Chapter 1

"The Espers believe they control the world from the shadows and are untouchable. The IDTE and their rivals believe they are superior to humanity in all aspects. The Time Travelers believe they know every move I can and will make. They are all wrong. None of them know what I am capable of and I am just an ordinary human."

There was a time where men walked forward, certain of their free will, oblivious to what path life would take them. Then came time travel and it's misuse.

Whilst the ability to go back to correct the mistakes of the past eluded early travelers, the ability to predict and move forward in time began to dictate people's lives as the rich and the nations of the world used this technology to examine what impact their decisions would make so they would make the right ones, so that they would always be in control and when they passed on, those who would carry out their will would be left in charge and for the democracies of the world, elections became nothing more than tradition, having no merit or meaning. Man gained great power and stability and in turn gave away their free will, following the orders of a soulless machine which had no intentions, no plan, no motive and no agenda as if it were the only thing to do. As this "Precognition" technology became more popular it also became more cost effective, enabling every day citizens in democratic countries to give away their choices to a machine and as such one could debate if they themselves were nothing more than a machine, if the price of precognition is your soul.

Then came the ability to go backwards.

At first men assumed time travel into the past was impossible per the laws of physics, then theory gave to fact that information could be sent back but it would become distorted to the point where devices of old would never interpret it correctly.

The WOW Signal was one such attempt at sending information about future mistakes and it was too distorted when it arrived.

Everything changed when she became aware, still unable to grasp the concept of stability... or maturity.

Suzumiya Haruhi used her powers initially to learn the secret to practical time travel and when she saw it was impossible, she altered the laws of physics, gaining the attention of an alien race whose sole purpose was to learn.

At first they saw her as a curiosity and later as a threat until finally they killed her.

But the damage was done, practical time travel became a reality by only 2046, 20 years after precognition technology was commonplace.

Her gravestone dated her life from 1993 - 2045.

And first contact was not peaceful.

Nishinomiya, 2046 AD, April 9th. Event - The Choice

A woman in her early 50s, Japanese, short brown hair, eyes golden.

She was speaking to a blonde haired man in his 20s, the man's features suggested he was also Japanese, he was getting angry though the woman was even angrier.

The woman shouted "This is the future you wanted for us? If I undo Suzumiya's damage than there is no hope, your old friends keep tearing apart city after city and the war is probably going to last thousands of years. Your damn machines say that's 94% likely!"

The man tried to regain his composure but it was more fear than anger now as this woman actually possessed the same powers that Suzumiya once had, it had taken many years but eventually they transferred Haruhi's power into this woman, Kazahana Sasaki. It cost Haruhi her life.

His reply was "They also say there is an 74% chance of total victory on our side! Whatever suffering is happening now will benefit mankind in the long run, a golden age without end! Thirty years ago you believed this dream, why are you losing perspective now?" Sasaki was done with him, she had enough of his manipulation and lies. He was going to be born five years from this date but he stood here because of Haruhi's past actions, having allowed practical time travel which in turn brought chaos and uncertainty when the war started, several botched attempts to alter the course of major battles had only empowered their enemy, the numbers from precognition devices meant nothing in this world though when factoring in actions of time travel, the numbers became more difficult to predict, requiring stronger machines. Sasaki's head was filled with more knowledge than an ordinary human could mentally cope with, her abilities as a Shinjin unmatched and her neutrality and naiveté of the past had allowed so much bloodshed.

The man known only as Fujiwara(not his real name) had done enough, if his death meant 12 billion would live, then it would be so but she would make sure he stayed alive long enough to see his plan fall apart long before it began.

Sasaki's eyes began to glow brightly with their golden shade which in turn provoked so much fear in Fujiwara that he became petrified by it, unable to will himself to move and when he finally regained mental composure, found himself frozen in place as closed space manifested across the entire universe, looking much more like Haruhi's regions than the passive regions Sasaki used to make. She was making changes.

Sasaki grinned and said "I won't change anything except one thing. I'll give opportunity to an individual, opportunity I know he will accept. Don't expect victory because I'll be watching him in the past from the past. It's been years since I've lost my temper but then again, you are the one to blame."

Reality blinked, that was the best visual expression that could be said for what Sasaki observed next, she now existed ethereally as living information, becoming like the very aliens that were destroying so much, though she was not linked to their collective consciousness and still retained her abilities as a Shinjin, she watched as time began to shift backwards to the middle of Haruhi's second year, having altered the opportunities of an individual from the United States.

This is his tale. The tale of an ordinary man.

North High, 2010 AD. Event - Entrance

Walking into the classroom was a young man, age 17, his hair black, eyes brown and his features suggested he was of Mexican descent though his skin was slightly brighter than one of that ethnic would be. The real oddity was the fact that he was the only non-Japanese man in a Japanese High School, having come here for personal reasons, education being an excuse. Staring at the class after the teacher asked him to introduce himself he paused before speaking, eyes scanning the room and for less than one second, centered on Suzumiya Haruhi.

The man then began to speak, eyes focused on the general mass of students instead of Haruhi specifically, saying "My name is Raymond Zenji, given name first, family name last. I transferred in from the United States to complete my education here. That is all."

It was less the content of his words and more his non-emotional and near robotic statement of them that reminded Kyon of Nagato Yuki and how she spoke, for a moment he assumed this was probably another alien to keep an eye on Haruhi though dismissed it when he sat down in a seat to Haruhi's left.

Though it was clear he was interested somewhat in her as Kyon had learned to be perceptive due to the events that occur in his life and though it was for only a second, he noticed his stare was focused on Haruhi and if he noticed it, then to someone as perceptive as Suzumiya Haruhi he may have well been firing off a flare gun above her head.

Haruhi did indeed notice the one-second stare but paid little attention, she had gotten a lot of that from freshmen in the first year though the thing that caught her interest was only when the schooling began as Ray seemingly paid little to no attention to what the teacher was saying and several times the teacher asked him questions on the lesson to get his attention and to the surprise of the class, repeated the lesson as if he were a walking recorder, word to word, leaving out no small detail in the instruction and by the end of the lesson had perfect scores, not one missed problem.

To the class, he was a genius, to Haruhi, he was an oddity as her gut feeling told her he was hiding something or was unusual and this time.

She had nothing to do with it. (A fact that would matter little to her due to her current status as being unaware of her true nature)

Ray paid little attention to the other students and to an extent, the faculty as well. He showed no interest in any of the clubs and was focused on his studies.

The thing that made the cup overflow in Haruhi's mind was the fact that several times he had turned down being moved to a more advanced class in favor of what Haruhi could only describe as an unbearably boring school experience. Something kept him here and she wanted to know what because based on the way he acted, it was highly unlikely because he was romantically interested in anyone, in fact that thought crossed her mind the first time people began to talk about his refusal to enter a higher class, she assumed it was because he had his eye on her but he was in fact paying no attention to her at all, the only hint would have been that one-second stare and the lack of attention had persisted for two weeks.

His routine was also extremely methodical, he had a small watch he paid attention to often, got to class punctually but at the same time was never early and few suspected of where he might have been spending the little free time he allowed himself.

Haruhi suspected or rather deduced the place he would be spending time and after the final class, knew that he wouldn't leave right away.

Ray had been here less than two weeks and already the brunette was a little too close for comfort, holding his school uniform's tie tightly as if about to strangle him with it. But things were going well, he recalled the words she spoke to him as she slammed him against the fence on the school roof.

"My name is Suzumiya Haruhi and I want you to join my club the SOS-dan. I kept an eye on you and you seem to have been bored out of your mind the entire time and the SOS-dan exists solely to have fun and meet interesting aliens, time travelers and espers."

Ray felt the urge to have his eye twitch though he managed to restrain what would have been a subconscious response to the situation. Ray, despite being pinned in a position which was both threatening and slightly interesting managed to keep a calm expression as he replied "Sure, though I can't promise I'll approve of everything you do, for example this threatening and possibly provocative position."

Haruhi was partially satisfied with his response, partially because he agreed to join the SOS-dan, and partially unsatisfied in that he assumed she was making an advance on him. However instead of letting go she pulled his tie as if to drag him though his body refused to move, instead his left hand clenched with the exception of his middle and index finger and as if fired from a crossbow, his hand jolted to hit a nerve cluster in her wrist, causing her to lose feeling and movement in her hand for a few seconds, enough to give Ray the freedom to distance himself slightly.

Though moderately painful, Haruhi's mind interpreted this as slightly hostile as Ray fixed his tie into a more comfortable position and said "The pain and numbness will only last a minute or two. As for my reasons it is because I am perfectly capable of walking on my own, there is no need to drag me to your club like a dog on a very short leash."

Haruhi stared back for a second as if about to return his favor but decided against it and walked silently towards the club room to which Ray began to follow, also silent in words.

Just as Haruhi reached the door the pain was negligent and the numbness gone, having motor function in her right hand once more as she opened the door revealing four occupants.

Koizumi Itsuki.

Asahina Mikuru.

Nagato Yuki.

Nagumo Takeshi a.k.a. Kyon.

Kyon kept not only an eye on the newcomer but also on Mikuru and Yuki as they would likely be the first to react to an oddity but neither Yuki nor Mikuru paid much attention to Ray anymore than a normal person would although Yuki merely acknowledged his presence and that was the end of it though for her that was normal for meeting another ordinary human such as Kyon.

Just as Haruhi was about to speak Ray spoke first, intentionally stealing her spotlight, saying "My name is Ray Zenji, your self-proclaimed brigade chief has decided to invite me into your little club, I have decided to accept her request. Although request is putting it lightly. Were all of you slammed against a wall or fence when she asked you to join this club?"

Haruhi glanced a short, hostile stare at Ray for interrupting her, although technically she would have had started speaking to actually be interrupted though to her it was the same thing. Kyon merely sighed at the situation, if Ray was correct and most likely was considering the way Haruhi operates, it was the exact same way Haruhi had "convinced" him to help her start the SOS-dan in the first place, by grabbing him by the tie and slamming him against the wall. He didn't know Koizumi's exact situation though considering his servile attitude regarding her he probably just nodded and followed and as for Mikuru, he would rather not recall how Haruhi bullied her into joining though then again she joined because of whatever mission of the future she has and Nagato technically never was recruited into the SOS-dan, she was the sole member of the literary club and was here before Haruhi even decided to make the SOS-dan which as Kyon recalls, was his fault for indirectly (and unintentionally) suggesting she make a club of her own.

Mikuru politely introduced herself and the others followed.

Kyon was about to give his name but Haruhi interrupted him, simply introducing him as Kyon though Ray knew his real name, how exactly he would keep to himself.

He knew all their names and he only was slightly unnerved by Mikuru's presence, he was indifferent to Yuki.

As time passed Haruhi decided to run an errand and neglected (Intentionally most likely) on what it was, demanding the SOS-dan stay put until she returned.

Ray then removed his façade, showing his true emotions around them simply by taking a look around him. He was sympathetic in expression to Kyon and Mikuru, observant with Yuki and the only real thing that unnerved Kyon was that his eyes were full of absolute hate when he glanced in Koizumi's direction and Koizumi's smile was more obvious as a fake then normal when Ray was present. Kyon spoke, saying "Mind telling me exactly why you're even interested in this club?"

Ray replied "To put it simply. I am here to prevent a future disaster which will claim Haruhi's life and then guide her to the point where she can properly use her powers without tearing apart the very fabric of reality."

Everyone, even Nagato turned their head with attention at Ray, their expressions diverse.

Nagato's expression was at best piqued interest, though possibly this meant something far more for one of her species.

Kyon was absolutely shocked that Ray spoke openly about Haruhi once she was gone and the fact that according to him, Haruhi will die sometime soon, and Ray intends to stop it, the information from those words causing a variety of emotions to stir.

Koizumi removed his façade and his expression was a combination of shock and anger, shock at the possibility of a disaster claiming Haruhi's life, angry at the fact that Ray intends to tell Haruhi the truth at some point in the future.

Mikuru was apprehensive around him, was he a fellow time traveler or had someone broken protocol and told him of future events and if he was a time traveler then was he her superior?

Ray gauged their reactions and then said "Before you ask, I am but an ordinary human. I was not born at a future date, I have no special powers and I am an Earthborn Human. To put it simply, I am exactly like Kyon, perfectly normal."

Koizumi replied with slight anger, saying "You are not perfectly normal, I know for a fact you are nothing more than a cold blooded killer an-"

Ray interrupted his fellow classmate, saying "I am an efficient fighter, if sometimes I have taken another man's life in self defense then that is history and need I point out that it has always been your organization attempting to commit murder and I am the one who keeps stepping up to stop it."

Silence filled the room, Kyon began to shift his attention from Ray to Koizumi and back again, waiting for more words. Mikuru was seemingly horrified which could have been because of the nature of the discussion but in truth it was because...

He was not supposed to be here, in fact as she recalled he was a survivor of cancer who went on to live a normal life after surpassing the disease, never having moved out of his home country and as she recalled, was in fact a friend of her grandmother after having saved her life at the cost of his own during the war she was sent to prevent.

Time passed and Nagato pointed to the door to all's attention and people resumed their façades as Haruhi entered the room completely oblivious to the words spoken in the room prior to her entry.

Haruhi had brought with her several tickets to a convention nearby, more specifically a Comic Convention which was local though also slightly known to the city but not really national. Haruhi explained the SOS-dan was going to "show Ray the ropes" there and basically look for aliens, time travelers and espers though Ray saw through Haruhi's façade, something only Kyon had done once.

She only wanted an interesting life, if aliens, time travelers and espers were not involved then they didn't have to be as long as it was fun.

Haruhi noticed the seemingly aura of distrust and anger between Koizumi and Ray though shrugged it off as not being her business, perhaps they disagreed on something or maybe Ray beat Koizumi in a game and rubbed it in his face though her reason took over as Ray wasn't exactly talkative and isn't one to gloat.

Three days later, 2010 AD. Event - It Begins

Time passed as the SOS-dan arrived at the Comic Convention Haruhi had planned. After his introduction into the SOS-dan Ray resumed his façade of disinterest and boredom until the date of the convention to which he had already prepared a costume.

A very realistic costume of Ezio Auditore da Firenze from the Assassin's Creed franchise but with pristine replication. Real Italian clothing, real leather & metal bracers and metal pauldrons and greaves, authentic and pristine, as if he had made the very same clothes Ezio would wear on his mission of revenge and truth. The design was that of his exploits in AC:Brotherhood and one could wonder if his hidden blades were actual metal or rubber.

To Ray, he had a benefactor who would give him resources such as money, weapons or even knowledge. Ray assumed his benefactor was from the future or perhaps was Haruhi's subconscious whims at first but he discovered the truth when his Benefactor introduced herself as the 54 year old Kazahana Sasaki, Kyon's old friend and a fictional character to places outside of the information blockade on Nishinomiya and parts of Kobe, specifically anywhere Haruhi was present or expected to be present, including this Comic Convention which was under the pressure of Koizumi's agency not to feature anything related to The Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi which was fiction as a façade to disinterest conspiracy theorists and governments.

When necessary she would use her power to make Ray know things and she promised one thing to Ray if he would accept her mission.

And his answer was in fact, simple, ambitious yet understandable. He wanted her power, her "Complete" power rather than specifically heads or tails so to speak. Haruhi and Sasaki in the past (To Ray, the present) held opposite polarities of the same power which affected their personalities slightly. Haruhi possessed the "Negative" polarity of a Shinjin's power and as such made her as unpredictable as her bouts of closed space though also her own free will played into that. Sasaki held the "Positive" polarity and as such was calm, stable and interested in the truth and not superstitions or façades.

It was something she agreed to, knowing that once history was changed, she would be the only one to remember it and would transfer her powers to Ray and live a normal life afterwards. The transfer of power is only fatal if the sender is unwilling to give up his or her power and thus the feedback overloads their nervous system, causing a heart attack whereas if the transfer is of their own free will then they will merely feel drained as if they had just donated a large quantity of blood.

The SOS-dan drew lots and Sasaki's elder self manipulated them so that Ray was paired with Haruhi. The other pairings were Kyon-Nagato and Koizumi-Mikuru.

Haruhi was a little happier that Ray joined the SOS-dan as now when they drew lots there was no one left on their own (Which was usually herself or Koizumi with exceptions of the case where they divided into two parties)

Ray followed Haruhi as she looked around and then Ray began to get genuinely bored, thinking to himself "This girl needs direction, perhaps if she learned a thing or two she would better keep focus on more important things when they happen. Faithful in small, faithful in big as they always say."

Ray kept a mental note of the SOS-dan's costumes.

Kyon didn't bother and was in casual clothes, Mikuru dressed as (or rather was forced to dress as) a maid, Nagato was dressed the same as when she was involved with the SOS-dan's movie filming and Haruhi was...in her bunny suit.

Ray directed Haruhi towards a cosplay outfit stand to convince her to get some new attire and then change before continuing on, she met him halfway by buying a black with red accents attire which was Shao Jun's (A character from Assassin's Creed:Embers, a video) outfit though said she wouldn't change until after something inclined her to do so. Ray also kept a mental note on how Sasaki sped up the progress of certain events she said happened, certain games came out sooner, technologies invented faster, it seems Ray was not Sasaki's only agent of change and Sasaki mentioned that the year 2010 was now representive of the year 2015 with exception to politics, people's ages and in some cases, movies which Sasaki explained would be better off not rushed in the case of live action movies so that the actors who portrayed them would be of the right age and build to fit the role though in some cases Sasaki moved things forward, taking a more active use of her powers though without compromising the laws of physics and as a pre-emptive to assist Raymond, gave his mind the ability to comprehend an infinite amount of knowledge and then gave him foreknowledge of the laws of physics which in fact, made school extremely boring to him as he had already learned all there is to learn about the physical sciences and in some cases, even metaphysical sciences.

Some theories deemed too wild to be fact were actually truth and some theories deemed solid enough to be fact were in fact, wrong.

He had also been notified that his personal actions in getting to Nishinomiya had caused Koizumi's Agency to lose grip on the events in the area, meaning unexpected things could happen such as criminal activity though North Prefecture High School, Haruhi's house and the route she normally takes to and from school were tightly secure with no chance of a mugging or any other criminal activity, it was crime free both in part to an effective police patrol system in that area and due to the more clandestine nature of the Agency's work, such as killing the murderers and rapists before they ever got close. Even high profile criminal organizations such as the Triads or the Yakuza had absolutely no influence in those areas and several times attempted to get influence only to receive the heads of whoever they sent there via mail, courtesy of Koizumi Itsuki's self-proclaimed righteous organization.

After a considerable amount of suggestions and shopping Haruhi settled on buying several manga and even a few games with Ray keeping close watch and also having trained his eye long before coming here to focus only on Haruhi's face when looking in her direction, something which seemed impossible for everyone else around there.

Ray excused himself for a moment for a trip to the loo and after relieving himself overheard something someone said in a nearby stall.

"He's on his way now, she won't elude us this time."

And knowledge came to his mind courtesy of his benefactor, the man was talking of Haruhi and more specifically, someone sent to kidnap her for the power transference and that originally Kyon had prevented this action though in a way which allowed them to eventually succeed easily the next time regarding a second kidnapping of Mikuru though their target this time was Haruhi.

Ray quickly washed his hands and left the restroom, scanning around for Haruhi until he noticed her and also noticed a suspicious individual moving in her direction with intent.

Ray blended with the crowd of cosplayers, making his way towards Haruhi as quick as possible without drawing attention but was too late, the suspicious individual did something he didn't do last time. Before he grabbed Haruhi's hand tightly and held her covertly at knifepoint prior to Kyon using the public eye to convince him to leave instead of kidnapping her. This time he seemed had a gun at her though still managed to keep the public eye off him and Haruhi's face was lit with fear and Ray somehow knew this situation was causing closed space to form because Haruhi was extremely distressed emotionally, especially considering her outfit she might be assuming the worst of this individual who was according to Sasaki, a member of the very agency that looked at Sasaki as some kind of deity, an organization that she disassociated herself with after Haruhi's death in the unaltered timeline.

Ray was now directly following him as Haruhi was trying her best to show signs of distress without alerting her kidnapper and sure enough, Kyon took notice and began to approach quickly though Ray was much closer. Gently pushing through the crowd dressed as an Assassin made Ray feel as if he was and Sasaki had given him the proper tools though his hidden blade was designed as a magnetic launch or in short, a Phantom Blade capable of firing secondary blades like a crossbow with a low spectrum electromagnetic pulse in which was active at a low setting passively as well to prevent detection from Metal Detectors and even blinded X-Ray machines, the device was technology of the future designed specifically by Sasaki to elude modern detectors.

Even in fiction, you can learn things that are effective in life or in this case, death.

Ray managed to avoid being noticed by the kidnapper as he left the more densely populated crowded area and was outside the building and quickly yet still not too suspiciously veered into a nearby alley and this is when Ray decided to move rapidly.

Ray began to push through the crowd rudely and left out a different door, keeping his senses in mind he noticed Haruhi by scent, a sense that Ray had honed naturally as he carefully migrated to an area supposedly untouchable by anyone who the agency did not want there. Ray then noticed the man holding Haruhi at gunpoint in the alley, motioning with his head towards a van less than 20 feet from them. Ray climbed up one of the fire escapes and quickly darts to a direction above Haruhi and the assailant who was about to become the victim himself.

Ray extended his hidden blade and mentally ignored the prospects of Haruhi witnessing him kill someone, he decided instantly that he would not show his face to her and used his free hand to lower his hood even more, hiding his upper face in shadow.

Sasaki had done good in cramming 100 years worth of training into Ray's 17 year old body within merely an instant because of closed space. Ray made Sasaki promise never to take away his humanity, something he valued but at the same time he was made at physical and mental perfection, being able to fight like a seasoned warrior with the body of a young man in his prime and in point of fact, Ray was still growing, his potential was greater and he was still an ordinary human.

A slight push against the wall behind him with his foot and he let gravity take over, his blade aimed at the gunman's wrist and with success, severed the artery and dangerously tore through his nerves, the man instinctively tried to pull the trigger but his hand did not respond, it went limp and the gun fell harmlessly to the ground which prompted Haruhi to run back towards the convention, likely to get police help though before she even made four steps Ray thrust his second hidden blade into the kidnapper's heart thus ending the assailant's life. Haruhi heard the man give out his last painful yell and whilst running, briefly looked back, the gunman was dead and her Savior's face was not in view, concealed by the hood and turned in the direction of the van, opposite of Haruhi.

Ray noticed two men coming out of the van and quickly withdrew his blades from the corpse by his feet and discharged his phantom blades at the other two, taking each with a headshot, they never knew what killed them.

Ray quickly scaled the fire escape and got out of sight, his benefactor removed DNA evidence of his presence but left evidence of the criminals, thanks to Sasaki, Haruhi and the authorities have no idea who just mimicked the fictional Florentine Eagle.

After the scene closed and Haruhi answered with stress the questions of the law enforcement officers, Ray was still dressed as Ezio though he was not the only one, blood gone from his body and clothes and his metal blades replaced with plastic imitations thanks to Sasaki and pre-planning (In that order, Sasaki did not change Ray's armaments, he kept plastic façades incase something like this happened though Sasaki did remove the DNA evidence and blood from Ray and his attire, leaving him as innocent as a newborn puppy in the eyes of both the law and Haruhi.

After the investigation and several other complications over the course of 3 days the SOS-dan resumed it's normal activities to their best extent but everyone was still shaken somewhat.

Haruhi thought she was closed to being kidnapped for unspeakable reasons and was traumatized just as much from that as seeing a man's life be taken from him forcibly at the hands of presumably someone dressed as a video game character.

Kyon knew problems would happen and perhaps kidnapping attempts would be made but never would he suspect people would die in the process.

Koizumi suspected Ray was the assistant and somehow tampered with evidence or had someone close tamper with evidence to keep him in the clear though he was also relieved that Haruhi was safe, a feeling that was overshadowing his dislike of Haruhi being exposed to something so horrible such as murder.

Nagato knew what was going on to an extent. Closed Space formed specifically around Ray after the kill. Ray was indeed the attacker as she was observing him with her enhanced senses and saw him do the deed. She was still observant but also cautious as Ray had done so to save Haruhi from being kidnapped and as a result of a power transfer, killed. Indeed Yuki knew of Tachibana Kyoko's method of transference and knew that the feedback from the transference would be fatal. She also knew neither Haruhi nor Sasaki (the Sasaki of the present that is) were responsible for the closed space incidents that concealed Ray's actions.

Mikuru was outright fearful entirely, if the man in white had failed to save Haruhi then her future would not exist, practical time travel into the past would be impossible and more importantly she had come to view Haruhi as a friend, despite the bullying.

Ray did not have a lack of regret, Haruhi was partially to blame, her actions in the future would cause these things to happen but also Kyoko's organization was to blame as well, directly in fact for killing her and making this entire ordeal necessary by kidnapping her, at gunpoint no less. Ray had killed in self defense when tracking down Haruhi's location prior to joining the SOS-dan but until all the oddities started he had never taken another man's life. It was something that got easier the more it had to be done though at the same time it became harder to live with it each time another body was buried six feet under on account of him. But also the thing that bothered him the most here was that this kill and this kill alone, he wanted no compromise, he wanted that man dead. Perhaps because he knew the man's actions would lead Haruhi to her death. The longer Ray spends with the SOS-dan the more attached he grows to it, seeing Haruhi as a friend or perhaps something more.

A Sunday, 2010 AD. Event - Friendship

Ray was dressed in a brown leather bomber jacket and black sweats, his jacket unzipped and a plain black shirt was visible under the jacket, three threaded neckwear across his neck which were known as Scapulars, religious objects with promises which differed on the color of the scapular which was a rectangular piece of cloth with a religious image connected to a round thread or small rope which would be around the neck to keep it there.

Leaving a Catholic church he paused to look in the sky as he turned on his cell phone and not long after it rang which surprised him slightly.

The caller was Suzumiya Haruhi according to the screen and Ray answered it, saying "Hello?"

Haruhi seemed to pause as he answered and then replied "Raymond, it's Haruhi, could you meet me at that café the SOS-dan gathers at before scouting the city?"

Before Ray could reply Haruhi hung up and Ray felt concerned and walked in the direction of the Café which would only be a five minute walk from the church.

Ray noticed Haruhi waiting outside the café with an expression that seemed to be slightly distressed, possibly still distraught over the incident a week ago and to be honest, Ray was also still disturbed by how openly his enemies operated and the measures they would take to carry them out.

After reaching her she silently turned and entered the café, Ray followed and the two found a seat as the silence carried on until a waitress came to take their orders which in the end was merely a cup of tea each.

Ray broke the silence, saying "Haruhi I get that you're distressed over what happened but you're starting to scare me with this long silence, you can't keep things like this bottled up forever. Correct me if I'm wrong but I believe you called me here to talk about what happened, if so then I'm right here, talk to me."

Haruhi merely nodded and then replied "I feel like the world is working against me. Crime seems to be rising around here, other minor problems but every time I try to do something I'm met with an obstacle. It's something new, I've never felt like everything was against me until..."

Ray spoke up in the midst of the silence, saying "The world isn't working against you, I can understand how you would feel once something horrible happens. I've been through some bad times myself, just as stressful if not more so as you. I've had guns pointed at me, I've had knives slashed at me and I've endured otherwise incurable medical problems. The world is a scary place Haruhi but at the same time it's not all bad. I've had good moments that make the bad seem insignificant."

Haruhi's expression changed slightly as Ray began to open up, he was never this talkative or at the least not around his classmates and the things he said about being through harsh times. Being at gunpoint like she was, being attacked with knives and sicknesses that science lacks a cure for.

She spoke, saying "What were these good things that can make such horrors fade into the background?"

Ray replied "I made good friends during my periods of poor health, my family was there for me. After I left, I met good people who were lights in the darkness that is the world today and one in particular helps me keep in touch with my humanity, someone I call a friend, someone I feel I can trust above everyone else."

Haruhi listened to Ray and then said "It sounds like you have someone you love." Ray shrugged slightly and said "I guess you could say that. I feel she's a good person at heart though she can be a bit... eccentric at times, wears the wrong clothes, says the wrong things. But beneath all of that I can see it's just a façade, she wants a true friend just as much as I do. Honestly, I care about her, I wouldn't say I have romantic feelings but it's as close as you'll get."

Haruhi realized just who he was talking about, Eccentric is the best description most others have of her and Haruhi decides to try and confirm her suspicion, saying "You're talking about me aren't you?" Haruhi awaited his response and he gave it, nodding and saying "Yeah, I consider you a friend. Act tough or go flamboyant, it doesn't matter because I can tell what you really feel, call it intuition. I suppose the proper word in the dictionary is platonic love though really words don't express it properly. If you ever need anything, anything at all then let me know. Your not alone in the world Haruhi, you have friends, people who will help you overcome the despair that exists in the world."

Haruhi looked at her tea, she had barely drank more than half of it as the conversation went about, she found her thoughts on what Ray had said.

He was her friend, perhaps her only true friend. Sure there was also Kyon who she considered a friend, there was also Itsuki, Yuki and Mikuru though none of them seemed open about it as much as Ray, Nagato was always nose deep in a book, Kyon was combative with her on so many things, Koizumi was a yes-man, something that Haruhi had indeed noticed and looked the other way because of his helpfulness and Mikuru was apprehensive around her which was expected because of the way she treats her.

As Haruhi ponders in thought Ray remains silent, allowing Haruhi the luxury of looking back at everything and then reflecting on the present.

As time passes Haruhi begins to resume drinking her tea, noticing Ray had finished his already, Haruhi then decides to speak, saying "Thank you, for everything. I suppose you're the one who keeps the world just bright enough to tolerate it, to me at least. I don't really feel safe on my own anymore though, I would appreciate it if you could walk me home."

Ray believed that was understandable, being at gunpoint changes your view of the surrounding environment and you tend to see threats everywhere, sometimes imagining them to the point of paranoia, Haruhi so far wasn't displaying paranoia but also Ray suspected the possibility of intrusions into her little "Security Zone" that Koizumi's agency has set up in secret because if Raymond, an ordinary human can do it, who is to say espers or aliens couldn't. Granted Ray had a Shinjin helping him but she never directly interfered, instead guiding Ray in the right direction when it came to hostility, informing him of threats or giving him warnings about how to proceed with a situation. This entire day not one word came from his benefactor, Ray was starting to feel a sense of self-sufficiency. She had cured him of the aftereffects of cancer therapy, the cancer itself Ray defeated long before his benefactor was aware of him, both in this timeline and the unaltered timeline according to Sasaki.

The walk to Haruhi's house was without incident, Ray and Haruhi occasionally had idle conversation along the way, the conversation in the café having eased Haruhi's mind and she seemed to be going back to her usual self at a modest pace. Too fast and Ray would assume she was trying to reinforce her façade, too slow and Ray would believe she would have been traumatized beyond repair. In either case however he now felt a personal attachment to her.

At first he followed orders to avoid the horrible future Sasaki had shown him in visions, then when he was shown Haruhi's picture he merely acknowledged that she seemed attractive. Knowing her, talking with her changed everything. This was no longer about a greater good, this was about keeping his closest friend safe. Ray had said to her at the café that this was as close to romantic feelings as it could get where in reality he had now found himself attracted to her romantically, something he has kept to himself, not even telling Sasaki who had given him a number which he could call that she would answer, specifically her future self as the number was a phone her future self bought in the present solely to communicate with Raymond.

Furthermore Ray's feeling of self sufficiency was maintained by the fact that Sasaki only revealed information of the unaltered timeline to him when he needed it, he lacked the knowledge until the crisis point. He had no idea the kidnapping attempt would happen until it began though in extreme cases like that he would have preferred to have been notified, he could have held his bladder long enough for the day to end, if he had known beforehand of the kidnapping attempt then it would never have happened to begin with though when he voiced his complaint to Sasaki afterwards she explained that the kidnapper needed to die or he would successfully seize the younger Mikuru which would have involved Koizumi's agency rescuing her heavy-handedly, an incident which shaped Mikuru's desire to prevent the war without altering the circumstances of Haruhi's fate.

As Ray set his jacket on a clothes hanger built into his bedroom door he also took off his shoes, when he arrived in Japan he got a house that was designed to western standards, he didn't have to take his shoes off when he entered. Laying on his back in his bed he stared through the window into the night sky.

He would remain Haruhi's friend, if it were possible then perhaps he would try to get closer but knowing Haruhi that is a task set out for him and further it is too close in time to the kidnapping attempt, making an approach now would make him feel like he was trying to take advantage of her.

Closing the blinds on his window and getting under the blanket he let a slight smile make itself known on his face, though filled with safety until the war as was explained to him by Sasaki, Ray felt that this more dangerous life of being involved with the conspiracy around Haruhi was far more enjoyable than a life of safety and lack of significant events.

With those dim thoughts passing, Ray felt sleep take hold, wondering what the next day would bring.

To be continued...

Afterword:

Clarification : Incase it isn't known to you (as most people tend to think a certain way, that's just how the world today works apparently). Ray's conversation with Haruhi in the café was not taken as a romantic advance by Haruhi, her personality does indeed go that far in difference to the average person and furthermore Ray's speech was not intended to be a romantic advance. As far as Haruhi is concerned, the two are the closest of friends but nothing further though Ray's personal feelings on the matter are partially contrary to what he has said but only in the line of that he mentioned he stated it was a platonic love.