Author's Note: It's so hot... feels like my brain is on boil. Working full-time doesn't help, either.

Here's chapter eight. I hope you enjoy!

Ikko shivered uncontrollably. Kia's hand settled on his shoulder blade, her soft warmth fighting past the bandages. "Oh, don't be a baby," she chided, "You're the one who asked for help."

"I know, but-"

"Hey, why are they squishy?" She pressed on the bandages, ignoring his stammering. "Eugh…"

He could attest to the efficacy of Ruby's healing balm, as gross as it felt. She applied pressure that would have sent his head spinning a few days ago. "It's a balm," he recollected, "Ruby made it to help me heal."

"Ruby the… security lady? You know her?"

"Kinda – can we get this over with?"

"Fine, fine. Oh, ew!" Kia began peeling the bandages back, and the pale paste of the witch's balm clung half-heartedly to the soiled bindings, dribbling down his back. "Ikko, this is gross! Oh my god-"

"It's not that bad!" he spoke over her complaints. Some of the trickling ooze touched skin, causing a disgusted shiver.

"You're not the one- ugh, this is no balm I've ever heard of." Her complaints persisted throughout the whole process. He gathered the bandages in the bin and tied the bag off, relishing the feel of any air on his mended body.

"It wasn't like – like lip balm. Think healing balm."

"Is that why it stinks?" Kia wrinkled her nose. "Get in the shower."

Ikko turned white, then flushed beetroot. "Thuh-"

"You stink! Get in there!" she all but pushed him into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him. "Did he grind your brain to mush as well as your bones?"

Feeling the indignance due a lad manhandled in his own apartment, not to mention Kia's sullen snapping, Ikko did as bade and stripped all the way, throwing himself into the shower. As the water cleansed the last globules of Ruby's magic away, he looked through the steamed cubicle to the door beyond. "How's school?"

"What?" Kia called back.

He repeated himself, slightly louder. At least the walls were thin enough, and the hall empty enough, for him to shout his curiosity and now have someone listen in.

"It's not been that long. You've only been in hospital two days."

"Long enough."

"You've not missed much. No homework that I didn't drop off. Kinda lonely, really."

Ikko frowned. He scrubbed his arms. "No luck?"

The hiss of water obscured her silence. He couldn't tell if Kia collected or steadied herself with the sigh that followed. "They were Masumi's friends first. Everyone always was. He has that way about him."

"Right." He finished washing, and as he dried himself a knock sounded. "What?"

"That wasn't me – someone's at the door. Want me to?"

"Sure."

He listened for the lock turning. "Ah! You!" came Kia's surprise.

They stood just far enough away to hide their voice. Ikko heard only mumbling. "No – no, he's just in the shower. I'll get him- Ikko!"

On cue, he popped his head out of the bathroom. Kia snorted. "What?"

"Your hair."

He picked at the clumping noodles of brown sticking to his face. "What of it?"

"Doesn't matter. Ruby's here."

Kia stepped to the side, revealing Ruby. She came burdened by a box that seemed desperate to wrest itself from her grasp. "Delivery!" she announced, "How're you feeling?"

"Uh-" Ikko looked between them. "Naked. Give me a sec."

He closed the bathroom door, pulling his trousers back on and wiping the mirror free of steam to check himself. Same scrawny body, same sodden mop of garbage bag brown hair – only now he saw them. A thousand tiny nicks and scratches, pale lines scarring his chest and arms. He ran his finger over them, feeling all too keenly the fragility everyone warned him of. "Ikko?" Kia's voice called.

"Huh?"

"Did you die in there? Come on, we're waiting."

"Sorry."

He threw a shirt on once out of the bathroom, taking a seat at his desk. Kia sat opposite on the bed, with Ruby standing between them. She set the medium-sized box down and placed her foot on it, standing much like might put their foot up on a tavern bench to announce a toast. "Looks like you've healed nicely."

"We just took the bandages off." Ikko nodded.

"I took them off, thank you very much." Kia pouted. "You sat there, stinking."

"Medicine's not there to smell nice." Ruby smiled. "You'll be glad to know that the investigation into the incident is wrapped up. Kotsubo's been banished."

It didn't quite lift the dread gnawing at the back of his mind, but Ikko nodded nevertheless. Kia scoffed. "Good!"

"Quite. With that in mind, the headmaster saw fit to authorize one of these for you. I'd meant to deliver it sooner, but – well." Ruby nudged the box.

Kia looked from it to Ruby, face contorting. "I thought you said the paperwork was for Ikko?"

"Paperwork?" asked he.

"Yeah – she had that thing on her last time, when Kotsubo grabbed you."

Ikko's curiosity glued him to the box. It rattled under his stare, frightening him back into looking at the witch. "Wh-what's in it?"

"Do you mind?" Ruby inquired, with a meaningful tip of her head towards Kia.

"Oh. Er. Yeah. I mean she's here now, so…"

Though Kia puzzled at their exchange, Ruby moved on. "It'll be glad to be out of its cage – don't worry, it's harmless – but with everything transpiring as it did, this'll be useful going forward."

She cut the box open and extracted from within a cylindrical cage covered in black cloth. "Now, Ikko," she instructed, "Don't freak out."

"What is it – a bird? Why would I freak out about a bird?" Ikko went back to staring at the cage. What good would a bird do?

"Not a bird, no." Ruby pulled the cloth off all at once, revealing a bare cage with shorn newspaper bedding. In the precise middle of the container, on eight spindly legs with a round body of mottled marble white, stood the weirdest spider he'd ever seen. It opened one bulbous, veiny black eye, locking onto Ikko. It stared. He stared back.

"Is that what I think it is?" Kia broke the silence. Both Ikko and spider-thing swivelled to face her.

"You recognise that thing?"

"Sorta? They're super rare."

"It's a shikigami," Ruby answered Ikko's bafflement, "A bit of magic that's out of my reach; they're bred for all sorts of things."

"You can breed magic?"

"You can breed shikigami, which are magic," Ruby clarified.

"I think one of Masumi's friends is from a family that does it," Kia added, "Yeah – Judo's… dad, I think? You can make a lot of money in the monster communities with these little guys."

Ikko leaned forward to tap the cage, each time causing it to blink and wobble unevenly. "I still don't get it. What's this gonna do for me?"

"I thought pets were banned on campus?" Kia added, eyeing Ruby. "Won't this just get him expelled?"

"This is a special exception headmaster Mikogami's wrangled for Ikko, accounting for his – his nature."

Ikko frowned, all too aware of the way Kia's eyes trained on him, demanding an explanation. It lingered in stiff silence before he cleared his throat, trying to push to the heart of the matter before them. "S-so what does it do?"

"Let me show you," Ruby unfastened the cage and swung the door wide, "Hold out your hand."

"What? No!" Ikko recoiled from the shikigami. Despite the promise of freedom, it hadn't budged an inch.

"She won't bite – do you see any teeth on her?"

"It's a her?"

"Ikko!" Ruby cut his questions off. "Your hand. Please."

He did as asked, and as soon as he extended his fingers out towards the creature it skittered into action. The shikigami placed one tentative leg on his fingertip, feeling like the slightest press of a needle, its eye watching the place where skin met chitin. It surged forward with frightening agility. He yanked his hand away, but too late – the shikigami crawled onto his hand. He could only watch, horrified, as the thing flattened the bulk of its body against his wrist, then wove its eight legs together into four pairs. Its flesh hissed as its limbs fused, taking on the shape of a bizarre, pale marble bracelet. He barely felt its skin against his. Ikko looked to Ruby, panic surging. "What is it doing? Why is it- how is it-"

"Relax," Ruby assured. She pulled back the sleeve of her coat, revealing a similarly-shaped bracelet in black. "These shikigami are twins. One for you, one for me. White reads your vitals; black lets me know if they act… weird."

On cue, the black bracelet opened its single, inky eye and let out a high-pitched whistle. "See? It's working!" Ruby's delight did not assuage Ikko's quickening breath. "You'll only have to wear it in-school and off-campus. Any other time is your own, and you can remove it whenever you please."

The whistling grew louder. Kia stifled a giggle, hearing the twitchy Ikko's anxiety given sound and shape. She reached out to stroke his shoulder. "Ikko – Ikko, come on. You sound like a kettle!"

"I'm not a kettle!" he yelped, voice breaking. He focussed on his breathing, running the hand not wearing the shikigami through his hair. "Oh, boy…"

"It'll let me know if you're in distress," Ruby explained, "And mine can point me in your direction."

"What if you're busy?" he asked, breathing in louder than was entirely necessary. Kia shuffled a little closer, fingers scraping over his shoulder with an affirming touch.

"Then Miss Shirayuki will take over. Oh – when you want it off, all you have to do is this." Ruby lightly tapped the eyeball on her wrist, and in a flash her shikigami extricated itself from its transformation and leapt silently onto the bed. Ikko followed suit, and soon the pair stared each other down on the bed. "And hold your hand out when you want it back on. She'll only answer to your touch, so you're the only one who can take it off without ripping your arm out."

"Which someone could do," Ikko pointed out. Ruby shook her head.

"Kotsubo was a one-time thing. I don't think you'll find a threat like that in the student body; this is just a precaution."

"Eh…" Ikko's whinge signalled his confidence. He held out his hand again, strangling his disgust with curiosity to see the shikigami transform again. "You can't say the headmaster isn't thorough…"

"Preparing for the worst is his job." Ruby reclaimed her shikigami and presented Ikko with a small stack of forms. "Sign these when you're ready and hand 'em to Miss Shirayuki. Oh – and whilst we're aware of the circumstances, pets are still forbidden on campus grounds. If a teacher who isn't Miss Shirayuki catches you playing with it, we're not going to be able to do much."

"How do I take care of it?"

"It's all there in the paperwork – they're low-maintenance, don't fret. Like a goldfish!"

Ikko failed to see how caring for a small fish in a medium bowl compared at all to the care of a cyclopean transforming glam-rock accessory. He continued to examine the shikigami from every angle, flinching away from his wrist when its eye opened to meet his. "So weird…"

"I think they're cute." Ruby protested, admiring her accessory with a small purse of her lips. "Now – I'll be going. Enjoy the rest of your day off, Ikko. Kia."

She bowed to each and departed, leaving the pair to their silence. Ikko continued to study the shikigami; Kia simply stared at him, lips flattening together in a thoughtful line. She wrestled with her question before, at least, broaching. "Ikko…"

"Hm?" He poked the shikigami, letting it find a home on his desk. It sat atop his laptop, drawn to the warmth and hum of the fan, and folded itself into a small ball.

Kia's baby blues shimmered with a trembling anxiety he'd never seen before. He'd seen her upset, seen her practically shatter, but this? She squeezed his shoulder, pulling him gently towards the bed, that they might sit together. Once there, she withdrew and knit her fingers together. "What did Ruby mean?"

"Mean?"

"Your nature." She whispered. "What did she mean by that?"

If he'd been wearing the shikigami, Ruby's would have surely screamed. His heart stopped, froze dead, then leapt into his throat, thundering loudly. "Uh-" he began, thickly.

"I've been trying to figure you out," she whispered, "Sure, Kotsubo put you through the wringer, but you took a long time to heal even with help. And there's the fact that you never fight back, not even for self-defence. And…" she sniffed. "And your smell…"

Dread chilled his blood. By admitting to Ruby that he didn't mind Kia's presence for their discussion, Ikko had also implied his comfort with her knowing the intimacies of his circumstance. How could he have been so stupid?

"Ikko." Kia spoke softly, so that her words reached him, and him alone. "You don't have to tell me. It's the rules, after all. But… I have to ask…"

His heart punched against the walls of his chest. Fingers tightened on his knees, knuckled pressing up against his pale skin. What would she do? What could he say? How could he spin this? Could he spin this?

Thoughts of Kia span out of control in his mind. Smiling radiance, the brightest laugh in the room, gleaming baby blue eyes. Would knowing shatter that?

Her eyes, too, shattered in his head. His memories of her bloated, distended, twisting into her true form. He'd seen it twice, now – and rather than inspire fear, it quieted his anxiety. Eased his grip. He breathed in, steeling himself.

She asked the question he knew she wanted to ask. "Ikko – what are you?"

He opened his mouth, but the words caught in his throat, squeezed and strangled by his erratic heartbeat. "I'm-" he squeaked. She lifted her eyes to his. Ikko cleared his throat. "Sorry. I'm… uh…"

"Yeah?" she urged, turning to face him. Her eyes opened wide and she leaned forward, but her fingers worried and stressed his duvet, ready to spring away at a moment's notice.

"I'm…" Ikko closed his eyes, wrenching from her grasp. "I'm human."

He daren't open his eyes. Daren't face Kia's response to terrible revelation. Daren't face the consequence of his foolishness, the weight of his admission, the warmth- wait.

Ikko opened his eyes. Something warm, soft, and smelling very much like Kia's deodorant wrapped itself around his head. The whisper of his name on her lips washed every scrap of fear away. Kia squeezed him tight against her chest, kneeling on his bed to face him properly, welcoming him into her arms. He hugged her waist, hands stiff and awkward given the angle, and the novelty of such an embrace.

"No-one else knows." He mumbled against her shirt, trying not to admit that he couldn't breathe in this beautiful moment. "W-well Ruby and Miz-ss Shirayuki, obviously, but… you're-"

"Shh."

"Okay." And it was, for about thirty seconds. "Kia, I can't breathe!"

"Sorry!" She pulled away, enough to let air flow freely. The sweet fragrance lingered between them, even as Ikko took an unceremonious gasp. Kia held loosely to his shoulders. "You're human…"

"I am," said he, a little hoarse, "My parents dumped me here, not knowing, and…"

"I can't imagine what it must be like," she whispered, "And when – oh, god, when I lost control… was that your first?"

"My first… monster? Yeah." Ikko nodded.

"Wow…"

"I-it's not been so bad. I mean, I mean there's Kotsubo, and Ruby and Miss Shirayuki hovering around, but…"

He realised the weight of Kia's hands on his shoulders. "I thought it'd be scarier," Ikko admitted, "Telling you. I thought you'd freak out. B-but then I remembered that, well, you didn't have a choice when you revealed yourself, so… fair's fair, right?"

"You didn't have to tell me," Kia spoke, words as soft as her touch, "But it means a lot that you did."

They shared a smile. Ikko's heart finally relaxed, letting his shoulders slump and his breath to start afresh. Kia giggled, throwing herself back into a tight hug, causing them both to topple back on the bed. "I can't believe it. I mean I thought you might be, but- a human transfer! That's so cool!"

"It's not cool," Ikko rebuked, arms flailing. He wasn't sure where to put them. "Why aren't you freaking out? Shouldn't you be freaking out?"

Kia shook her head, doubling up as an affectionate nuzzle. "Why would I? Staff's okay with it, headmaster knows. What's the problem?"

She… wasn't wrong. "Besides," she continued, once more placing her eyes mere inches from his. Ikko's cheeks burned, "It's against the rules to talk about our true natures. No-one else is going to know unless you tell 'em."

"You won't?"

Her eyes rolled. "You haven't told anyone about me, have you?"

Ikko nodded, tiny, though in truth it was more because the only person he could talk with about Kia's true form was the woman herself. The woman pressed so very close to him, on his bed. He cleared his throat. "Could you, uh- I mean…"

He looked down. Now Kia's cheeks flushed, caught red-handed. "R-right. Sorry. Guess I got a little excited."

"S'okay." Ikko moved back to his desk chair, folding one leg over the other. "Speaking of true forms, would you – uh, I mean, if it's okay, you don't have to…"

"Monstrel," Kia answered, immediately. Her smile lifted. "Fair's fair, right?"

"Monstrel?" Ikko's head tipped. He'd not read anything in his internet searches about those.

"Oh, um. Half-breed, basically. Like mongrel and, monster. Monstrel."

"Sounds racist," Ikko noted, tipping his head. Kia shrugged.

"Easier than 'Hey I'm a siren-wraith-hybrid.' Less assumptions, too."

"Siren… wraith… that's you?"

Kia nodded. "Mom's a siren. Dad's a wraith."

"Like a ghost?"

"No, it's-" Kia's smile faltered. "It's a little complicated. He never could explain it right. It's like… a spirit, but not? I don't know. He's real enough to make babies." She shrugged, offering no more.

Ikko blurted a laugh. "I guess that's real enough by anyone's standards."

"Right?"

"So… we're good?"

"Yes, Ikko," Kia's eyes rolled again. "We're good. Good as can be."

"Okay," he exhaled, "Okay. I'd just gotten used to you as, uh. A friend. I don't want to lose that."

"I don't want to lose you, either," Kia smiled, and the way she said it made him… fizz, slightly. He looked away. "So now what?"

"Huh?"

"We've got all day." Kia flumped back onto the bed. "Wanna chill? Go out? I'm hungry. Are you hungry?"

Ikko smiled, marvelling at her ability to so easily slip from serious heart-to-hearts about the truth of their nature, their very being, the one supposed irreconcilable difference between his kind and hers, to casual day-planning. He indulged her, even though anxiety filled his stomach. "I could eat."

"Great! Black Cat it is!"

Mizore looked up at her door as someone knocked. "Come in."

Ruby sidled in. Mizore untangled her fingers from the mess of her hair and pushed her textbook away, closing her laptop. "Working hard?" asked Ruby.

"Studying harder. Exams are coming up." Thought she'd accepted the position of teacher, it remained an informal post until she qualified. As advantageous as her experience with humans was, the headmaster made it exceptionally clear that she needed to perform as a professional before anything else.

"I'll bring tea next time," Ruby offered, "I dropped the shikigami off with Ikko."

"How'd he take it?"

"With his usual level of panic. The twin started screeching as soon as he put it on."

"Hah. Naturally."

"Kia calmed him down quick enough."

Mizore's eyebrows shot up. "Kia was there for it?"

"Yeah – turns out Ikko had already told her about being human. He didn't mind her being there when I asked."

"Really?" Mizore boggled. "Colour me shocked."

"I was surprised, too – but glad. Looks like he trusts her."

"I'd hope so, after all that."

Ruby nodded. They moved to the small table in Mizore's kitchen, but not before the former insisted upon preparing tea, as compensation for not arriving with some. "How are you?" she asked Mizore, bringing the kettle to boil. "I meant to ask, but I've been so busy with Ikko's healing. I'm sorry about your scrapbook."

"Mm." She waved her hand, dismissive. "I should have thrown it out ages ago. There're some rough times in there."

"Not all bad, though. You should ask Yukari – I'm sure she has some back-ups of the photos."

"Ruby…"

"I'm not saying you should hang out! Just ask her. Don't throw it all away."

She let her silence answer. Mizore picked at her hair and, seeing that she didn't want to discuss it further, Ruby offered a tentative smile. "Getting a bit too long…?"

"A little," mumbled Mizore, "But it's not so bad."

"Let me know if you want it cut. I'll take care of it."

The kettle's switch snapped as water boiled. Ruby busied herself with the tea, hovering by the mugs as it steeped. Mizore looked to her desk. "I hate seeing you like this."

Ruby's words caused Mizore to stiffen. "You hate it?"

"Don't you?"

"No, no – it's just… s'weird. I didn't think you could hate."

Ruby smiled, wistful. She turned away from their drinks, leaning against the counter, and pulled at one of the tails she'd tied her hair into. "I hate a lot of things, Mizore. Seeing those I love suffer chief amongst them."

"That's not hate. That's compassion. Who says I'm suffering?"

"No-one." Her eyes, pink like her namesake, drifted closed. "No-one needs to."

"Ruby, please. I won't ask again." Mizore folded her arms. "I have enough to deal with. Exams, work, Ikko – I can't- I need to focus on what's in front of me. I can't keep looking back."

"We're not asking you to look back," Ruby insisted, "We're not the pain of your past, Mizore. We're your friends."

"I know you are – you don't need to remind me every time you catch me alone." Mizore coiled one hand around the other, balling it into a tight fist. "I don't need reminding. I need space. Is that so hard?"

Ruby quieted. "No, I suppose not. Apologies, Mizore."

She stewed as Ruby set tea down in front of her, squeezing her hands tighter. "I'm sorry, too."

"It's okay-"

"The exams and work, it's a lo-"

"It's okay, Mizore. You don't need to explain."

Mizore took a calming sip of tea. "You're far too patient for your own good."

"I spend my life dealing with hypercharged, manically active youths." Ruby explained, "And then there's the students, too."

They shared a laugh. "Will you be studying over Golden Week?"

"Maybe," Mizore huffed, "Probably. It's a lot to cover."

"You'll burn out if you push yourself too hard."

"Thank you, mother hen."

"A break is good for the soul. Why don't you come out for a weekend with Yukari and I? Just Yukari and I, no-one else. Girls' night out."

"It really is a girl's night if she's coming along." Mizore muttered.

"Think about it, alright? We'll book a hotel, eat out… get away from Yokai for a bit. You might even, heavens willing, have a bit of fun."

"Heavens forbid," she countered, deadpan.

"Promise me you'll think about it?"

"If I'm not neck-deep in marking and my own studies, then yes, I will think about it. God, you're persistent."

"I learn from the best," she nodded at Mizore. She rolled her eyes.