Fandom Monster Musume Nextgen: Growing Pains

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Ahead of the two, Erebus was struggling, and as he struggled, Aiko became more nervous as well. When he abruptly got up and turned away from her, she clenched her jaw and looked more and more worried. His emotional state started to go into the danger zone. His heads-up display told him to calm down or he'd get a dose of sedation. When Aiko noticed him staring at her after he turned back to her, she looked confused. She didn't have much of a chest, and it was largely covered by her jacket. She took it off, wondering if he was glaring at her for covering up her uniform, and folded it neatly in her lap. 


As he started to ramble off the lines given to him by his grandfather, however, she started to get more upset, her face flushing, but before she lost her temper, she looked and realized that he was reading from a phone.


"Whoever gave you those Japanese phrases to say has a very bad sense of humor." she said in English, trying to figure out what to do to help him. Not only did she not want to fail at being a human partner, but she didn't want to make him upset and cause problems, not on their first day.


"If your Japanese is not good, I can speak English pretty strongly." she said, her Japanese accent fairly thick as she spoke, assuming that he had no idea what he was saying to her. 

 

[Nextdoor]

Ah...god, what did grandpa made me said!!!


What is wrong with this old man!!!


Erebus frowned in rage, he tried his best to not let his emotion lost control, but it's a lot harder than he thought when grandpa was being that irritating even at important times like this. 

"Whoever gave you those Japanese phrases to say has a very bad sense of humor." she said in English, trying to figure out what to do to help him. Not only did she not want to fail at being a human partner, but she didn't want to make him upset and cause problems, not on their first day.

"I-I am very sorry Aiko-chan...it's just..." Erebus blurted out to the girl in panic, noticed that the girl might be badly offended after his silly act. His body leaned forward a little as he looked at the girl before he swiftly turned and looked away again.


Wait...I actually did it!

"If your Japanese is not good, I can speak English pretty strongly." she said, her Japanese accent fairly thick as she spoke, assuming that he had no idea what he was saying to her. 

"It-It's..."


"It's okay...actually.. you can speak Japanese to me......"


Erebus kept his head looking aside as he spoke.


I did it again!


"U-um..."


"C-Can I leave now? Please......" Erebus mumbled as he raised his shoulders up for a little and started to rub his wrist with his gloved hands, showing clear uncomfort and nervousness.

 

[Illusionus]

Satori quickly looks around him as he feels himself being slowly moved forward. He then looks up to see a warmly smiling face right above him. Not sure whether the girl that had decided to help him was human or not, Satori straightens himself in his seat and tries to look behind him and try to examine her. Turning around a bit in his chair allowed him to see that the girl was actually a lamia. Seeing that the was a fellow monster, he began to feel somewhat relieved and a little more relaxed. Satori settles back down into his seat and smiles up at the kind lamia girl. 


Once Asuko finishes speaking, Satori covers his mouth with his hand before beginning to chuckle lightly to himself. He rests his hands back onto his lap and turns slightly shoulder to the lamia, still laughing softly. "I'm Satori. Most people back home just call me Sato though." The boy speaks with a warm smile. "It's nice to meet you." He looks down to his tail for a moment, flopping it up and down a little before turning his attention back to the snake girl. "I guess it was a little... tricky getting here on time and all. I'm just glad the train stations and bus stops have people hired to help other species that can't really move around as well as others. The only thing is that I wish people wouldn't stare as much. It makes me feel a little... uncomfortable when they do." Sato looks up to the girl again. "What about you? Was everything fine for you getting here?" The mermaid boy keeps a warm smile on his face as he speaks to the girl, happy to have someone nice to speak to.  

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Aiko was trying her hardest to keep her temper under control as Erebus stumbled over words, refused to make eye contact, and acted like he was terrified of her. It was incredibly insulting, and finding out that he was able to speak Japanese just fine but rambled off offensive phrases from a phone screen... she was made to feel very foolish and it took all of her effort to keep a straight face, though the redness in her cheeks and tense body posture made it pretty obvious she was having to work hard to keep from cussing him out on the spot, Japanese politeness or not. 


"Erebus-san. You should sit down and calm down. I'm not anything you have to be scared of." she said firmly, her eyes fixed on his. She didn't look particularly angry, but there was a definite inflection to her voice that warned him he'd better to as she asked. 


"We are supposed to have a full introduction so I know how best I can help you during our school year, you know, since I'm your helper. As in, we're stuck together." she reminded him. 


@arcaneSentinel


Asuko fixed her glasses and shrugged. 


"Nothing I couldn't handle. If need be, I can wrap my tail around myself to reduce my footprint... though the train gropers avoid me because of this." she said, showing him her impressive rattle at the end of her tail. 


"My fangs  may be safety capped, but most humans don't know that." she said, a bit of a smirk on her lips.


"Looks like the E.S. ahead of us is having some trouble with his helper." she observed, though she and Satori were far enough behind Aiko and Erebus that they were out of earshot, at least in as much that their voices were overshadowed by the din surrounding them as extra species and humans all chatted amongst themselves about the anxiety of being given a partner. Neither side knew what to expect, so it was at the same time exciting and a bit terrifying. 


"I hope you get a good helper, whoever you're going to be matched with is going to have to be right by you a lot... I'm sure the school has more than enough wheelchair access points, but there's bound to be choke points that can't be anticipated until actual student traffic runs through them." 


(You can choose what your helper is like; keen and helpful or neglectful and delinquent or what have you. I'll play according to your decision) 

 

[Nextdoor]

"Erebus-san. You should sit down and calm down. I'm not anything you have to be scared of." she said firmly, her eyes fixed on his. She didn't look particularly angry, but there was a definite inflection to her voice that warned him he'd better to as she asked. 


"We are supposed to have a full introduction so I know how best I can help you during our school year, you know, since I'm your helper. As in, we're stuck together." she reminded him. 

This is bad......


"Okay..." Erebus said while he exhaled, he then walked in front and sat down, keeping his head down while he do so. 


He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath.


My human helper... so she will be with me this whole year...that's...bad...very bad... Erebus was muted for a split second as a thought suddenly flashed into his mind after the girl reminded him that she will be stuck with him this whole year.


"......I'm not anything you have to be scared of."


              But I couldn't say the same for myself...... 


   I am...something you should be scared of...... 


Erebus bit his lip.


"Erebus Lux...that's my name." Still with his head down, Erebus replied with a dull and monotonous tone, he frowned under his glasses, his mood shifted as melancholic thoughts was starting to flood his mind, the feel of panic slowly ebbed away as it replaced by an aching sensation in his chest.


"Nice to meet you...Kasai Aiko." He replied to the girl again coldly.


"......"


"Please be warned that you will be in great danger if you ever come near me..." Erebus continued after a short pause, his voice trembled a little as he spoke.


"You may DIE."


"You may DIE, for every second you spent around me before you even have the chance to regret about it." Erebus clenched his fists as he intentionally made his tone extremely heavy when he reminded the girl of that, it almost sounded like a threat, and it was Erebus exact intention.


"Just from a single...glance..."


"A single...touch......"


"That's all you need to know about me......" 


"May I leave now?"


"Kasai Aiko?" He raised his head slowly and stared at the girl behind his glasses with a unusual cold and intimidating look on his face, his hand trembled as he tighten his fists.

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


(You've chosen her appearance but if you want, her personality can be up to you as well. I tend to just go with the flow.)

 

[Illusionus]

"Heh yeah." Sato chuckles lightly. "It's a little funny how you can get get around easier than me. Especially with how... Um... Lengthy you are." He lets out a small sigh, having not wanted to comment directly on Asuko's size or weight. "I guess that's probably because you can actually move around without needing one of these things." The boy rolls his eyes and sighs once more as he pats the armrest of his wheelchair. "Oh excuse me. Just a sec." Satori inches forward and leans to the side to look at the line. "Looks like it's almost our turn. I just hope that I have a really nice helper. It wouldn't really hurt for them to be strong too. I-I mean to help in case I have to get somewhere where my wheelchair can't get me." He rubs the back of his neck awkwardly, noticing that what he said might be able to be taken a different way. "I just really don't want me being unable to walk will keep me from being able to fit in." The mermaid boy looks down at his hands in his lap for a moment before back up to Asuko with a smile. "What about you though? What are you hoping your helper will be like? I honestly can't imagine that you would have as much to ask for as me. You seem like you're pretty capable." He laughs a bit and flops his tail a little again. "Well, a lot more capable than me anyway." Satori inches forward once more as the line shrinks more, little by little as other extra species are assigned to their helpers. 


@Orange Soba

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Aiko shifted her jaw as Erebus opened up on her, trying to frighten her. She had just about taken all she could and maintain her Japanes politeness. As he outright threatened her, however, she closed her eyes and clenched her jaw rightly, taking a deep, cleansing breath to keep from saying anything that she would no doubt regret later.


"Erebus-san." she began, her voice still polite but tinted with a hint of the irritation that she was trying to hide. "Our teachers have already briefed me on what you can do. I'm one of only a few volunteers who wanted to try and help you fit in here." she said with crossed arms, one hand visibly clutching her uniform sleeve. 


"I already know you have equipment that prevents you from hurting anyone on accident and alerts the authorities if you attempt to remove them, so I'm going to assume that you're only trying to scare me because you're hoping I'll leave you alone, and that you're not ENTIRELY a jerk." she said, still maintaining an calm demeanor facially but her eyes told of a burning temper that Erebus had just awoken. 


"However, volunteers in the extra species helper program get extra credit if their partner does well in school, and I plan on being in the top 5 of my class, and you are not getting in the way of that, so suck it up, tough guy." she said, a somewhat knowing smirk crossing her lips.


"I don't care how much you don't like humans. I took you on and I'm not backing down, so you'd better get used to seeing this face." she gently slapped her thighs and stood up. "So if you're done playing scary Yakuza face, we should head in." she said.


@arcaneSentinel


Asuko made a face, looking off to one side.


"Oh sure, right NOW I'm fine on my own. Soon as November hits though, I'm going to need full time help to make sure I don't get myself into trouble trying to do too much. All it would take is me pushing myself a little too hard in a cold wind and I'll be asleep in the street. Whoever is my helper will have to tolerate being my escort before and after class, because it would be really, really easy for me to lose track of time, think I can make it home on my own, and get surprised by a sudden shift in the wind. Insulating my tail only gets me so far crawling across cold cement." she explained. "Unfortunately, the biggest part of me is also the part of me I use to move. If I'm in a building with the air conditioning set too high, it's enough to make me sluggish." 


Asuko looked like she was ready to start shivering at the mere thought of it.


"I just hope my helper is really patient. Someone who's good company, someone artsy, like me, would also be good. The more things we have in common, the easier it is to stick together." she said, noticing that the basilisk boy and his helper had apparently started to move.


"Hmmm, looks like we're up." Asuko said, pushing Satori towards his table. She made a face when she saw who was waiting for both of them. In fact, Asuko didn't seem to have a helper at all waiting for her. Was her partner a no-show? Meanwhile, Satori's helper was still apparently talking to the case worker, likely being briefed on full responsibilities. 

 

[Nextdoor]

Aiko shifted her jaw as Erebus opened up on her, trying to frighten her. She had just about taken all she could and maintain her Japanes politeness. As he outright threatened her, however, she closed her eyes and clenched her jaw rightly, taking a deep, cleansing breath to keep from saying anything that she would no doubt regret later.


"Erebus-san." she began, her voice still polite but tinted with a hint of the irritation that she was trying to hide. "Our teachers have already briefed me on what you can do. I'm one of only a few volunteers who wanted to try and help you fit in here." she said with crossed arms, one hand visibly clutching her uniform sleeve. 


"I already know you have equipment that prevents you from hurting anyone on accident and alerts the authorities if you attempt to remove them, so I'm going to assume that you're only trying to scare me because you're hoping I'll leave you alone, and that you're not ENTIRELY a jerk." she said, still maintaining an calm demeanor facially but her eyes told of a burning temper that Erebus had just awoken. 


"However, volunteers in the extra species helper program get extra credit if their partner does well in school, and I plan on being in the top 5 of my class, and you are not getting in the way of that, so suck it up, tough guy." she said, a somewhat knowing smirk crossing her lips.


"I don't care how much you don't like humans. I took you on and I'm not backing down, so you'd better get used to seeing this face." she gently slapped her thighs and stood up. "So if you're done playing scary Yakuza face, we should head in." she said.

She knows??!! Yet she...... Erebus couldn't believe what he heard. Erebus was unaware that the girl knew clearly what she was signing up for, yet was so determined in trying to be his helper. 


Erebus was dumbfounded as the girl replied to his "threat" with a calm demeanor, and even express her determination in wanting to be his helper despite Erebus's "warning". 


This girl must be crazy!!! Why would she wants risk her life like that??!!


Erebus was petrified as his eyes locked a the girl while she was giving her speech. As the girl started to walked away, Erebus stared a the girl's back for quite awhile before he pulled himself out of his deep thoughts and ran after her to catch up with her. 


Erebus glanced at the girl's back while he was following her, no even knew where he was heading to exactly. There were thousands questions floatingin Erebus mind, Erebus rolled his eyes to peeked at the girl's back occasionally, trying to find his courage to initiate a conversation and find out what was on this girl's mind.


What is this mad girl thinking.....Does she seriously want to help me even if it means having to bear eternal curse of bad luck and even death?


After tailing the girl for awhile, Erebus abruptly stopped and decided to spoke with this "mad girl".


"Aiko-chan,"


"Why......"


"Why would you volunteer to help me even after you know how...dangerous I am."


"You could have chosen a safer companion you know? Why would you put your life on line like that, I don't understand."


Erebus question the girl's will in wanting to be his helper, he couldn't understand why would a young and youthful girl like her would want to spend her time looking after someone like him while having to risk her life like that. The source for the determination coming from this girl didn't make sense to Erebus at all. 

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Aiko looked back at Erebus with that same knowing smirk again.


"Yeah, you're a real killer. You can barely look me in the eyes. I used to beat up guys like you for lunch money when I was in middle school." she said, then clicked her tongue, as if she was trying to figure out whether or not she wanted to elaborate.


"Look, I know what it's like to try and start over. When I saw your case file, I figured that you were the ultimate hard luck case. I figure, if I can help you, maybe that'll make up for some of the rotten things I did as a kid. It's not that complicated." she said, then motioned with her head.


"Come on, killer. We've got some time to explore the school some so we don't get lost on our first day like a couple of dumbasses." she said, waiting for him to walk along with her, rather than walking ahead of him. She let her 'urban' accent surface for a moment, giving Erebus a small inkling of her former delinquent persona. No doubt she did a LOT of work on herself to try and erase all traces of her past self. She was actively walking straighter than she had to, to appear proper and disciplined, and not slouch like some wannabe high school gangster.  

 

[Nextdoor]

Aiko looked back at Erebus with that same knowing smirk again.


"Yeah, you're a real killer. You can barely look me in the eyes. I used to beat up guys like you for lunch money when I was in middle school." she said, then clicked her tongue, as if she was trying to figure out whether or not she wanted to elaborate.


"Look, I know what it's like to try and start over. When I saw your case file, I figured that you were the ultimate hard luck case. I figure, if I can help you, maybe that'll make up for some of the rotten things I did as a kid. It's not that complicated." she said, then motioned with her head.


"Come on, killer. We've got some time to explore the school some so we don't get lost on our first day like a couple of dumbasses." she said, waiting for him to walk along with her, rather than walking ahead of him. She let her 'urban' accent surface for a moment, giving Erebus a small inkling of her former delinquent persona. No doubt she did a LOT of work on herself to try and erase all traces of her past self. She was actively walking straighter than she had to, to appear proper and disciplined, and not slouch like some wannabe high school gangster.  

Erebus listen intently while he stared at the girl's face, his eyes couldn't look away as the girl spoke, it was as if his vision was tunneled to the girl.


That is the most ridiculous thing I have ever heard...... 


With her smirk and the "ridiculous" reason she gave, it somehow brought a smile on Erebus's face which he quickly tried to hide.


"Let's go then." Erebus slowly walked beside the girl as the Aiko signaled him to follow. 


Let's just hope everything will turn out to be alright...... 


Erebus once again shifted his eyes onto the girl and quickly looked away as they were walking side by side, he could still felt traces of bitterness  and fear consuming him and growing gradually whenever he tried to tell himself that everything will be alright, deep down he knew he couldn't just make assumptions, he couldn't let anyone's life being suspended merely by his assumptions. 

 

[Illusionus]

"Oh right. Hibernation. I guess fall and winter wouldn't really be your best months then. It's early awful that things like that can happen to somebody like you. I don't see why they wouldn't assign you a helper that could help you out in times like that." Sato chuckles to himself. "Maybe you can make your own like of fashion or clothing that can help reptilian species like yourself through the colder months of the year. You'd think something like that would've been made already."


"Huh?" The mermaid turns around and shifts focus from Asuko to the table in front of him. "Oh cool." Satori was just about to begin rolling himself towards the table, but the lamia girl behind him had already begin to push the wheelchair for him. "Oh, uh. You don't really have to do this. I don't really mind. I mean you get used to it after a while." He looks down at his hands in his lap, a little embarrassed to have somebody nice helping him out.


@Orange Soba

 

[Orange Soba]

@arcaneSentinel


Asuko laughed and shrugged.


"Just habit, I guess." she said as she gave him a wave and went to her own table as helpers were assigned to the pair.


Asuko was assigned a nervous-looking girl with slightly messy hair, slightly on the overweight side. She didn't seem to say much as Asuko tried to be as personable and friendly as possible. Meanwhile, Satori was assigned a tall, athletic girl. She was obviously an exchange student, being of African American descent and having dyed blonde hair. It might have also been a wig, though, considering the gentle waviness of her hair rather than tight curls. It just didn't seem quite natural, color aside. She was pretty, in good shape but not enough to make her overly masculine, and flashed a bright, friendly smile at the merman that was genuinely warm. 


"I've been studying hard at Japanese, but if you can speak English, I won't say no!" she said, then took his hand in both of hers. "I'm Melissa, great to meet you!" 


Satori was set up with a real oddity, it seemed. Not only was she an exchange student, which would make her academic studies more difficult already, but she volunteered for the helper program, making it even harder on her. 


@Nextdoor


Aiko took Erebus on a short tour of the school, meanwhile, mentally mapping out the places that were likely going to have the most students.


"You're not good in crowds, I bet." Aiko observed as she came upon a more isolated stairwell and hallway.


"I think if we use this way to get around, we won't have to deal with quite as much of a human stampede between classes. Keep you from panicking, and when you're more confident, we can brave actual crowds. I mean, if you're going to be living in Japan, it's something you're going to have to get used to, no ifs, ands, or buts." she said, turning a corner and stopping dead in her tracks.


"Err... oh." 


Right around the corner was a human boy and a spiderling girl who were already getting... comfortable. He was pinned up against the railing as the hall they were in actually was on the third floor and gave a view of the floors below, over the main entrance while the spiderling pressed herself up against him in a completely inappropriate way, whispering something in his ear. She noticed Erebus and Aiko standing there and smirked, before promptly pushing the boy over the railing. Before he could shout, he found that she had already spun a web around his leg, as she leaped up onto the wall, climbing up further onto what looked like some kind of loft storage area on the fourth floor, pulling her boy toy with her as he dangled helplessly with a big, goofy smile.


"Well. That's ONE way of taking advantage of your abilities." Aiko commented. Apparently she wasn't the type to get embarrassed at shows of affection or intimacy, and she DID seem awfully amused by the guy being put into a compromising position for once. 


"Though I guess you don't have any means of having fun with yours, do you..."

 

[Nextdoor]

(lol, I had been, and also will be itching for some yaoi if Satori's helper happens to be a 'strong guy' xD . Bud Nuuu, it's a girl! Nuuuuu! X'D @arcaneSentinel  @Orange Soba)


(I demand yaoi!!! )

Aiko took Erebus on a short tour of the school, meanwhile, mentally mapping out the places that were likely going to have the most students.


"You're not good in crowds, I bet." Aiko observed as she came upon a more isolated stairwell and hallway.


"I think if we use this way to get around, we won't have to deal with quite as much of a human stampede between classes. Keep you from panicking, and when you're more confident, we can brave actual crowds. I mean, if you're going to be living in Japan, it's something you're going to have to get used to, no ifs, ands, or buts." she said, turning a corner and stopping dead in her tracks.


"Err... oh." 


Right around the corner was a human boy and a spiderling girl who were already getting... comfortable. He was pinned up against the railing as the hall they were in actually was on the third floor and gave a view of the floors below, over the main entrance while the spiderling pressed herself up against him in a completely inappropriate way, whispering something in his ear. She noticed Erebus and Aiko standing there and smirked, before promptly pushing the boy over the railing. Before he could shout, he found that she had already spun a web around his leg, as she leaped up onto the wall, climbing up further onto what looked like some kind of loft storage area on the fourth floor, pulling her boy toy with her as he dangled helplessly with a big, goofy smile.

Erebus cringed at the inappropriate sight, he swiftly looked away as he clenched his teeth, feeling rather uncomfortable for witnessing something like that in his very first day of school, it sure left a fairly odd first impression for Erebus of how the outside world is like.


Gosh, has socializing always been that...intense? I certainly AM not ready for this...... 


Erebus turned and peeked at the spiderling girl at the corner of his vision as she made her leave, trying his best not to freak out too much and worsen the awkwardness in the air. 

"Well. That's ONE way of taking advantage of your abilities." Aiko commented. Apparently she wasn't the type to get embarrassed at shows of affection or intimacy, and she DID seem awfully amused by the guy being put into a compromising position for once. 


"Though I guess you don't have any means of having fun with yours, do you..."

"W-what?! Of course no! T-there is no way I will ever be doing that!!!" Erebus felt a sudden surge of heat rushed onto his cheeks as he sprung back from Aiko.


"A-and please don't ever get... all close and cuddly like that with me. Y-you will literally kill yourself!!!" Erebus face turned reddish, from both embarrassment and anger. 


"I-I-I will scream for help...if-if you ever......" Erebus wrapped his hands around his body and took a few steps back from Aiko, mumbling unintelligible sentences as he stared blankly at the floor. Erebus was clearly being paranoid about Aiko's intention at this point.

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Aiko paused for a moment and rubbed her face. She took a few steps towards Erebus and put her hand on his shoulder, while the other clenched a fist.


"I was just lightening the mood after an awkward moment. Think of me as some kind of aggressive pervert again, and I'll revert back to my old self JUST for you." she said, smiling through grit teeth as she brought her fist up and lightly tapped Erebus's chin with it.


"Do we understand each other?" she asked, still smiling, but clearly pissed off. 


She let go of him and took a breath. 


"Frankly though, you're going to have to get used to stuff like this. From what I've seen, a lot of extra species girls tend to be pretty forward because of how much stronger they are than human men, especially the species with no male counterparts." she put her hands on her hips as she finally digested what he said before.


{And exactly what the hell is wrong with me anyway? God, don't tell me I spent hours looking up fucking makeup videos and I still look like a delinquent. I even grew my hair out to look cuter and less threatening. What, are basilisk girls all super cute and I'm just a dog in comparison?} she thought to herself, unconsciously pouting ever so slightly. 

 

[Illusionus]

Satori chuckles a bit and waves back to Asuko. "Thank you." He turns back from the lamia girl to look to see who his helper might be. As he looks in front of him, the mermaid boy sees a girl's legs and hips. Looking up, he sees a very friendly looking girl smiling down at him.


"Oh hi." Satori smiles brightly back up at the girl. He outstretches his right hand to the girl, letting his other hand rest in his lap. "My name is Hiro Satori. But most people back home just call me Sato. It's very nice to meet you as well." The boy chuckles to himself. "I suppose you must have already known that though. I can also speak vey good English if that can help you. I don't mind vey much." He prepares to tun in his wheelchair to have it face down the other end of the hallway. "So um... do you know where we're headed? I'm not exactly used to this. I don't really know how this might work." As he prepares to turn, Satori can't help but look toward the kind lamia that had spoken and helped him out just moments ago to see how she might be doing. He hoped that this might not be the last time he would see her. She was the first person of a different species than him That had decided to go out of their way to help him.


@Orange Soba

 

[Nextdoor]

Aiko paused for a moment and rubbed her face. She took a few steps towards Erebus and put her hand on his shoulder, while the other clenched a fist.


"I was just lightening the mood after an awkward moment. Think of me as some kind of aggressive pervert again, and I'll revert back to my old self JUST for you." she said, smiling through grit teeth as she brought her fist up and lightly tapped Erebus's chin with it.


"Do we understand each other?" she asked, still smiling, but clearly pissed off. 


She let go of him and took a breath. 

Erebus petrified with the girl vigorous reaction, lost for words and reactions as he felt Aiko's pressuring anger starting to build up.


T-Too close...... 


His body reflexively leaned back as the girl approached, tying to hold back from instantly jumped away as Aiko gripped his shoulder while staring at him with thous char-..... threatening gaze. 

"Frankly though, you're going to have to get used to stuff like this. From what I've seen, a lot of extra species girls tend to be pretty forward because of how much stronger they are than human men, especially the species with no male counterparts." she put her hands on her hips as she finally digested what he said before.


{And exactly what the hell is wrong with me anyway? God, don't tell me I spent hours looking up fucking makeup videos and I still look like a delinquent. I even grew my hair out to look cuter and less threatening. What, are basilisk girls all super cute and I'm just a dog in comparison?} she thought to herself, unconsciously pouting ever so slightly. 

In the aftermath of the "threat', Erebus felt a shiver rushed down his spine as he stood there, acting all uncomfortable. 


Erebus noticed the clear annoyance of Aiko as he quietly stood aside and observe, realizing that his act towards her was the exact source of that.


Erebus's mind started to drift about as he crossed his arms and lowered his head, deep in thought.


......


"Let's just...continue......" Erebus said coldly as he started to walked away.


He chose to stay mute.


If I couldn't scare her off ......


I will let her hates me then......

 

[Orange Soba]

@arcaneSentinel


Melissa took hold of Satori's handlebars and started wheeling him to the main entrance. 


"We've got some kind of introductory speech to attend in the main auditorium." she said, choosing English for the time being. 


"But before that, we have a little time to explore the school on our own. Apparently we're the school's first class, so they're making a big deal out of this." she said. As she started towards the doors. 


Asuko and her helper weren't far behind, and the lamia caught up to the others. Melissa and Asuko introduced themselves to each other, as Asuko seemed keen on forming bonds with her classmates. Asuko's helper didn't introduce herself, however, and instead seemed to be keeping herself as quiet as possible. 


"Well, if we've got the time to explore, how about we see what this school's pool facility is like?" Asuko suggested. "If this school was really funded by the Kobold foundation, they'll have already learned what to put in the pool to keep it clean AND mermaid friendly." she said. "I'm a pretty good swimmer too, so I'm interested to see if they got it all right.


"I wonder how they're going to handle that, speaking of." Melissa chimed in. "I mean, are the sports teams all going to be co-species or are there going to be separate human and extra species teams? I mean, it I'm pretty good at sports, but I hardly think any human could out-swim a merman or a lamia... but if they DO separate extra species and humans, doesn't that kind of go against the whole integration with humanity thing? Whoof, too much thinking. Me like pool. Me go pool." Melissa grinned jokingly as she wheeled Satori around and bumped open the doors to the school with her butt.


@Nextdoor


Aiko followed closely behind Erebus as she heard voices from below, seeing a grouping of four extra species and humans pass beneath. She got out her pamphlet for the orientation day and looked over the school map, then flipped out her phone to bring up a virtual tour video of the school.


"If we keep going this way, we'll end up in the gym and pool area, so this way is a little bit of a ways around things, but it's a good way to keep you from having panic attacks because someone got within arm's reach of you." she said. 


"Might as well keep going on through. We'll have to head to the auditorium soon for the school opening presentation." she stated. "Which is going to be a giant crowd, by the way, where you'll be surrounded by people." she said, turning her voice dead-pan as Erebus's was.


"Oh-no. People. What-ever-will-you-do? Aaaaaaaaah. Scary-other-people-who-might-look-at-you-and-start-civil-conversation." she said in an emotionless robot voice, still teasing him as they walked along the upper hallway towards the gym. 


"Don't worry, killer. If it comes to it, I'll just unbutton my blouse and they'll all be looking at me instead and you can be utterly revolted by my appearance." she smirked, letting some of her annoyance out at what she perceived as utter disgust on his part for her.

 

[Nextdoor]

Aiko followed closely behind Erebus as she heard voices from below, seeing a grouping of four extra species and humans pass beneath. She got out her pamphlet for the orientation day and looked over the school map, then flipped out her phone to bring up a virtual tour video of the school.


"If we keep going this way, we'll end up in the gym and pool area, so this way is a little bit of a ways around things, but it's a good way to keep you from having panic attacks because someone got within arm's reach of you." she said. 


"Might as well keep going on through. We'll have to head to the auditorium soon for the school opening presentation." she stated. "Which is going to be a giant crowd, by the way, where you'll be surrounded by people." she said, turning her voice dead-pan as Erebus's was.


"Oh-no. People. What-ever-will-you-do? Aaaaaaaaah. Scary-other-people-who-might-look-at-you-and-start-civil-conversation." she said in an emotionless robot voice, still teasing him as they walked along the upper hallway towards the gym. 

Crowd? She got a point there...


Gosh...what will I do...I didn't know I'll have to deal with all of this...


Erebus pulled in his black jacket in a little. He squinted his eyes, feeling a mixed-feeling of annoyance and embarrassment. Aiko's teasing definitely hit him right in the face. It's so true that he couldn't just ignore her.


"We will just...find a quiet corner and watch from a far then."

"Don't worry, killer. If it comes to it, I'll just unbutton my blouse and they'll all be looking at me instead and you can be utterly revolted by my appearance." she smirked, letting some of her annoyance out at what she perceived as utter disgust on his part for her.

"It was very nice of you to do that for me..." He signed.


"But, do you even have anything to be stared at? I mean...there is really not much down there......"


"I guess the crowd will appreciate more to be killed by me instead of having to witness that ungraceful sight that will scar them for life anyway." Erebus replied nonchalantly, taking his revenge on Aiko's teasing.

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Aiko slowly turned towards Erebus, and for a moment it looked like she was about to hurl him into the sun, but when she got closer to him, she suddenly smirked and then made a scoffing laugh.


"So, you DO have a personality outside of Mr. Emo McWhinesalot." she said, grinning suddenly.


"Well, fancy that. He's learning." she stated, her arms folding. "Well, now that I've finally managed to get something out of you besides feeling sorry for yourself, I guess we can call that progress." she said, and punched him in the shoulder lightly.


"I don't know if we'll have the option of standing off to one side though. Have you never been to a Japanese high school? Everyone's packed in like sardines so the teachers can see who the troublemakers will be that year." she said, and then paused.


"Are you going to be able to cope with that? Seriously? Because if you don't think you can, I think we might actually be better off ditching the whole thing. We MIGHT be able to get away with it, but given how edgy everyone is today because this is a totally new school, I wouldn't hold my breath. Still, what's less terrifying to you, being in an auditorium shoulder to shoulder with a couple thousand people or being lectured by a teacher?" she asked him, suddenly more at ease given that she actually got a REACTION out of him instead of just more awkward silence.

 

[Nextdoor]

Aiko slowly turned towards Erebus, and for a moment it looked like she was about to hurl him into the sun, but when she got closer to him, she suddenly smirked and then made a scoffing laugh.


"So, you DO have a personality outside of Mr. Emo McWhinesalot." she said, grinning suddenly.


"Well, fancy that. He's learning." she stated, her arms folding. "Well, now that I've finally managed to get something out of you besides feeling sorry for yourself, I guess we can call that progress." she said, and punched him in the shoulder lightly.

Erebus squinted his eyes as his eyes followed Aiko, making a poker face as she spoke.


W-what?! Is she actually feeling HAPPY about the insult?! J-just what is with this girl?!


This girl is literally driving me crazy......


"D-don't act like I-I am just a dummy, I have freedom of speech too....of course I can say what I want..." He pressed his lips together and curled his upper lips a little.

"I don't know if we'll have the option of standing off to one side though. Have you never been to a Japanese high school? Everyone's packed in like sardines so the teachers can see who the troublemakers will be that year." she said, and then paused.

"Arg!!!" Erebus palms was sweating under thous gloves, his heart was already throbbing faster and faster just from AIko's description of the place. He uncontrollably let out a squeak under his breath from the panic attack.


"I-I..urg......" 

"Are you going to be able to cope with that? Seriously? Because if you don't think you can, I think we might actually be better off ditching the whole thing. We MIGHT be able to get away with it, but given how edgy everyone is today because this is a totally new school, I wouldn't hold my breath. Still, what's less terrifying to you, being in an auditorium shoulder to shoulder with a couple thousand people or being lectured by a teacher?" she asked him, suddenly more at ease given that she actually got a REACTION out of him instead of just more awkward silence.

"YES!!! Let's escape this hell!!!" Erebus screamed out as Aiko mentioned about ditching the assembly.


"I-I mean......" Erebus looked away and pressed his head down with his right hand, hesitating.


"Ur...is it really okay for us to do that though..."

 

[Illusionus]

Satori fidgets around a little in his seat. People normally wouldn't help move him around, so this is definitely something that he would have to get used to. "Going to look around the school sounds like a good idea. It wouldn't be too good to have to look fo our classrooms in the middle of the day. Especially with how I can't really walk. I just hope none of this keeps me or you from getting anyplace on time. The last thing I want is to keep you from your classes or anything like that." The mermaid boy looks up to the tall girl as she begins to talk about sports and swimming. He nods along, thinking about the interesting points she was bringing up. Once she finished, Satori holds his hand up to his hand as he begins to giggle at what Melissa was saying. "Hehe. Yeah. I guess it would be a bit complicated. I guess with some species like, well, me it might be a bit unfair. I don't see anything wrong with extra species teams though. I don't really think I would be too interested in swimming though." He looks down at his tail that lays on the footrests of the wheelchair. "I mean, to us mermaids, swimming is basically walking. It's really second nature to us." The mermaid boy begins to giggle to himself. "Maybe memaids can have a competitive walking team." He bursts out laughing at his joke, keeping his hand over his mouth, stopping as his suddenly braces himself for when Melissa bumps open the door.


@Orange Soba

 

[Orange Soba]

@Nextdoor


Aiko paused when she saw Erebus's outburst and took a moment before she walked over to him and put her hand on his arm.


"Well, that's the first really honest thing I've seen you do." she said a little more quietly.


"Okay then. We'll skip the opening ceremony, but we'll do it together, okay? As your helper, I can't just march you into something you're not ready for, because if you DO have a violent panic attack, those things you've got on your arms will knock you out, and people really WILL avoid you for the rest of the year. What would be the point of you even coming if that happens? If we get caught, as your helper, I'll take full responsibility for suggesting it. You just look sorry and bow a lot." she rationalized the decision. 


She patted his shoulder then, standing close, but not inappropriately so.


"We'll fix you. Try and believe that, okay? We'll start small. If crowds are too much for you, let's start you off with a small group, and see how you do, but if it's too much for you, you need to tell me and I'll figure out an excuse to leave. I already know you don't WANT to do that, but you're going to have to try. What about that group there?" she asked, pointing down the stairs as she spotted the four that she saw before. 


@arcaneSentinel


Melissa laughed at the mental image of a bunch of mermaids hopping along a 100 meter long line, ever so slowly fish-wriggling their way towards the finish line.


"Okay, that'd be hilarious at first, then it'd just get sad. Then it'd get hilarious again." she said as she wheeled Satori along with the others. The group spent some time marveling at just how new and frankly expensive the new school was. Everything was clean and unmarked. It really gave a sense that everyone was taking coexistence seriously. As they walked through the hall, the reality of interacting with humans was made all the more clear when they passed a muscular male student trying to show off his strength by lifting a smaller student, and his extra species partner, nicknamed a 'hellhound' responded by lifting the jock up over her head, military press style with almost no effort. She put him down gently and smiled in a cocky way at him, then patted his butt, making him jump and blush a bit. 


"I'd still like to see how I stack up against you though, Satori-san. I mean, for a human. I know I'd never be able to beat you but I can't help but want to see how close I might be able to get. It's the jock girl in me." Melissa said. She actually committed a bit if a faux pas there, using his first name even though she'd just met him, but attached the very respectful honorific 'san'. It was really up to him if it was okay with him; maybe she just forgot, or maybe it was just how she was. 


As the group got to the pool, she noticed them being flagged down by pair from the stairwell.


"Huh. Any of you know them?" Melissa asked.

 

[Illusionus]

Satori laughs along with Melissa as he thinks of a very similar image of what the "walking competitions" might be. "Hehe. Yeah. I'm not sure how the mermaid population would think about something like that though. We'd probably be laughed a lot though. It's very embarrassing for us to be flopping around like that though." The mermaid smiles as he looks around through the hallways as Melissa wheels him around. As he looks on with his helper and sees the antics of a group of students and helpers, giggling to himself at the funny scene and blushes a little when he sees the "hellhound" tease the student and pats his butt. He quickly turns back and looks up at his helper as she mentions her desire to compete with him. Satori chuckles nervously and blushes very slightly. "You would?" The boy didn't seem to mind being addressed by his first name. As he saw it, they weren't helper and extra species but two friends. "I never really thought anybody would want to even try something like that. I don't even think I'd be a good competitive swimmer. In terms of other mermaids I mean." He was suddenly interrupted by a group by a large set of stairs. "Um... I don't think so. Should we go and see what they want? Maybe they'd like to try swimming against me like you." The boy jokes as he slowly becomes more comfortable around his new friend.


@Orange Soba

 

[Nextdoor]

Aiko paused when she saw Erebus's outburst and took a moment before she walked over to him and put her hand on his arm.


"Well, that's the first really honest thing I've seen you do." she said a little more quietly.


"Okay then. We'll skip the opening ceremony, but we'll do it together, okay? As your helper, I can't just march you into something you're not ready for, because if you DO have a violent panic attack, those things you've got on your arms will knock you out, and people really WILL avoid you for the rest of the year. What would be the point of you even coming if that happens? If we get caught, as your helper, I'll take full responsibility for suggesting it. You just look sorry and bow a lot." she rationalized the decision. 


She patted his shoulder then, standing close, but not inappropriately so.


"We'll fix you. Try and believe that, okay? We'll start small. If crowds are too much for you, let's start you off with a small group, and see how you do, but if it's too much for you, you need to tell me and I'll figure out an excuse to leave. I already know you don't WANT to do that, but you're going to have to try. What about that group there?" she asked, pointing down the stairs as she spotted the four that she saw before. 

All of that caring act from Aiko was overwhelming to Erebus, the kind girl had awaken a certain comforting feeling deep inside Erebus. Erebus was trying hard to contain his emotion, and wanted to appear cold as he responded to Aiko's caring words by simply stepping away from Aiko once she got too close. Repaying Aiko's kindness like that, he knew this would be hard, but he will have to keep his distance from the girl, in both literal and metaphorical way. It was all for the sake of her own safety.


Fix me? Why would I be worth fixing anyway......


"Thank you for willing to help me to ditch the assembly, I appreciate it, but..."


"I...simply don't want to go near anyone. I came here just for the sake of grandpa, nothing more."Erebus looked over to the group as he crossed his arms and frowned.


"Why are you even trying to 'fix' me anyway...I don't need 'fixing' at all......" Erebus looked away as he spoke, reluctant to cooperate.


[Erebus's is a very 'difficult' character to deal with because of his mindset, but in this case, Aiko can just drag him to the group, pretending she didn't hear what he said. XD. Don't be understanding and soft with him, do it the hard way!!! He wouldn't dare to resist much!!! Take it as a tip when dealing with him maybe?  ]