Orochi hadn’t had peace ever since the attack of Feral, and the fact no camera caught wind of her battle against the slime mutants was too convenient. ‘No camera footage meant that they thought I defeated all those guys on my own.’
A lie, a big fat lie, but it's not like the media would care for it. "The middle daughter of the Atsushi found herself in the middle of another incident." Although she hasn't read the news lately because she will be in them, Orochi can clearly see the headlines.
"I feel so tired." This phrase has become more common lately. Who will blame her after everything happening in her life? 'My phone was destroyed, and my clothes were thrashed. I need to go shopping.' Cowering under a rock won't do any good; the media will be a pain in the ass all the same.
The only thing she can do is trust her father and mother, wait for them to pull some strings, and live her life as if nothing happened. 'I hate it.' The impotence before this world. 'I couldn't even help them change their lives. What the hell am I doing in a Hero School?'
This is a question she would ask the Korean5 when they met, but they all seemed to be doing better than her in all senses. It is ironic now that the one asking this question is herself. 'I should be faring better here.' The class terms are almost ending.
'I should go shopping and hope there isn't a new supervillain whose power is to drain people's bank accounts and make a money monster. Knowing my luck, it may be the case.' Done with sulking after class, Orochi gets up, her Hydra heads noticing other instances of them existing (again).
They start to hiss against each other. "Hush, you three. I'm not in the mood to deal with you." The heads fall in line, looking aimlessly, not trying to kill their kin for once. "Sometimes you three can be a handful..."
From ahead of her, two figures talk about something. Two-fifths of the Korean Five, Edith, and Maxine. She can't hear what they are saying, but this is hardly her problem. 'They have their own lives too. It is not my right to eavesdrop.'
Getting up from her seat, Orochi takes her bag and starts to walk away. “I will need a new phone and clothes.” The Hydra girl scratches the back of her head. ‘I will need to see if my tailor has anything for me. Damn, you three.’ Her heads answers by leisurely grazing.
‘Well, she will be happy to see me again. More money coming into her store.’ Time to go shopping.
“Hey, Atsushi,” Edith calls her, Maxine following after her. Despite her near-perfect poker face, the honed instincts of the Hydra girl can hear a tint of anxiety and hesitation in Edith’s voice.
“Yo, Edith, Maxine.” Orochi waves at them, wearing her own brand of poker face— an unconcerned smile, masquerading her insecurities and fears. ‘I can’t let them be concerned or worry about me…’
“You are alone now, Orochi. You cannot save a thing unless you realize that. Where are your Shiketsu friends?”
Orochi holds back the urge to purse her lips, the memories of her fateful encounter with Umi echoing. “Hum… do you want to go the arcade, I mean. You won’t be doing anything, right? We can go play karaoke at that place again.”
Despite her excellent attempt at hiding her feelings, the Hydra girl smells the nervousness in Edith’s voice. A true smile parts Orochi’s lips, breaching her poker face for a few seconds. ‘Another one converted to the arcade…’ The memories of how she dragged Yui there are still fresh as ever in her mind.
The same can be happening again but with Edith this time, another friend to play games with and forget about their stressful lives for a time… or so it should be in earlier days… “Sorry, but I’m not going to the arcade today. My clothes got messed up by the slimes, and my phone was destroyed. So I need to buy new cloth—”
Faster than anything she had seen in her life, faster than Hifumi and Chris’ teleport, Edith was on her, pouncing like a beast that caught its prey with a low guard, holding Orochi’s hands with impressing pressure for someone so small.
“I can work with that too. I’m kind of a fashionista myself. So when you are going?” Edith’s demeanor changed at the drop of a hat, her small hands pressuring Orochi’s claws with so much force that a chill ran up the albino serpent’s spine.
Not that her strength is impressive, but the fact it is coming from someone so small scares Orochi. The Hydra girl looks at Maxine, a clear plea in her eyes: “Help me”. However, the bone manipulator shrugs her shoulders, a sassy and cheeky smile on her lips.
Orochi returns to stare at Edith, sparks crackling from her eyes, an unwavering determination so strong that leaves the Atsushi without any argument to reject the two-fifths of the Korean5 to come with her. “Well… I guess? My clothes are all tailored, so you won’t be doing much choosing tho…”
While being a mutant comes with many benefits, it has many inherent drawbacks, clothes the first and foremost of them all. Orochi can’t remember a time in her life when her clothes weren’t tailored to suit her needs.
Three angry, hissy, and hungry needs. Edith’s excitement deflates, but not enough to shake her off the idea. “That’s… okay. Just because we can’t choose your clothes, doesn’t mean we can’t help you with accessories! Hey Max! We are going shopping!”
Orchi stands dumbfounded, staring at Edith with pouty cheeks and wide eyes in amusement. ‘Since when do you have all that energy? I never saw you so happy.’ Granted, the Atsushi didn’t interact much with the Korean5, Yui and Chris did more than her on that front, but even she knew that Edith was kinda aloof when compared to the other four.
‘I won’t curse it, my luck is not great lately, but it will be better than going shopping on my own.’
Who knows, it may be fun.
(Scene break)
The first thing they did when stepping inside the mall was grab something to eat and drink. Edith and Maxine preferred milkshakes, while Orochi grabbed a can of energy drink and a burger.
After getting their snacks, they decided to sit on a bench while they eat-slash-drink.
“Don’t you think that it is… too heavy, Atsushi?” Asks Maxine, while the taller girl takes half of her burger with one bite. Drinking part of her energy drink, Orochi places the energy drink beside her on the bench.
“Nah, I’m quite used to eating burgers or other fast foods when I’m in a hurry. After some time you just get used to it. Besides, I need lots of energy.” Orochi moves her hand to grab the energy drink can, but it is nowhere near where she placed it before. “What?”
Sneakily, her right Hydra head holds the can between its teeth, looking up to swallow its content easily. In one second, the Hydra Head downs all the contents of the can, before spitting it out towards a trash can.
“GRHUB” The hydra head burps. Orochi’s pale face becomes even paler, shame dawning over the act of her own hydra head behind her back.]
(Scene break)
“Hiss!” The right head looks up to the ceiling, staring at the glass ceiling, its body trembling as energy starts to run through its length, black eyes glistening with the light of sunlight. A thousand million thoughts run through its small mind, opening to the secrets of the universe.
The energy drink affects its system, and its reality expands. The structure of the universe to the secrets of dimensions and the cycle of life. Uncountable amounts of information coursing in its eyes.
Yet one piece of information stays imperative, one little tidbit, less than a spec of dust in the thick book that is the universe: The one who denied it the tasty plastic. He stopped it from eating a pen, a tasty ink pen enveloped by hard plastic.
Christopher. Christopher Cain. Its arch-nemesis, its greatest enemy. The denier of Plastic. The black devil who steals away the joys of life.
“You little bastard!”
However, its epiphany is cut short as a hand hits it on the head.
(Scene break)
“Hiss!” The hydra head hisses, throwing its body against the bench, attempting to hide from Orochi. Both Maxine and Edith tried their best to not laugh, her facades barely holding on as their ears became red at the sight of a fuming Orochi trying to strangle her own hydra head.
“You little! That was mine!” Her grasp over the little runt is unbreakable, strangling it while the other two Hydra heads get away from Orochi, as far as they can. The first to break out of her impassive face is Maxine, letting out a small chuckle.
“Do they do it often?” Maxine asks, her face starting to become red in an attempt to suppress her chuckles from becoming a burst of barking laughter. A grace for Maxine is that the attention of anyone who may look in their direction will fall on Orochi, instead of her reddenning face.
“Sometimes! Most of them are at very inappropriate moments like these!” Edith sees her left tail sneaking in to steal Orochi’s burger, but doesn’t feel like telling her “friend” about it. A silent and petty vindication over what happened at the arcade.
‘Go, if that stupid one could do it, so can you! Do it!’ Somehow, for some reason, Edith felt that she would be fit to join the political career, maybe even become a chancellor… the sneaky head manages to grab Orochi’s burger from her hand, as the Hydra girl is busy choking her other head.
Edith smiles smugly at her petty “victory” over the Atsushi, at the same time, Orochi releases her right hydra, fuming with annoyance. “Damn, little bastard. Hm? Where is my burger?” For a moment, Orochi looks around confused. “Hm, I must’ve eaten it.”
Shaking her head, the albino’s attention falls on the thief who was caught, who tries to hide, leaving out soft whimpers and whines. Maxine's whole body trembles as she takes her phone, attempting to hide her amusement over Orochi and her head’s antics.
“Where does the food they eat go? They have each a separate stomach?” With deep breaths, Maxine manages to get a hold of her laughter, her cheeks and ears still a little red.
“They go to my tummy, but I don’t get to taste it or feel the enjoyment of eatin’ something good. It is a hollow satiation.” Orochi chirps, her right head hissing at her. “Well, because it feels hollow, those three are always hungry and seeking to eat anything they can get away with.”
This draws a reaction from Maxine, half closing her eyes, the multitude of thoughts and analysis in her head in view for anyone who sees her eye to eye. “This is interesting. Since they will try to eat “anything they can get away with”, doesn’t that mean they ate things that are not supposed to be eaten?”
Maxine’s tone is sharp and analytical, like a doctor seizing a patient to see where the problem is with them, or how to best deal with it. A methodical and professional approach. Orochi whistles, admiring the serious and keen expression one of the Korean5 is making, her face cuter despite being “serious”. “I kid you not, girl, I ate some strange things on my own. When I was seven I ate half of a tree’s trunk.”
Edith chuckles, taking Orochi’s words for a joke. ‘There is no way for her to do it!’ Although not of good taste, her joke was still a little funny. Looking at Maxine and Orochi, however, their stares at still locked at each other.
A sassy and predatorial grin on Orochi’s lips, showing a particular set of sharp teeth, adds an air of danger to Orochi, while her friend remains dead serious. ‘Wait, she is not joking?’
“How did you do it?” However, Maxine is unbothered by it, her eyes shining with curiosity, the same curiosity of a scientist making a discovery.
“My whole body is poisonous, y’know? My stomach acid is something because of that. I tested my bite on everything I could when I was a kid, to beat my cousin in brawls, so I got to munch on many things.”
Maxine looks slightly surprised before taking a notebook and writing quickly on it. “Whatcha doing?” Orochi looks over to see what Maxine is writing, her curiosity peaking at the strange display.
“She is a quirk freak like Chris. She loves learning about them and knows a great deal about heroes and villains.” Edith sighs, a hint of tiredness in her voice. It isn’t the first time she has to deal with that, it seems.
‘Oh, Chris also does something like that from time to time.’ Not that he asked Orochi extensively about her past and how her quirk works beyond what is obvious, and she is glad for that. Explaining some of her childhood antics would be too troublesome.
‘If any of them meets my mom and her troublesome album, I will die.’ The image is enough to chill the Hydra’s soul. Maybe not letting her family and friends mix in too much was her greatest unintentional idea.
The prospect of how much shame and cringe they can bring to the table is not something even she can bounce off. “Well girls, snack time is over, time to go shopping.” With a clap of hands, Edith calls the attention of her friends with a wide grin on her face.
(Scene break)
While they will go to other stores to buy accessories and whatnot, Orochi decided to go first to get her new batch of clothes. Because of her… unique threefold circumstances, she never had clothes brought from normal stores.
Her mother went to her favorite stylist and bought many spots in her schedule across the year; every time Orochi needed clothing, many would be ready to be shipped to her. ‘The last time I came here with anyone was with mom. Afterward, I always came alone.’
Their fight wasn’t pretty. ‘Miss Tomoe always asked me about my mother; they are good friends. Aaah.’ It felt crushing when she heard of their falling off. Looking at her friends, both Edith and Maxine are on edge, for some reason.
“Hey… isn't that one of the biggest fashion companies in Japan? Like, I know they had their base in Kyoto, but… are you sure this is the right place, Orochi?” Maxine looks at the bright pink front of the fashion store, a drop of sweat running down the side of her face.
“Aye, I said shopping but it's more like grabbing a few clothes she had prepared.” No big deal, get in, see what Tomoe prepared in advance, and exit. Edith is quick to grasp at straws, raising an eyebrow.
“She? Who is “she”? Orochi?” Crossing her arms, Edith stares Orochi dead in the eye, her girl intuition sensing something more to this topic than one may think at first. ‘A throwaway line it is not.’
“Oh, the one who owns this place and company. Miss Tomoe. She is my mother’s friend, surprisingly, and the one to outfit my family since Akane’s birth.” Orochi waves her hand, dismissing the topic without much thought put into it.
Meanwhile, the two-fifths of the Korean5 are left dumbfounded, blankly staring at the back of her classmates who enter the store without a hurry. When she is out of earshot, they start to talk. “I think you were onto something when you called her a princess, Edie.”
While they are both rich, they can’t just stroll inside the main HQ of a famous fashion company and demand clothes from the owner of it all. “I knew the Atsushi’s were very old, but this is some bullshit, alright.”
Orochi may be as close to an actual modern princess more than they thought her to be… yet this begs the question: “What kind of home life can someone with the bearings and rights to be honest to God modern princess act like…”
“A rough street thug?” Edith intervenes with her own thoughts about the matter, making Maxine sigh at the crude and mean terms she threw at Orochi, although not out of place or unbefitting of their classmate.
While they heard rumors, it is all they are. Third-hand rumors at best. Orochi never spoke of her life or past, and when she did, it was so far away that it didn’t matter. Anyone who ever bothered to talk with her would know more about her cousin than Orochi.
‘Why is that?’ Maxine and Edith shared the same thought; the one who had a better grasp of the mystery of Orochi’s past was Hailey for some reason.
‘What makes someone so proud of herself and her accomplishments to hide her past so much?’ For Edith, it didn’t make sense for Orochi of all people to be ashamed of her past. A sense of wrongness settled inside of her. ‘It is as if her past is a taboo.’
A taboo no one is aware of, and those who are cannot put their fingers on what is wrong. Edith grinds her teeth, powerwalking inside the shop. ‘I don’t know how; I cannot point out why you are that way. It angers me.’ Everyone had a past.
With some clear exceptions, Sandatsu and Orochi, anyone had a past, no matter how boring or mundane. Yet those two who have nothing alike each other, no one knows anything beyond what she lets out.
‘Why is that?’ Maxine and Edith shared the same thought; the one who had a better grasp of the mystery of Orochi’s past was Hailey for some reason.
‘What makes someone so proud of herself and her accomplishments to hide her past so much?’ For Edith, it didn’t make sense for Orochi of all people to be ashamed of her past. A sense of wrongness settled inside of her. ‘It is as if her past is a taboo.’
A taboo no one is aware of, and those who are cannot put their fingers on what is wrong. Edith grinds her teeth, powerwalking inside the shop. ‘I don’t know how; I cannot point out why you are that way. It angers me.’ Everyone had a past.
So lost in her thoughts, Edith bumps into a tall lady.
(Scene break)
Maxine and Edith stopped to talk about something. As she is no eavesdropper, Orochi left them be, entering the store and going to the balcony. ‘It is a little ironic that Ms. Tomoe chose this place to be closer to people. Mom said she had a freakout when they tried to move to their own building.’
While Ms. Tomoe was as bubbly as one person can be without becoming a soap bubble herself, she had some strange fears. ‘Autophobia was the name. Mom said Tomoe felt so crushed by being on a tall building and in an office distant from others that she had a meltdown.’
Seeing the bubbly white-haired woman she knew to be great and lively having a meltdown was a haunting thought. ‘They moved out of sheer pity. Good thing we live in an era where people like Tomoe can work from afar and do their duties from home.’
The thoughts about the family personal, and her only stylist warms Orochi’s heart. “Good afternoon. Do you have a question for us?” On the balcony stands a girl Orochi never met before, a new blood, probably.
‘Well, she hadn’t the time to be used to me coming out of nowhere.’ Better not push the wrong buttons with needless banter and chitchat. “My name is Atsushi Orochi; I have an appointment marked with Ms. Aoki Tomoe.”
The clerk half closes her eyes with suspicion, pressing a button below the balcony. “Aoki-dono, there is a girl here in the reception. Her name is Atsushi Orochi. Tall, white hair… three tails with heads—”
“Orochi-tan is here!? Wait a moment! I’m getting there myself!” Now the only thing setting Orochi apart from a black-haired comet is the doors of an elevator.
DIM
And now, not even that. Orochi turns around to face the elevator, a black and purple object at high speed coming her way. Prepared and hardened for these situations, the Hydra girl opens her arms as Tomoe jumps, colliding against her in a tight hug.
“How have you grown! A whole seven inches since last time! Have you been through growth too? Here I thought only little Kyoko was prone to such spontaneous growth!” An excited and bubbly voice greets Orochi, a woman with long black and luscious hair, wearing a heavy and wavy black purple dress.
Her eyes sparkle with life and joy. “Yeah, yeah, Miss Tomoe. My clothes got beaten due to recent events; they are all over the TVs lately. I’m getting without that many clothes; this feels a little too small, my tails got girthier too, so I feel like it is crushing them at the base.”
While Orochi is not someone to talk about banal things and how they affect her life, the fact her clothes from a year and a half ago are getting smaller and tighter is problematic, especially for her poor tail base… “Oh, I see… sorry for not coming to visit you. My presence there would only draw more pests towards the hospital.”
Tomoe drops the hug, holding her forehead afterward, a small whimper leaving her mouth. “I thought I had more time before you became a brick house like Akane. It is so sad that I cannot rush and hold you like I did in the past. Even Kyoko is out of the question now.”
Tomoe whines, making a teary face. ‘I did grow taller and stronger in the past years and a half, huh?’ While she was by no means overly tall in the past, standing at a merely 5’6, most of her clothes were roughly of the same size.
‘At least I’m better than Kyoko in that regard, thirteen and five-six tall…’ If anything, her little sister would grow to be as tall as their father… “Well, I guess it runs in the family. Even I will have trouble to hold Kyoko.” Give a year or two, and her little sister won’t be so little anymore.
Only their behemoth of a father can hold Kyoko like a child, and even then it won’t be for long. ‘Time is running.’ And she feels more struck in the past than anything… “This is the curse of being a shortie… although I doubt anyone can apply common height standards to your family of giants.”
Orochi nods her head in agreement. ‘Akane got her entire life to spoil me, and I barely got years to spoil Kyoko before she grows up…’ It feels so unfair. ‘That is the curse of being born so close to my baby sis.’
They can’t win all battles. “So… I don’t want something as rebellious as I used to wear… I and Mom… we have our issues, but it is not like in the past. I want to make something that will make her proud while still being me…”
They have their issues, but a rundown closer to death made her realize things may not be as set in stone and bad… ‘I don’t want to spend my time on this earth hating on you. I… you are still my mother.’
The bad things and harsh actions won’t erase the loving memories they had before things took a turn for the worse. Tomoe’s eyes are filled with pride and tears, as she runs back to the elevator. ‘Make her proud… our lives went a full cycle…’
(Scene break)
Edith holds her nose, feeling as if she bumped against a stone wall. She gazes upward to see the impossibly tall woman, only dwarfed by Kaylee or anyone she knows. Her golden amber eyes shine with an apathetic light.
Her face bears some resemblance to her classmate, somehow. “Are you okay, girl? You seemed aloof.” The tall woman speaks in an imposing tone, her voice neutral yet bearing so much strength that forces Edith to straighten her posture.
She feels as if she is talking to her parents somehow. “Nothing ma’am. We were following after our friend; we lost sight of her when she entered this store, so we decided to go after her.” The taller woman looks Edith in the eye, her lack of care or emotion sending Edith to take a step back and reel from the pressure coming from the horned woman’s stare.
“You are far too young to come to this place on your own. It charges a silver dagger in the gut. I don’t want to sound patronizing, but where are your parents? No credible parent would let children go shopping so recklessly.”
Instead of stepping back further, Edith stands her ground, staring the apathetic woman in the eye. “We followed our friend here. She said she would talk with the owner about getting her clothes. Don’t try to boss us around.”
Maxine steps in. “You say your friend? I’m a long-time customer of the LunaGlow. Say her name; hell, she may be in my circle of friends.” The tall horned woman takes her phone, looking bored and uninterested in their words.
Maxine seems to take it personally, a vein jumping on her forehead. “Her name is Atsushi Orochi. Ring any bell?” Edith feels uneasy. The tall white-haired woman stores her phone inside her bag, the apathetic light vanishing from her lights, replaced by happiness, a little smile on her lips.
“Oh, you are friends with my sister? I don’t think she ever came to this place with anyone but me, our father, and our mother. I will talk with her later, dropping friends in a place like this is impolite.”
The commanding and powerful tone of the woman’s voice remains. Edith and Maxine stare at each other, trying to process what is happening. “Are you honest-to-God Orochi's sister?” While their face, hair, and skin tone are similar, they are not the perfect indicative of their relationship.
After all, white hair is not all that rare these days, artificial or natural; you can go down a street and find ten people with reptilian tails and white hair. “Of course. She never talked about me? Her big sister Akane?” Akane speaks with expectancy.
Waiting to hear about how much praise her little sister must’ve given her, how she brags about her fiery and powerful older sister… “Oh, she did mention you a few times, but her attention is always on her cousin, Yuusei, or something like that.” Edith waves her hand in dismissal.
Orochi simply loves talking about her cousin, so much that she rarely spoke about her sister. “Oh. Oh. Yuusei is at it again, huh?” The happiness in Akane’s voice dies out, Maxine and Edith hear glass shattering near them… “Oh well, my late cousin aside, it pains me to hear that my lovable little sister doesn’t speak often about me.”
‘Late?’ The sheer coldness in Akane’s voice as she refers to her cousin is enough to chill Maxine’s bones.
“Well, Orochi doesn’t like to talk about her past, period. She tells things about her childhood, but anything beyond that is a no-go territory. Wouldn’t you be willing to talk about it? For us to know her friend better? Sometimes she feels like an incognito.”
What do any of the class know about Orochi? She likes the arcade, spicy food, training, and fighting and cares about her friend, Last but not least, is from a high and mighty old family. This is where their knowledge about her ends.
“Hm. Orochi’s early childhood was problematic. This is how much I will tell you. Ask my mother, but I beg you, don’t unless you want to get zapped, or Orochi herself for details.” Akane immediately dismisses them, making Edith’s eyebrows furrow in displeasure, Maxine suppressing a frown.
“Well, I can’t give you details about that, but if you want to speak about her life there in Shiketsu, I’m all ears. It has been a year since we saw each other in person.” Akane chuckles with lightness, a cute sigh unbefitting her cold and stern features.
“A year… what have you been doing for not seeing her for an entire year?” Edith tries her best to not sound accusatory; she doesn’t know the Atsushi family affairs, but it sounds cold to not be there for her little sister when… Feral happened.
“I’m an underground hero.” Akane answers bluntly and without reservations. “I know what you are thinking; I was in Tokyo when I heard the news.” The older of the Atsushi sisters closes her eyes, her voice tired. Once again, Edith ran her mouth without putting much thought into it.
‘I should… stay silent more. If I keep talking like that I will only speak what is on my mind…’ A bad maneuver if she will always speak the most reckless stupid thing ever.
“Don’t worry, the fact you got so worked up about Orochi is a good sign she is making friends again.” Akane’s hand falls on Edith’s head, openly head-patting the girl. Edith opens her mouth to say for the older woman to back down.
But the sincere smile on Akane’s face is enough to melt through her heart like a blowtorch. ‘Besides, the headpat is not that bad.’
“So, kids. How is the life at Shiketsu? I heard many bad things happen throughout your school year. I hope you are doing okay despite the circumstances.” Ending the head pat short, Akane turns around and waves for the girls to follow after her.
Her face is impassive again, but the swinging of her tail betrays her true emotions— ‘Was Orochi so lonely that the fact she brought two friends here a big deal?’ Edith knew better than to voice those thoughts given Akane’s previous reactions, but this curiosity would gnaw at her insides for a long, long time until she finished the puzzle that is her “friend”.
“Life is… proceeding; some strange things keep on happening but we deal with that. Orochi and Kaylee’s hospitalization was the worst thing to happen…” Both bounced off it, but the Hydra girl seemed… changed somehow, more aloof than she used to be.
There is Chris, but his case wasn’t as bad as Kaylee’s coma, and Orochi rundown with death in the form of a dinosaur psycho. “I see. My time in U.A was not easy but it wasn’t as bad as yours. God, what is Rosethorn and the other teachers doing?”
Akane scratches her head in annoyance, mumbling something about a “spineless cousin,” but besides that, there is little even the trained ears of two members of the Korean5 can hear.
Feeling the formation of an awkward silence, Maxine decides to nip in the nub. “So, Orochi didn’t lie when she said she gets her clothes from the owner of LunaGlow?” Maxine is the first to ask, a little incredulity in her voice.
“Yes, my mother helped fund the first endeavor of Miss Tomoe, so she, and by extension, us, her daughters, have some connection to her. Orochi never had anyone else make clothes for her, so there is this.” Sometimes, they tend to forget that the Atsushi family had other businesses besides the money inherited from previous generations.
Her father was a businessman, and her mother apparently has a keen eye for talent and good opportunities… “So you weren’t joking when you said you were a long-time customer…” Railing from rich families, both Edith and Maxine know the importance of connections and money.
The Atsushi was like a cold mine. ‘Well, Orochi’s sister is more approachable than she was.’ While the Hydra girl mellowed out through the year, she still is rough around the edges.
“More or less. She really likes our mother and us. Don’t ever try to use that to your exploit, although. Orochi may break your bones.” Akane chirps with her an apathetic voice, leaving up in the air if she is joking or being serious with the “Joke”.
“So, huh… how it was growing up with Orochi? She said she gnawed a tree when she was little.” Maxine recalls a nice tidbit of information from their previous talk. No one better to answer this than Orochi’s big sister, right?
“She did. Father was furious; it took a week for her to give irreversible damage to the poor tree. It is in a better state, but the marks of her teeth and damage are there.” The underground pro hero speaks with uneasiness.
She loves her little sister, she really does, but few catastrophes could fight a sugar rush little Orochi head-on and win. Soon they find their friend talking with a raven-haired girl, shorter than Faith, even, showcasing many articles of clothing.
“Here you go. Hey, Orochi, Miss Aoki.” Akane waves at them.
(Scene break)
While Orochi’s day wasn’t bad per se, it brightened a lot as she saw her sister and classmates walking together. “Akane!” This time, the one who acts like an overactive comet is Orochi herself, rushing towards her sister.
A big oafish grin on her lips, genuine joy in her purple eyes. Meanwhile, Akane digs her heels into the floor, a tired expression in her eyes as her sister approaches at frightening speeds.
Orochi jumped on her older sister, enveloping Akane under her arms and tails in an airtight hug, her older sister pushed a few steps back by the “hug”, her lips turning in a strained smile as the older Atsushi braced herself to not be thrown off balance by her little sister.
“Happy to see you too, sis.” Akane attempts to pat Orochi’s head, but the tails and arms holding her stop any attempts to do so. Meanwhile, Maxine and Edith stare dumbfounded at the explosive reaction of Orochi, hearing some cracks and snaps coming off Akane.
Akane’s face starts to become red, her smile straining further because of the death grip on her body. “Orochi… breathe…”
The Hydra girl blinks a few times before looking up to see the reddening face of her older sister. “Oh.” Dropping her older sister, Orochi wears a clumsy and coy grin on her face. “Hehe, long time no see, sis.”
While they meet daily back at the estate, the Hydra girl’s mood always lightens up when meeting her sister. “Damn.” Edith is the first to break the silence. While she had some doubts regarding the identity of the tall dragon woman, Orochi’s reaction put any doubts to rest.
‘I have seen laser-guided missiles with worse accuracy than you…’ Edith swallows dry. ‘I swear I heard something snap in your sister. I don’t think a normal human can survive that.’ While they all know how Orochi fights, they never have the chance to see what happens to someone if she decides to grab them with all of her five limbs.
‘I may stop accepting hugs from her; I still have much to live…’ Maxine had no bone to pick with Orochi, but the unrestrained display of strength is a little scary. ‘Her tails coiled around her sister like snakes…’
Constriction is a cruel way to go to the afterlife. “Now, your friends here spoke some things about you in Shiketsu.” Akane smiles sweetly at her sister, closing her eyes with a serene expression.
“Oh, you two did? Well, I know I’m a strong gal after all. Did they tell you the tales of my exploits?” Stuffing her chest, Orochi stands proud, full of confidence, and in wait for the praises her sister will give.
Instead, what Orochi gets is a finger flick on her nose. “Ouch! What is that for!?” Reeling in feigned pain, she holds her nose, her sister keeping the facade of a smile.
“Your friends told me many things, about how you spoke more about our cousin than your beloved sister.” Akane half opens her eyes, a dangerous and angry aura on them.
“S-sis! You were from U.A.… it is counterintuitive to speak about it inside Shiketsu!” Orochi desperately tries to find a reason or excuse to calm down her sister, who prepares her fingers for another flick.
“Yes, but I’m your sister, and you couldn’t stop talking about Yuusei. Accept your punishment in silence.” The serene smile turns into a cruel Cheshire grin as the middle daughter of the Atsushi tries to find a way to escape the finger flicks of her sister.
“Have mercy, sis! I promise to talk about it in our second year!”
“Nu-uh. Make stupid choices, and reap stupid rewards.”
Orochi got a series of multiple finger flicks. Afterward, Akane, Maxine, and Edith helped Orochi and Tomoe to find a good combination of clothes.
(Scene break)
After some hours (Orochi had never spent so much time choosing her clothes before), they exited the store, waving goodbye to Tomoe. Unsurprisingly, the first to leave was her sister, who went out with a friend of hers.
Orochi felt tired, really tired by the end of this ordeal, but not in the sense she had grown used to over the last few weeks. No, she was happy and spent, despite not doing much. After choosing her clothes, she, Edith, and Maxine went on a shopping spree.
Bags, purses, some stuffed toys, and a new phone. At first, Orochi thought of buying the same model as her previous phone, but the two-fifths of the clique vehemently refused that course of action.
Instead, they convinced Orochi to buy a new model of a brand she had never used before. A slick and thin design. ‘It has good space for my games and hardware power, so it is no big deal.’ Due to her preferences, she bought a pink one with a usagi symbol in its middle.
Not soon afterward, Maxine went out in a hurry after a boy, perhaps her boyfriend, leaving Edith and Orochi alone to finish their shopping spree. The sky was already dark by the time they finished.
Once again, they went for a snack break. Orochi took a strawberry smoothie this time around, not in the mood to eat anything heavier. Edith had taken a mint with a chocolate milkshake. “It was… eventful.”
Edith whispers, a small smile on her face. Despite her rough edges and tendency to be a very touchy person, Orochi wasn’t that bad. Having learned her lesson again, Orochi enwrapped her Hydra heads around her waist like belts.
“Yeah. Didn’t expect my sister to join in out of the blue.” Orochi lets out a small giggle. Her heart beating soundly and happily. Nothing went wrong. She could enjoy herself and not a single villain attack.
Yet it doesn’t mean the day after will be eventful as well. Her life is at a turning point, and she is a racing car with no brakes, drifting and trying not to hit a wall and crash and burn. Orochi looks towards Edith.
‘She too is part of a long family of heroes…’ While the chances of Edith providing the true answer to her questions are slim, she may understand her worries and hurts more than anyone else… “Hey Edith, hypothetically speaking, let’s say you are in deep trouble.”
Edith stops drinking to look at her. “You want to help people, but you are only a single person, and you have the opportunity to do good, to gather people to help more people, but you have to return to a life you abandoned, would you take the chance?”
Orochi takes a deep breath, closing her eyes. “Hypothetically, you were the CEO of a big company but left it behind, but now you kinda need your position back to help save more people than you could do alone. You have an offer to go back and resume your previous position. Would you do it?”
Orochi feels a pressure in her chest, her heart aching with the memories of her old gang, of how united they were… “Do you think it is worth going back to the past so you can resume your future?”
The Atsushi tries her best to not show emotions or hurt, to not alert her friend. Maybe Edith can help shed some light on what to do and clean the mist inside her head. Help decide the course of action to take.
‘So, you are finally opening up to us…’ Edith sets aside her milkshake, carefully thinking about the words spoken. While there can be many metaphors for it, it is related to Orochi’s past somehow. It is far too specific to not be…
“I… would… maybe join back this life? I mean, if it is not too bad, and they have a good reason to want me back, I would go back.” Edith closes her eyes, her own heart starting to race the more she thinks about it.
“I mean, if there are other choices… but if there isn’t any other choice, then I would go back. To save more lives, to help more people is the duty of a hero. No matter how I see it, it is what it is. Save more lives.”
One day they will be forced to do unpleasant things, things they don’t like in the line of duty. They have to act despite unpleasantries to bring good to the world and protect the innocent. If it is for those who cannot protect themselves, then Edith gladly would accept this deal.
“Even if you need to go beyond the light?” Orochi’s words take a somber tone as she stares at the crowd, her eyes not on them but going beyond the crowd, like seeing a mirage on the distant horizon…
“I…” Edith bites her lip. The question about vigilantism and whether or not it is moral to use quirks is a long-winded list. Many disagree with the free usage of quirks, while many fight for what they perceive as “their right” to use quirks freely.
Honestly, Edith agrees with the regulation of quirks but knows some quirks, like Orochi’s, will not ever be contained or regulated because of their nature, while others need to be regulated because of how they can affect the world and the people in it.
But she also knows that when you are in a pinch, using your quirk may be what crosses the line between life and death, using it to save other people is only right, even if you lack a license for that… in the end, it has no clear answer.
“I… think it is worth it, in the end. If you are doing good, just be cautious not to get caught and cross the line. This world needs people to better it now more than ever.” Edith feels her shoulders hurt.
This small talk got her dead tired. “Is that so, Edith…? Thanks.” Yet, Orochi sounds more tired than her. The Hydra’s eyes not staring at the present but at the past. The illusion of five girls walking these same halls and stores with her friends.
Without a single worry or doubt about her path. Enjoying life to its fullest, trying to make her mother proud again…