It was Saturday and Konata had just arrived at the Hiiragi home. She had gotten a rather vague message from Tsukasa, who wanted to gather everyone at her house.
"I wonder what she's up to… Good thing it's Tsukasa then… I don't have to be scared then, I think…" Konata was standing in front of the door and didn't have to wait long for someone to open it.
"Yes? Oh… hello, Konata, that's a surprise, come in." Miki opened the door and after seeing who it was, she quickly gestured her inside.
"Hey, Miki."
"It's rare seeing you here. I don't think I can approve of this behavior anymore!"
"Ehh? Well, I guess I can try to come over more often then…"
"That's what I wanted to hear." Miki was happy enough with the answer, but she wasn't done with Konata yet. "It's good to see that the fight you had with Kagami is over again."
"Huh? Fight? We had a fight?"
"Was I wrong? Tsukasa told me you were acting a bit odd a little while ago and I could see Kagami on my own."
"Ah… t-that…" Konata remembered the week after realizing her feelings for Kagami. A week she really wanted to forget about. "No, it wasn't exactly a fight…"
"Hmm~" Miki summed in a happy tone. "If not a fight, what was it?"
"H-Huh?! W-What it was… uh… That's a bit… complicated and I don't really want to talk about it…"
"I see~ Well, I have the feeling you'll tell me soon enough anyway, so I won't pressure you now."
"That depends on a lot of t-things…" Konata first had to success with something else first before even thinking of telling someone about what happened. Especially because it's partly Miki's fault because her marriage talk was part of the whole trigger for it. "Huh… wait… what?"
"Anyway, why are you here in the first place, Konata?"
"Hmm? Oh, right… Tsukasa ordered me to come over for some reason."
"That's weird…"
"Is it really that surprising for me to come for Tsukasa?"
"Yes." Miki answered without any hesitation at all. "But that's not the problem. Tsukasa isn't even here at the moment."
"Ehh? Where is she?"
"At Miyuki's place."
"Hmm… what's this about…?"
"Yeah, I lost both of my twins… There's Kagami, who's basically every day at your place and Tsukasa is spending more and more time with Miyuki ever since Kagami doesn't have time for her anymore… That's why you have to come over more or else I'll get lonely, you know…"
"I see… I think… I'll come more often… Wait… don't you have two other daughters left?"
"Don't mind the small details, just come over."
"That's my standard line! Okay… but why did Tsukasa call me over in the first place then?"
"No idea, she's been pretty secretive about something lately, though… Maybe it's connected somehow."
"Oh, maybe I should be scared after all…" Konata got a bit worried. "Well, I guess I have to wait until she comes back then."
"Kagami's here, though."
"R-Really?" She quickly became a bit nervous again. "W-Well, I guess I'll pay her a visit then. She's in her room, right? See you later, Miki."
"Sure, have fun~."
….
Konata went upstairs and stopped right in front of Kagami's door. Her nervousness increased once more.
"Kagamin~ visiting me is one thing, but being here now is kind of… Why's Tsukasa not here?! It's almost like she set this up… d-don't tell me she noticed… I mean she can be pretty perceptive with the weirdest things… Or was it Miyuki and both are… What are they doing? Nonono…" Konata strongly shook her head. "Tsukasa's probably only having fun with Miyuki right now and she simply forgot about the meetup. Yeah, that sounds like her." She decided on the reason why Tsukasa was missing, even though she had no Idea that it actually was a mix of everything she just thought of and refocused her attention. Konata knocked on the door and after a brief period of waiting, she entered the room.
"Hey there, Kagamin~."
"Huh? K-Kona!? What are… WHOA!" Kagami as sitting on a chair in front of her desk when Konata entered. She was concentrating on something when the unexpected guest arrived. The surprise made her lose her balance and Kagami almost fell over with her chair, but she barely managed to be safe.
"What a greeting, good job."
"S-Shut up, I just wasn't expecting anyone…"
"What were you concentrating so hard on, anyway?"
"Homework."
"I see… Well then, forget that I asked." That sure wasn't a topic Konata wanted to invest time in.
"No intention of doing the same, huh?"
"What a stupid question to ask, Kagamin~."
"Yeah, sorry… So, what brings you here?"
"Well, I actually would like to know the same thing…"
"Eh? What's that about, you don't know why you're here?"
"First, that never stopped you from coming over, right?"
"P-Point for you…"
"Second, Tsukasa called me over for some reason."
"She did? Why? She isn't even here…"
"And with that, we're back to square one. She probably just forgot about it and is still having fun with Miyuki."
"That does sound like my sister." Kagami agreed to her explanation. 'What is Tsukasa doing? She couldn't have that set up to give us some alone time, right? I'm not complaining… but I probably would've gone to Kona's place later anyway… You can do better than that, sis…' She was a bit disappointed, but started smiling a little at the same time because she felt happy that her sister actually tries to help her.
"What's up with that smile?"
"Smile? What smile? I'm not smiling!"
"Sure, if you say so…"
The conversation abruptly ended because Kagami had no follow up and the old awkward silence was about to come back. Both broke eye contact and looked away from each other, but it didn't last as long as it used to be because both got a little bit more used to it and Kagami didn't want to waste Tsukasa's chance if that's what she wanted to accomplish.
"I-I wonder what my sister's up to…"
"Yeah, Miki also said she's behaving rather secretive lately… Hasn't Tsukasa told you anything?"
"Not really… Well, it's not like I've seen her often in the first place. She's always doing something with Miyuki lately."
"Hmm… weird… These two being so secretive is quite suspicious and now I got ordered over for no reason… Should I be scared, Kagamin~?"
"Don't ask me, Tsukasa has at least contacted you, but I don't know anything. By the way, what did you talk with my mom about?"
"We didn't talk that much, but I guess I have to come over more often now."
"Huh?" Kagami got a bit confused as a reaction to it."
"It looks like she missed me…"
"Ah… well… I'm always at your place and so my mom has no chance to see her favorite child…"
"I guess coming here occasionally isn't that bad anyway."
"Yeah, I can take it easy for a change then."
"Sure, because you aren't doing that at my place… Still, I really wonder why I'm here right now."
"Why not call Tsukasa and ask her?"
"Good idea, but you have to do that, Kagamin~."
"Why me?"
"Do I look like someone who brought her phone?"
"Oh… right, you're still Kona after all. Okay, I'll ask her what's going on." Kagami grabbed her phone and called Tsukasa.
- "Oh, hey onee-chan. What's up?"
"Don't 'what's up' me… Where are you?"
- "Hmm? I'm still ehm… yes, at Yuki-chan's place."
"Why did you invite Kona then?"
- "Well… have fun, onee-chan."
"Oi."
- "Sorry, I couldn't help it. We'll be coming over, but we need another hour or so."
"What are you two doing?"
- "That's a secret~."
"Ehh?"
- "Well then, see you later, onee-chan."
Tsukasa said so and the next thing Kagami could hear, was her hanging up.
"So, what's going on?" Konata couldn't hear Tsukasa's part of the conversation.
"That's… a good question."
"Huh?"
"Looks like your hunch of being scared was a good one. They're up to something."
"Really? What are they doing?"
"I don't know, but Tsukasa lied to me. They weren't at Miyuki's place like she said. It sounded like they were somewhere outside."
"Eh… So we have to wait and fear for our live now, or what?"
"I don't think it's that bad. We're talking about Tsukasa and Miyuki after all."
"I thought the same at the beginning, but are you really sure? I think the combination of a clueless airhead and a smart airhead could lead to something really, really dangerous…"
"Oh…" Kagami couldn't say anything against it. "W-Well, we'll know in an hour, when they come over."
"Oh man…"
"Yeah…" Both simultaneously sighed.
….
The two spent the next hour chatting while watching a bit TV and Tsukasa, together with Miyuki, finally came back home.
"Sorry for the wait, Kona-chan and onee-chan."
"Yes, we're very sorry, but we got held up a little." The two quickly apologized after arriving.
"Save that for later…"
"Yeah, what's going on here, sis? I know you two weren't at Miyuki's place when I called earlier…" Kagami and Konata wanted to find out what's going on as soon as possible.
"Ah… well, we were planning things for something…"
"Planning? Planning for what?!"
"Should we tell them, Yuki-chan?"
"Yes, I guess it's time."
"K-Kagamin~, that bad feeling from earlier is back…"
"Interesting, I kind of had the same feeling just now, Kona…"
"We all are going camping on the next weekend!"
"…"
"…"
"… Eh?" The silence caused by the confusedness of Konata and Kagami didn't last long, but both still looked rather dumbfounded. They weren't sure what to expect from the two, but it sure wasn't something like that. "Wait… what?"
"Camping!" Tsukasa really wasn't any help.
"Sis, we need context, if possible, a lot of it…"
"Yuki-chan's dad found his old camping equipment while cleaning their basement."
"Okay… and how did that end up with us going camping?"
"He became a bit nostalgic and told us about this place in the mountains where he used to go camping with his friends and it sounded really fun."
"We already have the end of June and it's really warm after all."
"W-Wait a moment." Konata suddenly became really interested.
"Oh no…" Kagami had a good idea why.
"We're going camping… in the mountains… WHAT?!"
"You don't like it, Kona-chan?"
"Nonono! We're going! We are so going!"
"Calm down, Kona, and Tsukasa… I don't think it's a good idea…"
"Eh, why not?" Tsukasa got a little closer to Kagami and started whispering. "Think about the possibilities, onee-chan. You two could do so many things together."
"P-Possibilities, huh? Like…" She started imagining a couple things. "Kona!"
"Y-Yes?"
"No disappearing for secret training on me!"
"Ehh? I would never…"
"Kona!"
"Okay… fine…"
"What are they talking about, Tsukasa-san?" Miyuki couldn't follow the conversation.
"I have absolutely no idea. It's probably some kind of inside joke."
"I see, but what did you whisper to Kagami-san that she changed her mind so quickly?"
"A little sister has her tricks." Tsukasa was still trying to hide Kagami's secret and she wasn't exactly lying either.
"Okay…" Miyuki refocused her attention to Kagami and Konata. "So, are you two fine with our idea?"
"Absolutely!" Konata was already sold after the word 'mountain' fell.
"Yeah, I guess it could be fun…" Kagami's motive definitely was a deeper one. Konata was so distracted by the mountain part, that she totally forgot about it.
"Yay! We're going to have so much fun!"
"We should ask mom first, though, sis."
"Don't worry, I already did ask her when we came back earlier."
"You surely thought that through, huh? But you need to ask your dad, Kona."
"Nah, he's so busy with his light novel… I barely even see him anyway lately. He probably wouldn't even notice when I'm gone for a day or two."
"What? R-Really? Are you okay, Kona?" Kagami remembered the talk with Konata's dad once more and got worried if she feels lonely.
"Hmm? Sure, why shouldn't I?"
"A-Ah!" She instantly realized her mistake. "I… ehm… sorry, I forgot that you're the one who does all the household stuff anyway." Her cover-up was actually decent.
"Oh, okay… Well, I'll ask him, but it's not going to be a problem."
"Yeah, that's true. So, Miyuki, do we have to bring anything?"
"Hmm… Tsukasa-san and I already have arranged everything for the actual camping and we only need some food and snack, but we two are going shopping on the day before. Only some spare clothes should be enough."
"I see…"
"That's how I like my preparations. Done by someone else."
"Hey…"
"I'm just joking, Kagamin~. I still need to prepare things for the training after all."
"What did I tell you earlier?"
"No -secret- training, but I just announced it and so, it's not secret."
"Haa… I can't win with you, can I?" Kagami sighed while slowly shaking her head.
"Nope~."
"I guess I have to join your training then, Kona."
"Eh? What? No…"
"After all, I also need training."
"Nah, you're fine the way you are."
"Nope~." Kagami didn't take long to turn the tables.
"Yuki-chan?" Tsukasa leaned closer in order to ask something in private.
"Yes?" She whispered back.
"Why do we need to help them again?"
"Uh…" Miyuki actually didn't know the answer to a question for a rare change.
"Okay, we can do a two-person training, Kagamin~, but I also need a solo run or else I can't take the lead." The two never stopped arguing while Tsukasa and Miyuki had their little exchange.
"No, everything together or no training at all." Kagami's goal in it was rather complex.
"Kaaagaaamiiin~, you only make me run away to do some secret training in the end."
"Oh no, you know you wouldn't dare."
"You don't even need any training…"
"A-Anyway…" Tsukasa tried to stop their discussion. "We'll all meet up at Yuki-chan's place next Saturday in the morning and stay at the camping place until Saturday.
"Why Miyuki's place?"
"All the camping equipment that we haven't already brought over the day before is at my place, Kagami-san, and the mountain is also near my place.
"Ah, I see."
"So, Yuki-chan, should we continue our planning for it then?"
"Absolutely, that's a very good idea."
"Well then, Kagamin~, shall we let the class-trip committee continue their work and we head over to my place and continue our game?"
"Oh… okay, sure, sounds good."
The meeting was over and Tsukasa, together with Miyuki, went to her room. Kagami grabbed a few things and the two then left for Konata's place.
…
A week passed and it was almost time for the camping trip. Konata had asked her father and he obviously had nothing against it. She also finally realized the opportunities of the trip and her training quickly got its priority by a fair bit.
All four met up at Miyuki's place and were getting ready for the trip. Miyuki and Tsukasa divided everything left to carry equally between them and all left the house again. Tsukasa led them to the station. Konata and Kagami stayed silent until now, but after entering the train, Kagami couldn't take it anymore.
"Hey, mind telling Kona and me where we're going?"
"It's a surprise, so, no."
"Eh… Can we at least know how long it's going to take?"
"It's only two stations, but we need to walk quite a bit afterward."
"What? I didn't sign for walking…!" Now it was Konata's turn for complaints.
"Just use it as training." Someone just gave her an incredibly cheeky smirk.
"…"
"Don't be like that, Kona-chan, it's not that bad. Yuki-chan and I already went three times or so in order to prepare things."
"Fine…"
The girls exited the train two stations later and after a fair amount of walking, they reached the bottom of the mountain. A small trail between the trees was leading upwards. The four followed the path for a while until Miyuki and Tsukasa suddenly stopped and led the two in another direction. It didn't look like a trail at all anymore, but the leader group still looked confident. Konata and Kagami, on the other hand, were slowly getting second thoughts about the whole thing while fighting against nature, but their worries were instantly swept away after seeing the scenery in front of them. The forest opened up and a beautiful looking glade appeared. A little green field, together with a river in the background appeared out of nowhere.
"Wow… it's beautiful here!"
"Yeah, I thought for a second we're going to end up in a horror movie back there on the 'trail', but Kagamin~'s right, it's an awesome place."
"Right? Yuki-chan and I thought the same when we first came here."
"Yes, it's indeed very nice here, but let's start with setting up the camp for now."
"Sure." Everyone agreed and went further on the field in order to get rid of the camping equipment they were carrying.
"Okay, we have two tents. Yuki-chan and I'll set up ours and you two do yours. Okay?"
"What's up with the already decided grouping?"
"Hmm?" Well, I want to sleep with Yuki-chan and you two… are used to it anyway…"
"Makes sense… in a way… I guess…" Konata wasn't exactly sure about it.
The two groups quickly set up their tents and went inside to take a look.
"Wow, it sure is small in here. Two people barely fit. I think my bed alone is bigger." Konata tried to measure the size with her arms while making the comparison.
"Y-Yeah…" Kagami also took a closer look and became a bit nervous. 'Oh… I have a bad feeling about this… I'm pretty sure I'm not going to sleep very much this night with Kona being so close. I can't even put just a little distance between us while sleeping like I used to do lately… I hope I won't do anything I'm going to regret.'
"W-Wait a moment… do we only have one sleeping bag?! It's a big one, b-but…" Konata also got nervous. 'That's not good, a small tent and just one sleeping bag? Do I have the willpower to survive this? Who am I even asking? I, myself, don't even think I can…'
Both started blushing as a result of their thoughts and left the tent again, only to get greeted by Miyuki and Tsukasa, who started grinning after seeing their faces.
"Wow, Yuki-chan, your plan is working so great." Tsukasa whispered to her.
"H-Hey, you two…" Kagami hadn't noticed their grinning but still had a question. "What's the idea of only having one sleeping bag?"
"Oh, that's actually my fault, onee-chan. I just read the 'two people' part of the description on the packaging and somehow ignored the rest that suggested that it's a single bag for two people. I thought it were two sleeping bags in one package…"
"Nice cover-up, Tsukasa-san." Miyuki was the one who whispered now.
"Oh, I see… I guess it can't be helped then." Kagami actually bought it, either that, or she realized what Tsukasa's trying to do. Either way, she stopped questioning it.
"Hey Tsukasa, do you and Miyuki also only have one?" Konata wanted to confirm something. 'Are they really trying to push me? Have they noticed?'
"Uhm… yes, the same goes for Yuki-chan and me. It's the same sleeping bag after all."
"Okay, makes sense." She nodded. 'Well, that didn't help at all…'
"So, to use the words of Kona, what's up next, dear planning committee?"
"Oh, good one, Kagamin~."
"Yes, we could start with building a fireplace so that we can cook something on it later on."
"W-Wait a moment, Miyuki, we're going to cook over an open fire?" Kagami wasn't how she should feel about it.
"Nice idea!" Konata was liking the idea much more. "What are we going to make?"
"We can either make curry, we have a little prepared, or we can try to catch something in the river. We brought fishing rods along." Miyuki was, as always, prepared for everything.
"We're so going to have a contest of who can catch the most fished, Kagamin~."
"Sure, bring it on, Kona!"
"Huh? Okay… easier than expected, I like… your fighting spirit!"
"T-Thanks…" Kagami got a little bashful after hearing the words.
"Y-You're welcome…" Konata also took damage from her own praise.
"…"
"…"
"Anyway…" Miyuki immediately noticed the building awkwardness and decided the change the topic to something different. "Back to the fireplace. How about Tsukasa and I collect some stones to build it and you two look for firewood?"
"Okay." Konata and Kagami answered together.
"Good. I think we should find some good stones at the river, Tsukasa-san."
"Let's go, Kagamin~, whoever finds the best firewood, wins." She had recovered instantly and dashed off.
"Don't overdo it now, Kona…" Despite complaining, Kagami still followed her and both soon disappeared somewhere up the river.
"Really now, are these two blind?" Miyuki simply shook her head while watching them leaving.
"W-Well… it's probably not that easy to realize it if you aren't looking at it from the outside."
"You're probably right, but still…" She let out a small sigh.
"Everything's going to be fine. Let's get the fireplace ready, Yuki-chan. These two shouldn't take long if they're this fired up."
"Yes."
The two went to the riverbank and collected several rocks to build the fireplace.
….
Konata and Kagami were still walking alongside the river while looking for wood, but Konata's attention soon shifted towards something else. The river took a turn and a waterfall suddenly appeared right behind it.
"Well, that explains the sound we've been hearing for some time." Kagami's reaction a bit weak.
"Wow, I've already found my training place, huh?"
"Eh?" She didn't understand Konata's statement.
"Can training get any more classic than meditating while sitting under a waterfall?"
"You don't actually want to…"
"Hmm?" Konata's shoes were already gone. "Did you say something, Kagamin~?"
"W-Wait a moment! You're actually going to s-strip here, right?" She already started blushing.
"W-What? No, wet shoes are just pretty unpleasant…"
"What about the rest of your clothes?"
"Y-You want me to strip or what?" Konata also started getting a bit red.
"Hey… Wait!" That's not the main problem here!" She didn't deny it, though. "Are you really going? I think the water pressure under the waterfall is going to hurt quite a bit."
"That's what training is for."
"I wonder about that…"
"You're not going to join me? I thought you wanted to train together with me?"
"Nah, I'll let that one be your independent session. I'll just watch that you won't drown in the process."
"Great!" Konata entered the river and slowly wandered towards the waterfall. She looked very confident right before it, but as soon as the first batch of falling water hit her body, she instantly jumped away and landed butt first in the river.
"A-Are you okay?" Kagami wasn't sure if she should be worried or give in to the urge of laughing uncontrollably right now.
"K-Kagamin~…?"
"Yes?"
"H-How can water hurt that much?"
"Well… the force of falling water is quite high…"
"Why didn't you warn me?"
"I did!"
"Oh… you're right…" She remembered her words from before entering the river.
"So, now what, Kona?"
"Waterfall meditating is officially canceled!"
"I figured that much. I mean… that…" Kagami gestured at her. Konata was still in the river and was obviously completely drenched from head to toe.
"Hmm… It's super hot today and the water feels extremely nice… I regret nothing." She had no intention of leaving the water. Instead, she just leaned back and started floating in the water a little.
"Really? Isn't it cold?"
"Nope, just refreshing." Konata took her hand and used it to splash some water at Kagami. "See?"
"Oi! Hey… It's really kind of nice…"
"Exactly, but that's not nearly enough, don't you think?" She now used both of her hands to splash water at her. Kagami soon started dripping from all the water.
"You're playing a dangerous game there, Kona."
"Oh, really?" She showed no sign of stopping and another wave of water came flying towards Kagami and directly hit her face. "Bring it on!"
"Big mistake." Kagami's face turned evil and without saying another word, she also took off her shoes and jumped straight at Konata. Both fell over, landed in the water and started wrestling with each other. The river wasn't very deep and so it was possible to sit on top of each other without one of them drowning. The two playfully fought over the position on top and changed it multiple times. Both got completely soaked with water and started calming down soon enough. They let go of each other and simply relaxed in the refreshing water.
"What are we doing here?" Kagami couldn't help shaking her head a few times.
"Having fun?" Konata on the other hand just tilted her head questioningly.
"I have the feeling we're forgetting something, though…"
"It can't be that important when even you forgot."
"You aren't even trying to remember, right?"
"Remember what?"
"Shut up, you stupid little idiot…" Kagami gave up and simply tackled Konata again, causing both to get submerged in the water again.
"Who's the unreasonable one here again?"
"That's you, Kona."
"I wonder about that sometimes…"
"Just because I, also, like to overdo it once in a while?"
"Once in a while, she says…" Konata laughed a little, splashed Kagami with another load of water and decided to flee because she started feeling Kagami's wrath at the back of her neck. She ran out of the water, grabbed her shoes and sprinted back towards the camp.
"OI!" Kagami was not amused and instantly started following her.
Both were chasing each other all the way to the camp. Konata turned around at some point to check if Kagami was still following her and completely stopped in her tracks after confirming it. Kagami was indeed still following, but it was her appearance that stopped Konata. Her twintails had become undone in the river and her wet hair stuck to her body. The same was with her clothes, which were also clinging tightly to her body and greatly empathized her figure. Konata just stared at her and gulped heavily. Her trance only lasted for a second, though. Kagami caught up, but forgot to stop fast enough and crashed into Konata. The impact threw both into the river again. Water splashed everywhere and Kagami landed on top of Konata in the water.
"Ha! I finally got you, Kona!" She didn't care at all about what just happened.
"Y-Yeah… g-good work or something…" Kagami being on top of her now didn't help at all with the thought she had a couple seconds ago.
"What just happened?"
"O-Onee-chan! K-Kona-chan! Are you two okay?!" Miyuki and Tsukasa watched the whole scene and were greatly confused. Kagami managed to chase Konata all the way back to the camp before she finally caught her.
"Sure, we're fine, right, Kona?"
"Yep, better than fine."
"But what… how did that happen?"
"Well… Kona found a waterfall and… one thing led to another, I guess."
"Eh? Waterfall? Really? Wow… wait, that doesn't help at all, onee-chan…!" Tsukasa almost got sidetracked but managed to stay on topic.
"I wanted to get nearer to the waterfall and due to a miscalculation, I ended up taking a bath in the river." Konata took over the failed explanation.
"Makes sense… probably." Tsukasa just awkwardly scratched her head. "And how did onee-chan also ended up soaked? I mean before you two dived into the river here?"
"How you ask? I can show you how. It more or less started like that…" Just as Konata finished her sentence, Tsukasa and Miyuki saw a huge wave of water flying towards them and two seconds later, before they could even react, the two were also drenched.
"Hey, that's not nice, Kona-chan!"
"But it does feel rather nice…" Miyuki seemed to enjoy the refreshing water on a hot day.
"Oh… now that mention it… Let's join them, Yuki-chan!"
"Huh?" She had no time to say any more than that because Tsukasa had already taken her hand and was dragging her to the river. Miyuki hesitated a little, but it was futile and both also ended up in the river next to Konata and Kagami, who readily welcomed them with another splash of water.
"Wah~, it's so nice and refreshing!"
"Yes, it's really pleasant." Tsukasa and Miyuki looked like they really enjoyed the unexpected swimming session.
"I have the best ideas after all."
"Since when was that your idea?"
"Okay, fine Kagamin~, I have the best kind of accidents…"
"That's better… I guess…"
"But I never thought you would play along with this, onee-chan." Tsukasa wasn't expecting her sister to be this playful.
"Well, with Kona around… ehm… I mean she has a way with dragging me into her pace."
"Hey, was that an insult or a compliment?" Konata wasn't sure how to feel.
"What works better for you?"
"A compliment, definitely a compliment!"
"Then it's that." Kagami just gave her another cheeky little smirk.
"That's good… Oi! You're just mocking me, aren't you?" Konata was a bit slow but still became a little angry and Kagami got attacked by a load of water. The revenge didn't take long and Konata got hit by even more water. The 'fight' quickly became more and more heated up until neither Konata, nor Kagami could be seen anymore because of all the water around them. Miyuki and Tsukasa just looked at each other with a happy smile on their lips while occasionally also splashing each other with a little water, just because it felt nice.
"These two, huh?"
"Indeed."
The 'fight' continued for a couple more minutes, but the two were finally exhausted enough to stop. A little later, all four decided to get out of the water and after a change of clothes, they sat down at the campsite and talked while drying their hair.
"By the way, Kagami-san and Izumi-san, did you two find any good firewood?"
"Oh…" Kagami's face lost a little bit of color.
"Kagamin~! Kagamin~! I remembered what we forgot earlier!"
"Just shut up, okay?"
"Okay…"
Miyuki and Tsukasa couldn't help it anymore and started laughing. It didn't take long for the other two to join.
…
Some time passed and Kagami, together with Konata, made another attempt to gather firewood. They just went to the nearby forest and gathered the first pieces of wood they could find and thanks to that, both quickly gathered enough, and without any incidents on top. The fireplace was finally ready and waiting for food to be cooked on. The mere thought of food woke up someone's stomach and wanted attention.
"What Kagamin~'s stomach wants to ask… What's the dinner plan again?"
"…" Kagami wasn't sure what to say and instead, she just glared at Konata.
"We should try the fishing first. The river should haves some fishes if we haven't scared them away earlier."
"Oh, right! We're still having our contest, right, Kagamin~?"
"Of course!"
Miyuki prepared everything and the girls went to the river. They found a good looking spot and started fishing.
"Okay, Kona, first who catches three fishes, wins."
"Only three? Isn't the contest over in like five minutes then?"
"No idea…"
Half an hour passed and absolutely nothing had happened.
"Fishing sure is boring." Konata's excitement from earlier was completely gone.
"Yeah…" Kagami wasn't much different.
"Fishing normally isn't an 'action' sport and waiting for fishes to bite for an extended amount of time is normal."
"Oh, I think I got one, Yuki-chan!" Tsukasa's fishing rod suddenly started twitching at the best possible timing.
"Huh?!" Kagami and Konata couldn't believe it.
"That's great, Tsukasa-san… Oh, it looks like I also have a bite."
"W-What?!" The two know what was going on anymore.
"K-Kagamin~, we can't lose against them!"
"I thought the two of us are having a contest?"
"Sure, but do you really want to lose against them?"
"You're right… that would be bad."
Another hour passed and the two girls were in complete despair. Things weren't in Konata's and Kagami's favor at all. Neither Kagami nor Konata any fish at all. Even worse, Miyuki, on the other hand, caught three, but Tsukasa even caught a whole five fishes. She looked very happy and that hurt the pride of the two even more.
"Fishing sure is fun, right, Yuki-chan?"
"Yes, it started a bit slow, but it soon became really interesting."
"Absolutely! What about… you… two…" Tsukasa was about to ask Konata and Kagami, but while looking at their direction, she quickly became silent again.
"Yeah… sure… fishing's the best…"
"Never done anything better in my life before…" If one thing's certain, it's that Kagami and Konata are never going to fish again in their life.
"Don't be like that, onee-chan and Kona-chan…"
"I'm sorry that you two couldn't enjoy it much."
"Oh, I know! I'm sure it's because the fishes sensed your intense determination and got scared."
"That actually may be possible. Fishes can sense dangerous situations fairly well." Tsukasa and Miyuki tried their best to cheer them up again.
"We get it… Can we hurry up and grill them already?"
"Kagamin~'s right, let's slowly roast them over a hellish hot fire already!" They haven't exactly recovered yet.
"Uh… okay… What about side dishes? We have some of these portable outdoor rice cooking pods here."
"Ohhh…" Konata's mood seemed to instantly improve. "Good idea, Miyuki. Let's make some rice, Kagamin~!"
"Eh?"
"K-Kona-chan?! You don't have to kill us just because you didn't catch any fish!"
"No, no, I'm serious here! See Kagamin~, I told you knowing how to cook rice on your own is important. A rice cooker can't help you here."
"You sure are happy to get such a convenient case for an example, huh?"
"Yep." Konata can be pretty simple from time to time.
"You really want onee-chan to make rice?" Tsukasa wasn't that thrilled by the idea.
"Sure, she already did it successfully once already and I'm sure my Kagamin~ can do it again, right?"
"W-What?" Kagami became flustered by the wording for a moment but had an idea. "Sure, if my Kona says so, I'll do my best.
"H-Huh?" Konata sure wasn't expecting this and her face also became a bit red in return.
"…" The silence returned, but the two started thinking about something. 'What's with this silence… and the reaction? Her face went red… Did she just got embarrassed because of my teasing or… or could it be…?' The two were reading the reactions of each other and they seemed to start noticing something.
"Anyway…" Miyuki broke the silence again. "Okay, Kagami-san will make the rice, Tsukasa-san and I'll prepare the fish and Izumi-san, can you light the campfire?"
"Me starting the fire? Nice… you don't have to ask twice for that." Someone looked really excited all of a sudden.
"Oh boy…" And someone had a bad feeling.
Miyuki and Tsukasa prepared the fishes, Kagami prepared the rice and Konata almost burned the entire campsite down, but the food was soon done and the girls started eating.
"Wow… onee-chan really made rice all on her own and it even was on campfire… amazing…" Tsukasa had already heard about it from Konata, but it was still the first time she saw it with her own eyes.
"Oh please… feel free to praise me more." Kagami looked really smug.
"You're amazing, Kona-chan!" Her praise was directed to someone else, though.
"Eh?"
"I know." Konata was the smug looking one now.
"But I have to admit that self-caught fish somehow tastes better." Miyuki changed the topic before it started to escalate.
"Right?! I just thought the same!"
"Really? I think they taste just like any other store-bought fish." Konata and Kagami answered the same sentence in the same monotonous voice at the same time to Miyuki's and Tsukasa's statements.
They finished eating a little later and Konata and Kagami slowly stopped pouting and the whole fishing incident was soon forgotten.
….
"So, what now?" Konata was wondering what else Tsukasa and Miyuki had planned.
"Hmm… Oh, how about we go exploring the area bit?"
"Sounds good, sis, as long as we keep Kona away from the waterfall, that is."
"Hey, I'm not that stupid to try the same thing again!"
"Really?" Kagami just stared at her.
"Absolutely! There's no way something unexpected would happen again."
"You're pretty good at raising your own death flags, aren't you?"
"What?! K-Kagamin~… wow, I'm so proud right now that I can't even be mad."
"Shut up, I just wanted to make a clear point."
"Oh yeah, you really made a clear point there." Konata smirked at her. "Okay then, what is there to see here, Miyuki, Tsukasa?"
"Let's just wander around and see if we find something."
"Sounds like a plan. Well, not really, but let's go with that." Kagami agreed to the idea.
The girls grabbed a few things and left the camp in order to explore the area. They first went into the nearby forest and looked around.
"Oh, that's a funny looking mushroom." Tsukasa suddenly stopped and pointed at something. "Can you eat that one?"
"Sis, |Tsukasa, | Tsukasa-san, that mushroom is definitely poisonous." The other three girls answered together after looking at the red and black striped mushroom on the ground.
"Oh, okay."
"I wonder if there any bears nearby…" Konata changed the topic to something very different.
"B-Bears?!" Tsukasa instantly became nervous and started looking around.
"Don't tell me you want to fight one?"
"Huh? What are you doing in my head again, Kagamin~?"
"Eh? I was just joking… Don't even think about it!"
"Aww… but I thought about a new move." She did some karate chops in the air in order to prove herself. "I'm sure I could take on a bear with it."
"No!"
"Don't worry about it, Kagami-san, there aren't any bears in this area." Miyuki reassured her.
"Ah… that's good." She sighed in relief.
"Too bad…"
"The two calmed down and the girls continued their walk through the forest. Kagami, Tsukasa, and Miyuki were talking about something while walking in front. Konata was slowly following them, for some time at least.
"Hey Kona, what do you think about… Kona?" Kagami turned around to ask for her opinion on their discussion, but Konata was gone. "H-Huh?"
"What's wrong, onee-chan? Wait, where's Kona-chan?"
"Oh, Izumi-san's gone?" Tsukasa and Miyuki also realized that she was missing.
"Where did that stupid little idiot now disappear to? Her stealth skills are way too good."
"Should we search for Izumi-san?"
"Yeah, I'm kind of worried about Kona because I can't leave her alone… You two go back the way we came from the camp and I'll take a different route."
"Okay. See you later then, onee-chan."
Kagami walked a bit of the original route and then disappeared on another way.
"Really now, how does she not realize how obvious she is?"
"Well…" Tsukasa had no answer to this question.
"Let's go back to the camp. I'm sure Kagami-san will find her without any trouble and it's probably a good idea if the two have some alone time again."
"Yeah, those two can probably sense each other anyway."
"I can actually see that being true. Do you want to do anything once we get back to the camp, Tsukasa-san?"
"Hmm… How about we just look for something to play in our tent?"
"Good idea, something more relaxing sounds nice."
The two went back and left the whole Konata rescue mission to Kagami.
…
Kagami was still wandering through the forest. She found a little trail a while ago and decided to follow it.
"Seriously, how could she disappear on us without making a single noise? I can't even walk one step without making a sound…"
"Because I had survival training."
"No, you hadn't." She retorted to the unexpected voice without thinking.
"Okay, fine, I watched a zombie survival anime as a preparation for the camping. You can't survive an apocalypse with making so much noise, Kagamin~."
"You sure are talented when it comes to unnecessary things. Are you expecting a zombie outbreak or what? H-Huh… wait… Kona? What?" Kagami finally realized something.
"Hey there, Kagamin~."
"Don't 'hey' me, what are you doing here?" Kagami had finally found her, or rather the other way around, after she walked around a corner on the path she was following.
"I'm not doing much. I'm just sitting here on this log while being really disappointed."
"Why are you disappointed?"
"I thought I saw a cave from the path we were walking earlier, but after a closer inspection of it, it was just a small hole in the mountain…"
"I see…" Despite saying that, Kagami only shook her head. "Do you really think that's a good reason to just disappear without saying anything, though?"
"Well… probably not, right? But it's not that bad, right?" Konata knew that it wasn't the best thing to do.
"Oh no, I don't think so." Kagami sounded a bit angry. "Do you have any idea how worried I got after you were suddenly gone?!"
"I'm sorry…"
"Just don't ever do something like that again, okay?"
"Yes, I won't…" Konata felt bad and stayed silent for some time afterward.
"… Let's go back to the camp, Miyuki and Tsukasa are probably waiting for us already."
The two started walking back and chatted a little more on the way.
"But for you to get worried about me, Kagamin~…"
"What? Do you have a problem with me worrying about you?"
"No, absolutely not. If anything, it made me really happy. Thanks for worrying about me."
"Y-You're welcome…" Kagami wasn't expecting this kind of turn of events and got rather embarrassed, but even Konata herself was a bit surprised by her sudden honesty. Both looked away from each other to calm down. 'She's trying to kill me, right? Really now, is that on purpose or…'
The good thing was that the camp was already in sight. The two arrived at the place in silence started wondering where Tsukasa and Miyuki are.
"Didn't you say they were waiting for us Kagamin~?"
"That's what I thought… Hmm? Wait, I think I heard something coming from their tent." She went closer to inspect the tent and quickly found them inside.
"Oh, welcome back, onee-chan." Tsukasa greeted her when she saw her. "Good job with finding Kona-chan."
"Well done, Kagami-san."
"Thanks… I know that I said that you two should take the way back to the camp, but aren't you taking it a bit too easy?" Kagami said after she found them relaxing in the tent.
"We had perfect faith that you would find her, onee-chan, and so we decided to play cards instead."
"You two sure an interesting duo…"
"Ehehe…"
"I wasn't exactly praising you…"
"Playing cards, huh?" Konata appeared next to Kagami at the entrance of the tent.
"Hey Kona-chan, want to join?"
"Sure, I'm in! Get inside already, Kagamin~." Konata moved behind her and pushed Kagami inside.
The two joined Tsukasa and Miyuki in their tent and started playing cards together. They played a couple rounds, but Konata or Kagami winning every round soon became boring for the other two and they tried to think of something to chat about.
"And, how are you two liking our trip idea?"
"It's nice, sis, well, except for the parts where Kona went overboard, that is."
"Hey, you didn't complain when we played in the water earlier, Kagamin~, and I already said I'm sorry for disappearing."
"Okay… fine, I'm having a lot of fun."
"Aww, an honest Kagamin~ sure is cute."
"Wha-! S-Shut up!" She took another unexpected hit. 'Okay, her way of wording things is really going to kill me.' She decided not to go down alone, though. "You think I'm cute?"
"Eh? H-Huh… I uhh… s-sure you are…" Konata didn't see that coming and it took some time for her to react.
"I-I see… t-thanks." Kagami made her situation only worse instead of better.
"Anytime…" And so it was for Konata.
"…"
"B-By the way, I've been wondering for a while already…" Konata decided to divert the attention away from her. "What are you two, Tsukasa and Miyuki, doing all the time when you're together?"
"Oh, great question, Kona." Kagami welcomed the attention shift. "I've been wondering about that as well."
"Hmm…" Tsukasa started thinking about it. "Nothing much, I guess… Probably the same as you two." She said so and the facial expression of two people suddenly became very complex.
'Oh no, I really don't think you do, Tsukasa…' Konata really didn't believe that it's the same.
'Sis, you perfectly well that it's not the same…' Kagami also strongly denied it in her mind.
"I think Tsukasa-san's probably right. We usually just spent a lot of time together, do our homework and lately, we're trying to make many different sweets. Oh, and she often accompanies me to the dentist. She really helps me to stay calm there."
"I see… that does sound similar…" Konata nodded. 'The activities do at least… Ignoring the last part, that is…'
I wonder if the sweets and the dentist have some sort of connection with each other…"
"No way, that's just a coincidence, just a coincidence." Tsukasa just laughed it off.
"But yeah, you two also seem rather close to each other."
'Wait, did Kagamin~ just say –also-?' Konata heard something interesting but had no time to think about it.
"That's true. I like Yuki-chan after all."
"…"
"…"
"… Eh?!" Not only Kagami, but Konata as well felt really lost right now and stared blankly at nothing in particular.
"Yes, I also like Tsukasa-san." Miyuki easily agreed to her statement.
"…"
"…"
"… W-What?" A couple moments passed and the two still looked completely stupefied by what they had just heard.
"W-Wait… what? You two are… huh?!"
"Yes, Yuki-chan and I are best friends by now." Tsukasa immediately destroyed all tension present in the tent.
"Ahh…" Konata and Kagami both sighed and slumped down on their place.
"What's wrong, Kona-chan and onee-chan?"
"N-Nothing's wrong, sis…" Kagami answered first. 'You know perfectly well what's wrong… Doing something like that…'
"Y-Yeah, nothing's wrong… It just sounded a little… ambiguous right now…"
"Ambiguous? What do you mean, Kona-chan?"
"H-Huh? Eh…" Konata wasn't expecting her to question it. "Ehm… well… that's a bit complicated…"
"Hmm…" Miyuki tilted her head a little and continued. "Oh, you thought that Tsukasa-san and I are… Nono, just like she said, best friends. Not that there's anything wrong with it, but no, right, Tsukasa-san?" Miyuki passed it over to her.
"Uh… yes, there's nothing wrong with it, but no."
"I… I… see…" Konata couldn't keep up with it anymore. 'W-Wait… did they both just said that they're both okay with it… that's good, right?'
"O-Oh, wow, it's already completely dark outside." Kagami also had a hard time and decided to change the topic. 'Miyuki's also okay with it, huh? Tsukasa's dead, though. She definitely told her about me… If they ask me now what I think… I mean… can they get any more obvious with what they're trying?' Not that Kagami had the right to say that. "Wait, are those fireflies out there?" She poked her head outside of the tent while saying so.
"R-Really?!" Tsukasa became really excited and instantly left the tent. "WOW! There really are fireflies… and so many of them!" The other three girls also decided to leave the tent to look at the spectacle. Dozens of fireflies had gathered at the campsite while illuminating the whole area in with a warm light. Tsukasa happily jumped around between them and tried to catch one with her bare hands.
"Tsukasa sure is energetic as usual."
"Indeed she is." Konata actually intended to say it to Kagami, but Miyuki answered before she even had the chance. "I better stop her before she hurts herself." Miyuki left and the two were alone again.
"They definitely have an interesting dynamic…"
"Like we're one to talk, Kona."
"Fair enough."
Kagami and Konata watched the two for a little while, but then decided to leave them alone and left the camp. They stopped in a little field and looked up at the sky.
"You sure can see a lot of stars when you're out in nature."
"That's true and they're so bright!" Konata let herself fall down on the grass in order to watch the starry night sky easier. "Come on, lay down with me, Kagamin~." She patted on the spot next to her on the grass.
"Hmm? Oh, sure, sounds good." Kagami changed her attention away from the sky for a second and after understanding what Konata meant, she laid down right next to her. "Oh, the grass is surprisingly comfortable."
The two looked at the stars in silence for some time. Konata was looking for some formations in the sky that she could recognize, but her knowledge in that field was rather limited.
"Hey Kagamin~, how's your level in astronomy? I haven't invested many skill points in at and so I don't recognize anything…"
"Way to ruin the atmosphere… but I guess my level is decent enough. Want me to show you a couple things?"
"That's why I asked."
"Okay, well then…" Kagami raised her arm and pointed at a particularly bright star. After Konata had found it, she started explaining the constellation of the star and the ones surrounding it. Konata nodded a few times and Kagami then pointed to the next group of stars.
"Oh, that's Deneb, Altair, and Vega, the summer triangle you pointed out, I remember that." Konata interrupted her while both were looking at the sky.
"Yes, they're also represented by the deities Orihime and Hikoboshi. Deneb is supposed to be the bridge between those two lovers so that they can meet each other once a year because the Milky Way normally separates them. According to the tale, that is."
"Oh, that's miss born-on-Tanabata for you."
"Yeah, Tanabata is more or less about their story. Orihime and Hikoboshi are only allowed to meet each other once a year on the seventh day of the seventh month. They can only meet up if it doesn't rain, though, because of the bridge, Deneb, that they need to see each other would be flooded or couldn't be built in the first place."
"That's also where those strips of paper with the wishes come from, right? Those two wished for no rain and we wish for… uhm… a lot of stuff…"
"More or less, yeah."
"Speaking of which, it's only a week away, huh? Tanabata and your birthday, that is."
"Yep, and I'm really looking forward to what you're going to pull off then. I mean after how you boasted on your birthday, it better be big." Kagami also gave her a little smirk at the same time.
"So you haven't forgotten, huh? I guess I really have to think about something good then. Even though I have absolutely no idea… but hey, I'm good at improvising…"
"Sure, if you say so."
The two focused on the stars again and Kagami resumed her explanation of the constellations in the sky. Her explanation was a bit too thorough, though. She went a bit too far with the details and as a result, Konata became a bit tired. She stretched herself a bit to fight back her fatigue. It worked brilliantly and Konata was instantly wide-awake again. Although it wasn't due to the stretching alone. After said stretching, her hand accidentally landed on Kagami's own. She wasn't expecting the sudden body contact and got really surprised by it. Konata almost, instinctively, wanted to retract her hand again, but she managed to fight back the urge.
'You can do it!' She was encouraging herself. 'Leave your hand there! Kagamin~ isn't reacting and so there's nothing to fear! Just. Enjoy. The. Moment!'
Kagami maybe wasn't reacting, but it was only her outside that stayed silent. 'W-W-What is going on here?!' Inside her mind, Kagami was panicking. 'W-Why is Kona holding my hand?! Eh… Wait, it looked like she was just stretching herself. Maybe it was just an accident. She probably isn't retracting her hand doesn't think anything of it… but I'm losing it here, Kona! Wait a bit, it was her who did it… I don't have to feel guilty and can just enjoy the moment.' Kagami readjusted herself a little, but she also moved her hand a little in the process and her fingers accidentally ended up entangled with Konata's own. Her face immediately became even redder, but thankfully, it was too dark for anyone to see it. 'O-Okay… maybe a little guilty…' Kagami's face wasn't the only red one.
"EHHHH?! W-What?! Why?... Why is Kagamin~ also holding my hand now?! Wait… c-could it be…? N-No, don't read too much into it, me…"
Konata continued her internal fight and Kagami hesitantly found some more constellations of stars in the sky she shared with her.
"That's all I have." Kagami concluded her little astronomy course of the stars she knew.
"'All I have' – she says… That was almost Miyuki level here." Konata had calmed down enough to hold a normal conversation again.
"Thanks, I take that as a compliment. S-Speaking of which, the two sure gave me a good scare earlier…" Kagami decided to try her luck and poked into a topic she had a great interest in, but also scared her a fair bit.
"Hmm? Oh, you mean about the whole… l-liking thing? Y-Yeah, that was quite… unexpected."
"Yes, I didn't see it coming. Good thing it was just a misunderstanding. I mean, my little sister being in a relationship before me? Nope, I can't allow that."
"I thought you don't care about the big sister / small sister stuff?"
"Well, there are some exceptions to that…"
"I see… Wait…!" Konata suddenly realized something. "T-That's the problem?!"
"What else should there be?" She just looked at Konata from the side on the grass.
"Well… they're both girls and all…" She wasn't sure what or how to say it. She wasn't even sure if she wanted to talk about in the first place.
"Hmm? What's wrong with that? There's nothing wrong with liking the person you like, no matter who it is." Kagami just repeated something she heard before. 'Thanks for the line, sis. I owe you one.'
"Oh, t-that's pretty noble, Kagamin~." Konata tried her best to remain calm, but she still started smiling from ear to ear in the dark because he was way too happy right now. 'YES! She has nothing against it! I can't believe it! Sure, I still don't know if she's into girls, but who cares?! I just want to party right now!'
"W-What about you, Kona?"
"Me?"
"Yes, I-I mean… I wouldn't want any of their friends to be against it if something happens between Miyuki and Tsukasa." Kagami cleverly used the misunderstanding of the two as an example.
"Me? Nah, it wouldn't be hard for me to fall for a girl myself…" Konata turned silent and white at the end of her sentence. She was still too happy from earlier and didn't realize fast enough what she had just said.
"Oh, t-that's good to know for the two…" It was Kagami's turn to show her poker face now. 'WHAT?! Wait… what?! No way…! That's… no! K-Kona's not only just okay with it… she IS actually into girls! Did my birthday and Christmas fell on the same day this year and moreover, is today Christmas?! That's way too good to be true!' Konata wanted to have a party, but Kagami already was having a party in her head and she decided to give her a little hint. "W-Well, it's easier to fall for cute girls after all, huh?"
"…" Konata's brain had officially given up and decided to go home.
"W-What's wrong, Kona?" Kagami got a little worried because she felt completely silent. She squeezed Konata's hand, which was still intertwined with hers a little to get a reaction.
"Eh? Uhm… n-no, everything's fine, if not better…" The squeeze brought her back to reality for a second. 'No! Freaking! Way! She did not say that just now! There's just no way that I have a chance, right? Or do I now? She did say that she… Wait… Why does that just make everything more complicated now? W-What do I do now? No, really, what? I need to think about a plan…' Konata was completely freaking out, but managed to remain calm on the outside.
"T-That's good…" Kagami also had a hard time holding the conversation up because her mind was too busy processing everything and her body was too preoccupied with fighting back the huge smile that continued to form on her lips.
Both fell silent and looked at the stars again. It wasn't exactly awkward like the last time the conversation died. Konata and Kagami had just found out they both are into girls, which means they actually have a chance with each other. It was too much to take in to feel awkward.
…
Some time passed and the two finally decided to go back to the camp again.
"Let's go back, Kona. We don't want to worry Miyuki and Tsukasa, right?"
"Y-Yeah… you're right." It looked like Kagami was handling the new situation better than Konata.
Konata got up first and offered Kagami a hand to help her up from the grass. Kagami gladly accepted the help and Konata lifted her up. Both were standing again and Konata wanted to let go of her hand, but it didn't work for some reason. She had loosened her grip, but Kagami was still holding Konata's hand and it didn't look like she would let it go anytime soon.
"Let's go, Kona." Kagami started walking and dragged her behind. 'Holding back is over. It looks like my chances aren't zero and I'm going to make use of that!' Kagami's newly found, and aggressive, resolve was strong, but Konata was still having a hard time.
'Eh?! W-What is going on here? Why is she holding my hand?! Is she giving me a hint? Did I die? Am I dreaming? Parallel World? Trapped inside a game? Well… whatever, let's just enjoy it for now…' Konata gave up on being rational for the day.
Both continued their walk hand in hand back to the camp. Arriving there, they only saw a faint light in the tent of Miyuki and Tsukasa and decided not to bother them. The two went straight to their own tent.
…..
"Oh, they're back, Tsukasa-san."
"Well, took them long enough. The two were gone for like two hours or so. Wait… Are they holding hands?!" Miyuki and Tsukasa were watching the return of Konata and Kagami from their tent.
"Yes, it does look like it. I wonder what happened while there were gone…"
"Uhh… I want to know!" Tsukasa got rather excited.
"Calm down, we should leave them alone and don't destroy the mood."
"You're right, Yuki-chan…" She looked a bit dejected but knew it was the best thing to do.
The two closed their tent again and resumed the chat the two were having before they came back.
…
Konata and Kagami went inside their tent and the next trial was already awaiting them.
"Oh… right… the sleeping bag. I totally forgot about that…"
"What do we do, Kagamin~?"
"Hmm? Well, we just have to work with what we have, right?"
"I-I guess so…" Konata really wasn't as good as Kagami with adapting to the new situation, but not having a choice helped and both got into the sleeping bag.
"Wow, it's supposed to be for two people, but it's sure tight in it."
"T-That's true…"
"It's probably for not to waste any warmth in the night while sleeping."
The two barely even fitted in the sleeping bag and any excess space was nowhere to be found. Kagami didn't mind it one bit, or rather, she readily welcomed it. Konata also had nothing against it, but the whole day was just too much for her, especially the last few hours.
"W-Well… let's try to get a bit of sleep." Konata wanted to end the day and start with fresh vigor into a new one. She needs to think of a plan to get Kagami, but she wasn't in the shape to think of it today.
"Yeah, I also am quite tired. Good night, Kona."
"Good night."
Both got as comfortable as possible in the tent and tried to sleep. Konata had no problems with it, but Kagami had a hard time to fall asleep.
"Are you still awake, Kona?" She asked after she got bored, but she got no response. 'I thought so… What a day… I guess I have to thank Tsukasa for it. I probably wouldn't have found out that I have a chance without the camping. I'm sure that was her goal in the first place. Too bad I have to kill her afterward because she told Miyuki about me…' She was happy and angry at the same time, but looking at Konata sleeping next to her calmed her down instantly again. 'I want to hug her! I sooo want to hug her!' Kagami's thoughts immediately changed into action when she wrapped her arms around Konata's waist and pulled her close to her own body.
"Such bliss~." Kagami let out a happy sound and hugged her even tighter. The need of a sleeping bag for two people, no matter its actual size, was completely gone. 'I want to do this every night… I want her to be mine and mine alone… But how can I accomplish it? I need to think of something… but first, I need some sleep.' She gently squeezed Konata a last time and let out a little yawn. "Works every time…" It didn't take long for Kagami to fall asleep afterward.
….
The next morning started early for Konata. It was still dark outside, but she just woke up and the reason for it was right next to her. Kagami had a little… violent sleep. One of her arms was still wrapped around Konata's waist, but her other arm had just hit Konata's chin hard enough to wake her up.
"What was that for, Kagamin~?" She pouted a little, but got no answer "Well, what was I expecting in the first place? More importantly… I need something to drink. Good thing she isn't holding me so tight anymore. I think I can free myself now." Konata wriggled herself around a little and managed to get away from Kagami's grip. She left the tent, grabbed a drink out of a portable cooling box and sat down at the fireplace. The fire was out for some time already, but it started to dawn and so there was a little light present for Konata to take a look around. "Tsukasa and Miyuki sure did a great job here. Most of the stuff, including the cooling box, was already here… They definitely had a lot of work with preparing everything. I can't help the feeling that the two had a goal in mind, though… Do they really want to bring me and Kagamin~ together? But why? Am I really that obvious or what? Wait… does Tsukasa know anything? Did Kagamin~ tell her anything?" The answer was yes to anything. "A girl can dream, right? Anyway, just thinking about it doesn't help at all. I need to think of something good. I need a plan… A good plan, but what can I do? I just found out that I have a chance, but… Kagamin~'s birthday is in a week and I have the feeling that that's the key to victory, but how? She said that she's interested in a necklace… but even she can't find one she likes… How am I supposed to find one then? That means I need something else and moreover, the impact is lacking quite a bit anyway. I need to find something that wants her make to jump at me… Just what should I do?! Hmm… OH!" Konata suddenly turned silent and started thinking about something very hard. It took her some time, but it looked like she thought of something good because her face loosened up a little again. Just in this very moment, she felt something on her shoulders and looked up.
Kagami had woken up and appeared behind Konata while she was thinking about something. She put her hands on Konata's shoulders and peeked over her head. After Konata looked up, their eyes met for the first time this day.
"Good morning, Kona."
"Oh, good morning, Kagamin~." The sleep, the monolog she had just now and the idea afterward helped Konata to find inner peace and she was easily able to remain calm while having a conversation and/or having body contact with Kagami.
"Why are you already up?"
"Ha, because a certain someone woke me up by hitting her arm against my chin…"
"R-Really? I'm sorry… Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I also was thirsty and so I got up."
"Ohm you have something to drink? Can I have some?" Kagami also got thirsty after waking up.
"Sure, here you go." Konata gave her the bottle of tea she grabbed earlier and Kagami took a sip out of it without thinking. 'Oh… calm down, me… That was just an indirect kiss, nothing important and pretty sure not the first we had… I can't let that bother me if I want Kagamin~ to become mine.'
'An indirect kiss, huh? Well…' Kagami didn't think much about it and gave the bottle back to Konata. "So, what were you doing here all alone?"
"Hmm… just thinking about things…"
"What things?"
"That's a secret~."
"I see…"
"Miyuki and Tsukasa sure had a great idea, right, Kagamin~?"
"That's true, it really was a fun event."
"Although I still wonder how they came up with the idea… or why."
"G-Good question, Kona. I have no idea…" Kagami actually had one, but saying that was out of the question.
"Hmm… well, whatever."
"Yeah… Oh, look, the sun has started rising."
"You're right. Wow, the sunrise on a mountain sure has a different vibe."
"Yeah, it somehow looks bigger…"
Kagami sat down right next to Konata and both watched the sunrise in silence together. At least until the sun became too bright to look at.
"Oh, how about we pay Miyuki and Tsukasa back a little, Kagamin~? To thank them for the trip?"
"Great idea. What do you want to do?"
"Let's make some breakfast for everyone before they wake up. I saw some eggs in the cooling box and we also have bread. A bit simple, but still good."
"Sound's nice, let's do that."
"Okay, you prepare the eggs, Kagamin~, and I get the fire running again."
"Why do I have to cook?"
"Training… and I want to play with the fire again…"
"Oi Kona, your real intention is leaking out."
"Oh…"
Kagami let out a little chuckle and both proceeded as planned. The fire was on again and the scrambled eggs were ready to be cooked. It didn't take long for the smell to reach the tents and Tsukasa, together with Miyuki, came out of their tent.
"Good morning, Kona-chan and onee-chan."
"Morning."
"Good morning you two."
"What are you two doing?" Tsukasa noticed that Konata and Kagami were cooking something the fire.
"We're making breakfast for you two."
"Why?"
"To thank you and Miyuki a little for the trip, sis."
"We really had a lot of fun, thanks."
"Aww, you're welcome."
"Thank you very much for the praise, Kagami-san, Izumi-san. We also had a lot of fun, right, Tsukasa-san?"
"Yes, it was great!"
The girls ate their breakfast and started chatting about the last day and what they had experienced. All really had a lot of fun and were glad they came. Miyuki and Tsukasa were edging to ask what happened last night, but they didn't want to make things awkward at the very end. They decided to postpone the interrogation to a later date and just enjoyed the last bit of their camping trip.
After the breakfast was over, the four girls started packing and tidying up the campsite.
"Don't worry about all the stuff here. My father will come later with his car and pick up everything we left behind. The best would be to only take your personal things leave everything camping related here." Miyuki explained the details and with that, the camping was over.
….
Konata arrived at home and directly decided to look if her plan she thought of earlier can work.
"Hey dad, I'm back."
"Hey Konata, welcome back. How was the camping?" After hearing her voice, Sojiro suddenly appeared out of the living room.
"It was great! Oh, working in the living room now?"
"Yeah, I couldn't see the walls of my room anymore. I was slowly getting crazy in there…"
"Even more? Good thing you changed places…"
"Dad's hurt…"
"How is it coming along?"
"Good, very good. I only have the last chapter and the epilog left to write."
"Uh, nice! Does that mean you can spare a little time?"
"Sure, what do you want, Konata?"
"I'm looking for something… can you help me search?"
"Of course. What are you looking for?"
"Well…" Konata explained what she wanted to find. Sojiro looked rather confused, but still helped her.
"Okay… I think I know where it is."
"Really? Great! Thanks, dad."
The two went upstairs and after a little bit of searching, they found what Konata was looking for and she went back to her room.
"Great, one part of my plan might actually work now. Too bad it's the easy part of my idea…"
It looked like Konata's plan for Kagami's birthday was coming along and while she was planning all the details, the week progressed a little and the birthday of the twins was only a few days away.
.
I finished a few days earlier than expected. Probably not a bad thing, I guess...
It's funny how a chapter that was supposed to be a 5k 'filler' chapter ended up being a 12k with quite a lot of progress. That's what happens if I run out of ideas... xD
Aggressive Kagami is also a great Kagami.
The chapter was a little all over the place because I had no idea what do with in the beginning, but I ended up liking it quite a bit.
The next chapter should be like teased about the birthday of the twins, although I'm not 100% if I'm not going to make another event in between. If it's going to be about the birthday, the chapter will take quite long to be released because then it's going to be a complex chapter…
If someone's interested in statistics, this story just went over 6000 views yesterday. Not really much, but for the advanced age of Lucky Star, it's quite decent, I guess.