Despite the veil being pulled back and the horrible truth being revealed, Haruhi managed to survive her half day of school rather uneventfully. While there was still a horrible alien monster in her class, as well as various and sundry disasters waiting to happen around every corner, school proceeded as normal.
Save for the fact that Haruhi hadn't done her homework, and for the first time in her life, was actually looking at getting poor grades, much to the ire of her teachers.
"I'm disappointed in you, Suzumiya. You've always done excellent work before," her math teacher told her sternly. "Don't let it happen again."
"Sorry, sir. Um, personal crisis. I'll have Monday's work done," she promised.
"See that you do."
"This is totally unfair," Haruhi complained to Kyon. "Why should I have to do my homework when I find out aliens, time travelers, and espers are all real, and I traveled to an alternate reality and made, like, a whole new world!"
"Gee, how could I possibly understand?" Kyon said in a deadpan tone.
"There are parallels to the events on December 16th to the 24th of last year," Yuki stated. "Or during the Time Loop last summer. We still needed to complete our homework on both occasions."
"Well, it seems super lame. If I'm actually a reality warper or goddess or something, I should be able to make it so we don't have homework," Haruhi muttered darkly.
"Please don't, I've experienced enough alternate realities for at least a few weeks," Kyon told her.
Haruhi very nearly stuck her tongue out at him, but decided she was more mature than that.
"Yo."
Both Kyon and Haruhi started when Kazuma poked his head into the group, though Yuki continued to walk along.
"Don't scare me like that!" Haruhi snapped. "What are you even doing?"
"Something's up. You serious about that training, Kyon?" Kazuma demanded.
"Yes, but what-"
"Then come on, I need a distraction," Kazuma ordered.
"What about Aqua?" Kyon asked, sounding suddenly uncertain.
"She's busy with Darkness, all according to plan. Come on. We've got stuff to do," Kazuma ordered.
Kyon turned to Haruhi, but she shrugged. "Go ahead. I'm meeting up with Mikuru. Have you seen Koizumi at all?"
"He was absent again," Yuki supplied.
"Well good. Until he apologizes, I don't want to see him," Haruhi declared.
"Come on, this could solve a lot of our problems if it works," Kazuma said, grabbing Kyon and hauling him away.
That left Haruhi and Yuki to head to the club room, where they found MIkuru already waiting for them.
"Did you bring it?" Haruhi asked.
"Um, yes, but...but I don't know if we should use it," Mikuru said nervously. "I don't know if this is such a good plan…"
"It's a great plan. And a simple one. We go back, and check on things. If it's all normal, then you have to go back, because you already did," Haruhi declared, and slapped the picture onto one of the club tables.
Mikuru hesitantly walked over, picking up the photo in question. "Well...it's kinda blurry...what if it's not even me? We could mess up the time stream."
"Well, give it to Yuki and have her check it," Haruhi prompted.
Yuki was handed the photo in question, and she blinked at it silently.
"Well?" Haruhi prompted.
"What data am I scanning for?" Yuki asked in a passive tone.
"Is that or is that not Mikuru's reflection in the glass?" Haruhi demanded, pointing to the hazy image.
Yuki examined the photo, then replied, "There is a 72% chance that the image is that of Mikuru Asahina. This object appears to be a highly dense data artifact. I am unable to fully process it with my current limitations."
"See? Even Yuki thinks that's probably you!" Haruhi said in satisfaction. "So, we have to go back and check! Why were you at my kindergarten class trip all those years ago?"
"Um, I don't know…" Mikuru said, wringing her hands nervously. "But...but...unauthorized time travel...it's dangerous! What if the TPDD detects it and arrests us?"
"Simple, we bring Yuki and she kicks their ass," Haruhi said in smug satisfaction.
"Negative. I am not compatible with TPDD technology: Spacetime will not fold around me in the manner referred to as time travel."
"Oh." Haruhi considered this, frowning. "Well, what if you just come with us to the aquarium, and make sure the coast is clear here? Once we go back, we should be fine, right?"
"Unknown. I did not exist when this picture was taken. I have no reference point," Yuki said.
"I don't know...I should check in with Big Me to see if this is a good idea, she would have done it already if it was…"
Haruhi put an arm around Mikuru's shoulders. "Mikuru, this is your first chance to be a free and independent time agent! No one to boss you around! Plus, think of it as a romantic date! I'll buy you dinner at the restaurant there. It will be terribly romantic!"
"Um…" Mikuru looked up at Haruhi, blinking her adorable eyes.
On impulse, Haruhi leaned in and pressed her lips to Mikuru's. It was rather brief, and unfortunately rather chaste, but Mikuru melted against Haruhi's side, and she knew she had the other girl.
"W-well, OK. It's just a 10 year jump on the same time plane...it shouldn't be too bad..." Mikuru agreed, pulling away and smoothing out her skirt.
"Great! Let's change into our disguises!" Haruhi said, pulling out two dresses from her backpack. "I got two of my mom's old ensembles from back in the 90s, so we won't have to worry about sticking out!"
Unfortunately, it took a little longer than just changing, as Mikuru was both shorter than Haruhi and had a more generous bust size. As it happened the other girl had plenty of practice with a needle after all the costumes she and Haruhi had made, so she was able to make a few quick adjustments that rendered the shirt just right. Haruhi had also picked up a couple of pairs of glasses with fake lenses so they would be further disguised. A little makeup and a changing of hairdos, and the two girls were ready for their trip to the past.
They took the bus across town to the Aquarium, along with Yuki.
"Just keep an eye out, OK?" Haruhi told the other girl. "How long will we be gone, Mikuru?"
"Well, we won't be gone for any time at all," Mikuru explained. "We'll leave, then return a few minutes later from the perspective of this time plane. Unless something goes wrong…"
"I'm sure it will be fine," Haruhi assured her date. "We'll just pop into the ladies room now, then come out in the 90s. Then, we'll just investigate real quick, and return the same way. You got that, Yuki?"
"Affirmative. I will monitor for temporal disturbances," Yuki agreed.
"Perfect." Haruhi grinned. This was going to be great! Real time travel, and she could solve some of those mysteries about her past! Together, she and Mikuru went into the women's restroom inside, then went into a stall together.
"Ready?" Haruhi asked.
Mikuru nodded, then took Haruhi's hand. "Um, we need to be in physical contact while the quantum bubble forms around us."
Haruhi pressed herself close to Mikuru, just to be safe. She wondered if she would even notice when the bubble appeared.
"Activating TPDD. Destination: Time Plane Primary, -273.05.17."
That wasn't any date Haruhi had heard of. There was a sudden note, and the air around Haruhi seemed to flicker. The hairs on the back of her neck rose, and it felt as though a mild electric shock passed over her. It was as though she were spinning very quickly, despite standing still, and a wave of nausea passed over her. Then, it was all over. The bathroom stalls around her had changed color, as had the lighting, but the difference was slight
"We're here," Mikuru said, and opened the door. A woman at the sink turned to them, blinking in surprise as the two girls exited what had been an empty stall.
"Like, what up, dawg?" Haruhi drawled, doing her best impersonation of bad 90s slang.
The woman bobbed her head, hastily dried her hands, and hurried out of the bathroom.
"So, this is the past?" Haruhi asked, peering over the rim of her glasses. "It doesn't look all that different."
"Well, we only went back eleven years. You have to go back farther than that to really see major changes. But, um, we're not supposed to talk about that," Mikuru whispered.
"Right." Haruhi made for the door, only for Mikuru to let out an indignant squawk. She turned, uncertain. "What?"
"You didn't wash your hands!" Mikuru said, pointing to the sink.
"We didn't even go to the bathroom!" Haruhi protested.
Pointedly, Mikuru turned on the water and began to scrub her hands. Haruhi gave up and did the same thing. Once both their hands were thoroughly scrubbed, both of them exited the bathroom. There had been some changes to the Aquarium, but again, Haruhi was slightly disappointed. It didn't really feel like she was in a different time, as the clothes and people didn't look all that out of place.
"Well, I guess now we have to find past me," Haruhi said, looking around. "But how will we find me in a place like this?"
"MOM, MOM, LOOKIT LOOKIT LOOKIT, THEY HAVE DOLPHINS!" a child's piercing voice cried above the tumult.
"Um, I don't think you were ever very hard to find Haruhi," Mikuru said, pointing to where a girl in a school uniform had broken away from her class and was sprinting for the tank that held the dolphins.
"Er, I guess not," Haruhi agreed. She watched her mother chase after her, feeling slightly strange as she watched her younger self press her face up against the glass of the tank and begin to make clicking noises at the dolphins.
"Come on, we've got to keep an eye on me," Haruhi urged, as a young Kiriko wandered away from her teacher to come stand beside her cousin.
At first, Haruhi felt a surge of adrenaline, ducking around corners, spying over a brochure she grabbed as they followed after her school group. Unfortunately, tailing an exuberant flock of six year olds was about as challenging as following the wake of a tornado, and none of the adults had any time for anything but corralling their young charges.
"Man, I remember how much fun this trip was," Haruhi said, feeling slightly nostalgic as she watched her younger self reach her hand in to pet the dolphins. The creatures moved away at first, swimming around their tank and clicking at all the visitors, especially the ones who paid to buy small frozen fish to toss to them.
That was until Haruhi and Kiriko looked very disappointed that the dolphins were ignoring them. Behind them, Haruhi's mother suddenly clapped her hands. Every dolphin in the tank, and indeed, every marine animal in the aquarium, suddenly focused all their attention right at Haruhi's mother and her two charges. Then Haruhi's mother crooked her fingers, and the dolphins all hurried over for the excited girls to pet them and coo over them.
"Weird," Haruhi muttered, taking her eyes away to look around the Aquarium. Every animal she could see was pressed up as close to the glass as they could get, and were suddenly performing what she could only describe as tricks. Not just the mammals, but the various fish, crustaceans, and even clams and other bivalves were cavorting about their tanks.
"What's weird?" Mikuru asked, her eyes still fixed on the little girls.
"The animals, they're all...I don't know. Acting out." Haruhi flagged down a passing attendant. "Excuse me, sir, do the animals usually act like this?"
"No, actually, they're rather lively today. Enjoy it while you can! I've never seen the clams swim around like that," the worker said.
"Uh-huh. Thanks."
Haruhi went back to observing her mom, who was smiling and talking to her niece and daughter as they excitedly talked about how nice the dolphins were. Haruhi edged a bit closer to overhear their conversation, though it wasn't exactly hard to hear what her younger self was half shouting.
"Mom, mom, do you think they can do tricks!?" the young Haruhi demanded.
"Oh, I think they probably can," her mother laughed. Then she seemed to meet the eyes of the dolphins, and circle her fingers in the air, as if showing them how to do a backflip. A moment later, the dolphins began to frolic around the tank, doing flips, spins, and walking on their tails back and forth across the tank. The visitors ooo'd and awww'd.
"Huh. I remember them doing this, but...I thought it was normal," Haruhi muttered to herself. "I wonder, are they trained?"
She inquired of another staff member, but it turned out the dolphins were not trained to perform, though they would do simple tricks to get the visitors to toss them more treats.
"Go with your teacher now, I'll be right behind you," Haruhi's mother told her charges when the class was ready to move along on their tour.
The two young girls hurried off, chattering excitedly with one another about how cool the dolphins were. Once they were gone, Haruhi's mother turned to the tank and bowed. Haruhi wasn't close enough to hear what she said, but it sounded like a thank you.
To her shock, the dolphins popped out of the water, then dipped their heads in reply, as if returning the bow. Then they waved their flippers as Haruhi's mother walked away.
"What the heck?" Haruhi walked up to the tank, where the visitors were snapping pictures and talking excitedly. She peered into the water as the dolphin's began to submerge and resume their usual circuit of their tank.
"Do you do that for everyone?" Haruhi asked the creatures.
To her shock, one of them popped out of the water right by her, meeting her eyes. It whistled and trilled at her as if in response.
"Er, sorry, I don't speak dolphin," Haruhi said. "I just...you were acting weird for my mom."
The dolphin cocked it's head to one side, as though it understood her. It chittered some more, then bowed in the water, and swam off with it's fellows.
"Wow, they really like you," Mikuru said, sounding happy. "It's so nice to be on a time plane where dolphins still exist. They're really cute."
"Wait, do they not exist in the future?" Haruhi asked, momentarily forgetting the odd behavior.
"No, almost all the animals have gone extinct," MIkuru said mournfully. "Without imports from other time planes, the TPDD's home time plane wouldn't be able to survive."
"Geez, Mikuru, what sort of post-apocalyptic hellscape do you live in?" Haruhi asked as they turned to follow after her old class.
"Um, well, after World War IV, there weren't very many people, animals, or even plants. So the TPDD tries to prevent further catastrophes. I'm not sure, I got bad grades in history class. It's confusing when there's dozens of different major timelines."
"I bet," Haruhi agreed.
They continued to watch the past Haruhi's visit to the aquarium, keeping an eye on things. It didn't take the other kids long to figure out that the animals always did interesting things when Haruhi was around, though Haruhi was beginning to suspect that somehow, her mother was getting the animals to perform on command. Sharks would pass close to the tank, fiercely showing their teeth as the children squealed and laughed. Schools of fish would form up, flashing their most vivid colors as if they were on review. And the animals that the children were allowed to touch, such as the starfish or rays, seemed to hurry over to allow themselves to be handled as soon as Haruhi's mother clapped her hands.
"Tell me you're noticing this," Haruhi demanded of MIkuru.
"Well, it does seem like the fish really like your mom. She does seem like a kind person, so that makes sense," Mikuru said with a nod.
"My mom is not a Disney Princess! Animals don't just line up for her to pet or whatever," Haruhi snorted. Then she paused, considering. "Though whenever we go fishing, somehow she always catches the fattest, juiciest fish. We stopped going when I asked her about it when I was eleven. Never thought about that before"
"Um, well...maybe they just think she smells nice?" Mikuru ventured. She frowned at Haruhi's mother, who was smiling as she watched her daughter and niece laugh and point as an octopus squirted ink and danced through the water before them. "I do feel like I've met her before though…"
"See? I knew there had to be some time travel involved," Haruhi snorted.
A few minutes later, the group of children split up, given papers to fill out on various animals.
"I had the harbor seal," Haruhi told Mikuru. "Look, there we go."
The seal in question seemed to perk up as Haruhi's mother approached, getting close to the glass even as the two girls pressed their faces against it.
"Don't tap on the glass, she doesn't like it," Haruhi's mother said sternly when her daughter raised a fist to do just that.
"Oh, OK," the young Haruhi agreed.
"Can you take a picture of us with the seal, Aunty?" Kiriko asked.
"Of course," Haruhi's mother agreed, taking out her camera. She looked around, spotting Haruhi and Mikuru. She blinked in shock, then smiled. "Oh, excuse me, would you take a picture of us?"
"M-me?" Mikuru stammered, looking around in shock.
"Yes, if you don't mind," Haruhi's mother agreed.
"Go, that's what we're here for," Haruhi prompted, nudging Mikuru forward.
"Um…" Mikuru scurried over as Haruhi watched in fascination.
"Say, 'cheese'!" Haruhi's mother said, standing behind the two girls and smiling herself.
"CHEESE!" little Haruhi and Kiriko shouted, and the seal struck a pose behind them. Mikuru snapped a picture, then hastily passed the camera back as the children turned back to fill out their school work.
"Thank you," Haruhi's mother said, taking back the camera. She turned to Haruhi, who tried to hide behind her brochure. "Do I know you?"
"Um, I don't think so," Haruhi said, desperately trying to hide behind her paper and blushing as she peeked at her mother.
"Hmmm. Are you a Sato, by chance? You look like my husband," Haruhi's mother said, frowning and tapping her lip.
"What?! No!" Haruhi gasped. Sato?! Her father's name was Suzumiya!
"Oh, well, never mind then. Thank you for the picture!" With that, Haruhi's mother turned away.
"Let's...let's go get something to eat," Haruhi groaned, grabbing Mikuru's hand and hurrying her off.
The Aquarium's restaurant was a large, brightly decorated place, with servers wearing uniforms modeled after fanciful versions of sea creatures. Haruhi and Mikuru grabbed a booth at the back, then picked up their menus.
"This doesn't make any sense…" Haruhi muttered, staring at her menu without seeing it.
"Oh? I get confused by how money works in different times too," Mikuru said reassuringly. "Um, I think the yen is mostly the same though, so we should be alright."
"No, I mean...why did my mom ask if I were a Sato? I'm not related to any Satos," Haruhi grumbled.
"Well...maybe she knows Kazuma?" Mikuru guessed.
"My dad is Kazuma Suzumiya. He's never mentioned having any relatives named Sato. According to him his parents died before he even met my mom so I've never known my grandparents," Haruhi explained.
"Yeah, I don't know who my grandparents are either, or even my parents," Mikuru agreed. "Oh! They have furikake fries! Would you like to share a plate?"
Haruhi checked her wallet, then nodded her agreement. "Sure, let's get that and some drinks."
She stewed while they waited for their food, pondering just who her mother was. Why had the sea life been acting so oddly around her? Come to think of it, they used to take vacations at the beach, and all the sea birds and animals and behaved oddly then too, though Haruhi had been so young she hadn't really considered it.
"Um, are you alright? Time travel can be hard, especially the first time," Mikuru prompted.
"Huh? Yeah, sorry. I'm not much of a date I guess," Haruhi sighed.
"No, it's been fun! I like looking at the cute animals, and you were adorable as a little girl. It was fun to meet your mom too," Mikuru agreed.
Suddenly, Haruhi smacked her forehead and groaned. "My mom! How can you actually meet my mom now? What if she remembers this!"
"Um, well...it was a long time from her perspective. She probably won't notice," Mikuru offered.
"Let's hope not, otherwise introducing you to my parents is going to be really awkward," Haruhi sighed.
The food was decent, if horribly overpriced, as were the drinks. Still, the decor was nice, with a large fish tank filling one wall.
On a whim, Haruhi looked at the tank, then clapped her hands. Nothing happened, the fish simply swimming about aimlessly. Frowning to herself, she thought back to how it had felt to sing a world into existence. On an impulse, she hummed a tune she had heard her mother sing around the house.
Instantly, all the fish in the tank swam towards her, several bumping into the tank wall.
"Mikuru, look!" Haruhi hissed, pointing.
MIkuru turned, but simply smiled. "Oh, hello, fishies!"
For about a minute, the fish all swarmed in one spot. Then, as if a spell were broken, they all simply scattered, going back to their normal business.
"Wow, I've never seen them do that!" the waitress said, coming over to Haruhi's table. "Can I get you two anything else?"
"No thanks, I think we're done," Haruhi said, still watching the tank. She pulled out her wallet and passed over a few bills.
"Um...ok."
The waitress hurried off, and Haruhi sat back, waiting for her change.
Instead, a woman in a manager's dark office wear came over to their table, followed by a security guard.
"Just what is the meaning of this, young lady?" the manager demanded as the security guard frowned down at them.
"Huh, what do you mean?" Haruhi asked, her head turning back around.
The woman held up the bills Haruhi had given her. "Did you know these were counterfeit?"
"What?! No way!" Haruhi gasped. Then she colored in horror as the woman set them down on the table. Both of the bills were new, printed well after the end of the 90s.
"Oh shit," Haruhi gasped under her breath.
"I'm going to confiscate these. Do you have any real money you wish to pay with?" the manager said darkly.
"Er…" Haruhi peeked into her wallet, but all of her bills were newer, and there was no way she had enough coins to pay for the expensive meal.
"Excuse me, what seems to be the problem here?"
Haruhi froze, her face going even redder as her mother came over, smiling at the manager.
"Nothing, ma'am, no need to worry," the security guard said.
"Oh, that's my cousin, Mizu Sato. She's visiting from America with her friend," Haruhi's mother explained. "Can I help? She's still new to Japan."
"So sorry, I'm just a stupid American," Haruhi said in her very best English.
The manager glanced at her, then back to Haruhi's mother. "She tried to pay with counterfeit bills."
"Oh?" Haruhi's mother glanced at the bills, then laughed. "My mistake! I work in party favors, you see. That's just play money from the new line coming out in a few months. Here, let me handle my cousin's tab."
"Well, that's fine then. Just try to show your cousin how money works here in Japan," the manager agreed easily once she had been paid. She took the uptime currency, then hurried off.
"I knew you looked familiar!" Haruhi's mother said triumphantly, suddenly bowing to her. "Checking up on me, Chief?"
"Er…" Haruhi goggled at her mother, not sure of what was going on.
"I wouldn't have expected you to mix up mortal currency like that, but I understand, it's hard to figure out," her mother said in a conspiratorial tone, leaning in close. "Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
"I…" Haruhi blinked in sheer confusion, uncertain of what was happening.
"Kazuma and I are taking good care of you, don't worry! We're the best parents!" her mother said, giving Haruhi a big thumbs up. "Um, sorry about all the time outs, and, um, the spankings. But you can be a real brat sometimes, chief."
"Yeah, I was," Haruhi said faintly, feeling as though she were falling into an endless void.
"Hi! We haven't met before. Are you an angel?" Haruhi's mother said, turning to Mikuru.
"Um, no, I"m a TPDD agent," Mikuru gasped. When Haruhi's mother blinked in confusion, she stammered, "I'm just a time traveler!"
"Oh, well, Time wasn't really my department. Say hi to Eris for me! And...and tell her I miss her. But...but I don't regret my Choice. Sorry, gotta go, I left you in the bathroom."
Staring after her mother, Haruhi felt as though every last thing she had ever known had just been blown to shreds.
"Wow, your mom is really nice. That was kind of her to pay for our meal. Who is this chief person, though?" Mikuru asked.
"I...I don't…" Haruhi shook her head, feeling as though she were going to pass out. "Let's just hurry back to our time."
As they were going into the bathroom, someone shot out of the door, bumping into Haruhi.
"Oh, sorry!" Haruhi said to herself.
The younger version flashed a gap tooth grin. "Excuse me!" Then she was gone.
"Haruhi! I've told you to watch where you're going. Where's Kiriko?" Haruhi's mother said. Looking up, she collared her daughter and waved goodbye.
"She's washin' her hands. Mom, mom, can we go to the restaurant? I want to try the food!"
Dazedly, Haruhi went inside, letting her younger cousin hurry around her as she dried her hands on her skirt.
"Can we please go home now?" Haruhi asked MIkuru.
"Yes, come on." Mikuru took Haruhi's hands, leading her into the same stall. There was the same odd sensation, then Haruhi looked around. They appeared to be back in their own timeline.
"That was...weird," Haruhi muttered. She stepped out of the stall with Mikuru, just as a maintenance worker with a mop set out a wet floor sign.
"Oh, I thought it was empty in here," the woman said, frowning at them. She had a faint accent, and with her light brown hair looked foreign. Her name tag read, "Vicky."
"Er, yes, we were just leaving," Haruhi said hastily. "We'll just wash our hands and go."
The worker nodded. "Very good, fraulein."
Haruhi turned to the sink with Mikuru. She looked into the mirror, then gasped and tried to spin as she saw the reflection of the worker draw a pistol from her coveralls.
"Mikuru, look-"
A dart buried itself in Haruhi's neck. Horrified, she clawed at it while the 'worker' regarded her dispassionately.
"I have the targets," the maintenance worker said as Haruhi and Mikuru slumped to the floor. "Ready for extraction."
"No, no, no! I have to talk to my mom!" Haruhi tried to say. But then consciousness fled from her.