It is the weekend.
It's time for me to sleep in.
It's time for me to sleep in some more.
It's time for me to stretch out, and yes, sleep in some more.
It's time for me to go out and be the public menace in Tokyo flying down the streets on my skateboard.
Unfortunately, I only get to sleep in, and that's only for a short while. Somebody turns on the TV, staying mindful of the volume, but it still rouses me from my deep slumber. I don't want to guess who turned it on. It can't be Natsuru and it can't be Mikoto. Natsuru is the type to oversleep if given the chance, and I have no doubt Natsuru enjoys sleep. Mikoto is an oaf, and she'd just snore an entire day away if she was allowed to.
That means it's either Akane or Shizuku. If Akane is in her Kampfer form, I can see her doing it. I can see her turning on MY TV without a care in the world to the fact I'm sound asleep. Shizuku will do it just because. She'd do it to piss me off and get a rise out of me. I won't give into that, though. If I get so worked up, so early, not even conscious practically, I'm going to give myself a migraine before they say can even begin.
"Turn off that damn TV!"
"Don't be such a crab ass."
One of two things are happening right now. The first. Shizuku has developed a need to use profanity in the last twenty four hours. She's also developed an extremely bossy attitude. The second. Akane is in her Kampfer form and she turned the TV on without a second regard for my sleep, or anyone else's at this moment in time. My sleep is most important, of course, but I've always been respectful to people who are sleeping. I don't knock on the door, I don't make noise, I don't even move around all that much.
Akane...Fucking Akane.
"Akane, you better turn off that fucking TV..."
"Why? It ain't loud or anything." Judging from her tone, Akane is giving me a rather hard look.
I stay silent for a second.
"You'd better turn that shit off."
"Well, I'm not."
"We're watching something at the moment." Shizuku cuts in.
Of course, she has a hand in this. This is the same woman that came knocking on my apartment door, when I didn't even have to be in school for another week, all just to be part of some stupid festival. So, it is no surprise that she's up with Akane-with the TV on, disturbing my sleep. Disturbing Mikoto's sleep. Disturbing Natsuru's sleep.
"Andrew...Stop being so loud..." Mikoto moans.
"I'm tired..." Natsuru seconds, groaning like a mummy. "Why is the TV on?"
"Because dumb and dumber turned it on. It's not my damn fault they turned it on."
"Turn...If off..." Natsuru groans.
"I don't have the remote...They do..."
If it was honestly...Honestly up to me I would keep that remote in a damn safe. First I'd have to buy a safe, but the investment would be worth the money, given the current situation. The only reason I didn't lock it up is so I don't come off as rude. I had no idea I was hanging around a bunch of infantile morons, that can't read a situation or take a hint. I know Shizuku is the most perceptive next to me and Akane, so I expect better out of her, but evidently she's an infantile little moron, too, that like to play these games.
I won't be getting the blame for this. It may be nothing but stupidity on my part allowing dumb and dumber to have access to the remote, but in no way is it my fault. They turned on the TV-they flipped through channel after channel, staying on one only for so long to satiate their two second attention spans. Honestly, fudge has a better attention span than these two do. Mikoto has a better attention span-if I put on my Godzilla movies, or any old school movies like that, she'll sit down completely enthralled.
"Why did you leave it out for them to fiddle with?" Natsuru asks such a feeble question, in such a feeble way.
I can feel my sleepiness start to ebb, and there's nothing I can do that prevent that. I've wrapped myself in blankets, stuffed myself with couch cushions, but none of that can prevent consciousness from taking me over. It frustrates the shit out of me. This is strike one for Akane. This is...Strike two for Shizuku, I'm pretty sure. Two times now has she disturbed me when I was sound asleep.
"Because I'm a dumbass, how's that?"
"You're not lying." Mikoto bites at me.
"Fucking A-I'm going to get a safe to put that remote in after this fiasco."
With the greatest reluctance I peel myself out of the couch. I toss the cushions aside. They bounce and they hit me, but they're soft, so they just annoy me more than anything. I unwrap myself from the blankets next-the darkness gives way to a world of light, and I hiss when it all hits my eyes at once. How do I miss the bliss of sleep and the inky black that was a comfort for my eyes. I shift, bringing the blankets to my eyes again, slowly bringing them down to my chest as my eyes slowly, but certainly adjust to the white noise.
"Rise and shine Andrew." Shizuku breaks the relative silence-that I had been enjoying.
Ugh.
"You two bozos get up too! Mikoto! Natsuru!" Akane yells, hitting them with a couch cushion.
"Stop swinging that around before it hits the TV or my DVD and tape collection!" I snap at her.
Akane's eyes center on mine, and she draws her brows together. She thins her lips into a scowl. She stops swinging the cushion like some four year old, holding it above her head. Mikoto is awake, eyes on the cushion. She's halfway off the couch, head near the floor. Natsuru is a complete mess. I'm certain he doesn't know which way is up considering he has his head wrapped in blankets along with half of his body.
I look at Shizuku, frowning. She's just remaining silent. I'm not sure if she is pleased with all of this, or just finds the amusement in it all. I'm pretty sure it can be a combination of both, knowing her. I'm pissed off for getting woken up, I had to combat Akane when I wasn't even fully awake to start with, and now Akane is just seconds away from losing her grip on that cushion and destroying my collection.
"What are you? Four? You can just buy more."
"I swear if you even break a case, I'm going to have your ass on a silver platter. I have every season and movie of Ed Edd and Eddy- The Fast and The Furious trilogy, if you wreck any of that-I swear..."
Akane snorts. "All over some DVDs and tapes?"
"First of all, you can't find any of those tapes anymore. You'd have to give up two arms and a leg to get them, and they may not even work. Second of all, I paid sixty bucks for that Rodan and War of the Garagantuas, it was package deal. I'm going to take sixty bucks out of your ass, if you fuck my shit up. Then I'm going to hit you."
"I'd love to see you try that." Akane, apparently, is taking my challenge.
"I think you mean six thousand yen?" Shizuku ventures, looking at me with an arched brow.
"No. I was living in the states at that time, so it was sixty bucks. I have the entire trilogy of The Fast and The Furious too!"
I'm not sure how much it would have cost me to buy the DVD pack here in Japan? If memory serves me right, it was through a third party seller, but Amazon ships it out, or something along those lines. Some of the DVD sets cost up to one hundred and twenty dollars-or if I'm talking about yen here, I believe it'd be about twelve thousand odd yen if I have my conversion right. Some sites charge two hundred dollars for the DVD set and if I have my conversion right-that'd be about twenty one thousand odd yen.
That's not including the tax.
So, am I out of line for telling Akane I'll have her ass on a silver platter? Absolutely not. Am I out of line for having the thought to cleave her ass right off of her body and put it on a silver platter if she messes my stuff up? I do not think so. Of course, she can always pay my back the money, that'd be no problem. She can even buy me the DVD set again, but will that quell my anger at this moment if she fucks any of my collection up?
No it will not.
"Please calm down, Andrew." Shizuku says, she turns to Akane, pointing off to the side. "Go over there and hit Natsuru with the cushion."
"Fair enough."
"Wait-"
I watch Akane beat Natsuru with the couch cushion. He sputters. He stutters. He struggles to get his words out. Akane isn't giving him the chance to even say anything or get comfortable again, and it serves him right. If I can't sleep-he sure as hell isn't going to snooze away. There is no way in seven hells he will be doing that, nope.
"W-wait Akane! Stop! I'm awake! Stop!" He sputters. "One of you! Help me!"
"I'm fine on that. I'm kind of hungry." Mikoto comments, looking at me. "I brought some curry with me."
"What exactly are you trying to imply or say, Mikoto?" I look at her like she's about to sprout another head.
I know she isn't suggesting I cook breakfast.
"Stop hitting me now! Akane!"
The angry look Natsuru gives Akane is the only thing I need to see. He's transformed into his Kampfer form, probably because of his high emotions at the moment. They start to battle for the cushion, and Natsuru ends up tripping over her own feet-runs into Akane, and they both hit the floor. There's blankets, so they don't hit as hard as they could, but the cushion...
My DVDs
Hell...
FUCKING!
No!
"I'm going to kill you both! I knew you were in cahoots to ruin my DVD collection!"
"What!?"
Natsuru is at a loss.
"You heard me! I'm not stupid!"
"As if!"
Akane scoffs.
"Why would I want to do that."
"You both must think I'm stupid or something! I know you're in cahoots! It doesn't matter, you little ass is mine! You're next after her, Natsuru! Maybe you should have a chit chat with your ring leader!"
"Who the hell is that?" Akane sneers.
"Shizuku!"
"I have nothing to do with this." Shizuku said, calmly crossing her arms over her chest.
"I'm not stupid, I know you pulled strings!"
"Really, Andrew?"
"I know what you and you two little lackies are up to! Trying to ruin my DVD collection!"
"That makes no sense."
"I don't care!
"Andrew-"
"Shut up!"
"I-I'm sorry!"
Natsuru apologizes-she tries to scramble to her feet, but gets a face full of Akane's boobs in the process. Her head bounces off the floor, she moans-Akane is flung backwards due to Natsuru's fat head, and she tumbles.
"I'm going to kill you both!"
"You're nine thousand miles off of left field!" Akane snaps back at me.
Somehow I find myself being steered away from the two idiots that made a mess, towards my DVDs. I pick them up, open the cases, and make sure no damage has been done to them. No damage has been done. I'm so concerned about my collection that I failed to notice Shizuku had been the one steering me away from Natsuru and Akane.
Mikoto is in the kitchen, setting down her big pot of curry.
"What the hell?"
"I'm starving hungry." Mikoto complains, stirring the pot.
"How about breakfast? Andrew?" Shizuku ventures, setting her hands behind her back.
Akane and Natsuru recover enough from whatever the hell they were doing to look at me with the expectant looks I'm getting from Shizuku and Akane. Oh yeah, I suppose acting like first class idiots does take a hampering on the appetite. They did expend a lot of energy knocking down my DVD collection and almost hitting my tapes-thankfully, I have my tapes in one of the drawers in the stand I have my TV on.
I really don't feel like making breakfast. That's why I brought out the chips and other snacks like I did. So we can all just munch when we want to and I don't have to go through the effort of making food for everyone here. Truth be told-I put in enough effort making food for myself, and if I include Stubby Bear in there since he always wants some, it's about double the effort since he's a bottomless pit. I don't know where that food goes, but it really goes down the hatch. It doesn't come out, though.
I shake the thought away.
Why am I wondering if Stubby Bear poops and pees?
"There's chips and other stuff there."
But, that's not real food! That's just snacks!" Mikoto whines.
"You're being rude, Mikoto." Natsuru comes to my defense.
"You don't want to eat chips for breakfast, either Natsuru."
As I thought-Natsuru's defense is feeble, like it was when I was held hostage in the Student Council Chamber. I'm not sure why this little dolt feels the need to open her mouth in situations like this. No good ever comes of it, and whether Natsuru is a he or a she, the end result is always the same. However, this has to do with food, and I can hear her stomach growl.
Clearly, chips won't cut it.
"Since when did I become a mom to a bunch of stupid teenager girls?"
"I'm really sorry..." Natsuru looks at her thighs, hands in her lap.
Something inside of me sways just a bit seeing Natsuru look so guilty. I wish he'd be more on point when it came to other people's feelings. mostly Akane and Mikoto. But, at least Natsuru is able to gauge situations like this with some relative dexterity. It's not like I told them-hey guys, spend the night, and when we wake up, I'll cook a five star breakfast.
"It's...Fine." I tell Natsuru, patting her on the head. I don't want to see Natsuru downtrodden, I'd rather see her awkward. "I'll heat up some left overs. You better stop looking so down or I'm going to feel you up."
"Andrew!" Natsuru cries.
"You promised, Andrew!"
Natsuru scrambles away from me, but Mikoto's irate shout makes me laugh.
I'd never do anything to break our pact, or the promise I made with her and Akane. I know they love Natsuru more than anything in the world, and I'm not going to get between them. They'll skin me alive, tear me apart, and feed me to sharks-while I'm still alive and suffering. I'm also not going to set myself for heartbreak since it's clear that Natsuru is only interested in Sakura-I can't take that step as I am, and even though I'm closer with Shizuku now, it's still a little awkward when I think about it.
"I know, Mikoto! Don't worry." I wave at her, laughing. "I'm just tired of seeing the dolt mope. The only time I'm going to touch Natsuru is when I'm strangling the moron."
"It is a little sickening." Akane points her gun at Natsuru. "Cheer up before I make you dance!"
Naturally, Natsuru is left speechless, trying to get words out, but nothing comes out.
Akane being Akane smirks and puts her gun closer.
"Okay! Okay! Just put the gun away!" Natsuru cries.
At least she's not moping anymore.
"While we're at it, now is a good time for you to meet our entrail animals. A nice breakfast to break the ice." Shizuku ventures.
I figured they had their own Messengers-as Stubby Bear called himself. It only makes sense. They are Kampfer, after all. They've all been informed of the events. I'm not sure who has been a Kampfer longer between the five of us. I want to say it is Shizuku, but it could be Akane. Shiuzku has that grace and poise, but Akane walks with a fearless swagger that just screams 'I've been there and done that, so what's new with you?'
But, I've had Stubby Bear since I can remember. One of my earliest memories is lugging him around as a child and laying on him. He is bigger than a lot of pillows out there. It had been long before I hit puberty. As far as I can remember I never transformed into a girl. Was there some delay or something along those lines? Had I transformed into a girl while I was sleeping, and when I woke up I was a guy once more? I had never been a girl when I went to grade school, middle school, or high school for that matter.
A delay?
That makes no sense...
I shake my head. My mind is starting to fog up with questions, that lead to confusion, and that leads to indecision. I can't afford confusion or indecision at this point in time, or at all-not at this point. Confusion will lead me to death. Indecision will certainly lead me to death. For now I'll just have to go off what I know for sure, and just forget the rest.
So, the present...Meeting these new stuffed animals and introducing my own-that closet half wit pervert.
"You brought them with you?" I look at the four girls, arching a brow.
"Yup." Mikoto nods.
"Mine insisted on coming." Akane replies.
"Mine doesn't listen and snuck into my bag." Natsuru replies.
"I didn't want to exclude mine." Shizuku reasons.
"I'm Electocuted Lynx!"
"I'm Strangled Stray Dog!"
"I'm Seppuku Rabbit!"
"I'm Harakiri Tora!"
I blink, as all at once-they spring from their cover and present themselves in front of me. If I don't know any better I'd call them a singing quartet and we're in the middle of Broadway doing some crazy play. Maybe even Vegas, doing some crazy show-maybe a magic show, and they are my faithful assistants. They help me saw the four other girls in the room in half, but I kick away the boxes containing their legs.
Electrocuted Lynx is white and looks like he had been put into a washer, had a fan put on him, and then-like his namesake, had a surge of voltage put through him to make his appearance seem so crazy. His fur is white. Strangled Stray Dog is a little bigger than Lynx, Rabbit and Tora, but not by a lot. His mouth is wide open, it seems, and it stays like that. His fur is brown. Seppuku Rabbit looks the most devious-I have to say. Between his red eyes, lop sided looking grin, and black-blue fur, he is quite the trouble maker. Harakiri Tora is a tiger-with a cheerful appearance.
It's odd, I know, but I've had a knack for deciphering these little fellas. Stubby Bear drives me up a wall, loves doing it, and will continue to do it. I imagine these four do the same with their owners, but...I wonder if they bond with these little fellas like I have with Stubby Bear. Do they feed them? Banter with them? Argue with them? Put them in the sink to clean them up after they've made a mess?
I have to wonder.
"Nice to meet you guys. Lynx. Buddy. Bugs. Tora."
"Who the hell is Bugs?" The rabbit questions.
I look at him, tilting my head. "I'm not going to call you Seppuku Rabbit, that's not a name. Bugs is what I'm going to call you. Like Bugs Bunny from Looney Tunes."
There's a moment of silence.
"Fine. I'll let you get away with that since you have a fine ass."
"Would you knock your perverted shit off!?" Akane snaps, punching him across the head.
"Ow! I'm just being honest!"
"You're a little ass!"
I turn towards my room in the back and narrow my eyes.
"Hey! Stubby Bear, come here!"
No reply.
"You closest half wit pervert! Get out here, now!" I repeat.
Akane and Mikoto try to hide their snickers, but I still hear them. Their stuffed animals, on the other hand, aren't as subtle. Natsuru's and Shizuku's aren't subtle about it either. They're openly laughing, rather loudly I'll add. I'm not sure if it's possible, but if these guys can snort, they're about to-or come very close to doing that in the next ten seconds.
"You don't need to yell at me like that, you know!" Stubby Bear makes his retort-I can tell he's coming. "Just after I got done looking up corsets and other things like that for you."
I immediately feel flustered. I told that little shit how many times now?! I'm not going to wear that stuff, ever. I don't mind if he looks at them, and even wants to take his pick at what he wants me to wear-but I will not wear it. More to the point, he doesn't need to be saying all of that when the four stooges are here-especially Shizuku. Heaven forbid she gets any ideas about putting me in something so ridiculous, I'll die of embarrassment. Mikoto, Natsuru, and Akane-I'm worried about them, but not so much.
My fluster gives way to anger as Stubby Bear makes his presence known. Big, stupid, and a fucking halfwit-he's just marching along without a care in the world. He looks at the other entrail animals present, and I can tell he's happy to see them. Like long lost family members being reunited. Like brothers and sisters coming back together. It's the same with the quartet, and I dare say they're ecstatic.
However, I can only focus on one thing.
"I told you about that shit!" I snap at Stubby Bear, marching up to him, tempted to kick him. "I don't need you saying that in front of my friends! You little moron!"
"One day your boobs are going to come flopping out! I'm trying to help you!"
"You're not helping anything. You're indulging your own perverted fantasies! You halfwit!"
"I never!" Stubby Bear snaps back.
I'm so irate I could kick him in his ass like I did the other day. This little stupid shit! I can't believe he'd actually say something so asinine in front of my friends. I should have expected it. I should have anticipated it. Silly me-I thought he had enough sense to not say such stupid things. I was wrong. I should have known the second he began griping when I had to wash him up, he'd do something like this.
"This is the thanks I get for trying to help you? I even found a nice black one for you that isn't too-"
"Stubby Bear! Shut up!" I snap, grabbing him by the ear, and hauling him up off of the floor.
"Ow! Ow! Ow! That hurts! Stop!"
I ignore his shouts, and set him down on the recliner.
"Introduce yourself and shut your mouth about that, now."
"I had no idea-"
"Shut up, Shizuku!" I snap at her, not even meeting her gaze.
Hell fricking no.
"I was only-"
"SHUT UP!"
There's a moment of silence other than a few snickers and giggles from everyone present. I'm glad I've become the source of entertainment. The nutcase sideshow to the perverted basket case known as Stubby Bear. Shizuku is never going to leave me alone after hearing about a fucking corset. It's bad enough she gave me every school uniform that the school has, but now...
"I'm Stubby Bear, as you've already heard." He shoots me a look. "Nice to meet all of you."
"What's up old man?" Tora asks, immediately walking up to Stubby Bear and jumping up on the recliner. "Is Andrew a good cook? I'm starving!"
"How'd you get yourself a fine ass babe like her?" Bugs questions a second later.
I'm tempted to hit that little shit. I'm with two perverts. A half wit pervert, and if Bugs has any sense at all, an inkling of it, which I doubt-he's a half wit pervert too, he'll shut his little mouth before he gets too far ahead of himself. Despite my urge to strangle them, I go to the kitchen and start heating up some left overs while cracking open a few eggs.
Everyone gets settled in their own way. The stuffed animals congregate around my gigantic ass of a bear. Natsuru and Akane are calm enough now, where they can sit next to each other without yelling at one another or hitting one another. Mikoto is content to just loaf around, half asleep, and still trying to gather enough wit rouse herself from her stupor. Once she smells the food, she'll be up and moving.
And, Shizuku...
Well...
"May I assist you in your task, Andrew?"
I turn towards her, hiding the frown that wanted to grace my face. I just try to look as calm and aloof as possible. I'm not sure why this woman feels the need to hover around me like a fucking wasp hovering around a beer can. It is in the wasp's nature to be a huge pain in the ass. It is in the wasp's nature to hover around the beer can, climb inside, and come hobbling out drunk as shit. Shizuku has a choice-humans have a choice.
Shizuku is making the choice to be that pain in the ass of a wasp hobbling on out of the can drunk as hell. Meanwhile I have to swat and bat her away, and just put my beer off to the side so the mean little prick can help itself. The only difference Shizuku doesn't have a stinger, claws, mandibles, and wings. She can't cut at odd angles and fly at twenty miles.
"What's with that look?" Shizuku is less than impressed with me at the moment. She sets her hand on her hip, flipping her hair. "I just want to help."
I can only think of my fight in the library, how this woman had been there one second, and was the gone the next second. She vanished just before I was attacked. I know she hadn't been lying to me-she went through her theories and what she thought was going on, and it was all convincing, but at the same time, it wasn't. I think it's just the fact I didn't break whoever attacked me in half.
"You need to understand there are two types of people in this world, Shizuku."
"Oh?"
I snatch her by the wrist, clenching with some strength. I pull her towards me, eyes trained on everyone else. They have no idea what is going on at this moment, which is a good thing. Because I might punch Shizuku in her throat right here and now.
"There are people who love to fight, and there are people who love to kill. Do you know which one I am..."
Shizuku's hard eyes harden even more. She doesn't try to yank away from me. "You're a killer."
"So stop fucking with me."
"It's only natural to tease the one you like. I didn't understand it when I was little, but I understand now."
I give her a look.
"Still, I didn't think you enjoyed corsets. You're so stubborn, but I guess those would fit you nicely."
I can scream in embarrassment, seriously. Stubby Bear is such a stupid ass bringing that up in front of my friends-in front of Shizuku of all people. It's not like she hasn't bumped up my knee already or has tried to suck out my tongue from my mouth. Now she has another thing that she wants to see-me in a corset-so tight that I can't breathe or sit down right. If I was in front of Stubby Bear I likely wouldn't mind-his stupid and asinine comments aside, I don't exactly feel flustered in front of him.
But, I can't wear something like that in front of Shizuku. She'd have to wear one too, and I'd feel more awkward because we're both wearing something that is squeezing our bodies. Not to mention-I'd be wearing that in front of Shizuku. We've been naked together, and have embraced naked, so it shouldn't be a big deal, but I can't help but think of the entire situation being awkward.
"I am not wearing them. I told that halfwit to browse, but that is it. He's not supposed to order anything."
"Did he?"
Shizuku's prodding makes me shiver.
"He better not have, now help me with breakfast, and stop thinking about me wearing something so ridiculous."
"I don't think it's ridiculous. A corset suits you perfectly, but I'll help you cook."
"Thanks."
Shizuku inches closer to me, and I do my best to ignore her. I don't want to be rude, but I also don't want to act like I normally would when this woman gets this way in front of everyone else. I want to keep that part of me private, and certain things private. She also needs to stop talking about me and corsets. I focus on cracking open the eggs, and getting the fish out.
"Broiled fish?" Shizuku ventures, taking one of them.
"Yeah. Work on the fish. I'll make the rice and eggs."
We go about our tasks. I heat up some leftovers while I let the eggs cook. I start the rice, and just watch it to make sure nothing goes wrong. I've seen too many animes where there's the person who can't cook, and somehow there's a mountain of mushy rice flowing out of the pot. This doesn't happen, and he breakfast is prepared in just short of an hour. The only thing missing from this is miso soup, but I don't care for tofu-has no taste, and it's kind of chewy.
I get the chips I had set out last night and put them away. I clean up the table as well, throwing away any mess that had accumulated. I throw away Mikoto's chocolate wrappers and Natsuru's candy wrappers. I hear a loud clang-I know exactly what it is and who caused it.
"Mikoto! I told you not to slam down that damn pot!"
"Stop yelling at me!"
I growl, marching into the kitchen. I steer towards her, with a purpose. "Stop. Slamming. The pot. On the table."
Mikoto glares me-her head grows three times as big to compensate for our height difference. "Don't talk to me like I'm a child!"
"Stop acting like one!"
"Both of you." Shizuku yanks us down onto chairs. "Stop and eat. Mikoto, there's rice for your curry."
"Thank you, Andrew!"
At this point I'm not going to ponder how or why Mikoto just did a one eighty with her mood. She's a little bundle of life and energy that can go on forever. Like the pink Energizer bunny in those battery commercials. I'm just glad the little bundle wasn't upset for too long. I have no idea what I'll do when and if the day comes that Mikoto is downtrodden or upset about something, for a long time.
We all get our portions, and I get the stuffed animals there own little plates of food. The last thing I'm going to have our five little morons drooling over my plate, or someone else's. Stubby Bear does everything but drool whenever he eyes my food, or wants some of my food. I have no doubt Tora, Lynx, Bugs, and Buddy are the exact same.
"Thanks for the food!" Tora says, before stuffing his face into the plate.
Literally.
"Don't make a mess!" Natsuru hisses at him, glaring. "Do you even need to eat anyways?"
"I wondered that myself, once upon a time." I tell Natsuru, taking a seat on the floor next to her. I grab the remote, and flip through the stations until I get to Cartoon Network. "I stopped wondering when mine wanted some cake I made."
Natsuru huffs, slowly lifting Tora's head out of the plate. "That doesn't mean he has to make a mess."
"I agree. If you're anything like Stubby Bear, I bet you'll hate being washed up." I remark.
It's smooth and calm, but we all converse and eat, and there's no tension or hostility. Of course there's the usual banter, and the stuffed animals making their silly and stupid comments, and us reacting to them, but it's all nice. It's better than having to watch over my back every second like I do now at school, even when I get around it.
"So, what are we going to do after this?" Akane asks, looking at me, and then everyone else. She's back to her normal self-no red hair. "It's nice outside, we should do something."
"Andrew is going to continue to teach me how to skateboard, you guys are welcome to come." Mikoto says.
I note there's a 'and that's that' finality to her tone. Basically, she isn't going to be taking no for an answer. That means it'll be a showdown like the day she tried to step on my board and I pushed her, and she tried again, and then I grabbed her, and she pushed me, and I pushed back. Sakura ended up breaking up the showdown of the century, and I snapped at her since she wanted to act like miss goody goody.
I don't mind wrestling Mikoto. I'll pick her ass up and powerbomb her, if I must. I only always get my way. Mikoto gets her way when I see fit, and that goes for everyone else.
"We're going to get in trouble. You guys can't do that in a public place." Akane says, adjusting her glasses.
"We can get to the old warehouses on the other side of town. There's an ice cream place right over there, too." Mikoto retorts.
I note Natsuru's eyes light up at the prospect of ice cream. "I do like ice cream. Let's do that."
"Fair enough, I suppose I'll indulge." Shizuku seconds, she eyes me before getting close to my ear, again. "I'll consider it a...Date..."
"Can you like, stop?" I grouse. "You're getting real creepy."
Shizuku ignores me-it appears. "What do you say, Akane?"
"We can eat a hot fudge sundae." Natsuru adds.
The modest girl draws her eyebrows together, deep in thought. Maybe she'll think this is a double date, or something. "My parents will be upset if I get in trouble that involves police, but since we'll be by the old warehouses...Okay, I'll go too."
"Woooo! Let's go!" Mikoto cheers.
I put the brakes on that. "We're not going anywhere until this mess is cleaned up, and all of you are going to help."
There's loud sighs and groans, and I don't care.
I am not going to clean all of this up by myself!
"Stubby Bear, Lynx, Bugs, Buddy, Tora-what are you guys going to do?" I look at the five stooges, arching a brow.
"You better not make a mess here." Natsuru gives his a stern warning.
"I won't!" Tora laughs at Natsuru. "You worry for nothing."
"We're going to hang back and watch some TV-you guys just go out and have fun." Stubby Bear replies.
There's something in his tone that makes me pause in my step, and look at him, but Shizuku and Mikoto quickly shuttle me off, along with Natsuru and Akane to finish up cleaning.
"We're getting ice cream!" Mikoto cheers.
M ear drums are ringing, now.
"Be quiet and use your inside voice." I grouse, setting down the plates and pots into the sink. "I hope you brought a change of clothes."
Mikoto shows off her skate shoes and skinny jeans. "I am always prepared, yeah!"
The old warehouses are huge, and it's clear that nobody has been around here for ages. The only people who would come here are skaters, breakdancers, people who smoke and drink, and maybe a couple that wants alone time. There's cement ramps, ledges, stairs, rails, and even cement pads that are a good twenty feet in length. It's a haven for skateboarding. The perfect place to learn everything from the basics, to the more advanced tricks. From tricking down stairs, to using rails to slide down the stairs.
The ice cream shop is jut four blocks away from the warehouses. Akane, Natsuru, and Shizuku make their way there to get our ice cream, while I hang back with Mikoto and see how far she's progressed. It's better this way, because if Mikoto had to wait one millisecond longer, I am certain she'd do a backflip out of her skin and start kicking me in the shin.
I distance myself a good ways away from her.
"Okay, show me what you got!"
Mikoto pushes. Once. Twice. Thrice. A total of ten times. They aren't little baby pushes either. She's bending her knee, and moving into the board as it were. She sets her foot on the tail, and shifts her bodyweight. The board turns whichever way she turns. She moves the nose back and forth-wheels off of the ground as she makes hairline turns.
It is impressive Mikoto came this way, in such a short time. She's really been practicing. The sort of practice where one is outside for hours and hour, from daylight to moonlight, and everything in between. I can remember doing that with heelfips-I was doing them for a whole day straight before I landed my first one. It had just been about to get dark, and I popped the board, flicked my foot, and it flipped under me, and I landed-clean. It shot out from under me a second later, but I still landed it.
Mikoto leans back, tapping her tail against the ground to bring herself to a slow stop.
"So, what do you think?"
"Do that five more times, and go as fast as you can. Try not to lose control of the board."
"Awww..." Mikoto pouts. "I want to learn how to do the Ollie and kickflip."
"We'll do that next, after this. Ollie first, though. That's the foundation for every trick you'll do. Show me what you got you little bundle."
"Ma'am yes ma'am!" Mikoto salutes me, grinning.
She runs further back than where she started and sets her board down. She throws up the victory sign, and I have no doubt she's so excited to learn her first trick. I just hope that excitement stays excitement while she is learning the Ollie. Excitement can quickly turn into frustration. People that are good at skateboarding, really do make it look easy, but there's a lot that goes into the tricks and it's all footwork, for the most part.
She pushes off, and Mikoto is flying like a shooting star burning through the sky. She flies around me, doing three second manuals to form a radius and straightens back out. If it's possible, with each pass, she's moving faster and faster. It's almost amusing how she looks, but I contain my laugh. My amusement if overtaken by surprise, just a bit. Some people can't even get the hang of standing on a skateboard, and here is Mikoto, moving with great dexterity and speed in such a short time.
Mikoto skids to a stop, keeping her front foot on the board. She moves side to side, hobbling to maintain her balance. It's more or less just her feet shifting back and forth on the board-she's feeling it out, finding that right balance.
"So..." Mikoto is so impatient.
I ruffle her hair until she sways my hand away.
"Stop it."
"Just let me have my moment."
"Ollie!" Mikoto chirps. "Show me the Ollie."
I do just that.
Mikoto is amazed.
"So cool~"
I do it a few more times-not popping the board as hard as I could. I just want Mikoto to see how it looks up close, the way my feet are moving, the way I jump up with the board, and suck it my knees. More so-I hope she sees how when I pop the tail down, my front foot slides up in unison. There's no pause. This is the tricky part a lot of people don't know until they actually do their first Ollie.
If Mikoto is the bundle of talent that I know she is, than she will catch onto this very quickly. It'll take a couple of tries to get it right, it's not enough to just see it, but to do it herself, and work through those kinks, that is the key. Still-just seeing it and how it's done should be enough for Mikoto. Pushing a board, and doing tricks are two different things entirely, but she's got a great sense of balance on the board, An Ollie should come naturally for her, once she gets the hang of it.
"See?"
Mikoto nods, setting her board down and stepping onto it. "Does it matter if I stand on the nose and tail?"
"Not at all. Whatever is comfortable for you. There's no rules."
Mikoto grins and pushes herself around. She slows down, and she pops the tail.
Her front foot slides up...
But...
The tail stays on the ground.
"Ow!"
I laugh.
"It's not funny, Andrew!"
"It is! It is!"
Mikoto huffs and puffs, stomping around in a fit.
I clutch my ribs, trying not to fall back.
This girl kills me, she kills me.
"Stop laughing so hard!"
"Sorry, sorry!"
"You're not! You liar! Liar!"
"Caught red handed!"
She huffs and puffs again, sets her board down, and stands on it. "Walk me through it, now."
I nod, slowly containing my laughter until I have to take a deep breath-sides and gut aching regardless of how calm I'm getting. Mikoto fell in slow motion, like a process, as opposed to just falling like a stack of bricks. I'm not sure how she managed to do that, but she did, and it was hilarious. It's not like she fell down a flight of stairs or something, she didn't even break any skin.
"Andrew!"
I take another breath, feeling a bout of laughter coming up. I wipe my eyes-tears smear across my sockets and go all the way to my ear. I have to wipe them away with my shirt.
"Okay. The Ollie. You want to put your front foot in the middle..." I grab Mikoto's foot, and shift it on the board. "Don't hang if off like that."
"But-"
"Don't hang it off." I say, more firm. "You want to keep it in the middle, since you're just learning."
I spend the next minute adjusting Mikoto's foot. This girl is getting so finicky when it comes to this I'm obligated to say she's obsessive.
"Okay, now your back foot. You don't want to keep it flat. Mikoto, stop being a penguin."
"Hey-"
"Enough! Curl your toes so it feels like you're about to pivot. Remember how this feels-your stance. Now, I want your bend your knees. No, don't go down like you have to take a crap and you've been holding it for five hours. Just sort of, squat, like you're taking your sweet time. Now, you should feel some pressure in your back foot, by the tail or nose, depending on your stance...Do you know what I mean?"
She presses her foot into the board, bends her knees, and adjusts her front foot. She's a natural, even though she hasn't done an Ollie yet. "I think I can feel it...Like If I press down, it's going to slide out from under me."
"Perfect! Remember that feeling. Now, when you Ollie-your back foot snaps down, think of yourself stomping on a can, but using your toes. When you snap your back foot down-you're going to slide your front foot up. It all happens at the same time. So, when you're thinking about stomping the can, think of rubbing your foot up some sand paper."
'That...Sort of makes sense."
I nod. "Okay. Now, you can and will do all of this right, and you may not get off the ground. You'd have to experiment for hours, but since I'm a master, you get the short cut. When your snap your back foot down, and slide your front foot up-bring your knees up towards your chest. You'll feel like you're riding a wave, sort of. Or doing a worm."
Mikoto goes about practicing. She doesn't get the Ollie at first. She doesn't get it in twenty minutes. The board skips and the wheels hit the cement. The plies rattle. A few times it goes completely vertical, and Mikoto has to jump and roll to avoid getting a credit card.
She finally pops the board, and it leaves the ground, just a few inches.
"Mikoto!"
"I did it!" She throws up the victory sign. "I am that awesome!"
I look around our surroundings, and I note the trio has yet to return. I had been so focused on helping out Mikoto, and laughing at her, that I didn't focus on the huge vacant spaces in our group.
"Mikoto...Where did those three go?"
"Huh?" She looks around, tilting her head. "I...Don't know. That's weird..."
"Are they being attacked?"
Why oh why now of all times-just when we were about to get ice cream...
Fucking...
Shit!
Before we can even take another step, we see someone approaching us. I squint to see who it is, but they're a little too far away for me to see. I know it's a woman, she's short, has dark hair-and from her outline, she's got quite the body. I can't tell where her hands or arms are-they're just little outlines, I am able to see her legs a bit more clearly. Something in me is screaming danger, danger, danger! It's just like the time during that damn fire drill when I had been around Hitomi.
My instincts, are telling me...
Fight...
Flight...
"Andrew...Who is that?" Mikoto questions, eyes narrowed.
"Ambrose-san and Kondou-san..." The woman is within range-where I can barely make out her features.
I swear, I've seen her before.
I hear something cock.
"Mikoto!"
I shove her out of the way, flying in the opposite direction as fast as I can. Bullets spray through the air-there's thousands, ten of thousands! I lose sight of Mikoto in the flash of fire. I can only think to run for the nearest warehouse.
"I think it was a MAC 10."
Akane hadn't been lying when she said that. That gun this woman is firing, is damn sure a MAC 10! I can hear-practically feel the cement being chewed apart behind me-windows shatter and disperse as the bullets carve through them with ease. They ricochet off steel beams, rusted and old, chipping away at the metal. I have nowhere to go-I can only run as fast as I can, and hope that's enough.
I have a thought to fire a sphere of water, but that'll do no good. I have no idea where the woman is shooting, and I'm now enclosed. It provides me with cover from the bullets, but now she can just unload-like she is, until she believes I'm dead or comes in to finish the job. I have always been wary of Akane's trigger finger-she's as fast on that as she is persistent, but this is just something else entirely.
"Fuck!"
I can hear the groan of steel and metal giving way. Bullets shouldn't be able to do this kind of damage-they can puncture steel, and do, but ripping a warehouse to its foundations-not a chance. It'd take an entire army to unload their weapons, and they'd need another twenty spare clips to recharge, and even that wouldn't be enough. Cement and debris are billowing, gathering like rain clouds, and the tell tale booms of something huge falling, shakes my ankles all the way up to my pelvis bone.
An archway collapses. I slide to a skidding stop, shift on a dime, and lunge for the next wall. Steel beams clatter and bang, metal supporters hit the ground with terrible force, attacking my ear drums with their harsh staccato. Still, I try to use my speed to evade what I can, but I put myself in this warehouse-the exit is closed off, and that means there's only one way I'm getting out of this.
Cement chunks hit the ground before me. They're twenty feet tall and fifty feet wide. I'm not even sure that I'd be able to lift them at all. I may be a Kampfer, but I don't my strength is that great. That's tons right there, thousands of tons, and it'd crush me like an ant. I invert, slamming my hands on the ground, and flip back, and back, and back, and back-forced inexorably back by the onslaught of this collapse.
My back hits a wall, and it is only on instinct I shoot water in every direction. It splits through the debris with relative ease, shattering it upon contact, sending clouds of dust and projectiles of rock shooting through the air. Still, it's not enough to stop the onslaught, and with finality, the whole place comes down on top of me. I use another water attack, pushing and pushing, and pushing with all of my might-I can't die here! I scream Mikoto's name, I can hear her, but she's too far away, yet so close.
There's fear in her voice, thick and palpable. I can hear it over the thunder of debris and crackle of steel bending. I can hear it over the crackle of metal being contorted and crushed. I can even hear it over my own scream-that is drowned out by the claps of thunder reverberating through the ground. Everything is silent, the bullets stop, the shooting stops, I can't hear Mikoto, and...
I can barely feel my heart beating.
"Andrew!"
I can barely hear Mikoto.
The concussive blast of force deafened me and knocked m silly. I managed to avoid being crushed-my knees and arms are bleeding, slowly healing thanks to my perks of being a Kampfer, but it's going to take a while. My lungs and eyes burn like sulfur was shoved into them-the billowing cloud of dust and debris is swarming around me, wishing for nothing more than to consume me whole, and to make me one with it. I try to move-pain jolts through me, and I turn over on my side.
"That's...Not good."
My right side is covered in blood. My shirt is drenched in it, and it's going all the way down to my pants. I can feel fresh blood still oozing out from the wound. I can breathe fine, so it's not my lungs. I don't feel any shortness of breath, that's alarming. It could be a wound that just cut too deep or looks worse than it really is, but that's still a lot of blood.
It's a lot...
I'm not feeling any burning, so thankfully, none of the bullets hit me. That's a miracle in of itself since there had been so may coming at once. So many had been bouncing off the cement and ricocheting off the steel and metal beam. I'd like to think I managed to speed around all of them, but when you have a hail storm of bullets coming at you, that's not possible.
Perhaps my water attacks had something to do with it, but the end result is now the same.
I'm wounded-I was attacked, again, and I'm wounded...
"M...Mikoto..." I groan out.
I doubt it's enough for her to find me. I have nothing against her, but she isn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. I dare to open my eyes-light hurts, and it turns into a hot white and orange. I embrace the darkness-it brings me bliss, but forces me to focus on my pain. It beats having my eyes fried by everything around me at the moment.
I'm just going to lay here, and...
"Andrew!"
"Shi...Shizuku..." I manage to get out, turning towards the sound of her voice. "Where's Mikoto?"
"She's...She's buried like you are, Akane and Natsuru are looking for her. Keep talking to me so I can find you, there's so much rubble around here."
"I'm so tired and in pain..." I moan, sounding pitiful.
Sleep...
Sleep sounds nice.
"Andrew, talk to me!"
"Un..."
"Don't fall asleep, whatever you do!"
"I'm...Tired..."
Her voice sounds close.
Or am I getting further away?
"Andrew!"
"Y...Yeah."
"Don't fall asleep!"
"You're not fair, Shizuku." I cry. "You're not fair..."
"I'm not letting you go and I refuse to let you give up, fight...Listen to the sound of my voice..."
"That's so...Cheesy. I thought you're too cool to say stuff like that."
"I have my moments, I am still human."
The ground shakes, and I know it's because some gigantic piece of debris has been shoved aside, or cut. Shizuku is on a mission to find me. The shriek of her blades cutting and cutting is a testament to that. I can hear Natsuru shouting close by while Akane unloads her gun-no doubt they're clearing debris as well. Still, I tense my body at the sound and feeling-it's like I just took a shot of fear.
I hear the faint footstep of Shizuku, and I try to open my eyes.
It hurts too much.
I can't.
"Is...Is Mikoto okay? Ow! Ow! Oww..."
I whimper, writhing, and squirming around like a worm. My side is exploding in pain. I don't think I can move. I can feel my knees and arms getting wetter and wetter-sweat is burning my eyes, and I feel some go into my ear. I'm not sure what's worse-how sweaty I am, how bad I'm wounded, or the fact I've been reduced to this condition.
I can feel Shizuku jolt, her hands leave me. What little of my body was off the cement, hits it again, and I can't begin to describe how it feels. I'm surprised shock and pain haven't made me pass out at this point. I guess that'd be thanks to being a Kampfer-I think any normal human would have lost consciousness a long ass time ago, probably when this place hit the ground like a stack of bricks.
"What should I do Andrew? You're hurt..."
I can hear the...Fear in Shizuku's tone. She's frightened to touch me, and that means I must look a mess. I only feel the pain and discomfort of everything-I haven't been able to open my eyes in order to look at myself. If Shizuku's tone is taking this sort of pitch, I must look horrible. I think she's just barely stopping herself from crying right now.
"I..I don't know..."
I wish I could move, but I can't. I've been hurt. I've fallen and busted my ass. I've biffed. I even got back up after coming a fucking hair close to breaking my ankle, before sitting my ass down right after. There's been times I've had to sit still after falling or getting hurt-but to be paralyzed by pain, to the point of shedding tears and hissing like a cat because I'm in so much pain...It's never happened to me before.
I'm not sure how much times passes, but Natsuru's shout shakes me to my core.
"Shizuku! Mikoto, she's-"
I think emotions are getting the better of Naturu, but I don't blame her at the moment. If Mikoto is in a similar condition as I, or worse, Natsuru's scream is more than well warranted. Spurred on by the shout, I try to move. It fails. Pain shoots through me as I have the thought to move. As I have the impulse to move. But, I manage to roll...
Over onto my back.
And, I'm out of breath.
"Shizuku...We were attacked..."
I fight against her the best I can, but end up crying. She carries me out of the mountain of rubble. I cough, going into a choking fit. Fresh air. How I've forgotten what it is. How I hate it since it's choking me at the moment. With the same haste I was picked up, Shizuku sets me down, being sure to be as gentle as she can. I don't jolt and I don't thrash like I had been, I just tremble and deal with it the best I can.
"Oh, Andrew..."
I can feel Natsuru near me, and the worry and fear in her voice is as thick as the fear and worry in Shizuku's.
"D...Please don't touch me...I hurt..." I whimper. "I hurt all over."
"She's bleeding, bad on her right side." Akane says-she's right up on me. I don't know if she's transformed or not. "Mikoto has the same wound on her left side."
"Are you transformed? Is Mikoto okay?"
"You're worried about her, when you look like shit? That's typical, of you."
I suppose she is transformed.
"Mikoto is okay, she's unconscious, but she isn't dead. You guys are both bleeding, bad."
I wiggle, wishing I could disappear.
"This is going to hurt...But, the bleeding has to stop. Hold her you two."
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!"
I scream bloody murder, punching the cement.
"I'm sorry, Andrew!" Natsuru exclaims.
No doubt it's because I sound like a dying animal.
"Fuck! Fuck!" I hiss-I've never been prideful, but I can't help but feel and be ashamed. They all see me so pathetic and weak, so filthy, so bloody...
So helpless...
"Fuck..."
"That should stop the bleeding for now." Akane's voice is strained. "We should take them to your place, Shizuku. It's closer. We should take the alleys and short cuts. I'd feel better if we wash their wounds and use alcohol for good measure."
"No..." I start trembling. "Don't do that."
"Did you manage to see who attacked you?" Shizuku prods.
"I..." I trail off-seeing a flash of color overtake the inky black. "I think I've seen her before...At school."
"Those fucking White Kampfer! I know it was them." Akane snaps, growling in fury. "Damn them! How dare they do this! Where do they get off!? Fuck them!"
"Center your emotions, Akane."
"Like hell I will! Look what they've done to Andrew and Mikoto! We shouldn't have wasted our time fighting those three sluts like we did! Look what they've done to our friends! You want me to calm down! I'm not an icy queen like you are! Fuck that! This makes me angry!"
"But, yelling won't help them..." Natsuru interjects, tone soft. "We have to help them...Let's just get them back to Shizuku's place before we get attacked again."
"Andrew, please bear with me." Shizuku pleads with me, finger tips brushing against me. "I'll move as swiftly as I can."
I just nod, and take a deep breath as she lifts me up in her arms.
"I'm sorry, in advance. Natsuru, carry Mikoto. Akane..."
"Don't worry about it. If anyone comes within eighty feet of us, I'm going to blast off their head and leave their brain ten miles away."
"Let's move with hast. I don't want to take longer than two minutes to get to my place. That's actually a minute too much for me. One minute is our deadline."