Constants and Variables
Author's notes
I do not own Yandere Simulator [insert joke of your choice here about that].
Hi everyone.
Since I'm currently stumped at the moment on how to proceed with my other project, sympathy for the devil, I figured I would try something different to get the creative juices flowing. This will be a series of story snippets based on one-word phrases or words for Ayano and random assorted pairings. My personal challenge to myself was not to skip anything that I was given even if it might be rather difficult to figure out how to incorporate the word. If enough people are interested, I will consider doing a second set of segments for them (none will share too much continuity between them and they can generally be considered stand alone shorts). I decided to start with Midori to kick things off, however, after reading Some Moron's excellent in progress four-shot Green Initiative which you all should definitely read. Everyone's favorite (?) audience surrogate definitely deserves some love so without further ado…
Chapter I
Ayano x Midori
"Just one more thing:
Remember the whole world's a circus,
Don't you be the clown."
- Chic, "(Funny) Bone"
1. Evidence
"You'll help me, won't you, Midori?"
It is a choice without a choice.
Ayano knows that she will say yes. Ayano knows that Midori will help her cut up the corpse, putting each dismembered limb into various trash bags, and help her haul them to the incinerator. Ayano knows that they will scrub the wood and tile so that the police will find no trace of her handiwork.
The younger girl stands before her, hands on her hips as she begins a slow, rhythmic tap with her foot. She does not have to focus her attention on Midori to have her understand the gravity of the situation; the knife that is still being held in a death grip does that for her as she casually glances around the room, eyes moving from each door and window and briefly back to her accomplice. Haruka's blood is now beginning to pool by Ayano's feet, her corpse spread eagled only a few centimeters away.
Midori knows that Ayano already has the answer long before she finally has the courage to speak.
"...Yes, Ayano. When we make messes, we're supposed to clean it up. It's… it's just like primary school."
Fear has long since fled Midori when Ayano's 'personal matters' crop up. She has grown accustomed to being told what to do and how to do it. Tonight will be no different; she is a slave waiting to obey its mistress.
Ayano's grip on the knife loosens ever so slightly as a smile slowly spreads across her features and her dull gaze lights up for a brief moment. Even when the girl comes closest to approaching happiness, it still looks so unnatural.
"Good girl."
The words of praise are sickly sweet, viscous and slow as if they were honey dripping down the side of a jar, but this too is just a formality. Midori does not even bother responding to the younger student as she moves to the mop that she brought into the room after the deed was done (the sooner that they can leave, the better).
But Kokona Haruka's accusing gaze never leaves hers when they are cleaning up.
2. Bullet
"Oh, you're going down, Aishi!"
Ayano ignored the taunt of her green-haired opponent and focuses only on the game before her. She had had no desire to join the gaming club. Every minute spent within its walls was simply another that she could not spend looking after Senpai and, even worse, all that time would be spent with the school's greatest nuisance Midori Gurin.
That title was an accomplishment all on its own as far as Ayano was concerned.
Yet joining a club had its uses. If a girl her age had to be 'social' but wanted to put no effort into actually going out and making the effort of socializing then video games were as good an excuse as any to add onto her daily disguise.
Ayano had never even wanted to really get to know the other club members either but with only a handful of them it was inevitable that they would want to at least do something with her during the club's meetup hour. Luckily, it seemed, that even when Pippi suggested they try some LAN matchs for Squad Fort 2 everyone preferred to keep to themselves. Or, at least, mostly everyone in the club.
"C'mon now, don't be shy! What's the use in hiding? Afraid of little ol' me?!"
Gods did Gurin make her want to slowly cut out her tongue with a rusty scalpel.
The moment they had begun Gurin had immediately begun trash talking. This would not have bothered Ayano so much if Gurin also did not happen to be the best player in the entire group for the game as well. As she quickly looked at Ryuto to her left she could see that the boy's eyes were glazed over and as she looked around at everyone else in the room she could see it was much the same. They all had the good sense to pay no mind to the algae-haired smack talker directly across from Ayano.
Yet she had taken it to heart and it had paid dividends. For every comment that Gurin made about how she expected to be playing with high schoolers and not a retirement home Ayano had steeled herself and mowed down her opponents. For every asinine comment about her sexual conquests with her father (or mother, she noticed) from Gurin she would camp that much more. The others had grumbled, but what did she care? That was the entire point of the sniper class.
It was down to the wire now.
29 to 29.
"Come on out, Aishi. Just give up already! If you do, I promise I'll go easy on you next time!"
She watched from halfway across the field as Gurin's heavy combat specialist moved spastically about, its model waving its gun around in every direction. If only she would move beyond the small adobe base on the Blue side then she would have a clear shot. Ayano can feel her index finger swiping ever so carefully forward, her pointer finger itching…
Crack.
Make that 30 to 29.
An incoherent squawk of rage and confusion emanates from the nerdy girl opposite her and Ayano is certain that shutting her up was almost as satisfying as spending an afternoon following Senpai home.
Almost.
3. Touch
"You know, Midori, I can open my locker myself…"
Midori immediately withdraws her fingers from the lock and places them by her sides. It is a bad habit, she knows, and one that Ayano does not appreciate much.
"S-sorry, Ayano, I know you can. I just like to help!" her voice brightens a bit and ups an octave.
"I mean, yeah, you totally know the combination but what if something bad happened to you? Like your hands," she takes one of the limbs in question and wiggles it back and forth in front of her classmate's face, "they could get hurt. What if you got into a bad car accident? Or broke the wrist on your dominant hand? If I don't practice now then how would I know if I could be there in your time of need?!"
Ayano stares at her blankly. Well, more blankly than normal. Ayano is a strange girl, Midori has noticed. She doesn't say much, and when she does, it always seems like it comes out funny, as if she took a lot of sleeping medicine. She doesn't think Ayano does drugs but she has never worked up the courage to ask the other girl if everything is alright.
"You can count on me, Ayano. I'll never ever let you down. It's bad to be able to help others but choose not to."
Midori is practically shouting now and there are several people staring at them with perplexed looks. It's not like she cares, though. The only person at Akademi whose opinion matters is the girl in front of her and Ayano simply gives a curt nod.
"You have a big heart, Midori. Not many people would be willing to do that for their friends."
Bobbing her head Midori twirls in place as she watches Ayano exchange her books for the second round of classes.
"Of course, Ayano! You're my best friend and best friends are supposed to do anything for each other."
Ayano peers at her from behind the locker door and studies Midori for a moment with an expression she can't quite place. Midori doesn't understand; why would something like that be a big deal? Granted, Ayano is also her only friend but that shouldn't matter. It isn't as if Ayano doesn't know how much she means to her already.
"…I shouldn't have even been surprised. I don't think I deserve a friend like you sometimes. You're pretty great, you know that?"
Midori's face flushes for some reason and she quickly looks away from the other girl. The flipping sensation she has grown accustomed to whenever Ayano is around is there in her tummy again.
"That's not true! Not as great as you've been to me, Ayano. I–"
The chiming of the first bell echoes through the front hall as Ayano slams her door shut.
"We better get going; don't want to be late again. You know how Shuyona gets when he finds students in the halls during class time. I'll see you around, Midori," Ayano says as she gives her a wave before departing.
"Right…"
As Midori leaves with her best friend there is just a little more pep in her step than usual though she would be hard pressed if asked to explain why.
4. Wednesday
Ayano sits on the benches of the school's roof and looks down at her lunch in disinterest. The unappetizing smell of warm tofu and broccoli meets her nose as she stirs the dish carefully, mixing the gochujang in as best she can with the rice and vegetables with her chopsticks, before she gingerly picks up a small pile of rice and pops it into her mouth.
There are few things that Ayano has ever been passionate about. Food is certainly not one of them and she strongly doubts she could name a 'favorite' if ever asked by someone. But this will do; the gas station beside her home had surprisingly fresh ingredients and the sell-by date at least put it within the next day. Perhaps it's a good thing that she doesn't enjoy eating much. At the very least it keeps her figure trim and fit.
After all, in all the reconnaissance she has done, Senpai has never expressed an interest in fat girls.
She has always sat in silence and ate by herself. It's the only way to keep herself relatively sane when she already has to listen to the prattle from her fellow students struggle to answer the questions from last night's assignment. Sometimes if Ayano is feeling brave enough she will dare to finish hear meal early and snap a few pictures of Senpai to save for later at home (though that always runs the risk of having her brain dead peers noticing). But today is not going to be one of those days; it will be only a matter of time before the faculty notices that Osana has gone missing. Ayano just needs to play it coolly, and despite having little to no emotions, it is easier said than done.
So to help her today she has brought the latest tankobon of Bukiyona's Daily Life to help pass the time, carefully avoiding splashing her food's sauce on the paper as she gingerly eats the food with one hand and holds open her book with the other. Despite her best efforts humor is something that has always eluded her and so the pratfalls of the main character are something that she stares at without any sort of mirth as she flips through the pages. Instead Ayano has always made a game out of fiction. If she can't appreciate what the author intends for audiences to understand, something that is almost always the case, she shall try to guess where the plot will proceed instead. Curiosity is something that comes easily enough to her and allows her to at least gains some understanding of the people around her. It is far less taxing on her patience to read about the fictional exploits of the world's idiots than to actually entertain the ones around her.
She isn't quite sure just how Bukiyona plans on explaining how she fell into the aquarium and got to swim with the dolphins but it turns out she will not get the chance.
"Are you… are you a fan of Bukiyona too?"
The voice is squeaky but not in the same way as many of her fellow students' are. Rather than the effects of lingering bodily development it is the kind of tone that one might expect from a beaten dog, an almost apologetic tone that is afraid of asking the wrong question altogether. Ayano's eyes glance upward to be greeted with a pair of vibrantly green eyes. The gangly, awkward girl fidgets in place at a speed Ayano does not believe possible as she tilts her head questioningly.
"...Yes?"
It's not a complete lie. Sometimes she has to admit she likes seeing those like the morons around her get away with their antics without punishment.
"Oh my gosh!"
The squeal of delight that the girl with mossy-looking hair gives her nearly makes her drop the bento box carefully situated her knees as she darts forward, planting herself firmly on the bench beside Ayano, and leans in babbling excitedly.
"You'llneverbelievehowmuchI'vewantedtotalkwithsomeoneaboutthisbecauseshe'ssofunnyandremindsmesomuchofmelotsofpeopletellmeI'msuperclumslylikeherbutthey'rejustmeaniessoIignoreitwhocareswhattheyhavetosayanywayrightImeanit'snotlikethey'reimportnatoranythingbutanwyayBukiyonaissofunnyshegetsintosomanyfunnyadventureshaveyougottentotheoneyetwhereshegoestothehospitalandaccidentallyunplugsoneofthepatientslifesupportdon'tworrytheydon'tdietheyendup becoming friends…"
The girl takes a deep breath and Ayano is surprised to find that the tsunami emanating from her mouth has a stopping place even if it's due to the lack of oxygen. Cautiously she holds up a finger and taps the girl on the shoulder.
"…I'm sorry. I'd love to talk about this but I don't have a clue what your name is."
"Oh! Sorry! When I get going, I really get going, don't I? My name is Midori Gurin! What's yours?"
"Ayano Aishi."
There are few things that Ayano can enjoy in life that are not Senpai. After that Wednesday and the introduction of the school's worst student into her life Bukiyona is no longer one of those few things either.
5. Excite
"Ayano! Ayano!"
Midori's voice echoes through the hallway as she waves to the soot-haired schoolgirl just a few hundred centimeters away. Many of the students around them either snort or quickly hurry out of Ayano's way as the girl stumbles from the sudden commotion behind her. They won't be caught dead hanging around her; Midori has long made peace with that fact.
Picking herself up with as much grace as she can muster (and she is always graceful, Midori knows) Ayano turns to her with a bright smile and clasps her hands together.
"Yes, Midori…?"
No matter where she is, or what her problem is, Ayano will always stop and help her. At first Midori didn't understand why. None of the others ever cared about her; she had never been invited to any of the parties that they threw, never invited to sit with anyone at lunch, and verbally tore her apart when they thought she wasn't paying attention.
But not Ayano Aishi.
For whatever reason the girl treated her with the undying patience of a bodhisattva and no matter how trivial her endless stream of questions was or how much it her hurt her own reputation her upperclassman would be there for her.
"W-well, you know, there's a new premiere of Murder College on Channel 7 tonight, right?"
"Of course."
It wasn't as if Midori hadn't reminded her of this fact about 15 times already.
Rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet, students filing about her, glowering at her as she lands on some of their own feet she tries to figure out how best to approach her next question. Ayano says nothing and merely looks to her fellow classmates as they mill past them, eying Midori in annoyance and Ayano with confusion. Midori has long given up on having any sort of working relationship with everyone at Akademi but she knows that her very presence is something that will have ramifications for the other girl. Any sign of weakness and the predators will pick off the weakest link in the herd as it were.
"Do you think you might want to, that is I mean, if you'd like to because I really enjoy talking to you about s-stuff like this, come over and–"
"Come over…?"
Sometimes Ayano did strange things that Midori could not understand. Like right now, in fact. She would repeat words back to her – not that there was anything wrong with that, as Midori often did it herself – but as if she had to think about things before she talked about them again. At first Midori had thought that she had found a kindred spirit in Ayano, someone who found the world just as frustratingly confusing as she did, but it was certainly different between them. For Midori, it was confusion at what society wanted. For Ayano, it seemed as if she knew on a basic level what was being requested, but had to find a reason to answer.
"Yeah!"
Midori perks up, her face splitting into a grin and she begins to bounce and place like a jack hammer, hands flitting slightly as she waited for the other girl to respond. When Ayano chose to say nothing, and instead stare in confusion at her, she came to an abrupt stop and cleared her throat.
"…I mean, did you want to head over to my house tonight to watch it? At 19:00?"
There is a flicker of uncertainty that graces Ayano's features that causes Midori's heart to go into overdrive. She's gone too far and now she's ruined it. Ayano won't want to come over. She's just being nice and it's always been that way. She doesn't actually want to come visit Midori, she just wants her to not feel like she's lonely at school.
"Um, sure. I guess it could be fun? Your parents are okay with that, right?"
"Right! I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't get their permission first, y'know? Guess I'll be seeing you later tonight if I don't see you after school today on the way home. It's a date!"
Midori practically skips down Akademi's hallway not bothering to pay attention with the stares of her fellow students and certainly not seeing Ayano's right eye twitch.
6. Surprise
The glow of the television in the Gurin living room is the only thing that illuminates the darkness.
Ayano watches the flickering shapes of the actors and actresses before her in uneasy silence. She has never been to a 'friend's' house before and has no idea of what to do. Midori shooed her in and slammed the front door shut behind them, whirling her into the living room before she even had time to remove her shoes, and plopped her onto the couch before she bounded over to the screen and turned it on. After that Ayano sat, staring at her classmate as the girl laid out dish after dish of packaged snack foods before them as if she were setting up a toshidana. Just as she finished laying out the last bowl of green tea-flavored chocolate bars the program had begun and Midori took her seat beside Ayano without so much as a peep. It had been the most quiet she had ever seen the girl in fact.
That had been an hour ago and the program had gone on. It wasn't anything special and Ayano was certain that even if she had been capable of feeling anything for the program her thoughts would have been the same. It was a fairly typical whodunit with 'college students' who looked as if they should be raising children about her age and whose only redeeming factor was that perhaps some of the murders would be useful in giving Ayano some inspiration. She did have to admit that the thought of pushing a certain someone off of a cliff while on a hike together did have its appeal.
A certain someone who was now loudly snoring in her ear.
Half an hour in Ayano had felt a sudden weight on her left shoulder that almost caused her to leap to her defenses and it was only with the reality of where she was and who she was with return to her. The Gurin household was nothing special: it was a fairly typical suburban home with an unremarkable couple (though with a daughter who was extraordinary in taxing her patience). Midori's parents worked long hours and left their seemingly disabled daughter up to her own devices in a way that Ayano guessed would have made many others question their parenting. There was no threat of them returning early as Midori had told her later in the day after inviting her over; the sushi bar wasn't going to drink itself dry or so she figured.
It wouldn't be worth it to extricate herself from the other girl pressing into her side but she hated the constant unladylike sleeping habit of her older classmate. She could barely even hear the program now with the droning in her ear. Had Midori not told her that her parents had given express permission for her to be over that evening she would have seriously considered smothering Gurin with a pillow but it was far too risky a move at this point. Foul play would certainly be suspected though Ayano liked to think that if a judge were to hear her entire case they would side in her favor.
Then it happened.
Just as with everything else about the girl Midori's hands quickly slid around Ayano's waist locking them in place. Even if she couldn't understand what embarrassment was like she could at least know what it was like from having watched countless people in her life. This, surely, would be counted as one of the times where one would utter protestations about how the situation was actually quite different than what it seemed and it was a misunderstanding. As she sat there in the dim window of the murder mystery playing out before her she could only wonder what Mr. and Mrs. Gurin might say if they came back to see their daughter entangled in such a compromising way with another girl.
Would they even bother interrupting them? Was it likely Midori would try to brush it off and say that she had simply been tired and fallen asleep where she had by chance? They sounded so detached that Ayano could readily believe that they might very well assume the worst. She certainly didn't want to spend a possible hour or two telling her hosts that she had no romantic designs on their daughter and that it was all just an innocent get-together between two 'friends.'
Though Ayano had to admit that the feeling of the girl beside her was interesting if for no other reason than she was not used to intimate contact with others unless it was performing a social ritual like a hug or having a victim struggle underneath her. Midori's sheer level of trust in her not to snap her neck as if it were a fallen twig was amazing; she had no idea the danger that she was in but couldn't care even if she wanted to. 'Brave but stupid' was a rather good description of Midori, Ayano decided.
It's also what she has concluded she would like the graveyard staff to write on the girl's grave marker if it ever comes to that.
7. Breakable
"Can I talk to you about something, Ayano?"
Ayano gives her a small 'mm' in response, her eyes never leaving the chemistry textbook sitting before her on the thin wooden table at the back of the library, and Midori knows that the time is now or never. She has been waiting at least a week to take the plunge and she's spent the last few days carefully determining the library's slow period after school. As much as she didn't like the idea of skipping out on the gaming club's activities today was much more important than keeping her high score.
"Well… have you, y'know, ever liked someone? Like really liked them?"
"You mean if I've been in love with someone before."
Ayano still isn't paying attention to Midori and that only makes her that much more nervous. The other girl's head rests in her palm, eyes downcast lazily at the various mathematical equations, her other arm occasionally scratching the work paper before her with whatever answer she had worked out. Ayano doesn't like beating around the bush and this time is no exception; it's something that Midori has come to appreciate given her own problems with figuring out metaphors but this time it bothers her. There is a distance to her voice, a kind of coldness that almost seems unapproachable, and she can feel a knot of anxiety beginning to form in her gut.
"Yeah. I mean, I'm sure someone like you has had loads of people asking them out before, right?"
Ayano's pen has stopped moving and she fixes her gaze from the book to Midori now. The expression on her friend's face is almost as unreadable as her tone. There are no tics or tremors to be found, only a strange stillness that Midori initially mistakes for polite confusion, but becomes something much more meaningful with her response.
"It's complicated."
"That seems silly. Who wouldn't want to make you happy?"
Midori notices that Ayano is staring at her now, head tilted ever so slightly, and she has the distinct sensation that she is treading dangerously. But her father is a realtor and he has always told her that the majority of his job was the presentation and not necessarily the product itself.
"I don't think they even know I exist."
Midori didn't know what heartbreak was but in every love story she had ever read it was one of the worst feelings you could possibly imagine. The thought of her best friend in such emotional straits filled her with a kind of distress that she hadn't thought she was capable of. But she had to press on, she needed to know if Ayano could feel the same way, but she would have to tread lightly.
"Have you tried talking to them about it?"
The soft glow of the setting sun from the window spilling into the library only accentuates the blush that has appeared on Ayano's normally pale cheeks. The other girl looks down at the table, the pen dropped and her finger interlaced, as she stares at the desk with an intenseness that Midori is sure could burn through it if she could. Somehow Ayano always knows how to be both radiant and cute at the same time.
"…No. Scared."
Midori blinks at that in surprise. How could she possibly be scared? Ayano seemed so cool, nothing phased her and she always had a way to settle situations if they were getting out of hand. She had even worked a miracle by having people willing to talk around Midori herself and not run the other direction by virtue of her presence alone.
"But that's crazy, Ayano!" her voice rises in pitch and she makes a pout, gripping the sides of the table and standing up.
"You deserve more than that, trust me. You're so… so pretty. I mean, everyone who gets to know you notices that. I know, I listen to them when you're not around and while it's sometimes not, well, nice... they definitely take notice."
Midori doesn't consider herself a prude by any stretch of the imagination but some of the talk about Ayano from the boys in the photography club had made her skin crawl.
"You're so smart. I'm not very good with books and I talk too much but when you say things you say them just right. I think you make a lot of the girls here jealous."
But Ayano gives her no response. She has seemingly totally shut down and fear hits Midori like a wasp sting. Had she gone too far? It had been an innocent enough question but clearly it was a deep seated issue for her friend. She couldn't have known it would make her like this but she would be damned if knowing wouldn't make her feel better.
It's now or never.
"...That's why I love you. I know maybe that's not what you want to hear 'cause I know I'm dumb, annoying, and all that other stuff. I don't know if you feel about girls, um, in the special kind of way but that's okay."
If nothing else she has snapped Ayano out of her funk. The girl's expression is one of perfect neutrality, eyes glazed over and unpredictable, perfectly still in the uncomfortable library chair.
"Maybe you don't want to deal with what people would say here at school might say. They won't see it as right. But I don't care about what those dummies think. I want to know what you think, Ayano. So I guess… I guess what I'm trying to say is that even if that person you've got a crush on won't say anything, I will."
Midori giggles nervously and she gives Ayano her best and brightest smile she can muster unwrapping her fingers from one another and reaching across the table to cup Ayano's hands in her own.
"That special someone you were talking about… I doubt they've said what I just said. I noticed you first! Romance anime rules are the first girl gets the main character, right?"
Ayano says nothing and simply stands up, carefully placing her chemistry work and class book back into her satchel, tucking away the pen she was using neatly into the carrying pouch attached to the side. Each second seems like an hour as Midori waits for the words she's wanted to hear so much they've invaded her dreams. But hope begins to wither in her as she watches Ayano push in her chair and stare at her for only a moment before she slowly shakes her head and walks past her out the door.
"In those romance stories the first girl's life is always fraught with the most tragedy, isn't it?"
Midori finally understands what heartbreak is.
8. Discipline
"Midori…"
Ayano sits on top of the other girl's stomach, legs positioned at either side of her frame to prevent her from squirming too much, and watches the other girl twitch and sniffle underneath her.
"I promise I won't tell anybody, Ayano, I swear. I was just sending an e-e-mail on my phone and I wasn't paying attention. I didn't m-m-mean to snoop…"
She has heard variations of this before and she will hear many more afterward. Victims and witnesses always cry and beg, pleading with her not to gut them as if they were fish at the market, before she ends up doing the deed. There is no reward for her in these activities other than the relief she feels after disposing of the corpses. An insane person would revel in the violence and bloodshed and if there is one thing Ayano isn't it's insane.
Girls who have mental illnesses do not get the boys of their dreams. They get white jackets and endless days filled with prescription drugs, not a loving husband and children.
The knife despite its size feels heavy in her hand, as if she were Ida-ten himself about to hand down judgment, and she grazes it gently along Midori's chin. Despite the fact that the girl's hands are fully available to her she chooses to clutch her phone desperately, as if her precious game developer could save her. Midori's large green eyes are filled with unshed tears as she whimpers underneath Ayano.
"Did you now? It's not polite to become involved in someone else's business, Midori. Isn't that what knocking is for?"
There was more to the entire situation then just an inopportune spectator of course. Budo Masuta had proven himself a valiant opponent Ayano supposed but he had still fallen to her just the same. It was a pity that he had been as obsessed with honor as he had right up until the end. The conflict that had played across his features over whether or not to incapacitate a girl had cost him his life when she had brought the axe swinging into his abdomen and then sinking it into the rest of him as fast as she could manage. It had been a challenge to haul him into the basement by herself but it had been smooth sailing after he finally bled out. He would be investigating nothing now that his charred remains sat the bottom of the incinerator.
"P-p-please, I don't wanna…"
"Want to what?"
The dam has finally broken and Ayano watches the girl's tears spill down her cheeks, her face slowing turning pink with irritation from the effort and her phone clatters to the floor next to her, forgotten as she brings her hands up to her head. Gently Ayano brings a finger to Midori and runs her finger along one of the streams as the warm liquid dissipating as she rubs her fingers together.
"…Die."
Midori's voice is so uncharacteristically small that Ayano has to strain her own ears to hear her. She removes the knife from the girl's throat and Midori slightly relaxes. Cocking her head to one side Ayano stares at her fellow student for a moment. Midori's eyes are tearstained but there's an underlying sense of hope. No, Ayano knows she can't allow that. The blade returns to Midori once more and it grazes against the girl's skin as it travels from her throat down to her stomach.
Despite weighing slightly more than Midori Ayano can feel the girl begin to shake and tremble at last against her leg lock. A distinct wetness comes from somewhere underneath her and Ayano resists the urge to roll her eyes.
"You're forgetting so many manners today, Midori. You should definitely go to the bathroom for that sort of thing, not on others. Babies do that. But that's what you are, aren't you?"
Midori only offers her a sniffle in response.
Utterly pathetic.
"You don't have to be an enemy, though, you know. I wouldn't want to be responsible depriving parents of their child," Ayano's voice emphasizes the last word as her knife gently scrapes against Midori's uniform.
"I d-d-d-don't know if I want to be your friend anymore, Ayano!"
"Be careful, Midori. You don't have much of a choice in the matter."
Midori's fiery gaze is snuffed out as immediately as it came to her. Her arms go slack now and her breathing becomes much slower. Perhaps the shock of it all has finally caught up with her, not that Ayano truly cares.
"Promise me you won't say a word of what you saw to anyone."
Her knife is perched directly above the girl's abdomen and she puts a slight amount of force behind it, the tip of the weapon touching Midori's skin but not breaking it.
"I–"
"Say it."
"I won't…"
Ayano's fingers grab Midori's hair and pull. Midori cries out which only earns her a harder tug.
"Say it."
"I won't say anything to anyone!"
Ayano removes the knife from Midori's torso, tucking it into the small band around her leg for carrying items into Akademi, and gives the girl a smile.
"As your best friend I think we ought to spend more time together; it seems we don't do it much anymore with my job. In fact, I think you should come work with me. It'll be fun."
The other girl's initially confused expression turns to one of dawning realization and she begins to struggle slightly once more.
"There's n-no way I'm ever helping–!"
Ayano's free hand clamps over her mouth.
"Why, thank you, Midori. You're such a good friend. I'm sure you'll enjoy every moment of it."
There is no further resistance from Midori, not when she stands up to feel her knees crack slightly at the sudden movement, nor does she rebel even after they leave for the evening.
She never does.
9. Fantasy
"Are you sure you want to do this?"
Without a second thought Midori nodded her head eagerly at Ayano her eyes filled with determination.
"Yeah! But, well, I mean I'll try to be as gentle as I can okay? I've never done this before…"
Ayano's smile was soft, her eyes warm, as she reached out to squeeze the other girl's hand reassuringly.
"Midori, I'm sure you'll do fine."
"So, uh," Midori nervously tucked a lock of hair behind her ear, "I'm gonna get ready and try to slip into something more comfortable. Don't laugh, alright?"
Shaking her head Ayano chuckled. "C'mon, Midori, I'd never do that."
Midori can feel her face heat up and she looks away from her companion towards the wall of her room. They had only been going out for a few months now and Midori still wasn't sure that she was ready for what lay ahead. If you loved someone, and vice versa, there was no reason to be afraid but she couldn't help but feel a sense of foreboding. What if Ayano couldn't handle what they were about to do? What if she couldn't? Her girlfriend sat placidly on the bed, still in her uniform and eying her with a quiet smile and sitting perfectly still, waiting for her to make the first move. She had been planning for this moment for a while now and she finally had the opportunity. Her parents had gone out for a night of drinking with her father's coworkers and they wouldn't be home until the early hours of the morning.
The time had come.
Unceremoniously Midori stripped off her stockings, uncomfortably aware of Ayano's hungry gaze as she stumbled slightly to the right and almost tripped over one of the many stacks of manga strewn about the floor. Next came her skirt, which she shimmied down her legs and tossed in the hamper in the corner.
"See? You're not so bad at this, Midori. You sure know how to keep a girl in suspense…"
The last thing off was Midori's shirt and it too joined the skirt in the clothes bin. There. That hadn't been as hard as she imagined it would be. She had to admit that she was more than a little cold given that she was down to her underwear but she knew it was a feeling that wouldn't last long.
"Is this… am I…"
Ayano got off the bed, the bed creaking ever so slightly, and slowly reached out. Midori felt Ayano's fingers wrap tightly around hers and her lover smiled gently at her.
"You're beautiful, trust me. If you're scared we can stop here; I don't want to rush you into anything you don't want to do. Besides," she winked, "even if this is it I think I'll have a lot to think about at home, won't I?"
Midori said nothing and shook her head.
"No, I want to do this, Ayano! We've been waiting for a long time. It just took me a while to figure out how I would show you how much I care about you."
It was Ayano's turn to remain silent, nodding her head and taking her place again on Midori's bed, one leg crossed over the other.
"Then we'll go at your pace then."
Nodding once more Midori stood there, arms outstretched and legs apart, as she called out, "Magical Girl Pretty Midori transformation sequence!"
"…Wait, what?" Ayano asked, her expression changing from longing to complete confusion as bright, multicolored lights burst forth from Midori, wrapping themselves around her girlfriend and filling the room with a blinding white light. It took Ayano moments to clear her vision, spots dancing before her eyes, as she rubbed her eyelids.
Just what the hell is going on?!
In the center of Midori's bedroom stood the socially awkward green-haired girl she had fallen in love with but not like the one she was so familiar with. Clad in a pair of short that left very little to the imagination (and a see-through skirt that hid even less) Midori, with whatever spell she had performed, was now posing dramatically before Ayano in ridiculous looking knee high heel boots with faux fur trim along the edges. The amount of skin that was showing now was almost as much as when she had had next to nothing on given that her midriff was exposed and her top consisted of little else other than an emerald tube that showed off her bust.
"I… don't understand…"
Midori's smile was as radiant as the morning sun as she leapt forward and brought Ayano into a tight hug, fingers running gently through her hair, as she pulled away.
"Well, do you like what you see, Ayano?" Midori giggled, batting her eyelashes playfully. "Told you I'd get into something more comfortable!"
"…Explain, please, before I end up passing out from shock."
"I'm a magical girl, silly! You know, defender of young people everywhere, saving the world before bedtime, but never having the courage to ask out the boy I like? Well… guess I don't meet the last description very well. I have you – and you're not a boy either."
"…"
"I really didn't know how I was going to tell you so I figured once we got to know each other more I'd have to spill the beans at some point. I hope you're not too scared. I mean I do a pretty good job at keeping monsters away from Akademi though Oka Ruto that mean old witch does her best to stop me. But I'm really, really good at my job!"
"The occult club president has demonic forces at her disposal."
Midori looked quizzically at Ayano as if she had grown a second head.
"Well, yeah, I mean what else would she use? Everything about her is so obviously suited for it. I mean, 'oka ruto,'" she moved her hands from left then to the right, "occult. Get it? It'd be weird if she didn't."
"Right. Next thing you'll be telling me is the science club really did manage to build a robot girl."
"Yeah, but she's the star of a totally different anime so… no go on a crossover, unfortunately."
Ayano's eye twitched as she slowly got off the bed.
"This has been very enlightening, Midori."
"You're not… mad?"
"No, I'm not."
"Oh, that's wonderful! I was so scared that you were going to not want to be my girlfriend anymore because you could be in danger of being a target for my rogues gallery!"
Ayano threw her hands up into the air as she marched towards the bedroom door and threw it open.
"H-hey, where are you going?"
"Home. I'm going to try and sleep off whatever the hell I'm on right now. Call me if you actually want to knock knees later."
Midori watched Ayano leave and heard her stomp through her home before feeling the vibration of the front door slamming shut.
"…Was it something I said?"
10. Pregnancy
"Did you hear about Musume Ronshaku?"
Ayano was still trying to determine how she felt about Midori Gurin. As much as she detested the girl's inability to shut up she had to admit that she had her uses. No one in the school liked her but few had the guts to actually send her away much of the time. As such Midori had become a repository of gossip but, much more importantly than that, had become a source of dirt on Ayano's fellow students that didn't require her to risk her academic career taking photos for.
"No, I can't say I have, Midori. Is there something the matter with her?"
There was plenty wrong with her. Musume Ronshaku was another girl, among the dozens of others, which Ayano could not stand. The ganguro girl physically hurt to look at with her fake, bleached blond hair and awful tan to say nothing of her single digit IQ.
"Weellll… it's not my place to say but…"
Midori always did this. She couldn't resist not blathering on about whatever it was that she knew. Ayano knew well just how much the girl could talk, and talk, and talk, and talk, and talk, and talk–
Ayano shook the visions of red that had begun to form from her head. If she let it become too personal then she was liable to end up with yet another corpse to hide before the week was up. No use in making more work for herself.
"I heard some of the popular girls, the real snobby ones like Saki Miyu, say that they heard that she was pregnant."
That was indeed interesting.
"Pregnant?"
Midori rolled her eyes at a speed Ayano didn't think was possible. She honestly hadn't expected this level of sass from someone who was so annoyingly inquisitive. Her 'friend' used her chopsticks to pick up an octodog from her lunch and stick it into her mouth, chewing thoughtfully before gulping it down.
"Yeah. With child. In a family way. You know how that happens, right, Ayano?"
"I took sex ed same as you," Ayano said a little more defensively than she would've liked. Granted, the 'education' in question had been terrible but it wasn't as if she had had any interest in such things until recently.
Senpai was such a stud muffin…
"That's what Saki said. Guess the rest of the Rainbow Ten didn't know what to think about it. I feel really bad for her, though! I think her dad has a lot of money, so maybe it wouldn't be too hard to get a doctor to perform a, y'know, abortion," Midori whispered the phrase as if it were some sort of bad word and Ayano resisted the urge to do an eye roll of her own. "But it's not her fault, right? I mean, whoever the dad is, it's his problem too!"
Ayano could care less about which one of their peers had been allowed to wash his burdock root in Musume's part of the Pacific but her mind was racing with possibilities. Kokona Haruka was an obstacle that needed to be removed, that much she was certain of. The Rainbow Ten as everyone at Akademi knew them as had a weak link it would probably be Ronshaku. She would be the easiest to manipulate and especially so if there was something she could use to hang over her head whether that was by taking advantage of the father or using it help ruin her reputation, Ayano was sure that Ronshaku wouldn't need much arm twisting if she had a favor or two that needed to be done.
"Yeah. It takes two people, after all. I can't believe that some of her own friends would turn on her like that for a simple mistake…"
"I know, right? Some people, Ayano," Midori huffed and angrily popped another piece of her lunch into her mouth, "they just don't care about anyone's feelings but theirs. I'm glad you're my friend; I know you'd never judge me like that – or Devpai, he never says anything bad about me even if I'm really pestering him. Well… maybe not all the time, but you know what I mean."
"I'm glad that we're friends too, Midori."
Talking to Gurin did have its uses after all.
That's all she wrote for Ayano and Midori though I might return to them in the future.
We were pretty mean to Kokona, though, so whenever the next chapter of this side project comes out expect Ayano/Kokona stuff, especially more on the romantic side of things.
Peace.
For those wondering as well, 'washing a burdock root in the Pacific' is a Japanese expression with the roughly equivalent euphemism in English of 'throwing a hot dog down a hallway.'
