"K-Kowaii!!" Airisu exclaimed, covering her head with blanket, "Kouran mou!! Yamette!!"
"Haha," Kouran chuckled, wiping her glasses, "Nanya? I'm just repeating what we heard ya..."
She alongside Reni, Kanna, Airisu, Coquelicot and Lobelia were staying in the attic for the night. Kouran suggested it because it had been cold lately and the attic still had her heating system. Orihime had convinced the others it was 'healthier' to stay away from Kouran's inventions, so it was just the six of them.
Their futons gathered around, they had been telling ghost stories with the record playing in the background. Kanna passed around a bowl of seaweed which Lobelia and Coquelicot instantly loved. "Mmmm! Umai! Is there anymore left??" Coquelicot chimed, as they finished it.
"Didn't you leave any for Airisu?" Reni asked, looking over. She patted her friend on the head. "Airisu, come out. There's no reason to be scared."
"D-Demo...!!" Airisu whimpered, "Kayama-niichan's ghost is in the attic like Erica said!! Airisu doesn't want to stay in the attic anymore!!" She then teleported out of there.
Reni frowned a little. "Airisu..." Suddenly, Coquelicot grabbed her by the arm. "Uwaaaah?!?"
"Ne, Reni, you're Coquelicot's SPECIAL FRIEND now! Ehihihi!"
"Haaah?!?!" everyone stammered, blushing a little. Reni pleadingly looked at the others to give an explanation to the oblivious twelve year old.
Kanna scratched her head. "Maa, none of that. We came up here to get some sleep. Let's just hit the hay now."
"D-Demo...!" Reni cried, still trying to break away from Coquelicot's hold, "Onegai...! Yamero!"
She simply smiled and let Reni go, sending her flying backwards. "Sweet dreams, Reni!!" she said and then went to sleep.
Reni sighed and climbed back into her futon. The attic now silent, she gazed up at the ceiling. 'Why do I feel like someone is watching...?'
* * *
"Fuaaa!" Oogami yawned as he got ready the next morning. Fixing his tie, he stared at the photograph of Kayama. Smiling, he bowed his head and left his room.
'So far, the enemy has not made any advances, but we are trying to find out as much as we can about them. Kaede-san had been absent since the funeral and a lot of our staff have walked off, so we will only have to work extra hard.'
"Oogami-san," Tsubomi said, meeting with him in the hallway in some maid outfit, "Shihainin wants to see you in his office."
"Understood! Arigatou, Tsubomi-chan." he replied, going for the stairs. He then went to the manager's office. "What would you like to see me about?"
"Take a seat, Oogami." Yoneda said, gesturing the chair in front of his desk, "The Tsukigumi was an important part of our city's defense. Not only did they supply additional support, but they also kept our corps a secret, by cleaning up after each of our outings. They are a great loss to us."
"I understand... but what are we going to do?"
"I've called Hanakoji. He will be sending us some help from the academy. I also contacted the Barugumi. They will be returning shortly."
Oogami nodded. "Since the Majinki is involved, the Baragumi will be essential. Only..." He imagined the drag trio surrounding him in a shower of rose petals. "Uwaah, do they have to come so soon?!"
"Oogami, most definitely. But this still doesn't solve our finance troubles." Yoneda sighed, "We just don't have the money to fix the koubu or to upgrade our weapons. And soon, our Gekijou won't be able to function to properly."
"Shihainin, I understand the situation. I'll do my best to keep the Teikoku Kagekidan working no matter what!" Oogami exclaimed, holding a fist in the air. He slowly slumped onto the desk. "Do the Baragumi REALLY have to come?"
"Of course, Yarou!!" Yoneda snapped, "Now stop dawdling here in my office and get some work done!!"
"H-Hai!!" he cried, scrabbling out the room.
* * *
'According to Yuri-san, all of the Hanagumi are doing their best to raise money to fund our expenses. Hanabi-kun, Glycine-kun and Airisu have sent letters to their families in France. Orihime-kun's father sold three of his painting and gave us the majority of the profit. Sore kara...'
Oogami stopped at the doorway to the business office. "What's going on?" he asked Yuri and Kasumi, who were standing outside, "Who's on the phone?"
"Sumire-kun desu yo." Kasumi explained, "She has been talking for the last half hour. It's been a yelling fest back and forth." The three of them slowly peered inside.
"ARA!! LISTEN UP, OLD MAN!!" Sumire hissed, shaking the phone in her hand, "Why should only MY koubu receive new parts! What good is it to put Teito's TOP STAR on the battlefield on her own... that's insane! I DEMAND new parts for ALL of the koubu!! I won't leave you alone until I have my answer!!"
Yuri cringed as the yelling started to from the other side of the line. "Sumire's grandfather must have an iron will to speak with her... then again, they are of the same family."
"Sou desu ka." Oogami uttered, "Sumire-kun's family runs the Nation's Steel Industry, that even first built the koubu. If Sumire-kun can get us the parts for free, fixing the koubu would be a breeze!"
Sumire finally finished up her phone call. "Arigatou, Ojii-sama. See you during the holidays. Love you too." She then hung up and turned towards the others. "OHOHOHOHO! I did it!!"
The others just stared at her, speechless. "..........."
Sumire gave them the evil eye. "Ara?! What's with that look?!?"
'Why don't you let Kouran know about it...' said a voice. Oogami lifted his head, looking around, but didn't see anyone. The voice continued, 'She's in the hanger.'
"Oogami-san, are you okay?" Yuri asked, she and Kasumi trying change the subject. Sumire was fuming in background. "You look pale like you've seen a ghost."
"Hah? Oh, it's nothing." he insisted, now turning to go, 'What was that voice...?'
* * *
On his way to the hangar, Oogami ran into Orihime on the stairs. "I wouldn't go in there if I were you, Chuui-san. They're crazy I tell you!!"
"Orihime-kun, thanks for worrying about me, but I really have to tell Kouran this news." he replied, rubbing his head.
"All right, but it's your life de~su!!" Orihime yelled after him as he went down the rest of the stairs. She could hear the chattering in the background. She then closed her eyes and covered her ears, awaiting the expected blast.
"Free parts ya!?! Yossha!!" Kouran exclaimed. Just then, there was shaking and smoke rushing out from the door. "L-Lobelia... han!!?!?"
"Hehehe, gomen..." Lobelia replied, the three of them covered with soot, "I got so excited about fixing those koubu I had to let it out."
Oogami fell into a seat, his hair extremely fried, "Kouran... by the way, what's the status on the koubu?"
Kouran wiped her glasses, she and Lobelia dusting off their work clothes. "Hmm... the Paris koubu should be arriving in a couple days. The koubu we have here need several parts replaced, including engines and out armor... demo, Sakura-han and yours are unharmed, so we have them on standby. I'd like to add upgrades to everyone as soon as I can!"
"But my koubu from France is coming in too. So, maybe someone else could use my old koubu for a bit?"
Lobelia shrugged, "It'll require some adjustments, after all these koubu are customized per person. Heh, it's your call, Taichou."
"I'm not the Taichou." he insisted, "Maria is your Taichou."
Kouran and Lobelia both frowned at him. Since the death of Kayama, he didn't want the position even more.
'Hah?' he thought, hearing something faint in the background.
'Oogami, so stubborn na... It's like they say, "go with the flow"... as surely as the stream ends up in the ocean, even you, Oogami will find your way...'
'Aarg! What are with these riddles?!' he sighed, clutching his head, 'Who in the hell...?!'
'Oogami... hayaku! That koubu over there... it's going to malfunction... Hurry! Get them out!!'
"Hah?" He lifted his head and saw that the voice was right, because there were electric curents around the black koubu Kouran had been sent to examine. "MINNA! LOOK OUT!" he exclaimed, grabbing Lobelia and Kouran by the arms and leaping for the door. He pushed them out in time before a blast shook the hangar.
"Holy crap!!" Lobelia exclaimed when the smoke cleared, "That was a close one, Taichou!!"
Oogami stammered, "Because the voice said..."
But Kouran cut him off, crying over the koubu, which was in worse shape than before. "Iyaaa!! Sonna ya! My beloved koubu-tachi!!"
* * *
Later on, everyone met at the stage to work on the set. "Aa, Oogami-san! Konichiwa!" Sakura said cheerfully, meeting with him backstage.
Oogami couldn't help but gaze back at her with a sad smile. 'I'm so glad Sakura isn't angry at me about that time. I know it was wrong of me, but I honestly feel ready for a serious relationship. I really want to be with Sakura-kun...'
"Nani ka?" she asked, leaning closer, "You were looking at me funny. Is there something on my face??"
"Iya, it's nothing." he laughed, nervously rubbing his head, "Sakura-kun, let's do our best ne?"
"Hai! Ganbarimasu!" she chimed as they walked out onto the stage. Everyone was just standing around, looking up. "Minna-san, what's going on?"
Pointing up at the light fixtures, Maria sighed, "Looks like a bird has somehow gotten in the theater." The little white bird chirped happily at the gawking Hanagumi.
Glycine crossed her arms, "Why don't you just shoot it with your gun, Maria?" Suddenly some droppings fell on her. "Aah!? Somebody do something!!" Orihime and Sumire both chuckled, dodging some violent reactions from her. "WHAT'S SO FUNNY!??"
Erica handed her a towel. "Please try to calm down, Glycine-san. You'll frighten the bird away. I think it's really cute!"
"Sou de~su!" Orihime chimed, "I don't think it's going to be harmless if we leave it alone."
Hanabi frowned a little. "What if it makes a nest? Then there will be several birds flying around the Teigeki. That can't be good."
"What should we do, Taichou?" Reni asked.
"Reni, I'm not your Taichou. Maria is." Oogami corrected her, "Besides, what's important right now to ready the set for the play."
"Yoshi!!" Kanna chimed, "Listen to what the Taichou says and stop dawdling! Move your lazy butt, Sumire!"
"NANI?!?"
Oogami dropped his head. 'No one is listening to me at all... I'm not the Taichou...' He blinked to feel Sakura brush her hand against his as she passed. Smiling over her shoulder, she went to help with painting the backdrops. Oogami blushed at that hidden bit of affection, which no one else on stage had seen. Cheering up, he decided to get to work.
* * *
Hours passed. Already a lot of work had been finished. "Kiiii?!?!" Sumire angrily waved her fists at Sakura, as she was covered with paint, "You clumsy country girl, I'm gonna...!!"
"S-Sumimasen, Sumire-san!" Sakura gasped, running to hide behind Oogami, getting covered him with paint as well. "Aa, gomen nasai, Oogami-san!"
"Sumire-san, please don't be angry! Sakura-san was really sorry!" Erica exclaimed, trying to calm her down, "A-Ano... Kyaaaa!"
Glycine had poured a bucket of paint on Erica. "Heh! That'll make this person shut up..." she chuckled, grinning to herself. But then a splash of pain hit her in the face. This erupted into big fight, paint flying everywhere.
"M-Minna!" Oogami stammered as a paintbrush splashed paint in his face. Looking a bit upset for a moment, he looked over his shoulder. "Sakura-kun, daijoubu kai? This is really getting out of hand."
"Hai! Demo, everyone is having lots of fun!!" she replied, smiling at him, "Don't worry, Oogami-san... as Taichou of the Hanagumi, you must suffer with your troops ne?"
Oogami frowned. 'Even Sakura-kun isn't listening to me...' He then had a strange feeling. Lifting his head, he gazed up at the light fixtures. 'A-Are...?? Up there?'
'The light fixtures are getting loose. Hurry, Oogami!' the voice said.
"Aa!?" Oogami exclaimed, breaking into a run, "M-Minna! Look out!! The light is falling!! Get out of the way!!"
"Eeeh?!? That thing?!!" Kanna cried, grabbing both Glycine and Sumire and leaping out of the way, while Reni rescued Coquelicot.
"KYAAAA!!" Hanabi exclaimed, completely too shocked to move as the light fixture was coming directly down to her. "SOMEONE HELP!!"
Without another thought, Oogami leaped out to shield her with his body. "Oogami-san!" Sakura exclaimed, she, Orhime and Maria safe from where they were, "IYA! OOGAMI-SAAN!!"
The light suddenly disappeared. "W-What happened?!?" Erica cried. Only she had fallen into the orchestra pit during the chaos. "Itai... can't move..."
Airisu appeared on stage, looking very sad. "It's the ghost... it's the ghost!! Airisu is scared!!" she cried, tearfully clutching Jean-Paul. Meanwhile, the light fixture had been teleported outside in the street, creating a giant traffic jam.
* * *
Later in the Salon, after everyone had washed up from the paint, they all discussed what had happened. "Datte, Erica said Kayama-niichan's ghost is haunting the Teigeki!" Airisu tearfully exclaimed.
Holding onto the stray bird, Erica blinked and gasped, "Heh??! Did I really say that??!"
"Airisu, that's not what Erica meant." Maria assured them both, "There are no ghosts to worry about."
Glycine nodded and sipped her tea, "You'd have to be brave like me to not fear such things..." Lobelia popped up behind her, with a 'BOO', making her scream and fall out of her seat. "KYAA!!!"
'Demo...' Oogami thought, leaning his chin down on his hand. He remembered hearing the voice on the stage and also in the hangar. 'Why do I feel like...'
Just then, the Sannin Musume and Tsubomi came running in. "Minna-san! Shihainin and Kaede-san want you all downstairs!" Tsubomi exclaimed.
"Kaede-san is here? Yatta! That means she feels better!" Sakura chimed, leading the way out of the room.
Oogami slowly got up. He then saw Hanabi waiting for him at the door. "Ano... Oogami-san, I wanted to thank you for earlier..." Her face blushing, she smiled at the floor. "You saved my life."
"Iie... I-I just..." he stammered, rubbing his head, "Hanabi-kun, I'm just glad you're okay."
"Oogami-san..."
Meanwhile, Orihime and Erica were watching from around the corner. "I knew it! Once a player, always a player!!"
"Jaa... what's a player?" Erica stammered. Orihime just covered her mouth and hid as those two passed. "Demo... I could've sworn that Oogami-san liked Sakura-kun..."
"Aren't you playing attention?? Chuui-san is a BAD Japanese man!! He likes ALL women!! A PLAYER DE~SU!!
"Oh..."
* * *
Downstairs, everyone greeted Kaede with a lot of hugs and smiles. They hadn't seen her for a while. She looked a bit happier than the time they last saw her, but with slight bags. She returned the smiles and laughed, "Could someone please help Shihainin??"
The old man was about to collapse with the heavy safe he was holding. Kanna single-handedly took it from him as he stumbled onto the floor. "Ite... my back... ugg..."
"Ne, what's in the box?" Coquelicot, "Is it snacks?? I'm kind of hungry right now..."
"I'm not sure." Kaede replied, "It's something I remembered that Yuichi was keeping in storage. He told me that if something was to happen to the Tsukigumi, that I would bring this to the Teigeki right away. I'm sorry for not remembering this right away."
"Don't worry," Maria replied, "You've been through a lot. We're just glad that you're all right, Kaede-san."
"Hurry and open it!" Yuri chimed, she, Tsubaki and Tsubomi being restrained by the calm Kasumi, "We wanna see what's inside! Hayakuu!!"
Kouran knelt down in front of it as Kanna lowered it to the floor. "Hoooh?? I recognize this model... you see, if you type in the wrong combination, it's gonna blow sky high ya!"
"NAN DE-SU KA?!" Orihime cried, running for cover, "No more explosions please!!"
Sakura was helping Yoneda back on his feet. "To make matters worse, we don't know the combination." he explained, "Seems the idiot forget to tell even his own wife. Any suggestions, Oogami?"
"Not really, Shihainin." Oogami replied, "But is it really worth it to try to open this box if it means that it might explode?"
"Oogami, sometimes you gotta take a risk."
Oogami slowly nodded. But he still didn't have any idea what the combination could be, and with everyone staring at him, he didn't know either. He suddenly heard the voice again, this time guitar playing in the background. 'Oogami, remember the first time we saw the ocean and promised to protect Teito together... do you remember...?'
"Aa! Sono toki ni...!" he gasped, "May 16... on the ship, called 'Yume'. We called it our 'ship of dreams'... because we dreamt that someday we'd be protecting Teito side by side..."
"Jaa... how does that help us tell what would the combination be?" Glycine asked, getting a little impatient, "Could you please specify for us??"
"Type 'yume516'" Oogami said to Kouran, "Minna, trust me on this."
Everyone nodded, despite their backing away. Kouran shrugged and went to type in the code he given. There was a long pause, but after a while, a ticking noise. "Is it gonna blow up?!" Airisu gasped, grabbing onto Reni.
Oogami lowered his head, feeling the tears well up in his eyes. 'Kayama...'
Suddenly, the safe opened. Kouran had fainted from the suspence, so they moved her out of the way and looked at the contents. "Sore wa..." everyone uttered to see a stack of gold, "Sonna...!"
Reni read off the note, "If anything were to happen to the secret corps, not only Teito, but the rest of the world will be faced again with disaster. That is why the Tsukigumi was created, to insure the continual of the secret corps, Teikoku Kagekidan Hanagumi. Therefore, if something would happen to the Tsukigumi, there will be great discrepancy in this continuation. All of these hidden funds have been collected around the world in support of the Teikoku Kagekidan. Please make full use of it. - Signed, Kayama Yuichi-shoui."
"Sou ka..." Kaede gazed down at the note and couldn't help but smile. "It seems Yuichi left us with this final gift."
* * *
That night, the Hanagumi partied. Their finance troubles had been solved and the koubu would be repaired without problem. Even Airisu had forgotten about her fear of ghosts and was having a good time.
"Ne! Open wide, Reni-chan!!" Airisu said, trying to spoon feed her, "Ehihihi!!"
"I want to feed Reni too!" Coquelicot argued, but she was handed Jean-Paul. "HMP!! What am I supposed to do with this bear?! I have a real one back home!" Along with an elephant and four monkeys...
After eating a great feast prepared by Kanna, Oogami decided to go upstairs. He still could hear faint guitar in the back of his mind. 'Kayama...'
"Aa... Taichou!" Maria said, stopping him in the hallway. "Would you like to have a victory drink with us?" she asked, leading him to the Salon, "Lobelia brought us this great liquor."
"Arigatou." Oogami replied, accepting a glassful. Suddenly, a girl climbed onto his lap, "Uwaah?!? Sumire-kun?!?"
"A~ra Chuui!!" the intoxicated actress slurred, drooling and sleepy eyed, "Let's drink together?? *hic *hic! OH hoho ho...*hic!" She suddenly passed out onto the floor.
Lobelia laughed and nudged at her with her boot. "Look at this girl; she's already wasted! Eheheh! More for us!"
"Pwaaah! This is some good stuff!" Oogami said after a gulp, "Where did you get this, Lobelia??"
A long pause followed. They all stared at her, waiting for an answer. "Well..." Lobelia uttered, rubbing her head, "The truth is..."
"M-Masaka...!" Maria's eyes went wide and she quickly handed Oogami her glass, "Here you go, Taichou. That's enough for you too, Lobelia! Let's go now!" The two of them then ran off.
"Oi oi!" Oogami stammered, wondering why they left it all to him. "Eeeh??!" Yoneda's angry yells soon filled the Gekijou. Oogami dropped everything and escaped.
When Yoneda got there, he saw the bottle on the floor and the split glasses, not to mention Sumire. "Chikuso... this girl..." he sighed, shaking his head at her. "Maa, better not let the drink go to waste." He then finished the rest of the bottle, steppping over the snoozing Sumire. "Yapadi! We really were saved!!"
Meanwhile, Kaede had snuck away from the festivities, walking home by herself. "Arigatou, Yuichi!" she chimed, sadly smiling at the starry sky, "My love forever..."
* * * * * * * *
Preview!
Erica: Standing on stage... the spotlight directly on me... my heart can't help but skip a beat. Will we be ready for opening night?
Sumire: A top star like me is not at all worried about the play! But surely, if we were to be attacked at a time like this...
Both: "Dreaming Awake" next time on Sakura Taisen. A storm of romance in Taisho cherry blossoms!
Erica: It must be truly wonderful...
