AN: Happy birthday, Mugi! Here's a gift! And no, for the last time, it is not a tea set, so stop guessing!
Warning: "Character Death". Also, any science you may see is fictional; most likely. Also, prepare for Perv!Mugi.
Disclaimer: I do not own K-ON or any of its conspirators (it should be illegal to have an addictive cast).
WhoDunIt?
The imaginative girl wanted to help, and so she tried.
A young woman, about twenty two years of age, set her book aside on her night table and sighed while she relaxed beneath her sheets. It had been another boring morning for the young heiress, the daughter of a wealthy overlord in the business world. As much as she enjoyed reading novels from her gargantuan library, she didn't enjoy being stuck at home on the weekends when she wasn't attending university. She would have gone out to walk amongst the townsfolk, but she didn't want the publicity nor the stress of having to wear a giant pair of sunglasses and a sun hat to cover her face.
"Ojou-sama!"
The heiress smiled at the elderly woman who stepped into her room. She had been a loyal maid to the family for two whole generations, and she was the kindest among their workers. Needless to say, she was a motherly figure in the eyes of the prestigious daughter.
"Yes?" she asked.
"A man came to the door and handed me this letter," the old woman held out a sealed envelope, "and said it was for you. How odd, it's not the time for the postage to come in yet..."
The young girl brushed the seal, crimson and in the shape of a "Y". She flipped the envelope over and saw her name elegantly written in cursive.
Tsumugi Kotobuki.
"Thank you, you may go." Tsumugi, who honestly preferred the nickname of "Mugi", said with another small smile as the maid walked out and closed the door behind her. Sitting up in her bed, Mugi carefully opened the envelope and unfolded the paper inside of it. Her eyes scanned the paper slowly, reading it carefully. She was excited because the idea of someone sending her mail was, frankly, awesome! She enjoyed the little things.
"Dear Guest,
You have been invited to a formal dinner party at my residence. I have chosen a certain amount of guests and I hope that you can all make it on the second of July. I do not know you personally, but you are one of the thousands that were chosen at random for this chance. I have a prize for the most worthy of the invited guests, and I can only wonder if you, dear reader, will be the one to obtain it. Ponder your decision carefully. After all, this is a splendid opportunity.
Sincerely,
Your Host
P.S. The directions to my estate are enclosed within the envelope as well. Don't get lost."
A completely idiotic, yet somehow cute, grin spread itself across Mugi's face. This letter sounded quite adventurous, and Mugi was one for adventure and imagination. She had a lot of secret desires that she expressed to no one but herself, and she enjoyed a lot of things that many others wouldn't. And so the decision to attend this so-called dinner party, which was to occur within a few days, was made! A few days and a getting-ready montage later, she was ready to go in a light and strapless white summer dress with matching white flats. Her blonde hair cascaded down her back beautifully, and her blue eyes practically glowed in excitement.
Leaving only a small note on their large refrigerator explaining that she wouldn't be back for some time, she hurried out of the house and into her silver Corvette. She had picked this car for herself, one of her first individual decisions when she was six. However, when she actually had said it she had not anticipated that her father would buy it for her the next day.
She drove along the road, following the directions as the host had said. It became more of a struggle as more trees began to appear, as well as the graying sky, until she had arrived in what seemed to be a giant forest. Not many people seemed to be driving on the same street, and she felt as though she were isolated. Rain droplets began to hit her front window just as she managed to spot a giant gate in the distance nestled within a couple of trees. She was lucky to notice it at all.
She turned and pulled up to a small button on the side of the gate.
"Who is it?" asked a voice from a small speaker beside the button, and it sounded like a woman.
"Ah, forgive me, but I have been invited for the dinner tonight." Mugi said, listening as the droplets on the window began to hit harder.
"O-Oh, alright. You may come in at the sound of the buzzer."
"Buzz – " Mugi began to ask before she heard a loud sound and watched as the gates opened in front of her, "Ah, thank you." she said before passing the gate. A long and winding dirt road awaited her, and the forest surrounding her began to grow thicker. Eventually, however, she finally reached the estate at the end of the path. A small but beautiful garden of colorful flowers rested on a small island in front of the Victorian-styled house, and the road went out in both directions around it in a complete circle. Seeing that a few cars were already parked close to the house, she parked closer to the single road leading back to the gate.
Just as she was about to get out of the car, she watched a girl walk out of the house and run over despite the light rain. Mugi opened the car door and smiled at the tall girl who stood right beside her car.
"Hello, are you the host?" she asked.
"Ah, no. I'm Sumire Saito, the new butler." the girl said, bowing.
"Butler?" Mugi couldn't help but giggle, so she lightly put her hand over her mouth.
"A-Ah, well, my employer said she wanted me to wear a suit, so... I'm the butler." Sumire said, her cheeks pink in embarrassment, "Anyway, do you have any luggage you would like to bring in? That's why I've come out, in case you need help."
"Oh, no. Do not worry, I'll be – " Mugi paused, taking a moment to stare up at the large estate. The towering mansion, the rain, the dark clouds, the thick woods, the mysterious invitation, and the nameless host were... perfect. Her eyes began to sparkle at the sight.
Sumire smiled, noticing how Mugi was staring at the house. "Beautiful, isn't it?"
"No, it's... Well, it's beautiful, but it's also... so... perfect." she sighed happily.
"Oh, well I wouldn't go that far, I don't think." Sumire chuckled.
"You don't understand..." Mugi began to say, walking to the back of her car and punching the trunk with the side of her fist only to have it pop open, "I've always wanted to do this." she grinned with determination as she quickly took out some folded item from the trunk. Sumire could only watch in confusion as Mugi whipped the item in the air, watching it unfold to reveal its true identity; a brown trenchcoat. Mugi quickly put it over her white dress, tying it closed. She dug in her trunk again and grabbed a matching brown fedora, whose brim was a bit pointed at the front to give it that investigator look, and a pair of what looked like steampunk-styled goggles. She put the goggles on, but let the lens rest on the brim of her hat instead of on her face right away.
Seeing some words on the leather strap of the goggles, Sumire leaned in out of curiosity. She blinked, feeling as though she read something wrong.
Mugi, who had taken out a small camera from the trunk as well, looked over to Sumire.
"You like my goggles, Saito-san?"
"Please, call me Sumire... U-Uh, anyway, I thought I read the words 'yuri vision' stitched into the leath – "
"Details, details!" Mugi smiled, waving her hand to dismiss the topic. "Anyway, would you take a photo of me with my camera? I'm so excited!"
Sumire, forgetting about the 'yuri vision' thing entirely already, loyally obeyed and grabbed Mugi's clearly pricey high quality camera and took a quick picture. Mugi looked to the sky, one hand holding the brim of her hat while the other rested under her chin in a thinking pose. The bottom of her dress was still in view and the flats didn't particularly go with the look either yet she somehow pulled it off brilliantly. Her expression was serious and skeptical, but with a determined glint in her eyes, and one would probably think that she had rehearsed for this in some way. She probably did.
"One more, one more! Ooh, over here perhaps!" Mugi pointed over to the road that led out to the gate. She directed for Sumire to stand back far enough to get the width of the road as well as the trees. She, herself, stood toward the left side of where the camera would take a picture, had her hands in her pockets with her collar popped up, and looked over her shoulder with a mysterious (and admittedly somewhat sexy) look to the camera with the cool yet dark forest in the background as well as the rain and the eerie road ahead. Finished with the picture, Sumire headed over to Mugi and showed her the pictures, at which she gratefully thanked the butler for taking them.
"Let's head inside, shall we? The rain is coming down harder." Sumire suggested, just as the rain began to worsen up.
"I agree." Mugi nodded, grabbing a flashlight and magnifying glass from her trunk before closing it, and Sumire led them inside. The house was somewhat dark on the inside because of dark brown panel walls that occupied a lot of the space, but otherwise it was a very nice home. Refusing to take off her coat, Mugi followed Sumire through a long hall until they reached a dining room where a couple of people, all women, were standing around and observing the decorations or the dinnerware.
"You are the last guest to arrive, I believe." Sumire said, beckoning for Mugi to go on ahead. "Feel free to mingle among the guests."
Mugi nodded with a small smile, thanking Sumire once again before watching the butler go off, and then walked over to the guest that was closest to her. The woman was tall, had long black hair, stormy gray eyes, and wore a black blouse with white capris and black sandals. She was very pretty, Mugi observed before lightly tapping the woman's shoulder.
"Hm? Yes?" The woman asked, turning to Mugi. She cocked an eyebrow at the getup Mugi wore.
"I just arrived, and I would like to meet my fellow peers here. I'm Mugi Kotobuki. Who might you be?" the heiress smiled.
"Akiyama Mio." Mio returned the smile as she introduced herself. "Are... you a detective?"
A little too embarrassed to admit she had no occupation, she nodded – A bit too enthusiastically.
Mio chuckled. "Ah, well I'm an author. Ever heard of 'Bottoms Up, Bangs Down', the bestseller? I write romance, you see, and – "
"What type of romance?" Mugi squinted a bit.
"Um... Different types of scenarios, you know?"
"Like two women embracing after a vicious argument only to end up in –", Mugi coughed,"A-Ah, I understand. Pardon me."
Mio blinked, watching as Mugi turned around. A moment later, Mugi turned back and quickly scratched the side of her nose. The novelist blinked as she noticed a small blood stain on Mugi's collar. She began to feel clammy.
"Is th-that blood?" Mio asked, shakily.
Mugi blushed for a moment but quickly shook it off. "Oh, this? Well, you know how us detectives are... Tough and always fighting crime, and whatnot, ohoho~"
"I thought you simply looked for clues and helped the officers find the culprit?" Mio blinked.
"Clues have blood too! At the crime scene, I mean. Decapitated heads and things like that. Anyway, I'll go meet the other guests." the wannabe detective smiled, not noticing that Mio collapsed as she walked away. Sumire would tend to that. The next woman had short brown hair pulled up into a high ponytail, brown eyes, a canary yellow t-shirt with jean shorts and white sneakers.
"Excuse me? Who might you be?" Mugi spoke up to grab the woman's attention.
The woman looked over her shoulder before turning around completely with a kind grin. "Ui Hirasawa. I teach kindergarten. You?"
"Private Investigator, Mugi Kotobuki at your service!" Mugi smiled, shaking Ui's hand.
"Oh really? How interesting! My sister, Yui, who is actually over there," Ui pointed at another woman who had her face up against the glass of a fish tank, "enjoys mystery movies so she would probably love to meet you."
"Oh, I love them too! Perhaps I'll go and talk to her. Nice to meet you." Mugi bowed before walking toward the other Hirasawa. However, another woman walked up to her while she was walking and stopped her. The shorter woman, who seemed young enough to be a mature girl instead, had black hair, garnet eyes, wore pigtails, a light green hoodie with a black kitty head design in the center, blue jeans, and green sneakers. She had a guitar case strapped to her back.
"Oh, hello there. I'm Mugi Kotobuki, a private investigator, and you are...?"
"Ah, um, Azusa Nakano. I'm a guitar instructor. I was just wondering if you knew anything about this 'being worthy' business that was discussed in the letter... I brought my guitar 'cause I thought it might have been a guitar contest or something but... I think I was wrong. Do you know why we're here?" the younger girl asked.
Mugi blinked. "Actually... I have no idea, now that you mention it. But perhaps it'll be a talent show?" she smiled. "Then maybe you can play your guitar."
"Ah, perhaps. Well, thank you. Good luck, if that is the case." Azusa nodded before heading over to the table to take a seat. Mugi continued on her original path until she reached Ui's sister, Yui. She poked the girl's neck, receiving what seemed to be a spasm as a response after the Hirasawa sister pried her face away from the glass. Yui had the same hair color as Ui and it was short as well but she kept it down. She wore a white button-down shirt and a black skirt, with white flats and black stockings.
"No! No blood donations for the fish!" Yui blinked, somewhat dazed, holding up her arms and a leg in some sort of kung fu pose. Mugi blinked as well, a bit confused, as she watched Yui lower her defenses quickly while rubbing the back of her head.
"Oh~ Sorry! Long childhood story, sorry! I'm – "
"Yui Hirasawa, correct?" Mugi smiled, "I met your sister just now. I'm Mugi Kotobuki, private investigator."
"Private investigator? That is so cute! I'm a Pediatrician; a doctor." Yui smiled, jumping onto Mugi and giving her a hug. Resisting the inevitability of the earlier mishap from reoccurring, Mugi kept the hug short and sweet.
"Those are for children, correct?"
"I love kids! They're so... cute and squishy! And eatable!"
"Ah, I see! Forgive me, but I must go meet a few more guests." Mugi said, shaking Yui's hand before walking off to another woman in the room to avoid any future awkwardly homicidal sentences from the only doctor in the room. This one had violet eyes, short hair in puffy brown pigtails, wore a black vest over a short sleeved white t-shirt and dark jeans with black sneakers.
"Hello, miss! Who might you be?" Mugi asked, after directing the woman's attention from a cabinet of wine bottles over to herself.
"Oh," the woman turned to her, "I'm Jun Suzuki. And I don't know about you ma'am, but my job is pretty lame compared to everyone else here, before you start asking me what I do." the girl rubbed her neck while glancing at everyone else. "Anyway, I'm a bartender. I specialize at pouring drinks into a glass, cup, mug, or whatever else is around the bar... like down the back of someone's shirt. Aside from that, tough profession, I know. Takes a bachelor's degree, y'know, and I totally worked my ass off in those college years."
Mugi put her hand up to her mouth and laughed a bit, much to Jun's enjoyment. The bartender smiled, chuckling as well. Not that she was kidding about the pouring being tough or anything, because it was harder to pour drinks to senseless jerks than one would think.
"I am Mugi Kotobuki, private eye investigator," Mugi smiled, holding out her hand and exaggerating as per the usual, "and it's a great pleasure to meet you."
"You, too. Anyway, I'm going to head over and take a seat. I heard the butler saying that our host would be coming in a few minutes." Jun said, giving a random and senseless type of salute before leaving toward the table. Mugi looked over to the last guest on the other side of the room, a woman with short brown hair, dark cherry red eyes, red-rimmed glasses, a navy blue suit top, a matching navy blue skirtskirt, and short heels.
"Yay, only one more to – " Mugi had begun to say, before she heard something from outside.
Everyone heard it. Everyone heard the roar of an engine outside in the storm unlike any they had heard before, and all of them looked to the window. And then they heard the engine stop. And soon, they heard the front door open and close. And finally, they heard the hard footsteps in the nearby hall before another woman entered the dining room. She had short sandy brown hair with her bangs held up by a yellow head band, amber eyes, and wore a dark green tank top under an open leather jacket with black jeans and black sneakers similar to Jun's. She held a helmet under her arm but put it down on a random shelf.
"Um..." Sumire came in, right behind the mysterious woman, "This is Ritsu Tainaka, everyone. The official last guest. So you may all take your seats and the host shall arrive soon."
Ritsu, avoiding having to look at anyone, walked to the dining table and got one of the seats farthest from the head of the table. Mugi figured she would get to know this Ritsu in time, but she went to go meet the other guest that she had almost missed. She quickly ran over to the woman, who was just about to sit down, and greeted her.
"Hello, I'm Mugi Kotobuki, private eye investigator agent. And you might be?" the heiress smiled, wanting to make a good first impression between her and the woman and was relieved when the latter chuckled. Although, she didn't know what was so funny.
"I'm Nodoka Manabe, attorney at law. Nice to meet someone in my department. You work in this district?" Nodoka asked, shaking Mugi's hand.
"Erm... I'm a secret private eye investigator agent." Mugi nodded, as if to assure herself.
"Ah, alright. That must be a good wage then, huh?" Nodoka smiled.
"Haha... You wouldn't believe me if I told you, that's for sure!"
"I bet! Anyway, let's sit. Shall we?"
"Of course." Mugi smiled, observing the brilliant chandelier above the table as she sat. There was one chair at the head of each end of the table and four chairs set up on both sides. From farthest to nearest to the head of the table, where the host was going to sit, on the left side was Ritsu, Ui, Jun, and Sumire, who was also required to sit as well. On the right, it was Mio, Yui, Nodoka, and Azusa. Mugi, of course, sat at the opposite head of the table and farthest from the host's seat.
"Ah, Sumire-san..." Nodoka spoke up softly, looking over at Sumire.
"Yes, madam?"
"Is there any chance that we can be served now? I may have to leave early for a meeting at the office. Not to be rude, but I just want to get this so-called 'opportunity' over and done with." Nodoka said.
"Agreed! I don't even know why I'm here. I'm nothing compared to you guys!" Jun spoke up. Ui, sitting next to her, turned to her and patted her shoulder.
"Don't say that, you're an amazing person! I just met you, but I can tell. I have a good judge of character, so trust me when I say that you are special." Ui smiled, unaware of the fixated blue eyes that stalked her and Jun's every move from that point onward.
Jun patted Ui's hand with her own. "Thanks Ui!" she smiled but then blinked when she heard a glass fall onto the floor and break. "Mugi, are you okay?" she looked over at the detective who began picking up the pieces.
"It was nothing! I've got it!"
"Are you su – "
"No worries!" a sniff, "I've got it. Sumire-san, where is the trash?"
"I'll handle it, miss." Sumire said, getting up and walking over to help Mugi. Minus a few minor mishaps that followed, mostly involving spontaneous nosebleeds from the detective that no one could explain whenever someone spoke with another, the dinner was finally brought to the table as well as the champagne.
Nodoka, hungry as a horse and reaching for the turkey, was stopped by Sumire before she could start eating.
"Sorry Manabe-san, not yet."
"Oh. Forgive me, then. I feel as though I wasted your time taking it out." Nodoka sighed, apologizing profusely much to Sumire's embarrassment.
Azusa had her eyes transfixed on a plate of hash browns, and Mugi could have sworn she saw kitty ears pop up from her head.
At the bottom end of the table, by Mugi, a certain Mio Akiyama tried to speak with a certain Ritsu Tainaka.
"So your name is Ritsu?" Mio asked, attempting to greet the isolated motorcyclist (which was unanimously assumed from the look of the helmet).
"That's what they call me." Ritsu said, not really looking at Mio but more so at the windows whose curtains completely hid the outside world.
"Um... What do you do in life?"
"I ride."
"... Ride?"
"Motorcycles," Bingo, "You?"
"I'm a romance novelist. Have you ever heard of – "
"No."
"No?"
"I don't read."
"Ah..." Mio's brow twitched, slightly annoyed. "You're fun, aren't you?"
Ritsu, grabbing her headband and taking it off since she wasn't on her motorcycle anymore, finally looked at Mio and smirked at her while grabbing her champagne.
"You know it, babe." Ritsu winked. "Bottoms up," and with that final statement she chugged down the champagne like nothing. Mio's face turned red from both the teasing of the shorter yet tougher girl, as well as the reminder of the title of her bestseller. Agitated from being flustered, she gave the motorcyclist a quick kick in the shin under the table. Ritsu's knee went up against the table hard and her face slammed against the table as a reflex.
"DAMMIT, FU – " Ritsu began to yell, before being interrupted by Sumire.
"The host is here, everyone." she said, standing up and pulling the chair out for the woman that approached. The woman wore a long and elegant red dress, had auburn hair, brown eyes, and wore glasses. Sumire pushed the chair in once the woman sat down before sitting down herself.
"Hello everyone. Thank you for coming." The woman said, smiling at everyone. "I'm Sawako Yamanaka, and I have bestowed upon you the chance of a lifetime."
"The chance of a lifetime?" Yui asked with a smile.
"Yes, Yui-san, I – "
"She knows my name~! Kyah!" Yui looked at Ui excitedly. "You heard that, Ui?"
"Yes, onee-chan." Ui smiled but whispered for Yui to shush.
"Anyway," Sawako continued, "Somewhere in the house is a chest filled with over one hundred million yen." she paused, waiting for the inevitable reaction.
Everyone's jaw dropped, minus Mugi's and Ritsu's. Ritsu actually fell backward on her chair, earning the snicker of a certain novelist, from the shock. Mugi, realizing everyone had a surprised reaction, gasped rather loudly and slapped her hands onto her cheeks. She wasn't sure of the big deal, though.
"Ah, yes my friends! Embrace the news! This is a scavenger hunt to see who can win the treasure!" Sawako said with a smirk before she noticed that Azusa was raising her hand. "Yes?"
"Excuse me," Azusa put her hand down, "but what reason do we have to believe you?" she asked, being ever so skeptical.
"What reason have I given you not to? You have been invited here. And you're here. Why should I waste my time on you for nothing?" the hostess pointed out.
"Ah..." Azusa looked down at her plate.
"So you're serious? Over a hundred million? Really?" Jun wanted to confirm.
"Completely serious."
"Wow..."
"So what do we have to do, Yamanaka-sama?" Nodoka asked.
"It's simple. Find it."
Ui blinked. "No clues?"
"Oh, well of course. The first clue is – " Sawako began to say before the lights went out.
The curtains had been let loose so that no light could escape through the window, and so the room was caught in complete darkness. A scream filled the air and voices, which Mugi had trouble identifying for each, began to jumble about in the room.
"Don't panic! It's just the lights!"
"We just paid this electric bill today!"
Chairs screeching against the wood of the floor, objects falling to the ground.
"Are the fish alright?"
"Who cares about the fish?"
Another scream; a bit more horrifying.
"What the hell is that?"
"Th-That feels weird..."
Mere seconds of darkness felt like minutes.
"Wh-Who is this...?"
"A-Ah, sorry Jun-chan..."
Frustrated by the wet feeling on her lip as well as the inability to get the flashlight to turn on, Mugi hit the side of the flashlight with her palm multiple times until it finally turned on. She pointed it at the chandelier, and everyone immediately calmed down and took their original place once they saw the crystals on the chandelier reflect some of the light onto the walls.
"Kotobuki-san, are you alright?" Ui asked, pointing at the trail of red on Mugi's upper lip.
"Huh? Oh, me? Forgive me, I tripped in the darkness." Mugi nodded firmly, before the lights suddenly came back on. Sumire stood at the wall and had turned on the lights again, giving Mugi a chance to put her flashlight away.
"My apologies everyone, the bill shou– ... sh-should h-have... b-been..." Sumire began to shake.
"What is it, Sumire-san?" Mio asked, before everyone turned to see where Sumire was looking. Mio immediately screamed, as well as everyone else. Well, except for Ritsu and Mugi. They simply became wide-eyed and blinked.
"Oh dear, I really DID become part of a murder mystery movie!", Mugi thought as she stared at the large knife that was sticking out of Sawako's chest. The blood leaked onto her dress, and it would have matched very nicely were it not so grotesque and utterly terrifying. Somehow, in some weird and freakish way, the aspect of solving a murder mystery such as this was very exciting. She jumped onto the table, ignoring the paled expressions of everyone at the dinner table.
"This looks like a job for Mugi Kotobuki, private eye investigator extraordinaire!" she grinned, taking out a magnifying glass with one hand and holding it in front of her eye while the other hand was in a fist on the side of her hip.
"... I feel like this is a rehearsed performance." Jun raised an eyebrow at Mugi.
"Oh! Well, I tried to – Actually, it isn't!" Mugi smiled, slightly pink.
"Oh no, it's okay, let's TOTALLY FORGET THERE IS A DEAD PERSON RIGHT HERE!" Azusa yelled.
Ritsu stood up and pointed at Sumire who was walking back to the table and jumped when she saw Ritsu yell at her. "The butler did it!"
Mugi pouted. "I've always wanted to say that..."
Nodoka pushed her glasses up a bit before nodding. "Well, it must have been someone closer because it couldn't have been Tainaka-san."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. WHOA. Stop where you are, right now!" Ritsu narrowed her eyes at Nodoka, who looked around to reassure herself that she hadn't moved anyway. "And why exactly couldn't it have been me? Are you saying I'm not cool enough to kill someone? I'll do it to this one right now!" she said, grabbing Ui by the arm only to get the school teacher ripped out of her arms by Jun, who received a thank you.
"Oh, how I hope Ui gives Jun a reward..." Mugi coughed again, trying to block out the voices inside her head.
Nodoka shook her head. "No, I'm not saying that. No need to prove yourself to anyone, but you're too far away to have done that in that amount of time."
"You sayin' I'm slow?"
Nodoka sighed. "Yes."
"Well! Uh... Better take it back!"
"I take it back."
"Good! Hmph!" Ritsu looked away.
Nodoka couldn't help but chuckle from Ritsu's playfulness. Yui walked over to Sawako and gently touched her wrist. After about a moment of requested silence, she looked back to the table, took a deep breath and spoke.
"Sawako-san is dead!" she said, frowning.
"We already know that, Yui!" Azusa yelled at her, pinching the doctor's arm.
"Ow! Don't worry Azunyan, I'm a doctor!"
"I highly doubt th – Azu-what-now?" the twin tailed girl blinked.
"Azunyan! You didn't see the kitty ear headband I slipped onto your head earlier?"
"What are you –," she began to ask before she felt something soft on the top of her head that had a pointy tip and she immediately started to blush crimson, "How and when did you do this?" she demanded.
Yui, striking another martial arts pose, smirked. "Kung Fu Cake Ninja, Yui Hirasawa!"
"Don't mind her, Azusa. She's a bit eccentric." Mio smiled, and Azusa returned it with another. But she forgot about the cat ears. "Anyway, can't we leave by car?"
Sumire shook her head. "No, the storm is too rough. Anyone have a cell phone?"
"No, there is no service." Ui said, shaking her head. Everyone else checked; same result. "What about the main phone line?"
Sumire walked away for about a minute before coming back. "Out."
"Everyone! Assemble!" Mugi said, hopping off the table and waiting for everyone to huddle around her. They, resembling a somewhat uncoordinated football team, wrapped their arms around each other's shoulders and leaned in to make a game plan.
"Alright, so one of you – "
"You mean one of 'us', don't you, Mugi?" Jun corrected.
"Haha, yes indeed. One of us is the killer. And whoever it is knows it. The rest of us need to find out who that killer is before they find us alone and helpless." Mugi said firmly, feeling a bit too excited on the inside but she hoped it wouldn't show.
Ritsu rolled her eyes and sighed. "I'm telling you, Sumire did it!"
Sumire blinked and frowned. "I didn't do anything! I just got here, today was my first day on the job as a matter of fact!"
"How convenient..." Mio muttered, looking at the floor.
"No, Sumire-san wouldn't do that. Right, Sumire?" Ui looked to Sumire, who nodded in response.
"Oh, you Hirasawas are really dumb, huh? Naive! The butler always – " Ritsu began, before the lights went out again. Before anyone had a chance to even scream, the lights came back on, " – ... does it." she finished, before looking down along with everyone else. On the floor, in the center of their huddled circle, Sumire was on her stomach with a knife through her back.
"Erm... Perhaps not." Ritsu blinked, staring as the butler's uniform beginning to stain after Mugi removed the knife from her back and placed it in her trench coat's pocket. Everyone backed away from the spot and moved to the other side of the room. Mio's delayed scream of horror came about two minutes after recovering from her paralysis.
"Okay, first rule. Let's not jinx anybody." Jun said, pointing at Ritsu.
"Whoa! I didn't know that would happen!" Ritsu put her hands up in feigned defense.
"Or maybe you did." Nodoka narrowed her eyes at Ritsu. "What is your job, exactly? I doubt your grandfather gave you that bike for Easter."
Yui blinked. "You celebrate Easter?"
"Hey, my grandfather is a great guy! That's the first thing. Second, no I do not! Third, I'm a private investor!"
"You?" Mio scoffed.
"Tainaka-san, what do you really do?" Mugi asked, holding a magnifying glass to Ritsu's arm.
"I uh... I'm a criminal. A thief actually," the motorcyclist bit her lip, feeling both the pressure of coming clean as well as the awkwardness of Mugi's close proximity, "and I heard about the party from Jun over there, actually. I was at her bar, and she was talking to her friend about it. Thought I would take some money or something, or get away with this big treasure thing, but I kinda' regret coming in the first place."
"You snoop!" Jun pouted.
"Hey, I'm not the one screamin' in the bar about your oh-so-great opportunity! Your fault, cotton balls!"
"Oi... I like my hair..."
"Whatcha' gonna' do about it?" Ritsu smirked, closing in on Jun. However, Ui got in-between them.
"Stop. There is a murderer in here. Let's deal with that first." she said firmly, stopping Ritsu in her tracks as well as calming Jun instantly.
"Alright." Jun smiled.
Mugi nodded. "I approve, Ui. Anyway, let's get down to solving this thing! Maybe someone is in the house with us. We'll split up into four teams of two to look for that person!"
"How about two teams of four? Safety in numbers." Mio pointed out, shivering a bit.
"What, are you a wimp?" Ritsu smirked at Mio.
"Yes."
"Oh. Fun. I want this one on my team." the thief snickered, looking at Mugi while pointing her thumb at Mio.
Mugi nodded, ignoring Mio's second collapse of the night. "Alright!"
"How about three teams of three?" Yui asked.
"That doesn't work out at all... " Azusa sighed.
"How did I graduate medical school again...?"
"Alright, you two on a team!" Mugi said, pointing at Yui and Azusa.
"No! I won't stand for this!" the guitarist said.
"Azusa-chan, as intimidating and persuasive as your cat ears may be, I think Yui would be the least likely to kill you. Besides, these are very strategically placed teams." Mugi smiled sincerely. "Compatibility..."
"Even more reason! The least likely are the most likely!" the instructor argued.
"Azunyan! I will protect you!" Yui said, saluting the shorter girl.
"What are you, eighteen?" Azusa groaned, but mentally accepted her pairing.
Mugi giggled and then turned to Jun and Ui. Oh, she could definitely feel the force in those two.
Ui blinked. "Hm? Are Jun-chan and I working together then, Mugi-chan?"
"Of course, you two seem like such good friends already for total strangers!" Mugi said, trying to ignore the silly grin that wanted to pop when she saw Jun blush. "Is that okay with you?"
"Peachy..." Jun smiled.
Nodoka tapped Mugi's shoulder. "So I'm with you, then?"
"Of course, Manabe-san!"
"Please, call me Nodoka." the lawyer smiled.
"Everyone! Head off in different directions and let's search for the killer!" Mugi pumped her fist into the air, and so did everyone else. They split up and began to search the house.
Who was the killer?
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
"Azunyan..."
"You can stop calling me that."
"Um, I'm sorry for doing nothing but bother you." Yui whispered as they searched the kitchen.
Azusa blinked and looked up at Yui. Just a moment ago, Yui was wolfing down all the of the frozen sweets in the freezer and the suddenly this new attitude came along.
"Are you okay, Yui?"
"I'm fine," Yui began, taking off the kitty ear headband, "but you're not."
"Wh-What?"
Being the pessimist that she was, Azusa blinked and backed up a bit when she had heard that.
"You're annoyed by me, right?" Yui asked.
"Oh," Azusa let out a sigh of relief, "well you do have your moments. But don't worry about it."
"Well, in case I die, I just wanted to say sorry."
"You die? Oh... Yui, don't worry, I'm not the – "
Yui grinned. "I know you're not. But they'll have to kill me first before getting to you."
Azusa looked up at Yui and smiled a bit. "You're not all that bad, Yui. But I think you've got it backwards."
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
"Are you sure you trust me enough to go into the attic with me?" Jun asked, looking up at the extremely spooky looking dark staircase that led up to the attic.
"I trust you. Question is, do you trust me?" Ui smiled, holding out her hand as she took the first step.
Jun smiled and put her hand in Ui's before walking up the steps.
"What do you think is up there? The treasure, maybe?" Jun asked.
"I hope that's not all you're thinking about." the teacher chuckled.
"No, but... it would be nice, right? Not to have to worry about finances for a while... A bartender doesn't make much, after all. Just to relax and have fun and just enjoy life, I guess. Well, if I get to live that is." the bartender chuckled.
"I'm sure you will." Ui grinned as they reached the top step. "Let's clean up and see if we can find anything... Mugi-chan isn't the only one who can play detective~"
"Now you're talking." Jun smirked.
Just as she was about to get off the top step, the wooden step snapped beneath Ui and she began to fall back. Instinctively, Jun quickly grabbed her and caught her before she could have fallen. Squeezing Ui close without realizing it, she took a couple of deep breaths to try and get rid of the feeling of almost possibly dying or getting hurt.
"Th-Thank you, Jun." Ui said, calming down and looking up at the bartender.
The pigtailed woman blushed heavily at the close proximity. "No prob, Ui."
Ui nodded, giving Jun a small hug before beckoning toward the attic. "We can hop over that small distance, come on..."
Jun blinked, trying to get rid of her blush. "You sure are adventurous..."
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Ritsu smirked as she threw a skull at the wall. The study had a lot of boring stuff in it, in her opinion, including a hanging skeleton. She figured the guy who was married to Sawako and owned the place was either a necropheliac, a creep, a doctor, or all of the above. She cringed a bit at the thought. Well, at the thought of that Sawako chick being married at least.
"Throwing a skull isn't going to help us find anything. Let's keep moving." Mio said, looking through one of the drawers of the desk in the room.
"Not yet, I'm going to look in this closet." Ritsu said, pointing at a door.
"Alright, alright. I'll wait outside. But don't take long, there's a killer out there..."
"Or in the closet, Mio-chuan~"
"Don't joke." Mio groaned and walked to wait outside the door.
Minutes ticked by, and the silence from inside the study started to make Mio a bit wary. They say curiosity killed the cat, but she really hoped that wouldn't be the case for her. Especially when she was a scaredy-cat. She walked back into the dimly lit room, briefly stared at the balcony, grimaced at the gargoyle statues, and looked back into the study to notice that the thief was not in plain sight. Panicked, she looked around and under things to see if she could find the shorter woman. However, she was a bit hesitant when she approached the closet.
"Oh, I hope I'm not going to regret this..." she muttered, her lips pursed. When she grabbed the knob and turned it, the doors suddenly flew open and before she had the chance to scream she was tackled. The attacker's hand covered her mouth as they fell to the floor with Mio on her back.
"Boo!" Ritsu laughed, waiting for Mio's hyperventilating to stop before letting her hand go.
"I regret it." Mio groaned and then glared at Ritsu. "Get off my stomach."
"Why? This is funny." Ritsu smirked.
"The joke is over. Well, whatever it was is now over because that was not a joke. Jokes are funny."
"It's my type of funny. Your reaction was priceless." the thief's cheeks were blown up a bit from holding in laughter.
"I'm sure. Please get off me, I'm really uncomfortable..."
"Am I flattening your fat too much?"
"Hey!"
"Heheh, I'm kidding. You're fine." Ritsu smiled, poking Mio's stomach. "By the way, why do you write about romance? You ever been in love?" she asked.
Mio blushed. "No, but I would like to be. I've always dreamt of it being perfect and whatnot. I guess I got into writing like that, because I couldn't stop thinking of alternate ways of becoming closer to someone."
"Ah..." Ritsu glanced at the hem of Mio's blouse. With her right hand she gently snaked her hand into the novelist's shirt a bit.
"Wh-What are you doing? Get off!"
Her thumb lightly brushed across the raven haired woman's stomach. "You might die, I might die, or we may all die within the next few hours... You're hot, I'm hot, and we're just both very hot. So why not live in the moment, Mio? If we live, you should totally write about you and I."
"Uh, I don't think – "
"As if you haven't fallen for me..." Ritsu raised an eyebrow.
Mio blinked and couldn't help but laugh at Ritsu's ego, despite blushing. "You sure are self-confident."
"How long do you think it takes to fall in love then, oh-great romantic?"
"Completely?"
"Completely."
"As long as they both shall live, I suppose."
"Well in that case, " Ritsu held Mio's arms down so she wouldn't fuss over what she was about to do, "we may only have a short time. So you better start loving me too." She leaned in and kissed Mio gently on the lips.
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Sniff.
Sniff.
"Wait!" Mugi held her hand out behind her and at Nodoka, who stopped in her tracks. "I smell something..."
"What do you smell?" Nodoka asked.
"Uh... Lilies." Mugi said. "Also known as an increase in feminine hormones in the atmosphere!"
"Oh, I don't smell lilies." the lawyer chuckled.
Mugi lowered her goggles from the brim of her hat and fixed them so that they would be over her eyes. "Where is everyone?"
"One team is on this floor, one on the second, and one in the attic. Plus us."
"Alright then..." Mugi mumbled, as she pressed a small button on the side of her goggles. "Yuri Vision: ACTIVATE!"
"Are you sure you can see in those? It's not that bright in here..."
"As a matter of fact, I see even better. High estrogen levels..." Mugi began to mumble.
"Excuse me?"
"Shh!" The goggles were very special goggles, the kind one would get off the black market from a shady looking man who claims it to be magic. And indeed it was. They had night vision, yet they also could see through walls to check the heat signatures and hormone levels of other humans. Oh, how handy it had been when the younger maids used to run around the manor.
"Kotobuki-san..."
"Pink for Yui and Azusa... Hm, good start. Purple for Jun and Ui, hehe, just as expected. And whoa, red hot for Ritsu and Mio! What could they be doing? That was a bit unexpected and sudden. Good show, good show... " Mugi smirked, her eyes beaming beneath the dark goggles, and bent her elbows and kept her excited fists in front of her chest.
"What are you talking about?"
"Erm, their favorite colors. Everyone just so happens to have the same favorite color as their partner, haha."
"Oh, well what's yours?"
Mugi smiled. "Yellow."
"Ah, darn. Mine is green."
"An admirable color. However, we must continue. Let's go meet up with Yui and Azusa." the heiress suggested, and off to the kitchen they went. Upon arrival, Yui and Azusa revealed that they had not heard nor seen anything that seemed strange. However, it was very apparent that Yui had to use the ladies' room.
"Oh, I need to go, Azunyan!"
"I don't, and I don't really want to go down that hall to the bathroom. It's creepy." Azusa said.
"Nakano-san, I have to use the bathroom too. I'll go with Hirasawa-san and you can stay with Kotobuki-san while we go." Nodoka said, looking over to Yui. "Do you mind? I have to go too, so it's now or never..."
"Yes, please! Let's go!" Yui said, already halfway out of the kitchen.
"Wait for me, at least." Nodoka chuckled. "We'll check the dining room again like you instructed, Kotobuki-san, since it's the hall right next to it. If there's another blackout, we'll scream okay? Anyway, let's go Hirawsawa-san."
Azusa sweat-dropped. "Please call us by our first names, please."
Nodoka smiled. "Alright, Azusa." she said, before leaving with Yui.
"So, Azusa... How are you?" Mugi asked, leaning against the counter beside Azusa.
"Well, frankly, I could be better."
"Ah, right. The murderer thing. Do not worry, Azunyan, we'll be alright."
"Thank you, Mugi, I really – Hey, don't call me that!"
"Only Yui-chan can?"
"Yes! I mean, no! No one should be calling me that! She just doesn't stop!" the guitarist grumbled.
"It's cute~ Embrace it." Mugi smiled, before hearing a thud from upstairs. She shivered a bit, excited of its implications.
"What was that?" Azusa asked.
"Er, me. My foot. It hit the uh... counter." Mugi laughed, "Right, good improvision."
"Uh... What are those things over your eyes? I thought you were an investigator, not a bug."
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
"I finished filling the bowl, Nodoka-chan!" Yui smiled, exiting the bathroom while Nodoka had waited for her outside the door. She had taken a bit of time because Yui had gotten a song stuck in her head. She patted Nodoka, grabbing the lawyer's attention.
"I've got a plan to catch the killer. Tell me what you think of it, alright?" Nodoka asked as they walked toward the dining room.
"Alright." Yui smiled.
Minutes later, after a carefully repeated explanation, Yui finally understood the plan. However, they needed to investigate the dining hall first. They entered the dining room and began to look around. It was fairly dark but the chandelier had a dim glow to it, which lit up the room enough to see.
Unfortunately, only a few minutes had passed before all of the light had vanished.
The screams of two women filled the air.
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
"Mugi!" Azusa exclaimed after hearing the signal.
"On it! Let's go!" Mugi said, running forward and leading Azusa to the dining room. When they got there, they managed to find the light switch and they turned it on. Yui and Nodoka stood at the other end of the room, gripping onto each other for dear life.
"Thank God you're here!" Nodoka exhaled. "I thought we would be dead before anyone could even turn on the lights..."
Mugi smiled. "I'm here, do not worry."
"Yui, are you okay?" Azusa asked from the other side of the room.
"Never been better! As a matter of fact, I remembered that you were staring at those hash browns and I wanted to get you some. But then the lights went out... Here, hold on." Yui said, walking up to the center of the table to grab one of the hash browns.
"Oh, well thank you, Yu – " Azusa began but looked up as she noticed the chandelier rocking. "Y-Yui...!"
"Hm?" the doctor blinked and looked up, hash brown in hand. She smiled. "See, I've got it. Happy non-birthday, Azunyan~!"
Mugi, noticing the chandelier as well, beckoned for Yui to move. "Move away from the table!"
"Huh?" Yui looked over to Mugi. Before anyone could realize what she had done, Azusa ran forward and jumped onto the table, sliding a bit on it and pushing away a very confused doctor just as the chandelier fell off the ceiling and shattered on top of her.
Only silence followed after that. Yui, wide-eyed, could only sit on the floor and stare at the debris. Footsteps echoed through the halls until both of the other pairs had arrived and were, too, rendered speechless. Mugi sighed as she watched Ui walk over to Yui to help her stand up.
"We must stop this murderer." Mugi said, lifting up her goggles until they rested on the brim of her hat again.
"Agreed." Jun said with a nod, averting her gaze from the table.
"Yui... I'm sorry for your loss." Nodoka said, patting Yui on the back. "We'll get the killer, don't worry."
"Right, Nodoka-chan..." Yui mumbled, staring hard at the floor.
Mugi turned to Ritsu and Mio, who were both quiet and trying not to look over at Azusa's body beneath the lighting fixture, and smirked. "So, Ricchan... What happened to your jacket?"
Ritsu, not noticing the odd nickname, immediately blushed, her only top being the dark green tank top, and glanced at Mugi. "In the study. It was too hot in that room." she said, and Mio coughed almost immediately.
"Mhm, anyway... Yui, you can stay with Nodoka and I." Mugi said, and Yui nodded.
"Alright... I need a drink. This is getting to be too much." Nodoka sighed, walking over to the table. She carefully avoided having to go near Azusa and grabbed one of the remaining glasses that still had champagne left in it. She quickly drank it down and let out a shaky breath.
"Well, now I think I'm ready to – " she interrupted herself with a fit of coughs and, before anyone could try to walk over and help her, fell to the ground in a sudden halt. Everyone's eyes widened.
"Y-Yui... Is she okay?" Mio asked.
Yui, not saying anything and trying to keep her eyes from watering, bent down beside Nodoka and gently touched her wrist. After a brief moment, she sighed and stood up.
"Nodoka-chan is dead."
Mugi beckoned for everyone to follow her into the kitchen where they could be away from the corpses.
"... Dammit! I drank that champagne too..." Ritsu hissed, grabbing a fistful of her hair and slamming her foot against the counter.
"D-Don't worry, it may have just been that glass." Mio said, getting a hold on Ritsu's arm.
"But what if it wasn't? Dammit!" Ritsu cussed beneath her breath before looking at Jun. She pointed a finger directly at the bartender.
"What?" Jun asked, a bit confused.
"You're a bartender! You know how to mix drinks! You did this, didn't you?"
"What is with you and accusations? Just because I'm a bartender doesn't mean I'm a drug dealer! I don't know how to make poison, if that was even it! What if she suffered a heart attack?"
"Oh, a heart attack immediately after she drank something? Unlikely!"
"Both of you, calm down." Ui said. "It wasn't Jun. Jun was with me the whole time."
"Yeah, but we were all with someone, Hirasawa-san. We have no way of knowing, no matter what." Mugi said.
"So you do think it's me?" Jun frowned, watching as Ui led Yui back to the dining room to let Yui mourn.
"Personally, I do not. But Tainaka-san is going to need some convincing." the detective smiled.
"Fine. I'll go out in the storm and try to look around. If that redeems me in any way, that is." Jun said.
"You'll just run!"
"Speak for yourself, thief!"
"Hey, compared to what's going on right now, my thievery is like a Dutch kid licking a lollipop!"
Mugi giggled, "Haha, such a silly comparison."
Within seconds, Yui and Ui ran back in.
"Nodoka's body is gone! And so is Azusa's, Sumire's, and Sawako's!
Ritsu groaned. "And this little minor detail went unnoticed because...?"
"It's like their bodies walked away!" Yui said.
"The killer must have moved them... Thus proving all of our innocence!" Mio smiled. "We can run for it now!"
Yui frowned. "We can't! They killed Azusa! And everyone else who is gone now! We've got to get the killer!"
"The doctor's got the right prescription, I think." Ritsu grinned and grabbed Mio's hand. "C'mon, let's continue searching in the study." she smirked, causing Mio to blush, as they walked back upstairs.
Mugi pointed at Yui. "You're with me, then."
"I am." the doctor smiled, and they walked off to another room of the ground floor.
Jun looked at Ui. "I'm going to check outside."
"Then I'll go with you."
"No, it's really bad out there..."
"Too bad." Ui smiled, receiving one from Jun as well as a blush.
"I love you, Ui." the bartender mumbled.
"Love you too, Jun." the teacher said, kissing Jun's forehead before leading them outside.
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
"Isn't estrogen an interesting thing, Dr. Hirasawa?" Mugi asked, looking around with her flashlight as they entered the parlor.
"Ano... I specialize in children. Most of them aren't old enough to go through puberty yet. I don't really deal with hormones..."
"What causes them to stir, do you think?"
"Our mom used to say that when we love someone, we get a weird butterfly nest in the corner of our stomachs and they're called Hormones, and that they fly around when we feel like that. It's scary, isn't it?"
"... In that case, I enjoy horror." Mugi smiled.
"But it's disgusting!"
"Haha, perhaps it is. I'm going to use the bathroom for a moment. Please excuse me."
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Jun quickly hugged Ui, despite the freezing and stinging rain.
"What was that for?" Ui chuckled, ignoring her soaked hair.
"We're going to split. You run and try to get help, and I'll look around out here."
"N-No, Jun, I can't. You and onee-chan are here..."
"You can only help us more by getting outside help, Ui. I'm going to look on the left side of the building." Jun quickly kissed Ui on the cheek. "I'm stubborn and stupid, okay? Just go!" she smiled before running off. Ui, conflicted, wasn't sure what to do.
However, Jun was going to be pretty conflicted as well. Just as she reached a small clear patch of grass beside the wall of the house, she tripped and fell into a pit trap. She could feel the 'grass' collapse along with her as well as the 'bushes' and 'flowers'. She screamed out in shock until she felt herself fall onto flat ground. Disoriented for a few seconds, she managed to get up after she recollected her thoughts. Completely ignoring her surroundings, she could only focus on one jutting rock that was on the slope that led into the pit.
Bouncing a bit on what was underneath her, she managed to grasp the rock. She began to pull herself up and was almost out of the pit before the muddy wet dirt around the rock began to slide down and move the rock off the slope. Within seconds, Jun found no rock nor any life to hold onto as she fell back and felt her head crack on another rock in the pit.
Ui, having heard the scream only a moment after she had begun to walk toward the exit, ran toward the sound.
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Ritsu smiled against Mio's lips before deciding to pull away Mio sat on the desk while Ritsu simply leaned into her while standing, both of her hands at the sides of Mio's body. Mio's blouse was rumpled up and Ritsu's own tanktop was sliding off her shoulder a bit. They had only felt each other, nothing more and nothing less.
"You want to know what the funny thing is?" the thief smirked.
"What?" Mio asked, smiling.
"I cannot believe that I fell for such a fatass..."
"Hey!" Mio punched Ritsu in the head, earning a yelp followed by a laugh.
"I'm kidding. You're actually fairly gorgeous, Mio-chuan~."
"I don't think so. But I guess you're kinda' cute."
"You know I'm sexy! Everyone thinks I'm sexy!"
"You and what army?" Mio raised an eyebrow.
"The army of fangirls that stalk me around all the time! I feel their eyes on me, even now..."
Mio laughed. "I doubt that. Anyway, let's stop and go meet up with Mugi and Yui. I'll feel safer, knowing all of us are together."
Ritsu shrugged, kissing Mio's lips one more time before moving away from the desk. "Alright then, let's go." she said, grabbing the author's hand and leading her out. Mio followed her out the door before realizing that Ritsu had left her jacket.
"Hold on, let me get your jacket." Mio said, letting go of Ritsu's hand.
"Sure thing, I'll wait right here and make sure no one comes inside." the thief smiled, standing in front of the door and keeping an eye on the hall and staircase. She began to feel odd when a couple of minutes passed and no sound came from the room. She grew restless and charged inside. "Mio, what are you – "
Her eyes widened when they met the sight of Mio's body on the floor. Next to her was a crumpled up damp tissue and Ritsu, having learned the ropes from watching plenty of cop shows, knew what that was.
"Crap..." Ritsu whispered under her breath. She sniffled, attempting to hold in whatever was threatening to come out, grabbed her jacket, and ran out of the room. "MUGI! YUI! UI! JUN!"
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Ui covered her mouth at the sight of the pit. She could not believe what she had found, and what was in it. She had never seen anything more horrifying in her life, and seeing that Jun was now added to it was enough to make her break down. Before the tears could fall from her cheeks, she noticed something on the ground. Picking up the tiny yet sharp piece, she glanced at the pit and then it dawned on her.
"... Oh my... I know who the killer is." Ui gasped. As she was just about to run, she heard something from above and looked up at the balcony above her.
"... It's you!" she let out in a hoarse whisper before realizing that she shouldn't have hesitated.
And then the gargoyle crashed down upon her in the dark of the night and she found herself added to the list of fools in the pit.
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Yui whistled as she waited in the billiards room. While Mugi had gone off to take care of her feminine business, the doctor had decided to play one of her favorite games. She only had three more balls to go when Ritsu came rushing in.
"Yui! Where is Mugi? Is she dead?"
"Huh? No, she went to use the bathroom. What's wrong?"
"Mio...Sh-She... isn't alive anymore." Ritsu said, looking away while zipping up her leather jacket.
"A-Ah... I'm so sorry, Ricchan."
Ignoring the nickname again, Ritsu balled up her fists. "I can't take it... I can't stand being stranded here like this, helpless and clueless. I finally found the treasure, and the bastard took it from me..."
"You... found the treasure?" Yui blinked.
"... Not the gold kind." Ritsu sighed. "Wait..."
"What?"
"Where is Mugi?"
"Bathroom, like I said."
"Are you sure?" Ritsu narrowed her eyes at the doctor.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
The thief whipped out a Swiss army knife from her jean pocket. "Awfully suspicious..."
"R-Ricchan, you're making accusations. Think carefully."
"I can't take any chances, Doc... Sorry if I make a false diagnosis."
Within seconds, Yui found herself on the ground beneath Ritsu. They struggled, rolling back and forth to try and get on top of the other. They could barely hear anything besides the sounds of them thudding about. The doctor, however, stood no chance against the tough motorcyclist and her neck inevitably met the blade of Ritsu's knife.
The bloodstained thief stood, and looked down at Yui. "... Jeez... I really hope you were the killer, otherwise the guilt is gonna' kill me."
"... Not before I do."
X~X~X~X~X~X~X~X
Mugi, having urinated and discarded all of the blood tissues that she had hidden in the pockets of her trench coat from many of the earlier incidents, left the bathroom and walked toward the parlor where she had last left Yui. Turning the corner and into the doorway, she had not expected to see what she saw.
"... You're the murderer, aren't you?" she asked the person sitting in the lounge chair, suddenly getting into a defensive stance. She received a smile.
"You're despicable... Nodoka." the blonde heiress glared at the lawyer in the seat, who didn't have her glasses or her necktie. "We thought you were dead."
"On the contrary..." Nodoka smiled, standing up, "Yui made you think as though I was dead."
"... What?"
"Yui is, as Ritsu had once put it, naive. She is also fairly gullible. When we had gone to the bathroom, I had suggested a plan. That, by 'fooling the killer into thinking I was dead', I would have a better chance of finding the killer myself without worrying about him or her wanting to kill me. After all, who would go against a doctor's word that one is dead?" she smirked.
"Sawako? Sumire?"
"Both of them were my employees, though neither were aware of what they were getting themselves into. I messed the wiring of the lights up so that spontaneous blackouts would occur. There's been three that we saw, yet there were probably many more while we were in other rooms."
"Azusa?"
"It was meant for Yui... However, fortunately Azusa played a little hero and got in the way. And then my plan to play dead also was able to work as well. I think it only made Yui more determined to for me to 'find the killer' after Azusa had died. While she took a large amount of time in the bathroom, for whatever reason, I was loosening up some of the screws on the chandelier."
"Is Jun...?"
"Yes. Everyone is dead. Except you and I, of course. Jun fell into a pit trap that I had dug out earlier and knocked herself dead on one of the rocks when trying to escape. I had been hiding in the study closet after I had dug the pit, and was waiting for someone to come and fall in. However, Mio and Ritsu got a bit... friendly," she paused while Mugi wiped her sleeve across her nose, "and Ritsu had given me the perfect opportunity to kill a lone Mio with a tissue soaked in toxic chemicals. I was going to use it on Yui, but I suppose not..."
"Ui?"
"She had found the pit, as well as the bodies I had dragged into it. When I had dug the pit, my glasses broke into bits of pieces when I tripped on a rock. I was rushed, so I didn't pick up all the pieces. Ui noticed a piece by the pit and had it in her hands when I dropped a gargoyle upon her from the study's balcony. Thankfully Ritsu had left the room in panic on time for me to do so."
"... And Ritsu and Yui?"
"Ritsu finished Yui off for me out of paranoia, and I suffocated her with my necktie while you were in the bathroom."
"And this was all for what, exactly?"
"A fun game I play once a year... This is actually my house. I won a large case awhile back and earned millions off of it. The pit is actually full of money. But the bodies are on top of it, so you'll have to dig for it. The money is all yours, if you want it."
"No. I wouldn't. As a matter of fact..." Mugi smirked, watching as the sun creeped out from the clouds through the window. "Let's add you to the list."
Nodoka blinked. "What?"
Quickly removing the knife that once resided in Sumire's back from her pocket, Mugi chucked the knife at Nodoka and struck her right in the neck. "Farewell, Manabe-san." the detective whispered, turning and quickly walking out the door and toward the exit. She opened the front door and walked out into the fading rain and the waking sun, and realized she had not only overcome the obstacles but had also made it through the night. Walking toward her car, she noticed Ritsu's bike parked behind her Corvette and she couldn't help but smirk to herself.
"I've always wanted to do this." she grinned as she hopped on, thankful for Ritsu's silly notion of keeping the keys in the ignition. Revving up the engine, she turned on the bike and drove off onto the winding road. She never looked back.
"And in the end, there would be a 'Join the Light Music Club Today!' message written in the clouds!" The blonde smiled, clapping her hands together lightly.
When her fellow club members realized they needed an idea for a video to attract new club members for Azusa's future keionbu, Mugi felt as though it was her time to shine. So she had written an idea that included all of them, and it was one of her fantasies of being a detective. However, when she told the story to her peers in the club room that very afternoon, she neglected to mention any of the yuri-related areas that existed in her actual fantasy. She used the PG-13 version that only had buckets of gore.
Everyone, including Ui, Jun, and Nodoka, surrounded Ritsu as they listened to Mugi finish her tale.
By the end of it, Mio was whimpering in the corner, whispering about a happy place of some sort, and had completely paled. However, no one consoled her for they were interested in the idea.
Ritsu laughed. "Ha! As if Yui could be an adult, let alone a doctor!"
Yui pouted. "Hey, I'm not really that stupid! Besides, I've never even seen Victorian houses in Japan!"
Ritsu, completely ignoring Yui's suddenly intelligent observation, continued. "Pbfft, who cares? I sound sexy! Let's do this! I might even consider buying a real bike!"
Azusa sighed, squinting at Yui. "You would be the one to let the killer to get you to work for them without even realizing."
"Not you too, Azunyan! Lawyers are professionals at covering for criminals! Nodoka had lying skills to begin with! Unfair!" Yui countered.
"I think Nodoka would make a splendid murderer!" Ui smiled.
"Thank you, Ui. I'm glad to know your opinion of me." Nodoka chuckled.
"You seem awfully out of character, Mugi-senpai. I've never seen this side of you!" Jun grinned, giving Mugi a thumbs up. In return, Mugi beamed at the ceiling with a dreamy haze clouding her vision.
Sawako snapped her fingers, getting most of everyone's attention. "Who is Sumire?"
Mugi smiled. "The butler."
"Well, clearly, but who can we get to play as her? Is Sokabe-san still within reach, Manabe-san?" Sawako asked, looking over at Nodoka.
"Yes she is, actually. Would you like me to – "
"Excuse me?"
Everyone, including Mio, turned their head to the new voice coming from the door. Peeking from behind the door was a tall, blonde, blue-eyed first year that looked a bit like Mugi. "Is this the Light Music Club?"
Ritsu grinned. "Why, yes it is!"
"I would like to look around..." the girl said.
"Sure! What's your name?" the buchou asked.
"Saito, Sumire."
Though confused, the lower classman watched as every head of the room turned to look at the smiling Kotobuki.
The End
AN: Ahah... This was my birthday gift for Mugi. I'm about one entire hour, plus about fifteen minutes, late though. So I guess it's belated. After the part where Nodoka "dies", everything after that didn't save when I thought it did... So I had to rewrite the last couple of parts. I kinda' rushed it too, because I was hoping to make it by midnight. Guess not, though. Anyway, I've had this idea for about two months and I thought it was fun to think about. Not my best, perhaps, but I don't mind how it came out. 8D Excuse any typos or grammatical errors, I really couldn't proofread quickly enough, lol. For some reason, when I make gargantuan stories like this using a lot of the characters (like in one other fic I made once), it feels bad to me despite my enjoyment to write it. I think it's just lack of detail in these big stories that involve more dialogue, I suppose. I'll get the hang of it, because I'm always improving. Really, this story was made to have absolutely no logic, I think. XD
EDIT: The author's note above was written at, honestly, around 1:10 or so in the morning of July 3rd. I figured "Oh, well a little over an hour later is okay.", but when Doc Manager was acting idiotic it kept saying "Error 408" and it spoke about request time outs and whatnot. I couldn't upload it close enough. So now I pried myself up at 7am, after three hours of sleep, to upload it. XD Hopefully it works this time (and if you see this, then clearly it did).
Thank you for reading!
Review? :)