Infinite Stratos, Volume 1, page 11
Houki was emphasizing the word “me” again. That was a bit of an exaggeration, but we had gone over that already. It was all too important to her, for some reason.
“He’s the representative of Class A, and so someone from Class A will teach him. Besides, how dare you crawl out of the woodwork to display your shameless persona—”
“I’m not crawling out of the woodwork. I’ve known him for longer than you,” Rin interjected.
“Th-Then I’ve known him the longest! And Ichika ate with our family many times. That has to count for something!” cried Houki.
“He ate with my family too. Big deal.”
This was true. Rin’s family had a Chinese restaurant. Whenever Chifuyu had been home, I’d cooked for us, but back then she’d already become an IS pilot, so she returned home infrequently. It wasn’t really worth it to cook for myself. Usually, I just prepared some instant food when I was alone. But, you know, instant food tastes like ash and isn’t good for your health. At some point I decided to go to a restaurant nearby that offered daily specials, and it just so happened that Rin’s family restaurant was the cheapest. The food was really good, so I found myself going there four or five times a week. I ended up hanging out with Rin quite a lot back then. At first we didn’t really get along because of how her personality is, but it got a lot better as time went on.
—It was the same with Houki, wasn’t it? I never get along with them at first, huh? No doubt this was also my fault somehow. And Cecilia too, actually!
“I-Ichika! What’s going on?! You never told me about that!”
“Yes! You didn’t tell me either! Ichika, I request an adequate explanation!”
“An explanation, huh? We were friends and I went to her family’s restaurant to eat,” I said.
That was just the truth, but for some reason Rin now frowned. Houki and Cecilia, on the other hand, looked relieved.
“Wh-What? A restaurant?”
“Oh, I see. Well, eating at a restaurant is perfectly normal, isn’t it?”
All the other girls around us were going through the same phases of tension and relief. It was almost as if Chifuyu had passed by and put everyone on edge for a minute.
“Is your Pops doing well, Rin? The viruses are probably more scared of him than the other way around.”
“Oh... Yeah, he’s doing well... I think.”
Rin looked distant for a moment, and I could feel that something was wrong.
“A-Anyway, do you have time after school today? Surely you do. Let’s hang out. Remember that restaurant by the station?”
“Oh, they went under last year,” I replied.
“I-I see... W-We can grab something to eat in the cafeteria if you want. We’ve got a lot to talk about.”
—Do we? There’s not much, really.
I’d been studying a lot the previous year, so there wasn’t really anything to tell her.
“Sorry, but Ichika has to do IS training with me. He’s got no time after school,” Houki butted in.
—You don’t get to decide that, Houki.
Couldn’t I plan my own free time? They were just making fun of me now.
“Yes. We have the class league match coming up and he needs to train more. Did I mention I have a personal unit? You could say that I’m indispensable for the success of his training.”
Houki and Cecilia had mounted a desperate counterattack over my after-school training, and it looked like it was working out. Thrown under the bus, at the expense of my free time. I was grateful for the help, but, you know, people want certain procedures to be observed. I wanted them to at least ask me before deciding these things. Life was a sequence of polite rituals, after all.
“Okay, I’ll be there when that’s over. Make sure you got time. Bye, Ichika!”
Rin drained the last bit of ramen broth and disappeared without waiting for an answer from me. She didn’t come back, either. I saw her leave the cafeteria.
—Now I’ll have to wait for her, huh? She didn’t even let me reply...
“Ichika, your training takes priority.”
“Ichika, don’t forget that you will be taking up our highly valuable time as well.”
I couldn’t turn down either of those two either. I was eternally suffering.
—Sigh...
◇
“Huh?”
We were in the third arena, after school. I was supposed to spar with Cecilia there, but an unexpected newcomer surprised me.
“Wh-Why are you looking at me like that? Is this weird?”
“I wouldn’t say it’s weird, but...”
“Shinonono?! Wh-Why are you here?”
Yes. Houki was standing in front of me and Cecilia. What’s more, she was deployed in the IS unit, Uchigane. Uchigane was a well-regarded, domestically mass-produced second-generation IS unit. It had a balanced performance ratio, which made it well-suited to new pilots. A lot of companies and countries used the model, and it was the most common training unit at the IS Academy, or so the textbook said.
“Ichika asked me to train him, right?”
—Uh, sure... I guess...
“Besides, he’s not getting enough close-combat experience. It’s my turn to spar.”
Uchigane’s design looked much like a samurai in armor, and its baseline weapons were katana-shaped close-combat blades. It really fit Houki, and reminded me of movies like The Last Samurai.
“Hrmm.”
Whoops. I was being glared at.
“Tch... Who would have thought the school would hand out training unit permits so easily...”
Cecilia looked weirdly upset. It made no sense to me.
“Ichika. Let’s start. Draw your sword.”
“O-Okay...”
She looked motivated. Houki already had her sword out. It had a dull metal color, with a sharp glimmer across the blade. I wouldn’t say it freaked me out, but I was feeling a little nervous.
“Okay... En garde!” Houki yelled.
“Wait! I, Cecilia Alcott, am supposed to be fighting Ichika!”
Before we could duel, Cecilia went between me and Houki.
“Out of the way! I will cut you down!” exclaimed Houki.
“Don’t think a training unit can beat me!”
Houki made a diagonal cut downwards from the shoulder. Cecilia had brought out her shortsword, Interceptor, and blocked Houki’s strike. She used the force of the impact to gain distance and pulled the trigger of her Starlight Mk. III with one hand. They were really fighting.
—What about my practice...
“HAH!”
“Too easy!”
I decided to wait for a result. They both looked positively vicious, and I wasn’t going to get myself hit by trying to intervene.
“Ichika!”
“Why are you just watching this?!”
“Uh... It doesn’t matter who I side with, the other is going to be angry, right?”
“OF COURSE!” they said in unison.
Then what were they expecting me to do? And it was really weird how Houki and Cecilia had the same opinion sometimes. I really wanted to know what was going on. Apparently my prolonged silence wasn’t going down too well, either. A few minutes later I was deeply embroiled in a battle against two IS units. It was enough to give me PTSD. These two were out to get me.
◇
“Well then, let us end it here for the day.”
“S-Sure...”
I was totally out of breath, but Cecilia looked relaxed. National Cadets were just on another level. She had the advantage in experience.
“Hmph. You’re out of shape.”
Houki looked a little exhausted, but not nearly as worn out as I was. I mean, they’d ganged up on me, really. Goddamn fiends.
I looked at the thin layer of sweat on Houki’s skin. It was strangely appealing to see her like that, and my heart beat a little faster. Just a little, though. Like a really tiny bit faster.
“What are you doing? Go back into the pit.”
“O-Okay... Hey, Houki. Why are you following me?”
“I have to go back into the pit, too.”
“But Cecilia went over there to—”
“D-Does it matter which pit I take?”
I guess not. She could have just gone to Cecilia, though. I decided to ignore this weird exchange and headed into the building.
“Hm...”
We dissolved our IS units. I immediately felt much more exhausted because the IS was no longer supporting my body. Houki also dissolved her unit and readjusted her hair, which glistened with sweat.
“Too much of what you do is pointless. That’s what why you’re so exhausted. You have to use less complex movements.”
That was the first thing she said down in the pit. I almost cried at the kindness my childhood friend was showing me.
—At least hand me a towel or something, Houki. Come on.
Cecilia had gone into the opposite pit, so I was alone with Houki now. All I wanted to do was take a shower. The closest shower rooms were in the club building, but that was just opposite of the dorms, so there was no point in going there. And again, there were no shower rooms for boys, so I’d have to use the same one as the girls. I didn’t mind seeing their underwear, but seeing them being naked would have been a different matter. I really didn’t want to go there. It just seemed like it would give rise to all sorts of problems. And even if I tried to do it, I was pretty sure Chifuyu or Houki would execute me on the spot. I figured now I’d have to add Cecilia to my mental list of possible murderers; her name was glowing since it was a recent entry.
“Houki, can I ask you something...”
“What is it?”
“Can you let me use the shower first today? Erm, besides, what about the kendo club? If you practice with me every day the other girls will beat you eventually.”
“Y-You don’t have to worry about that. Girls are about to beat me at a lot of other things.”
“Uh... Like what?”
“F-Forget it!”
I was just trying to be polite, but apparently I had struck a nerve. I decided to ignore it.
“So, about the shower...”
“Ichika!”
Rin pulled the sliding door open and walked inside.
“Good job. Here’s a towel. You okay with a sports drink?”
Wow, bless the heavens. Childhood friends were kind beings after all. I was on the verge of tears.
“Thanks. Man, that hit the spot.”
I didn’t like the feeling of sweat on my face. Being able to wipe that off and rehydrate felt incredible. Normally those sports drinks had too much sugar for my tastes, but after exerting myself so much, it felt perfect. Sugar was high-energy, after all. The drink was room temperature, which was also how I liked it. After a workout, your body was still very warm, so having a cold liquid pour into you always felt like suicide to me. A lukewarm drink was the way to go. Cold drinks could be more refreshing sometimes, but I didn’t want to damage my body in the name of short-lived refreshment.
“You haven’t changed, Ichika. You worry about your body like you’re a senior citizen.”
“Hey, you gotta start being careful while you’re young. If the body can’t last, you’re done. You’re the one who suffers first if you wreck your body.”
“Yeah, you sure sound like an old man.”
“Shut up.”
Rin looked at me the way someone looks at something they understand perfectly. It unsettled me a little. I didn’t want someone to see straight into my soul.
—Hm, was she always this cute?
The last time I’d seen her had been in the winter of eighth grade. That was only a year ago, but somehow she’d picked up something that made her seem more feminine to me. It was that something you could only find in girls that stirred the man within you.
“Ichika, did you feel lonely without me?”
“Sure. It’s always sad if you lose someone to hang out with.”
“That’s not what I mean,” she said, smiling.
Rin was in a good mood and went on without pause. Looking at her now reminded me of the time she’d sold me tickets to some weird movie.
—Wait a sec. Is she trying to pawn something off on me again?
I had to be careful. Fool me once, shame on you, but now was the second time.
“Rin.”
“Yeah?”
“I’m not buying it.”
Rin’s features dropped. Had I guessed wrong?
“Look... You’re reunited with your long-lost childhood friend! I’m sure there’s something you want to say.”
—Oh, okay... Uhh... Nope, not really.
“Like, for example...”
“Ahem! Ahem!”
Houki coughed so audibly it interrupted Rin, then she began to talk as though all that hadn’t mattered to her.
“Ichika, I’m going ahead. You can use the shower first if you want.”
“Oh, thanks.”
“See you later, Ichika.”
The way she said that had been a bit weird. My imagination was playing a lot of tricks on me lately, far too many times.
“Ichika, what did she mean?”
Houki had left the pit. Rin’s good mood had dissipated. She forced herself to make an awkward smile, but I knew she was in a bad mood. Her voice was also about two octaves lower.
“Hm? Oh, normally Houki gets the shower first, but I’m pretty sweaty today so I figured I’d ask her to swa—”
“Th-Th-The shower?! Normally?! I-Ichika, what are you two?!” Rin cried.
“Uh, I told you that before. Childhood friends.”
“Wh-Wh-What does that have to do with the turns you take showering?!”
Oh. Right. I’d never explained that.
“Houki and I got assigned the same room.”
“What...?”
“Uh, there were a lot of weird things going on when I enrolled. They couldn’t give me a different room, so now me and Houki have one.”
“Y-You’re sleeping in the same room as her?”
“Yeah, that’s how it happened. I’m happy it ended up being Houki. If they’d put me in a room with some random girl, that would’ve made me a lot more nervous.”
“.........”
“What’s wrong?”
“This is horrible...” Rin muttered.
“Huh?”
I didn’t quite catch what Rin had said, so I tried to listen closely, but she’d turned away. I couldn’t see her face, either.
“And that’s why you’re okay with it?! Because she’s your childhood friend?!”
“Whoa!”
She’d suddenly swung her head around and almost hit it against mine. It was really close.
“Fine. All right. Yes, yes, I get it now!”
Rin nodded a few times. I had no idea what she’d just come to accept. So many mysteries.
“Ichika!”
“Yes, hello?”
“You have two childhood friends! Don’t forget that!”
“I know that, but thanks...”
“See you later, then!”
Rin spun around and disappeared. Maybe “see you later” should be named sentence of the year, and we were only in April. Wait, didn’t Rin want to talk about the past or something?
—You know, Rin. Not doing something when you say you will hurts the trust others have in you.
“Hmm....”
I couldn’t get a hang of girls, much less my childhood friends.
◇
“There you have it! Change rooms with me!”
“G-Get lost! Why would I do that?!”
It was some time past eight in the dorms. After dinner, I was in my room making tea and trying to relax, when Rin came barging in. Those two were getting off to a really bad start.
“Hey, I’m sure you don’t wanna live together with a boy, Shinonono. You have to be mindful of him all the time. You just can’t relax! But I don’t mind all that, so I just thought we’d switch.”
“I-I didn’t say I don’t want to live with him. Besides, this is between me and Ichika! This is none of your business!”
“Hey, don’t worry. I’m a childhood friend, too.”
“Why does that matter?!”
They fought like that for a while. Neither was really listening to the other. Rin was just being herself, and only focused on what she was trying to do, and Houki was being herself, and was very stubborn. There was no way the discussion was going to have a happy ending. Even in the 21st century, humans were the same as always. How philosophical. Either way, unless my eyes were starting to go bad, it looked like Rin had already brought all her luggage over, but surely that wasn’t the case.
“Rin.”
“Yeah?”
“Is that all your luggage?”
“Yeah. I just need a big travel bag and I’m good to go.”
She’d always been pretty ascetic about things like this. Houki didn’t need a lot of luggage either, for a girl at least, but Rin just didn’t need much of anything at all. Back in the day, I joked once that she was always ready to run away from home, but that didn’t go over too well with her.
By the way, Cecilia invited me to her room once, and it looked like some high-end hotel. The bed, the mirror, the chairs, the table; everything was custom-made for her. She’d even brought in new tapestry and lights. That freaked me out, to be honest. It’d been the first time I’d seen a canopy bed, too. I felt really sorry for the girl who had to share the room with her. It looked like Cecilia had basically annexed the entire room. Let’s live a bit more modestly, Ms. British National Cadet.
“Anyway, I’m gonna live here too, starting tomorrow.”
“L-Like hell you will! Get out! This is my room!”
“It’s also Ichika’s room, right? What’s the problem?”
Rin looked at me, hoping for a yes. Houki also looked at me— more like stared— hoping for support in kicking Rin back out.
“Don’t make this about me.”
My head hurt. I needed medicine, with kindness as the ingredient.
“Anyway! We’re not swapping rooms! So get out, and go back to yours!”
“By the way, Ichika. Do you remember our promise?” Rin chimed in.
“D-Don’t ignore me! Fine, I’ll just have to use force.”
Houki was getting angry, and went over to her bed to retrieve her bamboo sword.
