Being caught in an awkward situation, and put on the spot, you burst out. It's a poignant rant that is supposed to shock and confuse. You go from being apologetic to lashing out in a moment.
"Oh not much: Tewi got a taste of her own medicine, literally, Eirin got the experimental data she needed and manages to extort me at the same time, Reisen passive-aggressively claims that not defending her chastity while in V-Fib is a moral failing, and I... I still don't have my fucking belt! Avalanches above, business continues below!" You turn and make a beeline directly out of there. All the while making sure to stomp your feet as loud as you can.
"Haha, what-?" Kaguya's perplexed voice trails as you begin storm out of the kitchen. Even though you're barely over your hangover, you feel like a stiff drink. You start to think about how to get one, seeing as you don't have any booze nor money.
You don't get very far however. The whole world spins around you. Followed by a loud thud.
"Oh, it seems that you tripped there Shirou. How careless of you!" Kaguya's voice now comes from directly besides you. "Help me make sure he's alright Reisen."
A couple of hands drag you and lean your torso up against the wall. You're not entirely sure about what just happened. "I tripped-?" Your voice sounds disconnected to even yourself. "On what?"
"Seeing how you got all worked up and needlessly excited with your persecution complex there, I'd be willing to bet you just tripped on your own." She tells you with no overt malice in her voice. "Isn't that right there Reisen?" She asks the bunny, whose been silent this whole time.
Reisen just nods, adding but a simple acknowledgement, "Yes."
"Now, I have a feeling here, that avoidance of the subject matter will only lead to increased bitterness. And seeing just how excitable you seem to be, I think it'd be better if you just came clean with everything." She gives you a bubbly, cheerful smile, "After all, you make it sound like there's some sort of conspiracy out to get you!"
You look at the two of them. Even if you wanted to get away, you don't think you could. They're effectively holding you in place, under the guise of helping you. You think about lying, but one look into Reisen's dulled expression makes you feel too guilty to lie in her face. Oh man, you feel like sighing, but that would just give away your frustration. You've squandered your opportunities to weasel out of this, and it's time to pay the price.
Telling anything but the whole unabridged truth is not an option here. Under the stern gaze from Reisen and the whimsical one from Kaguya, you try to recount things as best you can. Neither of them say a word while you speak, instead opting for something akin to poker faces. It makes you anxious to know what they're thinking. Almost to the point of slipping up.
"...and now I'm here." You conclude.
"I understand." Kaguya gets back up, signaling Reisen to do the same. "You wouldn't mind leaving us alone, would you?" She asks the other girl to leave.
"Not at all." She almost mumbles, leaving without a second glance.
Kaguya takes a few steps back, leaning against a counter. She's absolutely taciturn. Eventually this makes you uncomfortable enough to stand on your own. And after some more time, try to engage her.
"So..."
"Mmm?"
"What are you thinking about?" Damn, that came off as more timid than you wanted. It can't be helped.
"A lot of things."
"Any of them how mad you are at me?"
"I'm not upset." She tells you to your surprise. You're confused even further by her succeeding admission, "I'm not even sure I'm disappointed or anything."
"..."You abstain from saying anything. Despite her words, it feels like you're crossing a minefield with no map.
"I'll tell you something, though. This does show that you're easy to manipulate with wiles. It's a good thing that no one else here will probably try to do the same. I have a feeling that you'd jump on anyone who even alluded to the possibility of intimacy."
"...That's not really-?
the case, you meant to say, but Kaguya cuts you off.
"-Maybe I should hold you in line myself with those kind of promiscuous promises? It might be something worth considering, don't you agree?" She shows you an enigmatic look.
"Ah... well..."Even though you know she's kidding, you can't really make a follow-up comment. You try not to think of her as a woman, otherwise you'd have a hard time treating her as your buddy.
"Heavens above!" She exclaims. "I was joking, but you're already thinking of all sorts of implications, aren't you? This really explains how a seemingly rational person could be ensnared in a plot like that." She shakes her head, "There's no helping you, is there?"
"I'm sorry."
"Look. It doesn't make a single bit of difference if you're sorry or not. Truth be told, I'm not sure what to make out of all of this. I'll try to make sure you aren't baited any more, but you have to take care of yourself. You claimed to do things to call a bluff, but that just rings hollow. Intent is meaningless without results." She then sighs, "But well, I shouldn't be preaching this much, it's not my strength. I'm sure Eirin could put things clearer. I just want to say that if something happens to just you, that's fine, it's your responsibility, but you should be wary of hurting others."
This time you let out a sigh. While this isn't an apocalyptic one-sided attack on the part of the other residents here, it's still a bit of a downer. You tend to want to follow Kaguya's advice, a habit dating to the times you chatted on the net. Any perceived disappointment on her part translates to disappointment in yourself. She's being kind enough not to point out the obvious and directly attack you for your stupid decision, instead opting for a more general view.
"Listen," She stops leaning back on the counter, "I'll go speak with Eirin and see what's happening on her end; Hopefully I'll be able to prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future. I recommend you take it easy for today. Don't do anything that can lead to more trouble. I'll be around later if you want to do something together."
"Alright." You barely manage to get out as she leaves.
You walk back to your room, not sure if she's okay with everything or just hiding her anger. You think you know her well enough to assume that she's a bit upset but if she is, she's hiding it real well. You sit in your room, blankly staring at the ceiling. That is, until you remember that you've got your PDA. You fiddle around with it a bit, bringing up the application list.
[] Play ?Unending Afternoon? for a bit
[] Look up stuff on the encyclopedia (specify articles in vote)
[] Check out the ?IMPORTANT.JAR? applet again
[] Back to the real world
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>>13353 Anon has done worse things that would have been better at driving me away. It's mostly as
>>13356 says. Once my update cycle is broken I find myself busy with all other sorts of stuff. And in this case, I also spent time re-thinking and planing some stuff again.
>>13332 I'm sorry you feel that way. I value openess and transparancy between my readers and I, so you're welcome to state you opinion and I'll hopefully fix something if there's something wrong. However, before I start my usual long rant (and unavoidable insertion of semi-related ideas just to make the best of the opportunity) I'd like you to please point out the situations that you claim are epidemic. I happen to only be able to think up of only one situation where that's true (with Kaguya) and that was more than a characterization call than anything. I'll reply/ammend things as best I can.
