“I’m on my way to cram school.”
I was about to ask when the boy had already answered on his own, pointing to the schoolbag he was carrying behind his back,
“I always walk through this way to cram school, it was the same that time as well,”
The boy bowed once again, and then with a puzzling look, gazed at the box on the ground and the shelled reptile crawling around on my hand,
“Is Onii-san going to release the turtle to the wild?”
“Yeah… sort of.”
After answering, I suddenly felt consumed by guilt once again. Both Asahina-san and this boy had eyes revealing their compassion for the little turtle, and asked quietly: “Why do you want to toss such a small turtle into the stream on such a cold winter’s day?” It’s not like I wanted to do this either, but the problem is that I have to do this.
The watch indicates that there was now less than one minute before the indicated time, I no longer had time to look confused, I quickly thought of an idea and said,
“Hey kid, are you allowed to keep pets at home? I mean, if you take this guy home, would your parents be mad at you?”
The boy pushed his glasses and said,
“I don’t think so, as long as I take care of him,”
“Really? Okay then, wait here,”
I picked up the turtle on its back and knelt down beside the stream. The shore we were on was three meters from the water surface, so it wasn’t that far. And as the stream was flowing slowly, I wasn’t worried that the turtle would be washed away.
I gently dropped the turtle just like letting go of a feather, trying to reduce the impact of its fall.
“Ah!” Asahina-san exclaimed.
Sploosh! The turtle fell into the water. Creating ripples of concentric circles, it slowly sank into the water and was now going downstream.
The boy stared at such a scene, he didn’t even dare breathe once.
After sinking for a while, the turtle kicked to the shallow surface and re-emerged out of the water. Apparently looking troubled at the ripples that it has caused, it drifted for a while before it began to paddle. It finally climbed up a rock nearby and stuck out its neck. It didn’t seem like it was saying goodbye to us, more like thinking how it has expanded its horizons from a turtle’s perspective.
Eventually, the ripples subsided and only the turtle remained standing on the rock.
I had no idea how accurate Asahina-san’s (big) calculations were, but I have fulfilled her request of “throwing the turtle into the stream”. What I do with the turtle afterwards was solely up to my discretion. I convinced myself while taking off my socks. Rolling up my trousers just to be safe, I began to wade into the water, leaving Asahina-san and the boy with their eyes widened. The water was really freezing cold, and the surface was filled with some slimy algae-like stuff which felt gross, but as I’ve always played in the stream with my cousins every time I visit them in the countryside, this was nothing.
“Sorry about that, little turtle.”
The turtle lifted its tiny head. When I stuck out my hand, it didn’t attempt to escape, and allowed me to grab it. Perhaps it wanted to say to me: “If you’re going to pick me up, then don’t toss me in the first place.” It’s a good thing I wasn’t fluent in the turtle-language. As I returned to the shore with the turtle in my hand, and placed him back in the box, the coldness in my feet went straight to my brain. Man, I’m so gonna get diarrhea when I get back.
I sat on the ground and lifted my feet above to shake off the excess water and said,
“Kid, this turtle’s yours now.”
“Can I really have it?”
An observer to all this a few paragraphs ago, the Bespectacled Boy now asked hesitatingly,
“Doesn’t Onii-san have a special reason to release this turtle into the wild?”
I knew this kid was asking due to his curiosity, but like the turtle itself, I don’t have any answers that can satisfy that curiosity of yours. Since even I’m trying to find an explanation for the meaning of my own actions.
“It doesn’t matter anymore. Even the turtle would feel troubled upon being released into the wild in the middle of winter. If you’re willing to take him, I’m sure he’ll be better off than having to soak himself in a freezing river.”
Will that do, Asahina-san? Though you said that the instructions from the future has to be absolutely obeyed, my actions had not gone against the instructions at all. Despite that, I was still a bit worried, but I saw that Asahina-san, who has been kind to little animals, had already begun handing the box of pet food to the boy.
“This is the turtle’s basic meals, take it as well,”
She then said like an elder sister,
“Promise me that you’ll take care of him.”
“I promise,”
The boy replied slowly, but not in a disrespectful way. He received the plastic box and box of pet food from Asahina-san, and held them tightly with his arms,
“I’ll take good care of him,”
He said passionately. Actually, you don’t have to be so determined about it.
“Oh yeah, kid. I want you to promise one more thing.”
There was a need to take a precaution. It was because we didn’t take this precaution the last time around, both Asahina-san and I got punished severely by Haruhi. That painful memory still lingers in my mind till now.
“There’s a girl called Suzumiya Haruhi that lives near your place, right?”
“Yes, Suzumiya-nee-san has always taken good care of me.”
For some reason, I shuddered at the name “Suzumiya-nee-san”.
“You must not tell Haruhi anything about what happened today. My presence here with Asahina-san… that is the Bunny Girl nee-san, and us giving you this turtle are strictly confidential. Can you keep a secret?”
“Yes.”
The boy nodded very solemnly. I guess I can rest easy now. Asahina-san now asked as well,
“Are you sure you’re all right with taking this turtle back with you? Wouldn’t… your mother or family say anything about not accepting things from strangers?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll find an excuse.”
The boy straightened his back and said,
“I’ll tell them that as the people doing experiments on this turtle didn’t need it anymore, they were about to throw it away when I happened to pass by. As I felt pity for him, I asked them to give it to me… I’m sure Dad and Mom would let me have him,”
This kid sure was reliable. I really wish he would teach my sister a thing or two. They were both about the same age, but the difference was so great. This must have to do with the environments that they grew up in.
“Then, I have to go now, my cram school’s about to start,”
The polite boy bowed courteously to us once again. Asahina-san patted his head and said,
“Don’t forget the promise you made last time. Be careful when crossing the roads. Don’t let any accidents happen to you, and study hard. That way, you’ll become a very useful person. And a very important person, as well…”
Looking at Asahina-san sticking out her pinky, the boy revealed a shyness that suited his age, and hooked his pinky onto hers with trepidation. I couldn’t help but smile at seeing the figures of Asahina-san and this boy, one big and one small, standing together.
The boy then let go, embarrassed, and walked off carrying the plastic box as though it were some valuable treasure. Several times he turned around to bow to us. Asahina-san never stopped waving, until he had completely disappeared from our view, and only when I had finally put my socks on over my dried feet and put on my shoes, did she put down her hands.
“Phew…”
Asahina-san sighed deeply. For her, or I should say for the future version of Asahina-san, this boy seemed like a very important figure. If I were to travel back to the Edo Period and came face to face with a historical figure, I would probably feel the same way. I didn’t even need to ask, that’s got to be
Classified Information.
“Phew,”
I too breathed a deep sigh. Rather than a depressed sigh, it was more like a sigh of relief that it was all over. My mission with this Asahina-san has now come to a close. The empty can prank, the gourd-shaped rock, the mysterious memory device, and the turtle.
The question was, what do we do next? I haven’t got a clue at all. The final letter #6 made absolutely no mention of anything. As long as Asahina-san doesn’t go out on her own and continue to live in Tsuruya-san’s bungalow, then I shouldn’t need to worry. As the next two days were free, this Asahina-san would eventually return to our original time period. In contrast, I would need to instruct the present Asahina-san to travel back to the past, but that’s the day after tomorrow. For now, I felt a weight was lifted off my shoulders.
“Asahina-san, though you’ve only just arrived, I think you should go take some rest at Tsuruya-san’s place. We’ll take a taxi and send you back, I’ll then go back to the library to pick up Nagato.”
“Okay…”
Asahina-san said absentmindedly and walked off. Under my guidance, we reached the road that runs parallel to the cherry blossom path. Standing by the pavement waiting for a taxi, Asahina-san didn’t speak a lot, and seemed rather depressed.
While waiting for the taxi, I was also paying attention to my surroundings, for fear that the Sneering Bastard from yesterday would cause trouble again. It was obvious that bastard didn’t come with good intentions, but as he made it too obvious, he certainly didn’t feel like a scary enemy. To be frank, he hardly made me shiver at all. If it was Koizumi who approached us using that bastard’s manner of speech, I would have felt extremely threatened. If he hadn’t picked the wrong time to make his appearance, then he was probably playing the wrong sort of character.
Aha! I find myself to be more and more reliable now. That’s to be expected, for the past year, I’ve been involved in all sorts of strange occurrences, allowing my vision to expand and my mind to be more open. My life has been put in peril occasionally, but it’s different now. Though I wasn’t as determined as Nagato, I too went through the experience of having to decide what I really wanted. I’ll never misjudge my role and position again.
Though there were hardly any taxis and few cars on the road, it was quite a pleasure in itself to be standing all alone together with Asahina-san, so I didn’t feel anxious with the wait at all. But as I’d already told Nagato to go to the library herself, I would be doing her an injustice if I didn’t go pick her up as soon as things were settled.
…It was pointless worrying. Maybe I shouldn’t even be distracted.
Because in the next moment, I witnessed an unbelievable scene.
At that time, I didn’t check the time on my watch. I never had the time to anyway, so I didn’t know the exact time when it happened, I just knew that it was sometime before eleven.
Here was what happened:
As I waited with Asahina-san on the pavement on the left side of the county road, trying to see if there were any taxis coming our way, a big car came driving slowly. As it wasn’t some highway, there was nothing wrong with it driving so slowly. Truth be told, at that moment I paid no attention to it.
Yet that approaching car decelerated even more and, without even making a signal, stopped right in front of us.
“Huh?” I suddenly felt suspicious, I don’t think I’ve felt this suspicious before.
This was because the door to that minivan opened suddenly, and a hand from within had dragged Asahina-san into the car within a few seconds.
“WAH…!?”
By the time I realized Asahina-san had screamed, the green minivan had drove off in full speed without even closing its door. The plume of smoke it emitted felt as though it was mocking my slow reaction. By the time I looked properly, the car had already driven off to the other end of the road, and it became a small dot in the distance.
“What the…”
It only took me about 0.2 seconds to recover my senses. The car had already disappeared from my vision.
Hold it, hold it, HOLD IT!
What the hell just happened? Asahina-san had vanished before my eyes. She was dragged into the car, and that car had sped off and was now out of sight, leaving me standing on the roadside all alone… Just what was this?
“Kidnapped…!?”
And right under my nose as well. I could’ve stopped it if I had reached my arm out, even if it meant I had to grab her body. Asahina-san, who was standing so close to me just a few seconds ago, was no longer here. Can something this ridiculous actually happen!?
“Damn it!! I don’t believe this!!”
I don’t think I’ve been this terrified since finding out Haruhi had disappeared from the classroom last December. The last time I was this shocked was when I discovered that Asakura had replaced Haruhi sitting behind me.
“Shit!”
Was it that Sneering Bastard!? Was he behind all this!? If it really was, then I had underestimated him. Could it be that his terrible timing in appearance and choice of character was all just a ruse to distract me? If that was really just a trap to divert my attention by thinking he posed no threat at all…
“ASAHINA-SAN!!!”
A loud sound vibrated my eardrums. It wasn’t the sound of the wind blowing through the cherry blossom trees, but the sound coming out of my now completely pale face.
I took out my cell-phone, I could only rely on help from others now. Anyone would do, as long as I can bring Asahina-san back, it didn’t matter whether it was the police, fire fighters, the Self-Defense Forces or even the Chamber of Commerce. My fingers began to push the numbers on their own, not even knowing who I was dialing. I only knew that I heard a dial tone on the other end and someone answering it,
“What now, Kyon?”
It was Haruhi’s voice. As it all happened too suddenly, not to mention I wasn’t completely back to my senses, I ended up calling Haruhi. By this time my brain was already not functioning properly,
“Haruhi we’ve got a problem! Asahina-san’s been kidnapped!”
I called for reinforcements without even thinking…
“Wha? What are you talking about?”
Haruhi’s voice sounded very casual. Feeling anxious, I yelled once again,
“I said Asahina-san’s been kidnapped! If we don’t hurry and rescue her…”
“Hey, Kyon,”
Haruhi spoke in a nearly elegant voice,
“I don’t know what you’re trying to pull, but before you decide to make a prank call, you ought to sort out your script and try not to be too ridiculous. What’s wrong with your brain? Saying stuff like this. Mikuru-chan’s standing right next to me. If you had said it was Yuki, then I might have believed you.”
“No! It’s not Nagato! It’s Asahina-san…”
By this time I suddenly realized, it was useless no matter how I explained it to Haruhi. That’s right, right now in this time period, Asahina-san was with Haruhi. Only that it was the original Asahina-san from this time period, and not the Asahina-san that appeared in the broom closet. Speaking of that Asahina-san, the one that just got abducted by the car…
“You fail for making such a lame prank that gets exposed so easily. Besides, pranks are supposed to be funny. I don’t have time for this, you idiot Kyon!”
“No! Wait…”
The phone was cut off.
My hand trembled as I held the cell-phone. I shouldn’t have called Haruhi in such a situation where every second counts. I didn’t even need her to tell me that I was an idiot. Even when asking for reinforcements, I shouldn’t have asked Haruhi for them…
The phone began ringing.
Without even finding out who it was, I answered it.
“Hello?”
It was Koizumi’s voice. Before I could speak…
“Don’t worry. Suzumiya-san and Asahina-san aren’t with me right now. Well, I told them I needed to go to the bathroom and excused myself,”
Who
cares about that!? That’s not the issue here, what’s important is…
“Koizumi! Asahina-san has…”
“I understand the situation. Leave it to me, they should be coming to you soon,”
“Who’s coming to me soon?”
Feeling very baffled, I lifted my head. As if on cue, a taxi had stopped right in front of me. It was a black taxi. I wasn’t sure which cab company it was from, but it seemed familiar. I remember riding on such a taxi when Koizumi conned me to visit some “Avatars”.
The back door of the taxi opened.
“Get in, hurry!”
The passenger in the back seat waved to me, and I quickly leapt into the car. Sitting in the familiar car was a familiar figure. Before I could digest the situation, the door had already closed and I was instantly thrust back to my seat by the sudden force caused by the car moving off.
“We’ll now begin the pursuit,”
A clear crisp voice said by my side, it sounded familiar. As I’ve met her during the summer and winter, I couldn’t have so easily forgotten her name.
“M, Mori Sonou-san?”
“It’s been a while.”
It’s actually only been a month since we last met, so it wasn’t exactly a while. But, what was Mori-san doing here? And she wasn’t dressed in the familiar maid uniform, but in an office lady attire that could be found everywhere.
Mori-san revealed her usual smile and said,
“Didn’t Koizumi explain to you before? I too am a member of the ‘Organization’. The maid was just one of my disguises, and that was only limited to the time I spent with you.”
As though trying to assure me, Mori-san turned her gaze towards the driver’s seat and nodded,
“And it’s not just me. He is the same as well,”
Lifting up the left hand which was on the steering wheel, the driver exchanged glances with me through the rear-view mirror.
“Arakawa-san…”
“Greetings.”
He was a butler who could cook brilliantly before, but now he was a taxi driver driving at top speed. The elderly gentleman now said,
“There is a limit to being aggressive. They’ve gone too far by kidnapping that adorable lady. We won’t let them get away with this.”
Volume 7 - The Intrigues of Suzumiya Haruhi Page 23
