Chapter 5

The drawing was really coming along nicely. Inspired by that afternoon at the café with Tsukasa and Mitsuha, Taki had been working on a sketch of the three of them for over a week now. Well, it had graduated from 'sketch' quite a while ago, somehow developing into an incredibly detailed line drawing.

Usually when drawing something like this you would outline the scene, then progressively add more detail, slowly bringing the entire frame together. This piece had certainly not followed those rules. He'd made a very rough sketch of the setting, then immediately went to town on Mitsuha's hair of all things. Realising how odd the sight was, Taki had decided to complete a more in-depth rendering of the rest of the girl's form, which left him with the unique sight of a single girl laughing alone in a barely recognisable assortment of vague shapes and lines.

Eventually deciding to just do things his own way, the next few days were focused on completing the three of them and the table they were sitting at, before expanding outward and solidifying the remainder of the café. Last night he'd remembered about the window he'd sketched in (it was so faint he could barely see it) and ended up adjusting almost everything to make the lighting more consistent.

On a whim, Taki opened a drawer and withdrew a thin folder. It was almost time to leave for school, but he wanted to take a quick look – at the sketches he'd made of Itomori six months ago. They used to be pinned up all over the walls, covering every spare square inch of his bedroom walls, but he took them down and stored them away eventually. For some reason, the way he was working on this piece at the moment reminded him of back then, when he'd made those sketches. There was definitely a link between Mitsuha, Itomori and the incident with the comet, it was almost certain.

Looking at the time on his phone, Taki dropped the open folder on a free corner of his desk, grabbed his bag, tied his shoes and slipped out the door with a quiet 'click' as it shut behind him. Perhaps he would see her on the subway again today. It was very unlikely actually – the trains came every two or three minutes and were so crowded you could even be in the same carriage without noticing each other. Still, he could dream, couldn't he?

It was strange, now that he thought about it. They barely interacted despite being in the same class, but it didn't feel deliberate or awkward. It was more like they were both comfortable in not getting especially close. They shared something intimate that they didn't quite understand, and somehow that feeling of closeness stuck with them just by being in the same room together. Initially, Taki hadn't wanted to push his own agenda onto Mitsuha, but now that she'd settled in and they had confirmed that they really did know each other there was no need for that excuse anymore.

It was finally time to unleash his inner, impulsive, act-first-think-later self! And with that revelation, all thoughts of Mitsuha vanished. They would return when they were needed – such was the Tachibana way.

〈◆〉

Taki walked into class 3-2, looked around the room, thought 'wrong classroom', backed out the door, walked a few metres down the hall and entered class 3-3. He'd arrived a little early, so the room was only around half-full. Dropping his bag onto his desk, Taki walked over to Tsukasa (who always arrived early) and decided to make some small talk.

"Hey Tsukasa."

"Good morning, Taki. You're here earlier than usual." Tsukasa was already getting out his books and pencil case, always the prepared and diligent student. Taki casually sat down in front of him, sitting backwards at the currently empty desk.

"I guess I walked faster than I thought. I didn't expect you to be here actually, you've been pretty busy with student council stuff. What's going on?" Tsukasa had been in the student council since his first year and was one of the most responsible and reliable students in the school. He always got a bit too invested in his work, so it was up to Taki to make sure he didn't go overboard.

"Ah, that. Unfortunately, some official positions have still not been filled." His voice suddenly sounded tired.

"But weren't the elections in February? You know, to make sure there's enough time to do the transfer and everything?" Taki had voted for Tsukasa of course, as he had run for vice-president for the second year in a row. "I thought that would all be sorted by now."

"Two people pulled out last week, and most of the others who were running for those positions are no longer interested. To make matters worse, class reps must be chosen by tomorrow, which will mean a proper meeting sometime next week, despite not even having a full council. Well, we'll be quorate at least…"

"So, you're saying that on top of filling positions that should have already been filled two months ago, the council is also going to have to introduce a whole load of new reps into the group?"

"Yes, as all the first-year reps will need a full induction. We've been given permission to take as much time off as we need over these first few weeks to make sure everything is sorted out. And the karate, literature and art clubs haven't completed their club registration forms yet."

"Sounds like hard work." Taki had never been interested in the school's politics – it was mostly hidden from view, and almost nothing they did directly affected him in any major way. They were in charge of organising various events, dealing with the clubs (including annual club budgets) and voicing students' concerns to the staff. Besides, he was pretty busy with his job most of the time, so didn't really have the energy to spend on a mock government mostly run by inept teenagers. Tsukasa excluded, of course.

"Good morning, Hiraoka." Taki turned his head at the sound of a chair being pulled back, as the recipient of Tsukasa's greeting took her seat.

"Good morning, Fujii. Tachibana." They met eyes briefly, and any warmth from either of the two evaporated instantly.

"Hiraoka." Some things never change.

"Actually…I have something to ask you, Tachibana." Now this was interesting indeed – perhaps Mitsuha's friendliness was rubbing off on her? Taki was sceptical, though.

"…what is it?"

Hiraoka leaned in slightly, quickly glancing at Tsukasa before posing her question. "There's something I've been thinking about, and I think it's in both our interests to find out."

"…okay…" Now she really was making him nervous. "This isn't a business meeting, you know. You can just ask." Even Tsukasa was looking a little confused.

"Alright, then. How much do you know about-" Just then, Hiraoka's eyes darted towards the door and she stopped in mid-sentence. "Never mind, I'll ask you later." Turning his own head, Taki saw Mitsuha had just entered the classroom and was walking towards them with an impish smile.

"Wow, Taki-kun and Akira-chan getting along! It's a miracle, rivalry becoming friendship!"

"Don't call me that!"
"We're not friends!"

The two synchronised outbursts, followed by Tsukasa's and Mitsuha's bouts of laughter, quickly attracted the attention of the rest of the classroom, which by now was almost full. Taki and Hiraoka turned away from each other with a huff, which was difficult as Taki was still sitting backwards and had nothing to look at but a blank wall, while Hiraoka was forced to look towards the rest of the staring class, cheeks reddening by the second.

"Also, Taki-kun, you're sitting in my seat." Mitsuha was smiling as Taki's awkward face looked up at her own.

"Right, sorry. I'll…just…go…" Taki stumbled over his words as he got up and walked past Mitsuha to his own seat, nearer the front of the room. Mitsuha took his place, a grin still on her face. Taki looked back and shared a look of exasperation with Hiraoka, then sat down and pulled out his things. It was only a moment later that the teacher entered, and the first class of the day began.

〈◆〉

"Want to eat in here, Tsukasa? Takagi's busy so he won't be joining us." Usually the three of them – Taki, Tsukasa and Takagi – would eat together somewhere else, but now that they were split across two classes it was more practical to just eat in the classroom if Takagi wasn't coming.

"Sorry Taki, I've got more student council stuff. I'll be back for afternoon lessons…probably." And with that, Tsukasa packed his stuff and left, leaving Taki standing next to his friend's empty desk with lunch in hand. Guess I'm eating by myself then. I wonder if it's too cold to eat on the roof…

"You can eat with us." Just as he was turning to go, Mitsuha spoke to him. Of course, she sat right in front of Tsukasa, so she'd overheard them quite clearly.

"Well…if you don't mind." Taki's eyes slipped towards Hiraoka, who was currently looking daggers at her unconcerned friend. "But I don't think that-"

"Hiraoka doesn't mind."

"Hey, you don't speak for me!" She turned her glare on him, and Taki mentally recoiled slightly. A few seconds passed, and just as Taki was about to excuse himself, she spoke again. "Well? Sit down already. Don't you know it's rude to eat while standing up?" Since that seemed to be the most approval he was going to get, Taki reluctantly sat down at Tsukasa's vacant desk and unpacked his food, starting some casual conversation as he did so.

"So…how are you fitting in? I mean, you seem to be doing fine from what I can tell, but how are you finding the school? Or just life in general, I guess." Taki began to eat as Mitsuha put down her chopsticks to answer. The two girls had pushed their desks closer together and turned their chairs to face each other; Mitsuha now angled herself almost completely backwards to talk to Taki, her food in her lap. Hiraoka just continued eating, pretending not to be paying attention.

"It's really great here, way better than Ikebukuro. Everyone's friendly and accommodating, I feel like I'm already part of the school even though I still barely know my way around. It's crazy how fast I made friends here – like you guys." Mitsuha smiled sincerely at her two friends, and any lingering tension between Hiraoka and Taki dispersed. "That wasn't something I was expecting."

"It's kind of overwhelming, though. Since I moved from- where I used to live, to the city, I've got more used to the crowds and noise and all that, but going to school in the middle of Shibuya makes that little corner of Ikebukuro feel almost slow. And compared to the country, it's like everything is running at triple speed."

"Do you miss it?" This time it was Hiraoka asking. "Is there anything you miss from Gifu?" Ah, so she's from Gifu prefecture, huh? I didn't know. But that's where Itomori is, isn't it? It's right next to Hida. He had nothing but a gut feeling to go on – but then, wasn't that all he'd ever had? And if Mitsuha had the same feeling then it couldn't be discounted.

"Yeah, some things," Mitsuha sighed. "I miss my friends. I miss my house, Japanese-style with tatami floors and sliding doors. The openness, the mountain, the lake… I miss how clean the air is – you have no idea how dirty this city is until you smell true fresh air. …I miss the stars."

Her head was tilted slightly forward, and her food lay almost untouched. But then Mitsuha smiled, and there was something reluctantly bittersweet about it.

"But there are plenty of things I don't miss at all. I've wanted to live in Tokyo my whole life, and now that I'm here, I'm finding it's not exactly what I'd imagined. But I wouldn't change a thing…no, that's not true. There is one thing I did change." And with that, Mitsuha stopped talking and started eating, leaving Taki and Hiraoka with more questions than they had started with…but a lot of answers, too. For unbeknownst to them, both were thinking exactly the same thoughts.

〈◇〉

Mitsuha had said something weird again, she could tell from her friends' faces. So after a few mouthfuls of food, she decided to change the subject. "So Tsukasa is quite busy with the student council? What position is he?"

"He's vice president, and yeah, he's really busy at the moment," Taki explained.

"Plus there was that mess of an election last year. Some people have dropped out, the spineless weeds. Honestly, if you're going to run for a position don't resign before you even start it!" Hiraoka seemed unusually upset, as she stabbed at her food. "It's really irresponsible of them."

"Yeah, Tsukasa mentioned that to me this morning. He also said there are some clubs that haven't filled out their initial registration form for the year, which is weird as most clubs have already met at least once."

Mitsuha perked up at Taki's last statement. "Could one of those clubs be the literature club, perhaps?" Taki nodded, surprised. "We didn't get to meet on Monday because the teacher – I still don't know who it is, actually – cancelled the meeting. Apparently you need them to be there for at least the first meeting."

Hiraoka nodded in agreement. "That's right, they need to be present for the first and last meetings of the year, for administration-related reasons. That still doesn't excuse the form not being handed in, though, since it's supposed to be handed in before the first day of term. It's just proof that the club is actually running this year, so technically you're not supposed to meet until it's been verified by the council."

Taki nodded. "I remember Tsukasa getting annoyed about that last year – I think there was a new club that never filled in a registration form, so nobody even knew they existed for months, and they didn't get any funding for any of their activities." He turned towards Mitsuha. "So you've joined the literature club? Their poetry book for last year's cultural festival was pretty good."

"It was mediocre at best," Hiraoka interjected, more for the sake of disagreeing with Taki than actually contributing to the conversation. "Besides, Mitsuha doesn't want to write for them. Unless you've changed your mind?"

"No, I still don't want to do any writing. I've never written before, so I'm sure I'll be terrible." Mitsuha could see Taki was about to interrupt her, so she continued on quickly. "Besides, I'm only joining to read. That's all. I'll help out in other ways of course, but not by writing." Taki reluctantly backed down – it was clear he was going to give her the usual line, "How do you know if you've never tried before?" but Mitsuha was just not interested, that much was clear.

"So do you want to do literature at university?" Taki asked.

"I don't know. I'm good at it, so I suppose it's one option. But I'm not really sure what I want my career to be, or if I'm even that interested in Japanese language or literature. I mean, I'm definitely interested, but I don't really read as much as I used to, and I don't know what I can do with a degree in it." Mitsuha hadn't given the subject as much thought as she should have; given that it was her final year of high school, she needed to make a decision quickly. "What about you guys?"

Hiraoka answered first, to both Mitsuha's and Taki's surprise. "I'm going to study medicine and become an oncologist."

"A what?" The other two asked in sync. Oncology…Mitsuha had no idea what the word meant. "'-ology' means 'study of' in Latin, right? So you're studying…no, I have no idea." Taki looked surprisingly at her, clearly impressed by her deduction. Maybe I am cut out for literature after all…but Latin won't help me much with Japanese…

"It's the study of cancer. I've got the grades, may as well do something useful with them. And before you ask, it's not because someone I know died of cancer or something. I just don't want to get to fifty years old and realise I haven't actually contributed anything to the world. I saw this kid on TV, he was only three years old and yet…it's not fair. The world's not fair. So I want to make it at least a little bit fairer."

"Wow…I had no idea you were such a philanthropist, Hiraoka! That's a wonderful goal!" Mitsuha smiled at her friend. To want to help people, that was an admirable dream. "I wish I knew what I wanted to do…what about you, Taki?" Both girls' eyes turned to Taki.

"I want to become a landscape architect and bring some more of the country into the city, and leave good memories of Tokyo for the people of Japan." He smiled wanly. "I know it sounds cheesy, but you never know when this city might just disappear."

Mitsuha was moved. You never know when this city might just disappear. Those words resounded deeply with her. She had witnessed the complete destruction of her hometown. Looking behind her and seeing the wave of force and destruction coming towards her, knocking her clean off her feet, and returning a few weeks later to survey the damage…it had saddened her at her very core. Mitsuha had denied a lot of Itomori – its heritage, culture and history were on her shoulders and she had wanted to simply escape from it all. But there was one thing she couldn't deny – it had been her home. Her beautiful, irreplaceable home. If Tokyo were to disappear tomorrow – that feeling was one she knew, and wished upon nobody else.

A tear came to her eye, and Mitsuha raised her hand to brush it away. She looked up to see the faces of Hiraoka and Taki looking at her, concerned yet…understanding. Do they know? Maybe it isn't such a big deal after all. "Sorry guys, I didn't mean to cry. You just took me by surprise. Both of you have such wonderful dreams, and all I have is something I want to run away from." Then she felt the light touch of Taki's hand on one arm, and Hiraoka's on the other.

"Don't worry about it. I'm sure you'll find your calling one day, we just found ours a little earlier than you did."

"Just take your time and figure yourself out. That's what'll tell you who you want to be."

Mitsuha smiled and began to chuckle. "Thanks, really. I'm glad I met you two."

〈◇〉

The rest of the lunch hour passed with idle chatter. Mitsuha was glad to see Hiraoka and Taki getting along a little more, and the atmosphere stayed relaxed. Tsukasa finally returned near the end of lunch, followed moments later by next class' teacher. Afternoon lessons were kicked off and the day proceeded as normal. Mitsuha anxiously glanced outside the window every few minutes as the end of the day neared, but thankfully the sky stayed clear of grey clouds.

Finally, the last class of the day ended, and Mitsuha quickly packed her things. Waving goodbye to Hiraoka and Tsukasa, and briefly catching Taki's eye, she left the room and navigated her way through the school to class 2-1. Now that she knew where she was going, Mitsuha arrived while the corridors were still lively. Seeing some students inside, Mitsuha wasn't sure whether they were from the literature club or if that was actually their classroom and they were yet to leave. Then someone near the centre of the room turned, and she recognised the short, long-haired girl to be Kana, the girl who had so readily accompanied her to the station on Monday.

Mitsuha stopped loitering in the doorway and entered the room, moving directly to the desk next to Kana's. Behind her, a few more chatting students followed her in, and none of the students present left; it seemed they were all here for the club. In one rear corner she could make out the boy who had manned the stall at the club activities fair, a book open on his desk. Kana finally noticed Mitsuha's presence and beamed at her, her face practically shining.

"Mitsuha! You came!" Kana's eager voice brought a smile to Mitsuha's face. "There was nothing written on the board this time, so hopefully the meeting is still on."

"It's got a lot warmer since this morning and no hint of a grey sky." Mitsuha could see the sky out the window from over Kana's head – if anything, the weather seemed to be deliberately trying to make up for earlier in the week. "I've been praying for no rain the whole afternoon, I guess it worked."

"You and me both!" Kana motioned for Mitsuha to take a seat and she complied, setting her bag down on a free desk to the right of Kana's. Looking over her shoulder, Mitsuha could see more students entering the room and sitting down apparently randomly. The hallway was beginning to empty, and the room was around three-quarters full.

"So, what happens now?" Mitsuha asked Kana. At the moment the room looked like a normal class, with students sitting down and chatting. Shouldn't something be happening?

"The club president will be here soon, and she'll start things. Sensei will come in a bit since she's probably just taught a lesson and all." Kana explained. "At least, that was how it worked last year. Usually though, we just relax and talk for a bit before the pres announces anything special for the day, but it's almost always just discussion and feedback on whatever we've read recently. Oh, here she is."

Mitsuha was surprised to see a tall, foreign girl walk into the classroom and shut the door behind her. She had a graceful air to her, and a body most Japanese girls would be envious of. However, the most striking feature was her blonde hair tied in a ponytail that fell slightly wavily down between her prominent shoulder blades. From her face, she seemed to be half-Japanese and half-European, although where exactly she was from Mitsuha couldn't even begin to guess.

Then the girl began to speak, and the room immediately fell silent. From her lips came such harmonious, natural and perfect Japanese that nobody could bring themselves to continue talking over her.

"Good afternoon, and welcome to the literature club," she began, smiling to the assembled students and meeting their eyes one by one, as if speaking to each one individually. "I apologise for the cancellation of the inaugural meeting; this was because Yukino-sensei, the supervisor for this club, was unable to attend, and the supervisor's presence is mandated on both the first and last meetings of each academic year. She is currently in the staff room and will be here shortly."

Mitsuha was extremely impressed, and slightly ashamed – the few foreigners that had visited Itomori were always tourists, speaking more with their cameras than their mouths, and the Japanese they did speak was often broken and butchered; as such, Mitsuha had not expected much of her when she first entered the room. However, it was clear that she had a natural affinity and eloquence for language far beyond most adults. It was only fitting that a girl with such a fabulous command of Japanese should be head of the literature club.

"My name is Kimura Erina, but please just call me Erina. I will be serving as president of this club until next year. This is actually my classroom, so if you have any queries outside the usual meetings, you know where to find me. I hope to serve you well this year." Erina bowed deeply, and Mitsuha had to fight the urge to bow back, sitting down as she was.

"Firstly, I'll just take some time to outline the objectives of the literature club, as well as the main activities we will be carrying out this year.
"The aim of this club is to promote an interest in reading and literature of all types, although we will as usual be focusing on contemporary and traditional Japanese novels and poetry. Of course, other languages and forms of literature are encouraged, but these formats are the most accessible and discussable.
"The first activity we carry out here is actually one that is generally not done during club meetings, and that is reading. Although it is fine to read during meetings, it is encouraged to read at home or elsewhere and spend the time here in discussion, which leads me to the second activity of the literature club: discussing literature. We usually have two groups discussing what they have read, one group having agreed to read a certain amount of a certain book between each meeting, and the other simply discussing whatever they've been reading recently.
"Out third main activity is writing, something not all members are too keen on at first. Along with consuming literature, we also produce it. We usually have a third group for writers, which exchange ideas and, if they wish, review each other's work. The literature club also produces a book each year for the cultural festival in November; last year we wrote and sold a book of poetry with the theme of 'bittersweet' and recited some of the poems at the festival. We also encourage all members to review anything they read and add it to the club website, which unfortunately not many people know exists, so please do visit it and spread the word.
"That's all the essentials – does anyone have any questions?"

One boy at the front raised his hand, and Erina motioned for him to ask his question. "What book are you – that is, the club – reading at the moment?" This was something on Mitsuha's mind too, as it would tell her a lot about what kind of style the club liked – depending on what they tended to read, she may not be sticking around for too long. But Erina's answer was more than satisfactory.

"The club collectively decides which books it wants to read, which could mean no designated books, or multiple, depending on what its members want. Ideally the decision will be made by the end of today, and the club may be able to subsidise any book purchases if the chosen book, or books, are difficult to obtain through local libraries. This club is very much the sum of its parts – although I am president in name, I do little to decide on the club's activities, as that responsibility falls on the shoulders of every member equally. My responsibilities are mostly administrative, I must say, so it really is the people's choice."

"Any other questions?" The room stayed silent and no hands were raised, so Erina continued. "Very well, we just need to wait for sensei to arrive and then we can begin properly. Thank you for your attention." She bowed once again, and there was a spattering of applause that finished before Mitsuha could begin to clap herself. The room began to fill with the buzz of conversation and Mitsuha turned to Kana sat beside her.

"Isn't she awesome? You can see why we chose her to be president, can't you? And she's a second-year!" Kana whispered excitedly.

"Second-year? Wow, I thought she was older." Mitsuha glanced around before leaning closer towards Kana. "And she's so pretty. When I saw her, I didn't expect her to be so incredibly fluent, either. It was a real surprise." She spoke very quietly, but needn't have bothered as the volume of the surrounding students had increased and Erina had already left the room, probably in search of the teacher.

"I know, right? She's the only foreigner – or rather, half-Japanese – at this whole school, as far as I know. Her parents are Japanese and Irish, but she lived in Sweden until middle school. That makes her trilingual at least, it's amazing! And she's just so charismatic, you'll see." It truly was amazing – Mitsuha had had to adapt quickly to the almost overwhelming number of foreign faces once she'd moved to Tokyo, and Shibuya being such a tourist attraction made for even more languages, colours and cultures blending together. Most were from China or America, but she wouldn't be able to point out Sweden or Ireland out on a map if her life was on the line, so for her the beautiful, well-spoken girl was a real source of wonder. Just once of the many differences between her tiny village by the lake and one of the largest cities in the world.

The door opened and Erina walked back in, followed by a teacher Mitsuha could only assume was…Yukino-sensei…

Short dark hair, a slightly pointed chin, bright eyes, a while collared shirt with an open jacket rolled up her forearms…there was no doubt in Mitsuha's mind, this was Yukino Yukari, Mitsuha's literature teacher from Itomori.

She bowed and introduced herself, but Mitsuha couldn't hear a word. Caught like a rabbit in headlights, Mitsuha watched as Yukino-sensei and Erina moved around the class, handing out a piece of paper to each student, until finally her own desk was reached. Yukino put down the paper, looked up at Mitsuha's face, smiled, and paused, her face looking almost as surprised as Mitsuha's own.

"…Mi…Miyamizu?!"

"Hi, Yukino-sensei…how have you been?"

A/N

I watched The Garden of Words/Koto no Ha no Niwa recently, and this is the result. The idea to make Yukino Yukari (protagonist of The Garden of Words and Mitsuha's literature teacher in Kimi no Na wa.) comes from reviewer aysam . harits09, who suggested having her make a cameo in this story. Well, this goes a bit further than a cameo, but whatever. I really loved the film, and actually I had the idea to put Mitsuha in the literature club before receiving that idea, so it all worked out very nicely.

I was supposed to be a chapter ahead, but I'm not anymore, so any further delays (and by delays I mean laziness) will result in a delay on your end too…but hopefully I can get back on top of things by next chapter. Therefore, uploads will continue to occur thrice per two weeks, as usual. Thanks for reading!

Talndir