Patreon LogoYour support makes Blue Moon possible (Patreon)

The Unwilling Slider [Azecreth & Wingshadow]

As expected, while Mikuru had a bit of difficulty with what Kyon was saying, Koizumi appeared to take it in stride. Kyon wouldn't look too much into it since that was how he reacted to most everything, when he wasn't pandering to Haruhi as usual. There was no reason to make too much out of it, so he didn't as he focused on his situation, and how they responded to the knowledge about it.

Addressing Koizumi's question, he looked towards the esper as he shook his head at the same time. "I don't know, though I would assume whoever did this didn't pick Nagato since she could actively try and reverse whatever is going on. As for why I got picked over your Kyon, I don't know." As for Mikuru, he didn't have a clue. It was something that he was still working on, and he didn't seem close to an answer at all, though not for lack of effort.

He stepped forward then, moving towards his seat so he could resume lunch. "It's going to be hard keeping Haruhi from getting too suspicious until things can be fixed," he noted aloud, even as he returned to eating.
 
"Hm... So what you are saying is that whoever it is that put us into this situation does not trust you to be able to resolve it," Koizumi mused, "Or, conversely, they prefer you to find the solution to the problem rather than Nagato. I do not believe we have sufficient information to say for certain, but perhaps you have some experiance or knowledge that the Kyon from this universe lacks." Mikuru managed to calm herself down by this point, although she had taken a seat and remained silent regardless.

"Perhaps you could try a different approach," Koizumi's smile became somewhat mischevious, "If you were to distract her from your unusual behavior with something else entirely." His face lit up briefly, "You could always just take her to the sports equipment shed and let nature take its course. I'm sure she would enjoy the attention, and-"

"K-koizumi-kun!" Mikuru's face turned a deep red color as she waved her arms in the air, "Just what are you suggesting?!"

"I'm sorry, I suppose my teasing has been a bit too strong considering that Miss Asahina is also in our audience," Koizumi held up his hand apologetically, but his words lacked the impact that was expected when asking forgiveness.
 
"Yeah, if I had to guess," Kyon agreed with a nod as Koizumi made his deductions from the experiences he had been related. Eating his lunch, he used the time before he was able to speak on the thoughts that occurred to him in the meanwhile. "Probably because I have experience dealing with different timelines already." But that was a whole other story, and he wasn't sure if he had the time to explain it all before they had to go back to class. It wasn't exactly an esy subject.

Koizumi's suggestion as to how to distract Haruhi was met with a look of incredulity, mouth agape as he practically stared at him. "I'm not doing that," he asserted, even as Mikuru had her more vocal interjection in the conversation. Geez, you don't sound very sorry, he grumbled to himself as Koizumi made with what might have been the fakest apology he had ever heard. At the same time, it did stir something in his mind. Asakura had said there was something for him to see behind the shed, right?

......He had a bad feeling about this now. Err, moreso than he had before.

"Yeah," he agreed, falling silent once more to eat more of his lunch. "So I take it you're still an esper and she's still a time traveler?" he asked then. Might as well get the basics down just to be safe.
 
"Right. I suppose it is only proper for introductions to be in order," Koizumi nodded, standing up from the table, "I am Koizumi.... Koizumi Itsuki, an esper from the Organization sent to observe Haruhi Suzumiya. It is my pleasure to make your acquaintence, Alternative Kyon." He accentuated his speech with a polite nod, which seemed terribly ironic considering what he had just suggested to Kyon while in mixed company. It would not have been acceptable even when not in mixed company, but his lack of tact certainly showed through.

"Kyon is still just Kyon... There really isn't any need to make up a strange way to refer to him," Mikuru protested, despite the fact that the name Kyon was still just a nickname that everyone had picked up. He did have a real name after all, even though no one ever used it.

Mikuru then looked up at Kyon, "I... I'm Mikuru Asahina. Even though you might be from a different time plane, I hope we can still get along." Her lack of denial could be taken as confirmation that she was, indeed, a time traveler in this universe as well. At least that made things simpler on his end in that respect.

"Anyway," Koizumi stepped away from the table, "It has been pretty quiet lately and I would very much prefer it if it stayed that way. Even if you are a Kyon from a different universe, I still trust your judgement. Just try not to make too much of a mess for your counterpart to clean up when its time for us to part ways." He turned toward the door, "And speaking of parting ways, I think it is about time for me to head back to my own classroom. I still have an interview quota to meet, and I might as well ask a few of my classmates if they can help me out. I suggest you do the same, Ms. Asahina." He gave them one last nod before slipping through the door.

"Uhm..." Mikuru fidgetted a bit nervously now that Koizumi had left the room, "I don't think he meant anything bad by what he said. I think he's just trying to encourage you to pay more attention to Ms. Suzumiya... I just disagree on his meathods, that's all."
 
Kyon was less than impressed by the introduction that Koizumi gave, if only because it was the same pretentious speech that annoyed him all the time. At least it was confirmed that he was still an Esper, which probably could have been done with a simple 'yes' or 'no' regardless. But then again, it wouldn't have been Koizumi if he didn't make it as aggrandizing as possible, right?

"Yeah, that's not my real name anyway...." he protested in tune with what Mikuru was saying, though he doubted anyone would listen. No one ever did when it came to his name, and by now he was used to it. So long as they didn't insist on calling him 'Alternative Kyon,' he would live with it.

It was also good to hear Mikuru affirm that she was a time traveler, even if he was not sure himself whether she would be able to call in assistance from her older self. If the universe was going to be destroyed in a month or so, that probably impacted the ability of the future to do anything, if he didn't miss his guess. Still, at least the both of them were relatively the same. "Don't worry, I'll try to keep your job as easy as possible," he reassured Koizumi. He had no desire to end up in one of Haruhi's internal worlds again, and he preferred to just avoid trouble in general.

With that things seemed to be over, Koizumi making his exit to handle interviews and the like, much as Haruhi had. Kyon continued to eat his lunch, focusing more on that now as it dwindled, even as Mikuru talked to him instead, apologizing for Koizumi. "It's fine," he replied almost nonchalantly as he looked over at her. "He's like that in my world too. Just less blatantly obvious about it." He wouldn't put too much stock into what Koizumi had said, eve if it made him more wary of what Asakura wanted him to see.
 
"Is Miss Nagato the same in your world as well?" Mikuru inquired, "Please don't take this the wrong way, but she has been acting a bit strange lately. I wonder if your plane-jumping has something to do with it. I suppose even Miss Nagato herself might not realize it." She granted him an encouraging smile, "Just hang in there a bit longer, Kyon." She then began to hurry off herself, "I need to change then head back to my class as well... I'll talk to you later then." She stepped over to the door and walked out as well, most likely making a beeline straight for the nearest women's restroom. Did this imply that she had passed through the hallway in both directions wearing that getup?

In any case, with the lunch break coming to a close, Kyon had little time left in which to continue his investigation. Granted, that did not mean he would not get caught in the hall by someone who had other plans...
 
Kyon was more than willing to address this question as Mikuru asked about the Nagato of his world. "Somewhat similar, yeah," he confirmed. "In my world she's a part of our club, and she's more emotional too." Well, as far as he could tell. He hadn't had long to get a read on her, to determine whether she was. The book would probably help with that, if he didn't miss his guess.

"I will," he affirmed then, smiling at Mikuru's encouragement. Not that he had a choice, but to have her support almost made it feel like he could solve the problem that much quicker. It was a mood that probably would not suit for this universe, but he couldn't really stop himself. "Bye," he added with a wave before Mikuru departed. It was only after she left that he paused. Wait, she hadn't changed in the clubroom. Did that mean she ran through the halls in that maid outfit? He....wasn't sure how to feel about that.

With her gone he quickly finished his lunch, storing it away in his bag before he rose. At that point a sigh escaped and he moved into the halls to try and find someone to interview. He had better make some steps towards appeasing Haruhi, even if he didn't get everyone at once. He should at least have time for one person, and he went to do just that as he headed in the general direction of his classroom.
 
Unfortunately for Kyon, the first person he encountered along the way was Taniguchi, who made it a point to approach him in the hallway. He grabbed a hold of his shoulder and took him aside to speak with him in a hushed tone, "Hey... I know you like cute girls as much as the next guy, but what the hell did you do to Nagato, man?!" He pointed toward the taciturn bibliophile who stood down the hall from them. At first glance it would seem to anyone that she was simply resting her back against the wall while staring out into space. Upon closer inspection, however, it became clear that she emitted a warm aura around herself. Was Nagato... Happy?

"Look, I know it had to be you," Taniguchi insisted, "Nobody else can even talk to her, and I'm not exaggerating either. From what I hear, even the teachers have a hard time getting her to speak other than answering questions during class." Apparently Nagato did actually attend class. That was good to know. Taniguchi began to hold his shoulder a bit more firmly, "Teach me your ways, Kyon-" He shook his head, "No, please teach me your ways, Kyon-sama!"

He seemed to realize he was making a bit of a scene, so he pulled back from him after a moment and adjusted his tie in an effort to collect himself, "Anyway, I hear you've gotten yourself wrapped up in more of Haruhi's nuttiness. As much as I hate to admit it, I'd rather you take care of it than for her to force someone else to do it." Taniguchi certainly made it clear where his priorities rested. "If you need to talk to someone about those fox fires, apparently a girl named Yumi Mori had an encounter with one lately," he shrugged, "Just thought I'd pass that on to you... You know, just as a friend." Considering his earlier outburst, his true purposes were painfully clear.
 
Somehow, Kyon was not surprised to find that Taniguchi was the first person he ran across in the hallway, if only because that seemed to be the general theme of his luck thus far. He didn't protest though as he was led aside by his fellow classmate, though he did not anticipate the topic of discussion being Nagato. "Huh?" Looking past Taniguchi, he quickly spotted Nagato, and a closer observation revealed that not only was she standing there, she even seemed to have a bit of a smile, if he didn't miss his guess.

"I didn't do anything," he protested. "We just talked, that's all." Really though, he wasn't just surprised to see her happy. N, it made him feel good as well, a happiness that he had begun to break Nagato out of her shell, and continue her journey towards being a human. Admittedly the Data Entity was a problem, but that was one that would be dealt with when the time came. They wouldn't mess with Nagato while the universe was still in jeopardy, after all.

Of course, then Taniguchi had to ruin the moment by practically begging him to educate him in the ways of women, even when Kyon himself had no idea how he did it besides being a respectable person. Then again, maybe that was Taniguchi's problem. "Oy, get off me," he protested more firmly, even as Taniguchi pulled back. Now he was irritated, even if that was also the norm with Taniguchi. Sadly.

'Gee, thanks,' Kyon gurmbled to himself as Taniguchi deferred from taking care of Haruhi, which was reasonable as far as he was concerned, even in spite of that altered setting. More importantly though was his friend giving him the name of someone who had potentially seen the fox fires, even if it was with an ulterior motive in mind. As such, he shot his friend a deadpan look. "I'm not setting her up with you." He wasn't that blind.
 
"Way to ruin a guy's hopes and dreams," Taniguchi's shoulders slumped, "Look man, I understand what you're trying to do and I respect it. You've got a hell of a lot more guts than a lot of the other guys do, in fact... Just remember us less fortunate folk from time to time." He placed one hand in his pocket and waved with the other, "Well, I've said my bit so I'll let you think it over... Just keep me posted on your progress in the very least, alright?" With that, Taniguchi left Kyon in peace as the lunch break came to an abrupt end. It certainly felt longer than usual, which was a first considering that it was supposed to be an enjoyable reprieve.

Inside the classroom, Haruhi wore a much more exuberant expression than before. Apparently she had some success in her interviews, or interrogations rather, during the lunch break. Her eyes sparkled at Kyon when her gaze met his, as apparently she was bursting at the seams with anticipation of sharing her progress. Doubtless she would not be quite so impressed by his lack of intel, or at least intel that he could share with her in any case. Class was soon called to order and the studies continued, albeit with Haruhi's pleased smile staring at his back throughout the entire afternoon period.

Almost on cue, Haruhi called to Kyon just as soon as the last bell rang, "Meet you there!" Her form bolting from the room with remarkable swiftness. Why exactly she felt the need to restrain herself until they were in the clubroom remained unclear, but she most certainly expected Kyon to follow after her in haste. Granted, he still had plenty of other things to attend to...
 
"Sure," Kyon replied noncommittally, even as he grumbled in his mind. 'Less fortunate'? 'What he was trying to do'? Honestly, could Taniguchi be any more annoying on this subject. Unless the Kyon here did actually entreat his theatrics to set him up with their classmates, he was never going to do that. He had many more uses for his time that were more productive than helping Taniguchi get a girlfriend. If the man was willing to invest some actual effort, he probably would have been a lot less unfortunate.

As it stood, Kyon did admit to a bit of worry with how happy Haruhi seemed to be, if only because he knew from experience that it typically meant more work for him. But if she was in a good mood now then who was he to refuse or look down on that? She had to have found something out if she was this excited, though whether it had any actual merit remained to be seen. He was just surprised that she managed to contain herself, since in his world she probably would have started ranting immediately.

As it was, he sat down, giving her an approving look before turning to class as it began. The lessening of her bad mood towards him certainly helped him focus, and class was over sooner than he might have liked. That heralded Haruhi practically bolting from the room, so eager that she couldn't simply wait for a few minutes. Well then, she definitely had found something out.

He was a bit slower in rising, and once he did he set out. Not to the clubroom immediately though. If he didn't have any intel then he might as well make sure that he would, and so he sought out the girl that Taniguchi had directed him to, to see if she actually had seen the fox fires, and to arrange for them to talk later after the club meeting or something. Hopefully Haruhi could forgive him for that.
 
When Kyon set out on his investigation, Asakura passed by him in the hall, but instead of stopping to talk with him, she continued on her way, barely glancing at him as she walked with some of her friends from class. Exactly why Asakura had been blessed with popularity and a multitude of friends when Nagato essentially locked herself away with the computer nerds remained anyone's guess. Some of it may have been simply due to the difference in personality, but like with many details in Haruhi's world, it seemed like the cards had been unfairly dealt.

With a bit of digging, Kyon discovered Yumi Mori's whereabouts. According to some of his fellow students, the second-year student took an interest in classical music and literature, hardly the type who often found themselves wrapped up in strange situations surrounding Haruhi. She often stayed after school for club activities with her fellow members, a club known as the Classical Arts Appreciation Club. Their room just so happened to be rather close to the SOS Brigade's lair, only five doors down the hallway. Given that they had no need for special facilities, it went without saying that they too had been shuffled off to the old school building much like Haruhi's band of misfits. Granted, their club at least sounded benefical or at least educational to some respect, leaving out the role that the SOS Brigade's members played in protecting the universe from imminent destruction.
 
Kyon took the lack of interaction from Asakura in stride, assuming that she was waiting for him to go see what she had told him that she had found, even if it potentially involved something harmful for him. Even she wasn't that impatient, or so he hoped. As for the question of society, it was fairly obvious that it was because of differences in personality, as well as Haruhi's own influence. Sadly, Haruhi had not decided that Asakura shouldn't be in her life anymore. That would have made things a whole lot easier.

Luckily it wasn't too hard to find where Yumi was, and surprisingly it was pretty close to the SOS Brigade clubroom. At the very least it would be easy to get back in an expedient manner if she didn't actually know anything and Taniguchi had lied to him. He wouldn't dismiss the possibility after all, since she didn't seem the type to be involved in the weird stuff that happened to he Brigade. And at least her club had a reason for existing besides Haruhi's amusement.

Nonetheless, Kyon quickly made his way over to the building and to the room before he lost too much time. The sooner he got this interview set up the sooner he could get back to Haruhi before she tore him a new one. Arriving in front of the door, he took a deep breath and opened the door, poking his head inside to see if anyone was inside, and if he could locate Yumi.
 
When Kyon peered inside, the gentle sound of classical music whispered through the crack in the door. Three students sat around a table in the center of the room, all with headphones on. When he entered, the student facing the door looked up at him and slowly put down her headphones. The other two students seemed far too occupied listening to the music to react as they remained seated.

"Excuse me?" she studied him for a moment as if trying to place him, but the somewhat cautious look on her face told him that the two of them had likely never met before. At least he did not have to worry about keeping up appearances in front of her. The young woman had long brown hair held in place with a headband, her school uniform neatly pressed. She carried herself with an air of sophistication, one that meshed well with her apparent interests, yet the subtle flames that hovered just below her calm and proper exterior hinted that she was more than a simple wallflower.

"Are you considering joining our club, perhaps?" she suggested, having given up trying to reason out the purpose of his visit.
 
Well, this was....interesting. It was definitely more tame than the SOS Brigade room was. The music was actually relaxing, even if this club only had three people in it at the moment. Kyon looked around before fixing on the one girl who actually paid attention to him, which he supposed was probably Yumi. Well, he'd ask and find out. He couldn't recognize anyone there, so at least he didn't have to worry about his appearance beyond whatever reputation he may have garnered at this school.

"Sorry, but I'm pretty busy with my own club," he replied with a shake of his head. At the same time he stepped inside, no longer lingering in the doorway like a salesman. He felt bad for refusing, but it was the truth. Haruhi would probably string him up if he tried to join another club anyway, and he'd like to avoid a lynching or whatever else her sick mind could come up with.

But for now, time to tell the truth. "Actually, I'm looking for Yumi Mori, and I was told she was in here. I was hoping to set up an interview for later as part of the SOS Brigades efforts to investigate those fox-fires going on around town recently. Would that be a problem?" He patiently waited for an answer, hand resting on the table in the middle of the room. He had made his attempt, and if she refused then there was nothing he could really do about it.
 
"I see," she blinked, "Then why did you come all this way, exactly?" She spoke in a polite tone, relaxing somewhat as their conversation continued. She stood up from her seat and slid the chair back, her fellow club members noticing her movement and glancing over at him. She gave them a simple wave to let them know she was fine before approaching Kyon.

The girl nodded, "I am Yumi Mori..." She listened as he continued, however, her eyes widened with surprise as soon as he mentioend the fox fires and she quickly pushed him out the door and into the hallway, closing the door behind them before backing him against the wall and pressing her hand to his mouth to stiffle any further attempts to speak, "How on earth did you know about that?! I have not told anyone about it..." She looked left and right, ensuring that the hallway was empty before backing away from him, smoothing her skirt out with her hands, "Who are you, anyway? You certainly do not look like one of the school newspaper club members."
 
As Yumi began to push him out of the classroom, Kyon could only wonder why this stuff kept happening to him. Obviously Taniguchi was to blame for this, yet he had no doubt that Haruhi hadn't been accosted in such a way. Then again, if Haruhi had she probably would have beaten up her attacker, so maybe it was an unfair point. Yet right now he was just wondering what he had said to incite such a reaction from her.

"H-Hey," he protested, moving beyond the doorway into the hall, and grunting as he was pushed against the wall there. Mouth covered by her hand, he nonetheless listened on in confusion as Yumi explained what she meant, a sinking feeling appearing as to how this information had been obtained in the first place. Sadly, this was typical as well. For now he just hoped that no one came on the scene, to keep from causing further misunderstanding that he didn't need. His life was hard enough already.

"I heard it from Taniguchi," he replied in an appeasing tone with hands raised as a makeshift defense. "I'm from the SOS Brigade. You know, Haruhi Suzumiya's club. We investigate the strange, supernatural, and weird. And we save the world before lunch time too." More true than she could possibly know. Though if he were to be honest he never actually got to make this sort of speech. He'd have to work on it.
 
"Taniguchi? Is he some sort of stalker?" Yumi's suspicions remained high, Kyon's best efforts to explain the situation only making her pull back from him further. She placed her right hand onto her hip, "Haruhi Suzumiya? That must mean you are Kyon, that student I keep hearing about. I hear that you and your girlfriend pursue strange phenomina in your free time and that you've gotten into some pretty unusual stuff lately, but I did not realize you took it so seriously." Apparently his fame had spread even further than Haruhi's and that of the entire brigade in this universe, no small feat to say the least. She did not dwell on the subject for long, however.

"Look, I do not know why it happened or even if it happened. It felt really wierd, everything felt cold and everyone else around me went dead silent," Yumi reached up and rubbed her arms as if the vivid memory was replaying in her mind, "Then, the strange glowign thing approached me from around a street corner... I don't know what it said, but it said something, something that did not even sound like proper words. It fightened me, though, but as soon as I turned to run away everything went back to normal. A few people around me gave me some strange looks, but none of them seemed to realize that anything at all had been off just a few moments earlier."

"There, are you satisfied?" Yumi looked up at him, "I do not know anything more than that... If this is some sort of prank you and your friends are pulling, its not very funny. I was seriously freaked out over the entire thing for the last few days, and here you are bringing it up again."
 
"You might think that," Kyon ceded, if only because he remembered some of the stuff that his friend had done. He wouldn't fault Yumi for believing that Taniguchi was up to something suspicious, if only because he had a habit of acting with his own interests in mind, and that tended to involve going after other girls. Even still, now he was wondering how Taniguchi had found out in the first place.....

As it stood, he was surprised to find that his reputation was apparently pretty big around school, perhaps even moreso than the SOS Brigade or Haruhi herself. How that had happened he had no idea, though if she had a problem with it then Haruhi had never mentioned it before. Still, it was interesting. 'Yeah, that's me," he confirmed, glancing around right after that. "It's a long story." Longer than she could possibly have realized. Understatement much?

He listened intently though as she described what had happened to her, and the strange sensations involved. It didn't seem like what had happened to hm, though maybe that was because Nagato had been around during the second encounter? Yet he hadn't felt that sort of sensation the other time either. And it had happened in public too, making it even weirder. It had never happened to him when there were others around. He already knew the fox fries weren't natural, but what was so important about this girl?

At her accusation he shook his head, staying where he was yet still watching her. "We had nothing to do with it, honest. But with all the stuff that's been going on, and how improbable it is, we decided that they should be investigated." He bowed then, respectful even as he shoved his own sarcastic nature in the corner. "Thank you for telling me what happened. If you remember anything else, will you let me know?"
 
"Well, if you already know that strange stuff is going on, then would not your time be better spent investigating people who would actually benefit from it? I mean, why else would anyone go through the trouble?" Yumi crossed her arms in front of her chest, "I mean, whoever is responsible should just stop and think about how much they are inconveniencing people. Seriously, I have not slept well for the last two days..." She let out a sigh, finally beginning to relax as Kyon thanked her for her time, "I think I would rather just forget about the incident entirely, if that is even possible." With that, she stepped past him back into the club room and closed the door behind her. The ominous wooden barrier stared back at Kyon, indicating that he should probably not press his luck by demanding more of her time than he already had.

Time was of the essence anyway, since it would not be long before his own club activities would begin for that afternoon, and the last thing he needed to worry about was Haruhi losing her pleasant mood over him being late. Even so, the afternoon sun had already begun to cast long shadows across the school, the dull orange light stretching across the hall as the windows cut it into sizable fragments.
 
While Kyon would admit that Yumi had a point, it did not ruin the validity of what he was doing right now. "We have to try and understand how it works before we can help people," he pointed out in turn, and as someone who had been affected by one of those fox fires, Yumi was legitimately someone to talk to. But it seemed that she had been severely affected by whatever had been done to her, and he made no resistance as she stepped back into the clubroom, the wooden door a solid finale to the conversation he had just been having.

"Just my luck," he said to himself with a sigh. Nagato probably could have erased her memories, but that would ultimately do more harm than good. She just had to learn to live with what had take place. For now though, he turned and made the short trip down to the clubroom, stepping inside without hesitation so as to prevent Haruhi from ranting at him too badly. Time to get back down to business.
 
When Kyon entered the room, Haruhi was already excitedly chatting with the other two members of the club while seated around the table. Koizumi and Mikuru both immediately noticed his presence and welcomed him inside. "Good afternoon," Koizumi held his hand up in greeting, while Mikuru smiled and gave him a simple nod. Haruhi turned in her seat, a somewhat annoyed look on her face, "I hope you have a good reason for showing up late." Even in this universe, anyone who shows up last is always considered late, at least in Haruhi's mind.

"If I recall correctly, Kyon had a few things to look into after class," Koizumi spoke up, cutting Haruhi's anger off short.

"I see... So, what did you discover during your investigation, Kyon?" Haruhi looked up at him expectantly, her soured mood lightening somewhat.
 
Kyon was undisturbed by Haruhi calling him late, since he knew he was on time and was also used to being the one who was late. That was just how it tended to go, so he didn't put too much credit into it as he nodded to Haruhi, Koizumi, and Mikuru as he sat down at the desk. Time to prepare for the meeting.

"I was," he confirmed as Koizumi provided an explanation for him, welcome as far as he was concerned since it meant that Haruhi did not have the opportunity to go completely off on him. Somethings never changed. But it definitely could have been a lot worse if he didn't have something to present her. Thank you to Yumi for that.

Leaning back in his seat, he provided an answer. "I talked with someone who had an experience with one of the fox fires," he noted aloud. "Apparently it was like they were isolated from the world, and no one else there at the time noticed that anything had happened." He would keep the name to himself though, if only because he didn't want Haruhi nagging her endlessly. Yumi deserved better than that for what she had been through.
 
"Interesting... So what is your current theory explaining this strange event?" Haruhi turned to the others seated around the table. Koizumi raised his hand first, and Haruhi nodded to him, granting him the floor.

"There are several facts concerning these fox fires that are starting to emerge. First of all, regardless of the circumstances, they only appear to certain individuals," Koizumi folded his hands together, resting his chin on them as he spoke, "Secondly, they seem to be associated with cold temperatures. This is strange considering that they appaer to be fox fires, indicating power or passion. My theory is that they are not fox fires at all in a strict sense, but rather a manifestation of these individual people's subconciousness. They are real, but only to the mind of the people who encounter them. Since no one else can see them, it would make sense in this context."

"Alright," Haruhi nodded, but did not seem entirely satisfied, "How about you, Mikuru?"

"Uh, me?" Mikuru pointed at herself, suddenly aware that their fearless leader had directed the spotlight to her, "I... Uhm... Perhaps t-they are aliens trying to talk to us, but they can only talk to certain people? I mean, the strangest part about all this is that only some people hear and see them, so perhaps there is a reason for that?"

"That's not really a theory, but it does bring up a valid point," Haruhi leaned back in her seat slightly, "None of the interviews so far have even hinted at why they behave the way they do. Koizumi suggested a reason for it, but we really don't have any proof. What do you think, Kyon?" She turned her attention back to him once again. Both of his fellow brigade members had made incorrect suggestions, most likely in an effort to keep Haruhi off the trail and direct her attention elsewhere, while Haruhi remained none the wiser.
 
Kyon sat back when his explanation was done to listen to everyone else, as Haruhi had Koizumi and Mikuru talk about what they thought was going on here. There were some interesting points, but that was to be expected from someone like Koizumi. It seemed that he could be always trusted to come out with some important facts, and to organize things in a manner that they could all understand. Even if he did get on his nerves sometimes.

Of course, he had his own theory, and knew that the fox fires were involved with the Rift Entity that he had met before, But he still had no specifics beyond that. In that case it seemed like Mikuru was more right than anything, even if she was not exactly correct either. Surprisingly, but he would reserve judgment. There had to be more to this than he knew now, and figuring out what it was would be important.

Soon enough things came back around to him, without any real surprise in that area. That was how it looked like things were going, and he was ready when Haruhi finally came around to him. Their relationship status here would not save him from that. But thanks to his assumption, he was more than ready to talk and provide the voice of reason in this.

"Well, fox fires come from igniting gas, right? It could be that these people are being affected by the gas and whatever is causing these fox fires in the first place, and not actually seeing anything out of the ordinary," he noted then. He had no doubt that Haruhi would dismiss that, but he had to prove the sensible one, as usual. Hopefully he wasn't makng a big mistake again.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom