Pidgeons in a Fox Hole, Part 1

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This page is about the fifthteenth episode of Magical Monster High School Drama! It was released on June 2nd, 2017.

## Production

The episode was written by Terry H and features the voices of Kitto M, Rory F, Marco D and George H-S.

## Plot

Saturday morning, Zero returns to the school plane after a day away to collect herself. Her class is abuzz with the build up to Halloween and the Culture Festival, which is in three weeks. Mr Vyager explains that each class should come up with an idea for the festival that the entire class can contribute to. Daisy suggests presenting the class as a maid café, with all females as maids and all males as butlers. Nikkie pipes up that Daisy just likes maids, and the representative blushes profusely. Zeroeth, seeming listless and uncaring, offers no suggestions. In Class 1F, which still consists of Rowan exclusively, Madam Bonnie suggests a presentation of some tasteful nude drawings.

After class, Sashi visits the Treasure Hunting Society. This time, she is there as a patron rather than an adventurer. She asks Rubert to display a quest to her plane to retrieve a giant golden buddha statue. He does so, and both Rowan and Zeroeth, being members of the society, receive the message that there is a new quest available.

Quentin seeks out Dimitri and finds him in the History Club clubroom, preparing the room for a meeting that afternoon. For now, though, the vampire has time to talk, and he makes Quentin tea. Quentin tells Dimitri that he is writing an article on vampires for the Newspaper Club and would like his help. Dimitri agrees, and Quentin begins by asking how vampires are made. Dimitri explains that on his plane, there are two types of vampires: purebloods, and half-fangs.

Pureblooded vampires are created when two vampires mate, in the same way as mortals, conceive, and then bear a child. Purebloods do not age as long as they feed on blood, and so with an adequate supply of mortal blood, they are functionally ageless and immortal. They also gain several supernatural abilities, including, but not limited to: the ability to reincarnate from apparent death, superhuman strength and speed, and shape changing. If they do not feed on blood for an extended period of time, however, they will begin to feel their years. If they have lived past a human lifespan, this is likely to result in a slow, painful death as they first lose their powers, then age rapidly; and finally wither into a dried husk.

A half-fang is created when a vampire feeds on a human almost to the point of death, then feeds the mortal their blood. This ritual can be performed by purebloods and half-fangs alike, but the further from a pureblood sire the new vampire is, the weaker they will be. This process weakens the vampiric sire, and is extraordinarily painful for the mortal undergoing the transformation. All half-fangs are much weaker than any pureblood vampire. They are vulnerable twofold to all of a pureblood vampire’s weaknesses: sunlight, divine magic or objects, garlic, etc. The powers they gain are inferior to pureblood magic, and in particular, the ability to reincarnate from mist, and shapechanging in general, do not usually manifest in half-fangs. However, some unique powers occasionally manifest in half-fangs, as the transformation process can cause latent powers in the human to manifest, amplify or change. Lastly, all half-fangs feel a compulsion to obey the vampire who created them.

The vampire ends by stating that most of his kind are duplicitous, evil immortals who should not be trifled with. Quentin says that he is glad that Dimitri is an exception, thanks the vampire for his time, and returns home. He pins up his findings, and writes next to them a list of items including syringes, a catheter and blood pump; as well as a note: “Plan V: probs bad idea”.

Whilst he is doing this, he hears a knock on the door, and Zero’s voice. He invites her in, and she walks to his sofa and flops down on the pillows, then curls up like a dog. She looks small, and vulnerable. Quietly, she asks Quentin to cook for her. Wordlessly, he lays a blanket over her curled form, makes her hot chocolate, and switches on the television. She accepts this, asking what the drink is called, before sipping it as Quentin busies himself in the kitchen.

After dinner, Quentin excuses himself and goes upstairs. He returns ten minutes later with a hastily wrapped gift, and presents it to her, wishing her a happy Saturday. Eyes gleaming, Zero unwraps it to find a beautiful golden dragon statuette. It is the statue that Zero admired in the jewelry shop on Quentin’s plane the first time she visited. She stares at it for a few moments, then looks up at Quentin and thanks him, sincerely. He takes his antidepressants and removes his hand, then sits next to her on the sofa and half watches the television while reading a spellbook. After a while, Zero scooches up to Quentin and cuddles with him, wrapped in the blanket. He puts down his book, and holds her.

When night falls, Zero leaves, and Quentin sleeps. The next day, Sunday, he visits his cat plane and checks over the suits of armour he placed there from the slime moon. He buries the bodies within them, then takes the six suits and five cloaks back to his plane to be appraised. He learns of the cloaks’ properties, and sells three of the complete sets, keeping two more and the one lone suit of armour.

He returns to find that Dr. Wills has sent him the pager that he asked for. He attaches it to his metallic arm with tape, and checks the readings on it. Apparently it was active a couple of days ago, and he learns of Sashi searching the apartment and eating his tuna. In the afternoon, Rowan arrives at the Pet Monster Society clubroom to act as officiator for all duels taking part that day. While there, they also buy a spined rat creature and a ball to keep it in, for Akio when he returns.

After the society wraps up, they run into Zero, who was looking for them. They ask the dragon if she would like to act on the Treasure Hunting Society memos they both received. She seems reluctant and passive, stating bitterly that she does not think that she can do it. Besides, there are only her and Rowan. Rowan says that they may ask around for more people. Zero then asks if she may spar with Promethia. Rowan agrees to this, and they plan to duel Monday evening, after the Student Council meeting has finished. Rowan cooks, and they have dinner together like usual. Today, Zero makes an effort to use cutlery, and Rowan tutors her on dinner etiquette.

On Monday, Rowan drops in on afternoon lessons in Class 1E, and listens to a lecture on demifiends. These are creatures such as natural vampires, succubi, and other demons, who grow up like normal humans until around high school age. At this point they begin hungering for a specific substance: blood, sexual fluids, etc. They also gain supernatural powers and usually immortality at this point. Mr Vyager also mentions ghouls and kejin, relating to vampires, mindless monsters who may wander for hundreds of years before gaining sentience and a sense of self.

After the lesson finishes, they ask Gregor and Darren if they would like to participate in the Treasure Hunting Society mission for the golden buddha. Darren happily agrees, seeming eager to upset a religious artifact, while Gregor asks for more information. On a rumour, Rowan then visits Class 1C to find a member of the Christian Union called Raphael to see if he would be interested in the quest. As Rowan suspected, the evangelical student leaps at the chance to destroy pagan imagery and sacrifice his time to spread his faith.

After this, Rowan returns to the Treasure Hunting Society and notes the details of the world they will be travelling to: the portal should lead to a mountainous area controlled by a military shogunate, with two shrines separated by a lush forest. The first shrine is small and tended by a single couple and their apprentice, while the other is more the size of a monastery and has several priests in residence. The main source of income for the tiny village is wood, but the people only cut trees at the edge of the forest, superstitious of angry spirits within. Tiny spirits are said to inhabit sacred trees within the forest, as well as a gigantic boar and several man eating spirits. People have gone missing in the area, and no bodies are ever found. He brings these details to Gregor, and Gregor agrees to join the mission, tomorrow.

After this, Rowan and Daisy catch up before the Student Council meeting begins. She tells them about Class 1E’s preparations for the Culture festival, saying that they are already booking pastry chefs and fittings for costumes. Then, the meeting begins, with Rowan the newest class representative. They discuss the culture festival and preparations for Halloween, then the next item to discuss is a missive from B population. A representitive from B population walks in, and immediately takes centre stage.

This person has an uncanny resemblance to Quentin, possessing blond hair and blue eyes, with a Zenithian cast to his face. Unlike Quentin, he stands straight, and appears confident, slick and personable. He has a few scars, but they are small and neat, nothing like Quentin’s Chelsey smirk and messy throat scar. His eyes are piercing icy blue, the pupils mere pinpricks. They draw a person in, and he has a gravity about him that attracts, a presence that cannot be ignored. He strides to the front of the room, and begins. This person is here to explain the injustice of the preferential treatment of A population over B population, always having lunch first, for example. He suggests alternating lunchtimes, and also takes offence at the extreme segregation in the first place, mentioning clubs and societies in particular as a place where he would like to see the populations mix. He also seamlessly slips into the presentation a mention of his own class, 1B, which has nearly thirty members, and a science faculty teacher. After this, he steps down, and the meeting is adjourned.

This man is Ambrose, Quentin’s brother. Rowan approaches and greets him, then pulls out the Wand of Promethia. After Rowan does so, Ambrose recognises that this must be Quentin’s dual form. They express their pride for Quentin’s achievement in becoming class representative, and tell them that their mother expects them for dinner next weekend. Rowan asks about how the war is going, and learns that there is little progress on the front. Ambrose subtly implies that none of his cooks can compare to Quentin’s food, and Rowan offers their services, remarking that cooking is the only activity in which Quentin is more proficient than Ambrose. Their brother refutes this, pointing out Rowan’s many scars, and reminiscing about gaining his own fighting dragon whelps bare handed. He is suitably impressed that some of the Rowan’s scars were given to them by an eldritch being of chaos. Before they leave, Rowan mentions Rosaline, and tells Ambrose that they are preparing to investigate the matter. Ambrose assures them that their aunt will pay dearly, and the brothers cordially part ways.

Rowan goes home and transforms into Promethia, ready for her sparring with Zero. She takes a handful of antidepressants and waits. Meanwhile, Zero has been at the DC tower making preparations for their training, persuading Kimberly to remove the enchantments on her cuff during their fight. With this done, she returns to the apartment and she and Promethia walk to the prepared room. It is an old disused gymnasium building, and sitting in the bleachers is Illack.

They begin, and Promethia begins talking to Zero. She asks the dragon about her brothers who have died and her quest for revenge against the angels Azrael and Azazel, and how she felt when her gold was transmuted. Predictably, the dragon’s eyes blaze, and her movements become sloppy as she almost forgets the fight at hand in her anger. The goddess uses the dragon’s distraction to trip and hit her before dancing out of range of her attacks.

Completely calm, she notes that Zero’s inability to control her emotions it one of her key flaws. Promethia herself is a sociopathic anti nihilist, and feels nothing. Becoming frustrated with the ease that the goddess avoids her attacks, Zero declares that this philosophy is not helping with her mood. Promethia counters that it is still training. In response, the dragon points out that she does have a purpose, even if Promethia does not. Zero must carry out vengeance, and reproduce, and through her brood, she will live forever. To Zero’s disgust, Promethia offers sex. The dragon’s revulsion provides another opening, and the goddess corrects her with another sharp jab, received with a growl.

Promethia advises Zero to block out what people say in battle, saying that she hardly listens to anyone. At this the dragon complains that she is a creature of emotion; her rage is what stokes her fire, and gives her the strength to heal. Promethia simply tells her to rely on the rage that she has on the inside, to control that deep rage, rather than be distracted by petty words in the moment. Zero is forced to admit that this actually is good advice, and resolves to move towards that state of mind.

The conversation moves on to death. Zero explains the draconic custom of consuming dead relatives so that their souls may live on in their descendants, and Promethia compares this to the souls in the Wand. The dragon is adamant that the two are not the same. Promethia asks about Sashi, and Zero bitterly recounts her disasterous battle with the kitsune. The goddess remarks that Zero could get so much more done if she relied on others, and tells her that sometimes winning is more important than winning by oneself. Zero considers these training sessions to be just that, but feels ashamed to be using such methods.

After a pause, she mentions that she owes Promethia some favours, for saving her life, and for this training. Promethia shrugs, saying that she counts three, but that it matters little considering Zero’s record for keeping favours. At this reminder, the dragon growls and looks away, and Promethia quickly punishes this with a hard rap across the snout. They resume training, and Promethia continues on to tells the dragon to disregard love, as it only makes one weaker. Eventually, a battered Zero returns to her home plane and sleeps.

Teusday, she has Rowan fill in her paperwork for the Arcana Society, joins, and familiarises herself with the building. Classes fly by, Rowan officiates at the Pet Monster Society’s main meeting, then they meet up with Zero at six. Accompanied by Gregor, Darren, Raphael, and Raphael’s cronies in addition to Rowan; the dragon leads the way through the portal carrying the Treasure Hunting society pass.

They appear in a small shrine’s courtyard, before a tong gate. From their elevated vantage atop a rolling hill, the party can look down into a rural valley dominated by a thick forest, with a small village clinging to edge of the trees. Zeroeth steps away from the group and transforms, and immediately all of the members of the Christian union undergo their own transformation. They sprout golden wings and begin to glow with holy light, and they all draw their weapons. Finding herself suddenly surrounded by angels, the dragon growls, and demands to know why Rowan brought them. They assure Zero that they are as surprised as her, and persuades the dragon not to attack the divine beings, saying that they heard something from inside the shrine. She restrains herself, growling, but remains on guard, and the angels content themselves with surrounding her. Gregor shifts to a hulking, winged stone form.

Raphael bravely forces his way into the shrine first. He finds an old man, mortally wounded, but looking like he has held on at the brink of death for several days. There is blood everywhere. The old man tells the angel that demonic foxes came and murdered everyone, and ate Sashi. Seeing that the man is a buddhist, Raphael euthanises him rather than healing him. Then he tells the rest of the group. Zeroeth is surprised that Sashi is dead, and then realises that the shrine reeks of the kitsune once she peers inside the building. This must be Sashi’s plane, then.

While the others search the building, Zeroeth takes off, sensing gold towards the forest. She flies over the gold, and senses a line of tiny buddha statues spaced apart by hundreds of meters. She continues over the woods, and feels the line break, and the gold that she can sense seem to blink in and out. Somewhere, though, she senses a far larger chunk of gold. It is as if her goldsense has been blocked by the forest itself. She returns to the group and leads them between the trees, telling Rowan to watch her back against the angels.