Ichika sat tensely on the chair as he faced Chifuyu and Yamada, while the rest of security team. They’ve been kind enough to lend him a yukata, and the female who claimed by his friend to be Ichika kept her words that he’s mostly unharmed, so he will cooperate fully.
“So, you claim you’re Ichika Orimura, the only one man who can pilot an I.S.”
“I have no reason to lie” Ichika replied with a monotone “If it wasn’t for your influence, I might be somewhere around as guinea pig for God knows what experiment, coupled with Japan’s own curiosity and willingness to protect their only unique asset, I was sent to I.S. academy as the only male student, to protect me from foreign influence”
With all the motherly care, the more petite teacher pulled his armored arm and examined it throughoutly “And this I.S., it’s quite a unique frame”
Ichika could understand what she meant, as she remembered, everyone’s I.S. are mostly human sized, and he already knew what to say afterward.
“Tabane-nee… she never revealed the secret of I.S. at all, and thus, it depends to everyone else to replicate the system from existing White Knight frame, put it short, the reverse engineering is what caused the size to increase exponentially. I only learned this recently myself after digging something from the I.S. core network as ByakuShiki undergo second shift”
Chifuyu kept silent, however, her expression changed, for better or worse. Ichika has been jury rigged into an Uchigane using multiple connectors, using it as impromptu lie detector.
She finally open her mouth “He’s not lying, but either way, it don’t make any sense. Professor Shinonono DID reveal the secret of I.S. construction”
Ichika bit his lips, anger resurface again. Chifuyu always been cold, but she by no means uncaring, once or twice, but this time, she don’t see her brother, she saw a stranger that claimed to be her brother, a brother she never had.
If Ichika don’t know better, he really wanted to cry. When the last time he’s crying anyway? he didn't remember, and he shouldn't have cared.
“The only possible explanation is that he’s sleeper agent” Chifuyu said “Better safe than sorry, we will hid your presence, however… you are not allowed to use your I.S. until we told you so. Should you try to use that without our clearance, we’ll resort to brute force”
“I understand”
With his friends and the only family not knowing about him in the slightest, he has nowhere else to go.
“Now, as for the accommodation, we’ll escort you to I.S. academy while I contact people from government, don’t expect to be treated like a VIP, but we’ll try to make you comfortable without compromising security”
Ichika smiled and bowed as thanks, Ichika never felt this glad that Chifuyu treat him as he deserved. He’s no one, nothing. He’s just a stray dog clad with walking weapon of mass destruction, and treated just like that.
“Yamada, I leave this to you”
“Yes, Orimura-sensei” Yamada smiled brightly “Now, Orimura-kun… please follow me”
Ichika followed silently, his gaze is set to the starry summer sky. This place, this place is not where he does belong, but he’s not the kind of person who thinks deeply. He’d rather enjoy this as much as he could.
Moments of reprieve lasted quite long, until Yamada stopped on her tracks. And quickly put her hand on his shoulder.
She is sobbing.
“Ya-yamada-sensei”
“Uuu… Why aren’t you complaining? *sob* Why aren’t you crying? Does that means you’re really a pretender”
“Maybe I am, that’s up to your judgment” Ichika sweatdropped.
“The why you look like that? Your eyes told me everything”
Ichika aver his gaze, avoiding eye contact in the process. His face stay unmoving, but Yamada was right after all. No normal human completely emotionless.
“I don’t remember my parents and they abandoned me, I always been the bottom of all social injustice because of them, and the influence of I.S. made it even worse. I don’t even know how to cry”
Yamada’s large, round eyes widened even further, and she shook her head to waste the tears away. Her gesture, her expression, she’s trying to be serious but fail miserably. She’s halfway between curious little sister and concerned mother.
“Orimura-kun, Chifuyu-sensie also said the same thing when we met years ago”
Ichika thought, maybe things aren’t that much different at all. But still, she’s not the Chifuyu he knew and loved. For her, he is not her Ichika.
“Ano…”
“Ah, is that Orimura-san”
The meek girl now look even subdued than before, looked at them shyly. She twitched when Ichika approached her.
“Anyway, thanks, you kept your promise” Ichika smirked as wide as he could “It wasn’t half bad compared to what happened daily with Houki and the girls”
She shook her head “I don’t understand… I don’t know if you’re a part of conspiracy or what, but you don’t deserve it”
“I wish everyone can agree” Ichika replied with a wry, as image of Charlotte’s proper introduction crept into his head once again “But it always like that, men take all the beatings, deserving it or not”
She pouted, read that, POUTED. “Maybe you did deserve it after all”
He frowned in response “Oi, no name calling”
“You did ask them to stop but you didn’t stop them”
“It’s called chivalry”
“And that’s stupid”
Ichika is loss at word, she doesn’t really make sense. All she said contradicted what he said. However, this ‘Ichika’, so to speak, is saying what his heart always wanted to say.
Although Yamada was unsure whether to squeal or feel ill on the scene, she just let that happen and called “Orimura-kun, we’ll wait near the lighthouse, be sure to attend”
“… You know, if I want to blame anyone, I’d like to blame Tabane-neesan and her stupid invention” Ichika softly smiled
“But I don’t want to be a burden, I’m not the only man who suffered this kind of pain, and frankly, sometimes I don’t even feel the need to care about them… I’ll just do whatever I think right, and I truly care for my friends… maybe yes, I’m too stupid to call out my own friends and deserved that”
The girl blinked, she blinked again when he left her. What he said, all of it, are exactly what she always thought.
She doesn’t want to be a burden, especially to Chifuyu. She could be careless about people she didn’t know sometimes, but…
She, who had been betrayed by the world, will salvage and treasure everything she could reach.
“…Uh, wait!” She quickly pursued him “But what if they made others suffer?”
“Houki think leaving the illegal ship to sink is okay, I didn’t, so I stopped her” Ichika replied lightly “Or not, this Houki is not the Houki I knew… although they’re similarly violent”
She clenched her fist in front of her chest “I did the same actually… I knew that to protect, you need strength. But what she did is pure, shallow violence”
It was silent, and then she spoke again “You did participate in gospel retrieval mission?”
He furrowed his eyebrow in response, “…You’re torn between believing my story and calling it stalker hoax”
She huffed and then retaliated “And you’re still not decided whether you shall try to convince people or gave up and stay as suspect”
Their eyes met, drilling as deep as they could into each other’s ego, before cracking and bursting into chuckles. They simply can’t believe it; they understand each other so much that it feels like they’re talking to their own selves.
They began to share their story.
Everything is mostly identical, though, there’s vast difference as well. He told her how he ended up as the only male pilot, beginning with how he’d lost in the hall and unwittingly taking an examination that should be female exclusive.
She lost as well, and she would admit, the disinterest on the examiner side is quite aggravating. Although she also added that by that point, she already trained as Cadet Representative.
“Annoying indeed, she doesn’t even look at me, I’m a man as I can get… at least physically”
She gawked, horrified “You tell me, and you said you didn’t even check if you’re female?”
“Yeah, when I touch that Uchigane, I felt like diving into world of knowledge. It felt abstract”
“I felt the same when I first touch I.S.” she made a cat smile.
She then reverses the flow of story, back to her kidnapping that happened three years ago, when she’s still first year in Junior High.
“Which cause Chifuyu-nee to forfeit her match by technicality, right?” Ichika pointed “Then she decided to retire from being a gladiator…”
She nodded “I was sent to be with Houki, for the sake of governmental protection program… how about you?”
He replied enviously “Meh… I go to school like usual… she went to German to repay her debt since German Army Intelligence managed to find me”
She nodded that was when Laura’s story rolls downhill.
“Then we found her being a teacher in I.S. Academy, and yet we felt ignored because she treat us like a stranger” they concluded at the same time “Awesome”
“We should talk more” she tugged his yukata innocuously, and he wasn’t bothered by that either. In fact, he felt a sense of comfort he never feel with any other girl, and without him knowing, she too, think the same.
“Assuming I survive being a lab rat, we have all the time you need… assuming I didn’t get killed by Houki, Rin, Laura… maybe Cecilia and Charl too… you have seen how defensive they are when it comes to you”
He slumped and black aura began to crept over his body, she straightened his back forcibly, but not maliciously and deliver THE brightest smile she ever remember “If it’s about them, then I’ll hold them at bay for you”