| Haeret Lateri Lethalis Arundo Chapter Two |
"Her name is Iseki Tomomi. He told me I was overreacting," said Yanagi. She calmly sipped her hot chocolate, but Fuuko could tell she was disturbed. They had been sitting in one of the local coffeeshops for the last hour, and the two girls had been examining the situation from every angle.
"That's the problem with Recca," said Fuuko firmly. "He's way too innocent to tell when a girl's set and determined to get him."
"Get him?" squeaked Yanagi, her eyes wide.
Fuuko nodded, her eyes fierce. "Yeah. He probably thinks she's trying to be 'just friends', when in fact it's probably some plot to get him when he's alone and his defenses are down and he's not expecting anything and—" Her voice trailed off as she watched Yanagi's eyes go wider and wider, until they were at the very widest she could humanly manage.
"Maybe she does just want to be friends," suggested Yanagi doubtfully.
"Someone who wants to just be friends won't lie about someone else's prowess in a course they, to be frank, stink at. Someone who just wants to be friends won't need to have their hands surgically removed from someone else's arm. Someone who just wants to be friends won't coo adoringly about how knowledgeable our baka-Recca is."
"But Recca-kun said it would be all right, that I was worrying over nothing," persisted Yanagi.
"It's not Recca you need to worry about, it's Tomomi," corrected Fuuko, stirring her latte and nodding sagely. "She's got a bad track record. She does this kind of thing all the time."
"But Recca-kun and I have been together for years. Why would she want to go after him?" pursued Yanagi.
"Like that matters to her," said Fuuko scornfully. "Yanagi, not everyone's as nice as you are. There are mean people out there."
"I guess I just don't want to press the issue," said Yanagi reluctantly. "Maybe, it'll just go away by itself."
"But if you don't address the issue, it might become more than you want to manage," warned Fuuko, jabbing her spoon in the air at Yanagi's nose.
"Recca-kun said it will be all right," said Yanagi firmly. "So I trust him." She stood up. "Gomen, but I have to go to my literature club meeting in fifteen minutes. I'll see you at the apartment tonight, okay?"
"Okay," said Fuuko. "Have fun." She waved cheerily at her departing friend, but her smile faded into a pensive look as she gazed thoughtfully at a black and white poster tacked to the opposite wall. Finally, she seemed to come to a decision. She rummaged around in her backpack and dug out her cell phone. A quick dial—a few rings---
"Moshi moshi," came a voice on the other end.
"Ah, Mi-chan," said Fuuko. "Can you come over to the coffeeshop? There's something I want to talk to you about."
Half an hour later, Mikagami was seated across from Fuuko, a look of disapproval on his face. "I told Recca, if he ever hurts Yanagi—"
"And that's just it," interrupted Fuuko. "He doesn't know what he's setting himself up for. He can't see it coming. Even Yanagi can see it coming, but she doesn't want to upset Recca by doing anything."
Mikagami touched the back of his neck absentmindedly. It had become an unconscious gesture on his part ever since he had cut off his long hair, when he had avenged his sister's death. It was as though he half expected to feel the silver ponytail still there.
"Yanagi might care about upsetting Recca, but I'm not burdened by such concerns," he finally said. "What exactly do you have in mind, and how can I help?"