asked, still with a worried look.

"Well, it's hard to qualify at the moment. But I think I can figure it out from here." Lyra replied.

"Want us to come with?" Terry asked, pointing to herself and Sonnette. "Bring a little extra muscle and all?"

"No, you guys head to the house for the party. I'll be alright." Lyra turned and starting walking to the door. "Besides, I'll have all the muscle I'll need when I get there."