Back to school

It's been a while since the start of school… but… let's just say it's not too late.

Umira peered closely at the image staring back at her. After a final scan, Umira touched the ribbon in her hair lightly and tightened the pale blue fabric. It was the only time that Umira cared about her hair- and that can only mean one thing- start of a different term in school.

"There we go." Umira said, her voice as light as ever. Nothing stirred the quiet house as Umira closed the light in the washroom and tip toed down the stairs of her dim house. She was still trying to get used to how mornings are quite dark now… and it wasn't easy. Her house faced away from the sun in the morning, which led to the lack of sunlight in mornings.

Umira glanced at the clock when she reached the first floor, hearing the loud ticking. Despite the gloomy atmosphere, Umira felt rather cheerful, and was careful not to wake her dad.

However, Momo, their labradoodle woke up at once when Umira pulled open the fridge door to make something. Scrambling onto her paws, Momo wagged her brown, curly tail excitedly, making Umira giggle. At this rate, her bum looked like it might fall off soon. Slipping two pieces of toast into the toaster, Umira beckoned Momo to follow and crossed the living room to the dog's living quarters. Grabbing Momo's food bowl, Umira scooped some pellets and set it down for her to eat. It is always a fun sight, watching Momo gobble her food down.

Suddenly, a buzz against her right thigh made Umira jump, but then she realized it was only her phone reminding her to get going. Skipping back to the toaster, Umira took the warm pieces of bread and spread some butter on it. Then she went into the washroom and looked at herself again. She had been so prepared for this day. So prepared to prove that she's changed her negative sides and so prepared to have a fresh start. She can do this no problem. It's time to grab her chance.

…..

"W-whoa Umira!" Akane exclaimed, walking over to her friend. "You look so…" Akane paused, realizing that she didn't know what came after. Luckily, her friend just smiled.

"Different? I know, I know." Umira said, surprisingly sweet. Akane looked Umira up and down. Then her eyes sprung back to Umira's hair. Umira's blue purple hair was as smooth as silk and… brushed. Akane gasped, finally catching what made Umira look so different. Her usual messy hair style had been tamed with a brush and even from a normal distance, the scent of sweet shampoo reached Akane's nose. Akane stared- Umira was actually such a pretty girl… her long hair slightly curly and bright when brushed properly, it seemed as if even her eyes were sparkling.

"Wow… Umira, you should really brush your hair more." Akane said, a teasing smile forming. A smile spread on Umira's face as well.

"Well, captain, you know I don't possibly have time for that." Umira said, pushing up her glasses and putting her hands on her hips. "Straight A students don't have time for a lot of things… Like manga..." Umira added the last part with a sniff. At that Akane was totally defeated. She sighed.

"Ah… You just have to be so mean!" Akane whined. She herself wasn't a straight A student whatsoever, but her dad did make it her goal, although Akane was a little unsure. It seems as if to be a straight-A student, you'd have to sacrifice plenty of time… which means plenty of social media time… which means…

"I'm not mean- to both get A's AND keep watching anime and read comics, it really does take up all my time." Umira said innocently, as if she just read Akane's mind without realizing it. "Which… is why I'm so short. You know, you gotta take some chunks of time away from sleep!"

Akane snapped out of her thoughts, blinking twice. Then she smiled.

"Well… better not spend every single second of your life reading comics!"

"Yeah no kidding- I've got to save more for fangirling." Umira replied, looking deep in thought. Akane could imagine how Umira decided to start the new school term- and what she could have done over the break. She knew Umira's break was spent totally different than hers… and Umira's attitude towards school starting again must be as well. Hers went something along the lines of…

"Akane! Wake up already!" Akane's dad, Mr. Chiruma boomed into her ear. Akane sat up straight.

"Huh!? Wh-wha-what?" Akane groaned, sitting up at once in her bed, fighting to open her sticky eyes. She rubbed them, feeling tired and stiff. Her nearly red hair fanned out around her in a messy but voluminous way.

"It's nearly 7:30! You ought to have waken up by now." Mr. Chiruma said sternly.

"7:30…?" Akane stared at her dad with narrowed eyes. "So?"

Mr. Chiruma sighed, having anticipated this reaction. "Tomorrow is the first day of school! It's better to start waking up early today."

"Oh…" Akane said. Then she laid back down and dragged the blanket over her head.

"Did you NOT hear me!?" Mr. Chiruma boomed again, making Akane squirm. She pried open one eye and looked at her dad.

"But dad!" Akane wailed, dragging out the vowel. Her dad pinched his lips together tightly and a face similar flashed in her mind. Akane paused, as if tasting something sour. "Fine, I'll get up and check- for the millionth time- that I've got everything ready for tomorrow." With that, Chiruma smiled and patted where he thought Akane's shoulder would be and left the room. Akane turned around, sighing.

"Just as I was going to get one last day of proper sleep, too." She muttered.

"Ahhhhh!"

"Ughhhhh…!"

"Nooo…."

"Ackkkkkkk!"

"Arrrghhhh."

The cries, groans, screams of frustration and desperation could be heard throughout the whole house. Felix, Mr. Chiruma's shiba-inu, hid in a corner far from the sound source- which was Akane herself.

"I cannot believe school is starting again- tomorrow! Less than 24 hours!" She paced around the room. Ever since Akane had woken up, she has been a mess. These past days she spent in her house, doing nothing productive at all- but her supposedly long break still passed like running water, unable to be held and preserved. Still pacing, Akane could feel the time still seeping through the cracks in her hands and all the despair in her heart felt like bursting. She slowed down as Mr. Chiruma entered the room, asking Akane to calm down and let him read his newspaper.

"School's not that bad, you know." Mr. Chiruma said.

"Really?" Akane snapped, not meaning to. Whenever under stress, she would either snap or be very indecisive- which in this case, there is nothing to be indecisive about. "What about math, socials, home ec, science, PE, languages, and band?" She said, counting her fingers. Mr. Chiruma sighed.

"Listen, once you get back, you'll find that it's not bad at all."

Akane knew he was right, but she still felt as if her guts were squirming around inside. She bit her lip from saying anything else. Walking over to the window, she flung it open and crashed onto the ground and just stayed there, not wanting to do anything at all. Why, why must she go back and have every teacher judge and evaluate her, where every student competed with each other and every subject posed a threat to her brain? Akane moaned into the ground, and didn't stop.

…..

From far, Karina saw the too figures standing together facing each other. With a grin creeping over her face she crept up behind them.

"Boo!" Karina shouted and shoved Umira's shoulder gently. Umira jumped right up and squeaked a high-pitched sound which was surely inhuman. Akane, however, had no reaction. Her light eyes were focused on something far away.

Karina poked her friend's shoulder, watching as Akane jerked up to see a familiar face, wearing hair pulled back into a long, black ponytail.

"Spacing out?" Karina said, a teasing smile on her face. To her surprise, Akane poked her back.

"Right, that's just too weird for you, isn't it?" Akane said. Karina grinned.

"So you admit." She realized with a jolt that it might as well be the first time that Akane is sarcastic towards her. Karina had to admit, she felt closer to her that way.

With a wave of her hand, Akane opened her mouth. "Was just thinking about yesterday- how I was still so carefreely wasting my time… Say, how was the last few days of break?"

Karina let her thoughts process for a while. Her last few days were hectic. Or more like her… morning was hectic.

Something shuffled, more shuffling. Karina woke up, first noticing something off. Without staying in bed for more than one minute, Karina got out of bed and went to her brother's room.

"Kazu-" Karina's eyes landed on his empty bed. "to…?" Her voice tilted at the end, turning into a question. She checked her watch- it was barely 6:45 in the morning.

"Moooooom!" Karina called, walking up the stairs of their house. It was a particularly cold morning, and Karina had to distract herself from the cold- so she focused on the wall instead. The white walls of their house complimented their wooden stairs, which creaked on certain ones.

"Yes?" Karina heard her mom call back after what seemed like five minutes. When Karina reached her mom's room, she paused.

"What day is it?" Karina said, stretching her arms out. Haru went rigid.

"What do you mean? Don't you know? It's Monday-"

"Oh. Okay. Well, do you know where Kazuto is?" Karina stopped her mom before she could say anymore, because Karina really did not want to spend the extra time out in the cold in her pajamas.

"He slept at Yoritomo's house, for a 'last night privilege'." Haru replied, her black hair ruffled and her cheeks pale from the earliness. "Honestly, I don't know what that means but I guess it's true that from today on you guys won't have much time to spend with friends."

At this, Karina furrowed her brows. "What do you mean 'from today on'?"

"Huh? Oh… It's the first day of school- you can't have forgotten." Haru said in a teasing tone. The only problem is that Karina did forget, in fact.

The rest of the morning was just chaotic- Karina shoving muffins into her mouths and dragging her mom to the superstore, trying to do speed shopping. Then she rummaged through everything- even their toilet cupboards for her uniform. After that she tried her best to pack her backpack and arrived at school barely before 7:50, with ten minutes to spare. Standing there in front of the school she realized her unbrushed hair, dangling in tangled locks until she gathered them into a ponytail.

"Karina?" Karina came back to the moment at the sound of her name and blinked when she saw the palm of a hand waving close in front of her.

"Now you're the one spacing out." It was Umira, her face especially glamourous this day. "We're going to be late for class."

"It was hectic." Karina muttered.

"What?" Akane asked. Karina raised her piercing black eyes.

"The last few days- I mean, this morning."

Akane nodded. "Mine too."

As the three walked down the halls together, Umira was the only one with a smile and a energized face full of anticipation and excitement- the only one who didn't agree.

Ail: This is included in the birthday OVA chapter for our friend. Actually- This whole story is dedicated to our friend… we just need permission to reveal her name, I guess. BUT HAPPY BIRTHDAY! - with love.

Summer OVA:

Oh gosh. Oh gosh. He was mad. Furious. Akane tried to catch her breath once she was behind a stack of those colorful and flexible swimming noodle things. Hibiki was still in the ocean, clothes and hair drenched. He was glaring at Yori and Karina, who both were running away, trying to get as far away as possible from the angry council president.

Akane squeezed further behind the noodles. There was a soft plop to the left of her, and Akane turned around sharply, half writing her dying will, and half wondering how in the world Hibiki was able to find and get to her so quickly. When she saw the white hair and realized that it was only Miyoru, she let out a small sigh of relief.

How many casualties will there be? Miyoru mouthed, not even daring to breathe.

Akane shrugged, appreciating her ability to read mouthed words more than ever at the moment. "If we're lucky -" the rest was inaudible, as Miyoru clasped her hand over Akane's mouth. Her red eyes met Akane's, which it clearly said 'shut up unless you want to die!'

Akane slumped back against the noodle things in defeat, hoping she wouldn't die on a weird mafia beach by the hands of her very own comrades. BUT she was the one who followed Karina's orders and distracted him… Of course he'd come after her…

...

It was supposed to be a day of relaxation, dammit! Was the thought that ran itself through Kari's mind as she sprinted.

The group had been invited to the mafia beach as a reward for their hard work, and a few days off of chasing around enemies.

Today was only their first day off, and they were already going to die.

She and Yoritomo and practically dragged everyone into the ocean. They were all so tense and nervous - constantly on the lookout for opposing mafia members. But were they about to give up a precious chance to relax? No! ...Which is why they dragged Hibiki into the ocean, fully clothed. Who even wore a suit to the beach?

At first it was okay. He just stood there, sort of brooding. Then Yori and her dumped a bucket of seawater onto him, trying to get him to join the fun. They had expected him to get angry, chase them around with a knife, maybe, but not silence. It was an eerie silence, with a dark aura coming off of the council president. It smelled of danger.

"The calm before the storm," Umira had called it. "He always does this before he's going to explode."

And so everyone ran.

In the short time the group had been together, each person's temper had been made clear. Hibiki had gotten into a rage once before, and no one wanted to see it again.

"ARGHH! I can sense him coming after us!" Yori whisper-shouted to Kari, who was running a few feet ahead of him.

Karina looked back over her shoulder. "Relax. He still hasn't moved from his spot."

"But he's going to come after us first!"

"Are you stupid?! We're the ones who poured water on him - of course we're gonna die first!"

...

"Osaku-san~" Umira tapped the boy's shoulder, comic book tucked under one arm. "Have you possibly gone… paranoid?" Umira's innocent blue eyes scanned over Hibiki's wet clothes. Even though Hibiki was standing perfectly still, a slight shivering was to be spotted. "You know, it'll be worse if you don't move." Umira added. She then saw that everyone was not around. She cocked her head and and assessed her surroundings to see if they were under attack.

Finally, Hibiki cocked his head to look at Umira, and Umira understood why nobody was around. Hibiki was conjuring up his storm… and now… Umira smiled sweetly, knowing how to deal with this kind of situation- since she was the closest to him. The others either ran or hid, but she didn't need to.

"Listen. In order to be a good council president, you need to set a good example by keeping your equanimity even after much provocation. Just give them a stern scolding later on- and then have some fun with us! Those people may be unencumbered, but they'll really teach us to loosen up!" Umira said brightly. She noticed that switch of light in Hibiki's eyes, convinced by what she said. "Come on, they'll come find us soon enough. Meanwhile, why don't we go walk around?"

…..

The sand felt soft and cool under their feet. Shallow footprints were left behind as they charged lightly on, leaving so little trace that one sweep of the gentle wave can take it all away, as if they were never here. The wind pushed Miyoru's hair back, drying their wet tips.

"Akane!' She panted, her voice soft and childlike, but sandy at the same time. "Give me a second." Akane slowed and Miyoru doubled over to catch her breath. Seeing Akane glance ahead uncertainly, Miyoru knew she cannot spend too much time resting. With the already faint footprints of where Karina and Yoritomo had stepped in their run, they'll lose them completely if they don't keep chasing after their footprints soon.

The sand was loose, which absorbed most of their power in each push of the leg. Then, from within her bag, Miyoru took out two pairs of sandals. She offered a pair to Akane, who was also breathing heavily.

"Here, these might help." Miyoru offered. Akane shook her head.

"It's okay. You go ahead and put them on. I'm just wondering… How far could they have gone?" Akane squinted far ahead. The waves lapped against her ankles as Miyoru stuffed one pair back.

"True…" Was all she said before they started running again.

…..

"It's been a while now, I think we should go back to check on Hibiki…" Karina said. Yoritomo turned to look at her. Karina being thoughtful… How rare. He felt a smile creep across his face.

"Karina being sensible, huh?" He joked. His mistake. Receiving a death-glare, Karina stepped onto his toe harshly.

"What? I was always sensible. Just not out loud." With that, she marched away from the waves. Yoritomo was just about to give a retort when Karina grabbed onto him and pulled him down into a crouching position.

"Huh-" Yoritomo started, but a hand clasped over his mouth. He glanced at Karina, who had a finger in front of her mouth. She pointed discreetly at two figures, and Yoritomo recognized them as Umira and Hibiki. Too late, they already noticed them.

"Oh stars, they're gonna fry us. Let's run." Karina said. Yoritomo could feel her hand tense with her arm, strong with power and ready to set off at the speed of light. It was all powerful but… Yoritomo shook his head, peeling her sea scented hand away from his mouth.

"No… They already saw us. It's time to face our wrath. I think Hibiki will just get angrier if we run away again." Yoritomo said, and stood up. Karina followed, unwillingly.

…..

"Hey look!" Akane called to Miyoru. The girl behind her ran faster.

"Y-yeah?" Akane could tell Miyoru could barely manage to keep running anymore, but up ahead were four figures.

"I think that's them- Karina and Yoritomo… and…" Akane stopped abruptly, feeling the wind from Miyoru as she struggled to stop before crashing into her, sliding on the sand a little.

"Shoot. There's Hibiki." Akane said, backing up a few steps. There was nowhere to hide- the beach is such an open spot.

"..." Akane waited for Miyoru as she caught her breath. "What is he doing to them, then?" Akane shook her head. Then she saw Umira take out a piece of paper from a bottle and hand it to Yoritomo.

"He doesn't have that look anymore… we should probably go over and check it out." Akane suggested. Miyoru nodded, and they approached them warily.

…..

"A mission…?" Karina repeated after Umira.

"Yes.. is that not clear enough?" Umira asked, frowning. The breeze carried the scent of the sea.

"It is but isn't this a day off?" Karina asked, still hesitant. Umira had told them about a bottle she found in the ocean, addressing to them and asking them to go on a special mission to uncover the location of a precious treasure and bring it back to the headquarters with them. "Plus… isn't this supposed to be a day off? What if it's a trap?"

"What kind of trap could it be?- are you afraid that it's a trap and would rather ditch a possibly real mission for that risk?" Umira asked, eyes determined.

"... Fine." Karina said. Then she felt more presence around her. Looking up from the piece of parchment paper, she saw Miyoru's white hair and then Akane's red.

"Mission? What's this about?" Miyoru asked.

Akane nodded. "We heard some of what you just said but…" Karina handed the piece of paper to them.

"Umira found this washed up on the shore." Karina said with a shrug.

…..

Yoritomo watched carefully as Akane took the piece of paper from Karina and inspected it. Noticing the pursing of her lips and the slight frown, Yoritomo wondered if she found out about something.

"So? Find a special treasure right?" Karina said, turning to Hibiki and Umira. "The only clue is that it's very protected but it's also somewhere we've been before, but can also be at the Ramen stand not far from here."

"Isn'-" Yoritomo shifted his gaze to Akane as she started, but Karina interrupted her.

"Isn't that very broad? Yes, that clue is quite useless… But we do know it might involve our lives so let's be careful… I wonder what it is."

"N-" Akane started again.

"But let's start from here and look carefully on our way back while three of us can travel to the Ramen stand." Karina said with a nod of her head. Yoritomo saw Hibiki shift his weight- and he realized that Hibiki had been doing that for the whole time they were talking… Like he was nervous about something… or hiding something.

"Let's split into two groups- Umira, Miyoru, and Yoritomo in one group and Akane, me, and Hibiki in the other. Any objections?" Karina only waited a brief second, obviously not expecting any objection, although Yoritomo wanted to object. "Alright then, my group will go to the Ramen stand. We'll communicate by phone. Let's go."

…..

"Our lives might be on the line for this?" Akane squeaked.

Karina sighed. "The moment you joined the mafia, yes, you've basically ditched your life." Nobody said anything else after that. Hibiki still being that eery quiet- although a different vibe, this time- and Akane just shut up by her sharp tongue. Karina bit the inside of her lip. She really didn't want to be so mean all the time but the words just hop out of her mouth before she could even say '"."'.

"You know, I-" Akane started after a few minutes of them walking stealthily along the walls of the buildings in the mall. Karina suddenly noticed some suspicious looking people dressed all in black suits, and Akane seemed to have noticed too. All three of them proceeded to press against the wall carefully.

"It must be here… it's guarded- that was part of our clue." Karina whispered. "Shut up and save your words for later. Any plans?"

"Sneak past them- the Ramen place should be inside that mall. We could only enter from that toy shop over there… it's the closest to the food court." Hibiki. Finally saying something. "If we can't sneak past them… we'll run. There's too many of them to fight, but we might have a chance to outrun them." It was true that most of the guards were bulky looking- powerful for sure but not agile looking at all. They were all carrying guns.

"Okay. Sounds good. Akane?" Karina said, glancing behind her shoulder.

"Yes?" Akane responded, looking pale.

"You go after me, Hibiki will be the last of us three." Karina ordered. Akane nodded and gulped. Karina felt her hands shaking. Despite her calm and bold demeanor, Karina knew she was probably just as scared as her friend. Though they've all been training and having mock battles and all… this is the first time they actually go against real people. Seems like this mission really is hard core and real. What is this thing they want them to bring back?

Karina stuck up three fingers and lowered one, then two. Then she slipped out into the opening and sprinted lowly across the ground towards the next corner where they can hide and calculate their next move.

…..

"No luck here…" Miyoru sighed. "Kawasaki-san, don't you think this is taking too long? We should probably report to the other group. I wonder how they are doing."

"Hm… Not a bad idea." Yoritomo said and took out his phone. "I'll send Kari a text." Umira nodded, clearly distracted.

"I don't think it'll be here. Let's move on."

…..

Karina gritted her teeth. There were guards lined up on either side of a rather wide road. They'll have to get across it somehow. Moving towards the right, she felt the presence of the other two behind her and proceeded carefully. If they casually walk across… No, that wouldn't work. They might have to make a run for it. Pushing her palm out behind her, Karina peek out from behind a tree and then beckoned. She then crouched low and tried to squeeze herself into the shadow of the building's wall.

They were halfway across when her cellphone let out a horribly loud ring, making all three of them jump. Karina's train of swears filled the air before the guards all turned and lifted their guns and pointed at them. She hollered.

"RUN!"

At once, she heard the loud footstep behind her, desperate and heavy. Popping sounds of guns echoed off the walls as they sprinted until everything was a blur and they were only heading towards the general location- or what they thought was the general location of the toy shop. Just within ten meters of the entrance, Karina heard a bloodcurdling scream behind her, cut off by a sudden gargle. Then nothing at all. She turned, never so fast in her life. The last bit of Akane's limp fall towards the ground was all she saw of her friend's movements.

"AKANE! No, no, no!" Karina screamed, running towards her friend, not caring about the gunshots anymore. through the dizziness of running and now- despair, Karina saw Hibiki haul Akane up by the arm and swing her across his back.

"Go!" Hibiki ordered, and Karina only paused briefly before scrambling forth.

…..

"Did you send the message?" Umira asked Yoritomo.

"Yeah, like an hour ago." Yoritomo nodded, concerned.

"Well… Did they reply?" Umira asked.

"If they had, we wouldn't be sitting here right now." Yoritomo rolled his eyes. Miyoru watched them both carefully. They were sitting in a gazebo, where they ate for lunch- and where they first went after arriving at the beach. The sky has been darkening but the others still hasn't come back yet. The night air was warm, but Miyoru still felt like shivering. What if they were in trouble?

"Maybe we should go look for them…?" Miyoru suggested, her white hair looking almost orange in the sunset. "What if they're in trouble?"

"Maybe you're right…" Umira said.

…..

Continue with the mission… Continue… Continue…. The only words Karina had in her mind was what Hibiki told her before they split up, him gone seeking for medication with his phone. Karina was forced to continue the mission since they both knew Hibiki could carry Akane much better and had a better chance of escaping. Karina felt numb. She didn't know what to think, how to react… It was too sudden. It was her fault. She was so mean, too. Feeling her guts twist, she felt as if a hole was expanding in her chest, making it difficult to breathe. Taking gulps of air, she only just realized that she'd been holding her breath. When she exhaled, however, it came out a sob.

Her eyes began to sting as she spotted two men dressed in black. She went up to them, like a zombie. But she didn't care how she walked, and even less of what they think of her. Sorry, Akane, for making you deal with such a horrible friend with such a horrible temper. Karina reacted quickly, turning her numbness into rage. She spun, her eyes a killing machine and kicked her leg high up. Then pushed down with all her might on the head of one of the guards, knocking him unconscious immediately. She then upper cut the other guard, who was grabbing his gun. Sorry, for dragging you into this. I didn't realize how naive and greedy I was to force you to join the mafia.

Karina went through the dim food court with almost nobody inside. Then she found herself standing in front of the Ramen stand. Tears started pouring out of her eyes. Grabbing the shirt collar of the chef, she asked him fiercely with bared teeth.

"Where is it?" She growled. The chef panicked and thrashed wildly, only to receive a harsh jerk from Karina. She was almost lifting him by his shirt. "Tell me NOW!"

"Woah, woah, okay!" He said, fingers wrapping around Karina's clenched fist. "Let me go first!" Karina did so, and the chef stumbled. He reached beneath the counter and presented a small box and took out something neatly wrapped.

Karina wiped away her tears.
"You mean this, right?" The man said. "A girl told me that someone was going to get it if I ever find it but they never told me that person would be so rude and violent! God knows what's going on with teenagers these days."

Karina eyed the man. "Don't play dumb. How do you explain all those guards out there!? They k-k-killed…" The words were stuck in her throat, unable to come out.

"Karina!" A familiar voice rang through the air. Karina turned around, seeing Umira, followed by Miyoru and Yoritomo. Karina felt lighter, and a tiredness replaced her. Umira reached her, and Karina's rage died completely, left with only tiredness and vanity.

"Ah! You found it!" Umira said, eyes lit with pleasure. Then she seemed to notice Karina's red rimmed eyes. "Did you cry…?" Umira asked.

Karina looked away. So this was the package they were looking for. She did not want to be the bad news breaker but…

"It's… A...Akane." Karina said, choking on her friend's name. Umira reached over and grabbed the wrapped package.

"What's wrong with her?" Umira asked, innocent.

Then, to Karina's surprise and disbelief, Akane walked awkwardly from behind a corner with Hibiki's help. Karina's jaw dropped open.

"Akane…!?" She marveled, not trusting her senses. Was she hallucinating? When Akane embraced her, however, she knew she wasn't. "You… You're…"

"Yeah. I'm alive." Akane said, smiling shyly. "Um… Umira, you better start explaining soon."

"Explaining?" Karina echoed.

"Yeah, you'd better, kido. You're friend here was really rough with me." The chef said, crossing his arms.

"Oops, sorry about that, oji-san." Umira said, smiling cutely. Then she turned to Karina. "Actually…" She laughed awkwardly.

"Let me apologize in advance. I didn't think it would get this out of hand but… This is actually my manga book." Umira said, gesturing toward the wrapped package.

"I made up this mission so that we could all look for my book… but also to have some fun." Karina didn't know what to think. This incident has put her through so much emotion and… pain. She thought she had lost her friend forever… It was devastating.

"So…" Karina started, but Umira continued.

"After you guys left Hibiki, we came to the Ramen shop for a bite, but I couldn't find my book anywhere so I thought I dropped it somewhere. I also told this oji-san to take care of my book for me and that maybe a friend will come later to pick it up." Umira said honestly. Her voice was growing more apologetic by the second. "Hibiki knew what I planned, so I told him to play along because obviously you guys thought he should be having some fun too…" Umira looked guilty now.

"I just thought…" Umira shook her head. "Anyway. Those guards… they're not holding real guns. They're having some sort of hentai mafia race where they try to race but others also interfere with the racers by shooting them with stunners. So the mafia racers will have to avoid the shots while they run." Umira paused. Or she finished. Or she just simply don't know how to end. "The stunner will paralyze the person for around an hour- depending on the person's abilities… Hibiki obviously knew Akane wasn't dead and probably took her somewhere to reassure her." There was a long moment of silence.

"U-um…" Akane started, sounding a little distorted. "I was trying to say that the writing looked awfully like Umira's in the beginning, when we were reading the paper…"

"Sorry to cause such a mess." Umira said, looking down. Everyone seemed to hold their breath. Karina stared at her, as if burning a hole through her head. Although really, her mind was blank. Then to her surprise, Umira looked up to meet her stare. "Really." Karina finally felt a spark of something. She expected it to be rage, and prepared to restrain herself. However, it was relief. Relief that her friend did not actually die, relief that she finally learned something valuable. Relief that Umira put her through this all, because, it would be useful. The anger had not come yet, for whatever reason Karina didn't know either. However, she knew she cannot bring herself to hurt another friend again because all those guilt and blame and regret she bore when she thought Akane was actually dead… Never again. Karina held Umira's eyes and she didn't drop them. Then she turned to the chef.

"I'm sorry. As you see, this was clearly a misunderstanding." Karina said. Umira smiled, tears forming at the edges of her eyes.

"Thanks" Umira whispered.

Ail: Hey guys! I think this is the most intriguing part of the whole story I've written. This took me quite some time. Regi- what d'you think about this I expanded from that beginning part? :9

Birthday OVA

Happy birthday, our friend! 3

"Streamers."

"Balloons."

"Can someone please put the banner up?"

"Gifts?"

"Food."

"Someone. Please. Get the banner up."

"Posters."

"Markers, please. Who the heck wrote this?"

"GET THE BANNER UP. NOW."

Kazuto sighed as Karina barked orders at everyone in the classroom. She was busy standing on a desk, reaching for a roll of tape, but still managed to keep an eye on everyone in the room.

"You realize all you had to do was ask me to help you get it?" Kazuto jumped up from the ground and easily grabbed the tape from the top of the cabinet. His sister glared at him, clearly annoyed at how easily he was able to reach it compared to her. He stared straight into her eyes with a laidback expression, already used to her eyes of death.

As Karina stepped back down from the wooden desk, she purposefully stepped on Kazu's feet, eliciting a yelp of pain. She walked away without another word and snatched the tape from his hands, but her twin could see even the hairs on her head smirking, glad that she got so-called revenge.

"Oi, Lilian, you might as well help out before Karina spots you," Kazuto said in a low voice, turning to the girl sitting at a desk behind him. She pouted, and raised up a piece of construction paper for him to see.

"I'm making a card! I am helping! Why don't you tell Ena-chan off? Or Salazar-kun?" she asked, pointing at the two sitting beside her. Enaka, a girl with ebony hair, was merely writing in a notebook, and Salazar was laying his head on a desk, supposedly sleeping.

"Because Kari couldn't care less about Salazar."

"What about Ena-chan? WHAT ABOUT ENA-CHAN?"

Kazuto grimaced. This girl could match the energy level of his twin. "She gives off nearly the same vibe Hibari does, and –"

"Sorry, what about me being like this 'Hibari'?" Enaka spoke up, lifting her eyes slightly to look at Kazuto. He was unnerved by her stare. Though her voice was soft and calm, her eyes had an even deadlier stare than Karina's. It was a silent, cold stare, like a predator waiting quietly to attack its prey at the right moment.

Hibari indeed.

"EVERYBODY SHUSH RIGHT NOW SILENCE I HEAR FOOTSTEPS GET IN YOUR PLACES!" Karina roared suddenly, making nearly everyone in the room flinch. However, they all immediately crouched down beneath desks, hid behind cabinets, and waited for a certain girl to enter their classroom.

The footsteps echoed loudly in the hall, and as they neared, every person began to tense. The steady walk soon came to a stop as it neared the wooden door of their home room. It slid open with a creaking sound, and everyone suddenly sprang into action.

The lights flickered to life, and people jumped up, yelling "HAPPY BIRTHDAY!", Kazuto knocking his head into the desk during the process. There was a loud popping noise, and a sudden rain of confetti. Karina ran to the door, holding a confetti cannon and a wide smile on her face.

"Happy Birthda -" her expression suddenly faltered as she realized who was standing in front of her. Akane wore a confused look, hands holding the cake Kari had asked her to fetch earlier.

"Oh, it's you, Akane." The long-haired girl had never sounded so disappointed when the word 'Akane' was in a sentence she spoke. Akane smiled sheepishly, stepping in and quickly shutting the door behind her.

"I did bring the cake! Umira managed to decorate it rather nicely."

"Speaking of that, where is she?"

"Oh, she said she had stuff to prepare. Stuff that has to do with her fangirl thing."

Karina nodded understandingly. That was the best explanation anyone could come up with when Umira had her fangirl phases.

As everyone began to start chattering again, Karina quickly closed the lights in an attempt to silence them, while muttering "it better not be Umira," under her breath. "I hear more footsteps, everyone in their places! Again!"

This time, the tension could be felt in the air as footsteps neared them all. The whole mistaking-Akane-for-whoever-they-were-throwing-a-surprise-party-for mishap made everybody nervous. What if it was another person? What if it really was her, but they managed to mess something up? What if the presents weren't good enough? What if she didn't like surprises? What if –

The door was suddenly flung open, with an announcement of, "I'm here~ What did you want to show me?"

Without missing a beat, the flights were turned on, the confetti cannon's booming sound rang out, and a song of happy birthday began to ring throughout the room. Kari smiled widely, and after making sure she had the right person, yelled out "Happy birthday!" and tackled her in a hug.

Umira barged in, slamming the door open, her purple hair wild as the glint in her eyes. Running up to the birthday girl, she shoved a stack of paper in her hands. "I know I'm late, but!" her eyes shone, and she whipped out her cellphone, pointing at the screen. "I wrote a fanfiction for you! I just gave you the paper copy, but you can find it online too~ I really really hope you like it!" And with that, the birthday girl was again engulfed in another hug.

Kazuto looked on at the scene, while quietly helping himself to a piece of cake. The surprise party seemed to be a success – and it was a welcome break from all the tension at home.

A welcome break from the hectic mafia world.

Regi: THIS TURNED ANGSTY ALL OF A SUDDEN BUT HAPPY BIRTHDAY YOU KNOW WHO YOU ARE K-CHAN SENDS HER BEST WISHES AS WELL THOUGH SHE DOES NOT HAVE INTERNET ACCESS RIGHT NOW