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"What are you doing?"
It was an odd question, coming from her of all people. The mischievous devil of Sakuragaoka high was more commonly known for being on the receiving end of such inquiries. But even given this fact Ritsu was nonetheless curious.
Mugi froze midstep, her left foot hovering above the floorboards as though under threat of law. The grey mop bucket that she held in her arms sloshed noisily as she turned, craning her neck just enough to be able to spy her inquisitor from out of the corners of her bright blue eyes.
Neither girl spoke for what seemed like a long time.
Then, innocently: "Me?"
Ritsu's gaze narrowed sternly. "You."
The heiress stared silently for a moment, humming nonchalantly as she searched for a suitable answer. Her eyes eventually closed in a practiced look of refined abashment as she let out a laugh light and sweet like fresh-spun cotton candy. "Oh, nothing," she sang.
The drummer was unconvinced. Setting aside the rock 'n' roll magazine that she was only half-reading, she stood from her seat on the clubroom couch and rounded Mugi suspiciously. "Nothing, huh?"
Tsumugi hummed some more, unfazed and thoroughly statuesque as she still refused to move while trapped beneath Tainaka's hawkish glare. "Yep."
More silence. Cicadas screeched in the summer heat as the president glanced down into the bucket with marked skepticism. She clucked her tongue once against the roof of her mouth, accusation perched on the edge of her lips like a cat ready to pounce upon unsuspecting prey.
"You mean to tell me that you weren't planning on dumping that on someone's head just now?"
Azure eyes shot open in a shocking motion like lightning, blonde eyebrows arching quizzically while the rest of her face remained stoically docile. "What a strange notion," Mugi murmured softly, musing over the thought like it was the most interesting thing in the world. She laughed again, recited and perfect. "Only you could come up with something so devious, Ritsu."
Ritsu blinked once, then twice, her amber stare flickering from the bucket to the girl then back again. On the third time she shrugged, her features shifting seamlessly to a look of tired disinterest. "Oh," she mumbled, scratching her chin. "My mistake."
She threw her hands over and behind her head in stark resignation, meandering towards one of the far windows opposite Kotobuki's direction. "And here I thought that you might need my help with some wicked prank. How lame."
There was the sound of water splashing dangerously around in a basin as Mugi's entire body jolted in place. "W-wait, Ritsu!" she whined.
A sly grin plastered itself across her face as Ritsu spun on her heel. "Yes, Mugi?"
The blonde sputtered sheepishly, her feet wriggling like a child too embarrassed to speak to an adult. "I-I've never tried anything like this before and... seeing as you are so knowledgeable about these things, I-I could really use your expertise in-..."
Knowledgeable? Expertise? Tainaka's chest swelled with pride, her already-healthy ego successfully stroked. "Say no more, my young pupil," she beamed, rushing to the pianist's side. They shared the load, lugging it to the door with equal effort. "Let the master show you how it's done!"
Mugi was starstruck as the drummer took the pail from her hands and hefted it over her head, her arms trembling only slightly as the waves inside churned and spattered. "A prank of this caliber is something of an art form," Ritsu lectured, noting Tsumugi's dazzled expression. The bucket shifted tumultuously in her hands as she spoke, yet she continued unabated. "It takes a truly great mind to come up with such an inspired plan."
"I saw it on TV last night!" Mugi supplied energetically.
"Oh." Ritsu took pause, but only momentarily. "Well, we can't all be Keith Moon."
Hoisting the water up as high as she could reach it, the brunette had to stand on her toes in order for the container to clear the top of the entryway. "Now open the door. But only just a little bit."
Tsumugi obeyed, her brow furrowed with determined tenacity.
"The key is balance," Ritsu explained to an enraptured Kotobuki. "If you put the bucket too far to one side, the weight will bring the whole thing down without soaking anyone. You've got to place it right smack-dab in the center, that way when the door swings inwards the momentum will pull the water down onto whatever poor sap is walking inside."
The blonde nodded eagerly along to each and every spoken word, totally in awe. "I see, I see!"
"And with the door only slightly ajar like this, the person coming in won't suspect a thing, and they'll barrel on through without even thinking twice about it!"
"Amazing!"
"Now all that's left is the execution. One's technique must be flawless, for even the smallest mistake could-..."
Without ceremony, the clubroom door suddenly swung open, banging into Tainaka's body with a crash as the wood clattered against the metal of the bucket above her head. Ritsu yelped as the container flipped clumsily about in her fingers, turning itself upside-down in a blink and cascading water down upon her hair with a tangible splash.
Tsumugi gasped, hands clapping closed around her mouth too late to contain the sound of her surprise. Not that the drummer could hear her with the bucket now-sitting snugly atop her head.
"What was-...?" the noise of a third girl reached her echoing eardrums, before another gasp filled the air. "R-Ritsu?"
Mio was quick to act, peeling the container from atop her friend the prankster and examining her plight with worrisome grey eyes. "W-what is this? What happened? Are you alright?"
"I'm wet," Ritsu deadpanned, flicking her fingertips clean of tapwater. Her bangs were soaking as her headband slipped partway down her face, her blazer already drenched to the sleeves.
"I can see that," the bassist huffed, picking the accessory off of the drummer's nose and pushing it back onto her scalp where it belonged. "But what on earth were you doing back there? With a-... with-..."
There was silence as Akiyama's gaze lighted on the bucket once more, realization dawning upon her like a deathly aura. Her stormy eyes met Tainaka's and pierced through her skull like a razor. "What were you planning to do with that pail of water, Ritsu?" she demanded coldly.
Fear racked her body like a tremor as the club president faltered beneath the glare of her terrifying best friend. "Ah, well-... um, you see-... it actually was-... ah-..."
Mio abruptly turned, her calloused hands wrapping around the handle of the bucket beside her like a vice. Ritsu eeped with fright as she watched her march sharply over to the sink, shoving her way past a paralyzed Mugi as she did so. The sound of the faucet running and water rising sent a shot of dread straight down her spine.
"M-Mio, wait! It wasn't what it looked like! S-see it was really all Mugi's idea, and I was just-!"
Her pleas were cut short as Mio quickly returned- bucket in-tow- and with a flick of her wrist Akiyama sent another wave of lukewarm water careening into Ritsu's sputtering face. With a defeated cry, she slumped to the floor, curling pitifully into a wet ball of shame. The whole time Tsumugi could only look on in horror, glancing from girl to girl with hands still-clasped tightly around her open mouth.
The pail dropped from Mio's hands with an empty clatter as she turned away again, sitting down at the table and picking a magazine from the pile without another word. The sound of pages turning seeped in to replace the stunned silence.
"Hello! Sorry I'm late!" Yui burst into the aftermath, skidding to a halt only once she had reached the absolute center of the room. "I saw this stray cat outside of homeroom today and ended up chasing after him for a bit before-... why is everyone so quiet?"
Glancing ponderously around, the guitarist paled when she saw Ritsu huddled pathetically in the corner, dripping and shivering with humiliation. "Captain!" she called out, her voice anxious with dread as she sprinted over to help, scooching closer on her knees as though she were consoling a dying man. "You're soaking wet! Who did this to you?"
"Y-Yui," the drummer blubbered dramatically, grasping Hirasawa by the collar of her shirt so that she could whisper into her ears. "A sea monster."