Mitsuru sat in her room, a cup of tea in one hand and a book on her lap. The other inhabitants of the dorm were off on their own errands, so a quiet peace surrounded her. After approving a sizable stack of forms from various clubs and teams and completing her own homework, Mitsuru felt she'd successfully earned a break.
But success was short-lived. The slamming of doors signaled that the rest of her teammates had arrived – and from the sound of things, they were not happy with one another. That's odd, Mitsuru thought, Yuki usually mediates well in my absence.
Minako Yuki was proving to be quite an asset in more ways than one. She was able to rein in Iori, calm Takeba, and was it Mitsuru's imagination, or had Shinjiro been opening up more around her? Convincing Yuki to join student council was also working out beautifully, as she'd even managed the impossible feat of subduing Odagiri. As much as she hated to admit it, Mitsuru found herself admiring Yuki as well. The girl somehow managed to charm everyone around her while still staying at the top of her class and leading them through Tartarus.
Perhaps she hadn't returned with the others, because the angry voices increased in volume, and they were shouting Mitsuru's least favorite words: "I'm getting Mitsuru-senpai!" Oh, bother. If they were coming for her, it meant that Akihiko was involved and neither Yuki nor Shinjiro could reason with him. Already, she was displeased.
"Senpaiiiiiiiiii!" Yamagishi came running up the stairs. Mitsuru opened up the door to find her trembling, as if she'd seen a ghost. "Oh, Senpai! Come quick!" She didn't seem to want to offer any explanation – apparently the situation was dire enough to speak for itself.
When both girls finally reached the first floor, they emerged onto a battlefield. Akihiko and Shinjiro were at each other's throats, barely restrained by Iori and Yuki respectively. Takeba was circling the two, alternating between pleading with them to stop and threatening to tattle on them. Amada was standing by the door as if he'd contemplated fleeing. He may have been quite mature for his age, but he was still an elementary student, and had little experience with the Idiot Twins and their tempestuous relationship.
Mitsuru, on the other hand, could write a book about it. "What is going on here?"
Akihiko stopped immediately. Shinjiro continued his taunting gestures, but he, too, had stopped advancing at the sound of Mitsuru's voice – though he'd never admit it. He switched to smirking at Akihiko's subconscious reaction instead. When Yuki turned to glare at him, he – and again, Mitsuru had to wonder if she was imagining things – stopped doing that as well. Shinjiro Aragaki hypocritically committing Akihiko's sin of being cowed by a girl? 'What is going on here' indeed? How have I never noticed?
Standard operating procedure at this point was for Akihiko to sputter out an explanation that he hoped would placate Mitsuru, while Shinjiro would either bluntly refute it or go mute and start sulking. But Akihiko was strangely silent.
Instead, Yuki turned to Mitsuru herself. "I'm sorry, Senpai. It was my fault." she began. "You see, I've got new outfits for Tartarus. It took me forever to earn enough, but...anyway, they're really cute! I was telling Yukari-chan all about them when we ran into the boys, and when I showed them what I had hoped Shinjiro-senpai would wear..."
"I told you, I ain't wearin' it!" Shinjiro growled. "Give it to Aki! He's Kirijo's stooge – now he can finally dress the part!"
"No way in hell I'm wearing that stupid thing!" said Akihiko, brandishing his fist.
"One of us has to wear it!"
"So we'll settle this the way we always do."
"Bash each other over the head until Mitsuru gets pissed off enough and bashes both our heads together? No thanks!"
Mitsuru thought of her now-cold tea left in her room, along with the book she had been looking forward to finishing since her father permitted her to borrow it from his office. If she had been displeased before, by now, she was absolutely furious.
"Does everything have to end in a fistfight with these two?" moaned Takeba.
Mitsuru just sighed. "I've seen them come to blows over whose ramen had the most noodles in it."
"Who won?" Iori asked.
"The floor, after they knocked over the table." This was getting them nowhere. "Just what exactly is this outfit that no one wants to wear?"
Yuki bounded over to the sofa and grabbed some clothes that Mitsuru hadn't noticed earlier. "Ta-da! It's a butler's uniform!"
It certainly was. Mitsuru was very familiar with uniforms, since she'd spent more time with the servants than with her own parents. As smart as it looked, however, a butler's uniform didn't seem very useful when fighting Shadows.
"I-I think it looks nice." said Yamagishi meekly.
"Then you wear it." Shinjiro scoffed.
"Hey, at least it's real clothes!" Takeba rolled her eyes. "I'd rather wear that then Hi-Cut Armor!"
Mitsuru flinched. "Don't bring that up again, Takeba, please." That metal bikini would be forever etched in her memory. She briefly wondered if Takeba or Yuki ever had nightmares of showing up to school in the accursed thing. (Hopefully, she wasn't the only one!)
"What even made you think anyone wanted to be a butler, anyway?" Akihiko decided to ask Yuki.
"Aw, c'mon!" she said, "Haven't you ever wanted to be someone else?"
This gave Mitsuru pause. She sometimes did. She couldn't help but notice the change in demeanor when she introduced herself – the glossing over of eyes when she finishes her name. "Oh...Kirijo..." It wasn't as simple as a change in wardrobe, however.
"Senpai?"
"Hmm?"
Yuki had apparently been asking for her opinion. "Do you think I should change my name? I mean...everyone knows Minako Yuki is that orphaned transfer student...it kind of sucks. But if I go somewhere else after I graduate, I could be anybody!"
"No more Mina-tan?" Iori swooned dramatically. "Will the new you still wolf down three extra large beef bowls and murder me in video games?"
"Yeah! The new me's still really cool like that."
Mitsuru was, again, unexpectedly impressed. "You appear to have given this a lot of thought."
Yuki nodded. "I just need a name. What about something like...Hamuko?"
"Hamu-tan, huh?" Iori mused. "Hamu-tan...I like it!"
"Great," Shinjiro said suddenly, "but I'm still not wearin' that suit."
Mitsuru massaged the bridge of her nose. "It would certainly do you some good to get out of that coat...and launder it." Shinjiro gave her his most intimidating death glare, but it fell flat.
"Bark!"
"Koro-chan says he would be honored to wear a suit for Minako-chan, but alas, he is a dog." said Aigis.
"Aww, he's also a gentleman!" Yuki cooed as she booped him on the nose.
Amada had been steadily creeping toward the others as the fighting died down. He decided Mitsuru made a suitable shield, and was finally ready to contribute. "I would have worn it, too." he said, gazing up at Yuki with round, bright eyes, "but it's a little too big for me."
"Oh, Ken-kun!" chirped Yuki, and Amada turned pink. "If only the older boys were as thoughtful as you and Koro-chan are!" She pouted dramatically at said older boys, who all looked off in different directions.
"Pleeeeeaaaase...Shinji-senpai?"
Now Mitsuru could be sure she wasn't imagining things, because Akihiko visibly reacted to that as well. She was just about to tell Yuki that she was championing a lost cause when Shinjiro sighed.
"Only if you get one for Aki, too." he muttered, and quickly left the room.
Several days passed with no mention of servants' clothes. Yuki was as studious as ever, accompanying Odagiri on his furiously fruitless quest to catch a student smoker and apparently helping Yamagishi create edible food as well. Rumor had it she was even sewing with Geraux, the Japanophile transfer student. Mitsuru had been looking forward to taking a break from Tartarus before exams, but Yuki was as energetic as ever on that front, too. One of the mysterious barriers had been removed, and SEES was now on a higher floor and climbing faster than Ikutsuki could have ever predicted. Was there nothing this girl couldn't do?
When Akihiko came home that afternoon, he seemed pleased to find Mitsuru reading in her usual chair. "You seen Shinji?" he asked, flopping down onto the couch and putting his feet on the table.
"Not since this morning." Mitsuru answered, guiding Akihiko's feet back down to the floor with her own foot. "Arguing again?"
"Apparently, he told Minako that I was responsible for his mouth bleeding constantly." explained Akihiko.
"If I remember correctly, I believe you were."
"So she decided to lecture me about it." Akihiko leaned over and lowered Mitsuru's (actually, still Takeharu's) book so he could look her in the eye. "Since when did Shinji start hiding behind a skirt when he's always making fun of me for hiding behind yours?"
Mitsuru was about to raise an eyebrow at that statement, but something in Akihiko's face made her stop. He's really worried about this. Instead, she sighed and put the book down. "I've noticed Shinjiro acting differently as well," she began, "and I think you're correct in assuming it has to do with Yuki."
Akihiko sat back wearily. "Do you believe that stuff she was talking about? Wanting to be someone else?"
"It isn't always easy to get around someone's preconceived notions of you."
"Yeah, but..." Akihiko suddenly found something very interesting on the carpet. "She'd be leaving behind all that's left of her family. Who's gonna remember them then?"
"She will." Mitsuru assured him. "Everyone who knew and loved them will." It was very rare for Akihiko to let his guard down, even in front of Mitsuru. He never talked about his late family, and Shinjiro wasn't very forthcoming with information when she'd asked him, either. Such a monumental loss had left Akihiko petulantly clinging to anyone he grew close to – which, until recently, was solely Shinjiro. Mitsuru wasn't sure where she was on that list...or how that made her feel sometimes.
"Doesn't seem right to me." muttered Akihiko. "You can't get away from your past by disguising yourself so it won't recognize you."
Mitsuru couldn't hide the smile that illuminated her entire face. "Although one could grow and mature to the point where they hardly resemble their past self." I think I prefer this man you've become to the boy you've left behind.
"Yeah, but neither of those things are Shinji. He's been butting his past right in the head for years now. So what's that got to do with Minako?"
Mitsuru just chuckled. Oh, Akihiko...if only you knew...
Suddenly the door flew open and Yuki danced into the dorm, exuberant as usual. "I did it!" she sang as she hopped up the stairs with bags in both hands.
"It appears we're going to find out." said Mitsuru.
By the time 11 pm arrived, and SEES was due to leave for Tartarus, each member impatiently waited for Minako's resolution. The girl in question bounded down the stairs with her arms full of clothes and a devious grin on her face.
"There you are...Ham-mina-tan!" Iori smirked at what he thought was a witty joke.
As expected, Takeba shot him down. "You were supposed to pick one, Stupei!" she sighed, rolling her eyes.
Yuki cleared her throat loudly. Standing straight (in what Mitsuru suspected was Yuki's impression of her, the one she wasn't supposed to hear Akihiko laughing about), she proudly announced. "I'm sure you remember how I tried to add a little variety to our armor last week. Nobody wanted to wear the butler uniform." At this, Yuki pouted. "But," she perked up, "I realized that since I only had ONE butler outfit, everybody else would feel left out!"
"No, we wouldn't." muttered Shinjiro.
"Sooo..." Yuki picked up a few hangars and declared, "Not only do I have butler outfits for all the guys-"
"Heh-heh, Shinji." Akihiko chortled.
"-I have maid outfits for all the girls, too!"
"WHAT?!" shouted Mitsuru.
"HUH?" shouted Takeba.
"WHOA!" shouted Iori. He literally began jumping for joy. "Take that, typhoon! Our culture festival is back in business! Bet you can't wait, huh, Yuka-tan?" Takeba just growled.
"Wh-when you say, 'all the girls'..." Mitsuru desperately sought an escape. No. No, this is not happening! I am not the one who's trying to please you for some ungodly reason and I am certainly not wearing a uniform designed for servants!
But Yuki was smiling like the proverbial cat that got the cream. "Yep! I got you one, too, Senpai!"
Akihiko mysteriously choked on a drink he didn't even have.
"HA-HA!" Shinjiro burst out laughing. "AH-HA-HA-HAAAAAAHHHHH! WHAT NOW, MITSURU?" Lovely being that he was, Shinjiro turned to his oldest friend, still sputtering, and clapped him on the back. "Looks like Christmas came early for Aki." Akihiko looked at Mitsuru and promptly began choking again.
Oh, that does it.
You wish to challenge me, Aragaki?
You forget – a queen moves wherever she likes.
Mitsuru cleared her own throat, and Yuki suddenly looked guilty. "As I was attempting to say earlier: 'all the girls' implicitly includes yourself, Yuki." Silence. "Are you going to wear a uniform as well?" Shinjiro's eyes popped out of his head. Check.
"Well, yeah! I thought we could all wear one together! Won't that be cute?" Shinjiro's jaw dropped.
Your move, "Shinji-senpai".
Akihiko had recovered. "Hey, Shinji, you, uh...you got a little something under your nose...you might wanna wipe that off." Shinjiro glared at him. "Merry Christmas."
Shinjiro wasn't finished. "You gonna wear the uniform, Mitsuru? Mina went to all that trouble to get everybody something."
Mina? thought Mitsuru at the same time Akihiko could be heard muttering, "So she's 'Mina' now?"
But Shinjiro had made a magnificent error. "I will if you will." Mitsuru said simply. Now he was the one who needed to act. Oh, did you think this was checkmate? Looks like zugzwang from here.
Sure enough, Shinjiro blanched. "Shit..."
"Aw man, aw man, aw man! This is gonna be GREAT!" Iori was, predictably, delighted with this outcome.
"You still have to dress like a butler, you know." Takeba pointed out.
Iori pondered this. "Worth it!" he declared.
Yuki passed out the clothes, and everyone reluctantly left for their rooms to change. Mitsuru sent a silent thanks to the Dark Hour for eliminating most of the people in town. Now, if only it would eliminate some of the people in this dorm. When she returned, she was shocked to find Shinjiro not only without his coat, but his hat as well.
"Butlers don't wear beanies." Yuki was telling him, trying to smooth his hair.
"Quit it!" Shinjiro yelled as he pulled away.
Mitsuru was left wondering how this got so serious without anyone noticing...until Akihiko returned in his own suit. She stared at him, he stared at her, and this quickly became the second most awkward night of both of their lives.
This is all Yamagishi's fault somehow.
