Pride x Familiar (13 page)

Was it right for me to hate this girl?

I took a deep breath, and tried sorting through
the muddle my feelings had become.

Was I prejudiced against the Aventis? Did I have
a reason to be prejudiced anymore?

Was I prejudiced against Simone?

My throat felt constricted, making it hard to
swallow.

I felt even more confused when the Countess
straightened and looked at me through pained eyes.

She cleared her throat softly. “Caelum, when
Severin and I expressed our thanks, Maya looked bitter. But you
looked…disgusted.”

I tried looking away but I couldn’t.

I thought I heard hurt in her voice. “Do I
disgust you, Caelum? In your eyes, am I revolting?”

I clamped my jaw shut, but after a while I gave
her an answer. “I’ve spent the last six years hating your kind for
what happened to my parents. And for my sister too.” I sucked in a
lungful of air. “It’s a little hard letting go of that hatred.”

She squeezed her eyes shut for a heartbeat. “I’m
sorry for what happened to your parents. But…is that reason for you
to hate all Aventis? Is that reason for you…to hate me?”

I managed to look away, casting my gaze down
between us.

I felt her gaze on me but I didn’t return
it.

She sighed, undoubtedly finding an answer in my
silence. “I see….”

I chose to change the subject. “May I ask you
something?”

She smiled wretchedly. “So long as it’s not
personal.”

I shook my head weakly and looked at her. “I’m
not going to ask about your underwear or lack thereof.”

She rolled her eyes. “Then what do you want to
know?”

“Are you planning to bring in outside help?”

Her face was close enough I could feel her
breath on my lips. “What do you mean?” she asked.

“We’re facing Crimson Crescent. Do you think the
four of us are enough?”

I saw a calculating gleam in her eye. “You don’t
have confidence in your skills and training?”

“Not really. Not against an opponent I can’t
see.”

“You mean you don’t have an all seeing third
eye.”

“Countess, I’m serious here—”

I stopped abruptly. Her arms had slipped around
me waist. It wasn’t just her breath I could feel on my face. Now
her enormous breasts were pressed tightly against my chest.

In one move she made me forget all about the
differences between Aventis, Regulars and Familiars. That was the
effect her glorious body had on me.

“Countess?” I croaked out, trying to shift my
body so that she wouldn’t notice my body reacting to her. “What are
you doing?”

“Tell me, Caelum.”

“Huh? Tell you what?” I squeaked.

She pressed her body even tighter. “Tell me what
I need to do.”

“Huh? What?”

Damn, there was no hiding it now. There was no
way she wouldn’t feel my body saluting her.

But I couldn’t deny those breasts felt good.
Firm and well balanced. I could almost picture their shape and
disposition just by contact alone. They pushed into me with every
breath she took.

My thoughts fell into complete disarray, but I
found myself looking into her azure eyes and suddenly asked, “Were
you born an Aventis?”

She hesitated, then nodded very faintly. “Yes. I
inherited the Symbiote strain from my mother.”

“Oh. That probably explains why….”

“Hmm, what does that explain?” she asked with a
playful smile.

“Why you’re so beautiful….”

At first her eyes widened, then they narrowed.
“The Symbiote may have ‘helped’ in my development, but it all comes
down to good genes. At my age my mother was far prettier than I am.
And my elder sister uses her beauty to rip through men like tissue
paper. I have nothing on either of them.”

I said what came to mind, and regretted it
afterwards. “So you’re living in their shadow?”

Simone stopped pressing her body into mine but
did not move away. “I make my own shadow.”

I guess I’d succeeded annoying her. “Sorry. I
didn’t mean to offend you—ah!”

She squeezed herself tightly against me
anew.

I was rapidly approaching the limit of my
self-control. The sensation of her heavenly bosom pressed into my
chest was seriously impeding my sound judgment.

The scent of her hair, the perfume on her skin,
was an intoxicating concoction that further addled my brain.

All my senses were being completely overwhelmed
by her.

At this point I’d agree to anything she asked of
me. I was slipping helplessly and completely into her control.

My voice fell to a hoarse whisper. “Countess…I’m
begging you…please stop.”

“Ara ara, you really are a little boy.”

“Yes…guilty…as charged.”

“Never been hugged by a girl?”

“No…just my sister…when I was little.”

“I see. You ever kissed a girl?”

My eyes widened and I involuntarily turned
away.

“Ara ara, so you have kissed a girl.”

I breathed out heavily, regaining a fraction of
my composure. “I’m not sure if you can call it a kiss. There was a
lot happening at the time.”

“Would you like to kiss me?”

My voice almost failed me. “Huh? What?”

Wearing her three inch high heels – definitely
non-regulation footwear – she was only a couple of inches shorter
than me. But it was a negligible difference in height, and all I
needed to do was bend my neck down just a little and our lips would
definitely meet.

Her gaze caught mine and I couldn’t tear it
away.

Then she giggled girlishly and stepped back,
releasing me from her embrace.

I felt the last of my strength desert me, and
almost slid to the floor. The shelves at my back kept me upright
but only barely.

“What was the point of that?” I whispered,
unable to hide either my relief and disappointed.

“Payback, for making me compare myself to my
mother and sister. I hate doing that.”

I sighed inwardly. I was right. I had offended
her. “I said I was sorry.”

“Apology accepted.”

“Isn’t that a little late?”

Before she could respond, we heard footsteps
enter the room, and a girl’s voice asked, “Hello, is anyone in
here? The door was open so—oh, Vice-President.”

Simone had stepped out into the aisle between
the shelves.

I chose to edge away from the corner, and hoped
to remain hidden from the newcomer.

“I’m sorry,” Simone said. “I was looking for
something.”

“Oh, is there something I can help you with,
Vice-President?”

“Actually, can you tell me why you’re not in
class?”

“I was sent to pick up these items.”

“Oh, I know where those are, but they’re not in
this storage room. You’ll have to try the storage room on the third
floor.”

“Oh, I see. Thank you. I’ll be off then.”

“Take care. Don’t run in the hallways.”

The sound of the girl’s footsteps faded as she
left the room.

I peeked at Simone. “Countess?”

She stepped out of sight for a short while. When
she reappeared she gave me a mischievous smile and winked. “She
never suspected a thing. Doesn’t that make you feel naughty?”

I pointed vaguely in the direction of her chest.
“Actually, she might have noticed your blouse popped a few
buttons.”

Simone looked down. “Oh, they didn’t pop. I
unbuttoned them when we first came into the room.”

“Huh?” I couldn’t help staring at her in
disbelief.

She giggled again and stepped up to me. “Want to
do them up?”

“Uh, no. I don’t think it would be safe for me
to do so.”

“Caelum…button up my blouse.”

My brain missed a gear. She wasn’t serious was
she? “Countess…?”

She raised her delicate eyebrows at me. “Caelum,
you’ll be very late for class if you don’t.”

Then her eyes widened and she smiled coyly.

With her hands behind her back, she slowly
rocked her hips from side to side. “Ara ara, could it be you want
to play a little more?”

I regarded her for a long moment, wondering if I
should just put my foot down and resist her attempts at
seduction.

Ah, what the Hell. It’s just her blouse,
right?

I inhaled wearily. “Buttons. Just the
buttons….”

Buttoning up her blouse was easier said than
done. My fingers trembled so much it took almost five attempts per
button. Plus, I could tell she was pushing up her chest, making it
impossible to ignore the white, lacy bra she wore under her
uniform. I noticed the light sprinkling of freckles on her
cleavage, like chocolate powder on creamy white skin.

“Caelum? Caelum!”

“What?”

“Buttons.”

“Oh, sorry.”

Damn it, she was smiling mischievously at my
distraction.

I was relieved when I finally dealt with the
last button.

I leaned against a shelf, breathing heavily in
exhaustion.

As such, I was completely unprepared for what
happened next.

She leaned forward and kissed my cheek. Not a
peck, but a real kiss. Her lips felt warm, moist and very soft.

Then she stepped back.

“That’s a good boy. Now let’s get you back to
class.”

I don’t remember the trip to my classroom. I
just remember arriving at the door where I waited for the Countess
to finish speaking to the teacher. Afterwards, I was allowed to
attend the rest of the lecture. I felt the eyes of my classmates
follow me as I walked to my table and seat.

Huh, why are the girls looking at me funny? And
the guys are glaring at me. All I did was arrive late. Why is that
such a problem? Were they enjoying the lecture that much?

I sat down at my smart desk, and instructed it
out of standby mode.

Caprice’s eyes glared at me though her face was
perfectly emotionless.

Then she did a double take, and her emotionless
mask slipped away.

My mind felt so fuzzy I didn’t think much of her
reaction, but then I noticed my classmates were still giving me a
variety of looks.

I accidently met Haruka’s gaze.

She was staring at me in shock, and turned away
in a hurry.

Suddenly a paper napkin was shoved into my
face.

“Here,” Caprice growled. “Use it.”

I took it and asked, “To do what?”

“To wipe the lipstick off your face!”

It was the closest I’d heard her come to a
shout. It didn’t just shock me, but a number of my classmates
too.

Then my brain finally kicked back into gear.
“Lipstick?”

Caprice’s face grew unreadable again, but her
eyes burned angrily. “Wipe it off now.”

I applied the napkin to my cheeks and saw that
it came away stained a lavender color.

I heard our teacher speak from the front of the
classroom. “Mr. Desanto, are you settled in?”

I gave our teacher a polite nod. “Yes sir. Very
sorry sir.”

He cleared his throat loudly, and resumed with
the lecture.

I held back a heavy sigh, and did my best to
follow the lecture material.

Slipping on the visor and headset, I dialed up
the concentration aid to maximum output. In a short while, my mind
settled into ‘learning mode’ and I was able to absorb the material
being taught completely devoid of distracting thoughts.

All hail the wonders of the modern
classroom.

I’d given up long ago wondering if the learning
aids were subjecting us to subliminal brainwashing.

#

(Haruka)

I needed to talk with Caelum, and it had nothing
to do with him joining the class while sporting lipstick on his
cheek.

No, this matter was entirely something else.

It was the rumor I’d heard from Siobhan and
Alistair.

A rumor that the Princess of the Third Year
student body had taken an interest in Caelum.

I couldn’t think of why she would. Caelum was a
Familiar affiliated with the Lanfears. He had nothing to do with
the Raynars.

The problem was I knew very little about the
Princess. What I did know came from rumor and gossip and female
speculation, most of it overheard in the girls’ toilets.

I had the impression that few students at
Galatea knew the Princess very well.

I had the impression much of the student body
wanted to stay well clear of her.

At best she had acquaintances, and the four
girls that followed her around were more like ladies-in-waiting
than friends.

When those four weren’t around, there was one
other girl that shadowed the Princess almost like a bodyguard. I
had seen that girl around, and she was second year high-schooler
but I didn’t know what class she was in.

I knew the Ventiss Family was well placed in the
medical community, owning a number of hospitals and medical centers
within Pharos. But I’d also heard that being part of the Raynar
Pride, the Ventiss were also involved in the security of the
colony.

And like the Lanfears they had Familiars in
their ‘employ’.

Is that why Prissila Ventiss was expressing an
interest in Caelum?

And why the Hell did he have lipstick on his
face?

Wait—wasn’t the Vice-President wearing lavender
lipstick? Could it be hers?

No, it couldn’t be! But what if it was? Did she
kiss him? Why would she kiss him?

Oh no—wasn’t the Vice-President a Raynar as
well?

Ah, I can’t think straight.

I dialed up the concentration setting on my
visor and headset.

Those distracting thoughts were slowly but
surely suppressed into the back of my mind by the lesson
material.

But when each class ended, those worries came
charging right back at me.

I was glad when school for the day came to a
close.

Seated at my smart desk, I peeked over my right
shoulder at Caelum. I saw Caprice rise from her table while Caelum
remained seated.

I had two choices. Speak to him directly, or
pass word along to the only girl in school who wasn’t bothered to
be seen in his company.