[FFML] [Mai Hime, Future] The Summer of Her Discontent--Something For Me

[John Biles]

Adjusted Crystal and Nagisa scene:

Crystal's Tale:

    After Aunt Akane beat us like a beating machine again, I went to go see
Nagisa, getting a bunch of funny looks from the guys at the junior high
dorm.  They're full of hormones and not used to girls built like me.

    If any of them try to photograph my panties, they will discover what my
shinai feels like.

    I didn't have to kill anyone; I think the sword scared them off.  Nagisa
came down and took me up to his room.  "What's up?" he asked.

    I told him about the guy, though not the full details.

    "Huh, I can't think of anyone like that," he said.  "Why would he wear
the uniform in the middle of the night?"

    "Damned if I know, but he claimed his mother was the old headmistress at
Fuuka."

    "I will see what I can find out for you about her," he said.  "I found a
picture for you off someone's high school nostalgia page," Nagisa continued.

    It was a picture of Mom dressed as a cowgirl, Aunt Natsuki in a nun
outfit, Aunt Yukino wearing a ballerina outfit, Aunt Mikoto as a
policewoman, Aunt Nao in a formal dress gown, Aunt Aoi in some sort of
'female Conan' outfit (pretty skimpy), and Aunt Chie in a biker outfit, all
of them holding microphones in some club.  They were joined by some women I
only vaguely recognized—Mandi, Hayao, and Sanae's mothers, I think, also in
costumes.

    He pointed to the woman who I think is Mandi's mother.  "Her website had
that.  But here's the killer," he said.

    He called up another file; it showed the place where the bridge stands
by Fuuka now, but with only a burnt out wreck.  High above the bay, you
could see ten streaks in the sky like meteors or comets heading for the
wreckage.

    I stared at it.  Hime in action!  Ten streaks.  But there are fifteen
princesses.  Thirteen then.  Maybe Aunt Alyssa was too young for her powers
yet.  So twelve.  But that's still two missing.  Did people get too hurt to
fight?  Quite possible.

    "Where did you find this?"

    "A place that archives other sites.  The site that had this apparently
got shut down fast after it went up, but they must not have realized it had
gotten archived.  Also..."

     It was a blurry attempt at a closeup of one of the sky streaks.  You
could make out Aunt Midori with a giant pink battle axe, riding some kind
of...

    "What the hell is this thing?" I asked.

    "Damned if I know," he replied.  "Some kind of weird armored thing
pulling two giant wheels or something.  It looks robotic to me."  He
shrugged.  "Might as well ask why she's wearing shorts with a jacket."

    "Who put them up?"

    "Anonymous person in some free webspace, way back in 2005," he said.
"It's been sitting forgotten on the archive place for decades."

    I got copies of them on my flash drive.  Then it hit me.  Nagisa didn't
know about the Namcub or the battle princesses or anything.  What did he
think this picture was?

    But I didn't know how to ask him about it.  He didn't seem too suprised
by it.  On the other hand, a bunch of people must have seen this.  What were
they off to fight?  What was going on here?  And why only ten?

    "So what do you think this is?"

    "I don't know," he confessed.  "It could be a prank of some kind, which
was then left to die once everyone got their laugh.  But the second photo
shows your cousin Suguira Dan's mother, right?"

    I nodded.

    "So I decided to show it to you.  Even if I don't know for sure what
this could mean."

    And I can't tell you.  But man, if one person could get pictures of
them...Unless everyone somehow forgot it all.

    This raises as many questions as it answers.

    "Anything else?"

    "Not yet," he said.  "Someone's tried to wipe out all evidence of what
happened there, but there are bits here and there.  I'll keep looking."

    "Thanks," I said.  "You've been a big help to me, Nagisa."

    He blushed a little.  "Glad to help, Crystal."

    I need to do something nice for him as a reward.  This will bear
thinking about.
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