As Kazusa leisurely opens the door to her club's building, ferrying Haruka in, she takes a few seconds to really think of the strange new girl she's met.
If she had to get the elephant out of the room, it was that the girl was obviously a student from another district. From the way she silently marveled at every building they passed to her timid shrinking from other students' gazes, this had to be her first real rodeo in Trinity. That was fine, it wasn't like she was Trinity-crazed nut like some of the other students here, but the question of where exactly Igusa Haruka came from (and who exactly her friends are) would eat at Kazusa a little, this she knew.
There are other little things that kinda bug her too, like what her admittedly cool-looking patch meant, why the shotgun on her back was covered with spikes (didn't that hurt?), and why she was so freaked out all the time over the simple act of breathing, but she figured that some time with her club would soothe the girl's nerves enough to talk. It wasn't like she was a bad person, Kazusa knew what the bad ones looked like, but she was a mystery, and one that she was about to unleash on her friends.
"Alright, we're almost there. How's the cake doing?"
"Um, g-good?" Haruka looked distressingly at the melting scoop of ice cream, taking the tube wafers with it on its slow decline. "Um, and you're sure your friends wouldn't mind if I ate it...?"
Kazusa rolled her eyes. "It's yours in the first place."
"B-But still! I'm a guest," Haruka's distressed gaze went to the ground. "And all I brought was a slice of cake. Aah, Lady Aru would be so disappointed...!"
"I'm sure it'll be fine, Haruka."
'Lady' Aru, huh?
She must've been someone real important to get a title. Kazusa grimaced as she remembered a certain pain in her side and made sure to file that one away as she unlocked the door and pushed it open.
"Hey everyone, I'm back."
"Welcome back, Kazusa!"
"Yo, Kazusa!"
"How fortuitous that our paths should cross again."
Airi, Yoshimi, and Natsu looked up from their various activities, greeting their fellow clubmate with a smile...before staring at Haruka with naked curiosity.
"Who is she?"
"Did you bring a friend? How nice!"
"Ah, a new fate intertwined with ours. How lucky we are."
"Yeah, sure. She's a bit shy, so be gentle with her."
"Hello everyone, my name is Igusa Haruka..." she mumbled, "I'm very sorry that I didn't bring anything for your club despite imposing on your precious time, s-so if you'd like this slice of cake, o-or perhaps my life I-"
As if to remind Haruka as to why exactly she got the slice to begin with, her stomach loudly growled in protest. Almost immediately, her face went tomato red.
"Well, thank you for the generous offer," Airi nodded, sending the girl a soothing smile. "It looks delicious, but I'd be happy if you ate it instead. We can formally introduce ourselves once your belly is full!"
"Yeah, if you're that hungry I'll just feel bad if I took some," Yoshimi smirked at the girl, leaning back in her beanbag chair. "You gotta tell us how it tastes, though. It looks really good..."
"That slice of cake, perhaps it too can be seen as an avenue into the human heart," Natsu hummed, closing her eyes. "The exterior is everchanging, but the interior remains firm...and spongy. Isn't it a romantic sentiment, Igusa Haruka...?"
"Uh," she eloquently replied, looking nervously to the other club members. When she got sympathetic smiles and eyerolls in response, Haruka just let out an understanding 'ah': the pink-haired girl indulged in navel-gazing on the regular, it seemed. Seeing no other reason to delay, Haruka delicately sat down in an unoccupied beanbag chair, picked up her fork, and took a timid bite of her cake.
"O-Oh, it is really good!" she happily squealed, eyes closed in bliss as she slightly kicked her feet. It wasn't often that she ate these sorts of things: when Problem Solvers were on their own their diets were pretty utilitarian, and even when they joined up with Schale she kept in moderation. Cup ramen, bean sprouts, stir-fried herbs, the occasional meat dishes when they had a little extra...now those were more familiar to someone like Igusa Haruka. But this? They had a few simple cakes as a part of the holidays, but the pure flood of sweetness that had hit her tongue, combined with the softness of the cake, was amazing! The fresh snap of the mint ice cream was a welcome surprise, too!
She took a bigger piece of with her fork this time, not realizing that the After-School Sweets Club was happily watching her the whole time.
People really eat this every day...?
...
Haruka idly wondered what this would be like if she was still with Duke-sensei and everyone in Problem Solvers. Maybe Mutsuki would try to take a piece only for Duke-sensei and Kayoko to admonish her, causing her to scurry back with a laugh or three. Maybe Lady Aru would tell her that she should've spoken up earlier; they could fit a cake into the budget every now and then, just to celebrate how far they'd come as a company. They'd gaze upon her with a little exasperation, but overwhelming fondness, and Haruka wouldn't be able to look any one of them in the eyes as she smiled and thanked them for being a part of her life.
She missed them. She missed them a lot.
"Oh, is the cake not good?" Airi worriedly asked, scooting just a bit closer to Haruka.
"H-Huh? Oh, no, I just..." Haruka stared at her partially-eaten slice. "I-I'm very sorry, but I...I miss my friends..."
Yoshimi grimaced. "You got separated from them, huh? That sucks...least you're not totally alone, though!"
"The plot thickens!" Natsu exclaimed, eyes popping open. Haruka, strangely enough, could imagine the girl sparkling in the moment. "Perhaps this guest is here to stay! Lost, confused and abandoned, our protagonist finds comfort in the arms of another!"
"H-H-Huh? Abandoned?!"
"Eh? What're you on about now, Natsu?"
"Natsu, please..."
"The hell do we look like to you, clubwreckers?!" Kazusa growled incredulously. "Look, she's just gonna hang here until her friends can text her or something!"
"Boo."
"That's okay with me!" Airi clapped. "Since you may be staying for some time, let us know if you're still hungry, okay? We've got plenty of leftovers in the fridge!"
"Oh no, I couldn't!" Haruka sputtered, waving her hands at the mint-themed girl. "T-This is already too much of an overindulgence!"
"Huh?" Yoshimi tilted her head. "An overindulgence? It's just a slice of cake. Heck, we could spare some slices for your friends whenever they come over."
Natsu shook her head, staring at Haruka with an intrigued glint in her eyes. "I don't think you understand. Haruka, surely, has led a life of hardship and sacrifice. The way she treasures that slice as if it were ephemeral...it makes you feel like a pleb, right?"
"Huh?!" Yoshimi screeched in response, shooting the (slightly) taller girl a feisty glare. "I'm no pleb!"
"W-Well, I wouldn't say it was full of h-hardship or anything..." Haruka giggled nervously, smiling and closing her eyes as she let the good (?) memories wash over her. "Sure, there were times where I worked so hard that I wanted to puke...a-and there were times where my lowly self wanted to die...and sometimes I'd return from a job with a lot of blood to wash off my uniform...but I wouldn't say it was hard! A good employee sucks it up and gets results! Besides, after the first few times you go to bed hungry, you stop noticing it!"
Finally opening her eyes, Haruka's smile died an ugly death at everyone's horrified reaction. Even Natsu, normally unflappable, stared at the girl with wide eyes and an open mouth.
"...W-Was it something I said? Did I spoil the atmosphere with my pitiful, self-serving stories?! I'm sorry! I'msorryI'msorryI'msorryI'm-"
"I can't believe none of us were watching her!" Aru exclaimed, nearly tearing her hair out as she stomped around the guest room the group had stayed at.
"Heehee."
"Don't 'heehee' me! I'm sure if Sensei wasn't busy with that last-minute paperwork of his he'd come over there and throttle you with me! Our instructions were clear-"
"Re-lax, Aru," Mutsuki drawled, stretching on top of one of the four single beds in the room. "I get it. We were supposed to stick together and we didn't, big whoop. But as much as I like to dote on our little Haruka, she is capable of some seriously wild stuff."
"I-I know that, but..." Aru nervously fidgeted in place. "What if she gets into trouble?"
"She can just shoot it 'till it goes away, I guess!"
"Okay, w-well, what if she gets into trouble bigger than just one shootout?! We don't even know where she is!"
Kayoko sighed heavily. "Why don't we just...text her?"
"..."
"...Ahaha, you can't be serious, Aru!"
Aru's face turned as pink as her hair. "I-I didn't see any of you doing it first!"
"I was busy...!"
"Winking at every Trinity girl who glared at us? I'm pretty sure you've confused more than half of them on a fundamental level!"
"Izzat so?" Mutsuki stuck her tongue out and lightly conked herself on the head. "Oops."
"Oh for- Mutsuki!"
Mutsuki snickered as she was wont to do. "Aru, for real, how much trouble is she going to get into on a Trinity campus? She's not like us; s'long as her shotgun doesn't give her away she's probably fine."
Kayoko raised an unamused brow as her boss turned her glare to her. "I was going to text her earlier, before you and Mutsuki decided to drag me into making a missing child poster."
"It is a very nice poster."
"No it isn't," the oldest member of Problem Solvers narrowed her eyes, "Haruka's eyes aren't even that shade of purple, and her beret is off."
"...That's not a beret," Mutsuki squinted. "Pretty sure she's wearing a sailor hat."
"You can't be serious."
"Yeah, look it up!"
"Is this really important?!"
"Girls," Duke groaned. "I hate ta be a party pooper, but if you're gonna make all this noise..."
"S-Sorry, Sensei..." Aru winced. "Okay, my beloved Problem Solvers, mandatory overtime is in effect! Let's get back our precious employee!"
"Hooray!"
"Finally."
Aru snickered quietly, tilting her head up so her bangs would shadow her eyes. "Kayoko, be a dear and contact Haruka. We'll find out where she is and strike immediately."
The girl rolled her eyes, bringing out her phone with a grumbled 'aye aye' as Aru and Mutsuki said their goodbyes to Duke-sensei. She had pulled up Haruka on Momotalk in seconds, casually letting Aru loop a lanyard with her Schale ID over her neck.
Hey, Haruka. Sorry we're late, are you okay?
Haruka
Oh.
I'm sorry for the inconvenience...
Everything is...nice.
But
Uh
(You)
what is happening
explain
Haruka
No, really, everything is okay!
I'm sorry!
I made an acquaintance and she took me to meet her club.
It is a club dedicated to eating sweets.
(You)
Okay.
You're safe though, right?
Haruka
Um...
Well...
Maybe I said something unbelievable...
They keep doting on me.
I don't know how to feel.
(You)
...Huh?
(Actually, she kind of got it.)
Haruka
I'll send the coordinates in the group chat soon.
Will you be bringing anyone else?
(You)
Duke-sensei has paperwork to do but Mutsuki and Aru are coming with me.
We'll be there soon.
Haruka
Okay.
I miss you
I mean
I didn't mean to
send that
sorry
I'm sorry
...
Wait, no.
I did miss you. If it isn't too much of a hassle I'd
like to see everyone again.
(Kayoko brought her phone up to her face a bit closer to hide her smile. Like she needed Mutsuki on her ass before they left.)
(You)
Hey
Haruka
?
(You)
Aru, Mutsuki, Duke-sensei
We all miss you too.
Let's talk more when we're back together, okay?
Haruka
...
aefgvdvb
Thank you
See you soon.
I will be sure to save the best sweets for all of you to enjoy!
Sweets... Kayoko thought, huffing and re-reading the message. They had a club dedicated to eating sweets in Trinity...how whimsical.
...
Well, maybe I shouldn't be talking. We have our own group of gluttons, to say nothing of that madcap group of hot spring morons.
"Alright, good news boss," Kayoko said, Aru and Mutsuki leaning forward in anticipation. "Haruka's totally fine. She's having some sweets with a couple of new friends she made. Keep an eye on the group chat, she'll tell us where she is soon."
"Wha- that's great, I'm so proud of her!" Aru gushed before quickly clearing her throat. "I-I mean, she's making connections like any fixer worth her chops! Nagisa said we were some sort of symbols, right? What better publicity exists than getting along with some completely normal girls?"
"Nice save there, boss!" Mutsuki snickered. "But that's actually good to hear. Heh, seems Haruka is finally enjoying a story of youth, huh?"
Aru gave her a flat look as they exited the building. "Don't say it like that, it makes us sound ancient. Ah, but...we should probably pick up something for those girls she's with. To show up empty-handed after a kind gesture is not the Problem Solvers way!"
Mutsuki let out an impressed 'ooh' and clapped her hands. "Haha, guess Aru-mama wants to make a good first impression on her kid's new friends, huh?"
As the two bickered like they usually did, Kayoko let out a content huff and shoved her hands into her pockets, idly wondering what urgent matters Duke-sensei had found himself in.
...
"So what do you think? Not a bad infographic, right?"
Duke let out an affirmative grunt as he swiped through the slides once again, making sure to commit as much information to memory as he could. Arona, having manifested herself over the slideshow program, watched in anticipation in the bottom right corner.
Before Trinity was Trinity, there was Pater, Filius, and Sanctus...and a whole assload of small factions. Most of them had been lost to time, but some survived as clubs in the modern day, such as the Remedial Knights and the Sisterhood. To put it bluntly (normally, in his case) these factions hated the shit outta each other, and were more than willing to beat the tar out of each other whenever they damn well felt like it. It took a while, but the ones that survived presumably said fuck this, came together to make a council, and made Trinity off of it. Sounded good so far.
Then he learned of the academy known as the Arius Satellite School (with a logo that looked kinda sick), and Uncle Sam could sock him in the face if things didn't start to get real suspicious.
Schale's records on Arius are, predictably, slim. The academy was marked primarily by its hatred of Gehenna, and for some reason really didn't like the idea of forming up with Trinity. They got fucked up in an ensuing fight with Trinity and disappeared without a trace. That'd be the end of it...had Arona not compiled a list of conspiracy theories for some casual reading. Tinfoil nonsense like Arius having a mechanized academy on legs, having undercover spies in every district, hiding their academy right under Trinity's nose with the help 'a mole people, it all sounded like a load of horseshit...
If that last one really didn't rub him the wrong way. Sure, it was just probably some big joke on a forum that some nutjob posted for a laugh, but Atsuko's note burned a hole in his pocket all the same.
...
Except that mole people bit. Guess whackjob theories transcended dimensions.
"Arona, you can't send out, uh, computer feely things and just...find 'em?"
"...My what now? Sensei, I'm good, but I'm not that good. Most of my power is locked to a little area around the Shittim Chest and your mind, anyway." Arona shook her head. "They're definitely using some sort of Mystic power to hide themselves, I'm sure!"
"Mystic, huh?" Duke grumbled, scratching his chin. That was a different kind of nuts he didn't want to get into just yet: finding out that every student under your watch (or would be eventually) had some sort of magic power both made a lot of sense and didn't. "How the hell do we even begin to smoke out a magic hidey-hole that could be anywhere?"
"We're really subscribing to the idea that Arius is related to this off of a conspiracy theory?"
"Sure," Duke shrugged, yawning. What the hell, was he really this tired? "We ain't got any other leads for now, and there ain't anything else I can think of under Trinity. Guess we're gonna have to...talk to Nagisa in the mornin', Tea Party be damned..."
"Alright, I'll make a note of it. You look tired," Arona noted amusedly, "Take a page out of my book and take a nap, Duke-sensei! It's been a long day and I get the feeling tomorrow's gonna be even longer."
"Mmhm."
Duke slowly closed his eyes and slipped away.
O
o
O
o
O
Duke's eyes opened, and he found himself on the ground in a black void. Grunting, Duke sat up, shook his head, and got to his feet.
"What the hell...?"
"I-It wasn't me!" someone cried to him, and Duke whirled around to find Arona in the black void as well, just as lost and confused. "I was just about to check the collection app and take a nap too, I swear!"
"I trust ya, but if it wasn't you..."
"Then it had to be me."
Arona shrieked and stuck herself onto Duke at the soft, melodious voice that was suddenly behind them. Slowly turning around with his AI secretary in his arms, Duke looked down to find a blonde, sleepy-eyed girl. Fox ears twitching in amusement, the girl gave the pair a bow.
"My apologies for the abrupt visit, but I foresaw no better chance to get the answers I seek out of one of Kivotos' greatest mysteries."
...Greatest mysteries? Foresaw?
"...But I suppose my curiosity can be abated for now. After all, I believe you two need information I can provide...and I saw a future where you would pull my cheeks if I got philosophical with you."
Duke and Arona stared at her.
"I'm new to this whole 'changing the future' business," Seia shrugged, remarkably casual. "I thought that I was to be assassinated...well, almost assassinated, but it seems my fate has changed thanks to you, Duke-sensei. Perhaps that's proof enough that I could try...just a bit harder."
...
"I'm sorry," Arona politely replied, "you were going to be what-"
"My name is Yurizono Seia, one of the three presidents of the Tea Party. Are you perhaps interested in Arius Satellite School? Its history, its creed..."
Seia smiled.
"Its location?"
A/N: Sorry, no excuse for how late this was: combo platter of grad school work, exhaustion, and some new games in the catalog delayed this longer than it should have been. I'll try to finish up the backlog as quickly as I can, I am working on the NEW chapter though so it's not just old stuff. Thank you so much for the support everyone, you're all too damn cool.
Especially Merc-hant with the super long reviews. It's a bit tough to reply to them on FFnet, in all honesty I think THIS site is a bit archaic compared to AO3, but I did read 'em and I do appreciate 'em. Thanks for giving this dumb little story of mine a try and really taking the time to "ramble", as you say, I do it all the time and its great to see people as invested as I am in this. Thanks for all the well wishes and good lucks, I'm gonna need them!