Chapter 1: Finding out where you are
From Worldsofharuhi
Contents |
Morning Routine
GONG~!
GONG~!
Alan: "GAH! MY EAR DRUMS!!!"
"You could have just woken me gently!!!"
Haruhi: "You awake now?"
"I can honestly say I’ve never been this wide awake in my whole life."
"Since when did you possess a huge gong? No, more importantly, why are you using it to wake me up!?"
Alan: "Can you explain to me why you decided to use a gong to wake me up instead of waking me up the normal way?"
Haruhi: "What’s wrong with that? I have a huge gong in the house, I might as well put it to good use."
There is plenty wrong with that, and how is using a gong to wake people up a good use for it!?
I take a look at the clock, still wondering if it could get any worse.
Hey, whatdya know, it did.
Alan: "5:00 A.M!?"
How could you? I didn’t even manage to get sufficient sleep!
Haruhi: "It’s never too early to awaken to the fresh morning air!"
"..."
Haruhi: "Hurry up and get the sand out of your eyes! We’re going to go now!"
Alan: "Going? To where?"
Haruhi: "Brigade duties of course!"
Haruhi: "We’re searching for the mysteries of this world. Today, we will search for Dimensional sliders."
"You expect me to go with you when you have just awoken me with a gong around 5 o’clock in the morning?"
"You wish, although I feel something terrible might happen if I refuse. I should…"
Go with Haruhi
Alan: "Alright, I've got nothing to do anyway."
Haruhi: "Great, then let's go!"
"After running across about three blocks, Haruhi suddenly stops."
Alan: "Why did you stop?"
Haruhi: "Damn it! I forgot something! You go on ahead."
Alan: "I don't even know where we're going."
Haruhi: "Did you forget? We're meeting at the park from yesterday! Now get moving!"
Alan: "Fine..."
"I mutter as I start to turn towards where I'm guessing the park is."
Haruhi: "Wait!!"
"She hands me a note. No, it's a shopping list; as well as some cash."
Haruhi: "Go buy these on your way. They're important, so don't forget!"
Haruhi: "Just tell the owner that I sent you and you'll be fine. She knows who I am."
Alan: "Wait! I don't know where the shop is!"
Haruhi: "Just take a walk in the shopping district, you can't miss it!"
Alan: "But-"
"Haruhi was already in front of her house. Can that girl teleport?"
"... Let's see what I'm buying."
"Why do I have to buy her this... WHA!??!"
Alan: "“Waitress costume with extra large chest size?”"
"Okay, no, those are entirely inappropriate thoughts."
Kanata's Clothing Shop
"Sigh..."
"This must be it."
"The shop was full of clothes that normal people wouldn't dare to wear in public."
"Where is the shop owner?"
"I'll just wait around then. Dang. They sell the most ridiculous clothes here..."
Unknown: "Can I help you with anything?"
Alan: "Eh?"
Alan: "Are you the owner?"
Kanata: "Yes, my name is Kanata Izumi. Nice to meet you."
Alan: "Umm... Haruhi sent me to buy these."
"I show her the list that Haruhi gave me."
"... I'm so embarrassed right now. I can't even imagine what is going through Kanata-san's head."
"However, Kanata-san just smiled as if she understood my situation."
Kanata: "Suzumiya-san? Are you her friend?"
Alan: "I guess so..."
Kanata: "What's your name?"
Alan: "Alan."
Kanata: "Interesting name, what Kanji does it use?"
Alan: "Umm... You see, I'm a transfer student from Canada."
Kanata: "Oh I see, your name uses three katakanas 'a' 're' 'n'. Isn't that right?"
(I haven't tried to input Japanese on ren'py yet so these will do.)
"Although if you read it as katakana it starts to sound odd. It's Alan, not Aren."
"Why is she asking my name in such detail anyways?"
"I remember about the shopping list that Haruhi gave me."
Alan: "Umm, about the costume..."
Kanata: "That Suzumiya-san... she has a flare for fancy costumes."
"I just can't understand Haruhi, is she going to wear that costume herself? Although a waitress costume would scandalously good on her, I don't remember her chest being that big."
"On the other hand, look at Kanata-san, she looks even younger than Haruhi."
Alan: "Are you really the owner of this shop?"
"Kanata-san twitched."
Kanata: "Did you just assume that because I am short?"
Alan: "...Yes."
Kanata: "Don't worry. It happens a lot"
"She doesn't look too happy about me commenting on her height."
Kanata: "Anyway... let me get you these costumes."
"As if to escape the conversation about her height, she leaves in a hurry."
Alan: ".........."
Kanata: "Here you go."
Alan: "Thank you."
"I turn around to leave."
Kanata: "Please come to visit anytime you wish. My melon-pan is famous around here. I'll make you some next time."
"What's a melon-pan? Is it bread that looks like a melon? Or is it a melon that looks like bread?"
Alan: "Thank you very much."
"Well, here I am at the park... where the heck is Haruhi?"
Alan: "Never mind that, I could use a nap."
ZZZZZ
Zzzzz
Haruhi: "Ah! There you are, Alan!"
This is not good.
Haruhi: "You shouldn't snooze out here in the open. After all, you never know who you'll run into."
I think I just found that out, the hard way.
Haruhi: "Get up! I want you to meet my brigade members!"
Don't go with Haruhi
"I don’t feel like going with her. More importantly, I have to find some answers as to why I'm here."
"Alright, I’ll have to think of a reasonable excuse…"
Alan: "“Sorry, I have some stuff to do today. I can’t come with you.”"
"That hardly sounds like a plausible excuse;it sounds more like I’m trying to escape."
Haruhi: "“Oh... I guess you have to do all the paperwork for being transferred here, huh?”"
"Oh! That sounds reasonable. Thanks Haruhi!"
Alan: "“Um, yeah, that’s right.”"
Haruhi: "Fine then..."
"She left in a hurry. It might just be my imagination but, was she disappointed?"
"I guess I should leave too. Maybe I can get some answers today..."
"I walk around the same area of the city from yesterday."
"Nothing seems familiar…"
"Maybe I should try calling my home."
"I grabbed a nearby public phone and dialed my house number."
~Bleep Bleep Bleep~
Operator: "“The number you have dialed does not exist. Please try again.”"
"Okay, I will try again."
~Bleep Bleep Bleep~
Operator: "The number you have dialed does not-"
Alan: "Oh for the love of-"
Alan: "Damn you, stupid phone lady!"
"I swear, the person who voiced this was deliberately trying to irritate me!"
"Honestly, how can someone have such a robotic voice and still manage to be so annoying at the same time?"
"Phone lady aside, that’s strange. There’s no reason that international phone calls won’t work."
"Anyways, if the number doesn't exist, why are they telling me to try calling it again?"
"Sigh... Nothing makes sense. I can't remember anything. I need to cool off."
"Let's walk to the park, that is the only place I know of where I can have some peace and quiet."
"This park sure is serene…"
"Watching the river flow by quietly is really pleasant."
"Well, time to go back to Haruhi’s place. I really hope she lets me stay the night again."
After all, I am just some random student that she met.
Encounter with Fuuko
Alan: "Huh?"
Unknown: "......"
"Is this what they call an awkward moment?"
"Why is she staring at me?"
Alan: "“Is there something you need?”"
Unknown: "Fuuko found another weird person!"
Alan: "...Me? Weird?"
"And who is this Fuuko?"
"It takes a few moments to comprehend what she blurted out so suddenly. In that time, she ran away."
Alan: "“What was that all about?”"
"I’m pretty sure a person who calls someone else weird right when they first meet that someone is almost always the strange one."
"I begin associating the strange girl that I just met with the strange girl that I already met yesterday."
Alan: "“What's wrong with this city?! It's so full of...”"
"Forget it. Who am I to call other people weird? I talk to myself."
But talking to myself isn't as weird.
I began to walk back.
Haruhi: "Alan? What are you doing here?"
I froze upon hearing her voice.
I slowly turned around, wishing I hadn’t met her here. I faced her, a muscle near my eye beginning to twitch.
Haruhi: "“So, since you're relaxing here, I suppose you're not really busy then?"
Alan: "“Perha--”"
Haruhi: "“Perfect! I want to introduce you to my brigade members!”"
"Even if I said I was busy, you still would have ignored me outright and introduced them to me anyways, right
Introduction to the SOS Brigade
Haruhi: "“This cutie here is Mikuru Asahina.”"
Haruhi: "“She's our brigade’s mascot! For someone with such a sweet face though, she sure has a big chest.”"
Mikuru: "H-hello..."
Oh great, puppy-eyes, my weakness.
I'm one of those people who can’t handle puppy-eyes. Oh gods, she's overwhelmingly cute.
{Continued from "Go with Haruhi"}
"The outfit was for her huh? I am suddenly overcome by desire to see Asahina-san in the waitress costume."
"She doesn't look like a type to disobey Haruhi."
Alan: "Here you go~! I got it just as you said!"
"I hand over the bag that contains the waitress costume to Haruhi."
Haruhi: "Ah, thanks!"
"Haruhi's gaze is fixed on poor Asahina-san as I hand over the bag."
Mikuru: "Umm... what is that?"
"Asahina-san's voice shakes a little, as though she already knows and fears what kind of danger lurks inside that bag."
Haruhi: "Anyways, on with the introduction of the brigade members." {Continued from "Go with Haruhi" end}
Haruhi: "“This quiet book-worm over here is Yuki Nagato. She’ll do anything as long as she has a book to read.”"
Nagato: "........."
"She just looks up from the hard-cover tome she's reading and stares at me with an expressionless face."
"She's looking at me the same way I would look at a mildly interesting insect flying near the window. That's just creepy."
Haruhi: "“You met this person yesterday.His name is Itsuki Koizumi.”"
Itsuki: "“It’s a pleasure to meet you again.”"
"Okay.... your smile is beginning to freak me out a little. Again."
"Don’t you have any other expressions besides that smile?"
Unknown: "“Yo.”"
"Hm?"
"I'm quite surprised to see a 'normal' person in this brigade."
Haruhi: "“This here is Kyon. He’s not that important as he is only a low-ranking member.”"
"Kyon frowned. I’m sure I would do the same if I were in his shoes."
Alan: "“Really? He’s the only one who looks normal to me.”"
Alan: "“This city is really packed full of bizarre people, isn’t it?”"
Haruhi: "Hmm? What did you say?”"
Alan: "“No, nothing important.”"
Alan: "Let me see... based on what I've seen so far..."
Alan: "This is a ‘random’ brigade made by dragging in ‘random’ people such as these here, against their will.”"
Alan: "“You made this brigade because you were bored out of your mind and wanted to make this world more interesting.”"
Alan: "“Also, you made this brigade so you can find the mysteries of this world, am I right?”"
Haruhi: "“How do you know that?”"
"Oh? I was dead-on. The face she’s giving me proves it."
"...Wait... How did I know that? The term 'SOS-Brigade' just popped in my head out of nowhere."
Alan: "“...Why are you are staring at me so intensely?”"
Unknown: "“Hey!! Alan!”"
"Huh? Who’s calling me?"
Unknown: "“There you are! Come on, let’s get out of here!”"
"Who’s this woman that just popped out of nowhere!?"
"She looks bit older than I am, probably in her early twenties."
Haruhi: "“W-w-wait...Who are y--”" Unknown: "“What is it? Let’s get going!”"
Alan: "“Wait, what’s going on here!?”"
"She starts dragging me away with Herculean strength."
"She's almost as strong as Haruhi!Why are the both of them so strong?! They're ladies!"
Haruhi: "“Whoa, Hey! Wait a minute! You can’t just kidnap one of my brigade members like that!”"
"…Uh, lady, news flash: you kidnapped people to join your brigade too, you know."
Haruhi: "“Hold on, who are you?”"
Unknown: "“Oh? I’m Alan’s older sister.”"
"Oh gods, she's my sister?!"
"Wait Since when did I have a sister anyway?"
Alan: "“Huh? I don’t have a sister!”"
"I know I cannot remember anything about how I got here, but I'm pretty sure I didn't have a sister."
Unknown: "“There you go telling lies again to escape me Alan, but you know it is inevitable.”"
"I don’t think I can survive in this city much longer...random stuff like this keeps happening to me."
Haruhi: "“Even if you are his sister, you can’t just take my brigade member away!”"
Alan: "“Wait, it just occurred to me. When the hell was I in your idiotic brigade?”"
Haruhi: "“You've got some potential. You're fascinating enough to join.”"
"How exactly am I ‘fascinating’? And I really don’t want to join your brigade."
Unknown: "“Oh, don’t worry about it. I’ll send your brigade member right back after I have a little chat with him.”"
Haruhi: "“You'd better, or else…”"
Unknown: "“Alright then, we’ll be back in a few minutes.”"
The Mysterious Stranger
Alan: "“So, where are we going?”"
Unknown: "“Somewhere no one can hear us.”"
"... Wait, somewhere no one can hear us? That doesn't sound very good."
"If we're going somewhere isolated, her objectives are either killing me or..."
"My imagination is running wild."
Unknown: "“Huh? What’s wrong?”"
Alan: "“N-n-nothing.”"
Unknown: "“Really? You're blushing really fiercely.”"
Alan: "“Why do you want to talk in secret?”"
Unknown: "“I’ll explain everything when we get there. Oh, and I’m not your sister, so you don’t need to worry about that.”"
"Alright, I think I’ve reached my limit."
Alan: "“Man, what’s going on here!”"
Alan: "“I’m suddenly in this weird place and now I’m being dragged to God knows where by a girl I do not know so that people cannot hear us do whatever we do!”"
"I admit, I don't understand what I said just right now."
Unknown: "“Huh? Don't put it that way, you.”"
Unknown: "“Anyway, your memories haven’t come back to you yet?”"
Alan: "...?"
Alan: "You mean how I suddenly ended up here? To tell you the truth, I have no idea what happened to me."
Alan: "I remember I was in a plane on my way to Japan, I somehow don't remember anything from before or after that."
Unknown: "“Ah, I see. That’s why you are acting the way you are right now.”"
Alan: "“What do you mean?”"
Unknown: "“Alright, I’ll explain. Due to some bizarre phenomenon, when you arrived in this dimension, most of your memories were locked away.”"
Unknown: "It is rare, but it isn't unheard of."
"...I got to admit, you lost me at ‘arrived in this dimension’."
Unknown "“I thought your memories would have returned by now, seeing how well you explained the reason for the SOS-Brigade’s existence back there.”"
"Yes, I was wondering how I explained the SOS-Brigade's existence back then too."
Alan: "“Just who are you?”"
Unknown: "“It will be much easier to explain if your memories come back to you.”"
"................"
"Honestly, I’m speechless right now."
Alan: "“Alright... even if I am suffering from amnesia, how do you plan on making me remember?”"
Unknown: "“We have ways of dealing with you.”"
"...?"
"We? Suddenly, I felt a chill crawl up my spine, like a great big chilly spider."
Unknown: "“Close your eyes for a moment. Don’t open them until I say so.”"
"Huh? Suddenly…my consciousness…is fading…"
"What is she going to do to me? My imagination is running wild again."
"I need to get myself back together. The age is not important in these matters."
Alan: "“Yeah, as if! I can’t be fainting like this! She didn’t even do anything to me!”"
Unknown: "“What?? I said close your eyes!”"
Alan: "“Oh, sorry.”"
"I really should get my thoughts under control. And I should really stop talking to myself. I made a mental note of this."
Alan: "“I need to stop talking to myself.”"
"Okay, forget it."
Unknown: "“Alright, hold out your hand.”"
Alan: "“Like this?”"
Unknown: "“Yes, like that.”"
"…Is there a point to this? Maybe she really is just a weird wacko."
"I felt her hands grab mine. I really wish I could open my eyes now."
"And, as if hearing my thoughts…"
"..."
Unknown: "“Alright, you can open them now.”"
Closed Space
"Finally! I opened my eyes to gaze upon the setting sun once more… Where the hell did it go?"
Alan: "“What, it's night already?”"
Unknown: "“Well, that’s one way of putting it…”"
Alan: "“I think you should really explain to me what’s going o--”"
"Then suddenly, I remembered."
Alan: "This is... Closed Space?"
"The words felt dry in my mouth, as though they'd been uttered in an age past."
Unknown: "“Yes, Closed Space. A space that Espers think only they can gain access to.They are wrong however. There are in fact many beings that can enter this Space, and that includes us.”"
"Bits and pieces of knowledge are coming back to me now. But I seriously want to know what the heck is going on here."
Alan: "“How was this Closed Space created? Aren’t Closed Space only created when Haruhi’s emotions becomes unstable?”"
Unknown: "“Ohhh~ More of your memories are coming back to you then? I see its working.”"
Unknown: "“Alright, I’ll continue then. This closed space is actually a replica of the one from last night.”"
Alan: "“How do you even know about the closed space?”"
Unknown: "“Dimensional abnormalities are a huge issue: they could result in an apocalypse occurring on this world. Thus, we look over how Espers are doing their jobs when we get some free time.”"
Alan: "“We”...? So there's more of you? Who are you anyway?”"
Unknown: "“We’re dimensional Sliders of course! Otherwise interpreted as Other-Worlders.”"
"...This is pretty hard to believe. However, standing in this grey, muted world called ‘Closed Space’ makes it harder to disbelieve it."
"I’m in a different world, but it looks exactly the same as the one I was in, minus the sunlight and people."
"Somehow... I ended up in a world different from my own, yet still very similar to it."
"For some reason, I’m beginning to feel excited. Why, I wonder?"
Alan: "“How exactly did I get in this world then?”"
Unknown: "“You still don’t remember?”"
"All I remember is that... wait, I don't really remember anything about getting in here."
Unknown: "“Oh bother, I didn’t think your memory-lock would be this stubborn. Usually I just have to show some familiar images and boom! Your memories are back.”"
"Well, excuse me for getting my memory locked!"
Alan: "“Sorry... I really cannot recall.”"
Unknown: "“Then I guess I'll show you some more familiar scenes.”"
Alan: "???"
Alan: "What are you doing?"
"Suddenly, I’m in a world of white. Dead silence all around, and not even the wind blows. Honestly, I’m not even sure what I’m standing on."
Unknown "“This is the second place I want to show you.”"
Alan: "“This looks just like The Matrix, when Morpheus meets Neo.”"
"She stares at me quizzically."
Alan: "“Oh, nevermind.”"
Unknown: "“This is a gate realm.”"
Alan: "“A gate realm? What do you mean?”"
Unknown: "A gate realm is just what it's name implies, it acts as a gate that will lead you to the other worlds."
Unknown: "This particular gate realm was created by me to have only one gate, but normally they can have more than one gate."
Unknown: "“Here, stand where I’m standing. Now look this way.”"
"I do as what she says."
Unknown "Now look over there."
Unknown "Do you recognize this place?"
"Woah. It can’t be."
Unknown: "“Do you recognize this place?”"
Alan: "“…It’s my hometown. How can this be?”"
"Now memories started to flood my mind. Now that I think about it, earlier on I only remembered vaguely that I was from another country, and a phone number that was supposed to be my house number."
"I stroked the green necklace that my dear friend had given to me. All this is beginning to become too much for me…"
"As I try to step through the gate, I discover that some sort of invisible barrier blocks my way."
"I try to walk through and promptly smash my face into the invisible wall."
Alan: "“Ouch. Why can’t I get through?”"
Unknown: "“I’ll tell you this. Not one being in the history of this universe has broken through that barrier.”"
Unknown: "All we sliders can do is open a window that we can look through."
Alan: "“This universe? What about other universes?”"
Unknown: "“Don't split hairs. There's just one universe, but multiple dimensions.”"
Alan: "“But why is there a barrier here?”"
Unknown: "“It's to separate fiction from reality.”"
"..."
"This doesn’t make any sense."
Unknown: "“It looks something like this.”"
"She took out a notebook from… somewhere behind her. I didn't even notice any pockets! Don't tell me she kept it there...!"
"As if she read my thoughts, she explained."
Unknown: This particular gate realm was created by me, so I am it's realm master. As a realm master, creating a notebook like this is a piece of cake."
"She finished her drawing."
Unknown: "“Here, look.”"
"Oh, right."
"She made a quick sketch on a piece of loose-leaf."
Unknown: "“We are currently at the core of the fictional realm.”"
Alan: "“What, I'm fake now?”"
Unknown: "“No, merely in a fictional world. Some of these worlds were created by people on the other side of that barrier.”"
Alan: "“Doesn’t this mean I’m in a world full of anime and manga characters!?”"
Unknown: "“It’s as you say, but I hope you don't assume that just because I'm from fictional world, I'm fake. In here, events that go on are real as events that happen in reality.
Unknown: "“So, do you see those individual lights in the fictional realm?”"
Alan: "Yeah?"
Unknown: "“They are what we call ‘Fictional Worlds’. Each of them represents a certain fictional story.”"
"This must be why things seemed so familiar, and how I knew the reason for the SOS-Brigade’s existence."
"I must have seen Haruhi and the SOS brigade in an anime before."
Alan: "“Then, what character are you, and where are you from?”"
Unknown: "“That’s classified information, I’m afraid. It’s against the Slider’s rule to reveal your own past-life, unless deemed absolutely necessary. That goes for you too.”"
Alan: "I see...but how about telling me your name at least?"
Unknown: "It's Saya."
Saya: "“Saya Minatsuki.”"
Alan: "Okay... Saya, how do you know so much about me?”"
Saya: "“I was watching you through this gate realm yesterday.”"
Alan: "Why would you mind any businesses that goes on in the real world?"
Saya: "It's good to see anime and manga producers working so hard on their work. It's thanks to them that I exist after all."
Alan: "So you must know what happened while I was in that plane."
Saya: "You sure you want to know?"
Alan: "“No, I don't. Of course I do! I wouldn't ask you otherwise.”"
Saya: "“Alright...”"
"…My heart skipped a beat or two. Make that three."
"W-what is this?"
Alan: "“Am I dead?”"
"I don't want to be dead... I want to be alive!"
Saya: "“Fuu-chan!”"
"I was back at the place we were before."
Saya: "“I'm so, so, sorry.Please forget what you saw.”" Alan: "“It’s alright. I know now why you wanted to hide it from me.”"
A black shroud of depression settled over me. I wished for a sturdy rope and a high place, then remembered that I was dead already. Crap.
Saya: "“That’s not it! You got it wrong! You're not dead.”"
Alan: "“It’s alright. Thanks for trying to cheer me up, but I have to face reality. I’m dead, I accept that.”"
"If I kill myself when I'm dead, do I come back to life?"
Saya: "“No! I’m really serious here! It was my partner, Fuu-chan, who showed you that! Fuu-chan! Come out right now!”"
The Slider Duo
Saya: "Fuu-chan!!"
Fuuko: "“Fuuko is innocent; Fuuko doesn’t know what Minatsuki-san is talking about. This person is most certainly dead. See? He doesn’t feel any pain.”"
Pinch, pinch
Alan: "“Hey, wait- Ow!”"
"That hurts. Bad enough that I'm dead, and getting my corpse pinched, but I can feel pain too?!"
Saya: "“Okay Fuu-chan, what’s with you and pranks lately? You’ve been playing pranks with me and Kanata-san for quite a while now.”"
Fuuko: "Fuuko is training. Fuuko needs to be prepared for when Fuuko goes back to her own world. Fuuko will teach Fuuko’s arch-nemesis a lesson."
Fuuko: "Wah! Fuuko just admitted to playing a prank on him!”"
Saya: "“So Fuu-chan, I see you finally learned how to make fake images?”"
Fuuko: "“Fuuko can only create it for a short time. Kanata-san says Fuko has to focus less on starfishes.”"
Fuuko: "“But that’s impossible for Fuuko! Starfishes are irresistibly cute!”"
Alan: "“So, I’m not actually dead?”"
Saya: "“No, I don't know how you came through the reality barrier. I was just watching some boring guy reading a novel in a passenger plane, then suddenly that guy comes through the reality barrier."
Saya: "The penalty for going through the reality barrier seems to be the memory lock. Loss of memories during dimension travel is not unheard of, but it's really rare."
Saya: "“By the way, the plane you were on landed safely without you.”"
"I felt a sense of relief that I wasn’t dead. But now I glared at Fuuko, with vengeance burning in my mind from the ashes of my short lived 'death'."
Fuuko "“Wah! Weird person is looking at Fuuko like Fuuko’s arch-nemesis!”"
"I thought of all the retribution I could visit on her, but then, noticing Saya was still standing there observing, I ended up only pinching her nose."
Fuuko: "Mmmmph! Why did you do that?"
Alan: "“Do I even need to explain to you?”"
"There’s more where that came from! Once you and I are alone… Wait, hold on, that sounded too wrong."
Fuuko: "“Fuuko doesn’t know what weird person is talking about. Weird person should apologize to Fuuko.”"
"Deep breaths now. In, out. Anger leads to the dark side."
Saya: "“Now now Fuu-chan, don’t bother Alan so much. Remember, it’s your turn to make snacks today.”"
Fuuko: "“Wah! That’s right! Fuko has to hurry or Kanata-san will be angry and do bad things to Fuuko!”"
"Could it be?"
Fuuko: "“Fuuko doesn’t want her starfish to be taken away!”"
"…I’m stupid to even have thought what I was thinking."
Fuuko: "“Fuuko will be going now.”"
Fuuko: "“Ah, Fuko forgot.”"
"She walked up to me with a wooden… shuriken?"
Fuuko: "“Here, please have this.”"
"Don’t think this will make me have mercy on you when I-- I should stop thinking like a dangerous kidnapper now."
Fuuko: "Then, see you soon."
Alan: "“What is this, a shuriken?”"
"But she had already left. I held the wooden sculpture, confused, as Fuuko ran away."
"She is really odd... although in different sense than Haruhi."
"Why did she give me a wooden shuriken? Perhaps she gave it to me as a sign of apology?"
Saya: "“Well, we should get going too. I want you to meet Izumi-san.”"
Alan: "Sure, whatever you want."
The Sliders' Meeting
"The Closed Space and Gate Realm she had shown me were odd, but at the same time, it was really interesting. I wonder how Haruhi would react if she saw it herself."
Saya and Fuuko sure keep referring to Izumi-san. I’m sure I heard of that name just recently.
Alan: "“...Kanata Izumi, the costume shop owner?”" Saya: "“Have you met her before?”" Alan: "“Yeah, I met her this morning while buying cos--never mind. I just know her.”" Saya: "“Great! That makes things easier. Well, we’re almost there.”"
Saya: "“Izumi-san! I’m home, and guess who I brought!”"
Kanata: "“Welcome back Saya. Who've you brought? ”"
Kanata: "“Ara, it’s you from this morning.”"
Unknown "Welcome back Saya, who did you bring?" Unknown "Oh, welcome, I know that you arrived in this world, but I didn’t have the time to search for you. My name is Kanata Izumi, nice to meet you.")
"Saya goes to the fridge and takes out a bottle of milk. She gulped it down in 3 seconds flat. That might have defeated my record... A new challenger has arrived!"
Saya: "“Bwa! Milk is so good!”"
"Silently agreeing, I greeted Kanata."
Alan: "Anyways, nice to see you again Izumi-san."
(If You've never met Kanata:
Alan: "A pleasure to meet you Izumi-san.")
Kanata: "“For Saya to have brought you here, you probably know by now that you aren’t in your own world.”"
Alan: "“Yeah, I’m beginning to believe it.”"
Kanata: "“That’s great. You most likely also know why you ended up here.”"
Alan: "“Now that, I still don't know.”"
Saya: "“Ack! I’m so sorry, Izumi-san, I forgot to explain that bit to him.”"
"How could you forget?"
Kanata: "“You skipped that part just so you could drink milk sooner, didn’t you?”"
Saya: "“Eh, heh. Oh, Fuuko needs help with making snacks, see ya!”"
"I wouldn’t blame Saya for skipping those details. If there is milk involved, everything is only second priority."
"What gets me however is that a bottle of milk had higher priority than someone from another dimension, namely, me. Is it really that important as to skip out something that could be the answer to the reason I’m here? ...Actually, yeah."
Alan: "“So you three live together?”"
Kanata: "“Yes, living with those two, it can be very lively at times.”"
Alan: "“I can tell that much. Not as lively as being with Haruhi though.”"
Kanata: "“They remind me of my own family.”"
Alan: "“Wait, you’re married? Aren’t under-age marriages forbidden?”"
(If You've met Kanata:
Kanata: "“You’re making fun of my height again, aren’t you?”")
(If You've never met Kanata:
Kanata: "You're making fun of my height aren't you?")
"Me? Never. I'm a gentleman's gentleman."
"She does look like a sixth-grader though. Silence is the better part of discretion."
Alan: "“Oh, how could you say that of me? I'd never do such a thing.”"
"I grinned at her, and she smiled in return."
Kanata: "“Well, can you stay for a while? We’ll be having tea and snacks soon.”"
"At this rate, by the time I get back to Haruhi, she’ll probably be having a fit." "She might even make me sleep outside her house."
"But I really want to know what kind of situation I'm in."
"These people claim to be dimensional sliders, and one of them also talked about espers. If Haruhi heard all this, she would be downright ecstatic."
"If there is one person you know in this world who can listen to all this, say “I see, okay.”, and then walk away without a second thought, please call me. I’ll personally come to see him and hit him with all of my might."
Alan: "“Sure, I’ll stay for dinner.”"
Kanata: "“That’s great to hear. Fu-chan is making something special today.”"
"Fuko is making something special? Does it have to do with shurikens? Or what was that other thing she mentioned?"
Fuuko: "“Ah, Fuko isn’t finished yet.”"
"I was right... but that’s impressive. I once tried to bake a cake, but the only shape I could make wasn’t even a shape. It was just a blob."
Kanata: "“Fu-chan, that is wonderful. I can’t wait to taste it.”"
Saya: "“I know right? I wanted to help, but… I couldn’t do anything…”"
Kanata: "“Well Saya, you aren’t that good at making food. I don’t know where you got the idea of milk-tasting bread last time, but the flavor wasn’t exactly normal.”"
"PFFT! Milk-tasting bread!?! That almost sounds tasty. But still, ugh, I feel sorry for whoever ate them, mainly Izumi-san."
Saya: "“But, you liked my milkshakes, didn’t you?”"
Kanata: "“Well, I can’t say those were bad… they were pretty good.”"
Fuuko: "“Please talk somewhere else. Fuko needs to concentrate. You are distracting Fuko.”"
Kanata: "“Okay then Fu-chan. We’ll be going to the living room.”"
Fuuko: "“Fuuko will take her time.”"
"When those two left for the living room, I asked her something."
Alan: "“Why are you making a shuriken-shaped cake?”"
Fuuko: "“Fuko doesn’t know what you are talking about. Fuko isn’t making a shuriken-shaped cake.”"
Alan: "“Then what is that?”"
Fuuko: "“It’s a starfish cake! Fuuko thinks it’s very obvious.”"
"PFFT! It’s a starfish cake!? You mean all this time, I’ve mistaken it for a shuriken!?”"
Fuuko: "“Fuko thinks weird person should leave now. Weird person is distracting Fuko.”"
Saya: "“Aren’t you coming? You’re distracting Fu-chan.”"
Alan: "“Alright, alright.”"
Saya: "“So Izumi-san, how was work today?”"
Kanata: "“It was fun. It's going to be Tanabata day tomorrow, so there were a lot of people asking for kimonos and yukatas.”"
Saya: "“Oh! I love your yukatas, Kanata-san! The one you made me last time was perfect!”"
Kanata: "“I'm glad you like them. So, how was your day Alan?”"
Alan: "“It was alright. I had this huge misunderstanding when Saya dragged me away from Haruhi. I thought we were going to d--never mind. Forget I said that.”"
Saya: "“What misunderstanding? What did you think we were going to do?”"
Alan: "“It’s nothing!”"
Kanata: "*Giggle*"
Alan: "“So how was your day Saya?”"
Saya: "“It was okay. There weren’t many big targets though.”"
"Big targets? Is she in a shooting gallery?"
Alan: "“Targets? What kind of work are you doing?”"
Saya: "“I’m a Sweeper, see?”"
Alan: "“Put that away!”"
Saya: "“Hm? Don’t worry, the safety is on.”"
"This has nothing to do with that. You must be breaking a law carrying a pistol around!"
"Then again, you are a Slider, so I guess firearm restrictions don’t apply to you."
Alan: "“Anyways, a sweeper? What’s that? Do you go around killing people for money?”"
Saya: "“I don't exactly kill people. Sweeper is just another term for bounty hunter. I hunt down wanted criminals for cash, catch them alive, and buy lots of yummy snacks with that money!”"
"I feel sorry for the criminals. The money gained from capturing them is only used for snacks. What a waste."
Alan: "“So, did you actually capture anyone?”"
Saya: "“Not today, but I’m very closing to finding one that is in hiding.”"
"I’m not really interested in bounty hunting, but I guess it’s kind of like being an independent police officer."
Fuuko: "“Fuuko is finished~!”"
"We turned around to see Fuuko place the cake on the table."
Kanata: "“It looks very delicious. Thank you, Fuu-chan.”"
Saya: "“Thanks! It looks great! I can’t wait!”"
"We cut the cake and began eating."
"This is exceptionally good."
Alan: "“Wow, this is great! Fuuko tha… nks?“"
"Fuuko looked like she'd won the lottery and her face was all dreamy like. I waved my hand in front of her; nope, no reaction. LSD?"
Alan: "Umm... Fuuko?"
"Imagine if she got stuck like that forever."
"She'd just stand there, staring off into space, then."
"Several hundred years later, when our civilization has crumbled."
"A secret society searching for strange people will find Fuuko frozen in place trapped in time."
"Then they awaken her from her frozen state..."
"Wait a minute. Perhaps, this is the perfect time to get revenge?"
"No, Saya and Izumi-san are watching. I’ll probably be kicked out if I do."
Kanata: "“Don’t worry, Alan-kun. She has those moments when she sees a bit too many starfishes.”"
Alan: "“Oh, I see… UGH!”"
I almost choked, remembering this was made after a starfish. I spat it out right away. The cake that tasted so exceptionally good… now looked slimy and disgusting.
Fuuko: "“Ah…”"
"Fuko suddenly came back to life! Magic! Vile sorcery!"
Fuuko: "“Weird person spat out Fuko’s hand-made starfish cake!”"
Saya: "“Hey, you shouldn’t waste it! If you don’t want it, at least give it to me!”"
"… You can still eat this thing even though you know it’s made after a starfish?"
Kanata: "“What’s wrong, Alan-kun? Are you full already?”"
Alan: "“Uh, yes. I’m full. Ohh, my stomach's bursting. Couldn't take another bite.”"
"I’ll never want to either. If I eat even another bite; I’m afraid I might vomit and faint on the spot."
Saya: "“I’ll take your share than!”"
"You've got a cast-iron, industrial-strength stomach, don’t you?"
Kanata: "“Now, regarding what I was talking about earlier.”"
Alan: "“Yes, what was it?”"
Kanata: "“About how you appeared in this world.”"
"I usually never listen to what other people have to say, but this was obviously an exception. This will reveal everything."
Kanata: "“Saya must have already explained to you about the fictional worlds, so you should already know that Saya, Fuu-chan, and I are not of this particular fictional world.”"
Alan: "“But, why are you all here in this fictional world?”"
Kanata: "“We were assigned to this world.”"
Alan: "“You were assigned? You Sliders have an organization?”"
Kanata: "Yes, we have a lead slider council that decides who gets assigned to which fictional worlds."
"If people as small as Kanata-san or as weird as Fuuko work in this organization, I wish the best for their leader for having to deal with so much."
Alan: "“That doesn't explain how I got here.”"
Kanata: "Truth is that we are not really sure how you got here... all we can do is make assumptions."
Alan: "Assumptions?"
Kanata: "“It’s involves Haruhi Suzumiya.”"
"That was totally unexpected. Why would these sliders mention someone like Haruhi Suzumiya?."
Alan: "“So, what about Haruhi?”"
Kanata: "“I’m saying that she is the whole reason as to why you ended up in this fictional world.”"
Alan: "“But I thought all she could do was create Closed Spaces whenever her emotions became unstable.”"
Kanata: "“I see your memories haven’t all returned yet. If you are from the real world, you should know that the entity named ‘Haruhi Suzumiya’ can do more than just create Closed Space.”"
"It’s frustrating to know that. I want my memories to return to me already!"
Kanata: "Suzumiya Haruhi has an abnormal power that allows her to bend reality depending on her will."
Kanata: "The story of how we came to know about Suzumiya Haruhi's power is a long one." Forgot to mention the main issue of How Alan got here
Kanata: "Before I can tell you the story, we have to discuss just what caused you to travel through the reality barrier."
Alan: "I'm all ears."
Kanata: "What I'm about to tell you is just based on my speculations only, and it might not prove to be true-"
Alan: "I don't care if it's speculation, I just want to know."
Kanata: "Okay... this is what I think. Suzumiya-san has the power to bend reality. This means that despite being a fictional character herself, she can affect the reality barrier."
"I admit that 'Power to bend Reality' and "Reality Barrier" doesn't sound good."
Kanata: "So if Suzumiya-san desired someone from another world to cross over to this world, there is a chance that it could happen."
Alan: "So she wished me here?"
Kanata: "In her heart, she probably desires to have someone from really far away to visit her."
Kanata: "Just look at her reaction based on knowing that you are from another country."
"Yes... she went as far as letting me stay in her house. Wait... how does Kanata-san know that I'm from a different country?"
Alan: "If she wished for an Other-worlder, then how come she doesn't know who I really am?"
Kanata: "Suzumiya-san's reality bending powers conflicts with her common sense. Although she wishes Other-worlders existed, her subconsciousness tells her that it cannot be so."
Kanata: "The product of conflict between her power and her common sense is a mysterious transfer student from Canada, and three sliders."
Alan: "Three sliders?"
Kanata: "Sigh... I'll tell you the story of how we were stranded here in this world."
End Back to normal
Kanata: "“All of us Sliders have the power to travel between every fictional world in the fictional realm. However, four years ago…”"
Alan: "“Four years ago?”"
Kanata: "“A huge dimensional quake had appeared, so Fu-chan, Saya, and I were assigned to this world to stop it.”"
Kanata: "“In the middle of the quake, we found a puzzling sign.”"
Kanata: "“The sign read ‘I am here, come and find me’”"
Kanata: "“When we stopped the quake, we were ready to go back for our next assignment.”"
Kanata: "“However, we couldn’t go back. No matter how much we tried to travel across worlds, some mysterious power stopped us. It's like how the reality barrier stops us from traveling into the reality.”"
Alan: "“Why is that?”"
Kanata: "“We are not so sure ourselves, but we knew that the source of that power came from Haruhi Suzumiya.”"
Alan: "“Is Haruhi aware that she is stopping you sliders from traveling?”"
Kanata: "“No, Suzumiya-san isn’t aware. We might not be the only ones. The organization hasn't sent a backup even after they lost contact with us. We assume that, dimension travel has been cut off for sliders across the whole universe.”"
Alan: "“I find it hard to believe that Haruhi can do all of this. Isn’t she just an ordinary eccentric girl with ‘special’ ideas?”"
Kanata: "“Suzumiya-san has the power to change her surroundings based on her inner desires. She also has the power to destroy reality using the Celestials in Closed Space.”"
"I’d rather not think about the fate of the universe resting in Haruhi’s hands. That’s almost too scary to believe; plus, it’s ridiculous!"
Kanata: "“It may sound like the fate of this world is unstable, but it’s actually quite stable currently.”"
Alan: "“Stable? In the short amount of time I’ve known her, she’s proved herself to be insane! And she’s extremely bossy. It looks like the world will be doomed from the looks of it.”"
Kanata: "“You haven’t known Suzumiya-san for a short time; in fact you’ve known her for quite a while. I’m sure your memories will come back to you eventually. The chances of this reality being destroyed are very slim. This is mostly due to the presence of her friends.”"
Alan: "“The SOS-Brigade?”"
Kanata: "“Yes, Suzumiya-san’s stability has really improved since she formed the brigade.”"
Alan: "“I’ve been wondering; most of the members of the SOS-Brigade looked really suspicious…”"
Kanata: "“The members of the SOS-Brigade are comprised of very interesting individuals. They are very much like us Sliders, but the only exception is Kyon.”"
Alan: "“He looked like a normal human-being to me.”"
Kanata: "“Yes. He is the bond that keeps Haruhi from becoming unstable. He is more mysterious than the other members of the brigade since all of our research shows that he is just an average human.”"
Alan: "“Yeah, Haruhi isn’t the type to pull normal people into her brigade, but she pulls in unusual people almost instantly. I’m a pretty good example. She just dragged me into her ridiculous brigade just because I was a foreigner.”"
Kanata: "Alan-kun, can I ask a favor of you?"
Alan: "“Sure, what is it?”"
Kanata: "“We sliders have kept our existence a secret from Kyon-kun because we didn’t think it was necessary.”"
Kanata: "“However, your arrival changed that. We always assumed that because Suzumiya-san didn’t find us, we shouldn’t bother introducing ourselves to Kyon-kun.”"
Kanata: "“Since Suzumiya-san made you join her Brigade, it would mean that her belief in sliders has increased.”"
Alan: "But, I'm not a slider. How does her belief in sliders increase because I joined her brigade?"
Kanata: "You are from another world, and we sliders deal with everything regarding different realms, dimensions and worlds."
Kanata: "“I know this sounds strange, but can you just pretend to be a slider in front of Kyon?”"
Alan: "“Sure I can do that. He’ll just think I’m some kind of nutcase.”"
"Ignoring my comment Kanata-san continued to speak."
Kanata: "“We arranged it such that you will be attending North High school, starting tomorrow.”"
{If you've met Kanata: Kanata: "Although I'm not sure if I registered your name properly."
"That's why you asked my name in such detail this morning." }
Alan: "“So you were the one who spread the rumor about a new foreign exchange student?”"
Kanata: "“Uwa, I guess I’ve been caught...”"
Kanata: "“Still, you helping us observe Suzumiya-san may be the only way for you to return back to your world.”"
Alan: "“'Only way?' I guess I have no choice then.”"
"I really want to go back to my own world, for various reasons. But still, these turn of events is most thrilling."
Saya: "“You always have a choice; you just need to make the right ones.”"
"Where did you come out of all of a sudden?"
Saya: "“You should always live the way you want. Isn’t that right, Fuu-chan?”"
Fuuko: "“Fuuko still doesn’t approve of this weird person. He spat out Fuko’s starfish cake which Fuko worked hard on.”"
"Yes, I’ve committed a truly grave sin; I couldn’t eat a starfish."
Alan: "“I’ll talk to him tomorrow, but I can’t explain that much to him though. I still don’t quite understand a lot of this myself.”"
Saya: "“You can just tell him that you're a slider. That guy will surely suspect you of being something unnatural. Be sure not to mention us when you tell him though, okay? We're still not ready to be in the spotlight yet.”"
"Sure, I’ll just go up to him and say ‘Hello, I'm a slider.’ No way! He’ll think I’m crazy! But then, I guess I really should go tell him."
Alan: "“Sure, I guess I can do that… Anyways, I better get going to Haruhi’s place. She must be really angry right about now.”"
"Will I be able to tell Kyon before she brutally tortures and kills me?"
Saya: "“I’ll come along with you! It’s not that bad of a night today.”"
"'I'll send your brigade member right away~' It's all your fault that I'm in this mess."
"Saya and I walked along the quiet road. It really is a very clear night. I can see an incredible amount of stars. It’s a bit too quiet, so I decided to say something."
Alan: "“So, I heard you like milk?”"
Saya: "“Yes! I love milk! I can drink a bucketful and still want some more!”"
"... That’s the way. I love milk as well."
Alan: "“Milk is my favorite as well, but I like the strawberry-flavored ones the best.”"
Saya: "Hmm...."
"She just walked on as if she didn’t hear me. Is she daydreaming?"
Alan: "“What’s wrong?”"
"Saya then snapped out of her daydream and shook her head."
Saya: "“It’s nothing. I was just remembering my past.”"
"What sort of past could a slider that works as bounty hunter have? Surely more interesting than my past that I can't even remember."
"It must be great to have the power to travel through worlds and also experience action like pursuing wanted criminals at the same time."
"I realized deep in my subconsciousness that I admired Saya."
Saya: "Anyways, can you make it there on your own from here?”"
Alan: "“Yeah, I know where to go from here.”"
Saya: "“Alright. I’ll be going then.”"
Saya: "“Oh, you can visit us anytime too! See ya!”"
"Sigh... All I did was talk throughout the day, yet… I’m just so tired."
"By the time I made it to Haruhi’s house, it was very dark outside. This meant... that I would have to prepare for anything she had in store for me."
"This is definitely not going to be good."
End of Day
Probably by sheer luck, I made it to my room safe and sound. Perhaps Haruhi still hasn’t come back yet.
Haruhi: "I found you!"
... ugh, out of all the times, why now?
Haruhi: "“You’re late! Penalty! I want you to clean up the living room and the kitchen by tomorrow morning! Tomorrow is the Tanabata festival after all. I want all of my members to be ready for it!”"
Clearly, Haruhi has already labeled me as a member of the SOS-Brigade.
Alan: "“How is cleaning up the kitchen and the living room related to the Tanabata festival?”"
I think Kanata said something about this festival too. All I remember from reading the W*kipedia article on it is that people generally celebrate it by writing wishes, sometimes in the form of poetry, on tanzaku. These small pieces of paper are then hung from bamboo shoots, sometimes with other decorations.
Alan: "Eh? But..."
Haruhi: "“Hurry up and begin cleaning!”"
Haruhi: "“No buts! Just do it!”"
"Just like an evil feudal baroness, she ordered me to clean her kitchen and living room. Poor me. I didn’t get a chance to finish what I was going to say since she left my room so quickly."
Alan: "“Great… I better get started now or I’ll be up all night. And, why do I have this funny feeling that Haruhi is up to something…?”"
"What a great way to end my day… just great."
