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Jurina was halfway through rereading her favorite volume of Gyoza Over Flowers when someone sat next to her. There was only one person who would join her so casually. She nudged Nadeshiko with her elbow. "If you're not going to read them, can you give me back my copies of the first three?"
"I don't remember you ever loaning these to me," a deep voice replied.
Jurina jumped nearly a foot in the air as she propelled herself out of her chair. A shriek of terror ripped from her throat.
Mikoto stared at her with a look of bewilderment. "I didn't mean to frighten you."
"Me?" Jurina dusted off her clothes in an effort to seem casual. "You didn't scare me!"
"Ah. So you just jump in the air and scream for fun?"
Jurina could feel her face getting hot.
Mikoto peered at the cover of the book in Jurina's hands. "What is that?"
Again, she let out a little shriek. She quickly hid the book behind her back. "Nothing!"
"Why did that boy on the cover look like me?"
"Um... Um... I gotta go!" Jurina sprinted as quickly as she could out of the room.
This would be the last time Nadeshiko ever agreed to go anywhere with Jurina. What kind of person was late to everything?
When she heard footsteps coming near her, Nadeshiko turned her fury on Jurina. "Would it kill you to be on time for once?"
Mikoto stared down at her.
Nadeshiko's fury withered along with her will to live. She'd just yelled at Aragami Mikoto. She'd yelled at the Caligula, for god's sake! If Mikoto didn't kill her, Haruka definitely would as soon as she heard about this!
"Aragami-senpai!" Nadeshiko said. "Um. What are you doing here?"
"I heard you trying to persuade Azuma to see this performance with you. I thought it sounded interesting."
"An… idol performance?"
That didn't sound like something Mikoto cared anything about. It wasn't theater. She'd turned up her nose last time Nadeshiko gushed about her time in Sweet Pleats.
"I don't see why not. There's something to learn from every live performance—theater or not."
Nadeshiko coughed into her elbow. "Oh! Looks like I'm starting to come down with something. I should head home." She shoved the tickets into Mikoto's hands. "Enjoy the show!"
Then, she turned and fled.
Azuma wasn't much of a people person. She never had been. Jurina was too high energy; Nadeshiko was too annoying. Somehow, though, the three of them balanced each other out. Azuma didn't like them, but she could tolerate being around them.
That was why she'd begrudgingly agreed to meet up for a study session. If they put their heads together, they might be able to get Jurina's test scores up. Nadeshiko always said that Jurina wasn't stupid—Azuma begged to differ—it was just that she was horrible at taking tests.
"Ah, Azuma. Just who I wanted to see."
Well, that couldn't be good. The only people who ever wanted to see her were Nadeshiko and Jurina. Her classmates only spoke to her when they wanted something. Which had been increasing as of late since they found out she was one of Mikoto's allies.
Azuma did what any reasonable person would do and answered by hissing loudly, teeth bared.
Mikoto stared at her with a curious expression. "Huh. I wasn't aware you could make such a noise."
Azuma paled. "…Aragami-senpai. What a surprise."
"You don't look pleased."
"You shouldn't sneak up one someone," she said. Then, she realized she was scolding the Caligula. Not just one of her annoying classmates. Azuma's lips curled back in a grimace. "I have to go."
With her head down, she pushed past Mikoto and hurried toward the library.
"You're scaring people," Haruka said with a blank expression.
"Not intentionally."
It wasn't Mikoto's fault that her juniors seemed to freak out over the smallest things.
"Should I ask why?"
Mikoto fell into her chair with a sigh. "I'm trying to strengthen our bond."
"Can you try doing that without making the second years scared?"
"I tried asking Jurina about those books she reads, but she ran away. I tried to go to a concert with Nadeshiko, but she faked being sick in order to go home. And Azuma—" Mikoto put her head in her hands. "Azuma hissed at me."
Haruka awkwardly patted Mikoto on the head. "There, there," she said in her usual deadpan voice.
"I don't understand what I'm doing wrong. Am I really so unapproachable?"
She hummed. On the last pat to Mikoto's head, she left her hand there. Haruka sank her fingers into Mikoto's hair. "I've heard you have a reputation with some of the younger students."
Mikoto leaned into Haruka's touch. "Do I?"
"They say you're very frightening when provoked."
Leadership was a difficult thing. Ever since her battle against Stella, Mikoto had tried to make an effort to build up her relationship with her companions. They weren't friends. Not yet. With a little effort, they might be able to be. The question was then how to go about it.
"Is it better to be feared and respected or admired and relied on?"Mikoto mused.
Haruka didn't answer. She kept touching Mikoto's hair. Fingers scratched soothingly against Mikoto's scalp. Mikoto closed her eyes and hummed contentedly. It was when Haruka scratched behind her ear that Mikoto jerked away.
"Don't pet me like I'm some animal!"
Haruka dipped her head slightly. "My apologies. This is what we used to do at home when we took the cats to the vet."
Mikoto batted Haruka's hand away with a huff. "This is serious."
"I'm serious. If you hold a cat in your arms and pet their head and neck, it helps calm them down." She reached forward to demonstrate but Mikoto jerked away.
"I am not a cat!"
Haruka's hand hovered in the air. Slowly, she lowered it back to her side. "I'm afraid my experience in comforting humans is quite limited."
Mikoto crossed her arms. "Clearly."
"You seemed to enjoy it, though."
"Shut up!"
Haruka reached for Mikoto's hair again. This time, Mikoto begrudgingly let her. As embarrassing as it was, she could admit it felt nice. Perhaps Haruka was onto something with her cat analogy.
"All we need to do is find a way to make you seem… nicer," Haruka said.
Mikoto tilted her head to give Haruka more access to scratch behind her ear. "Do you have any ideas?"
"As a matter of fact, I do."
Mikoto vowed to never again listen to one of Haruka's ideas. The moment she set foot into Romana, she was greeted by flyers plastered all over the walls. Just the sight of it made her blood boil with rage.
There was a photo on the paper. That wasn't the problem. Mikoto saw plenty of pictures of herself. The issue was that this particular photo was of her sleeping. She was curled up on her side looking quite content. Worse, though, was that someone had edited whiskers and cat ears onto the photo.
Printed below this were the words "The Catligula Taking a Cat Nap."
The burning heat on Mikoto's face was not embarrassment. It was pure, unfiltered rage at Haruka, who had to be behind it. For one thing, she'd said she would take care of Mikoto's problem. More importantly, though, as Mikoto's girlfriend, she was the only one who would have access to a picture like this.
"You!" Mikoto hissed the moment she spotted Haruka. She crossed toward her in three quick strides and grabbed her by the collar. "What is the meaning of this?"
This close, Haruka had to tilt her head back a little to look Mikoto in the eyes. "I did exactly what you wanted. How can anyone be scared of such a cute face?"
"I am not cute."
"I disagree."
"You're biased!"
"It's an objective fact."
Mikoto pushed Haruka away. Her reputation around the school was ruined all because her—albiet well-meaning—girlfriend decided to edit pictures of her and put them around the school. What sort of twisted timeline did they live in? As long as no one from Siegfeld found out about this, she might be able to salvage the situation.
"Oh! Aragami-senpai!" Nadeshiko beamed at her. "You mentioned being interested in idols, right?"
Mikoto glanced at Haruka. "That's correct."
"I wanted to know if you wanted to come with me to see a performance this weekend."
"I'll… have to check my schedule."
"Sure! Just let me know!" There was a pep in her step as Nadeshiko walked away.
"I told you," Haruka said.
Mikoto scoffed. "Merely a coincidence. There's no way a simple poster caused this."
"Boss!"
Mikoto wondered if this was her life now. Being flagged down by her juniors before she could get more than two steps down the hall.
"Sorry for the other day." Jurina rubbed the back of her neck. "But you seemed interested in it, so I got the first book back from Nadeshiko!" She held out a copy of the manga she was always reading.
Mikoto took the book with just her thumb and two fingers. It dangled in the air like she was afraid of touching it. "Yes. Thank you."
"You'll have to let me know what you think! Volume one is pretty good, but it doesn't get really good until the second."
"Okay."
She opened her mouth to continue but was stopped by Mikoto holding up a hand.
"Please don't tell me anything else until I read it for myself."
Jurina nodded. Her smile never diminished. Where was the scared girl Mikoto had seen just the other day?
"No spoilers! I get it. Enjoy!" She gave a salute and then trotted away.
Mikoto tore the nearest poster off the wall. "We need to take these down," she hissed.
"Why is that?" Haruka asked. She peered at one of the pictures on the wall. "I think it's a good addition to our school."
"It is not! Tear these off the walls before Azuma sees."
With a shrug, Haruka began taking down the posters. Mikoto ripped the papers to shreds as she yanked them off the walls. This whole idea was the dumbest thing she'd ever heard. …even if it did appear to be working.
"Aragami-senpai?"
Mikoto barely suppressed a groan as she turned to her third and final junior.
Azuma's mouth slowly spread into a grin. "Those pictures are pretty funny."
"I'm glad you're amused," Mikoto said with a glare.
"The 'Catligula,' huh?" She laughed. "I'll have to remember that."
Mikoto's face was so hot it might burst into flames. "Don't you have anywhere else to be?"
"Wow. You really are just like a cat." Azuma snatched a poster from Haruka's stack. "I think I'll keep this."
Mikoto could hear her maniacal laughter as she walked down the hall and disappeared around the corner. Her life was ruined. Everyone in the school had seen Haruka make a fool out of her.
"You wanted to fix your reputation." Haruka patted Mikoto on the shoulder. "Be careful what you wish for."