One week had passed since the start of Kazuya’s newly updated class schedule.

In that time, Kazuya was starting to get into the swing of things.  Even before attending West Genetics Academy, Kazuya’s mindset was on doing his part to help in driving off the Nova threat to the best of his ability.  Before he was officially enrolled as a student, he was given the breakdown of what being a Limiter would entail.  While he had some understanding of what his duties as a Limiter would be, they were rudimentary at best.  After getting the more specific details from Chiffon as well as from his instructors (mainly Miss Kim, Miss Elize, and Kazuha), Kazuya was starting to better understand the concept of pairing up with a Pandora so that both Pandoras and Limiters could further improve their overall fighting capabilities.

Prior to learning that Pandoras had vastly outnumbered Limiters and there were only so many Limiters to go around, Kazuya thought that such a bond would make sense, in a way of looking at things.  After all, if the relationship was a simple state of one-to-one, then both Pandora and Limiter would look after each other’s well-being and safety on the battlefield, given the closeness and intimacy of the Ereinbar Set - the very act of a Pandora sharing one of her stigmata with her chosen Limiter.

Given how revered and meaningful such an act was among those within Genetics facilities, it was somewhat understandable that it was dubbed with the term “Baptism.”  Perhaps a similar term like “Joining,” “Pairing,” or even “Marriage” might be suitable in their own ways, but “Baptism” ended up being the term ultimately chosen since it carried the most weight, as if the two sides were joining together in an act of matrimony before God (or some kind of higher life form, for those who weren’t necessarily religious or associated with any one faith in particular).

In any case, as Kazuya began to process all the information he heard from his instructors, he obsessively perused his notes, listening intently on whatever information he could absorb with the hopes that it would be of use whenever the next Nova Clash would end up occurring.  While many students in more traditional schools would find sitting in class and hearing lectures to be quite boring and not worth paying attention, Kazuya’s mindset was the exact opposite, given the the study of all things related to Pandoras, Limiters, and the Nova were a matter of life and death, in a way of looking at things.

Just like soldiers in centuries past would study, learn, and brush up on the finer points of tactics and strategy, so too did Kazuya listen intently on every piece of information that was presented before him during his classes.  For Kazuya was now a soldier as well as a student, even if he didn’t carry a rifle or go through typical “boot camp” like soldiers of the last few centuries did en masse.  He just happened to be a soldier in a different type of war, admittedly in a support role as opposed to an active attack role like that of the Pandoras.  Still, if he could do his best and aid his partners in whatever effective capacity come the next Nova Clash, then he could take some measure of pride in knowing that he played a meaningful part in the whole thing and helped to save lives - both the lives of his partners and of nearby soldiers and civilians on whatever battlefield he ended up being deployed to.

While all the incoming information he learned and received was certainly useful and worth knowing (at least in Kazuya’s opinion), there was one little tidbit that gave him pause and made his mind wonder.

It was during one of Miss Elize’s classes on the finer points of the Ereinbar Set.

“While I’m sure this subject matter might seem a bit redundant for you third-years to hear about and even for Miss Roland here,” said Elize during the lecture, “for the sake of your fellow freshman, I feel that it’s important they get a better understanding of just how the Ereinbar Set is created.”

From what Kazuya recalled of the lecture, the procedure went as such:

When a Pandora finds a Limiter whom she is particularly “taken with” or “interested in,” in a somewhat subtle way of implying romantically-themed courtship, she pairs up with that Limiter.  If enough positive chemistry forms between the two of them, the Pandora willingly shares one of her Stigmata with the Limiter, having it removed from her own body and implanted into his in the process.  While it is technically possible to do so without the use of proper surgery - meaning crudely ripping out the stigmata from the Pandora, tearing open a hole in the Limiter somewhere, and forcefully shoving it into the Limiter - such an act wasn’t necessary within the state-of-the-art medical laboratories at Genetics facilities.  Once there is consent and agreement between the two, they undergo surgery and the Limiter receives one of the Pandora’s stigmata into his body.  After proper healing, the Limiter is slowly able to use his Freezing ability over time, working to hone and perfect it as much as he can in training sessions thereafter.  As the stigmata matures within the Limiter’s body, the two become more ‘melded’ in a way of putting things, sharing their basic human senses as they bond from that point on.  In the strongest of cases, it is said that Pandoras and Limiters share not just their five basic senses, but are even able to sense each other’s emotional state and even communicate telepathically (though these instances are more the exception than the rule as things stand among pairing up).

While all of that was a lot for Kazuya to take in, there was a distinct piece of information that made his eyes widen somewhat upon hearing it.

“Miss Schmitz?” asked one of the students.

“Yes, Miss Hiragi?” replied the instructor.

“Given that I’m the junior-most Pandora here, I’m curious:  Are most Pandoras and Limiters who pair up usually around the same age?  Just curious on that note.”

“Interesting question, Miss Hiragi,” replied Elize.  “While there’s no ironclad rule or standard on potential age differences between Pandoras and Limiters, we’ve seen from research over the years that the strongest links with the highest degree of synchronization and compatibility usually tends to be between older women and younger men.  That’s why Pandoras usually tend to pair up with Limiters who are younger than them.  Of course, there are exceptions, where both Pandora and Limiter are either the same age or the Limiter is older than the Pandora, but those cases are more exception than rule, so to speak.”

“Any reason as to why that setup is most effective?” inquired Kaho further.

“There’s a theory…I suppose you could surmise it as something akin to ‘female intuition,’ as corny as that may sound,” replied Elize with a chuckle.  “Over the years, we’ve studied brain scans of Pandoras who are paired up with Limiters, and have found that in general that both the  amygdala and the prefrontal cortex - the parts of the brain associated with emotion control - tend to light up with activity more often after a Pandora has completed a Baptism with her Limiter.  This brain activity is strongest among Pandoras who are teamed up with Limiters younger than them.  Personally, I like to refer to it as a sort of ‘Mama Bear’ or ‘Mother Hen’ trait of the female psyche going into full throttle whenever a Pandora’s Limiter might be in danger, especially since in most cases the Limiter is both younger AND smaller in most pair-ups.  I’m guessing that Pandoras in that particular setup feel a sort of subconscious need to love, coddle, and protect their Limiters with extreme tenacity, in the same way that the mother would look after her child or an older sister would look after her younger sibling.  That’s my personal opinion on the topic anyway.  Like I said earlier, there are exceptions in the age-differentials between Pandoras and Limiters; it’s just a general observation we’ve noticed.”

“Interesting,” thought Ganessa aloud as she took this information in.  Given her 2nd-year status, she wasn’t as well-versed on the finer points of Pandora-Limiter pairups.

For his part, Kazuya simply sat quietly as he digested this little tidbit of information.  Sure enough, the gears in his head started to turn as he came to some logical understandings.

‘If Pandoras tend to pair up with younger men as their Limiters, then I guess that makes sense as to why Chiffon and the others would pair up with me,’ thought Kazuya in self-reflection.  ‘Thing is…given that almost everyone I’m paired with is either a 2nd-year or 3rd-year Pandora…isn’t it safe to assume…that they already had Limiters…before meeting me?’

It was a fair assessment to make, even though Kazuya didn’t outright know for a fact as to whether or not the 3rd-year Pandoras in his group had Limiters prior to meeting him.  After all, by the time of their sophomore year, most Pandoras started looking for Limiters whom they had good chemistry with, in order to see if they would like to become viable candidates with which to form a Baptism, according to what he had learned in the class material so far.

‘So in the cases of pretty much everyone except for Kaho, it’s quite possible that they all had Limiters prior to meeting me.  And if that’s the case…then…am I to blame for separating them from their Limiters?  Assuming their Limiters are still alive and they were on good terms with their respective Pandoras, then did my arrival upset all of that?  Did I tear them away from their partners?’  These were Kazuya’s thoughts as he pondered on these potential developments, and given his mindset of not wanting to place undue harm onto anybody, his mind started to become filled with one emotion in particular:

Guilt.

After all, from the way Kazuya perceived such a development of events, if he didn’t show up at West Genetics, then all of the 3rd-Pandoras and Ganessa would most likely still remain with their Limiters.  For all he knew, they were on very good relations with one another - maybe even planning on getting engaged or married in the future!  And then here he comes and simply takes that all away, from both the Pandoras AND their Limiters, like some entitled, self-important playboy who decides to strut his stuff and lay claim onto the Pandoras in his clique like showcase trophies.  And most likely because of his last name and nothing else (given his freshman status).  The shame and guilt he started to accumulate began building up over time, eating him up from the inside and making the act of studying harder and harder, what with his mind coming to his own assumptive conclusions and all.

It was by this time (1 week since his newly adjusted schedule) that Kazuya was feeling like an outright bastard for separating these lovely ladies from their Limiters.  How could he not feel like such, unless he was a completely selfish, self-serving prick who didn’t care about who he hurt so long as he got what he wanted?  He was at least thankful that he still had a conscience so that he could feel rather low about how this whole situation had turned out.

Now he just had to come up with a plan to make amends…to make things right for coming between his group…no, that wasn’t right…between the group of Pandoras he had taken away from their Limiters unjustly.  The way he saw things, he had no right to be considered their Limiter anymore.

Fast forward to the group mansion/compound in which Kazuya and the Pandoras were staying.

The time of day was getting on into the evening.  After a big group dinner, this time consisting of Italian food (mainly a mix of lasagna and salad), the group was finishing up with the last of the meal, with about half of the women proceeding to put away leftovers while the others cleaned up the table and carried dishes over towards the dishwasher.  By this point, group dinners were becoming an outright assurance every night between Kazuya and his “partners,” which from his perspective, he felt guilty even referring to them as such by now.  In Kazuya’s viewpoint, he was thinking that they were more akin to borderline captives or hostages, forced to partner up with him and most likely against their will (which if true disgusted him all the more).

As the ladies were finishing up, some of them couldn’t help but notice Kazuya’s particularly quiet demeanor, as well as his somewhat crestfallen disposition.

“Kazuya?” asked Rana with equal parts confusion and concern.  “Are you alright?  You seem rather…well, sad by the look of things.”

Satellizer followed up by stepping up right to the young man and kneeling, bringing her head more level with Kazuya’s as she gazed intently into his eyes.

“Kazuya,” she began, sensing something was off, “what’s wrong?”

In response, Kazuya simply looked up into Satellizer’s big, beautiful blue irises and simply stared somewhat dumbfounded, with tears in his eyes as he struggled to come up with a verbal response.  It was like there was an apple lodged in his throat and he simply couldn’t force himself to utter the words.

Sure enough, within seconds, literally ALL of the women partnered up with Kazuya were closing in on him, surrounding the Limiter with varying degrees of concern or even downright worry on their faces as they gathered round and collectively cast the young man in their group shadow.

“Kazuya, what’s the matter?” asked Chiffon with open concern in her tone of voice.

“What is it, Kazuya?” asked Ticy in a similar tone of voice.

“Kazuya, what’s wrong?” asked Elizabeth, her tone calm, yet concerned all the same.

The same type of responses came from all the other Pandoras, all of whom had varying degrees of worry plastered on their faces.  Even the more stoic and reserved types like Ingrid, Attia, and Creo were showing cracks in their demeanors as they gazed upon the Limiter before them, wondering just what in the hell was eating him up inside.

“Please, Kazuya,” insisted Chiffon in a tone of voice that was bordering on pleading, “just tell us what is wrong.  Let us help you.”  The student council president was on bended knee, like Chiffon and Elizabeth and encroaching on Kazuya’s personal space at this point.  If she were to lean in any closer, her lips would end up pressed against Kazuya’s head at that point.

“I’m sorry,” muttered Kazuya quietly.  “It’s nothing.  I just…I’m…I’ll make this right…”

“Make what right?” asked Chiffon, curious as to what he was getting at.  “You’ve done nothing wrong, as far as I or anyone of us here can tell.  So what exactly do you think you need to make right?”

By this point, the guilt within Kazuya’s being was on the verge of overtaking him.  He couldn’t help but see himself as a bastard who ruined the potential love lives of nearly ALL of these lovely ladies.  Aside from Kaho, they may have all been part of a different Limiter’s harem, and then along comes Kazuya to simply upend all of that and whatever love and affection they had between them.  Dwelling on that possibility was becoming too much for Kazuya to bear, so he simply reacted the only way he knew how:

Kazuya Aoi started to quietly weep.

“I’m sorry,” he said at no more than a whisper in volume.  “I’m so sorry…I’ll make it right…I promise…I’ll fix things…I’m sorry.”  By this point, Kazuya Aoi had buried his head into his palms to hide his crying face and the shame he felt at this point, which was certainly confusing the living daylights out of all eleven women currently gathered around him.

Deciding to act promptly, Chiffon took command of the situation.

Scooping up Kazuya into her arms, she lifted the Limiter “bridal style” into her embrace and spoke aloud before all the other Pandoras.

“Ladies,” she said, “proceed to put away the leftovers and then meet me in the baths as soon as possible.  Understood?”

“Yes, ma’am.” was the collective response from the other ten women, all of them in unison (surprisingly enough, even Ganessa and Kaho were in lock step in their response).

Minutes later, Kazuya Aoi was being carried in the soothing embrace of Chiffon Fairchild, still holding his face in his hands, too ashamed to show the pathetic, pitiful look on his face at that very moment.

“Shhh, Kazuya,” whispered Chiffon in a rather soothing tone of voice.  “It’s okay, Kazuya, it’s okay.”  Chiffon’s voice was little more than a whisper at this point, with all of the nurturing affection one might expect from either an older sister or a mother, tenderly cradling Kazuya against her torso and bosom as she entered the bathing area.

Chiffon proceeded to gently pry Kazuya’s arms apart, pulling his hands from his face in the process and gazing deeply into his eyes as she did so.  For his part, Kazuya couldn’t help but feel shame, having to look upon this lovely young lady as she gazed through fox-like eyes onto the sobbing mess before her.

“Please,” muttered Kazuya, “don’t look at me.  I…[sniff]...I don’t deserve you…any of you…”  By now, Kazuya was struggling to keep the words together, so great was his shame and self-loathing over the conclusions he was coming to over the whole situation.

“Shhh…” replied Chiffon with an almost hypnotic tone of endearment as she proceeded to gingerly handle Kazuya’s clothes.  Funny enough, if she so desired, she could have EASILY just torn off everything Kazuya was wearing with almost no real effort on her part.  The stitching in his pants, shirt, and whatever else he was wearing would have surrendered to her raw strength easily enough, but Chiffon always preferred to do things diplomatically and with both tenderness and finesse whenever possible.  Fingering the buttons and zippers of Kazuya’s outfit, she proceeded to disrobe him completely, including his socks and underwear.  While he initially tried to stop her from doing so (which under the circumstances would be as comical as it was futile, given the ocean-wide gap in raw power between the two of them), Chiffon continued her gentle, motherly shushing to lower Kazuya’s resistance in order to let her finish the disrobing of her charge.  Funny enough, it was at this point that the remainder of Kazuya’s group were entering the baths just as Chiffon was finishing up with disrobing Kazuya.

“How is he, Chiffon?” asked Ticy.

“He’s calmed down somewhat,” replied the student council president as she briefly turned to the others, still holding Kazuya in her embrace.  “I’m going to take him to the baths and find out just what in the world is eating him up inside.  Will you be joining me?”

“Of course,” stated Elizabeth rather bluntly.

“Is that a serious question?” replied Creo.

“As if you even needed to ask,” commented Arnett.

Moments later, all eleven of the Pandoras were disrobing and making their way towards the baths, with a naked Kazuya being carried in a naked Chiffon’s arms (with his head firmly pressed into her bosom as he sobbed and whimpered), as the ladies began to settle themselves into the bathwater, gathered in a close-knit semi-circle around Chiffon as she held the whimpering Limiter against her bosom, gently shushing him in order to get him to relax.

The action was one that made some among the group (especially Satellizer, Rana, Ticy, and Elizabeth) want to instinctively reach out and take Kazuya into their own arms, partly out of envy for Chiffon’s position, but mainly to help console the Limiter and get his mind off whatever it was that was tearing him up inside emotionally-speaking.

After a few minutes of Kazuya quietly sobbing, Chiffon loosed her hold of the Limiter in her arms and pulled back so that she could face the young man in her embrace.  By this point, Kazuya had let up somewhat with the sobbing and the heavy spasms in his breathing, choking up earlier to the point that he could barely speak during the emotional climax of his guilt trip.  Now that he was more calm and level-headed compared to earlier, Chiffon decided to talk to the young man once more.

“Kazuya,” Chiffon gently asked the Limiter in her arms as she stared intently down at him, “please…just tell us what’s wrong.  We want to help you, but we won’t be able to until you let us know what has you so troubled.”  The words were simple enough to process, and the tone of endearment in Chiffon’s voice was like a tidal wave of pleading concern crashing down on Kazuya as he stared up at the lovely woman’s semi-closed eyes.  At that moment, Kazuya felt like a maggot standing before a goddess newly descended onto the planet.

‘I don’t deserve her,’ thought Kazuya as he gazed upon Chiffon’s face and as much of her body as he could take in from his current position.  He then looked around the baths and took in the lovely appearances of the other Pandoras who were focused intently on him, processing both the looks of worry and concern on their faces as well as their spectacular figures, especially their bosoms which had practically no sag and whose nipples were quite perky from what he could tell.

‘I don’t deserve any of them,’ thought Kazuya as he gazed upon the nearly dozen amazonian beauties currently in their birthday suits as they looked at Kazuya and tried to figure out just what was going on in his head at that moment.

“Please, Kazuya,” stated Elizabeth, “don’t go making the people who care about you worry like this.  Whatever is on your mind, just tell us and we’ll do whatever we can to fix it and make it right.  You should be able to depend on us.  After all, we’re your partners, aren’t we?”

Upon hearing the word “partners,” Kazuya’s eyes threatened to tear up once more, feeling that sense of guilt build up inside him once again.  However, he fought back the urge to break down once more and look like even more of an emotional trainwreck than he was already shaping up to be.  After shutting his eyes tightly and taking a few deep breaths, Kazuya cleared his head before speaking.

“That’s just it,” began Kazuya.  “Are we REALLY partners?”

“What on earth are you talking about, Kazuya?” asked a rather confused Arnett as she cocked an eyebrow.  “We’ve all been living together for over a week now, and we spend our time as a group in class, during our free periods, at lunch and dinner, bathing together, and in bed don’t we?  Haven’t we made that fact abundantly clear?”

“Ditto on what she said,” commented Attia, while Creo and Ingrid gave firm nods of agreement.

“Yeah, but…” replied Kazuya as he fought the urge to choke up once more.

“But what, Kazuya?” asked Chiffon as she gently increased her hold on him.  “PLEASE…just tell us what’s on your mind.  We won’t judge you or think poorly of you for sharing.  I’m almost positive that I speak for everyone here on that statement, don’t I ladies.”

The looks on the faces of the other ten Pandoras in the bath said all that needed to be said.  Every single one of them was just as adamant as Chiffon about knowing just what the hell Kazuya was so damn tormented over.

“Alright,” said Kazuya as he took another deep breath to help calm his nerves.  “Here goes…”  The Pandoras responded by leaning in closer to their smaller male counterpart, bated breaths hanging on whatever the next word Kazuya was going to say.

“This had been on my mind for the last few days,” started Kazuya.  “After sitting in on Instructor Schmitz’s class on the whole topic of forming the Ereinbar Set and all that entails.”

“Yes, go on Kazuya,” replied Chiffon, eager for him to elaborate.

“Well, from what I’ve learned regarding the Ereinbar Set, it’s usually formed between a Pandora and a Limiter…usually one who is younger than her.  As far as I understand things, when a Pandora enters her third year, she tends to have a Limiter already as her partner by that point.” Kazuya stated, wondering if anybody would pick up on what he was getting at.

“And?” asked Arnett.

“Oh…” stated Chiffon, Ticy, Elizabeth, and Ingrid all at the same time, figuring out what Kazuya’s line of thinking was implying.

“I see now,” stated Chiffon as she continuously held Kazuya in her embrace, her arms currently snaking around his torso and underneath his arms as she served as a makeshift recliner for him to lay against as he faced the other Pandoras during the group bathing session.

“Okay, what am I not getting here exactly?” asked Arnett, honestly not sure what she wasn’t getting that others were able to deduce.

“Yes, I must apologize, I’m afraid that I am, as they say, “missing the plot” in this instance,” added a particularly confused Rana.

“Kazuya feels guilt for pairing up with us…because we are third-year Pandoras.” stated Elizabeth to help Arnett realize what all the drama was about.

Sure enough, the vast majority of Pandoras were catching onto what Elizabeth helped elaborate on.  Even Ganessa had the look on her face that read “I understand now” plastered all over it.

“Oh Kazuya,” sighed Chiffon as she increased her hold on the Limiter, “Is that what all of this was about?  You feel guilty somehow for pairing up with all of us?”

“Shouldn’t I?” replied Kazuya.  “I mean, weren’t most of you already paired up with a different Limiter before I came along?  Weren’t ANY of you already in a meaningful relationship with somebody else prior to my arrival?  I’d be rather shocked if none of you had Limiters paired up with you already before meeting me.  So I can’t help but feel somehow responsible for separating you from your partners.  If I didn't show up, then you would all still be…still be with your…your…”  The tears were starting to well up once again and the ability to speak without breaking down emotionally was leaving Kazuya as well.

Deciding to help keep her Limiter’s mind both focused and at peace, Chiffon decided to act right there and then, or “in the moment” as some might put it.

Turning Kazuya around in her lap, she slipped her slender fingers delicately underneath his armpits and lifted him up towards hre face, before giving him a particularly sensual kiss, slowly prodding her tongue along the cavern of his mouth and inhaling deeply as she made out with him, all while pressing his torso against her bosom and feeling his growing erection poke into her stomach (which got a subconscious pur of approval from her in response).

Given Kazuya’s emotional state, Chiffon felt it necessary to overwhelm him with pleasure and affection so as to help keep him from having another full-blown breakdown.  From what she could gather, pretty much all the other Pandoras were considering taking the same act (or even something more passionate and intense than simply making out, at least in the case of Satellizer at a bare minimum).  To her credit, the kissing session was having the desired effect, given that Kazuya’s emotional state had somewhat softened and he was slowly calming down once more.

Once Kazuya’s mood had improved (or at the very least, he was no longer in danger of having a full-blown panic attack or nervous breakdown), Chiffon broke off the kiss and gazed into Kazuya’s eyes once more.

“Kazuya,” she began slowly, with a tone of voice that appeared somewhat…motherly in a way of putting things.

“Y-yes, Chiffon?” asked the Limiter.

“I think I understand the turmoil you feel at the moment, given what you’ve learned about forming an Ereinbar Set, and by now I’d wager that pretty much the rest of us here have caught on to that as well.  That being said, there are some things you should understand in turn, okay?”  The student council president was going out of her way to be as compassionate and patient with the young man as she could be, wanting to dispel whatever sense of guilt that Kazuya was feeling at the present time.

“First off, Kazuya,” continued Chiffon, “you should know that none of us here - and I do mean not a SINGLE ONE OF US Pandoras was forced into this arrangement, understood?”

“But Chiffon-” countered Kazuya.

“Understood?” repeated the Pandora, calmly but at the same time firmly.

Kazuya simply stared dumbfounded in response to Chiffon’s declaration.

“If my words are questionable,” continued Chiffon, “then simply look upon the faces of your partners - and I do emphasize in saying ‘your partners’ - and see if their eyes and their expressions run counter to what I just said.”

Kazuya did just that and turned his gaze outward towards the other Pandoras (Chiffon allowing him to reposition himself in her lap to get a better look).  Sure enough, not a singly look on their faces implied that Chiffon was lying in the slightest, with all of the lovely ladies assembled gazing with equal parts focus and longing in their eyes and their overall expressions as they stared intently at Kazuya, making the student council president’s declaration all the more true as a result.

“So then, Kazuya,” continued Chiffon, “as to your concerns regarding the idea of ‘snatching us away from our former partners,’ as you’re probably assuming to be the case, allow me to elaborate on your forgone conclusion, if I may.”

Kazuya simply sat dumbfounded, nodding his head in response.

“So then,” resumed Chiffon, “while it is true that most of us here were partnered with Limiters prior to meeting you, we weren’t strong-armed into pairing up with you against our will or anything like that.  We were given an opportunity and a  choice as to whether or not we wanted to become your partners, so if anybody is to blame for us pairing up with you, dear Kazuya, it would be us girls to take the brunt of it, understood?”

“B-but still,” stated Kazuya, “if I didn’t show up in the first place, or if I had known that you all had partners already and if I had said no to such a pairup, then you would all still get to be with your previous Limiters.  Am I wrong in that assumption?  Doesn’t that make this whole thing my fault?”

“Oh Kazuya,” sighed Chiffon, “you just can’t help but place the blame onto your own shoulders, can you?  That trait about you is so sweetly endearing in its own special way…even if it does make me roll my eyes at times, given how ingrained it is within your personality.”

“Exactly,” added Elizabeth, “you really DO need to stop feeling that you’re the cause of these problems which you perceive to even be problems in the first place.”

“But shouldn’t you all despise me for taking you away from your Limiters?  I honestly couldn’t blame you if you all did.” Kazuya responded, not letting up in his logic on the state of things.

“Like I told you earlier,” said Chiffon, “none of us Pandoras were forced into this arrangement.  We all made a conscious decision to pair up with you.  We WANT to be partnered with you, understand Kazuya?”  The rather adamant tone in Chiffon’s voice indicated that she wasn’t lying at all when she said this, and the looks on the faces of all the other Pandoras indicated just as much in agreement.

“But what about your Limiters?” asked Kazuya.  “Can you all tell me that not a single one of them had issue with the idea of giving any of you up to a different Limiter?  You really don’t think that any of them wouldn’t feel jealous or somehow betrayed by having one of their partners taken away from them and getting paired up with another Limiter?”

There was a momentary pause among the group, which in Kazuya’s mind felt like an admission that what he said had some degree of truth to it.

“Kazuya,” said Ticy, “while we understand the logic as to what you’re talking about, there’s something that I will try to elaborate on to the best of my ability.”

Kazuya simply turned his gaze onto Ticy, staring intently as he did.  Given his emotional state, he wasn’t much for conversation at the present moment, unless it was deemed outright necessary to speak.

“You see, Kazuya,” continued the student council vice-president, “pairing up is a two-way street between Pandora and Limiter.  A Limiter may want to pair up with a Pandora, but if she simply isn’t interested in him, it’s a moot point.  The same can be said of a Pandora who wishes to pair up with a Limiter who isn’t interested in her.  Unless wartime measures equivalent to an all-out draft are instituted, Pandoras and Limiters are free to choose whom they pair up with, so long as there is consent among all parties involved.”

“I get that much, Ticy,” replied Kazuya, “but still-”

“Having said that,” Ticy interrupted, wanting to make her point while it was fresh in her mind, “we - and by that I mean that we Pandoras currently here in this room - have come to take great interest in you, dear Kazuya.  While we formed meaningful relationships with our former Limiters and forged wonderful memories that we will always cherish with our respective partners, we respectfully decided to move on and pair up with you in turn.  I know that might sound like a somewhat callous way of looking at things, but please understand:  We had the option to say ‘no’ to pairing up with you and we took it anyway.  And as for our former partners, it’s not like we left on horrible terms with them.”

“What do you mean by that?” asked a somewhat confused Kazuya.

“What she means,” elaborated Elizabeth, deciding to step into the conversation, “is that we here - we Pandora here, except for a few key individuals, all had long, heartfelt sitdowns with our former Limiters and explained to them that we were pursuing a new path in our lives, as both Pandoras and as women in general.  While the news was a bit hard for them to process, in the end, our former Limiters understood the yearning of both our hearts and for the good of Genetics and Chevalier in the process.  Like both Chiffon and Ticy explained already, we WANT to be with you, Kazuya.  Nobody put a gun to our heads or twisted our arms and told us that we had no choice but to partner up with you.”

“But what about the Limiters you were already paired up with?” asked Kazuya, wanting to get to the heart of the issue.

“Regarding our former partners,” resumed Elizabeth, “while there was some minor degree of heartbreak among the Limiters we were paired up with, we did give them all a consolation prize for the times they spent with us.”

“What would that be?” asked a confused Kazuya.

“Well…” replied Elizabeth, somewhat blushing a bit as she struggled to put into words just what she was getting at.  “While it may sound a little…blase to you, dear Kazuya, those of us here who were partnered up before making your acquaintance…we made sure to give our former partners…something to remember us by, so to speak.  I like to think that you’re smart enough to “read between the lines” as they say.”

The young man was cognizant enough to know that all of the ladies assembled before him (minus Kaho and apparently a few others, according to Elizabeth) had initiated an act of heartfelt passion with their respective Limiters.  He didn’t need to know the details pertaining to each Pandora and how she expressed whatever love she held for her former partner in the most intimate of settings, no doubt in the privacy of a bedroom.  Kazuya liked to think that he was respectful enough to leave the finer points and enticing details of whatever lovemaking occurred between the Pandoras and the Limiters they were paired up with in the past.  Those kinds of cherished memories were for them and them alone.

“Still,” replied Kazuya, “I can’t help but feel at least somewhat responsible for this turn of events.  I mean, I’m sure that your former Limiters know about me by now.  And honestly, I couldn’t fault them if any single one of them wanted to clock me right in the face or the gut for pairing up with somebody they were paired up with not so long ago.  I feel like some kind of playboy who just swooped in and took what could very well be the love of somebody’s life among your former Limiters.  Do you understand why I’ve been kind of sullen and downtrodden now?”

“While we understand that you feel as though you’re somehow the main cause of what you think is a problem,” Elizabeth countered, “you should know that you’re carrying a burden of guilt that you need not carry.  We Pandora - all of use here - none of us were threatened, bribed, or intimidated in any way whatsoever with regards to becoming your partners.  We were simply made an offer and chose to accept, plain and simple.  It might sound like a preposterous answer, but that IS the truth.  And besides, we weren’t so cold-hearted to our former partners as you may be thinking.”

“What do you mean by that?” inquired a confused Kazuya.

“What Elizabeth is getting at,” answered Chiffon on her fellow Pandora’s behalf, “is that first-off, we all had a candid heart-to-heart with our former Limiters, including a rather…intimate farewell gift which we gave them on our last day of service.”  Once again, the implication of a parting night of love-making was what Kazuya surmised as to the “gift” that Chiffon and Elizabeth spoke of, but he didn’t want to outright say it, out of a show of respect.

“We also did the courtesy of leaving our shared stigmatas with them, as a show of respect and endearment between Pandora and Limiter,” said Chiffon.  “You see, when a Pandora who is paired up with a Limiter decides to break off the partnership, she is entitled to have her stigmata returned to her if she so desires.  However, many Pandoras who have fond feelings or some degree of respect for their former partners have chosen to leave their stigmatas in the possession of their former partners, as a way of giving them something to remember her by.  It might seem like an odd thing to do, but breaking up with a former Limiter should ideally involve as little emotional turmoil and pain as possible, in my opinion anyway.”

“What happens if a Limiter is unwilling to return the stigmata given to him, should the Pandora want it back?” asked Kazuya.

“The Limiter has the chance to appeal the decision before the judicial oversight committee at whichever Genetics branch he is enrolled in.  While it is certainly rare, there have been cases where a Limiter has grounds to keep the stigmata despite what the Pandora wishes, but that’s usually in cases of physical abuse onto the Limiter by the Pandora he is paired up with, or in situations where a Pandora has become extremely problematic, like those three bullies we ran into for example.  If the Limiter has no justifiable grounds to contest ownership of the stigmata and he refuses to surrender them, he is detained, restrained, and undergoes surgery to have them removed and returned to his former Pandora.”

“Against his will?” asked an incredulous Kazuya.

“If he’s adamant about going against the ruling of the oversight committee, yes.” answered Elizabeth.  “This IS a military installation as well as an educational establishment, so military-style solutions are used from time to time in order to settle things swiftly.”

“Girls like Miyabi are known to take back their stigmatas from whatever Limiters they are paired up with,” explained Ticy, further elaborating on the topic.  “That’s why many Pandoras tend to be rather guarded with their Limiters whenever she makes an appearance.  Miyabi is the type of person who takes interest in whatever ‘boy toy’ she thinks she can have fun with for a little while.  Then once she starts to get bored with whichever Limiter she’s paired up with, she decides to break off the partnership and reclaim her stigmata from them.”

“Does removal of a Pandora's stigmata from a Limiter have any serious side effects?” asked Kazuya.

“There are two distinct side effects which have been noticed among Limiters who have lost possession of the stigmatas they are given,” answered Elizabeth.  “The first is that a Limiter’s ability to implement a Freezing field is significantly reduced in terms of its strength, range, and overall effectiveness.  For while a stigmata may implant onto a Limiter after being introduced to his body, in order for his Freezing to have the potency required to take on the Nova, the stigmata must remain in his body.  It might work well enough on typical humans, but a Limiter’s Freezing area will only be that strong in its totality.  Against a Nova, it would be a shell of its original power once the stigmata is removed.”

“The other side effect that has been noticed,” Chiffon said, stepping back into the conversation, “is a noticeable heightened depression among most Limiters who undergo stigmatic removal.  While dealing with a breakup between Pandora and Limiter is something that can be very heart-wrenching for Limiters in general, there has been sizable data collected over the last few decades showing that Limiters who lose a stigmata from their former Pandora partners show increased depression and overall melancholy behavior.  Their very psyches undergo some degree of emotional trauma, given how linked they become with their Pandoras after achieving baptism.  Once that link is severed, most Limiters tend to take the loss pretty hard.  There have even been cases of Limiters dropping out of either Genetics or Chevalier after losing ownership of those stigmata.”

“Jeez,” quietly muttered Kazuya at the heaviness of what he just heard.

“So you see, dear Kazuya,” said Elizabeth, “out of respect for our previous Limiters, who we all DO hold dear in our hearts even after ending our partnerships as gracefully as we could, we decided to leave our shared stigmatas with them, so as to not potentially traumatize them.  And as odd and improbable as it might sound, we all left on rather amicable terms with all of our previous Limiters.  We still even keep in touch with them somewhat regularly here on campus, believe it or not.”

“...And they’re honestly not heartbroken over what was done to them?” asked Kazuya, not entirely sure he could believe Elizabeth (much as he wanted to).  “They’re not livid at the idea of losing one of their partners to some random guy out of nowhere?  I honestly couldn’t fault them for wanting to thrash me if they so desired.”

Elizabeth - and several of the other 3rd-years - simply sighed in exasperation, realizing that Kazuya’s sense of guilt was rather powerful, even if he had emotionally cooled down somewhat.  She then spoke again once more.

“Tell you what, Kazuya darling,” began the Mably heiress, “we’re going to do something to address the concerns you have over feeling like you’re in the wrong over this whole situation, okay?”

Kazuya simply stared blankly in response, nodding his head briefly to gesture to Elizabeth (or somebody else) to further elaborate.

“Elizabeth has a good idea, if she’s thinking about what I’m thinking about,” said Chiffon.  The two Pandoras looked at one another, and as if they were communicating telepathically, it was as if they had come to the same conclusion as to how to remedy Kazuya’s sense of guilt and self-loathing over the state of things, giving knowing smiles to one another as they did.

“Here’s what’s going to happen, Kazuya,” began Chiffon once more.  “We’re going to set up a little ‘play date’ of sorts between you and ALL of our former Limiters within the next few days.”

“Y-you’re gonna what?” asked a rather surprised Kazuya as he stared up at Chiffon’s lovely face as she in turn smiled down at him in her lap (still in her oh so loving embrace the whole time).

“You heard me, you silly boy you,” grinned Chiffon in response.  “You’re going to have a little sit-down with our former Limiters and get to know them better.  Then you can hear from them personally about their take on this whole ‘change of partnership’ that’s been eating you up for these past few hours.  While we would’ve preferred it if you just took our word for it in saying that you have nothing to feel guilty over, I suppose you need to hear it from those you believe that you’ve wronged the most in all of this, sweet of you though it is to feel like you’re the offending party in this whole thing…even though it’s all completely unnecessary in the end.”

“Chiffon’s right, Kazuya,” added Ticy.  “While everything we’ve told you is the truth, we realize that you need to hear it from your fellow Limiters that there are no hard feelings for how things have turned out between us transitioning from being their partners to becoming your partner.  I know this sounds rather far-fetched, but trust me…trust us, Kazuya.  Just have a sitdown with them and everything will be addressed fully.”

Kazuya simply paused and let this information sink in, while looking around at all the other Pandoras gathered around him.  The looks on their faces basically indicated that what Chiffon, Elizabeth, and Ticy told him was essentially true, as improbable as it all sounded.  On all of their lovely features, each and every single Pandora’s face implied that what he heard was the utter truth and nothing but the truth.

‘They’re really serious?’ thought Kazuya, ‘About everything?  That I shouldn’t feel guilt or like I’m to blame for this?  This is too much to take in at once.  I’m not sure how I should feel about this anymore.  My head…is spinning, with all of this information to take in.  But, however things go with this little meeting they have planned for me, at the very least, I need to apologize to their Limiters face-to-face.  I don’t think I’ll be able to look at myself in the mirror without being ashamed of myself until I do so.’

“Okay,” muttered Kazuya quietly.  The Pandoras all leaned in closer to the young man, not quite able to pick up on what he just said.

“What was that, Kazuya darling?” asked Chiffon as she gently increased her embrace of the Limiter in her arms and lap.

“I said ‘Okay.’  I’ll meet with all of your former partners,” replied Kazuya.  “I owe them a meeting at the very least.  And even if they don’t hold a grudge over this whole thing - all of you 2nd-year and 3rd-year Pandoras becoming my partners in the process - I still feel like they’re owed an apology all the same.  So, feel free to set up this meeting…the sooner the better.”

“Alright then,” replied Chiffon.  “I’ll get in touch with Sister Margaret about the situation and arrange a meeting within the next few days.  So for now, Kazuya, I just want you to clear your head and stop dwelling on such things for the time being, understood?”

“That might be easier said than done, Chiffon.” Kazuya quietly muttered in response.

“Oh?” asked Chiffon with a cocked eyebrow.  “Let’s see if we can do something about that before bedtime.  What do you say, ladies?”  Chiffon turned to her fellow Pandoras with a somewhat sly look on her face.  The sentiment was well understood among all the remaining women (with both Kaho and Ganessa blushing somewhat at the implication, given their comparatively virgin experience with getting intimate with young men, Limiters or otherwise).

So it was that the next hour consisted of Kazuya being passed from one Pandora to another, with his body being cleaned multiple times by a different set of hands from one amazonian beauty to the next (sometimes in pairs, as was the case with Satellizer and Rana, Chiffon and Ticy, or Arnett and Creo).  This was becoming a nightly pastime ever since Kazuya and his housemates/classmates/partners all moved in together.  Bathing had essentially become a group event where Kazuya was effectively shared among ALL the women present, with each one getting familiar with EVERY part of his body.  Even the more reserved types like Kaho, Ingrid, and Creo made damn sure to get in their share of the action, for while some of the Pandoras gathered were more open and adamant about ‘pressing the flesh’ so to speak, the overall sentiment was the same among ALL of them.

One thing that Kazuya noticed more and more was the inclination of all of his partners to use not just their hands to wash him, but other parts of their bodies as well…with the favored body part being their bosoms.  And given how busty the vast majority of his partners were (especially Satellizer), it was a rather surreal experience to have such profound breasts - lathered up and soapy as they were - running across both the back and front of his torso.  It was this sensation of having perhaps the most alluring parts of their bodies (Kazuya fancied himself something of a ‘breast man’ at this stage in his life, if he was being honest) rubbing alongside his own body that helped get his mind off of the worry he found himself consumed by from his rush to conclusions regarding the drama from earlier.

Once the cleaning session had come to its end, the group decided to call it a night and prepared themselves for bed.  After toweling off and making their way towards the bedroom, the only thing left to resolve was who got to be Kazuya’s sleeping partner for the night.  Usually, it ended up being done in pairs, with two Pandoras cocooning themselves around Kazuya’s smaller body and enveloping him closely against their torso with his head sandwiched between their bosoms.  Some of the Pandoras also had special quirks that he picked up on as the nights passed from one to the next.

Chiffon had an interesting habit of curling up and assuming the fetal position while ensnaring Kazuya in her arms and legs as much as possible, as if she was cuddling up against a body pillow or a big teddy bear.

Elizabeth’s key feature was the simple fact that she liked to sleep in the nude (as well as swim in the nude at the pool, and even lounge in the nude half the time she was in the house…so long as no guests were present outside of her fellow classmates/housemates/harem members).  So for the times she would end up sleeping next to Kazuya, he would find himself enticed by the heavenly aroma emanating from her entire body as he slept in her embrace.

In the end, it was resolved that Kazuya would be in the embrace of both Creo and Arnett this time around, with his face towards Arnett and his back against Creo in this case.  Kazuya simply eyed the playful redhead as she shot him an endearing smile and whispered into his ear.

“Like the others have told you, Kazuya,” said Arnett.  “Just have a face-to-face meeting with our former Limiters, and everything’ll get resolved.  I’m pretty sure that they’ll warm up to you fairly quickly, and besides, you should get to have some guy friends during your time here.  It’ll be good for you, I think.”

“If you say so, Arnett.” replied Kazuya as he nodded off to sleep.  “I hope you’re right.”

Arnett simply cracked a particularly heartwarming smile as she gazed longingly into the face of her Limiter.  A moment later, she leaned in and gave a simple (but heartfelt) smooch on Kazuya’s lips before pulling back and addressing her fellow bedmate.

“Creo, you up for a goodnight kiss before clocking out?” asked Arnett.

Without saying so much as a word, Creo Brand simply rotated Kazuya so that he was facing her.  A second later, he saw a flash of silvery-white hair, dark skin, and piercing blue eyes gazing onto him, before those lovely baby blues closed and her face leaned in closer to his, giving him a kiss with the same level of gusto as the one Arnett gave him.  Once the smooch had broken off, Creo looked deep into Kazuya’s eyes (with a noticeable blush on her cheeks, which Kazuya found rather adorable for someone like her) and spoke.

“Arnett and the others are right, Kazuya.” stated Creo.  “Please don’t go painting yourself as the villain in the middle of all of this.  You’ve done nothing wrong.  And it hurts us - as your partners…as your women - to see you tear yourself up over a hasty conclusion that you’ve come to over this whole state of affairs.  So the sooner you speak with our former partners, the sooner you can let go of this unnecessary burden you’ve placed on yourself, and the sooner we can all get back to…to…well, you know…being together.”  The blush on Creo’s cheeks grew in intensity.  For someone so stoic and strong-faced, she was quite the virgin-hearted maiden when it came to intimacy and vulnerability (which again was something that Kazuya couldn’t help but find so damn adorable).

“Thank you, Creo,” replied Kazuya as he tried to stifle a yawn.  “You too, Arnett.  I hope you’re both right…I hope you’re ALL right about this whole thing.  I just don’t like being the cause of any bitterness or animosity, especially when it comes to matters…of love.”  The last part was said in a whisper, given how sensitive Kazuya himself could be on the topic of romance.

“Get some sleep now, Kazuya,” whispered Arnett.  “We’ve got a big day tomorrow, so you need your rest.”  She then followed through with a kiss to Kazuya’s forehead, which was mirrored by Creo a second later.  After each Pandora gave their shared Limiter a kiss to his forehead, they repositioned their bodies so that Kazuya’s head was level with their bosoms, with their legs extending far down past his feet and their arms securely ensnared over his torso.

“Goodnight, Kazuya.” said both Arnett and Creo at the same time.  The two of them looked at one another with humbling smiles and subdued chuckling before turning their attention back to the Limiter they had in their collective clutches and gave the young man one more kiss on the top of his head from each of them.

“And no matter what, always remember, Kazuya…” whispered Creo as she started to nod off and drift away into slumber.

“We…all of us here,” said Arnett, finishing Creo’s statement for her, “we all love you and care about you so VERY much.  Remember that, now and forever, dear Kazuya.”

And with that, the two Pandoras joined Kazuya and the rest of his harem-in-the-making and let sweet blissful slumber take hold.