A/N: So the day of the 'test' arrives... man, I was procrastinating a lot while trying to write this chapter. This chapter breaks the 'he when with people, she when alone' rule, so I'm warning ya a little early. Admittedly, I don't have the best grammar as English is my second language but I do understand it better than my classmates, and my ideas are pretty cliche and they probably suck... but anyway, this chapter's not as long as my regular ones, but it's focused mostly on the 'test' event, so... eh, enjoy? ;w;
KatoriAeku - I try to upload fast when I can, but thanks! She'll keep crossdressing for a long while... but it does get resolved in an event that I'll be writing all on my own when the time comes! It'll happen soon after the last member of the team joins, so it'll take longer... I hope you can wait around? :)
Mr Giraffe (Guest)
- Sensei or Teacher does fit her in a way, lol. By the time P5 rolls around she'd be about 22 or 23 if P5 starts in 2016 or 2017...
- Ehhh the test is actually kind of easy, but it's tough for Yui... if you get the idea? Idk. Welp, his final social link event will happen in the near future so he'll be better soon!
- Mini fun-fact: I didn't even know they called the food cooked by Chie, Yukiko or/and Rise is called Mystery Food X until I researched more into the wiki and saw a few videos of Persona Q. If in the P4 Anime, Yu practically 'died' trying the valentines chocolate Nanako made with those three's help, that's probably the worst extent of it... welp, Yui is going to suffer with Yosuke... but there will be some small changes to the event when I do write it, which should be the next chapter lololol-
Tuesday came quickly, and with it, the dark clouds of rain.
As school ended, Yu left his class and went to the boys' toilet while bringing along his school bag. He brought a change of clothes so he could change in a stall without going through the trouble of looking for a spot to do just that… and since it was raining, most students have gone home early other than those with activities, and that included his friends.
It took him a small while, but he eventually emerged from the stall fully dressed in a suit and tie, plus a pair of dress shoes. Taking a glance at the mirror, Yu quietly sighed as his eyes fell on the image formed on the reflective surface of it. He saw himself, looking much like a teenage boy that was dressed as a businessman.
…But he isn't a boy. He's just a crossdressing girl, forced to act as a man.
Prying his eyes away from his reflection, he left the toilet as quickly as he can and ignored the stares he got from the few students that saw him dressed like this. They can never understand the life he was living… nor the pressure of trying to reach the expectations his family had for him.
Yet… they're so much luckier than him.
If only he could be as carefree as they were.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
Taking out her umbrella, Yui used it to walk out of the school compound and began to walk down the road to the flood plains. The further she walked, the sooner she noticed that another man dressed similarly like her was approaching with a black umbrella. A black car was a few feet behind the man, glistening dimly in wetness.
"Good evening, Miss Yui." It was Mr. Tadashi, who kept a serious expression at the sight of the girl dressed in a suit. "Shall we get going?"
"…Of course." The silver-haired girl nodded, letting her grandfather's secretary get closer to put the black umbrella over her head while she closed her own. When they reached the car, Mr. Tadashi let her enter first before going to the door where the driver's seat was and entered as well.
The car was much more luxurious than an average one, with a sleek design on the outside and a comfortable yet stylish look on the inside. It's no match to a limousine, but it's the closest one could get… and it was fit for an heir of a company.
Yui felt like this was overdoing it, though. But who were they to defy her grandfather's orders…?
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
As the car began to arrive at the central shopping district, Yui felt like she needed to take a moment to ready herself. "Mr. Tadashi… mind if we hold off the test for a short moment when we arrive?" she asked in a formal tone, acting like the perfect heiress.
"Well, Miss Yui… do not take too long." Mr. Tadashi looked at the silver-haired girl from the rear-view mirror. "But what will you do in that time?"
"Just a small visit to a place. It won't take but more than ten minutes."
"…Do as you wish, Miss Yui. I'll be waiting at the car."
"Thank you."
A visit to the shrine would be enough to calm her nerves.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
The car was parked next to the sidewalk that was of the same side with the abandoned shrine and the textile shop Yui would be paying a visit to soon.
Getting out of the car after her grandfather's secretary – though for the test, Mr. Tadashi would be her temporary secretary – opened the door for her and had carefully set his umbrella over the both of them, she glanced at where the path leading up to the shrine was.
"Mr. Tadashi, I'll see you in less than ten minutes," she told the man, her gaze cold as steel as she looked up at him. She has taken up the image of an heiress without much trouble; a result of her training that was given by her grandfather. Mr. Tadashi can only nod. "Yes, Miss Yui."
Yui then opened her own umbrella, which was of a black colour this time, and walked her way towards the path to the shrine in silence, other than the sound of her quiet breathing and the pattering of the rain against the stone sidewalk.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
"Fox?" Yui called out to the fox as she arrived at the shrine, her expression now looking much softer unlike moment before. She lifted her head to look at the roof and soon noticed the fox there, to which it soon jumped off to land right behind her with an ema in its mouth.
She didn't miss the look in its eyes as it stared at her, seemingly with confusion at the outfit she was wearing.
"I have business to do today, little fox…" Yui murmured, gripping the handle of her umbrella tightly. "But do not worry. The wish on the ema has been fulfilled – the woman won't have to worry about snacks again." She gently smiled despite the pressure in her hands on her umbrella's handle.
The fox then happily spun around her legs before doing the same thing as before, checking the offertory box with a joyful yelp. The silver-haired girl chuckled at the sight. "Alright fox, I need to go now. I'll come by another day to see if you need my help again."
It yipped at her happily, sitting at the base of the stairs leading up to the shrine.
Yui silently turned around to leave, her smile falling.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
"I've finished."
Mr. Tadashi noticed the heiress walking down the path that led up to the shrine. "Shall we start the test, then, Miss Yui?" he asked her, using honorifics like he did earlier. "Yes, Mr. Tadashi. Come with me…" Yui answered with a solemn nod before she began to walk to where the textiles shop is.
It was just a few stores down from the car, and soon the two stopped in front of the textiles shop.
"Tatsumi Textiles… is this the place?" Mr. Tadashi asked her. She wordlessly nodded in response. "It's a shop that has lasted for a number of generations, according to what I've heard… it is actually a dye and clothes shop, but they do sell textiles here," she explained further. "This is enough… is it not?"
"Yes, it is enough... may I?"
Yui nodded again, letting Mr. Tadashi slide open the store doors for her. She approached it as she closed her umbrella, entering once she did. Her secretary followed shortly, closing his own umbrella as well.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
"Oh, welcome…" Mrs. Tatsumi stood up from where she sat on the elevated wooden floor when she then saw Yu enter with Mr. Tadashi. "Aren't you… Yukiko's friend?" she asked with a small smile, recognizing Yu's face from that day.
"Yes, I am. My name is Yu Narukami, and this is my helper, Mr. Tadashi," Yu greeted her formally, introducing his secretary first before they both bowed politely. Mrs. Tatsumi bowed as well, her smile still remaining on her gentle face. She was very much unlike her son. "Well, please come and take a seat here."
Yu shook his head, smiling softly. "Thank you, ma'am, but just here to buy some textiles and a clothing or two, if there are any available." He approached the wooden floor, looking up at the older woman. "May I see some of the textiles and clothes you have?"
"Give me a moment and I'll see what I have," Mrs. Tatsumi told him. Yu gave her a nod of affirmation. "I'll wait here."
Meanwhile, Mr. Tadashi has been observing the silver-haired boy's actions up to this point, noting how Yu acted throughout the meeting. This was one of the tasks Yu's grandfather had set upon him – to observe the way Yu acted, the way he spoke and what he decided to buy. Yes, it sounded like a simple task, but his grandfather was fickle with everything.
Up until now, Yu has been passing these tests with minor difficulties.
Would this time be different?
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
"I'd have to say, this is of great quality, ma'am," Yu admitted as he observed and felt the cloths Mrs. Tatsumi showed him. "One can hardly find such cloths in the city…" he told her, recalling the difficulty of finding a good shop when he had to do these tests… and it was even worse in a city like Tokyo.
The woman chuckled softly, sitting on the wooden floor while Yu still stood as he checked the cloths. "Ah, thank you for the compliment. Also, here are some of the spare clothing we have." She gingerly placed the articles of clothing in front of the silver-haired boy. Taking a look at the clothes, which consisted of some Japanese clothes and one or two contemporaries, Yu noted which one he should buy – the budget given by his grandfather was always the same. So, he just had to pick the best of the best.
In the end, Yu smiled at Mrs. Tatsumi as he straightened himself. "Thank you for showing me this, Mrs. Tatsumi. I'd like to buy these, if I may?" he said as he motioned at some of the cloths and clothes. "Of course… that should be about twenty-two thousand yen," Mrs. Tatsumi told him as she nodded.
Still well within the budget… Yu then glanced at his secretary. "Mr. Tadashi?"
"Yes, sir." Mr. Tadashi approached him and took out a wallet that he gave the silver-haired boy. Yu opened it and took out the exact amount of money needed before giving it to the woman. "Here, twenty-two thousand yen. Pleasure doing business with you, ma'am."
…He did not miss the look of curiosity in Mrs. Tatsumi's eyes as she smiled, getting up to put the money away and also get the bags for the cloths and clothes that were bought. Once she got the bags and carefully folded the cloths and clothing, she put them into the bag and gave them to the boy. "Here you are."
"Thank you, ma'am." Yu bowed again and stepped back, letting his secretary take the lead from here while giving him the wallet back. Mr. Tadashi approached the woman and took out a business card from his pocket. "I am from Miyabi Jo Apparels – we might come again to buy clothes from you, so please keep this in the meantime."
"Alright… I will." Mrs. Tatsumi nodded, still smiling at the man. Mr. Tadashi then bowed. "We shall get going, then." He politely excused himself and began walking towards Yu, who followed him from behind… when the woman called out to them. The two men looked behind them to gaze at her.
"Pardon me, but may I speak to the young boy for a moment in private?" Mrs. Tatsumi asked with a gentle smile.
Yu and Mr. Tadashi stared at her in silence, until the former looked at the latter. "…I'll go see what she has to say," Yu told him quietly. The man nodded in understanding. "Alright… I'll wait for you in the car, sir." He took the bags first then exited the store, leaving Yu and Mrs. Tatsumi in the main area of the shop alone. The silver-haired boy approached the woman, wondering what she wanted to talk to him about. "Well, it's just us now… what do you want to talk about, ma'am?"
"I just wanted to ask you something, that's all…" Mrs. Tatsumi sat down so she was at the same level with the boy. "May I know… what it is?" Yu asked, keeping a calm face. Yet somehow, he's starting to feel nervous.
Mrs. Tatsumi looked into Yu's soft silver-grey eyes, seemingly knowing something. "…I want to know why a beautiful girl such as you are dressed as a businessman, acting like a grown man and not like the elegant woman I can see you are."
Suddenly, Yu realised in an instant why he felt so nervous.
Kanji's mother had seen right through her act like it was nothing.
"M-Mrs. Tatsumi…" Stuttering, the silver-haired boy found himself speechless to answer. His heart pounded strongly in his chest, fear and shock grasping him like the chilly air that resided in the place. "…I don't know what you're talking about." He spoke quietly, lowering his head.
A small sigh came from the woman. "I've heard of the Miyabi Jo Apparels company… it is a big company in Tokyo, its owner being a man with the surname Narukami..." Mrs. Tatsumi said softly. "You say your name is Yu Narukami, but the person I see standing in front of me is a girl dressed as a man. Your face resembles more of a lovely young lady than a boy."
With those few words, Yu felt his walls crumble down to pieces. He… no… she can't hide it any longer now. This woman… she's a lot smarter than she shows.
The silver-haired teenager lifted her head to look at Mrs. Tatsumi in defeat. "…You're right. My name… it isn't Yu, but Yui… and I am of the Narukami family…" Yui began to speak, using her real voice. "I am the granddaughter of that man, and the future heir after my father."
"I was right." The shrewd woman gently smiled at her. "Why do you hide yourself behind heavy clothes, when you have an appearance that rivals that of a princess?" she asked the young teenager. Yui averted her gaze, her hands turning into fists as she bitterly smiled. "That is too big of a compliment, ma'am…" she muttered. "I do so because of reasons I cannot say… but the least I can say is that I do it not of my own will."
"So… forced, then?"
Yui still wouldn't look at her as she kept silent.
Mrs. Tatsumi gazed at the silver-haired girl for a moment before slowly nodding. "Alright… I won't pry anymore. You may go now."
"Thank you." Yui bowed quickly yet politely before turning around to leave… but she stopped after taking a few steps ahead. She glanced back at the woman that still sat on the wooden floor of the shop. "Ma'am… please don't tell anyone. Not even Kanji," she asked, almost pleadingly.
"…I won't."
With that, Yui finally left the shop.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
Yui opened her black umbrella, the small protruding part of the roof giving her some shelter from the rain as she did so. Sighing to herself, she was about to leave when a familiar rough voice called out to her that made her freeze from head to toe.
Crap.
Sounds of splashing and footsteps quickly approached her, and she lowered her umbrella to cover her face. It wasn't as big as she had hoped it would be – it only covered her head and her eyes, but not her nose and lips. Peeking under her umbrella from the corner of her eyes, she spotted the body of a tall guy standing in front of her, his face blocked by her umbrella. It was definitely Kanji.
It seemed like he has just gotten back from an errand, bringing a bag full of sewing tools… he doesn't sound too happy to see her, though. "What, now there's a saleswoman walking around town…?" he muttered to himself. Yui quickly shook her head. "I'm not a saleswoman… I'm just a guy," she told him, speaking in a lower voice. She still held her umbrella low, to the point that the top of her head was touching the metal frame that kept the umbrella open. At least she didn't use the translucent umbrella she would usually use today…
"No way you're a guy with that face." Kanji wasn't buying that. "What're ya doing here, in front of my mom's shop?" he asked with a hint of a threat in his voice.
Yui gripped the handle of her umbrella tightly, attempting to keep calm. "I was just passing by… I'm not doing—wha…!" She was cut off when the blond boy suddenly gripped the edge of her umbrella. "I'm not one for manners, but you better-!" Kanji forcefully lifted the umbrella up as he spoke, wanting to see this lady's face for his own eyes.
He fell quiet when his greyish blue eyes fell on a pair of soft looking silver-grey ones that can only belong to one person… and the locks of front hair barely covering them that bore the same colour as those eyes sealed that very thought in his head in an instant.
For a moment, everything seemed to freeze. The world froze, the rain appeared to slow, and everything just went… quiet.
The two teenagers could only stare at each other in silence during that instant, shock apparent in their eyes. For that single moment, Kanji saw Yui not as a boy, but… as any other girl he had seen at school, except she held elegance to her fine looks.
…If he hadn't thought that Yu Narukami was a guy who had helped him back in the TV world, he would've sincerely believed that the person standing in front of him was an attractive girl.
What seemed like eternity was just a few seconds, but soon they both broke out of their stupor to blink, breaking the eye contact they had. Yui lowered her head, blushing deeply. She hadn't expected this to happen at all… nor the moment of staring that just happened.
"S-Senpai?" Kanji stuttered in surprise. "You were the…?" He had genuinely thought that the lady standing in front of him was just some saleswoman… hell, the nose and the lips his Senpai had was just like a woman's. He did not expect to see that those ladylike features belonged to… Yu Narukami…
His words went unheard as nervousness filled the silver-haired girl's chest like gushing water.
She… has to get away.
Now.
Instinct taking over her body, Yui then abandoned her umbrella by letting go of the handle and ran away through the rain. "Wait, senpai!" Kanji tried to stop her, but could only watch as she ran towards a black car while he still held the black umbrella that belonged to her by the edge of its cloth.
The car quickly drove away after Yui entered it, leaving Kanji standing there in a stunned silence.
What did he just see?
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
"Yui… did you get found out?"
Yui glanced at the rear-view mirror when she saw that Mr. Tadashi was looking at her in worry. "…No, I didn't," she answered quietly, letting her gaze fall back to her hands. She was slightly wet from the rain, her suit and hair now sticking to her body because of it. "He was just someone from school. I didn't want him to have any ideas from seeing me in this… suit."
Mr. Tadashi kept silent for a small while as he drove his boss's granddaughter to her uncle's home. Eventually, he spoke again. "…Well, I just wanted you to know that your performance this time is excellent. The quality of the clothes and textiles you picked are exceptionally high… I think you won't need to do another test later this year."
A nod and an inaudible hum of acknowledgement was the only response he got.
He decided to keep on driving in silence.
Mr. Tadashi left the town by car once he sent Yu back home, his given task now finished.
After taking a quick shower and changing into more comfortable clothes, Yu sat in the living room with Nanako while having a warm drink and watching TV. However, he wasn't focusing on the news at all. His face was still flushed from the events a while ago as his mind still repeated that moment where everything froze for him and Kanji as their eyes met…
It felt like forever.
A single fleeting moment where soft silver-grey met a striking greyish blue.
Their breaths audible through the freezing silence, warmth from the air touching their skin.
For the first time, under the umbrella in the rain… the one Kanji Tatsumi saw wasn't the boy he talked with days ago – he saw Yui Narukami, heiress of Miyabi Jo Apparels and the real identity of the senpai he was growing to respect.
…The silver-haired boy felt a shiver down his spine and he soon shook his head to dispel his thoughts. Worry took over him like a pressure in his chest - does Kanji even realize it? Or is he still oblivious to the possibility that Yu Narukami isn't who he thinks he is?
He won't know until he met up with the blond boy to talk some other day…
"…If you want, you can change the channel." Nanako's voice broke the silver-haired boy out of his thoughts. It was then he noticed how bored his cousin looked… spotting a rubber band on the table, he wondered if he can try to do something he learned about one day in his youth.
Well… there was no harm in doing so. It's just a small magic trick. "Hey Nanako, look at this…" he called her attention to his fingers, where he had placed the rubbed band on his index finger and middle finger. Without her noticing, he had also hooked it on his ring finger and pinky.
Nanako looked at him curiously. "What're you doing?"
Yu smiled and then opened up the hand he hand closed lightly, causing the rubber band to spring off his index and middle finger, instantly moving over to his ring finger and pinky… though he soon realised that Nanako saw only part of the trick.
Still, she was delighted at what she saw anyway. "I saw it! It went like, zoom! Do it again! One more time!"
Chuckling, Yu repeated the magic trick again for his cousin. Nanako laughed cheerfully, wanting to try it out too. "Okay, my turn now!"
…The night continued with a lighter mood.
~*~*~*~*~*~…~*~*~*~*~*~
With a small smile on her lips, Yui went her room after putting Nanako to sleep since her uncle wasn't home for the day. She had to put her suit in the washer since it got wet in the rain, and she let her school uniform hang on a hanger which she placed on a hook attached to the door of her room.
All in all, today was an exhausting day.
She began to prepare her futon for the night since the fatigue in her body was growing unbearable, yet had to pause when her phone rang. Probably her grandfather's secretary calling her… she answered it with a lower voice, nonetheless. "Hello?"
"Yui, it's me. Just calling to say that I arrived in Tokyo already."
"Well, that took you long enough..." Yui quietly laughed. "Will you be telling the results to my grandfather tomorrow?"
"You know the answer to that by now… but I think you did well today."
"…Thank you. I'm going to go to sleep now, Mr. Tadashi. Good night."
"Ah, alright. Good night, Yui."
Ending the call there, Yui yawned and put her phone down nearby before continuing to prepare her futon. Two days from now would be the camp… and Kanji would be there too, but she will be with Yosuke, Chie and Yukiko since they were second-years while he was a first-year. She was scared of what he might ask… but that is not how a Narukami deals with things.
This little problem will be but a memory once she does solve it. Somehow.