St. Mary Girls Academy Part 3

“Thanks for showing me right to it!” He says, his rugged voice growling. There’s no doubt his vocal cords have been damaged at some point. His lips twist into a wild grin. His partner stands behind him, too burly to squeeze through the small opening.

“Let her go.” Asa demands. “She’s not a part of this.”

“Give me the object first, then we’ll talk.”

“If I give you it, will you let her go? Safely?”

“That’d be no problem with me. I may be a criminal, but I disagree with pointless bloodshed. I have nothing against this girl.” The man musters his most trustworthy smile.

Asa closes his eyes, then walks to the man in a practiced manner. “Wait. Don’t tell me you’re actually gonna give it to him?!” Mint blurts.

Asa holds the Key over his open palm. He pierces the man with his gaze. “If you fail to keep your word, I’ll kill you.”

His brow twitches. “Oh? What’s the pipsqueak crossdresser going to do?”

Minoki’s eyes widen. Crossdresser?

Asa glares. “Just do it.”

“Alright, alright. I won’t hurt her. Promise.”

He holds the glare for a second, then drops the Key. It lands in the man’s calloused fingers with a soft plap. “Thank you very much.” He purrs.

He practically throws Minoki at them, and makes a run for the door. She crashes into Mint with a scream and they both fall. Asa taps his chest and transforms. He rams into the man shoulder-first at full speed, pinning him to the wall.

A mounted shelf splinters under the impact, sending books flying and metal parts crashing to the ground. A chicken alarm clock shatters and wooden support beams creak.

His cheek is squished up far enough to close his eye and a few of his teeth have cracked. Blood trickles from his mouth. There’s an empty stare in his open eye. Asa takes advantage, grabbing him by the arm and swinging him 90 degrees.

He collides with another shelf, this one not mounted and much bigger. His body bounces and falls to the hardwood. The shelf follows, emptying Minoki’s ancient relics onto him. She watches in numb horror as her collection topples in an avalanche of glass and metal.

It’s one of the loudest sounds she’s ever heard, like a stampede of elephants running through a field of pots and pans, with a few cannons going off for good measure. She’s afraid the floor is going to give. What would her mom think if the floor gave? There’s no way that guy survived.

The beautiful spy may’ve killed a man in her house. Her bedroom, no less. What has become of this day? The man’s partner charges into the room.

Asa dodges a knife slash. The world moves in slow motion as Minoki examines his body. His torso is a rectangle shape, with only a modest curve at the hips.

His waist is wide and his chest is rather flat, even with a breastplate bulking it up. It’s true that the androgynous woman of her dreams could look like this, but her image of the mysterious spy is morphing into a masculine one.

Not one of a masculine woman, just a man. Minoki’s face turns ashen as her spirit leaves her body. She watches the battle with lifeless eyes. The collapsed shelf rattles. It rattles harder, and harder.

It lifts from the ground, shaking violently. The scarred man’s muscles tremble with exertion. He throws the shelf.

“Minoki!” Mint cries, shoving her to the floor. Wood splinters. A plank whacks her on the head and another lands on her shoulder. Mint pushes himself up and looks her in the eyes, a few planks sliding from his back.

“Are you okay?!” He asks. Intense eyes strike into her heart. The little pigtail that bobs with the movement adds a touch of cuteness. Heat floods her face. Maybe the prince she’s looking for is just smaller than she expected. The scarred man stumbles, chiffon curtains brushing his shoulder.

Squaring his stance, he unsheaths the taser and switches it on with a cocky smirk. Asa interrupts the partner’s stab and grapples him into a one arm shoulder throw. His body slams into the scarred man and the window shatters.

The house rumbles from the impact as the two men hit stone below. Asa sticks his head through an opening in the broken glass. The scarred man lies under his partner. Neither are attempting to move. In this moment of stillness, Minoki takes stock of the damage.

Broken relics, shattered porcelain, and cracked dolls are strewn across the floor. There’s a gaping, man-sized indent where the wall’s part caved in. Her cuckoo clock and her desk are destroyed… Nothing has been left untouched. She looks at Asa.

He stands by the window, backlit by the cloudless, blue sky. Light reflects off his hair as it's tousled by the calm breeze.

☼

All three run through the backdoor and down the stairs. Mint and Asa are talking about something urgently, but Minoki doesn’t care to figure out what. Stray strands poke out from her braids.

Her glasses sit crooked on her face and she doesn’t bother to fix them. They reach the ground story within seconds. The two men are there and still haven’t moved. Asa’s mouth is moving. She thinks he’s talking to her. “What?”

“Insurance. Does your mom have insurance?”

“Yeah, I think so.”

“Have her take pictures of the damage and fill out a claim. If you're talking to police and anything about a mysterious object comes up, tell them you don’t know what they’re talking about and that these guys are burglars.” Sirens can be heard in the distance. “We need to get going. Bye!”

Asa and Mint start to run away, when Minoki speaks up. “Um.” She says, looking at Mint with a bashful expression. “May I know your name? I won’t tell anyone.”

He contemplates for a second, then answers. “It’s Mint.”

“Mint…” Her blush deepens and she holds a hand to her chest.

Asa elbows Mint. “Way to go, lady killer! Now, let’s go.”

They run off, Mint’s face turning red as a tomato. Minoki looks devastated.

“They’re both men?” She murmurs weakly. It’s suddenly the coldest 70 degree day she’s ever felt. A gust of wind blows a few leaves past her feet.

“I’m never taking strange items off the ground again…”

☼

The engine of the hoverbike whirs. Trees whip by in a blur. Mint clings to Asa, just barely managing not to fall off. “I feel like I aged 20 years….”

“Teenage girls have it a lot harder than I thought.” Says Asa.