Hololive☆Gender Panic! ~Yukihana Lamy and the Six Trials~
One morning, the talents of Hololive wake up to a huge shock. Yukihana Lamy, the leader of the popular VTuber group, discovers that some of her friends have had their genders swapped overnight. The always gentle and graceful Shirakami Fubuki has become a cool young man with a snow-country charm. The tiny, adorable Sakura Miko is now a lively shrine heir. On the other hand, the dependable Ookami Mio has transformed into a gentle, fluffy-haired beauty.
Panic ensues! What caused this? Can they tur
Hololive☆Gender Panic! ~Yukihana Lamy and the Six Trials~ - A Private Café Room and Two Wavering Hearts
The morning light painted the windows of the Maison Hakuro apartment building along the Sumida River a pale white.
Yukihana Lamy let out a small sigh on her bed, still clutching her smartphone. A night had passed since that unbelievable incident at the Cover Building—the Sakasama Mirror, the silver hand mirror with the vine pattern, and Fubuki and Miko turning into boys.
The group chat was still flooded with confused messages.
But Lamy's mind was filled with something else entirely.
(Mio... why won't you contact me?)
Her best friend, Ookami Mio. The messages still showed "unread." Not even "read." When she called, only the hollow sound of the ringtone echoed back.
Lamy stood up, her light blue twintails swaying, and retied the large blue ribbon at the chest of her white gothic dress.
"[serious]...I have to go."
Her sense of responsibility as the leader pushed her forward. The fear of losing her best friend made her feet hurry.
Lamy dashed out of the apartment.
She ran to the nearest station. The surface of the Sumida River sparkled, reflecting the morning sun, and she remembered walking this same path just yesterday. Back then, she never imagined she'd end up acting like a stubborn child in front of her best friend's door.
She rode the train to the apartment building where Mio lived.
A seven-story building with brown tiles, about a five-minute walk from the station. Lamy went straight up to the fourth floor and stood in front of room 403.
She took three deep breaths.
She pressed the intercom.
The light *ding-dong* echoed through the hallway.
...No answer.
She pressed it again.
"[gentle]Mio, you're in there, right? It's me, Lamy."
A faint sound came from the other side of the door. A sign that someone was there. But the door didn't open.
"[scared]...Don't come in."
The voice she heard was Mio's. But it wasn't her usual dignified tone. It was higher, trembling.
Lamy felt her chest tighten.
"[gentle]Mio... something happened to you too, didn't it."
"[scared]No... it's nothing. Leave me alone."
"I can't leave you alone. You're my precious best friend."
Silence.
Lamy plopped down and sat in front of the door. Her skirt spread out on the floor. This was unbecoming of a leader. She had to bring everyone together, and yet here she was, sitting on the ground like a stubborn child.
But.
"[serious]I'll wait here."
Lamy leaned against the door and said it clearly.
"[serious]I'll stay here until you come out, Mio. When I eat, when I sleep. Because I don't want to lose you."
Her voice trembled, just a little.
"[sad]I don't want... to have someone disappear without me noticing again. Like back in high school."
A small gasp came from the other side of the door.
Lamy hugged her knees. She cast aside her usual honor student face, her leader's mask, just for now. She sat before her best friend as just "Lamy."
Ten minutes passed.
Twenty minutes passed.
When about thirty minutes had passed—
*Click.*
The sound of a key turning.
Slowly, the door opened.
Lamy looked up.
"...Mio."
Standing there was—
A jet-black bob cut trimmed neatly at the shoulders. Soft, fluffy hair. Large, round golden-brown eyes. Petite, a lovely beauty almost like a small animal. The wolf ears on top of her head were drooping flat now.
She was a completely different person from the handsome, tall Mio who had always protected Lamy.
But the strength of will residing in those eyes was unmistakably Mio's.
"[scared]...Don't laugh, Lamy."
Mio's face was bright red as she looked down.
"[surprised]S-so cute..."
The honest thought slipped out of Lamy's mouth before she could stop it.
"[angry]Don't say that!"
Mio shouted, her face crimson. Her ears drooped even further. Her fluffy tail swished back and forth behind her.
Lamy stood up and gently approached Mio. A small flutter was born deep in her chest. A ticklish, warm feeling she had never felt before.
"[gentle]...It's okay, Mio. First, let's go somewhere we can talk calmly."
Lamy gently took Mio's hand.
---
A three-minute walk from the Cover Building.
A hidden café called "Tsukiakari," tucked away quietly in a back alley. A small shop with only eighteen seats, run by a thirty-eight-year-old woman named Rin Segawa, a former stage actress. It had two private rooms, which the members often used for secret consultations.
Lamy brought Mio into the private room in the back.
The interior was calm, with the warmth of wood. Seasonal flowers were arranged on the walls, and soft jazz played quietly from the shop's speakers.
"[gentle]Two lemon cream sodas, please."
When Lamy ordered, Rin Segawa nodded silently, as if sensing the unusual atmosphere between the two of them.
A few minutes later, two glasses with fizzy, bubbling carbonation were gently placed on the table. Rin left the private room quietly without a word. The door closed with a soft *thump*.
Just the two of them in the room.
Mio kept her head down the whole time, staring at the bubbles in her glass. The ice clinked.
"[whispers]...Lamy."
Mio opened her mouth, her voice trembling.
"[whispers]I've always... wanted to protect you, Lamy. People called me handsome, and I acted cool in front of everyone... but the truth is, you were special to me. Only you."
"Mio..."
"[crying]But now I'm so small and weak like this... instead of protecting you, I've become the one who needs protecting. This... I'm not good enough for you anymore."
Tears spilled from Mio's large golden-brown eyes. *Drip. Drip.* They fell onto the table.
"[crying]That feeling I had... wanting to protect you. It wasn't just friendship. I... I was in love with you, Lamy."
A confession spun with a trembling voice.
Mio covered her face with both hands and broke down crying.
Lamy felt her chest tighten painfully. The shock raced through her entire body. But—more than that, she couldn't leave Mio alone while she was crying.
Lamy reached across the table and gently took Mio's hand.
"[gentle]Even if your form changes, Mio is still Mio. The fact that you're my precious best friend... that won't change, no matter what."
"[crying]Lamy..."
"[serious]Because your eyes are the same. Even now, you're looking straight at me. Just that tells me it's you, Mio."
Lamy squeezed Mio's hand back tightly.
"[gentle]It's okay."
At those words, Mio stopped crying. For a while, she held Lamy's hand back, and silence flowed through the room. Only the gentle melody of jazz enveloped them.
Mio slowly stood up and sat back down next to Lamy. And then—
She gently buried her face in Lamy's chest.
"[whispers]...Thank you, Lamy."
Lamy's heart skipped a beat. A faint scent of shampoo drifted from Mio's hair.
"[gentle]...Yeah."
Lamy gently wrapped her arms around Mio's back.
At that moment—
*Bzzzt.*
Lamy's smartphone vibrated on the table.
A message notification appeared on the screen.
Fubuki: "Where are you now? Did you find Mio-san?"
Mio lifted her face.
In that instant, her large golden-brown eyes saw the smartphone screen.
"...Fubuki."
Mio's voice suddenly turned cold. Her woman's intuition had sensed something from the message.
"[cold]...Fubuki is in love with you too, Lamy."
Lamy hurriedly turned the phone face down.
"[surprised]Huh, no, this is—"
But it was already too late.
Mio let go of Lamy's hand and took a step back. Her expression clouded over.
"[sad]...So that's how it is."
"No, Mio! Nothing's been decided yet!"
"[sad]But Fubuki has special feelings for you. The same as me."
Mio returned to her seat and stared intently at the half-melted ice in her glass.
An awkward silence dominated the room.
Lamy couldn't say anything. She couldn't clear up the misunderstanding, nor could she choose one over the other. Memories of high school resurfaced—being called "hypocritical" behind her back by her group of close friends, the feeling of betrayal. If she chose one person, the bonds between her friends might break again. That was the one thing she absolutely refused to let happen.
"[sad]...I'm sorry."
Lamy apologized quietly and stood up.
She paid the bill and returned to the private room.
"[serious]Tomorrow, let's all go to Musubinomori Shrine. It's a matchmaking shrine in Bunkyo Ward, and there might be old documents there. Let's look for clues about the mirror."
Mio kept her head down and gave a small nod.
Lamy left the café.
The moment the door closed—
"[whispers]...I want to be your destined person too, Lamy."
Mio murmured in a voice no one could hear. As she placed the money for her cream soda on the table.
---
Outside, Lamy took out her smartphone.
"[sad]I'll explain everything tomorrow."
That was all she sent in reply to Fubuki.
Dusk was approaching, and the sky was beginning to turn orange. Walking alone along the path by the Sumida River, Lamy endured the pain in her chest. The fear of choosing one person. The trauma from high school flashed through her mind over and over.
At night, back at home, Lamy took a can of *chu-hi* from the refrigerator. She popped the tab and drank about half of it in one go.
"[sad]...What am I supposed to do?"
She asked the question to her reflection in the living room mirror.
The girl with the light blue twintails stared back at her with a sad expression. The beauty mark under her left eye was slightly blurred by tears.
"[sad]Mio, Fubuki... everyone is precious to me. If I choose someone... will it all fall apart again?"
No answer came.
She emptied the can of *chu-hi* and collapsed onto her bed. Staring at the ceiling, she thought about tomorrow. Would they find a clue about the mirror at Musubinomori Shrine? And what should she do about this new problem—this romantic rivalry?
Outside the window, moonlight shimmered on the surface of the Sumida River. It was a strange night, as if the world had been turned upside down, just like the Sakasama Mirror.
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