Weekend Paperwork (Open)

Like a half asleep zombie, Izanami slowly shuffled her way down the halls back towards her office. As she walked she took sips from her coffee. She drank it black as her armor, her father had always told her it was an 'acquired' taste. Well, she had acquired quiet the caffeine dependency in the mornings, so he had been right. Her free hand rubbed at her forehead, trying to stir herself into being well rested. It was not working, but the caffeine was certainly helping. It was a hallow victory.

Izanami swore she heard something... familiar echoing down the halls, but a quick glance in both directions and she saw no one. Head dazed mind was playing tricks on her, she told herself as she made her way to her office door. Izanami swiped her I.D. Card, and to her surprise her door beeped red. "Hmm?" She mused aloud, swiping her card again. Again it came back red, Izanami reached for the handle and discovered why. The door was already unlocked, which was unusual. She knew for a fact it locked automatically behind her went she left work last Friday. Not wanting to play detective at seven in the morning, Izanami concluded the janitorial staff must be cleaning the halls this weekend.

Making her way into her quaint office, Dragon Queen yawned and found herself a coaster to set her coffee mug down on. Not before a quick sip though, and she wiggled her mouse to stir her computer to life. It flashed the login screen to the school's network, so whoever left the door unlocked hadn't been trying to snoop through her files. Izanami leaned over and typed in her login credentials as she rolled her chair out with her foot. She only sat down for a moment though, before launching herself out of her seat. BBWWWAAAAAAAHHHP! It was the fastest Izanami had moved all morning as she shot up from her seat. Cursing aloud, the woman would have knocked her coffee out of her hand were it not on her desk. She immediately took a defensive stance, fists raised as her eyes darted around the room.

A moment passed before Izanami let out a long sigh and dropped her guard. She ran a hand through her wavy locks of hair, turning around and looking down at her seat. She fished around under the cushion and quickly found the culprit, an airhorn. Anger burned like fire in her eyes, as she held the device in her clenched fist. The vengeful woman exhaled sharply, trying to remain calm, cool, and collected. She slowly lowered herself back into her seat, setting the airhorn down on her desk. Her office had an intercom button, and Izanami pressed it after clearing her throat. "Miss Kawaguchi, I know you are here somewhere. Please see me in my office. Now." There was no hiding the anger in her final word, and Izanami sat there tapping her fingers anxiously on her desk as she waited for that immature miscreant she called a coworker to arrive.

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No sooner had Izanami's finger left the button on her intercom when she heard the sound of a curvaceous young fox woman falling out of the office closet where she kept a spare Hero Costume as well as more professional clothing for press conferences and interviews. She hadn't even suspected anyone was hiding in there, but sure enough Chiyoko tumbled out onto the floor, laughing to herself like a grinning idiot. Izanami's scowl only intensified, her eyes glaring like a thousand red hot daggers waiting to cut her fellow Hero to ribbons. More noticeable though, was Izanami's cheeks turning slightly pink as she face flushed with embarrassment.

Dragon Queen rose from her seat almost as quickly as she had during the prank, her hands on her desk as she peered over the edge to watch Chiyoko quite literally rolling on the floor laughing. She was so mad she couldn't even speak, just glaring down at her prankster while trying to formulate a response that wasn't just her screaming obscenities. "Very funny Miss Kawaguchi." Izanami finally said, speaking through clenched teeth as she walked around her desk and offered a hand to help Aegis onto her feet. She may be furious, but even then she wouldn't be impolite.

"Take a seat, I don't want you going anywhere." Izanami added harshly, before returning to her office chair. The buxom woman dropped into her seat so swiftly it left a pendulous bounce in her massive bust for a moment. Meanwhile, her amethyst eyes glared coldly into Chiyoko's own amber gaze. Part of her wanted to throw the fox girl through a window, not that that wouldn't be the end of her teaching career...

Izanami waited for Chiyoko's childish giggling fit to finally subside, before she continued to speak. "Is this all a game to you Chiyoko?" Izanami stated harshly, tapping her armored nails impatiently on her desk. "This..." She held up the air horn for her coworker to inspect. "...Is childish and stupid. You are supposed to be a teacher. We are supposed to be role models." Izanami slid open a desk drawer and tossed the air horn inside. "I'm keeping this." She said simply. The air horn farted out a soft BWAAP as it hit the back of the drawer. Izanami ignored it, pretending not to hear the comically timed sound. Dragon Queen just couldn't believe Aegis right now. No wait, yes she could, she pulled pranks like this on the regular. None managed to illicit even the slightest grin from the stern and serious Hero.

"Chiyoko..." Izanami said, trying to put herself in her coworker's shoes. "Why exactly are you like this? I've seen your file in the system. I'm well aware this is the Hero Association's final straw with you. Prove you can teach as a show of good faith, or have your Hero License suspended until further notice." Izanami felt like a mother scolding her child. Except the woman seated opposite her was an adult, and close to her age no less. Dragon Queen was only four years Aegis' senior. "You haven't grown up one bit since we were in in high school. You do realize that?"

That certainly felt like a lifetime ago, and if you excluded Chiyoko's figure, she hadn't. The young woman was the same trouble making trickster she'd always been. Izanami had been a senior when Chiyoko was a mere first year. But even the queen bee of the upperclassmen was aware of 'Chiyoko Kawaguchi,' the pretty young heroine that had every boy by the heartstrings and every teacher pulling their hair out. The worst part was her pranks had only grown more elaborate and clever since then.

"Never in a million years did I think I'd be sitting in Rhinosaurus Rex's old office yelling at an underclassman about her practical jokes." Izanami was so mad she didn't even know what to say, going off on a tangent as she took a drink from her coffee. "Honestly, I thought you'd go intern with Firefox and just go on to be her sidekick. Instead you go off on your own and end up getting reprimanded all the way back here." It was funny, time was a wheel. Somehow both women had ended up right back where they had started. For very different reasons. Izanami pressed her fingers to the bridge of her nose and rubbed gently. She was getting a headache, both from the anger and the lack of caffeine.

"Chiyoko, how can you expect to get any respect from anyone when you act like a delinquent?" Izanami was embarrassed on behalf of the woman, Aegis looked absolutely shameless as she sat there chuckling to herself. "Don't you want to be more than the jokester that's always getting in trouble? You're a Hero now. You were always going on about all the change you were gonna bring to when you graduated and got your license."

There was a pause as Izanami's face lost all sign of emotion, save for disappointment. "But nothing has changed. Has it? You're still an immature ditz, I'm still the one shaking my head at your antics." She breathed in a deep breath, exhaling black smoke from her nostrils. That only occurred when Izanami was either very mad, or hadn't breathed fire for several days. "This was a very serious breech of trust. You snuck into my office, picked the lock on my closet. I want to know exactly what was going through that empty head of yours."

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Izanami didn't expect Chiyoko to take such a dramatic response to her angry tirade. Normally, it seemed whenever the fox girl was caught red handed she brushed aside lecturing and simply continued her mischievous ways afterwards. Instead, Chiyoko stood up suddenly and gave a deep bow as she apologized profusely. Izanami was so surprised, she didn't quite avert her eyes quickly enough. Instead she received a generous view of the young woman's own considerable endowments, before coughing into her hand and averting her gaze as to not stare at Chiyoko's cleavage.

"I'm glad to hear that Miss Kawaguchi. It's nice to see you taking responsibility for once." It was nice to hear Aegis call herself stupid and an idiot. Someone had to, and Izanami was far too professional for such petty insults. Ditz, yes, forgetful, yes, childish, absolutely. But stupid and idiot were far too severe a choice of wording for someone who's job is to teach and mentor others. "I can certainly agree on your assessment of your own actions." She simply added, a rather coy agreement. "Well, you saw me break composure, I hope it was worth the cheap laugh because it's led us here."

Izanami scoffed when Chiyoko said she didn't mean to get her upset, that was surely the furthest thing from the truth. "Well you failed miserably at avoiding my wrath then. I would think after knowing each other each other for seven years you would come to understand I do not tolerate slights." The elder of the two women sat listening patiently, as Chiyoko continued to speak her revelations, and offer more promises that she would improve. "It's good you at least see things my way. I agree, you were very unbecoming of a teacher. Sneaking into my office, hiding in my closet, I'm irritated just thinking about it."

When Chiyoko asked if Izanami could trust her to be better, Dragon Queen simply shook her head slowly to the sides. "No, I cannot. Trust is earned, not given. And you have done nothing to earn my trust, quite the opposite in fact." Seven years of Izanami idly watching from the sidelines of Chiyoko's life as she continued to remain immature. Aegis had seen no real desire for self improvement, which is why Izanami's once-underclassman was currently forced into a teaching role by the Hero Association. They had her on a short leash, Izanami would have her on a shorter one.

The entire time the two spoke, Dragon Queen's cold violet eyes were locked intensely on Aegis' bright amber gaze. Izanami could not make it any clearer how she felt than with the look in her eyes. Anger, betrayal, but most of all disappointment. She felt like a mother berating her teenage daughter, but this woman was old enough to be her sister. When Chiyoko changed the subject and asked if Izanami was interested in going to a bakery with her, the woman exhaled sharply. Wisps of black smoke poured from her nostrils, as she mulled over her coworker's words. Her head said no, but her stomach said yes.

"Acceptable." Izanami finally said after a few seconds of deliberation. "I haven't had anything for breakfast but my morning coffee, and I expect even you aren't foolish enough to try something 'funny' that quickly after being reprimanded." The violet haired beauty then turned in her seat and casually logged onto her computer. "A show of trust." She repeated Chiyoko's words. "Just as you can trust me not to report this to the Principal or the Hero Association. I am strict, not petty, and I believe as rational adults we should be able to work out our differences." Izanami finished logging in and was already opening her course software to see uploaded homework assignments, no longer looking at Chiyoko as she spoke. Her toned softened slightly. "So this bakery, what are they known for?"

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Izanami simply nodded, before returning her fiery gaze to her computer screen. They had passed the major hurdle of this conversation, there was no real reason to continue bashing her fellow teacher over the head with her own anger. "Agreed. Actions speak louder than words... and your past actions have told me a great deal." The dragoness said coldly as she typed. "Hopefully these future actions tell a better tale." She left it at that, there was little else to discuss on that matter. She could tell from Chiyoko's tone the woman was still hopeful she could make amends. That was the spark of a true hero, that flicker of light, that they could always make more food in the world. Izanami didn't see it, but she would recognize that fire in an instant if she did.

The curvy young fox girl's comment on the bakery did command more of Izanami's attention, and she diverted her gaze from her screen. "Oh? The best you've ever had? Well... that's certainly quite the mantle." Izanami did not know Chiyoko's history well, beyond bits an pieces. But she did know the woman didn't come from wealth as Izanami herself did. So her standards for 'best' might admittedly be more... pedestrian than Dragon Queen's. "I will have to judge that for myself then." Red velvet cake did sound rather appealing, though Izanami's heart longed for another.

"I may have to try the red velvet..." The woman added simply, now distracted by the thought of delicious cake. "Though... to be honest my favorite is Devil's Food cake." Izanami was a chocoholic at heart, and the sinful decadence that was devil's food cake had chocolate in abundance. "Agreed. Then we shall have cake." The dragoness said with a coy smile. She let out a gruff sigh, then returned to her work. "Well I can't keep you here all day, and I don't want you lurking in my office all morning. So go do whatever you need to, which I can only hope isn't more pranks on the staff..." Izanami tapped an armored finger to her chin, mentally plotting out her schedule.

"I need about an hour, maybe two, to finish up what I couldn't get to last night. Feel free to just stop by my office when you finish up your own work. Or we can just meet outside the school on campus grounds. Whichever you prefer." Izanami had no preference, though she was going to make one thing clear. "Also, do you have some transportation to this bakery? A car, or do you take the train? My car rarely leaves the garage, I only really use it for formal business." Her gaze narrowed, and her eyes shimmered fiercely. "Because before you ask, I am not giving you a ride. Unless you want to be carried in my claws."

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"Top blokes?" Izanami said with a raised eyebrow, shaking her head. Chiyoko's upbringing in the impoverished slums was showing. Izanami could never seriously see herself using the expression 'top blokes' to describe someone. It sounded so... pedestrian. "Well, if you enjoy it so much it can't possibly be bad. Though I reserve the right to final judgement." The normally severe woman's eyes lit up when her coworker acknowledged that indeed, this bakery did in fact have Devil's Food Cake. "Indeed it is." She said simply, ignoring the growing sense of hunger coming from her stomach.

When Chiyoko commented that it was a short walk away, Izanami shrugged her shoulders as her suggestion was turned down. "Fair enough. A walk it is then. I can't remember the last time I've just 'gone for a walk.'" Whenever Izanami wanted to get away from it all, she took to the skies. It was easy to clear her head with only the rush of wind and the beat of her wings to break the silence. "Meeting back here is fine." Izanami added, and before she knew it Chiyoko had dismissed herself. The elder of the two heroines shook her head and sighed, taking a sip from her now lukewarm coffee. That woman had too much energy, and not nearly enough sense.

Izanami continued her actual work, grading assignments and imputing them into her computer. It was dull work in truth, but that was much of teaching. Not everyday could be battle training and practical exams. Izanami worked best in the quiet, the only noise her own typing and the sound of her clock ticking along the wall. The hour passed quickly, and she found herself managing to catch up to her backlog. Just as she finished the last of her grading, a knock came at her office door. She could tell from the dainty nature of it, it must be Chiyoko. "One minute." Izanami said simply.

Quickly logging out of her computer, Izanami got up and hit the lights to her office. She opened the door and was greeted to Chiyoko's bright shining face. "Hello again Miss Kawaguchi." Dragon Queen said simply, closing the door and locking it behind her. "Alright, I'm sufficiently caught up on my workload, and still quite hungry for breakfast." She gestured with her arm, beckoning Chiyoko to lead the way. "Age before beauty." She said in a slightly teasing tone, compelling the younger woman to lead the way.

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