Welcome to Gaia! ::

"Different? How so?" Mitsu wasn't sure what Lizzy meant but the thought of a movie and dinner was nice. Maybe Lizzy would be coming and Xiu too. Mitsu always had fun hanging out with them as a group. "J-Junko's gonna dress me up?" Now Mitsu really was confused, she could dress herself. Not that she minded Junko coming over but this was an activity she was certain she had a handle on. Or was this a subtle hint of some sort?

The confusion lingered on as Mitsu tried to ponder what this 'special day out' meant. That was until Lizzy brought up another recent issue. Instantly the lycan's face fell, her ears folding back as she looked at the spider demon with a guilt ridden face. Mac had already come to see her and had told her what had happened. "I...I never wanted anyone to get hurt. I...I really didn't know that's what Shun had in mind..." Mitsu tried to explain in a stammer. She felt absolutely terrible about what had happened, especially poor Mot. He had been dragged in the middle and for no reason at all.

"Well, Shun's taking you out on a date," She nodded; after all the subtle hints failed to get through to Mitsu, Lizzy thought that maybe direct was the way to go... Hopefully the outcome of the date would surprise everyone involved... Who knows? As much as she would love to see Shun admit his feelings for Mitsu, she wasn't going to force it if he wasn't ready.

It was really tempting though.

"So yes, Junko's going to help dress you up for the date," She clarified, giving the ghoul a nod and a smile. The look Mitsu gave at the mention of the 'Mac incident', however, made Lizzy felt like a horrible person who deserved to be covered in glitter for even bringing it up. She paused, before sighing softly and freeing one of her hands, although her other hand was still holding onto her friend's hand tightly. Using her now free hand, she reached up to gently pat Mitsu on the top of her head, careful to avoid her ears since this was quite an important talk.

"I already talked to Shun about it..." Although ugh - that Mac! She was apparently one step behind her boilfriend, although Mitsu's reaction was one that she had expected - and warned Shun of. The head pats continued even as she went silent, a thoughtful look on her face, "Mitsu, do you trust me?"

"A....a date?" For a moment it seemed like Mitsu still didn't get it her facial expression simply looked puzzled. The longer she processed the information though it was obvious to see she was no longer clueless. Her eyes widened slightly and a red hue touched her cheeks. Shun was....TAKING HER ON A DATE? Mitsu wasn't sure what to make of the sudden storm of emotions inside. Something between joy and panic. Now she was glad Lizzy had thought ahead and was having Junko come over. No doubt Mitsu would be in such a state choosing an outfit would be the last thing on her mind. She would be lucky if she didn't get so nervous she didn't want to go.

As she tried to calm her mass of thoughts Mitsu looked up at Lizzy as she continued on the Mac subject. "M-Mac came over." Mitsu still wasn't sure what to think about the boil knowing where her room was. It was a little daunting for sure but the head pats that Lizzy was giving were enough to keep Mitsu calm for the moment. No panicking. Not yet anyway. "I do trust you." Mitsu confirmed. There was full trust from Mitsu, Lizzy was a good person. Otherwise the ghoul never would have seen her face.

Now that was more like it! Lizzy couldn't help grinning at Mitsu's reaction, letting out a soft chuckle, "Just be yourself and enjoy your day out with Shun, alright?" She hadn't decided on a movie for the two of them to watch yet, but perhaps a cartoon of some sort? After all, Mitsu seemed like the sort to enjoty a good animated film, and Shun needed to loosen up a bit...

"Ah, I see... It's easy to find a student once you get their name, and she was pretty sure Mac didn't have much trouble finding Mitsu, "Well, uh, if he does anything weird-" What would Mac do anyway? "- Drop me a call." She would say to contact Shun, but she wasn't sure if her talk got through to the boil, so just in case... She smiled when Mitsu said that she trusted her, feeling both happy and a tad relieved.

"Good," She nodded, moving to gently stroke Mitsu's ear, "Let's go take a walk? It's a nice day, after all, and some fresh air is good for you."

Mitsu gave a nod. She would be sure to contact Lizzy if anything strange happened. There was still that favored she owed the reaper but she wasn't sure if she should bring that up. As for a walk. "Okay." Though as soon as she started to move Lizzy's fingers gave her ears a gentle rub. It left the lycan a little weak in the knees as she stood there, a light whimper bubbling up in her throat. Why was it that ear rubs felt so good?

After a moment (or really when Lizzy was done petting her ears), the werewolf finally let go of Lizzy's hand moving toward the door where her shoes were sitting so that she could slip them on. Once they were in place on her feet she quickly grabbed her mask off the stand by the door and slipped it over her face. The ear rubs had left her a little starry eyed and melty but not distracted enough to forget her mask in her room. She needed it.

"Where would you like to go?" Mitsu asked waiting at the door for Lizzy, opening it and stepping out into the hall. It was a nice day maybe a stroll through the courtyard or around the edge of the forest would do.

She thought her plan would work - granted, maybe she should have targeted both ears, but at least she had an idea of how reliant Mitsu was on her mask... Perhaps this would be a lot more difficult than she originally thought; then again, looking on the bright side of things, that would make any progress easier to track!

Walking over to Mitsu and taking her arm, she smiled as they walked down the corridors of the monster dorms, "Well, I was actually thinking of walking around the garden~ I went there some time ago and it's a nice place for a stroll. There's also nobody around usually." Which made it an ideal place for 'training', not that she was going to tell Mitsu that - the ghoul would probably be able to figure it out for herself.

"Ah, by the way..." Her expression softened as her smile widened, "Do you still feel that same way about Shun...?"

There was a light wag to her tail as Lizzy took her arm and starting their way down the hall. "Oh the garden?" Mitsu had not been there before so it would be somewhere new to visit. She couldn't wait to see the different things that would be in bloom during the season. It brought back fond memories from when she remembered running through the garden at home. Now it was impossible to do, the garden had been neglected for so long nothing grew anymore. The part about there being no one around really didn't bother the lycan, then again she had no idea what Lizzy had in mind.

"I uh..." The question had come out of no where and had caught her off guard. Feeling her face heating up Mitsu shifted her gaze off to the side giving a light nod of confirmation. She did feel the same but she was still uncertain when she should talk to Shun about it. Lizzy had told her to wait and Mitsu had been thinking maybe the right time would present itself....but it always seemed so awkward. It wouldn't feel that way when the time was right would it? She didn't expect everything to feel perfect but she at least hoped to be a little less nervous.

"Yup!" She grinned, glad that Mitsu liked the idea of a stroll through the garden. When the ghoul nodded at her question, Lizzy beamed; this would certainly make things more interesting! After all, the two of them obviously had feelings for each other, even if both of them seemed unsure about what they want out of these feelings... After all, if they did, they wouldn't need any help from love squad!

"It's been a while, hasn't it?" She lightly patted Mitsu's arm, looking at the ghoul with a smile, "Now that you know Shun better - his good and bad traits - I'm glad that your feelings didn't change..." At least she could now safely say that it wasn't just infautuation or Mitsu developing some sort of attachment to him from spending too much time with that one person.

She paused, her smile growing a little as she teased, "Have you ever thought about telling Shun about your feelings some time?"

Mitsu supposed it had been a while. It didn't seem like she had come to this school that long ago but at the same time so much had happened. She had grown rather fond of the reaper and those feelings hadn't changed. In fact, she was certain they had only grown more despite his quirks. He had a rough outside but he was really a good guy, though Mitsu was fairly certain he couldn't see it himself. Maybe this was how Lizzy felt about Mac?

There was a pause as Lizzy asked her question, a puzzled sort of noise coming from Mitsu's throat. "I..I have but...it never seems like the right time. A..and you told me to wait so I didn't want to ignore your advice." Truly she held Lizzy's advice in high regard. She had listened well ignoring the urge to say something all this time. Not that she thought she would have said something otherwise. Just the thought sent bats fluttering through her stomach. "I ...also wasn't sure he would feel the same." Yes, that thought had haunted her. What if she admitted her feelings and Shun just rejected her because of it? What if it messed up their friendship? It sent her into an internal panic.

Mitsu gave a nod to Lizzy's first question. She had remembered what Lizzy had told her and had been sure not to ignore it. To Mitsu is was important advice.

Glancing up as they exited the dorm Mitsu noted the direction they were headed. They were headed toward the reaper dorms. The lycan had no idea there was a garden over than direction. Did Shun know ab- Her thought was completely interrupted. "Y..you think I should say something now?" There were those bats again, fluttering away in her stomach as she thought about telling the reaper how she felt. At least Lizzy seemed to be okay with the idea now. Maybe Mitsu could manage to do it. "I..I'm worried about what he will say." Mitsu's ears drooped a little. She knew Shun fairly well but she did not know how he would react to her confession.

"Well, how about during the date with Shun...?" She suggested; it was a gentle push, so it was up to Mitsu if she wanted to or not; however, if all goes well, Shun might end up confessing too... So it was really a matter of who confesses to who first, if they even get the courage to confess at all.

"Aww..." Her expression softened as she smiled, releasing Mitsu's arm to take her hand instead, giving it a squeeze, "It's alright to be afraid... Well, you don't have to do it if you don't want to. I guess... Confessing just means you want to know what the other person thinks of you?" She was pretty sure that Mitsu would like to know about Shun's feelings.

Ugh, she could only hope that it all works out on Spiderday...

Mitsu hunkered a bit from the pat on the head, looking to the ghoul as she took a seat on the ground. Hesitantly she took a seat beside Lizzy her focus more on the ground in front of her. "I...I'm not entirely sure." That wasn't entirely true. She knew her fears and she knew them well.

"I guess...I feel inferior without it." She tapped the mask lightly too afraid to really say anything about her caretaker. "I'm not much of a monster." The name calling came back, the taunting was hard to forget. "I feel like if I have it I can make up for what I lack at least a little bit." But she had grown more dependent on it than just that. Much more dependent. It was a way to hide in plain sight.

She listening quietly to Mitsu, taking her hand halfway through her talking and holding it tightly; demons did not get much laid down on them for not looking scary, but monsters seemed to have that problem... After all, she remembered talking to Calder about something similar, just because he was a 'pretty monster'.

Sh remained silent for a while, although her hand remained tightly around Mitsu's. It was a moment later when she finally spoke, "What does the mask make up for? What is it that you think you lack, as a monster?"

The question was something Mitsu was not prepared for, at least not to say out loud. It was verbalizing all her short comings though the mask only hide a small portion of them. As her eyes trained to the ground in front of herself, her tone became rather serious. "There are a lot of things that I lack, Lizzy." The lycan started giving the spider demon's hand a return squeeze.

"I grew up with knowing that looking scary and being scary were everything and if you couldn't be one or the other you weren't really a monster at all." There was one thing that the mask did do which was mask her expressive face. While her body language often gave things away her facial expression was a mystery and the constant image of the mask could often be unnerving. It was better than nothing. "There are a lot of things that I will never be able to hide, but this hides what is most useless." She said in a softer tone tapping at the mask. And that's what she honestly thought of her childish face. It's what she had been told after all.

Again, she found herself being unable to relate and it was something that ate away at her; Mitsu obviously had some deep-seeded issues connected to her looking 'not scary' despite being classified as a monster. Pausing, she scooted closer to Mitsu, putting an arm over her shoulder and pulling her in, "Well, we're all in school to learn how to be scary right? A face that is not scary might be a good thing, in a way... You get the element of surprise!" She smiled, putting her head gently against the ghoul's, "I don't look scary either, do I?"

Sure, she was no monster, but 'being scary' did not just apply to one race in Halloween... Not at all.

Mitsu gave a nod leaning in closer as Lizzy put an arm around her shoulder. "I guess." She wasn't entirely sure she believed it though.

"No, you don't look scary," Mitsu admitted, though she had yet to see Lizzy with her legs. "But you probably have more than just appearance to go by. That's all I really have." Demons generally had magic, much like the reapers, that was always something else which Mitsu didn't have at her disposal. In any case it didn't seem like Lizzy was going to change her mind any time soon.

"Element of surprise," She repeated herself, and Mitsu would soon find 4 spider legs curling around her side, pulling her in even closer; it would seem that those thin, fragile looking legs might be stronger than Lizzy herself. She smiled and gave the werewolf's shoulder a light squeeze, "Besides, like I said, we're here in school to learn how to be scary, but you have to overcome your own fears and take that very first step first..."

She paused, the spider legs turning into a black, wispy substance that quickly dissipated into the air, "You have your wolf form, and you could always go to a professor for private lessons on how to use that to your advantage... But that also means stepping out of your comfort zone." The mask was holding her back, and Lizzy was pretty sure that somewhere in Mitsu, she knew this as well, "Shun had been protecting you a lot, but one day, you might need to protect him - it never goes one way. I had to learn it the hard way, but that's how it works... I watch your back and you watch mine."

While she knew that Mitsu would not be convinced by this, she really did not want her to 'learn it the hard way'.

Inhaling sharply, she smiled, the hand on Mitsu's shoulder moving to pat her on the head instead, "Well! You're still a year 1~ So there's plenty of time for you to get comfortable." And maybe change her mindset... It would be a long road ahead, probably.

The repeated words didn't really effect Mitsu, not until she felt something that wasn't an arm wrapping around her side. Multiple things in fact. Looking down she saw the long spider legs curling around pulling her closer to the spider demon. Had...Lizzy always had these? Mitsu had never seen them before. Though this seemed to only strengthen what Mitsu had said. Lizzy had other things going for her that let her fit in.

"Yeah I know," Mitsu almost grumbled. Maybe she was picking up some bad habits from the reaper she always hung around with. She seemed to realize her toned wasn't entirely favorable so she immediately followed up with a lighter voice that was more like her own. "I'm not sure who to go to about that." Mitsu was only familiar with so many Professors. Who would help her to learn to take advantage of her true form? It was daunting to think about to Mitsu, it wasn't just this form that was small, she was a runt in general. Much smaller than her mother and father or even her brother had been. Too bad Mitsu didn't realize that for a werewolf her form was rather huge.

Mitsu's brows furrowed behind her mask, her legs coming up to her chest as she wrapped her arms around them. "I...I never wanted to be a burden. Shun is supposed to train me. I want to...protect the people I care about." So that they wouldn't keep disappearing on her. If she could protect them then maybe no one else would vanish.

Ears drooping forward Mitsu let out a soft whine as she leaned further into her knees. This subject matter was rather tough but she knew Lizzy meant well. The spider demon was only trying to help her and look out for her. "I'll work harder, Lizzy. I promise."

"Hmmm, Professor Red, maybe? She's a werewolf!" She couldn't think of any other shifter-type professors in the school, but she wasn't sure if Professor Red would be willing to do any private lessons; after all, Lizzy hadn't seen her since the last class she held, a long time ago, so she might just be busy. A pause followed as she went through the list of professors whose classes she had recently attended, "Or... Professor Savage?" She wasn't sure what the Human Studies Professor was though, and if she could even help Mitsu at all.

"I'm sorry... I didn't mean to nag at you," She had to admit that it was becoming a really, really bad habit of hers though, "I'm just really worried... I just this bad feeling that things might be happening." Or rather, the way they asked all the year 2's to sign a waiver made her suspicious that something might be happening soon; after all, why them? Why now, when they had been sent on one dangerous field trip after the other in the past? Had it reached that point where they might actually face permanent death, unlike Christmas town and unlike that 'foggy' island?

She just wanted to get back to her own life... But yet, she signed that waiver; not thinking about something doesn't make it go away.

"It's good that you're trying though," Her smile widened a little as she nodded, "I suppose that is a good first step..." She chuckled lightly, shaking her head, "On the island, we couldn't save each other... After we returned, Mac made me overcome my fear of water and taught me to swim so I wouldn't risk drowning on future field trips. I started jogging regularly to build up my stamina, and Petro helped me with my speed... Then I met such wonderful new friends such as Xiu, Mot, Shun... And you."

She playfully ruffled the ghoul's hair, giving her a grin, "Your friends will give you strength! Believe in them~" Oh gosh what is this? A pep talk? Her cheeks started to turn pink as she realized how much she sounded like some sort of a cliche motivational speaker before turning her body to give Mitsu a hug, "Ahhhh, this was supposed to be a happy day out! Let's... Run around the garden while yelling or something."

"Professor Red?" Mitsu had yet to meet this Professor, but they were a werewolf too? Maybe that would be helpful. Mitsu wasn't entirely sure what Professor Savage was either so she wasn't sure if she could help. She mostly smelled of salt water so it was hard to say by her scent. It might not hurt to ask if she had trouble locating Professor Red or if this person was too busy. It seemed a lot of activity was going on lately and there was rumor about something going on in the future even Lizzy seemed to sense it, so it was hard to say if this Professor Red would have too much too much to deal with or not.

"I know you mean well." Mitsu said softly. Lizzy was her friend, she wouldn't do anything to hurt her. She was pretty sure of that. It was just hard to move passed her fears, but as the demoness said that's why they were in school. To learn about these things to move passed them so that they themselves could be scary.

Mitsu wanted to ask Lizzy what she thought might be going on. Mitsu hadn't really heard anything mention about another field trip yet. Maybe she could find out a bit later. For now it seemed the conversation had moved on. "M..Mac helped you?" Mitsu asked curiously. Wait..."Y..you drowned?!" At least that's what Mitsu had gotten from that statement. That just seemed like such a horrible way to go and it took Mitsu back to the time she had pulled Shun out of the pond. What a scary day that had been and she had been forced to remove her mask. So it wasn't like she couldn't do it if the situation called for it. But outside of needing to she wasn't very up for it. But swimming and running were two things that Mitsu could actually do so maybe...one problem down. Many others to face.

"I'm very glad to have met you all," Mitsu smiled behind her mask suddenly caught off guard by the hair ruffling and then the hug. Mitsu liked Lizzy hugs though and quickly reciprocated the gesture and hugged her back. The lighter tone and hug made the mood lift a little, Mitsu's ears perking a bit as the situation shifted. "R...Run around yelling?" Mitsu wasn't sure about the yelling part but. "I don't mind running around." A good run would probably be good for them both. "We can circle the garden before heading back to the dorm." Mitsu thought about shifting but perhaps that was unfair. She knew her strides would be a bit much for Lizzy to keep up with.

"She is the current gym teacher, although I hadn't seen her for a while... I'm sure you could drop by her office though, to see if she's willing to do some private tutoring," She nodded, giving Mitsu an encouraging smile; it was nice to see that she was actually taking her suggestion into consideration... It would be easier to help Mitsu if the one teaching her is of the same species, right?

"He did," Her smile turned sleepish as she sighed softly; despite all the new developments in their relationship, she still couldn't bring herself to feel secure about it. Her mother's words had - frankly - scared her a little; she might trust Mac, but... Her smile faltered for a moment before she hid it with a giggle, "His way of showing affection is a little different, I suppose, although it might also be because I'm a demon... Ah, well, I almost drowned twice - once, a student lost control and tried to drown me in a vat of bleach, but he was stopped in time. Another incident was when I thought my minipet was drowning... It was a stupid move on my part, but I panicked and dove in after him, although I couldn't swim. Mac saved me, even left his jacket on me to keep me warm but when I confronted him, he refused to admit to saving a demon."

How things had changed since then... Well, sort of.

"Just a random idea!" She chuckled lightly, ruffling Mitsu's hair again before standing up, offering a hand for her to take as she grinned, "Take sounds good to me! Just don't ask me for a race - sports-related things are not my forte at all, and running takes a lot out of me, usually." At least she was improving, from her regular morning jogs and from running with Petro!