It was a sunny day in the suburbs of Tokyo, Japan, with fluffy white clouds lazily drifting through an otherwise spotless sky, the sun shining down through the windows of a large two-story house.

At a desk with a rather expensive computer, in a comfortable chair made for long hours of sitting, a man sat back with a sigh, nervously tapping his fingers on his thigh, the blank white document page taunting him. The shine coming from the screen reflected off of his glasses as he fruitlessly brushed his hands over the keyboard, his mind far, far away.

My name is Saul Dewitt. I used to live in America, and I was raised in Washington. I've always loved writing, and I mean 'always'. I started when I was nine, and the first thing I wrote got me my first A+ ever…though that was more because my teacher then was an old bitch.

I've worked small jobs in my teens, and once I had enough money, I bought myself a computer and, in the span of nearly a year, I wrote my first novel. It was a moderate success. It didn't make the world explode, but it still sold, and there was plenty of demand for a sequel. I found a good publisher and editor, an old friend of mine, and signed a book deal for a whole series, six books in total.

They sold well, and I ended up with plenty of money. I used that money to get Japanese lessons, and once I was fluent enough, I bought a house in the suburbs of Tokyo.

The deal I got on it was a steal, frankly. The family who used to live here, a mom, dad and son, were desperate to sell, citing something about their kid getting attacked by…some sort of monster person.

I thought that was bullshit, but I bought it anyway and moved in. I also bought a gun, just in case. And Krav Maga lessons. And some ninja lessons, but that is a whole other story.

That was three years ago.

I like this place. It's far enough away that traffic isn't a problem, and it's not because I don't have a car, but not far away enough the groceries aren't wildly price-gouged. And the internet is fast, too.

So, after about two and a half years of living in my new place, writing a couple more moderately successful books in the meantime, something world-changing happened.

At the time, I thought it was an elaborate hoax, as I'm sure many people did.

They call them, 'Liminals', or humanoid creatures with a mixture of animal and human traits. Like the Centaurs, half-horse-half-human; the Harpies, half-human-half-bird; or the Mermaids, half-human-half-fish. Though, most people call them monsters.

Apparently, the government has known about them for a long time, and were just now beginning to integrate us and them together so we could live peacefully.

It's a nice sentiment, and naturally, there was quite the vocal opposition to the idea, but the with powers combined of the Otaku, the Furries, just plain fucking weirdoes and people who actually wanted to know more about alien cultures, like myself, out-voted them by the vast majority and passed the Cultural Exchange Between Species Bill, which led to the Cultural Exchange Between Species Program. Why am I mentioning that?

Hold your damn horses and I'll tell you.

So, after the bill was passed, ratified and all that good shit, I closed the news page and went back to playing Mass Effect, patting my back for my small part in changing the world, and I thought that was that.

My day usually starts pretty early, around seven or eight. I go for a morning walk or a jog sometimes, grab a shower and breakfast, then secure my laptop and take a walk down to a local coffee shop for a cup of actually not-that-bad coffee and a breakfast sandwich. The cute waitresses may also factor into my decision to visit that place regularly, but I will deny the shit out of that.

One day, I sat down with my usual and almost instantly spotted someone who didn't fit. Most people wear casual clothing to a coffee shop, unless they're a business person who's just stopping by for a pick-me-up.

This person wore a suit. The first thing I thought when I saw her was, 'She's part of the government.' Her suit was black; actually, all of her clothing was black, except for the shirt underneath the jacket. She wore stockings, heels, and her jacket was very tight around her exceptional bust, and she was pretty tall. And her hair went down to her lower back.

What the hell is it with Japan and hair long enough to present a safety hazard?

Anyway, I remembered seeing this beautiful suited woman around for the past couple of weeks, ever since the bill got passed, actually. I never could tell because she wore black sunglasses, but I could've sworn she was looking at me the whole time.

I won't lie, I've been called handsome, 'ruggedly handsome' for the most part, and in Japan, my easily tanning skin, platinum brown hair, ice-blue eyes (my mom's words) and general stature made it pretty clear that I'm foreign, and a chunk of the girls I've gone out with was entirely because I'm considered 'exotic'. I'm not a model. I do my best to keep in shape and eat healthy, and I'm taller than most people in Japan, but I'm no model.

So, I figured she was looking at the foreigner and left it at that. But this day was different.

Usually, she sat in the corner of the room, sipping what I think is espresso, looking out at the room through eye-concealing sunglasses. But this time, she was sitting at the table I usually take, and she was looking directly at me with sharp brown eyes.

"Why don't you join me for a chat?" She asked politely, gesturing at the chair across from her.

I took a seat, wondering why someone like this would want to talk to me. All my paperwork had been done and filed years ago…unless she was Yakuza, but then what the fuck would they want with an author? "Sure. What's your name?" I greeted, taking a seat and setting my food down.

"You can call me Ms. Smith," She replied easily.

I was tempted to make a crack about the Matrix, but decided against it. She had a gun hidden on her, and I'd rather not anger someone with a gun. "Alright, Ms. Smith, is there a reason you're talking to me? No offense, but someone like you must have a reason."

"Oh?" Smith quirked an eyebrow. "Someone like me?"

I took a sip of my coffee. "A government person. Who else wears black suits on a summer day?" I replied dryly.

A small smile bent her lips, but that disappeared quickly. "I'll get right to the point, Mr. Dewitt, we've been watching you for a couple of weeks. We noticed your vehement approval of the recent Extraspecies bill, and I would like to talk to you about it."

Swallowing the bite of sandwich, I replied, "What about it?" I can't imagine they would want to chide me about something they pushed forward, but you never know.

She pulled out her phone and unlocked it, looking at the screen. "It says here that you left a comment on a news page, reading, 'I wouldn't mind letting one of them stay at my place. Think of how interesting that would be for both of us.' And I want to know if you still consider that a valid opinion."

"Well, yeah. If one of them wanted, I would definitely let them stay at my place." I said calmly. "Other cultures have always fascinated me, and here are a whole slew of new ones most people barely know anything about."

A heavy packed of papers slammed onto the table, shaking my cup of coffee. "Read that and if it sounds agreeable, call this number." She ordered politely, dropping a card on top of the stack.

Something was definitely going on, so I took that tome of wonders back to my house and read through it.

And I was very surprised, to say the least. It was a contract of sorts, asking me if I'd like to invite a member of the Extraspecies to my house for a home-stay, and what rules I'd have to follow and where to get information.

Naturally, I signed the contract and called the number, and the person on the other line informed me that someone would be by to pick up the contract and I would be contacted when an Extraspecies person would be coming.

That was about a month ago, and I haven't heard anything since, not until this morning. My handler, Ms. Smith, would be coming by with someone for the home-stay. According to the information they gave me, which didn't include a species or a name, it said that they would like high, spacious rooms.

My attic didn't have much in it besides a few boxes and a menagerie of dust animals, so I cleaned it out and now I'm just-

"-Waiting." Saul finished his thought, sighing out loud. Nervousness was prevalent in his features, his feet tapping the floor and his fingers tapping the desk. He was just waiting for the bell to ring, and little else had been on his mind.

Is it going to be a centaur, or a harpy? Harpies would like a spacious area and high places, so that might be it. If it's a Harpy, then it'll definitely be a girl…well, that'll be kind of weird. But I can deal. He thought, eyes glazing. But, what if-

His doorbell rang, making Saul jump in his seat. Shutting off the computer and opening the blinds, he strode to the door, nervously combing his hair with his fingers. With one hand on the doorknob, he took a deep, bracing breath, and turned the handle.

"Mr. Dewitt," Smith greeted him politely, "It's a pleasure to see you again."

He smiled nervously at her and stuck his hand out for a shake. "If we're going to be meeting often, I'd prefer it if you called me Saul."

Smith shook his hand, her smile becoming just a little more genuine. "I'll keep that in mind, Saul. Are you ready to meet your new roommate?" She asked carefully.

Sighing a little, Saul nodded his head. "Yes, yes I am."

Nodding, the government agent turned to a similarly-suited person standing next to a cargo truck and waved. "Open the door!"

With a loud rattle, the door was pushed open, and something stepped out.

The first thing Saul saw was a leg. Not a human leg. It was long, black, and jointed strangely, with some sort of armor covering it and a very sharp tip. It reminded the author of a mix between a spear and a katana.

Ms. Smith noticed the wide-eyes the man was sporting and kept an eye on his reaction, just to be safe.

Then, the Liminal fully stepped out of the truck.

Saul's jaw dropped.

Eight long, black armored legs supported a wide body, a familiar body, but magnified by a large factor. The back was rounder then the rest of the body, tapering off to a point and decorated with what looked like a human skull, though stretched and deformed. In front of that was the middle of the body, which the legs connected to, and where that ended, an entirely different body began.

She had fair, nearing pale skin and lavender hair that brushed over her shoulders, with six solid-red eyes; two where they'd be on a human, and four progressively smaller ones above those. She wore strange clothes, mostly black and gold with some frilly white parts that covered most of her prodigious breasts, her neck and little else.

She had her arms crossed over her chest, trying to look unperturbed but showing signs of nervousness as her host unabashedly stared at her. It looked like she wore gloves that were covered by black and gold cloth, but those were her actual hands covered in cloth. Her stomach bare, looking taut and smooth, and below that, a length of cloth, almost like sash, was draped over her hips and covered her pelvis.

Her pelvis, which was connected to the rest of her body; the rest of her body, which was that of a massive spider.

Smith cleared her throat softly and adjusted her glasses. "Her appearance won't be a problem, will it Mr. Dewitt?" She asked easily, with a hidden edge in her tone.

Saul blinked as the Spider-Woman strode, as only an Arachne could, standing above him by a good number of inches. His jaw snapped shut as he looked up at her, her features schooled, but the shifting of her numerous legs and the tapping of her dangerous fingers belied her anxiety.

"That…" He whispered, awestruck. "Is so…"

Smith narrowed her eyes behind her glasses, and the Arachne visibly tensed in preparation for an insult.

"…Badass."

The government agent blinked in surprise, as did the Arachne, which was sort of comical given her six eyes.

Saul smiled widely and held out his hand. "Hi, I'm Saul Dewitt. It's a pleasure to meet you!" He said happily. "I thought a Harpy would be coming when I heard that my home stay preferred high, spacious rooms, but this is far more awesome."

The Arachne blinked again and slowly reached out, taking Saul's hand. "My name is Rachnera Arachnera. Please take care of me." She introduced, bowing lightly.

"I've got no problem with that," He replied cheerfully, shaking her armored hand, feeling her sharp nails against his much softer skin. "Well, come on in, I'll show you around."

He stepped back, pulling open the door and gesturing for them to come inside. "I'm glad you had those guys come by and modify my doors," Saul admitted to Ms. Smith, who looked bemused. "It would suck if Rachnera couldn't get through them."

Smith, taken by surprise, just nodded her head. "Yes, that would be unfortunate." She agreed in a low tone, following behind him with Rachnera as he led them through the hallways.

"You guys want anything to drink?" He asked, "I don't have much in the way of soda or juice, but I've got coffee, tea and water."

"I'll take some coffee," Smith perked up slightly.

"Just water, please." Rachnera replied, her eyes scanning the room.

"Well, make yourselves comfortable." Saul offered, walking into the kitchen to retrieve the drinks.

Shrugging, the leggy brunette took the leather arm chair and crossed her legs, sighing at the comfortable seat. Rachnera looked around the room, examining the furniture. Besides the chair Smith now occupied, which was black, the couch and the loveseat were both dark green and looked very comfortable, though with her body, she wouldn't fit on them.

Besides a low mahogany coffee table, there was a desk with a computer on it and a swivel chair, and a large-screen TV with various game systems connected to it. There was also a large bean-bag that, judging by the indent, had recently been sat in.

Shrugging, Rachnera carefully settled herself on it. "This human…Mr. Dewitt…he seems…strange." She said carefully to the government agent.

Smith shrugged and rocked the armchair. "He seems to be a very genuine, though."

"I am strange," Saul said casually as he walked back into the room with a plate holding some glasses. "I don't really mind."

Rachnera blushed lightly in embarrassment. "Sorry." He handed their drinks to them and sat on the couch, kicking his feet up on the coffee table.

"Don't worry about it. I won't hold you speaking your mind against you." Saul replied with an easy grin. "So, now that you're here, I want to set some ground rules. One: Knock if you see the light on in the bathroom. Two: If you need anything, anything at all, just ask. If you want to go out for a walk or something, or you want a certain meal for dinner or whatever, just ask. Three: I have a password, but just so you know, don't read my files without my permission. And that's it."

Rachnera blinked in confusion, tilting her head slightly. "That's it?" She questioned in disbelief.

Saul shrugged and sipped his coffee. "Well, there's a whole bunch of regulations you have to follow from the government already, not to mention just plain old laws. But yeah, as far as I'm concerned, that's it."

"Oh," She muttered, playing with her glass.

An awkward sort of silence fell over the room as drinks were drunk. "Well, I can safely say that you're welcome here, Rachnera, so I'll be taking my leave." Smith announced, setting aside her cup. "Saul, I'll be checking in every week, and if any problems arise, please call me."

The man nodded to her and waved. "Come by anytime." As the echo of the closing door came through the house, silence fell again. "So…what do you like to do?"

"Me?" Rachnera asked, surprised. At his nod, she said, "Well, I…like making things with my thread and reading…magazines and books."

"Oh? I'm an author." He replied with a grin. "I've got a couple of books out, and I'm actually working on another. What kind of books do you like?"

The Arachne played with her fingers. "Just…books. Anything, really, though the horror stuff isn't for me." She couldn't exactly say most of her books were erotica, could she?

The author chuckled lightly. "Same for me. Do you have any hobbies? I enjoy playing games, writing, cooking and reading." He admitted with a smile.

"I don't have many hobbies," Rachnera replied with a shrug.

Saul nodded, and silence became prevalent once again. "Well, I'll show you to your room."

She rose from her seat and followed the human as he walked back into the hall and up the stairs, stopping at the end of another hallway. He grabbed a hanging rope and pulled it down, revealing a set of stairs.

Rachnera followed him up, coming into a surprisingly clean, though empty attic. Besides the windows and a dresser, and a small stack of boxes pushed into a corner, the room was bare. "I don't know what kind of furniture you like, so if you want any decorations or anything, just ask." Saul said quietly, rubbing the back of his head. "I hope this good."

"Yeah," She replied, shifting on the wooden floor. "It's perfect."

"Good, good." He said, smiling at her. Blushing lightly, he turned away and started back down the steps. "I'll go and make dinner. If you need anything at all, just come find me or shout, okay?"

"Okay," Rachnera mumbled as the human disappeared into the rest of the house, leaving her alone in her new room with her thoughts. Did he mean everything he said? She wondered, remembering the looks he had been shooting her since they had first met. Was he faking it all, hiding how he really feels?

She tapped her chin and sighed, getting to work on decorating her space. I'll just have to find out, I guess.

Saul sighed in light dismay, leaning his head against the fridge. Oh man, that was really awkward. He complained to himself, pulling his head back before letting it bounce off the freezer. I can't help it around pretty women, dammit. I hope I didn't make her feel weird.

Glaring at his reflection in the refrigerator, he thought, I probably did. Crap. Well, nothing to do except make her feel comfortable.

…

Dinner was simple. Arachne, being a predatory race, liked eating meat, the closer to raw the better, so Saul cooked a pair of steaks for them with some cauliflower to go with it.

While it was simple, it was also stilted and somewhat uncomfortable for both of them, as was to be expected with a new person living in the house.

After dinner was done, the human among them bid Rachnera good night and went to bed. She stayed up for a few hours afterwards, thinking hard. Once she was certain Saul was asleep, she snuck into his room and watched him as he slept, trying to divine more of his personality and reasons from his resting form, only to be stymied by the fact that shit didn't work.

Stealthily approaching the sleeping man as he rolled over and faced the door, she ran her fingers over one of his cheeks, whispering to herself. "Did you mean any of what you said? Or are you just afraid of me, of how I look?"

Saul's eyes snapped open, the ice-blue irises rolling to look into her solid red. "Besides being a light sleeper, you'll find that I'm probably the most bluntly honest person you'll meet." He said casually, as if he hadn't just woken to hear her question his actions. "If you want to know how I feel, all you have to do is ask, Rachnera."

Drawing back in surprise, the Arachne crossed her arms over her chest. "How do you feel about me, really?" She asked bluntly.

"Do you really want to know?" He shot back, running a hand over his tired eyes.

Rachnera's expression didn't shift, though her silence spoke volumes. Saul sat up and turned to face her fully, and she became aware that he apparently didn't sleep with a shirt.

"I really want to know." She finally said, as calmly as she could.

Saul sighed heavily, bracing his knees on his elbows and looking directly into her eyes. "Alright, Rachnera…you…are one of the most…attractive women I've ever met." He admitted, blushingly mightily.

The Arachne blinked in shock, her mouth falling open slightly. "That's…that's it? That's why you were being so awkward?" She asked incredulously.

"I not that good around pretty women, okay?" He retorted defensively. "And before you get any weird ideas, it's not just your human part that I find attractive."

Saul reached out and gently took one of her hands, laying it open. "Yes, your hands are dangerous, and your body is intimidating, to say the least, but it doesn't detract from you at all. It adds to it, and as far as I'm concerned you, your whole body, it's all very alluring."

Rachnera mouthed a few words silently before finding her voice. "Y-you, you find me alluring? Even my non-human parts?"

He nodded solemnly. "Yes. I'm sorry if I've made you feel uncomfortable at all."

Her lips twitched slightly, a soft hissing noise issuing from her mouth. "….Pfffft-hahahaha!" She giggled loudly, covering her mouth with one hand.

Saul's face became dead-pan. "I'm glad my problems are amusing to you." He commented dryly, dropping her hand. Well, I feel foolish now.

She waved off his comment, still giggling. "You like my spider parts? My, aren't you a little creepy?"

"Speak for yourself," He shot back, patting one of her forelegs. "I'm weird and I don't particularly care who knows it." He said with a smile.

Suddenly, her long black fingers were tracing over cheeks, the sharp tips grazing his skin. "I like weird." Rachnera admitted, a smirk on her lips and a blush on her cheeks.

Saul gave her a genuine smile, gently touching her hand still on his cheek. "I'm glad we talked. It's really put my mind at ease." He said quietly, before yawning. "But it is late, and we should go to bed. Is there anything else you need?"

Rachnera smiled shortly and shook her head, lavender tresses shaking from the action. "Nothing I need. Goodnight, Saul."

Slipping back under his blankets, the human author gave the Arachne woman a tired smile. "Goodnight, Rachnera."

Before she slipped out of the door, Rachnera looked back at him over her shoulder. "Call me Rachnee."

…

Morning dawned bright and lively, with a nearly cloudless sky. Saul, freshly awoken, yawned lightly and stepped out of his bedroom, heading for the kitchen.

As he came down the stairs, he heard muffled cursing coming from the eating area. Curious as to why someone was in his kitchen, he carefully stepped around the corner, finding Rachnee standing near the counter with an irritated look on her face.

Smiling to himself, the man walked into the kitchen and greeted her. "Morning, Rachnee-gah!"

He found himself suspended above the floor, his arms tied to his sides and his mouth gagged with spider silk.

Rachnee, having been startled by the weirdly silent treads of her host, had reflexively wrapped him in thread. "Oh! I'm sorry, I didn't hear you!" She apologized, quickly approaching the confused and tied up form of Saul Dewitt, amazing human piñata. "I was trying to make breakfast for us, but I didn't know what you would like…"

The doorbell rang, drawing her attention away from her host to the hallway. "Who could that be?" She asked herself.

"It's probably Smith," Saul answered easily.

Rachnee spun around, finding her webbing dangling limply and Saul putting coffee into the maker. "How did you-?"

Her host turned to her with a small smirk and a playful wink, saying simply one word. "Ninja."

She blinked comically at him, and he pointed at the door. "Can you get that, please? If it is Smith, she'll want coffee."

Nodding, Rachnee turned and answered the door, letting the black-suited government agent inside. Muttering about going to the bathroom, she left the two humans in kitchen.

"Thank you," Ms. Smith said thankfully, taking the cup of coffee presented to her. "So, how did your night go?"

Saul took a seat across from her with his own cup. "It went pretty good. I think this will be a really good time for both of us."

"That's good, that's good." She said, nodding. A mischievous gleam glittered in her dark brown eyes. "So…you think she's hot, right?"

Saul spluttered, coffee spilling from his mouth and onto his shirt. "What the hell kind of question is that?!"

…

…

…

A/N: So yeah, that happened. I believe this could be called a 'Slice-of-life' story, much like the manga. So, no Reapers or world-ending disasters or anything like that. Just regular, everyday life…with monster girls. It'll be interesting to write, as I've never written something that doesn't have a bunch of action just…everywhere.

And yes, the other women will be showing up eventually. I did supplant Kurusu with a slightly less-fictionalized version of myself from the Hero series. Still not me exactly, but damned close. More successful.

I hope you like it, but don't be afraid to tell me if the POV switch is odd, though I want to remind those who read the manga that Rachnee's attitude from when she first appears is based on the reactions she got from her first host family, which made her very cynical. As Saul is her first (and only) host family, that's not exactly a problem. Her full, perverted and playful personality will become more prevalent in the next chapter or so…when I get around to writing it. Don't hold your breath.

But, I do want to tell everyone who reads my stuff that this is my last new story for a good while. I've got Still Not A Hero, Dare To Wander, Jinchuriki of the World-Eater that I'm still working on, Shadows of the Remnants, and now the Guardian of the Avatar, and I don't want to singularity myself with too many stories. I might put up a poll asking yalls which stories I should focus on.

Anyway, that's all from me. Review, why don't you?

Stay Awesome.

~Soleneus

P.S.: I've noticed that Rachnee likes to engineer perverted situations, like having her be seen naked or making someone stumble and face-plant into her breasts. Having someone like her, and someone like Saul (who wouldn't mind at all) interacting will be interesting.

And as for the ninja thing? Not Naruto 'ninja' (pffffffffft), but like, actual ninja. And that's all I'm telling for now.

Stay Awesome Some More.

~Soleneus

SMOKE BOMB!