Interview with the Yokai

Chapter 3

It was Monday morning and Shoji was sitting in class, waiting for homeroom to start. He felt a chill run down his back and was aware that Benihime was giving him a cold stare, she had been doing that the whole weekend every time that she saw him. Shoji kept having flashbacks to the day on the roof every time she gave him one of her icy stares. Shoji couldn't believe that Benihime, the quiet, kind, girl that was the personification of a docile woman, almost born to be someone's perfect wife, had a vicious cold hearted killer lurking within her. Shoji knew that if Noriko hadn't saved him, he would have been dead. Still there was a part of Shoji that almost wanted to excuse Benihime, she was such a quiet girl, so prim, and proper, that the act of being stripped naked, must have felt like a violation of the highest degree. Of course there was the little fact that the whole event had been orchestrated by Kurasawa-sama, but would Benihime even listen if he tried to explain himself?

Beyond the cold stares that Benihime was giving him, was also the problem that her boyfriend, Tanahashi Keiji, was noticing that Benihime was looking at him and was starting to give him equally dirty looks. Tanahashi was a second year student and star of the football team, he was also the school bully with two first year stooges who followed his orders. Shoji risked a very unsupernatural beating, that would still hurt just as badly, from Tanahashi and his crew. Normally a fight would carry a large punishment at Sasayama Academy, with even expulsion being a possibility, but Tanahashi was the star of the football team, a person had to weigh the hit that his social life would take, should Tanahashi not be able to play, versus the beating they would get. Tanahashi for a bully wasn't much of a delinquent, even he knew not to push his luck too far, but still knowing that he would only receive a light beating in no way made Shoji feel better. Shoji felt that the Benihime situation was a time bomb that he needed to disarm before it completely blew up in his face.

Yayaka was also becoming a time bomb, but of another nature altogether. Yayaka had spent the whole weekend flirting with him. Everytime he went to the cafeteria for a meal, Yayaka was sure to drop by and get clingy. Lucky there were other people around, so she wasn't able to do more than a few hugs and some flirtatious words, but they had been enough that Shoji found himself taking cold showers. The succubus seemed to be enjoying herself, she had given Shoji a note with her number, in case he wanted to do any research. Shoji had no idea whether this whole thing was one big tease by Yayaka, her own form of revenge for what Shoji had done on the roof or if the succubus was actually following through on Kurasawa-sama's instructions. The weekend had left Shoji exhausted, between Benihime's cold stares sending chills down his spine, Yayaka's presence causing his body to burn up, and the constant feeling that he was being watched every time he stepped out to walk around campus, Shoji had no energy that Monday morning.

" You look kinda blue Shoji-kun, feeling sorry that you didn't take me up on my offer?," Yayaka said as she walked past his desk on her way to her own. Yayaka looked at him and then frowned at his nonresponse. Luckily she sat two desk in front of him making it so she couldn't pester him throughout the day.

Okaga-sama, the homeroom teacher, entered, everyone rose and bowed, then classes went on as normal. The classes really helped to get Shoji back in his normal mindset. No matter what the girls might be, they were students and all took their classes seriously, none of them having time to bother concentrating on Shoji. Shoji for his part was paying attention to the lessons, Sasayama Academy wasn't a prestigious school, because it was the type of place where you could get by without putting full effort into your lessons. By lunchtime Shoji was ready to believe that he was just a regular student again. Has Shoji got ready to eat his lunch at his desk it was clear that the reprieve that he was given was now over.

" Hello Shoji-kun, glad to see you're not so grumpy anymore. Maybe this time you'll acknowledge me," Yayaka said. Shoji looked around, the eyes of all his male classmates were on him. Shoji couldn't blame them, a week ago he would have killed for this situation. As much as Shoji wanted to tell Yayaka to go away, he wasn't that stupid. Shoji doubted the girl would leave and it would do his popularity no good if everyone thought he was snubbing the class idol.