Tooru quickly slammed her shoe locker door and spun around. Yuki looked at
her in surprise. "Honda-san, is everything alright?" Uo-chan and Hana-chan
stood behind him, looking at Tooru in shock. She was dead white and her eyes
were round.
"Yes, everything's fine! We'll be late to class!" She began to walk away
from the lockers.
"Tooru-kun, your shoes." Hanajima pointed to her friend's feet still in her
outside shoes.
"Ah-ha-ha! Right, shoes, shoes!" She spun back around and stared at her
locker. She squeezed her eyes and opened her locker.
Arisa looked over the smaller girls shoulder, curious to see what was
inside. A while back some of the Princess fan club had put tacks in Tooru's
shoes in revenge for walking with the Prince to and from school. Hanajima
had said, loudly, in class that if it happened again, Tooru should save the
tacks so she could use her denpa to track who had put them there. Arisa had
made sure that the Princess Club had been listening when she described what
she'd do to when she found out who the culprit was. It hadn't happened
again. But she wouldn't put it past the girls to have thought of some other
devious method to torment Tooru. She also knew Tooru would try to keep it a
secret so as not to be a bother to anyone. Arisa was pretty sure the Prince
hadn't even been aware of the first incident. Some boys were just too
oblivious to be believed. If Tooru were being teased again though, she'd do
something to stop it. Arisa's eyes opened in surprise when she saw what it
was Tooru was so eager to hide. "A~ah! A letter!" She reached in over the
blushing girl and pulled it out. She flipped it over looking at it from all
sides. "A love letter!" She looked at the telltale heart seal on the back.
"Love letter?" Hanajima's antenna extended. She came over to look at the
letter with Arisa. "What effect will this have?" Her eyes just barely
flicked to Yuki who was standing shocked at the head of the lockers, his own
shoes forgotten in his hands.
Tooru blushed and stammered. "I-I'm sure it's a mistake! That I would get a
l-l-lov-, that I would get a letter! It's just impossible!" She shook her
head emphatically, "Someone must have mistaken my locker for someone else'
s!"
Hanajima took the letter in her hands and presented it to Tooru like a
servant presenting a crown to a queen, "Tooru Honda-san." Her face was
expressionless, but one could almost say that she was smiling. "That's what
it says on the front."
"A~ah! Tooru is getting admired! That's so sweet!" Arisa hugged Tooru
wrapping her arms around her head. "Kyoko-san would be so pleased!"
"Admired?" Tooru looked through Arisa's arms to see Kyou had joined Yuki at
the end of the row of lockers. Kyou gave Yuki a sideways look of suspicion,
but the mouse wasn't paying attention. Yuki stared at Tooru, still in Arisa'
s embrace. He almost looked...distressed. Puzzled Kyou looked back at the
girls. Kyou felt a weird tension in his coil in his stomach. What was going
on here?
"Tooru-kun got a love letter." Hanajima explained. She gave a pleasant
internal sigh, outwardly expressionless. Such wonderful waves, so many
interesting vibrations, life with Tooru presented so many pleasant
opportunities. Even more so since the two boys had become involved.
"Love Letter?!" It came out as a shout before he could help himself.
Embarrassed, he put a hand over his face and looked away.
Arisa draped an arm over Tooru's shoulder, "This is so exciting Tooru's
first love letter!" She grinned. "I wonder who it's from?"
"Perhaps it is one of these two?" Hanajima turned slowly to look at the
Souma boys.
"Aah-" Yuki turned bright red, and let his hair fall over his eyes to hide
his expression. He started to put his hand up in a negative gesture.
"What kind of guy would write a girl a love letter?!" Kyou's question was a
violent dismissal. He cut through air with a fierce chop. "It's supposed to
be the other way around!" He felt his ears burning and knew his face had to
be as red as a tomato.
"If not the Prince or Orange Head," Arisa mused, "then who?"
"A mystery." Hanajima agreed.
"Are you going to read it?" Arisa asked Tooru who stood staring at the
letter in her hand.
"Ah, y-yes." Tooru broke the seal and aware of everyone's eyes on her
quickly read the letter. Her face grew pinker and pinker. But by the end,
Yuki and Kyou were both upset to see a small smile on the edge of her lips.
"Sooo," Arisa drawled and rose an eyebrow.
"It's not signed." Tooru ducked her head, "I'm sorry."
"A~ah," Arisa straightened and stretched. "The mystery deepens, an
anonymous love letter. You'll have to tell us what it says so we can figure
out who it is."
"Eh?!" Tooru looked up at her friends and blinked.
"Yes," Hanajima agreed, "That this person is suitable, we must be sure."
"We made a promise." Arisa nodded to Hanajima.
"At Kyoko's grave." Hanajima nodded back at Arisa. "Not here though, it
should be somewhere private. And where we can get snacks."
"You're right. Well." Arisa considered. "It's Friday, so we can stay over
tonight. We can do it then."
"Umn..." Tooru started concerned.
"Ja, okay then. We'd better get to class." Arisa smiled and started to walk
down the hall with Hanajima. "We'll stop by after dinner."
"Thank you for having us." Hanajima said to the boys as they passed.
Tooru closed her eyes and sighed. She was happy to have such good friends
as Uo-chan and Hana-chan, but they could be very determined. She opened her
eyes to see Kyou and Yuki still staring at her. For some reason their faces
seemed odd to her. She felt a strange constriction in her throat. The letter
she had received was not from them. "Ano..." she started.
"Ah, Honda-san." Yuki interrupted, smiling. "We should get to class. We'll
be late."
"Y-yes...of course." She nodded and quickly slipped into her school shoes.
She followed the two boys to class head down. Yuki's smile had not been
right. She glanced up at Kyou. He refused to look at her, casting a pissed
off look at the walls. "Mother," she thought, "This letter...I don't know
what to do about it."
* * *
her in surprise. "Honda-san, is everything alright?" Uo-chan and Hana-chan
stood behind him, looking at Tooru in shock. She was dead white and her eyes
were round.
"Yes, everything's fine! We'll be late to class!" She began to walk away
from the lockers.
"Tooru-kun, your shoes." Hanajima pointed to her friend's feet still in her
outside shoes.
"Ah-ha-ha! Right, shoes, shoes!" She spun back around and stared at her
locker. She squeezed her eyes and opened her locker.
Arisa looked over the smaller girls shoulder, curious to see what was
inside. A while back some of the Princess fan club had put tacks in Tooru's
shoes in revenge for walking with the Prince to and from school. Hanajima
had said, loudly, in class that if it happened again, Tooru should save the
tacks so she could use her denpa to track who had put them there. Arisa had
made sure that the Princess Club had been listening when she described what
she'd do to when she found out who the culprit was. It hadn't happened
again. But she wouldn't put it past the girls to have thought of some other
devious method to torment Tooru. She also knew Tooru would try to keep it a
secret so as not to be a bother to anyone. Arisa was pretty sure the Prince
hadn't even been aware of the first incident. Some boys were just too
oblivious to be believed. If Tooru were being teased again though, she'd do
something to stop it. Arisa's eyes opened in surprise when she saw what it
was Tooru was so eager to hide. "A~ah! A letter!" She reached in over the
blushing girl and pulled it out. She flipped it over looking at it from all
sides. "A love letter!" She looked at the telltale heart seal on the back.
"Love letter?" Hanajima's antenna extended. She came over to look at the
letter with Arisa. "What effect will this have?" Her eyes just barely
flicked to Yuki who was standing shocked at the head of the lockers, his own
shoes forgotten in his hands.
Tooru blushed and stammered. "I-I'm sure it's a mistake! That I would get a
l-l-lov-, that I would get a letter! It's just impossible!" She shook her
head emphatically, "Someone must have mistaken my locker for someone else'
s!"
Hanajima took the letter in her hands and presented it to Tooru like a
servant presenting a crown to a queen, "Tooru Honda-san." Her face was
expressionless, but one could almost say that she was smiling. "That's what
it says on the front."
"A~ah! Tooru is getting admired! That's so sweet!" Arisa hugged Tooru
wrapping her arms around her head. "Kyoko-san would be so pleased!"
"Admired?" Tooru looked through Arisa's arms to see Kyou had joined Yuki at
the end of the row of lockers. Kyou gave Yuki a sideways look of suspicion,
but the mouse wasn't paying attention. Yuki stared at Tooru, still in Arisa'
s embrace. He almost looked...distressed. Puzzled Kyou looked back at the
girls. Kyou felt a weird tension in his coil in his stomach. What was going
on here?
"Tooru-kun got a love letter." Hanajima explained. She gave a pleasant
internal sigh, outwardly expressionless. Such wonderful waves, so many
interesting vibrations, life with Tooru presented so many pleasant
opportunities. Even more so since the two boys had become involved.
"Love Letter?!" It came out as a shout before he could help himself.
Embarrassed, he put a hand over his face and looked away.
Arisa draped an arm over Tooru's shoulder, "This is so exciting Tooru's
first love letter!" She grinned. "I wonder who it's from?"
"Perhaps it is one of these two?" Hanajima turned slowly to look at the
Souma boys.
"Aah-" Yuki turned bright red, and let his hair fall over his eyes to hide
his expression. He started to put his hand up in a negative gesture.
"What kind of guy would write a girl a love letter?!" Kyou's question was a
violent dismissal. He cut through air with a fierce chop. "It's supposed to
be the other way around!" He felt his ears burning and knew his face had to
be as red as a tomato.
"If not the Prince or Orange Head," Arisa mused, "then who?"
"A mystery." Hanajima agreed.
"Are you going to read it?" Arisa asked Tooru who stood staring at the
letter in her hand.
"Ah, y-yes." Tooru broke the seal and aware of everyone's eyes on her
quickly read the letter. Her face grew pinker and pinker. But by the end,
Yuki and Kyou were both upset to see a small smile on the edge of her lips.
"Sooo," Arisa drawled and rose an eyebrow.
"It's not signed." Tooru ducked her head, "I'm sorry."
"A~ah," Arisa straightened and stretched. "The mystery deepens, an
anonymous love letter. You'll have to tell us what it says so we can figure
out who it is."
"Eh?!" Tooru looked up at her friends and blinked.
"Yes," Hanajima agreed, "That this person is suitable, we must be sure."
"We made a promise." Arisa nodded to Hanajima.
"At Kyoko's grave." Hanajima nodded back at Arisa. "Not here though, it
should be somewhere private. And where we can get snacks."
"You're right. Well." Arisa considered. "It's Friday, so we can stay over
tonight. We can do it then."
"Umn..." Tooru started concerned.
"Ja, okay then. We'd better get to class." Arisa smiled and started to walk
down the hall with Hanajima. "We'll stop by after dinner."
"Thank you for having us." Hanajima said to the boys as they passed.
Tooru closed her eyes and sighed. She was happy to have such good friends
as Uo-chan and Hana-chan, but they could be very determined. She opened her
eyes to see Kyou and Yuki still staring at her. For some reason their faces
seemed odd to her. She felt a strange constriction in her throat. The letter
she had received was not from them. "Ano..." she started.
"Ah, Honda-san." Yuki interrupted, smiling. "We should get to class. We'll
be late."
"Y-yes...of course." She nodded and quickly slipped into her school shoes.
She followed the two boys to class head down. Yuki's smile had not been
right. She glanced up at Kyou. He refused to look at her, casting a pissed
off look at the walls. "Mother," she thought, "This letter...I don't know
what to do about it."
* * *