The Choices of Haruhi Suzumiya

Today wasn't really any different from any day. In fact, things had finally started to settle in the SOS Brigade. It wasn't long after we came back from the Winter Vacation that Koizumi planned for us. And I mean the actual vacation part, not the bizarre time-disorted mansion with the fake Asahina that I will never be able to forget about.

Anyways, I was trudging up the hill to get to North High, letting out a deep sigh, hopefully today would remain as peaceful as the others so far.

"Yo!"

That was Taniguchi, he came up next to me with a stupid smile on his face.

"So, Kyon, I met this really awesome girl yesterday..."

Taniguchi blabbered off about nonsense I didn't really care about as I stared forward, occasionally answering with nods and the occasional heartless "yeah".

Taniguchi didn't seem to notice or care, however. And I was fine with that.
"...Anyways, she kind of reminded me of Asakura."

That snapped me back to reality.

"Asakura moved to Canada." I lied. We all know what really happened to the Monster known as Ryoko Asakura, she tried to kill me and Nagato killed her – Does turning someone into particles of dust count as killing? – and inevitably saved me from probable death.

"Well yeah, I know, but you don't see many girls like her is the thing! And this one was definitely an A+!-"

And suddenly, I stopped caring again.

Me and Taniguchi reached the top of the hill and made our way to class, Kunikada met us at the school entrance, and after a bit of small talk, we made our ways down the hallways and into the boring Class 1-5. Okabe was drinking his morning coffee, per usual, and Haruhi simply sat with her arms crossed, staring forward like she was some kind of conscious statue who was forever cursed to look in the same direction.

"Hey." I said as I made my way to the desk that was inconveniently located right in front of hers.

"Oh, hey." She said with a voice so blank it would leave Nagato jealous.

We engaged in small talk – why does that give me a sense of deja vu? – and waited until the First Period bell rang. Class was uneventful as I sat through today's lectures, trying my very hardest not to fall asleep.

After many boring lectures, class eventually ended. I grabbed my backpack and made my way to the former Literary Club Room. Haruhi had left me with the vague "I have something to do! I'll be at the Brigade Headquarters later!" and sprinted out of the room like Usain Bolt after drinking a liter of coffee.

I soon found myself in front of the cursed room and unconsciously knocked. If I opened the door right then and there, my eyes could very well be greeted with a sight that's worth saving for the rest of my life... But, being the nice guy that I was, I decided to knock just to make sure that Asahina was already finished getting dressed.

"Come in..." A soft voice spoke out and I opened the door.

I looked around the Brigade Room, I saw the chestnut haired beauty dressed in her lovely maid outfit as she happily started brewing tea. In the other corner of the room, Miss Anti-Social was reading a hardcover book. It looked thicker than one of those dictionaries you find at the public library.

I made my way over to the desk at the end of the room with the small cone marked "Chief" and casually turned on the Computer. The OS booted up as the logo flashed across the screen I silently waited as the Log In info appeared. At that moment, the wonderful Asahina had put a steaming cup of tea next to me. I graciously picked it up slowly sipped on the holy taste that heaven itself would have trouble matching.

"Do you like it? It's a new brew I'm trying!"

Anything Asahina makes I'll enjoy. That's just a fact of life. I gave her a simple answer followed up by a slight smile and she looked as joyous as an angel who just heard a bell and got it's wings.

Asahina then set a cup tea down next to Nagato, who seemed to completely ignore it as she stared at her book.

You could at least say Thank you.

Anyways, so I logged onto the Computer and opened the SOS Brigade Website, it had still barely gained any views – and I assume all of them were from the Computer Society or Haruhi – but, nevertheless, I decided to give it a quick update of putting random stuff we did on there. At least it would make the Computer Society happy knowing that we don't completely ignore it.

Around that time, the door opened and another Brigade Member walked through it.

"Sorry I'm late."

I didn't even need to look up to know who that is. Nevertheless, I peered my eyes over the computer screen and looked at the only other male Brigade member as he showed off his fake smile.

I kinda felt like I wanted to punch him. Though, that was a usual feeling.

"Where's Suzumiya?" Koizumi asked as he placed his bag on the large table in the center of the room. Asahina quickly brought a cup of tea over to him and he gave her a smile. "Thank you."

"Haruhi is doing something." I replied. "Didn't really tell me what it was."

"Ah, I see."

No you don't.

"Well, in that case, you want to play a game of Othello?"

It wouldn't hurt. I closed the Browser but left the Computer on because Haruhi was probably going to use it to browse the Internet or something later, anyways.

Koizumi engaged in small talk as white and black soon started the ultimate battle of dominance over the board. Though, per usual tradition, my black easily took over the board and beat Koizumi's white.

Koizumi simply shrugged. "Good job."

Honestly, do you even try anymore?

At that moment, the door was thrown open as the Potential for Evolution/Time Warp/God/Whatever opened the door.

"I'M BACK!" Haruhi waved as she came in.

"Good afternoon, Suzumiya." Koizumi said, his fake smile being even more prominent.

"Ah! Tea!" Asahina perked up as she scurried over to the teapot and grabbed the cup labeled "Haruhi" on it.

Nagato simply remained silent as she continued to watch her book.

I decided to use the time wisely to flip Koizumi's last few whites and claimed victory. The smiling idiot simply shrugged.

"You guys are gonna love this!" Haruhi so rudely interrupted.

Doubt it.

"I found us a new Brigade Member!"

…What?

"I decided that the Brigade needs to expand! We can't do anything if there are only five of us! It's imbalanced!"

What about all those "Junior Brigade Members" you made? You know, like Taniguchi, Kunikada, Tsuruya, everyone in the Computer Society, and my Sister. I decided to bring my thoughts up.

"Doesn't matter!" Haruhi replied.

If one of our Junior Members were here – the ones that actually like the role – it would break their hearts. But, the cruel dictator that is Haruhi Suzumiya doesn't seem to care all that much.

"When did you decide this?" I asked.

"I decided a long time ago that he would be in the SOS Brigade! I just haven't acted on it until now!"

I somewhat felt bad for the poor Student. He would be dragged into the strangest "club" in school and his reputation would probably be shattered. But, if Haruhi says it is so, then it must be so.

"If I may, Suzumiya. Why did you wait so long?" That was clearly Koizumi.

"Because if I brought him in too soon, everything would be ruined!"

And what is this 'everything' you speak up? I'm actually curious to know.

Asahina had given Haruhi her tea, and Haruhi grabbed it without a single thank you and walked over to the desk marked "Chief" with a cone.

Poor Asahina... She put so much love into her tea and the mean ol' Haruhi just took it without a word like an evil Monarch who took the riches of the land without thinking about how his people might feel about it.

Alas, that was the problem known as Haruhi Suzumiya.

"So, Kyon!"

I jumped a bit after she called out my nickname.

"What's with you? I have no plans of torturing you just yet! I just want you to find out more about the new guy!"

Well... I guess that's not too much trou-... What did she mean by 'yet'?

"And who is this 'new guy' suppose to be, exactly?" I asked.

"Isn't it obvious?"

Actually, no. It's not. Even Sherlock Holmes would have trouble figuring out what you meant.

"The new guy is clearly going to be..." Haruhi pulled a crumbled up piece of paper out of her skirt pocket and worked to straighten it out before shoving it into my face.

"HIM!" She shouted.

First of all, how did you get that photo? Did you stalk him and take it before he could notice you or did you just scavenge through the school records for one? Both sounded equally wrong.

I took the Photo from her hand and tried to make out the features... But it was kind of hard considering all the crease lines that Haruhi had made by balling it up into a big mess. It felt like I was trying to look one of those messed up mirrors you find at a Fun House.

I took a look at the photo, a blonde haired guy in the standard North High Uniform was just walking by, talking to a another guy. Probably a Friend.

I'll admit, he looked a lot nicer than Koizumi. But if he made a move on Nagato or Mikuru... Well, our friendship might not last too much longer.

"Who is he, exactly?"

"Doesn't matter!"

Er... Yes it does.

"Just look for him! We have to recruit him!"

She acted like she was in charge of a Nuclear Warhead and couldn't wait to send it out against the opposing country.

She soon kicked me out of the Brigade Room, and locked the door, giving me the message "Don't come back without him!" before shooing me away.

I, unfortunately, complied as I wandered the hallways. I began to ponder the fact that this guy might not even participate in after-school activities. And if he did, how the hell was I supposed to know what club he was in? Haruhi gave me no information whatsoever.

I let out a signature – can I even call it signature? – sigh as I continued to pace through the empty hallways. It somewhat reminded me of Closed Space, without all the grayness and absolute silence.

As I turned a corner, a figure stood at the end of the hall. Okay, that was just creepy.

If our town had a Jack The Ripper, that'd definitely be him.

He looked over at me, a smile over his face. I noticed one key thing, blonde hair.

You know what? I don't think he's normal. Then again, who is when it comes to Haruhi?

I cautiously approached like how a Lion would approach it's prey, and gave him a half-hearted smile followed with a small wave.

"Hello!" He said. "How may I help you?"

"Well..."

How do I describe this? Do I say "Hey! Want to join North High's strangest Club? We're not even approved by the Student Council!" or what? I can't just tell him about the whole supernatural thing going on.

Of course, if Haruhi wants him in the Brigade, I can't rule him out as being normal... God, I sound like Koizumi.

"Um... You see... I have this Friend, and she thinks you're really neat. So she wants to know if you'd be interested in joining a club..."

I put absolutely no love into those words. Heck, I didn't even think it would work. Not in the slightest. Of course, he simply watched me with careful green eyes.

"You want me to join a Club without even introducing yourself?"

Is it just me, or was he amused by this? He looked like a Magician who had just pulled off the greatest trick the world has ever known.

I introduced myself to him, even including the fact that most people call me "Kyon".

"Kyon, huh?" He said as he twirled a pencil in his fingers.

Hey, I have a real name too, you know.

"My name is Ken Takeshi."

Ah, that name sounded familiar. I remember skimming over it when I was reading through the Grade Averages. He was a B+ Student, if I remember right. Not that I was trying to remember.

"So... About the Club..."

"What's it about?"

God dammit... He hit my weak point. Now I actually had to give him the half-assed definition Haruhi uses.

I sighed.

"To find Aliens, Time Travelers, Sliders, and Espers... And have fun with them."

If he bolted right now, I wouldn't blame him.

Instead, he just continued with his amused expression.

"Sounds fun."

...You're kidding.

"When can I meet said Leader of this Club?"

Well, if he was abnormal, he was damn good at hiding it.

"You can meet her right now. Come on, I'll show you."

You poor lost soul. You have no idea what you just got yourself into.

Nevertheless, I showed him the way to the Old Building and near the Room where hell has a habit of breaking loose on a weekly basis.

"So... This is it, huh?"

He seemed to frown as he spoke. Maybe he wasn't as enthusiastic as I thought. If that's the case, he still has time to run.

My staring didn't seem to get the message through, though. He simply returned to an easy look and gestured for me to open the door.

I slowly slid open the door and looked around the room.

Koizumi and Asahina were playing a game of Othello, Nagato was still reading the same book as before, and Haruhi was simply sitting behind the Computer with a bored look on her face.

I made my presence known by giving a fake cough and the other Brigade Members all turned towards me in a unison. Kind of like something you'd see out of a badly done horror movie.

"Well?" Haruhi blatantly asked. "Did you find him?"

I stepped out of the way as the blonde Takeshi stepped into the room. First, he eyes Koizumi, then Asahina, and then Nagato before finally shifting his eyes to Haruhi.

"Hmm..." Is all I heard from him.

The reaction of the other members is what freaked me out, though. Koizumi's fake smile receded for a moment as he looked at the new guy.

Asahina cutely jumped in her chair like a Hamster who had just saw a Human for the first time.

Nagato even looked up from her book – which was incredibly rare, by the way – and I could see her mouth turn downwards my a single millimeter.

Crap, he wasn't normal, was he?

"Good job, Kyon!" Haruhi said.

She quickly opened the drawer of her large desk and pulled out an orange piece of cloth. She grabbed a magic marker and quickly wrote the word "Recruiter" on it before running across the room at inhuman speeds and handing it to me.

"There you go! Your first armband!"

...Was Haruhi actually showing appreciation towards me for once? The World must have gone out of whack while I wasn't looking.

"Hi! I'm the Brigade Chief, Haruhi Suzumiya!" She said as she started walking around Takeshi with the brightest smile on her face.

I glanced at Koizumi and his smile returned to Koizumi. He gave me a shrug and I quickly went back to watching Haruhi.

"These are the other Brigade Members! #1, #2, #3, and #4!"

You could at least refer to us by name, you know. I recalled her doing something similar with Koizumi's entrance.

"Uh... Hello. My name is Ken Takeshi... I guess I'm the new Brigade Member."

A fair response. I can't blame him for being nervous, if I was in his position, I would've turned around and walked away immediately. Kudos for standing your ground.

"Well, Takeshi! I will be the first to welcome you into the SOS Brigade!"

"Tell me, what does SOS stand for, exactly?"

"/S/aving the World by /O/verloading it with Fun /S/uzumiya Haruhi Brigade!"

"Uh..."

Another fair response from Takeshi.

"Well?" Haruhi didn't even give him time to think. "What do you think?"

"I think that... I think that it's going to be a lot of fun! I look forward to working with you guys!"

That's a sudden change of attitude... Incidentally, the other Brigade Members seemed to go back to normal as they each went back to doing their individual activities.

We sat around and talked for awhile. Takeshi played Koizumi in a game of Othello. They seemed to be at even odds as they continuously overthrew each other.

We engaged in small talk as we learned a bit about Takeshi. Like his Homeroom number and a bit about himself. Asahina had to put his tea into a Paper Cup, since we hadn't bought him a Teacup yet.

As the day went by, Haruhi eventually dismissed us and I picked up my backpack and began to walk out.

Koizumi walked next to me and whispered into my ear.

"Be careful." Was all he said, then walked away as if he was a secret agent who just gave valuable information but couldn't act publicly about it.

Well, crap.

...

Later that evening, I was struggling with Shamisen to file down his claws.

"Stupid Cat! Just let me do this!"

He responded by scratching me in the cheek and running off.

You know, if Shamisen could still talk, this wouldn't be a problem. I miss those days.

I grabbed him again and held him down by wrapping my arm around his stomach and began filing.

He screamed a hissed but I wasn't going to let him have the satisfaction of victory.

When I got down to Shamisen's last claw, I heard a knock on my room door.

That distracted me long enough for Shamisen to squirm loose and hide under my bed. I sighed as I walked over to open the door.

"Kyon-kun!"

My Sister was standing at the door.

"What do you want?"

"There's some guy at the door for you!"

Really? Who could it be? If it was Koizumi, Taniguchi, or Kunikada, my Sister would recognize them. And it couldn't be Nakagawa, because he didn't have a reason to come talk to me again.

"Alright, give me a second."

I shot Shamisen a "I'll be back" look as he poked his head out from under the bed and I went to check on my mysterious visitor.

The front door was already open, I guess my Sister never learned that you should keep the door shut when a stranger comes by.

Luckily for her, the person standing there probably wouldn't have busted in.

Unluckily for me, that person was Takeshi.

"Hey, Kyon. Do you have a minute?"

"How did you find my Address?"

"Oh... I asked Koizumi. He was happy to tell me!"

Dammit, Koizumi. Don't give out my private information! That's Haruhi's job!

"Alright, what is it?" I asked as I stepped outside and closed the door behind me.

"It's, uh... Kinda complicated. We'll need to go somewhere private."

...I already knew where this was going. It happened to me three times before.

"One second."

I went back inside and told my Parents that I was heading out for a bit. They didn't seem to care, probably because I'm always out with the Haruhi's Group of Weirdos every weekend.

I came back outside and Takeshi gave me a slight smile as he started walking.

"Come on, I know a good spot."

Takeshi stayed silent as he walked. Which gave me time to wonder about who exactly Takeshi was.

First things that came to mind, Time Traveler, Esper, and Alien Interface. Though, none of those seemed likely. Haruhi wouldn't have a reason to recruit another Time Traveler and Esper, and an Alien Interface would have a higher grade than a B+.

Well... There was always another option. Slider.

That gave me a shiver down my spine. Haruhi had always discussed wanting to find a Slider. It seemed like the most likely scenario.

But why show up so late? Why would a Slider-type Faction take so long to contact me?

I remembered Haruhi saying something along the lines of "I had to do it at the right time!"

So, would that mean that she just recently created Sliders? Or was it purely coincidence that one would show up around this time?

Still, it wasn't an excuse to leave me in the dark. If Takeshi was a Slider – which he probably was – I would be in a world of trouble. I wasn't exactly fond of the idea that I would go to another Dimension.

I decided not to say anything to Takeshi. For all I know, he could be something else. Maybe a Faun or a Nymph.

But, his legs looked normal and he didn't seem to have the same type of charm a Nymph would have.

I immediately crossed those ideas out of my head.

"We're here."

I looked up as I saw nothing but forest all around... When did we get here? Was I that deep in thought?

"Koizumi told me that you're pretty smart. Tell me, Kyon... Do you know who I am?"

I decided to feign ignorance.

"Ken Takeshi."

He seemed to find that amusing as he let out a sly chuckle.

"Playing dumb, huh?"

He figured that out quick. Who was he? Cole Phelps?

"You got me."

I said, raising my palms up in a surrender.

"Well, I guess I'll tell you anyways."

Wait for it...

"I'm a being created by Suzumiya to be able to cross through the rifts of dimensions. Or... You may be more familiar with the term Slider."

Called it.

"So, I guess you've come to tell me about what Haruhi is and show me some Alternate Dimension?"

"That's exactly right! I'm sure you've heard what the other Factions think Suzumiya is and how she got her powers."

"Something about Autoevolution, Time Warps, and Creator of the Universe."

I recalled what each individual person had told me in all of their reveal conversations.

"Another spot-on for Kyon!"

Please... Please don't start acting like Taniguchi. One of him is enough.

"Well, I guess you're interested in hearing my Faction's opinion, then."

Not really, but shoot.

"We believe that Suzumiya is the link between all Dimensions. How do I describe this? You know how you may find a bunch of computers in a building, but all are linked to the same router? Suzumiya is the router, while the dimensions are Computers, per say."

"See, Suzumiya has the power to reflect from other Dimensions and create things that are in those Dimensions, but not hers. Therefore, bringing them into this dimension."

"Also, it seems whenever Suzumiya makes a decision, she has a tendency of regretting that she didn't choose the other option, opening up another Dimension where she made that choice."

"Wait... So Haruhi can make Dimensions?"

"Yes, it appears so. Think of it like Pascal's Triangle."

Yay, another Math term I'm unfamiliar with.

Takeshi simply grinned as got down on his knees and pulled out a piece of paper and a pen.

Did you plan this ahead of time?

"Look at this." He said, and I knelt down next to him.

Takeshi drew a '1' at the top of the paper.

"This represents the primary dimension which Suzumiya is located in."

He then drew two ones under it. It looked something like:

1
1 1

"Those represent the choices Suzumiya has to make. When Suzumiya is in front of a hard decision, one of these choices will split off into a different dimension. Inevitably, those dimensions will end up leading to the Suzumiya of that dimension having to make a tough choice. Making it so that another dimension splits off and the other dimension is slowly absorbed into the first one."

He then drew something like:

1
1 1
1 2 1

"That two represents the dimensions coming together, while the ones split off into the two choices she had to make before. Eventually, the two dimension will end up coming together and splitting again leading to even more complications."

1
1 1
1 2 1
1 4 4 1

"Hang on... Now I'm getting confused." I decided to finally voice my thoughts.

"Those fours represent the two other decisions eventually coming together while the main dimension has to split off again to compensate."

"This can go on for a seemingly endless time, until all the possible decisions are solved and they come together to make the '1' again."

"And what do Sliders have to do with this situation?"

"We have to keep these dimensions stable. If something were to go wrong inside one of the off-hand dimensions, it would end up crashing into the main one, causing a rupture in all of time-space."

"Basically, we just make sure that the dimensions absorb together without consequence. So we maintain these dimensions to make sure everything goes smoothly."

"Am I in one of these alternate dimensions?"

"I can assure you that you are the main Kyon."

"Main?"

"Parts of your consciousness split off into these dimensions. It's not necessarily like making a copy of you, you're still the same guy. Just parts of you are spread about."

"And what if these parts get spread too thin?"

"Then we have to make sure everything comes together quickly before everyone ends up with migraines until you eventually lose awareness of who you are."

"Everyone is affected by this?"

"No, just the people Suzumiya is close to. Everyone else is just a copy."

"I see."

That's just dandy. So Haruhi has the ability to split me into a hundred little Kyons? I imagined a bunch of little Kyons running around in alternate dimensions, all being dragged around by little Haruhis.

"I assume you need time to wrap your head around this, right? I was going to show you how my work is done, but I guess it will have to wait."

Well, at least he has compassion.

"Anyways, that's all I really had to tell you. The next time Haruhi is faced with a hard decision, I'll be sure to show you."

I wasn't really looking forward to seeing the Multiverse, but I guess I didn't really have any choice in the matter.

Oh, Haruhi. Why must you always make things complicated?