Mahiru heard Hiyoko call from inside the gym.
"Play the song from before, Ibuki! Now!"
She stopped in her tracks.
"Roger roger!" Ibuki returned.
Simple strumming ensued.
Both sounded happy.
Inevitable subject for curiosity, given the two of them. Particularly Hiyoko.
...Oh, how it was to be in a position wherein half the time, knowing that one of your best friends was happy was a sign of impending trouble.
Something that warranted checking up on.
Once her body caught up with the wait signal in her brain, she turned around, walked briskly to the gym door as if it was part of some kind of programming. She opened it and popped inside, lips pursed. Scanned.
On one end of the gym, Ibuki sat with an acoustic guitar, indeed strumming away with leisure, one knee pulled up and other leg outstretched. She had a cowboy hat pulled down over her eyes; it was not worth questioning, Mahiru quickly assumed.
Her field of vision panned to the other end of the room.
And her eyes popped slightly as she recoiled - huh…?
...Her brow furrowed; a subtle scowl.
"...Hiyoko?"
Hiyoko looked over at the call bouncing off the walls of the gym.
Ibuki did not respond. She had begun humming.
"What are you doing up there with that jar?"
Hiyoko stood at the top of a tall, tall stepladder, propped up next to the fan in the wall.
Her pigtails were streaming in its air current. The fan was… not supposed to be that powerful, Mahiru thought. Her body tensed and breath felt rougher as she took a few quick steps forward. I don't think you should be up there - it's not safe…
"How many rooooaaaaads must a mailman walk down," Ibuki sang, all the while, "befoooooore he falls oooooooff of Japaaaaaan…"
...Of course she, too, was just.
Playing.
For a second, Hiyoko balked - leaning back just a hint, clutching the jar closer to her; Mahiru practically stumbled over herself a couple more paces with her hand outstretched off a steady…! reflex before pausing. Lower lip just barely bitten. Looking up to the top of the ladder about as… earnestly-sternly as she could.
What could possibly be in that jar that you would have to bring up there…?!
"How many 'C's in focaccia bread's name… I wonnnnnder if it's good with claaaaaams..."
...Mahiru couldn't help but let her breath fall out in a sigh when Hiyoko immediately… brightened. Smiling big. Laughing.
As if this was a totally normal situation in which to just be happy to see your best friend.
"Mahiruuuuu!" she cooed, lifting the jar, giving a couple of waves aloft; made Mahiru's shoulder muscles seize with another zap of that no stop steady - ! reflex. "You'll never believe what I have in here!"
Mahiru shielded her eyes from the fluorescent light with a flat hand. Narrowed her eyes at the jar.
Whatever was inside was black. Appeared shapeless.
...She took another step forward, and -
"N-no, no, no, Mahiru!" Hiyoko was balking again, huge-eyed, shaking out her head with her jar hand forward. "You have to stay there! I don't want you getting caught in the line of fire!"
...Line of fire.
A sudden Cheshire grin. "See - I was listening to Ibuki's stupid singing earlier…"
"Howwwww many syllables can you craaaam into a… parodylyricsverse," Ibuki sang on, scrunching her nose and screwing up her eyes over a toothy smile. Extra flicks of the wrist in her strums. "...Befooooore it can no longer scaaaaaaan…"
"And it gave me an idea for something fun to do with Gonta…"
...Mahiru blinked wide. Mouth just-open.
If it was Gonta, and - the black mass inside the jar, hang on…
...And Hiyoko stood up straight atop the ladder with a shriek. "He's here…!"
Mahiru turned just in time for her to receive a firm bump into her side that send her stumbling sidewise - with reflexive indignance, her head snapped up to see Gonta smiling sheepishly at her from under his big old mossy mane, scratching at the back of his head. "Oh - please forgive Gonta!" he said, underscored by the little wobble of a humble laugh. "He not know Mahiru would be here to see Hiyoko, too…"
...Orange and yellow moved somewhere to the left of his face.
Mahiru passed her visual focus its way again.
Hiyoko had unscrewed the lid of the jar. She was holding it over the fan.
"Hey, Gonta!" she chirped in the most keen of chirps. Waving. Gonta froze just a sec before looking right her way. "You're so slow! I've been waiting all day to show you this cool thing! You're the Ultimate Bug Guy, right?"
And in a beat, her smile narrowed impish.
"Have you ever seen this many ants fly?" she said. She upended the jar.
...Mahiru's breath stopped and back froze.
...Oh, no.
Both she and Gonta tensed.
And in time, she hissed and grimaced and reeled back with her arms in front of her face, one eye shut and other squinted protectively, as a duststorm of countless little black specks began to fly around the gym.
"NO!" Gonta cried.
It was all panic. No anger.
Geez, Hiyoko, of… all the targets you could have chosen…
...Mahiru strafed backward a couple of steps.
"The aaaaaants are my friends," Ibuki sang. "They're blowin' in the wind…"
Hiyoko squeaked and hiccuped with laughter as she began to descend the stepladder and Gonta's footfalls began to pound as he moved from spot to spot in the gym - with cupped hands, or quick surveying scans and calls of "where?!" and "ants safe there…?!"
"The aaaaants are all blowin' in the wiiiiiiiind…" Ibuki's grin had buckled again.
And as if its tightening had been a sign of spring-loading, she jumped straight up onto her feet with a cackle and crow, cowboy hat flopping. "...Nooooow Ibuki gets it!" she squawked to the ceiling.
Before spinning and dancing and strumming again fast and merry and erratic in the veritable whirlwind of ants. Hiyoko, likewise, danced as she hopped from foot to foot.
As all the while, Gonta continued to trudge and scoopand bottle and catch and yelp and bug-whisper.
And safe outside the doorway, Mahiru gave a heavy, heavy groan as she dropped her head to rub her temples.