Werewolf - Chapter 6

Hiyori: Jun-kun! Aren't you so glad we got to see that just now?

Jun: You mean the cat sittin' all cozily out in the courtyard, right? Yeah.

It was real cute... though it ran away when I tried to pet it. Wonder if it got lost and wandered in?

Hiyori: If it was a lost cat I would have loved to welcome it into my home...

But I can't do something as irresponsible as that, what with all the unpredictable travelling we do for work.

And besides, we can't have our Bloody Mary getting jealous, of course!

Natsume: ....

Hiyori: Hm? If it isn't Natsume-kun! Right as I was thinking I could feel some despair in the air!

Jun: Oh, you're right. Heya~

Hiyori: What's the matter? You shouldn’t be spreading gloomy vibes all over the place, you know? They'll just infect everyone around you, you see.

And I was in such a good mood, too! What a foul weather!

Natsume: I’m in an extremely bad mood right NOW. Leave me ALONE.

Jun: Hmm. Well then, wanna play some game again? Pick something fun and maybe your mood'll clear up a bit, whether you win or lose.

If you'd like, I can let you win, too? You could even pick something you're a pro at if you want — wouldn't bother me.

Natsume: I'm not in the MOOD. I won't feel like playing games for as long as I have all these worries weighing on my MIND, you KNOW.

Hiyori: Oh, that’s no good now, is it? If there's something troubling you, you should come have a heart-to-heart with me! How fortunate you are, to be blessed with advice from me of all people ☆

Natsume: ...Are you joKING? No way. You're not the least bit reliaBLE.

I don't approve of you inserting yourself into other people's affairs in the first PLACE. We call that "meddling," you KNOW?

Hiyori: Heheh. Tweak the meaning slightly and even meddling can turn right into care!

Everyone would be so much happier if they'd look instead at the bright side of life ♪

Not to mention, I'm always the one who soothes Jun-kun's woes. So knowing that, you should just kick back, relax, and tell me everything!

Jun: You're usually the source of my woes to begin with, Ohii-san.

Hiyori: Feeling bashful, are we, Jun-kun? You're so cute when you are ☆

Jun: Bashful's the last thing I am, actually....

Natsume: HonestLY. I don't understand how you can stay so needlessly optimisTIC, Tomoe-senpai.

Hiyori: Yes, yes. You see, this is what you'd call an adult's composure. I'm on a different level entirely when it comes to experience — after all, I'm basically your senior in life!

Jun: Well, putting Ohii-san and his advice aside...

If you're at your wit's end over something, Sakasaki-san, it might help to ask around for opinions, y'know~?

In times like these, you could totally have some kinda breakthrough just by looking at it from a different angle.

Natsume: A breakTHROUGH…?

(It is true that asking Sora hasn't gotten me anyWHERE, and I don’t even have an inkling of what the problem is in the first plaCE. I'm well and truly STUMPED.

Hrmm… These two were with me when Sora started acting strangeLY, so perhaps they might know someTHING...)

But it literalLY, physically pains me to rely on the two of THEM...

Jun: Sakasaki-saaan? You kinda said that out loud, y'knooow~? Please keep stuff like that to yourself.

Natsume: I'm sooo sorRY. That was on purPOSE ♪

Jun: Man, both you and Ohii-san are such pleasant people, huh.

Natsume: But it's exactly as you SAY. I feel completely and utterly STUMPED.

You SEE, it's because of Sora that I'm so glooMY.

We met him in the kitchen some time ago, RIGHT?

Jun: Yeah. We did, now that you mention it~

Natsume: Since THEN, Sora's been acting oddLY. He's been aloof for some reaSON.

As you might exPECT, it's worrying ME. He ran away in the blink of an eye when I went to visit his room just NOW.

Hiyori: Hmm~ Are you sure it's not because of you, Natsume-kun?

Like maybe you said or did something to upset him. That's my deduction, anyway!

Natsume: I'm sure it isN'T. Sora only acts like this at the dorms; he's his usual self when we're doing WORK.

He's not the kind of person who does a total 180 between his public and private life eiTHER.

If I'd really done or said something to HIM, then it'd be strange for his attitude to change only based on where we ARE.

Jun: Mmm... It does sound like a real mystery...

We're not gonna find any answers standing around thinking about it, so why not just straight-up ask Harukawa-kun why he ran away that time?

Natsume: Absolutely NOT.

Jun: You're practically pulling your hair out over this, so why not? Isn't hearing it straight from him the quickest way to get a guaranteed answer?

Natsume: I certainly could force him to tell me exactly what's going ON...

But that wouldn't be FAIR. Sora doesn't belong to ME. He's his own perSON.

If he doesn't want to talk to ME, then I'm not going to corner HIM.

Hiyori: Ah-ha~ ♪ I can see right through you. You're trying to put up a front, aren't you! You don't want to let your adoring junior see you looking lame in the slightest, correct?

Natsume: God, you're so annoYING...

AnyWAY, that's THAT. If Sora's decided he's not going to talk to me about IT, I'm not going to make him, BUT...

If I could just figure out what's going ON, then I might be able to do something about IT.

You two saw him that day too, didn't YOU? Did you notice anything OFF? Anything's better than noTHING… I'm not expecting that much from you, anYWAY.

Jun: Easier said than done.... Nothing really happened that day, right? I can't think of anything that could've been—

Hiyori: Heh heh heh.... Interesting.... Reaaally interesting!

Natsume: What? Did you figure something OUT, Tomoe-senpai?

Hiyori: Nope, not in the slightest! But I do believe Sora-kun's hiding some sort of important secret!

This is truly worthy of some super sleuthing! As the great detective that I am, you should just leave it to me, Natsume-kun!

In the name of my dear old grandfather, I'll solve this mystery for everyone! After all, only a single truth prevails ♪ ¹

Natsume: ...Just what is he so obsessed with this TIME?

Jun: The detective mangas I've been lending him, I'm guessing?

Ohii-san, I'm just saying but you got things a little wrong, y'know?

Natsume: (sighs) I feel like reaching back into the past and punching myself for even trying to talk with THEM...