The Dream Shifter

Chapter 215

"But Yuki isn't weak at all!"

"Yes, he is."

"Yuki's the strongest in the group. What about the others then are we all weak to you?"

The cornered feeling that Yumi easily brought on came back. She hated such questions and how easily it occurred. "It's a different type of a weak."

"Oh? So you don't think he's weak!"

"Of course, he's weak!" Chiharu leaned a little caught up with Yumi's words. At the edge of the words, she found herself in a position she despised. She pulled herself back in to check. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the confused stare of Yumi at her. Her last statement fell easily into a paradox. The meanings lost their significance. In the end, Chiharu sighed once more. "You're straying from the original topic."

Yumi pulled back to rest at a straightened walking stance. "Huh?"

"My question."

"Oh, right! But I already answered that!"

The repeated answer in annoying airheaded fashion made Chiharu want to fall over, but she resisted. It threatened her balance dealing with Yumi. Her actions still did not make any sense to her. 'She's being unusually absentminded. What's with the change?'

In the rear of the group, Seiji and Fumiko carried on in silence. However, Fumiko watched the two girls going back and forth. She did not understand most of what they said, as they did not get too loud. The occasional shout or excited word came through, but it was not her intention to spy on them. Chiharu still had difficulty with her. It made it feel a little more at ease to see them. "They look like they're getting along," she commented to Seiji. It still confused her a little what happened between them in the short time they were away.

Seiji held his arms crossed for the last few minutes. He remained in the position since they started walking. A slightly furled brow also seemed permanently taped to his forehead. "They look like they're fighting to me. I don't think that they're getting along."

Fumiko shook her head lightly. "Arguing can be a sign of getting along as well, especially in Chiharu's case."

"Eh? That brat?" The thought of Chiharu made Seiji's eyebrows wrinkle further.

"Chiharu keeps at a distance with everyone. She also limits her interactions. But she approached Yumi and is carrying on a conversation. Even if they might be fighting, it's an important sign for her."

"I think you're thinking too much of things."

Hearing Seiji made Fumiko giggle a little. "Not straightforward enough for you?" She glanced over at him and caught him turning away. "Well, it does go both ways. It seems that Yumi's become more relaxed as well. It's pretty clear why she came along, but she still isolated herself. She's been using her brother as insulation from everything. Without him, she's exposed."

"Tch!" Seiji grumbled at all of the introspective talk occurring. His arms tightened up around his chest acting like a defense. "Done talking like a shrink?"

A dangerous thread came exposed to Fumiko. She ignored it previously, but could not help poking something that she knew that she should not. "Are you still upset that a frail girl like Yumi's faster than you?"

Sounding like a branch breaking, Seiji snapped and turned to face Fumiko. "Who the hell would be upset over something like that?" He stopped walking and tightened his hands into fists, though not actually planning to use them.

Fumiko expected such a reaction, giving her the preparation not to be startled by his aggression. "You know if you overreact it only makes it easier to read you." She glanced over to the front of them. Yumi and Chiharu looked back at him. "Also, it seems you've gotten unwanted attention." He did not immediately understand her words, but her finger pointing ahead of them redirected his eyes.

Once he figured out what his actions caused, Seiji straightened up. While he forced down his embarrassment, he played everything off as if nothing happened. A few awkward moments passed before everyone silently seemed to agree on ignoring the matter. Fumiko and Seiji resumed their even pace in the back.

Back in the front, the two's interruption had been well timed, for Chiharu. They got off on a tangent and she found herself playing to the pace that Yumi set. It bothered her that she got distracted from the matter. She only wanted a satisfying answer and then to be left in peace for the rest of the walk. "Can you return back to answering the question?"

"Huh? What question?" asked Yumi.

The shallow formation of an angry vein slowly began to surface on Chiharu's forehead. She reigned herself back in before it went out of control. "You're doing this on purpose."

Yumi smiled appearing innocent, while quietly agreeing with Chiharu's statement. "But it's been a while since I got to talk to a girl the same age as me about things like this."

"We aren't the same age! I'm in middle school." Chiharu felt at the end of her rope. Every trained thread in her core was threatened by the actions of the girl. It dangerously teetered on the brink for Chiharu. Each answer worked tirelessly on her nerves to undo them. She did not know how much longer that she could last against the barrage. Chiharu exercised her hands by tightening and relaxing them to focus her energies away. Her calm center held too many vibrations. It did not make any sense. She needed more answers. "Why are you acting differently?"

"Hmm?" Yumi tilted her head over at Chiharu a little confused. She did not make complete eye contact.

"You're not this flippant. You're acting like how that weakling acts."

The smile dropped from Yumi's face. She pulled her head back in and straightened out. Her stature altered and fell in line with the sudden change in atmosphere around her. Yumi placed her hands behind her back and looped her fingers together to tie them off. "You're right. Is it a little too forced?"

All of the changes caught Chiharu a little off guard. She narrowed her eyes trying to read everything that Yumi did. The new position that Yumi took only confused her further. She found more things that made no sense to her. "What were you trying to do?"

Yumi lifted her head up to the stars in the night sky. It made her mind run through the memories of the evening she had with Chiharu. "I guess it was an answer to your question."

"Eh?"

"I guess that's a little vague, huh?" She pulled her gaze back down to the dark plains that surrounded them. Her eyes moved to her side looking at Chiharu. "Revenge for your ambiguity from early."

Chiharu raised her eyebrow a bit marking her confusion. It took her a few moments to filter through finally understanding everything to Yumi's meaning. "You did all of this because of that?"

"No, I think you're missing the point," laughed Yumi. She pointed her sights forward again. "The vagueness, not the question. But I was answering your question."

"How is all of that an answer?"

"Because I want to change myself!" Yumi turned her head back to Chiharu to meet her fully. Her features emitted the determined resolve of her choice. "That's my answer."   

"I guess that's a little vague, huh?" She pulled her gaze back down to the dark plains that surrounded them. Her eyes moved to her side looking at Chiharu. "Revenge for your ambiguity from early."

Chiharu raised her eyebrow a bit marking her confusion. It took her a few moments to filter through finally understanding everything to Yumi's meaning. "You did all of this because of that?"

"No, I think you're missing the point," laughed Yumi. She pointed her sights forward again. "The vagueness, not the question. But I was answering your question."

"How is all of that an answer?"

"Because I want to change myself!" Yumi turned her head back to Chiharu to meet her fully. Her features emitted the determined resolve of her choice. "That's my answer."

Despite the night, Chiharu felt like the sun blasted her with a blindly beam of light. It did not make any sense to her. A glow seemed to be around Yumi that defied Chiharu's mind. She saw a fragile and wavering strength that continued to be broken and rebuilt endlessly. Chiharu could see the old pieces of the foundation that failed reused as chunks in the new. It held countless pieces always recycled. Nothing was ever wasted. 'What is this answer?'

'Change herself?' Yumi's words ran through her mind repeatedly. She did not feel that the girl made any change, even if it was her desire. Everything she saw showed her to be weak and easily controlled by emotions. The only thing she found worth something was her determination, but even that seemed to falter at times. 'She always backs down when the slightest thing fails on her. She starts out strong and then collapses under pressure. She can't change. You are who you were when you're born.'

The return of silence from Chiharu pulled in Yumi. It made her fear she said something wrong to Chiharu again. She always expected a quick answer from Chiharu. She never seemed stutter in her response, but it happened before and again. Yumi leaned over to Chiharu hoping to get her attention. "Chiharu? Everything ok?"

Yumi's voice roughly pierced through her thoughts and snapped her attention. Distracted in her words, Chiharu narrowed her glare for Yumi to push her back. "I'm fine. I'm just not satisfied with your answer." She crossed her arms, locking herself back away from Yumi. The wall came up.

An awkward feeling filled the air around Yumi. She did not understand the sensation, but it made her pull away from Chiharu. The unease tried to drill into her stomach to ferment a sour liquid. Yumi fought to keep her nerves together. "W-Wh-what's wrong with the answer?" Yumi pressed her hands together at her waist for comfort.

"It's that." Chiharu pointed at Yumi without actually moving her hands. It focused everything on her.

Startled a bit, Yumi pulled herself tighter. "W-what do you mean?"

"You're weak. You collapsed too easily."

"W-we're all weak…"

Chiharu angled her head over to Yumi a little. "That's not what I'm talking about." She dug in her gaze. She planned to pull out the answer. The only option was to be ruthless.

Pressure from Chiharu did not help Yumi calm herself. She felt surrounded from all sides. Each direction had the eyes of Chiharu aimed at her. Yumi did not understand what she wanted anymore. She thought she gave her what she wanted. 'I thought I was starting to understand her…but now…Chiharu's so scary…' Feelings and sensations no longer mattered. All it did was overload her. She had to find another way out. However, Chiharu did not look to be backing away from her. Yumi was out of answers.

"Already out of words?"

"But…I…"

"You're already doing it."

A wall stood before her blocking her path. Yumi had no place to return and no place to move again. Everywhere a barricade came down. She did not understand what Chiharu wanted from her. 'She feels different from before…' Chiharu refused to give a clear reply. She did not know what to do.

"You don't even understand do you? You really are just dumb…"

Yumi pulled further away from Chiharu. She already went beyond uncertainty and confusion. She lost the chance to say anything. Her every turn threatened her with biting jaws of angry fangs. Yumi wanted it to stop. "Pl-please stop…"

Letting loose a puff of air, Chiharu tightened her arms. "Already making me the villain?"

"Why?"