Chapter 11_Dancing with Crabs

Tomiko wasn't looking forward to breaking the news to Aio about still trying her game console yet.

“Don’t worry about it.” Aio said cheerfully when Tomiko broke the news. “I know you’re very busy.”

Tomiko felt like she was failing as a friend again.

“Let me know if you would like to study together sometime. My house is always open to you, and I think I got a good grip on this week's material... maybe.” Aio continued.

That wasn't true. Well, maybe knowing what was being talked about in class was true. Aio’s grades were a lot better than Tomiko’s. But Tomiko felt as though she wasn't welcome at Aio’s house.

Tomiko had been over to Aio’s place once before. It was a while back, before the tears appeared. Tomiko remembered feeling overwhelmed and jealous of all the stuff Aio had. She didn't trust herself not to lash out at something stupid.

And then there was the case of Mako. He was over at Aio’s place all the time. There was no way she could go over without feeling like she was interrupting. Even if he wasn't there, Tomiko would feel like Aio had to change plans and disappoint Mako to arrange it.

“I appreciate the offer, but I think I study better on my own.” Tomiko said after much consideration.

“Ah, my little brother is just like that. I always try to help him out as the kind, caring, doting older sibling I am, but I always end up getting off topic and wasting his time.” Aio put two fingers to her temple and made a silly face.

To what end, Tomiko wasn't sure. Was Aio trying to display what she would do to distract her brother, or trying to cheer her up, or maybe practicing a trend she saw in a video? Whatever the gesture was, it was ineffective at conveying anything.

“You definitely don’t act like an older sibling. You have the carefree attitude of a youngest” Tomiko said with a snicker.

“Hey,” Aio said back with a childish tone. “I’m very good at leading in track. Aside from daddy I’m basically in charge.”

While Aio did contribute the most to the team, her dad was still very much in charge. She was probably pressured into the role from her family. Tomiko wasn't the most convinced of Aio’s ability to lead, but it was something she would never say to her face.

“Yeah. I suppose you do take after your old man in that way. More than you take after your mom.” Tomiko said with another snicker, trying her best to contribute to the conversation.

“I know!” Aio laughed. She was used to Tomiko’s sense of humor. “I can’t clean my room or cook a meal to save my life. And she reminds me of it constantly. Just last night….”

Then Aio proceeded to talk about the happenings of her home life until class started. It was the kind of thing Tomiko both liked and disliked to hear.

During class, Tomiko was having a difficult time focusing on the material again. Math wasn’t so bad, but she was really struggling to follow along in English. She forgot where her speaking part was in the text, and wasn't prepared when it was her turn to read out loud. She had only messed up a little, but the embarrassment from the odd looks she wasn't getting from her classmates made it even more difficult to focus the rest of the day.

“Say Aio,” Tomiko spoke up during lunch in the middle of another explanation of a game she was trying to pitch. “Have you heard of a student named Chimon?”

“In our grade? Hmm… not that I can remember.” Said Aio.

“They could be in a different grade. I’m not actually sure.”

“I may need to ask around for it, I’m pretty good with names but I’m not that good. I can confirm we don’t have anyone in any of the sports named Chimon.”

Based on Chimon’s plump physique, Tomiko could already say with confidence he wasn't a part of any sports. But Tomiko did trust that if Aio wasn't familiar with him, they were not currently in their grade. Tomiko hadn't seen Chimon in school at all either, so it was very possible he went to another school.

“Do you have their last name? It would make it a bit easier.” Aio asked.

“No. It was a name someone brought up while I was diving. They thought a Chimon went to our school and to say hi for them if I crossed paths.”

“Oh, are you actually interested? You don’t bring up boys very often.” Aio inquired.

“N-no!” Tomiko started to get embarrassed. She should have thought of a more clever cover up reason.

“Ha-ha, your face is beat red, you must have a crush!”

“Shut up! I haven’t even met the guy!”

“Sure….” Aio said with a suspicious look.

“Whatever, I don’t need you to believe me”

As much as Tomiko wanted her friend to believe her, she didn't have the energy or the clear head to continue to make her case. Maybe if Aio thought she was already interested in someone, she would stop recommending Tomiko spend more time with boys.

Boys were annoying. Tomiko found them to be disruptive and inconsiderate. Sure, one could say Tomiko’s aggression could be just as bad, but Tomiko never starts the issue. To Tomiko, she was always pushing back against people who got in her way. Boys, on the other hand, were rowdy for the sake of getting attention. Shouting absurdly any time they would get away with it, barging into others conversations and trying to show off in the lamest ways possible. Like ‘oh cool, you can stick more pencils in the ceiling than your friend’. Who honestly cares.

Aio continued to talk about the game she wanted Tomiko to try, while Tomiko kept thinking of how much she hated boys.

“Hey Tomiko,” Aio’s dad called out to her during stretches. “I want you to run around the track a few times before going around the school. I want to check up on your form”

Tomiko knew better. The tone in his voice had too much concern in it. This was definitely about what happened yesterday.

However, he was the coach, so Tomiko decided not to fight back and do as she was told. Was it because he was the coach, or perhaps it was because he was Aio’s dad. Either way, Tomiko was running laps around the track.

She disliked the track. While Tomiko loved running, it was almost exclusively cross country she enjoyed. Running around on the track felt repetitive, boring, trapped even. The way the bleachers faced toward her, the uniformity in the track itself. It wasn't like running off track. The openness is freeing.

After a few laps, the coach called her over. Aio was there too, which was a little unnerving at first. Then Tomiko figured she was waiting for her so they could run laps around the school together.

“Tomiko, I want you to sit out today.” The coach said sternly.
Tomiko was shaken, like she had just received a blow to the stomach, but she wasn't defeated.

“May I ask why, sir?” Tomiko questioned, keeping as level toned as she could.

The coach let out a sigh.

“I’m concerned about your health. Your eyes look tired and your breathing irregular. This is not just about what happened yesterday.”

“So, what? Am I just out?” Tomiko asked.

Tomiko appreciated he was looking out for her, but it was overshadowed by the feeling he was getting in her way.

“Only for the moment, I want to have a talk with your father. Will he be home this evening?”

That was too far for Tomiko. He had crossed a line. All her respect for him took a temporary trip as she lost control.

“Mind your own business! I can take care of it myself!”

With that outburst, she turned away to leave. As she was doing so, she saw how Aio was looking at her. It was the last expression she wanted to see from her friend.

Troubled.

Tomiko had originally planned to just walk away, but after seeing the trouble she was causing Aio, she ran.

Her eyes started to well, but she just blamed it on the wind.

#

Tomiko questioned what to do with the rest of her day. She hadn't showered yet, due to leaving practice so abruptly. Yet, she wanted to see if Chimon would still be in the alley this soon.

She knew Chimon was early to meet up even on the first day when she had no practice, but it was because of a portal event causing the closure of most afterschool activities. It was possible he was still involved with a different school organization that wouldn't have allowed him to be there early.

Tomiko questioned back and forth as she approached the alley, but she had basically already made up her mind to go, so she was more so just keeping her mind busy with something else other than what just happened at practice.

Sure enough, when Tomiko entered the back part of the alley she heard the frantic tapping of buttons.

Tomiko stood there a bit in silence. She didn't feel like it was where she was supposed to be. At first she questioned how clean she would be, not having showered after a few laps around the track. But she found something else that felt off. She had broken the pattern in her schedule. She wasn't supposed to be here this early. The sun was too high in the sky. She didn't feel the usual level of exhaustion. It felt wrong.

Not knowing what to do with herself, Tomiko just sat on the back steps of the candy shop. She tried not to think, just waiting out for the right time to dive. She had difficulty doing so. Regret filled her head.

Eventually, the time came when she would normally enter the alley. She could have easily gone home, showered, and came back. Whatever, it was in the past now.

Tomiko approached the garbage bin. She had wanted to kick it firmly to let out some aggression, but something inside stopped her. She had bothered enough people for one day.

Instead, she peered over the side of the dumpster. She had never actually looked in before, and was a little curious how Chimon could stand being in trash for so long.

Chimon was sitting cross legged at the bottom of the container in what looked like a dog bed. It was wrapped in a thin garbage bag, probably so it wouldn't get wet. With the bag, it should have looked like trash, but it was easy to tell its contents because of how thin the bag was and it being formed around the contours of the bed sides as he sat on it. He had a thin blanket loosely hung over his shoulders. All around Chimon were dozens of wrappers from snacks, candy, and soft drinks. It was clear he had poor eating habits from his size, but this was more junk than Tomiko could force herself to eat in a month.

Although trash littered the bin, it actually looked cleaned. There was no caked on grime or dirt. Even the rusted edges seemed to have been treated with a layer of duct tape.

Among the trash, Tomiko also saw Chimon’s open backpack. But, it wasn’t a regular backpack. All bags of actual garbage seemed to have been removed. However, when she focussed on the bag, it was actually a traveler's bag. The kind people would take on planes, back when people could fly in planes. All air travel was deemed too dangerous on account of all the floating portals.

Looking inside the open travel bag, Tomiko could make out clothes and toiletries. She also couldn't help but notice a small generator on the other side of him connected to his game device.

Was he… living here?

“Hey Chimon.” Tomiko said incisively.

“Ah! What?” Chimon yelled. He had been too engrossed in his game to notice Tomiko was observing him.

“Are you homeless?” Tomiko asked.

She thought about skirting around the question, or asking other things leading to the question, but it was bothering her to know. It may also lead to other questions that were bothering her. Like why he wasn't around school, but still had a job posting on the quest board.

“Oh! Haha. I guess I can see how you would think that.” Chimon said with a nervous laugh.

And then he just looked back at Tomiko, like he was hoping she would forget she asked a question.

“Well. are you?” Tomiko said, reaffirming her question.

“Guh! Um… no… I have a house. I just like hanging around here.” Chimon said.

It was said in the least convincing way possible. There was clearly more to the story. But it was like pulling teeth to get the information, so Tomiko decided to drop it for now.

“Fine,” She shrugged her shoulders. “As long as it doesn’t interfere with me getting paid.”

Although, seeing this was how Chimon spent his time, Tomiko felt worse about taking money from him.

They entered the portal with no further fuss.

Back on the beach. Tomiko had partially forgotten this was where they left off. Her mood improved a little, as she was looking forward to smashing more.

“I recommend grinding for levels in this area,” Chimon said.

“Grinding? Sorry, could you remind me what that means again in nerd speak.” Tomiko said.

“Um, fighting enemies over again without making forward progress for the purpose of leveling and getting resources.”

“You want me to smash more stuff in this area?”

“Yeah. You could say it that way.”

“Good, because that’s what I was planning to do.”

Tomiko brought out her hammer, which was still equipped from yesterday, and ran forward at the crabs.

They were easy for Tomiko to handle. They took about six hits each in different spots to take down. Even though they could deal a lot of damage with a single pinching grab, it was very easy to avoid, even with the heavier hammer.

Tomiko was enjoying herself. As she bobbed and weaved around the large enemies, she left the problems of her day behind her. A wicked smile crept across her face. One she hadn't worn since fighting on the Grembo hill.

“On your seven, grip attack incoming.” Chimon would say.

Tomiko would adjust accordingly and step further to the right.

“One in front is off balance, strike at the right leg to prone.”

“Got it!” Tomiko shouted as she maneuvered her hammer to knock the crab off balance.

“Attack incoming, but one more strike to take this one out” Chimon said.

Tomiko could afford to take the hit.

She pulled her hammer over her head, bending back a little with it, then snapping it down on the fallen crab.

A weak hit pushed her to the side about a foot from the dropped items.

“Ten percent sustained. Seventy five currently.” Chimon said.

Tomiko turned to face the other two crustaceans she was engaged with.

“Have either of these taken damage yet?” Tomiko asked.

“One to your left is at fifty percent. Other one is fresh.” Chimon replied.

“Got it, ready a health item.” Tomiko said.

She leapt at the one already damaged, hitting its arm before it could strike. Tomiko then used the disarmed side of the crab as cover from the other enemy as she used a health potion Chimon readied.

“You’re back up to full.” Chimon said.

Tomiko spun around and struck at the spot she had just been using for cover.

“Incoming grip attack!” Chimon said.

Tomiko noticed, and ducked under the wounded crab to avoid the attack. She tried swinging her hammer at the underbelly, but there wasn't enough space to drive enough force behind the blow.

“No damage done, but it probably only needs one hit. Another enemy is where you were.” Chimon said.

Tomiko pushed off the sand with her weapon to quickly put space between her and the approaching crab. Now it was still out of range.

The damaged crab tried to turn so it could strike, but took too long as Tomiko crushed two of its legs with a single attack.

It poofed into loot, now leaving a straight path for the other crab.

The smoke from the defeated crab made it difficult to see the one approaching.

“It’s charging! Side roll!”

Tomiko followed the advice, and did a somersault leap to the left. Because she had enough time to react, she was able to tumble back into standing position.

Turning back to where the crab had just charged, she capitalized on the fact it was facing away from her. Tomiko managed to get four hits in before it even knew where she was. It also poofed into some item drops.

“Well done!” Chimon praised.

“I still got hit a few times. Would prefer not to waste potions.” Tomiko said back, unable to take the compliment.

“Well, we are getting them much faster than we’re using them.”

Tomiko looked at the three spots of unclaimed loot on the ground. She could see there were two health potions among other things, so he wasn't wrong.

“Maybe not much faster, but we’re net positive.” Tomiko said.

“Fair, you're leveling up which is the main point anyway.” Chimon said.

That was true. Even without being told what level she was, Tomiko could tell each of the same enemy required less hits to defeat.

It was also nice the item drops were not decreasing in value too steeply. For Tomiko, it meant she wasn’t too overpowered for the area, and it was still requiring skill on her part to do well. She liked that.

“I’m going to grab the drops and then engage some more,” Tomiko said to Chimon.

“Got it.” Chimon said back.

Tomiko stuffed the items in Chimon’s bubble for a head, and walked down the beach where more crabs were. She kept walking until four crabs noticed her, and then backed away a little as they got closer. This was so they had room to fight without drawing more over.

The two of them continued smashing crabs all evening. When there were no more left on the main beach area, Chimon would teleport to a different area and then teleport them back to the beach. Tomiko didn't understand why this would bring the crabs back, but Chimon said it was similar to how it worked in video games, so she didn't question it further.

“Mind if we stop here,” Chimon asked after about two hours of continuous battling.

“Yeah sure. Say, are any other weapons good against these guys? I’m kinda getting bored of this one.”

“Unless you want to try your hand at magic?” Chimon replied.

“Really! All this time and we didn’t get any crush weapons?” Tomiko asked, fairly shocked.

“To be fair, that’s not the kind of drops these enemies give. They did give us weapons that would be good against fire enemies. One of the swords you picked up does elemental water damage.”

“If I’m going to use a sword, I want to use my original one.” Tomiko said stubbornly.

“Oh, uh, then why do you want to switch the hammer you're using? I’m surprised you wouldn’t get bored of your sword.” Chimon said.

“T-That’s different!” Tomiko protested.

But, she didn't know how to make her case. She didn't want to say she was attached to it, because she didn't want to come off as an overly sentimental person. Tomiko tried not to get attached to anything any more. Yet, when she searched for another explanation nothing came to mind. She kept returning to the thought “It’s important to me”

“If you want to try something new, I really recommend getting in some magic practice. We are going to encounter enemies that are immune to physical attacks, and some of them like to stay at a distance. It would be really useful to have tomes at our disposal.”

Tomiko took in Chimon's explanation. She overlooked another piece of evidence suggesting he knew too much about this world. Tomiko was too focussed on making herself seem less attached to things.

“Yeah, I guess I can give it a try. But if it doesn't work, I’m chucking the book in the ocean,” She said, feeling fairly confident she made herself look cool and uncaring.

“Gah! Maybe don’t toss it.” Chimon nervously retorted, but in a tone clearly displayed he was powerless to change her mind.

“Just take us back already.”

“S-sure… You won’t actually throw it in the ocean will you?”

“Log me out!”

“Yes! Right away.”

Chimon saved where they were and exited them out.

She was about to leave the alley after getting her payment, but then thought to bring something else up. It was something that was in the back of her mind all day.

“Um. I may be here earlier than usual tomorrow.”

“Oh. Why’s that?” Chimon said, already in the dumpster.

“I… don’t have practice tomorrow.”

It wasn't a complete lie. The school had practice, but she wouldn't if she refused to go.

“Okay,” Chimon said back, “As long as it’s still after school I’m fine with starting. See you tomorrow.”

Chimon gave a respectful nod before crouching out of sight into the dumpster.

Tomiko stood there in the alley. She was a bit surprised at how short the exchange ended. Part of her didn't want him to ask about it. However, a large part of her, deep within, wanted him to press more. Ask why she didn't have practice tomorrow. Ask why she seemed upset about it. Yet, she couldn't see herself explaining the situation to him. It wasn't her place to load off her problems onto her client.

With a fuzzy head filled with mixed emotions, she went home.