Ch. 6.5 Canon Omakes and Fillers part 1
The hidden depths of Tae Yamada
"I do desire we may be better strangers" -William Shakespeare
*Tae knows math?!* After a very interesting music video demonstration and further discussion, Tae was sitting down with the other zombies at lunch. It occurred to her that she didn't know all that much about them, with her memories still quite vague. Turning towards the girl she felt the most at peace around, she tapped Sakura on her shoulder. Her gaze was soft as the pinkette girl stared at her in confusion, and she practically whispered," Sakura-chan, would you please tell me a bit more about yourself? My memory is not the best from our time together."
Realizing Tae's genuine attempt to connect, which none of them really got to do with her for obvious reasons these past 2 years, Sakura obliged. Her bad luck that she'd mentioned was thrown into a whole new light after Tae's info dump this morning, and it was just a bit harder going over just how many everyday things kept going wrong, especially at school. She should've had it better since she was a very good student, but no. Noting the tension and visible sadness around the table, Tae took a new tactic after the truck incident was brought up.
"How smart would you say you were?" As Sakura just blinked at being asked that, Tae spread her hands invitingly, "Humor me, I'm curious." It turned out Sakura was quite above average, acing every subject and having scored an 85 on a mock exam for one of Saga's best schools (10 points above the average score), and so on. She felt better when everyone, especially Tae, smiled at her accomplishments. Saki did make a couple teasing jokes about her "nerd factor" but assured her it was more than she could've done herself and meant well.
Sakura turned toward Tae with a smile, "What about you, Tae-chan? Did you have any specialties in education or was it all devoted to fighting the Sagako?" Tae opened her mouth to respond, then paused. It had been a while after all, maybe she should check with some good old fashioned writing practice.
"Truth be told, I could use some practice. Ai-chan, please pass me a notebook and a pen." Intrigued, she did so. Tae slowly tapped her chin in thought, and since only Sakura and Ai were continuing to watch while everyone else had started to drift off into typical girl talk, she started to slip into an old math tape-lecture habit of hers. She began to write down mathematical info and quietly and calmly recite it aloud after a mere 30 seconds of writing.
"Ok, let me start simple, perhaps like … 4x²+20x+16 … first factor out the 4 to get it into 4(x^2+5x+4) .." and she quickly gained speed and went into full analysis … "if in the following equation I input the value that make that makes the denominator equal to 0 … in 7x² -3xy +1.5 + y the coefficients are 7 and -3…" She was so absorbed in this she did not notice the utter silence as all the other zombies just stared in disbelief. And she kept going and it only got more hilarious as it got more complex.
"…and i² = -1, thus being an imaginary number for an unreal number solution with many more purely imaginary numbers as well …" By now, half of the girl's jaws looked like they were about to drop off, and Yugiri was barely keeping from going to that level herself. Saki looked like she was about to have a seizure from trying to process this sight, and Ai was clenching her fists to keep quiet. But then she got into theories, and the mesmerizing effect only increased.
"If O is the midpoint of MN, one of the sides of the triangle (LMN), then prove that LN² + LM² = 2 {MO² + LO²}, which is how Apollonius's Theorem goes … let h1 and h2 be the altitudes of triangles ABG, BGC and ADG, GDC, respectively …" at this point, Sakura's eyes had popped out 3 times as she was practically gasping for air that she didn't need. Ai's eyes were beginning to twitch furiously, and Saki was muttering quiet gibberish. Yugiri was quietly laughing hard at their faces, and nearly lost it when Tae moved into the field of probability.
"… P(A) = (# of ways A can happen) / (Total number of outcomes) …" Poor Lily was trying hard not to bang her head and Saki looked like she was seconds away from fainting, and Junko began to stop holding her breath in suspense and exhale.
Many minutes later: "… and E = mc² has thus defined the effects of gravity on nature and even led to more theories like the Twin Paradox." She sighed contentedly and stopped. "Good, good, that was really excellent practice, now what did I miss?" She looked up, only to be greeted by nearly all of them gaping at her, (even Sakura right next to her). "What?" she muttered defensively," Is there a problem?" She began to glare angrily at Ai and Saki across from her, who were looking the most bizarre in their unreasonable reactions.
Yugiri finally burst out laughing hard and wiped away tears of mirth as Ai stumbled to recover, "No no no, it's just … you're a math prodigy?!" Oh, now she got it. She facepalmed and grumbled.
"It was one of my best subjects, yes, what's wrong with that?" Sakura quickly jumped in.
"Don't be mad, Tae-chan, that was … amazing! Forget being top of the class, you could've been the best math professor in Saga!" Tae blushed and Saki chimed in.
"Hell yeah, you're not just a warrior chick but an ultra-math geek!? Can you blame us for being shocked?" She backpedaled hard as Tae clenched her fist and grit her teeth, recalling that Tae had emphasized during breakfast that she could and would punch AND yell with terrifying fury if provoked enough," Not that it's bad, it just came out of &^**ing nowhere!"
The longsuffering ravenette sighed," For all that I don't know about you, you know even less about me, considering I lived to just shy of the prime of womanhood, which none of the rest of you did. I have years I've only just began to share with you."
Awkward glancing was shared between most of the rest, abashed at her blunt and true insights. Sakura patted Tae on the shoulder and said, "Well, please feel free to do so, we've got all the time in the world to do so! I guess it's just hard with how we've only known you at less than full capacity for so long …"
Tapping her chin thoughtfully, Ai brainstormed out loud," If we ever need to earn more extra money in the future, that skill would come in handy." Tae was truly taken aback, even more when Sakura asked if she could go over any of her skills with her, and hesitantly agreed. Lily and Saki got into a shouting match when Lily wondered if she could make Saki learn how to count, which Yugiri broke up.
*Bad luck vs Stupidity* Tae sat down on the upper balcony, just gazing at the twilight sky. This time, she could fully appreciate it with her restored mind. It was good to be back, even if she was dead. Flexing her undead fingers, she sighed. What had MJ gotten into with this weirdo and this plan?
"Tae-chan?" She turned to see Sakura standing down a few feet from where she sat," can I ask you something?" She gestured to the seat next to her, and the pinkette zombie sat down next to her.
"What can I do for you, Sakura-chan?" She, like all the rest, had a major soft spot for her, even back when she'd had a less functioning state of mind.
"Why … is my luck so bad? More than anyone else's? I don't understand why … what did I ever do to make Saga prosper that my whole life had to go wrong? This Curse is heartlessly cruel, I get that, I mean, look what it did to you … but, how and why would ruining any chance I had at succeeding at anything at all … I just don't …"
Sighing with sympathetic insight, "I'm not quite sure, I can't say I know of any examples off the top of my head of anything comparable, and no, you never deserved that … maybe it saw what you could do and was extra cruel to you. This thing IS cruel, and if it makes you feel any better, at least being a zombie has let you defy it, and it can't really hurt you anymore and I won't let it either … it's the least I can do." Sakura felt a bit better.
"You know, I think I remember from those very vague memories of stumbling around like that, that you did something for me… "Sakura stared at her in confusion. "After a while, probably that time when you were feeling so depressed, I am certain you made me feel emotions for the first time …"
"What kind?" Sakura asked, leaning forward, just dying (or not) to know.
"Well, it felt like love …a family type of love … I don't know why, but you seem just like family to me, and I can see why now, you took such good care of me like that, and you still are too good to me, and everyone else. I'm happy I could return the favor, even back than …" She smiled as she stared away, embarrassed to try and look Sakura in the eyes. But Sakura just laughed and hugged her, happy to have helped Tae and done even more than she realized for their mystery member.
"Hehe, no wonder you acted so affectionate towards her," Saki said from the doorway, and walked forwards and sat down, and her cocky smile faded into a grim scowl.
"Saki-chan, what's wrong?" Sakura asked tenderly.
"Your crappy life really was a buttload of bad luck, but … I died in a tough-girl game of chicken. Was it really only bad luck or just me being the same dumb kid I always was? Plus, was I ever good for Saga, even though I freaking love this place?" Both zombies looked at her softly, and Tae sighed and cleared her throat and Saki looked at the MUCH older woman, who looked her in the eyes.
"I did go over the details of at least some of your deaths after getting to know you better with Ai-chan's help. You did do a rash challenge against a rival gang, yes, but you did live for 2 hours after being discovered alone there, and the police never knew the full truth. The Curse probably saw this as the best way to take you down, since a fight was out of the question," Saki snorted at that but smiled anyway, and Tae continued," plus your death did end up disbanding Dorami, and thus their control of Kyushu, and while you were a biker gang of violent girls, it would seem that could've benefited Saga somehow, and you don't seem like a bad person at heart… what was the dynamic like in Dorami?"
Saki happily talked openly, about how she found a place to belong with them, especially her senior co-captain Reiko, who actually wanted to have a normal life since she wanted to avoid the cycle of parental divorce she'd been through, but Saki just couldn't get the concept of normal, and now it seemed utterly out of grasp. But she had saved Reiko's kid Maria (Tae smiled at her vague memories of the brown onion-hair girl) and directed the gangs towards something positive, so it wasn't a total waste.
"Well, that's all I need to know, you were not pure evil, just troubled, and did manage to enjoy yourself. And you are a true native of this place, and care for it. That is something that keeps this place going, and thus a threat to the Curse. And I wanted to do something else with my life but look at me. I died at 29, and my friends used to say you weren't fully a woman until you were 30, but …" her breath caught, and they both leaned towards her in concern." I never had a love life, I was so withdrawn, and just as I felt a bit of optimism, it ended. Even working on MJ's food trucks, I was so bad at interacting with customers …" She looked away, feeling socially withdrawn again. These girls opened up so many gates within her, but getting to know the real her was still challenging.
"Hey, Tae, just look at me, ok?" Saki stood in front of her, her face softer than usual. Tae did not need a tough girl talk now, she needed a friend (which they were). "It's alright, we got your back. And you managed all this time without being awake. I believe in you, and … well how could I turn my back on you after that pep talk you just gave me?" She smiled brightly at her, and Tae gave a small one in return. Sakura liked those, she looked so darn sweet with those, a window showing the true treasure of the lovely girl underneath a tough scary exterior.
"I have to admit, I do wonder how strong you actually are. You ever bench-press anything?" Saki asked, and Tae chuckled darkly, and suggested she try an alternative manner of testing her multiple-level strengths. Not taking the hint, Saki asked if she ever arm-wrestled, and Tae took her up right away. To be fair, Saki lasted longer than anyone else ever had, but Tae still won. Saki brushed off an alarmed Sakura that she didn't need to worry, the table could be fixed easily enough, and she didn't even feel the slamming force that hard, and she should be praising Tae for being so damn tough.
*Shopping Expedition, Queen and Stupid Tourist #2* Sakura and Junko both volunteered to help Tae go shopping for some new clothes on her first day awake. She was understandably grumpy at being told to act like her formerly unawakened self but consented. They needed to ease everyone into introducing the real her, just start off slow. And she was assured she didn't have to act truly brainless, maybe just quiet. Plus, her reasoning of getting some new outfits appealed to their shared love of fashion common to most girls.
Going around, it honestly warmed Tae's heart to see all 3 of them adored by Saga and how kids loved her. It honestly made her burn behind the ears, but at least she did that line of hers at least twice from the Tori commercial (and Sakura and Junko did NOT laugh). The clothing store was excellent, and Junko proved to be beyond happy that they shared similar 80s tastes. She was so flattered that she recovered quickly after a rude tourist from Tokyo invaded the shy zombie's space with inappropriate questions and photo snapping with his phone. Sakura loudly insisted he leave, and that No. 4 had a process, so behave yourself. Local shoppers and staff glared at him, so the tacky jerk walked off mumbling, not noticing a glaring Tae who took a detour to the bathroom. No one noticed when he was yanked around the corner, and it wasn't on the cameras either.
After getting a sizable amount of new clothes (plus some swimsuits), they headed out, running into Maria. "Oh hey you guys! Your concert was epic. Mama, er my Mom was almost crying it was so sweet! I swear, Dorami really needs to be on stage like you some day!" While Sakura and Junko both responded positively, Tae considered the fact that they (herself included) had turned a biker gang name into something dance related. She let out a small chuckle, only to look away in embarrassment when the brunette stared. Junko stepped in.
"Oh, good news Maria-chan! No. 0 has been coming out of her wild shell lately, and we have high hopes for her!" Maria looked intrigued and stepped up to Tae and beamed.
"That's cool! Seeing you dance like that before we went to the boat track was amazing! And that rally yell of yours, you are a real Legend!" Ok, now Tae was trying hard to look blank, but blushed and she impulsively distracted hard by scribbling something on a corner piece of their shopping list and handing it to her. As they walked off, Maria watched them go fondly and then stared at the word/title, well written, on the sheet of paper. Her eyes widened.
"I HAVE NO. 0'S AUTOGRAPH?!" Many stared and Tae facepalmed but smiled anyways as Sakura and Junko tried to scold her briefly but couldn't, just feeling happy at the love their Tae-chan was getting. Besides, Maria and the rest were distracted minutes later when she ran into a man/statue(?) against the wall, in a ridiculous pose, sunglasses, the dumbest looking t-shirt and pants ever, and tape over his mouth. He suddenly lunged forward after staggering forward as if waking up and then trying to yell through the tape, making her scream. Security came up and restraining him and removing the tape did little to calm him down, and his subsequent mall-jail time and viral exposure was somewhat earned.
After returning to the Mansion, Sakura took the clothes upstairs while Tae asked Ai to pull up Youtube for her. Junko lingered in the living room and then started as a song she hadn't heard since the late 70s began to play, followed by a piano beat.
Can anybody find me
Somebody to love?
Ooh, each morning I get up I die a little
Can barely stand on my feet
Take a look at yourself in the mirror and cry
Take a look in the mirror and cry
Lord, what you're doing to me? (Yeah, yeah)
I have spent all my years in believin' you
But I just can't get no relief, Lord
"I know that song!" Junko came up to the couch, staring intently as Tae and Ai glanced at her. Tae smirked, pleased to have found something else to relate to. She had proved to be quite shy and awkward still in many areas, the earlier experience with talking about being Junko's fan at breakfast still fresh.
Some Hours Earlier: Discussing the other idol's backgrounds had unintentionally caused Tae to let slip the mention of how she totally loved the intent of "50 and 4 Things Left Behind" to be sung to feel better. Then she started fidgeting when they looked her way. Junko in particular was curious and did ask what she'd meant to Tae.
"Well, I … I guess even before your big break … music was a nice break from my double life," something she and Yuko had a mutual love of, and having the younger girl around really did wonders for her tortured soul," and then, I guess … my best friend and I, we just liked how you did it so well, and … the other girls always said I was pretty and smart and strong, but …" at this point she was close to pounding her head after her attempts at smiling looked downright cringe-fuel.
"Tae-chan, what's the matter?" Sakura said in her sincere touching manner. Tae very slowly looked at her, looking sad. Sakura was always good at helping a moody Tae, and she still was.
"I was ALWAYS only good at being the scary leader, and … I'm a shy girl, Sakura, have been for a long time, but … it would've been nice to be cool and cute, like I saw with Junko-chan … it was a darn shame that you died like that … and I never did get to anyways … and I guess it's a new experience even for me to be talking with the idol that inspired me, let alone dream of actually trying to sing with her …"
Junko was truly touched and replied," Well, as everyone here can tell you, I'm shy too. I worked alone back then, and even now I'm still the odd one out with group performances. And I think I was MORE confident before the crash, so I can work with whatever anxiety you have. And Ai-chan is here to perform with her local fan, it's nice that I have one as well." Tae blushed at that, and did stammer out some more things she'd liked, and the revelation that so many people didn't take her idol dream seriously in life resonated with Saki in a way (she could relate to responding violently/loudly to mockery all too well, and she still did at their concerts a lot with hecklers or other troublemakers). It had been hard enough trying to smile on demand on the Food Truck.
Ai smiled and just had to step in," Well, Junko-chan and I have our work cut out with you. Customer service is one thing, doing well on stage is another!" Tae fidgeted even more when both girls got close, but Ai just made her look at her. "Oh please, Tae, don't be like that, we know you got it! You're one of us, and I will make sure you have the practice you need, first opportunity!" That got her to smile even if she did look away. It was like having the Busters around again, especially Yuko and her brother.
Back to the Present: "Well, good. Queen came out with this in 1976." It was the band Tae remembered even while incoherent, and Junko gladly sat down next to her as the promo Music Video from said year played out. Ai giggled, happy to see that Junko had someone to relate to on her own style after so long.
(He works hard) everyday (Everyday)
I try and I try and I try
But everybody wants to put me down
They say I'm going crazy
They say I got a lot of water in my brain
I got no common sense
(He's got) I got nobody left to believe
No, no, no, no
[Guitar solo]
(Ooh, ooh, ooh, Lord)
Ooh, somebody
Ooh (Somebody)
Anybody find me
Somebody to love
Can anybody find me
Someone to love?
Some number of seconds later (you do the math):
(Find me somebody to love)
Find me, find me
Find me, find me, find me
(Find me somebody to love)
Ooh, somebody to love
(Find me somebody to love)
Ooh, find me, find me
Find me somebody to love
(Find me somebody to love)
Anybody, anywhere, anybody
Find me somebody to love, love
Find me, find me, find me, find me
Junko Konno was silently crying, as Tae patted her on the shoulder. Didn't they all need somebody to love, even at the most basic level and to love back in the end?
*Skill vs Personality, True Colors, and Add the Dream* After discussing much more of the music of Michael Jackson, Junko and more of the 80s (which Tae found insulting that so many people critiqued for other reasons regardless of the legit enduring music that came out of that time, which Junko agreed with), it was heartwarming that they thought they could build off of this. But the smart analytical part of Tae's mind that made her so resourceful was digging away at the optimism and she started getting withdrawn again, spacing out when Ai turned to ask her a question.
"Tae-chan, Tae-chan!?" She let out a rather girly squeak when Ai's hand brushed hers. Then she stared in embarrassment "YES?!" Only to curl her messier hair over her face at the staring after Lily said," Lily-chan still can't believe Tae has such a cute voice."
"Now, Tae-han, whatever is the matter? You do have a cute voice. Any pretty woman would be envious!" Yugiri said.
"Doesn't matter if my voice is cute, I still don't know about going on stage." She tried turning away, only for Ai to pull her back by the arm. "I'm sorry, Ai, it's just … I don't know. The only public job I ever had, I was good at the work, but I never was good with customer service. We had a bit called the 'Karatsu smile' and …" she grimaced," I was so bad at doing a simple smile, and … even Junko-chan knows how to do that, I saw her on the tube back then! Now that my brain's all back together, I don't know … Besides, I'm past the age of a proper idol anyways, no matter how young I look …" Ai wasn't giving up.
"Tae, let me worry about that for now. Everyone around here, even you before, looked to me for image advice. We'll work on it, and you are fresh at it, so to speak. Did anyone help you get past that in life?" Tae mumbled quietly the closest friends she had in life (Yuko and Eikichi) could make her smile, and Ai knew she had her," Well there we go. We've all seen you smile around us!"
"Fine, well, do I have an official color scheme? I vaguely recall that being mentioned somewhere …" "Oh Tae-chan it's obviously purple, fits you so well!" Sakura said, thinking that would cheer her up, only to frown as Tae spun her long hair strands through her fingers, and then turn bitter again.
"That is a cruel irony in a way!" She paused and then elaborated," My hair used to be purple, just like my eyes, now it's all black and much messier."
"W-w-well you can still make it work and your hair does look fine, I'd be happy to help you with it …" Sakura said frantically, her spot next to Tae giving her ample opportunity to try and reassure her up close. Tae was taken aback at how much empathy Sakura was showing her, then again, she had already shown it to her before.
Junko unexpectedly piped up from across the table," When Kotaro-san gets back, I would like Tae-san to help me ask him a personal question," and all 6 of them turned to look.
"Of course, that wouldn't be a problem, what do you want me to make him say?" Tae said eagerly, only to realize that might've come across as too violent. But Junko didn't notice, and her request threw them all off as she examined her hands, both different blue shades of patched skin.
"How much of my body is … me." Tae looked alarmed, while the rest of them were even more so. She closed her eyes as she continued. "I don't know how much of these … parts … are mine, if any of my body was recovered from that crash, but it's obvious that I was in p-p-pieces either way … and I don't know if this mismatched skin or my insides … is all mine. And I still think whenever I go to the beach … a place I like to go to, that maybe I'm literally missing pieces of myself, not just having lost most of the confidence I had that could inspire such a strong woman like you … even if I did it alone" She stared at Tae, looking sad and on the verge of tears as her hidden fan was at a loss for words. Even as she started to say something, only to just try and hold her hands, which Junko accepted even as Lily and Saki on the other side got closer to her in concern, it didn't make her happy, as she got more loudly emotional than usual (usually on a level reserved for the arguments with Ai).
"You were right, Tae-san! We ARE in a horror story! Not just because I was the intended target of a deliberate plane crash that nobody survived or what you told us. But I have to see what I am now every day! I'm like a stitched-up doll! Or one of those monsters a mad scientist would make out of … oh right." As she gripped Tae's fingers tightly, inhumanly tightly, she nearly broke down." Your hair looks fine Tae-san, but yours was never the color of a ghost at least … because now I think about that a lot …" She began to cry and Tae did not let go even as Lily gave her a hug.
Ai walked over to her even as Sakura scooted next to Tae to add her own hands on top of Junko's, and Saki and Yugiri went to stand by. She sighed quietly as she realized," You've been holding that in for a while, haven't you?" "Yes …"
"Hell Junko, it makes you feel any better you don't look that bad, you're still a mushroom headed cutie!" Saki said, and Junko let out a brief laugh and she kept it up, "And there is one perk. You are the only zombie among us that probably CAN'T lose a limb because of all those stitches! Does that help?"
"Not by much, but it'll do …" Junko whispered. "I may NEVER go on a plane again, even if we go on tour someday … or at least for another century."
"Maybe they'll have invented some OTHER means of traveling, quicker and safer!" Sakura said, and first Tae and then Junko and then the rest laughed at this encouraging fact.
"Plus, you do get the implications of being dead a lot better than everyone else," Ai said brightly, and then flexed her own fingers," And you're not the only one with massive scarring!" (Tae internalized the thought about how the non-local Ai and Junko had the worst scars until the next day during training).
"If it makes you feel any better, you remind me of an onion like that, and onions were a key part of fighting the Sagako," Tae supplied, only for Ai to hilariously blush and frantically ask around if this was true, and Saki and Lily both enjoyed teasing her about it as she began muttering about being compared to a vegetable, and having "layers" and more. Tae sighed quietly as Yugiri quietly enjoyed this with a smile and Sakura frantically tried to restore order as "egg" and "mushroom" jokes came out as well.
*Buster's Music Vids, and the Problem with Tourists and Businessmen* It was Tae's first "official" part of the group at their favorite local chicken restaurant, and the staff eagerly agreed for them to have a private area to eat in, away from prying eyes so Tae could enjoy her meal with them in peace. And they were still going over the stuff Tae told them. With Hanako's old files around, the pictures, diagrams and more led to Tae indulging sharing the stories about some of them, and she had just wrapped up on the Rainbow Matsubara Sagako which had gotten Yuko sealed in an onion in the first place to explain why Sakura's mother had been out of commission and her brother brought in. She quickly shifted gears to make the pinkette feel better (even though Sakura was taking it rather well all things considered) and moved on to the Hot Springs Sagako which was the first one Eikichi encountered after they "recruited" him (what Yuko's situation after coming back had been like was curiously blank in Hanako's files).
Ai, who was diligently going over the notes and pictures on the laptop, noticed a key detail," If I'm not mistaken, that is Hotel Kaseuin!" Sure enough, it was the same hotel where'd they'd done their performance for promoting "Saganship Z" in their debut weeks. "Oh it that where that was? What are the odds?" Tae said as she picked up another piece of chicken. Junko noted the sheer irony that said Sagako made people age faster in the water as she read over Ai's shoulders, given what a hot spring was meant for.
After a truly rushed explanation of his first victory, a "Love Sagako" which had been embarrassing for both of them given how Anna and Hanako interpreted it, a sympathetic Sakura stopped anyone from roasting them, especially since Tae got them all interested about one of their official "local jobs" at a club, especially Yugiri and Saki, at the "Club Maryina".
"I heard of that place; Reiko said it was a good dance spot for all the fancy chicks! Never did go …" 'Don't feel too bad, it was basically just a snack bar, even though Anna was a VIP member … and the so-called 'Queen of Saga' for part-time clubs all over Saga, and a heroine of the dance floor according to her … both her and Hanako were much more outgoing socially than me, is it any wonder I struggled to believe in being an idol?" Yugiri was nearest to Tae and reminded her that she already had proven she had what it took to perform. Feeling better, she clarified the notes about the club having a 'cursed song that caused the women to go violent and the men stunned' which ended badly the first time they went there with their new quartet. But Eikichi remembered a bit of the song, which mentioned something about being tall, which Tae had put together meant tall, smart and rich, or the "male trifecta (three highs)" the perfect man should have in Japanese culture. There was a hilariously awkward pause.
Yugiri's curiosity turned to amusement about this unfortunate stereotype, and Tae herself was not advocating it as a model, but they did try and have Yuko's little brother (he was shorter than all 3 girls) fit the bill. Their efforts to help him as Ai read them off got incredulous stares directed at Tae, who got moody.
"Hanako was the one who stretched him out to become taller, not me, and I didn't tell her to do that!" "But I thought she was a genius, not unethically crazy …" Ai said, and Tae gave her a priceless flat look, "Let me put it this way, I had Anna join since Hanako and I fought all the time over how to fight the Sagako, and Anna took better care of the physical aspects, and while Hanako was an invaluable help in our group, she saw any radical science of hers as the …'simple' solution."
"So, that kind of idea wasn't even out of the ordinary for her is what you're saying." Junko said after they thought about that. "Exactly, and if I remember, my idea to help him get better actually helped the MOST in that fight, since Anna both insulted his skills and just got him a job as a host at a different club!" Ai's reading of the notes seemed to contradict that, except Tae had her read further that although he did get genuine skills there, the older women there were even worse at putting him on the spot with flirting and in the end, that was NOT what beat the Sagako. "So how did you …what's this?" There was a file called "Trifecta" at the bottom. Tae switched places with Sakura next to Ai as she racked her brains.
"That might be a video file, oh right. Hanako would take care of removing video footage from public places like the club afterwards, and I guess this was from that night …" Intrigued at the idea of actually seeing Tae's group in action, they all gathered around as they opened it up. The old black-and-white footage thankfully had adequate sound and was of decent quality, as the 3 Buster women stood there in their work Ghostbusters -like outfits, except for Hanako who wore her typical red dress and lab coat with her goggles and wildly long hair even as a well-dressed Eikichi asked how they were going to draw the Sagako out, and Hanako said in a very cheerful and bubbly voice to just introduce himself.
Eyebrows were raised all around from the watching zombies (Tae just smirked) as he announced that he was "16 years old, 180 cm, a perfect sleep learner, working at a host club, a guy with a promising future and the 'perfect trifecta'," and seconds later a "cassette tape robot Sagako" came out and Anna and her friend from the other club urged him on, with the guy reminding him how he taught "him to confess". "Confess?" Sakura said, looking worried, even as the younger Tae looked on quite stoically even after she said the "Sagako was checking him out!"
It became all too clear that it was quite literal as he held out the large bouquet of flowers to the undersized robot. "Sa-SAGAKO! Please go out with me!" Ai had to pause at that, as Saki laughed with glee, even as Sakura looked more flabbergasted than ever at her"funny uncle" acting even weirder than she remembered, while Yugiri found this utterly priceless compared to her own "list of awkward romance stories", and Ai and Junko just looked at Tae who quietly said she hadn't been too keen on this part, which given her expression on screen was true. Then said robot in a clearly female voice replied "Trifecta … FAKER!" and then spewed cassette tapes out of his mouth as he looked offended.
"Sheesh, rejected by a robot, your uncle really did have girl problems." Saki said with a smirk. Sakura frowned but didn't argue as he leaped back and everybody else got wrapped up and a monotonous tune began playing. Thankfully the 3 Busters were wearing headphones with Tae's math recordings playing, and Hanako declaring that the magic "of Tae-chan's voice" fit how the equations were hurting Anna's ears worse than the song being played, while Tae just quietly said nothing with a rather resigned look on her dace. To the present-day Tae's surprise, Ai paused again and gave her a soft look of sympathy.
"I'm understanding more and more why you think you'd have problems singing in public, if you had to hear that from your own friends." Sakura backed her up, and she gave a quiet thanks and insisted the next bit was ironically hilarious as far as music went. Eikichi tried fighting it, and Tae showed her obvious concern by telling him to run (notably being the only one to call him by name the whole time) and he revealed a dramatic stack of "fresh sour onion cocktails" in a perfectly arranged stack of wine glasses.
Saki shook her head and turned to Sakura,"I have to ask, Egg-head, are those any good? I never had onion wine before …" "Well, Saki-chan, he always did have a knack for delicious onion dishes …" "True, but that's not all he was good at…" and Tae was visibly amused at what she knew was coming. Sure enough he led an apparently improvised song that he had the crowd go along with.
I've been waiting all night
(Yeah yeah, let's go)
For you, Sagako
(Yeah yea, let's go)
A trifecta man
(Yeah yeah, let's go)
I'll drink to thatT
(Yeah yeah, let's go)
"Is he … doing a love song to a Sagako?" Junko said, a phrase even she could not make sound serious if she wanted to (she didn't). "Yes, yes he is." Ai said, dry as a desert at the increasing insanity she had to deal with. Saki was fighting hard not to laugh while Lily was already burying her face in her hands.
Tonight's Sagako as well
(I'll drink to that)
Go go come on
(Go go come on)
Hilariously, everyone else realized this was a "champagne call" and joined for a "toast" as the final chorus came out and they covered the creature with the wine …
Go go sagako (Bring the champagne)
Drink drink (Go go go go)
Drink drink (Drink drink)
Drink drink (Drink drink)
Drink drink (Drink drink)
The now screaming robot got dramatically reduced, just like Tae described, to an onion with a fancy symbol on it. If any of the zombies still doubted Tae's stories, those doubts were squashed right there. Tae looked away as the video showed her looking impressed and then emotionally conflicted as Eikichi grandstanded about having become the "perfect trifecta of a man" and then he got cocky at the "Sagako having looked for a perfect man" and Hanako speculating that they were on the right track from her own hidden camera feed in their truck. Then he got cocky that as the "perfect man he could easily save Saga" only for Tae to demonstrate one of her many angry moods by angrily beating him up in the truck while yelling "The Hell you are!"
"Sorry, Sakura, really, I was still warming up to him and…" "No no don't!" Ai butted in. "Yeah, he got full of himself from one dorky song battle. Harsh, sure, but I'd have been even harsher on him." Saki said. "And you did show the most emotional control the whole time, so I think you did quite well," Junko said quietly.
Yugiri asked Sakura quietly," Sakura-han, pray tell, did his love life improve from having to sing to a Curse-borne monstrosity?" Sakura tried hard to answer seriously, then she buried her face in her hands as she whispered," I really wish I knew but he never talked about it, so I wish I could answer, but …" then she laughed hard as the sheer absurdity of what she'd just witnessed hit her, and they all joined in. "If he mocks either of you for singing after THAT, I will rub this in his face for life!" Saki promised.
"Thank goodness, I thought it was weird enough for me looking back on it, "Tae said. The fact that Hanako had apparently named the video file after the song only made it more hilarious. The next few they covered involved showing pictures of Tae working at MJ's food truck with and without the Hyodo twins. It was obvious in both that Tae looked more miserable doing it alone, but visibly happier with either one of them beside her. And Eikichi, while never quite as good as Yuko, had helped out his first day on the job by killing a giant Squid Sagako over the truck (they only had pictures of that one drawn from memory) and somehow the squid made for a good burger recipe that people literally ate up( in spite of seeing the monster), which proved on a large level that the locals were aware of all this. Hanako's "descriptions" of the love potion experiment were even more awkward than the way Tae described it.
"Tae-chan, it is official, you were the most qualified to lead the group by far." Ai said. Tae beamed at that and pulled up at least one more story for Lily's sake, with a heartfelt description nearly word for word of the successful proposal from Tae herself who'd been on the roof. Lily looked starstruck at Tae's description of the truly heartfelt speech from Takeo and Sachika's adorable acceptance (the first girl to see past the rough giant and the lover underneath), and Tae herself quietly mentioned that she believed love would save Saga. Sakura nearly cried a storm with tears of adoration,"Oh Tae-chan, that was so sweet of you!" And the fact that Hanako just made notes from where she and Anna had been on the roof after they "subdued" the mannequin Sagako ("Remind me to ask Maimai-chan about that next time we see here" Sakura said), got some dry remarks from Tae about how she had called the creepy thing cute while it clung to Eikichi from having that same love potion thrown at it that whole time so what did she know about romance (Saki continued to find Sakura's uncle hilarious especially with Yugiri's remarks on his "type that were not Tae-han").
"I don't know if our group qualifies as weirder than your old one at this point," Junko said quietly, which Tae admitted. Then she remembered MJ's remarks on "those 2 bringing prosperity to Saga in regard to why he'd sent them there" and turned to look at Lily.
"I wonder, did my dad, with his confusing prediction abilities, sense that their child would become someone who would help bring Prosperity to this place?" Lily looked astonished at the idea, and everyone else realized the implications as well, and it got the actress a lot of love and compliments from everyone, especially Saki. Ai promised to print out the picture of the young couple for her to keep, and Lily once again thanked Tae profusely with a tight hug. She really wasn't that bad with kids after all.
Of course, after they finished their meal and had finished paying, they heard a loud yell as they headed off home. A large architect from out of Saga who'd come by earlier complaining about "local business owners refusing to be compensated for their ruined franchises being replaced by more successful ventures" came running up yelling like a lunatic. The 6.5 man who'd been wearing the best model of suit from Tokyo's finest and a well-shaven face, came up covered in … something and a certain kanji written on his somehow clear shirt.
"IF THIS IS A REJECTION OF MY OFFER, I WILL SUE THIS WRETCHED *&^^ DUMP OF THIS *&&%^ PLACE! I DID NOT WASTE MY TIME TO COME HERE ON MY PERSONAL JET TO GET DUMPED IN RAW SUSHU LEFTOVERS AND WHAT I SUSCECT IS WHATEVER SECOND-RATE SAUCE YOU SERVE! NOW TELL ME WHO …WHY ARE YOU STARING AT ME LIKE THAT?!" The Tori manager glanced between the words in well done, not too-large kanji "OBVIOUS LUNATIC" and between his employees, Cocco and every other staring patron and civilian in sight. He looked at a loss as to how to respond, and thankfully the man made it easier by lunging at him with a yell worthy of any anime villain. Cocco and half of the staff tackled him to the ground and the police were called.
"Third out-of-town whack-job this week to get arrested, what is going on around here? "One man muttered, and as Franchouchou walked off, Tae snickered loudly. Sakura leaned over and gave her a serious look usually reserved for Saki," Tae-chan, do you know something?!"
Tae snorted and said,"You really are Yuko's daughter, get us somewhere quiet and I'll tell you." They got to a nearby picnic table out of sight, and Tae quietly admitted to having publicly humiliated not one but 3 idiots she'd run into since waking up, the 2nd one being the guy harassing Junko yesterday (whose phone with photos she'd disposed of) and the 3rd guy having been quietly "taken care of" when she luried off to overhear him going on and on about "putting the pressure to put Tori and other small-time businesses out of the way", and after calmly stating that neither guy witnesses her doing it, she ignored the scandalized (impressed in Saki and Yugiri's case) looks and went back to the first.
"As far as the first idiot goes, I am certain that happened while walking home while my memories were coming back before I woke up yesterday and he was dumb enough to try and touch me and get me to go out with him. I think I restrained him in under 30 seconds, not my personal best …" Junko quietly mouthed "personal best?" while AI pulled up the latest local news, which had pictures of the first 2, such as the second guy in a hilariously atrocious outfit flailing with duct-tape on his mouth as the security held him down, and the first even more so with a young man tied to a lamppost by his own pants, and shirt in his underwear, having been discovered by an elderly neighbor checking out the drunken-sounding gibberish the guy kept mumbling, and his claims of a "dark-haired ghost lady humiliating him" were written off as a drunken or drug-type party gone wrong. Sakura's restraint burst when Ai noted his wallet was reported missing, and she got mad.
"TAE-CHAN, WHY?! Did you steal that man's wallet?!" Tae was honestly taken aback by Sakura's uncharacteristically mad face, then she remembered something.
"Oh, is that where I got this?" She pulled out a wallet, and while Sakura's eyes twitched, she shrugged, "Must have picked it up in the moment, my mistake." Saki snatched it and started going through it, eagerly pulling out at least 70 yen.
"Sick, this'll come in handy later!" As Sakura began to look incensed between the 2 of them, Tae shrugged and said quietly," Anyway, you're all welcome!"
Saki laughed again while the rest looked annoyed or amused (or both), Sakura grabbed Tae by her shoulders and shook her," WHAT DO YOU THINK THAT'S GOING TO ACCOMPLISH?!"
Tae looked sheepish and gave a hilarious example of why customer service was still not her thing, "Bad luck for them? They really should add that to the local tourist advertisements, especially given we don't have a deadline for Curse removal. It could be a hazard for public relations." Sakura groaned loudly in the air while Ai facepalmed and Saki fell to the ground laughing. "Better them than you, at least?"
"What am I going to do with all of you?!" Sakura said, so done with being the voice of reason for once. Tae pulled her up and let her lean on her taller shoulders.
"Be who you are, and be the pure soul shining light around here, just like your mom." They headed back after that, with Yugiri remarking she'd seen far more embarrassing incidents while a courtesan, which Sakura begged her not to say. She did get Tae to at least promise to not go over the top while protecting them all the time. She did smile when Tae asked if she meant embarrassing them or punching them.
*Possible Justice delivered on the Emperor and why a pure-hearted character matters* Once again, knowing Tae was proving mind blowing, and as they wrapped up back at the Mansion, Tae looked around as her wonderful new band of sisters had gotten some books, local trinkets and more without her noticing as she had gone on and on about Saga, its mythical nature and what they all meant to her, especially Sakura. While Sakura knew her mother was a nice woman, even she was floored by how nice and loving Tae claimed she was. The first real friend she ever had, and she adored Sakura so much since she so much even more now reflected in her friend's baby girl (Sakura was embarrassed at the term but it was meant in kindness and Tae was hugging her hard again while saying it and even Saki didn't give her a hard time about that too much it was almost diabetes-inducing in how sweet it was) as she kept going on/
Her mother, 13 years younger than Tae, had just always been so kind, smiling down at the already much older girl, and had gotten involved because she didn't want Tae to get hurt and stood up for her, and fought for her in her own way, and for the first time, Tae had somehtin else to live for other than revenge. And Tae in turn wanted to protect that smile, never let it fade, and while Eikichi could never be as good as her, it did help forge a bond. And now, looking at Sakura, it was almost uncanny. A girl who dared to make the scary Tae Yamada want to sing with her, and had such a good heart, even without remembering her own life like Tae had, and she still was so good to her! Yuko Hyodo was the first person, after MJ, to ever be true family for her when the Busters first formed in 1979, and without being a truly physical fighter she used her family farm's mystically charged onions to seal the Curse's Sagako, and she kept at it event though it drained at her over time until the day she got sealed herself to keep one down. And now, Tae was determined that Sakura got the same devotion for all eternity.
Sakura was so awed by all this as Tae finished and the look on her face was so sincere, she knew she meant it all. "I … I never thought I could be so special just for being so nice … and onions … why onions?" Tae grinned and cheerfully elaborated as Ai kept going over the notes from the files quietly while listening just as much as the rest were. The Hyodo Family Farm represented the best part of how the Prosperity of Saga worked tangibly, grown with love and care (and onions were one of Saga's biggest exports) they acted the part of what MJ called a Misogi ritual where an old Shinto-type purification ritual was performed by a miko (Shrine Maiden) which as the heirs of the farm, the Twins qualified for, even though Miko were typically young maidens. Eikiichii managed it despite her skepticism and it was fitting in a way since they were often portrayed throughout literature as fighting evil spirits, demons and ghosts and were represented as being pure.
"And like I said, Saga will be saved with love. And all that pure simple love of your family, reflected in how you love others and tended the grounds of the land, that is your true weapon! Maybe that's why Saga sticks around so well, that love defies the insane evil of the Curse!" She sighed with contentment and Sakura had her sit down, who smiled at her friend's content face. Yugiri put some tea in front of them and then Ai thought back to the original legend of Xu Fu and brought up some further research on the sketchy Chinese Emperor she'd found since.
"I did some further digging, some of suggested records say that Xu Fu never returned after being sent out the second time, and that the Emperor met a legendary immortal Chinese magician named Anqi Sheng, over 1,000 years old, likely related to what Tae-chan told us about the Elixir already, and after talking with him for 3 days and bribing him, nothing came of it. He may have sent Xu Fu to find him once for the first expedition and bring him back, and Xu Fu reported a sea monster, a snake, blocking the way. And that there was supposedly a curse placed on the Emperor himself and anyone seeking immortality by the magician, complete with a meteorite prophesizing his death with words on it and possibly causing a legendary flood in the Yellow River which killed millions, and the Emperor died, and might have been poisoned by some Alchemists with a mixture of mercury and Jade in an attempt to give it to him, after he killed everyone around that part of the river since no one would confess to inscribing the words. So he could have been a victim of the Curse of Saga, the first in a way. And Xu Fu, which is the same name as Jofuku, some people say he might have founded Japan itself when he never returned." Tae whistled and clapped in approval.
"Impressive, Ai-chan, you have a knack for this sort of thing!" Ai smiled proudly, and Tae did admit that added up with everything she knew about MJ, about how he had said the Curse had been brought about by "those who sought immortality" and it fit with what he hinted at. He fought for Saga nonstop, maybe he truly viewed this as his rightful atonement. As Romero came up and Tae scratched his head fondy, she revealed that the loyal dog had been around well before he had met Yugiri, and she knew the 3-year old in dog years(or 28-year old by human years at that point of his death it was unclear hwo that worked) canine had been the family pet of the Momozaki family, and along with Kiichi, Jofuku took him in and had a genuine undead pet ever since. And she saw him all the time growing up, an undead dog for a lonely immortal and now the pet for a team of zombie girls, still a loyal pet at heart and arguably smarter and more useful than a regular dog due to his nature.
Yugiri looked at yet another connection to an old life of hers, now their loyal pet. Sakura meanwhile said thoughtfully, "I never thought my nice heart would be so … powerful or worth that much …"
Junko said quietly," There wouldn't be a Franchouchou with you, Sakura-san. And we would all still stand on that stage with you and risk failing, even with all the bad luck in the air. That's how important it is to us."
The Heart of the Team indeed. And all of them loved her for it.
