Valdis would have a note stuck to her things just before she departed in the morning.

[My Office: 5:00 PM. Be there, and do NOT try to get out of this]

Valdis would know instantly that meant Daddy was mad. Perhaps word of one of her recent activities had met his ears. Regardless, the purple haired beauty would likely be filled with just a tinge of dread. This was the kind of thing that was serious business.

When the appointed time comes, Adoji would be sitting in his office, leaning back in his chair. Documents would be on the table, and he would hold in his hand a processed and stamped application from a government agency: Valdis' application to sign in for a GED. Did that bloody girl ever think of the backlash that would ensue if the media got wind of the fact that his daughter was trying to drop out of school? 'How could the President keep the country together in troubled times if he can't keep his household together?'

He could see it now...and thus, he had to come up with a solution fast. With the increasing activity around the town lately, he needed one less thing to stir trouble. The President would be wearing a full tailored suit, drinking a cup of tea waiting for his daughter to arrive.

She sighed, some kids got loving notes from absent parents to be cute, she only got them when she was in trouble. Casually she tossed the note in the trash, he was a day late in figuring this out...he was getting slower. By now she had already gathered the papers she would need to soothe the angry beast. Angry or not Valdis would continue as usual, only difference is now she had a curfew to be in, troublesome fathers.

Valdis got home only a few minutes until five, her hair was braided and slung over her shoulder; bangs framing her china like face. She sipped her coffee as she pushed the door aside dropping her leather back pack onto the floor. The door shut just as the clock struck five, her punctuality for these things was really impeccable.

"You know most parents give their kids loving notes; or if there in trouble yell at them right then and there....not make meetings for it, I'm not an employee waiting for a performance review"

She gave him a dull look; she could already guess why he was angry. Really he didn't give her much credit for thinking through her plans....

"...You will excuse me if I am more than a little alarmed that my daughter on her own decided to drop out of school and get a GED without so much as a notice to me. Much less the fact that you FORGED MY SIGNATURE." he says, slamming the paper down on the desk in front of her. There was a slight twitch on the side of his forehead, which meant Valdis crossed a line or two, something that she might not have seen in awhile. There was a sort of equilibrium between Valdis' insanity and her father's responsibilities, but that precarious balance was upset.

"Do you realize the position you've put me in professionally? Now, it's on legal record that 'Adoji Ito, president of Japan elected by the people, allowed his daughter to drop out from a well funded education that I have been pushing to build up and enhance since I took my role, for...what exactly? Do you realize that once the nitpickers and the media get a hold of this it could potentially undermine my credibility as the President? If I can't manage my home, how can I manage a nation! That's what they will say." he says, as he then takes several deep breaths and calms down, before trying to lean back in his chair to relax.

"...I want your reasoning, and what moment of sheer ludicrousness inspired you to go about THIS stunt? Is it a publicity thing for your music group? A sudden lack of interest in education where you have excelled your entire life? Tell me Valdis, what exactly went through your head THIS time?"

Daddy was mad.

Oh ya....there was that....It had slipped her mind that she had forged his signature on the consent form. She was a bit proud of that skill, she had it down perfectly. There was a slight sweat drop as she scratched the side of her cheek. There was really no excuse for that one....it was simply if she asked she would have gotten denied then would have spent time convincing him otherwise.....a waste in her eyes really. Valdis calmly let him rant at her, taking his annoyance at in stride. When he finally began to force himself to calm down Valdis reached into her back and took out a couple of folders and slid them over to her on his desk.

"Then you can tell them this; your daughter being ahead in both emotional and educational development found the need for a greater challenge. I have already filled out applications for several local collages, I'm positive I will be accepted into any university considering my scores on that GED are sure to be top notch."

Valdis looked her father in the eye.

"I find the college schedule more suitable for my time management. I had originally meant this year to be a metal break for myself to concentrate on just my music. The high school level classes bore me; frankly I've been playing dumb since entering high school nor have put much effort into it to begin with. So it's not as if I've taken a lack of interest in my education....especially since a GED means I've passed all high school requirements and have obtained by diploma...all it means is I'm not going to attended the fancy ceremony or go on any senior trips....Senior year is a waste of time meant for fun and games....yes there's test preps for entrance exams for the university but that's basically it."

Valdis was brilliant, it was what allowed her to go ahead and go through with this. Entrance exams would pose no problem for her.

"If you need more reasoning then I'm exhausted with the duties I've taken on, I have an obligation at the shrine, my full time career which includes keeping up with dance, vocal, and instrumental coaching, and balancing watching my back for my freaky covenant manager, add school to that which takes up 7 hours of my day six days a week."

She leaned forward on his desk; her eyes narrowing.

"Did you not notice your daughter's health declining do to an extreme lack of sleep to the point of narcolepsy? Did you not see how run down I was becoming? I excel at coping to extreme schedules but I had to make a cut some where. Looking at my options I knew I was able to graduate early via the GED, college courses are more challenging but less time consuming. All I'm sacrificing is some high school fun that other teenagers get to experiences, ie no proms, senior trips, graduation ceremonies, ext. My education is not going to suffer since I'm continuing it."

Adoji is quiet as his daughter defended her actions and tried to explain to her father why she took the steps and methods that she did going around his back. The last comment, the ever dreaded 'guilt card' was deployed made his right eye twitch just a little. The fact that she pulled that was just a little insulting and depressing: Valdis knows that he expects her to take adequate care of herself. That he is working his hardest for both her and the country and he relied on Valdis' intelligence that she prided herself on so much to make reasonably day to day decisions at this point. She was nearly an adult, not a toddler.

"Well, then yes, you going to college is the only option to make this entire affair seem reasonable. I still would prefer you to have gone through your normal schooling to at least share a little bit of the normal experience. Later in life you might regret not having done the senior field trip or some other activity of the sort." he says, as he exhales a deep and held breath, before he then leans in to match her scrutinizing gaze.

"...You are old enough and mature enough to make a calculated decision like that, and then you resort to a guilt trip to try to defuse my anger. Valdis, you are almost an adult and you can't play both the grownup and the victim here at the same time. You know more than most I've been having to deal with a lot at work lately. You also know that while I do my best, I can't be a traditional parent 100% of the time. Perhaps it is my own fault for never having found someone to serve as a step-mother figure, but I've honored the memory of your mother too much I can't bring myself to that particular venture." he says, standing up and then walking to a window, looking out at the snow before speaking.

"Further, your education comes before your 'shrine work' or your music career. I don't know what inspired you to find faith where you never had it before, or what your ulterior motive for it is, but if you cannot keep up with this college schedule then you will make cuts on that level and NOT your education." he says in that firm, fatherly voice that Valdis would know meant it was nearly impossible to get out of. After a moment of silence, he then turns to his daughter and narrows his eyes at her.

"All that said, forging my signature is still unacceptable under any circumstances. In fact, it is a felony. Of course, I have no intent to send you to prison, so I want you to tell me this: what would you do in my situation?"

"I understand I may regret it but it is something I feel I may need to live with."

A smirk formed on her face as he leaned in and accused her of playing both sides. Which she didn't deny what so ever.

"Daddy dearest you raised me in this world of politicians; of course I'm going to play both cards. As for a new mom we both know I would have gone out of my way to make her life a living hell."

As he got up she turned around leaning on the desk with a look of disinterest, she had expected this speech. After all school was important to him, at least it was for his image, it was the only reason she ever put in an effort for it.

"I give you my word I will not make a cut on college, the only reason I did for high school was because I knew I could be working at a higher level. So I'm not really making a cut on anything, it was the only decision with a positive out come. Only drawback was this chat. As for my new found "faith" its more like a new found dept. Granny saved my ass twice already in the past couple weeks. She gave me a place to sleep the night after the first youma attack I was involved in. Second time was when I ran into a Zodiac, I'm sure by now you know there in the city to. I got doused by a poison by one of them and Granny Rei purified it out....it stung like a bitch, but I wouldn't be here now without her."

She was completely honest about her ulterior motive as she examined her nails. When he asked her opinion on what he should do to her for forging his signature she gave it some serious thought. She did put him in a difficult situation; and she realized there should be some reprimand for her actions...considering it was the president's signature she forged.

"Considering my motives were to free up some time, I suppose the time that I would have spent at the school should be put to use helping you. Boring paper work, errands, ect. At least until you feel I've suffered enough for my crime"

A few more weeks of being exhausted, but she thought it was as much of a fair punishment that she could come up with.

"Purification....right....I will just let you be on that." Adoji says tilting his glasses a little, not entirely understanding what she meant by that. The idea that there was some kind of supernatural influence or that a Zodiac attack really happened was a stretch. Valdis never lied...often, but even she had to admit it seemed a little crazy.

"Well, I will thank her then if and when I see her." he says seriously enough, though Valdis would know that her father was always skeptical about faith. An atheist by nature and professional need, he always took the matter of faith with a respect for others while not overwhelmingly trying to push onto others. When she mentioned the idea of working with him, he rubbed his chin.

"Interesting idea...but I feel as though you would take that in too much stride,hm...plus that imposes on your 'busy schedule...whatever shall I do.." he says slightly singsong and almost enjoying the idea of thinking of creative punishment for his daughter.

Oh if only he knew how much a sting of an ofuda could feel like. She understood her dads skeptical nature; hell if the events hadn't taken place as they did she would have been the same. A frown was on her face as she folded her arms across her chest. Her foot tapping on the ground. What was worse was that her father was getting creative with her punishment....This resulted in a sigh as she picked up one of his letter openers on his desk. She spun it around in her fingers.

"I can tell you don't believe me..."

She tilted her head to the side, her eyes examining the blade. Although Val enjoyed messing with others her relationship with her father had always been an honest one. Plus her new lifestyle was only going to get worse if her father went on a punishing spree every time she went and did something weird. Her eyes glanced up locking with his. In a quick movement she brought the blade down on her forearm creating a long slice. Blood welled up and trickled down her arm; just enough time for him to panic. Steam would then rise up from the gash before rapidly closing.

"You really have no clue how many times I've had my ass handed to me in the past couple weeks cause of this..."

She looked him dead in the eye her face that of a serious nature.

"I know Jun is working on regeneration and there missing the serum. So forgive me if I was hesitant to show you this"

"...Well of course I find it hard to belie..." he starts as he turns to face Valdis and his eyes instantly fixated on the knife that was in her hand. He opened his mouth to speak but before he got a word out, Valdis went to town on her own arm. He leaps forward and grasps the wrist with the knife and the arm, but by the time he saw the wound it had closed up and begun to heal? What was with this steam coming out of it? His eyes narrow as he looks at his daughter.

"What is this?" he says, as he tries to resolve the difficulty of what he saw with reality, he quickly remembered his daughter was a performer. There were often acts that involved fake bleeding and special effects. What was the point of all this?

"Please tell me this is some kind of special effect that you are doing to drastically overdramtize because you knew I was going to be upset about the forgery." he says, but when Valdis went to talk about Jun's research and the fact that she had gotten her ass kicked so many times about it, his frown deepened.

"...Even if this isn't some trick, you don't need to cut yourself." he says with annoyance and concern both in his voice as he took a few steps back and turned around having a difficult time trying to figure this out.

"How did this happen? Did you steal something from his office? If he used you as a guinea pig there will be drastic consequences...I thought he was anti-human experimentation." he growls out, clearly trying to figure out entirely what to do about this.

She allowed him to grab her wrists, and inspect them to make sure she was truly alright. Sadly she didn't think summoning Nazo while doing so would be the wisest decisions in this cases...although it looked freaking awesome when he did show up after she cut herself. Her eyes rolling when he asked if this was some sort of trick; but she could hear the worry in his voice, her facial features softening.

"I'm good but not that good....and you know as well as I do if I didn't cut myself you would have never believed me....though then again I could have probably showed you this"

She held out a hand and a small purple flame flickered to life in her palm.

"Granny smacks me with an ofuda every time I do this....I can tell you personally those things sting like a bitch. Which makes me think there is something to this whole spiritual stuff."

She let the flame die off.

"I haven't a clue how it happened; it started when the first youma popped up in the park. I got scraped up and burned pretty bad in that fight and they just started healing like that. As for Jun he is against human testing; there currently trying to get starfish DNA to go off of because they refuse to use anyone from the covenant....and no I did not steal anything from Jun. I did how ever make a choice to move my career to his agency after finding out mine has been altering my CDS to send subliminal messages to convert people over to the covenant. We both even started a charity to send a portion of my profit to help the victims of the covenants families...Also Jun has no clue of the regeneration."

She looked down at her feet.

"It's possible I was born with this ability....I was born in Transylvania...it was where the covenant first popped up....I think it was just triggered by the attack. It's as confusing to me as it is to you; all my free time has been spent trying to figure it the hell out."

She scrunched up her nose; she was missing pieces of the puzzle. If she was born with the abilities...she only had one person to turn to now.

"If it makes you feel better I have no urge to join the covenant, nor help them in anyway."


A look of innocence crossed her face as she fiddled with her fingers.

"Also...if you received a report on a class V covenant along with a class IV I may or may not have been that IV"

Adoji takes several steps back and slumps into his chair when the initial shock of what he was seeing wears off. He rests his elbow on the arm rest and rubs his brow and temple with intense and instant stress, simply listening to what his daughter was telling him. Of all the things that he had to deal with, now his daughter was manifesting strange non-natural abilities? Did she get infected by some kind of virus? He sighed deeply and then mutters a little.

"Well, this explains why you never took scarring from your constant mishaps as a child..." he says as he then sits up and looks at his daughter in the eye.

"You know that this cannot become public knowledge for about a hundred different reasons. Did you do anything at all to cause these...anomalies to manifest? And what exactly do you know about what you think is a Class v incident.." he says, staring his daughter down and waiting for an answer.

This was complicated. A lot more complicated than the father could realize.

She nodded, it certainly did explain a lot...now that she thought back on it she should have gotten banged up A LOT more then she had as a child. She shifted over to his chair leaning over to poke him a couple times in the cheek.

"Yes I know this cannot become public knowledge, but your my father after all. I like to say we have an honest relationship as things go."

She plopped down on the ground and rested her head on his knee. She was getting tired of standing.

"But can you understand why I dropped the high school portion of my activity now? Its where I'm surrounded by the most people...and it's where if something odd happened isn't easily explained away as a part of a performance."

She looked up at him, her head still resting on his leg , an annoyed expression on her face when he accused her of causing this stuff to happen to her.

"No, I about had a panic attack that I was going to turn into one of those damn monsters when they did manifest. But I won't deny I have practiced to be able to use them.....cause that flame thing was popping up every time I got pissed. I had to figure out to control it otherwise we'd have more of a problem. Plus I needed to up my survivability."

She raised an eyebrow at him when he tried to pull the what do you think your know thing on her again....didn't he learn that she wasn't making this shit up the first time? Plus it seems the face she just admitted she was a high class youma seemed to just fly over his head. Though history was showing he needed visuals.

"I know he tasted nasty"

She licked a fang in memory, as a small shimmering wave of purple rippled around her. Turning her hair that snowy white, her eyes turning from violet to demonic maroon. Purple markings surrounded her eyes along with stripes along her wrists leading to clawed hands.
"As for what I know about that fight was a group of people myself included took down what your army failed to do."

She smiled up at her father; a look of innocence that seemed wrong on such a being.

"Before you go into a panic attack I'm still functioning like I normally do....this form feels even almost natural..."

There was another shimmer as Valdis returned to normal; although her body visibly sagged as the power left her. She really couldn't maintain that form for more than a few minute. She closed her eyes all while still resting her head on his knee, she hadn't done this in a long time.

"I'm not exactly sure what to do with this new abnormality, but I do know I want to help end the covenant. I want to see my old home again, this Beryl person will be brought down"

A yawn escaped her lips, she was sleepy.

Adoji is silent as he listens to Valdis, his moment of meditation broken only by the abrupt and sudden morph that Valdis did. He was startled so hard he jumped back in his chair, tumbled too far, and rolled falling back with the chair, bumping his head on the ground and looking at the ceiling.

"Ow....why did you have to do that..." he says dejectedly, sitting up and righting himself by clamoring to his feet, but by the time that Valdis had come back into sight, she had returned to her normal state of being.


"Fighting the Covenant? That is out of the question." Adoji says in response to her declaration that she wanted to stop the Covenant. The jab about the army failing to stop the Class V stung just a little, even if it were true: it wasn't for a lack of trying or a lack of effort to attempt to reach out and change things in the world. It's just been a mountain of problems and logistics trying to develop something, anything that could tip the scales.

But to see his daughter go into battle, that would be more than he could take. Never mind the fact that if it were to get out who knows what would happen to his talented daughter. Never mind the career part, Valdis' health was of concern to the President now. He rubbed his head and then looks at her seriously.

"I wish you to stop using that. Who knows what that could do to you long term."

A look of surprised crossed her face when her father jumped suddenly; she had never seen him do that before. She blinked a couple of times and when he seemed alright burst out into laughter. The site of her father falling over in such an undignified way was so humorous that the laughter brought tears to her eyes. She wiped the droplets from her eyes, her giggles slowly subsiding.

"Sorry father; but your proving to have difficulty excepting what I'm saying as the truth without proof."

She folded her legs under herself and grabbed her toes. She looked up at him with an impish grin. It was replaced by a pleading look when he forbid rising up against the covenant.

"But Daddy; I can DO something! I realize what this could mean for the rest of my life...but there's a chance to make things better. We've run out of time; the covenant are getting ready for their final blow, can't you see that?"

She got to her feet; it was rare for Valdis to show much passion towards anything but her work but she had made this her battle already.

"Fighting the covenant is the choice between surviving and not; there drawn to energy signatures. They attack and wipe out those who have the ability to rise up and fight against them. They're going to come after me anyways...Not only would I perish but so would many others as well if I didn't act when I did already."

She ran a hand through her hair, pushing it out of her eyes. Her facial features becoming slightly excited when he said they wouldn't know the effects of long term.

"It was something Sorpio said as he was dying, Beryl is used some sort of spell to control him. The Zodiac are beings from a world called the dark kingdom; they're not human to begin with. They're born with their abilities; and they function like you or me! My abilities aren't from being infected by whatever turns lower youma; it's in my DNA....and it is most likely in yours or mothers DNA as well...As long as I don't fall victim of the queen baddies magic I think I will be able to function no differently then I always have."

Adoji scowls at his daughter.

"Right, and if your children turn into something that looks like a vampire you tell me how you would react." he says with narrow eyes, then shaking his head again when Valdis protested about fighting the Covenant. What kind of insanity had gotten into her to the point she wanted to try to put her life on the line using some kind of supernatural power to fight the group that was best known for subverting humanity and corrupting their bodies and minds.

"The Covenant have legions of those beasts and fanatics who gave up their humanity to serve some 'greater good' in their minds. What do you think risking your life would accomplish??? Would your mother want her legacy to die fighting a battle she can't win?!" he says, then shaking his head again when she talked about Scorpio.

"...How would you know if Scorpio is dead. It could have been a body double for all you know, and what do you mean 'Beryl' or 'Dark Kingdom'." he says narrowing his eyes until Valdis mentions something about a DNA link.

"I don't know the science of the supernatural phenomena but I know with certainty neither your mother nor I could shoot fire out of our hands or turn into vampires."