[Summary: Summer break is already half over. It's time for the summer festival!]
[8/16: Tuesday]
"Come on, come on," Nanako said, tugging on Yuuta's hand.
"I-I can go home on my own," the boy pleaded, but Nanako shook her head.
"Nuh-uh! I wanna meet your mom."
"Bosssss," he whined, but he finally stopped struggling, and they walked hand-in-hand down the street in front of the Seta residence. Since they'd come home so late from the beach, he'd stayed overnight with Souji. Naoto didn't mind the company, especially when it turned out the two boys could easily share Souji's futon with some room to spare.
Nanako didn't exactly know where Yuuta lived, so the boy had to guide her. There was no way she was going to let go of him now. She remembered how he'd run off on his own last time, leaving her in the dust. She would not be bested by a little boy again. No way.
"So, Yuu-chan," she began conversationally. "How's progress on the cutest plushie front?"
"I made a bear! It was round and the ears are really big and..."
"I want to see it!" Nanako said. "Hey... what's Sou-chan making? He wouldn't tell me."
Yuuta gave her an alarmed look, like he couldn't believe that Souji was hiding something from her. "Uh, umm..."
"You know what," she told him. "Nevermind. I just hope it's lots of pink!"
Now the boy was smiling at her. Then the smile faded and he tugged on her hand to indicate that they should turn down the next street. They walked down it some until Yuuta stopped. He emitted a long sigh. "It's this one..."
Yuuta's family had such a nice house! Nanako was impressed by it. It was way bigger than Aunt Seta's place. It even had a fenced-in back yard. The scent of chlorine came to her nostrils. Was that a pool!?
She was totally gonna swindle an invite if she could manage it. What better way to follow a beach party than with a pool party?
She rang the doorbell, ignoring how depressed Yuuta looked. He really didn't want to go home, did he...?
They waited a while but there wasn't an answer, so she rang it again. Finally the door opened, revealing a young woman possibly in her late 20s or early 30s. What Nanako noticed first was that she really needed bangs to cover her forehead.
"Minami-san?" Nanako inquired. "I've brought Yuu-chan home!"
She glanced down at Yuuta and found him determinedly not looking at his step-mom.
The woman sighed. "Ah, thank you. Was he good?"
Now Yuuta glared up at her, and then away. Nanako felt a tug on her skirt and realized he was clutching the hem of it in his fist.
"Yuu-chan is a cutie pie," Nanako reported. "Can we come in?"
"'We'?" Minami questioned absently. "Well, I suppose so..." She opened the door further and invited Nanako into the living room, where the TV was on to some soap opera. "Yuu-kun, you can go to your room."
Yuuta couldn't get away from them fast enough.
"Aren't you going to ask him about his trip?" Nanako asked. "Don't you want to know if he had fun?"
Minami gave her a puzzled look. "Even if I asked, he wouldn't answer. He hates me."
Have you tried to make him not hate you? Or are you okay with the status quo? Nanako frowned as she pondered how to continue the conversation. "He's just a kid," she said. "I don't think he hates you. Do you want him to?"
"Of course I don't want him to," Minami said, "but there's nothing I can do. I've tried. He won't talk to me if he can help it."
"Do you wanna talk to him?"
"I don't know. I'm just so tired of it all. His father—my husband—just threw him onto me while he's working overseas. I feel cheated. I didn't even know he'd had a son until right before we got married, and there wasn't any time to get to know him." Minami wrung her hands, and Nanako marveled at how she'd open the floodgates and got her to talk without even trying.
...Maybe Minami hadn't talked to anyone outside of the house in a while.
"It's been over six months now," Minami went on, "and I think it's too late, even if I wanted to. He'll never think of me as his mother."
"You're giving up way too easily, Minami-san. What you need to do is—"
"But that's the way it is," the woman continued as if she hadn't heard her at all. "I saw a show on TV that went just like that. One of the characters was a doctor, so it must be true."
"What you need is," Nanako tried again, but she paused because the polite look on Minami's face was all-too-familiar to her. It said that the woman was only pretending to listen. Nanako bit her lip in determination. She'd been planning to say that they needed to take some time and talk to each other heart-to-heart, but she decided in that moment that a different approach was required. "What you need is a pool boy!" she declared, lifting a fist into the air.
Minami's big brown eyes imitated a strobe light. "What?"
"You're bored," Nanako explained. "You miss your husband and sit around all day being a bored housewife and watching crap television. A hot, shirtless pool boy with just the right amount of hair on his chest is what you need to break you out of this listless funk."
The woman was giving her that familiar 'Did you really just say that?' look. Now that she had her attention, Nanako continued on a more serious note.
"Seriously, woman. You actually believe everything you see on TV? How old are you?" Nanako shook her head. "And don't you think this sucks for Yuu-chan, too? It's not like he wanted his dad to abandon him. I'm sorry you fell in love with such a winner, but—"
Minami interrupted there, her forehead covered in wrinkles of anger. "It wasn't love. I—"
She stopped herself, her face still contorted in a frown. Nanako glanced around the room and noted the TV so large that even Junes didn't sell any in that size, along with a large lucky cat statue, a blue-and-white Ming vase, bottles of liquor high on a shelf...
"You got money, right? All the more reason to hire a poolboy." Nanako nodded. "And why does this big ass house only have one TV? Buy one for Yuu-chan's room or something! It doesn't have to be half as big as that one. Or at least stop watching that crap so he can have SOME cartoons. The kids make fun of him at school because you don't let him watch Featherman! How sad is that? He's just a kid."
The woman looked flustered now, and instead of waiting for her to break out into a rage, Nanako left the house with some final words: "And I think you'd look better with your hair down. Might wanna note that for pool boy seducing 101."
[8/17: Wednesday]
Nanako came down from her room to find Naoto at the tea table, resting her head on top of a closed laptop. She wasn't asleep; her eyes tracked Nanako's movement, but she didn't get up or even greet her.
"Uh, are you all right?" Nanako asked.
Naoto sighed. "Yes and no. I believe it's about time I went through this." She lifted her head and stared down at the closed laptop. "The police have relinquished it to me. Everything seems to be intact... including my camera's video surveillance feed."
The detective wasn't looking at her. "I'll watch it with you," Nanako offered.
"Thank you," the detective said simply.
Nanako sat right next to her friend as she awoke the laptop from sleep mode. Silently, Naoto used the trackpad and clicked through different folders until she found the videos. There were several files from the day of her kidnapping. The camera in her apartment only began recording when a motion sensor was triggered, meaning Naoto herself sometimes triggered it. Some of the files, then, weren't of interest to the case.
Naoto hesitated before opening the fourth one. Nanako saw her expression turn grim, and then the video was playing.
The video started immediately with a man in a blue-collar uniform entering Naoto's apartment from the front door. His face was covered with an indistinct mask. His height and weight seemed about average, and the uniform had no name tag on it nor any sort of brand logo.
It didn't seem like he had forced the door at all—in fact they watched him pocket a key. "He used a spare stolen from the maintenance room," Naoto explained without moving her eyes from the screen, her voice a soft murmur. "If I'd known this complex's security was so lax, I'd have requested to live elsewhere."
"Y-yeah," said Nanako distractedly. The man on the screen seemed to give the apartment a once-over from the doorway. Most of the apartment could be seen from the camera's angle; the apartment wasn't a large one. He stared for a bit at Naoto's small TV before ducking into the side room and out of the camera's sight. Naoto confirmed that it was her bedroom when she asked, and both of them shuddered.
The feed ended there; without motion, the camera would time out after a few minutes of inactivity.
Naoto opened the next clip. In it, Naoto was coming home from her day at the police station. She hadn't noticed anything out of place. She'd set her things down on a shelf—a coffee thermos and an umbrella—and then gone over to her laptop.
It happened so fast after that. While she was focused on the laptop, the man came out from the room he'd been hidden in, a cloth in his gloved hand, and stealthily grabbed Naoto from behind, putting the cloth over her mouth. The detective hardly had any time to act before the sedative took effect.
Watching the scene unfold, Naoto began to tremble next to Nanako, who felt sick to her stomach. She couldn't imagine what her friend must be feeling. She put an arm around her and pulled her close, rubbing her back in sympathy. Naoto muttered something, but she couldn't catch it.
In the video, the man slung the unconscious detective over his shoulder and took her outside the apartment and out of the camera's sight. Eventually the feed ended.
It took a long while for Naoto to speak. "The TV in my apartment isn't large enough to fit through," she murmured.
Nanako brought out her phone. "Can you get the timestamp for me? I'm going to check when the GPS gave me the last signal that night."
It turned out that Naoto had been thrown into a TV less than three minutes after the end of the video feed.
"Kanji-kun's right," Nanako said. "He has to have a big TV that he travels with. It has to be in his truck."
"We're so close," Naoto murmured. Her voice was scratchy. Probably her throat had tightened while watching the video. "But no one who'd bought a TV at Junes also owned a suspect truck. The culprit must have obtained a TV elsewhere."
"Damn," said Nanako. "It was a good try... But this one is more than a good try! Can you zoom and enhance?" Naoto snickered despite herself, and Nanako grinned at her before continuing on a more serious note. "Maybe change the saturation? If we can narrow down his height and his build, we can get closer to identifying him."
"The police have already given me their report," Naoto said, bringing forth a manilla envelope, "and I'm sure they've already scoured as much information as they can from the video. However... I haven't read the report, and I wonder if what we can determine will match up."
"Let's do it," Nanako said, and in that moment, she almost felt like Loveline again.
Some time later, Souji came out from his room. His gray hair was disheveled from sleep.
"Well, well!" Nanako said. "Sleeping beauty finally woke up. Still tired from our trip to the beach, are we? Too much sun for our Sou-chan!"
Despite all the sunscreen she'd slathered on him, he was a little bit sunburned. A ring of red encircled his neck, and the tip of his nose was peeling.
"I'm itchy..." he complained. He had his hands under his shirt and was rubbing his upper body.
"Poor baby," Nanako cooed. "Shirt off, honey. You weren't so bad yesterday..."
And he wasn't that bad today, really, considering how long they'd been out in the sun. "Big bro," the boy said. "Do you have more... lotion?"
"I'll find some," Nanako began, but then her eyebrows scrunched together. "Wait, 'big bro'?"
Souji wasn't looking at her, but across the living room to...
Naoto stood up from the tea table. "Yes, of course," Naoto said, and she moved past Nanako into the kitchen and picked up a bottle of aloe vera lotion from the counter. Nanako noted that the detective's cheeks were a smidgen pink, and that she was smiling faintly, and that's when Nanako realized that it wasn't actually the first time Souji had called her 'big bro.'
Nanako cursed herself for missing that precious moment!
She helped Naoto dab the lotion onto Souji's sunburned skin. 'Big bro,' huh? She wondered if that had been Souji's idea and decided it had to be. Naoto would have corrected him if she didn't like it.
"Take it easy, Sou-chan," Nanako said, resisting the urge to pat him on the back. "We don't have anywhere to be until Saturday. That's when the summer festival begins. We're going to have a lot of fun! I wonder if your mom will be able to come with us. If not, that's okay. You've got me and Saki-senpai and Shirogane-san, too, if you want to come with us."
"Umm..." said Souji, looking up at her earnestly. "Big sis, umm..."
"Yes, Sou-chan?"
"I-I want... umm... can..."
Nanako waited patiently for the boy to gather his thoughts and the courage to speak them.
"Adachi-san," he finally said. "He couldn't come to the beach. D-do you think... he could come to the festival?"
"Adachi-san," she repeated. She couldn't imagine the detective would want to hang out with a group of teenagers. Nor did she really want him to, considering what he knew about her breaking into Junes...
But, she further thought, if Aunt Seta was able to come to the festival, he could go with her and Souji, just the three of them together, and it could be like a date. Did Aunt Seta have a yukata? She had to! Would she wear it for him...?
"I'm almost afraid to ask," Naoto remarked, interrupting her thoughts.
"Hmm?" Nanako replied absently.
"The look on your face, Nanako-san. It was quite devious."
"Big sis...?" Souji was still looking at her with muted anticipation.
"I'll talk to your mom about it," Nanako promised, the grin on her face far more than simply devious.
[8/18: Thursday]
Nanako entered the Velvet Room and immediately asked Igor why she'd seen a door in a nameless beachside town.
His only answer was, "DEAREST GUEST blah blah blah mind games blah." There might've been a 'special' or two in there too.
Nanako didn't care that much, to be honest. She had other business to attend to. Mainly: Marie.
Without warning, she grabbed the girl's hand and pulled her out the door.
"Hey—" Marie protested, but the complaint was cut off abruptly when they were outside. The girl's eyes were wide as saucers as they followed the path of a bird flying across the clear blue sky.
Come on, Nanako thought. I know you've been outside before.
Marie recovered from her surprise to scowl. "Huh, I thought you'd never take me out of that blasted room."
"Well," Nanako replied, "I figured that since I had a social link with Margie—" Nanako paused for a fraction of a second as she sensed it, her Empress link growing restless, as though it might break at any moment. Damn that woman... "With Margaret," she corrected fluidly, "I'd probably have one with you, too."
"So you don't actually care? You just want the power?" Marie seemed suspicious of her. That being said, she was spot on.
"Yes," Nanako answered, "but I am kinda curious about you too, Marie. I mean, what's it like living in the Velvet Room? Does Igor ever eat? Is he going out with Margaret? Is there a bathroom in the limo? Which brandy is Igor's favorite?"
"...You're weird," Marie said, and she wouldn't answer any of the questions, no matter how much Nanako insisted. "If you don't care, then I don't want your help."
"That's fine, link over, but you don't care about me much either, do you? It's the same." Nanako crossed her arms and sighed. "If I went out of my way to help out every old lady crossing the street, I'd never get to the stuff that actually matters."
"The stuff... that actually matters?" Marie repeated slowly. She seemed to be thinking deeply about something, but then she started clutching her head in pain. Nanako was pretty sure she had seen this in an episode of Loveline, but she decided to politely ignore it and, feeling rather defeated, took Marie by the hand to the shrine, because why the hell not.
They were walking uphill when Marie spoke up again. "This place feels familiar to me, but I can't remember... It bothers me."
"Maybe you used to live in a small town before the limo tried to run you over but missed and the driver decided to kidnap you instead."
"Don't say weird stuff like that!" Marie demanded, and Nanako pretended to notice that the girl hadn't sounded out the word 'kidnapped' before saying so. "I don't think that's it."
"I wonder if the limo is in another world like the TV World. Would explain all the fog outside the windows," Nanako mused.
The one time the fog had gone away, she'd been too angry to pay attention to what was outside. Hindsight was such a bitch.
Marie shrugged. "A TV World sounds fun... I wanna watch a lot of TV. Take me there!"
Nanako took in Marie's appearance again: the striped stockings, the plaid skirt... "I bet you'd have a fun Shadow."
Marie looked down at the ground and pointed to her shadow. "What's fun about that?"
"Well, you can make shapes and stuff." Nanako made a rabbit shadow with her hands. "See?"
Marie made a bird. Nanako made a lewd symbol and then Marie said this was boring, do something fun.
"There's nothing more fun than this!" Nanako proclaimed. "How old are you, anyway?"
"Old...? I'm..." Marie clutched her head suddenly and cried out in pain. "I'm, I'm...!"
Okay, enough was enough.
"It was just a simple question, Marie, geez. You don't have to spazz out or anything."
When the girl didn't stop, Nanako decided to show a little concern for a change, even though her thoughts were really on the question of why every social link had to be so weird and poignant.
"Nooo! I can't remember and it hurts if I try. It's all your fault! Don't ask questions like that!"
"Okay then," Nanako said.
"I wanna go home," Marie grumbled. "This place sucks."
You suck, Nanako thought. "Don't say that," Nanako said. "I have to live here!"
She was trying to lighten the mood, but since Marie didn't take the bait at all, she decided to walk her back down to the Velvet Room. Inside, Margaret asked if Marie had enjoyed herself, but before she could even finish her question, Nanako shot her a glare.
"Oh, you know exactly what happened."
Margaret raised her eyebrow, clearly amused at the accusation.
"We do not possess all knowledge, my dear guest..."
"Igor, I love you, but I was there, and so far you've known exactly what happened every time I've been somewhere! You keep making thinly veiled references to my life, and at this point I wouldn't be surprised if you were up to date on my porn reading schedule."
Now her Empress was offended. Nanako still couldn't win against her glare. Damn it, all that delinquent training for nothing! She didn't give up, though, and quickly veered the subject into another direction.
"So what's up with her memory anyway? Did you guys take it? Why?"
If Margaret's eyebrow rose any further it would fly off her head and into the fog.
"Dearest guest," Igor interrupted whatever his assistant was about to say. Oh, his voice was so dreamy... "Marie's past is shrouded in fog, even to myself."
"Huh. Would you say she's special...?" Nanako asked, but Igor merely chuckled. She wouldn't tolerate a rival! Or maybe she would. A rival could be good for business. Nanako shook those silly thoughts away and said, "Well, next time I'm gonna bring her to a doctor. It's a date, Marie."
"No!" the girl shouted, though at least she didn't seem to be in any pain this time.
"It's a date, Marie."
"I'm not going to the hospital."
"You don't even know what a hospital is!"
"I do too! ...Oh!"
Marie took a notepad out of her bag and started scribbling frantically. Nanako walked over to her and she didn't even notice, though Margaret certainly did. Igor, too. If she wanted to, she could just... sort of reach over and... touch his nose...
"There!" Marie said, making Nanako jump.
"That was fast. Is it a poem? Read it for me."
"No, this is a private journal!"
"Marie, I spend my weekends watching a show about a magical detective solving mysteries with the power of love or whatever. I once dressed my little cousin with a bra on his head and no pants to play some make-believe stuff. I can handle some bad poetry."
"Y-you did what with your little cousin...? Wait, my poems aren't bad!"
"Then prove it!"
"Fine!
Dressed in pure snow white
Blind to the disease in their
Sorrowful mad eyes."
There was silence in the Velvet Room, but Nanako was pretty sure time hadn't stopped just yet. When she finally found her voice, it was with a big smile plastered on her face.
"It's a haiku, like I taught you! And it's a good one too! Yeah, your poetry is not bad at all."
"I told you! Umm... I mean... Shut up! I hate you! Go away!"
"Okay, fine, I'll go, but here's a haiku of my own, especially to you:
Tsundere princess
Surrounded by sweet brandy
Unable to drink."
Nanako got out of the room before seeing her reaction, but she was pretty sure she heard something beating against the Velvet Room door—from the inside.
Marie wasn't that bad after all!
[8/20: Saturday]
"I picked this up for you, Nanako-chan," Aunt Seta said, holding up a bright yellow yukata. "I'll help you put it on."
Nanako was almost speechless as she surveyed the yukata in the standing mirror in Aunt Seta's room. It appeared to be tailor-made just for her. It was loose on her body and so short that it didn't even go to her knees. The sash was a paler yellow than the yukata, which helped draw attention to her midsection.
It was totally sexy. She'd have to wear it over to Saki's sometime.
And Souji had a yukata, too! His was pink with a white cherry blossoms pattern... wait, that was a jinbei actually, she hadn't noticed the cute little shorts! He looked so huggable that she simply couldn't resist wrapping her arms around him even though it loosened her sash. She'd been pretty enthusiastic about letting him go on a date with Adachi-san, but now she wanted him all for herself!
Souji giggled. "Do you like it, big sis? I went with Mama and she had them made for us..."
"Only the best for my baby," Aunt Seta announced, standing proudly in her own white yukata.
When had they done this? Nanako wondered. It took time to make these things, so it couldn't have been too recently...
Aunt Seta had even obtained geta for them to wear. It took Nanako a few tries to remember how to walk in them. Souji wasn't provided a pair, and when Nanako asked, her aunt answered that for his own safety, sandals would do just as well for him. Besides, he had a really cute pair of sandals with little animal shapes stamped into the leather sole.
There was a knock on the door, and since Nanako nearly tripped again trying to move out of the room—short steps! Not her normal bounding strides—Souji ran ahead to answer it on his own. Aunt Seta grinned fondly after him, and when the door opened, there stood Adachi, wearing the same suit and pants set he always wore.
"What, no yukata?" Nanako complained with feigned offense.
"Like I can afford that on my salary!" Adachi said, shaking his head. He then smiled shyly down at the little boy looking up at him. "Uh, hey, little fella! You look ready for a fun day. That's a good color on you."
Now Souji was grinning. "It's Yuuta-kun's f-favorite! I hope... we see him there."
"One of your little friends, eh? Oh, Ryoko-san..."
Aunt Seta stepped forward and greeted him. Nanako tried to gauge Adachi's reaction to her yukata. The man seemed to be impressed, but it was hard to tell. Dazzle him, Auntie! Nanako willed. You've got a whole day with him. Make it count!
"You can stop in for a moment and we'll have some tea," Aunt Seta invited, "or we can simply head on out."
"We can have tea any time," Adachi said, which wasn't really true considering how busy he and Aunt Seta always were. "If you're ready, let's go. I think Souji-kun wants a Topsicle."
"A Topsicle...?" Souji repeated, his eyes growing wide.
"Yeah, I'll get you one. That won't break my bank." Adachi emitted a low chuckle.
"Coming, Nanako-chan?" Aunt Seta asked. "You're welcome to join us."
"Huh? Oh... No, I told a friend to meet me here, so..."
Aunt Seta raised an eyebrow as if to question her intention to be home alone, but then nodded at her. "All right. If you'd like to watch the fireworks with us, please call me later."
"S-sure," she said. "Have fun you two, and Sou-chan!"
Since he was already outside, in lieu of hugging him again, she waved at Souji, and he smiled and waved back. "Bye bye, big sis!"
Once the door was closed, she turned her back on it and proceeded to hug herself. She probably should've gone with them—she could've easily called Saki and met up with her at the festival—but she didn't want to get in the way of whatever was going on between her aunt and the cabbage detective. Though it could be cute to see it unfold in front of her eyes, hehe...
She played around with her phone for a bit, but the cracked screen only made her antsy.
Not long later, the doorbell rang, and it was Saki. Nanako let her friend in with a somewhat strained smile.
"My my," said Saki. "I wasn't expecting you to have a yukata!"
Saki was wearing one, too. The vibrant orange color made it as sunny as Nanako's own. The skirt was a little longer, but Nanako didn't complain even though it would make it harder to feel her up.
Which she tried to do right now, regardless.
"Nanako!" Saki protested with a laugh. "Wait 'til tonight, please! I do want to go to the festival, you know..."
But Saki kissed her anyway, nice and sweet and just what she needed. "Senpai," Nanako murmured as she drew away.
"Hmm?" said Saki, holding both of her hands. "You seem down. Not looking forward to the festival, or...?"
"Feeling a little lonely is all," Nanako explained. "I mean... I won't be going with Souji-kun, so... but it's a good thing! He's going with his mom and his maybe future step-dad, and he was really happy about it, so I'm happy for him and..."
Saki squeezed her tight. "I think I understand. I felt that way when I first went to high school and Naoki was still in middle. Happy and sad at the same time."
"I didn't remember to take a picture of him in his adorable yukata. You've got to see it, Senpai!" Nanako grinned, but then allowed it to fade. She heaved a sigh. "I miss my family. I mean, I know Auntie and Sou-chan are family, but I mean my mom and my dad. I've never ever been away from them for this long, and it's starting to..."
Saki hugged her.
"I still haven't called my dad, and Mom... She's just not as helpful when it's long distance. Though she's doing her best!" she added quickly, not wanting to disparage her mom. "But like, I can't tell her everything. And I used to! We were so close back in Tokyo, it's almost amazing I never included her in a threesome, heh heh..."
"I don't think a boy could survive that," Saki remarked.
"Who said it'd be with a boy?" she teased, but her voice came out without feeling. Saki just told her to drop it, so she did. "Honestly," she went on in a serious tone, "I'm more scared about my dad. I love him so much—and I'm learning a lot of weird things about him that I'm totally gonna tease him about when I go home—but I'm worrying him and I don't want him to worry, but I can't stop giving him reasons to worry. And if he doesn't hear from me soon, he's gonna know I'm just trying to keep him out of the picture, and... He'll worry even more."
"Your dad loves you," Saki murmured into her ear. "I talked to him that day I found you in the rain. After you fell asleep. He was angry, but... It seemed like the anger was directed at himself."
Nanako murmured wordlessly into her friend's wavy hair.
"He asked me a bunch of questions. Not going to lie, he's definitely a cop!" Saki laughed. "But... he seems like a much better dad than mine. Try not to hurt him, all right?"
Nanako promised that she would, and then offered to kick Saki's dad's ass. "It's the least I can do for you, Senpai!"
"I'm tempted to take you up on that. He wanted me to work today! I told him I had a sugoi booty call, and he was not amused."
"He wouldn't—" Nanako began, but she stopped because Naoto was coming out of Souji's room.
The young detective took in their yukata without a change in expression. "Oh, Nanako-san. I thought you'd already left."
"Did you see how cute Sou-chan looked?!"
Naoto nodded. "I took the liberty of taking a truly inappropriate amount of pictures, and hope you will continue my legacy at the festival."
"That's my man!" Nanako declared, cheering up immediately.
Saki looked Naoto up and down: the detective was wearing sweatpants and an oversized T-shirt. "Taking it easy today, are we?" Saki asked, raising an eyebrow. "I don't think I've ever seen you so under-dressed. I see living with Nanako has rubbed off on you."
"Indeed," Naoto replied. "I'll change when I go to the police station. I wasn't expecting to be seen by anyone until then."
"You're not coming to the festival with us?" Saki's lips turned down. "You should! And you'd look great in a yukata."
"I don't dislike traditional clothing," Naoto said, "but I don't have such a thing to wear at the moment. I must apologize for dashing your dreams."
Nanako watched the exchange with a grin growing on her face. The two were getting along just fine! Maybe they could live together at some point.
"Konishi-san," Naoto began.
"Oh, please call me Saki," the older girl said.
"Saki-san," Naoto said, not batting an eyelash. "I'm not surprised that you and Nanako-san are associates."
"Compatriots," Nanako corrected.
"You could say Nanako is my boyfriend," Saki added.
Naoto's lips curled up—that was a smile! "I see. As a princess can be a prince... I was wondering about her association with you, since she seems to visit you fairly often."
"Th-there's not always a mystery!" Nanako said, feeling her cheeks heat up.
Now the detective began to chuckle. "I'm not suspicious about everything," Naoto said, "but it's in my nature to be curious. Forgive me."
"Curiosity killed the cat," Saki remarked in a teasing tone.
"But satisfaction brought it back," Naoto replied, again without missing a beat. "The truth is its own reward. I believe wholeheartedly in that."
"I meant that I'm sure you don't want to know what Nanako and I get up to during those visits," Saki further explained.
"In the same way that you don't want to know what she and I get up to?" Naoto countered, raising an eyebrow.
Nanako coughed in surprise at Naoto's affected innocence. "Sh-Shirogane-san!"
They all chuckled at that, and then Naoto emitted a forceful sigh. "Unfortunately, I have a meeting to attend. Please enjoy the festival in my place."
"All right, see you later," Nanako called when the detective returned to Souji's room presumably to get changed.
"I want to get to know that guy better," Saki remarked.
"If you're thinking we could have a threesome, it won't happen," Nanako informed her. "Despite what he suggested, I haven't been able to get into his pants at all!"
Saki's head swung back in disbelief. "Really? I'm impressed with his resistance."
"I think he might be married to his job. Anyway, Senpai, let's get this sugoi booty call started!"
The festival took place at the Tatsuhime Shrine, and it was a bit of a let down, in Nanako's eyes. There were quite a few game booths, but not very many people. Although the sun shone oppressively hot, there was a cool wind, so that wasn't much of an excuse. Besides, several stands sold ice cream and other cool snacks to ward off the heat.
"Is there, like, another festival in Okina or something today? Geez," said Nanako. "Is it always this dead?"
"People have been kind of afraid to go out," Saki explained. "What with the murders and all. I doubt the liquor store will get much business from this, despite whatever my dad seems to think."
"Oh... I thought it was the small town being small again." Nanako sighed.
"At least it's easy to meet up with people. Hey!" Saki waved to two girls standing near the shrine's offertory box.
It was Chie and Yukiko. The former wore a white yukata with an orange sash and orange decorations. What, not green? Nanako thought, raising an eyebrow. And Yukiko wore a dark blue yukata with white designs and a pink sash. When she stepped out of the shade, the blue looked more purple instead.
"Yo," Nanako greeted. "Time for our double-date, eh?" She latched onto Saki's arm and hugged it.
"Double-date?" Chie repeated uneasily, and then she glanced at Yukiko, who was giving her a surprisingly foxy look. Yukiko then hooked her arm under Chie's. She looked proud of herself, and Chie was totally blushing.
It was adorable. Nanako was so glad to see they'd made up.
"So whatdya wanna do?" Chie asked. "You girls hungry? Souzai Daigaku is selling their Super Croquettes and it's not even raining!"
"Might be too messy to eat in yukata," Nanako murmured. "I could do with some ikayaki, though!"
They snacked out on festival fare and played a few of the games. The festival became slightly busier as the day wore on. They had some shaved ice and then the warabimochi truck came by, and Kanji had been right, its owner was too fossilized to be the culprit. Besides, that warabimochi was really good! It reminded her of Souji and she hoped he was having a good time with the adults.
And the warabimochi reminded her of something else as well...
"I haven't seen Yosuke," she muttered. "Did he skip out on the festival?" Maybe he didn't want to run into her.
"I saw Hana-chan earlier," Saki reported. "He wasn't wearing a yukata, so he stood out. I haven't seen him since."
"Don't tell me you haven't talked to him yet, Nanako," Chie said.
"I haven't, actually. Remember, I told him I'm not going to bother him anymore."
Chie looked troubled. "But... I don't see him giving up on..." She glanced at Saki, but Nanako nodded at her to continue. "You know, the investigation."
Nanako shrugged. "Maybe he isn't, and we'll just be doing things our own way now. You have his number, don't you? You can talk to him yourself."
"Huh," said Chie. "I don't even know what I'd say."
"That you understand exactly where he's coming from. But really, I don't want you to intercede with him on my behalf or anything. I've made my choices, and there's no use bemoaning that, y'know?"
"Things could've gone better," Yukiko muttered. "But they always could. That's always how it is."
"If you ever need me to, I can try talking to him," Saki offered once again, but Nanako shook her head.
She wasn't even sure whether she missed Yosuke or missed how he bought drinks for her. It was a really harsh thought, and she felt marginally guilty for thinking it. Marginally. He'd done good there at the end, using the last of his healing juice on her broken body...
She hadn't thanked him, either.
"Is that Kanji-kun up there?"
Nanako blinked out of her melancholy. "Huh, it sure is."
At the fishing booth farther down the street, Kanji, wearing a dark blue yukata with a dragon silhouette, was helping Yuuta catch a goldfish. It was a rather adorable scene, and Nanako noted how Yuuta was wearing a red yukata of his own. He was probably too shy to ask for a pink one. He was going to be so jealous of Souji's jinbei!
Eri Minami was watching them in a half-interested way. Nanako had the feeling that she wouldn't play any of the games herself, but didn't care how many her stepson wanted to play. Nanako was actually surprised to see her out here. In good news, she'd got her hair cut so that her bangs covered her forehead now.
Kanji ensured that Yuuta caught a fish and then handed the bag to the boy, who seemed uncertain as to whether to show his stepmom or not. Yeah, he didn't. They still hadn't bonded. More time was needed, maybe. Or maybe she just hadn't gotten around to Junes yet to buy him a TV.
Nanako was thinking that maybe she should go over there and force him to when she noticed Kanji turn to another boy at the booth, someone about his own age but shorter and with black hair, and leaned over his shoulder to give him advice on catching the fish. The boy nodded, and then his glasses fell down his nose, and then Kanji laughed and nudged him aside and took his net and went to work catching a fish for him.
And then Kanji and the boy walked away together, smiles on both of their faces. They were standing pretty close as they walked...
"Huh," said Chie. "I think that boy in glasses is in our class."
"I thought he looked familiar," Nanako murmured.
But how does he know Kanji? He'd always seemed a bit stuck up... Kanji-kun, with his delinquent looks, was definitely beneath his notice.
"Hmm," Nanako thought out loud. "Anyway! You girls wanna give the ring toss a go?"
After playing a few games with her friends, Nanako sneaked off because she wanted to get up in Minami's business. She caught up to Yuuta and his stepmom at the candied apple stall. Minami seemed to be trying to ask Yuuta if he wanted one without actually asking him. And Yuuta was trying to ask for one without actually asking. Really, these two were starting to get annoying.
"Yuu-chan," Nanako stated. "Did a cat steal your tongue or something? Asking really can't hurt. And don't forget to say 'please.'"
Yuuta scowled at the ground.
"Minami-san, the same goes for you. Just say, 'Yuu-chan, you want a snack?'"
"Don't make her call me 'Yuu-chan!'" Yuuta shouted. "She... she can't do that!"
"Yuu-kun," Minami murmured, her big brown eyes blinking rapidly in surprise at his outburst. Then she sighed, as if she didn't expect better from him. "Yuu... chan," she tried.
"No!" Yuuta screamed, and in a flash he bolted away from them.
Nanako immediately gave chase. "Yuuta! Get back here!" she called after him.
At least the festival being so empty meant he wasn't weaving through a crowd or anything. The yukata hampered his speed, so he was easy to follow, and Nanako, with her slightly longer strides since she was almost an adult and because her short yukata was far less restrictive, was soon on his tail, despite the difficulty in walking with geta.
The boy ducked between some booths, and she followed after him. She was so close to him now that could almost reach out and grab him. Almost, but not quite. And now he was climbing up the shrine's steps.
At the top step, Yuuta tripped over his sandals and went flying backward. Nanako swiftly grabbed his hand, but his weight unbalanced her, and she fell, too, right onto the hard stone walkway leading into the shrine. The impact made her see stars for a brief moment.
Yuuta was panicking over her. "Big sis!" he wailed.
She tried to reassure him that she was fine, but wind had been knocked out of her.
He began to shed tears. "You can't die, big sis, you can't die," he whimpered.
She pulled herself into a sitting position and patted him on the head. Seeing her get up calmed him a little, but he was still crying.
She pulled the boy to her chest with a sigh, allowing his snot to get all over the front of her beautiful yukata. "It's all right, Yuu-chan," she cooed. "I've been through worse."
"You fell so far... You could've died."
She'd only fallen from the first step. It might have been fatal if she'd landed on her head—though she hesitated to use that word considering everything she'd been through—but she guessed it must look pretty far from a kid's perspective.
Still, she smiled at his worrying. The kid cared about her that much, huh? Yeah... yeah, actually, she cared about him too.
They sat there on the unkempt floor, not knowing (in his case) or not caring (in her case) that not too far behind them, Eri Minami watched their exchange with wide eyes that could not turn away.
When the boy was returned to her, he was already asleep.
"T-thank you," Minami said, taking him in her arms for the first time.
"Don't mention it," Nanako replied, giving the woman a polite smile. She was trying.
After watching Minami walk off, Nanako rubbed the spot she'd fallen on. Another bruise, huh? Sadly, she'd long ago used up all of the cream the hospital had given her. Well, it wouldn't be big enough this time to scare Souji, so it'd be fine.
While looking for her girlfriends, she spotted Kanji with the glasses boy again. As she watched, the glasses boy held a large pastry in his mouth. Kanji didn't hesitate at all to take it out of his mouth with his own, as if they were playing that food passing game made popular on goofy game shows.
Nanako's jaw might have been dropped at the sight, then she recovered and it morphed into a grin. Kanji had good taste, that was for sure.
She decided not to bother them.
Turning around, she found Kou and Daisuke at the shooting gallery. Neither of them seemed to be doing all that well at the game. Why had they chosen one that didn't require their athletic skill in the least? She almost went up to them to show them how it was done, but as soon as she walked by, she felt something stirring in her mind.
The potential for a social link? She didn't want anything to do with that. Not right now. Not after... not after Teddie. Marie was one thing, but these were her classmates, and...
She shivered in her yukata. She'd only been to one stupid Balls Club meeting anyway. School seemed like a whole lifetime ago at this point. Hell, she'd been in the hospital on the very first day of summer break.
"Nanakoooooooo," called a voice down in the shopping distract. It was her girlfriend come to save the day!
"Senpaiiiii," she called back, and soon Saki was by her side. She almost pulled her senpai into a hug, but Yuuta's snot hadn't quite dried. Only one yukata needed to be ruined today.
"It's getting late," Saki observed. "Satonaka and Amagi headed off. I think they're going to the inn together."
"I knew it!" Nanako said. "I knew she'd invited Chie to the hot springs before."
"Hmm? You wanna go to a hot springs some time? There's one at the next train stop."
"Honey, if we leave Inaba, I might not wanna come back," Nanako told her frankly. "Don't tell me you wouldn't be tempted to really run away with me, either!"
"I've saved up some money," Saki murmured, "but not that much, really."
Nanako shrugged in her yukata. "I thought I was joking, but... now I'm not so sure." She sighed and looked at the darkening sky. "The fireworks should be starting soon, right? You're a native. Show me the best spot around here to see them."
"You mean apart from my bedroom?"
"...You're right," Nanako said. "We can make the fireworks happen anywhere."
Saki took Nanako's hand and led her down some alleys until they ended up by the flood plain. There were several couples and families already there. Some even had blankets laid down on the grass. It was a warm night, but not unpleasant now that the sun had mostly set.
They found a nice secluded corner and sat together on the grass.
She and Saki were somewhere along the way to fireworks when there was a loud cough. Nanako hastily straightened her girlfriend's yukata at the sight of Aunt Seta striding into their little hideaway.
Adachi followed soon after, and Souji was at his side. No, Souji was actually holding his hand, and the smile on the boy's told her everything she needed to know about his day at the festival.
Though he let go of the detective's hand to show her a plastic bag with a goldfish in it. "Look, look, big sis... I'm really good at f-fishing!"
"He was catching them for some of the other kids," Adachi confirmed. His eyes flickered to Saki and then back to Nanako, perhaps curious about them, but then Souji's happy giggling stole everyone's attention.
"The man said... I was a natural!" Souji's grin was so big it was almost off his round little face.
"Of course," said Aunt Seta, looking as proud of her son as ever.
Nanako grinned too and made a show of looking at Souji's fish in its bag and suggested some silly names for it.
Then a reddish hue was cast over everything in the area. A deafening boom sounded out. Souji jumped at the sound and clutched at the hem of Nanako's yukata.
The fireworks had started!
"It's loud," the little boy whimpered. Another firework exploded and he jumped again.
Nanako pulled him to the grassy ground and held him tight, hoping he wouldn't start crying. "It's okay, it's okay," she cooed. "They're loud, but... that's part of the fun."
Saki knelt before him. "They have to be loud, Sou-chan. That's the only way they can show off their pretty colors. They're like flowers blooming in the sky. Loud flowers."
"Watch, watch!" Nanako said, and she covered the boy's ears and tilted his head towards the sky.
A multicolored starburst firework exploded in the sky. Souji seemed to calm in her arms, but she kept her hands over his ears as they watched the rest of the fireworks show.
At one point, red light from a series of red and purple fireworks lit up some stray clouds in the distance. Against the backdrop of the black sky, Nanako was reminded of the spiraling vortex sky in the TV World.
I wonder, she thought, if the killer is seeing this?
[Author's note: I wouldn't say Eri Minami was my least favorite social link in Persona 4, but it's definitely low on the list. Nanako'll turn her into a better mom, though!
Oh, and thanks for the reviews! They always make the day brighter.
Dusk Clark: I'm glad to know you're still with us :)
Subtle Melancholy: We'll keep your words in mind, and I really can't wait to write that part of the story! It's gonna be great.
SK: I promise we're going somewhere! Thank you for such a thoughtful review.
Guest: We're trying our best to finish this! hahah
Next Chapter: Idle Business
Idle is a homophone with Idol, by the way!]