Looking at Hinako, Ascot would say:

"My Lady Kitsune...you're right." Painfully so. "Right that we should judge Demi-Humans by the content of their character, not their race. But, and this is not an excuse, just an explanation, most of the information about character and race relating to Bea's class of being involve multiple attempts at destroying existence, along with true, madness-inducing forms that shatter the minds of normal humans and demi-humans with just a glimpse, and the formation of cults dedicated to the destruction of everything that we hold as 'real' in order for their true masters to turn our realm into a place of nightmare and horror. Again, this is not an excuse, but rather an explanation of just why the two of us would jump to conclusions with Bea."

"Basically, when you are limited by what you know, those limits might hold one back in seeing other possibilities. And for that, I am sorry." There was a bit of hurt and pain in Ascot's voice; he did not like being reminded of how...morally dangerous his behavior was.

@TheHangedMan@Hammerman@ADamnFiddle

As the ant girl began thinking that she ruined her introduction to both of the girls, she noticed the awkward silence coming from the other girl, and the long pause between them gave off the feeling to Ash that she came in kind of rude, before she could apologize again, one of them took the ant girl's chitinous hand into hers. Once Ash felt the other girl's hand she had an odd feeling run up her and through her spine, it wasn't a feeling of fear, but one of those weird feelings you have when you touch something very odd, you know one of those feelings. Human flesh felt really weird to Ash, she wanted to shake her hand as soon as the small human looking girl let it free, but she held back doing so knowing that it would actually be rude to do so.

When Kyoko told Ash her name along with the name of her friend, the ant stared at the other girl before repeating their names." Kyoko and Odette."

She chuckled at their names for a moment before catching herself." I'm sorry again, but it's just I thought my name seemed strange." She told Kyoko.

Then Kyoko brought up the reason why Odette didn't seem very welcoming and more awkward, she mentioned that Odette was dead, Ash gasped before she began to circle around Odette." Dead? What is she? A zombie? A vampire? A ghost? A wraith? A ghoul? A lich?" She asked Kyoko rapidly without taking a breath to breathe." Or is she wight?" She listed off another undead creature. As the Ant was rubbing her chin attempting to think of another creature she knew of, then something came to the front of her mind, and she held up her hands in a defensive manner.

" Not that it's okay that she has passed on, I'm just a little curious is all, most of my life I've been around humans and my own kind, I apologize if that seemed weird or if I was impolite towards you." Ash wanted to hit herself in the forehead for apologizing so and not coming off as rude to people or annoying to everyone she met or have someone scream call her a bug and run away from her.

"Hmph!" was Lily's only response to Bea's teasing, as she threw away her face from her and huffed, pink dying her cheeks a little. Once again, she poked at her weakness. She would have snarled back, if not for the fact that she actually agreed with her. She was really quite ashamed of herself and her display of fear.

If only she had brought out her wings and tails, transforming into her half-dragon form, perhaps she would stand a better chance.

That's it! That's the problem! Her human form only barely used her dragon strength, so of course she would be overwhelmed by her eldritch presence! She was closer to a human than a dragon in this form.

And look at the others. They were all employing a lot more of their strength. Hinako had her ears and tails all out. Ascot had his wings. Edward... well, Edward was clearly something as he was brave enough to threaten a Great One like that. Perhaps he was a Great One hunter or something like that.

She went into this school to learn to be with humans. But it seemed the people here would prefer to live like their original selves.

She made sure she made a mental note about this. When Bea would try to scare her again, she would go to her half form right away.

Her musings were halted when she heard Hinako apologizing to the girl. Quite frankly, it kinda irked her that she did. It wasn't like it was entirely their fault. She was a Great One, for God's sake, a terrible creature from the great beyond. But alas, Hinako didn't seem to know that. And her natural kitsune power, one that she didn't bother to hide, made her immune to the creature's terror. That's why she thought she was harmless.

And then Hinako pretty much went after Ascot and Edward, even bringing up their religion in the process. Lily very well knew about Christianity, and it was pretty much the reason that noble dragons had not become worshipped as gods already. Personally, she and her family never really thought of becoming gods. They were simply dragons, and that's that.

On one side, she could understand her argument. The kitsune had lived over the ages and she had saw many demis being discriminated unfairly. Lily herself had not had that kind of experience, but she had heard tales about humans being automatically hostile to them. The funny thing was that dragons never really considered themselves as "one kind" with other supernatural creatures. Dragons were dragons, fairies were fairies, dwarves were dwarves. So they never really cared about the plight of other demis. Dragons enjoyed terrorizing humans, and if the humans feared and hated them, so much better. Fear and hate translated into respect. Respect for the strong. So Lily never really had any antipathy towards humans for being suspicious towards demis. They should, for demis were stronger than them. Her philosophy when you ever lived under the oppression of others were to overthrow them with strength and show them what you got. In this, she and the old dragons shared the same view.

On the other side, Hinako never knew about the Great Ones. She didn't know their power, the danger they might bring to this world. She agreed that we shouldn't judge someone for something they hadn't done yet, but sticking into that kind of thinking so tightly was simply naivete. The best and wisest path would be to doubt someone until they had proven themselves worthy of trust.

Hinako then apologized for her brashness. Lily could understand why she got so worked up. Some of her friends were hunted just because of their race. As a loyal friend, it must be hard for her.

She then heard Ascot's reply. He pretty much said what she wanted to say. So she held her tongue, glancing at Hinako for her response.

~Odette Billeaud~

@Melpaws@Spriggs27

Kyoko to the rescue again. She really should work on her social speaking skills, as futile as such a thing would be. That said, she was a bit embarrassed by Ash's questioning of what she was. It felt like she was being made the center of attention, which she really didn't like. The act only caused her to clamp her mouth shut tighter, though she would at least attempt a response to the ant person even if she didn't have an answer herself. Right then. Saying "I don't know, I just woke up like this" couldn't be too hard, could it?

"I don't...like...this."

Oh dear, that's not what she wanted to say at all. Now it sounded like she was saying she didn't like Ash or something, didn't it? Or she was at least disapproving of Ash's inquiry. Which she didn't mind at all. In fact, she wanted to know what and who she was more than anyone. Ugh, why did talking have to be so difficult? If only she could talk with living beings via telepathy like she did with most spirits...that'd make her life so much easier.

In the end, Odette simply remained staring with a cold expression towards Ash. What else could she do? She didn't want to open her mouth again and possibly say something else rude or mean. Instead, she thought of the various names of undead Ash had listed off. Well, she knew she definitely wasn't a lich. She was a purely spiritual entity, and definitely not a vampire or zombie either. She had thought about being a 'Wraith' or 'Wight', but she wasn't sure if either of those had the capacity to move beyond their hauntings or command other spirits.



@Blu

Now that she was finally away from impending doom for her little birdie self, Bea went back to the snack tables. After dealing with the mischievous little kittens trying to nom on everything, she finally managed to get her...hands, on some food. Cheese, she believed the humans called it. Along with some little slices of meat of some sort and some green leafy things that were pleasantly cool to the touch. Also delicious. Lettuce...or was it Cabbage? Broccoli? She was fairly certain it wasn't the latter, but it was difficult to keep up with all the names of different foods sometimes. Before she could get far though, something tugged on her sleeve. She thought it was another mischievous little kitten trying to interrupt her, but when she turned to find a small human...child thing staring at her, she was pleasantly surprised.

"Ah..." She tilted her head, giving the child a friendly smile and making sure all her...appendages were where they were supposed to be. Out of sight, as long as he didn't start looking to hard the child would be fine, though children tended to be...a lot more open, about perceived things like her. "You're not an impish little kitten trying to steal my food...a cute little bear cub? Did you lose your mother, little cub? I miss mine, but she is far away..." That was...probably a bit of an odd thing for someone to say to another, especially upon meeting them but she didn't give him much time to reply.

"Hehe, don't mind me little cub, this little birdie is singing to itself." She straightened her head, placing a hand over her mouth with a light giggle. If he was paying attention, he might have seen something slither across her exposed wrist for the briefest of seconds. "Ah...The dorms. Yes, I passed them on the way here." But food. She wanted food...but she also would like to be free from this place as quickly as she could. Hanging around the Keeper was making her uneasy. Humans could be unpredictable when faced with something they didn't understand or fear - even if that fear was well deserved considering the typical nature of her people.

"This little birdie can show you, little cub if you would like to follow its song to-Oh," She suddenly stopped mid sentence, giggling lightly again as she lowered her hand. "I am Bea, little cub, human just like you obviously!~" Truthfully, this was likely how Bea was going to introduce herself to everyone until she found someone who believed it. It would be hilarious to find someone like that and proceed to mess with them.

Edward stared after Bea as she left. He had the distinct feeling that he was terrified of him now - another completely new experience. Once upon a time, it was him that was afraid of the wriggling mass of madness tentacles; he'd gotten over that in time, but he'd never seen one that was actually afraid of him instead. Until now that is.

He sighed; this would not be easy to patch up, if the other girl would even consent to hanging around him for more than a few seconds.

To make things better, the other girl, who had yet to give her name, gave him and Ascot a verbal chewing out. While Ascot apologized, he just shrugged his shoulders.

"You assume an awful lot miss," he said, eyes shifting to Hinako steadily. A Kitsune, hm? That explained a great deal about her, and her outrage at how they'd treated Bea, "sadly, someone as long lived as you should know, what you feel oftentimes has very little to do with reality. I've got nothing more to say than that I've nothing to apologize for."

She didn't know; didn't know what his nemeses were capable of and what they would gladly do; wasn't aware that Bea was an exception among exceptions - and yet so eerily similar to her progenitors that it wasn't enough to put him completely at ease. Hinako didn't know what they could do, and would do, if given the opportunity, and didn't know that for them, evil as was defined by human standards was the norm.

He paused. "Oh, right, that, and I haven't gotten your name," he ended with a faint smile. It'd be awkward to just call her by you all the time.

@Letter Bee @Hammerman @ADamnFiddle

What a peculiar way of speaking. Calling herself a little birdie and referring to the child as a little cub. The child didn't quite understand it. A bear cub... Bears are big and strong when they grow up. Hey, it's a compliment! What impeccable logic. The child feels really proudly about how he arrived at that answer. The girl suggests not paying any mind to her musings as she covers her mouth and giggles. There it is again. The child tilts his head as if he notices something odd. But he elects to keep quiet. His attention is easily diverted when the girl mentions that she has passed the dorms earlier. He straightens his head and his face immediately lights up.

"She's an interesting one." The ever-smiling second oldest says with intrigue.

"What do you mean?" The oldest one asks.

"Hmm, nothing in particular. Those eyes of her are so blue. It's like a shimmering ocean of stars. Perhaps I'll write a ballad about it?"

"Hey, are you hiding something we ought to know?"

His smile gets even bigger. "The sky and the cosmos are one-"

"What does that even mean?!"

The girl tells him that she could show him to the dorms to which he nods with delight. She interrupts herself for an introduction. Her name is Bea and she is a human just like him... obviously. The oldest one almost facepalms after hearing that particular line from her. Even despite the location, somehow that line sounds incredibly suspicious. However, the child pays no heed to the line. "Bea? Bea! What a pretty name! I'm Tsukihana! I'm a human too! But I guess you already knew that!" The little moon flower introduces himself- Now she's got me doing it. "But you can call me Tsuki! All my friends do! We can be friends, right?" How bold... He's already aiming for the friend zone.

Tsuki is entranced by her beauty. Her flowing, raven hair contrasting against her starkly pale visage. And those blue eyes of hers that seem to shimmer if you stare at them for long enough and delude yourself into thinking that. She is kind too. Hmm... Why are any of her physical features of note? Tsuki wouldn't come to find his answer until 6 years later. "Bea!" Tsuki embraces her and buries his face into her chest. Oh how innocent. Where are his hands wandering off to...? He grabs hold of her *coughs* and starts gently messaging them.

"W-W-W-Wh-" The oldest one's entire face is red and he finds it increasingly difficult to get any words out. The smiling one is doing his best from bursting out in laughter.

Tsuki turns his little face up to Bea. "Can I call you Big Sis?" He inquires ever so innocently with those puppy dog eyes of his.

"Onee-chan?!" "Onee-chan?!" The two shouted in unison.

@Rune_Alchemist

Kyoko Sakura

Calling her friend "dead" seemed to really get the ant-girl excited. Was it really so amazing? Technically Kyoko was really impressed by that fact, but she took it for granted this far. It´s not like she actually thought about asking what kind of ghostly figure Odette was... now that Ash asked it did seem like an interesting fact to find out. Maybe she would eventually, but it did not seem like it was right now. With Ash observing Odette and walking around her, it seemed like she was uncomfortable like this, since she said "I don´t like this..." or at least that is what Ash and Kyoko were able to hear. So maybe Kyoko could answer in her place? The witch tried to recall all the facts that she read about either of the beings that Ash mentioned. Damnit, if only she had her demi-human cyclopedia with her, it was inside of her luggage.

For now she´d have to answer Ash though, and since Odette seemed uncomfortable, maybe take the attention away from her a little bit. If only Kyoko knew that Odette was capable of telepathy, it was an easy thing to do for a witch. They could communicate much easier like that... maybe she would get to know that someday. Potentially when reading about it in her cyclopedia? Anyway, she had to answer for now.
"I don´t know what she is either. Don´t worry though, I don´t know much about demi-humans myself. I haven´t seen many during my life! However maybe we shouldn´t bother her... she seems sort of uncomfortable like this. Maybe she doesn´t know either what she is? I mean ghosts wake up the way they are, they have noone to tell them what they are. Same goes for any type that you listed... so I think she just doesn´t know it.
Scratching the back of her head Kyoko looked at Ash again, slowly reacing out her hand to pet the fullers on her head.
"I hope you don´t mind... I am just incredibly curious about you too Ash... You could tell more about yourself maybe?

@Rune_Alchemist @Spriggs27

As the ant began circling around the Ghost girl asking what she was, she noticed that she made the girl feel uncomfortable, she could tell by the way the ghost answered her. Ash stopped herself and took a step back from the ghost girl attempting to give her some room just as she spoke up about how much she didn't like this." Oh, I'm sorry if I'm making you uncomfortable I don't want to make you feel bad."

Ash held her arm then looked away from Odette, suddenly the other girl started to speak up for her friend once again," I, I was just excited, Odette, I wanted to know what you were and you seem like your very interesting." She told the silent ghost girl." You're a good friend Kyoko." Ash complimented her.

When Kyoko reached for the ant's antenna and put her hands onto them, Ash got an even weirder feeling flowing through her spine and visibly shivered before grabbing Kyoko's hands." Please don't do that. I use those to hear and smell things better they are also very sensitive." She told her.

" My people come from the Earth's mantle. For all, I know they lived down there for years, but unlike the people up here we used swords axes and alchemy to protect ourselves and to dig tunnels, even the clothing is different down there, people wear robes, cloaks and stuff like how humans wore thousands of years ago." She told the witch girl." Plus a majority of my people are mostly female. We came from the mantle thinking the Earth's surface was heaven, and to escape from lizard people living deeper in the mantle near us, but I guess you could call us ants since we seem to be somewhat like them."

The ant girl looked Kyoko in the eye look her up and down." So what are you Kyoko?" She questioned the other girl. She was interested in Odette being a possible ghost, but she started to become curious about what Kyoko was, Ash shared what she was to a degree, but Kyoko had yet to actually reveal what she could be, Ash, locked her black eyes onto the girl waiting for her to answer.

@Letter Bee
@Hammerman
@TheHangedMan

“You may refer to my esteemed self as Hinako Kirishima. Don’t forget it,” the fox had proudly declared herself. Perhaps this was a glimpse of something shown before from Hinako before she was known as “Hinako”. Even if she was no longer the goddess without a name she was before, her body and mind were still engraved with the idea of her supremacy. Perhaps she chose not to utilize such a “mask” during more casual conversation, but the somewhat heated debate might have awakened emotions she had long forgotten.

No.

They always existed within her under the guise of something much scarier than the Kitsune let on. It was clear that despite her ignorance over subject matter, she was wise in the ways of her worldly experience. Lily, Ascot, and Edward were but fledglings before the former goddess, even if she had weakened from her disgrace from godhood. If one had the ability to detect magical presence, once could tell that she had immense magical power within her body. There was a reason for her worship, after all.

“The presumption of guilt before action is hypocritical. I merely wished to draw attention to your ideology. You have your agency as an individual, and so does she. We are not beasts drawn from the cloth of savagery. We dawn upon clothing for civility. I will not say that it is wrong to ignore potential threats, but to preemptively declare hostile intent will inevitably cause what you wish to prevent. You are simply feeding a cycle of hate. Fear not those who face you openly, but rather those who have been drawn into a corner, for they no longer have anything to lose.”

The seeds of revenge are sewn into every action one can take. If wronged, or if in danger, one could expect a monster to be born. Though Hinako did consider herself a bit of a moderate, if she was threatened she would take any measure she considered morally acceptable given the position Even if Bea was not “earthy”, consciousness tends towards priority placed on preservation.

“But hey, it isn’t like I’m the enforcer of any rules here. Guess I’d rather be hated for something I am than loved for something I am not. I simply wish to live a quiet, peaceful life. I am not here to start fights, but I do feel that living with hatred in your heart isn’t a life at all. I’ve learned that long ago.”

~Odette Billeaud~

@Melpaws@Spriggs27

Odette simply listened silently, glad to no longer be the center of attention. Ash, the ant person seemed like a pleasant enough person to be around. She didn't seem to take her stumbling over her words as anything mean, at least. She listened quietly to Ash start talking about her and her people. Aside from living beneath the surface of the earth, there was also a group of lizard people they were at war with. She'd love to know more - about their culture, history...everything. Maybe there were books she could read since asking directly would probably be a bit...difficult.

Then she asked Kyoko a rather odd question. Kyoko was human wasn't she? She had said so much herself, didn't she? Or at least, she mistook her for one when they first met, so she assumed at any rate. Not that Odette particularly minded if she wasn't. She was a ghost - she didn't have much room for talking in that department. The ghost turned her head to Kyoko, giving her a slightly expectant seeming look.



@Blu

Friends? With...this little human child? She would greatly love to have a friend, but so far most humans tended to...well, if they weren't wary of her they tended to behave in the same manner as Edward. Seeing this small child behave in such an enthusiastic manner towards her was both refreshing and welcome. After that confrontation with him, she could have used a good laugh, and this was definitely the sort of laugh she needed. Plus, he had called her name pretty. She smiled, stifling a small laugh. Well, if he heard her actual name it'd probably be a lot less pretty since he probably wouldn't even be able to say it.

Ah, maybe she should tell him and watch him try to anyways? He looked like he might. It'd be funny watching him bumble about trying to pronounce something humans would have a hard time vocalizing.

"Ah, the little cub is Tsuki? This little birdie would enjoy being-Friends?" She had been wholly unprepared for the hug. Not that she found it unpleasant. Humans were oddly fun to embrace. The...ahem, touching, though, was not something she had been prepared for at all. Not that she minded a little...touching. In fact, she greatly enjoyed any sort of physical contact with humans. Granted...they generally didn't like...appendages covered in questionable slimy fluid doing the touching or rather, where the touching happened, but details. That was half the fun of it. This precious little human child though, was just too adorable.

At being called big sis, Bea just laughed brightly.

"Hehe, ah cute little cub...You're an innocent one, aren't you?" As she spoke, she gave him a bright smile as her arms gently wrapped around Tsuki and gave him a surprisingly firm hug and holding him closer. He was so small and adorable, she didn't want to let go. "This one would not mind being called 'Big Sis' at all." Being the youngest out of her siblings, this would be a refreshing change of pace, heh. As Bea hugged him, he'd feel her affectionately rub the top of his head before sliding down the back of his head, resting a moment on his neck before withdrawing.

Except, both of her arms were still holding him in a hug, and the appendage was somewhat damp and...slimy?

"Let this little birdie lead the lost little cub, then." She said, quickly releasing him from the hug and taking a step back. Ah, where had this adorable, precious, human child been all her life? She wanted to take him home and keep him...keeping humans as pets though, would likely not really get her on friendly terms with them.

well, she could at least have her fun with him.

Just one thing before she left.

She may have been terrified of what he might do to her.

but

She could at least have her fun with him. She couldn't help it. Messing with these funny little humans were just too amusing, and it'd be so much fun watching him squirm, if even a little. A small victory over him, at least. With a giggle, she turned on the spot and walked towards the exit of the auditorium making a noticeable point to walk close to Edward. As she passed, Edward would feel something slimy, damp, and cold touch the back of his neck and slither around to the front...and slowly slither down his shirt. It was mostly to get his attention and before he could do anything though, it was quickly retracted. If he looked, the only thing he'd find on Bea is a small smile, seemingly ignoring him and motioning for Tsuki to hurry up.

"Come on, little Cub. This place is full of silly little lizards and ignorant little buzzards." She giggled, making sure both Edward, Lily, and Ascot could hear her. "The cute little fox is friendly though, but we can't stay for a chat." Before any of them could possibly say anything as a rebuttal, she quickly exited the auditorium, only making sure to wait long enough to make sure Tsuki saw where she went.

Assuming he did in fact follow her, now she could play with him a little.

"Hmm~ I believe the dorms were...this way."

At least, that's what she said. She wasn't going to head straight there. Leading him in the opposite direction of the dorms, the pair would eventually ending up in the sports building and the swimming pool. No, she wasn't lost. She simply was taking the 'scenic' route. A tour of the campus! That would definitely help him not get lost again! She knew what she was doing, yep. She always knew what she was doing.

"Ah...this is...water?" She tilted her head to the side. "Not the ocean, too small."

Kyoko Sakura

@Rune_Alchemist @Spriggs27

The compliment which Ash gave Kyoko about being a good friend, did make her somewhat happy and content, since that is exactly what she was trying to do the whole time. She smiled sheepishly and scratched the back of her before she went on to pet her fullers. But it really did seem like Ash just didn´t enjoy it, she even visibly shivered. Of course Kyoko pulled her hands away immediantly after Ash told her how uncomfortable it was. "I am so sorry... I didn´t mean to make you feel uncomfortable.
She really overstepped her own line, she touched random strangers again though, quite frankly, it was worth the feeling for her. The curious witch was just like that, it was worth it for her.

Now the ant continued to tell the story of her tribe, or rather, her species. It was quite an interesting one, saying that they did think earth was heaven. Little did they know that it was more like somewhere between heaven and hell. Kyoko inspected the antgirl with an interested look as she told her her lifestory. Or rather that of her race.
Now after she was done, she did pose an interesting question for her, actually asking what Kyoko was. Of course she didn´t mind revealing, she just found it amusing how long it took for people to ask her that. Maybe they all believed she was human? Odette certainly seemed to have thought so, since she stared at Kyoko too, sort of with an expecting look in her eyes.

Both were now staring at her, so she might as well tell them what she was. "Well... I guess the closest thing you could call me is..."
She made a peace-sign with her hands, held it sideways and put it next to her hand, winking with one eye.
"I am Kyoko Sakura, a witch!"
... God. It came off way more awkward than she was hoping it would... in her mind, it was incredibly cute but the actual result was more awkward than anything! So she quickly wanted to change away from that pose.
"Call me what you like. Witch, magician, whatever. It would all fit to some extend.", she explained looking at Odette with an awkward stare back at her.

Edward Carter

---

@ADamnFiddle @Letter Bee @Hammerman

A friend. He made a new friend. Few things in this world are as wondrous as that, at least in the boy's limited perspective. Perhaps even more striking is the fact that she accepted Tsuki calling her "Big Sis". It made him very happy as evident by the beaming smile on his round little face. Bea had wrapped her arms around him and held him tightly, gently stroking his head. She withdrew from his neck but still kept him in a hug for a while longer. Through his multiple layers of clothing, he wouldn't notice the odd sensation of... moisture? That's one way to put it. Releasing Tsuki from the hug, she tells him that she'll guide him to the dorms but, you know, in her odd little way of speaking which Tsuki understood about 60% of. He simply nods in response.

Tsuki doesn't mind her way of speaking. In fact, he finds it a bit... cool—he thinks to himself. It's been a while since someone had been so nice to him. Outside of his adopted family, Tsuki doesn't have many people who are nice to him. All the other children stay away from him because of his condition. But he doesn't hold it against anyone. He's content enough if they acknowledge his existence, even just a little bit. But enough of that. He doesn't want to lose Big Sis in this crowd of people. As Bea passes by a group of students, Tsuki notices something wriggling around one abnormally tall boy. The students of the group then give Bea a strange stare.

It's similar to the kind of stare other children gives him. Do they not... like Big Sis? But she's so kind. Tsuki doesn't dwell on the thought for too long as Bea calls to him to hurry. He quickly jogs over to her and, as he passes by the group of students, gives them a small wave of the hand to simultaneously say "Hello" and "Goodbye". Going up to Bea, Tsuki grabs her sleeve so he doesn't get lost. A child's mind easily wanders and thus so their feet. In the "Black Room", a discussion arises.

"That little group was interesting." The smiling second oldest refers to the group they had passed by earlier.

"What are we to make of this girl?" The oldest one asks about Bea.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm not as perceptive as you but something is definitely odd about her. Is she... dangerous?"

"Cautious as always. Hmm... Everyone's dangerous to someone."

"Dangerous to us?"

"We're dull and we make everyone around us dull."

Bea soon leads Tsuki to the sports building which holds a massive pool within. Tsuki needs to go to the dorms but he can't really complain about seeing such an impressive thing. "Woooow! This is a big pool!" Bea mentions that it's too small to be the ocean. "Yeah, the ocean is at least twice as big!" Tsuki feels unnecessarily smart for making such a claim. He kneels down next to the edge of the pool and puts his hand into the water, motioning back and forth. Aaaahhh... The cool water feels nice to the touch. But, it smells funny. He decides not to drink it. Good! "I've never seen the ocean actually... Mommy doesn't want me swimming in pools either. She says I'm not very good at it. Maybe when I grow up so that I'm not shorter than the water."

Tsuki retracts his hand and walks over to Bea. "Those people..." Tsuki is referring to the earlier group. "Do you not like them? They gave you a funny look. I don't get it. You're so nice though, Big Sis." Straight forward as always. Tsuki doesn't let anything simmer in his little mind for too long. Suddenly, his stomach lets out a growl to which he instinctively covers his hand over. "Hungry..." He says quietly. He then laughs it off. "Don't mind me, Big Sis. We should get going!" He didn't want to bother her with such a thing. How considerate. Children are rarely ever not self-centered.

@Rune_Alchemist

Ash flexed her antennae up and down moving them on their own as she sighed, when Kyoko began apologizing for touching them, Ash touched the bridge of Kyoko's nose, rubbing a chitinous finger down it." Don't worry we're even now." The ant told her with a smile on her face. The ant soon noticed that Odette seemed a little more calm about the whole situation, Ash looked at her for a second still curious about what she is, but she knew that she would need to be patient to learn what creature Odette is, and even if she's not sure what she could be, Ash would be willing to help her figure out.

Then Kyoko answered the ant's question, she looked back to the human girl, only for her to reveal herself to be a witch, Ash's only response was." Hm."

Ash acted as if she wasn't impressed, and Kyoko's embarrassing but funny pose didn't really help dazzle Ash either." Huh, so that's what you are. I figured you'd be something of the sort of a vampire or immortal or even a revenant." Ash told the witch. But after hearing that Kyoko was a witch, a thought came to the ant's mind."Kyoko when you get your witch hat can I try it on?" Ash asked almost sounding excited." Also, I'm a master alchemist in training." She ended her sentence off with that." I wouldn't mind seeing any potions you make, and I'd be willing to show you how to make runes if you share ingredients of you magical potions. But we'll have to wait for my luggage to come before I can show you anything really, though."

Lily heard Edward's reply. She could sense his pride right away by him refusing to apologize. It really sounded like it was his job to hunt the Great Ones or something.

Lily liked that. She always liked someone who would hold their head high and not just bend over in front of an opposition. The most wretched way to live in her opinion, was to grovel in front of someone stronger than you, pretending to serve them with a smile while you detested them in your heart. She wouldn't be able to stand a coward like that in her presence. She even wouldn't want to grace them with her presence.

Edward then asked for Hinako's name. Lily realized Hinako hadn't really told her name, despite her being asked earlier. She had introduced herself to him so she had no need to do so again.

Hinako then introduced herself, even more majestically than Lily did. It seemed she was in her goddess persona now, as she continued her lecture towards Edward.

And then she snapped out of it, as she ended her speech to Edward by saying that she just wished for a quiet, peaceful life and that living with hatred in your heart was a bad thing to do. Lily could certainly agree to both. She wasn't sure though that Edward really had that much hate towards the Great Ones. It sounded like it was more of a profession thing, that he simply had a job to do, and he would do it right. Lily herself didn't hate the Great Ones either. It was more about being cautious... a-and a little fear, she supposed.

Lily then heard Bea's teasing once more as the latter left. With her was an adorable little boy, who waved at them as they left. Lily remembered that she saw him greeting Bea when she returned to the confectionary table. She didn't remember this academy allowing children that young to enroll. Maybe he was just younger that he really was? It wouldn't be that much of an odd thing in the monster world. Once, her family was visited by a 300-year old elf with a body of an eight year old girl. She was a travelling merchant of some sort. At first, she wondered whether or not people would not take her seriously with that look, perhaps even bolstering their desire to cheat and rip her off. But then, she realized that the girl was employing her little girl charm to get better deals. What a cunning little person.

She made a little mental note to warn him about Bea if she met him again. She now didn't really think Bea would be dangerous (just michiveous), but just in case.

"Hmph, I certainly don't remember Great Ones being this petty and mischievous. She really is just a child," Lily grumbled to herself, clearly feeling annoyed. She could already tell she would not get along with the girl. Well, she already expected she would find one or two people she wouldn't be able to stand when she came here. It was just the nature of things. There would always be people that you didn't like, or people that didn't like you. Both were similar. They created conflict. And that was why strength, both physically and mentally, was important.

Edward then replied to Hinako. He said he could agree with her wanting to life a peaceful life, but Lily sensed that he wasn't really sure about that, thus proving even more to Lily that he was a hunter by trade and by personality.

Edward then suddenly bowed to her, with a greeting straight out of a Shakespeare play. Lily could already tell he was playing her, and she didn't like that. Not by one bit.

"Stop it. I know you're not being genuine," Lily responded with an annoyed look on her face. "You think us dragons are so blind that we cannot see an obviously fake praise coming towards us? We are worshiped and feared daily, and we have encountered many people who are better flatterers than you. And we all can see through their lies."

@TheHangedMan@Rune_Alchemist@ADamnFiddle

Ascot sighed, Hinako was a prideful and pompous person, it seemed, as well as presumptious. But she wasn't bad, not really. A smile. At this rate, they can be a 'nakama', or in english, true companions. Yeah, that'd be great. Of course, Edward and Lily have started to get off on the wrong foot, with Edward saying the wrong things. As Edward's friend, he had to step in.

"Umm...Edward?" he said, "I don't think that you should casually flirt with Lily. We met each other before while I was looking for you." Basically, Ascot was implying that he made that mistake before, and it didn't end well. "Also, all four of us: Despite our differences, which might strengthen us instead of cripple, we seem to complement each other's strengths and personalities. Why don't we form a nakama? You know, a band of true companions?"

@TheHangedMan@Hammerman@ADamnFiddle

It was finally time, she had waited a whole year for this very moment. Reina was located at the bottom of the hill at the pathway to the academy. This was her big moment, one huge step in her life to adulthood. It took a lot of effort but she was finally here to attend this wonderful academy.

With this hot weather she was dressed appropriately. She was wearing a short beige skirt with a white blouse and a light blue blazer over that. Her hair was tied in a high ponytail so her hair wouldn't gather the heat in her neck and it looked nice. It was tied with a big white frilly tie.

For a moment Reina gathered up the courage and climbed the hill, it took a few breaks in between to scale up the whole thing but she managed to make it still in one piece. Reina panted like crazy, she tried to catch her breath on top of the hill and glanced down over the town. The view was horrendous but to scale up this whole thing just for this was a little over the top. She hoped she would never have to go down again to be honest. It took her a lot of time to climb after all.

Reina got into the building after taking another short break and was overwhelmed for a moment. The entree hall was enormous. It looked so nice and fancy that she couldn't even think of what it would have costed to build this. She was truly the luckiest person on this planet right now. She had earned herself a hot ticket to the world's best school there is. The opening ceremony was quick to start and end? That went by fast, this girl really made a mess out of it but people seemed to enjoy it so it didn't really matter. She was a child after all too what was there to be expected of it. They must get another one of these speeches by the principal of this school later on.

Reina glanced around the auditorium a little, everyone was mostly forming groups to talk about stuff except for... her, yes her only... This wasn't off to a great start but it was not the end yet, she could still make friends later on in the year but she did feel a bit bothered about it. Reina slid over to the snacking table and glanced over all the food. It all looked pretty tasty for her but... Perhaps she should hold her composer a little... Reina took a few hands of chips and some candy. She then got some lemonade for herself and held a bit more candy in her free hand as she took a short distance from that hellish table for now. She doubted that she would leave any trace of food behind if she kept standing there. Reina glanced around once more and noticed a boy rather awkwardly standing alone between all the groups. Reina proceeded to stare at him for a little while longer to see if he was really alone and got to phase two...

Reina slowly walked over to him without really trying to get all too much attention by looking mainly at the walls and ceiling instead of anything else. When Reina got close she did start looking at him and gave a soft smile towards him.

"Hmph, testing the waters, huh? You should very well know the saying not to rile up a dragon," Lily replied, still glaring at Edward with her hands folded below her chest. "And then you have the nerve to praise her looks after that." Lily very well knew she was pretty. The beauty of her dragon form would have transferred into her human form after all. Her mother always taught her that she should be proud of her beauty; the glitter of her scales and the elegance of her lean form and tail. Just as a male dragon looked intimidating and mighty, a female dragon would be a creature of beauty and grace.

"Well, whatever. I am pleased to meet you also, Edward," Lily replied, still looking at him with a cool glare, "And you say you are just a human. I don't buy that for a second. The way you handled that Bea girl, I know you must have some sort of power against her kind. Well, we all have our own secrets, and I don't really care that much if you refuse to tell me the truth."

Ascot then chirped up, advising Edward not to flirt with her. It was kinda too late to say that, wasn't it, which made Lily smile a little for how naive he was being.

And then he suggested for them to become nakama, or true companions as kindly translated by him, even though she was pretty sure everyone here could speak Japanese.

"I do not know what this 'nakama' business is, but I believe we are already friends now, or at least acquintances. True companions though, no. We dragons don't use that term lightly, as we will die to defend our true companions, or else we will sully our honor and pride. As for me, I only ever have one person that I have ever considered to be my true companion, my true friend, and he--"

Lily paused abruptly. She stopped her tongue from continuing, realizing she didn't want to tell them about him. No, not yet. Not now. They don't need to know. Dragons don't share their treasures so easily.

"...Apologies. I do not wish to talk about this subject any further," Lily continued, finishing her speech with a little downcast look.

"If we're finished here, then I shall take my leave. I'll check up on the boy Bea goes with, just in case she tries anything to him,"

Lily decided that she was not comfortable being there anymore, so she just made up an excuse to leave. Well, it wasn't entirely an excuse. She was serious in wanting to check up on him.

@Letter Bee@TheHangedMan@ADamnFiddle

---

Kurou would have to admit that he found it fairly impressive to be this bubbly on the first day of school. That was something he was not quite capable of. He also found himself impressed with how active she was in conversation. It was almost a workout just to keep track of everything she was doing. She was certainly a more expressive person than he was. Or anybody else he'd ever seen, for that matter. And to add to that, she apparently held quite the title. He hoped that was an indication that she was a lot mature than she looked, but judging by the speech she gave, that wasn't likely to be the case.

But it was a very beautiful speech regardless. It would probably be a great change of pace if the Student Council President was actually fun for once.

If she's the Student Council President, then that means she'll be dealing with Shizu quite a bit. I wish our president luck.

Shizu Yoshikage was a young woman who could be said to be the exact opposite of Kurou in many aspects. From things like favorite food to their very sex, there was a heavy contrast between the two. And because Kurou absolutely loved that horrible, horrible speech, it was almost assured that his sister, Shizu, would hate it. Or hate hearing about it. Perhaps it was fated that Kurou was the one to listen to the speech directly. Hopefully that would soften the blow a little, but it wasn't likely.

Oh well, it wasn't as though it was his problem.

"I put a lot of sweat into that masterpiece you know, it is bound to be great! I'm sure everyone loved it!"

"They had better! People who can't appreciate that speech simply don't have the ability to appreciate a work of fine art." Kurou stated in response, giving a nod and probably inflating the young girl's ego more than he should. "Normal speeches are borin' anyways. They're always so long and pointless." Kurou seemed to have a strong opinion against speeches, so luckily, the subject did move away from that as Hikari explained whom she was running from.

"Fine by me. I was just curious 'bout it, is all."

Kurou had seen people in trouble before and she looked just like one. If he had to bet on WHY she was being sought out, it was because of the very speech she had given earlier than Kurou enjoyed. There was people who simply got mad at the dumbest things. Those people would chide you for the most stupid of reasons and there were times when you just had to dip. He could acknowledge this and gave Hikari a mental nod of approval.

Just do you, Hikari.

...

...

...

Perhaps he should not have said that. In his head.

The young demi had found himself the subject of a very intense observation. It was actually rather uncomfortable to be looked at this... uh, hard? It was like Hikari was searching every inch of his being for something. No, wait, that's exactly what she was doing, wasn't it? But what was she even looking for? A weapon? A map to El Dorado? Embarrassing christmas photos?!

"...can I help you at all?" he asked, standing completely still. He didn't want to make any sudden movements, lest he anger the beast before him. But yet she continued checking him out without paying his question any mind. Kurou could not tell you why he was frozen still while she even began to touch him, but by the end of it, he felt like she had shamed him and that he was no longer pure.

Shizu, forgive me...!

And as if pretending the whole situation was completely normal, she nonchalantly said, "I don't know it, you are too weird to be human so what are you. I can't see it."

I-I'm too weird?! And what can't you see!?

Kurou took a pretty big blow to his pride as a man, even if that wasn't what she was referring to. But he did his best to remain calm, he couldn't let the beast see his tears or taste his fear, lest it beset upon him with even more ferocity. Be strong, Kurou. Be strong for mother.

"I think I would have been a lot less traumatized if you had just simply asked... me." he complained. "But you are right, I'm not a human. At least not entirely... but what about you?" he returned the question. Kurou had never actually learned what a vampire was, so it was very unlikely he would have picked up on hints beforehand.