Deep summer is when laziness finds respectability.
— Sam Keen
The summer cicadas buzzed loudly as Kagami and Shouko strolled down the riverside, the latter unable to resist peering into the reeds every ten seconds.
"What are you looking for, Sho-chan?" Kagami asked when Shouko started pushing through the reeds for longer than ever.
"Frogs, Kagamin!" Shouko had become quite taken with Kagami's new nickname and liked to use it every chance she got, much like how Oikawa Tooru called his best friend "Iwa-chan".
"Frogs, huh?" Kagami looked up at the blue sky before smiling. "Yeah, frogs are nice, aren't they?" It just so happened she was carrying a net for catching such creatures. "Let's try to find one together and look after it for a bit! Then we can take it back to the field."
"Oh, oh, okay! Make it a really big one too!"
About ten minutes later, they were successful in catching a large frog that Shouko decided to name Momo. Kagami carefully carried Momo in her net all the way home, Shouko making it her duty to make sure that Momo didn't escape.
"Okaa-chan, otou-san, we're home!" Kagami announced as she stepped into the house barefoot. She carefully removed the frog from her net, making sure to grip it firmly but not too tightly so that it wouldn't be painful for the creature.
"Where are we going to put Momo?" Shouko asked when Kagami passed the frog to her to take off her hat.
"I have a tank in my room," Kagami replied, "Come on, Sho-chan, let's go!"
"Woww... Momo sure is cute, right?"
"I know! It's so big as well. What a great find..."
Iwaizumi was sitting in front of his computer, having just finished some work when the telltale pitter-patter of feet sounded, indicating that Shouko and Kagami were headed upstairs as they talked about something cute.
Hmm? Did they find some sort of kitten or something? Iwaizumi wondered as he pushed his chair away from his desk to come out and greet the girls. "Hey," he said, popping his head out to the corridor, "let me see too."
Shouko eagerly held up the writhing amphibian in her hands.
"... I need some coffee."
Iwaizumi headed downstairs, a bit lightheaded, as Kagami closed the door to her room behind her. Then she placed Momo in a clean tank she had used for a previous science experiment.
"So, Sho-chan," Kagami eventually said when the two sat down in the floor, Kagami hugging Uroro to her chest. "Is your family going to the summer festival next week? There's one happening in our neighborhood in the evening."
Shouko nodded. "Mmhm! Kaa-chan says that we're going to meet Sumire-nee-chan and Tobio-nii-san there as well."
"Are you guys going to wear a yukata? Haruhi said she was going to wear one since she volunteered to help out at the shrine."
"Wow, Haruhi is so awesome and good at everything... Do you think I can volunteer too?"
"I think you'll be too young. Sorry, Sho-chan."
"Aww..."
Oikawa Tooru answered the door, blinking in bland surprise at the short person standing in front of him and wearing a mask over her face. "Sumire-chan...?"
"I do not know of this person you speak of. I am the Cicada Queen." Sumire lifted the mask over her face. "By the way, where's Sho-chan? The custom yukata you ordered arrived and I have it here with me."
"Next door at Iwa-chan's," Oikawa answered, smirking. "Why do I get the feeling that you're up to something?"
"Kukuku... you know me so well, Tooru-nii." Then Sumire pulled the mask back down and headed over to the Iwaizumi's.
"... And then Haruhi ate the whole loaf of bread!" Kagami finished, laughing until her sides hurt. "Even while the poles collapsed!"
"Is Haruhi the Hulk?!" Shouko demanded to know, enraptured by Kagami's tale. "She's so strong and eats a lot!"
Before Kagami could answer, someone knocked on the door. Assuming that it was her mother or father, Kagami called, "Come in!"
The door swung open eerily slow... and a masked menace entered in an almost zombie-like state.
"Shouko... I am the Cicada Queen... and I have come to collect your soul for the summer harvest!" Sumire declared, drawing out her sentences to make herself seem more fiendish.
"Guh... Gwah?!" Shouko cried out unintelligibly, backing away in fear with eyes wide. "Get away! Ahh! I don't want my soul to be harvested!" When Sumire neared her, she cried even louder, "GYAAAHH!"
Kagami stared at Sumire. "The heck..."
Suddenly, Shouko grabbed something from Kagami's desk and threw it at her. It was a stress relief ball and the thing bounced harmlessly off Sumire's waist.
"GET AWAY!" shouted Shouko, feeling for something else to throw at the Cicada Queen. "GYAAHH, LEAVE ME AND MY SOUL ALONE!" Then she found a roll of masking tape and threw it hard at Sumire. It bonked her on the head.
"Ouch! ... Now you've done it," Sumire said threateningly, continuing to advance on Shouko.
"Sumire-nee, that's you, right?" Kagami said weakly. "Maybe you should stop..."
"I do not know who this person is," retorted Sumire. "I am the Cicada Queen and my only purpose is to collect this little girl's soul!" Heheh... she's so easy to scare!
"GET AWAAAY!" squeaked Shouko, tossing a stapler fast and hard at Sumire, who flinched.
Okay, maybe this joke is going a little too far, Sumire thought to herself, sweatdropping. She peeled off her mask. "Calm down, Sho-chan, it's just—mffft!"
While Sumire had been taking off her mask, Shouko, in a last resort move, had grabbed Momo from its tank and thrown it at Sumire, the frog landing headfirst in her mouth.
"Mffft!" screamed Sumire, flailing her arms around.
"MOMO!" shrieked Kagami, unable to see the poor thing in pain.
"THE CICADA QUEEN ATE SUMIRE-NEE AND NOW SHE'S EATING MOMO TOO!" Shouko howled in terror, pointing an accusing finger at Sumire. Deciding it was nigh time to take action, Shouko ran at Sumire and started kicking her shins with all her might. "TAKE THAT! AND THAT, AND THAT!"
"MFFFFTT!"
"SUMIRE-NEE, WHATEVER YOU DO, DON'T BITE DOWN ON MOMO!" Kagami warned, panicking.
Sumire looked as if she were going to faint at that suggestion. Eventually, Sumire managed to calm herself down enough to pull the frog out of her mouth, her tongue hanging out of her mouth as she balked.
Momo simply hopped to the side.
"GYAAAH!" Sumire screamed, the fact that she had just had a frog in her oral cavity catching up to her.
"GYAAAAAAAH!" Shouko hollered, still under the impression that Sumire was the Cicada Queen in disguise.
"Momo...!" sobbed Kagami, grabbing the frog and holding it close to her.
Downtown, Naoko was shopping for tonight's dinner. She glanced upward as a flock of crows flew overhead, disappearing over a particularly tall building.
The summer breeze caused her hair to whip around as she craned her neck to try and glimpse the crows again before giving up.
What a quiet day today... she thought.
Kageyama frowned when he sat down opposite Sumire for dinner. "You haven't kissed me all day," he said bluntly. And you've brushed your teeth three times today...
Sumire grimaced, looking a little pale. "Trust me when I say I'm doing you a favor."
"Hold still," said Naoko as she tied the sash of Shouko's kimono. Shouko kicked her legs back and forth on her parent's bed as Naoko tightened the sash. "There. Now let me do your hair..."
Naoko herself was wearing a yukata for the summer festival that was happening in their neighborhood. She and her family were to head over there with the Iwaizumi family. There, they would likely be meeting up with Sumire and Kageyama, both whom had promised to show up.
"Eh? Why are you twisting my hair like that?" Shouko tried to tilt her head up but Naoko forced her to lower her chin.
"Because you look nicer this way," Naoko replied simply as she finished up with her daughter's brown locks. "Your hair has grown out long enough for me to style it like this."
They exited the bedroom, where Oikawa, who was dressed in a navy blue yukata, greeted them, smiling. "Sho-chan, you look so pretty!" He picked up his giggling daughter and held her in her arms, careful not to mess up her hair.
Shouko scrunched up her nose. "Don't care! I want to play with Kagamin when we get there so my hair's gonna get all messed up anyway."
Naoko rolled her eyes as Oikawa set her down again. "Just don't roll in the grass again."
They met up with Iwaizumi and Kiyoko, where greetings were exchanged before they all hopped into Iwaizumi's car to drive to the festival location.
"Wow, Sho-chan, you look so cute," cooed Kagami, pinching Shouko's cheek and laughing. "Did your mom do your hair for you?"
"Uh huh! Okaa-chan is really good at styling hair, isn't she?!"
Kiyoko smiled at Naoko. "You really are. Since when did you get so good at doing these kinds of things?"
Naoko snorted. "When you have Ryouta Rin as a friend, it's nearly impossible not to escape without some kind of vain knowledge... She made sure to make my university days hell with her makeup tips."
At that, Oikawa laughed. "I remember when you tried to put on mascara for the first time! My god, you looked like someone had punched both of your eyes! I was about to call the ambulance, Mako-chan."
"Oh, shut up," Naoko grumbled, folding her arms across her chest. "It was my first time, okay?" Dumb chihuahua!
At that, Iwaizumi spluttered and nearly missed a stoplight.
"Get your mind out of the gutter, Hajime," sighed Kiyoko, a smile exuding fond exasperation on her face.
"It's okay, Kiyoko, we all know that Iwa-chan is a secret pervert—"
"We are not having this discussion in front of the kids, Trashykawa," Iwaizumi cut him off with a half-hearted scowl.
"Kaa-chan, can I get a goldfish?" Naoko raised both eyebrows subtly at Shouko's sudden inquiry. "Kagamin said that a lot of festivals have the goldfish scooping game!"
Oikawa turned his head backward from his place in the front seat to exchange a concerned glance with Naoko. Nobody in their right mind would let Shouko look after a live animal.
"Sorry, kiddo, but you're not going to be able to look after it," Oikawa said, hoping to let her down gently. "Maybe when you're older..."
"Aww..." Shouko pouted, eerily reminding Oikawa of himself.
"What about me?" Kagami asked, tugging Kiyoko's sleeve. "Do you think I'm ready to look after a pet?" Momo turned out alright... even if Sumire-nee nearly asphyxiated it in her mouth... "We have a fish pond in the back that we can use."
"If you want," Iwaizumi answered, and Shouko spluttered in disbelief. "I think you're responsible enough to own a fish."
"I agree," Kiyoko added, "It'll be a good experience."
"Thanks!"
"Why does Kagamin get to have a fish and I don't?" Shouko complained, puffing out her cheeks in indignation. Unfair! I can be responsible too!
"Because you're too young," Naoko told her, "And you're not ready for such a responsibility yet. Maybe when you're older, we'll let you have one."
When they arrived at the festival, it was already in full swing. There were plenty of locals wandering around, playing festival games or running stands. The shrine was decorated as well, and some shrine maidens were handing out fortunes and selling souvenirs.
"Don't wander off too far," Naoko told Shouko as she left her daughter in the care of Kagami. "Stay with Kagami-chan at all times; don't leave her side, okay?"
"I'll make sure to look after her," Kagami promised.
Soon, the two children separated from the adults, wandering around to look for Haruhi, who was supposed to be working here tonight as a shrine maiden. Eventually, they spotted her offering fortunes.
"Haruhi!" Shouko said cheerfully as she and Kagami approached her. "What are you doing?"
"Oh, hi, you guys." Haruhi grinned at them before pulling out two fortunes and giving them to Kagami and Shouko. "I'm handing out fortunes. Here."
"Oohh..." Shouko tried to look through the plastic containing the paper fortune. "... I can't tell what it is."
"Silly," Haruhi laughed, "It doesn't work that way! I'm going off my shift soon so I'll be able to join you for the rest of the night."
"You're supposed to open them first and then unroll the paper," Kagami explained to an irritated Shouko, demonstrating by tearing open her own and pulling out the paper. "Like this, see?"
"But what if it's a bad fortune? I want a good fortune!" Shouko protested.
Haruhi sweatdropped. "Like I said, it doesn't work that way... Just open it and see for yourself, Sho-chan." As Shouko begrudgingly did so, Haruhi turned to Kagami. "What kind of fortune did you get?"
"Geehh..." Kagami turned over the paper to Haruhi, tears comically pouring down her face. "I got future bad luck! Wuu..."
Shouko opened and read hers. "I have middle fortune," she said, "Is that good?"
"Yeah, that's great," Haruhi replied, "Personally, I think middle fortune is the best one to get. Also, Kagami, you should probably tie yours to a tree so that bad luck doesn't follow you around."
"Oh, great idea, Haruhi!" Kagami looked around for a tree branch to tie her fortune on, spotting a tree that already had multiple fortunes tied on its thin branches. "Wow, if I didn't know any better, I'd think it was rigged..." She went over to the tree and managed to find a bare spot. Carefully, she tied her fortune on it... but then the branch snapped off and fell into Kagami's hands. "Gaah!"
Shouko pointed a finger at Kagami and unabashedly laughed. "Looks like bad luck is going to follow you around, Kagamin!"
"Aw, be quiet," Kagami grumbled before attempting to tie it on another branch. It snapped off again. "Are you serious?!"
Haruhi was let off her shift five minutes later, and the girls eventually found a bare tree to tie Kagami's bad fortune on. Haruhi encouraged Shouko to keep her middle fortune with her until she got home and even bought Kagami a golden poo to counter her bad luck.
Shouko marveled at Kagami's new golden poo charm. "It looks just like the cake you ate the other day! It must be a sign!"
Kagami scowled. "Hey, stop insulting my cake! I'm sorry I have a more sophisticated taste than you, Sho-chan." I thought it tasted good! And it looked nice... not poopy...
"Hey, little girls, over here!" A crafty looking elderly vendor was beckoning them over, a smile on his face that was far too large to be genuine. "Do you want to win some toys? Come over here and play the shooting darts game!"
The three girls glanced at the man's selection of toys on the shelf. Suddenly, Shouko's eyes widened and she cried, "It's Uroro!" She pointed at a teddy bear sitting on the middle shelf in awe. "A real life Uroro!"
"Are you still on about that?" Kagami blinked at her in surprise. "Her name's Ushio, but whatever, I guess. Do you want to try and win Uroro?"
Shouko nodded eagerly and Kagami pulled out her wallet, filled with the allowance that her parents gave her. "I have about 1500 yen in here," Kagami reported. "How much for a play, sir?"
Haruhi narrowed her eyes at the man. I don't trust this man... he's got this fishy air about him. But there was nothing Haruhi could do as the man explained the game to Shouko.
"All you have to do is hit the bear and it's all yours," he promised with that shifty grin on his face. "And it's 250 yen for three darts." After Kagami paid, the man gave a plastic gun filled with the plastic darts to Shouko.
Sticking her tongue out in concentration, Shouko shot at the bear and missed it by inches. "Darn it!" She shot at it again but missed by an even larger distance. "Hrr..."
"Calm down, Sho-chan," soothed Kagami, "If you get mad, you won't be able to concentrate."
"Kagami's right, Sho-chan," added Haruhi, shooting discrete death glares at the elderly vendor. "And don't get too upset if you miss, okay?"
"Fine, fine." Taking aim, Shouko unleashed the final dart onto the toys on the shelf. It hit the teddy bear's leg. "Yes! I win!"
"Good job, Sho-chan," praised Kagami, refraining from ruffling the girl's styled hair for now. "Uroro's all yours now."
Haruhi stepped in front of them, ready to collect the teddy bear from the vendor. "Excuse me, sir, the bear, please." She raised an expecting eyebrow at the man. This guy really annoys me...
"Sorry, but I can't do that," the vendor apologized in a tone that suggested that he was not at all sorry for declining Shouko's prize. "To win, I said you had to knock the bear off the shelf."
"Hah?! No you didn't!" Haruhi said angrily. "You just said we had to hit it!"
"I must be going senile in my old age," the man said apologetically, grinning sharply.
Shouko's eyes grew sad. "But... Uroro..." Tears started welling up in her eyes. "You said I could have Uroro if I won!"
"There's no way one of these flimsy darts could knock anything as heavy as that bear off the shelf," Kagami argued, frowning. "You're trying to scam us!"
The man yawned as if none of them were even worth his time. "Look, you brats, just run along, okay?"
"Give us our money back first!" barked Haruhi, baring her teeth at him. "You conman!"
The man tapped the sign that said 'no refunds' with his wooden cane. "You can read, right?"
"Hey, hey, what's going on?" Sumire suddenly appeared behind them with her husband in tow. Unlike Sumire, Kageyama was not dressed in any traditional wear, wearing instead a volleyball jersey and carrying a volleyball. He had obviously just come from a volleyball game. She narrowed her eyes at the elderly vendor. This guy seems really familiar...
Shouko, teary-eyed and on the verge of crying, tugged on Sumire's yukata sleeve. "This man won't give Uroro to me! He says that you have to knock Uroro of the shelf!"
The girl's bottom lip trembled and Sumire scowled, instantly remembering just who this sleazeball was. Then she smirked. Obviously, he doesn't remember who Tobio and I are just yet... "Excuse me, how much yen for a play?" she asked.
"250," was the man's expected answer. He smiled lazily at Sumire, obviously expecting more easy winnings.
Sumire paid the money and received the dart gun with a triumphant smile on her face before stepping back. "Hey, Tobio, you're up."
Kageyama smirked. "Gladly." He brought the volleyball up so that the man could see it. "Remember me, bastard?"
The man's wide eyes indicated that yes, he did indeed remember him. Kageyama tossed the ball up in the air agonizingly slowly, ready to serve the volleyball into the shelves and shelves of toys.
"WAIT!" the man cried, sweating as he grabbed Uroro down from the shelf. He smiled genially at Shouko as he gave her the bear. "M-my treat, little girl."
"R-really?" Shouko sniffed, taking the bear from him and holding it tightly. "Thanks!"
"HAHA, it's really no big deal..." The man stepped back from them, obviously terrified. "... Please don't knock down all of my shelves again... you nearly bankrupted me last time."
Kageyama raised an eyebrow at him. "Maybe I will if you stop trying to scam kids out of their money." This damn asshole again... I never thought I'd see him again.
"Wow, Tobio-nii, you're the best!" Shouko cheered as she hugged Kageyama's legs. "Thank you sooo much!"
"Ahem," Sumire cleared her throat and opened up her arms expectantly. "What am I, chopped liver?"
A cheeky grin stretched across Shouko's face. "No, but you're stinky like liver!" Scowling, Sumire pinched her cheek.
"Take that back, you brat!"
"Whoa!" Haruhi suddenly blurted, looking up at Kageyama. "You're my otou-san's volleyball friend, right?"
"Eh?" Kageyama glanced at her. "Who's your dad? Wait..." He narrowed his eyes at her silver-grey hair. "... Bokuto?"
"Y-yeah! I'm Bokuto Haruhi... And you're Kageyama Tobio, prodigy, right?!"
Kagami, who was in awe of how the whole situation had been resolved, piped up, "I've never seen you so excited, Haruhi."
"Are you kidding?! This guy is legendary!"
"Hu?" Shouko tilted her head to one side. "I just call him Angry-senpai in my head, actually..."
Kageyama looked decidedly unimpressed but decided to let that remark slide.
"Angry-senpai?!" Haruhi looked as if she were about to faint. She wobbled and Sumire just managed to catch her before she fell.
"... And I was wondering if Shouko wanted to come," Kiyoko concluded as she, Iwaizumi, Oikawa, and Naoko all stood together to the side. "I think she'll enjoy it, even if we have to wake up really early."
"I remember Hiyori," said Oikawa, mulling Kiyoko's suggestion over. "The photographer, right?"
"Mm. She's going exclusively for the sights and she's taking Kagami with her, so why not?"
"I suppose," Naoko hummed, "Tooru, you're free next week, right? Which means you should be able to go."
"Ah, do I really have to?" Oikawa harrumphed. "I don't want to wake up at four in the morning just for something like that."
"You don't get to see something like that every day," Iwaizumi pointed out. "Honestly, I'd go if I could, and so would Kiyoko." He deadpanned at Oikawa. "And your lazy ass would rather sleep in..."
"Mean," Oikawa whined, "Besides, beauty sleep is important!"
"Obviously, your beauty sleep isn't working," Iwaizumi said snidely.
"Rude! So rude, Iwa-chan!"
"It's a shame that I can't go either," Naoko said to Kiyoko. "But I have to be at the hospital on Thursday."
"And I actually have to go down to my office for once," Kiyoko said with a laugh. "Hiyori really picks the worst timing."
With a triumphant shout, Kagami managed to bounce a goldfish into her bowl. The vendor congratulated her before pouring the goldfish and some water into a plastic baggy for Kagami to carry home.
Kageyama and Sumire had wandered off somewhere else and Haruhi would have left with them if Kagami hadn't pulled her back (Kageyama had shot her a thankful look).
"Wow, Kagamin is so cool!" marveled Shouko, taking a close look at the bag. "So lucky as well... I want a goldfish!"
"You can come over ever day to see Gyoppi-chan if you want," Kagami promised with a smile.
"Huh? Gyoppi-chan?" Haruhi said questioningly as she squatted down to look at the little goldfish. "Is that what you decided to name it?"
"Mmhm!" Kagami stared lovingly at her goldfish. I'll take care of it. I'll take good care of it. My little Gyoppi-chan...
A/N: Some deja vu with that shifty vendor and Sumire and Kageyama. Perhaps he's learned his lesson for good this time. This story is probably going to be wrapped up in another 2 or 3 chapters.