"Hey, Pyke!"
Audra turned around to find Samuel Sanada flanked by two boys she didn't recognize. So it's time, then. She thought to herself. Ana had warned her of her "classmate's" return and now, it seemed, it was time to face the music.
"And what can I do for you, Sanada-san?" She asked innocently as the group approached.
"You know what you did, gaijin." Said Sanada angrily.
"Oh, come on." Audra sighed. "Are you still mad about the other day?"
One of Sanada's buddies grabbed her by the hair and forced her to her knees. "You shut up, bitch!"
Audra allowed herself to be held down. Ana had told her that she needed to deal with this in a way that would salve Samuel's fragile ego. It was fine, Audra had prepared for this in advance. In her pockets were a pair of extendable metal batons. She may be a below average sword fighter, but she was an expert with fighting sticks. If this got out of hand, these punks were in for a nasty surprise. But, for now, she let them drag her behind the dorm and thrust against a wall.
"So what do you want us to do, Sam?" One of the strangers asked.
"Hold her." Samuel responded. Pulling back, he punched her hard in the gut. Audra doubled over in pain.
She coughed and laughed. "Is that all you got? Cause you hit like a girl."
Grunting, Samuel pulled her up and punched Audra again, this time directly in her breast, causing her even greater pain.
She dropped to the ground, clutching her bruised chest. Turning to his friends, Samuel barked. "Rough her up. But leave her head and neck unharmed. It would be too obvious. The rest is fair game."
"What's fair game?" Came a voice from behind them. Audra looked to her right and saw Ana and Isolde standing there.
"Damn." Samuel cursed, recognizing the pair. If it had just been Konstantinovich, it wouldn't have been as big a deal. He could've intimidated her to leaving. Isolde, on the other hand, was a teacher's assistant and part of the faculty. He quickly called off his friends. Looking down at the kneeling Audra, he smirked. "I like seeing you in that position, Pyke. It should remind you of your place here, kneeling at the feet of your betters. See you around, gaijin on-na." He left with the other two.
Once they were out of sight, Audra got up and dusted herself off. Still wincing a bit asked, "So, how long were you two standing there and are you satisfied with my performance?"
Ana nodded. "Long enough. And yes, your performance was quite convincing. As long as he thinks he's beaten you, he won't suspect anything. We don't need anyone suspecting you of being more than what you appear to be."
"You know he's never going to let me live this down, right?" Audra said.
"You're a big girl, Audra." Said Isolde. "You should be able to deal with a little bullying, especially since I know you've got a weapon hidden in your jacket."
Ana looked at Isolde questioningly as Audra drew out the batons and popped them open. "Of course I do. I never leave home without them."
Ana's eyes widened. "You mean you could've fought them off and yet you didn't. I'm impressed by your restraint."
"Nah." Audra shook her head. "These were just for if they tried to get really fresh with me. I'm willing to take a few lumps for the team, but I wasn't going to let them force themselves on me."
"Samuel wouldn't do that." Ana insisted. "He has too much pride. Such an act would dishonor him. His friends, I'm less sure of. I don't know if they were even students here."
"We can worry about that later." Said Isolde. "For now, let's get Audra to the infirmary. By the way, Ana, I've received some information that you would find very interesting."
"I don't need an infirmary." Audra set her jaw. "I can move on my own." Though still in some pain, she walked ahead of them into the faculty building and Isolde's office. Once there, Isolde sat them both down. She showed them a printout with a list of names. "Ana, these are the names and identities of your suitors..."