Tari Tari: "Past and Present"
Chapter 2: "Before you go..."
Author's notes: We are now going back in time. A few days after Sawa announced that she was leaving Japan to try and become a horse jockey, a professional one.
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Classes had been going on regardless of the huge construction already starting. 3rd years had to keep working hard if they intended to at least have a chance at university. Even Sawa, who wasn't going to enter university was hard at work. She had to try and learn English in record time and even though she wouldn't have to finish the curriculum nor go to school anymore, (she would be given enough points to graduate, despite leaving) she found herself going to school every day.
She just couldn't stop going, not these last few days. She had to make sure she would get as many memories as possible because in the coming future she wouldn't even be able to see them. All of them. Konatsu, Wakana, Wien, Taichi... the other classmates, the teachers... even her family. It was a lot to leave behind just for the sake of her dream. She doubted herself countless times, but she wasn't allowed to show that. Not when everyone else was so supportive.
The bell rang.
"Hey Sawa-"
At the call of her name, she turned around only to be poked in the cheek with a pen. With a small laugh Konatsu soon found her book being thrown at her.
"How old are you anyways!?" Sawa tried to erase the blue mark on her cheek but it wouldn't come off, no matter what she tried. "God, you even did it with a pen..." Sawa wailed. There was a reason she wanted to look absolutely perfect today of all days.
As students moved in and out of the class, Wien and Tanaka came over to where the three girls were talking. Sawa got nudged by Konatsu. She hissed back.
"Yeah, Wien and I got a few disciplinary pointers" Taichi scratched his head. Annoying tick of his... but kinda cute if you asked Sawa.
"So did those disciplinary pointers include doing THIS?!" Konatsu pointed at a notebook. Inside it were about 100 handwritten letters of apologies to be given out to the employees working in the new construction. "And I don't even remember that we bothered them. This is just that chairman being a jerk" She sighed as she closed her notebook.
Wakana opened up her notebook and showed about 50 posters (also hand-written). "I had to make these and I'll have to go around town posting them apologizing for the inconviniences... And they said they'd check to see if the handwriting is the same" She joined Konatsu in sighing.
"Well... at least it was worth it." Wien chipped in. "I have a lot of things that I'll remember from that day, I'll tell my family about it of course"
"My sister really enjoyed it, she even filmed it and I have it all in my computer now... sadly" Taichi looked at Sawa for just a second longer than necessary.
"My brother said that he wouldn't come and see it, but of course he came. He's so silly, not wanting to show his love to his older sister" Konatsu went over dramatic on her voice as always, and her hands waving around also helped.
"Oh my dearest sister, I'm sorry for being so shy!" Sawa went along and played, just like she always did. As they hugged in an overly exagerated fashion.
Sawa then rocked her desk with her leg threw her notebook to the floor, opening on a small letter also handwritten.
Wakana was the only one who noticed the letter and started reading out loud.
"Dear Taichi, I'm sorr-"
Sawa shouted and immediately grabbed the notebook with a look screaming -I'll murder you- to Wakana who immediately went red and looked at Taichi who had not heard, and then back at the twintailed girl. Realization dawning on her.
Konatsu still had no idea what was going on. And that was probably for the better the little meddler would go around the world to have a hand in this. Sawa didn't want anyone to interfere.
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Classes came to an end, and like every day the group of five walked out of school. Wakana had tried to talk to her privately but Sawa refused to give her any time. Her mind was set on how to do this, and-
"Hey Sawa, let's all go to your house"
"What!? No I have stuff to do"
"Konatsu, you shouldn't invite yourself to others' house like that..." Wakana always the voice of reason.
"Every time we go to Sawa's house we end up doing something crazy anyways..." Taichi let a comment slip, to which Sawa gave him a joking punch. "Ouch"
"Remember the Gambarider thing?"
"I sure had fun..." Wien lost himself in remembering.
"So? Come on, Sawa... for old time's sake"
"You make it sound like we're old" She retorted.
Everyone laughed at this. Sawa had initially refused but she thought that it'd be a good way to put her plan into motion. Maybe Konatsu could help her somehow.
"We should buy cake this time" Wien said remembering Sawa's mother bought cake last time.
"That was only because she needed us for something"
Before they knew it, the sky had turned orange and they had stopped walking, just talking about their time together.
"Is it really all going to end like this? All of us going separate ways?" Sawa was looking at the horizon while letting her hair loose.
"It really does seem like a dream. And how we ended up being like this" Taichi sat down on the guard-rail.
"So? Are we going to my house? We could do an all nighter" Sawa finally offered.
"I'm not sure about an all nighter, but I could go over for a little bit" Wien sadly commented.
"Oooh, it's going to be Taichi alone with three girls then?" Konatsu nudged Sawa, and Wakana joined in.
"D-Don't be stupid, I'll leave if I have to"
"Oh he wouldn't even hurt a fly" Wakana slyly commented. Very out of her usual self.
"Not without his badminton racquet not."
The group set way for her house. She had told her parents, who didn't object. They wouldn't really object if it was the group that made her last year so memorable. Or at least part of the year.
-.-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Wien, as he had anticipated, had left pretty early. Taichi was about to leave but he was asked by Sawa's mother to stay a little longer.
The group had talked about everything there really was. A few emotional moments between the three girls in which Taichi wanted the earth to split up and eat him for being so out of place. He eventually got too uncomfortable and left for the stables. At least with Sabure he could share some silence.
Sawa and Konatsu. They had been friends for most of their time at school, and their relationship was that of life partners. Konatsu of course never really showed that she was a strong girl, but she actually was very composed. To see her literally on the verge of tears coming into Sawa's house for one of the last times was... touching.
Wakana of course also was on the cliff between crying and remaining composed, but seeing Sawa start crying before the other two got her.
The three were apologizing for everything they had done and not spending more time with each other before Sawa apologized for even wanting to leave and told the other two that she would try to come back as soon as possible, that she would work extremely hard so she could come back to Japan and spend more time with the rest of them.
It was a moment that Sawa wouldn't forget in a long time, as well as the other moments she lived with the group.
Eventually and after a while, Sawa bid her farewells to the two girls and watched the two go with a sad smile on her face. A single tear streamed down her face as she realized that these would be her last memories of the whole group...
Wait.
Realization hit her like a truck. Taichi was probably still with Sabure.
She rushed back into the house and skidded to a halt to ask her mother if she'd seen Taichi leave.
"Huh? Didn't he leave already?"
Sawa couldn't believe that he'd leave without saying goodbye to her... well, it's not like he couldn't, they didn't have any kind of relationship, but-
"God, stop thinking" she slapped herself and walked to the stables which were very quiet at night. Sabure was probably sleeping already, so she only took a peek.
"..."
She had to peek again to take in the image of what was going on. Taichi was leaning on the wall scratching Sabure's nose and the horse looked like it had warmed up to Taichi. Granted, it was a docile horse, but for it to like a boy...
"Hey, you're having fun there?" She tried to come up with the most casual of greetings. It might have come as forced but there was nothing she could do after she said it.
"Oh hey Sawa. I'm just talking to Sabure here. He's really nice today isn't he?"
"It's probably because it's in his house" Sawa went and scratched the horse's head, their arms might have touched a bit.
Taichi pulled back a bit red faced, Sawa didn't care. This was just the proof she needed. The proof she wanted.
An awkward silence settled. Sawa might have wanted that piece of proof, but she had no idea what to do with it. And her emotions were all over the place a few minutes ago with the girls, so she wasn't exactly in the best of mental states to come up with flirty answers.
And then the unexpected variable came into play. Taichi.
"Say, Sawa..." His eyes sparkled with... something she couldn't quite say "Don't you wish you could sometimes do things without regretting them?"
"W-What, you mean like going abroad to study?"
"Yeah, that's one way of putting it. But I wasn't really going that far."
Sawa took a second before realizing what he was going to and her legs might have failed her a bit, so to make it seem natural, she slided down the wall all the way to the floor. Sighing, she answered
"Oh, plenty of times. Every day I go to school I regret not doing something, like not eating that piece of toast..."
"I'm not talking about that I'm-"
"Yes, I know what you're talking about"
Silence.
Sawa sighed. This was not going at all how she expected. Taichi had made her nervous and her whole plan had gone to hell. She stood up and looked at Taichi straight in the eye.
He closed the distance, and Sawa immediately tried to back away, but the wall stopped her.
She put out her arms to stop him while looking to the floor. She was acting irrationally. She knew that.
"I-"
He tried to talk but she put her finger in his lips to stop him from saying that.
"Don't make this any harder for me" Sawa pleaded, finally looking at him. "I'm having a hard time as it is trying to leave everyone behind... and this... would just make it harder."
Taichi's eyes dropped. She knew that it was going to hurt... and to be honest she didn't like it one bit. But even though she didn't like it, it would be painful to say goodbye if something happened.
"So... I'll just take this as a way to remember you by"
Sawa lunged at his lips.
It was over before they both knew it, as Sawa backed away instantly, and rushed out saying "See you tomorrow!"
-.-.-.-.-.-.-
Author's Notes: Thanks for reading through chapter 2. Hope you enjoyed it and as always, remember to say hi in a review/comment and tell me what you liked, didn't like.
Arturia Polaris (EX: Niker)
