Shape of the Heart – Four-leaf Clover
By Fox McCloude
Disclaimer: The Quintessential Quintuplets and all related characters belong to Haruba Negi. All rights reserved.
Extra: Nino's Courage Test
School Camp site forest…
"Itsuki! Itsuki, where are you? Aw, hell, why'd you have to run away like that?"
As the second Nakano sister continued to walk through the forest's path, she was growing impatient by the second. Worse, her cellphone's battery ran out, and the lantern's light died out.
"Eh? Oh, drat, right now of all times."
Fortunately, the path established for the courage test was illuminated with paper lanterns so nobody would get lost. All she had to do was follow it and she'd surely meet up with Itsuki, though being the scaredy-cat she was, there was an oft chance she could have walked out of the past and wander around aimlessly.
'I really hope she's not lost,' she thought with worry.
Admittedly, the forest was a bit creepy, no longer having her cellphone's light to illuminate her path and give herself a sense of security. For about two or three minutes she continued calling out to her sister, until she reached another of the signed bifurcations.
"What if she walked off and I left her behind?" she wondered, looking back at the path she came from. "Maybe I should go back to find her."
That'd be ideal… but the truth was, even if she didn't admit it out loud (let alone in front of Itsuki, to avoid being seen as another scaredy-cat), getting into the forest and without light was a bit terrifying. Not so much on the chance of there being any ghosts (that was nothing but silly child superstitions), but in case someone could try and assault her. Now thatwas a real danger.
"No, surely she's fine. Maybe I should just stay here and wait for her… but what if something happened to her?"
Someone suddenly tapped on her shoulder.
"Don't bother me," she said ignoring it. "Maybe I should go back just in case she got lost."
Her shoulder was tapped on again.
"I said don't bother me," she said without turning around. "Though I don't know how I'm gonna look for her without light, and I could get lost myself too."
For the third time, her shoulder was tapped.
"I said don't bother me! Don't you see I'm trying to…?" Her voice cut off in an instant, and her face lost all its color.
"I VANT TO ZOHK YER BLEOHD!"
She wasn't sure if it was because the costume was convincing, the creepy of the dark, or how close he was, but the sharp-toothed vampire in front of her left her petrified, unable to move a muscle or emit a sound. She just stayed there, looking at him, until her body finally responded again.
And there was only one natural response.
"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
Scream like a little girl and run away. She didn't care where; she just wanted to get away from those scares, the forest, and everyone. This camp wasn't being fun anymore.
"Hey wait! You took the wrong path, come back!"
But Nino paid him no mind. She just ran as fast as her legs could take her. The rush of adrenaline spiked, and she didn't watch where she went, so when she finally realized, she'd strayed too far from the path.
And she hair some rather creepy wails echoing in the forest.
"God… what if Itsuki was right? What if this forest is really haunted?"
Looking around everywhere, she saw a clearing and felt hopeful. There was the exit! Without a second thought she ran there, to find the way back
"Stop, that way's dangerous!" the vampire's voice called out again, but she paid him no heed. There was something familiar in him she couldn't pinpoint, but at the time she couldn't think about that. She just kept running towards the apparent exit…
Only for her relief to turn to terror when she realized she was heading for a cliff. Her body barely stopped when she stepped right over the edge, but it was too late. It was too dark to see the bottom, but it probably was a long fall.
'I'm gonna fall… I'm gonna die!'
And right before she went down the abyss, a firm, yet warmly familiar hand grabbed her by the wrist, and pulled her out of danger. Said hand kept holding her while another grabbed her shoulders, giving her a strange feeling of security while trying to help her relax. Little by little, she controlled her shaky breathing.
"Watch that step, lady. It's pretty high."
That voice, and that way of joking… it couldn't be… was it really him?
"K-Kintarou-kun?" she asked trembling, finally turning around to face her rescuer. She noticed he no longer wore the vampire cape, and he immediately removed the long black wig and fake vampire teeth. Now he was more recognizable.
"Sorry, it was my fault," he said as he scratched his head. "You'd stopped and since you didn't come any closer, I just came out. Did I scare you too much?"
"No, no, of course not!" she frenetically exclaimed, though she knew it was a lie, and began fidgeting with her fingers. "T-thanks for saving me."
"Think nothing of it. But hey, why're you here alone? You're supposed to do this in pairs, right?"
"My sister got spooked and ran away," the second quint explained. "I've been looking for her, but I can't find her, and I'm starting to get worried."
"I see," he nodded. "You want me to help you find her? Better make sure she's okay."
Nino gladly accepted the offer. She didn't like the idea of wandering around that forest completely alone, but if she went with him, she'd feel much more at ease.
…
After she explained Kintarou what happened, how Itsuki got spooked before by Fuutarou and Yotsuba and thus ran away by herself, the blond couldn't help but laugh a bit. From what he said, he knew his cousin had the face of a thug, but didn't think he'd be that scary. Neither did he buy that Nino's other sister could scare someone, let alone one of them.
"Itsuki's always been a big scaredy-cat," Nino said. "Though I'm really worried, we need to find her quick."
"Maybe we should split up to cover more terrain," Kintarou suggested. "We'd take less time."
"No!" Nino exclaimed, involuntarily grabbing his arm. The boy was surprised by this, but not as much as Nino herself when she realized it. "S-sorry. Let's not split up, okay? So we don't get even more lost."
The boy shrugged, but accepted her reasons and they continued their walk as they called out to Itsuki. They got no other response other than an echo of their own voices, forcing them to keep searching the old fashioned way, and as the minutes continued to pass, Nino got even more impatient and worried.
'At least I can hang around him for a bit,' the girl thought.
If there was a positive thing, it was that even a creepy forest like this wasn't so bad, if you were in the company of a boy you liked. That helped her stay relaxed while focusing on finding her sister. If it wasn't for the seriousness of the situation, she'd like to take the chance to talk to him.
She already knew a few things from their first meeting, but she was dying to know more.
…
The Uesugis' bakery wasn't seeing many customers that day, so Nino felt a little bored. The job itself wasn't too bad, and Mrs. Uesugi turned out to be a rather nice woman, not only for being completely different from her son, but also a pretty good boss at work, always open and understanding with her staff. Now she had a place to work part-time during holidays to kill some time and earn some money of her own.
But still, that didn't change how boring it could be during slow days, especially having to wait next to the cash register until someone entered, so when the entrance bell rang, she felt a huge relief.
"Welcome, what can I…?" She cut herself off upon realizing the one who entered was Fuutarou. "Ah, so it's just you."
"Have a bit more respect with the customers, will you?" he dryly replied. Nino wanted to groan something, but technically he was right on that, so she forced herself to smile, trying to conceal her annoyance.
"S-sorry… about that. What can I do for you?" she said, trying not to grit her teeth too much.
"I'll think for a bit what I'd like today," he replied. "Meanwhile, here's someone else you wanted to see."
He stepped aside to let someone come in behind him, and much to the Nakano girl's surprise and delight, she quickly recognized that wild blond hair. Having him even closer than before she could get a better look at his features: those amber eyes, and that captivating roguish smile made her heart throb in an instant.
"Hey, hey, so then it's true?" he said as he came over to the register. "You're one of Yotsuba's sisters?"
"Eh? Ah… yeah, of c-course I am," Nino replied, trying to control her nerves at the closeness. "I'm Nino, Nino Nakano."
"Nino, huh? Lovely name," he replied. "Well, I guess my cousin already told you, but even then, name's Kintarou Uesugi. Is it true what Fuutarou said, you're five identical quintuplets?"
"Y-yeah, we s-sure are. Of course it be b-better if you could see the five of us."
She stuttered a bit, but she couldn't help it; she was too nervous. She also noticed how Fuutarou, seemingly realizing he was a third wheel in that conversation, had vanished from sight. Not that she cared too much about it, but now… she didn't know what to talk about with Kintarou. What could she tell him?
"If I didn't see you know, I'd almost think you were pulling mi leg. You and Yotsuba would look almost identical barring hair color and length," Kintarou said. "Though now I get a good look, you have something… different."
"Different? Different how?"
"I don't know how to say it," Kintarou said, his hand on the chin. "But well, since you're here, how about we get to know each other? Will you tell me about yourself?"
"S-sure. What would you like to know? Ask me anything you want!"
Next thing was Kintarou asking him the typical questions: her age, where she studied, hobbies, future plans, etc., and she was more than happy to answer everything. He seemed quite a fun and charming guy, which only scored him more points in the second Nakano sister's books.
"You must be pretty good at baking, if Auntie Kazane put you to work here. She's got pretty high standards in that area, and very few can match her."
"So I've been told." Nino twirled her finger around one of her ribbons. "Well, we've talked a lot about me, how about you tell me more about yourself?"
"Haha, sure. Well, for basic info, I've got the same age as my grumpy nerd of a cousin, since we were born on the same day, though with a couple hours of difference…"
…
Even though that 'basic info' satisfied Nino's curiosity for the time being, she lamented that her nerves betrayed her and she didn't ask many other things. There was so much more she wanted to know about him, and now they were alone, there was a good chance to.
"Say, Kintarou-kun. When this trip is over… I suppose you'll go back home?" she asked.
"Eh? Ah yeah, I'll have to go back… to my dismay."
For some reason the boy's demeanor shifted. His smile had dimmed down and his voice sounded unusually serious. Nino was torn between curiosity, and respect in case she'd struck a sensitive nerve. Would she dare to ask?
Better not to, the girl thought. She could save it for another time to avoid spoiling this moment.
"Hmmm… so tell me, could you come visit often?" she finally asked.
"Don't know if I can," he replied. "The last term before winter holidays will be a bit heavy, so I'm gonna be busy. Though maybe we could meet during Christmas."
"That's be great." The Nakano felt excited at that. "By the way, I didn't give you my phone number or email so we can get in touch."
"Sounds good." He began searching through his pockets, only to stop suddenly and chuckle nervously. "Ah, drat, I think I left my cellphone back at the shelter."
"And mine's out of battery," the girl groaned. "Can we trade them when we return later?"
"Sure. Though I'm more surprised you haven't asked Fuutarou yet."
Nino looked away and puffed her cheeks. "He and I… we don't get along too much. Truth is, I'm surprised someone like him is related to a boy as cool and cute as you."
"Hahaha, yeah, sometimes I find that hard to believe at times," he said, though he stopped laughing rather quickly. "Though, he wasn't always a grump who only cared about studying, you know?"
"You don't say." She clearly didn't buy it.
"No, I mean it. When we were younger, we used to be partners in mischief often. I'll tell you, he used to look like this, just like me and my uncle."
The last part, he said it passing a hand through his blond hair to emphasize his point, and that brought a thought to Nino's mind. That photo Fuutarou had in his notebook and didn't want anyone to see… so what wasn't Kintarou? Was it actually himself?
"You two were close?" the girl asked, once she snapped out of her thoughts.
"Oh yeah. Believe it or not, if it wasn't because we were born from different parents, we could sometimes pass off as twins. Sure, nothing like the five of you, but we could pull it off sometimes, Haha, yeah, that was pretty fun, good times."
Nino found it hard to imagine that. That serious and grumpy brainiac, who in her eyes had no charm at all, and she didn't understand why Ichika and Yotsuba were so interest in him, it was hard to believe they could pass of as twins. The girl blamed it on Fuutarou almost never smiling like Kintarou did; that perpetual frown of his did him no favors.
"So what happened?" the girl asked again. Like before, she was a bit afraid of touching a sensitive nerve, but the curiosity was getting the best of her.
"Well, what happens to everyone, I guess. We grew up," he said, no longer as cheery as before. "That, and I had to move away due to my old man's job. He's a cop, so when he was transferred to another station, I had to leave with him whether I'd like it or not. I guess that's why we ended up distancing a bit."
"I think I get what you mean," Nino said, sympathizing with his words. "Me and the others used to be much more identical, true quintuplets. But after Mom died, many things happened, and now… I feel we've also distanced from each other."
"Why do you say that? You five still live together, don't you?"
"Yeah, but… I don't know. Now we're so different, and we don't agree on everything as we used to. We also argue and fight more frequently, and that hurts me. Why did things have to change? Why can't we go back to be as before? I've always wondered that."
"Hey, asking that things never change is like asking time itself to stop." Kintarou said with a serious tone. "It's inevitable."
"I know, but that doesn't mean we have to like it," the girl said a little pouty. "In fact, do you know why Yotsuba is the only one who transferred to Asahiyama? She flunked the remedial exams in Kurobara and was expelled. And that's why Papa went looking for tutors all this time."
"So that's how my cousin landed that job, huh?" Kintarou said, and Nino nodded before she continued.
"Me and the others were about to tell the teachers we cheated, so we'd all be transferred together… but Yotsuba blew the whistle on us and said we were lying for her. Didn't she understand why we were doing it? We promised Mom that no matter what happened, we'd always stick together. The five of us are part of a whole. It's always been that way since we died. Didn't she see that?"
She was still upset about that. Things at her school weren't the same since Yotsuba left, she was sorely missed and that always put her in a bad mood. If it depended on her, she didn't care about being expelled too, or even repeating the year if it meant the five of them could stick together. On top, she didn't like the thought of letting her spend so much time with that grump Fuutarou, and she only tolerated it on the promise that he'd raise her grades enough for her to come back.
"What you say is quite admirable," Kintarou said. "I can see how much you care for your sisters. But tell me, haven't you thought how Yotsuba would feel about it? Why she didn't want you and the others to follow her?"
Nino gave the blond a cursory glance. His expression had turned more serious and for a second, she caught a glimpse of Fuutarou's face in him. That alleviated a bit her doubts about their relationship.
"I still don't know Yotsuba too much, but if I had to guess… I'd say she did it to avoid becoming a load to you four," he said. "Maybe she did it because she cares, and she doesn't want you four to pay for her mistakes. Tell me, what'd you have done in her stead?"
Nino opened her mouth, but found herself unable to pronounce a word. She'd be about to say that she'd have accepted the others' decision, if it was to stick together, until she realized she wouldn't actually be able to. In fact, being as stubborn as she was (and she was fully aware of it, hard as it was to accept), she'd probably be even more vocal about it, unlike Yotsuba who waited almost until the last second to give them away, and maybe just because she couldn't hold her weight of conscience anymore.
"Guess I'd have done the same," she said in a solemn tone. "Hell, any of us would have done the same. None of us would have wanted the others to suffer or have troubles because of her."
"You see?" The blond smiled again. "And if you're worried about being separated for too long, you can rest easy. My cousin might be a grump, but when it comes to studies, there's no one more reliable than him. You'll see soon enough; this year's gonna fly really fast, and Yotsuba will be back with you before you realize."
"I hope you're right," Nino said. She still didn't like the blue-haired grump, but they all counted on him for Yotsuba to go back to their old school. He couldn't fail them.
Suddenly, the interesting conversation was interrupted by some wails coming from the forest. Nino was startled for a moment, but involuntarily grabbed Kintarou's arm. He, catching the indirect, immediately stepped forward protectively in front of her (how gallant!) and made her feel safer.
"Wait, that voice sounds like… Itsuki? Itsuki!"
"Eh? Who …? Who's there?" the voice answered, and effectively recognized her as her sister. She still sounded scared to death.
"Itsuki, over here, quick!" she called out, and both her and Kintarou began running in her direction.
"DON'T COME CLOSER! BEGONE, EVIL SPIRITS!"
Which turned out to be a big mistake. Unlike Nino, Itsuki was so scared she didn't recognize her sister's voice, and as soon as she heard them approaching ran off again, crying and screaming. The bright side was that, at least, that told them where she was and made it easy to follow her, though they quickly ran into another problem…
"This is bad! She's heading for the cliff!" Kintarou exclaimed upon realizing where she was running to.
"Stop, Itsuki! You're gonna fall!" Nino screamed.
"GET AWAY, DON'T COME ANY CLOSER!" the redhead continued to scream.
Nino and Kintarou sped up the pace, trying to catch Itsuki. The area she headed for was much darker and the risk of falling off the cliff for not seeing it was much higher.
"Eh? Ah… ah, aaaaaaaaaaaaahhh!"
"WATCH OUT!"
Itsuki could barely stop, with her tiptoes right over the edge, and began waving her arms around trying to balance herself. One second later she would have probably gone down headfirst, but fortunately, each of them managed to grab one of Itsuki's arms, stopping her from falling right after the fragile soil under Itsuki's feet gave out, leaving them suspended over the dark abyss.
"Nino, on the count of three!" Kintarou said. "One… two… three!"
With their combined strength, both of them pulled Itsuki back from the cliff, and the three of them ended up sitting on their rears. Both Nino and Kintarou breathed heavily, while Itsuki continued to cry like a baby, still not over the scare until she finally raised the look and saw her sister.
"Nino!" she shouted, hugging her. "I felt so lonely, and so scared!"
"There, there, little sis. There's nothing to fear now," the second sister said.
For the time being, it was better to stay this way, at least until her little sister calmed down enough for them to go back. That had been one hell of a scare for both, but luckily it was all over.
…
A few minutes later, Kintarou escorted them back to the path, though he had to double back and retrieve his vampire cape, which got ensnared in some bushes when he ran after Nino. Both sisters were deeply grateful for saving them from falling off that cliff.
"I apologize for the inconveniences we caused," Itsuki said.
"Especially you. He wouldn't have had to bother if someone hadn't run off alone," Nino quipped. Itsuki puffed her cheeks at the remark, but Nino ignored her. "But really, thanks so much, Kintarou-kun. You saved us both."
"Gee, ladies, you're making me blush," he said modestly. "You'll almost out of here, just don't get separated or stray from the path anymore, okay?"
"We won't," Itsuki assured.
"See you later!" Nino waved him goodbye.
And with that, the two sisters returned to the courage test path. Now they were together again, Nino grabbed her sister more tightly, to ensure she wouldn't run off until they got out of there.
"What a night, huh?" Nino said.
"One of the worse I've had," Itsuki said. "I'm scared to death, and I almost died literally! How can you be so calm?"
"I'm not, I just can hide it better," Nino admitted. "Really, you gave me the biggest scare of all. You had me so worried."
"I'm sorry," the redhead apologized.
"Well, at least there's a bright side to everything." The second sister smiled. "I could get to see Kintarou-kun again, and even talk to him."
"You're so lucky." The youngest sister smiled too. "We better hurry, the sooner we get out of this forest, the better. And I'm starving."
"Fine, in that case I'll make some snacks for you. And for Kintarou-kun; I need to do something special for saving us."
The two sisters continued without a single word. Fortunately, there was only one checkpoint left, though this time around they just got a slight startle. They weren't sure if it was because the boy who tried to scare them looked more like a pretty boy than a spooky creature, or because almost falling off that cliff and living to tell the story ensured they couldn't get more scared so easily.
Though for Nino, those scares were worth it, just for having the chance to hang out for a bit with the boy she liked, and she definitely would give him something special to thank him. In fact, maybe she'd make it double, for each one of them.
With memories like that, Nino wished this school camp could last forever, so she could spend more time with and get to know him even more.
To be continued…
Author's notes:
Okay, this one's so far the shortest chapter I've written. Could be said that this chapter is more of an extra scene for the previous one, but since I promised to have some chapters starring the quints who are not in the main love triangle, the first one is for Nino. It also helps me set up some development for Kintarou, whom despite having a few elements of canon Fuutarou (like having him save Nino from falling off the cliff), I'm trying my best to distinguish him, as I want to give him a character arc, rather than having him just as the second quint's couple. I've got some backstory and personal growth thought up (and I'll try to take it along with his relationship with Nino), but I won't give any more details for now. I don't want to ruin the surprise.
Anyway, now this one officially concludes the school camp's second day. Next comes the final day, and the bonfire dance I'm sure many of you are waiting for. What's gonna happen there. Well, in the meantime, thanks for the reviews to TheMist33, Random Reader Guy, OmegaBox, OtakuCruz and The Exiled Darkness. See you soon!