Becoming Monsters: Tidbits 20

Becoming Monsters is the creation and property of Ai Loves, setting used with permission.

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Chapter 20: Check On Learning

He slept through his alarm that morning. And his second one. And Song trying to shake him awake as she realized the beeping had been going on too long. And Ghata splashing cold water on him. Thankfully, the ladies of Room 222 were not limited to these means. May dove into his dreams, finding his form there ALSO sprawled out in his mind's bed, and shook him awake in his dreams. It makes sense in context, but it was enough for him to feel his body being shaken and wet, which was enough to let him wake up, look at the clock, and panic. It took him about two nanoseconds to realize that getting a shower was entirely out of the question, but he could at least change. Modesty was pointless, everyone in this room had not just seen but

experienced

him naked in the last 48 hours.

"What the heck, guys? We have twenty minutes to make it to Professor Otterly's class for the first exam, why did you let me sleep in so long?" Todd was hastily putting necessities into his backpack, double-checking that his research assignment was there.

Jem handed him a glass of water. This time to drink, not wear. "Not my fault you slept through two alarms and three attempts to wake you up afterwards."

"Jem, you of ALL people should know that yes, it really is your fault." Todd had his pants and belt on, and gulped down some water. He had never been hung over in his life, but the way he felt was a lot like descriptions he'd heard. He found he didn't like it much, and resolved never to test it the real way. "Something about shooting my soul out through my dick twelve times yesterday, and I know I'm not the one who wrote THAT schedule."

With a rustle of wings, May manifested behind him in the bed. "Hey! I'll have you know that I'm an authority on such matters, and you

definitely

still have plenty of soul left in your dick."

"Not helping, May. We don't have time, let me grab one of my emergency snacks and I can get more after the math exam. No time to be

your

emergency snack. Did you all eat?"

A chorus of yesses came back, and he ran out the door chewing on a candy bar and praying it would last him. This would not be the first time he'd ever done so, but it was certainly the first time after that kind of physical effort. The fact that it was his first time doing anything remotely like that kind of effort helped make the distinction. Was it really ten days ago that he was a VIRGIN? Seemed hard to believe. As he wondered at it all, his feet carried him forward. The classroom he was headed towards wasn't close, but even as the ladies kept pace (minus May) he knew he'd have some time to spare. Reflexively after yesterday, he called up his Status screen... but what he saw was puzzling. Specifically, his Mana was reading at 28%. Considering he had spent himself to zero eight hours prior, that should not have been remotely possible. Not on his own. He should have been well under 10%. This data point was wildly off base, and of course it was coming right as he was going to turn in his report. This was also leaving aside the two Attribute points and Class Feature he had to choose. Say what you will, good or ill, about the day. It certainly served to help him power level 20% of the way into Level six.

The line at the math building did surprise him, though. With five minutes before class, normally the hallway was cleared out and the classrooms and lecture halls more filled. Instead, the hundred or so students in that mass lecture were waiting for the doors to open, nobody quite knowing what was going on. Especially Todd. Professor Otterly was not the kind to be late. If anything just the opposite, some students had reported getting to his hall half an hour before class only to find him happily jotting down notes or preparing the board. Five minutes before class and he was the kind of person to be glaring at the latecomers arriving just in time for the start of class.

The doors opened, and there was a stir from the front. Painfully slowly, the class began to file in. Todd was too far back to see what was going on, but as he got closer he could hear his professor's voice occasionally muttering "talley one... okay, one more..."

It turned out he was speaking to a teacher's assistant, also a Beastfolk but this one looking like a small dog of some kind. Possibly part Corgi? Either way, her tail was wagging a bit as they took stock of every student entering, stamping their hand with what looked like an ink mark. The professor's nose twitched, and he looked up to see Todd shuffling closer. "Ah, good, you did make it. I was afraid I hadn't been clear on the fact you needed to be here for this one." He turned, stamped a Human's hand, then looked at the person his TA was helping. Stacey, the Changeling. "Talley one more, please."

Todd eventually got to the front of the line, and the TA nodded at him. Her voice was chipper and perky, almost the opposite of what Todd was feeling at the moment. "Todd, right? The professor wanted you to stand by for a moment until the others get in. I'll get them started while he speaks to you."

"Talley another, Selma."

"Yes, professor." She put a mark on a clipboard she was carrying. "Can I have your dominant hand, please? I do still need to stamp you."

"Uh, sure. Can I ask what this is for?" He held out his right hand.

"You can, sure, but I can't tell you. I will see you when you get inside." She went into the auditorium and closed the doors, leaving Todd alone with the professor.

Professor Otterly sniffed the air delicately. "Mr. Reed, you smell a bit low on mana."

"Yes, sir. Several people asked me for assistance yesterday."

"That would explain the other smells, then." He had the decency to wait for Todd to finish his reflexive flinch at the commentary. "That hardly matters, however. Do you have your assignment?"

"Yes, sir." He awkwardly took off his backpack, pulled out the folder he was keeping it in, and handed the report over. "It probably isn't anything revolutionary, but there's a lot of data going into the charts."

"Excellent." The professor opened the report to take a look... and his casual demeanor suddenly dropped. "Todd. Do you have a copy of this besides the one you just handed me?"

The student was perplexed. "No, I do not."

"I will make one for you then. Save it, and keep it safe. You will need it. For that matter, start saving your assignments anyway. It is a good idea in general. Now, the other students have already begun their exam, but you will get an additional five minutes at the end in the exceedingly unlikely event you need it. Go to your seat and get started, see me on the way out." With those cryptic words, Professor Otterly opened the door to let Todd in. Slowly, he made his way over to his normal seat (if it could be called that, given he'd only sat in it once). There was a paper there, he flipped it open and got started.

The first thing he noticed was that the content there seemed a step or two higher in difficulty than what they had been getting the last time he was actually in this classroom. Either the class had stepped up its pace after the first day or something else was going on. The second thing was that the exam had 200 questions on it. For one hour of allotted time, this seemed excessive.

Third? Well, third was the fact that it was all ridiculously easy for him anyway, so he burned through the exam's demands almost as fast as he could circle answers and write out others. No calculator was permitted, but then again none was required. Not for him. His brain barely turned on for it, which was good because he could not have kicked it up into high gear if he tried. It did give him time to think, which was crucial.

Okay, so. This exam is strange, and I can see the stamp shimmering as I answer things, so I guess it's magical. Makes sense if they want to... what, make sure we don't cheat? Check to see how we're doing it? Take attendance the fancy way? No way to know for sure without spellcasting analysis, and I don't have one set up to do it even if I wanted to take the time to. Maybe they want to see if we're taking them up on being able to use class abilities? Huh, that could be it. The talley might have been counting people walking in with buffs? It would make sense with what I know. Jem, Song, and Ghata don't have one active and didn't get tally marks while Stacey did after visiting me yesterday...

The pages of the exam melted away before him, and before too much longer he found himself out of questions to answer. Looking around, he saw a marking on the board pointing to where he could turn in his stack. There were only two others done before him despite the delay in getting started, and he left the room in silence. The professor was not in his office, but there was a thick envelope in his box labeled with "for Mr. Todd Reed" so he figured it was probably his copy of things. Outside, Todd decided to sit on a bench by the grass, enjoying the stillness that it could bring. Nobody else was walking around, busy with their tests.

Todd figured that he should probably be doing something directed and constructive with this sliver of free time. Maybe researching possible Class Abilities which might be hiding, maybe reviewing notes, but he just didn't feel the need. Not this time. Not after all he had done and been through the past week. There was too much turmoil in him that needed to be let go. And so he meditated, after a fashion, breathing in the clean air and listening to birdsong. A soft sound behind him almost made him jump out of his seat, but Song's soft voice came. "Just us, Todd. Exam's done."

He breathed again. Given the number of people who wanted to do moderately horrible things to him on this campus, knowing the sound was friendly did a lot. "How did you all do?"

Jem's voice this time. "There was a lot there that I KNOW wasn't on his 101 syllabus, and there was a lot more than I think it's reasonable to demand we do."

Todd shook his head. "He wasn't testing for his class. He was testing for a couple of levels up. Speaking of, actually, you three have a moment? I got to Level 6 yesterday and could really use some help picking my new Ability."

Ghata was the one responding this time. "I know I do... and if that's what the next level looks like in math I'm going to be leaning on you a lot the next few years. Go ahead with the abilities, let's see what you've got. Ladies, phone time. We might need to do some research."

Todd chuckled, calling up his Status screen. "Okay, first thing. I'm going ahead and putting one point each into Luck and Charisma. I'm not leaning on either more than the other right now. Now for abilities... Mass Inspiration? I didn't even think I was eligible for that one."

Jem found it first... ish. "Supposed to increase the number of people you can hit with Inspiration at once by 50%. I can't find a single report of a Carnal Arts Bard taking it, so I have no idea how it might work for you."

"Probably a pass then. Reflected Glow? Name rings a bell."

"It should." Song was the speaker. "That's on your path to True Inspiration. Sets up feedback from the people you Inspire, and you get a fraction of what they do. Considering how many Inspirations you keep rolling, that's pretty significant."

"Oh, yeah, that one. Supposed to follow a logarithmic chart with a..." Todd realized the silence from the other girls had taken on a somewhat glazed quality. "Never mind. That's probably going to be my pick unless something unexpected is on the other two. Correlation Engine is another one I know, it's a Bardic Knowledge thing that really helps put together things you know. And number four is... Cutting Words? I've never heard of this one."

"Oh, this one I know. It's a spell, often used by magic-dedicated Bards who go into Dungeons. It's a direct attack." Jem's answer was quick and certain.

How she knew that, Todd wasn't sure... but was pretty sure he didn't want to know. "I cast my spells by being buried balls deep in one of you ladies. Casting that sounds like it would not have a particularly pleasant outcome. Reflected Glow doesn't have any real contenders today, any objections to taking it? Alright, locking it in." He could feel the power washing over him, now familiar after averaging nearly a level a day for the last week. It was absurd to him how successful Jem had been in her self-imposed mission, especially considering she was only halfway through it. Then again, while she had been dedicated to the opposite, she'd managed to ensure he stayed a virgin at 0% Progress Level 1, so perhaps it wasn't so surprising. "Okay. I think we've got enough time to grab lunch before Gen Chem. Shall we go?"

The four stood and started walking, but did not get far. Ghata quite suddenly looked off to the left, away from the path they were walking. "Todd, Jem, you need to move. Between those two buildings, it sounds like Martin's in a heated argument with someone."

The two took off running. Jem remembered to slow down a bit when four of her strides put her way ahead of the struggling Tidbit. They made it quickly enough. Rounding the corner, they could see two figures. One was someone they did not know. She was a Fox Beastfolk, with fiery red-orange fur and an angry expression on her face. Quite a looker, too, even by the standards of this campus, even in sweatpants and a fairly ragged shirt. The other, they knew. It was indeed Martin the Weasel, from his gestures making a passionate argument. As they got closer, they could hear what Ghata had already. "... and we went and we looked, Megan. I'm not like that. I made a promise under binding magic, I will never be disloyal again!"

There was a ringing crack that echoed off the walls of the buildings they were walking between. Megan lived up to her passionate and fiery reputation, the slap coming so fast that it was hard for the others to even see. Martin's head was turned to the side with the force of it. "You're right about one thing, Martin. You won't ever cheat on me again. How DARE you try to pull this kind of stunt? Right as I'm going to exams, too? Don't even TRY to tell me you didn't know."

"Megan, I..."

"Save it. I told you last time I had to slap you that we weren't getting back together. Next time I use my claws and Class Abilities. I can't TRUST you, Martin. That's gone and it isn't coming back. Now, I have fifteen minutes to get you out of my head and get to class. Don't follow." She turned and strode off without looking back, tail held low.

Martin took a moment to gather himself up then turned to face the others. A red mark was visible on his cheek. Though he did not permit them to fall, tears were clearly visible in his eyes. "How long have you two been standing there?"

"Ah... about thirty seconds. Arrived just in time for the conclusion." Todd was trying his best to be delicate, but there was only so much one could do to soften the blow.

"I... see." Martin closed his eyes. He took a deep, slow breath and let it out equally slowly. "Thank you for all that you have done for me. You did your best, and I know you did. This is on me. I'm... I have some time before my next exam. I need to think. See you in Gen Chem?"

Jem inserted herself here. "Martin, I need you to remember something. The promises you made."

"Yeah. I said I'd hold to them regardless of her response. It's not like I'm able to cheat on her anymore, but I'll work to make sure she's back on the right path. Not sure how, but I hope the Moon appreciates the effort."

"And intent." Jem's voice betrayed something beyond mere advice, but what it was Todd didn't know. "I know it has to be hard for you right now, but if you don't show up to the next exam we will come looking for you."

"Don't worry about that. I've had my fill of doing stupid stuff, not gonna end it all on a low note. I'll see you later." Martin, too, walked off with his tail held low.

Todd stood in silence with Jem for a few seconds after Martin ducked out of sight, but silence could only last for so long. "Do you think he'll be alright?"

"What do YOU think, Mr. Bard?" Jem was very clearly thinking hard.

"I think you're trying to buy time to put an answer together. Martin tried, we helped, but he failed. Badly. That's going to hurt."

"Listen closely, Todd. Redemption and atonement do not require your victim to forgive you. Megan's mind is Megan's own, and no matter what that must be respected."

"It must be serious if you're actually calling me Todd. And yeah, I get that. Even makes sense. Just sucks for Martin in particular."

"Them's the breaks when you let yourself do stupid things. Everything has consequences. Sometimes, those consequences are beyond your ability to repair. Martin will make it through the hard part, I think. I also think we need to run if we want to be able to eat before the next exam."

"You're right, even if we aren't done with this conversation." The two trotted off to eat. Quickly, both for the movement and the eating, because by the time they'd bolted down whatever they could rapidly grab it was time to move onwards to their next test.

The professor had set up a practical lab in General Chemistry. Todd had to dig deep into his memory to make sure he had his reports set up, the equipment straight, and the proper number of drops dripped from one sample into another. It really was cool to see the clear liquid suddenly turn purple. It was less cool having to scramble to look up what this meant about what was coloring it. Martin was in the same class, and he was really obviously not having the best of times. He somehow managed to get something to explode when the components were water, red cabbage extract, and a mild acid. How, Todd didn't know. He suspected that Martin might not be testing out of the class, however.

Much like he felt about his own Computer Science test a couple of hours later. Todd realized rapidly that he had given unfortunately little effort to studying for it, figuring that perfect memory would cover it. Problem of course being that there were an awful lot of incredibly idiosyncratic details to remember, and just sifting through them chewed up more time than it should. Probably thanks to the fact that he'd spent more time cumming into random women the day prior than reading on how the computers were put together.

He rather bitterly regretted not taking Correlation Engine, but there were no take backs from the Status.

Shaking his head, he left the building next to the Cobra who sat next to him in class. He could be forgiven for nearly missing the woman who was there to stop him. This despite her rather striking appearance. She was a Beastfolk, a Rabbit this time. She was tall and slender but clearly athletic in build with her ears held up and alert, dressed in jeans and a tee shirt. What was most striking was her coloration. Her fur was jet black, but Todd could see swirling patterns of a faintly glowing blue on her visible arms. This one didn't take any special abilities to correlate, the extremely distinctive coloration was identical to someone who he'd seen the day before. The Tigress, Shannon, who had been the one to screw him unconscious. When she spoke, her voice was soft but had the same intense focus that Shannon's had. "Todd? If you have ten minutes available, please follow me."

"Uh, sure. I'm done for today, anyway." He began to walk towards her. She didn't wait, turning and striding off at a rapid clip. Given the length of her legs and the raw power in them, her strides were equal to a quick jog from Todd. Unlike Jem, earlier, this Rabbit was not willing to look over her shoulder to slow down. She strode off to the student center adjacent to the cafeteria, going in and taking the stairs up. Todd was not a fan of this, but thankfully their goal turned out to be in a room just at the top of those stairs.