Replay

3-7 Q.E.D.

A/N: Multiple announcements first:

1) I will explicitly state here that Blake's only read up the end of the Black Dragons arc—that's the one after Valhalla, for you anime-only watchers. There's a bit of a spoiler regarding Kisaki from that arc in this chapter, so beware.

2) I made a minor mistake in 3-5 (Limit), the chapter before the battle, with Takemichi's scene, after he'd returned from the future. I changed a moderately major detail of the next arc, and that'll affect the future Takemichi saw. It only regards that exact scene, though. You'll see what I mean in the final third of this chapter.

3) If you remember the list of quotes I posted as a preview to this arc, the Botox one was originally meant for Souya, but it ended up sounding insensitive in context, so I didn't use it.

4) I drew three manga pages of the last scene from Blake's perspective in this chapter and have inserted them in the chapter. She should be wearing glasses, but they were too much of a pain to draw in. 

5) I will sometime post a parody one-shot, unrelated to this story, that features Chifuyu in the timeline where Takemichi became a Toman Admin. Again, go take a look if you're interested.

6) Last but not least, it's been about a year of this story (I think? Wattpad only saves the date last updated, and I edited the first chapter a few months ago). Thank you for all the support thus far, people who commented, voted, or simply read up to this point!

Now, onto the chapter.

"Why didn't you tell us where you would be?"

"Um." To not aggravate my sore neck, I slowly peered up at the glowering behemoth that was Shigeru. My fingers hung loose in front of me after the door had swung open the instant I'd inserted my key. My lanyard dangled from the lock.

"Let her in first, dear," Youko called from beyond the foyer. My host father responded by shuffling to the side of the doorway, but his expression remained stern. I tugged my key out of the lock and pocketed it as I stepped inside.

The house was cozy compared to the autumn night, which wasn't especially cold, but the wind had been uncomfortable against my bare arms. It'd sure woken me up; I hadn't expected I'd be outside for so long and neglected to bring my jacket. My tote bag with my Toman uniform had been a welcome insulator against my side. Keeping my neck straight, I bent down to take off my shoes and stow them on the shoe rack. Youko stood up from the chair pulled over to the floor lamp and hobbled over to stand behind her husband.

"So?"

I looked up at Shigeru. "I thought you wouldn't have let me go otherwise," I admitted. "I'm sorry." I bowed my head slightly—ow. I straightened back up with a carefully neutral expression.

Shigeru moved back when Youko spoke. "My initial response would have been no. But this is your overseas exchange, and we want you to enjoy it, so it's alright—but only every once in a while." She smiled, the small wrinkles around her eyes crinkling.

"You're still going to school this week," her husband rumbled.

"I will. I'll make up on any late work." I met their eyes. It was the least I could do after skipping school. Considering the day's excitement, spending an extra hour or two on homework sounded like a godsend.

"That's good. Dear, could you heat the water back up? I think it may have gone cold again." Shigeru complied and left upstairs. "Blake, let's go to the kitchen."

"I believe I texted you that I ate at Hayato's house?" I said as I followed Youko into the room at the end of the hallway. She flipped the light switch, illuminating the kitchen area and dining table across from the counter.