Chapter 6: Raingear
Konata and Miyuki, for the first time, saw an angry Tsukasa—not the type that they always see everyday. She was geared up with raingear—raincoat, umbrella, and rain boots. Somehow, the mass media shaped her from an innocent young girl to a determined dog that would seek out someone in trouble. If anyone was going to rescue Kagami from danger, it was Tsukasa.
"Tsukasa-san, please be reasonable." Miyuki said. "What if the rain gets stronger again?"
"Even if it rains fireballs, I will go." An absolutely serious Tsukasa answered.
"You can't go outside. You might get hurt."
"I'm sorry Yuki-chan…but at times like these, my sister is top priority."
She spoke no more and ran outside the subtle drizzle. Now there were two one-man teams in search for Kagami. It just goes to show how much she loves her twin sister as much as vice versa. The problem got so intense; it caused changes in her personality. What Konata and Miyuki just saw was a different kind of Tsukasa—determined, hardheaded, courageous, and not to mention scary even. That other side of hers lay dormant throughout her lifetime. The recent report of a schoolmate being electrocuted triggered its release. Imagine the power of the mass media to shape one's opinion…its power is definitely undeniable. At first she cried a river then the next thing her friends knew, she was not the Tsukasa they knew so much. If anything were to happen to her, they would feel responsible for letting her go in the subtle drizzle which could turn nasty again anytime.
Both of them could do nothing but hope that she would return safe and sound.
"Oh no, I'm too late!" A distressed Inori hurried down the stairs and talked to the two. "She's going to get herself ill in the rain."
"What made her act that way?" Konata stressfully asked.
"I have no idea. She couldn't sleep so I sung a lullaby to calm her nerves. All of a sudden, she grabbed her raingear in the closet and went downstairs like an angry girl. By the looks of things, she's going to attempt to look for Kagami."
"Hmm…this is pretty disturbing."
"I know! What will I tell mom and dad?"
"No, I'm not thinking about Tsukasa's actions. This is more about Kagami."
"W-What do you mean?"
"Lately she has been acting weird. Afterwards, these problems pop up like daisies."
"What are you trying to imply?"
"Hmm…no, it can't be…"
"What is it?"
"Kagamin may be the source of all this."
A quick flash of lightning followed by a shuddering sound of thunder happened. Miyuki couldn't speak not because of the sudden flash and shudder but by what Konata had concluded.
What she said might be correct. As stated before, if she hadn't gone back to school to see if Hajime was still there, this mess wouldn't happen entirely. If she had said everything about her existing love relation with the upperclassman, friends could provide various effective solutions. Hence, it was a bad move from the start…a bad move that would leave her regretting the rest of her life.
To say "if Hajime didn't confess to Kagami about his feelings and emotions, none of these problems would've existed in the first place" is in its entirety wrong. He had said what he wanted to say all this time. It wasn't intended to let her down; at the same time it wasn't also intended to boost her morale. It was solely intended to express what he had been hiding because it isn't good to keep something in secrecy (except close pals' secrets) especially when the door of opportunity is wide open. Kagami is also not to be blamed. She was confused because of the sudden outbreak of Hajime's words. It's natural for someone to be confused; even the wisest of the best and the best of the wisest. So who or what is to blame? What or who is the culprit in creating these series of unfortunate events that eventually led to morphing egos and intensifying conflicts? Most of all, is there really to blame?
Why do problems exist? Is it because of man's growing desire for the fundamentals? Is it because of false accusations made by warring delegates? Is it because of prioritization? It's ambiguous to answer any one of these questions. It has already assimilated to human life. In the case of romance, did love itself pave the way for problems to arise? Love is supposed to bond people together; "stick like glue" in leman's terms. But why did it backfire on Kagami and Hajime? Instead of love bringing them together, the result is the polar opposite. It even eluded her and eventually hurt herself in her confusion. Not only that; people outside the bounds of their romantic love are constantly being affected like in the case of the ego-altered Tsukasa.
Kagami felt like not saying "no" to the meeting at Sunday. She had learned her lesson the hard way. She was assisted by her two classmate buddies despite her inability to walk properly. As soon as they've reached the place where leather shoes were left, they faced another problem. Kuroi-sensei couldn't get the door to open.
"Shoot! I forgot that we're locked up." She grumbled. "Apparently, somebody didn't get the message that we're still here."
"Aw man, I'm really going to miss my favorite show!" Misao complained, kicking the closed door that almost shattered it.
"Watch it, Kusakabe! You'll pay for that!"
"Ah, sorry sensei…its just life is so not fair!"
"(You're not the only one who thinks like that.)"
Indeed, life is not fair…at least sometimes. On the other hand, life is very fair.
"I see something!" Ayano cried out as she saw a silhouette coming near them. "Or someone…"
"Kagami!" The silhouette shouted from afar but it was no use because the glass door was soundproof.
"What shall we do? We're locked down for the night." Ayano said.
"I'm going to try picking the lock with my hairpin. It should buckle open." A dumbfounded Kuroi-sensei responded.
"Um sensei, I know I'm not in a position to say this but—"
"—that only happens in espionage movies? Well stand aside little missy! This teacher's going to prove you wrong!"
Kuroi-sensei slowly inserted the hairpin inside the hole. Movie producers make this look easier in the big screen. But it isn't easy in real life. Ayano, although her teacher was the one speaking determinably, doubted such a measure. After a few minutes of lock picking, the lock clicked open and the teacher slid the door aside.
"I told you so." She said.
At the same time, it was Kagami's father to the rescue.
"Kagami, I'm glad that you're okay!" He breathed easily. "Come on, your mother and your friends are worried sick."
The drizzle still held the potential of becoming a rainstorm again. It was only a matter of time before the clouds launch a second assault with its faithful allies: lightning and thunder. It had been several hours since the disaster but together they were able to make it through. Now all that was left was to return to their respective homes before the rainstorm assault. Kagami was able to walk again after hours of temporary paralysis brought forth by lightning. She was one of the lucky few; unlike most of the victims who not only were given a chance to walk but also never got to see the light of day. Her father gave her his raincoat to shelter from the cold winds and drizzle. All of them were going to make it home safe and sound.
Little did they know…that someone was still out there…with the same primary objective.
In the case of little Tsukasa, a simple sound of an angry sky was enough to render her motionless. With no form of shelter nearby, she tucked herself against the wall under her umbrella. Despite her determination to rescue her elder twin from certain danger, the weather was just too much for her. To act like that is to prove something wrong. The sound of dripping rain touched her parasol. But under it a form of water was also dripping—tears. Tears came out flowing from her eyes and along her sweet rosy cheeks. At first she was very determined to bring her sister back safe and sound. She even reprimanded Konata and Miyuki for not believing in her declaration. Halfway across the road to school, she was shaky and cold despite her raingear. In the end, she was too cold to move on and warmed herself by tucking against a wall under her parasol. It was game over and she had lost the battle.
But not the war…
Kagami spotted Tsukasa all cold and scared of the continuous strikes of lightning. She offered her helping hand.
"Come on, Tsukasa, let's go home."
"Onee-san…"
"You proved yourself out here. I'm proud of you."
The feeling between twin sisters was sentimental. This kind of feeling was indestructible to the elements and immortal to those with hearts of gold. It was only in this that; close family ties still existed amidst problems the family was facing. Kagami showed great perseverance and the same could be said about Tsukasa. Despite differences, superiorities, and inferiorities they shared one mind in two ways: hold on until help arrives and get there no matter what. The latter may not have been proven however, it has been proven that it's possible even under the worst case scenario. They're worthy of being called twins despite their differences.
All of them went back to their respective homes. The father along with his two wonderful twins was welcomed with great esteem. Konata and Miyuki could now breathe easy. It was then that the night sky sent a fresh wave of lightning storms and rain showers as heavy as a few hours ago. Miyuki had something to say to one of tonight's two heroes: Tsukasa.
"I just want to apologize for not believing in you." Miyuki said. "I should've known you better."
"No I should be the one who should be saying sorry." Tsukasa replied. "I never made it to school because I was too afraid of the lightning."
"We're all very proud of you, Tsukasa-san. You came through even though you failed in your mission."
"Thank you, Yuki-chan…I feel much better now."
Konata, however, wasn't satisfied with only Kagami's return at all. Even if she was safe and sound, Konata had several questions waiting to be answered by the source of all these blunders.
"Is there something that you want to tell us, Kagamin?"
Everybody looked at Kagami. It was no use hiding it now.
"Actually, I have…I'm sorry for keeping this a secret."
"We're your friends. We share and keep."
"I didn't have the guts to unveil it to you all. I'm sorry for causing too much trouble."
"Ho, ho, ho; you're already a troublemaker from the start, Kagamin." Konata grinned humorously.
"You don't even care about anything at all, do you?!"
The rest of them laughed the night away with a big celebration—a celebration not only to celebrate heroism but also to celebrate the safe return of the lost. Kagami told everyone about Hajime Takashi and his feelings towards her. It really caught the attention of the audience. Miyuki also had something to confess; that Hajime is her cousin. It also caught the attention more than the Kagami's revelation.
"So you're scheduled to meet at Tokyo Tower on Sunday, am I right?" Miyuki asked.
"That's the place and time." Kagami answered.
"So when he was talking about his destiny found at school, he was talking about you."
"Destiny…?"
"If that's the case Kagami-san, then we're with you all the way!"
Kagami faced everybody with great joy and happiness. Once a gloomy ego dominated her heart but now that ego has been changed to something better than sorrow.
"Kagamin triggering a flag…?" Konata couldn't believe every word that passed along her two ears. "This I got to see."
"Onee-san, I'll support you in anyway I can. I can bake cookies for you to give to him." Tsukasa said.
"As long as you keep up your studies, you have our blessings." The father spoke formally.
From the start, it was really a big mistake to keep such a pressing issue away from the public audience. This gave her new hope—a new clean slate to write on the continuity of her life and a new hope for the betterment of everyone. At first she was all alone, trying to fight the battle herself—a losing battle right from the beginning. When she revealed her problem to everybody else, she gained a number of allies to fight for her cause. Indeed, the truth will set her free. It freed her from the shackles of loneliness and agony; and she was ready to start all over again this time with all the help that she could get her hands on.
"Okay that's settled. Let Operation: Kagami's Flag commence!" Konata shouted with overflowing enthusiasm.
"You're overdoing it, Konata!" Kagami exclaimed.
END OF ACT I
TO BE CONTINUED