[Day: Saturday, April 3rd Time: 2:50 p.m.] [Weather: Sunny and clear.] [Having saved Katie, you're all at school again! Yay!] [Session Start!] * Haruko heads down the hall at a somewhat slow pace and still has a few visible bandages. * Satoshi is at his locker, exchanging his books. He closes the locker door and waves to Haruko as she approaches. * Haruko makes a small motion to wave back. She reaches Satoshi and with some care sits down by the lockers. She also starts going through her backpack. How are you feeling? * Haruko gives a half smile. "Physically, not so great, emotionally, looming dread, but all things considered, not too bad. You?" * Satoshi half-smiles back. "Maybe a bit better physically, about the same mentally." * Taki limps up the hall - there are a couple of rectangular chalk marks in her hair and she's stopping every now and then to yawn. * Katie heads towards y'all. Which makes sense, since her locker's there. She looks... okay, all considered. Eyes aren't darting everywhere; back to that half-seeing way she always used to have. * Haruko gets out a medium sized tupperware type bowl and a cork, and then her bottle of water. She glances up at Katie and waves and then stands slowly. * Kaede is walking with Katie but unusually, he doesn't seem to be holding Katie's hand and actually might be outpaced by her. He sighs as he approachs slowly and walks straight up to his locker. * Haruko closes her eyes for a moment when Kaede walks up. (figuratively holding her hand of course...well most of the time) * Katie smiles a little and glances at Haruko's eyes, then Satoshi's, then back to Taki's. She ends up at her locker and starts switching books around. * Satoshi waves to the group. "Afternoon." He meets Katie's gaze when she looks at him, then looks over at Taki. * Kaede swaps out his books and then closes his lockers, keeping his hand against it. "We're all here?" Everyone but Kyon. But I don't think that'll be changing any time soon. Yeah. Anyone heard from him lately? Good. Then we need to go. Go? Go. * Taki still has her violet eyes, they're a bit bloodshot at the moment, "Where?" * Katie glances at Kaede, then nods. "Yeah, but first I've got to talk to Eriko." Doesn't matter. * Haruko opens her eyes a few moments later, although Katie probably could have seen them from a distance. She looks to Kaede. "I'm keeping him posted." She then nods and leans down to put her bowl, cork, and bottle back in her bag. The Tower could work...apartment might too but a bit risky... * Haruko looks to Kaede. "What's your goal? Just a better place to meet?" Unless we're going right to the source right away... * Taki blinks at Kaede. The source? * Kaede looks at Haruko and says simply. "Chariot knows we're involved now. And if he knows we're Sakuragoaka students, he'll start showing here..." * Satoshi 's eyes widen. "Hoo boy..." * Haruko shrugs. "He hasn't shown for Saki, she's been a bigger menance to him, but sure. Tower has never really been safe, how about your shop, if you feel that's safe." * Taki blinks at Kaede again, "...Uhm... Just... how much did I miss yesterday?" True...has he given Saki a death threat yet though? Well...for now at least, I think it'd be best not to stick around if we can...the shop...the shop...could work I suppose... I want to go there, anyway. * Kaede seems a little hesitant at that, but doesn't disagree. * Haruko chuckles. "Well, he did give orders to kill her just like us, so... Anyways, you have tools, we can work on the headband there." That's...yes that's an idea. * Katie finishes and turns, closing her locker behind her. "I'm going to talk to Eriko and Ryuji. If you guys go to the shop early, just call and let me know. Haruko, you're with me, if that's okay." * Satoshi nods. "All right." * Taki pauses a bit and then nods. ( Go with Takeuchi-san or hang out with Ryuji-sama....Katie, you give me such tough choices..) (*snicker*) * Haruko looks back to Katie, her expression is odd for a moment. She then smirks. "Sure, since you asked nicely. I can give you a ride to the shop afterwards." * Kaede looks about. "The thing is...if Chariot did decide to go on the direct offensive one of these days, with what we know there'd be no way to stop him..." * Katie grins and nods to Haruko. "That's the idea." * Kaede looks over at Katie. "...Save us a paper, won't you?" * Katie blinks, looking to Kaede. There's a long pause before she finally says, "I don't know if I'm going to try to get one." Please, Katie. * Satoshi blinks, too, then remembers how Chikako had reacted to him on the phone. He sighs quietly. * Haruko grins back. "Oh, thought you were just giving me an excuse to see Ryuji." She then frowns at Katie's next comment. You... should talk to her, please. * Katie looks into the distance. "I don't know what I'd say." Just be yourself. That's what I always do. * Haruko sighs. "Katie is quite capable of making her own choices. Let's go, if you want to stop on the way, or on the way back, we can." That you're still alive... and mostly alright? ( Don't be like me and avoid people just because you don't know what to say to them.) Yeah. Being myself is a real help. And yeah... I'll think about it. * Katie waves to the others, then heads off with Haruko. To the roof! * Kaede turns. "Haruko's right. Let's go." * Satoshi waves back, then nods. "Yeah." * Haruko gives quick disturbance in the force blink, but she doesn't check Kaede's eyes this time. (*waits for Haruko to check Kaede's ey--ha!*) * Taki waves to Haruko and Katie and then limps after the boys. (Hee hee heeeee!) * Satoshi hangs back and waits for Taki to catch up. * Satoshi says quietly to her, "By the way..." * Taki looks up at him slowly and quitly asks, "Yeah?" We really need to talk sometime. Maybe after we're done here? * Taki shives slightly and nods, "I'm... I.... yes." * Satoshi nods and smiles a little sadly. "Good. Thanks." * Kaede is going and not eavesdropping in the slightest. Not at all. Yup. (No, that's my job.) (Yes. Yes, it is.) (*drops a pin in a quiet room and EXPLODERATES KATIE'S EARS!*) (*implodes*) (Sadly she can hear us from the roof) [Some time later, you get to Kaede's shop!] * Kaede heads on in. The bell dings. * Satoshi follows Kaede in. It's his place, after all. He takes a look around to see if anything's changed since the last time he was there. (Except for the "Under New Management" signs with swimsuit pictures of Akemi hanging all over the place, noooo...nothing at all.) (*laughs*) * Taki is the last one in the door, unless there's a customer following them in, and is much more intersted in looking for a chair or even an empty bit of wall to lean on. * Kaede calls out. "Nanami? Akemi? You around?" He starts taking off his jacket and walking towards the counter as he walks further inside. [No answer! But gimme hearing checks] 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Taki (2d6) and gets 9. (All of us, or just Kae- eh, never mind. ;p) 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Satoshi (2d6-2) and gets 4. 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-2) and gets 6. [Kaede and Satoshi hear loud thumping coming from upstairs.] What's that noise? * Kaede starts, looks at Satoshi for a second, then literally RUNS towards the upstairs. * Satoshi follows. It could be trouble. Mh? Wha...Kaede? * Taki follows along as fast as she can with out teleporting. 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Haruko (2d6) and gets 11. 2d6-8 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Katie (2d6-8) and gets -1. [The thumping gets louder! It seems to be coming from the door to the living room.] * Kaede listens at the door for a bit after cracking the door open to see if he hears any tell-tale signs. (Yeah, it's not like the shop bell didn't alert whoever's in there >_>) (not if there's thumping no ;P) * Taki lags behind the others, but catches up when Kaede stops to listen. 2d6-3 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-3) and gets 5. * Kaede stops at the door, raises an eyebrow and opens it, going on in. He doesn't seem as frantic now though. * Satoshi hesitates briefly, then follows. * Kaede knocks on the door before going all the way in though! * Taki straggles in behind, and looks releaved. [Inside, Akemi (in a tight elastic outfit) and Nanami are playing DDR. The horror!] (* has bad Wasabi flashbacks) * Kaede sighs with relief and goes to his room to change. If they notice him, they notice him. * Satoshi backs away. He looks over at Taki. "I guess we should wait for him in the shop?" * Taki looks away from the scrolling arrows, "Ah....yeah." * Taki heads back down there. * Satoshi waits for Kaede. "So..." He glances over at Taki. "I'd talk to you about some things now, but Kaede's going to be coming back soon and I don't want to be interrupted." 'Cause it's pretty important. ( Plus Akemi's taking all my attent--um forget I said that) ( Hmm... ) (*snerk*) ( Am I feeling unnecessarily cruel today? ) (Really, I want to do a Taki/Satoshi mini at some point.) * Taki nods, "I... lost control of myself... I'm sorry." ( I am. Satoshi and Taki, soul rolls! ) ( -2 bonuses ) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Taki (2d6-2) and gets 2. 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Satoshi (2d6-2) and gets 0, a CRITICAL SUCCESS!!! "I love you. Do you love me too? Y_ N_" (* Satoshi manages to think hockey is better than Akemi in spandex.) You made it through, though. [Taki is intrigued by the game, but Satoshi ignores it in favor of watching Akemi instead.] * Satoshi did, admittedly, take a pretty good look at Akemi. (If that's a crit success, what's a crit failure? :P) (Well...oogling Nanami. Kaede'd kill you.) (Knocking her off the machine to play it himself!) (It's an evil DDR machine that's possesed them!) (Sorry, Taki, but my exorcist is in another game.) * Kaede finishes changing and steps back out. He watches for a little bit before clearing his throat. Can't say he doesn't note which song they're on though. (sall right, Haruko will be here in a bit) (She's a miko, though, not an exorcist.) (She'd try to exorcise or call her dad.) [The song ends just as Kaede does that, and the two turn around, out of breath. Akemi smiles and waves. "Hi there." Nanami... not so much.] * Kaede nods and looks over the both of them. "Slow day?" * Kaede tries not to look at Nanami but can't help spare her a glance. Akemi nods. "Uh huh!" * Kaede frowns. "Must not be the time of it...I don't know..we're going to be doing some work downstairs..that might draw a crowd if we make it public...but.." I don't know..anyhow, we're going to be looking at tools. And it's my turn to go over the books so.. * Kaede gives Nanami another side-glance. Akemi smiles. "I can draw a crowd for you if you want." * Kaede looks at Akemi faintly. "Yes...but the question is will they BUY anything?" * Kaede suddenly hmms. "Wait...that's an idea actually..." * Akemi grins slyly. "With a little incentive..." * Kaede looks up at Akemi. "What about a modelling shoot at the bike shop? I mean if we get a bunch of contestants to showcase bikes in a contest or something like that..." * Kaede suddenly sighs. "But I don't know if we have enough to offer in the way of reward...or even for a charity or anything like that..." ( Gimme a buisness roll ^^ ) (Woot! How long has it been since I've done one of those?) (A Long Time.) (Small business?) ( Hmm... ) ( Don't have my book, so... Ok! ) (No, Kaede. Little did you know, Takeuchi Bike Repair has become a chain.) 2d6-4 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-4) and gets 7. (Well there might have been one on advertisement or such) (Maybe you find a note downstairs that Taki and Satoshi have gone to get a bite to eat or something >_>;;;) [Akemi thinks. "Hmmm... That could work. With the right backdrop. And the right outfits..."] * Kaede turns to his sister. "What do you think, Nana--" He cuts himself off and looks away. * Haruko arrives outside, or at least you hear the sound of a familar motorcycle and can probably assume. (Whao, Kyon's back already? :P) [Akemi looks between the two. Then gets a lightbulb over her head (although not literally).] [Akemi walks over to Kaede.] * Kaede then looks at Akemi...trying to keep an eye on her face, since he's speaking serious. "You'll have to help me with the outfits. You're more...uh...intune to this sort of thing.." 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 2, a CRITICAL SUCCESS!!! "I love the smell of a crit in the morning." * Haruko , after reading the note, heads up stairs and knocks on the door. (Strangely, I want to retcon that crit success) ( Go ahead ^^ ) (Brett, just pull a Paranoia GM) [Kaede manages not to fall over when Akemi grabs his arm and drags him into the room!] (Look, even Kaede can't fail all the time :P) (Whoo, makeout session!) * Haruko waits about half a minute and then knocks louder. (with his sister right there, kinky :P) * Kaede gets dragged. His main concern, strangely, seems to be keeping his glasses on his face more than resisting Akemi. [Akemi pushes Kaede onto the pad on the right. Then she pulls Nanami onto the one on the left. She starts up the next song. "Play."] (... Akemi is freaking brilliant.) * Kaede blinks and looks at Akemi. "Me? But I can't...I mean..." "Hurry up! The song's starting!" (She is.) [Nanami gives Akemi a confused look, but Akemi just gestures at the screen.] * Haruko hears music presumably and shrugs and goes to loiter outside the front of the shop. * Kaede turns towards the screen. This is insane. This is confusing. This is a waste of his valuable time. (I was waiting for that line. :P) (^_^) [But there's music and lights and arrows! Body - gaming (video games)!] (Now the question is just how long will Haruko wait for Kaede before a) breaking into the shop to get some work done or b) going home to get work done. :P) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 5. (I think the door's unlocked) (Oh it is?) (Door is unlocked, yes. ;P) * Haruko after getting bored (didn't take long) checks the door and then goes inside and after calling out appropriate warnings, goes back to the back and gets to work on the headband. (Yeah, and Taki's note should be inside. ^^;) (I had her read it earlier, so we'll just say it was visible from outside. Probably big windows so not surprising) [They play! Those crazy arrows! Akemi giggles at Kaede's attempt at rythym. "Faster! Faster!" Another roll!] (Taki's note: "Gone brooding. Kaede's oogling Akemi upstairs. Be back later. ~Taki") 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 6. (Hey, he's just missing by 1. ;P Well 2 now.) 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-2) and gets 8. [The arrows scroll like crazy! Akemi bursts out laughing, mostly at Kaede's serious face as he tries to do this. Kaede also sees Nanami crack a smile out of the corner of his eye.] ( Another roll! ) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 9. (...he just keeps getting worse and worse...) (That's what happens!) (I'm like that when I play ddr. ^_~) (Ditto. 'specially fast songs.) (*puts Kaede on So Deep and watches his head 'splode*) (Maniac? Oh, the pain.) [Kaede's winded already. Poor, poor, miss, miss, miss... He gets all the way through, but only because Nanami picked up slack. She chuckles, but it's lost behind Akemi's laughter. "Wow! You HAVE to do that again!"] * Kaede huffs, holding his hands on his knees. "That's not...that's not fair! You know I've never really done this before...I've just watched Nanami mostly..." [Akemi giggles. "Of course I do. That's why you should go again! Newbies are always funny to watch."] * Kaede eyes Akemi. And not to look at her fine body either. (A-sexual o/~) (That's only what his mind thinks) (Kaede's a newb.) (Kaede reproduces through mitosis.) (*coughs on her grape*) (Woot! Choke point!) * Kaede turns back towards the screen in a huff. "Fine." * Kaede pushes up his glasses, sideglancing at Nanami. "Let's go, sis." [Nanami grins to herself. She ups the difficulty.] (Kaede = Doomed) (But he goes out being surrounded by pretty girls, so it can't be all that bad.) [The game starts! OMG gaming roll, Kaede!] (Nevermind that one's his sister. I'm sure there's a doushinjin in there somewhere) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 7. [The meter just... drops. Beeeeeeop.] ( Another gaming roll! ) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 2, a CRITICAL SUCCESS!!! "I'm down with that. You know me." ( @_@ ) (...bwahaha) (@_@) (Kaede is THE WIN!) (Serves you right, Brett ;P) (He gets down with his groovy self) (Kaede's gettin' jiggy with it.) (HIS DISCO NEEDS HIM.) [Kaede starts to pick it up. Akemi grins, "Ah ha! You do have rythym after all!"] ( Another roll! ) (That or he just used his power on the machine.) (* Kaede finishes and huffs, asking "What song was that?" ...Max 300... Is that...good? ...) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 7. [They almost get through! But Kaede stumbles a bit at the end, and they fail. The game makes sure they know, too: "Oh man! You faaaaail!"] ("Are you a monkey?") ( Ook.) * Kaede finally gives up...he stumbles and then just flops, sitting on the pad, breathing. "Darn...almost..had it.." ("Have you had breakfast today?") (I never had when it asked that ;_;) [Nanami flops too. "Yeah..."] [Akemi chuckles and pats them both on the back.] * Kaede looks at Nanami. "We'll have to practice again late--" He realizes what he's doing and turns his head away ashamed again. 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 10. [Akemi shakes her head. "You two are unbelievable." She pushes them together. "Now, make up."] (...I should go to sleep... I parsed that as "Now go make out." >_>;;;) (EEW.) ( >.> ) * Kaede 's eyes widen and he looks at Akemi. "Eh?" Then back at Nanami, staring at her for a long while. (Yes. Eww.) (No incest here. >.>) 2d6-8 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Katie (2d6-8) and gets -6, a CRITICAL SUCCESS!!! "That was close. One cycle later and you'd have fit nicely into a sandwich." (... Dude, I made that.) (Katie hears the heartbeat of the world) (Katie IS Neji Hyuuga.) (She's got ears, not eyes... or at least not that level of eyes) [Akemi grins. "Go on..."] [Nanami sighs. "I'm sorry I threw my purse at you, brother."] * Kaede sighs and turns off to the side, starting himself. "I.." He then looks at her. "Wait. You are?" I thought... * Kaede sighs. "I thought you were still mad." * Kaede turns away. "...well. More than that. More than mad. You--I don't want you to be afraid of me, Nanami." Nanami: "It was the way you were acting. It wasn't like you. It was like mom." * Kaede frowns at that. But doesn't say anything. Akemi grins and pats Nanami's head. "I'm sure he was just stressed out. It happens to all of us." She looks directly at Kaede's eyes. "Right?" I was...I just...a lot's been going on lately. It's been hard to keep my head straight. Do you forgive me? [Nanami nods slowly.] Good. Akemi grins widely. She wraps her arms around both of them and gives them a big hug. "There! Doesn't that feel better?"] 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 4. * Kaede looks up at Akemi and nods, "Of course." then suddenly grabs for her wrist, standing up to yank her down in his previous position. "Because you're going to challenge me next." (It's love!) [Akemi is pulled down! "Wha-?!"] * Kaede grins at her, standing over her. "But...later." He turns to the door. "I'm expecting someone soon. I wonder if they came already." He then waggles a finger at Akemi. "But don't forget that that's a challenge." [Akemi hops to her feet. "Ooh! A challenge. I'll have to wear my challenge clothes."] I'm not going to ask.. [Akemi grins. "Ok! It's a date." She then challenges Nanami to another game.] * Kaede eyes them, then looks down the stairs. "I guess...I'll manage the store today shall I?" He starts walking back down the stairs, shaking his head. * Haruko continues to work back in his shop. 2d6-5 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Haruko (2d6-5) and gets -1. (Back at the Sekrit Lair of Takeuchi...) * Kaede walks in on Haruko! But considering it's his shop, that's probably allowed. (Checking progress with DM) 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Katie (2d6) and gets 4. * Haruko is staring at the band, she's done a fairly good job of fixing up the dents, but is still frowning. 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Haruko (2d6) and gets 6. * Haruko seems fairly deep in thought while studying it, and doesn't notice Kaede come back. * Kaede walks up to Haruko, checks out the shop for any customers first before taking a seat. "How's progress?" 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Haruko (2d6-2) and gets 1. * Haruko looks up, slightly startled, she settles quickly. "Not so good..." * Kaede nods. "May I take a look?" Near as I can tell, nothing mechanic or electronic, just chemical. ::She points out two metal points at the side:: They're hollow, like syringes. Probably still some chemical, cause it was still working on Katie. ::she holds it out for Kaede:: * Kaede looks it over. "Hmm..the question is, what kind of chemical? Is it something like the drug?" * Haruko sighs. "That'd be my guess. We're going to need to bring in some help on this. Dang, I need to call Matthais I should..." Haruko cuts herself off. You could talk to Akemi. She's upstairs. She might know something. * Kaede inspects the syringes and the mechanism fully, trying to assess Haruko's assessment. * Haruko blinks. "Thanks, I should." She then sighs. "But first I should talk to you." * Kaede looks up. "About?" * Haruko looks sheepish. "Well, first, you have any preference about what I call you?" * Kaede blinks. "What? What brought this on?" * Kaede looks back at the headband. "That's a rather silly question.." (Called it! XD) (Called what?) (Good call then.) (Thanks. ^^ And I called Kaede's reaction to Haruko's question.) (Hehe) * Haruko shrugs. "So, you have no preference? It's the sort of thing that matters to me, but I'm sure it doesn't for everyone." Why should it matter for you? * Kaede inspects the headband more as he talks. Because honorifics have meaning. Familarity, distance, affection, that sort of thing. ::She grins:: C'mon, you didn't just skip class on those days, right? Pffft, that was years ago, Haruko-san. I couldn't remember if I made those days or not if I tried... * Kaede leans back. "And just because the teachers give them that sort of meaning doesn't necessarily make it absolute..." * Haruko grins slightly. "Just a joke, you're bright enough to figure it out even without that. Anyways, it's a silly question because it doesn't matter to you whether I call you Kaede or Takeuchi-san or anything else?" * Haruko shrugs. "Nope, but it's how most people use them." No. I was curious with the shift though. * Kaede tinkers. * Haruko shrugs. "Didn't think I had the right to be familar. Anyways, guess I'll go with Kaede then. Less sylablles." * Kaede snorts a little. "A right?" * Haruko nods. "Like I said, these things matter to me." So you don't feel comfortable with me. That's fine. Not many people do. Not many people ever have. * Haruko closes her eyes. "It's more than that." She opens them again. "We don't have to do this all at once, but, I guess, decide how much effort you want to put into understanding. It won't be fun." * Kaede looks at her honestly. 'And since when have you known me to do things solely for the sake of fun, Haruko-san?" * Haruko looks back. "That still doesn't mean it's necessarily worth your time." * Kaede shrugs as he looks over the headband. "Not much else to talk about while we work on this thing. Go ahead." * Haruko sighs and looks down. "This isn't easy for me, y'know." She then forces herself to look up again. "Look, after your fight with Nanami, I intruded and pushed you much farther than I had any right to. I just thought it might be worth it, wasn't like my attempts at friendship would have lasted anyways." 2d6 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6) and gets 5. 2d6-5 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-5) and gets 1. You... * Kaede turns about and sighs, "I snapped." 2d6-2 * Dicesuke throws the bones for Kaede (2d6-2) and gets 6. * Haruko nods, she looks tempted to speak but bites her tongue. * Kaede tinkers at the headband. "Do you have any idea what it's like to feel you've just lost...everything? Or at least everything important to you?" No. I just...I don't even know what I said back then...it was just a feeling of...I guess the best thing that could describe it is numbness.. * Haruko nods and stays silent. And...I just really felt like lashing out...that's the first time I've ever really felt like that...and for that, I'm sorry... * Haruko nods and closes her eyes for a moment. * Kaede tries to check the chemicals. "You're right, it's definitely chemical...do we have a chemistry club on campus? Or maybe they'll let us use the room.." * Haruko shrugs and replies somewhat flippantly. "If there isn't, Kyon could get funding." She then settles a little. "That wasn't the only time, although I'm pretty sure now weren't intentional, and you tended to be hurting at the time soon, but..." ::Her voice wavers a little;: But? [There's no visible chemecals there. Meaning, if there are any left, they're microscopic amounts.] * Haruko opens her eyes, they're fairly obviously quite watery. "You've hurt me worse than anyone else, and you weren't even trying." Haruko grits her teeth for a moment. "And that does make it worse, and I hated you for it. And because I couldn't help you and you didn't seem willing to help yourself." She closes her eyes again. "Maybe I still do." * Kaede looks at Haruko evenly, just observing silently for a moment. * Haruko opens her eyes after a bit. She's still crying. She doesn't seem to have anything to add. * Kaede then taps at the band. "Is it that important for you to like me, Haruko- san?" * Haruko rubs at her eyes with the back of her left hand. "No. I've accepted that someone can be a good person without me liking him. That helped a lot." Good... * Haruko lets her hands hang at her side. She's still crying, she just seems to have given up doing anything about it. * Kaede taps the headband. "I'm not that hard to figure out when you come right down to it..." That's what everyone thinks. And just because I know you're numb at times, doesn't mean the things you say won't hurt. * Kaede looks up slightly, taking a deep breath. "If the things I've said have hurt you, then perhaps you need to look at them in a different light." * Haruko lets out a breathe and looks down for a moment. "What's past is past. In the future, I'll examine for different lights." She then looks up again. "And we'll have a talk if I don't see them." Her voice doesn't make clear if that's a concession or a threat. * Kaede doesn't seem to take it as a threat. In fact, he snerks at that. "That's a step better than most tak eit." * Haruko shrugs. "We'll see out it goes. I'll go fill in Akemi on what we learned about the drugs. Let me know if you find anything else, we can try the chemistry club tomorrow." Right. * Haruko walks towards the stairs. "And I'll accept your apology, if you'll promise me one thing." Yes? * Haruko glances back and says rather sadly, "The situation may come where any of us may decide it's for the best if we sacrifice ourself." Her voice then gets stronger. "Promise me you'll demand an exorbitant price for your life." ( No more playing martyr, Kaede. Awwwww, but it's my favorite game. ;_;) (*snicker) * Kaede looks at Haruko. And just stares for a bit. And then starts chuckling. * Haruko shrugs. "I do understand you well enough to expect that. Think about it, and know I'm not going to accept a flippant answer." * Haruko goes upstairs. Haruko...wait... * Haruko stops and looks back. She's still got tears, but her expression is quite serious. "Yes?" I just...despite what you may think...I'm not trying to kill myself, Haruko-san. I never have been. * Haruko nods. "But that wasn't what I asked you to promise me." There's too many other obligations on this world for me to simply give up. But...if that's what it'll take...I'll always make sure it's worth it... * Haruko smiles slightly. "You better, as I intend to hold you to it. Anyways, apology accepted." * Haruko rubs at her eyes again and heads upstairs. * Kaede nods and mans the shop while tinkering away! [End!]