Chapter 76: A Night to Remember

The sun was still out by the time the prom got started. Lunalei was tasked with watching the front entrance of the gymnasium to take attendance of all the students for the time being.

She had picked out a light lilac colored dress with loose shoulder straps and a sash around the waist. A few students had complimented her, but she didn't know how to respond and so shyly fiddled with her glasses while they passed her by.

At least every other student came with a date and it left her biting her lip in slight envy.

"Haaa, hopefully this night will go smoothly…and quickly." Her knees were tense and she fidgeted her toes wanting to move somewhere else, preferably with juice or appetizers.

"Hey, Luna!"

Her body jolted upright from this unexpected sound and she spun around to see Serra running into the building with Damian lagging close behind.

"W-What…?!" Lunalei's glasses almost fell off her face and she snatched Serra's arm, trying desperately to wrangle this bull to a stop.

"What the HELL are you doing here?!" She hissed through gritted teeth.

Serra performed her customary blinking and said plainly, "Enjoying the prom with my buddy?"

"The prom? You." Lunalei faced the metaphorical oil in the water and let go, deciding this wasn't worth the headache.

She brushed her hand out and then wrote the two's names down on the docket before looking up to see a more pleasant sight: Leo dressed nicely, guiding what appeared to be a blind girl who was dressed in a rather swanky fashion, which brought a smile on her face.

"A girl in a suit, how quaint." She murmured, which caught the girl's attention, and in turn, Leo's.

Leo had the two of them face her as he commented, "Oh, there you are, Lunalei. They put you here?"

"Yeeeaaaah, and I'm stuck here for the first hour. But hey, you look nice tonight Leo. And so does your date."

The two blushed. Clearly there was some nervousness about their obvious romance being seen.

The girl coughed and then faced her with a smile, "So you're the famous Lunalei. My friend sang your praises for hours!"

She extended her hand…at a level that'd be appropriate for a taller girl.

Lunalei was briefly miffed but raised her hand to shake it, which caused the girl to flinch.

"O-Oh…" And following a blush she said, "Anywho, my name's Lyra. Nice to meet you!"

"Same. And if Leo makes a wrong move-"

"There's no worries there." Lyra said bluntly, but nudged Leo's side with her elbow and chuckled.

Leo smiled fondly and then took her further into the gymnasium.

An upbeat techno jam started to play through the speakers and Lunalei swore she recognized this was a video game she played when she was younger and started bobbing her head to it.

After a few more miscellaneous greetings another student she recognized walked into the building looking rather tense: Bang.

He cleaned up rather nicely and had a barely fitting tuxedo on, likely a gift from his parents.

He was being guided by a rather forceful dirty blonde haired girl with her hair draped down to her thighs and…black dyed tips…wearing a glittery off-shoulder crop top and baggy bell bottom jeans bearing a familiar color palette of yellow and pink.

Perhaps it was the hair. Perhaps it was the make-up acting as a veil. But Lunalei was barely able to get her surprise out, "V-Violet…?"

The once punk-ish looking girl turned to her with a blank stare and a seemingly forced smile, but speaking in her usual cadence, "Hey teach! Didn't think you'd be here!"

Lunalei obscured her blush poorly and adjusted her glasses, "I-I see. Well…here I am. And you're here with…Bang."

"Yep! So if you'll excuse me…" The moment Violet grabbed hold of Bang's arm the guy twitched and started scratching the side of his face, "We're off to have a hella lot of fun!"

"Y-Yeah! TOTALLY!" Bang roared at a high-pitch, and the two were off.

Leaving Lunalei to look at herself and realize how ridiculous her mind was at this moment.

"It's just a change of clothes. Don't be tempted…" Her gaze then strayed in Violet's direction as her and Bang caught up with Leo and Lyra and talked.

Lunalei felt…sad, "I guess…she found someone else."

She focused on her docket and murmured, "Good…"

More time passed and Lunalei eventually distracted herself by realizing a certain nuisance had yet to show her face at the prom.

And by now most of the gymnasium was filled with students, so either she was showing up or she wasn't.

But she hedged her bets on this being a purposeful delay on Erin's part to make it more dramatic.

Lunalei clutched her pen between two fingers and twirled it around and around while staring at the door.

"What're you looking at, cuz?"

Lunalei once again was taken aback by Erin's sudden appearance next to her, alright flaunting her assets with a carefully placed lean.

As she craned back, she showed off her dress, built similarly to her mom's performing outfit, but pitch black with a few jagged red streaks down the front, and the other thigh exposed.

"Figures." Lunalei closed her eyes and let out a groan.

Then she tried to just play it off coolly by writing hers and Alex's names down on the docket. Alex, as a note, was wearing a simple suit, reminiscent of what Julius used to have, which did make Lunalei pause and reflect.

Which was broken up by Erin snickering, "So which kid's store did you go to for that dress?"

Lunalei glared at her and bit back, "Oh, go flaunt your breasts somewhere else. I'm busy."

Erin fanned her fingers against her face and laughed, "Awww, chill, cuz! Let me have a little fun, after all…"

She leaned in and smirked, "You owe me."

Lunalei felt intimidated and she didn't quite get why. But Erin smoothly waltzed into the crowd of students, instantly drawing all manner of attention.

Alex stuck behind and gave Lunalei an odd look, prompting her to ask, "...Hey, did your mom pass that suit down to you?"

Alex instead asked, "...What did she mean by 'you owe me'?"

Lunalei nudged her glasses, "F-Forget about it. Just enjoy the night, Alex."

Alex clicked his tongue in discontent and then dragged his feet after Erin.

And it wasn't long after that when Lunalei's mandated time at the entrance was over and she could enjoy herself a little bit.

Which meant a quick trip to the punch bowl, mixing it with some seltzer water nearby, and finding a seat nearby so she could check her phone for any updates.

Once she had her fill, she leaned back and gulped down her drink while trying to see what the other students were up to.

A lot of them were on the dancefloor, busting a move to a piece the principal was remixing on the DJ stand.

Apparently, he had an interesting past.

She saw that Bang, Violet, Leo and Lyra were chewing on the snacks on the opposite end of the gymnasium. They seemed to be having a good time.

She really, REALLY couldn't stop thinking about Violet though…but she didn't want to be rude.

Not that Violet herself was showing that same courtesy to her students. She was acting as leader to their small group, shoving other students out of the way so Lyra could get the best treats available.

Leo and Bang lagged behind, giving Leo a chance to look at his on-edge friend trying to ease his nerves with heavy breathing.

"Don't breathe harder, breathe slower." Leo advised.

"T-Thanks, bro…Btw, you look very prince-ly tonight." Bang flicked his fingers out and clicked his tongue.

"Thanks, my dad picked it out." Leo said with a light blush.

"He's got good taste!" The moment Bang said that Leo looked him dead in the eyes and whispered, "Are you ok?"

Bang clutched his lips tightly and spat up, "Duh…! Whatcha talkin' about?"

Leo made a passing glance at Violet, and then back at him, gesturing at her in confusion.

"Oh, her?" Bang waved his hand out and gulped, "You don't worry about that bro, this night's for you and Lyra."

He then leaned in close, patted him on the back, and whispered, "Are you finally gonna give her her first kiss?"

Leo recoiled out of his grasp and coughed awkwardly, "D-Don't worry about that."

"Got cold feet bro? I got some killer advice to help out," Bang swayed his hand around nervously, "If you want."

Despite admiring his good intentions, Leo saw the obvious problem here, "Bang, have you ever kissed a girl before?"

Bang's pupils shrunk, "...Does my mama count?"

A short pause and Bang hung his shoulders, "Yeah thought not."

Leo reached out and patted him on the shoulder, which Bang reciprocated by taking a deep breath and admitting, "Who knows, maybe it's our lucky night…?"

Though that once again cast doubt on whatever the heck he was doing with Violet in the first place. But a direct confrontation seemed fruitless while Bang was this tense.

Leo lets events play out as they should, with them eventually being forced to vacate the snack table by one of the teachers when Violet's roughhousing got a little too pushy.

But they left with full plates of treats, which Violet gobbled down with fervor.

Bang ate slowly, but paused to contemplate, "Isn't it bad to eat before dancing?"

"Naww…! You need the energy, big boy!" Violet proclaimed.

Meanwhile, Leo and Lyra were close by in their own chairs, with Lyra trying to make sense of all the snacks Violet forced on her.

"She knows I don't like nut cookies…" She passed those off to Leo, who in turn quietly passed them off to someone else.

The two found themselves looking at Violet and Bang, and Lyra jumped to the right conclusion, "Are you getting strange vibes from them, or…?"

"No, you're right on the money. It's like we've entered the Twilight Zone…"

"The wha-"

Leo hung his head and murmured, "...Never mind."

Lyra puckered her lips and groaned, "I think I oughta have a talk with Violet."

As she prepared to drop her plate on the chair and head off, Leo gently grabbed her arm and pulled her back down, "Now hold on…"

"I know Bang has…problems. But I want to trust him to handle this."

Lyra turned and blushed, brushing her hand across his arms to get him to let go, and then confronting his words directly with a happy smile, "You just want to spend time with me."

Leo shrugged, "Guilty as charged."

And then he remarked, "But even still. I trust him."

Lyra nodded, "Ok. I will too. But if he lays a hand on her-"

She turned towards Bang and sliced a finger across her throat. Bang was naturally confused and threw his hands up at Leo.

After Leo and Lyra had their fill of snacks, they set their plates in the trash and headed onto the dance floor. The music had shifted towards a heavy metal song, which set Leo off temporarily.

Lyra commented, "Will you be able to dance to this?"

Leo remarked, "Actually…I've never danced before."

Lyra lowered her brows and murmured, "And so you invited me to a prom…"

Leo smiled and shrugged.

"...Weeeeeell," Lyra tapped her pointer fingers together, "Don't worry. I shouldn't try dancing either."

"If I got down to this kind of music, I bet I'd be flopping like a fish on the ground within seconds. Heh he!"

"Then what are we to do?" Leo murmured.

"Ummm…good question," Lyra replied, "I didn't think we'd get this far. Y-You know…you and I."

Leo closed his eyes and reflected on this last year of their lives. And from there arose that temptation to be honest about what he was.

…But this wasn't the time or place for it.

He gently took her hand into his and remarked, "Why don't we just enjoy the mood for now?"

Lyra nodded, "Yeah, I'd like that."

The two strolled about the area.

Meanwhile, with Violet's plate emptied and her stomach full, she pulled Bang from his chair with surprising ease and declared, "C'mon quarterback! We got a whole night to fuck around!"

Violet glanced over her shoulder through the crowd, then back to Bang, then back through the crowd.

"Y-Yeah…I-I mean, HELL yeah…!" Bang tried to force up some enthusiasm as Violet dragged them into the middle of the dance floor and without pause, started performing some crazy, fluid dance moves.

Bang, feeling stiff in his joints and weirded out by her almost cartoonish behavior, nevertheless played along by shimmying his arms up and down and faking enthusiastic grunts.

"Yeaaaah…! Wooooo! Party time!"

But the sheer charisma from his quarterback rank ended up riling up the party crowd to put a little more pep in their step.

"Ah crap…" He thought out loud, since this just enticed Violet to get more wild on the dance floor.

"WOO HOO! PAAAARTY!"

And every time she was stopping between moves, she wasn't looking at him. She was looking out at the crowd.

Bang slowed down his pace and with a tense, annoyed grunt, he made a very STUPID and rash move, sweeping Violet up off the floor and bolting out of the crowd before she could fight back.

"H-Hey! Let go of me, dumbass!"

He took a couple kicks to the face but eventually got her over to the snack area and tossed her into a chair.

"Ow! Rude!" She immediately slammed her foot into his kneecap and though it hurt like HELL, he grit his teeth and stood his ground.

"O-Okay…! I ain't a therapist, but you're acting messed up. Like…more than usual messed up."

Violet crossed her arms and hit him with a haughty smirk, "Oh THIS oughta be good."

Bang gestured his finger at her and declared, "No. No no no. I've had it up to here with your attitude! But at least before you seemed to be going with a purpose."

"But THIS…?" He gestured at the suit he was forced to put on, then gestured at her face, plastered in make-up, "C'mon! What's the big idea?"

Violet puffed her cheeks and swung her head the other way, "None of your fucking business, you testicle brained gorilla."

Bang's gears turned and he jumped onto the first answer that came to mind, "...You're trying to make someone jealous, ain't ya?"

Violet turned with a thick blush in her face and shouted, "N-No…sh-shut up!"

"That's totally it. Oh my GOD…" Bang had a proud smirk on his face until Violet got up like she was going to punch him in the chest.

He recoiled but she stood there, hanging her head and grumbling incoherently.

"This last month's sucked dick…" She finally said.

"Mmrrr…yeah, I getcha," Bang shook his head and then folded his arms, "Look, just go talk to the person you love and get your feelings across. If they say no, well…pffft, better than not saying anything at all."

Violet looked up and after wiping some tears onto her arm she smirked at him in a more friendly way, "Y'know…that ain't half bad advice. Coming from you."

Bang humbly shrugged, but then laughed, "I still don't get what your problem is with me…"

Violet smiled, "Nothing you did. I just hate your type."

Bang gestured out, "Well I don't know what overmasculine dumbass ruined things for you, but on his behalf, I apologize for our gender."

"Ha…" She reached out and clocked him in the arm gently, "I guess you ain't half-bad, you testosterone filled gorilla."

"Ha! I still dislike your guts, you shrieking mischievous imp," He then stepped out of her way and gestured his head at the crowd, "Go on. Find your mate."

Violet nodded and then dashed valiantly towards the crowd, leaving Bang with a good feeling in his chest.

Lunalei had remained in her chair all this time fiddling around with her phone in hopes of finding a distraction.

But for the third time this night, she was ambushed by a shout, "Hey! Teach!"

And she shot her head up to see Violet running up to her with a determined expression, "I-I mean, Lunalei…!"

She stopped, caught her breath, then threw down her fists and shouted, "We need to talk!"

Lunalei was thrown for a loop, and after putting her phone down she stood up and murmured, "O-Okay, fine. Let me start first then…"

Violet shook her head and declared, "Nuh uh. Not until I say my peace! First off? You screaming at me after I confessed my love? Dick move."

"Second of all-"

"Violet!" Lunalei put her foot down with authority and stared her dead in the eyes until she was quiet, "...I was going to address all that. Settle down. And first off…"

She hung her head slightly and fidgeted with her glasses, "I'm…sorry…for how I behaved. It took a lot of courage to confess to me, and I treated you like trash."

Violet's mouth hung open and she began to blush, itching the side of her face, "Y-Yeah, you did. Like…I've opened my heart to you. You were like…the first bright light in my life in a long time and…w-when you yelled, I thought you were just…taking advantage of me up until that point."

Lunalei crossed her arms and sighed, "...Look, I can't get into it, but…I'm not as…kind as you think I am. I'm messed up. In like…a lot of ways."

She then flattered her hand against her face and groaned quietly, "Especially now that I'm finding myself attracted to one of my students, GOD…why did you have to come here dressed up like that?"

Violet reacted violently with a blush all over her face, "Y-You think I look…pretty?"

Lunalei blushed and then gasped out, "T-That's not the point…L-Look Violet…"

She calmed down and stood prim and proper, taking a deep breath for what horrible but necessary thing she had to say, "I think…you're an exceptional student, and a lot kinder than people think you are. But you and I can never be a couple. Even when you grow up, I'm never going to stop seeing you as my student. And doesn't that dynamic sound…unfair?"

"...I don't understand much about love. But…from watching my mom and dad all the time, I understand that a relationship survives off of mutual respect."

She had to watch Violet's stature slowly lose more and more of its enthusiasm with a twist in her gut and a knife in her heart.

So to not rub further salt in the wound, Lunalei closed her eyes and whispered, "...I'm sorry…"

"It's unfair…" Violet sniffled, then shook her fists out like she was throwing a small tantrum, but the subject matter…quite surprised Lunalei, "If I don't get to appreciate how great you are, who will?!"

Lunalei recoiled and then passed off with her comment with a light but appreciative chuckle, "...That's something for an adult like me to worry about."

"Oh, ok…" Violet pouted, but with one last raise of her head she murmured, "Can we…still be friends?"

Lunalei thought this over for a bit and then replied, "Sure, I don't see the problem with that."

This brought a smile to Violet's face that Lunalei had sorely missed. After which, she returned to her spunky self, but in a more regulated way, wiping the sweat off her forehead and declaring, "Wow...boy…I'm beat…and now I'm stuck here for a few hours at this crappy event until my uncle comes to pick me up."

She glanced at Lunalei and wondered, "...Can I hang out with you?"

Lunalei nodded, "Yeah. I could use a way to pass the time."

The two sat down in separate chairs and Lunalei looked at her with a question, "So…have you ever watched Decade Avenger?"

After Violet's eyes lit up with a gasp, the two went from there.

Meanwhile, Serra and Damian have mostly spent their time here by the punch bowl. Serra's enjoyed the juice, but Damian has had one cup filled in his hand and twirled the liquid around dully.

He took occasional glances at Serra trying to survey the area for something fun to do. Her hopping confirmed her impatience.

"What the hell was I thinking…?" Damian stared at his reflection in the punch, "This sorta place isn't meant for her…"

He looked at her smile and saw it as her just acting herself instead of being genuinely happy to be here.

"Hey buddy!" She cried out to break his funk.

"E-Eh?"

"I'm gonna run a few laps around the ol' gym! Catch ya in a bit!" She waved him off and started running.

"H-Huh? Ooookay…" But she left him a more doubtful man, "Haaaa, yeah I'm an IDIOT."

He closed his eyes and punched his forehead, "A stupid, selfish idiot…"

"She probably thinks I'm boring. And who'd blame her? I got nothing special going on…I-I can't even get my feelings across…!"

He gripped his glass and shook, "...am i going to be alone all my life?"

"Heeeey…!" He was shaken by Serra returning to him with a smile and a laugh, "Ya looked deep in thought there. Everything alright?"

"Uhhh…" Damian put the glass down on the table and rubbed the back of his head, "N-Not at all! I-I mean, yeah…! Everything's fine!"

"Heh heh heh, you're so funny. But, that's what I like hanging around with you."

Damian's heart stirred in surprise, "R-Really? You've…never said that before…"

Serra perked up and clenched her fists, "Awww, you shoulda known I felt this way!"

"I…guess?" Damian felt weird, but she was saying everything he wanted to hear, so he ignored it.

Serra took a couple steps closer and her brows slanted, her smile creasing.

"Ya know, Damian…My heart's always felt funny around ya lately, and I thiiiink I finally know why."

Damian's heart started pumping loudly, "R-Really…?"

He let out a nervous gulp as she leaned in closer and poked him on the chest, then started raising that finger up towards his chin, "I love you."

Damian's legs turned weak and all he could do was scream internally, "What?!"

Serra grabbed his chin and her smile turned into a satisfied, hungering smirk, "And I want you…to be mine forever, Damian."

Before he knew it, she was moving in for a forceful kiss, salivating between the lips.

There was a brief disruption in this moment that made Damian take pause, "Wait…what did she call me?"

But then she slammed her lips into his his and started going to town, tongue and all.

Damian quivered and let this happen. For as brief of an encounter as this was, it was everything he ever wanted…right?

One blink later, and there was a loud booming noise that sounded awfully a lot like a thunderclap, followed by a huge gust of wind blowing past him.

It took him many seconds to register that Serra was suddenly in front of him posing like she had thrown a mighty punch.

The music had stopped. The dancers were silent, facing the direction Serra's swung fist was pointing at.

Damian swiveled his head and saw that a couple of the snack tables had been bowled over, and Erin laid in the middle of the devastation with a blistering red mark on the right side of her face.

Serra stood up and started panting, carrying both ferocity and fever in her grin.

Damian shook and tried looking back at both her and Erin. Erin started grinning, her eyes positively glowing.

"Heh heh heh…" She chuckled.

Damian could only face Serra as the rest of their classmates turned on her, "S-Serra…? What the hell…? But you were…"

Lunalei came running over shouting "Are you out of your mind?!" to Serra.

Serra stood there with the blankest stare yet as Lunalei accosted her, "Everyone's trying to have a good time, and you go and start shit with Erin?!"

"I…" Serra was speechless.

"Nuh uh, I don't wanna hear it! You're out of here! GO! Go on!" Lunalei shoved her hands out at Serra, who seemed to be left in a trance as she obediently made her way out of the gymnasium under the shame ridden gazes of her classmates.

Damian bit his lower lip and chased after her, "S-Serra, wait!"

While everyone started gossiping about what went down, Leo remained unconvinced that the truth of this matter was so crystal clear.

He looked over at Erin trying to get up after that punch, and though her legs gave way a couple times she managed just fine.

Her aura felt…off, in more ways than one.

"...What did you do, Erin?"

Once Erin was up all the way she soon found herself surrounded by students gesturing at her with cries of sympathy.

She absorbed it all with a delightful internal smile.

But one student reached out differently: Nero.

He stood beside her and leaned in with a whisper of, "Congratulations. Doesn't it feel good to let loose?"

By the time she faced him, he had disappeared into the crowd.

And she was left to feast upon all this attention, which in turn let the power inside of her stir…

Alex kept his distance, eyeing Nero slipping out of the crowd with suspicion before murmuring to "himself", "Should he…be made irrelevant?"

"No…he is a friend."

Alex squinted with great suspicion…

Outside the gym, Damian chased after Serra, who was moving at a brisk pace, "S-Serra, wait! I'm sorry…I don't know what happened…I swear!"

He actually managed to catch up and grab hold of her shoulder, turning her around to see her blank expression persisted.

But then she shook her head and commented on the whole affair in a rather carefree fashion, "Well…that was weird."

Damian bit his teeth and murmured, "T-That's all you've gotta say…?"

"Ummmm…" Serra scratched the side of her face, "I dunno why Eri was on you like that, but that was very rude of her…"

"But I dunno why I punched her so darn hard…I saw what she did, and my heart exploded!"

Was this…a good thing? Her nonchalant way of addressing this really didn't make it obvious.

Serra then got her energy back and giggled, "Well, sorry 'bout that, buddy! I know ya really wanted to go to the prom with me."

Seeing her in her natural light, he decided to just cast aside all his worries for the time being and said, "Ah forget it. You're right. It's boring as SHIT there."

He then timidly suggested, "Uhhh…y'know, Leo's probably going to be here for a while. W-We could go to the nearby bowling alley to pass the time…?"

"Yeah! Let's do it!" Serra raised her hand and the moment they clapped on this idea Damian realized…he had to say SOMETHING.

"H-Hey, Serra…" He murmured as they started walking.

"Hmmm?"

"...I'm not too boring, am I?"

"Huh? Why'd you think that, buddy? Anything's fun as long as we do it together!"

That blunt, straightforward positivity was everything he ever needed out of Serra…and made him feel a little stupid for ever having these doubts in the first place.

So for tonight? To hell with those worries.

He just wanted to hang out with his friend…

Next Time: The Woes of Magical Girls