Summary: Has Mio found a new after-school activity? A jealous Ritsu investigates!...

Genre(s): Romance/Humor

Character(s): Ritsu T., Mio A., Tsumugi K., Yui H.

Pairing(s): Ritsu x Mio; Implied Mio x Yui

Story Type: One-shot

Disclaimer: I do not own K-ON!

* A Caring Idiot *

It was an average day in Sakuragaoka High School's Light Music Clubroom. The orange afternoon sun shone in through the windows and glinted off the ornate teacups arranged on the table. However, these teacups were also blinking in the sunlight as they rattled from the musical sound waves blasting out from across the room. For once, the Light Music girls were actually practicing; however, one particular member was having a tough time of it.

"Yui! Yui!" Ritsu yelled out from her drum kit as she tried to cover her ears.

Yui Hirasawa was lost in her own world of jamming on her guitar, though her notes were horribly out of tune, and so was her playing. Mio finally braved the harrowing journey of a few feet to physically grab Yui's guitar by the neck, thus stifling the ear splittingly bad noise.

"Huh?" Yui wondered out loud when her jittery finger movements produced no noise. She then looked over and saw the stern face of Mio, her hand clamped down on the neck strings. "Mio-chan? What's wrong?" Yui asked curiously, oblivious to how bad she had sounded.

Yui then glanced around at Ritsu and Tsumugi, who both looked relieved now that their ears were no longer under assault. Yui's gaze then rounded back on Mio, her eyes large with equally large tears hanging from them.

"W-w-was my playing t-that bad?" she asked, her voice dramatically stuttering and choking with tears. Mio looked at the sorrowful girl for a moment as she began to feel bad for hurting her feelings.

"W-well, n-no..." Mio lied in reply, earning her sharp looks from both Ritsu and Tsumugi which kicked her mind back into gear. "I-I mean, you just started playing the guitar...o-of course you won't be that good yet," Mio added quickly which earned her simultaneous nods of approval from her fellow band mates. Yui sniffled dramatically as her tears dried.

"R-really..?" she asked softly to which Mio nodded in reply which caused Yui to brighten up slightly.

"Ah, how about some tea?" Tsumugi interjected to complete the mood-lightening.

Yui's sorrow instantly lifted, her face shining with joy as she scurried over to the table and sat down, bouncing up and down in her seat chanting "Tea time, tea time." Mio sighed, her head and shoulders drooping from the experience. Ritsu stood from her drum kit and went over to Mio, a large grin plastered on her face as she comfortingly patted Mio on the shoulder.

The girls all enjoyed their tea together before the school-closing bell sounded throughout the almost empty school.

"Guess we should get going, then," Ritsu said to Mio as all the girls stood.

"Bye, everyone!" Tsumugi called out as she was the first to leave. All the girls waved the blonde off before Ritsu turned back to Mio.

"So, coming?" she asked expectantly.

"Ah, yeah, go on ahead, I'll catch up," Mio replied, which Ritsu found slightly odd.

'We always leave together...' she thought before she simply nodded and left the clubroom. Ritsu headed down the third floor staircase then waited in the corridor. 'Wonder what she's doing...' Ritsu thought as she kicked the floor impatiently.

Ten minutes passed before Yui came bounding down the stairs.

"Bye, Ricchan!" she called excitedly out as she ran down the hallway.

"Bye!" Ritsu called back after her.

Five more minutes passed before Mio came down the staircase herself, a strangely exasperated and exhausted expression on her face.

"Hey, Mio," Ritsu greeted which startled the tall girl, almost as if she had not been expecting Ritsu to be there.

"Oh, hey, Ritsu," she returned as the two girls fell in stride beside each other.

"Wanna go do something?" Ritsu asked, an excited undertone in her voice. A strangely conflicted look came over Mio's face as she seemed to be thinking it over.

"Ah...well...I actually need to go do something, maybe tomorrow?" Mio offered.

Ritsu looked hurt for a moment. 'What's more important than me?' she thought melodramatically, though a tinge of sadness was in her mental voice.

"Uh, alright, sure," Ritsu replied as she forced a large smile. Mio nodded before hurriedly walking off ahead of Ritsu, leaving the now frowning girl behind.

Ritsu returned home, alone, and entered her room, throwing down her school bag before flopping onto her bed.

'What could she be doing that's more important than me?' she brooded jealously as she stared up at the ceiling. 'Could it be...a boyfriend?' she thought in fear as she bolted upright in bed and a pang of worry shot through her. 'No, no, I'd have noticed...' she assured herself as she slowly laid back down.

Bored, she kicked her dangling feet in the air as she contemplated what Mio could be up to.

'Gah! I can't stand not knowing!' she mentally cried as she grabbed at her head in frustration and rolled around on her bed.

* K-ON! *

The next day was as normal as the previous, however, when the girls finally managed to practice, Yui sounded much better than the day before. After practicing, the girls all migrated to the clubroom table.

"You sounded really good today, Yui-chan," Tsumugi complimented sweetly with a gentle smile on her face as she poured up tea for all the girls.

"Well, it was all thanks to-!" Yui began but caught herself before she said anything as Mio shot her a harsh look. "I mean, thanks, Mugi-chan!" she quickly amended. The exchange went unnoticed by the blonde, but not so by Ritsu, her curiosity piqued.

'What was that all about?' Ritsu wondered cryptically as she glanced to her side at Mio.

Finally, the school-closing bell rang out once again and Ritsu and Mio were heading down the stairs together.

"Well, wanna go somewhere today?" Ritsu asked expectantly, not having forgotten Mio's promise from the day before.

"A-ah, well..." Mio began lamely which caused Ritsu to frown. "Y-you see...I can't, I'm sorry, Ritsu…" Mio said as she hung her head slightly. Ritsu's frown turned into a full blown pout.

"What? Why not?" she asked sadly.

"Well...-" Mio began but was cut off as a voice sounded out behind the two.

"Mio-chan! Ready to go yet?" Yui called out excitedly as she ran up to the pair. Mio blushed in embarrassment as Ritsu's frowned deepened.

"Ah, yes, Yui, let's go," Mio said quickly and quietly. "Sorry, Ritsu," Mio apologized to the brunette, who was too upset to notice or care.

Mio rushed off with an excited Yui, leaving a brooding Ritsu behind. Ritsu returned home alone once again, throwing her school bag down in distress and heavily falling onto her bed.

'How could she just leave me like that?' Ritsu thought in upset anger as she felt sadness and betrayal welling up inside her. 'But more importantly, why with Yui?' she wondered. 'Why is Yui more important than me now? What are they up to?' she thought as jealousy began to fill up inside her, overtaking the throbbing sorrow in her heart. 'What are they doing...' she wondered curiously as she turned on her side, a look of concentration overtaking her.

'Could they be...no!' she thought in despair as she rolled back onto her back, a mixed look of realization and fear on her face.

Images of Mio and Yui frolicking along the sidewalk, hand-in-hand, large happy grins on their faces as they laughed and giggled ran through Ritsu's mind.

"I love you, Yui! You're my best friend!" Mio said overly cheerily in Ritsu's mind.

"Even more than Ricchan, Mio-chan?" Yui replied, also overly cheerily and excited.

"Of course! You're way more fun to be around!" Mio replied as sparkles of light dancing around them.

Ritsu bolted upright in bed again, clutching her head dramatically. "Noooooo!" she cried out in theatrical sorrow.

"Onee-chan! Stop being so noisy!" Satoshi called out from his room which caused Ritsu to quiet down, an embarrassed blush on her face.

'Or...what if...' Ritsu thought as jealous dread tightened her stomach.

A new series of images depicting Mio and Yui, laying on Mio's bed, wrapped up in each other with blushes on their faces ran through Ritsu's head.

"Oh, Yui..." Mio said overly serenely.

"Mio-chan..." Yui replied hotly, a light pink haze surrounding the two girls.

Ritsu bolted up once again, her head in her hands. "Nooooo!" she cried out again.

"Onee-chan!" Satoshi cried out irately.

Ritsu lay back down on her bed, her mouth twisting into a jealous pout then scowl as more and more images ran rampant through her mind's eye.

'I have to know!' she mentally cried as she stood up from her bed. 'They might be at Mio's house...' she decided as she went over to her window and drew the blinds. She was indeed correct as she spotted the shadows of two figures in Mio's lit bedroom.

'I knew it!' Ritsu thought mournfully as a pang of jealousy struck her once more. 'How could you do this to me, Mio..?' she thought melodramatically, though the jealousy she felt was very real.

Ritsu bolted out of her room and down the stairs. "I'm going out!" she called out as she slipped into her shoes, wrenched the door open, and ran out into the night.

Quickly, but quietly, Ritsu hurried across the street and down a few houses until she arrived at Mio's house.

'How should I do this? Sneak in? No, too risky,' she thought as she patrolled around the house. 'Burst in? No, too dramatic,' she thought as she rounded the corner near Mio's window and nearly ran into a tree near the house. 'Perfect!' she mentally cried as she grinned widely.

Ritsu slowly scurried up the tree's trunk then grabbed a branch and heaved herself upwards, branch by branch. By the end of it, Ritsu had finally climbed up to the top branch, thoroughly covered by a camouflage of leaves.

'Now, if only I could see inside...' she thought irately as she crawled out onto an exposed branch until she noticed Mio's shadow walking towards the window, causing her to duck back inside the leaves and hope she did not get spotted.

"It is kind of hot in here," Ritsu heard Mio comment as she slid the window open.

Ritsu waited for a few moments before she crawled back onto the branch. She stopped dead, her mouth agape, her eyes like saucers at what she saw. She saw Mio and Yui standing in the center of the room, both of their backs towards Ritsu. However, Mio was clearly pressed up against Yui's back, her hands draped around the brunette and her head leaning over the guitarist's shoulder.

'M-M-Mio...' Ritsu mentally stuttered in shock and envy as she stared agape, unconsciously moving further out on the branch.

"Oh, Yui, not there~" Ritsu heard Mio say which caused the poor brunette to jolt as a mixed emotional attack of jealousy and sorrow struck her heart.

The sudden jolt was too much for the overtaxed branch to handle and, with a splintery crack, the base shattered. Ritsu cried out as she plummeted downwards, landing resoundingly on her face, her body stuck up in the air before slowly hitting the ground along with her bruised features.

"Owww..." she murmured to herself as she slowly got to her knees, rubbing her red nose and forehead.

"What was that?" Mio cried in surprise as she rushed to the window.

Ritsu jumped from surprise as her head shot around frantically for a place to hide. She spotted a patch of bushes at the base of the house and leapt into them just before Mio looked outside and scanned the surroundings.

"Must have been a cat..." Mio muttered to herself before she slid the window shut.

When the coast was clear, Ritsu exited the bushes, her emotions hurting just as much as her injured face. Slowly, she trekked back to her house, a brooding scowl set on her features.

* K-ON! *

'How could she do that to me..? I thought we were best friends!' Ritsu sulked silently, her face twisted into a pout and jealousy clenching her stomach as she walked to school by herself, having deliberately left earlier than Mio did to avoid the black haired girl.

Ritsu entered the classroom and sat at her desk, propping her chin up in her hand and scowling out of the window. Mio eventually entered the classroom herself, casting a worried glance over at the brunette, but was resoundingly ignored. Class passed by normally for the other students; however, it was rather tense between Mio and Ritsu. Mio tried to get in contact with Ritsu by, surprisingly, sending her notes. However, Ritsu did not even bother to open them, instead scowling out of the window, which only caused Mio to worry more. After class, Ritsu headed into the clubroom, only to be confronted by a concerned Mio.

"Ritsu," Mio called out as Ritsu walked through the clubroom door. Ritsu froze for a second then put on a haughtily pouting face, crossing her arms and turning her head defiantly to the side.

"Ritsu, what's with you? You've been ignoring me all day," Mio said as she walked up to the pouting girl, a tinge of sadness in her voice. Ritsu "hmph"ed and kept her head resolutely turned. "Ritsu..." Mio trailed off sadly.

"I saw you and Yui last night," Ritsu said suddenly as she turned her gaze back, her pout still set in her features.

"Me and Yui?" Mio asked in confusion. Ritsu nodded her head.

"Yeah, I saw you and her...together," Ritsu continued as her pout deepened. Suddenly Ritsu rushed to Mio, startling the girl, and grabbed onto her shirt, her eyes large with tiny rivers of tears flowing down her cheeks.

"Why, Mio?" she asked dramatically, as if she were on her death bed. "Is it something I did? Is it me? I can change!" she continued, her voice choking on an overdramatic sob. "I know what you two were doing!"

Mio was taken aback by the melodramatic girl, confusion clear on her features. "B-but...last night I was just...helping Yui with her guitar," Mio said, clearly confused.

Ritsu's tears instantly stopped flowing as her face froze. "...Eh?" she squeaked out.

"Yeah...Yui was embarrassed about her guitar playing and asked me to help her," Mio continued as Ritsu detached herself from Mio.

"B-but..." Ritsu stuttered in shock. "I-I saw you two together! I heard you say 'Oh, Yui, not there~'" she imitated overly sweetly and sugary before snapping back to reality. Mio's face lit up at the implications.

"I was showing Yui proper hand position..." Mio said but trailed off at the end as the obvious dawned on her. "Wait, how did you know about that?"

Ritsu's face petrified in sudden fear before she spun around on her heel and tried to march out of the room.

"You know! I don't know what I was thinking! Of course, that's what it was!" Ritsu said quickly, her voice sounding fast and desperate and adding a nervous laugh on the end, sounding more insane than anything. Ritsu stopped cold when she felt Mio's hand come down on her shoulder, fear washing over.

"Ritsu..." Mio said darkly, causing Ritsu to squeal in terror. She jumped around and dropped to the floor, bowing as low as she could.

"I'm sorry, Mio-sama! I couldn't help myself! I had to know what you were doing! Don't kill me!" she apologized profusely, the last part being an unusually high-pitched squeaking sob.

"Ritsu..." Mio repeated, but more softly. Ritsu cautiously rose and looked into Mio's surprisingly soft and calm face. "You idiot!" Mio yelled suddenly before smacking Ritsu hard on the head, dropping the brunette to the floor once again.

"Owwww!" Ritsu cried pitifully as she nursed her head wound.

"But..." she heard Mio say as the tall girl knelt down next to her.

Ritsu looked up curiously and saw the soft, calm expression on Mio's face once again. Ritsu gasped in surprise as Mio embraced her, holding her tightly for a moment before pulling back.

"At least you're a caring idiot," she said softly with a smile. Ritsu stared into Mio's eyes for a moment before a happy smile spread across her face.

END

Author's Commentary: This is a birthday present for Mio, today being her birthday. This is an older idea I've had for awhile, but I really felt inspired to write it up today, so I did. I hope you all enjoyed it and all feedback is happily welcomed!