Chapter 6b: Here we go again... or The Cameo Chapter From Hell
Continues!
Friday:
The first week of college was over for the majority of the students at
G.U.U.C. A-ko woke with a start, no thanks to C-ko. She had woken her up
early, they were supposed to go to town and shop for some new
"undergarnements".
"C-ko, leemealone!" she mumbled, turning her face into her pillow.
"C'mon A-ko!" C-ko whined. "You promised we'd go to the mall today!" She
tugged at her friend's bed sheet. A-ko rolled over to face her best
friend.
"Alllllright..." she sighed. "Juz' lemme wake up
sommme...Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz...."
"A-KO!" C-ko screamed into her ear. A-ko flew out of bed and clung to the
ceiling, shaking. She was definitely awake, now. Her eyes were wide and
she dug her finger and toenails into the ceiling. Realizing what happened
<and the fact that gravity has an affect on even anime characters,
especially when they realize that they cannot defy gravity>, A-ko slammed
into the floor with a thud loud enough to wake up the entire campus.
"OWWW!!" she yelled. C-ko looked down at A-ko and smiled at her. She
then stuck her hand out to help her friend up off the floor. A-ko got up
and tussled her hair around. She turned around and walked into the
bathroom with C-ko following closely behind her. A-ko closed the door.
With a sudden yell, the bathroom door burst open and C-ko went skidding out
on her butt, followed by the bathroom door being slammed shut again.
"Tee hee, she's such a tease," C-ko giggled, still seated on the floor.
* * *
B-ko had fully recovered from her "incident" in the science lab relatively
quickly. Good thing for her, her father is Hikaru Daitokuji. Otherwise,
she might still be in that God-awful hospital, getting the same treatments
as the "average" patients got. She shuddered at the thought. The doctor
that had rushed her to the hospital had told her what had happened and that
a young man by the name of Craig Vincent had saved her life. She thought
for a moment as to whom it may have been. The name was certainly American.
_No...it couldn't be...could it? Why would *he* save my life?_ B-ko
walked over to her computer terminal and brought up the student records.
She typed in the name. A small image of the young man appeared, with his
stats to the left of it. A list of his acheivements and other various
"incidents" were listed under the image.
She shut off the computer and then sat back. She then got up and looked
out the window that overlooked the campus. She looked in the direction of
the boys' dormitory. She would have to repay him...some
how...Daitokuji-style... B-ko allowed herself a smile at the thought.
B-ko changed her focus and saw her reflection in the window. Behind her
was Ine.
"You called, Mistress?" she asked.
"Yes, I want you and Mari to follow A-ko and C-ko to the mall today," she
replied, not turning from the window. "And tell Ume and Asa that I want
them to follow Upperclassmen Vincent around for today only. Tell them I
want to know how he thinks, that's how comprehensive I want their report to
be."
"Hai," Ine replied.
"Is there something you want to say to me?" B-ko asked, still facing the
window.
"Well, Mistress. I...that is, we are starting to worry about you. I was
thinking that going to the mall with us may be good for you."
"I don't," B-ko retorted, flatly. She stood still for a moment, and then
swung around so fast that Ine jumped back. "My vexation is beyond your
comprehension! It's not a matter of health, it's a matter of love and
honor! C-ko is the matter of love, and Mr. Vincent is the matter of honor!
I will have my revenge against both him and A-ko before this term is
over...THIS I SWEAR ON MY FAMILY NAME!!!" B-ko stood clutching her right
fist over her left breast and panted slightly. _Damn, I've been getting
too excitable lately. I'll have to go see Tony after I'm alone._ B-ko
refrained her smile. "You may leave."
"Hai," Ine said, bowing before B-ko and then slowly backing out of the
room.
* * *
A shadowed, shapely figure stood in a lit doorway. The woman was
certainly well endowed and was obviously wearing either a tight outfit or
nothing at all. Myles was standing in front of the shapely figure, arms
outstretched. The shadowy figure came into the light, revealing a sensuous
red-haired girl, wearing a tight black leather outfit that fit her
perfectly. It was A-ko.
A-ko turned to Myles and ran into his open arms. When they reached each
other, they embraced. Holding each other tightly. Myles looked into
A-ko's hazel-brown eyes. She smiled and leaned into him. Their lips met
as they began a long, sensuous kiss. Myles then...
...woke up. Craig had kick-started the television and sat down. Myles
got out of his bed, growling. He walked over to Craig and looked him in
the eyes. Craig was obviously confused.
"I don't like ye," he said, tonelessly. He then pushed past his friend
and went straight into the bathroom. Craig looked over to Kei, who was
still comatose because of the current condition of his bike. He then
shrugged, tuned the TV and got an American cartoon in. It was
"Animaniacs", he realized.
"DAMMIT! I don't see the show since I leave Chicago and it's the same
fuckin' episode that I saw when I left!" he muttered. He flipped through
the rest of the channels and then sighed. "Fuck. Two hundred and
seventy-some channels, and there ain't a damn thing on." He got up and
shut the TV down. He decided to go to the cafeteria and get some "food".
<IF you want to call it that.> Myles came out of the bathroom, drying his
hair.
"Hey, you didn't use all the hot water, did you?" Craig asked.
"Nay, I took a cold shower," Myles mumbled.
"Wanna go get some 'food' from the cafeteria?"
"Nah."
"Looks like A-ko's going," he replied, looking out the window. He then
looked down to see Myles running in the direction of the cafeteria, wearing
only his bathrobe and a towel on his head. Craig shook his head and then
left the room to check the mail.
After Craig had left, Kei finally snapped out of his catatonic state and
looked at his what was once his bike. He then dropped to his knees and
began to sob uncontrollably. He then got up and decided to take a shower.
He would soon avenge his poor lost Harley, and Myles and Craig would pay
dearly.
Craig walked back into his dorm room, carrying a rather large-looking box
with him. He set the box on his bed and then wiped his hands off. Reading
the return address, he smiled. Myles burst into the room, now only wearing
a towel. <Not a pretty sight, folks.> Craig turned around and looked at
his half-naked friend.
"What the hell happened to you?" he asked, averting his eyes.
"Who the hell cares! We're gooin' ti the mall, me friend," Myles replied,
bursting with excitement.
"Eh?"
"Aye, we're goin' ti the mall! I overheard me lass and her friend say
that, after breakfast, they were goin' into town to shop. I want ye to
offer her a ride!"
"In what? My foot? You totaled my car last month, remember? If you
don't I'm gonna kick your ass from here back to Ireland. It *was* your
fuckin' fault..."
"Aye, aye. I thought that maybe ye'd gotten it back by now."
"No. I did get my bi-annual care package from my cousin in Chicago,
though." Myles looked up with a glimmer of some hope. "No car..." Myles
frowned.
"What'd she send ye?" Craig whipped out his switch blade and opened the
box. He removed some of the packing foam and began to sift through the
box's contents.
"Heh. The usual stash of booze. A couple movies, some CD's. A pair of
sunglasses...cool... A few other things and...cute, Ral...a box of
condoms..." Myles laughed as Craig held up the box marked Trojan Condoms
<Double-lubbed and ribbed>. Craig pulled out a note that was in the box
and read it over. He laughed and then stuck it back in the box. He then
set the entire box into his foot locker and then locked it. "So, when to
we leave?"
"How're we supposed to get there?" Myles mumbled.
"Take the bus, ya putz..."
* * *
Graviton City's Eastside Mall was the biggest in Graviton City. Another
bonus was that is was the closest to the University and three high schools.
Needless to say the mall was constantly packed. Following the American's
concept of one huge building with hundreds of stores within it, the mall
was one of the first places constructed after the meteor smacked into
Graviton City eighteen years ago. This was to boost the economy and of
course, increase tourism. People from all over Graviton City...for that
matter, Japan, come to the mall to shop at the three hundred plus stores.
It has been said that it would take the average shopper at least a week to
visit all of the stores in it. Fortunately for A-ko and C-ko, they are
*far* from average shoppers, for they are teenage mallrats...
"Where do you wanna go first, A-ko?" C-ko asked, cheerfully, skipping
along a row of stores.
"Let's go visit some clothing stores, I want to make sure that I have
enough money to buy my new underwear," she replied. Myles was not too far
behind her in the crowd and could make out what she was saying. _Och!
Myles, ye bloody maroon! Ye stole all of the poor lass's underwear!
What'n the hell's the matter wit'ye?_ A little further back, behind Myles
was Ine and Mari, trying to act inconspicuous...or at least as
inconspicuous as someone like Mari can ever get. Unfortunately for them,
however, they could not hear A-ko and C-ko over the crowd.
A-ko and C-ko turned into a clothing store that had a large red sign with
white lettering on it that read <in Japanese>; "SALE!!" Myles took two
steps toward the store, read the name of it and went crimson. "Shit! I
can't go in there!" he muttered. He did a quick look around to see if
anyone would see him and then slipped into the store. Mari and Ine walked
up to the entrance of the store and then entered themselves.
A-ko turned to look at the mannequins that were standing in the window to
see if there were any outfits that she would like to get. She had conned
her father into letting her have his credit card before she left for
college. She was able to buy anything that the mall had to offer her, but
she felt a sort of responsibilty towards the card, thinking that it would
be wrong for her to charge the card up to its limits.
A-ko quickly got a hold of herself. _CHAAAAAAAARRRRRRGE IT!!!!_ she
thought. She then looked to see if an outfit that a mannequin had on was
in her size. She looked on some of the racks and saw that the outfit she
liked was nowhere to be found.
"Can I help you, Misth?" a high-pitched, male voice called from behind
her. A-ko turned around to see a man in a pink vest with a matching pink
beret and tiger-striped stretch pants stood before her. A-ko thought that
his build was rather feminine for a man. "I'm Melba," he said, in a
queerish voice. "Can I help you find anything?" A-ko almost laughed out
loud at the "man's" mannerisms. She brought herself under control.
"Uh, yes," A-ko replied. "I liked the outfit on this mannequin here and I
was wondering if you had any others in stock."
"Hmm, exthellent choisth," he said, nymphishly gesturing at the mannequin
A-ko was inquiring about. "Alasth, I haven't stheen thisth outfit before.
If you like, I could find out the sthizthe on thisth one for you. I'd
sthay it'sth about your sthizthe." A-ko smiled.
"Sure, I'd like that," she replied. "I'll be over there in the
undergarnments section."
"Okay, I'll be with you in a moment." A-ko turned and walked over to the
undergarnment section of the store where C-ko was already looking. Melba
walked up onto the display and grabbed the mannequin that had the outfit
A-ko liked. "Mmm, mmm, mmmmmm. Thisth one'sth justht stho life-like," he
muttered, feeling the mannequin out. When he reached the mannequin's
crotch, Myles broke free of Melba's grip and slugged him in the gut.
"[Ye bloody fucking FAGGOT!!!]" he yelled in Irish, his brogue thicker
than usual. As Melba went down, Myles jumped off the display and picked
Melba up off the floor, kneeing him in the groin and then pummelling him
until he lay unconscious on the floor. Myles removed the dress that was
covering his actual clothing <that's why the outfit looked different>, and
left the store in a flash, forgetting to remove the wig that he had on.
Among the real mannequins, Mari and Ine looked at the unconscious sales
associate on the floor nervously. They then looked to watch one-another as
Myles went running out of the store.
Over by the undergarnments, C-ko was displaying some underwear for A-ko.
Some were typical "cutesy" C-ko-style underwear <one's with the odd colored
fuzzy aminals on them>, and others were a silky, see-through-style. A-ko
was blushing profusely as she shouted her suggestions loud enough for
everyone in the mall to hear them. A-ko decided to do with some of the
typical white cotton panties and no-frills bras, except for the little pink
bows in the center...
After a few minutes of browsing and looking around, A-ko was ready to
leave. She looked to see where Melba had gone to. She walked up to the
register and set her purchases down on the counter. A young red-haired
girl walked over to her.
"Are you all set?" she asked.
"Um, no. One of the salesmen, Melba, I think, was supposed to get an
outfit from one of the mannequins in the window," A-ko replied, looking
over to the display window. "But, I don't see the mannequin over there
now." The girl behind the counter shifted nervously.
"Um, well, someone beat the shit out of poor Melba. When he came to, he
kept mumbling something about the mannequin coming to life and beating him
up."
"That's horrible!" A-ko exclaimed, astonished. "Who would do such a
thing?"
"Well, like I said, he said it was the mannequin that had your outfit on
it." The cashier then smiled at A-ko. "So, will this be all, then?"
"Uh...I guess so..."
* * *
Craig walked into a gun shop and began to browse. While looking at a
display case, he saw the reflection of two girls standing not too far
behind him. One had a micro-vid-cam in her hand. Craig studied the images
in the window for a moment and then began to think where he had seen them
before. He quickly swung around and the two girls vanished as if they were
never there. Craig laughed to himself and then contiued on with his
browsing.
Ume shoved Asa into the crowd the minute she saw their subject begin to
turn. _That was close,_ she thought. Asa got her bearings and then began
to re-focus her camera on Craig. He was now talking to someone behind the
counter, looking at something in the display. Asa flipped on a switch to
filter out the noise from the crowd. The converstation came in perfectly.
Asa was pleased with herself and the equipment she had been granted for the
mission.
Man: Oy, Craig, you gonna buy anything today, or are you just going to
drool again?
Craig: Funny, Kaneda, real funny. Maybe if your prices were a little more
competitive.
Craig pointed to something in the display case.
Kaneda(irked): What're you talkin' about? I'm the only gun shop in the
mall, and for that matter, I've got the best prices in Graviton City.
Craig: My cousin used to own a gun shop before her newest situation, and
these prices are outrageous compared to hers and to what she could get me
now.
Kaneda: Where was her gun shop?
Craig: Chicago.
Kaneda: Feh, with all of the taxes, customs fees and shipping fares, her
"deals" are probably ten times more than mine.
Craig (snorts): Guess again. Your Smith and Wesson M-19 (6") here, she
could get me one for three hundred less...at least. And that *includes*
all of the above. Lemme see that one there.
Kaneda: Aw, c'mon! Three hundred *less*? You've *got* to be yankin' me.
Kaneda pulled a Desert Eagle (Isreal, Gas recoil)<Special chambered for
the .44 Magnum> and handed it to Craig who checked the cylinder and
cleanliness.
Craig: Nope. Where'd you pick this one up?
Kaneda: Got it at a Tokyo gun shop that went out of business.
Craig: Feh. You'd think in Tokyo, they'd all stay in business.
Kaneda: Naw, it's those AD Police that're causing the slump. They're
actually doing a good job over there.
Craig: Got my special order?
Kaneda: Yup. [Pulling a box out from behing the counter.] Did these
myself. Don't know what you expect to use Hot Loaded .44 Magnum
Armor-piercing bullets in.
Craig [pulling open his coat]: This.
Kaneda [eyes wide]: Oh my! That's a--
Craig covered Kaneda's mouth and shhed him. They then wrote a few things
back and forth on a notepad. Asa began to sweat profusely.
"What does he need ammo for?" she wondered out loud.
"He builds mecha just like B-ko, maybe that's what it's for?"
"Hmm." Craig handed Kaneda a credit chip, collected the case of bullets
into a shopping bag and walked out of the gun shop. Asa was not sure what
to think. Other than that she was certainly scared of Upperclassman
Vincent now more than ever.
--
Oni a.k.a. Greg Thompson
<AkoMagami@usa.pipeline.com>
Member, Red-Head Anime Girls Fan Club
Co-Founder and High Priest of The Holy Order of A-ko
-----Folder of the Holy Fuku-----
Co-author of Project A-ko: The College Years