| “ | I'm so sorry for this, Damian... but for the sake of this mission... I need to crash your family reunion! | ” |
Note that the arc title and following sub-headings are fan-made and used to better organize the story.
Furthermore, CAPITALIZED sub-headings are parts of the arc in the anime canon, whether it be extra material from the manga or anime original scenes.
The Imperial Scholars Mixer Arc is the ninth story arc in SPY x FAMILY.
With the biannual Imperial Scholars mixer coming up, Damian sees a rare opportunity to meet with his reclusive and distant father. However, Twilight also has his own plans to intrude on their meeting.
Summary[]
Shopping with Friends[]
Anya tries on different outfits
At Eden Academy, Anya wonders how to help Loid with Operation Strix despite her struggles to be a good student and make friends with Damian. Becky misperceives Anya's pensiveness as her "crush" on Damian and wants to help her out. Becky gets the idea to dress up Anya to catch Damian's eye, so they agree to go shopping for clothes together. Escorted by Becky's servant, Martha, the girls go to a high-end department store, where Anya tries on all sorts of outfits. Anya points out that Damian will not see her new clothes at school because of their uniforms, but Becky tells her they can wear other clothes at an upcoming end-of-term party. The mention of the party makes Becky realize that Loid may be there, prompting her to try on outfits as well, later buying them all after being unable to choose one.
Anya and Becky's matching keychains
Anya cannot decide on a dress and gets tired of looking at the clothes, so the girls check out the other stores together. While Becky buys many things, Anya does not, unsure of what to get. Worried that she dragged Anya along, Becky asks her if she had fun shopping. Anya says she had lots of fun shopping with a friend for the first time, which touches Becky, who decides to help Anya get something she wants. Anya notices a sheep keychain and buys two for her and Becky as a memento of their trip. Becky is hesitant to accept the gift but is able to after being nudged by Martha. On the drive home, Martha reflects on Becky's precociousness when she was younger and is happy that she made a friend in Anya. The girls later reunite at school, now wearing the matching keychains on their bags. As they walk to class together, a nearby Damian cannot help but notice their smiling faces.[2]
The Imperial Scholars Mixer[]
Checking the guests in the Tower of Wisdom
The Imperial Scholars mixer is Eden Academy's semi-annual get-together exclusive to Imperial Scholars, their parents, and select alumni. As the mixer is attended by Ostania's top brass, security in the school has tightened with SSS agents and the military on guard. Additionally, the venue is inside the Tower of Wisdom, which is fortified against all kinds of infiltration attempts. In the hopes of finally making contact with Donovan Desmond, Twilight sneaks into Eden while disguised as a professor. With his options thin, Twilight's best option is to encounter Donovan as "Loid Forger," so he decides to observe and prepare for that scenario. Although opportunities to meet Donovan outside the Tower are practically nonexistent, Twilight decides to try exploring them.
Damian talks with Demetrius on the phone
Meanwhile, classes are closed ahead of the mixer. As the students of Cecile Hall pack up and chat about the mixer's attendees, Damian recalls an earlier call with his older brother Demetrius, in which Damian asked him to tell Donovan to meet with him after the mixer. Demetrius agreed to his request but reminded him that their father is a busy man. Anya learns about Damian's plan through her telepathy and attempts to shadow him. They end up having another spat, which ends with Damian and his friends running away. Anya then hears the thoughts of Loid, who is following Damian in case he meets with Donovan. Hearing his plan, Anya also follows after Damian with Becky in tow.
Damian and his friends check out the mixer, where they see many Imperial Scholars heading to the event with their parents. After Emile mentions how Donovan is a VIP among all the famous people there, Damian gets cold feet. He decides not to see Donovan, reasoning that he is an incredible and busy man who does not have time to waste on people like him. Before he can inform his brother of his decision, he is stopped by Anya. Anya reveals that Damian is scared to tell Donovan about his recently poor quiz score and convinces Damian to go through with meeting him after declaring to tell Loid about hers.
"My name is Loid Forger."
Waiting for Donovan alongside Damian and his friends, Anya is determined to face "the final boss" but falls asleep and is taken home by Becky and Martha. Loid plants a copy of Anya's sheep keychain near Damian's group and later approaches them as the mixer ends, pretending to be looking for it. After Loid properly introduces himself to Damian and apologizes for Anya punching him, Donovan, accompanied by his entourage of bodyguards, appears to meet with Damian. Upon noticing Loid, Donovan gives him a chance to speak, allowing Loid to introduce himself to his target.[1]
Discussion at a WISE safehouse
At a WISE safehouse, a rookie agent reviews a file containing attendees to the Imperial Scholars mixer, including Donovan. Seeing how the mixer is a treasure trove of intelligence, he suggests sending more agents to back up Twilight. Sylvia advises against it, saying it would only give their enemy easy prey. She reminds the young man that they are in enemy territory and that Eden Academy is the front line of this cold war.
Returning to Eden, Loid plans to learn as much as he can about Donovan from his behavior, get him interested in "Loid Forger," and most importantly, extract the plans for the war he is plotting. Donovan recalls the incident at the orientation and apologizes for being too busy to respond personally. When Loid offers to bring a token of regret to his manor, Donovan brushes it off with an unusually bright smile that startles him and upsets Damian, who complains that Anya laid hands on him, a Desmond. Loid agrees and insists on making amends, but Donovan politely rejects him again. Loid realizes he is being blown off and withdraws.
Donovan shares his dark worldview
Damian tries to express his frustration to Donovan, only to get shut down by him. Loid speaks up to defend Damian's feelings and, hoping to get a read on Donovan, talks about the difficulties of parenting. Donovan agrees, stating that children are only related by blood and are essentially strangers who cannot be understood, adding that people will never truly be sympathetic with each other. Loid disagrees, telling Donovan that what is important is meeting others in the middle, despite how difficult it can be, and suggests it may have been why Donovan took the time out of his schedule to meet with Damian. Loid then talks about Damian's respect for Donovan, bringing up the boy's school report on his work (which he had secretly snuck a peek at in the school) and praising it for positively changing his views on Donovan and the National Unity Party.
Donovan wraps up the conversation, but not before remembering Loid's name and saying he enjoyed their talk. Satisfied that he has Donovan's acknowledgment and memorized the faces and features of his security team, Loid takes his leave. Before doing so, Loid asks Damian not to tell Anya about their conversation and shares his hope that they can get along. Damian says he also wants to get along with her but quickly gets embarrassed and yells at Loid to go away. As Loid leaves, he and Donovan quietly look at each other with suspicious glares.
Damian tells Donovan about his achievements
Now alone with his father, Damian cannot bring himself to talk to him. However, after being motivated by Loid and Anya's words, he talks about his achievements and failures at school, which earns him passive praise from his father. Damian asks Donovan why he agreed to meet him, to which he says it was on a whim. Before Donovan walks away, he instructs Damian to continue working hard so as not to sully their family name, which Damian enthusiastically agrees to while Emile and Ewen cheer him on.
Watching the exchange inside the school, Loid senses how distant Donovan is from his son, and concludes that the closer they are, the better the odds of success are for Plan B. Choosing not to tail his target, Loid takes his new intel to HQ for analysis to lay the groundwork for the next steps. Before leaving, Loid observes Damian excitedly cheering for Stella with his friends. Loid returns home to see Anya fast asleep with Bond, making him think about how carefree she is.[3]
FOLLOW MAMA AND PAPA[]
Yor's pained face after getting shot in the butt
After assassinating the Red Circus, an armed militant group, Yor speaks to her employer over the phone to confirm her job completion. She fails to notice that one of her victims still lives and gets shot in the butt. Yor manages to treat the wound but returns home with an irritated expression, which worsens the next day. Unsure of why she is upset but determined to cheer her up, Loid invites her out on a date. Yor agrees to go, wanting to learn to play the part of a married woman. Anya also wants to go, but Loid rejects her and gets Franky to look after her and Bond while he and Yor go on their date.
Loid has hundreds of date ideas planned, but Yor, wanting to prevent further damage to her butt, severely narrows them. Anya gets the idea to shadow Loid and Yor on their date and proposes it to Franky, who happily agrees as he wants to observe Loid's seduction arts. The two get into disguises and start following them, though Loid immediately notices them. Throughout the date, Loid takes Yor to various locations, but she is unreceptive to them all, making him distressed by her apparent disinterest and his inability to cheer her up.
Anya's worries what might happen if Yor exposes her identity
Loid takes Yor to an expensive-looking restaurant for dinner. Due to their clothes and Anya's young age, Franky and Anya cannot enter and decide to go home. However, Anya's mind-reading abilities overhear the thoughts of a waiter in the restaurant, who is the sole survivor of Yor's massacre from yesterday and recognizes her as the killer. The Red Circus member decides to avenge his comrades by killing Yor. Anya worries that if Yor fends him off, she will expose her identity and cause Loid to break up the Forger family. Wanting to save their family, she convinces Franky to infiltrate the restaurant. The Red Circus member squeezes lots of blowfish poison into Yor's cocktail glass and serves it to her. Anya, high above in the vents with Franky, is too late to save Yor, who drinks the poisoned martini. However, it is revealed that Yor has a high tolerance for poison, which has simply numbed her injury. Now cured of her pain, Yor becomes happy, which stumps Loid.
Anya confronts the Red Circus member
With his first attempt failed, the Red Circus member decides to make an improvised bomb with ingredients from the restaurant's storeroom. Still in the vent, Anya notices the room is nearby and slips away. Inside, Anya makes a non-lethal peanut bomb as the man recites the bomb recipe in his mind. When the Red Circus member enters the storeroom, he stumbles upon the bomb, which detonates shortly after he picks it up. Anya appears before the man and orders him not to approach Yor ever again. As she leaves, Anya tells him to make his girlfriend, who she overheard in his thoughts, happy. Frightened by the girl's knowledge of him, the Red Circus member decides to abandon the underworld and live a normal life.
Yor tells Loid she enjoyed their date
Anya quickly returns to Franky as they resume spying on Loid and Yor, the former being relieved that she has finally cheered up. As they look out at Berlint's night scenery, Yor shares how she never had a chance to go out to have fun because she was always taking care of herself and Yuri. She thanks Loid for taking her out and hopes they can do it again. The next day, the numbing poison wears off, and Yor is once again in pain, much to Loid's confusion.[4][note 1]
After the Mixer - The Field Research Trip[]
Henry punishes Damian for oversleeping
Damian misses morning muster at his dorm, having spent all night studying. As punishment, Henry Henderson tasks him with helping the dorm mother with chores, forbidding him from leaving school grounds until he finishes. Emile and Ewen go to check on Damian, worrying that he is pushing himself too hard. They try to convince Damian to have fun with their peers, who are going to the movies and get roast beef with their dorm tutor. Damian is adamant about studying, hoping to get his father's praise again. To help him finish chores faster, Ewen and Emile purposefully loiter around the halls in an unkempt manner to get Henderson to punish them. Damian is surprised as they stay to help him and ends up playing with them as they do the chores. Observing their youthful friendship, Henderson gives the boys a new punishment for fooling around during chores by going on a field research trip with Mr. Green.
Damian, Emile, and Ewen prepare to fish
Mr. Green takes the boys on a fast-paced canoe ride to take them to a lake for a picnic. Damian spots an approaching "waterfall" and accidentally falls off the canoe. With Damian seemingly drowning, Ewen and Emile jump off to save him, only to end up in the same situation. They prioritize Damian's life and ask him to carry on their dreams, which moves him. Green interrupts to reveal that the water is actually shallow, which embarrasses the boys. After starting a warm fire on land, Green teaches fishing to the boys. While looking for bait, Emile and Ewen discover Damian's fear of earthworms and quickly exploit it as they chase him around with some. Once the boys start fishing, they each successfully catch a fish.
The boys see Stella Lake
While enjoying their hard-earned meals, Damian worries he is wasting time instead of working to become an Imperial Scholar, but Green tells him it is okay to enjoy oneself every now and then. After eating, Green takes the boys to "Stella Lake," whose name excites Damian. There, the boys are amazed by the sight of the lake, where the stars reflect on its surface and look like they can be reached, hence its name. Damian is shocked there are no Stellas but admits that the trip was not a waste, then lies on the ground and watches the stars with his friends. On their way back to the dorm, Green reminds them to write a proper field report. At the dorm, Green hands the boys' reports to Henderson, who thanks him for letting the boys loose.[5]
Life-and-Death Dinner[]
Bond believes he will die from Yor's dinner
In the Forger home, Bond suddenly receives a vision where everything is pitch black. He wonders what it means and assumes a scientist from Project Apple might come to kill him. Although scared, Bond believes the family will cherish his memory, and so he accepts his apparent fate. He goes to Anya's room to say goodbye, but she pushes him away to focus on her homework. In the kitchen, Yor tells Bond she forgot to buy more dog food and decides to cook his dinner. Remembering his mysterious vision, Bond believes he will die from eating Yor's cooking. Bond contemplates refusing to eat, but imagines Yor responding by killing him after remembering Anya saying that Yor would kill him if he upset her. Bond almost resigns to his doom, but comes up with an idea: if he can help Loid with his work, he can come home early and make Bond's dinner, preventing his death. With newfound resolve, the family dog unlocks the door and runs away to look for Loid, much to Yor's astonishment.
Bond runs around the streets of Berlint while sniffing for Loid's scent. Eventually, he finds him outside the Born Industries research facility, where Loid has been tasked with stealing a sample of "Gerrulimus," a new truth serum developed by the company. However, because he has no time to collect intel for impersonation, he can only make a direct infiltration. Loid is surprised when Bond appears and guides him to a route free of people. Loid questions Bond's knowledge and recalls that Born Industries was presumably involved with Project Apple. Assuming Bond knows this and wants payback against the scientists who abused him and his friends as test subjects, Loid lets him tag along to complete their respective missions.
Bond knocks out a scientist
The two infiltrate the facility and make their way to the laboratory, which is full of specimen lockers, one of them containing the serum. While Loid works to find it, Bond foresees the staff returning to the lab, which causes Loid to hold them off and order Bond to flee. Bond becomes distressed and warns Loid to hide. Before hiding, Loid leaves a note for the staff saying the Gerrulimus has been stolen, tricking them into opening and checking the locker with the serum. Once they do, Loid and a masked Bond ambush and knock out the men. As Loid retrieves the sample, Bond has a vision of Loid making his dinner and Yor happy for his safety, which makes him bark for joy.[6]
Working for Family[]
After surveilling a room where an illegal deal is being held, Yuri and his division successfully arrest all the men involved. At the SSS headquarters, Yuri gets praised for his work and is given a new assignment to investigate Franklin Perkin, a journalist who writes several books and articles for the West that slander Ostania and sells them to Ostanian black markets. Yuri is tasked with finding Franklin's publishers and stopping his work from influencing public opinion.
Yuri and the Lieutenant watch Franklin's movements
Yuri is disgusted with Franklin's traitorous activity and carefully monitors him, logging Franklin's every move from his daily schedule, the people around him, and his conversations. The Lieutenant is impressed by Yuri's detailed report but fails to persuade his visibly fatigued subordinate to let someone take over after Yuri pulls two all-nighters in a row. After hearing Franklin preparing to leave home, Yuri and the Lieutenant move out to tail him. Franklin tries to find something to write about for his articles as he discreetly takes pictures around the city with a camera hidden under his jacket. Upon passing by several children playing with a Bondman replica pistol, Franklin snatches the toy and tosses it into a nearby dumpster. While the children frantically dig into the dumpster to find the toy, Franklin takes a picture to stage them as desperate and hungry street urchins. When the children threaten to report him to the SSS, Franklin intimidates them, which angers Yuri, who gets held back by the Lieutenant.
Yuri returns to monitoring Franklin at his home, where he hears the man's motivation to make the country a better place for his family, as they did not have enough money to keep his mother alive. Yuri wonders aloud if Franklin is motivated by concern for his family on his report but quickly rips it out and crumples it. During his monitoring, Yuri realizes that Franklin contacts his publishers at his work, the post office. Yuri follows Franklin to the post office, where he sees him discreetly slipping the manuscript into the mail pile. Intercepting the letter, Yuri locates the publishers and arrests them.
Yuri shows up at Franklin's apartment to arrest him
Later, he and other SSS agents wait outside Franklin's apartment to arrest him. Franklin resigns himself to his fate and surrenders to the agents. As he gets taken away, Franklin poses the question of who is the true disgrace to their country between him and Yuri, to which Yuri answers that he would never do anything to cause his family pain. Yuri tells Franklin that he will apply for his father to receive financial assistance, which Franklin is grateful for. At headquarters, Yuri gets approached by the Boss, who asks if the recent workload has been stressful. Yuri says this is the perfect job for him, and he vows to protect their country and catch Twilight. Later that night, Yuri visits the Forgers and is reassured by Yor's smile that he works to protect.[7]
THE ELEGANT BONDMAN[]
Bondman with his all of his love interests
Anya watches an episode of Spy Wars, in which Bondman accrues multiple love interests throughout his missions. Eventually, all the women become upset and demand that Bondman choose one of them, but he refuses. As a result, all the women brutally beat Bondman and leave him. Anya comments that this must be one of those lovey-dovey shows that she can talk to Becky about, but Loid tells her to stop, confused and disgusted with Bondman's womanizing behavior.[8][note 1]
THE HEART OF A CHILD[]
Loid lets Anya ride the electric panda
At the rooftop of the department store, Anya sees large electric plush animal rides and tells Loid that she wants to ride one[note 2]. Loid thinks about how pointless the rides are, but when Anya starts crying to go on it, and at Yor's suggestion, he allows her to ride it. After Anya finishes, she asks to do it again, and Loid thinks about how he cannot understand children.
Later, Anya tells Loid she wants to go to the ocean, so he compromises by taking her to the pool. While Anya initially has fun, she becomes shocked and disgusted after hearing the thoughts of other kids peeing in the pool. At home, Anya says she never wants to go to the pool again, and Loid is once again confused.[9][note 1]
WAKING UP[]
Loid tries to wake up Anya
At Cecile Hall's boys' dormitory, Ewen and Emile wake up for morning muster and go to wake up Damian after remembering when he overslept. To their surprise, he is already awake, having woken up an hour ago to study and saying that the last time was a fluke. At the Forger home, Loid desperately tries to wake Anya up so she will not miss the bus and be tardy, worried that she will get a Tonitrus Bolt for too many tardies. However, Anya is too asleep to get up and ends up being tardy.[10][note 1]
The Pastry of Knowledge[]
The "Pastry of Knowledge" is one of the seven wonders of Eden Academy. It is said that a mysterious pâtissier randomly appears in the cafeteria and offers extraordinarily delicious desserts. As many of those who have managed to eat this pastry become Imperial Scholars, it has become rumored that it makes one instantly smarter.
Anya and Becky race against Damian, Emile, and Ewen to get the "Pastry of Knowledge"
During lunch, Becky tells Anya that they will be divided into new classes based on performance at the end of the term and urges her to work hard so they can stay in the same class together. She also mentions that the grouping is rumored to be based on not just the midterms and finals but tomorrow's quizzes too. Anya and Becky overhear other students gossiping about the Pastries of Knowledge being sold at another dining hall. The mention of the pastry being able to make someone Imperial Scholar catches Anya and Becky's attention, so they take off to the hall. Shortly after the girls run into Damian and his friends, who have the same goal, only one order of the special "Pierre Pommier Macaron" set is left. The two groups race to get it but are stunned when George Glooman buys it for himself.
Anya deliberately takes the Joker card
The kids confront George and demand the macarons, reminding him what he owes them from last time. George agrees to give up four of his five macarons, but as the others realize there are five of them, they hold a round of Old Maid to determine who gets the pastries. Anya is unaware of the rules as she has never played cards but wins the game using her mind-reading abilities, making Damian and his friends accuse her of cheating. When Damian baselessly thinks she could be reading minds, Anya panics and suggests they play another round, where she purposefully makes mistakes and gets the Joker card to avert their suspicions. To make matters worse, Anya's facial expressions are easy to read, making it impossible for her to get rid of the Joker.
Anya gets fired up for the quiz after eating the macaron
As the game continues, only Anya and Damian remain. Anya panics at the thought of not getting a macaron, thus failing her tests and being in a different class from Becky, and begins to tear up. As Damian is about to take a card, he is stunned by Anya's expression and takes the Joker, causing him to lose the game. Anya offers to share half of her macaron with Damian, but he rudely rejects her in embarrassment. After eating the macaron, Anya becomes fired up and studies with fiery vigor until the quizzes the next day. When their results come back, Henderson shows that Anya's quiz results are just as bad as before, leaving Anya and her peers in disbelief.
At home, Loid and Yor look at Anya's quiz papers. Loid takes note of Anya's Classical Language quiz, which she almost did well on. He wonders how Anya did so well since her class barely studied it and if she is acquainted with the language due to her upbringing. Loid decides to brush it off and cheers up Anya by telling her that he made her favorite hamburg steak for dinner.[11]
Story Impact[]
- Supporting character Martha Marriott is introduced.
- Donovan Desmond makes his first physical appearance.
- Loid has his first meeting with Donovan.
- Anya's knowledge of Classical Language is brought up for the first time.
Characters Introduced[]
Trivia[]
- The faces of some Imperial Scholars and graduates are first introduced as cameos in this arc.
- Demetrius Desmond is the only one of them who has replicas, but at the same time, the only one whose face and silhouette were not visible.
Notes[]
References[]
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 37, and Episode 25.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 36, and Episode 24.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 38, and Episode 25.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Extra Mission 2, and Episode 26.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 39, and Episode 27.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 40, and Episode 27.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 41, and Episode 28.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Short Mission 7, and Episode 28.
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Anime: Episode 28, Volume 2 Bonus Comic
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Anime: Episode 28, Volume 7 Bonus Comic
- ↑ SPY x FAMILY Manga and Anime: Chapter 42, and Episode 29.
[]
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