Anyhow, in he went. Aguri, how I missed you! Ooh, I wonder if Nagisa is right, did Kayano get her all fancied up? Ooh, the things she could be wearing! A new dress? Low-cut! Super professional looking low-cut dress, come on! He saw Kayano waiting for him. "Hello, Akari."
"Hello, Brother." She gestured toward the elevator with him.
Ooh, Brother. She was really gunning for marriage. Then again, single mother's, no father, not doing really well . . . but he didn't have anything to contribute either. "Did I mention I have no identity in the story I told you after the tentacles were removed?"
"We could figure it out." Akari hit the button to go to the top. "You had a long drive with Nagisa alone. Did you figure out what you wanted to do with your family and Emiko?"
"Nope."
"Lola is coming with Emiko," Akari said stoically. "Please be nice. I will be a helpful reference to you guys, I know several people who could get my sister and you jobs as teachers again."
Tempting. "That's such a nice thing to do for your old teacher."
"I do help my family as much as I can." Akari got out first as the doors opened. "Aguri's just-"
"Aguri!" He forgot himself as he saw her again. He waved his tentacles at her. Oh yeah, best not to do that. He put his tentacles away and dashed toward her. "How was the plane ride?"
"Oh? It was so-so," she said slowly. "She told me a lot about this girl Emiko, and I tried to show her Egg. It actually doesn't fight back to curl up anymore."
Yeah, he noticed that when it woke up. It curled, but not as tight. He quickly picked it up, it was almost unfrozen like Aguri, and that was a sad sight, just it by itself on the ground. As soon as it was thawed, Egg knew exactly where it wanted to go. Been with Aguri ever since.
"God of Death!"
Oh no. He knew it was coming. His Messenger definitely missed him, all tentacles were around him. "Okay, yes, I'm here. No tentacles showing, Lola. Watch the tentacles!"
"Of course, yes, sorry! No front to back ever, I promise." She bowed to Aguri. "No back to front, Lady Aguri!"
"Geez, and you complain about me?" A kid followed behind her. Obviously, it had to be this Emiko, but that wasn't what struck him.
"Are these some of the Sanctuary freaks you brought back or my parents?" Emiko asked.
Yep, a real mouth on her. What's going on.
"No, Emiko, they are not your parents after all." Akari went toward her closer. "Let's go inside before we talk more."
Emiko shrugged and just skipped inside.
Korosensei went in with Aguri and Akari. Slower. Watching Emiko.
"Emiko. I went with Nagisa to check out Sanctuary," Akira said.
"No, you went to go see if it existed because it was hard to tell with all the crazy stuff Aunt C. is spouting all the time," Emiko said. Her eyes lit up like she suddenly remembered something. "It's daytime hours! Can I have candy?"
"Emiko." Akari sighed. "Let's talk about something serious."
Emiko tilted her head and placed her hands behind her back. "Serious stuff goes down better with candy."
"Pretty good philosophy," Korosensei couldn't help but agree, still tracing her. Every inch. How was it possible?
"Goddess Emiko," Lola joined in. "This is important."
Emiko pointed at Korosensei. "I already know it. You already yelled it, he's the God of Death that you claim is my dad but isn't. The other one matches the picture Aunt Akari always showed of my mom, Aguri Yukimura. But, it isn't. Now can I have candy?"
Analyzing every square of her. The voice was similar. The appearance? Younger.
"Emiko, be serious," Akari told her. "For a few minutes. Then afterwards . . . Aguri can decide. She will be taking care of you."
"Oh." Emiko moved closer to her. "I'm happy to meet you." She curtsied. "I'm sweet. I'm cute. I need candy to keep that up inside of me."
Aguri smiled. "I don't know if I ever fell for that one."
"I thought you were from Sanctuary? Isn't everyone from Sanctuary crazy, stupid or evil?" Emiko asked her.
"Powerful," Lola corrected her. "Not evil and not stupid."
"Uh huh." Emiko clearly didn't believe that. "I am even cuter when I eat candy."
"Emiko." Akari covered her forehead. "Get a piece of gum real quick and then let's continue, okay?"
"I think I deserve chocolate instead of gum. I am meeting a god today," she said cheekily. She looked toward Aguri. "Do you think I deserve chocolate or gum? I am more easily patient with chocolate."
"Go ahead and have some chocolate," Aguri told her.
"I never tried to play mother, I just raised your goddess the best I could, Lord Reaper." Lola was still bowing. "Can I get up yet?"
"Nah, not yet." He really didn't need her messing stuff up. I don't doubt Akari's story, but what the heck is happening? This is impossible.
He watched Emiko crawl up a chair to get to the counter to get to a cookie jar.
Emiko pulled out two cookies. "Oops, I grabbed two. Germs, unfortunately, are a thing, so I better take them both." She crawled back down from the chair.
"Share the other one," Aguri stated. "Share with Korosensei."
"Mmm, saw that name on the board." Emiko took a bite of her cookie. "Are you a god?"
Yep. "I'm not a god, but a lot of people in Sanctuary said so. Let me see your other form." No words, not a big deal, and she changed easily by moving to her side. Different. Everything is different.
She held her cookie next to her front tentacles that looked like hands. She stretched the other one to him across the room. "No one can get mad, a god told me to do it."
She could be wanting to give me a cookie, or fixing to kill me on the spot.
She brought her tentacle back. "He denied it, everyone saw it."
"No, I didn't, I'll take the cookie!" He had to work fast before she bit in it. He stuck his own tentacle out to take the cookie, but her tentacle outmaneuvered around him, making stairs back toward her, so he curled up like a slide and caught her on the way.
He took the cookie. "Thanks." He brought his tentacle back to himself.
"That counts as worshipping," she decided. "No bowing for me."
A dull moan came from Lola still bowing on the floor.
"Why don't we try sitting down?" Akari recommended. "Emiko, fix yourself."
"She doesn't have to," Koro told her. "That's her true form and she should get used to it."
"God says I don't have to," she piped up. "Can I stay up 'til 11, eat whatever I want for lunch, and get two snacks a day instead of one?"
Koro stayed silent. He noticed the look from Akari, and even Lola had an odd look not necessarily of worship toward him. Oh, she is good.
"Let's just head to the couch," Aguri said as she actually headed toward the couch. Everyone followed.
"Cephalopods should stay on the other couch," Akari instructed.
"That's prejudice," Emiko pointed out.
"We are next to a huge window surrounded by other buildings, and my curtains are open. It's smart, not prejudice," Akari reasoned.
Yeah it made sense. It wasn't the first time he was kept out of things for being who he'd been.
"Have I shown enough worship yet, God of Death?" Lola asked from the floor on the other side still.
"Nah." Korosensei sat down. Emiko sat right next to him. No fear. Even though Lola and Akari had raised her. Taken care of her. Tried to teach her things, he could still see a lot of risk inside of her. She could never take anything at face value, from Akari or Lola.
Both of them were probably wrong about a lot of stuff. She was probably restricted at both houses in certain ways. She was clearly not allowed to be her octopi self around Akari. Teaching her to be used to the side to show society, it would make sense. What's the plan?
"Can we go for a walk?" Emiko asked Akari.
"You know the answer to that," Akari scolded her.
"I think a walk sounds nice," Aguri disagreed. "Can't we go on a little walk?"
"Oh." Akari sighed. "Okay, just, watch out for her? Make sure she doesn't do anything wrong."
"Don't worry," Korosensei said. "I'll be right there."
Emiko held Aguri's hand. Korosensei stayed on the other side of her walking. Not holding her hand. While Aguri was trying to get close to her, he was just observing her.
Where she looked outside. How she looked around the environment. What she seemed to enjoy the most. She's not alert at all, her eyes are going everywhere, especially on the sky. She does love that sun.
He couldn't pass any blame onto his former student. Akari raised her how she could for someone her age. Shoot, when they first got frozen, almost seven years ago? Getting caught with a baby or a toddler on the street? Her own goals would be long gone.
"Excuse me," someone said as they passed on Aguri's side.
Emiko's attention lingered on the person longer. Another sign she wasn't used to anyone else.
"Who do you talk to around here?" Korosensei had to ask, even though he had a feeling he knew the answer. They both guarded her like a terrible secret.
"Aunt Lola and Aunt Akari," she said.
"Who else?" Aguri asked. "Do you have any friends? Have you met any of the rest of the Yukimura family?"
"No. Cool." Emiko picked up a soda can lid from the ground. She looked through it.
Emiko was smart. She was investigating a pop can lid. If Lola or Akari didn't put it in their apartment, she didn't learn it. They wouldn't let her access the internet. Brilliant, but stunted.
"That's a soda can lid," Aguri said to her. "Do you want a soda?"
"Yes." Emiko showed a smidge of emotion again. "That'd be new. It's sweet, right? A treat? Not like a cookie, more savory."
All key ways Akari and Lola must have described it.
"Let's go over here and I'll buy you one. Do you want one, Korosenpai?" Aguri asked him.
"Soda would really hit the spot. You should get one too," he urged her.
They all three got a soda. Aguri opened it for Emiko.
Emiko sipped it. "It's not savory, and it's not sweet. It's good."
"Not something you should have every day," Aguri told her as she took a drink herself. "Moderation."
Emiko pointed. "A cat!"
Korosensei looked. "That's a dog. Canis lupus familiaris. A cat is different. It's felis catus."
"I bet it's soft to pet," she mentioned as she stared at it instead of where she was going. She tripped and fell.
Aguri wasn't holding on as tight. "Are you okay?"
Emiko got straight up. "I'm fine."
Aguri bent down and saw she scraped her knee. "That must hurt. Do you want carried on the way back home?"
"I'm fine," she said again, wanting to walk some more.
That could be normal. Some kids get too excited and ignore their little injuries. Emiko's scrape was also bleeding and had gravel and sand in it. Any other kid would definitely be crying for that one. Unless a gift given was a high tolerance for pain, she should be doing something.
She didn't shed a tear, just looking around again. No, she's limping a little, but she still doesn't care. Her body knew she was hurt.
"Does Akari take you many places?" Aguri asked, starting to pick up on the clues he'd already figured out.
"Sometimes for special nights, Aunt Akari will take me to her fancy place restaurants. Then we go right back home."
"Oh, I bet you go to the high-end places," Korosensei said. "Reserved places just for you two, huh?" So no one would see them. Yeah, Emiko shook her head. She didn't need to though. Even when she did go in public, public wasn't really public. "Hey, you got any favorite books?"
"Favorites? No. I have a ton of books that sits around at Aunt Lola's and I have a couple picture books at Aunt Akari's. That's a dog," she said pointing to a dog walking with it's owner.
"Right. What a pretty dog too," Aguri added.
"Any beginner books for reading?" Koro continued.
"I'm six. I don't do that yet."
"Math?"
"I know my numbers and addition."
"How'd you learn those?"
"Math book I found," Emiko said. "I got bored one day."
Aguri's hand tightened around Emiko's. "That's so nice to hear." She patted her hand with the other. "Let's go ahead and head back. I really would like to get your injury looked at. Are you sure you don't need carried? It's no trouble."
"No." She turned around. "Home. Please."
Taught the basics of manners. Just tacked on at the end. What's her strength level? Why did Akari and Lola limit her ability to learn, and absolutely keep her out of public? Did she scare them in the past? Is there a reason Akari really wants me to marry Aguri, besides social status?
Was it actually to . . . keep him there so he'd raise Emiko to stay on the good side?
Ugh. It's a good thing Yanagisawa never got his hands on Emiko. She was perfect modeling clay. Because she was clearly . . . "That was a nice walk. We should head back, I need to talk to Lola about something."
Koro went straight in and toward Lola. "We have to talk."
"Does that mean I can get up?" Lola said from the ground.
"Yeah, and to that room." He gestured to Akari's room. He didn't care, he needed somewhere private. He closed the door after she came in. "Where did you find Emiko?"
"Oh? I saved her from the freezing," she insisted. "I didn't know if an egg could survive the same way or not."
"No, you didn't." He stepped forward, with force. "We have our egg still. It's with Aguri right now, probably nursing or asleep in her bosom." Ooh, what an image. Falling asleep in such a- Nope, focus! "Where did you get that egg?"
"Uh?" Lola seemed confused. "I thought I saved her from . . ."
Yeah, she knew something. "Out with it, Lola!"
"But? Well? Okay, so I first knew that Yanagisawa would be after me for the egg, so I rushed to the Little Miracles room and put it in one of the random beds that didn't have an egg. I went over to Digi, and told him to meet me out back with it."
Aaah, Digi? Mistake number one.
"Then, I went running out the front door all loud and crazy! That way they would think I ran away and would never come back. Then I snuck in the back and Digi said he gave it to me." She looked ultra worried. "Did I raise a normal Sanctuarian away from the graces of Sanctuary?"
"No, Emiko was not an egg, she was probably curled up in an invincible ball and uncurled later." Egg always did that.
"What do you mean, Lord Reaper?" Lola asked.
"I'm guessing it takes a specific kind? Something experimental. Something just up Yanagisawa's alley." Wait. That . . . "You got Digi's number still?"
"I didn't dare call, it is Sanctuary." She brought out her phone. "It has carried over though."
Korosensei took the phone and dialed it. Hopefully he would get a ring. "Hey, Digi."
"My Lord Reaper, I am honored and humbled by your call!"
Yep, Digi. "So that day you gave an egg to Lola-"
"Sorry is not a big enough word, I will punish myself tonight without stopping for several hours, believe me! Just don't come down and share your infinite mercy on me, I'm not worth it."
Ah. Just like candy. Since Yanagisawa couldn't get to Aguri, he found someone else to take her place as a groveler. "I won't if you give me a play by play of what happened that day."
"Yes, Lord Reaper. I was doing my daily ritual of worshipping you in all your glory," Digi continued, "and then the former Voice of God came by and asked me to give her an egg in a random crib when she met me out the back. I assumed it was your will, so I grabbed the egg in an unmarked crib in the Little Miracles rooms. I gave it to her as asked. You wisened me up with your overwhelming mercy for awhile, went toward the Little Miracles room, and took another random unmarked crib egg back to the freezer. You said, 'Idiot forgot to spin it', and opened it and threw the egg in. You repeatedly bounced it back and forth like a racquetball. I, in my absolute stupidity of n-not understanding your massive mysterious ways made a small scene about the egg when I heard it yelp. Y-you came back over, and I fell clumsily to the floor, and in the middle of my bowing, the door got closed and spun. I-I separated you from Lady Aguri, and I felt my immense mistake reign down from your immense mercy that, while putting me in Sanctuary's hospital wing, a-also made me your go-to person for information around Sanctuary. A blessed job that is a-a miracle to have."
That's how it happened! I need to look at Egg closer. He thought it was a side effect from freezing something that was too young, but that wasn't the case at all.
Yanagisawa got so angry Lola took his egg experiment, that he tried to kill Egg! And? Fumbling Digi, who he never even really stopped to talk to or see, had figured the egg would be safer frozen than in those wretched hands. No matter the words, Digi had saved Egg's life.
"Th-the rest of the shuttle is still a little behind, but Team A and Team D promise that they are catching up. No one's being shoddy or slow."
"Digi, has anyone been on patrol or security for any emergencies?" Korosensei was getting a real good feeling he knew what was going on.
"No, Lord. Sanctuary is as safe as always. Will you be coming back soon? Sanctuary is worried of course for its Lord."
Worried that Yanagisawa playing him would be back. Someone helped my former students. I said it was Chou Chou, but that can't be Chou Chou because Emiko is Chou Chou reborn! "Thanks, Digi, keep up the great work!" He hung up. That had to be Yanagisawa in the shell! It was his chance to get Chou Chou back. "Lola, we have to get out of here right away."
He went straight over to Aguri and wrapped her up first, and then he tried to wrap Emiko up, but she quickly moved away.
"Hey, Stranger! What's that about?" she complained.
"You are in a second life, but Yanagisawa erased your memories," he tried. "I'm sorry, but if you just remember a little bit? Chou Chou?" He wasn't reaching those eyes at all. "I had three two. The first was as the human God of Death, the second was a terrible monster of cephalopod, and then I was reborn into Korosensei."
"Huh?"
"Look, I don't know what he has planned, just take my-!"
He managed to grab Aguri's sister as half the apartment room was demolished. Yanagisawa! He appeared in Korosensei's shell again, but this time with tentacles. His focus was on Aguri, until he spotted Emiko. "Well, well, there you are too!"
Emiko got pulled into the clutches of Yanagisawa.
"What have you been doing?!" Korosensei demanded.
"Experimenting, until I got what I wanted," Yanagisawa answered him. The shells had become more advanced. "Ransacking Hyouga's house led to some interesting pills he labeled as failures, as well as a bridge to my new work."
I knew it! Chou Chou's recent change back then!
"Let me go you big old meanie!" Emiko yelled at him. She turned into her other form and tried to pull at his tentacles with hers. "What are you doing? What do you want with me?!"
He pulled her in closer. "Did you enjoy hiding from me? It's over now."
Lola had taken the chance to go after her. She had blended into the ceiling part that hadn't been pulverized. She grabbed a tentacle, but Yanagisawa had a tighter grip on her. "No, you can't have her! I care not if she's a goddess, she's a sweet girl!"
"Touching." Yanagisawa had nothing in his voice to say it was anything but pathetic. He grabbed her tentacles with his and squeezed them tight. Too tight. "Let go or you'll lose that tentacle."
"I will never listen to a false god!" Lola cried out.
Emiko's face was really showing emotion now. "Don't do that."
"Of course, more work will need to be done with you," Yanagisawa complained. "Forgotten trash into treasure. It's time to come home."
"I don't know who you are," Emiko said to him. "Just let go of Lola and I'll come."
"Emiko, no, don't trust the false prophet!" Lola yelled. She threw more tentacles, but Yanagisawa caught them.
Meanwhile? He's opened. With Lola throwing her tentacles and making him use them, he had enough time to throw his own tentacles toward Emiko now.
"Damn it!" Yanagisawa noticed the grip of Korosensei and Lola were too strong to hold on to Emiko, or bicker with Lola's trapped tentacle. He tried to use a spare one to grab Aguri too, which was not going to happen. Like, ever!
Aguri was of course not speaking as she felt Yanagisawa's tentacle wrap around her. Korosensei still had one around her, but he had a new request.
"Wrap around me, Aguri." If she wrapped her tentacles around him, it would ground him to her. He concentrated on her, and she changed back into her octopi form.
She didn't just wrap one tentacle, she wrapped all of her tentacles around him. She forgot about the rules. And.
They both kind of lost what they were doing when she did that.
And that, definitely caught Yanagisawa's attention. "What do you think you are doing you slut, wrapping your tentacles around another?! You are mine!"
Korosensei wasn't planning on that, he just wanted to root her closer to him while he helped Emiko and Lola. Now, he distracted Yanagisawa so much he could probably yank Emiko . . . if he could think with Aguri wrapped all over his body.
"Emiko!" Lola pulled Emiko toward her, taking the lead there. When she pulled her, she fled. Fast.
"Fine, keep her!" Yanagisawa complained. "I will get her back into my plans, and I'll be back." He glanced back at Aguri angrily and took off at Mach speed.
"Sorry about your home." Korosensei felt sheepish and even lifted his hat toward Akari. "What's a little bit of demolishing between family, Sister?"
Akari didn't respond, just looked at her sister holding him still. "When could you do that?"
"Hm. Awhile," Aguri admitted.
"Are you going to let go of him anytime soon?" Akari asked.
"Eh." Now really wasn't the time to explain that they had front and back, and back and front, and Aguri just wrapping against him like that wasn't . . . the fact he was just glowing PINK should be a big sign. Unfortunately, it wasn't clasping front and back tentacles, it was moving across them that started the intensity. Once she let go, that movement would be pretty intense again.
He was trying to save Emiko and protect Aguri from Yanagisawa, a highly important and serious issue, yet he lost his grip when she simply grabbed him. Now, they didn't have anything urgent to even help distract when they let go.
"What is he doing now?" Akari asked. "Where did Lola take Emiko? Who is Chou Chou?"
"She was a student of mine at Sanctuary." Korosensei explained all he could about her, as fast as he could. He would have to get out with Aguri and Egg before someone came and claimed he did it or something. "We have to leave. Could you maybe write a really big check?"
Akari took out her purse and tried to hand Aguri all the bills inside. "Keep in touch. Keep my phone." She gave her the phone. "I'll get a new one, text you my incoming number, and you can keep in touch. Stay safe. Be safe. I miss you. I wanted you to stay."
"I know." Aguri admitted. "I'll keep in touch. We have to go, it's not safe."
Akari nodded toward her. "Take care of Egg. Please give it a name when you find out what it is?"
"I will," she promised.
"We will hear from you soon," Korosensei promised her too. "We'll get Emiko back too." That's all the time he could spare, they needed to get out now. So? "Aguri?" Damn that was-!
She let go as they both kind of swayed around. Dizzy.
"Are you two okay?" Akari asked her.
"Fine, I'm fine!" Aguri answered quickly. "Never better."
"Never, never better!" He agreed quickly. "Uhhh . . . what? Um? Oh yes, leaving. We are leaving." He watched Aguri start to mess with herself, a sign she was going to change on Egg. "Oh come on, we'll both be safer like this."
She was really shaking her head no as she changed back to her human shape again. She was a burning red all over her face. "Egg is getting bigger, I need more control. We need to go."
Right. She found an excuse.
"Wait!"
Whoa. That was Chou Chou's voice? He watched as someone in Aguri's shell ran toward him.
"Korosensei," Chou Chou said. "I'm sorry. He found out I helped you escape. He had plans, but I saw people wanting to help you. He came straight to Lady Aguri's sister's apartment." She handed him a box of shells. "You'll need those later, but I can't stay long, I have to get back before he knows I'm missing."
"Chou chou?" It didn't make sense. "But then?" He gestured his tentacles any which way. I don't get it. Who else was as rude as her, and unemotional as her, and who would Yanagisawa actually bother to go after? It had to be some kind of failed pill, even Yanagisawa mentioned a pill. So that must be. Was it another egg he was stealing for experimentation?
"I haven't heard that name in a long time," Chou Chou said. "Everyone calls me Lady Aguri now. I'm afraid I sped things up, but at least you are safe now."
The rude child had grown up. Almost seven years would do that.
"I'm sorry about what happens, Korosensei, but I have to go, I can't be gone long from Yanagisawa!" She ran away, turning into a cephalopod.
Shells that could shift now. He glanced toward Aguri, who was just staring after her. She understood it too.
Since Yanagisawa couldn't have his candy, he made a new one. Yanagisawa had a plan that made Chou Chou actually come to apologize, so what was it?
"If that was your student, Korosenpai," Aguri asked, "then who is Emiko, and why did Yanagisawa go after her only when he saw her?"
He felt a vibration in every tentacle in his body for a second. "He wanted revenge against me using my student last time. I figured he would do the same thing again." He was using poor Chou Chou, but not with Emiko. Yanagisawa didn't even seem to know where Emiko had been, it was like a pleasant surprise when he saw her. Not even in his plans.
"Korosenpai?" Aguri looked very worried at him.
"Can I see that picture you showed Aguri, Kayano?" he asked. Akari showed him the picture. Emiko was being a goof, sticking out her tongue and covering one eye with a vertical peace sign. Definite Sailor Moon fan.
"Is she a random girl, or is she more important?" Aguri wanted to know too.
Damn. I don't know. I don't know! "Thanks for the photo, can I hold onto it?" he asked Akari. She nodded but his hearing was already picking up the sirens. "Okay. We gotta go now, and I'll let you know if we run across anything."