Chapter 36: Per Aspera Ad Astra

Thursday, July 26, 2012, Yu's POV

Our exams seemed to go fairly well, or at least as well as we could hope for. At the beginning, the five of us felt well-prepared, and at the end, none of us doubted that we'd done as best as we could. The actual results would be another story, but for now, that sense of well-founded optimism was the most we could ask for.

On the way to the last day of school before the end-of-term assembly, I met and talked with Sakura.

"So you're going back to Inaba in two days, right?" Sakura said. "It must be fun to see your girlfriend and other friends again."

"Yeah," I said. "It's possible that this will be the last summer we're all in the same town, so I want to make the most of it."

It was a fairly harsh truth, but it had to be said. Chie and Yosuke had very different skillsets and aspirations than Yukiko and I did, and so did the second-years. The school Yukiko and I were shooting for- Kikuoka University- was perhaps not quite on Tokyo University's level, but it would be difficult for many of our friends to get into it, and even those who did might not find programs that were suited to their interests. Perhaps we would be able to come back to Inaba together next year, but it would only get harder the year after that, and possibly in the years to come.

"I see," Sakura said. It was clear that she knew the same went for the five of us, and while Hitomi's fiance lived across town, if his family was as strict as hers, she might as well be living on another planet.

"It might be a little late to ask this," I said, "but have you ever thought of coming along with me?"

Sakura sighed. I hadn't brought up the idea of inviting her around the others because I knew that she was the only one who would possibly accept, and the idea was one I came up with on the spur of the moment. Of course, that didn't mean she would accept, so she sadly shook her head.

"I thought about asking my folks for a train ticket to Inaba," Sakura said, "but while they're nowhere near as strict as the Ayanokoujis, they're not quite as open to the possibility of my traveling on my own as yours are. Besides, Mom and Dad are planning on spending some time together as a family."

"Well, my family would rather have me stay with them, or, failing that, with my uncle," I said. "With that in mind, the fact that they're traveling makes things convenient for me."

"I see," Sakura said. "Well, it's not as though I'll be lonely in Minagi, either. Even if the others will probably be busy, I still have other friends I can see."

Sakura did her best to put a positive spin on it, but she was clearly somewhat disappointed, much as she had been when I rejected her confession. Perhaps some time alone would help her to sort out her thoughts, just as it had helped her come to an epiphany about how she felt about me.

While I knew I would miss my old friends, I felt as though we were parting on a better note than we did for Golden Week. We'd made progress since then, and while we couldn't say where we would be in eight months, this gave me a foundation for my confidence, and reason to believe that we'd stay friends until we graduated.

After School

Club was in session one last time before summer vacation, so Sakura and I had student council and drama club meetings, respectively.

On the way there, though, the two of us stopped by the bulletin board and saw the exam results posted.

Sakura's face lit up as she saw the upper rankings, and I could see why. The president was again on top of the class, Kenji had moved up to second, I had moved up to third, and Sakura was seventh place- everyone I knew in the upper echelons had either improved or kept their rank. For a moment, I felt guilty over celebrating the misfortune of the former fourth and fifth rankers- now sixth and eighth- but I reminded myself that college admissions were intensely competitive, and it was only natural to wish for luck for oneself and one's closest friends.

Of course, our enthusiasm faded as we scanned the list and noticed how far down everyone else was. Otonashi-san had evidently had a rough time on the exams, and was ranked 72nd.

Kaoru was 104th. While it was an improvement, and met the team's requirements, it was still below average, and would be one more disadvantage he had going into the workforce. He would likely find it very depressing that the thing he enjoyed most and thought he was best at would do him little good, while his failure to improve much in his weakest area would likely catch up to him in the near future, but he didn't need to hear that from anyone else.

Hitomi had slid several places, to 139th. It wasn't hard to guess that whatever her parents were having her do at home wasn't related to studying.

"Well, at least none of us will have to go to summer school," Sakura said.

"Yeah, I suppose that's the most we can hope for," I said. "But what'd happen if Hitomi flunked the test?"

"Her parents would make her go to summer school," Sakura said. "Of course, they wouldn't be happy with her."

I couldn't help but pale slightly.

"I know what you're thinking, but don't worry," Sakura said. "They might be old-fashioned, but they don't beat her."

"True, but what are they going to do to her?" I said. "It's not like they let her leave the house for anything besides school, so grounding her won't work. A lot of punishments focus on taking away privileges, and Hitomi hardly has any."

"You're right," Sakura said. "Still, I've been thinking. There's only one reason I can think of why Hitomi-san would continue to obey her parents even though it requires so much sacrifice. And if they took even that away from her..."

"Then what?" I said, but noticed a second-year boy I recognized as the vice president of the student council waiting on Sakura.

"Sorry, I've got to get going," Sakura said. "Just... forget I said anything and for now, hope that the worst doesn't happen."

I nodded, although I wasn't reassured. It was always depressing when people thought of their parents as little more than people who could provide for them until they could do so themselves. Worse, still, that was a best-case scenario, and Sakura was clearly trying not to think about the worst-case scenario.

Of course, Sakura was apparently running late for her meeting, and so was I, so I didn't have time to think about it. I then hurried to the drama club room, hoping that Hitomi would have better news when we returned from summer vacation.

After quickly slipping in and apologizing for my lateness, I took part in one last practice session before vacation. Tachibana-san was in charge, and I was paired with a girl I didn't recognize.

"Narukami-kun?" the girl said.

"I am," I said. "And you are?"

"Setsuna Senoo, of Class 3-3," Senoo-san said. "It's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," I said as we exchanged bows.

I listened to her practice a few lines and commented on her delivery. Eventually, my turn to practice came, and Senoo-san asked about my role.

"So you're Mercutio, right, Narukami-kun?" Senoo-san said.

"I am," I said. "What about you, Senoo-san? Whose part do you have?"

Senoo-san laughed out loud and shook her head.

"No one's," she said. "I tried out for Juliet, but while the president said I was a good performer, I got passed over in favor of Nakasuga-san. I don't hold it against her, though."

"I see," I said. "It's good to hear that there aren't any hard feelings."

"Well, the club is a reasonable size, so there's all sorts of people competing for roles, and people have different strengths and weaknesses," Senoo-san said. "Tachibana-san, for example, is a mediocre actress- a good grasp of the technical side but little flair for performing- but she's a good leader, so she'll become a good president someday."

I looked over at Tachibana-san, who appeared to be walking some first-years through voice training. As passionate a Sayuri was, she'd never explained things quite so clearly, so I'd had to fall back on what I'd learned from Yumi.

"But what about the current president?" I said.

"She's a good leader and actress, but I get the sense that she only wants to be the latter," Senoo-san said. "I understand that, but at the same time, I know that the club doesn't necessarily need you to be what you want to be, so as long as I'm willing to do her job, I can respect and appreciate that."

For a moment, I had to wonder where all the potential rivals for leadership were. In some clubs, there would be at least two people vying for the leadership position, with vastly different plans and personalities, leading to a bitter dispute. I suspected that Satomi wasn't the only one to disagree with Sayuri, but neither she nor anyone else believed that they could do a better job, or that Sayuri was unworthy of her position. For now, the responsibility was on her shoulders, and while I sympathized with the fact that she didn't enjoy it, had to concede that the club had a competent leader, and the safest route would be to let things go on as they were.

At the end of practice, Sayuri gathered us for an announcement.

"That's all for today," Sayuri said in the same way she let out club on every other day. "We may be on summer break starting tomorrow, but I expect you all to continue rehearsing your lines on your own time. If any of you are unable to keep up, please let us know. For now, though, you're all dismissed- have a good summer."

As everyone else eagerly rushed out of the classroom as quickly as the school's ban on running in the halls would allow, Satomi stayed behind and turned to me.

"Is something wrong, Satomi?" I said.

Satomi shrugged.

"For better or worse, I don't think anyone's going to have a problem with keeping up," Satomi said. "The people who got parts are a solid bunch, after all."

I closely studied Satomi, noticing that these days, she was sometimes careful to avoid giving off any indication of her opinion.

"Are you happy about that?" I said. There's little Yumi wouldn't have given to be part of a group like this, but with Satomi, things were more complicated.

Satomi shrugged.

"It's always nice to be part of a group like that," Satomi said. "On the other hand, I have to wonder- do we need Sayuri in charge?"

I nodded, recalling what Senoo-san had told me.

"Well, she's at least doing a passable job, and no one else's stepping up," I said. "There's also the fact things apparently got pretty chaotic after her predecessor's arrest. But you know that already, don't you?"

Satomi nodded. I didn't really have that much hope of convincing her, but it was a bit disappointing to see it fall flat.

"Yeah, and I tried to convince her to resign near the end of last year," Satomi said, "when the situation calmed down a bit and she started being dissatisfied. She told me, 'I'll lead the club as long as the club still needs me, and as long as I'm in charge, I need you to respect that, Kajiki-san.' That hit me so hard I ended up bowing in apology."

"Interesting," I said. "It seems Sayuri used to be a lot more forceful in her defense of her opinions."

"It's not like she's given up or gone soft," Satomi said. "She still thinks that the club needs her, and as long as that's true, I'll do what I can to support her regardless of my feelings."

While it was clear that neither Sayuri nor Satomi nor Senoo-san had gotten what they wanted, the status quo was sustainable, at least for now. All I could do, as a relative outsider to the club, was to stay the course and do what was asked of me, just like the other three girls I knew did.

Friday, July 27, 2012, After School, Yukiko's POV

The day before Yu-kun arrived, my friends and I met at the food court in Junes after school, following the end of term assembly, to discuss Yu-kun coming back to Inaba tomorrow. As we sat down, I couldn't help but notice something was amiss.

"I think we're missing someone," I said.

"Well, Marie-chan has work today," Rise-chan said. "I couldn't believe she'd actually gotten a job as a meteorologist until I saw her on the TV- it's kind of a boring stage name she has, though."

I recalled once asking Marie-chan about her new name, and she said that Margaret had apparently named her Marie before she realized that such a name would be out of place in our country, so Marie went with an alias that was similar to her name.

"Well, it's not just her," I said. "I wonder what's keeping Kanji-kun."

"Sorry I'm late," Kanji-kun said from behind me. "Kashiwagi made me stay afterward to talk to her for some reason."

I turned around, and didn't recognize who I saw. Kanji-kun's hair was the same raven color as mine, since he'd most likely dyed it, and was now combed over. He was actually wearing our uniform, and had a pair of glasses on his face.

"I'm sorry, but who are you?" I said.

"It's me! Kanji Tatsumi!" Kanji-kun said indignantly.

"I can't really blame Yukiko for not recognizing you," Yosuke-kun said. "Your new look really isn't like you at all."

"The hell was that?" Kanji-kun said, evidently still having his temper, and he only got angrier when I burst out laughing.

After I'd stopped laughing, and Kanji-kun calmed down, Yosuke-kun decided to get to why we were here, as he stood up and walked over to the nearby planter.

"All right, everyone, since Yu's coming tomorrow, let's review the plan one last time," Yosuke-kun said. "Once Yu gets off the train and doesn't see any of us at the station, he's probably going to stop by the Dojima residence first. When he rings the doorbell and no one comes to get it, it'll look like no one's home, so he'll call Dojima-san, who'll tell him to come find us. After Dojima-san hangs up, he'll give me a call to let me know that Yu's on the way, and give us all time to get into positions. Teddie and I will lay in wait just behind where I am now, while the rest of you hide nearby. When we see Yu, we'll signal you over, so sneak over to where we are, and when I give the signal, jump out and yell 'SURPRISE!' at him. Any questions?"

"What if he calls us?" Rise-chan said.

"You guys should probably keep your phones off, just in case," Yosuke-kun said. "As for me, I'll keep mine on while waiting for Doima-san's call, and hang up if Yu calls."

"What about Dojima-san and Nanako-chan?" I said. "Are they on board with it?"

Yosuke-kun nodded.

"Yeah," Yosuke-kun said. "Dojima-san didn't promise much, but he said that he'd do his best, and Nanako-chan wouldn't be back from her piano lessons by the time Yu's train gets in. As long as everyone here does their parts, I don't see us running into any trouble."

Naoto-kun sighed and shook her head, possibly aware that Yosuke-kun's predictions of success were least likely to come true..

"To be honest, I'm not as worried about Yu-senpai or the Dojimas," Naoto-kun said. "We're trying to hide seven people in a store from someone who's actively looking for us. The chance that someone will make a mistake at some point, and that Yu-senpai will notice us is quite high."

"I can't really argue with you there, Naoto," Yosuke-kun said, before shooting a glance at Teddie. "Still, it's worth a shot, and it's better than having him walk halfway across Inaba on his first day."

"I suppose so," Naoto-kun said. "For what it's worth, though, I'll promise you that if anything goes wrong, it won't be due to my not doing my part."

We then discussed the finer points of the plan and did a trial run- Naoto-kun, the person least likely to get her part wrong, played Yu-kun's role. Judging from our results, in which Teddie was the one who most often made a mistake, I suspected that Naoto-kun was correct and that the plan might not go smoothly, but I wondered if Yu-kun would simply take this in stride as something his friends would naturally do.

Evening

Once again, the neighborhood association and local business owners held a meeting at the inn regarding collaborating with Junes. Over the course of the last few meetings, we'd worked out the finer points of the proposal, and once we held a final run-through, we would be prepared to present it.

Before the meeting started, I changed into my kimono and went to the front lobby to greet guests. Mr. Konishi was one of the first to arrive, wearing a dark suit- the same that he'd worn to his daughter's memorial service, but with a red tie rather than a black one.

"Why hello, Yuki-chan," Mr. Konishi said. "You're looking lovely as ever in the kimono."

"Thank you, sir," I said. "You also look quite nice."

"I decided to dress up a little," Mr. Konishi said. "I read one of the books about job interviews that Saki bought, and they stressed that making a good first impression is important. I might not be applying to work at Junes like Saki was, but I'm essentially trying to convince them the same thing- that working with us will be good for them- so everything I can do to make this work will help."

"I see," I said. "Well, on behalf of my mother and everyone else, I wish you the best of luck."

As Mr. Konishi left with a "Thank you," Naoki-kun walked up to me. He and I had known each other since childhood, but, like our parents, were more acquaintances than close friends.

"Good evening, Amagi-senpai," Naoki-kun said.

"Hello, Naoki-kun," I said. "Is there something I can help you with?"

"Well, I just wanted to talk with you about something," Naoki said. "You might realize this by now, but I'd like you to know that this is a really big step for my dad."

I nodded. What he was saying wasn't surprising, but i was interested in hearing more.

"In what way?" I said

"When Junes came, my dad, like a couple of his friends in the shopping district, got scared of three things," he said, "The first was Inaba no longer being the town he grew up in, with all its local merchants replaced by nationwide chains you can find just about anywhere in Japan. The second was losing his business, his livelihood, and his gift to his children. The third, and most important fear, was that if the first two happened, my generation wouldn't understand or care about what they lost."

"I have some idea of where he's coming from," I said. "So that must be why he opposed your sister's decision to work at Junes.'

"Yeah, but let's take a look at it from our perspective," Naoki said. "A lot of the adults like him take it for granted that their kids will inherit their businesses, or at least their values. They're all for tradition, but there's also an element of complacency involved, assuming that the world- or at least this town- won't ever change, and like it or not, they'll need to get over that. That's what he gradually came to understand over time, and I think one of the things that helped him reach that conclusion was when you spoke up at the first meeting we had."

"I've noticed the change," I said. "He seems a lot more enthusiastic now that he's supporting that plan."

"He hasn't been that way since Sis died," Naoki-kun said, "and while that'd be good enough in and of itself, now, he's actually working to improve our own business so that we can coexist with Junes."

"I'm glad," I said. "Of course, I think that everyone else here has been struggling with the issue in their own way, even if they haven't had a death in the family."

"True," Naoki-kun said. "It's times like these when you have to come together, and I think that seeing other people with the same problem helps you put yours into perspective."

Naoki-kun nodded in agreement. Perhaps some would find it callous to be told that they weren't the only ones suffering, but Naoki-kun had enough of being pitied, and took comfort that other people could come to terms with what they'd lost and get on with their lives. He'd never forget or stop missing his sister, but perhaps he and his family could recover, and work hard so that Saki-senpai could be at peace knowing that her surviving family was faring well.

We then headed into the conference room to begin the meeting. Hope was all well and good, but only by thinking and planning could we find a way to ensure our businesses' continued survival. Thankfully, through all our efforts, we were now on the cusp of a solution, and all that remained was to finalize it and put it into practice.

At the meeting itself, Mr. Konishi did a reading of the final draft of his proposal. By this point, no one else had any comments, so he did a run-through of the actual proposal, with Mother roleplaying as Mr. Hanamura. It largely went well, save for one time when Mr. Konishi got confused as to whether "Mr. Hanamura" was a "ma'am" or a "sir."

"What we're offering is an opportunity to sell our goods, made by Inaba for Inaba," Mr. Konishi said. "They come at prices comparable to the big-name brands, with quality you won't find anywhere else. Whether the customers want what's popular or what's local, they can make the choice at your store."

"Well said, Mr. Konishi," Mother said. "You effectively outlined why this would benefit Junes while making it a sales pitch, rather than a plea for help."

"Thank you, Mrs. Amagi," Mr. Konishi said. "Unfortunately, while you may be impressed I can't say with absolute certainty that Mr. Hanamura will be so enthusiastic if he doesn't think these will sell."

Mr. Konishi's doubt was understandable. He might have gotten past seeing Junes as the enemy, but he realized that Junes was as much of a business as Konishi Liquors was, concerned with profit. Mr. Hanamura was a good man by all accounts, such as during the fog crisis late last year, when he refused to profit off people's panic by selling gas masks, but even if he seemed open-minded to this idea, he wouldn't sign off on it unless he thought it was good for his business.

"Maybe that's not the only benefit, Mr. Konishi," I said. "As idealistic as it may sound, perhaps this might generate some goodwill among the locals, and news of the new campaign might increase brand awareness and boost sales for the rest of Junes. Besides, people can be convinced to see reason, since not all of us here were willing to consider this idea at first."

"Yukiko has a point," Mother said. "She may not speak for all of Inaba, but try taking a look around the room and see if you can find anyone who disagrees."

The attendees had sat listening in respectful silence, and gave nods of approval. Perhaps they would not be the ones to decide on Mr. Konishi's proposal, but all of them had contributed to the statement he had made, and all of them trusted him to make it. We couldn't speak for Junes or the rest of our town, but this was a conclusion we had arrived at together, and so, we hoped to convince the rest of our community about it as well.

"Thank you, everyone," Mr. Konishi said. "I'll do my best."

Anyone could imagine what they hoped to accomplish, but while those were blueprints for the future, hard work, determination and effort were the bricks, mortar and other materials that gave the planned buildings form. It had been over a year since I first started going out with Yu-kun and three months since I'd last seen him, but our relationship had survived this long, not merely because of confidence and affection, but because of well-founded trust and loyalty.

Friday, July 27, 2012, After School, Yu's POV

Minagi's end-of-term assembly was largely the same as Yasogami's- an address delivered to a captive audience that was champing at the bit to get out and enjoy summer vacation. Unfortunately, while Yasogami's principal seemed like a kindly and personable old man with strange hobbies, Minagi's principal was a firm believer that children were subordinate to adults, as he set harsh rules and according to Sakura, gave the student government a fair amount of responsibility but little autonomy

The assembly concluded, and I met my four friends at the gates.

"So... summer's finally here," I said, unsure of how to begin.

"Well, it won't be much of a break for me," Kaoru said. "My parents are having this guy they know over, and we're going to talk with him about possibly getting me a job. They expect me to come straight home, so I've got to get going. See you guys later."

With a wave, Kaoru walked off.

"Yeah, I've also got studying to do this summer," Kenji said, "and while my parents certainly expect me to attend and do well at school, they don't want me to stick around there when it's not in session. See you three in September."

As Kenji left, the president walked up to her.

"Why hello, Sakura, Narukami-kun, Ayanokouij-san," the president said.

"Hello, Shizune-san," Sakura said. "That was an excellent speech."

"Thanks," Shizune said. "You and the others helped me a lot. Want to get some ice cream with the rest of the student council?"

Sakura nodded, then turned to me.

"I've got to get going," Sakura said. "I'll see you in September, Yu-kun, Hitomi-san."

Finally, Hitomi and I were left alone. Unsure of what to do, she hesitantly said goodbye to me, and left. Apparently, her parents were suspicious when she spent too much time alone with a member of the opposite sex.

Once again, my friends and I would be parting for a while, and from a certain perspective, not much had changed. Come March, Hitomi would be married off, Kaoru would be entering the workforce (in retrospect, his failure was unsurprising), and Sakura, Kenji and I would be going to college, likely at three different schools. Still, through every time we'd had lunch together, our conversations on the way to school and the basketball game we had, we were slowly growing a stronger bond as friends, proving that perhaps if we could become friends again after this long, we'd perhaps be able to meet again as friends years later. With that in mind, I departed, hoping to see them in September and tell them about my summer.

Saturday, July, 28, Morning

My parents saw me to the train station, less than 24 hours before they were set to head to the airport. The platform was fairly crowded, although few people seemed to be waiting for my train.

"Looks like this is it," I said, as I saw the train pull into the station and stop at the platform.

"All right," Mom said. "Take care of yourself, Yu, and please send my regards to Ryotaro."

"We'll see you in a month," Dad.

"See you then, Mom, Dad," I said.

Waving goodbye, I boarded the train and found a seat. Before long, as I sat staring out the window, as the train sped out of the city and into the countryside, my thoughts returned to my family situation.

For a moment, I couldn't help but take a more cynical interpretation of my mother's requests- asking me to look after myself, what I'd had to do as a result of their often leaving me alone, and to reach out to a brother that she'd barely contacted since reaching adulthood. My uncle had his flaws as a person and a parent, but he'd taken more steps toward addressing them in the last year than my parents had in the last decade.

This wasn't a new problem, but I realized that it had been a long time since I'd cared about it. For a while, I'd been angry, then I'd accepted it as a fact of life that I'd eventually be rid of once I started living on my own. Having lived in Inaba, I'd also gained an understanding of my parents' perspective, but also a belief that things didn't have to be this way. While I could understand why my parents felt the way they did, I had no desire for them to impose their values on me, or to follow in their footsteps as a salaryman whose life was ruled by his circumstances and the whims of his employers.

I thought back to the various people who had reached certain epiphanies in the time they knew me. Some, like Chie and Kanji, were desperately trying to change, even if they didn't know how. Others, like Yukiko and Rise, believed that they'd arrived at a solution to their problems, but ultimately realized that it was not the correct path for them. A third group, like my uncle and Eri-san, misunderstood their own problems, or did not realize where they were going wrong. I had not told any of them what to do, and merely listened to them as they thought through their problems, and while I was glad my parents were passive for now, I couldn't help but fear that they would become more assertive, rather than trust me to find a solution.

But even if my parents didn't necessarily follow this approach where I was concerned, perhaps I could do so for them. Perhaps they had some things left to learn after over four decades of life, and more than 17 years of being parents. The process would not be short or easy, but I was determined to do what I could for them.

Day Time

Once again, the train pulled into Yasoinaba station, and I got off. This time, I saw a throng of people assembled there, but none of them were waiting for me.

Namatame was standing and giving a speech about running for mayor. A woman asked if I knew him, and I said yes, a truthful answer, even if it didn't reveal my complicated personal history with the man. He apparently remembered me, though, and mentioned my group of friends in passing as having changed him for the better by helping him see the truth. I couldn't help but smile- perhaps it was a long shot, but it was nice to see him putting his energy into a positive outlet, and I wished him the best.

Speaking of positive outlets, I saw that the shopping district was vibrant, and the businesses, once afraid of going under and blaming Junes for their woes, had reached out to cooperate with their hated enemy- which had accepted their proposal, the product of weeks of hard work by my friends' families. Apparently, the details had to be worked out, but for the moment, it was pleasing to hear that they knew what path they had to take.

I reached Junes. and looked around the food court. Before long, I noticed Yosuke and Kanji trying to hide themselves, and failing miserably, even without counting the fact that they were talking loudly enough for me to hear them. The surprise apparently having failed, the others ran over, and complained about Teddie and Yosuke's failure. This might not have gone how they had planned, but it probably went as they intended, since, I appreciated the gesture.

I was amazed by how different everyone looked after a few months away, possibly because now that school was out, they could wear clothing that caused their real personalities to show through a bit more.

Yosuke wore a pink shirt with tan pants, perhaps proof that he'd broadened his horizons a little... or maybe lost a bet. Teddie, in his human form, wore a casual blue and white striped shirt and shorts, something Yosuke had likely bought for him, since it seemed more on Yosuke's budget. Chie's hair seemed a bit longer than usual, but otherwise, she looked mostly the same as before. So did Yukiko, who wore a white dress with a sky-blue blouse, while her hair was tied up in a bun, a formal style that suited her nicely.

Naoto wore a sleeveless white button-down top with a black skirt, and her hair was slightly longer than before, albeit not quite up to the same length as Yukiko, Rise or even Chie. It was good to see that she was no longer trying to hide her gender, nor was she reluctantly conforming to what society expected of girls, but she was being herself.

The last of the group, and the one who took me longest to recognize, was Kanji. He wore a white button-up shirt and black trousers- the kind of clothes he was supposed to wear with the uniform. His hair was dark- most likely dyed, at least for the moment, and he wore glasses, a bit like his mother did. Perhaps this was how the real Kanji looked, as a young man who was at peace with himself and no longer tried to adopt a persona out of a misguided understanding of what it meant to be strong.

After I got a call from my uncle about this, we ate at the Dojima residence and I heard various news- about Namatame's release and bid for office, a trial date for Adachi-san, my uncle getting a lead on his wife's case, Nanako starting piano lessons and Marie becoming a meteorologist for the local news station. I also shared what I'd heard in the shopping district- that the deal between the local merchants and Junes had been finalized, even if the merchants had yet to put any of their wares on Junes' shelves. The news seemed especially pleasing to Yosuke and the three children of the local business families- Yukiko, Kanji and Rise.

We talked about all sorts of things- Rise's ongoing efforts to revive her career, everyone's new looks, what we were up to in school, and so forth. The one subject that didn't come up was my relationship with Yukiko and everything associated with it- her parents, my parents and what our future had in store for us. That, among other things, was a challenge we would have to wait, but it could wait until she and I were ready. For now, there was only one thing on my mind:

It was good to be back.

Author's Notes

Thank you for the reviews, favorites and follows.

This (fairy long) chapter took a little while to come out, partly because NaNoWriMo is taking up much of my writing time. I hope to get another update or two before the month is over, though.

We're now up to Golden's epilogue. I decided to skip over most of it so as to avoid having to retread the dialogue.

I had to guess when exactly school let out for the summer. In general, you may see me begin school on Mondays and end it near the end of the week, or what seems like a reasonable guess.

Incidentally, if you talk with a wandering housewife in the northern shopping district in February, she'll mention the neighborhood association collaborating with Junes. I wonder if she meant that it was still in the planning stages at the time, since it's only finalized in Golden's epilogue.

The chapter title's Latin for "To the stars through difficulty," reflecting one of the themes of this fic- the hard work that's required to realize one's hopes and dreams.

Next chapter, Yu and Yukiko will tell their friends about their relationship.