Meraki
Doing something with soul, creativity, or love - when you put "something of yourself" into what you're doing, whatever it may be
~O~
Haru really didn't understand the Hibari siblings. The older one was a violent jerk who understood the world in terms of laws of food chain, while the younger one's moods changed faster than a flip of a coin, but one thing always remained constant about Nagi- she loved to antagonize her. Just yesterday the two of them had a huge fight, and now, the two are as thick as thieves. Seriously, the way the two of them had almost hit each other yesterday –and that too not in a push-and-shove way. (Haru is smart enough to understand the violent intent to hurt, and the sudden bloodthirst the Hibari siblings had emitted at that time had not been her imagination, she knew that for sure. She wondered what kind of upbringing the two of them had to turn out to be such violent kids.) –and now, they're interacting with each other, joking around and discussing some "fake-herbivore" –whatever that means. Seriously, someone should give Haru a book called "Guide to Understand Hibari Kyoya, For Sane People" so that she could at least understand what goes on in the head of that Vampire. After all, not everyone has an in-built Kyoya-translation device inserted in their mind from birth like Tsuna and Nagi had. (Because there's no way that their understanding of one Hibari Kyoya's speaks and tells is natural. They must have some sort of translation device inserted in them. Maybe it's Google translate?)
A tap on her shoulder snapped Haru out of her thoughts. She blinked and glanced up from her now empty bowl and turned to look at Yamamoto Takeshi, who had patted her shoulder just now.
Takeshi stared at her in amusement and said, "Haha, if you think too much you'll have a headache, little Psy-du-ck~!"
A vein throbbed over Haru's forehead and she couldn't help but retort, "Well, having a headache is better than getting my jaw stuck because of grinning too much, right, you damn Totodile?"
Takeshi laughed at her snarky reply. "Oh man, you're so funny! I really wonder why I hadn't interacted with you sooner, being from same school and all."
Haru shrugged. Her eyes fell on a certain girl sitting on the center table in the cafeteria, smiling politely at her group of friends who were all trying to engage her in their conversation. "Maybe because I'm a weirdo, and no sane person would ever want to be friends with me." Her eyes turned distant as she spoke in a sad tone.
Takeshi's eyes sharpened slightly as he watched Haru sadly looking at someone, but didn't say anything. Something inside him clenched when he saw her so sad, so depressed, and he wondered if this was how he had looked when he had been hiding his pain and sadness inside him all this time. No wonder his Dad had been worried about him lately.
"Well then, it's a good thing that no one among us here is actually sane, right?" Haru whirled her head towards Takeshi, her wide eyes staring at the grinning boy in surprise. "A weirdo Psyduck would fit amazingly well with a mischievous Leader, a demon, a trickster, a pretty fairy and a Totodile. Don't you think so?"
"Yeah," Haru's eyes teared up at his words, and a soft smile appeared on her lips. "I do."
(Nagi and Tsuna shared a look and discreetly shared a high-five. Kyoya, who had been sitting some ways from them, gave them a stink eye and asked warily, "What are you two conspiring now?"
The two stared at him a bit too innocently and replied in unison, "Nothing."
Kyoya stared at them, unimpressed. "I don't believe you." He said flatly.
The two of them giggled at his words.
Kyoko who returned to the kitchen of the cafeteria –with Nayuki-Sensei's permission- and brought Nagi's breakfast –since Nagi's hand was injured and she would have difficulty holding the plate- put the plate down. She stared at Kyoya scowling on one side and Tsuna and Nagi giggling conspiringly on the other side, and then glanced at Nagi and Takeshi having a heart-to-heart moment, she asked quizzically, "Um, what did I miss?"
Nagi beamed at her and said teasingly, "Kyoko-chan, you just missed the start of a very beautiful friendship of the oblivious duo!" Tsuna couldn't help but crack up in laughter at her words, while Kyoya snorted.
"…..What?")
Tsuna groaned while tossing in the bunk bed, the cramps and bruises he had gotten in the parkour class today –Hikari-Sensei was a demon, he was damn sure of that- throbbed in pain, making him unable to rest. He had somehow managed to fool the girls with his happy-go-lucky act this morning, but he couldn't keep up the charade any longer than the fifteen minutes he had spent in the cafeteria, keeping Nagi company with the others as she ate. After that, as soon as the girls prepared to attend their classes and waved them goodbye, Tsuna had immediately sagged like a puppets whose strings were abruptly cut off, and had flopped on Takeshi's back, demanding him to take him back to their room –since asking Kyoya to carry him away (no matter how much he wanted it to happen) was a death wish. Thank goodness Dr. Kagami had given them some painkillers –as well as a pain relief ointment- this morning during his check-up after their morning parkour lesson or else Tsuna wouldn't be able to even lift his limbs, let alone tossing on his bed.
Hearing Tsuna's pained groans, Takeshi shot him a sympathetic look. "That bad, huh?"
"It's worse." Tsuna moaned, his face scrunching in pain, as he spoke "Everything hurts, Rain-san. That reminds me-" he turned his head a bit and eyed Takeshi enviously, "How come you're not hurting as much as I am?"
Takeshi rubbed the back of his head and chuckled sheepishly, "I train a lot and exercise regularly to keep up my baseball skills, that's why I'm not as much hurt as you. Though," he winced slightly as he shifted his leg a bit, his thighs cramping at the slight movement. "I think I overdid it today. I'll need soak in hot water to relieve the cramps before I would be able to play baseball today."
Tsuna gave Takeshi a stink-eye and with a huff decided to ignore the other boy. It's true that misery loves company. What's even truer is that being the only one suffering sucks –especially when the other person went through the same thing with you but is still alright, while you're the only one who's suffering from it.
How hateful!
Haru had been quite engrossed in knitting a pretty design on a beautiful blue fabric during her Sewing and Knitting Class, when Hisako-Sensei clapped her hands, grabbing her attention.
"Hello everyone! I have an announcement to make!" Hisako-Sensei smiled slightly at the little girls who stared at her curiously. "Do you remember Nayuki-Sensei informing you on your first day here about the various competitions that will happen on the last day of the camp?" When the girls nodded, she continued on, "Our Sewing and Knitting class will also have a competition, but it's a bit different from the ones that will happen on the fifth day of the Summer Camp, and I want every single one of you to compete in it." The girls immediately sat straighter and listened intently to their teacher. Hisako-Sensei couldn't help but smile at such an adorable sight. "I want you to present anything you have sewed or knitted with your own hands –whether it be a simple design on a handkerchief, or a self-made plushie with discarded fabric- to me on the fourth day of the camp. The results will be declared in the evening in the same class." A few girls wanted to protest but Hisako-Sensei cut them off. "I know some of you here are beginners, while some are already quite advanced in sewing and knitting, but I still want you to try. Don't be discouraged just because you think your level is low. Every effort of yours counts. So what if the result wasn't to your satisfaction? You should be content because at least you tried."
Her heartfelt words shut the girls up.
Hisako-Sensei then smiled and said, "I have just the perfect thing to motivate you." Saying this, she gestured towards the table, on which lay a something of cuboidal shape –must be some kind of box- hidden by a white fabric. "This is the prize that the winner of this little competition will get."
Saying this, she pulled off the white fabric covering the box, and most girls gasped in delight when they saw what the prize actually was. Even Haru couldn't help but be stunned. Because lying inside the transparent plastic box were six pokemon plushies.
On the furthest right stood a Riolu whose beady eyes were narrowed as it scowled, and for some reason, she was reminded of that damn Vampire and his grumpiness. Next to it stood Misdreavous with a mischievous look in it's purple eyes that were so similar to Nagi's. A Totodile stood next to the tricky ghost pokemon, it's eyes curving into a smile, it's happy-go-lucky attitude was so similar to Yamamoto Takeshi that Haru couldn't help but be startled. On the furthest left stood a Clefairy with a bright smile just like Kyoko's, and next to it stood a Psyduck, whose head was tilted, as if it were confused. Haru then glanced at the Evee standing in the middle of the row, wearing a hat as orange as Tsuna's amber eyes.
.
"You," Kyoya pointed at the cosplayer girl, and said, "are coming with me."
.
Tsuna extended his hand out towards the cosplaying girl, making her jump at the sudden movement, as he smiled brightly and asked, "Would you like to join our Team, Psyduck-chan?"
.
"Hush, no one asked the Psyduck for her opinion." Nagi said teasingly.
"Why, you-!"
.
"Haru-chan, you're amazing!" Kyoko gushed at Haru.
.
"A weirdo Psyduck would fit amazingly well with a mischievous Leader, a demon, a trickster, a pretty fairy and a Totodile. Don't you think so?"
.
.
Looking at the Pokemon plushie set that reminded her so much of her newest friends, Haru couldn't help but clench her fists as her eyes flashed in determination. It was as if someone has ignited a fire inside her. For once in her life, there was something she wanted from the depths of her heart. She wanted to win that plushie set with her own efforts, and then gift each pokemon plushie to the ones it reminded her of, and thank them with the bottom of her heart for being her friends. She wanted them to know how grateful she is for their acceptance of her weirdo (lonely) self.
That's why, she will win.
Lunch Time came, and as always, Tsuna and his friends –sans Kyoko and Haru, who were attending their Cooking Class- sat at their table at the corner of the cafeteria. Well, it was more like everyone was sitting on their chairs, except Tsuna, who slumped forward, resting his head on the table. Nagi poked Tsuna's arm, and the boy twitched in response, before shooting her a glare. "Stop that." He moaned. "It hurts so much!" He whined at her.
Nagi stared at him, flabbergasted. "How come you are hurting only now? You were fine during breakfast, Orange-san!"
Takeshi chuckled and immediately outed Tsuna, "He was pretending at that time."
Tsuna pouted. "Rain-san, you weren't supposed to tell her that!"
"Ahahahaha! Sorry, sorry!" Takeshi apologized, though it was obvious from his grin –as well as the teasing smile on his lips- that he wasn't actually sorry for letting out Tsuna's little secret.
Nagi giggled. Kyoya snorted and turned his head to the side, though the way the corner of his lips twitched upwards made it obvious that he was amused by their antics.
Tsuna balefully glared at them and huffed. "What good friends I have, that find my suffering amusing…"
Nagi patted Tsuna's back lightly and said, "It'll be fine, Orange-san. I'll call Kusakabe-sempai to get you some pain relief medicine."
Tsuna waved her off and spoke lightly, "Don't trouble sempai for such little ting. Dr. Kagami has already prescribed me some medicine to tone down the pain of my cramps and bruises."
Nagi and Kyoya shared a look, and then Nagi shrugged. "If you say so." She muttered quietly.
Tsuna glanced between Kyoya and Nagi with narrowed eyes, but when his orange fire didn't react too much, he put it out of his mind, and then glanced sideways and saw Kyoko entering the cafeteria. "Hey, Kyoko-chan's back!" he informed his friends, who all turned to greet Kyoko.
Kyoko walked towards them with a dazed look in her eyes, carrying a bento box in her hands. In her daze, she was less aware, and hence almost bumped into someone. She stumbled, and the bento was somehow ended up in air. Takeshi immediately put his baseball skills to use and caught the bento before it could fall on the ground, while Kyoya used his speed to reach Kyoko and steadied her, before glaring at the herbivore that had bumped into her. The boy shrunk in fear when he saw Kyoya's scathing glare, and after stammering an apology to Kyoko, he quickly scurried off. Kyoko thanked Kyoya and steadied herself. Meanwhile, Nagi and Tsuna rushed towards Kyoko and helped her sit on a chair.
"Are you alright?" Nagi asked Kyoko in concern.
Kyoko blinked and said, "Ah yes, I'm fine. I was just thinking about something."
the others shared a look, and sat down around her. "What happened?" Tsuna asked.
Kyoko scratched her cheek and said, "Well, Haru-chan was really strange today."
"Strange?" Takeshi mused. "How so?"
"Uh, she seemed quite distracted today during the Cooking Class. It was as if she had something on her mind. And also, she didn't pay much attention to Satsuki-chan's scathing comments today. Yesterday she had been quite affected by Satsuki-chan's bad attitude towards her, and Ami-chan's indifference, but today, she had just ignored them. That was really strange." Tsuna and Nagi shared a look. Well, that explains why their resident Psyduck seemed quite depressed yesterday. Looks like there was someone messing around with her.
Should they teach that perpetrator a lesson or should they just sic Kyoya on them?
Kyoya smacked the two's head with is hands and said exasperatingly, "Can you stop that? I know that look on your faces."
"What look?" Nag said innocently, while Tsuna himself stared at Kyoya with doe-eyes.
Kyoya stared at them, unimpressed, and spoke, "The look that means you are planning someone's doom."
The two of them couldn't help but snicker at his words.
"He knows us so well." Nagi whispered to Tsuna.
"That, he does." Tsuna agreed to her.
"But that isn't all that's worrying you, is there?" Takeshi asked Kyoko.
"Yes, there's more." Kyoko said as he glanced down at her hands and clenched them into fists. "I don't understand…" Kyoko muttered, "Why is Satsuki-chan so hostile to Haru-chan? I don't think Haru-chan did anything to her to earn that hostility. Also, how can Ami-chan be so indifferently?! It's so obvious that Haru-chan so much wanted to be friends with her, but she just Haru-chan as if she doesn't matter." She looked up at her friends, her eyes flashing in distress for her friend, "Why? Why do they treat her like that? I really don't understand…."
The others looked down quietly, not knowing what to say to her. The suffocating silence surrounded them for a few minutes before it was broken by the least expected person.
"Because that's how some people are." Kyoya spoke indifferently, and everyone turned to stare at him with wide eyes. Kyoya stared back at them with calm grey eyes, leaned back on his chair and continued on, "There are all kinds of people on this earth. There are those who take pleasure in hurting others, those who feel superior by suppressing those who are weaker than them, those who are over-confident of their abilities that they treat others like dirt- people like them are nothing more than fake-herbivores. Then there are the truly weak ones, those that have sheep mentality and follow the crowd, and never form their own opinions –those are the herbivores. The ones who fight against the system, who stand up for their belief are the true carnivores. The Omnivores are the ones who might appear weak and herbivorous, but once they find their goals, their will to live, then there is nothing that can stop them." He stared at each of the child sitting before him, and stressed out his words, "This is how the world works."
He turned to Kyoko and told her, "You cannot expect selfish herbivores like them to appreciate someone like Miura Haru. Not everyone can see how special she is."
Everyone stared at Kyoya, speechless. Kyoko and Takeshi hadn't thought that Namimori's demon child had such a depth to his character. It seemed that him calling people herbivores and all that wasn't only a strange quirk of his –there was actually a deep meaning behind it.
Seeing their wide eyed stares, Kyoya narrowed his eyes and hissed out, "What?"
Kyoko blinked her eyes at him, then turned towards Nagi and said flatly, "He's a tsundere, isn't he?"
"Yup." Nagi said as she snickered.
Kyoya bristled like a particularly disgruntled cat and threatened them, "I'll bite you two to death!"
And just like that, the atmosphere turned to normal. A good thing too, because a few minutes later, Haru herself appeared, carrying a notepad and a pencil, looking quite distracted as she scribbled some words on it and mumbled something under her breath.
"Yo, Psyduck-chan!" Takeshi waved at her, and Haru glanced up at him. "Thanks for the Omurice!" He gestured towards the bento that everyone had opened just two minutes ago, and had quickly grabbed a piece of it each.
Haru stared down at the now empty bento, and then screeched in outrage, "Where's my share?!" She glared at everyone else and exclaimed angrily, "You didn't even leave anything for me?!"
"Nope!" Nagi denied shamelessly as she bit into the Omurice with an exaggerated moan, making Tsuna and Kyoko giggle at her antics. Even Kyoya smirked in amusement.
"I'll strange you all, you little-!" Haru hissed furiously and stomped towards them.
Tsuna gasped as he tried to control his laughter, and then turned towards Nagi and Takeshi, who were laughing like idiots at the face of a furious Haru and scolded them, "Oi, no antagonizing the Psyduck, you guys!" he then turned towards Haru and said, "Don't mind them, they're lying to you. We did left you a piece." He then pointed at the plate lying on the center of the table, only to blink in surprise when he found that it was empty. He then glanced up at Kyoya, who somehow stuffed the whole omurice into his mouth and smirked tauntingly at Haru,
"It was delicious." he purred as he licked his fingers, not noticing Tsuna's eyes that were glued to the motion and his cheeks turning a little red, not even knowing why he was blushing.
(Deep inside him, his orange fire curled as if it were laughing it's ass off.)
"You guys are all so horrible!" Haru screeched at them in offense, making everyone else laugh.
After having their fun at Haru's expense, they finally calmed their friend down by offering her an extra omurice that Kyoko had hidden earlier –who had known that her new friends were really gluttonous and wouldn't spare anything for their resident Psyduck if she offered them all the omurice they had cooked together.
So, after spending a fun lunch together, they finally parted ways. Tsuna went back to his room with Yamamoto, Kyoko went to return the bento box to the cafeteria, while Kyoya disappeared to god-knows-where. Nagi was about to head back to their room and try a few origami designs from the book she had borrowed from her teacher, but was stopped by Haru.
"Hey Nagi-chan," Haru asked Nagi, who turned towards her friend. "What is your favorite flower?"
Nagi was startled by the random question, but she then shrugged it off and answered, "Iris."
"Oh." Haru murmured before she scribbled something in her notepad. "What about Tsuna-san and your Vampire brother? What are their favorite flowers?"
Nagi quirked a brow at the question, and wondered why Haru wanted to know that. "Onii-sama likes Bellflower, while Orange-san likes Lilies."
"Alright, thanks!" Haru said and soon walked away with the notepad, still scribbling something on it.
Nagi watched Haru's back as she went away and hummed under her breath.
"How strange." She muttered.
An hour later Yamamoto Takeshi carried a bat on his shoulder, as well as a pair of gloves in his hands as he walked towards the playground behind the camp, where some kids often gathered to play games. It was a shame that Tsuna couldn't come today, since his body still wasn't feeling well from the extreme impromptu workout of the morning, and hence he had to go alone today. Not that he minded not having Tsuna –or anyone else from his newest group of friends- to be with him when he played his favorite sport –a sport that reminded him of soft hands, warm eyes and a desperate plea "Don't go anywhere, Takeshi!"-
"Yamamoto-kun, are you okay?" a familiar voice snapped him out of his trance and he shook his head to shake off the memories he didn't want to remember right now and glanced down at Haru's concern face.
He grinned at her –however his smile never reached his eyes- as he spoke, "Hey, I'm fine. I was just thinking about how many homeruns I should make today!" He lied easily, and he almost thought that Haru had noticed his lie, what with the way she narrowed her eyes at him. But then she shook her head and the previous skeptical expression was wiped from her face, leaving behind a small smile that made him sigh in relief. Thank goodness she didn't notice.
(Haru could see right through his lies, but she didn't dare to call him out for that. After all, she knew he didn't need someone's sympathy or pity. What Yamamoto Takeshi needed was for someone to accompany him, to accept him for who he is- with all his goodness and flaws. She could see it in his eyes, the longing for someone to understand him, the loneliness that threatened to consume him and the despair of an unknown past. They were the same kind of eyes she saw in the mirror every day.
They was the same as her own eyes.)
"So, did you need something from me?" He asked her.
"Oh, right! Hahi, I almost forgot!" She smacked her head in exasperation –making him laugh- before she asked him, "What's your favorite flower?"
"Ah? Why do you want to know that?"
Haru pouted. "Come on!" she whined at him. "TellMeTellMeTellMe-!"
Takeshi laughed. "Alright, alright, jeez don't hound me like that. My favorite flowers…." the smile slid off from his face, as his dark eyes dropped in sadness. "Forget me not." He whispered. "My mother loved them too."
Haru stared at him quietly. "Mine are Sunflowers. My dad said my mother liked them too." She spoke, then she patted his back and left, leaving behind Takeshi who stared at her lone back.
He chuckled, that soon turned into sobs as a tear escaped his right eye. "I'm such an idiot." He said as he let the baseball and his gloves fall on the ground and pressed the back of his palm against his eyes, fearing that the tears would fall. All this time he had been suffering all alone, tormenting himself, thinking about what ifs and spending his time being depressed, he had forgotten one crucial thing.
He wasn't the only one who had to go through something like that. At least he had known his mother –no matter how gruesome her death had been. There are people in this world who didn't even get to meet their own mother's.
Like Haru…..
Grieving was fine. But letting his grief consume him, to not let anyone in, and even pushing his precious people away was not acceptable. He had forced this loneliness upon himself, unlike others who were forced to suffer it due to circumstances. He was the only one responsible for his sadness and despair.
It was high time he leave the past behind and finally move forward to a brighter future.
.
Kyoko walked into their shared room at four in the evening, and was startled at the mess on the floor. Leftover remains of colorful fabric littered the floor, a few scrunched up paper-balls were strewn all over. In the center of this disaster sat Haru, working on something with utmost concentration as she compared two fabrics of dark green color –honestly, both of them looked the same to Kyoko- and glanced at her notepad every once in a while.
"Haru-chan?" Kyoko asked. "What are you doing?"
Haru jumped –too engrossed in her work she hadn't noticed when Kyoko had actually entered the room- and in her haste she pieced a needle into her forefinger. Yelping in pain, she pulled the needle out, and with teary eyes jerked her hand a few times. Kyoko rushed towards her and pulled her injured finger towards her, and noticed a little bit of blood slowly appearing from the wound. Kyoko then grabbed a Band-Aid from her bag –good think she always listened to her mother's lecture about keeping a few essential first aid things with her- and pasted it on her wound.
"You're so clumsy, Haru-chan!" She scolded her exasperatingly. "What are you working on with such concentration that you didn't even notice me coming?"
Haru averted her eyes and said, "Well, I have participated in the Sewing and Knitting Competition organized by the camp, and according to it, I have to submit my creation the day after tomorrow."
She then stared at Kyoko, conviction burning in her eyes as she said "I want to win, Kyoko-chan. I want the first prize, and I will try my very best to get it." She grabbed Kyoko's hands and said desperately, "Believe me."
Kyoko beamed at her. "Of course I believe in you, Haru-chan! Your creation will be amazing, I just know it!" She said as she patted her friend's shoulder.
Haru's shoulders slumped in relief. "Thank you…" she whispered. She then remembered something suddenly and asked Kyoko, "What is your favorite flower, by the way?"
Kyoko stared at her, puzzled. "Why do you ask?"
Haru smiled mischievously at her. "Just because." She shrugged.
"Well," Kyoko said with a small smile on her face. "It's cherry blossom. I like Sakura trees the most. They are the prettiest, aren't they?"
Haru smiled softly at her. "Yes, they are."
The next day, Tsuna and his friends didn't see Haru around for the whole day. Haru had skipped Dinner the day before, and the next day, she wasn't even there at the breakfast table. When the boys asked about her, Kyoko told them what Haru had been doing since the previous day.
"It's good to know that she is working hard for something, but to neglect her own health for something like this is foolishness." Tsuna frowned in concern.
Nagi sighed. "A Psyduck will always remain a Psyduck- foolish to the extreme."
Kyoko suddenly chuckled after hearing her last statement.
"What?" Nagi shot her quizzical look.
"Nothing."
"What is the prize anyways?" Takeshi asked as he scratched the back of his neck. "What is it that she wants so much to work so hard like that?"
The other three shared a look and then shrugged. They then turned to Kyoya in unison, who had been eating in breakfast in peace till now, ignoring his fellow Baby-guardians' antics.
"What?" he scowled at them when he found them staring at him.
"What's the first prize for the Sewing and Knitting Competition, Cloud-san?" Tsuna asked.
Kyoya's scowl deepened. "How should I know that?"
"How can you not know?" Nagi asked wryly. "You know every little thing that goes on in Namimori, Onii-sama. It's impossible that you not know about this."
Huffing in irritation, Kyoya pulled out his phone, and after tapping a few buttons in it, he showed them a photo. "It's a Pokemon plushie set. Here, this is it."
The others leaned forward to get a closer look at it. After a while, they leaned back on their seats and the four of them shared a look.
"That damn Pokemon fanatic." Nagi deadpanned.
"That's our Psyduck for ya!" Takeshi said with a wry grin.
Kyoko walked into the room, carrying a tray in her hands, in which sat a plate of onigiris that she had brought for Haru to eat. "Haru-chan!" She greeted the girl, who was sitting on the ground, and was busy sewing something on a small green patch of fabric. "I brought lunch!"
"Just a moment….." Haru mumbled as she completed sewing the design, before she put the fabric to the side and smiled at Kyoko and patted the space next to her. Kyoko placed the tray there, and then sat before Haru.
"You are really diligent in making this, huh, Haru-chan?" Kyoko asked happily. "You must really want that Pokemon plushie set then!"
Haru, who had just bit into an onigiri, almost choked at her words. She coughed a few times, and only when she drank a few mouthful of water from the glass that Kyoko had immediately offered to her, she finally felt relief. "Who told you that?" She asked, her voice was slightly hoarse from coughing so much.
"Hibari-sempai told us about the first prize." Kyoko informed her.
"Ah… is that so." Haru mumbled awkwardly.
"Hey, I'm really curious about what you're making; let me see that, okay?" Kyoko said as she moved to grab the green fabric to take a look at it.
"What? No-!" Haru, who was startled by Kyoko's sudden action, tried to take away the fabric but was a second too late because Kyoko had already grabbed it. She quickly snatched the fabric from Kyoko's hands and hid it behind her, but it was of no use. Haru glanced at Kyoko's widened eyes and gaping jaw, and sighed. "You saw my sewed designs, haven't you?"
Kyoko stared at Haru in disbelief. "You… what's going on?" She asked.
Haru didn't reply.
Most of the time, Kyoko played the role of an oblivious, bright girl who would overlook even simplest of things. And while Kyoko might be oblivious most of the times, she was sensitive to some things that most people don't understand. Kyoko was more attuned to people's feelings than anyone else. Her Mom used to joke that if superpowers actually existed in this world, then Kyoko would be a natural empath. She could understand the feelings deep buried inside them quiet easily. That was how she had noticed Hana's torment. While there was nothing she could do to help Hana-chan –but she wanted to, god knows how much she wanted to help Hana-chan so, so much (but it wasn't possible because she was so weak and useless and what could an under-aged child like her do when even Hana-chan's mother –and even her own mother- was helpless against those problems?!) she'd be damned if she failed another friend of hers. While Haru-chan wasn't as much in trouble as Hana-chan is, there is still a knot in her heart that can't be easily solved.
Haru-chan was putting all her heart into her efforts, and it would really be a shame if others misunderstood her intentions, and overlooked her heartfelt emotions.
Because if she only desires those plushies for herself, why else would she carve the design of the favorite flowers of their friends on the patch of green fabric?
Kyoko grabbed Haru's hands and tightened her grip on them slightly. "Tell me everything." She insisted. When she saw Haru was about to protest, she quickly assured her friend, "I promise I won't tell anyone about it."
Haru hesitated for a while, before she finally told her everything. Kyoko just sat there silently and listened to her words. Of course she would keep her promise. She won't tell everyone else that Haru-chan wanted this plushie set for everyone else. She won't tell them that Haru was putting her heart and soul into this little competition because she wanted to prove that she was worthy of their friendship.
Just because she can't inform them, it doesn't mean Nagi-chan too can't do that.
(Nagi stood outside the room, by the door, and silently listened to Haru's words as she explained to Kyoko her intentions regarding this competition and it's prize. Nagi couldn't help but smile wryly.
"Psyduck-chan really thinks too much." she whispered under her breath as she rolled her eyes fondly. "Who said we need some token as a gratitude for befriending you, you damn confused duckling? Can't we befriend you for being yourself?")
Haru hadn't known when she had fallen asleep third night of the camp. All she remembered was putting the last finishing touches on her creation. She must've dozed off on the floor. But when she opened her eyes, she groaned and tried to stretch her limbs. Sleeping on the floor was a really bad idea, her neck was quite stiff now. Yawning she pulled off the blanket from her body- wait, blanket?
She glanced down at the baby blue blanket covering her body –if she remembered correctly, wasn't this Nagi-chan's? She then glanced at the side, and stared blankly at the plate of pancakes covered with honey –they were still warm- to her side. Rubbing her eyes, she turned towards the desk where the alarm clock sat, and blanched when she saw the time- it was already 9:30 AM. She hastily got up, and grabbed the plate of pancakes and placed it on the desk. She then folded the blanket and placed it on the lower bunk bed, and hastily turned to grab a change of clothes from her bag. She pulled out her clothes, and along with her clothes came out a folded piece of paper. She stared at it in confusion, before she shrugged and grabbed it. She unfolded the paper and when she read it's contents, she could help but let out a laugh.
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'Sorry Haru-chan, we didn't wake you up 'cause we wanted you to catch a few more hours of sleep. You have been working too hard these few days, you needed a little rest!' –Kyoko
'Psyduck-chan, you look less like a duck and more like a panda with those dark circles underneath your eyes. (^_^) Take a nap in the afternoon, I don't like looking at a duck with Panda-eyes.' –Nagi
'Haru, Tsuna and I sneaked a few extra pancakes for you! Hope when you wake up, they're still warm! Oh, and Best of Luck for Today, 'kay?' – Takeshi, the Totodile \\(^u^)/
'Hii Psyduck-chan! Don't make a habit of staying late up still night, alright? I hope you like the pancakes! I asked Cloud-san to treat us chocolates if you win today's game! (Don't underestimate Cloud-san, I'm sure he'll find a way to smuggle some chocolates in the camp *wink**wink*) -Tsuna
'I will excuse your tardiness just this once, herbivore.' Hibari Kyoya
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She leaned against the wall and clutched the piece of paper closer to her chest. She let out a watery chuckle and whispered, "I'm so glad I met you guys."
When Haru walked into the cafeteria during lunchtime of the fourth day, she found herself surrounded by her friends as they dragged her to their table and loaded her plate with huge amount of food. She really didn't know whether to laugh or cry at their antics.
"Hahi!" She squeaked. "I can't eat this much!"
"We don't care, you have to finish off everything in your plate by yourself." Nagi declared as she sat next to her.
Kyoko piped in, "Haru-chan, you don't know how much worried everyone was in the past two days. You came for neither Breakfast, Lunch, nor Dinner yesterday. They are obviously concerned about you."
"But I still can't eat this much!" Haru whined.
Takeshi cracked up in laughter. "We'll help you finish the rest you ate as much as you had. Now dig in!"
Haru rolled her eyes, but she did begun eating. It wasn't until she took a few bites of her sandwich that she noticed everyone still staring at her, and not eating their own lunch.
"What?" She asked after she swallowed her food.
"How did it go?" Tsuna asked eagerly. "Your competition I mean."
"Who knows." Haru shrugged. "I only submitted it right now. The results will be declared in the evening."
The others sighed in disappointment. Haru then glanced at others curiously and asked, "Didn't anyone of you participate in any competition?"
"I took part in Poster-making Competition." Nagi said.
"I put my name for Landscape Photography!" Tsuna said.
"That's great!" Kyoko said happily, "I myself am participating in the Cooking Competition."
"I am doing two hundred meter race and the spoon race." Takeshi grinned.
Everyone then turned to Kyoya, who gave them a disdainful look as if saying, 'Are you seriously expecting me to participate in such herbivorous activities?' the others turned away in embarrassment. They had almost forgotten that Kyoya didn't just do social things.
Haru blinked as she realized something. "So, no one participated in any group activities?"
The others shared a look and then shook their heads.
"It's too late for us to give our names now. The participating teams were supposed to give their names by this morning." Tsuna said with a shrug.
Haru scratched her chin. "It's not like every one of us has something in common that we could've participated in."
"Yeah, we all are too different." Nagi agreed.
Kyoya couldn't help but smirk smugly. "You'll find common ground soon enough." he muttered under his breath, as he remembered how all his fellow Vongola guardians –who had been so different from each other- had come together after Reborn's arrival.
Takeshi, who had been sitting next to him, shot him a puzzled look, "Hibari-sempai, did you say something?"
Kyoya immediately schooled his features to indifference. "It's nothing."
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Haru tried to calm her nerves down as she sat in the assigned room in the evening, eying the other girls as they talked with their friends and wished that Kyoko-chan hadn't opted dancing classes instead of this class. In that case at least she's have Kyoko-chan's company right now. Sighing, she glanced around the room and her eyes fell on Ami-chan who sat near the window seat, who was eying the darkening sky in boredom. Ever since she had made friends with Kyoko-chan, Nagi-chan and others, she didn't feel that lonely anymore, and had also stopped craving Ami-chan's company. But still, sometimes she couldn't help but glance at her. After all, Ami-chan was the person she had always wanted to befriend, the kind of person she had always wanted to be like –smart, charming and popular. Ami-chan was really an amazing person, and well, if she wasn't that cold towards her, Haru was sure she'd have been a wonderful friend. Haru had once wanted to be like Ami-chan, but now, for some reason Haru thought that she was fine the way she was. She had friends now who had accepted her the way she is, and she was really glad for it.
(She has Kyoko-chan, who she felt was as close to her as a sister, who understood her heart even better than Haru herself did. There was Nagi-chan who –for all her teasing and mocking- cared for her so much. Then there was Takeshi, who was so much like her that sometimes it hurt her to even look at him. Tsuna-san -who somehow knew what she wanted before she could speak, who accepted her into their group with open arms. And there was Hibari Kyoya –that damn vampire- the one who brought her to this group ad forcefully scared away her loneliness one violent action at a time. Gods, she never thought she'd be lucky enough to find such amazing friends here. How funny is it, that in just these four days she had managed to get close to such wonderful people.
This Summer Camp has been the best thing that has ever happened to her.)
"Good evening Everyone!" Hisako-Sensei spoke as she walked into the room, and the girls who had scattered around the room all gathered towards her. Hisako-Sensei smiled brightly at all the girls and said, "I'm so proud you all girls. Each one of you brought forth a beautiful creation, and that showed all the effort you put into it. I cannot explain through words how much proud you have made me today."
The girls blushed at their teacher's praise.
"I really wanted to reward every single one of you for your hard work. But unfortunately, this is a competition, and hence, there can only be one winner." Hisako-Sensei said.
Haru crossed her fingers and slightly leaned forward in anticipation. 'This is it', She thought. She must win.
She had to.
"And the winner is-" Hisako-sensei paused dramatically, eying the anxious girls in amusement, and she finally declared the name of the winner-
"Matsukaze Ami."
…No.
Haru slumped in her seat in a daze as the other girls in her class clapped and cheered loudly for the winner. Ami stood up from her seat by the window, and walked towards the teacher when she gestured her to come forward.
"While everyone of your work was definitely worth seeing, Ami's designs had truly been spectacular." Hisako-sensei said proudly as she patted Ami's back.
No.
"Here, I'll show it to you and let you judge her work yourself." Hisako-sensei said as she pulled out a red velvet scarf from her duffel bag and spread it to show it to her students. The girls "ooheed" and "aahed" when they saw the beautiful gold embroidery on the ends of the scarf. The craftsmanship was too beautiful, the golden peacock that Ami had carved from glittering golden threads seemed to left it's head proudly as the velvet cloth fluttered a bit. The silver trees sewed from silver colored threats seemed to shimmer with just slightest movement of the loth. It was too beautiful to be true. Who would believe that such a beautiful craft was made by an eight year old's hands?
"Isn't it truly beautiful? I must say Ami is truly talented." Hisako-sensei patted Ami's head fondly, while the little girl just looked on indifferently, as if she wasn't excited even a bit to win the first prize.
"However, I must say, Ami isn't the only talented person in the class. There is also another person whose craftsmanship has highly impressed me." Hisako-sensei spoke as she pulled out a green armband from her duffel bag and showed it to the girls.
The girls stared at the dark green armband with wide eyes. On the armband were sewed six beautiful flowers, connected to each other by shimmering light green vines. In the middle of the green armband was a big and bright yellow sunflower, surrounded by a blue forget-me-not and a pink-cherry blossom flower. On the other side of the armband were sewed a beautiful orange Lily, with a dark blue iris on one side and a bright purple bellflower on the other. The craftsmanship was so detailed that the flowers looked vivid and bright. Looking at them could give someone a peace of mind.
However, the elegance and vividness of the flowers paled in comparison to the magnificence of the flamboyant golden peacock. No wonder Ami had won the first prize.
"Haru-chan's work was also a beautiful sight to see. Everyone, please give her a huge round of applause for her beautiful work!" Hisako-sensei exclaimed with a smile, and the girls obeyed as they clapped enthusiastically for the girl who had sewed such beautiful flowers. Ami's brows furrowed slightly, but soon they smoothed out as they regarded Haru calmly.
"Haru-chan, come here, sweetie!" Hisako-sensei gestured for Haru to come forward, Haru could only numbly obey her words. She nodded and walked forward in a daze and stood next to Ami.
"So, we have our winners here! Matsukaze Ami- who won the first prize, and Miura Haru- who won the second prize!" Once again, everyone clapped their hands and cheered for the winners, but the sound of clapping was akin to buzzing noises in Haru's ears, as her mind was stuck on only two words spoken by Hisako-sensei.
Second Prize? Her dedication and hard work was only worth Second prize? The armband that she had created as a symbol of her friendship was only worth this much in their eyes? She poured her heart and soul into it, she made it with all the feelings of gratitude, affection and companionship that she held for her friends, and it didn't even compare to Ami's soulless flamboyant peacock? Were her feelings not enough to go past the barrier that is Ami's geniusness? Were her emotions not genuine enough?!
Haru didn't remember what had happened next. She had been too distracted to listen Hisako-sensei's next instructions. By the time she had come out of her daze, twenty minutes had already passed and the class had been dismissed some time ago, since there wasn't anyone in the class except her. Haru gently picked the armband she had worked relentlessly on the last two days, and stumbled out of the classroom. Her eyes were glued on the armband, especially on the bright yellow sunflower she had painstakingly sewed into it. She then gently rubbed the pretty petals of the sunflower slightly and walked forward, not noticing where she was actually going.
"Ami-chan, you're so amazing! I knew you'd win!" Hearing the familiar voice froze Haru. Wasn't that Satsuki-chan's voice? "You remember your promise, right? That you'd let me take a plushie from the pokemon set if you win!"
"Of course I do. You can take whatever you want. I am not interested in such childish things anyways." Ami spoke indifferently.
"Really? Thank you so much, Ami-chan! I knew you really are the best!" Satsuki gushed.
Haru stared to the side and saw Ami boredly handing Satsuki the Pokemon plushie set she had won, and Satsuki excitedly held the plushie set in her hands and cooed at the pokemon plushies.
"Goodness, Evee is just the cutest! And so is Clefairy! Look, this Riolu look so fierce, I bet it's a softie deep down! Oooh, this Misdreavous looks so mystic! And this Totodile, hahahahahaha! Just looking at it brightens my mood!" Satsuki cooed at the plushies as she picked one by one and hugged them, and then placed them back in the set.
Meanwhile Haru just stood there as if someone had glued the soles of her shoes there. She knew she should move on, but her eyes couldn't help but be stuck on the pokemon plushies Ami had so indifferently handed to Satsuki.
Haru scolded herself. She knew she was being silly. It was just some plushies, what's the big deal? She should move on, before Ami-chan and Satsuki-chan find her staring at them like a creep. They don't really like her, and if they actually find her here staring at them like that, she was sure they would not have any good words to speak to her. It's better to go to her friends and tell them flatly that she was incompetent and couldn't win.
But for all her mental scolding, her feet still did not move, and her eyes still did not leave the plushie set in Satsuki's hands.
"And-Eh? There's a Psyduck here too?" Satsuki exclaimed as she pulled out the Psyduck plushie that was holding it's head. Satsuki's eyes darkened as she glared at the plushie in her hands in disgust, "I hate Psyduck! It is really a useless pokemon!" She complained. "While it has such powerful psychic powers, all it does is hold it's head and make difficulties for Misty in the cartoon! I really can't stand such a useless thing!"
Saying this she threw the Psyduck plushie away, declaring it as worthless.
Haru knew it was stupid, and that she was being really silly. But when she watched the plushie being thrown like that, and for the soft toy to fall into a ditch and get covered with mud like that, she couldn't help but compare herself to the Psyduck plushie.
What had Satsuki called it again?
Pathetic….. Weak… Useless…Worthless…..
Remembering those scathing words, Haru couldn't help it. She finally let her emotions overcome her and burst into tears.
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(Somewhere inside the cafeteria, Tsuna suddenly sat up straight as his orange fire pinged alarmingly inside him. Seeing Tsuna's suddenly alert expression, the other four turned to him nervously.
"Tsuna?" Takeshi asked in concern.
"Did something happen, Orange-san?" Nagi asked as she narrowed her eyes.
"Something's wrong." Tsuna's voice deepened slightly and his eyes flashed amber. He then glanced around the table, and when his amber eyes fell on Haru's empty seat, the alarm ringing inside his head intensified. Wincing slightly at the pain, he hissed and said, "Haru….." his eyes snapped open and he said urgently, "Something happened to Psyduck- no, Haru-chan. We need to find her immediately."
"What do you mean-?" Kyoko asked anxiously, but before she could say anymore, Kyoya immediately cut her off as he ordered them with narrowed grey eyes.
"Ask questions later, herbivore. Right now, our main priority should be to find the Cosplaying-herbivore."
The other three shared a look, and then steeled their emotions as they spoke with determination, "Hai!"
Of course, no one noticed the slight flashes of different colors in their eyes)
(To be continued…)
A/N:-Gosh, these kids are just too much. Sometimes, I just want to hug them tightly and never let go.
…And then I remember I' the one who wrote them like this and I fore myself to get down from the high of inspiration.
P.S. sorry, no Arcobaleno OMAKES for today. See you next time!
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(Oopsie! It's not over yet! Here's some EXTRAS for you all!-
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~EXTRAS-1~
Tsuna had never been as angry as he was at that moment. Tsuna had been the one to find Haru –thanks to his orange fire- in a corner of the garden, crying so heartbreakingly that it made something inside him clench. It made him want to hit someone, to destroy something to pieces, to r a g e-
And then all his rage simmered into nothing as a plastic tonfa smacked against the back of his head, and while Tsuna was busy rubbing the bump on his head and wincing at the slight stinging pain it caused, Kyoya dialed Nagi's phone number –it was then Tsuna realized that even Nagi had brought a phone at the camp, seriously, how had the teachers even allowed them to bring them?- and a moment later Nagi, Takeshi and Kyoko had appeared in the garden, and they tried their best to console Haru. Kyoko had brought Haru to their room and Nagi followed, while the boys stood awkwardly at the door, and leaned against the walls on the side of the door. Nagi had kept the door open so as they could directly listen to what had happened –as well as keep away anyone from eavesdropping on them –Kyoya's presence did wonders in scaring any sneaking kid off. It took a few minutes for Kyoko to coax Haru, and all the while Haru just kept blubbering nonsense, and repeatedly apologized for being useless and pathetic and not good enough to win even a silly competition-
-each word of apology spoken out of her lips darkened the faces of her friends, and it wasn't long before Kyoya stomped away in rage, not trusting himself to listen to his friend's depressed cries. Takeshi and Tsuna still guarded the door of the girls' room, and tried their best not to let their anger get into their heads. It took a while for Kyoko to get the whole story from haru, and after learning from her what had happened to her, Kyoko coaxed Haru to sleep –and Nagi discreetly doused some indigo fire over Haru's forehead to keep away her nightmares, easing her sleep.
After that, Kyoko and Nagi quietly shut the door of their room and followed Tsuna to now empty cafeteria, where Kyoya was already waiting for them at their table. he was already perched on his chair.
As they neared her, he told them, "I have already arranged everything. No one will approach the cafeteria for the night. We can plan whatever we want right now."
Those words were what everyone had wanted to hear, since they all shared a look, with only one thought ringing in their minds-
They had to do something. Because no one hurts their friend and gets away with it unscathed.
No. freaking. one.
And the ones who hurt their resident Psyduck will not be spared. They will definitely pay. Tsuna –as their (Team)Leader- will make sure of it.
Tsuna's eyes glimmered orange in determination and he clapped his hands to get the attention of his friends present –sans Haru. An idea occurred to him, and his orange fire helped it develop into a fool proof plan.
"I have a plan," he announced to the others as they listened to him with rapt attention. "-and I need your help with it."
Nagi cocked her head to the side and asked quietly, "Does it include getting revenge for Psyduck-chan?"
Tsuna smiled and answered, "…among other things, yes."
"Then I'm in." Nagi declared, her eyes glinting a cold indigo.
"Hn." Kyoya agreed with Nagi's words.
"Hahaha, sounds interesting! Count me in too!" Takeshi exclaimed with a glimmer of blue in his eyes.
"Me too!" Kyoko chirped, her brown orbs flickered yellow for a second.
Tsuna grinned at her words, and the rest of his friends soon followed with, and their eyes alighted with the respective color of their flames.
Needless to say, some people were going to face misfortune soon enough.
~EXTRA -2~
After discussing their plan several times and then making sure that each of them remembered their parts in it, they were finally ready to retire for the night.
"Wait a minute!" Takeshi exclaimed. "we forgot the most important thing!"
The others tensed.
"What?" Kyoko asked.
"We forgot to name our team for this plan!" Takeshi said solemnly.
Kyoya almost face palmed at his words. "Are you serious?!" He demanded.
"Very." Takeshi nodded.
"That is a valid question." Kyoko mused.
"This is important." Nagi agreed.
"You can't be serious." Kyoya said flatly.
The others ignored Kyoya as they blurted out the names that came to their mind.
"the Psyduck Avenging team?" Nagi suggested.
"No, that will give away the aim of our plan really easily." Kyoko pointed out.
"What about the amazingly awesome Team of badasses?" Takeshi wondered.
"I won't even deem that a response, it was that horrible." Nagi deadpanned.
"What about the Justice League?" Kyoko offered.
"No." Tsuna and Nagi flatly refused. "Just, no."
Tsuna blinked as he realized that the orange fire inside him tugged his senses, as if trying to whisper conspiringly to him. He tilted is head and concentrated at it. His brows furrowed as he somehow made out the words it tried to speak it him.
"The Rainbow Junior Association?" He blurted out, and when he found the others staring at him, he blinked and finally realized that he had spoken that out loud.
"Hey, I like that name!" Takeshi said.
Nagi nodded. "It's acceptable."
Kyoko clapped her hands excitedly, "It's adorable!"
"I highly object!" Kyoya snarled. Like hell he'd be willing to be called an associate of a team whose name is similar to Arcobaleno! Just think about it Arcobaleno includes cursed infants, and Rainbow Jr. association consist of pre-teens who will one day become the Vongola tenth generation. This is like a disaster waiting to happen!
"Denied!" Nagi and Takeshi said in unison, and Kyoko couldn't help but giggle.
"Objection overruled!" Tsuna shot Kyoya an apologetic look. "Sorry cloud-san, Majority rules!"
Kyoya glowered at everyone else, and conjured plastic tonfas in his hands with his mist flames. "Change the name of the team, or I'll bite you to death!"
"Hieeeeeeeeeeeee!"