I do not own Yandere Simulator, nor the picture of Amai used in the cover page. Credit goes to YandereDev and Kjech, respectively.

The atmosphere changed when she walked through the door. My girls ceased their conversations, all attention gravitating to the figure at the door.

"Hello, Miss President!" I say, setting aside my stirring spoon, wiping my hands on my apron as I step forward. Megami's eyes follow the streaks of flour I leave on my clothes before her eyes meet mine.

"Amai Odayaka," she says. She stares at something over my shoulder before resuming eye contact. "May I speak with you?"

"Of course," I say, waiting for her to talk.

"Privately?"

"Oh...sure. Keep working on those cookies, ladies!" I call, following our school's president outside.

"How are you, Amai?" Megami says, walking to the stairs. "Is the Cooking Club doing alright? You have enough money?"

"I'm fine, and yes, thank you," I say as we ascend the stairs. "We've gotten plenty of money from bake sales, and my members are becoming quite the chefs! If you don't mind me asking….where are we going?"

"The Student Council room. I have something important I need to discuss with you, and we need to be far away from any prying ears."

"Wait-the Council room?" I say. "Am I even allowed inside?"

We reach the room, and Megami opens the door. "You're allowed if I or one of my members give you permission. After you."

I hesitate. "You're sure?" The room has always been an otherworldly place in the school, off-limits for those incapable of securing a spot in the Council.

"In here," Megami echoes. "Please."

I step into the room, my foot thudding on the polished wooden floor. It's one of the school's biggest rooms, and it'd seem more spacious if not for its antique-like decorations: red, upholstered chairs, a pristine tea set, and the grandfather clock's steady ticking make it a rather cosy place.

Three of the council members sit around the table: Akane, Kuroko, and Shiromi. Aoi's gone.

Shiromi folds and pockets a piece of paper she was writing on. "Odayaka. Welcome." She stands up, vacating her chair and gesturing to it. "Sit."

I sit on my hands as Kuroko shuts her book and Akane ceases drawing something in her a sketchbook. the other two members leave the table to look at me. Akane smiles and compliments my hair and clothes; Kuroko glances at my flour stains, adjusts her glasses, and shakes my hand.

"Welcome Cooking Club President," Kuroko says. She and Akane move to the side of the table as Megami closes the door.

Shiromi leans on the back of my chair, and I shift a bit. It's far more comfortable than the chairs we use in class, but, judging by the looks Megami and Kuroko are giving me, not to mention how little space Shiromi is giving me, I feel I'm about to be interrogated.

Megami sits across from me and says, "Amai, I have something to discuss about one of your club members."

"Who?"

Megami purses her lips and closes her eyes before saying, "You should evict, or at the very least keep an eye on, Ayano Aishi."

Noticing my expression, she continues. "You are aware of the recent deaths of Asu Rito and Muja Kina, yes?"

I nod.

"My council members and I believe Aishi is behind their deaths, and has engaged in other immoral activities. When Asu's corpse was found in the bathroom, the plastic covering of the light switch was gone,indicating it was deliberately removed. The poisonous food given to Muja Kina was made in the Cooking Club, and, according to eyewitnesses, Aishi attacked Mida Rana with a butcher knife in Buraza Diner's male bathroom. Furthermore, Shiromi observed Aishi stalking Taro Yamada during the first month and a half of the school year"

I remain silent for a moment until I say softly, "Ayano-chan came to school today with a black eye. She said you and Aoi barged into her home, demanding responses to obscene questions and accusations. When she didn't give you the responses you wanted, Aoi punched her."

Megami frowns. "Yes, unfortunately, she was telling the truth. Aoi lost her temper, and I regret bringing her to the Aishi household.I've dismissed her, and tomorrow I'll announce I need a new Enforcer-"

"Okay, but you've been invading her privacy."

"Is that what you're concerned about?" Megami says. "Trust me, it's for everyone's good. Aishi's dangerous."

"Why do you say that?"

"Are you aware what happened in the 1980s in regards to her mother?"

"I don't think so," I say.

Megami sighs. "It's a convoluted story. Basically, when Ayano's mother was in high school, her mother was arrested for the presumed murder of a classmate, but declared innocent by her jury. A couple months ago, she and her husband travelled to America. Ayano's father returned last Friday. When he came home, Aoi and I visited to ask him and his daughter questions."

"Wait-her mother stayed in America?" I ask.

Megami tosses some of her silver hair over her shoulder. "No. Her mother was jumped and murdered by a New Yorkian gang while walking at night to rendezvous with someone."

"Wait. Ayano's mother's dead, and you're heckling her?!"

Megami presses her palms against the table and leans forward. "Something's wrong with her. Was she even upset today?"

"Yes!" I say, the room feeling a bit more like a prison. "Aya-chan looked exhausted this morning; her eye's really messed up- people express grief in different ways! She doesn't want to break down sobbing in front of everyone; she's been keeping it together-it's been hard for her! You're implying she's a murderer? Well, I do monitor her; I monitor all the girls in the Cooking Club, in case they ever need help with something but are too shy to approach me. I've grown close to Ayano; she's been a great addition to my club. What proof do you even have?"

"You remember Asu Rito's death, yes?"

Rarely-experienced emotions snake into my chest, wrapping their tendrils around my heart. I silently count to three before saying, "Asu Rito's death was an accident, and accusing Ayano of murder is a disgrace to both Asu-chan and Aya-chan."

"Hold on," Megami says. "You say it was an accident? The light switch's protective plastic cover Asu touched was gone. Had it been there, she wouldn't've been electrocuted."

"That was poor maintenance. Someone probably took it off during cleaning time and forgot to put it back on."

"But Asu was wet when she touched the switch," Megami says, her voice raising slightly. "That doesn't seem suspicious to you?"

"Of course she was wet! She swims-swam- every day after school!"

"You don't think she would have dried off by then?"

"Water doesn't dry instantly. She would've still been damp from the pool. Also, in case you're wondering, after Asu-chan died, Ayano suggested we take a meal to her family to express our condolences. She was just as sympathetic to the Ritos as all of us."

"Fine," Megami says,leaning back and lifting her eyebrows. "How do you explain Muja Kina's death? The cookies that killed her came from the Cooking club."

My shoulders release their tension, and I stare at my lap. "Don't blame anyone for that except me."

"Why would we blame you, dear?" Akane asks. I've nearly forgotten about the rest of the Council. "What did you have to do with her death?"

"I should have noticed the flour we used wasn't flour," I mumble. The room's too warm; the snack I ate half an hour ago heavy in my stomach. "Yuna-chan said it smelled weird-I should've paid attention to her."

I look up, Megami strangely blurry. "That was my fault. Please don't blame anyone else. Anyone could've walked into the room and replaced the flour with that cyanide powder. The door doesn't have a lock. It never has. It really should."

"Here." Kuroko plucks several tissues from the top of the bookshelf and offers them to me.

"Thanks," I mumble, wiping my eyes. "Yan-chan was just as disturbed as the rest of us when Miss Muja passed away."

"What if it's just an act?!" Megami says, slamming her fist on the table. I jump, and she continues. "What if she's behind the deaths and disappearances that've been happening to our students?"

"Why would she do that?!" I shoot back. "What would be her motivation? Her end goal?"

"She wants to get rid of people who stand in her way."

"'Gets in her way?'" I repeat. "Gets in her way of what?"

"Like I've said," Megami says, voice thick with condescension, whether or not she realizes it. "Shiromi's noticed Aishi following around Taro Yamada, leaving notes in his locker, admiring him from a distance-"

"Her love life has no effect on you," I say, turning to face Shiromi. "If you haven't noticed, she's started hanging out with Yamada-san. Lots of people aren't initially brave enough to talk to their crushes. She's gathered the courage to approach and befriend him. What about that is harmful?"

"Do you recall that Aishi attacked Mida Rana in a bathroom a few weeks ago, before Mida vanished?"

"Yes, but, if the rumors I've heard are correct, Miss Rana was in the middle of attacking Taro-kun. Ayano-anyone-would defend someone they loved from a potential threat."

"SHE'S A LIAR!" Megami yells, slamming the table again and shooting out of her chair. "She-her mother-her entire family-are liars, actresses, psychopaths-she's killing those in her way-"

Megami's claws rip at old wounds I'd hoped to leave untouched. "No, she's not," I say, any traces of former respect I'd felt for Megami rapidly fading. "When I came back to school, I tried entering a relationship with Taro-kun. It didn't turn out right, but Ayano helped me get over him the next week. She and I have been alone in the kitchen before-she invited me to her home once; she said she needed help making her favorite meal. There've been many times we've been alone, a few feet away from knives-for heaven's sake, if she wanted me dead, I'd be dead!"

Megami inhales, but before she can reply, I say softly, "Tell me, Madame President, how has being absent from school for ten weeks helped you judge Yan-chan's character?"

Shiromi yanks my chair away from the table and seizes my shirt, hoisting me out of my chair, her tranquil disposition abandoned."You don't know what you're talking about, you overprivileged, naïve-You take that back now, you bi-"

"Shiromi-chan, calm down!" Akane says, grabbing the white-haired girl's arm. "Come on, she didn't mean-"

"Put her down, Shiromi," Megami says, taking her own seat.

Shiromi stares at the two of them, then drops me. I snatch the side of the table; Kuroko steadies me before I fall. "Sorry, Amai, Megami. Won't happen again."

"My father-I have not attended school until now because my family believes Ayano is a threat," Megami says. "If she's anything like her mother, she's a tumor in desperate need of removal from our midst to ensure the safety of those who attend school here."

"I've had over two months to get to know her. I'm in a better position to judge Yan-chan than you. You're basing assumptions of Aya-chan off of crimes a dead woman may or may not have committed."

Hands on my shoulders, then my arms. I flinch; Shiromi's hands are freezing "I'd watch yourself, Amai," Shiromi says, her breath stirring my short hair. "Megami's usually right about things. If Ayano's dangerous, Ayano's dangerous."

She leans in close, too close for the other three to hear. Her words barely audible, she whispers, "And if your president thinks you're an obstacle to exposing 'Aya-chan,' you'll be treated as one, dear. Know your place."

The words echo in my head for a few seconds before I stand. Shiromi's hands linger on me a bit too long.

"If you're finished throwing baseless accusations at my friend, goodbye," I say to Megami. I incline my head to Kuroko, curtsy to Akane, and straighten my skirt. I head for the door, eyes of all four Council members on me. I half-expect the door to be locked.

It's not, and I step outside.