Page 61 of Pandion

No,Kagesawa replied. Yajima went in by himself.Is it far?

A few hundred metres.Now that he was fairly sure they’d get there without being harassed, Harumine realised he was still nervous.

Or was this excitement?

But why? Nostalgia? So soon?

He was happy to be reunited with his professors and even some of the other staff. There were a few underclassmen he’d been on good terms with, but none of these felt like the reason he was excited. Was it the prospect of finding out something new about the organism?

What’s taking him so long?Kagesawa asked.

Let him take his time. There’s hardly anyone here. We’re fine.On an average day, there would have been more students around, but other than that, everything appeared normal.

Hopefully, the people he knew on campus were doing all right. He considered getting in touch with his old school mates and friends, but since he’d kept a distance after graduation, and most of his friendships felt strained and awkward to begin with, it was difficult to take the initiative. Yajima exited the konbini.

“This way.” Harumine continued down the street.

The campus was fenced off, but there was a small parking garage behind a restaurant where the height of the fence halved to give better visibility out into the street for the few people who used the garage. The top of the fence had become suspiciously scuffed where people had climbed over it.

Harumine hopped over with ease. Kagesawa followed without having to hop. The three of them circled around some overgrown bushes to a little back road behind the West main building. Beyond there on the other side towered the dorms. It felt familiar, foreign and a little sad now that there was nothing there for Harumine anymore.

The West main building housed a lot of the lecture halls and classrooms, but also a number of staff offices and the research department. Barging in there was useless without a valid research student ID, but with a strategic pit stop, perhaps one could be arranged.

As they entered the building, Harumine realised why he was so excited. And when he realised it, he immediately recoiled.

What’s wrong?Kagesawa asked.

“What is it?” Yajima was almost as quick to notice.

“Oh, nothing.” Harumine groaned inwardly.

He was excited because he wanted to show Kagesawa around the place: the auditorium with its half-modern, restored clock tower. The massive university library. The view from the glass skybridge between the East and the West buildings, shaped like joining cherry tree branches that were illuminated after dark with blooming, light pink flowers in the spring. The dorm roomsoverlooking the park and the founder’s statue… something he hadn’t glanced at twice when he’d studied here but now felt nostalgic.

To his shock, he’d also been looking forward to introducing Kagesawa to the people. This was not a sightseeing tour, for fuck’s sake. “It’s on the third floor, if memory serves me, but we’ll need an access card for the lifts.”

Kagesawa was not the gorgeous girlfriend he was taking home to see his parents, and this was not a date. The man looked about as kempt as a trash bag with his hair tied back in a mess resembling a bird’s nest, wearing that ancient excuse of a coat he’d worn the first time they’d met. It had been dirty then, and it most certainly hadn’t been washed since. It was a disgrace.

These weeks had made Harumine virtually blind to Kagesawa’s vagrant image, and what was worse, he wasn’t much better himself in this oversized jumper and tattered trousers. He couldn’t even recall when he’d last worn a proper suit and tie. Was it emotional growth that he’d learnt to see past the exterior somewhat? Or was it a loss of his sense of propriety, a moral bankruptcy even?

Harumine knocked on the door of the office of student services. The student councillor that answered the door was dressed to perfection in her uniform. The contrast was supremely unpleasant.

“May I help you?” She looked worried, but her voice was kind. Perhaps the recent events had eased the dress code, or perhaps she was taking pity on him?

“My apologies for the interruption, but does Hase-sensei happen to be in today? What about Shigemoto-sensei?” Harumine would make do with either.

The councillor seemed reluctant to cooperate.

“May I see your student ID?” she requested.

Harumine patted his pockets, wondering if he even had his wallet with him. He could almost hear the imaginary angelic choir sing their praises when Kagesawa handed him his wallet. He pulled out the now-expired student ID and handed it to the councillor, who inspected it with some curiosity.

There was a moment of confusion visible on her face, but it did not last for very long. Clearly, she was having a private conversation with her link to verify what to do. A door behind her opened, and a man came to join her at her desk. He looked familiar.

“Harumine-san.” The man nodded to Harumine, printed out a slip and assembled a visitor’s badge. “Welcome back. Hase-sensei is busy at present, but if you are not in a hurry, I can leave him a message, and he will get back to you later. Shigemoto-sensei has been dispatched to Kyoto and will not be available for the next two weeks. May I ask what this pertains to?”

“It’s difficult to explain. I would rather discuss it with Hase-sensei directly, but it has to do with the current situation.” Harumine took the badge offered to him. “Where should I wait for him?”

The student councillor’s colleague, Matsutani-san, with whom Harumine had spoken before though a mere handful of times, seemed only a fraction more willing to help.

---