She didn't know what impulse had led her to drive to Haruka's house the following day after school, wait at the gate for Mrs. Kinoshita to buzz her through, and stand on the front porch mere moments from confronting Haruka's parents about what she believed she knew.
Ideally, she should have waited, spent a day or three researching the shipgirls and Awakened. Shipgirls were beings of magic, spirits of old warships and their actual massive, multi-ton metal selves somehow merged in the form of Human girls. Was it so hard to imagine that Yamato might simply have a voice sounding eerily close to Haruka's?
Why was she so ready to believe that Haruka's parents had lied? That Haruka was now a shipgirl representing one of the largest warships in history, holding press conferences and risking her newly-magical life in fighting against twisted monsters out to destroy everything?
If only it didn't make absolutely, horrifically perfect sense to her.
Haruka's evident obsession with shipgirls, especially Yamato? That day, with the magazine… Haruka had been so sure Yamato wouldn't be summoned while dressed anything like a geisha. Had that been Yamato speaking?
Had Haruka known she was going to… wake up? in the near future?
Minami Kinoshita, Haruka's mother, opened the door.
The elder woman had been at least half a foot shorter than her or Haruka, and Cheryl caught herself idly wondering how much taller Haruka was than her mother now, as Yamato. The battleship shipgirl looked like a giant, looming awkwardly behind podiums meant for people of average height at her press conferences.
She forced the thought from her mind.
"You say… you want to talk to us?" Mrs. Kinoshita was saying. Without a true need to learn or speak English, or constant exposure, her command of the English language remained rudimentary and thickly-accented.
"Yes. May I come in?"
"Okay."
Barely able to contain her eagerness to confront Haruka's parents and finally learn whether or not her best friend really was a battleship, Cheryl waited a single step past the older woman into the foyer before pivoting on her heels.
"I know the truth about Haruka," she blurted, while Minami shut the door behind them.
Minami didn't turn around. "…Truth?"
"…Yamato."
The woman's hand flicked to the deadbolt, locking it, and in the next instant Cheryl found herself being ushered to the office.
Haruka's father, she'd decided some years ago, spent ninety-eight percent of each week sitting behind his desk.
He was there, naturally, attacking a stack of paperwork whose height alone caused her to wince in sympathy. Minami rushed to his side, urgently and quietly mentioning something to him in Japanese; Cheryl could swear she heard Haruka's name. Was Haruka's mother telling him she'd figured out what had truly happened to their daughter?
"So," he said, finally, setting the papers aside and fixing her with an even stare. "You said you 'know the truth' about Haruka?"
She hesitated. "I've been doing research on Yamato for an essay. I've noticed that in all the footage showing her – the press conferences, every time she appears on-camera – Yamato's speaking using Haruka's voice. Yamato is Haruka, isn't she."
Takashi Kinoshita didn't react for an uncomfortably long moment. "A shipgirl and her reincarnate share the exact same voice. Did you think that maybe, while Yamato has been summoned, Haruka is her un-Awakened reincarnate, safe at home, watching her grandmother?"
Is he really gonna try playing the 'lesser evil' game!? "Then, in that case," she snapped, "Haruka would Awaken soon, if she hasn't already, and still end up being involved and in danger. Having the summoned version of a shipgirl present accelerates the Awakening process greatly, more so depending on how close they physically are to each other."
Cheryl gave the man her own stare. "Give me credit for doing some research on shipgirl reincarnates."
Silence.
"Mr. Kinoshita, please," she persisted. "Haruka is my friend. I want to know the truth. I won't tell anyone else. Honest."
Takashi exhaled, allowing the tension to leave his body. "I believe you."
You do? she thought, but decided not to say.
"If I tell you what you want to know, do I have your word you will not mention any of it to anyone else?"
Didn't I just say I wouldn't? "Yes. I promise I won't."
She listened with obvious interest as he proceeded to tell her the entire story, what had actually happened after she and Haruka left the store, the latter holding a new magazine to add to her shipgirl collection.
How Haruka had Awakened as Yamato that evening, her parents discovering the unconscious battleship, cannons and all, in a shallow crater holding the wreckage of her bed.
How, once they'd realized who Haruka was, Takashi had – reluctantly, he claimed – promptly passed along the word to his superiors that Yamato's reincarnate had been found. That spun into a plot, from a group of people Takashi barely knew, to have Haruka pretend to be the summoned version of shipgirl Yamato.
Oh, it bothered her, certainly. But Haruka's ability to lead anything resembling a normal life after becoming a battleship shipgirl would be extremely questionable, anywhere short of a naval base.
Haruka had jumped at the opportunity. She was proud of being the Yamato, one of the most powerful battleships in history. She liked having the chance to participate in the fight against the Abyssals. When Yamato declared she was committed to stopping the Abyssal threat, Haruka meant it.
Was this the Haruka she had known?
But even Cheryl could see the incredible morale boost Yamato's presence was giving the people of Japan and to varying degrees, others throughout the world. Haruka was proving to be a surprisingly capable battleship.
"The worst part?" Takashi, she saw, suddenly looked more haggard than she'd expected. "We haven't been able to contact her since she left." All this time, having to depend mostly upon what footage of Yamato Japan released, be it press conferences or worse – battle footage – in the hope of determining whether or not their little girl was alive and well. "I'm told nobody's been able to set up any secure ways of communicating with her. Even if she had a computer or cellphone, her traffic can be monitored, and her emails can be read."
"She can't even hand a letter off to anyone?"
Takashi shook his head. "I don't know. I'm beginning to think I should come up with my own way of getting in touch with her."
Uh-oh. "Isn't that dangerous? If the guys who set all this up can't get her a way to communicate with you, doesn't that imply she's in a position where her cover can be easily blown?"
He snorted. "I know the type of people we're dealing with, if not them directly. They're rarely all that inventive." Noting the dubious expression his guest was forming, Takashi added, "I will run any idea I have past them. It's simply that I do not trust them to develop a good plan on their own."
Good. Haruka's predicament was already crazy enough without her parents rushing to try their own schemes to get in touch with their daughter-turned-battleship.
Cheryl caught herself wondering – if the truth about Haruka were discovered, what would happen to her? Could they execute a shipgirl?
Okay, maybe the situation wasn't that dire, and she was letting her imagination run wild. It was a dizzying plot to have to keep to herself… and damn it, she still had to spin an essay about her best friend. The idea of throwing all her research out and restarting with a different shipgirl felt disrespectful to Haruka, all her friend's sacrifices and accomplishments.
Crap. What was she going to do?
"Yeah, she's done," Akashi indicated, the repair ship subconsciously sweeping her sakura-blossom dark pink hair back as she led the Admiral and Nagato into her workshop. "Just gotta bring her back around."
The first sight that greeted them, drew their attention, was Yamato, lying prone on an uncomfortable-looking metal slab of a table. Nagato winced, recalling her own experiences in dry-dock. She forced herself to concentrate on the changes to her fellow battleship, instead.
True to her word, Akashi had improved Yamato's armor slightly, attempting to address some of the issues that had contributed to Yamato's sinking during Operation Ten-Go.
Two 15.5cm turrets had been removed to make room for a number of smaller 12.7cm anti-aircraft turrets – and yet, those were but a few of Yamato's new cannons…
Her profile… It's so close to the way it was, back then… A memory rose… early January, 1945. She, Yamato and Haruna had been transferred to what would be a short-lived reactivation of the First Battleship Division. The night before Yamato departed for the Inland Sea, Nagato had had a chance to see the younger battleship's profile silhouetted in the moonlight.
Akashi's notes indicated that the upgrade brought Yamato in line with her ship-self's configuration around that same period of time… and Nagato's own memories seemed to bear that out.
Memories… With a start, Nagato realized where her thoughts were heading, and collected herself. Now was not the time to let the past overtake her.
"Akashi?" the Admiral's voice interrupted her musing. "This stocking… did you do this?"
A mild surge of irritation rose in Nagato, and briefly, she wondered why their Admiral was choosing to focus upon superficial details such as Yamato's clothes or her appearance as a girl – when she recalled any alterations to either were presently the only changes the man would be able to see, unless Yamato summoned her rigging.
"No, that changed on its own. It's one of her flags."
Nagato followed the Admiral's gaze to the longer of Yamato's stockings, where a familiar set of kanji had been painted in a line sloping down the length of the garment. Her eyes widened. "The Hirihoukenten," she breathed, stepping closer in order to trace the kanji with a finger. A proverb, adopted as a slogan by the Imperial Japanese Navy.
Right triumphs over Wrong.
Law triumphs over Right.
Power triumphs over Law.
The Heavens triumph over Power.
No man can oppose the Divine.
"Yes, she's flying that flag, now."
"Nagato?" inquired Goto.
"I have read the historical accounts of Operation Ten-Go," she stated, turning to face him. "Yamato flew that flag during the final phase of her voyage to Okinawa." A destination Yamato would never reach…
"And now she's flying it again."
"Yes."
Neither of them were willing to chance voicing their hope that the flag wasn't a sign history was repeating itself – that Yamato was nowhere near embarking upon her final voyage. As long as they didn't acknowledge the fear or hope, it remained little more than superstitious foolishness… right?
Right?
Purposely ignoring the unease and note of worry beginning to pool deep within him, Goto shifted his attention to the repair ship standing at the foot of the 'bed.' "Bring her around, Akashi." In a sense, if they didn't resuscitate Haruka, the shipgirl remained 'safe.' She couldn't head out into battle to risk her life fighting the Abyssals – bad enough he had to order young women and girls to do just that, no matter if those girls were the spirits of warships past and therefore the most ideal soldiers, as shipgirls, to combat the monsters.
Haruka was only military now, due to her previous self being the most revered battleship in Japanese history. She should be attending high school in the United States, her worst problem worrying if her grades were good enough for her to graduate and get her into college, not the optimal use of her ammunition!
But all of that had been thrown out upon her Awakening. She was Yamato, now, and would not accept remaining safe and sheltered when she was perfectly capable of contributing to her country's efforts to fight the Abyssals.
Worse, knowing Haruka's secret meant he was doubly responsible for her. And what did he do, as her commanding officer? Send her out into dangerous battles, and help her become a better battleship.
He hoped her parents would forgive him, someday.
"Yamato?"
…wha…?
Bright pink.
Wait… what? Pink?
Cold. Hard. Uncomfortable.
I shift, but that only makes the discomfort worse, so…
My eyes began to adjust. I groaned, trying to push myself up and away from the uncomfortable cold hard metal… table? Yeah. Table. Someone helped me sit up.
"How do you feel, Yamato?" asked Akashi.
I stared at her, letting my eyes continue to focus while I swung my legs to the side of the table, and hopped off. If I'm too weak to stand, I'll just crash to the floor. I do NOT want to spend any more time on that table!
Fortunately, I didn't collapse.
Right, I've been… upgraded. I quickly took stock of the changes, casting my senses throughout my entire body and ship-self. "Different," I answered the question, honestly.
Akashi snorted. "Very funny," she drawled. "Okay, then. I want you to summon your rigging, so the Admiral can actually see what's different, where all the money went."
Oh, that I can do. Besides, the further I get from the table, the better. The thing didn't feel any more comfortable than when I'd laid down upon it. Wasn't I supposed to get used to it?
A few minutes later, I was nervously standing across the room from the frozen slab of metal, doing my best to remain still while the Admiral and Nagato circled me and my rigging. Even without directly focusing on the additions and changes, I can definitely feel them – the added and replaced turrets, and armor. And to think, when I Awakened, I'd assumed I couldn't possibly have or control more guns…
"Yamato? You can dismiss your rigging. Everything appears to be in order." Naturally, I have to field-test all of it before I can be sure it's dependable.
"Are you ready to come back to the office, Yamato?" Nagato put the question to me, as the last traces of my rigging faded.
"Uh-uh." Akashi shook her head. "I'm giving her at least a day off. She needs to take it easy, get used to the new configuration first. Repair ship's orders."
Nagato raised an eyebrow. "She'll just be sitting down most of the day at the office."
"I wasn't summoned yesterday, Nagato. I know how crazy it can get over there."
The Admiral intervened. "I'll take her to her quarters. Unless you believe something may happen along the way?"
"In this place? It's practically guaranteed."
"I will be fine," I assured her. "I'm sure nothing major will happen."
All three of them stared at me momentarily, as though they couldn't believe what I was saying.
"I suppose I had better head for the office," Nagato sighed, meeting the Admiral's gaze with her own even stare. "Those piles of mildly backdated paperwork won't complete themselves, Admiral."
"Piles of paperwork?" I echoed, in a mock-scolding tone. "Admiral? Have you been letting the work pile up in my absence?"
"Don't you start. Mutsu teasing me is bad enough as it is."
Hey, when Mutsu isn't around, someone has to do it. Come to think of it… why isn't she here?
"The Admiral's sister has decided to let his niece visit the base–"
"Hikaru-chan?" I interrupted.
"Yes," answered Nagato. "At this time, Mutsu should be showing her around."
I turned to find the Admiral appraising me. "Oh, that's right. You haven't had a chance to meet Hikaru, yet. I'm sure she'll like you, Yamato."
"And after you take Yamato to meet your niece, you're heading straight to the office to tackle that paperwork, correct?" Nagato's voice almost sounded wry, though you'd never guess it from her perfectly-schooled expression.
"I, Yamato, will make sure he does," I told her.
"Haruka, what was that about?" the Admiral asked me once we were well away from Akashi's workshop… and presumably, anyone else's hearing range.
I came to a stop. "What, the paperwork? You know what happened the last time we let you put it off."
"You three are never going to let me live that down, are you?" He hung his head ever so slightly. "But, no. I'm talking about after you woke up. You were speaking more casually than usual."
"I was?" Concerned, I mentally replayed what I'd said while in the workshop, and… oh. It isn't that big a change from my past behavior as Yamato, is it? "Um… actually…," I said, fighting a blush. "For a while now, I've been sort of… channeling my former self, I guess you can say, instead of consciously maintaining the act. It's easier to act natural if I'm not spending time picking my words before I say them."
What I thought might be shock flashed across his face, and vanished just as quickly. "So… I can reasonably assume that by April of 1945, you were 'speaking' a little more casually than formal, as a ship-spirit?"
"Yes." The Admiral was trying to avoid mentioning Operation Ten-Go, I knew, aware that talking or even thinking about it was uncomfortable for me. But, as I'd been sunk shortly after the beginning of the month, that particular April was another topic I wanted to avoid.
As if he'd sensed my distress, the Admiral didn't continue that line of thought, directing me to pull out my phone. "Sir?"
"Call Mutsu, and ask her where she and Hikaru are. I'm sure she'll be glad to hear you're up and about."
I keyed in the code to speed-dial Mutsu, and switched the call to speakerphone.
She answered one-and-a-half rings later. "This is Mutsu. Yamato, you're out of dry-dock?"
"Yes," I replied, repressing a shudder. I'd better not have to repeat that, anytime soon.
"I'm afraid I don't have time to talk," she hastened to add. "Iku has nearly all of our cruisers up in arms again."
"Again!?" I groaned in dismay. Beside me, the Admiral's shoulders slumped. The cruisers were among Iku's favorite targets, for some reason.
You'd think Iku would have the sense to leave them alone, particularly if Mogami's still angry. Unless… wait, that can't be it, can it? "Make sure everyone is aware not to go after Lieutenant Matsubara."
Mutsu's voice was pensive. "Oh, dear. You suspect Iku's setting her up?"
"It's a possibility. We may need to place both of them in protective custody until we know exactly what happened." And Iku's intent, I didn't say. The Lieutenant wouldn't like that, but I'm sure she'd like having most of our entire complement of cruisers out to get her even less.
"Mutsu, what about Hikaru-chan?" the Admiral raised his voice. "Is she still with you?"
"Oh, Admiral. No. I didn't believe she should be exposed to Iku or whatever Iku was up to, and with little time… well, I left her with Tenryuu and DesDiv Six."
The Admiral exhaled. "Thank you for that," he acknowledged, though he was likely mentally running through a list of 'better' candidates to babysit his niece. "Where were they when you left them?"
"They were helping the kitchen staff at the mess hall. But that was a good thirty to forty minutes ago."
"Okay. We'll let you get back to dealing with Iku. Yamato and I will locate my niece. I'll alert Nagato, in case you need backup."
The main difficulty in contacting Tenryuu, is that while she does have a cellphone, she rarely bothers to bring it with her – or if she does have it, she 'forgets' to turn it on. Or switch it out of silent mode. She essentially forces us to track her by her ship's tracker and ID, and contact her by radio, both normally last resorts. Now that we're shipgirls, many surprisingly preferred using cellphones to the older radio transmissions, as they were a bit more 'private.'
It's been suggested that we give DesDiv Six phones to get around Tenryuu's 'stubbornness,' but they're not always with her.
We were about to enter the mess hall when the Admiral stopped me. "I just realized that technically, you haven't had anything to eat for over a week. Are you sure you'll be okay with going in there while we're still looking for Hikaru?"
"Akashi made sure I was completely refueled and resupplied. I should be fine for now." Nobody wanted to risk me collapsing again, after all.
Once inside, I cast a quick glance about the hall to see who was present. The Shiratsuyu sisters. Amagi, vainly attempting to ignore the commotion from the Shiratsuyu tables and maintain her serenity.
Hyuuga and Ise, actually succeeding.
And by herself at a table next to the exit on the opposite wall, a clearly-bored Shimakaze, building random structures with her food. Quickly.
"I'll see what the kitchen staff can tell me. You stay here, in case they pass through."
So, stand around for a while watching other shipgirls eat? Sure, why not.
By the time the Admiral returned, about five minutes later, the Akizuki sisters had claimed a table for themselves and their meager meals, and I'd resorted to idly guessing what the heck Shimakaze was building before she dismantled it and began anew.
"Well, they were here until Tatsuta showed up and dragged her sister away, kicking and screaming," he informed me. "After that, as far as everyone here is concerned, DesDiv Six disappeared."
The Admiral's worry was surely mounting; I didn't consider myself all that great at talking someone down, but I had to do something to keep him calm. "Should we try their quarters?" I suggested. "I doubt Akatsuki and her sisters would take Hikaru on a tour, without Tenryuu present."
"Mmm," he murmured in agreement. And if they're not there… then, I'll try radioing them, or asking Nagato to track them.
"Hello?" I called, pressing the button for the door chime outside the quarters that the four members and sisters of DesDiv Six shared. "Is anyone here?"
Thunder – or rather, the distinct sound of three destroyers' heavy footsteps as they ran toward the door – rumbled, the storm ending abruptly as Akatsuki threw the door open. "Yamato-sempai? You're–"
The nervous and slightly guilty looks Akatsuki and Ikazuchi wore set me on alert. Even Hibiki, who tried to appear stoic most of the time, was a bit anxious.
I knelt to place myself at their eye level. "What happened?" I asked in all seriousness, mindful of the Admiral standing behind me. "Where is Hikaru-chan?"
Ikazuchi winced. "Uh… We didn't do it!" she exclaimed.
"Ikazuchi!"
"You didn't do what?" The Admiral's voice and gaze were quickly developing an edge.
I knew I had to take control of the situation. "Admiral," I stated, calmly and evenly, hoping he would understand. He was an uncle, worried about his niece's safety on a naval base where a considerable fleet of shipgirls was stationed. More so when one realized that anything could theoretically happen when shipgirls were involved.
But the sisters were already panicking, and no doubt imagining the worst possible outcomes. "Everyone, please calm down," I soothed, turning my attention back to the trio. Where is Inazuma? "Now. Start from the beginning."
"Uh… the beginning?"
"Say, around the time Mutsu left Hikaru with you," suggested the Admiral.
Ikazuchi considered that for a moment. "We were all havin' fun. Hikaru-chan, too. Then one of the ladies said Hikaru looked… like she belonged with us. Tenryuu even said she'd make Hikaru-chan an honorary member of DesDiv Six."
"And that's when her sister came and dragged her away." Akatsuki made a slight face. "She was cursing a whole lot."
I consciously did not turn to see what the Admiral's reaction to that statement was. I'm sure he's making a mental note to chew Tenryuu out later, for swearing in his niece's presence.
"Then, you brought Hikaru-chan here?" They could have dropped Hikaru off somewhere, yes. However, that took time, and they'd probably have to go out of their way to find someone responsible enough to take Hikaru, or to get to the Admiral's office or home.
A nod. "Everyone was still havin' fun, and as far as Hikaru knew, she didn't have to be anywhere, so…"
"She was playing with Inazuma a lot!" Akatsuki again picked up the story. "But then… uh… she screamed, and started glowing all gold an' floating–"
Oh, no.
It occurred to me that I didn't know how aware the Admiral was of the Awakening process, as he curtly stepped around me. "Where is Hikaru-chan?" he repeated the question.
"Here she is," Inazuma's voice announced, drawing our attention to the bathroom – where the destroyer was leading her exact twin through the door.
"H-Hikaru!?"
"Uncle…" the girl in question whimpered, catching sight of him. Tears welled in her eyes. "I'm scared, na-nanodesu."
She ran, wrapping her arms tightly around the Admiral and hiding her face against his leg. "Hikaru… chan," he managed to wheeze, teeth gritted, "could you… loosen… your grip… a little? You're… stronger than… you were."
"S-sorry." Hikaru apologized, her gaze traveling to the floor as she released him.
Sighing, he knelt to place himself face-to-face with her, as I had with DesDiv Six. "It's okay. You've done nothing wrong. None of you have done anything wrong. It's just… you're a shipgirl, now, so you need to be aware of your strength."
I pursed my lips. It was difficult to tell how hard this was hitting the Admiral; I'd never seen him truly upset, and the pleasant tone he's forcing to his voice only masked everything more.
He drew Hikaru's attention to me. "Hikaru, this is Yamato."
"Oh, yeah," she said, eyes brightening. "You were on TV."
I gave her a soft laugh. "Yes, I suppose I was."
"Would you mind if I have Yamato carry you? We'll go to the office, and try to figure out what we're going to do, okay?"
The newly-Awakened destroyer appeared to think about it. "…Okay."
"Princess carry?" I offered.
She nodded, though timidly. "Uh-huh."
So, gingerly, I scooped her into my arms, and in one swift motion lifted her away from the ground. Once she was satisfied my hold was secure, Hikaru relaxed. "Comfortable?"
"I… think so."
The Admiral pulled himself to his feet. "You two go on ahead. I just want to ask Hikaru's… new sisters a few questions."
"You're not gonna punish them, are you? You said nobody did anything wrong!"
"I meant what I said. Nobody is being punished." He hesitated, hints of a pleading look present in his eyes. "Yamato, if you please…?"
Ah. My order to leave, obviously. Inclining my head, I turned and left the room, carefully shutting the door behind me.
Hikaru remained quiet as I walked, giving other thoughts a chance to run through my mind.
I had to say something… but what was I going to tell her? Everything will be all right? Awakening was a considerably big upheaval, and not everyone wanted to suddenly become a shipgirl.
Darn it, Akashi was right. Weird things happening here are practically guaranteed.
Author's notes:
I had considered naming this chapter, "A Shipgirl Wakes at Yokosuka," but figured many might assume from the start that it referred mainly to an Awakening, giving one of the events of the chapter away.
L: Thanks! Although, I'm afraid I can't say anything about the possibility of shipping at this time. :D
Special thanks: J. St. C. Patrick
