A/N: Hello, AB section! Less than a month and I actually have an update for you. I better get working on Ch 46 though, so I can keep this momentum going (though I confess lately my heart longs for TPS). Thanks to everyone for last chapter's reviews! Seriously so blessed.

Shiranai Atsune, thank you so much! It still blows my mind how long we've been on this journey. Seiram, that was absolutely a Victorious reference and I'm pleased that you caught it. :D Also glad you and ZainR enjoyed the NPC/Programmer conversation, and the mention of Hejjiguchi. Judging by your review I think you might be on the right track with your theories. And review spams are a-okay in my book! Always happy to hear what you think!

ZainR, Iwasawa sure did make an impression with her debut concert, didn't she? But when GDM reunites, that's when the real magic can happen! :D And the NaYuri conversation may have sparked some kind of change between them! We'll see... I'm glad you thought so highly of that scene! It holds a lot of important comparisons/themes, that's for sure. And I promise, HC won't end without you all learning what's up with Hejjiguchi!

Kage, oh yeah! The bet is one of my favorite HC traditions, originating way back in Ch 19. They bet money on who they think they'll find the following weekend. Undisclosed amounts, but enough to make it interesting. Yes, just your standard NDA shenanigans XD Also, the NPC they're talking about is the person Yuri learns about from the AI in the Guild computer room (ep 12)! A boy from long before the Battlefront. As for the preview, ohohoho indeed - now that would be an interesting development, wouldn't it? ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Enjoy!


[Chapter 43]: Just One of Those Mornings


It really was a beautiful afternoon. The sun was going down over the park, leaving a magnificent trail of golden effulgence in its wake. In a less poetic sense, but still worth mentioning, the sky strongly resembled orange sherbet. Ayato thought presently he should get some at the store later.

He was only faintly aware this was a random thought. Random, asinine thoughts were most common when in the presence of the Battlefront. Nonlinear and puzzling and all over the place. He usually strove for structure, but it was hard to think clearly while Yuri Nakamura was sitting so close to him that their shoulders touched, so close she was practically leaning on him as she pressed a key on her laptop.

Was that her old one, the one from Akuma? He thought that she'd replaced it back in 2015. Towards the end the charge port had glitched out, and it faded to a hellish "0%, plugged in, not charging" state where Yuri would scream in frustration whenever either of them accidentally tripped over and ripped out the cord before she finally did away with the damn thing and got a nicer one. Like so many other things from Akuma, he thought he'd seen the last of it.

It seemed to be doing fine now. The Battlefront had gathered around it on the grass, sort of hanging out, mostly attentive to the computer. Ayato was slow to realize, for some reason, that it was set to YouTube and was playing a concert video of "My Song." As if emerging from beneath ocean waves, he came into his senses, and Iwasawa filled his ears with music clear as a bell.

In fact it was very, very clear. So loud and high-def – as if the concert was right in front of them and not masked by a screen – that he didn't quite understand how he hadn't heard it until now. Maybe it was the way Yuri was draping herself on his shoulder, nearly using him as a headrest. Yuri did not do that. They didn't do that anymore. But she was, and he was letting her, and it felt normal and everything was casual and normal and also in a hazy way not normal. His mind wouldn't let him figure out why, it only focused on the music that had enveloped the park.

He listened, and as he did, after a time it began to not sound like "My Song," if that made any sense. Maybe there was a note change. It must have been subtle. It felt like it shouldn't have been this subtle, because Iwasawa's voice had transitioned from an impassioned, melodic lilt, to something sharper and halting. Robotic, even.

It wasn't Iwasawa's voice anymore. And those weren't song lyrics – they were digits of pi.

The Battlefront members were a bit confused, exchanging nonplussed glances with each other, but not as fazed as they really should have been. Even when the digits started floating out of the screen like colorful little germs or fireflies in the air. More and more random numbers poured out in a strange little stream at the speed of computer voice's calm recitations.

Then they weren't random colorful numbers anymore, but black bits of binary code, which glittered with blue and silver dust and bunched together in a tighter, faster torrent spewing out of the screen. Almost in sync, Yuri and Ayato finally had the sense to scramble backwards and leap to their feet. They stood together, close – all the Battlefront was standing now – as the black code began to take form.

Shadows. So many shadows they must have blocked out the sun. Yuri seized at his arm as the world started to go dark. He could only see flickers of their friends in the swirling black masses. The world itself was flickering, like a light switch, the sea of tornado-like monsters churning and writhing faster and faster. The air around them was no longer air, but shadow essence, cold and murky and thick, suffocating and miserable, he just wanted to get out—

The shadows cleared briefly – as hurricanes tended to do, this must be the eye of the storm – and they weren't in Mizuzaka anymore. Ayato knew this. He recognized his surroundings immediately. This was where they had found Yuri after the shadows were destroyed. This was the Guild's computer room. But it was not as they'd left it. The screens were intact, and glowing blue. They flickered. They went out.

A figure waited in the darkness, staring out at them. Ayato felt that they should not be here. The figure wanted him here.

He should not be here. He did not belong here. He didn't have unfinished business to deal with.

Did he?

The figure moved forward, still shrouded in darkness. It was Hejjiguchi glaring ominously at him from the shadows, or maybe it was Kimito. The man – or boy – was still indeterminable, alternating between the two. He was Hejjiguchi and he was Kimito and he was an amalgamation Ayato could not make sense of.

Ayato looked into the figure's dark eyes and saw a cold, melancholy resentment that nearly brought him to his knees. It filled the room, and the shadows billowed once more, a fog of angry storm clouds so strong he could not see or feel Yuri any longer.

Just the pair of harsh eyes cutting through pitch black as he was trapped in a hell he couldn't escape—


Ayato opened his eyes.

The world was bright again, the air clear and calm, and he was staring up at his own ceiling. Here in Mizuzaka. Just another one of those damn shadow dreams again. At least this time he hadn't screamed and possibly woken up the entire house.

Ayato pushed himself up into a sitting position and rubbed at his face, adjusting his vision to the morning light. When he finally returned to full consciousness, he could hear noises coming from the kitchen. Voices that sounded like they were in a mild argument. Déjà vu, almost, except Shiina wasn't hovering in the corner as his vampire bodyguard. He frowned and tried to look over at the pass-through. Its shutter windows were closed – thoughtfully muffling most of the noise.

After slipping into the bathroom to brush his teeth and briefly ruminate over the dream (which was mostly Yuri's fault, damned shadow and programmer talk two weeks in a row), curiosity got the better of him and he padded back towards the kitchen.

Just like last Sunday, it was Hinata and Yui in there. But this time they really were arguing with each other. Yui's arms were akimbo, Hinata's crossed in front of his chest, as they stood in front of the stove for their little face-off. There were eggs out and a pan on one of the burners, probably Hinata was making breakfast again. Why was he always—? God, Ayato could not remember a Mizuzaka Battlefront Sunday where he woke up and Hinata wasn't trying to make breakfast.

Rolling his eyes, Ayato edged slowly past the doorframe, not trying to make himself known quite yet. There was always a lingering invisibility to him that he occasionally liked to use to his advantage. He went off to the side, to the fridge for the green tea from last night, not paying a whole lot of attention and sort of letting them yap at each other. About—

Oh, he thought, as Shibuya and Kyuuya got in through his mental filters. You've got to be kidding me.

This AGAIN? When were they going to let up?!

He rolled his eyes again and tried not to slam the fridge door. Why were all of his friends so weird?! What did that say about him?

"Listen," said Hinata, his voice gruff and tired as he turned to the stove and cracked an egg. "Going back to Kyuuya isn't an option for me. You know that."

Alright, that was new. That caught his attention. Ayato turned more fully to the pair in interest, taking a step towards them as Yui made some incomprehensible whining and pouty sounds. Did he mean…?

"Why would you want to move back to Kyuuya?" he asked, leaning against the kitchen sink and eyeing Hinata over his tea. Wait, was this really what the two been going on about all this time? He added, trying not to sound jealous, "You guys live so close to Otonashi and Kanade."

Hinata startled a bit, turning away from the eggs, but recovered quickly and gestured towards Ayato as he looked back to Yui.

"Exactly! We have friends in Shibuya!" he said adamantly, as Yui continued to look dismayed and conflicted. At the look on her face, he calmed some, but his conviction stayed the same. "I like Kyuuya, but only for visiting. We'd be too close to my parents."

"But we'd also be close to my mom," Yui said sadly.

Upon hearing her tone, Ayato felt sort of badly for the girl. They had clearly been close from what he'd seen in Kyuuya during the Matsushita week. A single mother, reading to her daughter, hugging her in concert T-shirts, baking sugary desserts… She'd doted on her, probably, all of her life. Been her first best friend. He couldn't actually relate to this all that well, but he could still understand why Yui might miss having her nearby.

And yet…

"As much as it pains me to say it, I have to side with Hinata," Ayato said, sipping a little at his drink. The idiot blinked at him in surprise before allowing a small triumphant half-grin and eyebrow raise at Yui. "I would never go back to Akuma, not even for my mother. That place was hell for me. Leaving it behind and starting a new life with Yuri was one of the best decisions I ever made."

Now both idiots looked surprised at him, possibly for mentioning his past with Yuri and being somewhat nonchalant about it. Hinata considered his words for a second before the eggs hissed and sputtered at him and he resumed his cooking. Behind him, Yui's thoughtful expression only deepened as her devil tail began to droop.

"But Kyuuya," she said in a softer voice, wringing her hands, "it's where we fell in love."

"Akuma holds the same meaning for me too," Ayato replied, and shook his near-empty can of tea a little, considering. "But you know as well as I do, there are some things, some places, you're meant to move on from."

Hinata and Yui looked over at him again like he'd just said something meaningful. And, well, he had, but they didn't need to act so astonished that he was smart. After all, he was — oh, forget it. He downed the last of his tea with a scowl.

After a beat, Yui gave a tiny relenting sigh.

"I know," she said, resigned, and walked over to Hinata so she could fall against the counter next to him. "It's just that I don't know if Shiina will want to live in a big city like Shibuya."

Ayato choked a bit on his last swallow. "Shiina?" he echoed, muffling a cough.

"Oh—" Hinata sprinkled some salt and pepper into the eggs, and exchanged a glance with Yui before shrugging. "Yeah, we're going to ask her to move in with us."

W-wh—?

? ? ? ? ?

Something in his brain popped and withered, very much like a deflating balloon, or like Noda last night when faced with the perils of pi. Ayato sputtered incoherently for an embarrassing five seconds before pointing an accusing finger at them.

"Which one! Which one of you is – ?!"

He threw his hands in the air with a snarl of aggravation and snatched up his green tea can, storming out of the kitchen to recycle it while Yui and Hinata wheezed with laughter behind him because they were horrible. He could hear them still talking about it in the kitchen.

"Do you think we should explain it to him?"

"Not unless he's mean about it. This is hilarious."

Ayato frowned over his shoulder as he was shutting the door to the garage. Explain what?! He couldn't stand them!

When he came back in a minute or two later, still shaking his head and coming to grips with the fact that Hinata and Yui were oddballs and he should know this by now, he was just in time to see Kanade come swooping into the kitchen out of nowhere. He could also hear footsteps on the stairs that sounded like Otonashi's following after her. Curious, Ayato returned to the doorway.

"Hey, Kanade," Hinata said fondly, waving the spatula at her. The girl hummed a greeting and fluttered about the cabinets, murmuring softly to herself. She opened one and lit up, retrieving a bag of coffee (was that from last weekend? Had she hidden it there or something?) and moving quickly to the pot.

Yui spied the bag and turned to Otonashi as he entered the kitchen from the side stairway hall. "You just can't go one morning without it, can you?"

"It's for Yuri," Otonashi said, a slightly haunted look in his eyes. He stressed, "She needs it this morning. Trust me."

Ayato and Hinata glanced at each other knowingly, somewhat fearful.

"That doesn't sound too good," said Hinata, sweating as he scooped the eggs onto a plate. Behind him, Kanade got the coffeemaker started while Otonashi fetched some mugs from the cabinet.

"Yeah." He set the mugs down on the counter and scratched at his hair with a nervous smile – more like a grimace, really. "Um. Fair warning. I don't think she slept very well last night."

"Then maybe you two shouldn't do that when she's in the same room," Hinata said idly to the counter.

"It wasn't because of that!" Otonashi snapped, his cheeks scorching red.

Kanade, somehow more used to Hinata's dumb jokes, calmly nosed through the fridge and took out a bottle of juice. "I woke up in the middle of the night – sometime after three – and scared her a little when I got out of bed," she said, pouring herself a glass. "When I apologized for waking her, she said that I didn't. After that, I could still hear her shifting around before I fell back asleep."

"Maybe she had a bad dream again," said Shiina, standing behind Otonashi and making him jump. If Ayato had been standing there he would've flinched too, because when the hell had she come downstairs?

"Maybe." Yui looked doubtful, playing with a lock of long pink hair and getting a pinched expression like she was trying to solve a particularly complicated math problem in her head. She frowned at Ayato suddenly. "Naoi? Did you say anything mean to her when we left you two alone last night?"

"No," Ayato bit back without hesitation, too resentful at the accusation to really think about it. "If I had, wouldn't she have gone to Ooyama's instead? I was nice to her. I told her I'd stop calling her an NPC."

Yui blinked at his mini-rant, if you could really call it that. Her brow smoothed over in acceptance, but a fraction of a frown returned to her pursed lips as she rested her chin in her hand.

"Hm," was all she said.

For some reason, this made the hairs on the back of his neck prick up in suspicion. But before he could open his mouth to reprimand her for whatever it was she was thinking, the coffeemaker started bubbling noisily at them. Thank goodness, it should be ready in a few minutes.

Not soon enough, it seemed, because maybe thirty seconds later there were quick footsteps on the stairs and Yuri appeared through the kitchen's side entrance, looking – well. Not exhausted. Ayato had seen her on two and a half hours of sleep, with bags under her eyes that could carry Hejjiguchi's ego (an old saying of theirs, as long as they were bringing up the past this weekend). This was, if he was measuring, four hours, possibly nonconsecutive. Potentially worse than last weekend. Her hair showed signs of being brushed but some strands hadn't agreed with the treatment and were still curling.

"Morning, Yurippe," Hinata tried in a moment of bravery.

Yuri snarled quietly, edging past everyone and following the sounds of percolation. Her eyes darkened with unhappiness, lips pressed together in a grim line as she regarded the unfinished brew.

Then she caught Ayato staring, and the expression that briefly crossed her face was akin to a computer rebooting before it transformed into a scowl. "What?!"

Ayato recoiled, and apparently the side of his brain that had no sense of self-preservation took over because what escaped his own grinning lips was: "Nothing. I just didn't know my spare mattresses were filled with rattlesnakes and rocks."

"I don't need your commentary, Naoi!" Yuri hollered, making Yui and the guys jump. She turned to Kanade. "Is the coffee going to be ready soon?"

"Please tell me it's going to be ready soon," Ayato intoned, unable to help himself.

"What did I just say?!" Yuri glowered at him for a second, then quickly looked back to the coffeemaker. However, their heads both swiveled to glare in the same direction when a cell phone buzzed nearby.

Hinata went all deer-caught-in-headlights on them, holding one hand up for peace and displaying his phone in the other.

"It's Fujimaki," he said. "Chill out."

Before Yuri could rage at him for the sheer disrespect of "chill out," Kanade nicely came to his rescue. "Coffee should be ready in less than three minutes."

Yuri grunted irritably and stalked over to the fridge, swinging the door open and rifling through its contents, possibly for alternate forms of caffeine. As she searched, Ayato continued to watch her in mild fascination.

Had she had another shadow nightmare as well? It would make sense after the conversation they'd had last night. Though if it was a shadow dream, he would think she might've mentioned it to Kanade. But what else could've kept her from falling asleep last night? He didn't think he'd said anything especially awful. In fact, their conversation had been encouragingly civil—

'Doesn't feel very good, does it? Being on the other side of it this time.'

Ayato's eyebrows knit together in consternation as his words drifted back to him through the corridors of his mind. Well. Alright. That was the exception. He knew it was a low blow. It'd been at the back of his mind ever since Hejjiguchi shut them out, and Yuri was already upset by everything that had happened so he'd felt badly for thinking it at the time and had bitten his tongue to hold back the cheap shot.

Still, there was a lot of truth to it. As undeserved as this coldness was, even back then he'd found the situation terribly ironic. It was the same treatment she'd given Hisakawa, but now she was the one left fuming and hurt with a metaphorical door slammed in her face. Resented and mostly forgotten.

But had that – what he'd said last night – honestly bothered her this much?

He couldn't say for sure. She'd only given him a black look for it, and maybe spoken sharply a couple of times before she retreated upstairs. He didn't think it was enough to keep her tossing and turning all night. She wouldn't waste that much time and thought on Hisakawa.

Maybe it was the programmer that had occupied her mind. They'd spoken of him twice now, so whatever happened in that computer room must have really affected her. It certainly affected him last night; that dream had been even more intense than the one he had after the… the fallout.

Ayato's expression soured. He didn't know why part of him thought things could be any different between them, just because they'd had a couple of civil conversations after Noda happened to have a girlfriend.

Well if she couldn't get a good night's sleep under his roof, that was still no reason to take it out on him!

If anyone asked Ayato, later, he'd say the coffee didn't help her one bit. She slumped at the table, clutching the mug like a baby blanket and narrowing her eyes at anyone who dared interact with her. When Fujimaki, Ooyama, and Matsushita burst through the front door at 8:30ish and Mitsuo started barking excitedly as soon as he saw Shiina, Yuri looked like she was going to blow a gasket.

"Still wishing you'd stayed with them last night?" Ayato had asked smugly, half-serious.

Yuri scowled into her mug. "Fujimaki snores," she said dismally. "But if you're just as obnoxious-"

"What are you three doing here so early, anyway?" Ayato asked, turning away from her. He was surprised but he didn't really care either way, it was mainly an excuse to cut her off.

"I texted them," Hinata said, gesticulating with his phone. "Ooyama's a morning person."

Fujimaki and Ooyama promptly entered the kitchen together, with Matsushita following shortly behind. Fujimaki helped himself to the juice Kanade got out, Ooyama searched hopefully through the cabinets for potato chips (for breakfast?), and Ayato resigned himself to having friends with absolutely no boundaries. As per usual.

So they all sat down for breakfast, and Yuri ate in stony silence for most of it while the table conversation roared on around her. Picking at her food, chewing on a thought. She had that faraway look in her eye, that "lost in my own world" glint that Ayato recognized from the Angel Player conversation they all had last week, which to him confirmed his suspicions. She woke from her reverie long enough to flush an angry red and glare at Ayato for staring, mouthing another "what?!" at him, and he averted his eyes with a scowl.

Why was this bothering him so much? Why was he taking it so personally? It wasn't like she'd been particularly friendly with him this weekend. Had he really fooled himself with that heart-to-heart last night? Or maybe it was his mother's and Hinata's faults for their misguided pep talks. This was Yuri now, as she'd been for weeks. Cold, biting, resentful.

She wasn't an NPC, she just couldn't stand him.

Ayato lowered his gaze to his plate. He'd been trying to ignore her, tease her, make light of it and hold it off for so long, but the truth of the matter was still heavy when he weakened and let it crash down on his head.

"I've... I've never loved anyone that much before."

He'd had her love, and... and now...

Willing away the thought and the sting in his chest with a muted growl, he sat back in his seat and half-listened to the Battlefront's table chatter. He couldn't let himself get worked up over her again. Like she'd said once in the Afterlife, feelings never solved anything anyway.

(Though according to Yuri and the programmer, getting rid of them certainly did.)

After breakfast was done with and the kitchen cleaned up, everyone migrated to the TV room, deciding whether or not to wrap things up for the weekend. Otonashi was wavering about staying since he and Kanade had fallen behind a bit with housework. Meanwhile Yui had her guitar ready to pack up but, in Hinata's indecisiveness, ended up taking it out and determinedly strumming the chords to Crow Song near the entrance hall.

"Yui, what are you doing?" Shiina asked, looking greatly amused by her. To be fair, the girl's fiercely focused expression was pretty hilarious.

"Whatever it takes," Yui huffed, shredding away at her guitar. "I'm doing my best to ensure we summon Iwasawa for next week, so I have to put out this energy. Crow Song is the one song that has the strongest spiritual connection with her."

"What about My Song?" said Hinata. "Isn't that even stronger since it's the one that started it all?"

Yui screeched her jamming to an abrupt stop and gave her husband a shocked look. "I couldn't do that! It's sacrilege!"

"You'll never find her with that attitude," Fujimaki teased.

"Stop doubting me, you jerk!"

Yuri's phone buzzed, and she read from the screen in a slight monotone. "'Botan has been acting kind of mopey since last night, any idea why?'"

Fujimaki laughed and glanced over at Mitsuo, who was flopped over the edge of the couch between him and Ooyama. Come to think of it, the dog looked vaguely depressed himself. He'd been staring out at nothing, barely fazed by the conversations and music going on around him. Now, seeing his sad puppy-dog eyes turn towards the group at the mention of Botan, Ayato felt empathy for the poor animal.

"Hey Mitsuo," Fujimaki said jovially, "your girlfriend misses you, buddy!"

Mitsuo lifted his head from his paws in interest, while Ooyama gave him a scratch behind the ears with one hand and fished his phone out of his pocket with the other. He took a picture of Mitsuo in mid head tilt and started tapping at his screen. "Here, Yurippe, let's send her this!"

Yuri's phone pinged, and she cracked a smile for the first time that morning. Obediently, she sent a text Kyou's way. Minutes later, Yuri looked satisfied and waved her phone at them. "Kyou says she showed it to her and she perked right up!"

Sure enough, the photo on display revealed a bright-eyed Botan waving her little legs at the camera. Mitsuo stood up eagerly to nose at the screen and get a closer look, making Kanade and Yui squeal.

"Aw, he misses her too!" Yui cried in delight. "That is so sweet."

Kanade smiled softly. "It's understandable. Everyone should hold onto a picture of the one they love."

Lowering her phone, Yuri closed her eyes and suddenly looked very put-upon. "It's not that deep, Kanade," she said through a tight smile.

Kanade, to her credit, was unaffected by her friend's random prickliness. She and the rest of the group went on discussing how the rest of the day was going to go. Ooyama, who'd previously been on the fence about doing anything without Noda, sounded like he was backtracking now.

"How soon do you guys need to head back, though?" he said, lighting up. "I'm kinda in the mood for mini golf."

"Maybe next time," Yuri mumbled. Against his better judgment, Ayato couldn't repress a rich snort, and Yuri rolled her eyes before snapping her head to look at him. "Oh, now what?"

"It's probably for the best, is all," he said as calmly as possible. "You've always been an angry golfer. With you in your current state, the clubs would go flying. You'd probably end up kicking someone into the water trap."

Fujimaki swallowed nervously and pulled at his shirt collar. Yuri snarled, "What current state?"

He gestured vaguely. "Isn't it obvious?"

"I thought you weren't going to call me an NPC anymore!"

"You don't have to be an NPC in order to be a—"

Hinata laughed nervously, his hand clamped over a disgruntled Ayato's mouth. "Ahaha," he said with a too-broad grin. "You kids and your witty banter. So… mini-golf, anyone?"

"Mrrrrpfffmph," Ayato said warningly.

This time it was his phone that buzzed. He checked the screen – a text from Yui. What is it with you?! Stop baiting her! He glanced over at the girl, who'd indeed set aside her guitar in favor of her phone and was frowning over at him.

It's not MY fault, he sent back. I was just joking around at first, but you heard Otonashi! She's been like this since she got up!

Because she didn't get her beauty rest! You don't need to poke the bull!

Ayato resisted the urge to make a comment about beauty rest, it was too petty. And he'd never admit it out loud, not even if they tied him to a chair in an interrogation room, but it'd be a lie, because – if he were being honest with himself – part of his frustration this morning stemmed from the fact that he'd forgotten how much he enjoyed Yuri's "just rolled out of bed" look, and was currently wondering why in the world he'd brought this torture upon himself. Shaking the thought away, he frowned down at his phone and sent back: It's not just because of that. I know sleep-deprived Yuri. Something else is wrong.

It's probably the effects of the potion, she told him, adding a shrug emoticon for effect. You would remember that if you were still reading OUAT instead of shoving it under the couch!

I know it's the potion. I'm tired of it. He looked up from his phone briefly to shoot a quick careful glimpse over his shoulder at the subject of their conversation, only to catch her eye as she was watching him suspiciously. Again, she reddened and flashed him a wary frown before averting her gaze. Ayato returned his attention to his phone with a slight shake of his head – so he got in trouble for staring and for catching her staring? – and sent another message: We were being borderline friendly last night, so why is she acting like this? Is it possible the effects are getting worse?

Yui raised her eyebrows at her phone and started typing something with a weirdly cheeky smirk, then apparently thought better of it, as the dots on his screen vanished for three seconds before resuming. A moment later: Maybe. Yurippe's been without her memories longer than Snow White ever was. Read the book and maybe it'll help you!

I am reading it! How would it help me? The only answer it gives is true love's kiss which is NOT GOING TO HAPPEN.

Well keep reading it! Because you're hopeless. And that's what the book is supposed to give you. Hope and answers.

Or more questions.

Well yeah. Probably that. :)

"What about you, Naoi?"

Ayato looked up from his phone, suddenly aware that a whole group conversation had gone on without them. "What about me?"

"Do you wanna come mini-golfing with us?" Ooyama said, ever the patient and upbeat one. "We're gonna try to fit in a round or two before Shiina and Matsushita have to be dropped off at the station."

"I'll pass," Ayato said, and gave Yui a pointed look. "Apparently I have some assigned reading to do."

"Don't say 'assigned' like it's homework!"

"When did you two join a book club?" Hinata said, exasperated.

So Ooyama, Fujimaki, and Matsushita went back to drop Mitsuo off at home, saying their goodbyes to those they weren't meeting at Mizuzaka's mini golf course later, and everyone else started pulling their stuff together to head out. While Yui walked out to the car with Shiina and her guitar case, patiently explaining why they couldn't bring Mitsuo along (Shiina looked wildly upset at the example she gave of the puppy floundering around in a water trap), Hinata turned to Ayato with a raised eyebrow.

"You sure you don't wanna come?" he asked, shifting his overnight bag over his shoulder. "If you change your mind, we'll still be in the area."

Ayato glanced past him out the door, where Yuri was talking to Kanade out by the cars. Her "bye" had been gruff and clipped as she walked out without looking back, and his chest felt heavy from remembering. "Thanks," he said, a bit tonelessly. "Just don't really feel up to it."

Hinata followed his eyes all the way to Yuri. "What happened between you two last night?" he asked.

"Nothing," Ayato replied. "She's just like that. She's been like that for a while now." He gave a bitter snort of laughter, shifting his gaze to Hinata again as he was stepping out onto the front porch. "What, did you think I could actually get through to her?"

Hesitating, Hinata peered at him curiously. "Were you trying to?"

Ayato sent him a half-hearted glare, silently telling him he wouldn't dignify the question with a response. The corner of Hinata's mouth twitched as he got the message and shook his head, walking down to the car with a slight wave behind him. He heard him mutter under his breath in wonder, "An unstoppable force meets two immovable objects…"

"Oh, shut up," Ayato jeered after him. Couldn't suffer the idiot to believe he was the next big philosopher.

As he was about to shut the door, he took one last lingering look at the Battlefront members scattered out in front of his house. Ooyama was at Hinata's car on Shiina's side, nicely letting her give Mitsuo some farewell pats. Fujimaki was leaning against his own car, arms folded as he watched them with a mellow grin. Otonashi and Matsushita were standing patiently and joking across to each other about people not being ready to leave (Matsushita laughingly pointed out that his door wasn't even unlocked yet).

Sure enough, at the end of the driveway, Yui and Kanade had cornered Yuri by her car and were talking to her very seriously. Maybe it was a girls meeting that Shiina was late to (as something extremely important and cute had come up). Possibly Yui was trying to get them both to come mini-golfing with the rest. He could just imagine that conversation now as he tried to lip-read from here. C'mon, Yurippe! It's not like Naoi is going or anything! Pretty please? He won't be there, so it'll be fine and you'll have loads of fun!

Whatever it was, Yuri didn't look entirely convinced by it. She managed a weak smile and said something that made Yui and Kanade exchange hopeful looks, then the girls parted ways with a wave. While Kanade headed up the drive to join Otonashi, Yuri glanced idly back towards the house, and faltered when her eyes found Ayato's. She lingered for a moment, as his heart stupidly began to flutter, then quickly turned her back on him and rounded her car to the driver's side.

He turned, too, hearing her car door slam just before he shut the front door behind him.


A/N: Oh dear. Just when things were starting to look hopeful... What will Naoi do? Where will he turn? (Yui certainly has a recommendation!)

Until next time!

(Meanwhile, if you mind very much about getting spoiled for the show OUAT, do consider checking out the first couple of seasons if you haven't already, as you're waiting. Because we may be about to learn some stuff.)


Preview:

"I wouldn't need protecting if you didn't have power!"

"All I want is your happiness."

"Can you leave everything here behind for the unknown?"

"Don't break our deal!"

"You drove him away."

"Take this burden from me."

"Then I'll just have to kill him."

[Chapter 44]: Lost Boy.