Sumire Chapter Final Chapter: Loyalty! (菫編 最終章: 忠義!)
After collecting my tip, I changed out of the maid outfit and into something a little better suited for tailing someone. John escorted Sumire towards a nearby park, hoping to visit a shrine before he returned to his other business. The weather was clear, and the streets were filled with people.
Sumire hadn't spoken since she left the restaurant. She'd nodded and waved towards the staff, but her mind was racing with thoughts after John dropped the news during lunch. The members of Houkago Tea Time were the first friends Mugi really had. Sumire had helped Mugi go away on family trips before, but she always returned to Japan. She couldn't return from marriage, and if Sumire went along with her, then she'd be taken away from me, after she had started coming out of her shell.
The issue of children was something Sumire had always heard about, but never considered until now. At this very moment, Houkago Tea Time was performing their first major label concert. If John's prediction came to pass, it could very well be their last. Music isn't something Mugi could outgrow, Sumire was thinking, it's an essential part of who she is. As far as she knew, there were no other keyboardists in the greater Toyosato area. None with her lady's level of skill.
"Tsumu-gi?" asked John, "Is something bothering you?"
"It's a lot to take in," said Sumire, "Barraud..."
"Call me John. In these matters, it is not purely business," said John.
"John," said Sumire, "Is there any chance that, upon marrying, you could stay in Japan and manage both companies that way? It would allow me to keep my musical career going..." she spoke uneasily the next few words, "until we start thinking about a family."
"I do have a brother, but he has no interest in running the company," said John, "I have friends that I'd be leaving behind as well. HMV is a big company. I'd need all the help I can get to keep it running. That's how business works, doesn't it? We merely give out orders, other people do them for us. We don't need to be in the country to keep our influence strong."
He and Sumire came to the front of a shrine in the middle of a park. They held hands as they walked up the steps.
I bent down and looked up the hill. It was steep, and if I wanted to get there without being seen, I would have to climb it myself. I sprinted up the slope, fighting against the deep patches of grass and piles of rocks that crossed my path. A small rock slid against the bottom of my shoe, causing me to lose my balance. My elbows and knees were dirty, but I couldn't let that stop me. My breath short, I arrived at the top of the hill, and hid behind the shrine.
John and Sumire arrived shortly thereafter. Sumire paid a coin to the shrine, praying that this undercover date wouldn't get worse. John tossed in a coin as well, and quickly muttered something under his breath.
"Tsumu-gi, there's something I've been holding back on," John said, "This isn't the first time I've seen you."
"I saw the photograph," said Sumire.
"Not that," said John, "My family always went on a vacation in Japan when I was in high school. That's how I came to like this country. My grasp of the language might need a little work," he said.
All this time I thought he was unaware of that one.
"One year, my family and I were taking a trip in the Sunflower Ferry. I was on deck, looking at the shore through my binoculars. I saw you and your friends, playing in the sand, having fun. I had no idea you were a band, or that it was your private beach," he said.
Sumire was reacting to this with a stare that indicated curiosity more than knowledge. She had heard about Mugi using her family's beach properties as training camps, but heard very little about what went on there. It had been years since. Most of it was vague recollections in the back of her mind.
"That was when I saw you. You weren't shy or running about without purpose. You were the princess of the beach. The ship sailed around day after day, and I saw your boldness time and time again. I fell in love instantly, without even knowing your name. To think that we could meet again after all this time, my love," he said, kissing Sumire's hand.
Sumire ignored the kiss. She was still staring at John blankly. "I don't understand," she said, "When you say 'boldness', what are you talking about?" John leaned down and whispered in her ear. Sumire's eyes went blank.
"You still love me even though I did all that?" asked Sumire, sliding away from John.
"I love you because you did that. If you'd be willing to do it again, with your consent, of course, I would love you even more. This was only the first impression. Now that I've spent so much time with you, I know you and I make an even more wonderful pair. Are these feelings mutual, Tsumu-gi?" he asked.
Sumire reached into her pocket and felt her cell phone. She said she had a call coming in. Her phone wasn't ringing at all. "It's set on vibrate," Sumire said, "I'll be right back." She ran behind the shrine, and found me. Sumire hugged me tightly. All that energy she uses when playing the drums was now channelled into not letting me go. I got my arms out of her grip, and readjusted my glasses.
"What did he say?" I asked.
Sumire whispered the contents in my ear. Some of it didn't sound so bad. "Sumire, how could you not have noticed this?" I said. "That's seriously dirty."
"I think Ritsu might have coerced her. But Lady Tsumugi is always interested in what the commoners do, so some of it must have been her own idea. If only I'd gone to that training camp with her. I'm such a terrible maid," she said.
"This date's not over yet," I said. "You can always call your father and..."
Sumire's phone actually was ringing. She didn't recognize the number, and picked up. "Sumire Saito speaking, who is this?" she asked.
"Masaka Yumeno," came the voice out of the speaker, barely audible.
"How did you get this number?" Sumire asked.
"The greatest thing money can buy is an appreciation of the things money cannot buy," said Yumeno, "Your seats are reserved, so you might want to get back to the Budokan." The phone went silent. Sumire was able to make slightly more sense of that than what John had told her.
"Nao, let's go," said Sumire, "Milady's music will be the perfect chance to take all this off my mind."
"What are we going to do about Barraud?" I asked.
"I don't know, I'll figure that out when we get there," said Sumire. She took a deep breath and walked around to the front of the shrine. She grabbed ahold of the rope holding the ceremonial bell, and let it swing in the April breeze. The brassy echoes calmed her heart.
My run towards the bottom of the cliff was going to be a lot quicker.
"Tsumu-gi," said John, "Where are we going?"
"There's something I want to attend at the Budokan," said Sumire. She walked down the steps one at a time, carrying a ladylike poise in her step. She checked her purse, making sure our tickets were in there.
John ran after her. Sumire's walking was faster than he could run. It wasn't until they made it out onto the sidewalk that John was able to break through to her again.
"The Nippon Budokan," said John, "I've been seeing posters for that all over town today. I'm surprised a foreign girl like yourself has an interest in a band that only recently rose out of local stardom. Are you the one that signed them?"
The sweat on Sumire's forehead had gotten between her false eyebrows. The adhesive was starting to wear thin, causing one of her eyebrows to droop downward, exposing part of her head, which hadn't gotten anything in hours, to the fresh sensation of the outdoor breeze. She winced a little.
"Something like that," said Sumire.
"Cool," said John, making a pointing motion with his fingers, "That's the other reason why I'm here. I've got Valiant in Nagoya and Wembley in Hokkaido. We're looking for a cool new sound. Didn't you say something about being in a band?" he asked.
"Yes, I play dru- keyboard," said Sumire, almost slipping again.
"What was the name of your band? I'd love to hear them play sometime," said John.
"Houkago Tea Time," answered Sumire slowly, her smile widening as she spoke.
Sumire and John pulled into a district filled with advertisements for the battle of the bands at the Budokan. Posters, video advertisements, even one on the side of a truck, all prominently displayed the band name, and mentioned that they were playing today, and today only. I darted between the light poles on the opposite side of the street, even hiding behind a food stand at one point.
"Tsumu-gi, that's the name of your band," said John. "What are you doing out here? One of your eyebrows is starting to fall off." He reached out towards Sumire's right eye with his hand, peeling off the fake eyebrow and holding it between his fingers. "You're not Tsumu-gi," he said.
"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry," said Sumire, bowing rapidly until her other eyebrow started to slip off, "I know I'm not Lady Tsumugi. I wasn't able to get her to come from the Budokan, so when you mistook me for her, I went along with it, and I didn't know when to stop. I wanted to see if you were a good person."
"How much of this was a lie? If I never got to know the real Tsumu-gi," he said.
"Nobody knows milady better than I do," said Sumire. "I'm Sumire Saito. I play the drums, and these aren't my real eyebrows."
"Sumiire?" asked John. "Are you her friend?"
Sumire felt her tension easing a bit. "Yes. No. I've been around her for a long time, because I'm her maid. I may have told you more than she would. A lady is expected to be proper, but a maid has no such restrictions."
I stopped doing nothing and ran across the street before the light turned. I stepped in front of Sumire, holding a faded glow stick in my hand as if it were a police baton. "Sumire, what are you doing?" I asked.
"You look familiar," said John, "Nao Okuda. Are you really Tsumu-gi's producer? Or are you a waitress?"
"I'm not a waitress. I was lucky I survived a physical thing like that at all. Mugi and I haven't talked that much," I said, "but I am Sumire's friend, and I really am her producer. We were together in the same light music club. Mugi left just before I joined. Sumire didn't mean any harm by this, she just really cares about her lady. Please don't make a scene of this."
"That does explain why you wanted to get to the concert," said John. "Why would my father and Mr. Kotobuki schedule our meeting on the day of Tsumu-gi's performance?"
"Milady did inform her father, but I don't know if the message got further than that," said Sumire. "There's something I want to talk about with you, Barraud," she lost her shy demeanor. "Why are you taking milady away from me? Why do you want to make her be a mother this early? Lady Tsumugi is a worldly woman. She can pursue her career as much as you can pursue yours. Don't try to decide things for her that make her whole life dependent on yours! She's..."
Someone was walking in our direction, opposite the crowds. The people kept moving towards their own destination, but she dodged between them effortlessly, coming to the almost deserted block where we stood. Sumire became excited in an instant, peeking over my shoulder. She went ahead of me and John, bowing towards the person coming our way.
"Milady!" she exclaimed.
The wind blowing through the streets had roughed up her hair, and her clothes had small patches of sweat starting to form. Her eyebrows were large and bushy and genuine. She kept her eyes closed; a smile was across her face. Tsumugi Kotobuki had come all the way out here. All the nervousness from this afternoon was focused onto her.
She gave a quick glance at me and Sumire, walking forward towards John. His eyes went up and down, examining her body. When he got to her eyebrows, he bent down on one knee and held out his hand towards hers, and spoke melodramatically.
"Tsumu-gi! It is really you," he said, "Forgive me, for I fear I may have fallen for your maid, but it is you that I really love!"
"John," said Mugi calmly, "I thought the meeting was rescheduled. I am interested in relationships, but only watching others'. I still have a lot I need to learn before I make a decision like that. What's most important to me right now are my friends and my music. You must have things you want to do outside your family as well. I encourage you, go and do them. We can try this again at a later date."
John stood up. "Do you not like me?"
"I don't know you well enough. I do have a concert I need to get back to, so this date can be considered over for now. I hope we can meet again," she said.
John reached into his pocket, and started walking in the opposite direction. He made it to the end of the block before abruptly turning around, getting himself closer to Mugi than he had been before. Her eyes opened. They were a darker color than Sumire's, showing only the slightest hint of weakness.
"Tsumu-gi, before I go," said John. "Was that you...?" He whispered the rest into her ear. Sumire and I were impressed at how little reaction Mugi was showing to these acts. All we could see was the back of her head.
"We'll talk about this later," said Mugi.
John's expression changed from boyish curiosity into swift compliance. He turned around and walked towards the horizon, shouting "Good bye!" in our direction. He took a call on his cell phone before he vanished. We could overhear him talking to Valiant, and something about a club.
"Sumire, why are you shaking?" I asked.
Mugi turned around to face Sumire and me. Her smile had not faded, but her eyes had changed subtly. I was no longer nervous, because it had all been replaced by fear of what Mugi could do. Sumire's warm hands grasped onto mine. She knew what to expect out of this, and was trying to protect me.
"Milady," said Sumire, bowing.
"Sumire, why didn't you call me?" asked Mugi.
"I tried to, Milady, but I wasn't able to get through. How did you know we were here? My father is back in Shiga and..." said Sumire.
Mugi said, "Oh, Yui passed out. While we were waiting for her to wake up, I got a call from Miss Yumeno. She's helped us out so much." That name again, Yumeno. The green haired girl in Akiba had mentioned it too. Everyone but me had been touched by her presence. I was just... normal.
"Why are you still keeping your eyes like that?" I said.
"I promise I did nothing to defile your image, milady," said Sumire, "I've been by your side your whole life. I know more about you than anyone else. You're the closest thing I have to a big sister. An aloof big sister, but I don't want to lose you so soon. I didn't even want to get Nao involved, so spare her, please."
"Nao?" asked Mugi, "Ah, I've heard about you from Azu-nyan. Are you enjoying Tokyo?" she said.
"Yes. It's a very lively city," I answered.
"Enjoy the concert," she said. Mugi turned to Sumire and turned on her stare again. "The cost of the lunch is coming out of your pay. Run these things by me next time." Then back to normal. "Have a good day."
Mugi started walking in the direction of the Budokan. Kitaku Free Time's set was finishing up, and her friends needed their keyboardist. Sumire was still holding my hand. It was only us on that street, watching the wind blow through the alleyway and past the shrubbery. I pulled Sumire in the direction of the stadium, but she resisted.
"You're the one with the tickets," I said.
"Nao, why did you insist on following me?" asked Sumire, "You're unknown in my world. The reason why I wanted to come to Tokyo was to make you happy. If I wanted to hear milady play, I live with her. You, you're always at your computer, composing and arranging. You don't need to overwork yourself."
"I'm the only person who can't play an instrument. That means I have to work twice as hard so that everyone else makes this band work," I said. "I thought by getting close to you, I'd be more like a real musician. All I can do is tag along, and even at that I make mistakes."
"That's why this concert is important," said Sumire, "Yui was like you. She thought she would become a NEET, but this club gave her a home. I wanted you to see what this club's alumni are capable of. It doesn't matter if you can't play an instrument. You do something that nobody else can do. I've thought that since my second year."
"Sumire," I said, holding back my tears.
We presented our tickets at the booth, running through the halls to get to the concert on time. Sumire had put on her Mugi Fan Club gear, finding the section of the crowds where fans like her were gathered. She picked me up a Yui Fan Club jacket from the merchandising booth. It was a little big on me, and I barely had time to put it over my shoulders before the concert began.
I looked up at the stage. From here, Houkago Tea Time appeared like living legends. Their white dresses shone brightly underneath the heavy lights, making them stand out even more against the pitch blackness of the arena.
"We are Houkago Tea Time!" Yui shouted into the microphone.
Those next hours were a spectacle of light and sound, not once drawing attention away from the girls on stage. When the performance ended, the two bands, totaling fourteen people, walked on stage. I took off my glasses and rubbed them against my shirt. My vision returned, the image on stage unchanged.
It was as though someone had placed a mirror across the stage. The instruments, the proportions, the hairstyles, everything between the two groups was identical. The biggest difference was the hair colors. Every member of Kitaku Free Time had hair in a bold, deeply saturated color, not commonly seen. I wonder if they dyed their hair, and if so, why?
"Sumiire," I said, tapping her on the shoulder, "Do you find something odd about the other band?"
"Is there something?" asked Sumire.
"Never mind," I said.
Azusa, Ui and Jun were up there, standing beside each other, and apart from the other four. They were so far away, the crowds so large that there was no way they could notice us. The two bands started bantering on stage, with Ritsu and Ran Fujii taking the microphones.
"Alright, alright, did you all enjoy the show?" asked Ritsu. The audience erupted into cheers. "As the leader of Houkago Tea Time, I've decided we're going to put on a show together!"
"After some intimate discussion with Michi, I found out she wanted to play something that came to her in a dream. Be careful, high schoolers. You wouldn't want our hardcore soul to dirty your purity," said Ran slyly.
"You're the ones who should watch out. We might outshine you with your own song," said Ritsu, "Whoever gets the loudest cheers makes the other band do a penalty game at the after party."
"It's on," said Ran.
Mugi whispered something in Azusa's ear. She grabbed the microphone out of Ritsu's hand. "Before we begin, there's someone in the audience I'd like to thank."
The spotlights danced around the audience before focusing in on Sumire and myself. We stood up from our seats, and the crowd fell silent.
"Nao! Sumiire! Without you two, the light music club might have been dissolved again, and I'm not very good at forcing people in like Ritsu," said Azusa. Ritsu smirked at that, "Especially you, Nao. We own the stage, but someday, you'll control this entire hall. This goes out to you." Asada, the second guitarist in KFT, was applauding.
Azusa shouted from the bottom of her heart, "The Houkago Tea Time tonight hasn't ended yet! One two three FOUR!"
There were some parts where the bands didn't match up perfectly. Yui and Yorozu competed with each other on vocals, and the song changed tone in an instant. As the closing chorus came to a crescendo, the sound of the instruments felt different. The feelings beneath each of the bands conflicted, but neither felt less authentic than the other.
I wonder what the punishment game was going to be.
"My rock spirit..." said Yui and Yorozu together, "...cannot be stopped!"
Sumire and I were back in our hotel room. We were going to spend another day in Tokyo before returning to our classes. She was sitting next to one of her drums, and I was at the computer. I had been plugging in notes into my software, trying to recreate the final song. I was close, but some of the music was improvised. My recording had so much background noise it was tough to make out some of the nuances.
"What did you think?" asked Sumire.
"It wasn't very good," I said, "Can we go again?"
Sumire's phone was ringing. She casually answered it, surprised by the ecstatic voice on the other end.
"Sumiire!" That accent, it had to be him. "Valiant found a new sound! You have got to listen to it!"
"Later. I've had a lot of music lately," said Sumire, "Good bye, John." Sumire let out a sigh. "Of course, he only has my cell number."
There was a knock at the door. I called out from my chair. "Who is it?"
"Sumire, can you let me in?" asked a soft voice behind the door.
Sumire answered it, bowing as she was accustomed to. "Good evening, milady." Mugi, looking as cheery as ever, was standing outside the door in her pajamas. Her keyboard, which was really heavy, was behind her. She dragged it in and set it up in the living room beside Sumire's drums.
"Milady, what are you doing here so late? Shouldn't you be out with your friends?" asked Sumire.
"Yui and the others already fell asleep," said Mugi, "What you said today made me realize that I haven't gotten to know you as well as I should. I need someone to take care of things for me, and I'd want that to be someone I can trust. So I was thinking we could perform a song together."
"Can I play?" I asked.
"You two provide the beat, and I'll provide the melody," she said, "Does 'Honey sweet tea time' sound good?" We would have been fine with any song.
The steady beat of the drums started to resound.
The computer's digital notes became a countermelody.
The keyboard, elegant but common, colored the room with its timbre.
Our anthology.