Markus had to admit, this was new to him as he sat awkwardly on a couch as tea was being served to him by a blonde blue-eyed girl as Kaguya and Chika smiled happily for him. While at the same time, Miyuki can only look at Markus with empathy and understanding and at the same time, Yu seem to be dozing off indifferently to the happenings of the current event right now. Markus wished he had half of Yu's strong indifference right about now, so that way he would at least feel calm instead of twitchy.
This whole place felt like one extravagant party that he really has no right being here at, this place was literally too rich for his blood. Hell, not even the time he was at the Lucky 38 in his own personal Penthouse Suite or the White Gloves made him feel this out of place like he was feeling right now. And even then, the feeling this school had them both beat on feeling like a place for rich people and upper-class folks.
"Here's your tea." The blond girl said as Markus focused on that as he was offered a cup from her. "Please enjoy." She said quietly as Markus took the tea with a nod as the girl went to stand by Kaguya. "What do you think of the taste?" She soon asked as Markus took a sip and his eyes widened a bit at the taste.
"I never had black tea before, spent most of my time drinking coffee, water, and soda before I got to Japan." Markus noted as he decided to ignore the reactions of the girl, whose eyes twitched at that. "But I have gotten used to the taste of green tea to an extent and I must say, this…black tea you have brewed is quite delicious." Markus praised earnestly as the blonde girl nodded at that.
"Glad you like it, now then, shall we talk Markus?" Kaguya asked smoothly and calmly as she smiled with Miyuki by her side and Markus couldn't help but internally smile at the way those two showed their affection to one another quietly. It reminded him of that one time he helped that Boomer boy with that Crimson Caravan Lass get together, he even got an invite to their wedding even, after the Second Battle of Hoover Dam, fun times.
"Very well, do you still insist on repaying? I said it once before and I will say it again, you owe me nothing." Markus said firmly to Kaguya as he then turned to Ishigami, who was now paying attention to him. "You also owe me nothing, I saved you both because it was the right thing to do, nothing more and nothing less. You say that I saved you all for a favor and I will be upset." Markus stated to them.
All of the students before him, actually blinked their eyes at him as Shirogane suddenly looked thoughtful and contemplative at that. "Does this mean, you seek value in lives than you do in a potential payoff? Considering your work attire, you strike me as a handyman, and probably not living in wealth." Shirogane noted astutely.
"…" Markus was kind of impressed by this observation and he also noted that Kaguya had an interested look on her face. "I value certain things, and to correct you, I don't value lives, I value innocent lives." He corrected as the students look curious. "Let's just say I've met more than my fair share of bad apples that is better off gone and no longer in the world for anyone to suffer." He said calmly.
"So, you truly seek nothing other than our own safety." Kaguya soon spoke up as Markus turned to her and nodded at that, and for some reason, she seems to be holding Shirogane's hands much tighter yet more warmly. "This seems kind of familiar, that kind of altruism." Kaguya said as she turned to Shirogane with a loving look on her face now and he seem to be blushing a bit as he smiled.
And the clear love that these two held once again fascinated Markus, even as the others did not look interested for whatever reason, looked jealous, or just annoyed. He hadn't seen a couple share that much open love so easily and willingly. Aside from that one couple he helped hooked up, all he met mainly were widows of the shit show that was reality.
So, seeing open young love like this, actually kind of fascinated Markus, especially since most relationships he was aware of, and took part in, were mainly physical relationships of the likes. The most notable one being Red Lucy, and that was only after hunting her some nasty critters and the like to help keep her death pit running.
But he should probably stay focused on the talk right about now. "Yeah, I really don't need…well I actually don't want anything from you." Markus continued. "I saved you because it's the right thing, unless you're one of those people that work on honor that demands you to pay back a life debt or whatever. Then my request is simply for you to live your life to the fullest satisfied." Markus said to Kaguya.
Kaguya gave Markus a strange look, before she eventually nodded. "I see, if that is indeed the case, then I will not pursue this request any further as you desire." She said as Markus sighed internally in relief. "But I would like to know your phone number, in the events that do desire to change your mind, circumstances may evolve out of your control in the future." She said calmly to Markus.
"I suppose that will do for now, but forgive me if I don't try to keep in constant contact, it would be weird for a grown man to be texting with a teenager, regardless of the circumstances they met. Even more so since I imagine your boyfriend wouldn't exactly like it." Markus commented as Kaguya and Shirogane blushed a bit as Chika giggled and the blonde girl, that Markus still didn't know the name of, smiled a bit at that.
"I suppose they didn't exactly make it a subtle display of affection then." Yu commented lifelessly as he sighed at that. "What a pain." He muttered as Markus snorted in amusement at that.
"I think it's kind of endearing all things considered." Markus said to Yu, who looked kind of exasperated by that. "Speaking as a foreigner, I think that the Japanese, as a whole, are a little bit too restrained for my personal likings." Markus said to Yu. "If you try to hold in emotions, be it good or ill, it will either explode or cause you unneeded mental stress." Markus said.
"If you say so." Yu shrugged. "Personally, I think it's bit of an annoyance as it can be a bit too much at times to deal with." Yu said to Markus as he shrugged at that, as Yu was perfectly right to have that opinion about the expression of love that Kaguya and Shirogane share with one another.
"Well, I suppose if that is all for now, should I take my leave?" Markus said casually as he finished his tea. "Unless you want anything else from me?" He asked as Kaguya shook her head.
"Nothing else, as you yourself said you had no desire, but I think it would be helpful if we all gave you our numbers and contact." Kaguya said as Markus nodded and slipped out his phone and tossed it to Kaguya, who caught it deftly with her hands and then she started adding her number before passing it to her boyfriend and it continued on until Markus got the entire group of students' phone numbers.
Just as he was about to head out, someone else walked in, a girl with light colored hair and two veil like hair clips in her head looking around before she beamed at the sight of the students and walked in. "Hey guys sorry to barge in like this, but I have a bit of an emergency." She said with a bit of an anxious look on her face.
"What's the emergency?" Yu soon asked as Markus seem to be noticing that Yu still seems drowsy but was able to give the girl her full attention like he did for him. Markus couldn't help but wonder if that sleepy attitude of his was a front that he did to keep people underestimating him so he can get the edge on them.
"Well, she's coming in with her." The girl said as another student showed up, said student was a petite girl with brown eyes and long brown hair that is styled in loose pigtails, with bangs covering her forehead. And she was bringing in with her, a little girl that was holding her hand. "My little sister is here and I can't exactly afford to look after her." She said in worry.
Kaguya and the others looked surprise as the girl motioned for the little girl to sit on the couch where Markus was sitting on and as both of them stared at each other in silence and curiosity. The students were having a bit of a discussion.
"You brought your sister here Koromo?!" Kaguya said in surprise. "Why would you do that? Don't you have parents or a caretaker to watch after her?" She asked.
Koromo winced. "Originally, I did but our parents got caught up in an emergency meeting relating to their work and had to stay far longer than normal. I can't exactly bring her with me, since I need to take a long distance to get to my work zone. And they're really strict about letting people inside, even if it is family." She explained.
"Why can't you bring her with you?" Shirogane asked. "I mean if it's an emergency, I'm sure they would understand." He pointed out to her.
"The people in charge are really strict, and it's a long distance away too, I can only bring her here as it's the furthest I'm allowed to bring her with me by myself, anything further than that, will get me into trouble, and since this school is pretty well secured, I figured Frill would be safe here, all things considered." Koromo explained to the students.
"And the favor you want is that you want us to look after your little sister, right?" Shirogane sighed out in exasperation at what he figured to be the most likely case scenario. As Koromo nodded reluctantly at that. "You do realize that none of us are exactly skilled at childcare, right?" He pointed out to her.
"True but I trust you guys to watch over Frill." Koromo said earnestly to the student council. "I mean look how quiet she is, and how little disturbance she's making." She said as she pointed to her sister…who was not on the couch where she sat. "Eh?" She blinked in surprise and then the student council turned further and saw that Frill, Koromo's little sister, was on another couch playing a game of rock, paper, scissor with Markus.
As Markus and Frill were shaking their hands at each other, they threw out their choice and Markus had scissors and Frill had rock. "You win again lass, you're pretty good, thought I had you there that time." Markus said to Frill, whose dark green hair and cat like eyes with her two beauty marks made for an interesting look on the girl. In Markus's honest opinion, the girl before him looked like a priceless doll with her blank expression.
"I am good, because I play this game more often." Frill said calmly to Markus. "I can't imagine adults like yourself having the time or energy to play games like these, especially when you have to work to make a living and the likes." She pointed out to him as Markus nodded as Koromo and the others looked befuddled at the sight of Frill simply playing a game with Markus.
"Well, I can't argue with you on that, a man has to work to make money so he can buy food and pay his bills, that's life lass." Markus said casually to Frill, as she nodded as they played another game and Markus won every once in a while, but Frill had him beat most of them time.
"Yet you indulge in playing games with a kid." She commented as Markus nodded at that. "I suppose this is the logic behind decompressing every once in a while, so one does not break down from stress I suppose?" She commented as Markus nodded at that, and as the two continued their game, Koromo was befuddled by what she saw and turned to the Student Council for answers.
"Okay I have many questions, who is that guy first off. Why is he even here to begin with? Why is there a handyman in this school to begin with? And why does my sister seem pretty okay with him?" Koromo started off as she fired a rapid series of questions aimed at the Student Council, to hopefully explain the weird situation to her.
"Oh, his name is Markus." Chika started off rather cheerfully. "While we were out for a walk, some purse snatcher pushed us around and knocked Kaguya and Yu into the road. When suddenly a big vehicle almost came and hit them and would have likely ended up dead or seriously injured had it not been for Markus rushing in to save them at the literal last minute." She said to Koromo, as she blinked in surprise as she turned to see Markus, still playing with Frill, and then back to the students.
"He saved you from being hit by a truck?" She said in genuine surprise as Kaguya and Yu nodded at that as Koromo whistled at that, and she started working out what happened next. "And you wanted to repay him back I imagine, hence why you brought him here to discuss methods of repaying him back. But considering the fact that he's still here, either he didn't agree with whatever reward you wanted to give him or you guys are trying to get to know him." She then said to the group.
"He actually doesn't want anything." Yu spoke up as Koromo looked surprised, considering the vast wealth and connections Kaguya's family had. "I know, I was caught off guard as well, but from the looks and sounds of it. He was just saving us simply because it was the right thing to do." He said as he pointed to Markus as he and Frill seem to be strangely bonding over the game they were playing.
"That's…a bit weird, when I think about it." Koromo admitted, especially considering the fact that she was a big shot of sorts in the entertainment industry. And people always acted on the principles of give and take, and for someone to simply just give and not take, was a rather baffling concept to her senses.
"Apparently so." Kaguya commented as she focused on Koromo. "You said you needed someone to help watch over your sister and you came to us for that help?" She asked as Koromo them remembered why she came here and nodded. "As much as I would like to help you with that, I do not think we can do it for too long." Kaguya said with a frown as she continued on. "There's plenty of things we have to do ourselves and it's not like we're exactly fit to take care of kids either for that long here." She pointed out.
Koromo frowned. "I was afraid you guys might say that, I figured it would be safer for Frill to be here at the academy where the Student Council can watch after her for a bit before I either return home or get someone here to drive her to my work place once I am done or close to being done." She said in frustration.
"I can also imagine you're not allowed to leave Frill alone either in the care of only one other student as well." Shirogane commented as Koromo nodded at that as he sighed. "Would be much easier if that was the case, we could have simply left Frill in the care of Ai then, no one would think to mess with her then." He said as Ai nodded at that.
"You know." Miko, the last member of the Student Council spoke up, getting everyone's attention, it wouldn't exactly to hurt to ask what does Frill want to do." She pointed out as everyone blinked at that and turned to Frill, who was in another game with Markus, still playing without feeling any kind of issue thus far. "…Provided if we can get her attention." She added in.
"Might as well ask now." Yu muttered as he turned to Frill. "Excuse me, Frill?" Yu called out as Markus and Frill paused in their game as Frill turned to Yu with her bright cat like eyes brimming with intelligence and curiosity at Yu. "We have something that we want to ask you if you don't mind answering." He said to her.
"…You can ask me, but depending on what is asked, I may or may not answer." She said to Yu as she turned around to give everyone in the council the same look.
"Very well then." Kaguya spoke up. "What is you want to do or prefer to be at right now?" She asked kindly of Frill.
Frill gave them all a look before she spoke her mind. "I find playing with Mister Markus to be fun, and would like to be with him for now." She answered easily as Markus raised an eyebrow at that and the students blinked in sort of surprise at that.
"Oh dear, mom and dad aren't going to be happy that Frill is with a complete stranger for her care while I work." Koromo muttered.
"Oi lass." Marlus called out to Frill with a raised eyebrow as Frill turned to him. "You do realize that I'm a complete stranger, and that I would be a terrible choice to look after you. Not a family friend or relative, you're better off taking your chances with the students your sister knows, you know?" Markus pointed out to her, trying to be a voice of reason.
"That's right." Frill confirmed as Markus let out an internal sigh of relief and hoped the girl before him wasn't going to want to stay with a complete stranger, and an adult at that. "But you're different." She said as Markus and the students with him raised an eyebrow. "You…feel safe." She stated in no uncertain terms as Koromo's eyes widened at that, as did Markus's.
"I feel…safe?" Markus said in surprise as Frill nodded. "Okay, that's a new one." He muttered in disbelief.
"You feel like you would keep me safe." Frill repeated again more strongly to Markus as she turned to Koromo. "Can I stay here with Mister Markus here?" She asked as Koromo blinked in surprise as she took a moment to examine Markus with a closer eye.
Despite how it seems, Frill very much had a developed sense of danger, that is something that she had developed due to their family being heavily involved in the entertainment industry So for Frill to feel safe around a complete stranger spoke…volumes about the kind of aura that Markus gave off that made her feel safe. Koromo is also very aware that she's not an easy person to win over either.
In short, Koromo may not be okay with it, but it's clear that Markus is no danger to her sister. "Would you mind watching over my sister then Markus?" Koromo asked as Markus's eyes twitched at that. And at the same time, Kaguya and the others were befuddled by what they hard.
"Oi girl, don't just entrust a random stranger just because your sister says she feels he makes her feel safe!" Markus snapped logically at Koromo.
"Maybe but Frill likes you and she doesn't take easily to meeting others, so please?" Koromo pleaded as Markus looked annoyed. "I will pay you back as well." She added in with a smile on her face.
"Don't say stuff like that!" Markus retorted as he turned to Frill. "Find someone reasonably close to your sister lass." He said to her.
"But Mister Markus is right next to big sis." Frill said casually and sassily as Markus's eyes twitched at that. "Also, please?" She asked trying to use her puppy eyes on him, causing his eyes to twitch even more as he looked to Kaguya and the others for help. But to his dismay, they looked kind of amused and exasperated and didn't want to get involved, the traitors.
Besieged by two folks asking for help, Markus had a hard time trying to say no to that so he sighed and turned to Kaguya. "I'm going to need that favor right now." He said as Kaguya blinked in surprise. "That maid of yours is close and is capable right?" He asked as Kaguya nodded at Ai's prowess. "Then she's staying here with me to make sure nothing happens to the little one." He said as Koromo smiled and though Frill's expression didn't change that much, her eyes did brighten a bit.
"If that is what you need, then sure." Kaguya said with a smile as she turned to Ai Hayasaka with a look and she nodded. "Don't worry, Ai will help you." She said as Markus's eyes blinked at that. "Don't worry we won't consider this a favor for you to use, just a good deed on our end." She said with a smile as Markus sighed at that.
"Well kid, guess we can play more games." Markus then said to Frill as she pumped her fist at that. 'I also need to let Ai know about my inability to return home.' Markus thought to himself. 'Hopefully she isn't in too much trouble.' He thought fretfully for her, especially considering the fact all traces of the stalker vanished without a trace at the construction site.
Aqua frowned as he tried to figure out a way to open the photo book before him, but no matter what he did, he couldn't think of a way to safely open it up without damaging any of the contents. Whatever Markus was hiding in here had to be something valuable and important. Which also means it would give him insight into the kind of person Markus is or was, and maybe tell Aqua more about his past.
If only he had a key or something like that…then he remembered that there was a bunch of tools on Markus's workbench, maybe there was something there that he could use to break open the book. Putting the book down, Aqua moved his tiny little body to the workbench and started looking for any tools that could help him open the book with him.
And then he spotted it, a bobby pin of some kind! Smiling at the fact that Markus carried something like a bobby pin, despite the fact that it brought up many questions. Such as the fact as to why Markus would carry a hair pin of all things on his person or in his workshop. Remembering his time as a doctor and having to use some paper clips to open up some jammed or locked filing cabinets and the likes. He started working on unlocking the book before him.
Just as he felt he was about to finally get it open, Ai's phone started ringing, and causing him to squeak in surprise and panic as he waited for Ai to pick up the phone to answer it and then discover him missing and then walking until she finds him in Markus's room. Where she would no doubt punish him. But to his relief, Ai was still napping and he rushed out of the room as fast as he can to answer the call before Ai woke up.
And soon he found Ai's phone and answered the call. "Hello?" Aqua greeted as soon as possible without him checking who it was he was calling. Which may be a bad idea depending on who was calling Ai right about now. Thankfully the one calling Ai is none other than Markus.
"Aqua? What are you doing on her phone?" Markus questioned in in clear bafflement as Aqua heard some noises coming over from Markus's side, causing Aqua to raise his eyebrow. Was Markus interacting with several of his other friends right now, or was he talking to new strangers that he had met by pure chance?
"Ah she's currently napping; she and my sister went through a long movie marathon and they ended up tired after it." Aqua said to Markus, as he made sure to keep Ai's name out of the conversation. As after all, Aqua didn't know if the people Markus was around could be trustworthy or not. And it also seems Markus did not seem that surprised or surprised at all by Ai's actions.
"Is that so?" Markus sighed out. "Well in any case can you let her know that I will be coming back home late? I somehow ended up becoming the temporary sitter for a kid that seems to be fond of me for reasons unknown to myself." Markus said as Aqua could only look befuddled at that, especially of the idea that somehow Markus was endearing enough to a kid that said kid wanted to spend time with him as a sitter of all things.
"I have many questions about that." Aqua retorted to Markus's explanation. "But sure, I can tell her that you will be late due to you, somehow, ending up caring for someone else's kid." Aqua said causally while also internally pleased by this, as this means that he can take advantage of Markus's longer disappearance to work into his photo book that he clearly had locked up for a reason.
Soon he would find out the secret that Markus was clearly hiding and there was nothing he can do about it with how far away he was. Unknown to Aqua, his star eyes which had been a bit grey started to darken with color the more he thought about it. And then Markus's voice came back to him redirecting his attention to call he was having. "Well either way, I figured it would be important to check in, to give you guys a heads up so you don't wonder too much about where I am. And you know the rules." Markus said to him.
"Don't worry, we will follow the rules, Markus." Aqua assured him, hoping he end the call soon.
"If that's all then see you guys later, and if any of you are hungry, I still got leftovers in the fridge." Markus added in as several other noises were coming from the background that Aqua assumed sounded like teenagers for the most part. "Take care and bye." He said to Aqua.
"You too, bye." Aqua said as he hung up the phone and put it away. "Now then, to crack open that book." Aqua said to himself as he walked back into Markus's room to figure out what secrets his book held.
Once he was back in Markus's room, he started working on picking the lock on the book and with concentrated focus and a determination to know about the man that Ai is taken with seemingly. Aqua finally found his answer as he cracked the book open, causing him to grin as he opened the photobook. "And jackpot as they say." He muttered as he turned to the first page and froze in surprise and shock as he blinked at the sight he was seeing before him, as the grey in his star irises vanished. "What the heck?" He muttered in confusion at the sight before him.
Before his eyes was a seemingly normal group photo, but it was the individuals within the group photo that made literally no sense to his common sense. The biggest standout was the clear giant blue giant before his eyes, wearing sunglasses and a sunhat of all things! Not to mention the giant was carrying a massive bladed weapon that looked as though it could tear through rock and metal with ease!
The next standout was a zombie looking man wearing a kind of mechanic outfit with a pair of revolvers holstered on his side like a cowboy, and to add in to the cowboy look had a sombrero of some kind. Was the zombie alive, well, sane, sensible, Aqua didn't know and it confused him so much! And the looks on both the zombie and the blue ogre were clearly too real to be makeup or practical effects of some kind.
He then turned to the sight that caught his attention next, and what he saw both disturbed and intrigued him from a medical perspective. It was a dog with clear cybernetic implants panting alongside like there was nothing wrong, and the entire backside was made of nothing but metal! How did that dog even survive what happened to it to begin with? Why was the brain so visible?
Next was a floating drone bot of some kind, but that was all there was to it from what he can tell. And thankfully for him, the next set of people to grab his attention were all normal looking but clearly different from one another.
One was a soldier, a Sniper if he had to guess based on the outfit he wore and the scoped rifle he carried on his back as well as the many pockets on his outfit blue his crimson red beret. He also gave off the attitude and aura of a soldier from the few times he had interacted with American Soldiers that has passed by his clinic in his past life.
The next was a medical doctor with white hair and glasses but a symbol on the doctor's coat that he has never seen before. And he was also armed but the gun did not look like any gun that he has ever seen before. He was smiling mischievously and had a look of sly intelligence radiating in his eyes.
Next was an American woman who looked as if she stepped out of the Wild West with her cowgirl like attire and hat, and holstering a fearsome looking shotgun on her back holding a bottle, of what he assumed to be, moonshine of some kind.
The second to last was a cheerful looking woman wearing a dress of all things, smiling happily, but what contrasted with the rest of her outfit was the hood she was wearing. And more importantly that foreign looking metal brace on her right arm that looked as though it could smash through rock and metal.
The last figure though was clearly the most important as before Aqua's very own eyes was Markus Redgrave, and he was not wearing his usual handyman outfit at all. Instead, he was wearing a complete set of armor on the upper torso with shoulder pauldrons, bullet belts, a canteen, dark colored camo pants, high end armored boots, carrying an advanced looking helmet with red lenses in his arms with a bandanna wrapped around his neck.
And more importantly his full face was now out to see and Aqua could see his red and blue eyes twinkling with confidence and strength as his blonde hair seemingly fluttered out and about. He was also carrying a gun on his back, a long sheathed weapon on the opposite side of where his long gun was holstered, a pair of guns holstered on his side and a knife sheathed next to his shoulder for easy access.
Markus was a lot more different than he expected. He was clearly a soldier of some kind and had obviously seen combat. So, with that in mind, Aqua dug into the photo book as his eyes widened more and more with every photo, he saw that was both awe inspiring and dread inspiring as well.
Pictures of people, animals, monsters, robots, locations, settlements, and far more, and all of it seem to tell Aqua a story about the kind of person Markus was. And he wondered just where did all these sights came from as he knew for a fact that sights like the ones in Markus's photobook would have been a massive internet sensation. And then he found it, he saw what made his heart stop in shock at what was being displayed before him.
It was a simple victory party from what he can tell. A victory party set up in some hotel's cocktail lounge of some kind. In there were soldiers, doctors, randomly dressed people, and more all celebrating, drinking, and having fun. But on the backdrop of the party was a banner written in English that he knew well and it said one thing.
October, 31, 2282. End of the Second Battle of Hoover Dam.
2282, that's what the banner said, Aqua wanted to disbelieve it, but something told him it was no lie.
2282, it would account for all the technology he has never seen before until now in these photos.
2282, that would mean that something had happened to reduced human civilization in what can only be a post nuclear war based on some of the photos he saw, like the unexploded nuclear warheads.
2282, that meant Markus wasn't from this time but from the far future as well individual from a more damaged future.
2282, it would explain why Markus had a natural talent for fixing and repairing junk, there wasn't any more factories producing any of the modern tech goods and marvels around anymore.
It explained a lot about Markus and yet also told Aqua nothing, but what he now knew for sure was…Markus can be trusted to protect Ai. He had no reason to get involved or care about benefiting anything from her.
Which means Ai now had a skilled and experienced veteran fighter protecting her, and that's all that really mattered to Aqua.
Aqua calmly closed the book and locked it again and then quietly placed the book away, unaware that the grey that filled his eyes was now back to his normal white, but seemingly shined brighter than normal.