Part 5: Show's Over
"A splendid job, Amamiya-san. It couldn't have gone better if we tried any other way."
"You're over-exaggerating."
"Even with the way they tried to knock you down, you've gone and exceeded my expectations." Kawakami stormed in to the room, having forgotten where they were.
"Amamiya-kun, you can forget about that club of yours - what possessed you to think brandishing swords and pistols on live air, might I add, was a fathomable idea? Of all things…to let you parade MORE in school, not to mention walking around with the items from wherever you bought them! Have you even CONSIDERED what happens if you end up pulled over by rank and file officers who don't understand what's what? No, of course the hell not! You must think your contact can get you out of any and every time it happens? And how in the hell did you not think it was a wise idea to give ANY semblance of-" The knock interrupted the teacher's tirade for which Ren couldn't be more grateful of the recipient.
"It's just me, Ren. Ann's here too." Hearing the voice of Ren's girlfriend on the other side door, Kobayakawa knew he probably wanted some time alone with her.
"Sadayo. I'm sympathetic to your worries - we will need to take the time to properly discuss this with all involved but, surely for tonight, we can let young Amamiya-san have some time to himself before we need to leave." Kobayakawa then opened up the door to find the two girls slightly startled at his presence.
"*sigh* My apologies, sir. We'll have serious words another day…but well done, Amamiya-kun. Take the back exit - we'll weather the press who approach us from the front." Kawakami commented as calmly as she could before the two teachers left. The two girls then came in and closed the door behind them. Ann briskly walked over to Ren and threw a fast slap his way. Of course, her reaction was to be expected. He'd requested her to gauge the reaction that brandishing replicas in the real world in unfamiliar locations might have. Turning her into a pawn piece again.
"I had so many checks just now - I'm probably on the wall of suspicious people they have in their security office!" Before she could implode, Ren went over to hug his vice leader, stroking her hair so gently, as he gave her tender words of relief.
"I really am sorry that I burdened you with that task. Kobayakawa will have that sorted out on Kawakami's insistence. If not, I'll sort it personally." He'd let go of her shortly afterwards.
"Well…it hopefully did the job for our club." She couldn't help but sigh, aiming to reassure herself. His attention then focused on the girl dearest to him.
"...Honestly, how do you do it? That interview was sublime, Ren." Shiho replied, embracing Ren with everything she had, slightly annoyed at how he held her bestie.
"You said it before, right? Don't fuck up."
".….." Ann was tired of wasting her breath on the two lovers so she'd just let them be for a while. Eventually, the Shujin community was required to leave so the three students proceeded to leave through the back way as suggested.
"Shiho?" Ren asked.
"...You and Ann should go on ahead. I'll go the other way." she requested.
"I want you with me, Shiho." he requested.
"If there is a load of press waiting to corner you both, my presence won't exactly do much to dissuade them. If anything, they'll ponder who I am to you, Ren, and throw some uncomfortable questions your way." she rationed.
"Don't be silly. You're coming with us." Ann denied.
"It's going to defeat the purpose of today's interview if your love life ended up plastered all over social media. You outed your status which is distracting enough as is.I'll see you later at Leblanc with the others anyway." she urged. She kissed him flashed him a smile reassuring him that it was fine and then left the area.
"Wait-"
"Let's just go, Ren." Ann grunted, also upset at the situation but choosing to respect her bestie's wishes.
"...Okay." Normally, having lots of cameras flashing in your eyes along with bloodthirsty reporters breaking all bounds of personal space, desperately hoping to gain something to bring back to their agencies would decimate a person. In the case of these two individuals, however, there were three facts that allowed them to ferry the attention. The first was that Ann's modelling experience allowed her to put whatever face she needed to put on for any camera. The second was that Ren Amamiya had no care for the people in front of him and having been entrusted by his girlfriend to look after her best friend, failure was not an option. The third, which should've been the first, was that their time in the Metaverse forced them to learn how to divorce themselves from their acts and deeds against Shadows as well as suppressing any feelings they may have had. In this case, it was a simple matter to not give the press a field day.
"Are you two dating?" "How long have you known each other?"
"What's next for you both?" "What plans does your principal have?"
"Is that a real sword?" "Where do you get your weapons from?"
"Whose idea was it to do the interview?" "Are you going to do more interviews?"
""No comment!"" The two answered. Fate had it in store to relieve the two students from their misery. An all black Mercedes pulled up to their location and the tinted windows of the five seater vehicle disguised the passenger inside. Rolling down the windows, an ascertained voice gave an order.
"Get in, you two." Funnily enough, the relief came in the form of…
"Haru?" "Okumura-senpai?!" her two juniors answered. A rookie mistake was made by Ann Takamaki in that moment.
"Okumura!?" "How are you related to Amamiya and Takamaki?" "What's the deal with drugs potentially being funnelled out of your restaurants?" "Are the latest failings in hygiene checks at your Gunma location of any concern to you?" "What is your father's stance on politics?" "Whose lives are your products and stores going to continue to wreck?" "Can you comment on the mass eviction of several tenants in order for construction of your latest superstore in Sendai?" Practically ushering the two juniors into her vehicle and shifting over to the left side of the car, she wound down her window and gave a statement worthy of a conglomerate's successor.
"Continue with this intrusive, harassing treatment and expect a lawsuit to be filed on the grounds of defamation and insulting the honour of our company. Our security team has the names and numbers of your agencies so if you value your jobs, I expect you to delete the footage you have and to leave at once." Of course, they wouldn't just listen to the ramblings of a 17 or 18 year old girl but the smarter ones thought twice about their actions. Notwithstanding, this provided a window of time for the driver to leave. Sure that enough distance was put between the reporters and closing all windows, Haru began a conversation.
"I never thought our odd little trio to be reunited once more." she quipped.
"I don't know how to thank you, Haru. You seriously saved our skin back there."
"You already have."
"Um…thank you." Ann meekly spoke.
"Given your little flub just now, you've thrown the two of yourselves onto the chopping board for the press and will now need to weather the attention it brings. The least you can do is keep some distance from the first step you take out of the vehicle." What a contrasted reaction Ren thought before his next worry came.
"Where are you taking us?"
"We're circling the block a few times and then I'll drop you both off at Leblanc."
"Leblanc? How did you know-"
"Your younger sister requested that I help you. I took her up on it. Simple what asking provides you with, right?" The closet sis-con he was, a fuzzy feeling of happiness touched Ren's heart knowing his closet bro-con Futaba still wanted to look out for him.
"The others have let me know they're all there."
"How come I never see you in Leblanc?" Ren spat.
"How come you're never there when I do go?" Haru shot right back. Ann sat silently, uncomfortable at being ignored and left out of the conversation.
"And when do you go?"
"Whenever I can go. Why? As far as I see it, the times where entry is barred is when Sojiro has the store closed."
"Well, that's just vague."
"You have my phone number."
"I don't know when you're free!"
"Contact me then! We are friends, right?"
"Butch and Sundance, can you quit it?" Ann barked at the two bickering with one another. The conversation restarted with Ren.
"Well, it would be nice to have a call or text from you, Haru, when you are. It's not like I would ignore it."
"You have no right to ignore me." She asserted.
"We could just catch up or chill out or even do something around the neighbourhood."
"I'm informed you have a tendency to fill your evenings."
"I guess I don't really have much of a defence to that."
"Excuse me, Okumura-senpai…"
"What, Takamaki?"
"...I was going to ask if you wanted to join us at Leblanc."
"I appreciate the offer." Could have just said no is what Ann thought to herself, though she would never be so rude as to utter that.
"It's to do with…that matter, right?" Ren guessed.
"*sigh* How you know me well, troublesome kouhai." Haru all but confirmed his line of thinking and then changed the subject to a different matter.
"You handled yourself with such grace and dignity on that set. Was this your first time taking such an interview on?"
"Broadcast to the nation? Absolutely right, Haru."
"...You're lying, right? Our spokesperson of years could never keep such a collective calm. To think that was what the top brass envisioned…I'm highly intrigued to see what you do going forwards." With the way that Haru said this, Ann once again hated the fact she wasn't in on things and didn't have the time of day given to her.
"It'll be your turn soon. Both of you."
"Hmm?" Haru pondered what Ren was referring to whilst Ann simply scowled.
"Anyway, I'd like to thank you, Ren, for sticking to your word. I never got the chance to say it to you before and I didn't want to forget."
"Hm?" he wondered, clearly not remembering such a task.
"I suppose one would forget such a trivial thing…you didn't lose to that man. Oh, and thanks for continuing to stand by his side, Takamaki. I've got to at least provide you with that much."
"Okay…" she grumbled.
"Oh. You're welcome." Ren answered. The three eventually arrived in Yongen-Jaya and for Haru's sake, she would bid her goodbyes at the car park near the alleyways.
"Obviously, do your best not to let the media come for you and watch your backs. It was splendid seeing the two of you tonight." As the two stepped out, Futaba happened to be waiting close by and waved to the older girl with her left hand.
"Hey, Haru!"
"Hello there, Futaba. Your older brother's eternally grateful for helping him and his girlfriend out tonight."
"We're not dating…" Ann corrected no louder than a whisper, too afraid to ruin the moment. In her other hand was a disposable cup with Leblanc branding containing the signature coffee with milk just as Okumura-san likes it. As she took a sip of the coffee, Ann seethed with jealousy over the preferential treatment Haru was receiving.
"Tastes just as wonderful as in store." Haru praised the attempt and as Futaba jotted the feedback down, her confidence towards her next venture to propose to the older Sakura soared. Ren saw this and had an approving grin on his face.
"Hehe…"
"Sorry that I'm not heading inside. Shall I stop by another day?"
"Any time!"
"See you later, Haru."
"...Bye, Okumura-senpai."
"Alright alright, off with you three now." As the window began to roll up, the younger and older girl shared a slight grin before the driver took off from the car park. The more familiar trio began to make their way over to Leblanc for the remainder of the night to discuss their mutual business. Futaba instantly interlocked her arm with Ren no longer feeling she had to restrain herself.
"Hey there." he said.
"Hehe…hey, big bro. Tell me…what am I to you?" She excitedly asked. Oh jeez…she's gonna be clingy all night he lamented.
"Ahaha…I can't remember."
"Oh, but you do."
"Do I though? I mean, I said a lot on that interview…" he joked.
"A family member, I recall?" Ann added belatedly, choosing to keep to herself some distance from the other two.
"Besides, you can't be so sure I was being sincere. I could've been coached to say that, you know."
"…You're irreplaceable to me too." she teased back. He couldn't come back with a counter to something so sweet and ended up the subject of sis-con jokes despite the serious concerns up ahead.