Nukume Dori
by Leareth

Chapter Eleven

Subaru squinted past the late afternoon sun up at the sign on the side of the building. According to the information he had been given the MS Institute was headquartered in the lower end of Shinjuku, and whilst he was fairly certain he was standing outside the right place it didn't hurt to check. Sure enough, the sign said that the MS Institute was on the third floor. Subaru glanced at the corresponding windows; from the outside it looked like a tutoring school. Of course, appearances could be deceiving.

Steeling himself, Subaru entered the building and went to press the call button for the elevator. It came quickly, opening its doors for Subaru with a ping, and he stepped inside pressing for level three. The brief moments as the elevator rose gave Subaru just enough time to collect his thoughts. Things had been rather awkward yesterday afternoon, calling up his grandmother to inform her of his change of heart, then calling up the Education Ministry to apologise and explain before calling Lady Sumeragi once more to keep her abreast of what was going on. Subaru hoped that he hadn't given the Minister of Education the impression that the Sumeragi were unreliable, though at least his grandmother hadn't told him off too badly. If nothing else, it gave Subaru added incentive to do this job well. Incentive was definitely something he needed right now, given that he couldn't shake the feeling that maybe he was using this case an excuse to avoid more personal issues—

Stop thinking about it. You're here, so just get this done quickly.

The elevator doors slid open. Subaru stepped out and had just enough time to take in the bright office surroundings before he was confronted by a smiling receptionist. "Hello!" she said. "Can I help you?"

"Um, yeah." Subaru approached the receptionist's desk, hoping he didn't look suspicious. That was the problem with this kind of undercover job; he always felt that people were examining him. This morning Hokuto had dressed him in a manner more toned down than her usual wont so that he looked the part of an ordinary high school student, albeit a rather fashionable one. "Ah, I'm here about joining the MS Institute?"

"Why of course! Come with me." The receptionist got up and led him to a door on which she knocked before opening. "Asaoga-sensei! This young man wishes to join up!"

Subaru followed her inside. There was another woman in the room, older with short-cropped black hair and large round earrings. She had apparently been reading at her desk but she put the text away to welcome Subaru with a friendly smile. "Good morning. I'm Asaoga Himawari, an assistant director in the Institute. And you are?"

"My name is Sumeragi Subaru."

"What a lovely name! Please, take a seat." Subaru complied, at the same time casting his eyes about wondering if there would be anything here that could help him. Earlier when he had tried to remember the MS Institute case he had found out to his irritation that he couldn't remember much at all other than Hashimoto. He vaguely recalled the people involved, or at least he thought he did, and a couple of incidents like an assembly, but there was always a point where his memory arrived at a complete blank – this Asaoga, for example, Subaru couldn't recall her at all – and he couldn't for the life of him remember what he had found that resulted in the Institute being shut down. It was frustrating to say the least, and so far nothing was jogging his memory. For an alleged cult the office was disappointingly normal, spacious enough for two or three workers, with a bookshelf beside the door. Subaru attempted to read the titles there but only managed to identify a Japanese-English dictionary before Asaoga sat down to face him. "So!" she said cheerfully, "you want to join the Institute, yes? May I ask how you heard about us?"

Subaru tried to think of an excuse. The shelf's contents provided inspiration. "I read about it in a magazine somewhere."

"Is that so! We have been doing some magazine interviews lately so I'm glad to see something has come of them. And how old are you?"

"I'm sixteen."

"A high-school student, then." Asaoga leaned towards him slightly, the smile still affixed to her lips. "And why exactly did you decide to join us?"

Subaru thought carefully. Asaoga seemed friendly, and probably was a very nice person, but the way she put the question reminded Subaru a little of the soft interrogation tactics he had seen policemen use. "I have … various issues to deal with in my life at the moment," he said, hoping that Asaoga wouldn't inquire any further and force him to make up a less vague response. "I thought that this place would help me."

"I see." She relaxed into her seat, taking on the attitude of one presenting a prepared spiel. "Well, the fact that you have sought us out is already the first step. Children are vulnerable individuals and need to be nurtured to believe in themselves. Here we strive to help through cleansing of the soul and to guide members through the troubles of their lives. Since our members are predominantly students, we also provide an environment in which they can study in addition to counselling, so feel free to bring your books and school homework along."

"It sounds wonderful," murmured Subaru, more to be polite than anything else.

Asaoga beamed. "Now then!" She got up and went to her desk, coming back with some forms. "It's just procedure," she explained as she handed the forms and a pen to Subaru. "Once you've filled those in you will be a member, it's as easy as that!" Subaru looked over the forms. The details they asked for were standard enough – name, age, contact details, nothing out of the ordinary. He filled the spaces quickly and handed the papers back to Asaoga. "Great! Welcome to the MS Institute."

She extended her hand to him. Subaru got up and shook it – she really did seem like a nice lady. "Now, today's 'class' will be starting soon, in fact people should already be arriving. We'd love it if you join us."

"Uh, okay."

Asaoga smiled and opened the door, gesturing for Subaru to leave before her. Outside, the corridor was full of people exiting the elevator and heading towards a large door at the far end. All of them were in uniforms from various high schools both public and private, and didn't spare Subaru a glance. "Just follow the other students down to the assembly room," said Asaoga reassuringly. "We're all friends here, all striving towards the same goal. You'll fit right in!"

I doubt that, thought Subaru as he allowed himself to be gently propelled into the milling flow of people. The students all seemed so young to him; it was almost easy to forget that physically he looked no older than them. They walked quietly and in an orderly manner, without the usual chatter or tomfoolery that Subaru expected from students. Most likely it was because everyone was from different schools and therefore didn't know each other, but for some reason Subaru felt that there was more to it than that. Then he saw a face coming towards him that he recognised.

"Hashimoto-san!"

Hashimoto Kuniko stopped dead in her tracks and stared as if she couldn't believe her eyes. "Sumeragi-kun? What are you doing here?"

"I just enrolled." Politely Subaru made his way through the flow of people to her side. "How are your injuries?"

Hashimoto flushed slightly. The bruises on her face had darkened into angry violet. "I'm fine. Why did you join the Institute? I thought you—"

"Keep moving please, we'll be starting soon!" Asaoga came down the corridor bringing up the stragglers. She paused when she saw Hashimoto and Subaru standing together. "Oh? Kuniko-chan, do you know Subaru-kun?"

"We've met."

"Well, that's a bit of luck for Subaru-kun – you were worried about not knowing anyone here, weren't you!" Asaoga beamed and Subaru saw no need to correct her assumption. "You probably want to catch up, of course, but I'm afraid that will have to wait for now. Go in and sit down – Kumiko-sensei is on her way."

Kumiko-sensei. Kumiko Nagi, top level director of the MS Institute. Subaru ran the information from the case-file over in his head as he entered the assembly room behind Hashimoto, who kept turning to look over her shoulder at him as if still unable to believe he was there. They sat down beside each other, and watching the rest of the seats steadily fill around him Subaru couldn't help but feel a rush of anticipation – this was it, he was inside, and now he would come face to face with whatever agenda this alleged cult leader had. The assembly room itself was much larger than Subaru had suspected from the building's façade, filled with long desks like a lecture hall and taking up two floors, which implied that the Institute's financial means were quite substantial. Where that money was coming from, though, Subaru had no idea. He hadn't been required to pay a membership fee on signing up, and almost everyone in the room was a high school student. None of them were likely to be able to contribute much money.

A door opened at the front end of the room. Through it entered a woman, conservatively dressed in a cream-coloured office suit, who headed for the single lectern that stood facing the desks. As she did so all the students rose as one and bowed – Subaru quickly copied them. When he lifted his head, the woman before them smiled softly. It was a very friendly smile.

"Good evening, everybody. I am Kumiko Nagi."

Subaru looked the woman over. She was somewhat taller than average height but not imposing, attractive to look at, and seemed to be at the most in her early thirties. She had long chestnut hair that was loosely pinned up at her neck, and from what Subaru could tell, wore very little makeup. Her eyes were gentle, and looked as if they smiled easily. All in all, she didn't look anything like Subaru's idea of a religious cult leader; in fact he could have easily taken her for a music teacher or secretary. "Good evening, Kumiko-sensei," the children around him chorused.

Kumiko Nagi nodded at them, and obediently all the students sat back down. She let her smile rest on them for a moment, then began to speak.

"To all our new members attending today, I bid you a warm welcome. To all those friends who have gathered here once more, I thank you. To everyone, I give my blessing and pray for your spirits to be cleansed so that God can come into your hearts …"

Subaru's eyes widened. Although Kumiko Nagi did not raise her voice, eschewing even the use of a microphone, her voice reached Subaru as if she was sitting immediately before him and they were the only people in the room. More than that, though, was a feeling behind those words, a gentle but insistent pressure that ran over Subaru like cool wind off a mountain. He found himself wanting to listen to her, not just with his ears but his heart. With his training as an onmyouji it was easy enough for Subaru to ignore the pressure, but as for the other people around him … he stole a look around. All of them were listening with expressions of intense focus bordering on ecstasy. All except one, that is. Sitting next to Subaru, Hashimoto simply listened.

"God lives inside each and every one of you. All of you are able to survive the sufferings and hardships of each day because God is there in the most intimate places of your heart. If you let him show you the strength to continue and grow each day …"

Kumiko-sensei has a real power, not power like mine or Seishirou-san's, but power all the same. Subaru stared at the patterns in the desk's wooden surface before him, forcing his mind to concentrate on its lines away from Kumiko Nagi's speech. Still, however, he could feel her charisma flowing over him. Her power moves people, makes people listen to what she says without question, though interestingly enough Hashimoto-san doesn't seem to be affected. Is it because she's a new member or something else?

Whatever it is, I'm getting an idea why the MS Institute is under investigation …

"There is no such thing as a person who is unwanted." Kumiko Nagi's voice had taken on a strident tone, and despite himself Subaru looked up. "Each and every one of you is a god. Each and every one of you is the most important person in the world." Like a benevolent queen Kumiko Nagi spread her arms wide as if to welcome all the lost souls of the world. "Please, I urge you all to forgive yourselves, and everyone around you. All of you must learn to be strong."

Whether that moment was simply a pause or signalled the end of the speech Subaru never found out. Suddenly all around him students were on their feet, their faces no longer closed and blank but grateful, filled with rapture. Some of them even had tears in their eyes. Cries of "Kumiko-sensei!" resounded throughout the room over the thunder of rapid footsteps as students left their seats and rushed down to the front of the room in stark contrast to their almost subdued entry earlier. They surrounded Kumiko Nagi in a press of uniformed bodies, trying to touch her or take her hand in a way Subaru had only seen on television with music idols. Kumiko Nagi welcomed them all.

"Don't give up!" she told them, her voice clearly audible through the crowd. "No matter how bad things get, don't give up because God is inside each and every one of you. Once you realise that you can accomplish anything!"

Quietly, Subaru remained in his seat, trying to analyse what he had seen. Although the content of Kumiko Nagi's speech didn't seem particularly incendiary or controversial, the level of emotion she had managed to stir up in her audience was unsettling. Certainly Subaru could understand why the Education Ministry was concerned, but whether Kumiko Nagi's abilities were reason enough to justify a forced closure of the Institute which Subaru knew had to eventually happen was difficult to say. On the positive side at least now he had something to work on in the investigation; the question was now how to proceed from here. Right now Kumiko Nagi was still surrounded by her adoring followers making it impossible to talk to her which quite frankly Subaru wasn't keen on doing. Apparently he wasn't the only one to feel that way either – sitting beside him, Hashimoto hadn't moved a muscle.

Subaru looked at Hashimoto. The girl was watching the activity around Kumiko Nagi at the front of the room as if trying to understand a film written in a foreign language. She must have noticed Subaru's attention on her, for she glanced at him only to immediately turn away as their eyes met. "Hello," said Subaru kindly.

"Um, hi." There was a pause. "So, ah, what do you think?"

"Huh?" Subaru looked at the activity at the front of the room, which was slowly beginning to break up and filter out the lower door. "It's very … inspiring."

"Mm." Whether the response was an agreement or not Subaru couldn't tell. Hashimoto took a deep breath. "Why are you here?"

Subaru hesitated for a moment; he hated lying but knew of course that there were times when it was impossible for him to tell the whole truth. "I read about the Institute a little while ago. Before that day in the park, I mean. I was interested however wasn't sure about it, but then I met you and you said that there were plenty of people in the Institute so I felt encouraged to join." Which is sort of true, Subaru added silently.

Hashimoto only looked half-convinced. "So you joined up because of me?"

Subaru blinked. "Ah, I suppose you could say that?"

Hashimoto's reaction to his answer was not something Subaru expected. Her eyes widened, and a faint blush crept over her face as she turned shyly away from him. Subaru grew concerned. "Hashimoto-san? Did I—"

"Subaru-kun! Kuniko-chan!" Both Subaru and Hashimoto twisted in their chairs to look in the direction of the voice. Asaoga-sensei waved cheerfully from the assembly room's upper door. "Can you two come with me, please. Kumiko-sensei would like to speak with you."

Subaru wasn't the kind of person who was given to paranoia, but upon hearing this he couldn't help but have a moment of panic believing that he had been discovered and that he was about to be hauled up before Kumiko Nagi and questioned. "She does?" he replied, trying to buy some time to think.

"Yes, right now."

"Uh …" Hashimoto, Subaru noticed, was already out of her chair and obediently walking up to Asaoga. When she realised that Subaru was still sitting down, however, she paused and turned back with a confused and pleading gaze, obviously not wanting to go by herself. Since she was called up as well it was probably safe to assume that Subaru's cover had not been blown, but then why did Kumiko-sensei want to talk to them? Was it just because they were new members? Or had she noticed that he and Hashimoto had been the only two left sitting when the rest of the room had run down to her – was she going to challenge them on that?

Whatever the reason, there was only one way to find out.

Hashimoto was still looking at him with that pleading expression. Asaoga on the other hand was beginning to look impatient. Taking a deep breath Subaru fetched his bag and stood up, though not before feeling in his pocket for the reassuring shape of his ofuda.

"I'm coming."

 

* * *

 

They were led to a door on the eastern side of the building. The door was non-descript except for a simple sign that said 'Director's Office'. Subaru couldn't help but notice that the corridor the door was on was quiet with very little people traffic. Hashimoto either didn't notice this or didn't care, which made Subaru wonder if this was her first time seeing Kumiko Nagi. Before he could ask her about it, however, Asaoga gave the door a respectful knock.

"Come in," a voice said pleasantly.

Asaoga opened the door. "Kumiko-san, I've brought Kuniko-chan and Subaru-kun to see you."

Prompted by a discreet push Subaru and Hashimoto entered the room. It was a spacious room, which in a city of millions of offices immediately denoted seniority and status, and well-appointed with leather armless couches and a coffee table of iron and glass sitting in front of the executive's desk. There was a large window on the far wall, which would have had an impressive view of Shinjuku if the curtains weren't drawn. Display cabinets made of some dark timber lined one wall, and a decorative indoor plant rather like the one Seishirou had in the clinic's reception sat in the corner. Standing close to the plant was Kumiko Nagi. She greeted the two of them with a kind smile.

"Good evening."

Her voice was softer than it had been in the assembly room, but no less warm. Hashimoto immediately bowed; lacking her automatic student habits Subaru did the same a beat later. "Good evening, Kumiko-sensei," they murmured.

Kumiko acknowledged their respect with a slight nod then glanced at the door. "Thank you, Himawari-san." Subaru heard the door shut quietly behind him as Kumiko turned her attention back to them. Her large eyes were dark brown, Subaru noted, still feeling a little apprehensive, and she was quite attractive even up close. "Thank you both for coming. Don't worry, it's not for any trouble; I just wanted to have a quick chat with our newest members. Please, take a seat."

Subaru and Hashimoto did as they were told, putting their bags down and sitting next to each other on the three-seat couch. Kumiko took one of the sofa chairs opposite. "Now, Subaru-kun," she began.

"Y-yes?"

Kumiko gave a gentle laugh. "There's no need to be nervous. I've asked you here simply to see how your first experience at the Institute has been."

"Oh." Subaru tried to look nonchalant with mediocre success. "It's been good?"

"What do you think of the Institute?"

"Ah …" His hands were restless – looking down, Subaru realised that he was twisting his fingers in their gloves. This was why he hated undercover jobs; unlike Seishirou he had no confidence in pretending to be something he was not. "I was surprised that everyone here was in high school," he said at last.

The smile on Kumiko's face grew soft. "Is it really so surprising? Religion is the power of belief, a power to believe in something greater than ourselves that can be a pillar for us in times of turmoil. Everyone needs to believe in something, but the ones who need to believe the most are the children of the world. Children like you. You are the most valuable members of our society, but also the most vulnerable. As you grow up and see more of the world with all of its sins and tragedies, it becomes more frightening, and you become lost in it. And when you become lost … that is the time when you need to believe." Subaru kept his face as expressionless as possible as Kumiko fixed her gaze first on him then Hashimoto. "It's a lie to say that children don't suffer. In fact, their suffering is more deep and pure because children aren't allowed to give up or falter the way adults are. It is children like you who need the most guidance, and it is my mission to give that guidance."

She was giving another speech, Subaru realised, like the one he had heard earlier at the assembly but in a more intimate setting and up close. Again, Subaru found it easy to rebuff the impulse to engage too closely with Kumiko's words, but even though he was listening as an observer he was still listening. Kumiko spoke well in her warm voice, earnestly enough for people want to listen to her and as far as Subaru could tell, completely sincerely, her charisma not backed by any calculation or malice. In fact, thus far it looked as if Kumiko really had no other agenda in talking to Subaru and Hashimoto other than to spend time with them, and all of Subaru's apprehensions in facing her were groundless. If this was all there was to the Institute and Kumiko Nagi, then why when Subaru had first done this investigation had the Institute been shut down? There had to be something more. "It must be very hard work," said Subaru aloud, feeling a little clumsy – he knew from his dealings with the police that there were techniques to direct conversation to gain information, but he had never tried any of them himself before. "Running the Institute, I mean."

"Oh no, I have some wonderful people who help me – Himawari-san, for instance, she was one of my first followers and is an absolute treasure. Not only is she a teacher here, she also runs the administration. It's a very heavy workload, but she does it all enthusiastically. There are many others like her who either help manage the Institute or act in a teaching role, and still more who cannot give their time but who donate financially. Everybody may contribute differently, but the one thing they all have in common is that they share my passion and vision."

"And what vision is that?"

"To teach those who are lost in life to cleanse their soul, and through that show them strength. We live in an unfair world that every day grows more immoral and vicious, and I want to do what I can to change it by guiding the new generation towards light." Kumiko Nagi brought a hand up to rest over her heart in the attitude of a nursing mother – she really didn't act anything like Subaru's idea of a cult leader. "I have received an amazing amount of support and assistance from so many people around the country in my quest to help these children; it's how I came to create this Institute," she said softly. Suddenly she focused on Subaru, making him jump. "I know you have many worries, Subaru-kun, worries that you keep to yourself. You don't have to say anything now, but if you ever feel like talking, or that you need someone, please, let me know.

Subaru was rather taken aback. "I, ah …" What on earth was Kumiko talking about? There were plenty of worries that Subaru kept to himself, not the least being how to win the heart of an emotionless assassin who had killed his twin sister in a past life, but there was no way he was telling anyone about it, least of all a woman who was an alleged cult leader he had only just met. "I wouldn't want to trouble you."

Kumiko laughed. "Believe me nothing would please me more than to help you with your problems. You too, Kuniko-chan," she added, turning towards the girl sitting in uncomfortable silence on Subaru's left. "It wasn't coincidence that led to our meeting in the park that evening. It would make me very happy to help you."

Subaru turned his head a little to look at Hashimoto. The girl sat staring at her hands which were placed properly on her knees, but her braids hid her face from Subaru. "I … I prayed just like you told me to, Kumiko-sensei. I prayed that I could learn to love myself every day, but …" Suddenly her hands clenched, crushing the pleats of her skirt. "But nothing's changed! Nobody at school makes an effort to help me!"

"You must not have prayed hard enough, then." Kumiko looked as serene as the Buddha statues in Asakusa Park. "You can't rush things, Kuniko-chan. You need to believe in yourself with all of your heart. I'm sure it must be very difficult to deal with your classmates' bullying, but it's only because you are unable to truly love yourself, so you must believe that you can endure and do so. That is the only way you can become stronger. Once you become strong you will then have the strength to forgive everyone."

"But that's not it!" Hashimoto cried, obviously distressed. "That's not what I'm talking about! What I want is—"

She broke off. Kumiko was smiling at her the way a mother would smile at a child bawling over a bruised knee. Confronted with such a response Hashimoto seemed to deflate, shrinking back into her seat and bowing her head – watching this, Subaru bit his lip but under the circumstances couldn't really offer any comfort. Certainly Kumiko didn't, instead continuing her lecture. "In time you will understand, Kuniko-chan, understand why you are going through this. You will come out of this stronger. Until then you must persist and pray to be able to love and understand yourself." She glanced at her watch. "I'm so sorry, but I'm afraid I'm going to have to stop there – I'm expecting a call for a phone conference soon. I hope you don't mind."

Subaru gave an internal sigh of relief. "Oh no, I understand. I need to start heading home anyway." He stood to go.

Kumiko rose to her feet as well. "I'm very happy that I was able to meet you, Subaru-kun. Please, if you ever need to talk, my office is always open to you."

"I'll keep it in mind." Privately Subaru had no intention of ever taking up Kumiko's invitation, but he bowed anyway. He was about to leave when he realised that Hashimoto was still sitting silently on the couch.

Kumiko followed his gaze. "Oh dear." She stepped around the coffee table and bent down to touch Hashimoto's shoulder. "Now, Kuniko-chan—"

Without warning Hashimoto suddenly stood, knocking Kumiko's hand back as she grabbed her bag and stormed towards the door. Taken by surprise Kumiko half-stumbled, however as Subaru instinctively reached out to help she managed to catch her balance on her back foot. Hashimoto didn't spare either of them a glance as she yanked the door open and ran out leaving an abrupt silence behind. Subaru stared after her in shock.

It was Kumiko who spoke first. "Well!" she said, something like laughter in her tone. She was still smiling, Subaru noticed, and looked completely unruffled. "Poor Kuniko-chan. She's obviously still very confused."

Subaru looked at the open door. "I think she's very upset," he replied softly.

"Don't worry, she'll calm down, and when she does she'll be able to think clearly about what I said." Kumiko headed to her desk. "Tomorrow our service is being held at six o'clock, so I'll see you then, all right, Subaru-kun?"

"Um, sure." Silently thankful for the dismissal Subaru picked up his bag – just how long had this interview gone on for anyway? "Thank you, Kumiko-sensei."

Kumiko smiled. "It was a pleasure."

Ever polite, Subaru bowed once more, then exited the room closing the door behind him. Once the lock clicked into place, he began to run.

The halls of the Institute were deserted. As he dashed past the windows Subaru glanced outside – already the sky had turned dark. Hokuto would be expecting him home soon, but before that … Subaru turned the corner to the reception area where the elevators were. The receptionist's desk was empty, but there was someone at the elevators.

"Hashimoto-san!"

Hashimoto didn't respond, clutching the handle of her school bag in two fists as she waited for a lift. Subaru slowed to a stop beside her. "Hashimoto-san! Are you all—" He broke off, question answered when he saw that Hashimoto's cheeks were damp. Hashimoto quickly turned away from him. "I'm sorry," said Subaru quietly.

Hashimoto wiped her face with her sleeve. "What for? You didn't do anything."

"That's why I need to apologise." One of the lifts pinged and opened. Subaru followed Hashimoto inside and pressed the button for the ground floor. "I should have said something back there when Kumiko-sensei was upsetting you."

"She's a teacher; she can say what she wants. Besides, she's trying to help me."

Subaru was baffled. "How does making you upset and dismissing your feelings so casually help you?"

"She's trying to make me stronger!" Hashimoto glared at him with reddened eyes. "I'm upset because I'm not strong enough to take even just Kumiko-sensei telling me that I need to get better. If I can't take a little criticism that then it's no wonder that I can't take what those girls at school do to me—" She broke off as she tried to choke back tears again.

There were so many things Subaru could say, so many encouragements he could give. But Hashimoto had heard enough words from Kumiko-sensei and they had done nothing, so instead Subaru chose another option. He reached out and put an arm around her shoulders. At the initial touch Hashimoto flinched, but only for a moment, and when Subaru pulled her closer she didn't resist. Like a paper doll she crumpled against him, burying her face in his jacket as if he were her only friend in the world – and perhaps he was. It struck Subaru then that maybe this was the first time Hashimoto was able to cry supported on someone's shoulder instead of alone, a thought that if true made her situation all the more pitiful. On impulse Subaru awkwardly patted her back much like the way Hokuto would to give him comfort. "It'll be all right," he murmured. "It'll be all right."

Still Hashimoto kept crying, as if she found Subaru's kindness too much. Indifferent to the moods of its passengers the lift continued to sink until it came to a stop on the ground floor where it opened its doors. Burdened as he was by Hashimoto's weight Subaru didn't move, though he did notice that the lobby was empty, and eventually the lift doors closed leaving the two of them in seclusion once more with Hashimoto's sobs thickening the air. It took a while, but gradually she began to calm down, sobs quietening to little more than hiccups. "Are you feeling better?" asked Subaru quietly.

"A little." Exhausted, Hashimoto leaned against him, but then all at once she realised the position they were in. With a mortified gasp she shoved herself away from Subaru and bowed deeply. "I-I'm sorry!"

Subaru blinked. "What for?"

"For crying all over you! I'm sorry!"

Subaru tried to laugh it off. "Eh, that's okay, I don't mind. Really." Still Hashimoto kept her head bowed, and Subaru could only imagine how embarrassed she felt. He looked at the elevator doors. "Uh, we should get out of here, don't you think?" Without waiting for an answer he pressed the button to open the elevator, and the doors slid apart with a slight hum. Subaru held them apart. "Please, after you."

Hesitantly Hashimoto raised her head. What with the crying and the still visible bruises on her face she looked a mess, and the unflattering yellow light didn't help. Subaru smiled encouragingly which seemed to help, and she timidly stepped out into the empty lobby with disbelief. Subaru immediately followed, pulling out his handkerchief as the doors slid shut behind him. "Here," he said kindly, holding the handkerchief out to Hashimoto. "Use this."

"Th-thank you." Gingerly Hashimoto accepted the handkerchief and wiped her eyes. There was a tentative smile on her face. "You know, this is the second time you've given me your handkerchief because I was crying."

"It is?"

"You gave me your handkerchief the day we met in the park. It's hanging up at home to dry because I washed it, but I didn't know if I would ever see you again to return it. Now that I am seeing you again you give me another handkerchief." Hashimoto laughed a little nervously. "Isn't that funny?"

"Oh." Subaru blushed at his forgetfulness. "I suppose so."

"Would you like me to clean this one too?" Hashimoto held out the tear-stained handkerchief.

"That's all right; I can wash it at home—"

"But I'm the one who got it dirty! Please!"

Subaru felt embarrassed – the way Hashimoto was asking reminded him of some of the maids at the Sumeragi household in Kyōto, a comparison Subaru was far from comfortable with. "It's all right," he repeated firmly, taking his handkerchief out of Hashimoto's hand before she could protest further. "You already have my other one and you shouldn't be a laundromat. But it was very nice of you to offer." Hashimoto's expression was disappointed, and Subaru changed the subject. "Where are you going from here?"

"Home. I'll have to stop at the shops on the way and get something for dinner, though. What about you?"

"Home as well – my sister will be waiting for me." Subaru hesitated a moment before his next question. "Are you going to be coming to the Institute tomorrow?"

Hashimoto looked unhappy. "I have school tomorrow. There's art class in the afternoon which I love however those girls are in my group … I'd rather study at the Institute where no one bothers me, but I've already been told off for skipping school so I'll come here for the evening assembly. I want to prove to Kumiko-sensei that I am learning to be strong. Are … are you coming tomorrow?"

She sounded so hopeful, so desperate. Subaru took one look at the uncomfortably open expression on her face and his reservations about Kumiko Nagi died on his tongue. Later, he told himself, later he would talk to her about the teacher. "I'll be here tomorrow," he promised.

It was if he had promised her the moon. The smile that had disappeared earlier appeared again on her face like a winking firefly, only this time it was bigger, less timid and nervous. "I'm glad," said Hashimoto softly. Then a faint blush spread over her cheeks and she asked, "Could you … could you walk with me for a little while?"

Subaru stared at her, the way the light fell on her shyly turned face. Then he smiled.

"Sure."

 

* * *

 

Subaru walked Hashimoto to Shinjuku Station. As it turned out both of them needed to catch the same train, so they ended up travelling together for longer than expected. Throughout the trip Hashimoto's behaviour puzzled Subaru; she would talk rapidly for minutes at a time, then without warning suddenly stop and pull into a shy silence until Subaru worriedly asked what was wrong, in which case she would start talking again. It confused Subaru immensely, and he was rather relieved when the train pulled up at his stop. Given how quickly the doors opened and closed he couldn't say much more than a hasty goodbye, but once on the platform he turned to wave. It was hard to tell, but as the Yamanote pulled away blurring into silver and green Subaru did think he saw Hashimoto wave back. It cheered him enough for him to face the long cold walk home, but didn't last. By the time Subaru unlocked his door he wanted nothing more than to sink into his couch, however as things turned out, Subaru had company waiting for him.

"There you are!" Still standing in the genkan Subaru looked up to see Hokuto sticking her head out from kitchen doorway. "What took you so long? I was about to page you and tell you to hurry up because dinner's nearly ready!"

"Hello, Hokuto-chan." Automatically putting his shoes away Subaru went to hang up his coat. "Sorry I'm late; I had to stay back and talk to someone. What's for dinner?"

"My special chicken stew! But don't eat too much of it, because there's stuff for dessert as well. We made cookies this afternoon!"

"It sounds delicious," replied Subaru. He began heading down the hall to the kitchen, then his brain finished processing what his sister had said. "Wait – we?"

A tall familiar figure leaned into the hallway behind Hokuto. "Hello, Subaru-kun," said Seishirou genially. "Welcome back."

Subaru froze. Hokuto on the other hand was grinning. "Sei-chan had the afternoon off today so he came over to bake cookies, and since it's been so long since the three of us have spent time together I told him to stay for dinner! Well, Subaru? Aren't you going to say anything to Sei-chan?"

It took a bit of effort for Subaru to wet his suddenly dry throat. "Good evening, Seishirou-san."

"Aw, you can do better than that. Oops!" Hokuto's eyes widened as the sound of bubbling behind her grew louder. "Back to the stove – Sei-chan, go help Subaru with his bag!" She dashed back into the kitchen, not before giving Subaru a significant look. Subaru watched her go with a pleading expression before his attention was arrested by someone much more immediate.

"Here, let me take that." Smoothly Seishirou removed the bag from Subaru's hands. "What station did you get off at?"

"Ah, Seibushinjuku."

"And you walked all the way from there? Dear me, you must be exhausted." Gently Seishirou began to push Subaru towards the dining room. "So is the job going well?"

"Um, I suppose." Mentally Subaru told himself to act normal – so Hokuto had invited Seishirou over for dinner, fine, he could deal with that. What wasn't so easy to deal with was Hokuto's motives behind the invitation, which were undoubtedly to create an opportunity for Subaru to tell Seishirou that— "I have to investigate a religious group," said Subaru quickly, trying not to follow the thought any further. "I managed to speak to the woman who heads it; she's a very nice person but she also has some spiritual power because when she spoke at the assembly this afternoon all people listening were completely enraptured—"

"Slow down, Subaru-kun," said Seishirou laughingly as they entered the kitchen. "You've just walked in the door; you don't have to tell me everything at once even if you are adorable when flustered. Go take a seat while Hokuto-chan and I finish cooking—"

"Oh, you don't need to help, Sei-chan, I'll be done in a minute! Why don't you keep Subaru company on the couch?"

"Very well, then. Come on." Without breaking step Seishirou directed Subaru to the living area and placed the bag on the floor against the wall. "So why do you have to investigate a religious group?" he asked as they both sat down.

"The members of this group are mostly high school students, which is why the Ministry of Education is concerned," said Subaru, toying with the cloth of his gloves. Why did Seishirou have to sit so close? "I attended one of the assemblies this afternoon and listened to the woman who heads the group – she's very charismatic, you want to listen to her, and everyone around me did except for this one girl who wasn't affected the way the rest of the students were—"

"Subaru-kun." Seishirou leaned over until his face was inches from Subaru's. "You're rambling again."

Subaru reddened. For two days he had managed to avoid giving much thought to what he had to tell Seishirou, but now that the man was actually here it was impossible to think of anything else. "I am?"

"Yes. Is something wrong?"

The light from the standing lamp made Seishirou's eyes seem warmer. Subaru tried not to stare. "Nothing's wrong," he heard himself say. "Why should anything be wrong?"

Seishirou gave a charming smile. "You seem to be nervous."

"I—" Subaru ducked his head, breaking the gaze. "I'm just tired. So, ah, how was work today?"

"Good! Busy, but good. There was a big drama in the morning when a family brought in a golden Labrador puppy that was choking on something, and the two little children were so afraid that Kinko-chan – that's the name they had given the puppy, by the way – was going to die and they kept crying no matter how many sweets my assistant offered them …"

Subaru listened to Seishirou with a sense of relief, thankful that the anecdote didn't require much more from him. He felt a little bad for so obviously changing the subject, but it was easier, so much easier to talk about things that were mundane and ordinary. Certainly it was safer, and besides, it left him free to watch Seishirou perform. Expression, voice, mannerisms, even though Subaru knew all the tricks and what Seishirou was covering up, he couldn't help but admire and wonder about the thought and effort the Sakurazukamori must have put into creating the role. Then again, it was also frustrating. Here they were, Sumeragi and Sakurazukamori, sitting on the couch talking about puppies and sweets instead of trying to kill each other. The whole situation struck Subaru as rather ridiculous, to the point where he almost missed the mood of the Final Year when they faced each other without pretence and all masks stripped away …

"—and you know what I found during the operation? The father's pager! What was even more amusing was that as soon as I showed it to the children it started beeping—"

"All right, you two, dinner's ready!" Subaru and Seishirou looked up to see Hokuto setting the table. "Come take a seat and dig in!"

Subaru was all too happy to oblige. He hurried to the table and sat down, uncomfortably aware of how Seishirou casually followed. Hokuto beamed at them. "You know, I think this is the first time all of us have been together for nearly three weeks!" she said as she served out the food. "Have you been doing much, Sei-chan?"

"Work, work, and more work." Seishirou took the seat to Subaru's right and began pouring out the tea. "Very boring, sad to say. What about you and Subaru-kun?"

"School, work, shopping, work. Very boring, sad to say." Hokuto gave her brother a wry grin acknowledging private secrets as she sat down. "We did try to invite you over for spaghetti a couple of nights ago, but you didn't pick up. Did you go somewhere?"

"Dinner – I couldn't be bothered to cook for myself so I went out to eat instead."

"By yourself? Aw, that's terrible! What did you have?"

"Mosburger." Seishirou made a mournful face.

"What!" Hokuto looked shocked. "For dinner? You poor thing! That's it – Subaru, you're learning how to cook!"

Startled, Subaru looked up from his dinner. "Huh? Why?"

"So you can be a proper wife for Sei-chan!"

Subaru spluttered. "W-why do I have to be the girl!"

Seishirou and Hokuto burst out laughing, exchanging arch looks. Immediately Subaru reddened, realising that the two of them had been Talking and he didn't really want to know the details. It was all rather unfair, he thought as he dug into his food with burning ears, he had no chance when Hokuto and Seishirou teamed up against him with their teasing. Certainly it wasn't encouraging him to go anywhere near the subject of what he had to tell Seishirou.

Dinner passed in much the same way. Hokuto and Seishirou chatted almost non-stop and regularly aimed good-natured teasing at Subaru who would always either feebly protest or blush, which only encouraged Hokuto and Seishirou to tease him more … it was the usual script. Subaru watched it, feeling more like part of the audience than an actual participant in the scene, and wondered if this was what the rest of his life would have been like had Seishirou had actually been who he was pretending to be. Now and then Seishirou would laugh, sharing one of Hokuto's jokes, and Subaru would smile with an odd sense of warmth, content for now just to listen to the other man's humour.

Eventually, however, Seishirou turned the conversation to more serious matters. "So what are you going to do about this new case of yours, Subaru-kun?" he asked.

"Mm." Subaru chewed and swallowed his mouthful of rice before replying. "It's hard to say – the Education Ministry is concerned that the MS Institute may be a cult, and after what I saw today I can understand why because Kumiko-sensei definitely has a good level of spiritual power. I can't tell if she's trained to wield her power, but it does at the very least make her extremely charismatic, which could explain why the group is growing so quickly."

"Who's this Kumiko-sensei?" Hokuto asked.

"The top-level director of the MS Institute and leader of the group. She seems to be a very warm and friendly person, and from what I've seen so far is completely sincere about her work."

"Given that you've been investigating this group for less than a day that doesn't mean a lot," said Hokuto, daintily fishing a piece of chicken out of the pot with her chopsticks. "Leader of a suspected cult, huh. What exactly does this Kumiko-sensei preach to people?"

"She says that God lives inside everyone and that through forgiveness people can learn to be strong. At least that was the general gist of the assembly I attended – she asked to see me afterwards because I was a new member, and she told me that her vision in creating the Institute was to guide children to cleanse their soul and through that show them strength because we lived in an immoral and vicious world."

"Interesting philosophy. What about the people in the group, what were they like?"

"They—" Subaru broke off, recalling the people around him in the assembly, the blank expressions on their faces and Hashimoto's desperate eyes. "They're all so young," he said softly. "High-school students who look completely disillusioned and lost, but then they listened to Kumiko-sensei speak and … I don't know how to describe it, but they were completely enraptured by her. Some of them were even moved to tears. And then when Kumiko-sensei finished everyone all ran down to thank her or touch her as if she were some kind of celebrity … it was all rather unsettling."

The table fell silent, perhaps to allow Subaru's listeners to imagine the scene. Hokuto in particular looked vaguely uneasy. "From what you've said 'unsettling' might be a bit of an understatement," she said at last. "I don't know about you, but personally I can't think of much else that disturbs me more than the idea of giving up all critical thought to blindly follow some religious nut promoting salvation. Are there a lot of people in this MS Institute?"

"Oh yes, the assembly room was like a big university lecture hall, and it was full of high-school students. And this is only the Tokyo group – apparently there are over ten thousand members around the country."

"In other words, this Kumiko-sensei is exerting a strong influence over a lot of very vulnerable people," said Seishirou. He seemed to be listening to Subaru very carefully. "If her group really is a cult rather than a benign religious group and keeps gathering more members she could become a very powerful figure in society."

"It would explain why the bureaucrats are worried about her," Hokuto observed. "Do you think they're looking to shut Kumiko-sensei's group down?"

"I'm sure it's being considered but it's not that simple. There are plenty of shinkō shūkyō in Japan which are eccentric but harmless off-shoots of Shinto or Buddhism, and while they're certainly outside the mainstream not all of them are what you'd consider cults. Can you imagine the reaction from the media and civil libertarians if the government clamped down on the MS Institute just because they were worried about its influence? The outcry could badly damage the government's reputation, and they can't afford that even if they were voted back into power earlier this year because the public won't have forgotten the trading scandal and political crisis so quickly. If the government does want to shut down this group, Subaru-kun, you're going to have to find some very strong evidence that shows the Institute is dangerous to counter any bad publicity."

"But what kind of evidence can I find?" Subaru asked. "I agree with what you said about not all new age religious groups being cults, but how do I make a distinction?"

Seishirou set his chopsticks aside and leaned back in his chair in the attitude of an amiable teacher. "There isn't really an obvious line between the two, Subaru-kun, which is part of the problem when dealing with cults. What one person views as a cult another may view as a legitimate religious group—"

"A cynic would say that the only difference between a cult and a religion is that the latter has a larger following built up over several centuries," interjected Hokuto dryly.

"—however the main difference is how they're focused. Religions focus outward; they want to better the lives of members and the world at large. Cults on the other hand look inwards and serve their own purposes, in some cases expressly forbidding members to have any contact with the outside world. If this Kumiko-sensei starts telling you to cut yourself off from your family and friends because we're preventing you from reaching salvation I'd say that's a good indication of what category the MS Institute falls into. When do you have to report back?"

Subaru shrugged. "I don't really have a deadline, but I'd like to finish as soon as possible." After all, he added silently, glancing from his sister to the Sakurazukamori, I have more personal things to worry about.

"Hm." Hokuto tapped a candy-pink nail against her the rim of her empty plate. "Maybe you could get some evidence from one of the Institute's members – actually that's a thought! What about that girl, the one you met in the park and wanted to help? Would she be willing to talk?"

"You mean Hashimoto-san?"

"Yeah, her."

"Who's Hashimoto-san?" asked Seishirou curiously.

Hokuto winked across the table. "Hashimoto-chan is the reason Subaru is doing this job. She's a girl who joined the MS Institute hoping it'll make her life better because she's being bullied at school. Subaru ran into her at the park yesterday afternoon, and upon hearing her tale of woe immediately decided to help her out."

"How very kind!"

"Did you see Hashimoto-chan at the Institute?" Hokuto asked her brother.

"Yes, I did. I must have really surprised her by turning up, because she kept staring at me."

"Staring at you?" Hokuto giggled. "You're a pretty boy, of course she would stare! (Actually I get stared at too when I go out.) So how was Hashimoto-chan doing? Is she far into the cult?"

"Her injuries are healing, but I don't think her bullying situation has gotten any better. She has been listening to Kumiko-sensei, but it's hard to tell how far into the group she is – on one hand she didn't really react to Kumiko-sensei's assembly speech, but on the other when we met with Kumiko-sensei she said she really wants to believe and she was acting funny when we caught the train afterwards—"

"Wait." Almost cat-like Hokuto's eyes narrowed into green slits. "You and Hashimoto-chan caught the train together?"

"Yes, why?"

"Was it your idea?"

"No, it was hers."

"Uh huh. So you caught the train together, at her suggestion, and you said earlier that she was staring at you. Hm." A thoughtful, slightly unsettling smile had begun to spread over Hokuto's face. "And what exactly do you mean by she was acting funny?"

"Ah …" The expression on Hokuto's face was setting off silent alarms in Subaru's head. "Well, she was very shy but sometimes talked really fast about little things that didn't make sense, and I think all that crying after we finished talking to Kumiko-sensei gave her a headache because she looked kind of flushed and—" Subaru broke off as his sister began to silently giggle. "What? What's so funny?" Hokuto didn't answer, breaking out into fully fledged laughter. "What's so funny! Hokuto-chan!"

With supreme effort Hokuto pulled herself together. "Oh, Subaru, Subaru," she said loftily. "Don't you realise that this girl is probably starting to have a crush on you?"

It took a moment for that to sink in with all its eye-boggling weight. "Wh-what!?"

"You heard me." Hokuto's grin was infuriatingly knowing. "A crush. Hashimoto-chan from the park has a crush on you. You described all the signs perfectly."

"But, but—" Subaru looked from Hokuto to Seishirou and back in dismay. "But how can she have a crush on me? What did I do to make her have a crush on me?"

"Knowing you? You helped her out when no one else would. I'm guessing that you let her cry on your shoulder, gave her your handkerchief, generally made her feel better and gallantly walked her to the station like a gentleman straight out of a romance novel. Do you know how many girls would kill to have a boyfriend like that to show to her friends, especially one as pretty as you?"

Subaru put his face in his gloved hands and groaned. "This is not making me feel better."

"Nor I." Seishirou's voice was despondent. "I now have a love rival."

"Oh dear, I think Sei-chan's jea~lous!" Hokuto sing-songed. "What are you doing to do about that, Subaru?"

Startled, Subaru looked up. "Huh?"

"Sei-chan! All your talk about a girl is making him feel upset and unworthy! Do something!"

"I—"

"That's okay, Hokuto-chan." Seishirou's expression was melodramatically mournful. "After all I'm just a lowly veterinarian, and a man at that, so I'll completely understand if Subaru-kun has got a girlfriend."

Subaru felt himself turn red to his ears. "Don't be silly, Seishirou-san. I don't have a girlfriend."

"Really?" asked Seishirou eagerly. "So does this mean I still have a chance with you?"

He leaned hopefully towards Subaru. Flustered, Subaru could only look embarrassed, a feeling that was not helped by Hokuto's very pointed looks telling him to say something, but when he tried to increase the space between him and Seishirou he received a kick under the table. "Ow! – uh, maybe?"

The Look he got from Hokuto for that response could have chilled molten lead. Subaru avoided catching her eyes and pretended to be engrossed in his empty plate, not before making sure his legs were safely tucked away. Thankfully Seishirou didn't seem to notice the twins' interaction; either that or it was in character for the veterinarian to be oblivious. "Still only 'maybe', then?" said Seishirou, sitting back in his chair with a disappointed look that was a little too exaggerated to be taken seriously. "Well, at least it's not a 'no', which is better than nothing. Don't worry, Hokuto-chan; I promise to keep working hard to succeed in the 'win Subaru's love' campaign!"

"You've already succeeded," muttered Hokuto, too low for anyone but Subaru to hear. In a normal voice she asked, "Does anyone want some more food? If not we can start cleaning up." Subaru and Seishirou replied in the negative and Hokuto began to gather the empty dishes. "All right. Bring the tea to the living area, Sei-chan; once all this is washed we'll have dessert. Subaru, can you help me clean up?"

"Sure." As requested Subaru stood and collected the used cutlery, at the same time watching Hokuto out of the corner of his eye. His sister's movements were sharp, expressing impatience, and Subaru inwardly sighed as he realised why his sister had asked him to help. Unfortunately polite escape routes weren't forthcoming, and his only other choice was to go sit with Seishirou, something that Subaru was sure Hokuto would approve of but also a hundred times more nerve-racking. "What shall I do with the leftovers?"

"Transfer it to a smaller bowl and store it in the fridge – oh, no you don't, Sei-chan, put those plates down and go sit on the couch! You're a guest, you don't do house chores here!"

"But I want to help Subaru-kun!"

"You can help Subaru with chores when you're married to him." Hokuto made shooing motions. "Go on, off with you!"

Defeated, Seishirou put his hands up and obediently left the area, though not without a grin at Subaru. "You hear that, Subaru-kun? You have to marry me so I can help you with cleaning up!"

Before Subaru could get his tongue to form a response Seishirou had gone to the living area. Subaru watched him for a moment, the way the man sat easily on the floor back against the couch and picked up something to read, before returning to the kitchen with a deep breath. As expected the moment he put down his pile of dishes Hokuto immediately pulled him aside. "Aren't you going to say anything to him?" she demanded in a whisper.

"What do you expect me to say?" retorted Subaru, also whispering. "I'm not going to tell Seishirou-san what I feel over dinner!"

"But you could at least be a bit more encouraging! All you've talked about so far is work and more work, and then when the opportunity came for you to open up a bit to Seishirou you completely dodged! Playing hard to get is one thing but you take it too far!"

"Stop pressuring me!" Their voices were beginning to rise – Subaru glanced over at the living area and was relieved to see Seishirou still reading, then began to stack plates and bowls into the dishwasher hoping the noise would make it harder for them to be overheard. "I'm not ready to do this," he said tensely. "I'm not ready; it's not the right time—"

"When is the right time?" Hokuto threw back, grabbing a dishcloth to wipe down the kitchen bench. "Tomorrow? Next week? The next month, or the next year? I know you, Subaru, and whilst I understand that telling someone you love them isn't easy, if you keep dithering you may be too late!"

Subaru's gloved fingers tightened around the plate. "I know," he bit out quietly, remembering, So this is how it ends.

"Then do something, otherwise—"

"Are you sure I can't help with anything?" Seishirou called out from the living area. "It sounds rather chaotic over there."

"Oh, we're practically done," Hokuto called back brightly, tossing the dishcloth in the sink and going to the pantry where she fetched a coloured tin. In a very different voice she said to Subaru, "I'll finish the dishes. You go keep Sei-chan company."

Subaru blinked as Hokuto emptied a handful or so of the tin's contents onto a plate. "What's that?"

"Dessert. Sei-chan and I made cookies this afternoon. Now go!"

Without further ado Hokuto shoved the plate of cookies into his hands and pushed him firmly out of the kitchen. Subaru did manage to give her a reproachful glare, but it went mostly wasted as with a flick of tulle skirt Hokuto spun away to finish cleaning the kitchen, and by then there was no putting it off any longer.

Taking a deep breath Subaru walked over to where Seishirou was sitting reading on the floor, the plate of cookies heavy in his hands. As expected, the Sakurazukamori looked up at him with a smile. "Hello, Subaru-kun."

"… Hi," replied Subaru, feeling a little awkward – why awkward? He had spoken to Seishirou countless times on countless occasions, from inconsequential small talk and work discussions at the clinic, to conflicts of raw emotion and his moment of death. Then again those were the past and nowhere near as immediate as the now … "Um, I brought some cookies for dessert if you like."

"Ah, I've been waiting to try those!" Seishirou put aside the document he had been reading – the MS Institute case-file, Subaru noticed – and motioned for Subaru to sit next to him on the floor. "Hokuto-chan wouldn't let me taste-test a single cookie when we finished," he said as Subaru handed him the plate and sat down on his left. "She insisted that we wait for you to get home first. They're vanilla, you like that, don't you?" Subaru nodded. "Here, try one!"

Seishirou held a small cookie up before Subaru's lips. For a brief moment Subaru stared at it, the way Seishirou's fingers held it, then imagined Hokuto glaring at him before he hesitantly opened his mouth and eating it whole. "Good boy," Seishirou said, almost purring. "How is it?"

Subaru tried to catch crumbs in his gloved hands as he swallowed with some success. "It's delicious," he said quite truthfully, despite the abundance of sugar which was probably more to Hokuto and Seishirou's taste than his.

"I'm glad to hear it." Seishirou chuckled. "Hokuto-chan and I put a lot of effort into making them. I won't tell you how much sugar we put in, though, you might faint."

"When did you come over?" asked Subaru, hoping to make conversation.

"About four o'clock. Hokuto-chan asked me over for a baking afternoon. I had hoped to see you as well but Hokuto-chan told me you were at work."

So Seishirou had come over at Hokuto's invitation. No doubt she had been prompted by some ulterior motive that revolved somewhere around getting the two of them together, but that was only expected. "Well, you're seeing me now," he found himself saying.

Seishirou gave him a warm smile. "That I am. Here, have some more."

Again, Seishirou held out a cookie. A little emboldened Subaru didn't hesitate this time, leaning over to take it in his teeth and beginning to feel rather pleased with his efforts, which to him seemed rather daring—

Light footsteps on the wooden floor interrupted them. Startled, Subaru jerked his head up to find Hokuto grinning down at him. "So how are the cookies?" she asked brightly.

Subaru choked a little on his mouthful of cookie, painfully aware of how warm his face felt. Seishirou on the other hand didn't miss a beat. "Subaru-kun thinks they're delicious!"

"Well, of course they're delicious, we made them!" Hokuto's grin widened like a cat after cream, and Subaru knew she had seen him eating cookies from Seishirou's hand. "Anyway, I've got a new outfit to show you guys, so keep each other entertained whilst I go back to my apartment to change, okay? Bye!"

"W-wait!" Too late, or perhaps more correctly, with pleas falling on deaf ears, Subaru could only watch as his sister disappeared, pixie-like, out the room into the corridor. A second or so later he heard the familiar creak of his front door opening, a muted click of it falling back into place – and then they were alone.

Really, Hokuto-chan, thought Subaru reproachfully, you could be a little less obvious about this.

The quiet that followed Hokuto's departure was almost deafening. Listening to it Subaru felt with sudden sharpness the enormity of the space in which the two of them were alone together, a space which he was expected to fill. It was something of a relief when Seishirou spoke first. "So," said the Sakurazukamori casually, helping himself to a cookie from the plate and eating it. "Where were we?"

"… ah," was all Subaru could make himself say. Inwardly he was berating his conveniently absent sister; for all her good intentions, all her ploy had really achieved was to put more pressure on him. Instead of creating a situation where Subaru wanted to tell Seishirou about his feelings, it was now one where he had to tell. Hokuto meant well, of course, but Subaru couldn't help but feel rather needled at being set up. "I'm not sure."

"I'm not sure either."

Silence, hollow enough for distant traffic to whisper in. Awkwardly Subaru searched for some way to start a conversation, and ended up saying the first thing that came into his head. "So how was work today?"

"Good. Busy, but good – I think I told you about the puppy that swallowed the pager earlier."

"Yeah." Mentally Subaru applied a kick to himself that he hoped was hard enough to prevent any more repeated banal questions. "I'm glad it turned out okay."

"Me too."

More silence. Subaru found it rather strange as well as heavily uncomfortable, because usually Seishirou could always be relied upon to fill wordless spaces with anything from a ridiculous flirtatious joke to some insightful observation. This uncharacteristic disinclination for talk seemed to weigh down like an expectation on Subaru to take charge, and he had never been good at the art of conversation. Besides, what with the charade he had to keep up, it wasn't like he could even say half the things he really wanted – except maybe three little words that would change their relationship forever. Three words that in another lifetime had been fatally kept to himself.

He could already hear Hokuto shouting, Just do it, Subaru!

"Seishirou-san," began Subaru slowly, praying he wasn't beginning to blush. "I … I have to tell you something."

The last few words had come out in a rush, probably to keep pace with his now racing pulse. Subaru recognised it as the first stirrings of panic and immediately wished for the world to rewind ten seconds to before he had started to speak. Unfortunately the world didn't oblige him, and the fact that Seishirou was smiling with infuriating unawareness wasn't helping. "What is it, Subaru-kun?"

Why did the man have to have such captivating eyes? True, they weren't as unsettling as the half-blind pair that had haunted Subaru for so many years, but even so, looking into them was like sinking into pools of poisoned honey. Subaru wet his lips with nervousness; he could feel what he was supposed to say resonating in his head, which in itself wasn't new, but unlike the fearful whisper of before now it was more like a shout in an amphitheatre that couldn't get beyond the doors. How can Seishirou-san not know? It must be so obvious in my face; surely he can read my feelings for himself …

Just say it!

Subaru took a deep breath, forced himself to look straight into Seishirou's face – and realised he couldn't speak.

Seishirou frowned, expression slightly perturbed. "Subaru-kun?"

He couldn't say it. Not now, not here, not like this. Not to a smile he knew to be nothing but a mask, not while he himself was pretending to be someone he was not. His honesty wouldn't allow it, and if it did he'd end up hating the result whatever it may be. The love he felt for the man sitting beside him had been carried for too many years through too much suffering to be exposed so cheaply. Subaru turned away. "It's nothing."

The cover-up was obvious, and not surprisingly Seishirou didn't look convinced. "Are you sure, Subaru-kun? You can tell me anything, you know."

If he could tell Seishirou anything … "I said it was nothing," replied Subaru, grabbing a cookie off the plate on the floor between them hoping it would excuse him from speaking. The ruse worked; Seishirou didn't press the issue, instead almost studiously watching Subaru nervously nibble at the cookie as if he were some sort of abstract painting. The scrutiny made Subaru uncomfortable, to say nothing of the fact that he knew he was being highly impolite. Eventually guilt prompted him to retrieve his manners and he hastily offered Seishirou the plate of cookies. "Um, would you like some more?"

"No, thank you." Suddenly Seishirou smiled, but it wasn't the veterinarian persona anymore. "I'll have yours instead."

With practiced quickness he reached out and grabbed Subaru's right wrist. Startled, Subaru yelped as he was pulled sideways towards the man like a puppet, only just managing to catch his weight on his free hand and nearly sending the plate of cookies flying. "Seishirou-san what are—" He broke off as Seishirou brought the captured hand up before his face and carefully ate the rest of Subaru's half-eaten cookie from his fingers. Oh …

Behind the glasses Seishirou's eyes glinted like lurking coals. There was a familiar smirk on his face, half-hidden by gloved fingers that were held far too close to the man's mouth for Subaru's comfort. "It tastes sweeter this way," was Seishirou all said by way of explanation. "You do realise that this counts as an indirect kiss, right?"

Subaru thought that he had been blushing already, but now his face felt like he had a bad sunburn. His current position didn't help – sitting half-twisted as he was his left arm was taking the whole of his weight, and the vice-like grip Seishirou had his right wrist was all that was keeping him from falling flat on his face. " Wh-what—"

He broke off as Seishirou lowered his head, almost bringing his mouth to touch Subaru's gloved fingers. The Sakurazukamori's gaze was challenging. "Would you like to know what a direct kiss is like?" he asked softly.

Like a caged thing Subaru's heart hammered the inside of his chest. Memory tripped – that afternoon in the clinic with the crushed cat, the feel of Seishirou's body trapping him against the operating table, was Seishirou trying to provoke a reaction again? Because if he was he was getting one – yes, Subaru wanted to find out, wanted it with a fierceness that was frightening in its certainty, but what was just as certain was the fact that he couldn't give voice to his answer. Kisses were intimate, tender expressions of affection, and as much as he had dreamed of kissing Seishirou he couldn't bring himself to do it, not when they were both pretending to be someone else, but oh he wanted to, not just for the sake of the Bet but even more so because he was denying himself to the point that he wished that Seishirou would just force the issue—

Hours seemed to pass as Seishirou simply stared at him. Then, without warning, he let Subaru go. Subaru blinked, unconsciously untwisting himself into a more comfortable position on the floor as Seishirou began to stand up. "What—"

"I should be going." With deliberate steps Seishirou crossed the living room floor and retrieved his jacket from one of the kitchen barstools. "It's late and I have work tomorrow. Why, what did you think I was going to do?"

It a great deal of effort for Subaru not to splutter indignantly. "I thought – I mean, you were—" He couldn't bring himself to say it.

"Don't worry." Seishirou smiled as he pulled his jacket on. It was hard to say what exactly was different, but even though it was the same face smiling somehow the Sakurazukamori had become the veterinarian again. "I would never make you do anything you didn't want. If nothing else, if I ever made you cry Hokuto-chan would kill me!"

"Hang on!" Hastily Subaru began to get to his feet – something had happened, something vitally important that he had missed and if Seishirou left now he would never know what it was … but already Seishirou was exiting the living room and Subaru was ten too many steps behind to catch up. "Seishirou-san—"

Seishirou waved as he disappeared into the hallway. "I'll see you soon, all right, Subaru-kun? Oh, hello Hokuto-chan!" he added cheerfully as the sound of the front door opening was heard. "Nice outfit, goodbye!"

"Huh? You're going?"

"I'm afraid so, I have work tomorrow. Don't worry, I can let myself out. Bye!"

Too late, Subaru made it into the hallway only to stop halfway at the sight that met him. His sister was alone in the genkan, dressed in red and black, and the front door was swinging shut. As Subaru watched, it fell into place with a click.

With a dumbfounded expression Hokuto turned around. She was wearing a fitted black t-shirt, black stockings, red shorts with suspenders and a red beret. Large red plastic earrings jangled softly as she stared at him. "What happened?" she demanded.

Subaru lifted his hands in a manner he hoped clearly expressed his consternation. "I don't know!"

"What do you mean, you don't know? Sakurazuka Seishirou, the man you love, just walked out of here like he suddenly had somewhere else better to be, and you don't know why?"

"Really, I don't know!" protested Subaru. "I didn't do anything!"

For a long moment he was afraid Hokuto would yell at him. She didn't. Instead, she looked at him, emerald gaze narrowed and hard, before eventually giving a long resigned sigh. "Well. That explains it."

"Huh?"

Hokuto eloquently rolled her eyes heavenwards. "You didn't. Do. Anything."

 

* * *

 

What happened? wondered Subaru for the umpteenth time, mechanically following the flow of people into the assembly room of the MS Institute. The crowd seemed bigger this evening, either that or Subaru wasn't focusing properly on the case and was misremembering details. Probably the latter. Seishirou-san would never be so careless as to let his act slip like that, meaning whatever he was doing last night must have been deliberate, but why? What was he trying to achieve?

Nothing answered him. Considering that he had spent the rest of last night and the entirety of the day so far wondering about the issue he thought that was rather unfair, especially given the barrage of questions he had had to endure from Hokuto ("He was feeding you cookies! How did that go wrong?!"). With an exasperated sigh Subaru slumped into one of the assembly room chairs in the upper rows and gave into an urge to kick his bag under the desk. His behaviour attracted some curious looks from some of the other Institute members which were ignored. In his mind he replayed the events of last night's dinner, the awkward conversation over the cookies, the way Seishirou had abruptly upped and left. He tried to gloss over the part where Seishirou had come onto him, but, mainly because he couldn't think about it without blushing—

 

"Would you like to know what a direct kiss is like?"

 

Subaru ducked his head, wondering if his embarrassment was as visible to the world as he felt it was. Apparently not; all around him, like a flock of timid sheep, young people were filling the MS Institute's assembly hall and quietly sitting down with little other apparent interest than the blank desk in front of them. Still, however, Subaru could feel some inexplicable, almost wild shiver within him at the thought of being kissed by Seishirou that skittered through his blood with the knowledge that not only had he wanted Seishirou to kiss him, he wanted the man to kiss him long and slow, preferably whilst pinning him against the wall or some other hard surface. It wasn't the first time he had entertained such thoughts, but whenever they had popped up in those years leading up to the Final Day he had been able to squash them, deny them life with the memory of Hokuto's death. Since in this life Hokuto was alive … well, suffice to say those thoughts weren't so easy to reject. Probably the only thing that kept him in check was the sobering knowledge that it was all a charade where every one of Seishirou's action was a calculated move to further the Bet. Certainly it would be wise to presume that if Seishirou did kiss Subaru he wasn't doing it with Subaru's best interest in mind, which begged the original question – why had Seishirou behaved in the way he had last night?

More importantly, why had he run away?

The door at the lower end of the room opened. It signalled a ripple of animation through the crowd of students, catching Subaru's attention and making him sit up – back to work now, his own problems could be dealt with later. A familiar figure entered the assembly room walking towards the lectern, and as one the audience stood to give a respectful welcome. This time Subaru copied them flawlessly.

"Good evening, children," said Kumiko Nagi.

The gathering bowed deeply. "Good evening, Kumiko-sensei."

Kumiko Nagi gestured for them to be seated, which they obeyed. She remained silent for a moment, searching the crowd with her eyes. It could have been Subaru's imagination but she seemed briefly to focus on him, but before he could react Kumiko Nagi began to speak. "Welcome all members and new members. I congratulate and bless you all for making it here today …"

The oration that followed was, to Subaru, much the same as that of yesterday. As before Kumiko Nagi's charisma flowed over the crowd through her words, commanding undivided attention, however this time Subaru made a better effort to detach himself from it in order to critically listen to the content of her speech. Remembering what Hokuto and Seishirou had said last night about cults he tried to see if Kumiko was calling on her listeners to devote themselves to the Institute and forget their family and friends, but she said nothing of the sort. Actually, if one disregarded Kumiko Nagi's magnetism as a public speaker her sermon was rather repetitive and vague, yet Subaru couldn't help thinking of how desperately Hashimoto wanted to believe in her and her words.

"The god inside each of you is perfect. You are all perfect. You are all able to endure …"

Speaking of Hashimoto, where was she? Subaru hadn't seen her when he had come in, and given what Hokuto had suggested about her having a crush on him Subaru would have thought she would have found him to at least say hello. In fact, hadn't she mentioned yesterday that she would definitely be coming to the evening assembly?

Where was she?

Uneasiness tugged at Subaru's intuition. Slowly, trying not to attract any attention, Subaru visually swept the room thinking that maybe Hashimoto was simply sitting somewhere else, but although he spotted other students wearing her green uniform the girl herself was nowhere to be seen. He knew that there were plenty of harmless reasons for her to be absent, maybe another commitment like an after-school club or cram class, but Subaru couldn't bring himself to believe them, especially since he knew that Hashimoto was devoted enough to skip school to go to the Institute and the extent of the bullying she was regularly subjected to …

"If you pray every day for forgiveness and enlightenment you will all achieve strength …"

The question of the girl's absence plagued Subaru through the rest of Kumiko Nagi's address. By the time it ended and the crowd had once again surrounded Kumiko Nagi with their exultant thanks Subaru was starting to think of ways to get in touch with Hashimoto just to check on her despite the fact that he didn't have any of her contact details. His partly formed plan to try talking to Institute members who had the same uniform as Hashimoto was put on hold, however, since as soon as he stood to make his way to the upper doors Asaoga appeared frantically waving to get his attention. "Sumeragi-kun!" she called out. "Can you stay back a bit? Kumiko-sensei would like to speak with you."

Inwardly Subaru grimaced; recalling his previous interview with Kumiko Nagi he wasn't particularly enthusiastic at the prospect of another one-on-one conversation with her. "Right now?" he asked.

"Right now. Come on!"

The way Asaoga was smiling and gesturing made her look as if she was summoning a pet dog. Subaru sighed; there was no helping it. Hopefully it would be short. "I'll be right there."

He grabbed his bag and jogged up the stairs. Asaoga stretched out to put an arm around his shoulders to urge him on. "Quickly now," she said, her smile affixed to her face like a child's cartoon sticker. "She won't be kept waiting."

As things turned out it was Subaru who was kept waiting. Asaoga led him to sit on one of the plastic chairs outside the door of the director's office and told him that Kumiko-sensei would be with him shortly. After that she had scurried off, presumably called away by some more pressing matter of administration, leaving Subaru to fiddle with the cloth of his gloves wondering just why Kumiko Nagi would want to see him again so quickly and whether Hashimoto was all right. He didn't have to wonder long. Less than five minutes after Asaoga had disappeared down the corridor, he heard the quiet steps of well-heeled ladies shoes coming towards him. Subaru stood up. "Kumiko-sensei," he said respectfully.

The welcoming smile Kumiko Nagi gave was exactly the same as last time. "Hello Subaru-kun. I hope I haven't kept you waiting long?" Subaru replied in the negative. "That's good. Please, come in."

She opened the door and stood to one side for Subaru to enter. Subaru politely did so, and listened to Kumiko close the door behind them. "Take a seat," she said.

"Okay." Gingerly Subaru took the larger of the couches – what was he doing here? – and watched as Kumiko sat down behind her desk. Behind her the curtains were open revealing a living picture of Shinjuku at night. Subaru did his best not to let the neon lights distract him. "Ah, may I ask what this is about?"

"I want to talk to you," said Kumiko. "Something important has come to my attention."

The seriousness of Kumiko's expression made Subaru apprehensive, and it wasn't helped by the knowledge that the woman did possess a level of spiritual power. "What might that be?" he asked warily. Does she know about my investigation?

"It's about Kuniko-chan."

That was unexpected. Immediately Subaru's wariness melted into worry. "What about her?"

"A few of the students here at the Institute go to the same school as her. They told me that she had been stabbed in class."

"Stabbed?" Subaru stared in shock. "W-why?"

"By a fellow classmate. The classmate was one of the ones that bully Kuniko-chan, and the two of them got into a fight during art-class." Kumiko looked wearied with sadness. "In the struggle the classmate grabbed a painting spatula and used it to slash Kuniko-chan in the face."

"Is she all right?" demanded Subaru.

"The hospital said that she's in a stable condition, but she has received a wound that will never heal." With a small sigh Kumiko stood and went to the window, gazing out onto the lights of Shinjuku in a pose that would have been melodramatic if not for the seriousness of the discussion. "It's a terrible accident," she murmured. "Even more so because of Kuniko-chan. Had she endured, had she patiently persevered, this never would have happened. She should have prayed harder to become a stronger person."

Prayed harder– "What are you saying?" Subaru asked. Memory flickered – a crying, terrified face, one discoloured with new bruises layered over old— "Are you saying that the stabbing is Hashimoto-san's fault?"

"Kuniko-chan couldn't make her heart strong enough to forgive everyone," explained the teacher. "She was a weak person, too weak to forgive something as petty as her classmate's bullying."

Petty?" Subaru couldn't believe what he was hearing. "Hashimoto-san gets beaten up every single day at school to the point that she gets stabbed in the face, and you say it's petty?"

"Pain is but a small piece in the greater scheme of one's life. This may be difficult for you to understand, Subaru-kun, because you're still so young, but in time you will see how it is possible to free yourself from pain and attain true strength. I will help you see." Disbelief froze Subaru's power of speech as Kumiko crossed the room and took him by the shoulders with surprising strength. Instinctively Subaru tensed, not so much at the unwelcome invasion of his personal space, but in an automatic resistance against the force of will that Kumiko was bringing down on him. "I know that you're exceptionally powerful," said the cult leader, eyes boring into his. "I also know that you suffer because of your powers. I want to relieve you of that suffering, to rescue you from your pain before it's too late like it was for Kuniko-chan. It's what I'm here for."

Slowly, Subaru's gloved hands curled into fists – at this intimate range listening to Kumiko-sensei was like standing beneath a powerful waterfall, and for once he was thankful for his heritage and training which allowed him to resist. He could only imagine how an ordinary person would have reacted to Kumiko, someone helpless like Hashimoto who had desperately pinned all her hopes onto this deluded woman expecting salvation. Still Kumiko went on. "Imagine it, a life without pain or suffering! A life where you are able to understand and love other people without fear – I can show you how to reach that. I can save you!"

Subaru was unable to contain himself any longer. "Save me?" Abruptly he stood, roughly knocking Kumiko's hands from his shoulders – he didn't want this woman touching him – and glared at her with barely repressed outrage. "You can't save anybody."

The look of astonishment on Kumiko Nagi's face was almost priceless. "What?"

"You claim that with your spiritual power you can understand people's pain," said Subaru coldly. "But you're not me, and I'll tell you right now that I can say with absolute certainty that there's no way you can even begin to comprehend my problems. Nor are you Hashimoto-san, you can't understand what she's going through, in fact you probably haven't even experienced anything like Hashimoto-san's pain because if you had you wouldn't be describing it as 'petty'!"

"Subaru-kun—"

"Hashimoto-san is a fifteen-year-old girl. A fifteen-year-old girl who now has to live a permanent scar on her face and you say it's there because she didn't pray hard enough?" By now Subaru was shouting, but he was too angry to control himself. "You're blaming the victim, that's what you're doing! You go around with your power offering people salvation with the condition that they learn to love themselves and stop being afraid, but it's not that simple! All you're doing is building up people's hopes to be dashed to pieces when they discover the world isn't the way you'd like it to be – it's unfair, it's cruel, and you know what? Bad things will happen to good people for no reason at all!"

"He's absolutely right."

The voice from the doorway was unexpected, familiar, and had the power to stop Subaru dead in his tracks. Kumiko also looked startled, and as one, they both turned towards the speaker.

Subaru stared in shock. "Seishirou-san?"

Sakurazuka Seishirou, clad in black suit and long coat, leaned casually against the doorframe and smiled from behind his glasses. It was not a pleasant smile, and it became less so as the man straightened and entered the room with slow, deliberate steps. "Seishirou-san?" asked Subaru, baffled by the man's presence. "What are you—"

Seishirou walked straight past as if Subaru were invisible. Belatedly Subaru realised that not only had Seishirou not given him a single look since his entrance, Seishirou's gaze was completely and utterly focused on the now wary Kumiko Nagi. It was a gaze that Subaru had seen but a few times and always associated with the closure of a hunt—

A hand dropped in front of his eyes bringing a soporific pressure. Before Subaru could finish his thought the world went dark.

 

* * *

 

There were voices somewhere, distant and unclear, like an improperly tuned radio heard from another room. Subaru frowned a little in his sleep, trying to identify who was speaking as he slowly climbed back to consciousness. Why was he asleep in the first place?

"—you're growing to be quite a problem."

Seishirou-san. Subaru dreamily identified that voice with ease, there was no way he could ever mistake it. He strained his ears further, trying to listen, wondering why Seishirou was there … the darkness around him was dissipating gradually, as if he was rising through cloudy water. Who was Seishirou speaking to?

"A problem?" A woman's voice, low and calm. Subaru knew that woman's voice too, remembered being angry with her arrogant attitude to the suffering of others, but why Seishirou talking to such a person he didn't know … "Am I a problem for you? Are you part of another new religious group?"

"Me? I couldn't care less. And I certainly don't have anything to do with any religious organisation."

"Then who says that I'm a problem?"

There was an almost audible dark smile. "Who indeed."

Kumiko Nagi, that was the woman's name. Subaru had been asked to see her in her office and had ended up in a shouting match, but that didn't explain why he was asleep … he tried to get up, a difficult feat when his limbs felt as if they were weighed down with – what? A sleep spell? Yes, that was it; he recognised the way its skeins felt across his mind. But this sleep spell wasn't cast correctly, or rather, it was cast correctly but didn't quite fit, like an expertly tailored jacket that was two sizes too small— "It's no use," Seishirou was saying off-handedly, "your abilities are no match for mine. Though I'm certain you've already realised that."

There was a subtle change in the room's air pressure; Subaru could feel it on his skin. It was a pressure Subaru had felt before and had learnt to associate with the power of the Sakurazukamori … and then it clicked. Why he was asleep, why Seishirou was here and talking to Kumiko, it all added up to only one reason. Urgency gave Subaru adrenalin; he heard a gasp of terror from Kumiko and fought to move, but still his body was too heavy and even his tongue couldn't be made to do more than whisper—

"NO! Stay – stay away from me!" Frantic steps of ladies' shoes, a doorknob rattling. "Somebody help me!"

It was like struggling against gravity, so difficult was it for Subaru to drag himself free of the sleep spell. He threw his mind against it, trying to exploit its weaknesses to open his eyes— "Help me! Somebody, help me! Hel—"

The air was filled with soft pink petals. Subaru managed to wrench himself to his feet just as Kumiko Nagi's screams were cut short. Still moving sluggishly and with sakura blowing into his eyes, nevertheless Subaru forced himself forward trying to get between the hunter and his victim, desperately reaching out and screaming to be heard over the roar of the wind—

"Don't kill her!"

The sakura storm abruptly stopped. Kumiko Nagi's body dropped to the floor with a sickening thud. Subaru stared at it, the terrified eyes that were now blank and dead, but only for a moment. Standing above the teacher's corpse was the Sakurazukamori as Subaru had always remembered him: resplendent in black suit and long coat, an air of predatory danger in his poise. Like a raptor caught with bloodied beak he was turned towards Subaru. His amber-gold eyes were wide.

Subaru knew he should be running for his life. But all he could think about was how he had never seen Seishirou with that look of shock before.

 

Chapter Ten

Annex IV | Chapter Twelve

NOTES:
- The Yamanote Line is the famous Japan Rail train that goes in a huge circle all around the Tokyo Metro area. It stops at all the major stations such as Tokyo, Shibuya, Shinjuku, Ueno, etc., and is recognisable by the light green stripe along the side.
- Many thanks to Tammaiya for the name 'Kinko-chan' as the name of the puppy in the story Seishirou tells. I originally wanted the puppy to swallow a cell-phone, but I remembered that cell-phones in the early 1990s were bricks, so decided a pager was more feasible.
- Mosburger is a chain of Japanese fast-food restaurants with burgers and chips and drinks etc., but much better quality (and probably healthier) than Western fast-food joints like McDonalds. The best thing there is the rice-burger, where instead of bread-buns they use packed rice with fillings like teriyaki beef.
- In the general election of February 1990 the Liberal Democratic Party of Japan was voted into government despite being battered by a political crisis in the months before. The political crisis was the result of a number of issues, including an insider trading scandal which forced the resignation of the Prime Minister in April 1989. It's worth noting that the LDP lost the 1993 election to the opposition.
- Shinkō shūkyō – a new religious movement in Japan. More info can be found here

the void