"Reina?"

The moment she could finally see everything in front of her, the first sight that greeted Kumiko's eyes was a feminine figure. Initially assuming it was Reina, Kumiko was relieved to see the girl she loved by her side, just like the other time she had woken up facing an unfamiliar ceiling. However, it became clearer to Kumiko this wasn't the case upon closer inspection.

"Kaori… Nakaseko?" Her mind still hazy after whatever happened before she ended up here, Kumiko rubbed her eyes to double-check that yes, that was indeed the Steel-type specialist of the Elite Four. Despite her calm smile, Kaori's presence only made Kumiko feel even more uneasy. Where was Reina? Shouldn't she be by her bedside, waiting for her to wake up?

"Miss Oumae, please calm down. You're safe now." Those words were hollow, but not knowing how Kumiko would react, Kaori couldn't offer anything else to her except a false hope. "To keep it short, after you were hit by a sleep-inducing Pokémon move, Asu- Miss Tanaka rescued and transported you here to a hospital in Dacap Town. Thanks to a Worry Seed I fed you, you managed to wake up shortly afterwards."

"Where's- where's Reina?" To Kumiko, the most alarming thing about this entire situation was the complete lack of Reina. If Reina wasn't by her side, then what happened to her? Trying to remember everything that occurred up to now, Kumiko's mind was repeatedly grabbing at straws that were just barely out of reach, unable to string together all the details into one coherent thread.

"Miss Kousaka left the room a few moments ago." Kaori replied. "She didn't say where she was going, but I assume she will be back soon enough. Right now, you need to continue resting. The Worry Seed I fed you only removes the Asleep status ailment from you, but not any side effects caused by the move you were hit by. Like all conditions, the best way to ensure a healthy recovery is to relax yourself."

"But Reina-" Hastily scampering out of bed, Kumiko attempted to stand up properly, though this only resulted in her falling flat on her face. As her forehead met the floor, memories of what happened before she awoke came swimming back to Kumiko. Storming HTT's headquarters. Battling Mugi. Rescuing Reina. And most important of all, pushing Reina out of the way as an attack hurtled towards them.

For some reason, Kumiko remembered those last few moments particularly well, most likely because it was what caused her to lose consciousness in the first place. Even as her mind began to make sense of all it experienced, Kumiko still couldn't quite make sense of what she witnessed on the rooftop. Whatever she saw back there in those split seconds was too strange to even properly describe.

Right as Kumiko prepared to jump off along with Reina, she heard a lone voice break through the silence, shouting as if ordering an attack. Turning around to see who it was, Kumiko was immediately greeted by a pitch-black orb being launched at her. Though Kumiko instinctively knew it was a Pokémon move, the way it seemed to suck in everything around it was highly unnatural, causing her suspicions to be heightened.

With little time to react at all, Kumiko quickly pushed Reina aside, taking the full brunt of the attack herself. The last thing she actually remembered after that was a sensation similar to being swallowed up into an abyss, but even that feeling was fleeting. Because of how quickly everything happened, whoever the voice belonged to, what Pokémon was behind the attack, and what the attack itself was were complete unknowns to Kumiko.

However, her number one concern right now was Reina. Having no recollection of anything after she was hit by that attack, Kumiko was at a complete loss as to how the girl she loved had fared. Was Reina alright? Did she also get attacked as well? What did Reina have to go through? As all those questions and more floated around Kumiko's head, she soon saw a helping hand reach out to her.

"Miss Oumae, perhaps it's better if you remained in bed for the time being." Kaori offered. "Since I don't know what move caused you to be Asleep, I can't give you proper treatment for all the side effects you're going to go through. All I can do for you right now is to assure that you get some rest. That way, Miss Kousaka won't be worried about your condition once she gets back."

"Alright then…" Taking Kaori's hand, Kumiko was pulled up by her and hoisted onto the hospital bed, being settled in there once more. Now feeling comfortable again, Kumiko only realized how weak she had physically become as her body began getting heavier without any explanation. Unable to fight against it, Kumiko could only lay in bed as she stared at the ceiling for the second time, wondering where Reina could be.


"Fucking hell… why did he have to show up here?"

Crying and sobbing to herself behind the hospital building, Reina couldn't believe what she had just done as her friends watched on. In her mind, that person had deserved every last bit of what was coming to him, but the last thing Reina wanted was for other people to see her being so violent. With her facade of being a cool and calm girl now completely broken in front of her friends, Reina didn't know what to do. How would other people accept her after that?

Wiping back her tears on her bare arms, Reina stared up at the fading afternoon sun, its dull shine not being enough to blind her or dilate her pupils. Even so, it was still bright enough to reflect the streaks of moisture on Reina's skin, revealing her true feelings laid bare. With no one else to lean on, Reina simply fell back on the wall behind her, its hard surface catching her weight as she slid down. Sighing to herself, Reina found that she was now completely lost.

"Here, have a tissue. It looks like you really need one." As the light in front of her was obscured by a person's silhouette, Reina looked up to see two girls her age standing in front of her. The taller girl had long chestnut hair and was wearing a mint green sweater paired with black elastic leggings, while the shorter girl had medium-length brown hair with a red ribbon tied behind her head, and wore a plain red cardigan over a simple white dress.

"Thank… you." Though she was confused about why these two girls chose to help her, Reina still took the tissue from the taller girl's hand, using it to wipe her eyes and nose. Once the last remnants of her tears had disappeared, Reina could now see the two girls' faces more clearly.

"Sorry for not introducing ourselves earlier." The shorter girl began. "My name's Masako Sakai, and she''s Junna Inoue. We're Trainers from the Subton City Gym. During the raid on Houkago Records, we saw you along with a girl who had curly brown hair, but it seems both of you weren't part of either HTT or any raid team the League sent. May we ask what you two were doing there?"

"The girl you saw… was my girlfriend Kumiko." Reina told them, her mind doing the bare minimum to fill in the blanks. "I was kidnapped by HTT yesterday for some reason, and my girlfriend somehow broke into their headquarters and rescued me earlier today. After that… she… she…"

Unable to carry on speaking, Reina burst into tears again at the mere thought of remembering what happened just a few hours ago. Taking more tissues out of her pocket, Junna handed them to Reina. "There, there. You've definitely been through a lot. Just let it all out here. No one else is going to hurt you anymore. You can continue speaking anytime when you're ready."

Nodding in confirmation after hearing Junna's reassuring words, Reina waited until she became composed enough to talk in coherent sentences again. "...Kumiko was h-hit by a sleep-inducing Pokémon move, and s-she pushed me aside before I could be hit as well. After t-that… Tanaka from the Elite Four took u-us here, and Nakaseko… gave Kumiko a Worry Seed to help her recover. B-by the way, my name's Reina Kousaka. Apologies for not telling it to you sooner."

"I see… That's quite a lot to process." Junna noted, before turning to Masako for a moment. "Well then, Reina. I think you should return to your girlfriend's side. She's definitely going to need a friendly face next to her when she eventually wakes up. Being all alone in an unfamiliar environment won't do any favours for her mental state, doubly so when she's just regained consciousness."

"...Don't want to." Reina's voice was tinged with hesitation as she replied. This didn't go unnoticed by either Junna or Masako, but they didn't press further. If Reina was deliberately keeping something hidden from them about what happened during the raid, then there was certainly a good reason why. As tears began to form in Reina's eyes for the second time, Masako suddenly thought of a bizarre way to help her out.

"I know. Since you don't want to see Kumiko right now, why not reunite with her a while later? Maybe some distance is what you and Kumiko need to get closer again." Masako suggested, attracting both Junna and Reina's attention. "Since we've got a Teleporting Pokémon, you can accompany us to Subton City. We'll have our friend Tsubame pick Kumiko up once we get you settled in, and then we'll help you two arrange a date to get back together. How does that sound?"

Now presented with a new option aside from going back to face Kumiko again or running away forever, Reina thought it over. With everything she had gone through, maybe it was better if she took some time to recalibrate herself. Besides, wasn't the Gym in Subton City one of the two she hadn't challenged yet? Perhaps a good old-fashioned Gym battle was what she needed to get herself back into shape.

"That's… actually kind of a good idea." Reina gave her answer. "To be honest, I haven't felt like myself ever since I learnt Kumiko was Asleep. It's possible that I'm not handling the news too well, so some time alone may be better for me. Once I don't have so much pressure on me, I think I won't be afraid of looking Kumiko in the eye. With all that said, I'll take you up on your offer."

"Good to hear! Then I'll immediately call Tsubame and have her search the hospital for your girlfriend!" Masako clasped her hands together in excitement. "By the way, I've thought of somewhere special for your date with your girlfriend. It's a nice place called Fullmoon Lake, but I'm afraid I'm getting a bit too ahead of myself there. Junna, is the Abra we borrowed ready to go?"

"Give me a moment here." Junna replied as she began rummaging in her bag, producing a Pokéball from it a short while later. Throwing it out, the Pokéball opened to reveal an Abra, which began levitating above the ground as it waited for orders. Once their way out was confirmed, Masako took her cell phone out and dialled a set of numbers into it before she pressed it to her ear.

"Hello, Tsubame? It's me, Masako." Reina could only hear bits and pieces of the conversation that ensued, but it was still enough for her to follow it. "...So you somehow met one of your friends at the hospital as well? That's interesting. Anyways, there's something I want you to do for me… No, we've got a change of plans on our hands, so we're ditching the League behind for now. We'll catch up with them later."

"...So here's the gist of it." Masako continued after a longer than usual pause. "I want you to find this girl called Kumiko and bring her along with you to your home in Subton City. She should be a patient somewhere in this hospital. We've got her girlfriend Reina here with us, and it looks like they're in a bit of relationship trouble, so Junna and I have agreed to help them get back together."

"...Don't worry about the details just yet. I'll share some of my ideas with you once we meet in person." Another long pause punctuated the air before Masako spoke again. "For now, just wander around the hospital and ask if anyone knows where Kumiko is. If you need to, check some rooms. Simple as that. I'm about to go back to Subton City with Junna and Reina, so catch you later! Bye!"

Hanging up with a 'beep' from her phone, Masako turned to face the other two girls. "Tsubame's agreed to help us find Kumiko here, so that's one less thing to worry about. After we arrive back in Subton City, we can start thinking about the details of the date. That way, once Tsubame's cajoled Kumiko into going along with our plan, all we have to do is hope everything goes smoothly from that point onwards."

"Alright. I understand your line of thought." Pausing for a moment, Reina then remembered another question she wanted to ask. "Didn't you say that both of you are Trainers at the Subton City Gym? That's one of the Gyms I haven't challenged yet, so do you mind if I battled the Gym Leader there sometime before or after the date?"

"Of course! We're always happy to have challengers!" Now it was Junna's turn to get excited. "The Gym specializes in Ground-types, so make sure to pack Water, Grass, or Ice-type moves if you want a good shot at winning. That is, if you don't get defeated by Knuckle- I mean, the Gym Leader first. Even for a Trainer gunning for their eighth Badge, he's still a very tough nut to crack."

"Then it's a done deal." Reinvigorated by the possibilities of getting one step closer to her goal and mending the relationship between her and Kumiko, Reina's determination became steadfast once again. "I'll head with you two to Subton City and challenge the Gym, while also preparing for the date."

"Great! Take my hand!" Grabbing onto Masako's wrist instead, the ribboned girl smiled at Reina while latching on to Junna's hand. As they warped away, Reina couldn't help but feel a little more assured about her own future. Despite all the twists and turns she had been through in the past two days, everything seemed to be back on track again.

With this resolute hope in her heart, Reina's mood lightened up.


"Where's Reina?"

It had already been an hour since Kumiko regained consciousness, and yet Reina still hadn't returned to the room. Having no clue as to where Reina could've gone in this time, all Kaori could do was try and prevent Kumiko from doing anything rash. Not knowing what kind of sleep-inducing move Kumiko had been hit by, Kaori was completely in the dark as to what side effects might manifest later.

Kaori had thought of trying to start some small talk with Kumiko, but refrained from doing so each time after looking at her glum face. Kumiko clearly didn't feel like talking much right now, and Kaori was sure this would continue until Reina was back. Sighing to herself, Kaori continued to observe Kumiko, continuing to be worried about whether or not the conditions she previously saw would reappear again.

The room they were in being part of a hospital, there obviously wasn't much to do, and Kaori couldn't afford to get distracted from monitoring Kumiko. Going on a break carried the risk of leaving Kumiko unattended if something happened to her, which Kaori didn't want at any cost. Hoping that a proper doctor would arrive soon to take over, Kaori felt like she would be stuck here for quite a while until she heard a knock on the door.

"Come in." Unsure of who would enter, Kaori thought it was Reina for a split second when the first thing she saw was a mane of long black hair swishing in the air. However, that assumption was soon proven wrong upon closer inspection, and Kaori soon blushed at her simple mistake, having finally realized who had arrived to visit them.

"Thanks for looking after my precious Oumae-chan while I was busy, Kaori." Taking a seat directly on her lap, Kaori's face became even more red as Asuka turned to look at her and began caressing her cheek. "If it wasn't for you, then she'd have to wait a lot longer to get the treatment she needed. Given how busy the hospital is right now, there's no telling when that might happen."

"Asuka…" Even in such an uncertain situation, Kaori was still enamoured by how beautiful Asuka was. Unable to pry her eyes away, Kaori decided to keep herself focused on the matter at hand and quickly changed the topic. "I fed Miss Oumae a Worry Seed to wake her up, but I'm not sure if there will be any lingering side effects from the move she was hit by, especially considering I don't know what it is."

"Then let's not worry about what we can't control." Standing up again, Asuka's departure from her lap made that area of Kaori's body feel cold again. Going over to Kumiko's bed, Asuka leaned in close to face her 'kouhai'. "Hello there, Oumae-chan. I'm glad to see you're alive and well, doubly so after what you've been through. I trust that Kaori-chan here has been helping you smoothly recover from your ordeal."

"Asuka… what?" Though she remembered Kaori mentioning that Asuka had a hand in rescuing Reina and her, Kumiko was still extremely confused as to why she was here at all. With Asuka's overly affectionate behaviour towards Kaori upon entering the room, Kumiko didn't know how to react anymore. "What are you even doing here?"

"Excellent question, Oumae-chan." As she sat down on Kumiko's bedside, Asuka looked at Kumiko with that oh-so-tantalizing gaze. "Well, you've probably heard from Kaori-chan that I was the one who rescued you and Kousaka, so clearly there's no reason for me to continue hanging around. Alas, my duties as an Elite Four member have unexpectedly brought me to this hospital for other reasons."

"Do you know what happened to Reina? She's not back yet." Her mind shifting back to what she considered more important, Kumiko impulsively blurted out the first thought she had. In an instant, Asuka's eyes visibly dulled, but the expression on her face remained unchanged. Unsure what response Asuka was going to give her, Kumiko waited with bated breath for the next few moments, nervous about Reina's fate.

"Unfortunately, I have no idea where Kousaka went." Asuka answered. "I last saw her outside after arranging for Kaori-chan to treat you. From the moment I found you two on Houkago Records' rooftop, Kousaka looked visibly shaken, so her prolonged absence probably has something to do with that. She may be under a lot of pressure right now, so try to give her some breathing room. In the meantime, I'll help you look for her around the hospital."

"...Thanks." With Asuka's reply essentially being a non-reply, Kumiko had no other choice but to accept it. Unable to do anything else while being confined to her hospital bed, Kumiko could only watch as Asuka stood up and strode to the door. Giving Kaori a final look, Asuka closed the door behind her as she left the room. Breathing a sigh of relief, Kumiko saw that Kaori had slightly tensed up for some reason.

"...So what was that between you and Asuka?" Hesitant to ask that sort of question in Asuka's presence, Kumiko decided to address the most glaring issue now that one of the aforementioned people was gone. The blush she previously had when Asuka was still in the room appearing on her face for the second time, Kaori was now unwillingly thrust into the spotlight.

"Um… I… uh…" The usually calm Elite Four member soon descended into a nervous stutter as she was forced to reveal some details about her personal life to a relative stranger. "To be honest with you… Miss Tana- Asuka's the most special person in my life. Without her, I don't think I would be where I am today. She's that type of person who has a huge impact on you, whether you like it or not."

"...I see." The exact phrase Kaori used to describe the relationship between her and Asuka hadn't gone unnoticed by Kumiko, and she felt a tinge of jealousy begin to overcome her. Right when Kaori's special one entered and affectionately reassured her that everything would be alright, Kumiko's special one abruptly left her alone for no reason, heightening her insecurities even more in such an uncertain time.

Even so, Kumiko still steadfastly believed that Reina would eventually return. There was no reason Reina would run away from her just like that. After all, she promised Kumiko she would always be by her side, no matter the situation at hand. Kumiko personally suspected whatever HTT did to Reina during the time she was kidnapped was related to her disappearance, but she couldn't prove it.

Trying to relax in bed, Kumiko found herself unable to, being more occupied with thinking about Reina instead. Though her own condition was still volatile according to Kaori, Kumiko was far more worried about Reina instead. Compared to herself, Reina was more prone to erratic outbursts whenever she got too emotional. If what Reina went through had been severe enough, Kumiko shuddered to even think about how the girl she loved was currently coping.

"Well, well, well. If it isn't Kumiko." A familiar voice snapping her out of her thoughts, Kumiko turned her head in the door's direction to see Natsuki looking at her. Seeing another one of her friends suddenly appear in this hospital, Kumiko was extremely confused about how and why Natsuki ended up here. She didn't look injured or ill, so Kumiko was completely left in the dark until Natsuki continued speaking.

"After she told me to come over with her, Asuka told me you were here as well, so I couldn't help but check up on you once I got the chance." Based on the slight hint of disgust in her voice, Natsuki was clearly implying Kumiko's location had been offered up by Asuka as bait. Otherwise, there would be absolutely no way Natsuki would follow what Asuka said that readily.

About to reply, Kumiko's response was stopped in its tracks when the cell phone inside Natsuki's pocket began vibrating. Fishing it out, Natsuki promptly began speaking with whoever was on the other end. "Oh, it's you… Any luck with that thing on your end? No? Figures as much… Look, I'm in the middle of a conversation with Kumiko here, so catch you later. Bye."

"That was Yuuko." Natsuki blandly stated as her phone automatically hung up. "She's also here at the hospital for the same reason as me. I don't know exactly what happened, but when Yuuko was coming back from the bathroom, she saw Reina do something shocking in the hallway outside. She's been trying to find Reina ever since. Do you know where your girlfriend went?"

"No. I woke up to that news as well. I really hope Reina's OK…" Becoming even more worried that Reina had done something disturbing, Kumiko could feel the grip of anxiety begin to close around her. Already having been separated from Reina once in the last few days, Kumiko didn't want to lose her again. Not after being reunited with her so soon.

"I really can't offer you much advice, Kumiko, but listen to this." Sitting down on Kumiko's bedside, Kumiko could see the gaze of someone more responsible in Natsuki's eyes. In a way, how Natsuki looked at her reminded Kumiko of Asuka and Mamiko. "From my own experience, it's sometimes best to let the ones you love have some space to themselves. You don't know when they need it, and sometimes it's too late when you do."

"Alright. But I'm still quite worried about Reina…" Despite the similarities between what she and Asuka said, Kumiko felt that Natsuki's words had more weight to them, as if she was speaking from experience. Based on what Kumiko knew about Natsuki's circle of friends, there was only one possibility as to who she could be talking about. "Did you learn that from your time with Yuuko?"

An expression that was too difficult to read came up on Natsuki's face, and what she said next amidst a luminescent blush only seemed to further confirm it. "What? Where did you get that assumption? Of course not! I certainly haven't been through anything like that with Yuuko! Nothing at all! Anyways, I've got to meet back up with her! See you later!"

Hurriedly bolting out of the room, Natsuki didn't even bother closing the door behind her properly. Though she sighed to herself again, Kumiko did so more out of relief this time around rather than a feeling of worry. Even after everything she had gone through, at least there were some things in her life which wouldn't change. Case in point, Natsuki being Natsuki.

Laughing a little to herself, Natsuki's antics took Kumiko's mind off more serious thoughts for a short while, but she inevitably drifted back to them. No matter how much other people tried to fill the void, no one else could truly replace Reina in Kumiko's heart. The night she spent alone without Reina by her side continued to linger ominously in her mind, and Kumiko was worried it would repeat itself if this kept going on.

Wondering if there was any other way she could find out Reina was, Kumiko briefly considered calling her over the phone before remembering why that wouldn't work. Since they travelled together all of the time after their encounter in Perto City, there was no need for either her or Reina to exchange their phone numbers. Their bond with each other being as strong as it was, the possibility of them being separated for a long time never occurred even once in their minds.

That was a simple mistake to make, but it was still a mistake nonetheless, and a costly one to boot. Without Reina's phone number, Kumiko couldn't contact her at this critical juncture, right when such a gaping distance between them had appeared. This basic error resulted in a lost opportunity for them to reconnect with each other, separating them even more than they already were.

About to cry after realizing what a fool she was, Kumiko used all her willpower to hold her tears back in. There wasn't any use in lamenting over something which already happened, or at least that was what Reina would say if she was here. The past couldn't be changed now, which meant the only way out of this situation would be what she did next.

Thinking about how she could find Reina, Kumiko's initial thoughts were soon interrupted by a series of quiet knocks on the door. Her heart skipping a beat at the possibility that Reina had returned, Kumiko didn't know what to say as the door opened. Contrary to Kumiko expectations, the person who appeared was a bespectacled girl with dark green hair, wearing a gold necklace over a black turtleneck and blue denim jeans.

"Um… excuse me, I'm looking for someone named Kumiko." the girl began, her voice tinged with anxiousness as she nervously glanced around the room. As she didn't look like someone who would work at the hospital, Kumiko was confused as to what the girl needed her for. "Do you know where she is?"

"I… I'm Kumiko." Answering the girl's question after a brief moment of hesitation, it was then that Kumiko noticed they were about the same age. Though she dressed quite maturely, the girl's shy demeanour made her look a few years younger. "Is there someone who needs me?"

"Nice to meet you, Kumiko. My name's Tsubame Kamaya." She introduced herself. "I'm a Trainer from the Subton City Gym. You see, my friends told me to look for you around the hospital and take you to Subton City along with me. That's because… they know where your girlfriend Reina is."

"Reina? Really?" Though she knew she shouldn't trust complete strangers that easily, Kumiko was now at the point where she was grasping at straws for Reina's whereabouts. Hearing Tsubame mention her name and knowing they were separated was enough to convince Kumiko that this was legitimate. "Can you tell me where she is?"

"I can only do so if you come along with me to Subton City. I'm not sure why, but that's what my friends told me." Tsubame replied. Confused about Tsubame's secrecy, Kumiko then reasoned to herself that this was because Reina told Tsubame's friends they had previously been chased by HTT. After their escape, it wasn't out of the question for HTT to continue hunting them down. "Um, are you going to answer me?"

"Miss Oumae here has been hit by a sleep-inducing Pokémon move, so I'd advise against having her moved somewhere else as her nurse. Since I still don't know exactly what she was attacked by, I can't let her be discharged until I've confirmed there aren't any harmful side effects." Kaori speaking up reminded Kumiko she was still in the room, but her diagnosis of the situation only seemed to dampen the mood. Kumiko's only hope of finding Reina was now at stake.

"However, as I haven't been able to observe anything happen to Miss Oumae ever since she regained consciousness, there isn't any reason for her to continue staying here." Kaori continued, causing both Kumiko and Tsubame to breathe sighs of relief. "As long as she gets frequent rest and doesn't engage in too much strenuous activity, she's good to go. Just in case, I'll also give her a packet of Worry Seeds as treatment if any symptoms appear again."

"Ms. Nakaseko… thank you very much!" Seeing that the Elite Four member was willing to bend the rules a bit to let her have the chance to see Reina again, Kumiko's emotions were bursting at the seams. Barely being able to keep her feelings from overflowing, Kumiko was ecstatic at this turn of events. "I don't know how I can ever repay you for this!"

"Don't think about it too much. It's what Asuka would want me to do." As Kumiko lifted herself off her bed with renewed confidence, Kaori was sure this was the right decision to make. Giving Kumiko the bag of Worry Seeds as promised, Kaori watched as she went over to Tsubame, head held high from the blessing she received.

Sending out the Natu she borrowed, Tsubame let Kumiko grab onto her wrist as they were Teleported over to Subton City. Right before they vanished from the hospital, Tsubame then remembered something from a few minutes back. She didn't know why she suddenly thought of that, but something about that scenario struck a chord in her for some reason.


Several moments ago…

"Oh, Tsubame-chan. What a coincidence. I never thought I'd see you here."

Turning her head, Tsubame saw her friend Hazuki sitting on a chair, head held in her arms. The two met a while back and quickly became close with each other, and even journeyed together for a short period of time, but never had Tsubame seen Hazuki look so down. Worried about what caused her friend to act so uncharacteristically, Tsubame responded in kind.

"You too, Hazuki. What happened? You're looking sadder than usual." Knowing that Hazuki was quite a straightforward person, Tsubame decided to address this matter in the most direct way possible. This may not have been the best method for talking with Hazuki, but Tsubame didn't want to beat around the bush longer than she had to. After all, she still had something else she needed to do.

"...Don't want to talk about it that much." Hazuki glumly responded, startling Tsubame. Her friend was almost always an extremely cheerful person, so seeing Hazuki act so anguished was troubling for Tsubame to see. "One of my friends got hospitalized here, and I've got an uneasy feeling that another one's also here too."

"I see. That's unfortunate to hear." While she would have liked to console Hazuki, there wasn't much time Tsubame could spare. Junna and Masako's plan was now hinging on her success. "Well, I've got to go see somebody here, so take care of yourself. See you soon."

As Hazuki waved a simple goodbye to her, Tsubame wondered if she could've done more, but all that had been left behind when she walked away.


A/N: If you don't know who they are, Junna, Masako, and Tsubame are the three percussion players in Kumiko's year. Junna's the one with the long brown hair, Masako's the one with the big red ribbon, and Tsubame's the short one with the glasses.

See if you can guess where their outfits are from!