# Kyon: Big Damn Hero

## Heroic Antics Begin Arc IV

### Chapter Eleven: Yeah, It Went There

Disclaimer: The novel series of Suzumiya Haruhi that began with 'The
Melancholy of Suzumiya Haruhi' is the creation of Nagaru Tanigawa. No
disrespect is intended by the posting of this fanfiction, as I do not own the
characters or settings involved. I'm merely dabbling with another set of
paints. TVtropes(dot)org is part of the public domain, I think? I actually
couldn't find a 'legal' section on the site!

Notes: Count the tropes! Save, collect, trade for swell prizes!

* * *

"Chapter Eight: Overbearing"

"In a confrontation that is either physical or verbal, when possible,
completely overwhelm your enemy from the outset. If it's a serious fight,
there's no reason to hold back, no purpose to pulling punches. If it's not a
serious fight, you're reading the wrong book!"

"Methods of Victory" -- 'T.H.'

* * *

Yanagimoto led the way to the far end of the old clubhouse, and the idol
research clubroom. Tsuruya stood just behind her, Kyon and Yuki side-by-side
behind her. She wasn't sure how she should feel about leading members of
Haruhi's club against someone who was an ally only an hour ago ... but her
misgivings vanished when she considered the pictures that Haruhi had shown
her.

Haruhi might have been many things -- a depraved pervert among them -- but she
wasn't the type to use subterfuge. Subtlety was a force she didn't understand
very well. Which suited Yanagimoto just fine at the moment; if Kyon was half
the delinquent she had been claiming, Yamane would get some well-deserved
facial reconstruction.

She took a quick breath to steel herself, then put on her most cheerful
syrupy-sweet voice. The one she had previously only used on Taniguchi to try
and turn him against Haruhi. "Yamane-kun," she called, rapping on the door.
"It's Yanagimoto~! Do you have a free minute?"

The quartet listened to the creak of his chair as he rose, then the tap of his
footsteps across the room before the door unlocked and opened. Yamane's
expression shifted from something quite near a leer to raw alarm when he saw
Kyon. Before he could slam the door shut, Kyon gave it a hard kick, sending
the edge of the door flying into the boy's face, knocking his glasses off and
sending him stumbling back.

Yanagimoto was a tiny bit unnerved by the way that Tsuruya strode past her and
into the room, standing over Yamane's form with arms crossed over her chest,
and both Yuki and Kyon seemed to just flow around her. The supposed delinquent
gestured her in, and she hesitantly joined the group, before Yuki shut the
door behind them, locking it once more.

"Ow!" Yamane protested, rubbing his nose, his eyes tearing as he fumbled for
his glasses. "What the hell!? Yanagimoto-san -- I thought we were friends!"

"So did I," she spat, glaring as he put his spectacles back in place and gave
her a sad gaze. "Haruhi showed me the pictures you took!"

"Things are about to become very, very uncomfortable for you," Kyon said,
using the informal form of the word. He crouched near the boy and stared at
him dully. Tsuruya chuckled, her grin ominous. Yuki slowly turned around and
studied the room. It was dark at the moment, only the red lighting of a film-
development closet active at the moment. The short girl walked to the window
and pulled the curtain open, flooding the room with brighter light.

"Hey!" Yamane protested again.

Yanagimoto realized that every surface of the room was plastered in pictures
cut out of idol magazines, or full-page prints downloaded from the internet.
She couldn't recognize a fraction of them. Near the far end, just before the
window, was a desk with a computer on it, very similar to the setup in
Haruhi's club room, only without the long table in the center.

"What the hell is going on here?" Yamane whined.

Tsuruya gave him a cool look. "Do you knows who I am?" she asked, quirking an
eyebrow higher.

"Tsuruya Haruka," he answered, glaring at her. "Third year student. What did I
ever do to you?"

Tsuruya chuckled, showing her teeth to the boy. "Do you know who my family
is?"

"I don't care!" Yamane said defiantly. "Whatever big shot you're related to,
nothing gives you the right to break into my clubroom and assault me!"

Kyon cracked his knuckles loudly, then reached down and pulled Yamane to his
feet by the collar of his coat. "I very strongly advise that you start
talking," he warned. "Because right now, most of the rumors you've been trying
to spread about me are true. And if you don't start talking, well...."

"Well _what_?" Yamane sneered, unshaken.

"Then he gives you to me," Tsuruya said cheerfully. "'Cause he's the _nice_
one!"

Yamane's eyes went wildly between the pair, then turned to Yanagimoto,
silently beseeching her for help.

"Come clean, you piece of filth. You think I'm going to help _you_?" she
snarled, copying Kyon's derogatory use of the term. "After what I found out!?"

"You're being played!" Yamane tried desperately. "I was framed! This ... this
is all Suzumiya's plan to-- UGH!" He coughed, short on breath, hunching over
the fist that Tsuruya had driven into his stomach.

"Haru-nyan is a much better planner than that," Tsuruya informed him stiffly.
"And she's not the one here."

He gasped, struggling to breathe, held up only by Kyon's grip on his coat.
"Okay," he wheezed. "Whatever.... Just ... don't hurt me...."

"Let's start by getting us into that computer," Kyon said, releasing the boy's
coat and pushing Yamane toward the desk.

"Y...yeah, okay," the bespectacled boy said shakily, wobbling toward the seat.
Yuki watched him impassively as he paused, leaning on the edge of the desk and
panting, then turned her attention away, approaching one of the filing
cabinets near the door and opening it. Yanagimoto wondered what the girl was
up to, but couldn't look away from the revenge she had wished on Yamane.

"Gonna open a window," he said, "need ... some air."

Kyon grunted wordlessly, glancing at Tsuruya. The eternally-cheerful girl was
still smiling, her eyes fixed on Yamane, except to flicker to Kyon every so
often for the briefest moments. Was the rumor that Yanagimoto had tried to
help spread true? Was there something going on between them? Yamane paused
once the window was opened, just standing still and breathing.

The chime sounding the end of lunch rang out, but Yanagimoto decided she'd
wait and be late to class. For this....

Tsuruya grumbled, marching to Yamane's side and raising a fist in warning. He
scurried to the computer, cowed, and frantically began typing. "I'll log in,
and you can see--" He broke off, and Yanagimoto realized his ploy too late,
too shocked to react to what he'd done. When Tsuruya had moved toward him, she
stood next to the window.

With a desperate shove, he pushed her to a three-story drop to a concrete
walkway. She felt a horrified shriek build in her own throat as Tsuruya's eyes
widened, and her hands windmilled frantically, one catching momentarily on the
glass edge of the window before it shattered, sending a blossoming aura of
glimmering shards exploding outward behind her. A bare instant before the girl
vanished from sight, Kyon had somehow gotten there, grabbing her other
flailing hand and being pulled after her all the way to his shoulder, his
knees slamming to the floor loudly.

Just as quick as Kyon was, somehow Yuki was there, too. Before Yamane could
try and shove Kyon as well, the shorter girl seized the back of Yamane's coat
and -- improbably -- plucked him up with one hand, hurling him head-over-heels
through the air, sending the boy flying past Yanagimoto faster than she could
turn to look. The paneling of the wall crunched from the impact -- at least,
part of Yanagimoto hoped it was only the paneling. The boy made a retching
sound and collapsed face-first on the floor after bouncing off the now-dented
wall.

"I've got you," Kyon managed, his voice strained. Yanagimoto scrambled to try
and help. All of Tsuruya's weight was dragging down on Kyon's arm, driving the
narrow edge of the windowsill up beneath his armpit; she couldn't imagine how
painful that must be. Before Yanagimoto even reached his side, Yuki leaned out
the window and helped haul Tsuruya back up and into the room.

The tall green-haired girl was shaking uncontrollably, her eyes streaming
tears as she collapsed into Kyon, who himself knelt on the floor. Tsuruya's
right hand was slashed and bleeding from the shattered windowpane. Her left
shirt sleeve over her wrist, where Kyon had grabbed her, was bloodied with a
large and expanding stain. Her arms were limp, her hands shaking worse than
she was. "S...stitches tore open," she whimpered. "H...hurts...."

Kyon swore something guttural, clutching the girl to his chest. "Okay," he
said quickly, snapping his gaze to Yanagimoto. "One thing at a time.
Yanagimoto, make sure Yamane's still down -- keep an eye on him." She nodded
shakily, glad to follow orders and not think about things too heavily.

Behind her, Kyon continued, "Tsuruya-kun, it's going to be okay. You trusted
me with your secrets, so we're going to trust you with this. Nagato...." She
couldn't hear the rest of his words, but realized that ultimately, she didn't
_want_ to. Whatever world she'd gotten involved in, she was happier being as
uninvolved as possible. Revenge on Yamane was one thing, but this.... This....

How had she judged so badly that the person she despised had garnered such
trustworthy allies, while she herself had been deceived by someone as
despicable as Yamane!? She was seriously contemplating kicking the boy while
he was down to vent her frustration before Kyon was at her side. "Ah," she
managed, looking up at him nervously. "Is Tsuruya-sempai...." She trailed off
and looked over her shoulder. Though she looked very tired, the upperclassman
seemed alright, catching her breath in Yamane's chair.

Maybe it had been a trick of the light, or Yamane's imagination? There was a
smudge of blood on the girl's right hand, but her left shirt sleeve was
completely unstained, now. Kyon leaned down and collected the boy's glasses,
somehow still in place, only slightly askew. "Yeah, Nagato took care of her.
Hold these for me," he said, thrusting them at her as he straightened.

She numbly accepted them.

"Nagato, is Yamane alright?"

"Minimal reasonable force was used," the girl stated calmly. "No permanent
damage should result."

He smiled at her. "Thank you. Now, we don't need any interruptions, could you
secure the door?"

"Understood," Yuki replied, stepping away from Tsuruya's side to place one
hand against the door and stare at it intently.

Bending down again, Kyon grabbed Yamane's collar and dragged him to the
window, hauling the boy upright before slapping him awake. "W...wha--" Yamane
sputtered, just before Kyon shoved him out the window.

But not to fall, as she'd initially thought. Grabbing first by Yamane's belt,
and then lowering him further, so that Yamane was suspended by only one ankle,
Kyon let the boy dangle. Yanagimoto was stunned, but no so much she couldn't
be impressed by the fact that Kyon was holding the boy with what seemed
minimal effort.

"Rise and shine!" Kyon yelled with fierce cheer, jerking the ankle and shaking
the other boy. "How you doing, Yamane?"

"L...let me go!" Yamane yelped.

"Classic poor choice of words," Kyon remarked. "Do you _really_ want that?"

Yamane wailed, then screamed, "Help! Help! Someone -- I'm being murdered!"

"Nonsense," Kyon said, shaking Yamane again. "I'm trying to save you. But,
see, I recently strained this arm ... not sure how much longer I can hold you
up!"

"You're never going to get away with this!"

"You think? So, maybe I should just drop you, since I'm damned anyway? How
does that saying go ... 'if you're going to do the time, may as well do the
crime'?"

Yanagimoto stared in morbid fascination. Was Kyon _actually_ going to drop the
boy...? The door to the clubroom shook with a muffled yell and a frantic slam,
but didn't budge. Yuki stared at it fixedly, one hand holding it shut. Then
again ... she had somehow hurled Yamane the length of the clubroom with one
hand.

Tsuruya gave a small shudder, recovering slightly and rising from the chair.
"Escalation is an ugly game, Yamane," she warned. "And it's not one you're
going to win todays. I don't get mad much, but you badmouthed my friend, you
tried to murder me, and you shamed almost every girl in this school. Believe
me, if Kyon-kun lets you have a three-story French-kiss with the pavements
below, that's a mercy compared to the world of hurt I could introduce you to!"

"Let me go!" Yamane wept. "Please!"

"Password for your computers," Tsuruya demanded, producing a notepad and paper
from one pocket. "Names of your accomplices -- _all_ of them."

"And make it quick," Kyon added, shaking the boy, his arms trembling. "You've
got some people watching you down there."

"M...my password is 'Tenshi'," Yamane cried. He then wept a litany of names,
which she also studiously wrote.

"Good," Tsuruya murmured, once the names were all recorded. She then turned to
the computer, tapping a few keys. "Okies, password checks out."

"You've got quite an audience, now," Kyon grunted, exertion reaching his
voice. "Tell you what, Yamane, since you've been a sport about this so far....
Say hello and wave to the nice people!"

"Hello!" Yamane wailed.

Yanagimoto anxiously crept to the side of the window furthest from the scene,
eyes widening as she realized fully half of the students in the school had
flooded the courtyard to stare at the spectacle. The classrooms opposite the
club room were full of onlookers, and quite a few were taking pictures with
cell phones or cameras.

"Louder," Kyon rasped. "My arms are getting tired. Since you've got their
attention, introduce yourself ... and tell everyone what you were doing in
this room!"

"M...my name is Yamane Jun!" the terrified boy screamed. "F...for the last few
weeks I've run an illicit photography ring! I've been collecting pictures of
all the girls in the school as they changed uniforms! I've been s...selling
them to yakuza, or anyone else who will pay me!" He blubbered wordlessly for a
moment, then keened, "I don't want to die!"

"Um, hey, Tsuruya-kun," Kyon said, his voice suddenly level. "Is it me, or did
Yamane here just wet himself?"

"Huh?" The upperclassman cautiously approached to peer out the window, then
exploded into gales of laughter. "Bwahahaha! Oh, Yamane-chan, that's
_precious_! I'll make sure one of those pictures of you that's being taken
down there now is _right_ next to the article about this that'll be in the
paper!"

Kyon snorted, hauling the boy into the room and laying him out with a straight
punch to the face, stepping away from the widening puddle forming around
Yamane.

The delinquent moved away from the window and stood still for a long minute,
just closing his eyes and breathing very deeply. When his eyes opened, he
raised his hands before him, frowning at their shaking. "I don't like being
angry," he muttered.

Tsuruya shut the computer down, then walked to his side, pulling his face
toward hers, so their foreheads touched, her eyes closed. "It's okay," she
soothed quietly. "You get angry for good reasons. I'm sorry, Kyon-kun."

"I'm not," he replied, his arms wrapping around Tsuruya. "You're okay, and
we're done with this, right?"

"...almost," Tsuruya meekly said, tentatively hugging him back. "I'm sorry ...
he kept records on his system ... he made a sale last nights. If we can get
those pictures back before they go onto the internet...."

"Okay," he mumbled, shifting his face to one side and burying it in her
shoulder. "When this is over, I need a damn vacation."

"Anything I can do for you," she promised him, breaking the embrace to stare
into his eyes and nod emphatically.

He gave a shaky grin and rolled his neck, cracking it in several places.
"Hopefully we can get out of this without going to jail, huh?"

Yanagimoto swallowed. Whatever was going on between Tsuruya and Kyon ... it
was none of her business. But if that scene was anything to go by, the pair
needed one-another. And much to her surprise, Yanagimoto realized that if it
kept things like Yamane's plot out of her school, she was all for it. They
were involved in life-or-death struggles ... judging by their relatively
unshaken demeanors, and how unreasonably fast Tsuruya had recovered from her
ordeal, this wasn't _that_ unusual for them. And here, she had spun pointless
drama to make their lives harder?

"Nagato," Kyon began, turning around to look at Yuki, then cutting off with a
choked gasp.

Following his gaze, Yanagimoto saw a floor-length picture on the back of the
door. A familiar girl that she remembered seeing a long time ago.... She was
looking over her shoulder, laughing about something as she undid the zipper on
the side of her skirt, her long blue hair fanned out behind her. "I...is
that," he stuttered, eyes widening in what Yanagimoto thought was horror.

"Yes," Yuki answered.

"S...so this whole thing...."

"A ... long-term plan," Yuki said quietly. "Until seeing the data acquired
from Yamane Jun's operation, the mechanisms of this were invisible to me.
However, the execution appears to have become ... corrupted."

Swallowing, Kyon gave an uncomfortable nod, muttering the name of the girl in
the picture, "Asakura Ryouko...."

* * *

Haruhi had elected to ignore the chime warning students to return to their
classrooms, and Koizumi stayed with her. Mikuru and Kanae, being largely
uninvolved, returned before they were late, while Haruhi quickly wrote out a
list of notes and considerations for the explanation to the student council.

Packing away the lunch box he had brought to the clubroom, Koizumi glanced out
the window, just catching a growing crowd of students looking toward the
opposite end of the club building. Haruhi caught it too, glancing over her
shoulder before gathering up her papers and narrowing her eyes. "We'd better
check this out," she declared, swiftly jogging out of the room.

Shrugging, Koizumi followed, not expecting much of anything spectacular until
they reached the courtyard and caught the nearby murmuring students. At a
glance, the clubroom furthest from the brigade room, but on the same floor,
was the focus of attention. One of the windows had been half-shattered, and a
very familiar student was dangling Yamane Jun out the window by his ankles.

Haruhi's eyes widened, before she smacked her forehead with the heel of one
palm. "Kyon is such an idiot," she groaned. "Koizumi, you work damage control
on this end, we'll meet up when we face off against the student council
president!"

Koizumi only had time to nod before she dashed off, and he found himself
hindered by the thickening crowd. It would take a miracle, or maybe Emiri's
tampering to get something of this magnitude passed down to the student
council.... It would probably take some doing just to keep Kyon from being
expelled. Fights and intimidation were one thing, but such a display in broad
daylight....

Breaking into a jog of his own, Koizumi quickly trotted to the hall outside of
the room in question. Okabe and a pair of other teachers were already there,
Okabe anxiously slamming one shoulder into the door repeatedly, the other two
watching him while trying to call through the door and demand it be opened.

If Yuki were in that room, no teacher would be given access.... Okabe was Kyon
and Haruhi's homeroom teacher, and just a normal person, as far as Koizumi
knew. The other two were Organization members; Tanaka and Hoshino. Tanaka was
a shortish male with plain features in his thirties, and Hoshino was a tallish
woman with sharp features in her forties.

Okabe ignored Koizumi's approach, and the other handful of students who had
gathered around in the hallway to stare in amazement. The other two caught his
eyes and shook their heads slightly. He understood their meaning clearly
enough; they didn't have a way to make Okabe look the other way at the moment,
which would make smoothing things over more difficult.

Retreating down the hall out of earshot of the crowd, he stopped before the
computer clubroom. Their door was open, and the president was leaning out the
open window to see what the commotion was. Keeping an eye on the man, Koizumi
pulled his phone from his pocket and speed-dialed Mori.

He gave her a terse explanation for the day's activities -- not enough time to
try and explain the scandals, just the trouble that they would need to get
Kyon out of. Once he was done, he caught his breath; Okabe had stopped trying
to break down the door for the moment.

Mori finally said, "Understood. I will get in touch with other school
operatives. In the meantime, Kyon is mostly able to look after himself now, I
think. So make sure that Suzumiya-san is being covered."

She hung up without waiting for him to confirm. He debated internally for a
moment, but doubted that he would actually even find Haruhi if he were to
search for her. That thought in mind, he strode back toward the teachers,
drawing in hearing range just as the door opened, swinging inward easily.

Yuki was the first student behind the door, stepping back as though she had
just unlocked it. Directly behind her was Yanagimoto, and Tsuruya and Kyon
were side-by-side behind her. Okabe yelled and made to seize Kyon's shoulder;
the physical education teacher was no match for Yuki.

The slight girl grabbed Okabe's wrist with just the fingertips of her left
hand, quickly spinning the man about and pinning him against the wall in a
joint-lock by his own elbow. "W...what is the meaning of this?" he protested.

Tanaka and Hoshino winced. Once again, the message was clear enough to
Koizumi.

"You will not touch him," Yuki answered.

"That's enough, Nagato," Kyon said, shaking his head. "Okabe-sensei, we'll go
with you. There's no need for force."

Yuki blinked, then released the teacher, who straightened his arm out and
glowered. "Don't think you're getting off easily!" he warned, shooting a look
that was both amazed and confused at Yuki.

"No good deed goes unpunished," Kyon remarked, shrugging.

Tsuruya fished in her pocket for a moment, then produced a card. "This numbers
is one of my father's men," she said, waving it back and forth. "He represents
my family legally. Further inquiries will need to go through him for myself,
Kyon-kun, and Nagato-chi. Any statement taken without our lawyer present is
inadmissible! Yanagimoto's just a bystander, though, so she shouldn't be in
trouble."

Okabe growled. Koizumi felt his smile slipping. This was serious! Tsuruya
invoking legal protection and treating the entire thing as a crime drama....
This wasn't helping, and neither was Kyon's amused almost-smirk. Especially
added to Tsuruya's triumphant grin, and Nagato's utter indifference after a
girl one third or less the teacher's mass had easily manhandled him.

"Okabe," Tanaka said suddenly, when the teacher seemed about to reply. "Why
don't you take care of Yanagimoto and return her to her homeroom? Hoshino and
I will bring the others to the principal's office; you can also have the nurse
come to take a look at Yamane while we wait for the ambulance."

"Yes, good," Okabe decided, still frowning. "Yanagimoto, if you're uninvolved,
please come with me. We'll stop by the office briefly so you can give a
statement, and then return you to class."

The girl looked hesitant for the merest moment before she shook her head and
slipped past Yuki to follow Okabe without a word.

"You trouble-makers," Tanaka said, glancing at the students in the hall,
staring at the scene. "Get out of here and back to class! Oh, except for you,
Koizumi-kun. Don't think I'll let one of my own homeroom students gawk like
this without reprimand!"

"Caught," Koizumi chuckled, giving a sad smile and shrugging to the other
students in the corridor as they obediently ran away.

Once they were out of earshot, Tsuruya crossed her arms over her chest and
eyed the two Organization teachers suspiciously. Kyon seemed almost as
indifferent to them as Yuki.

"Tanaka, Hoshino," Koizumi began apologetically, "at this time, Kyon-kun is
entirely aware of your role at the school."

"He is?" Tanaka asked, taken aback, eyes widening when they turned to Kyon.
Hoshino seemed just as surprised.

"Organization, right?" Kyon asked. Tsuruya's stance loosened as she looked at
Kyon in confusion.

The two teachers nodded hesitantly. "Still," Hoshino said, frowning, "we're
going to completely break with appearances if we don't take you to the faculty
offices, and this is quite an event to smooth over...."

"And Tsuruya-kun is involved, which makes it awkward for you, right?" Kyon
asked, shaking his head. "Well, in any case, Koizumi, what do you think we
should do?"

"Ah, well ... Hoshino-san should be able to escort you to the office," Koizumi
suggested. "Tanaka can watch the club room and keep an eye on Yamane Jun. I'll
go with you for the moment, but...."

"We can talk on the way," Kyon commented, falling into step behind Hoshino,
Yuki and Tsuruya following just behind him and to either side. Koizumi hurried
ahead, having to walk a bit ahead to keep out of Tsuruya's way.

"Well, this is going to escalate to police involvement, I suspect," Koizumi
said, grimacing. "I have a hard time imagining them not being called in."

"Between that computer, which we have the password for, and the other evidence
that Haruhi's hanging on to, we should be able to prove what they were up to
without any trouble," Kyon said confidently.

"While I believe with all confidence that good will prevail, the bigger issue
at the moment is making sure that your own life isn't too badly disrupted,"
Koizumi warned, frowning. "In other words, you underestimate your importance
to Suzumiya-san by allowing yourself to be in a situation like this. Things
will become difficult for all of us, I think, if you are suspended."

Kyon winced, shifting his shoulders. "Crap," he muttered. "And my mom's going
to freak out about me 'destroying my future' to become a delinquent again."

"I'm ... not sure what's going on here," Tsuruya noted, glancing between
Koizumi and the silent Hoshino. "But, Kyon-kun, I might be able to help, if
you let me know the details?"

"Yeah ... I guess I owe you an explanation on that one later, Tsuruya-kun,"
Kyon admitted, grimacing. "Once we've got some relative privacy."

* * *

After collecting all of the paperwork and contacts that Haruhi thought she
would need, she felt a nagging suspicion that she had forgotten something.
Dashing all the way back to her clubroom, she was surprised to see the
computer research society president standing in the hall, looking back toward
the idol research clubroom door.

"Shouldn't you be in class?" she reminded him.

He raised an eyebrow as he turned to look at her, before shaking his head.
"You really think that little of me?" he asked. "I graduated last year, you
know. But the club asked me to stay on as president through this term; I have
special permission from the school to be here for that." He shook his head. "I
guess you don't talk to your friend Kyon ... he already knows that. Never mind
that, though. Kyon seemed a good sort, and Nagato Yuki absolutely didn't seem
like the kind to get herself in trouble. So ... what happened?"

"Did you hear Yamane's confession?" she pressed, frowning. That much had
gotten around school, surely the president couldn't have missed it?

"I heard it," he agreed. "But a confession like that.... I suppose if it's
true, even the incredible Nagato-san could be upset enough to be involved.
Even so, not much stock will be put into a confession that was extorted."

Haruhi grimaced. Kyon, being a hero and leaving her to deal with the logistics
and fallout. "Well, whatever. At a school, I think that most people would be
swayed by the confession anyway. The biggest thing to worry about is Kyon's
record, and this getting back to his mother!"

The boy in front of her frowned and crossed his arms over his chest. "I really
don't know anything about that," he said, shaking his head. "Just that your
priorities seem strange to me."

"So?" she challenged him. "That means nothing! When your club was defeated,
you swore allegiance to the SOS Brigade should we need reinforcement against
the student council! That time is now, and I expect you to be good for
something! I don't know if you have unresolved business with your ex-
girlfriend, but that doesn't matter to me. What matters is your support in
this issue!"

"Alright," he agreed after a long moment, frowning. "Those were your terms.
Now, what can I actually do for you? I suppose I at least shouldn't be afraid
of being suspended or expelled -- I'm a graduate. But I'd like to leave my
club members out of it, if possible."

Haruhi chewed her lip for a minute. "You know how to make a good computer
presentation? Something I can show on a laptop?"

The man nodded slowly. "Sure," he said, uncrossing his arms to shrug. "I think
I've got a copy of some presentation software lying around. Let's start
putting it together, huh?"

She grinned at him. "Good," she declared. "Let's get to work!"

He fell into step behind her as she marched back into her own clubroom, before
asking, "What ex-girlfriend, though?"

* * *

Before reaching the principal's office, the delinquent trio, escorted by an
Organization teacher, found themselves confronted by a pair of police officers
in standard dress. Koizumi gave a small sigh of relief at seeing the pair. If
the Tamaru brothers were nearby, that probably meant Mori was already working
on things to the best of her ability.

"Hello," Keiichi said, nodding at the group. Behind him, Yutaka checked his
wristwatch and glanced around; the hallway was empty for the moment. The older
of the pair produced a notepad from one pocket and made as if he were
scribbling, but Koizumi knew it for an act. "We don't have a whole lot of
time. Koizumi-kun, what's the situation?"

Tsuruya made a surprised noise, leaning close to Kyon and staring between the
uniformed men and Kyon. Yuki's gaze had drifted to Keiichi's notepad and stuck
there. Kyon watched everything with a distant, thoughtful expression.

"Kyon-kun has uncovered a sinister plot. Evil actions were brought to light,
and the school was saved. From a practical standpoint, however, Kyon-kun did
hold a fellow student upside down out the window of a three story building and
threaten to drop him until he confessed," Koizumi said quickly. "For Suzumiya-
san's stability, we need this resolved as quickly as possible, and ideally,
without word of it getting back to Kyon-kun's mother."

"Alright," Keiichi said, frowning. "We're just plainclothes officers, not
detectives. Is there any evidence on this other student?"

"Yamane Jun," Kyon supplied, nodding. "Haruhi has some of the evidence, the
rest is on the computer in Yamane's club room. He got a bit roughed up, but
Nagato says there's no permanent damage, so he should be fine."

"Her definition of permanent might vary from ours," Koizumi noted, giving Kyon
a pointed stare, which the delinquent ignored.

"Okay. We'll take him into custody and have him brought in for questioning,"
Keiichi said, glancing at his partner. The younger officer nodded
thoughtfully. "Then we'll seize his computer for evidence and hand it over to
a detective."

"Will that work, Nagato?" Kyon asked, turning to look at the shorter girl. She
slowly turned to face him and raised her gaze to stare into his eyes. Koizumi
personally found her stare coldly unnerving; it never ceased to amaze him that
Kyon seemed to be unfazed by it. After a moment of thought, she gave a single
nod.

"In the meantime," Yutaka said, glancing at his watch again, "Mori-san should
be waiting at the gate. Kyon-kun, we highly suggest that you avoid school for
the rest of the day."

"You're telling me to cut classes?" Kyon asked, mildly surprised.

"The faculty hasn't met your family," Keiichi said pointedly. "Mori-san stood
in as your aunt."

"I'm not ditching Tsuruya-kun or Nagato," he said flatly.

"Eh ... don't get what's going on here," Tsuruya finally chimed in, scratching
the back of her head and giving an apologetic smile. "But, don't look a gift
horse in the mouth, right, Kyon-kun? You should go!"

"I'm not leaving without you," he said stubbornly, looking between Yuki and
Tsuruya. "And anyway, Haruhi's still here--"

"I will go with you," Yuki said suddenly, lowering her gaze to look at nothing
in particular.

"Likewise!" Tsuruya agreed. "Let's cut class and ... take care of that one
last loose thread, right? You can send Haru-nyan a text!"

"This would probably be for the best," Koizumi agreed, nodding. One of the
school's supposed teachers, his friends, and two supposed police officers were
all pointing to Kyon that he should run. Was he that devoted to Haruhi?
Koizumi mentally smacked himself. Of course he was; that was a stupid
question.

"I'm not sure," Kyon said hesitantly.

"At this point, all you can do by staying here is saying something you
shouldn't, or giving the faculty reason to pass judgment on you before
Suzumiya-san can finish her defense of you," Koizumi said with a shrug. "You
don't have to text her; I can explain everything to her myself. Now, really,
you should run while you can. I will take care of loose ends such as your
schoolbags." He nodded at Yuki and Tsuruya. "So, good luck, and hopefully we
can meet tomorrow to discuss how things went."

"Right," Kyon decided, nodding. "Thanks, Koizumi. Good luck to you, too. And
... tell Haruhi I'm sorry about things working out like this, alright?"

"I will," he agreed.

Taking a breath, Kyon glanced at Tsuruya, and then Yuki. Without a word, the
trio broke into a run toward the shoe lockers. Just as they vanished from
sight, Okabe rounded a corner, jogging back toward Koizumi and the other
Organization plants.

"Oh!" the teacher said, surprised at the uniformed men. "Where did the
delinquents go?"

"In custody," Keiichi answered, shaking his head slightly. "Now, where is
Yamane Jun? We're going to need to bring him in, too."

"This way," Okabe said, leading the way back toward the clubhouse. "Oh, I know
it's a lot to ask, but I care about my students, so ... is Kyon going to be in
trouble for this?"

"That's somewhat unavoidable," Keiichi answered. "Still, once the detectives
chosen for this case finish looking through the evidence, they'll decide the
final outcome."

"Hmm," Okabe mused. "Well, thank you, officer. I suppose I should just give
Kyon's mother a call to let her know that I think he's a good student at
heart."

Koizumi stifled an internal sigh.

* * *

After hurriedly changing shoes, Kyon dashed to the school gate, unsurprised to
see Mori standing there in sharp black business attire. Knee-length pleated
skirt, formal jacket, and all. She was even holding a pair of dark glasses in
one hand. She quirked an eyebrow up as she saw Tsuruya and Yuki following him,
but wordlessly gestured them into the car.

Barring a moment of confusion, when Kyon realized that for some reason both
girls wanted to sit in the back with him, there was no trouble. He sat in the
middle, Tsuruya to his right, and Yuki to his left. Arakawa was driving, as
per the evident standard, while Mori sat in the front passenger seat.

"So," Kyon said, once Arakawa started the car, "you're pretending to be my
aunt?"

"Yes," Mori agreed, nodding and looking over her shoulder at him. "Only a
parent or legal guardian could ask for you to be removed from the school, and
that seemed the best way to prevent your mother from being notified."

"Yeah, well ... with my luck it's going to get back to her anyway." He turned
to Tsuruya, then said, "I'm sorry about this, Tsuruya-kun."

"We've got relative privacy," she said brightly. "So, you said you would
explain things? I'm especially curious how Kyon-kun has pre-bribed police
officers!"

"Well ... this is somewhat complicated," Kyon began, frowning. "Actually,
Mori-san ... I think you might explain it better?"

"Are you sure this is wise, Sir?" Mori asked, looking very uncomfortable.

"As long as it doesn't get back to Tsuruya-kun's father until her test is
over," Kyon answered.

"I want to know!" Tsuruya said, nodding quickly.

"Very well," Mori grudgingly admitted. "Ah ... Tsuruya-san ... the
organization I represent at this moment is in part funded by your father.
However, we were of the understanding that your family did not intend to pry
into our agendas and intentions, provided they did not interfere with your
family's. Therefore, we likewise also try our best to uninvolved with your
family's personal business. In fact, until Kyon pointed it out some days ago,
we were uncertain that you were ya... that is ... ninkyo dantai."

"If Kyon-kun said you could be trusted with that," Tsuruya allowed warily,
narrowing her eyes slightly.

Mori looked uncomfortable. "A...at any rate, Kyon ... convinced ... us to help
him assist you when he claimed it would be required. Which is why I am
revealing these things to you now. However, there are a few points of concern.
Your family may not approve of us tampering with your activities as directly
as we are by assisting you here. Assisting Kyon is well within our allowed
scope of operations, but this...."

"Well, don't worry about it!" Tsuruya said cheerfully. "I skipped schools on
my own! Kyon-kun got permission and left with his aunt, who happened to give
us a rides to my place! Right?"

"That would be most convenient for us at this juncture," Mori agreed, giving a
weak smile to Tsuruya.

"Okay! So ... what's your organizations all about, anyway?"

Mori looked uncomfortable again. "It ... may be easier ... if you don't know,"
she said cautiously. "Sorry to be so vague, but your father was content to
remain uninformed."

Tsuruya looked thoughtful for a moment, then gave Kyon a questioning glance
before her smile bloomed again. "I want to know more," she said with a shrug.
"I've been afraid of letting peoples too close to me because of what my family
is and does. But Kyon-kun is tangled up in bigger, stranger things ... and he
trusts me. I dragged him into my worlds, so ... I will let Kyon-kun decide!"
She nodded to herself, smile widening to a grin. "So, Kyon-kun, should I know
more?"

He bit his lip for a moment, and began to turn toward Yuki, as though to ask
her advice, but caught himself, shaking his head. Taking a deep breath and
closing his eyes, he slowly said, "Tsuruya-kun ... I don't want to make that
decision for you. I believe that you can handle the truth, now. But I don't
know if you take this step ... if we explain everything to you ... that you'll
ever be able to go back to being 'just a side character' again. I know you
said you liked being on the sidelines and making other people laugh."

His eyes opened, and he gave a small nod. He continued, "In fact, knowing
about your family, and what they do, I understand why you chose to make
yourself a bit separate from the rest of Haruhi's friends. I can see why....
Well. I understand and respect your decision at that time. If you want to
change things now, then I want to make sure you understand beforehand that it
may be a one-way trip."

Tsuruya pursed her lips for a moment, staring back at Kyon with her expression
sliding from joy to thoughtful neutrality. Just when the silence began to
become uncomfortable, she grinned hugely and gave a decisive nod. "Okay!" she
cheered. "I give Kyon an 'S' rank scores for that speech! You're right; if I
make Kyon-kun decide for me, I'm running from responsibility. My trial is to
learn to _take_ responsibility, not avoid it. So! Tell me everything."

"Very well," Mori said anxiously. "Arakawa, the temple, if you don't mind?
That should be private enough.... Now, I'm afraid I cannot enter closed space
myself, and anyway, thanks to Kyon's efforts there isn't any active at the
moment. So, please believe what I have to say, even though it will sound quite
strange and I cannot give immediate proof...."

* * *

Something was up. Something suspicious. Something worth investigating.

And as soon as Haruhi finished saving Kyon's career and home life, she was
going to get to the bottom of it. But after a few innocent questions turned
into intense grilling, the president of the computer research society
adamantly insisted he not only had never dated Kimidori Emiri, he didn't
recognize the name. He admitted, once she found a picture of the girl, that
she looked vaguely familiar, and then in a very defeated tone insisted that
he'd never had any girlfriend at all.

Haruhi found that strangely easy to believe. As interesting as this new quirk
was, she knew it probably had nothing to do with the situation at hand, so she
shelved it for later consideration. Kyon might know more, but if she didn't
finish rescuing him, she'd have to brave the storm of his mother's crushing
gaze to find out. And that was one prospect she did _not_ enjoy.

"Anyway," she said, tapping the top of the laptop while the president of the
computer club looked irritated and quickly punched keys. "Never mind that for
now. How much longer until you're done?"

"It's finished," he said, hitting the last few keys, then turning it around.
"You'll have to add the pictures yourself, since you don't want me to see
them--" At her sharp look, he quickly added, "Not that I should see them, or
anything! So, uh, it's all up to you, then."

She nodded, paging through the presentation, which the president of the
computer club had set up. He had labeled all of the pages she could add images
to with instructions for how to replace them, which would simplify the
process.

He rose, shrugging. "At any rate, that's my contribution. I don't know what
else I could bring to your arguments. Still, give my regards to Kyon, and
Nagato-san." He paused, frowning slightly as he looked at the ceiling, then
nodded.

"Is that all?" Haruhi asked, already flipping through the images taken from
the SD cards, glancing at him out of the corner of her eyes.

"Hmm? Well...." The man seemed torn, then shook his head and gave a sad smile.
"Ah, she's out of my reach. Tell them I wish them both the best, and good
luck. I hope things work out for them."

She looked up from her work long enough to stare at him questioningly, but he
seemed stuck with a melancholy expression.

"I'll be off," he said, shaking his head again. "Take care, Suzumiya-san."

"Yeah," she managed, frowning as he opened the door and stepped into the hall,
just as Koizumi returned, looking a bit more worn than usual, but his eternal
smile intact.

"Hello," Koizumi said cheerfully.

"Back already?" Haruhi asked, surprised. "What about Kyon? How's the damage
control?"

"I've done what I could," he said, apologetically. "Kyon, Tsuruya-san, and
Nagato have left school for the moment, and aren't likely to return today.
Yamane-san is being taken to a hospital, but the police are watching him. It
doesn't seem he's suffering internal bleeding or any broken bones, but he's
quite badly bruised. He was too disoriented to give any testimony."

"Good," she decided, grinning. "Is the student council in session?"

"Yes," he said, his smile fading. "But, without Kyon-kun--"

"No, that's perfect," she insisted. "Harder for them to pass judgment on him,
Yuki-chan, or Tsuruya-san. Let's go get them before they just make up their
minds because he's not been represented."

"...of course," he allowed, nodding.

She finished moving the last few pictures onto the presentation and then saved
it and snapped the laptop shut. "Let's go!" she declared, leading the march to
the student council room. They reached the door shortly, and Haruhi opened it
with her usual care, kicking it violently open to slam against the wall.

Within the room were a somewhat confused looking Okabe, a teacher that Haruhi
didn't recognize, the student council president, and in one corner, noticed
only because Haruhi thought to look specifically for her, Kimidori Emiri.
"Hello," Koizumi said uneasily.

The student council president pursed his lips thoughtfully, not adopting his
usual scorn-filled sneer, instead turning his gaze to the teachers. "You, too,
huh?" Okabe said, breaking the silence and giving Haruhi a calculating gaze.
"Shouldn't the pair of you be in class?"

"Ah, I asked Koizumi-kun to come here," the unfamiliar teacher said, prompting
Okabe to look at him in surprise. "Koizumi-kun, if you don't mind...?" the
teacher prompted somewhat nervously.

"Right," the esper said quickly, when Haruhi turned an inquisitive gaze at
him. "As instructed, I have brought an account which should explain Kyon-kun,
Tsuruya-san, and Nagato's involvement in the ... incident at lunch today."
Haruhi began to scowl, but he quickly bowed and indicated her. "As his club
president, Suzumiya-san will present it."

That was more like it, she decided. "As I'm sure you've all heard by now," she
said, setting the laptop on the president's desk, as the teachers reluctantly
retreated toward the edges of the room to give her space, "Kyon and the others
were investigating a series of criminal actions."

"Yes," the president said dryly, adopting his more familiar sour expression.
"Obviously, this should have been handled by your misfit 'club', and not
trained professionals."

Haruhi ignored the comment, turning the laptop to face him and showing the
first screen. "The issue was first discovered by Tsuruya-san," she explained,
"who asked Kyon for help because of the enormity of the situation."

"You have not addressed the point that this is an activity best left for
professionals," the president remarked. "Let us set aside your 'ends justify
the means' stance for the moment, and examine that issue, first."

Haruhi grimaced. She didn't like the idea of saying that the ends always
justified the means, but it seemed in her experience it _frequently_ did ... a
certain incident involving tackling Kyon with Mikuru's aid notwithstanding. "I
didn't say that," she retorted. "Be careful what you try and claim I said! If
you put words in my mouth, your fingers will be bitten!"

The president calmly folded his hands together on the desk before him, sitting
up the slightest bit straighter. "The point, Suzumiya-kun," he drawled.

"Eh, well ... Tsuruya-san discovered this issue and brought it to Kyon.
Initially, neither of them even wanted me to know what was going on -- and why
not?" She tapped a key on the laptop that was facing away from her, changing
to the next slide. "Would _you_ want to advertise to everyone in the world
that pictures like this were going around, taken in your own school!?"

For all his stoic demeanor, when presented with the image that Haruhi had
chosen for the first example, the student council president could not look
away. His expression shifted from coldly arrogant to mildly awed, with tiny
hints of concealed mirth. Picking up the laptop and swinging the screen around
to Emiri, Haruhi added, "I would have thought you were too old for character-
print underwear, Kimidori-chan. You should come to my club, sometime, though,
Kanae-chan is a big fan of Trope-tan, too!"

The student council secretary's face still bore a serene smile, but Haruhi was
positive she saw a flicker of something in her eyes. Something vast and irate.
"I ... see," Emiri managed.

Haruhi set the laptop back in front of the president and hit a key for the
next screen before he started to enjoy it too much. He'd probably never be
able to look at Emiri the same way in any case, but that wasn't her problem.
"This is a list of all of the first year students involved in taking these
pictures."

"That...." The president coughed, looking up from the screen and fixing Haruhi
with a dour look. "I understand the vehemence that such a craven act might
instill into someone. But if your entire argument is an appeal to surrendering
to emotions, then you fail completely to understand what a system of law is
for."

"Okay, fine," she retorted, paging to the next slide. "In that case, let's say
that Tsuruya-san brought her complaints to you directly -- that someone at the
school was somehow taking pictures of her. What would you do?"

"That's not entirely a fair question," Okabe objected from where he was
leaning against a wall. "Strange as it is that this issue has been handed down
to the student council, that sort of action is more than a violation of school
policy -- it's criminal. If it _were_ brought to either the student council,
or ourselves, then we would defer it to the police! Where it _belongs_."

"Is that completely true?" Koizumi wondered aloud, shooting the teacher a
questioning glance.

"Nope!" Haruhi said brightly. "In fact, just a few days ago, a student left
this school. Ryuguu ... something-or-another. It didn't make the news, no
police were involved, and according to the attendance office when I asked,
even though this student assaulted Kyon with a knife, he was given the chance
to quietly withdraw. Word among students says he was expelled, but the
official record says he withdrew for ... no reason whatsoever!"

"That's not true," Okabe protested.

The other teacher winced and shook his head. "Actually," he said, looking
away, "it is."

"Is it any question in the face of events like that, or other, interesting
'withdrawals' in the school's past, most coinciding with questionable behavior
on the part of a student--"

"You have evidence to support these allegations?" the student council
president asked, sounding genuinely intrigued.

She nodded, tabbing past a few more example pictures of Emiri until she
reached the incident list. "But, as I was saying," she continued, "is it that
surprising that no student trusts the administration enough to come forth? You
speak of the law, and order, but where's the justice in a system that sweeps
the problem beneath the rug? This school isn't nearly as clean as it wants to
claim! How many girls have to endure this humiliation to satisfy this school's
pride!?"

She spread her arms in a helpless gesture, glancing at both teachers, then the
student council president. "And if the police were involved immediately, what
would they do? Make the entire thing public first, and then start
investigating in their way? Every student and teacher in this school would
need to be questioned -- in a way, even though he didn't tell me his reasons,
Kyon did this school a _huge_ favor by managing things like this.

"Now the police only have to question those involved ... and he obtained a
signed confession from one of the ringleaders, to say nothing of the other
evidence we've amassed! Realistically, this is the smallest amount of
publicity you can expect to endure for such an incident...." Her eyes hardened
as she trailed off. "While still looking out for the interests of the
students. Or was _this_ what your slogan of 'student independence' was
supposed to lead to!?"

The president tilted his head, his glasses shining like mirrors directly into
her eyes. She grit her teeth and grinned at him fiercely; she'd never believe
it was a coincidence of lighting. He'd obviously watched enough anime to learn
to master the effect to conceal his eyes and hide his emotions. That he was
hiding behind it now.....

"What was that," he said icily, "about putting words in the mouths of others?"

"You're dodging the issue," she challenged him.

"Right, enough, fine," Okabe said from the side of the room, his expression
sour. "Suzumiya, if what you're saying is true about incidents being covered
in the past to make the school look better, then maybe some small part of why
Kyon-kun and the others felt the need to do this themselves is explained. But
in any case, it's not right for a student to take matters such as these into
their own hands. As has been mentioned before, 'the ends justify the means' is
not an acceptable answer, here.

"Worse, after all is said and done, if we let this pass without reprimand, we
send the message to the students that the faculty are incompetent at best, and
malicious at worst. We tell every student that the outside world this school
is intended to prepare them for is a place where they cannot trust in any
strength but their own. I'll even go so far as to say what you suggest would
undermine the very society we live in."

"Interesting," the president remarked, his mouth a flat line, his eyes hidden
behind his lenses. Emiri sat in her chair, dutifully recording everything by
hand on her notepad. The other teacher sighed and hung his head, obviously
worn out by the process.

"It is interesting," Koizumi noted, speaking again for the first time in
several minutes, "to see that the student body in general thinks very highly
of Kyon-kun at just this moment. Certainly, almost all of the girls -- in any
event, a solid fifty percent of the population, at a minimum. Why wouldn't
they look up to Kyon, Tsuruya-san, and Nagato as heroes? They alone protected
the virtue of upstanding, innocent students by exposing the unfortunate
darkness that lurked within our otherwise upstanding school.

"If they were to be reprimanded, and punished, that would cement their images
as martyrs. At least ... if certain documents linking 'withdrawals' to certain
unacceptable mischief were to be circulated. Then it would be seen as fact
that the school was untrustworthy, going so far to punish any effort to
improve the situation and mask what you are correct to say would be perceived
as incompetence."

"A...are you ... _threatening_ the school?" Okabe asked, his eyes widening in
amazement. Haruhi felt a little stunned herself. She'd dug up the evidence for
her report, but hadn't considered how useful it genuinely was as leverage ...
anyone who was willing could find the same information from the public record.

Still, coming from Koizumi, who she had seen act genuinely forceful exactly
one time ... going back to that horrid memory of the only time she'd seen Kyon
genuinely angry at _her_.... This was a new face for the boy, she thought. His
smile had even lessened, becoming thinner, and much more dangerous.

"Koizumi-kun," Okabe warned, shaking his head as he stood upright, no longer
leaning against the wall, "this is very serious--"

"I think our answer here is clear," the other teacher cut in, suddenly.
"Okabe-sensei, the administration has already passed this decision down to the
student council. I believe I see why. Punishing Kyon and the others would make
them martyrs in the eyes of the students. Rewarding them would be going too
far the other direction. But doing _nothing_, and allowing the students to
manage themselves, and the authorities to handle the criminal elements....

"And, anyway, that all aside, all we're doing here is undermining the
authority of the student council we have in place. Letting them handle it
allows the student body to see that they're well represented by their own
peers."

Okabe looked like he was trying to swallow something particularly bitter, but
nodded. "Fine," he grumbled. "Fine."

"On that point," the teacher continued, glancing at the students, "we will let
you finish this on your own ... but we naturally will need copies of the
meeting notes.

Haruhi grinned, crossing her arms over her chest, as the student council
president's head lowered, and she caught his resigned expression. She'd
already won, as far as she was concerned. Did Kyon feel that same satisfied
victorious surge right now, she wondered? He should be happy, knowing he'd
solved the problem for good, and she was covering for him where she'd agreed
to.

Yeah, she decided, he had to feel as positive as she did right then.

* * *

After reaching the largely abandoned temple grounds, they'd had enough privacy
for Mori to explain things while they slowly strolled around. Tsuruya had
listened to Mori's explanation with only occasional questions. In point of
fact, when Mori had seemed to veer off and try to explain the roles of the
others involved in Haruhi's life, Tsuruya insisted that Mori remain on topic,
since she was concerned with the Organization and their involvement with
Haruhi specifically. After hearing it all out, she gave a slow nod.

"So," she said, after an extended, thoughtful silence. "Kyon-kun, was that
thing you asked for from aliens, or time travelers?"

"Aliens," he answered. "As we understand it, anyway. Ironically enough, it was
to try and help them learn to slide to alternate dimensions. But that's not
really important right now, I think. I mean ... do you believe it?"

"I do!" she agreed, nodding. "After all, didn't Kyon-kun somehow vanish while
we were sleeping together?"

Mori made a pained, choking noise and nearly fell over. "What!?" she
protested, horrified.

Kyon ignored the woman. Yuki seemed completely unperturbed by the comment,
only glancing at Mori with what seemed to be mild curiosity. "Yeah," he
agreed. "Nagato teleported me to her apartment for ... eh ... it was
personal."

Another strangled noise escaped Mori's throat as she stared with something
like raw terror at Kyon. "S...sir," she managed, "you.... Suzumiya...."

Tsuruya looked thoughtful, but equally indifferent to Mori. "Okies!" she
decided. "Let's wrap up that last bit of trouble with the Sumiyoshi-rengo! I
can't do it alone, but if I finish this and pass my trial, then maybe I can
help Kyon-kun like the others can!"

"Right," he agreed, frowning. "So, kick in the door to their place and fight
how many of them?"

"Can't be more than twenty," Tsuruya said, nodding confidently. "We should be
able to handle them!"

"Oh, gods," Mori moaned, one hand rising to cover her eyes. "Sir! Do you at
least use _protection_?"

"He has not been given any," Yuki answered. "It has not previously been
requested."

"Use protection!" Mori demanded, her voice nearly a screech, her hands balled
into fists, her entire body shaking. "You must! Kyon-ku-- That is ... Sir!
_Please_!"

Why was she suddenly getting so bent out of shape, he wondered. "You didn't
say anything except that I was on my own the last time I went out to do this
with Tsuruya-kun," he said, mildly reproachful. "I had to demand assistance
from you that time!"

"B...but," she protested, wincing. "I ... I didn't _know_!" She cut herself
off suddenly and took a deep, calming breath. After a heartbeat, she recovered
her seemingly unshakable demeanor. "In any case," she said evenly, "I will
ensure personally that you are adequately supplied with what you need from
this point forward."

"Oh?" he asked, raising an eyebrow. "Do you have anything with you?"

Mori's face turned beet red. "No," she said stiffly. "Of course not. I can-- I
_will_ get it for you, rather." She put her hand to her face and sighed. "If
you don't mind, Sir, I'll go take care of that now."

"It's fine," Tsuruya remarked, nodding. "I'll call my driver and set things up
for our next mission."

Hands still trembling, Mori quickly hurried away down the stairs to where
Arakawa waited in the car.

He turned to look at Yuki. "Oh," he said belatedly, frowning. "Um, we should
get you home."

Yuki shook her head once, moving a half-step closer to him, but not saying
anything.

"You want to come with us?" he asked in surprise, while Tsuruya barked a
string of orders into her cell phone. Yuki's gaze slowly rose to meet his, and
she gave a single sharp nod. He was about to protest when he caught himself.
This was Yuki, after all ... and even if she didn't have all her powers and
abilities, she had to learn the martial arts he'd learned in order to train
him. She outmatched him by several orders of magnitude; why wouldn't he want
her help against an unknown yakuza?

Kyon wished he could shake the feeling of impending doom that seemed to hang
over him. What protection was Mori going to get, anyway? Maybe he'd be lucky,
and it'd be a bulletproof vest -- or better. That was worth hoping for ... but
he wasn't likely to get it before the next assignment.