The final bell of class chimed, interrupting Haleford's lecture.

"Ah," he said once the chime ended. "It appears my tirade has gone on long enough. We will save the remainder of today's lesson for class next week. Have an excellent weekend class; stay safe, those of you with assignments, and for those without I wish you an uneventful and relaxing weekend."

The class barely heard Haleford over their general clamor as the students put their things in their bags.

"And as far as our "dinosaur" problem is concerned," Haleford interrupted as the class's preparations to leave were suddenly stopped. "I have spoken with Sister Hund, your Chrysanthemum Dean, and Malzone has spoken with Father Esposito, the Bellflower Dean. Neither of them have reported any knowledge of any Feeders with the described traits prior to Mister Fujita's report."

"Yeah," Ken chimed in as he finished putting his things away. "They called me in to describe the thing, well, Ms. Hund did. I told her all about the thing I fought, but she didn't seem all that interested. Real 'can't believe I have to deal with this' vibes."

"I would not be surprised. The two deans, and the headmaster himself, are no doubt overwhelmed with all manner of scientific officials. For them, it would certainly be far simpler for this all to be a figment of Mister Fujita's imagination."

"But it's not," Ken replied.

"Apologies, I did not mean to insinuate anything. I believe you, Ken, for you have no reason to be untruthful in this matter. But for the powers that be, it would be much easier for this whole ordeal to be swept under the rug. Unfortunately, for them and for us, I do not believe that will be the case. For better or for worse, it would seem a new generation of Feeders may be upon us."

"Isn't that like, a big deal?" Emanuel said.

"A very big deal. Feeders predate written history, and from the dawn of human society we have understood Feeders to be born of the blood of living things, and to be derivative forms of their parent beings. We all understand this. For a Feeder to possess traits of multiple parent beings... I can only dread the implications."

"I've been doing independent research," Maria added. "For one, Ken, I don't think it's a dinosaur."

"Hell yeah. Fuck dinosaurs."

"Language," Haleford said.

"Sorry."

"Two," Maria continued, "birds and reptiles are not, in fact, related. A bird is more closely related to a crocodile than an iguana, which you said the Feeder was. So I don't think that this was some freak of genetics that resulted in a weird Feeder. Three, I find it weird that this is the literal first of these Feeders we're hearing about."

"What's that supposed to mean?" Ken asked indignantly.

"I mean, the facts don't add up. It's not a genetic one-off that we encountered randomly, but we aren't hearing about more Feeders like this popping up? This was Ken's random one-off Feeder mutant? I got to thinking, and now that Ken and Mr. Haleford have mentioned how the staff don't really like dealing with this press- do you think more students have fought Feeders like this? And maybe their stories weren't heard, for one reason or another?"

"Ooohhh," Ken said, and clapped. "Sasuga genius."

"Sasu-what?"

"It means 'as expected.' It's a compliment. Most of the time."

"And you mean it as a compliment, right?"

"Of course," Ken said, sweating.

"If you're right," Isabella added, "then maybe we should ask some of the other students? ...That's a lot of students to get through, though."

"Well, club rush is next week," Emanuel said. "We could maybe organize something? All the students are gonna be in the courtyard looking at all of the clubs- maybe we could set something up? Mr. Haleford? What do you think?"

"I like the sound of it," Haleford replied. "The one problem would be that all of the stalls have already been approved, and there is no time for a stall to be approved now. If you do anything, it will have to be unofficial."

"We can just ask people as they pass by, maybe?" Isabella asked. "Oh, I know! Let's have flyers, or posters, to get people's attention! Will that work?"

"As long as you have no official station," Haleford replied, "I believe that is fine. Do not be surprised if you are asked to leave, however."

"Even if we can get a couple of people interested, that's what matters," Maria said and turned to the class. "All that matters is that we start the fire, and get people talking about it. I wouldn't be surprised if the admin tries to let all of this blow over, so let's make sure that doesn't happen."

The students clapped. Isabella and Ken were genuine, Emanuel joined them sarcastically. Dory clapped because everyone else was clapping. Maria blushed at the attention.

"Bellflower kids really are built different, aren't they," Ken said.

"So who's gonna make the posters?" Emanuel asked.

The class deflated. The five students glanced at each other. Ken snuck behind his sister and raised her hand.

"Guys, look, Dory wants to do the posters!"

"HA?"

"Don't worry, you got this."

"Why aren't you doing it?"

"I've got assignments."

"Me too," Emanuel lied.

"I can't draw," Maria said.

Isabella paused. The students looked at her. She stared at them.

"Don't even think about it."

"It's so nice that you volunteered," Emanuel said.

"I did not!"

"Well, it's you or Dory."

Isabella looked at Dory, and her puppy-dog eyes, and huffed. "Fine, I'll draw the damn posters."

The class cheered.

As they left the classroom into the hallway, Ken tapped Isabella on the shoulder.

"Got more to throw on me?" Isabella asked as she turned around to face him. "Where's the other one?"

"She's heading home right now. I was actually wondering if, maybe, you wanted to work on the posters together?"

"Huh? Why? You were so ready to throw your sister under the bus."

"I mean, I just kinda think it was fucked up that Emanuel made you do the posters. And, like, I was gonna help her anyways. Cause I'm such a good guy."

Isabella squinted at Ken. She looked over the boy, at his fidgety demeanor and slight blush in his cheeks, and locked eyes with him. He looked away pretty quickly.

"I'm not interested in dating right now," she replied.

"Damn," Ken said. "Can't blame a guy for trying."

"So now are you still gonna help me with the posters?"

"Huh? I mean sure, I can, but I figured you wouldn't want to since that would make things awkward."

"It's only gonna be as awkward as you make it. You offered to help, so I'm gonna hold you up to that, date or no."

"Damn. Well, I have an assignment on Saturday night, so I can't do it then."

"Sounds good, I'll see you Sunday. We'll meet in the library here to work on them."

Isabella turned and walked away.

"Smooth..." Ken said to himself. "Now you've got posters to make AND no bitches."

Isabella's phone buzzed on Saturday night.

Ken: Isabella I like you

Isabella: Ken we literally went over this yesterday

Ken: Ha?

He already confessed?

Isabella: I'm confused

Ken: I'm Dory

I stole my older brother's phone

He forgot it when he went on his assignment

Isabella: Omg lol

And you were gonna prank him by texting me that? Girl u r evil

Ken: I knew he liked you

He did the same to me with my middle school crush

Year later payback

Isabella: Holy shit

Thats so funny

Ken: I underestimated brain of high school boy

Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation.

Too erotic

Only thinks about sex

Isabella: GIRL STOP

Ken: Did you know he plays gacha games

With slutty women

Isabella: I DID NOT

UR KILLING THIS MAN OMFG

Ken: Last night he ate my ice cream

Deserved

Isabella: lol

ur too much

Ken: Now I am going to tell Maria

Isabella: LMAO

Emanuel woke up late on Sunday, and groggily dragged himself out of bed. To his surprise, Shinzo was sitting at his desk, doing homework.

"Morning," Emanuel said.

"Morning," Shinzo replied.

"I'm surprised you're here."

"Yeah, the dumbass that I needed to meet with got in a car accident."

"Holy shit, what? Is he okay?"

"He's fine, probably just didn't want to meet up."

"Run that by me one more time."

"I'd do the same thing if I didn't want to meet with someone."

"I... you know what, me too honestly."

Emanuel got out of bed and got ready.

"Holy shit it's two," he said as he got out of the shower.

"Yeah, we got sleeping beauty over here. What time did you go to bed last night?"

"Like... ten, I think."

Shinzo thought about Emanuel playing games on his laptop, and how Emanuel was still playing when Shinzo went to bed at midnight.

"Yeah, sure. Didn't you mention having a thing to do today?"

"Did I?"

"Yeah, that therapist Solomon set you up with, the one he got you booked with extra fast because he's Solomon?"

Emanuel stared at Shinzo blankly. Sweat trickled down his forehead, as he began to recall the appointment that he was now several hours late for.

"Tell them you got hit by a car," Shinzo smiled.

Ken arrived at the Mavella library mid-Sunday afternoon. Isabella waved him down once she saw him.

"Oh my god, what happened?" She asked once Ken sat down next to her, pointing at his left arm in a sling.

"Feeder from last night, broke my arm."

"And you didn't get it fixed?"

"Nah, I'll heal it myself."

"Bro..."

"Nah, it's fine, trust. I've healed worse."

"Like that?" She asked, pointing at the scarred holes in Ken's head.

"Yeah, and I'm totally fine now," Ken said, and then faked having a spasm. Isabella did not find it funny.

"How long's it gonna take to heal on its own?" She asked.

"Probably about three days."

"Three whole days?!"

"Just three days."

"But you could go to a professional healer and get it healed up in an hour!"

"Yeah, well..." Ken considered whether he wanted his friend, and still hopefully future girlfriend, to find out he was broke. "...Nevermind."

"Nah, say it. You wanted to say it, say it."

"I don't... okay, don't laugh, but I don't have the money to go to a professional healer right now."

"Go to the student healers then!"

"The what?"

"There's a program here where you can get treated by students that are training to become professional healers."

"Wait, like, for real?"

"Yeah! How did you not know?"

"We didn't have anything like that back in Japan. Honestly, we barely had professional healers at all. All the Mods in Japan are about fighting real good."

"Seriously?"

"Yeah, it kinda sucks. People with real healing Mods are so rare, they get to charge an arm and a leg. It's kinda fucked up."

"Glad we're not living there, then. You can swing by the student healers right now, actually- I think they're staffed 24/7."

"For real? Aren't they students?"

"Yeah, but they get paid to work there, so it's like an easy part-time job."

"Lucky bastards," Ken said as he stood up to go. "You know how long they take?"

"Shouldn't be longer than a couple hours, with all the paperwork."

"There's paperwork? Fuck..."

Ken left, and Isabella called out after him. "Get back here quick, we've got posters to make." She giggled, and Ken tried to pretend he wasn't excited at the idea of spending more time with her.

The following morning, Emanuel crawled out of bed and made his way to his dresser. Today, and all this week for that matter, he wouldn't be wearing his usual clothes. He dug past the layers of ripped jeans and grungy shirts, down to a neatly folded uniform- Mavella's uniform. The students were normally allowed to wear whatever they wanted, but for official events- which club rush counted as, for reasons beyond Emanuel- they were expected to wear their uniforms. Emanuel withdrew the sleek satin shirt, a dull green in color, and the paired black slacks. Emanuel groaned when he saw the Orion constellation on the left breast pocket, figuring it was another way for his family to write their name on something else.

As he finished getting dressed, he turned to face Shinzo, and was shocked to see that Shinzo's uniform lacked the Orion constellation.

"What the fuck?" Emanuel moaned as he pointed where the constellation should be.

"Huh?" Shinzo said through a mouthful of water.

"You don't have the constellation!"

"No shit, I'm not an Orion. Not yet, at least. That's how a family crest works, numbnuts."

"I thought this was a uniform? You're telling me my uniform looks different?"

"Obviously it's not just you, it's all the Orions. That's how that works."

"Why???"

"Because that's sorta the whole thing. It's celebrity status. You get to walk around and show off how big your dick is because you're part of the big dick family."

"But I don't want to be!"

"Why not? It kicks ass. I see the way Orions are treated at school- give it a shot. I'm trying to leverage the little bit I get by being engaged to one. It's privilege. Use it."

Emanuel looks down, sadly, at the constellation on his shirt.

"I'd really rather not..."

"Sure, wanna trade then? I'll use all that privilege if you're not gonna."

"...No."

"Fine, use it then. Use it or lose it."

Emanuel looked at Shinzo, then back at his shirt.

"Fine..." Emanuel groaned.

"Man shut the fuck up, just go flex for a day. Try it, it's fun. Clubs get extra funding if they scout an Orion, so use that."

"How so?"

"Just like, fucking, I don't know, brag about how many clubs you're being invited to and say... say that if the girl- or guy, hell if I know- who's scouting you doesn't date you that you won't join."

"That seems sleazy..."

"So what? Your family will make it all blow over. That's your bullshit superpower. Exploit it. Abuse it."

"What if-"

"Lemme stop you there. Stop thinking about it and just do it. Tell someone 'since I'm an Orion,' and then follow that up with whatever the fuck comes to mind. Just give it a shot. I've been doing it and it KICKS ASS."

"...Okay?"

"Attaboy."

The students of Chrysanthemum Class met up at lunch the following Monday in the courtyard of Mavella. The courtyard was a stunning feature of architecture, not that any of the students that attended cared to notice. Sheltered on all sides by the buildings of the cathedral, the central courtyard housed a simple-yet-elegant fountain at its heart, with a cross of cobblestone pathways between each of the surrounding buildings that centered on the fountain. Lush grasses filled the space between the pathways, with beds of flowers lining the edges of where the grass and path met. This week, however, the beauty of the courtyard was overshadowed by the commotion of the numerous stalls owned by the clubs of Mavella, as they attempted to recruit new members for the coming year. The stalls lined each side of the pathways, leaving only a small space for people to walk through.

Emanuel jogged to the fountain, where the rest of Chrysanthemum waited, sitting by or on the fountain. The five of them remarked at each others' uniforms, and Ken pretended he wasn't ogling Isabella, seeing her in a dress for the first time. The truth was, as much as the students wanted to jeer at each other for wearing their uniforms, the dark satin material was was extremely flattering. The short sleeves of the male uniforms did well to display their toned muscles, while the contours of the female dresses slimmed down exactly where they needed to. Of course, all the students had to pretend they didn't notice.

"We ready?" Emanuel greeted.

"Hell yeah we are," Ken replied. He unfurled the poster he Isabella worked on. The Chrysanthemum Class gasped, not in amazement but in shock. The poorly-drawn iguana with bird wings that Ken had encountered sat at the center of the poster, and the words across the top of the poster read: "Have you seen something like this?"

"I..." Emanuel said dejectedly.

"I am not holding that," Maria said.

"What she said," Emanuel followed up.

"What?" Isabella said. "It's perfectly fine, right?" She glanced around the group. Nobody could look her in the eye. "Okay, look, you think it's that bad? Do it yourself next time!"

"I actually like it a lot," Emanuel said. "Yeah, totally works... as long as I'm not holding it."

"Well," Maria tapped him on the shoulder. "I did the research, Ken and Isabella did the poster- that means you have to advertise. Besides, it'll be great to have an Orion talking- real voice of authority, y'know."

"What about Dory?" Emanuel said, pointing at Dory, who immediately deployed puppy-dog eyes.

"I can't hear if people shout at me..." Dory said as she touched her index fingers together and looked down at her feet.

"I... fine."

Dory immediately dropped the act. Ken shook his head and mouthed, "you fell for it..."

Now, it's not entirely certain whether Emanuel's sour look and aura of killing intent did or did not deter people from approaching Chrysanthemum's impromptu stall. What is certain, however, is that the hour of lunch passed by without a single soul approaching the group. Throughout this hour, Emanuel continued to scowl as he held the poorly-made poster, wishing he could socialize with the people at the other stalls, or frankly do anything other than what he was doing right now. He scowled and frowned and scowled again as Isabella was scouted by the Gym Club, as Dory was scouted by the Students with Disabilities Organization (SDO), and as Maria was scouted by the Young Scholars Program. Soon, only he and Ken were left standing by the fountain as the lunch bell tolled.

"This was fucking stupid," Emanuel said.

"Now now, we did what we had to do... but yeah, not a great day. I'm surprised more people didn't come up to you."

"Yeah, my stupid roommate told me I'd be drowning in clubs, but not a single one came over. It's because of this stupid poster, I bet."

"I don't know what to tell ya. Good news is, we got all week."

"A whole week of this??? Fuck me."

"...Um, excuse me?"

The two turned to look at a pair of girls, who looked to be a year ahead of Ken and Emanuel both. Ken nudged Emanuel with his elbow, and raised his eyebrows rapidly. One of the girls grimaced.

"Are you an... Orion?" One of them asked. This girl was blonde, and the shorter and less muscular of the two- about the same height as Ken. Her hair was long, and held up in a bun.

"Yeah, I am," Emanuel replied.

"And what is... that?" The other asked. This girl was black, and was both tall and muscular. Her hair was braided tightly into many little braids, which hung down to her shoulders. She was pointing at the poster Emanuel held.

"You see... I'd like to know that myself," Emanuel said, scowling at Ken.

"And that's just the thing!" Ken said, as he leapt into his social persona. "We don't know- do you? I recently fought this Feeder on an assignment, and it seemed to be made of both a lizard and a bird! So we're asking around, seeing if anyone has had a similar run-in with a hybrid Feeder, and we're using this poster to do it! Got any leads?"

"...Kay," the black girl said, "first of all, that's the ugliest thing I've ever seen. Like you have GOT to work on your drawing skills. Second, haven't seen anything like that before. Third, we're here to talk to you today about joining our club."

Emanuel did his best not to smile. He failed.

"We're here on behalf of the Lyther Student's Association, or LSA," she continued, and Emanuel immediately dropped his smile. "Have you heard the word of Lyther?"

"I'm more than aware. I'm good, you can keep moving."

"But the word of Lyther is the one true gospel," the blonde chimed in. "and it's our duty to spread it-"

"We're good," Emanuel cut them off.

"Are you aware that the Orion Family has heavy ties to the Church of Lyther?" She continued. "It's only natural for you to join!"

"I'll pass." Emanuel said, in the sternest voice he could muster. "I'm not interested."

"Are you involved in any other clubs?" The black girl chimed in.

"...No," Emanuel muttered.

"That doesn't matter," Ken said. "We're not interested, can you just go find someone else?"

"But-"

"But nothing," Ken interrupted. "Get 'er gone."

The two stepped away, disheartened.

Within a minute of the two girls leaving, a group of eight people was beginning to gather around the Emanuel and Ken.

"Um... what's the deal?"

"Are you not in a club?" one of the gathered peoples asked.

"Uh... no?" Emanuel replied, very confused.

The group murmured excitedly.

"We thought you were a part of some freaky club," another one said.

"Since you're not, you'd be cool with joining the Quilter's Union, right?" a third asked.

"You'd fit in great at the Feeder Research Club!" a fourth shouted.

"Come join us at the Snacker's Alliance!" a fifth said.

Emanuel smiled to himself, thinking back to his conversation with Shinzo.

"Well," he said, "if you want me to join, you gotta make it worth my while." A shit-eating grin crossed his face.

The general clamor of the amassed group died down in an instant.

"Nah man, that ain't how it works."

"Yeah, you join a club for fun. You don't go asking for a reason to join."

"Not cool..."

The group shook their head in disappointment and left. All except one, that is.

"Look man, we just really need the numbers," he said.

This boy looked to be years ahead of Ken and Emanuel both- as a matter of fact, it looked like he shouldn't be in school at all. He was taller than Haleford, taller than Solomon, taller than anyone Emanuel had ever met. While he wasn't as muscular as Haleford, he was still beyond muscular for his height, as though all he did was weight train. His hair shocked Emanuel, as it was a light gray in color, and his eyes were a light green. His arms and face were colored with scars- fewer than Shinzo, but more than anyone else Emanuel had ever met. To match his intimidating appearance, his uncomfortable forced smile brought across that he was not a person who regularly enjoyed himself.

"And, uh, what club are you here from?" Emanuel asked, killing himself inside for his cringeworthy actions.

"Anime club."

"Oh..." Emanuel and Ken said in sync.

"Yeah, exactly. It's not exactly popular for, y'know obvious reasons, so we don't get a lot of people what the fuck is that?" The boy cut himself off, pointing at the crude drawing on Emanuel's poster.

"Oh, that's a weird hybrid Feeder I fought a few days ago," Ken said. "We're asking around if anyone's seen anything."

"Oh yeah, I've seen like six of those."

"Yeah so if you ever hear anything what did you say?"

"Oh yeah, I go out on assignments like all the time. These guys have been popping up everywhere lately." A diabolical grin fell across the boy's face. "I'll tell you all about it- if you join my club."