Ding Dong

Chapter 10:

A Turn of the Good Moment

"Are you serious?"

Homura Akemi asked her teacher, Kazuko Saotome, that question back in the office. Madoka Kaname was beaming when told of the news. They were being thrown onto the world stage after just one meet.

"The meet at the University of Tokyo had some representatives from the Japanese Olympic Committee taking a look. Madoka?"

"Yes?"

"Your childhood idol, Hayakawa-san was also watching the proceedings. She decided that it would be best for you two to take a chance at this tournament. It's a huge gamble, but she told the representatives that your skill far outweighs that of hers, and she also said that she would not risk getting eliminated by either of you at the meet. Superhuman skills, she said."

"But...Hayakawa-san always wanted to be the best? She's decided not to take part?"

"There is a meet in Ogden, Utah next year that she will opt to prepare for. She will try her luck there because she is hoping that you two will qualify for the Olympics."

"What?" Madoka and Homura exclaimed.

"You mean London 2012?" Homura wondered. "The Summer Olympics?" Kazuko nodded. "Dear God..."

"Yes. And the meet is going to be in four weeks, so when summer break begins, be sure to prepare for the trip to Italy. Everything will be prepared for you: the flights, the itinerary, where you will stay...the plans are being made."

"Wow..."

"Head down to the quad. They are ready to interview you and also take photos."

"Yes, ma'am!" they both said, and the two of them left the room, shell-shocked.

"I still wonder about that," Homura said to Madoka as they walked down the stairs. "Do you really think we are that good?"

"Well...if Hayakawa-san said so, then she must be right. But I never thought we would be THAT good."

A slight change of shoes. "Maybe we are. I always wanted to experience being at an Olympic Games because I only get to see that on television. I don't get to see that in person because tickets and travel are so expensive."

"But you're a Goddess, so you can go wherever you want, right?"

"I can, but in my previous existence, it would have been hard for Mom and Dad to take me to Europe on holiday. And I don't want to travel without a passport either. I know what we should do after the interview."

"What?"

"We purchase new passports. I'll get my documentation and you get yours. We can do it over the weekend."

"Good idea...Madoka."

"Ah, here are you two again," said the crew member the two of them ran into earlier in the day.

"Hello, sir," Homura said, bowing.

"You can call me Mr. Hiroda. We're ready to do an interview and photo shoot. A reporter from Newtype wants to do an interview on you. Right this way."

"Cool," Madoka said, walking to a few seats set up. A man wearing a teal blazer was talking with his colleague, who was holding the camera for the interview.

"Are you sure it's fine for us to interview them?" Kyon asked Itsuki Koizumi, scratching his head.

"Haruhi wants us to test our interviewing skills. A little hands-on training," he replied, smug as a cat. "When we are finished, we're going to upload it onto YouTube and show the world what these two girls can do as archers."

"Archery, is it?"

"Yep."

"I'm not a fan of the sport, but I already memorized the script." Madoka and Homura then walked to their seats. "Ah, here you are."

"Hello, sir," Madoka said, nodding her head from side to side.

"Greetings," Homura added.

"Good afternoon, I am Kyon, and I am here to interview you for a magazine we do on some of the interesting young people in Japan," he said.

"Hello, I'm Itsuki," he said, adjusting the camera. "I am Kyon's good friend."

"Shall we start?" They both nodded. Kyon pointed to Itsuki, who pressed the record button. "Hello, I am Kyon, here in Mitakihara Middle School with a couple of young student athletes who look...well, drop-dead gorgeous! Tell us your names."

"Madoka Kaname."

"Homura Akemi."

"And you are members of...?"

"I am a member of the Archery club, but used to be a student council representative last year until I decided to switch clubs," Madoka said.

"I am also a member of the Archery club. Me and Madoka are the best archers in the club, according to the president," Homura added.

"When did you first take up the sport?"

"Hmmm...It is very hard to say when I first took up the sport; I have to say it was very recently," Madoka said in her blurry recollection. "I played with a bow and arrow when I was a few years younger and I suddenly had an affinity for archery."

Homura knew she was lying, and so she played along. "I took up the sport when Madoka first told me about the club a few months ago. I watched a few tournaments on television during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing, but I never picked up the sport until I met Madoka."

"What is so great about archery?"

"I think it's because it's a sport that goes back centuries. Lots of early civilizations in Japan, China and elsewhere took up the sport of archery, and every continent has some variant of it, if they are not playing the modern version of the sport."

"I like games that focus on concentration and precision. Archery is an exercise in focusing your mind, body and spirit. One mental slip-up and you could be off by centimeters or meters. There is a holistic aspect to archery, and I find it very fascinating."

"How did you get so good upon joining the club? People who start out in a club generally have to build on their skills, rather than have it already by the time they join."

"Maybe it's because we're special?" Madoka wondered with a laugh. "No, actually it's because me and Homura-chan were blessed at an early age with skills at doing whatever we wanted to do. We just happen to have a fondness for sports involving bows, arrows and quivers."

"That's what she said."

"Is that what she said?" Kyon asked Homura.

"That's what she said. As for me, I like being good in anything I set out to do. And if Madoka likes archery, so do I."

"So you do it because of Madoka?"

"I do everything for her. Because I love her."

"Oh my...real yuri before my eyes," Kyon said, visibly stunned, Itsuki smiling like an idiot. "You two...are in love?"

"We are," Madoka said. "But we try to keep it under wraps because of the persisting prejudice that comes with coming out of the closet."

"We don't let our love for each other affect what we do best, and that's become better student-athletes for our school," Homura clarified. "We're good at putting on different hats."

"We are indeed lesbians. But we're mostly students who like archery with a passion."

Kyon kept the questions coming. In the distance, Kyubey was seeing the proceedings before dashing out of sight to continue his search. "When you heard the news that you were going to take part in the World Archery Championships, what was your reaction? Homura, let's start with you."

"At first, I was shocked," she said. A pause before she continued. "Both of us just completed a meet at the University of Tokyo not too long ago, and when we heard the news from our teacher, we didn't know what to think. Later on, it all began to sink in."

"Has it begun to sink in?"

"It has, but not completely. I'm a mix of nervous and excited. We're good, but if we are good enough to take on veteran archers from around the world, I would be stunned and impressed."

"I had a feeling that if we were that good against archers our age," Madoka remarked, "maybe we could measure ourselves against veteran archers who are inn their 20's and 30's. I don't expect either of us to win it all when we head to Italy. But at the same time, I will not let either of us become just satisfied to be in the tournament. We want to do our best, and we will give it all we got."

"You understand that this is a tournament that counts as a qualifier for the Olympics, correct?" Kyon asked them.

"Yes, we do," Madoka replied.

"If you actually make it to the top quarterfinals of the tournament, is the age factor something that could put your dreams of competing at the games in jeopardy?"

"Not really. I have read one story about an Olympian who won a medal when she was as old as me and d Homura-chan, and that was back in 1988. I wasn't even born during that time, and it actually happened: an archer at age 14 won a bronze medal. It might be a bit of a longshot, but if we do qualify, I want us to do better and win silver and gold in the individual competition."

"I'm going to get the gold ahead of you, though, Madoka," Homura snicker, elbowing her friend playfully.

"And I hope Japan also wins gold in women's archery, too."

"Already dreaming big, huh?" Kyon said to both of them with a smile on his face.

"It doesn't hurt to dream."

"Anyway, on to the next question...you two are going to be competing in Italy over the summer. What comes to mind when you think of Italy?"

The two girls looked up to the sky to process the question before rattling off a mishmash of randomness. "Pizza," Madoka said.

"Pasta, definitely pasta," Homura added.

"Churches."

"Pope Benedict XVI and the Vatican."

"Nightclubs."

"Pretty strong coffee."

"The leaning tower."

"People who get angry rather easily."

"Really good football players."

"And very short tempers."

"Actually," Madoka said, "we have never been to Italy, so we really don't know what to expect. But I think a lot of good, fun things are associated with a place like that."

"You mentioned soccer teams," said Kyon. "What's your favorite team from Italy?"

"That's kind of a hard one to say. I like pink, though, so I guess I'll go with Palermo, but I really don't have a favorite Italian side."

"I'll take Inter Milan, no questions asked," Homura added.

"Actually, if you're talking European football, I do like Manchester United."

Kyon got a laugh out of that. "You two sure are something."

"We're open...to talk whatever is on our mind," Homura replied. "We are that confident."

"You're not trying to make a pass at me are you?"

She flipped her hair, and then gave him the look. "And what if I were?" she purred.

"Homura-chan, you're going overboard with this," Madoka laughed hesitantly.

She put a finger to her lips. "Sometimes stirring things up is a good thing, Madoka."

"Before we end this interview," Kyon said, "is there any message you want to say to the fans?"

"Please cheer for us at the World Archery Championships in Italy!" Madoka said, bowing.

"We will do our best to make all of you proud," Homura said with a smile, bowing as well. At that, Itsuki stopped recording.

"Madoka, Homura, thank you very much for taking the time to talk with us," Kyon said, offering a hand. Instead, he received a hug from both of them.

"Thank you," Madoka said.

"It's an honor," Homura added.

"They smell so nice," Kyon thought. "Haruhi could use the shampoo they are using! My God..." He then spoke. "We're not done with you yet. We're going to be doing a photo shoot, so can you two stand over there where the cameras are? This is for a magazine."

"Oh, absolutely," Madoka said.

"And you will be using your bow and arrow for this."

"No problem," Homura remarked, taking out her apparatuses. "It's not very often we do a photo shoot. This is actually our first time."

"Okay, you two will be standing back-to-back, and pose as if you are about to fire your arrows," Itsuki said.

"Like this?" Madoka asked, aiming for a bush, while Homura aimed for a stray bicycle on the sidewalk.

"That looks good. Now be sure to smile. There. That's great. All right, let's take a few photos, please stay still." Itsuki directed a few staff members to take photos from different angles. "All right, now lower your bows, and look at each other, and smile."

"Oh, this is easy," Homura said, looking at Madoka with a smile that wasn't contrived, but was actually natural. It was one thing to express her feelings through eye contact. But to do it for a magazine was totally different, and even more special.

"Homura-chan, I love you," Madoka whispered.

"I love you too," she replied.

"This is actually natural, even better," Itsuki smirked. "Here we go." More shots were taken. "Now raise your bows again, and aim for the red spot I am holding. Be sure to smile." He was holding a red disc. "Good. All right guys, go." And the photographers took a few more. "One more shot before we let you go. Madoka, I want you to embrace Homura as she looks up to the sky. Homura, look to your left."

"Like this, right Itsuki-kun?" Madoka asked, hugging Homura by the waist as she looked up.

"That's good. Homura, tilt your head a little bit down." She did. "Better. All right." And a few more shots. "Just one more, this time, have your eyes closed, smiling." Too easy. The photographers had a field day with this photo shoot.

Mr. Hiroda came back to shake their hands. "And with that, we are finally finished. Personally, it is an honor to work with both of you. We wish you the best of luck at the World Archery Championships. Never surrender!"

"Thank you very much," the two of them said, bowing before putting their bows and arrows away and leaving campus.

"Homura-chan, we're already famous," Madoka said, grabbing her ladyfriend's arm. "We got interviewed, we're going to Italy, and we're going to feel like we are on vacation in Europe...so excited..."

"But it's not a vacation, Madoka," Homura said. "This is a tournament we are taking part in, involving the world's best archers. You call it a vacation; I call it a business trip."

"Business trip, Homura-chan?"

"A business trip or official trip is a travel/journey caused by business necessities. We're leaving home to take part in a sports event halfway around the world."

"Wow. You really want to win this event, huh?"

"There is a reason why I am taking this seriously," Homura said, taking a few steps forward before turning to her, pointing at her face.

Madoka saw the fire in her eyes, and a smile that told no lies. She braced for impact as the words came out.

"I want to beat you at your own game. With authority. And I will win."

It was amazing how the days were going to pass by quickly before the two of them got ready for the trip. But when Madoka looked at Homura, she knew right then and there, that the gauntlet had been thrown as they both returned to Homura's house.

END CHAPTER 10