Between the lines: A Flashback

Kamijou Touma wasn't in his dorm when I rang the bell. I rang it once more before giving up. I was turning to leave when I saw Tsuchimikado-san's sister coming up the stairs.

"Ah! It's you again!" she said as soon as she saw me, "Forgive me, but I don't think I've introduced myself properly. My name is Tsuchimikado Maika, it's nice to meet you."

"Likewise," I said, bowing, "Pleased to meet you. I am Takitsubo Rikou."

She beamed. "Are you here to see Kamijou-chan?"

"Hai," I said.

"I knew it!" Maika-san cheered, "Unfortunately, he isn't here. He got hurt last night and had to go to the hospital."

"Oh?" I said, "Which hospital is he at?"

"The one here in District 7," Maika-san said, "It isn't too far from here."

"Sou-desu ka?" I said. That would make sense, after what happened in that video uploaded last night. "Thanks for the information."

"No problem! Have a great day!"

I studied the girl as she went to unlock her own dorm room. Seeing that maid uniform under her overcoat, I couldn't help but think of one of the staff members in Fremea's boarding school.

"Anou…Just a minute," I said.

Maika-san paused and looked at me. "Hai?"

I cleared my throat and asked, "I have a friend who goes to a certain boarding school, and one of its staff members also has the name Maika. All of the staff were hired from Ryouran Maid School, so I was wondering if you worked there."

"Oho?" Maika-san said, "What is the name of that school?"

"Et-to, I think it was Abbey Grange Park Academy," I said.

"Ah!" Maika-san shook her head. "Sorry, but I'm training in Tokiwadai's dormitory," she said, "But I think I know who you're talking about."

"You do?"

"Does she have black hair and squinty eyes and look like some sadist?"

"Hai."

"I thought so!" Maika-san cried, "She's a really nice girl, once you get to know her. She's a year ahead of me, even though she has only been at my school for a month. The instructors say that she had prior working experience in a certain role-playing maid café."

"Role-playing maid café?"

"Hai!" Maika-san said, "Apparently, there was a scandal involving some food inspectors and the owner, and the place closed down as a result."

"Hmm…" I said, "I will have to look in to this incident."

As I was musing, there was a commotion on the third-floor landing. A whole group of people came boiling up the stairs and was making a beeline for us. At the head of the pack was a short pink haired girl. Behind her were two high school students: a blue-haired lanky boy, known to be an associate of Tsuchimikado-san, as well as a tall girl with a well-endowed bust.

Looking down at myself, I resolved to never let Hamazura-kun meet this girl! Ever!

"It just wouldn't do," the pink-haired girl was saying, "I can't just have my ka-waii students disappearing all the time! We've already lost Kamijou-chan, and now Tsuchimikado-chan is gone as well? I can't accept this!"

"Oh, come on, Komoe-sensei!" The tall girl cried, "As shameful as it is for me to say, this is Motoharu we're talking about! He's been in out of school plenty of times! In fact, his delinquency makes Kamijou-kun look like a saint!"

"That may be true," the shorter girl said, "But Tsuchimikado-chan has always provided excuse letters, however flimsy or contrived. Having no communication at all is so unlike him!"

"But why are you going to this idiot for help!" The taller girl snapped, "He makes some elaborate excuse, drops out of high school and goes to hang out with Skill-out members and goes fighting in some gladiatorial event! How can you come here and not find more sensible help like Anti-skill or Judgement?"

"Because Yomikawa-sensei trusts him. It's not like I'm trying to rely on a delinquent high school boy, but he knows things even Anti-skill officers like Yomikawa-sensei do not." The pink-haired girl sighed.

"Speaking of which," she went on, "Fukiyose-chan, I heard that you came here and bothered him while he was working. I hope you didn't cause him too much trouble."

"How could you!" The taller girl gasped, "I was only trying to bring him back to class! I can't bear the thought of leaving him behind!"

"I understand your feelings," the shorter girl said, "Honestly, I was worried myself when he first told me what he was up to. However, he promised that this was a temporary measure, and he would be coming back in the spring. Kamijou-chan isn't someone who goes back on his words."

The pink-haired girl smiled. "Besides, if the worst-case scenario happens and he doesn't come back, then I can come here and tutor him myself."

The taller, more athletic girl was going to say something else, but then the blue-haired boy waved his hands and called out, "Ooii! Maika-san! Ohayo!"

Maika-san giggled lightheartedly and waved back, "Ohayo! Baka-onichan!"

"Hi-doi!" The boy cried, reeling back as if he had been slapped, "What did I ever do to you!"

"Hmmm, let's see," Maika-san pretended to think, "First, you broke into my bedroom to steal my panties, then you tried to cop a feel while I came to your school to deliver Aniki's lunch bento. Then you propositioned me in front of Aniki. You're fortunate that I stopped Aniki from beating you to death."

"Ya ha ha ha ha!" the boy laughed, rubbing the back of his head, "Funnily enough, I don't even remember that episode! Anyway, we came to see Kami-yan. Can you be a dear and wake him up for us?"

Maika-san shook her head, "Unfortunately, he isn't here right now. If you hurry, you can find him at the District 7 Hospital before he gets discharged. Better run!"

Chapter 17: The Council of Touma

"I guess this is karma for all the times I've walked in on you changing, but did you have to hit me so hard?"

"Uru-sai! It's your fault for appearing naked in front of me!"

"Eh? How is that fair?"

"Just die already!"

"Fukouda!"

Oni-chan was sitting on a bench in the hospital hallway. His face was covered in white bandages after Fukiyose-san had beat him to a bloody pulp.

She had gone berserk upon seeing him naked getting dressed, and decided to vent her embarrassment by smashing his face in. It took Me, Saten-san, and Itsuwa-san considerable effort to pull them apart, and we had to physically restrain the girl so Misaka-san could drag Oni-chan back into his room. By the time he reemerged dressed, his face had swelled into a red and tender mess.

A nurse had to be called in to attend to his injuries. She suggested that he stay another night, but Oni-chan wouldn't even consider it. "It's already a strain on my wallet," He said, "I'll go broke if I have to stay here. Besides, I've gone through far worse than this."

Instead, he asked if there was a place that was private so he could talk to so many people. Reluctantly, the nurse acquiesced, "There's a conference room in the second floor. It's available until noon, so you have plenty of time."

"Thank you as always," Oni-chan said. Smiling, he turned around and waved at the group. "Alright everyone, follow me!"

Dutifully, we all fell into this strange procession. All the other patients had come out to gawk, and I couldn't help but blush at my situation.

I was walking next to Index and Misaka-san, right behind Oni-chan. He was conversing with Aogami-san and the pink haired girl. Behind me, Yomikawa-sensei was walking with Shirai-san and Uiharu-san. It was strange to see her without her Anti-skill uniform. Instead, she wore a green tracksuit and an ordinary T-shirt. Lastly came Saten-san and Fukiyose-san, not really speaking to each other.

Oni-chan ushered us all into the elevator and then got in himself. I found myself standing next to the pink short-haired girl who was busy conversing with Aogami-san. She caught me staring and bowed. "Hello! You must be Kamijou-chan's ka-waii cousin. Yomikawa-sensei has been talking all about you."

"Hai!" I said, bowing back, "My name is Otohime. It's nice to me you."

"Nice to meet you too, Otohime-chan," she said, "I am Komoe Tsukuyomi. I'm actually your Oni-chan's former teacher!"

"Eh? Kamoe-sensei?" I said, "But your no bigger than I am!"

"Ha! I get that a lot," She giggled, "Despite my looks, I'm much older than you and a proper high school teacher!"

Before I could say any more, the elevator chimed, and the doors opened. Oni-chan led the way and ducked into a conference room.

Like any other conference room, it was long and fairly spacious. Frosted windows made up the far wall and florescent lights were recessed in the ceiling, lighting up the room. The central table could comfortably seat up to twenty people and was narrow enough to allow people across from each other to shake hands comfortably.

Stiyl Magnus was already sitting at the head of the table, smoking. He watched as we filed in one-by-one. Oni-chan went around the table to sit in front of the windows. I sat down on his left-hand side, along with Index-san and Itsuwa-san. Meanwhile, Misaka-san, Shirai-san, Uiharu-san, and Saten-san all sat down to his right. Fukiyose-san, Aogami-san, Komoe-sensei, Yomikawa-sensei, and Takitsubo-san all took seats across from us.

Finally, Kanzaki-san closed the door and sat at the foot of the table. Once everyone was seated, Oni-chan grunted and rose from his chair.

"You have all come to seek answers for a problem you're having. If I have to guess, there are people you care about who have gone missing and you have no way of contacting them."

To my surprise, everyone sitting across from me was nodding.

Oni-chan sighed. "Tsuchimikado Maika, who was here beforehand, has told me a similar story. However, I would like to hear more details from all of you," He said, "Come on then. Let us have the facts."

Before anyone else could say anything, however, Fukiyose-san stood up to speak. "First, let me apologize to you for making baseless assumptions about you. It seems that you move in circles above what the normal population experience, and you in fact fight monsters that normal people wouldn't dare approach."

"Thank you," Oni-chan said, "That was very nice for you to say, but what made you change your mind so drastically?"

"I think this is what she saw," Shirai-san said. Leaning in, she pulled out her little white phone. A little screen popped out from the main body and a certain video from a certain urban legends' website started playing. Oni-chan's eyes grew wide as he saw it.

"Who leaked this?" He asked. "Who was filming us?"

"I don't know," Shirai-san said, "But this video was uploaded last night. It's safe to say that your secrets are out in the open. Anyone who knows you will see it."

"Fukouda!" He cursed silently.

Fukiyose-san went on. "Anyway, I want to understand more about what you do. Why were you fending off some giant monster? Why are you consulting with Skill-out members?" She glanced around and scowled, "Why are you surrounded by so many girls?"

Oni-chan sweat-dropped. "Well, I can't say much about that last question…" He laughed nervously. Index-san, Misaka-san, me, and the other girls were all exchanging uncomfortable glances.

He cleared his throat loudly. "I am a consulting detective. I make it my business to know what other people don't know, like all the things happening in this city." He gestured towards me and the other people sitting next to him, and said, "These are the people I work with: my friends, my family, my compatriots. They help me keep tabs on things like the criminal underbelly, corruption in the highest echelons of power, and threats from outside forces."

" Admirable," Fukiyose-san said, "You did a great job of sounding like a certain mei-tantei from a certain never-ending anime." She spat out the phrase "mei-tantei" like some piece of gum that had lost all its flavor. "All of this just sound like lofty nonsense to me. After all, you're just a high school boy who meddles in affairs beyond his normal life."

Oni-chan sighed. "I haven't been a normal high school boy since summer. There's no way I can prove what I can do."

"On the contrary, of course there is!"

"How?"

"Let me come with you. Bring me along to see whatever you're up to."

"Ehh?"

Fukiyose-san crossed her arms. "Nothing you say will change my opinion about you. I have to see what you do with my own eyes."

"Impossible!" Oni-chan cried, "The places I go aren't some fun adventure spot or some amusement park. You don't know the power of the dark side!"

"I can take care of myself just fine," Fukiyose-san said haughtily, "There's nothing I can't handle!"

Oni-chan bit his lips. He gripped the table so hard that his knuckles went white. "What if I say no?"

Her eyes narrowed. "Then I will drag you back to school, and we will have no more of this consulting detective nonsense."

Oni-chan groaned. "Is there no way I can dissuade you on this path?"

She shook her head.

"Fukouda!" Oni-chan grumbled, "Fine, have it your way."

Satisfied, Fukiyose-san sat down.

Oni-chan, too, collapsed into his chair. He looked towards the others and groaned. "Okay, who wants to speak next?"

Yomikawa Aiho stood up. She surveyed the room before speaking. "As many of you know, I have taken Accelerator in as my ward."

Misaka-san flinched at those words. Her eyes became unfocused, and she was shaking as if her life had been sucked out. Oni-Chan noticed and placed a hand on hers. She jerked violently at the sudden contact but relaxed when she saw who it was. Their fingers intertwined, and she leaned in to him.

Yomikawa-sensei gave Misaka-san a concerned look but continued on regardless. "During the Battle Royale days, he was always able to call me every day. Even during World War III, he had somehow remained in contact despite being deep in enemy territory. He has only been out of touch once before, when he decided to break into the windowless building. As you can imagine, it's deeply concerning when his communications get cut off so completely."

Kamoe-sensei stood up next to Yomikawa-sensei. She took a deep breath and spoke. "My home has always been a sanctuary for wayward students who are in desperate need of assistance. Like Yomikawa-sensei, I have been harboring a student, Musujime Awaki, in my house since September."

This time, it was Shirai-san who flinched at the name and Misaka-san who comforted her, embracing her with one arm.

Kamoe-sensei didn't notice. "Even when she was knee-deep in Academy city's darkness, Awaki-kun has always answered my phone calls. This time, however, she hasn't call me or even text me if she was alright. The last time I saw her was yesterday afternoon, when she got a text saying that somebody needed her help."

"That's what happened to Accelerator," Yomikawa-sensei said, "He said that he got some text message and left without saying anything else. I suspect it was Tsuchimikado who contacted them."

Kamoe-sensei nodded. "And he is missing too. It's not like him to skip class without even providing the flimsiest excuse, I'm worried about him."

At this, Fukiyose-san stood up again. She glared at Oni-Chan as if deeply despising the fact that she needed his help at all. "Like you, Tsuchimikado has decided that going to school is something he can do on his own schedule. He has failed to show up to class and is doing god-knows-what in god-knows-where. He never even bothered to provide any excuse for his shameful behavior."

"Me too," Takitsubo-san said, standing as well, "Hamazura-kun always contacts me whenever he goes out on dangerous missions. After leaving your dorm yesterday, he called Kinuhata-san for help. Since then, I haven't heard from either of them. Kinuhata-san has always been diligent in maintaining communications with the rest of ITEM. In fact, she was the one who set up this system of calling in."

Oni-chan sighed. "Tsuchimikado told me that infiltrating GROUP headquarters was dangerous, but I didn't appreciate exactly how dangerous it would be. To think he would call upon Accelerator and Awaki for help," He leaned back, deep in thought, "I wonder if Etzali was also roped into this affair. I don't know what effect this will have on the magic side."

"Practically nil," Stiyl Magnus said, puffing out more smoke, "The Aztecs are in total disarray, and even then, Etzali has forsworn any allegiance to the cabal. It's not a problem."

"That's great! We can dispense with that complication," Oni-chan said, "Thank you everyone, please return to your seats."

Standing up, he addressed the group again. "All of you have heard what the others have said. All of you have undoubtedly noticed what unites these stories. Now, it is my duty to provide the last piece of information. I know where your loved ones are."

This caused a stir among the table. Oni-chan went on, "I sent Tsuchimikado and Hamazura to retrieve some intelligence from a dark side organization called GROUP. In fact, Tsuchimikado, Accelerator, Awaki-san, and Etzali were all members of this organization. I'm guessing Tsuchimikado sent word to his old comrades for help. Yesterday, sometime in the evening, I received a voicemail from Tsuchimikado. It was the last piece of communication I received before his disappearance. I will play it for you here."

He set his own phone on the table and activated the voicemail. He put the speaker on, and Tsuchimikado's voice emerged from the static.

"Kami-yan, I think I'm in deeper shit than I thought. What is that phrase you always say? 'Fukouda!' right? More like 'Fuck my life!' right?"

He laughed. "Luckily, I have great sense of self preservation, and I've kept myself out of harm's way. Hamazura's with me too. If his girlfriend's hearing this, let her know that he lives to fight another day!"

The rhythmic pattering of feet could be heard, as he was running down some hallway. "Anyway, I'm going to need some back-up. When you do decide to intervene, bring Stiyl or Kanzaki with you. Who would have thought that our old liaison would hire a magician to do the dirty work? Somehow, he's turned us all against each other."

"I fear the you have met this bastard before. I remember reading something similar from the reports about the Misawa cram school incident. He must have escaped during the chaos that the chairman brought when he invaded Britain."

He stopped when suddenly, there was a loud crash coming nearby. More pattering of feet could be heard as he escaped into a stairwell. "I'll try to stay alive as long as possible. Surely, my healing abilities will help in this situation. Take care of yourself, Kami-yan, and I'll see you soon! Motoharu out!"

The call ended.

At first, no one else was brave enough to break the silence. Everyone was processing what was heard.

Then, Kamoe-sensei whispered, "Oh my god!"

"A-men." Stiyl Magnus angrily stabbed his cigarette into the ashtray. "Aureolus Izzard!" He spat, "To think he would be involved!"

"Hold on!" I said, "Is this also why you tried to sneak out of the hospital? Were you seriously going to help Fremea's case and then go help Tsuchimikado? In the same night?"

"Eh-heh, it's not like I haven't done things like that before." Oni-chan said sheepishly. Shirai-san and Index sighed heavily. Misaka-san just growled "Baka!" under her breath.

"Anyway," Oni-chan said, "I promised Tsuchimikado that if he found any trouble with the mission, I would go and assist him. However…"

Here, he stopped, grinding his teeth as if regretting what he was going to say next. "However, I can't do this alone. If even Accelerator can't handle the situation, what are the chances that I will survive alone?"

He grimaced as he struggled to say his next words. Planting his hands on the table, he bowed so low that his head touched the surface. "Make no mistake. I am going in to extract Tsuchimikado's team from GROUP headquarters, but I just don't have the strength or the firepower necessary to go alone. It's hard for me to say this, but I need help. I can only ask the people here to help me, and I'm only asking for volunteers. Will you go with me into the depth of hell?"

At first, there was silence. Then, Misaka-san, Shirai-san, Index-san, and Itsuwa-san all stood up at the same time. "It's about time!" Misaka-san said, grinning, "I've been waiting for this call forever!"

"All of this talk of Academy City's darkness worries me deeply," Shirai-san said, "To think such lawlessness could happen under our very noses, I can't even fathom how deep it all goes."

"Me too!" Index said, "I want to meet this Aureolus Izzard. Stiyl Magnus said he took me in when I was still a child. I want to save him from his own demons!"

"Normally, Amakusa wouldn't be involved with problems involving the science side," Itsuwa said, "But since you asked me so directly, how could I possibly refuse? Plus, Tsuchimikado-kun is a friend and I don't want him to get hurt."

Kanzaki-san, and Stiyl Magnus rose up as well. Kanzaki spoke. "Like Itsuwa, I have a debt to pay. Compared to all the things you helped me with in the past, this is a trifle. Of course, Tsuchimikado is in trouble and there's no way I can refuse to help him."

Stiyl sighed. "As loathed as I am to say, I'm in the same boat as Kanzaki. Aureolus Izzard, boy do I have a score to settle with that son of a bitch!"

I stood up too, "I may be small and inexperienced in these sorts of things," I said, "But I want to help."

"It's going to be dangerous," Oni-chan said, "I can't guarantee your safety."

"I know, but I too have a good sense of self preservation. If any trouble comes my way, I'll just hide somewhere safe, so they won't find me."

Fukiyose-san stood up next. "I've said this already! I'm coming with you, whether you like it or not!"

Finally, Takitsubo-san, Uiharu-san and Saten-san all stood up.

Takitsubo-san sighed. "Since half of ITEM are there anyway, I might as well join in on the fun. Plus, I want to see Hamazura-kun!"

Saten grinned. "I've always looked up to you, Kamijou-senpai! You're a level 0 like me, yet you get roped into all of these crazy adventures! How can I not come and help out!"

Uiharu also grinned, nervously, "Clearly, communication is going to be difficult once we get into the building. You need someone who is experienced in these sorts of things. I happily offer my services!"

Oni-chan looked around and grinned. "Thank you, everyone." He bowed again.