Misaka kicked the bucket.
In this particular instance, the bucket would be the vending machine. One kick didn't quite make the cut, so she gave it another. A second attempt produced fruits in her favor, for the vending machine, almost immediately, spewed a can in the wake of the impact. With an air of satisfaction, she knelt to retrieve of prize; all in the meantime, unbeknownst to her for a short period, her audience, Kuroko, crossed her arms with a huff.
"I swear, Sissy; one of these days you're going to get caught doing that. You're lucky I'm your friend, otherwise, as a Judgment officer, I would be arresting you."
"I think it'll be a while until that day comes." Misaka retorted with a distinct voice of confidence. What made such a proud, if not robust, tone diminish so suddenly would be the sight of the can when she finally seized the moment to gaze upon it. Chamomile tea, the label read, which caused her great distaste. "That's weird. This is the fifth can of tea in a row I've gotten this week. I wonder why it hasn't been spitting anything different lately..." she handed the drink to Kuroko, who, after reddening, took it with a puzzled expression.
"W- Are you giving this to me, Sissy? Like, for me to have? Or are we sharing it? Or are-"
"You can have it. I'm in the mood for a soda today." another swift kick followed. Had it been any rougher, it may have scared away the distant cicadas; their presences was only known due to their consistent chirping, which failed to overpower the sound of the vending machine mournfully surrendering another can. With more hopes, Misaka went to retrieve it. Shortly after, however, her expression morphed back into distaste. "More tea?" she groaned. "But this machine has eight different flavors of soda! How could I have gotten another tea?"
Kuroko, while digging in the the pocket of her skirt with a free hand, gave her an unnoticed shrug.
"Maybe the hook is loose on the teas. Here, why don't you try buying one for a change? Had I not known you better, I would take you for a cheapskate." shortly after finishing, she withdrew a handful of change, which she offered to her senior.
A word of gratitude came from the philanthropist's receiver as she promptly began shoving the tokens into the machine's mouth. Hungrily, they were each swallowed until the amount left it full and satisfied. Without a word, Misaka impulsively punched the button that ordered a lime soda, only for it to do nothing.
Perhaps she didn't hit it hard enough, she figured, so she hit it again.
It still did nothing.
"I guess it's out of that one." the customer commented dully.
"Rumor has it the strawberry flavor tastes good. Try that one," her donor injected.
With no superior ideal, Misaka, with a shrug as well, went ahead and ordered for a strawberry cream soda, only for it to do nothing again.
It didn't want to give her cream soda either.
Or root beer.
Or orange dreamsicle.
Watermelon.
Blue raspberry.
Grape.
The final straw was on grape (the flavor she happened to dislike the most), where she was desperately wailing on the button. When that straw disappeared into the abyss, Kuroko had the sense to back away- a wise move, for just moments later, another roundhouse met the machine's side, as did a fearsome bellow.
"Ridiculous! How can this thing be completely out of sodas? Aren't these restocked often? Who buys out an entire vending machine's supply of soda?" the sound of another drink landing in the receiver caught her ear after her brief tantrum, which happened to stroke her curiosity- just not for long. It was only tea again.
"I don't know, Sissy, but this may be a sign of some sort; the abuse you've been giving this poor machine here has to come to an end, and until it does, it won't give you anything you want." Kuroko piped from behind; leave it to her to use to moment as a sort of intervention. At least she wasn't trying at anything with those antsy, and brave, hands of hers.
Sighing, Miaska tucked one of her two chamomile teas beneath her arm; doing so allowed her to pop open the top of the other. Reluctantly, she took a sip, which allowed her to get a good look at the sky; it was getting somewhat cloudy, which wasn't characteristic for what would otherwise be a routine morning. Her sipping stopped when she began walking away; a word wasn't needed to have Kuroko be her intimate shadow.
"I guess it doesn't matter that much, but sometimes it's the little things that mess up your whole day, know?" the soles of her shoes scraped across the concrete recklessly, which came with no discretion to their owner. Unaware of this, Kuroko, sure to stay at Misaka's side, hopped onto a bench nearby. She trotted across it before skipping back to ground zero.
"Aw, don't feel bad, Sissy." she soothed, "After school, I'll buy you a drink at Joseph's. Sound good?"
"I think I can agree to that."
Kuroko only saw stars.
"Be still, my beating heart- I get to go on a date with my Sissy!"
The so-called 'date' didn't consist of much besides having Kuroko watch Misaka hungrily down a lime soda, whose empty glass she slammed back on the table with a heartily satisfied breath. The shocking matter, at least to Kuroko, would be that Misaka drank the entire glass in one inhuman gulp. Misaka happened to take notice of her partner's disbelief and decided that daintily wiping her face with a napkin would be the most modest of follow-ups.
"You weren't lying when you said you were craving a soda..." commented Kuroko deeply as she gazed off to the side.
"Honesty's the best policy, as they say." Misaka added. "Hah... That really hit the spot. Thanks. While we're on the subject, though..." she gave her friend a studious examination; she was sitting across from her at the table, mannerly keeping her palms in her lap. The sunlight spilling into the restaurant from the window at their side brightened half her face, which donned a strangely innocent look. That innocent look, always hiding something; Misaka had yet to grow fluent in its far-from-flawless signs. What made the situation somewhat awkward, in her opinion, was how nothing sat before Kuroko on the table- not even a glass of water in the very least. "Why didn't you get something for yourself?"
The inquiry seemed to make Kuroko jump and whip a whetstone from her pocket; that whetstone would be used to sharpen each and every one of her senses as if on a case for work.
"M-Me? Why didn't I get anything?"
"Yeah. Usually you end up ordering what I order when we come here..."
"Oh! Well, it's Judgment work, you see." she pensively took one of her dual pigtails to twirl its tip around her finger. The motion seemed playful enough to mask the way her body quivered ever so slightly. "I'm trying to cut back on the sweets. I have to keep my body in good shape for when I'm chasing down hooligans, right?"
Misaka chortled.
"Uh huh. I bet chasing people is a real challenge when you can just teleport in front of them." the tip of her index nudged the glass away to make room for her to spread her elbows across the glossy wood of the table. "Whatever, I'm not one to pry. It's never done someone bad to cut back on sweets anyway."
Kuroko's words would come back to kick her later on that night.
She pushed open the door to their dormitory without a word, which was an odd detail; she would normally announce her return with a casual tone to alert her dorm-mate, but today was no such day. Being a well studied genius when it came to her dear Misaka's routine, Kuroko knew that twenty hundred was designated for a bath. Having Miaska in the bathroom would be the perfect opportunity for her to slip inside the dorm with her goods unnoticed; she would then have plenty of time to hide them.
Except Misaka wasn't in the bath, to Kuroko's horror.
Misaka was sitting on her bed, brushing away at her dampened head. Her head lifted to receive her visitor.
Her visitor was an interesting sight.
Kuroko looked the same as she always had, but there seemed to be something terribly askew when it came to her overall appearance. It wasn't wrong for Misaka to believe something was different, that being because there was something different. Upon laying eyes on her, Kuroko froze- heck, she didn't even bother moving the rim on the can of soda from her mouth. Her clutch on a plastic bag from a convenience store tightened, especially as she reddened.
"You're home late." Misaka commented. "I'm surprised you weren't here to try peeking into the bathroom while I was in there."
"I-I'm not that late; it's even not past curfew." for the time being, it was as if both of them refused to acknowledge the elephant in the room; Kuroko didn't even try hiding it (which made sense, as elephants were difficult to hide).
"Late for you." Misaka rose from her bed after setting her brush on a pillow, then made a few strides over to meet her. At such a point, Kuroko was pawing at attempts to accomplish the impossible. Doing so had her nervously bring the plastic bag behind her legs, which ultimately did her no favors; the noisiness of its material only made its presence more pronounced... And as for the can hanging out of her mouth... Well, there wasn't much she could do about that besides bite on it with her all as Misaka's hand reach out to take it. The hand, however, was ultimately more powerful than the tooth.
Once ripping it from Kuroko's mouth, Misaka observed the can. It was half empty, its weight would tattle, and had very colorful labeling. The most eye catching detail would be the cartoonish watermelon character dancing on top of letters that spelled 'carbonated sweet drink.' Just seconds later, Misaka's brows rose as she looked up to face a reddening Kuroko.
"I... Um... I can explain..." the red face muttered timidly.
"Guess you aren't as dedicated to Judgement as you say you are."
"Y-Yes I am. I was just thirsty and wanted a drink while I was out."
"Really? In that case, you wouldn't mind it I took a look at that bag you're not doing a good job at hiding..." as if she were a prying mother, the girl immediately began reaching for the prize taking shelter being Kuroko's leg- but that was before it instantaneously disappeared. The sight made her face sink, then return to her friend. "And now you're teleporting it away from me? Now I know you're trying to hide something." she shoved the can back into Kuroko's hands and turned around; the look in her eyes was maliciously determined.
While uneasily prowling further inside, Kuroko brought the door to a close, where she mindfully locked it. Nervous, she watched as Misaka began touring the room. First, she investigated her desk, where she violated each drawer and cupboard, then the bookshelf, top and bottom. Sweat began to bead on the forehead her audience, especially when her intent grew more raw with each passing moment.
"S-Sissy, it's not that impor-"
"I don't trust you, going off late at night and buying stuff you're trying to hide from me. What'd you get this time? More aphrodisiacs? Strange underwear? Cameras you're planning to hide in places that shouldn't be hiding cameras?"
"N-No way! Nothing like that, I- well, I have to say the last one's a pretty good idea, but-"
"Kuroko!"
"Wh-What?"
"Where did you send it!" a tiny spark danced along the outline of Misaka's skull; it was a lovely shade of blue and only existed for a moment. That didn't mean, however, that it wouldn't have followers; as a matter of fact, the more time that passed, the more livid their ballads and reoccurrences became. "This room isn't huge, in case you haven't noticed; I'm going to find that bag some time or another, so you'd might as well fess up now!"
From there, there embarked a stare down. Kuroko's eyes widened in direct ratio to Misaka's squinting. It seemed to last for hours, this match, almost to the point where both parties had tears welling in the brim of their eyes. Before there could a victor, however, Kuroko disappeared within the blink of an eye (which didn't happen, seeing that it was the goal of their competition not to blink). Just moments after her disappearance, Misaka released a howl.
Misaka didn't know that Kuroko reappeared outside of the dormitory, standing beside the wall that connected to their room right beneath their window. She trudged through some hedges before releasing a sigh of relief. Though she couldn't see thanks to the darkness which was nighttime, she could most definitely feel, and she could most definitely feel the handle of a certain plastic bag. She fished it out with victory so that she could admire it in the moonlight; it was a truly beautiful sight, for it was a bag- not just a bag, but a bag filled with canned sodas.
"Who said I didn't send this somewhere outside the dorm? Hehe... Couldn't have Sissy finding you; she'd surely think I was a hypocrite if she did..." she sounded with a maniacal chuckle. "Or, better yet, she'd think I was planning something. No, no, we can't have that..."
The following week, Uiharu's head lifted at the sound of a hiss. Her eyes, once resting upon the screen of one of her many computer monitors, darted to the side and beckoned her chair to swivel to the right. She found the office just the same as always, except there was one odd detail: Kuroko, who was sitting before her minute laptop, had her head tilted back; this would be because she was gulping down the contents of a newly opened can of soda. At least Uiharu thought it was another can of soda- it was reasonable for her to assume such when the other four, no, five cans before that were soda too.
Geez, how many had she drank?
"Shirai!" she hissed, alarming the girl across the room. She was so surprised, in fact, that she nearly dropped her drink. "You're going to make yourself sick drinking all those sodas! How many is that?"
Perhaps in spite of her, she guzzled down another gulp, which finished off the entire can. While taking the time to contemplate a response, she carelessly tossed the remains into the trash can neighboring her desk.
"Not sure. Let's see; I had one this morning, two during different passing periods, one at lunch, two on the way here..."
"You mean you had more before you came to work?" worriedly, Uiharu bolted up from her seat to make her way to her coworker; the moment she arrived, she took her face into her hands and urgently examined it. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary as far as she could tell, for Kuroko's eyes still held that same business-like, if not on the border of apathetic, dullness. "That has to be at least ten in just one day. Where's this soda obsession coming from all of a sudden? I don't think I've ever seen you drink this many through out all the years I've known you combined!"
Again, perhaps in spite of her, Kuroko reached beneath her desk to dig inside a plastic bag from a convenience store, which had her retrieve yet another can.
"I'd tell you, Uiharu, but I can't trust you with that sort of information; sometimes your mouth can stretch a little wider than I'd like it to."
"What? My mouth? What do you mean my mou-"
"Sorry, that was a rude thing to say." she offered the can to her friend. "Do you want one? This brand is surprisingly tasty."
"Do I want...?" Uiharu paused to observe the can; her trance was quickly broken when she furiously shook her head and swiped the drink from her hand. "No I don't want one, and you need to cut back! I don't know why you're suddenly obsessed with these, but I do know one thing: your body isn't used to this much consumption, so I'm certain your stomach won't like you later on! As your friend and fellow Judgment officer, I won't let you drink anymore."
She would be surprised when Kuroko reached out and recaptured the can anyway.
"Hey; you have to risk it for the brisket." she muttered simply before the can sounded with the crisp hiss of being opened.
"What does that even mean?"
"I don't know. I read it in a magazine once." she tilted her head back to take another swig. "Or was it a billboard..."
"Shirai!" Uiharu pounced on the girl with intentions to snatch the drink away once more, but her target vanished before their bodies could collide. When she looked up after clumsily landing on a now unoccupied swivel chair, she found Kuroko across the room, seated on a plush arm chair as she continued at her can. "Can't you see I'm trying to help you? Addiction is an expensive habit, you know!"
"I'm not addicted." Kuroko defended softly.
"Twelve cans of soda in a single day isn't addiction to you? If that isn't, I don't know what is!"
Amongst the ruckus, Konori, once minding her own business, happened to peek from behind her own computer. As they continued to argue, she gave the two a hardened stare.
"You know, Shirai, she has a point; twelve cans of soda isn't healthy for anyone, no matter what their diet is. You should probably call it a day with the drinks."
"Oh, but neither of you understand!" Kuroko sounded with a sudden burst of pride. She continued after finishing her current fix. "I'm not doing this to feed an addiction- in doing this f-" she froze when her eyes widened. A hand, almost instantly, bolted to her head as it sunk. Her breathing intensified, especially as she drowned even further into her seat. There, she curled her body and released a moan.
With a gasp, Uiharu dashed to her assistance.
"Oh no! Are you feeling bad? How long have you been like this?"
Delayed, Kuroko shook her head.
"...Maybe... An hour or so?"
"Liar. Tell me the truth."
"Fine. Since..." she cringed. "...Lunchtime..."
Her condition didn't get any better, even when she was sent home early- even when she saw that Misaka was there doing her homework. She couldn't find the strength within her to pounce and grace her with the biggest embrace she could muster. The most she could do was stagger inside the dorm, throw her book bag on the floor, and plop on her bed, upon which she pitifully curled her body. She remained that way in the stagnancy of the silence, even though Misaka turned in her seat.
Blinking, Misaka set her eyes upon her roommate with a puzzled frown. She swung her arm over the back of her chair as she continued to watch, waiting for something- anything- to happen. To her surprise, though, nothing came about the silence. Kuroko remained still, even when it seemed that she would begin suffocating from having her face buried in her pillow for too long. Heck, she didn't even bother kicking off her shoes.
"What? No hellos today?" Misaka inquired before long. When a response didn't come to her, she narrowed her eyes with suspicion, then cautiously rose from her seat to deliver herself to the bedside. There, she squatted, set her hands on her knees, and cleared her throat. "Helloooo? Any one home?" she knocked in the girl's head. Not even that had anything rouse; she was left with no choice but to take her shoulder and give her a quick shake.
To her fortune, this did draw a moan from the girl, muffled thanks to the pillow. Sluggishly, her head shifted to the side so her face could peek at her visitor. Even at the sight of her face, Kuroko couldn't smile.
"Hi, Sissy..." she gurgled. "Sorry I'm not very talkative today..."
"Forget that, you sound horrible." Misaka disregarded with surprise. "Feeling under the weather? What's wrong?"
"Mmm... My... Stomach..."
Rising, Misaka set her hands on her hips.
"Again? That's too bad." she began walking towards the bathroom. "Let me see if we have any stomach medicine left in here... You've been going through a lot of it this past week, you know. If you keep getting sick and using the medicine, the dorm matron will start getting suspicious."
Pitifully, Kuroko nodded her head.
One such night was only one of the many that Kuroko spent sprawled across her bed, moaning in misery. On some occasions, she had to stay from classes and work. No amount of pain, however, could keep her from what really mattered. While Misaka was away at school, Kuroko would be left in peace in the dorm and had nobody to interrupt her. This is what drew her up from her laying position, even though it pained her, so that she could stumble to her desk and grab a pair of scissors from a drawer. Once that was said and done, all she had to do was slap her body onto the floor so she could reach beneath her bed; underneath, she hid a bag, which she withdrew. This bag, however, it wasn't a bag from a convenience store. Instead, it was a small trash bag, the ones found in her office at work. Even though it probably wasn't sanitary, she tossed that bag into her bed, where she crawled on to join it.
A few minutes had her retrieve each and every empty soda can resting inside and abandoning the rest of the remaining garbage. No time was left in between pulling them out and making them suffer from the wrath of her dual blades. With ease, the scissors cut through the tin hide of the carcass. The moment she was done with one, she eagerly spread the layout of the can across her bed. This would ultimately lead her to her disappointment quicker, though, for all she found was stray liquid that made her hands sticky and print she didn't like.
"Blue? Again?" she growled before shoving the shavings back into the trash bag. She repeated the process as if there approached no tomorrow, but each attempt left her equally frustrated. "Red? No... Geez, another blue? Green? No. Yellow? Yellow again? No, no, no! Maybe next one one will be lucky..." she reached for another, only to realize that there was no next one. She was out of cans. "Drat. Another haul has proved itself fruitless. Looks to me I'll be paying a trip to the store again..."
And thus, as she had for the past few weeks at the time, Kuroko stepped into the office with another bag of cans hanging from her hand. She froze, however, when she found Uiharu standing before the doorway, as if waiting to meet her. With her hands on her hips, she gave the girl a frustrated stare- especially when her eyes wandered down to the articles within the plastic bag.
"I should've known." she grumbled. "This is the last straw, Shirai; if you don't get rid of those sodas this instant, I'm not letting you any further into this office!"
Kuroko simply stared back at her once taking another guzzle from a drink in her hand. One of her brows happened to raise; it came off to Uiharu as disgustingly condescending, but the actor seemed to beg otherwise.
"I feel as though I'd be insulting your intelligence if I told you why that sort threat doesn't scare me." she stated. Instead of telling Uiharu, she demonstrated; the place she once stood became unoccupied in an instant, and not even a second later, she reappeared in the swivel chair before her desk. Uiharu turned around to see her change in position, but that didn't seem to frustrate her much; her crutch would be on Konori, who Kuroko discovered was waiting right beside her desk the entire time. The eldest gave the latter a cold stare before also heaving a sigh.
"It's true that she may not be able to scare you..." she shook her head as she slapped a thick packet of papers onto Kuroko's desk; the mere sight of the heading had the desk's owner widen her eyes and retire her drink. Konori noticed such with a grim expression. "...But I'm sure I, as the Chief of Judgment Branch One Seventy-Seven, can. This bad habit you've mysteriously picked up is putting your body at risk; should you injure yourself, you can be legally charged for the endangerment of a Judgment officer."
"Wh-What? But I own my own body!"
"Things in the legal realm don't always walk hand-in-hand with things that apply to common sense." Konori stated sternly. Her fingers brought the attention to the papers again. "If you keep on drinking those sodas, Kuroko Shirai, these papers will be all yours."
Slowly, once setting her soda on the surface of the table, Kuroko slowly took the packet into her hands. Her hardened eyes carefully skimmed over its tattoos before roughly slamming it back where it belonged. In doing so, she lifted her head to angrily gaze at the face of her senior.
"Discharge papers?" she exclaimed. "You can't fire me; I'm this branch's only field officer!"
"Don't worry, I'm sure there's plenty other candidates that would be willing to take your place." Konori crossed her arms. "You've left me no choice, Shirai. If you'd just listened to Uiharu and me and slowed down on the drink, we probably wouldn't have to go through with this. So, now that we've got everything explained, which is it going to be?"
An awkward silence rose between the two as they continued to stare one another; both hoped they would intimidate the other into submission, but neither seemed to prevail. Uiharu, the anxious audience, remained as she was across the room, allowing her eyes to nervously dart back and forth. When she began chewing on her lip, however, one finally gave way; the loser would be Kuroko, who snatched her bag into her hand and forced it towards her chief.
"I want these back when the day's over." she grumbled as she also gave up the can from which she had recently been drinking.
"So you can drink them all when you get home?" Konori, with a slight smirk from victory, gladly took what was offered to her. "Not a chance; sorry, but you won't be seeing these again." While taking them away, she happened to peek over her shoulder to narrow her eyes. "And I wouldn't advise trying to go drink one when you're off duty. I'll have eyes everywhere, and if I feel the need, I'll get Misaka involved. Capisce?"
Groaning, Kuroko turned back around and reluctantly brought her laptop atop her desk.
"...Fine."
Thus marked a historic day: the beginning of The Great Soda Depression of District Seven. It swept upon the innocent people as they slept, and when they awoke, they would find their environment in complete devastation. Riots of people paraded rampantly down the streets, crying with the exuberant demands for soda. Buildings caught fire. Blood flowed in alleyways. Fights broke lose around every corner.
Well... It wasn't quite that bad. If anything, the entire event seemed to sweep by without anyone noticing... At least until the third day.
On the third day, Misaka kicked the vending machine again.
The machine spewed yet another drink, which she went to retrieve. The sight of the can in her hands made her heave yet another sigh; it wasn't of grief, one would suppose, but it wasn't satisfied either.
"Another tea..." she observed. A shrug followed shortly afterwards, particularly as she brought her fingers to the crown of the can to crack it open. "At least one doesn't sound too bad today, but can't help wondering why this thing still hasn't been restocked."
Kuroko, watching her friend take a swig from the drink, glanced up to the sky; the weather blimp promised good conditions, and she anticipated to hold it to its word.
"Haven't you been watching the news, Sissy?" she inquired. "District Seven has been going through a soda recession recently. The sales of soft drinks suddenly skyrocketed and stores don't have enough products to meet the demand. It's going to be at least a few weeks until some shipments get in, so it looks like it's just tea for now." as Misaka began walking away, she followed. "Makes you wonder. What sort of event is going on or coming up that's causing so many people want to buy a soda?"
"Who said that some selfish nut didn't buy all the sodas for himself?"
Misaka was too busy drinking to notice how Kuroko reddened.
"What? That's crazy-talk, Sissy. There's no way one person could possibly buy all of District Seven's sodas."
"Who can say? This is Academy City after all. It's a crazy town with crazy people. I'm certainly one to know..."
"But in all seriousness; nobody would possibly do something so minute, right? I don't know about you, but I'm going to stick with my hypothesis."
"Kuroko, I wish you could hear how suspicious you sound right now."
"Ha ha ha ha ha..."
It was a good thing for Kuroko that Misaka didn't follow her on what she stated was "Judgement business" later on that day- even though Kuroko had the weekend to herself. What Misaka didn't know was the fact that this lie was merely a front. A pretense. The only option Kuroko had in order to get out in town by herself. After all, Misaka knew that Kuroko was acting strangely if she decided to go out without her.
Asunaro Park would receive a delightful surprise that day, for a certain young girl came skipping down the sidewalk. Beside her ran a pile of colorful boxes; they looked too heavy for her to carry on her own, such was why she decided to set her hand on the bunch to make it disappear and reappear a little ways from her until she arrived at the doorway. Before she could even knock, a riot of children spilled out of the building and surrounded her.
"Whoa! Whoa! Look at all the sodas she has!"
"Wow! I haven't seen soda in days! The news lady said there's none left!"
"This mountain of soda boxes is taller than me!"
"Can I have one?"
"I want one!"
"Please!"
Kuroko tried to answer any questions, shoo climbers, and dismiss beggars for the time being, hoping she would soon have any figure of authority report to investigate. To her fortune, she didn't have to fend her goods for long; following the stampede of orphans, a young man eased the door open to give her a bewildered look.
"Why hello there. Judging by the looks of your uniform, I'd suppose you're a student from Tokiwadai."
"You assume correctly, mister." after patting her good friend, the pile of boxes whose height neared her shoulders, Kuroko began dancing on the balls of her feet. Modestly, her hands retrieved to the sanctuary behind her back, but not for long; when more children began to try probing at her goods, she had to shake them away. She mustered a slight bow before the man. "Shirai Kuroko, a first year at Tokiwadai Middle School. It's a pleasure to meet you."
"My thoughts likewise, Miss Shirai, but um..." his eyes wandered to her neighbor. "...That's quite the curious collection you have there. What's it for?"
"A community service project, of course. Tokiwadai makes it tough for us students to penetrate the seal to becoming an honors graduate; just to qualify for the picking, we have to have at least two hundred hours of community service in addition to other requirements. Mother expects the best from me, so here I am to do my duties. I'd dare say you have some thirsty kids on your hands, am I wrong?"
A chorus of cheers followed.
"Yeah! Soda!"
"Gimme a soda!"
"We want one!"
"Me too!"
"What do we want?"
"Soda!"
"When do we want it?"
"Now!"
The sound was bewildering, Kuroko seemed to think, hence why she awkwardly turned back to the orphanage keeper. While scratching the back of his head, the man returned her bewilderment with a shrug and a gentle laugh.
"I suppose that answers your question."
"Good to hear!" she faced the crowd with triumph, fists resting on her hips. In doing so, she cleared her throat. "Listen here, kiddos! There's enough for all of you here, but you have to promise you'll meet one condition if you have one: be a good kid! What does a good kid do? A good kid takes care of the environment and recycles! So, as soon as you're done with your drinks..." she removed a roll of garbage bags from a pocket, ripped one from the train, and quickly inflated it. "...Put your cans right here so I can take them to the recycling station. No exceptions, got it? If I catch you not throwing a can in here, you're going to be in big trouble."
Of course the children said they were going to throw their cans in her designated trash bag, but that didn't particularly mean they were going to hold themselves to their word. Kuroko would normally forgive such a handicap, but not today; she was much too intense to possibly be forgiving. Where once there settled compassion inside the girl, there settled persistence. Cold, merciless, persistence.
Kuroko toured the yard of the orphanage for a while, observing each and every waif that happily guzzled down their drink. Her eyes observed her surroundings like a hawk, tracking each drink and guesstimating how much was left inside of them. The kids sitting in the swing set were drinking the fastest, so she was sure to keep the most amount of attention on them- much less than those who were savoring the flavor near the jungle gym.
But suddenly, she heard the sound of tin meeting the ground.
Within moments, she spontaneously appeared at the child's side, gazing down at him grimly. She narrowed her eyes and gave the child a stiffening frown. A clear of the throat made her presence known, which in turn made the child jump in surprise. As he was whipping around to meet her, he gasped.
"S-Sorry, miss, I was-"
"That ground doesn't look like my trash bag, wouldn't you agree?"
"I-It was an a-accident, miss. I'm sorry! I just dropped it is all- honest!"
She cleared her throat.
"Very well." she muttered benevolently as she shook her bag insistently. "Just throw it in here."
As the child kneeled closer to the ground so he could retrieve his missing trash, he happened to allow his eyes to dart over to her timidly.
"Gee, lady... You sure do want these cans pretty bad."
"I care magnanimously for the environment. The same should apply for you."
"Oh. That's neat... I guess... Um... I was wondering something..." the toe of his rugged shoe modestly traced circles in the ground as he tossed the first can into the bag. "I was wondering if I could cut open the can so I can put it in the mail and-"
"Nope. You're not keeping it."
"But I'd only cut off a small piece and throw the rest away! This brand has a special-"
"I already said no. Maybe next time."
Assuming there was going to be a next time. Once she had pestered every child into returning the used cans, now emptied of liquid, Kuroko left Asunaro Park with satisfaction in her eyes. She got what she wanted, and she wasn't likely to be going back any time soon.
Kuroko continued on with her day, walking down the sidewalk with a bag slung over her shoulder as if she were Santa Clause. It was worth mentioning that she did accumulate multiple odd glances as she went along, but little did she care; she was far too fixed on her goal to bother dealing with people who didn't understand her intentions or plights. Her seemingly aimless wandering wasn't as aimless as it seemed, for she had a clear path laid out in her mind. A suspicious side of her, however, kept her from following that path directly. She turned her path askew multiple times in hopes of throwing off anyone who grew weary and attempted to follow her. She looked like she was simply taking a walk... A walk that led her deeper into the less populated areas of the city. For a while, she was surrounded by crowds, but they thinned into small gatherings. Soon, there lingered only a few passers that avoided her trajectory along the street.
Before long, as if she had abandoned her name in Judgement to adopt a life of crime, she was alone within the shadows of dark alleyways. It was there she began scouting instead of being on the lookout for followers; her attentive eyes scanned for an ideal place to nestle herself and begin with her work. Her searching led her to a stray street lamp, barren of friends or neighbors besides the lonely walls of unwanted buildings. She smiled maliciously upon spying upon such a place so ripe, and she quickly made her way towards it to stake her territory. Upon arriving, she threw the bag directly beneath the light. She stared at it, her body casting a shadow upon its frightened form as she cracked her knuckles and released a soft cackle.
"Perfect. Now... Let's get started..." and she fished a pair of scissors from her pocket.
Saten ran the tip of her thumb thoughtfully over the brim of her lips as her eyes carefully scanned the sign standing before her. There was quite the line standing ahead of her, which gave her plenty of time to think, but never had she felt so conflicted in her entire life; she worried that what time the line was going to give her wasn't enough. Not even the impending sunset preparing to dominate the sky seemed to be steady in its assumptions, as it did not slow its decent into darkness.
"Sheesh. Who could've seen that the hotdog stand was going to start charging nearly three hundred yen higher than the original price for a soda?"
At her side, Uiharu shrugged.
"It's gone from the small panel on page three of the newspaper to the front headlines: District Seven and its neighbors are going through a historic soda shortage. It's surprising that some businesses have some left, but what's not so surprising is how much they're charging for them... How did an everyday beverage suddenly escalate to the likes of precious jewels?"
"Heck do I know, but I sure have a hankering for something cold and sweet." Saten replied as she reached into her pocket to retrieve a coin pouch. With her fingers, she began counting her funds as Uiharu's eyes widened.
"Wait, are you implying that you're thinking about buying one at such a high price? Don't waste your money, Saten! If you want something cold and sweet, we can just go to the ice cream parlor a few blocks down."
"Okay then..." she tossed a coin in the air and swiped it back into her hand with style. "...I want something cold, sweet, and carbonated." Uiharu was secretly hoping that Saten was joking, but her hopes would ultimately crash, burn, then explode, for she soon found herself walking at the girl's side as she used her fingers to open a can with a sharp hiss. After a brief chug, Saten released a satisfied breath, then handed the drink to her in humble offering. "Wanna sip? Better have some now before it's all gone- both here and the entire city."
With a roll of her eyes, Uiharu took a nibble out of the hotdog she held in her hands. Her feet whimsically skipped over the cracks that littered her path along the sidewalk, a sort of game her body liked to play while her mind was busy thinking. She spoke when they happened to pass by an entrance into a narrow, and menacing, alleyway.
"No thanks, I'll pass... Last week has bombarded me with so much soda it's not even funny. The mere sight of one makes me furious!"
"Really? That's odd when there's a soda shortage."
"Good point. Now that you mention it, that makes me wonder..."
The two continued on down the sidewalk, hoping to make it within safety before curfew. They were so wrapped up in their own affairs that they didn't notice the dark business that conspired beyond the seal of the alley they had passed. If they stopped to take the time to go spelunking within the domain of uncertainty and syndications, a most unwise decision they had the wisdom not to take, they would have found a lone man walking along timidly. He was a fish out of water, making his way through the narrow halls of buildings both forgotten and occupied, for he was dressed in a fine suit and sleek shoes. In his hand was a rather spiffy suitcase that held unknown contents.
This man's name was Tanaka.
Tanaka was a hardworking, earnest business man that spent his days toiling at the office for the sake of his beloved family. At home there waited a doting wife and two young children, a boy and a girl. Such a place where his family dwelled was his current destination, and in order to get there before dark, which was drawing nigh, he hoped to cut his path shorter by taking the route that led through the alleys...
...Except Tanaka instead became dreadfully lost and worried.
It was for good reason that Tanaka felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise and sing, for his environment spooked him with multiple unsettling noises. One such noise would be the clanging of a trash can when its inhabitant, a rough stray cat, took its leave. Another would be when a gentle breeze from the outside swept inside to cause a liberated newspaper to whisper. Indeed was Tanaka becoming frightened, having no sort of weapon to grant him security; he began considering to abandon the land of the uncertainty and syndications to reunite with his world of civilization, even if it ultimately slowed his trip.
But he was suddenly stopped in his tracks when he heard something. It was far more alarming than the departure of a cat or the whispers of a newspaper.
Far more alarming.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
The steady sounds of footsteps, light as a feather, were making their way towards him. Out of fear, Tanaka froze, allowing a tear of sweat to travel down the temple of his head. With his teeth tightly clenched, he surveyed his six. North didn't seem to yield him any visitors. As did West. East wasn't any more favorable; if anything, it was the least generous of his considerations. He then realized he had no choice but one: South, upon which he chose to glance with dread.
He found his visitor as he turned his head; she was slowly making her way out of the shadows to step into the golden shade of the sunset. She was a mysterious figure, short as she was dark. Her form was cloaked in the menacing folds of a black, and heavy, trench coat whose ends traveled down to her ankles, where her feet were hidden by a pair of shiny boots. Over her face was a pair of plain sunglasses that didn't allow him to see her eyes, even though the sun was no longer a force worth the conflict. The only reason why she was recognizable as a female was by the length of her sleek auburn hair, which extended to the bottom of her shoulder blades.
As Tanaka, with shock and tension, observed his visitor, she reached up with a seemingly harmless hand and tilted her shades down the bridge of her nose for only a moment.
"Good evening, sir."
"H-Hello. Pl-Please... I don't want any trouble. I don't have any m-money on my person, b-but even if I did, I'd like to ask you n-not to hurt me."
"What, you'd think I'd rob you? Nonsense. You just look like you're a hardworking, earnest businessman that spends his days toiling at the office for the sake of his beloved family. I happen to harbor much respect for your kind. What's your name, stranger?"
After nervously running a tongue over his lips, the man inhaled unsteadily.
"T-Tanaka."
"Tanaka. Nice to meet you, Tanaka. You got a family at home?"
"Y-Yes."
"How many kids?"
"Two."
He heard a chuckle rouse from the incognito as a menacing smirk crept upon the corner of her lips. In doing so, she slowly moved her hands to her side, where the sleeves of her oversized coat swallowed her palms.
"That's perfect. Simply perfect."
"Wh-What do you want from me?"
He was frightened even more to see her slowly prowl closer to him. When he seemed that he planned on making a break for his freedom, the stranger, in an instant, spontaneously appeared closer to him. The amount of space she left him was not enough to allow him to carry out his goal.
"Not so fast, kind sir, I have no ill intentions for you; rest assured. Before you take your leave, I'd like to show you my wares..." she reached to the zipper of her coat to hastily rip it down. Without a moment to spare, she whipped the coat open to spread its wings, displaying the interior. The man gasped in shock of what his eyes happened to spy, for it was a mixture of miraculous and awesome. Strapped to the inside of the coat's interior were multiple cans of sodas, all colorful and unopened. She housed every flavor imaginable, Tanaka observed with astonishment, which immediately enticed him. Hook line and sinker, the merchant seemed to realize, which invited another maniacal grin. "There's no need to lie to me about having no money as you had before, sir; I'm simply interested to make business with you. How does a nice soda or two for your kids sound?"
"I-Incredible..." Tanaka gasped. "I haven't seen a soda in days, and here you have almost as much as a corner store! How much are they?"
"I'm having a special today. Two cans for one hundred yen, no limits. Interested?"
"What a miraculous price! Of course!" the man, almost immediately, withdrew his wallet from his trousers and yanked it open. In doing so, however, the dealer cleared her throat and sounded with a lowered tone. "I'll purchase t-"
"But there's one catch." her head lowered to express sincerity. "And you have to be willing to cooperate, otherwise you can land your boots in a place you don't belong. You see, my organization is profiting on having the foresight to purchase many drinks before this time of crisis rose and took our district hostage, so we take our work very seriously. For the sake of concealing our operations from a potentially suspicious law, we request that all cans are not thrown away when they are drained of their product. Instead, on the day following consumption, they are to be brought back here in secret, hidden in a a trash bag, and delivered to one of the many trash cans surrounding us. Can we agree on that?" she extended her hand to shake. Hesitantly, Tanaka took it and allowed them to bob like a lure. "Good, good. You need to stay true to your promise, now; I've stationed eyes everywhere to make sure customers hold their end of the deal. I'm sure you can figure what happens to those who don't..."
Kuroko didn't have eyes everywhere. Most of the time, she just hoped that she would land on the crutch that appeared more often than not with idle threats. She was relieved to find it catch her just as she had predicted, for the following day, shortly after school let out, she appeared in the alleyway where multiple transactions were made the night before. She scavenged through each available trash can until she at last found her prize: a non-conspicuous trash bag containing ten empty soda cans as expected. When she dug through another, she found several more promised by previous sales. She took each and emptied them all into one grand bag; the sounds of aluminum clanking against aluminum happened to mask the sounds of footsteps that were making their way towards her.
"Kuroko Shirai," muttered a tone, evoking surprise in the girl. When she lifted her head and directed her cautious eyes to her right, she found a familiarly graceful form making her way towards her. The visitor flared a fan before her expression and narrowed her eyes with judgement. "Just what exactly are you doing here? Don't you realize you're smearing the prestige of Tokiwadai, rutting through the garbage while shamelessly wearing your uniform?"
With a groan, Kuroko hoisted the bag power her shoulder and allowed her gaze to harden; though mildly alarmed, she was able to perfectly demonstrate her ability to maintain her composure, even under the stress of improv.
"Oh, it's you, Kongo. What're you doing in these parts?"
"Hold on; I asked you first, so you need to answer before you do anything else." Kongo began fanning her face before long, providing a soft breeze to her silky black locks. Her wrist seemed to bend at just the right angle to prick Kuroko's nerves, hence why she begrudgingly began to continue with her current task after a curt clear of the throat. Kongo didn't seem like the type that would blab about seeing her collecting empty soda cans in a deserted alleyway, otherwise Kuroko would have viewed the encounter as a complete disaster and took drastic measures to rejuvenate the tranquility of her operation. Nonetheless, she couldn't help but take utmost caution in fear of being discovered.
"I'm out on Judgement business, of course. I normally don't involve civilians with case affairs, but I don't see the harm in giving you some details. We've received information that contraband has been smuggled into the city via soda cans, so I've been tasked to investigate any suspicious activity. Happenstance has led me to this hotbed; it's the site of either illegal activity or a big party." she set a hand on a hip and heaved a sigh. "Whatever it is, it's great evidence and going straight to the office when I'm done here."
Visibly surprised, Kongo stiffened.
"My, my, you're such a busy girl; almost as hard-working as yours truly. Is this what you've been doing all night? Misaka explained to me a few days ago that she's been worried ever since you started coming back to the dorms at indecent hours. I grew quite curious myself and couldn't help following you today to make sure you were all right."
"Sh... Sissy's been worried for me?" who was she kidding? Though she ignored her advances more often than not, Misaka was still her friend; it was natural for friends to be concerned for one another. Much less, she didn't know why she was surprised to discover that Misaka noticed her slacking appearance rate at the dormitory. Of course Misaka was going to notice she wasn't there! She wasn't stupid! Kuroko had no choice but to brush every thought off her shoulder with a face of tolerance. "I mean, of course Sissy's been wondering where my whereabouts have strayed. Why wouldn't she? She is my Sissy after all."
Kongo raised a brow.
"Is that so? If that's the case, why haven't you told Misaka about this? Judging by the tone in her voice when we conversed, I'd say she didn't have a clue as to what you've up to."
"Wh-Why didn't I...?"
"Yes. If you could tell me about this case you're working, what's stopping you telling Misaka? Oh dear, don't tell me you're going to start following me around everyday in her stead."
Drat. There's a crack in her front; she needed to get out of there the soonest she could before the bugs started to invade.
"You know? I need to get these to the office the soonest I can! Bye! Be careful on your way home!" and she disappeared, almost before she could wrap her sentence to a close. Left behind, and alone, Kongo allowed her eyes to blink a time or two; eventually, she collapsed her fan and forcefully tucked it into her uniform,
"Hmf. I suppose the obligation to inform Misaka falls upon me. Mighty suspicious, that girl..." she walked away from the 'hotbed of crime' without any additional words.
Over a malt at Joseph's, Misaka took the news with a sour expression. With her arms crossed, she narrowed her eyes at the girl sitting across from her, who stared back with a spotless expression of honesty. It was difficult to assume the worst of such an expression, as it wasn't painfully forced nor apparently fake. Not even Saten and Uiharu, who neighbored either girl, could detect anything untrustworthy. Misaka had no choice but to believe every word she said.
"Judgement work?" she echoed. "Judgement doesn't disrespect the curfew laws for students often, so there's no way Kuroko could be working when she should be home."
Kongo thoughtfully glanced out the window at her side, sighing heavily. Just their luck: it sounded like they had a fibber on their hands.
"That's quite curious then." she commented. "The most I know Shirai to do is pose as your shadow or teleport all over town in pursuit of petty criminals. What could she possibly be doing so late at night on a repetitive basis?"
"Hold on a sec." Uiharu replaced a glass of water onto the table roughly, her eyes housing an inferno of rage. "What did you say Shirai was collecting earlier today?"
Kongo took a sip from her own malt.
"Soda cans, if I'm not mistaken."
"Soda cans! I don't believe her!" Uiharu's voice raised to the point of disturbing fellow, but unassociated, customers. When she noticed their questioning looks, she cowered and lowered herself back to a state of privacy. "I was talking to Saten about this the other day: a few weeks ago, Shirai picked up on this strange habit. She was downing nearly a dozen sodas each day! Things got so bad Konori had to threaten discharging her from Judgement just to get her to stop."
Misaka's brows lowered as she brought a hand to her chin.
"That certainly explains why she was coming home with a stomachache almost every evening."
"Were you the one tending to her, Misaka? If you were, it could explain why she was drinking herself into sickness." Kongo observed. "In order to get your attention, which she so desperately craves, she purposefully drank enough sodas to make her unable to care for herself. It's a plausible theory upon which I'll pride myself." she eyed away smugly, only to be downed when Uiharu shook her head.
"That could be true, but why didn't she just fake it?" asked the girl. "Shirai does love Misaka's attention, but I doubt she'd go to those kinds lengths just to get it. That doesn't explain why she's collecting the cans either..." her eyes widened suddenly. "Wait. It is the cans she's after! A few weeks ago, when she was drinking the sodas at work and throwing them away, I'd never seen her so insistent to take out the trash. It must've been so she could get the cans out in secret behind the building where the dumpster is."
Having listened to the entire ordeal, Saten leaned forward and shook her head.
"Sounds like she's up to something she doesn't want us to know about. That's weird."
"Especially for Kuroko..." Misaka added in the form of a grumble, propping her chin on her fist and slouching. "Her business is almost always my business."
"Who would've guessed? Soda cans..." Kongo mused. "...That girl must be losing her mind."
Kuroko was losing her mind.
She hid herself within the concealing walls of an abandoned warehouse in the midst of the lower sectors of town, hunched over a circle of cans spread across the ground. She had finished slicing apart the final can that had been returned by one of her shady customers, but even it did not seem to prosper in her favor. Having found nothing she wanted inside the can, she angrily bunched the remains into her hand until it was nothing more than a crumpled ball of aluminum. She released a snarl.
"Not in these..." she hissed, then angrily threw the trash onto the ground so it could join its dead brethren. "It's not in any of these..." the subtle tap of the impact echoed through the tallness of the building; the noise made her less lonely, even when she hadn't realized she was lonely at all. If anything, she was far more fixated on her goal.
That goal remained in the chambers of her mind as she rose to her feet.
Her each and every heave fell victim to amplification.
Her fists clenched when she at last came to a dastardly conclusion.
"I have one last choice available to me. I'll have to take it whether I like it or not..." she muttered as she turned to the wall; it was a wall indeed, but not just any wall; it was a wall of boxes containing sodas towering over her. "It's not like me to be wasteful. That's why I wanted the others to be drank before I searched for my prize... But now... Now, I no longer care! For my prize I'll abandon all morality and waste every single one of you!"
She started by yanking a box from the hoard and ripping it until cans came rushing out of the wound. Before they could even hit the floor, their intended destination, they were impaled by needles, which caused them all to spew their contents. Just a few made quite the mess, but Kuroko was true to her word: she didn't care. Not anymore. Her shoes trudged through the multicolored puddle spreading across the cement floor, and she kneeled before her treasures. After cutting open several them, she was yielded no desired results, which is why she repeated the process with increasing frustration.
The moon peeked through a skylight by the time her scissors ate through the umpteenth source of tin. The room became eerily quiet when those same scissors slowly met the sticky floor.
The depths of her throat gave birth to a hearty rumble. It wouldn't leave her mouth until it was mature enough to fly from the nest. Her throat raised that rumble well, for it departed with menacing glory. It as a laugh- a wicked laugh that might have plunged her into the darkness of insanity.
"At last." she bellowed. "At last!"
At last indeed; she found exactly what she wanted, and she clung to it tightly. What was it, many would wonder? It was a square of tin she had extracted from the corpse of the soda can, but printed upon its unlabeled side was nothing more than machine-tattooed ink. For something so minute, she kept it as though it was the most valuable of jewels, especially as she slowly rose to stand. Bathing in moonlight, she continued to chuckle until it finally died down. The fit ended with a small hiccup and a sigh. "I hope the post office is still open at this time of night..."
Misaka was surprised to hear the bell ring in the dorm one Saturday. Even more surprising, Kuroko was awfully antsy to be the one to receive it, especially since she went to lengths that had her nudge Misaka out of the way as she skipped her way to the intercom.
"Shrai Kuroko and Misaka Mikoto's room! How can I help you?"
Behind the radio was the voice of a man neither recognized. It was higher than the average man, but they could recognize it as a man nonetheless. Almost immediately, upon hearing such a tone, Misaka's eyes narrowed with suspicion.
"Um... Hi there. I have a package for a Shirai Kuroko?"
"That's me! I'll be down in just a moment to get it!"
But as soon as she hung up and made motions towards the door, she ran into her roommate, who guarded the exit with a merciless frown and crossed arms. Nervously, Kuroko released a subtle laugh; she knew the look on Misaka's face well, seeing that it was often that she met it. No amount of time or familiarity, however, could possibly smother the wrath it foreshadowed.
"Kuroko..." Misaka growled. "What have you been buying without telling me?" their eyes locked, which Misaka used to ease closer until she was within unleash to release a harsh whisper. "They wouldn't happen to be any more computer parts, would they?"
"Computer parts? What ever could be talking about, Sissy?"
"You know just what I'm talking about, and you know I don't approve."
"Quite frankly, Sissy, it's an awful habit to jump to conclusions."
"So is drinking yourself sick with soda." a pause erupted between the two of them; it was the prime opportunity for Kuroko to teleport away. It was the single thing required to throw Misaka into a fit of rage. "Kuroko!" she bellowed loud enough to disturb neighbors as she turned around and threw open the door to the hall. Just a little ways down, she captured the sight of Kuroko and with her ponytails flying behind her. "Get back here! You know you can't run from me when you aren't teleporting!" only a fool would dare to use an esper ability within the dorm with the risk of the dorm matron prowling through the halls... But then again, Kuroko could be quite the fool at times.
She was clearly wise enough to stay in her toes instead of rending through space, but her loyalty to the matron's law wasn't loyal to her; Misaka was quick on her feet, and she was making gains at a frightening pace. Kuroko had no choice but to push herself the quickest she could while avoiding doors opening to allow other room's inhabitants to catch a glimpse of the drama. A few times, when she was close enough, Misaka grappled for any article that would give her leverage; this included things such as clothes and hair, which she barely missed each time. Her failures drove her to a deeper state of rage and, against her own judgement, sparks began to dance around her temple.
"I'm going to fry you five times over!"
Kuroko didn't have any smarty replies to such a claim- or maybe it was a commitment. Whatever it was, Kuroko clearly didn't take it lightly, hence why she quickened her pace the soonest she felt the energy available to her. The chase continued into the lobby of the dormitory where few congregated. Amongst such a feeble crowd, there stood the post man handling a quaint box for which the pursued homed.
Just before she could meet her delivery, however, she was stopped dead in her tracks when a foot slammed down on the back of her shoe. With no foreknowledge of the turn of events, nor much time to think, Kuroko landed splat on the floor, face first, arms extended above her head. She groaned in pain as Misaka, without a word nor second thought, trotted her way past the body and met with the man. He seemed baffled by the scene that just unfolded, just like the rest of the witnesses, but little did Misaka seem to care. All she did, while heaving from the pursuit, was point at the box in his hand and clear her throat.
"Is this for Kuroko Shirai?"
The man, having felt the anger of her aura collide with his body, jumped in surprise.
"Y-Yes ma'am. Are you her?"
"No, I'm just picking it up." she took the box with nothing else, turned around, and began making her way back to the hall. It was just second after she was passed a second time Kuroko scrambled onto her feet, grabbed the shoe that had fallen off her foot, and rushed after her.
"Wait! Sissy!"
Through the halls, in a much quieter fashion, the two continued with their conflict. Misaka had yet to tear the box open- far later than Kuroko assumed; she used the moment to attempt at getting it back, but with no prevail. Misaka already knew her sly tricks and had beefed up her countermeasures before she even put a plan into action. Such plans involved having Kuroko try to quietly reach for the box, only to have her hand slapped away. Another had her pointing out the window and crying for her to look at something of interest that wasn't there. If that wasn't clawing at the bottom of the barrel, shamelessly lunging for the box was, and it was just as successful.
When they returned to their room, Misaka slammed the door shut. Then was silence besides the subtle ticking of an analog wall clock. When she was through giving Kuroko the evil eye, Misaka allowed her gaze to wander down at the cardboard in her hands; it was small, she observed, and no larger than her hand. It hadn't donned on her that the size happened to be recorded in the banks of her memory.
"So, Kuroko." she began once returning her eyes on the girl standing timidly across the room. "Care to tell me what's in here? Based off the way you acted, I'd say you don't want me to see what it is."
"W-Well, it's not that I don't want you to see it all, I just-"
"You just what?" Misaka growled. "Kuroko, you know I don't appreciate it when you keep coming on to me like this! And force is no way to fix that! Not by force, not by chasing me, not by Chinese aphrodisiacs..."
As she spoke, Kuroko's shoulders sank. The tip of her toe, barren of a shoe, traced patterns, preferably circles, along the floor timidly. Her eyes wandered back and forth.
"No, Sissy... That's not what's in there. None of that stuff... But it is true that it's for you."
The claim, almost immediately, had Misaka redden and suddenly hold the box as though it were icky.
"Excuse me?"
"It's a present for you, Sissy! Just a present from your dear ol' friend Kuroko." she gained the courage to ease closer and lift her head high with pride. "I was going to dress the box up a little before I gave it to you, but I guess you're just a little too enticed to wait. So..." she leaned closer. "I'll let you open it now."
The girl narrowed her eyes again. Prejudice had her shake the box in hopes of identifying its contents; whatever was inside, it was light, as it barely made impact against the walls of the containment. It definitely wasn't heavy enough to be a bottle of a love potion, but the box was far too small to be some sort of suggestive lingerie. Her guess was as good as anyone's.
"I don't trust you."
"You don't trust me? Your roommate? Your best friend? Your secret admirer?"
"It's not as much of a secret as you think it is." stiffly, Misaka straightened her neck and let out a huff. "Fine, Kuroko; I'll believe your insistence this once, but if it's any sort of innuendo..." her hands effortlessly peeled off the tape holding the folds of the both together. When she separated such folds, though, she paused mid-sentence in surprise.
Kuroko stared in suspense, her antsy feet fighting not to dance, more so as Misaka reached inside to retrieve a single object; it was a pink frog character whose bottom was a hole fit for a finger. A finger puppet. A pink Gekota finger puppet in all its glory.
"Well? I you like it? I remember you were really worked up when Febrie took your old one, so I decided to lay down my prejudice against your obsession for childish memorabilia in the name of making you happy. It was a challenging outing, I'll admit, but in the end..." she paused when she heard a giggle come from the girl. Her eyes widened with delight, brightened even, and drank the sight in with pleasure.
"I certainly wasn't expecting something like this from you of all people." Misaka smiled and pat her on the head. "How thoughtful- I'm sorry I doubted you, but..."
The delight in Kuroko's eyes shattered.
"But? What do you mean but? Why are there buts here?"
"Well..." Misaka made her way to her bed, where she set the gift atop her comforter. She knelt before the bed so she could reach underneath and drag out a small tin box. She pried it open to reveal her collection of other puppets of varying colors. Within her stash, to Kuroko's horror, she withdrew an exact replica: a pink Gekota finger puppet. Misaka displayed it shyly. "...See, I found a vendor online that was selling them awhile back, so I couldn't help myself from getting a replacement. I didn't bother telling you because I didn't think you would care. If I'd known you planned on getting another for me, I certainly would've told you." she hadn't realized that Kuroko had become still, staring into space with her mouth ajar. Even so, Misaka approached her again and gave her yet another pat on the head. "The thought's what matters in the end, right? Thanks, Kuroko."
Kuroko remained as she had been for the past minute.
She sank to her knees after several solid minutes of motionless standing, and in the midst of her stillness, her eyes wandered to the clear blue sky beyond the window. Having watched her, Misaka anchored a brow.
"Hey. You alright?" Kuroko didn't answer within a reasonable timespan, so she simply clicked her tongue and walked away. As she was making her way to her bed, however, Kuroko finally released a croak.
"Dear fate, must you always be cruel to this pacifistic soul? Do you treat all with such hostility and prejudice? What have I done, dear fate, to deserve the eternal torture of unrequited love? Was it a mistake I made in my youth? Perhaps the time I cursed you in a fit of rage? Oh fate, forgive me for every transgression I've made against you... If I could just have this one time..."
Misaka rolled her eyes.
"A drama queen as always."
And that was how Kuroko came to hate soda.
THE END