Haruhi always liked to take the longest, most redundant walk to school that would still get her there in time. A little more time to just, well, be a normal person was really nice, no matter how fleeting the moments were.

People she met were not worried about her bringing about the end of the world, or reshaping the world on an infantile whim. They simply thought of her as Haruhi Suzumiya, and even if they knew of her, they merely chalked her up to being an eccentric and oft insufferable schoolgirl instead of essentially a physical god.

Oh, and what a screwy, screwy "god" she was. Surrounded at school by an esper, time traveler, reality-hacking alien, and Kyon, Haruhi wondered how they could all get their facts just so... wrong.

What fun was there in a confusing tale laden with multiple timelines and dimensions? Real life was exciting enough as it was! The phrase "stranger than fiction" existed for a reason, and men and women she had derided as "boring" under metaphysical gunpoint all had their own tales to tell of defeats and tragedies. There was a beauty in simplicity, as her life had been before getting "discovered", a beauty Haruhi knew she'd probably never experience again.

But no. She was Haruhi Suzumiya, a "god" doomed to bring about actions people would "think" she would do. If she got upset, the Brigade would swoop in for damage control instantly. Oh, it wouldn't matter how many times she'd say "No, it's okay. Really!" They'd think the world was in danger, and by that rationale, it really would be.

And when she would die? Haruhi didn't want to think about what the others would think would happen, because at that point it would be carried out.

Amidst her internal musings, Haruhi happened on a larger than average stone on the sidewalk. Furrowing her brow, the girl with the weight of the world on her shoulders furiously kicked it away. It merely vented her frustrations for precious seconds, but it was still an action she did devoid of the fears of the entire Universe looming over her.

The feeling was nice. She'd have to remember where that stone landed and give it another good kick tomorrow.