Asmodeus would trudge through many things, decide his future and fate with his own hands … and now he debated whether or not being 'Alice' on stage in front of millions of people would somehow be LESS embarrassing than spending another minute around his Mother. "Oh that sailor uniform looks so lovely on you."
She wasn't putting him in a dress. That was what was important here. "If you say so mother." Asmodeus rolled his eyes. "So what 'mother-son' bonding did you plan today? Don't say Sabbath, I'm not in the mood, and Gaako's with her family today as well."
"Of course I wouldn't put you on the Sabbath … I still need you to tell me everything you can about your girl after all … you know, the one you never told me about?" The smile ment trouble, this was going to suck.
"... She's a girl … we hang out …." Come on, something generic she can't latch onto!
"How far have you gotten? Or did that play explain everything? Very tasteful I might add."
"THAT PLAY WAS LIES AND SLANDERS! LIES AND SLANDERS! I wasn't even at the war, I was far more busy with the buff moron Sabnock as we collected points with those Devi-Damned morons, the Dorodoro brothers!"
"... So you left her high and dry is what I'm hearing?" This woman would not let him live anything down! "You find yourself a nice little dom-dragon and leave her all by her lone-some? I thought you were better than that."
"I just, it's just, I don't see why you have the right to complain. Didn't dad do the same?" Asmodeus felt the mood of the room drop some, instantly regretting. "I'm sorry, didn't mean to say that, it's just-"
"No….it's FINE." It wasn't. "I'm...I'm just glad that I get to have the BEST part of him with me. You." Oh, that was actually very sweet of her. "If only Inko were here with us. She could've brought her baby with her and we could all be one nice, ah Nakama, as you put it." Don't you dare taint that name, mother! Don't you ruin Nakama for him!
"I'm sure she's busy with the thirteenth month just like the rest of us." Asmodeus spoke up. "And Izuku is likely going to spend time with-"
"Mama!" His two little cousins called out, both running into the room.
"Aunty Inko wants a call." Lily spoke while holding out the phone.
"And Izu-kun is on screen, he's a princess." Viole pointed at the TV excitedly.
He loved his little cousins like sisters, he truly did, but did they really need to spring THIS of all things onto his mother?
"Oh really, this day is starting off so well!" His mother grabbed the phone. "Hey, Inky! Viole just told me! So your son's a demdol?...Hm, now that I think about it, Izumi appeared with four other mysterious girls a few months ago...one of which seems to share MY cotton candy's name!"
…. It was days like this he wished his fire sword aimed at Izuku's neck rather than his back … he'd never act on it NOW of course, but the wish was nice all the same.
Ameri's father really seemed insistent on her getting out more. She understood it was to help improve herself, but so soon after the ball? Apparently this was doubling as an 'apology' for it, which in all honesty she would never ever regret.
'I had my first kiss with Izzy-kun! He was speechless, and not scared or worried or trembling in fear! I really am ahead!' Her head's been stuck on cloud nine ever since that night, and she only had high hopes for the future afterwards. Sure, they haven't said much about the kiss since then, but Izzy looked so happy whenever they crossed each other in the halls, even doing the awkward sidestepping like in the sacred text!
But she couldn't focus on that now. Now she needed to focus on the present, which was her acting as a volunteer security guard. The Demdoll event brought plenty of happiness after all, and they upped security considering the Six Fingers being a bit more active than usual.
"Kuromu, I don't think we should go out there. Izumi's in a weird place right now." A familiar voice could be heard from a room she was checked to inspect due to some commotion complaints.
"It's fine, the determination works, even if the way they got it was flawed." That was a bit concerning, well, it was her duty to investigate … well that and the fact there was a gaping hole from a kicked down door. The latter might have helped.
"Excuse me, I heard there was trouble and … came to … investi …" Ameri saw Izzy … in a frilly dress … with everyone else … WHAT!? "IZZY! I was fine with you being a furry because I thought it meant you weren't going to crossdress anymore!"
"Wait, you know...wait you actually thought…you think...CAN I GO ONE DAY WITHOUT PEOPLE ASSUMING I HAVE SOME FUCKING KINK!?" And she made him mad. Great, that was a setback.
"It was less of a kink and more of an identity disorder, there's many of them actually. One guy literally used magic to feel more like an older man because he felt old." Eiko patted the boy on the back. "Besides, there's nothing wrong with crossdressing … or being a furry."
"I'm literally about to decay into nothing because there's nothing but rotting organs inside of me now." Izzy looked like he would fall over dead. "Okay, so that there's no more misconceptions, Kerori is Kuromu, the Calamity Cult is the Cute Quintet, and I'm only doing this because I'm trying to be a good friend."
"I wanted to reveal that!" Kerori said. "I had a skit ready and everything."
"... Why would-"
"Every Demdoll has the ability to make skits." Lied spoke up, ALSO in a dress. "It's this weird thing nobody has been able to explain, like how Valac's can break into musical numbers with spotlights and stuff."
"Wait, so no one else can do that?" Valac asked. "I thought everyone could."
"No, but don't worry, they can be … fun to watch." Eiko spoke up, patting her.
"Okay then … I see that this isn't something permanent then." Ameri nodded with a cough into her fist. "I'm … sorry for assuming. I just really, really didn't want you to be in a dress. Does not do the mind well to picture."
"Trust me, I think I'm going legitimately insane just by wearing this thing. After today, I'm DONE with anything Demdol related." Izzy huffed. "I'll just go back to being the crazy danger-junkie hero bunny or whatever name Bablys has for me next."
"If it's any consolation I think the dress does wonders for your frame." Ameri, Clara, Lied, and Izzy all turned to Eiko. "... I'm bisexual, you all know what i'm about."
"Right...the threeway." Ameri crossed her arms.
"Wait, that's actually real...Azz wasn't just screwing with me?!" And Izzy was having another mental crisis. Great going, Eiko. You set him back again!
Kuromu, or apparently Kerori, walked up and slapped Izzy. Don't you dare hurt him! "Snap out of it, you can worry about your messed up inability to handle a single woman in your love life later. Right now we need your head in the game. Remember what's at stake, pride, honor, my ambition, and the girl that called you ugy." Who did what?
"I've lost the first two the moment I put on a dress and I could care less about the last one, but the middle is reason enough for me to go through with this. Plus Ultra people. Clara, you'll be okay sitting this out with Ameri?"
"Wait, i'm doing patrol I can't just-"
"Sure thing! Come on Lady Red Hair!" But her job! "We'll watch Izumi-kins together!"...Hm, valid point, and she'll keep an eye on the girl that stole what should have been hers….leaving Izzy between the most popular demdol in the netherworld and the girl that sang her confession to him….this was hell.
"Alright, strategy time, we don't have much time before the events so listen up." Kerori stated as one team after another got called out, the group watching from a small screen. Lied wanted to go out and meet everyone, but that could wait.
"Why didn't we talk about strategy before?" Izuku asked.
"I wanted to wait until Merun was here, but seeing as the bitch has become a traitor to my empire …" Guess the Queen of Beasts hasn't completely gone away. It was weird seeing her being cute one moment and icily stunning the next.
"So what's the main objective here? It's a demdol festival, right? I thought it would just be a series of performances?" Izuku wondered. Right, he never heard of Demdols until he came to Bablys. One of the worst sins the Chair Demon has ever committed.
"If it was just that then I could have asked for anyone else." She explained. "Here, there's a series of physical challenges."
"It's athletic events such as a sixty six mile run, rock climbing, tail wrestling …" He dozed off before being snapped back into reality by Eiko, thank you sis. "Archery, tug of war, cavalry battle, all of it leads to the last event, where the four finalists perform concerts with the genre's picked based on the Demdoll that got the most points beforehand."
"It's like you've got Demdoll trivia to rival Izu's Hero trivia." Eiko pointed out.
"Yeah, I'm weirdly more prepared for this than I thought." Izuku nodded, taking notes of everything Lied just said. "It just sounds like a slightly more complex version of the U.A sports festival."
"There's another major fact you all need to be aware of." Kuromu stated. "We Demdolls pride ourselves on being both cute and effective, it's our motto and solem swear. If anyone here tries to not be cute in an effort to win … I'll personally kill you myself, friendship be damned." Lied gulped at that one.
"Yeah, hard to be threatened when you've already tried to kill me before."
"Don't need to threaten you, you already hold yourself to Plus Ultra." She stated.
"... Wow you're effective." Izuku muttered. "Either Way, I'll take Archery, pretty sure I'm the only one of us who's ever used a bow."
"Not for lack of trying, believe me." Eiko huffed. "I spent forty hours trying to get it right, but I just broke the bow instead. It's just not worth it."
"Eiko, it takes a week to get it down." They all stared at the boy in horror. How spiteful was he to spend that long on a single type of object?
"Fuck that. If I can't master something in a day now, I drop it completely." Eiko said indignantly.
"You know, I'm starting to see why my Master acts the way she does around new students." Izuku muttered. "So what else should we take?"
"I'm the most prepared for rock climbing and the sixty-six run." Eiko raised her hand. "I've spent a lot of time at the Harvest Festival chasing people around all year, aint nothing is going to get in my way."
"I've got tail wrestling." Lied spoke up. "Kuromu needs to be in top form for later events, I might as well pull my own weight."
"Are you just doing this to be a perv?" Izuku asked with a raised eyebrow.
"By all means, if you want to touch tail to tail with another girl, feel free."
"You know I'm never going to say yes to that, stop being mean. Besides, I don't have a tail unless I'm Deku or in Skvader mode."
"Izuku-kins are out of all flying stuff too." Clara butted in. "So, what do I get to play?"
"You're a substitute." Kerori waited for the nod, or smile to fade. She received nothing. "It means if someone else can't play their game, you fill in."
"Okay, so I can play if someone else can't play. Got it." Clara brought out a Chainsaw. "Lied-game-boy, you don't need legs today, right?" How did Izuku deal with this!?
"Clara, you do get to play!" Izuku shouted, getting the maniac to drop the weapon. "You get the most important part, the cheerleader! You shout and cheer for us to win and keep all of us happy!"
"YAY! Cheerleader!" She shouted. "I'm gonna make pompoms!" Saved by the skin of his kneecap.
"And here comes the coolest Demdoll to hit the stage, a recent sweep of popularity, give it up for … Gyari!" The crowd went wild, like it should. She didn't bring out the motorcycle for nothing! "Look at all her fans roar! And she brought her harem with her! So jealous!" The announcer droned on.
"Her flashy performances and Rock solid performances have allowed her to take what she wants wherever she wants." The second older announcer said. "I don't think I've ever seen a demon that embodies greed more so than her."
She never understood it, greed. She wants something and she gets it. That wasn't greed, people usually handed it over to her. Money, fame, toys, boobs. In fact there was only one thing she couldn't have … Kuromu. That sparkling girl was worth more than anything Gyrai had ever seen before, a true secondary protagonist.
"Thank you for taking me onto your team, Gyari!" Her latest girlfriend, farmer tits, spoke while holding onto her. She didn't even try with that one, she just wanted to know where Kuromu was.
"Yeah, yeah, whatever." Eh, she would've taken her regardless of whether or not her fourth player dropped out due to Gyari being 'uncaring' and 'negligent', or whatever made up bullshit words people said these days.
"And here they come, the team from the Kuromu agency … is that a little girl?" The first announcer starts, everyone looking to see Loli moving front and center, holding out pom poms with a wide grin. Where the hell was everyone else? Kuromu better not have bailed, unless it was to get marriage certificates, then she would allow it.
"You FOOL!" The second announcer spoke, much louder. "That's the forest fairy Clarine, only seen once through all recent Demdoll history, we have little information besides one performance where the mysterious Cute Quintet had made their debut." Cute Quintet? Where has she heard that name before?
"Alrighty everyone! Are...you….ready?!" She shouted, balls of fire launching from behind her … and becoming flowers of fire in the sky. "Here comes the cute Quinet, revised!" The crowd went wild, and for once Gyari was actually semi curious about whatever lame bitch Kuromu tried to support herself with.
"She's here! Kuromu, along with three of the five original Quintet!" The first announcer shouted, revealing from a cloud of smoke the Bimbo and Ugly jumping out of it together, holding hands as they posed. Ugh, such an eyesore, that apparently everyone was going crazy for. "Looks like they have a new member though." The fan posed right beside them.
"I'm Lilly, pleased to meet you, everyone? I'm super nervous about all the stardom, please treat me well." They finished with a bow. The crowd ate it up, but she wouldn't. Newbies didn't have a place in a stadium of pros.
"A team mostly composed of rookies. That doesn't bode well for the Prideful Divas." The second announcer spoke again. "Their only hope is if these rookies have talent beyond talent for being cute and stealing the spotlight."
Bimbo laughed. "That's Izumi in a nutshell! We're going to win this whole thing no problem!" She shouted loud and proudly. Ugly was muttering something she couldn't hear, and it ticked her off. What did that girl have that Gyari didn't, besides bad looks?
"Papa, I know you're curious, but can't we respect his privacy?" His darling daughter asked of him.
"Oh come now, if he's doing something like this without telling us, we must support him any way we can!" Sullivan countered. "We will cheer him on through whatever illegal activity he's doing."
"I've already prepared a hideout for him and his little friends oto lay low in. It has enough storage for food, water, and whatever narcotics they've likely chosen to sell and mass produce on the black market." Opera said with a simple bow.
"While I'm honestly not surprised you have a bunker, you all are being ridiculous. He would never do something so bad and evil." She argued.
"Which is why we're making sure it IS good and true." Sullivan grabbed the remote. So many complicated buttons. "Now, how do you turn on the TV again?"
"Allow me sir." Opera grabbed the remote and hit the big red one at top. Of course! So obvious. The butler began flipping through channels with a raised eyebrow. "That's … odd."
"What is Opera?" Please tell him it wasn't anything too risky.
"There's nothing on the news, and the only major events televised today are the Demdoll games." They said, finally resting on that channel.
Inko sighed in relief. "Now I get it, he wanted to go out and watch it with friends and thought it would be embarrassing to tell us of his new interest." Of course, how could he be so blind! Izuku-kun was at that age, after all, interested in girls.
"The crowd goes wild as Izumi takes center stage!" … The group slowly turned back to the TV. Sure enough, it was his darling grandson in a fluffy frilly dress.
"... Opera, record it!"
"Done!"
"Inko, get every friend we have!"
"Already calling!"
"How long would it take for the highest quality television to arrive?" Sullivan asked.
"Three days sir."
"That's three days too late, I'm flying there myself!" If he could record this in the highest of definitions, he would. He wouldn't miss a moment of his darling grandson … or granddaughter, going big in the world.
