Chapter VI: Making allowances in the name of interspecies relations.

"So do you want to join my-"

"Ew! He talked to me!"

Alright, that was a little rude.

"Have you ever thought about alie-"

"Kyyyaaaaa! Pervert!"

All he did was walk up to her with a pen and paper.

"Hello-"

And she didn't even wait for him to say anything else before sprinting in the other direction.

Then again, he wasn't sure he'd get anything from them in the first place.

He could work with this.

Maybe.

Alright, yes, he could definitely work with this. Surely there had to be some of the guys in the school who would definitely work with him!

"Hey, pal-"

"Don't talk to me."

Issei dropped his shoulders at being stonewalled immediately, the fact the couple he approached had been laughing as well really killed the mood. Just the way they had taken one look at him and then just lost any ounce of good humour on their faces. As if he was some sort of joy vampire.

That was a terrible image.

Was this an alright time to feel sad?

He was certainly sure that was the case.

He might have been a loser and nothing at all like one of those handsome bastards like that Kiba guy, but surely there was someone in the school whose interest in aliens was far beyond their dislike of him. With his hands dropping upon his hips, Issei narrowed his eyes and started to let his thoughts swirl.

Perhaps he needed a new approach?

Or maybe something else…

A twinkle of an idea emerged in his mind, snapping his fingers.

"Got it!"

And with that, headed off to the library.

Not for studying, that could come later, but for something entirely different.

A plan that was definitely going to work.

"What is he doing?"

"What does that-aliens? I didn't know he was like that…"

"I didn't really know he cared about anything other than-"

"-maybe it's a trick?"

"-definitely a trick."

"-bet all this is just a cover for porn-"

"-warn some of the juniors not to fall for this guy-"

Issei kept the sign held up above his head as he walked through the school during lunch. Allowing the words to wash off his body all while they plunged one after another into his gut like so many knives. The very least some of these guys could have done was to just do this when he was away so he didn't have to hear them badmouth him.

It was actually getting a bit hard on his self-esteem.

Dropping his arms just a little - only because they were getting tired - he held the little sign in front of his chest and looked around.

Everyone immediately ducked their head just so they could avoid making eye contact with him.

A sigh rumbled in his gut.

How was it that meeting with the student council had been the easiest part of this entire ordeal?

Surely there had to be someone who was willing to look past the natural appreciation and his healthy interest in breasts and work with him for the good of looking for aliens in history. It wasn't like he was asking for a lot at the end of the day, there had to be someone-

"What new scheme is this?"

A voice of pure aggression and definite suspicion stopped him in his tracks, he turned around rather suddenly because he was certain that it was definitely aimed towards him. Blinking once again, he went stiff on instinct and looked around the assembled group who had appeared in front of him.

"...I haven't done anything today." Issei felt the need to say, just before anyone started swinging.

This would definitely be wholly unprompted this time.

"Haven't done anything?"

A shinai was pointed right towards him, or rather towards the sign he was holding up, then raised towards the tip of his nose.

"Then what is that supposed to be about?"

He went cross eyed at the tip of the shinai, then stepped back just a little and looked down at the sign, flipping it about just to make sure he had been holding it properly. He was fairly sure he had been doing just that and…yep, it was definitely upright and in pretty bold letters as well.

Issei turned back to the owner of the weapon and her assembled gang.

"I want to make a club." He explained. "To study aliens."

Katase of the Kendo club looked far from convinced, rather her eyes just seemed to narrow all the more and the shinai wasn't lowered away from his face.

"You want to make a club?" She didn't have to make it sound so dubious. "Liar. This is obviously just a scheme to trick some of the juniors into your clutches, isn't it? Pervert."

"Yeah!" One of the girls behind her shouted out, pointing an accusing finger at him. "You and your two pervert friends would already meet the minimum requirements for it."

Issei scowled at the mention of those guys. "They said they couldn't do it. Matusda has the photo-club and Motohama said studying aliens would make him look bad."

Oddly enough, his words seem to settle with the girls.

"Matsuda-san is part of the photo-club." Another of the girls - oh! He'd seen her before! - added in rather slowly, looking like agreeing with him was somehow painful, the expression like she sucked a lemon really sold that feeling. "...Fujioka-san said he took the photos for the school magazines."

There was a short and sudden silence which held a distinctly horrified aura about it, especially as the heads of the girls turned as one.

"Seriously? Those are actually really good…I feel so dirty now."

"To think he could actually do that…what the heck? I can't enjoy it anymore…"

"...So does that mean he's trying to study aliens for real or-?"

Katase cut in. "The photo bit doesn't matter. Hyoudou is just as much a pervert without his friends as much as he is with them!"

And the Shinai was back in his face once more, but at least she didn't look like she was going to start swinging.

"And besides, no one can make a club without-"

"I already went to the student council."

Katase looked rather stricken by that, taking an actual step backwards as her grip faltered enough that the Shinai lowered down. Eyes widening, she and the others stared at him for a good solid five seconds before she eventually started speaking again.

"You went to the student council already? They know about…this…?"

Issei nodded his head. "Yeah. I just need some people to sign up for it…"

He paused for a moment, then looked down at the paper and then towards the girls one at a time and squinted.

Slowly, he extended the sign towards them and then flipped it around to reveal the signage sheet, going to his pocket and pulling out a pen.

"So…anyone want to sign up?"

The collective step back they all took was probably a no.

Not one to be deterred, Issei took a step towards them.

"Seriously. It's just about aliens."

He stopped, then lowered the sheet.

"Well, aliens in history, I mean-"

"Wait, history?" There was a brief pause as the words settled before one of the girls suddenly pointed at him. "Do…do you mean like aliens building the pyramids?"

"No." Issei dropped his arms. "I know they didn't do that…I mean like Atlantis."

Was it alright to say this much?

It probably was.

He hadn't referenced any of the minicons or anything else, so it was probably fine.

And anyone who signed up would find out in the first club meeting anyway, so it was all good.

Katase had lowered the shinai down to her side by this point, losing any of the aggression she had when she confronted him.

Once again, today was full of surprises as seeing her without a murderous expression actually brought out quite a lot of her good features.

She had a very nice face.

"...Atlantis?" Katasa looked at him like she didn't know what to make of him. "...You think aliens came to earth…and built Atlantis?"

"...Well…maybe?" He shrugged his shoulders. "That's what the club is for, to find out."

It felt like he was winning people over.

The crowd of girls looked at one another and all were suddenly wearing these weird expressions on their faces. As though they were really strained about something and fighting back their actual words.

Which was weird, people didn't do that around him.

Issei looked between all of them and raised a brow, especially when Katase looked back to him.

"...Is this just you trying to get close to the Occult Research club?"

"No?" Issei tilted his head. "They research supernatural stuff, I'm doing aliens…why? Does Gremory-senpai like aliens or something?"

Actually, that wouldn't make sense.

If she did, then she would have made this club before him…

"...Lets go…"

And just like that, they were suddenly dispersing at the quiet word of Katase, backing away from him and then quickly ducking their heads as if they were afraid to have been seen talking with him in the first place. Issei watched them with a weird sense of confusion at their lack of words.

Only Katase stayed behind, but that was to offer a lacklustre warning.

"We'll be watching you…"

She didn't put her heart into it, looking at him with pity.

Then she turned and walked off as well, leaving him alone holding his sign and now thoroughly confused.

"Feel free to sign up any time!" He shouted out after them. "It probably won't be just Atlantis! There are probably other spaces with aliens too! Maybe they did build the pyramids!"

And then suddenly it felt like there were eyes all over him.

He turned about and found the surrounding area had gone silent and everyone was looking at him.

"...What?"

He flashed them the club sign.

"Anyone?"

They all turned away.

Issei frowned.

"Weird…" He muttered to himself, then started to walk off.

There would definitely be someone who would sign up.

No one signed up.

To make matters worse, it was rapidly approaching the end of the school day and there hadn't been a single person who had not only engaged him in a conversation long enough to show an interest in the club - beyond the crowd Katase had rallied - nor had they spoken with him at all.

Issei dropped his head into his hands and stared down.

The sign stared back at him.

He'd barely even focused on anything else.

Looking up, he stared at the clock as the minutes ticked past, very nearly inch by inch.

It wasn't like there wouldn't be tomorrow…except he had gone around and asked everyone he could think of and the very worst part of it all was that the girls and guys had remained true to their word. Virtually all the juniors had taken one look at him and scattered, those who remained behind gave him the same pitying look.

The bell rang rather loudly.

With a sigh, Issei pushed himself up.

His phone chirped and he almost didn't want to answer it.

But that would be rude to Highwire.

Fishing it out and putting it to his ear, he sighed through it.

"Sorry man, I tried my best."

Highwire gave a reassuring tone back through to him, telling him that everything was alright.

"I know I said early days but if no one agrees now…I pretty much asked everyone I knew already and they all hate me."

Except his friends.

But with neither of them able to help him, Issei had no one left to turn to.

Further beeps.

Issei snorted. "Man, don't say something like that. It doesn't have the same effect unless its coming from a girl."

Puzzled beeps.

"Human thing, don't worry about it."

Slipping his bag on, Issei walked for the door.

He supposed he could make an effort tomorrow, but chances were that-

He stopped when he noticed someone was standing directly in his path, and his words to alert them to his presence died on his tongue the second he spied who they were. His face darkened and his lips drew thin.

"...What do you want?"

"That's a pretty rude greeting." Glasses girl replied back, lips curved into the sort of smug smirk which always preluded something going wrong for him. "Especially in your position."

Issei lowered his phone from his ear and held it by his side, staring at her for a few seconds before he sighed.

"Uh-huh? Look, I'm not in the mood for your teasing today."

He moved to step past her.

"I got enough of that from everyone else-"

A hand was raised to barr his path, stopping and staring at the limb he glanced across to the owner and scowled a bit deeper at them.

"Do you mind?"

"Oh?" Glasses girl was suddenly grinning, "but I thought you've been looking for people to talk to all day…people who aren't going to run away from you or your less than popular pals, is that right?"

Issei cringed. "Have you come to poke fun at me as well for that?"

Lowering the hand down, she inclined her head. "I doubt there's much I can say that would be more humiliating than your little performance earlier. Shouting about aliens building the pyramids and how they made Atlantis…suffice to say you're the talk of the school for one of the strangest reasons out there."

Hand cupping her chin, she leaned back and squinted at him behind her glasses.

"Is this some sort of new thing you're going with? Because I wasn't actually expecting to add conspiracy buff to your list of titles."

Issei stepped back to let someone pass him by, all while keeping his eyes on the person opposite.

"Everyone goes on about studying but then I start studying and now people want to make fun of it? No one does this to the Occult Research club."

"Well, yes." She gave him a flat expression. "Would you do it to them?"

"The heck? No!" Issei was rather horrified at the suggestion.

Insulting the club that both of the great ladies in Kuoh used? That would be crazy and-

"Oh. Right." He dropped his shoulders and deadpanned. "So it's because I'm me, huh?"

She gave him a mocking smile. "It's good to be self-aware."

He turned to the door once more.

"Hold on now, I'm not finished yet."

"You didn't get it all out?" Issei turned back to her and sighed.

"We can't all be quickshots like you."

Issei whipped around and gaped, then he glared.

She only giggled and raised her hands, the twitch of a smirk on her lips dropped. "But I didn't come here just to make fun of you…I take it no one wanted to join your club?"

"Figured that out all by yourself?"

"Now, now." Lowering her hands, she placed them on her hips. "No need to be so high strung. I'm coming here with a nice offer."

Would be a first.

She silently extended her hand towards him.

He looked down at it, then back at her.

"Well?" She tilted her head. "I thought you wanted people to join?"

Issei blinked very slowly at her. "...Pardon?"

Was she…was she offering to join his club?

He squinted in suspicion and leaned back. "...Is this some sort of joke? If I say yes are you gonna go 'haha! Got you! There are cameras over there!' or something like that? Because it feels like something like that."

She only folded her arms. "Aren't you a little too paranoid? I wouldn't come out and say it unless I actually wanted to join your club."

"...Why?"

She snorted. "Because one of the perverted trio has suddenly started shouting out that he believes aliens built the pyramids-"

"I was actually focused on Atlantis but I wasn't ruling it out-"

"Exactly." She talked over him. "So there is a reason for that…which is probably hilarious and the fact that neither of your friends joined your club tells me that you really weren't going to use it as just an excuse to look at porn at school or something, or bring in any of those magazines."

Well, she wasn't wrong.

"That and you'd have had to go to the student council about this." She added on, then leaned back.

"Which means you're actually serious about it…and I'm a little curious as to why that is."

Issei exhaled. "Alright, but why join?"

And he hadn't even said he wanted her to join yet.

Of all the people who could accept…

With a shrug of her shoulders, she shifted her weight. "If nothing else, it should be funny to see you turn into certifiable crazy person on top of being a pervert…and it gives me a lot of gossip material if that is the case."

"Wow." Issei drawled. "You're really looking out for me here, huh?"

"Yes. I am." She beamed, then extended the hand once more. "So then? Am I in? Or are you going to keep trying your luck in the hope that someone eventually takes the chance on you? Because that could be a long time…at least if I join and stick around, they'll probably realise you're being serious."

Damn it!

He hated it when she was right, also this was super weird.

Pursing his lips, he looked down at her hand and then back at her face.

…Highwire better appreciate this.

"...Fine." With a sigh, he held up the paper and pen. "You can sign here…"

Aika took them from his hands with that smirk still on her lips, quickly signing her name and then handing it back.

"...So you really didn't get anyone to sign it?"

Issei huffed. "Except you, apparently…"

"Well." Aika turned to the door and walked out, waving over her shoulder. "See you later, club president!"

And like that, she was gone.

His phone hummed rather suddenly, he looked down at it and saw the excited words of Highwire.

[We have a new comrade! Doing your best and showing your earnest intentions really pulled through, Issei!]

…He wasn't sure he had the heart to tell Highwire just who they had managed to net as a comrade.

They were so excited…

…With a huff, he figured he'd leave them with that for a little while.

Now though, he had something else to do.

Returning to the student council wasn't nearly as intimidating as the first time around.

Still a little daunting, but now he was clutching his sheet - and some little notes about the Atlantis thing - rather carefully just in case he was asked for what they would be doing.

The door opened, this time it was Tsubasa who greeted him instead, arms folded over her chest the moment she opened the door and then leaning against it, staring at him for a good few seconds before she stepped aside.

"Hyoudou-san is back." She called out, "So your advertisement worked?"

And then he nearly stumbled through the first step, righting himself and drawing his lips thin at the reminder.

"Yeah, it did…So you saw that?"

Tsubasa gave him a very slow blink. "I believe that everyone saw that…but good job in getting your honest intentions across. They were very convincing."

He perked up. "Really?"

She gave a short nod. "Yeah…" then she nodded her head towards the direction of the president.

Issei rapidly advanced through the room and towards the desk, coming to a dead halt in front of it and staring down.

This time, the president wasn't doing anything, rather it looked as if she had just been sitting there and waiting for him.

Which was now a little ominous.

But he had someone in his club!

Granted, only one person, but it was still one person more than him!

…Wait, wasn't Aika just as big a pervert?

…He really hoped that the president didn't get the wrong idea-

"You have returned as promised." Breaking him from his words, the eyes of the president dropped to the papers in his hands, then back to his face. "Shall I assume that you have managed to find some members for your proposed club as well as initial drafts of club activities?"

"Yes, president!" Issei barked out, all but spilling the papers onto the desk and then stepping back.

The president sighed. "I would have been content to wait until you had drafted up more detailed works, but at least this demonstrates you are eager…"

Silently, she took them and lifted them up, giving them a once over before looking back at him.

"...Only Kiryuu Aika-san?"

"...No one else really wanted to talk with me."

"Mmmmh." She flipped through to the next page, then stopped and squinted for a few moments as she looked back at him.

Issei felt sweat build up on the back of his neck.

Then, at long last, the president gave a short nod of the head.

"...Very well. Seeing as how you have recruited someone to your proposed club, I can allow a brief trial period for now…but I shall insist that you make an effort to recruit more members to your club in the future."

She raised her hand.

"And I shall occasionally send someone from the student council round to assess the activities of your club and ensure everything is being done within the confines of the school rules regarding them. Is that understood?"

Issei grinned and nodded his head. "Yes, president! Thank you, president!"

"...Then I shall offer you luck in your endeavour, Hyoudou-san." Her eyes parted from his face. "And if there is nothing else you require…?"

"No, thank you again!"

Issei turned and bounded for the door.

"Seriously! Thanks a lot!"

And was out of there.

Even before he got his phone to his ear, Highwire's ecstatic tone was singing through the device.

"Yeah, I know!" Issei beamed as he moved through the halls. "We can really start proper now! We'll go up there at the weekend, alright? To that hill and have a look around."

Highwire agreed.

Then said something that had him stop.

Issei slowed his steps.

"...Uh…yeah…that's…not the best idea?"

Highwire's confusion came next.

Issei winced a bit. "Not…not immediately? Like…uhm…g-give it a week or so to make sure she's serious and-"

Highwire sounded a bit sad now.

Issei dropped his shoulders.

"...It just seems a little risky to me but…well…if you really want to…"

Highwire sounded more confident with the next message.

Well.

He could understand that at least.

"...When you put it like that…" Biting his lip, he closed his eyes and sighed. "Fine. A couple days."

A couple days.

And then Highwire wanted to meet Aika.

Which was…probably not a good idea? Maybe?

…Well, at least this might inspire her to stick around?

If not, she would probably sound crazy as well if she tried to spill any of it.