Humiliation is a dish best served in a highly public setting. Scott learned this lesson well, only a moment before. Now he stood in front of his wife's table, and fought down the rage that made his body tremble in indignation.

"What did you just say to me?" asked Scott.

A brunette girl with light brown hair, and who wore coke bottle glasses waved her hand in the air like she smelled something terrible. "I said that Electra doesn't want you. You just give it up, you tiny bastard."

Scott eyed the girl carefully. "I'm getting a little tired of people who have no idea what the fuck they're talking about mouthing off to me."

"Oh, big man! Gonna try to make the little girl cry 'cuz your penis is so small?" asked another girl at the table, this one a blond.

"You know what," said Scott, before he looked over to Electra. "I came over here because you seemed to want to try and talk. If this is the crap you had in mind, you can just save it."

"How dare you talk to me like that!" snapped Electra. She hurled herself up from her seat.

Scott slammed his tray down on the table and glared hotly at the Minotyran girl. "I'm getting tired of that damned attitude of yours," he snarled. "Every fucking thing that's happened here started with you, and you blame me for it."

The other girls immediately got up and started to berate Scott, a few even tried to physically push him out of the area. However, they had no success in their endeavors.

Electra glared at Scott. He glared at her. The girls all glared at him. Several teachers sighed and looked on longingly, nostalgic expressions writ large on their faces. Ah, memories of youth.

"And just what is going on here, sweety?" asked Maxine as she and Alice walked into the cafeteria. The undercover elf walked over to where Scott and Electra were squared off in a heated glaring match.

"This guy came over here and started bothering Electra," said coke bottle glasses girl, smugly.

"Really? How did he do that?" asked Maxine, a curious and thoughtful expression on her face.

"Well, he's always after her!" exclaimed the girl. "If we were anywhere else, he'd be up on sexual harassment charges."

"I see. So, he came over here and started saying perverted things?" asked Maxine.

"What? No... He wanted Electra to eat dinner with him," answered the blond girl, before the brunette could say anything. "He's always after her to go eat with him, and just doesn't get it!"

"Ah, I understand." said Maxine.

The blond turned to Electra. "Sweety, we've tried to be reasonable about this and allow you two to work out your marital troubles on your own. However, it's obvious that only one of you is actually trying."

Maxine smiled cheerfully then said, "You're going to have dinner alone with Scott every day. If these girls give him any more trouble because of you, I'll tell your father to come get you."

"What!" exclaimed the blond girl, "But he's the one who's causing problems!"

"No, sweety. You and these friends of yours are the problem. These two crazy kids are married. You have not been helping. You've been acting like a bunch of gossipy bitches," said Maxine, her smile never dropping slightly.

"Whoa," said another girl a few tables away. "Maxine actually called out those girls."

Electra sighed loudly then picked up her tray. "Yes, I understand," she said. She turned a baleful gaze toward Scott. A great deal of the anger in her demeanor melted away after a moment, "Shall we have dinner, husband."

Scott took a moment to answer her. Finally, he said, "Yeah," and followed her to another table in the far corner of the cafeteria.

"Maxine... how could you do that to her," said the coke bottle glasses girl. She looked both confused and angry.

The elf girl looked to the one speaking and said, "As long as you girls keep enabling her, she won't have to deal with the problem that she caused. I'm not saying to avoid her, but you will stop causing problems for Scott just because you cluelessly think he is the one at fault here."

"But!" cried the girl, only to be shut down by a friendly hand to her shoulder. Maxine smiled at her and said, "Let it go, and stay out of their business, or I'll send you home, sweety."

The girls drew back in surprise. They had no idea what they were doing was so serious that they could get tossed from the training center.

Maxine rejoined Alice, but looked back to the girls. "You are not students at IDEA, yet. You can wash out at any time. Until selection ends, you need to remember that you're here solely to make it through selection. Acting like a mean girl high school clique won't help you achieve that goal."

"Maxine, why are you helping that guy so much?" asked the blond. "I mean... We all heard..."

The she-elf sighed. "What you heard was an angry girl who was mad about her life choices, sweety. Scott tried to keep the situation from getting out of hand, and was chased through the halls like he had stolen something because of it."

"But..." began coke bottle glasses.

Alice finally spoke up, but it wasn't with a sweet and caring tone of voice. "Shut your mouths, stop gossiping, and eat your dinner. Unlike you, he's already eighty-five percent complete on selection."

"That guy!" gasped the blond girl. "Eighty-five percent complete?"

"This is the last that any of us will say on the matter. Keep causing trouble, and you'll be tossed out of here," said Alice. The pink haired woman turned away from the girls and stalked off toward the teacher's dining table.

"A little harsh there, sweety," said Maxine.

Alice glanced at her. "Call me a hypocrite if you want, but I can't stand bitches."

Maxine laughed softly, before she sat down at the table. "Would I ever call you that, hon?"

Alice snorted softly then sat down as well. "Yes."

The two friends looked at each other for a moment then shared a smile. They knew each other well. Unfortunately, the moment passed as they realized that they had forgotten to get their dinner. Feeling slightly foolish, they stood up then walked over to the serving line.

While the two hunger-challenged super gals went to find something to fill their bellies, Scott and Electra sat at their dining table. They did not look at each other, even though one sat across from the other.

Scott was nearly finished eating, before he gave up and tried to speak with her. "You look nice today."

She sighed softly and seemed to ignore him. Scott did not follow up his small talk, but after what seemed like a life time she softly said, "Thank you, but I only have two outfits."

The blue haired youth looked at her again then nodded. The only other thing that he had seen her wear was her robe of enticement. The skin-tight suit that she wore right now left nearly as little to the imagination, but it at least covered everything important without fear that a small amount of water would allow a world-view that would change a man's religion.

"We should get you some more clothes before we get to IDEA," said Scott.

She sighed once more then looked down at the table. "I have not earned enough Ideons to purchase clothing."

"We could talk to the teachers... or some of the girls might let you borrow some clothes," he suggested.

Electra shook her head. "I cannot take such charity. A few have offered."

A thought occurred to him. "It's not the best solution, but you could try some of my clothes... or is taking something from your husband—"

She stopped him before he could finish. "You would do this for me?" she asked, her eyes wide and hopeful.

He shrugged at her. "Can't say most of what I have would fit over all that glory you have going on, but we might be able to find something."

Electra's hands crossed the table quickly and grasped Scott's. "Thank you," she said sincerely.

Scott blinked then drew back a little. "No problem, but... How can you only have two outfits? You were planning to be here, right?"

The Minotyran girl nodded. "The body suit is a common garment for my people. I planned to wear it for a day or two until I could acquire proper Earth clothing, so that I would be able to dress in the manner of the people of this world."

"You can't leave here now though, can you?" asked Scott, as he realized one of the problems caused by their marriage. It was not concern as dire as the need to remove his testicles and toss them into a fire, but still a grave concern to any girl who enjoyed cleanliness.

"During my first heat, I agreed to go to school at IDEA. As a student in selection, I cannot leave this facility," she said simply.

Scott pulled one hand free and patted the back of one of her gently grasping hands. "Look, I know we're married, but that's no reason not to at least try to get along."

She nodded softly. "I suppose..."

"After dinner, let's see if you can fit into any of my clothes. I don't have many myself, and nothing really suitable for a girl, but I can spare some things," he said.

She squeezed his hand a little, and then looked down at the table, a slight blush rising on her cheeks. "Thank you, husband."

Briefly, the husband and wife duo stayed in that position. Many eyes were upon them, several of which belonged to thoroughly confused girls who did not understand what they were seeing.

Once dinner ended, they retired to Scott's humble disaster area. He cleaned up the debris, but the signs of domestic disharmony could be still be seen. His missing door was the most blatant sign of all.

Scott had repacked his clothing into his original luggage, since his wardrobe had been destroyed. It was an easy chore, actually. His entire clothing selection amounted to a handful of simple outfits.

He turned to grab another bag, one that held socks and a few other assorted items. While he did so, he said, "You can look through that to see if you can find anything that will fit."

"I'll step outside so you can—" he began to say while turning back to her, but the words died in his throat as he saw that she had already begun to shimmy out of her body suit.

"Husband?" she asked curiously, while half-undressed. "Why would you step outside?"

He coughed once then turned around again. "I didn't think that you'd want to change while I was in here."

She eyed him curiously for a moment. "That's a strange thought for a husband."

"Yeah, I suppose so," he said. Scott turned around slowly then allowed himself to revel in the splendor that swayed heavily before him.

Electra nodded, satisfied that he was acting appropriately for once. She finished stripping off her suit after a brief instance of eye-popping shimmying and wriggling. All that was left behind was her cow bell. It clanged delightfully as she moved around.

Her eyes widened slightly when she noticed a black stretchy item. "Husband? What is this?"

"Ah that? Those are silk weights. The army, and people like me who don't want to chafe when they run, wear them. They're like the best pair of underwear, ever," admitted Scott with a hint of masculine shame.

She placed the thin stretchy fabric against her chest then rubbed it across her breasts a little. "It's soft, like my suit..."

Scott fought the urges rising up from the depths. The sight of the buxom cow girl acting so normal and feminine when confronting new clothes was quite interesting.

Electra slipped the silk weights on like normal underwear, but had a little trouble drawing them up over her pert posterior. It was a momentary issue, however, as they were quite the stretchy fabric.

"These silk weights..." she said, her voice trailing off briefly before turning to the side. "Do they suit me, husband?"

"I— Yeah, they... Yes." he said, a little tongue tied. He had seen her naked on more than one occasion, but the sight of thin stretchy material added a bit of mystery once more. They suited her far more than, just fine.

A slight smile crossed her lips, but it soon disappeared as she looked through the meager selection before her. Scott had a silk weight top as well, which she claimed. He felt compelled to inform her that what she wore now was considered underwear.

"I see, so this is to be worn under the clothing... such a novel concept," she said.

"You don't have underwear in your culture?" asked Scott.

"We know the concept, but normally only don it when it is cold, and our suits are not completely up to the task of keeping us warm," she admitted. A soft sigh followed after. "Though, normally a married woman has other means of staying warm in the cold."

Scott smiled slightly, but did not say anything. He did not know her well enough to consider that an invitation. If anything, she sounded like she thought only of regrets. Bringing up his husband status could not help the situation at the moment.

Electra chose a plain cotton t-shirt that strained to hide and contain the glory hidden beneath its fibrous existence. As it turned out, only Scott's athletic shorts with the stretchy band were able to fit her. His pants were too big in the places that needed to be smaller, and too small in the places that needed to be bigger.

He gave her one of his pairs of shower shoes, his real shoes would not fit her feet. Electra eyed the simple sandals, or flip-flops as Scott called them.

Electra received them gratefully, but made a slightly disappointed expression and quietly said, "Such poorly crafted sandals."

"They're mostly disposable. People wear these on the beach for a few days, or if they want to take a shower in a place where other people shower as well," said Scott.

"Why wear these in the shower?" she asked, curious about the custom.

"It helps prevent getting athlete's foot or other things," he said.

"Athlete's feet are bad things?" Electra bit her lower lip and tried to comprehend such a thing.

Scott laughed a little then shook his head. "No, but that's a name for type of fungus that can get on the feet if it gets tracked into a public shower. It's called that because people on sports teams often shower together, and so..."

"Ah!" she exclaimed, her eyes widening in realization. "So, the athletes were the ones who were commonly plagued by the fungus, and these badly made sandals can prevent it from being caught?"

"They do help," said Scott with a smile. "Cleaning the shower properly is the best way to avoid it, though."

She nodded. "Very well. I will wear these with pride, husband."

Scott tilted his head to the side then nodded as well. "So, was there anything else that you think might fit?"

She shook her head gently. "No, but I do thank you for taking the time to consider my needs, husband."

They were silent for a moment. Her words hung on the air briefly, before Scott said. "Would you like for me to walk you back to your room?"

"That... I would not be averse to such a thing," she said slowly, without looking at him.

Scott held out his arm to her and she looked at him curiously. "Husband?"

"Oh, you don't know this?" he asked.

She shook her head, and he smiled a little. "Come stand next to me."

Electra's nostrils flared a little then she walked over to his side. "Like this?"

"Yes, good. Now, slip your arm around mine," he said. He showed her the right way, and in the process caused the bridge of her nose to become slightly pink.

"This... What are you attempting to have me do, husband?" she asked while looking away from him.

Scott smiled at her. "I'm escorting a lady back to her home."

"I'm not a lady. I'm your wife," she mumbled.

He fought down the laugh that bubbled up after he understood her clearly. "No, Electra. This, it's just something people do when they're supposed to be in a relationship. They walk around arm in arm."

"Oh. So... This is something that human couples do?" she asked, slightly curious.

"Well, it varies from one person to another, but we do tend to like to be physically close to the people we like," said Scott.

Electra's nostrils flared a little, and her tail lashed from one side to the other. "I see. Thank you for the lesson, husband."

The strange shift in her demeanor was not lost on the blue haired superhero in training. From the moment that he had offered her some of his clothes, she had become far less aggressive and dismissive of him. Could getting on her good side literally be as simple as thinking of what she needed and then trying to help her get it? It was fairly obvious, really, but the results were bizarre when compared to the way that she had been acting toward him.

Walking arm-in arm, they made their way through the hall and eventually reached Electra's room. Strangely, the formerly hate-filled girl was reluctant to release Scott's arm.

"Something on your mind?" he asked her softly. While she acted like this, it was easy for him to temporarily ignore the fact that she had chased him across the school recently.

She slowly released his arm then shook her head. "No. My thoughts do weigh heavily, but they are not troublesome enough to speak of at the moment."

Scott nodded. "Well, here we go then."

"We are going somewhere else?" she asked, a slight hint of excitement in her tone.

"Ah, not that I know of... I meant that we had gotten here safely," he said.

"Oh." she replied, her excitement dying down slightly. "I see."

"Did you want to go somewhere else?" asked Scott.

Her tail whisked sideways, and she looked down before she answered. "I am fine. This is... fine."

A brief moment passed by after she spoke. The silence soon became awkward. Electra broke the stillness of the hallway by asking, "Are there any other customs your people have for this sort of situation?" She looked into his eyes, a soft and curiously innocent expression evident.

Scott looked into her eyes then smiled in spite of himself. She was a massive pain in his ass, but at times like this it was hard not to be won over. "Well, if this were after a date maybe."

"A date?" she asked softly. Her eyes opened slightly and her tail swished. "What is that?"

He took stock of her innocent expression and strangely hopeful appearance. "It's when two people who like each other, go somewhere to spend time together alone but still out in public."

"Alone, but in public?" she asked. "Ah, like when we ate dinner together and you took me to get clothes?"

He rubbed the back of his head and laughed a little. "Well, yeah. Some could see that as a date under different circumstances."

"I see..." she said with a soft upward inflection in her words. Electra stepped forward and tilted her chin upward slightly. "What do humans do after they have been alone in public?"

"It depends, on if it's a first date really," he said. Scott conveniently left out the concept of the one night stand. It seemed like it might lead to other topics of interest.

"A first date, is a time when the couple has been alone in public together by choice for the first time?" asked Electra.

"Yeah, something like that," said Scott.

"What if it is a first date?" she pressed, a slightly sparkle coming to her eyes.

"If they enjoyed the date they might hug or even—" he began only to have her lips part slightly. He stopped speaking and allowed her to stand there with her lips lightly parted. "You already know this don't you?"

She blinked then drew back. "Know what, husband?"

Scott looked her in the eyes. It was impossible to be certain since she was not human, but he saw no obvious signs of deception.

Another awkward silence ensued as Scott tried to fathom what the girl wanted. Was she toying with him? Were her alien hormones acting up again? It was a never ending rollercoaster of emotion with this girl, and he was the track that she ran over.

Eventually, Scott brought the silence to an end. His face schooled into a mask of genial confidence he said, "Good night, Electra."

She frowned prettily then released a soft sigh and stepped back. She nodded slightly then said, "Good night to you as well, husband."

Another awkward moment passed between them, before Scott quietly took a step back and turned away. Electra looked up at him then bit her lower lip a little before turning toward her door.

She listened to his footsteps for a moment, before she closed her eyes briefly. The moment passed and she reached down to gently grip the hem of her new shirt. Electra shook her head slowly from side to side then smiled slightly. A hint of warmth filled her eyes just was her eyebrows shifted into a thoughtful expression. "Perhaps you are not that small after all."

Scott, for his part, thought carefully about how the situation had played out. Electra confused him. One minute she wanted to have sex with him, the next she wanted to smash him into a meat paste, and then in the next she was a shy girl uncertain of what she wanted to do with herself. It was hard to understand her motivations. "I should learn more about her people."

Just before he reached the ruination that was his dorm room, the intercom blared. "Scott Hennessy, please report to your teacher's office. Scott Hennessy, please report to your teacher's office."

He blinked slowly. "Alice wants to see me?"

He shrugged then turned around. "Wonder what she wants to talk about, now."

Curious, and unassuming, Scott immediately set out for the offices of his teacher. Whatever it was that she wished to discuss, it was probably important. At the very least it would take his mind off of his supposed alien wife.