The Intrigues of Haruhi Suzumiya- novel 7- Prologue (part 2)

*MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD*

The Prologue to The Intrigues (novel 7), (part 2):

Set on Tuesday 3rd February 2004.

Its the end of the day in the club room. Due to circumstances, only Kyon and Koizumi are present. Itsuki uses this rare alone time to talk about Kyons time travel to the 18th December. He uses the white board to illustrate how time flowed during Kyons experience. He also goes on to say that the 3 days afterwards (where Kyon fell down the stairs) may never have happened, and that they could be fake memories.

Haruhi barges through the door followed by Mikuru and Nagato. They have been shopping for food to celebrate the Setsubun festival. Haruhi questions the strange diagram on the white board before Koizumi quickly dismisses it as a doodle and wipes it off. They then spend the rest of the afternoon throwing beans out the top storey window (a local custom to cleanse evil spirits) and eat Fukomaki facing a certain direction (also a part of local traditions).
Despite having fun doing things like this, the next day Kyon notices that Haruhi is not happy with something, but its so subtle that he wonders if he is the only one to notice it in her.

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5-10. This story starts from the English publication of The Intrigues from page 22 line 11! XD
Otherwise there's not much to say about this, apart from that the next storyline looks to be centered around Haruhi's restlessness.

Up next: The Intrigues.

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The Wavering of Haruhi Suzumiya- novel 6- The Melancholy of Mikuru Asahina

*MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD*

The Melancholy of Mikuru Asahina- the fifth (and last) short story of "The Wavering of Haruhi Suzumiya" (novel 6).

Set sometime in mid-late January.

Kyon arrives at the club room after school like usual, and knocks on the door. Theres no answer so he feels free to walk in. He's hit upon the sight of Mikuru sitting on a folding chair clutching a broom, looking spaced out. He's never seen her look this sad- ever, and calls to her. She snaps out of it and recognises his presence. Still, she appears down and he keeps an eye on her. She tentatively asks him for a favour but is interrupted by Yuki walking into the room. She quickly changes the subject and goes off to make some tea, but they are out of water. She then tells them she will get some, but Kyon stops her because it would be wrong for her to prance around school dressed as a maid. He leaves with the kettle, but she follows anyway. At the water fountain, she asks Kyon to join her this coming Sunday to shop for tea leaves. Kyon, ignoring her depressed state, fantasises over the event and considers it a date.

Sunday arrives and they meet up near the station. They travel to the shopping district and go into a small family run store with a tiny cramped cafe in the basement. This is the store that according to Mikuru sells the best tea leaves. Its cafe even brews its customers bought tea for them.

Kyon notices that Mikuru has been checking her wrist watch a little too often, but he doesn't press her about it. It's getting towards twilight outside when she suggests they should take a walk. They walk around for ages and still she constantly checks the time. Kyon hears her talking under her breath 'its not time yet'. Eventually they get to a crossing point, and are waiting for the green man to appear so they can cross when they both notice a boy shoot out into the middle of the road. Not only that but a speeding truck is racing towards him. Unconsciously, Kyon runs into the road and sweeps the boy away from the speeding truck within millimetres of being hit himself. Mikuru runs over to them and lectures the boy about not looking out for cars before running onto the road.

Mikuru makes the boy swear a pinky promise with her regarding not doing anything like this ever again before he continues running off.

Mikuru and Kyon walk off and she starts to cry. Her crying gets worse and she buries herself into Kyons sleeve. She explains that she considers herself useless because of the lack of communication she receives from her superiors about her missions. She explains that the boy they just saved will go on to be a very important person in the development of time travel, and that the person in the car that tried to run him over was a time traveller from another faction that attempted to change the future. She also explains through sobbing that she used Kyon because its against the rules for time travellers to interfere with the past, so she brought him along to stop whatever it was that was supposed to happen, not that she knew what was supposed to happen or to whom.

They go to the park and sit on the same bench as they did at the Tanabata festival 3 and a half years ago when adult Asahina made her fall asleep on his shoulder. Kyon feels her head hit his shoulder once again, only this time she's burying her head into him, quietly sobbing once again. Kyon tries to comfort her but has no idea how. He tries to explain to her just how important she is but he stumbles in his words. She realises through unspoken words that he's tied down to revealing more about her future and whats going on. During his bumbling she places her index finger to his lips, then to hers, and thanks him for making her feel better.

Back at school and the club room, Haruhi talks about a boy she knows and how he said he saw Mikuru and Kyon together on Sunday. Apparently he knows their faces from the school festival. Haruhi grins and demands Kyon to 'fess up. Both Kyon and Mikuru look like they are caught red handed. Even Yuki is interested.

---

7-10.  Mikuru has been lost deep in thought ever since her experience of traveling back in time to December 18th. Events don't add up for her. She contacts her superiors who tell her nothing. She could ask Kyon but its against her own rules if she tried to get answers from seemingly unexplainable time travel. Therefore, she spends the rest of January confused, deep in thought, and also melancholy because she feels purposely left in the dark.

The most memorable scene for me was the chat between Kyon and Mikuru on the park bench. It was just so atmospheric in the twilight in the stark dead of winter. Especially with her being as depressed as she was. She never asked Kyon to try and explain what happened on the 18th December, but in the end she didn't need too. Kyon's stuttering were enough to tell her that Kyon cannot talk to her about it, which confirms that she shouldn't worry about it, especially because he did tell her how important she is.

Up next: the prologue to The Intrigues (part 2).

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The Intrigues of Haruhi Suzumiya- novel 7- Prologue (part 1)

*MAJOR SPOILERS AHEAD*

The Prologue to The Intrigues (novel 7): part 1.

The first part of The Intrigues prologue acts like a short story that completes The Disappearance arc. Read up until the middle of page 22 when it starts spoiling events that happen in the next short story; The Melancholy of Mikuru Asahina.

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Its January 2nd 2004, the day they return home from the mountains. Kyon has been living besides himself ever since the incident of getting trapped in a mansion by an unseen enemy. He cannot put it off any longer and decides the moment he returns home to sort out events left unfinished from December 18th. He phones Mikuru, who has only just arrived home herself, and informs her that she needs to go back in time with him. She says she would need days to sort out the clearance from her superiors, but Kyon's insistent, so she contacts them right there and then. All Kyon can hear over the phone is Mikuru's soft breathing for 10 seconds, but then she speaks to him sounding surprised that not only has she been given the clearance, but they are telling her to listen to Kyons instructions and do as he says. The author missed a trick here. Mikuru should have asked Kyon whats going on, and his reply should have been "thats classified". lol that would have been funny. Oh well.


Kyon tells her to meet him around Yuki's apartment and then he phones Yuki to tell her whats going on. They meet up and have a cup of tea whilst Kyon gives them the run down. He purposely omits information about adult Mikuru. Kyon doesn't make the same mistake twice and remembers to make sure everyone is wearing their shoes before they leave for the 18th. Whist putting his shoes on he spots adult Mikuru's high heals, but does not take them with him. This must be because Mikuru would ask questions if he did. Mikuru activates her TPDD and the three of them travel back.

They are standing near North High at night. Very close nearby the Kyon of the past is pointing a gun at a whimpering glasses clad Nagato, with adult Asahina standing just behind him.

Kyon informs Yuki that they are standing too close, but she informs him that they are shielded from their past selves. Mikuru asks who the woman is (she's staring at her back), but then out of the shadows Asakura runs out and stabs Kyon of the past. Kyon of the present notices something he didn't remember from the ordeal, Asakura is twisting the knife deep into his body as vigorously as she can. *shudders*

Seeing Kyon of the past fall to the ground, Miruku of the present runs to him but hits the invisible barrier. She demands Yuki to lift the barrier and she does. Mikuru then runs to his side, ignoring the fact that kneeling right next to her is her older self. Current Yuki stops Asakura and deletes the knife. Kyon waltz's up to the scene and recites his memorised lines. Kyon of the past passes out and Asakura disintegrates. Kyon picks up the gun and points it to glasses clad Nagato, of whom is now trembling on the ground. Adult Mikuru puts her younger self to sleep and current Yuki heals Kyon's wound.
Yuki then demands Kyon to hand her the gun which he does, and she points it to the other Nagato and pulls the trigger. It makes no sound nor light, yet glasses Nagato blinks twice and slowly stands, taking her glasses off. They stare at each other for a while until her past self demands synchronisation. Yuki refuses. When asked why she simply says "I do not wish too" with obvious emotion in her voice. Yuki then demands her past self to reset the world back. Adult Mikuru helps her younger self onto Kyons back and the four of them travel through time again, leaving past Nagato alone and lonely with an unconscious Kyon.
Time travel out of this time frame proves a bumpy ride for Kyon. Adult Asahina explains that they cannot be present for Nagato's time realignment because it takes a hell of a lot more effort to make the amendments then what they previously experienced from before. During the time travel journey they all experience a snippet of the three days absent from Kyons memories; an ambulance outside North High along with ashen faced Haruhi and Asahina escorting the paramedics with Kyon in a stretcher, whilst Koizumi is on his cell phone, no doubt organising hospital arrangements. Nagato is not there.

Time travel starts up once more. Adult Asahina informs them that they are traveling back to their respective time frames. Her last words inform Kyon that he can give her sleeping younger self a kiss if he likes. After this adult Asahina disappears and Kyon, Mikuru and Yuki arrive back in Yuki's apartment. Yuki establishes the fact that they had been away for approximately 60 seconds.

Kyon helps the sleeping Mikuru into a futon in the spare room. He downs whats left of the tea and thanks Yuki for her help before leaving.

Kyon feels completely satisfied that he can start the new year without having to sort out unresolved problems of the past. He sleeps well that night.

---

8-10. If I were head writer of the Haruhi anime, I would make this one episode long. I read bits of the continued prologue and yes it talks about The Disappearance, but its set in mid-late January as a conversation with Koizumi. I will cover this later on.

EDIT: 3/Feb/2015
I cannot believe I haven't mentioned this, but stop reading from page 22 line 10! Line 11 onwards will be read later on! XD

Up next: Random Numbers.

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