Yukari sighed as she stared at the door in front of her; Mitsuru had requested that she wake the Arisato twins up and escort them to the faculty office that morning, stating that she had things related to the Kirijo group to take care of this morning. 'I wonder if it's just payback for me nearly pulling an Evoker on a new kid like that.' Yukari thought to herself as she knocked, trying to see if that would rouse the boy. When no response came, she knocked harder. "H-hey, Arisato-kun? You up?" She called out.
No response.
Letting out an annoyed noise, Yukari dug out the spare key Mitsuru had given her and unlocked the door, shoving it open. "Hey, sleepy but, get uuuUUUUUUUUUAAAAAAAAAAAA!" Turning scarlet when she realized her mistake, Yukari whirled around, face red; Minato was not only still asleep, but was spread eagle over his bedsheets … in nothing but his boxers.
To her great shock when she looked again, the shriek didn't wake Minato up, but there was movement from upstairs. A minute or so later, Hamuko had appeared beside her, auburn hair mussed as she stood there in bunny-covered pjs and a purple dragon plush in one arm. Tired ruby eyes blinked as they looked between the flustered Yukari and the sound asleep Minato. "... I'm sorry." She mumbled with a yawn. "I would've warned you if you'd gotten me up first; he does this a lot." Nodding in understanding, Yukari watched as Hamuko walked into the room, stopping at her brother's bed.
Only to blink in shock as the auburn's method of waking her brother up involved tickling his ribs.
Minato was up with a yelp, face flushed as he glared at his twin. "What?"
"Gotta get to school early; faculty stuff I guess." Hamuko replied, rolling her eyes. "Next time you decide to sleep in just shorts, at least get under the blanket. Goofy exhibitionist." The girl giggled as she dodged the pillow Minato tried to throw at her, shaking her head. "Get dressed, alright? Meet you downstairs." Not giving Minato a chance to respond, Hamuko was out of the room and shutting the door behind her.
Turning to Yukari, the auburn gave her a wry grin. "Sorry about that, he does that a lot." Hamuko admitted, patting Yukari on the shoulder. "I'll go get dressed, then." Still pink in the face, Yukari nodded, going to open her mouth in agreement when something caught her eye.
"... How did you get that scar?"
It was a faint one, a thin line a couple centimeters above Hamuko's left ear where hair refused to grow. It was about as long as Yukari's little finger, but only about as wide as a flat arrowhead. Hamuko flinched briefly, but a smile had crossed her face a second later. "I got it a long time ago; doesn't hurt, but it's easier to cover up than anything else." Giggling, the other girl waved and trotted upstairs, not giving Yukari time to formulate a reply.
Sighing, Yukari headed downstairs to wait, hearing the coffee maker go off. Taking a sip of the drink after adding a bit of creamer, the brunet girl found herself thinking about what all she had read in the twin's files. Mitsuru had handed her a copy, and while there wasn't much detail about what they had done schooling-wise for the past ten years, the files had clearly stated that their parents were deceased. They had been taken in by their maternal grandfather, and had a younger sister who would starting her second year of junior high.
Yukari shook her head, a wry smile on her face. She had been expecting a pair of introverted twins, almost like the creepy identical twins from a certain horror movie that had been on television one night – and a movie that she had quickly changed away from after that scene – and that they would be virtually impossible to talk to. So far, the reality was very different; Hamuko was a friendly, chatty person, and Minato seemed to be at least friendly despite his tired state.
'I … almost wonder if it would be okay to let my guard down …' The brunet thought to herself, surprised at how happy the thought made her. 'Of course … the senpai will probably want to make sure that they're safe... Although if Hamuko-san isn't I'll eat my own quiver of arrows.' Shaking her head as she heard steps coming downstairs, Yukari relaxed to see that it was Hamuko; she felt it would be awkward if Minato had arrived first. "Heh, you get dressed fast."
"Naoto and I had to learn how to dress fast to beat Minato to the breakfast table." Hamuko said with a laugh, walking over as she pulled her wavy auburn hair into a high ponytail. The XXII hairpins from before were now pinning up hair over where Yukari had seen the scar, obscuring it completely from view. "Don't let his skinny looks fool you; that boy eats like a starved wolf."
Yukari let out a laugh, shaking her head. "You two are weird." She said, brushing her hair behind her ear. "But I'm glad you're at least friendly … so far. Haven't spent much time around your twin yet."
"Ah, he's … pretty quiet." Hamuko offered with a shrug of her shoulders. "He's been that way our entire lives; Mom and Dad used to say that I talked too much and he talked too little, and that Naoto was the perfect midpoint." Yukari laughed with Hamuko at that, Minato walking downstairs to the noise as he chewed on a cereal bar.
"So … why exactly did we have to wake up so early?" He asked as he walked over, trying once again in vain to flip his bangs out of his face. The blue locks fell back into place defiantly, making him scowl; he needed to figure out something to get his hair in line …
"You two still need to double-check the paperwork that's in at the faculty office, and find out what room you guys are in." Yukari gave a nod, leading the way out the dorm. "Plus, well, I wanted to show you guys a quicker way to the monorail station than you probably took last night." Hamuko let out a weak laugh, not wanting to admit that they had sprinted all the way there and hadn't been paying much attention to where they were going as it was.
"Well, let's get going then, before we wind up late for 'anime school'." Minato commented with a wry chuckle, heading out the door as he produced another cereal bar from who knows where. Yukari blinked but sped up to walk with him, Hamuko taking up the rear.
The train ride to Port Island proper, along with the Gekkoukan camups – Yukari had explained the school went from grade school through high school – was lively; around them were several other students that made Hamuko look around while Minato and Yukari made idle chat. From her seat, she could see a teal-haired girl sitting by herself as she read a book, a group of four girls standing nearby and chatting loudly– two of which boasted a patch on their school bags shaped like a bow and arrow like Yukari's, while the youngest carried a violin case in her hands – and at the far end of the car, a pair of boys talking quietly amongst themselves. While she couldn't hear them, Hamuko took note of the fact that the one closer to her had silver hair, and tried to lean over to get a better look of his companion when Yukari patted her shoulder, making the auburn look at her.
"We've just hit the best part of the train ride." Yukari said with a smile, nodding to the window behind them. "Go on, look; we're gliding out over the ocean!" Blinking at one another, the twins looked, Minato flinching briefly at the bright flash of light off of the water. The view was, however, stunning; Iwatodai spread out over the coast with a series of bright skyscrapers, boats floating in and out of the harbor, the fuzzy outline of a suspension bridge just barely visible as they continued on to the school.
"I … Wow ..." Minato felt his breath leave him, smiling internally. The countryside around Inaba was nice, yes, but the ocean …
A flash of pain went through him, and for a second, the beautiful view in front of him was gone. In its place was an ocean of scarlet, the sky a sickly color overhead as a large, golden moon hung low over the bridge.
The mental image was gone in the next second, making Minato pause; what the hell was that?
Looking towards Yukari and Hamuko, he couldn't help but smile a fraction. Hamuko was beaming, ruby eyes dancing as the water reflected in her gaze; leave it to her to remain so cheerful and upbeat about everything, even something as tentative as attending a new school for the first time since they were kids.
Yukari, however, seemed far more peaceful than he'd ever seen her before. Granted, he had only known the brunet girl for all of two hours total, but there was something that seemed … well, calm. Like the water held a power over her to calm her nerves. Smiling to himself, Minato continued to stare out at the ocean as Hamuko and Yukari continued to talk with one another for the remainder of the ride.
Upon reaching the campus itself, the twins stared once more; Yukari's description of the place barely did it any justice. The high school building alone was a glorious structure of polished steel and glass, almost glowing in the spring sunlight. Cherry and apple trees in full bloom lined the main walkway up to the building, Small groups of students lined the walkway, talking to one another as they all began to migrate towards the entrance at a snail's pace. Yukari waved to some of her friends, the dark-haired girl Hamuko had spotted on the train slowing to talk with her.
"We have a quick archery meeting before the assembly, kouhai." The girl addressed Yukari, odd violet eyes observant as she looked the twins over. "Oh, are you two new?"
"Yup; I was asked to show them to the faculty room real quick, Akemi-senpai." Yukari nodded, grinning. "I'll be at the archery field when that's taken care of, though." The newly named senior gave a nod as she walked off, waving to Yukari as she sped up to reunite with her group of friends. "That was Akemi-senpai; she's the Captain of the archery club." Yukari explained, voice carrying a small laugh. "Sorry if she freaked you out."
"The school has an archery club?" Hamuko's eyes brightened, a small burst of hope for a naginata club.
"Sure does!" Yukari gave a laugh. "There's a whole bunch of 'phys ed' clubs here, including swim club, kendo, tennis, volleyball, archery, naginata -" The brunet let out a louder series of laughs at the way Hamuko cheered at that. "Well, I guess I'll have to let you know when the clubs are accepting new members then!" She said, patting Hamuko on the back before turning to Minato. "What about you?"
Minato gave a weak laugh. "I've never been one for physical activity like that." He admitted with a weak chuckle. "I'm more of the cultural club type of guy; Hamuko has enough energy for an army."
"Fair enough." Yukari shook her head as she lead the way into the school, stopping at the shoe lockers. "Well, here we are, Gekkoukan High school." She said with a laugh as the three of them swapped out their shoes. "I'll run you to the faculty office so you can talk with Toriumi-sensei, but I'll have to jet after that; the archery club meeting's probably going to be a rundown of our scheduled matches and such."
"Gotcha." Minato nodded as he stood up, biting back a yawn as he hefted his school bag over one shoulder. "Lead the way, Yukari-san." He offered the brunet girl a tired smile, almost wanting to ask what class she was in. he decided against it; the question was creepy even to him. Hamuko gave a contented hum soon after, ruby eyes dancing as Yukari laughed and led them down a hallway to their left. Bypassing a teacher in an elaborate kabuto boisterously discussing the samurai era with a student holding a fan (judging from his hair and accent, he was a transfer student), the group of three stopped in front of a pair of double doors that lead to the Faculty office, Yukari knocking on them.
When a woman in her early thirties poked her head out, Yukari grinned and nodded to the twins. "Hey Toriumi-sensei! You're the one who needs to see these two, right?" She asked, to which the woman smiled and nodded. "Alright, here they are! I'd stay, but archery ..."
"Not a problem Takeba-san, go on and get going." The teacher chuckled with a friendly wave, inviting the twins into the office as Yukari bowed politely and darted off down the hall. Turning her attention to the twins, she smiled and propped one hand on her hip, the other holding a ledger full of paper. "Well, you two got here with plenty of time to spare." She said, voice every bit as friendly as her expression. "I'm Toriumi Isako, the Composition teacher and homeroom teacher for Classroom 2-F." She introduced herself, smiling. "I've got Minato-san for homeroom, so he'll be seeing a lot of me."
"And me, sensei?" Hamuko asked, tilting her head to one side.
"You're in 2-B, and your homeroom teacher is Ono, the history teacher." Toriumi gave a nod. "He's a nice man, just … incredibly eccentric."
Hamuko thought for a moment before replying. "I can deal with eccentric." She uttered, voice a deadpan as her mind thought back to some of the things that had gone on back home in Inaba. Minato, whose thoughts went along the same lines, bit back an amused grin. Grinning herself, the auburn gave a polite bow. "Well, it's still a pleasure to meet you, Toriumi-sensei!"
"Likewise." Minato smiled and gave a polite bow with his sister, earning a laugh from the teacher.
"Well, you two are certainly well-mannered." Toriumi said with a laugh, looking over the ledger in her hands as the kabuto-wearing teacher entered the classroom. "Ah, there you are." She commented, shaking her head at the newcomer.
"Sorry, I was doing the paperwork check with the foreign exchange student in my class." Ono's voice seemed to have a permanent chuckle to it, accenting the broad smile on his face as he took some of the paperwork from Toriumi. Thanking her with a nod, he turned to look at the twins, giving Hamuko a broad smile. "Well, good day to you, young miss! I'm certain Toriumi-kouhai informed you already, but I'll be your homeroom teacher for this upcoming year."
The auburn-haired girl gave a happy giggles as she nodded and bowed. "Here's hoping it's a fun year, sensei!" Hamuko chirruped, earning another happy laugh from the male teacher.
"Haha, there's the spirit! I'm certain other classmates could follow your example." Ono said with a chuckle, reading over the paperwork in his hands. Toriumi was doing the same beside him, Minato's paperwork in hand. "Hmm … ten years of homeschool, a good hand with a naginata? Impressive!" he seemed to want to say more on the topic, but was silenced by Toriumi stepping on his foot.
"Yes, yes, that is impressive. You can lavish her with samurai stories at a later time." She muttered, making Minato snigger. The female teacher didn't seem to hear him as she went back to reading over the files, muttering what she had read aloud to herself. At one point, however, she stopped and let out a wince. Ono seemed to have reached it as well, judging by the look he was giving Hamuko.
Deciding to reassure the teachers, Minato gave them both a sad smile. "It's … alright. We've gotten past that, even though it hurts. Life moved on." Hamuko gave a nod in agreement, ruby eyes softening. "Besides, the dead don't come back no matter how much you mourn them."
"That's mature of you two." Toriumi seemed legitimately impressed, nodding her head as she placed the ledger on her desk. "Now, we should get you two to the classes for introductions before the welcome ceremony starts."
"One quick thing, however." Ono spoke up, still holding the paperwork in his hands. "Young miss, why does the photograph of you from grade school show you with blue eyes?"
"If I knew myself, I would tell you." Hamuko gave the teacher a bitter smile. "The best guess anyone has been able to come up with was a side-effect of the accident that took Mom and Dad; I was protecting my little sister from debris and got hit on the left temple." Tapping her finger to her barrets, the auburn shrugged. "I can still see perfectly fine, so I've just never bothered to correct it."
"Haha, fair enough!" Ono gave a nod, tucking the paper into a briefcase by his feet. "But yes, let us make haste to the classroom. I don't mean to be rude, but the welcome ceremony drags on something fierce." Toriumi groaned in agreement, opening the door out of the faculty room.
The twins gave one another a fearful look.
Lunchtime had finally rolled around, and Minato let out another yawn after he returned from the school store with the largest bento he could purchase. Sliding into his classroom, the blue-haired teen let out a relieved noise as he saw how empty the classroom had become. 'If I eat fast enough, maybe I can take a nap,' he thought to himself with a smile, sitting down at his desk. He had been amused to see Yukari was in his class as well, making the brunet girl laugh.
Breaking his chopsticks, Minato was about to dig into the food when a shadow fell over his desk, making him look up with a piece of soba half-hanging out of his mouth. A new student stood there, grinning at him; it was a boy a handful of inches taller than him, wearing a blue button-down shirt under his blazer instead of the standard one, no neck tie, and a baseball cap on his head. The start of a goatee covered his chin, and his eye color was impossible to tell in the lighting.
"S'up?" The other boy asked, still grinning as he leaned in closer. Minato leaned back in kind, taking his bento with him.
"Personal space, please?" He asked, swallowing the piece of soba that was in his mouth. He didn't think the other boy was there to start a fight, but he had come out of nowhere and caught him off guard. Minato wasn't fond of that sort of thing at all. Fortunately, the other boy seemed to catch it, because he gave a laugh and plopped down in the seat in front of him.
"Haha, sorry 'bout that." The capped teen said with a grin, leaning forward and resting his arms on the back of the chair. "I was tryin to get your attention when you first walked in here, but you were pretty zoned out. I wanted to see how you were handling your first day here as the new kid." The easy grin made Minato relax a bit, making eye contact. "Name's Iori Junpei, by the way. Transferred here in eighth grade."
"Arisato Minato." Minato gave a small smile back, still eating his food. Junpei seemed friendly at the least, even if he had gotten a touch too close at first. 'Then again, I didn't really notice anyone else. If he was trying to get my attention, I must have been really zoned out.' About ready to open his mouth to say something, Minato jumped as the door opened.
"Niichan, did you get food?" Hamuko had appeared in the doorway, grinning around a stick of pocky in her mouth. The auburn nodded at the sight of her brother's bento, and then grinned at the by sitting in front of him. "So! Made a new friend already, Minato?" She teased, skipping over and sitting on the desk besides her brother. Turning to Junpei, she grinned and offered him a hand. "Arisato Hamuko, at your service! I hope my goofy brother isn't too rude."
"No offense, but you two look nothin' like siblings." Junpei said with a laugh as he shook Hamuko's hand.
"Bah, we get that a lot." Hamuko waved it off with a grin. "Got the auburn hair from my grandmama. The blue's from grandpapa's side of the family, and why it's dominant? Nobody knows. It just kinda is."
"If this were a video game, it'd be 'Protagonist Syndrome'." Minato muttered from his seat, done with the boxed lunch. Junpei and Hamuko both burst out laughing, making Minato smile as the talk shifted to discussions on Pocket Monsters. Looking up, he smiled and waved at Yukari when she entered, catching the brunet's attention. "Hey Yukari-san, I was wondering where you vanished to for lunch." The blue-haired teen said with a chuckle, making Hamuko and Junpei stop talki ng long enough to greet the brunet girl.
"Some of my friends wanted to talk with me over lunch." Yukari explained, standing beside Hamuko as she waved to Junpei. "It's kinda weird that most of us are in the same class, though ..." Pausing, she turned to Hamuko. "I'm really surprised you aren't in Toriumi's class. Where did you get stuck, Ekoda-sensei's homeroom?" Minato noted the way Yukari's voice went bitter at the mention of the teacher, making him wonder if there was something odd; from what he recalled of the man's class, he was simply very dull.
Hamuko just took it in stide. "Nope! I have Ono-sensei for my homeroom." She beamed, giggling. "I actually sit next to someone in archery club. Kaname-san, actually."
"I was wondering what class Kana-chan got in." Yukari nodded. "She's a nice girl, easy to make friends with her. Her pet ferret stinks though." Shaking her head, Yukari turned her gaze to Junpei. "So what brought you over to talk with Minato-san? I hope there's no stupid rumors going around …."
"Nah, don't sweat it, Yuka-tan." Junpei chuckled, leaning back in his impromptu seat. "Just came over to say 'hi' and be a nice guy. Can't fault me for that, can ya?" Yukari just shook her head in response, although Minato noted the quick scowl that flashed over the nickname.
"Well, fair enough ..." The brunet girl shook her head with a sigh before turning to Hamuko. "Hey, if you want, Kana-chan and I can show you around Paulownia Mall. As a sort of welcome to the group sort of outing."
"Sure!" Hamuko beamed up at the girl, grinning. "That sounds like fun, and Minato-nii always dreads going shopping with me."
"You go absolutely bananas whenever we pass a store carrying Bishoujo Senshi Sailor Moon." Minato deadpanned. "Can you honestly blame me for not wanting to stand around while you geek?"
"And you do the same thing in a bookstore." Hamuko retorted, sticking her tongue out at her twin. Junpei and Yukari both seemed amused, if the way the cap-wearing teen laughed.
"Well, if the girls are gonna go out, why don't I show you around and treat you to Hagakure?" Turning back to Minato as he spoke, Junpei offered the other boy an easy grin. Glancing at his twin, Minato let out a quiet sigh; adjusting to such a new environment was rough, and he wanted to go back to the dorm and nap, but he supposed it wouldn't be too much of a hassle to take a one-on-one tour of Iwatodai. Learning the layout of the city would be a bonus too.
"Alright, sounds good." Minato said with a chuckle.
Hamuko grinned, hopping off of her seat. "Just stick to one bowl, Minato-nii! Don't wanna give Junpei-kun here a heart attack over how much you can eat!" Minato retorted by sticking his tongue out at his sister as she darted off, the bell signifying the end of the lunch period cutting off any form of conversation.
"... Should I be worried?" Junpei gave Minato a look, arching an eyebrow.
"Maybe; I'm not too hungry today though, so don't feel obligated to treat me." Minato gave a smile. "In fact, I could do the treating instead; think of it as thanks for showing me around the city."
"Well, as tempting as that is, I feel like that'd be kinda unfair." Junpei shook his head. "Why don't we decide to call it even and split the bill? You pay for mine, I pay for yours, that sorta thing." Minato nodded his head in agreement, offering his hand to shake on the matter. Yukari shook her head in what appeared to be amusement as she watched.
"You boys and your food, I swear." She chuckled as the rest of the class filed in. "I guess the saying of 'the way to a man's heart is through his stomach' is more true than I thought."
Minato just offered her a weak chuckle in response, shrugging his shoulders.
Nighttime had fallen, and Mitsuru found herself alone in the dorm lounge as she skimmed through the paper while her thoughts went over what she knew of the two potential 'recruits'.
Minato had returned first out of the underclassmen, looking a touch worn out, but content. When she had asked him why, he had admitted that he was easily drained around large groups of people, but he'd be fine with some time to himself. The redhead senior had nodded, pointing him in the direction of the shower if he wanted one, and watched him head up the stairs. 'A blue-haired introvert?' she thought with a chuckle. 'If I didn't know better, I'd say that was planned by some sort of higher power.'
The thought had only been reenforced when Hamuko and Yukari had arrived together, talking loudly as they bade goodbye to one of Yukari's friend's from archery club. The auburn had waved to Mitsuru upon spotting her, calling out a greeting as she and Yukari had carried several bags up to their rooms; Mitsuru could have sworn she spotted a large plush poking out of one of the bags. To see the girl so happily adjusted to a group not even a full day after relocating spoke volumes of her adaptability, let alone her personable nature.
It wasn't to say Mitsuru thought Minato wasn't personable, it was simply that he didn't fare well in large groups of people. His sister, however, reveled in it.
"And here I thought twins being like night and day was reserved for identical twins." She mused aloud with a chuckle, folding her paper at the sound of footsteps walking down the stairs. Looking up revealed a new student; a tall boy with short cropped silver hair, wearing a red sweater over his uniform shirt and the black slacks. He was busy fiddling with a pair of leather gloves as he reached the first floor, stopping and grinning when he spotted Mitsuru. "Heading out, Akihiko?" She asked as he approached her.
"Yeah, was planning on it." Akihiko nodded, gesturing at her paper. "You probably saw the same article I did; figured it would be a safe bet for me to try and do a run. I'd take Takeba, but you said you wanted to wait until she was comfortable with everything, right?"
Nodding, Mitsuru let out another sigh. "... I'd almost be tempted to say take Hamuko-san." She admitted, making Akihiko look at her sharply.
"Wait, are you saying she's …?" The silver-haired teen tapered off as Mitsuru nodded her head in confirmation. A feral grin threatened to split his face in half at that, and he chuckled. "Wow, impressive. Maybe it's just easier to wake up the Potential in women? Not that it's a bad thing, really," He held up his hands to placate the now glaring Mitsuru, "It's just that it makes some amount of sense. You tend to think and plan more often than us guys; we just prefer running up and punching things in the stomach."
Placated, the redhead gave a nod. "That might be the case; however … I haven't talked to her about joining yet. But she did confirm one thing." Putting her paper to the side, Mitsuru's scarlet eyes sharpened in thought. "Her Potential has been active for the past decade, Akihiko. I think she's been summoning even longer than I have."
Akihiko let out a low whistle at that. "Damn … that's saying a lot, really. Didn't her file say she was related to the current Raidou?"
"His eldest granddaughter, yes."
"That might be part of it; summoning supernatural creatures is just in her blood." Standing up and stretching, the silver-haired senior gave Mitsuru another grin. "But yes, I'll go ahead and go on patrol then; anything about the Lost I should look out for?"
Mitsuru shook her head. "No, nothing about the Lost." A wry smile graced her lips. "However, Hamuko-san did bring up something she noticed last night. Apparently a certain horse was up and about, making sure she and her brother made it to the dorm safe and sound. She described it as 'black with a fiery mane'."
Akihiko froze where he stood, staring, before a loud laugh left him. "Haha, I should have expected him to do something like that!" He shook his head as he spoke, heading to the door. "Want me to try and track him down to talk with? I think the newcomers might help with his issues."
"Only if you run into him while walking." Mitsuru nodded. "I'd rather not have you two causing a ruckus if I can avoid it." Waiting until Akihiko nodded in understanding, Mitsuru offered him a smile. "I'm worried about him too, Akihiko, but the three of us are so stubborn, it might take a bit more push than the two of us can manage right now."
"Fair enough." Sighing, the silver-haired male shook his head. "I'll head out then; gotta make sure they know who's in charge around here, after all." Waving at Mitsuru again, Akihiko left, prompting a heavy sigh from the redhead.
"Back on your one-track mind, Akihiko?" She chuckled, shaking her head. "... But hopefully you're right; maybe they can help him out ..." Picking up her newspaper again, Mitsuru frowned a bit as she looked towards a small picture that rested in a bookshelf. It showed her and Akihiko, along with a second boy, back in their first year of high school. "It's not really the same without both of you knuckleheads, after all."
Unbeknownst to Mitsuru, Hamuko shifted from her spot on the stairs, an empty glass in her hands. She had meant to come downstairs and get a drink of water, following the strange boy – she had wanted to introduce herself, but had quieted herself when he had started taking to Mitsuru – but had instead sat there on the steps and eavesdropped.
Now her curiosity was piqued; who were they talking about? They seemed to know where the horse from the night before had come from, but what did they mean by 'issues'? Had something happened to the summoner that made it hard for him – they referred to the missing summoner as a 'he', after all – to aid them? The auburn frowned, biting her lower lip at the mystery in front of her. If there was one thing she had in common with her siblings, it was the need to solve mysteries.
This mysterious male summoner was one, even if he was tied up in the time paradox as well.
Feeling a force stir at the back of her brain, Hamuko tilted her head to one side as she began to creep back up the stairs. 'What now, Eurydice?' She asked, knowing the presence wouldn't respond vocally. Instead, a feeling of unease filled her from where the summon rested, making Hamuko look out a window at the nearly full moon. She frowned at it, ruby eyes narrowing.
Something big was coming, but what?
Tori's Notes: Here's the second chapter. Again, not too much to comment on, barring a quick reasoning why Hamuko isn't in Ekoda's class.
Simply put, she'd derail things a bit too much if she was in there, and as annoyed as I am with the Fuuka subplot, it's tied into the story proper. I'll be working with it for things to flow better.
Plus Ono-sensei needs some love.