Kaede wants to play with me.

Kaede finished her performance and made a small, half-joking bow, both hammy and totally warranted. Maki and I clapped for her applause. Feeling moved, and feeling spitefully rebellious of Regina's assurance that I'd **** my ring powers willingly or unwillingly, I made a promise to myself. Now that I'd seen Kaede's talent in action, there was no way I'd take it away from her, no matter what Regina, Junko, or anyone else said! I'd make sure she stayed in control.

The thought felt so big in my head that I expected the others to comment on it, but, of course, my silent struggle went unnoticed. Instead, Kaede clapped her hands cheerily with an easy sunshiny demeanor that seemed to lit up the room. "Now I'm sure you understand what's so great about piano, right, Minnie?"

"You're incredible!" I shouted back earnestly. "I mean, your skill, it's incredible... How did you learn to do that? Must've been nights of practice, right?"

"Oh, no no!" Kaede reassured me, waving her hands. "Well, sometimes, yes, but mostly I've just played a little a day every day since I was a kid. I've always wanted to play for people, but I can't say I'm thrilled about being defined for my talent... So, when you leave here today, it'd make me happy if you thought of me as just plain ol' friendly Kaede Akamatsu, your buddy who played a nice song for you."

I nodded vehemently, thinking I'd absolutely love to leave this room with that feeling, that it was more than I deserved.

"Of course, no one's leaving just yet," Kaede reminded me, sensing my enthusiasm. "We've still got a piano lab, right? The school wants you two to help me develop my talent... Besides, I need to show you how the labs work, Minnie. Maki, would you mind sitting this one out so I can show her the ropes? The lab assignment for today says I should play with her."

"Be my guest," the dark-haired girl agreed, taking a seat again and giving a small smile to the shock on my face. "You can't be worse than I was when Kaede tried to teach me, Minnie."

I, on the other hand, felt pretty sheepish. "Kaede, I appreciate it, but I ain't got a musical bone in my body. Not even for circus instruments!"

Kaede shook her head as she scurried to the stairs at the edge of the stage, then made her way to me as if to stop me from backing down the aisle. "Minnie, that's a common misconception. Talent may have something to do with it, but I believe what sets someone like me apart is simply my interest in the subject. If you have any interest in learning, I'm sure you'll be a natural. And if you don't... Well, humor me, okay?" She clapped her hands together and gave me a wink. "Practicing teaching it will help my fundamentals."

I couldn't say no to that face, but if I'd wanted to, I wouldn't have much choice. Kaede had already grabbed my hand and begun leading me towards the stairs, then guiding me up, then almost dragging me to the piano bench. For my part, I was stumbling along in a dreamy state. I'd never had many friends my age to take interest in me like this, and I'd never had a friend this gorgeous and talented, period, so I felt my heart skipping a beat. The pianist took a seat on the left side of the bench, where she'd be visible to Maki, and patted the place next to her, indicating I'd be sharing it.

With my pulse still hammering in my ears, I took my seat. The bench was a cozy fit for two women. I knew Kaede was talking to me, but my mind was racing with ideas of how this would go. "This feels more like a date than a lesson- Gah!" I nearly fell off the seat, realizing I'd said it out loud.

"Ahehe," Kaede giggled awkwardly before surprising me by speaking in a quiet voice, practically a whisper. "Well, not quite. I do intend to teach you a thing or two, after all." She cleared her throat, then spoke up slightly. "I want you to open your ears and watch my hands, carefully. I'll show you it once, and I want you to remember it. Simple, really." She brought her fingers to the keys, straightening her spine and resting her thumbs at the board slowly and deliberately to show me the proper posture. She began to tap keys in slow motion compared to her previous play. As she did, she locked her eyes on mine... Her big eyes and friendly smile were so distracting, I was paying no attention to her hands at all. Her melodious voice rang out in time with her slow notes.

"Ma~ry had a lit-tle lamb

Lit-tle lamb

Lit~tle lamb"

She paused, giving me a small grin. "Minnie, you're supposed to be watching my hands. Pay attention and sing along with me. You know this one, right?"

I nodded, then tried to join along with her. At first, I was stumbling along, but eventually I caught up to her rhythm ...

"Ma~ry had a lit-tle lamb

Whose fleece was white as cum-"

I had said it along with Kaede, following her lead, but I choked on the word when it appeared in my throat. Kaede was tittering with her usual cute laugh. In the audience, I could see Maki, who'd been zoning out a moment earlier, watching with wide-eyed surprise.

Kaede wiped a tear from her eye and waved her hand. "Oh, sorry, Minnie! We're adults here, so I thought an adult version of the nursery rhyme would be a neat joke. It must have sounded funnier in my head... Anyway, all I want you to do is finish playing the rest of it. Once you do, I'll let you leave your seat. Don't worry, it's easy. I'll remind you of the melody..."

Still watching my face carefully, Kaede leaned just slightly forward. I didn't understand why at first... Quickly, I began to understand. The pianist wasn't playing the keys in front of her any more. Instead, as she carefully sang out the words of the nursery rhyme, she moved the arm that would be hidden from Maki's view, placing it on the crotch of my trousers. Her eyes peaked at what she found there immediately, then settled back into their reflexive, focused mirrors.

"And e~very~where that Ma-ry went

Ma-ry went

Ma~ry went-"

As she sang the words in her same angelic voice, her hands snuck effortlessly into the waist of my pants. She found what she was looking for and, without any change in expression or tone, began stroking my shaft through my underwear furtively in time with her words.

"E~very~where that Ma~ry went that lamb was sure to come."

Distantly, I heard Maki comment. "You rhymed 'cum' with 'come'..."

Feeling like my body had grown a second heart inside my head just to pound in my ears, I **** a dry hiss out of my lips. "Kaede, what are you doing?"

"The lesson said to play with you. So I'm playing with you." She gave me another angelic smile, but with briefly different eyes, sparkling with the little secret she was keeping from Maki (assuming she was succeeding at all; from my position, it didn't seem likely). "Are you saying you don't want me to play with you, Minnie?"

I... wasn't saying that. "But... Kaede... why?"

"Why wouldn't I want to play with you?" Kaede turned the question back on me. With her usual friendliness, in another situation, it would have been reassuring, but it was just turning me on more here. "Besides that, well... Minnie, you were keeping a little secret from me, hm?"

"I... N-not intentionally... b-but Kaede-"

Still stroking me, Kaede tilted her head and shut her eyes, fixing me with another sunny beam. "Well, now this is our little secret! That is, it's our little secret if you finish playing the back half of Mary Had a Little Lamb, before you, well, finish. If you do, I'll hide your 'high pitch' from Maki. If you can't... and if you were to have a little accident in that outfit... I'm sorry to say, I don't think those white pants are going to be cream enough to hide it." She gave me a shockingly apologetic smile as she continued to gently play my rapidly hardening dick like an instrument.

"What the fuck?!" I hissed, staring at the keys in front of me. I didn't know the white from the black, and I hadn't paid a bit of attention when she played the keys before. I might get lucky and trial and error my way into it, but how long would it take? I'd never had another hand touch me like this before, and I didn't know if I'd hold out doing a monkey-with-a-typewriter approach.

Had I misread Kaede entirely? Was I about to cum by a woman I'd taken to be my first friend in the school, made to do a jizz-stained walk of shame that would both mortify me and probably make my condition the talk of the whole school? I didn't live on campus... I wouldn't have a chance to go home and change... Why was this happening to me? Wasn't I supposed to be in control of other women?!

"You're really excited to have me play with you, hm?" Kaede giggled, keeping her pace even, perhaps understanding she had no need to rush. "You're not pressing any keys, silly! Go ahead, Minnie. I'm so excited to hear what kind of cute noise an inexperienced pianist will make in my capable hands, hehe!"