1
Sometimes Tsukasa would drive his brother crazy.
Just like in that precise moment.
Even when they were twins they didn’t agree on much of their opinions.
Amane knew that their race was a warrior race. Always looking for planets to destroy or conquer, or maybe even both.
As heir to the crown of Jibaku planet, he knew that this mission was crucial in the way the royalty of his land would receive him once his father left him the throne.
He and Tsukasa were expected to conquer their first planet without any kind of help in less than six months, and to be honest, the planning was a total mess.
Amane was the big brother, the brain, and the leader in most of their conquests. After all, almost all of his plans were always the key for Jibaku to win any war they were in.
While Tsukasa... Well, he was the brave and strong, the one who no one else on his planet ever dared to challenge to duel.
“They’re just humans! They’ll surrender as soon as they see us. Besides, they’re weak, stupid, and probably, most of them don’t even know about our existence. The best way to conquer them is to destroy everything without mercy!” Tsukasa said.
But Amane wasn’t sure about his brother’s statement. There were always risks, and it was better to be cautious.
Almost six hours had passed and neither of them had agreed on any proposed strategy. They were about to fight, the eldest knew it by the way his brother’s claws started growing.
So he preferred to go back to fixing the teleporter his little brother broke when trying to test if their spaceship would be able to dodge J1407b gigantic rings...
Ah~
At least they survived.
Once he was done, he tried it hoping that this time it would finally function, but nothing happened. Confused and irritated, he stepped into the machine and checked what was going on, unluckily he didn’t remember one thing:his tail.
Ever since he was a little lad he had a veryexpressivetail.
Whenever he was happy it wiggled peacefully when sad it’d just hang and stay still and when angry it used to wiggle vividly.
And to his bad luck, that trait hadn’t disappeared.
So it wasn’t a surprise that, once he was inside the teleporter kicking some cables and growling in disapproval, his tail wiggled and ended up pressing the ON button. Because, even when Amane was the smart one, he was also dumb in a way.
Who’d have guessed that the teleporter wasn’t functioning because it was off?
Meanwhile, a certain fat ankled researcher was crying inside the bathroom of the lab she worked in.
After all those years of mental preparation, she finally felt brave enough to confess her feelings for the most handsome scientist she’d ever seen. The lab coat totally suited him and he was so princely... Just Nene’s type!
But unfortunately, he rejected her and even made fun of her.
“Aren’t you a hybrid between daikon and human?” He asked between laughs.
She was going to show him how much of a daikon she’d be!
Correction.
She was going to show him just how much of a mastermind she’d be! She was going to discover something so fabulous and amazing that even he’d have to admit she was a genius and not just a talking daikon!
She closed the faucet after washing her face and started looking for something to dry her skin.
Suddenly a thud and a growl caught her attention.
Strange, since she made sure she was alone so she’d cry to her heart’s content.
A ghost?
An insect?
Maybe a cat?
Or a mouse?
Nope. She was sure none of those would have made such noise.
Slowly and quietly she walked towards the third stall. She was nervous and didn’t know why, but something deep inside of her told her to look closer. And because she is Nene Yashiro and not any other type of woman, she opened the door.
To say she screamed to the top of her lungs was to demerit the effort of her organs. Certainly, the creature in front of her also screamed but it was impossible it’d have screamed louder than her, or at least that’s what she thought when she saw it covering its... ears?
Nene was used to unknown species since she was a researcher who specialized in aliens and any kind of new creatures, so it was safe to say that she wasn’t afraid of the strange. But, when it came to someone just as... that thing inside the stall, it was a different story.
He looked almost human! If it wasn’t for his fangs, tail, and claws, he’d have been just a pervert spying on the women’s bathroom!
On the other hand, Amane was not only confused by the sudden teleportation but also because of the screaming being in front of him. But, contrary to Nene, once he observed her in detail he was sure that not only he was on the Earth but also he was facing the cutest human he had ever seen.
It wasn’t only the fact that she was alive, contrary to all those cold bodies he used to study in his free time.
Her crimson eyes reminded him of Betelgeuse, her screaming was louder than any war cry he’d have ever heard, and her silver and teal hair was even brighter than Orion Nebula. It was as if the whole cosmos was just at an arm’s length.
And how he’d like to own it.
He stretched his arm to grab her wrist, but to his surprise she headbutted him and it was painful. How would a human own such a strength? It was a mystery that he’d discover once he figured out how to return to his spaceship.
But first, he needed to catch her before she would escape from that place.
It was only then that he saw her legs.
She...
She had...
Really fat ankles.
It was the very first time he saw someone like her.
“An endangered specimen,” he thought.
It was his duty as the future ruler of Jibaku to preserve such an amazing human before trying to conquer her world!
She wasn’t only cute, but by the force, she had used to hit him and the shape of her ankles he’d tell that maybe it was a good idea to try breeding with her.
It was for the sake of his race!
Not because maybe, just maybe, she was her type.
...
Ok, it was because he felt what his mother always told him about love.
“It feels like someone is about to cut your neck but you don’t really mind because you’re too busy staring at them.”
He thought that her words were exaggerated, so he used to leave whenever she started talking about love, marriage, or even kids. After all, he was ok with an arranged marriage. But now, he was more than thankful that Jibaku was open to mixing species as long as they were proven to be worthy.
And that female was worthy.
He looked at her one more time and approached her, trying to look less menacing.She was on the floor, crying, shivering, and frightened. By the nonsense, she was babbling he’d say she was japanese. Thank the cosmos that he just learned japanese a week ago.
Also, maybe it was a good idea to hide his fangs and claws.
He sat on the floor facing her. “Are you ok?,” he asked her.
“Y-you can speak!?” Nene was surprised to hear his voice, it was almost... human.
“Yes, and I can understand you too. Are you scared? Sorry.”
Nene wiped her tears.
“W-Who are you? What a-are you doing here?”
It wasn’t a good idea to reveal his real identity or at least that’s what his father always told him. So, as much as he wanted to impress the female, he was cautious, and fortunately for him, he remembered a legend about a ghost in the toilets while learning her language.
“My name is Hanako, and I got teleported here by accident.” Accident? who’d believe something like that!? “I think I’ll need some help to return to my spaceship though.”
Suddenly, a thought crossed Nene’s mind.
“I’ll help you!” She grabbed his hand and started walking towards the exit. “By the way, my name is Yashiro Nene, nice to meet you, Hanako-san!”
As both of them crossed numerous doors and hallways that went straight into a series of cages and bacta tanks that had inside alien species, Hanako acknowledged that the place he was in was nothing else but a laboratory. Much more primitive than his own but still, the fact that humans were aware of aliens and even had a special place to investigate them, only gave him more reasons to disagree with his brother.
Humans weren’t as dumb as Tsukasa thought and it’d be better if he escaped and started planning again. Obviously, he’d bring Yashiro with him for research reasons.
Not because he liked the softness and shape of her hands or the sweet smell of her hair.
They finally arrived at Nene’s private laboratory.
It was full of plants, some of them were known by the creature holding her hand while others were totally new at sight. Also, he couldn’t help but notice a cage within which were a bunch of what seemed to be mokke. You know, those annoying space bandits...
Most of the time they were harmless but when they felt threatened... Well, it was a long story that he didn’t like to remember.
But these mokke were totally different from the little green creatures he remembered them to be.
“Are those mokke?”
“Huh?,” she looked into the massive cage on her right side “Yeah, they are. Do you know them?”
“Yes, they’re pretty annoying. May I ask, why are they pink?”
“I discovered that they consume high doses of glucose. So I started feeding them candies instead of the sugar that they usually find on comets or meteoroids. After that, they started changing color.”
He kept silent. She wasn’t only cute and strong, she was also intelligent! And that only made her even more precious.
“Stay here, I’ll call some other investigators so we can help you.” She said while going into another door.
He started walking around while waiting for Nene, taking a good look at the plants and the mokke, everything seemed to be perfect, just like her.
Her desk was clean and well organized, and her notebooks were full of notes and cute little drawings that decorated each page. On some of her bookshelves, he saw some interesting titles: Twilight, New Moon, Eclipse, Breaking Dawn, and 50 shades of Grey.
Who’d have guessed that the young researcher was in fact a fan of astronomy as well as the reflection and refraction of the light phenomena? She was without a doubt a genius. No wonder why she was a female of science.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps, so he did what any other Jibaku citizen would have done.
“Hanako-san!” Nene called him when she returned.
“I’m here~,” he whispered to her ear.
She screamed, frightened by the sudden voice, and turned to face him. It was a surprise when she noticed him hanging from the ceiling. His claws were the only thing keeping him from falling.
“Don’t scare me like that!” She scolded him.
“Sorry! I’m too cautious, you know? I heard footsteps.”
“You have an amazing sense of hearing. These walls are almost 30cm thick.”
“It’s all thanks to good genetics! My race is good in a lot of stuff, don’t you think?”
Nene looked at him, not knowing what he meant by those lines. “Sure...”
Hanako smiled, proud of proving that he was better than the average human in at least one thing. He was more than impatient to show her more things that he’d do much better than any other earthly being.
“So... Where’s the help?”
“Oh, yeah! They’re coming in a few minutes. Do you mind if I take some samples from you first?”
“Are you that interested in me?~”
“Don’t make it sound like that. It’s for research only!”
He laughed and agreed.
“Would you open your mouth? I’ll need some saliva.”
“Saliva? Sure.”
Hanako opened his mouth and showed his teeth. Nene watched, amazed by the size and sharpness, she wasn’t able to imagine how he managed to hide them.
“You know, my teeth aren’t the only thing that is overwhelming...”
“Don’t say things like that!” She yelled at him, blushing hard.
“Wanna see?” Nene said nothing, her mind was blank but in some way she was curious, so she let him show her whatever he was going to show.
He stuck out his tongue at her slowly. It was certainly long and it was getting close to her, she could feel his heat against her cheeks, he was about to lick her when the door was opened. In less than a few seconds, he was surrounded by them. They were looking at him, making questions, and many other things that he wasn’t paying attention to.
He was busy looking at the blushing researcher.
Maybe when the questions and exams finished he’d have another chance to show her more about him.
Tsukasa was never the one to apologize first.
Not when he ate Amane’s first pet when they were five.
Not when he destroyed his laboratory when they argued about who was the dumbest of them when they were seventeen.
Absolutely not when he went straight to J1407b gigantic rings now that they were almost twenty-five.
So it was only predictable that he wasn’t going to apologize this time.
But really, his brother was sooooo dramatic. He hadn’t left his bedroom in at least two weeks since thatlittleargument!
“Amane! Amane! Amane!” He was knocking on his door. “I know you’re still upset because of my plan but I insist, humans are dumb. It’s said that they still walk on their fours! We don’t have to worry much about them!”
He knew his brother was always the one to give orders and he was more than perfect with being the one fulfilling his will. But this time it was different, they had to work as a team so it was obvious that he wanted to be involved in strategic planning.
However, since his big brother managed to analyze some human corps he was less and less convinced about this theory about humans being even dumber than himself.
Tsukasa was getting angry and the more time passed the worse. Amane knew it, so it was much more upsetting.
He kicked the door and by the time he shouted“Amane”for the seventh time he was inside the room. But no one else was there.
He started looking for clues about the whereabouts of his brother. Nothing under his bed, nothing inside the bathroom, nothing inside his lab.
Suddenly, he detected the typical smell of his big brother a few meters from the teleporter. It was fading but it was stronger than in any other place inside that room.
From what he’d remember Amane mentioned something about the teleporter being broken and that he was going to fix it the last time they talked.
He looked inside the device. Everything seemed to be fine, the controls were good, and the funny lights that his brother always told him to check were flickering so it was obvious that the machine was on. He got out to check the location record of the teleporter.
His jaw almost hit the floor when he read the name of the last location someone went to.
The Earth.
Was it that his brother went to the Earth to try to conquer it by himself?
No, that wouldn’t be possible. It was true that they had an argument but they never kept secrets between them.
Or maybe...
What if Amane was trying to impress the other Jibaku citizens so he’d keep all the power for himself?
No, it wouldn’t be. It was Amane who he was thinking about! They were twins...
He went straight to the teleporter and pushed the button that would certainly take him to the same destination as his brother.
Sakura was one of a kind. Contrary to other women her age, she wasn’t seeking any kind of relationship aside from her work.
She was passionate about the mysterious radio signals the lab would tune in when launching new satellites in search of any kind of alien communication, and she was always up to spending all her time trying to decipher them.
Or at least that was how her life was until some of the mysterious signals were deciphered by the unknown creature that researcher Yashiro had captured.
Who’d have guessed that some of them were actually a prank of his little brother, Tsukasa?
So she thanked him when he offered his help to decode some of them, leaving the most mysterious for her own entertainment.
She washed her hands while wondering which flavor of tea would be better to accompany the chocolate biscuits she baked last night.
Suddenly, she heard a thud and a growl inside the last stall of the bathroom. She was about to approach it when the door broke and a creature, much similar to Hanako, appeared.
The human-like being started walking towards her. A grin that made him show his fangs was decorating his face. He was absolutely terrifying, or at least that’s what Tsukasa thought he’d look like, so it was a surprise that once they were a few centimeters from each other, Sakura bumped his head.
“Do you realize what you’ve done!? If someone enters the bathroom right now I’ll be the one paying the door! Apologize!”
Tsukasa was confused, he was supposed to be frightening. The human in front of him should be horrified by his appearance and should also be begging for her life.
“I know you understand me, your brother is able to communicate with us.”
So they knew Amane...
“My name is Tsukasa, and I’m looking for my brother.”
“I know. He said that maybe his little brother would worry and start looking for him.”
Well, it wasn’t the kind of interaction he was expecting but at least he knew that Amane was nearby.
In his mind, Tsukasa was supposed to arrive at a desolate location, not a bathroom, let alone a toilet stall, and to encounter talking apes who’d barely walk on their fours. Not some kind of female walking on heels.
“Ok, then I’ll be on my way.” He said before walking towards the only door in that room.
“Where do you think you’re going?” Sakura grabbed him by the tail. “You need to pay for the stall door.”
“Pay?”
“Yes. Pay. I’m not going to pay for the mess you’ve caused.”
Seriously, this female was starting to drive Tsukasa mad. He growled and made his claws grow bigger, but Sakura didn’t react.
“Let’s make a deal.” She proposed.
“Deal?”
“Yes, you can borrow my appearance so you can look for your brother without raising any suspicions but in exchange, you must complete my schedule for the next two weeks. Deal?”
Tsukasa thought about it. Just how much about them had Amane told the talking apes?
“Why do you think I should accept it? I can just look for my brother and then bring him back with me while killing all of you, talking apes.”
“Maybe you’d discover something interesting and new about your brother if you choose to accept.”
Tsukasa was well known in Jibaku for his love for his brother. He loved and admired him. Ever since they were little, Tsukasa always considered his brother the best brother in the universe.
Was it worthy to make a deal with the green-haired female? Maybe not, but he couldn’t help being a curious brocon.
“Hope I really find something interesting and worthy for making such a deal.”
“I assure you, you won’t be disappointed.”
“M’lady~,” greeted the brown-haired researcher.
The green-eyed woman looked at him, Sakura knew who he was.
Hyuuga Natsuhiko, a co-worker who often tried to flirt with her and also used to follow her to any place she’d go.
The green-hairedstarted walking towards researcher Yashiro’s lab, the place where she would surely find Hanako.
“My lady, I thought we were going to have lunch.”Sakura didn’t answer and continued walking.
“You know, today seems to be a lovely day. Why don’t we go outside and have a picnic?” He continued while walking beside her.
Sakura ignored him once again.
“Maybe you’d like me to brew some blueberry flavored tea just for you.”
Sakura stopped and looked at the flirty man.
“You know m’lady, ever since I saw you for the first time I thought that you were just as beautiful and mysterious as the universe itself.” He said while winking at her.
Sakura grabbed him by the collar of his shirt and sent him flying to the end of the corridor. She didn’t have time for that kind of nonsense.
If someone had told Amane two weeks ago that he was going to be taught manners and human history from a human themself he surely would have laughed.
But now, there he was.
Sitting as straight as he could sit and trying to look as cool as ever. He already memorized all the history books that Nene brought him and even started learning three new languages. french was his main target since his beloved researcher once mentioned how romantic it sounded.
It was a pity that his vocal cords weren’t that good at pronouncing the “r” or making the nasal sounds.
But aside from that, the days with the fat-ankled researcher were pretty interesting and worth remembering.
He learned a lot about humans, their culture, their history, their morals, and also about their religious beliefs.
But when it came to Nene... Well, he’d say that it’d be easier to conquer the whole Milky Way with one arm and no legs than to make her look at him the same way as the funny old men who constantly praised him.
It was till now that he regretted not having at least one ex. He never tried to court anyone, so he was a total dumb in the field of love.
He’d still remember the first time he tried to start courting her by starting with a few questions to get to know her.
“What type of blood are you?”
“Do you prefer to stab or to shoot someone?”
“Are you mature enough to procreate?”
“Are your ankles just swollen or are they a family trait?”
This last question was responsible for him sleeping on the floor that night.
So instead, he tried demonstrating how much he was suitable as a sexual partner. During the physical exams, he never failed to amaze the researchers. He was stronger, smarter, and without a doubt much more interesting than any of those old men in lab coats.
Every time he received a compliment he looked at Nene, expecting to finally have her attention on him, but instead, he was met with the sight of her looking at one of the youngest scientists there.
What was his name again? Daichi? Daisy? Dai... Dai... Daisomething.
Somehow, even when he had already memorized the name of everybody inside the lab, he never really cared about his name or what his face looked like.
“You know, I’m much more interesting than the average human. And I’d be honored to show you much more about me.” He told her once, but Nene didn’t answer. She just blushed and started walking away from him.
So he tried some other tactics that he learned while watching over the animals that the lab used as experimental subjects.
He acknowledged that some mammal species got to know others by sniffing their butts.
Unfortunately for him, when he tried sniffing the fat ankled researcher’s butt, he was met with a kick, and a slap, as well as a ridiculous amount of words that he wasn’t even sure were japanese.
Later, while watching over the animals once again, he saw a cat giving another one a dead mouse. A few minutes after that, both cats were copulating.
So there he was, killing a guinea pig and offering her the dead animal.
The result?
A screaming researcher.
And now, he was about to finish reading the last book Nene lent him for research. He learned a lot about the Showa Era. Some of his favorite points were the Godzilla films and the design of the schoolboy’s uniform. He wondered how he would look in a gakuran.
Time passed and as the minutes became hours he grew bored. So instead of counting dust particles, he ended up going to the bookshelves of her lovely researcher.
He felt proud every time someone referred to him as “Researcher Yashiro’s Unknown Creature” because he felt as if he was hers. But he’d like it more if he’d say that Nene Yashiro was his.
He looked once again at those books that he’d seen the researcher read every night. Which one would be more interesting? He had no idea, but since he was already bored he chose the first one he saw and started reading.
After some pages and not finding an ounce of mathematics, science, physics, or anything he’d think that book would teach him, he stopped. Just what was he reading?
it was a novel, he got it. But, why did it have to be about a human and a vampire? What kind of appeal did those blood-sucking creatures possessed to make his researcher sigh with each line?
He sat on the floor and spent the next few hours trying to find the charm within the paragraphs. Looking, reading, and analyzing each sentence, devouring book after book.
Suddenly, he heard footsteps. Somehow the rhythm and the force of each step were familiar yet unknown by the clacking of the heels.
The door opened and he saw Sakura enter.
“Need something, Nanamine-san?” He asked.
The green-eyed girl looked at him and for a moment he’d have sworn that her pupils look almost like his brothers.
“Hanako-kun!” Nene just arrived “Oh, Sakura-senpai! I didn’t know you were here. Do you need Hanako-kun to help you again?”
Sakura didn’t answer and just stared at them, making Nene uncomfortable while Hanako stayed by her side, looking directly at the green-haired, the novel still in his hand.
“I came here because I need... that.” She said and took the book from Hanako’s hands, then, she left.
“How weird, usually Sakura-senpai only comes to ask for your help or to invite me to have lunch with her. What book did she take?” Nene asked Hanako.
“Eclipse.”
“E-E-Eclipse!? I didn’t know she was a fan of the saga... However! Why were you reading it!?”
“I was bored and you took soooooo long. I thought you abandoned me.”
“Did you... read it?”
“Just a few pages, to be honest, it wasn’t that much of my interest.”
“What did you read?”
“Some stuff, I don’t really get why you look so focused whenever you read it.”
“Because it’s romantic!”
“Romantic?” Even when he knew the meaning of the word, he never really thought about its meaning and all the implications behind it.
“Yeah, I know you may not be familiar with the term, but romance is when someone or something makes your heart flutter.”
“A fluttering heart? That sounds more like a heart disease.”
“Have you ever been in love, Hanako-kun?”
“No. As I told you once, my people don’t really care about feelings, we just focus on reproduction and that’s it.”
“What about your parents? Don’t they love each other?”
Hanako remembered all the times his father and mother smiled at each other, how they looked into their eyes, the hugs, the gifts, the sweet words, the way they danced together, and even the few times he saw them kissing. He thought it was disgusting and had no sense, but now...
“I think they do.”
“Well, that book and the others from the shelves above my desk are romance books. All of them are about romantic stuff.”
“Really?”
“Yeah, romance is something that humans long for, but not many achieve to find or win. So most of us try to fill that hole with romantic stories.”
“And what about the part where the vampire and the girl had intercourse?”
“You were reading Eclipse! How do you know what happens on Breaking Dawn!?”
“I took a sneak little peek at the other books~ And I found some other interesting things.” He approached her, a roguish smile on his face. “Still, I want to ask. Why do they have titles like Eclipse, Breaking Dawn, 50 shades of Grey, and such? How inconsiderate to not think about the ones who are new in this world! All this time I thought they were astronomy and physical optic books and then... Well, just imagine the look on my face when I discovered that Mr. Grey wasn’t a scientist but a millionaire playboy!”
Sakura arrived at her lab and found herself sitting on a chair and drinking a cup of tea.
“Was it worthy?” The human asked.
“All I wanna know is why? Why is Amane so calm? By this time, he would have destroyed everything and killed everybody here. But instead, he seems to be that researcher’s pet.”
“Maybe you should continue watching over him.”
Tsukasa changed into his usual form. “I guess so. But we have a mission to accomplish!”
“A mission?” The green-eyed woman asked.
“Nothing a talking ape would understand though.” Sakura rolled her eyes.
“By the way, what did you bring?”
“Oh, I took this from Amane’s claws. Do you know what it is?” The green haired checked the cover.
“Eclipse? Why is your brother reading teen romance novels?”
As the days passed Hanako started courting Nene in ways that he wouldn’t have guessed before; even when he had watched his parents and friends at Jibaku doing it, he somehow thought that maybe with humans it was a different story.
But now that he was much more aware of the ways that love worked in the human race it was easier to make his beloved researcher blush.
A flower on her desk.
Take her breakfast to bed.
Surprise hugs.
Showering her with compliments.
And sometimes when he felt brave enough, he kissed her cheek. “For good luck,” he said, and obviously the young researcher would believe it. Who was she to distrust him?
After all, she didn’t need to know that it actually meant that she was his. Only other Jibaku citizens would notice the mark left by his lips.
But even when he tried, she still looked at that “princely” scientist.
So, he started following him, disguised as Nene while she was taking a nap. “It’s for research purposes, not because I’m jealous or something.” He told himself as he looked at the young man from afar.
He talked, flirted, laughed, and even make out with some other females when thinking no one else was watching.
What was so good about him?
If Nene wanted he’d do the same as him. But, just with her. He didn’t find any other female worth his attention in that lab after all.
A couple of hours later, the man stopped right in his tracks and started walking towardher.
“Hey, don’t you think it’s enough!? Are you still upset because I turned you down!?”
“Excu...?” The man in the lab coat interruptedher.
“You don’t have to pretend. I know you’ve been following me for the last few hours, you creep... What part of ‘I don’t like you, you’re disgusting’ you didn’t get? Should I repeat it? Well, here you go: I don’t like you at all! Why don’t you try seducing that horrendous monster of yours? Only an alien as pathetic as him would be interested in you and your hideous radish leg...!”
The last thing the human saw was one of his arms being chopped by the claws of the creature in front of him.
When Hanako opened his eyes the first thing he saw was Nene’s face. She looked worried and also scared, just as the first time they met.
“Hanako-kun,” she called him. “Can you hear me?”
He was about to answer when he realized that even if he tried she wouldn’t be able to hear him.
He was inside a bacta tank. And by the last memories he had, it was logical to guess how he ended up there. Not everybody survives as many shots as he did.
He nodded and she smiled.
“How are you feeling? Does it still hurt?
Pain? He was uncomfortable, yes, but he wasn’t in pain.
He shook his head.
“Good. Hanako-kun, do you know why you are here?”
A nod.
“What you did was something that attracted the attention of some people. People who aren’t that convinced about aliens being good.”
It was until then that he realized the big mistake he committed. His eyes grew wide and before he would have tried to say something, she started crying.
“Those people want to kill you! You are now a danger to their eyes! You pretended to be me, followed a researcher and then you almost killed him! Why...? Why would you do something like that!? You big dummy!”
It was true, he did so. And honestly, if he could he would do it again. At least that scumbag had what he deserved for insulting someone as kind as Nene.
He placed a hand in front of him, touching the crystal, the researcher followed and both of them stared at each other’s eyes. He wanted to console her, to tell her a lot of things and confess just how much he cared for her. He was desperate.
“Researcher Yashiro.” A voice called.
“Ah, Nanamine-senpai!”
“Misaki-san managed to organize a trial for your creature instead of letting the special forces take him away. The only condition is that he needs to be totally honest if he wants to continue living here.”
The ruby eyes shined with hope. “Thank you for letting us know, Nanamine-senpai!”
“No problem. The interrogation will take place at the main hall in 30 minutes.”
Once the door was closed, Nene looked at her creature.
“Did you hear that? There’s a little hope for you, Hanako-kun! Please, when they ask you something, answer truthfully. We don’t know if they’ll be able to know if you’re lying so please, just answer the whole truth. I don’t want you to die. I like you a lot Hanako-kun.”
That last sentence made Hanako change his own plans.
Instead of escaping with Nene, he chose to follow what his beloved told him to do. Who’d have resisted such a face? Obviously, he would never deny her a single thing in the whole cosmos.
The hall was full of whispers. Timid and horrified looks decorated each and every face within those walls. No one dared to make eye contact with the unknown creature that was in front of them. After all, they were well aware that ‘Hanako’ would free himself from the cuffs that held his claws together.
Then, the voice of one of the men that watched him as he walked into the room interrupted the murmurs.
“After discussing it, we, the security committee, decided that before making any decision we should first listen to this so-called ‘Hanako.’ After all, he speaks, thinks, and is as intelligent as any of us. So, please Hanako-san, start explaining your actions. Why were you disguised as researcher Nene Yashiro and were following Fuji-san?”
“I wanted to know why she loved him.” He answered. No doubt in his tone.
“So you disguised as her and started following him because you wanted to know more about researcher Yashiro’s love life, is that correct?”
“Yes.”
“What happened between you and him before you chopped his arm?”
“He thought I was Yashiro and started saying mean stuff about her. To be honest, I couldn’t help it.”
“Why couldn’t you? Why did you snap?”
Hanako kept silent.
“Hanako-san, we need you to answer. Remember that this trial will decide your fate.”
“I... I did it because Yashiro doesn’t deserve such words. She’s cute, nice to all people, even to me, she cares a lot about others, she’s intelligent, a little clumsy, a hopeless romantic, and also... She’s the most precious being I’ve ever seen in the whole galaxy.”
People started talking and whispering once again. The commotion was obvious, but Hanako didn’t mind at all. He was busy trying to hide the blush on his face. He wasn’t brave enough to look for the fat ankled researcher’s face, he expected her to be terrified.
He was a monster after all.
“Order please!” Mr. Misaki exclaimed. “Can we please continue with the interrogation?”
Once everybody kept quiet, the representative of the security committee started walking toward the alien.
It was the first time Hanako saw him, but somehow his eyes reminded him of his brother’s... Where was Tsukasa at that moment?, he wondered.
“Are you in love with that human female?” He asked him with a stern voice.
Hanako thought about the books he kept reading when Nene didn’t watch him, about how she described to him the feeling of being in love and all the romantic demonstrations he witnessed throughout his life. Then he smiled and looked the representative in the eye.
“Yes, I love her.”
The representative flinched, just a little, imperceptible to the human eye, but not for Hanako.
“Is your name Hanako!?” Someone shouted from the public.
“No.” He answered, feeling finally free to be honest in all ways.
“Who are you then? Why weren’t you honest?” They continued.
“I couldn’t reveal my identity because once you knew it, you’d be as terrified as you’re now.”
“Who are you then!? Answer!” They demanded.
Hanako cynically smiled. The excitement to feel discovered and vulnerable at the same time made his two hearts beat faster. Then, he chuckled and answered.
“My name is Amane Zugi. I am the crown prince of Jibaku. A planet that is nearly 20,000 million kilometers from the Earth, but I think you already know that. As you may also know that my people aren’t the kindest of them all.”
Everybody there knew about Jibaku and their bloodthirsty fame. The hall was once again silent. No one dared to whisper or even think about Amane’s words.
“What do you plan to do with this female?” The representative asked.
“I want her to be by my side. To love me the same way as I love her. To make her my queen. To start a family with her. To give her everything she wants. I need her to be mine.” The man in front of him paled and started walking to his own place.
“Is it true you came by accident?” Someone asked, terrified but still braver than any other human within those four walls.
“Yes. I got teleported on accident while I was trying to fix the teleporter in my spaceship.”
“How can we be sure that you really are who you say you are? There are lots of registers that describe different creatures as Jibaku’s!”
“It’s thanks to our policy of mixing species that we don’t share most of our physical features. So it would be almost impossible to know who is a Jibaku citizen and who isn’t if it wasn’t for a birthmark that we can hide and show at will.”
“Enough! The security committee will now start to discuss what we are going to do with him!” Exclaimed the representative before leading the way for the other members.
Amane was once again dragged to the room where he was previously, following him was Nene. He knew it, he would smell her perfume and hear her heartbeat.
“Sakura!” Ordered the representative.
“Yes?”
“This is tougher than I thought! I’d have bet he was going to escape and kill everybody here! But he even dared to expose information as crucial as the one about the birthmarks! He’s insane!”
“So... It’s true.”
“First things first. Where’s the other talking ape?”Heasked.
“Did you call?” Natsuhiko answered. He was lucky that the hypnosis worked on him better than expected.
“I need you to give all the researchers the candies I gave you. That will erase their memory from the latest events.”
“Ok, I’ll be going then.” The young man said as he started walking towards the exit.
“Sakura, you’ll be in charge to watch over my stupid brother and that female.”
Without an answer, she went to start with her duty.
To say that Tsukasa was confused and angry was an understatement. But, what else would he do? Abandon his brother? Kill him?
No, he wouldn’t.
So there was no other way than to make his brother comprehend the differences between humans and aliens. Little did matter if it was the easy or the hard way.
Even when Tsukasa didn’t like to be disguised as that man, he had to do it for his brother’s sake. Or so he thought while walking towards the room where he was expected to be at that moment.
“Ishikawa-san! Where were you? We need to discuss what will happen with that alien.” Said one of those annoying beings once he stepped into those four walls.
“Well, he was clear. He wants researcher Yashiro. I think we should give her to him.” Propose another one.
“Are you planning on sacrificing a human’s life for the pleasure of an alien?” They started arguing.
“Of course I am! As long as those blood-thirsty monsters don’t come any closer I’ll gladly sacrifice as many lives as needed!”
“You’re insane! Ishikawa-san, we need you to make a choice!” Demanded another one.
He walked towards the center of the room, a point where everybody’s eyes were on him.
“I totally agree with the idea of giving researcher Yashiro to Zugi-san. As long as he is happy he won’t be doing anything stupid, I hope.”
“Hasn’t anyone considered what will happen with Yashiro-san!?”
“I think that you’re not considering what will happen tousif we don’t give her to Zugi-san.”
Mister Ishikawa looked at them. Everybody was terrified by the sole thought of a human and an alien. But he? He started being curious.
Thanks to all the observation she made during that time, hewas able to tell that said female wouldn’t care less about the race, color, or origin of her lover.
So maybe, it was time for her to be horrified by the things someone like Amane would make her pass through once copulation started. In that way she would certainly reject the alien and just like that, and, his brother would surely go back to him and their plan.
But first, he needed them to finish their absurd discussion about morals and what was better for the human race.
“Humans! You all are going to let that female have any kind of interaction with Zugi-san. No one will interfere, and, if she asks why, you’ll tell her that it is for research purposes.” He ordered, a deep voice made everybody in that room fall under a hypnotizing effect.
“Yes, Ishikawa-san."
He smiled, this was going to be certainly entertaining to watch.
The silence within those walls was suffocating both of them. The young researcher was still trying to digest everything that the creature beside her had told everybody in the hall.
Sure it was romantic in a way and sure she already started feeling things for the unknown creature... But still! They were from different species! And even worse, Hanako-kun, no, Amane-kun, had lied to everybody!
Little mattered to her that his planet was famous for its countless atrocities.
To be honest, now she understood why the mokke had preferred to stay inside their cage ever since Amane stepped inside her lab/room.
She sighed, thinking about other possibilities.
What if he only wanted her to breed and there was no love after all? To think about it made her feel sad.
Well, maybe that was her destiny after all. To be used as an alien incubator, without ever feeling love or tenderness.
“Hey.” The alien called her.
She looked at him. Was he blushing? No, it’d surely be the effect of the light inside the room.
“I want you to know that everything I said back there was true and that you don’t have to return my feelings. I know that I’m not by any chance your type, I’m not even human, haha...” He laughed sadly. “However, if I even get to escape this one I’ll ask for a change, so you won’t have to deal with me anymore.”
Nene was about to answer him when suddenly they were called again to the main hall.
The committee had already made a decision.
None of them expected to be thrown into Yashiro’s lab and locked up. The final verdict was weird in more than one way.
“Researcher Yashiro must end the investigations about this creature on her own. Also, to avoid other incidents, both of them will be locked up together and any kind of human interaction is forbidden. She’ll send a daily report with her findings.”
Or something like that was what Ishikawa-san had sentenced them to.
In a way it was great. Amane didn’t have to leave nor die, but at the same time, he felt pity for her lovely researcher.
He wasn’t even given the opportunity to tell them about his decision to change researchers.
And now, there they were.
Nene was still knocking on the door, trying to appeal the conviction. But obviously, there was no answer to her begging.
He couldn’t bear to watch her cry because of him.
He got it.
He was scary.
He was hideous.
He was a dangerous alien who recently chopped a man’s arm.
He was the monster who just a few minutes before had confessed his feelings for her; and now, she was enclosed with him for who knows how long.
He tried on his own to free them, but as soon as his claws touched the walls both of them got electrocuted. Obviously, the researcher was the most affected.
He hurried to her, his eyes searching for any other kind of wound aside from the little burn on her hand. She seemed to be intact. He sighed, relieved.
“I’ll find a way to free you.” He murmured, feeling worse every second.
Maybe being honest wasn’t the best.
If this was the price to pay for his honesty, he preferred being killed by some strangers other than to watch Nene get hurt.
He carried her and tucked her into bed after removing her shoes, then he got the first aid kit.
He wasn’t that skilled with bandages and stuff, but he got some little experience while watching her every time he got injured. Even if it was as small as a scratch she always showed pure concern.
“What if it gets infected!? We don’t have any kind of alien medicine! Hanako-kun you dummy!”
He laughed at the memory while securing the bandage.
“Thank you.” She said, looking at her hand.
“You’re welcome. Maybe you should rest, I’ll go to my usual spot, so don’t worry.” He assured her, walking towards his sleeping spot.
“Hana- Amane-kun! Wait!” She called out for him.
“Huh?”
“Sorry, for being too dramatic...”
“Don’t worry, it’s the usual thing people and other beings do when they know about my true identity. After all, I’m a monster who can kill you whenever I want to.”
“I’ve known that since the first time we met. Even if I didn’t know about your true identity. But, I also know that you can’t kill me, because you don’t want to...” She blushed a little, caressing the bandage. “What I’m trying to say is that... As long as we’re in this situation maybe we should follow the orders that the committee gave us. I don’t think that escaping is an option, if we do that, they’ll try to capture you, and I don’t want you to be hurt again.”
Amane walked towards her, was he hallucinating? He needed her to say it again.
“So, please Amane-kun, stop trying to escape.” She said, almost in a begging tone. How could he deny her something?
“Ok, I won’t escape.”
“Promise?” She showed him her pinky.
“Promise.” He answered, completing the pinky promise.
“Good. Now I think we should go to sleep.”
“Yeah, it’s been a long day. Good night Yashiro. I’ll go to my spot now.” He said, walking towards his designed spot.
“Wait Amane-kun!”
He looked at her.
“My bed is big enough for both of us, can you please sleep with me? I don’t think I’ll be able to sleep on my own.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yeah, please. Stay with me, just for tonight. But, if you don’t want to, I won’t oblige you...”
He laughed, this female never failed to surprise him.
“Ok Yashiro, I’ll sleep with you.”
She nodded and went to her little dresser, looking for her pajamas while Amane waited for her in bed.
He was nervous, whenever it was about her, he was always insecure.
What happened to his past self? The one with the cold-blooded eyes and a stone instead of two hearts... Well, that version of him was certainly dying out of cringe just by looking at this Amane. Blushing and shivering just at the mere thought of sharing a bed with the fat ankled female.
Once Nene went back to bed she found Amane asleep, he was a heavy sleeper for a fact so it wasn’t that much of a problem to tuck beside him and close her eyes.
The closeness between them was comforting and, in no time, she was hugging him, just as if he was the most comfortable pillow. Unfortunately for Amane, that night he wasn’t going to sleep at all, not when the pressure of her chest against his back and the gentle friction of her legs tangling with his was the only thing he could think about.
