Nogi Sonoko and Mimori Togo were lesbians. It was a simple fact. They were completely in love with each other, Togo had held a strong three-year long crush on another girl, Yuna, and neither of them had ever felt any interest in men. They weren't ashamed of it, but they didn't really like to parade it around either. Togo was shy and Sonoko kept that kind of thing to her (many) romance stories. In public it was easy to pass for close friends. It wasn't uncommon for young girls to be close, even touchy-feely, no one batted an eye. So their relationship remained secret to all but their parents and closest friends. Until June first rolled around, and Sonoko burst into the kitchen where Togo was preparing dinner, her parents away on a business trip for a couple of days, with an excited look in her eye.
"Wasshi! Guess what!?" She squealed excitedly. Skipping the question of "why are you in my house this late at night AND without knocking" Togo simply asked what was going on. Sonoko whipped out her phone and showed her an article on a Gay Pride parade. "A parade! Just for people like us! Yuyu and Nibosshi are already going! Can we go too, pleeeease?" Togo facepalmed, groaning softly. What. The hell. Three years of keeping their romance secret and now Sonoko wanted to go to a damn Gay Pride parade. "No. Absolutely not. I'd die of embarrassment. You know not everyone is accepting of such things." Sonoko huffed and Togo knew without even looking that she was doing her irresistible puppy-dog eyes. 'Don't look at the pout, don't look at the pout, don't look at the- dammit.' She just could not resist those eyes. "Fine. We'll go." She relented, wincing to herself as Sonoko cheered and hugged her. What had she just signed on to?
Two days later, the Hero Club has gathered to prepare for the parade. Fuu and Itsuki were going too, Itsuki struggling to muster up the courage to declare herself as bisexual, and Fuu going as a "straight ally" or whatever that was supposed to mean. Togo didn't really want to look anyone in the eye, her cheeks burning. She was ashamed for… being ashamed. She loved Sonoko and there shouldn't be anything wrong with proclaiming it. But she still dreaded the idea of "going public." She sighed and sat down, working on sewing together the flags everyone would carry. Not ten seconds later, a tiny, shy voice reached her ears. "Togo-san?" It was Itsuki. She looked up from her work. "What is it, Itsuki-chan?" She said with a soft smile. "Um… are you nervous… too?" She asked, her voice a bit shaky. Togo felt a pang go through her. Poor Itsuki. She had always been such a wonderful girl, sweet, kind, determined, smart, she was everything a person should aspire to be. But she was still so painfully shy. "Yeah. I'm nervous too, Itsuki. I really love Sonocchi… but I'm scared of what people will think of me." She admitted. She could be honest with Itsuki. Her precious friend wouldn't mind. "What about you?" Itsuki looked ashamed. "I'm not…" the rest was unintelligible mumbling. "Itsuki-chan. It's alright. We're the Hero Club, remember? Hero tenet number four, if you're troubled, talk to someone."
The smaller girl took a deep breath. "I'm not strong enough to do this…" She admitted. "I'm not like Onee-chan… I'm not as brave or as pretty and my breasts are still small and I don't have as much girl power.. I'm too scared, and I can't tell her, she's so excited and she wouldn't go if I didn't… it's not fair to her." "Itsuki-chan… you want to do this, right?" Togo asked. "You're too shy to do it, but you still want to?" Itsuki nodded. And Togo felt a jolt of realization course through her body. "Itsuki. That's good. That's even better than I'm doing. I don't even want to do this. But you, you can admit that you really do want to. That's a wonderful start." Itsuki blinked, surprised at the praise. "Is it okay if I tell the others? They can help you. They will help you." Nod. "Okay.." She stood up and cleared her throat loudly, and everyone turned to her. "It has come to my attention that two members of the Hero Club are having problems with the upcoming Gay Pride parade. I myself do not want to do it, I'm to embarrassed and ashamed and ashamed of being ashamed. But I've learned something from Itsuki. Itsuki is afraid to do it just like me, but she's not ashamed at all. She admits that she's bisexual and she really wants to be able to go to the parade but is just too shy. That's just how she is. Love is a good thing, no matter what. I'm going to go to the parade with all of you and I won't be ashamed at all. So I ask you all to give Itsuki some of your girl power so she can show off all of her wonderful self without being afraid." Silence, then enthusiastic clapping. Fuu ran over and enveloped her little sister in a hug, and Sonoko cheerfully congratulated Togo on overcoming her embarrassment, hugging her warmly. Yuna cheered for her friends, they were all so brave and so committed to each other. "Let's go, Hero Club! We'll be the best there is in the whole parade!
Three hours later, the flags were almost done, and everyone had gathered around Togo, suggesting little details to add here and there, or a bit of customization. She smiled cheerfully, doing her best to accommodate the additions in a timely manner, even though her hands were getting sore. Finally, she was done, and bid everyone goodbye as she went home, excited to see her mom and dad after three days of missing them and also wanting to soak her hands to ease the soreness of so much sewing. Her chest was light. Everything was going to be fine. She wasn't ashamed anymore. Thank the gods for her friends, and brave little Itsuki. The Shinju-sama no longer existed, but she said "thank you" aloud anyway. There were still gods somewhere, she reasoned. She arrived home and revived a joyful embrace from her parents, who had already prepared her favorite meal so they could eat together. She was so thankful for her parents. Both sets, to be honest. She was still in contact with the Washio family, and called them "mother" and "father" even though they now had a daughter and son of their own. They allowed her to call them her siblings, and taught them to call her "big sister." Even though she'd only been their daughter for two years, they still loved her for what she was and she was so, so grateful. After eating dinner and telling her parents that she would be getting ready for the parade in the next couple of days, she went to bed, dreaming of Sonoko and her bright, warm smile.
The day of the parade had arrived. All six girls were dressed in nice clothes, buzzing with energy. Itsuki cling to Fuu's hand, her if sister standing tall with an air of pride for her brave little sister, holding a bisexual pride flag and ready to go. Togo hugged Sonoko tightly and gave her a loving kiss, holding up the flag she'd brought for them both to carry. It read "Gay and proud" and had an patch of Sancho sewn onto it. "Ready?" She asked as they approached the start of the parade. Fuu's rallying cry was heard. "Hero Club, Go!" And they were off. It took courage for all six girls to walk in the streets, announcing who they were and who they loved. For the standoffish and reclusive Karin, who tried to never let anyone see her upset, for the bright and cheerful Yuna who longed for everyone to like her, for the intelligent and hyperactive Sonoko, who hoped that Togo would be okay and that no one would be mad at her, thoughts of Gin also swirling in her mind, for Itsuki, bravely carrying her flag, young but determined to embrace how she felt and who she was, for Togo, who was always so embarrassed to admit this side of herself, even for Fuu, who was the only straight girl in the group and had no one to empathize with her. But they were Heroes, and they marched on. As the parade got off to a good starts, the girls began to absorb the energy from the crowd and the other marchers, their smiles growing bright as they felt energy filling their bodies. Togo and Sonoko pressed their bodies together, both of them grinning brightly as cheers of encouragement surrounded them. "You were right Sonocchi. This was a great idea." She murmured. "Mino-san would be so proud of you, you know that?" She responded. Togo sighed softly. "Yeah. I know."
As the parade came to an end, the girls rested on the grass, drinking water and nursing their sore feet. "I didn't think we'd be walking so far!" Yuna complained, rubbing lotion on her feet. "You shouldn't have worn those shoes, Yuna. It's impractical." Karin scolded, as usual unfazed by the physical strain. Togo was looking at Sonoko, love overflowing like never before. She reached into her pocket. It was still there. She had been too scared to do it for the longest time, but now… "Hey, Sonocchi?" She asked innocently. She turned. "Yeah?" She pulled the amethyst ring out of her pocket and offered it to Sonoko. Her eyes went wide and the other girls froze in their place. "Marry me, Sonocchi?" She asked nervously. Sonoko froze for a few seconds before squealing loudly and tackling Togo to the ground. "YES!" Cheers erupted from the other girls, a group hug ensuing as congratulations were issued. Happiness flowed through every one of them.
As they finally began to calm down and got ready to go home for the day, they packed up their things, still buzzing with joy. Itsuki felt someone tap her shoulder. Her classmate, Rika Haruno, stood shyly before her. "Hi Itsuki… I didn't know… well, that you were bi until now… I am… too..." she said awkwardly. "I… was wondering… maybe you would… take me on a date, someday?" Itsuki's heart sped into overdrive. She'd had a crush on Rika for what gem like eternity, what were the chances it was actually returned? "I-um… Yeah. Yeah, I will. Thank you, Rika-chan." She managed. She kept her composure as Rika waved and left, before burying her face in her bag and squealing. Fuu hugged her warmly. "See? Good things happen when you're brave." She said. Itsuki grinned and called out to the departing girls. "Goodnight everyone! And thank you so much!" She has been scared to absolute death score, but now, because of this parade, she had a date with the cutest girl in her grade. This was all the girl power she needed. "YES!" She shouted with a fist-pump, running to catch up with Fuu. She couldn't wait for her very first date.