This story is a work of fiction. Any similarities to events or persons living or dead in your world is purely coincidental.

4/26 Friday

After School

An inner conflict raged between impotent fury and the keen knowledge that now was the absolute worst time and place for one to lose their temper.

Still, it was tempting.

The presence of police officers at a school might, under other circumstances, have been comforting. Junior detective Makoto Nijima's words still resonated and she'd professed faith in her partner, but it was nice to see others following up on it, trying to learn what kind of connection existed between the Koashimizu girl who had disappeared and returned... and the one who had come back as a corpse.

For these reasons, the two uniformed men talking to her in the guidance office might have been comforting, if they had not chosen to single Aiko out for questioning. Even that would have been a minor annoyance, not a cause for blood vessels to feel like they might burst.

Except for the fact that Julian's first soccer game was starting right now. She'd promised to come and cheer him on. She would have done that even without making a promise, glad to finally see some extracurricular action going on at school that didn't require her to stir it back up from the living death called 'lack of interest'.

So she bit down on her lip and forced her voice into regular, nonthreatening tones no matter how many times she imagined Julian searching the crowd for her and finding nothing, no one on his side. Occasionally, she could hear noises from outside. The first game was definitely one worth watching.

"You're certain?", the shorter officer asked again. "You followed miss Sorano down to the shore, and she only returned a week after?"

"That is what happened", she replied, forcing her voice even but at the cost of making it sound robotic. "I spent a week worrying about her. I went down to beach several times after school to try and find her and bring her back. That was after I reported it to the school."

"We believe you, miss Tsuruga", the taller cop assured her, more gentle than his partner. "We merely require all the facts. Miss Sorano claimed she arrived in a completely different world, and you brought her back."

"I did bring her back", Aiko said sternly. "I found her on the beach one day, the same place she disappeared. She was wet and tired and hungry."

"We know", the tall one nodded, trying to calm her. "Poor girl must have been hallucinating due to hunger and sickness. She's lucky to have a friend like you, miss Tsuruga. Our true concern now is actually miss Furusato, and... the exact depth of her relation with the transfer student Noel Vitienne."

She nearly sat up in shock. "Noel-kun would never hurt her. Never."

"Then you do know him?", the short one asked, his arms folded, and she knew she had just unwittingly extended this questioning session even longer. "Yet, you have only been here at Koashimizu academy for just under a month, correct? Before then, you lived in Akihabara, Tokyo. Far from Vitienne's residence."

She said nothing. Any answer she give seemed pointlessly antagonistic. So what?

"What he's saying is", the tall one provided, "you can't say for certain that Vitienne is clean. We've already spoken with several other students who have known him much longer, and claimed otherwise about him."

WHO? The furious bark echoed in her mind unaired. Who said such things? Student disciplinary members? People who don't even know Noel-kun, but would believe that about him just because he's a damn 'gaijin'?

She didn't speak that anger of course, but the short man seemed able to sense it. "I understand that you want to protect your friends, miss Tsuruga, but at this point like it or not, Vitienne is the prime suspect for miss Furusato's death. If he truly is responsible for the girl's death, then shouldn't you be glad to see him properly punished for his crime?"

That... didn't help. Inwardly amazed at how calm she was behaving, Aiko pushed back in her seat. "I stand by what I said. I know Noel-kun. Better than anyone else you've spoken to, in fact. He wouldn't hurt anyone."

"That is for us to decide, miss Tsuruga", the short one told her with a hint of scorn for what he no doubt saw as blind schoolgirl naivete that duly appointed officers of the law- adults- couldn't afford. "You are free to go now. You may vouch for his character if you are ever called upon as a witness at his trial."

His partner looked like he wanted to apologize, but said nothing. They were both silently expecting her to leave, so they could bring in the next person to dig into for dirt about Noel.

"You know", she said, glaring daggers back at them. "I saw the big news story just a few years ago. All those cops and investigators and coroners who were being paid off by that awful Masayoshi Shido. Nearly a hundred of them discharged from the force, right? But my mom said that it was good that they were getting rid of corrupt officers, so that the country's police force could be trusted by the people again... She would be ashamed to see you behaving this way."

The short one merely snorted. Her disapproval meant nothing to him, and vice versa. His partner stared back, suddenly looking sleepy. "That happened in Tokyo, miss Tsuruga. This is Tosashimizu city. Here, there is no such widespread corruption."

"Tell that to officer Nijima. Assuming you let her know about this case at all."

That was all she could afford to say. Anything more and she might burst, probably incrimidating herself as an accomplice. Running out into the foyer, she could already see the way the story would be spun- Noel Vitienne, the unscrupulous gaijin boy who wanted to make a clean break with his boring current girlfriend in favor of the attractive new arrival, and plotted together with her to dispose of the old...

God, why do I always end up going in that direction with Noel-kun?

It was too much to take in. Too much. She needed something less stressful to take her mind off it.

AT: hey

AT: u there, Hayato?

MS: I don't think she is. What's up? How's the hame?

MS: game*

AT: couldn't watch it. police were questioning me.

MS: questioning you? why?

AT: they think Noel-kun drowned Ayano-san, or at least helped cause it

MS: ...that's indane.

MS: insane*

AT: yeah. not sure, but I think somebody spread a rumour.

MS: omg no way

MS: no one is that evil

This naive-seeming declaration brought a faint smile to her lips. Even after all she'd been through, Mirambela remained overwhelmingly positive both in outlook and personality... most of the time. More often these days, but sometimes a mention of her experience in Faraway Lands would swing her back into the depression that had gripped her when they'd first met.

AT: doesn't matter. they haven't arrested him yet, but it looks bad

AT: punishing whoever started the rumor won't change anything.

MS: what if we show them Faraway Lands?

It was only a text, but Aiko could practically hear the desperation in that proposal.

AT: can't. the gate didn't open yesterday when I tried it. we already told them and they didn't believe us

AT: also: no talking about that on a text pls

MS: sorry. I'm just so dorried

MS: worried*

It showed, too. Mira had shown a definite reduction in texting errors and other tech-related mistakes since her return from Faraway Lands, but whatever progress she'd made had gone out the window now that they were talking about a friend who might get put on trial for a serious crime.

Aiko thought for a moment. After today's questioning, she really didn't feel like going down to the soccer field just as the game ended so she could be grilled by Julian as well.

Coward.

AT: u know where Noel-kun usually spends his days after class? When he's not at the boys' dorm doing homework?

MS: sometimes he goes to the coast to draw. other times he goes to this little temple in Tosashimizu city.

Aiko was impressed to see a map with coordinates and even a website link sent to her phone next, marking a place to the north not far from the bus stop.

AT: thanks, Mira-chan.

MS: anything I can xo to yelp.

MS: help*

MS: do**

4/26 Friday

Evening

The temple was indeed small, a spread rectangle with a narrow steeple housing an old-looking crisscross of dark wooden beams which looked to be the same wood as what made up the six benches arranged into two rows. What little congregation there was spread out along them, none of them giving her any mind.

Except for the balding robed man with a brass cane at the front. a fringe of curly dark hair clinging to his scalp as though it might fall off at any moment. Though the book mounted on his podium indicated he'd already given a sermon today, he now seemed content to let his flock open their own personal dialogues with the almighty. As he approached Aiko, she heard a strange knocking sound that stopped when he did.

"Hello there. I am father Shigetsu. I've not seen you before. Have you come to seek guidance?"

Aiko smiled back nervously. This kind of focused devotion felt alien to someone who had grown up in the fabled 'electric city', seeing lots of shrines but never actually entering them. "I might need it later, but not right now. I was looking for someone I was told comes here often." A quick scan of the benches confirmed that he wasn't there now. "Noel Vitienne."

"Ah, yes", the priest recognised the name easily. "He does frequent our sermons, usually on Sunday of course. A good lad. Always a kind word for others."

"Would you be willing to swear in front of a jury that he's a 'good lad'?"

That got all of his attention focused on her, his cane pressing down into the wood just a bit too hard to be natural. "Is he in some sort of trouble, then?"

"Nothing official yet", she said, hating to be the bearer of this awful news to yet more people who cared about Noel. "But I think they're going to accuse him of drowning his girlfriend, Ayano Furusato."

The man crossed himself. It was the first time Aiko had ever seen the gesture performed, and it inevitably reminded her of an emoticon more than a benediction. Man, I really have been spending too long in Akihabara. "I cannot possibly imagine a boy less likely to commit such a sin. He has invested himself more into this place- into helping others come to terms with their grief- than any other man his age. All of his sins have been confessed to me here, and that is not one of them."

She nodded wearily. It was nice to speak with a fellow voice of sanity for once. "Pray for him, then. And if he does stop by, tell him that Aiko Tsuruga is looking for him."

"I shall", the man her turn to leave however, he rapped his cane on the wood. "Ah. Additionally, if the worse does come to pass... I would like to be informed. Who knows what the word of one shepherd and his flock will be worth, but we would give it gladly."

She looked back to see a dozen hands of all sorts of ages raised up from the benches behind them. Solidarity I've never seen in a Koashimizu classroom. Whether she wanted it or not, there was a bit of hope for Noel's future to be had here. Too bad he's not here to see it.

"That... yes, that would be very helpful. Thank you. I'll let you know if he gets arrested, so you can come to the trial."

Shigetsu nodded, offered up a smile that suggested he was re-learning how to perform the action. "I understand if most children your age wish to dismiss my words, but I've sensed a great shift in the powers that watch over this land as of late. Something is coming. Something that most of us remain blind to, but... I feel as though the calamity from six years ago was only postponed, not stopped. It tries again now."

He actually did sound crazy, she acknowledged. If she hadn't gone through what she had recently, she might have dismissed him as a crackpot. "The calamity six years ago?"

Shigetsu's eyes closed. He leaned back just enough so that Aiko could see the strange asymmetry of his body when it leaned in any direction, and understand.

He hid it well. The robe covered his form all the way down to his feet, and how often does someone really pay attention to that part of their pastor? It was only the way the cloth sudden bent inwards at an angle, creating a smaller depression in his right side that made her realize, and move her gaze down further to spot the man's clean black boot.

Boot, singular.

Shock made her forget every courtesy she'd ever known. "How...?"

The priest's sigh seemed to let more empty air into the room than it could contain. "The calamity struck us. Beings of darkness appeared, and did this to me."

The calamity...? But I don't remember anything like that happening six years ago.

No. That wasn't quite right. There had been something. Six years ago, just a few days after the legendary public confession of minister Shido to many wicked crimes on the very eve of his election, she'd been watching it at home. It hadn't meant that much to her at the time, but it seemed like the adults had all been informed the world was ending.

Kogaya hadn't cared, naturally. There wasn't much that could catch her attention, unless her daughter did something that might hurt herself or refused to eat.

But she'd gone outside that day, without really able to place the reason why. It just felt like the walls of the house were pressing in around her then. A common enough sensation, but this had been worse somehow. A vague sense of unease, like she was being pursued by unseen observers who wished her nothing pleasant. The feeling hadn't abated once she was outside either. She'd simply walked and walked, hoping to shake it off, and then...

She snorted. Can't remember what happened then. I went back home and the feeling was gone.

Calamity? What happened? And why don't I remember?

Whatever her own concerns, Shigetsu had obviously come to terms with it. He put a hand out to prop her chin up. "Please don't be sad. I am certain that the correct powers will intervene to save humanity, just as they did last time."

That jarred her out of her memories, blinking and facing the congregation again. "Oh. I'm sorry. I just... I don't remember any kind of calamity happening six years ago. There was the election, and then..."

The priest nodded as if he'd expected nothing else. "Yes. I'm afraid my medical insurance provider refused to cover this until I told them 'the truth of what happened'. What they mean, of course, is the truth that they are willing to accept."

"That's awful", she whispered into the candelabra. She suddenly felt very inconsiderate, coming here and bothering a one-legged priest for help when they were obviously in some degree financial trouble. "I'm sorry."

"You have nothing to apologize for, girl. It was the creatures of darkness who did this to me. There had to be a reason for it to happen, and so I accept it in good faith."

Creatures of darkness... Shadows? But how could Shadows appear in Tokyo without anyone else knowing about it?

"The creatures did vanish in the end, and the sky returned to normal, no longer a rain of blood. Perhaps my flesh was the sacrifice required to avert the calamity."

"Maybe", Aiko nodded wearily. She didn't have the heart to suggest he was wrong. "Noel-kun's lucky to have friends like you."

"Don't understate your own value either, miss Tsuruga", he reminded her gently. "We did not even know of Noel's plight until this very moment, and you are clearly reaching out to him. If all people were so supportive of those we care for, I doubt that the world would be in its current state."

"Me too. Wait... Samesaji-san?"

As she looked closer, one of the people who had raised their hands when Shigetsu asked stood up to reveal familiar black ponytail and a shy, reluctant smile. "Hi there, Tsuruga-san. I guess you can imagine what I'm here for."

She could, and the realization made her more confident than a dozen upraised hands had. Kotone's light hands found hers as they closed with one another. "We try. That's all we can do now. I know Noel-kun wouldn't do anything bad to her."

"She has come to pray for the soul of her departed friend as well", the man noted. "An awful tragedy that should not be compounded by another. Ah, young love..."

Still confident, Aiko regarded him and the others with new appreciation. "It won't. I'll make sure of it."

The man beamed, centering his gravity again so that his wound was concealed. "Then you will always be welcome here, child. Together is the only way that humanity might survive calamities such as the events of six years ago."

4/27 Saturday

After School

Mr. Umaeda's second fencing session had been every bit as exhausting as the first one, but Aiko did not let that stop her from putting full effort into her voice once they were done learning the various attack forms.

"I'm sorry."

It felt like she'd been saying that a lot lately.

Julian was in a similar state. He looked tired, but took no time in picking up on what she meant. Or in waving it away as they exited the sparring room. "Hey, it's cool. We're both busy people. Not like you had to come or anything. We'll be seeing each other in this club anyway, right?"

"But, I promised..."

He shrugged, idly twirling a blue pen on two fingers as was his general habit. "Not like you missed very much going on yesterday. First game? More like 'worst lame'. That crappy other team couldn't do a thing."

"Sounds like you had fun anyway."

Julian pocketed the pen- as expected, him doing such a thing while walking was attracting a few stares, and while he clearly enjoyed all the attention and gossip he was getting, he also knew that she didn't. "No, not really. It's no fun if it's too easy. I barely got a chance to show off all my awesome skillz."

Aiko gave a weak smile. She still liked Julian as a friend, but sometimes he was a fair bit too impressed with himself for his own good. That attitude hadn't yet crept into their fencing classes, but outside of them he could be a handful. He wrinkled his nose seeing the front of her locker, which bore yet another of the revolting messages she had gotten so used to seeing that it was a mere nuisance, but for him it was still a fresh insult- you are so ugly you should drink bleach and kill yourself.

"Ughhh. Assholes. You know, if you really do feel bad about missing my game and want to make it up to me, how about if we get together for something else? Maybeeee... somewhere out in the city?"

The question hung in the hall's dusty air as if the competing noise of the rumour mill had trapped the words for posterity. Say yes and everyone in the school will know. As Julian planned, no doubt.

To hell with what they know, she decided. It was her life.

"You start fast", she observed nonchalantly once she'd gotten the books she needed.

"In everything, Tsuruga-chan", he confirmed cheerily. "Is that a yes?"

She gave an exasperated smile. He didn't have to say anything at all to imply that this was also repayment for agreeing to join the fencing club with her in the first place. "Seeing as how you seem like the type to keep trying until I do, why not? I have some plans for tomorrow, but maybe Monday after school?"

"Done. Meet you at the bus stop after class."

The fog of random whispers that was a permanent part of the scenery at Koashimizu intensified almost immediately, for once focusing on one single topic and a thousand differing viewpoints on it. Like with the messages she'd seen on her locker and on the school's online discussion boards, she had learned to let it wash over her as meaningless noise.

"...shack up with any gaijin, won't she?"

"...wanna see how they get on..."

"...he is kind of dreamy though, and he's only hafu..."

"...ujou-san's right, she really is a shameless skan-..."

"...get my phone-..."

Still, it was a relief to get out of the building and enjoy the fresh rain washing over her face.

4/28 Sunday

Morning

Cape Ashizuri was a natural marvel, a spit of cliff jutting out off the southernmost end of the Koichi prefecture to the point that it was surrounded by water on three sides at once. A towering white light house topped it off, and various other facilities had been constructed around it to transform it into a true vacation destination.

The sheer stone cliffs also carried sound quite well, as anyone who happened to be near the cape that morning discovered.

"Underwater boat price is HOW much?!" Aiko's voice came out in a shriek before remembering where she was and dropping to a tone less likely to frighten children. "Okay, what about the tours?"

A uniformed gentleman bearing Pelagio's level of exaggerated dignity shook his head in dismissal. "I'm afraid such a thing would need to be booked in advance. All our time slots for the next month are currently taken, miss. The price of a reservation will be 10,000 yen in advance, please."

Minutes later, she and Mirambela were sitting outside the visitors' center, having achieved the exact opposite result they had wanted with their 'celebration party'.

Or at least, Aiko had. Mira didn't look that bummed about it at least. "It's just as well, Ai-chan", she assured her roommate with a cold hand placed over hers. "Midterms are coming up after this week... we should be using these days to catch up on studying."

"We can't even reserve anything for next week", Aiko grumped. "This sucks! I wanted to have a victory party!"

"It does", Mira agreed. "But there's no point in getting upset over it. Having a fit won't make them lower the prices. Maybe after midterms, we can go try somewhere less expensive."

When the sight of Pelagio soaring overhead failed to rouse her mood, Mira decided to press a little more. "Maybe you shouldn't have bought that TV? Look, you've already saved me from something no one else could have. I'm content to just enjoy my life for now, because I know that if it weren't for you, I wouldn't have my life at all. That's the best present that I can ask for."

For several moments, there was only the sea breeze and the faint chatter of wealthier passerby. Then, Aiko stood. "There is one place we can go... and it's free. You wanted to try it out, right?"

Mira stared, knowing what she referred to. "You mean...? I don't know if I count that as free. It's dangerous."

"So's life", Aiko grunted, still aggravated at having bussed so far to gain nothing from it. "We'll be careful. Pela-chan and I know how things work there now. We'll stay away from your Land, or any other big ones that look like they might have strong Shadows. It'll be fine. I need to work this stress out anyway."

Despite keeping up a steady torrent of objections on the trip home, Mira eventually yielded. "But only when the gate opens. Until then, we study."

Aiko chuckled, bright after her victory. "Yes, ma'am. I guess it's only natural that you're so focused on that now that Takao-sensei gave you a second chance. How'd that go, by the way?"

"Well enough", she said noncommitally. "We won't know until marks get posted next week, but I think I did alright, having to do everything again and submit it in hand-writing. I'm more worried about midterms now."

"Yeah", Aiko agreed sheepishly. There was something about all she'd done in the last few weeks that made studies feel so... irrelevant. Even though they weren't, especially not for someone whose continued fencing classes depended on getting above average grades. "I checked, by the way."

Ignoring the tremors of the bus, Mira blinked. "Checked what?"

"Your online assignments. Aren't you curious about what really happened to them that day?"

Mira's lips tightend. "Not really. It's kind of obvious, now that I'm thinking clearly again. That's why I'm doing all my assignments on paper now."

"Everything deleted", Aiko mused, more infatuated with finding the culprit than its victim. "Not even any records showing submissions of assignments and notes. Got to be a hacker, right?"

Mira rolled her brown eyes at her friend's habit of immediately jumping to the most dramatic conclusions. "More likely it was just someone with high-ranked access to the school's online records. Someone from the IT department who either didn't like me, or was taking orders from someone who doesn't like me."

"Bastard", Aiko spat.

Mira shrugged, strangely calm after how her initial reaction had gone. "It could have been worse. They could have left behind files from... adult websites. Takao-sensei said he would calculate my grade personally, so we'll definitely know if they try changing that. Honestly, aside from that things have been pretty quiet. It's... nice."

It wasn't hard to figure why that was. Only the most heartless of Benihime Kujou's anti-exchange student group would be able to bring themselves to target someone who had just returned from a week's disappearance, preluded by an emotional meltdown that seemingly everyone in the school knew about now.

Of course, that temporary sympathy only meant that their attention had been shifted over to a more high-profile target- Aiko herself.

"Why do they do it?", she lamented. Not because of any particular mental anguish, though she couldn't deny it was irritating to her. "They really feel like this is the best use of their time and energy?"

Mira stared out the bus window facing the cliff, eyes passing over the countless bits of plantlife which clung tenaciously to it. "I don't like to point fingers, but I figured it was the same thing which drives the JCAP at their rallies."

Aiko grimaced. "Which is what? I don't really get them either."

"A shetani", Mira announced flatly, her eyes lowered. "A devil. Rather, they are seeking out a devil to fight against. Something which can be labelled as the source of all of their woes large and small, in the belief that removing it will improve their lives and remove those sorrows. People in authority that they wish to trust claim that we are that shetani."

"Idiots."

Mira leaned back, taking a moment to scan the bus for anyone who might overhear their words and take offense. Aside from a few elderly folk keeping to their own devices, they were alone.

"Labelling over two million citizens of Japan as 'idiots', Ai-chan, is not really so far off from the kind of broad strokes that JCAP promotes. Hating them is equally as productive as their activities."

More thoughtfully, she used her phone- no longer showing any fear of its multitude of buttons or interface- to bring up public information on the founding of the JCAP movement, and how their influence had gradually spread across the nation over the last six years. Its fundamentals had begun with many of the more radical ideologies originally put forth by the United Future party shortly before its disbandment, due to its charismatic leader, suddenly confessing to murders, rape, and worse on the very eve of his election.

Their website looked very well designed indeed. It inspired trust and hope for a better tomorrow.

"I could spend a lot of my time and energy hating the highest leaders of JCAP for what they have created out of Masayoshi Shido's support base, tricking countless people into believing that removing all foreign people from the country will turn it into a perfect paradise for them, where can work much less and earn much more. It is tempting at times, but I do not believe it would achieve anything of value. And so... I do not hate."

Her friend hesitated, stating into the linoleum floor. "Good for you, Mira-chan. Wish I could say the same. They're still idiots, and I don't like them."

"You are far from alone in that", Mira admitted, playing with her phone some more. With confidence, now that she had someone show her how to do everything with it. "My father says that these various movements across the world are like wildfires. They are dangerous now, but will eventually burn themselves out as more and more people realize that they are doing more harm than good."

"But until then, we have put up with people like Mattora and Kujou", Aiko remarked. "And Noel-kun might get accused of a murder that he would never do."

"He might", she noted sadly. Aiko had told her everything about the boy's situation, including the fact that he and Kotone Samesaji normally attended the church together, and the fact that father Shigetsu had likely encountered Shadows six years ago. Shadows who had torn his leg off when he tried to resist.

"But that has not happened yet. He hasn't even been accused of anything yet. All we can do is monitor the news channels closely, and try to show up for Vitienne-kun's trial with as many people as we can if it comes to that."

"And hope that the whole forest doesn't burn down in the meantime", Aiko finished dourly. For all they'd accomplished in the other world, it seemed that hope was all they could manage for now.

o