The Demon [A JSHK Fanfiction]

Chapter 01

"Is it true that a demon protects Kamome?" A girl with silver hair asked her friend. Her friend hummed and shrugged.

"That, I don't know, Nene-chan," she replied. The girl, Nene, looked at her plants.

"But what if they are real? Aoi-chan, do you think they hurt students?" Nene asked, making her friend turn to her.

"Oh, Nene-chan, they wouldn't! They are the protector after all," Aoi answered, making Nene sigh.

"Of course," Nene and her friend went back to taking care of their plants.

A certain girl heard their conversation, making her curious. She approached the garden silently, wary that one of them might see her. She looked around the said garden, admiring all the plants.

"Oh, it's all right, Aoi-chan! You can go home before me, I can take care of the plants!" She saw the two girls, watching them interact as a frown appeared on her face.

"Are you sure you can handle it, Nene-chan?" Aoi asked, but Nene only nodded.

"I'm sure, Aoi-chan! I'll see you tomorrow!" Nene waved at the retreating figure of her friend. The unknown girl walked closer towards the silver haired daikon. She peeked at her, making the daikon look at her as well.

"EEEEEKK!!" Nene pushed the girl away from her, surprised by her sudden appearance. The girl stumbled backwards due to the impact of Nene's push. Luckily, she caught herself before falling towards the ground. She looked at the girl and smiled.

"You can see me?" She asked happily, springing up to her feet and staring at the terrified girl. "Oh I'm terribly, sorry! I'm... Kurokawa Izumi, nice to meet you!"

The newcomer, Izumi, offered a hand to help the girl on the ground. The terrified girl hesitantly accepted her offer. Izumi hoisted her up and patted her head.

"And who might you be?" She asked.

"Y-Yashiro Nene, a first year high school student," Nene replied, making Izumi smile even more.

"You're the one with... him. You're the one who turned into a fish, right?" Izumi asked, getting closer to Nene who flinched at the memory.

"Y-Yeah..." Nene admitted, making Izumi giggle.

"Who managed to eat the other half?" Izumi curiously asked the daikon.

"A-Ah, my new friend, Minamoto Kou," Nene said. Izumi frowned.

"Was it against your will? Did someone force you to eat it?" She asked frantically, making Nene shake her head.

"No... it's kind of my fault," Nene glumly replied as she rubbed her nape. Izumi hummed at her answer. "You see, I was really into this guy, Minamoto-senpai. He's really charming, perfect, smart, and really nice! So, I went and ask Hanako-san about it, and I found this."

"Oh, unrequited love," Izumi nodded her head in realization. "Let me guess, you ate the scale without even knowing what it does."

Nene hung her head low as she sulked. Izumi chuckled as she waved her hand to dismiss it.

"Well, I mean, I was forced to eat one. Along with someone," Izumi shrugged, making Nene look up at her. Her eyes screamed curiosity as Izumi stared into it. She sighed.

"How?" Nene asked. Izumi shrugged.

"I should be asking you that. How the hell did this Kou ate the other mermaid scale?" Izumi asked Nene, completely driving the conversation away from the topic about it. Nene noticed, of course, but she didn't say a word.

"He thought it was a candy," Nene answered. Izumi sweat-dropped.

"How the hell would someone mistake that for a candy?" Izumi stopped with a chuckle. "Apparently, the three of us."

"Anyway, Yashiro Nene, I think it's time for you to go home. If you want, I will I accompany you home, to protect you," Izumi offered with a grin. Nene happily nodded as she walked home with her newfound friend.

"See you tomorrow, Yashiro Nene!" Izumi walked away from the girl as she went back to the school, continuing her duty as the so-called demon protector of the the school.

"I surely hope she's not like you two," Izumi muttered to herself as she looked at two specific areas. She smiled sadly as she approached them. "Why am I always friends with people who's going to die soon?"

Izumi climbed up a tree and sat at a branch, watching as the sun sets. It was the tree she spent the full year, waiting for the school's construction to be finished.

———

Izumi woke up to the sound of voices. She yawned and looked down, realizing that school was starting. She decided to be hidden from them, to avoid any unnecessary commotion.

Izumi decided to pay Nene a visit. Izumi silently climbed down her tree and walked around the school building to reach the back door. She opened it silently and walked inside one of the school's buildings.

"Now, where is her classroom?" Izumi asked herself as she sweat-dropped. She sighed before walking towards a specific place. "Maybe he knows where her room is."

Izumi opened the door slowly, peeking in to check if there are other teachers inside. She sighed in relief as she saw no one aside from him. She approached him with a small smile.

"Tsuchigomori!" Izumi greeted the guy, making him sigh and look at her.

"What do you want, Mephistopheles?" Tsuchigomori asked as he blew a smoke from his pipe. Izumi pouted at the name.

"Just call me Izumi or Kurokawa! That name's old!" Izumi told the teacher who ignored her. "Anyway, do you know where a certain Yashiro Nene's room is?"

"What are you going to do?" Tsuchigomori asked as he suspiciously looked at the girl. Izumi chuckled.

"I wanna pay her a visit! I met her yesterday at the school garden, and I wanna see how she's doing," Izumi told the teacher who sighed.

"The high school building next to the old building," Tsuchigomori told her, making ber beam at him.

"Thank you so much, Tsuchigomori-san! I promise I'll make it up to you," and with that, off Izumi go. She walked towards the said building as another question rose in her mind.

'Which section is Yashiro Nene's?' Izumi thought as she looked up at all the signs. She peeked inside the first room, grinning happily at her luck.

'Would you look at that? I found her,' Izumi silently walked inside the room, tearing Nene away from her notebook. She smiled at Izumi who was looking at the students like a teacher.

"You made me search for you for so long, Yashiro Nene," Izumi told her, but shushing her once Nene was about to reply. "You're not speaking, not unless you want your classmates and friends thinking that you're insane!"

"Besides, I only wanted to see how you're doing!" Izumi said with a huge smile. "After all, you're the one who can see me after years!"