Chapter 64 – Tour de Paris (Part 1)

Mugi's POV

After the meeting/reunion with Trézel-san at the airport, all of us were taken by bus to the hotel we would be staying at. Compared to Tamura-san's and even the one in Okinawa, this one was the GRANDEST I've ever seen. It looked like only the RICHEST of rich people could afford just a single night here. I don't think even my parents would've been able to afford such a thing.

Something that's greater than Kotobuki wealth…I didn't think it was possible…

"Damn…this place is freaking fancy!" Ricchan yelled out as everyone was just as amazed at the sight of the place.

"This is one of the most expensive hotels in the country." Miharu said to Sawa-chan. "How the hell did you guys afford this?"

"We couldn't. Somehow, Sokabe-san paid for it."

"Sokabe? You mean that Mio worshiper?"

"Can you please not say "Mio worshiper"…" Mio-chan said with an exasperated sweatdrop.

"She helped planned the whole thing and offered to pay for lodging expenses." Sawa-chan continued. "I honestly thought it was weird that a first-year college student had that much money…"

"You didn't question it?" I asked.

"I wanted to…but something in the back of my mind said that I didn't want to know."

"Huh…" We all gained huge sweatdrops.

Sokabe-senpai's still questionable as always…

"Well…however it was paid for…you sure are lucky, Miharu." Trézel-san said. "To stay at a place like this for a school trip is super dur à cuire!"

"Yeah, I guess. A country girl like me never dreamed or believed that I would ever step foot in here. So, this trip's already becoming memorable."

"Attagirl! Now, how's about we make this trip feel the same way for your friends over here. You said it's their first time here, right?"

"Yeah, true. But I wanna change clothes first. The fact that I had to wear this uniform for over 15 hours is starting to gross me out."

"Hey. You can't change clothes, Neroni." Sawa-chan said. "It's school rules to keep your uniform on."

"Ah, rules are meant to be broken. I mean…why else did we have the French Revolution?"

"That was because of political, economic, and social problems and had nothing to do with changing clothes."

"Wh…What do you know? You're not French..." Both Miharu and Trézel-san pouted like children.

"*sigh* What-freaking-ever…" Sawa-chan facepalmed hard before turning to the rest of us. "…if any of you want to shower and change clothes before the tours start, you're free to do so. Just be back here in an hour."

"Yes, Sensei." We all replied.

All of us were split up into groups of three for the rooming arrangements. The same groups we were in during the flight here. Meaning that I was bunking with Miharu and Yoko-chan.

Thank God Miharu didn't bring her video games with her…

I had already taken a shower and changed into more casual clothes. And was waiting in the hotel lobby for the others to show up. But with so many wanting that shower, it sure was taking a while.

"*yawn* It's getting late. At this rate, we'll probably miss the tours…"

"What do you mean?" Trézel-san said as she suddenly sat next to me. "It's still pretty early. So, we'll definitely catch at least a few of them."

"Huh? Oh…sorry. I guess I'm still on Japanese time. It's been a while since I've traveled outside the country."

"Oh…I see. Jetlag at its worst. I can totally relate when my family went to Honolulu for a holiday. Girl, let me tell ya…I was laggy as hell. Slept for the whole first day we were there."

"Wow…I didn't think jetlag could get that bad."

"Trust me, it's that bad. It can be a real emmerdeur if you don't prepare yourself ahead of time. I told Miharu the same thing."

"I see…" I then looked up at the ceiling. "…so, jetlag can be a total emmerdeur if you don't prepare. Good to know." And after staring for a few seconds, I looked back down to notice Trézel-san staring back at me with a look of pure shock.

"Hmm…Voici une question au hasard. Es-tu toujours vierge?"

"Je ne sais pas en quoi ça vous regarde, mais... oui. Je suis toujours vierge."

"No…WAY! You can totally speak French!"

"Did I really had to tell you I'm a virgin just to prove that?" I said with a light blush. "I'm completely embarrassed right now."

"*giggle* Sorry. That was just a joke. But I'm really surprised that you can speak French so fluently, Tsumugi. Most foreigners don't even bother learning the language before coming to a different country. It's a real nuisance to us residents."

Now, I was the one who was looking at Trézel-san with pure shock.

"You…You know my name?"

"Of course. Miharu's told me all about you. Your family's wealth, the band you guys are in, the fact that you're an idol named Melody…

The whole…half-sister thing…"

"O-Oh…she told you that?" My face grew a little pale.

"D-Don't worry. I won't blab it out to anyone. Miharu and I have been keeping each other's secrets since childhood. Plus…I'm sure it's still personal to you both."

"Yeah…it is. Thanks for agreeing not to tell, Trézel-san."

"It's fine." Trézel-san then went silent for a bit. "Although…I do have one condition."

"Huh? What's that?"

"Can you…drop the "Trézel-san" thing? I know that's a thing back in Japan, but…it's kinda weird hearing it here."

"Oh. That."

She lasted even less than Miharu did…

"I can see why you wouldn't like it. Miharu has issues with it to this day. It annoys our Student Council President."

"Haha…yeah…that girl can really speak her mind."

Ain't that the truth… I gained a mental sweatdrop. Remembering all the times Miharu's "opinions" almost got us screwed over.

"In any case…I don't mind dropping the honorifics. And I can probably get the others to do the same. Would that be okay, uh…Danielle?"

"Yep! Sure is! Thanks a bunch, Tsumugi."

"It's fine, really. And you can just call me Mugi. Everyone else does."

"Tout ce qui fait flotter votre bateau, Mugi." Danielle said with a thumbs up.

Miharu's childhood friend…she's really nice. A little on the carefree side, but she definitely a good person. I'm sure she and Miharu were the best of friends before she moved.

Makes me wish I had a childhood friend. And no, Sumire doesn't count.

"Well, look at you two bonding already." Miharu said as she sat in between us. "You better not be taking my childhood friend for yourself, Mugi. I know how needy you can be sometimes."

"Wh-What do you mean "needy"?!" I grew insulted by that claim.

"Relax, girl. She ain't trying to take me." Danielle said. "We were just sitting around chatting and getting to know each other."

"Huh…"

"I even found out that she's totally still a virgin." Danielle then turned back to me with a flirty look on her face while intertwining my hand with her own. "Which I can totally help get rid of if you're ever interested, Mugi~. *flirtatious giggle*"

"D-D-D…D-Danielle, I…"

*BONK*

"Girl, don't be flirting with my sister." Miharu said after hitting Danielle in the head.

"*giggle* Sorry…I couldn't resist. She's like…si sacrément sexy, you know?"

"Answering that question would be HIGHLY illegal of me, you know?" Miharu retorted with a sweatdrop.

"Uh…wh-what just…" I asked. Still having a huge blush on my face.

"Oh, right. Danielle's totally into girls."

"It made me jealous as hell when you and Zoé got girlfriends." Danielle said. "Hell, Zoé even got rid of her V-card meanwhile I'm still trying to get a girl to get naked with me."

"Zoé's been without her V-card. Why else would sexual stuff come out of her mouth every time she speaks?"

"Oh, yeah…"

That honestly explains a lot about Zoé…

"So, what about the rest of your class? Are they available or are they all taken by boyfriends?"

"You're really gonna try to hook up with one of my classmates?" Miharu asked in an exasperated tone. "Geez…you sound just like Éliott right now."

"H-Hey! Don't compare me to him! I actually want a serious relationship with a girl. Éliott just wants access to their petite boite and call it a day."

"Uh…"petite boite"?" I asked.

"French slang for vagina. It literally translates to "little box"."

"Huh…"

Even in France, I can't escape sexual references…

"Well, if you must know…two of them are in fact dating each other." Miharu said. "As for the others…I don't even think they swing that way."

"Aw! You mean they're all straight?!" Danielle whined. "Ugh…maybe I could at least turn one of them bi…"

"Danielle…" Miharu grew more exasperated.

"Fine, fine. I'll lay off your classmates." Danielle then went silent for a bit. "But if any of them come hitting on me, I'm taking that invitation without a second thought."

"*sigh*Fine. I can't stop you on that. Surprisingly, there a lot of lesbians at an all-girls school."

"It's stereotypical, but also true." I added with a sweatdrop.

"What's true?" Ricchan asked as she and the others finally joined up with us after each taking a shower.

"Oh, um…nothing important. Just talking to pass the time."

"Huh…"

"Wowie…that shower was AMAZING!" Yui-chan cheered. "Who would've thought a shower head could so many different settings?! My back felt SOOOOOO good!"

"I have to admit, even I was impressed." Mio-chan said. "A 15-minute shower here was more relaxing that a 30-minute soak in a Japanese bathhouse. It's truly unbelievable…"

"If you guys want to REALLY feel good in the shower, there's this certain setting that lets you focus on one part of your body." Danielle said. "And if you use it on a specific part of your body…"

"Oh, yeah…THAT setting." Miharu said with a derpy smirk on her face. "It really did release some stress I was having. *giggle*"

"H-Honestly, you two…" I said with a light blush on my face.

"Wait…what setting on what part?" Ricchan asked.

"I'm sure you'll figure it out… *giggle*" Both Miharu and Danielle replied with huge perverted smirks. And while most of the others didn't get it, Yui-chan was the only one with a similar blush on her face.

And it made me facepalm hard.

She's totally gonna try it out. Her mindset's too horny NOT to try it out…

"So, we're going on a tour after this is done, right? Where are we going?" Ricchan asked.

"Well, your teachers decided to go at this in separate groups since there's a lot of you." Danielle said. "My group is starting at a busy area known as the Avenue des Champs-Élysées. From there, it's the famous Eiffel Tower. And then after that is…"

"Um…if you don't mind, Trézel-san…but I've read online that there was a music festival happening today and I was wondering if…uh…w-we could go see it?" Mio-chan said.

"A music festival?" Danielle thought for a moment. "Oh…you mean the Dreamy Star Festival."

"Dreamy Star Festival?" The four of us tourists asked.

"Oh, yeah…the Dreamy Star Festival." Miharu said. "Can't believe it's already that time of the year."

"You know what it is?" I asked.

"It's a music festival that happens every September. It usually Trance music. Which is supposed to help you fall asleep faster."

"Trance music?" Ricchan asked. "I know what that genre is. The music is usually loud as hell and makes you feel a high rush."

"True…" Danielle said. "…but there's another genre normally used there called Chill-out music. Which usually gives slow tempos and relaxed moods."

"There's also a rumor behind Chill-out music." Miharu added.

"A rumor?" We asked.

"Supposedly, listening to Chill-out music while you sleep can let enter your own dreams."

"Enter your dreams?"

"No way! Is that for real?!" We were then taken by surprise when Yoko-chan joined our conversation in an excited manner. Specifically about the "enter your dreams" part.

"Yoko, don't eavesdrop on other people's conversations." Himeko-chan said as she and Mika-chan caught up with their friend.

"But did you hear what she said?! Enter your own DREAMS! That's like…so freaking cool!"

"Is that really true?" I asked.

"Well, scientists have said that it's completely absurdité." Danielle said. "But there are people out there who truly believe in the power of Chill-out music. And the attendance of the festival keeps growing every year. Just to prove that you can truly enter your owns dreams. It's a weird but interesting tradition, I can tell you that much."

"Wow…"

"Oooh~! We just GOTTA go!" Yoko-chan cheered. "Can we go, Trézel-san?! Right now, even?! Can we?! Can we?! CAN WE?!"

"U-Uh…well…" Danielle grew uncomfortable at how close Yoko-chan was to her face. "…it's not today. It actually starts tomorrow. But I can make a few adjustments to the schedule for you guys to see it. It really is a blast."

"YES! This is going to be SO cool! We can eve go together right, Akiyama-san?!"

"Huh? Uh…sure, Sasaki-san. I'm sure it'll be fun." Mio-chan replied.

"OH YEAH!"

"Oh no…" Himeko-chan and Mika-chan mumbled to themselves.

What's going on with them? I wonder…

"In any case…" Danielle stood up and turned to face all 9 of us. "…let's get this tour started! With your tour guide being yours truly: Danielle." She then looked at me with a simple wink of her eye.

"Oh, right. That…" I gained a sweatdrop. "Just a heads up, everyone. She's not a fan of the honorifics. So, just call her Danielle."

"Wow, girl…lasted even shorter than me." Miharu said.

"You may have gotten used to it back in Japan…but hearing it here just sounds so weird." Danielle said. "Out of place, even."

"Oh, don't get me wrong. I still find the whole thing stupid as hell. You have to remember things like "-san", "-chan", "-senpai", "-sensei"…it's just extra crap you gotta use to someone's name. Also, you gotta EARN the right to refer to someone as their first name over there. Otherwise, you have use their last name."

"What?! Seriously?! That's such a connerie rule!"

"Trust me. A lot of things over there are total connerie."

As the two French girls continued to badmouth our home country, the rest of us just sat there and watched. We WOULD'VE defended Japan and told them off…but since we're so far from home, it would've been harder to do so.

Plus…some of Japan's rules and traditions I kinda do agree with being total bullshit.

"Uh…hey, guys." I spoke out. "You can badmouth Japan all you want, but can we get going now? We're running behind."

"Oh, right. Sorry." Danielle said. "Anyway, let's get going. It's still daylight out…we could finish this tour by the time sunset comes. And then you girls can experience some French cuisine."

Once that was said, everyone (besides me) raised their hand to ask a question.

"No, we do not eat snails." Both Miharu and Danielle replied with exasperated looks. Which made everyone lower their hands…

…And me facepalm hard for having that question being asked in the first place.

We're going to have A LOT of new experiences on this trip…


Jun's POV

*MEANWHILE, BACK IN JAPAN…*

"*sigh* I still can't believe you guys are making me do this…"

"Get over it already, Jun." Azuza said to me. "You were destined from the start to tag along with us."

"Heh…more like doomed."

So, here we were, in the park near Ui's house at close to midnight…getting ready to travel from Shinga, Japan to Paris, France through a cardboard box that can bypass the logics of Time & Space.

It sounds ridiculous no matter how many times I say it…

We all decided to just wear casual clothes. No point in packing a bag when we're only going to be there for a day. Even though in my case, I won't be doing much of anything.

*sigh* I'm going to the Love Capital of the World while still questioning my possible homosexuality. This is a total slap in the face…

"I finarry get tū see mai hometown once more. This is a duream come turrue."

"*giggle* I'm glad you're so excited, Zoé-chan." Ui said to her girlfriend. "And I can't wait to have that special date in the City of Love. To see it with my very one eyes…"

"Turrust me, Ui. It wirru be rearry rearry beautifurru. Le plus beau spectacle que vous n'aurez jamais vu."

""The most beautiful sight", huh? Well, we'll see about that." Azusa said.

"Haha! You guys are all here! Just perfect!" Sakurako cheered as she walked up to us. Carrying her Space-Time Box in her hands without a care in the world.

She can put up a fake smile so easily…it's impressive. Especially after telling me what's been going on with her recently…

"I'm surprised that you managed to come all the way out here on a regular school night." I said.

"Yeah…I had to pull some strings last minute. Thank God my sisters had never met Sakura."

"Who's Sakura?" Azusa and Ui asked.

"My parallel doppelgänger from a different world."

"What?"

"It's…a long story." I replied to my two baffled friends.

"This Takaoka prace sounds rike tū be a rearry interesting prace." Zoé said. "Perhaps I shourd gó there sometaim."

"Honestly, Zoé…you're better off staying away." I gained a huge sweatdrop.

"Well, whatever. Let's get into more important matters." Sakurako said. "Everyone's here and ready to go, right?"

"Yeah, we're here. All four of us are…"

"WAIT! WAIT A SECOND!"

"Huh?"

We all then spotted a girl with dark-orange hair made into a side ponytail rushing up to us in a frantic manner. Breathing hard once she caught up to the point where she almost collapsed.

"I *pant*…I *pant*…I-I want to…*gasp*"

"I…think she needs some water." Azusa said.

"She can have some of mine." Ui said as she held a water bottle in her hand. "I bought it on the way over here."

"Th-Thank *pant* y-you *pant*" The girl said as she took the bottle and nearly chugged the whole thing in just seconds. "*sigh* That's better. Thanks for the water, Ui."

"You're very welcome, uh…h-huh? Wait, what did you say?"

"I said thanks for the water, Ui."

"You know who I am?"

"Of course, I do. You're Ui Hirasawa. The biggest siscon to ever walk the Earth…"

"Th-The biggest…?" Ui felt hurt by that comment.

"You're Azusa Nakano. The cat-faced girl who's always doted on by Yui."

"I don't look like a freaking cat!" Azusa yelled in annoyance.

"You're Jun Suzuki. The easygoing girl with the brother-complex."

"Wh-What?! I-I don't have a brother-complex!" I yelled with a huge blush on my face.

"And you're Sakurako Ohmuro. The biggest badass to ever exist on this planet! GUARANTEED!"

"Hell yeah, that's me!" Sakurako cheered. "No one else can compare! Hahahahaha!"

"Why is she the only one to get a complement?" Azusa pouted.

"Okay, really. How do you know our names?" I asked. "Who even are you?"

"Oh, right. I kinda forgot." The girl said. "I'm Hikari Saeki. 15-years-old and currently going through puberty. *giggle*"

"We didn't need to know that last part…" Ui said with a sweatdrop.

"Wait a minute. Saeki…" I thought for a moment about that name. "…you're Mika-senpai's sister?"

"Yep, that's me. The little sister whose better than her big sister at everything. And I probably have a bigger clitoris, too."

And…that when all of us just stood there with huge red blushes on our faces. None of us had a response to what she just said out of freaking nowhere. And to say that so boldly, too…

"Werr, mine is biggeru."

"Z-Zoé-chan!" Ui yelled at Zoé.

Right…kinda forgot that Zoé's basically a living porn site…

"A-Anyway…" I tried steering the conversation away from THAT topic. "…what are you doing here, Hikari?"

"Right, right. I wanna come with you guys. Take me to Paris through the warpy box."

"Huh? W-Wait, why do you wanna tag along?"

"How do you even know about us going this way?" Azusa asked.

"I read the last chapter. Going to another country through the means of a box that can bypass the logic of Time & Space…that's like so freaking cool!"

"Wow…I've never heard of an OC being aware of the 4th wall before." Sakurako said.

"It's definitely becoming a thing nowadays." I replied.

"Look, Hikari-chan…" Ui said. "…we don't want to have a lot of people know about this trip. If Mika-senpai finds out that her sister is roaming around a different country, we'll definitely get caught."

"Then, we won't get caught." Hikari said. "I'm not trying to see my sister, either. I got my own goals."

"Like what?"

"Seeing the Eiffel Tower, tasting the gourmet pastries, spying on people having public sex on the French streets…"

"Th-That last one, though…" Azusa, Ui, Sakurako, and I gained huge sweatdrops and blushes.

"…I'll be totally sure Onee-chan doesn't see me. Honest."

"W-Well…" I said while still recovering from Hikari's list of desires to do in France. "…do you guys think this is a good idea?"

"I guess…" Azusa said.

"If we don't get caught…" Ui added.

"I thinku this is a gureat idea." Zoé said. "More peopre tū see mai home makes me veru veru happy. L'excitation rend ma chatte humide."

"Zoé…please don't start." Azusa said with a facepalm. Which got me to believe that Zoé said something sexual again.

At least she's feeling better…

"I think it's fine." Sakurako said. "While Azusa, Ui, and Zoé have their little dates, the three of us can go walk around the city somewhere. I highly doubt we'll run into the others."

"*sigh* Whatever." I said after thinking about it. "I just want to get this trip over with. Just don't cause any trouble okay, Hikari?"

"You can bet my virginity I won't! *giggle*" Hikari cheered with a thumbs up.

"God, you're a total perv…" I gained a sweatdrop.

"Alright! Let's get going already!" Sakurako shouted as she placed the box on the ground. "It's already close to 5:00 pm over there and I wanna see at least something before the sun goes down."

"By the way, Sakurako…where in Paris exactly is this box going to spit us out?" Azusa asked.

"Oh, that. I chose some random hotel room. Last I checked it was empty. So, we should be fine in using that to crash for the night."

"So, not only are we sneaking into another country but we're also using a hotel room without paying for it." I said. "*sigh* I really hope this doesn't come bite me in ass later in life."

"It shourd be okay, Juné." Zoé said. "The porice in France wourd not care much about freeroading a hoteru room. They are tū busy with the murtipre sexuaru harassment craims they receive on a dairy bases."

"Th-That doesn't exactly make me feel better, Zoé…" I gained a huge sweatdrop of concern.

"Alright! Enough chit-chat! LET'S GO!" Sakurako shouted once more as she jumped right into the Space-Time Box and disappeared completely.

The rest of us were shocked to see that box actually working. But then the shock turned to determination as Azusa was next to jump inside the box.

Then Ui…

Then Zoé…

Then Hikari…

Until it was only me standing in a park in Japan. Staring at a box that will take me to a hotel in France in 30 seconds or less.

"*sigh* Here goes nothing, I guess."

Author's Note: As Mugi gets ready to tour Paris and forms a bond with Danielle, Jun gets dragged into a really bad idea of sneaking into another country with her friends and a senpai's younger sister. Things are starting to get eventful again.

Sorry for the longer-than-usual wait. Things got in the way of writing as a whole. Days where I could just sit down and write are slowly dwindling.

Something to know: Mugi and Jun will have the most POVs this time around. Other characters will get some spotlight, too. But it'll be mostly these two.

Thanks for reading. Later.