Pocky [FIC]
Posted: Fri Feb 03, 2006 6:14 pm
A leaf fell off of one of the nearby trees.
It fell slowly, rocking back and forth, until a strong gust of wind blew it far from view.
Life was like that. Sometimes, it seemed to progress slowly and evenly. At other times, something would come up that throws everything into frantic motion.
Today was a good example. Everything had been going smoothly for the past week. Once again, the students and teachers had been lulled into a false sense of security, or so they said afterwards.
“If I had hesitated… and there had been a danger… my regret would be greater…” Sousuke sighed. As he watched, another couple of leaves broke off from the tree and blew away. He wondered how long his assignment at the school would last. When his time was up, it would be his time to get sent on his way.
There had been a girl. She screamed. A man had his arms around her in a manner that could not be considered appropriate. Moving by instinct and habit, Sousuke had rushed onto the scene, without calling for the man to cease his behavior. The solid impact the butt of his pistol made on the temple of the assailant’s head put him down quickly.
Unfortunately, the man had been the Vice Principal wearing a ski mask. The girl had volunteered to be the ‘victim,’ so that the guest speaker could describe simple self defense measures that the watching students could attempt, if they found themselves in a similar situation.
That would have been bad enough. Earlier, he had gotten his test score back in Classical Japanese Literature. Despite all of the extra time Kaname had put in helping him, his performance had been substandard. It was somewhat ironic, that Japanese was his worst language.
“Sousuke!” That was Kaname’s voice. She had found him. He only had a few seconds more before the scolding started. “There you are.” She sat down next to him, and immediately reached for her bag.
“Sorry.” Sousuke automatically cringed, lowering his head some to protect his face. When Kaname made a move like that to her bag, she often brought back the halisen in full swing.
“What are you doing?” Kaname sounded exasperated. “I’m not going to hit you or something.” She was holding a colorful box in her hand. “Geeee-eee-ee-ez… you’re really paranoid…”
“I thought…” Sousuke examined the box. It appeared to contain a foodstuff of some kind, unless Kaname had used it to carry something else.
“Well that’s certainly an improvement, mister.” Kaname shook the box at him, causing something inside to shift back and forth. “Maybe you should have stopped to think before you sent someone else to the Emergency Room.” She tapped her fingers on the box in staccato fashion. “It wouldn’t hurt to think when you fill in your test answers, too…”
“I apologize.” Sousuke couldn’t meet Kaname’s eyes. He was looking down at his feet, feeling deficient on all fronts. “You worked hard.”
“We worked hard,” Kaname said. She was in one of her upward mood swings. It didn’t hurt that she aced the exam. “You may be an accident waiting to happen… and you’re not the sharpest knife in the kit…” She scowled, realizing that she had used an otaku analogy. “…But… you always try your best…” This was one of her days to appreciate the things that Sousuke did for her. It made her feel somewhat proud: she hadn’t needed to mark it on her calendar this time.
“You are not angry?” Sousuke looked surprised. That had Kaname frowning for a moment. Sousuke was quiet when she wanted him to speak; but, when it was best for him to remain silent, he always managed to say something.
“Angry? Me?” Kaname tossed her hair, holding the box on her lap. “Of course not. Ah hah hah hah hah hahhh…”
“What is in the box?” Sousuke eyed the brightly decorated package.
“Pocky,” Kaname said, smiling. “I thought you might need some cheering up.” She opened the box and took out a long wrapped item. “It’s Strawberry.”
“I see,” Sousuke replied, sounding as if he were taking not of a mission parameter. “What is Pocky?”
“Huh?” Kaname’s face couldn’t have looked more incredulous if she had just watched a flying saucer land on top of the school. “You’re kidding, right? Everyone knows what Pocky is.” She stared at Sousuke and sighed. What had she been thinking? The word ‘Everyone’ usually didn’t include a certain Muddle-headed Military Misfit.
“I must have been absent on the day they discussed it in class,” Sousuke said. He sat a bit stiffer. A day didn’t pass without his being reminded in some manner, that he didn’t fit in to popular culture, despite having been in Tokyo for a fair while now.
“Baka,” Kaname said by reflex. She bit her lip. Now was a time for supporting Sousuke, not chiding him. “It has nothing to do with school, Sousuke. It’s a snack food.” She couldn’t help herself. “When was the last time that any of the teachers gave a lecture on snack food?”
“Last week,” Sousuke answered. “Biology Class. The lecture on pond life. We were both in class that day.”
“What are you talking about?” Kaname’s voice went up an octave. The fingers on one hand left indentations in the box.
“Frogs and salamanders are easily found around bodies of fresh water,” Sousuke said. “As the teacher mentioned, frogs seldom move from the safety of the water's edge. At the first sign of danger, they plunge into the water and bury themselves in the mud and debris.” Sousuke relaxed some. He normally felt better when discussing subjects he knew something about. “There are few poisonous species of frogs. Avoid any brightly colored frog, or one that has a distinct "X" mark on its back. Do not confuse toads with frogs. You normally find toads in drier environments. Several species of toads secrete a poisonous substance through their skin as a defense against attack. Therefore, to avoid poisoning, do not handle or eat toads.”
“Why would I… I just don’t see…” Kaname hung her head. “What does any of that have to do with Pocky?”
“Nothing,” Sousuke said, wondering why Kaname suddenly seemed tired. Perhaps she stayed up later than usual to study. “You mentioned snack food. Under survival conditions, amphibians make adequate snack food. In sufficient numbers, they can serve as a nutritional main meal.”
“Sheeee-eee-ee-esh…” Kaname’s long drawn out exhalation of breath was punctuated by a snapping sound. The item in her hand was now bent in the shape of a boomerang. “Never mind, Sousuke.” She took out another wrapped treat and tried to put on a smile. She didn’t notice that one foot was tapping faster and faster.
Sousuke sat looking at Kaname for a few moments. That had Kaname fidgeting.
“What?” Kaname furrowed her brows. She was certain that Sousuke would ruin the mood with some other stupid comment.
“I like it when you smile.” Sousuke swallowed hard after that. Why had he blurted that out? Not knowing that he was doing so, he clutched at the fabric of his recently pressed trousers with both hands.
“Oh.” Kaname froze. She felt warmth spreading across her cheeks. “That’s nice.” She suddenly felt like she was a little child again, anxious and confused. What was up with that? It really wasn’t a big deal! It had been more momentous when the scruffy idiot had told her that she looked beautiful in her mother’s kimono. She narrowed her eyes for a moment. “Why don’t you give me more reasons to smile, then?”
“I will try,” Sousuke said. He sounded earnest.
“Good,” Kaname said, waving the hand with the unwrapped Pocky in it. She fought the urge to wave it like a baton. Seeing Sousuke track her movement, she fought the impulse to smack him on the head. “Back to Pocky.” She undid the treat. “This is Pocky.”
“Understood,” Sousuke said, nodding his head.
“It…” Kaname clenched her teeth. The big jerk didn’t sound very enthusiastic. But, she could allow that for now. Once he tasted Pocky, he would be a convert. Who knows? After that, she might be able to use the stuff as some kind of reward. If people could train dogs, she should be able to get some kind of results with Sousuke. “Pocky is like a cookie. You like cookies, don’t you?”
“That is not a certainty,” Sousuke said.
“What?” Kaname clenched her fits. She broke another Pocky stick. This one was in the shape of a ‘V’. “How can you be so stupid that you don’t know whether or not you like cookies?”
“It depends on the cookie, Kaname.” The way Sousuke said that made it sound like a child should have known the answer. He twitched when he saw Kaname’s fingernails shred the box. “For example, I enjoy the small packets that come in some MREs.”
“You…” Kaname bit her lip. She held her breath and let it out. MREs. She was talking Pocky, and the big imbecile was bringing up MREs. “Anyway… these slender bisquit wafers dipped in strawberry coating are one of the high points of Japanese civilization…”
Sousuke blinked rapidly. He looked at Kanme… at the new Pocky sticky she held… and then back at her face again. He didn’t say a single word. He didn’t have to.
“I am not exaggerating,” Kaname said, shaking the Pocky stick at Sousuke. Sighing, she unwrapped it, taking out the long and slender snack. A thin pink coating covered more than three quarters of its length. “Jerk,” she said under her breath. “As I was saying, Pocky is basically a wheat cracker that can come with all sorts of flavors. Chocolate. Almond Crush. Pumpkin. Caramel. Coconout. Banana. Melon. Black Sesame. There are dozens to choose from, some found only in regional areas.” She wrinkled up her nose. “Before you ask… they do not come in ‘fresh buttered roll’ or ‘gun powder’.”
Souske raised his hand.
“What… is… it…” Kaname caught herself in time. She almost crumbled the Pocky stick.
“I find myself confused,” Sousuke admitted. “Is Pocky a cookie… a bisquit… or a cracker?”
“Guh!” The Pocky snapped in half. It joined a growing pile of casualties at Kaname’s feet. “What does that matter!”
“You called it a cookie,” Sousuke said, taken aback by the fire in Kaname’s eyes. “But, you also made reference to bisquits and crackers. Those are not the same thing. I wished…” He was interrupted.
“I KNOW WHAT I SAID, MISTER!”
Kaname stood up. A number of students walking through the same area stopped to look at her. They didn’t need to catch sight of her to know who it had been. Her voice had carried half way around the school, despite the busy traffic noise nearby.
“Are you upset that you have broken the snacks?” Sousuke took the tortured box out of Kaname’s limp hands. “I will keep the remainder safe.” He suddenly looked more attentive.
“I… you… they…” Kaname sputtered like an old fashioned fuse. It took a Herculean effort to remain calm. She closed her eyes and counted backwards from twenty.
“Wheat flour… vegetable oil, including palm, rapeseed, soy and corn oil… sugar… lactose… whole milk powder…margarine…” Sousuke ran a hand through his hair while he read of the ingredients. He wasn’t cognizant of Kaname, who was in real danger of hyperventilating. “Dried strawberry… maltose… butter… yeast… salt… artificial strawberry and artificial milk flavor… red beet coloring... soy lecithin… trisodium phosphate… sodium bicarbonate…” He looked quizzical. “Aboard Da Danaan, trisodium phosphate is a substance added to soaps or detergents to increase their cleansing action. In food form, would it have laxative qualities…”
“S-O-U-S-U-K-E-!”
Kaname’s shout was so loud, that it nearly caused a great tragedy. The window washer took a step by reflex, almost plummeting off of his scaffold. The bucket that he kicked fell and drenched the visiting School Superintendent. Standing next to him, the Principal closed her eyes and said a quick prayer.
Sousuke found himself involuntarily standing at attention. What was wrong now? Did Kaname think that he was making some inference to her being constipated? He would never do that! Not after the beating she gave him the first time he asked such a question. It had been more than ten weeks, and that lump still hadn’t gone down.
“All I wanted to do was share a snack,” Kaname said to no one in particular. “Why me? Why does something like this always have to happen?” She wrung her hands for a moment, stopping when she saw an underclassman looking at her. When she made a face, the boy scampered off, running into a tree. Bark peeled off, sticking to his face. “Don’t I deserve some happiness, sometimes?”
“Affirmative,” Sousuke said. “After your safety, your happiness is paramount.” His shoes and ankles were touching, and the box of Pocky was clasped tightly to his side.
“At ease, soldier…” Kaname sat down hard. She rubbed at her temples for a moment. Hearing a crunching noise, she saw that she had stepped on the crippled Pocky sticks.
Sousuke relaxed his posture. “Why is this called Pocky?”
“Well, that’s a start.” Kaname nodded her head. Her usual indomitable spirit had returned in spades. “I think the original cookie…” She stopped and gave Sousuke a pointed look. If he said ‘cracker’ or bisquit,’ he would end up in the infirmary. “…Was called Chocoteck or something. When it became popular, the name was changed to "Pocky", after the Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound Pocky makes when bitten, pokkin.”
“Onomatopoeia?” Sousuke looked perplexed.
“A figure of speech that uses a word, or a group of words, that imitates, echoes, or suggests the object that it is describing.” Kaname unwrapped a Pocky stick. “You know… like buzz, crash, fizz, clang, hiss, purr, squeak, mumble, hush, boom… or animal noises like ‘moo’, ‘quack’ or ‘meow’.”
“Boom?” Sousuke asked.
“Forget I mentioned that one!” Kaname’s words came out in a rush. That had her feeling silly. Then again, she had her reasons to be nervous around that word.
“As you wish,” Sousuke said agreeably. He took his Pocky and snapped it in half near his ear. “It did not sound like pokkin.”
“It’s just…” Kaname began to tense up again.
“Hmmm-mm-m…” Sousuke tried again, using both resultant pieces. “It still does not sound like pokkin. More like the sound a detonator switch makes just before it shorts out.”
“Can’t you…” Kaname squeezed her hand too tightly. Her Pocky crumbled into small fragments and fell apart.
“Let’s see what happens with standard applied pressure.” Sousuke broke each of the four fragments. “Perhaps I should have my hearing checked.” He rushed to add “Not because of the continued shouting…” Mithril could do him a favor by surgically implanting a zipper at his lips.
“Grrrrr-rrrr-rrr-rr-r…” Kaname’s eyes looked like those of a caged or cornered wild beast. She had images of Sousuke walking back into class, Pocky protruding from every available orifice.
“I suppose I should eat these.” Sousuke looked at the handful of Pocky fragments. Tentatively, he put on in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed, looking somewhat contemplative for a moment. “It is not unpleasant.”
Kaname’s eyes bulged. She was a Pocky addict. The fact that someone might not consider the famous snack to be mana from the heavens left her flabbergasted. Her anger quickly turned to disbelief.
“I suppose they may even be somewhat pleasurable,” Sousuke muttered, crumbs falling from his mouth as he ate a couple more pieces. “Not bad.”
“Not bad?” Kaname snatched one of Sousuke’s pieces to taste for herself. He must have gotten a poorly made stick. No. His was fine. It was delicious. Big moron! “Not bad!” That was it. The pin pulled on a grenade. The trigger squeezed on a rifle. The final push of magma that sent the top of a mountain flying away.
“Yes,” Sousuke said, nodding his head. He reached into the box, unwrapped two Pocky sticks, and started eating one, after handing the other to Kaname. “Thank you, Kaname. I somehow feel in better spirits now.” He looked down at the Pocky, before glancing over at her eyes. Why was it difficult for him to speak now? “You have helped me in a way that others could not.”
“…” Kaname was speechless. Her mouth fell open. Soon thereafter, her lips pressed back together and she smiled a big smile.
“Perhaps today is not so bad a day after all.” Sousuke finished off his Pocky.
“Really?” Kaname’s eyes went very wide. She was close to connecting with Sousuke on another level. She felt her heart beating faster and faster. She blushed, thinking about the way a couple might eat a single Pocky held in both their mouths. “Sousuke…”
“There they are!” It was the Principal. She was standing with a man who was drenched from head to toe. His suit looked European in cut, and fabulously expensive.
Kaname just closed her eyes.
THE END
It fell slowly, rocking back and forth, until a strong gust of wind blew it far from view.
Life was like that. Sometimes, it seemed to progress slowly and evenly. At other times, something would come up that throws everything into frantic motion.
Today was a good example. Everything had been going smoothly for the past week. Once again, the students and teachers had been lulled into a false sense of security, or so they said afterwards.
“If I had hesitated… and there had been a danger… my regret would be greater…” Sousuke sighed. As he watched, another couple of leaves broke off from the tree and blew away. He wondered how long his assignment at the school would last. When his time was up, it would be his time to get sent on his way.
There had been a girl. She screamed. A man had his arms around her in a manner that could not be considered appropriate. Moving by instinct and habit, Sousuke had rushed onto the scene, without calling for the man to cease his behavior. The solid impact the butt of his pistol made on the temple of the assailant’s head put him down quickly.
Unfortunately, the man had been the Vice Principal wearing a ski mask. The girl had volunteered to be the ‘victim,’ so that the guest speaker could describe simple self defense measures that the watching students could attempt, if they found themselves in a similar situation.
That would have been bad enough. Earlier, he had gotten his test score back in Classical Japanese Literature. Despite all of the extra time Kaname had put in helping him, his performance had been substandard. It was somewhat ironic, that Japanese was his worst language.
“Sousuke!” That was Kaname’s voice. She had found him. He only had a few seconds more before the scolding started. “There you are.” She sat down next to him, and immediately reached for her bag.
“Sorry.” Sousuke automatically cringed, lowering his head some to protect his face. When Kaname made a move like that to her bag, she often brought back the halisen in full swing.
“What are you doing?” Kaname sounded exasperated. “I’m not going to hit you or something.” She was holding a colorful box in her hand. “Geeee-eee-ee-ez… you’re really paranoid…”
“I thought…” Sousuke examined the box. It appeared to contain a foodstuff of some kind, unless Kaname had used it to carry something else.
“Well that’s certainly an improvement, mister.” Kaname shook the box at him, causing something inside to shift back and forth. “Maybe you should have stopped to think before you sent someone else to the Emergency Room.” She tapped her fingers on the box in staccato fashion. “It wouldn’t hurt to think when you fill in your test answers, too…”
“I apologize.” Sousuke couldn’t meet Kaname’s eyes. He was looking down at his feet, feeling deficient on all fronts. “You worked hard.”
“We worked hard,” Kaname said. She was in one of her upward mood swings. It didn’t hurt that she aced the exam. “You may be an accident waiting to happen… and you’re not the sharpest knife in the kit…” She scowled, realizing that she had used an otaku analogy. “…But… you always try your best…” This was one of her days to appreciate the things that Sousuke did for her. It made her feel somewhat proud: she hadn’t needed to mark it on her calendar this time.
“You are not angry?” Sousuke looked surprised. That had Kaname frowning for a moment. Sousuke was quiet when she wanted him to speak; but, when it was best for him to remain silent, he always managed to say something.
“Angry? Me?” Kaname tossed her hair, holding the box on her lap. “Of course not. Ah hah hah hah hah hahhh…”
“What is in the box?” Sousuke eyed the brightly decorated package.
“Pocky,” Kaname said, smiling. “I thought you might need some cheering up.” She opened the box and took out a long wrapped item. “It’s Strawberry.”
“I see,” Sousuke replied, sounding as if he were taking not of a mission parameter. “What is Pocky?”
“Huh?” Kaname’s face couldn’t have looked more incredulous if she had just watched a flying saucer land on top of the school. “You’re kidding, right? Everyone knows what Pocky is.” She stared at Sousuke and sighed. What had she been thinking? The word ‘Everyone’ usually didn’t include a certain Muddle-headed Military Misfit.
“I must have been absent on the day they discussed it in class,” Sousuke said. He sat a bit stiffer. A day didn’t pass without his being reminded in some manner, that he didn’t fit in to popular culture, despite having been in Tokyo for a fair while now.
“Baka,” Kaname said by reflex. She bit her lip. Now was a time for supporting Sousuke, not chiding him. “It has nothing to do with school, Sousuke. It’s a snack food.” She couldn’t help herself. “When was the last time that any of the teachers gave a lecture on snack food?”
“Last week,” Sousuke answered. “Biology Class. The lecture on pond life. We were both in class that day.”
“What are you talking about?” Kaname’s voice went up an octave. The fingers on one hand left indentations in the box.
“Frogs and salamanders are easily found around bodies of fresh water,” Sousuke said. “As the teacher mentioned, frogs seldom move from the safety of the water's edge. At the first sign of danger, they plunge into the water and bury themselves in the mud and debris.” Sousuke relaxed some. He normally felt better when discussing subjects he knew something about. “There are few poisonous species of frogs. Avoid any brightly colored frog, or one that has a distinct "X" mark on its back. Do not confuse toads with frogs. You normally find toads in drier environments. Several species of toads secrete a poisonous substance through their skin as a defense against attack. Therefore, to avoid poisoning, do not handle or eat toads.”
“Why would I… I just don’t see…” Kaname hung her head. “What does any of that have to do with Pocky?”
“Nothing,” Sousuke said, wondering why Kaname suddenly seemed tired. Perhaps she stayed up later than usual to study. “You mentioned snack food. Under survival conditions, amphibians make adequate snack food. In sufficient numbers, they can serve as a nutritional main meal.”
“Sheeee-eee-ee-esh…” Kaname’s long drawn out exhalation of breath was punctuated by a snapping sound. The item in her hand was now bent in the shape of a boomerang. “Never mind, Sousuke.” She took out another wrapped treat and tried to put on a smile. She didn’t notice that one foot was tapping faster and faster.
Sousuke sat looking at Kaname for a few moments. That had Kaname fidgeting.
“What?” Kaname furrowed her brows. She was certain that Sousuke would ruin the mood with some other stupid comment.
“I like it when you smile.” Sousuke swallowed hard after that. Why had he blurted that out? Not knowing that he was doing so, he clutched at the fabric of his recently pressed trousers with both hands.
“Oh.” Kaname froze. She felt warmth spreading across her cheeks. “That’s nice.” She suddenly felt like she was a little child again, anxious and confused. What was up with that? It really wasn’t a big deal! It had been more momentous when the scruffy idiot had told her that she looked beautiful in her mother’s kimono. She narrowed her eyes for a moment. “Why don’t you give me more reasons to smile, then?”
“I will try,” Sousuke said. He sounded earnest.
“Good,” Kaname said, waving the hand with the unwrapped Pocky in it. She fought the urge to wave it like a baton. Seeing Sousuke track her movement, she fought the impulse to smack him on the head. “Back to Pocky.” She undid the treat. “This is Pocky.”
“Understood,” Sousuke said, nodding his head.
“It…” Kaname clenched her teeth. The big jerk didn’t sound very enthusiastic. But, she could allow that for now. Once he tasted Pocky, he would be a convert. Who knows? After that, she might be able to use the stuff as some kind of reward. If people could train dogs, she should be able to get some kind of results with Sousuke. “Pocky is like a cookie. You like cookies, don’t you?”
“That is not a certainty,” Sousuke said.
“What?” Kaname clenched her fits. She broke another Pocky stick. This one was in the shape of a ‘V’. “How can you be so stupid that you don’t know whether or not you like cookies?”
“It depends on the cookie, Kaname.” The way Sousuke said that made it sound like a child should have known the answer. He twitched when he saw Kaname’s fingernails shred the box. “For example, I enjoy the small packets that come in some MREs.”
“You…” Kaname bit her lip. She held her breath and let it out. MREs. She was talking Pocky, and the big imbecile was bringing up MREs. “Anyway… these slender bisquit wafers dipped in strawberry coating are one of the high points of Japanese civilization…”
Sousuke blinked rapidly. He looked at Kanme… at the new Pocky sticky she held… and then back at her face again. He didn’t say a single word. He didn’t have to.
“I am not exaggerating,” Kaname said, shaking the Pocky stick at Sousuke. Sighing, she unwrapped it, taking out the long and slender snack. A thin pink coating covered more than three quarters of its length. “Jerk,” she said under her breath. “As I was saying, Pocky is basically a wheat cracker that can come with all sorts of flavors. Chocolate. Almond Crush. Pumpkin. Caramel. Coconout. Banana. Melon. Black Sesame. There are dozens to choose from, some found only in regional areas.” She wrinkled up her nose. “Before you ask… they do not come in ‘fresh buttered roll’ or ‘gun powder’.”
Souske raised his hand.
“What… is… it…” Kaname caught herself in time. She almost crumbled the Pocky stick.
“I find myself confused,” Sousuke admitted. “Is Pocky a cookie… a bisquit… or a cracker?”
“Guh!” The Pocky snapped in half. It joined a growing pile of casualties at Kaname’s feet. “What does that matter!”
“You called it a cookie,” Sousuke said, taken aback by the fire in Kaname’s eyes. “But, you also made reference to bisquits and crackers. Those are not the same thing. I wished…” He was interrupted.
“I KNOW WHAT I SAID, MISTER!”
Kaname stood up. A number of students walking through the same area stopped to look at her. They didn’t need to catch sight of her to know who it had been. Her voice had carried half way around the school, despite the busy traffic noise nearby.
“Are you upset that you have broken the snacks?” Sousuke took the tortured box out of Kaname’s limp hands. “I will keep the remainder safe.” He suddenly looked more attentive.
“I… you… they…” Kaname sputtered like an old fashioned fuse. It took a Herculean effort to remain calm. She closed her eyes and counted backwards from twenty.
“Wheat flour… vegetable oil, including palm, rapeseed, soy and corn oil… sugar… lactose… whole milk powder…margarine…” Sousuke ran a hand through his hair while he read of the ingredients. He wasn’t cognizant of Kaname, who was in real danger of hyperventilating. “Dried strawberry… maltose… butter… yeast… salt… artificial strawberry and artificial milk flavor… red beet coloring... soy lecithin… trisodium phosphate… sodium bicarbonate…” He looked quizzical. “Aboard Da Danaan, trisodium phosphate is a substance added to soaps or detergents to increase their cleansing action. In food form, would it have laxative qualities…”
“S-O-U-S-U-K-E-!”
Kaname’s shout was so loud, that it nearly caused a great tragedy. The window washer took a step by reflex, almost plummeting off of his scaffold. The bucket that he kicked fell and drenched the visiting School Superintendent. Standing next to him, the Principal closed her eyes and said a quick prayer.
Sousuke found himself involuntarily standing at attention. What was wrong now? Did Kaname think that he was making some inference to her being constipated? He would never do that! Not after the beating she gave him the first time he asked such a question. It had been more than ten weeks, and that lump still hadn’t gone down.
“All I wanted to do was share a snack,” Kaname said to no one in particular. “Why me? Why does something like this always have to happen?” She wrung her hands for a moment, stopping when she saw an underclassman looking at her. When she made a face, the boy scampered off, running into a tree. Bark peeled off, sticking to his face. “Don’t I deserve some happiness, sometimes?”
“Affirmative,” Sousuke said. “After your safety, your happiness is paramount.” His shoes and ankles were touching, and the box of Pocky was clasped tightly to his side.
“At ease, soldier…” Kaname sat down hard. She rubbed at her temples for a moment. Hearing a crunching noise, she saw that she had stepped on the crippled Pocky sticks.
Sousuke relaxed his posture. “Why is this called Pocky?”
“Well, that’s a start.” Kaname nodded her head. Her usual indomitable spirit had returned in spades. “I think the original cookie…” She stopped and gave Sousuke a pointed look. If he said ‘cracker’ or bisquit,’ he would end up in the infirmary. “…Was called Chocoteck or something. When it became popular, the name was changed to "Pocky", after the Japanese onomatopoeia for the sound Pocky makes when bitten, pokkin.”
“Onomatopoeia?” Sousuke looked perplexed.
“A figure of speech that uses a word, or a group of words, that imitates, echoes, or suggests the object that it is describing.” Kaname unwrapped a Pocky stick. “You know… like buzz, crash, fizz, clang, hiss, purr, squeak, mumble, hush, boom… or animal noises like ‘moo’, ‘quack’ or ‘meow’.”
“Boom?” Sousuke asked.
“Forget I mentioned that one!” Kaname’s words came out in a rush. That had her feeling silly. Then again, she had her reasons to be nervous around that word.
“As you wish,” Sousuke said agreeably. He took his Pocky and snapped it in half near his ear. “It did not sound like pokkin.”
“It’s just…” Kaname began to tense up again.
“Hmmm-mm-m…” Sousuke tried again, using both resultant pieces. “It still does not sound like pokkin. More like the sound a detonator switch makes just before it shorts out.”
“Can’t you…” Kaname squeezed her hand too tightly. Her Pocky crumbled into small fragments and fell apart.
“Let’s see what happens with standard applied pressure.” Sousuke broke each of the four fragments. “Perhaps I should have my hearing checked.” He rushed to add “Not because of the continued shouting…” Mithril could do him a favor by surgically implanting a zipper at his lips.
“Grrrrr-rrrr-rrr-rr-r…” Kaname’s eyes looked like those of a caged or cornered wild beast. She had images of Sousuke walking back into class, Pocky protruding from every available orifice.
“I suppose I should eat these.” Sousuke looked at the handful of Pocky fragments. Tentatively, he put on in his mouth. He chewed and swallowed, looking somewhat contemplative for a moment. “It is not unpleasant.”
Kaname’s eyes bulged. She was a Pocky addict. The fact that someone might not consider the famous snack to be mana from the heavens left her flabbergasted. Her anger quickly turned to disbelief.
“I suppose they may even be somewhat pleasurable,” Sousuke muttered, crumbs falling from his mouth as he ate a couple more pieces. “Not bad.”
“Not bad?” Kaname snatched one of Sousuke’s pieces to taste for herself. He must have gotten a poorly made stick. No. His was fine. It was delicious. Big moron! “Not bad!” That was it. The pin pulled on a grenade. The trigger squeezed on a rifle. The final push of magma that sent the top of a mountain flying away.
“Yes,” Sousuke said, nodding his head. He reached into the box, unwrapped two Pocky sticks, and started eating one, after handing the other to Kaname. “Thank you, Kaname. I somehow feel in better spirits now.” He looked down at the Pocky, before glancing over at her eyes. Why was it difficult for him to speak now? “You have helped me in a way that others could not.”
“…” Kaname was speechless. Her mouth fell open. Soon thereafter, her lips pressed back together and she smiled a big smile.
“Perhaps today is not so bad a day after all.” Sousuke finished off his Pocky.
“Really?” Kaname’s eyes went very wide. She was close to connecting with Sousuke on another level. She felt her heart beating faster and faster. She blushed, thinking about the way a couple might eat a single Pocky held in both their mouths. “Sousuke…”
“There they are!” It was the Principal. She was standing with a man who was drenched from head to toe. His suit looked European in cut, and fabulously expensive.
Kaname just closed her eyes.
THE END
