A Hiro Kind Of; Talk PT. 2/5

I smiled as I watched Depra walk into the school building, nodding to myself. "Right, today's the day Mestra; the day we put our plan into action!"

I turned to my partner in crime, Mestra, who nodded to herself. "Indeed, I think it's time we've had ourselves a chat."

"Oh man, after all that hard work we put in to make sure nobody interfered, this better be worth it," I said, stretching my tired body upwards. "I can't believe how many people were into this though. I knew Pandora was popular, but to think that Depra had that many supporters as well."

"It's because of those friends of his," Mestra said, and the two of us started to walk towards the school. "As much as they tried to help, all of it would've ended in failure if it wasn't because of us."

Yeah, by those friends, we're talking about Erebus, Eros, Aether, Hemera, Nyx, and Necessitas; you know, those fools. I sighed, scratching my growing afro. Just imagining what would've happened if even on their plans came to fruition is enough for me to get stressed out.

"By the way, do you so happen to have a plan?" Mestra asked, her green eyes glancing over at me. "I'd rather not have you die."

I scoffed. "Please, of course I do. I would've enacted it sooner if they weren't so lazy, but nooo, they just have to be slow setting things up when it concerns me, but when it's something they want, they'll be faster than a cheetah at the sight of antelope."

Mestra frowned, turning to me. "What do you mean by that?"

Whoops, kind of let that one slip out. "Nothing of importance to you." I said, and I raised my finger up as I continued, a satisfactory look on my face. "Remember rule number one of being an underclassman: Never question what your upperclassman says, no matter how weird it may sound."

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head. "Yes, you are indeed my upperclassman; an idiot for sure, but an upperclassman nonetheless."

"Nah, I'm the lovable genius Hiro!" I proclaimed, pounding my chest with a single fist. "Loved by all, shunned by none, helper of all his friends!"

She sighed. "Strike that, a stupid idiot that so happens to be my upperclassman."

I opened the door for her, and she accepted with a curt "Thank you" as we continued our walk and talk.

"It seems our time together in this partnership of ours is drawing to an end," Mestra said, readjusting her backpack. "It was fun while it lasted, wasn't it?"

"Who says the fun in this partnership has to end?" I asked, and she looked over at me, curiosity filling her green eyes.

"You are quite the smooth talker," she murmured, and I couldn't help but laugh.

"Nah, I just know what to say and when to say it."

"Is that not the very definition?"

I chuckled, shaking my head. "Oh please, I'm not a player or anything like that. Although if I wanted to get a girl I could."

She wrinkled her face as she leaned away from me. "Cocky too boot. As if any girl would fall for you."

Ah, you would be surprised. We stopped in the middle of hallway, having to go our separate ways now.

"Well Hiro, I bid you farewell. I want to hear this plan of yours in more detail at lunch, so let's reconvene there." She bowed her head slightly.

"Your way of speaking throws me off sometimes," I said, but I waved her goodbye before heading to my own classroom, where Depra was staring out the window, a small smile on his face.

His black greasy hair was now covering his eyes, and he was wearing the same clothes he wore the past couple days, but he had a different air about him, one that rang full of happiness. I had asked him if was every going to cut it, but it seems that he has no intention of doing so. I also asked him about the acne that came with it, but unsurprisingly, there wasn't even a trace, as if it had vanished or something.

"What's gotten you in a good mood Depra?" I asked, tapping him on the shoulder, and he turned to me, a bigger smile then the one he had before on his face.

"Oh, it's you. Do I really look that happy?"

"Well, you're not sleeping, so there's that," I said, chuckling as I took my seat behind him. "And even though I can't see your eyes, I'm pretty sure they don't look as dead to the world anymore."

He frowned, picking at his long, greasy hair. "Is it really that bad?"

"You've assimilated with a true cultured protagonist."

I couldn't see them, but I'm sure he rolled his eyes then. "Whatever, I have no intention of doing similar activities."

I decided to press him. "But something did happen though, right?"

He faced forward, resting his chin on his head. "I don't really think so."

Oh, he's actually gonna hide it? "You wouldn't be hiding anything from your dear 'brother' now, would you?"

I could see the tips of his ears grow red. "Oh, don't remind me! Agh, that's so embarrassing. I'm still not done with my lists yet."

"How many left?"

"Oh, just two. I had four, but I knocked it out two weekends ago. There's this nice old couple who live out in the farmlands, they really helped me out, and I go every so often to catch up. They were on the Familial Love by the way, and they seemed pretty happy by my confession." Through the reflection on the window, I could see him smiling. "I was quite relieved at that."

I nodded. "You still haven't answered my previous question."

He whirled around. "Hey, no fair!" I laughed at his reaction. "I'll tell you soon, alright?"

I'll let it go for now, since I already know what it is. "Okay, whatever bro. Who else is on your list?"

He looked up, thinking. "Uh, I believe your older sister is one."

"What the hell do you need with that woman?"

He glanced at me. "Oh, she's the reason I even joined the Hidden Club. Plus, she helped me out a bunch after that, especially last year."

I leaned back in my chair. "Yeah, she is good at that." I of all people should know, she's helped me out more than I could probably ever repay. Well, unless…

I shook my head internally. I shouldn't be thinking about that. I already decided when to do it, especially after; fuck, I'm doing it again. "Okay, who's the other one?"

His mood suddenly shifted as he looked down, and he quietly gripped the chair. "Well, I don't really know much about that type of love, so I could be wrong, but…" He trailed off, starting to get lost in thoughts.

I patted him on the shoulder, nodding at him. "One step at a time, alright?" He looked at me and nodded.

"Yeah. Thanks."

I grinned. "It's what I'm here for my dude!"

"What are you two talking about?" It was Lachesis, who pulled up a chair next to us, and Depra stiffened slightly at her voice. He's still not over it huh?

"When did you get here? Now that I think about it, where's everybody else?"

Lachesis glared at me. "You don't need to know. As for the second question, they're probably in the library or something. This is basically a free period you know. No teacher or anything."

She was right about that. We're expected to be fluent in our language by the end of the year, with their being a written, audio, and oral exam. It really was a pain, but only because it was too easy.

"And yet, you chose the copout way Lachesis, choosing English."

"Shut it," She grumbled, and I laughed.

"You two really don't like each other, do you?"

It was Pinkie now, and she pulled up a chair as well, placing her bag next to mine. "It isn't that, it's just because she loves me sooo much!"

She punched me. "Go to hell Hiro!"

Eh, can't win them all. I glanced at Pinkie, who was pulling out study materials. "You're actually struggling?"

She stuck her tongue out. "Not everyone can be as great as you."

"Eh, you're not so bad. In any case, I'm gonna pull a Depra and take a well needed nap. I'm so damn tired! Plus, I don't get to bother you guys, so it's a win-win, probably."

I yawned, pulling out a pillow. "Why did you bring a pillow to school!?" Depra exclaimed, watching me place it on my desk.

"I'm tired, so I packed it in advance, since I knew I didn't need to worry about my language. You, on the other hand, need some work on your German. Same goes for Pinkie and Latin."

"Ugh, don't remind me," Pinkie complained, collapsing onto her materials. "Why do I need to learn how to speak a dead language anyway? Why can't I use Chinese, since I'm already fluent in it?"

We all turned to Pinkie as she sighed, messing with her long pink hair. "Since when did you—on second thought, I'm not gonna worry about it. Besides, we all know that you can't use a language you're already fluent in, which is why Lachesis' reasoning is bullshit. What was it again, ah yes, 'English isn't my first language even though I speak it perfectly, so I should be allowed to take it?' Yeah, bullshit."

I got another punch for that statement. "I thought you were about to sleep."

"Yeah, yeah. Hey Depra, wake me up when it's time for the next class please and thank you." He nodded, and I let my face fall onto the soft pillow.

Really am glad I chose Japanese, I thought as I started to drip off to sleep, letting out a loud yawn. Watching anime without subtitles is what's saving me in the end…

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"You're not coming to eat with me?" Depra asked, a frown on his face as we walked out of the lunch line, and I rolled my eyes.

"It's not like I just eat with you. You're forgetting the other six we eat with. But no, not today."

His frown didn't leave as we walked out of the cafeteria. "But…"

I patted him on the back, giving him a grin. "Alas, I cannot Depra King. Now shoo, I'm already late since you insisted I escort you through the lunch line as usual. Go on before Lachesis sends out a search party, and don't think she won't."

I waved him away, and he relented, walking away with his shoulders slumped. "Damn, if you're still like this with me now, your girl is gonna get hella jealous you know." I sighed, scratching the back of my head. Well, it should be fine for now.

I glanced at nearby clock and nearly jumped out of my skin. "Damn, I really am late!"

I rushed through the school, watching the student body eat and chat amicable during their lunch until I reached my destination, one of the many courtyards in the school.

Mestra was sitting on a bench under a tree that had lost almost all its leaves, with the remaining hanging on being yellow, red, or a mixture of both. I had many experiences with that bench, and my thoughts went back to sophomore year, reminiscing on one of my many near death experiences.

Ah yes, what fond memories indeed.

"Sorry I'm late!" I yelled out, and she glanced up at me, her sandwich already half-eaten. "Depra really didn't want me to leave him, so it took a while to shake him off."

"And here I thought you were the punctual type. Way to prove me wrong once more," she said curtly, biting off a piece of her sandwich. Man, when was the last time I had banter like this?

"I'm more surprised you got away so quickly," I said, sitting down next to her. "Could it be your friendship with Pandora is that superficial?"

"No, she just has other friends she likes talking too, unlike Depra."

"Nah, I wouldn't say that about him, he just knows who's the best," I said, nodding to myself, and she let out a sigh.

I unboxed my homemade lunch, courtesy of my adorable lil' sister, Luna.

I clapped my hands together. "Thanks for the food." I glanced at the note she wrote, which said "Have another fun-filled day at school today big bro!" It had a quick sketch of her giving me a thumbs up. She had gotten into drawing lately, and it showed in her note.

"Fufu, it seems like she's a bona fide genius, same as I," I said, grinning to myself before putting the note in my pocket.

Mestra looked over into my lunch. "You make your lunch?"

"Nah, my little sister Luna does. Ah, she really is the best!"

She frowned. "Luna? Huh, interesting…" She trailed off as she tried to grab some of my food, which got stopped by a slap of my hand. "Meanie."

I pulled out my sandwich and took a couple bites out of it, the heavenly taste filling my mouth. "So good!"

"Are you really 17?"

"Just because your sandwich is clearly inferior doesn't mean you can throw shade at me you know. Besides, Luna's food isn't meant for sharing I'll have you know," I said, taking another bite out of my sandwich.

She started to slightly tug at her green hair. "I forget you're like this, so let's cut to the chase, since I'm in no mood to meet up again to go over your plan after school. So, what exactly is your plan?"

I nodded, taking a swig of water. "Right, the plan. I take Pandora away from the gate to a secluded area, say what I need to say, and that's it."

"… You're an idiot."

"I think you meant lovable genius."

She took a bite out of her sandwich in frustration. "Ugh, whatever. Do you actually have one?"

"Aw, are you actually worried about me partner!? I didn't know you cared so much!" I exclaimed, holding my chest. "I'm touched."

I got punched for that one. "I'm serious, I don't need you dying on me today. That would cause way more problems than necessary."

"Are ye of little faith Mestra?" I asked, taking another swig from my water. "I'll be fine. I'm not number one for nothing."

She frowned. "Number one?"

Oops, let that slip. "Number one in being cautious! After all, I'm an Overly Cautious 'Hiro!' Get it, cause I'm Hiro?"

She let out a sigh. "I'm a fool for even spending any energy worrying about you."

"Speaking of worry, do you have a plan?" I asked, taking another couple bites from my sandwich. "Delicious!"

"I don't think I have to worry about death like you do, so I shall be fine," Mestra said. "After all, I can defend myself if I must. I'll just take him somewhere and talk."

Yeah, I know all about that, I thought, taking a glance at my bag. "Mind telling me where?"

"I don't, but why do you wish to know?"

I leaned back into the bench, looking at the fading leaves on the tree. "Well, I need to talk to him as well. I'll tell you where Pandora is as well since you'll need to talk to her too."

She pursed her lips. "Was it that obvious?"

I looked into her sapphire blue eyes, holding eye contact. "Well, if I couldn't even do that much, I would be considered a failure in my field. Although…" I trailed off, leaning in closer as she stared back at me innocently.

"There's something about you that throws me off. It's like you're older or something."

"Well girls mature faster, so that must be what's bugging you."

I chuckled, and released my gaze, looking up into the grey skies. "That's probably it isn't it. Man, I guess it must be true about guys not knowing everything about girls."

Lie.

"Anyway, how are you going to know where Pandy is?"

"Oh, don't worry about it. Someone I trust will handle that part." I finished up my sandwich and burped. "Yep, delicious!" I opened my bag of cookies and popped one in my mouth.

"You are quite vulgar sometimes, you know that?"

"Not vulgar, but free-spirited. Enough about that, I'm tired as it is, so I'm taking over your lap."

I collapsed my head on her lap easily, and she frowned as she looked down. "You just do whatever you want, don't you?"

I yawned and shook my head. "That isn't it at all. I just live my life the way I want, to have as much fun as I want, and ultimately to enjoy it as much as I want." For the two of us…

"Such a silly boy indeed," Mestra sighed, and I drifted off to sleep for the second time today, my last thoughts of a silver-haired girl calling me Master.