It was a nice warm day today, perfect for any kind of activities. Whether it is exercising, hanging out, or even just enjoying the surroundings. And of course that's the kind of activities these girls likes to do.
For Umi, days like this really does boosts her mood to do their usual practice for μ's. Right after she finishes her chores at the archery club, she wastes no time to gather her things and went to the idol research club room.
It is a great day today, surely nothing will went wrong, right?
As soon as Umi reach the club-room, she notices something amiss inside. Namely, she saw there's only one person inside, sitting on the right side of the main table near the computer holding their heads while looking down to the table as if something terrible had just happened to them.
Not to mention, the club-room was all dark and all.
The first thing Umi did was to turn-on the lights to see who is the other occupants in the room. And as soon as the light turned on, which reveals the other person was Maki, Umi then proceed to make her way to the said girl. The said girl too was actually surprised when the light went on and now is looking to the person that just entered the room.
"Maki," Umi call as she walks toward the seating place of her junior, "are you alright? you look so down earlier…"
The receiver attempts at nothing to answer the question asked by Umi, in fact she just keep on staring at her like she is watching her nightmare come true.
"Maki?" Umi continues due to the fact that she's not answering the question and also the constant staring.
After a few more seconds of silence, Maki then slumped herself on the table and mumbling something that couldn't be heard by Umi.
Worried that there might be something serious happened to Maki, Umi then try to once again communicate with her.
"Maki? Is everything okay? Are you okay? What happened?"
Loads of questions was being thrown unintentionally. And as she realize this, Umi then trying to calm herself down before continuing her attempt.
While Umi is calming herself down, Maki suddenly stand abruptly from her sitting and slumped position. Of course this sudden action startled Umi for a bit and makes her to step back a few step out of reflex.
"Maki?" Umi finally gathered herself after the shock.
"I'm sorry, Umi, I love you, but I had to." was Maki only replies.
Everything after that happened so fast, too fast even for Umi liking's.
Maki was facing Umi, holding her shoulders and then proceed to pushed Umi on to the shelves. And Umi realizes that Maki's face is getting closer by the second, which makes her to closes her eyes out of embarrassment.
But after a few seconds waiting, Umi doesn't feel anything out of the ordinary while closing her eyes, its just that she suddenly smell something that was not there in the first place.
She smell the scent of a marker.
Umi then opened her eyes immediately after realizing this fact. And saw that Maki is not in the same position as before Umi closes her eyes, she also notices that Maki had something in her hands.
"Maki?" was all Umi can say out of her confusion.
"I'm sorry, Umi…" Maki replies with regret over her voice.
And whether its luck or not, the door of their club was opened once again. This time the newcomers was Nozomi and Rin.
The first thing the did was stares at Umi (again), and not long after that giggles was heard, then the giggles turn into a full laughter.
This only adds more confusion to Umi. She tries to look for the answer from Maki, but the other girl was busy averting her eyes to Umi plea, intentionally.
Umi then tries to solve the confusion by herself, and considering that they started laughing after giving her a stare then the problem must be somewhere around her face.
Umi then waste no time to walk toward the turned-off computer monitor, as she doesn't have a mirror at the moment and the only mirror at the club-room was at the changing room, then the monitor was the only thing that could help her see her reflection other than a mirror.
What surprised her that there's something present on her face that was not suppose to be there in the first place.
A moustache.
Then everything start to clicked together.
"Nishikino." was the word that came out of Umi's mouth after a really long silence, and not without a hint of grim in there.
Knowing that her time on earth was up already, Maki is ready to just gave up on trying and accepted her fate, but after sensing a far more malice than she anticipated seeping out from Umi, Maki then aborting her initial plan and make no haste to start dashing out from the club-room.
Followed by the other two occupants that was just entering the room a few minutes ago.
Then Umi, filled with the need to hunt down her prey like an animal in the wild, start the chase for the fleeing target. With a moustache on her face.
A duet screaming of "why us" can be heard around the school grounds.
—
Back in the club-room after what seemed like an endless chase (for the prey), Umi then start looking for something–anything to get rid of this bizarre thing on her face.
Unable to find such things inside her bag, she then tries to look for it inside the changing room. There she was welcomed by a silhouette from a small stature girl that was seating on the long bench just by the window.
It was Nico.
And upon noticing that there someone there beside herself, Nico then open her eyes to see the newcomer.
Nico is trying her best to hold herself from laughing.
And in-between her attempts (which is really bad), Nico tries to give the welcome the other girl deserve.
"Great day, babe?" was her words, almost got muffled between a giggles.
"Yeah, so great." A sarcastic reply.
"There, there, don't be like that, come here," Nico patted the spot next to her, "let me clean that for you."
Umi complied.
As she seated herself next to Nico, she then rest her head on the other girl shoulder.
Nico rummage through her cardigan pocket in search for some tissue, and after she found it, Nico proceed to wipes the moustache that's on Umi's face.
"Well it must be tiring day just now, right? Why don't you get some rest before our practice, well that is if there a practice after this." Nico now patting her thigh, implying that Umi should rest her head there.
And again, Umi complied.
After Umi rests her head on Nico's thigh, facing the ceiling, she closes her eyes in hoping to get a breather after the hunt.
Nico only hums while caressing Umi's hair.
—
Another person entered the club-room by the sound of door opening. After a few steps was heard, the door of the changing room got its turn to be opened.
The person behind it was Eli.
Realizing the atmosphere inside, Eli tries to lower her voice so it doesn't disturb anyone while asking her curiosity out.
"Hey, Nico, have you heard anything about what happened to Maki, Nozomi, and Rin? We just found them lying almost lifeless near the alpaca's stable."
Nico was only able to shake her head so that she doesn't have to stop her humming.
At that Eli then nods and proceed to leave the occupants of the room alone.
"I guess no practice for today then." Nico stated with no one to give her any replies but a soft grumble by the sleeping girl.
Well out of all thing, today is a great day.
—
What actually happened before was:
"No… it can be… how could this be…"
Nishikino Maki, 15 years old, first year student at Otonokizaka All Girl High School, can not believe what had just happened.
In front of her, Yazawa Nico, 17 years old, third year student at Otonokizaka All Girl High School, was standing with all high and might.
"How can this be!?" Maki ask again to no one in particular.
"You're a ten years too early for even hoping to beat the greatest idol, Nico-nii, on a card game, Nishikino."
Maki was still staring at the pool of cards that was sprawled on the table, not wanting to accept that Nico just beat her in the game of uno.
"Now, now~," Nico says almost in singing tone while walking around to her bag was placed, "I think I know what the punishment-game should be~"
Nico took out a marker from her bag and swinging it around a little in front of the defeated girl to get her attention, but was kinda failing because the other girl still too focused on the pool of cards in front of her, busy denying the truth.
After giving up getting the attention this way, Nico then put down the marker on the table with a slap, then the other girl avert her focus on the marker.
"For the next person to enter this haven, you'd have to reward them with a doodle on their face."
With that Nico leaves the marker and Maki alone, and went inside the changing room. While seating on the bench just by the window, Nico the waits for the event that will happened soon. Patiently.