sparse flash 1

Subaru: ......

Natsume: Ã̟̂keͮhoshi̥ͣͦ S̉̌u̜̼ͦb̘ͧa̫̱r̢͂u-̘k̐́u͐͡n̷ͤ.^[1]

Subaru: Gyeh?! Jeez, you scared me! Don’t sneak up on me, okay?

Umm, Sa... Saka... Sakaki-kun, maybe? Did you want something from me?

Natsume: Sakasaki, not Sakaki. People get it wrong often, but my name is Sakasaki Natsume...

It would do you well to remember the names of your classmates; I’m pleased to make your acquaintance ♪

Subaru: Pleased to make your acquaintance! Ahaha, you talk pretty funny ☆

Wait, we’re classmates? You’re... uh, you said Natsume? But I haven’t seen you around before.

Natsume: Ahaha. I’ve already completed most of the coursework for the spring of our first year.

I attended an idol training school much like this one looong ago.

This school’s curriculum is too lax; it caters to the lowest common denominator.

I was irritated having to shut up and listen to things I’ve already learned.

I thought it would be smarter to set myself apart from the crowd: I read a thing or two during the time I would otherwise have wasted here.

“Time is money,” they say. Rather, time is the most valuable resource in the world.

I wasn’t about to waste it. The idols of Yumenosaki Academy... we’re like royalty.

No teacher would dare speak up if we happen to skip a few classes.

Subaru: Hmm... I mean, you should probably come to class, though. You’re paying for it, after all.

Natsume: My parents are the ones who forced me into this school. I have no motivation myself.

My daddy supposedly wants me to be a “charismatic leader of the new generation.”

By combining the skills of both a fortune teller and an idol, I will become uniquely capable of manipulating people and influencing the world over, all from behind the scenes.

Daddy isn’t a bad person, but he is a bit of a megalomaniac with a touch of paranoia.

Personally speaking, I wanted to simply join my mommy in being a fortune teller...

But this is not the age for simplicity; I must follow the trends where they go.

Subaru: Uh-huh... It’s cool how everyone comes to Yumenosaki for different reasons.

Me, I just wanted to be an idol! And here I am. Maybe I’m in the minority these days, though.

Natsume: Fufufu. The sheep of the world resound a chorus of all the pretty things they’ve been told before.

They may admire a lovely concept, but they can never truly adopt the pure ideal.

In that sense, you are certainly in the minority. No, you are an entirely different beast, Akehoshi Subaru-kun.

Humans are blinded if they stare directly at the sun.

This is the reason you are separated from everyone else, and the reason no one understands you.

Take now for example. You are working day duty for another of your classmates, I assume.

And I have observed that you have been on day duty for three days now.

That’s odd, because the shifts for day duty operate on a rotating schedule. Someone would have to have asked you to cover for them, and then you so willingly agreed.

How tragic. No one will love you if you solicit them like that.

You will only become to them a convenient tool who does whatever they say.

They don’t see you as their equal, and they will never be your friend.

If you ever refuse their orders, or simply fail to accomplish them, they will turn their backs on you without hesitation.

What a useless tool! An untrained dog! An incompetent slave!

...Just kidding. Rather, they would prefer that to happen.

Humans are unsettled when they see something that is pure and beautiful. They will go to any length to destroy it.

They would pluck out the wings of angels and send them plummeting to earth; they would douse the sun in mud and suffocate its light.

I’m tired of that. Yet it is a structural defect of humanity; we must carry the burden of that fate.

Subaru: Right. Sorry, I don’t actually get what you’re trying to say. It’s kinda going over my head.

Natsume: Ahaha. But you’re only pretending not to understand, aren’t you?

Subaru: ...Um, seriously. Did you need something? Or did you just come over to laugh at me?

Natsume: Ahaha, my apologies. It is common practice for fortune tellers to speak suggestively to set your mind to analyzing it, or to aggravate you and make you lose composure.

Call it an occupational disease. It’s not that I dislike you or want to hurt you.

Actually... I approached you because I’d like to be your friend, Akehoshi Subaru-kun.

Subaru: Huh, friends? That’s awesome! I haven’t been able to make any friends so far who I can talk to normally!

Natsume: I’m sure. I can’t imagine there are many people who would accept your friendship without malicious intent or envy. What a pity—the life of a genius is that of solitude ♪

If you have just one friend in whom you can trust, you can certainly overcome the harshest of battles.

But that is hard to come by in such a competitive world as the entertainment industry.

Natsume: I̱͚͘f o͉ǹ̳l̪̎͜y͆ ỵ͢o͕u̵̓r͌̑ f̱́̎ḁ̀͢th̬̫e̱r͡ hą̪̊d͛ͦ a̾ͧͅ cͩ͑͡om̸̹̹ra̴͙̗d̓e͝-iņ̵͓-͡a͉͠ŗ̦̰mṡ... P̛e̶̿r͞_ha͉ͪ́p̔s t̝͑ḩ̦̄è_ͭn̽͢ h̩͐e͌ m̓̉͢i̵̳͆g̤ht n̵͍̄ờ͝t͍ͦ ha_̮̒v̧_͖e m̷͞e͚͛͠t̉ ṡůc̦̹͡h̾ a ṫ̥r̀agiͪc̈́ en̳ͤ̓d͍ͯ͂.̂́^[2]

Subaru: ...So you knew about my dad and came over just to make fun of me, then.

Natsume: Don’t misunderstand me; that wasn’t the reason in the slightest.

Your father was a great man; I’m sure the majority of people who have talked about him with you were like that—

But I have no business with “the son of that Akehoshi.” I am here for Akehoshi Subaru-kun alone.

Of course, I won’t deny that the reason I took interest in you was because of your father.

Mommy was a good friend of his, so I’ve heard a lot about him... I wanted to talk to you out of curiosity and sympathy.