92 Chapter two, 2016, southbound: 9 (2/2)

”What about it?”

Noriko looked for somewhere to sit but found nothing but the ground. It had to do and she sat down cross-legged. ”Cooking food takes another half an hour. One at most.”

Ryu nodded understanding.

”Kuri and Urufu had planned some games to pad out the hours before we pretend to go to sleep.”

That brought a laugh to her brother. ”You really should try to voice the illusion, sis. You're cleverer than I am by far, but you're not very smart.”

”Huh?” Where did that come from?

”Sis, at least try to act as if you didn't know everything from the start. When we go to sleep we go to sleep.” He joined her on the ground before he continued. ”That's it. If some members prefer chatting or going out with their flash-lights you don't have to sound like you knew it would happen, OK?”

Noriko felt that she had an inkling where he was going, and it wasn't somewhere she was too keen to follow. 'Am I too rigid? Does it make me boring?'

”So, what did you want to talk to me about?” Ryu said.

The question brought her back from her thoughts. ”We have to make it look like Kuri's and Urufu's absence isn't that big a deal. I just don't have a clue how.”

She got a smirk from her brother. ”I'll handle that. I can keep them occupied for a few hours, but that wasn't really why you brought me here, was it?”

'Bro, when did you start growing up? Maybe he wasn't the simpleton who could never see behind human duplicity any longer.' ”Lucky guess?” she tried.

He shook his head. ”Sis, I've always been smarter than you. Not as clever, but smarter. Do you really think I'm this popular by accident?”

Noriko took a long stare at her brother. His unruly hairdo wasn't an accident. Their favourite hairdresser was anything but cheap, and even Kuri had once made a comment about professional taste. But did he really think things through?

”I learned during middle school. Some of my pranks made people angry, and others just made me more friends.” He grinned at her. A friendly grin. A warm one, but none she could understand why it would make girls flock to him like moths to the light. ”That's my friendly grin. I have another for the girls,” he said and shattered any remaining illusions she had harboured.

Noriko shuddered. 'I've known you my entire life, and you managed to keep this kind of secret. Gods!'

”Sis, the real reason, now. Your idiot bro has a harem to care for, isn't that how you see me?”

”You're being unfair,” she protested. Then she felt herself grinning wildly as years of need to take care of her brother ran off her in an instant. ”Ryu, we need to slip information about our new part time jobs to them. Not too much in one go, and it's important it sounds it was all dad's idea from the beginning.”

He nodded. ”I thought as much. I was so angry yesterday, but it made sense. I'll play the clown then. It's really a part of me by now. Not all show, you know,” he added and laughed loud enough to make a few faces turn in their direction. Then he was all serious again. ”You take care of the real business until Urufu is himself again, and use Kuri. She's not just beautiful. She's got the experience as well.”

'OK, not really grown up yet. Did you find out that just now? Kuri's the real pro of all of us. She's way ahead of Urufu.' ”I will,” Noriko promised. She felt relieved her brother hadn't turned into a totally different person. There were still blind spots to his observations.