The next day was a Thursday.

When looking at the events of this summer with hindsight and trying to pick a definite moment when things started to go awry I might be inclined to choose this day; of course, I couldn't see that by the time. Perhaps more than anything else my shortsightedness was caused by the fact that the threat to the recently achieved and much cherished balance came from a direction I could never have foreseen — but then again, based on the way in which everything eventually unraveled I must assume that neither could anybody else.

Indeed, it's quite probable that I wouldn't have believed it even if I had received a written statement from my future self, personally delivered by a certain adorable time traveler, so in the end my ignorance didn't even matter that much. Events proceeded with the inexorable force of a mountain glacier; all things considered, I sincerely believe that I did my best.

But all of that was still ahead, and my morning started with the loud noise of a door swinging open and hitting the wall, followed by a cheerful greeting.

"Good morning, Kyon-kun!"

My little sister rushed into the room in her pajamas and caught Shamisen from the bed before the cat got an opportunity to slip away. I rubbed my eyes and picked up the alarm clock, noticing that because of this unsolicited intrusion I had just missed ten minutes of perfectly fine sleeping time.

"Hey, what have I told you about knocking first?"

The impenitent intruder ignored my reproach and hugged the struggling cat. "Shami, Shami, a big, droopy cat-pillow! Why can't I have him with me while I sleep?"

"You toss and turn so much in your sleep that it would scare the cat away. Besides, he's not a pillow, and you better not try to use him as one or you'll get scratches."

"But he's so warm and soft!"

She took a couple of dance steps around the room until the fretfully protesting cat finally managed to escape from her smothering embrace and disappeared downstairs in a blur like a furry cruise missile. That didn't reduce my sister's overflowing vigor a bit.

"Anyway, get up, Kyon-kun! It's almost breakfast time! It's going to be a really fine day, and mom has promised to take me and Miyoko to the shopping center after school."

"Good for you. If you're feeling so energetic then why don't you go feed the cat and let me wake up at my own pace?"

My sister skipped out of the room singing some pop song that I didn't recognize, and I shut off the now redundant alarm clock. Oh boy, little sisters….

It was really hard to believe that my sister was as old as Miyoko, who had always been polite and mindful, behaving like somebody much older than her actual age; especially during this last year it had become rather evident that her body was also catching up in maturity. My sister, then, was in all respects her polar opposite. Despite their differences the two got along very well, and I could only hope that eventually some of Miyoko's admirable qualities would rub off on my sister as well.

I completed my morning routines and left for school a bit earlier than usual, deciding to spend the spare time by walking at a more leisurely pace. My sister had been right; although there was a thin layer of haze in the air it dissipated by the time I reached the top of the hill. Other than that it looked like we would be having another perfectly clear and sunny day.

Arriving at the classroom, I noticed that Haruhi had again been faster than me. She was looking out of the window as usual, but unlike yesterday there was a large sports bag under her desk. There wouldn't be PE today, so it had to be something else.

I greeted her the same way as every morning and sat on my own seat. As I rummaged through my school bag to find the proper book I suddenly became aware of a very meaningful, observant silence behind my back. However, I kept paying studious attention to the contents of my bag, almost certain of what would happen next; I was soon proven right. Is it possible that you're becoming predictable, Haruhi?

"Was that all you're going to say?"

I turned around to look at the person who had asked this question. She was resting her head on one hand and watching me intently, with a complex expression on her face. Anticipation, excitement and perhaps something else as well, in any case a definite step up from yesterday. I decided to try my luck.

"I see that you've brought an extra bag to school."

"True, but that's not what I meant."

"Well then, I seem to remember that it's the first day of shousho today."

"Probably true, but irrelevant."

"At least it can't be your birthday."

"Of course it isn't! Hey, wait a second…."

Haruhi furrowed her brow as she caught up with my little ploy. "You're doing this on purpose and know fully well which day it is today!"

"And what if I do? Doesn't it only mean that I'm getting better at predicting your inclinations, just as you have requested?"

"It's not nearly enough to just know about things, you should act on them, too! I should give you five points of demerit for a deliberate lack of effort!"

As long as Haruhi's reward points weren't accepted as legal tender by any institution I was aware of I couldn't really care about the balance sheet of my account. Besides, even if Haruhi tried to look annoyed I could tell that she really wasn't; quite obviously, she had some idea that she wasn't willing to share as of yet, and that was making her so excited that she could barely sit still.

It looked like Tsuruya had been right in assuming that Haruhi was planning something. Oh well, I could only hope that it wouldn't be anything too bothersome this time.

"Of course, as the leader of the brigade it's my responsibility to make sure that all the essential issues are properly taken care of, but it doesn't mean that I should be the one doing all the legwork! After vision and determination, the ability to delegate work is the most important aspect of leadership."

So much for that hope, then.

"However, like any reasonable leader, I wouldn't even dream of demanding more of my subordinates than what I demand of myself."

Saying something like that doesn't help at all! Nobody can keep up with your energy level, and you should know that by now.

"Nothing awesome ever happens if we don't make it happen. Just keep your eyes on the goal, and you'll find reserves that you weren't even aware of before."

Somehow, this pep talk was having the exactly opposite effect than intended. My concept of an ideal day didn't entail going for a limit break! Oh boy, it looked like I'd better start gathering those reserves right away.

"What's with the defeatist attitude? It's going to be fun!"

What is fun for Haruhi is all too often an experience somewhere between consternation and outright panic for everybody else, but I couldn't make an argument to that effect because at that moment Okabe-sensei arrived to start the homeroom session. As we stood up I could hear Haruhi muttering something behind my back, but I didn't pay much attention to it.

Nothing worth mentioning happened during the morning classes. After the initial conversation Haruhi hadn't been interested in talking about anything in particular; from the look of it the pensive spell had once again taken hold of her mind. The aura of anticipation that had been clearly visible at first had faded to the background; like an overcast day, only through the eyes of intuition could one see that somewhere behind the clouds the Sun was still shining and would eventually reveal itself again.

On a normal day, the beginning of the lunch break was marked by Haruhi bolting out of the class to get a good seat at the cafeteria. That's why I was genuinely surprised when this time I couldn't hear the usual clatter behind my back as the bell rang. I turned my head and saw that Haruhi was again staring out of the window without any apparent intent to leave the room. She noticed my questioning look and turned to face me.

"Not hungry."

"Then you won't mind if I eat here?"

"Go ahead."

I picked up my bento box and turned the chair so that I could talk with Haruhi while eating. Taniguchi and Kunikida who usually joined my company during the lunch break saw the situation and decided that it was in their best interest to stay out of it; I wasn't going to blame them for that.

Haruhi pinched a prune from my bento and started to chew it while looking at me appraisingly.

"Say, Kyon, do you ever wonder why you do the things you do?"

That came out of nowhere!

"Just answer the question."

Honestly, there were days when most of my time was spent doing exactly that, and the person directly responsible for this state of affairs was sitting in front of me right now! However, I sensed an unusual degree of sincerity in Haruhi's voice as if the question had some specific significance to her; the snappy retort I had in mind suddenly started to feel out of place, and I decided to try something else.

"I guess that introspection is a completely human trait. There are even schools of meditation based on that, which tells us that it should be beneficial to be mindful of one's own motives."

"I wasn't expecting something that abstract."

Haruhi shuffled her hands before continuing.

"I've noticed that some of the things I used to look forward to feel rather insignificant now, and instead, some other things have become more important. Shouldn't important things stay important regardless? Otherwise, aren't they something that only looks important but really isn't? Or maybe it's just that the new things are even more important than the old ones?"

Haruhi was having second thoughts? Now that was exquisite!

"We should be able to trust our intuition by default, but if it changes over time then isn't there a danger of veering off course? Even a tiny error can grow over time until it becomes too large to neglect. Therefore we should always have a clear goal to strive for."

And she was accusing me of being too abstract?

"And even then, if we just do whatever we've always done, then doesn't it mean that we're not truly free, and are held prisoner by our own habits instead? Shouldn't we face each challenge as if we were seeing everything the very first time, without any prejudices? Isn't that the only way to avoid getting stuck in a rut?"

I looked at the girl who seemed to be lost in her thoughts and realized that her words had managed to take me by surprise. There wasn't any question about it — Haruhi was growing up. The difference between her and the singularly assertive girl from one year ago who didn't even get the whole concept of introspection was so great that anybody could see that; apparently now even Haruhi herself.

She had been isolated from all social contacts for so long that she hadn't had any points of reference for comparison; her own opinion had been the absolute truth for her, and she had even been unable to grasp the fact that somebody else didn't see things the same way she did. Now that Haruhi had friends again her worldview was being challenged by all the new experiences. She had to catch up with everything that she had been missing, even if the process was difficult.

I knew that she would succeed because I had seen it with my own eyes. Or rather, she was succeeding already.

But what should I reply? There had been too many difficult questions, and all the answers that came to my mind felt too trite and callous for the occasion. Why couldn't these situations ever come with a warning so that I could be better prepared?

At that point I noticed that I had been trying so hard to find a good reply that I had stopped eating.

Haruhi was looking at me with an amused expression on her face. "Aren't you going to finish your lunch?"

It's your fault that I got distracted.

Haruhi chuckled at my excuse, and her mood seemed to improve. Maybe she hadn't even expected any specific answers to her questions, and was just happy to have somebody listening when she talked about them. If these were the kind of thoughts she had been mulling over recently then it wasn't any wonder that she had felt somewhat low in spirits.

Haruhi didn't return to the issues she had just mentioned, but kept talking idly about other things. I learned that she was still tutoring that bespectacled boy from her neighborhood and was really proud of his progress. Who knows, maybe she'd really have wanted to have a little brother?

Anyway, it looked like the situation had normalized, at least for the time being, and I was tempted to hope that the rest of the day would go just as smoothly.

This just underlines the fact that sometimes I can still sorely underestimate Haruhi's abilities.

When the last class of the day neared conclusion I suddenly noticed a critical weakness in the idea I had gotten yesterday. If Haruhi ran off as soon as the class was over it would spoil the whole thing, but if I tried to stop her she would become suspicious, and that would be just as bad. Damn, why hadn't I thought about it earlier so that I could've come up with some excuse to keep her with me until we got to the club room?

I was still trying to find an acceptable solution to this problem when the bell rang, but to my immediate relief Haruhi didn't have any intent to leave. Instead, she chose a book from her bag.

"Don't forget that the term end exams start on Monday. From now on, we'll have to double the effort in order to get you through with passable grades."

We spent the next ten minutes by studying English prepositions, a topic that wouldn't have been that inspiring even without other pressing issues in my mind. However, I couldn't think too much about the awaiting problem, as Haruhi noticed my lack of concentration and demanded that I should pay more attention.

Once we were done with the topic Haruhi grabbed her bag and announced: "Okay, let's go to the club room, the others must be waiting already. Take the sports bag as well."

So, I didn't have to find any excuse after all. It looked like it was my lucky day today!

I lifted the bag and noticed that it was rather heavy.

"What have you got in here, bricks?"

"Never mind the content, just remember that it's fragile. Be careful so that you don't break anything!"

Haruhi marched through the corridor in long strides, and I tried to keep up with her pace. That was easier said than done on any normal day, and doubly so with my burden. It was quite fortunate that our class was much closer to the club room now. Besides, I could hardly complain, since everything seemed to be working as well as one could hope.

After the last flight of stairs Haruhi slammed the club door open and stormed into the room with all the confidence of a feudal lord returning to his castle, shouting her usual cheerful greeting that didn't contain any hint of that recent streak of pensive reflection that I had noticed. I followed in her tracks, carrying the extra baggage, and almost bumped into Haruhi when she suddenly stopped cold, her attention drawn to an object that was occupying a prominent place on the brigade chief's table.

"What's that?"

Looks like a bamboo to me.

"I know that it's a bamboo, but who brought it here? Mikuru-chan?"

Asahina-san, who had been setting up her tea brewing equipment, looked genuinely puzzled. "Um … it was here when I arrived today, but not yesterday when we left, and I was the last one to leave because I had to change clothes…."

Haruhi turned her gaze to Koizumi who shrugged apologetically. "I must admit that this issue has grabbed my interest as well, but alas, at the moment I am not able to provide any insight into it."

When Nagato sensed that she was the next and probably last person on the list of Haruhi's potential suspects she just shook her head slightly without even raising her gaze from the book that she was reading.

Maybe somebody is concerned about the wellbeing of nearby plantings, and has decided to take preventive measures to reduce casual pillaging?

Hearing this, Haruhi turned around with a perplexed expression on her face, mouth halfway open but apparently unable to decide what to say. I put on my best deadpan impression. If this was going to reduce into a staring contest then my long and arduous training had not been in vain.

However, Haruhi rallied almost immediately, and confusion gave room to a devilishly triumphant grin that I knew all too well already because it indicated that she had just gotten a idea. She looked me directly in the eyes with ferocious intensity, like a bakeneko that had seen a new prey to toy with, and made an exclamation.

"You're right! It means that we are finally receiving recognition!"

I'm not sure whether that's the kind of recognition I'd be looking forward to.

Ignoring my comment, Haruhi rubbed her hands in glee and paraded through the room to her rightful place behind the computer table. Did she really accept my frivolous explanation just like that?

Quite frankly, the situation had momentarily been too close for comfort, which almost made me regret my earlier decision. Maybe I hadn't thought it all the way through, but it still seemed to be my lucky day since everything went well despite my lack of foresight.

I left the bags by the door and took my seat opposite Koizumi who watched me with poorly concealed interest. Keep looking as long as you want and figure it out yourself if you can, there won't be any additional explanations forthcoming!

Haruhi examined the latest decoration of the SOS club room carefully before giving it an approving nod.

"This bamboo is even better than the one we had last year! Very well, then, let's get this meeting started. As everybody should know by now, it's Tanabata today, and it's our responsibility to make it an unforgettable experience. We should start by reviewing last year's wishes before making any new ones. I've got the old tanzaku right here."

The old bamboo branch from last Tanabata had dried up between terms; it had been thrown away, but apparently Haruhi had decided to keep the tanzaku regardless of how pointless that was.

"Mikuru-chan, have you become better at cooking and sewing?"

"Um, I'm not sure, really. There's always room for improvement…."

"You're too modest. If you are approaching those tasks with the same diligence that you've shown with tea brewing then there should definitely be visible results."

"Well, if you put it that way…."

"Good, good, we can file this one under 'promising'. Well done, Mikuru-chan! Koizumi-kun, how are your wishes?"

"I am glad to say that my family has indeed been enjoying a period of peace and prosperity lately. On the other hand world peace doesn't seem to be any closer than a year ago."

"Hmm, one out of two, that's not bad at all. Great, this seems to be working. Yuki, reform and harmony?"

"Yes."

Haruhi turned her attention from the slips of paper to the quiet bookworm who kept reading some old, hardcover book until noticing that more was expected of her.

"There has been a reform. The current state is harmonious."

"Really? I must say that I'm impressed. You're setting an example for us all!"

Haruhi took the next paper from the pile and grimaced as if having bitten a mouthful from a particularly sour apple.

"Kyon?"

"You know just as well as I do that I don't have a new house or wads of cash lying around. Why don't you look at your own wishes first?"

"My wishes are much more ambitious than yours, so it stands to reason that they'll take more time to fulfill. The issue here is that you aren't even trying!"

What's the point of wishing if you have to work for it in any case?

"You cannot expect gods to grant a wish so unimportant that you don't even believe in it yourself. Isn't that obvious?"

Haruhi stared the slips of paper dubiously for a moment before giving her final verdict. "Fine! There's clearly room for improvement, and more of it for some of us than for the others. It's time to write down new wishes; make sure that they're good ones!"

Haruhi handed out two empty tanzaku to everybody. I looked at mine with misgivings; certainly, this was just as pointless as before.

I couldn't even bother coming up with anything plausible to write down and preferred to watch as the others worked on their own wishes. To my surprise I saw that Haruhi wasn't writing anything either, and instead just sat there chewing her pencil, looking ill at ease. She stole a glance in my direction and certainly noticed that I was slacking, but didn't say anything. I'd never have thought that Haruhi could have difficulties with deciding what she wanted!

After a moment of silence Haruhi slammed her hand on the table, startling Asahina-san, who had been concentrating on her task admirably.

"A change of plans! If we just discard those wishes that haven't been fulfilled yet it will look like we weren't serious enough to begin with, and that's unacceptable. Thus, everybody should replace only those wishes that have already been fulfilled."

There seemed to be something in the situation that was bothering Haruhi, but I didn't pay much attention to it; I just couldn't take the whole thing as seriously as she apparently did. Anyway, this just had to be my lucky day, as Haruhi's change of mind meant that I didn't have to do anything!

In the end, Asahina-san decided to keep the wish about cooking and added another one asking for happy memories, Koizumi wished for acuity in recognizing new opportunities and Nagato's wishes were just as abstract as before. Insight and resolution? How could you even tell when such wishes were fulfilled?

We watched the decorated bamboo for a moment; I couldn't help wondering how the bygone year could at the same time feel so incredibly long and still pass by so fast. By all accounts, there should be a contradiction somewhere in that.

Anyway, was that all for today?

Haruhi looked at me incredulously, as if I had been a foot-soldier who dared to tell his commander that they should desert their assigned positions.

"Of course not, that was just the first objective! We should strive to improve our traditions every year, so let's go downtown to see the local Tanabata festivities. Take the sports bag as well."

So much for my lucky day. Oh boy!

We walked down to Kouyouen and left our school bags in a locker by the station. Haruhi insisted that the extra bag should be taken with us, and the name of the person given that assignment didn't come as a surprise to anybody. It might have felt a bit more worthwhile if I had at least known what I was carrying.

After taking the local train to Shukugawa we headed to the shopping area. There were some streamers and other decorations here and there, though certainly not to the same extent as in those cities that are famous for their Tanabata festival. Of course, this didn't hinder our intrepid leader the least, as she had clearly decided that we were going to have fun no matter what.

Haruhi stopped in front of a makeshift stand that had baked goods for sale, and after giving a cursory inspection to the offerings turned to me.

"Hey Kyon, buy me a kaiten-yaki!"

Actually, I didn't remember having any outstanding penalties that would compel me to do that.

"Does it always have to be a penalty? I was just giving you an opportunity to earn some sorely needed points through supporting your brigade leader, so that she isn't too hungry to fulfill her responsibilities. But if you insist, then maybe I can think of something you've neglected."

"You might consider that a carrot but all I can see is a stick. Anyway, it's not my fault that you skipped lunch today."

"I wasn't hungry back then but now I am."

Doesn't that girl plan ahead for even one half of a day? Wait, don't answer that question because it's completely rhetorical.

I noticed the anticipative expression of our formidable but impulsive brigade chief who seemed to be permanently unable to ask nicely when she wanted something, and got the impression that she had something specific in mind, as if this was some kind of a test. However, I wasn't certain whether I liked either of the available options.

She was most likely telling the truth about being hungry. Considering the amount of food she could usually devour in one go it was only to be expected by now since she hadn't eaten anything during the lunch break. Furthermore, to be quite honest I thought that I should probably feel at least marginally indebted for all the tutoring Haruhi had recently provided at school without asking anything particular in return. From that point of view I could just as well give in a bit here and leave any lessons in manners or proper nutritional balance for some later time, but still, there was something in it….

According to a placard on the table kaiten-yaki were sold at 450 yen for five. I looked at the placard for a moment before realizing what to do. Now that I thought about it, there hadn't indeed been many penalties lately, but as far as I could see the reason for that couldn't be anything that I had done or failed to do since I hadn't certainly gotten more punctual during the last year. In any case, at the moment I could certainly buy a pack of five cakes without having to worry about my finances.

Haruhi watched me with a victorious grin on her face while the stand keeper wrapped the items in a paper parcel that I then gave to Haruhi with the appropriate piece of advice.

"Since I bought this many then at least share them, except for all I care Koizumi can buy his own if he wants one."

Hearing that, Koizumi just shrugged nonchalantly. "Thanks for the sentiment, but I think that I will pass this time."

Haruhi gave me an odd look but seemed to be satisfied with the outcome, and offered one of the cakes to Nagato, who was standing silently behind us. She examined the cake as if never having seen one before and took it without saying anything. Haruhi then picked one for herself and headed to Asahina-san who was looking at some posters on the display of a nearby travel agency.

"Ah, what's this, a sweet cake? Why, thank you!"

Asahina-san accepted the offer with a smile that was dangerously cute even when seen from a distance. Who knows, I might be more inclined to entertain Haruhi's requests if she could learn such manners as well … and anyway, your gratitude is misguided, Asahina-san. Although Haruhi couldn't bother to mention the fact, it was me who bought those cakes!

Munching her cake, Haruhi then turned her attention to the display that Asahina-san had been watching.

"Is there something interesting in here?"

"I was just looking … Hawaii seems to be an amazing place. I have never seen a volcano that's still active…."

That innocent remark made me wonder how far away from the future Asahina-san was again if she saw a volcano as something exotic.

Haruhi seemed to give a serious consideration to Asahina-san's unvoiced wish. "Well, a volcano is rather unusual and all that, but it isn't really mysterious, at least unless there's a hidden alien base or possibly some forgotten fauna from the Cretaceous period inside. Now that would be worth investigating, but when you think about it, if the volcano is still active it reduces the chances of finding something like that quite dramatically."

The lesser the chances of unexpectedly finding myself face-to-face with a ravenous velociraptor the better! And anyway, where did all this sudden interest in volcanology come from?

The whole brigade had now gathered in front of the display. To my mild surprise, even Nagato seemed to find the topic interesting and examined the advertisements with unblinking intensity. Was I the only person here who wasn't dreaming of exotic and — most crucially — dangerous places?

Haruhi's expression suddenly changed into something much more impish as she continued: "On the other hand, I'm sure that Hawaii would be a suitable place for taking some really great photos. Just think about all the costumes that you could wear there, Mikuru-chan!"

"Uh … what? Ehh…."

Why do you have to say something like that, Haruhi! Asahina-san's resigned sigh only made the situation worse, and I couldn't help thinking of images where grass skirts and colorful wreaths of flowers featured prominently … well, those, and not much else, which gave my current state of mind a rating that was far beyond anything suitable for a public space. Please accept my sincerest apologies for having such depraved thoughts, Asahina-san!

My train of thought was interrupted as abruptly as it had started when I noticed that Haruhi had stopped eating her cake. She stared at me from under her eyebrows like a particularly unimpressed crocodile that had just raised its head above the water level in the otherwise serene lagoon of my tropical paradise. Can that girl read my mind?

"Kyon? You're grinning."

You're the one who brought the whole issue up!

At various points in the past when the circumstances and Haruhi's antics had conspired to make me look like an accidental pervert she had been livid, but the mood that I could sense right now seemed to be something else altogether. Without that purposeful expression on her face I might have said that she found the whole situation amusing.

"Isn't it great that we're all having a good time, then?"

It sounded innocent enough but there was just the slightest hint of caveat in her voice. Having said that, Haruhi considered the issue closed and marched away with brisk steps as if nothing had happened, even humming a tune as she walked down the street. As the rest of us hurried after her Asahina-san stole a cautious glance at me, and I shrugged in response. If Haruhi was in particularly high spirits today then all we could do was to enjoy the sunny spell as long as it lasted.

As with any other brigade outing, we walked around the shopping district without any apparent goal. Because of my extra load, I didn't mind falling a bit behind the others, as that saved me from most of the meandering. After a while Koizumi decided to join my company, if for no other reason than to share his latest observations as if I had asked him to inform me about them.

"So far this has been a most interesting day, would you not agree?"

You're using the word 'interesting' in a sense that I don't seem to be familiar with.

"As I have mentioned before, to the casual observer it might appear to be the case that Suzumiya-san's actions are inadvertent and haphazard, but in reality there is a clear purpose behind everything that she does. I know fully well that you and I are in a constant disagreement over this fact, and therefore I am not even trying to argue my point; that is not even what I am thinking about right now. Instead, in the light of recent events, I am wondering whether the same could be said about you."

There's nothing haphazard in my actions nor any hidden motives to talk about. I'm just trying to get through the day with my sanity intact, and in this particular case without getting my shoulder strained. Speaking of which, why won't you make yourself useful and lug this bag around for a while?

"I couldn't possibly do that. Whatever the contents of that bag are, it is unquestionable that there is something so important in there that Suzumiya-san doesn't trust anybody else than you to carry it for her."

More likely she has just pegged me down as the bottom-tier errand boy of the club, as usual.

"Do you really believe so? Anyway, we are digressing. The specific question that I wanted to pose is: how does the unexpected appearance of a bamboo plant at the clubroom fit into the picture I just described?"

"Beats me. What makes you think that I have something to do with it?"

"That would appear to be a valid question. After all, it is not typical of you to take a sudden initiative in such a matter. Maybe I am simply mistaken and reading too much into it. So, you are saying that sometimes a bamboo is just a bamboo and nothing else, am I right?"

I couldn't care to answer anything to such a loaded question, and Koizumi didn't push the issue any further because the girls had stopped in front of some shop and were now within earshot distance of us. What was he insinuating, anyway? I hadn't bought Haruhi a bouquet of roses or anything like that, so I didn't owe an explanation to anybody and especially not to Koizumi! There really wasn't anything to it.

I was absorbed in my thoughts when I suddenly noticed that Haruhi was standing next to me, holding the packet of kaiten-yaki in her outstretched hand. What was it this time?

"I've eaten as much as I can already, so I'm sharing the rest just as you wished. After all, it was you who bought them so you should get some, too."

I took the suspiciously light packet and inspected its contents.

"There's only one half-eaten cake left?"

"Many people around the world would be only too happy to have any food at all, not to mention a completely fine piece of fresh cake. I'm not taking it back, so if you don't eat it yourself then you can just throw it away."

"That's not the issue here."

Haruhi kept staring as if waiting for my next move. I wasn't sure why this piece of cake was suddenly so important for her, but once again I didn't find either of the given options too enticing. I wrapped the paper around the cake and put it in the side pocket of my jacket.

"As you can see, I'll keep it just in case I should suddenly find a need for a half-eaten cake — and if I won't, it may eventually become a coveted piece of memorabilia bearing the bite marks of the famous leader of the SOS Brigade! What do you know, it looks like a win-win situation for me."

"Stupid."

With a single word that she seemingly muttered to the world in general rather than to me in particular Haruhi dropped the issue, and thus I forgot it as well for the time being.

Nothing out of ordinary happened during the next couple of hours. At some point we bought some drinks from a grocery store; Haruhi didn't even ask me to pay hers, but said that everybody should check that they had some spare five-yen coins on them. She refused to give any reason for this random request, and once the issue had been confirmed to her satisfaction we continued the round.

By sunset I felt exhausted under my burden; my feet were aching like those of an unpracticed wayfarer who had heedlessly made the pledge to walk through the eighty-eight temple pilgrimage of Koubou Daishi. I was hoping that the excursion would be over soon, but our relentless brigade chief had other plans in her mind.

"Since we are here, let's visit Ebessan and pray for good fortune!"

This was said by a girl who could most likely create — all by herself — as much fortune as she would ever need.

The great shrine area called Ebessan was in the immediate vicinity of the city center, spanning an entire block with its associated gardens. Although the primary festival of Ebisu was in January the area was also decorated during the summer festival season, making it a popular attraction for visitors from all over the prefecture.

As we approached the area I noticed that there was a large stand near the entrance with a set of lanterns arranged into a kanji meaning 'fortune', befitting Ebisu's status as one of the seven gods of fortune. After we had walked through the torii and observed the proper cleansing rituals, we could also see that the entire enclosure had been illuminated with lanterns that were evenly distributed on the ground all over the gardens.

Asahina-san seemed to be particularly impressed by the sight, and her childlike enthusiasm was very adorable to behold. I was secretly happy that Haruhi had the decency to not bring up the topic of miko costumes this time, although I had to admit that any shrine receiving the unique fortune of having Asahina-san as a shrine maiden would have to reserve some additional offering boxes for the money that people would certainly give in spades.

We walked to the offering hall of the shrine, rang the bell and prayed for good fortune after putting some money in the box. While that might have been enough in a normal situation, Haruhi wasn't satisfied by anything less than a full repertoire.

"Of course, we must get omikuji as well!"

So, that's what the five-yen coins were for. It looked like she had this whole thing planned from the beginning. We all took a fortune from the stand and unrolled the paper slips to see the divination. I was only halfway through when Haruhi already announced hers.

"Dai-kichi! I got a great blessing for my wish becoming true."

Honestly, did somebody really expect anything else? I got mine opened and found out that I was going to have bad luck with romantic relationships. Oh well, whatever.

Unable to restrain her curiosity, Haruhi leaned closer to have a look at my fortune and grimaced like a duck when she saw the verdict. "That won't do at all! Tie the curse to the wires and get a new fortune."

"I don't want to look like an opportunist, and besides, who says that I even care about random fortunes concerning romantic relationships?"

"That's a totally unacceptable attitude! Traditions are there for a reason."

Haruhi dragged me to the wire wall, took my paper slip and tied it there. I still thought that it was just a clever ruse to make people buy more fortunes, but promised to get a new one anyway if it was so important to Haruhi.

While I opened my second fortune the other brigade members told what they had gotten. Apparently, Koizumi would have luck with his business relations, Asahina-san with a person she was looking for, and Nagato was going to find auspicious directions. This time I was promised moderate luck with my studies, and because that seemed to pass Haruhi's muster I didn't have to get yet another fortune.

This all only goes to show that omikuji shouldn't be taken too seriously.

After the minimal formalities had been completed Haruhi said that we should spend some time going around the shrine area, enjoying the decorations. Certainly, the area was much larger than what could be seen from just one point, so we wandered leisurely around the place among other visitors that weren't too numerous this early in the evening, as it was not a public holiday today.

I wasn't particularly inspired by the scenery; lanterns were certainly pretty when spread between the trees like fireflies, but they were just lanterns — once you had seen one you had seen them all. Even more importantly, I was still carrying Haruhi's bag without even knowing why, and therefore preferred to stand in one place while the others walked around. It was getting dark now, and the first stars were appearing on the indigo sky, mirroring the scene on the ground.

Thus, I was on my own when I suddenly noticed a familiar figure walking away from me, toward the far end of the shrine area. She was at some distance and had her back turned at me, but I was pretty certain that I recognized her. I hadn't seen her since April, so what was she doing here now? I looked around but couldn't see the other brigade members nearby; after a moment of hesitation I decided to pursue the unexpected person, as her presence bothered me more than anything else that I had seen today. There were certain questions I wanted to ask her.

This part of the shrine area had many trees, large bushes and rocks that reduced visibility. I could see a glimpse of the person I was following a couple of times before she disappeared behind the bushes again. Finally, she seemed to take a route into a garden that was so overgrown there were no branches from the single path through it. I picked up my pace as now I could easily catch up with her.

I followed the path through the garden but found out soon that it didn't lead anywhere beyond a small opening. I was completely alone and would have noticed if somebody had tried to escape through the shrubbery, which meant that I had either imagined everything, or the person whom I had been trailing had just disappeared in thin air.

The whole situation made me feel a bit silly. Had I gotten so bored with the safe, ordinary life that I had finally found that now I had to deliberately go out of my way to seek trouble?

Oh well, whatever. I decided to ignore the whole thing and headed back to the central complex, taking a shortcut through an area that had several ponds joined together into a harmonious piece of scenery. When I arrived at the bridge I noticed that there was a band of submerged blue lights laid down in a large circle at the bottom of the ponds, making them look like a mirror image of the Milky Way.

I stopped on the bridge to appreciate the unexpected sight and stood there in momentary contemplation when I heard somebody approaching from the direction of the shrines, running. The person soon came in clear view, and I realized that I had subconsciously recognized her just by the sound of her steps. Come to think about it, who else would run around at a place like this?

Haruhi slowed down to a brisk walk and looked just as surprised to find me here as I had been a moment ago when I hadn't found anybody at all.

"Kyon? Did you see somebody running this way just before me?"

I certainly hadn't seen, and as far as I knew there wasn't anybody else than us two at this part of the garden. Well, it was technically a true statement, and I couldn't possibly tell her what I had seen myself.

Haruhi furrowed her eyebrows in bewilderment and looked around the area.

"I could have sworn that I just saw…."

Stepping on the bridge, she noticed the lights in the pond and stopped to watch the scene as well. I could tell from her expression that she was discontented with the latest turn of events, but I didn't want to give Haruhi any reason to continue this wild goose chase, so I just stood there without saying a word and waited for her to give up. I didn't even want to think of the possible consequences of Haruhi starting to believe that there was something extraordinary going on around shrine grounds, out of all places!

However, at the moment I probably felt just as puzzled as she did. Exactly what was it that had happened, and why? I was a bit worried about the possible implications but the prudent thing right now was undeniably to stay put and avoid drawing any attention to it. Isn't it so that you could summon misfortune just by saying its name?

After a moment of silence Haruhi did indeed lighten up, as if remembering something more interesting than the mystery of a vanishing person, and turned to me with a mischievous smile on her face. Suddenly, I had a bad feeling about the whole situation, and as it turned out to be, I was not mistaken to think that way.

"Hey Kyon, help me rearrange the lanterns in the main garden."

"Are you serious?"

"Of course! I'm always dead serious!"

"I can't even begin to fathom why you would want to do something like that! Besides, we would be thrown out before getting even halfway through the task."

Haruhi pouted at my obvious lack of enthusiasm. "It isn't the least bit difficult to overcome such simple obstacles if you only care to use your imagination! But don't worry, I got it figured out already. We can create some diversion to give us enough time, or in a pinch we could just wait until the official opening hours are over before sneaking back in."

"And what after that, get arrested for trespassing? No thanks, count me out of your delinquent plans."

"You're supposed to support your brigade chief when she needs help!"

"The brigade doesn't have anything to do with the issue! I don't think that the club charter says anything about pulling pranks when it lands you in trouble with law enforcement!"

Haruhi grunted in exasperation and turned away from me, arms crossed and her mouth pursed into an acute triangle. It didn't take master level skills in the art of interpreting Haruhi's moods to see that she was annoyed and frustrated, but this time it was a disposition I readily shared with her. How does that girl come up with all these harebrained schemes that are nothing but trouble?

The situation had taken a turn for the worse so rapidly that I didn't even know exactly how it happened. We both stood still for a good while until Haruhi finally decided to break the silence. She didn't move her gaze away from the pond; however, instead of angry, the tone of her voice was surprisingly regretful.

"You know, I was going to tell you about it at a suitable moment but I guess that it doesn't matter if it's all a prank to you."

I had a nasty premonition that I was going to regret what I had just said, but unfortunately, real life still lacks some rather basic features like save points and undo buttons — at least if you don't happen to be a certain reality warper.

Haruhi had a pensive look in her eyes as she continued. "I've always liked all festivals as long as they are properly celebrated, but Tanabata has a very special meaning for me, because of something that happened a long time ago."

If this story was heading where I thought it was heading then I wasn't sure whether I was too happy to tag along.

"In the middle school I was totally unsatisfied with my life and couldn't stand boring, ordinary people and their dull complacency. No matter what I did, people couldn't understand how exciting their lives could be if there was something wonderful and unique within their reach. The constant failures to find anything despite my best efforts made me really frustrated, and I started to feel like giving up altogether. Then, during a Tanabata festival, I met somebody who gave me hope. Somebody interesting."

And just like that, without any warning, we were dropped directly into the danger zone! Clearly, if Haruhi told me too many details about that event I would lose my trump card; who knows what would happen after that, especially if the aliens learned about it. However, I couldn't think of anything that I could do to prevent it and started to feel rather uncomfortable, as if the already hot and humid evening atmosphere had just been heated by another ten degrees.

"The person whom I met by chance told me that extraordinary things were already all around us, and it was only a matter of knowing where to look; he said it so casually that it had to be true! So, that was why I had failed to find anything. I realized that extraordinary beings must keep themselves concealed, or otherwise they stop being extraordinary and become just as mundane as everything else. That was when I decided that I would never give up, that I would find them no matter what.

"That was four years ago, and every year when I celebrate Tanabata it makes me remember that particular event. But this time, when I thought about it I also noticed something else.

"Things didn't work out exactly the way I had expected, but still, I've found … interesting things, just because of that encounter. I've been having more fun than ever before, and that's why I hoped to get a chance to express my gratitude to that person. But I never learned his real name, and I don't think that he even realized how much that single incident meant to me. He must have forgotten the whole thing already; it's starting to feel like a distant dream to me as well.

"I wanted to move forward, and this was one of the things bothering me. When people unknowingly do something that you find important you should tell them about it; it's only proper to speak your mind when warranted. So, even if it looks insignificant to everybody else I wanted to say 'thank you' to that person. That was my wish for this Tanabata.

"However, the thought of having to wait another twenty-five years for a reply made it feel rather pointless to write the wish on a tanzaku. I thought that if I came here and made a message out of lanterns, then the kami would see it and, if I was fortunate enough, forward it to the proper destination without any delay. After all, they are kami so they should be able to do it one way or another, right?

"But … I needed your help for doing it."

Haruhi stopped speaking but kept her gaze fixed at the artificial Milky Way beneath us, as if waiting for my reply; her frustration had abated, leaving only wistfulness. The sight of Haruhi standing on the bridge, looking so forlorn and dejected, made my mind reel from the sheer injustice of the entire situation. It wasn't just that her sincere words evoked thoughts that I found too difficult to handle at the moment, but the whole thing was so impossible that I didn't know what to do.

Haruhi couldn't know that her wish had just been heard and granted, without moving a single lantern! Even worse, regardless of what would happen next she would be deprived of the answer she was looking for. I wanted to let her know, but couldn't; not without risking everything. I would've even helped her with the lanterns now, but I knew already that nothing good would come out of that — it was completely pointless! Also, I had a vague feeling that there was something more to the situation than just Haruhi wanting to express gratitude, but I couldn't figure out what that something was; it bothered me and made me too anxious to even try to resolve the deadlock.

How did we arrive at this point? I wanted to do something, anything, but my hands were tied by what I knew and she didn't; that disparity created an impassable chasm between us two as surely as if we had been standing at the opposite ends of the sky.

In the end I couldn't say a word, and that made me feel pathetic.

…

Sensing that no answer was forthcoming, Haruhi eventually let out a heavy sigh and looked up to the dark sky that was now rapidly getting overcast by ragged clouds.

"You know, time is a precious resource. Once a day is over it will never come back. Therefore, you should always strive to grasp any available opportunities and live life to the fullest; it's worse to regret things that you didn't do than those that you did.

"Now that I think about it, perhaps it's a mistake to celebrate Tanabata according to the Western calendar instead of the Chinese one? I wonder if we should at least observe tsuki-okure and hold the festival in August, like people do in Sendai?"

She lowered her gaze from the sullen sky and sighed once again before adding one final thought.

"I wanted to see the Milky Way tonight, but it looks like I was hoping too much…."

Perhaps Haruhi couldn't see the Milky Way, but I certainly could, as the lights of the garden reflected in her eyes like a swirling galaxy; I had to turn my head away because I wasn't sure what I might have done if I had kept watching her when she looked like that. I felt shaken and flustered, and the only thing I could be certain of was that I needed a cold shower!

"Well, so much about it, then. I'm going home."

Haruhi tried to sound indifferent but I could still notice how disappointed she was. I had to sigh as well. If that girl had to get her message heard, why didn't she just buy an ema and write it there like everybody else? Well, that was the crux of the issue, wasn't it? Haruhi was not like everybody else, as if I hadn't noticed that before.

I followed in her steps back to the main shrine where we found the other brigade members, still enjoying the scenery. If any of them found it peculiar to see us two arriving together they didn't let it show; in my current state of mind I wouldn't probably even have noticed.

When we walked back to the railway station Haruhi didn't seem to want any company and marched at her own pace well ahead everybody else. I saw that both Koizumi and Asahina-san looked at me questioningly, but I didn't feel like giving any explanations. Instead, a particular thought had started to bother me, and after mulling it over for a while I decided that I had to discuss it with the only member of the brigade who appeared completely unconcerned about the events of the day.

"Hey, Nagato? I know that you cannot currently synchronize with yourself, but would you still be able to tell if there's something wrong with the flow of time? Like if we were inside a loop again, or something?"

"Yes."

That wasn't the most helpful answer. "Yes as in that you can sense it, or that there's something wrong?"

"The local topology of this temporal plane is completely normal."

Nagato tilted her head slightly to the side and seemed to reflect on what had just been said before continuing on her own initiative: "Would there be a reason to believe otherwise?"

That was a good question. What was it that had made me worry about it in the first place? The combination of circumstances and something that Haruhi had said….

Well, if that wasn't the case then it didn't really matter.

"I was just checking, there isn't anything in particular. Though, if I ever have to live this day again, it would be nice to get a warning before going to the shrine."

Nagato examined me critically for a moment but didn't say anything, and I was quietly thankful for that.

We took the local train back to Kouyouen and retrieved our school bags from the storage locker. That reminded me — had I carried this heavy bag the whole evening for no reason whatsoever?

Haruhi extended one arm in my direction while keeping her head turned away from me. "I'll take it now and appreciate that you don't keep talking about it any more."

She was so obviously depressed that I could only feel for her. It was neither her fault nor mine, but somehow a day that had seemed so auspicious at first had turned out to be much more unfortunate than expected. If only it were possible to know such things in advance then I'd prefer to stay in bed the whole day, waiting for a more favorable one!

Still, I felt strongly that I had to do something, no matter how insignificant, to lift the mood. So, while giving Haruhi her bag I said a random thought that just happened to pop up in my mind at the moment.

"Some other time, then?"

Haruhi looked at me, visibly surprised. She stood still for a moment, seemingly uncertain about whether to say something or not, until setting her jaw straight and nodding just once. Determination. That was the message I could read in her eyes, and although a determined Haruhi can be a rather intimidating sight, it still made me feel better; not by much, but even a little step in the right direction was better than nothing.

The others could sense that the current atmosphere was somewhat precarious; after minimal observances everybody went their own way. Outside the station I stole a quick glance at the receding figure with a large bag on her shoulder and wondered whether I'd ever find out what it was that I had been carrying all around the city. Probably not.

On the way home I had time to reflect on the events of the day. I was still feeling perplexed about some of the thoughts that they had evoked, so I tried to concentrate on analyzing the situation in a rational manner.

Compared to the events of one year ago this Tanabata had appeared more normal, at least on the surface. Certainly, I hadn't been invited to any time traveling trips this time; neither had any other extraordinary events taken place, unless I counted the mystery of that disappearing person. It was as if supernatural incidents had become more subtle, happening under the cover of normalcy, and could only be seen by chance, like a small, furry animal that disappears into its burrow as soon as you notice it. I couldn't decide whether I preferred it one way or the other.

Come to think of it, was the fulfillment of Haruhi's wish a manifestation of her powers or just a coincidence? I couldn't tell, but regardless of that it was obvious that it hadn't made either of us happy. Wasn't there a fundamental conflict in the whole issue if the same power that enabled all those extraordinary things prevented her from ever learning about them? That sounded like an ultimately unsatisfying premise to me, but I couldn't find any means of rectifying the situation.

Even then, the reality altering power didn't seem to yield to rational analysis, at least with my mental capabilities. Koizumi had said that whatever Haruhi believed to be true necessarily became that way, but I had a hard time trying to relate that proposition to the recent events. It looked like Haruhi's wish had been granted even before she had done what she believed to be a necessary step to the effect; on the other hand she had specifically wanted to see the Milky Way, and there wasn't any reason to believe otherwise, but that hadn't still happened. If Koizumi's theory was true, shouldn't we have been able to observe a most magnificent stellar spectacle?

Could it be that Haruhi's powers were slowly waning, or was there something else?

It was around that time when I noticed that the weather was changing. A gusty wind was picking up strength and making trees shake and rustle; cicadas had stopped singing as if they had suddenly vanished without a trace. I looked up and saw a solid cloud front approaching rapidly from the sea as it sometimes happens during the summer months, wrapping everything in complete darkness like a giant blanket being drawn over the city. I started to run, but I was still about two blocks away from home when the sudden torrential rain hit the neighborhood.

It's needless to even mention that I got wet. I knew that I had hoped for a cold shower at some point, but no matter which way one looked at it, this was a bit excessive.

I arrived home, dripping water on the floor like a soaked dog, and went upstairs to change my clothes. When I was hanging my jacket out to dry I noticed that there was a lump of sticky mush at the bottom of the side pocket. It took me a while until I recognized it as the remains of the cake that I had decided to spare. Oh boy, talk about driving a point home!

After a while, as I stood in the bathroom drying my hair with a towel, a random tidbit that I had recently read somewhere came to my mind. It went along the lines that according to the chaos theory, when a particular butterfly in Fukuoka flaps its wings in a certain way, then two days later it rains on Hokkaido.

If I ever mentioned something like that to Haruhi she would undoubtedly say that it had to be true because it sounded too odd to be a fabrication, and would then probably try to find such a butterfly to see how it does the trick. Well, that right there was the exact reason why I'd better keep my mouth shut because Haruhi is completely capable of creating more than enough chaos on her own even if she doesn't realize it herself, and whenever Haruhi flaps her wings there's much more at stake than just a sudden shower of rain!

Admittedly, I couldn't tell whether this latest downpour was caused by one of those mischievous butterflies, or more mundane meteorological phenomena like humidity, air pressure and cold fronts, and it didn't even matter that much either way, now did it? And if by any chance the current state of mind of our peerless brigade chief had something to do with the weather we were having tonight, then wouldn't that be first and foremost Koizumi's problem and not mine? At least that was what I thought.

So, I spent the rest of the day by having dinner with my family, doing some homework and then playing with the cat and watching TV until it was time to go to bed.

I felt dead tired after all the walking and pushed the cat to the side of the bed in order to have more room for myself when I heard something rustling under my pillow; I picked the object up and saw that it was a piece of red paper. I turned it around a couple of times but it was just a plain paper slip, empty on both sides. Well, that was rather unusual, but I couldn't bother thinking too much about it at the moment. I put the slip on the nightstand and decided to ask my sister about it in the morning. I wasn't going to lose any sleep over a random piece of paper.

In retrospect, I don't think that I'd have been so calm if I had known that somewhere along the way the proverbial butterfly had just flapped it wings and set in motion a long chain of events that would eventually lead me to a situation where the sudden explosive eruption of a nearby stratovolcano was among the least of my concerns.

I'd like to underline the fact that the last part was neither a hyperbole nor a figure of speech.

End of Prologue (Remembrance Impromptu)

Author's Notes: I wanted to make the prologue a self-contained short story that still incorporates all the essential motifs of the main work in a nascent form. At this point the overall style and thrust of the story should be rather evident; the seeds have been sown, and all that remains is to observe how they eventually grow to fruition. If you have enjoyed the scenery so far then I sincerely believe that you shouldn't be disappointed when this journey eventually reaches its intended destination. Until then, if the story manages to evoke some particular thoughts or feelings along the way then I would be very grateful to hear about them.