Hiro spent the next half-hour atop the wheeled float, completing the array of complicated songs and dances with surprising grace, and hardly even broke a sweat. He was, however, the smallest bit sore when the parade finally ended, in the same way as after he'd played a long violin solo. Looking around for Aoi and Yuki, he caught sight of blue hair and waved dramatically into the crowd, grinning as his friends approached. "Hey hey hey! Weren't we all so cool? Minori's our best drummer, believe it or not. She seems like a pretty docile person most of the time, but she gets real hostile with the drums." XX
He continued to gush about the performance until a hand wrapped around his mouth and eyes, Akihiko standing behind him with a playful smirk. "Hey, Chibi-chan, why don't you stop gloating and talk about how you threw your mallet into Hotaru's face that one time?" Hotaru, who had appeared next to the two siblings, shuddered at the memory. "That was terrifying..." "Nii-san, get off! And that was an accident too, stop making me look like the bad guy!" Hiro grumbled, batting Akki's hand away and sparking an heated argument, which soon grew physical. Hotaru groaned loathingly. XX
As the two siblings argued, Yuki and Hotaru took the time to explain to Aoi who Akihiko was, as it'd probably been weird to suddenly see an extremely buff male with suspiciously dyed hair messing with your classmate. Hiro and Akki's argument grew progressively angrier until a black-haired woman suddenly popped up behind them, smashing their heads together with a loud thunk that probably should have injured the two boys, though they hardly even flinched from the contact. "Come on boys, I expect you to get along for tonight at least. And Ko, stop picking on Hiro or I'll ground you." XX
"What? Why are you only grounding me?" Akki complained, watching with a pout as his girlfriend ruffled Hiro's hair with a wide smile. "Haha, your girlfriend loves me more than she loves you!" The two brothers exchanged angry looks. "Ah, that's right! Nee-san, this is Shimizu Aoi, remember? I told you about him~" Sachiko grinned at Aoi and bowed in greeting. "Hmmm, so you're the one Hiro's been talking about? I can see why he likes you. I'm a big fan of your sister...ah, perhaps I can meet her! Come on Ko, lets go!" Without another word, the two lovebirds disappeared into the crowd. XX
Yuki let out a giggle. "Hiro's siblings sure are interesting to watch. Anyhow, Hotaru and I have to help with packing up the drums, so you two go on ahead. And make sure you aren't followed~ Anyways, lets go!" Hiro nodded in response and watched his two friends disappear. "By the way, we don't plan on doing anything illegal. We have a secret firework viewing spot that we've been going to every year since we were kids, and its against the rules to let anyone follow you~" Leading the way through the dense crowd, Hiro gently pulled Aoi along by his sleeve, chatting about how cool the fireworks looked and how he'd once managed to burn off his eyebrows with a sparkler. His tale was a dramatic adventure from start to finish, as always. XX
As they walked on, the crowd grew thinner, and eventually vanished. Hiro led Aoi across an old, worn-out wooden bridge and along a small creek, until they finally arrived at what appeared to be a treehouse. The structure itself was hardly three feet off the ground, supported by steady wooden beams and half-hidden among thick clusters of bamboo. "We found the place when we were grade-schoolers and made it our Secret Base. We didn't know it was good for firework-viewing until nearly two years after, now we come here every year, since its not crowded like everywhere else. Plus, there's fireflies!" XX
As if on cue, the tall grass surrounding the area was suddenly illuminated by tiny, glowing lights that flickered on and off. The fireflies were scattered about, some sitting idly in the grass and other flying around. Hiro grinned softly. "I guess we both have our own secret place with a great view, huh?" XXX
Taking Aoi's sleeve again, Hiro led his companion up the short ladder and into the treehouse, which was surprisingly clean and cozy despite its old and abandoned-looking appearance. The roof had been reinforced with extra boards to keep out the rain, and the windows were surprisingly clean. Cushions and blankets were scattered around the small room and a wide assortment of photographs covered the walls: photos of Hiro, Hotaru, and Yuki in grade school, of Yuki and Minori in Junior High, of their Junior High school graduation. Some were of of Hiro and his brother, others of sceneries and animals. XX
"You can sit down if you want to. Hotaru and Yuki should be here soon, and they might bring Minori. She knows about the base since Yuki's brought her here a couple times~" Hiro gestured to and pillow-covered couch and plopped down on one end, patting the seat next to him with a silly grin. When Aoi sat down, Hiro started to explain the photographs on the wall, some of them harboring rather hilarious stories, others with stories a bit less nice. No one else interrupted the moment, and before long, the loud boom of fireworks could be heard overhead, and Hiro hurried to the huge glass window to watch. XX
He continued to gush about the performance until a hand wrapped around his mouth and eyes, Akihiko standing behind him with a playful smirk. "Hey, Chibi-chan, why don't you stop gloating and talk about how you threw your mallet into Hotaru's face that one time?" Hotaru, who had appeared next to the two siblings, shuddered at the memory. "That was terrifying..." "Nii-san, get off! And that was an accident too, stop making me look like the bad guy!" Hiro grumbled, batting Akki's hand away and sparking an heated argument, which soon grew physical. Hotaru groaned loathingly. XX
As the two siblings argued, Yuki and Hotaru took the time to explain to Aoi who Akihiko was, as it'd probably been weird to suddenly see an extremely buff male with suspiciously dyed hair messing with your classmate. Hiro and Akki's argument grew progressively angrier until a black-haired woman suddenly popped up behind them, smashing their heads together with a loud thunk that probably should have injured the two boys, though they hardly even flinched from the contact. "Come on boys, I expect you to get along for tonight at least. And Ko, stop picking on Hiro or I'll ground you." XX
"What? Why are you only grounding me?" Akki complained, watching with a pout as his girlfriend ruffled Hiro's hair with a wide smile. "Haha, your girlfriend loves me more than she loves you!" The two brothers exchanged angry looks. "Ah, that's right! Nee-san, this is Shimizu Aoi, remember? I told you about him~" Sachiko grinned at Aoi and bowed in greeting. "Hmmm, so you're the one Hiro's been talking about? I can see why he likes you. I'm a big fan of your sister...ah, perhaps I can meet her! Come on Ko, lets go!" Without another word, the two lovebirds disappeared into the crowd. XX
Yuki let out a giggle. "Hiro's siblings sure are interesting to watch. Anyhow, Hotaru and I have to help with packing up the drums, so you two go on ahead. And make sure you aren't followed~ Anyways, lets go!" Hiro nodded in response and watched his two friends disappear. "By the way, we don't plan on doing anything illegal. We have a secret firework viewing spot that we've been going to every year since we were kids, and its against the rules to let anyone follow you~" Leading the way through the dense crowd, Hiro gently pulled Aoi along by his sleeve, chatting about how cool the fireworks looked and how he'd once managed to burn off his eyebrows with a sparkler. His tale was a dramatic adventure from start to finish, as always. XX
As they walked on, the crowd grew thinner, and eventually vanished. Hiro led Aoi across an old, worn-out wooden bridge and along a small creek, until they finally arrived at what appeared to be a treehouse. The structure itself was hardly three feet off the ground, supported by steady wooden beams and half-hidden among thick clusters of bamboo. "We found the place when we were grade-schoolers and made it our Secret Base. We didn't know it was good for firework-viewing until nearly two years after, now we come here every year, since its not crowded like everywhere else. Plus, there's fireflies!" XX
As if on cue, the tall grass surrounding the area was suddenly illuminated by tiny, glowing lights that flickered on and off. The fireflies were scattered about, some sitting idly in the grass and other flying around. Hiro grinned softly. "I guess we both have our own secret place with a great view, huh?" XXX
Taking Aoi's sleeve again, Hiro led his companion up the short ladder and into the treehouse, which was surprisingly clean and cozy despite its old and abandoned-looking appearance. The roof had been reinforced with extra boards to keep out the rain, and the windows were surprisingly clean. Cushions and blankets were scattered around the small room and a wide assortment of photographs covered the walls: photos of Hiro, Hotaru, and Yuki in grade school, of Yuki and Minori in Junior High, of their Junior High school graduation. Some were of of Hiro and his brother, others of sceneries and animals. XX
"You can sit down if you want to. Hotaru and Yuki should be here soon, and they might bring Minori. She knows about the base since Yuki's brought her here a couple times~" Hiro gestured to and pillow-covered couch and plopped down on one end, patting the seat next to him with a silly grin. When Aoi sat down, Hiro started to explain the photographs on the wall, some of them harboring rather hilarious stories, others with stories a bit less nice. No one else interrupted the moment, and before long, the loud boom of fireworks could be heard overhead, and Hiro hurried to the huge glass window to watch. XX
Oh my friend, so I finally finished watching Hyouka last night, and I swear to God, Houtaro and Eru would make the cutest freakin' couple in all of anime. Also, I now realize that we had an idea about the festival already...welp, I completely destroyed that. I got a little bit carried away with my Secret Base...