[Other Fanfic] Periwinkle Springtime Reverie

[Palamon]

Welcome to Periwinkle Springtime Reverie. You might be familiar with my previous short story collection, Violet Midsummer Phantasm, if so this is a second season of Across the Siorcverse. However, these are not related to those, are not continuations, and this is nothing more than a collection of one-shots of thirteen different Siorcs across the multiverse. A majority of these will be fandom, but some won't be, and they'll all be based on drawings of Siorc I have drawn in the past of which will be collected into the endnotes at the bottom. With that being said, please enjoy!

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Siorcorita, and the Mysterious Mewtwo

"My name is Siorc, but most people refer to me as Siorcorita. As
You might guess from that

Nickname, I
Am what is known as a Pokémera.
My origin? A mystery. I don't
Even know. No one, not even my parents before

I moved into a boarding house know. I was born in
Some far away region, or rather, that's

Some cover up that
I've been told.
Of course, I don't know if that's even true. I'm
Rather sure it's likely not. I
Can't remember much about where I was

Born, quote on quote. I remember an
Eensy amount of my life when I lived in, what was
That region called again? Orre?
The Orre Region, yes, but
Eh. At some point, we moved to the Suleir
Region, where, Pokémeras often live together in harmony. It's

Kind of a strange region. There are
No Pokemon trainers here. Just Rangers and
Once in a
While, I assist the Rangers by befriending
Not catching a few Grass types.

Ah, I don't like the concept of owning
Some creatures. Pokémon

Should just live
In nature and be free.
Of course this opinion comes from a hybrid humanoid Pokemon creature. It'd be
Rather hypocritical if I
Caught Pokemon.
One or two Pokémeras left the Suleir
Region to become a trainer, but
In a strange twist,
They fight themselves in battle.
Ah, well, we Pokémeras have a few attacks.

It's different than normal Pokemon.

Ah, you see, we all have a universal attack known as Chimera Beam.
My roommates use it

All the time. They scream it out?

Can I use it?
Haha, I do but
I despise talking, so I just think it. I
Know, that's lame, but,
One thing is for sure, I'd
Rather keep my mouth shut.
I'd rather keep quiet.
The way I communicate?
Ah, well, using my vines to

Perform shape language, and
Obviously writing stuff down. I
Know that's
Especially boring, but it
Makes life
Easier to never utter a word. I
Report things through body language
And that's good enough.

In any case,

Living in the Suleir Region
Is great, but it can be
Very difficult sometimes,
Every once

In a while, some
Nasty plots kick in

And rangers come to the

Big rescue and
Once in
A while, we have to help.
Robin enjoys springing into action, but I
Don't. I
Hardly enjoy doing it. But, I guess,
Once in awhile is fine.
Ugh, lately, I've been
Starting to have to spring into action
Every day.

I have to assist rangers. I
Never feel complete having

To do this. I thought
Having moved here,
Everything would be peaceful,

Since so many other Pokémeras found
Ultimate acceptance in this
Little region. But,
Eh, I can't just sit
Inside my board house and
Rot. I have to do my work. It is

Rather tiring and not
Easy to save the environment, but I
Guess it's okay.
I'm doing something good.
Or maybe I do
Not do enough.

Ah, well, at the end, I am
Not all that strong, and
Don't have a

Lot to contribute, but
At the end of
The day, I am trying my best. But,
Err, in the past few days,
Lately I have been having a weird dream that won't
Yield. I keep having a dream

In Kanto, which is
Very strange, I only
Ever have

Been to Kanto once.
Err, when? I don't
Even remember. I do
Not have the most incredible memory,

Haha, maybe I know the move
Amnesia, ah no, it's just
Very hard for me to remember things.
I don't have any clue why, but that's
Neither here nor there.
Guess I should just have the dream

Vacate my head. I'm
Especially convinced it's just
Rocky garbage anyway.
Yeah, because honestly,

Why am I dreaming about Kanto?
Eh, it's not real.
I should move on since dreams aren't
Real. I have a job to
Do. I have to help some Rangers,

Don't I? Don't have time to
Ruminate about
Every silly dream that dances
Around in
My head.
So, it's time to move on."

A short, nearly translucent person stood by a shore off the coast of a volcanic island within a small region in the world known as the Kanto Region. Area tinted a reddish-orange, a strong scent of sulfuric ash overtook the person's surroundings. That scent, it had gotten so much stronger lately, too. The flaming mountain, would it soon erupt?

Before the unknown ghostly individual had been an isolated area with very few buildings very close to one another. Bright crimson roofed mansion looking ready to fall apart at any given moment, a laboratory with solar panels shined rather brightly. Gym with an orange roof on it as well, the door was locked like usual.

Hearing a an intense series of loud noises near the mansion, the ghastly figure floated off towards the building. Something was quite odd. What was happening? It was time to check it out. What could possibly be going on here? It was far more active here than it ever had been before. Had some discovery happened?

Phasing through the door, a rather strange scene played out in front of the phantom individual. Spotting a large, white, cat-like creature with two necks, one going from the back as well as the front, the critter had three fingered hands, three toed feet, and a long purple tail accompanied with a violet underbelly. Small, amethyst eyes opening up, the rather tall monster turned their head inside a large glass container.

Surrounding the creature had been an entire team of scientists working rather diligently. Writing this and that down, the phantom could see an entry curling up on another page, February Sixth, Mew gave birth, we have decided to call the newborn Mewtwo. Reading such, a realization had come the phantom's way. Ah, this dream again. Right where it had left off from last time. But, something was different this time.

The creature inside the tube, they had look much bigger than the last time the phantom had saw them. How much time had passed between this dream and the last? Weeks, months years? The ghost didn't know it had been way too long for it to matter. What was important was now, not then. But, the specter swore a voice beamed inside the head.

Where were they? Who are they? Why are they here? Hearing those questions, the ghost could not help but question the same. Why have the same, long ongoing dream over and over again? Maybe there had to have been some sort of reason. Glass cracking, a middle aged man with glasses soon cried out to the world as everything shattered.

"Mewtwo is alive at last!" the middle aged scientist cried. "The world's strongest Pokémon!"

"Mewtwo?" the creature asked, bemused.

Scientist going on a long raving rant about the creature known as Mewtwo being created from the deoxyribonucleic acids of a creature appropriately named Mew, the phantom scratched the side of the head. Wait, just a minute, hold on. That story, that sounded quite similar to how the race the phantom belonged to was created. This Pokémon, Mewtwo, why hadn't this being been recorded in the history books?

Creature's face growing dark, the ghost could hear the critter known as Mewtwo's thoughts begin to flurry. That scientist said they were created by the human race. Who are they, why were they created? For what purpose? What's their reason for being alive? Voice inside the head getting angrier, power had begun to build up rather quick.

Multiple scientists trying to run away, but were unable to, an intense array of strong psychic energy engulfed the mansion instantly. Glasses cracking, humans felled, the ghost's eyes opened wide as they could see a person begin to write another diary entry. Mewtwo is far too powerful. We cannot control it. Mansion beginning to rumble, everything collapsed. Creature flying away in the midst of it all, the ghost's thoughts had begun to wander.

Who is Mewtwo?

Peep, peep, peep, peep. A loud, bird calling alarm clock soon rang off the walls. Yawns going off one after another, a collective group let out a morning cry. Time to get ready for the day. It had been yet another, sunny, but smoky day for the Pokémon Chimeras, Pokémeras for short that lived in the boarding house in the dead center of the Suleir region. But, for one particular Pokémera, sunshine and rainbows were dead.

Waking up from a cold sweat had been a feminine appearing young adult humanoid Chikorita Pokémera with light green screen, and large, round mismatched purple and green eyes. Dark purple hair with a dangling leaf-like ponytail, a stubby, triangular tail had been on the backside. Little triangular bumps on the person's chest, the leaf on the head drooped. That dream again it just couldn't leave the head.

Images of that white, powerful creature destroying the mansion floating on through, the Chikorita could not help but question. Mewtwo, who was that Pokémon? And, why had they been so confused? That voice, they asked who they were, what their purpose was. Reaching for the Rotom phone with vines, the Pokémera soon typed away.

But, no matter how much the young adult typed away, not a single result for the creature known as Mewtwo popped up. Nothing at all whatsoever. Article after article lauding Mew as the ancestor to all Pokémon and the creation of Pokémeras, the Chikorita aborted the search. Why bother continuing to search for something that didn't even exist? Right, that was just a dream anyway. But, a cry had soon come the Pokémera's way.

"Siorc! Stop being lazy and get out of bed!" a deep, bass voice cried out.

"Yeah, Siorcorita!" a tenor voice cried out. "Quit slacking off! We have to go to Slushina Town's Ranger Base today, remember? The Rangers need us!"

"You know him, he's probably stuck in his dreams again!" a feminine voice called out. "Get it together, Siorc!"

Yelling from the bottom bunk had been a tall humanoid man with a bright green mask and a ruby red nose. Long pitch black hair behind him pulled into a high ponytail and the rest flowing towards his backside, he had sharp yellow claws and cape-like sea green wings behind him. Bright white fancy shirt with a crimson collar, his yellow eyes looked fierce like they always did. He always wondered if all Hawlucha Pokémeras were like this, or if it was just Robin. Probably just Robin.

Standing with an annoyed look on his face had been a rather short humanoid young adult man with spiky golden blond hair with small, orange eyes adorning heavy black rims around them. Bright violet suit with a beard like collar, on his face had been pure white flame shaped eyebrows. Present sack hunched over his shoulder, he let out a groan. As usual, Prinz had been nothing like the caring, present adoring Delibird he had the DNA of. But, what else was new? Maybe he had been a different Pokémera altogether.

Resolute in the corner had been a short, dark skinned feminine appearing canine featured woman with bright blue spiky ears on the top of her head. Black mask with four tassels hanging down low, her sky blue waist length hair glistened against her bright yellow bodysuit with a metallic protrusion in the front. Gloves with the same spikes, Siorc let out a sigh. As usual, Aega was quite unlike the other Lucario Pokémeras out there. Feminine, beautiful. Most were martial artists who cared more about fighting. Azure shorts beneath, she had a short tail behind her that looked almost hard as rock.

Removing himself from the bed, the Chikorita tried to shove the thoughts about that dream away. He needed to forget about that creature. There was no such thing as Mewtwo, after all. Why was he having that dream again anyway? He really needed to stop watching documentaries about legendary Pokémon before going to bed. His roommates didn't like it anyway.

Slipping on a jade green dress with a dark emerald collar and sleeves, a side print of arrows glared down at the Chikorita. Grassy, triangular shaped hairpins and earrings clipped onto his hair and ears, he soon headed for the kitchen. Bright yellow eared Lucario Pokémera with a blue shirt slaving over the stove, his thoughts continued to wander as he seated himself at the large breakfast table.

That Mewtwo creature, throughout that dream, he could hear their thoughts. They asked who they were, what their purpose was. He could not help but relate. Why were Pokémon Chimeras created in the first place? Who created them? He always wanted to leave this region he had moved to all those years ago and find out the truth. But, he never could, and probably never will, Aiding Pokémon Rangers in preserving the environment as a hybrid creature would be his duty forever.

"Loba, what's taking you so long?" a voice whined. "I'm hungry!"

Complaining in the corner had been an androgynous individual with short bright green hair pulled into a very high ponytail. High, yellow leafed v-shaped neck behind the snake had been a leafy tail. Regal, white outfit upon the Pokémera, the young adult sighed as he reached for his little whiteboard. Man, Kigyo sure lived up to the Servine Pokémera name quite well. Vines slapping up a storm, words soon appeared on the whiteboard.

|Be patient, Kigyo.| The vines slapped upon the whiteboard.

"Kigyo, honey, we go over this every morning," Loba said over the counter in the corner. "It takes me awhile to beat the eggs."

"Then make something else!" Kigyo cried. "Hello, the forest fires aren't going to beat themselves!"

"Kiki, we can't help the Rangers on an empty stomach!" a youthful voice cried. "And, you can't rush perfection!"

Pointing at Loba in the corner had been a tan skinned young adult woman with very dark shadows over her eyes. Long icy blue braid behind her, she adorned a light pink belly shirt covering a black and white striped longer shirt underneath. Long, light brown tail with black spikes coming from behind her, she had sharp clawed feet that looked ready for an attack at any given moment. Gris was nothing like her Krokorok Pokémera nature at all. How could such a nice, rule following girl like her be a dark type?

"Stop calling me Kiki, it's Kigyo!" Kigyo shouted.

"I'll call you Kiki all I like!" Gris cried.

"Ugh, Robinlucha, why did you let this annoying pest live here?" Kigyo cried. "She's making fun of me again!"

"Do you ever shut up and stop complaining?" Prinz asked. "It's just a nickname."

"And, I told you thousands of times now that she's welcome here and signed the same lease as you did!" Robin cried. "Now, shut up, and hurry and eat your breakfast!"

Loba and Aega joining the table, the grass type stared down at his eggs. He did not know why, but his fork wouldn't move. Images of his web searches still flowing through him, the words kept swimming. String of words, no results found for Mewtwo, did you mean Mew, continued to float on through, he pushed his plate away. Everyone munching away at their breakfast, multiple eyes soon turned towards him in tandem.

"Siorc, what's wrong?" Aega asked, pointing at his plate. "You haven't touched your eggs."

"Did I put too much salt in them again?" Loba asked. "I'm sorry."

Inquiry coming his way, the grass type attempted to chomp on down. But, he couldn't bring himself to. Mewtwo, Mewtwo, Mewtwo, he just couldn't stop thinking about that name. That creature, and the destruction they caused. Why couldn't he let this dream go? Vines moving around in a frenzy, he let the marker scribble down everything.

|Sorry, Aegacario, Lobacario, I'm just thinking about Mewtwo again,| the text on the whiteboard said. |I keep seeing that Pokémon in my dreams.| But, a sea of sighs had come his way.

"Ugh, not this Mewtwo garbage again!" Kigyo cried. "How many times you going to bring up that Pokémon your dreamed up?"

"You grass types and your stupid dreams," Prinz scoffed. "Don't you ever stop to think it's a dream and it's not real?" He threw a sack as he said such. "You could use a Present attack right about now!" But, such had been halted.

"Do I have to use Flying Press to knock some sense into you?!" Robin cried. He then turned towards Siorc. "Anyway, Siorc, get a grip! Mewtwo isn't real! No such Pokémon exists, got it? Hurry up and eat so we can go to Slushina Town already."

"Guys, don't you think you're too harsh sometimes?" Gris asked. "Some people say dreams are prosthetic."

"He's not a psychic type, you dolt!" Kigyo cried.

"Neither are you?" Gris barked back.

Munching on his eggs, the Chikorita tried to clear out his thoughts. That's right, Mewtwo wasn't real. There was no such thing. Right, of course, there had only been one hundred fifty Pokémon discovered in Kanto. So why did he feel like there was one missing? Every time he had that dream, he always thought something was a little off about that number.

Heading over to the next town, the grass type could just smell the fires brewing everywhere. Sky bright orange, the young adult's heart leaped out of his chest. Ah, they had gotten quite bad again, hadn't they? What was going on with the Suleir region lately? He had heard something about Entei awakening, but that was just a rumor, right? Surely.

Reaching Slushina's Ranger base, a tall, green haired person with a small, open red coat and black one piece outfit slapped on some gloves over a counter, he could feel their urgency from four meters away. Did the head Ranger even need to say what they had to do today? He already knew what was about to come on through.

"Thank you for coming, everyone," the Ranger said. "Due to Entei causing another eruption, the forest fires have gotten out of control. Could you Pokémeras help us out with your chimera beam attack and by befriending some Pokémon?"

"Of course, ma'am," Loba said, nodding. "We'll all go in teams of two or three and do that for you." She then clapped her gloves together. "How bad are the forest fires?"

"Devastating," the leader Ranger responded. "That why, we need your assistance, Pokémeras."

"Right," Loba replied. "I'll go with Siorc."

"I'll go with Kigyo," Robin said. "You'd better not slow me down with your babble, you hear?"

"Do you ever stop babbling yourself?!" Kigyo barked back. "Whatever! Let's go!"

"Guess I'll go with Prinz and Gris," Aega said. "Her ground type attacks might be very helpful."

"I'm not sure that'll be very helpful, but I'll try," Gris said.

"Illogical, as always I see," Prinz replied, stubby arms across his waist. "I'll have to befriend a few Piplup to my side, and they might not want to even aid me."

"Fair point, but we have to try. Let's go." She grabbed her teammates hands and exited swift, like a rocket, as she said such.

Everyone soon exiting the Ranger Base, the Pokémera stared off into space. So, the rumors about Entei causing a volcano to erupt had been true after all. Pokémon Rangers sure had their work cut out for them, didn't they? He could just imagine all the pain and suffering they must have went through to deal with all the catastrophic catastrophes that had been plaguing nature lately.

Trudging behind Loba slowly as the Frosteria Forest had kept getting ever so closer, the Grass Type could feel his heart skink at all the burned bushes everywhere. The Suleir Region used to be a slightly chilly northern region not too far from Almia. But, after years of volcanic eruptions, everything changed. No longer had the icy themed names matched in any way. Maybe it was about time to rename it to something else.

Smoky scent burning his nostrils, he shook his head to such. Ah, no, maybe it fit well. Suleir sounded like solar after all. But, gone were the nice, frosty days when he had moved here from the Orre Region. Gone was the snow and ice. None of that was here any more. And, it would probably never return.

He could not concentrate at all, in any shape or form whatsoever as he helped contain the forest fires. He couldn't stop thinking about it all. About everything. Those words that Pokémon thought in his dream. Who were they? What was their purpose? Why were they here? He could not help but twist such words back towards himself.

Who was he, why was he here? Why did Pokémeras exist in the first place? Back before he moved into the boarding house, he would ask his big brother and parents about his origins. But, no one would ever tell him. Where was he actually born, or perhaps, created? He had no idea. All those articles he had seen on the net had mentioned Pokémeras had been created. But, by who and why?

Befriending some Lotad on the side of the road, the little leaf head creatures assisted him in putting out the fires. Loba making her Aura Sphere filled with water, he could feel himself fall into a daze as the little leafy water type creatures did their duty together. Portion of the fires contained, the Chikorita's thoughts continued to rumble.

That place in his dreams, it was the Kanto Region, wasn't it? He had only gone to the Kanto Region once in his life while on vacation, but he could hardly remember. He didn't know why, but more often than not, his memory almost always failed him. Maybe he needed to try harder to absorb the information inside him.

Smoke slowly but surely thrown away, the young adult gazed at the sky, sighing. There still was a long way to go before all the forest fires would be contained. Where did that Entei come from, anyway? Had it moved away from the Johto Region? But, he threw a pebble to that. No, that couldn't have been it. Maybe a new one had been born and had been roaring a lot. That's all it was, probably.

Returning to the Ranger Base in the evening, the Head Ranger had soon asked if every single one of them could return tomorrow. Roommates except Loba and he heading back for the boarding house, he stared off into space. How much longer would this go on for? Loba soon turning towards him, he could feel a question ready to knock his socks off.

"You seemed kind of out of it today, honey," Loba said in a concerned tone. "Something wrong?"

Inquiry coming his way, the Chikorita scrambled for his whiteboard. What should he write? Vines frantically swirling about, he couldn't come to a conclusive response. Should he just act like nothing's on his mind? No, that wouldn't do any good. She would know he was lying anyway by reading his aura. Lucario Pokémeras were sharp as a tack.

|Sorry, I'm just thinking about Mewtwo again,| the whiteboard text said. |It made me wonder about my origins, no, our origins. Who we are, what's our purpose, why we're here? But, it's nothing really. I can get over it.|

"Ah, I see, well, I've been wondering about our origins, too," Loba responded, crestfallen. "I didn't tell you this, but Prinz's brother wrote him a letter from Kanto. He has been asking us for awhile to head there and go to Cinnabar Island." She paused for a moment before continuing. "I hear your older brother has gone off there, too, along with Gris' sibling." She gazed at the Pokémon Ranger at the desk as she bent over into a whisper. "I've been thinking lately that we should go there, too by taking the Sky Train. We could ask the Head Ranger at the end of the week and act like it's a cross regional mission if you want."

Gazing at the head Ranger in the corner, the Chikorita placed his hand on his chin. Would she fall for that? She as a human, after all, and they were pretty sharp. But, maybe it was worth a shot. It had been a long while since he had seen his brother since he moved into the boarding house. He had written letters every few months, but he had stopped getting them back. Maybe he had been barking up the wrong tree by bothering at all.

Returning home, he could not stop thinking about it all. His origins, what they might have been, why he existed. But, he tried to calm the storm. Ah, he needed to stop letting these thoughts consume him. What good would it do? Taking out a sheet of paper, he had begun scribbling away. Maybe writing a letter to his brother would clear his mind.

"Dear Pira,

I hope this letter finds you well. Lately, I have been having strange dreams about some Pokémon that doesn't seem to exist that might have lived in Cinnabar Island. That's where you're going, right? I haven't been hearing from you as much since I moved into the boarding house a few years ago. Is everything alright? I really miss you.

I'm thinking of going to Kanto in a week or so and going to that mansion I saw in my dreams. I don't know if it's still there, or if it even exists, but I want to find out more about myself. I feel like I know nothing apart from being a hybrid between Pokémon and human. I wish I knew more.

I hope to hear from you soon.

From,

Siorc."

Sealing the letter into a fancy pink envelope, the grass type crawled into his bed. It's not like he'd answer his letter anyway, right? Maybe he shouldn't even bother to send it. What good would any of that do for him? Probably nothing. Ah, forget all this, it was time to sleep. It's not like he'd be able to go to the Kanto region anyway.

Dreams about that Pokémon flowing through his tired mind again, he had soon learned a few other things. Some man with a black suit and a red R patch on it had a conversation with the creature. But, what he saw next soured everything. Machines, a lot of them. He could feel the coldness pinch him at the sight of such. This human was trying to use them as a weapon, wasn't he? How cruel.

Days went by in monotony after such. But, at the end of the week, there had been one string of good news. Going to Kanto for quote on quote cross regional work had been approved. He could hardly believe how easy it was for that outcome to happen. But, that hadn't been the only string of positivity.

Bright, grassy green envelope waiting for him in the mailbox addressed to him, the Chikorita's heart fluttered like a Butterfree. When was the last time he had gotten a letter from his older brother? He couldn't remember, it was way too long. Months, years? Well, what did that matter now. Tearing it open, he gazed at the fancy script in front of him.

"Hey Kiddo,

I'm sorry for not writing to you for so long. I have been travelling the world in pursuit of finding our origins in the world. But, no matter where I go, I always wind up empty. No one is interested in answering us, nor do most humans know where we came from. Maybe they just couldn't care less to answer.

But, in recent times, my team and I have heard that Cinnabar Island in Kanto might have the answers we're looking for. As of the time this letter comes to you, we are about to leave Johto in a couple of days. We often go between Johto and Kanto, but haven't yet gone to Cinnabar Island. We're planning on going this time, though. You're free to join us if you come by while we're there. If you do, I suggest taking the Sky Train. It'll drop you off in Saffron City. Head southwest and take a small ferry from there.

Look forward to seeing you again.

With love,

Pira."

Tears streaming down his face, he could hardly believe what he just read. Ah, how lovely. After all this time, he had finally received a reply back. Pira, he was heading to Cinnabar Island, too, huh? How wonderful. In two days time, they would reunite again, even if brief. He could feel his motivation rise through the roof as he put the letter down.

Click. Two days going by in a flash, he could hardly sleep over that long, grueling weekend. Kanto, what was it like? What if there was no mansion there in his dreams? All his roommates taking the quote on quote cross regional mission with him, his thoughts would not stop flurrying. Not even when the day of departure arrived. Familiar screams coming his way, he slapped the pillow over his ears.

"Siorcorita, wake up already!" Prinz cried. "We can't be late for the sky train!"

"How can you sleep in when you're the one who wanted to go to Kanto in the first place?!" Robin cried. "Get up! Kigyo, Loba, Aega and Gris left already!"

Plopping out of his bed, the remaining party had soon dashed off towards Sleeten City. Sky Train oddly not busy, he watched as the steam locomotive choo chooed up towards the clouds. Faint sights of burning forests everywhere, he closed his eyes. He could never get used to this painful sight before him.

Parachuting downward, a large, compact city with a very tall purple roofed building awaited the party of six and he. He swore he could see the text Silph Co near the roof. Why did he feel like he knew that name before? Maybe he had heard it somewhere at some point? He didn't know, his memory was pretty spotty. Loba and Aega looking at a map, the girls cleared their throat.

"According to this map, we have to head southwest to Fuchsia City, and then some man with a boat will take us to Cinnabar Island," Aega said. "But, I must say, Kanto feels pretty small."

"Small?" Loba asked. "What makes you think that?"

"I don't know, it just feels that way to me," Aega responded. "I can't sense many people's aura here, either."

"Isn't that a good thing?! You're always complaining there's too many people's aura in a condensed place!" Kigyo cried.

"Kiki, come on, we're in a new place we've never been, she has to get used to it!" Gris cried.

"I told you to stop calling me Kiki!" Kigyo ran off towards the south gate as such had been said.

Heading south for awhile, a small port city known as Vermillion City had been passed through. Taking a long fenced route west for awhile, the Pokémera could hardly believe his eyes at the sights before him. Humans fighting Pokémon with their own companions and catching wild ones in balls, he could feel a wave of shock flow through him, but tried to shake it off. That's right, in most of the other regions in the world, humans were trainers, not rangers, and they captured Pokémon for a sport known as Pokémon Battles. He could hardly ever understand the purpose behind such a thing.

Reaching a slightly bigger city with zoo exhibits out in the open, the Chikorita could see multiple young children eyeing the Pokémon in the little terrariums outside. Or, whatever they were called. He could not help but wonder upon seeing all this. What were Pokémon to humans in regions like this where trainers were the norm? Friends, tools? He didn't want to think about all that.

Taking the small boat, the small isolated island from his dreams soon graced him. Red roofed mansion there and everything. Everything had felt kind of eerie here. Why did this place feel like one volcano eruption away from destruction? He had to have been imagining it, right? Surely, he had to have been. Hopping off the boat, he had seen a face in the corner he thought he never would again.

In the corner had been a rather tall, light green skinned man with short, pine green hair pulled into a low ponytail. On the top of his head had been bright yellow antennae. Large red flower around his neck, he adorned a jade suit. Seeing him, he wondered. When had he evolved into a Meganium Pokémera? Why would he want to? He always thought he'd stay the same, like always. Pira had become so drastically different.

Next to him had been a rather tall man with long, but well brushed golden hair. Buck teeth, he adorned the same outfit as his brother Prinz, but red. Seeing such, he almost wanted to turn around. He had sometimes seen this Delibird Pokémera's letters. They were never nice at all. How were either of these two adorned Delibird DNA in any way was beyond him.

Standing in the corner with a boned hand had been a sickly looking Krookodile Pokémera with very short indigo pulled into lighting shaped pigtails. Pitch black eyes that almost looked like sunglasses, they adorned a rather strange looking red and white suit. Large striped crimson and black tail behind them, they had a bit of hay hanging out of their lips. Were the supposed to be a Krookodile, or a Grovyle? He didn't know anymore.

In the center of everyone had been a short masculine humanoid person with Wigglytuff ears on the top of their head. Short pigtails falling just below their ears, They adorned a pink shirt with a bowtie, and white belly. Exuding powerful high energy, he could feel his own drain right away. Ah, a Wigglytuff Pokémera. He'd better prepare himself for a loud hyper voice. Eyes turning towards him, he prepared himself.

"Nice to see you again, kiddo," Pira greeted. "Your roommates came with you, too, huh? Well, no matter, let's all go to the Cinnabar Lab together."

"Prinz, I told you to not come to Kanto!" the other Delibird Pokémera cried.

"Too late, Konig, I'm already here," Prinz replied, sticking out his tongue.

"I also told you that in letters multiple times, Gris," the Krookodile Pokémera said in a cold tone.

"I know, Liath, but we really want to know about our origins," Gris responded.

"You'll see soon enough that you won't like the answer you get," Liath responded. "Right, Nousagi?"

"Alright, everyone, let's find out the truth together!" Nousagi shouted. But, a sigh had come their way.

"Annoying as always." They moved on ahead as they said such.

Everyone except Pira going on ahead, the Chikorita looked into his brothers eyes. Why did he use a chimera stone to evolve? He had always told him when he was a kid he would never change. He promised him he wouldn't. But, he couldn't bring himself to write anything. Maybe he had his reasons for using those horrible things. But, oh well, there was hardly any time for that.

"Let's go, kiddo," Pira said, extending his hand.

Taking his brother's hand like the old days, the grass type could feel the questions race in his head. Would the scientists in the lab know anything? Would they have any idea about the origins of Pokémeras? He could feel himself freeze cold in anticipation. After all this time, he'd finally learn why he exists. Or, would he? Maybe he wouldn't.

Finding himself in a rather large laboratory, he could see a few scientists hard at work. Many working on fossil resurrection, and others working on other projects, they had all been brought to a room all the way in the deepest depths of the laboratory. Seeing a middle aged man that looked almost exactly like the one in his dream, he had been accompanied by a peculiar woman with long flowing golden locks and maroon eyes he had never seen before. Who was she? Told to wait outside for a bit, he stamped his shoes as the minutes dragged themselves out.

Roommates all leaving the room with dead looking eyes, the Pokémera gulped. Did they not like what they heard? Oh, no. Was he in for a cultural shock too? But, he slapped his cheeks. No, no. He couldn't allow for himself to be surprised about what he's about to hear. Soon hearing the call to come in, he braced himself. Clutching his whiteboard, he knew he would have to ask about that Pokémon, Mewtwo.

"Hello, there, young Pokémera," the golden haired scientist said. "I am Dr. Mysell, and this is Dr. Fuji. I hear you came from the far away region of Suleir to meet us today. You're here to ask about your origins, yes?"

"Correct, ma'am," Pira said, nodding. "Don't worry, I won't freak out like the others did."

"This lad over here seems more interested than you do," Dr. Fuji responded. "Son, ask away."

Spotlight plopped over him, the Chikorita could feel cold sweat pour down his back. Ah, he was being put on the spot. How should he write this? Shaping his vines into a question mark, he let the marker scribble away. How should he ask this? What should he ask? Should he bring up Mewtwo? Maybe he shouldn't. Popping such thoughts with a bubble, he included the name anyway.

|I apologize, this might sound a little weird, but I had a dream about this Pokémon named Mewtwo. I know that there's no such thing as a Mewtwo, but ever since I saw them, I was thinking lately. About myself, my origins, pretty much everything. Could you tell me? I'm certain I was created, not born.|

"Mewtwo, hmm?" the golden haired scientist asked. "I see, so you're the chosen one to inherit its memories."

Hearing such, nothing made sense. He was what now? The chosen one to inherit their memories? But, why? Mewtwo wasn't real, right? They were just a figment of his imagination in his dreams. Ah, no, this scientist, she was pulling his leg, right? She had to have been. She couldn't have been serious. There was no possible way.

|Sorry, could you repeat that?| the whiteboard text asked. |Dr. Mysell, you're joking, right?|

"No, young Chikorita Pokémera, I am not joking," Dr. Mysell responded. "Indeed, Mewtwo doesn't exist in this world, but, it does in another. Right, Dr. Fuji?"

"That's right, lad, there exists another universe," Dr. Fuji responded. "In this Kanto, instead of Mewtwo being created, Dr. Mysell and I decided to take the DNA of Mew and various other Pokémon and create hybrid existences like you, who stands before us today." He soon continued. "But, in the other Kanto, another version of myself and many other scientists in the Pokémon Mansion next door discovered Mew in a jungle and it gave birth to a Pokémon known as Mewtwo."

Hearing such, the Chikorita tried to absorb everything. There was another Pokémon world? How could that be? He did not quite understand this at all. Another version of Kanto where Mewtwo was created? There was a place where Pokémeras never existed. He did not know why, but hearing all this did not shock him. Something about this felt so right. Like it was meant this way. How many other Pokémon worlds were there? But, ah, maybe it didn't matter how many others there were.

Recalling what Dr. Mysell said, he couldn't help but think back to it for a moment. She said he had been the one who inherited Mewtwo's memories. What did that even mean? Did something happen to them in the other world? Should he try to find a way to get there and meet this creature? But, he plucked such ponderings away. There was probably no way to do that, was there?

|Why am I the one who inherited Mewtwo's memories? Did something happen to them in that other world?| The vines slapped on the whiteboard.

But, a long silence soon followed. Scientists looking at one another, the Chikorita couldn't help but feel a chill drop down his spine. Why did he suddenly feel this sinister aura radiate through them? Something wasn't right. Something wasn't right here at all. But, maybe he was overthinking it. He had to have been, right?

"Would you like us to probe your mind to find out?" Dr. Mysell asked.

Strange tools seated in the researcher's hands, the grass type's face grew dark. Ah, this was? He sees. This woman, had she said the same thing to his roommates? Maybe she had. What should he do? Should he agree? But, he could feel the little baby Chikorita in his head shaking their head. No, that wouldn't do any good. Older brother squeezing his hand, a powerful voice soon came out.

"Sorry, I won't let you do that to my brother," Pira said. "Kiddo, let's get out of here."

Screams attempting to follow him out of the lab, the grass type did not look back. Maybe he shouldn't have come here after all. But, at least he had some answers about himself, that's all that mattered in the end. Bidding farewell to his older brother, he had soon returned himself to the Sky Train. But, as the locomotive rode its way back to the Suleir, he couldn't stop thinking about everything.

That other world with Mewtwo, what was it like? What happened in that version of Kanto? Was there a version of himself in that world that was just a normal human? Maybe. But, he didn't want to think about that. Did a human version of himself have Pokémon in those scary Pokéball devices? He sure hoped not, he could hardly even imagine it.

As the days went by, and he went back to his normal routine of assisting Pokémon Rangers, the dreams about that Mewtwo creature kept on coming through his mind every so often. He could feel a ton of regret flow through him. Maybe he should have let that lady probe his mind. As the months went by, those dreams kept on going.

Forest fires raging even worse as time went on, he tried to move on with his life. He knew it was better to not have the answers about this sort of thing. But, at some point, he had had one peculiar dream. A transformation. Had Mewtwo evolved? Trying to focus on his job as the flames kept growing day after day, one question would never leave him.

Why was he the one who inherited Mewtwo's memories in the first place? He might never know.

---

Next week, will be the Pokemas story.

Anyway: This is what Siorcorita looks like this was made by Chibiratsu!

Here's a the rest: My original version of Siorc Chikorita drawn by me. And, the redraw. This idea was born back in I'd like to say pretty late 2021, maybe early 2022, but it sat and rotted in my head for a very long time until I decided to bring the idea back. Pokemon Legends Z-A motivated me to actually plan this this time!

 

[Palamon]

Sync Pair: Siorc and Purple Flower Floette

---

"I am called Siorc Ingne

And, not going to lie,
My life feels so empty. I am what you

Call a dollkin. A doll with a human brain
And heart. I'm somewhat of a chimera, I guess. My
Life has been pretty hollow since my younger sister
Linked together with a Scorbunny and started training with them
Every single day. Along with my friends. I
Don't know what to say,

Since I don't talk, but
I feel like she's left me behind for her Pokemon partner.
Over here in the very very distant
Region of Lunele, we synchronize with one Pokémon and usually
Compete mostly in Pokemon contests, sometimes

In Musicals and other forms of showmanship, but
Not me. I don't have a Pokémon partner, I
Guess I just haven't found one. I usually head for my garden and tend to it. I do
Not do much
Else. At least, not really.

I occasionally watch trainers,

Ah, no excuse me, let
Me correct myself here, Champions, in

A league called the Pokémon Masters League,

Duke it out with
One another. My favorite to watch is
La---, the Johto Champion, and his Pokémon partner, Dragonite.
La--- currently seems to be inviting new trainers to come over to Pasio, but I
Know I'd never ever be invited.
It's not like I have a partner.
Now, Hase, she probably would be invited.

At the moment, if I had to guess, it

Looks like her Scorbunny
Is quite close to evolving,
Very close to doing so anyway,
I truly don't know. It
Never occurred to me she could be
Going for the gold. I

Don't know if I should say this, but
Okay? You know what? I'm going to. I'm a
Little jealous of my sister. A
Little jealous. But, I

Would never admit that, of course.
I haven't found a Pokémon to bond with, I'm
The only one, and it
Hurts, I feel so left behind

As my sister is currently

Having the time of her life
Up on stage. But, I guess,
Maybe I'll eventually find
A partner. My parents had connections from Galar on a business trip, so that's how she met Scorbunny. I
Never dare say a word, so I guess if I

Had said something, maybe I'd have a Grookey right now, but
Eh. I prefer to be all
Alone in the garden tending to
Roses, but lately,
There has been something

Incredibly weird happening

A lot of the time,
My garden outside has been full of Pokémon such

As, Roselia, Oddish, Bellsprout, Hase

Comes into the garden and defeats them, often
Having a Pokéball or two
In hand and then releasing them to the wild.
Maybe I'm incompetent for not
Even bothering to deal with them. It's my
Rose garden, after all. But,
Ah, I'm not supposed to fight wild Pokémon without one

I call my own, but I can't help but
Feel bad leaving it all to Hase,

You know? I shouldn't force her to do it all. But,
Oh well. My parents are always abroad, so it's just the two of
Us. And, eh, I'm a young adult now.

Well, I guess, so
Is Hase. So, maybe it's time I just
Let this dream go. I
Literally won't be

Able to pursue it, anyway. I'll
Never be like La---. He's a master of the
Dragon type. But, in the end,

I'll never succeed in life. I

Feel so lonely, and
Empty as Hase gets her dream. I feel so
Empty, alone, and
Like I have nothing to live for. I wish I had a Pokémon to call my own, but I

Shouldn't count my Torchics before they hatch. It's
Obviously never going to happen,

Ever, why would it?
Meh, I have the garden and the
Pasio League to watch on
Television, it's fine.
Yes, it's fine, completely fine.

I'm fine with my big old
Nothing life that I currently am

Living. It's not like at this point,
I guess that's what I get
For being inactive and not doing anything.
Eh, oh well, that's just how it goes."

Tweet, tweet, tweet, tweet.

It had been a rather bright morning in the very distant Pokémon Region Lunele. Sun beaming through the curtains, the Doduo were screaming at the top of their lungs to get everyone's attention. Chirp, chirp, chirp. Little Flechling flock adding their own cries to the mix, a collective of yawns broke through the paper thin walls within an enclosed greenhouse residing mansion.

Letting out a yawn had been a young adult feminine appearing human sized mannequin person with socketed elbowed doll joints visible from the light cotton leaf printed duvet. Loud crack practically ready to rip out the walls, the dollkin let out a sigh. It was time to replace the arms and legs again, how tiresome.

Shoulder length dark purple hair as messy as it always had been, the living mannequin slumped back under the covers. What was even the point of getting out of bed anyway? Maybe it was better to sleep forever. But, the dollkin removed the self from the bed. Rotting here until mold spores formed would be a fate worse than death anyway. Tiptoeing to the latrine the young adult tried to search for motivation somewhere.

Staring at the reflection in the mirror, the mismatched purple and green eyes had no life to speak of in them. Pupils dull and boring, the dollkin kept staring at the glass in front. The same look, the same nothing. Today would be the same as well. Freckles looking rather dull as well, the young adult almost wished the entire world had been painted black and white.

Pitch black overalls thrown over the porcelain body, the dollkin pressed the comb through the wild locks. bright pink matching flower hairpins and earrings clicked in, the lifeless reflection kept staring back. Arms quickly replaced with a newer set, the individual reached for a small ovular shaped device. Small remote tucked away into a pocket, the living mannequin strutted off towards the kitchen with mild reluctance.

Whiffing up a burning scent from the dining room, the young adult, let out a groan. Oh, great, the sister was letting was letter her Pokémon cook with her again. How many times did it have to be said to not do that? At least a hundred dozen at this point. But, no, she never listened. Didn't she care if her doll joints got burned? Guessed not. Oh, well, the individual would not help this time if she burned away. Her fault.

"Waah!" a voice cried. "Scorbunny, no, I told you to do a light Ember, not a strong one! No, the brisket and sausages are gonna overcook now!"

Complaining in the kitchen, had been a short late adolescent human sized mannequin girl with bright green hair that had practically sparkling. Messy, spiky locks pulled into two pigtails, her eyes had matched her bangs almost exactly. Flaming hairpins and earrings looking ready to catch on fire, she adorned a red collared, one pieced black hoodie. Frying pan looking about ready to become a drying pan, her partner next to her jumped up and down like a madbunny.

Adjacent to her had been a short white rabbit creature that stood at about twelve inches tall. Large, white triangular shaped ears with orange tips, they had tiny little dark orange eyes like a sunset. Bandage placed on top of their nose, such adhesive had been on the bottom of their soles as well. Little white ball shaped tail behind them, the dollkin shook the head. As usual, Hase and Scorbunny were up to no good.

Click.

/Hase, I have told you a million times now to not let Scorbunny cook with you!/ Text screamed out on the open air in the kitchen. But, such had been met with complaints.

"Oh, my goodness, Siorc, not even a hello?!" Hase cried. "Not even a good morning Hase, good morning Scorbunny?" She let out a groan as she said such. "You can be such a lame big brother sometimes!"

Sister calling him lame once again, the dollkin shook his head. Look at her, thriving in her life with her Pokémon partner. He had told her countless times to not cook with her pal, but no, she never listened, and she probably never would. Every single morning, it was always the same. Ember, burned breakfast. He should have woken up early so she couldn't have tried to make anything.

Click.

/And I keep telling you over and over again that using Ember in the kitchen is a fire hazard. What if mother and father were to come home right now and see that? They'd be yelling at you for days!/ Floating text on the kitchen air said, screeching with a holler. But, such had once again been met with a groan.

"Ugh, Siorc, I keep telling you Scorbunny and I are practicing our contest moves!" Hase cried, tone annoyed. She then changed course. "Speaking of which, I'll be competing in a contest this afternoon, live at three! Will you actually watch me this time?"

"Scor!" Scorbunny chanted, punching their fists.

Reminder of her contest coming his way, the dollkin turned towards the opposite direction. Ah, that was today, wasn't it? Why should he tune into that? It was the same as always, anyway. Multiple humans and dollkins showing off their Pokémon moves. What was in it for him? It's not like she was on the line to win her fifth ribbon yet. He had to tend to the garden this afternoon, anyway.

Click.
/No, Hase, I have to attend to the garden before more wild poison types attack it again./ Floating text on the kitchen air said. But, such had been met with an immediate groan.

"Ugh, why can't you ever watch my contests?! All you ever do is garden, garden, garden, then you rot on the couch watching La--- in the Pasio league competitions! It's not like you have a Pokémon of your own! What, do you think, if you keep watching those televised broadcasts, he'll invite you to the Masters League or something?!" Hase shouted. "How can you call yourself a chimera when you barely pay any attention to my progress? I might win my second ribbon today!"

/I'll be in the garden, Hase. You know that./ Floating text on the kitchen air said. /I won't have time to watch your contest./

"Maybe if you watched my contest from home, I'd be on track to my fifth ribbon by now!" Hase cried. "Ugh, whatever! You're as boring as ever! I'm eating in my room! Let's go, Scorbunny!"

Sister and her partner stomping away, the chimera grabbed his plate and strutted off towards the couch. Here she goes again, crying the same thing as always. Turning on the boob tube, a bright, spiky red haired man wearing a dark blue outfit with orange accents and a red cape had been accompanied by large, orange friendly looking dragon creature with a long tail, yellow belly and green wings. Battlefield in front of him, he gazed at his opponent.

On the other side of the battlefield had been a short, young teenage girl with a white hat, and light brown pigtails adorning a sky blue spring kimono with white flowers, the chimera munched on his burned food. This girl didn't stand a chance against La---, the Johto Champion. Bright pink, round cat-like creature beside her with dark turquoise eyes and a curly little tuft, she soon pointed in a commanding manner.

"Jigglypuff, use Disarming voice!" the girl commanded.

Munch, munch, munch.

"What's this?!" an announcer cried. "It looks like La---'s Dragonite had a Roseli berry!"

Discordant pink hearted scream doing next to nothing to the Dragonite, the spiky haired red man rose his cape. Girl on the other side gritting her teeth, the dollkin's eyes were glued to the boob tube. As usual, Mr. La--- was two steps ahead of everyone. What a beautiful spectacle to behold. How he wished he could be on that stage right about now right alongside a Pokémon of his own.

But, the living mannequin shook his head. As if he would ever get a Pokémon companion of his own. Hase, she was always able to communicate to everyone exactly what she wanted. He still remembered it like it was yesterday when she told their parents she wanted to be partnered with her very own Pokémon. He still recalled that day their parents went all the way to Galar for a research mission just for her to bring her back a choice of a starting partner. He'll never be her.

"Dragonite, Hyper Beam!" the red haired man cried.

Bright white beam unleashed from the dragon's mouth, the poor little Jigglypuff could hardly withstand the blow. Announcer soon declaring La-- the winner, the dollkin's eyes soon sparkled. He won again. The Johto Champion was so cool. And, here he was, with the same boring old life. The same nothings every day. Everything was always the same. But, he guessed he only had himself to blame. But, his thoughts had soon been interrupted by the sound of stomping shoes.

"I'm heading to the Contest Hall now!" Hase cried. But, she soon groaned. "Ugh, all you ever do is watch the Pokémon Masters League on tv!" She waved her hands as she said such. "Why can't you ever pay attention to me, and my dreams?" She let out a sigh as she said such. "Ugh, whatever, I'm going! If another Poison type Pokémon appears in the Greenhouse again, go bother the neighbors or something, because I'm going out to eat with my friends tonight after the contest! Cook for yourself tonight!"

Sister stomping off, the young adult let out a sigh as the door had been slammed behind him. What was she so livid for? He never watched her contests in the first place? How could she expect him to when she had everything he always wanted? But, he knew he could never say that. What point was there? Laying on the cushions, the dollkin turned his porcelain legs inward.

Silence of everything around him engulfing him, a tidal wave flowed. If only he had his own Pokémon to call a partner. But, no matter how many times he tried, he could never bring himself to ask to borrow a Pokéball from his neighbors. It's not like he could move forward in life if he had one, anyway. What was the point in anything? Everything was an empty sea of nothing.

Ding, ding, ding.

Afternoon bell soon ringing, the living mannequin clicked off the boob tube. It was time to stop thinking about all this nonsense and tend to the garden. Slapping gloves over the porcelain palms, he tiptoed towards the door. Nincada army rubbing their wings together, loud cries had been ready to knock his ears off. Trying to tune it out, he pressed onwards towards the greenhouse. It was time to focus, and tend to the plants.

But, upon reaching the greenhouse, a dark purple creature with three pointy horns on the top of its head, long eyelashes, its yellow next was spewing with toxins. Dark orange skirt like leaf trunk and two brightly colored roses serving as its hands, the dollkin's human heart beat out of his chest. Oh, no, the Roselia had gotten in here again and mutated. What type were they now? He couldn't remember.

"Roselia!" the Roselia cried. "Roselia!"

Rose creature spitting a dark purple ball of acid, the chimera placed his hands through his hair. Ah, no, not again, that was the sixth time this week these Pokémon had come enmasse and used Acid Spray on his cucumber plants. His precious produce, if they shot anymore with their poison type attacks, harvest season would be so done for! He had to chase these creatures away!

Click.

/Shoo, get out of my greenhouse!/ The Floating text on the air cried.

"Roseeelia!" the Pokemon horde screeched!

Little Pokémon group spinning in a rapid manner, the chimera's eyes opened wide. He should have known better, never intimidate a wild Pokémon. What should he do? It's not like he had a partner of his own. If Hase were here, her Scorbunny could wipe out these Roselia in a second. Shaking his head, he pressed the SOS button on his sky writer. She wasn't here right now.

Hearing a set of six porcelain feet running, the dollkin had almost been taken aback. How many of his neighbors were coming to answer to this call? Had the entire neighborhood heard that? Maybe he should have just let his skywriter scream for help instead of pressing that alerter. Oh, well, too late now.

"Wild Pokémon in your greenhouse again?" a slow voice asked. sighing. "Siorc, can you please just get your own Pokémon already? Just catch the Roselia with a Pokéball, or something."

"Those Roselia look way too hostile, Yinlong," another voice said. "Can't you be neighborly and help a fellow dollkin out?"

"Parisa, you coddle him too much," the one named Yinlong responded. "He really needs to learn how to fight for himself."

"Hons, come on let's not argue," a tenor voice said. "Methinks he just relies on his sister too much. After all, she always battles for him. And, I don't mind taking on a few wild invaders in her stead."

"Raven, you're way too nice, you know that?" the one called Parisa responded, sighing. "I'm with Yinlong. He needs to catch his own Pokémon already."

"Roseeeeeeelia!" the Roselia horde cried.

"Anyhoo, you two, let's defeat these Roselia," Raven said, clutching a Pokéball.

Standing in the corner complaining had been a short, feminine appearing human sized mannequin person with round black ears on the top of their head. Short silver hair pulled into a messy low ponytail, a portion of their locks had been spiked upward. Pink eyes looking about ready to catch on fire, the dollkin wanted to look away. Dark black shirt with a triangular pattern on the bottom, next to them had been a short little white bear-like creature with small, round black ears, and a small black body and chubby, furred grey belly. Small leaf in their mouth, the chimera wanted to turn away. Yinlong and Pancham were in sync like they always were, he guessed.

Next to them had been a slightly taller, feminine human sized mannequin person with dark porcelain skin and black antlers. Long, magenta hair pulled into bunned braids, she had a pink shirt with a yellow stripe in the center. Tired green eyes, and pointy ears, next to her had been a quadruped fawn creature with a pink coat and yellow spots. Little yellow flower beneath its pointy ears, he could not help but feel a wave of envy. Parisa and Deerling were in tiptop shape as usual.

Throwing out a Pokéball had been a rather tall human sized male mannequin person with light brown hair pulled into a high ponytail. Cowlick on the top of his head split into three, his yellow shirt had a small pink ribbon on it. Wearing pants with one pink leg and the other yellow, next to him had been a slightly large pigeon like creature with brightly colored red feathers and brown head. Beak looking sharp as always, he wanted to look the other way. He sees, Raven's Pidgey had evolved into Pidgeotto recently. Everyone except him had been moving forward in life.

"Pancham, use Flamethrower!" Yinlong cried.

"Panchaaaaaaaaaaaam!" Pancham cried.

Breath of fire releasing from the little bear creature's mouth, the chimera shivered. How did that Pokémon learn such a move? Wasn't Pancham a fighting type? Shrugging, he stared off in silence. What did he know about battles anyway? Nothing. All he knew is about what he heard on the television. Roselia letting out a battle cry, a dark purple shield had soon been plopped over it, the flames had soon went out. Purple bubbles surrounding Yinlong's partner, a cry had soon released itself out into the open.

"No, Pancham is badly poisoned!" Yinlong cried. "What move did that Pokémon just use?!"

"Let me handle this," Parisa said, rolling up her sleeves. "Deerling, use Zen Headbutt!"

"Deer deeer" Deerling cried.

Deerling charging straight at the rose creature with a violet glowing head, the purple shield soon rose from the ashes once again. Head ram bounced off, the toxic bubbles had soon decorated the little fawn creature in spades. Ally on their knees huffing, the tables stayed in the feral Pokémon's favor. Gazing at the enemy, the dollkin wondered. How did these Pokémon get so strong?

"Raven, what move are they using?!" Parisa cried. "You're a move expert, right? Give us your insight!"

"I don't know, hon, but it looks to me like a protection move," Raven replied, he then chuckled. "No matter, leave it to me. My Pidgeotto is a special boy! He has the ability No Guard!"

"What?! How is that even possible?!" Yinlong cried. "I thought Pidgeotto can only have No Guard when it evolves into Pidgeot and assumes its mega form!"

"Roseeeeeeeeeeelia!" the Roselia cried.

"They've got their guard up!" Raven cried. "Pidgeotto, use Brave Bird!"

"Pidge!" Pidgeotto cried.

Intense energy surrounding the avian creature, a pitch black shield soon covered the horde of Roselia. Attack not connecting, the dollkin watched in horror as a large rose the size of a human child had soon been gifted to them in return. Intense explosion blasting towards the ally, bruises had come in droves. Seeing such, the chimera's knees buckled. No, his cucumber plants. He really needed to get a guard Pokémon, or something.

"What move was that?!" Parisa cried. "It hit Deerling, too!"

"Pancham, Pancham, can you hear me?!" Yinlong cried. "Pancham, snap out of it!"

"Roseeeeeeeeeeeeelia!" the Roselia horde cried.

Second explosive rose soon plopped upon the opponents, the living mannequin could no longer watch this. These Roselia were way too powerful, weren't they? Was this what happened when they invaded a nice, flourishing, beautiful greenhouse? Maybe he should have just caught one of them after all. Then, this would all be over in a flash.

Allies continuing to lose, regret flowed through the dollkin. Maybe he should have just told his sister he'd watch her contest. Then, maybe she wouldn't have stomped off in a huff. But, what good would any of that do now? He had already ruined it. It was too late to change what had happened. But, as he kept watching everything unfold, something soon floated into the battlefield.

"Ruinous Lily Beam!" a quiet, but prominent voice shouted.

"Rose?" Roselia one asked.

"Roseeeeeeeelia?" Roselia two asked, in a bewildered tone.

Large beam of bright orange lilies knocking the Roselia off towards the wall, the little flower creatures held their roses onto their torsos. Huffing and puffing, they tried to go in for the defense, but such had not worked in their favor. Large, purple flower soon dropped downward, another strong pulse had knocked the enemies silly.

"Roseeeeeelia!" the Roselia cried. "Rose, rose!"

Explosive plant soon gifted to the mystery floating creature, a strange scene soon played out in front of everyone. Attack doing nothing, the young adult studied the little floating critter for a moment. Fighting with prowess had been a tiny, white fae creature with green eyebrows. Little white floppy ears adorning a pigtail like aesthetic, they had yellow bump like notches besides such. Green tail in the shape of a broken heart, above them had been a little purple flower almost acting like an umbrella. Light violet eyes with no life in them, the dollkin could feel something flutter in his chest. This little Floette, he didn't know why, but he could see himself on them. They looked so alone, so empty, so hollow.

"Where did that Floette come from?" Yinlong asked.

"Beats me," Parisa cried. "But, look at that! That grass type attack did nothing to them!" She placed her hand on her chin when she said that. "Do you think that they have the ability Sap Sipper?" But, a head shake had come her way.

"I don't think that's possible, hon," Raven said. "As far as I know, Floette have the ability Flower Veil. What a strange little Pokémon."

"Lycoris Strike!" the Pokémon cried.

Large red flower slapping the Roselia down, the creatures fainted one after another. Little fae creature floating towards him, the chimera blinked. Had another neighbor come by and commanded their partner from afar? Observing the greenhouse around him, he had seen nothing of the sort. His head spun as he thought of the possibilities. This tiny Floette, were they the one talking? No, that couldn't have been possible, right? Maybe their trainer was somewhere nearby.

"That Floette just defeated an entire horde of Roselia with three attacks?!" Yinlong cried. "What in the world?!"

"Impressive," Raven said, hand on his chin. "I wonder whose Pokémon this is?"

Fae creature floating downwards towards him, their eyes met. Lifeless pupils staring back at him, he did not know why, but he could feel an immediate kinship with this Pokémon. Where did this little fellow float away from? Maybe a small breeze blew them away from their trainer. That was all, right?

"She's looking at Siorc," Parisa said.

"She is indeed," Raven said.

"He," a voice whispered.

Everyone turning their heads, collected confusion had come the Floette's way. Adding his own to the mix, the chimera scratched his porcelain ears. Did he hear that correctly just now? They just said he, didn't they? Gazing at the Pokémon, the dollkin did a triple take. He? No, he misheard that, right?

Thinking back to the Floette species for a moment, nothing was adding up. The Florges line, they were a female only species, weren't they? There was no way it was possible for there to be one of the opposite gender. At least, that's what he thought. This wasn't the Kalos Region or the Paldea Region. Why apply that logic here?

"Um, you two, are we going to address the fact this Floette is talking?" Yinlong asked in an exclamatory tone. "Hello?! Am I the only one who is going to point that out?!"

"Yeah, I heard it, hon," Raven replied. "But, I'm more concerned with what they just said." He placed his finger on his chin, turning towards the Pokémon. "Little Floette, care to repeat that?"

"He," the Floette replied, voice a little louder. "I'm male." They then floated behind Siorc.

Floette hiding behind him, their little purple flower had soon acted like some sort of shield. Turning towards them, his heart sank. Did they not handle confrontation well? As the minutes unraveled, he could see himself more and more in this Pokémon. Where had they come from? But, he recalled something. Recently, he had planted strange purple flowers. Could they have been attracted to those? Maybe so.

"Why don't we stop asking them questions?" Yinlong asked. They then nudged into their pocket. "Anyway, Siorc, we really suggest you catch a Pokémon of your own. The three of us want to train for the Pokémon Masters Young Adult Rookie League." Plopping a Pokéball in his hands, she continued. "You can't expect your sister or us to come to your rescue all the time, okay? Bye."

Party of three soon leaving, the chimera pocketed the Pokeball. Pulling the weeds, he could feel doom loom over him as all his plants had begun to flop over. Those lousy Roselia, they had to ruin everything. Grabbing the sheers, he plucked away the invasive plants. Maybe if he got rid of them, these crops could have a chance at life again.

Little Floette still floating beside him, the questions rolled around once again. They hadn't left yet. Where was their trainer? Pressing on with the droll routine for hours on end, he put a pin in that. Maybe they were simply just a wild Pokémon that hadn't been hostile. But, a seed of doubt soon plopped in. What if someone released them? Tiny fae's head dropping, he placed his hand on his chest. How lonely. All alone, and by themselves, just like him.

Exiting the greenhouse, the chimera trotted off towards the garden. Tall, beautiful sunflowers everywhere, the fae creature soon sped off towards the small violets in the corner. Dashing off towards them, he reached for a watering can. Why was the soil so dry today? But, as he prepared to sprinkle down the head, a loud whisper kicked.

"These flowers are so well taken care of," the Floette whispered. "Unlike me." Their head drooped as they said such.

Sprinkling down the water immediately, the dollkin could feel his chest grow tight. What happened to this poor little fellow? Whoever released this Pokémon should feel very sorry. Further plants sprinkled, he pondered. Should he invite them to stay with him? Maybe they would like that. But, that wasn't up to him, was it? Finger twitching over the remote, the sky had soon adorned worded clouds.

Click.

/You can have these flowers if you want,/ the skywriter up above said.

"Really?" Floette asked.

Pokémon's eyes sparkling, the chimera could feel his lips quiver. The look on this fairy type's face, he could tell. This poor creature, it had been cast away from society many times, hadn't they? Maybe, whatever little Floette colony they floated away from wanted nothing to do with them. Should he write they can come over to his garden whenever they wanted? Maybe he should.

/Yes,/ the skywriter up above said. /Float by whenever you'd like./

Pop.

Feeling something removed from his pocket, the dollkin could hardly believe his eyes. Pokéball seated in the fairy type's hands, the chimera blinked as the critter pressed the button. Did they just? But, he did not have time to think as the spectacle continued. Spherical capsule object opening, a white light soon engulfed the creature. Device dropping on the ground, it shook. Shaking a second time, it wobbled for one extra moment. Sparkling stars popping over the ball, a weird jingle soon played.

Gotcha! Floette was caught!" the skywriter up above cried.

Picking up the pokéball, the chimera gazed at the red and white spherical device. Why did Floette do that? Shrugging, he threw the ball outward. Why keep them trapped in that thing, that would do no good, would it? Fairy type soon next to him, their eyes met once more. Creature whispering about garden tending, the chore sped itself up a smidgeon.

Evening soon rolling around, the dollkin laid himself up on the couch. Was it just him, or did gardening go by much faster today? Maybe it had. Or, maybe it hadn't. He couldn't tell. Flipping on the boob tube, his eyes were soon glued to the screen. Pokémon Master Champion League playing, he could soon see his hero step onto the podium. Mic tapped, it screeched.

"I have an announcement to make!" La--- cried. "We here at Pasio will be recruiting trainers far and wide for the Pokémon Masters Young Adult Rookie League!" As he cried such, the crowd cheered.

Hero explaining that anyone from ages sixteen to twenty two could file a recruitment form, the dollkin sunk into the couch cushions. Ah, the rookie competition, huh? It's not like he'd qualify. He was almost twenty at this point. Maybe that age bracket was a mistake. Floette soon floating upward and pointing at the tv, he swore he could hear them whisper they should enter.

Sweating, he turned towards the little Pokémon. Him, try and apply for recruitment for a battle league? In what world would he ever get accepted for something like that? He didn't know the first thing about battles, let alone have the prowess capable to compete. He didn't have the talent, nor capability like Hase did.

Door slamming wide open, multiple sets of feet had pile drived their way in through the carpet. Groaning, the dollkin wanted to hide beneath a pillow. Hase invited friends over again from her Pokémon Contest, hadn't she? Great, and they were a loud looking bunch, too, as usual. And she wondered why he didn't watch her contests? Look around her, why doesn't she.

"I won the Contest without your cheering!" Hase cried. She then pointed at her partner. "And, look at this, Scorbunny evolved!"

"Raboot!" the former Scorbunny cried.

"You should have been watching, Hase's bro!" another voice cried.

"Yeah, totes," another voice cried. "She knocked me out in our contest battle round!"

"And she knocked me and my partner out in our contest battle!" another annoying voice cried.

Gazing at the crowd, the dollkin almost wanted to turn away. Standing proud had been a tall, floppy eared human sized mannequin person with short pink hair pulled into a tiny braid. Plain pink shirt with a red ribbon in it, next to her had been a large pink winged fairy creature with black tipped ears, and a swirly tail behind them. He almost wanted to pluck his ears off at this dollkin. What was Hase doing befriending this girl? What was her name again, Kouneko? He didn't know. He almost never listened when his sister said her friend's names.

Barely able to be seen from the couch had been a short child sized mannequin person that had barely been three feet tall. Big, round ears on the top of her head, she had a nervous look on her face. Brown hair barely going below her chin, the fringes were messy. Blue bouncy rodent creature next to her with a big white belly and coiled tail, he tried to remember her name. Krysi? How could a Marill lose on stage to a Scorbunny? That made no sense at all.

Looking ready to scream the loudest had been a short human sized mannequin with bright leaf like yellow hair, and flame like golden eyebrows. Orange eyes looking bright and bold, she had a pinkish red top in a strange shape. Short, red legs that looked rather flexible, next to her had been a little green haired feminine plant Pokémon adorning a similar small red and white body. Turning away, he continued to look at the boob tube. It was the ever annoying Regina and her even more annoying Steenee. Why did Hase have to invite these three over? So annoying.

Gazing at Hase's Pokémon for a moment, a slightly taller rabbit like creature had now been adorning a similar shirt. Turning back towards the television, he tried to tune her out. She was going to brag for days about this ribbon she earned. If she intended to that, she could talk to the wall instead. Sorry, the ear factory was closed.

"You should have seen me, Siorc!" Hase cried. "When Scorbunny evolved into Raboot, they practically just handed me the win!" She flapped her arms as she said such. "And, guess what else! I was recruited into the rookie Pokemon Masters league!"

"Me too, me too!" Kouneko cried. "Sucks to be rotting on the couch doing nothing all day, doesn't it? Your sister told me all about you. Look at you, all you do all day is garden, garden, garden, huh? Have some whimsy in your life!"

"Um," Krysi said. "Just one thing. You know the four of us all were all recruited, right?"

"Hmph! Way to spoil Hase's moment!" Regina cried. "Let her brag to her brother and rub it in some more!"

"Sorry?" Krysi backed away as she said such.

"You should have been watching me today!" Hase cried. "Then, you would have seen my crowning achievement! I bet you wish you tuned in for a change!"

Sinking deeper into the couch cushions, the chimera watched as his sister and her annoying friends chattered up a storm in her room. Covering his head with a pillow, he curled up into a ball, doll joints cracking. Why did she always have to brag about every little thing? He was getting quite tired of this. Every single day, Scorbunny did this. Scorbunny did that. Always shining. He was a pool of darkness with nowhere to go.

Feeling a tug on his sleeve, the chimera sit upward. Floette looking into his eyes with a rather disdained look, he could feel a sudden wave of determination flow through him. Maybe this Pokémon and he could? But, he popped such thought with a pin. Ah, no, it's not like he'd be recruited, or anything. Not a chance. He didn't know the first thing about battling anyway.

"I don't like her," Floette whispered. "She's so self important."

Disdain coming his way, the dollkin bowed an apology. As usual, Hase had to be the spotlight. The sun, the center of attention. Fingers twitching on the remote, he could feel something brew inside him. Maybe he should try to get recruited, too. Get into battling. It was about time his kin put her finger into a humble pie.

/I'm sorry about my sister,/ the floating text on the air said. /Floette, I have a question. Would you like to--?/ But, such air writing had been interrupted.

"Let's battle together," Floette whispered. "And, show your sister she's too much of a showoff."

Nodding, the living mannequin scrunched up into a ball. Letting the zes catch him, he could feel himself fall into dreamland. He could not help but think about everything. This little Floette, their origins, where they came from. Maybe he should try and find out more about them in the coming days. Thoughts fading, he soon fell into the flower field inside his head.

Days going by, the dollkin had soon found himself in Waxing Park quite often lately. Sister finding out about his new companion, a competition between the two soon roared into place. Claiming she would become a top league battler, he could feel a spark flow through him. The best battler there ever was, huh? She'd fall off that hill shortly.

Learning a few things about the distant Pasio region as the days went by, a rather interesting fact had been laid out to him. Told by a group of twin boys that in the Pokemon Masters League, people had to team up into three, there had been so many rules he had not understood. Three on three? How weird. Running off towards the park, he searched for his practice partners for the day.

Reaching the crescent shaped tree, the dollkin huffed as he could see his practice partners look rather impatient. Standing by the hollowed out trunk had been a short, dark skinned masculine appearing human sized mannequin with a bright red greasy mullet. Blue white collared shirt on him, seated on his lap had been a small cyan frog-like being with bright yellow eyes and a white collar all the same. He sweat as his sharp eyes turned towards him. Ah, Gloine was about to be so cross with him. Shorter doll boy with a flipped mullet and glasses beside him, a green creature with a bulb on its back had been sleeping soundly. Miotal rubbing his glasses, he could tell a scolding was about to come his way.

Click.

/Good afternoon, Gloine and Miotal. I'm sorry I'm late./ the skywriter up above said.

"Late?!" Gloine cried. "You're so late that if this were school, I'd have marked you absent! Froakie almost fell asleep we waited so long!"

"Uh, Gloine?" Miotal asked. "You know we're a year younger than him, right?"

"Who cares about that?!" Gloine cried. "Siorc, if you're serious about this, you have to come on time! Also, why are you wearing those filthy overalls again? You and Floette should be in sync with each other!"

Click.

/I don't have money for clothes, apologies./ the skywriter up above said.

"Good afternoon, boys," an alto voice said. "Ready to lose?"

"Squawk, ready to lose?" a Pokémon squawked.

Strutting in had been a tall human sized mannequin with short, curly light brown hair pulled into a low ponytail. Bright green checkered shirt and yellow pants, next to her had been a colorful avian Pokémon with a black head shaped into a musical note. Feathers colorful shades of yellow, green and blue, they had a metronome like tail and pink beak. Covering his ears, the Chatot continued to copy everything their trainer Gwendolyn said.

"Where are your partners, huh?" Miotal cried. "You know, we can't train for the Pokemon Masters Rookie League if it's just you!"

"Ugh, hold your Horseas they're coming in a second," Gwendolyn groaned. "Men are so impatient, I swear."

Yinlong and Parisa flocking by, the dollkin could feel his eyes burst into flames. His neighbors, huh, bring it on! He could take one, two, no, ten of them if he really wanted to. Twins taking their turns one after another, the living mannequin had soon gone with the flow. Be in sync with his partner, right. That's all it took, right?

Many fights won, but various lost, as the days tooted along, he could feel his kinship with his partner begin to grow. More and more reminders coming day in and day out the deadline to try and be recruited was fast approaching, the chimera tried his luck. Maybe he could submit his entry now. Scribbling away, a laugh had soon come his way.

"You really think they'll let you join the rookie league?" Hase asked, laughing. "I've seen you fight alongside your Floette, you're sloppy! No way La--- would ever recruit you!"

Chides coming his way, the dollkin folded his hands into a fist. Who did Hase think she was, huh? She had already been recruited. He'll show her, he'll be invited, for sure. Training day in and day out, as almost two months of battling alongside Floette floated by, he could feel something he had never felt before.

A spark.

Spark flowing through him, he wondered. Was this what it felt like to be alive? To have something to do in life? Maybe it was. Maybe this was what it felt like to pry away the emptiness, get rid of that nothing. Training sessions in the park roaring on, the blazes kept their parade marching forward.

Recruitment forms soon closed, the chimera knew deep down. Even if he wasn't accepted into the young adult rookie league, it would be fine in the end. There was always next year, and if not then, the year after that. Or, perhaps later down the line. Waiting with bated breath, the day soon came.

The magical day.

The day everything would change.

Finding a letter and a package on his doorstep while gardening one day, the chimera could hardly believe his eyes at what laid out in front of him. Lacy, purple dress with black ribbons gifted to him, he almost broke into tears. Where did this thing come from? Yellow scrunchies inside the box as well, he peeled back the envelope. Gazing at the letter, he almost did a double take.

"Dear Siorc and Floette,

You have been accepted into the Pokemon Masters Young Adult Rookie League. Attached in this letter is your ticket to the ferry to Pasio. We hope you continue to battle with style and grace.

— La---."

Hero personally signing the letter himself, the chimera could feel his eyes water. Had this really been happening right now? He had been accepted into the league? Boat ticket dated to the day after tomorrow, he clenched his fist. He could hardly believe it. He could finally join the rookie leagues. All these months of training had finally paid off.

Forty eight hours passing by in a flurry, the dollkin placed his hair upward into two low hanging pigtails in the style of his Floette's ears. Lacy lavender dress on him, he waited at the pier. Sister opting to taking a jet with all her so called proclaimed winners, he rolled his eyes. Always trying to one up him, like always.

Long ride upon him, the living mannequin could feel a fire blaze in his chest. Finally, after today, he would set foot in Pasio. His journey was just beginning. Multiple other trainers chatting away with one another, he watched the waves. Partner floating next to him, he could feel the anticipation growing.

Vessel soon docking, he could hardly believe his eyes at who had been waiting. Red spiky haired Johto Champion adorning a white shirt and purple cape, the dollkin's eyes sparkled. There he was La---, in the flesh! He could hardly believe it. he wasn't dreaming, right? Pinch him! Pinching himself, he let out a hiss. Nope, he was definitely awake right now. Man smiling, he soon announced himself.

"Looks like everyone is here!" the Johto Champion cried. "Welcome everyone, to the Rookie Pokemon Masters League!"

Multiple trainers speeding away, the chimera almost fell face first on the ground. Man, everyone sure was eager, weren't they? Looking at the world around him, he placed his hand on his chest. Finding himself on an artificial island, he could feel the battle juices within him flowing. So, this was Pasio, huh? What an interesting place. Ready to head for the Trainer Lodge, he could soon feel a tug on his dress.

"Ah, young man, the video you submitted of you and your Floette was quite heartwarming to watch," the Johto Champion said with a warm smile. "I hope you two enjoy your stay here."

Words coming his way, the chimera's cheeks immediately turned pink. Did La-- just talk to him? Him, of all dollkin? No way, he was dreaming right now, right? Pinch him! Porcelain stinging once again, he almost broke into tears. He wasn't dreaming at all! Amazing. Fingers twitching, he almost didn't want to let his skywriter spit the words out.

/Thank you so much, sir!/ the skywriter cried out. /We'll try our best to battle well together!/

Dashing off towards the trainer lodge, many other trainers had bragged to one another about being the very best. Tuning them out, the dollkin gazed at the little crudely drawn map. Finding his room number, he flopped onto his bed, screaming gleefully into pillow. He could hardly believe it, the Johto Champion spoke to him. Pokémon pal and him settling in, he could not help but grin as he looked into the window of the future.

His debut with Floette into the Pokemon Masters Rookie League was just getting started.

---

Okay. So, here's what this Siorc and his Floette look like.

Drawn by me.

I know a lot of questions regarding the Floette Siorc teamed up with went unanswered here, but you can leave them up to your imagination.

Next week: Ninja Assassin Siorc!

 

[Palamon]

Mosique's Movie Buff Ninja

---

"Greetings, welcome to the
Relatively sealed world of Mosique.
Enclosed world shut away from
Every other nation, and
The ninja capital of the world, or
Is it? I'll let people be the judge of that.
Now, in this isolated place, chimeras
Gather. There's very few humans.
Since I feel like sharing

What is public information, I'll tell you
Everything I as a citizen of this
Little establishment know.
Come one, come all for
One big information free for all.
My name is Siorc Ingne, the
Ever quiet floriculture major in

The most mixed reviewed college
Of all time. I communicate

Through a large floating television screen that
Has my thoughts broadcasted.
Eh? We're a high technology place, so. I'm a hyena

Chimera, but that
Literally doesn't matter much,
Of course.
Since pretty much
Everyone in this huge
Downtown is

One. At least, I think. While I'm a
Floriculture major by day, I am a
Film buff by afternoon, my friends and I

We go off and see movies every day.
Oh? How do I earn money? Get
Ready, it
Literally won't surprise you how. I'm a ninja.
Don't gasp. It's true. I'm

One of the ninjas you'd
Find in the news defending justice. You

Might even see me in
One of the big
Streets. Heheh, well maybe not
I'm a lesser known ninja.
Quite below the cuff, if you will.
Uhuhuhu. I have a bit of a team and
Err, we're pretty tight.

In the evening, when it's ninja time,

All of us
Move to The Ninja Office and

See clients who need us. Eh? What?
In this world, ninjaing is
One big business okay?
Ridiculous as that seems.
Can't do this for free, after all.

In any case, we
Ninjas are here to help, for a few hundred
Gold coins.
No, we wouldn't
Ever offer our services for free, get outta

Here. How do
You expect us to
Earn a living, hmm?
Ninjaing is a business, period.
And there's multiple ninja firms you

Can contact in a pinch.
Of course, that's only if you're willing to pay.
Look, sometimes, I can be a
Little understanding if it's an
Emergency job, but
Get real here. Gotta
Earn a living.

School ain't cheap!
That goes for all my teammates too.
Uh, who told you ninjas work alone? They
Don't? Whoever told you that is
Especially dumb, understand? That's
Never been
The case in this place.

It's better to work as a team.
Never work alone.

Though, I guess, some people
Have the galls to do so. But, they
End up being

Mauled under the pressure
Of managing such a demanding task alone.
Relegated to the side with
No chance of spotlight!
I'm not saying I'm well known or anything!
Not at all! But, I know how it
Goes. I know the rules.

Maybe some don't, but
Of course, that's a
Very big mistake here
In Mosique. You
Either learn the rules, or get

Buried by society.
Uhuhu, well, I
Feel like I am exaggerating a little here.
Fufu, maybe just a little?

But, it is true,
You have to learn

All the rules of this world, or you'll be
Fodder. I have seen
Time and time again when happens to pretty much
Everyone who tries to challenge the
Rules, who tries to challenge the
Norm. And,
One thing is for sure. Not a single
One of those people lasts long. They
Never do. So, either follow

All the rules, or get eaten.
Now, today is a big
Day. A big movie is releasing!

Now, as a film buff and movie critic,
I'm thrilled to go see it.
Nothing like a good old movie
Just as my lectures
Are done for the day.

But I have heard some
Yikes things lately. What exactly?

Not telling!
It's confidential! I
Guess you'll just
Have to sit and watch
To find out!

Ohoho, so, why not come by when evening is
Ripe and watch my team? You

Are not going to want to
Miss this. After all,

I'm the best ninja in town!"

It had been a rather dark and cloudy day over in the skies of the rather closed off vast, chimera and ninja populated city state known as Mosique. People were moving to their own beat. Some were training, some living normal lives. But, for one particular chimera today would be yet another day that leaned towards both sides of the spectrum.

Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring. Wake up Little Ninja, It's Time For Your Lectures.

Snooze.

Slapping down the phone alarm to a quiet snooze had been a young adult feminine appearing person with rather long dark purple hair that went down to about the backside scrunched up and messy as usual. Dark shadows beneath the mismatched purple and green eyes, a bright red two piece pajamas with a barrel of popcorn peeked through the bed covers.

Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, your lectures start in thirty minutes!

Alarm screaming again, the young adult let out a groan. Why did the brother have to make these stupid alerts? Being an application developer instead of a ninja was the worst career path he could have possibly chosen, but whatever. He was wasting his life by making these useless inventions, that was his problem at the end of the day.

Small eight inch television screen powering on floating next to the person, the college student fluttered off towards the latrine. Doing a light spritzing, the young adult almost wanted to punch the mirror at the sight before him. Oh, by the ninja lords above, why were the hyena ears out? Go away, go away, go away, go away. Closing the eyes, they soon dissipated. Human ears returning, a breath of relief had pushed on through. Today was not a good day for those stupid things to appear. How embarrassing.

Matching teddy bear hair accessory and earrings in place, a pull over white hoodie with dark brown sleeves and a bear cross body fanny pack had decorated the hyena's stomach. Light brown waist length skirt soon beneath, the chimera rubbed as much concealer as possible over the large hyena spots. Go away, disgusting spots, they were such an eyesore, that was for sure. The face looked better without them.

Hair soon pulled into a ponytail, the college student soon strutted off towards the dining room. Whiffing up eggs like mad had been a rather short feminine appearing person with long light green hair pulled into a high ponytail. Pitch black tassel earrings hanging down low, there had been a pitch black belly shirt with a golden band logo on it that read, Lan Haren. The young adult almost wanted to slap a palm over the face seeing this. The brother sure enjoyed wearing shirts five sizes too small on him. Didn't he know by now for someone at his ripe age of thirty, that nonsense wasn't hip anymore? How were they eight years apart again? It was more like the two of them were whole centuries apart! Varg was stuck in a time capsule. Time to get him out and bring him back to the present.

"Good morning, bro," Varg greeted. "You have like twenty minutes before your lectures start, ya know. Hop to it."

Brother reminding him once again of the time, he could feel his cheeks grow read. For the love of ninjutsu and crackers, he knows already. Twenty minutes, blah, blah, blah. Television screen up above buzzing around static, he closed his eyes for a minute. Ah, if he let that appear on the screen up there, that would only brew chaos. Well, he supposed it would do no good to let this thing spew out thoughts he didn't mean.

Beep, beep, beep.

= For the love of ninjutsu, I know I only have twenty minutes before I have to be at my lectures. Could you please not remind me? = the television screen up above marqueed across the screen.

"Just reminding ya, Siorc, ya gotta be on time, after all!" Varg cried. "Hurry, and eat up before you're late!"

Beep, beep, beep.

= Alright, fine, could you stop rushing me? = the television screen up above marqueed across the screen.

Biting away as the news had been playing up a storm, a report on the tiny screen in the corner caught his attention. Teachers purposely misgendering their students? Practically stabbing the yolks, the young adult's eyebrows twitched. Ah, how horrible, and these professors and teachers got away with this kind of behavior. He ought to do something about it! The nerve.

Munching away as fast as possible, the college student switched the television off. That was enough news for today. Honestly, how did his brother watch that all day long while working? Was he thirty, or was he fifty? He was mentally a middle aged man with too much technological know-how. Ah, but, he tried using that insult many times by now, and he'd always tell him he was wrong.

Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, time to head for your lectures.

Slapping the stupid alarm off, the hyena wanted to throw the alarm against the wall. Man, his brother sure loved to put a timer on everything, didn't he? Couldn't he see that he had fine time management by now? This man would never understand him. He wasn't a young chimera anymore who was almost late to everything! Stop timing him.

= I don't need your timers every ten minutes, Varg. Could you learn to turn them off? = the text marqueed across the television screen screeched out.

"Bro, if I did that, you'd be late to everything!" Varg cried. "Anyhoo, yer reviewing a movie again after lectures this morning, right?"

= I am. Why? = the television screen up above marqueed across the screen.

"You forgot your movie critique outfit again!" Vag responded. "Here you go."

Bright white shirt with the words, I am a film critic plastered on it, the last two words had been inside a clapper board. Popcorn hairpin and earring set slipped inside the skirt pocket, he folded them up. Slapping them into a fanny pack, he headed off towards the door. He supposed his brother was at least useful for something every once and awhile. Running shoes soon on, he moved towards the intersection. Crosswalk about to be upon him, he had soon seen one of his fellow film critic crew.

Standing by the edge of the sidewalk had been a rather tall feminine appearing person with bright, golden penguin crests where the eyebrows would have been. Long blond hair pulled into a ponytail flopping from the backside, A ton of makeup had been plastered over the eyes, making the orange pupils a near eyesore. Bright purple outfit with the chest slightly visible, he always wondered how Kaiser could go to college looking like that, but why judge? It was not in his place to do so.

"Beautiful morning it is today! Mostly because I'm here, of course!" Kaiser cried. "Siorc, we're still on for that movie this afternoon at the theater, right? We're getting paid a dirty amount of gold coins to review it, you know!"

Beep, beep, boop.

= Yes, of course we're still going. It's called Life Of A Sand Maiden, in case you forgot. = the text on the television marqueed across the screen. But, such had been met with an annoying dramatic screech.

"Why would I have forgotten?!" Kaiser cried. "I've been wanting to see that movie in early screening all week!"

"Could you two shut up and move already? The light's green!" an annoying voice behind them cried.

"Alright, alright, we're going!" Kaiser cried. "You know, rushing a queen is ugly, don't you?"

Running across the crosswalk, the chimera tried to hold back a sigh. He was waiting all week for Life of a Sand Maiden, huh? Not him, he had been dreading this film all week. He had heard about that nasty film company constantly calling the lead star a he during production, the nerve of those people! The actor they chose neither male nor female.

Reaching the gates towards the college, a rather short, dark skinned man, excuse him queen with black panther ears stood by the entranceway with his hands behind his head. Navy blue hair coiled up into curly dreadlocks, his light brown eyes were shiny against his sparkly eye shadow. Adorning a bright pink kaftan dress, in his hand had been a closed and peeled open mangosteen. Long tail behind him, a wave had soon come his way. Waving back, he let out a sigh. Same old Bogart, eating the queen fruit early in the morning.

"Mornin'!" Bogart cried. "We're seeing Life of A Sand Maiden today, right?"

= Yes. At two o'clock, as planned. = the text on the television marqueed across the screen.

"Awesome sauce. The maiden's costumes are so gorgeous, I wish I could look like them sometimes!" Bogart cried. He then turned towards Kaiser. "Where's Malika?"

"She had classes before me," Kaiser said. "But, we have the same floriculture lecture today."

"What about Plata?" Bogart asked.

"Oh, my lord, stop asking me ugly questions!" Kaiser cried. "They like to go to lectures early? Could we just go in already?"

Strutting towards the entrance, the hyena shook his head. Why would Bogart want to dress like the maiden in the movies? Did he not read the news about the production and how nasty they were to the lead star? He guessed not. He knew if he had read about all that, he would probably want to wear the outfits anyway to spite the director or something. Come to think of it, maybe he should do that, too. The directors of the movies he reviews always read their blogs on tumbloo and the newspaper anyway.

Reaching the door towards the lecture hall, the chimera snapped such thoughts away. No time to think about movies right now, he had a floriculture lecture to think about. What were they learning about this week? Flower arrangement, right. He almost forgot about that. He had other things to attend to right now.

"Ugh," a voice complained, walking towards the lecture hall. "Not again."

Complaining through the hallway had been a rather tall feminine appearing person with bright golden penguin crests replacing human eyebrows. Bright, sparkly flowing blonde hair going down to about her chest, a portion of it had been slightly hanging loose like they were sideburns. Flaming orange eyes and rosy cheeks, she had a pure white dress with a heart shaped chest covering. Malika was gorgeous as always. Honestly, how were Kaiser and she related? Penguin chimeras sure had it all.

"Did Professor Goma misgender you again?!" Kaiser asked.

"He did!" Malika cried. "It's the second month of our semester now, and he still hasn't stopped!"

"That rat!" Kaiser cried. "Why I oughta!"

Ding dong.

"We'll talk about this later," Malika said. "Better head inside the lecture hall before he yaps again."

Hearing the small commotion, the hyena pounded his fists behind him. That rotten professor, he was always uttering the wrong things, wasn't he? No one had ever taught this man how to respect others and how they wished to be seen, did they? Appalling. But, he knew he had to keep such thoughts to himself. If he were to dare call him out, he'd fail the rest of this course for the entire year, he bet.

Stepping into the lecture hall, the chimera strutted off towards his usual desk. Seated on the furthest chair had been a short, feminine appearing person with bright dark cobalt blue hair that barely reached below their ears. Bright yellow crocodile eyes with red pupils, on the top of their head had been a flower crown. He always wondered why Plata wore that thing to class all the time, but it was better to not ask questions. Adorning a white, lacy shirt, a plate of flan had been in their left hand. Munching away, he waited for them to finish munching.

Beep, beep, beep.

= Good morning, Plata. = the text on the television marqueed across the screen.

"Mornin, Siorc," Plata greeted. "Movie's at two today, right?"

= That's right. = the text on the television screen danced around on the screen in the static above.

"Right, got it," Plata responded, nodding. "How long is it again?"

"Two and a half hours, I think," Bogart said, sitting down next to her. "Why, you got something else planned after?"

"Nah." Plata shook their head as they responded.

"I don't know, you seemed pretty preoccupied with something just now," Malika said, seating herself in the middle seat. "Something on your mind?"

"No," Plata said, shaking their head.

"Then why you asking how long the movie is for?!" Kaiser cried. "You only ask that ugly question when you got something on your mind!"


Scrch, scrch, scrch.

"Men in the front table, could you all simmer down?" a loud voice asked. "I'm about the start the lecture."

Scratching his nails on the board in the corner had been a rather tall dark skinned man with small pitch black frog eyes. Bright red hair covering a portion of his face, the locks had been split down the middle, reaching to just below his shoulders. Pitch black suit with a necktie that had an egg yolk on it, the chimera once again cracked his knuckles behind him. He said men again about his group, how dare he. He was just asking for it, that's for sure! But, as he thought such, he could hear people running towards the door.

Boom.

"When will you two learn that you have to be to my lectures on time?" Professor Goma asked. "If you men can't take my lectures seriously, then drop out already!"

"Professor Goma, I'm a lady," a weak voice whispered.

"Don't talk back to me and get to your seat!" Professor Goma cried.

Party of two heading to their seats, the chimera twiddled a little dagger in the back of his hands. This professor, so annoying, he ought to throw something at him for a change. But ah, no, couldn't do that, now could he? Why make a scene? Putting the little pocket knife away, the professor soon screeched up a storm up front.

Long lecture about flower arrangement going on and on, the college student took note after note. Entire pages covered with ink in minutes, he held back a yawn. He didn't know how intricate the art of flower arranging was. Why was it so detailed and complicated? Maybe he should have majored in environmental science instead, but that class had been full. It was full in his first year, too, and his second. Oh, well.

Professor babbling for quite awhile about how to make a floral display perfect, the young adult's mind had begun to wander. What time was it anyway? Gazing at his watch, the little hand floated over the twelve. Big one passing by the six, he tried to keep his head up on his desk. One hour to go, and he's finally out of here. Time couldn't go any slower.

Stupid teacher throwing books at sleeping students in the corner, he could hear that pesky man refer to one of the students as a guy once more. Hearing such, he again spun the pocket knife behind him. This student already corrected him, and yet, he's still insistent on being wrong. The president ought to fire this guy already.

Long, tiresome lecture soon coming to an end, the chimera took out a small notebook. Adding four more lines and crossing them, he soon repeated such action once more. Ten times, time times today. How many times did this infuriating professor call his students men today? Too many to count, that's for sure. He ought to show this tally book to the president. But, that would be a waste of time, wouldn't it? He tried that a few times before, but it never did any good. Oh, well. But, an elbow soon bumped into him.

"Hey, we're going to the movie soon, right?" Bogart asked. "Shouldn't you get changed?"

Beep, beep, beep.

= This campus is so big, I forget where the bathrooms are here. = the text marqueed across the tv screen.

"What do you mean you forgot?!" Kaiser cried. "The inclusive ones are on the second floor, remember?"

= Right. = the text marqueed across the tv screen.

Trotting up to the second floor, the hyena quickly changed. White shirt soon upon him, the matching popcorn hairpin and earring set replaced the bears. Plopping the sweaty hoodie into a bag, he removed the fanny pack. Mascara plastered on, he could feel dread flow through him. Maybe he shouldn't see this movie, but he couldn't back out. His boss expected a review to submitted by tomorrow afternoon. Heading off towards his storage locker, he grabbed his afternoon backpack.

Meeting up with the film critic gang in the courtyard, a group sigh had soon taken the stage. Everyone complaining about the lecture, the college student kept his thoughts to himself. Why should he say anything? Powering down the floating television, he stuffed it in the container from behind him. Better to not let his thoughts be broadcast right now, that's for sure.

"Well, we should probably get going now," Malika said. "They want us to be a little early this time."

"How early?" Plata asked.

"I thought I told you in my text this morning that they want us to be there, like, ten minutes before the previews!" Kaiser cried. "Oh, wait, you didn't even read my texts, did you? How ugly!"

"Oh, sorry, my phone's been off since yesterday," Plata said. "I don't want to check my messages right now."

"Why's that?" Bogart asked.


"I don't wanna talk about it," Plata said, turning their head. "Let's get going."

Heading back towards the intersection, the hyena gazed at Plata. Had someone been sending them nasty messages again? How come they hadn't blocked this person by now? But, he supposed they could have gotten burner phone numbers whenever they discovered they weren't able to contact them again. But, now was not the time to focus on that.

Reaching the Super Discount Theater a tall man with brown hair waited outside the theater with a warm smile. Forcing a smile back, he soon stuck out his hand. Gazing down at his palm for a moment, he broke out into a sweat. His hand was human right now and not hyena, right? Right? He could feel daggers about to glare at him if it were the latter.

"Thank you for coming, you guys," the man said, shaking everyone's hands. "The front row's all yours."

"How many people are in the theater today?" Bogart asked.

"Just you five," the man responded. "A majority of the other reviewers for whatever reason didn't want to screen this movie."

Hearing such, the film buff wondered. Had the other film critics in his circle heard about what the director had said about the film star? Maybe they had, and refused to come. Maybe he should have also declined, but he had already been here. Too late to back out now. Moving towards the front row, popcorn and refreshments had already been waiting for him.

Multiple boring previews of documentaries playing over and over again, the young adult almost fell asleep. He really needed to tell the owner of this theater to stop playing those documentaries about the world's greatest ninjas. Most of them sold poorly and were a box office flop. Why did they keep on advertising them? Whatever, well, it's not like he would say anything about it.

Three.

Two.

One.

"Welcome, theatergoers. Please take this time to silence your phones. And, in the case of emergency, please go through the back exit door," the screen up front said.

Silencing his phone, the large roaring lion logo soon played. Crossing his arms across his waist, he shook his head. He sees, the his a Lions Door production. Every single one of their films always sent a backwards message. This one wouldn't be much different, would it? He could feel his blood ready to boil as he thought such.

Screen shifting to a sandy world and a bright white bed, a short young feminine appearing person had been eating a ton of sand grapes. Slightly older children in the room calling their name, the star of the film soon rose from their bed. Bright, golden dress with nice tassels on the side, he could see Bogart's eyes sparkle. He was already blown away by the costumes, wasn't he? Typical Bogart.

But, the next scene made the hyena's throat taste like lemons. Older woman groaning at the kid asking how many times has she told them not to wear that? They're a man act like one, the young adult already wanted to leave the theater. Ah, yup, this film was like all the others from this director. Pushing that you are what you're born agenda. Disgusting. He should have declined coming to this film screening.

Young heroine proclaiming themselves a maiden, throughout the first hour or so, multiple people were against them. Seeing such, the chimera almost wanted to pull his hair out. Man, if he directed this movie, he'd cut out almost an entire portion of this entire script. The Sand Maiden wanted to be seen as a girl, just accept that. But, he would soon see that conclusion would never come into fruition.

Reaching the climax, a war had soon broken out in the kingdom. Multiple people screaming at the sand maiden to be a man and fight for their country, screams had come everyone's way. They're a maiden, and maidens can fight, too. But, such tribulations had been met with screams aplenty. It doesn't matter, they're supposed to be the leader of this army, so fight like one. Hearing such, he almost wanted to throw his pocket knife at the movie screen. This film director thought that line was a good one, didn't he? Well, it had flopped.

Film twisting into a maiden sacrifice towards the end, a long scrolling message soon played on the screen, 'in the end, Mithra died a hero, and a forgotten warrior.' The film buff loudly chomped on the last piece of popcorn. Of course, the movie had to use that bury the different trope. He should have known it would go like this. The same message as usual, you are what you're born, and you will suffer if you go out of the norm. Why did this director always choose to tell stories of people he didn't even care about? Probably for money. Leaving the theater, the party of five headed towards the tree where they usually grouped.

"Another bad film from Lions Door production!" Kaiser cried. "As soon as I get home, I'm writing a one star review!"

"Me, too," Malika said. "But, enough of that." She turned towards Siorc. "Same time tonight, right?" She lowered her voice into a whisper.

Whisper coming his way, the hyena nodded. Ninja duties? Of course, the same time as always, nine o'clock sharp. Five hours to go until Ninja Time. He could hardly wait any longer before that time came, he had some things to take care of. But, ah patience, Siorc, patience, patience. The time would come.

"Okay, see you then," Malika said. She then whispered. "Honestly, I wish ninja time would come sooner. There's something we really need to take care of, wouldn't you say?"

"Yeah, I'd say so," Bogart said. "But, we gotta movie review first, don't we?"

"Yup," Plata said. "See you all later."

Waving at everyone, the film buff returned home. Throwing his shoes back, he closed the door behind him in his room as his brother was loud as usual making apps with his annoying dev friends. Laptop taking forever to turn on, he rubbed his eyebrows. By the ninja lords, he really needed to invest in a better computer by now. Typing in tumbloo dot com in the address bar, a rainbow texted message screaming, welcome Hyena Movie Reviewer popped confetti on the screen. Seeing such, he almost wanted to shut the lid. When did the devs add this stupid feature? Was there a toggle? Pressing the compose new article button, he tip tappied away.

"Life of A Sand Maiden is yet another backwards movie parading around with the you are what you're born agenda.

I am tired of having to type this up every time I write up a review for Lions Door movies, but nothing ever changes. Every single movie they put out is always the same. They always try to use that same message, you are what you're born, and Life of a Sand Maiden so far has been the worst one of them all amongst the countless films I have seen from this studio.

We see the story of a young teenager, Mithra, who wants to be seen as a maiden in a warring country of sand. But, almost no one around her respects how they feel. Throughout the film, almost everyone tries to pressure them to go back to presenting as a man. Not only do I find this to be cruel, it's rather unrealistic that almost everyone would be against them like this. But, that's how almost all of these movies by Lions Door studio seem to go.

The climax made this even more apparent when the war had broken out and reached its maximum tension. Multiple citizens in the movie demanded Mithra fight like a man, and every time I had heard this line, I wanted to gag right there in the movie theater. I thought that this movie would at some point come to accept Mithra as the maiden they wanted to be seen as, but that conclusion was never going to happen, I fear.

And, as goes with every single one of these films, as usual, the bury the different trope was used. Mithra sacrificed themselves in battle for their country, and instead of referring to them as a heroine, they were referred to as a hero, of course, and as forgotten warrior. Not maiden, but warrior. I can see that this title was used a audience bait. As this film was completely backwards, I give it half a star out of five."

Looking over the entry for a moment, the hyena removed any typos or repetition he could find. Writing an entire separate review for the newspaper, he inched towards the envelope icon on his desktop. Spending a couple extra hours ensuring the review for the Daily Mosique Gazette looked professional, he almost wanted to pull his hair out. He was always the one who had to write for the newspaper, and more oftentimes than not, his boss would tell him to stop making his movie reviews make him seem like a social justice warrior. Like, excuse him? He's fighting against backwards people here!

Bling, bloop, bling, bloop, bling, bloop.

It's Ninja Time.

Alarm ringing, the ninja soon closed his laptop screen. It was time, the best time of the night, nine o'clock. Time to get into action. Leaping towards his drawers, a purple mask had soon covered his face. Pitch black sleek suit upon him, his popcorn hairpin and earring set had soon been replaced by knives. Ponytail curled upward, he slithered off to the office.

"Good luck, bro," Varg said. "Have fun, nin nin."

Toss.

= I'd like to remind you, brother, that this isn't fun and games. = A tossed ninja scroll said.

"I know, I know," Varg said, sighing, he then lowered his voice into a whisper. "But, I can't say that in front of my app making buddies here."

Toss.

= Good, you'd better keep it that way. = A tossed ninja scroll said.

Doing various hand symbols as he exited the door, a cloud of smoke soon puffed around the ninja. Reaching his office in no time flat, the chimera seated himself in his desk. Another evening, another beautiful night of ninjaing. Who would be their first client today? Party of four walking through the door, he soon tossed a scroll their way.

= I'd appreciate it if you came in here using ninjutsu instead of walking through the door. = A tossed ninja scroll said.

"Well, the thing is, our client came with us today," Ninja Malika said. "And our client brought two other people, so we couldn't poof here."

"That's right!" Ninja Kaiser said, flapping his arms. "When you see who our main client is today, you'll fall out of your seat!"

"Will he, though?" Ninja Bogart asked.

"I'm with Bogart here," Ninja Plata said.

"All of you are so ugly right now!" Ninja Kaiser said. "Does wearing all black make you all more annoying?!" He flapped his arms up as he screamed such. "Gah! Whatever. Come in esteemed clients!"

Walking in at the front of the crowd had been a short, androgynous appearing person with golden penguin crests more sparkly than Malika and Kaiser's could ever hope to be. Messy golden hair fringing to just below their chin, they had pointy ears. Orange eyes looking rather tired, they adorned a soccer uniform for whatever reason.

Standing behind them had been a rather tall dark skinned feminine appearing draconic person with panther ears on the top of her head. Short yellow hair pulled into a low bun, on her face had been scales. Olden grandma sweater barely hiding her dragon wings, he recalled this lizard lady had been Bogart's sister? He had no clue, maybe he had remembered wrong.

Standing in the corner looking away had been a rather tall feminine appearing draconic person with long pink hair that went down to about their backside split down the middle. One eye covered with their bangs, their bright red dragon claws had poked their bright red shirt. Green tail behind them, the ninja placed his hand on his chin. Ah, yes, he was waiting for this moment.

"Hello, there, Misgender Assassin, sir," the one in the front said, bowing their head. "I'm Domini, well, Darlene, please call me Darlene. And, the three of us have two clients for you today." But they soon stuttered. "Um, Rashmi, could you go first, please?"

"We'd like to hire you to eliminate professor Wanta," Rashmi said. "As well as Professor Goma." Her dragon tail furiously swished behind her as she continued. "The three of us are tired of these professor constantly misgendering not just us, but everyone else! Please, eliminate them."

"Especially Professor Goma," Darlene said, pointing at the third person. "He's been cruelly calling Yanglong a man all week. They keep correcting them, but they refuse to correct themselves!"

"Please, do something about them," Yanglong said. "We have an entire list of students these two refuse to call by their desired names, and have purposely continued to misgender. Take a look." But, as they handed over the paper, cheers echoed in the background.

"Finally," Ninja Malika cried. "I'm so tired of Professor Goma and Professor Wanta calling me a man. I'm a woman, thank you!"

"Uh, hold on a second," Ninja Plata said, finger held upward.

"Is there a problem, Plata, hmm?" Ninja Kaiser asked.

"Wouldn't it be, you know, kind of suspicious if we eliminated both of them at the same time?" Ninja Plata asked.

"Why would it be?" Ninja Bogart asked. "We've eliminated multiple targets at once before!"

"Right, but, I'm just saying, these are college professors," Ninja Plata said, voice shaking. "And, the whole school is going to find out."

"By the ninja lord, they're not going to find out, we're in masks!" Kaiser cried. "So, tell us, where do these two go around this time of day?"

"We have heard that Professor Goma and Professor Wanta are neighbors, and they sit outside in their yards at night and look at the stars together. So, now is the best time to eliminate them," Darlene said.

Reading over the long list of crimes committed by this disgusting professors, the misgender assassin flipped the pocket knife in the palm of his hands. Ah, yes, finally, after all this time, he could finally get rid of these annoying professors. So long, farewell, he couldn't wait to use his double team attack and get these pitiful backwards professors from behind! Haha, wonderful, wonderful, it's ninja time.

Toss.

= We'll eliminate them for you, but first, name your price! = the tossed ninja scroll cried.

"Two thousand gold," Rashmi said. "Six thousand if you eliminate these lowlifes in less than thirty minutes."

"I uh, I don't know, do you really think they can do that?" Yanglong asked. "I'm pretty sure our professors might have their guards up."

Toss.

= Oh, please, I'll have them eliminated in twenty minutes, mark my words. = the tossed scroll said.

"What a foolish statement, you really think it'll be that easy?" Rashmi asked. "You know, Professor Wanta is a cat, do you not?"

Toss.

= And, I'm a hyena chimera. And, my squad members are a group of stealthy penguins, crocodile and panther. Stop doubting us, why don't you? Isn't Bogart your brother? =

"And, that's exactly my point, he's my brother," Rashmi said. "This warning is specifically for him."

"I can eliminate a target just fine, thank you!" Ninja Bogart cried. "My specialty is smoke jutsu! They'll be blind before they even see us!"

"Whatever," Rashmi said. "Hurry up already, time is ticking."

Doing various hand symbols, the misgender assassin stocked up by the door. Trying to hold back a laugh, a toothy grin appeared inside the mask. Ah yes, yes, finally, finally it was time to eliminate these stupid backwards professors. He could hardly believe the time had come to get rid of these monsters. They had gone too far too many times, and he had had enough.

Following the map Yanglong had gave him, his crew sped up ahead of him. Leaping upwards towards a tree, the hyena had his shurikens ready. He could hardly wait for this moment. Beautiful, he had been waiting for two whole months for this moment to finally arrive, and the day, no evening, had finally come. So long, Professor Goma and Wanta, they were about to kiss their last days here.

Crouching on the tree branch, the ninja soon reached for the binoculars. Zooming into the homes from afar, the misgender assassin studied his prey. Standing in the yard with a telescope had been a rather tall man with bright yellow cat ears. Short, chin length blond hair with light blue highlights, the moron wore cloud shaped sunglasses during the evening. Ah, what an idiot, it was nine-ten at night, shark tail behind him, the hyena cracked a smirk from underneath his mask. Ah, a perfect place to eliminate him, shark cat chimeras were weakest in that area. It was time for Double Team Jutsu.

Double Team Jutsu!

Multiple copies of himself dropping down towards the bushes, the ninja clutches his dagger. Aim for the backside, come on, aim for the backside, waiting for the man to look away, he could hear a rather disgusting conversation as one of his shadow selves hid deeper into the bushes. Oh, great, he could already hear him talking smack about his students.

"I mean, you should see some of the students I teach!" Professor Wanta cried. "A bunch of <bleeps>. I thought I'd get to teach fashion to a bunch of cute girls, but my morning lecture is all <bleeps>. I should have made a rule only real girls should sign up for my lectures."

"I know, right?" Professor Goma asked. "And, my class is full of <bleeps> and <bleeps>, too. I was hoping cute young girls with big bums would sign up for my lecture this year, but nope, a bunch of men who sleep through my class half the time! I ought to fail them all for taking up spots from young beautiful women!"

Professor Goma proudly proclaiming he was ready to fail everyone, the chimera clutched his dagger aplenty. Excuse him, there were no men in his lectures here. Honestly, how dare he? Oooh, how he wanted to leap off this tree branch now and slice that throat of his right here, right now! But, patience, Siorc, patience, he had to take care of this little rat in the corner first. Leave this stupid frog to his partners.

Hearing such, the ninja cloaked himself. This monster, who did he think he was blurting that out? How dare he, first of all? And, second, disgusting, this man was in his forties, he could hardly believe it. It was time to eliminate this freak once and for all. Team in the corner slicing and dicing from behind, a scream had soon let itself out in the open.

"What was that?!" Professor Wanta cried. "Goma, Goma, speak to me!"

"Wanta, please remember," Professor Goma choked out, blood pouring out of his neck like rain. "To bury me next to that hot science professor that died last year."

"Flamejutsu!" Ninja Malika cried.

Professor Goma burning into a crisp, the ninja watched as the rest of his team came back for just desserts. Keeping himself from guffawing, the misgender assassin prepared himself for the final blow. This little rat was going down. It was his turn to be eliminated. Screams aplenty, the ninja had soon been behind him.

Slice, slice, slice, slice, slice, sliceroo.

Pathetic little rat lifeless on the floor, the ninja soon whistled. Multiple hand signs called, the party of five prepared the flames one after another. Pitch black bodies out in the open, the quintet dropped down the smokeballs in unison. Hopping back off towards the trees, a maniacal guffaw soon released itself from the throat.

Once again, the misgender assassins had successfully eliminated their targets.

Returning to the office, the hyena gazed at his stopwatch. Ah, yes, wonderful, done in twenty minutes just like he had thought he would. Wonderful, amazing, he's perfect, like usual. No, they were all perfection, as usual. Never failed to eliminate a target. He hoped that stupid rotten teacher enjoyed rotting in that grave next to that disgusting science professor they hit last year.

"Impressive," Rashmi said. "Done in twenty minutes. Fine, here, six thousand gold."

"Were you expecting us to fail?" Ninja Bogart asked. "Honestly, we have been plotting to eliminate Professor Goma for awhile now!"

"You have?" Darlene asked.

"That's right, we have," Ninja Malika said. "And, if you hadn't asked us to do it tonight, we would have eliminated them anyway."

"Really?" Darlene asked. "What about Professor Wanta?"

"Hmph, that little nasty monster was on our target list, too!" Ninja Kaiser cried. "Right, Plata?"

"Yeah," Ninja Plata said. "He was on our target list for awhile." As they said such, a head bow had come their way.

"Thank you so much for eliminating those awful professors!" Yanglong cried. "Thanks to you two, I feel safe to go to class more often."

Toss.

= No problem, take care of yourselves, alright? = the thrown scroll said.

"You, too," Yanglong said. "Thanks again, you five. Goodbye." She waved as she said such.

Returning home, the chimera curled up in his bed, giggling. Once again, the misgender assassin successfully eliminated his target. Heading to the lecture hall the next morning, an announcement had been made. President saying that unfortunately, Professor Goma had passed away, and they'll be finding someone to replace them soon, the chimera could hardly contain himself. Yes, yes, that's right, he's gone now, tell everyone the evil has been eliminated!

Rest of the week going by rather smoothly, a replacement who had been much kinder and less backwards had soon been found. Lectures going by much more smoothly, the ninja could feel pride flow through him as he continued to eliminate targets as the days went on. Multiple other garbage movies screened and reviewed, he could feel one last high hit target at the top of his list. Hitting submit on his most recent film review, he soon created a zip folder on his laptop as he closed the lid.

Next target: Lion Doors production's head director.

---

Okay, so, here's Ninja Assasin Siorc, drawn by me: One of the earlier drawings I made on mspaint. And, Here are the other two outfits described.

Next week is Danganronpa Siorc.

 

[Palamon]

Danganronpa: Chimera Killing School Life!

---

"I am Siorc Ingne, Ultimate Florist, and hyena chimera. I

Didn't get into Hope's Peak Academy when
I tried transferring through a foreign exchange program. I
Don't know why, but they told me they do

Not allow chimera scum into their school
Or something. And, honestly,
That bums me out. A lot of chimeras have been trying to

Get in for years now, but none of us
Ever do. But, guess what. Guess what,
There's now a chimera's Hope's Peak. And,

I may be a third year, but after all this time, I got it!
Now, there's one little
Thing I'm nervous about,
Oral exams. Oh, I forgot to mention, I don't talk.

Hahaha, I don't talk, ever. For
One thing, my voice is
Pretty disgusting. So, I communicate through a holographic watch by projecting the words on a wall and
Err, rapid hand gestures. That's
Something I also do! I'm

Pretty sure I'm in the first class which is filled with chimeras from
Every country you can imagine!
Ah, me? I'm from Scotland, you
Know Europe? Hehehe, I got

A book in the mail of my
Classmates, and there's nine of us, including me,
And, weird quadruplets. Thirteen, huh? Unlucky number,
Doh! Oh, no, what if
Every one of us is forced into a killing game? Oh,
My, well, that's not going to happen,
You know? Silly me! That's

Just so silly, why would that happen?
Uh, of course not! That'd
Never happen, nope, let's
Keep this positive!
Of course, stay happy, everyone.

My start date? Well, I'm leaving in a day or two,
Yeah. At home, it's just

Me, and my sister, and
Uhuhu, I'll miss her
So. If it weren't for her, I wouldn't have tried to
Enter Hopes Peak Academy.

My ultimate may not be worthy, but,
You know, now it is!

Get a load of that!
Oooh, but, I am still nervous.
Don't get me wrong, I
Doubt anything bad will happen, but
Eh! It's like
Somewhat possible, you know!
Somewhat possible, anyway. I intend to get

My fresh start a little late, but
You know what, now's my time to

Shine! I might be two years too late
And all that, but it's
Very much a better late than never!
I know that sounds pretty lame, but,
Oh, well! Now, it's my turn! I'll make those
Rotten humans regret not accepting my application!

They'll pay for that, they'll pay for that
Hard! Ah, hmm,
Eh? Nothing, nothing.
Yeah, nothing. I didn't

Say anything weird, okay?
Ahahaha, what? It's not like
I want revenge on Hope's Peak Academy or anything!
Don't paint it like that,

Come on, where did that
Horrible idea come from?
It's not true, okay? Got it? I'm going to a better school, you
Misconstrued all this, okay?
Everything here has been
Rather misconstrued!
Ah, well, anyway! That's neither here nor there,

So. If only my twin sister
Could see me now!
Uh, what happened to
My twin sister? Oh, uh, she? She's

In another continent right, now, yeah!
She, uh, she transferred to
Nother school, yeah! She's uh, uh,
The Ultimate Lion Tamer!

Ah, she uh, she went to a school that specializes in, um! Show bizz! Yeah! I
Literally haven't seen her in so
Long, I miss her.
Oh, uh,
What school did she go to again?
Err, I forgot the name, sorry!
Didn't recall it, oopsie.

Sorry, I am a little bit
Of a klutz.

I seem to trip over my memories all the time.

But, that's not important right now!
Upup--, uh, what's
Important right now is my
Life is finally going in
The right direction! I

Might finally be able to show the world my talent!
Yes, yes, I can finally show the world what I'm made

Of! That I'm actually
Worth something! After all, I had it--. Oh,
Nothing, nothing, oops.

Silly me, this projector is
Constantly glitching out,
Hehe. Whoopsie, whoopsie, what an
Oopsie! So, I am packing my bags today, and heading
Onto the train in a
Little over, hmm,

I'd like to say, the day after?
Now, I got to be ready early,
Since I--. Um! My student number is one after all! Yeah,
That's right, I'm the student in the first seat,
Ehehe. Right, of course, I gotta be
All prepped and such. So, I'm going a
Day early.

Hehe, so, so
Excited, like I'm
Hyper, super duper excited. My time

Has come to show my worth as an Ultimate and a hyena chimera!
Every emotion inside me is full of bubbles.
Happy little bubbles floating around. My debut as the Ultimate De--, Ultimate Florist begins now!"

It had been a rather bright and sunny morning over the skies of Scotland. There had not been a single cloud in the sky. Everything was completely normal. Totally, completely fine and dandy. Hunky dory, peachy keen. But, for one particular young adult hyena chimera the next couple of days would be the door to a brand new debut.

Ring, ring, ring, ring, ring, ring.

Slap.

Slapping down the button on the alarm block had been a short, feminine appearing person with dark purple hair that had went down to about the waist. Mismatched purple and green eyes like a bellflower, the floral pajamas had rips all over them for no one to see. Wide smirk appearing on the face, the person reached for a wristwatch that had soon been on top of the pitch black hyena wrist.

Suitcase out in the corner, the young adult let out a yawn. Today was the last day before he were to set off into the world. The person would finally get to go to that brand new academy the chimera had b--, cough, couch, that was built recently, Chimera's Hope Academy. After all these years of being rejected from Hope's Peak Academy, the debut as the Ultimate Florist would finally be realized in this world!

Knowing packing could wait until the evening, the young adult slipped on a small skirt after doing a momentary cleansing. Bright orange shirt with a sun beaming over a flower, the chimera headed out towards the garden. wolfing down a large piece of toast, the hyena woofed up a storm. Wow, too fast. Maybe it would be best to knock it down a peg for a bit.

"Morning, Siorc, good old brother of mine," a high pitched voice. "The garden will miss you after you leave. But, I'll take good care of it, prommy."

Pruning the weeds in the corner had been a short, approaching middle aged woman with long curly very light purple hair that went down to about her backside. Adorning a large striped red and white outfit with an egg pattern on the front and back, the chimera let out a sigh. Coiote seemed to still be at it with wanting to let the world know she wanted a child. He especially heard her talking about more in recent months while--. Cough, cough. While they went to the doctors office lately doing physicals before getting ready for the new school year! Totally. Dark, large freckles on her face just like his, her hands had been human at the moment.

Nowhere to project an image to, the young adult closed his eyes for a moment. Hyena paws reversing back to a human state, he soon waved. Pointing at the garden and hopping, he wondered if she would get what he was trying to convey. Eating a sigh, he stared at the sky. If only the projector on his watch worked in here, everything would be simpler.

"Did you forget to charge your watch last night?" Coiote asked. "Siorc, you know, I'm getting super old, and stuff! Gonna be thirty eight soon. I don't know what you youngins are dancing to. Could you write it down?" She rummaged through her pocket as she said such. "Here. Take it."

Shopping list let out in front of him, the chimera scribbled away. Words on the paper reading, I'll miss the garden, too, please keep it going for me while I'm gone, he headed off towards the rose garden. Sheers in his hands, he let out a tired sigh. Without him, his sister would most certainly forget to take care of it, he bet.

"You know it, don't worry, I'll take care of it, prommy," Coiote responded. She then changed course. "Also, where are your hairpins and earrings?"

Hair and ears bare, the hopeful student's cheeks turned pink in an instant. How could he forget the most important thing? He had been busy thinking about the k-- cough, cough, his new school that it slipped his mind! How terrible, how could he do this to himself? Dashing back off towards his room, he slipped on a matching golden rose set. Can't tend to the garden without a load of style, that's for sure!

Returning to the rose bushes, the chimera snipped the leaves away. His class would have thirteen students including him, all chimeras. That was an unlucky number, right? Oh, no! What if a killing game would unfold before his very eyes like at Hope's Peak Academy? If that happened, he wouldn't know what to do with himself! Would he be the first to die? He wasn't a talker, after all, easy target.

Roses accidentally plucked away, the hyena let out a scream. Ah, no! He didn't mean to do that. He had been so caught up in the ki-- cough, cough, in thinking about his new school, he let a precious little rose get away! How could he do something so silly? Focus, focus, this would be the last time he'd see this garden until graduation!

Continuing to prune away every unusual growth he could, the Ultimate Florist pulled out a student roaster list. Everything looked to rather normal. Just a bunch of chimera students shunned away from Hope's Peak Academy. Those Headmasters, honestly, how could they turn them away and call them chimera scum. He would get his re-- cough, cough, they had missed a perfect student such as himself! A missed opportunity!

Work of art finished, the young adult moved onwards to the next area. Freshly ripe cucumbers and other plants picked off the stem, the chimera wiped his brow. Hopefully, Chimera's Hope Academy would have a nice garden for him to tend to as well. If it didn't what a shame! But, he supposed he would be able to start a gardening club anyway. This was a brand new school after all, think of the possibilities!

Tick, tock, tick, tock, tick, tock.

Early evening arriving faster than he could keep up with, the hyena made a run for it. Ah, look at the time, it was time to pack his things! After all, he had to leave tomorrow in order to se--. Cough, cough. He had to leave tomorrow because he's student one in Class A! Have to be there earlier than everyone else, after all! Of course, of course. That's how it should be!

"I'm going to make dinner now," Coiote asked. "What do you want for your last meal?"

Click, click.

(A nice juicy steak, please.) The projection on the wall said.

"Alrighty, coming up, I'll make you a nice steak!" Coiote cried. "I'll kill it good!" She giggled as she said such.

Returning to his room, the young adult rummaged through his drawers. Old school uniform glaring daggers at him, he rolled his eyes. Ah, why did he keep that ratty old disgusting boy's uniform? Disgusting. He'd never forgive his parents for--. Cough, cough. Who cares about them? They were long gone! And, those long days of suffocating are long over!

Dark green checkered dress with a pink flower in the center, and light olive green sleeves, the Ultimate Florist practically twirled the outfit around like a little kid. His uniform, it was so beautiful, so vibrant, so colorful. Unlike that disgusting middle school uniform. If he had gone straight to High School after graduating that infernal place, he bet that he would have to wear that hideous blazer again! But, no matter, this would be a new start!

Hairpins and earrings tucked away, the chimera let out a somber sigh. If only his twin sister could see him off right now. But, she went to the sch-- cough, cough, she was abroad as some show business school, living the dream as the Ultimate Lion Tamer! Haha, how was she doing right now? What was the name of the school she was going to again? Oh, no, he forgot! How could he let something so important slip his mind?

Everything packed away, the chimera brushed his hands together. That should do it. Was there anything he forgot? Gasping, he covered his mouth. Oh, he forgot his g--, extra rem-- cough, cough. His charger for his watch, right! How could he forget that? Silly him! He's such a forgetful little klutz, hehe. Silly him!

Whiffing up a juicy smell, the hopeful student practically floated off towards the kitchen. Coiote had made such a delicious steak as usual! How amazing. Was she an Ultimate Cook when she was in High School? Maybe not, maybe so. Come to think of it, he never asked about that, but oh, well! Not enough time to! Time's a ticking.

Greasy, dark brown slab of meat right in front of him, the young adult licked his lips. Wow, this meat looked so dead, how wonderful. Kind of like when? But, he shook his head. Oh, nothing! Haha, of course, this was a slaughtered cow on his plate, after all! Just a normal, juicy slab of meat!

"I might have let it simmer a little too long, I hope you don't mind!" Coiote exclaimed. "Maybe I killed it too dead, hehe!"

Click, click, click.

(No, it's perfectly well done, Ultimate Cook.) The projection on the wall said.

"Aww, you flatter me, brother, but I'm not the Ultimate Cook," Coiote responded, giggling. "Hehe, you know, back in my day there wasn't any Ultimates yet!" She then sat herself on the opposite corner. "Now, let's eat!"

Munch, munch, munch.

Thick juices soaking through his teeth, the chimera almost let himself strip in his mind. Ah, the tenderness, the gravy, mwah, mwah, the mushrooms, the super thick sauce, wonderful, beautiful. This is the deadest steak he's had in his entire life. Did she use new seasoning? She would definitely be the Ultimate Chef if she were his twin rather than his other sister. But, oh well! That's not how the egg went into the basket eighteen years ago.

Click, click, click.

(Did you use new seasoning? This is so good!) The projection on the wall said.

"Oh, you noticed? Yes, I did!" Coiote cried. "It's called blood juice. Bought it at the supermarket last night!"

Hearing the words blood juice, the young adult let out a giggle. Haha, blood juice, what a silly name! So red, and squishy, how funny. How he would miss his sister's outdated and cringy humor. But, he had a life to live out here! He was this close to his dream of showing the world what the Ultimate De--, cough, cough Ultimate Florist looked like after all!

Watching a funny battle royale show on television, the hopeful student's eyes were practically glued to the boob tube. Students, killing each other on live television for everyone to see, how could someone put people against one another like that? How awful! He hoped something like that wouldn't happen at this new school! It would be such a shame if it did!

Letting out a yawn, the chimera curled up underneath his covers. Tomorrow would be a long day ahead of him, better get to sleep! Letting out some zzes, he put on a little smile. Tomorrow, the k--, cough, cough, he could show the world he was the Ultimate Florist! Twin, wait for him, he would soon be able to be with all the elite chimeras out there, just like her.

Peep, peep, peep.

Waking up the next dawn, the young adult stretched. Good morning, Ultimate Florist, it was time to start a brand new day! The train ride over to Chimera's Hope Academy would be a long one after all. Gotta prepare himself for the super long day ahead. Dark green uniform on, the hopeful student slapped on pink flower hairpins and earrings.

Suitcase dragging behind him, the Ultimate Florist slapped the watch onto his wrist. But, he could feel a small wave of unease flow through him. Oh, no, what if the school wouldn't let him use it? That would be terrible! But, he shook his head. No, of course not, he had arranged it so that would not be the case. Right! Sister waiting for him by the door, he clicked away.

(You ready to go?) The projection on the wall asked.

"Yup," Coiote said. "Let's get going, bro."

Sister revving up the engine, the hyena hummed a little tune. Finally, after all this time, the day had finally come. He'd make Hope's Peak Academy p-- cough, cough, he'd make Hope's Peak Academy feel sorry for missing out on a perfect student such as himself! They missed an opportunity for greatness! Perfectly understandable. Maybe he was too good for this school! He'll show them, he'll show everyone that he can make a better k--, cough, cough, that this brand new school was the most elite of them all!

Reaching the train station after what felt like the blink of an eye, the hyena was ready to set off on a grand new adventure. Chimera's Hope Academy, he could hardly believe it. after three years of missing out on his high school experience, it was finally time! The other chimeras were about to have the time of their lives, too, that's for sure.

Click, click, click, click.

(I'll see you during break, Coiote, don't kill the garden while I'm gone!) The projection on the car door said.

"Don't worry, don't worry, I'll try my best to not to!" Coiote cried. She then curled her fingers, bellowing a whisper. "And, don't worry, everything's been arranged, okay?" She then let out a giggle. "Have fun, Ultimate Florist!"

Choo, choo, choo, choo.

Train roaring up a storm, the young adult giggled. Hehe, his sister was so silly. Everything been arranged? What was arranged, exactly? The k--, cough, cough, oh, silly him, he's so clumsy, tripping on his memories like that! She just meant she arranged with the teacher to let him use his watch, that's all!

Soon finding himself at the entrance of Chimera's Hope Academy, the chimera practically sprinted towards the door. A new school, a new life, a new world of ultimates! What a wonderful day it was today! Hehe, after three long years, he was finally the Ultimate De--, cough, cough, the Ultimate Florist! Here goes nothing!

Huh?

His head, why did it hurt so much of all a sudden?

Ah, no, this was-- pa-- -f, --- ---- ---- -----.

Darkness.

Waking up again, the chimera rubbed his eyes. Huh, where was he? Finding himself in a classroom, he rubbed his eyes. Why did everything feel so fuzzy, was this a dream? Maybe he was still asleep? Observing the area around him, there were more questions than answers. Destroyed blackboard laid out in front of him, he scratched his head. Did his sis--, cough, cough. Huh, why was everything in this room looking so disheveled? That's weird! Did the teachers abandon this room?

Hearing voices off in the distance, the hopeful student strutted off towards the racket. Oh, the other vi-- cough, cough, students were here already? Man, how long was he out for? Darn, he was supposed to talk to the teachers a day early! How could he let himself get dizzy like that? Silly him.

Spotting twelve other students in the gym with confused looks on their faces, the hopeful student put on his own bewildered look. Ah, look at all these vi--, cough, cough. Huh? How strange, everyone else was here already? He could have sworn it would take everyone a few days to get here! Guess not.

"Did anyone else feel dizzy when approaching the gate?" a blonde girl with lynx ears asked.

"You did, too?" A girl with magenta hair asked.

"Same, that was like, super weird, am I right?" a badger girl in the corner asked.

Gazing at everyone, the chimera's hands twitched over his watch. Ah, so everyone was here already, huh? P--- a----, cough, cough. Maybe he should introduce himself and have everyone say what their Ultimates were? Like in--? Cough, cough. Right, they all felt dizzy and found themselves in this destroyed place! Wouldn't it be common courtesy to learn everyone's names and Ultimates? Of course.

Click, click, click.

(Don't you all find it strange that we all have the same story?) The projection on the wall asked. Click, click, click. (Let's find out what happened together. I'm Siorc Ingne, The Ultimate Florist. What about you guys? Could you all tell me your names and Ultimates?)

"Haah, you what?" a redhead asked. "You expect us to do that?"

Click, click, click.

(If we know each other's names, maybe we can get to the bottom of this together!) The projection on the wall exclaimed.

"Fine, whatever, I'll start, then," a tenor voice groaned. "Name's Garran Frama. Ultimate Heavy Metal Guitarist."

Standing in the corner with their hands in their pockets had been a short, dark skinned masculine appearing individual with a bright red spiky mohawk and pitch black eyes with tiny white pupils. Seeing such, the chimera placed his hands on his chin. Ah, so they were a frog chimera, huh? Wouldn't it be very difficult to play the guitar with slimy suctioned hands? Ah, well, not his problem. Pitch black clothing with spiky edges, he nervously scratched his head. Ah, this guy looks like they could smack someone hard with a guitar. Ah, no, what was he thinking? Silly him.

"I'm Qiulong Jinzi," a small, nervous voice asked. "Ultimate Pink Rattan Weaver."

Shaking with her hands on her sides had been a short young woman with panda ears on the top of her head. Rosy skin, she had shiny pink hair that went down to about her shoulders. Bright pink lacy outfit and skirt beneath her, there was absolutely no other color visible on her person at all whatsoever in any shape or form.

"Well, I guess, I'm Xena Pictiur, you can call me that, or whatever," an annoyed voice forced out. "Ultimate Norse Mythology Historian."

Standing in the corner with her head hung low had been a short young woman with bright blonde hair pulled into low heart shaped buns. Bright pink headband upon her, her sideburns had been dyed a dark shade of purple. Old style fuchsia dress that looked like it had been ripped straight out of the alleged Norse Mythology time period, he crossed his arms across his waist. What a weird ultimate.

"I don't see why we have to introduce ourselves, but fine, I guess. I'm Cordon Piosa, lizard chimera," the young girl said, sighing. "Ultimate Martial Artist."

Rolling her eyes in the corner had been a short, tan woman with light brown hair pulled into rather spiky ponytails. Bright purple dress with cross stitches in the center, the young adult did a double take. Hold on, she was the Ultimate Martial Artist? She sure? She looks more like the ultimate brownie baker, or something. Dark purple yam brownies in her hands, on the top of her head had been a lopsided headband.

"What's the point of introducing ourselves?! You know what, whatever, I'm Aigre Bulles, this is so stupid," the redhead groaned. "Ultimate Mermaid."

Seated on the ground looking ready to gasp for air had been a tall young woman with dull magenta hair pulled into a high ponytail. Eyes matching her locks exactly, she adorned a rather skin tight outfit. Little tail cover thrown off in the corner, her legs and feet had been complete barren. Turning away, the chimera's face grew hot. Woah, was this allowed? Shouldn't she, he doesn't know, at least wear socks, or something?

"You all sure seem uneager, huh? Well, I'm Sani Kawu," a bass voice said. "Ultimate Scientist."

Spinning his bowtie in the middle of the room had been a rather tall dark skinned man with jackal ears on the top of his head. Short, messy dark blue hair with loose strands going to about his chest, on him had been a bright white lab coat blinding enough to ruin everyone's eyes around them. Could this man have worn a black one instead? No? Whatever.

"Yawn, can we just get this over with?" a tired voice asked. "Satine Piosa, Ultimate Insomniac."

Yawning her head off in the corner had been a short badger woman with a pure white face that had pitch black patches covering her barely visible eyes. Light brown hair pulled back into a high ponytail, she had a cream nightgown with the words I Love Sleep printed on them. Shaking his head, he mumbled. Insomniac, huh? She'd be the fi--, cough, cough. Man, she must be a super hard worker pulling all nighters all the time!

"Mmm, not going to lie, this is pretty dumb," the other redhead groaned. "Whatever, whatever, I'm Toki Pictiur. Ultimate Rabbit Breeder."

Stroking a rabbit plushie had been a short, androgynous looking individual with crimson hair pulled into a medium ponytail. Ribbon holding it together, they had a rather olden looking teal sweater that barely fit them. Little rabbit chain on the side of their belt, the chimera sighed. A gentle soul, he would be the f--, cough, cough. It was so rare to see people who cared so deeply for rabbits, how cute!

"Mimi Meresa," a robotic voice said. "Ultimate Quadruplet."

"Mumu Meresa," a robotic voice said. "Ultimate Quadruplet."

"Meme Meresa," a robotic voice said. "Ultimate Quadruplet."

"Momo Meresa," a robotic voice said. "Ultimate Quadruplet."

Robotically reciting their ultimates in the corner had been a group of four nearly identical girls with one off piece to tell them apart. First girl having a golden streak in her messy knee length hair, the girl next to her had a cyan streak, third adorning a bright red one, the last girl had a teal one. Everything else too close to tell apart, the chimera shrugged. Was there a secret hidden fourteenth student somewhere who made robots, or something? Ah, no, silly him! Maybe they just had trouble conveying emotion.

Upupupupu.

"Did you hear that?!" Garran asked.

"Hear what?" Qiulong asked.

"A laugh!" Garran cried. "Someone laughed!"

"You must be hearing things, dude," Xena said, shaking her head.

"Totally," Cordon cried.

"Nope, I heard it, too!" Aigre cried.

"Oh, goodness, same," Sani cried.

"Upupupu?!" Satine cried. "Oh, no!"

"Oh, no, indeed," Toki cried.

"Flower," Mimi said.

"Over there, little flower," Mumu said, printing.

"Black and white," Meme added.

"Smirking," Momo added.

Boom.

Standing by the podium had been a small black and white stuffed animal, excuse him, stuffed flower with a bright red spiky eye and weirdly stitched mouth that only appeared on the black side. Huh, where did the other half go? He thought he told hi--, cough, cough. Woah, wait a second, did that stuffed animal just talk? No, way!

"Thanks for ruining my grand entrance, stupid quadruplets!" A voice cried. "How dare you, how dare you, how dare you!"

"Who the heck are you, huh?!" Aigre cried. "You'd better explain yourself!" She then gulped. "Hold on, did that flower stuffed animal just talk?!"

"Upupupu! Why, of course!" the flower stuffed animal cried. "I'm your Headmaster, Monohana!" They then did a little bow. "Welcome to the Chimera Killing School Life! You thirteen will be--!" But such had been interrupted with a gag.

"What did you just say?!" Cordon cried, twisting the stuffed animal tighter. "You'd better repeat that."

"No roughhousing the Headmaster!" the flower stuffed animal cried. "It's as I've said. You thirteen will be playing a killing game! Want to get out of this place? You gotta kill to survive!" But, such had been met with screams and chatter.

"Kill?!" Qiulong cried. "No way! We won't play your sick little game!"

"Ugh, did no one remember what happened at Hope's Peak Academy?!" Garran cried. "Why are we playing this game? I ain't killing nobody!"

"Me neither, I refuse!" Xena cried.

"Same here!" Aigre shouted.

"Oh, my, now, this is such a ugly little thing," Sani said.

"Say sike right now!" Satine cried.

"I'm too young to die, I'm too young to die!" Toki cried. "I don't want to kill either!"

"Ah," Mimi said.

"A killing game," Mumu said.

"How unexpected," Meme said.

"Weird," Momo said. But, such had been shouted back at.

"Upupupu, and who said any of you had a choice, hmm?" Monohana asked. "If no one is killed in forty eight hours, the bombs strapped to your necks will go boom!"

"What? did you say?!" Garran cried. "What did you do to us?!"

"Look and the mirror, and then you'll see!" Monohana cried.

Reflection looking back at him, the hopeful student's eyes opened wide. Did his t--, cough, cough. Huh, when did this collar get on his neck?! It was so tight! Ow. Who did this to them, and why? But, no, he would not resort to killing! That scientist, Sani, surely, he knew how to defuse these bombs! He wasn't about to play this little flower's games!

Click, click, click.

(We won't play this game, puppet! Sani will find a way to get rid of these bombs!) The projection on the wall screamed.

"Upupupu, we'll see about that!" Monohana cried. "Enjoy your last forty eight hours, then! Unless you kill someone then, upupupu, the rest of you will get to live, maybe!" As they said such, they cackled. "Tootaloo!"

Weird flower creature disappearing, everyone screamed one after another. Ah, this was really happening, wasn't it? A killing game. Per----, per----, ---------- -s ----- --------- -o ----. No! How could this be happening to him? Did someone watch Junko Enoshima and decide to play her sick game? How horrible!

"Don't worry guys, I'll find a way to get rid of these bombs!" Sani cried. "I'm pretty good at wires, and stuff."

"But, we need a plan and a place to do it," Garran said, hand on his chin. "Why don't we all split up into groups of two and find out what kind of places this school has? Assuming most of them aren't destroyed."

"Sounds like a plan," Qiulong said. She then turned towards Siorc. "Say, florist boy, why don't you decide?"

Click, click, click.

(Why me?) The projection on the wall asked.

"I don't know, you just seem like the leader type!" Qiulong cried.

Hearing such, the chimera almost wanted to hold back a laugh. Him, the leader type? How silly, he wasn't the leader type! After all he was the Ultimate De--, cough, cough, Ultimate Florist! He was a mere background character. But, if they saw him as the leader, so be it, he may as well assign people into groups.

Click, click, click.

(Alright, Garran, you come with me, Cordon and Satine can go together. Qiulong and Xena, you two seem like you might be able to be quick on your feet, so you two go in a pair. Aigre and Sani, and, Toki and Momo, you can head upstairs, and I guess the rest of the triplets can go to the bottom floor.) The projection on the wall said. (When we're done, meet us back in the gym.)

"Fine," Cordon said. "We'll tell you our findings!" As she said such, she dashed away.

Everyone going their separate ways, the hyena rubbed his furry hands together. Ah, yes, yes, this student, he'll do, he can--. Cough, cough. Man, this guy, Garran, he seemed like he might know a thing or two about music, huh? The two of them were the exact opposite of one another, weren't they? He was probably a screamer, for sure.

Finding a large auditorium shortly after, the chimera placed his hands on his chin. How interesting, this little hall looked big enough to host concerts. Maybe they could? Ah, yes, that could work. Taking out a piece of paper, he scribbled up a map. That should do it. How many other rooms were in this school.

"This auditorium looks like it could hold an entire classroom," Garran cried. "Makes me want to jam out!"

Returning to the gymnasium, at least twelve rooms had been spoken about. Multiple floors reported to be locked up, the hyena sighed. Ah, how tiresome, some places were inaccessible. But, why? What was the headmaster planning? Had his t--? Oh, nothing. Whoever this flower headmaster was, they were playing a sick and twisted game!


"So, what now?" Toki asked. "Where do we go from here?"

Click, click, click, click.

(How about the day after tomorrow in the morning, Garran holds a concert in the auditorium while Sani tries to remove our explosive collars?) The Projection on wall asked.

"Hmm, sure, I guess," Qiulong said, shrugging.

"I?!" Garran stuttered. "Well, if you want to see how great I am at guitar, sure!"

"Eh, fine with me, I don't care," Xena said, why not?

"Cool, I guess, I'll go," Cordon said, shrugging.

"Hmph, fine!" Aigre shouted. "I'll think about it!"

"Oh, dear, you thinking that high voltage in the air or something will disrupt the collars?" Sani asked. "Okay, well, I guess I'll take you up on that."

"No objections," Satine said.

"Same here," Toki said. "Please play a bunny song, okay?"

"No contest," the four quadruplets said in unison.

Everyone splitting off on their own way, someone soon tugged onto his sleeve. Guitarist asking to hang out with him, the chimera shrugged. Eh, sure, why not? The best way to learn about your v--, cough, cough, the best way to come to understand the other students was to hang out with them, right? That was a good idea. Walking around the school together, the party of two soon stopped by a fountain.

"You know, kinda weird someone as quiet as you is the leader type," Garran said. "What's your secret?"

Question coming his way, the chimera broke into a sweat. Huh, what was his secret? What did they mean by that? What should he say? He wasn't the leader type at all! He was usually the one on the sidelines. But, maybe this situation changed something in him, who knows? Click, click, click.

(I don't know, maybe it's because I took the intuitive to get everyone to introduce themselves.) The projection on the wall said.

"Hmm, you could be right!" Garran cried. "Where do you want to go next?"

Click, click, click.

(You lead the way.) The projection on the wall said.

"Sure, leave it to me," Garran responded.

Finding dorm rooms off in the distance, the hopeful student could see a door with a pixel art picture of him. Seeing such, sweat dropped down his neck. What a crude drawing of him. Did that headmaster draw that? It looks so crude. Well, oh well, that's how things crumbled sometimes, he supposed.

Hours of hanging out eventually coming to an end, the hyena flopped onto his bed. Dumb little flower headmaster flopping on in to disturb him, a lock had been removed from his door. Seeing such, he rolled his eyes. Why did they have to go and do that for, huh? Little plant stuffed animal crying only the girls get locks on their shower doors, he wanted to strangle this little thing. Excuse him, he's not a guy, but he supposed he wasn't the opposite, either. Whatever.

Waking up the next morning, a full out argument had broken out in the cafeteria. Multiple people screaming at one another, the young adult covered his mouth. Ah, ex--------, -t --- -----, --- ---- --- ----- --t- -----, cough, cough. Oh, no, why was everyone fighting? What was going on here? Yesterday, everyone was getting along so well! Where did all this hostility come from?

"Why did the quadruplets swap rooms? Who said you could do that?!" Qiulong cried.

"Scared," Momo said.

"Afraid someone might kill us," Meme cried.

"Someone looked at us funny," Mimi cried.

"Really funny," Mumu cried. "So, swapped rooms."

"Ugh, I didn't look at you funny!" Aigre cried. "Stop perpetrating that lie!"

"Did," Mumu cried. "So did Xena over there."


"I didn't!" Xena cried. "You four are so annoying, and so robotic, but I wasn't looking at you funny!"

"Hey, uh, guys, could we please get along?" Garran cried.

"How dare you," Cordon said. "That guy over with the bunnies was sniffing me last night when they claimed they wanted to hang out!"

"He sniffed me, too!" Aigre cried. "Creep!"

"I'm not a guy, and I didn't do that!" Toki cried. "That's all a misunderstanding, I swear!"

"You so did!" Satine did. "You sniffed our hair, our clothes, weirdo!"

"Everyone, can we please calm down?" Sani asked. "This is all a misunderstanding."

"I'm not going to get all buddy buddy with freaky sniffer over here!" Aigre cried. "Everyone, let's sit as far away from freakazoid as possible!"

"Here ye, here ye!" Satine cried.

Girls all sitting on the opposite end of the cafeteria, the young adult bit into the school slop. He did not know why, but this accusation was kind of strange. Why would this meek little rabbit person do that? But, he could soon see something weird underneath the table. Hmm, this person had a snake tail, how very interesting.

Rest of the day everyone grouping up into pairs hanging out with one another, the chimera watched everyone from afar. Rabbit breeder guy sniffing girl's hair as accused, the young adult watched as everyone avoided them like the plague. Shaking his head, he could not help but feel that would not end well at all.

Day of the concert.

Auditorium all ramped up and ready to go, something quite horrible had been discovered before the songs had begun. Neck collars unable to be removed, the hyena's knees buckled. Oh, no, was everyone going to die? They all agreed to not kill anyone! Maybe he should p--, cough, cough. Well, it's been a nice forty eight hours here, he guessed. Goodbye world.

Everyone sitting away from Toki, the word pervert had been repeated on loop. Everyone stay away from Toki the pervert, and many other nasty tidings said, the redhead's face grew dark. Garran slamming down on the microphone, everyone looked towards the noise. Screams front and center, an electric guitar had soon been plugged in.

"Are you all ready to make some noise?!" Garran cried.

"Let's blow this joint!" Cordon cried.

Mystical tunes playing for hours on end, the hyena turned towards the back row. Girls throwing gum at Toki, the chimera shook his head. How cruel. Was this really a good punishment? But, he shrugged. Not like he was going to do anything about it. Why should he? That was a waste of his time.

"Man, I'm parched, intermission," Garran cried. "Let's come back in thirty, kay?"

Everyone exiting the auditorium, the young adult strutted off towards the fountain. Thirty minutes going by in a flash, something was not right when he returned. Everyone except two people missing, the chimera couldn't help but get a bad feeling. Oh, no, something happened didn't it?

"Almost all of the girls are missing," Sani said. "We have to look for them!"

"Missing?!" Toki said. "You sure?"

"Well, everyone except for the quadruplets," Sani said. "They're kind of weird."

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.

Loud scream coming from the cafeteria, the Ultimate Florist had begun running. That noise, something happened, didn't it? But, what he had seen upon reaching the eatery had been something he not expected. Ceiling span spinning slowly, a body had been attached to it, rotating like mad. Quadruplets turning down the power, he could the blonde lynx girl soon screamed again.

"Agire is dead!" Xena cried. But, such had been met with further screams.

"Xena, your hands!" Momo cried. "They're covered in blood!"

"I, I-," Xena cried.

Qiulong unconscious in the corner, the hyena's knees buckles. Was Qiulong dead, too? But, he shook his head, surely, no! Why would that be the case here? That couldn't have been more wrong! Sani and Toki running towards the cafeteria as well, they let out a scream.

"Aigre!" Sani cried. "Who did this?!"

"What?!" Toki cried. "Someone k-k-killed?!"

"Shut up, perv!" Xena cried in a weak voice.

Ding, ding, ding, ding!

"A body has been discovered, I repeat, a body has been discovered!" Monohana cried. "You have twenty minutes to investigate, and then it's time for a class trial."

"Are you kidding me?!" Xena cried. "Some of us went missing somewhere, you know!"

"Hehe, you mean Cordon and Satine? Hehe, they're in the weights room tied up!" Monohana cried.

"What?!" Xena cried. "We have to grab them!"

Running to the gym, the hopeful student could hardly believe his eyes, Cordon and Satine tied together with blindfolds attached, the chimera could feel the color fade away. Ah, this really happened, didn't it? Who did this? Who could the killer have been? He didn't anticipate this. Hearing spiky boots come running, shouts had soon added themselves to the mix.

"What do you mean a body has been discovered?!" Garran cried, what happened?!"

"Aigre," Meme cried.

"On the ceiling fan," Mumu said.

"Spin, spin," Mimi cried.

"Ugh, everyone, investigate the murder scene!" Garran cried. He then turned towards three of the four quadruplets. "Say, you three, why are your hands dirty?"

But, no answer had come. Observing his surroundings in silence, the hyena scribbled everything down. victim, Aigre Bulles, strangled to death by a ceiling fan in the cafeteria. Neck shows extreme signs of being fractured before being tied onto the apparatus. Writing down all the possible culprits and suspects, multiple other people had added their own observations to the mix.

Timer ticking down, the hyena strutted to the gym all by himself. Cordon and Satine, did someone intend to kill them, too? Qiulong coming to after some time, the chimera wrote down everything he could as the timer moved off towards zero. Returning to the scene of the crime one last time, there was something quite unusual he couldn't help but find on the deceased body. Skin, how strange. Peeling it off while no one was looking, he place the incriminating evidence into a small casket. How interesting. Will everyone be able to figure out who the killer is?

"Times up!" Monohana cried. "It's time for the class trial!"

Finding himself in a small courtroom, with everyone's pictures on chairs, the hyena blinked. Ah, he sees, this was exactly like the Hope's Peak Academy Killing game. Wond--, cough, cough. Horrible, horrible, how awful. What if no one was able to find the killer? They'd all die, oh no, how terrible! Flower stuffed animal sitting on the podium, he soon announced himself.

"Welcome, students to your first class trial where--!" Monohana started to say, but he was soon interrupted.

"Oh, my god, we know!" Xena cried. "We all have to find the killer, and if we are able to correctly guess who it is, only the killer dies! But, if guess wrong, and the killer gets away with it, we all die! We all know how it went in Killing School Life! So, start the stupid trial already!"

"Sheesh, you didn't even let me finish!" Monohana cried. "But, you know the drill, without further ado, then!" They then pointed at Aigre's crossed out picture. "Aigre, the Ultimate Mermaid! Cause of death strangulation! Body found attached to a ceiling fan! Which of you guys do you think dunnit?"

"Well, I think it was one of the quadruplets personally!" Garran cried. "Their hands all were dirty and covered in mermaid slime!"

"Huh?" Mumu asked.


"We didn't kill her!" Momo cried.

"Monohana, only one person can kill, right?" Mimi asked.


"Therefore, it couldn't have been us!" Meme cried.

"If more than one person kills someone, then only the first person who initiated the murder counts!" Monohana cried.

"Are you kiddin' me right now?!" Toki cried. "You dumb, or somehin'?" They then pointed at Garran. "Garran probs did it! I mean, he knows a thing or two 'bout electricity!"

"Excuse me?! How could I have done it?" Garran cried. "I was with my guitar the entire time!"

"That's right perv!" Xena cried. "Garran couldn't have done it!"

"Xena, your hands were covered in blood!" Qiulong cried. "Care to explain that? That's looking awfully suspicious!"

"What?! Why would I have been the one to kill her?!" Xena cried. "I couldn't have possibly! Someone went after me, too! And they cut my hands!"

"Really?!" Qiulong cried. "And, how can you prove that?"

But, silence soon followed. Everyone staring at Xena, the hyena folded his hands on the table. Oh, they were all going to paint the lynx as the murderer weren't they? Yawn, how boring. Should he refute this point? It would be so b--, cough, cough, no! It couldn't have been her, after all, mermaid blood was green and slimy! Should he refute that? Nah, he'll let everyone else figure it out for themselves.

"No, that's wrong!" Satine cried. "It couldn't have been Xena!"

"Oh, and what makes you say that?" Qiulong asked. "Care to explain?"

"It couldn't have been Xena, because according to the evidence file, the blood on her hand was red! And mermaids like Aigre have slimy green blood!"

"See? So, it couldn't have been me!" Xena cried. But, now, I have a question!"

"Oh? Do you now?" Sani asked. "Pray tell."

"Cordon, Satine, were you able to make out who tied you up?" Xena asked.

"No, but, they had a high pitched voice," Satine said, hand on her chin. "But, I know the person who tied us up is the same chimera who killed Aigre!"

High pitched voice mentioned, the young adult almost broke out into a whistle. Hmm, a high pitched voice, so no one would accuse him of anything, that's good. Eyes soon turning to him, the chimera gulped. Ah, they were going to send accusations his way, weren't they? How tiresome, he was ready to defend if he had to.

"You know, Siorc, you're sweating a lot!" Xena cried. "Almost like you're guilty! What are those scales on your hands?"

Hearing such, the young adult clicked up a storm. Huh, scales on his hands? That's what they were fixated on? But, mermaids didn't have scales. Should he mention that? Maybe he should, but before he could even get one projection in, someone had pointed his way with a loud scream strong enough to shake amounts.

"No, that's wrong!" Garran cried. "Siorc couldn't have done it! He's mute!"

"Hmm, you do make a good point, no one has ever heard what he sounds like," Xena said, hands on her chin. "But that doesn't mean he's innocent! What are those scales on his hands?"

Everyone arguing amongst one another for awhile, no one had come to a conclusion for minutes on end. But, as the fights had broken out, one point had been repeated over and over, Toki's clothes had been wet. Hearing such, a random and stupid excuse had been laid out in the open that almost no one believed.

"I slipped in the bathroom!" Toki cried. "I didn't do nothin'!"

"No, that's wrong!" Sani cried. "No one went to the bathroom during intermission!"

"Huh, you're right," Qiulong did. "Hold on a second, Toki, are you putting on a fake voice?"

"What are ya talkin' bout?" Toki asked. "I ain't doin' none of that! My voice is deep, baritone!"

Everyone gazing at the redhead, the hyena folded his hands together once more. Would you look at that? Everyone finally came to the conclusion. Shall he add one final piece of evidence to the mix? Click, click, click, click. Yes, yes, perhaps he should. He wasn't planning on participating much in the class trial, but whatever, here goes.

(I can prove without a doubt that Toki is the culprit here, everyone look at this.) The projection on the wall said.

Click.

"Huh?! Snake skin?!" Qiulong cried. "Wait, that's weird, there's no snake chimera here, is there?"

Click, click, click.

(Everyone, look beneath the table!) The projector on the wall said.

Gasp.

"Toki's got a snake tail!" Xena cried.


"What?!" Qiulong cried.

"You mean?" Mumu asked.

"They were?" Meme asked.

"Transformed?" Mimi asked.

Everyone glaring at Toki, the chimera hid a smirk behind his palm. Yes, yes, that's right, they found it the culprit! Isn't it wonderful? Color in his face disappearing, they soon slithered on top of the table hopping up and down. Seeing such, he slapped a palm across his forehead. The guilty were always the loudest and most annoying, weren't they?

"Yer a bunchamorons!" Toki cried. "I ain't the one who did it none! It was Xena, she's a snake, too!"

"I am not!" Xena cried. "Shut up! Just because your mother and my mother are cousins doesn't mean I'm like you!"

"Idiots, idiots, idiots, all of you!" Toki cried. "The quadruplets are snakes, they did it!"

"Nope," Mumu said.

"We cat dolls," Meme said.

"Meow," Momo said.

"Give it up," Garran said. "You're guilty, what do you have to say for yourself?"

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAaaH." Toki screamed.

"That monster, she! She called me a pervert, that stupid mermaid, she told everyone to stay away from me! How couldn't I kill that monster, huh? I just thought her hair smelled nice and I wanted to get a whiff, but no! She had to label me a freak! I ain't no freak! What healthy eighteen year old doesn't want to smell a gal's hair? To that I say, no normal person wouldn't! So, yeah, I killed her, so what? She deserved it!"

"Pervert, you sick pervert!" Xena cried. "I hope you die!"

Everyone glaring at the culprit, the chimera rolled his eyes. Wow, the guilty sure had a lot to say, didn't they? How pitiful. It was always like this, though, wasn't it? The most likely person who was the one to have done it always had the most to say. Everyone without a doubt voting for Toki, the flower let out a cheer.

"It's punishment tiiiiiiiiiiiiime!" Monohana cried.

"No, please! She had it coming!" Toki cried. "Let me live!"

"Nope, let's go!" Monohana cried.

Toki Pictiur has been found guilty.

Time for the punishment!

Bunny Meal.

Redhead in the a pet store setting, the young breeder was sweating. Thousands upon thousands of bunnies nibbles on his ears, face and eventually everything else, the young adult could hardly believe his eyes. Huh, what a strange punishment. Little fluffy mammals munching on them like the leaves outside, soon nothing remained.

Flower plushie saying they felt bad for the poor fella, they had soon been held into a chokehold once again. Little plushie crying if they do that again, they'll be the next to go, everyone returned to their rooms. Closing the door behind him, the young adult plopped himself in the bathroom.

Letting out a laugh, the hopeful student placed his hands over his face. Wonderful, wonderful, the first class trial had soon come to an end, what a great spectacle! Cough, cough. Huh, what? No, what a terrible show! He needed to get out of this terrible school as soon as possible! But, how? How could he ever hope to leave this place? Sighing, he smirked as he stared at the wall.

His Killing School Life was just beginning.

How won--. Cough, cough. Terrible.

---

It should be pretty obvious who the mastermind is. Anyway, I don't have a digital reference, so here's Danganronpa Siorc, I guess!

Next week is phantom thief Siorc, oh boy.

 

[Palamon]

Teddy Bear Alice's Heist: Kitty Zircon Museum

---

"Hi there, pleasure to meet you,
I'm Siorc Ingne, a sophomore

In a community college
Majoring in fashion design, specifically teddy bears. I adore

Small plushies so much, and
I plan to one day
Open a Teddy Bear museum made from Teddy Bears only using ethical and
Recycled components! I live in a place
Called Iceachester, a chilly northern town populated by humans, and chimeras.

I'm a hyena chimera with a shark brain, by the way. Hence the
Name Siorc. In any case, there's been something
Going on in the past couple months
Now. Now, most of the humans don't
Even know this, but, we've had a stealth

Alien invasion.

How do I know?
You see, I might have an
Eensy little secret. I'm a phantom thief.
Now, I haven't been one
All that long. I'm still

Completely new to this, and I
Have a small team, but
I was contacted by this
Mildly irritating bird sized alien and
Everything turned upside down
Rather fast after that!
Ah, so, there's these things called

Anima jewels, and these aliens
Started bringing them in from

Wherever they came from! And
Err, they're dangerous and could
Literally kill the museum owners and other things.
Let me just say that, it's

Absolutely obvious when an alien
Stops by to add their dangerous

Anima jewels to museum

Collections. Before this fairy came
Over to me, I often would visit museums in my free time. And,
Like, those jewels give birth to alien hatchlings, and they
Like make museum
Employees act weird. So, it's my job to
Go and steal them before an
Even worse invasion can occur! But, I fear

Soon, my cover might be blown.
Okay so, there's this really
Problematic couple of students who are onto me.
However, I don't talk, I use flash cards to communicate, but they
Might be
Onto me! Some think, Teddy Bear Alice, that's my phantom thief alter ego, by the way,
Resembles me!
Even my roommate in our shared apartment seems to think so!

But, I never speak, so,
Unless someone catches me in
The act before I'm in

My costume, but what are the
Odds of that? Zero to none, I'd
Say! Anyway,
There's no way I'll

Incriminate myself, so.
Might as well stop asking! I
Probably should mention, I'm
One of five phantom thieves on a little team. But people only
Remember Teddy Bear Alice for some reason.
The little bird fairy Iben, he told me
And my team that we might
Not be remembered, but
That's not true!
Look, it's kind of weird,
You know, that people

Always seem to remember my

Phantom Thief alias. But, they do, and I
Have to
Ask, why only me? It makes
No sense. But, I'm
Thinking too hard about it!
Oh, well. I'm hoping they'll forget next time, but
Maybe I'm a little

Too hopeful. In the end, I
Hardly understand why
I'm the only phantom thief
Everyone remembers, is it because of my bear motif? I
Feel like there's more than

One of us on this team that
Has memorial features,

But whatever. It is what it is.
Ugh, I have a feeling
That the aliens might

Try to attack again soon. And, I'll
Have to go
And steal
The anima jewels again, but

Listen, people
Are onto me right now,
So I would prefer if I don't have
To right now, just saying!

But, if an alien attacks,
I don't have a choice but
To go and steal the anima jewels.

If they were to
Stay around for way

Too long, they'll hatch into
One big dangerous and
Poisonous alien, and I

Simply just can't allow it!
Even if I'm risking getting
Caught and my secret identity being
Revealed, I cannot quit.
Every single chimera on my
Team relies on me. I

Don't know why, but without me, not a single
One of them can operate. I'm
Not sure why either! Guess I'm
The glue

That holds
Everything together?
Look, maybe I'm a
Little too optimistic that's true! But,

Anyway, for the moment, I
Need to pinpoint the next target.
You listening, alien?
Of course you're
Not, but I will
Eradicate you and steal your anima jewels! Watch me!"

Pitter, patter, pitter patter.

The hail hit the windows of hundreds of homes across Iceachester, a desolate town in the middle of a bustling city-state. Despite being a summer day, for the citizens of the human and chimera intertwined society, it had been yet another typical day for the community. And, as usual, the icy chill wasn't about to slow down.

Shake, shake, shake, shake.

Waking up to a violent raddling had been a feminine appearing young adult individual with long dark purple hair slung over the right shoulder. Bright pink pajamas with a navy blue cat eared cloud on it, the person rubbed the eyes with the currently hyena paws. What did the roommate want this early in the morning? It wasn't time to leave for college classes yet.

"Siorc, how can you keep on sleeping? I keep trying to get your attention. Wake up already!" the roommate said. They then groaned. "Ugh, is he still half asleep?" Such had been said under the breath, but they soon stopped themselves from growling further. "Oh, my lord! Could you stop looking like you're ready to go back to sleep?"

Lifting himself up from the covers, a dark skinned feminine appearing person with bright red hair pulled into a low ponytail had an annoyed look on their face. Bright green thorny ears and vined hands and feet looking ready to tap him a new one, he groaned at his roommates outfit. In a leotard yet again. How many times did he have to tell them to at least wear pants underneath? But, Cedre never listened. They would always use the excuse that they had been a plant chimera, there was nothing underneath to hide. Reaching for the communication cards, he flipped to card seventeen. Placing the book over his lips, he let out a barely audible noise.

<I ask you to knock before coming into my room, Cedre,> the flash card said.

"Since when do you care about me knocking?" Cedre asked. "Whatever! Since you're awake, don't forget to go to the market after your college lectures today! Steak's on sale. And don't touch it with your hyena paws! Make sure your hands are human when you're shopping! I don't want our dinner contaminated!"

Contamination mentioned, the college student hid his face underneath the communication flash card book. There they go again, claiming his paws were dirty, and filthy it's not like he chose to be born this way! How could they be so fixated on that when they themselves were a chimera? He'd never know. And, why couldn't they just go to the supermarket themselves? It's not like they were in school! All they did all day was work from home! They had plenty of time to go shopping! Flipping to page forty, the book had been out in front once more.

<Why can't you go to the supermarket? I have other things to do today, you know,> the flash card said.

"Are you serious?!" Cedre cried. "It's hailing! I can't go out in that kind of weather! You'd better get the stuff I put on the shopping list for today, or you can forget me making dinner tonight!"

<Whatever, fine, I'll go pick up what you need after classes today, alright?> the flash card responded.

"Good, you'd better!" Cedre cried. "We're out of food today, so you'll have to make due with yogurt for now! You'd better hurry up and get ready soon! Don't you have to leave in two hours?"

Infernal plant chimera rushing him, the hyena rolled his eyes. Look at this big flower, telling him how to live his life! He had plenty of time before he had to leave today, thank you. Can't they let him breathe? He had a game to play before he went out today, that hip and happening phantom thief hit of the century, Anosrep V.

<I don't have to get ready yet! Now, get out my room!> the flash card exclaimed.

"Playing that stupid phantom thief game again?" Cedre groaned. "I swear, if I didn't know any better, you're that Phantom Thief Teddy Bear Alice or something! Whatever. Have fun with that piece of junk!" They slammed the door on their way out.

"You know, you really need to change your taste in games, bro," a tiny voice said. "Your roommate been onto you for a week now."

Flying over a tiny little pillow in the corner of his bed had been a small eight inch tall brown haired masculine pixie with messy shoulder length brown hair. Pure white eyes low on the face, in the middle of his forehead had been a wide open green eyes with a blood red pupil. Fancy robe almost bigger than his entire body, on his hands had been fanged tongues. White feathered wings behind him, the hyena almost wanted to chuck him across the room. This dumb fairy. Couldn't Iben be quiet? He's going to blow his cover! Opening to page five hundred, he grunted beneath the back cover.

<Say it louder so they can hear you, why don't you?!> Flip, flip. <Iben, I thought I told you a million times at this point to only talk to me when we have to issue a calling card!>

"Man, I've told you like, a million times that normal people not blessed by my powers can't see or hear me!" Iben cried. "Don't worry, pal, they don't even know I'm here!"

Flip, flip, flip.

<That plant has a sixth sense, I'm certain they can see you! Now, leave me alone so I can get ready for my morning gaming session before classes!> the flash card cried.

"I don't get why you like Anosrep V so much!" Iben cried. "You're a real phantom thief on a real team. And, like it's not even good or accurate! There's not even an alien invasion in it!"

Pesky little pixie insulting the holy pastime, the college student flicked his annoying freeloader's nose. How dare he call Anosrep V a bad game! He'll pay for that! What's wrong with him enjoying a good old time? Even before he became one himself, he always adored this genre! What, was he supposed to suddenly despise it now? Fat chance of that happening! He ought to feed this fiend to the aliens by now!

Flick, flick.

<Who cares if it's not true to life! The alien invasion happened suddenly!> Flip, flip. <Now, leave me alone so I can get dressed!>

"Alright, alright, sheesh. I dunno why you're so defensive over that stupid game for!" Iben cried. "Have fun with your dumb game! Hmph!"

Stupid pixie floating away, the young adult hopped out of the bed. Groaning, he rumbled through his drawers. Stomping off towards the restroom, he locked the door behind him. Iben and Cedre, neither of them would understand the greatness that was the Anosrep series. He had been into it for as long as he could breathe! Okay, maybe not that long, but whatever, may as well be the case!

Slightly cracked mirror in front of him as he placed a towel over his dripping locks, the college student reached for the mascara brush. Lashes stylish as usual, his mismatched purple and green eyes were as bland and boring as ever. Groaning, he sighed. If only he could wear contacts to hide that green pupil. But, those horrible plastic things stung like a bee.

Reaching for the hair drier, the young adult grabbed the bright green scrunchies. Hair tied up into bunned pigtails, the hyena plopped on a light pink sweater. Awful fabrics pressed upon his skin, he groaned as his hyena paws switched back to human form. Who was in charge of making sweaters? He'd like to have a word with that sorry son of a glitch!

Bright pink overalls with a smiling teddy bear on the pocket, the buttons as well had been cute little teddies. Blue shaped hearts printed everywhere, his spotted light rosy tail swished behind him. But, he tried to make the appendage go away. Oh, no, there it was again! He needed to stop that thing from popping out! Press on cuticles put over his plain and boring nails, the chimera clicked the matching hairpins and earrings into place. Grizzly here, grizzly there, grizzly everywhere, everything was set.

Trotting towards the kitchen, the hyena creaked open the fridge. Nothing but Greek Yogurt on the bottom shelf, the chimera let out a groan. Why did Cedre always wait until the last second to tell him they needed to go shopping? Reaching for the blue container, he wolfed down the disgusting liquid. Holding back a gag, he huffed. Whoever invented this awful food should be sent to prison for crimes against food!

Slam.

"You're wearing that stupid outfit to your fashion design class again?" Cedre asked in a disgusted tone. "Can't you wear something else?"

Flip, flip.

<Leave me alone. You wear a leotard every single day when I tell you not to, so why should I listen to you?> the flash card said.

"You wrote that flash card especially for me, didn't you?" Cedre asked in a sarcastic tone. "God, whatever. Go play your stupid phantom thief game. But, you have to leave in like thirty minutes!"

Zooming towards the den, the chimera flipped on the television. Odnetnin Hctiws booted up, the controller had been practically glued to his hands. Pressing the U button, the bright and magical intro to Anosrep V soon played in its full glory. Oh, sweet, sweet bliss, how he missed it. How long had it been since he turned this thing on? Yesterday? One day too long, if you asked him!

But, an annoying mishap soon took the stage. Buttocks clicked on the stupid television remote, an aggravating breaking news report soon played. Reporter on the television going on and on about Teddy Bear Alice, he tried to switch back to the game. Low battery noise beeping, the student let out a growl. What deity had he angered for this to occur? Ugh. Plopping everything into the dock, he shook his head. Forget it, he'll play later.

Heading for the door, the young adult reached for the heavy duty boots. Winter jacket slapped over, he could hear the bus horn honk at him. Bright white shuttle with the words Iceachester Community College slanted horizontal on the vehicle waiting for him on the streets, he ascended the small staircase.

Plop.

Seating himself on the furthest seat from the back, the shuttle's door soon slammed closed. Removing the jacket as the wheels had begun whirring, the chimera stared out the window. Spotting a big green man in the corner with a teddy bear shaped jewel, the young adult held in a groan. Oh, great, looks like he's going to have another midnight heist again waiting for him! Why can't he just have one late night gaming session for once in his life?

Scrrrrrt.

Plop.

Person soon seated next to him, eyes sized him up, in an instant. Bright, blond haired man with light blue highlights on the spiky loose strands, and azure plastic eyes, the college turned back towards the window. How did this lynx chimera have star shaped pupils? Whoever made costume contact lenses a thing, they needed to be put in fashion prison! Bright white pirate shirt and high waisted jeans practically cutting into him, he wanted to text up the fashion police right now. How in the world was Faxi in the fashion design department when he couldn't for the life of him look good in anything he ever wore?

"How can you go to school wearing that gaudy thing?" Faxi groaned. "Aren't you embarrassed to wear that horribly washed out pair of overalls?"

Stupid lynx yammering his ear off, the chimera kept his attention on the window. Big green man strutting off towards the natural mineral museum, he groaned. Yup, as he thought, yet another anima gem. What poor and sorry museum director was going to get possessed today? He guessed he'd find out when he got home. But, a tap on the shoulder took him away.

"Why are you ignoring me? I'm talking to you!" Faxi cried. "Do you know how gaudy you look right now? You dress as bad as Teddy Bear Alice! Almost like you're them or something!"

Spotlight flashed over him, the young adult broke into a sweat. What did this pest just say? Did he uncover his secret identity? Oh, no, oh, no, what should he do? How could he get himself out of this? Ah, no, Siorc, don't panic, this dude just despises pink, that's all! Totally typical behavior from this pesky contact wearer. Ah, which flash card should he use, which one?

Flip, flip, flip.

<We're in the soft goods design class.> Flip, flip. <What's wrong with me showing my appreciation for the fine art of teddy bears?>

"At least wear a contrasting sweater!" Faxi cried. "Didn't anyone ever teach you the art of fashion? No? Didn't think so!" He crossed his lynx paws around his waist as he said such. "Ugh, why am I stuck in the same assigned seat as you in class? I'm going to ask the professor to switch my spot today!"

Lynx going on and on as usual about getting his seat changed, the student tuned him out. When will this man learn to keep his mouth shut? He never would, would he? Horn soon honked, the chimera reached for his coat. Lord, finally, that ride was over. Everyone barreling off the vehicle, the chimera slowly exited. Trudging through the campus hallways, the young soldier plopped his coat in the gymnasium lockers for the time being.

Reaching the fashion design department, a tall, blond man with golden penguin crests had been seated off in the corner by a dozen of extremely large teddy bears. Bright pink monster dress with a gaudy as ever tutu, the young adult broke into a sweat. Did Professor Marquis lose a bet with the other fashion design professors again? Every day, he swore he wore the most ridiculous outfits on purpose.

"Professor Marquis!" Faxi cried. "I want to switch tables!"

"I have told you fifty times by now that I won't be switching tables! Seats are full, so get used to it!" Professor Marquis cried.

"Hmph! Why did I enroll in this stupid class?" He stomped off as he said such.

Flip, flip.

<Good morning, professor, what's the agenda today?> the flash card asked.

"Continue on your project as usual," Professor Marquis responded. "If you have any questions, don't be afraid to holler!"

Nodding, the hyena strutted off towards his seat. Sifting through his tote bag, the fabric sheets had soon been laid out on the table. Today, he wound finally put a head on this sad, sorry little pink grizzly. Peachy, they would soon nearly be ready to be stuffed up! He could hardly wait to begin the stuffening.

Plop.

"Ugh, your overalls could light up an entire room!" his seat neighbor soon cried. "Don't you know how to dress?"

Seated next to him had been a short tan skinned masculine appearing person with a messy low brown ponytail and pitch black triangular shaped earring. Bright pink sweater vest with a ball shaped creature on it, the college student wanted to rip his hair out. Like Velours is one to talk! They were wearing a bright pink Ybrik knitted tank top! Practice what they preach for once! Flipping to the three hundredth page in his flash card book, he hid a groan.

<Look who's talking,> Flip, flip. <You're wearing pink, too!>

"Oh, you put that line in your communication book just for me, didn't you? I'm flattered!" Velours cried. "Unlike you, I make pink look good! Also, those teddy bears are just so annoying. Are you trying to be a professor's pet, or something?"

Flip, flip.

<Leave me alone. Don't you have work to do?> the flash card asked.

"Yeah, yeah, don't rub it in!" Velours cried. But, they soon didn't practice what they preached. "Say, you know, unlike you, I got contacted by Odnetnin to make them new Ybrik plushies as a part of my internship! What are you doing? Ethical teddy bear making? Ha, that is so last decade! No one will ever want to hire you in the future! Give up while you're ahead, bro!"

Annoying empty phrases coming his way, the chimera placed the needle in the teddy's body. No one would want ethically made teddy bears!? He'll show them! When Odnetnin saw them using their lizard blood for their plush's eyes, they would cancel their internship, that's for sure! Ah, but why spill the beans on that? They'll find out the hard way.

Stuffing soon shoved into little Peachy, the chimera gazed at the head. Had he made it too big again? Maybe he really needed to start measuring a few more times before he finished the product. He'll have to remember that for next time. Needle up and ready to go, he prepared to make this precious toy look alive. But, as he had begun to stitch the cranium on, annoying words had come his way.

"You know, Siorc, I've been thinking for awhile now!" Velours cried. "Wouldn't you say you resemble that lousy thief Teddy Bear Alice to a t? You wear the same gaudy fashion they do!" They soon laughed as they said such. "This time, I won't fail to catch them!" Violently removing a needle from the tomato pincushion, the giggles continued. "I won't rest until that jewel thief is behind bars!"

Peachy's head soon rolling onto the floor, the young adult's eyebrows twitched. Oh, no, was this guy onto him again? This is the third time this month. What should he do? Had he already uncovered his secret identity? How did he surmise that so fast? Lord, why was their father the Iceachester's top museum chief? Ah, what page should he flip to? Which one, which one?

Flip, flip.

<I don't look anything like Teddy Bear Alice!> the flash card exclaimed. He let out a nervous laugh as he continued to flip through everything. <And, I don't dress the way they do at all!>

"Why do you have a flash card ready and waiting about Teddy Bear Alice, hmm?" Velours cried. "It's almost like you're guilty! Haha, just kidding!"

Reaching for Peachy's head, the hyena let out a sigh of relief. Oh, they were just joking, haha. They were, right? Surely, they were? He really needed to wear a different costume and put on a wig on midnight heists. Why didn't Iben think of that? Oh, well. Nothing he could do about it. He supposed he was stuck looking the way he did.

Head soon plopped on, the hours passed by. Heading off to his boring other lectures shortly after the clock struck two, the hyena practically fell asleep. Ugh, why did he sign up for math lectures again? He shouldn't have. But, too late for that, he guessed. He was paying for it. He hardly had money for the dropping fee. Clock ticking slowly, his phone soon vibrated in his pocket.

Thick as thieves group chat banner on his notification screen, the college student was practically ready to zoom out the door. Oh, this was what he thought it was, wasn't it? It had to have been. Teacher soon dismissing the class, the hyena dashed off towards the common area. It's reading time! So long, division problems. So long, geometry, he wouldn't have to hear that professor yap about shapes and numbers again! Sitting crisscross on the gross plastic chair, his phone screen lit up like a holiday tree.

{Thick As Thieves Chat!}

{Cloch}
{That Iben! He texted me a calling card while I was at work again!}

{Laine}
{Ugh, again?! When is is written for this time?}

{Cloch}
{Midnight sharp at the Kitty Zircon museum! Something about an alien introducing really poisonous animal jewels into the museum and the owner started acting super weird or something? For the love of! That dude lives with Siorc! He ought to tell him for once to wait until we're all off from work or school to alert us about thieving duties!}

{Pulao}
{Um, I dunno, it's kind of nice he lets us know ahead of time so we can figure out how to strategize, wouldn't you say?}

{Cloch}
{No?! It's so annoying when he lets us know ahead of time! I have to think about whether I have to take off work or if I have to reschedule! I'm a busy college student who happens to have a part time job, too! But, no, that little pixie decided to give the five of us alien fighting powers! And, now I'm stuck in this role until the aliens decide to leave this planet!}

{Kali}
{I'm with Pulao.}

{Laine}
{I'm not! I'm with Cloch here! Why can't that stupid pixie wait until the night of to tell us he's sending out a calling card? It can't be that bad! I thought the poison those anima jewels let out don't go into effect for a few days? Unless he lied?}

{Cloch}
{We need to tell Siorc to talk to that guy! We're all way too busy for this!}

[Siorc is typing...]

{Cloch}
{Siorc, tell Iben to send our calling cards later in the day!}

{Siorc}
{Tried that multiple times. He doesn't listen to me.}

{Cloch}
{Ugh! Now I have to leave work early today because of this!}

{Kali}
{Cloch, it's only six.}

{Cloch}
{Midnight will be here before we know it! Please, Siorc, tell that annoying fairy to wait until at least four hours before to let us know we have a mission!}

{Siorc}
{I'll try.}

{Laine}
{Anyway, since it's pretty clear we're on for another heist today, where should we all meet up and discuss things in person?}

{Pulao}
{Same place as usual?}

{Cloch}
{Just say your room in the back of your family's restaurant! It's not that hard!}

{Pulao}
{Sigh. We'll meet in my room in the back of my family's restaurant. Happy?}

{Cloch}
{That's better!}

{Kali}
{I'll be there at seven. I have something I have to do first.}

{Laine}
{Same. Have to go to the deli and buy dinner for my twin.}

{Cloch}
{Ugh, anyone else have other unimportant things to get done?}

[Siorc is typing...]

{Cloch}
{Oh my god, Siorc! Not you too!}

{Siorc}
{My roommate needs me to go buy a few groceries. I'll be there at seven thirty.}

{Cloch}
{Can't you just make them get their groceries?}

{Siorc}
{My roommate will shutdown if they have to walk through the cold.}

{Pulao}
{Look, it's fine! No rush. I'll see everyone at seven thirty, okay?}

Locking his phone screen, the chimera retrieved his jacket. Heading for the bus station, the hyena let out a sigh as he seated himself on the last seat from the back once more. Why couldn't his roommate just order their dinner online or something? He had a heist to get done today! There was hardly any time for this nonsense.

Reaching the grocery store, a loud horn soon blasted every which way. Announcer proclaiming it was time for the blue light special, the crowd was roaring. Becoming one with the ground, the chimera groaned. Oh, no, what was on sale today? Ice cream half off for an hour? Great, steak was full price today! Goodbye wallet.

Strutting off towards the meat department, cold, hard spiky cuffs had soon pressed against his coat. Letting out a screech, the young adult could hardly believe his eyes at who was standing next to him as he examined the meat prices. Green skinned humanoid person with large bug eyes and a slicked back ponytail, a museum employee outfit had been practically glued to the stranger. Rolling his eyes, he tried to look away. Oh, great, this alien was shopping here, too? Was he looking to plop down an anima jewel here? Not on his watch, they don't!

"Heheh, this place will do!" the alien said, but such had been whistled away.

"Psst, psst, Izzet, no, what are you thinking?" alien number two cried. "If we poison the human's food supply, those things called the polize will be after us!"

"Polize?" Izzet asked. "What's dat?"

"Bad people who will beat our brains out!" alien number two cried. "Stick to the plan for today!"

"Fine, hmph, let's go!" Poof.

Eyebrows twitching, the chimera tried with all his might to forget what he just heard. What were these aliens doing here trying to set their heights on a local grocer? No way is he doing a heist here, forget it. Plopping the cheapest steak he could find in his recycled bag, he stocked up on food for the rest of the week as well. Money ready to drown him up to his eyeballs rung up, he groaned as he took out the plastic card of debt. Not enough cash on him again, how embarrassing.

Returning to the apartment, he let out a sigh as his roommate glared at the price tag on the steak container. Here they go again, he's so cheap! He's supposed to buy the fancy steak! Blah, blah, blah. If they wanted it so bad, why couldn't they just buy it? Whatever, he didn't have time for this. They can eat steak by themself.

"I keep telling you to buy the good steak!" Cedre cried. "Why are you buying the annoying cheap ones?"

Flip, flip.

<Just hurry up and make it. I have to leave in forty five minutes.> the flash card said.

"You! What? Where are you going, huh?!" Cedre cried.

Flip, flip.

<I'm going to my friend's house,> the flash card said.

"Since when do you have friends?" Cedre asked. "You're the loneliest loner I know!"

Steak rushed onto his plate, the young adult nibbled away like a madhyena. Meat super rare, he nearly split it out. How many times did he have to tell them to kill the meat dead? Whatever, it's not like he couldn't handle it. Hyenas were scavengers. At least, the animal his dna was ruined by were. Wolfing down the grossly undercooked meat, he zoomed off towards the door.

"When will you be back?" Cedre asked. "By the way, rent is due tomorrow! Hand over your half!"

<Late.> the flash card said.

"How late?!" Cedre asked. As they said such, they could hear their pesky roommate madly flipping through that stupid communication book. "Geez, just how many pages are in that stupid thing?! Can't you just talk to me like a normal person for once?"

<After midnight,> the flash card said. <And, I'll put my half of the rend in the envelope when I come back, alright?>

"Ugh! Whatever, lock the door when you come back!" Cedre cried. "You having friends, haha, sure you do, buddy. I'll believe it when I see it."

Slamming the door behind him, the chimera could hear pesky wings floating beside him once more. Turning towards the side, he rubbed his eyebrows. He thought he told Iben to not follow him around? Sighing, he surrendered. Not like he'd listen to him. Shoulder as cold as ice, he sauntered onwards towards Bai Tofu. Door jingling like always, the familiar greeting had come his way.

"Customer?" a tall otter man asked. "Pulao, greet our customer."

"No, papa, a friend," Pulao said. "I'm going to my room now, okay?"

Stepping away from the counter had been a short young woman with short white hair tied into two buns. Light blue ribbons on her hair aplenty, her eyes matched the accessories almost exactly. Plain beige cheongsam exposing her legs, her otter tail behind her was a mess, as usual. Sighing, he shook his head. He never understood how she was chosen by Iben. Strutting off towards the back room, he seated himself in the leftmost beanbag chair.

"Ugh, I thought you said you'd be here by seven thirty!" a high pitched voice cried.

"You know Siorc's roommate," Pulao said. "They're always asking a million questions about us."


Complaining in the corner had been a short young adult tan woman with curly brown hair that went down to about her waist. Adorning two rabbit barrettes on the top of her head, her pitch black lizard eyes looked as though they were staring into his soul. White sweater and skirt looking ready to rip apart, her striped tail swished behind her. Same old Laine, same old impatient gal.

"Siorc went to the store during the blue light special, so of course he's going to be a little late," an alto voice called out. "Laine, honestly, just chill."

Talking with her hands in the corner had been a short young adult woman with maroon hair tied up into a ponytail. Eyes matching her locks exactly, she had a very weird black shirt on with nothing but goofy looking eyes and a mouth. Seeing such, he shook his head. Kali was always wearing the strangest outfits. Was this mermaid dress code or something? Excuse him, sea lion chimera. His bad.

"Again?!" another high pitched voice asked. "Siorc, time is money here, you know! I had to leave my job early!"

Complaining in the corner had been a short dark skinned young woman with bright red hair pulled into two high pigtails. Adorning ancient looking clothes, he did a double take. How was Cloch at all related to Cedre? He never understood. Where were her plant bits? But, why question her biology? Maybe she could transform them away, unlike his dumb roommate.

"Cloch, come on," Kali said. "The blue light specials come at any place and any time. How was he supposed to know?" But, such had soon been interrupted.

"Say, Iben, why can't you send us the calling card later in the day?" Cloch complained at the top of her lungs. "Some of us have jobs!"

"And, some of us have school!" Laine said. "I'm a college student, you know!"

"Girls, girls, I keep telling you we got to be ready in advance for our heists!" Iben cried. "Speaking of which, today's museum has high security. So, I'd leave a little early if I were you!"

"You!" Cloch cried, groaning. "How early?!"

"I'd say maybe two hours early!" Iben cried. "This museum is state of the art when it comes to locking out intruders!"

Hearing such, the hyena cracked his knuckles. Oh, they were state of the art when it comes to security were they? Well, little did this dumb fairy know, Kitty Cat Dee was an expert at this sort of thing! Did this pixie think they were all braindead or something? He didn't know, but it sure seemed like he thought they all were!

"No problem, no problem, I can disable the lasers!" Kali cried. "So, tell us, what are we stealing this time?"

"Did you even read the calling card I sent?!" Iben cried.

"No, you stupid pixie because you sent it to us way too early!" Cloch cried.

"Same, I didn't read it, either!" Laine shouted.

"Guys, uh, you probably should have because?" Pulao said, voice shaking. "This heist is taking place in Kitty Zircon. And they've employed much more security than our last heist!"

"Ugh, you can't be serious!" Cloch cried. "Iben, you braindead pixie! You're supposed to have knocked out those stupid guards before we even got there!"

"Huh, since when was that my job, Clockwork Spades Hare?" Iben asked in a cheeky tone.

"You?!" Cloch cried. "Siorc, do I have permission to wring this stupid fairy's neck?"

Flip, flip.

<No.> the flash card said.

"Why I oughta!" Cloch shouted. "Whatever! Oh my lord, so, let's discuss the plan, shall we? Yearning Lover Cheshire, you'll knock out the security guards."


"Got it," Pulao said. "What about White Rabbit Lorina?"

"She'll? She'll fight the aliens on the roof!" Cloch cried.

"Fight aliens on the roof?!" Laine cried. "You mean, they have friends again!"

"Yeah, they have friends!" Cloch cried. "As for you Teddy Bear Alice, you'll--." But, she had soon been interrupted.

Flip, flip.

<I'll fight the aliens and steal the anima jewel, don't worry about it.> the flash card said.

"You?! Fine, Mx. Main Character, take the glory away from everyone else!" Cloch said. "Now that that's taken care of, does anyone wanna play Anosrep V Royale with me? We have two hours before it's go time!"

"Ugh," Kali groaned.

"What's your problem huh?" Cloch asked.

"How can you enjoy that game when we're real phantom thieves?" She rolled her eyes as she inquired such.

"I've always loved Anosrep!" Cloch cried. "Am I supposed to suddenly stop just 'cause we're phantom thieves now?"


"I said the same thing!" Iben cried. "You girls need to stop playing that bogus game!"

Toss.

"Shut up! Go crawl into your hole until it's showtime!" Cloch cried.

"Alright, alright, I'll go take out my spare Hctiwses, okay?" Pulao asked. "Who's playing?"

"Siorc and I will!" Cloch cried.

"I'll play, too," Laine whispered.


"Fine, make that the four of us!" Her voice grew louder as she said such.

Competitive battle royale game blasting the walls, Pulao's parents soon screeched to lower their console's volume. Fictional phantom thieves duking it out with one another, the chimera paid attention to the time. Why was the clock's numbers flying so fast? Timer soon dinging, the stupid pixie had soon come flying forward.

"Everyone, put your consoles down, it's time for the hunt!" Iben cried.

"Just, shut up and give us our badges, you stupid pixie!" Cloch cried.

"Okay, okay, here." He handed everyone their pendant as he said such.

Little teddy bear pendant in the palm of his hands, the chimera closed his eyes as the tiny grizzly had become one with his body. Blinding light engulfing him, a bright pink dress with a cross stitch in the middle had adorned his short body. Teddy bear design on the hem of the knee length skirt, his face had soon been covered by a red violet mask. Right eye hole purple and right eye hole green, he groaned. He had told Iben a million times by now to change the eyes on this thing! Hair pulled into a wild high ponytail, his hairpins and earrings remained the same.

Everyone else in far more less flashy outfits, the hyena scratched his head. Why didn't Iben give the rest of his team the same costumes as him, but with their corresponding animal? He never knew, but he supposed he was the first person he contracted into this job. He shouldn't think too hard about it.

Party of five teleporting straight to the roof, the phantom thief studied the world around him. Museum off in the distance glowing up like a holiday tree, Teddy Bear Alice took a triple take. As usual, these stupid aliens had to make their presence known. How many jewels did they put down in this museum this time? Kitty Zircon was one of the larger ones, were they going to take advantage of that?

"I can already see hundreds of aliens on the roof!" White Rabbit Lorina cried. "I gotta go fast!"

"Ugh, White Rabbit Lorina, wait!" Kitty Cat Dee cried. "Hmph, well, I guess I should go through the back then! Clockwork Spades Hare, let's go!"

"Okay, okay, I'm coming!" Clockwork Spades Hare cried. "You know, I'm supposed to be the leader of this team, right?"

"As usual, those three are dysfunctional as always," Yearning Lover Cheshire sighed. "Okay, Teddy Bear Alice, we'll be going through the air duct. You ready?"

Flip, flip.

<Ready.>

Museum roof soon reached, Teddy Bear Alice cracked his knuckles. Finally, it was time for the show. This stupid alien thought he could introduce his poison gems and get away with it? No way, not a chance! This time, he'll knock out that stupid invader and steal that animal jewel right in front of him! Dropping through the airduct, jazzy music soon played.

It's Showtime.

Yearning Lover Cheshire knocking the security guards out good, the lasers had been undone like always. Hearing someone panic in the corner, Teddy Bear Alice prepared himself. Ah, that fiendish scum from college was here after all. That wannabe detective thinks he can best him and get his team arrested, huh? Not happening!

Rolling up into a ball the phantom thief was ready. Pesky sweater vest wearing lizard setting up a million traps, Teddy Bear Alice swerved every which way. Ah, yes, little net traps, the same old nonsense. When would they ever learn how to really trap someone? They were the worst opponent he had ever seen! He should teach him how traps really worked!

Snap.

"Ugh! Teddy Bear Alice, I'll get you for this" Velours cried. "How dare you evade me once again! I won't let you steal the anima jewel!"

"What do you want to do with him?" Iben asked.


Flip, flip.

<Torture him a little for me.> the flash card said.

"Got it," Iben said. As he said such, his little pixie body glowed. "Hey, there, buddy, wanna play a game?" His voice boomed as he said such.


"Who?! Who are you?!" Velours cried.

"Your worst nightmare!" The voice echoed.

Lasers everywhere the eye could see, the hyena rolled up into a ball. Ugh, had there been some his team had missed? How annoying, he thought these two were better than that! Soon reaching the showroom after trial and tribulation, the young adult readied his spear. Goodbye fellow aliens, they're going down!

Spotting a little girl beside a liver spotted man the little girl had been drowning in tears. Ancient old bag looking ready to toss the girl against the wall, Teddy Bear Alice could feel his heart thump in his chest. No, not again, these poison gems, why were they always bringing the worst out in humans? He could never understand what these aliens were truly after when they invaded.

"Daddy, ever since Mr. Goat came in with those new gems, you've been acting so strange!" the little girl cried. "What's wrong, daddy?"


Toss.


"Daddy!" the girl cried. "Daddy, you're hurting me!"

"Silence, you stupid kid!" the middle aged man cried.

Bam.

"Daddy! Daddy! Stop, it hurts, daddy!" the little girl cried. "Mel sorry for making you mad!"

Watching in horror as a poor young kid got caught in the cross fire, Teddy Bear Alice cracked his neck. Oh, these aliens, they're so going down! Bright pink jewel with bear ears practically glowing in the display case, his spear was ready for action. Sea of extraterrestrials surrounding the treasure, he was ready.

Stupid looking blobby creatures in the dozens coming left and right, the phantom thief let his energy flow. Vined whips becoming one with him, multiple monsters from beyond had fallen into the ether. Jewels looking ready to be taken at any given time, he kept going. These monsters, they're going down. He couldn't let these stupid fiends poison anyone any longer. No more! This game was over.

Further blobs coming left right, and center, the phantom thief jumped upward. Large teddy bear tossed at the enemies, he let out a battle cry. Possessed human in the corner trying to add themselves to the mix, the chimera dodged them. Oh, great, what were they up to? So annoying. He's not fighting a human, forget it.

Army looking ready to collapse, the hyena threw down a flashy explosive. Little grizzly going boom, he could hear the army of blobs let out a scream. Covering his ears, Teddy Bear Alice prepared himself. The army was wearing thin, it was time to go in for the steal! But, as he readied himself towards the glass box, a sound interrupted him.

Stupid horned alien in the corner clapping their hands like a child, the phantom thief rolled his mask. As usual, this fiend was treating this like some kind of television show. How dare they! This time, for sure, he'll knock them out from behind! Snapping his fingers, he prepared the little present, but a laugh had come his way.

"Try all you like, Teddy Bear Alice!" Izzet cried. "I'm wearing a bombproof vest! Try and stop me!"


Slice.

"We don't need bombs to beat you!" White Rabbit Lorina cried. "Lookie here, we won again! Teddy Bear Alice, hurry and grab the treasure!"

Flip, flip.

<I'll be taking this, thank you!> the thrown card screeched.

Bright pink jewel yoinked, the phantom thief snapped his fingers. Sweet scent plopped in the air, the little gem had soon transformed. Small teddy bear in the palm of his hands, he repeated such action as the human man in the corner became one with the ground. Bright blue jewel replacing everything, he walked over to the young girl. One last spell making waves, a gift had been given to her as her injuries had been attended to.


"A teddy bear, for me?" the little girl asked. "Thank you!" She then turned towards daddy. "Will daddy be okay?"

Flip, flip.

<He'll be back to normal when he wakes up.> the flash card said.

"I'm so glad!" the little girl exclaimed. "Lately, daddy has been acting so scary."

"I'll be back, mark my words!" Izzet cried. "I won't let you beat me next time, Teddy Bear Alice!"

"Ugh, they only credited Teddy Bear Alice again!" Clockwork Spades Hare cried. "Whatever, let's skedaddle phantom thieves!"

Poof.

Heading back to Pulao's room, a blinding light had soon engulfed the young adult. Back into his overalls, the hyena bid farewell to his team. Tiptoeing back into his apartment, he quietly hid the teddy bear behind him, like always. But, as the light blasted to the highest setting, a stupid plant ran their mouth.

"I'll be back late, huh?" Cedre cried. "Siorc, it's three in the morning! And, what's that behind your back?" They then tripped the object from his hands. "A teddy bear?! Are you that phantom thief Teddy Bear Alice?!"

Accusation coming his way, the hyena broke into a sweat. There they go again, being onto him. Ah, what was a good way to get out of this conversation? Oh, right, paying rent. Crawling through his wallet, he tossed what felt like a million bills into the envelope. Reaching for his communication notebook, he flipped to page two hundred fifty two.

<Here's the rent for this month,> the flash card said.

"You better have put every single penny in there!" Cedre cried. "Hmph, I'm going back to bed now! Don't come home this late anymore, or I'll have the landlord take your name off our contract!"

Groaning, the phantom thief returned to his room. Huffing and puffing, he stared at the wall. Ugh, maybe he shouldn't take back the treasures he took with him! That stupid plant, they were always onto him. How was he supposed to hide this forever? He didn't know! Maybe he ought to tone down the teddy bear motifs. But, ah, that was definitely impossible, how could he do that? He was hopeless.

"Great save there, brother!" Iben cried.

Flip, flip.

<Stop following me home, Iben!> the flash card screamed.

"Wish I could, but it says in our contract that I have to stick by you until your phantom thief duties cease!" Iben laughed as he said such.

Plop.

Tossing the stupid pixie across the room, the hyena grit his teeth. He should have never accepted this contract when this dumb creature came to him! But, too late now, he supposed, oh well. Sighing, the chimera slipped into his nightwear. Bright pink cat cloud pajamas upon him, he let out a yawn. Being a phantom thief was the most tiring job out there, for sure.

Brand new teddy near placed on the edge of his bed, the chimera gazed at it. Maybe he really should tone down the teddy bear motifs after all. But, he shook his head. Why bother now? It's not like it would do him any good. Besides, one day, he was going to open up a museum for his babies. Feeling himself drift off, a small smile graced his face as dreamland took him.

Another teddy bear to add to his collection.

---

Alright, so here's Teddy Bear Alice, drawn by me! This was uh... originally I considered just doing Persona 5, but I ended up not having time to watch the game playthroughs, so I went with plan b, something original. Alien invasion and phantom thieves? I hope this was a fun and original story! Even though most of it was more so focused on the slice of life stuff, unlike misgender assassin, Siorc being a phantom thief was not a secret.

Next week, I'll be doing Paradox Live!

 

[Palamon]

Chimera's Paradox Live: Slum Jim

---

"Yo yo yo there, name's Siorc Ingne, MC SLUM HERO.
Oh? Weird name I got? Well,

To you, maybe! You see, I live out
Here in the dirtiest slums in the
Entire world! Garage everywhere! I'm constantly swimming in
Refuse! Isn't that something?
Ehehe, well, you see, I am

Not just some run of the mill hyena chimera, I
Am a hip-hop artist, and a good one!
My fellow chimera slim dwellers abandoned by our creators, the five of us
Ended up making a hip-hop team.
So, we call ourselves Slum Jim, and one of our songs? Rise Up,

Slum Dwellers! I make the lyrics, but the only time
I use my voice is to sing.
Oh, is that weird? Well, I
Refuse to speak, since I find my voice
Cringe. My older brother and fellow abandoned experiment tells me

I sing so good, so why do I hide my voice otherwise?
Now, listen, listen. My voice is just
Gross. It's so weird sounding.
Now, all of my teammates always
Encourage me to get out there and talk.

I won't though, never.
My lips are sealed unless I

Am using them to sing! We

Have a goal, by the way.
Yes, a goal. We want to
Enter Paradox Live.
Now, this is going to sound
A little weird for us slum dwellers, but we want to

Compete there. We think we
Have what it takes to compete!
I know we don't look like
Much we're
Extremely dirty and filthy creatures, but that's because we swim in
Refuse! I can't quite help my situation
At all, honestly. I've tried, and I thought that

Maybe things would get better,
And someone would clean this
Dump, but nope. The world has
Effectively abandoned us!

For what it's worth, if we
Rake in the prize money,
Our money is going to cleaning up the slums, and
Maybe getting all of us

Slum Dwellers a real place to live!
Our parents abandoned us here. We
Might never see them again.
Eh, I'm twenty one now, though.

Whether I see them again remains to be seen.
Even still, I won't welcome them with open arms.
I was abandoned by them! Strix, too. While I'm
Rather tight with the slums crew, it's very
Dangerous here. The world has decayed

So far that I just don't know what to do. I
Can't act like that this
Isn't normal for me. It's
Especially the norm. But,
Not going to lie, I
Can't live here forever. Anyway,
Each of us has something called Phantometal.

Every single one of us.
Xsquisite, isn't it? Mine is a kitty ankle bracelet.
Perhaps I should
Explain what that is? Aight. It's some
Rather recent phenomenon
In which when someone sings on stage we can
Make illusions appear. It's pretty
Eeerie, but it's extremely cool. I'm
Not supposed to use it a lot,
Though. Because, well,

If I do, I might

Live through my trauma again, and
I don't want that. I
Very much would like to avoid it, thank you!
Even so, I try my best to

Drop them beats.
Even though I'm far from the best, and
Even though I am
Pretty dirty and live

In the slums, my passion is
Not to ignored! Will

This get the attention of the
Heads of Paradox Live?
Err, probably not, but it

Doesn't rule out that
It's probably possible!
Relatively small of course,
Though, but we're trying our best.
I'm sure we'll
Eventually divide and conquer
Someday, even if it
Takes us a very long time.

Since, there's no age
Limit. Anyone can compete.
Ultimately, I know that, so we
Might be able to!
So, I'll keep on trying,

I'll keep the fight going,
No matter one, so cheer for my

Tean! We won't stop fighting!
Haha, with a hearty laugh, we shall
Enter today

With hope for the future!
Of course, I do find it
Rather difficult, this
Life I love, but that
Doesn't mean I have

No future out
In these slums! So,
Count on me to
Entertain! I'm going

To get a spot in Paradox Live,
Or die trying!

My team is
Especially spectacular, you'll see!
Everyone will one day see us on
The stage! Rise up, slum dwellers,

Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Our song goes out to
U! Fight with us

Yeah yeah yeah yeah.
Our journey will see us through!"

Sniff, sniff, sniff, sniff.

It had been another filthy day out in the dirtiest slums in the world. Garbage was piled up high enough to swim in, the playgrounds were nothing but trash, and the science experiments known as chimeras as well as some left behind children and young adults had been forgotten here for all of time. But, for one particular group, today was another day towards their goals.

Swimming through the countless piles of trash had been a short, young adult feminine appearing chimeric person with long, unclean dark purple hair pulled into a rather messy ponytail. Hair spiked beyond words with speckles of trash inside it. Mismatched purple and green eyes surrounded by zits aplenty, the person huffed as the couch had been reached.


"Mornin' bro," a husky voice said. "We singing today?" As they said such, a mirror had been handed to him. "Your mirror."

Staring back at the reflection had been a rather filthy pink and purple shirt with green xes printed everywhere. Microphone and dark violet swirls towards the bottom, the individual's legs had been ridden with grime and boils. Feet pitch black as always, not a speckle of pants had been in sight. Reaching for the back pocket of the oversized shirt, the young adult scribbled away.

{Nah, gotta find the kinda the drowned somewhere in junk mountain.} the note said.

"Hmm, I dunno Siorc you probably aren't gonna find them," the husky voice said. "Besides, aren't we supposed to be practicing for the Paradox Live thingy you talked 'bout recently?"

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

{Not yet! I gotta save the kids!} the note exclaimed.

"Aight, aight, bro, gotchya," the husky voice said. "But, it might be too late."

Pulling the mirror away had been a tall husky guy with spiky, radioactive green hair that had been matted for the entire world to see. Messy suit that had been rescued from a landfill discolored entirely, the pants had holes in them pretty much everywhere. Bowtie crooked, Siorc always wondered how his brother managed to get such nice clothes in a place like this.

Making a run for it, the chimera closed his eyes for a moment. Filthy human feet transforming into hyena legs, Mountain Trash was about ready to be upon him. This time, for sure, he's going to get those kids who fell in out of there! How many were stuck in this heap of junk at this point? One, two, ten? Fifty? He'll go with ten. That sounded about right. But as he was ready to dive, a shout had come his way.

"Diving head first again?" a slightly high pitched, but soon lowered voice soon asked. "Siorc, come on man, you know it's hopeless by now! You can't save the kids!"

Dissuading him out into the front had been a short person with a feminine face. Bright golden penguin crests replacing their eyebrows, their orange eyes had a hint of redness to them. Messy oversized t-shirt black with soot, it was barely recognizable from whatever it used to be. Chopped up matted blond hair going slightly below the ear, he stuck out his tongue at the guy. Nobile was always like this. Didn't he care what happened to these kids? He hadn't even been an adult for that long! Like, what, maybe a whole year? At least feel sorry for them.

Scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble, toss.

{I can't leave them in there, you know! Lend me a hand at least!} the paper screamed.

"Ohmigod, fine, I'll dig, you'll jump," Nobile groaned. "But, I'm telling you they're probably gone at this point! Didn't Strix ever tell you when to not try to be a hero?"

"He's jumping head first into Mountain Trash again isn't he?" a slightly low pitch voice groaned.

"Yup," Nobile groaned. "I can't with him sometimes, Sawyer!"

Groaning in protest in the corner had been a rather short person with a feminine face. Short blond hair pulled into a very short ponytail, their greyish pink eyes looked rather tattered. Messy tank top and tattered shorts, he tossed down another sheet of paper. Oh, great, Sawyer is here, he can help!

{Sawyer, swim through the trash and help me save the kids stuck deeper within!} the paper exclaimed.

"Fine, fine!" Sawyer groaned. As they said such, they closed their eyes. "I'm going in!"

Leaping into the heap of trash, the young adult could hear kids crying for help deep within the mountain of junk. Ah, yet again, there had been so many of them trapped in this cave in. People were always dumping their things here, the nerve! Making this place their dump, like hello, this is the slums, not a place to toss their garbage everywhere! But, no, this place has been designated the trash free for all!

"Help me, help me!" a kid cried. "Can't breathe!"

Heap of junk getting smaller by the second, the hyena grabbed the kids into a small princess carry. He's going to get everyone out of here if it's the last thing he did. Planting one child after another on the pitch black grounds, the rest of the crew pushed in further. Going back and forth, he huffed. Oh, finally, everyone was out of there. He was starting to believe that he'd never find them.

"Thank you, Siorc, Holly and Savon!" one kid cried. "You saved us!"


"Ugh, I've been telling you lot for ages now it's Nobile now," Nobile cried. "Or Nob. I'm a dude now, remember?"

"Same goes for me! I'm Sawyer, not Savon!" Sawyer cried. "Man, these kids have no education. I thought Jiaolong was teaching them in the ruined classroom!"

"He is, but it's not like they've been able to go for awhile," Nobile said, sighing. "Sigh, whatever. I'll let it side just this once."

"Are you gonna sing for us Mc Slum Hero?" one kid asked.

"Yeah, yeah, you gonna sing?" another kid asked.

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

{No, there's still more kids trapped in trash mountains, I have to save them!} the note cried.

"Waah?" one kid asked. "Those nasty garbagemen at it again!" another kid cried. "Just 'cause everyone abandoned this place doesn't mean they can haul their trash here!"

"I know, but people do it anyway!" Strix cried. "Where did my brother go?"


"He's going towards the classroom where the big one is," Nobile said, pointing.

"Again?!" Strix squeaked.

"Again," Sawyer said, arms across their waist.

"Bro, come on, you don't gotta save everyone, you know!" Strix ran towards the ruined classroom as he said such.

Brother chasing after him, the slum hero took a dive for it. He doesn't have to save everyone, does he? Come on, now! Yes, he does. Look at all the young children who were caved into these trash mountains! It was his duty to save them! No one else was, after all! Taking a leap for it, another monster soon awaited him.

"Oh, dear," a deep, but gentle voice asked. "You're going in that trash heap, aren't you?" A tsk had soon been added off towards the end. "I keep telling you not to do that."

Dissuading him in the corner had been a rather tall person with panda ears. Spiky silver hair pulled into a very tiny braid slung over his shoulder, his bright red tattered clothes were the least dirt filled amongst everyone else. Turning away from him, the hyena took the dive. Didn't Jiaolong care about all these poor, innocent kids left to rot in the slums to die! Wasn't he supposed to be their teacher? He should be ashamed.

Multiple young voices begging for assistance, the slum hero made a swim for it. There were so many again today. Yesterday, too, and the day before that, and he was supposed to ignore it? Come on, now! Not happening. Honestly, why should he? That was like leaving a poor innocent dog to die! He's coming, brave, valiant ones.

"Thanks again, Siorc!" kid number, he doesn't know anymore, cried. "I'm free!"

"Yay, I can breathe again!" another kid cried.

Huffing, the hyena gazed at the world around him. No more landfills? Good. He could go back to the couch now. Swimming through the trash, he brushed off his clothes. Ah, he made it. Thank goodness. Reaching through the bottom of the couch cushions, a rather beat up tablet had been in the palm of his hands. Little microphone attached to the device, he was ready to belt out some tunes. But, he had soon been interrupted.

"Practicing for the Paradox Live Battles again?" Strix asked. "You know, I didn't tell you I may have submitted our last song to the Club Paradox people. You know, that club our heroes went to?"

Reminder coming his way, he turned his head. Huh, when did his brother submit their songs? Ah, no, they didn't stand a chance of getting accepted on that stage! Looking as filthy and dirty as they did? No way, no way, not happening. That was just a silly fleeting dream, no way they'd accept them.

Scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble.

{When did you go and do that? They're not gonna accept us, we're so dirty.}

"About that, well, Jiaolong used photoshop to clean up our appearances," Strix said.

Hearing such, the chimera grumbled. Ah, he sees. Jiaolong used editing software? Man, how could he do that? They were supposed to be their authentic selves! How could they show off who they really were if they looked shiny and clean? That wasn't possible, that's for sure! Why he oughta. Unplugging the mic, he ran towards the school's remains.

Scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble.

{Jiaolong, how could you photoshop our appearances to the Club Paradox people? That's lying! Some teacher you are!} the paper exclaimed.

"Oh, my, caught!" Jiaolong exclaimed, hands in the air. "But, come on, think about it. They're not gonna want us on stage if they saw what this place really looked like. Nor how we might look."

"You!" Sawyer cried. "Did you make me look manlier at least?"

"Yeah, me too," Nobile cried. "Me, too, right?"

"No, sorry," Jiaolong said, shaking his head. "We agreed that we're only allowed to use the tablet in turns, so didn't have time for that."

"Boo!" Nobile cried. "Could have used that time to make me look manlier, like change my face shape or something!"

Jiaolong admitting to it, the hyena sighed, hands on his cheeks. He couldn't believe it. He even edited the appearance of the slums? He worked so hard to sing with everyone, and he had to go and make it look like he was neat and tidy? There's no way they're gonna accept them as Slum Jim now. Whatever, too late for that, he guesses.

Scribble, scribble, scribble.

{At least, next time, tell us you're gonna edit our submission? Ugh.} the paper complained.

"Alright, alright," Jiaolong said, sighing. "Next time, I'll consult you, kay? But, there's not that much time left. They're announcing the teams tomorrow."


Word tomorrow said, the chimera ran around in circles. Hold on, tomorrow? As in the next day? The day after yesterday? Morrow? The day that preceded the day before? Woah, wait, hold on a second, when did that slip by him? He could have sworn he still had plenty of time left to practice! He didn't at all? Gah.

Dashing back towards the couch, the hyena plugged in the portable mic. Ah, no, ah no, he had to practice, he had to bust out them tunes, but which one? Which one should he practice? Not one he submitted, no, no, that wouldn't do, that's right, he should do a rap battle. But, with who?

Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, screech.

"Yo yo yo wassup, Mc Slum Hero's in da house!" Siorc sang out in the open. "Who wanna rap battle with the queen?"

"I will!" a young adult cried. "I'll be your opponent!"

Curling his fingers, sick burns had been thrown his way about his oversized shirt the hyena could feel himself short circuit to come up with a rhyme in return. Ah, ah, ah, how does he come back from that, uh? Wait, he knows. He's the trash queen, like the world's seen. Bow down peasant, to fancy feet. But, he groaned at such. Ah, no, no, that was cringe.

"Fancy feet? You're so unclean, a bandicoot wouldn't be able to lick you shiny!" the young adult rapped back.

Beat getting intense, the a little kitten ankle bracelet glowed beside him. Ah, no, this is getting bad! How does he come back from that? He doesn't know. Ah, he has a good idea. Large cat monster appearing behind him, he returned some beats. The only bandicoot here is that messy nest between your ears. The opponent huffed and puffed.

"No fair, why are you using your phantometal now? the young adult cried. "Ugh, the kids are all excited. Hmph, take this!"

Crazy beats coming his way, the young adult adult flinched. Man, this opponent sure knew how to dish them out. How did he come back from this one? He didn't know, he was cornered. Letting out one last hurrah, the mic soon gave out. Huffing and puffing, he sat down. Raising his hands up in the air, he seated himself back on the sofa.

"The mic's outta battery already?!" Nobile groaned. "I told you to save some juice for the rest of us!"

Scribble, scribble, scribble, scribble.

{Sorry, I got a little too into it.} the paper said.

"Also, you know the Paradox Live Battles are a different kind of fight, right?" Sawyer asked. "We'll be singing on stage but we won't be doing like literal rap battles. At least, I don't think."

Hearing such, the hyena sighed. Ah, he sees, so it's not like that? Well, he knew that already! He thinks, or did he? Well, whatever, it was what it was. It wasn't like his unit was going to be picked, anyway. After all, he was nothing like that legends that were BAE, and Cozmez, and he never would be. He would never live up to their names.

Tablet running out of juice shortly after, the chimera plopped it onto the only working wireless charger for the time being. Other people challenging him a rap battle, the slum hero belted out further tunes. Oh, they wanted to go, huh? With pleasure! He could rap all day if they asked him to!

Singing and rapping until he couldn't anymore, he soon recoiled. Ah, that was enough for today. He needed to save his voice just in case they might get picked tomorrow! Not like it was going to happen, though. Swimming through the seas of trash, the chimera coiled into his blanket. Goodnight, world.

Arms shook over and over again, the hyena rubbed his eyes. Huh, what time was it? Broken wristwatch reading two, he shook his head. Well, it was two oclock somewhere, but it was not here. Turning towards the aggressor, he could soon them hopping upward like a little goat on the top of a hill.

"Did you hear me, Siorc?" Strix asked. "It's time for them to announce the units participating in the Paradox Live battles! Hurry and swim to the couch!" As he said such, he himself did such.

Swimming through the debris, the hyena did a triple take. Wait, hold on a second, what? It was time to announce the four teams already? He could hardly believe it. How did time fly so fast? He was out like a light, and? Poof, the time had come already! Steamrolling onto the couch, the tablet had been placed on the last piece of wooden furniture that remained intact.

"This is Club Paradox, I'm your host. %%%%!" the host cried. A name had been said, but for some reason, it was obscured. "Are you all ready to hear our stars?"

"Yeah!" Sawyer cried.

"Bring it on!" Nobile shouted.

"You know they can't hear you, right?" Jiaolong asked.

"Ohmigod, like, who cares?" Nobile asked. "Did I ask for your opinion?"

"You're lucky I was able to find a signal out here for public internet connection at all," Jiaolong bit back.

"Shh, shh, all of you, shhh! They're about to announce the first unit!" Strix cried.

"Our first unit, SEMBLENSE!" the host cried.

Picture of three chimeras moving on through the screen, the hyena blinked. Huh, there had been more science experiments out there in the world? He could have sworn the five of them had been the only ones. Had there been more than he thoughts? Where were they? Why hadn't he heard of them before this? Well, oh well. That was not on him.

"Our second unit, Club Paw!" the host cried.

Portrait of even more chimeras moving on through the screen, the young adult placed his hand on his chin. Huh, there were more? How could this be? No, that made no sense. There were even more science experiments? That made no sense at all! This had to have been some sort of trick of the light. Of course it had to have been.

"Huh?!" Nobile cried. "Vido?!"


"Your brother?" Sawyer asked. "The one that made you awaken and realize--?"


"Yeah, that brother!" Nobile cried. "Unbelievable! Look at him, he left the slums to seek out medical changes. The traitor, I hope we get paired up against them!"

"You know what? Me too!" Sawyer shouted. "I hope we beat them!"

"Please, you two, quiet in the front, they're about to announce the third unit!" Jiaolong cried.

"You expect us to be quiet when a traitor is on screen right in front of us?!" Nobile and Sawyer asked in unison.

"Fair enough, but please quiet down." Jiaolong sighed as he finished such sentence.

"Our third unit, Café Surprise!" the host cried.

Random human unit cried out, the young adult could feel his hopes begin to drop. Ah, there was no chance his unit was going to be picked, was there? Well, time to throw in the towel and try again next year! If there was one next year. He had heard that Club Paradox tends to disappear sometimes, whatever that meant. Like when those Cozmez dudes won. That was weird, he must admit.

"Why are you getting up?" Nobile asked. "Sit your butt back down!"

"You're giving up already?" Sawyer asked. "Shame on you!"

Plopping himself back down, the chimera tried to not bit his dirty nails. Ah, well, maybe there was a slim chance his unit would get picked. But, look a the competition! Like, for starters, there were so many people from all around the world trying to land a spot on this stage! Why would they be picked over the hundreds of many?

"They're about to announce the last group!" Strix cried. "Everyone finger's crossed!"


"Our final unit, Slum Jim!" the host cried.

Hearing such, the young adult almost did a triple take. Wait, did he hear that just now? Slum Jim? He was mistaken, right? He didn't hear that, did he? Pinch him, he has to be dreaming! Right, he had to have been. There was no way he heard that correctly just now, had he? Had he? Of course not. No way. Someone pinch him, he definitely dreaming!

"Did you hear that?!" Nobile cried. "They picked us over hundreds of other units! Can you believe it?"

"I can't," Sawyer said. "Oh, no, now everyone is about to see how dirty we look!"

"Could you two let the host finish?" Jiaolong asked, groaning.

"Sheesh, alright!" Nobile cried. "We'll let him finish!"

"These are our four units that will be competing!" the host cried. "Helicopters will be bringing you all to Japan in the next couple days or so!"

Hearing such the hyena did another triple take. Wait, hold on, Japan? In a few days or so? Ah, no, he was hearing things, right? Right, he was dreaming. He had to have been dreaming! Ain't no way that dirty, smelly people like him and his unit would be allowed in a copter, right? Haha, he guesses his journey ends here.

Scribble, scribble scribble.

{There's something I think you're all forgetting! You know, how dirty we all are?} the paper exclaimed.

"Don't worry about that, I scrapped up enough money to use the showers at the public beach," Jiaolong said, waving rupee bills over the top of his head.

"How did you manage to get enough rupees for that?!" Strix cried. "When?"

"Who says Siorc here is the only one who has gone dumpster diving, hmm?" Jiaolong said. "Anyway, we should get going. Mission clean is afoot!"

Jiaolong leading the way, the young adult wondered if he was still dreaming. He had heard all that correctly, right? They had won the right to head on the stage for a Paradox Live battle! He could hardly believe this. Pinch him, someone, he's definitely still asleep! Little sting taking him away, he hissed. Ah, no, wide awake.

Trotting along the path, the chimera wondered. When was the last time he had a shower? Months, years? Hmm, he'll have to go with years. When was the last time he had clean water available to him? He didn't know. It had been so long since he had enough to give himself a good cleanse! When was the last time he even had shoes to wear? That, he didn't know either. It had been ages since then, too, he supposed.

Reaching the public beaches, the hyena ran towards the showers in the corner. Ah, the outdoor kind, he sees. How embarrassing. But, oh well, it would do! Goodbye grime, goodbye mess! Hours spent scrubbing away as much as possible, he almost could not believe what he was seeing in the mirror. No more black, no more garbage. Oh, goodness, who was he? Hair all shiny as well, he almost didn't recognize himself.

Everyone else getting their turns, he swore multiple people had been staring at them. Where did these guys come from? Hearing such, he broke into a sweat. Ah, they paid to come here like everyone else, come on! Shirt soon cleared of all its grime, the hyena sighed. How he wished he had pants to wear. But, oh well, can't wish for too many things he couldn't have.

"I found this cool hat in the garbage!" Nobile cried. "I'm taking it!"

"Uh, I don't think you should be taking that, Nob," Jiaolong said. But, as he said such, a sprinkler came coming down.

"There, all clean, I'm taking it!" Nobile cried. Flipping it backwards he grabbed Strix's mirror. "Look at me, I'm so manly now!"

"Alright, take it, then," Jiaolong said, shrugging. "But, you really shouldn't be dumpster diving."


"Should you be saying that when you went around dumpster diving for rupees?" Sawyer asked.

"Fine, you got me," Jiaolong said. "Now, there's one more place I want to go. Come."

Dragged to a nice curry restaurant, the chimera gazed at Jiaolong. Just how much money had he found in the slums? He had no idea, but it must have been enough to come to a place like this. When was the last time he ate something good? He could hardly remember. It had been too long now to recall. Oh, well, time to dig in.

Spicy meats hitting the spot, the slum hero almost let out a squeal. Man, when was the last time he had good curry? Months, years? Ah, who cares, he's in the now, not the then! And, he needed to stay here in the now! Returning back to the slums almost like nothing happened, he could hardly sleep in the anticipation.

Two days passing by in the blink of an eye, a large chopper appeared in the sky. Large ladder coming down, the young adult blinked. How did they find them here? But, he shook his head. Honestly, he'll never know. Maybe they were looking at the internet protocol addresses of everyone who submitted. That was likely the case, anyway.

Ascending the huge ladder with the rest of the unit, the slum hero couldn't help but feel rather nervous. Ah, this was it, wasn't it? A long eight hour flight would soon await him. Reaching the top, he could see a whole ton of rather interesting faces soon await him in the small chopper. Some recognizable, most not.

"Ugh, bro, you entered this thing?" an annoyed voice asked. "You just wanted to copy me, didn't you?"

"No?" Nobile asked. "Vido, I always looked up to you, I ain't copying you!"

"You definitely did," Vido said. "Back when I was still Vidame, you always did everything I did when I was still in the slums!"

"Ohmigod, I was a little kid back then!" Nobile cried. "And, even before you announced you were a guy to everyone in there, I knew I was a guy since I was even before you went and said you were one!"

"Whatever, you're gonna lose, Slim Jim!" Vido cried.

"That's Slum Jim!" Nobile shouted.

Arguing in the corner had been a short young man with golden penguin crests. Bright blue blazer on them, the hyena almost wanted to look away. So, Vido left the slums and got all those affirming surgeries and never came back and had been living the best life, had he? This means war, brother! He should say something. But, he couldn't bring himself to. Sticking out his tongue instead, further arguments broke out.

"Who's that little nervous doggy in the corner, huh?" Sawyer asked. "We'll wipe the floor with him."

"Um, I wouldn't be so sure of that," the nervous dog person said. "We're good, you know."

Stuttering in the corner had been a rather short well dressed dark skinned man with jackal ears. Bright orange suit with a bowtie looking ready to eat up the competition, he had well put together brown hair hanging into a very low ponytail that was barely visible. Orange eyes to finish off the look, he moved onto the next person.

Standing in the corner had been a short dark skinned feminine faced person with short hair pulled into two buns, and a very long cowlick on the top of their head. Locks a bright blinding red, they, too, adorned a blazer matching their locks almost exactly. Placing his hand on his chin, he blinked. Ah, so this was Club Paw, huh? Interesting. He'll beat them to the ground with his songs!

Sitting crisscross at the back of the chopper had been a rather strange looking person with short light blue hair pulled into weird sideways loops. Sideburns barely doing it, they had red eyes with yellow sclera. Were they some crocodile person? He didn't know. Oversized hoodie with a mouse creature printed, he almost did a double take. They were the leader of SEMBLENSE, huh? They didn't seem the type. But, they had soon noticed something rather interesting. Both legs prosthetics, he couldn't help but wonder what happened to them.

Standing against the wall in the corner had been a rather tall man with spiky orange hair and rabbit ears. Open green shirt and a plain white tee, his eyes had been so white, he almost couldn't see them. Ah, how strange, who was this person anyway? They looked like they might have been native to Japan. But, what did he know? Why did they come here on helicopter if they were born and raised? But, he shook his head. Maybe they wanted to meet the competition.

Groaning in the furthest corner had been a androgynous person with blue hair that went down to about their shoulders. Only having one arm, and one leg being completely bone, he rose an eyebrow. So, what happened to this chimera? What was their story? Whatever experiment was done to them, he almost didn't want to know. What good would it do to lean anyway?

Normal looking humans off in the distance, the chimera ended his observation. Man, there was so many people competing, there was no chance he would win, was there? But, slapped his cheeks. Ah, no, there was still a chance, of course there was! There was a total nonzero chance that he could still win this! Eyes soon on him, a chipper voice soon kicked in.

"Say!" hoodie person cried. "Why don't you all introduce yourselves! I'm Argenta!"

"And, I should introduce myself because?" the skeleton leg person said in the corner asked.

"Because it's the right thing to do?" Argenta asked. As they said such, they almost stamped their prosthetics down.

"Whatever. I'm Rasa," they said. "I'll beat you guys."


"That's my line!" rabbit person cried. "I'm Hatsu!"

"You already heard my name, I'm Vido!" Vido cried. "Why I gotta repeat it?"


"Just repeat it and get it over with?" Plant person groaned. "Hmph, I'm Noce."

"Rabiu," the dog man said, shivering.

"Why so nervous, aye, Rabiu?" Nobile asked. "Afraid we'll beat you?"

"Not especially?" Rabiu asked.

"Oh, then why you shaking, then?" Sawyer asked. "You seem afraid to me!"

"You two, let's not leer, okay?" Strix asked, hands in the air.


"Who asked you?!" Nobile and Sawyer said in unison.

"Everyone, can we just get along? We're not competing yet!" Jiaolong cried.

"We may as well be!" Nobile cried. But, such had been interrupted.

"Um, what about you?" Rabiu asked. "You've been awfully quiet. What's your name?"

Question coming his way, the chimera gulped. Ah, introduce himself? Should he? He didn't know. Maybe that would be a waste of time. After all, why get into pleasantries? What good would that do? Ah, well, what did he have to lose? Scribbling away, he tossed the paper around long enough for everyone to see.

{My name is Siorc.} the paper said.

"Come on, man, don't waste paper like that!" Vido cried. "Whatever, Siorc, anyway, Club Paw will beat you!"

"Not if SEMBLANSE beats you first!" Argenta cried.

"Can you lot be quiet?" the humans in the back asked. "Some people are trying to get ready to compete here!"

Long copter ride taking what felt like a million years, the hyena gazed at his surroundings. Lots of bustling buildings everywhere, the chimera almost let out a squeal. So, this was Japan, huh? He had only heard of this place from cut up magazine clipping tossed in the dumps! Man, this place was so clean! He could probably eat the floor and see his face here! Okay, maybe not, but it's possible! Theoretically, of course!

Dropped onto the roof of some weird club, the chimera blinked. Wait, what, they had to literally drop into the club? Uh, why? He didn't quite get it. Jumping down through the vent in the ceiling, the strange announcer had been out on the frontlines. Creature dancing around, he couldn't quite make this thing out. Were they some kind of hologram? How weird.

"And, would you look at that, our competition is finally here!" the host cried. "Who will be up first?"

Spotlight plopping over Café Surprise and SEMBLASE, the young adult let out a sigh. He wasn't going to get to go first, huh? What a shame, he was ready to pump out that new rap today! But, oh well, patience was a virtue, after all! His time would come soon, for sure, wouldn't it? Ah, this was going to take forever, wasn't it?

Interesting rap songs blasted out in the open, the hyena could feel the tension mountain as the groups went all out with their phantometals. Ah, those illusions, they sure were good. But, would they win this? He didn't know. He heard that they changed the rules on how this works. That in the first round, two winners would be the victor, but there would be a middle round in the next week or so to decide who would go onto the next stage.

Semblanse going second, the chimera placed his hand on his chin. Ah, these two were good also, huh? Man, did he even have what it takes? Maybe he didn't. He didn't know anymore. He was staring to feel the heat, that's for sure. Would he end up losing this whole thing? He sure hoped not, that would be such a waste.

Club chosen next, the slum hero was blown away by the competition. They were all pretty good at this, weren't they? He didn't know if he had what it took anymore. But, he knew he couldn't give up. What good would it do to surrender now? Right, of course not! He had to prove that Slum Jim had what it takes, too. Spotlight soon over his unit, the time had come.

"What's Slum Jim have on the table for us?" the host asked.

Tap, tap, tap, tap.

"We are Slum Jim!

Stand up for the slum dwellers,
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
We gonna rise up
Put your hands up
For the underdog.

Trash mountain gonna rise,
Till ya can't look us in the eyes!
We're the heroes,
So time to revere us, yo.

I am MC SLUM HERO
Gonna save y'all
From da noise
Enthrall in da stink.

Swim in the ink
We take y'all on a journey
Through da trash heap.
Hop in, smell the skin.
It's not much to take in!

Rise Up To The Slums
Yeah yeah yeah yeah
Rise Up To The Slums
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

Can you feel the filth?
Let it sink in
We're da heroes
Soar free.

Yo, MC Shark Teeth here
Gonna teach da beat
The rap of the trash heap
Swim, swim, swim through the dirty sea

We stand for the forgotten
Toget as a team
Swim, swim, swim swim
Through the garage sea

We'll rise to the top,
So do forget da gum.
Pop, pop, pop, pop,
Envelop in the stink.

Rise Up To The Slums
Yeah yeah yeah yeah
Rise Up To The Slums
Yeah yeah yeah yeah

Yo, Mc Gleam
I'mma dazzle y'all
With one big beam
We got trash taste,

A mediocre place, but
Rise up to da heroes
Of da story
We got shocks a plenty.

Rise up, rise up, rise up.


Mc Suds, just yer mermaid dude,
Living like a king
With a big tude
Secret to slum dwelling?

Living in da moment!
Rise up to the losers
The mediocrity,
We da heroes of the story.


Stand up for the slum dwellers,
Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
We gonna rise up
Put your hands up
For the underdog.


Rise up, rise up, rise up.

Ya know me, ya love me,
Say my name,
MC Dragon, the one
The only, King of prosperity.

Join me in this trash heap
Watch us rise up, geeks.
Y'all be swimming to yer mommies,
With the justice we cooking.

Slum Jim, your new deities,
Your heroes,
Your steeds.
Rise up, rise up, rise up, rise up.


Rise up."

Illusion after illusion taking the stage, the slum hero swore he could hear everyone clapping. Applause kicking louder than he had ever heard before, the chimera almost dropped to his knees. Wait, they were cheering for them? Slum Jim was getting a round of applause? No way, was this real. It couldn't have been, right? Pinch him, he's dreaming!

Sting kicking in once more, the chimera let out a hiss. Nope, he definitely wasn't dreaming. Host soon floating off in the corner once more, he could feel it in his bones. It was voting time. Host explaining that dope points would be awarded, he closed his eyes. There was no way he'd get that many, right? Tallies soon rising, his jaw practically dropped at the results.

"Slum Jim comes in first!" the host cried.

Jaw dropping, the hyena almost could not believe. Wait, people voted for Slum Jim the most? Say it isn't so! No way, this wasn't real. It wasn't, right? It couldn't have been! But, ah, no, he wasn't dreaming, this was real! Of course it was. Why would he be asleep right now? He most certainly wasn't. Of course, this was real, one hundred percent.

Club Paw getting the second most votes, the slum hero shrugged. Well, of course they had gotten the second most, what was he expecting? They were aiming to win the most out of everyone here, after all. Or, were they? He was pretty sure everyone was? Well, oh well, it was what it was. Or something like that.

SEMBLANSE getting the third most, the hyena did not know whether to be surprised or to do a double take. SEMBLANSE only got one less dope point than Club Paw? How very interesting. People really liked these two units, didn't they? Well, that's not all that surprising, if he was being honest.

Café Surprise at the bottom with only a three point difference from SEMBLANSE, the chimera blinked. So, everyone had done well, huh? He supposed a good rap would make the audience cheer. Of course it would. He supposed he knew a thing or two about that. Host soon telling everyone the next round would be in the coming days, an escort had soon taken the stage.

Brought to a hotel, the chimera's eyes opened wide at the sweet, sweet bed laid out in front of him. Woah, a cot? Beautiful, wonderful, amazing. After all these years of sleeping on top of garbage, he finally had a temporary bed to call home! How long? Well, he supposed as long as this competition would go on for! Who knows how long that would be?

Crawling underneath the crusty covers, he let out a yawn. Man, all that rapping had made him so sleepy. How many more rounds of this would he be in? His unit wouldn't win the whole thing, he bet, but that didn't mean he shouldn't aim for the top! Rest of his unit hitting the sack, he soon let the zes begin to roll.

Slum Jim's in it to win it!

---

Okay, well, here's MC Slum Hero: View attachment Paradox Live Siorc.png I know this art isn't that great, sorry, but I made it.

Next week... pretty cure? That's a whiplash if I've ever seen one. lol

 

[Palamon]

Flower Sticker Pretty Cure!

---

"Well, um, hello there, I guess?
Err, um, I am not super good at introducing myself.
Let me just admit that, since I don't
Like talking at all, and, honestly,

Ugh, how do I introduce myself?
How do I introduce myself?
How do I introduce myself?
How do I introduce myself?

How do I introduce myself? Ah! Repeating
It probably won't do me any good. No, of course not,

That'll just make everything worse, won't, it?
Hahaha. Um well, I'll give it my all.
Err, my name is Siorc Ingne, and,
Rrrr, I am so incredibly bad at this. To be honest, though, I'm bad at
Everything. I am trying my best to at least be comfortable with

Introducing myself, but I find
Myself just tripping more often than not. This is why I don't talk!

Caca! Well, uh, let me get this over with,
Ah, so you see, I am from the magical
Land of Stickerland, where stickers from some
Little planet called, uh, give me a second? Oh.
Earth, right! Where all the stickers that were
Discarded from earth come to. They're big and alive. These

Stickers are pretty cool. Most people, me
Included go on super big sticker rallies.
Of course, that's all I have been doing
Recently since I graduated High School. I am
Currently a directionless young

Adult who does nothing but go to sticker rallies and tends to my garden.

Hahaha, all the other chimeras have something to
Yearn for, but I don't
Even have a thing to call my own.
Now, Stickerland is a planet full of people with
Animalistic traits but with an outwardly appearing, uh, human body?

Come to think of it that's what those
Humans who visited said.
In any case, the humans called
Me a chimera so
Every single one of us
Rephrased what we called ourselves
A long time ago.

Well, anyway. Lately, since I
Have graduated, I have absolutely no direction in my life.
Of course, I wish I did, but I feel

Like I probably never will.
It is what it is, I do
Vye for something to do. Like,
Err, becoming a Pretty Cure, or
Something, I don't know.

I truly can't say at this point. I have
Nothing to look forward to

At all anymore at this

Point. Ah, what's Pretty Cure? Mmm, well,
Let's just say the four friends I graduated with might
All be magical superheroes
Called Pretty Cure. They don't
Even know I know, let's make that

Clear, but I am fully
Aware. Honestly, I wish I could become one and save our
Land. I've been hearing some super evil villain is
Laying down horrible spells on our stickers.
Evil spells, but I honestly
Doubt that there's anything I can do to become

Something like that. Since, all
The Pretty Cure are girls or women.
I am unfortunately, not a girl, I was born the opposite. But, I wouldn't
Call myself a boy. I'm neither. I
Know that won't heighten my chances, but
Even still, I have always mostly
Radiated towards femininity. Not girlhood, just feminity. It's not
Like that will even so much
As allow me to become a Pretty Cure. It definitely will
Not, but I kind of
Do wish it'd be enough. I

Wish it would be enough,
Haha, but it wouldn't be
Enough, I fear. The
Reality of the situation is I won't
Ever get to be one. I'm

Scared Stickerland is in danger,
Though, but there
Isn't anything I
Can do to help. I
Know I can't. And, so, I'm in an
Endless cycle of worthlessness. I'm
Rather worthless if I'm being
Super honest. But,

Ah, I don't know, the
Reality is I won't
Ever get a chance to be a Pretty Cure. I

Am aware probably only girls can have that shining
Light. Which,
I am not a girl. I'm
Very aware. I am not
Even a boy, but I am not a girl.

Roar, all of this
Is making me feel
Gritty. I don't think I'll ever
Have anything in my life
To look forward to.

Never, and now that I'm an adult, I
Obviously do have to find something, but
What? Not going to lie,

I truly haven't

Found anything that
Even speaks to me. Nor will I
Ever. My only calling in
Life is becoming a pretty cure. But, it's

Very unlikely someone like me is
Ever getting the chance.
Rrrr, I wish I could! But,
Yeah, not happening! Ugh, I

Don't have any direction
In life, I feel stuck in a
Reversing loop
Every single day! I
Can't get out of
This loop!
I can't get
Out of this loop! I have
No direction in
Life, none at all. Not
Even a little! Gah,
So what can I do? Do
Something, I have to find

It, something of purpose, but it'll
Never happen. I'm stuck in a

Loop. I'm stuck
In a loop. I'm stuck in a loop
Forever and ever and
Ever and ever.

Sigh, I feel like
I'll never find anything.
Guess I'll go on another sticker rally.
Haha, I'm so boring and pitiful."

Pitter, patter, pitter, patter, pitter, patter, pitter, patter.

The large, sticky sun with a pitch black outline had shone over every single chimera's polyester windows across the magical planet of Stickerland. Tiny little decals raining down from the sky, multiple young children were outside playing with their one-dimensioned little discarded label friends who had travelled all the way from some far away planet known as Earth. But, for one particular hyena chimera, life was the same old loop it would always be, and then some.

"Hey, hey, wake up Siorc, wake up! It's time to wake up and water the flowers!" a little floating sticker cried.

Yawning from the polyester bed had been a short young adult feminine appearing person with medium length dark purple hair that went down to about the shoulders. Locks as messy as ever, the person let out a groan. Another day starting out exactly the same. Messy hair, same old annoying elephant sticker coming for a wakeup call, same old everything. Everything was looping over and over like always, someone free the clock. Grabbing the notebook, the individual reached for the communication stickers.

Slap.

+[Phanty, could you give me a minute?]+ the sticky note asked.

"There's no time for that, the plants are dry! They need their watering can sticker now now!" Phanty cried. "And besides, weren't you going to the sticker rally today?"

Siorc let out a groan upon hearing the words sticker rally. Ah, right, that again. How many times had he gone on that sticker rally by now? Every single week since graduation? How long had it been since graduation again? The person needed to think for a moment. Hyena paw on the edge of the chin, the memories attempted to flow back.

It had been about six months since the hyena chimera had graduated Stickerland Highschool. And, every single friend had already moved on to the latest and greatest in their lives. The students that were in the same club had gotten a job cleaning out dying stickers, some students had proceeded to work at Decal Theater, but there was one particular group in the graduating class that seemed to have a secret.

A big secret.

And the young adult knew about it.

There had been four girls who seemed to have a secret, a big magic secret. And, the hyena had caught wind of it. Secret magical alter egos, big evil stickers threatening to harm Stickerland, super weird aliens who were guiding this quartet on their journey as magical superheroes. What was their name again? Pretty Cure? The chimera wasn't sure, but that was the name the person decided to go with for now.

"Hey, hey, what are you spacing out for?!" Phanty cried. As they said such, they stuck themselves onto Siorc's arm. "Before you know it, your sister's going to call you! You gotta get ready for the day!"

Slap.

+[Phanty, please get off of me, okay? I'm going!]+ the sticker cried.

Peel.

Groaning, the young adult dragged the self to the bathroom. Phanty was being annoying as usual. Why did Nia have to rescue this infernal sticker from their timely demise? All they ever did was annoy the living daylights out of everyone in the house. Well, it was just the three of them, but even still. This elephant decal, what a pest. If only Phanty would just go away forever.

Dropping the self into the bathtub, the shampoo and condition stickers were floating besides the rim, the chimera let out a tired sigh. Every single day was the same as always. Same floating haircare stickers, same floating sticker soap. Why did he have to be born on this planet? Should have been born on Earth with the humans. Humans lives sounded so interesting. Building an entire amusement park with some magical invention known as the Three Dimensional Printer, how cool. Everything on Stickerland had to be made by hand. Those computer thingies they had were a luxury here only the richest of chimeras could afford.

Mismatched purple and green eyes staring back at the reflection, dull eyes of nothingness refracted through the grass. Freckles looking ready to fall off, Siorc rubbed the eyes. Maybe this entire life was just a dream. Perhaps it was. But, the chimera knew it wasn't. Fat chance of that being the case. Of course it wasn't this was the life the person was born into. The boring, nothingness that'd last forever.

Outfit slipped on, a bright pink fluffy shirt with striped sleeps and a dark red elephant on it graced the young adult's short body. Text underneath it saying, Trunk Your Way Through Life! The chimera wanted to throw the shirt off and roll it up into a ball. The person was getting way too old for these stupid graphic tees, ugh. Knee length skirt with a matching mammoth underneath, the individual wanted to turn back around. Every single day it was the same as always. Same clothes, same morning, same, everything. How tiresome. Bright pink matching elephant hairpins and earrings slapped down into the hairs and ears as well, the young adult sighed as the feet dragged themselves towards the dining room.

Pushing on through towards the kitchen, a short, adult woman with light purple hair pulled into a right swept bun had been cooking over the stove with a sticky decal of a cooking pot. Dumb little one dimensioned tool looking ready to burn away into absolutely nothing, the hyena whiffed up a burning scent. Head plastered over the forehead, the person shook the head. How old had Nia been now and she hadn't the foggiest of clues how to cook? Thirty? Thirty two? Thirty three? Thirty tree, that sounded about right. Fifteen years apart and she could never get anything right. Green eyes full of life, the hyena wanted to turn away.

"Goooood morning, brother!" Nia cried. "Why the long face? Aren't you excited for the sticker rally today?"

Slap.

+[No. It'll be the same as always. Why would I be excited for the same boring trash?]+ the sticker in the notebook said.

"Come ooon, have a little whimsy in your life!" Nia shouted. "You know what will make this a little more fun? Why don't you go to that little Super Decal Café that opened up recently!"

Super Decal Café mentioned, the graduate turned towards his sister. When had she heard about that little restaurant his former classmates had opened? Did she know his classmate's secret, too? But, the young adult shook his head to such. No, of course not. She was way too old to know about Pretty Cure. She was practically ancient at this point. No way she knew about that!

Pitch black eggs dropped on the table, the hyena's eyes pulsated. Every day was the same as always. Same old burned breakfast, same old sister saying she's trying her best, same old annoying stickers joining him at the table to get their fill. When would something interesting happen? In the past six months since graduating, he still hadn't found anything that spoke to him.

"I'm sorry, I burned it again!" Nia shouted. "I swear, I'm trying my best!" She then pointed at the door. "Oh, look, here comes Phanty's little friends! Share some of your toast with them!"

Elephant stickers floating through the door, the chimera almost wanted to toss the pest across the room. Same morning of cutting his toast up and giving it to the stickers. Same old suggestion of giving the flower stickers outside some toast, too. Everything always went exactly the same. Why couldn't something different happen for a change? Nothing ever did, and nothing ever will. Why bother thinking anything would ever change?

"Say, you should share some of your toast with the flower decals, too!" Nia cried. "They've been dry recently!"

Slap.

+[I am not feeding the flowers bread, how many times am I going to tell you this, Nia?]+ the sticker asked.

"Oh, but, you know the stickers in the garden enjoy my leftover toast!" Nia cried. "You totally should!"

Slap.

+[I am not feeding the flowers your burned toast, Nia.]+ the sticker repeated.

"Okay, okay, sheesh! It was just a suggestion!" Nia cried. "But, seriously, you should consider going to that new café! It's been open for a month or two now, right? I heard they serve nice stickers with every meal!"

Nibbling on the burned eggs, the chimera shook his head. She didn't know about that café's secret, did she? It was just a cover up for those Pretty Cure activities. But, he knew he couldn't say that, there's absolutely no way someone as ancient as her would understand. Of course she wouldn't. Why even bother mentioning it? He only had so many letter stickers he could slap into his notebook anyway. He had to use them wisely.

Annoying elephant stickers demanding more of his toast, the hyena practically tossed the crumpled up pieces back towards the adhesive creatures. At least leave him some, why don't they? As usual, he didn't get a single scrap of bread for himself. Finishing the last of his crunchy egg yolk, he excused himself.

Slap.

+[I'm going to the decal garden now.]+ the sticker said.

"Okay, have fun!" Nia cried. "Your sticker rally friends should be here in about two hours!"

Sister calling his sticker rally teammates friends as he slammed the polyester door shut, the young adult let out a sour groan. Friends? Hardly, those three were nothing more than a nuisance who always pushed him around. There's a sticker we missed! Siorc, Siorc, hurry, there's a little birdie sticker stuck in the tree, we need it for the rally! All they ever did was push him around. Maybe this time, he should utter that magical two letter word of rejection and stand his ground!

Picking away at the weed adhesives, the little invasive nutrient sappers let out a whine. Creatures crying out to not get rid of them, the chimera flicked away the villains. Ugh, this again. Every day was the same as always. Same weeds plucked, same cries to not get rid of them, as usual. He could hardly stand it. Why was he bothering? He didn't know; maybe he shouldn't have. He really ought to find something that calls out to him. Something, anything to tune his life to.

Further weed stickers plucked, the tiresome flower decals wiggled like their lives depended on it. Seeing such, he slapped his furry palm across his face. This was the same as ever, too. The marigold stickers would twitch and waggle. Couldn't they ever do something more interesting? Do a flip, do a trick! They were magical stickers, after all.

But, he knew he was preaching to the wrong choir. They would never do that, why would they? Of course they wouldn't. At this point, it would be like telling a dead dog sticker to come back to life. It just wasn't going to happen, and he knew it wouldn't. Such was his mundane life of nothingness. Not a single thing ever changed. And, he supposed, nothing ever would. He was a slave to the hourglass decal with nowhere to go.

"Siorc, Siorc, your friends will be here in twenty minutes!" Phanty cried. "Are you almost done weeding?"

Slap.

+[Phanty, can't you see I'm still weeding? Could you please leave me alone?]+ the sticker said.

"Nia told me to bring the marigolds some leftover toast!" Phanty cried, blowing their sticky trump. As they did such, they sprinkled down the balls of toast. "Here you go, goldy!"

"Yaaay!" the magical glower sticker cried. "More bread crumbs!"

Om nom, nom, nom, nom.

Dumb flower stickers eating Nia's leftover bread scraps as usual, the graduate shook his head as the decal let out a disgusting belch. How many times did he have to tell his sister that she should not be feeding the flowers in the sticker garden bread? He told her hundreds of times and yet she still insisted on feeding it to them anyway? Well, whatever, that wasn't his fault. If these little marigold stickies died, it would be her fault, not his. Continuing to pluck away the weeds, an aggravating disturbance soon caught the wind.

Knock, knock, knock.

"Yoo hoo, Siorc, you in there?" a tenor voice asked.

"It's time for the sticker rally, you know!" another voice cried.

Knock, knock, knock, knock.

"Come on, open the door, it's time to go!" another voice shouted.

"I'll get it!" Phanty cried.

Slap.

+[Can't you wait a second?! I'm not done yet!]+ The sticker cried.

"Nopers, your friends are here! There's no time to waste!" Phanty cried.

Slap.

+[They're not my friends! They're my annoying teammates!]+ The sticker cried. But, such had been ignored.

"We're gonna miss out if you don't open the door, you know!" the tenor voice cried.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Phanty cried. As they said such, their sticky trunk reached for the door, letting out a loud noise.

"Siorc! I thought we've told you like, a gazillion times by now to be done weeding ten minutes before we came!" the tenor voice cried again. "Can't you at least do that, for once? Break out of that loop of yours!"

Screaming in the corner had been a rather tall young adult man with otter hands and feet and bushy brown tail behind him. Pure white spiky hair slightly slicked back barely going below the ears, he had baby blue eyes that were practically sparkling. Dark orange shirt with a white and black donut sticker printed on it, below it had been the words Yin Yang. Seeing such, the hyena wanted to bite that pastry on the shirt. Man, those earthling visitors sure had passed down a lot of words he had never heard before. What did Yin Yang even mean? Olive shaded pants with a knotted belt in the front, he wanted to pull his hair out. Qiongqi was the same annoying pest as always, wonderful. Annoying donut sticker with eyes floating next to him, he wanted to tear that creature up. Amazing, that pest was here, too.

"He'll never break out of the loop, Qiongqi!" the voice next to him shouted. "Just ask Donnie over there!"

"Donnie, will he ever get out of this loop?" Qiongqi asked the donut sticker.

"Nopers, never!" Donnie cried.

"See, told you!" the chimera next to him shouted.

Standing next to Qiongqi had been a young fae cat woman who had been slightly taller than him. Bright orange hair tied into two twin drills, her front bangs had been parted practically past her chin. Bright red eyes with shimmering star pupils, the chimera wanted to look away. As usual, Ulka was the light of people's lives. Except his, of course. Cherry shaded button down winter shirt adorning colorful macaron stickers everywhere, her bright crimson skirt had scones on it to match. Annoying little madeleine sticker next to her looking ready to yap off, he folded his hand into a fist. Here comes yet another annoyance.

"Silly Siorcy stuck in his silly bubble as always!" the annoying scone sticker cried.

"Couldn't you have just opened the door yourself instead of making Phanty do it?" the last chimera asked. "We don't have time for this, you know."

Complaining in the corner had been a rather tall young adult feminine appearing individual with short low hanging bright orange spiky hair that had been gelled to oblivion. Fawn horns on the top of their head even shinier, the young adult covered his eyes. Damla as usual, was far too bright, they needed a dim setting. Obnoxious bright red dress with sequin filled sushi stickers plastered all over it, group of sushi decals floated next to them. Seeing them, he almost wanted to roll up into a ball and move away. Why did they even need him to join this sticker rally again?

"You could at least try to look a little more alive, you know?" Damla groaned. "You always look so dead every time we come here. At least look like you care a tiny bit?"

"Oh, you know Siorc! If we push him a little, it'll whip him up into shape!" Qiongqi cried. As he said such, he slapped the dude's back hip. "Come on, bro! Stand up, and let's go!"

"Stand up and let's go!" Donnie cried.

"If we don't get there first, other people will score more points than us, come on!" Ulka screeched.

Backside stinging, the early adult clicked his tongue. Tch, this, too was the same as always. Same old rallying same old forced used of pushing. How much more desperate could these three get at this point? He didn't know anymore, but they sure were ready to win it all. They most certainly didn't need him to do that. Pesky elephant sticker ready to act as his mouthpiece, he rearranged the letter decals on an empty page.

Slap.

+[Then, all of you can just go without me, Bye.]+ the sticker said. But, such had been met with a grab of the wrist.

"Why, so you can rot here by yourself and do nothing? I don't think so!" Qiongqi cried. "Let's go! The decal bus is here!"

Magical, one dimensioned sticker bus waiting for the lot of four, the young adult rolled his eyes. Oh, great, it was still here? Why couldn't it just leave already? Go away, white shuttle of doom. Dragged onto the vessel, he groaned at all the other stickers seated. As usual, this single decker was filled to the brim with puppy stickers. What earthling kid threw an entire sheet away? Lame.

"Okay, is everyone seated?" the driver sticker in the front asked.

"Yeah!" the puppy stickers in every other seat cried.

"Okaaaaaaaaaay, then let's go to the sticker rally!" the driver sticker said in a babied tone.

"Yaaaaaaaaaay!" everyone else cried except the hyena.

Paper wheels whirring, the hyena gazed out the polyester window. Same old sticker rally, same old bus ride. Why did he let Qiongqi force him into this? He should have had the foresight to say the two letter word of rejection? But, he could never say anything, not once, not a single word. What point was there? Everyone always talked over him anyway. It was better to zipper the lip and not bother.

Hearing a loud noise out the window, the young adult flinched. What was that noise? He didn't know, smoke signal in the sky, he swore he could see multiple big stickers outside look rather angry about something. Did something happen? Something did, didn't it? Something horrible. Was there an evil human visiting? He had heard sometimes earthlings came here to stir up trouble.

But, the chimera shook his head. Ah, no, Why would there be some evil earthlings here? The only time they ever came to this planet was for alien research or something. Whatever that was. Why would any of them have any sort of malicious intent? That was crazy talk. Complete and utter crazy talk. Pesky elephant sticker pressing themselves onto the window, they soon let out a shout.

"Wow, lotsa smoke again!" Phanty cried. "I hope the other stickers are okay!"

Slap.

+[Get off the window, we're leaving soon.]+ the sticker said.

"Let me make sure my sticker friends are okay first!" Phanty cried.

Adhesive bus wheels whirring towards the sticker rally entrance, the hyena could not help but think. Were those Pretty Cures fighting against something evil right now? But, he shook his head. The little pastry restaurant they were working at was super far away from that smoke signal. They probably didn't even know about it, did they? Definitely not. Maybe he shouldn't worry himself over it.

Screeeeeeeeeech.

"Okay, everyone we're here!" the sticker conductor cried. "Have fun out there! And remember, come back in three hours!"

"Okaaaaaaaaaay!" all the puppy stickers cried.

Puppy decals running off the bus, the young adult wanted to bury himself in his knees. There everything goes. Yet again, this day was going the same as always. Same one dimensioned dogs running towards the sticker rally. Same annoying teammates yelling at him to get out of his seat and look alive, when would something interesting happen?

"Get out of your seat already, brother!" Qiongqi cried. "We got some stickers to save!"

"Yeah, quit sitting around!" Ulka cried. "Phanty, tell him to get up!"

"Get up, get up!" Phanty shouted.

"Damla could you--?" Ulka started to say, but she tilted her head. "Huh, they already left? Ugh, Siorc come ooon! Stand up already!" As she said such, she grabbed his wrist. "Come oooon, let's go!"

Dragged off the bus, the chimera gazed upwards towards the sky. Smoke signals getting stronger, the graduate almost wanted to tuck his tail in and turn around towards the sticky shuttle. Should they really be going on a sticker rally right now? That collection of black gas wasn't looking very good. Come on. Now was as good a time as any to turn back around.

Ulka dragging him towards Damla and her pesky sticker companion, the hyena gazed at everything around him. Multiple lost stickers calling out for help, the chimera sighed. Everything was the same as always. Hundreds of recently tossed out stickers from earth had found themselves lost in Tape Park. Why did earthlings throw out every single sticker sheet they ever owned? He didn't understand, he never truly did, though. Look at the mess he had to clean up! Stickerland had an overpopulation problem now, thanks, earthlings!

Adhesive bucket handed to him as the pesky winged catgirl gripped his wrist even tighter, the graduate wanted to bite her hand clean off. Can she lock down his wrist any tighter? It's not like he was going to run away. He knew if he did, Qiongqi would go and grab the hook and force him back here. He was on this sticker rally team until the day he were to die, go him.

Multiple newborn stickers caught in the basket weeping like there was no tomorrow, the reluctant sticker collection covered one of his ears with his free paw. By the decal gods above, stop whining! Why did the mayor think it was a good idea to make a sticker rally in the first place? The only people who participated were the high school dropouts and recent graduates with nothing better to do. How bothersome. Loosen the load a little, why don't they?

Many little star decals begging for help, the chimera rolled his eyes. This was the same as always, too. Hundreds of earthling children had thrown out entire sticker sheets worth of galaxy themed adhesives. Why were those under the age of eighteen so disinterested in space? He could hardly fathom it. Little five pointed ships patched up, gratitude had come his way.

"Thank you so much, Mr. Hyena!" the star stickers cried. "The earthling who threw me away tried to rip me up, and it hurty a lot!"

Baby talk coming his way, the hyena almost wanted to plug his ears. Oh, a little kid had thrown these stickers away, hadn't they? Another thing that was the same as always, kindergarten age earthlings throwing away boatloads of sticker sheets and trying to rip them up. Why wasn't he surprised there had been so many of them today? But, his thoughts had soon been interrupted a loud voice.

"Guys, you hear that?" Qiongqi asked.

"No?" Damla cried.

"What do you mean, no?!" Qiongqi asked. "Listen! Tell them, Donnie!"

"Listen, listen!" Donnie cried.


"Help me, help me, tweet, tweet, help me!" a bird sticker cried.

"Listen, that bird sticker needs our help!" Qiongqi shouted. "Say, Siorc?"

Sigh.

Here it comes.

"Could you be a pal and help the poor bluejay stickers get out of the tree?" Qiongqi asked.

"Hurry, hurry, we're losing points!" Donnie cried.

"Then, I'll toss him up there, here goes!" Ulka cried. Go on, Siorc, catch the birdies!"

Whoooooooooooooooooooosh.

Bonk.

Thrown across the way, the hyena folded his paw into a fist. Of course, just like always, Ulka had to throw him. Back of his neck smacking hard onto the wood, the baby chicks kept on whining for assistance. Ugh, he heard them, he heard them alright? Calm down. He's getting to them. Did he have to keep on hearing this over and over again?

Peel.

Peel.

Peel.

Tweet tweet.

Baby bird stickers set free, the young adult's neck throbbed like a monster. Why did they always have to throw him like he was a toy? Every single week they did this all on purpose. Why couldn't Qiongqi for once climb up the tree and help the stickers? Why, why, why? Someone, besides him do something for a change. They were always making him do it! Why, was it because he never said the two letter word of rejection? Probably. Hopping off the branch, one voice of reason kicked in.

"Stop throwing him like he's a toy," Damla said.

"Yeah, stop that!" the sushi sticker trio cried.

"I mean, we're trying to beat the clock here, right?!" Ulka cried. "It's better to show a little force!"

"Have you maybe considered that you're going a little too far?" Damla asked. "The both of you."

"Never!" Qiongqi cried. "After all, we gotta be number one! We have to be fast, or the others will beat us!"

"Keep treating him like a toy, and the thing you used to play with will soon rebel." Damla walked on ahead as they said such.

"You, get back here!" Qiongqi cried.

"Yeah, you take that back!" Ulka shouted.

Stupid duo speeding up ahead, the hyena covered his ears. When would these two learn to stop pushing him around? Oh, wait, never! Never. Never, ever, ever. Every day was always the same. These two would drag him around like a little toy they could control. Each time, he would try to say something, but the words died every time. It was too late to change anything, was it? Of course it was.

Smoke signals only getting stronger, the chimera could feel a wave of unease stick a doom decal on the back of his shirt. Man, that black cloud was getting bigger, wasn't it? Why wasn't anyone doing anything about it? Where was Pretty Cure? Surely, by now, they had to have seen it? Maybe they were too busy serving customers to even notice.

Hours droning on by of saving discarded baby stickers, the chimera huffed a tired breath. He could use a cup of nice warm tea right about now. Same results as always granted to his teammates and he, the graduate tuned out the decal announcer giving them yet another stamp on their competition book.

Dragged back onto the bus, the hyena stared out the window. Maybe he should stop at the Super Decal Café like Nia told him. Maybe a small change of pace would do him some good. Right, maybe breaking this loop once and for all could finally change something. Maybe it wouldn't change anything of value. But, it was worth a try. Maybe if he were lucky, he could see the girls fight an evil sticker or two.

Home nearing, the graduate could feel himself drift off. Maybe he, too, could fight for justice. Destroy those evil stickers possibly brought down by those pesky earthlings. That would be fun. Maybe he had what it takes to become the legendary warrior, Pretty Cure? He adored superhero stories when he was a kid.

But, the young adult shook his head. Ah, no, what was he thinking? He wasn't a woman. But, he wasn't a man, either. He wouldn't be allowed to be a Pretty Cure, would he? That role was exclusive to young girls and young adult women, right? There was no way he'd ever get a chance to become a magical superhero in a pretty dress with supernatural powers.

Screech.

Getting off the sticker shuttle, the chimera tiptoed through the streets. Smoke signal only getting bigger, he grit his teeth. Man, it was getting stronger, wasn't it? Should he do something about it? What if some of the older chimeras inhaled that stuff? But, he knew he should probably leave it to the professionals. He wasn't qualified to deal with things like this.

Reaching Super Decal Café his pesky sticker tagalong had been snoring away. Groaning, he stuck Phanty on the cover of his communication sticker book. Could they possibly snore any louder? Dropping the log into his bag, the chimera gulped. In his goes. Bell popping off as he closed the door behind him, immediate greetings had come his way.

"Welcome, welcome!" a low pitched voice cried.

"The girls will be right with you!" the other voice exclaimed.

Standing at the left of the desk at the front had been a rather strange looking person with light green skin and short baby blue hair that had barely gone below the chin. Spiky elfen ears, the graduate lowered his eyes into a squint. This guy, they seemed rather suspicious, but why? They didn't feel like they were from Stickerland at all. Red violet striped shirt upon them, next to nothing about them made them look like a chimera.

Waving at the right side of the desk had been a pint sized rat man about as tall as a grade schooler. Short Light brown hair about earthling ear length, a portion of it had been tied into a small braid. Baby blue eyes very similar to the weird guy next to him, for some reason, he was wearing a sailor suit. Rat stickers next to him dancing, something felt very wrong, but what?

"You two, why are you just standing there?" one voice asked. "You especially, Peltro." A finger had been pointed at the weirdo on the left.

"Take him to his seat, we're trying to clean here," the second voice from afar said.

"We were just about to, girls!" the rat person cried.

"You say that all the time, Cyril," another voice said.


"Come on, take the initiative, you two," one last voice demanded. As they voice said such, the two weird people stood.

"Okay, let's get you to your seat!" Peltro cried.

Guided towards an empty table, the hyena observed everything around him. Not a single chimera nor sticker in the café, the chimera broke into a sweat. It sure was quiet here, wasn't it? He had heard from his sister this little pastry restaurant was widely popular, though. Was business declining already?

"Okay, girls, he's seated!" Cyril cried. But, eyes had soon been on the customer. Something mumbled, he smiled. "This fella looks to be around your age!"

"Huh?" a voice called running. But, the cheeks grew red. "Siorc, what are you doing here?"

Questioning with her face red in the corner had been a short young adult lizard woman with tan skin. Long, wildly mess dark black hair pulled into two low pigtails, she had black eyes with no sclera to match, as well. Bright orange dress with blue cherries on it, he let out a sigh. Soie was the same as always. But, he knew something was different. He knew her secret, after all.

"Why do you think he's here, Soie?" the next girl asked. "He's here for tea and biscuits."

Standing in the corner with a menu in her hands had been a rather short dark skinned cat woman with long sea green hair that went down to about her backside. Portion of it tied up into two high pigtails, she adorned a pitch black punk dress that hid her panther tail almost too well. Man, as usual, Waiola put the black in black panther. Reflective sunglasses stickers looking ready to fly off her shirt, the next girl soon interrupted.

"It only took you two months to come here, Siorc!" the next girl cried. "What gives?!"

Whining in the center had been a tall young woman with long blonde hair that went down to about her backside. Portion of it dyed a bright shade of indigo, the unnatural portions had been pulled into two high pigtails. Bright pink contacts looked so plastic they could do some permanent damage, she had been wearing a dark blue blouse suit. Lynx tail behind her, the graduate scratched his head. Some people changed too much after graduation, he sees.

"Guys, can you just serve him?!" the last girl cried. "I can sense something bad is in the air, we might have to--!" But loud screeches had come his way.

"Dove, shh!" Soie cried.

"Don't say it!" Waiola cried.

"We have a customer, don't say that forbidden word in front of the customer, okay?" Irpa cried.

"Hmph," Dove pouted.

Pouting with a menu in her pocket had been a short young adult woman with long shadow colored hair pulled into a very long high ponytail that went down to about her chest. Tied up hair only hooked to the left side, she adorned a rather strange white dress with hazelnut stickers decorated all over them. Seeing such, the hyena let out a tired groan of defeat. Dove never changes. She was still friends with nut stickers, wasn't she? How tiresome.

"Alrighty, what can I get for you?" Dove asked.

Slap.

+[Lemon tea and biscuits will do.]+ the sticker said. But, as he pushed his book upward, the familiar noises soon added itself to the mix.

"I want some toast!!" Phanty cried.

Slap.

+[Say excuse me, Phanty, so rude!]+ the sticker shouted.

"Okay, okay, can I have some toast, pleeeeeeeeeeeease?" Phanty asked.

"Sure, on it," Waiola said. "It might take a little while, but it'll be out soon, we promise."

But, soon never came.

Disturbing monstrous noises echoing throughout Stickerland, a wave of doom had flowed through the hyena. Ah, that bellowing screech, he knew it. The enemy was out and about causing wreckage to Stickerland and turning baby stickers into monsters. Gee, he wondered, what kind of excuse would the girls use? Sorry, family emergency, wait here, they'll be back in ten minutes! Probably. Maybe he should say he knows their secret. Quartet running out like clockwork, the predictable set of words had come his way.

"Sorry, Soie has a family emergency, we'll be right back!" Dove cried. "Wait ten minutes, okay?"

Party of four leaving, something fishy soon took place. Weird duo at the desk poofing away, he placed his finger on his chin. Very interesting, those two left as well, very suspicious. Didn't anyone ever think to question this? Well, he supposed not everyone knew these girl's secret. Slipping towards the window, he could soon see a blinding flash of light.

"Pretty Cure! Sticker on my heart!" four voices called out at once.

"Flower Sticker Pretty Cure!" the party of four soon cried out together.

Party of four girls dressed up in brightly colored flower themed super hero costumes, their hair had soon become pink, red, blue and yellow. Quartet using their magical powers on a large sticker letting out villainous screams, the cures had been pushed back multiple times. Weird high pitched noises crying out for them to not give up, the hyena sighed. Is the team losing? How strange.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!" a collective scream shouted.

"This time, Pretty Cure, you will be defeated, and I will make all the stickers in the world evil!" the villain cried.

"No, you can't do that!" one of the cures cried.

"Earthlings are so evil!" one of the cures cried. "Super Aster Blast!"

Bam.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.

"Cure Aster!" a squeaky voice cried.

"Cure Sunflower!" a squeaky voice cried.

"We won't give up!" one of the cures cried. "We will defeat you!"

"Nyahaha, I'd like to see you try! Your precious little sticker friend is ten times more power than you, Cure Iris!"

"I won't let you beat me!" Cure Iris cried. "Blue Bell splash!"

Bam.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH.

"Cure Iris!" the high squeaky voice cried. "Keep it together!"

"Cure Rose, please, get up!" the high squeaky voice cried.

"Oh, no, those cute girls are losing!" Phanty cried.

Cures looking like they were about to collapse and float away into space, the hyena made a run for it. Oh, no, justice was dying! He needed to get out there and do something? Slamming the door behind him, he could hear the annoying tagalong convince him to stay behind. Gritting his teeth, he pushed forward. No way, he couldn't just sit back and watch, absolutely not!

Reaching the battlefield, the chimera watched in horror as the evil turned elephant sticker had wrecked havoc on everyone. Girls looking all tattered, no spell of hope could turn the tables. Feeling something welling up inside him, the graduate let out a scream. He had to say something. He had to put a stop to this. Pretty Cure couldn't lose, no way! Do it, say it, cry his heart out.

"Earthling, leave those girls alone!" Siorc shouted at the top of those lungs. "Stop turning abandoned stickers into your minions!"

"Pahaha, and who's this?!" the villain cried. "Pretty Cure, who's this trash you forgot to throw out?!"

Stepping on the Pretty Cure quartet in the corner had been a colossally tall masked lady with blonde hair. Bright fluffy outfit with the words Stickers Are My Slaves printed in all capital letters, the chimera rolled his eyes. Ah, great, this villain couldn't have been any more obvious, huh? Reaching for his sticker book, he slapped away rapidly.

Slap, slap, slap, slap.

+[If I'm trash, then I'll be the trash to take you out! How could you harm our stickers like this?!]+ the sticker cried.

Click.

Weird sticker book pendant with a wisteria in the center plopped into the palm of his hands, the chimera tilted his head. Huh, why did he receive this? He wasn't a girl. This had to have been some sort of mistake, right? Charms on the tome glowing, an alligator baby alien and a rat alien soon flew towards him.

"Siorc, hurry, transform into Pretty Cure!" the alligator alien cried.

Slap.

+[Me?]+ the sticker asked.

"That's right, you!" the rat alien cried.

Slap.

+[But, I'm not a girl. Can I really become a Pretty Cure?]+ the sticker asked.

"Anyone can become a Pretty Cure if they have a kind heart and sense of justice!" the rat alien cried. "Now, repeat after me, Pretty Cure, Sticker on my heart!"

Pretty Cure! Sticker on my heart!

Sticker book glowing, a blinding hot light overtook the hyena. Hair engulfed in a burning energy, his locks soon grew much longer. Body encased in a light purple force, a bright lavender dress with light green accents in the skirt had soon overtaken him. Locks now a very light purple, his eyes had almost been sparkling. Wisteria hairpins and earrings replacing the elephants, an involuntary chant soon broke loose from his throat.

"Scion of flower stickers, Cure Wisteria!" Cure Wisteria shouted. He posed his leg upward and pointed at something invisible as he shouted such.

"A fifth cure?!" the villain cried. "That should be impossible!"

Magical sword in the palm of his hands, Cure Wisteria sweat up a storm. Ah, this was really happening now, wasn't it? He wasn't dreaming? Phanty next to him growing super large and surrounding him, he could not help but feel like something wasn't right. Why were they his partner? He was never nice to them. Did he even deserve to be this magical superhero in the first place?

Shaking his head, he leaped upwards. Wisteria filled sword swipe about ready to take the enemy out, he let out a battle cry. Crying out Phanty's name as well, the elephant sticker stomped downward with a thud. Evil spirit about ready to release itself from the enemy, his jaw dropped. Why was this so easy? The other cures were struggling.

"How is he doing so good at this on his first try?!" Cure Aster cried. "Cure Wisteria's powerful!"

"Maybe it's the adrenaline?" Cure Sunflower asked.

"Or maybe Cure Wisteria was the last piece in the puzzle we needed!" Cure Rose cried.

Feeling the magic power flow through him, the cure let out a battle cry. Screaming out, Crocus Petal Dance, the magical superhero could feel the enemy weaken. He had break this poor little sticker free from its evil brainwashing, right. One more try, one more try. One, two, three, one, two, three. One, two, three!

"How is this newbie cure holding their own?!" the villain cried. "They must be beefed up on something!"

"Nah," Cure Iris said in a weak voice. "Maybe their sense of justice at the moment is stronger than ours." As she said such, she took a weak breath.

"Finishing move!" Phanty cried. "Peanut Wisteria cracker!"

Combining his energy with his elephant sticker companion, a large purple peanut butter cracker had been gifted to the earthling villain. Evil spirit letting out a defeated cry, the mammoth adhesive dropped down onto the ground floating back to their friend. Gratitude coming his way, a question had soon come his way.

"Thank you, Pretty Cure!" the young chimera cried. "Who are you?"

Slap.

+[I'm Cure Wisteria. Make sure you keep your sticker companion safe now.]+ the sticker said.

"I will, thank you, Cure Wisteria!" the kid cried.

Pretty Cure team returning to their sense, the cure blushed as all the super hero girls looked at him. Did they know he knew who they were? Maybe they knew all along he had been aware of their secret. Should he have said something? Eyes studying him for a moment, everyone had soon grown frantic.

"How long have you known our secret?!" Cure Aster asked.

Slap.

+[Give or take, since the beginning.]+ the sticker said.

"Ugh!" Cure Sunflower cried. "Hurry, let's get to the café so we can detransform!"

Flying back to the café, a loud chant had nearly shook the walls. Cure Aster soon transforming back into Soie, he placed his hand on his chin. Hmm, strange, he thought Cure Rose would be the leader of this group, but it turns out that wasn't the case. Cure Sunflower soon transforming back into Waiola, he watched as Cure Iris flopped back to Irpa. Cure Rose returning to her Dove form, the superhero had gone back to his plain jane hyena chimera appearance.

"Wait, so you knew who we were all along?!" Soie asked.

Slap.

+[That's right, I did.]+ the sticker said.


"Peltro!" Waiola cried. "Why didn't you tell us someone knew our secret identities?!" She raddled the alligator fairy as she said such.

"I didn't know someone knew, sorry!" Peltro cried.

"You should have said something too, Cyril!" Irpa cried. She shook the rat fairy as she said such.

"How was I supposed to know someone knew your secret?!" Cyril cried. "Well, it's not like he blabbed to anyone. So, now your secret is his secret, too!"

"Girls, it's fine, Siorc was always the quiet one anyway, and it's not like he told anyone," Dove said to the party of three. She then turned toward Siorc. "So, how about it? Would you like to join our team? Your elephant sticker partner is welcome too, of course!"

Hand soon extended out to him, the chimera placed his finger on his chin. Should he join Flower Sticker Pretty Cure? This would finally end the monotonous loop in his life! Closing his eyes for a moment, the nothingness flashed on in his memories. Sticking out his hand, he shook on it. As he did such, he could feel everything about to get a lot better.

Cure Wisteria was here, and his life was about to be much more worthwhile.

---

This kind of did not go as I expected, ngl. Whatever: This art is extremely old and needs to be redrawn, but for now here's Cure Wisteria. Anyway, after this is tennis with a twist.

 

[Palamon]

Tennis Ivy

---

"Hello there, I guess, not like it matters, I'm a nobody.
Eh, fine, fine. Alright, fine.
Let me introduce myself. I'm Siorc Ingne. Ugh,
Listen, listen, I really don't like talking,
Okay? I recently graduated college with an associates degree

In math. Well, I guess no one wants a hyena chimera with an associates degree in math.

Going to be completely honest here, I
Ultimately feel no direction in life since barely any good job
Even pays me. So, I have to go and
Settle for dead end jobs. I
Should have just majored in environmental science like I planned.

Maybe I'd have something worthwhile in my life if I had.
Yeah, if I had just tried for an environmental science course,

Nothing would been
As meaningless as it is now.
Maybe my life would have been better off, but
Eh. Being a chimera in this world of humans

Is extremely difficult. Humans are
Seen as inferior in this world.

So, where do I live? Eh,
I live in a place called Chesarail. A walled city
Or something. I don't quite
Remember when this place became a
Caved prison, but

It is what it is. It does
Not really matter, I suppose. I just
Go to whatever job I
Need to go for for the day
Every single day,

And just try to live my nothing life. I guess it

Just doesn't really matter. Life
Obviously doesn't matter. I
Barely feel anything these days.

Hardly anything at all. Ha, if
Only I had just
Picked environmental science like I wanted, but I
Picked maths instead. I
Ended up not caring for that, and
Routed to just get a two year degree.

I guess I should have tried harder to try

For switching degrees. But,
Eh. That didn't work out. I
Ended up graduating in two years to just
Literally get it over with.

Let me just say that the many jobs
I have, I feel nothing. I
Know that's annoying, but
Everything feels like nothing.

I just go through the motions in life

Never feeling anything for anything.
Eh, my sister tells me to live a little.
Every so often, I
Do try meeting up with my friends, but they often

Suggest we go
Out drinking. I don't want to have
Malt beverages with them. But,
Every time we
Try and meet up, they just
Have to utter the words, 'let's go drinking!'
I'm called a buzzkill when I shake my head
No when they
Go and drag me out to the bar.

My sister who is almost forty, mind you, always says,
'Oh, you're in your twenties only once, bro, live a little!'
Rather not. Alcohol is awful, it
Ends up taking people away. Like

What happened to father. Eh,
It doesn't matter.
There's also something else people
Have been trying to force

Me to do. And,
You know what that is?

Let me explain,
I guess. My
Friends are trying to drag me to join a country club. And,
Eh, I am honestly not interested.

But, I am very likely getting signed
Up against my will. I'll
Take my communication picture log with me if I

Am because I would rather not
Talk to people. My voice is just

Terrible. Not only that, I just
Have nothing to say. Ugh,
I feel people take advantage of my
Silence. But, I don't want to

Pop open my mouth.
Oh, well, most likely,
I'm going to be forced to sign up.
Nothing I can do about
That. Eh, maybe this

Is going to sound incredibly

Rude, but aren't country clubs for the
Elderly? Like, why do my friends want to go there?
Ah, I think I know, it's
Likely the discount booze, isn't it? It's not
Likely, it's one hundred percent guaranteed.
Yes, absolutely positively guaranteed. I

Can't think of
Another reason. And they just want to use me as a little token. To move around. Well,
Nope, I will not be joining
That country club.

Find another friend to force
Into it! Just because I
Never say anything,
Doesn't mean my

Answer is automatically yes. A headshake means
No. But, ah, who am I kidding? They take it as a
Yes and
There is nothing I can do about it,
Haha, why do
I bother, honestly? I'm
Nothing more than a little token to
Go drive them places, after all. Oh, well. That's life."

La la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la la.

The sun was rising steadily over the walled city of Chesarail. Chimeras were out in the open being pointed at by humans; the mortals were laughing like it was their job to poke fun. It was yet another chaotic, but predictable day for the citizens of the distanced region of Checkzo. But, for one citizen, it would be yet another day of being the designated driver.

Waking up to loud singing had been a short young adult feminine appearing humanoid hyena chimera with dark messy purple hair that went down to about the shoulders. Mismatched purple and green eyes having deep bags over them, the person let out a groan as the human hands had been transformed into hyena form. Ugh, when would the sister stop singing so off key?

Rubbing the eyes, the young adult tilted the head. What day was it today? Reaching for the smartphone, the person let out a tired sigh. Oh, Tuesday. Which job was on the table for the next eight hours? Oh, Dairy Emperor. Great, it was peak Snowstorm Treats season. Why couldn't the boss take those stupid summer drinks off the menu? Raising from the bed, the pick black pajamas with the equation e equals mc squared were about ready to rip off the body.

Dragging the self into the bathroom, the chimera wanted to punch the reflection staring back. How could the hands transform into paws again? Hideous hyena spots staring back as well, the young adult turned away. There better be enough concealer to hide everything. Rushing into the tub the person groaned as the human legs transformed into hyena legs as well.

Knock, knock, knock, knock.

Ugh.

Pesky older sister pounding on the door, the chimera scratched the shower tiles with all the might that remained. Couldn't Deigr use her own bathroom? The person thought after the two of them moved into this apartment complex she would stop sharing everything. For backgammon's sake, she said if the two of them split the rent, she wouldn't ask to share.

"Siorc, bro, come on, can you hurry up in there?" the sister demanded. "I have to go!"

Groaning, the hyena reached for his bagged smartphone. Ugh, how many times did he have to tell Deigr to use her own bathroom? A hundred, a thousand? Ten, a million? a gajillion? He didn't know he lost count. Tip tappying away, the text to speech voice screeched out on his behalf with an uproar.

[Use your own bathroom, Deigr! I'm in the shower!] the text-to-speech voice shouted on his behalf.

"My toilet needs repairs, please?! I'm gonna burst!" Deigr cried.

Older sister using childish words again, the chimera let out a groan. This woman was pushing forty and she still talked like this. Ugh. Bathrobe slipped on, he bolted out the door. Pesky twin drilled sister dashing straight in, he slapped his palm across his forehead. Why can't she just admit it at this point she just liked his better? Don't be shy.

"Thankies! You're the best, bro!" Deigr shouted.

Tap, tap, tap, tippity tap.

[You could have waited you know, some of us have to get ready for work in the morning!] the text-to-speech bot said on his behalf.

"What's that supposed to mean, bro? I make plenty at my accounting job!" Deigr cried. "You could have become one too if you had continued to pursue your degree for a couple more years!"

Slam. Click.

Bathroom door locked tight, the young adult sunk his teeth into his currently hyena wrist. There she goes again with that if he had continued to pursue is degree a couple more years. Math and numbers weren't his thing. But, he knew he couldn't say such a thing. What good would it do? She would go and do that annoying speech again she always said.

Locks rinsed out, the young adult reached for the folded up clothing on the loo. Pitch black shirt with multiple different math equations on it, the chimera let out a tired sigh. Why did he go and buy a whole ton of these nerdy shirts back when he was majoring in math? He needed to go clothing shopping at the nearest Voyages fast. But, when would he ever have time for that? Pure white maxi skirt hiding his hyena legs, he closed his eyes for a moment. Disgusting fur, begone.

Human hands in front of him at last, the job hopper reached for the concealer. Hideous spots covered, he put on a small smile. Finally, he looked normal, almost regular enough to pass as a completely regular human. Clicking down a hairpin that said one plus one equals two, e equals mc squared earrings had been clamped down as well. Hair put up into a left swept high ponytail, he headed back to his room for a moment. Picture communication book dropped into his pocketbook, he dragged himself off towards the dining room.

Sitting at the table already eating had been a short, approaching middle aged woman with bright light purple hair pulled upward into two twin drills like a certain virtual idol all over the internet. Bright green eyes looking as energetic as ever, he slapped his palm over his temple at her shirt. Light teal shirt with a thumbs up reading, Feeling Thirty Two, he practically gagged at the sight of it. Ugh, how could she parade around wearing that thing? She was going to be forty in a few months. Why did his mother have to have him seventeen years after she was born? This past year and a half living with her since graduating had been a nightmare.

"Sorry, bro, did you want toast, too?" Deigr asked. "I ate the last piece!"

Flip, flip, flip.

[Buy more, then!] A picture of a supermarket with text underneath it had been opened up.

"Later, later, I have to work with a client today," Deigr said. "He needs his taxes done."

Flip, flip, flip.

[Is there anything left to eat at all?] A picture of a young adult woman with her hands on her stomach with text underneath it had been flipped to.

"Uh, I dunno, maybe there's some canned ravioli in the pantry?" Deigr asked. "I'll go shopping later, I promise!"

Slam.

Pantry bursting open, the job hopper gnawed his teeth on the easy open tab on the can of Cook Girl R Dee Ravioli. For Backgammon's sake, didn't this chimera know that processed food is unhealthy? Sighing, he plopped the annoying creature into the microwave. Oh, well, it's not like he had any time for this. He had fifteen minutes before he had to leave.

Flip, flip.

[Turn on the tv.] A picture of an olden time television with text underneath it had been flipped to.

"Oh, right, it's time for the news, I almost forgot!" Deigr cried.


Click.

"Good morning, good morning, it is now seven thirty, and we're here with the early morning news!" a reporter cried. "There's been a sudden large outbreak of poison ivy around Chesarail? We are here in front of the Domino Community College to ask students if they know about it!"

"Ah, yes, yes, the poison ivy is everywhere!" a student cried. "Some say that it might even transform into monsters!"

"Oh, really? We'd better be on the lookout!" a reporter cried.

Nibbling on the flavorless ravioli, the chimera clicked his tongue. Oh, great, more poison ivy had been growing in places it shouldn't. What a nasty summer this was shaping up to be. He bet he had seen at least hundreds of customers at his many different jobs breaking out in hives every single day. Finishing the disgusting breakfast, he reached for the remote.

Jingle, jingle.

Flip.

[I'm leaving for work now.] A picture with a green bill with text underneath it had been flipped two. Flip, flip. [I'll be back at around five.] A picture with a watch on it had been flipped two. Flip, flip. [Please go to the store before I come home.]

"I will, I will, don't worry!" Deigr cried. "Here's your uniform!" A bright red overall and had had been handed off to him. "By the way, your friends are coming over this evening!"

Reaching for the uniform, the hyena groaned as he put the red Dairy Emperor apron over his shirt. Oh, great, his friends were coming over today. He knew where this was going. What far away bar were they going to force him to drive them to now? He swore, every Tuesday their demands were getting more and more annoying.


Loafers plopped over his currently human feet, he closed the door behind him. Light green car with a math whiz decal plastered on the door, he hopped in. Maybe it was about time he removed that stupid sticker. Revving up the engine, he kept his eyes on the road. But, as he had prepared himself to take a left turn onto the expressway, he could hear peculiar noises.

"There's poison ivy at the park!" a troubled person cried.

"I think I saw some poison ivy growing in the pipes at my job, too!" another troubled person shouted.

"Why isn't anyone doing anything about this?!" a third troubled person cried.

Rolling his window back up as the light turned green, the chimera tried to focus on the road. Unusual growths on the grass everywhere, he broke into a sweat. There sure had been a lot of poison ivy everywhere, hadn't there? If only he had gone for an environmental science major instead he could have been out there exterminating that stuff. But, oh well. It was way too late for that.

Road sign reading, exit W Twelve, and another reading Othellorae, keep left he let out a sigh. Whoever chose to name this administrative region after board games was so stupid. For backgammon's sake, it was the digital age! It was time to rename this place once and for all. Red light waiting for him, he blinked his turning signal.

Dairy Emperor parking lot reached after five minutes, the job hopper examined the world around him. Poison ivy everywhere here as well, his head spun. There was some here, too? Just how many occurrences of this had there been? He didn't know anymore. He ought to start keeping an invasive plant journal to keep track.

Slam.

Small restaurant with a checkered floor waiting for him, the hyena dragged himself off towards the break room. No employees out in the open, he groaned. By shogi, where were Isamu and Iomra? Weren't they working today? The restaurant opened at nine, they had to clean everything before the manager came! Had they been late? How unlike them. Maybe he should quit his other five jobs to make sure order is maintained here.

Stomp, stomp, stomp.

"Siorc, I keep telling you to stop slamming the entrance open, the manager is going to be mad if the bell on the door breaks again," an alto voice complained.

"He slammed the door again?!" a tenor voice groaned.

"I just said that, didn't I, Iomra?" The complaints continued.

"Sorry, Isamu, I was checking the pipes for poison ivy," Iomra said.

Standing in the corner with an annoyed look on their face had been a tall, feminine appearing rabbit person whose rabbit ears were sticking out of their pitch black hat. Black hair pulled into a low bun, they had light brown eyes that looked tired and rugged, as usual. Black apron covering their light blue shirt, the chimera let out a groan. Oh, come on now, he hadn't slammed the door open that violently. Get a grip, Isamu.

Looking at the pipes off to the side had been a short young adult man with grey skin. Koala ears on the top of his head, he had short brown hair reaching towards his chin. Employee hat missing, the chimera wanted to dash off towards the break room to look for it. How could Iomra stand around with those ears visible? How horrible. How could he be so out in the open like this and remained unbothered? Bright mint green apron hiding what looked to be a soccer player jersey, he held back the urge to sigh. He was supposed to wear a t-shirt underneath his uniform. But, did he ever listen? No. He ought to be the manager of this place.

Flip, flip.

[Iomra, where's your hat? You should be wearing it!] A picture of a hat with text underneath it had been flipped to.

"I'll wear it when we open, okay?" Iomra groaned. "Stop being so uptight. I was checking the pipes for poison ivy."

"How much poison ivy got in there this time?" Isamu asked.

"If I had to estimate, enough to cause enough of a problem to clog the air conditioner." He fiddled through the pipes as he said such.

"Guess we'll have to tell the manager," Isamu groaned. "What is going on with this city lately?" Snap. "Oh, well, let's clean the tables." They then turned towards Siorc. "Siorc, you can mop the floors. I think there might be some poison ivy down there, too."

Flip, flip, flop.

[On it.] A thumbs up picture with text underneath had been flipped to. But, a sigh had come his way.

"Why do you still carry around that picture book with you?" Isamu asked. "Aren't you in your twenties? You ought to use your words." But, they shook their head. "Never mind. Let's get the store ready. I can already hear people lined up to the door to order some Snowstorms."

Plopping the mop into the bucket, the hyena let out a barely audible growl. Who did Isamu think they were telling him how to communicate? It's not like the customers complained about him, so why even bring it up? Whatever, forget them, they'd never understand. Dropping the cleaning tool upon the checkered floor he could seen a ton of three leaved plants everywhere. Seeing such, he grit his teeth. Huh, where did all that come from? Oh, no, there really was poison ivy everywhere, wasn't there? How did it even get here?

Bang, bang, bang, bang.

Door pounded on aplenty, the chimera gazed at his watch. Ugh, people were here twenty minutes too early. Why couldn't everyone be patient? It wasn't even nine yet. He swore, every summer the entire place was practically drowning in people who wanted their Snowstorm Delights. He could never quite understand why these ice cream cups were so popular.

Stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp, stomp.

Everything cleaned, the manager stomped upon the grounds like they wanted to become king. Finger soon pointed at him to pick up those leaves on the ground, the job hopper could feel his soul about to leave his body. No, there had been more poison ivy? Where was it coming from? He didn't know, but this was way too much for him to handle.

"Manager, please do something about this poison ivy outbreak!" Isamu cried. "It's everywhere!"

"And, what do you expect me to do about it?" the manager asked in an annoyed tone. "Can't you see we're understaffed? Shut up, do you jobs and deal with it! We're about to start the morning rush!"

"Manager, it's in the pipes, too, we have to do something!" Iomra cried.

"That's ridiculous, there's no way that's possible!" the manager cried. "Hurry up and get behind the counter, all of you!"

Dashing towards the front counter, the chimera placed his hand on his chin. Of course, as usual, the manager didn't believe them. But, what else is new? They never did. And, they never will. But, such thoughts were cut off by the customer storm. Multiple kids sprinting towards his line, he flipped open the communication book.

Flip, flip.

[Hello, what can I get for you?] A picture of a person waving with text underneath it had been flipped to.

"One Strawberry Snowstorm with Smoreos, please!" the teenager cried.

Gazing at the ice cream down below him, the chimera swore he could see some leaves inside it. But, he shook his head. Ah, no, trick of the light. Reaching for a plastic cup, he filled the cup with the fruity creamy sugary food. Cookie bits slammed down the complaints had soon come piling in one after another.

"Hurry up, mister! I want mine!" a teenager shouted.

"One at a time, please!" Iomra cried. "We can only handle so much of you at once!"

Teenagers aplenty hurrying the three of them up, the chimera let out a groan. If only he could grow a second or third pair of hands. But, that wasn't possible, was it? Of course it wasn't. Oh, well. The morning rush was never going to end, was it? Why couldn't the manager hire more people to deal with this? Multiple other people soon coming through in the drive thru, the chaos continued for hours on end.

Almost out of ice cream halfway through the day, the chimera let out a sigh. Just how many people wanted these dumb Snowstorms? Every Tuesday for the next fourteen weeks was about to be such a nightmare. Taking a momentary lunchbreak, he gazed at the table in front of him. Three leaved plants decorating it, he groaned. Where did this poison ivy come from? Go away, shoo. Blowing the pesky creature away, he picked himself up from the table. That pesky invasive species ruined his meal.

Returning to the chaos, the job hopper had been screamed at aplenty. There wasn't enough cookies in this. What did he mean they were out of pistachio? Move faster, hurry up. Hiding everything behind a smile, he attempted to bury his face in his hat. For backgammon's sake, couldn't these people see they were running out of ice cream? Why can't people come here and just order food like normal people?

Watch blinking three thirty, he let out a groan. One and a half hours left. Why couldn't it have been Wednesday already? The gas station convenience store was a much less demanding job. Almost no one came there. But, he couldn't help but remember. Right, his boss told him he was closing up shop for the next few weeks because of the poison ivy incident. Could time speed up and bring him to tomorrow already?

Last drop of ice cream given to the least grateful of customers, the young adult huffed a weak breath. Why couldn't the manager just go to the freezer and put more in the tins? But, no, they always say the same thing. Make due with what they put out for the day. They never put out enough, didn't they know that? How aggravating. He ought to become the manager and change things up around here.

Watch soon reading five, the chimera strutted over to the break room. Thank solitaire this is finally over. Folding up his uniform, he plopped down his time card. Evening employees taking their turn, he gave them a salute. Good luck, soldiers, they're about to become burned out before they even knew it.

Driving back home, the hyena let out a groan. Oh, right, those annoying evening drinkers were going to be waiting for him. Why did Deigr have to call them his friends? They all just wanted him for his car since they had their licenses permanently revoked. He can't believe he went to college with these guys. All they ever did was drink after work. Or maybe they skipped it to get wasted, who knows? He sure didn't.

Hearing loud laughs as he unlocked the door, the job hopper covered his ears. Oh, great, they were here already. Maybe he should make some sort of excuse that his car was out of gas and he couldn't bring them to the bar. That would do it, right? But, he knew they would be able to catch him on his bluff. Of course they would. That excuse never worked. He needed to invent a new one.

"Heeey, buddy, you kept up waiting, you know!" a bass voice cried.

"Yeah, what's the holdup? We gotta bar to get to!" another bass voice cried.

"Oh, but, before we do, we need to remind him again!" a tenor voice cried. "We're signing up for the country club, bro! You should totally sign up, too!"

"Here ye, here ye!" an alto voice cried. "Come on, Siorc, sign up with us!"

Stroking his goatee in the corner had been a rather tall goat man with short green hair that barely went below his chin. Barely maintained goatee looking disgustingly unkempt as usual, his golden eyes looked like they were about to go on a trip. Barely fitting baseball team jersey on him, the hyena almost wanted to turn away. Why did Rede have to show off his stupid beer gut? How disgusting. Cover it up!

Seated next to him had been a slightly shorter tan skinned androgynous appearing individual with gazelle horns on the top of their head. Bright and curly dark pink hair that went down to about their shoulders, they wore hideous rainbow checkered clothing. Why did Onur always have to come here straight from that history buff club? Couldn't they at least change? Bright blue eyes that looked like they had been one step away from shroom land, he groaned. Were they taking a hit again before they came here? Ugh. Whatever, who cares? Their problem.

Sitting crisscross at the table had been a tall dark skinned androgynous appearing individual with dark blue hair pulled into a bun on the lower right side of their head. Orange eyes looking ready to catch on fire, their cheeks were quite rosy. Jackal ears on the top of their head, he bit his lip. How could they could around so proudly with ears like that? So many people probably pointed at them aplenty. Striped yellow shirt peaking through a white lab coat, he twitched. Coming here straight from work, wonderful. Keep the chemicals to themself! Folu needed to stop coming here after they had been in the lab all day.

Standing in the corner with her hands crossed around her waist had been a short sheep woman with short dark blue hair hanging downward. Eyes matching the locks exactly, the sour look on her face drowned out everything else. Bright pink suit blouse covering her up nicely, he couldn't help but think. Didn't Lang have a girlfriend? Why couldn't she ask her to drive her around everywhere? Oh, right, he forgot, she couldn't drive! Leave it to him to do everything, he guesses!

"Friendo, come on, there's a cool bar that's near the country club!" Lang cried. "Get up!"

Flip, flip.

[Say please.] A picture with a person's hands clapped together with text underneath it had been flipped to.

"What do you mean say please?!" Rede cried. "Come on, take us there!"

"Yeah, take us there!" Onur cried. "We gotta sign up for the country club after we get a drink!"

"Chop chop!" Folu cried.

Tap, tap.

[Say please.] The picture stayed up for a moment longer.

"Guys, the least you can do is ask nicely!" Deigr cried. "My brother is being so nice to drive you wherever you ask!"

"Ugh, fine, please!" Rede cried. "I'll be waiting in the car!" Zoom.

"Whatever," Onur groaned. "Please take us to the bar near the country club!" Zoom.

"Pretty please?" Folu asked. "We'll pay for your drink!" Zoom.

"Hmph, please," Lang forced out. Zoom.

Hearing the car doom slam outside, the hyena slapped his palm across his forehead. These four were so eager to get wasted, weren't they? Why did he ever agree to take them places when they were all in college together? One and half years later, and he still couldn't believe it. Throwing his uniform into his laundry basket, he gazed outside his window for a moment. Poison ivy practically covering it, he let out a sigh. Oh, great. There's some of that garbage here, too.

"When do you think you'll be back?" Deigr asked.

Flip, flip.

[Probably around eight or nine.] A picture with a clock between the numbers eight and nine with text underneath had been flipped to. Flip, flip. [Now, please can you go shopping? We need food.]

"Don't worry, don't worry, I was just about to leave!" Deigr cried. "See you later! Why don't you have fun and grab a beer this time?"


Tap, tap, tippity, tap.

[Not happening. I'll be having a sparkling lemonade, bye,] the text-to-speech bot said on his behalf.

Honk, honk.

Pests outside honking the horn, the hyena wanted to pound these four into submission. Ugh, why didn't he lock the car doors? These four could never be patient. It was always hurry and take them to this and that bar. Never a please, never a thank you. Why couldn't they have driven responsibly? He could never hope to understand these chimeras.

Plopping into the driver's seat, demands had come his way to drive faster. Continuing to go steady, he could feel kicks to the back of his seat. Almost swerving, he wanted to let out a shout. Could these three be any more childish? People who weren't mentally mature enough shouldn't have been allowed to buy alcohol period. But, he didn't make the rules. But, if he could, he would make that one a requirement, for sure.

Reaching an extremely isolated bar next door to a country club, the chimera swore he could smell something rather peculiar in the air. What is that scent? He didn't know, but it was pretty rancid. Shrugging, he parked in the back. Annoying pests making a run for it, the pesky sheep woman grabbed his hand and forced him to point.

"See? That's the country club!" Lang cried. "You're signing us all up for it after!"

"And, don't even think about saying no!" Folu cried. "We hear the booze there is much better than this bar!"

"This bar boutta go outta business soon!" Onur cried. "Hehe."

"Shh, don't say that out loud, or they won't serve us!" Rede cried. He then turned towards Siorc. "Anyhoo, you heard Lang. After we have our fill, you're signing us up!"

Pesky party of four dashing into the bar, the chimera rubbed his hands through his hair. Of course, as usual, they were demanding the same nonsense as usual from him. Did they ever stop to think about what he wanted? He wasn't going to join a country club. Gazing at the sign from afar, he could feel smoke come out of his ears. Free alcohol served every Thursday. Oh, he sees, he gets it now. They wanted to come here because they knew he only works evenings on Thursday. Great, wonderful, amazing, another place to drive them to get wasted.

Chaos quartet whistling at him to hurry to the table, the early adult grit his teeth. What if he just turned back around to the car and drove off? But, he knew he couldn't do that, they would kill him. Seating himself in the designated payer seat, he let out a groan. Oh, boy, they're going to say they forgot their wallets again, weren't they? The same old classic line. Waiter soon coming by, as usual, the pests ordered the most expensive beverages on the menu. Eyes soon on him, the question had soon come his way.

"And, what can I get for you, sir?"

Tap, tap, tippity tap.

[Sparkling lemonade and potato skins, please.] the text-to-speech bot said on his behalf.

"Sparkling lemonade again?!" Lang cried. "Man, broski, you gotta live a little!"

"Waiter, spike it with some rum!" Rede cry.

"Yeah, booze this brother up!" Onur cried.

"He needs to experience something thrilling, booze him up!" Folu shouted.

"Sir, would you like me to put some rum in your lemonade?" the waiter asked.

Flip, flip, flip, flip.

[I can't, I'm the driver.] A picture of a car with text underneath had been flipped to.

"Okay, sir," the waiter said. "Your drinks will be out in a few minutes."

"Man, broski, you're so boring!" Lang cried. "It never hurts to drive a little drunk!"

Pesky sheep encouraging him to drive under the influence, the job hopper kicked the girl's shins. But, she felt nothing. Had this woman been taking those illicit narcotics again? Probably, ugh. Why can't these four go find someone else to drive them everywhere? Drinks plopped on the table, his potato skins took a little longer. Jeers coming his way, he attempted to tune everything out.

"Man, potato skins again, hic?" Rede laughed. "You're going to become a potato before you know it!"

"Don't you ever eat anything else?" Folu asked. "Man, brother, we need to take you to a good restaurant. With your credit card, of course!"

"Ugh, those smell horrible!" Onur cried. "How can you order those things every time we go out?"

"Burp, eh, let him have his crummy little loaded taters," Lang said. "He's paying the whole bill anyway!"

Sipping on his lemonade, the early adult wanted to bite these pesky drunk's hands. Of course, he's paying for everything again. He remembered that time they all ran out when they claimed they would pay. He should have backed out of this transaction right then and there. But, he was too soft, he supposed. They apologized for the quote on quote mistake. Maybe he shouldn't have forgiven them so easily. But, too late now.

Gazing at the table as he bit into the last potato skin, the chimera couldn't help but notice something. Every single table covered to the brim with poison ivy, he almost spit out his lemonade. Where did all this come from? Something wasn't right here. Bill soon coming his way, the numbers swam in his head. Two hundred dollars for eight glasses of beer, the sparkling lemonade and the potato skins, ridiculous. Did he look like he was made of money? Slipping two one hundred bills and an extra fifty in there, the party of four soon dragged him off to the country club.

Pushed towards the desk at the entrance, a tired employee let out a groan as she chewed her gum. Lady saying they have to like sign up on the website, claims that the website was down had come their way. Groans coming to and fro, an archaic looking set of papers had been handed to the party of five. Everyone pointing at him to sign, he rolled his eyes. What if he just walked out right now and let them be on their own?

Unable to go through with it, the job hopper plopped down his signature. Two hundred fifty dollar initiation fee coming his way, the young adult sighed as further hundreds had practically flown out of his wallet. There goes, down five hundred down the drain in the span of two hours. Great.

"Like, we open our doors at around eight every day," the employee at the front said.

"The booze is free, right?" Lang asked.


"Ugh, like, yes," the employee said, filing her nails, totally free.

"Awesome!" Rede cried. "You'd better be awake when we come over Thursday morning, Siorc!"

"Now, take us all home!" Onur cried.

"Chop chop!" Folu exclaimed clapping their hands.

Dropping the pesky fools home, the early adult drowned himself in his bed. Why did these four keep on pretending they were his friend? All he was to them was a designated driver. Ugh, he needed to put his foot down and stop driving them wherever they demanded. But, he tried that once, didn't work. Oh, well.

Party of four coming to his apartment at seven o'clock sharp on Thursday morning, the pests had demanded he dress more country-like. Throwing on a pure white tennis shirt, the chimera sighed as he drove out to the country club. Maybe there was a nice tennis court he could hide in while these thorns in his side got wasted out of their minds. Maybe he should go look for one.

But, upon reaching the country club, poison ivy had been everywhere. Employee at the front desk claiming there hadn't been a tennis court here, he could feel the smoke ready to come out of his ears. That couldn't have been true. He saw one on the website. Oh, well, maybe this lady at the entrance was wasted. He'll go look for it himself; he didn't need her help anyway.

Moving through the various areas including the pool, the entrance towards the golf course and many more, the chimera could hear tennis balls being thrown somewhere. Hearing such, he rolled his eyes. Oh, there wasn't a tennis court here? Sure, there wasn't. Spotting something that look rather covered in leaves from afar, a long hour walk had taken the stage.

Finding a large court covered in moss and grime, the young adult huffed a breath. This tennis court, why was it so unkempt? Smelling something rather minty in the air, he backed six steps away. Huh, what is that scent? Spotting something strange hopping around in the corner, he dashed off towards it. Something unusual is going on here, that's for sure.

Tennis balls courted around, the job hopper lowered his eyes into a squint. Who was playing tennis here? This court, it had definitely been abandoned for many years. It just had to have been. No wonder the employee at the front desk claimed there was none. Had no one remembered they even had one here? Maybe so. That sounded about right.

Squinting further, the young adult swore he could see a person made out of poison ivy leaves holding a tennis racket. But, he shook his head. Ah, no, that couldn't have been the case. Why would it have been? He had to have been imagining things! He was just tired, that was all. Nothing to see here. Turning back around, thoughts had begun to race in his head.

Maybe he should clean this tennis court up over the next few weeks. That sounded like a good idea. After all, he was being forced to pay for this stupid country club. He might as well put his membership to good use. Returning home for the evening, a multitude of texts from his many bosses had come flying through.

Every single employer telling him they were temporarily closing their stores until the poison ivy outbreak had smoothed over, the young adult slapped his hand over his face. Oh, great, he knew what this meant. More time to be the designated driver. Inquiries about whether he'd still get paid during this unprecedented time, affirmations had come his way that it had been the case.

Pesky party of four catching wind he had been temporarily relieved of his employment duties, demands had come his way to drive them to the country club every single day they were open. Unable to utter the magical two letter word of rejection, he let the demons win. But, maybe this was a good thing. After all, he could clean up the tennis court. That's all that mattered.

Tiptoeing to the holy grail, the chimera brushed away the moss and grime. But, there had been so much to move away, he knew it would take forever. Or, would it? He didn't know. Continuing to clean for what felt like an eternity, he swore he could see those plant people on the fields again. But, he knew he had to have been imagining it. There was no way there was plant aliens here!

Weeks passing by, the poison ivy had begun to make its presence known everywhere possible. More stores closing one after another, he knew it was only a matter of time before that country club temporary halted business as well, but unfortunately, such moment had not yet arrived. Tennis court almost ready to use again, two surprising faces had greeted him as the second week rolled into the third.

"I didn't know you were a member of this country club, Siorc," Isamu said, sighing. "Manager said they'll be opening up the store again next month. Maybe." They then sighed. "They said the entire building is covered in poison ivy now."

"We don't know what's going on, but," Iomra said, sighing. "We decided to chill here for awhile. So, what are you up to? Not going to lie, these kind of places don't seem like your speed."

Tip, tap, tippity, tap, tap, tap.

[They're not. But, the guys I graduated with make me drive them here. So, I decided to go clean up the abandoned tennis court at the back of the country club.] the text-to-speech bot said on his behalf.

"Really?" Isamu asked. "You know, tennis is my favorite sport. Want to play a few sets?"

"Oh, wow, you too?" Iomra asked. "I used to play tennis with my dad all the time before he got into that drunk driving accident." His face grew dark before it was sunny again. "But, I still enjoy playing a set every now and again!"

Hearing such, the hyena's face grew dark. Ah, that's right Iomra's father was in the same drunk driving accident as his parents. He almost forgot about that. Alcohol was the most evil liquid ever. Nodding, he supposed it wouldn't hurt to play a few sets of tennis. Guiding the duo towards the court, a group of new faces had been out in the open.

"Ugh, why do ya'll keep on comin' here?" a voice cried.

"Yeah, you know, this is our tennis court!" another voice cried.

"Ours," a shorter voice added.

"Woah, wait a second, Isamu, are those?" Iomra asked, pointing.

"Poison ivy monsters," Isamu said, eyes closed sighing. "I've been seeing a lot of them around lately. I bet they're behind the poison ivy outbreak across Chesarail."

"That's right, we are!" the poison ivy person cried. "Whatchu gonna about it?"

"Yeah, what you gonna do about it, huh?" another poison ivy person asked.

"Probably gonna beat us at tennis," the third poison ivy person cried.

"Hah! That ain't happening, we'll beat 'em!"

Standing proud with a vined hand on their chest had been a tall masculine appearing plant person with spiky leaves that looked like it was supposed to be hair. Light green face with dark blue eyes in the middle, he could make out a bit of a face. Was this an alien, a mutated poison ivy plant? Maybe both. What did he know? Oh, well. It wasn't his job to figure that out. But, the questions still continued to roll out. How did this poison ivy plant become a person? He couldn't possibly come to a conclusion.

Squinting in the corner had been a rather strange looking plant person with long yellow leaves on the top of the head that went down to about where human shoulders would be. Strange flame like eyelashes on their light green face, they had low orange eyes that also looked like they were about to combust. Fancy looking shirt covering their messy trunk, he wondered. Were they a tree, too? He didn't understand.

Standing furthest away from everyone had been an extremely tall giant of a plant person. Yellow leaves forming a peculiar looking ponytail and a braided blue set of leaves on the right side of the face, if he could even call it that, something strange had been going on with this one's eyes. Bright blue eyes with star shaped pupils, for whatever reason, they had been wearing a brown coat over their tree trunk body. Questions continuing to pile in, his fingers hovered over his phone keyboard.

[Are you three aliens?] the text-to-speech bot asked on his behalf.

"Is that what you chimeras call something you've never seen before?" the spiky haired poison ivy person asked. "We ain't no aliens, just mutated poison ivy. I dunno, some scientist from some weird place called Kowloon did it."

"Kowloon hasn't been around in decades," Isamu said. "This is Chesarail."

"Ohhh, yeah, some scientist from Chesarail got too trigger happy, and gave birth to us," the spiky haired poison ivy person said. "What'dya want?"

"We want you to leave this place and stop spreading poison ivy everywhere!" Iomra cried.

"Oh," the braided poison ivy person said. "Sure. I guess."

"I mean, only if you beat us at tennis," the well dress poison ivy person said. "We're good, by the way, don't say we didn't warn you!"

"We'll verse you three in singles," Isamu said. "How does that sound. But, before we do, give us your names."

"Dunno, the scientist that made us in Kow--, I mean that lab in Chesarail called me Linggui or somethin'," the spiky haired poison ivy person named Linggui said. "I don't get it, but call me Lin."

"I'm Baron, I guess," the well dress poison ivy person named Baron said, introducing themselves. "Remember that name when we beat you."

"Uxi," the braided poison ivy person named Uxi said, introducing themselves. "Prepare to lose."

Poison ivy people holding their tennis rackets, the hyena let out a tired sigh. Oh, he sees, the only way they'll go quietly is if the three of them beat them in a tennis match, huh? This should be easy. It's not like the three of them had hands. How could they possibly throw the ball back? This was about be super interesting, that's for sure.

Plopping his phone down on a little wireless speaker, the young adult set up a tennis move tracker. That should do it. It was time to play some tennis. Placing himself in the middle court, his opponent had soon looked into his eyes. Braided poison ivy person trudging their vined feet upon the ground, he cracked his knuckles.

"Not a talker?" Uxi asked.

Shaking his head, he swore he could hear the poison ivy person on the other end let out a sigh. Was this a reason to annoy them? Well, too bad, so sad, he wasn't about to move his lips for a stranger. Party of two other plant people turning towards him, he swore he could hear a million chuckles about to come his way rapid fire.

"Should be easy to beat the lad, then!" Linggui shouted.

"Mmm, my opponent looks pretty weak, too!" Baron cried. "Koala, isn't it past your bedtime?"

"I'm wide awake, excuse you!" Iomra cried. "Whatever, whoever wins two out of three sets wins!"

"And, I wouldn't underestimate Siorc, if I were you," Isamu said. "He's better than he looks."

Speaker announcing the game was ready to start, the chimera had the first serve. Ball soon raced over the court at lightning speed. Plant creature able to hit it back, the hyena grit his teeth. Ah, maybe they really were better than he thought. He needed to try his best to get them out. His jobs were on the line here!

Iomra managing to get his opponent to miss the shot a few times, the chimera wondered. How could he do that to his rival on the other side? He needed to think long and hard about how to win a set here. How could he easily reach forty five? He needed to think. Bouncing the ball, he prepared himself for action.

Ball tossed back fast, the job hopper grit his teeth. Man, this plant person was fast. He needed to find a way to win before it was too late. But, how? Studying his opponent for a moment, he had eventually come to notice something. They had no peripheral vision. That was it, that was the ticket. The only way to win this.

Isamu easily able to wipe the floor clean with their opponent, the chimera's jaw dropped open. This rabbit, what was their secret? Maybe their ears heard more than he once thought. About to play for their third and final set, he gazed at Iomra for a moment. Koala rocking it as well, he couldn't help but feel a sting of envy. He had to turn this around before it was too late.

Bouncing the ball on the field, the hyena prepared himself. Right, he had to aim for Uxi's blind spot. Here goes. Tossing the ball towards the corner of their eyes, they missed the shot. Ball hitting the ground, he could hear his phone shout thirty thirty. Pressing onward, he knew this was the end of the road for this pesky fly.

Continuing with all his might to aim towards the corner of this plant creature's eyes, two further shots had been missed from the opposite party. First set awarded to him, he held back the urge to cheer. Ah, no, it wasn't over yet! There was still one final set to go out there and win. Snap out of it, he had to focus.

Opposite party pushing the ball towards him fast, the chimera almost missed the shot. Man, was this Uxi guy as swift as a flying bee. How did they do that? He needed to step his game up. Taking a deep breath, the hyena whizzed the ball past him. Three more points, and then it's over. He had to hurry and win this.

Iomra and Isamu winning their games, the chimera grit his teeth. Man, these two were fast, how were they done already? He needed to finish this right here, right now. Racket smashing the ball across the field, the plant person on the other side almost fell to their knees. If they even had them, he didn't know.

Two further shots missed, the job hopper crossed his fingers. This was it, the final stretch. He had one more volley to knock this creature out of the park. One, two, three, and the ball goes flying! Wait, wrong sport. Poison ivy being attempting to hop towards the ground, the shot soon hit the fence on the other end.

Phone soon announcing game set and match, the young adult huffed a breath. Man, what a match. Maybe he should play tennis more often. Plant people in the corner huffing breath after breath, the chimera extended his hand, but pulled it back. What was he doing? If he shook vines with this dude, he'd break out into a rash! But, a sigh had come his way.

"Not gonna give you a rash, wearing these things you mortals call gloves," Uxi said, sighing. "We'll go quietly. So, shake on it."

"You won't poison us, right?" Isamu asked. "You're being serious?"

"Totes," Linggui said. "We're wearing gloves, see?"

"We promise we'll stop having our ivy invade this little walled city since you beat us, alright?" Baron asked. "Now, shake on it."

Shaking on it, the hyena stared off towards the walls. If they stopped spreading their poisons, where would they go? Tapping away, he almost regret asking that question. Why is he inquiring about this? It wouldn't do him any good, now would it? Maybe it wouldn't, but oh well, he had already opened up Pandora's Box on this one.

"Dunno, maybe we'll donate ourselves to some plant exhibit or something," Linggui said. "Or maybe we'll just live here. Tennis is awesome." They then waved their vines around. "We promise we ain't gonna poison no one! We'll back off, kay? And, we'll make our invasion go away! You have our word."

Tap, tap, tippity tap.

[You'd better mean it.] the text-to-speech bot said on his behalf.

"We do," Uxi said. "Will we see you all again?"

"I guess, maybe," Iomra said. "You better not break your promise!"

"We won't," Baron said. "We'll get rid of our infestation. But, it might take a week."

Leaving the country club for the day, the hyena stared off into space while laying on his bed. Would the poison ivy people really get rid of their infestation? Maybe they were lying. They had to have been, right? But, over the course of a week, the pesky toxic leaves had been gone. Everything slowly going back to normal, his various jobs had texted him to start coming back to work.

Heading back to the tennis court every Thursday, surely enough the plant people remained there. Continuing to play matches with them, something in his life had gained meaning, he supposed. Summer looking ready to disappear, the late September sunset was getting earlier with each day. Dropping down in his bed that night, the job hopper couldn't help but think as he drifted off into bed.

Tennis was far more fun of a game than he once thought.

Even though it was against plant people.

---

Well, alright, here's Tennis Siorc. Originally, this was going to just be, "tennis but with a supernatural twist." But, I decided to do something with poison ivy for the supernatural twist, and thus the title became Tennis Ivy.

Next week is going to be Myumon Siorc, aka: Show By Rock Siorc. That should be fun.