Pebbles glimmered here and there beneath the water, while the stream's surface glowed from the incandescent orange that the sunset burned into the sky.
Himiko marvelled at this slowly fading scene, particularly admiring the conifers that seemingly leaned on each other whenever a stronger gust of wind had the strength to challenge their usual immobility. It reminded her of Kokichi and him being her immoveable guardian on whom she was ready to rely on.
Sleepiness was gradually taking her as she was sitting on Kokichi's lap – the pairing of his warm embrace and the image of the descending sun making it no less hard to stay awake. A sense of safety and peace, that she did not have a chance to enjoy for a long time, returned to her, pushing away smallest remains of previous worries and troubles.
''Do you like it here?'' Kokichi asked.
''Yes...it's great,'' Himiko replied, smiling lovingly at him before giving him a peck on the cheek, her smile gaining a note of embarrassment as she still wasn't used to being openly affectionate – even in private.
''Is the mage falling under the spell of sleep? To be honest, I expected more from an Ultimate!'' Kokichi said playfully and submerged his right hand in the stream before sprinkling some water onto Himiko's face. That was enough to awake her. She left his embrace and splashed some water back at him in retaliation.
''AAA, ASSAULT!'' Kokichi shouted and ran along the bank towards a shallower part of the stream.
''Get back here!'' Himiko yelled, intent on preventing him from reaching the other side of the stream.
''Never, never! My last stand will be here!'' He shouted triumphantly, successively passing the stream halfway by the means of rocks and pebbles sticking out of the water.
''Come back here!" Himiko shouted, seeing that Kokichi's shoes were completely watered at this point, making his stunts all the more dangerous.
''Catch me,'' he said. When he jumped on the edge of the bank, however, he let go of the sneeze he was trying to suppress. At once, he lost his balance and, with a loud splash, fell into the water, the stream being sufficiently deep at that place to cover him whole.
''Kokichi!'' Himiko cried, unsure what to do, as her shoes were not suited to let her reach the other side.
But, as if in response to her yell, Kokichi's head popped out of the stream.
''I don't know about you, but this water is a bit too chilly,'' he said, his body being carried further down the stream, which to Himiko presented a more terrifying image as she could only see a talking head bobbing on the water's surface.
''Stand up!" She shouted while running along the bank. The stream was becoming noisier
''Gundham? Where?'' Kokichi's head rotated as he asked the question.
''No, get on your legs!''
''Warm my legs? Make a better joke next time, Himiko.''
The stream was forking off, two rivulets following thereafter.
''Come here!" Himiko shouted hopelessly, relieved that Kokichi must've understood her intent, as he pushed himself away towards the other side of the stream, the current helping him out. Himiko grabbed him when he was close enough and he in turn dragged himself onto the bank, quickly crawling further as if to avoid being dragged back.
''Maybe I won't splash you next time, although this wasn't that bad,'' Kokichi uttered, gasping and moving away drenched strands of his hair from his face.
''What? Why didn't you get out immediately? I was worried!''
''Nishishi, it was like a rollercoaster ride! You should've joined me,'' he said, lifting himself from the ground to hug Himiko.
''Don't. You're all wet! Both of us will get sick if you hug me.'' Himiko said, rebuking herself inwardly for being so stern towards Kokichi.
''Aw, how boring. You remind me of Kirumi sometimes,'' he said, squeezing his sleeves and shirt to get rid of the water.
Himiko did not reply. The wind was getting colder because of the approaching night, so she was concerned about Kokichi who started sneezing despite his assurances that it would pass. Going back to the school wouldn't take them long, most students were likely in the hall, their labs or in the canteen and there wasn't really any security for them to worry about. However, if she wanted to house Kokichi for the night, then she would need to deal with Tenko, or to at least conceal Kokichi from her.
''Go, it's getting late.'' Kokichi's voice brought her out of her thoughts.
''I will not leave you like that. You'll spend this night with me! That will be your punishment,'' she said, a slight blush warming her face.
''And how will you smuggle me into the dorms?'' Kokichi asked with a sly smirk on his face. Something told Himiko that he wasn't necessarily concerned about getting caught, but she decided to conceive a plan anyway.
''You'll hide under my bed.''
''Under your bed? Sounds like a cozy place for a guest.''
''I mean, you could...'' Himiko stuttered and was not able to finish. She realised that there was nothing she could do until she knew what to do if Tenko happened to be in the dorm when Kokichi was to be brought in.
''We'll make up something on the go, then,'' Kokichi said, expressing what she struggled to put into words.
ŞİMDİ OKUDUĞUN
A Destructive Prank (An Oumeno story)
Hayran Kurgu*Discontinued In this story, all the ultimates live normal highschool lives. Kokichi is dissatisfied with DICE and is determined to perform pranks that will bring him infamy and respect, however, in the process, he throws himself into a conflict wi...
