That and the fact that I'm not very sociable. Perhaps loads of people would talk to me if I made more overtures. "I don't see why not."

He bounces in place a little bit, grinning.

By the way, I've just discovered two things.

What, did you stop time real quick and test some stuff?

Well, not exactly, because I need to be in costume to stop time. However, while I need to be in costume to rewind time, I don't need to rewind to a time I was in costume. That was one of the things I found out.

The other thing is that I can totally duplicate items in my bag of holding when I do that.

Keen!

So, you know, if there's anything you want duped, let me know and I'll see what I can do.

...I ought to have five thousand ideas but they are not popping into my mind at this exact moment!

I've got two extras of your pen, at any rate. Though they're in my buckler right now, I'd need to transform to get them back. Ah, and here are the fateful stairs.

(Oh, it would be so gentlemanly of me to help you walk down down these stairs to make sure you don't trip and break your arm, but now you don't need it anymore... he said, the first time around.)

    (I don't! replied Haru, wearing that smile that makes Yutaka want to kiss him. It's super neat!)

So like any reasonable person Yutaka spent an unreasonable amount of time thinking about how to improve on that, and eventually he arrived at, You know, while I'm not so selfish as to actually wish you'd spent a minute longer with dyspraxia (he also practised pronouncing that word in his head) than you needed to, a little part of me does miss the opportunity to be gentlemanly and the excuse to stick by you.

Well, you can probably do some of it for appearance's sake on the ice outside if you really want.

Y e e e e s s s s s s he is SO good at this he is ACING it he is being SO sexy and confident and powerful.

I would love to.

It's actually kind of hard to walk like I used to.

D'you think people would notice if you let go a little bit?

A little bit, no. I'll probably pretend I outgrew it over the next few months or something.

Gotta get past this one, first. Oh, someone's about to show up to bug me in ten seconds, let's pretend we've been having a normal conversation so they don't try to interrupt it.

"I really don't think my English is good enough for Twain, but maybe I'm wrong?"

"Some of Twain's books are routinely assigned to kids. You'd need to look stuff up for historical context as much as vocabulary, but you could probably struggle through Tom Sawyer if you wanted to do so." Who was going to bug you?

"Well if I'm already going through the trouble of being in a school like this I might as well go all-in and actually immerse myself." That guy over there, coming up from the right after the stairs. Ishida Tetsuya. He's the football team captain and he thinks I look fit and that it would be cool if I tried out and that will last approximately one and a half days until the rumours that I'm gay reach him and then he will avoid me like the plague. I suppose the rumours will be a lot quicker this time, though.

Delighted to be of assistance. I take it you don't want to be on the team. "It'd be extracurricular."

"Maybe I'll ask you to help me. Never had such a handsome sensei before, I'll be so studious." I wasn't against it or anything but Ishida-san's reaction really turned me off even trying.

"In my copious spare time?"

"If I'm a really good boy maybe sensei will make some time for me." Or, at least, maybe he will consider the idea of going out with me once we've saved Tokyo, if I make him like me enough.

Yep, there goes Ishida Tetsuya, having caught enough of that exchange to decide against even starting a conversation. He will casually walk past them even though he does not have a reason to go upstairs.

Something about that seems to - slightly disquiet Haru? Football invitation averted.

—sorry, am I coming on too strong?

...not necessarily?

I guess that's better than an unqualified 'yes'...?