Chapter 6: School
Author's notes
Alrighty, so how am I doing so far? I hope I get to write more stuff like the last chapter, I can't wait until Konata gets better :3 I hope all of you have as much fun reading this as I do writing it!
Shortly after Kagami left
As Kagami sped towards school, her mind wandered back to Konata. Man, she sure was energetic. Clearly still sick, but she was looking better. And she said she would talk to Tony so I guess it must have been the illness. She figured with herself. This is twice I've borrowed someone's bike, but this one is so much more embarrassing... How can she ride this thing? She thought as she arrived at school. She started to lock the bike in place, desperately trying to keep her face hidden from view.
As she ascended the stairs, she heard "Hi Onee-chan!" from behind her. She turned to see a very sloppily dressed Tsukasa, clearly fatigued.
She totally overslept... Kagami thought, unsurprised. "Hey Tsukasa, your clothes are really messy, lets go to the restroom and fix you up real quick." She shouted back to her sister as she waited for the latter to catch up.
"Thanks Onee-chan, nobody woke me up this morning..." Tsukasa said arriving at her sister, embarrassed, but eliciting raised eyebrows from Kagami.
Wow, she got up by herself? I've gotta admit, I'm surprised... She thought, a little frustrated that she didn't have more faith in her little sister. I hope Matsuri didn't get caught. If she did, I'll have to tell Dad that she did it to help me out. Not looking forward to that... She thought as the two walked to the restroom.
As they arrived at the restroom, Tsukasa asked "So how was Kona-chan?"
"She's still sick, but not nearly as much as yesterday. I think it's passing." Kagami stated. Directly after, however, she realized her note had only told Tsukasa that she was to leave without her, not why. "Wait! How did you know I went to visit Konata?" She yelled, her voice reverberating off the walls of the restroom, hurting her ears slightly. Lucky no one's in here but us... She thought after her outburst, rubbing her ears.
"Because you care about her Onee-chan, I could tell. It was a pretty good guess, huh?" Tsukasa nervously giggled as she said the last part, unnecessarily afraid she might have upset her sister.
"Yeah, no kidding. There! All done!" Kagami exclaimed, her sister once again presentable.
"Thanks Onee-chan!" Tsukasa chimed, admiring her sister's handiwork.
"No problem, we should probably get ba-" She was about to say before being cut off by the First Bell. "... Exactly." was all that needed to be said as she and her sister left for their respective homerooms.
Class B
Tsukasa walked into Ms. Kuroi's class, slightly after the bell and took her seat in front of Konata's desk.
"Hey Tsukasa, did you see Kagami by any chance?" Tony asked as Ms. Kuroi called roll.
"Yeah, I was just talking with her!" Tsukasa whispered in reply.
"So how's Konata?" Tony asked, causing Tsukasa to jump a little in surprise.
"Wait, how did you know Onee-chan visited Kona-chan?" A question mark appearing above Tsukasa's head.
"Konata is the only person I can think of that would have the bike Kagami was riding. I assumed she went super early to see Konata and borrowed her bike. You just confirmed that." He smirked at the last part, but said it as if explaining a simple concept.
"But how did you-"
"Something you would like to share with the rest of the class you two?" Ms. Kuroi interjected with a smile that was riddled with triumph.
"N-No, Ms.-" Tsukasa started to deny.
"Actually, I was merely asking Konata's condition Ma'am. May I?" Tony interrupted.
"Oh, well you can find out during lunch." The teacher said, a hint of concern in her voice for her favorite punching bag.
"As you wish." Was all the boy said before turning his attention to class.
Class C
Kagami walked into her homeroom and walked to her seat as Ms. Yukari called her name for roll.
"Here!" She shouted at the call of her name.
"Oi Hiiragi, what was that bike you were riding this morning? It was ridiculous! Is that REALLY yours?" Misao asked, obviously trying, and failing miserably, to stifle a laugh.
"No, it... it's a friend's." She blurted out, embarrassed that any of her friends had seem her and angry at the ridicule. Oh man, I hope Misao was the only one who saw...
"I don't believe you Hiiragi! Who's was it then? Shorty McBlue hair?" Misao asked, an annoyed look on her face. Every time we talk, it goes back to her! Why is Hiiragi so interested in her? I'm WAY more interesting than that squirt! Not to mention my 'features' are much more impressive! She ranted in her head.
"Yeah, her name is Konata. What's with the look?" Kagami asked, only to have the answer cut off by the teacher.
"Hey you two, we're having a test on this so quiet!" Ms. Yukari shouted.
"Yes Ms. Yukari..." Kagami said before turning back around.
Lunch
"Hey, I'm here for lunch!" Kagami shouted as she entered Class B.
"Hi Onee-chan!" Tsukasa shouted in response, moving to Tony's desk.
"Hey Kagami, how's Konata?" Tony asked as she and the others sat down.
"Wait... How did you know I went to visit Konata?" Kagami asked, wondering just how many people knew. Then she realized that he might have seen her on Konata's bike, suddenly getting a little scared of reliving the ridicule of one Misao Kasukabe again.
"Well I-" He started, but caught himself as he realized she might be embarrassed of the bike. He decided to lie, just in case. "I live next door to Konata. I saw you arrive."
"Oh really? And how do you know what my Dad's car looks like? Are you lying to me?" Kagami asked, causing Tony to jump a little. He hadn't thought about her being driven.
"Uh.. I saw you in the passenger side of the car. I swear." He said as Kagami gave him a look so skeptical, it made him look away.
Kagami was still unconvinced. "I was driving." She lied, testing him.
"Alright, you got me. I saw you on Konata's bike this morning, alright? The way you hid, it seemed like you didn't want to be seen with it." Tony admitted.
"It's scary that you know that Tony, you know that?" Kagami said, satisfied that she had finally caught the boy without an answer, but still embarrassed at having been seen by him, Misao AND Tsukasa. At least Tsukasa hadn't said anything. You kinda made him say that though...
"So this is the second time I've asked about Konata today and not gotten an answer. I'm getting concerned." Tony said, obviously disappointed at people seemingly avoiding his question. They weren't really, he just hadn't gotten used to the fact that they can get side-tracked VERY easily.
"It's not that, bu... Hang on a second? Who did you ask before?" Kagami asked.
"Tsukasa. And that's three." Tony said, his expression turning from disappointed to annoyed.
"How would Tsuka-"
"Four."
"Alright, alright. Konata's still sick, but she's getting better. She was really energetic when I visited her this morning, despite the time. Happy now?"
"Yes." I figured that would be the case.
"Alright, now you answer my questions. How would Tsukasa have known?" Kagami asked, irritated at being interrupted.
"I asked if she had talked to you and when she said yes, I knew she must have asked about Konata. Anymore questions?" Tony asked as if giving a class.
"Yeah. Why did you lie to Mr. Izumi?" Kagami asked, not liking the tone he was taking with her.
"What? I never lied."
"Yes you did, he told me you said you were Konata's friend. Obviously she didn't like you, and why are you even concerned about her if she was so rude to you?" Kagami interrogated. She realized after that her second question was incredibly rude to ask, she had really blurted it out without thinking. Tony answered before she could retract it, however.
"I have reasons for being concerned. And like I said, I never lied. I told Mr. Izumi that SHE was a friend of MINE. I consider her a friend because she seems like a nice person to everyone but me. After all, that was a pretty mean look you gave her when she requested I call her Izumi. He only assumed the feelings were mutual, it isn't my fault." He smirked, shrugging like this was common practice. Kagami raised an eyebrow, impressed by how he had played Sojiro.
"On a similar subject, Konata invited us over after school today!" Kagami said cheerfully, changing the subject as she was reminded that Konata was going to talk to Tony.
"I really wish I could go, but I'm afraid I have a dentist appointment. Please give Konata-san my best!" Miyuki tried to say it with enthusiasm, but couldn't hide her depression of yet another visit to the terrifying dentist.
"I don't think I should come either, her father is undoubtedly mad if he ended up figuring out my little trick." Tony added. "Tell me how she is la-"
"Actually, she asked for you in particular to come. She said she wanted to talk to you." Kagami interrupted.
"Uh-oh. I wonder what I did this time..."
"Don't worry, Konata said she was giving you a chance. She also admitted I was right, which she actually never does..." She added under her breath. She also apologized yesterday. That was sure a surprise...
"Curious... This is an unexpected development..." Tony muttered, closing his eyes and rubbing his chin.
"What?"
"Nothing." He added after realizing he had actually spoken aloud. "Tsukasa, you're quiet." After which he added almost inaudibly, "The writer must still be a real noob if he can't even write some lines for Tsukasa..."
"Well, I really didn't have anything to add, I was going to ask why you lied to Kona-chan's dad, but then Onee-chan asked so..." Tsukasa trailed off, not thinking of anything else to say.
"Unfortunately, It seems lunch will be over soon." Tony observed.
"Yeah, I better be getting back. See you all after school!" Kagami called as she headed back to class.
"Bye Onee-chan!" Tsukasa said, getting in the last word for once.
Hmmm, I wonder what Konata wants. I guess I'll find out. Was the last thought in Tony's head before lunch ended.
After School
Kagami started to pack her things as she heard a loud voice from behind her.
"Oi Hiiragi! Come study with Ayano and me!" Misao emphasized with the books in her hand, though Kagami knew she wasn't going to be studying for long.
" I can't, I'm going visit Konata, sorry." Kagami answered, though not really sorry. She was incredibly excited to see her little Otaku again. What's wrong with me? She isn't mine, why do I keep thinking that! She scolded herself in her mind.
"Bah! Blow her off and hang out with us! We're WAY more fun to hang out with then that stupid little squirt!" Misao shouted happily unaware of what she had just done.
"..."
"Hi-Hiiragi?" Misao stuttered, suddenly very afraid for her life.
"Misao. Don't ever. EVER. Insult Konata like that again. Understand?" Kagami said, death salted through her voice. She punctuated the threat with a very hard knock to the head.
"OW! Hiiragi, you're mean!" Misao cried out as she rubbed the giant lump on her head in a vain attempt to stop the pain.
"You deserved it." She said as she left the room, going to meet her friends who were waiting to go see Konata. As she walked, she began to regret what she had just done. Why did I react like that? I guess that was really over the top, but she shouldn't have insulted her like that. ARG What's going on? Why did I get so angry with Misao, it was nothing different I guess...
"Onee-chan~! Where are you going?" She heard her sister ask from behind. She had been so lost in thought, she had walked right by them without noticing. Embarrassed, she turned around.
"I-I-I was going to see Konata, that's what we're doing today, right?" She said, scratching the back of her head and laughing nervously.
"Thinking of Konata?" Tony said, not really meaning it as a question as him and Tsukasa caught up. Miyuki had already left, wishing Konata good health and apologizing again that she couldn't accompany them, clearly distressed about her own fate.
"Why do you always assume that?" Kagami asked, annoyed.
"Am I wrong?" Tony put on his smirk, cocking his head slightly.
"... Let's just go..." Kagami quietly said as she slouched, defeated.
I knew it. The boy smirked victoriously. "So, Konata asked for me, eh? Now I can finally figure a couple things out."
"I'm not even going to bother asking."
"Wise decision."
"So why can't you ever tell us anything? It seems most any question we ask, we only get 'Classified Information'. I appreciate a good Haruhi reference as much as the next girl, but it's getting really annoying." Kagami asked angrily.
"Merely because while I COULD tell you, it's more interesting if I don't." Tony said, matter-of-factly. It only served to piss Kagami off even more.
"You can't be serious." Kagami said in disbelief, teeth grinding.
"Not in the least." He said with a chuckle.
"Then why answer?"
"Because you asked."
"Well that's annoying."
"I know."
"I...'m out of comments..." Kagami sighed, once again defeated.
"Don't worry, you held up longer than most." Tony tried to console, however vain it might be.
"Right~ Gary..." She sighed under her breath.
"What?" Tony asked, for once not hearing something clearly.
"Nothing." Kagami said, taking her turn to smirk.
"Onee-chan, how are we getting Kona-chan's bike back to her house?" Tsukasa asked, as they were already half way to Konata's house.
"..." Kagami started seething. Damn it! How could I forget? I even promised I would bring it back after school!
"Don't worry Kagami, I'll go get it." Tony said, taking off for the school.
He's... fast. Maybe as fast as Konata. When she gets better they'll have to have a race... She thought, sweatdropping.
"Should we wait for him Onee-chan?" Tsukasa asked.
"Nah, he'll be on a bike, he can catch up." Kagami said, smiling that he had to share in her embarrassment of riding it. Come to think of it, I've never seen Konata riding it... Why does she even have it?
They walked in relative silence for a few minutes before Tsukasa asked "Onee-chan, are you sure she's going to get better? Her dad said it was really bad..."
"Don't worry, she was much better this morning. It's not the time to worry." She said as she looked reassuringly at Tsukasa. It seemed to help.
At that moment, they heard from behind, an extremely quickly said, as if with no pauses, "Hi-Kagami-Hi-Tsukasa-See-you-at-Konata's-House!" as Tony rushed by at amazing speeds on Konata's bike.
Whoa! How the hell was he going so fast? So much for being embarrassed... I guess if no one sees you... Hang on, how did he get the lock off that fast? That was a combination lock! She thought to herself as she realized that it was unlikely anyone would be able to discern any feature of the bike at that speed.
"Wow, he was going fast..." Tsukasa said, standing on her tip-toes and shading her eyes to improve her vision.
"Hey Tsukasa, let's run!" Kagami said as she broke into a sprint, dashing for Konata's house.
"Wait Onee-ChaAaAan~! Tsukasa called after her sister, struggling to keep up.
"You can rest when we get there!" Kagami called back. It didn't take five minutes to reach their friend's house. Oddly enough, Tony was standing at his own home seemingly unfatigued, looking at Konata's house. "What are you doing?" Kagami asked him.
"I figured I should probably wait here for you guys to catch up. As you said, Konata isn't the fondest of me, not to mention her father. He's probably talked to her and gotten that she doesn't like me. I have a feeling if I go in alone, I'm not coming back out." He laughed.
"Yeah, he was pretty pissed..." Kagami said between huffs of breath.
"You guys wanna sit down for a minute?" Tony offered, gesturing to the lawn chairs he had placed outside.
"Nah, We can sit inside..." Kagami said as she approached the door. She knocked on said door.
"Come in..." They heard. As they entered, they saw Sojiro with a doctor's mask on, disinfecting things here and there. His eyes suddenly got dark as he saw Tony walk in. "Tony. My daughter wants to speak with you apparently. Care to enlighten me as to why?" He said, sounding like he would kill the boy at any moment.
"Actually, I'm as confused as you for once." Tony replied, not intending it to be an insult. Unfortunately, that's how it was taken.
"Hey. You're already on a very shaky boat. Don't rock it." Sojiro said grimly, intending it to be a threat. This was a boy he didn't know, coming into his house, insulting him, and his daughter was supposed to be friends with him. Sojiro would kill him if he thought it best for his daughter.
"Calm down. You're not thinking right, fatigue must be affecting your judgment. I can tell by the bags under your eyes. Please, go take a rest, either me, Kagami or Tsukasa can take care of Konata until you wake up. Take a long nap." Tony offered, but to Sojiro, in his sleep deprived state, it was an order.
"Don't presume to order me in my own house!" Sojiro lunged at Tony, causing Tsukasa to shriek and Kagami to take a step back. She couldn't believe that he was acting like this! She figured the combination of barely any sleep, his sick daughter, and his heightened paternal suspicion of Tony had taken its toll.
Tony didn't miss a beat, however. He grabbed Sojiro by the arm, twisting it behind the man's back. He found the two pressure points behind his neck and, right before pressing them only enough to knock the man into unconsciousness, said "Sleep." At that point, he knocked Sojiro out, and carried him to the man's bedroom. He laid Sojiro on his bed before returning to the living room.
"He needed a nap. He was so concerned for his daughter that he neglected one of the very necessities of life. A man has to sleep. I hope he won't be too mad, I'll stay until he wakes up." Tony said, looking none the worse.
"T-Tony, How did you do that?" Tsukasa stuttered, still in shock from what had happened.
"Don't bother Tsukasa, he'll only say-"
"My brother was trained. He was a... soldier in the US military... My brother, after he got back home, trained me mercilessly until I was as good as him. He was a very good trainer, I learned quickly and eventually mastered what he taught."
"Wow, I thought you were going to say 'Classified Information' again..." Kagami said, surprised at his sudden openness.
"Well, I see no reason to keep this from you. I only 'Classify' information that I either can't tell, shouldn't tell, or isn't important at the moment. My brother is the kind of guy you don't want catching you doing something wrong. Unless you apologize and right the wrong, he'll beat you within an inch of your life." Tony continued, shocking them with his sudden bluntness. "But... aren't we here to visit Konata?"
"She'll call us when she needs something. Listen for a bell, she's probably still sleeping." Kagami answered.
"Ahh~" Tony started to understand why Kagami hadn't run to Konata's room instantly like he had originally figured she would.
"So what was your brother in the military anyway? Army, Navy, Marine..." Kagami started listing off, partially out of curiosity, and partially to pass the time until Konata woke up.
"He was a Green Beret." Was Tony's simple answer. Though Tsukasa didn't know what that meant, she could tell it was something big by the expression of pure awe on Kagami's face.
"Onee-chan, what's a Green Beret?" Tsukasa asked.
"Well, from what I heard, they're supposed to be some elite group of the US military that were specifically trained to handle practically any combat situation..." Kagami barely managed to choke out.
"Mostly right, they basically are trained to be able to survive on rat meat and be able to kill with almost scientific precision." Tony explained.
"...And you said you were trained to be one...?" Kagami said, seeing this boy in a new light.
"Yeah. That's why you'll probably never see me too serious. Complimenting my apparent natural knowledge, he trained me at a young age to be able to interpret things, find their meaning, pretty much anything I need to be able to do at any given moment, at a glance. I'm also pretty damn strong. That comes from being made to carry 23 Kilos when I was 5." He smirked. Before Kagami or Tsukasa could inquire further, they heard a bell ring. It was less of a ring and more like someone was violently trying to choke the bell to death and it was screaming bloody murder.
"Konata!" Kagami yelled as she ran at breakneck speeds to Konata's room, worry covering her face.
"She's sure quick to answer that..." Tony remarked at her speed.
"That's because Onee-chan really cares about Kona-chan, you know Tony-chan..." Tsukasa informed him of the obvious, still a little confused as to what exactly a Green Beret was. Tony jumped at the "Chan" after his name.
"Hey Tsukasa, lets talk about that nickname there..." He started.
POV Konata
As Konata woke up from her nap, she looked over at her alarm clock. It was three in the afternoon. Man, still a while before Kagami and the others get here. That's alright, I need to think of what to say to Tony... She then focused on said subject, only to be interrupted by her own hunger. That pancake, while rather large, wasn't enough to take the place of an entire days worth of food. At least I'm hungry... she thought, taking it as a sign that she was getting better. I guess the first thing I need to ask Tony is how the hell he knew where I lived... I really hope none of my friends told him, that would be tantamount to betrayal... She thought as she listened to her stomach rumble. At that moment, she heard violent yells coming from her living room. She then heard Tsukasa shriek in terror. Silence. Konata began to panic. What's going on? Who's here? I hope Kagami is okay... She laid in a terrified silence as she heard nothing but heavy footsteps outside her door. She waited, praying that Kagami or her father or ANYONE would walk in and tell her everything was okay. She laid there, too scared to call out. It was several more minutes before she remembered her bell. She grabbed it and shook with all of her diminished strength. She kept ringing until her arms hurt. She heard footsteps hurriedly approach her door.
Luckier Channel
"Luckier~ Channel~!" Akira yelled out. "Hiya Luckies! I'm your navigator Akira, Kogami! How are you all today? I hope you're all happy, cause I sure am!"
"I'm the assistant, Minoru Shiraishi! You sure seem happy Akira-sama!"
"You bet! The producer promised me a roll in the next chapter!" Akira shouted with genuine joy.
"That's great Akira-sama! Now I'm really happy too!" Minoru yelled with equal intensity.
"I just want to thank all my fans who supported and rooted for me! You all are the best! This never would have happened without all of you!" Akira yelled again.
"So who gave you the part Akira-sama?" Minoru asked.
"The producer of course, silly~!" Akira said, still very happy.
"Uhh.. Akira-sama.." Minoru stammered.
"What is it Shiraishi-san?"
"The producer can't do that... It's up to the writer..." Minoru said, knowing full well that he likely caused his own death.
"Wh...Wh...What." Akira said, completely losing her cute voice.
"You could always ask the writer himself if you could be included in the sto-"
"WHAT THE HELL! YOU JERKS, HOW COULD YOU LIE LIKE THAT?"
"Akir... *Sigh* There's no point now..." Minoru realized.
*Music Tone*
"Well, I guess we're out of time for today. Please, please, please, I really want to be in the story, root for me to get in if you all want it! I know you do~! I'll go ask the writer if I can have a roll! Bye nii~!"
"Bye Nii~!"
"..."
"Well that's disappointing. Not that I'm not used to it by now, they always like to bend me over and f-"
"Ah! Please Akira-sama, please don't say something like th-"
*End*
After Section
Alrighty, so this ended up being longer than my last chapter lol Regardless, this is getting to be a long day. So far, it's taking the span of three chapters. And I made Tony's brother a Green Beret simply because I don't know the Japanese equivalent. If any of you know, please tell me so I can correct it! Please tell me what you think! I'm always glad to hear from you all, I really hope you like it!