DISCLAIMER: I do not own Kagerou Project or any of its character.
GAHHHH! I SOOOO LOVED THE NEW SONG! I WAS ALL SNIFFING AND STUFF AFTER LISTENING TO IT! GEEZ, JIN...Y U KEEP ON MESSING WITH OUR FEELS? ;A; AND WHY DO YOU SUDDENLY LEAVE US HANGING AFTER GIVING SUCH A GOOD PLOT TWIST? Naw, seriously. It was an epic plot twist! Who knew Ayano was actually connected to Mekakushi Dan? No, WHO KNEW THAT AYANO WAS ACTUALLY THE LEADER OF MEKAKUSHI DAN?
Less ranting, more fanfic-writing. Enjoy!
"Ayano..." Shintaro trailed off as he stared at the dark haired girl. Ayano shook her thoughts away and turned to Shintaro, her usual smile plastered on her face.
"Yes, Shintaro-kun?" Ayano's smile twitched slightly. How long...how long do I have to fake it?
"...Nothing." Shintaro finally said. He picked up his bag and started to walk away.
"Shintaro-kun, can I walk with you?" Ayano asked, a small smile still on her face. Shintaro glanced back at her and sighed, it wasn't like he could say 'no' anyway. Ayano would still cling to him nonetheless.
The two walked in silence. Usually, Ayano would talk non-stop, but today was different. Shintaro began to wonder if something was wrong, then again, Ayano looked so happy. Besides, Shintaro didn't have the guts to ask her if she's okay.
"Say Ayano..." Shintaro mumbled. Ayano's eyes widened in surprise, he was the one who started a conversation. For a moment, Ayano felt a genuine smile gracing her lips.
"Hm?" She hummed giddily, skipping as Shintaro walked by her side.
"Why do you always follow me around?" He asked, letting out a tired sigh.
"Because it's fun." Her reply was too simple, it didn't content Shintaro.
"How is it fun?" He asked. Ayano looked at him, curiosity written all over her face.
"Being with Shintaro is fun." Ayano said in response, gripping Shintaro's hand. He felt heat rise to his cheeks. Why was he feeling like this whenever Ayano's around? It was starting to annoy him.
"Leave me alone." He said as he snatched his hand away, only to be caught by Ayano.
"I don't want to." Ayano said stubbornly, puffing her cheeks a little.
"You're so annoying." Shintaro grunted. He briskly pulled his hand away and walked ahead of the poor dumbstruck girl.
"Ah, I annoyed him again..." Ayano muttered, smiling bitterly to herself. She snuggled her scarf and comforted herself with its warmth.
"I'm home." Ayano shouted, removing her shoes as she entered their house.
"Welcome back, Ayano-nee." Kido greeted as she momentarily looked away from the television to face Ayano. Ayano glanced around the room and frowned.
"Where's my other secret agents?" Ayano said in a childish demeanor that never failed to make the three smile.
"I think Seto said something about buying food supply for Hanao. The idiot is probably asleep on the couch." Kido emphasized the word 'idiot', feeling rather annoyed at the mention of Kano's name.
"Ehhh, you should really stop calling him that." Ayano scolded, although she was clearly amused by Kido's reaction.
"I'm back." A dull voice called.
"Hey, dad." Ayano forced a smile on her face.
"Welcome back, Mr. Tateyama." Kido greeted with a small bow. Mr. Tateyama walked past the two girls and went to his room to rest.
"He looks tired." Kido noted. Ayano nodded her head.
"Say, you can call him 'dad' y'know?" Ayano beamed. Kido looked up at her and smiled sadly. "Ah, anyway, I have an important announcement to make. Call me immediately when Seto comes home, okay?"
"Announcement?" Kido tilted her head in confusion. Ayano smiled at her.
"Sssh, it's a secret between the Mekakushi members only." With that, Ayano hopped off and went straight to her room.
"I'm back, mom." Ayano gingerly touched the frame of their family picture. How long has it been since her mother died? She lost track of time, she didn't want to count the days they survived without her beloved mother. It was a great loss and it had truly affected everyone in their family, especially Ayano's father.
"Mom, please help dad snap back to his senses..." Ayano grumbled, tears forming around the corners of her eyes. Recently, she'd discovered what her father's been up to. One night, she went to his room to give him snack. Unfortunately, her father wasn't there when she came. Out of curiosity, Ayano found herself inching closer to her father's desk. There she saw documents about two of her friends; Takane and Haruka.
"Hey mom, do you think I could also get myself a pair of 'those' eyes?"
"So, uh, what's the announcement about?" Seto asked, nudging Kido.
"Dunno." She replied monotonously. She noticed that Kano was about to doze off once again, so with all her might, she kicked him in the shin. "Wake up, idiot."
"AAGHHHH!" Kano shrieked as he curled into a ball and cried.
"Ow." Seto winced, seeing Kano in great pain. He imagined what it could've felt like, but he figured that it would be better not to know.
"Yooosh! Mekakushi Dan Member No. 0 is here!" Ayano yelled as she did her 'heroic' pose, muttering 'that was a mouthful' under her breath.
"Ayano-nee is so cool." Kido murmured, Kano could've sworn he saw her eyes sparkle as she admired Ayano.
"Kido is such a kiddo." Kano joked, referring to Kido's chuunibyou/8th grader syndrome.
"Shut up." Kido growled, glaring down on Kano.
"O-oi, you two..." Seto sweatdropped as he tried to stop the two from fighting.
"Aye! Member #1 and #3, stop fighting!" Ayano commanded, and two completely froze and then broke away.
"Good." Ayano sighed in content. "As I was saying, I have a very important announcement to make."
The three members looked at her expectantly. Ayano smiled, she loved how these three were so loyal to her. She swore to be loyal to them in return.
"I am now passing the leader rights to Member #1." Ayano finally said. Silence.
"EHHHH?!"
After a few 'why' 'how' I don't want to' and stuff, Ayano finally made Kido accept the new responsibility. She assured her that it wouldn't be a difficult position, and that she thought it was time to change leaders anyway. They insisted that her title as the 'Creator' remains however.
"A very rowdy bunch indeed." Ayano muttered to herself as she lay down on her bed. "I'm gonna miss them."
She sat up and looked at her desk. She absently took a seat and tore a sheet from her notebook. She grabbed her pen and started scribbling incoherent words. All the while, she had one person in mind: Shintaro.
After spending about two hours writing, she stretched and stifled a yawn. She glanced at the clock, it says '12:32'.
"Ah, it's already this late?" She groaned, remembering that she has school tomorrow. She got up and patted her numb legs. She couldn't help but feel sad. It was the last night she's gonna spend in her room.
"Ohayou, Shintaro-kun." She greeted, watching the young man occupy the seat next to hers.
Shintaro felt guilty from acting like a kid the previous day, but the guilt soon vanished upon seeing the girl's smile. "You seem happy today."
"What are you saying? I'm always happy!" Ayano beamed, pumping her fists in the air with more enthusiasm.
"Yesterday...you..." Shintaro trailed off. He shook his head and sighed. Of course, Ayano would always be happy. That's the type of person she is, no doubt about that. Or at least, that's what Shintaro thought.
Class felt lively today. Shintaro also noticed that Ayano was happier and sweeter- in some ways. Well, it's not like she wasn't sweet before, but she was acting really sweet today. Almost as if she were his girlfriend. She cooked bento for him. Drank on the same cup as he did. Shared her scarf with him. Moreover, she nearly kissed Shintaro on the lips for who knows why. They received a lot of strange glances from their schoolmates the whole while, it made Shintaro feel terribly uneasy.
He tried prying her off by saying mean words to her, but she would just reply with a smile and then she would resume to whatever she was trying to do.
"O-oi, what's wrong with you?" Shintaro stuttered out, gaining an amused look from Ayano.
"Shintaro-kun stuttered!" She gasped in awe.
"S-so what? Ayano, w-would you please get off me?" Ayano realized that she was still riding Shintaro's back.
"Geez, Shintaro-kun! Am I really that heavy?" Ayano asked with a childish pout.
"No...it's just..." Shintaro covered his face so that the girl wouldn't see his blush. "P-people have been giving us strange looks."
"Ehh, so what?" Ayano noticed Shintaro's beet red face and started poking his cheeks. "Uwaa! Shintaro-kun's blushing!"
"Ayano, quit messing around!" Shintaro snapped. Ayano got off his back and dusted her skirt. She looked up at Shintaro, and smiled once more.
"Sorry. I just..." For a split second, Shintaro saw the corners of Ayano's mouth turn downward, but when he looked again, it bloomed into a full smile. "I just wanted to spend the whole day with Shintaro."
After that, Ayano left Shintaro alone for the rest of the class. When class ended, Ayano stayed behind, even when all of her classmates had left. She searched inside her bag and sighed in relief when she caught the letter she wrote last night. She silently re-read it. Tears dripped on the crumpled piece of paper.
"What a waste..." She mumbled, "but I'm glad that I forgot to hand it to him..."
Shintaro watched from afar. He was too stunned to even move. Ayano's crying? It seemed too unrealistic for him. He felt scared. He didn't really know what to do, so he left. Perhaps the girl would prefer being alone at a time like this.
Hey Shintaro...
She ran up the stairs that led to the roof top.
Sorry for not giving you a proper goodbye.
She turned the door knob and walked forward.
Say, did you know that I have three secret agents! And all of them have 'super' eyes! I hope I can get eyes like those.
Slowly and carefully, she climbed up the fence.
Those kids are very nice, I'm sure that they'd like to be friends with Shintaro!
"Azami..." she muttered quietly as if she was praying.
Please take care of those three. Sorry for leaving you with this responsibility. I have to leave for a mission. I don't like idling around while everyone else has their own responsibilities to care for. I don't want to be a burden, I want to be of help. You know me, right Shintaro?
She closed her eyes and hoped for her plan to succeed.
Nee Shintaro, I hope we meet again. By then, I would be brave enough to talk to you face to face!
Ayano inhaled, "I hope they don't get mad at me if I fail this mission."
Shintaro...
With a last smile, she finally jumped.
Sorry.
The last thought that crossed her mind was the last three words she wrote in the end of the letter.
I love you.
THAT'S ALL! Thanks for those who would bother giving reviews! I appreciate stuffs like those! I hope everyone liked the story~ Just message me if you want me to make a part two for this xDD Tata~