Chapter 4 is up and ready, I assume. Proofreading was never my strong suit. In any case, this is where the story starts to head towards the climax, so I'm starting to set it all up. Hopefully it came out well. As always, I appreciate any critiques, and thank you for the kind reviews.


I took a deep breath and put my hand on the doorknob to the clubroom, bracing myself for whatever it was I'd face on the other side. Haruki already said he'd be making an announcement today, and that was never a good thing. But Nagato said he trusted me, and even Koizumi said the same thing. I psyched myself up and turned the knob only to see...

Nothing. An empty room. Well, okay, Nagato was still there, but when wasn't he there? Seriously, does he even go to class? Well, with his brain, I'm sure he could just show up for tests and--

"K-Kyon?"

A timid but somewhat familiar voice whimpered from inside the room. Wait, come to think of it, so far, I've spoken with Haruki, Koizumi, and Nagato. There was still one member of our little renegade club I hadn't seen. I looked around the room, but aside from Nagato reading his book, I didn't see anyone. But then, out of the corner of my eye, I saw what seemed to be a head of orange hair sticking out of the costume rack. "A-Asahina?"

"Kyoooooooon!"

In a blur, that head of orange hair lunged at me, tackling me to the ground. My vision blurred as the back of my skull met the cold, hard floor for the second time today. If this were a bad daytime soap opera, I'd already be an amnesiac. More than my head, however, I was concerned for my torso, which was currently being crushed by a very, very emotional... boy.

"Kyon! Kyon! KyonKyonKyonKyonKyonKyonKyonKyoooooooooon!" he screamed, somewhat oblivious to the fact that I was unable to even gasp for air. "Kyon, I don't know what to do! I... I... I turned into... into a boy! And... and everyone else has changed, too! And... and..."

"Can't... br... breathe..." I finally managed to gasp out the words, signaling a moment of clarity in the mind of the young red-head, who finally realized what he had been doing.

"Oh... Oh no! I'm so sorry! I'm sorry! Please, please forgive me! I just... wah! Wah! I just--You, too?! And me! And Haruhi and Nagato and everyone!" Asahina began to wave his hands all over the place in a wild panic.

I immediately sat back up and put my hands on the now-masculine Asahina's shoulders and looked into his deep, brown eyes. Even in a new body, they were still filled with an innocence and purity that absolutely shone through. Well, the parts that weren't overflowing with tears, anyway. "Asahina. Please. Calm down. Deep breaths."

"Y-Yes, th-thank you, I've... I've been on edge... all day. I just..." The boy finally seemed to have calmed down as he took a few deep breaths, though his cheeks were still quite moist with tears and he shook visibly. However, it was enough to give me a chance to look over the angelic 'mascot' of the club.

Suffice to say, Asahina was not exactly the pinnacle of masculinity. He wasn't a rung or two below it. He wasn't even halfway there. The female Asahina Mikuru could have easily passed for a middle-school student if it were not for a few strategic, and wonderful, curves. Similarly, the male-version looked just as young. If it weren't for the fact that he wore a high-school uniform, you'd swear he was still in junior high. From his high-pitched voice to his gentle face and short stature, he was adorable.

I'm still not entirely sure if the warm feeling I got looking at him was caused by my new womanly hormones or if the Asahina I knew was merely so pure and perfect that even a clash of universes could not sully her nature. All things considered, sore ribs and a second bump on the head was a small price to pay for knowing that Asahina was still herself. Himself. You know what I mean.

Finally getting up off the ground, Asahina gave me a hand and lifted me up as well. After I was back on my feet and dusted off my skirt, though, I found him just staring back at me with a slight blush in his cheeks. "Wah, Kyon... you're so pretty..."

Immediately, both of our faces got even redder. God, this was pathetic.

"Ah, no, I didn't mean it like that!" Asahina stammered while flailing about. "I don't really think you're pretty—erk, wait, that's even worse! I don't think you're ugly! Not in the least! I just saw your face and my heart skipped and—wait, I shouldn't say that! That's wrong! It's... It's this body! I feel all strange and I--"

"Asahina, I'm a little thirsty. Could you please make some tea, if it wouldn't be too much trouble?"

"Ah! Tea! Yes, coming right up!"

I sighed deeply. It was actually strangely comforting that there was someone who actually managed to take our current situation worse than I did.


"I... I see," Asahina said sadly. "If that's what's going on, then that explains why I haven't been able to contact the people of my time. There was a time quake this morning, early on. When I felt it, I tried to contact my superiors, but there was no answer. But now it makes sense. It's just like in August..."

Asahina referred to the time we were stuck in a time-loop back in the summer. We repeated the same two weeks before school opened over 15,000 times until we finally discovered how to set the world in order once more.

"Kyon. It's supposed to be nearly impossible to alter the future from the past. You should know this from what you've seen and done. Time is like a film reel. Altering a single cel doesn't change the rest of the movie. At least, that's how it's supposed to work." He paused to take a sip of his tea and sighed sadly. "However, there do exist ways to change the course of time in slight ways."

Change the course of time? Say, that gives me an idea. "Asahina, would it be possible for us to go into the past, such as yesterday, find out what made Haruhi wish for the world to change like this, and then change it so it never happened?"

He just shook his head sadly. "I'm afraid not. I said it was possible, but as a time-traveler myself, it goes against the code to ever do anything other than that which has been predetermined. Not only that, but it's incredibly dangerous. Even slight changes in a time plane, if they ripple across into other time planes, can cause catastrophic events."

Great. The fact that my plan was so fully rejected on all levels was a blow to my pride. Not to mention that all this talking of time planes and parallel universes was giving me a headache, which was exasperated by my second blow to the skull today. Isn't there some astrophysicist who would be better off thinking about all this?

"However," Asahina continued, "I can say this. In every instance in which time has been altered, it all rested on a decision. To act or not to act. To fight or to retreat. To live or to die." He put his hand on his heart and closed his eyes. "I believe right now, Haruhi is at one of those decisions. A choice between worlds. It's a choice that will affect all of us. Until that choice is made, there isn't a future for me to return to..." He seemed to be ready to cry once again.

"Hey, it... it'll be all right... I think..." Ugh. That was the worst reassurance I'd ever given.

He sniffed his nose twice and held back his tears. "You're... you're right. I'll be okay. Because you're here, Kyon. Or should I say, Kyonko?"

"Ugh. My nickname is dumb enough. Honestly, Kyonko?"

Asahina giggled to himself lightly. "I'm teasing. No matter what you look like, you're still Kyon to me. And that's why I won't be frightened anymore. You've always made the right choices in the past, so I know you can help Haruhi. She may not even realize she's struggling, and she might not look like herself, but she's still herself inside. I know you can help her."

I smiled for the second time that day. That bode of confidence and this delicious tea was all I needed to bolster my spirits. Now, I was ready to face anything.

Sadly, that delusion lasted all of three seconds, when the door came smashing open to reveal the foot that kicked it open at mach speeds. Attached to that foot was Suzumiya Haruki, brandishing a smile that I knew too well.

"Yo, your shining commander is here! And I have big new--" He stopped mid-sentence and glared at Asahina. "Mitsuuru!"

"...Huh? Wait, do you mean me?" Asahina looked around the room, wondering if we had a visitor we hadn't noticed.

"Do you know any other Mitsuuru?" Haruki asked sarcastically. Ah, I see. In this world, that's his name. I supposed Mikuru would be a little strange for a guy, I guess. "Where's your uniform?"

"Eh? Y-you mean I still have to dress up like a maid?!" The terror in his face was palpable. So much for no longer being scared with me around.

"What? Of course not! I meant your butler uniform, stupid," Haruki said with a sigh. However, his frown turned into a mischievous smile. "However... a cross-dressing shotacon character would certainly attract more female customers... All right, let's do it!"

With that declaration, Haruki ran to the costume rack and grabbed a maid uniform from a hook. Wait a second, why do you even have one of those?! In an instant, Haruki had tackled Asahina to the floor and was starting to strip him down.

"AIIEEEEEEEEE!"

I had been frozen in shock until that piercing scream woke me from my daze. The look of humiliation in his eyes mirrored my own as I ran from the room and slammed the door shut from the hallway. I leaned back against the door and sat down on the floor, sighing in disbelief.

"Just like old times, hmm?" Came a teasing voice from beside me.

"Yah!" My heart nearly jumped through my recently-bruised chest. I turned to see Koizumi not more than 10cm from my face. "Don't scare me like that!"

Koizumi giggled lightly, hiding her smile with her hand. "My apologies. You looked so cute, I couldn't resist."

"Spare me the empty flattery." A round of screams, squeals, and crashes came from within the room as the epic battle between men and a dress continued. The fact that I got the urge to peek inside scared me.

"Oh, but it's not empty." Koizumi sat across from me against the opposite wall and hugged her knees, still pretty, and still smiling gently. "I really do think you look cute as you are now, and I'm not the only one who thinks so. And what's wrong with that? I'm just being honest. It's a luxury I can't usually afford. After all, Suzumiya still views me as the 'mysterious transfer student.' If I started wearing my heart on my sleeve, there would be no mystery anymore."

"What are you getting at?" I asked. I was really not in the mood for a lecture while listening to the horrific screams of Asahina behind me.

"Pardon me. There really wasn't a point there, I just was saying what was on my mind." She tilted her head to the side and chuckled lightly. Argh. Just watching her made me mad.

"Now now," she continued. "There's no need to be jealous."

I blushed. "Who said anything of being jealous? Wh-who cares about being busty and beautiful?"

"'Busty and beautiful?' Now who said anything about that?"

Erk. Me and my big mouth. "...Fine. Okay, I might be a little... jealous of you. Just a little."

Koizumi's smile widened. "There now, was that so difficult? It's important to always be honest with yourself of all people. After all, how can you understand the motives of another when you can't even understand your own? Speaking of which, have you given much thought to why Suzumiya would cause this incident?"

I shook my head. "I haven't had much time, though I doubt it'd do any good. Nothing significant enough for me to remember happened over the course of the last few days."

"I see," Koizumi nodded. "Well, then, just be sure to think about it. And since we're all being honest with each other here, I'll tell you a little secret, too." She raised her hand to point at me. "When you sit like that, everyone can see your panties."

I looked down. The top of my skirt rested on my legs, which were spread out a bit. I quickly threw my hands down to push on the skirt and turned redder still. Koizumi began to laugh to herself and the parts of me which weren't mortified grew even more irritated. Before I could express that anger, though, the door opened behind me and we were greeted to a sight of an adorable crossdressing maid.

"W-welcome, m-masters..." Asahina's face was devoid of life. It seemed the experience of being stripped and forced to crossdress the very same day his gender spontaneously changed was simply too much for his mind to take and had abandoned all pride and dignity.

That's why I didn't have the nerve to tell him how good that maid's outfit looked on him. The following thoughts were too impure for me to speak of. Fortunately my thoughts on my sexual orientation, which became very complex, was interrupted by Haruki.

"Gentlemen! I have made a discovery that may very well change the nature of this brigade—no, the world!" He paced back and forth at his computer desk while we took our seats. "Now, I've discovered an important flaw in our plans. For all this time we've searched for the extraordinary. And while we have gotten close to finding something big, I've realized there's an easier way!"

I had a feeling that whatever it was, it would not be easier for me.

"Simply put," Haruki continued as he rested his chin on his palm, "the extraordinary attracts the extraordinary. Geniuses join organizations full of other geniuses and athletes go to sporting events and join teams of the best players. So, if we want to meet those who are phenomenal is to be phenomenal ourselves!"

This was Haruki's brilliant announcement? I felt a massive headache set in as I pondered how in the world he planned to make us amongst the elite of humanity. Then I remembered he was also addressing an alien, a time traveler, and an esper. Honestly, you weren't going to find a crowd more extraordinary than that.

"It seems to me," said Koizumi, "that it would be impractical and too time consuming to study hard and work out in order to be the smartest or most athletic people in the world. So, I'm willing to guess that you have an idea as to how we could become a pinnacle of humanity, don't you, Suzumiya?"

Haruki's grin went from glowing to blinding. "You nailed it! You're not our vice commander for nothing! You're right. It's not enough to compete with humanity in the same old boring ways. We'd never attract attention by competing the same way as everyone else. Knowledge, sports, wealth are meaningless. We'll train ourselves to be something that could never be denied or taken away! We're going to become shining beacons of manliness!"

Somebody kill me. Please. I don't even know where to begin. But enough was enough and I had to say something. "You do realize that two of your subordinates are female, right?" I had a horrific experience today almost walking into the men's room. My experience in the girls' room after that was even worse, but it did attest to my new sex.

"It doesn't matter!" Haruki explained, throwing his fist in the air. "In fact, that's all the more reason to do it!"

I couldn't argue with that logic. Mostly because there wasn't any to argue with.

"Mitsuuru," Haruki exclaimed, pointing at the terrified maid-boy who began to tremble. "Look at yourself! You can hardly call yourself a male looking like that!"

"You're the one that dressed him like that against his will!" I protested.

"That's beside the point!"

"No, that is the point!"

Haruki sighed. "Can't you ignore the petty details and see the big picture for once, Kyonko? Think about it, as shining pillars of masculinity, we'll have the eyes of the world on us, looking up to us! And as such, we'll be a beacon for those like aliens who wish to know the true nature of what it means to be a man!"

I give up.

"And that's why, for this momentous plan, we need to visit the manliest place in Japan! Okinawa!"

A hundred thoughts ran through my mind. In no particular order, they went something like this: How is Okinawa manly? It's said to have beautiful beaches, sure, but isn't 'beautiful' more of a feminine word? What do you intend to do there? One thought stood out, though.

"How are we supposed to afford a trip to Okinawa?!" I proclaimed.

"Oh ye of little faith," said Haruki with a grin. "Did you think your brigade leader had come unprepared for every contingency? Hey, Tsuruya!"

The door swung open again and was followed by a round of laughter that came from a fanged, open mouth of a tall and handsome man with shoulder length hair. "Yo, guys, what's up? I wanted to surprise ya and let ya know my family has an old summer home on Kouri island in Okinawa. The rest of my family is going overseas for golden week, so you guys get to come with me instead! It'll be a megasa blast!"

I suppose there wasn't any way I could worm my way out of this. Not that I had any plans to interrupt during golden week, but... Ah, whatever. I needed to figure out what Haruki was thinking, and this trip might provide the perfect chance to find out.

"Then it's settled. Tomorrow, we leave by boat for Okinawa! We'll meet up first by the usual spot at 9am! And as a penalty, since the trip is free, the person who arrives last will have to spend the entire day in a bikini!"

Erk! I just hope I don't die of embarrassment first.

End Chapter 4


Whoo, Okinawa! The Hawaii of Japan! Kinda! Japanese geography isn't exactly my strong suit, so I used Google Earth and Wikipedia to look for some good places to set up the conclusion. The next chapter is the trip there, and it's where the stakes will get higher and where things will come together. And for all those who requested it, I may let Taniguchi come as well.

As always I don't own the characters, and look forward to your comments.