Part Two
Chapter Thirteen
Transfer students always mean a world of trouble for me: Toritsuka, Kuboyasu, Aiura, Akechi; not one of them has been anything but a giant pain. So, of course, these new transfer girls would be no different, even if one of them is a second year.
Fortunately—or is it unfortunately?—Teruhashi-san wasn't about to let me go off with some unknown girl to unknown parts for an unknown reason. And naturally, if Teruhashi-san was going, so was Yumehara-san. I also doubt I need to tell you that Shun, Kuboyasu, Hairo, and Nendou all tagged along—as well as Nendou's new *shudder* admirer, Kuwabara Natsuko-san. Mera joined in, ostensibly, because food was mentioned, but she probably would have come anyway. Saiko, fortunately, declined, as he is above such "plebeian things" as "peasant gatherings," and I wouldn't be able to stop Toritsuka and Akechi from coming if I tried; which, in case you're wondering, I did.
Honestly, it wasn't all bad. I'd already planned to meet up with everyone on the roof as we'd discussed having a strategy session yesterday before I left school to pick up Yuuta. I hadn't planned on having those plans announced to the entire school. I also hadn't planned on including two other people just as, or even more, eye catching as Teruhashi-san (mostly because, until Kuwabara-san walked into the room, I wouldn't have believed such another person could exist), but as I said, God hates me. So here I am.
Yare, yare. All I wanted was to be ordinary; was that so wrong a request? Apparently it was, because so far, the only thing being ordinary has gotten me is an increased level of crazy.
Yamato Nadeshiko
Aiura lay sprawled out on a picnic blanket laid out with blue china, a lit candelabra, and an extensive meal of obvious quality. Rose petals were scattered all around, intermingled with lit tea lights, and she'd adjusted her uniform so it lay scandalously around her, showing strategic amounts of skin, in a way that was obviously meant to induce sexual desire.
Yare, yare. I should have known.
"Hello Kusu—whaaa!" Aiura sat up, pulling down her skirt and covering her exposed stomach and cleavage. "What are they all doing here?!"
"I told you we were meeting at lunch."
Aiura glared and sat cross-legged, showing just as much skin as before with only the flop of her skirt to keep her panties covered. "I thought you meant, like, us! Not half the school!"
Kusuo shrugged; how was that his fault? Aiura sighed and lowered her head, both hands on her knees. "Maa, maa; if it can't be helped, it can't be helped."
Without looking up, Aiura waved at everyone. "Go ahead and help yourselves; I bought plenty."
"Really?!" A brown blur darted from behind the stunned crowd and did a running dive into a seiza position that had to hurt like hell, not that Mera noticed with a whole turkey leg in each hand. "Itadaki—chomp!"
Kusuo could feel the tension building and knew either one of the guys would say something stupid (probably Toritsuka, who was already salivating over the sensual glimpse he'd gotten of his fellow psychic) or Teruhashi would explode. Whether that was a literal or metaphorical explosion would forever remain a mystery Kusuo had no intention of uncovering.
"If you're done playing around, we need to talk strategy." Kusuo stepped to the side and motioned for his friends to settle onto the overladen picnic blanket. They did so with minimal fuss, though a lot of strange glances passed from Kusuo to Aiura and back again. As none of his friends were idiots (except Nendou), the byplay wasn't lost on them. But as none of his friends were idiots (except Nendou), everyone knew better than to comment.
Well, Kusuo did see Yumehara offer Teruhashi a commiserating pat on the shoulder, but since it was non-verbal, he let it slide.
"The hell kind of company do you keep, Saiki?" The brunette transfer student crossed her arms and popped out her left hip as she frowned down at Kusuo and his circle of friends. "I mean, we knew about the crazies—" She motioned to Hairo, Kuboyasu, and Shun. "But we didn't hear nothin' about the shit we just walked in on."
Kusuo stiffened, shooting a suspicious glare at the pair of too pretty girls. Was she saying what he thought she was?
"Nadi-chan, that's rude." Kuwabara put a hand on her younger cousin's arm. "I'm sure Aiura-san is a very nice girl; she's just a bit aggressive."
"Aggressive my ass. Or should I say hers?" The girl snorted before a red-faced Aiura could respond and took a seat in a primly proper seiza that was completely incongruous with her extremely foul mouth. Kuwabara sat next to her, just as prim and proper. She waited patiently as her cousin poured her a cup of tea, her sightless eyes settled unnervingly on Nendou.
Wait, tea? Kusuo didn't remember seeing a tea set laid out when they first came upstairs, and his memory was perfect.
"He's nowhere near as pretty as you think he is, Natsu."
"You only say that because you can't see what I can." Kuwabara let her crazy cousin guide her hands around the body of a blue teacup so delicately spun, light shown through it. Where did that come from? "He's completely untainted, Nadi-chan; he reminds me of otou-sama."
'Nadi-chan's' eyebrows went up. "No shit?" She looked Nendou over with a mixture of respect and incredulity. "Sure doesn't look like much on this spectrum, but I bow to your superior sight."
"Hey." That yankee vein in Kuboyasu's forehead was popping again, though it was clear he was trying to control his 'kill em all' expression, if only for Teruhashi's sake. And maybe Yumehara and Mera, assuming he remembered they were there. "Not that your poor attempt at street slang ain't cute or nothin', but who the hell are you?"
"You better as hell not be leveling that attitude at me, you reformed yankee wannabe." Nadi seemed to have the same yankee vein as Kuboyasu, but she was much better at schooling her expression. Kusuo had a flashback to his first real conversation with Teruhashi Makoto. He smiled that exact same smile this Nadi person now used while spitting the same level of vitriol.
"Oh yeah? And what if I am?" Kuboyasu was very quickly losing the battle with his temper as he leaned forward with his arms firmly crossed. Kusuo didn't need psychic powers to know her was also clenching his fists. "You wanna throw down, bitch?"
"Hey, now, Aren." Hairo dropped a hand on Kuboyasu's shoulder with a disapproving frown. "That's no way to talk to a lady."
Nadi blinked, her smile faltering as she turned her attention to Hairo. Her mild disbelief quickly shifted to equally mild amusement as she moved the lollipop from one side of her mouth to the other. "Thanks, Hi-toko, but I don't need back up. I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself."
"Oh, wow, Nadi-chan! How did you know his aura was like fire?"
Nadi takes her eyes down Hairo with an appreciative gleam. "Lucky guess."
Hairo shuffled uncertainly and scratched his cheek with a faint blush. For all his well-intended bravado, he really had no idea about girls.
"Who are you?" Kusuo said, tired of the ambiguous game the girls were playing. It wasn't cute, it wasn't funny, it wasn't appreciated, and if he still had his powers, he would let them know all of that with impunity.
Nadi rolled her eyes at Kusuo and adjusted her seiza so she could set down the finely spun, clay teapot. Seriously, where did that come from? And is she eating a strawberry mochi?
Kusuo looked around at the western style feast Aiura had provided. No tea service, no mochi, no sushi—wait, sushi?
"I put some yellowfin on a plate for you, Natsu. Be careful you don't knock it over."
"Wah! Thank you, Nadi-chan!"
Where is this stuff coming from?
"All right." Nadi finished serving her blind cousin, who was happily and daintily nibbling on a yellowfin tuna roll. "No need for introductions on your end, we already know who you are because we've been watching—"
"I knew it!" Shun rose to one knee, his still-bandaged right arm held straight out in front of him. "You're minions working for Dark Reunion, here to steal the great demon power sealed within my right arm. But you're gravely mistaken if you believe I, the Jet-Black Wings—!"
Nadi flicked the air, and Shun jerked back as if shot right between the eyes.
"Kaidoh!" "Shun!"
Kuboyasu came to his feet, fists raised. "You damn bitch! What the hell did you—!"
Nadi twirled her finger through the air, and Kuboyasu's arms and legs snapped to his sides, pinned down by some invisible force. He yelped, tottering this way and that, before he lost his balance and pitched to the side. Fortunately, Mera was right beside him. She grabbed him before he could fall onto the sponge cake Aiura had bought and carefully laid him on his back with his head in her lap. She dangled a strawberry over his lips.
"Hungry, Kuboyasu-san?"
Kuboyasu stared at her, incredulous, but opened his mouth anyway. Mera fed him the strawberry, then reached over him, probably smothering him with her boobs, to stack more food onto her already teeming plate.
"What are you doing, Mera?" Yumehara was in tears as she cradled a comatose looking Shun to her chest. "How can you keep eating when those…those…people just attacked Kaidoh-kun and Kuboyasu-san?"
"Because." Mera broke apart the breastbone of the rotisserie style chicken no one else had had a chance to pick at. The ominous crunch of ribs and spine made Kusuo cringe, but Mera didn't hesitate as she carefully pulled the meat from between the bones and set it on her plate. Her face was impassive, made completely unreadable by the white glare on her glasses. "Eating gives me super strength."
"Ehhh?!"
"Mera!" Teruhashi slapped her palms on the rooftop, leaning forward with a frown. "This isn't the time for your games!"
"Actually, if I may interject, Teruhashi-san. From my observations, I would have to say that Mera-san isn't playing games. In fact, based on the ratio of sustenance to starvation she endures, it would be impossible for a normal human to maintain such a healthy lifestyle and robust figure. I've calculated that the more Mera-san is able to eat on a regular basis, the longer she is able to go without; a remarkable if otherwise seemingly useless talent. Though I suppose it has enabled her to take care of her brothers and sisters with minimal damage to herself. In addition, Mera-san's energy level seems to rise based on the quality of the food, for while she can subsist on grass, she is much more—"
"TOO LONG!"
The intruder girls laughed, Kuwabara daintily and softly, like the tinkling of a silver bell, while her brown-haired cousin laughed loud and long, though she still maintained her too proper posture.
"Oh, wow!" Nadi wound down to harsh chuckles. "Looks like you missed a crazy, Natsu!"
"Honestly, Nadi-chan," Kuwabara said, still giggling softly. "You're being very rude."
"All right, all right." Nadi waved her cousin off and looked around the group, pointing to each as she said their names. "Teruhashi Kokomi: Low-level new psychic with an open territory. Able to charm anyone interested in women, including other women, simply by being seen, excepting people who are already in love, a-sexual, or too innocent to understand.
"Hairo Kineshi: Reborn with no territory. Strong reiki with latent pyrokinetic abilities.
"Aiura Mikoto: Mid-level new psychic with an open territory. Aura sight, clairvoyance, and minor precognition that grows less reliable the further out she reads. Potential: tapped out.
"Toritsuka Reita: Low-level natural psychic. Sees ghosts. Massive pervert."
"Oi!"
Aiura jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow. "Shut it, perv."
Nadi went on as if the exchange never happened. "Mera Chisato: Mid-level new psychic with an enclosed territory. Ability to metabolize organic matter into reiki.
"Kuboyasu Aren: Reborn; no territory. Excessive strength, latent reiki with good potential for physical manifestation.
"Yumehara Chiyo: no known powers."
Nadi pointed at Akechi. "Blondie, I don't know and really don't care to know. He talks to much, and his face creeps me out." She moved on. "Nendou Riki: Reborn. Powers unknown, ability unknown, potential unknown. The only thing we know for sure is he can rebound any attempts at telepathy."
Because he's an idiot. If there are no thoughts in the head, there are no thoughts to read.
"Kaidoh Shun: Reborn. Potential is nearly off the charts. Predicted power is Psychokinesis, but possibly others as well."
Wait, what?
"Reiki patterns suggest the right arm as the strongest conduit for release."
What?
"Powers currently sealed."
What?
"And then there's you." Nadi pinned Kusuo with her haughty golden eyes. "Saiki Kusuo: Reborn and former new psychic. Powers: none. Potential: Useless. Way to go, dumbass."
Kusuo gritted his teeth.
"All right, that's enough." Hairo stood and held out an arm as if to block everyone from her view. "You've said your piece; you obviously know who we are. Now answer our question; who are you?"
"Well." Nadi smiled prettily, her golden eyes flashing. "This is my cousin, Kuwabara Natsuko."
Kuwabara bowed; she held a half-nibbled mochi with both hands.
"Natural psychic, so no territory. Powers include aura sight, telepathy, clairvoyance, precognition, reiki manifestation, and jigen tou—dimension cutting."
Kusuo blinked at that. He'd never heard of such a power before. Were there actually psychic abilities he hadn't had?
"And then there's me: Yamato Nadeshiko."
"Ehhh?!"
"Are you serious?"
"What kind of name—how could your parents possibly—"
"…powerful name that implies both modern and ancient nobility, commonly used as a moniker to describe young ladies who represent the paragon of Japanese feminine virtue—"
"No one asked for your explanation, blondie; I'm well aware of what my name means, aside from my mom having the worst sense of humor."
"Oh, Nadi-chan. I wouldn't say Shizuru-oba-sama has the worst sense of humor. Look at Shinne-kun and Katoko-chan."
Yamato—It's good to know her real name so I don't have to keep using that stupid nickname—cringed and shuddered a bit. "My mom has the second worst sense of humor."
"Well, there's also the twins—"
"Okay, I get it! Dad, Natsu, you're killing me!"
Natsu sniffled and felt around for her teacup. "No need to be so rude, Nadi-chan."
"You never answered Shun's question."
Yamato looked over at Kusuo with a frown. "What question?"
"Do you work for Dark Reunion?"
The sudden reminder of what they'd come to the roof to discuss put everyone not half-unconscious or invisibly bound on edge as they prepared to attack, depending on Yamato's answer. She scoffed.
"Not hardly. In fact, we're out to stop Dark Reunion. It's the reason we transferred to your city in the first place."
"How did you find out about us, anyway?" Teruhashi looked fierce at the demand, and Kusuo wondered if she would leap over the picnic blanket to get her hands around Yamato's neck if she found the younger girl's answer unsatisfactory. "Have you been watching Saiki-kun?"
Yamato quirked an eyebrow. "Obviously. We've been watching all of you, in case you're one of those people unable to extrapolate from incomplete data."
Hairo crossed his arms, making him appear to loom over the two transfer girls as he had yet to sit back down. "And who, exactly, is 'we'?"
"My family." Yamato rolled her eyes. "Duh." She eyed Akechi with mild interest. "It didn't escape your notice, did it, blondie?"
"Of course I noticed that you swore by your dad. A strange occurrence unless one considers that children often believe their parents to be at or near deific standards; a state of mind that usually dissipates before the formidable junior high school years when children begin to feel their parents are actually the paragon of ignorance and repression. That you, a high school student, would still maintain the elevation of your father to such a degree would suggest you either never outgrew the point where you believed your father to be all-knowing and invincible—"
"Oh. My. Dad." Yamato mimed a zipper, and Akechi went silent. "Can you not say anything without saying everything? Just get to the point!"
Akechi mumbled something exhaustive through his sealed lips, and Yamato rolled her eyes with disgust. "Seriously, blondie, this is your last chance. Keep your answer to five words or less, or never speak again."
"There's no need to be so rude, Nadi-chan."
Yamato ignored Kuwabara and reversed her zipper motion. The blond boy worked his lips for a moment, clearly fascinated by what had just happened, but Yamato's glare was enough to put him back on track.
"You are Enma-sama's daughter."
Everyone stared at Akechi, partly for making such an extremely ridiculous statement, but mostly because he really had confined his answer to just five words.
It's a miracle.
"Bzzt, bzzt." Yamato held her pointer fingers up in an X. "Wrong."
Of course, he's wrong; who, besides Shun, would think up such a ridiculous—?
"Enma-sama was my grandfather, but he was a bastard, so my dad and uncles gave him the boot. My dad is Koenma-sama. But yeah, you're basically right." Yamato grinned a surprisingly malicious grin for how polite it was. "I'm the daughter of the Gatekeeper god. Feel free to bask in my presence."
