CH. 42 - Back to the Academy. The Reps' Challenge?

He says, looking towards the viewer. Teach steps up to Moshiro hastily but stops when she steps to him and plops her head against his stomach, a bit worn out. Teach stops, a little surprised but places his hand on her back gently.

Teach "Are you alright, Moshiro?"

Moshiro nods her head a bit as he sighs in relief.

Moshiro "Sensei…"

She says softly while grabbing onto his cloak. He sweats a little as she looks up at him with a super upset look.

Moshiro "Did you know about the mission and lie to my face before we came here?.."

She asks with an intense scary energy coming off of her. Teach looks away nervously as he rubs the back of his head.

Teach "Well, I, uh…"

Nazuna steps next to Nobody who sits up.

Nazuna "Looks like somebody owes her a sweet treat when we get home."

Nobody nods as he stands up and approaches Abalm and Crystal who approach them.

Nobody "Take it, it went well?"

Abalm "Indeed."

They shake hands firmly.

Nobody "Thanks again for coming out on such short notice."

Crystal "It's no problem. We were already in the area for a mission anyway."

Nazuna "You'll be returning with us to the academy, right?"

Abalm "Indeed."

He repeats with a more softly long tone. Nobody turns to the rest of the class and lifts his arms to them.

Nobody "Looks like nobody's getting expelled today! I'm proud of you all despite y'all disappointing me by denying me the chance to expel even more of you."

He says proudly before hearing some yelling his way.

Wolf/Yoko "Nobody!!"

They shout angrily while diving at the large man and tackling him to the floor. They hit the ground with a thud, shocking the others. Wolf sits on him, shaking him by the collar of his shirt aggressively while Yoko baps him on the head repeatedly.

Wolf "How could you have done this?! You tricked us!!"

She shouts.

Yoko "Yeah yeah! Let me fight you now!"

They shout. 

Nobody "It was for your own good! I swear!"

Nazuna sweats a bit.

Nazuna "I guess that's as good a reaction as I could've hoped for."

Phoenix "Don't worry, I got this."

She says, stepping next to her before diving in. There's a couple heavy thuds as Nazuna flinches before Phoenix huffs satisfied, lifting Wolf up by the collar of her shirt.

Phoenix "All done, got it?"

Wolf "Blegh… yeah…"

Yoko continues to bap Nobody on the head as he sits there. Phoenix looks at them.

Phoenix "Yoko, stop it."

They then immediately stop and rush to Phoenix's side, rubbing against her.

Yoko "Yes, whatever you say, pretty human!"

They say with heart eyes as Phoenix blushes and smiles. 

Nazuna "Come on everyone, let's get you back home."

She says with a warm smile before opening one of those portals with a tap on the air, a different color than the last couple times. The group gathers together and begins walking back as Yoko rushes up next to Moshiro.

Yoko "Hey hey, human, look at what I've got!"

They say excitedly as Moshiro stares at the hunk of wood they have in their hand. 

Moshiro "Wood."

Yoko "The piece of wood that was stuck to my horns!"

Moshiro "Why do we need a piece of wood?"

Yoko "I thought we could put it up as decoration in our home! It was stuck on my horns after all."

They say with a giggle as Moshiro looks away with a blank look.

Moshiro "Whatever, do what you want. I don't care."

Yoko giggles excitedly and gets a warm look at her acceptance. Moshiro looks at them out of the corner of her eye for a moment as her look softens a little.

Moshiro "Hey, Yoko?"

They look at her curiously.

Moshiro "I've been thinking, about you."

Yoko "Oh, well of course you have. I am quite the specimen after all."

They say smugly.

Moshiro "Why are you always in your hybrid state? It has to be exhausting, isn't it?"

Yoko looks confused.

Yoko "Hybrid state? I don't know what you're talking about. I'm a dragon! That's why I have all these awesome features!"

They say proudly as Moshiro looks down a bit, seemingly not certain of their answer but doesn't pry further. 

Moshiro 'Dragons don't actually exist, it'd have to be a Myth Type power, right?'

She thinks. Phoenix steps next to Cole as he looks at her for a moment before looking ahead as well. 

Cole "I appreciate the work you put in to succeed despite my attempts to make things worse."

Phoenix "You didn't mean to, so don't be so hard on yourself. We're all a team after all."

She says softly as he nods gently.

Phoenix "Although, if you did want to make it up to me, you could answer a question I have."

Cole looks at her curiously but doesn't respond. Phoenix's smirk softens to a more serious look.

Phoenix "Back there, Crystal called you a demon boy, what was that all about?"

Cole looks at her for a moment before looking away with a cold gaze.

Cole "Nothing for you to be concerned about."

He says blankly. Phoenix is shocked and gets upset.

Phoenix "Come on! After everything we did for you! Tell meeee!"

She complains while punching him in the arm. He closes his eyes as she beats him but doesn't react. The class then makes their way through the portal and back home. 

Back at the academy, Southpaw stands with his hands behind his back in the South Range, watching the valley with a smile on his face then out from behind him, a large boy stands in the arch way. He is larger than even Henry but still quite small compared to Southpaw. He has dark hair the same color and even shares freckles like Southpaw does. His eyes are narrow and a scar runs up his left cheek from his jaw. He glares at Southpaw.

Marcus "I need to talk to you."

Southpaw "Go ahead, I'm all ears."

He says while his ears grow in size. Marcus only grows more intense.

Marcus "The real you. Not this projection."

Southpaw turns around with a soft smile on his face.

Southpaw "I'm sorry Marcus, but the world is a busy place. For now, you'll have to settle for this."

He says, Southpaw's feet fused with the stone of the ground, twigs and roots sprouting from them a bit. Marcus clicks his tongue in frustration. 

Marcus "It's about those new students you brought in."

Southpaw "Hmm?"

Marcus "They've only been here a month and they've already caused so many problems. The Torn attack, the androids and now I hear they're even taking our mission."

He says with an intense attitude.

Southpaw "The Okar Woods mission was not yours in the first place."

Marcus "That's crap. It was made for the Representatives!"

Southpaw "It was made to help students grow, whether that be your skill level or there's. They needed the help."

Marcus grunts a bit in frustration.

Marcus "Why are you favoriting them like this? Those kids have broken a bunch of rules already and seem to bring trouble wherever they go! Why do they get a pass for that? What makes them so special?"

He asks aggressively as Southpaw stares at him for a moment before turning away.

Southpaw "Nothing at all. Whatever chip you've got on your shoulder needs to be wiped away, now."

Marcus grunts again before turning his back on him too.

Marcus "Whatever. I didn't expect you to do anything about it anyway. You never do."

Southpaw looks over his shoulder at the boy exiting the South Range. Outside of the office doors awaits the other five Reps as Marcus comes storming out.

Henry "I take it he doesn't see things the way we do?"

He asks with a sarcastic tone while leaning against the wall with his arms crossed.

Marcus "Doesn't matter. We'll handle it ourselves."

Keigo "Hell yeah, time for some rookie crushing?"

He asks enthusiastically while jumping up from his crouching on the ground.

Samuel "It's time for a lesson, don't get carried away."

Marionette "This doesn't seem like a good idea guys… If Southpaw isn't concerned, shouldn't we be-"

Ashi "It is our duty as the Representatives to make sure all students are up to code and the ASA is kept safe. These students are not."

She says coldly as Marionette sweats with a concerned look on her face but nods all the same. 

Marcus "They need to be put in their place and if father won't do it, I will."

He says with an intense look on his face, stomping away. 

TIME UNTIL "The Yupond Incident": 1 MONTH.