Disc 2: Summer Vacation

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“Have you heard the rumors?” Touma leaned back in his chair, his attention drawn to the gossip. The classroom was pretty loud before class on most days, but now it was consumed by the latest topic - the transfer student who was joining their class. “I heard that anyone who gets close to him ends up having accidents! And if you touch him, you’ll get shocked!” A nearby student exclaimed, clearly caught up in the hype. Touma rolled his eyes. He was fairly certain everyone was exaggerating. He probably just had a few accidents, and now everyone’s ready to call him cursed! People are ridiculous.

In the beginning of summer, everyone was anxious to get through to vacation. Everything had been quiet since Usana’s death, and despite some search efforts, they hadn’t found any other stand users or signs of a stand arrow. The class was silenced as their teacher entered and began the morning routine. Everyone seemed to hold their collective breath, waiting for the transfer student to enter. Despite himself, Touma was excited too. There had been several empty desks in the classroom for months, no thanks to Usana. They made him uneasy; it was a daily reminder he didn’t need. The door slid open, and all eyes were on it as the transfer student stepped through.

The first thing Touma noticed was that he had a head of hair more befitting of a sheep; it was hopelessly curly, with volume most girls would kill for. Next was that he was tall - broad shouldered and imposing, with a piercing turquoise gaze. Touma almost whistled. Damn.. he’s pretty impressive! The teacher began to write his name on the board as he walked across the room. His long strides matched with sharp steps that echoed throughout the room. 

“Class, I’m sure you already know we have a transfer student. Please introduce yourself.” Their homeroom addressed the new student with the same seriousness he always did, and he gave the slightest nod in response. “My name is Takagi Kei. It’s nice to meet you.” He spoke formally and bowed stiffly. The response from the class was somewhat muted, and the teacher quickly assigned him a seat near the middle.

Kei walked over to his seat and sat silently. Everyone around him either looked away or ignored him, and he kept himself busy unpacking his things from his school bag. Touma swore mentally, glancing at the empty seat next to him. Why couldn’t he be assigned to sit over here? He knew why, of course. Their teacher hated when students sat in the back, and would only assign it as a last resort. Frankly, Touma was lucky he hadn’t been moved already, but he didn’t feel fortunate at the time. As class truly began, he kept his eye on the transfer student. 

During lunch, he couldn’t get close because there was a small pack of students following him around, though they all kept at least a foot of distance. Touma swore that when he was surrounded, his hair seemed to fluff up even more, as if defensive. It kinda reminds me of that one time I scared Mi with a cucumber.. That was hilarious! Well, until she started clawing me.

When the school bell rang and it was time to go, Touma packed as fast as he could. He was almost out the door before Hibiki caught his arm, pulling him back. “Touma, wait.” He turned, and noticed her exasperated expression. “Don’t tell you’re going after him? If he left that fast, he wants to be left alone. You don’t need to butt in on everyone’s business.” 

He frowned. “Why not? I wanna talk to him, he seems cool.” Hibiki rolled her eyes, crossing her arms. “That’s what you and about half of the class is also thinking. Why do you care, anyway? He’s probably not that special.” Touma blinked. “Are you kidding? Have you seen his hair? It looks so soft, I wanna touch it!” Hibiki raised an eyebrow, but didn’t object. He grinned. “Thanks, Hibiki! I promise I’ll make it up to you tomorrow. I’ll text you, kay?” Touma turned and struggled through the crowded halls in the direction he’d last seen Kei go. I hope I’m not too late!

He didn’t see him again until he’d escaped the school itself. Jeez, and I thought Hibiki walked fast! Touma waited until he was actually shouting range to call out to him, though he was having a bit of a hard time keeping up. “Hey, you!” Kei glanced back and stopped. Touma slowed to a trot, fighting to catch his breath. After a moment he rose again to face him. “I’m in your class, so I wanted to say hi. You can call me Touma!” 

Touma offered his hand, but didn’t find his enthusiasm matched by Kei, who didn’t return the gesture. He glowered at Touma with unrestrained suspicion. A soft crackling filled the air, and Touma blinked in confusion. Where’s that sound coming from?.. “I don’t know why you approached me, but you’re not going to get anything out of it. Buzz off.” Touma was stunned by Kei’s blunt, icy tone. Without another word, he turned and began to walk away again.

I swear, I’m getting déjà vu.. “I’m not trying to get anything out of you, I just wanted to talk. Being rude isn’t gonna help anything, you know!” Touma pursued, weaving through the crowd. He reached out to grab Kei’s shoulder, but stopped as he was suddenly hit by a strong shock to his hand. He quickly withdrew it on instinct. 

Kei paused, glancing back at him. “You should keep your hands to yourself. If you keep being pushy, it’s only going to give you bad luck.” Was that a threat? Touma silently watched as he walked away, disappearing into the crowd. His annoyance quickly faded, and he sighed deeply. Well.. I don’t think that could’ve gone any worse. Touma considered going back to Hibiki, but he could only imagine how smug she’d be when he explained what happened. I guess I’m walking home on my own today.

Just as Touma made it out of school, he was cut off by a flock of students that took up the entirely sidewalk. They walked at a painful pace, and he tried to duck around them, but there were no gaps to break through. Dammit.. I guess that’s what I get for going this way while everyone is leaving school. It’s super crowded. Touma hung back, annoyed as he was forced to walk slowly behind them. 

After what felt like an agonizing amount of time, they finally pulled aside to chat at a street corner. Touma rushed past, glad they were out of the way. He heard a curious snapping noise, and his world went sideways. Touma realized he had tripped a moment later, and he began to fall into the road. Beast Dance grabbed his collar and pulled him back, and a car sped by where his body had been an instant later, blaring its horn angrily. Touma quickly backed up against a nearby wall, out of breath. Th-that was too close!

After taking a moment to steady himself, Touma looked down and saw one of his shoelaces had come undone. He quickly bent down and re-tied it, hands still shaking. When the light turned green, Touma very slowly and cautiously crossed the street with the other students. He only let himself relax after he got a good distance from the intersection, and his heart gradually stopped pounding in his chest. Touma stopped by a vending machine. Nothing like snacks to help someone relax! He looked over the options, before seeing his favorite kind of chips only had a bag left. He grinned, quickly inputting the money and pressing the right combination. Touma watched as the metal turned, and the chip began to tilt downwards.. Only to get stuck against the glass. 

“Are you kidding?” Touma let out a small shout of frustration, lightly hitting the side of the vending machine. It didn’t look like it was gonna budge. Seriously, how unlucky can someone be?

Suddenly, Touma heard the screech of tires. He turned and saw two things; the first was a cat in the road, running as if its life depended on it. The second was a truck headed directly for him, the driver shouting something he couldn’t hear. Touma stood frozen, but Beast Dance managed to react. It took him a second to process what just happened, but when he did, he found he’d been tossed into a tree just above where the vending machine was. He started to fall a moment later, but managed to catch himself, looking down. The driver hit the vending machine and skidded across the road, before taking off at breakneck speed. What’s with these drivers? Is it the area or time or day? Touma sighed shakily, still recovering from the shock of two near-death experiences. 

“Thanks, Subby. I really owe you for that one.”

“I'm just glad you're alright.” Beast Dance looked around the area, as if he expected another hazard to appear. “You should probably stay in the side streets and avoid any further danger.” Touma rested against the branches, before something caught his eye. Across the street, Kei was leaning against the wall. He glanced over silently, glowering, before he turned and walked away. What's he doing here? I thought he didn't want to have anything to do with me. 

Touma lowered his voice, starting to get suspicious. “Hey, Subby. Could this be the work of a stand?” Beast Danced blinked. “It's certainly possible.. I've seen and been able to do stranger. Why?” Touma began to climb out of the tree, brushing off the leaves and dirt that fell onto him during the initial impact. “Ever since I talked to him, strange stuff has been happening. I remember that he shocked me - that's enough, right? I'm going after him.”

Touma hopped down, and not a moment later he felt his hair raise with a surge of static. The nearby telephone wires suddenly fell, sending a shower of sparks in his direction. He bolted, narrowly avoiding them. I need to hurry; it's only bound to get worse from here! Touma followed where he last saw Kei, turning onto a narrow side street as he fumbled with his phone. He sent off a quick text before shoving his phone back in his pocket, looking up and spotting him.  “Stop right there!” He shouted, and Kei paused, glancing back. He looked incredibly annoyed. “What do you want?” 

Touma panted, winded by the sprint. I've been slacking off.. I need to get back into shape. “You.. What did you do to me? Ever since I left school, I've almost died more than once!”

Kei glared at him. “It doesn’t matter. I don’t know how you survived, but by now your bad luck’s probably done. Go away before you make it worse for yourself.” This time, the threat was clear. Sparks danced along his body, causing his clothes to ripple in an unnatural fashion. That’s definitely some sort of stand!.. But I don’t know if it’s short or long range.. Touma hesitated to act without any idea of what he was getting into. If I can draw it out, I’ll get a better idea. “What’s with you? All I wanted to do is say hello, and you attacked me! If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re looking for a fight.” 

Kei looked perplexed, his expression hardening. “I can’t control it. It attacks anyone who gets close to me, so you’d be better off just leaving. Whatever you think you know, you clearly don’t, so don’t be an idiot and get yourself killed.”

“You can’t control your stand?..” In his surprise, Touma blurted it out. Is it automatic, like Akito’s? “If that’s the case.. Well, I guess I can't be mad at you.” He was honestly somewhat relieved, and relaxed. Kei, however, only tensed further. “‘Stands?’ What the hell are you talking about?” He narrowed his eyes in suspicion. 

“Well, it’s a lot to just explain here.. But basically, that’s your ability! If you can’t control it, then I’d guess it’s tied to when you feel threatened or something, right?” Kei’s balled up fists confirmed Touma’s hunch. “That’s no good.. you’re gonna keep attacking people like that. You need to be able to stop it from coming out all the time.” But just how do we do that?.. From the looks of it, Kei was thinking the exact same thing. “First of all.. I’m pretty sure your stand isn’t just electricity. They tend to have more.. Solid forms? So, you’ll need to manifest that! Once you can actually summon it, you’ll be able to start working with it better.” 

They stood in silence for a moment, before Kei finally spoke. “..how?” He doesn’t know how to even that? Touma was a bit blown away, but kept that to himself. “It’s like an instinct, I guess. Like you need to fight or protect yourself, and you want to beat the crap out of someone who pissed you off!” He thought the explanation was pretty clear, but Kei gave him a blank look. “I’ve already got you to piss me off, but nothing’s happening.” 

Though he was insulted, Touma was more focused on the problem at hand. If he’s already mad and nothing is happening, then what could get him to summon it? Thinking about when I first summoned mine, and Hibiki’s experience.. Touma blinked, before grinning. “Oh, I know!” Beast Dance appeared behind him, and Kei tensed in alarm. “What are you doing?” I’m not actually gonna hit him, of course.. But if I can fake him out and make him think he’s in a fight, then it’ll show up for sure! 

“Sorry about this, but looks like it’s the only way!” Touma lunged forward and Beast Dance followed, winding up for a faux-punch. Kei took a step back, but there was no way for him to dodge it in time. The air around them crackled dangerously, and Kei’s hair began to float with a supernatural force. Come on, you can do this! Touma had hoped just getting this close would push it out, but he was prepared to go farther. He aimed the punch directly at his face.

At the last second, Beast Dance’s fist was halted. The crackling abruptly stopped, and Touma was now standing in front of Kei’s stand. It took on a shape reminiscent of an electrical tower, made of connecting metal beams. Currently, it had formed a fist that held Beast Dance back. I did it!.. Touma grinned triumphantly. Now that he can summon it, things should be much easier! His victory was short lived, however, because in the next instant electricity shot down its arm. He and Beast Dance were both hit with a intense amount of it, and Touma feel back, stunned. He was pretty sure this was what it felt like to be tazed, but worse. His whole body twitched erratically as he steamed slightly. But I’m not dead.. So, that’s a plus!

“Idiot..” Kei’s voice broke through the pain, catching Touma’s attention. “I told you I couldn’t control it, but you went ahead and got yourself hurt anyway..” He was surprised at just how frustrated he sounded. The painful twitching finally subsided, and Touma began to struggle up again. Kei watched in silent shock as he got to his feet. 

“I didn’t have time to mention it, but my stand’s super tough. Since it’s only a second-hand shock, I’m fine!” Touma laughed shakily, ignoring the stinging pain his body was still experiencing. A victory was a victory, even if he suffered a bit for it. “What did I say? If you need to fight, your stand will show up and protect you. Yours looks pretty fast, too!” Though he tried to act like he was fine, Kei clearly didn’t buy it. Now he was back to glaring at him.

“Touma?” Hibiki rounded the corner, likely out of breath from running there. Ah, that’s right - I texted her. “Yo!” He called out cheerfully, starting to smooth out his puffed up hair. “You missed all the action.” She quickly scanned the area, assessing the situation as she approached. 

“That’s because your directions sucked, and you didn’t explain what was going on. I’m assuming that’s his?” She gestured to the stand that was still floating behind Kei, motionless. He nodded, preparing to explain. Before he could, though, Kei spoke first. “Who’s that, your girlfriend?” His snide remark made Hibiki bristle slightly, and she gave Touma a look. “Seriously, you ditched me for him?” 

Touma stood between then, quickly sensing the approaching conflict. “C’mon, don’t be like that! This is all just a misunderstanding. I found out he couldn’t control his powers, so I helped out. That’s all.”

“Except you didn’t. You may have managed to bring this thing out, but I still don’t have any control over it.” Kei kicked a pebble down the road, clearly annoyed. Hibiki looked to Touma, her offense temporarily set aside. “What does it do?” Touma finally finished fixing his hair, and glanced back at her. “Anything it shocks gets seriously bad luck. Pretty sure it’s short ranged, too.” 

Hibiki paused, furrowing her brow. “Touma.. You just got shocked by it, didn’t you?” Touma shrugged, unconcerned. “It’ll be fine. Now that the stand’s out we should be able to get rid of the effect, right? You’re good with this stuff, it probably works like yours.” Hibiki quickly turned back to an irate Kei, expression serious. “You’re going to need to come with us. We can take you somewhere safe where we can figure this all out, and you can gain control over your stand. More importantly, you need to stop the effect on Touma.” 

Kei narrowed his eyes into angry slits. “Why should I?” He was responded to by a thunderous crack that echoed through the entire street. Touma looked over, and saw a massive tree from someone’s yard beginning to fall towards Hibiki, who was closest to him. The moment he tried to move he was hit by a wave of pain that paralyzed him. Dammit.. Why now, of all times? She needs me! He wouldn’t be able to recover quickly enough to use his stand, and he clenched his shirt as heat pulsed from his stomach. Hibiki reacted much faster; as the shadow of the tree loomed over her, Disappearance Addiction shot up from it, grabbing the tree and holding it up. It was clearly a struggle, but she was able to hold on long enough to shift the tree behind her. It fell with a resounding crash. For a moment, everything was absolutely silent.

“That.. is why.” Hibiki exhaled, her stand still flowing under her. The hands writhed angrily, grasping at the open air. “You’re a liability to everyone with your stand like this. Either you’re going to come with us of your own will, or I’ll defeat you for your own good.” Touma was stunned. That was impressive, but.. Can she really take him on? It’s way too bright out! He had regained his breath enough to summon his stand, but even then it seemed risky. He looked to Kei anxiously, and saw an expression of absolute resentment. I think it’s gonna be a fight after all!.. Touma tensed, preparing himself. 

Kei clenched his fists so hard his knuckles went white. “This had better be worth it.” When he finally spoke, his tone was curt. Touma could hardly believe it; he was certain they were going to have to drag him there. “It will be.” Hibiki responded with similar coldness, turning and beginning to walk in the direction of Akito’s house.

Kei watched her go, before his expression suddenly changed. “You.. I only said it because of your hair, but you really are a girl, aren't you?” Hibiki paused, and he continued. “What’s wrong with you?” Touma froze. He could practically feel her rage from a few feet away. If I don’t do something, there’s gonna be a fight after all! Touma quickly approached her, trying to sound persuasive. “Come on, we should get going..” He took her shoulders in his hands and tried to push her along, but she’d already dug her heels into the ground and wouldn’t move an inch. Crap!.. 

“I don’t see why it’s any of your business.” Hibiki’s reply was civil, but contained a deadly edge. Kei sneered, clearly gaining satisfaction from seeing her riled up. “Go put on a skirt. It suits you better than pretending to be a guy.” Touma felt a knot forming in his gut. He’s seriously trying to get her to attack him, isn’t he? What’s his problem?

“You first.” Hibiki replied coolly, making eye contact with him. Kei frowned, crossing his arms. “No, I’m not a girl.” She smirked in satisfaction, apparently pleased by his reply. “Well, there’s your answer.” She turned and strode away, leaving the other two in shocked silence. Did I seriously hear that right? Kei seemed to be thinking the same thing, but he finally shook his head and followed. Either way, Touma was weak with relief. He was incredibly thankful that Hibiki had restrained herself from trying to beat Kei into a pulp. As he followed, he became increasingly aware of his aching body. I might have overdone it today.. He sighed quietly to himself, clutching his stomach. Touma had the feeling that if Hibiki and Kei so much as looked at each other, the day would be far from over.

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