Pandion (Genera #1)

Chapter 35

A week and a half from their arrival, and with the last of the leaving students escorted out and on their way home, Harumine heaved a sigh of relief.

Kagesawa had organised a maintenance team for the donation portal consisting of some of the remaining research students and members of faculty still living on the school premises.

The thousands had dwindled into a few hundred students and there was no telling if the SEU would ever stand as tall and proud as it once had, but at least what remained was now a functional entity. They were even utilising the empty dorms by taking in empath refugees who needed help getting their lives together after losing their jobs and their savings.

Oddly enough, Yajima had carved himself a comfortable space amidst all of this and seemed to be thriving, helping with server security and giving technical advice. It didn’t really matter whether he was trying to reform his ways or covering up his tracks so long as it was keeping him out of trouble.

“What do you want to do now?” Kagesawa asked Harumine on the morning of the eleventh day.

The political climate was still volatile and the streets couldn’t be described as safe, but they’d grown more used to the situation and started to accept it as the new normal. It didn’t seem like it would resolve any time soon, if ever. Harumine would have to figure out what to do outside of the future he’d imagined for himself. What he’d been aiming for had long since turned out to be a pipe dream.

“Everyone’s heading home. It’s been a while, so maybe I should do that, too. What about you?” Harumine had received some worried messages from his family, but he’d only replied once or twice to say he was fine and not to worry.

Kagesawa was packing up his things and getting dressed.

“Do you still want to be linked to me? Do you want us to stick together or would you rather do your own thing?” he asked instead of answering. He was preoccupied trying to find a sock, but Harumine got the impression he was intentionally keeping busy to detach himself from the question.

Sometimes having a conversation with him felt like trying to wrangle a wet bar of soap. He was yet to grasp quite a lot of things Harumine had been trying to tell him recently, even when he’d tried to leave no room for misinterpretation.

“I want you to come along with me, but I was wondering if we should go see your family first. You don’t talk about them much. Do they live close by?” Harumine asked. Takazaki and Yajima had mentioned Kagesawa’s parents, so it was safe to assume they were alive somewhere. Other than that, Harumine knew nothing.

“My parents live in Aoyama. I haven’t seen them in years.”

“Are you not on good terms?”

“No, it’s nothing like that. It’s just a hassle to arrange because they’re never home.” Kagesawa found his sock and put it on. Then, realising his palm reader wasn’t in his pocket, he started to look for that instead.

“I think I saw it on the shelf over there.”

“I guess I could send them a message and see if they’re around. I don’t really have much to say to them.” He found his reader and connected it to his port. “I could ask them for details, but I don’t think that would change anything.” His nonchalance was perplexing, considering how upset he’d been to find out his parents had known about his DEFD. He sent out the message and disconnected the reader.

“You’re surprisingly chill about this. I’d want to give them a piece of my mind if I were you.”

“If they’re around, and we go meet them, you’ll see what I mean when I say it’s a waste of breath.” Kagesawa put the reader into his pocket and lifted his bags. He was done with packing, and to his credit, it wasn’t even noon yet. That he’d managed to locate all of his scattered belongings was no small miracle.

It only dawned on Harumine when they arrived at Aoyama-itchōme Station that Kagesawa had indeed said Aoyama. A stone’s throw away from the station, Kagesawa pointed out a modern three-storey detached house overlooking a park, with a garage, three cars and a backyard. Considering the location and what he was staring at in disbelief, Harumine refused to even guess the value of this piece of property.

Kagesawa, in his usual worn out getup, looked very out of place at the front gate of this house. Harumine himself felt like he should have been wearing at least three, maybe four designer suits on top of one another to not feel like a beggar.

“Let’s hope they’re actually home because I didn’t bring my keys.”

Kagesawa rang the doorbell.

“Yes?” A female voice from the intercom.

“It’s Tsuyoshi. Can you let me in?” Ah, crap, I forgot about her.

“What? I don’t know anyone by that name.” She sounded much too spiteful to be serious.

“Please? I know it’s been a while. Let me in, OK?”

“Fine.” The gate opened.

Kagesawa let Harumine in and followed even less enthused than before, if that was possible. It’s my sister. I don’t know what she’s doing here. She’s usually abroad most of the year.

The door was left ajar. Kagesawa opened it for Harumine, either to be a gentleman or to delay for a few more seconds before having to walk in himself.

“Mum and Dad aren’t here yet, but they’re coming home for dinner.” By the sounds of it, Kagesawa’s sister had already headed off into the kitchen.

Kagesawa guided Harumine towards the stairs.

“Will you be staying until then, or are you here to pick something up? Money? You’re here for money, right?” She, a fairly beautiful and well-dressed woman in her early forties, returned to the entrance hall. “Oh, who is he?”

“Harumine Satoru. Satoru, this is my older sister Kagesawa Reika.”

“Nice to meet you.” Harumine gave her a polite bow. She raised her brow, inspected Harumine from head to toe and turned back to her brother.

“A link?”

“Yes.”

“What are you here for? To show him off? He’s not much to look at, no offence.” She seemed genuinely puzzled, even annoyed. The atmosphere was getting tense and uncomfortable. Harumine wondered if the parents were going to be as off-putting. This probably hadn’t been a good idea.

“He’s prettier than your ugly face.” Kagesawa’s response made Harumine do a double-take. After a moment of heavy silence, Reika snorted.

“I’ll give you money if you need some. It’s no problem.” She smiled and gave Kagesawa a hug. “Come by a little more often. I’d like to know what you’ve been up to.”

“I don’t need anything. Satoru suggested I stop by before we head out of town since it might be a while before it’s safe to travel again.”

“Ooh, right. I heard something on the news. I landed two days ago, so I haven’t really had the chance to catch up. I’ll be leaving for Italy again early next week. How are you holding up? Are you sure you don’t need some money?” She seemed friendlier now that she’d been insulted.

“I’m fine.”

“Are you staying for dinner at least?” Before Kagesawa could respond, she started ushering him and Harumine up the stairs and continued, “Change out of those rags and show your friend around. Dinner’s at six. I need to go do a thing.” She was as quick to retreat as she was pushy, and she hummed something as she disappeared back into the kitchen.

Don’t mind her. Kagesawa climbed up the stairs. Harumine followed. Here’s my room, assuming they haven’t converted it into an office. Kagesawa opened the door to one of the bedrooms.

What unfolded was a shrine of days past: it was tidy, and it had been dusted clean, but everything in the room was as if stuck in time, around 15 to 20 years ago. There was a pressed, clean school uniform hanging from a hanger, a stack of CDs and some shōnen manga on a shelf, knick-knacks from popular series from decades ago, half a band of instruments, a basketball and various other sports gear placed here and there.

Harumine hadn’t expected Kagesawa to be into sports, but he did have the height, so it stood to reason they’d recruited him for basketball. The school uniform looked high-end, even if a bit dated. Looking at Kagesawa now, it was difficult to imagine him ever having worn it.

There might be something that fits, but I wonder if anything’s worth wearing. Kagesawa checked the closet. It’s probably going to be awkward, but at least we’ll get something to eat before we go. Did you have a specific train in mind? Kagesawa pulled out a t-shirt and changed into it. Then he picked out a fresh pair of brand name sneakers from a box.

I’ve been getting reports from the students that there’s been trouble on the Hokkaidō line. With the sleeper trains discontinued and no privacy on the Shinkansen, the ferry from Oarai should be the safest option. Harumine watched Kagesawa browse through a row of suits and designer clothing as if in a store.

What time does it leave? Kagesawa picked up a leather jacket, shook his head with a hint of amusement, showed it to Harumine and put it back.

19:45, Harumine replied.

Better not stay for dinner then. I wonder if Reika would be willing to drive us to Oarai. Wait here. Kagesawa hurried back downstairs.

Harumine was left in the strange time capsule. Thinking back to Kagesawa’s rickety-ass apartment, it seemed like a gigantic lie. Anyone used to this kind of luxury shouldn’t have been able to adjust to such a dump. The only things that made more sense were Kagesawa’s bizarre indifference to money and blindness to housework. The rest of it was a weird fever-dream.

Ah, come on back down. They’re here. Might as well get this over with and go.

It was a shame to end it short since, as strange and jarring as this felt, Harumine was curious to see more. He was rather hoping it would make more sense if he got used to it. He wanted to shake away the feeling he’d been lied to, even if by omission.

Downstairs, Harumine wished he was still wearing the SEU suit and not the clothes he’d worn the day they’d fled the apartment. Kagesawa’s father looked stately and distinguished in his short grey hair and business suit, but it was Kagesawa’s mother especially that drew Harumine’s attention.

She was objectively a beautiful woman. She was clearly foreign, but her ethnicity was difficult to determine from her looks. Kagesawa had inherited her height and hair, but even though they also shared some facial features, the similarity was so subtle, it had never occurred to Harumine that Kagesawa could be half-Japanese.

“Oh, you’re here.” Kagesawa’s father acknowledged his son as if he hadn’t been notified of their visit. Kagesawa’s mother said nothing at all. Instead, she ignored the lot of them and headed off toward the master bedroom. “You’ll have to excuse her. She has a routine. Is Reika still around?”

“I don’t know. She was here when we came, but she had something to do.”

Kagesawa and his father resumed their conversation with zero acknowledgement of the time that had passed since they’d last seen each other. There were no ‘good to see yous’ or ‘how have you beens’, but then again, they were talking past one another not really listening to what the other was saying, their subject matter inconsequential, unrelated small-talk. Neither of them was focused enough to care about introductions either.

“Are you staying for dinner?”

“We should be going. The ferry leaves at…” When was it? Kagesawa turned to Harumine, who repeated the time for him. “19:45 from Oarai.”

“You’re not going to take a flight? I can pay for the tickets if that’s the issue.”

“I’m an empath. The pressure stabiliser for the organism is a dead giveaway. You might as well draw an x on my forehead.”

“Right.” Kagesawa’s father looked confused but made no further comment. It was possible to fly without the stabiliser, but the health implications were unpredictable and ranged from nothing to catastrophic. It wasn’t worth the risk. “I guess we could have some ‘tea’—as your mother puts it—before you go to your ferry. I’ll have my driver take you.” He excused himself to go get changed.

Kagesawa headed into the living room. I’ll show you the rest of the house if you want, but there’s not much to see. It’s just a house.

Just a house? The size and scope of it was modest relative to what was available outside of the metropolitan area, but it was still an impressive piece of architecture! The door handles and light-fixtures screamed custom design, and the furniture was expensive foreign import. It was understandable he’d become blind to it, having grown up in this environment, but calling it ‘just a house’ was aggravating.

We used to have a cat, but it’s been so long I don’t think she’s around anymore. She used to like that spot there beside the fireplace. I don’t think they’ve gotten another pet after her. I recall my mother complaining to the cleaner about the shedding. She was a cute cat though. Very sociable. Kagesawa smiled. I’d like a cat myself, but with my track record, I’m afraid I’d forget to feed it. He chuckled and opened the sliding door to the backyard.

There was a rock garden, a koi pond and some pine trees carefully curated and maintained.

Kagesawa sat down on the back porch. The atmosphere was about as stiff as the rest of the house, but he looked somewhat more at ease here. Although the backyard wasn’t suitable for play, Harumine got the impression this had been his favourite spot since childhood.

I wasn’t trying to keep this from you. It’s just depressing to talk about. We’re not what you’d call a close-knit family, and because it’s such a cliché to be estranged when you’re rich, people tend to assume things. It’s annoying having to explain we already had these problems before. My mother is not stuck up because of the wealth, she has other issues. My father has always been a workaholic. We moved here when I was seven and his career took off. It was a struggle to fit in. At least with the money, I had plenty of things to preoccupy myself with.

“ I’m glad you agreed to bring me here.” It put things into a context. The time he’d spent linked to Kagesawa had made Harumine realise how little he actually knew and how easy it was to make assumptions. Even when he’d challenged his preconceptions and managed to peel off a layer of the onion, more and more layers were revealed underneath.

No matter how frustrating and tear-inducing the process, Kagesawa was a fascinating onion.