Hinamizawa Syndrome Part 1
June 1983... We were past the Time Quake... I can only begin to imagine how Asahina is going to react when she finds out.
As for everyone else, Koizumi and Haruhi haven't seemed to notice yet... And I doubt that even an Oyashiro-sama could wipe Nagato's memory... Hell, she probably figured it out already.
"Come on, Kyon! Keep up! If we don't hurry up, we won't make it to the Watanagashi festival!"
Watanagshi Festival... I remember Haruhi mentioning something about that... Right, something about cotton and curses.
It makes sense that Hanyuu would send us back to when it was going on. Especially if it's something about curses.
"Suzumiya, the Watanagashi Festival is still a good day or two away. We have plenty of time." Koizumi spoke, a relaxed smile on his face.
"Yeah... I know... But I don't want to miss it! That'd just be unfair!"
Said the person who wastes her life dragging others around to her very will...
I took the liberty of taking out my cell phone and flipping it open.
It was currently 10:35 AM and I had no phone service... That figures. I wouldn't expect to get phone service in 1983 anyways.
I flipped it shut and slid it into my pocket as I let out a sore sigh.
"Kyon... What's your problem? Aren't you excited for the Watanagashi Festival?" Haruhi asked.
Right... That...
"Hmm? Yeah, you could say that."
"God... You're such a downer... Honestly!"
Believe me, I'd probably be way more excited if I didn't know that we were about to get involved into more than we could handle...
Acutally... I better make sure to tell the rest of the Brigade Members about what's going on when Haruhi isn't around. No way in hell I'm doing this alone.
I glanced over at Nagato, who was giving me a spine-tingling stare... Yeah, she definitely figured it out by now.
Well... No way to stop it now. I guess we'll have to get to Hinamizawa as soon as possible. Maybe I'll be able to find Hanyuu or something.
I shoved my hands into my pants pockets and instead of being greeted by the warmth of pocket lint I touched what felt like a rough mountainside in my pocket... Hang on...
I grabbed the mysterious object and pulled it out. Turns out, it was a very wrinkly piece of paper.
I straightened it out and read the text.
The Village of Demons continues tradition.
Organs flow alongside a river for wishful thinking
Then... And only then... Demons come out to play.
Oyashiro-sama is not pleased.
...What the heck?
What is this? A message? A warning? It says Oyashiro-sama... Maybe Hanyuu left it as some kind of clue?
No way... I can't imagine her being that violent.
"What are you reading there?"
Koizumi walked next to me at the most inconvenient time.
"It's nothing." I balled it up before he could see a single word. "I'll tell you later, alright?"
Koizumi stopped smiling for a second.
"Hang on.. What are you-"
"Guys! We're almost there! Look!" Haruhi shouted out.
Thank god... I almost spilled the beans... Almost.
Haruhi cheerfully pointed at a road sign that said: Hinamizawa, 2 Kilometers
Well, that's comforting. Only two more kilometers of walking... I mean, I haven't walked that long yet, but my legs definitely felt like I've been walking for days.
"Only two more kilometers! We'll be at Hinamizawa in no time!"
At that point, I was already getting fed up with walking. I'm starting to wonder why I even accepted this... I could've easily told Hanyuu no.
Then again... She probably would've started crying, huh? The last thing I want is to make a little girl/god/thing cry.
I sighed and decided to suck it up. What's done is done after all...
…
Anyways, I continued walking with the rest of the SOS Brigade for just a little while longer.
No one seemed too interested to start up a conversation... Haruhi was too busy humming some Battlestar Galactica tune, Koizumi was too busy smiling, Nagato was Nagato, and Asahina was far too shy.
The further we got, the more I could feel myself having trouble breathing... Probably due to the fact that I haven't been on a Mountain in months.
And I swear to you now, I never actually planned on going back up one... The Mansion of doom was enough!
Nevertheless, it wasn't long until the smoothly constructed road pavement turned into a dirt trail that looked like it was pulled straight out of a fantasy video game.
I began seeing little old-style Japanese houses scattered about... Something which did not help the Fantasty Video Game feel... Did they even have Video Games around here?
I would assume not... 1983 was when Video Games were just starting to hit it off, if I remember correctly.
I took a good look at our surrounding as Human life started to form around us. People smiled and greeted us and we returned the gesture.
You know, for a Demon Village, the people here aren't have bad.
Eventually, Haruhi pulled us off into a small group of trees... Well... She mostly just pulled me... Everyone else just kind of followed.
"Alright, Brigade! Here's the game plan... We have to find the High School here and start up our own branch of the SOS Brigade!"
I looked around at the others... No one said a word. Seriously you guys? You're gonna make me do the talking again?
"I don't think we can just start up an SOS Brigade in a foreign town." I stated.
"Of course we can! We'll just walk in there and declare ourselves the rulers! These guys seem pretty secluded, so they're bound to believe us if we tell them that we're royalty!"
...That hardly seems fair.
Hang on... Royalty? Who is the Emperor anyways?
I racked through my brain to go back to those faded memories of History Class that I barely payed any attention to... I'm probably wrong, but was it Hirohito? I'll make sure to inadvertently ask later.
"I think that sounds like a wonderful idea, Suzumiya." Koizumi replied.
No one asked you...
"See? Koizumi agrees! Alright! We'll ask around the town... If they ask, we're transfer students! Come on~!"
And with that, there was no stopping Haruhi. She run out of the small group of trees and we inevitably followed.
"Excuse me, sir!" Haruhi was already chatting it up with the locals... "My name is Haruhi Suzumiya from the SOS Brigade! And these are more subordinates; A, B, C, and D!"
You know... You could at least use our names.
"We're transfer students from North High and we would like to know where the High School around here is!"
It was at this time when I got a good look at the person she was talking to.
He was a young man who was rather physically fit. He had dog tags around his neck and a black cap covering his seemingly brown hair.
Also... Did I mention he was holding an 80s style camera? Because... He was.
"Hello, Suzumiya. My name is Jiro Tamitake! I think it would interest you to know that the School here is actually a joined school between all the grades."
"Really? Why's that?" Haruhi replied.
"Well, the people here live in a fairly small town, so there's not many children. Don't worry, though. I can assure you that the local kids are very friendly."
"Oh! So you're not around here, huh?"
"No, actually. I'm from Tokyo. I just come here to take pictures of the birds."
"A photographer then?"
"That's right!"
A shoved Haruhi aside slightly and walked up to Tomitake.
"Sorry about my friend here. My name is-"
"That's Kyon!" Haruhi so rudely interrupted.
Dammit...
"Yeah... Anyways, can you lead us to the school? I'm afraid we're a bit lost."
"Not a problem, Kyon. I was actually about to head over to the Irie Clinic, which is on the way."
"Thank you."
With that, Tomitake kindly led us across the town... I kinda felt bad for him. Not because we forced him to be our guide, though that was part of the reason, but because Haruhi kept asking him annoying questions.
"So... Why did you want to go to the Clinic?"
"My girlfriend works there."
"Who's your girlfriend?"
"Her name is Takano. She's one of the nurses."
"Oh! Cool, we'll make sure to meet her! Alright... How about your favorite color?"
"...Why would my favorite color matter?"
This went on for awhile before Tomitake, understandably, interrupted Haruhi.
"Alright... Let me ask you a question."
"Yeah... Alright."
"You said you recently transferred here... Have you been vaccinated yet?"
"Vaccinated? For what?"
"Oh... There's just a small virus going around. I'd hate for you guys to catch it!"
Alright, first off, I've seen enough fake smiles from Espers to tell which ones are fake and which ones aren't.
And that one was definitely fake. Tomitake was hiding something.
"Hmm..."
I looked behind my shoulder as I saw Koizumi rest his chin into his fingers... I guess he noticed it as well.
"I'll set up an appointment with Doctor Irie later. He'll make sure that you guys are set to go, alright?"
"Yeah, whatever! We'll only be here for a couple days so its not like it really matters or anything!"
If she were any more careless, she'd be a Kamikaze pilot in World War II.
But... Come to think of it... Nagato mentioned something about a Vaccination to get rid of parasites... Could it be...?
"Excuse me, Tomitake." I spoke up. "Is this Virus parasitic?"
"Oh!" I heard Koizumi behind me.
Tomitake was much more surprised, however. He even stopped walking for a moment.
"W-why would you ask a weird question like that?"
"I'm just curious." ...That wasn't entirely a lie. But it's close enough, I guess.
"Listen, it's just a small virus. You don't have to worry so much."
And with that, he continued walking with us in suit.
There was definitely something wrong with this Village.
…
It wasn't long until we eventually made it to our destination.
Thankfully, we did that without Haruhi causing too much trouble.
"Well, here you guys go. I think Class is in session, so try to keep it down when you go inside."
"Yes, sir." We all said... Except Nagato, who just kind of faintly nodded.
Tomitake took a picture of the School building and then made his way off.
Haruhi watched him go then smiled once he was out of earshot.
Oh no...
"Alright, men! You know the deal! We're transfer students!"
"But, obviously the Teacher won't know who we are. And I don't think she'd buy that we're transfer students when she was never informed."
"Alright! Let's go inside!"
Once again, my useful insight goes in one ear and out the other... It's like she actually filters out what she doesn't want to hear...
Haruhi began marching into the School and the rest of us followed behind her. We were still wearing our North High Uniforms in this time... Probably because Hanyuu didn't bother to change them... So we would at least look the role.
The School itself was a somewhat run-down building. But it looked fairly maintained... Though, it was really small.
In fact, it made North High look like Yale University.
We walked into the School building and I took a good look around.
Unfortunately, there was nothing that interesting about the interior. Just a couple of lockers here and there.
We made our way up the stairs and Haruhi began pacing around.
"Wow... It's pretty small compared to North High... But I thought there would be more on the inside..."
You thought wrong.
But... She did have a point. There was only a couple of rooms scattered about... Only one looked like it led to a classroom.
"Alright then... Let's go meet the students in Hinamizawa!"
Haruhi rushed over to the door and threw it open.
"WE'RE HERE~!" She shouted in an extremely overly-delighted voice.
I walked behind her as 16 Students looked up from their desks, all with confused looks on their faces.
I could just faintly make out Asahina's adorable whimpering as a couple students looked directly at her.
Alright... So, how do I describe this class? Well, the first thing that caught my eye was that they were from all different ages.
I saw kids who looked like they could fit in perfectly in my little Sister's class and teenagers who looked like they were a grade above Asahina.
At least two of the girls could have been twins, since they both had long green hair.
No... I'm not kidding. They actually had green hair!
The one thing that really caught my eye, however was the young purple-haired girl with horns... Hanyuu.
"Um... Excuse me, but who are you guys?" The teacher asked.
"My name is Haruhi Suzumiya! These are Itsuki Koizumi, Yuki Nagato, Mikuru Asahina, and Kyon!"
Well... At least she bothered to introduce us this time.
"We're student from North High in Kobe! We just transferred here for a School Project on learning about different cultures, and we're hear to learn about the Watanagashi Festival!"
"That's odd... I never heard anything about you guys arriving... And we just got three transfer students in recently."
"The letters must have never gone through! You guys live in the mountains, so it's actually no surprise that you didn't get them."
The teacher blinked a couple times before eventually sighing. "Alright... Well, we have a few empty desks. Take your pick and sit down. I'll get to you in a moment."
"Alright~!" Haruhi happily hopped into the first seat she could find and sat down.
Everyone else did the same as Nagato chose a nice area in the back of class, Asahina sat next to Haruhi, and Koizumi and I sat next to each other in a pair of desks by the window.
I have to say, it was kind of weird sitting in a classroom without Haruhi sitting behind me.
"Well... This is certainly a unique set of arrangements, don't you think? I always imagined that I'd only be transferring schools once." He said.
"I guess... But I'd much rather be at home sleeping."
Koizumi chuckled at my comment as I leaned my cheek into my fist and looked over at Hanyuu.
She immediately noticed as a small blush went across her face. She shoved her head into her hands like an embarrassed monkey... But with horns.
I was hoping for some secret symbol or something to help me but that works too, I guess.
"Kyon... I didn't know you had a thing for little girls." Koizumi said, a teasing smile crept across his face.
Alright, I better tell him what's up.
"Look at this." I said as I reached into my pocket.
Koizumi's smile faded away for a moment as I pulled the crumbled up note out of my pocket.
He read over it for a minute before looking at me with a serious complexion.
"That looks nothing like your handwriting... Where'd you find that?"
I looked around the classroom for a moment to make sure no one was listening in and I leaned in towards him.
"Koizumi... Do you know what year it is?"
"Of course. Why do you ask?"
"No... I don't think you do. We're in the year 1983."
Koizumi frowned and slightly tilted his head.
"I'm afraid I don't follow..."
"Alright... Listen up, because I'm only gonna say this once."
I gave Koizumi the short version about all the events leading up to when I met Hanyuu. As I spoke is my hushed tone, he quietly listened. His smile not returning.
"So... Let me get this straight. You're saying that we were sent here from the Future."
"Yep."
"And that we were originally going to an abandoned Hinamizawa to investigate sightings of a ghost."
"Mhm."
"But we were sent back to 1983 because she-" He pointed to Hanyuu. "-sent us back in time to fix a series of curses?"
"That about does it."
"Interesting..." Is all he responded with.
At that time the teacher, who introduced herself as Rumiko, came to our table.
"Alright you two, I'm not really sure what North High has been teaching you, so I'm going to give you a little quiz to see where you're at, alright?"
She handed us two papers, each had handwritten questions that she probably wrote herself.
I guess she didn't have time to use a Printer.
We both nodded at her and went to do our work.
Koizumi's smile returned to him as he immediately started filling in answers like this was Elementary School work.
Meanwhile, I had a bit more trouble since it was divided between Algebra, Science, and Japanese History. And since Algebra was first, I struggled to figure out the formulas and write them down.
Koizumi looked over at me an smiled. "Need some help? I'm pretty sure that the answer to #7 is..."
"I don't need your help."
Koizumi raised his hands in defense as I filled in my next answer.
It took a bit, but I eventually managed to get through the test... Unfortunately, Koizumi had turned his in 10 minutes earlier. And it goes without saying that Haruhi and Nagato were probably already done.
I went to turn my test in and went back to sit in my seat... To be honest, I actually half-assed most of those answers.
I had a casual conversation with Koizumi about some show he saw on TV last week... Or, in the future, I guess.
It was around that time when two of the students walked up to us. One was a young man, about my age, with a built figure and brown hair. The other was a girl with orange hair and a happy smile on her face.
"Hey there, my name is Keiichi Maebara. I just recently transferred here as well... And this is my friend Rena Ryugu." The boy spoke up.
"Hello~! Hello~!"
Aww... The way she said that was actually pretty adorable!
"My name is Itsuki Koizumi." My Esper companion said. "And this is my friend Kyon. It's a pleasure to meet you, Maebara and Ryugu."
You know my real name! You don't have to introduce me as Kyon!
I took a quick peek over at Haruhi, who was having a casual chat with one of two green-haired girls.
Maebara seemed to notice my stare as he peered over.
"Oh! That's Mion Sonozaki. She's one of my friends here... That's her twin sister Shion over there." Maebara pointed to the other green-haired girl.
"Are they like twins or something?" I asked.
"Yeah, actually."
...Called it.
"So, tell me, Kyon... What brings you guys out here all the way from Kobe?"
I racked through my brain and tried to remember what Haruhi had said before.
"Uh... We're here because of the Watana-something Festival."
"Watanagashi?" Ryugu cut in.
"Yeah, that."
"Oh! Well, I'm sure that you'll love it, love it!"
She gave me what seemed like a half-hearted smile... What is with this town and fake smiles? I think Koizumi might have some fierce competition.
"I'm certain that we will, Ryugu." Koizumi said, returning the fake smile of fakeness.
Maybe I should ask about the Festival a bit... It would help to have at least some knowledge of what I'm dealing with.
I got ready to speak but was quickly interrupted by the ringing of a bell.
"It's time for P.E." Maebara said. "You brought your Gym Clothes, right?"
I actually didn't know the answer, but Koizumi was quick to bust me out.
"Actually, Suzumiya has them in her bag."
...Haruhi had a bag?
I looked over towards Haruhi and saw her pick up a backpack that was right next to her desk.
Well, then...
I stood up from my seat. "So... Where do we go?"
"Just follow me, I'll show you wear the guys change."
"I'll see you outside, okay Keiichi-kun?"
"Alright, Rena. I'll see you again in a moment!"
Ryugu giggled cheerfully before running after the rest of the girls.
Haruhi quickly split off from the group and walked up to us. She quickly unzipped her bag and took out two folded sets of male gym clothes and handed them to us.
"Here you go! I'll see you guys outside!"
Haruhi quickly took off after the girl group and started talking to Mion again.
...They're getting along well.
"Come on." Maebara said as he led me and Koizumi out of the room.
Alright, I'm just going to say this bluntly.
No, I'm not gonna describe the changing room. And no, I won't tell you how we got changed or what kind of conversation we had.
I'll just skip right past that.
So, Koizumi, Maebara, and I all walked out into the field around the School. We were joyfully greeted by Haruhi, Asahina, Nagato –as much as Nagato can be joyful at least–, Ryugu, and the Sonozaki Twins.
With them were three young girls. A blonde haired one, a darkish blue haired one, and Hanyuu.
The blueish haired one looked at me and then smiled. "My name is Rika Furude! Nipaah~!"
...Aww! That's adorable! Say what you want about this town, but at least they're friendly.
"So, you guys must be Kyon and Koizumi!" One of the Sonozaki Twins spoke up... I didn't realize it until now, but this one had a ponytail.
I found myself staring at it until she tilted her head and laughed.
"What? Did I do my hair wrong or something?"
I immediately shook my head. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Haruhi giving me a death stare.
"Well, it's a pleasure to meet you, Sonozaki." Koizumi stated.
"Please, just call me Mion! Or else you might just confuse my Sister."
Ah... So that one is Mion! Remember... Ponytail = Mion. Not ponytail = Shion.
Shouldn't be too hard to remember.
"I'm Shion." The other girl spoke up. "I actually just transferred here as well!"
So that makes two transfer students... Who's the third one? I asked.
"Actually, it's Rika's cousin." Mion said as she pointed to Hanyuu.
"I-I'm Hanyuu... Auauau..."
"Aww..." Ryugu perked up as she grabbed Hanyuu. "I WANNA TAKE HER HOME WITH ME!"
"RENA!" Maebara and Mion spoke in unison as they grabbed her and pulled her off of Hanyuu.
...Odd group.
"And... I'm Satoko Hojo." The last girl spoke out. The blonde one this time.
"Hey." I simply said.
Satoko looked at me like she just witnessed me stealing and was about to call the police.
She then walked around next to Maebara as like he was the police officer.
Maebara seemed to find this amusing as he smirked right at me. "Guess she doesn't trust you guys, yet."
I don't blame her.
"H-hey, Kyon!" I looked over to see Asahina waving at her... I swear, her gym uniform only improves upon her wonderful elegance!
Must resist urge to hug...
"What is it, Asahina?"
"Come here~! I have something important to show you!" Asahina giggled as she ran behind the school building.
That's... Rather odd. Oh well, if Asahina says I should, then I will fight through armies just to get to her!
I walked around the corner and saw Asahina... But not with a happy face. In fact, she looked really depressed.
"K-kyon... I-I can't contact the future! I h-haven't gotten classified information s-since I got here!" Tears began to form on her cheek as she started to sob like the wife of a victim after his murder.
That makes sense. We're past the 3 year point...
Oh... That's right... I haven't told her yet...
"Asahina, there's something I have to tell you..."
She wiped a tear off of her cheek as she looked up at me. "What is it?"
So, I told her the whole story. Every single detail. All the way from us first going to Hinamizawa to me coming across Hanyuu and going back in time.
"Wh-what? Y-you mean that...?"
"Yes. We've gone past the three year point. It's no wonder that you can't contact the future anymore."
"Oh... I see..." She sniffled a bit. "I-I guess that makes sense... Will we go back?"
"...I hope so."
She wiped her tears off with her arm before looking back up at me.
"Come on, Kyon... Let's go back to the group, alright?"
She gave me a little smile and my heart felt like a bunch of teenagers had just started a dance party inside of it.
Oh, Asahina... Even the tiniest of your smiles is enough to warm my dying heart!
My lovely thoughts were interrupted by Asahina walking away towards the rest of the group.
I, inevitably, followed right behind her as we rejoined the group.
Not even Haruhi seemed to notice we were gone since she was too busy having a laugh with Haruhi...
I don't know if I should be scared about the fact that someone is actually having a decent conversation with Haruhi or not.
I mean... The last person who did that was Tsuruya, and because of her Asahina ended up getting drugged and we had to go to a time-distorted mansion... Well, the latter wasn't really her fault. So I guess I can't get too mad about it.
Besides, Tsuruya is probably one of the few Junior Brigade Members that actually enjoy the role... Along with Taniguchi and Kunikada of course.
Well, nothing I can really do about it.
Maebara seemed to notice my concern and gave me a pat on the back.
"Don't worry. She's a little freaky but she's usually a nice person."
Usually? I'd hate to know what she's like on those other times.
"Kyon! Get over here!" Haruhi shouted at me.
It was at this time when I swallowed up any pain I could possibly hide and walked over to Haruhi.
"Kyon! Mion runs a Club just like we do!"
We? You're the one that runs everything. The rest of us are just forced to follow your will.
"Well, actually, we just play a bunch of random games. But the loser is always punished!" Mion responded.
I looked over at Haruhi who was smiling at me... No! No! What are you thinking?!
"How about this... The SOS Brigade vs The Club!" Haruhi stated. "We play a Team game and each of us choose someone to take the fall for the rest of the team!"
"Actually, that's a great idea!"
No it's not. I know for a fact that she's gonna single me out.
You know that guy in Cartoons who's always picked last? Well, in the SOS Brigade, I'm the opposite of that guy.
Haruhi always uses me as he chore boy and feels no shame in doing it.
So... Do we just sit around and talk during P.E. or are we waiting for something? I was about to ask when a whistle was blown in the background.
That answers it.
Koizumi walked up next to me and smiled. "Well, we can't miss Gym, can we?"
I wouldn't mind.
…
Remember when I said I wouldn't mind missing Gym?
I feel extra strongly about that.
Seriously, the exercises here are twice as hard as the ones back at North High!
I mean, sure, Haruhi and Koizumi had no trouble with it. And Nagato got through with out a sweat.
But Asahina and I were left behind and could barely keep up with the rest!
Even Rika and Satoko were treating it like nothing.
You know, being beaten by two little girls is not a very good moral boost.
I feel like Napoleon when he attacked Russia.
Sure I can try, but I'm just going to end up getting destroyed in the end.
Regardless, exercises ended with me nearly passing out.
I've never exercised so much in my entire life!
I found myself on the ground groaning in exhaustion as Haruhi walked up to me, put her fists on her waist, and opened her big mouth.
"KYON! WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU DOING?! WE'RE NOT AT YOUR HOUSE SO YOU CAN'T JUST SLEEP WHEREVER YOU WANT!"
She kicked me right in the rib cage and I sat straight up.
"OW! GOD! What the heck, Haruhi?! I'm just a little tired! You can't get mad at me for that!"
"Yes I can! I'm Brigade Chief and you need to keep up you lazy bum!"
"..."
This girl is insane!
Mion found this amusing for some reason as she started laughing in the background. Shion, Asahina and Ryugu gave me concerned looks.
At least someone cares.
I got up and rubbed my rib cage... That really hurt!
Koizumi laughed a bit and I shot him a glare that made him shut up completely.
Who the hell does that guy think he is, anyways? Esper or not, I'll kick his ass if he keeps pissing me off.
…
Anyways, a little bit of class time later and the final bell rang for the day.
It was actually really strange... I always go straight to the Literary Club room after school. Who knew I'd be walking outside with an entire platoon of others?
"Alright you guys! We're going to be playing the most popular team game in the World!" Mion spoke
I thought it over for a minute before replying.
"Baseball?"
"What? No! We're playing Dodgeball!"
Well... That figures.
Mion pointed towards a small section of the field where red balls were lined up... When did she have the time to set that up?
"It'll be our Club versus the SOS Brigade! Each team will pick a tribute to serve punishment if the team loses!"
That hardly seems fair...
"I, Mion Sonozaki of the Hinamizawa Branch School pick..." She pointed right towards Maebara. "The Magician of Words!"
"H-hey! How is that fair?! Figures... Picking on the new guy..." Maebara responded.
Well, at least I'm not the only one picked on by their club... Even if this was decades in the past.
"And I, Haruhi Suzumiya of North High pick..."
Here we go...
"Kyon!"
Knew it.
I sighed and looked around.
Koizumi merely shrugged and Nagato did nothing.
Asahina walked up to me, though. "Good luck... I hope we win."
Easy for her to say... She's not the one on trial, here.
"Alright then! Remember the Club Rules and we're bound to win this!" Mion started to rally up her side.
Hang on a second... I counted up the totally number of people on Mion's side.
...Seven people! That was one more than us! I pointed that out.
"Kyon! Will you stop your complaining? Of course we're gonna win! Two people don't change anything!" Haruhi replied.
Well... I guess I can't call it unfair. There are three little girls on their side... Albeit that one is a god or something.
"Alright! Let the games begin!" Mion called out.
Everyone lined up on their designated sides.
"Alright! There are no limits to where you can go as long as it's not inside the School Building or outside of School property! Other than that, feel free to run, take cover, whatever!"
This dodgeball game is turning into Warfare...
"Three!" Mion called out.
"Two!" Haruhi replied.
"One!" They both said in Unison.
...Man, that was like something out of a movie.
Both sides ran and grabbed the balls before running away as fast as possible.
Well... Except for Nagato.
I noticed that she pretty much just walked over and picked a ball up.
It's not that I'm surprised by that, but it is pretty surprising that she took to liberty to actually move.
She started to chant something... No... I refuse to allow that.
I ran up to Nagato and put a hand on her shoulder before whispering.
"None of that Alien data manipulation junk."
She looked over her shoulder and stared at me for a good two seconds.
"Acknowledged."
"Good."
I immediately had to run out of the way because Satoko took a good throw right at me.
It flew past me like a bullet and I gotta say... I was in awe.
Who knew a little girl could throw that hard?
Shion started to come back her up and I took off running as fast as I possibly could and run behind the school building.
Unfortunately, Koizumi was also there.
"Hello! Are you enjoying yourself?"
"I'm not in the mood for side conversations."
"Alright... I was just trying to be friendly."
Koizumi then looked over the corner with the red ball in hand.
That gave me a shiver down my spine as I remembered the times when Koizumi had held a similar red ball in his hands... But those ones were made out of energy.
Either way, I knew for a fact that he knew how to use it.
Koizumi threw the red ball and I peered over my shoulder to see him hit Shion who immedietely fell backwards.
"Dammit!" She replied.
Shion walked over to the penalty area and sat next to Nagato, who was casually reading some thick book.
Two questions.
1) Why the heck is Nagato already out?
2) Where did she find that book?
I'm gonna guess that Shion knocked Nagato out before, but it's hard to tell.
Then again, I doubt Nagato was actually really trying to win.
Regardless, I ran off around the corner only to come across Maebara and Mion.
...I refuse to go without a fight.
I threw the dodgeball right at Maebara who casually dodged it like it was a slow moving molasses.
Crap...
Maebara threw the ball right at me and it tagged me right in the chest.
Oh well...
I got ready to leave before a sudden red ball flew out from the trees and his Maebara right in the shoulder.
We sighed in unison and both walked to the penalty line.
I turned around to catch a glimpse of Haruhi dodging a ball that Mion threw at her and running off with Mion on chase.
That's going to be an interesting one...
Once Maebara and I got to the penalty line, I sat next to Nagato and Maebara sat right next to me.
I watched as Hanyuu stood there helplessly with Asahina right in front of her with a dodgeball.
I inwardly cheered Asahina on... But, Hanyuu started to cry.
"I-I have no way to defend myself! Wh-what am I ever going to do?"
"Oh..." Asahina walked right up to her and smiled. "That's alright... I won't tag you out."
"R-really?" Hanyuu replied.
"Yeah! I'm not mean!"
It was at the moment when Satoko and Rika came out from the bushes and both threw their balls at Asahina.
...I call foul play!
Satoko put a hand over her mouth and made the weirdest sounding laugh I ever heard in my entire life... It sounded something like "Hohoho!" but with more female demon and less Santa.
"The Trap Master wins again!"
Asahina sadly walked back after Satoko's remark and sat next to Shion.
How dare they take Asahina's kindness for granted! If they weren't little girls I'd be giving them a piece of my mind right about now!
That left 3 Brigade Members out and 2 Club Members out.
So... 2 against 4.
That is in no way fair.
Then again... It's Haruhi and Koizumi who are in... We might stand a chance!
That's when two red balls came from the shadows and tagged both Rika and Satoko.
Satoko stopped laughing and walked back to the penalty line with Rika.
Haruhi and Koizumi stepped out of the shrubs and approached Hanyuu as Haruhi picked up her dodgeball and tagged Hanyuu lightly.
At least she was gentle... That's more than can be said for usual.
Hanyuu went to catch up with Rika and Satoko.
Koizumi picked up his ball and quickly turned around as he threw it right into the shrubs.
Ryugu slowly walked out afterwards with a little frown on her face.
Meanwhile, another ball came flying out and hit Koizumi.
He simply shrugged and walked next to Ryugu to the penalty line.
Haruhi turned around instantly as Mion busted out from the shadows and grabbed her ball.
So... Haruhi and Mion stood across from each other... Both of them holding dodgeballs.
It was like an American Western movie where the Cowboy and Bandit would both slowly pull out their guns to fire at each other.
Except... This time it was two girls with dodgeballs.
I leaned in slightly as Mion and Haruhi both raised their arms.
It felt like a lightning strike when both of them threw their bottles.
...And they both tagged each other at the exact same time.
…
We were all in a big circle as Mion and Haruhi were trying to figure out what to do.
"It was a tie... So how should we deal with that?" Mion asked.
"Why don't we punish both Kyon and Maebara?" Haruhi replied.
...She just wants a reason to see my pain.
"Alright! That sounds like a great idea!" Mion said with a thumbs up.
Maebara and I looked at each other as we both let out a sigh.
…
So... Wanna take a guess on what our punishment was?
Give up?
We both had to wear dresses.
"Kyon! You look so pretty!" Haruhi said
Shut up.
"I must say, Kyon, you look like you're enjoying yourself.
"...Both of you. Shut up."
Koizumi raised his hands in defense with a smile still on his face.
I looked over at Maebara who had Ryugu... You know what? I'm just gonna start calling her Rena from here on out. Everyone else does and Ryugu just sounds too weird... So, Maebara had /Rena/ hugging onto him.
"Keiichi looks so cute in a dress! So cute!" Rena said.
"Rena... Please... Not now." Maebara replied.
He looked like he was a child who just walked in on his Dad cheating on his Mom with a guy.
In other words... Very scarred.
"Hey, so..." Mion walked over to Haruhi... Since when did these two start becoming buddy-buddy anyways?
"Do you guys have places to stay?"
"Actually... Come to think of it... We don't." Haruhi replied as she scratched her head.
I swear, it looked like she was trying to remember something.
"Well, that's alright! We'll all just accommodate, right?" Mion said as she looked back towards everyone else.
They all nodded... Did they plan something out for us?
"Kyon, Keiichi offered to let you stay at his place!" Mion said as she put an arm around my shoulder.
"I envy you! You get to stay at the Maebara Mansion!"
"And I suppose you arranged this?" I asked.
"Actually, he offered! Now... We need to decide everyone else!" Mion walked away from me and over to Asahina.
Asahina immediately squealed when Mion walked over.
"What are we going to do about her?"
"Wh-what? M-me?" Asahina said as she looked around nervously.
"Aww..." I heard Rena speak from a distance. "I wanna take her home with me!"
"That's a great idea!" Haruhi spoke out.
"H-huh?!" The innocent Asahina replied.
"You mean... Rena actually gets to take Mikuru home with her?!" Rena replied as she immediately went up to Asahina and started cuddling her.
Asahina whimpered nervously as Mion went over to Koizumi.
"Who do you want to stay with?"
"I actually don't really mind. I'll stay with whoever."
"I'll take him!" Rika raised her hand.
"Satoko and Hanyuu... Do you both agree?" Mion asked.
"A-alright!" Hanyuu replied.
"I don't see why not!" Satoko said right after.
"And... Um... Sorry, what's your name?" Mion asked while walking over to Nagato.
"Yuki Nagato." She replied.
"You don't mind staying with my Sister Shion, right? She lives in the next town over, so it would take awhile to walk here and back."
"I don't mind."
"Well... Alright."
"Hang on... So that means I have to stay with you!" Haruhi said.
"That's right! You can come up to my place... But, uh... There are a few rules. I'll tell you when we get there."
"Who cares? I'll follow them!"
...I feel slightly worried about Mion. If there are rules, Haruhi is obligated to break them.
Well... It's not my problem, I guess.
"So, it's settled! We'll house the SOS Brigade and meet up here tomorrow to prepare for the Watanagashi Festival!" Mion said.
…
Maebara walked me all the way to his house... Which, I will admit, was a lot bigger than most of the other houses.
"Mom, Dad, I'm home!" He called out as his parents walked over.
His Dad looked something like a French Artist... Which was kind of odd.
His Mother looked pretty normal, however.
"Hello, Keiichi. I see you brought a Friend." His Mom said.
"This is Kyon. He's from Kobe and his friends have come here for the Watanagashi Festival. They had no place to stay so we all pitched in to help them out."
"Well that's very kind of you!" His Mother replied.
She walked up to me. "My name is Aiko Maeabara... But, please, you can just call me Aiko."
His Dad walked up next to her with a relaxed smile as he held out his hand.
"Ichiro Maebara."
I shook his hand like any normal person would do as his Mom spoke up.
"I just finished Dinner... Would you like some?"
"If it's not a problem." Is all I replied with.
So, there I was sitting down with the Maebara Family eating a rather nice Dinner... Much better than what my Family usually makes, at least.
"So... Kyon. I'm actually a pretty famous artist. Have you heard of me?" Ichiro asked.
Actually, I have. Back in Middle School, Taniguchi and I were doing a project for Art Class and he happened to be the one we were given.
We weren't allowed to do Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci or anyone famous like that and we had to stick to Japanese Artist... Go figure that I would actually meet him.
"I think I saw you on a Newspaper Article one time." Is all I replied with.
It seemed to make him happy, though.
"Maybe I'll show you my Art Gallery if you stay long enough."
"What? That's not fair! I haven't even seen your Art!" Maebara replied.
"Maybe you can go with him... If you behave."
Maebara thought of this for a moment. "Yeah... Alright."
So... It actually was a rather nice Dinner.
My Sister wasn't pulling on my hair or putting Shamisen on the table.
My Mom wasn't asking me questions about School.
Honestly, I could do this more often
Time passed as Maebara and I headed upstairs.
The Maebara family offered me to let them stay in a Guest Room that they had, so I was well accommodated for.
As I lounged on my bed, I took the liberty of pulling out my phone again.
Still no signal and the battery was starting to drain.
I sighed and put it away in my pocket.
It was around that time when the Cicadas started to let out little cries.
I don't know why... But it felt like they were warning about something.
This quest.
Something was about to go terribly wrong.