A/N: Story so far: The team mourned their grades and received a letter. Meanwhile, Kanji revealed his sewing hobby to Naoto (who showed some unfortunate stalker tendencies) and tried to keep Teddie away from his mother (who showed a fondness for sparkling exchange students).

In this part: CULTURE FESTIVAL CULTURE FESTIVAL CULTURE FESTIVAL

At least, the first section. Mostly setup, covers the sign-ups and first day. Expect three chapters and two interludes in total. As usual, there will be alterations/additions - some more major than others.

October 27th, 2011

Souji paled. "Tell me you didn't."

Yosuke just grinned.

It wouldn't last long. Chie and the others would find out he'd signed them up for the stupid pageant - probably in about fifteen seconds, with all the gossiping in the corridors - and flay him limb from limb. Then they'd start on Kanji and Souji too, just for being unlucky enough to breathe the same air. "S'finally happened," Kanji muttered, shaking his head. "You turned into Teddie."

"No way," Yosuke shot back, far too quickly and firmly for it to sound casual. "He was way more excited about this than me! I just meant it as a joke."

"Which is so much better." Elbows on his desk, Souji pressed the heels of his hands against his forehead. "Yosuke, why?"

"Beauty pageant, guys. Beauty. Pageant. C'mon, am I the only red-blooded male here?"

Kanji sank down in the nearest chair. No high-pitched yelling or pounding feet from the corridor yet, but it was just a matter of time. "Only one with a death wish. Y'signed up the three girls in the school who are guaranteed to kick your ass."

"Four," Yosuke corrected.

Kanji blinked.

Wait a sec.

"Three," Souji was saying, somewhere far away. "Naoto'll never do it."

Holy crap. He'd signed up Naoto?

"Sure she will! Rise'll make her. In fact, I guarantee Rise'll be happy I signed her up. Idols love being on stage!"

Naoto, who freaked out at people knowing her measurements and, if Rise was right, pulled some sort of arcane magic every morning to hide them. Kanji had blocked out the precise details of her theories; the nosebleed would've lasted weeks.

"So, you only need to worry about being shot, kicked in the balls and set on fire."

He'd never actually looked at the notice board, and Souji had been too busy trying to pry an explanation out of Yosuke to fill in all the details. He'd just assumed…dammit. Stupid Hanamura, stupid pageant, stupid Naoto who Kanji would have to watch stand on a stage wearing a-

"I swear, Souji. You could have the hottest girl in the world sitting in your lap and you'd start complaining your leg was asleep. You should be thanking me."

…What would the entrants be wearing? Dresses? Because that would be so, so weird. But also really cute. And weird.

Wait. He was a guy. Manly man. Supposed to like that crap. If he only liked Naoto in guy's clothes, then maybe all that stuff he'd refused to think about any more actually made a difference. Maybe his Shadow really had been about guys and girls instead of sewing dolls and he was just-

"See, Kanji gets it! Zoned out soon as he realized he'll get to see Naoto-kun." A hand gripped his shoulder. "Though she might not be dressed as a boy this time."

"Shut it!" Kanji snapped, smacking the hand away.

"And he's back!" The smirk would've been unbearable if Yosuke hadn't also been clutching his fingers and massaging the knuckles. Served him right. "Thought we'd lost you there, Tatsumi."

"He'd be the lucky one. I can't believe you'd-" Souji stopped and shook his head. "No, I can."

Kanji scowled. "I don't give a crap about the pageant," he lied. "Just pisses me off that Senpai and I are gonna get lumped in with you."

"Ah, the girls can drop out if they hate it that much." Yosuke grinned again; Kanji couldn't decide if it looked wolfish or perverse. "And who knows, maybe some of them'll take part."

"Come back down to earth, Hanamura," muttered Souji. "Here's what's really going to happen: Chie and Yukiko are going to destroy you."

Kanji nodded grimly. "Thass right. Little bits of ya flying out the classroom windows." Five minutes with Chie and the staff would be sweeping up Yosuke-pieces for a week, provided Yukiko hadn't already Agidyned the schoolyard.

The grin didn't fade. With the unshakable confidence of someone who'd forgotten just how terrifying girls could be, Yosuke winked and gave Kanji a thumbs-up. "Trust me, it'll all be worth it."

"You better have a damn good explanation for this!"

Toned muscles didn't make a person any taller - and tough as she was in a fight, Chie was still pretty small. Kanji therefore considered it even more impressive that, when sufficiently pissed off, she could scare the living shit out of him.

Yosuke clasped his hand to his chest, eyes wide with an innocence that even Teddie would've labeled unconvincing. "For what?"

"The beauty pageant, moron!" Chie edged closer, trapping him against one of the rooftop air ducts. "You signed us up without even asking!"

"Hey! Why do you automatically blame me?"

"Past experience," muttered Yukiko - who, in her own quiet, polite way, was just as terrifying as Chie. Maybe more. The two girls stepped closer as one, fists clenched, and Yosuke's wide-eyed look swerved from feigned ignorance to mild panic.

Chie was leaning forward on her tiptoes, dangerously close to his face. "You are in so much trouble!"

"Whoa, whoa!" He raised his palms defensively. "I-I mean, if you don't wanna do it, just say no, right? L-like it was just a joke!"

"We wouldn't be so pissed if we could do that!"

Damn. No wonder they were mad. "You can't?" Kanji asked.

Yukiko turned to him and shook her head. "Kashiwagi-sensei's running the pageant. Once somebody's been signed up, they can't back out." Her expression turned dark. "No matter what."

"That's right," Rise said, with a firm nod. "Word is that the contest won't go ahead without at least three entrants - and I bet Kashiwagi's been waiting for this all year. Her name's first on the sign-up sheet, right above Ohtani."

"Seriously?" Yosuke winced and ran a hand through his hair. "Man, I didn't even read the other names…or the fine print…"

"So it was you!" Chie shrieked.

"Oh crap! Listen, Chie, I-"

"Idiot! I can't believe you'd do that! Of all the stupid, selfish, immature-" Chie must've run out of adjectives, because the rest of the sentence turned into a wordless, furious growl that made Kanji think of an angry wild bear. Yukiko took over her tirade, at a volume too low for Kanji to hear but with a lot more gesturing.

Yosuke shrank back further and almost tripped over the air duct. "C'mon! I-I-don't get-"

For a fleeting moment, Kanji almost felt sorry for him. But the guy had brought on himself, and Naoto was probably just as pissed at him as Chie and Yukiko were, meaning she'd be pissed at Kanji by extension. She didn't look mad - she'd been watching the argument with the sort of expression Kanji usually reserved for Tuesday morning's Physics class - but her posture was even stiffer than usual. The sole exception was her hand, which was tapping against her hip every time he glanced over.

"Hey, Senpai," Rise piped up. "Do you want us to be in the pageant?"

Rise had a knack for asking questions which had no right answer. At Kanji's side, Souji took a deep breath. "Well…"

"Of course he does!" Yosuke jumped in. "Everyone knows how popular Yukiko is round here." He gestured toward Yukiko, who still looked vaguely murderous. "Amagi Challenge, right? And on top of that, we have an idol and a Detective Prince."

Naoto's hand tapped a little faster. Kanji thought he heard her tsk.

"And what's the point," Yosuke continued as he dodged neatly around Chie's left side, "of having a beauty pageant if all these incredible heroines aren't going to take part?"

Souji leaned toward Kanji, voice lowered to a murmur. "You were right. He really has turned into Teddie."

Chie, who'd been quietly staring at Yosuke as he spoke, kicked back into life and grabbed his sleeve. "Hey! Where do I fit in?"

"Uh-you, y-you're…" he stuttered, trying to pry her fingers off his jacket while glancing frantically around the group, "you're-you know, right?"

Whether or not he honestly expected her to get it - or if there was anything to actually get - Kanji wasn't certain. What was clear from Chie's expression was that Yosuke might as well have shrugged and told her he'd rather see Hanako Ohtani up there instead, because she looked primed to explode. "Well, excuse me for not fitting in, you- you jerk!"

Both of Yosuke's hands flew to cover his crotch. "N-no! I-it was just-hey, Kanji! You want the girls to be in it too, don'tcha?"

Two pairs of angry female eyes - plus one pair that'd been fixed on Senpai and another that made him lightheaded to look at - turned upon Kanji. He swallowed hard and summoned the quickest and easiest lie he could. "I-I ain't interested in that stuff."

Yeah, right. Of course he was interested; who wouldn't be? He just couldn't tell if it was a happy sort of interest or a 'this is freaking me out' one - something he would've tried to explain if it wouldn't have ended with him being shoved off the roof. "So, you-all'a you can do whatever."

With a solemn nod, Yosuke turned toward Naoto. "Naoto-kun, Kanji-kun says he really wants you to be in it."

Naoto blinked at him. "Wh-what?"

Kanji felt his stomach wrench itself into a spectacular knot. "I-I-I didn't say that!"

"And Souji's just dying to see our lovely ladies up there too! Right, partner?

"I just want everyone to know," Souji said, his voice flat and his arms crossed over his chest, "that I had nothing to do with this."

"Me neither!" Kanji tried not to yell, hoping Naoto was paying attention.

"Well, if Senpai wants to see us, I guess we've gotta do it!" said Rise, with a cheerful shrug and no sign that she'd listened to the conversation. "If there are people looking forward to seeing me, I might as well put on a show for 'em. My agency doesn't need to know."

"Th-that's right! See, Risette's got the right idea!" Yosuke sounded high-pitched and slightly desperate. "Teddie can't wait either!" He paused. "Actually, I think he was more excited than anyone. He's planning on sneaking in to watch."

Sighing, Chie shoved her hands deep in her tracksuit pockets. She'd stopped threatening to beat Yosuke to death in favor of frowning at her feet; maybe his explanation had worked after all. "So, Ted's behind this too. I should've known."

"If we can't refuse, I suppose there's no sense in arguing the point." It was the first time Naoto had spoken, and she sounded a lot calmer than Kanji had expected. "But for someone like me to get up on stage…" She shook her head. "Perhaps there's a way I could take it up with the school authorities…"

Someone like her. Someone awesome?

…No, no. Someone professional, Kanji decided, someone kind of reserved - and someone who he really, really needed to be in that pageant, no matter how many tiny shards his mind would break into while watching her. "I-I don't think it's a problem at all."

He didn't realize he'd spoken out loud until Naoto stared at him.

…Screw it, no reason to stop now. Couldn't get any worse. "I-I mean, just do it, y'know? Seriously!"

"Dude," Yosuke said, almost admiringly. "Your blood's boiling even more than usual!"

Boiling was right. If Naoto didn't stop fricking gaping at him, Kanji would burst into flame starting with his face - though judging by the crimson creeping over hers, she might just beat him there. She stared a few moments more before swiveling away and tugging down the brim of her cap.

Rise giggled. "Silly Kanji! Just tell Naoto-kun you wanna see her on the stage." In what looked like a single motion, she skipped forward, latched one arm around Naoto's shoulders and tugged the cap up again. "She'll totally do it. Then all four of us will be in the pageant!"

"Hey, wait a minute!" Chie protested, eyes wide.

Yukiko whipped around with a look of sheer horror. "B-but we never said-Rise-chan!"

Naoto, who'd been simultaneously trying to wriggle out of Rise's grasp and make words come out when she opened her mouth, finally formed a sentence. "Wh-what are you saying!"

This. This was it. Kanji's single chance. He needed her to be in this pageant. It was the best way he had of knowing for certain whether he liked Naoto not only as a boy, or as a girl who'd claimed to be one, but as herself. He cleared his throat. "Um, I beg you. P-please be in it. If you do, my-" He hesitated. "My, uh, doubts will finally be cleared."

Rise - left arm still around Naoto's shoulders and the right now holding her by the waist - winked at him. Unfortunately, Naoto just kept staring.

Figuring that he'd been pretty composed up until now, at least by his usual standards, Kanji gave up and went for gusto. "C'mon!" he yelled, fists clenched. "Make me a man!"

In his defense, it'd sounded a lot more impressive in his head.

Silence fell - or would've, if not for Naoto's quiet sound of distress and all the other students on the roof whispering as they turned to gawk at the team. Still, Kanji swore he could hear each second tick by. He also swore he heard Yosuke snicker, and vowed to beat the crap out of him when Naoto was done staring. Finally, she blinked again - twice, this time - and her expression shifted from blank to utterly confused. "Doubts? What are you talking about?"

Shit, like she hadn't figured all this out? 'Make me a man' had been his last resort; the next step was tattooing love poetry on his forehead and smacking her on the nose with a bunch of roses. "L-look, just do it, dammit! I mean, you're an ace detective, aren't ya?"

"Wh-What does that have to do with a beauty pageant!" Naoto spluttered.

Kanji had run out of both words and ideas. He glared at her, breathing hard.

Naoto glared back.

The school bell rang.

"Well, that's that!" Rise chirped, as she unwrapped herself from Naoto's shoulders. "So we're all in the pageant, right?"

"Whatever. I'm not gonna be late for class because of-just-ugh!" With one last scowl at Yosuke, Chie stormed past Kanji and grabbed Naoto's arm. "C'mon, Naoto-kun."

The team quickly dispersed: Naoto with an ineffective yelp as Chie dragged her through the stairwell door, Yukiko with a look of general confusion, and Souji with a sympathetic shake of his head. Kanji figured Rise would follow. He was sorely disappointed.

"You almost had it, Kanji-kun!" she exclaimed. "The 'make me a man' part was kinda off and I don't know where you were going with that ace detective line, but the rest was great!"

"You-that-" He stopped, took a deep breath, and forced his fists to unclench. "...Damn, Rise. That was horrible even for you."

She pouted, hands on hips. "I wasn't being horrible! You just weren't saying what you meant."

"You gotta let me take things at my own pace!"

"I have been! See, I'm going gray waiting for you!" Rise tugged at a loose curl of hair just above her ear. It looked the same reddish-brown as the rest. "Nobody wants old lady idols. Look, I gotta go to class, Kanji-kun, but you and me are gonna talk later, okay?"

It sounded like a threat. Knowing Rise, it was intended as one - and as he watched her dash off to the stairwell, Kanji shivered. No way was he going to class now. Composition sucked at the best of times, and after a lunch spent trying to spill his feelings to the most oblivious person he'd ever met, it would just be twisting the knife. He walked over to Yosuke - still standing by the AC duct and frowning at his feet - and flopped down beside him. "You goin' inside?"

"I guess." The frown deepened. "Man, I didn't think she'd be that mad."

"Who, Naoto?"

"What? No, I meant Satonaka. I seriously couldn't tell if she was about to yell at me or burst into tears." He kicked his heel against the duct, rattling it against Kanji's back. "Chie doesn't do that. She must really not wanna be in the pageant."

Kanji hadn't been able to see Chie's expression that well from where he'd been standing, but she'd sounded pissed off rather than upset. He shrugged. "Sounded like you didn't think she'd fit in anyway."

"Hey, that's not what I meant! It's not like she doesn't-it's-she's just different. And she's also totally overreacting." Sighing, Yosuke pushed himself away from the duct. "But she'll get over it."

"Y'think?"

"Yeah. Chie's always pissed at me over something." His hand landed heavy on Kanji's shoulder. "Be grateful Naoto's not like that, dude."

October 28th, 2011

Revenge came swiftly, of course.

There was no way the girls would let Yosuke off the hook; Kanji had known that since first hearing about his latest poor life decision. Yukiko had even muttered something about payback on her way out the school gate last night, with a glare that sent her usual group of admirers scattering. The only person who hadn't seen the inevitable was Yosuke himself - who was spending his lunch break storming around in the first-floor corridor, ranting about how completely unfair everything was and insisting there was no way he was putting on a dress (and no, Rise, it didn't matter how pretty he'd look, he didn't want to look pretty at all).

"Why wouldn't he?" Rise muttered, arms folded, after her final failed appeal to Yosuke's feminine side. She'd taken refuge in Classroom 1-3 while Souji tried to calm him down. "I don't see why Yosuke-senpai can't just have fun with this!"

Kanji didn't either. If you were stuck doing something, you might as well do it properly. Besides, he'd tailored enough dresses to know girls definitely had the edge in clothing. Wasn't like he'd be wearing anything ugly. Rise had even promised to help him with his hair and makeup, and anybody who'd worn a different hairstyle on each of her album and single covers - or at least on the twenty-six he'd counted in the Junes music department - had to know their stuff. The only real challenge would be finding an outfit at such short notice.

Well, okay. Pulling off 'pretty' might be tough too. "You sure I'll look good?"

"Of course!" Rise insisted, like helping burly guys cross-dress was scribbled somewhere in an idol's job description. "I'm an expert at this stuff, it's gonna be awesome. I can't wait to see Senpai!"

Kanji frowned. "You can't wait to see your boyfriend in a dress?"

"He isn't my boyfriend, Kanji-kun. Not yet, anyway," she added with a smirk. "But I'll make sure your boyfriend shows up too."

"Don't care if she does," he lied. He'd developed a knack for that lately - or so he'd thought, until Rise's short-lived smirk turned completely skeptical.

"Yeah you do! You wanna see her, and that's fine. I'd be worried if you didn't."

Kanji shifted in his seat. "I-I just wanna figure out-you know. If it's the same no matter what. Boy or girl or, or whatever."

In retrospect, Naoto's secret getting spilled should have solved everything. She was really a chick, meaning Kanji hadn't been crushing on a guy, meaning he could once again take pride in his amazing heterosexuality. Simple. Except Naoto was a guy in a lot of the ways that counted, a girl in plenty of others and somewhere in-between for all the rest. Basically, Naoto was Naoto, and Kanji was as confused as ever.

He swallowed. "It has to be the same. Because if it isn't, then there's something up, right?"

Rise studied him for a moment, eyes slightly narrowed - then shrugged. "I dunno if it matters, Kanji-kun."

"But you-you said it did, before! You said it was okay now Naoto's a girl."

She waved his protest aside. "I say a lot of stuff. Mostly to see your face when I do. I just mean it'd be easier now 'cause people won't give you a hard time for liking boys." She shrugged again. "Perceptions count. We ought to know that better than anyone."

She had a point. Kanji had never figured out how to change himself to what people wanted, so he'd pretended to be something they definitely didn't, to the point where he'd almost forgotten how to stop. Rise had fallen into almost the same trap - not because she didn't know how to remake herself, but because she was too damn good at it. She'd forced herself to fit, he'd pushed everyone away. Naoto had done both. Kanji doubted it'd worked out any better for her.

Fact was, people thinking Naoto was a girl instead of a guy somehow changed everything - even for him. Especially for him. Kanji just really wished it didn't.

He closed his eyes and let out a long breath. Shit, he hated thinking about this stuff.

"I think you like Naoto-kun no matter what," Rise said firmly. When Kanji opened his eyes again, she was leaning over his desk, palms flat against the surface. "And I wanna know why."

"Uh-what?"

"Sure, she's totally cute, I thought that back in the summer. Gets almost as many letters as me and Yukiko-senpai, too. But they're mostly from girls, and girls do that stuff. We're nuts sometimes." Rise tipped her head. "What's the deal with you?"

Kanji hesitated. His first instinct was to insist Rise go get bent - except it was a really good question and one he'd never actually answered. Had to figure out what you liked about someone, right? He cleared his throat. "Uh. Sh-she's really clever. Knows stuff."

Rise hummed approvingly. "Okay, good start. What about looks? Gonna have to tell her that, she'll wanna know."

Kanji was pretty certain Naoto would shoot him for saying he liked her hat, never mind waxing lyrical about all the ways she made him go gooey and dizzy and other adjectives that made him sound like a twelve year-old girl. "She looks…nice."

"Nice? C'mon, Kanji-kun, be more specific!"

"I-I dunno. Dresses smart. The ties, y'know." He could already feel his cheeks heating up. "Her eyes, too."

Rise leaned further forward. Her grin had turned shark-like. "What about them?"

"Uh... they're b-blue, and- dammit, quit needlin' me!"

"Like I said, you're gonna have to get more specific." Frowning slightly, Rise shook her head. "Maybe the pageant'll help. Make sure you get a good look at her, okay?"

The pageant had to help. Kanji was counting on it to answer the first of his two big questions - whether he liked Naoto no matter what - though part of him couldn't help thinking he should be able to figure that out himself. Another part wondered if it mattered at all. It only seemed vital when he was panicking about himself - which he'd been doing way too much the past few days. No matter what he'd said to his Shadow, some of the mess in his head was still about boys and girls. Still, he couldn't help noticing that when he'd tried to separate out the things he liked about Naoto, neither of those words had seemed that important at all.

The gossip about the pageant had died down by the end of school, along with the jibes at the three lovely 'ladies' entering it. Most of them had been directed at Yosuke, partly because he made the most noise but mostly because nobody had the guts to say anything to Kanji's face. A few guys had started ragging on Souji, but soon quit when they realized the girls seemed to like him more than ever. Kanji had heard a group of them whispering and giggling as Souji passed the lockers; something about sensitive boyfriends being the best, and why couldn't all guys be just like Seta-senpai?

After that, there'd been a lot less snickering and a lot more boys staring nervously at the pageant signup sheet. He hadn't figured any of them would be dumb enough to actually add their names, but the crowd still gathered around the notice-board ten minutes after final bell suggested otherwise. Curious, he peered over the small sea of heads as he walked past. It was hard to be sure - he couldn't make out the writing from this distance, especially not while he was moving - but he swore there were two new names scribbled at the bottom of the sheet.

Poor bastards. But hey, a few extra contestants might be nice, they'd at least give Yosuke a few extra bodies to hide behind on stage so he wouldn't keep-

"Uh…hey, Kanji?"

Kanji snapped his gaze away from the board and looked straight ahead. A few meters down the corridor, Naoki Konishi was leaning against the wall, schoolbag in hand and looking very nervous.

Crap.

He and Naoki had been friends years ago. Their mothers had known each other well, in a neighborly sort of way, so when they weren't playing in the street they divided their time between the liquor and textiles shops. Kanji remembered freaking out during one of Naoki's attempts to hide bugs in his sister's schoolbag - they'd looked way too much like tiny cockroaches - and how much Saki had yelled at them both after catching him. Then Kanji's old man had died, two months before the start of middle school, and nothing had seemed worth the effort. Now Saki was gone too and Naoki probably needed a friend more than ever, but Kanji had been too chicken to try bridging the gap.

He cleared his throat. "Uh. Hey. How's it going?"

"Not bad. You?"

"Great," he replied, trying desperately to think of something to say that wasn't sorry your sister's dead.

Naoki didn't seem certain what to say either. "So…um." Moments passed in difficult silence, before he finally shook his head and laughed. "Wow, this is awkward."

Wasn't funny really, but it broke the ice. Kanji grinned down at him. "Yeah. Never been good at small talk."

"I think you got worse. How's your mom?"

"Good. Workin'. Yours?"

Naoki shrugged. "She's fine. She misses Saki."

"Yeah. I'm sorry, man." Kanji clasped a hand over his shoulder, a little more heavily than he'd intended - but Naoki still smiled. "So…uh, what's up?"

The smile vanished. "I saw your name. On the board. The pageant."

"Oh. Yeah. Hanamura got me roped into it, can't back out."

Looking almost embarrassed, Naoki shifted his gaze to the crowd around the board. "Um…there were a lot of-people were talking about you for a while. Earlier in the year. Saying you were-that you didn't like girls." He hesitated. "Is-is it true?"

Kanji tried not to wince. Word must've spread even quicker than he'd guessed. Maybe people had seen him hanging around with Naoto - or more likely, they'd seen him on the Midnight Channel. He had no idea what his Shadow had said, but it hardly mattered; seeing a guy prancing around a bathhouse in a fundoshi would've been enough evidence for anyone. And not only did he still not have a firm answer to the question, Kanji hated that Naoki was asking it at all. "Would it matter if it was?" he asked, forcing his voice to stay steady.

Naoki paused for a long moment, then shook his head. "Not really."

"…Good," Kanji managed, letting out the breath he hadn't realized he'd been holding. "People say a lotta dumb stuff."

"Yeah, they do. Sorry. I-I kept meaning to ask you when you came back to school, but-" Naoki gave a sheepish shrug. "You know."

"Yeah."

Silence fell again, but at least this one was a little less awkward - and if they hung out more, it'd get easier, right? If Kanji had a chance of fixing things between them, he owed it to Naoki to try. "Listen, you, uh, wanna go get something to eat? Aiya or someplace?"

"Actually, I'm meeting Souji-senpai there later. But I bet he wouldn't mind if you came too, you guys hang out all the time. We're meeting around eight, if you're free?"

Figured. Senpai got along with everyone. Probably a better friend to Naoki than Kanji had ever been. It wasn't really stealing, either, not when they hadn't been close for years.

Knowing that didn't stop it hurting. Kanji shook his head and tried to smile. "Nah…s'cool. Gotta watch the store then. Kinda late to eat."

"Yeah...we were supposed to head there straight after school, but he said he had to go see Shirogane-kun first." Naoki shrugged, looking a little annoyed. "Something about giving her a letter."

Kanji's first thought was of the letters in Naoto's locker. He swallowed, turning away. "Right. 'Course. Guess I'll catch you another time, yeah?"

Naoki smiled. "Yeah, I'd like that. Later, Kanji-kun."

Hanging out with Naoto wasn't stealing, either. She probably liked talking to somebody as smart as her. Besides, Souji made time for everyone on the team; leaving her out would be wrong. Nothing to worry about. Kanji kept telling himself this all the way back to the store, but he still couldn't shake the feeling that whatever that letter was, Naoto wouldn't be throwing it away.

October 29th, 2011

"I don't think Yosuke meant any harm, Kanji-kun. He just…" Yukiko trailed off with a vague gesture that Kanji interpreted as can't open his mouth without sticking his foot in it. Which everyone already knew, so it was no consolation.

"Can't stop being a jerk," was Chie's grumbled finish. "Sometimes I think it'd be better if we just let a Shadow eat him."

Yukiko frowned for several moments, like she was searching really hard for an argument - then sighed. "Probably."

"I mean, c'mon! Kind and fragile! Fragile!" Chie threw up her hands. "What's he planning to do, snap her in half?"

"Probably just doesn't want her to kick his ass," Kanji muttered. He hadn't put much thought (or any, really) into Yosuke's imaginary ideal girlfriend, other than dimly noting that she didn't sound much like anyone he knew - and especially not the girls he hung around. The only one who couldn't kick Shadow ass by herself was Rise, and she made up for it by causing trouble outside the television instead. Besides, somebody didn't need to be delicate for you to want to protect them, because Naoto wasn't at all, just little, and Kanji still-

No. No way was he getting started on that. He'd pissed her off enough last time.

"I don't get it. It's not like I beat him up all the time," Chie said, her face flushed. "A couple of kicks, that's all, and only when he's being-ugh, you know."

"Well, people like different things, don't they?" Yukiko offered. "Like Kanji-kun wants somebody mysterious. Um, who isn't Souji," she quickly added. "I'm sure Yosuke was wrong about that."

"Damn right he was!" Why the hell had Senpai picked Kanji anyway? Everyone knew he'd only gone on the girls' side to make up numbers. Could've just said he'd rather date a chick. Instead he'd fueled Yosuke for another week - and hell, Kanji didn't even blame Hanamura, that was just how the guy was, but Souji should've known better. That said, Kanji should've known not to start describing the sort of person he liked without thinking it through first. Yosuke's sweet and breakable girl had at least been vague - but someone mysterious, who looked strong but had a lot more going on underneath? Real subtle.

"Although Souji-kun is mysterious," Yukiko continued. She smiled dreamily. "And strong."

Chie rolled her eyes. "Okay, Yukiko, we get the idea. It's pretty clear that Kanji-kun didn't mean him."

"Oh. Then who did he mean?"

Figuring things would only get worse from here, Kanji quickly made his excuses. "Sorry, gotta go," he mumbled, already on his feet and moving toward the door. The last thing he saw on his way out was Chie leaning over and tapping a puzzled-looking Yukiko on the nose.

No point heading back to his classroom. The café might've sucked, but at least it was an interesting idea. Almost interesting enough to distract him from the fact that Souji and Naoto were now hanging out together and blowing off other people to do it.

…Dammit, when'd he become such a frickin' whiner?

Around the time Naoto rolled into town, probably. She'd once mentioned that Sukuna-Hikona had something to say about everything she did, and that most of it wasn't flattering - but still, Kanji kind of envied her. Life would be a lot simpler if Take-Mikazuchi kicked his ass every time he started feeling sorry for himself. The big guy always butted in during fights, so why not for all the other important stuff?

Concentrating hard, trying to call Take-Mikazuchi out of hiding, Kanji barely registered the displays as he stormed down the corridor. Aside from a few wearing weird costumes - the ruffles were neat, but the baggy shorts weren't flattering at all - he didn't really notice the other students either. He definitely didn't notice Naoto standing by a table full of pots, at least not until he walked into her and knocked her to the floor.

He lurched forward. "Oh, crap! Naoto, I-you okay?"

"I'm fine." She grabbed her hat from the floor and tugged it back down on her head. "But you should've-"

Kanji, caught in a moment of mad guilt, interrupted by grabbing her hand and hauling her upright. Naoto rewarded him with an off-balance kick to the shins. "Ow! What was that for?"

"People are staring," she hissed. It wasn't even true. Admittedly, everybody nearby had looked over when Naoto hit the deck (probably because she'd squeaked), but nobody seemed particularly interested now.

"Was just tryin' to help," he muttered, trying to swallow his irritation. Dammit, he'd knocked her down, why wouldn't he help her up?

Naoto glared at him. "And it was entirely unnecessary."

Each stared at the other for several moments. Kanji was still trying to think of a response that didn't involve scowling - and deciding he really hated the word unnecessary - when he realized he'd forgotten to let go of Naoto's hand.

Judging by her sudden furious blush, she'd noticed too. Kanji jerked his arm back, releasing her hand just in time to avoid pulling her with him. "S-sorry," he choked.

"I-y-you-" Naoto managed - then took a deep breath and squared her shoulders. "We're blocking the corridor."

"Yeah. Right." Kanji wasn't equal to more than one-word sentences. Stepping closer to the wall was difficult enough, since he had to tell his feet to do it three times before they actually moved.

Naoto folded her arms. "Why aren't you assisting your class with their break room?"

"Th-they got enough people. And s'boring." A break room took no effort whatsoever. Even the snacks had come straight from Junes, which was a total waste when there were so many things that would've worked. Cookies, melon bread, little iced cakes…maybe even some onigiri, as long as people didn't drop rice everywhere. He grimaced. "They didn't even make the food."

"Perhaps they didn't know how. Cooking seems to be a rare talent among our colleagues. Even Seta-senpai's abilities are questionable." She paused. "But-the food you brought, before I returned to school. I remember it being very good."

Kanji had been wondering how the hell Naoto would know anything about Souji's cooking, but the question suddenly stopped being important. "Th-thanks," he managed. Naoto shrugged it off and he could feel his cheeks burning, so it seemed best to change the subject. "So, uh, what's your class doing?"

"Assisting Class 2-3 in their production of Romeo and Juliet…and Hamlet." Naoto shook her head. "Illustrating the problem with decisions made by committee."

Hamlet. Kanji vaguely remembered a movie in English class. It'd been full of guys in tights and ruffled shirts and hadn't made much sense even with subtitles. "Huh. That why people are in costume?"

She nodded. "They should be rehearsing, but we're behind schedule. Hamlet has been arguing with Kashiwagi-sensei for the last fifteen minutes. Something about the cross-dressing pageant." As she finished the sentence, her gaze dropped, and she began studying the floor.

Kanji frowned. "S'up?"

Naoto lifted her head, meeting his eyes with a look similar to the one she'd worn when he'd caught her spying on him on the hill, except a lot more worried. "The pageant. It was Rise's idea."

Like that was news. In a changing world, Kanji could think of only a few constants: the rolling of the tides, the rising and setting of the sun, and Rise Kujikawa making trouble every chance she got. "Yeah, I know. Chie-senpai said so. Ain't blamin' you."

"Of course not. I had no involvement in this. I suspect Hanamura-senpai also acted alone."

Which, Kanji decided, was Naoto's way of saying she didn't blame him either. "Thass right."

Glancing away, she cleared her throat. "I could-I-I was considering talking to the school board. I could present your case too."

He blinked. "You-you wanna get me outta it?"

"Two petitioners would carry more weight." The response was smooth, but she still hadn't looked back at him. "It's no greater effort."

"Uh…th-thanks. Seriously. But my attendance record's a mess, it ain't worth rocking the boat." Kanji slammed his fist into his palm with what he hoped looked like confidence. "So I'm just gonna do the best job I can!"

Naoto hesitated for a moment, eyebrows quirked up in surprise - or as close to surprise as she ever got. "That's…certainly enthusiastic."

"Well...y'know. The girls promised I'd look, uh, nice." Good thing he'd caught himself before pretty. "Rise, she's doing makeup and stuff."

He'd sort of expected Naoto to give him one of her looks, but she just nodded and clasped her hands behind her back. "I'm sure you'll do well." She paused, her gaze shifting to somewhere near his left kneecap. "Kanji-kun…what Rise-san and, and Hanamura-senpai said yesterday. Regarding the girls' pageant."

Uh-oh, thought Kanji.

"W-why would my participation concern you?"

This was the sort of question he'd need three hours of silence and five sheets of paper to properly answer. His two main reasons - that he needed to clear up some serious doubts about his preferences, and that he had a crush on her the size of a small country - both sucked. Hard. Kanji would never be able to explain them the way he wanted, Naoto'd run a mile even if he could, and both were ultimately kind of selfish. His benefit, not hers. She hadn't seemed keen on the pageant idea from the start, and she'd been even less into Kanji begging her to be a contestant.

Unfortunately, this didn't stop him wanting her to do it anyway. "F-f-figure-s'new experience, yeah? And-and you're-" Really awesome and cute and if I was in charge you'd win every contest in the universe. "You're pretty popular."

"With girls. And it-it isn't popularity when they aren't…" She trailed off into a grimace. "They're hardly my friends."

"But they like you." Kanji felt a little helpless. Naoto kind of had a point - he hadn't seen her talk with many other students at all, girls or otherwise - but she couldn't blame people for liking her. Who wouldn't?

There was a long, long moment of silence before Naoto spoke again.

"I don't want to be in the pageant, Kanji-kun." She glanced up at him for a moment, then away again. "I-I'm sorry."

"Why-?"

"It isn't appropriate. And I-Yukiko-senpai and Rise are far more suited to that sort of thing. Chie-senpai will also do well. Rise has informed me that she's well-regarded among male students. As for myself, I-I'm not…well, as I said, it's inappropriate."

Kanji's actual question had been why are you sorry. He was grateful only one word of it had made it to his mouth. Naoto was just being polite. Good upbringing and all that crap. Unfortunately, it made him feel like even more of an asshole. He'd suspected she wouldn't be cool with entering the pageant since Yosuke first signed her up; no matter how much he wanted it, trying to push her into taking part had been selfish on a whole new level.

He swallowed hard. "You-you don't hafta enter. Or 'pologize if you don't," he quickly added. "N-not like it matters, y'know?"

Man, he sucked at lying. Naoto must've noticed too, because she somehow looked even more uncomfortable. "Of course not," she said quietly, still turned away.

Kanji had the sinking feeling he'd made things worse. "I-I think you'd do great if you did," he tried. It was easier to say when she wasn't looking. "But s'okay if you don't."

…Yeah, like Naoto would be doing this for him. If anyone, it'd be for Souji. Who cropped up in Kanji's thoughts way too often, considering he was supposed to be talking to Naoto, dammit, and she needed cheering up again. He tried for a grin. "'Sides, maybe you can ask 'em to hold another cross-dressing one. 'Mister' Yasogami High."

Lame joke, but it worked. Naoto's expression relaxed. "Rise-chan suggested the same. I suspect I'd be the only entrant."

"Ah, Rise'd join in too. You'd still win."

"I would be ashamed if I didn't," she answered, the corners of her lips curving into a tiny smile. It disappeared a moment later. "I should return to work. Even if rehearsals are delayed, I have to help prepare the stage." She sighed. "Unfortunately, Ohtani-senpai is playing Juliet and the balcony has not proved as sturdy as first thought."

Kanji nodded. "Uh, okay. Good luck," he said - then, as she was about to turn away, added, "And thanks, yeah? For, for offering to-y'know. The school board. I-I know it was just convenient - but still."

Naoto glanced up at him, nodded once in reply, then turned and walked away.

Kanji had never seen the benefits of being tall, particularly when teamed with muscles guys twice his age would envy. He intimidated people without even trying, his feet stuck out over the end of his bed at night, his knees barely fit under his desk at school - and worst of all, none of the dresses in the shop would fit him. Seriously, there was a huge gap in the market. What was a dude supposed to do if he needed a nice dress at short notice? With no time to put a full pattern together, Kanji had resorted to pulling some white cotton out of the stockroom and trying to make some sort of billowy thing that he really hoped wouldn't look like a tent.

He still hadn't figured out where the others would get their outfits. Yosuke was still diligently pretending the pageant wouldn't happen, so Kanji couldn't imagine him trawling around the womenswear section at Junes. Even Senpai was jittery, which had been kind of surprising at first. Made sense, though; the guy couldn't be calm about everything. Maybe, Kanji thought grimly, he was the weird one for being cool with putting on a dress. Maybe Naoto would think that way too. Hard to tell, given how mysterious she was. Shit, what had he even meant? Wasn't like 'mysterious' was a good thing. To him, it'd become shorthand for 'impossible to ever fricking understand no matter how much you like them'.

But the part he hadn't put into words bothered Kanji even more. Back when they'd first met, he'd wanted to be Naoto almost as much as he'd wanted to be with her. She'd been cool, calm, smart, no-nonsense...all traits someone like him didn't have and never would. Seeing the side she kept buried underneath had been majorly disappointing - because it meant that even if she was better at hiding it, Naoto was just as mixed-up as him.

Thing was, when he thought about it now, he liked that. He just couldn't figure out why. It made no sense.

His phone buzzed against the sewing table, Rise's number flashing on the screen.

did u find a dress 4 2morow? this is gonna b soooooo awesom! \(^o^)/

Text message, of course. Couldn't make the faces otherwise. working on it. you got all the makeup and stuff?

im an IDOL kanji -_- no wories about makeup! ur gonna look gr8 naotokun will love it

He scowled as his fingers jabbed at the keys. shes got nothing to do with this!

riiiight :3 beautiful blushing kanjikun + the dashing detective prince

Since Rise wasn't in the room, Kanji had to settle for glaring at the phone instead. Maybe he should find out how to do the faces too; with Rise, he'd only need to learn the angry ones. shut it!

whatev kanji c u 2morrow! d(^_^)b

She was nuts. No question. Kanji cursed under his breath and went back to making his not-a-tent, fervently hoping Ma wouldn't ask why he was running a sewing machine at midnight.