# In Your Dreams -- Chapter Four

## Season of the Mists

### A Suzumiya Haruhi no Yuuutsu fanfiction

co-authored by Halbarad and Brian Randall

Disclaimer: No disrespect is intended with the posting of this story.
Situations and characters are property of Nagaru Tanigawa, and are used here
without permission. His stuff; we're just borrowing it for a wee bit.
Additionally, some tinting (characters and settings) are borrowed from
Higurashi, which is the property of Ryukishi07; the gaggle of cousins that
appear are covered by the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0
Unported License.

Note: Takes place after novel eight and ignores novels nine through eleven.
Welcome to a divergent AU! This is not a proper crossover; just using some
established characters due to laziness.

* * *

I reel, just a little bit, staring at the girl in Asahina-san's maid uniform,
still wearing the 'Legendary Dreamer' armband. After a quick glance at the
costumes on the rack, she turns to stare at me with an expectant grin.

She did it! She really figured out how to meet me in dreams!

It's just a little too much for me; I can feel my barely practiced control
slipping away. It's one thing to learn a new skill, but there's a vast gulf in
confidence for me trying something new ... and trying something new when
someone _else_ is watching you -- especially when that someone else is
Suzumiya Haruhi!

"Hey!" she protests, her smile vanishing in a heartbeat as she zips to the
space before me, her hands grabbing my coat, giving me a gentle shake. "Kyon!
What's going on? Keep it together!"

Before anything else, I recall what Nagato had mentioned again-- A space that
waking people couldn't enter? So ... maybe this isn't really Haruhi in my
dream -- but _both_ of us somewhere else. That calms me down enough to get
things back in control. Nagato said this would be fine, right? So-- So why
worry about it?

I'm not sure how long it takes, but after I calm down I give a small shake of
my head. Really, if anything, isn't this all _my_ fault for bringing up that
'dream' that Haruhi and I shared so long ago?

This time, it doesn't look like Haruhi's about to rewrite the world to make it
more interesting -- so there's that, at least.

"S...sorry," I manage. "I wasn't-- You never told me this was your plan, was
all," I manage, almost mumbling, her fists still full of my coat, resting on
my chest. The surprisingly clear worry on her face fades somewhat, though she
doesn't move away.

I shake my head sharply before she can respond. Trying to puzzle this out
would be like trying to solve the riddle of the Sphinx, and I've had enough
confusion for one day! That thought in mind, I simply ask, "Actually, what
_was_ your plan? I was supposed to learn...." I make a vague gesture to the
room around us, and give her a questioning gaze.

Her eyes flick away from me as the last of the worry fades from her face. "I
came to get a report on your progress, of course!" she answers.

"I ... just got here," I say, somewhat plaintively, unable to keep a faint
note of protest from my voice.

"Did you do anything yet?" she prompts, raising an eyebrow.

I try very hard not to think about the idea I had briefly of summoning an
Asahina-san of some sort-- "Nothing at all!"

Haruhi finally releases my coat and straightens up, giving me a dubious look.
"Somehow, I'm not sure I believe that."

...it's just not fair how obvious I probably look to her sometimes -- and it's
not like I'd really even decided to do it! I just considered it when she
barged in and-- "Wait," I start, looking at her curiously. "'Not another dream
Kyon,' you said? What's that all about?"

"N-never-mind about that!" she says quickly, turning to look at the costumes
again -- frowning for some reason at what appears to be an even skimpier maid
costume hanging at the very end.

Before I can deny having anything to do with it being there, Haruhi scowls at
it and looks away. Clearing her throat, but still not meeting my eyes, she
says, "I wanted a progress report on how you were doing -- but if you want to
know what my plan was, I was hoping that this exercise would encourage you to
be more creative! In case you haven't noticed, you can do absolutely anything
here!

"Don't tell me you can't come up with something interesting to do when you get
to make things go exactly the way you want!" She turns her gaze of judgement
back to me -- making me feel like she could weigh my heart against an ostrich
feather. A few minutes of her staring at me in uncomfortable silence pass
while I try and think of something before she prompts, "Well?"

"I don't even know where to begin," I complain, shaking my head slightly.
"Like I said-- I just got here when you showed up!"

She looks irate for a moment before brightening. "Well -- I've looked at maps,
but it's not the same -- show me your village while you tell me what else
you've been up to! If you've got no amazing dreams to show me, you can at
least tell me what's been keeping you so busy!"

I blink at her, then glance outside the window. The view through it is the
same as ever, so I can't help but remark, "We're still at least eight hours of
travel away-- There's no way we could make it before we had to wake up."

"Idiot," she chides me, her eager smile belying her satisfaction. At what, I'm
not sure -- until she takes a deep breath and launches into a long-winded
explanation: "Didn't I just tell you that in dreams you can do anything you
want? It's simple! To change where you are, you just have to think about it,
and then make it happen!

"So, for example, I just reach out like I'm turning the page of a book, and
then grab the edge of the page," she lectures me. Her hand reaches out, just
as she says, and grabs something I can't see. "Now--"

She cuts off abruptly as a bizarre ... _line_ passes over her, in time with
her moving hand, and she's completely gone.

I leap to my feet in alarm, trying to keep myself calm. Okay, this is a dream,
so--

Just as abruptly -- and with that same strange transition and gesture -- she
returns, frowning. "You didn't come with me," she notes, looking irritated.

"Was I supposed to?" I can't help but ask, unable to deny that I'm glad that
she's back.

She opens her mouth to retort, then stops and considers. While she's
pondering, and since I'm standing anyway, I think I get what she's after. And
it's not what I'd originally had in mind, but instead of summoning a person, a
place sounds a lot more reasonable.

Haruhi did just show me that moving another person might be tricky, so while
she's quiet, I focus and think about things, moving over to the clubroom door.
"Hey," she starts, looking strangely anxious for a moment. "What are--"

That's as far as she gets before I close the door she kicked open, and falls
silent, just watching me curiously. I think about the view from the hill by
the shrine, and tell myself what to expect before opening the door once more.

Haruhi sounds about as pleased as I feel when it opens to reveal not the
corridor of our school outside the clubroom, but the bright sunlit hilltop I
envisioned. I can't keep some smug satisfaction from my face; if she notices
it, she doesn't say anything, just rushing through into the grass.

I follow behind her, and then we're both standing on top of the hill. Above,
the skies are fleeced with clouds, the same shapes I remember gazing at for
hours with my 'nee-chan' before--

It's been a while since I've actually been to this hill, come to think of it.
We're above the shrine, and have a fair view of the village, though not as
good as from Aunt Mion's house. From here, a few of the outlying farmer's
homes can be seen, looking as pastoral and classically styled as ever.

The complex of shrine buildings is closer, down a path from our hilltop. The
clearing we're in is ringed with trees, like a balding man's head, though
they're sparse enough not to block visibility especially well.

"So, this is where you've been hanging out?" she wonders, looking around and
admiring the view.

"Not really," I admit, turning back, where there's now just a doorway standing
on the top of the hill, the clubroom still visible through it. We exchange a
glance, and then both circle around to view it from behind. From the other
side, it's just closed. Shaking my head, I gesture down the path we're now
facing.

"This is the village shrine," I explain. "It's also just about the largest
meeting space with a roof in the village, so town council business frequently
takes place here."

"Ah, yeah," Haruhi says, nodding, then breaking into a trot down the hill. To
my surprise, when I jog after her, I'm able to keep pace effortlessly.

It takes us almost no time to reach the shrine itself, where Haruhi pauses to
admire the scenery. For me, it's nothing new, so naturally, for that reason
only, my eyes go to the one thing that's most novel to me here:

Haruhi in that maid costume.

After she finishes admiring the main shrine building, she catches me looking
at her. I realize I've been staring a little, but before she can call me on it
I ask, "How long are you going to wear that outfit, anyway?"

She instantly shows me that huge grin that always speaks trouble for me and
counters, "How long are _you_ going to wear that cute little cheerleader's
outfit?"

I look down and belatedly realize in utter mortification -- that's what I'm
still wearing. I look up to the sky and concentrate, relieved to feel my
clothing shift -- when I look back down, it's the thick shirt and jeans that I
usually wear while visiting my cousins. A bland blue color, but more than good
enough for me.

Her grin not diminishing in the slightest, the rest of Haruhi's outfit remains
as I changed it.

"Alright," she allows. "You haven't told me what you've been up to yet -- show
me something else here, too! Oh, and before I forget -- you need to give me a
call tomorrow when you wake up. That's an order, by the way! You need to
mention meeting me here! Understand?"

"Fine, fine," I sigh. "But this is a small village, you know-- So small, it's
only got a single school, and even though it's two stories, only one room is
actually used for classes. I'm not sure there's much to show you."

"Then you can tell me while we go see the school building," she declares,
nodding decisively. "So-- What's your report, anyway?"

...that actually sounds fine to me. "Alright," I agree, leading the way. She's
mostly focused on the view, though she does glance at me every so often as we
walk down the rest of the hill from the shrine, away from the stream that runs
behind it and toward the school building.

It's about a mile and a half away, even though I'm not sure that will matter
in a dream.

"It started raining on Sunday," I sigh, shaking my head. "So I've mostly been
cooped up inside with the cousins all day. Other than trips to my aunts'
houses to help out with chores, anyway."

"How many aunts do you have, anyway? You mentioned a 'Sonozaki Mion,' but who
are the others?"

"My other aunts are Fuurude Rika, Houjou Shion, Houjou Satoko and Ryuugu
Rena," I answer. "They've been visiting with my parents while I watch over the
cousins, mostly."

"Two aunts named Houjou? Are they sisters?"

I spend some time regaling Haruhi with the convoluted family history-- Aunt
Shion and Aunt Mion are twin sisters, and Aunt Shion and Aunt Satoko are only
sisters-in-law -- not that it really matters that much. From a technical
standpoint, only Aunt Mion and her sister would be my aunts; the others are
just very close friends. But in a village this small....

Of course, emphasising that point, we walk between the rice-paddies and
buildings that look almost like they could have been erected centuries ago.
Haruhi snickers and shakes her head when we pass the first gassho-zukuri-
styled home -- a building that sticks up like a wedge with a very steep roof
that runs all the way to the ground.

There are more modern touches too; the style was a byproduct of the difficulty
of transporting building materials from elsewhere, which isn't a huge concern
in the modern era. Even so, the more modern buildings that are scattered
around still reflect the classic design. Except for the lack of other people,
we might really be walking through the village together!

Maybe distracted by the scenery, or just because of how many of them there
are, Haruhi's unable to keep up with the names of all my cousins. She does
laugh when she hears that the twin sisters among my aunts _also_ had twins of
their own. After I finish relating that, that I explain the much less
interesting things that I've been up to lately -- what little you really _can_
do while cooped up indoors with so many children.

"Well, I think I know why you always beat Koizumi-kun at games," she allows
when we round a bend in the road and the school building comes into view.
"It's also cute that you let your little cousins win -- though it sounds lame
beyond belief that you've basically just been dragged up here to be a
babysitter!"

"It's not so bad," I reply. Except, in all honesty, if the rain doesn't let up
soon it will probably start really getting to me.

"Hmm," she muses, studying the well-maintained but very old building for the
school when we halt at the gate. "You've never taken classes here, though,
have you?"

"Of course not," I answer, stepping through the gate. "I've lived in
Nishinomiya all my life. My family just comes here to visit."

"So, that means you haven't actually visited your family out here," she says,
gesturing to the rice fields behind us, "since last summer?"

I nod in answer.

"I guess it's harder to complain about them wanting to see you, then," she
allows reluctantly, before shaking her head. "Well-- They only use one room of
the school? Show it to me!"

I oblige, leading her into the wooden building. I haven't actually been inside
it in years, and I look around to see what's changed-- But nothing has. It
takes me a minute to remember why; if this is all based off my own memories,
why would it be more updated?

Oh, well.

I then also realize that I'm wearing indoor shoes, remarkably intact
considering where we've been walking. That thought in mind, I don't bother
looking for slippers -- and Haruhi doesn't hesitate to follow me down the hall
and into the first classroom.

While we're there, and she looks around at what was picked out of my memories
to make this place, I remark, "You know-- Uncle Keiichi and my aunts all took
classes together in this room, and actually formed a club. They used to play
games and stuff together."

"Really?" Haruhi asks, looking interested, surveying the room with some new
thought in her mind.

I nod, pointing at the now very faded 'Hinamizawa Game Club' sign on one of
the storage cabinets in the rear of the room.

She unhesitatingly and enthusiastically flings the cabinet open, admiring the
huge stack of collected board games within. It's quite easily more than a
match for the library we've amassed in our own clubroom. She quickly starts
rifling through them curiously, knocking over a baseball bat with the name
'Satoshi' written on the bottom of it.

Since it's a dream, we both ignore it-- When she breaks from shuffling things
around with a bright grin, I notice that everything has restored itself to
order in the cabinet while we weren't looking.

"Hmm-- Okay! Then when we're here, we can make this a satellite Brigade room!"
she declares, nodding, raising one fist decisively. "Now...." She looks
intent, concentrating on something, but as I watch, her outline ... wavers a
bit, like she's suddenly out of focus.

I try to rub my eyes to clear it, but that doesn't help-- The edges of her
outline start to distort unnervingly. More, there's a trio of shadows before
her, outlines of-- Wait, is she trying to bring the rest of the Brigade here?

But then-- Very abruptly, Haruhi fades into total transparency, and the
shadows disperse like a faint dark fog, leaving me alone.

"Ha.... Haruhi?" I manage uncertainly, looking around. What the hell just
happened?

I feel like some desert wanderer, suffering from some cruel mirage -- and
suddenly realizing that I'm staring at nothing.

* * *

Not long after Haruhi's abrupt disappearance, I'm awake, staring at the
ceiling of the guest bedroom in Aunt Mion's home. I do my reality check to
confirm where I am. After that, I pull myself from bed and drag my weary form
to my concealed dream journal, unable to keep some grumbling from escaping. I
also detour to retrieve my hidden phone and double-check something.

There's not really any difference between my recall of Haruhi from the dream
and the last picture I happened to have saved to my phone that had her in it.

Thinking about her instructions to call her, I write down the details of the
dream. If it was a dream. I guess it was a _kind_ of dream, anyway....

I stow the notebook and phone before leaving the room, spotting Aunt Mion
coming down the hall to wake me. She smiles, remarking, "Up so soon! Could you
wake your sister for me?"

Now _there_ is a rare reversal. I nod and step across the hall to Nonoko's
borrowed room, knocking once with a knuckle before sliding the door open. My
little sister is deceptively cute in that state, like an unarmed explosive,
curled up around her pillow and drooling slightly.

If she takes after me in studies, I expect it's only a matter of time before
she starts to savor her sleep as much as I do.

Instead of retaliating and stripping the blankets away from her, I carefully
lift the lower edge and gently tickle the soles of her feet until she wakes
up, giggling. "Kyon-kun?" she mumbles, blinking the sleep from her eyes before
looking confused. "Why are you awake before me?"

I'm not about to tell anyone I had a dream which ended in a way that reminded
me of an uncomfortable set of days last December! Aside from which, my family
remember those same days very, very differently from me. A whole different set
of things I don't want to talk about with them.

So I answer, "This mountain air is invigorating."

"Glad to hear it!" my uncle enthuses from the hallway, unexpectedly. "Hey,
Kyon-kun, what do you say to giving me a hand? I need to go to Okinomiya to
pick up some groceries; if you're up, would you like to come along? There
should be enough time for you to wash up before we head out -- though, if you
do help me, Matsuri-chan's going to be sad that she'll miss you for a good
part of the day."

...actually, a chance to get out of the house for a bit would be nice-- And
this time it'd be spending time with my uncle instead of doing more menial
labor for my aunts. A change of pace to clear my head would be ideal, in
retrospect. "Sure thing," I agree, nodding.

"Great!" he replies, grinning. "Oh, your aunt Rika also mentioned, 'this too
is cutting wood and carrying water' -- do you know what that means?"

I relate the story to him as my sister climbs out of her futon and goes to
gather a change of clothes-- "I'm going to take the first bath~!" she teases,
running past my uncle as I finish.

He rolls his eyes, smirking. "You can use the shower in the master bedroom
again," he reassures me. "My fault for distracting you."

I nod gratefully and hurry to collect my clothes for the day, jogging quickly
to the shower.

* * *

After a shower that washes the last of the sleep from my system, I join my
uncle in his car and we take off through the rain. The pass is slick, and
there's a danger of mudslides, but the route is safe -- even if we do have to
go a bit slower than usual on account of the weather.

At least there's a change of scene!

Okinomiya is the nearest town to Hinamizawa, though that's not saying very
much. The tallest building in town is four stories, and that's the police
station. Thankfully, the supermarket we head to has a covered parking area for
loading -- once we get enough supplies to feed a horde of cousins for at least
a week, we load them into the back of the car, overflowing the trunk and
taking up most of the rear seats.

The drive back to Hinamizawa is even slower, thanks to the weight of the
groceries. I periodically remember my reality check, but mostly chat with
Uncle Keiichi about baseball. He's a fan of the Hanshin Tigers, a little
disappointed in me for not going to see a game since we last met. I've been to
a few of their games in the past, and thinking about that reminds me of
Haruhi--

Realistically, looking back ... I could very well have been one of those other
people in the stadium from when she told me that story. The unwelcome, heavy
thought bears down on me like the entombing weight of a pyramid.

Sensing this, Uncle Keiichi asks, "What's weighing on your mind?"

"I can't help but think of a friend in Nishinomiya that I haven't seen in a
few days," I admit. Her vanishing suddenly at the end of that dream was more
than a bit alarming.

He gives a knowing nod, sparing me a sympathetic glance, though most of his
attention is on the rain-slicked road. "Your friends are important," he
agrees. "Maybe some day you can show this girl around Hinamizawa!"

I didn't say it was a girl, but I realize he might have heard about Nagato
calling yesterday-- Certainly, he would have heard about Matsuri's complaints
on the subject! Anyway, I kind of already _have_ shown her around, haven't I?

After that we're both silent for the rest of the trip; Uncle Keiichi focusing
on driving, and me thinking about Haruhi and her instructions for me to call
her.

If I'd really thought about it, I would have brought my cell phone with me and
called while we were getting groceries. Okinomiya has much better cell
reception.

I didn't, though. Given some more time to mull it over.... Was it real? Given
everything else I've experienced, and Nagato's earlier phone call, I can't
really bring myself to strongly doubt it. So I really do have to call Haruhi.

Before that, once Uncle Keiichi parks in front of his and Aunt Mion's home,
well.... Time to unload groceries without the benefit of an awning. The rain
seems to be diminishing a tiny bit, at least; hopefully it'll clear up tonight
or tomorrow. In the meantime, we both get soaked before my father and Uncle
Satoshi join our relay team.

Naturally, since they're still dry, this breaks down into me and Uncle Keiichi
staying outside and handing things in through the doorway. After that's all
done, I see that Aunt Rika has preemptively restrained Matsuri from jumping at
me.

Yurie, providing a better behaved example, helps my little sister drag the
excitable little blue-haired girl to the gaming table with the rest of the
cousins.

Soaked and freezing, Uncle Keiichi and I are herded into the large bathroom
together, despite my complaints. I suppose my 'city-minded' attitude is
amusingly conservative to my aunts -- when Aunt Mion asks if I'd rather bathe
with her, I resign myself to sharing with Uncle Keiichi.

Much to the amusement of my mother and the other aunts.

It's not so bad, and I can see the logic; we're both freezing and wet with
rainwater anyway. After rinsing ourselves off, we climb into the large furo to
warm up. The environment is quiet and relaxing; if I hadn't rested well, I
might drift to sleep.

"Is your friend still on your mind?" Uncle Keiichi asks, reminding me of his
presence.

"Yeah," I allow.

For the briefest moment, I toy with the idea of _not_ calling her-- Letting
her think the entire thing was a dream that had nothing to do with me. At the
same time ... even if it does risk bringing up that 'first' dream -- too late
to call myself stupid for bringing it up, now -- I don't like the thought of
that.

"Um-- Would it be alright to borrow the phone to call that friend?" I ask,
shaking my head.

"Absolutely," Uncle Keiichi agrees without hesitation, climbing out of the
furo first. "Though you might want to grab something to eat first-- Lunch
should be ready when we get out, and we both skipped breakfast!"

Nodding thoughtfully, I'm not far behind, giving him enough time to use the
changing room in relative privacy before heading out myself.

* * *

Yet another slow day. Dammit.

It's still raining -- annoyingly -- so yet again, I've been forced to cancel
the Brigade's trip for the day.

...okay, that's an excuse. But a good one! I wouldn't have done anything today
anyway; there's no _way_ I'm taking any chances of missing Kyon if he calls!
The problem is that he doesn't, for the entire morning. And I'm too wound up
with thinking about it to really concentrate on much else; I end up starting
on a bunch of different things - poking around online, reviewing homework,
watching TV, even cleaning the kitchen - but I can't focus on anything for
more than about five minutes at a time.

I'm about to start making some lunch when the phone finally rings; I almost
pounce on it when it does. The caller ID has an unfamiliar name on it, but it
only takes me about two seconds to connect the name with Kyon's aunt before I
flip the phone open and bark into it. "This had better be Kyon!"

The response is confirmation enough - both in the voice on the phone and the
reply I get. "Well, my little sister probably wouldn't mind talking with you,
if you'd rather I put her on."

"Very funny, Kyon - but you'd better tell her I said hello to her too!" I
can't keep the smile off my face - even with having seen him in the dream last
night, it's good to hear his voice for real.

"Well, I did receive orders that I had to call you today," comes the reply.

Perfect - we _did_ really end up in the same dream! I start pacing through the
kitchen, trying to burn off some of my excitement as I respond. "And just
where did you get that order? The last thing I told you before you left
Nishinomiya was just to work on that lucid dreaming book - I never told you to
call in and report on it!"

"But you- You told me last night! You... don't remember?" He sounds a little
confused - I won't string him along for _too_ much longer, but this is way too
much fun.

"I sure didn't call you last night! How else would I have given you orders?"

The sigh is even audible over long-distance. "It... I was practicing lucid
dreaming, and you were there in the clubroom - you told me I had to call you
today."

I grin triumphantly, and I'm about to state my approval when I'm interrupted
by another voice from the other side of the phone - one I don't recognize.
"Kyon-nii-sama, who are you talking to?" It's a younger girl, and there's a
slight hint of a threat in the voice - audible even to me from over the phone.

Just as I'm about to ask who it is, another voice pipes up - but this one at
least I know, it's Kyon's little sister. "Kyon-kun's on the phone~! Are you
talking to Haru-nee or is it Yuki-nee again?"

Kyon talked to Yuki? "What's this about Yuki-" I manage to get out before the
outraged gasp comes through from the phone - good grief, is she right on top
of the receiver or something?

"Sorry, Haruhi - give me just a minute." There's a couple of noisy clicks from
the phone - I'd guess he put down the handset, and I can hear some shuffling
in the background. I shake my head; seems like his cousins are a real handful.

It's definitely confirmed a moment later when there's a muffled shout from
Kyon in the background, then another click as someone picks up the handset.
"Kyon-nii-sama is mine - you stay away from him!" The slamming of the phone
back in its cradle is sharp enough to get me to jerk my head away from the
phone in shock, but when I look back at it, I'm surprised to see that the call
hasn't actually ended yet.

I'm not sure exactly why it's still running after I clearly got hung up on,
but I put my cell phone back up to my ear to check anyway. "Hello? Is anyone
still there?"

The reply is from yet _another_ unfamiliar girl's voice. "Hmm, are you the
nee-chan that Matsu-chan's jealous of, I wonder, I wonder? Take good care of
Kyon-nii for us!"

"Wait!" I grab the phone with both hands - Kyon didn't even hear me say that I
really did give him that order. "Tell Kyon that it's good that he's following
his orders - and that tonight will be just like last night, so he'd better be
ready!"

A quiet giggle is the only reply to that, and with a final click, the call
_does_ end. I just stare at it for a minute - it's really annoying that I
barely got to talk to Kyon at all, but on the other hand... if that's what
Kyon's cousins are like? Maybe I should go easy on him, just this once.

* * *

Lunch is quickly crafted and demolished, and then the afternoon stretches out
in front of me. I don't need to hang around waiting to hear from Kyon now, and
I don't really want to stay cooped up in the house for the rest of the day
either; the question is what I actually _can_ do though, since the rain
doesn't look like it's going to be giving up any time soon. The only bright
spot is that it's at least not as heavy as it was this morning, but it's still
not something I want to spend more time in than I can avoid.

That comment about Yuki having called, though.... I'm tempted to call Yuki and
ask her about it directly, but I decide against it for now; I can always grill
Kyon about it tonight, and it'll probably be easier to tell if he's not being
honest about it than if I was asking Yuki herself - not that I'd really
_expect_ her to lie, but she's really hard to read.

For now, I'll just put the whole thing off - but it still leaves me without
something to do for the afternoon. On a whim, I call Mikuru - maybe an
afternoon out shopping for costumes will help burn off some of this energy.
And at least _she_ hasn't called Kyon!

* * *

"Are we the first ones here?" Mikuru asks as I exit the station and approach
her; the Brigade's mascot is standing alone under a frilly pink umbrella, but
it's hard to say how long she's been here - the rain is dripping off it, but
it's pretty steady at the moment so that wouldn't take long.

"Nope, we're the only ones here!" I reply, giving her a grin. "It's just you
and me today, Mikuru-chan - I didn't want to drag the whole Brigade out in the
rain, but I figured we could go shopping for new costumes since we've got some
time off - it's still official Brigade business!"

"O-oh," is the hesitant reply, Mikuru looking slightly nervous. "Did you have
anything particular in mind?"

I stop to think for a minute; I actually _didn't_ have anything specific to
look for, just some way to kill some time - and maybe grill Mikuru a little. I
still haven't forgotten what happened at Himeji Castle, and after the dream
the other night I'm even more curious about what that comment was all about.

"Nah, I didn't have anything particular in mind," I say, shaking my head. "I
just didn't want to be cooped up in the house all afternoon, and I figured we
could look around. Shopping should keep us out of the rain, at least most of
the time."

"Alright," Mikuru replies, seeming to settle down just a little bit. Things
fall into a companionable silence from there as we start to head over towards
the shopping district.

It's not until we get into the costume boutique and start looking through the
racks that I start up again. "So, Mikuru-chan - did you enjoy the trips
earlier this week?"

"Oh- yes, it was really interesting getting to see things that have been
around for so long," the brunette gushes. "I'm actually kind of interested in
history, so it was fun getting to see all those places looking so well-
preserved!"

"Good, I was hoping _someone_ got something out of it, at least," I can't help
but grumble.

"Ah..." Mikuru winces a bit. "Did... were you upset with the trips?"

"Not that much, really," I reply offhand, then turn my head from looking at
the clothing racks so I can see Mikuru out of the corner of my eye. "I've just
been to Kyoto way too many times for it to be anything but boring, and Himeji
Castle ended up being a real letdown."

She grimaces a bit at that. "Ah- I didn't know you disliked it that much," she
says. "Other than the grounds being really confusing, I thought it was pretty
nice."

"Well, with everyone being late, we ended up missing most of the guided tour,"
I grumble, looking sidelong at Mikuru.

She cringes a bit at that. "A-are you still upset about that? I'm really sorry
- we just ended up getting lost when we tried to get back!"

"Nah, I'm not really upset - really, if you got lost once, then staying put
made more sense than wandering around trying to find me and Yuki." I'm still
watching Mikuru more out of the corner of my eye than directly at her,
watching for any kind of reaction as I go on. "But it was a little strange - I
heard you talking with Koizumi-kun just before we got to you, and it was kind
of weird to hear you say you'd been _ordered_ to stay put. _I_ sure didn't
give you any orders like that!"

Bingo - she freezes up solid at that. "A-a-aah, you heard that?" she stammers
out.

Making sure to hide my smirk, I turn to face her, crossing my arms and raising
an eyebrow. "Well?"

"I'm- I wasn't- I'm sorry!" she wails. "It wasn't-" Taking a deep breath,
still on the verge of tears, she tries again. "I-it's just that when I was
little, I was always taught that when you're lost, it's better to stay put
than try to find your way to a more familiar... place," she says, eyes watery.
That hesitation at the end is a little weird, but the explanation makes sense,
at least.

That... I want to push again, but not only did she dodge my original question,
she also had to stop in the middle of what she was saying. She's definitely
hiding something, but I think if I try to push her any further, she's either
going to panic worse or clam up completely - and I don't need to spend the
rest of the afternoon annoyed at her for doing either one. Half the reason
we're even here is because I'm irritated that I didn't get to talk to Kyon
longer - do I really need to make that worse?

So instead, I just give her a half-smile and shake my head. "I didn't say it
was a _bad_ thing to do, it just sounded really weird - so no, I'm not mad
about that. I'm more disappointed that the whole ghost story thing ended up
being a bust - there's no way it could be real if they're running a tourist
trap tour for it!"

That seems to calm her a bit, and I shake my head a bit as I go back to
focusing on what we're here for. This particular boutique isn't entirely
focused on cosplaying, but it does tend to have some actual costumes to look
at, and accessories that work well for making your own cosplay outfits.

I can't help but smirk a bit as I pull something off the rack and hold it up
for Mikuru to see - a pink leotard and tutu, but definitely child-sized. "What
do you think, Mikuru-chan - think you could pull off a ballerina?"

She makes a moue at that. "I _can_ if you want," she allows, although it's
pretty clear it's not something she's entirely happy with.

"Nah, I'm not going to make you - looks like a pink puffball," I say with a
grin. "Really, though - what kind of costume would you actually like?
Everything you've worn so far has just been from ideas I've had."

"I... guess I never really thought about it for myself," Mikuru says, blushing
a bit. "I do like the maid costume the best, though."

At that, I can't help but think back to the maid costume that Mikuru was
wearing in the dream the other night, and I look away from her. I don't know
what possesses me to keep going with it, either - but I do. "So, then... if
you like the maid costume, have you ever thought about changing it up, maybe
still a maid but with a different look?"

"I'm not sure... what do you mean?" At least now she's just looking puzzled
rather than evasive.

"Oh, come on Mikuru-chan - you've got a fantastic body, and with that
unreasonably cute face.... Don't you ever get tempted to show off what you've
got?" I turn to look at her, raising an eyebrow. "I mean, sure, I've put you
in some sexy costumes before - like the bunny girl - but don't you ever get
the urge to do something like that on your own?"

To my complete lack of surprise, Mikuru goes bright red and starts stammering.
"I'm- I've- I don't-"

Rather than let her keep babbling, though, I keep going: "Oh, come on - you
know it's true, we got a huge crowd when we wore the bunny girl costumes and
handed out those flyers at the beginning of the year last year! You've never
even thought about doing something like that yourself?"

She shakes her head quickly. "N-no, not like that!"

Interesting way to answer that. "What do you mean, 'like that'? You've thought
about it in some other way?"

Mikuru sighs a bit at that, her shoulders slumping. "I do enjoy getting to
dress up, but... Well, I've daydreamed about wearing something a bit...
sexier, I suppose, but there's no way I could ever do it for real!"

"And why not?" Spotting something on one of the displays towards the back of
the store, I grab Mikuru's wrist and pull her along with me as I head towards
my target - and on arrival, I jerk the costume off the display and thrust it
into her hands. I can't help but grin as her eyes go wide. "You can't imagine
serving tea in a French maid outfit?"

"I'm- I..." she splutters briefly, then shakes her head. "Okay, maybe I could
_imagine_ doing something like that, but there's no way it would ever go any
further than that!"

Hearing her say that, I feel a sense of reassurance for something that up
until now, I hadn't even realized was still bothering me - _this_ is the real
Mikuru, not that seductress that I dreamed about. She'd never do anything like
that, with Kyon or anyone else.

Still, I can't resist giving her a hard time, at least a little bit. "Then if
you've thought about it, go try it on!" I grin, nodding at the almost (but not
quite) indecent outfit I just handed to her. Seeing her take a breath to start
protesting, I set my hands on my hips and smirk at her. "Before you even think
about saying no, think about it - we're the only ones here, and it's not like
I'm going to actually _get_ it unless you really want it. You should
definitely see how you look in it, though!"

Mikuru looks watery-eyed again for a moment, then seems to resign herself to
it, heading off to the changing room with the maid uniform in hand. While
she's in there, I wait just outside, idly browsing through some of the nearby
displays. It's not until I'm checking through the sizes of what look like
pieces of vinyl armor that I realize that Mikuru _still_ isn't done changing,
and she's not usually that slow about getting dressed - after all, she's
usually changing in the clubroom while the guys have to wait outside, so she's
gotten good at doing so quickly.

Putting the armor back on the rack, I poke my head into the changing area.
"Mikuru-chan! What's the hold-up?"

The answer comes back from inside one of the stalls, behind a closed curtain.
"Do I have to come out?"

"Yes, you have to come out!" I retort, scowling a bit. I'm tempted to go in
there and drag her out, but I resist. "What's the big deal, anyway? I'm the
only one here, and I've seen you wearing a lot less than that!"

She whimpers briefly at that, then comes out of the stall- and I have to
admit, she pulls off the look amazingly well. The outfit she's wearing now
shows off even more than what I'd dreamed about does! The overall look is
totally different, though - Mikuru looks like she's waiting for someone to
pounce on her, or maybe for the earth to open up and swallow her, rather than
strutting her stuff - which she could definitely do in that uniform.

"That looks _fantastic_, Mikuru-chan!" I grin, pulling out my cell phone
camera and snapping a couple of pictures. "I can just imagine the look on
everyone's faces if you served tea at one of the Brigade meetings in that!"

From the look on her face - shading from simply red to something incandescent
- so can she.

As I snap pictures, though, my smile slips a little; actually, I _can_ imagine
the look on Kyon's face if he saw Mikuru dressed like this, and the puddle of
drool that'd be on the clubroom table as he stared, too. Still, it's not like
he's actually here to do that, and taking it out on Mikuru in either case
wouldn't exactly be fair, so I force the grin back onto my face.

"Oh, come on - it's not that bad, is it?" I gesture towards the front of the
store. "Just think about it - if you went outside wearing something like that,
you could raise your own army of loyal followers! It's like cranking your
already high moe level up into a superpower!"

That gets her to react; she darts back into the stall almost before I can
blink in surprise. "I don't _want_ an army of people following me!"

That was... surprisingly emphatic, for Mikuru at least. "Why, what's the big
deal about that? Sure, I can see not wanting to lead a bunch of guys on, but
the point is that with your looks you wouldn't even _have_ to - it's not like
you're promising anything with a smile, and half the guys I can think of would
trip over themselves trying to make you happy for just that much alone!"

There's a rustling from the stall, then Mikuru emerges, still red-faced. "I
don't like it when boys look at me like that," she says quietly, handing the
maid uniform back to me.

"Why's it that big a deal?" I wonder. "Okay, sure, having guys slobber over
you for your looks... yeah, I can see that being kind of creepy, but if all
they care about is a cute face and a nice body, they're idiots anyway and you
don't have to care what they think!"

She shudders a bit at that. "It still bothers me," she replies. "I feel like
some kind of trophy or prize - it's like they don't even see me as a person,
just something to be won."

I can't help but wince a bit at that; that's more or less the exact thing I
was thinking when I found her in the first place, but since then... well, it
turns out that's not a good way to look at people, and I try not to think of
her that way now.

"It's nothing for you to worry about, Mikuru-chan!" I announce. "Like I said,
the regular idiots that stare aren't worth caring about, and if any of them
ever get too creepy or pushy... tell me! You're the SOS Brigade's number one
mascot, so you'd better believe we'll watch out for you!"

That earns me a somewhat skeptical look, but she nods anyway - but I have to
admit I can understand why, so I continue: "And I'll check with you first
before we do any more big mascot events." It's kind of a wrench to let the
idea go; using Mikuru's talents to bring in a crowd for Brigade events is
still tempting, but if it really bothers her that much I can probably do it
myself if we need to.

"That... would be nice," she says hesitantly.

I head back out to the floor to hang the maid costume back up, Mikuru trailing
along behind me. The silence is kind of awkward, though, and I'm not sure how
to break it - and then Mikuru solves that issue for me. "Um... thanks, for
inviting me out," she offers. "It's been kind of quiet the past few days with
no activities going on."

I can imagine that; it's been quiet enough for me, and I can't see Mikuru
being as eager to go out and do things on her own as I am. "Not a problem!" I
reply. "You don't have to wait for me, though - if you want company, give me a
call! Or someone - don't just wait at home for things to happen!"

"I- but..." Mikuru stammers. "I wouldn't want to intrude if you're busy, and
with you having cancelled the Brigade's trips, I figured you had other plans."

"That doesn't mean you can't call and check anyway, if you've got nothing else
to do!" I cajole her, nodding to the clerk as we head out of the store. "The
worst that'll happen is that I'd tell you I'm busy with something else - it's
not like I'm going to get upset at you just for _asking_. And you could always
check in with the others, too!" I glance at her from the corner of my eye as
she gets her umbrella back out. "Don't tell me you haven't even thought about
calling Kyon while he's been away this week - you've done stuff with him
outside the Brigade before!"

That gets her completely flustered; it's cute watching her splutter as she
tries to come up with a reply. I don't really think there's anything serious
going on between the two of them, but I'd be surprised if she _hadn't_ thought
about contacting Kyon, either. "That's- I- It wasn't anything like that,
Suzumiya-san!" she finally manages to get out.

"Don't bother," I say with a grin. "I know it wasn't - but you've still
thought about calling him, haven't you?"

She flushes at that, then finally nods. "I've... thought about it, yes, but I
didn't want to bother him - I didn't know how busy he'd be doing stuff with
his family."

I... actually hadn't thought about that when I ordered him to call, but it's
not like I told him exactly _when_ he had to call, so he probably did it when
he had time - although the call ended up being so short that I didn't get to
ask why he waited until lunchtime for it.

"Well, I did get to talk to him earlier today, before I called you - he had an
assignment to report on, after all!" I nod emphatically as the two of us head
out into the shopping district, the rain having lessened to more of a drizzle.
"We didn't get to talk for very long, though - just long enough to hear that
his assignment was going well, and then his younger cousin ended up hanging up
on me. She sounded like a real handful from what I could pick up over the
phone."

Mikuru giggles a bit at that. "If she was anything like his little sister, I
can just imagine," she replies. "It's good to know that he's doing well, at
least!"

"He sounded fine, yeah - it'll be good to have him back next week, though," I
confirm. Mikuru just nods in reply, and I turn to her. "Anyway - we've got
more shopping to do - you pick out the next store!"

* * *

After Matsuri's mother had caught the girl running away from the phone and
told my cousin that she was grounded for her misbehavior, I looked at my
options. I could have called her back, a minute or so later, but if I had
somehow made the entire thing up in my head....

What a mistake that was, then! I bet Haruhi's having a laugh at me, admitting
I dreamed about her. Still ... judging by last February, she'll keep it to
herself when she's not teasing me about it specifically.

Thinking that, I trudge toward the table where my cousins are mostly done
eating.

Yurie giggles and trots down the hall toward me from the bedrooms, waving a
hand. Her brown hair bobs when she ducks her head, reminding me of a certain
middle-school classmate. "Kyon-nii's girlfriend says, tonight is just like
last night, and that Kyon-nii was good at following orders," she announces
with a quiet giggle.

...wait. Wait!

"How--" I start before she giggles again, waggling a finger at me.

Winking, she remarks only, "Don't let Matsu-chan find out~!" before trotting
to rejoin the cousins.

I run a hand through my hair. From the master bedroom, or Uncle Keiichi's
office? There's another phone in either of those rooms, so....

I get it, Haruhi.

I can't help but heave a sigh and shake my head. I should be upset that this
means Haruhi _has_ found something outside of normal reality to play with ...
but I can't really complain. This seems genuinely harmless, and other than her
vanishing on me without a warning last night, could actually be fun.

* * *

After another day of doing different chores to get out of babysitting, I
realize that with Matsuri being punished, the other cousins are much more
subdued. Even though I think I've gotten the important parts down, I do spend
some time leafing through techniques to try in the book Haruhi gave me.

After that, I end up going to bed a bit early. All of the rain leaves an
unfortunate, gloomy air to the place. Even if the downfall does let up a
little around dinner, it's still raining. I listen to the rain on the roof in
my room for a bit, thinking that it will be nice to have the sun come out
tomorrow.

I don't quite catch the transition, but my reality check breaks me into
lucidity, trudging through endless corridors of Aunt Mion's house. Ah-- Okay.

Another dream, and I have to find Haruhi again. Or she could find me, I
suppose.

Looking around, I go to the nearest door and try it. It's stuck, the wooden
frame not sliding in its rails in the slightest. I concentrate for a moment,
envisioning the club room, and then the door easily slides open at my touch.

The clubroom is just as I envisioned it, and just like I hoped, Haruhi's
waiting inside.

There is the bit of strangeness that the doors are of different types, but
being that this is a dream, I think that can pass. I step through and slide
the door shut behind me, very pointedly not looking at it. When I glance back,
it appears to have reset to its proper state for this room -- a door that
swings, instead of sliding.

That's not a bad trick; I'm just about to start feeling proud of myself when
Haruhi snaps, "God, you're an idiot! Can't even use the door the right way!"

...excuse me? I turn to look at her quizzically. She's dressed as she usually
is in her school uniform, her armband reading, 'brigade chief,' in place as
always. Her features are sharpened into a scowl, focused on me.

Well -- she's probably upset that I didn't call her back again. Did Yurie
forget to pass on the message? "I'm here now," I tell her, shrugging. "What
did you want to do once we met up again, anyway?"

"Moron," she chides, her glare increasing.

This isn't like you, Haruhi. "What's bothering you?" I ask, starting to get
annoyed.

"I have to put up with _you_, for one!" she snaps.

What-- I catch myself staring at her, a bit stunned -- but.... The armband.

I can't really let myself get upset with a fragment of my own dream. "I see,"
I say, sighing.

"I'm sure you think you do," she says acidly, stomping in front of me. "But
I've seen you sneaking off alone with Mikuru-chan, Yuki, _and_ Koizumi-kun!"

That last actually gets me to snort in surprise. Really? I mean, I _have_ gone
off to speak with Koizumi and the others in private, but--

"I know who you've been dreaming about!" she yells, raising a fist.

I reflexively grab it before she can swing a blow toward my chest. "Calm
down," I chide her. "You're not the real Haruhi, just a dream."

Her eyes widen and her expression becomes startled-- There's a sensation of a
surge of water or something bursting out from behind me and passing through
the room. I'm almost staggered, and Haruhi seems to feel it as well. Once it
passes, nothing looks visibly different in terms of our surroundings, but
Haruhi has shifted -- I'm holding her hand, not her wrist, somehow.

Her expression shows that incredibly rare soft smile she has when she's happy
for her friends, and her cheeks are pink, her eyes not meeting mine. "Ah, um,
Kyon-kun," she giggles. "So bold!"

...I think I get what Haruhi was really talking about when she said 'fake
Kyons,' now. I let go of her hand and belatedly mumble an apology-- Even if
she's just a dream fragment....

I back away, but she just immediately follows me -- coming closer, in fact,
putting her hands on my shoulders and tilting her head back to look up at me
in expectation. "H...hey!" she protests, still smiling. "You can't just lead a
girl on and quit like that~! Come on, Kyon-kun~!"

Yeah, I really can't afford to be caught by the real Haruhi like this-- Though
I'm sure she'd love it!

"Hey, hey, do you want me to put on my bunny costume?" she prompts, moving
even closer. "I'll let you watch me change~!"

"Uh-- Yeah, sure," I agree, looking around for a distraction, or-- Ah, got it!

She lets go of me to to go to the costume rack, and I hurry to the door,
thinking of another clubroom -- this one empty. Behind me, I can hear that
dream Haruhi humming happily, and the rustle of cloth-- Oh, boy! I'd better
not think about that too hard.

"Hey--" she starts, before I dash out of the clubroom, and into ... another
clubroom, closing the door behind me and leaning against it.

The Haruhi in _this_ room looks a little disconcerted, all but her face hidden
behind the computer monitor. "That voice sounded _really_ familiar," she
muses, brow furrowed.

"Yeah," I agree, almost choking as she stands and I can see her fully.

Instead of a bunny costume, this one is wearing a French maid outfit with a
much shorter skirt, and a neckline that shows off probably just as much
anyway! I manage to tear my eyes from her legs and stare in astonishment at
the armband she's got on -- this one reads 'Legendary Dreamer,' again.

"Hey!" I hear quietly through the door I had closed. "Kyon-kun!"

Haruhi raises both eyebrows at me, and I rush back over, thinking of the place
I put it last time. I open the door before that dream Haruhi can barge in,
revealing the same hilltop in Hinamizawa.

Well, the same except for the rain, anyway.

Haruhi seems to be hiding a smirk, but steps to the edge of the doorway, next
to me. I can't help but wonder ... and the real Haruhi would have a better
answer anyway, so I ask, "What's up with that costume, anyway?"

"Huh?" she responds, looking down. Her face freezes for a moment, before she
looks up, her eyes bright. "I-it's a dream, anyway! Why _not_ dress up and
live a little? We can have fun in any outfits we want, right? You're just
being super-boring, wearing your school uniform again!"

I can't help but sigh; this does sound like Haruhi.

"Hey, what's with that? Anyway -- pick something more exciting, already!" She
puts her hands on her hips and fixes me with a stern look, leaning closer to
me.

Haruhi, I think you don't realize what happens when you do that in such an
outfit!

"What are you staring at, anyway?"

"Er, the armband," I say quickly, looking up at the ceiling and thinking.

"Really..." she muses, sounding amused, and less than completely convinced.

What I really need is a change of subject, but there's a natural one. I was
worried about her most of the day, so ask, "What happened to you last night,
anyway? You just vanished on me, you know."

She looks briefly startled, then raises her eyebrows, standing up straight and
distracting me slightly less. "Eh ... sometimes if you push the dream too
hard, it breaks and you fall out," she grumbles, shaking her head. "Anyway, do
you want me to pick an outfit _for_ you again?" she says, sounding amused.

All that comes to mind is a costume from an old video game that sticks with
me. I hope that does it!

I feel my clothing shift, and look down. Instead of the school uniform, I'm
wearing a loose, comfortable suit in similar colors, without the Kitago emblem
on it. There's an ornate sword at my hip, and a red cape hanging from my
shoulders. Just like in the video game, it wavers behind me even without wind.

"That," Haruhi says, masking a smirk, "is so silly it's actually kind of
cool." She shakes her head abruptly and gestures out to the rainy dreamscape.
"Going to show me around more? Not in the rain, I hope!"

"Hmm," I hum, not entirely sure. I concentrate on what I want to see -- the
clouds rolling back and the sun coming out. Just as I wanted, the clouds
almost immediately blow away -- though, there's a curiously elastic sensation
in my mind, as if I were pushing at them and they very softly pushed back.

Still, I step out and check the clear sky, the shining sun.... It seems
alright. Haruhi steps through after me, looking around again. I can't help but
be distracted by that outfit a bit, and the skies darken.

When I look up, the sun is already gone, and the clouds have rushed back in.

"Smooth," Haruhi opines, unhesitatingly reaching behind herself and pulling
out an umbrella, giving me a cool, amused gaze.

"Sorry," I sigh. "All of this rain is getting to me."

"That's fine-- You already showed me almost everything here," she says
breezily. "Now, I want you to show me something amazing!"

Talk about pressure! I can't think of anything off the top of my head like
that, anyway. The best I can do after a minute of rain hitting me and not
getting wet, is borrow from books or video games. Movies, too, but Haruhi's
managed to watch almost all of the movies I've seen lately with me, so I can't
see anything from that being 'amazing' to her.

Well, why should I show her something, if she's better at this than I am?

"Why don't you tell me what you and the Brigade have been up to?" I ask,
shaking my head. "You're still exploring things nearby, right?"

"Eh, yeah," she says with a shrug. "Well, time for a change of scene, then,
huh? Let me show you!"

She marches to my side and thrusts the umbrella into one of my hands, grabbing
the other. With her free hand, she reaches out and-- Whoa!

I watch the backdrop of Hinamizawa fold up like a turning page, leaving us
standing in one of the bright, empty entrances to Himeji Castle's labyrinth. I
recognize it from a long ago field-trip, but in the dream, it seems more
simplified in a lot of ways. When I focus, detail sharpens -- an indistinct
stone wall becomes a series of stacked stones with mortar between them, but if
I'm not looking directly at it, it seems to blur.

Haruhi plucks the umbrella from my hand and tosses it away, releasing me and
looking satisfied with herself. "So, we checked out Himeji," she says with a
shrug. "Oh-- Hey, why don't we go to check out Okiku's well?"

"Alright," I allow, still a bit surprised. She gestures me to follow and I
fall into step behind her, trying to fight off the sense of a forming
headache. Right away, the place looks like even more a maze than I remember.
Haruhi looks annoyed after a handful of turns. The place feels like an
immense, imposing labyrinth, that's for certain.

"Do you know the way?" I ask.

"I-- It's changing on me," she answers, frustrated. "I remembered the clear
route that Yuki showed me, but it's not working this time!" She shakes her
head. "Never mind -- I'll just take you straight there!" She reaches for my
hand, and something occurs to me. So, this is the dreamscape she made, and the
other one was the one I made. So....

"Let's try something," I suggest, pointing to a nearby door.

"What's that?" she wonders, her hand dropping to her side.

Haruhi's dream of Himeji is probably more imposing than the real thing. The
scale is impressive, but the imprecise details.... Actually, that's just like
Haruhi, isn't it? I try to imagine my own version of the place, as I recall
from when I was there before -- but then I imagine it merging with Haruhi's,
and waiting for us beyond that door.

She looks about to speak when I decide I'm ready and open the door. The view
through the other side seems more detailed, but surprisingly, isn't exactly as
I envisioned. It's much more majestic and imposing -- and the castle already
was pretty impressive.

Haruhi sounds pleased as she steps through before me, looking around. We're at
the same entrance we started in, before getting lost. "So, this is your
version?" she asks.

I step through and close the door, frowning. "I wanted to put together both of
our impressions of Himeji," I answer.

"I like the level of detail," she approves. "And I suppose from here, the maze
won't shift around on us?"

No guarantees on that. This is a dream, and the book said things like patterns
could be inconsistent. "Hopefully," I say, shrugging. I fall silent, not quite
sure what to say when I catch a figure moving on the rooftops of the labyrinth
walls. It.... It looks like Asahina-san, wearing the same outfit that _Haruhi_
is, carrying what looks like a brown leather attache case, a look of intent
concentration on her face as she dashes, ninja-like on the sloped peak.

Haruhi looks inexplicably annoyed, then shakes her head as that strange
Asahina-san vanishes from view with one final action-movie leap across a wide
gap. She comes down out of our line of sight, and I'm entirely clueless as to
what to make of the entire thing. Looking back, while the outfit was
revealing, somehow, it wasn't as appealing without her normal expression; with
that face, somehow I couldn't pay much attention to her body at all.

Really, Haruhi looks better in the same outfit -- not that I'd say that to
her!

"Ugh," she grumbles, shaking her head.

I don't say anything, just trying the route I distantly remember. It was a
pattern of left and right turns, wasn't it? Haruhi falls into step at my side,
looking around.

"You're good at the details," she acquiesces. "And it doesn't feel like the
maze is shifting-- So that means you've been here before?"

"In middle school, yeah," I agree. "For a field trip. I wanted to try and
impress a classmate, so I tried to memorize the route before we went."

"Impress a classmate?" Haruhi asks sharply, looking at me from the corners of
her eyes. "So-- What was her name?"

Ouch! This isn't the kind of thing we usually talk about, is it? Well....
"Okamoto-san."

She starts at that, looking a bit surprised, but the sharpness fades from her
expression, and she merely looks thoughtful. "So you learned the route for
her, huh?"

"No," I sigh. "I screwed up and got terribly lost, because my map had errors.
Another classmate had the same idea, but just memorized the turns. I remember
that much, at least." Sasaki always was good at things like that.

"Huh," she muses.

It takes surprisingly little time to clear the labyrinth, but as we do, a
shadow passes over us. I _really_ don't know what to make of that same
Asahina-san-like figure executing a perfect, flipping jump between the walls
of the labyrinth, attache-case still in hand.

"That's been on my mind a lot lately," Haruhi grumbles, looking at where that
strange version of Asahina-san vanished as we enter the small courtyard beyond
the gatehouse. "I guess just like you couldn't get the rain out of your head,
I can't get that out of mine!"

"Asahina-san in that outfit?" I say, before catching myself.

She gives me a slightly annoyed look. "Her as some kind of super-spy," she
clarifies, hands on her hips. "I heard Mikuru-chan make some remark about
'orders' to Koizumi-kun. She gave me some excuse about how it was what her
parents told her to do when she was little, but I didn't really push," Haruhi
huffs. "She was shaking like a leaf when I wanted to know more, so I let it
slide for a bit." She glances at me, and I must have let some alarm show on my
face.

It takes absolutely no time at all for her to be standing directly before me,
her face in mine as her scowl sharpens. "That face," she growls. "You know
something about this!"

I must be that obvious ... but I've been terrible about hiding things from
Haruhi pretty much always. That letter to Nagato from Nakamura, that final
page of the story I had to write about 'romance'-- I stop paying attention to
Himeji Castle and look away, unable to handle the intensity of her gaze.

_Now_ what? I can try to lie, but I've never been gifted at that, and I know
Haruhi wouldn't buy it. If I say nothing--

"If you don't open up, I'll _really_ grill Mikuru-chan," she warns.

...if I say nothing, that will happen.

Her grin tells me that she knows I can't stand up to that kind of threat, and
she knows full-well she won't need to follow through. "What did Asahina-san
tell you, then?" I ask, trying to figure out where to even _start_ on this
whole mess.

"Almost nothing," she answers, shaking her head and stepping back a tiny
distance, her satisfaction visible. "She was so nervous, I didn't have the
heart to push her. I wonder what weighs on her so heavily? She's a member of
the Brigade, so I'd look out for her ... but I don't know what the problem is.
But you do! So _spill_!"

Her expression sours at my dumbfounded stare.

"Well?" she demands expectantly.

"Just-- Hold on a moment," I say, shaking my head slowly. "It's ...
complicated, and you're asking me to give up information that I was told in
confidence."

"So she trusts you more than me?" is Haruhi's immediate, irate response. Her
eyebrows draw closer together, and she crosses her arms, which has an
interesting effect in that outfit. Not a distraction I need right _now_ of all
times! She doesn't seem to realize this, just raising an eyebrow and tapping
one foot impatiently.

"It's really complicated," I mumble hopelessly, bowing my head. "I-- I think
it would be great if you found out and could help Asahina-san with her
problem, but if I tell you, then wouldn't she stop trusting me?"

"That's a _crappy_ excuse!" she snaps. "If it's really serious, why _wouldn't_
you tell me?"

I am suddenly reminded of my promise to Nagato last December. I'd tell Haruhi
the truth to save our alien friend -- why wouldn't I do the same for Asahina-
san or Koizumi, if they needed it, too? Come to think of it ... she very well
may find out _anyway_. As perceptive as she is, and as terrible as I am at
lying....

In that light, though it's a frightening prospect, it'd be better if she were
to be told sooner than later. I can only imagine how upset she'd be at the
idea-- No ... not the _idea_. The _fact_ of her Brigade hiding the truth from
her.

I realize I'm taking too long to reply, but she seems to see that I'm
wrestling with this, and just waits, staring at me expectantly.

She's already come this far -- made it so we can meet in dreams. How long
before she figures it out on her own? How poorly will she think of me -- of
_us_ -- if she puzzles it out and feels betrayed? I'd like to think that she'd
be forgiving, but the prospect is not a lighthearted one.

How can she just stand there looking like she's straight out of some idol
singer's photo-op, risque outfit and all, while such ominous thoughts suddenly
loom? I can't help it; I realize it's my fault when the rainclouds suddenly
fill the sky overhead. We both shelter under the nearest gatehouse, but
judging by her expression, her patience is running out. I know if I leave her
be, she's going to come to a boil -- and that's not going to help the
situation at all!

Realistically, at this rate, I don't feel I have a choice except to start
trying to tell her the truth. The last time I did it, I was rejected outright.
Now, I suspect she'd believe me -- or at least give me _some_ credence. But
then, couldn't I also be considered to be betraying my friends by giving up
their secrets?

"I'm in an awkward spot," I tell her honestly. "I'm not going to lie to you,
but there's some questions I just can't answer without breaking promises I've
made to our friends."

She's mildly taken aback. "So it's not just Mikuru-chan?" she muses, still
locking her sharp gaze on my eyes. "Koizumi-kun, too then-- That explains that
conversation! This has something to do with his part-time job? That he's
always whispering about with you -- trying to get you to join him, right?"

...she's sharp, so I'd better be careful with this.

She shakes her head abruptly, planting her hands on her hips. "Well?" she
presses, as I hear distant thunder, though there are no visible flashes of
lightning, yet.

"I...it's complicated," I say, feeling somehow very small before her-- I shake
my head at the realization that I'm looking _up_ at her face. I need to get a
grip!

She looks more surprised than upset as I pace away, trying to put my thoughts
together -- and keep the castle around me from getting larger and larger. I'm
almost the height of the hem of her skirt before I fit things together and it
all stops. That alone tells me that I must be on the right track, here.

"L-look, I want to help you, but how can I do that without saying things I
shouldn't? So-- So let me give you small clues, alright?"

"Turning this into some kind of game?" she asks skeptically, eyebrows rising
as she sinks to a crouch, bringing her face closer to mine. "I don't think
this is very funny!" Her glare is like the searing gaze of Ra, making me feel
like an abandoned desert traveler, not someone trapped in an archway to take
cover from the rain!

"I don't either!" I return miserably. "Asahina-san ... may not be able to tell
you much-- And it's not her fault! I...." What a stupid thing to say -- who
knows what Haruhi's going to think of that? "Just-- She could use a friend,
Haruhi, more than anything else."

She looks dissatisfied with that. "So, don't press her, and be her friend?
That hasn't gotten me very far yet!"

That's ... fair. Haruhi does look out for Asahina-san much more than she used
to. How do I handle this, anyway? Or, maybe I'm trying to rely on the wrong
person, here. Koizumi may not be able to answer because of his superiors.
Asahina-san almost _certainly_ can't because of hers. But Nagato....

"Nagato might be able to help you, if you can figure out the right questions,"
I offer, wincing at how cryptic that sounds and watching Haruhi and the
surrounding castle grow larger briefly. Now I'm only about the height of her
chest, even with her crouching before me.

"Okay, okay," she says, shaking her head quickly. "Just-- Stop doing that!"

It's not like I'm enjoying it, Haruhi! "I'll try," I agree.

She looks irritated, though I'm not sure if it's at me or the whole situation.
She stands up, prompting me to stagger back a handful of steps. From this
height, while she doesn't look _scary_, and she's properly scaled to our
suroundings -- she's _huge_!

"Anyway," she says with a sigh, her eyes fixed on me, "you'd better know that
lucid dreaming isn't very restful -- so if we do this every night, you're
going to be too exhausted to keep up with your cousins. So -- tomorrow night,
you can sleep. I'll see you the night after, instead."

I'm still in a state of shock at the realization of how much larger than me
she is right now, barely registering her words; I can't even manage to form a
reply before my thoughts are interrupted by a booming, cheerful voice.

"Kyon-nii~! Wake up~!" the voice thunders from the sky.

"Well? Aren't you going to say anything-" Haruhi looks down, her words cutting
off as her face starts to flush crimson--

And at that point, I find myself blinking awake, staring up at Yurie's bright
face. What a transition!

"It's mo~orning," the young girl cheers. "Mama said I should wake you up for a
change of pace, and Matsu-chan's not allowed to for the rest of your
vacation!"

...I'm not sure if I should be happier for that, or how reasonable Haruhi was.
Then again, maybe all of the dream metaphors.... In a way, maybe this
connection Haruhi created for us to share will let us earnestly communicate
with one another -- a sort of mental Rosetta Stone!

If I trust in the rest of the Brigade, I should trust in her, too.

* * *