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[[this should be interesting cause I'm upset and kinda pissy]]

Malik narrowed his eyes at her as she lectured him. He let her talk for a while, letting her bare her fangs for a bit. Before she went on to her example he snared, "Obviously you can't follow a simple wish from someone else. The need for you to have a reason is beyond annoying. Shouldn't the legit reason be obvious or must I spell it out to you? Privacy."

He listened to her stupid example- sure, it brought up good points, but he knew he was right no matter what. She was trying to turn the situation around- making it seem like she had a right to know everything about him. Malik was simple, he did what he wanted when he wanted. All his life he had to do things other people told him to do. Now that he was a young adult he sure as hell was not going to continue that tradition. "Alright then. I'll answer you if you tell me why you want to go into my room so badly. You wouldn't have your tits in a twist over this if you weren't even considering going in there. You must want to. Why?"

"Do you think I like being told what to do?" he said slamming his mug down a little in frustration. ******** girl..... she was striking his last nerve. "If I wanted to be lectured I would have just stayed home with my family," he said with a hiss. He finished his tea and turned around, putting the empty mug in the sink, "I don't have to be jerked around for something I desire. I didn't push you and lecture you when you didn't want to talk anymore about your shower problems."

Malik also heard the noise, it made the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. He looked around, no longer feeling safe. Malik ignored Lerena as he still felt on edge. Like someone was watching them. He then heard a different voice speak. He instantly grabbed a knife from the knife block swung around and looked for the source of the voice. He was fast, because he didn't want to be surprised. He didn't see anything, but he heard voices. He watched the pen move from the table and hit Lerena. "What the ******** is this???" he said paranoid of what he couldn't see. "Am I hallucinating?" he said feeling deja vu. This sense of someone looming over you, the voices, the fear. His eyes were dark and angered, angered because he was confused.

It couldn't be his mind playing tricks on him, Lerena also heard it because she was talking back to her. Malik didn't say anything for a while and kept the blade near him. When he realized that would do nothing for him, he turned around cautiously and put it away. He stayed where he was- trying to focus, trying to see what Lerena saw. They discussed a lot, seemed the spirit was an ancestor. He listened, taking down mental notes. Especially the part about the Dean. Interesting. He'd have to meet the Dean. "Do women nag this much even after they have died?" he said darkly. This ghost just went on and on. He didn't bother to talk to it, he'd rather it go away as well.

When she went on about normal people Malik simply said, "If you are trying to build trust in normal people and you are using me as an example, you will fail. I will tell you that I am far from normal. And you should not trust me- or other people at that. It's healthy, it'll keep you alive." Malik was not an optimist in the least bit. Well, he used to be, he used to dream. But now he was down to earth and if he wanted something he knew how to get it- no need to dream.

Finally Malik felt the dark air from the room lift. "Thank god it's gone," he said cracking his neck. He glared back at Lerena. "Really now? Well you better learn this and fast- the way things go is what I say. I stopped playing by other people's rules a long time ago. Get used to disappointment, because I am sure that I get things my way. You will simply have to learn. Don't worry, chances are I will leave you alone anyway," Malik said then continued, "I wouldn't be so pissed off if you just left me to my wishes unquestioned. MAYBE I would have told you in the future, but now I don't see a reason to. I'm an a*****e, a cold hearted monster, and I'm perfectly fine with it. You just learned the hard way."

This girl has him so ******** pissed off now it isn't even entertaining. He could do greatly without all of this. He ignored her advise to cool off and come back at another time and simply walked passed her to get his things. He had to go to his next class soon. Isis told him to take Ancient Egyptian History. He was not happy about it at all- he felt like he already knew it. He wanted to learn something knew- and something that wouldn't remind him of home. Fianlly, when she told him she didn't mean to piss him off is when he acknowledged her again. He looked at her, eyes not as darted. He stood up straight and looked at her, simply saying, "I've lived in the dark my whole life as well. And no, I don't like it as well." He grabbed his bag and threw it over his shoulder. "I have to go to class. If you really want to discuss things later I will be back later," he said. Why the hell was he giving her the opportunity to talk about this later!? He didn't want to, he didn't care to know anymore, right? Damnit, he must of said it because it sounded good. Oh well. He turned around and shut the door behind him. Well that went real ******** well.

Akiko squinted one of her eyes and made a confused look. She looked back at Kaiba and said, "Oh so, you're the billionaire guy that runs a company...... why are you attending college?" If he had a successful business was there any reason to go to college? "Unless you want the fancy paper that says 'you graduated, good for you'," she added.

She then felt that stabbing cold bite at her skin. Oh god...... that ghost was back. Her body stiffened up, goose pimples ran up her arms. However she appeared to them as if nothing was happening. She had a hard time making friends when she was younger because of this 'power'. Kids thought she was either crazy or making things up. At a young age, she decided not to share this with anyone. She turned her eyes to her side to see the ghost girl sitting next to her. The ghost girl sat properly with her back straight and her hands together resting on the table. The gap in the girl's skull was facing Akiko, brains and all. Akiko could hide it to an extent, but she couldn't hide the fear on her face. She turned her eyes back to Yuugi but did not look him in the eyes. Her pupils dilated slightly, which always happened when a ghost was near.

"Do you see his shadow that covers even the sun?" the ghost said staring at Yuugi as well. She smiled and added, "It's as plain as day. But I think you have a blind eye."

"Oh? That's interesting. Could you tell me more?" she said to actually both Yuugi and the ghost. It was clever. She couldn't speak to the ghost now- obviously no one else there saw her.

The ghost went first and simply said as she leaned over to Akiko, "My mother always told me I had eagle eyes. That shadow has a gold eye though." She then scratched the gap of exposed brains for a moment, doing so some 'brain matter' slipped out and landed on the table in between the two of them. "I think this big guy stole my book. How mean! I need that to learn calculus!"

It was obvious this woman was freshly dead. She was very altered and confused. Ghosts that have been dead for longer were more..... normal so to speak. She really didn't know what she was talking about..... she didn't see anything. And if she talks about calculus one more time she was going to lose it. What shitty timing, she just met these two and a spirit had to come by now. However, Akiko almost lost it though when the brain matter fell almost on her. She jumped a bit to the side and winced a little, brushing off her arm. "Damn.....bugs....." she said to cover it up.

Suddenly the ghost started to screech. She stood up and away from Akiko. Her hands patted down her own body as if she was on fire. "It burns! It's too hot here!" she cried. The ghost then disappeared off again.

Akiko almost sighed in relief. Good, she was gone for now.

"Are you Akiko?" another voice said out loud. This voice came from a human, an apathetic human. The girl had long dirty blonde hair that rested on both shoulders down and against her back. One side covered a little of her face. She wore a black spaghetti string tank top and dark tight jeans. She approached her and the two others looking down at Akiko. "You're my roommate right?" she said with something she held behind her back.

"Yes?" she said unsure who it was at first. Oh right, this was her roommate. They really hadn't had time to really sit down and talk. She hardly ever saw her in the dorm. "Right. And you're Alisa correct?" she said.

Alisa said nothing to her, only gave her a scowl. She then revealed what was behind her back, a figurine that fit in the palm of her hand of the Virgin Mary holding a small orb of water. She then deliberately tossed the ceramic figurine onto the table, cracking it into a few big pieces.

"What the ********>" Akiko said as she intentionally broke the figurine.

"Shut up and listen to me. I am not religious, I am an atheist. I don't believe in your crap. And if you think that you are going to try and 'convert me' by sticking your 'holy relic' in our dorm you are dead wrong... I found that in the bathroom behind the towels," she said thinking Akiko knew the fact that she was an atheist.

"You don't HAVE to believe in anything. But you should AT LEAST respect other people's beliefs," Akiko argued back to her.

"Don't ******** with me. I know you did that on purpose," she spat back at her.

"First of all, how would I even know what your beliefs or lack of are? Secondly, how did you know I even put it there? And THIRD, I'm not that religious either," she defended herself.

"I don't really care. Keep your voodoo bible pushing lies away from me. I don't care what you do in your room, but I swear if I find them again in the rest of the dorm I will be sure to rectify it more then this simple warning," she said and then turned away leaving them.

"Pfff, ******** c**t," Akiko said under her breath but loud enough. She looked at her broken statue. Yes, it was hers- she didn't have to tell the b***h that. It was hidden in there to protect her against ghosts while in the shower. Nothing is more bothersome then when they visit you in the shower. "Really, I'm not that religious," she said taking the shattered pieces and piecing it back together to see if it can be fixed, "I don't like religion, but I believe in something else. Spirituality kinda. Nothing freaky. Just...... ideas...... beliefs." How embarrassing, now she had to explain herself. "I can fix this..." she said mainly to herself.

[[this will be entertaining for all my character >:3 ]]

Malik walked towards his class. Once in the building, he started to feel that same heavy feeling. But it wasn't quite the same, this was something darker. He stopped, feeling dizzy. He leaned up against the wall to try and regain his composure.

A voice deep within Malik's mind spoke to him, "Isn't it euphoric?"

Malik darted his head from side to side looking for a person to match the voice. When he saw nothing he froze, was he dealing with another spirit? "What are you? And what are you talking about?" he asked it, wherever it was coming from.

"I'm the voice in your head of course. And I know you feel it. That dark energy flowing through you, intertwining with your blood as if it were a part of you. How else would I be able to talk to you now? It awoke me," he replied back to him.

"How much crazy do I have to deal with today?" he hissed at him. Though the voice had a point, he did feel a dark aura passing through him. Something..... something had happened. But he didn't know what it was.

"Heh, crazy is going to become your reality once again. Get used to it," the voice said.

"Again?" Malik asked. He looked distressed and shaken- but nobody in the hallway questioned him. "You're just an annoying voice in my head, go away," he added.

"I am a voice in your head but I am not you," the voice said cackling. When Malik looked down at his shadow it transformed and moved up to wall, as if it was it's own person. Malik could see it, other's could not. He approached Malik face to face as much as a shadow could and said, "You hear it too do you not? Or do your mortal ears have to be closer?" The shadow went back down and forced Malik to walk forward.

Now he was certain he was drugged some how. It was like he was tripping but everything was clear. He walked to the class he was supposed to go to. Most students looked in and instantly left. Malik peeked in to see, it was Lerena and that Kirsty girl. But no teacher. "So what? What am I supposed to see?" he whispered to the voice in his head. He caught a scent of something irony, it was a scent he knew rather well but would not admit to himself.

The shadow appeared on the wall and covered Malik's mouth so he would not give himself away. He pulled him back, keeping him hidden behind the door. By now, no students were coming by the class room. "Just listen, you might learn something," it said to him. "And yes you know that smell, that's the smell of blood and lots of it. It's euphoric, is it not? You know this to be true. Our blood boils with excitement when we smell it," the voice said to him. He didn't allow Malik to respond, he kept his mouth shut. But when Malik tried to struggle he took initiative. "You are bothersome. You will learn to obey me no matter what. I will let you witness everything, but as punishment you are not allowed to be in control," the voice said with authority. The shadowy part of the hand slipped into Malik's mouth, the rest of the body flowing in.

Malik's body instantly felt like every nerve ending was being pulled out. It was agonizing, as if ripping his skin apart. Physically, he could not scream, mentally he was. He felt as if he lost all control of his body and that he was looking through his eyes as through they weren't his to direct. He soon felt nothing, no pain, no sensation, nothing. As if he was separated from his earthly body and senses.

Malik was in fact disconnected from his body. The voice inside him had taken over. The usual soft scowl Malik wore by default was now a more aggressive dark scowl. He dropped his bags outside the door and walked into the classroom as if everything was perfectly fine. As he walked casually with his hands in his pockets he spoke out loud to the both of them, "The first record of torture trails back to Ancient Egyptian times. People who were considered untrustworthy were whipped until the truth could spill from their lips. Especially when it came to criminal investigations. If you were found guilty of murder, your sentence was death. And not p***y a** put you down like a dog death. They made sure it was agonizing. By means of drowning, poisoning, or being set on fire." He then raised an eye to Lerena, "Guess you know where the witch trails got them from."

He turned around to look at Kirsty, laying there on the ground as if she was bounded. Malik could not see the spell but the voice who had taken over could. He faked sympathy, "Would you liked to be released little mouse?" He then cackled a little then squatted to be more eye level with her, and said, "Even if I could, I wouldn't. I remember you from before. That annoy voice of yours. Your insolence and stupidity make me sick." He then wrapped his finger around her hair a little and said, "'A dirge for her, the doubly dead in that she died so young'." He then stood up and said one last thing to her, "However, no one shall mourn for you when you are gone."

He then turned to Lerena, sitting there at the desk. He approached her and put his hands down on the desk. "If you wondering, no. This isn't the same Malik you met before. For one thing, I actually trust people. Do you want to know why? Because no matter what someone may scheme, no matter what they may try to do to me, no matter what they say or do, I will always survive, and.... if they try to cross me, they will end up dead." He smirked, this was fun. The spirit in charge didn't really have a problem with Lerena. For one thing, it ralled up Malik- which was rather entertaining. Not only that but her power woke him up. "I really must thank you. If it wasn't for you, I don't know when I would be free. You see, to both Malik and I, freedom is the most important thing in this world," he said revealing a hint to his secret. He came down low to eye level and grabbed her chin lightly, "However, I do have one rule. You alert Malik of me and try to explain to him who I am and what exactly happened. I will take care of you and I will do it slowly and painfully. I know you like reasons, so here is mine. One, I like doing it this way. It's more fun. I can assure you I won't hurt him either- not that you would care. Secondly, it may be too much of a shock to him. See? I told you I'm not looking to hurt him."

He let go of her chin abruptly but not with force or to leave pain. He turned his back to her and said, "But don't think I am here to help you or get close to you. Malik was right, he is a monster. And I am much worse. I may not be interested in you personally, but I think you are interesting. And you should be grateful- I find nobody worth my while. That is why I will at least give you a hint to why he is such a b*****d all the time." He turned around and looked back at Lerena, "His past and your past aren't so different. He has never had freedom and was kept in the dark. His life IS darkness. He does not want to be bound by anyone or anything. Of course he is not going to trust you. He doesn't trust anyone. Because he thinks everyone is out to get him. And..... he may just be right. I can't say he's wrong, because, I'm the one who fed that to him for years."

"Yea well.... whatever. ******** her I guess. I understand bible pushers are annoying but I am not one," Akiko said putting the broken pieces into her bag to fix later. "And really, I don't have a religious belief. I just like different ideas from different views- different cultures and religions. Like I said, they are all just ideas. Religion treats things like fact," she said closing her bag. "I'm sorry, you don't need to hear me rant about things. She just pissed me off pretty bad. It's just..... bad luck to break things that are considered holy, sacred, or enchanted- so to speak," she said.

Akiko was fine until he mentioned her going pale and much worse, the ghost comment. She froze for a moment, stared him down. She went pale again, her eyes widened. Was he using it as a figure of speech? Or, did he know? No, of course not. Akiko covered up her thoughts by putting her one hand to her cheek and closing her eyes. She said with a giggle, "Oh stop! Don't tease like that- I'm a lady after all." She acted as if it was nothing. Hopefully he would drop it. Even so, she looked at her watch and saw the time. She had to go to her next class. Good, now if he tried to pry he couldn't. She stood up from the table and said, "I hate to leave so soon, but, I do have class." She got out of the bench seat and looked down at Yuugi, "Well hey. I hope to see you again. It was fun talking to you. Minus Vinard being an a*****e of course. If you have anymore questions about him ask me. Or if your bored or whatever, come and talked to me. I'm always on campus usually." She then took a few steps and said, "See ya," putting her hand up in the air as if waving.

She turned around and took a few steps forward. However, she didn't have a chance to walk away- she was only a few steps away from the table her and Yuugi were at when she stopped dead in her tracks. Something shot through her stomach like a train, it was such a quick sensation of pain and fear it stunned her. After the initial feeling she dropped to her knees and dropped her bag. The after feeling was much worse. Her whole body felt like she had the chills. It felt as if there were millions of tiny pin needles stabbing her continuously. She felt something horrible- something bad happened. Someone just died.... and she felt one..... maybe two evil spirits near. First she felt the newly dead- angry, demented, raging. Recently departed souls would sometimes be angry- but this soul she felt was worse then any poltergeist she felt.

And it screamed..... the ghost screamed like a banshee. It rung in her ears, it was so ******** loud and painful. Akiko covered her ears and lowered her head, "My head..... it hurts....." she groaned in pain. She could even attempt to cover this up, the spirit was too powerful for her senses. She rocked back and forth a little to try and stop this feeling. When was it going to past? What were these souls?! She then kept mumbling to herself, "Something bad happened..... something very bad happened." She needed help, but she couldn't even manage to bring herself to scream for it.

[[I'm just going to assume Kaiba left. he served his purpose for now
Also I changed Akiko's text color to a darker orange. And I updated the information on the 1st page]]

[[I'm going to control the Dean's ghost for a moment. Nothing too special.]]

He looked at Lerena and shook his figure at her, "I can't tell you about myself if you plan to tell him. I'm only doing this for your safety," he said with a twisted smirk. Another one entered, one that knew Lerena. An ally of hers? He was hesitant at first but saw she would cause no harm to him. There was no reason to fight. He smirked when Darla spoke, "Beauty, hm. Perhaps. Maybe that was the reason why I didn't come out at first and snap her neck. A woman's beauty is truly a man's demise." The statement didn't completely hold water. He just came out after all, he couldn't have done much before. He was crazed and deranged and killed whoever and whenever he wanted. Lerena, he left alone for now. He didn't feel the want or need to be rid of her.

He listened to the two talk about the world. Things he knew, things he made truth. He didn't care for mankind, he cared for himself. He then said, "Yes, please do get along with him. Keeps me from baby sitting him all the time. I may enjoy his agony and angst from time to time, but I know my limits."

"No, I'm not," Malik began to answer Lerena, "he's a sorry stupid fool. As you said before, human's are meant to be sociable creatures. Have you ever seen what happens to a man in solitary confinement? A closed in area, no sense of time, no contact with a living soul. Three days becomes three weeks to them. Their sanity breaks. I'm telling you this because it is important to me. I was brought into this world by fear, sorrow, paranoia, and darkness. It's entertaining to watch him squirm. But, if he drives himself mad, to the point of death, he will be as useless to me as a fish without gills. Perhaps I did too much of a good job on him. I'm proud of my work, but I wish to exist in this world."

He stepped back and smirked a little. "Kill as you may, whatever you want or desire. But it seems your discussion of how dark the world is has spurred my host. I agree but his locked away innocence disagrees. I am ashamed to say I couldn't completely destroy that without killing him in the end. For now, this is good bye. Except him to be lacking in some memory. This is going to be traumatic on his soul."

Malik then felt the reverse of how he felt before when he lost control. It was as if his muscles and skin were being reknitted back into place. It was such a horrid feeling. He had witnessed and heard all of what happened even after losing control of his body. But because of the dramatic change, parts of that memory blacked out. When he was back in full control his body felt limp and week. He fell to the ground at first and blacked out one last time. He then slowly got up, forcing himself up. He was confused at first, everything was a blur at the moment. The horrid sensation had disappeared but he did feel nauseated.

"What happened? Where am I? What are you doing here?" he asked Lerena. He was confused and agitated that he was. Not to mention, rather embarrassed to know what had happened. He stood up completely and looked around. No one was in this class. Why was he in here? How long was he in here? He scanned the wall quickly to try and find a clock, he needed to know what time it was.

Things became worse when Atemu took over- though she didn't even know of this. She didn't know who he was or even that Yuugi was someone else. She thought it was the boy from before and because her senses were all off she couldn't take the time to notice any difference. But she did feel him, it added to her strain. Her mind was like blasting white noise and that horrible screaming. Because Atemu took over and because of everything else, her body became cold as if she had been in winter weather for over ten minutes. She shook from the pain in her head and the cold on her body. "Please..... please don't touch me," she begged him keeping her head down trying to cradle it between her arms. It would hurt more if someone touched her, she believed at least. She winced as she tried to speak and answer him, "I don't know.... somewhere on campus.... somewhere near.....it hurts too much- I can't tell....." She sniffled to try to keep from crying. "I need to get back to my room....." she said. She would be safe in her room- it was decorated with relics to keep ghosts and evil spirits out. She attempted to get up, she looked forward to see a new ghost with a bashed in head. She looked very newly dead.

The spirit of the Dean rampaged the campus in an unholy rage. She was freshly dead, angry, confused, but more so angry. She ran up to Akiko and screamed, "I'LL KILL HER! I'LL KILL THAT ******** WHORE!!!!" And with that she drew her hand back and swiped once at Akiko's face.

Ghosts were known to move things or even touch people if there was enough focused emotion within them. The ghost was so enraged that she was able to hit Akiko across the face once. Her head moved from the impact and two small gashes appeared on her face from the woman's nails. They weren't deep, but enough to break the skin and bleed. She put her hand to her face and looked at the ghost. Akiko then chanted softly under her breath repetitively, "What is dark be filled with light, remove this spirit from my sight." It was a simple old wiccan spell to rid yourself of a bothersome ghost or spirit. It was enough, the ghost backed off and disappeared. It wasn't completely gone, but it was no longer bothering her. The pressure in her head relieved itself a little. She had never seen that woman before, only reason she came to her was because of her strong 6xt sense, it was a beacon for the dead.

Malik felt his composure come back and the pain dissipate. "My stupid sister thought it would be a good idea to have me learn of my ancient history and heritage. She feels I need to respect my heritage more," he grunted. Malik narrowed his one eye and raised his other eye's eyebrow in curiosity. "The teacher is dead huh?" he said not really caring. People die all the time, he never even met her. "Forgive me if I don't care, but I have a thing against abuse. If one must rise up to take care of the matter, then let it be. However she died, she had it coming," he said simply.

He narrowed his eyes at her when she spoke of his past, "Who said?!" His paranoia clenched his gut. Who did she speak to, who knew him? And now, how much did she know? She then answered him, his eyes grew wide and frightful. He tried to succumb the fear as well as he could. Darker self.... why..... why was that so familiar to him? It was on the tip of his mind, and it took a toll on his heart. Deja vu filled his mind but there were no solid memories to match the feeling. Somewhere deep in his past..... why was it gone now? He did, however, begin to remember the voice he heard. Some glimpses of the classroom, has he been in here before? And some other woman.... who was she?

He turned around to her and called out before she left, "Wait." He looked at her, feeling almost defenseless because he was not in control, but he was stubborn enough to still put up a front to shield himself from the world. "Obviously you now know things that I never planned to share with anybody. Don't take it personally, I have little trust to give anyway. You don't have to avoid me. As long as you don't push me so much then I won't try to put you in your place," he explained and tried to negotiate. He partially felt a little guilty, the same type of guilt his sister used to be able to put on him. Not only that, but if something was happening with him he didn't need to have an enemy against him in the dorm. Didn't mean he was going to be buddy buddy with her, but he would try to be civil.

Akiko wiped away the blood from her face. It wasn't a deep cut but because blood vessels are closer to the skin in the face more then anywhere else on the body, she bled a decent amount. She didn't answer Atem, instead she stood up and said, "I have to go." She grabbed her bag and walked away from him. Not only was she embarrassed but she still felt the prescience of another spirit. It was close but because she was so shaken up she couldn't pin point how close it was to her. She headed to class for two reasons, one, she was late and that was the class she was supposed to be in, and two, as she walked away she was able to pick up on where all those other spirits were at. They were gone now, but they left a trail of energy. It was most concentrated in her classroom.

She started to enter the class when she saw a girl in her way. Akiko still felt dazed from before, so in an almost eerie tone she asked Lerena, "Who was the one that just died in this room?" She acted as if she wasn't phased that someone had died in here. Such things didn't creep her out considering what she had to already deal with. The loss of a life was a little disappointing- but she was not attached to whoever it was so she couldn't be on an emotional level with this. She looked around the room, trying to sense what little energy remained. "It was a violent death...... wasn't it?" she said again as if still not caring. She wiped away the blood on her face as if it was only water- it had yet to clot.

[[I'll just leave this right here smile
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20100304071140AAuCUY0 ]]

[[I'm going to do a bit of a time skip. Take way Akiko can be in her music group, Lerena in her Advice Column, and such. I'll have Malik look for a job and run into the boss of the Adult book store. If you have something in mind for the boss you can play him/her. Otherwise, I'll make up his/her character. Either way is fine with me. Perhaps this should be the time when Ms. Phoenix approaches Yuugi and eventually, he goes looking for Vinard?]]

Malik watched as Lerena left. He then saw a new girl enter the class. Did she not hear Lerena? Whatever. He grabbed his things and left. But before he walked out the door he looked back at the new girl one last time to see what she was doing.

"Not a funeral...." Akiko said walking past her and letting her out the door. She reached into her bag and took out a small bottle filled with salt. Akiko stood in the spot where the teacher's body fell dead. She took the cork out of the bottle and tipped it over. Salt came out at a steady pace through the thin neck. Akiko made a small circle of salt. She then exited out of the circle and made a five pointed star within it. Once she finished she corked the bottle back up and put it away. This would keep the spirit from coming back to haunt the classroom. Most likely, the custodians would clean it up- but it will do it's purpose before then.

Once she finished the circle Malik walked away. That certainly was weird. He had better things to do then bother with someone who was crazy.

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Malik spent the rest of the day reading. He read the Psychology book first then went on to leisure reading. He remained in the campus library for a while - he needed to clear his head before he faced his roommate again. He received a few text messages from his sister- asking him how he was etc etc. And then.... the slew of 'Are you looking for a job?', 'have you found a job?', 'when are you going to look for a job?'. "Nagging b***h....." Malik mumbled under his breath. Around two in the afternoon he began his search. He took his motorcycle into town and went to various shops that either he was interested in or he saw 'now hiring'. Of course, he was interested in book store and libraries. No luck, with anything. Even some of the places that were hiring didn't give him an application. They looked nervous when he walked in asking for one and told him the job has been full filled. Pff, morons. He headed toward Domino City Library and asked the clerk for an application.

"I'm sorry, we're not hiring at the moment," the older.... almost snobbish woman replied back to him.

"Oh? Is this not the Domino City Library? Then... I guess this print out is false advertising?" Malik said bringing out a print sheet of an ad for the library posted yesterday. "Did you manage to find and choose someone within a day?" he added feeling fed up.

The woman did not take the paper but only peeked at it. Of course she knew they were looking for people. "Let me explain. You, you are the one that came in on that dreaded noisy contraption, right? How do I put this.... we don't hire thugs, we are looking for someone who actually has knowledge in literature. Not some drop out needing money to buy a gun," she sneered assuming the worse from Malik because of his motorcycle and his looks.

"Not that I have to explain myself, but I've read all my life. All I ever do is read. Literature is a hobby and an interest. And it's a motorcycle and..." Malik stopped. He was going to tell her that if he wanted to kill someone he didn't need a gun. He needed this job, he needed to work somewhere that wasn't a slave driving job or lower then him. He needed Isis to stop bitching at him.

"Playboy is not a form of literature," the woman countered.

"If you don't at least provide me with an application form, you will be denying me employment because of my race. Now, isn't there a law forbidding such actions?" Malik played the race card. It was true though, besides the bike part of her assumption had to have been his race. He did look like a bad boy, but that couldn't be enough to make her assume that much.

The woman looked down at him but remained quiet. She then handed him a form and a pen. Malik took it and began filling it out.

It only took a few minutes after she left that classroom to come out of her daze. Now she felt horrible.... horribly embarrassed. How many people saw her on the ground like that? She was betting that most didn't- students were in shock from the killing. But she was still embarrassed. She knew Yuugi saw, obviously. She was hoping to make a new friend but that won't happen now. She hadn't seen him all day after that. Maybe for the better. With guitar case on her back she walked into the Conference room for the Music Club. Once in she already saw a bunch of members conversing, listening to music, and even playing. She put her case down and looked for her friends and band mates.

"There you are my little cousin," said a voice that came up behind Akiko and hugged her from behind. He picked her up a little and swung her a bit. "Look at you! All grown up and in college! I'M SO PROUD OF YOU!!!" he said exasperatingly. Not only was Taro Akiko's cousin, but he was also the lead guitarest of the band.

"Taro.....! Let.Go.Of.Me.....I.Will.Hurt.You!" Akiko said. He did so and she looked up at him. "Christ! You treat me as if I am your little sister!" she said complaining.

"Well.... you are little, and you are like a sister," he said chuckling.

"Who's little?!" Akiko said looking unpleasantly at him.

Finn walked up to the two and waved. Finn was a tall bulky guy, Scottish in heritage and it showed- red straight hair that came down to his shoulders, white skin that burns seconds to sun exposure, freckles, and emerald green eyes. He wore a lot of band t-shirts, mainly ones that were black. Black jeans to go along with it and a brown and gold striped bennie hat. He was their drummer, a power horse of a drummer at that. He was a gentle giant though, but strangely enough, Finn didn't talk a lot. He wasn't mute, he didn't have speech problems, and he wasn't unsocial (quite the opposite, he is ALWAYS around people); he just choose not to talk a whole lot.

"Hey Finn," Akiko said with a smile.

"Finn, isn't Akiko a little person?" Taro asked jokingly.

Finn looked at Akiko, took his hand and shook it as if saying kinda but nodded his head as if saying yes.

"See?" Taro said laughing. He then noticed a bandaid on Akiko's jaw. He looked serious and said, "Akiko.....did someone hit you?" Taro was only her cousin, but he acted like her older brother. He was very protective of her. He put his hands on her shoulder and looked her in the face. "Akiko, who hit you?" he asked again

"Finn, you're no help..." she said rolling her eyes a little. She then looked up as Taro drilled her about her bandage. "Taro nobody hit me, god. I scratched myself in the middle of the night. It looks nasty and I didn't want people to stare," she lied. Not even Taro knew her little secret.

[[an introduction to some people. I know she's not important but I can't wait to introduce Pepper Anne. smile Still figuring out who my last band member would be.

Remember, Playboy is not a form of literature smile ]]

[[I'm changing Akiko's cousin's name to Taro, since he is full Japanese and I just named him Roy at the moment cause I couldn't think of a name. I knew his character but never named him @___@ ]]

Malik looked over to the voice who spoke to him. A weird looking guy, whatever. He gave him the time of day and listened. He couldn't help but be interested. He was being offered a job, and the man was right- he wouldn't have to put up with that old hag. He straightened himself up and looked at the man. "Can I eventually get more days?" he asked. One day was good for now, if he can work his way up to more hours that would be better. Adult bookstore.... ok so their were some erotic novels. Big deal, he could manage. He walked over to the old woman and crumbled the paper in front of her. He gestured to hand the ball to her, but then through it past her onto the ground. "Choke on it," he told her and walked away as she scolded him. He approached the man who offered him the job and said, "Sure, I'm interested. Do you need me to fill out any papers or just stop by on Saturday?" Thank god, he'll be working in a bookstore and Isis can stop bitching.

Vinard was finishing up talking with his lovely club members. Everything was perfect in their club, nobody was there to weigh them down with their imperfections. Ever since this early afternoon they had the solar lounge to themselves. They kicked out anybody who dared off put the mood and ruin their practice. They had been working on a play, written and directed by Vinard himself. It was a work of beauty really. But now they were finished and only bragging to each other their own talents. Vinard being the biggest bragger of them all, and all in the club fell for him. Other then this morning, he was having a fantastic day. His members left the lounge one by one until it was only he and a few others. Vinard looked around, great, morons were filling into this room now. These untalented barbarians, talking amongst themselves about their stupid lives. "I grow tired of this," Vinard said standing up. "The percentage of lowly beasts has risen too high for my taste," he added saying out loud which got him plenty of dirty looks.

He began to walk towards the exit, he saw someone carrying his dinner from the cafeteria into the solar lounge. The boy wasn't stopping for him? Well, he would fix that. Vinard did not show cutesy and let the boy through, he simply pushed the student away- causing him to stumble over and drop his food everywhere. Some students laughed, others looked in disgust towards Vinard. "Watch where you are going," Vinard said laughing as he walked away. My that felt good, putting the swine where they belong. Down on the ground near his feet. Vinard left the building and started to walk back to the dorms. The campus was dimming and rarely any students were out walking. Most where inside in their classes or dorms.

"Don't lie.... cause I swear if someone hit you I will kill them," Taro said. He wasn't completely exaggerating. Though he was a kind soul nobody messed with his family or friends. But especially his family. Taro rarely got into physical fights because once he started, he couldn't stop. Once enraged he just blacks out and won't stop punching.But this had only happened when he was pushed over the edge. Otherwise he was pretty tolerant.

"Taro knock it off already! Why would I lie to you? You bugging me!" Akiko scolded him then walked away getting her guitar out. There was already a few amplifiers hooked up so she began hooking up her guitar.

"Sheesh ok," Taro said getting off the subject. "Why so cranky?" he then said.She wasn't her carefree fun self as usual.

"I had a bad day...." Akiko said not looking at her cousin.

"She said I would not understand?" Taro said quoting a song as he smiled.

Akiko looked up and smiled a little, "She left a note and said I'm sorry I, I had a bad day again," she quoted more of the song.

A girl with short natural blond hair that flailed out to the sides a little approached the group. She wore black pants that cut half way down her calves, decorated with chains and belts of various types. She wore short black boots and multi shades of blue striped knees socks that peeked through the gap between her pants and boots. She wore a black t-shirt that exposed her one shoulder, which allowed you to see her purple bra strap. The girl was thin and small, but not as small as Akiko. She looked tough for her size. She pointed behind her and said, "Finn, I swear to god if you don't move your shitty equipment I will make you eat every last piece of it all. Shouldn't be too hard for a fat a** like you."

Finn looked like a mix of scared and nervousness when Pepper Anne came by. He put up his hands a little as if about to shrug his shoulder and say 'would you chill'.

Pepper Anne diverted her attention away from Finn, "Hey Akiko, Taro." She acted perfectly fine with the two. Pepper Anne was a drummer for another band who played mostly punk or metal music. She was tough, she had to be. There were no other female drummers in this club, a lot of people thought she would not succeed. But she is an animal on the drums, vicious but graceful. She may be fine with everyone else in every other band, but she seem to have a rivalry with Finn. There was really no reason for it- he never did anything to her. Actually, Finn had a crush on Pepper Anne. Taro and Akiko both believe that she actually has a crush on Finn as well, but did not know how to accept her feelings or is just too tough to break down and admit anything. "Where is Rox?" she asked. She looked back at Finn and pointed, "5 minutes, or all your equipment belongs to me." She walked away angry

"Hurrr.... all your base belong to me," Akiko joked.

"Here I am," Rox said putting her bass case down on the ground. Rox was Taro's bass player. There was a reason why they called her Rox the Fox, this girl was hot. She was tall, thin, curved in the right places, busty, soft skin, a perfect face, the works. She knew she was hot, but even so she didn't use it to be malicious. She was dressed in black vinyl pants and a lime green tank top that exposed her stomach a little. Underneath was another tank top dark gray in color with thicker straps but it still kept her stomach exposed. She had black straight hair with streaks of brown, orange, and red highlights through out that rested to the bottom of her shoulder blades. Part of her hair was behind her ear and the other was over the side of her face. She also wore black shoes and a black studded belt. She spoke with a mature, in demand, calm voice. "Sorry, I'm late. Some of the theater club members were whistling at me and egging me on. I had to take a few minutes to set them straight," she said calmly as she set up her bass to another amp.

Taro laughed, "You showed them huh Rox?" Taro moved his brown hair out of his face. He wore it down and a little off to the side. He dressed in clean attire, a dark red sweater vest with a 3/4 sleeve dress shirt underneath. He wore black pants that were nice but not quite fancy. He wore his red Converse high top shoes - which is why Akiko liked her orange Converse low tops so much. "Alright, Finn go move your stuff so we can practice and Pepper doesn't jam her fist down your throat," he said setting up his guitar as well. "So, Akiko, what made your day so bad?" he asked.

"Well.... I mean..... my whole day wasn't bad. It's stupid don't worry about it," Akiko said. "I mean after all, my class was nice and I started talking to someone kinda nice."

"Sounds good. See you then," Malik said turning away from the man. He had already given him directions to his store. He was set. Finally, Isis can stop nagging him. He took off on his bike and rose around. This always relaxed him, and he needed to be relax now. The whole thing with Lerena was on his mind still. After all that. Why did he feel guilty? He hasn't felt guilty since he first left his home. Isis..... she made him feel that way. It must be a skill only women had, to make men feel like s**t. He stopped at a bridge and parked off to the shoulder. The bridge was barren, the roads were quiet enough but this bridge was rarely ever used. That's why Malik liked it so much. There was a great view of the horizon, this place was sacred and quieted his mind. Malik walked up to the edge and leaned his arms against the rails. He then took out his phone to see a text message from Isis. Rolling his eyes he texted her back, 'I got a job, you can stop complaining.' He closed his phone and enjoyed the view for a while.

[[I may have Isis call Malik if I need more time.]]

Vinard turned around in fright for a moment - he heard a voice but did not hear footsteps draw near him. How stupid, what a stupid reaction. He looked around more and finally matched a person to the voice. "Tch," he smirked and rolled his eyes, "just you. What do you want?" He wondered..... did the teacher actually say something to him. He smirked, enjoying the fact that it worked. "What are you talking about?" he said as if the words were meant to play dumb but deliberately sounded guilty. "You suggest that I speak lies. That is where you are wrong. The teacher, she approached you, did she? Because you ARE a slacker, and because you are unappreciative. I spoke the truth, you would endanger my grade in that class due to your lack of talent. Sorry if the truth hurts- not my problem,"

Vinard said twisting the situation. He then looked serious at him, then formed a twisted smile, "You'll do what now? I'd like to see you try! Scrawny little cur, I'll put you in your place- which is at my feet begging for forgiveness. And when you have failed in your attempt to 'make me eat my actions' I will report you to the school for harassment and fighting. This school has zero tolerance harassment you know. And when I am done with you, I will be sure to take care of your loud mouth friend!" He chuckled to himself. He then saw a rose in his hand. He laughed, "Really Yugi? A rose? Hope you weren't looking to give that to a lady any time soon, No woman will want to see your mug after I am done with you! Well? Why are you just standing there? If you are so tough then come at me!"

"That's good to hear. What's her name?" Tora said plucking a few strings of his guitar as he tuned it by ear.

Akiko chuckled a little and said, "What makes you automatically think it's a girl I met? Why? Cause I am a girl I can only have female friends?"

A screech from Tora's guitar could be heard through out the large conference room as he slid his fingers down, temporarily unable to feel his hand. He put her two last comments together and assumed. He looked up at Akiko, twitching a little. Big brother mode kicked in as he walked up to her, put his hands on her shoulders, and got in her face once more. "Who is he and where can I find him!?" he sounded angry at her and whoever she spoke of.

Akiko backed away and looked nervous only from Tora's ferocity. "Wha-what do you care Tora? He didn't do anything wron-" Akiko said then stopped for a moment. She looked at him irritated and angrily, "Tora you're such a moron! I just spoke to the kid today. Damn are you paranoid!"

Tora shook her a little and proclaimed, "I don't care! You don't know how boys operate! I KNOW. Oh I know what they think and what they want! We are evil beings of this earth. EVIL! And I won't let one of us get over on you!"

Akiko spoke in a broken tone as she was being shaken, "To-ora, I'm go-oing to ki-ill y-you!!!!!" And with that she flung her head forward and head butted her cousin. He fell to the ground and she rubbed her head a little looking down at him, "Man you have a thick head... you know that?"

"Jeez Tora calm yourself," Rox spoke in a calm almost apathetic tone. She looked for away from them and said, "Is your cousin not even allowed to talk to boys? How old are you again Tora? Boys don't have cooties."

"No, no she's not," Tora said stubbornly. "And what I say goes," he added pointing to himself.

"Yes father dearest," Akiko joked and chuckled a bit. "Tora you are being ridiculous. If I was to cease talking to boys completely I would not be able to function in this world. In fact, I wouldn't be able to talk to Finn or anybody in this club! Teachers, customers, doctors...." Akiko went on listing people.

"Alright alright.... I get it. Just be vigilant, ok?" he said calming down.

"Again, I repeat. We just met and we only talked a little. I don't even think I will see him again. My luck," Akiko said tuning her guitar as well.

"Hm, but it was important enough to mention to us," Rox said only to tease. She then put her hand on her head and said, "Tora.... you make me want to have a cigarette....." Rox did smoke but very rarely. However, when she did smoke she smoked clover cigarettes.

Akiko stopped for a moment and thought. She then laughed out loud and said, "Oh stop! Really now. Can't I make normal conversation to my friends without there being a hidden meaning?"

"You are a musician, there is always a hidden meaning," Tora pointed out. "Well what's his name?" he asked.

"Haha true, I'll give you that," Akiko said with a laugh. She looked at him and rolled her eyes while smiling, "Oh yea right Tora. You're psychotic, like I'm going to give you a name. Why? So you can find him and beat him for no reason? Cause you know, that would make you bully. Bullies are bad and they should feel bad."

"Me? A bully? Tah! Never. That s**t is lame. I'm more of a knight in shining armor," Tora said putting his hand on his chin and looking up to the sky. He then looked back down at Akiko seriously and said, "But.... you do know why I worry about you, right?"

Akiko stayed quiet for a moment as she looked down at her guitar, hair hiding her face. She then said in almost a sorrowful tone, "Yea, I know." See, there was something that only Tora knew- because Akiko never bothered to tell anyone else. She made Tora swear to never tell as well. Akiko was a woman shrouded in secrets. She buried the past, bottled it up in her heart and refused to show it to anyone. No one should be burdened by her poor luck and misfortune. She just wanted everyone to be happy and not have to worry about her. Sometimes..... she wondered if telling Tora this one secret was even worth it. But she didn't know what to do then- she was scared.

[[I won't reveal this secret, not for a while. But I just want to say that it is not rape. After rereading it I realized it sounded like that. It's not.

Also I have an idea for later that night for Lerena and Malik. It will force Lerena into his room and hopefully bring them closer. I am going to make him suffer for the good of it all. >:3]]

[[Sounds good to me >w<. Bejeweled has never been so hardcore. I figured Atemu/Yuugi won't see Akiko for the rest of the night. Instead, I will have Jonouchi and him go to her work (unknowing she works there) and spend time that way.

I am going to rush the death myself. Also, I'm going to say 'Atemu' when describing him when he is in control because it's too much of a find ******** to go back and forth. People will say 'Yuugi' if they don't know about his other self. ]]

Vinard looked a little off put by Atemu's claim about the rose. ******** creepy.... is this the same wimp he met before? Yuugi put up with him all through out the day- now he was talking back to him? Vinard rolled his eyes, "Yuugi, you are a horrible actor. My death, hmf. You make it sound like you will be my maker. Boys like you could barely even bruise me up if I let you. Bullying may be unacceptable to you but I guess death threats are just fine?" He then looked at him again, that serious look. The only reason he did not deny his stupid little game right from the get-go was because he had a chance to make him suffer. "I've never killed someone before..... but I can't say I never thought about it. And right now, I would love to shut you up permanently. Maybe then people will respect me more," Vinard said with an evil smirk as he brought out his phone- it had Bejeweled on it like most phones now a days. And with luck, it was the same version as Atemu's. "I'll be sure to make your death long and painful," He hissed as the two of them began to play.

It was a simple game, one that anyone could learn. He was doing well, he figured he could win over this naive fool. Little did he know that Atemu was the king of games, but more importantly, this was a shadow game. And in a shadow game, the darkness of one's soul handicaps them. Vinard was doing fine until his hands locked up completely- he could not use his fingers. "What! What is this! I-I can't move my fingers!" he struggled and struggled to move his fingers but he couldn't. He was worried about the game, but he was freaked out about his hands. "Y-Yuugi! This doesn't count! My fingers! Look at them! I can't move them!" he claimed in a panic. When Vinard looked down at them, they look tensed and contorted. They were discussing! This was horrible! The game ended when the minute ended- as they set the game for that amount of time. On Vinard's screen flashed 'GAME OVER'. He then looked down to see that his hands and fingers were now perfectly fine and quite able to move.

[[I figured I'd go with the theme 'boy who cried wolf'. Have fun >:3 ]]

A call came through to his phone all of a sudden. He looked at it, it was his sister. He rolled his eyes and answered it, "Hello?"

"Malik? It's Isis. Good to hear you got a job. Where is it at? How has your day been?" she asked him with her natural kind yet mature tone of voice.

Malik rolled his eyes as she asked him all these questions. "At a book store and fine," he said shortly. He didn't bother to tell her an adult bookstore- she was rather a prude. Even though it was just novels, or so he thought.

Isis paused for a moment, then said, "You know, you could try to be a little more social with your sister. You know, you're own family. The person that cares about you."

Malik put his hand on his head, "Really Isis, I don't need anymore nagging today. I've reached the limit of being nagged to. Is there any other reason you called besides to nag at me?"

"First of all, don't talk to me with that tone. Secondly, who nagged at you today?" she said sternly.

"Nobody, it doesn't matter," Malik said.

"Malik, when are you going to talk to me again? When you were younger you told me everything," she said with a hint of sorrow in her voice.

"I don't need your help anymore. I am capable of living my own life," he snared at her. Why did everyone think he needed help or that he had to be social?

"I didn't say, nor, have I ever thought that you are incapable of living your life. I am your sister and I am interested in your well being. I am letting you live your life but that is no reason to shut me off from it. After all the times I have been there for you you can at least amuse me and have a normal conversation with me," she said now irritated.

Again, with the guilt. He should just throw his phone in the water and never return back to college. Perhaps college was a bad idea. He sighed, paused, then said, "Fine. Don't freak out..... god." He decided to be civil with her. Maybe he needed the practice to survive college.

"So," she began to say changing the subject, "did you get to meet your roommate yet? What is he like?"

"She, actually. And I don't want to talk about it. Let's talk about something else," he said still sore from everything. The last thing he wanted to talk to Isis about was Lerena.

"You're..... rooming with a girl? In the unisex dorms?" Isis said shocked. When Malik replied yes she paused for a longer amount of time. She searched for the right words to say. She then said, "You should see if you can change dorms."

Malik rolled his head back in aggravation, "Why am I going to do that now!?"

"Because you will probably scare her if you haven't already," Isis said honestly.

"Trust me, she isn't afraid of me. That is the problem," he said.

"See, and that's the other thing. You're a brute. I love you dear brother, but you are too much for a woman to deal with," Isis continued.

Malik paused for a moment, keeping himself from cursing out his sister to only prove her point. "Anything else?" he asked sarcastically.

"I'll let you go but please for god's sake- if you are going to stay in that room just TRY and not act like a..... well.... try to be nice. At least try to talk with her," Isis said.

"Goodbye Isis," Malik said hanging up on her. He was right back where he started, aggravated. He got onto his bike and headed back to campus.

Finn had moved his equipment over and met up with the group again. He blushed a little and rubbed the back of his neck.

Akiko giggled and said, "Finn, if you like her so much you should take her out somewhere. Or at least tell her. You can break the rules a little and at least tell her, right?" Akiko tapped her chin then said, "Or write it, that way you don't have to speak."

Finn shot his head up and shook his head in fear. But he blushed a bit more.

"That is the problem with men...." Rox began to say, "they speak up if they are ready to fight someone, they stand up for themselves when they are pushed down, but they stay quiet when they have feelings for a woman. As if they were afraid of their feelings."

Finn looked at Rox as if saying 'are you serious?' as he swung his arms as if saying 'get out of here'. He also maybe a 'pfff' sound at her.

"Rox, I'm shocked you still aren't dating anyone. Don't men flock to you?" Tora joked.

"When I find a real man, I will take him up on his offer," she said simply.

"Ooo, ouch. Have you dated someone since me?" he asked. They broke up on good terms and remained friends.

"Don't get too carried away. And we didn't really go out. You took me out to dinner. It was one date," she verified.

"Eh, I didn't pursue. It would cause bad juju for the band. Plus you aren't my type," Tora said light heartedly. Tora was a pretty handsome guy, he had his fans but not nearly as much as Rox did.

Rox looked at Akiko and then back at Tora, "Sure, we will leave it at that. After all your younger cousin is here. I'm not going to mud sling at you while she is here."

Akiko narrowed her eyes at Tora, "I don't even want to know."

"I told you men are evil," he said.

Finn nodded in agreeance to Tora.

"Man, can we get to rocking? People are waiting to use the amps!" she said getting bored. The band began to practice within the room. The beautiful thing about the music club was that everyone was considerate of one another. Everyone didn't have to like every genre of music, but they were all respectable to one another. Well, mostly everyone- the majority. During club meetings they all signed up for practice time. It was hard to do it within 2 hours, but it was manageable. The best part about the club was that you didn't have to be a musician to join- if you were a music lover you could join and talk to others who shared your passion. Akiko and the band set up and started to play. They practiced two songs.

Obviously, Finn was the drummer and Rox was the base player. Depending on the song, Akiko was either lead singer or lead guitarist, Tora would be either or as well. Akiko could only sing and play guitar when she was the secondary guitarist and it was something simple. Or if she did a simple acoustic song. She still had much to learn but had great potential and talent. Her main focus was singing though. Akiko held a lot of passion for music so when she sang it came from the heart. People may be interested in Rox or Tora because they were extremely good looking, not to say that Akiko wasn't pretty but she was more recognized for her voice. Once they finished they began to pack up. "You know, we still need to come up with a name for our band," she said.

"Yea... Akiko you should come up with it. Or at least some ideas," Tora said.

"Wha! But it's your band technically," Akiko exclaimed. Why did the burden have to be on her?

"You're creative. You'll think of some ideas I'm sure of it," Tora said with a chuckle.