Past the phony posers with their worn-out lines

The women in Nick’s harem were split between two separate tasks for the party celebrating Rose. (Not including the girls who were fetching panties for the woman of the hour.) A good chunk of them were helping out in the kitchen, preparing food, while the rest were on decorating duty, making sure that the Banquet Hall looked fit for a party.

But then there were the two women who were not doing any party-related tasks whatsoever.

“Your handwriting is atrocious,” Amelia informed the assassin she was teaching as she looked through the booklet she had made. Elementary school students could do this task; Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin hadn’t even bothered to follow the dotted lines to guide through the letters, and her “attempts” to recreate them on the blank spaces below looked like shoddy scribbles.

It was like she was intentionally trying to anger Amelia. And the frustrating thing was that Amelia couldn’t even be certain that wasn’t the case. It was impossible to read the inscrutable smile of the mute assassin- almost as impossible as the assassin herself reading anything at all.

Amelia sighed and took off her glasses. She rubbed the bridge of her nose for a moment before putting them back on and looking coldly down at the smirking woman in front of her.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s smile was frozen to her face. Her sky-blue eyes were narrowed in a challenge, and if Amelia didn’t know any better, she would have assumed that the other girl didn’t want to learn how to read or write at all.

She had no reaction to Amelia’s critique. She just kept staring at the older woman, hardly even blinking, just drumming her fingers lightly on the table. It might almost be more feasible for Amelia to teach her morse code than anything involving handwriting, given how she seemed determined not to engage with the material today.

Strange. By the end of last round, she was eagerly engaging with lessons and actually putting in an effort, Amelia thought, recalling the determined look that the mute assassin wore on her face as she underwent Amelia’s assessment. Has something changed? Has she lost her motivation, perhaps? Or grown dissatisfied with my teaching methods?

Honestly, given the mercurial temperament of the girl in front of her, Amelia could think of multiple reasons why that might be the case. But she wasn’t one to speculate about the motivations of other people.

Amelia had dealt with countless troublesome students in her years as a teacher. One of them was even in a turbulent relationship with her stepson! She’d had students who actively refused to learn, those who protested and argued saying that they didn’t need to learn, and plenty of students who clearly wanted to learn, but for one reason or another, they simply didn’t know how to properly apply themselves.

Yes, Amelia had seen it all- or at least, she’d thought she had.

But this was the first time she’d encountered a student who presented the difficulties that Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin presented her with- at times she seemed dedicated and ready to apply herself, and at other times, it was like she didn’t give a damn and would just blow off the lessons if that suited her whims.

If Amelia was being perfectly honest, she didn’t know how to deal with the other girl.

And that presented a bit of a problem.

Before, I motivated her with stories about Nicholas from his childhood. But nothing about that has changed. Something else must have, Amelia thought.

She gazed into Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s eyes, and thought about how to approach the matter at hand.

There were a lot of things Amelia wanted to say to the other girl. But that had always been the hard part for her. Amelia had never been adept at communicating with others. It may not have been a moral failing on her part, but it was certainly something she struggled with.

“What do you want?” She found herself asking bluntly. Even as the words passed her lips, she knew that it was a foolish question to ask.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin leaned back in her seat with a smirk, and shrugged as if to say “How do you think I can answer that question?”

Indeed- the other girl was incapable of properly communicating with her words. Which left Amelia stuck trying to discern her intention through other means.

And that was never her strong suit.

“…I should rephrase my question,” she said, approaching the other girl with a careful stride, keeping her eyes on the smiling face of the assassin. Amelia leaned over the dark-haired girl’s desk, and stared her down.

“…Before now, you seemed determined to learn how to read and write,” she reminded the assassin. “But something about that has clearly changed. Has it not?”

She was very careful with her word selection. Knowing how difficult it was to properly put her feelings into words, she went into as much detail as she could, and hoped that the assassin would understand her intent.

Judging from the shadow that crossed the other girl’s face, she’d succeeded.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin slowly and quietly nodded her head, while keeping her eyes focused firmly on the woman in front of her.

So, something had changed, just as Amelia had suspected.

Now, if only the other girl could articulate that change in some form, maybe they could actually make some progress. But unfortunately, she seemed inclined to do just the opposite, which made everything much more difficult for Amelia.

But the teacher would not be deterred.

“I am only trying to help you,” she said gingerly. “That is what you want, isn’t it?”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin raised a curious eyebrow, and Amelia realized that she should probably reword her question.

“…Nicholas would prefer if he could talk with you, but that is impossible,” Amelia calmly pointed out. “So without that, the only way he has to properly communicate with you is through the written word. You understand that, correct?”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s smile disappeared. She pinched her lips together tightly and leered coldly at Amelia, just as she’d anticipated.

This is going to be difficult, it seems, she thought, trying to figure out a way to engage the mercurial girl without getting on her bad side.

Alternatively, she could use a method that she personally disdained and tried to avoid using if at all possible.

Brute force.

“If you do not wish to learn how to read or write, then of course, I will not compel you to do so,” Amelia said calmly. She turned and strutted over to the door, and swung it open. “You may leave, if that is what you prefer.”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s ears twitched, and she gave Amelia a look of surprise. As Amelia expected. Given her behavior up until this point, it would be unusual if the assassin wasn’t surprised by this sudden change of attitude.

The slender girl rose to her feet and drifted towards the door, keeping her eyes on Amelia the entire time, like she couldn’t be sure whether or not she could trust the older woman. But Amelia made no move to shut the door in her face, or hinder her in any way.

As far as she was concerned, class was over for the day. Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin was free to leave, if that was what she preferred.

But the assassin seemed doubtful all the same.

“I am only trying to help you,” Amelia said again as the assassin lingered in the doorway, her eyes glued to the woman in front of her. “If you no longer have need of my instruction, then we can end these lessons right now.”

It was both a bluff and not a bluff. Amelia deeply wished that she could help the other girl with her illiteracy. But she was not going to struggle with it like someone trying to make a horse drink the water that they brought them to. Or however it was the analogy went.

If Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin no longer wished to learn how to read and write, that suited Amelia perfectly.

But the assassin seemed agitated for some reason. She eyed Amelia carefully.

“I’m not going to stop you,” Amelia reasserted herself. “Go, or stay, but make your choice.”

Her words were cold and brusque. She could have been kinder, gentler, and part of her wanted to be, but another part of her was taking advantage of her cold demeanor and difficulty expressing herself, and using her difficulty with communication as a weapon.

A decision that a skilled assassin should particularly be able to appreciate, Amelia felt.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin glanced out the door for a brief moment, and then her eyes slid back to Amelia’s again. And Amelia was surprised by what she saw in her gaze.

It wasn’t contrition. Or even a superficial apology.

It almost looked like desperation.

It’s as though she is frustrated about not being able to communicate what she wants with me, Amelia observed in the other girl’s expression. But that is not something that I can allow to shake my conviction. I am trying to teach her how to communicate. So why does she seem so opposed to it?

Could she have been missing something?

Amelia went over what she knew about Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin. Unfortunately, even though she had put a great deal of effort into teaching the other girl over the last round, that was a shockingly small amount of things.

The woman had deep feelings for her stepson.

She also cared very deeply for Kim.

She liked ice cream, weapons, and surprisingly, pretty clothing, like the bright pink top and tight black miniskirt she was wearing right now.

And she very much disliked women who she felt were interested in Nick, or trying to sleep with him- neither of which applied to Amelia.

So, with all of those things taken into consideration- why was she suddenly so opposed to learning how to read? What had changed?

Amelia narrowed her eyes.

“…Is there something you would rather be doing right now?” She theorized.

No emotion changed in the assassin’s face. Not so much as a twitch of her eye.

And then, with their eyes locked upon one another, Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin slowly and deliberately turned towards the hallway. Then she looked back at Amelia.

A message, a signal, and one that Amelia immediately understood.

“…You want to leave, of course… but you aren’t.”

That was the obvious part. And the “why” was only now becoming apparent.

“…I see, it’s my mistake, then, is it?” Amelia’s heart sank.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin looked surprised. Like she hadn’t expected the other woman to actually understand her. But Amelia knew what she was trying to communicate to her.

If she just wanted to go do something else, she would have, Amelia thought. I was the one who pushed things too far by suggesting she leave and never come back.

The second Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin stopped at the door and looked to Amelia to stop her, she should have taken that as a signal that something was wrong.

It wasn’t that Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin didn’t want to stop taking lessons altogether, no matter what she seemed to suggest with her actions.

No… it was apparent that she simply did not want to continue their lessons today.

Which was something Amelia should have been able to figure out immediately if she had stopped to think for a moment about the current state of events.

“…I’m sorry, Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin,” she apologized, hanging her head. “I should have realized.”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin jerked back in surprise, not sure what to make of the sudden apology. She twisted her face into a confused expression and looked carefully at Amelia, squinting at the other woman.

It didn’t help her understanding that Amelia had only partially explained herself.

“You don’t want to be here taking lessons, you would rather be going to help out the other girls with preparations for the party, is that it?” Amelia asked.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s eyes widened even more. She glanced at the doorway and then shook her head, before turning back to Amelia and shrugging.

The only thing Amelia could take from that response was that she was somehow right and wrong at the same time.

“…Is it… about Rose?” She asked.

The assassin made a grossed-out face and shook her head.

Apparently, she didn’t have a very high opinion of Rose. That didn’t exactly come as a surprise to Amelia, if she was being honest.

“Then because you want to spend time with Kim or Nicholas?” She guessed, knowing how much those two meant to her.

This time, when Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin shook her head, Amelia really was taken by surprise.

She knew for a fact that it had nothing to do with ice cream, at least.

“…I’m sorry,” she apologized, admitting her own shortcoming, which was an unusual thing for a teacher to do. “In that case, I don’t understand.”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin bit her lip. Then her eyes lit up and she turned on her heel and walked over to the blackboard.

She grabbed a stick of chalk in her narrow fingers and scribbled a line across the board. No letters or anything legible. Just a horizontal line.

Then another one.

She kept drawing line after line until she had almost filled the entire board, then at the bottom she drew four lines, one after another in sequence. She circled them all together and turned back to Amelia, adamantly tapping the chalk against the dark green board.

Amelia stared, trying to figure out what the other woman was telling her.

Lines on the board, and chalk? That… what could that possibly mean? She wondered. She searched the board for some signal or deeper understanding, but found nothing, no pattern whatsoever. So was there something about the number of lines, then? Or-

Wait.

Amelia counted them again, just to be sure.

There were twelve lines. Or rather, twelve rows of scribbled lines. Stacked on top of each other one after another, like a list.

Or a ranking.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin insistently kept tapping her chalk on the board next to the bottom row, doing it so hard little pieces of white started breaking off the stick.

Amelia felt like such a fool.

“The Popularity Poll,” she said aloud, and Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s face lit up like a lightbulb.

The bright-eyed woman nodded her head in silent agreement, moving so fast her face was practically a blur. She circled the four lines again, which Amelia now knew represented her name, and as she did, Amelia understood.

“I see… I’m sorry,” she apologized. “Of course you wouldn’t want to be stuck in this classroom with me, of course…”

That was what had changed.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin did in fact care about learning to read and write. Her impatience had nothing to do with that.

She was upset because her ranking in the polls had dropped to the bottom. The audience didn’t like her, and apparently, that was starting to get to her, even though up until now she had just done whatever she wanted without caring what other people thought.

If Amelia kept her cooped up in here instead of spending time with the other girls and interacting with them, then she would never change their minds.

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin wanted to open up to the harem. She wanted people to accept her.

She just didn’t know how.

“You’re right,” Amelia said, walking over to the blackboard and grabbing the eraser. She deftly swept away the scribbles of chalk, kicking up a cloud of dust into the air.

Ignoring the particles falling onto her clothes, she turned to Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin with a sharp look in her eye.

For whatever reason, the other woman didn’t move.

“…I said you are correct,” Amelia tried again.

Still no movement. The assassin just kept staring warily at her.

Ah. Perhaps she needed to be clearer, more precise.

Coughing, Amelia cleared the chalk dust out of her throat and tried again.

“You are correct- you should not be stuck here learning how to read and write if you would rather be spending time with the others and getting to know them better,” Amelia explained herself more thoroughly. “So, if you would like to go and assist them with the party, then you may do so, with my full support.”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin’s eyes widened, and she looked at Amelia curiously as if she couldn’t quite believe what she was hearing.

Amelia nodded insistently. “I will not say it again,” she replied.

That was enough for the assassin. She scurried to the door, and didn’t look back until she took the first step out.

Then she gave Amelia a hesitant glance.

Amelia adjusted her glasses. “If you are concerned about what I said before, you have no need to be,” she assured the mute girl. “We can proceed with your lessons in the future. But right now, this is an experience you would do well to share with the others, do you not agree?”

Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin had accompanied her to the study room without any fuss, so Amelia had not been concerned with it.

But- the assassin had been hiding her feelings out of a sense of responsibility, because on some level, she did agree that this was vital for her to learn.

Apparently, she did not know how to convey those feelings. Amelia was relieved that she could help her see that this did not need to be troubling for her.

With that burden lifted, and reassured that they could resume their studies another day, Augmented Synthetic Humanoid Assassin departed with a spring in her step.

Amelia wore a rare smile on her face as she watched the other woman go.

“…Hopefully she will be able to communicate her feelings adequately, even without using her words,” she murmured, turning to look at the smeared whiteboard. Only a faint outline remained of the assassin’s makeshift poll.

But it was enough to fill Amelia’s heart with hope that her student could accomplish what she set her mind out to accomplish, and actually interact with her friends in a positive way. Both to improve her own situation and make deeper connections, and also to improve her standing with the audience.

Both were things that the assassin desperately needed, in Amelia’s opinion.