Comfort Zone

Chapter 25 - Three

The next day, Harumi didn't come to school, a very rare occurrence.

Suzuka was naturally worried, but Harumi wasn't returning her texts, and Fuyumi didn't have a phone. She ended up asking Mika.

"Hey, Mika, is Harumi okay?"

Mika sat up at her desk and turned to look in the direction of Harumi's house. She then shook her head. "She's suffering from mana withdrawal again. Should I take you to her?"

"Eh? She shouldn't be, right? I've been taking care of her properly." Suzuka frowned, finding the situation strange. "Let me tell some people, then you can take me there."

Mika nodded and slumped back onto the desk.

Suzuka first went to find Nanmei.

"Um, I'm not sure why, but Harumi is sick today," Suzuka said. "I have to go take care of her, so we'll have to reschedule. I'm sorry."

Nanmei smiled. "You'd do the same for any of us, right? Don't worry about it."

Suzuka then explained the situation to the teachers before returning to Mika.

She held out her hand. "Okay. Let's go."

Mika took Suzuka's hand. Their surroundings twisted, changing from the school to Harumi's house. Mika left Suzuka there and vanished.

Suzuka went in and found Fuyumi in the living room. "What's going on?"

"Oh, hello, Suzuka." Fuyumi set down the book she had been reading. "Harumi's going through mana withdrawal again, so it's good that you've come."

"Why? Did she lie about how much I needed to uh, help her?"

"No, you've been giving her more than enough mana," Fuyumi replied, shaking her head. "The problem here is that she's gaining her third tail, and it's really soon after her second tail. She used up all her mana to gain the second, and you've brought her up to about sixty percent full since then. However, she's still missing that forty percent that would have avoided this situation. If she'd gained her third tail a month later, there wouldn't be any problems."

"Huh." Suzuka tilted her head. "Why is she gaining another tail so soon?"

"Only two tails are based on age," Fuyumi explained. "The rest are based on life events. Considering everything, the only likely tails that she could meet the requirements for are the one for eating a human's heart, or the one for finding a soulmate. The former seems unlikely, so..."

Fuyumi gave Suzuka a meaningful look. "Did something happen recently?"

"Um. I told Harumi that I love her yesterday?"

Fuyumi nodded. "So, it's your fault after all. Go take responsibility."

Suzuka nodded back. "That's the plan."

"Though I should warn you, this won't be like last time. Last time, Harumi had the forewarning and could prepare a bit for you. She didn't have any of that this time. She's truly completely out of mana, nothing hidden. Once you wake her up, you'll entirely be at the mercy of a kitsune acting on her instincts."

Suzuka gulped. "How different will that be?"

"Harumi never uses magic on you, but she will this time. She also won't care about the pacing. But, she still won't hurt you, so just enjoy it."

"Hmm. Then, can I borrow some clothes?"

"Certainly."

Suzuka changed into a black kimono, then headed into Harumi's room.

Sunlight lit the room naturally. Harumi laid on her side on the bed, wearing a white t-shirt and black shorts, normal pajamas for her. Sweat covered her exposed skin, her breathing heavy.