I've been getting a lot of requests from people asking if it's okay if they could use Oruki and Naru in their fics. And my answer to that is absolutely. I think it's awesome that people want to use them. I only ask that you do three things.

You ask me ahead a time (I doubt I'll say no).You make mention in your author's notes that you're borrowing the characters from me.You also state that I've given permission.

Once you've done that, feel free to do whatever you want to them. Use them, abuse them, bash them, torture and kill them, I could care less. I'd probably laugh if you bashed them or killed them. I'm weird that way.

Anyway, I'm happy that once again the last chapter was well liked. We're almost to the trip to Kyoto! Gah, I'm going to have to do a lot of research on Kyoto. I desperately want to make sure that I get it as accurately as I possible can without actually visiting it or being a Japanese native.

As always, I hope you enjoy the chapter!

Chapter 23

What a miserable week. For the last three days we've been going on one pointless city-wide escapade after another, and Haruhi's been more and more serious about the searches every day. We hadn't even had the chance to goof off, or more specifically, I haven't. Whenever I've been grouped with Haruhi, she would force me to do idiotic activities such as looking under cars or looking into garbage dumpsters, all for the sake of finding the mysterious. And if I were partnered with anyone other than Haruhi, she would sneak up on us to make sure we weren't goofing off. Of course, we were goofing off, so Haruhi would give us a scolding speech about responsibility and such, even though the fact of the matter is that while she was spying on me, she wasn't searching, either.

Then there was yesterday evening. I was helping that bastard Oruki with a project of his down in the basement. Unfortunately, I lacked the sense to wear socks while I was down there, and a splinter soon entered the flesh of my foot, unleashing the gift of stabbing pain into it. The truth is that it really wasn't a big deal, but when you're in a sour mood, the smallest annoyances get magnified ten-fold. I spent the next half-an-hour cursing and yelling while I tried to remove the damn splinter with a knife. Haruhi insisted more than once that she should give it a try, but there was no way I was going to let her near my foot with a knife. No way!

And of course Oruki had to be an ass and say 'Why don't we just remove the foot. I'd be way easier' with a completely serious face. Shut up, you bastard! You're not funny! I'm so happy that your daughter didn't inherit your crappy sense of humor…then again, her sense of humor isn't really much better.

Eventually, I was able to remove the evil splinter and look at it with my own eyes. It's amazing how such a tiny piece of wood could cause so much pain.

And every night, I've been having that dream again about my cousin. It just won't go away. And sometimes, I realized that the face of my cousin was replaced by Haruhi's. Strangely though, every time Haruhi appeared in the dream, she had her long hair again, and it would be tied with four ponytails. Nevertheless, the dream went about exactly the same as before. I'd watch her kiss that other guy, and all those wretched feelings would return just like when I first felt them. The dream would always end with me falling off my bike and landing on the asphalt. I've been perplexed as to why my dreams have been like this. I would have liked nothing more than for the dreams to go away.

Anyway, none of these things are really all that important. The truth of the matter is that I've been depressed and irritable all week. Of course the reason for this was because I was being forced to move out of this place the day after I return from the trip to Kyoto. Perhaps the worst part is the fact that I haven't told Haruhi. And no, I haven't kept it from her because I was afraid or anything. I just didn't want to ruin the trip to Kyoto. She's been looking forward to this damn thing for a while now, and we've all worked hard to make it happen. It would be a shame to ruin it. Yes, leaving Haruhi in the dark about why I've been moody all week was the lesser of two evils.

Obviously, Haruhi has asked me repeatedly why I've been down so much lately, but I've played it off as anxiousness over the upcoming trip. I've tried my best to keep my mood cheerful, but I knew I was failing. That and the lack of sleep were definitely getting to me. The problem was that I couldn't even say "I can't wait for this trip to end" because the day after it does I was going up north to live with my parents again.

Yes, that's right. I was moving. I already bought the train ticket.

That isn't to say that I didn't consider other options. I thought about obtaining aid from both Nagato and Koizumi. Hell, I even thought about asking Kunikida or Taniguchi if I could stay at their places. But all these option posed one problem, Haruhi and her growing feelings for me. Whether I wanted to admit it or not, Oruki was right. If I didn't love Haruhi back, I should go before I broke her heart. It's better for me, her and the whole world if I did that.

But if it was the right thing to do, then why do I still feel so terrible over it. My mind and emotions have been in constant conflict with one another. A part of me feels relieved that I'm finally leaving, another completely dejected. Why can't I get over it?

And still that's not even the worst of it. Then there's the whole trip to Kyoto itself. If what Asahina-san (big) has told me was true, than something bad was going to happen during our trip. And then there were all the signs I've been getting that Haruhi's planning to finally confess to me during the trip itself. Dammit, I don't want that to happen! I'd been praying to whatever god I could think of in a hope that she wouldn't confess to me during the trip. What would I say to her if she did? What could I say? I had no idea. All I hoped for was that this supposedly bad thing that was going to happen was unrelated to Haruhi's upcoming confession.

The only good news I've had came in the form of two extremely vague clues. Asahina-san (big) said "There will be a location that will be of great importance to Suzumiya-san out in Kyoto. You won't realize it right away, but I urge you to pay attention during your trip. When the time comes, you'll find her there." What place could it be? And how the hell would I know when the time comes? The only thing I could assume was that "her" must have meant Haruhi. I guess I'll have to take her advice and pay attention.

More confusing was the other clue…

When confronting her.

He held on the stage's edge.

He then let it go.

What the hell is that supposed to mean? Once again, I could assume that her meant Haruhi and He was me, but that's about it. What did she mean by stage's edge? And what exactly did I let go? Was it some twisted metaphor? Whenever I tried to ask Nagato about it, she refused to answer, saying that the answer would become clear when the time was right. Why the hell did I have to wait until "the time is right?" Why couldn't I know now?

Why couldn't I ever get any easy answers?

These were all the thoughts that were swirling my head today during lunch. It's Thursday, the day before the ever eventful trip. I was once again sitting with Taniguchi and Kunikida. I decided not to tell them I was moving. I didn't want to hear their whining and complaining.

Taniguchi decided to start up a conversation. "Hey, Kyonko!"

Bastard! Stop calling me that! I thought we had an agreement that you weren't allowed to tease me anymore if I made you a judge of that god-forsaken mud wrestling contest.

Taniguchi shrugged his shoulders. "That wasn't the agreement. I only said I'd stop teasing you about you and Suzumiya-san. By the way, I heard in Kyoto that there are these rocks that are called love rocks. Legends says that if you can walk from one rock to the other with your eyes closed that you'll be happily in love with the one you seek. Are you going to try and walk from one rock to the other? Who knows, you might just get lucky and finally be with the girl of your dreams." He was mockingly puckering his lip after he said that.

Ass&^%$! Didn't you just say you weren't going to tease me about Haruhi?! You already went back on our agreement!

"I didn't say anything about Suzumiya-san," said Taniguchi innocently. "You're the one who brought her up."

I immediately lost patience with him and got up from my desk. I decided I wasn't hungry and left the classroom to go take a walk. I was still very much in a foul mood. I had hoped that wandering the halls would help with my mood, but it failed. By the time I made it to the roof, I was just as upset as I was when I got up. Unfortunately, when I got up there, I found someone that I didn't want to run into.

"Ah, good day, Kyon-kun."

It was Koizumi. He was standing at the edge of the roof looking out into the sky. I merely greeted him plainly before taking a seat next to him. "Yo."

"You appear unnerved," he said. "Anything you feel you need to get off your chest?"

No. But I'm pretty damn sure that you're going to talk my ear off anyway.

Koizumi gave me an annoying smirk before he turned back to the clouds.

"It's almost been a year now."

"What was that?" I asked, my voice barely hiding my melancholy.

"It's almost been a year since that day when Suzumiya-san almost recreated the world."

Don't remind me. The images of that night are still within the recesses of my brain. The grey sky. The blue giants. And Haruhi and I… "Why'd you bring it up?"

Koizumi put his hand in his chin thoughtfully. "The truth of the matter is that it will be exactly the one year anniversary of that day this Saturday. When I realized this yesterday, I was utterly amazed. But thinking about it now, I know for sure that it's not a coincidence."

I had nothing to say. This was not what I wanted to hear. I'm not the type of person who believes in destiny or anything like that. I didn't want to believe that Haruhi had this whole thing set up on purpose. That it wasn't a coincidence that this James Randi guy was having a conference at a convention center in Kyoto and thus giving Haruhi an excuse to set up this whole trip just so she could confess to me. I sunk my head a bit. Everything seemed so simple a week ago, even if I was killing myself digging up dirt for the mud wrestling tournament. It's amazing how things could get out of control so quickly.

If Koizumi had anything else to say, I didn't remember it. I was too much in a daze. When I realized that lunch was almost over, I got up and returned to class. My attempt to make myself feel a little better failed miserably. I now felt worse than before. By the time I entered the classroom, Haruhi had already made it back. I could tell that she noticed my disposition.

"What's wrong with you? You've been like this all week."

"I'm fine." I lied as I took my seat in front of her and buried my head in my arms. "I'm just not feeling that good."

If Haruhi thought I was lying, she didn't show it or say it. The rest of class went by like a blur, mostly because of my apathy. What was the point in paying attention when I was going to be gone next week?

I was now in the clubroom. We were making the last of our preparations. For our equipment, we had the following: Five butterfly nets, three glass jars, two small wooden containers, two digital cameras, two cheap magnifying glasses, two pairs of "X-ray" glasses, and the digital camcorder that we used to shoot the movie. I shook my head when I looked at all the stuff, half of which I knew would be completely useless. Yet Haruhi managed to find some excuse as to why we needed all of it.

"I think we're good now," said Haruhi, looking at all the items with satisfaction. "Tomorrow, we'll run into the clubroom and grab all these items before we head down to the train station. We've done a lot of training this week to prepare for the main event. Tomorrows going to be very busy, so tonight I'm going to allow you guys time to rest. Make sure your ready, because we're not going to stop until it's late tomorrow night."

Everyone in the room nodded in understanding. After that, Haruhi dismissed us.

Haruhi and I were now walking home. There was complete silence between us now. This was likely my fault, due to my somber mood. Unfortunately, it wasn't long before Haruhi decided to say something about it.

"Are you feeling any better now?"

"I'm fine," I said, doing a poor job of hiding how I was really feeling.

Haruhi looked at me suspiciously. "Are you hiding something from me?!"

I guess I couldn't blame her for being suspicious. The last time I was like this I was in fact hiding something, and I was hiding something now as well. I tried my best to deny it, though. "Of course not. I told you I'm just not feeling well."

Haruhi narrow her eyes and glared at me. She then began to move into my personal space. I reacted by backing away. We both kept moving until my back was up against a pole. No longer able to back away any further, I was trapped as Haruhi moved unbelievably close to my face while still glaring at me. I felt it again…my heart. Every time she gets this close, it starts to race. Go away!

"Tell me the truth," she said in a low tone.

I swallowed hard as I tried to resist her form of intimidation. I wanted to tell her. I really did, but I knew what would happen if I told her. Without a doubt, Haruhi would race home and butt heads with her father. A huge fight would ensue, and who knew how bad it could get. In the end, though, I knew Haruhi would lose. Oruki was the only person on the planet that she couldn't bully or push around. Ultimately, it would solve nothing, and then we'd all would be bummed out during the entirety of the trip. Hell, the trip could even be canceled, and then that would ruin everything. No, I had to shoulder this burden alone. For that sake of the trip and for the sake of Haruhi, I would not say anything.

"I told you it's nothing."

Haruhi glared at me for a few more seconds before she finally gave up and sighed deeply. She stepped back and rested her cheek on her hand. "Then cheer up already. I don't want you to be a downer during the whole trip.

I gave her a bit of a fake smile. "I'll do what I can."

Haruhi smiled back and threw her hand in the air. "That's the spirit! Let's go!"

It was then that the two of us went home…I did it again. It's not my home. I needed to stop thinking that.

I was relaxing in the living room, watching TV. Oruki had told me that I didn't have any work to do today, so I was free to try and relax. Haruhi and I had already finished our homework, so there was really nothing left to do but sit around and wait.

It was then that Naru-san snuck into the living room. "Kyon-kun, I need to talk to you."

I turned to her and smiled lightly. "What's up?"

She took a seat on the couch next to me while looking back and forth. "Where's Haru-chan?"

"She upstairs in her room. Probably scheming away for the trip tomorrow."

Naru-san breathed a sigh of relief before speaking again. "Kyon-kun, remember our talk about what I should do if I heard a secret?"

Not this again. Let me guess. She knows a secret. "Yeah."

Naru-san began to fidget around a bit before continuing. "Well you see, Haru-chan and I have been able to talk a bit lately, and she told me something really important that I wasn't supposed to say to anyone. Now you told me that if I had trouble keeping it to myself that I should just tell you. There's a problem, though."

"What's that?"

"I'm especially not supposed to tell you what she told me. That was what Haru-chan said to me. The thing is that…"

"Stop." I said while interrupting her. I put my hand to my face and sighed deeply. "Let me guess. It's something to do with me and our trip to Kyoto."

Naru-san seemed a bit surprised. "You already knew?"

"Let's just say that I've been given a lot of clues lately." I said, feeling even more down.

I think Naru-san picked up on how I was feeling. "What's wrong, Kyon-kun. You seem really down."

I decided to confide in Naru-san. She was probably to only person I could think of that I could tell. "Has your husband told you what will happen to me when we come back?"

Naru-san stared at me a bit before nodding. "Yes, I heard."

"The truth is that I really don't want to go, but I don't really have a choice."

"Oh…" said Naru-san a she began to stare at the carpet, perhaps starting to become a bit depressed, too.

It was then that I realized that now was a good chance to thank Naru-san for all she'd done while I was here. I had a feeling I wasn't going to get the chance if I didn't do it now. "Naru-san, I want to thank you."

Naru-san seemed a bit confused. "For what?"

"For everything. If it weren't for you, I don't think I could have made it through this whole month. You're the breath of fresh air in this place. I don't care what anyone says about you, you're a great mother, wife, friend and person, and I'm glad I met you." I decided that I would be the one to hug her this time. She was taken aback by this, obviously not used to being the one who was hugged first, but she soon returned the hug. It was a nice moment in what had otherwise been a lousy week.

I soon let go, feeling a smidge better than before. Naru-san gave me a million-watt smile before speaking. "I have a feeling things will work out in the end, Kyon-kun. Try to look up."

I wish I had your confidence, Naru-san. I really wish I did.

Naru-san got up and gave me a light bow. "I'm going to go work on dinner now. I'll give it my best!"

I wouldn't expect any less from you. "Thanks again, Naru-san."

Naru-san nodded and went into the kitchen. I was once again left to watch TV. I was watching one of those wacky game shows, hoping it would cheer me up a bit. Sadly, watching the contestants make idiots of themselves was not really enough to lighten my mood, and I actually found myself slipping back into my depressed state. Damn this sucked bad.

It wasn't long before Oruki exited the basement. He approached me with a serious look on his face. "I wanted to get a chance to talk to you before you went on your trip, and I know I'm not going to get the chance tomorrow, so let's go."

I looked up at him weakly. I didn't know what he had to say, but I honestly wasn't in the mood to hear it. I was still feeling a little sour about being kicked out, even if it was for a good reason. I got up anyway, though, and the two of were soon out the door and in his car.

The trip down to Oruki's location of solitude was quiet. Whatever he had to say, he obviously wanted to wait until we got there before he said it. It would be about twenty minutes before we finally arrived.

The two of us exited the car and sat in the hood while we stared down the sunset. He didn't say anything for a good five minutes, perhaps trying to gather his thoughts before he spoke.

Eventually, he found the urge to speak. "Look…I know you're down…And I really wouldn't blame you. I know you don't want to move but…" He was silent again while he scratched his chin. "I…I like you, kid. I really do. You're a good kid. Not perfect, but who is? After all, you've been dealing with a lot on your shoulders for a while now, and I hardly think that's fair for anyone. If I thought it was for the best, I would have let you stay, but…" His face started becoming very serious again. "I'll do whatever it takes to protect my daughter."

I didn't say anything for a bit, thinking through what he said. I couldn't disagree with him. I have had a lot of responsibility over the last year. Although I would say I've done well for myself in handling someone with the power to alter and destroy the world, it's still a lot for anyone to handle, let alone a teenage boy. "So, are you saying that you're going to keep your daughter in line?"

"I'll do what I can." He said, sounding despondent. "I was able to handle it the first three years before you came along, and that was before I knew the truth. To be quite honest, the whole thing still scares the hell out of me, but I'll manage."

I figured there was at least one more thing to tell him. "Just so you know, a birdie told me that something bad was going to happen during this trip."

Oruki looked at me with concern. "What kind of bad thing? And how bad?"

"Bad," I said in a way that really emphasized the level of severity.

"Why can't we just cancel the trip if something would happen?"

"Then you would upset Haruhi and replace one bad thing with another. Besides, it was a time-traveler that told me. When a time traveler says something is going to happen, it has to happen. History must play out the way they say it does."

Oruki stared at me for a bit before shaking his head. "I don't think I understand any of this."

"You better figure it out when I'm gone. You're going to have a lot on your plate when I'm gone. And I'm sure Koizumi's going to talk your ear off…a lot."

"You mean Mr. Smiles? I hate that kid. Something about him."

I chuckled lightly when I heard that. "He gets on my nerves sometimes, too."

It was then that Oruki gave me a smile. "You know what I'm in the mood for?"

No! Please don't say it!

"That's right! Exercise! Nothing raises the spirit like a good old fashioned exercise!"

I highly disagree! "Uh…Haruhi said for all of us to rest up for tomorrow and…"

"Bah! Rest is for the weak! You'll have plenty of time to rest when you're dead!"

He then grabbed me by the collar and threw me in the car. Before long, we were off to that god forsaken dojo. I swear, it's like this guy thinks I'm made of gundanium or something. I hate his god damn guts!

Oh, and by the way, it didn't raise my spirits…

I want to apologize for the short chapter, but this was meant to be the last of the set up chapters before I finally started to get to Kyoto. I'm going to be busy doing research, so I wouldn't expect to see the chapter done till next weekend.

Until then, hope you enjoyed the chapter. (Oh, and episode 13 of the season relaunch was made of win!)