Disclaimer: I own nothing from the show. Don't sue me, please!
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Morning the next day.
It was lunch time again and the gang of four where once again seated together in Kuroi-sensei's classroom eating their respective lunch. It was Friday already and they were all eager to get the day over with. However there was still a few periods and the mandatory club meetings after lunch that needed to be taken care off so nobody was in a hurry even if they wanted to be.
"Finally, it's the weekend again," said Kagami. "I can't wait for tomorrow to come."
"It will finally give us some free time to go to that amusement park we were talking about before," added Tsukasa.
"Is that all that you've been waiting for ? Man, you're so childish sometimes, Tsukasa."
Tsukasa giggled bashfully. "Sorry, I can't help myself sometimes."
"It is in Tsukasa-san's nature to be like that," said Miyuki.
"That's true enough," concurred Kagami. "Ain't that right, Konata?"
Konata didn't answer.
"Hoy, Konata?" asked Kagami again.
They all turned too look and found Konata to be ignoring them. However, her unusual position did not go unnoticed to her friends. Konata was not seated properly on her chair and was instead squatting near the edge of the chair so that her chin almost touched her knees. She had one hand cupping her knee while the other hand was delicately holding up a chocolate cornet between her thumb and index finger only. She was also intensely staring at it as if she was analyzing it thoroughly, with her head only slightly tilted to one side.
Her three friends sweat-dropped at the sight of this.
"Eh…Kona-chan?" spoke up Tsukasa. "What are you doing."
"Trying to solve a mystery," replied Konata with a monotonously deep voice.
"Uh, mystery?"
"One that has been plaguing mankind for quite some time now.
"Um, which mystery is that?"
"The mystery of whether he thinner part or the thicker part of the chocolate cornet is the head."
Her friends sweat-dropped a bit more.
"This mystery cannot be solved by just any person. It is up to me, the one the world knows simply as "K" to finally make a conclusion."
"Hoy, aren't you acting a little weird?" asked Kagami.
"Though you say such things, I have almost figured out which part of a chocolate cornet is actually the head."
Her three friends sweat-dropped even more.
"Um, haven't we discussed this multiple times in the past already?" asked Miyuki.
"Yes, we have. But only now can I have a full understanding of why I think one side is the head or not. It is logical to think that the thinner part is the head because that is what most people would be inclined to bit first bite first in a cornet. And though Tsukasa-chan may have once said that the thinner part is the head because the cornet resembles a seashell, this is a fallacy since one cannot justly compare a sweet with a seashell. Alternatively, the thicker part may indeed be known as the head since this is where the concentration of the chocolate filling is found. Also, cornet is derived from the British synonym for the ice cream cone and the thicker part of the cone is always facing up."
Her friends sweat-dropped a little bit more.
"Kona-chan," said Tsukasa, "do you think you can really conclude something from all that analyzing?"
"I have to solve this mystery, Tsukasa-san. My reputation as the worlds greatest detective hangs in the balance."
"Um…I see."
Kagami lightly slapped her head in frustration. She was doing it again.
"What do you think, Kagami-san?" asked Konata as she flashed Kagami with a suspicious look.
"Eh? Why are you asking me?" asked Kagami, feeling a bit annoyed.
"Even though I have my suspicions of you, Kagami-san, I seem to have no choice but to ask you since I wish to evaluate you by your reactions to my questions. Now, tell me, do you think the thicker part is the head or not?"
"Suspicions?"
"Right now, my suspicions of you not believing that the thicker part of the cornet is the head are…roughly 10 percent, Kagami-san. But until that reaches 0 percent, I cannot clear you of my suspicions."
A vein popped on Kagami's forehead. "You've been reading Death Note again, haven't you, Konata?"
"Oh, Kagami-san is indeed as smart and perceptive as I had imagined. It would seem that you are the most qualified person to continue the legacy of "K" when my time comes."
"Will you knock it off already?!"
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Later that afternoon.
The rest of the school day went by quickly. The girls had finished up their classes and respective club activities so they were now free for the day and for the weekend. So now, Miyuki, Yutaka, and the Hiiragi twins were on their way home to enjoy what was left of their Friday. Konata wasn't present as she asked to be excused and left early during the club meetings. She told her club mates she'd make up for it later.
It was outside the school and the multitude of the student body were all walking out of the buildings in groups of friends, and sometimes even in pairs. The four girls were on their way towards the gate.
"Glad to get this day over with," said Kagami with a sigh of relief. "Now I can just go home and relax for the afternoon. Maybe I'll play some shooters to help me relax. Wanna challenge me, Tsukasa?"
"Eh?" Tsukasa yelped slightly. "No way. Onee-chan is to good for me to beat."
"But it's more fun playing with another person. Both Inori and Matsuri don't want to take me on either."
"Why don't you ask Misao-chan and Ayano-chan to play with you later. They are coming over later on, right?"
Kagami thought about it and realized that she was right. Her two friends from her class, Misao and Ayano were coming over again to their place to discuss club related things. So much for relaxing at home, it looked like there was still a few moe things to do today after all.
"Well, Ayano isn't all that into gaming. And while I can definitely take on Misao, she takes away all the fun out of winning."
"That's because only Kona-chan can take on Onee-chan when it comes to games."
"Yeah, I guess that's true."
The four girls walked a bit in silence before Kagami spoke up again. "Say, where is Konata?"
"Oh, Onee-chan went home early today," answered Yutaka.
"What? Honestly, that girl can be so irresponsible. She should look after you as you go home, Yutaka-chan."
"Oh, don't worry about her, Kagami-san," said Miyuki. "Yutaka chan will be going home with me today."
"Really? Why?"
"Apparently, her group is still not done with their project for their class so she'll be sleeping over at Minami-san's place again."
"Oh. That's cool I guess."
"Besides, I wouldn't want to be a bother to Onee-chan today," said Yutaka.
"Is Kona-chan busy with something?" asked Tsukasa.
"No, not really. But I wouldn't want to impede on her since she's spending the rest of the day with Kirio-kun."
"Oh, I see….Who's Kirio-kun?"
"Onee-chan's date," replied Yutaka matter-of-factly.
"Oh, I see," said Tsukasa.
"How, nice for Konata," added Kagami.
"Yes, indeed," concurred Miyuki.
As the four girls walked on, a slight breeze blew across the school courtyard, kicking up the fallen leaves into beautiful spiraling flights. The sky was clear and the afternoon sun shined brightly down into the school. The air was alive with the soft sounds of the wind and the mixed pleasant chats of friendliness of the people around. It was like a scene straight out of a haiku. Everything was calm and peaceful—
"HE'S KONATA'S WHAT?!" exclaimed all three of the third-year high-school students towards Yutaka who jumped back in shock.
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Somewhere else.
"Achoo!" Kirio sneezed.
"What is it, Kirio-kun?" asked Konata. "You're not catching a cold, are you?"
Kirio sniffed his nose as he wiped it with a handkerchief. "I hope not."
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At the Izumi household.
Sōjirō was relaxing in the living room in front of the TV watching some cheesy detective show. Alone at home, he didn't feel like doing much of anything. He momentarily considered going to the computer and playing some dating-sims but soon decided that he was just not in the mood. After an intense overnighter at his editor's place, Sōjirō was feeling a little lazy. So he simply sat there on the floor in is casual yukata.
That's when the doorbell rang.
Sōjirō groaned as he got up from the floor and wobbled to the door. He hoped it wasn't some solicitor again. He took so long getting to the door that the person outside rang the doorbell a second time.
"Yes, yes, I'm coming already," called out Sōjirō.
He reached the door and opened it. Standing just outside his door was a middle-aged woman who was in her late-thirties. But her physique would lead one to believe that she was at least five years younger than that. She was an average build, around five feet in height. She was dressed in a pair of slim-fitting jeans, a white blouse with a blue denim jacket over it, and a pair of sandals. Her face had soft features of a young woman and she also had short brown hair
"Well, hello there Sōjirō," said the woman. "how have you been, lately?"
Sōjirō raised an eyebrow to the woman. For some reason she seemed familiar but Sōjirō just can't seem to put his finger on it.
"Ummm…do I know you?" he asked.
The woman put on an annoyed face. In the flash of a second, she charged in and put Sōjirō in a headlock. Sōjirō was now at her mercy all of a sudden. Again, very familiar.
"Hey, don't tell me you already forgot about me, Sōjirō," said the woman. "It's only been a few years, you know. I even came back all the way from Canada just to see you guys again."
Something in those patter of word triggered something else in Sōjirō's memory. At first he couldn't believe it but eventually the reality of it all hit him smack in the face. This woman, he knew her better that he thought.
"Tomoyo?!" he asked her while still gasping for air.
The woman smiled and finally let go of her chokehold. "Ah, I'm glad you finally remembered who I am, Sōjirō."
Sōjirō had to brush his neck to relieve some of the irritation then he looked up to the woman standing in front of him. There was no longer any doubt in his mind as to who this person was. His neighbor from all those years ago who moved away to the west, Tomoyo Sato.
"My, word, it really is you, isn't it, Tomoyo?"
"of course it is, you dummy!" replied the woman in mock anger. "Well aren't you gonna let me in?"
"Huh? Oh! Of course, come in. I'll make you some tea."
"That's more like it."
A little later, Tomoyo was in the living room, sitting on the floor over a cushion, and drinking a cup of freshly made tea Sōjirō had prepared for them. She took the cup and gave a couple of blows to cool the drink down a bit. Then she took a long sip and let the warm drink sooth her throat. She drank nearly half the cup's worth before setting the cup back down on the table. Tomoyo then let out a relaxed sigh of satisfaction.
"Man, it's been so long since I had some old fashioned home-made tea like this." She commented.
"Don't they have those in Canada?" asked Sōjirō.
"Not really. In the restaurants they do, but something about making them in a home just makes the tea tastes better, don't you think?"
"I don't see the difference."
"Well I can't really expect some dirty old man like you to understand such fine things."
A vein popped-up on Sōjirō's temple. "How many times have I told you to stop calling me that?"
Tomoyo smirked. "Even if I won't say it, it's still true."
"It's comments like that that give my daughter a bad impression about me."
"I don't think Konata needs me to show that you're just a dirty old man, Sōjirō."
"Oh, just shut up, already."
Tomoyo flashed him a humored smile and resumed to drink her tea. Sōjirō seemed to have taken no offense to her slight teasing. They've been doing this since they've first met all those years ago. The two old friends continued to talk about times gone by up to he present.
Sōjirō remembered almost everything about her. Back then she was a practicing pro-wrestler making her easily the most intimidating woman Sōjirō has ever met. She quite the business when her son started schooling and she settled down in their small little town spending her days working as a part-time fitness instructor. It was later when she would make it big in that line of work that she was offered a higher job abroad. Back then, she and her son really needed it since at the time she was actually loosing cash. So they had no choice but to move to the west. A choice that none of them liked to make.
Now things were a little better. Financial problems were a thing of the past for her and she had more than enough in the bank for her son to live off on until he was forty. She still worked as a fitness instructor but instead of simply working for the gym she herself owned the gym, and a few others.
"By the way," asked Tomoyo. "How is your daughter? Has she grown up yet?"
Instead of answering her directly, Sōjirō moved to a nearby drawer and pulled a small, framed picture frame from the top of it. "Here you go," said Sōjirō as he handed Tomoyo the picture.
Tomoyo examined the photo. It was a picture of four girls taking a fieldtrip in Kyoto. She recognized the shortest among the girls. One look and Tomoyo couldn't help but smile.
"She hasn't grown that much I see," she said. "She's still the chiisai kitsune that I remember."
"She never did get used to that nickname you gave her."
"It still suits her though. Man, she's cute for a high school student."
"That reminds me…How's Kirio?"
Tomoyo flashed him a smile. "Oh, why the sudden interest in my son?"
"Konata has never been late getting home on a Friday on the count of that her favorite afternoon anime airs close to this time. I'm suspecting that you're son is the only reason why she shouldn't be here yet."
"My, you're a perceptive one, Sōjirō."
"Well, it's alright. At least I know Kirio-kun."
"Well, if you want to learn more about him, I'd be happy to oblige. As long as you tell me more about Konata-chan. I like to know more about how's she's been too."
"Deal."
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Somewhere else.
"Achoo!" Konata sneezed.
The blue-haired girl sniffed then wiped her nose but this turned out to be a costly mistake on her part. With her fingers off the buttons and joy stick, Kirio took this opportunity to execute a finishing move with a few button mashes and quick turns of the stick in order to bring Konata's virtual character down to its knees. By the time Konata was able to concentrate again, she had already lost the game.
On the other side of the game cabinet, Kirio raised his hands in victory. He may have admitted that Konata was better at him at certain types of games but Marvel vs. Capcom 2 wasn't one of them. Behind him and Konata, a growing audience of arcade goers was applauding.
"Looks like I win again, Kona-chan," he said.
Konata was fussing. "No fair! I sneezed at that time!"
"That's no excuse!"
"C'mon. Best eight out of fifteen!"
"Fine, but you'll never learn…"
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Author's note: Here's another chapter down. Stay tuned for more and I promise I'll update as soon as I can. In the meantime, Pls. R&R!
Other notes: In case you didn't get the joke in the first part, Konata was parodying Death Note as she was emulating the character of L. The show didn't parody this particular title as it did with other famous titles so I decided to do it myself.