Koizumi said that the number of sealed spaces created by Haruhi had decreased, and they were beginning to happen less frequently too.
Koizumi also said that Nagato’s aura of “alienness” had decreased.
And even though you never said anything, Koizumi, you’ve also changed, isn’t that right, Mr. Vice Commander?
I could feel it; Haruhi had gradually opened up to the public. Be it during the cultural festival, during the competition with the Computer Research Society, or during the various SOS Brigade outings, Haruhi had definitely changed. No longer was she the same melancholic, anti-social individual she was during her first year. She would smile more often, and even communicate with unknown strangers.
“If anyone here is an alien, a time traveler, slider, or an esper, then come find me!”
“To find aliens, time travelers, and espers, and play with them!”
It’s as if she knew the truth after all.
I viewed all of this as part of her growth.
Though I had no idea about my own growth.
About half an hour later, I brought Asahina-san into my house.
“So that’s why.”
Asahina-san said as she removed her shoes and placed them by the door. “So that’s why Kyon-kun didn’t come to the club room that day.”
There was no way I could let Asahina-san return to her own house. Since I couldn’t think of a better place, the only place left was my own house. If there were any other time travelers like Asahina-san, I might have considered letting her stay with them.
“There’s a possibility such people exist, it’s just that I know nothing about them.”
Asahina-san wore an expression similar to a puppy after competing in a dog show, one of grief mixed with melancholy. My expression was probably similar to hers. Even though many questions appeared in my head, I didn’t feel like searching for answers right now.
Just then, my sister, who had totally nothing to do with our current problems, rushed over to Asahina-san’s side.
“Ah, it’s Mikuru!”
My sister was just about to drag Shamisen out from under my bed. Just as I opened my room door, she fixed her gaze on the beautiful Asahina-san, who was every North High male’s fantasy, before rushing forward towards her.
“Umm, yes, sorry for disturbing.”
“Huh, it’s just you and Kyon-kun? Where’s Haru-nyan?”
My sister looked at Asahina-san, as I grabbed the ten-year-old fifth-grader by her collar. “Haruhi’s still in school. And don’t come into my room without my permission.”
I knew that no matter how many times I told her, it would be useless. However, it took me a lot of effort to find a suitable hiding place for Asahina-san. I didn’t want anyone to find out about it.
“But, Shami doesn’t want to come out, either.”
My sister tugged at Asahina-san’s skirt, and giggled softly.
“Where are Yuki-chan and Koizumi-kun? And Tsuruya-san? Aren’t they coming?”
My sister was used to using whatever nickname she would hear. This can be seen ever since she started calling me Kyon. This little fifth-grader who had no idea what respect was. Come on, can’t you call me “Onii-chan” for once?
“Oooh, it’s a date! Am I right?”
I drove her out of my room before shutting the door tightly.
I sat on the floor facing Asahina-san, and said, “Tell me briefly what happened, I mean, what will happen, this week.”
“Umm…”
Asahina-san paused for a moment, before saying, “Eight days ago, and that’s today, I went to the club room, but noticed that no one was there. The heater, however, was already switched on.”
That’s what I saw, all right.
“Just after I finished changing, Nagato-san entered the room, and hurriedly dragged me to the emergency staircase…”
That’s what I saw partially, all right.
“When I came back, Kyon-kun’s bag was already missing, and Koizumi-kun was already inside.”
What a narrow escape.
“About 30 minutes later, Suzumiya-san entered the club room.”
Now that’s some career advice. I shouldn’t have panicked after all.
“Suzumiya-san looked a bit angry.”
Because she argued with Okabe-sensei about her ambitions. If there were any application forms for her desired ambitions, I would want one, too.
“She looked out of the window with killer eyes, and drank three cups of tea in a —- ah!”
Asahina-san eyes bulged wide with terror, as if she had just seen a dead body in the corner of my room.
“Suzumiya-san noticed that Kyon-kun wasn’t in the club room…”
She noticed?
“And she made a phone call.”
Just as she had finished making that statement, my cell phone rang.
Oh shit.
Thinking back about it, for Asahina-san, it was like a video replay; but for me, it was a live broadcast. This wasn’t the time to listen to her slow recollections. I hadn’t even thought of an excuse for skipping brigade activities. If I answered, I would probably become the next sacrificial goat, but if I ignored the phone call, things would seem even more suspicious. Well, I guess I should ask before answering?
“Asahina-san, did I answer the phone then?”
“Um… I think you did.”
Well then, here goes.
“Hello?”
“Where are you?”
Haruhi started off with her inquisition sounding frustrated. I answered her truthfully.
“In my room.”
“What? You’re slacking off?”
“It was an emergency.”
I began to weave my lie.
“What emergency?”
“Well…”
Just then Shamisen crawled out from under my bed.
“It’s like this. Shamisen was sick, so I brought him to the vet.”
“You?”
“Yes. Only my sister was at home then. It was she who told me.”
“What kind of sickness?”
8 A form of hair loss that usually originates from the scalp. It usually causes spot baldness on the head, and is sometimes known as “spot baldness”.
“Umm… Alopecia areata[8].”
It was a name I came up from nowhere. For some reason, Asahina-san covered her cherry-like lips.
“Alopecia areata? Shamisen?”
“Yep, the vet said that it was due to stress. He’s quietly resting in my room now.”
“Do cats have nerves that detect stress? And what’s this about resting in your room, hasn’t he always been staying in your room?”
“Well, that’s right, but you see, since my sister forced him to play with her too often, it’s caused stress to build up within him. I’ve decided to turn my room into his shelter, and I’m not letting my sister come in.”
“I see…”
Haruhi snorted and fell quiet. Did she buy it?
She then proceeded to say: “Is anyone else there with you?”
“…”
I brought my phone away from my ear, as I studied the time displayed on the screen.
How did she know? Asahina-san hadn’t said a word. She even covered her mouth with both her hands to prevent accidentally making any noises.
“No one’s here.”
“Oh, is that so? I just noticed that your voice seemed different than usual, so I decided to ask you.”
Her intuition is still as sharp as usual, I see.
“It’s just Shamisen. Should I put him on the line?”
“Forget it. Just tell him that I wish him a speedy recovery. Bye.”
And to my surprise, she hung up.
I threw my cell phone onto my bed, and looked at the flowery cat, who was leaning on Asahina-san’s lap. If Haruhi had really decided to drop by for a visit, I would be in trouble.
“And then? What did Haruhi do?”
Asahina-san thought for a moment, while caressing
Shamisen’s ears. “Umm… We stayed at the club room until five, and then everyone went home. Suzumiya-san… she was really quiet. All she did was flip through some magazines…”
Haruhi’s calm before the storm. Even Asahina-san had noticed it.
Had anyone else noticed? I bet Nagato had.
Shamisen lifted his paw and placed it on Asahina-san’s kneecap, as if claiming it as his own. Asahina-san then stroked his back, and said, “It’s as if she was different than usual… I’m sorry, I can’t really remember.”
That’s to be expected. If someone asked me what was Koizumi’s expression last Monday, all I would do was shrug and say, just like usual.
“What about the rest? Tomorrow, or the day after tomorrow?”
Asahina-san gently grabbed the purring Shamisen’s tail, as she lowered her head and said:
“Where should I stop?”
Just tell me what the future has in store, I’ll figure out the rest.
“All right then. Next, during the holidays, all of us will be going on a treasure hunt.”
A treasure hunt?
“Yes. Suzumiya-san came in the club room holding a map in her hands, and told us that we were to go dig for treasure.”
Dig?
“Yes. It was Tsuruya-san that gave Suzumiya-san that map. She said that she found it in the storeroom. Apparently, it was a map that her great great ancestor left.”
Asahina-san waved her fingers in the air, like a school of invisible silver fish swimming in the air.
“An old map drawn using black ink.”
Tsuruya-san… Once again you hand Haruhi something weird. And this time it requires digging? It’s not like we’re in ancient times anymore, where would we find a place to dig?
“A mountain.”
Asahina-san’s answer was clear and simple.
“There’s a mountain behind Tsuruya-san’s house. If you look carefully while standing on the slope during your journey back from school, you should be able to notice something round in the distance.”
Just hearing about it made me feel tired. It’s not like I hold any vendetta against the place or anything, it’s just that turning an entire mountain upside down just for the sake of some buried treasure was just as stupid as going on a picnic in this freezing climate. Just to make things clear, Tsuruya-san owning a mountain was nothing to be surprised about. I mean, if they are rich enough to afford a private skiing facility in the midst of the wilderness, what’s to be surprised at owning a mountain behind their house?
I sighed loudly without any inclination to conceal it, and said, “Did we find anything?”
“Well… No.”
Even though she hesitated slightly, Asahina-san continued to shake her head.
“It’s not like there’s ancient treasure anywhere else anyway.”
I better stop asking. Holidays were hard to come by, yet I had to waste it trying to find some buried treasure that I knew I wouldn’t find. There’s nothing worse than doing something you know won’t work out in the end.
“Then even during Saturday and Sunday…”
Do we still have to dig? Why don’t we just dig in Tsuruya-san’s front yard? Who knows, maybe we’ll discover an underground hot spring or something.
“No. During the weekend, we have to go for… um… a city wide search.”
So it was really going to be that activity after all. Searching the city in order to discover any mysterious events was one of the SOS Brigade’s main activities. Come to think of it, we haven’t done it for a while now.
“We won’t be searching for two straight days, will we?”
“Erm…. No. I mean yes.”
For some reason, Asahina-san averted her gaze from me, and said, “Because Monday’s also a holiday……”
I suddenly remembered that Monday was the day that the entrance exams were held. Students already enrolled there were allowed to skip school for the day.
So did we find anything strange?
That shouldn’t be the reason Asahina-san was sent back to the past, right?
“No, none at all.”
Asahina-san said as her maroon hair swept the floor.
“Just as usual, we would go to the café and have lunch…”
That just makes things even more complicated. If what Asahina-san said was true, then there wouldn’t be any reason to send Asahina-san back to the past, would there? Now if only she had traveled from a few months or few years into the future, then maybe that would make some sense. But for her to travel back one week in time? Are you sure there hasn’t been any mistake?
I silently observed Asahina-san, who was stroking Shamisen’s belly.
Since it was only a week, there would be no need to trouble Nagato in order to return to the future. Asahina-san and I had once returned from the 7th of July three years ago with Nagato’s aid. The both of us were frozen in time, as three years silently passed before us. It seems that my future self had learned a lesson. Concealing Asahina-san in a place where no one would notice her for a week, it wouldn’t be long before she returned to her original time plane. There would be no need for time freezing. As for any side effects, the only one I could think of was Asahina-san aging one week older, but I doubt it would make any difference.
But what was the point? If that was so, there would be no reason to send Asahina-san back to the past. Something must have happened, something that forced my future self to send her back to this time. There was also Asahina-san (big)’s letter, which further confirmed the matter…
“What was I like when I told you to return? Did I do or say anything strange?”
“Erm…”
Asahina-san closed her eyes as she continued to stroke Shamisen, who was curled up into a ball.
I might as well try a different approach.
“Tell me what my self eight days from the future did when he told you to return here.”
“That I can remember clearly, since to me, it happened just today.”
Asahina-san removed her hand from the flowery cat, and began tracing shapes in the air.
“We were having an activity in the school’s front yard, an SOS Brigade style lucky draw.”
For what reason?
“Anyone who wished to participate had to pay a small sum of money… The winner would receive a five hundred yen coupon. Suzumiya-san was busy holding up a megaphone…”
“That should be to gather some funds for our future activities.”
Asahina-san continued to explain, as if in great difficulty. “I-I was in charge of doing the promoting. Being in a crowd of so many people made me feel nervous…”
9 Kyon is referring to the incident which he and Mikuru went out on a date during “The Melancholy of Asahina Mikuru” in Volume 6.
So this was Haruhi’s “Operation Payback”[9], huh.
“Asahina-san, what costume did you wear then? Don’t tell me it was the miko costume…”
“Yes. How did you know?”
That was just like Haruhi’s doing. In order to attract attention, she would start with a striking costume. The regular Asahina-san was already attractive enough. After dressing her up, she would be able to radiate an aura of charm that no one would be able to resist. That aura was probably what attracted the large crowd.
“I handed the winners their prizes, shook hands with them, and took photos with them.”
Asahina-san grabbed Shamisen’s fur, as she said uncomfortably, “Then Kyon-kun pulled my hand, and took me into the club room. You ordered me to change into my sailor uniform, and even though I didn’t know what was going on, I duly obliged. You then told me to wait in the broom closet, and instructed me to return to the past, eight days ago, at precisely a quarter to four. You also told me that your past self would be waiting for me, and when I did meet him, I was to tell him that you said ‘hi’. I was also told to follow everything you said.”
Asahina-san removed her fingers from the air, before slowly tracing her index finger on the patterns o
n Shamisen’s back.
“The usage of the TPDD was quickly approved. It was so fast it was unbelievable. It was like they were waiting for me to ask for approval.”
That could be the case, because your superiors already know what you’re going to go through. What I didn’t understand was, why did my future self so willingly play the role of Asahina-san’s superior? Why did I instruct her to return to the past, instead of waiting for them to tell her to? I admit that I had told Asahina-san to time travel a few times, but every time I did so, I would be filled with guilt. If possible, I didn’t want her to time travel again, or, at the very least, didn’t want to be the one to tell her to. Come on, Asahina-san (big), tell me something. I’m lost here.
The Asahina-san before me once again began to look depressed. I immediately recalled that this was what she looked like a month ago, during the van incident. Don’t worry, Asahina-san, if it’s helplessness we’re talking about, I’m not that better off either, because right now, I have no idea what to do, and I don’t know who to count on either.
“Sigh.”
Asahina-san and I both sighed at the same time. As if on cue, Shamisen also yawned.
“Kyon-kun, open up…”
The sound of my sister yelling could be heard through the door. Judging from her voice, she must be balancing a tray too big for her, filled with cakes and juice, while carefully making her way to my room. Even though I wasn’t a very sharp guy, once I saw three sets on the tray, I knew that she wasn’t leaving. She must have also inherited the same dimness as I did, for she conveniently failed to notice that it was a rare chance for Asahina-san and me to be together in my room at this late hour. Blame genetics, if you will.
I immediately shot a look at her that read “Get out!”, but she ignored me and sat beside Asahina-san.
“Does Shami want a cake?”
My sister put a small slice of cake near Shamisen’s nose. Asahina-san smiled warmly at her antics.
Volume 7 - The Intrigues of Suzumiya Haruhi Page 6
