"Kyon, you must calm down." Koizumi said.

"I'll kill him." I growled.

"Please stop and think for a moment." Koizumi tried once again to calm me down. "Asahina brought us back here with what little strength she had left to make sure that Fujiwara does not have his way. Take a deep breath and let us devise a plan."

I did my best. I got off the ground and looked around. It was night, probably a summer night judging by the temperature. I stripped off my jacket and unbuttoned my shirt. Koizumi had done the same before me. We were in the middle of a street.

"Asahina had said that this was the only patch of the past open to travel." Koizumi said. "There must be a reason why we are here. Any clues Kyon?"

"We're in the same neighborhood." I said. "Does that help?"

Koizumi began looking around for any people. So did I, we were the only people standing outside.

"Kyon, who is that?" Koizumi said hiding behind a nearby car.

I also followed him behind the car. I understood why he was being so cautious. It would be troublesome if we were seen by the wrong people. There was indeed someone across the street, walking. The person passed through a patch of light from a street lamp. In the split second where the light properly illuminated the person I knew who she was.

"That's Haruhi." I said.

"Who? Are you sure Kyon?" Koizumi asked. "Her physique isn't what I remember."

"I think I know where we are." I said watching the solitary long black haired girl walking. "Let's follow her."

We tailed her as quietly as we could. Jumping from car to car, bush to bush, it kind of disturbed me how good Koizumi was at it.

"Can you tell me where we might be now?" Koizumi asked.

"There was this time where I went back three years ago to the past with Asahina." I recalled. "Then the Asahina from the future appeared and told me to go to a school and help the person at the front gate. That person happened to be Haruhi when she was in middle school."

"Three years ago?" Koizumi said.

"Today is Tanabata, and I think I know where Haruhi is going." I said as we continued to follow her.

Eventually we arrived in front of a school. It was the same school as I remembered it. Haruhi was attempting to jump the gate.

"We must act now." Koizumi said. "I have a feeling we must do exactly what you did the last time you travelled back into this time."

"How can you be so sure?" I asked.

"Three years ago… in the next few days I will begin to realize my abilities." Koizumi muttered. "I wonder…"

Koizumi stood up.

"This is our chance Kyon, to make the most important connection of them all. If we fail here, then it's all over." Koizumi said walking ahead.

Naturally I followed.

We approached Haruhi who was struggling to climb high enough to get over the fencing of the gate. She met eyes with me as we approached her. Her hair color was still black, long also. Just like the Haruhi in the reality.

"Hey, what are you going over there?"

"Don't try to stop me…" Haruhi said with a surprising lack of authority.

"Do not worry, we are here to help." Koizumi said.

"Why would you want to help me? I don't even know you people." She relied rather timidly.

This wasn't the Haruhi I remember meeting in the past. The best way I could describe her was that she was the younger version of the Haruhi in the reality. Of course this was a different past. The Haruhi here in a few years will become the lifeless Haruhi I saw back in the present time. I began to wonder, what kind of connections could possibly prevent her from becoming just that?

Haruhi continued to try and scale the gate. She obviously needed help with this first step of what I expect her grand plans were. We stood around patiently watching her. Eventually she realized that she really did need our help.

"Fine… you guys can help me." Haruhi finally said. "Get me over this fence."

Koizumi looked at me. That probably meant I was the one who had to go and help. It didn't even take a few seconds to get her over with my assistance. Haruhi almost lost her balance after she landed on the other side. In a few seconds she unlocked the gate and pushed it open from the inside.

"Can you help me a little more?" Haruhi asked us.

"Sure, anything." I replied.

"Good." She said walking ahead of us.

"How is it going Kyon? Just as you remember?" Koizumi asked me.

"No. the Haruhi I had met was the one from the old world. This Haruhi is the one from the reality."

"I suppose that makes a big difference." Koizumi said.

"Not too much so far." I said.

Haruhi led us into the school campus, a wide area of dirt for sports, gym classes and the like. It was the kind you find adjacent to any school. Haruhi disappeared into the darkness for a few minutes and then reappeared a few seconds later with a red line maker.

"Here." She said pushing it over to me.

"What do you want me to do with it?" I asked.

"I want you to draw whatever I tell you to draw, and how I want you to draw it." Haruhi informed. "Can you do it?"

Can I do it? When I did this with the old world Haruhi, she was a lot less considerate of my feelings. Up to now she's been asking me, not commanding. I knew that these were choices and these choices would allow me to back out any time I want if I didn't want to do it. Of course I will, what makes you think I won't?

Just like last time Haruhi shouted orders and I followed them. Koizumi had his own uses too. He was given the job of refilling the line maker with more powder and covering up any mistakes I made if I went too far or out of line.

It was unbearably warm given the fact that I was wearing winter clothes in summer weather. The only thing that stopped me was that I was in the presence of a little girl and Koizumi and I already looked like we just finished our shifts over at the host bar.

When we finally finished, Koizumi and I took seats on the stone steps next to court where Haruhi stood giving us orders. She looked out onto the completed work. Her silence made me wonder what she thought of it. Then again, I never really wondered why she had done it in the first place.

"Satisfied?" I asked.

"It's good enough." She replied.

A few moments passed. Haruhi was no longer looking at the message, but at the sky. These were a countless number of stars.

"Do you think aliens exist?" Haruhi suddenly asked.

I thought of what to say next. From as far as I can tell this was the most crucial point to make connections. Last time I was here, what I tell Haruhi here will decide which high school she does to. And at that high school she was going to tell everyone that she didn't give a damn about anyone unless they were an alien, time traveler, or esper. For some strange reason I still remember the worlds I spoke to the old Haruhi.

Then again, if I go through with this, I just might end up with the old Haruhi. Do I really want that?

"Why not?" I replied reluctantly.

"What about time travelers?"

"I wouldn't be surprised if they did."

"And espers?"

"Crawling all over the place I guess..." I smiled.

"and sliders?"

"I haven't met any yet…" I looked down at my hands questioning my normality. How many realities have I gone through now?

More silence.

"Why are you guys dressed like that in the middle of the night?" Haruhi asked.

"We work at a host bar. This is what we usually wear." I replied casually.

"What's your name?" Haruhi asked me.

"Charming General Person." I said.

"And you?" She said to Koizumi

"Crimson Superball. Koizumi smiled.

"What?..." Haruhi sighed in disbelief.

"Our host names. Pretty cool huh?" I said sarcastically.

"Yeah..." Haruhi said.

You have to be kidding me…

"So what is this? This thing you made me draw."

"It's a tanzaku."

This was different from the last time. She never mentioned anything about a tanzaku before.

"A tanzaku?"

"Yeah, you know, when you write wishes on paper and hang them up on a bamboo sprout." Haruhi explained. "You don't know this? Every Japanese person should."

"But don't you have to write it on paper." I said breaking my script.

"Does it really matter where you write it?" Haruhi said. "It's what you write that matters, more so the wish itself. Just write it where the stars can see it, and they'll grant them."

"Isn't this a little too much?" I asked considering the size of the message.

"Today is Tanabata." Haruhi stood up. "Obviously people all over Japan are writing their own wishes on little pieces of paper. My wish is far more important than theirs. So I decided to write it as big as I can! And I did!"

You mean I did…

"The stars can't ignore me now… they'll have to grant them this time…"

Haruhi stood up and began walking towards the gate.

"Where are you going?" I asked.

"I'm going home."Haruhi said. "And thanks for helping me today guys. I would have given up if you guys hadn't shown up."

It was dark, but I saw her smile at us right before she ran off. I sat there for a few minutes wondering if our job was done.

"Hey Koizumi." I said.

"Yes?" He asked.

"How do we get back to our own time?" I asked.

"Asahina would not leave us stranded like this now would she?" Kouzumi said.

"No I wouldn't" said a third voice.

To Our Beloved Readers: Alright, I know... It's be a crap load of time since I lasted updated the story. I have been extremely busy lately. You see, I just got into high school (a little secret). So I have been more sleep deprived than usual and it probably shows on this chapter right here. It's not as good as the others right? No? Well, that's up to you to decide. Either way, it's not just high school, I've also been working on a side project too, but since I finished that up I will be FULLY focusing on this story until something else pops up.

Please read "Blue" my new completed Haruhi Fanfic, you'll have lots of fun I SWEAR! I didn't take a break from this story for nothing you know! ㅠ.ㅠ

Thanks For Reading: LordPlagus777