Chapter Five - Mysterious Confusion

As I let my hands drift through the leaves, I could feel their fragility in the world. Some fell as my fingers came into the lightest contact with them, but others were strong. I stared down at the crumpled dead leaves on the ground and realised that nature was a test of strength. Some of these leaves were weak from age or constant factors in the wild, and they would all die long before the younger, sturdier foliage.

I found this an interesting concept and realised that life was like this with everyone. The weak minded fell into depression and madness where the confident and positive rose above. I realised that at the moment I was one of the weak, and if I did not take every opportunity I could in these next few days, I would fall despite everything.

I let out a shuddered breath. It was frightening to think about it, and without giving any thought to my actions I pulled myself roughly through another clump of thick branches to find myself in the burning sunlight. I closed my eyes and opened them slowly to let them adjust to the suns rays, and when I could see again I gasped in surprise at the world I had revealed.

The first clearing stretched out lazily before me. The ground was thick with grass that was constantly driven by the sighing wind. It would lay the grass out flat, then drag it back in, before releasing it once again. Behind the grass was a think line of foot deep water that ran lightly into a round end where it gathered. Surrounding the area were more of the trees, but they grew thicker. It was like a dark green fortress, impenetrable and prefect for keeping people out.

In the centre of the small clearing, Midori and Nao were rolling over the grass, grasping each other and throwing light punches. They were play-fighting, I realised, as they laughed and teased each other without dealing any major damage. It seemed they were both children at heart. Mikoto was getting herself a drink at the gathering end of the lake. She dipped her hands into the cool, clear water and brought out great mouthfuls that she sucked down gratefully.

A smile spread across my face without even having to be forced. I stepped into the long grass and it tickled my forelegs, reaching out for my knees. I kicked at it playfully and looked up to see Midori waving me over.

"Come and get your payback, Mai! I'll hold her down for you!"

Nao grasped at Midori's shirt sleeve as the teacher pushed her down into the ground, her hands resting heavily on her shoulders.

I couldn't help but laugh at the ridiculous position. "No thanks," I called out, turning down the offer. "I'll leave her to you, Midori."

Behind me, the others emerged from the trees. Yukino was out of breath after chasing after me and almost collapsed at my feet. Luckily she had Haruka to keep her standing. Their eyes swept over the clearing, and they widened with amazement. Yukino gave a sigh of relief when she sighted the water and she began ambling over to cure her thirst.

"This place is pretty nice," Natsuki stated as she stood beside me. "Is this on the list of stops?"

I shook my head. "No, but it is nice to run into a place like this in the first hour, although we will probably be needing it later on more than we need it now."

"We don't need it at all!" Haruka shouted as she headed over to Yukino whom was lapping up great mouthfuls of water. "Let's get going already or it'll be late by the time we reach the first stop!"

Midori raised her head from the headlock Nao had her trapped in. "Relax Haruka!" she managed to cry out as she struggled. "I know a shortcut."

"Oh no," Nao gasped, letting down her guard. Midori took the advantage and struck her in the stomach, then pinned her to the ground.

"What's that meant to mean?" she asked the terrified Nao.

I pressed a finger to my temple nervously. "Well, no offence, Midori, but your sort of shortcuts are… well…"

"Suicidal," Natsuki finished for me perfectly.

"Exactly!" Nao agreed as she pushed herself off of the ground and tackled Midori into the soft soil. "So don't even think about it!"

Midori shook her head in disbelief, barely even effected by the crushing weight of Nao as she sat upon her stomach to keep her down. "I can't believe that's what you think of my shortcuts!"

As Midori struggled to understand what we thought of her idea, and Nao, whom refused to give in, I listened to the music of nature that I had discovered. Concentrating on the sounds made it easy to pick out one that didn't belong, so when I heard the sound of leaves rustling despite the wind remaining at it's pace, my instincts took hold and I spun around to face the source.

In the longer patches of grass that grew near the bordering trees was a shadow. It disturbed the leaves again as it took a step forward, and then it seemed to hesitate when it saw me staring at it. I didn't let myself blink or look away even the slightest. I kept the shadow in my sights, trying to understand the shape. What sort of animal was it? It resembled a bear more than any other I could list, and I took a startled step back.

"Mai? What's wrong?"

I turned to Natsuki and pointed towards the shadow, unable to speak. My blood was ice and my heart was beating too fast for me to keep my breathing settled.

"I don't see anything… Are you sure you're okay?"

I turned and pointed again, but froze with my hand midway in the air. There was no shadow there. At least, not anymore. I was sure of what I had seen and refused to deny it, but how had it escaped so fast without a sound?

"Maybe we should rest for a few more minutes," she suggested, leading me over to a soft patch of grass, and I couldn't bring myself to refuse. I rested down into the grass and became engrossed in the thoughts of what I had seen. Were we in danger already? Did bears follow their prey when they spotted them? I shivered despite the warmth.

Finally the battle between Midori and Nao ended. They released each and rolled onto their backs, gasping for air.

"Guess you're… giving up… huh?" Nao managed to sputter out as she struggled to regain her breath.

Midori shook her head, already feeling fit again. "Nah, you look like you need a break. I'll get you later."

Things were starting to settle down, it seemed, however I could not keep my eyes away from the trees. The only thing that brought me back to my senses of the rest of the world around me was Mikoto as she let out a great cry of joy.

"This water tastes so great!" she roared, dunking her hands into it and scooping out great mouthfuls.

Haruka stared at her. "It's just water, geez," she muttered unkindly, turning away in disgust.

Mikoto was confused at her behaviour and ambled to her side. "Haruka, what's wrong? Why are you so mad?"

Haruka sighed and shrunk her shoulders. "What would you know? You don't have the pressures that I have! I have a million things to think about and worry about and I have to remember all of it!"

Everyone turned to her as she started to lose it. She was going on a rampage, jumping to her feet and kicking long blades of grass around as she furiously bent her fingers back as she listed off each item she always had on her mind.

"I always have to keep an eye on all of the students! Why can't anyone take care of themselves? Then there comes to all of the planning, balancing, and making sure that nothing gets destroyed! And don't get me started on that Shizuru!"

Natsuki clenched her fists at her sides at this remark. No one but me seemed to realise, and I took a subconscious step towards her to stand at her side just incase she launched herself at the emotional strung Haruka.

The council will be the death of me, I swear it!" she howled. "What's going to happen to the school while I'm gone? What if it catches fire? What if the students start to kill each other? I should head back! I need to get back there!"

Yukino looked crushed and took a step in front of Haruka to stop her. "Please, it's only been an hour or so! Please, please, stay and concentrate on something else! The school isn't your responsibility at the moment!"

Haruka was not hearing any of this. She was panicking to a point no one had ever seen her panic before. She was shaking and trying to fan herself as she went bright red. "No, no, I have to get back there! I can hear it now! The school is suffering!"

We all tried to calm her down at this point. Even Natsuki had put the Shizuru insult behind her and was telling Haruka to take deep breaths. In the end, it was Mikoto whom grasped her by the arms and kicked her feet out from under her.

Haruka was caught off guard. "Mikoto? What the hell are you-"

Mikoto jabber her fingers into he girl's shoulders directly beside the veins of her neck that stuck out like thick cords. As soon as her fingertips hit the flesh, a look of lazy content passed over Haruka's face. She seemed to melt back into Mikoto's lap as the wild girl messaged her shoulders with deep intensity.

We all watched, shocked at first, then we started to laugh. Haruka was half asleep as she muttered things that didn't make sense at all. She was completely in Mikoto's control, something that we never thought we would ever see.

As the message wore on, Haruka seemed to lose herself more and more. No longer was she shouting in a rage. Instead, she was having trouble keeping her eyes open as her shoulders were soothed beneath Mikoto's clever hands.

Once the unexpected service was finished, Mikoto pushed the girl up into a sitting position.

Yukino bent down in front of her friend. "Haruka? Are you… in there?" She was not entirely sure how to ask.

Haruka gave a slurred, "Huh?" before her eyes glazed over again and she fell back into Mikoto's waiting arms, muttering and whispering.

"What did you do to her?" Midori asked. "It looks like she's been hit on the head really, really hard. I've never seen her like this before."

Mikoto laughed. "Che Chi Cha," she sang happily. "It's a message I learnt from my brother when I was little. It helped me sleep."

Somehow I doubted that the name was genuine, nor the actual message.

Natsuki looked less than pleased as she stared down at the 'barely there' form of Haruka. "No offence to your skills, Mikoto, but we don't have time for her to be asleep."

Yukino sighed and bent down before Haruka. "Don't worry, I'll take care of her. She needs her rest, after all, so I'd hate to pull her out of this." With surprising strength, she gathered the girl up and flipped her over her shoulder.

From beneath the mop of hair that covered her face, we could all hear Haruka mutter the jumbled words, "Tanthk oou Mirotoko."

Yukino paused to translate. "She's saying 'thank you Mikoto' I think."

I almost laughed out loud at the ability she had of speaking in for Haruka was amazing. "How do you know what she's saying?" I asked.

Yukino shrugged and wore a shy smile on her face. "Well I have had a lot of practise."

That was true. Being Haruka's 'secretary' would teach skills like that, and in situations like this, no mater how unlikely they were, they definitely came in handy.

Midori took the lead of the ground and gave a heavy sigh. "Alright, we're off to an odd start," she pointed out, her eyes gleaming as she looked to the bumbling Haruka. "We have to get going though. Down this path is the shortcut I was talking about, so let's get going." She paused before adding to Mikoto, "I hope she won't be like this for long."

Mikoto shook her head. "Tonight she should come out of it… or next week."

That was the best answer we could get, so we started down the rocky track and weer forced to listen as Haruka tried to sing in her current state.

It was not an experience to remember.