To Be a Friend
She was in a park. The surroundings were too familiar to her, yet completely unknown. A dark black colored the sky, and dim, blue-white street lights gave the buildings on the streets around an eerie feeling. Not a single sign of life appeared. Not a car passed, not a voice was heard.
Kagami sat up on the bench from which she awoke. Despite the darkness around her, Kagami felt no fear. The quiet, empty environment set the girl's heart at an odd state of peace. This would be a perfect time to study, Kagami mused to herself.
The park held many memories for the twin-tailed girl. Her family would occasionally come here for picnics. Some festive events occurred here that she attended with her friends. Kagami reached into the pocket of her jeans to get her cell phone, but noticed the small device's lack of existence.
The realization that she had forgotten her cell phone set a small bit of alarm in the girl's mind. She stood, hoping to grasp the situation by moving around a little. The tsundere had no idea why she was sleeping on the park bench, nor why no one was around. There is always a small amount of traffic, even at the deadest hours of the night.
Kagami came across the playground, a very familiar location. When she was little, she and Tsukasa would play here often. The playground had grown in size, surprising Kagami a little. She knew that improvements were inevitable, but the changes from her fond memories still saddened the girl.
A quiet squeaking noise woke Kagami from her thoughts. She looked around, attempting to locate the source of the noise. Under a lone light post, a small girl rocked on a swing. The girl seemed to be quite young, no more than six. Her long yellow hair flew with her as she operated the swings.
Seemingly noticing the stranger around her, the girl looked up, revealing her black eyes to Kagami. She smiled and quickly stopped the swing. She stood, revealing to Kagami a black camisole and a small white skirt.
"Good evening, Onee-san (1)," the girl greeted.
"What are you doing out so late? It's dangerous to be outside alone," Kagami asked, worried for the small girl.
"It's not dangerous right now. Besides, I can hide in the monkey bars if it gets dangerous," the girl responded, happily skipping over to the older girl.
Kagami decided not to question the girl's sense of danger. She leaned down to face the girl.
"Where are you parents? Someone at your age should be at home."
The golden-haired girl giggled at Kagami's maternal remarks. She turned away from the high school student, walking towards the monkey bars. She adeptly flipped around the metal maze. When she reached the top bar, she sat on it, using her hands to position her skirt.
"Not here," the girl stated flatly.
Kagami took a few seconds to ponder the meaning of the words. While the girl could have meant that they physically weren't there, there was also the possibility that her parents are dead. Deciding it best not to respond to that, Kagami changed the subject.
"Why isn't anyone here?"
"No one has ever been here. How are you here?"
While the answer she was given felt extremely odd, Kagami's returning confusing distracted her as she considered the girl's question. She knew that she had woken up in the park, but she had no idea why she was there in the first place.
"I'm…not sure of that myself," Kagami admitted.
"Would you play with me again next time?" the girl asked politely.
"Next time?"
"Yes. It is almost time for you to return home," the girl stated.
She walked over to Kagami and motioned for the older girl to lower herself. When the taller girl complied, the golden-haired girl hugged her. She whispered in Kagami's ear.
"Take care of me out there too, please? Bai bai, Onee-san!"
As the girl said this, Kagami's body began to feel warm. A sudden weakness fell over her, and the ability to move was completely disappearing. Before her vision went blank, she managed to get out one more question.
"Who are you?"
The girl answered, but Kagami's hearing had already dissipated. She attempted to burn the motion of her lips into her memory and proceeded to lose consciousness.
Her peaceful slumber was no to stay, for suddenly, a loud beeping started. Kagami felt unusually groggy, and ignoring the alarm felt like a nice idea.
"Imouto (2)! Turn off your alarm already," a voice yelled angrily. Kagami opened her eyes, attempting to grasp her surroundings. She awoke in her room, just like any other normal morning. She turned off her alarm fairly quickly, wishing to avoid a battle with Matsuri on a morning already proceeding so oddly.
When she walked into the kitchen, she found two people already inside.
"Good morning, Onee-chan."
"Good morning, Kagami."
"Good morning, Mom, Tsukasa."
"Breakfast is almost ready," the younger twin stated.
"Okay, that's good."
Kagami browsed through various sections of the newspaper. Nothing seemed interesting, and she was too tired to pay much attention to the noticeable articles. A strange feeling crept into the twin-tail's brain. The feeling of discomfort grew stronger until realization finally hit the girl.
"Tsukasa?" Kagami shouted. The short-haired girl recoiled at the sudden outburst. Kagami instantly noticed her volume and covered her mouth in embarrassment. She heard laughing behind her.
"I think all of us did that," Matsuri commented with a grin.
"An occasion where Tsukasa wakes up first should be considered a holiday," Inori teased.
"Cut it out! Jeez!" Tsukasa pouted, but her cute expression failed to do anything but amuse her sisters more.
"Calm down, everyone. Breakfast is ready," Miki interrupted, saving Tsukasa.
Everyone sat down in their normal positions. Tadao entered the kitchen at some point and already proceeded to ready the newspaper. When Miki and Tsukasa finished placing the food, they sat down too.
"Itadakimasu (3)!"
"Wow, this is good," Matsuri cheered, grinning. "Tsukasa, you need to wake up earlier more. If you can do that, you'll be the perfect wife."
Tsukasa blushed at the compliment, lowering her head to hide her face. Konata had stated more than a few times that Tsukasa's cooking alone could make a guy fall in love.
"But seriously, what a weird morning. Kagami wakes up late, and Tsukasa wakes up early. It's like you two swapped places," Matsuri joked.
"I had a weird dream," the twins commented. Upon hearing the other voice the same comment, both twins giggled. Konata's "twin telepathy" theory crossed Kagami's mind.
"You too?" Kagami asked, wondering if Tsukasa saw the same mysterious girl.
"Yeah. I was in the middle of a school I couldn't recognize. It was really dark and I could see anything. Then a small girl with long black hair walked up to me. She was really scary looking," Tsukasa explained, trembling at her memory.
"What happened next? Did she say anything?" Kagami questioned, a little more excitedly than necessary.
"N-no. I don't know…I woke up the," Tsukasa replied, chuckling nervously.
"Oh…"
"What was your dream about, Onee-chan?"
"I hate to interrupt, but isn't it time for you two to head to school?" Tadao inquired.
Kagami jumped as she looked at her watch. Although they would have plenty of time to get to school, the twins always met up with Konata early.
"Tsukasa, I'll tell you on the way," Kagami stated quickly as she dashed to the front door.
"O-okay. W-wait up, Onee-chan!"
Kagami rushed towards the train station with a panting Tsukasa in tow. The speed at which her sister was running could probably match Konata's. However, when they made it to the train station, their otaku friend was nowhere to be found. Kagami looked down, somewhat saddened.
"Oi, Kagamin! Tsukasa!" a voice called from behind them.
"Good morning, Kona-chan," Tsukasa greeted. She finally stopped panting and regained her breath.
Konata looked over to her tsundere friend. Her face turned a few shades whiter at the flaming aura of tsuntsun that had overcome her friend. The blunette had no way of knowing why the taller girl was so mad at her late arrival.
"Where were you?" Kagami demanded. Konata looked genuinely scared.
"U-uh. You see, I had a fun dream with everyone, so I woke up later. Having to make meals for both my dad and myself takes a while. So I got here late."
While she omitted the part where she stayed up far too late gaming, Konata was honestly worried by her friend's hostility.
"Sorry, Kagamin. Did you wait long?
The image of the small girl at this time weakened the tsuntsun wall inside of Kagami's heart. Konata was shifting her right foot around with her head down. The response in front of her was that of a girl late for a date with her boyfriend. Kagami had completely expected a nonchalant "I stayed up too late gaming, so I slept in." She was about to forgive her friend when Tsukasa spoke up.
"Don't worry, Kona-chan. We had to run here to ge-"
Kagami quickly silenced her sister with her hand, blush lighting up her face. Although Tsukasa was her closest relative and her friend, sometimes the air headed personality of her could be her worst enemy.
"Tsukasa! Don't give out information that isn't necessary!"
As the tsundere feared, the otaku's mouth turned into the dangerous cat grin. With a mischievous look in her eyes, Konata latched onto Kagami.
"Aw, my Kagamin rushed to meet me. I'm so happy!" The bluenette smiled knowingly as a blush filled Kagami's face, a mix of tsuntsun anger and deredere embarrassment. The twin-tailed girl quickly began her improvised excuse.
"Like I would! It's irresponsible to arrive late. I couldn't scold you anymore if I were to act irresponsible!"
"Sure, sure," Konata responded with a teasing tone, brushing off Kagami's excuse. Even Tsukasa had to sweatdrop at the lousy excuse. It lacked the precision her comebacks normally had.
"Jeez, leave me alone. I'm exhausted," Kagami sighed.
Konata noticed the fatigued look on both of their faces. They boarded the train silently. The lack of conversation made the blunette worried, but she didn't know how to approach the topic.
"Oh yeah. Konata, you should've been at our house this morning," Kagami spoke up. A question mark appeared over the other two girls' heads. "Tsukasa and I had similar dreams and even spoke at the same time once. That's your "twin telepathy," right?"
A sparkle appeared in the smaller girl's eyes at her words. Both of the twins noticed Konata's concern, so cheering her up gave the two quite a bit of relief.
"Yes! It took long enough, but you finally did it. Your twin power leveled up! Next, you'll end up falling in love with the same person!"
"Huh? That would just be trouble, wouldn't it? Then we'd have to fight each other," Kagami countered.
"Or you can trigger the 3P flag, Kagamin. Twins are every man's fantasy! No exceptions," Konata nodded knowingly.
Tsukasa smiled as she watched the two. While she rarely got the spotlight, she preferred it that way. Even though she can be an airhead, there's no way she couldn't see the closeness of the two.
The ribbon-clad girl, however, felt that she had a certain closeness with each of the two that they haven't found in each other. Her hobby of astrology gave her a unique knowledge in romance and gave her a strong emotional intuition. Gemini and Cancers are very compatible with each other, since both tend to seem extroverted. Tsukasa was sure of it: both girls were hiding their true selves, Konata more so than Kagami.
The train ride from then on proceeded like any other day. Konata and Kagami bickered while Tsukasa watched silently. When they got off the train, however, Tsukasa stole the conversation.
"So, Onee-chan, what was your dream about?"
"Huh? Oh yeah, I didn't tell you yet, did I?"
Just as Kagami was about to explain, she began to feel uncomfortable. She peered over at the nonchalant otaku. For some reason, she didn't want to explain the dream in front of her close friend. Listening to her gut feeling, Kagami used the time as a legitimate excuse to escape.
"Never mind. I'll tell you later. We're going to be late."
The twin-tail sped up, gaining a groan from Konata. Kagami internally cursed her excuse as her fatigue kicked in. She also added an apology to her twin sister in that train of thought.
They managed to reach the school in time. Kagami rushed off to her classroom, determined to maintain her zero-tardy policy. Tsukasa waited for Konata, who took longer to change her shoes than normal. As Tsukasa approached the older girl, she noticed the calmer expression in her friend's face.
"Tsukasa, you can go on ahead," Konata said softly.
"Huh? But you're going to be late," Tsukasa protested. Konata forced a laugh.
"That's fine. I can give Kuroi-sensei (4) another one of my super excuses!" Tsukasa noticed the less energized look in Konata's eyes and decided to let the small girl win this time. It wasn't often Konata's natural pace was thrown off.
"If you say so. See you in class, Kona-chan," Tsukasa said, resigning openly to her friend.
Although the temptation to do so was great, the short-haired girl resisted looking back to figure out what the event was. Tsukasa didn't think anything could stop the otaku's outer personality.
If it's something serious, I'm sure Kona-chan will tell me later, Tsukasa thought to herself. If she couldn't trust her friend to settle her own problems, she couldn't be called a good friend. When she got to the classroom, however, she pulled out a small box from her school bag. She looked through her astrology book and set up her tarot cards.
Can I take a sneak peak, Kona-chan? Tsukasa thought to herself. The bell rang, and with it came her blue-haired friend. She took no effort to make an excuse, simply heading to her seat. Thankfully for her, Kuroi-sensei also had yet to appear.
After a close examination of her otaku friend, she noticed a slight blush on her face. Konata noticed her gaze and quickly pulled out a piece of paper. As she started writing on it, the gaming teacher shot through the door.
"I'm not late!" Kuroi panted. Her hair was disheveled, and her tie was clearly uneven. Sweatdrops appeared among the students of the class as the picture became clear: their teacher had overslept.
The girl to the right of Tsukasa gently tapped her shoulder, diverting her attention from the teacher. The ribbon-clad girl took a second to notice the paper in her hand, but remembered that Konata had begun to write something down. Smiling and nodding her head, she took the paper from the note-passer.
Meet me on the roof after school today. I need your advice on something,
Thanks,
Izumi Konata.
Tsukasa giggled quietly at her friend's consideration. Despite the fact that it was just a note, she signed it completely, even including the "thanks." The thought of helping Konata made the short—haired girl feel excited. Normally Konata would go to Kagami or Miyuki for help, whether it be an odd question or an intellectual question. Tsukasa's chest swelled slightly in pride that she would be the first to help Konata this time.
I wonder what this is about though, she thought to herself. I guess I'll have to wait until after classes. Tsukasa jotted down notes about the Norman invasion of England with little interest. Konata also seemed to be taking notes, but the content had no relativity to that of the lesson. It didn't take long for Tsukasa's lack of sleep to catch up and take her to the dream world.
At lunch, Konata and Miyuki came up to Tsukasa's desk to find the girl fast asleep. Konata set up the other desks around hers, completely unaffected by her friend's lack of consciousness. Miyuki shifted comfortably.
"Shouldn't we wake her up, Konata-san?" Miyuki asked, worried. Konata gave her usual cat grin.
"I think it's 'can we' rather than 'should we,'" the short girl replied knowingly.
"Eh?" Miyuki replied, confused by her words.
"Have you ever seen Tsukasa at home? It's impossible to wake her up," Konata cheered.
The memory of her visit to the sick Kagami reminded Miyuki of the laid-back girl still in her pajamas in mid-day.
"I suppose you're right," she concluded with a sweatdrop.
"I wonder where Kagami is," Konata noted. She couldn't help but grin at the image of Kagami nagging Tsukasa to wake up. "I'm going to go check up on her. You go on and eat."
"Ah, okay," Miyuki replied with a smile. "I'll watch over Tsukasa-san while you're gone."
Konata generally never travels to other classrooms due to her size causing misconceptions. With her cousin in her first year now, she may have to make a few exceptions. They look so cute when they realize I'm a third year, Konata thought to herself.
"Hey, it's Chibikko (5)!" Misao called. Konata glared at the fanged girl.
"Oi, Misakichi," the otaku responded. A question mark popped over the blunette's head as she saw the sleeping girl awake and the woken girl sleeping.
"We seem to be unable to wake her," Ayano explained. Konata cheered.
"Twin telepathy! Tsukasa's sleepiness is infecting the workaholic Kagamin~!"
Misao backed away from Konata as she noticed a vein pop up on the sleeping girl's head. Konata spoke in an announcer-like tone.
"Kagami used Helping Hand! Tsukasa used Rest! Both sisters fell asleep!"
"Misao throws ultra balls!" the brunette shouted, joining in Konata's play. Ayano sweatdropped.
"But the wild Kagamin broke free!"
"No! Misao throws bait!"
"Wild Kagamin jumps at it furiously."
"At this remark, many people in the classroom started laughing.
"Misao throws a Pok*'ball!"
"Wild Kagamin is caught!"
Both girls sang the capture theme of the popular franchise. When they looked over to find Ayano, they noticed that she had moved quite far away, along with many other students. Kagami, still sleeping, jerked to her feet, slammed her fists onto the top of the two girls' heads, and proceeded to sleep on her desk.
"Ow, Kagamin is violent even in her sle-"
"Shhhhh," Misao silenced her, fearing actually awaking the tsundere.
"Izumi, head back to your class please. Lunch is almost over," the teacher spoke up.
"Okay!"
When she got back to the classroom, Tsukasa was still asleep. She sighed as this morning's ordeal came back into her thoughts.
I guess I'll wake her up at the end of classes, she thought to herself.
Tsukasa woke up in her bed, very confused and afraid.
Shouldn't I be in school? Tsukasa thought. It was dark in her room, and no sounds could be heard but a set of footsteps. Tsukasa lowered herself under her covers to console herself. Every few seconds she'd peek her head out of the sheets in order to see.
I just need to stay quiet, she thought, attempting to calm herself. The footsteps slowly became louder as their owner grew closer. Tsukasa's hands quivered as her mind flashed through the bad things that could occur if the person across the wall was hostile. The footsteps stopped abruptly, bringing a tense peace to the short girl's mind.
Maybe they're go-
"Tsukasa, ar-"
The short-haired girl let out a yelp as a voice interrupted her thought. The door shot open, revealing a girl with twin-tails. The older twin barged in, worried about her sister. However, the noise of the door opening freaked out Tsukasa even more. The girl closed her eyes tightly and screamed. In a reflex to escape, she rolled out of her bed, wrapping herself in her sheets as she went.
"Tsukasa, are you okay?" Kagami asked quickly, rushing to her sister's side.
"Onee-chan?" Tsukasa quietly asked, peeking out of her sheets.
" Thank goodness. I thought I was alone," Kagami sighed in relief.
The younger twin felt tears flow from her eyes as she embraced her sister. The girl had never liked scary stories, and the setting she just experienced was right out of one. Kagami smiled as she held her sister. Tsukasa quickly regained herself to respond to her sister.
"Alone? What do you mean, Onee-chan?"
"I think we're asleep again," Kagami answered, agitated at her own calmness in this situation. "Or, at least, we're back in the dark city again."
"But we're in our house," Tsukasa noticed.
"And together," Kagami smiled. Motioning for Tsukasa to stand, Kagami remembered her friend here. "Follow me."
"Eh? Where are we going?" Tsukasa asked, obviously confused. Despite the reluctance in her voice, the ribbon-clad girl refused to let go of her sister's shirt.
"The park," Kagami stated. "That's where I dreamt I was. You said you didn't recognize the school you were in, right?"
"Y-yeah," the younger twin replied slowly, thinking of the lonely girl there.
The twins couldn't gauge a season from the temperature. Although it was dark, a constant yet comfortable warmth lingered throughout the city. The air was still and comfortable, neither humid nor dry.
If it were lighter, living here would be nice, Kagami thought to herself. The city looked the same as last time; a city in a blackout under a starless sky. The moon was nowhere to be found. The blue-white streetlights provided the only light. They wordlessly arrived at the playground, where Kagami looked around.
"Who are you looking for, Onee-chan?" Tsukasa asked.
"Like you, I also met a girl here. She's really young and has really long golden hair," Kagami explained. "She seemed to know where we are."
"You talked with her?"
"For quite a while. Until I woke up, that is."
The two girls sat down on the swings as they waited. The small girl wasn't visible anywhere. After a few minutes, Tsukasa spoke up.
"Did she say where she lived? Maybe she's at home."
"Where she lives," Kagami pondered. Reflecting on the conversation, she couldn't remember hearing about a home.
"Besides, I can hide in the monkey bars if it gets dangerous."
"That's it" Kagami stood up and walked over to the the monkey bars. "Hey, are you there? It's me again."
Almost as if waiting for Kagami, the short girl popped through a few bars. Tsukasa jumped slightly as the girl appeared in a place that she should have noticed her.
"Hello again, Onee-san!"
"Thank goodness. I thought you were gone," Kagami said.
"No. I'm always here. It's my favorite place," the golden-haired girl replied.
"Who is that other Onee-san?"
"She's my twin sister, Tsukasa. I'm Hiiragi Kagami," Kagami added, noticing that she never gave her name.
"That explains your similarities. Nice to meet you, Tsukasa-oneesan."
Tsukasa blushed when the girl called her "onee-san." It was a new experience for the youngest of four.
"It's nice to meet you too, uh," Tsukasa faltered, realizing that she didn't know the girl's name.
"Innocence. But Inno-chan works, since my name is hard to say," the girl said cheerfully. "Did Kagami-oneesan tell you my name?"
The older twin felt too guilty to tell her that she didn't hear what she said.
"I forgot. Sorry, Tsukasa. But Inno-chan, that's an odd name."
"My sisters have even more unusual names," she informed, giggling.
"Eh? Do you mean the black-haired girl?" Tsukasa asked.
"Exactly."
"Um, Inno-chan, do you know where we are?" Kagami asked.
"In the park, of course," Innocence said, smiling.
"I don't mean tha-"
Kagami's statement was interrupted by the small girl's hand. A look of fear showed clearly on her now pale face. She quickly reached into Kagami's pocket and took her cell phone.
"You have to go. Do not return here. If you come accidentally, go here. Innocence gave Kagami her cell phone back, revealing a newly entered address. "You must head there now. Quickly."
The mature sound in the girl's voice somewhat startled Kagami. In combination with her polite speech, Innocence had a very commanding type of tone.
"What's happening," Kagami asked, worried.
"We're not alone anymore," she responded cryptically.
"What about you, Inno-chan?" Tsukasa protested, her selfless nature kicking in.
"I can hide like I did before."
If the mood of the three girls were less tense, the twins could've sweatdropped at the comment. The girl's ability to hide was definitely astounding.
A cold wind flew by, causing goosebumps to run up the girls' skin. A dark figure appeared on the other side of the park fence. Innocence let out a small yelp and dived into the monkey bars, disappearing from sight.
"Go now! Head to the third floor!"
"Got it!" Kagami replied quickly.
The older twin grabbed her sister's hand, steeling herself from her fear. Her sister relied on her for support, so Kagami couldn't falter so easily.
I don't know what that shadow is, but I don't want to find out, Kagami thought, starting into a sprint. After thinking about the address, she realized that it was a local middle school.
"Tsukasa, I think we're heading towards the middle school in your dream!"
"Eh? So we're going to see Inno-chan's sister?"
"I guess so."
Kagami quickly navigated the streets. Using her memory of her shopping trips as a guide, she chose roads that would get them there the fastest.
Jeez, I wish I had my bike right now, Kagami thought.
"Wait," a voice quietly but sternly ordered.
The twins turned a corner to come face to face with a dark figure. Her skin was pure black, and her eyes were dark blue. With the exception of her blood red hair, the girl seemed like the result of a picture taken in Negative. Her clothes were torn up, and her shoulder-length hair seemed jaggedly cut.
The sight alone of the girl struck the twins with terror. Tsukasa collapsed, falling to her knees. Kagami couldn't stop herself from trembling. Her eyes were locked on the dented baseball bat in the girl's left hand.
"Do not move, or else I will have to stop you."
Hey, I'm back! I've been REALLY bad at updating my other stories, and my life tends to stay really busy anymore. Right now, this will be my main focus in regards to writing, though I plan to work on my other stories in between. I want to warn everyone that this story will have a sad ending, so if you like fluffy, happy endings, I'd suggest not to read. Also, the story will be mainly in Konata and Tsukasa's PoV.
Sorry if this story started to fast. One of my main weaknesses is pacing, but everything should be understood in the next few chapters. Review please! My writing gets better and faster the more you review!
(1) Onee-(san/chan) - Older sister. Drop the O for just sister.
(2) Imouto - Younger sister.
(3) Itadakimasu - Word said before eating; sort of like a blessing.
(4) Sensei - Honorific meaning Teacher, Doctor, etc.
(5) Chibikko - Midget, literally tiny girl. Misao's making fun of Konata's height.
(6) Misakichi - Misao's name with a masculine kanji added. Konata's mocking Misao's tomboyish nature.
* If you don't know what a tsundere is, check out Wikipedia. :P