Hello Everyone~~
Thanks for your feedback on Sae's next pairings...so here we are, with a new fic with my two oshi's Sae and Nana! The pairings for Sae will be quite complicated because Rena, Mako and Milky were all suggested, so why not write on ALL of them?!
Sorry I can't fit in other suggestions like Acchan or Jurina, maybe next time in some other OS's
Anyway, here is
Chapter 1.
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Chapter 1 - New Kids on the Block"All of you, hands up!" Two men disguised in masks pulled out their guns and pointed at the stunned curator who, a minute ago, was just chatting casually with the only two other visitors at the Uchida Foundation Gallery.
The gallery is housed in a modest Victorian style cottage, bizarrely sandwiched between the large suburban mall standing at the gateway of the Mitsuki Municipality and the 70's style government administration quarters. Usually ignored by passer by's, this gallery has actually curated a collection of rare artefacts, so it shouldn't come as a surprise that someone is robbing it.
Peeking from the front glass pane, a lean, tall girl tightens her fists. Her eyes light up with excitement, a reaction contrary to what someone who has just stumbled upon a robbery would make. Especially not from someone who looks skinny, pale and shy in her short skirt, worn out tracksuit jacket, and bitten fingernails. The girl is about to ram into the entrance when she felt a tug from behind.
"No, Rena, we should leave." A calm voice commands in a monotonous tone.
"But there are people inside!" The girl looks back at her companion, a shorter, younger girl that with straight, tidy bangs, who looks unmoved by Rena's passionate plea.
"One woman is crouching at the seven o'clock corner, and two others at two o'clock, with the centre of action occurring in a thirty-meter radius. To over power two Glock 22 guns, you will have a 98% probability of being seen, and 60% probability of getting hurt." The shorter girl is already eyeing for a way out as she speaks.
"Geez Nana, I just can't stand here and do nothing, stop being so heartless..." Rena reluctantly follows the girl, who has already started walking.
"It is just illogical. Fatality rates of gun robberies are 0.5%. They will be fine." Nana answers and looks at her friend seriously. "We came here to find out how to get home. We should lay low and focus on our tasks."
"OK, fine...." Rena looks worriedly back at the robbers, who've retrieved two paintings and looks set to leave. She boarded the van they have rented to move their stuff, and drove on into the town.
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*one month later, in Don Quixote High School
"Naaaaaanya!" A cheerful voice rang in the hallway.
A girl who is busy counting the books in her hands stops on her tracks and turns around, just in time for a pair of arms to fling around her.
"Miki-chan!" Naanya exclaims happily. "How've you been? I haven't seen you for so long!"
"I'm genki genki, mori mori!" Miki releases her friend and spins around, flaring her navy blue uniform skirt like a ballerina. "See? I am in amazzzzing shape!"
"Haha," Naanya laughs and looks considerably relieved. With a slight hesitation, she assumes a more somber look, "I...you don't have to push yourself to be cheerful in front of me..."
Miki's smile finally softens at Naanya's remarks. She knows that her friend is referring to the tragedy of her dad's recent death.
"There's...there's no point to sulk all day. I know Papa will not want to see me like that. Besides, Sae-chan has transferred back and we'll live together from now on!"
"Sae-neechan?" Naanya's eyes lights up at the thought of seeing Miki's older sister. They are both energetic and fun to be with, not to mention how cool and ikemen she looks. "I remember how you bawled your eyes out when she moved away last year. Such a dependent little sis..." Naanya playfully makes a disgusting look.
"Says someone who cried for a whole week and refused to leave neechan's empty room!" Naanya had grown up with Miki and they were best friends since elementary school. She always stayed over at Miki's place, which is how she got to know Sae as well. To say the truth, she felt extremely stricken by Miki's father's accident, but she has determined to be strong for Miki, putting up a cheerful face so that they can both start high school life happily together.
"Ah....here it is, our classroom." Naanya leads Miki's hand and walks in to class 1-A, where they met some familiar faces from junior high. After all, the town in the outskirts of Tokyo is not that big, so it isn't entirely difficult for them to settle in.
The homeroom teacher came in and introduced himself. Unfortunately, Naanya and Miki's seats are randomly assigned to two different corners of the room, one in the right front corner and the other at the left back. Miki looks longingly at her friend, while staring at her neighbouring seat, which is still empty.
"Sir!!" Miki raises her hand up energetically and stood up, jumping up and down to get the teacher's attention. A few giggles can be heard by classmates who are new and not used to this hyper-energy, but for the others who have been with her since junior high, they simply smile knowingly.
"Why don't I have a neighbour?" She continues to ask before the teacher had a chance to speak.
"Nishino-kun, you should learn to have some patience. Please sit down." He clears his throat and continues, "I would like to introduce to you all, a transfer student who's not from Mitsuki or the Tokyo area. Please welcome her and help her out in any way you can."
The door slides open with everyone's eyes fixed on the new transfer, who glides into the room gracefully like an ojousama.
"Nice to meet you all," Nana said with an almost undetected smile. "My name is Okada Nana. I am from Nagoya..." She pauses and said in an unexcited tone, "Please take care of me."
The classmates are all awestruck with her beauty and composure. Her jet black hair is tidily combed. Not a trace of crease can be found on her white uniform blouse, neatly tugged in her pleated navy blue skirt. The neck tie is in a perfect triangular and symmetrical shape, and so are her knee high socks and squeaky clean indoor shoes.
"Please sit there, next to Nishino-san, who is earnestly waiting for her neighbour."
The girl whose name is mentioned can't believe how much she's blushing as Okada approaches the desk, unaware of the effect she has on her, and everyone else in the room. She sat down calmly without noticing the silly smile on Miki's face.
She's so beautiful!! Nishino thought...
"Ano..."
"Nishino-san?" Okada turn and faces directly at Nishino, who is taken aback by the straight forwardness and looks away shyly. Meanwhile, Naanya's eyes narrow in curiosity, wondering why the two words, 'shyness' and 'Nishino,' will suddenly appear together in one sentence...
"I..em...I...you are new here, right...ha...haha" Miki starts speaking awkwardly.
"This is a redundant statement." Okada answered. Upon hearing something so abrupt in the type of small talk like this, Miki glances up at her immediately. However, there doesn't seem to be any malice in her look. She's just stating it as a fact.
"Hahahaha!!" Miki laughs at this socially awkward creature in front of her. "Naaaachan, you shouldn't say that to people you've just met."
"I am Okada Nana, not Naachan." She pauses after she corrects the girl, who reaches out and pats her head, amused at her reaction. However, Okada continues, "If that is how you plan to call me afterwards, I will take note of it."
Miki gaped and slowly nods at the girl, wondering whether she is a robot or just an emotionless nerdy girl.
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While her friend is enjoying the first day of high school, Rena herself has also found her way to the college campus. There seems to be quite a few strange looks from people passing by, not used to the yankee way she dresses.
The first class is a calculus lecture, and Rena enters, sitting down on an empty seat without thinking too much. However, she notices how some students beside her just moved away upon seeing her. She shrugs and tries to look at them for more clues, but they simply averted their gazes.
"Why is everyone scared of me..." She mumbles as she recalls how she's shunned in high school as well for the naturally dark aura she has. "I'm really friendly, yo..."
The lecture started and Rena felt someone snuck in and sat right beside her. A girl with short, messy hair, who looks like she's just woken up, turns her head sideways to look at who is staring at her so intensely.
Perhaps Rena didn't notice this, but she looks oddly focussed, fixing her sights on a stranger who just sat down beside her. Normally, this will be the time when the stranger or acquaintance feels uncomfortable, and Rena would never understand what she's done to scare them away, but this time, the girl smiles back.
"Good morning.... My name is Sae, Nishino Sae desu! What's your name?" The smile on her weary face seems weak, but it cannot hide the sincerity in her voice. Meanwhile, the girl called Sae is strangely amused by the psychotic look on Rena's face. She does look creepy, but she also has a pretty face, and for a reason she cannot pinpoint, she feels attracted to her round, fiery eyes, instead of threatened by this intense gaze.
"Rena, Matsui Rena!!!" The girl spreads a huge smile on her face, glad that someone is finally talking to her. Her voice was so loud that it interrupts the lecture.
Scratching her head embarrassingly, Sae looks to the front, with a dozen of faces staring at them in confusion.
"Please carry on...heh heh..." She gestures the class to continue and tugged on Rena's sleeve, whispering, "we better keep quiet, but it's nice meeting you."
Rena smiles back and nods furiously. She can't contain her excitement that someone can be so nice and friendly to her. She's just staring at the lecturer, pretending to listen while she steals glances at the girl, who's now taking notes, sometimes biting her pencil, sometimes scratching her head. All these little gestures suddenly look so cute in her eyes.
"Who can solve this problem?" The lecturer looks around, pointing to a sample problem on the blackboard.
"How about you, the girl there who came in late?" Sae gulped and looks at the lecturer, slowly raising a finger to point at herself.
"Yes, you."
Sae sighs and stood up, walking down to the auditorium. She starts scribbling some steps on the blackboard, but got stuck in the middle.
"Iiiya..." Sae curses to herself and wonders why she's being picked on like a high school kid in the first lecture of the year.
"There's a minus sign missing!!" Rena's voice rang through the hall, as she stood up and slams her hands on the table, excited that she's found out the answer and can help her new friend out. However, there's a bigger problem. A huge crack splits the table into half and everyone looks stunned at the girl's outburst...and her inhuman strength.
"Shit..." Rena whispers as she looks at the fallen piece of furniture in front of her.
An eerie silence falls upon the whole hall and all eyes are locked onto this yankee looking girl.
"Aaa...ano, Rena-chan, that' s...that's why I told you we should move to another seat just now! Heh.." Sae took the chalk and corrected the mistake that nobody cares about now on the blackboard. "You see guys, the table is already broken when I came in, so that's why we're...er....talking about it just now...." She looks back at the lecturer, who doesn't look convinced but decided to stop this awkward moment as well.
"Yep...well students, be careful with our desks...they ARE getting old. Anyway, the problem is indeed solved by changing the sign here...."
The class's attention quickly focussed back to the blackboard and barely anyone remembered the broken desk by the time the lecture ended.
"Sa...Sae-san!" Rena followed after the girl to the open quad outside the lecture building.
"Renachan, thanks for helping me out just now." Sae looks at her and smile. "What other classes are you taking?"
"I...I thought you'd be scared of what I did just now..." Rena looks worriedly at her new friend. "Thanks for covering up, by the way."
Sae takes a deep sigh and smile. "To be honest, it shocked me too....that a skinny girl like you is soooo strong, but...you look like a cool person to me. Let's be friends, okay?" She extends her hand forward, and flashes a cool smile.
"Sae-san..." Rena looks into the girl's eyes and blushes without herself knowing it. Sae's eyes are so bright and warm...and, and she's not scared of me? She clutches her chest suddenly as she felt her heartbeat quickens.
"Eh??" Sae rushes forward and grabs hold of the girl's shoulders. "Are you okay, Rena-chan?"
"I...I am fine..." She nods weakly and looks down. Rena herself is confused by how her body reacts. What's going on? Why does it feel so nauseating just by looking at her? I'm...I'm about to explode!
"Let me call the campus medics..." Sae is not convinced by the flustered look on Rena's face. She reaches for her backpack to get the phone.
"Ah...here it is..." However, when she looks up, she feels a puff of wind on her face, but Rena is nowhere to be seen.
"EH?" Sae looks around frantically, but she can't even see a trace of the black tracksuit girl. Everyone else seems to be going on with their lives, walking, chatting and passing by her normally.
"Is this....a dream?" She scratches the back of her neck and wonders again.
"What dream?" Two hands land heavily on her shoulders behind her.
"WooooW!" The scared Sae jumps and look around, finding non other than her good friend, Kojima Mako.
"Sae-chan!" She smiles happily at her, a dimple showing on her cute face.
"You scared me, Makochan!" Sae protested with puffed cheeks.
"What happened to you today..." The girl in high ponytail frowns at Sae's genuinely shocked face. "You're usually unfazed by stuff like this. Don't tell me...that you haven't slept last night?"
"I...I couldn't....I couldn't stop thinking about that case..."
"Then don't close it." Mako looks serious for the first time. "Sae-chan, I have been thinking after last night...we should continue 'Nishino Magic Detective Agency'."
"What...no...no way!" Sae smiles bitterly and shakes her head. "Dad worked there full time. The only choice we have now is to close it down and carry on with our lives. I have college, I have Miki...and I have bills to pay."
"Which is all the more reason to continue, right? Clearly, he must be on with something big too...Don't you want to carry on and finish what he's started?" Mako is referring to the file they found, when they're cleaning out the detective office last night.
The file was not in the regular cabinet. It's found tugged beneath a smaller cabinet under his desk. They stumbled upon it only because Mako was trying to retrieve a hair clip that fell between the cracks. Moving it away with Sae's help, they found this file hidden at the bottom. It couldn't be some lost file, because it looked very new, and it looked purposely hidden by the neat position it was placed. Opening it, they weren't greeted with a lot of details though. A photo of a girl, with the name 'Watanabe Miyuki' scribbled on the back hastily by pencil, as well as a small plastic ziplock containing a corner of a piece of cloth with yellow powder stained on it.
"Watanabe Miyuki..." Sae mumbles the name of the strange girl on that photo. She looks their age-- an ordinary cute looking girl, with slightly curled, black hair, wearing an innocent smile on her face. The photo is a candid shot of her walking somewhere against a nondescript background, showing only the upper half of her body. She can't even decide whether she's a client, a suspect or some kind of witness in the case. However, Sae knows that her face has imprinted in her mind, and she'll never be able to get the case off her head.
"I did a quick check on the directory today after my photography session," Mako said as she pulled a piece of paper out. "Look, she's a freshman here too."
"Wow, Mako... you really do make a good detective." Sae looks at her friend in wonder. "And...thanks for sticking by all this time." The weary smile on Sae's face touches Mako.
"Nonsense..." She scold her gently and takes her into her arms, giving her a tight hug. "I am your best friend, Sae. Please rely on me when you need to."
Sae nuzzles in Mako's neck and relaxes. It has been three weeks since she moved back from Tokyo. She left her hometown last year to go to college, but after the sudden death of her father, she transferred back in order to take care of everything, including his only family member left, Miki. These three weeks have been a hectic time, with many arrangements on the funeral, questions by the police, and a hint of mystery shrouding his dad's shooting. He was at the mall with other people, but when the criminals robbing a neighbouring art gallery barged in in their escape and asked everyone to duck, he alone stood in a zombie-like state, ignoring their commands. One robber freaked out and shot him. It was a very untimely death. A stupid reason to die...Why...why didn't he react to them? Yet Sae had no time to think really. Three weeks passed by in a blink of the eye, and now, the school year has started as well, with the empty detective agency waiting for her last arrangements to be closed down.
Mako continues to pat on her friend's back gently. She is a year younger than her, but they have been close friends for a few years now. She still remembers her first day in high school, bumping into the basketball star on her way to class. She caught her in her arms and smiled at her, walking her to the classroom in fear that she'd get lost. And since then, she couldn't forget that moment with Sae. At that time, she felt so unreachable to Mako-- a popular ikemen sophomore surrounded by cute admirers, while she's just an ordinary freshman with average looks and talent. However, with a great stroke of luck, they got to know each other through Naanya, her adopted sister. It turned out that her good friend, Miki-chan, is Sae's little sister! Through them, they became closer, and Sae helped her out all the time, even encouraging her to take up tennis and photography. When news that Sae's moving out of town to go to college came through to her, she felt her heart poked by a million little needles. That's when she realised that she's already fallen in love with her. Sae's back...she's really back...but I, what can I do about this? Mako wonders as she strokes Sae's hair tenderly.
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*two weeks later
"Ah~~ I heard that Sakuratan is back to school!" Miki clings onto Naanya's hand excitingly as they walk up to the roof to have lunch. They found a key to the locked roof one day by accident in an old gym storage, and it has become their secret paradise since.
"Really? I feel so relieved! So many girls are disappearing lately..." Naanya opens her lunch box and smiles happily as she sees a cream bun inside, packed by Mako secretly without their parents knowing.
"Yes, it's creepy isn't it? But they always returned unscratched. Sometimes, only a necklace, a hair band, or a ring is reported missing. I wonder what his motives are..."
"The kidnapper? Yeah..but the scary part is, the girls themselves do not remember anything while they were gone. They claimed to have just...a weird dream, and didn't notice the time that's passed by at all. No one ever saw them kidnapped or returned! It all sounds...scary."
The girls carried on with their lunch as they chatted. The sky is bluer than ever and Miki's heart feel light today. For the two weeks, the only thing that bothers her at school is Okada Nana. She barely talks to her, or anyone. She refused when Miki invited her to lunch, activities, or just to walk home together. But she can't say she's cold towards her. In fact, it might sound strange to say this, but she feels that if there's ever anyone Okada takes an interest in, it's her, Nishino Miki. It seems that even Naanya feels this way too.
"Speaking of biology lab, I saw Okada Nana peeking at you today." Naanya winks.
"No, she didn't. It couldn't possibly be, she barely answers me when I talk to her." Miki explains but is secretly happy about what she's heard.
"She's definitely interested in you..." Naanya reasons, tapping her chin with her finger. "See, yesterday, I saw her staring at you in the cafeteria, and looked away when I found out. Why is she stalking you if she doesn't like you?"
Miki jumps up from the bench and skips to the edge of the wall, refusing to hear Naanya out in a fit of embarrassment. Looking down to the quiet garden, there's almost not a soul in sight as most people are still in the cafeteria, enjoying themselves. But there, coming out from the building alone, is none other than Nana, holding a book in her hand. Miki leans forward and tries to get a glimpse at where she's going.
"What are you looking at!" Naanya just finished her bun and rushed towards the girl, slapping her arm on her back.
"WO---AHHH!" Miki's back has leaned so much forward that Naanya's slap caused her to lose her balance, and she trips. At the same time, the shout catches Nana's attention, and to her horror, she sees a figure stumble all the way down the roof, landing on the grass in a loud thump.
"Miki!" Naanya exclaims as she found her hands grasping onto thin air while she tried to stop Miki from falling. The girl is laying flat seven stories below her, gazing at Naanya in dazed eyes. Blood starts to seep from the corner of her mouth.
Nana reaches Miki's side and found the gasping girl spitting out blood.
"Miki..." The stunned girl crouches and props her body up in her arms. She coughs and winces at the movement. "Miki...look at me...look at me!"
This is the first time that Miki heard any emotions from her neighbour's voice. However, she feels too dizzy to react. Every inch of her body is shouting in pain...is that how it's like to die? With great effort, she moves her neck and looks up into Nana's eyes. She looks worried with her knitted eyebrows and frowning lips, but nonetheless, she's glowing like angel, with a halo of light shining behind her back.
"Naachan...you are so....beautiful..." She heard her own breathless whisper. The girl bites her lips at the remark, and carries on to place a hand on Miki's stomach. She starts to feel a warmth radiating from there, spreading all over her body. There's a strange sensation that feels like her body is rapidly getting charged through electricity flowing up her capillaries and veins.
"Stay still, you have just fainted from seeing a snail climbing out of the bush." Nana places Miki's body down and looks around, hoping that no one has seen them. She looks up and found Naanya on the roof, staring at them in disbelief.
Someone saw me...Nana furrows her eyebrows, but she got distracted by the voices of some footsteps coming into the courtyard, alarmed by Miki's shout earlier on. She ran away before a teacher and a student arrived, while Naanya crouched down from the roof edge and hid herself too.
"Nishino-san...are you okay? What happened?"
The girl stands up and straightens her uniform, like she's barely fallen.
"I'm...I'm all right. I saw a....a snail and freaked out...."
"AA~ sasuga Miki-chan!" The other student sighs, exasperated and relieved at the same time. "I thought something horrible had happened when we heard a scream."
Miki pats her own body again, amazed that not an inch of her bones and muscles feel hurt at all. She looks to the direction where the strange healer has fled. Just who...no, what, is Okada Nana?
Topic: Alien Detective Agency - Chapter 9 [NanaMiki, Sae+Mako/Rena/Milky] 21/08/2015 (Read 14243 times)