Strings Attached

The late afternoon sky is rather hot when we finally leave the clubroom. Both Miyari and I have our uniforms on, the white sleeves and black collars fluttering in the wind. Sweat drips down our necks, and I'm another Celsius away from riding up my skirt to dangerously high levels.

But I don't, because I'm a good student, and so is my best friend.

I glance over to her, almost literally melting in the heat. She hates the summers, and though the clubroom had AC, the outdoors definitely does not have that luxury. The cosplay items and arm warmers she has on probably aren't helping either.

"Hey." I nudge her on the side, and her eyes snap open, the gold contacts meeting my gaze. "Wanna come over to my place? We can grab ice cream on the way."

Her ears perk up, and her tail straightens. "O-oh, sure! I'd love to—Erm, I mean. As long as you don't try assault the great Magus Miyari again, we shall have peace."

I laugh, wiggling my fingers like some sort of degenerate. "No promises, hehehe."

"Kimiko!" She hisses, and I can't help but laugh harder, her frown deepening, and her blush getting brighter.

"What?"

"Y-you know what!" A huff escapes her lips, and she crosses her arms, looking away. "You're a pervert."

"And you're a chuuni, so we're both freaks together."

"Pft, do not compare me to those middle-schoolers." She waves her hand in the air, nose turned up. "We of the cult are far more sophisticated than mere chuunibyou. Our powers come from real pacts and real rituals! How do you think I've managed to transmogrify my form into that of the superior nekomimi?"

"Mm, I dunno." I hum, pondering, and then I reach out and tug her 'cat ears'.

She lets out a little mewl, and I can't help but snicker as it comes undone, the expertly camouflaged headband lifting slightly. "Looks like really well-made cosplay to me."

"Hmph." She pushes my hand away, fixing it. "Curse your witch instincts. Only someone with superior magic like yourself could ever detect the truth of the matter—"

"HEY, CHUUNI FREAKS! GET A ROOM!"

A shout from across the road startles us both. It's a group of guys around our age, dressed up in athletic gear in the school's colors. They're laughing and jeering, pointing at us.

Hm, baseball players from the look of the uniforms. They're a pretty big deal around here, especially with Summer Koshien coming up, but that's no excuse for rudeness. Still, I'm not about to get in trouble for a fight. Not worth it. I try to wave it off, but when I glance at Miyari, I notice her fidgeting around in her bag, eyes downcast.

"Let's see…" she murmurs. "I have some hexes in here, maybe a few curses, or perhaps a summoning circle to the seventh hell to sacrifice their souls—"

"Hey!" I grab her wrist when I see her hand close around a can of pepper spray—crap, where did she get that from?!

"Let go, Kimiko!" She snarls, trying to pull out of my grasp, but I don't yield. Despite her bravado, her arm strength has much to be desired, and I easily keep her in check. "They were making fun of you too!"

"I don't care, Miyari!" I hiss back. "You're gonna get us in trouble if you do that! Now come on, we should just go—"

*SMACK*

A baseball hits her in the back of the head, and she collapses forward with a yelp.

I freeze, the noise dying in my throat as I watch her fall. My mind is suddenly blank. I hear the baseball players screaming in panic and their footsteps as they run away like the cowards they are.

"Miyari?" I finally manage to choke out, and I kneel down beside her, gently shaking her shoulder. Those things are not to be underestimated. If she's bleeding, if her skull's been cracked, if—

"Ow…" She groans, stirring, and a wave of relief washes over me. I pull her into a hug, and she stiffens.

"Thank goodness, don't you dare scare me like that again." I sigh, letting her go. "Are you okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine." She mumbles, rubbing the back of her head. There's no blood, no concussion, and I can tell from her eyes that she's still lucid. "Hehe, my superior nekomimi features provide me protection from such low-ranking attacks—"

"Good," I say, and then, without another word, I pick up the baseball, stand, and chuck it as far as I can.

I have a pretty good pitch, and it goes sailing horizontally. My fury may have aimed it, because one of the boys cry out in surprise as it hits him in the back of the knee. He stumbles and falls to the asphalt, and his friends turn to glare at me.

"Wha—You bitch!"

I grab Miyari's wrist, tugging her along as I run from the unintentionally escalated conflict. I might've stopped doing sports back in middle school, but I can still outrun most of my peers. And I know Miyari can keep pace for a little bit. She used to run away from bullies and bullies' girlfriends all the time before I became her friend.

"H-hey, Kimi-chan?!" she yelps, stumbling after me. "Where are we going?"

My heart jumps at the nickname. Ah, she rarely ever uses it. But right now, I'm too focused on losing the boys behind us.

"The store. We'll kill two birds with one stone. Get our ice creams and lose the idiots chasing us. C'mon!"

We dash through the streets, the boys hot on our heels, and we're laughing the whole time. We're running, and running, and running, and the wind billows our skirts, and the world seems so bright and free.

It feels like we're flying. It feels like we're soaring.

And it makes me want to kiss her.

But I don't, because I'm a good girl, and she's not my girlfriend.

Yet.

***

"Could we get these, please?"

"Certainly, miss."

The two of us are standing at the counter, still catching our breath in the AC'd sanctuary. Miyari leans against it, wheezing, while I fish around in my wallet for some change.

I place the money in the tray after making sure there's enough. He glances over at our purchases, scanning them.

"By the way, were you planning on getting coffee for this ice cup? I noticed you didn't put any in there."

I shake my head. The ice isn't for drinking. "Nope, that won't be necessary. But thanks anyway~"

"Suit yourself." He shrugs and finishes the exchange, passing us the receipt with a bow.

I stash the ice creams in my bag, then pass Miyari a water bottle, pressing it against her face, gently. She flinches, human ears twitching, and I can't help but giggle.

"A-ah, thank you, Kimiko," she says, and her fingers wrap around the bottle. "You truly are my greatest ally and most trusted friend. Thank you for helping me escape those ruffians."

"Pft." I roll my eyes but smile nonetheless as we walk out of the store and down an alley. "Yeah, well, what are best friends for, huh? Anyway, you can hold this ice cup to where the ball hit you—"

I blink as I try to pass it to her, realizing her other hand is suddenly occupied once again. The voodoo doll from earlier is in her hands, and she holds it up.

"Fufufu! Unfortunately, your compassionate heart is your downfall. While you were busy purchasing sustenance for our souls, you did not guard your satchel, leaving it open to my cunning fingers!"

"W-when did you learn how to pickpocket?! And when did you even steal it? I never saw you take it—"

"Shhh. Silence, peasant." She pushes her water bottle forward to shush me, smooshing against my lips. I can feel the cool plastic of the bottle cap, and I wonder why she didn't just use her hand to do it instead. "You are powerless before me. I have the voodoo doll, and thus, I hold your life in my very hands."

"…So?" I ask, raising a brow. "What exactly are you gonna use it for?"

A smile. "This!" She positions herself against the wall, tucks her bottle away, then moves the doll's arm forward.

My body is yanked along by invisible strings before I can react, and my open hand slams into the wall beside her. My breath hitches as the air is nearly knocked out of me, and I'm suddenly aware of the fact that we're in an extremely lewd position.

My arm is right next to her head, and my form is shadowing her, leaning over like some sort of predator.

"Um, Miyari…?" I squeak out, and my throat feels dry. "What are you doing…?"

She giggles. "Fufu, isn't it obvious? I'm bestowing a reward upon you for helping me earlier."

"T-this is just a kabedon! What kind of reward is this?!"

"Are you saying you dislike my gift?" Her ears lower, tail drooping. She really looks dejected, eyes wide and sparkling. My heart skips a beat.

Damn it. This girl. This stupid, lovely, chuuni girl.

"N-no…" I mutter, and she lights up, cheeks red, and a grin on her lips. "But I mean—"

"Shush then. I'm not done yet." She moves the doll's head this time.

My chest nearly explodes as my lips contact her forehead. Her hair is so, so soft, the skin beneath is warm and gentle, and I never wanna leave this spot.

I'm frozen, just standing there, kissing her like an idiot. Time seems to stop.

This is our first kiss, isn't it? I mean, it's not on the lips, and I would have liked it better if it was a mutual thing, but—Wait, is this not mutual? I don't really mind it, and she did ask if I liked it, so…

My mental debate is cut short as she pulls me away with the doll, a blush still on her cheeks. "T-there. That is your gift. You may keep it forevermore."

"…" I stare at her. Many thoughts are racing through my head at once. Thoughts like: 'what the hell just happened', 'is she okay', 'can we do that again'.

The moment passes after a few more seconds, and I muster the strength to break free, snatching the doll again from her clutches.

"Wh—hey, that's mine!"

"Not anymore." I mutter, tossing it into my bag with a flourish. I'm still blushing, but it's probably not as notable as her red face. Seriously, she looks like a cherry. "I'm gonna be taking that as my real reward for saving your butt."

"B-but—"

"Shut up," I say, then grab her by the wrist. "Let's go to my place, Miyari. Time's wasting and we're burning daylight."

"Kimi-chan—" Her voice cuts off, a gasp escaping as I pull her away from the alleyway and into the sunlight.

I can't look her in the eye. I thought her delusions of 'debauchery' were limited to headpats and ear scratches, not this.

Is this a confession? Can it be taken as one? I mean, I'm not opposed considering how I was planning on asking her out anyway, but still!

"…" I glance back at her, and I can't help but yearn when I see her expression.

Her mouth is wide open, gold eyes staring at the sky, cat ears and tail flopping about, and she's barely able to stay upright. Did my forehead kiss really do that much to her?

While we walk, a breeze blows past us, and the moment of coolness reminds me of the plot I was conjuring earlier: the one to confess to her.

Just like that, more pieces of the puzzle come together, and a fully realized plan manifests into reality.

Yes, this is it!

My gaze shifts to the voodoo doll again. It hinges on a lot of assumptions, but with how she acted today, I can't help but hope.

I giggle like the 'witch' I am.

The next time she pulls the strings, it'll be because I let her.