Flutter
by Funakounasoul
Disclaimer: I still don't own Azumanga Daioh...
Author's Notes: Juggling schoolwork and this story is harder than I thought it would be...Ahem! Remember how I said chapter 2 was the last pre-Azu chapter? Well, I lied. THIS chapter is the last pre-Azu chapter. It takes place right before the manga and anime start, and I mean "right before".
CHAPTER THREE
"Hurry up, Yomi!" Tomo yelled from outside. Yomi had just woken up when she heard the shouts of her friend coming from outside. It was finally their first day of high school, and for some strange reason, Tomo was very anxious about it. In fact, Tomo had been waiting outside for an hour -- there was still about half an hour left until school started. Ignoring the shouts coming from the front of her house, Yomi got dressed and ate a small breakfast.
"What took you so long?" Tomo asked a while later, "I've been waiting for hours!"
"Don't exaggerate. Besides, what made you like school all of a sudden?"
"It's not really the school part that's got me all hyped up."
"Oh, really?"
"Nope! It's the fact that today's day one of our bet!" Tomo proudly stated, thrusting her fist into the air. Chuckling softly, she faced her bespectacled companion and added, "I will not lose this one either! Just watch, I'll be this school's wildcat schoolgirl for all three years!"
Yomi looked at Tomo strangely. Since when did Tomo call herself a "wildcat schoolgirl"? She shook her head. In truth, Yomi did not want Tomo to cause any trouble today. She wanted today to be "normal" for once. Then again, what was "normal"?
As they continued walking, Tomo began to quiet down. By the time they reached the gates of the school, she had been completely silent. Many things were going on in her head -- Would she make new friends? How much homework would she have at the end of the first day? What kind of teachers would she have? There was also that one question that kept bugging her all morning -- Would she be in the same class as Yomi? Tomo gulped at the thought of not having Yomi in class. It would be a sudden change for her -- they had been together ever since they were kids. For once in her life, Tomo was scared.
"Hello? Tomo?"
Tomo snapped out of her thoughts, "Huh?"
"What are you thinking about? You seem pretty stressed."
"Oh, well...You don't need to worry! I got it all under control!" Tomo sighed. She did not want Yomi to see her all stressed out. She never wanted to show those kinds of feelings. However, she always had a way of turning her negative emotions into something brag-worthy. Smiling contently, she readied the attack on her prey...
"I got this all under control...but I don't think you do..."
"What?"
"Oh yeah, I can see it all now -- We look at the class sheets, and discover that we have been separated! You begin to cry like a baby, tugging at my sleeve, crying, 'No!! Tomo, don't leave me!' I know you can't live without me!" Tomo looked over her shoulder, checking to see if her speech was having any effect. It was. Satisfied with the results, she finished, "We're like bread and napkins, you know?"
"Bread and napkins, huh?" Yomi restrained herself from hitting the other girl. Tomo liked annoying her when she had the chance, it seemed. She now truly hoped that they would be in different classes.
"Come on!" Tomo said as she grabbed her bespectacled friend, "Let's go see those class lists!"
The walk towards the class lists seemed like an eternity to Tomo. She silently prayed that she and Yomi would be together again. Internally, she became a wreck. Being the person she was, she managed to hide her uneasiness by torturing Yomi. Finally, after what seemed like five hours, the two reached the first year class lists.
"Come on," Tomo whispered, "Please let us have the same class. Please let us have the same class. Please --"
"Hey. I found my name."
"What?!" Tomo quickly turned towards the direction of Yomi's voice. Looking at the list, she discovered that Yomi was in class 3. She was glad the girl found her class, but that was not enough. Without hesitation, she began to search for her name.
Suddenly, time slowed down yet again for Tomo. Just a few names down the list, the name "Takino Tomo" appeared. Unless there was another girl named Tomo Takino, she had every reason to cheer. Tomo was excited. She began to jump and run around the hallways of the school. Her sudden antics caused a confused Yomi, as well as dozens of other students, to stare at her.
Moments later, both girls arrive at their homeroom. For a while, the entire room was silent, expecting their teacher to come in any second. Minutes pass, and there was still no sign of class 3's teacher. Students began to chat, though most were introducing themselves to others.
"Hey, Yomi." Tomo whispered as she poked the girl's shoulder.
"What do you want?"
"We're in the same class...again!"
"Yes, I know that."
"There's no stopping us now, huh?"
"Uh...sure."
"I know you were happy when you saw my name on the list."
"Huh?"
"Like I said, if I wasn't with you, you'd start crying and stuff. You probably wouldn't last the entire day if I wasn't with you. Aren't you glad I'm here?"
Yomi finally had it. Her Tomo-comment quota had reached its maximum. She stood up from her desk and faced the shorter girl. The rest of the class watched as Yomi unleashed a powerful uppercut upon Tomo, sending the other girl off her seat and onto the floor. A couple of students were going to punish Yomi right then, but then a murmur rose from the floor.
"Wow...What...an impressive...left upper...you...have..." Tomo slowly rose from the ground, assuring everyone that the previous event was the norm between the two. That was a lie, however. This was the first time Yomi had ever punched Tomo, much less during school. She was going to ask Yomi why she did what she did, but the teacher finally decided to show up.
After school, Tomo headed straight for the park. She had been trying to hide her pain throughout the day. Entering the deep part of the park, she fell onto the grass and cried. Keeping these feelings hidden was going to hurt her someday, and she knew it. The problem was that she wanted to look like someone strong, someone who never cried or backed down on anything. Calming down somewhat, she turned around and faced the sky.
"Maybe I shouldn't act so energetic and hyper all the time..." As Tomo looked at the sky, she noticed a couple of cherry blossoms fly past her. The petals reminded her of the bet she and Yomi made a few days ago. Shaking her head, she told herself to stay the same, otherwise, she would lose the bet. Another of her weaknesses, she never liked losing.
"Tomo! That is no way to talk! You will win this bet and you will make Yomi do whatever you want!" Suddenly, Tomo's previous thoughts entered her head again, causing her to think out her situation. Finally, she told herself, "Well, maybe you should lay down the comments a little...By the end of third year, I'll still have my basic annoying factors! Yeah!"
"If that's your goal, then doubt you'll be the same by then."
Tomo's body sprang upward upon hearing the familiar monotone voice, "Ahh! Yomi! How'd you get here?"
"You showed me the way, remember?" Yomi replied while sitting down, "It wasn't like you blindfolded me or anything."
"Oh yeah...How much did you hear?"
"I got here when you mentioned your third year goal."
"That's good..."
"What's that?"
"Oh, nothing."
The two sat for a while more. Yomi apologized to Tomo, though she did warn her she could do it again, and apologized in advance. Tomo stood silent, staring into the darkening sky, and tried to forget what happened earlier that day. Her eyes quickly began to water from the constant playback of the scene, and Yomi noticed.
"Tomo? What's wrong?"
"Huh?" Tomo had not noticed the tears running down her cheeks, "Oh, uh, it's nothing."
"Tomo, when there's something wrong with you, I know it. Now tell me, what's wrong?"
Tomo could not hold it any longer. This was her chance to reveal all. It was her chance to finally show someone her other side. She hoped Yomi would at least not freak out. She gulped and turned towards the only person she could count on.
"Okay, you want to know what wrong? I'll tell you. First off, I have a sensitive side. You've seen it before, though I bet you thought it was just a mood swing or something. Well, it's not. Every time you get angry with me, it hurts my feelings. Today's a good example. You hit me...in front of our class."
"Second of all, I tend to hide my real feelings by picking on other, though that's a 50/50 chance. Sometimes I'm hiding my true feelings, other times I'm purposely making fun of someone. And lastly..." Tomo began to tear up once more before finishing. Yomi waited patiently for Tomo to finish on her own, thinking Tomo would just end her rant right there if she pressured her.
"Lastly...I...I was scared today."
"Scared?"
"Yeah. I was worried we wouldn't be in the same class again. You see, we've been together for so long. It would feel weird not having you around. Haven't you ever thought about that?"
"Well..." Yomi thought about it for a minute. She then realized that Tomo had a point. Not having Tomo around would be as if a part of Yomi was missing, and vise versa. Facing Tomo, she replied, "You're right. It would be weird..."
"See?" Tomo giggled slightly, "I can be right sometimes."
"I guess you can."
"Well, at least I finally got that off my chest. I feel...lighter, if you will."
"Does this mean you'll go back to your usual, non-secretively sensitive self?"
"Yeah. I guess so...if that's what you want."
"Actually, yeah, I do," Yomi replied with a smirk, "But you'll still change by third year!"
"Oh ho ho! That's what you think, four-eyes!" Tomo shouted as she regained her usual attitude, "I will win the bet, you'll see!"
"Four-eyes?" questioned Yomi, but she let it slide just this once. She smiled and thought, "Now there's the Tomo I know!"
Yomi helped Tomo up from her spot. She then offered to take the shorter girl all the way to her house since she was still a little shaky from earlier. Tomo thanked her and took Yomi's hand in hers. The two then made their way towards their destination. Together they walked, enjoying the evening breeze and the scent of the many cherry blossoms floating around.
TO BE CONTINUED
Yay! Chapter 3 is over! That was probably the saddest thing I have ever typed (and ever will). Oh, and just a reminder to all you readers, I will no longer mention the bet the two made. Tomo and Yomi, and obviously you guys, already know that the bet lasts until third year, so they (and you) don't need to be reminded. Hopefully, I won't have as much schoolwork to do while I start typing chapter 4...
