"Vice-Director, Chief Kurusu, Ambassador Lala, Secretary Arachnera, and Miss Lia!" greeted the blonde centaur woman standing at attention, saluting the five of them. "Your escort is ready!"
"You're way too stiff with your own family, Cerea," sighed Beiste, the blue-furred and red-eyed cu sith next to her.
"At least she tries to be dignified," Draco scolded, the dragonewt's yellow slitted eyes narrowing down at him. "Have some pride, will you?"
"Eh, pride? What's that?" wondered Lilith, the petite lesser devil lazily picking at her teeth with her tail. "Can you eat it?"
... was MON Second Squad.
"At ease, soldier," Antonio told Cerea, smiling up good-naturedly at her. "Always appreciate the help. They got you running security for the expo too?"
"Naturally," Cerea answered, her body relaxing as she grinned broadly. "Just because the dreadful likes of the Black Fables and Charybdis have been vanquished does not mean we can be lax in our duties."
"Don't worry boss lady, I'll make extra sure the oni bar is secure!" Beiste promised with a cheeky wink.
"Yeah, you know how rowdy can oni can get," Lilith chimed, hovering over on her small leathery wings. "I'll be there to back him up!"
"Lilith will be on minotaur duty, and Beiste will be watching over his fellow fae," Cerea reported to Trevor, very pointedly not looking at the two in question.
"Ehhh?! But they smell like barn," Lilith whined while Beiste just deflated.
Meanwhile, Draco had stepped forward to approach Rachnera. Or rather, the small girl still wrapped around her.
"Lady Lia," Draco said in a stately voice, taking a knee and placing a hand over her chest. "Please rest assured. I would never let the daughter of Miia experience any strife. You are under my protection."
"Eh?" The black-haired lamia girl blinked at her, until Rachnera nudged her. "Oh! Um, thank you, Miss Draco," she managed somewhat awkwardly.
"You're really too sweet, Draco," Miia told her, chuckling a little. "Thanks for all your hard work."
Draco stood up and looked at Miia, a faint glistening in her eyes before she turned away. "I'm just trying to live up to the noble dragon blood within me," she offered as an excuse. "Think little of it, please."
"Oy, Cerea, you've got quite the interesting bunch under your command," Rachnera spoke up. "I'd say it's amazing you can wrangle them all together, but I know just how stubborn you can be."
"Hmph, it is true they are a troublesome bunch," Cerea admitted, blue eyes regarding the three MON members. Her smile didn't waver. "But we have done good work together. I couldn't ask for better comrades to serve with."
Antonio had never seen her filled with such pride and joy before. Least of all because of her own merits.
But there Cerea stood on the stage, sharply fitted in the MON dress uniform. Her smile never once left her face, and Antonio could tell she was barely repressing tears.
The same couldn't be said for her mother, wiping her face in a dignified manner. The older woman was beside herself, staring at her beloved daughter as she answered the noble calling of fighting for justice.
Kuroko had just finished her speech on the podium, and beckoned Cerea forward. The sound of hooves against wood echoed through the room, and then she stood before Zoe. The zombie commando's grin was almost as wide as Cerea's own when she placed the pin over the centaur's heart.
Centorea Shiantus had officially become a member of the MON Squad.
As the thunderous clapping and cries of jubilation filled the chamber, Antonio made brief eye contact with Cerea. In that moment, he saw tears forming at the corners of her eyes.
In that moment, he saw her lips say, "Thank you."
That moment had been preserved on the photo at his desk.
The ride to the airport was uneventful. Which wasn't to say it had been quiet, far from it; a ride with MON Second Squad was never a dull affair. But they'd gotten there, which was the important part, and soon enough they were out on the tarmac waiting for the arrival of certain parties.
One of which came in like a wrecking ball.
"BIG BROTHER!" cried a blue blur that crashed into Trevor, nearly bowling him over. He would've hit the dirt if not for Miia's tail quickly bracing him. The motion looked as though it were almost routine. "Hi-hi!"
"Hi-hi yourself," Antonio wheezed as the harpy tightly wrapped her wings and legs around his body. "P-Papi, please..."
"Oh, sorry!" Papi laughed, jumping off him and landing on the ground. Her blue hair was longer, wilder, but otherwise it was though she hadn't aged a day over the past ten years. "I was just so excited to see you! It's been, um... a long time!" she declared with utter seriousness on her adorable features.
Antonio snorted. "That it has. You'll have to tell me all about it when we get a chance, okay?"
"Mhm!" At that, she bounced over to the others, loudly greeting every single one in that effortlessly whirlwind way of hers.
"You work too much!"
"Wh-!" Antonio jumped in his seat, startled by the sudden appearance of a shouting harpy that had kicked down the door. "Papi?! When'd you get in town?!"
"Today! I think! I was visiting Mommy and Daddy! But that doesn't matter!" Papi huffed as she stomped over to his desk. "Rachnee told me you didn't sleep last night!"
"Do you know why I didn't sleep last night?" Antonio asked pointedly.
"Boring stuff," Papi instantly retorted.
Antonio paused. Mulled it over.
"You're not wrong," he admitted.
Papi puffed her chest out with pride. "See, I knew it!" Her wing reached out and grabbed what looked to be a remote on his desk. "Now... um." She fiddled with the device. "Hmmmmm. Where is it, where is it?"
"Where is what?" Antonio asked tiredly.
"The button! The one that makes the windows go whoosh!" Papi explained helpfully. Her amber eyes lit up when she found what she was looking for. "Ah ha, here!"
Without a moment's hesitation, she pressed it. Sure enough, the large window for the office slowly rose up, one of the features installed for bigger, airborne guests such as dragons and phoenixes, or a particularly awkward wyvern.
"So whyyyy-WHOA!"
Any questions he had were lost to the wind as Papi launched forward, grabbing him in her talons and then gleefully carrying him outside. "C'mon big brother, I know you love flying! So let's fly for a bit!" she encouraged, beaming down at him as she soared through the skies.
Antonio almost protested. But when he looked around and saw the sweeping Japanese landscape, he stopped. He looked up at Papi, that bright and wild girl that could never be fully tamed.
And then he laughed loudly and without restraint, exhaustion fading away. She was quick to join him.
Their laughter filled the blue skies that day.
That moment had been preserved on the photo at his desk.
"Oh, I see them!" Miia shouted, pointing to the sky. Sure enough, the tell-tale shape of a plane could be seen gradually getting closer.
"Right on time," Rachnera said, several of her legs twitching in anticipation. Try as she might to hide it, not even she could contain her excitement.
Papi didn't bother making her feelings a secret, practically vibrating as she was next to Cerea. As for the centaur, she too seemed lost in the moment until she blinked. "MON Second Squad!" she barked. "Prepare to receive the Queen and Cultural Homestay Chief!"
"Ma'am!" Beiste, Draco, and Lilith were quick to snap at attention, despite their earlier lack of professionalism.
"Heroes gather..." Lala murmured under her breath.
"You said that already," Antonio noted.
"Urk."
Then they waited, eagerly watching the plane make its descent toward the airport. It skidded to the earth, landing without issue. Someone must have seen them, as the large aircraft slowly rolled its way toward the gathering. Once it was close enough, the back ramp descended and there was an immediate influx of fishfolk garbed in ornate, ceremonial armor and sporting tridents.
The only ones not dressed that way were the two butlers, one squat and the other long.
"Make way! Make way!" cried the tall fishfolk Sebastian, rubbing at his brow with a handkerchief.
"Bow before the Queen!" cried the short fishfolk Potemkin, waddling down the ramp.
In unison, they both grandly gestured back the way they came and shouted:
"All hail Queen Meroune Lorelei du Neptune!"
There Mero sat in her wheelchair, a magnificent crown resting atop her pink-haired head. The mermaid woman wore a dress designed as though the ocean waves themselves had been captured there, rising and falling so as to heighten her already incredible beauty. She was smiling, until her vibrantly purple eyes realized that the gathered people were all bowing before her.
"My friends!" Mero urged. "You bow to no one!"
"I feel a little overshadowed here," admitted the Japanese man behind her as he pushed the wheelchair forward.
"KIMI!"
"DADDY!"
Any concerns the man had were quickly dashed aside as two very passionate lamias, one big and the other small, darted toward him for a crushing embrace. He abruptly vanished beneath a pile of winding coils, and he was lost to the world.
Meanwhile, Rachnera was the first to approach Mero, her expression clouded. In contrast, Mero was practically glimmering with joy as the two met.
"It's been a long time, Rachnera," Mero started. "Have you been taking care of yourself? You better not have been drinking coffee again so early!"
"... That's my line, dummy," Rachnera grumbled, fidgeting where she stood. "You do a lot more work than I do."
"I think all of us have developed a bit of an overworking habit," Mero laughed. "Except Papi, of course."
There was a pause. Until Rachnera reached forward and lifted Mero up from the wheelchair to pull her into a tight hug. The only thing that stayed the royal guards' hands was the knowledge of their queen's unique relationship with these particular people.
"Missed you," Rachnera whispered.
Mero smiled, returning the embrace. "I missed you too," she whispered back.
Antonio stood to the side, patiently waiting for his turn. Papi, Cerea, and Lala all greeted Mero in their own ways, all of them knowing to not bother engaging with the reunited human-lamia family just yet. Eventually, the queen was able to make her way to him, looking just a little more disheveled than she had previously.
"My queen," Antonio said, dipping his head to her with a small smile.
"Dear sir," Mero greeted, brushing back a lock of curling pink hair behind her ear. "You look well."
"Thanks. You... ah, you look good too," he told her, an annoying touch of nervousness hitting him right then. "Well, you always do."
Mero giggled melodically. "Has anyone ever told you that you are too kind?" she asked warmly.
It had been a few days since the incident with the Queen when Antonio entered Mero's room. She hadn't left it once they got home, only finding the energy to mumble a "Thank you" whenever someone brought her food. Otherwise, she simply floated in the pool, her gaze distant.
"Hey," he called out gently, stepping inside. His bare feet made light smacking sounds as he walked across the tiles to the edge of the pool. After a moment, he sat down and dipped his legs into the water. "You should get out of here for a bit."
Mero grunted, an uncharacteristic sound from the typically-dignified woman. "I know. And yet I do not want to. My mother..." She wiped her face. "She did all of those absolutely dreadful things, for the sake of, of... a tragic romance!" she exclaimed, splashing the water in frustration. "The very thing I once wished for with all my heart!"
"But not anymore," Antonio told her. "You're better than that now. And you called her out. It was pretty cool, actually," he admitted. "I don't think I could ever yell at my own mom that way."
"It was the most difficult thing I've ever done," Mero confessed, swaying where she floated so she could look at him. "And now, my kingdom is paying the price for her madness. We're a laughingstock among both the human and liminal nations, shamed for the stupidest of reasons and rightfully so."
"Yeah. But that won't last forever. Not when you're on the throne," Antonio pointed out.
"I am not so certain. I believed the same things she did, once upon a time that wasn't too long ago," Mero murmured, her webbed hand lazily swinging through the water. "I too was a fool."
She took a deep breath, and then her face became set.
"Perhaps I still am. But I am no longer that kind of fool. I've met too many living learning experiences to be so any longer," Mero said, offering Antonio a slight smile.
"It's not the worst thing I've been called," he chuckled. "But you're already looking better."
"Yes, well, perhaps all I needed was for someone to disturb the water, so to speak," Mero answered, straightening herself and now treading upright in the pool. "What happened with my mother was truly dreadful, but now that I think about it, there is a strange sense of resolve within me now. After all, if my cherished friends still desire me in their lives despite the grief my family has caused them... then perhaps there is little to worry over after all!"
"That's the spirit," he praised, grinning at her. "Of course we still want you around, Mero. Our messed-up little family here wouldn't feel right without you in it."
Mero giggled melodically. "You are too kind," she said warmly.
That memory where she had been crowned Queen of Neptunus and became one of the greatest public supporters of the Cultural Exchange Bill had been preserved on the photo at his desk.
"I get that a lot," he admitted sheepishly.
"It is well-earned," Mero assured him. "I truly do hope we can spend more time together when our duties permit it," she said earnestly.
"Yeah... I'd like that, I'd like that a lot," Trevor told her.
"Oof, man," groaned Kimihito as he shambled over to join them, unwinding his shoulder. A bashful smile crossed his face. "Sorry about that, Antonio. I expect that reaction every time, but they always seem to catch me off-guard."
"You really should know better by now, man," Antonio laughed as the two men clasped hands and gave a firm shake. "I don't think any other human dude could keep up with a gal like Miia."
"Maybe that's why we go so well together," Kimihito suggested, setting his hands on his hips. "After all, neither of us are shy about our love, she's just, ah, more physical about it than I am."
"You should have seen him on the plane ride here," Mero confided in Antonio with a stage-whisper. "The poor man was ceaselessly fidgeting where he sat and he would ask the pilot when we would arrive every few minutes!"
"Incredible. He can get on a stage and give a speech to millions of people, but the anticipation of seeing his wife and kid again?" Antonio clicked his tongue, smirking at Kimihito. "That's just too much."
"-and so, thank you all for your hard work!" Kimihito said to the large crowd gathered in the auditorium. "Every one of you made the first ever Cultural Exchange Expo a roaring success! I hope you're all looking forward next year just as much as I am!"
The crowd, a mix of humans and liminals cheered and clapped, congratulating each other on a job well done. Kimihito let out a breath and waved at them all as he retreated backstage. There, Antonio was waiting for him with a water bottle.
"You make a good poster boy," the curly-haired man half-joked, offering the bottle as he did so. "I could've sworn I spied more than a handful of liminal girls swooning out there."
"Please don't joke about that," Kimihito begged, gratefully taking the water bottle and guzzling it down. After he finished it off, he made a satisfied gasp for air and tossed it in a nearby recycle bin. "But I did like being up there, oddly enough. Everyone worked hard, after all, and they should all be proud of themselves for that."
"So should you," Antonio told him. "It was pretty touch and go a few times there. We wouldn't have pulled through if you weren't at the right place at the right time."
"Same applies to you. Really, it was a team effort," Kimihito insisted. "Everyone from home chipped in. It was actually kinda fun, all of us working together. We should make a habit of it."
"Think so? You want all of us working for the Cultural Exchange?" Antonio mused, rubbing his chin. "... You know, that might not be too bad. Suu resolved a lot of disputes thanks to her empathic feelers, Mero was able to do similar just by being herself, and Rachnera's management skills were pretty impressive...
"Miia did some great photo work during this expo, Papi isn't really one to be tied down to a job, Cerea is already doing training with MON..." Kimihito went on, mulling it over. "Oh, and Lala was there. She did something, right?"
"Probably. Hard to tell with her," Antonio shrugged, then smiled. "Huh, I think you're onto something. Maybe I'll bring it up with Kuroko at the next meeting."
Kimihito nodded, smiling as well. "Sounds gucci."
That moment where Kimihito had given the speech ending the first successful Cultural Exchange Expo was preserved on the photo at his desk.
"I don't want to hear that from you of all people," the black-haired man retorted, wagging a finger at Antonio. "Speaking of, where's Suu? I thought she'd be here too."
Antonio shook his head. "She's probably at the expo building right now with the rest of her people. This is a big day for the slimes, after all, so I figured she'd want to spend it making sure everything is good on her end."
"Ah. Fair enough," Kimihito nodded.
The sound of an approaching car abruptly ended any further conversation. Everyone turned to see a black limousine driving up to them, with a larger trailer coming up behind it. When both vehicles came to a stop nearby, the doors were quickly swung open.
"Oh wonderful, everyone is here!" Tio cheered, the giant armored ogress running over to them with thunderous footsteps. "Hello, everyone! Isn't it beautiful out today?!"
"Try not to squash anyone, will you, Tio?" Doppel called out, the dark-skinned shapeshifter riding a wave of her own silvery hair behind her comrade. "It'd be a hell of a way to start the tenth anniversary, you know!"
The usual greetings went all around, with Tio doling out her typical nearly literal back-breaking hugs to all who could bear them. Doppel was more sedate, but only overtly so; teasing remarks were fired off to everyone, with the notable exception of Lia. The child was safe, for now.
"You've recovered pretty well, it seems," Antonio noted, arms folded across his chest when the shapeshifter eventually wandered his way.
"Yeah, well," Doppel shrugged her slim shoulders. "I just miscalculated a little. Gu was having another episode, and I was the only one who could take the hit. What's an acid burn or three?"
"All the same. You had me a bit worried there."
Doppel snorted, looking away from him. "You've always been a worrywart." A brief pause. "... I'm fine now. Thanks, though," she added, her tone just a touch softer.
"Don't mention it."
Just then, Antonio felt a slight tug on his sleeve from behind, and he turned to see a wide violet eye looking up at
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