Hi folks! DylanMason210 here.
This is my first ever fanfiction story, so I must ask you to be patient if I screw up somewhere along the line. This will also be my first try at writing, but I will try giving it my best.
…So, Prison School huh? I have read the manga and watch the anime, and I gotta say, it was…not what I was expecting, but it certainly was a fun ride XD (well, except for the end of the manga. It may have been a logical conclusion for it but, really?)
This story will follow Prison School's manga and anime, but with some new faces along the way: Some borrowed from other anime/manga, and others of my own. I will keep the canon up to a certain point, but there will be some changes made and beyond a certain point, I plan this story to follow its own way
Disclaimer: I do not own the rights of any franchise presented here. All rights are in possession of Akira Hiramoto, Studio Fantasia and Hari Tokeino.
Tokyo, Minato City
A young boy was sitting at his desk, while his fingers typed the keys of his Toshiba laptop. His fingers quickly moved through the keyboard, typing while some voices could be heard coming from the headphones he was wearing, the microphone on the right side lifted upwards.
"Nah, weon ¿En serio? ¿Pero cómo dejai lo' audinofos enredao encima de la cama y despue' te sentai en ellos? JAJAJAJA!" (Nah man. Really? But how do you leave your headphones' cable wrapped around it, on your bed, and then you sit on them? JAJAJAJA")
The boy's eyebrows twitched ever so slightly as he continued to tap on his laptop, trying to suppress the smile at the corners of his lips at the other person's mocking tone about his current predicament, and several people's laughs accompanying it.
"¿Pensai que después que mi hermana me hiciera correr como 1000 kilómetros pa' 'botar energía' o una wea así, me iba a preocupar que hubiera alguna wea en mi cama? No weon, me fui de hoci en cuanto entre a la pieza" ("You think that after my sister made me run like a thousand miles to "release energy" or some shit like that, I was gonna bother to look if there was something on my bed? Hell nah dude, I went down face first on it after I got to my room")
"Pero aun así weon ¿Cómo se te ocurre tirar el cable de lo' audífonos enredaos en el micrófono?" ("But even then man. What made you think of yanking the headphones cable, wrapped around the microphone?") Came another male voice from his headphones, conveying no small amount of amusement either "¡Obvio que te lo' ibai a pitiar! Como soi tan weon, enserio" ("It was obvious you'd fuck them up! How are you that dumb, really")
Before the boy could type an answer, a female voice made itself present.
"Weon, paren la wea ¿Quieren? La partia va' empezar" ("Guys, cut the shit would you? The game's gonna start")
Suddenly the Young boy looked at the top of the screen, and realized she was right. The loading screen that has been there for quite a long time by now (much more than it should have been because of the other people's poor overseas wifi) was finally gone, replaced by a group of people dressed like soldiers, with a silver handgun at the bottom right of the screen, aiming forward.
Without a moment of hesitation, the boy pressed the arrow keys and began to move, followed by the rest of the group. It wasn't long before they encountered another person dressed like a soldier too, but with different colors in its uniform. The boy's group opened fire without a second of doubt, killing their target.
Loud swearing in a foreign language could be heard being uttered by a female voice.
The boy's group then spread apart, and no sooner than later, more gunshots could be heard in the distance.
The boy grimaced when he realized two members of his team where down.
After turning around the corner of a large wooden box, he saw two more people dressed like the enemy his team had killed earlier, but this time he didn't open fire immediately. Instead he pressed a key on his keyboard, and the gun on his screen disappeared, being now replaced with a scoped rifle.
The screen of his laptop now displayed a circle with a giant black "X" crossing it from one end to the other, and the boy simply waited until the head of one enemy was right in the middle of said "X".
The moment it was, with a click of his mouse, a loud shot was heard, and the enemy fell to the ground immediately. The other one tried to take cover and aim in the direction the shot had come from. It was also put down the moment it tried to fire at the boy.
With both enemies' down, the boy changed once more to his gun and came out of hiding. He quickly scanned his surroundings, looking around for any other enemy that might pop out nearby.
Unfortunately, he didn't get to see the one who did.
Three slashes from a knife from the back and he was dead.
The boy took out his headphones in frustration at getting blindsided and eliminated, while the other people just commented on how now it was a one-on-one between the last members of each team.
Now that he was out of the game by now, he took a time to look back at his bed, his new uniform neatly folded on it.
He almost could not believe it. He. On an all-girls highschool.
"Hachimitsu academy, was it?" The boy thought to himself. "I still don't know what my parents were thinking by enrolling me there, really"
The boy drew out a breath as he ran a hand over his face and hair. "What if they-?" He stopped this track of mind as he shook his head "No" He firmly told himself "They are not her. They wouldn't do something like that… Wouldn't they?"
He rested his cheek on his palm with a look of resignation "Even after all these years, I still haven't put that behind me, have I? Well, I guess my parents have their reasons to put me in that school. I just hope that it's for the best"
Before he could dwell into it more, a voice coming from his headphones declared that the game was over. He looked at his laptop and realized that it was true: His team had won.
Allowing a triumphant grin to settle on his face, he decided to put that thoughts to rest for now, and put his headphones back on.
"Bueno, wena partida. Muy wena partia'" ("Well, that was a good game. A really good game") Said the voice of the last member of his team, who gave them the victory.
"¡Solo deci' esa wea porque vo' ganaste culaio!" ("You only say that shit because you won asshole") Came the female voice that previously announced the start of the game.
"Ya weon calmense. Fue una buena partida, ¿pero mejor lo dejamo' hasta aca no creen?" ("Alright guys, calm down. It was a good game, but let's just leave it here, don't you think?") Typed the boy as he tried to calm down the girl at the other side of the globe from going into a full tantrum, as he knew she would.
"Seh, hacerno' "old school" pa' jugar Counter Strike estuvo weno, pero igual llevamo' como 2 hora' asi" ("Yeah, going "old school" to play Counter Strike was good, but we have been at it for like two hours")
"Ya po, ¿a que le damo' ahora? ¿Su partia' de LOL o un Battlefield?" ("Ok, what do we hit next? A League of Legends, or a Battlefield?") Came a male voice that sounded older than the rest.
"No weon, na' de Battlefield" ("No dude, no Battlefield") Another voice immediately interjected.
Laughter, some suppressed and some not even bothering to hide itself came from the boy's headphones. The boy himself trying not to burst out laughing.
"¿Todavía estai' picao porque te trollearon en Battlefield? Weon, eso fue como mil año' atrás" (Dude, you still peeved you got trolled on Battlefied? That was like a thousand years ago")
"Incluso apareciste en un mashup de Battlefield, Y en un video de Dross*" ("You even showed up on a Battlefield mashup, AND in a Dross' video") Added the boy with no small amount of amusement as he sent his message, knowing full well what his friend's reaction would be.
"Weon no me recordi' esa wea en serio. ¡¿Nunca me van a dejar de wear con eso?!" ("Asshole, don't remind me of that shit really. You never gonna stop bothering me with that shit?!")
The boy was so focused on his friend's tirade that he didn't hear the voice outside his door, calling for him in an increasingly impatient manner.
"Gekka" Called a young girl's voice from the other side of his door, accompanied with some knocking "Gekka. Gekka! Open the door!"
The boy (Gekka) was still completely oblivious to the girl's voice, speaking to his friends.
"Weno ¿entonces qué tal si no' echamo' una partia de Call of Duty?" ("Then how about we play some Call of Duty?") The boy typed, now surprisingly invested on the topic of what game should they play next.
"No se weon, ha estado floja la franquicia últimamente. El último que me gusto fue Black Ops 2" ("I don't know man, the franquise has been losing quality as of now. The last one I liked was Black Ops 2") Came the female voice that had made very clear she didn't like how Gekka's team ganged up on her and filled her full of bullets.
From the other side of Gekka's door, another female voice, older than the girl, and a boy's could be heard
"Hikari, what's wrong?" Said the older woman. She was a tall and beautiful woman in her first twenties, with waist long red hair and green eyes. She was barefoot, wearing a loose white sleeveless shirt and jeans.
"Why are you being so loud?" Said the boy. He was about 11-12 years old, kind of short for his age, with short red hair the same color that the older woman, but with brownish eyes behind his glasses. He was wearing a white shirt with long black sleeves, grey breezy pants, and grey socks.
"Onee-san! Gekka won't open the door!" Said Hikari with a pout. She was a girl around 13 years old of average height for her age, brown wavy hair went past her shoulders with some of her bangs dyed red like her older sister's hair. She was wearing a pink shirt with red designs on the chest area, a purple skirt down to bellow her knees, and white socks
"Oh, is that it?" The older woman said as she looked at her younger sister with a mischievous smirk, which the girl replied to with her own. The boy chooses to stay behind instead, not wanting anything to do with whatever his sisters were planning.
The oldest of the two sisters opened the door as quietly as possible, and peeked inside her brother's room, half hoping to find him looking at some dirty magazine or porn site on his laptop.
Instead, what she found was Gekka sitting on his desk, big headphones covering his ears. Despite the fact that she couldn't see what he was looking at on his laptop from her angle, she could clearly hear some familiar voices speaking on a foreign language coming from his headphones.
A few seconds later, Hikari poked her head from behind her sister, frowning at the sight in front of her.
"So that's why he didn't answer" She whispered in annoyance, before looking up at her older sister "Onee-chan, do you understand what they're saying?"
"Some things, yes" She said in a quiet voice as her brother typed on his computer, raising an eyebrow as to why would he not just simply use his microphone to talk instead, noting that said microphone was lifted up, far away from his mouth where he'd always place it.
"SOOO…Are they talking about anything suspicious?" Hikari asked with a sly smile
"No, they're just talking about some videogames and stuff like that" she answered with a sigh
"Mou, how boring" Hikari said with her cheeks puffed, before the sly smile from before settled on her face once again "Well, if he's so preoccupied with his stuff, then he wouldn't listen to us unless we're really close to him, right?"
Hikari began walking on her toes, trying to make as little noise as possible. The posture of her arms and way of walking made her brother think she resembled a zombie from an old music video, or that maybe she was trying to imitate a velociraptor in some way.
"Weno, ya. Una partia' de Call of Duty. Pero del Black Ops eso sí" ("Alright. One Call of Duty play. But Black Ops that is") Said the girl that Gekka had been trying to convince for the last few minutes of playing Call of Duty, while oblivious to his sisters being right by his side, and the younger one now a few steps behind him.
As Gekka typed in his response, Hikari, in the blink of an eye, grabbed his shoulder and lifted his headphones out of his left ear.
"ONII-SAN!" She yelled into his ear. Gekka lets out a scream and jumps in surprise, almost falling from his chair. He catches himself on the corner of his desk before looking back at the girl behind him with wide eyes.
"I've told not scare me like that Hikari!" He yelled in a state of semi-panic as he tried not to fall to the ground.
The girl simply laughed at his current position. "But you look so funny right now! And they seem to think so too!"
It was true though. Now that he put his headphones back on his ears, he could hear people laughing at his sudden outburst, despite most of them also asking he was talking about right now, clearly not understanding Japanese.
Gekka simply puffed his cheeks in annoyance as he accommodated back on the chair once more, now catching the other woman and younger boy that stood by his door.
"Good morning Sadahiko. Yunako-neechan" He greeted the boy and the woman, respectively.
"Good morning Gekka" Replied the woman (Yunako) as she leaned against the wall with her arms crossed.
"Good morning big bro!" The boy (Sadahiko) greeted cheerfully, waving his hand up.
"So, what were you doing there Gekka? Where you and your friends exchanging naughty videos?" Yunako teased with a smirk, causing Gekka to blush and shake his hands vigorously in front of him.
"NO! Nothing like that! We were just playing Counter Strike!" He explained her while Hikari simply laughed at his expense and Sadahiko stared at his oldest sister with a disapproving look which she ignored.
"Ya po weon! Vai a jugar o no?!" "(Come on man! You playing or not?!") Came an impatient male voice from his headphones, dragging him back to his laptop, typing as fast as he could.
"¡Si, voy altiro! Estaba ocupao noma'" ("Yeah, I'm coming! I was busy that's all!") He typed as more voices joined in, hurrying him to log out and turn on his console to start playing. Some of them were more understanding of his situation though.
"Ya déjenlo tranquilo weon. Si igual Gerardo empieza las clases dentro de poco" ("Just leave him be guys. Gerardo has to begin classes son anyway") Said one of the boys through his own microphone, earning a grateful sigh from Gekka.
"Para otra sera" ("Next time will have to be") typed Gekka, the rest of his friends sending him farewells before he disconnected from the lobby.
Just as he closed Discord, another woman walked into his room.
She was of average height, shorter than Yunako. She had the same red hair than her but much shorter, going slightly pass her shoulders, and shared the same brownish eyes of Hiraki and Sadahiko. She wore a white apron, some stains on it indicating she had been cooking as of now, and beneath it was a short sleeved orange blouse and a long brown skirt that reached midway between her knees and her ankles.
She looked at Yunako and Hikari with her arms crossed under her bosom "Girls, what have I told you about messing with Gekka?" She said, giving each of them a hard stare, which got Yunako to avert her gaze with a "tsk!" and Hikari to squirm ever so slightly.
The woman just shook her head before looking down at Sadahiko "Honey, could you set the table for dinner while I'm here with Gekka, please?" She asked the youngest one in the room with a softer tone than before.
"Yes mom! Right away!" The boy exclaimed before jumping out of the door and running down the stairs. Taking a quick glance around the room, her eyes set on the uniform laying on top of Gekka's bed. Gekka and his sisters followed her line of sight after being evident that something was bothering her. Gekka didn't understand what was wrong with the uniform, as it was neatly folded on his bed, just like when his father had brought it into his room.
And that was exactly what was bothering his mother, which his sisters immediately took notice of.
"You haven't even tried your new uniform, have you?" She said, turning to Gekka. It was less a question and more of an accusation, disapproval ever so present on her face.
Gekka looked down with a sad expression, feeling guilty. His mother was right: He hadn't even touched his new uniform even though his father brought it to him a few hours ago after lunch. He took one last glance at the blue blazer on top of his bed before sighing and looking back at his mother.
"Mom, does it really have to be that place?" He said with a tone of resignation, knowing very well by now what her answer will be "That school is expensive, and there are many other places I could go instead of-"
"We already had this conversation Gekka" His mother interrupted with a firm tone.
"The Morinomiya Academy is even closer to our house than Hachimitsu, and way less expensive. That could've been a better option" He said, muttering the last part mostly to himself.
His mother sighed "Ok, you are right on that" She conceded his point, much to his surprise.
"But we couldn't let this chance slip away either" She quickly added "Your father and I have been friends with Hachimitsu's current chairman for a long time, and he was kind enough to select you as one of the first ever male students in Hachimitsu's history"
"You should be proud little one" Yunako said while crossing her arms under her bust "You have over a thousand beautiful highschool girls around yourself at all times. Any other boy would be more than a little excited, being able to ogle pretty girls all day" She added with a teasing smile at the end.
"That's the point. This is an all-girls school!" Gekka exclaimed in annoyance, clutching his head. Not that it was gonna convince them though.
"It was an all-girls school big bro. There will also be boys there you can befriend!" Hiraki said will patting him in the shoulder.
"Like 10 boys aside of me?" Gekka said on an unusual display of snark
"Actually, I think there are 10 boys counting you for what I remember" Yunako corrected, earning a puffy cheeked groan from Gekka, and a laugh from his sisters.
Sighing, his mother turned to Yunako and Hikari "Girls, I think that's enough" she gently scolded. After their laughter had subsided, she walked up to Gekka and put a hand on his shoulder in reassurance.
Gekka jumped ever so slightly at the physical contact, causing his mother to retreat her hand, before slowly putting in back on his shoulder "Listen, I know that this is hard for you my son, and I'm sorry if it bothers you, but you can be running forever" She said in a soft, kind voice.
Gekka tensed shoulders visible relaxed under his mother's words, but he still tried to object "I still think Morinomiya would've been better" His voice was barely above a whisper.
His mother looked at him with a sympathetic expression "Yes. It's true that we could have just enrolled you on Morinomiya Academy" She sighed and shook her head sadly "But you would just be avoiding the girls like the plague again, right?".
Gekka simply looked at his feet with remorse, unable to deny his mother's words.
Neither Yunako or Hikari uttered a single word, instead simply looking at each other with conflicted emotions. Some of the previous mischief was still present, but this time tempered by sympathy and tiny specks of guilt that they tried very hard to hold back.
Gekka's mother then gently took his cheeks on her hands, getting him to look up at her. She stared at his eyes with the warmness only a mother could muster.
"Just promise one thing, my son" She said while looking intently into her son's eyes "We are your family, and we will always do whatever is on or reach to help you" She didn't break eye contact with Gekka even once "If things do get too hard for you in this new school, just say the words and we'll get you out" She breathed out as closed her eyes for a second "But, promise me that you'll give it a try. That's all I ask"
Gekka looked into his mother's softly pleading eyes, while Hikari and Yunako looked at him from the side with encouraging smile, the latter pumping up a fist in the air.
Closing his eyes, he drew out a long breath as he tried to clear some of his insecurities away. When he opened his eyes, it was clear seeds of doubt were still ever so present, but Gekka didn't let their roots spread all over himself. Pushing his uncertainty aside, he looked into his mother's eyes.
"I'll...I'll try"
His family gave him a reassuring smile. "Very well, I think we should leave you alone so you can try on your new uniform then" She said, turning to look at her daughters, who nodded in agreement.
"We'll be outside Gekka. Tell us when you're ready" Yunako said as she walked out of the door, her mother and Hikari following close by.
Gekka turned to look at the uniform laying on top of his bed, and sighed. He took off his casual clothing and grabbed the white shirt of his new uniform. Instantly, he could feel something was wrong.
Outside his room, his sisters waited expectantly for him to yell "I'm ready!" for they had already prepared a long list of teasing comments to make fun of him, but his mother wore a very different expression, one that conveyed remorse and even sadness as she looked at her hand.
"We could just start squealing at him like some rockstar groupies! That should lift up his spirits!" Hikari whispered into Yunako's ear
"Yeah, because his uniform actually hides his wimpy physique pretty well" Yunako answered, earning a snicker from her younger sister.
While they thought about more ways to tease Gekka, Yunako sent her mother a quick glance, wondering why she hadn't try to scold them by now. Despite the fact Yunako was enjoying thinking about ways to tease Gekka, she couldn't help but worry after she saw the downcast expression on her mother's face. She quickly walked up to her, Hikari close behind.
"Something's wrong Oka-san?" Hikari asked, concern coloring her and Yunako's faces as their mother simply stared at her hand.
"Oh, nothing sweetie, just a little impatient to see my little boy in his new uniform, that's all" She said with a reassuring smile.
Despite this, neither Yunako or Hikari seemed convinced, clearly seeing something was bothering her, and had an idea of what that could possibly be.
Yunako put a hand on her mother's shoulder, gripping it a comforting manner, while Hikari hugged her from behind.
"It's okay mom" Yunako said reassuringly "He just…needs time. We already knew about it"
"I know" She said, sighing "But…still, it should be like that" She bit her lip.
Yunako simply shook her head as she tries to find the right words to comfort her.
"We just kept talking about girls though. All-girls school this, only nine males that" Hikari pointed out "Maybe we just got his head on the wrong place. Maybe even Otou-san would have got that reaction out of him"
The mother of four seemed to consider this, despite the fact that she still didn't seemed completely convinced of this. But just as her mind began wandering off again, her son's voice interrupted her thoughts.
"Umm…Mom?" Came Gekka's hesitant voice
Yunako and Hikari looked at their mother expectantly. She drew a long breath to try and reign on her emotions, a mask of calmness making its way over her face.
As she opened the door, her two daughters exchanged worried looks, wondering whether or not their mother would actually be able to keep up appearances in front of Gekka.
Their worries, and the tense atmosphere that choked the air up to that moment unceremoniously died after seeing the flabbergasted expression of their mother.
Peeking inside his room from the side, they could see why.
Gekka's blazer jacket fitted him like a glove, and even his sisters couldn't deny that it made him look reasonably handsome. If only the rest of his uniform fitted him like that
Gekka's pants were uncomfortable tight and too short, ending midway through his calves. His white collar shirt was a different story though. It looked so baggy that he could easily slip a classroom worth of chips bags under it into the cinema (By Hikari's logic)
After shifting awkwardly for a few seconds, Gekka looked up at his mother with a sheepish look "I think dad got the sizes wrong"
His mother didn't say anything, simply pinching the bridge of her nose as her two daughters exploded in laughter.
A week later…
Tokyo, Nerima Ward
"Let's see. Morinomiya-san office would be…that way, I guess?" Said the young teen as he looked around the school grounds of Morinomiya academy. A small, tiny 2-year-old toddler holding onto his hand.
After finding the right direction to walk to, he couldn't help by look around himself as he took his surroundings in.
"It sure is a big place though…" He commented mostly to himself as he and the child kept walking.
Suddenly, the kid stopped walking, causing the boy to look down at him in concern.
"Are you tired?" He asked "Can you keep walking, Kotaro?"
The kid (Kotaro) simply nodded in response, his sleepy/inexpressive face ever so present
The boy sweat dropped "Which is it?" He thought as Kotaro simply stood there holding his hand "I guess I phrased that badly"
Kneeling down to his level, he swopped up Kotaro from under his arms "Upsy-Daisy!" He said as he stood, now holding him in his arms. Kotaro clung to his shoulder, earning a reassuring smile from the boy.
"Don't worry Kotaro. Morinomiya-san is willing to take in and care for total strangers like us" He said as the little kid simply cuddled against his shoulder "She's sure to be a nice person"
As he eyed the large building in front of him, a certain girl with short blonde hair came to his mind, her cocky grin oozing with self-confidence and mischief "Well, almost total strangers" He thought to himself with a sheepish laugh.
As he walked through the main doors, he was greeted by the same girl who's face he had pictured on his mind. She was exceptionally tall, slightly over 6ft, with tan skin and blonde hair going down to her chin.
Her skimpy clothing was something he was used to seeing (to a certain point at least): Denim shorts that showed off her long legs and its lean, toned muscles, and a tight red tank top with a considerable cleavage, exposing her large breasts and fit arms, apparently opting to go barefoot inside the building.
The moment she saw him, her purple eyes lit up and a huge smile made its way onto her face, right before she launched forward and wrapped her arms around him
"Ryuichi!" She squeezed the air out of him in a rib-breaking hug.
"He-Hello Torimi-san" He said as he struggled to breath, and praying that Kotaro was safe as he had raised it to his shoulder after seeing the girl sprinting at him.
"It's been so long! How are you? Did you bring Kotaro with you?"
"Y…es…" He gasped for what little air he could breathe in "Tori…air…can't bre-"
"Oh yeah" Torimi chuckled, letting go of him after seeing him turning blue "Sorry, my bad" She laughed as she scratched the back of her head.
Kotaro, who seemed somewhat scared at her sudden contact, now looked at her with curious eyes. Torimi's face softened after getting a look at him.
"There you are, you lil' goofball" she said while patting him in the head, revolving his green hair a little "Who's been a good boy?".
"Ung?" Was Kotaro's answer, earning a soft laugh Ryuichi and a chuckle from Torimi.
"Of course you've been" She says as she tickles his nose with her finger, to which Kotaro does not react to, simply looking at her in confusion.
With a soft laugh after his lack of response to her tickling, Torimi gives Ryuichi, a glance, looking at him with softly pleading eyes. He quickly understands what she's asking for without a single word, and carefully positions Kotaro in his arms until he's facing Torimi and she picks him up, holding him on an embrace against her bust.
"You tired?" She asks in a softer voice than before. Kotaro simply cuddles against her bosom in response, and Torimi gently runs her hand on the back of his head as she addresses Ryuichi.
"Aren't you tired too? Took you longer than we expected"
Ryuichi simply scratches the back of his head as he looks to other way "Yeah, We-I got lost along the way. I ended up taking the wrong train" He laughed awkwardly after explaining his mistake
Torimi blinked, and then her face morphed into her usual cocky grin "Well, that's quite a bummer. The old hag was getting real impatient, and if that's why you didn't make it in time, she's not gonna be happy"
"Don't talk about it like that. She was kind enough to takes us in despite barely knowing us, so she must be a really nice person" Ryuichi defended
Torimi simply pated him in the shoulder "Oh Ryuichi. Innocent and oblivious, as always" She said in a sweet, and somewhat mockingly condescending way.
Ryuichi simply stared at her in confusion before she chucked "I think that's enough for now. Here, let's see the old hag already"
She guided the two brothers through the building. The mansion was way bigger than he thought when looking at it from the outside.
As they came closer to a door with the plate "Chairman's office" displayed on the top, a woman appeared around the corner, carrying a bunch of papers under her left arm.
She was a beautiful woman with purple eyes and long hair that reached the middle of her back, the same color as her eyes. She was wearing a white short sleeved blouse, black pants and high heels. Her clothes, while formal, did nothing to hide her very busty and curvaceous figure.
"Oh, Hello. Ryuichi-kun, Kotaro-kun" She says politely
"Hello Risako-san!" Ryuichi answered while bowing in greeting, earning a soft laugh from the woman
"There's no need to be so formal, Ryuichi-kun. You can call me Aunt Nagisa if you want" She smiled as she approached Torimi, looking at Kotaro. He simply stared at her without saying anything, with Risako grabbing the hood of his jacket, giggling when noticing the cute panda ears on the top.
"I see you still use that hoodie I gave you Kotaro-kun. Aunt Nagisa is sooo touched!" Risako cooed.
The only reaction she got from Kotaro was his usual confused "Ung?". She chuckled at it before adopting a more serious expression.
"Do you mind if borrow Kotaro for a minute?" She said, turning to Ryuichi. He looked a bit confused, but Torimi clearly understood what she had in mind.
"Umm…of course not" At his words, Torimi carefully put Kotaro down, Risako kneeling and extending her right hand to him. He reluctantly grabbed two of her fingers in his tiny hand and followed her around the corner.
"How you two holding up? You know, after what…You know" Torimi trails off after they slip out of sight.
"Well…Our parents always were of the carefree type. They spent a lot of time away from home, traveling" Ryuichi said as he scratched the back of his head "So taking care of Kotaro by myself it's nothing new to me".
Torimi simply hummed, looking away from him. Her expression told him she was likely deep in thought.
"Then again, I think I should extend my condolences to the chairwoman"
"…" Torimi simply looks at him with curiosity.
"I mean…I already extended mine to you and Risako-san!" He quickly added
"…I don't think my grandma will accept them though" She sighed, Ryuichi noting this was the first time Torimi has referred to the chairwoman as "grandmother (or grandma)" in a long time.
His thoughts were interrupted when they heard steps coming closer, turning to look at Risako approaching them, carrying Kotaro on one arm.
Ryuichi immediately became concerned after seeing the rather uneasy expression of his brother.
"Kotaro got restless after being away from you" Risako explained as if reading Ryuichi's mind, handing him Kotaro.
"…They only were apart for like 1 minute" Torimi blinked, while Kotaro clung to his brother once again.
"I think we should go inside. We have been keeping Youko-san waiting long enough" Risako suggested
Ryuichi and Torimi shared a look before nodding, the former reaching for the handle of the door while mentally preparing himself.
"Excuse us!" He says as he opens the door. Torimi and Risako follow suit as they enter, Ryuichi closing the door behind them.
"Hmm!" As he turned around, he heard a stiff huff, coming face to face with an elderly woman sitting on a desk, a tall, impeccably dressed man (which he thought looked like a butler) standing right beside her.
The woman was rather stern looking, with a giant afro of puffy grey hair almost as big as her whole upper body
"Took you long enough" She said, locking him in place with a hard stare "I have been waiting here for ages!"
Ryuichi looked quite taken aback by her, clearly not expecting this from the woman who had agreed to become his and Kotaro's legal guardian despite barely knowing them. Torimi simply looked at him from the side with a smirk, her face screaming "told you".
"Please don't be so hard on them Youko-san" Risako intervened on behalf of Ryuichi "Maybe they simply got lost along the way?" She suggested, closer to the truth than what she might expect.
"Yeah, don't fret about it so much, old hag. You'll get wrinkles" Torimi shrugged nonchalantly before her eyes lit up with malicious intent "Oh wait-"
"For your sake, you better not finish that phrase" The chairwoman (Youko) looked at Torimi with a scolding glare, earning a "Hmm!" from Torimi, who made a point of not looking at her.
Ryuichi was feeling quite uncomfortable with their interactions, despite being aware that the chairwoman and Torimi had a tense relationship. But before he could speak up, Kotaro pointed at Youko, causing Torimi and Risako to look at him, eyebrows raised in curiosity.
"Shaggy shaggy-" He said, clearly referring to the chairwoman's hair.
Ryuichi put a hand on Kotaro's mouth in alarm, while Torimi and Risako covered their own mouths (Torimi with both hands, Risako with her fist) trying not to burst out laughing.
"So-Sorry! We took the wrong train by accident and walked over here from the station!" He hastily explained. Risako, who's laughter had subsided by now, threw a knowing look at him before shaking her head with a smile
"I actually kind of expected it. Always so likely to clumsy mistakes when nervous" She thought to herself.
"I'm…Um, my name is Kumagai Ryuichi. This is my little brother Kotaro"
"I'm aware. You were given quite strong names, were you? With their allusions to dragons and tigers" The chairwoman said while clasping her hands in front of herself and leaning her chin on them.
"Ah! Um, I would like to extend my-" Ryuichi made the attempt to try and give his condolences at the chairwoman for her loss. But was cut off before he could do so.
"You can stow the stuffy formalities" She interrupted sternly "I did not call you here to become replacements for my son, nor out of a sense of sympathy" She declared while Kotaro looked like he wanted to say something, waving his chubby arm and grabbing Ryuichi's finger.
"He probably just wants to call her shaggy again" Torimi and Risako thought almost at the same time.
"I've heard you have been looking after this child since he was a baby"
"Yes" Ryuichi said while eyeing the other man in the room, wondering why he hadn't spoken at all during this meeting "Our parents were away a lot"
Risako scowled ever so slightly at this, remembering the many times she had told Ryuichi's parents that they should not put the responsibility of caring for a baby on their son at such a young age, to no avail.
"So you know how to change diapers and give milk?" The chairwoman continued
"…Yes?" He said, not knowing where she was going with all this questions, though Torimi and Risako had a good idea of what were her intentions.
"Excellent" The chairwoman said, closing her eyes
"As of now, Morinomiya Academy's classes will not begin until a week from now due to reparations" She said, now eyeing the Kumagai brothers "So we'll take care of your brother while you attend Hachimitsu"
"I have no issues staying at home for this week and take care of Kotaro" Risako said in a very formal and professional tone, but the glint of her eyes clearly said she really wanted to spend some time with the toddler.
"Very well then" The chairwoman stood up and addressed her "butler" or so thought Ryuichi "Saikawa, take him to school then. Make sure he doesn't arrive late again"
"Understood" The man (Saikawa) politely bowed
The chairwoman turned around and pointed a finger at Ryuichi, who looked clearly nervous.
"You will only get this week easy because Morinomiya Academy is currently undergoing repairs. When classes start there, you will be required to attend its daycare room after school every day"
She then slammed her hands on her desk, earning a surprised yelp from Ryuichi "Give-and-take is the law of the world! Every man must earn its daily bread, and those who don't work don't eat!" She finished by pointing a finger at the Kumagai brothers
"In return for looking after the needs of both of you, I require you to spend all of your time, while not in class, acting as Morinomiya's babysitter"
Ryuichi blinked in confusion "Baby…sitter?"
"If you understand then hurry up and go! You too Torimi!" She yelled as she stood of from her chair and motioned them to get out "I'm busy!"
The chairwoman slammed the door after all the other occupants left. Ryuichi simply stared at the door flabbergasted, while everyone else wasn't even fazed by her outburst, clearly used to them by now.
"Well, that went better than expected, huh?" Torimi commented on a rather deadpan tone, earning a snicker from Risako and pretty much nothing from Saikawa, who was instead looking at the Kumagai brothers.
"Is there something troubling you, Ryuichi-sama?" He asked, with both women now noticing the rather crestfallen expression on Ryuichi's face
"I didn't even get to thank her or anything" He said on a somewhat sad voice "I wonder if she even wants us here to begin with…" Risako's expression softened, and reached her hand forward in an attempt to pat his shoulder in reassurance.
"Shaggy" Kotaro said once again pointing at the door, to which Ryuichi gently scolded him for. Risako retreated her hand, seeing that the toddler had inadvertently distracted his brother from his troubled thoughts.
"Please, come with me" Saikawa did what Torimi called "The typical butler reverence" as he said this. Then he spun around, and kneeled on the floor, extending his arms behind himself "After the long walk you endured, not pushing yourself further should be our top priority on this instant, so please climb aboard"
"HEH?!" Ryuichi squawked, earning a heartfelt laugh from Risako, and a much louder one from Torimi as Saikawa clarified he was joking.
"I wonder if he was trying to comfort us…" He thought.
"We'll drive you to school, but first I have to deliver some papers" Risako then motioned to Torimi "And you need to put on your uniform"
"Right away!" Torimi said with a wink and a grin, running into the mansion.
Ryuichi saw his friend run off, unaware that Risako was staring at him and the toddler on his arms with conflicted emotions, musing something to herself that he didn't get to hear, and that she didn't want him to hear in the first place.
She eyed Saikawa, who seemed to catch on what was distressing her.
"Do you think she would give him trouble?" She whispered to him
"I am not sure" He admitted "But should that be the case, the chairwoman will likely intervene immediately. The respect she commands over them is not something we can dismiss out of hand"
She sighed "Let's hope you're right. I've known her long enough to know how stubborn she is. And how much she hates males".
…
As the wind rushed pass the black limousine currently driving through the city, Ryuichi stared at his now sleeping baby brother, laying on his child seat by the window.
Just as Risako had said, they were now heading to some kind of business building, well over 20 floors high. As they parked on the side of it, Risako exited from the car, promising to be back as soon as possible.
Torimi also excused herself to the bathroom shortly after, leaving Ryuichi alone with Saikawa.
"Umm…Saikawa-san"
"Is there something troubling you, Ryuichi-sama?" He answered from the driver seat, looking at him through the mirror.
"What did she mean by "babysitter" exactly?" Ryuichi asked, still not getting what the chairwoman was talking about
"You have been entrusted with the task of looking after the children of Morinomiya Academy's employees"
"Heh?"
"The chairwoman's deceased son, Youichi-sama and his wife, Yuna-sama, created a facility within the school grounds to assist the female teachers there" Saikawa answered as he handed Ryuichi his phone, a picture of a door with flowers on one side, and a rabbit on the other. Big, colorful letters above read "Babysitters club".
"Despite their good intentions, due to insufficient budging, it's been short-handed" As Saikawa said this, Ryuichi scrolled through more photos displaying the room from the inside. It looked pretty much like a normal daycare, with several children playing around while a tall man with pink hair was sitting in the background, a baby on his arms.
"Thus, to gain the aid of the school's students, the chairwoman's son and her daughter in law attempted to form a babysitters' club. Unfortunately…"
"Who'd want to join a club like that?" A middle school girl asked in disbelief, just as her teacher explained to her the new club added to the school grounds.
"A club where you look after children?" A middle school boy blurted out after reading a pamphlet affixed to a wall, clearly finding the idea nonsensical.
"No way" A high school boy dismissed after being handed a flier.
"…They failed to gather enough students, and therefore the club was never officially formed" Saikawa ended after the memories of their previous failures at gathering members for the Babysitters' club flushed on his mind.
As if on clue to their conversation, Risako returned from the building, the stack of papers she carried on the Morinomiya's mansion no longer present. Torimi made her entrance a few seconds later, receiving a suspicious look from Risako. She made a point of avoiding her gaze, looking out of the window
"So the chairwoman wants me to become the club's first member…" Ryuichi concluded from what he had just been told.
One could practically see the wheels turning on Risako's head, both on what exactly had both occupants of the limousine been talking, and why Torimi was just standing outside of the limo before she entered: The windows were rolled down enough so one could hear the occupants of the limo talking from the position she was in before entering, so Torimi had clearly hear their conversation, and the mention of her deceased parents. Nagisa however didn't know if she was just standing simply to not interrupt them, or if the mention of her parents had frozen her in place.
"Yes. I'm terribly sorry for this imposition" Saikawa politely apologized, Risako and Torimi turning to look at Ryuichi with sympathy.
"Not at all!" Answered Ryuichi with determination, earning a raised brow from both female occupants of the limo "As the first member of the babysitters' club, I'll do everything I can! Please tell the chairwoman we are very grateful for her bringing us here!"
After delivering his speech, Saikawa removed his glasses and turned away covering his face with his hand. Torimi's face was smug yet proud, while Risako gazed at Ryuichi with warm eyes. Really, both women expected nothing less from the kind boy, just as they had always remembered him as.
"Um?" Ryuichi mumbled in confusion at Saikawa's actions, not noticing both women's expressions.
"Forgive me. The nobility of your statement has moved me to tears" Risako giggled softly while Torimi simply rolled her eyes in amusement at Saikawa's theatrics. "Just as usual"
"I think we should get going" Risako suggested "We don't want to get late and be scolded by Youko-san. Again"
Right after it, Saikawa started the engine of the limo, pulling out of the parking lot and onto the city streets, making his way to Hachimitsu Academy.
Meanwhile…
Front of Hachimitsu Academy
As the grey Toyota Aqua, the last model of this car launched in Japan and bought just last year by the patriarch of the family of six inside of it, approached Hachimitsu, Gekka looked out of the window leaning his cheek on his palm. Should Hikari describe his look, she would say the only thing missing was a black cloud dropping tiny lightings over his head.
Gekka and Yunako, the older siblings of the family where sitting at opposites sides of the car, with Hikari and Sadahiko squeezed in between the two. Yunako was showing a video to her youngest brother, while Hikari was chatting with her friends through Line, sending occasional glances to Gekka.
On the front seats were the parents. Their mother was sitting on the passenger side, while an older man, who seemed like an adult version of Gekka, but with a stronger physic than his son and a couple threads of silver along his sideburns, sat on the driver seat.
Multitudes of young girls wearing brown and white uniforms passed by them, talking among themselves. With each one who walked by, Gekka felt more and more uneasy, gripping at his jacket in a futile attempt to calm himself.
"Wow. I knew Hachimitsu was an all-girls school, but I never expected this much girls to be enrolled here" The mother said with slight awe as she took in the sheer number of girls passing by.
"According to Shiriusu, the school has 1026 students, taking the male population into account" Said the older man.
At this remark, Gekka snapped his head to his father "O-Over a thousand girls?! Are you kidding me?!" I thought Yunako was just saying that as a joke!"
"Looks like you won the lottery Gekka!" Yunako said while patting him in the shoulder "Over a thousand girls for you to find a girlfriend. No, better yet, find us a sister-in-law!"
Gekka simply glared at his sister, who seemed impervious to it.
"And look, they all look sooo pretty!" Both Hikari and Sadahiko exclaimed at the same time.
Gekka took a glance at the multitude of girls swarming through the gates of Hachimitsu. He had to admit his younger siblings were right, it was like the only kind of student Hachimitsu had to offer were gorgeous girls, but that didn't stop his mind to dwell into its usual negative places.
"I guess they really are attractive but...just the fact there are some many girls here it's-I just could never be at ease here!"
The mother took in the downcast expression of Gekka, and couldn't help but sigh.
"I just hope we made the right decision darling" She voiced her concerns to her husband.
"Me too Nijiko. Me too" He said as he gripped her shoulder in comfort.
As the car begin to pull over in front of the school's doors, Nijiko turned back to her son "Are you ready sweetie?"
"Honestly, no. But this is as ready as I'll ever be"
"That's my boy" His father said in reassurance, before his face turned into a dead-serious and intense glare "Now" As he said this, Gekka couldn't help but swallow in anticipation "Show those girls what the proud progeny of Homura Akari has to offer the world!" He proclaimed as if he had just given a speech to a group of soldiers about to enter a suicidal mission to boost up their morale.
Akari's theatrics didn't have the intended effect. By a long shot
All the Homura family simply stared at him blankly, Gekka feeling like a fool for expecting his father to say something important or give him some kind of advice.
"W-Well, not like that but…You're a smart boy Gekka, and I'm sure you'd make friends with those girls in no time. Go get'em tiger!" He finished with a thumbs up.
"This is why we never leave you around our friends for too long" Sadahiko said matter of factly
"I can believe I actually expected you to say something poignant Dad" Gekka said while shaking his head "Well, I guess at least I'm calmer now"
"Very well little one. Now go before Otou-san throws another corny speech" Yunako said, trying to suppress the smirk on her face at her father's exaggeratedly incredulous and hurt look
Taking a deep breath, Gekka opened the door, and steeped outside.
The moment he did, every single female student at the front gate, either about to enter or already done so, stopped dead on its tracks, their eyes immediately falling on the trembling boy.
"This is worse than I thought" Gekka thought, looking down with a blush
The girls were now whispering among themselves, some of them giggling, while others looking confused.
"Isn't that one of the boys who just enrolled here?"
"No way it's a boy. It looks too much like a girl"
"Then why is she wearing a male uniform?"
"Don't know, maybe she just likes to cross-dress?"
He could hear some of them already confusing him for a girl, and this replaced some of his old trepidation with annoyance, enough in fact to clear his mind a bit. Pouting, he swung his bag over his shoulder and made his way to the gates.
"Well, that went better than expected" Sadahiko blinked
"Yeah. He still quite tense though" Hikari commented, watching the scene intently.
Akira, Nijiko and Yunako also watched the scene unfold with some relief, but the concern about Gekka eventually being overwhelmed by being around so many girls was still present.
Suddenly, as if a light bulb just lit up on her head, Yunako opened the door and creeped on Gekka from behind as quietly as possible, her family wondering just what was she thinking. He on his part, was more preoccupied with trying to look somewhere, anywhere, that could distract him from the many girls in front of him.
Two flocks of birds quickly caught his attention. Both were sitting on the trees that extended beyond the school's gates, but Gekka noticed that there seemed to be two different kinds of birds: One completely black and smaller, and other with bald, red heads and significantly larger. The formers were also much more numerous than the latter.
The former was mostly by his right side, while the latter gathered to his left. The smaller ones were definitely crows, while the others he wasn't so sure, but they looked like vultures to him.
What he could see though, was that neither group looked quite pleased by the other.
As his thoughts drifted, trying to find some sense to the birds' presence on school's grounds, he was unaware of his sister slowly approaching him from behind. When she was just a few steps behind her brother, she stood up to her full height and adopted an air of utter seriousness "Gekka"
Being called by his name in such a stern manner made him stiff up, nervously turning around to face his sister "Wha-What's wrong onee-san-"
Before he could fully face her, she grabbed his head under her armpit and gave him what she thought was the perfect goodbye than an older sister could give: NOOGIES
"Some gall you got, not even bothering saying goodbye huh?" Yunako playfully scolded her brother as she drilled her fist on his head.
"ONEE-SAN!" Gekka tried to scream, but his voice was muffled when his face was pressed against her left breast. His face flushed red.
From his position, he could see a huge crowd of females who were either giggling in amusement or recording the scene with their cellphones. This was beyond embarrassing for him, and quickly slipped out of his sister's embrace, earning a scowl from her.
"Why did you do that?!"
"It's a girl's duty to embarrass her younger sister" She said with an air of utter seriousness while crossing her arms under her bust.
Gekka's emotions instantly gave way to complete outrage. Closing his eyes, and stomping the floor, he yelled at Yunako "I'm a boy!"
She simply shrugged dismissively "Yes, I know you are. But my point still stands" She pointed at him "Just stop being such a kid"
"I'm not a child" Gekka said, unaware of how him pouting, and looking to the side in annoyance while crossing his arms actually did make him resemble an angry kid.
Seeing his reaction, Yunako grinned internally. Now that she had taken that self-deprecating mindset out of him for now, she could have a little fun. "Aww. Are you mad because this was the closest you have been to a girl?" She teased while giving her "twins" a lift. At this, Gekka's face became as red as a tomato.
"Gaahh!" Gekka attempted to leap at his sister, only for her to effortlessly keep him at bay with a single hand over his face, yawning while he was flailing his arms in vain trying to get her. This seemed to have the desired result, as the crowd of high school girls were giggling and laughing even louder than before.
The moment was interrupted when Nijiko put a hand on both their shoulders "I think you made your point dear" She gently scolded her eldest daughter, though it was clear she was trying to hide her own amusement at the scene.
Yunako pulled down her arm with a chuckle, while Gekka simply stood there with his arms crossed and cheeks puffed, looking incredibly grumpy. His family always thought he looked cute when he did this, and the female population at the Hachimitsu's gates certainly seemed to think so.
As Gekka was about to start arguing with his sister again, something else caught his family's attention. A quick glance at the girls by the school's gates made clear that, whatever they were looking at, it wasn't something they would usually see at school.
Following their line of sight, a black limousine came to view. Its elegant and compact design screamed money, and whispers broke among the female students about who may be on it, their hypothesis going from just some new rich girl, to members from a boy band that would be attending Hachimitsu. Gekka found most of those ideas nonsensical, but he would be lying if he said the limo's possible occupants didn't get his attention.
Also, it didn't escape Gekka how the crows seemed to get agitated by the limo.
The tension in the air only increased after the limo pulled over, one of their backdoors opening.
The hopes of some of the girls for a group of handsome young men coming out of the limo were crushed when a very tall, gorgeous young woman with tan skin walked out. Her uniform was quite revealing, with her white shirt barely reaching below her large breasts, and tied in the middle, a skirt much shorter than any girl by the gates, and her jacket tied to her waist.
Her very bold chose of clothing made Gekka look away with a blush, which his mother and sister took notice of.
Before any of them had time to either tease or try to calm him, another person came out of the limo.
A boy with brown hair, large grey-brown eyes, and soft, gentle features followed suit. He was clearly uncomfortable with the stares he was receiving from the girls, squirming quietly in place.
The tall girl glanced at Gekka for a few seconds before waving
"Whassup? You new to the school too?" She greeted with a hand on her hip.
"Oh-oh well yeah-we're-I'M new to the school! Pleasedtomeetyou!" Gekka bowed after ending his hastily greeting.
Yunako snickered behind her hand, Hikari doing the same from the car.
Torimi simply looks back at Ryuichi with a smirk "So, you gonna introduce yourself?"
"I-I'm Kumagai Ryuichi. I'm first year too" He said with a bow.
Nijiko, on the other part, simply looked at the boy with a smile. It looks like her son will have a much better start at his new school than she anticipated. It was really lucky for them to meet another one of the few boys who'll attend Hachimitsu right at the school's gates.
"Hey! Something's wrong?"
And judging by the other male voice coming from the side, they weren't the only males who were just arriving to their first day in Hachimitsu.
Two remarkably tall boys (or at least one of them looked like a boy) were making their way to the gates. One of them had long, red hair flowing down slightly pass his neck, and brilliant blue eyes. The other one had brown hair with a copper-like shine, a blond gradient on the tips of his hair, and sharp golden eyes. Despite the fact that both were wearing Hachimitsu's school uniforms, the stubble beard on the copper-haired boy made him look like someone in his mid-twenties instead of a highschool student.
The red haired boy waved at the group by the school's gates "Is everything okay? You look a bit off" He said at Gekka as he walked up at him
"Um…y-yeah, just nervous for my first day, that's all" He answered, though neither his family or Torimi seemed convinced at all. The boy seemed a bit suspicious, but shrugged dismissively, not wanting to push the issue further.
"Very well" He gave Gekka a friendly smile "I'm Mochizuki Hagane, and you are...?"
"Oh! I'm…I'm Homura Gekka. Pleased to meet you" He then gestures to his mother and sister "These here are my mother and sister"
"Hello. I'm Nijiko and this is my daughter Yunako" His mother politely bowed and gestured to her eldest daughter, who waved at Hagane. After it he turned his attention to Torimi and Ryuichi, who had remained quiet through the introductions.
"Oh yeah, sorry" Torimi said with a "tehe!" gesture "I'm Torimi, and this is my friend Ryuichi". Ryuichi was again politely bowed after being introduced.
Then all attention shifted to the one boy (or so they thought) who hadn't uttered a single word during this exchange.
"Hello" Was all he said as he extended his hand for a handshake. His emotionless look and deadpan voice raised a few eyebrows among the group, while some of the girls by the gates simply blinked.
Gekka stared at him for a few seconds before returning the gesture by shaking his hand.
"What's your name, young man?" Nijiko intervened
"Rhett…Rhett Kilgore"
"Wow. I heard machines emote more than this guy" Torimi internally deadpanned. Then something else caught her attention "Wait, are you an exchange student?"
"Yes. Akron, Ohio, United States of America"
This revelation only sparkled more whispers among the student body.
"A foreign student"
"My, he really looks exotic"
"Yeah but, he looks just so…off, like he's an android or something"
"Like the cellphone?"
"…Not that kind of android"
"Wait, hold on a minute!" Yunako stepped forward.
Rhett turned to look at her, with Nijiko raising a brow at how the "boy" turned his whole body to face her instead of simply moving his head.
"You said you're a student here?"
"Yes. Hachimitsu Academy; Nerima Ward, Tokyo. Chairman Shi-"
"Okay okay I got it" She pinched the bridge of her nose at his long tirade about the school
Her mother on her part, simply shook her head in disapproval at her daughter's unintentional rudeness. She put a hand on her shoulder, and the look on her face instantly told Yunako that a long motherly scolding was coming her way.
"…I'm sorry mom" She apologized with a sigh.
"You are 20, it would do you some good to start acting like it" Nijiko whispered "Our family shouldn't be embarrassed by someone not acting her own age"
Yunako raised a brow "You know dad acts like a chunni at times, and he's on his mid-40's right?".
"…Point well taken"
After their little conversation about manners, Nijiko approached Rhett.
"I'm sorry for my daughter's attitude" She bowed "We are just curious; you look much older than a highschool student. May I ask how old are you?"
"16"
"Very well, thank you" She said, though behind her polite face, she was just as surprised as everyone else about this boy being so young despite his appearance.
Despite the fact that Rhett somewhat robotic personality made him slightly uncomfortable, Gekka was happy. The idea of attending an all-girls school was something that scared him at first, but getting to know people that he feels he could easily talk to and even befriend right before beginning this new life is something that at least puts him at ease.
"Excuse us, Ryuichi-sama, Torimi-sama" Torimi jumped ever so slightly after hearing Saikawa's voice right behind her, while Ryuichi was much more shocked at how the Morinomiya's secretary seemed to just materialize out of nowhere.
Pretty much everyone had a similar reaction, not noticing Saikawa's presence until then. And so transfixed on the butler that they also didn't pay attention to the woman holding a child right behind him
"What's wrong, Saikawa-san?"
"Kotaro-sama woke up a few moments ago, and seemed quite distressed at being separated from you"
As he moved out of the way, Nagisa came to view, holding a (at least for him) restless Kotaro, waving his tiny arms and legs.
"Eh? Kotaro?"
Nagisa put Kotaro down, and he quickly made his way to Ryuichi, hugging to his leg in a "please don't go!" kind of way.
The scene drew several giggles and "Aww's" from the female students, while the Homura family, Hagane and Torimi watched in faint amusement how Ryuichi looked a bit caught off guard by his baby brother.
"He really wanted you to stay, Ryuichi-kun" Nagisa added with a warm smile. Ryuichi looked at her, understanding slowly spreading across his features, before looking down at his brother.
Ryuichi kneeled down, playfully revolving Kotaro's hair "Thanks Kotaro, but you can't come with me. Nagisa-san is going to take care of you for a while now" He tried to put it in the kindest way he could as to not upset him. Kotaro simply hugged at his leg tighter, eliciting a soft laugh from Ryuichi as he picked him up.
"Well, well. Who is this little cutie?" Yunako asked playfully
"Ah! Umm…Sorry, this is my little brother Kotaro!" Ryuichi hastily explained after being so focused on his baby brother that he forgot about the other people around him.
"Come on Kotaro, don't be shy! Say hello" Torimi laughed
"Ung!" Kotaro said as usual, waving his arm in a greeting manner. This action got even more Aww's from the female audience, many of whom where now recording the whole thing again.
"It looks like your kids are very well behaved" Nijiko addressed Nagisa, bowing after being acknowledged
"Oh, I'm sorry but they are not my children" She said, eliciting a raised brow from Nijiko "I'm their aunt, due to…special circumstances regarding their parents, I'll be taking care of them for a while" Nijiko noted the faint touch of sadness on her voice after referring to those 'special circumstances', but decided to not pressure further.
She then turned to Ryuichi, who was still holding Kotaro on his arms. She gave a warm smile to the child, before addressing her son "I think you should also say hello dear"
Gekka simply looked at her, confused, before walking up to Ryuichi and Kotaro.
"Come on Kotaro, say hello" Ryuichi gently encouraged his brother.
Kotaro stretched his tiny arm, waving it in greeting, with Gekka doing the same. But after their little greeting was over, Kotaro still seemed focused on the boy, instead of simply cuddling on his brother like usual.
Gekka's curiosity picked on, leaning forward a bit
"Can I?"
Ryuichi simply nodded with a smile, and Gekka now extended his finger to Kotaro, who grabbed it in his tiny hand while looking at Gekka with curious eyes.
The cute scene got more giggling and whispering among the female students, who looked tempted to go forward and greet the peculiar group if only for the chance of talking to or even pinching Kotaro's cheeks.
Nagisa, on her part, looked at Kotaro and Gekka's interaction with a smile, before turning to look intently at the birds in the school. While the crows got a somewhat disdained look from her, the bigger, red-headed birds seemed to make her confused, only exacerbated by how they now were agitated (or more precisely, excited).
The answer as to what got the birds agitated came in the form of a very tall figure, wearing a black coat over his Hachimitsu's male uniform. Its black hair covered his whole head from all angles, not much different to Sadako or Samara*, but with his hair naturally flowing down from all directions like a fountain instead of being brushed on a single direction.
As the figure kept walking, the vultures took flight, making circles above the figure's head. While his presence really freaked some of the students out, the majority of the non-female students and adults by the gates couldn't help but think that the only thing it was missing was a scythe and he would be the perfect cosplay for the grim reaper.
Gekka gave a few steps back before the figure stopped right in front of Ryuichi and Torimi, with Kotaro clinging to his brother in fear. Torimi on her part set a foot back and adopted a "pre-fight" position, preparing herself in case any problems may arise.
The figure then leaned down a bit…and removed the hair from his face.
He was pale, but not abnormally so, and had deep red eyes, which only exacerbated his vampire-like looks. But despite that, he looked…surprisingly young, clearly a teenager.
"Oh hi. Are you first year too?" And his voice was also not what anyone was expecting. It definitely sounded youthful and pretty casual, if somewhat cold. And his body language didn't seem threatening in the least.
While most people were freaked out by him at first, the contrast between his looks and his apparent character came as quite a shock by the spectators.
The tall boy then turned his head to Gekka, who seemed to have been frozen in place the whole time.
"Um…Y-yes, we are"
"Cool! Good to know I won't be the only one" He said, giving a small, friendly smile
Torimi relaxed following their exchange. Despite his scary looks, this boy was actually surprisingly nice, and his body language didn't indicate any ill intentions so far. Her cocky smile found its way back on her way as she put her hands on her hips.
"You're quite the sight, hot stuff" she chuckled "It almost looks like you could've blocked the sun up there"
"That's rude Torimi!" Ryuichi scolded while Nagisa looked at her with disapproval.
The tall boy just gave her a blank look instead.
"You're one to talk, miss two-legged giraffe" He snarked, his face completely deadpan.
Ryuichi and Nagisa looked at the boy in shock, while Torimi simply blinked, before her grin grew even bigger and crossing her arms under her bust "Oh, you wanna play shinigami?"
"Do your worst Ganguro reject" He quipped back, his face and voice as deadpan as before.
By now the students (old and new) were staring at the scene with either worry, amusement, or a combination of both, as Torimi and the new boy seemed to hit it off immediately with their jabs at each other.
Unfortunately, their little squabble was interrupted by someone clearing up its throat.
"I think that's enough kids" Nagisa interjected.
Both of them looked quite disappointed at being interrupted, nonetheless both obeyed and remained quiet.
Ryuichi nervously looked left and right, unsure if he should speak or not
"Umm…Sorry but, we didn't get your name" He finally decided for the former.
The boy's eyes widened for a second, before scratching the back of his head in embarrassment "Oh, yeah. I'm Seijuro Kurogane".
Ryuichi seemed to calm down a bit, now shooting a kind smile at Kurogane, which only morphed into frozen shock. Everyone else pretty had the same reaction after seeing a large pair of black feathered wings spread from his Kurogane's back.
He on the other hand didn't realized what got everyone to look at him like that.
"What's up? You look like you've seen a ghost" He asked with narrowed eyes
Gekka pointed a trembling finger at Kurogane's back. Turning his head back, he could make out something on it, but it wasn't until he casted his gaze down to his own shadow that he saw how he now resembled some kind of angel.
A fallen angel in the mind of the onlookers.
"Ah, sorry. Lautaro just likes doing that" He said as this was just as normal as having some bread scrums on your face after breakfast, before clicking his tongue twice.
Suddenly, both wings began to beat and a large, large bird came flying from behind him before landing on his forearm.
Of all the people present, Rhett seemed to be the only one who wasn't either flabbergasted or scared of this gigantic bird. In fact, he looked quite fascinated for him.
He walked up to Kurogane, and looked intently at the bird for a few seconds
"It's an Andean condor, 310 cm of wingspan and likely somewhere between 14-16 kg of weight" He declared in his usual monotone voice.
Kurogane blinked at that, giving Rhett a blank expression before turning to look at Hagane. He simply shrugged in a 'Meh, he's just like that' kind of way.
"Well, yeah. It is"
"And you're allowed to bring it to school" Ryuichi asked incredulous
Kurogane simply raised just arm, letting Lautaro catch fly before landing on the ground "Well, another student is allowed to bring her crows to school without a single problem, so I asked if I could bring my vultures too" He explained
"Aren't those birds a bit…dangerous?" Gekka asked while squirming, as if the question would somehow offend the larger teen.
"Nah, they're well trained. And besides, they're just five-well, six counting Lautaro instead of the whole air force of crows that girl brings to school" Luckily, he simply clarified that the birds were safe, while throwing a jab at the other girl who supposedly owned the crows in the school.
For some reason, the girls and Nagisa looked quite alarmed by the way in which he talked about that girl, but he paid them no mind. Instead, he focused on Kotaro, who looked quite interested on his giant condor.
"I think your brother may want you to put him down" He pointed out to Ryuichi.
"Eh!? Oh! Kotaro, what's wrong?" He said after seeing Kotaro waving his tiny arms at something.
After putting him down he, Torimi and Nagisa watched intently as Kotaro made his way to Lautaro, standing in front of it. The giant bird took notice of the child, bending down a bit to look at him.
After some tense seconds from their audience as both kept gazing at each other, Kotaro pointed at the condor with his finger
"Birdie"
"…"
Pretty much everyone present seat dropped at that "That isn't in any way a BIRDIE"
Lautaro, some way or another, understood the situation in front of him, leaning down even further to look at Kotaro, who only gazed at him with childlike wonder.
After Lautaro's head was low enough, Kotaro began to pet him as if he was a puppy. Ryuichi and Nagisa were visible worried about what the giant bird may do, and even Torimi seemed ready to spring to action should something happen.
That 'something' never came though. The condor closed its eyes and allowed the child to lightly pat its head. The scene was cute, unusual, and just downright adorably bizarre for the onlookers, who didn't know if they should go "Aww" or be creeped out, so they simply stood where they were with blank stares, the confusion about what would be the appropriate reaction to this kind of situation evident on their features.
A loud cough interrupted the scene.
"I think you should go inside now kids" Nijiko interjected "You are going to be late"
A quick glance at his watch told Hagane that she was right. It appears their little introductions distracted them for enough time that they now were in risk of arriving late on their first day of school.
Suddenly, the large multitude of highschool girls by the gates sprung to life, running towards the school in panic.
"Nijiko-san is right, Ryuichi-sama. You must hurry" Saikawa added.
The unusual group by the gates started preparing to follow the female students: Ryuichi picked Kotaro up and handed him to Nagisa while the toddler clearly didn't want him to go, Torimi playfully patted him in the head, Gekka exchanged hasty goodbyes with his family, Kurogane seemed to give some orders to his birds, all of them (the 'normal sized' vultures and the giant condor Lautaro) taking flight. Hagane and Rhett just stood there waiting for everyone else to be finished with whatever they were doing.
"You ready guys?"
"No, but this is as ready as I'll ever be" Gekka said with a sigh "Wait, I think I said that before…"
"Can't help but feel there's something wrong in this school to be honest" Kurogane admitted with his hands on his pockets. Gekka looked at him with a raised brow, not knowing what he could possibly be referring to.
"Well, you're already quite the unusual sight 'birdman', can't get any weirder than that" Torimi quipped, earning a disapproving glance from Ryuichi
"Torimi-sa-"
"Hey, wait for us Rhett!"
As everyone looked at Hagane, then at the front where he was screaming, they could see the exchange student walking way ahead of them, clearly not waiting for anyone.
"You think you're gonna leave us here!?" Torimi yelled with a playful grin before sprinting at him, Ryuichi towing behind her trying to calm her down.
The three boys that remained by the school's gates simply stood there a little longer.
"Well, it's now or never" Kurogane declared, earning a shrug from Hagane and a sigh from Gekka.
A few minutes later, all boys had finally arrived to the school, ready to face whatever challenge this new school may throw at them.
…At least, so they thought.
To be continued…
Phew! Man, I gotta say, I never thought that it would be this hard to write something when I started this.
But still, I got a lot of fun with this, so I'll try to update this story as quick as possible.
As you may have noted, multiple OCs have been introduced here. Regarding which one of them will take the role of protagonist, I will just say that each one of them will have some chapters dedicated to them, but some more than others.
Also, if you look closely as to whom I said has the rights of some of these OCs, that should give you a pretty good idea of what animes and mangas are involved in this story besides "Prison School". The physical descriptions of those OCs and pretty much an entire scene here are dead giveaways of one of them. The other may be…a little harder to catch as of now, but it will become much clearer as the story progresses.
Hope you liked this story. Leave a review if you want to share your ideas, and let me know if you have any doubts about the characters, setting, etc.
For some references:
* Dross: A Latin-American youtuber specialized in horror videos, and occasionally in more light hearted ones. The one Gekka and his friends are referring here its "El top 7 de los trolls y psicopatas mas grandes de los videojuegos en linea" (The top 7 of the biggest trolls and psychopaths in online video games). The fifth place is about Battlefield trolling
* Sadako and Samara: The ghosts and villains from the films "The grudge" and its American version "The ring".
That's all folks!