Epilogue

“Sato Amaya.”

“Yes, that's my name. What do you want?”

She really wanted to know that. On a list of all disgusting orders she had ever received during her years in the police corps paying a visit to Red Rose Academy made very high scores.

Now she sat seated in the principal's office, but there was no principal there. Instead of him she faced two members of the board of directors.

“For the time being we seem to share an interest,” one of them said.

“Things are escalating out of control here, and we doubt that we can stop this school from taking action against all of you.”

All of them. That would include the Wakayama parents who also sat in the office. Amaya really had no wish to visit the school that had cost her Urufu so much, but Principal Nakagawa was adamant.

“Sato-san, how much do you know of Hamarugen Urufu's background.”

Amaya thought about the question. The way it was phrased those two already knew about the impossibility. “I know enough,” she said.

“You don't,” one of the two answered.

“And that is why we'll have you transferred from the police to the defence forces.”

What?

“Starting immediately you're assigned the title of lieutenant colonel, and from September onwards you'll act as the handle for both Hamarugen Urufu and Ageruman Kuritina. I assume you're familiar with the latter?”

She was. Her Urufu was head over heels in love with the girl, and from what Amaya had just heard that girl was no girl at all.

“Now, Wakayama-san,” Amaya noted how the greeting pointedly wasn't directed to any one of the two present parents, “we'll agree to give you all the information you've required. We'll also respect that you want your children to believe they successfully managed to hide what happened here last year.”

“And in return?” Mrs Wakayama asked.

“You'll make certain both arrivals spend most of their summer break as far away from Tokyo as possible. While I have no reason to like Nakagawa-san I respect his judgement. We'll keep him supplied with information of whenever things get out of hand here.”

So the Wakayama parents were in the know as well for some reason. Amaya turned to her hosts. “Why did we have to meet here?”

“Because there are things you need to be here to understand. We'll tell you everything, and the Wakayamas will fill you in on anything I forget or point out any lies of mine. We can't afford distrust at this time. I'm afraid it'll be a long evening.”


It was, and when it was done Amaya was both more disgusted and scared than she had ever been before in her life.

Chapter six (segment nine), twenty four years earlier, July, main cast

And another failed exam. Summer break promised to be just as tedious as last year. With both an M Sc and an MA (with a major in English literature for the preceding BA to boot) in his pocket, the subjects themselves didn't present any problems. The Japanese language, however, was a major obstacle.

English, I failed English. I could bloody teach the half trained monkey who poses as an English teacher here. Ulf sighed again. Another week, another twenty kanji to master. At this rate it would take him a year before he would receive grades that at least remotely resembled his real knowledge.

But still, English. That hurt. According to the local tests his vocabulary ranged in the low one thousand, which was a far cry from the stiff twelve thousand words every decently designed international test indicated.

What was worse. They weren't taught functionally useful English at all here. That would have to be rectified in the club. One more proof why dubbing television is bad for your health, and they're even worse off here than the Germans.

Well, he could whine as much as he wanted. Complaining wouldn't yield any results. Next week, another twenty kanji. Two years, two thousand kanji. Ought to suffice.

***

Yukio counted his steps as they walked from school. The last Friday. Next Friday was summer break, and even if they met at their shared haven it wouldn't be for sharing school. He had passed all his exams, and Urufu most definitely hadn't.

He listened to the sound of distant cicadas as they came closer to their mall. Another block and he wouldn't be able to hear them any longer.

There were so many questions, but until Urufu decided to talk he'd keep silent. Failing just about every exam had been hard on his friend. Yukio couldn't recall ever having seen him this morose. Angry, yes, but not depressed this way.

Noriko had promised to help out with the make up exams, and given her scores Himekaizen literally had no better study buddy. Kuri had grinned her usual 'I don't give a damn, but thank you anyway' -grin and promised to do her best in return. Kyoko, ah what a girl, had gracefully accepted the offered help.

Graceful has to be your second name. OK, that was way too much syrup. But I can't but help liking your good manners. Call me stupid for that if you want, but I won't change.

So what should he do for a month? His father had offered him to join a five day trip along the west coast, and his mother had even promised him extra pocket money should he agree. Club activities? But that would only be a few days more.

Maybe he could convince Urufu to hang out by the sea for a day or two. Coastlines seemed to be all the rage in Sweden anyway. At least if he could believe the tourist ads they had plastered all the walls with in their club room.

A few hours in their café, and then Urufu would ride his bike to the station, and spring term would truly be over.

Kyoko. There are a lot of days. Could we share some of them? Summer break spoke of a new beginning.

***

Kyoko followed Yukio and Urufu, but she made sure to keep her distance.

I'm stalking him. Gods, when did I degenerate into this kind of a person.

But she couldn't help it.

Yukio hadn't exactly done anything to make her believe he hated her any longer, but lack of hate was a far cry from like, or love.

Love. I'm behaving like a middle schooler with a major crush. But then she had been a middle schooler only a few months earlier.

Two weeks ago she would have joined them, but without Noriko and Kuri-chan at her side she didn't want to. Don't dare to. Be honest at least! Especially not as this was the first time in almost a month that Urufu made the route together with Yukio.

Summer break. She'd visit her grandfather to show him proper respect. And after that they'd visit her mother's parents for the same reason.

And, and, summer school. The verbal bashing had been bad enough, but her feelings of failure were far worse than any scolding she received from her parents. Properly raised daughters didn't fail exams. That made her improper. Her. Her parents weren't at fault. They had brought her up the way a daughter should be raised. So she had failed them.

Shame competed with anger in her. One point. It had only been one point between failure and a passing grade. In two subjects to boot. But one point was one point. She had disappointed her parents, and nothing she tried to say in her defence could clear that away.

She would make up for it, and she would attend to at least the minimum of club hours that was appropriate.

And, if she was lucky, there would still be a couple of days she could use as she wanted.

Summer break. Redemption.

***

Well, those results were disappointing, but she had already gained Nori-chan's promise that they'd study together during the break.

And Ko-chan needed to attend summer school for a couple of subjects as well. And Ulf. She wouldn't be alone.

School during summer break, who cares? I get to see him almost every day. Same class for a month. Happy! Happy! Happy!

Christina kicked with her feet, giggled and hugged herself. But lying curled up like a ball soon got too hot. Her small flat didn't have an air-conditioner worth its name, and the night was clammy.

She wondered what Ulf was thinking about. They hadn't come any closer to finding a way back home. Hadn't really come closer to an understanding of what really had happened to them. But, she wondered. The most important question.

Do I really want to go home?

She had come closer to building a new life here, and for each day that life grew brighter, and for each day her old life felt more and more like something she would willingly leave behind.

I lived alone and felt alone. Now I live alone, but I'm in love. Do I really want to go home?

***

“What are you going to do?”

Ryu looked at his sister before answering. “Do about what?”

She pushed with her feet and swung backwards. “Summer break.”

He kept looking at her. She was still small enough to use the playground like a child. The swings were already too narrow for him to be comfortable, so he sat still and watched her going back and forth.

They were close to their house, and this close to midnight they had to ask permission to go outdoors. Ryu looked over his shoulder. He could see their living room windows. Getting permission hadn't been all that hard.

“Apart from Hokkaido?” he asked.

“Yeah, that's only one week.”

That week was important. He looked forward to it. Mom, dad, sis and the exotic north. But his sister seemed to have grown distant from that need. You're so small, and yet you're growing ahead of me. Sis, you're getting all grown up.

“I don't know. Club activities I guess,” Ryu suggested. He hadn't thought all that much about summer break, and now it was here.

“Can't do that for three weeks, you know,” she responded. “With our new friends English conversation school just got obsolete.”

Despite the discomfort he pushed his swing into motion.

“We should get the gang together. Go to the beach or something.” Yeah, definitely go to the beach!

“Ryu! Can you use your brains instead of your libido? Of course you'd want to go to the beach, as long as Kuri-chan comes along.”

“And you wouldn't want to see Urufu?” he answered defensively. You really should let that hair of yours grow. Right now you look like a boy.

Noriko said nothing in return. She kept on swinging. For some time the silence was only broken by the metallic squealing of the swings. Then she seemed to have reached an answer. “Fair enough, idiot bro.”

“You?” Ryu let the insult slip.

Noriko hesitated for a while. “I've promised to help Kuri and Kyoko with their summer school.”

“I'll stay away from that. I passed with good grades, but I had to put in a lot of work. You have it easier.” Noriko would have to admit that truth.

“Not even for Kuri?” she teased.

“Not even for Kuri.”

Ryu grinned. He grinned so wide he knew she'd see his teeth in the dark. “And no help for poor, poor Urufu? That's mean.” And he couldn't help but laugh, even if it disturbed their neighbours this late.

“I don't think I can help him,” Noriko said silently. “Yukio says he's different. Ryu, they're different.” She was all serious now. “Idiot bro,” She fell silent and gathered speed. “why did we have to fall in love with the two most impossible persons on earth?”

Ryu jumped off the swing. “Sis, we're the Wakayama twins. How could we possibly fall in love with anyone else?”

It was after midnight. Spring term had ended. Summer break started.

Chapter six (segment eight), twenty four years earlier, July, Ryu

The clubs closed down for spring term. One week was all that separated them from finals. After that summer break.

All six of them gathered for study evenings, which really wasn't all that different from club activities. But walking talking sure is a lot more fun.

Ryu wasn't entirely convinced about what Urufu was doing but as long as it meant spending a lot of time with Kuri he wasn't about to complain.

At the moment he was spending time with his sister. In their kitchen. Any other time he would have refused but this time they were standing here preparing food for ten. The club core, which meant even more time with Kuri-chan, was coming.

Also expected were Sango-chan with Jirou-kun and did they make a cute couple, or what?

More unexpected was that the motor mouth had announced his arrival together with Sakura-chan. Talk about a mismatched couple. But whatever floats their boat I guess.

“You're strangely happy idiot bro,” Noriko said. He had been silent for a while.

Behind them two large stashes of vegetables and meat threatened to merge into one. This was the main reason they were both so busy cleaning and chopping vegetables.

“Last time gang's getting together like this before exams,” Ryu answered. “I like the club a lot more than I had thought.”

Noriko cleaned out some shiitake and put them in a plastic bowl. When she put the bowl on the second table she looked at her brother. “Like the club or like Kuri-chan?”

Ryu didn't even take the bait. He just continued cutting up salad. “Both,” he smiled.

After another quarter of an hour they were ready to fire up two hot-pots, and shortly after that the doorbell rang.

All eight at the same time. They must have taken the train together.

Noriko was busy making the tables so he went for the door.

“Welcome to our imperial residence,” he greeted them to take some edge from the impact of the oversized house.

Urufu and Kuri failed that test badly. As in it was clear they hadn't even noticed how large the building was. What kind of places did you two call home?

After that Ryu's home turned into a friendly chaos of hungry teenagers planning to spend the evening studying.

Soon the ingredients lay simmering in the two pots and hunger set the pace for the conversations. From the occasional word or grunt while they still gorged themselves to fragments of statements and then full sentences as gluttony gave way to satisfaction.

“That was,” Sakura-chan beamed, “exactly what I needed.”

The motor mouth was still busy eating but even he stopped chewing as he watched her in amazement.

“You know I am able to talk. I just don't overdo it.”

She had spoken a second consecutive sentence without letting anyone in.

“Did he do anything to you?”

“Should we beat him up?”

“Nori-kun what have you done to her?”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! I in' o any'ing!” he said and looked for some sympathy. Talking with his mouth full of food did little for his cause. “'agura-an, 'elp me!”

“Nori-kun, silence becomes you better,” was Sakura-chan's merciless reply to his plea.

That bought her a round of laughter from both tables.

Well that's a good way to finish dinner. “Books everyone. One table English and the other Japanese.”

It was as Kuri would have said, time to get down to business. But not as Urufu wanted, to do it right. At least not according to his standards. If they did they'd all fail their exams.

Guys it's good to see you here. One last race before finals and then we break up for summer.

Prelude

Nakagawa Akio sat outside the tent in his foldable chair. A man in his mid thirties he would normally not have been left in charge of handling arrivals from a transition, but early April 2040 wasn’t a normal transition event.

“Sure they'll transit this year?” the woman to his left asked.

Nakagawa nodded. “Last year's arrivals said they planned to gather everyone originally involved for a midsummer's party in Sweden,” he replied.

He stared at the hillside ahead. A few more minutes and he would know if he had interpreted the planned party correctly.

“Seems awfully early to me. They'll be around forty years old. Wouldn't they have children to care for?”

There was that of course. Those who were parents couldn't blithely transit and leave their children behind in an upstream world. But as far as scientists knew the transition event only allowed for downstream transitions. “I wish I knew,” Nakagawa admitted. "Of all the arrivals since they broke the code I guess I'm the one closest to them.” He sighed. “But I can't really say I was that close. By the time I transited I was retired from active service.” He grinned and turned to look at her. “Seventy years old, you know and they were university students so there was a minor age gap.

She shuddered. “It's not natural. Well, I guess it is, but it doesn't feel natural.” She looked at him with a question in her eyes.

“Almost twenty years ago. I arrived here 2021,” he answered. “So I'm almost 90 subjective age. What about it? I feel like my 35 objective. You get used to it after a while.” Nakagawa smiled at her. “You know I was the principal of Himekaizen?”

She nodded. “Yeah, in the upstream world. You never existed in this one. Said it wasn't natural.” She was visibly sulking by now. “I know you're called Principal Nakagawa out of courtesy, but there's never been a Principal Nakagawa of the Himekaizen academy here.”

Nakagawa rose from his chair and enjoyed the spring breeze for a few moments before he sat down again. “I could apply for the job, you know. I know the school after all.” He reached for a cup of tea and sipped it a little while he waited for the event.

A bit below them a lone sakura bloomed its promise of a restart as befitted the occasion.

“Well, I arrived here close to twenty years ago. I wouldn't know which of them are parents now. They've lived those years upstream and the arrivals we've had since my transition didn't have any information about their family lives.” He rose again. It would happen any moment now. “I've staked my reputation on this. I refuse to believe they'll go to such lengths without a reason. The upstream world is almost identical to this one and you just don't move a lot of people from Japan to Sweden late June just so that you can have an obscure party a continent away.”

The voice of a government agent reached him from his right. “Sensei, we have incoming arrivals!”

Nakagawa grabbed his binoculars and scanned the hillside. One, two, no five bodies materialised on it.

“Incoming! I count five arrivals. Move vehicles and collect them!”

Yes, I was right! I know at least one of those faces. They look so young!

And they should. All of them fourteen years old objectively, no matter how old they were subjectively. Nakagawa knew that, but it still surprised him to see the kids pop into existence on that hillside even though he had spent the entire day waiting for it to happen.

“Agent Carlfeldt, I'll join the ride and welcome them personally. After that we split them into different middle schools and gather them together in Himekaizen next year.” Just like in the old days. In the upstream days.

The transition event had occurred. Now the arrivals had a restart waiting for them. Nakagawa and Hammargren had finally agreed on that, even if it took some head butting first. The age reset was just too great to allow a fourteen old child to take his or her place in society as an adult, no matter the subjective age.

A transition had to be followed by a slow reintroduction to society.

Ulf, you really coined a good expression for it. Transition and restart.

Chapter six (segment seven), twenty four years earlier, July, Christina

That was… pleasant.

Flustered Christina left the pool side and followed Ulf. They had taken things a little bit too far but she longed for him so much. He was like a stranger these last weeks. Prowling the streets late evenings on his bike. Not once since that day by the river had they ridden together.

She saw the members of the kendo club filing inside the gym hall. One of them turned and waved at her and she waved back. Photos of her in those strange dresses probably floated around the club by now. A price she had to pay for Ulf's failed midsummer's dinner.

A bit down the slope the football team pretended to train in the murdering heat. Christina agreed with Ulf on this one. Football, not soccer. She had been an occasional fan of the Champion's League in her earlier life.

Somewhere down there the Watabe twins were sweating their hearts out to secure a place in the team, something normally only the second years managed but both twins were better than any second year at Himekaizen.

Christina watched the training in silence. Because they didn't talk that much these days. It was a wonder that she had managed to at least get Ulf to talk with his hands and lips earlier.

It worried her.

It scared her.

She hadn't allowed herself to fall helplessly in love like this since that horrid disaster when she was twenty. OK I was twenty one when I found out what a creep he was. One lover on the side would have made me sick, but five. Five!

But now she had. Whenever she saw a tall man in a crowd she tip toed to find out if it was Ulf. She turned at voices that sounded like his and once she had even run around a corner to catch up with a Himekaizen uniform that wasn't his.

How did I even become like this. He's good looking but not that good looking. She drowned in his eyes for a while when he heard her draw for breath and turned around to look for what had excited her.

He's arrogant and conceited and he thinks too highly of himself. She felt secure when he was around, solid, always true to what he believed was right.

He's uncaring, unchanging and sometimes he's so socially inept it hurts. She could trust him. Sometimes he was manipulative but he seldom told outright lies.

Is it because he's my only anchor back home? I don't think so. I don't think all that much of home any more.

Christina took another step to catch up with him and caught hold of his hand again. It felt good in hers. Warm, with his fingers around hers, like lovers of their own.

I love him. “I love you.”

He gave her an uncertain smile in return. Like he wasn't certain he had heard what she said. A sudden breeze threw his bangs over his head and glued his shirt neck to his cheek making him look like a surprised idiot but she didn't care.

I don't want a life without him. Even if I have to start all over from the beginning in this world I'm doing so together with him. She found new resolve in that thought and took both his hands in hers. “I've fallen helplessly in love with you. Please be careful with me!” There, she had told him how much he meant to her. Her entire world.

He shot her another of those uncertain smiles as if he was thinking about what she had said. Then that smile turned into one of those grins that made her heart lurch. “I will,” he promised. “I'll never knowingly do anything to hurt you.”

He threw his arms around her back and hugged her close to him. Drew her into the warmth of his world. His shirt was a little salty to her lips.

And yet you do. I want to hear those words from you. I want to hear you say that you love me. “I'm happy,” she lied, and smiled into his chest. It hurts you know, to need you so much more than you need me. To love you so much more.

That wasn't entirely honest. He loved her back. She knew it, felt it whenever he touched her. But something held him back. A fear of something she couldn't understand and therefore couldn't compete with.

With some regret she loosened herself from his hug and stared into his eyes. What is it that stands between us? She found no answer there, only a pair of eyes with a longing for love that mirrored her own.

Christina took his hand and led them on.

They rounded the right wing hand in hand, and under the walkway the club members stood or sat waiting for them. A few rather racy wolf-whistles greeted them. Someone saw? No! Someone saw!

“Here they are... all prepared!”

“Ageruman… -san… -chan!” they chanted.

I'm so embarrassed I'll die of shame! They saw!

The summer heat was sweltering but that didn't prevent her from flaring red from her collarbones to her hair.

It was the last Saturday with the club before summer break. They would spend a long walking talking session riverside, and after that another two the coming week. Then club activities went into hiatus in preparation for the final exams.

Chapter six (segment six), twenty four years earlier, July, Yukio

As summer heated up, so did school. They were uncomfortably close to finals now but the murdering heat made it difficult to concentrate during classes.

Over a week had passed since that peculiar evening at the café. Urufu was absent the next Friday as well but at least this time Kuri-chan hadn't left in anger.

We're growing closer by the day. All six of us are dropping the honorifics from time to time now. Just Kuri-chan (Kuri, Kuritina?) and Kyoko who stick to those between them.

Yukio waved at Noriko as she left the cafeteria and looked for where they sat. Well at least you made it clear I don't get to be that friendly with Ryu and leave you on the outside when it comes to dropping the honorifics.

And Ryu came after her, happily chatting with Kyoko while at the same time trying to juggle with the atrocities he had forced the vendor machines to vomit out. He failed, and what looked suspiciously like a sub filled with yakisoba fell to the ground. Suspiciously, because the baker needed to suffer from a hangover to produce that… thing that substituted for real bread. Whatever ailments the cook creating what passed for yakisoba suffered from, that was something Yukio preferred not knowing.

Ryu picked up his wrapped… could it actually be called lunch? Yukio wasn't certain. There should have been laws against it.

Kyoko laughed and went ahead.

“Kuri and Urufu?” Ryu asked from where he stood wiping dirt from his… food.

“Prep, just as I told them,” Yukio answered. He scowled. “In the best of worlds they'll even believe I spoke the truth when I said the club members wanted them prepared for our activities.”

“In the best of worlds they're snogging,” Kyoko countered. That was a surprisingly blunt and improper statement coming from her but Yukio had seen her trying out a wilder side the last weeks. He liked it. She was more alive this way.

Noriko apparently wasn't as used to it as Yukio. At least not if he was to guess from the burst of tea that left her mouth.

“I stand corrected,” he said. You can correct me any way you want. “Snogging, making out, kissing, whatever. As long as they spend some time alone, together.”

“I don't know about 'whatever',” Kyoko said. “That could be bad.” At least she had the decency to blush at that.

“What's bad about making babies?” Ryu suggested.

“Ryu! Idiot bro!”

“Ryu, really!”

“Man, that's awful!” Yukio exclaimed just as he realised that all three of them had reacted in the same way. “It's Urufu we're speaking about,” he needed a way to defuse the situation, “and knowing him they're probably actually preparing club activities.”

“No!” Kyoko said. “I hate that! Kuri-chan loves him. She needs to feel loved back.”

Yukio looked at Kyoko. You really care that much for your friend. “I'll sneak a look. I left them by the pool. They had their bags open.”

Kyoko groaned.

Four teenagers left their food by their seats and hugged the left wing wall. Slowly they reached for the corner from where they could see the pool.

“Shush!”

“Don't push!”

“I can't see!”

Yukio peered around the corner. He could see Urufu and Kuri. They were snogging. And then some.

“I think we can take our lunch to the club room,” he said.

“And tell our members that the president and vice president are currently occupied,” Ryu filled in.

“With the last, ah, touches to their preparation of our activities,” Noriko snorted pointedly.

“And snogging,” Kyoko finished.

“Kyoko! Idiot girl!”

“Kyoko, really!”

“Man, that's awful!” Yukio laughed, not giving a damn that Kyoko very much wasn't a man at all.

Chapter six (segment five), twenty four years earlier, July, Kyoko

Kyoko looked up when she noticed Yukio entering the café.

“The tall foreigner isn't with you today?” one of the waitresses asked.

Even the staff take note of his absence. Those two really lived their Fridays here.

Yukio shook his head. He looked downtrodden.

So tired. Does he worry you that much? “Over here!” She rose and waved.

Yukio had Ryu-kun in tow and both boys turned at her call. Ryu shot them one of his patented smiles. Enough of it to make Nori-chan wince by her side.

“Idiot bro,” she muttered.

Yukio's smile was more shy. More honest, Kyoko thought. You can be the prince of Himekaizen for all you want, but for me Yukio is the more handsome. That thought brought more heat to her cheeks than the summer's heat could be accounted for.

Kuri-chan dropped her spoon to the table. Kyoko cold see her looking out the window with an expression of helpless desolation in her face. I'm sorry but I don't think he's coming. Tomorrow, you'll see him at the club tomorrow.

But tomorrow wasn't today, and Kuri-chan had told Kyoko earlier that she was taking the day off her part time job just to see Urufu without the rest of the fan-club drooling over her.

I'll ask Yukio to make you some time alone tomorrow. Her Yukio. In her mind he was already her Yukio.

He and Ryu-kun sauntered over to their table, a waitress in her uniform carrying their orders trailing behind them.

She liked this place, could understand why Yukio and Urufu-kun hadn't given up on it after they found it. It was a place away from school in a way James' coffee shop could never be. That place was part of the club by now and the new waterhole for the fan-club now when it was known that both Ryu-kun and Kuri-chan spent their evenings there.

She liked the poorly wiped windows, the tacky, plastic interior, the waitresses in white and pink uniforms that had seen a few washings too many, the very fact that she had been right that evening when she thought a couple of interesting students from her school had sat on the second floor and that it was a place important to Yukio.

Most of all she liked that it was a place within walking distance home for both her and Yukio. Because that meant he lived close to her and that was safety in more than one way.

“… round?”

“Eh?” Kyoko looked up from her thoughts and saw Kuri-chan do the same.

“Another round?”

“Eh, yes sure. Same.” Kuri-chan, what are you thinking of. I'm happy even though he's not mine but you look so sad and Urufu is all yours. The thought gave her a start. Is he really? Sometimes when I look at you two I wonder.

“I'll take my leave,” Kuri-chan said. “Feel like the odd one out. My apologies.”

She rose and left the table.

Kyoko watched her go. A tall beauty on long, slender legs. A worried beauty.

Ryu stood and started after her and Yukio looked as if he was about to try to stop him. Nori-chan grabbed his shirt sleeve and stopped him with a shake of her head.

“He's not… he knows he can't, not now anyway,” she said, and when Yukio made another attempt to follow Ryu-kun she continued: “He doesn't stand a chance. Not yet, so he won't try. He's just worried like the rest of us and she feels alone now.”

You're loyal to your friend Yukio. I like you even more for that but right now Nori-chan is right. “Yukio trust his sister, will you?”

Yukio hesitated for a moment but he sat down again.

They were eerily silent around the table and Kyoko slid to the place by the window that Kuri-chan had occupied until just moments earlier.

After a while she could see Kuri-chan and Ryu on the street below. They were talking but Nori-chan had been right. Ryu-kun never made any attempts to touch her.

“What's happening?” Yukio asked. He was left on one of the seats from where he couldn't see what was happening outside.

“Bro's asking her if she won't come back up again. I don't think he'll have any success,” Nori-chan answered. She took a sip of her soft drink.

No I don't think she'll return. Kyoko felt a little ashamed. By all rights it should have been her following her friend out. But Yukio was here right now, and…

And it turned out they were right. She saw Kuri-chan throw her hands in the air, turn and walk away. Ryu-kun returned inside.

Kuri-chan what are you doing. You told me he was bad news when I had my crush on him. Kyoko sighed, and shook her head when Yukio shot her a questioning look. And now? You shine like the sun whenever you see him and you fade like the night when he walks away. Where did your cool go? That colour on your cheeks when he smiles at you and that look on your face just now. Is it worth it?

Kyoko stole a glance at Yukio. Yes, yes I guess it is. And she smiled.

For once when Yukio looked at her with questions in his face, she didn't blush. She just smiled even more.

“Well I brought Urufu's problems with me,” Yukio said and picked two sheets of paper from his bag. “He said we should timebox twenty minutes each for them. “Ryu, can you prep the English conversation on Japanese history? Kyoko you run the preps for comparing Japanese grammar with English?”

She had forgotten. Friday was problem solving. Urufu prepared two or three problems each week for some obscure mix of school subjects. Kuri-chan helped him. “Five minutes preparation and the full twenty for discussion?” she asked.

Yukio nodded.

A few of the guests around them rose to attention when they started analysing the merchants class rise to power in Edo during the eighteenth century, in broken English. It was slow going and she and Yukio both had to help the Wakayamas when some concepts grew too difficult to express in English but it was good training.

They laughed a lot, and probably spoke awful English, and they learned something new. Always something new.

Urufu-kun, Kuri-chan, even when you're absent you're changing us.

Next week they'd run the problems by the members of the club in the Stockholm Haven Café and by then Urufu-kun would prepare them for the next batch during his walking talking sessions.

The strange sessions. Two hours of walking, three days a week. There were already rumours about club members asking strange questions during class.

The rumour mill already moved the centre of attention from 3:1 to the Himekaizen Cultural Exchange Club, and now they had eight more applications for the club, plus the four old ones that had finally been formalised. The club room couldn't handle that many.

New rumours, true rumours Kyoko knew, had it that Principal Nakagawa had ordered one of the unused classrooms in the right wing to be cleared during summer break. They were to be given the same space as a sports club.

Another rumour told that both Swedes were part of some kind of exchange program for adolescence super prodigies, and that Himekaizen had been chosen for validation of the concept. Albeit false that one came far, far, far too close to the truth for any of them to feel comfortable about it.

And I hear that English class in 6:1 looks like Japan right before Sekigahara. Eastern army versus the western. I don't think Tokugawa is going to win this time. If Urufu-kun spoke the truth, and Kyoko had no reason to believe he didn't, his knowledge of English were light years ahead of his English teacher's. Even his old academic credentials were held higher.

English tests in 6:1 had degenerated to the level that they weren't allowed to use the support of hiragana to understand the kanji used. Kyoko wasn't certain that was allowed but she was certain Urufu-kun and his teacher had entered a state of war.

The lines of battle were drawn along the languages. The teacher refused to speak English and Urufu-kun refused to speak Japanese. Both had been called to the principal's office but nothing had been resolved. Principal Nakagawa was playing a game of his own.

Kyoko looked at Yukio while he explained something to Ryu-kun. I could just sit here watching your face Yukio, but you look so harried whenever we mention your English classes. I'm happy I have Kondo-sensei.

An hour and another round of drinks later they were finished. The discussions had led nowhere, which according to Urufu-kun was intended, but they all made some peculiar connections between the subjects involved. It was interesting to see that no matter how they tried the English language was still sub-par when it came to recounting Japanese history. Are the tables turned when we talk about the rest of the world?

Chapter six (segment four), twenty four years earlier, July, Ryu

I never expected to make friends with Yukio this fast, Ryu thought as they made their way to the mall, or rather the café on its second floor.

Urufu-kun probably wouldn't join them. The last couple of weeks he did his duties as vice president for the Himekaizen Cultural Exchange Club but there was something haunted over him.

Ryu took a few steps more and when they passed some girls from another high school he automatically flashed them a smile. This was part of him. He couldn't help it.

Yukio grinned when the expected response materialised. Ryu wasn't the prince of Himekaizen for nothing.

While the girls whispered delightedly among themselves Ryu took note of how the sweltering heat had removed the last remnants of fresh greenery. What grew now had attained a deeper green, more mature, and he felt how he himself had lost a little bit of innocence. A high schooler now. The next level but it was more than that.

Kuri-chan you're dangerous. Both of you are. And he thought thoughts that were strangely alien to a teenager. Somewhere deep inside I know I'm living in a bubble of youth. If it bursts I'll see the grown up world around it, and you're full of needles. He shook his head and barely remembered to give the girls a mock salute to get them going again.

A few cars passed and only the air-conditioning in them prevented their drivers from looking as lethargic as he felt.

Something new. Something to bring spring back to his mind. Ryu decided he would drop the honorifics between the six of them. It would be a small change but a change nonetheless.

“Yukio, am I friends with all of you?”

Yukio stood still. “Took you a while.” He bit his under lip. “Yes you are. But you're still a rival of Urufu's. I don't like it but that's the way things are.” Yukio looked him right in the eyes. “I've seen how you look at her. Urufu and Kuri-chan might think it's an elaborate joke but I know better.”

For being so observant you're really blind when it comes to Kyoko. Ryu tasted the unfamiliar sound of just a first name. This is what it will be. Urufu blithely ignores the honorifics anyway and it's starting to spread in the club. It would take a while to getting used to though.

“Yukio do you know what he's doing?” Ryu asked and changed the topic. He didn't want Yukio to think too much about the strange pairing constellation between him, his sister, Kuri and Urufu. Hmm Kuri, yes, suits you better than Kuri-chan. Ryu suddenly laughed. Kuri-chan, when you're taller than me. No, Kuri it is.

They were overtaken by the girls they had passed just a little earlier. A couple of them looked at him and when he saluted them they all started to giggle again. Summer uniforms made it harder to pin point schools. They weren't from Himekaizen but without blazers he was at a loss for guessing which school they belonged to.

“I don't know but I'm afraid he's looking for that fourth guy,” Yukio answered belatedly.

The fourth guy. The thought that Principal Nakagawa had ventured out on some strange kind of vendetta felt discomforting. For what they had tried to do to his sister they could spend eternity in the underworld as fas as Ryu was concerned. But they had left that school behind them and now it was all coming back.

“Yukio, Urufu already did something bad, didn't he?” Ryu fell silent as they overtook the same group of girls for the second time.

“Hey, call some friends and join us for karaoke!”

Ryu looked at the girl who had come with the suggestion. Cute with short, dyed hair and on her way to becoming beautiful, and obviously outgoing.

“It would be a pleasure but alas we're already booked by other girls,” he said and bowed dramatically. He grinned all the way to his feet before he rose. “Some other time?”

He received a sparkling smile in return. “Lucky girls.” She dug up her phone. “Some other time you said. Swap email?”

Ah, I walked right into that one. “Sure.”

They exchanged mail addresses while Yukio impatiently studied the procedure.

When they left the girls behind them, for good this time, Yukio snorted. “Prince of Himekaizen. I knew you as the prince of Red Rose. You just can't change, can you?”

Ryu shrugged.

“About that bad thing,” Yukio continued. “Yes but I can't tell you. Made a promise to Urufu.”

They turned around the last corner before they could see the mall.

“You don't have to say anything. I guess he went after the other three.”

Yukio stayed silent in a way that told Ryu he had guessed right. “I wish he shows up one Friday soon. Then we'll know.”

“Yeah we'll know. Not saying I want to know, but yes we'll know.”

Before they went inside Ryu threw a glance at the bike stands. Urufu's ridiculously expensive bike was missing. I wish it was stolen but I guess you're riding it around the city looking where you shouldn't be.