It is December 24. A familiar chill falls upon the crisp winter air. At our school it should be pretty quiet, but Rin and the guys decided not to go home to their families. On top of all that, Kyousuke called the four of us in at the beginning of our short school break.
"We're going to do a party on Christmas Eve," he announces in my dorm, like always. "For this party, I will give all of you a new mission."
"Another mission?" Masato looks at him with a weird mix of anticipation and doubt. "Is it going to be a Muscle festival?"
"That may be an idea, but that's not what I'm talking about," Kyousuke downplays his response. "No, our mission is for each member, including the girls, to offer presents to the other members."
Kengo is left speechless. "Huh?"
Masato growls in surprise. "What?"
Rin's eyes and mouth widen. "Eeh?!"
"Kyousuke, we don't have enough money," I reason with him. "We can't buy gifts for all the Busters!"
"Who said you need to buy gifts?" Kyousuke answers coolly. "You can make things if you want. I'm sure the girls would love to make things for Christmas."
Suddenly there was a collective understanding of what Kyousuke meant. There were still some grimaces among the four of us, and more might join once the girls find out. Rin looked at me with scrutinizing eyes, as did Masato. I grew nervous around them. Kengo simply sat in deep thought, but Kyousuke's face was grinning like a child who couldn't wait for Christmas.
"Well, that's settled," Kyousuke shouts with glee. "Riki, I'll be counting on you to tell the others. As for the rest of you, Operation Christmas Kindness has begun!"
As I left the room, I realized something. Some of the girls had other plans. Komari, Kurugaya, Mio and Sasami were heading home to their families. Kud and Haruka chose to bunk together in the meantime, and Kanata had to stay to monitor the remaining students, so finding them would be easy. However, I felt like Christmas wouldn't be complete without the other Busters. If only I could convince those that were leaving...
"Riki." I turn around as I cross the terrace. Rin's small cross-armed figure, continuing to scrutinize me like some sort of detective. She holds her breath for a while, staring directly into my eyes. I couldn't wait.
"Rin, I gotta go meet with the girls," I tell Rin bluntly. "Do you want to come with me?"
"Mm..." Rin doesn't move or speak. She does take a moment to breathe, but then continues to stare at me. I don't have time for this.
"I'm going." I walk away from Rin.
"...!" She clasps my wrist to prevent me from stopping. I turn back to her. She seems a little desperate. "Don't go, I need...uh..."
"Need what?" I don't really know what's up with her today. It's like she wants to say something, but can't bring herself to say it.
"...To go with you," she answers finally. "I need something from my room."
"Okay," I nod readily. Seems we're going the same way. Guess I could use her company.
Since it was the beginning of December, the crispness of autumn was just giving way to winter chill. Rin and I could see each other's breaths, and she was still staring intensely at me, even when I wasn't looking at her. Our walk to the girls' dorm continued in this awkward fashion until...
"...I'm gonna miss you, Nishizono-san." A brief pause.
"I'll miss you too, Noumi-san." It sounded like Kud and Nishizono-san were saying their farewells as roommates for the season. I didn't see Saigusa-san anywhere.
"Nishizono-san, Kud, good afternoon," I addressed them out loud.
Kud was the first to notice. "Ah, Riki, Rin-san! Itsu naisu to miito yu~"
"Nice to meet you too," I responded in kind. "How are you, Nishizono-san?"
Nishizono-san had her parasol folded up in her right hand, a leather bag wrapped around her left shoulder. Her eyes, normally a perfect mask of her true emotions, seemed a little sad today.
"...I'm doing well, Naoe-san," she exhaled a puff of steam. "My business here is done for the season."
"Isn't it a little early for heading home?" I asked her.
"My home is a ways off," she explained. "I can't afford the flight, so I must make the transfer now if I plan to reach home by Christmas."
"Riki," Rin catches my attention. "I'll be right back."
"Ah, sure," I nodded, and watched Rin run off into the dorm. I turned my gaze back to Nishizono-san and Kud.
"Is Rin-san doing well?" Nishizono-san asked a seemingly superfluous question. I didn't mind the innocence of her asking, though.
"She is well," I answered honestly.
"I see," she closed her eyes to ponder. "I don't wish to prolong my farewell. If the other Busters ask about me..."
"Nishizono-san..." I wanted to stop her from saying any more. Even if she turned me down, I wanted to tell her how much she is needed here. But...what was I supposed to say to keep her here?
"Farewell, Naoe-san," she bowed to me before walking away.
"Mio!" I called out to her. She stopped for a moment. Crap, what do I say?! "Um...Is there any reason you can't stay for Christmas?!"
She did not move a muscle. I heard a small, almost inaudible exhale of breath from her direction. I felt like I needed to say something more, but...
"Nishizono-san!" Kud, having been a part of the background before now, joined me in my attempt to keep her here. "I would love to celebrate Christmas with you, with everyone! That cookbook you lent to me...I want to try it with you! Please, Nishizono-san!"
That's when I heard something from her...an unexpected giggle from that blue-haired spectre almost faded into the white horizon. A pleasant light humor settled within her, and she turned toward us. That's when I noticed...her complexion was different. Her entire attitude...had changed. This wasn't Mio.
"I'm happy to hear you say that," this stranger smiled warmly without any sense of malice. "The trouble is, Mio can't stay here. She must return home with her family, or they will be sad."
She took a few steps towards us, and winks. "So you'll have to make do with good old Midori~"
"Wafuu?!" Kud was filled with genuine shock. She had never seen this side of her roommate before.
"Midori..." I remembered that name. Mio had mentioned it some time ago, and I had met her once. I believed she was Mio's sister, but my memory of her was hazy at best. Still...was this really Midori? In that case, where was Mio?
"Where is Mio?" I asked Midori.
"Don't worry about her," she smiles. "She's on the next bus home. She'll be back when school starts up again." She leans over to Kud's eye level. "Now, how's about we get started on those recipes, huh?"
"Wa-wafuu~" Kud is still a little shocked about the whole thing, but now I was in a position to ease things up.
"Kud, this is Midori," I introduce her. "She's Nishizono-san's sister. She's here to visit her old friends for the holidays."
Kud takes her time sorting out the difference between Mio and Midori. Midori, in the meantime, turns to me with an eager smile.
"I take it Natsume-san wanted you to tell us about the Christmas party?" She asks rhetorically. "Don't worry about asking, I already know. I'll fill little Kud in on the details."
"Th-thank you," I answer her.
"Wafuu? A Christmas party?" Kud snaps out of her confusion (or rather, snaps into a new confusion) upon hearing our conversation. As Midori and I fill her in on the details, her interest piques – no, rockets to the moon. "That sounds really cool! Amaishingu kuru~!"
At that point, Rin returns with a small cat-laminated notebook and pencil. "I'm back."
"Welcome back," Midori automatically greets for me. Now it's Rin's turn to be confused.
Our next target was Kurugaya, who could literally have been anywhere at that stage. My first guess was the broadcast room, but she was not there that day. I asked my investigator sidekick where she might have gone, and she answered: "Do I look like the kind of person to follow her everywhere?"
The school was close to closing for the Christmas season, so I had little reason to search the school. She might not have been there anyway. Same would go for Komari or Sasami. I had more reason to check their dorms, but Rin told me the dorm mother had not seen them come or go. I feared the worst.
"Mm..." Meanwhile, Rin was still carefully observing my movements. I didn't want to interrupt her, but I did admit the act was a little creepy. I sat on a bench in the courtyard after a long search, and Rin did the same. She shivered a little. "Cold..."
"I know," I responded, also feeling a little chilly. "Do you want to go back to the dorm?"
"N-no!" She jumped defensively. "I...I have to talk to Komari-chan."
"Well, we're not going to find her at this rate," I sighed. "She might have already left for home."
"Komari-chan hasn't left yet," Rin filled me in. "She would have told me first."
"Do you know where she went?"
"I heard from Nishizono-san that she went to the hospital," she explained, pondering something. "It would be bad if she caught a cold..."
"I don't think she goes there when she catches a cold," I refuted her theory. Actually, had Komari ever been sick? There was that one weird incident back in June, but that didn't require medical treatment. She's more amazing than I thought...
Rin gives me a blank, somewhat perplexed stare. "Why would Komari be in a hospital, then?"
"She does volunteer work for the elderly sometimes," I recalled for her. "She sings and cleans for them, and they give her lots of sweets in return."
"Sounds like a comfortable life," Rin observes, nodding. Her bell jingles as she does. "Let's go see her."
I knew the bus route to the hospital, so it didn't take us long to reach there. When we arrived, we were surprised to see Kurugaya and Saigusa-san standing at the entrance, wearing what looked like nametags on their breast pockets. They seemed to be talking.
"...And that's when I pocketed his ten-thousand yen and ran off!" Saigusa-san sounded like she was recalling an incident she was in. Kurugaya didn't look impressed.
"I've done naughtier things to men, honestly. Have I told you about the time I tricked Kengo into taking off his top?"
"Kurugaya, Saigusa-san, good afternoon!" I called out to them just in time.
"Geez, Riki-kun!" Saigusa-san seemed rather upset. "Anego was about to tell me something juicy!"
"Come to steal me away from Saigusa, have you?" Kurugaya grinned slyly. "You're a brave boy, Riki-kun. Adding me to your harem of...Rin-san?"
"Uh..." Rin hid behind my back. Out of all the girls, she never liked being around Kurugaya in particular. I could kind of see why.
"Actually," I started. "I'm here to relay a message to you two and Komari. Where is she?"
"Komari-max is inside," Kurugaya nodded. "I can send Saigusa to grab her."
"Why can't you go grab her, Anego?!"
"A hospital full of old people just isn't my scene," Kurugaya answered a little coldly.
"It isn't mine either!" Haruka's tantrums frightened Rin even more.
"Calm down, Saigusa-san," I urged her. "I'll go talk to her after I relay the message to you guys."
"What is it you want to tell us, Riki-kun?" Kurugaya leaned in with a playful smile. I could see down her...uh...bosom. I shut my eyes and tell the two of them quickly about the Christmas party Kyousuke was planning. Kurugaya stood back, her cocky smile gone. Haruka had cooled down by this point as well, and wore a weird look.
"Why does Kyousuke-san want to throw a party when so many of us are going home?" Kurugaya's question made me think a little bit. I never could tell what was in Kyousuke's head, but if I was going to do as he asked me, I had to come up with something.
"I guess he wants the Little Busters around so that it'll feel more lively and fun," I hypothesized. From the look of Kurugaya's face, she didn't seem to buy that completely.
"Well, Kyousuke-san is Kyousuke-san," she nodded in understanding. "But even he should know that I have to return home every once in a while. There's no way around it."
"Anego," Haruka looked at Kurugaya. "Wouldn't a Christmas party be fun? We could pull off all kinds of gags on the boys."
"Even Riki-kun?" Kurugaya heavily considered something dangerous.
"I don't know," Haruka looked to me. "Riki-kun, could we pull a prank on you for Christmas?"
"Why are you asking me?!" I protested, but Rin slowly stepped away from my side.
"I'll allow it if you don't touch me," Rin interjected, cowering a little in front of Kurugaya.
"Hm...okay," Kurugaya decided after some reservation. "I'll contact my family later."
"Hooray, Anego stays to play~!" Haruka shouted joyously.
"I'm back~" At that moment, Komari emerged from the front doors of the hospital. When her eyes fell on Rin and I, she seemed a little curious. "Fue? Riki-kun, Rin-san, why are you here?"
"Well, um," I started, but Kurugaya finishes for me with a mischevious grin.
"Riki-kun came to propose to you."
"Hey! That's not..." Before I could say anymore, Komari answered back with her same clueless eyes.
"Riki-kun...I thought you already proposed to me," she gave a surprisingly calm answer, smiling gratefully. "I appreciate the reminder, though. I've been meaning to ask you something."
No one else spoke a word, as they were all utterly surprised by Komari's response. She continues: "Riki-kun, do you want to come home with me for Christmas?"
"Uh...um," I stumbled on my words. It was a very tempting offer, but I still had to deliver Kyousuke's message regardless. "About that..."
As we returned to the school, I divulged Kyousuke's plan to Komari. She was taken quite aback by it. "Fue? Kyousuke wants to have a Christmas party with the other Busters?"
"Yeah," I responded to her. Everyone behind us nodded in unison. "It's happening Christmas Eve night."
Komari pondered this piece of news carefully as we reached the school gate. I happened to spot Kengo speaking with Sasami outside it. I supposed he was trying to convince her to come as well. Sasami seemed a little miffed, so I didn't think it was going too well.
"Well, Riki-kun," Komari turns to me after some thought, "I'd love to join, but having Christmas with my parents is far more important to me."
Rin visibly jumped in place. "Komari-chan, don't say that..."
"Come on, Komari-chan!" Saigusa-san shouted at her. "The Little Busters just isn't the same without you! If you're worried about gifts, we can collaborate on something sexy for Anego!"
"And just what were you planning to give me?" Kurugaya poked into the conversation.
"It's a secret~" Haruka dodged a bullet gracefully. I'm sure Kurugaya liked surprises, so she'd let it pass.
"Thank you for the encouragement," Komari answered them. "I would love to have a good party with everyone, but this year I feel I need to be closer to my parents."
"Geez, what's so great about parents, anyway?" Saigusa-san moaned.
The conversation died out after that. Everyone, including Rin, went their separate ways after we reached the dorms. I was left alone, rather dismayed at Komari's decision. For a brief moment, Saigusa-san's words echoed in my mind. Why was celebrating Christmas with parents so special?
While pondering this, I found myself alone on the bench again, breathing in the crisp evening air. Curfew would arrive soon, and Kyousuke was probably expecting a report from me. Heck, I wasn't even sure how I was going to carry out the mission. My relatives didn't leave me much money to work with for the holidays. At most I would have enough for a piece of candy, maybe a cute little can badge. I don't think any of the Busters would care about those except Komari, and she was...
"What am I supposed to do?" I sigh quietly, letting my breath condensate in the cool air.
"May I ask what you are doing here, Naoe-kun?" The tall, daunting figure of Futaki-san looms over me like an expectant teacher. She doesn't look angry, though.
"I..." I started explaining, but I couldn't think of what to say to her. If I told her I was having problems with my friends, she'd ask me to leave them alone. I couldn't do that, not when Kyousuke was counting on me.
"I've...just been thinking about what present to get for one of the Busters," I told an alternate truth to her. She looked at me for a moment, then sighed hopelessly.
"Your face looks so miserable, I want to strangle you," she groaned. She rests herself on the bench next to me, turning her head back towards me after she's settled. "Tell me what's going on."
With those intimidating eyes, I had no choice but to tell her about Kyousuke's plan. Again, she sighed hopelessly. "There's no stopping that idiot. I can't allow him to host a party on school grounds, but he'll find a way to do so anyway. At least Haruka's antics were more predictable."
"Yeah," I agreed with her, if only to help along the idea forming in my head. "But Saigusa-san is in on this too, since she has nowhere else to spend Christmas at. I think it would help if you came, too."
She sighed once more, but this one was a sigh of regret. "Does she really want me there...?"
"She would love it," I push her along. "Forget the rules and have fun. That's what we've always done, and I think there's no better time to do it than Christmas. Forget your family issues, just this once. That might be..."
"Please stop, Naoe-kun," she shakes her head. "I get the point, but I can't accept it. I can't just...let go. This is my burden, my curse. If Christmas is about forgetting one family to spend time with another...I can't accept that. I'm sorry."
She stood up, looking away from me. I couldn't see anything on her face, but her hands were trying to steady themselves, almost as if she were trying not to cry. "Curfew's almost here," she reminds me in a low voice that's close to cracking. I expected her to follow up by telling me to return to the dorms, but she had long gone before that could happen.
I continued to think about the lost sheep of the female Busters in my room. Masato and the others hadn't returned as of yet. The outside world was getting darker, and it worried me quite a bit. Staying up late wasn't uncommon for us, but for some reason, I was more afraid of it now. So many people had ignored Kyousuke's message, and if I had to guess, Kyousuke probably knew it by now.
Man, what should I have done? What could I have done? Was this the part where I have to face facts and forget about 'my' family, the only family I have? I considered Futaki-san's words. Maybe I was being selfish in trying to get people who had real families, something I had long forgotten about, to stay. Conversely, what was Kyousuke trying to accomplish sending me to convince them to abandon their plans? I just couldn't understand his line of thinking.
*Tap tap*
Someone was knocking on the outside window. I leapt up out of bed and went to check. There wasn't anyone immediately in front of me, but I noticed an ominous full moon garnished with mist. I had a feeling who was behind the window.
"...Kud?"
That's when I saw her. The reaper of souls, covered in the white mantle of Death herself. She sensed my hopelessness, and came to offer me a way out. Her servants Strelka and Belka, the guardians of night, stood on each side of her. If I stepped out to meet her, this would spell the end of Christmas as I knew it. She would take me in her embrace...and it would be all over.
"Riki..." Her disembodied voice was sad, almost as broken as Futaki-san's as she left me. If it was Death's job to reap the unfortunate souls of the poor, why was she hesitating? I knew well why: she loved me too much. And I loved her. Death was the last thing she wanted to give me, but those urges...the nature of her calling was an unnatural form of lust, alien to my human senses. I had to make a decision for her.
"Kud, it's almost Christmas," I pleaded with her. "No one should have to die on Christmas."
"But it's not Christmas," her wails resounded in my mind. "I don't want you to give up hope on this, Riki. Your wish for the end of existence beckons to me, and to Strelka and Belka. We love you. We don't want you to give up on Kyousuke's plan. Please...don't open that window."
"You won't kill me, Kud," I played my trump card. "For precisely that reason, you won't kill me. I won't give up on my existence because Christmas isn't the exact way I want it or Kyousuke wants it. I'll see my friends again, won't I?"
I could see her and the guardian hounds nod in the distance. At that moment, a dark cloud passes over the ominous moon, and the figures of the Reaper and her guardians vanish. It was at this point that I really worried for Saigusa-san, having to deal with a roommate who could very easily kill her if she broke down again. I resolved to protect them, the both of them, this holiday season.
*knock knock*
The door behind me opened, and in stepped Kyousuke and the others. All of them had various faces plastered on them: Kyousuke with his confident smile, Masato squinting hard at Kengo, Kengo ignoring Masato, and Rin looking directly at me expectantly.
"Oh, Riki, there you are," Kyousuke noticed me as he stepped in. "The rest of us were looking for you. How did the girls respond?"
"Um..." I settled down in front of our usual spot, then began to relay the girls' responses.
"Hm, this is most troublesome," Kyousuke pondered quietly after I finished explaining. "So Nishizono, Komari and Futaki were the only ones who turned you down?"
"For the same reason, yes," I noted to him after he made that observation. Masato was looking rather pissed at the prospect, and Kengo was a bit concerned too. Rin seemed mostly concerned about Komari not being there.
"But the other Nishizono has joined us in some fashion," Kyousuke gives us a distant smile. "At any rate, our concern rests on Komari and Futaki joining us."
"Why does Futaki have to join?" Masato complained, crossing his arms.
"Because she very clearly wants to be with Saigusa-san," Kyousuke pacifies him. "But it seems she has other plans, if I'm not mistaken."
"It seemed that way, but I thought she wasn't going home for the holidays," I explained what I heard from her. "Actually, Kengo. What did Sasami say to you?"
"She's adamant on going home," Kengo answers, seemingly resigned to the fact.
"Can't be helped, I guess," Kyousuke sulks a little, before returning to his usual self. "One less Buster isn't going to hurt us, but three will. Riki, you've done enough for today. Put pursuing them on hold until I give you further instruction."
I disagreed with Kyousuke on this, but even he could see that prospects weren't looking up. "But what will I do in the meantime?"
"What everyone else is doing right now," Kyousuke grins like a child. "Come up with a present for one or more of the Busters. Handmade presents work well if you don't have money. Collaborating on a gift is okay, too. Just make sure the recipient doesn't see the gift until it's time for the exchange. Got it?"
His last two words were delivered in an oddly serious tone. This really did feel like a mission. Now it was all a matter of figuring out which of the Busters to give a present to...
"Riki," Rin, who hadn't talked much throughout the whole meeting, spoke up to me. "Let's go out shopping tomorrow."
"Uh, sure," I hesitantly agree. I felt like this was a good start for figuring out what any of the Busters would like. And so the night went on...
Continued in Act 2...