Our Stories

That Side of You [Rikuhachima Aru]

Puff...

A white cloud of smoke blew from your mouth. One might mistake it for a mere warm breath amidst the chilly winter evening, were it not for the smell of cigarettes that lingered. Winter was starting to come and grace Kivotos, and the crisp cold air was soon to follow for sure.

Atop Schale's building, you admired the slowly setting sun on the horizon. The biting nip in the air felt strangely pleasant for your exposed face. The silent district down below you, oddly calming for your mind.

What was it again...?

Ah... right.

Red sun over paradise.

Calming, smoking was. At least for you. It felt like your mind was at ease, even though you knew its side effects. And it's not like you've ever openly smoked in front of your students.

Creak! The door behind you squeaked open with a grating sound. Guess you should oil it sometime later. You glanced at it to see who would come to the rooftop. And to your surprise, it was a certain someone whose hair quite matched the sky's color right now.

Rikuhachima Aru, a Gehenna student under your care. She strikes quite an appearance with her reddish-pink hair and the pair of horns behind her, along with that sharp amber eyes. Accompanied by a quite lavish red overcoat and her formal attire, she did look like a leader.

And unsurprisingly, she is one. Aru is the leader of Problem Solver 68, a small club under your supervision... or rather, undergoing a partnership with you, as she would put it. A group of fixers, as they called it, ready to solve anything as long as the cash was good. Including the less-than-legal business in that part of Kivotos.

Watching over them has been nothing but trouble for you. More often than not bailing them out of a sticky situation, softening up a lot of business negotiations, straightening out payments from some less-than-savory clients, keeping them safe from harm... a new day would usually spell a new kind of antics. And yet, you had never minded it one bit.

"Ah, Sensei, here you are." She remarked with a small smile. "I was wondering where you-"

"Hey, Aru." You greeted, turning toward her with a lit cigarette between your lips. You hummed curiously as she froze and audibly gasp. As if she had seen something horrid.

"Aru?" You questioned. She broke out of her trance and neared you post-haste. "What's wro-" She swiftly snatched the cigarette from your mouth and stomped it down. "No!" She surprisingly shouted and stared you down with something akin to a glare.

You quietly gasped as your eyes caught the little tears forming at the edges of her eyes. "Ah, uh, sorry...?" You mumbled, not knowing what else to say. "No more smoking, got it, Sensei?!" She pointed at you with her demands.

"Ah, yeah... I'll try..." You could only agree with her sudden outburst. You were... surprised, to say the least, to see her in such a state. Usually, she would appear stoic and calm to impress you, but right now, all signs of those vanished into thin air. "Hmph, as a leader, I have to make sure that my employees are always in tip-top shape..."