"Stop it. I said stop it!!!"
He sees her stop and so stops also. Had that been Nabiki? Before she knew what she was doing, Akane had turned to the voice and began to run.
It was indeed Nabiki. The older girl looked harried as she faced down two junior guys, her back to the lockers.
"Hey," Hiroshi spoke up in his prerogative as a male. "What's going on here?"
The two turned to face Hiroshi and Akane. Akane recognized them as two guys from the kendo club. They sneered.
Nabiki looked apologetic and embarrassed, as though she couldn't possibly bear the fact that her little sister and her friend had come to her rescue. "It's nothing," she said, not sounding at all convincing.
"That's tight, it's nothing," the two juniors hissed. "Why don't you two go back to class, huh?"
Hiroshi and Akane exchanged nervous glances. "What's really going on here?" Akane demanded.
"The girl just owes s some money, that's all." The burlier of the two guys suggested pleasantly.
"I do not owe you money," Nabiki spat, regaining some of her fire in the presence of reinforcements. "You lost that bet fair and square."
"You rigged it," the smaller junior proclaimed.
"I tilted it in my favor," Nabiki agreed. "But if you were stupid enough to take such a dumb bet, then it's your own fault and not mine."
"Come on guys," Hiroshi began soothingly, stepping between Nabiki and her assailants. "I'll bet we can figure this all out - "
That was when the punch connected squarely to his jaw.
Akane took up a loose stance. "You hit my friend," she growled. She could feel something building within her. Her only real friend, Hiroshi; what if he didn't want to be around her anymore, since it was so dangerous? They'd pay for that!
Nabiki edged out from her position, now that the kendo juniors were no longer focused on her. She crept until she stood behind Akane, who was wreathed in blue flame.
"Shi. shi. HOKODAN!" Akane cried.
The blast was very small, but it was enough to singe and frighten the boys into taking off down the hall at a pretty fantastic pace. "There," Akane said firmly.
Then she fell to her knees.
"Thank you. Again," Nabiki said dully. "I really thought I was going to get beaten up that time."
Akane whirled on her older sister, ready to scream at her and admonish her to never scare her like that again. But then she saw Hiroshi, who had been rather soundly decked, spread out on the floor like a rag doll. "Kami- sama! We have to get him to the nurse!"
Nabiki sighed and stood a little shakily.
"Are you okay?" Akane asked her.
Nabiki nodded. "Didn't really sleep last night," she murmured faintly. "But maybe all of us could use a visit, huh?"
Akane nodded back, shaking a little bit of the weariness from herself. She felt so. empty. So alone. And yet she was viewing the emotion almost outside herself, like she knew it wasn't real. "Wait a moment," she said softly. It seemed like she was feeling more herself every second.
"The backwash," Nabiki said suddenly. "You have to wait for all your energy to come back."
"I'd almost forgotten," Akane said dreamily. This disconnected feeling was like being drugged. Once she'd had an operation when she was five. It was strange how vividly she remembered that slipping feeling. This was just the same.
"We'll wait here a moment or two," Nabiki replied, seeming grateful for the reprieve.
Akane glanced at her older sister, who looked about thirty. Why was she so upset? A strange, nasty thought occurred to her. Had Nabiki somehow had a hand in her loss of memory, or in what caused that loss? Of so, she appeared to be paying for it. Maybe Nabiki was simply worried over her. Or maybe it was something totally unrelated.
Whatever it was that was making Nabiki act so strangely, it was affecting her work and her health. She's never come that close to being manhandled before. She was always very careful with her business transactions. Akane shook her head to clear it. "I think I'm alright, now. Let's get Hiroshi."
Between the two of them, they managed to drag the boy to the burse's station, which was usually completely overrun. They got lucky, and there was time to treat all three of them.
Nabiki fell asleep and ended up staying at the nurse's for the rest of the day. When Kuno arrived to escort her home, she not only did not protest, she did not wake.
He sees her stop and so stops also. Had that been Nabiki? Before she knew what she was doing, Akane had turned to the voice and began to run.
It was indeed Nabiki. The older girl looked harried as she faced down two junior guys, her back to the lockers.
"Hey," Hiroshi spoke up in his prerogative as a male. "What's going on here?"
The two turned to face Hiroshi and Akane. Akane recognized them as two guys from the kendo club. They sneered.
Nabiki looked apologetic and embarrassed, as though she couldn't possibly bear the fact that her little sister and her friend had come to her rescue. "It's nothing," she said, not sounding at all convincing.
"That's tight, it's nothing," the two juniors hissed. "Why don't you two go back to class, huh?"
Hiroshi and Akane exchanged nervous glances. "What's really going on here?" Akane demanded.
"The girl just owes s some money, that's all." The burlier of the two guys suggested pleasantly.
"I do not owe you money," Nabiki spat, regaining some of her fire in the presence of reinforcements. "You lost that bet fair and square."
"You rigged it," the smaller junior proclaimed.
"I tilted it in my favor," Nabiki agreed. "But if you were stupid enough to take such a dumb bet, then it's your own fault and not mine."
"Come on guys," Hiroshi began soothingly, stepping between Nabiki and her assailants. "I'll bet we can figure this all out - "
That was when the punch connected squarely to his jaw.
Akane took up a loose stance. "You hit my friend," she growled. She could feel something building within her. Her only real friend, Hiroshi; what if he didn't want to be around her anymore, since it was so dangerous? They'd pay for that!
Nabiki edged out from her position, now that the kendo juniors were no longer focused on her. She crept until she stood behind Akane, who was wreathed in blue flame.
"Shi. shi. HOKODAN!" Akane cried.
The blast was very small, but it was enough to singe and frighten the boys into taking off down the hall at a pretty fantastic pace. "There," Akane said firmly.
Then she fell to her knees.
"Thank you. Again," Nabiki said dully. "I really thought I was going to get beaten up that time."
Akane whirled on her older sister, ready to scream at her and admonish her to never scare her like that again. But then she saw Hiroshi, who had been rather soundly decked, spread out on the floor like a rag doll. "Kami- sama! We have to get him to the nurse!"
Nabiki sighed and stood a little shakily.
"Are you okay?" Akane asked her.
Nabiki nodded. "Didn't really sleep last night," she murmured faintly. "But maybe all of us could use a visit, huh?"
Akane nodded back, shaking a little bit of the weariness from herself. She felt so. empty. So alone. And yet she was viewing the emotion almost outside herself, like she knew it wasn't real. "Wait a moment," she said softly. It seemed like she was feeling more herself every second.
"The backwash," Nabiki said suddenly. "You have to wait for all your energy to come back."
"I'd almost forgotten," Akane said dreamily. This disconnected feeling was like being drugged. Once she'd had an operation when she was five. It was strange how vividly she remembered that slipping feeling. This was just the same.
"We'll wait here a moment or two," Nabiki replied, seeming grateful for the reprieve.
Akane glanced at her older sister, who looked about thirty. Why was she so upset? A strange, nasty thought occurred to her. Had Nabiki somehow had a hand in her loss of memory, or in what caused that loss? Of so, she appeared to be paying for it. Maybe Nabiki was simply worried over her. Or maybe it was something totally unrelated.
Whatever it was that was making Nabiki act so strangely, it was affecting her work and her health. She's never come that close to being manhandled before. She was always very careful with her business transactions. Akane shook her head to clear it. "I think I'm alright, now. Let's get Hiroshi."
Between the two of them, they managed to drag the boy to the burse's station, which was usually completely overrun. They got lucky, and there was time to treat all three of them.
Nabiki fell asleep and ended up staying at the nurse's for the rest of the day. When Kuno arrived to escort her home, she not only did not protest, she did not wake.