My Parallel-World Self's Fashion Sense Was Simply a Kink

The thinly clouded sky still held the last of the sunset. We came down the slope from the lookout park, passed in front of the high school, and turned off the station-bound main avenue onto a road heading for the east side of town.

We'd stopped once at a convenience store along the way, because I'd run out of steam. Tsukino was perfectly fine, so I found myself wondering whether a bit of training could bring me up to her level.

Unlike the bustling district by the station or the residential areas to the north and south, Motomachi, where we were now, had a fair number of noticeably older houses. The stretch from here to the station was apparently the old town that had been around before the new-town development. This area in particular, unlike the station front, gave the impression of having been left behind, never developed on any large scale.

Go a little farther and there's a shrine set amid the old streetscape. The small sacred grove visible over the stone wall that ringed it, the stone torii dividing the road from the sacred ground, the guardian lion-dogs, all of it gave off the feel of a shrine rooted in this land since ancient times.

"After the lookout park, I stopped by here."

Tsukino came to a halt and turned around, her whole body swinging with the motion. Her black hair streamed a beat behind her, and the shrine backdrop suited her unfairly well.

"Why here, though? It's a detour on the way to the station."

"Sometimes you turn to the gods, you know. …Although, for me, it'd be more accurate to say I made a detour in the middle of an idea-hunting walk."

"Yeah, that I definitely do."

When story ideas won't come, or won't come together, a little walk sometimes sorts it out. Sometimes it doesn't sort out anything at all.

"If this were a modern fantasy, you'd expect the key that links the two worlds to be at this shrine or something."

Tsukino and I peered into the shrine grounds.

Beyond the torii was a simple layout with a chōzuya purification font and a worship hall. There was a small shrine office and a storehouse too, but nothing especially out of the ordinary.

The sign on the torii… no, the plaque, I guess. It bore the name "Himurogioka Shrine."

"If coming here had set something off, that would fit the bill, but… Actually, this place is managed by Nanaha-senpai's family, isn't it."

To be precise, senpai's family, the Hananokorizuki family, served as its Shinto priests. Apparently they're a fairly distinguished old house in this town. Now and then you'd spot Nanaha-senpai herself helping out on the grounds as a miko shrine maiden.

"Senpai's not here today. Still at school, maybe."

"She's the type who loses herself the moment she starts reading a book or writing a novel. Then again, she might just be home like normal."

Senpai's own house was in Motomachi as well, but a fair distance from here. Miko though she was, I remembered hearing she only handled things like cleaning the shrine and simple rites.

"I hope there's some kind of clue."

"I doubt reality's just littered with mysterious phenomena like that, though."

Tsukino, herself the very embodiment of a mysterious phenomenon, was reading the description of the enshrined deity.

"Sarutahiko-Ōkami… the deity who led the way for Ninigi-no-Mikoto at the Descent of the Heavenly Grandchild, and is also held to be a god of boundaries. …Huh?"

"Description-wise, that sounds relevant."

I'd been to this shrine any number of times, but I'd never once cared what deity it enshrined. It might have been different if I were into Japanese-style fantasy or occult-legend novels, but I wasn't.

Even so, there was nothing to learn beyond the description.

"Damn. I should've asked Nanaha-senpai when we were talking in the club."

"Even apart from that, senpai specializes in Japanese-style fantasy and period pieces, after all."

"She's well-versed in the town's strange stories too."

Something about the ring of the words "parallel world" had kept me from making the connection.

"We'll see her tomorrow, so let's try asking, keeping the whole parallel-world angle vague. She might have some story that turns into a clue, this shrine's lore included."

"You're right. I let it slip past me too. But if you overlooked it, Asahi, then of course I'd overlook it as well."

"Even if we're the same person, there's bound to be a blind spot that comes with being the one in the thick of it."

Just in case, we set foot into the grounds as well.

Listening to the pleasant crunch of our footsteps on the gravel, we rounded the side of the worship hall and passed through to the main sanctuary behind it.

Behind the sanctuary towered a great sacred tree. The furrows carved into its trunk, wound with a shimenawa sacred rope, conveyed a holiness that had weathered a dizzying span of years.

"Was there anything, any mysterious happening?"

"If I knew that, I'd start by investigating the place where the mysterious happening occurred."

"That's me for you. Yeah, fair point."

We wandered around a while and made a full circuit of the shrine, but there was nothing amiss; a neighborhood grandmother came to pray and simply left again. Naturally, no convenient portal opened up, nor did Sarutahiko-Ōkami appear to show us the way.

Without either of us suggesting it, we'd both ended up heading for the worship hall.

Splurging a little, I dropped a five-hundred-yen coin into the offertory box, rang the bell, bowed twice, and clapped my hands. Then I closed my eyes and pressed my palms together. The order of the worship steps differs by place, or so I think Nanaha-senpai once said.

In any case, I heard Tsukino follow suit.

What I prayed for was, of course, that Tsukino would be able to return to her original world.

Tsukino goes home. We'd no longer be able to meet, or to talk.

That was what I was praying for.

I gave a final bow and opened my eyes.

Standing beside me, Tsukino was still quietly praying for something.

Was she wishing, somewhere in her heart, that she could return to her original world?

Different from her cold beauty, different from her mischievous look, the sight of her praying in earnest had me thinking things like that.

 

*

 

"Infinity Heaven" had only two showings a day, an evening one and a night one.

Not many days had passed since it opened, but at this rate it looked set to finish its run in the shortest span possible.

I couldn't help comparing it against the showtimes posted on the theater's board, against how many screenings some hit anime sequel or romance film was getting.

"I'd like to catch it once more before the run ends."

"I hope it gets a streaming release."

"Should we just buy the disc, then?"

"If the disc actually makes it to release… yeah."

Tsukino and I raved about it, but the public reception was, how to put it, middling enough to leave me uneasy.

"The next showing we could still make from here would be the late show."

"The one minors aren't allowed into. No, wait, this is no time to be watching movies."

Talking as we went, we left the movie theater.

Having put the shrine behind us, Tsukino and I had come to Green Mall Himurogioka.

Relying on her memory, we were retracing yesterday's route. Though "route" meant a supermarket, a hundred-yen shop, a general-goods section, nothing but places that seemed to have zero connection to any parallel world.

Time-wise, yesterday we'd still have been watching the movie right about now, so there was some room to spare, but not enough to keep hunting for clues like this.

"This theater's where we met, after all. Anything come to mind?"

"Nothing at all. If I had to reach, the screen, maybe? Like, watching it, I slipped into another world… yeah, that's a stretch."

From what I'd seen, the screen hadn't looked the least bit off either.

"Come to think of it, you didn't stop by the bookstore?"

"Being me, I'd definitely have stopped in, right."

The bookstore was on the floor right below the theater. A major chain, decently spacious, with a not-bad selection. With the town's bookstores vanishing one after another, I was grateful it was hanging in there.

"But yesterday the movie was coming up soon, so no, I didn't go in."

"Even though normally that's where you'd kill the awkward stretch before a movie."

"Right, right. And then I buy a book I hadn't planned on."

We passed by the front of the bookstore, right where you step off the escalator.

"How does the shop look? Anything different from the bookstore in your world?"

"I wonder… The posters and such are different, so the books they stock might differ a little too. I couldn't say without a closer look."

"Doesn't seem too relevant right now, then."

Since she hadn't actually gone in, it would only amount to verifying differences between the parallel worlds.

"What do you want to do after this? Head home already?"

"That's fine too. Aren't your legs completely worn out, Asahi?"

"I'm not that feeble, come on. Though if you told me to go back to the lookout park right now, I'd have to tap out."

"Maybe you really should try a little self-abandonment after all."

She giggled. Deliberately falling into self-abandonment just to build stamina seemed like a bit much.

"But if you've got the energy to spare, there's a little something I'd like you to come along for."

I fell in behind Tsukino as she took the lead.

On a weekday evening the Green Mall wasn't all that crowded anymore. Still, where Tsukino was heading, there were plenty of students who'd apparently dropped in on their way home from school.

"This has nothing at all to do with getting back to my world, but there's this little thing that's been bothering me."

"In that case, of course I'll come along."

"Good. I don't know why, but there was a room for me at your house, Asahi, and everything I needed was there, right?"

"Yeah. You forgot your textbooks, though."

"That was because I got the class schedule wrong."

Setting that aside, it wasn't just a bed and a desk; even things like the pajamas she'd worn yesterday had been laid out ready in the room.

"But… something's a little off, you know."

"Off how?"

"There were other clothes laid out besides the pajamas. A spare blouse, for instance."

Tsukino pinched at her white blouse. I hadn't paid it much mind, but apparently so.

"The uniform's fine. The design doesn't change. But the casual clothes they laid out, how do I put it… they're a lot like the clothes Mom used to buy me back in middle school."

"The kind that's fine for a run to the neighborhood convenience store, but that you'd hesitate to wear somewhere like here?"

"Yes, that feeling exactly. That's me for you."

"Pretty sure that one's universal, though."

"It'd be fine if a way back to my world turned up right away, but…"

A rare crease had formed between Tsukino's brows.

"At this rate, I'll end up spending my days in a parallel world wearing iffy clothes. I can't very well stay in my uniform every Sunday and holiday, either. So, I want to look at some clothes."

"Then let's go look."

What if I were in the same position? I probably wouldn't be all that particular about it.

It was one of those differences between Tsukino and me that I felt now and then. Whether that came down to being male versus female, or just to environment, I couldn't say, but there was no reason to refuse.

Together we walked through the section lined with apparel shops.

More and more Himurogioka High students were around now: groups of girls chattering away noisily, boy-girl pairs who looked like couples.

Tsukino and I were supposed to be the same being across parallel worlds, but the only ones who knew that were us. If other people saw the two of us together, what would they think? And what did Tsukino think, for that matter?

I found myself wondering as I watched Tsukino peer into a shop.

No, I was overthinking it.

"What kind do you like, Asahi?"

The question came out of nowhere and nearly threw me.

"Me… my sense of style is maybe a hair's breadth above the middle-schooler who was perfectly happy with whatever his mom bought him."

"Not that. I'm asking what kind of clothes you like to see a girl wearing."

"On a girl? No, you can't just spring that on me…"

"You know how you spot a girl in town and go, ooh, nice outfit, or you see the clothes an idol or actor's wearing on TV or in a movie and just can't take it? You do that, right?"

"Quit making it sound like I'm forever eyeing them with dirty thoughts."

Not that I'd deny it.

"That said, it's tough when you're actually put on the spot."

I gazed at the apparel shops lined up ahead.

This was a shopping mall well away from the city center, so it wasn't like there were any daring, edgy stores. There was everything from family-oriented shops to ones mainly for outdoor gear, and ones where clean-cut, fresh-looking clothes stood out. I'd never paid attention to brands in the first place, so most of it went over my head.

But something caught my eye. No, come to think of it, I remembered always sneaking glances at it whenever I came here. It was the "ooh, nice outfit," the "just can't take it" kind Tsukino had described. Not in a weird way.

The clothes on display were clearly blacker than at the other shops. Black, accented with deep purples and dark reds, touches of silver, decorated with pointed motifs like skulls and studs. And mixed into that main theme were contradictory ornaments like frills and ribbons.

Dresses, frilly skirts, blouses and shorts, even distressed jeans. The types of clothes on display were all over the map, but every one of them was where black, thorns, and decadence crossed paths with a faint touch of cute.

"I see, I see. So this is the kind you like."

Out of nowhere, Tsukino's face barged in right in front of mine. She narrowed her almond-shaped eyes, and past the upturned corners of her lips a sharp little snaggletooth peeked out. It was the smile of a devilish little imp.

"Then this is where we'll go."

"I haven't even said any…"

Before I even had the chance to hesitate, Tsukino went into the store. Then, with barely a moment's deliberation, she tossed several outfits into a basket.

"I'm going to try them on."

Quick as a lightning flash, without a single opening.

Before I knew it, I was posted outside the fitting room in a daze. Being alone in a women's clothing shop was a first for me, and startlingly nerve-wracking. The clerk was watching me with a smile, and I couldn't tell whether she found me suspicious or took me for Tsukino's boyfriend. Either one was a little troubling.

I took out my phone and pretended to be killing time, but every time another customer passed nearby I couldn't help being self-conscious. Standing right beside the fitting room, I could hear the rustle of cloth, so I backed off a few more steps. I could still hear it a little.

At any rate, the wait felt absurdly long.

"Sorry to keep you, Asahi."

Tsukino poked her face out of the fitting room. Then she slowly drew the curtain open.

It resembled the uniform she'd been wearing until moments ago, yet was something else entirely. Put simply, it was a casual dress built on a uniform-like design. Something like an idol-group costume rearranged in an edgier direction.

The pure-white blouse was a demure thing trimmed with elegant frills, while the collar and the ribbon at the throat were, by contrast, gray and black. The skirt, its frills just as prominent, had ribbons braided through it in layer upon layer, yet against all that sweetness its color was mainly black. On both the blouse and the skirt, silver studs glinted and glittered as accents. All of it suited Tsukino's own long black hair, and the black-and-silver rose adorning it, unfairly well. A decadent air and a chaste primness, an innocent expression brimming with girlish charm and a smile you could only call bewitching; the outfit was like Tsukino herself, all of it intermingled.

Inside the fitting room, spine drawn up straight, she cut a striking figure with just the slightest tilt of her body.

"Well?"

 

 

"It's a kink."

The moment I said it, I regretted being too honest, but it was too late.

"I see… Same goes for me, though."

A flush of red settled onto Tsukino's cheeks as she lowered her eyes. Even that came across to me like an accent color setting off the girl draped in black and white.

"This is what my casual style's like. I do love cute things, but black and decadent motifs have a side to them that ties into bad ends, after all. Kink aside, it's weird… isn't it?"

"There's probably some kink bias at work. But even without that, I think it looks good."

I gave a thumbs-up before I could stop myself.

"I see."

Tsukino spun around inside the fitting room. The ribbons at the back of her skirt bounced.

"Great. I'm buying this one, then."

Finishing her turn, she let a smile spill out, gave a little wave, and drew the fitting-room curtain shut.

With the rustle of cloth starting up again, I found myself unable to move.

After a while, Tsukino, back in her uniform, finished paying. Once she had, we left the store together.

Hugging the paper bag with her clothes in it, Tsukino smiled bashfully. The gaze she turned my way, looking up at me, was somehow feverish.

"We're different, being a boy and a girl, but I'm happy your tastes and mine are the same, Asahi. You were captivated, weren't you?"

"…It matches my kink way too well."

Tsukino let out a giggle.

"Then clothes that suit you would surely be my kink too, Asahi."

"What?"

Tsukino's gaze burned hotter than before, misted over, even.

"You'll go along with it for me too, won't you, Asahi."

Tsukino pointed. At the end of her finger was an apparel shop mainly for men. Its aesthetic ran close to the store we'd just left, black clothes front and center.

There was no way I could refuse.

 

*

 

This time it was my turn in the fitting room. Just like Tsukino before me, I was the one modeling, and what I had on was a shirt and jeans she'd picked out.

Unlike Tsukino's heavily ornamented outfit, this was extremely simple. Both top and bottom were mainly black. It was a slim design, just right for my lean build.

"This is a kink, but…"

With the paper bag of her own clothes hugged to her chest, Tsukino looked up at me. She was studying me pretty intently.

"It suits you so well. I'm glad I picked purely on kink."

"So kink was your only selection criterion… It's a kink for me too, but isn't this still way too chuuni?"

I tend to gravitate toward black clothes, but an outfit this unapologetically all-black was a little daunting.

"Nope. It's cool."

Being told that so directly didn't feel bad.

"Your gaze is sharp, Asahi, and it makes you look really cool. Plus you're all sleek and trim. So a full-on chuuni sort of aesthetic doesn't look weird on you at all."

"I've just got a mean look, and I'm plain skinny, is all."

"For me… ever since we met, I've thought you had cool eyes, cold and sharp and piercing."

That was the very impression I had of Tsukino. Huh. So she'd thought the same thing about me.

It wasn't unwelcome, but being praised for something I'd never thought well of in myself made me squirm, itchy with embarrassment.

"Setting aside whether my eyes look good or not, if you put it that way, I've got no choice but to buy it."

"Oh, are you okay for money? I really did pick this on impulse."

"Good thing I was carrying a bit extra on me."

In truth it was cutting it close, so I'd be living pretty frugally for a while.

"What about you, Tsukino, are you okay? This is supposed to be a different world, after all."

"Good thing I was carrying extra too. If anything, the scarier part is realizing I've brought money into a different world."

"It's not enough to throw the economy off, so it's probably fine."

"Then I'll buy shoes too."

"I don't recall telling you to get carried away."

There was also the worry of, say, a bill getting treated as counterfeit because its serial number matched another. Still, the odds of that were absurdly low, so it'd be fine.

In any case, we finished our shopping and left the Green Mall. And, sure enough, Tsukino really did buy shoes.

After school, we'd gone all the way to the lookout park at the northern edge of town and back. The fatigue of a round trip I'd never normally walk was catching up with me by slow degrees.

It was late May, a season when the days ran long, but the setting sun was nowhere to be seen now, and a cloud-veiled moon was rising in the sky.

In Tsukino's hands and mine were several paper bags of new clothes. We were supposed to have been searching for a way to get her home, yet this was a haul with nothing to do with that at all.

Setting off home with a load like that in hand felt like an after-school date, and the thought left me a little guilty.

"In the end, we didn't learn a thing today. We need to nail this down more concretely. Tomorrow let's try asking Nanaha-senpai about the shrine. We might find out whether any of the places we went have some history to them."

"You're right. Thank you, Asahi."

"Nah, I wasn't any help."

Tsukino's phone still wouldn't connect to her original world. I didn't even know what we should be doing, and my impatience mounted.

Tsukino didn't let any of it show, but having come to a different world, she had to be anxious. Because I would be, if our positions were reversed.

"Don't worry about it. At the very least, right now, I'm not in any trouble. I'm living in the same house as you, Asahi, the school somehow knows who I am, and I've bought clothes and shoes."

She held up the paper bags.

"So, you see. Starting now, we've got to think about something else."

"Something else?"

Tsukino nodded and raised an eyebrow.

"The novel battle. The two of us, me and me, are going to beat Jun with a bad end. We're always losing, aren't we?"

"You too, huh. Jun's novels are interesting, except for the part where they aren't bad ends."

Bad ends didn't go over well even in the literature club, most of the time. We'd lose, drawing reviews like "the endgame developments are too painful" or "if only it weren't a bad end."

"Let's win, Asahi."

"Yeah. With a bad end from the two of us, me and me."

""More bad! More hell!""

A few fist-bumps, paper bags still in hand.

The bags full of nothing but black clothes knocked together with a papery crinkle.