Chapter 11
Otonashi Yuzuru
I head out to school today in a really good mood. Talking to Hinata really made me feel like I'm doing something and not just being a sitting duck. Everything would just be perfect if one of us meets Yuri today and gets her to remember our past.
I wonder how Kanade is doing. I hope she has had success with Angel Player; that would answer a lot of questions on both sides as well. Somehow I think Kanade acts as the bridge connecting both worlds – if we find out more about her from before, it should help us with some of the mysteries we are facing now in the real world. I don't know where I got the idea from, but that's the feeling I get.
Yet, at the exact moment I step into the school grounds, I'm overcome with a feeling of dread. A strong sense of malice appears to hang from the air itself, which seems to have become so thick I feel like I'm suffocating. I stop in shock and try to catch my breath, but the overwhelming feeling of suffocation doesn't last long. I manage to regain my senses, but there remains a lingering feeling of uneasiness deep inside me. This time I don't only think that something is wrong; I'm positive that whatever is going to happen cannot be good.
As I look around at the students coming to school, I realize something unusual. None of the other students appear to be affected by the atmosphere as strongly as I was. At the very least, they don't get the suffocating sensation I had, but as I walk further away from the gates, I hear uneasy whispers among them that indicate they are aware that something is off. Even then, none of them appear to have felt it as clearly as I did. I wonder if this has something to do with the afterlife; I need to check on Kanade, Hinata and all the others we know.
I run in the direction of Hinata's classroom, but before I get there, I see him around a corner in an intense discussion with a girl with violet hair. Well, at least he's found Yuri. As I approach them, Yuri suddenly turns in my direction, taking me by surprise.
"Ah, Otonashi-kun. Great timing. I assume you're feeling the strange atmosphere in the air today?"
"Erm, yes, but…"
"Excellent. From what Hinata has told me so far, I think we can all agree that this should have something to do with our past in the afterlife. The most important question we should answer now would be 'what is going on?'."
As expected of her. Apparently she has already taken up the leadership role without so much as a blink of an eye.
"Wait, Yurippe," Hinata cuts in. "How exactly do we go about answering that? We have nothing to start with!"
"But that's where you're wrong. Otonashi-kun, I heard you were attacked by some strange character? Can you describe him a little?"
I briefly describe my attacker and tell Yuri about his weird, slightly inhuman behavior.
"You're right. Doesn't sound very humanlike to me. Kind of like the NPCs from before, only different. Actually, we should get Takeyama-kun to help out as well. The computer whiz should be smart enough to form some theories about this phenomenon. I happen to know that he's also in the same school as us."
"Wait, you're going too fast. How are you taking all this so calmly? Most of us are still confused by our memory fragments and yet you're acting as if this is all natural, like you have been doing this forever."
"Isn't it obvious?" Hinata puts in. "She's so excited to be able to return to being leader of a rebel group that it somehow triggered a total recall. It just shows how much she misses... Ouch!"
Yuri had interrupted Hinata with a straight punch to the face. She didn't look like she was playing around either; she put everything she had into that punch without regard to any injury she might cause.
"Yuriphe!" Hinata shouted with one hand over his nose. "Whaddo you dink you're doing? We're dot in the abderlibe adybore! I can'd resurrect ib you kill be!"
"Oh really?" Yuri replies, putting on a surprised expression. "Sorry, it slipped my mind. By the way, I can't really understand what you're saying with your hand over your nose like that."
"Whoze fauld do you dink id is?"
"Ok, calm down, you two," I interrupt. It's really amusing to watch, but I want to get the discussion going.
"Alright, Otonashi-kun," Yurippe turns her back to Hinata, all trace of humor gone. How does this girl switch gears so quickly?
"Actually, to put it simply, I think my form of memory resurfacing is a little different from the rest of you. Each of you seem to have small fragments come back to you crystal clear, while other parts are blank. I've been having this strange feeling that something is off for a while now, but nothing has been clear to me until Hinata told me everything you know this morning. I still can't say that I remember everything, but there is this gut feeling that tells me 'this is the way things happened, and this is what I should do.'"
"Wow…" I say in mock wonder. "That's really a leader for you. Having natural instincts that tell you what to do and not mess things up…"
"Otonashi-kun," Yuri's tone suddenly drops low and menacing. "I don't know if that was supposed to be sarcasm or not – "
"Ok ok I'm just joking!" I hastily correct myself. It definitely wouldn't be fun being on the receiving end of the same punch Hinata received. Besides, I know deep down that if anyone had to lead, it would be Yuri. She's a natural, although she has weird methods sometimes.
"So, what should we do next?" I ask. Before Yuri can answer, the bell signaling the start of homeroom echoes through the hallway.
"Ah, what bad timing," Yuri exclaims. "Anyway, let's head to class for now. I'll try to get in touch with Takeyama-kun as soon as possible. The rest of you just stay alert. The heavy atmosphere today can't be a mere coincidence. Oh, and Otonashi-kun?"
"Yes?" I reply, a little surprised.
"You should probably get Kanade-chan back with us. She'll definitely be more than a little useful when the time comes."
