Chapter 27
Very Suspicious
The sun was beginning to get low over the mountains as the bus navigated its way along the winding road, leaving the ski resort far behind. As we made our descent, the snow reflected the fiery red of the sky, bringing colour to a once colourless world. Eventually, the snow gave way once more to the oranges, yellows, and greens of autumn, and the last remnants of the snow were relegated to the shadowy places where it desperately clung to existence.
In the bus itself, we had mostly returned to our previous seating arrangements - but Miku had elected to sit on another bus, possibly to avoid a grilling from Yotsuba and me. As we rounded yet another bend in the road, I was recounting the day's adventures to Ichika, who was nodding along with a half-smile on her face.
"...and then, we fled Second Place-san, and spent the rest of the afternoon on the slopes. I only fell a couple more times, but Itsuki had a magnificent wipeout - frankly, I was impressed."
"Hey," Itsuki growled, turning to look back at me through the headrests. "I was trying to avoid that kid who cut across the slope!"
"You and the kid were both fine, though, and so it's hilarious," I shrugged. "I'm fairly certain you slid at least fifty metres."
"Actually," Itsuki said, suddenly laughing in a self-conscious way, "it was kind of funny, wasn't it?"
"I wish I could have joined you guys," Ichika sighed. "I just never ran into you! I was with Hayasaka-chan for the entire time."
"Who?" I frowned.
"Our roommate," Yotsuba said from beside me, stifling a yawn. "You know, the girl Ichika and Miku did the orienteering with."
"Oh!" I said, frowning. "Right, I remember now. She was with you at the Ryokan as well, right?"
"Yep," Yotsuba said sleepily. Then, with another yawn, she closed her eyes and leaned back in her chair.
"It was nice, and she's a lovely girl, but it would have been more fun with everyone there," Ichika sighed. "Oh well, it is what it is."
"Well, the trip isn't done yet," I said, shrugging. "We can still do stuff after we get back to the lodge - and there's the bonfire tonight as well."
"That's true," Ichika said, smiling back at me through the gap in the chairs. "Thanks, Fuutarou-kun."
I blinked. I wasn't quite sure what she was thanking me for, but I would nevertheless accept the praise.
Ichika turned back around to face forward, and I turned my head to look out the window. Suddenly, I felt a weight fall on my right shoulder. Glancing over, I saw that Yotsuba had slid over from her sitting position, and her head had fallen onto my shoulder.
Her red hair fell in small spools across my jacket, their swirls and eddies flowing across its surface. From this close, I could make out the individual hairs, each so thin and winding. While I couldn't feel her skin due to the polyester separating us, the pressure was enough to give me goosebumps - literally and figuratively. Her bow was gently swaying as she breathed, the ends tracing a path through the air in front of my face that was near-mesmerizing.
I felt like my eyes had been captured, with no hope of escape.
While, to the best of my abilities, I outwardly managed to avoid changing expressions, on the inside alarm bells were ringing, the clang-clang-clang of an emergency rearing its head on the horizon. All soldiers were at their posts, anticipating their looming duty - prepared to engage in combat to protect the fort: both from the dangers without, and the dangers within.
Deep in my chest, in the padlocked cage of many things, a dark purr rumbled. Yellow eyes and dark black fur, a heavy paw, thick and deadly. The bars rattled; not by padlocks and keys, but by staves and polearms were the beasts inside eventually quelled. My iron will, so carefully honed over many years, was shaking - but it was not yet broken. Wrenching my eyes away from the sleeping girl on my shoulder, I glanced out the window, and tried to occupy my mind with something - anything - else.
Yotsuba let out a small noise, and readjusted herself slightly in her sleep.
Internally, I screamed.
Itsuki glanced back at me through the gap in the headrests, raised both her eyebrows in surprise, and then a massive smirk crossed her face.
"What?" I hissed quietly.
"Nothing," she said as she turned back around, her voice sounding all the world like she was trying desperately to contain peals of laughter. "Nothing at all."
I couldn't see the back of her head due to the obstruction of the headrest, but nevertheless I glared at it. Ichika also glanced back, chuckled, and then turned forward again. Rolling my eyes, I gently slid back into my chair and looked out the window, trying desperately not to think about the girl gently breathing in and out on my shoulder.
Alas, it did nothing for my elevated heart rate.
About forty-five minutes later, as we were beginning to make the final approach to the camping grounds, Yotsuba awoke with a sudden jolt, and sat up straight, blearily rubbing her eyes.
"Huh...?" she murmured. "Did... I fall asleep?"
"Yep," Ichika said, smiling slyly back at her. "All nice and comfy."
"Huh?" Yotsuba asked again groggily. Then, she squinted at Ichika, and turned to look at me slowly.
Then, she looked down at my shoulder, and her face slowly reddened.
"U-um, sorry, Uesugi-san," she stuttered, a mortified look on her face. "I... uh..."
"It's fine," I said, shrugging. "You clearly needed it."
"Um... but... sorry," she repeated, turning to look away from me.
I frowned. Her reaction seemed a bit over-the-top to me. Glancing down at my shoulder, I suddenly realized why - there was a wet spot on my coat where her head had been.
Huh. I guess she's a drooler.
I didn't really care, so I just shrugged. "Don't worry about it."
Yotsuba buried her head in her hands, groaning, and I couldn't help but laugh. With that, the bus pulled to a halt at the campgrounds. As we slowly began to disembark, Yotsuba still wasn't making eye-contact with me, and as she walked down the steps as quickly as she could, I could see her ears tinged with crimson and pink through her red hair; two shades so similar, yet so distinct.
Cute.
The thought came unbidden to my mind, and I mentally swatted it away. Back in the cage, dammit!
As the final students exited the bus, the gym teacher appeared from inside the lodge. On his face were the same giant foam sunglasses he'd worn during the orienteering, each lens the size of his face. Once more, I marvelled at the sheer determination with which he was keeping them perched on the bridge of his nose.
"Alright, kids!" he roared at the top of his lungs. "You've got the rest of the time until dinner free! Everyone meet at the picnic tables at eighteen-thirty! Dinner crew, you're on duty starting at eighteen-hundred! Diiiiiiismissed!"
"Uesugi-san!" Yotsuba suddenly exclaimed, turning to me, her earlier embarrassment forgotten in an instant. "I just remembered - I found a table tennis table in a lounge in the lodge yesterday! Play me!"
I raised an eyebrow. "Is this revenge for me whooping your butt at cards?"
"Huh? What, no, I- wait. Actually... yes! Muahaha! You'll bow before my might, Uesugi-san!"
Cackling with glee, Yotsuba turned on her heels and started marching off towards the lodge. I turned to Itsuki and Ichika, who were both watching her go with varying levels of amusement on their faces.
"Coming?" I ventured.
"Sure," Ichika smiled lazily. "I'll probably just watch though. I'm not huge on... sports."
I briefly thought back to my own volleyball-related injuries.
...Understandable.
"In a bit," Itsuki shrugged. "I want to go grab my book from my room first."
"Suit yourself," I shrugged. "Shall we?"
With a nod, Ichika started walking after Yotsuba, who had turned back at the entrance to the lodge and was waving frantically for us to follow. After a moment, Itsuki and I followed suit. After walking through the door, Itsuki bid us a temporary farewell, and departed. Mere minutes later, we had arrived in a large lounge area in the basement; and, indeed, there were a number of tables set up for table tennis.
"Alright, Uesugi-san!" Yotsuba called, picking up a paddle from a small alcove in the table. "Get ready for a whoopin'!"
"Bold of you, Yotsuba. I'll probably get at least one point off of you," I said drily, picking up my own paddle. "What are we going to?"
"Twenty-one!"
"Great," I said, nodding. "I'm ready for my beat-down."
"Shi shi shi," Yotsuba snickered. "At least you acknowledge my dominance, Uesugi-san!"
I snorted. Looking down at the paddle, I ran my finger along the material. While I'd certainly heard of the sport before, I'd never actually tried to play. The soft surface felt almost... sticky to the touch. The wooden handle, on the other hand, was smooth and lacquered. It fit into my hand near-perfectly.
"Sure," I said absently, still staring down at the paddle. Then, I looked up at her "I just have one extremely important question before we begin, Yotsuba-sensei."
"Yes, my faithful student?" Yotsuba said smugly.
"Right... what are the rules?"
Yotsuba's jaw dropped.
After a moment of stunned silence, she shook her head. "Um... oh, geez, I wasn't expecting... o-ok! The rules of table tennis! Um..."
Off to the side where she was sat on the couches, Ichika turned away, covering her mouth - but I could see her shoulders shaking with mirth that she was entirely failing to hide.
"Well, I appreciate the effort to not laugh in my face, at least," I said drily, looking over at her with dead eyes.
"Sorry," she said, wiping a tear from her eye as she turned back around. "I didn't mean to laugh at you, Fuutarou-kun. You really are terrible at sports though, aren't you? How do you not even know the rules to table tennis?"
"Can you get a university degree in table tennis?" I asked.
"I... don't think so?" Ichika said.
I spread my hands in a 'there's your answer' position, and Ichika started shaking again. Rolling my eyes and turning back to the table, I listened attentively to Yotsuba's explanation. It seemed simple enough, so I was fairly confident I could get at least one point off Yotsuba. It reminded me of badminton, which I was at least capable of playing.
It's basically the same thing, right? I'll be fine.
"Ready?" Yotsuba asked.
"Born ready," I said, brimming with false confidence. "When I was a zygote, I already had a table tennis paddle in my hand, practicing for this moment."
"Good! I like your confidence, young one!" Yotsuba chortled. "Now, feel my wrath!"
Yotsuba served. I swung.
The ball phased through my paddle, and onto the floor.
"Eh?" I said, frowning, looking down at the paddle.
"Uesugi-san," Yotsuba said, trying to hide her smile. "You... have to hit the ball with the flat part of the paddle."
"I... thought I did?"
"No, you just missed," she shook her head. "It can be hard to judge the ball's position sometimes."
"...Huh. No, I'm pretty sure that just defied the laws of physics and phased through my paddle."
From the side, Ichika piped up.
"Should have done some more reps in the womb, hmm, Fuutarou-kun?"
I scowled at her.
"Hey now," she said, her smirk growing bigger. "Itsuki-chan isn't here yet, so I'm on teasing-you duty."
"I wasn't aware there was a rotation," I said drily. Turning back around, I tossed the ball to Yotsuba.
"Ok, attempt two!"
A serve.
Another miss.
"Again," I said, gritting my teeth.
Itsuki walked into the room some time later to my howls of frustration. Sitting down in a chair near Ichika, she opened her book, but then looked over at me.
"How's the match going?" she asked.
"How do you think?" I shot back, my teeth not so much gritted as in a vice grip. "Again!"
"Is he getting his butt kicked?" she queried Ichika.
"Badly," she laughed. "It's 17-0 right now."
Itsuki's eyes widened. "Not a single point? Wow. Uesugi-kun, you suck."
"This is my first time ever playing!" I growled.
"I thought you practiced relentlessly in the womb as a zygote?" Ichika asked innocently.
Falling to my knees, I repeatedly banged my head (gently) against the table's edge in frustration. I'd expected to lose - I hadn't expected to be destroyed this badly. I'd expected to pick up at least a few points off error by Yotsuba... but there hadn't been any.
Yotsuba laughed awkwardly, preparing her serve. "Sorry..."
"It's fine, it's my own incompetence," I said, shaking my head and rising back to my feet. "I want you trying your best. I swear that I'll get a point off you... eventually."
Yotsuba looked doubtful, but she served.
I swung powerfully and made contact with the ball.
It went flying straight and true - right across the table without touching it once, and far past Yotsuba, who dodged out of the way. It smacked into the far wall, and dropped to the floor with a clatter.
"Hey, at least you hit it!" Yotsuba said as she picked up the gently rolling ball, clearly trying to be supportive.
"Thanks," I sighed, defeated. "Now I just need to hit it in the right direction..."
As Yotsuba got ready to serve again, my eyes wandered to the door behind her leading back up to the main floor. There was a person standing there... watching us. Well, standing wasn't quite right - they were hiding behind the thick oaken door frame, their figure partially obscured by its girth.
Watching us also wasn't quite right. As I followed their gaze, I realized they were staring at Itsuki.
I sighed.
If you're going to stare at her like that, I thought, mentally shooting daggers at the cowering Second Place-san, just come over and apologize. How could you be so relentless on the slope, and then so timid now?!
Suddenly, the ball smacked harmlessly into my chest. Blinking, I looked down, and grabbed it.
"Uesugi-san...?"
Looking up, I saw Yotsuba looking at me quizzically.
"Sorry," I said, shaking my head. "I was distracted by a certain starer."
"Starer...?"
Yotsuba turned to look at the door, and with a yelp, Second Place-san ran away.
"That was weird," she said, turning back to me. "He was so... straightforward before. Anyways, we don't have to count that serve."
"Right?" I said, shrugging. "We can count it, it was my own fault. Again."
The score quickly reached 21-0, and with that Yotsuba finished me off with a perfect game. Looking extremely pleased with herself for not messing up a single serve, Yotsuba came over and shook my hand - a gesture that I wasn't totally sure I'd earned, but I took anyways. Even as she vigorously pumped my arm, her hand felt soft in mine.
"Let's go again!" she said.
"Fine," I sighed. "You just want to relish kicking my ass, though."
"What, I- um... no..."
"It's fine, just admit it."
"I don't want to just kick your butt, Uesugi-san! I wanna have fun playing with you too!"
Doubtfully, I took up my position opposite her.
"If you say so."
As the serving continued, I found myself eventually able to consistently hit the ball, though returning properly was still a challenge. Even as the second round neared its end, I had yet to take a single point off the smug ribboned girl across from me.
"Shi shi shi," she snickered as she prepared to serve. "Witness my dominance, Uesugi-san!"
I was too depressed to offer a retort.
"Alright," Itsuki said, suddenly snapping her book shut and standing up. "I have to head off for dinner duty. See you all tonight!"
"Bye!" Ichika said brightly.
Yotsuba and I both waved to her as she walked around the table and out the door where Second Place-san had been hiding. She disappeared down the hall, and I turned back to the game.
"Huh- Miku? What are you doing? ...Why were you hiding?"
Itsuki's voice came from the hallway, and I looked sharply up at Yotsuba.
"Uesugi-san...?" Yotsuba asked uncertainly.
"I'm gonna go press her," I said decisively. "This whole hiding and sneaking around and staring and being hot and cold - it's starting to piss me off. I want answers."
Yotsuba nodded. "I'll come with you."
I was about to agree - but something in my chest made me hesitate. Some instinct.
The last time Miku told me a secret... she didn't want any of her sisters to know. I wonder if it's related.
"No, I think it'll be easier if I just go on my own," I said, shaking my head. "I just... I have a feeling."
Yotsuba looked a bit hurt, but nodded.
"Ichika?" I said.
"Huh?"
"Catch. Your turn."
"What?!"
I tossed her the paddle and strode out the door. From behind me, I could hear Ichika complaining about not wanting to actually play, but I was soon out of earshot. At the end of the hall, Itsuki and Miku were facing each other - but as soon as Miku saw me coming, her eyes widened, and she turned and ran.
"Wha- Miku? Where are you going?!" Itsuki asked in bewilderment.
Charging after her, I shot past Itsuki - or at least, that was how I saw it in my mind's eye. It was probably more of a quick lope. Luckily for me, Miku was hardly a paragon of athleticism either, and so as I chased her across the hall and up the stairs, I neither gained nor lost ground.
Reaching the top of the steps, I saw Miku's red hair rounding a corner, and I charged after her. Dashing around the bend and sliding slightly on the carpet, I could see her chugging along down the hallway. Taking off after her, it was all I could do to draw breath as I funnelled all my energy into my legs. Miku looked back over her shoulder, her hair catching slightly in her headphones: and even from this distance, I could see the flare of panic in her eyes.
Instantly, part of me felt guilty - though as to why, I wasn't sure.
Nevertheless, I persisted.
Miku turned another corner, and as I too rounded it, I saw with horror that she was on the verge of entering a place I couldn't follow - the women's washroom.
"Sneaky," I hissed as she raced inside.
Pulling to a halt just outside the door, I raised my hands to my mouth.
"Miku!" I called. "I just want to talk!"
A minute passed with no response. Then, just as I was beginning to get self-conscious of the fact that I was loitering outside a women's washroom, none other than Nino emerged from the bathroom. Frowning, I moved out of her way.
"Uesugi," she said coldly. "Why are you creeping outside the washroom?"
"I'm not," I scowled. "I'm waiting for Miku to come out."
Nino sniffed. "Sounds like creeping to me, pervert."
I rolled my eyes. "Whatever you say."
Nino strode away, and rounded the corner. I watched her go, and then turned back to the washroom.
Another minute passed, and Miku hadn't emerged.
Weird...
Suddenly, my eyes narrowed.
"Hang on a second!" I exclaimed indignantly, turning back to look the way that Nino had gone. Running to the corner, I looked around it to see, of course, an empty hallway.
She didn't disguise herself as Nino... did she?
Charging down the hallway, I exited out into the main lobby, and looked up at the balcony on the second floor. Sure enough, I saw Miku walking towards one of the hallways on the far side, a distinctly smug look on her face.
She doesn't know I figured her out. Time to be sneaky.
I immediately slipped out of the lobby and up the stairs. Hurrying to where I'd last seen her, I rounded the bend and saw her leisurely strolling, almost at the end of the hallway. Power-walking after her, I reached the end myself and saw that she was no more than a few metres away from me, her back turned away. Stepping softly up to her, I reached out and tightly grabbed her shoulder from behind.
She immediately jumped, turning her head to look at me in surprise, her mouth hanging open in fright.
"Gotcha," I said grimly. "That was a dirty trick, Miku."
Miku squeaked - but, instead of responding, she ducked out from under my hand, and then began running again. Gritting my teeth, I once again raced after her.
Isn't she tired of this?!
She rounded the corner, but she'd lost her head start, and I maintained my separation, neither gaining nor falling behind. Charging past a teacher who called after us angrily, Miku emerged back onto the balcony and crashed into the railing. Rolling to the side, she used the momentum to clumsily push herself towards the hallway leading to the stairs. Swinging around the corner sharply without going anywhere near the railing (more out of a fear of going straight over it than any desire for efficiency), I tailed her closely.
Tap tap tap tap.
She shot down the stairs.
Thud thud thud thud.
I followed.
Racing through the centre of the lobby, Miku had fully given in to her panic at this point. Ignoring the teacher yelling down from the balcony, she charged straight across the large room with its couches and fireplaces and rural regalia, and blasted out the doors. Paying minimal heed to those things as well, I enacted my pursuit, refusing to allow her a moment's respite to try and trick me again.
Outside, the unseasonal warmth that had characterized the past few weeks was beginning to fade away, and the icy chill of the mountains was settling in with the sun far lower over the stony peaks. Darkness was already on the verge of falling. Miku, pouring sweat, took off across the stone plaza, making a beeline for the woods.
Seriously?!
Frustrated, I gave chase.
Stone soon gave way to trail and branch and shrubbery. As she clumsily leapt over roots and dodged tree branches in her headlong dash down the trail, I could tell that she was beginning to lose steam - her lack of natural athleticism was beginning to catch up with her. Her movements were growing sloppier, and her breath, which I was close enough to hear, was ragged. She was definitely slowing.
Unfortunately, so was I.
Wheezing, my lungs on fire, it was all I could do just to keep pace with her. Every breath I took was agony, and my legs were threatening to cramp with every step. A small part of my mind, the one that had long since given into the madness of lactic acid, was ruing my decision to not start running with Yotsuba.
She only offered the morning we left, idiot. It wouldn't have made any difference yet.
Eventually, we rounded a corner, and I saw the small bridge which Itsuki, Yotsuba and I had crossed during our orienteering. As Miku stumbled across it, she lost her footing, and she fell flat on her face.
"Miku!" I called, finally catching up. Crouching next to her, it was all I could do to not topple over as well from sheet exhaustion. "Are... are you ok?"
Struggling, Miku looked up at me.
"I think so," she panted, before wincing. "Actually... I think I may have skinned my knee. I... don't think it's anything serious though."
Rolling over and sitting up, I could see that she had scraped her knee, and while it didn't look like she was bleeding, it did look like it needed to be cleaned.
"Let's head back to the lodge," I said, wiping sweat out of my eyes. "You should get that cleaned up, and it's going to be dangerously dark soon."
Miku nodded silently, and rose to her feet unsteadily.
"Can you walk?"
"I... I think so."
"...Ok," I said, suddenly unsure of what to do. Getting her treated was far more important than pressing her over some secrets.
With Miku walking slowly next to me, her shoulders hunched, I felt a bit like a dog who had frantically chased an ambulance down the street, only to suddenly surprisingly catch it. Just like the canine chaser, I was clueless as to what to actually do now that I'd caught my target. We walked in silence for several minutes - but with our slowed pace, given our depleted energy reserves, it was clear we'd be on the trail for a while longer.
I still wanted to press her. That said, I had no idea how to actually broach the subject.
How... do you ask someone why they're being weird... without being rude?
Then, I blinked.
Wait, since when have I ever cared about being rude?
"Hey, Miku," I said suddenly, and she started.
"U-Uh...Yes?"
"You've been acting weirdly lately," I said, pointing my finger at her. "What's going on? Spill the beans."
Miku, instead of getting angry, simply looked away from me.
"What... what do you mean?"
I frowned. "You know exactly what I mean. You've been staring at me non-stop, and yet also switching between being friendly and giving me the cold shoulder, seemingly at random. I don't get it - I thought Nino was the queen of mixed signals, but you're really starting to give her a run for her money here."
Miku opened her mouth... and then closed it again.
We walked on in silence for an entire minute more without her saying anything, and I could feel my irritation beginning to spike.
Yep. As expected, I don't have the patience for this sort of thing. Maybe I should have let Yotsuba come after all.
"It's... it's complicated," Miku muttered.
"Is it really?" I asked, raising my eyebrow.
"No, not really," she admitted.
I just kept my eyebrow raised.
She remained silent.
"Oh, also," I added, "that reminds me - who was your friend? Your sisters were extremely curious. I'll admit to also having had my curiosity piqued. Slightly. Marginally. Just a little bit."
Miku seemed to be struggling with something internally. As we stepped over a fairly large root in the trail, she suddenly stopped, and I almost walked into her.
"I don't want to say," she pouted, turning to look back at me. "That's why I ran away."
"Why? I already know your secret. What's another one?"
Miku's eyes narrowed as she took that logic into consideration- and then she seemed to almost wilt.
"Fine. I'll... I'll tell you."
I waited.
Nothing.
I made a 'continue on' gesture.
"I guess I need to go pretty far back," she started.
I simply nodded.
"Fuutarou... do you remember? That day, on the balcony."
Frowning, I slowly nodded again. "I remember. The day I made up with Itsuki. You told me about your love of Sengoku-era warlords."
As I named her passion aloud, Mike seemed to instinctively flinch and look around, as though hunting for eavesdroppers. After being seemingly reassuring herself that we were, in fact, in the depths of the woods, she nodded.
"Do you remember what you told me that day?"
"Uh... believe in yourself? Something along those lines?"
"Not quite," she said, smiling softly. "You told me that it was ok to be proud of what I like."
"Right, that's what it was," I said, nodding.
"I actually... really took those words to heart," Miku said quietly. "Not enough to tell my sisters... but I realized that night that I wanted someone to talk to. Someone to share my passion with. I didn't want to be ashamed of what I like."
"And... that's why you've been acting weirdly?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I'm getting there, Fuutarou," Miku said, pouting. "Be patient."
"Ah. Sorry."
"Anyways," she continued. "I was lying in bed that night, and I decided I needed someone to talk to. I thought about talking with you about it... but Yotsuba and you were so busy with preparing for midterms that I realized it wouldn't work. So..."
"So?"
"I decided to look for people online who like Sengoku warlords," Miku said matter-of-factly.
I frowned. "There are people on the internet who like Sengoku-era warlords?"
"There are people on the internet who like everything, Fuutarou," she said.
"I... see," I said, not seeing at all.
"Anyways, I found a community of people who like warlords, and so I started talking with them about my favourite games, who the best warlord is, who... who the most handsome is. Things like that."
Are... are any of them handsome?
I diplomatically chose to keep that thought to myself.
"Most of them were guys, which was fine... but there were a few girls there too, which surprised me. There was one of them that I started talking to every day, and playing online with her... it was a lot of fun."
Miku seemed embarrassed by this, but I was still stuck on the point that there were entire communities of people in the nebulous virtual world of the internet who liked ancient warlords.
The internet is scary.
"Anyways, I... I was talking with my friend every day, and pouring hundreds of hours into playing with her."
"Ok, and-"
"So, when Takeda gave his first session... I completely forgot about it, and was up in my room talking and gaming with my friend. By the time I realized what had happened, he'd already finished tutoring and left."
In my chest, small embers of pity for Second Place-san smouldered.
"Then," Miku said, ploughing ahead - now that she'd begun talking, she was starting to really get into it. "When I came downstairs, Yotsuba and Itsuki were complaining about how terrible the session was, and how much of a jerk the tutor was... and I realized something."
"Yeah?"
"I couldn't tell them why I'd skipped."
I frowned. "Wait, why not?"
"If they knew I was talking to a friend and gaming instead of attending the tutoring session with them... they'd want to know about the friend, and how I met her."
"...And then they'd have learned about the warlords," I said, an inkling of comprehension beginning to dawn on me.
Miku nodded glumly. "So... so I lied."
I was silent, awkward. I wasn't sure how to respond. I wasn't even sure if she wanted me to respond.
There's more to this than I thought.
"I told Yotsuba and Itsuki that I refused to attend the session out of principle. Honestly, I just sort of panicked and came up with something on the spot. After that, though... I'd made it into some big thing. I couldn't suddenly start attending the sessions after that."
"...Ah."
I frowned, scratching my cheek. It had never made sense to me that Miku had been so opposed to tutoring by Second Place-san. Now, I knew why - she hadn't been opposed at all.
"So, I... just didn't go. Every session, I was just holed up in my bedroom playing video games with Maggie, and-'
"Maggie?" I frowned.
"Oh," Miku said. "That's my friend's username - Maggie, and then some numbers. I think it's after a character in a western show or something. That's not her real name, obviously."
"What is her real name?" I asked, confused. What's a username?
"Komagi Rei, but I usually just call her Maggie in my head. Actually, now that I think of it... maybe it's from her name as well? Komagi, Maggie... Hmm. I didn't think of that before now... I'll ask her later."
"Ok, let's focus," I said, feeling quite strongly that the topic of conversation had diverged. "So, you skipped out on Second Place-san's sessions to play video games with this... Maggie? Repeatedly?"
Miku pouted at my tone... but then nodded. I could tell she wasn't particularly proud of it.
"So... I heard you failed pretty badly. I guess that's direct cause and effect."
"I still passed Social Studies," Miku protested. "Barely, but..."
"You barely passed the subject that you're so obsessed with that you skipped your tutoring sessions?" I asked, raising my eyebrows in surprise.
"Most of the questions weren't on Sengoku warlords," she said glumly. "My score dropped a lot... thirty-two out of a hundred."
"That checks out," I sighed, "but also, ouch. Ok, so what happened after that?"
As I asked, I began walking again, and after a moment, Miku began walking after me. The trail was littered with roots, which made walking and talking somewhat difficult - but I didn't particularly want to linger after the sun had finished setting. We were already cutting it dangerously close.
"Just before the exam, Maggie told me she was going to be going skiing in November. A family trip, or something. I checked the dates, and realized it was a week before our own school trip - and when I asked, I found out she was going to the same resort we were!"
"How fortuitous," I said drily. That sounds suspicious as hell.
Maybe my skepticism was visible on my face, because Miku's eyes hardened.
"She brought up the ski resort first, Fuutarou."
"I see," I said carefully.
"Anyways," Miku continued, "Maggie lives in Tokyo, so it's not like I was going to get a lot of chances to see her - but we weren't going at the same time, so at first I thought, 'oh well, that sucks,' and forgot about it."
"Seems reasonable."
"Yeah, but then she convinced her family to change the weekend they were going skiing."
My eyes widened in surprise. "Wow, that's... that's a big commitment."
"I know," Miku nodded. "I was pretty surprised too. I've voice chatted and video called Maggie before, but getting to meet her in person was a pretty exciting idea - and she even went so far as to change which weekend she was going."
Well, that explains how weirdly she was acting on the bus here, and on the way up to the ski resort. She must have been messaging this person the whole time. I see.
"So, we had made plans," Miku continued, oblivious to my analyzing eyes, "and I was starting to really look forward to this trip - I was going to finally meet up with a friend that I could talk with about warlords as much as I wanted."
"I see," I nodded.
"Then, Dad threatened to cancel the trip."
I froze. "Oh. Right. The threatened community service."
"Right," Miku said glumly. "It's my own fault, I shouldn't have lied and skipped the tutoring sessions... but I panicked. So, I decided I would start attending, because I really wanted to go on this trip."
"So that's why you were so distraught about it," I said, slamming my closed fist down onto my palm. "It all makes sense now."
"Huh? You... you noticed that?" Miku asked.
"Well, you see," I said drily, "I have eyes."
"Rude," Miku pouted. "You don't need to be like that."
"Ah, sorry," I said, raising my hands. "My bad."
We rounded a corner on the trail, and I realized with a start that it was already starting to get quite dark. Pulling out my phone, I saw that it was approaching dinner time. I slightly increased my pace, my aching legs complaining about my tyranny - but alas, not being independently sentient, they had no rights.
Miku caught up, and shook her head.
"Anyways, Takeda's sessions weren't that bad. I don't know what Yotsuba and Itsuki were being so dramatic about."
"That's because you joined after the midterms," I said, a strange feeling of defensiveness suddenly rising in my chest. "Second Place-san got humbled pretty badly. His ego got temporarily deflated."
"Maybe," Miku said doubtfully.
"Emphasis on temporarily," I said darkly. "You'll see."
Probably.
There was some small part of me that was hopeful that Second Place-san would seriously change his ways - but I was hardly an optimist. His reverting to form was far more likely.
As we neared the head of the trail, I turned back around to look Miku dead in the eye.
"So, that explains most of your weirdness-"
"Hey, that's not a nice way of putting it," Miku frowned.
"...Fine, that explains most of the way you were acting. Not all of it though."
"What do you mean?"
"It doesn't explain the way you've been acting around me," I said pointedly. "Ever since the midterms, it feels like you've been acting hot and cold around me - standing up to defend me from Nino, and then ignoring me completely. I don't get it."
"Oh..."
Miku looked away from me, and for the first time, I thought I saw her blush.
...Wait, what?
"It's embarrassing," she said quietly.
"...Go on," I said disbelievingly. This had better not be what I think it is.
Miku took a deep breath, and gulped. Then, she looked up at me.
"I... I..."
I raised an eyebrow in trepidation, and Miku apparently decided to just get it all out at once.
"Since the midterms ended, I thought you might have more free time! Which meant you... might be free to talk about Sengoku warlords with me! Since you're the only person I know in real life who knows. Talking with Maggie is fun, but... it's not the same. It was when I finally got to meet her today, but... I want to talk about my hobbies in person! I want someone who can sit next to me while I'm playing and talk to me about it!
"I wanted to ask about all that- I want a real-life friend to talk to about my passions! It's... but... but it had been over a month since we had that talk on the balcony. It... it felt awkward to bring it up out of nowhere. I didn't know what to do - I wanted to be your friend and hang out, but I also didn't know how to do that, and I... I didn't want you to think I was trying too hard. So..."
Miku paused, seeming to get caught up in her words.
"So I would sometime lose myself in it, and then sometimes I'd remember." Miku eventually finished lamely. "That's... that's it."
I was silent, suddenly embroiled in my own thoughts.
Well, at least it wasn't some kind of confession out of the blue, like I thought it was at first - that would have been awkward in the extreme. I've barely talked to her. That said... she wants to be my friend? Can... can people become friends that easily?
Admittedly... whenever I've hung out with Miku, I've enjoyed myself. Playing cards with her is fun, and while I'm not particularly enamoured with Sengoku warlords the way she is... it could be fun to learn more about them.
Hmm...
With a start, I realized that Miku was anxiously staring at me, waiting.
"So, just to summarize," I said slowly, "you were acting like that... because you wanted to be friends, but were too awkward to directly bring it up, and weren't entirely sure of what to even do."
Miku glumly nodded, and I suppressed a laugh.
"Well then," I said, shaking my head. "I guess that's fine with me. I'm happy to be friends. So long as it doesn't get in the way of my studying, of course."
She pouted. "Why do you make it sound like it's conditional?"
I frowned. Because it is...?
"Ah, well, whatever," Miku said quietly. "I'm just happy I finally have someone else to talk to about Takeda Shingen..."
Then, a soft smile slipped onto her face, and Miku walked past me on the trail, continuing on towards the lodge.
Picking up the pace to catch up with her, a soft smile slipped unbidden onto my face in turn. Somehow, I felt like I'd been handed something precious out of the blue, and while I wasn't totally sure how to handle it, I could tell it was a fragile thing. Delicacy was needed... and care.
Am I up to the task?
"So..." I ventured as we approached the front doors of the lodge. "What should we tell the others?"
"Huh?"
"Your sisters," I elaborated. "They knew I was going after you because you were acting weirdly. What should we tell them?"
Miku paused for a second without answering, looking upwards at the arching wooden frame of the lodge above us, its rustic style almost calming, perhaps. A look, which I thought might have been fear, crossed her face for a moment, and then she took a deep breath, and looked over at me.
"As gentle as the forest, and as unshakeable as the mountains," she whispered.
I raised an eyebrow.
"Tell them," Miku said, a note of decisive steel entering her voice, "that I will explain everything to them myself. Just... not yet. Soon."
I shrugged. "Sure, sounds good. Yotsuba's going to whine about that, though."
Miku shrugged, and stepped past me. "Oh well."
Her dismissal seemed a little cold, but I decided to shrug it off. I definitely didn't fully understand the girl pushing the lodge doors open in front of me- not yet, anyways.
Maybe, though, by being her friend... I will, one day.
We re-entered the lodge, and descended back into the basement. As we walked through the door, a small plastic ball whizzed past my head. Looking over, I saw Ichika panting, sweat pouring down her face.
"F-Fuutarou-kun!" she whimpered, an uncharacteristically desperate note in her voice. "Save me!"
"Huh?!"
Yotsuba turned to face me from where she was standing at the other end of the table. A near-maniacal look was on her face.
"Uesugi-san, you're back! It's your turn!"
I sighed, and walked back over to Ichika as Yotsuba laughed maniacally.
"Sorry for shunting that on to you," I said, taking the paddle back.
Instead of responding, Ichika just staggered over and collapsed onto a couch. Miku went and sat next to her... and as I tossed the ball to Yotsuba, she smiled at me.
"Remember, Fuutarou," she said quietly, "be as fierce as the flames."
Yotsuba looked at her curiously, then back at me, and raised an eyebrow.
Later, I mouthed to her. Glancing over at Miku, I nodded.
"Noted."
Then, I swung the paddle at Yotsuba's serve - and finally managed to make a return.
A/N: Some couple-dozen chapters after it happened in canon, the Miku chase is here!
As I was finishing up this chapter, I was struck by the unfortunate fabled "AO3 curse", by which I mean that I was playing soccer/football, and my ankle spontaneously decided on its own that being vertical was for suckers. It's definitely sprained.
Luckily, I don't write with my toes. This is why we don't play sports, kids.
I'll see you all in the next chapter, which I've been looking forward to for a long time!