Several months had already slipped through our fingers since that outing to Shibuya with Sister Utahime, and before I knew it, the year was drawing to a close. Christmas? There wasn't even time to think about such things. We simply threw a modest little snack party in the evening once our missions were wrapped up.
"Touya. It's already been almost a year since we entered Jujutsu High. Time flies, doesn't it?"
"Ugh... tell me about it. To think it's been nearly a year since we first met. I've seen so much of you that I hadn't even realized how much time had passed."
Having finished our missions for the day and eaten dinner, Suguru and I were currently idling in the lobby, shooting the breeze. As we leaned back on a bench, comfortably deep in conversation, Satoru appeared, freshly showered after completing her own assignment.
"So this is where you were! I was wondering where everyone went."
As she spoke, she plopped down right next to me, a faint scent of citrus wafting from her skin.
"Your body wash smells nice. Why were you looking for us anyway?"
"Right? Hehe... Oh, that's not it! I mean, obviously, the year is about to end. Which means..."
Her face, which had been bright with a smile at my compliment, suddenly shifted into a look of exaggerated gravity.
"Which means what? This is Satoru we're talking about, so it's bound to be something trivial. Why the dramatic atmosphere?"
"Suguru! Do you seriously want to die? You damn bangs-kid!"
Suguru, who had been snorting mockingly, saw his expression stiffen the moment his fringe was mentioned. It was a direct hit to his pride.
"What did you say? You little white-hair. Shall we take this outside for a chat after all this time, Satoru?"
I sat between them, caught in the middle of Satoru, who was glaring with eyes that seemed to smolder, and Suguru, who was thickening the air with cursed energy as if he were about to summon a spirit. I let out a heavy sigh and spoke up.
"Why are you two suddenly fighting again? Satoru seems to have something to say, so let's just listen. And Suguru, why are you the one getting triggered when you're the one who picked the fight?"
"That girl is making fun of my bangs. This is my identity."
"Yeah, yeah, I get it, so quiet down. Satoru, what were you trying to say?"
Satoru, huffing and puffing as she suppressed her temper, let out a sharp 'humph' and leaned her head against my shoulder.
"Tch. He's the one who started it, so why is he acting like the victim? All because I mentioned those stupid bangs. Whatever. I'm only telling Touya. Suguru can listen or not, I don't care."
"Right. Just tell me. I'm listening."
"Look, Touya. The end of the year means the dawn of a new one is coming, right?"
"That's true."
"Which means! We're about to become second-years!"
"What is that even? That's no different from saying the sun comes up after you go to sleep," Suguru interjected.
Satoru scowled at Suguru's heckling and raised her voice. "I mean! It means that when we become second-years, first-year students will be coming in!"
"Oh. Come to think of it, you're right. Does that mean we're going to be seniors?"
'So we're finally getting juniors. I've been so preoccupied that I completely forgot about that.'
Suguru's eyes widened in surprise as he nodded. "That was actually a decent point, Satoru. I hadn't even thought of that yet."
"Right? Hehe... Only yours truly could have realized something so significant."
Watching Satoru, whose mood had completely flipped at that one bit of praise, giggle along with Suguru, I was interrupted by the arrival of Shoko. Having finished her work early, she approached us with a look of utter disdain.
"What are you all doing here? Sitting around with those moronic looks on your faces."
"Ah, Shoko. We were just chatting. We're going to be second-years soon. Are you ready to welcome some juniors?"
"Yours truly is more than ready! I'm going to show them so many cool moves that they'll have no choice but to respect me. They'll probably fall for me and chase me around all day. Then, I'll act like I'm doing them a favor and buy them some sodas. What do you think, Touya? Doesn't that sound like a totally cool senior?"
I laughed and nodded at Satoru's words; she seemed more interested in appearing impressive than actually looking after the newcomers. Shoko, who had been staring intently at me, finally spoke up.
"Do you really think you two can be good seniors? I'm not exactly the type to dote on juniors. You guys know that, right?"
"Well, that's true. Shoko, you're always swamped with your own work. It's understandable. But even so, I think that while you might be a bit neglectful, you'd never be a bad senior."
"Is... that so? Hmm. Thanks for saying that. I don't know about those idiots, but at the very least, I think you'll be a great senior."
Satoru and Suguru, wounded by Shoko's half-joking sincerity, immediately began to whine and complain to me.
"Why me...? I'm actually quite normal, aren't I? Touya... what about me does Shoko find so disagreeable?"
"Suguru aside, the great Satoru-sama is incredible, so I'm obviously going to take great care of the juniors... Shoko is really too hard on me. Though, I do have to admit Touya will be a good senior."
"Ahahaha... Thanks for saying that, Shoko. Well, I figure looking after juniors won't be much different from looking after you guys, so I'm not too worried. If anything, I suspect handling the two of you is going to be way harder than handling any junior."
'If I remember correctly, the juniors coming in this time were relatively calm and didn't cause much trouble. Ah... but I can't even remember who exactly was in that year anymore.'
Lost in thought, a sudden realization hit me. I clapped my hands together and addressed the three of them.
"Wait, don't we get a winter break? We've been running missions non-stop all year; shouldn't they give us some time to rest?"
"Oh, true. Should we ask Yaga-sensei tomorrow?"
"Why wait until tomorrow? I'll go and ask him right now!"
I grabbed Satoru as she turned to leave, fully intending to do exactly what she said.
"Satoru. Let's just go together in the morning. It's late now; it would be rude."
"Tch... fine. But you're coming with me first thing tomorrow morning to ask him. Got it?"
"Yes, I promise."
Shoko and Suguru watched me with eyes full of admiration, clearly shocked by how easily Satoru had folded at my request.
"How on earth do you have her so wrapped around your finger? That's seriously impressive."
"I know, right. You're like a lion tamer."
"Haha... hardly a tamer. Satoru and I have just been close since we were kids, so she listens to me a bit more, that's all. I'm sure once you guys get to know her better, she'll listen to you too."
Shoko and Suguru shook their heads as if my explanation was utterly untrustworthy. I gave them a wry smile and asked, "What would you guys do if we actually get a vacation?"
Shoko was the first to answer without much hesitation.
"Well, I don't know how much time we'll get, but I'll probably just stay here anyway. Just because we aren't working doesn't mean all the other sorcerers are taking a break. Someone will inevitably get injured and I'll be called in. If I have to keep coming back, I might as well just rest here."
"That makes sense. Suguru? Satoru?"
"I'll go home and spend some time with my parents. I feel bad about not seeing them very often lately."
"I'll probably have to head back to the Gojo clan. The Elders will all be breathing down my neck to see how I'm doing. I suppose I should show my face once. What a pain..."
'I see. So everyone is heading back to their families, except for Shoko.'
"I see. I suppose I should visit my clan too. My father called and was complaining that Naoya won't stop looking for me. Come to think of it, I haven't heard from him in a while. I wonder if things have settled down?"
"That's your younger sister, right? Hm... based on everything I've heard, it sounds like her feelings for her brother go a bit beyond simple affection," Shoko noted.
I looked at her with confusion at her cryptic remark, but seeing my gaze, she simply shook her head dismissively.
"Never mind. I should head back in now. Tell me what Yaga-sensei says tomorrow. I'm curious. See ya."
After saying goodbye to Shoko, I turned to bid goodnight to Satoru and Suguru as well.
"I'm heading in too. Might watch a movie before I sleep. See you tomorrow morning."
"Yeah. We're going to Yaga-sensei together! Goodnight, Touya."
"Alright, see you tomorrow. Get some rest, Touya."
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I went back to my room, watched a DVD movie, and fell asleep. The next day arrived. I washed up and changed into my uniform as usual, and when I stepped out of my room, I found Satoru waiting for me with a beaming smile.
"Touya! Did you sleep well? Let's go! To Yaga-sensei!"
She grabbed my arm and began pulling me along.
"Why are you so excited, Satoru? We don't even know if we'll get a vacation yet."
"Hmm? I just have a good feeling! This sensation definitely screams 'vacation.'"
Following a giggling Satoru, we headed straight to the faculty office and put the question to Yaga-sensei.
"A vacation? Hmm... I wasn't going to tell you yet since nothing was finalized, but it looks like you'll be given about two months starting next week. Master Tengen himself brought it up. The Higher-ups are having a meeting about it, but if it's Master Tengen's opinion, it's unlikely to change."
I looked at Satoru in shock. She looked positively triumphant, puffing out her chest as if she had been the one to secure the time off herself.
"What did I tell you? I told you I had a good feeling. Hehe."
Yaga-sensei shook his head at Satoru's antics and continued.
"However, as you know, there aren't many sorcerers, so you'll occasionally be contacted for missions. As long as you handle those, the rest of your time is yours. Don't worry about it."
"Yes! Thank you very much!"
"Don't thank me, thank Master Tengen. I don't know his true intent in granting this vacation, but I suspect it's meant to be a short rest before things get difficult in the future. You still have time until then, so keep focused on your missions."
"Heh heh. Don't you worry. I'm going to wipe out every single curse so they won't dare disturb my honey-sweet vacation."
Satoru declared it with the conviction of a protagonist from some dark shonen manga.