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Oh. So she was right about it being five. Nice.

"Yeah! I picked up a couple of them from the store. Last time I had to run to the local Best Buy to buy a modern version of a polaroid camera. For taking pictures. Better to be prepared in advance." Aerin looked down in a combination of sheepishness and amusement at herself., before looking up at the mention of an unfamiliar name. Basiluzzo was a name she had heard before, but Pendour was new.

Viatrix's soft frown didn't go unnoticed, and Aerin averted her gaze again, It was ironic, she knew, for someone whose goals were so socially oriented, who tried so hard to be kind and good, to have no real social connections outside her parents. It was true anyway. Friendship took work, more work than being nice to kids or random strangers.

Whatever she could have said or thought, though, was immediately interrupted by Viatrox's words- first, a quiet warmth at being called friend, and second, pure, unadulterated shock. Oh my god. Meadowview High School, senior year-

"Wait, Anser goes to my high school? We're in the same GRADE?" That was completely, overtly, ridiculous. It was also very funny- Aerin couldn't stop a laugh from bubbling out of her chest if she had wanted to, and she did not want to. Nor could she stop a second one, either, when Viatrix was suddenly and forcibly turned back into a cat.

Aerin bent down to give Viatrix a gentle scratch behind her kitty ears. "You want to go home now?" A pause, and a small, content smile makes itself a home on Aerin's face. "It was nice running into you again, Viatrix. I'm glad I did."

"Raina Arya…?" Aerin thinks for a moment. "I'm… pretty sure she's in my math class. I'll have to talk to her." And I know just where we can speak privately.

Aerin fought the urge to give Viatrix a gentle kiss on her little kitty head, and instead settled for continuing the gentle scratching and pets.

"I'll promise I'll tell you if I need anything. I have Encke's number, and everything. I'm not too bad at taking care of myself, either. I do have a car. Thank you for looking out for me, though. And the same goes to you. Even though I'm pretty sure Encke is way more powerful than me- if you guys ever need anything I can provide, I'm there."

A pause.

"I think I would like to hit a youma with a car."

"Anyway- see you later?" she offered.

"I'm doing it. If I get the opportunity, I'm doing it. Encke said use what's around me, right?" Aerin's eyes were definitely glittering with mischief and crimes, and even if they weren't, her smile definitely was.

"Of course we do. Thanks, Viatrix. Though… I don't think I could do that." A pause. "Unless maybe you show to my house in the middle of the night to scream and it's not an emergency. Don't do that, by the way. My mom could hear you, and then she'd never let me out of the house again. Certainly not to fight monsters and known murderers."

There's a tinge of sadness, there, but Aerin smothers it down. "I know there are other magic cats out there. But I'm pretty sure you're my favorite one." The mischievous smile grew a little bit. "Even if you're wrong about oysters."

Aerin's smile faded a little bit, cheer diminished by the thin threads of terror that were starting to become familiar- this war is going to kill me. "I think if I face a youma that strong I should be distracting it, calling Encke immediately and also running away."

It repaired itself, though, at Viatrix's protest. "They smell like brine, Viatrix. You're just smelling salt. They don't really have a taste that isn't various brands of salt, either. Just a texture. Just say you don't like the smell of the ocean and go."

Aerin kept petting Viatrix. "You're all different, huh? Makes sense. You're people. Just small, and also furry." Aerin had, however, discovered the joy of teasing Viatrix, so she couldn't help but add, "Though- Do all of you them like petting just as much as you do? Or are you a special case?" And do any of them have PowerPoint presentations. She hoped they had PowerPoint presentations.

"Okay. I promise if I ever find a giant oyster, I won't put you in it. You can trust me."

"Also I was teasing you, mostly. I wouldn't pet someone without asking. That seems rude? And you shouldn't be rude to magic talking cats. Or people in general, if you can help it. Actually, I think if you started being rude to just regular cats, you would get mauled. And you would deserve it."

Being drawn into a terrifying magical war wasn't so bad, if it involved this. And it did, luckily, involve this.

"-Oh. Before I forget, if I'm going to talk to Anser, maybe warn her that she might get approached by another senshi in her math class. That way its not completely weird. If I got a mysterious note from my classmate asking to talk about matters that can't be discussed around cameras I would probably burn it, and maybe punch them."

"I would never." Viatrix was teasing, but the answer was genuine, and general. If she could help it, Aerin wasn't going to betray Viatrix. She just wouldn't. Even if eating oysters around her would be pretty funny.

Wait, what? "You have lasers?" A beat. "Normal cats have lasers? And are sentient?" It wasn't the weirdest thing Aerin had found out by a long shot, but it definitely threw her for a loop. You could practically see the question marks floating above her head as she tried to fit this new information into what she understood about the world.

"Why?"

"...Please make sure Anser doesn't punch me. I'd rather like not to be punched, and we'd probably go to detention about it, and my parents would be pissed at me. We'd probably at least have to go to the nurse."

The nurse was almost certainly a definitely, really. At least if Anser was any good at punching, and she probably was, if she had been in this war for a while.

"Oh." That was… good? Probably? Some housecats definitely shouldn't be trusted with lasers. Also, if all normal cats were straight up sentient, that would have some horrifying implications. Probably for the best that wasn't the case.

"You should definitely still beam anyone who's rude to cats. Also youma." Amusement was written clear across Aerin's face. "Not as good as hitting youma with cars, but still funny. Breaking news, tiny kitten laser blasts giant snake directly to hell."

Aerin paused thoughtfully at the mention of how aggressive Anser was- it made sense that someone would become that way, especially by witnessing the atrocities of the war as it went on. Certainly, she couldn't guarantee she wouldn't be the same way, eventually. But- the Negaverse had people on it who seemed good or at least likeable, and fighting all of them without a second thought- maybe it would do more harm than good.

Aerin would have to see for herself.

"Thanks for looking out for me. I can find somewhere private in the school to talk; I'm polite to the teachers and I like learning, so I can basically get anywhere."

"If I ever get the chance, I'll make sure to film you." Aerin pulls a phone out of her pocket. "I got a burner phone with cash, for listening to music purposes. Also maybe getting food purposes. That way, if I lose it somehow, or it gets stolen, it can't be traced to me."

Man, if my parents find out I've been using my stored-up allowance to buy camping equipment and a burner phone, they're gonna be… concerned.

Aerin buried that realization in her box of 'don't think about it'. (She was going to have to think about it, eventually.)

"You can get anywhere, if you smile, wish anyone who sees you good afternoon, and walk like you know where you're going. That's my lesson to you. Though I guess Encke could probably get you anywhere anyway; who's going to question a movie star?"

Aerin's heart sank, a little bit, at the mention of Anser having priorities other than school. Of course she did; Saving the world was more important than passing high school chemistry. It stung anyway; another reminder of what she was trying very hard not to think about- the fact that once the museum reopened, she was going to have to figure out how to rearrange her entire life. And structure her lies in a better way than 'I'm going to go visit a classmate I've talked to exactly once.'

"I'm taking one class there a day, actually- if she needs any help finding her way around campus, I can help?"