This was written months ago following a marathon of Broken Sword and Resident Evil. Comments and Suggestions would really be appreciated since I'm at a loss with this story that seems to have a mind of it's own. I guess I could say this is a rough draft but I liked the reviews for those silly little drabbles so much I decided to share this. Let me know how you like it, yes?

Read on.
All standard disclaimer applies. Utena does not belong to me.
-Okami

Book One: The Murdering Aristocrat

Today is the day that the world ended, vanishing quietly and without a trace into the dark. A cloud of fear and worry has descended. We are alone in this massive Academy, since Headmaster Akio passed away. Found in his observatory, cold, wrapped in a sheet--flowers placed around the body to hide the smell. His spell was instantly broken, incompetent police were called in. It was homicide. They claimed, Murder. The usual suspects, the fiancé, the secret lover, the sibling, all had air tight alibis. So who would do it? No, I'll rephrase that, who could do it? Who could slay the prince, who could possibly play the murder and end everyone's suffering and despair? But that is not the day the world ended. Oh no, The world ended, my world ended the day Arisugawa, Juri went missing. You see that day marked the beginning of the end for us. The last apocalyptic sign that Headmaster Akio's power was no more and it started with her. Juri. Sigh.

With Arisugawa, Juri's disappearance came a string of mysterious deaths. All the victims had their bodies torn apart by what appeared to be large dogs. Students and teachers a like are afraid to leave their rooms at night, a strict curfew is now in place and the gateway to the Arena Forest has been securely locked down. The Student Council was disbanded, the bells now tone in remembrance of lives lost--a knell. As for the duels, weapons of any sort are no longer allowed on campus, no fencing coils, no bokken. Law Enforcement are stationed in strategic areas, swarming around the grounds like roaches. The fantasy, the magic of it all slowly faded from our hearts and our minds. Did some sort of twisted Revolution happen behind our backs? It must have, the reality of it all is one big undertow.

Another sigh. Let me start this again. Calmly, now. From the very start.

You see, a package arrived for me that day, that day the world ended, and with impeding doom I opened it. Inside was a diary, a fairly new one, only a few pages had been written in but the handwriting was familiar. And I understand now, quiet clearly. As I read, I realized that I must make things right again. Without the enchanted sword or the witch everyone else is pretty much useless. Whoever is behind this, is exploiting our major weakness, well, their major weakness. I still have my brain--my wit, my smarts. These uniformed outsiders will never be able to bring us justice, but I will.

My investigation starts here.

October 8th

I've been eating a lot lately. Taking two, sometimes three meals before sitting down to dinner. The strange thing is; I haven't gained any weight. In fact I'm loosing. Maybe I should see a doctor about this...

October 10th

Got a clean bill of health. Doctor Nguyen said that my metabolism had increased due to regular exercise. Which explains my appetite but doesn't quite explain the weight loss. Dr. Nguyen suggests a high protein diet.

October 20th

Inherent hunger...I'm constantly eating but it doesn't seem to be enough. My stomach cramps with hunger pains all the time now. My head hurts. I get these weird cravings for meat all of a sudden.

October 22nd

Ate raw beef dripping with blood straight out the container. I didn't get sick and for the first time in days my stomach didn't growl. What's happening to me? I should see Doctor Nguyen...

October 23rd

I was screened at the clinic for parasitic worms in my intestines. Tests can back negative. I was healthy. Doctor Nguyen sent me home with a note to excuse me from school for a few days. So I could rest.

October 25th

I ate dog food today...and...two raw steaks...it was so delicious...it filled my belly...but the cravings...it was still there....I'm afraid....I'm afraid that prepackaged meat won't be enough....

October 26th

Stopped going to school after Shiori cornered me in the dojo today. It seems they are worried about me. Miki, Touga, Utena, all of them. She even accused me of doing drugs, although I don't blame her...my eyes are turning redder by the day.

October 27th

Hurts....the hunger pains are back...god it hurts so much I can barely think straight....much less write this...but I must. Something awful is happening....something not natural...I can't keep anything down...my stomach demands flesh...human flesh...oh god...someone help me...

The entry was barely legible and trailed off wildly at the end. It was the last page in the black notebook. The date was three days before Juri went missing.

November 13th The Karou Household

Miki clutched the diary to his chest. "Cannibalism... those deaths, could she be behind those?" He shuddered, "Of course not. The bodies had been torn apart by wild animals. But...if what Juri was saying was true then something super natural is going on." Miki sighed, deciding to call it a night. "I'll see this Doctor Nguyen in the morning." He muttered, stumbling out of the study and into his shared room, shedding his clothes at the door. He climbed into bed with the diary still firmly grasped in one hand. Kozue was all ready fast asleep, mouth parted in the softest of snores. Miki smiled and flicked off the lamp.

"What do you mean a Doctor Nguyen doesn't work here?" The blue-haired duelist demanded. "Just what I said." The receptionist answered calmly, safe behind the glass shielding. "There is no Doctor employed here by that name."

"What about a patient then? Her name is Arisugawa, Juri. She was here recently for a check up."

"Oh?" The woman said in recognition, "The girl that went missing. Listen, are you a detective? Because the police have already been by."

"No, I'm a very dear friend of hers." Miki said sadly. The woman was silent for a moment. Eyeing the boy through a sheet of bullet proof covering. "Miss Arisugawa did schedule an appointment with us October 10th and again on the 30th but she never showed up for either of the appointments."

Never showed up? That can't be right unless- No, it wouldn't make sense for Juri to lie about something like that.

"Let's say she did show up." Miki began, "Wouldn't she have documents from the physician?"

"Detailing her physical status? Why, yes." She replied. I thought so, all I have to do now is search Juri's apartment for the carbon copies of her medical visits. Miki smiled a tired washed out smile, "I see thanks for your help ma'am." He called, running out the building and onto the chilly streets. He barreled down the sidewalk, making the trip to the apartment in record timing, taking to the stairs two at a time. Panting, Miki went to open the door and much to his dismay found it locked. "I was stupid to believe no one would check to make sure everything was locked up." He said, frowning at the Crime Scene Investigation tape that had been tacked onto the door. Exiting out the hallway window Miki stepped towards the balcony's railing, peering out into the apartment next door. 'Maybe I can get in this way.' He looked down then quickly back up, his heart pounding. 'Man that's a long way down. But....' Terrible images of what could have happened to his friend raised Miki's courage. 'Here goes.' He climbed over the rail, feet supported by a thin bar of metal. he gulped, kept his eyes forward and shimmied across to the neighboring balcony.

Arisugawa Residence, November 14th

Miki let out a huge sigh of relief when his feet touched concrete. 'You know now that I think about it, that was a very stupid thing to do...' He laughed and tried the glass door. "Locked." He rattled the handle angrily. "Damn!" The duelist cried and punched the window, tears of frustration filling his eyes. 'I risked my life for nothing.' He rested his forehead against the cool surface of the glass, the interior of Juri's bedroom mocking him, when something caught his keen eye. The door was slightly ajar, he realized, though the latch was firmly in place. "Hm..." Miki pulled a pen from his breast pocket, felling much like George Sttobbart, the famous detective whose occupation was a patent Lawyer. He stuck the tip in between the gap of the two doors and gave a little wiggle. The latch came away easily. "Ah-ha!" Grinning like a fool, Miki pulled open the door and walked inside. It was dark and the smell of spoiled meat immediately assaulted his senses. "God!" He covered his nose with a hand and reached out with the other to turn on a light switch.

Roaches on the carpet...

"AH!" Miki jumped back against the door, creeped out. There were swarms of them, crawling from underneath the bed. It was probably where the source of the smell was coming from. 'Why would Juri hide food under the bed? She such a stickler for cleanliness.'

Deciding it was best not to examine this room too thoroughly, Miki walked out into the living room which lay in ruins. The police had been through everything. Papers and magazines had been tossed carelessly on the floor. Drawers had all been searched and much to the blue-haired boy's horror there were still blood stains on the floor, although dried. "The officers said there were signs of a struggle but no forced entry." Miki recalled. It doesn't match up. He thought while kneeling. Tentively he ran his fingers over the stains and his hand came away with very fine hair, clumps of it. Licking his dry lips, Miki examined the hairs closer. It was a very light brown, he rolled it around in his fingers and frowned. It wasn't hair, it was..."Fur." lots of it. he looked around for something to wrap the clue in and decided to check the kitchen for a ziplock. The floorboards under the rug creaked suspiciously as he passed over them. He'd examine them later.

The kitchen was a spacious disaster area. The cabinets had been torn off and all its contents ripped open, eaten and discarded on the floor. Wading his way through the mess, Miki rummaged through the garbage on the counter for the item. He found one buried under an empty carton of Singapore noodle and sealed the evidence inside, hiding it in one of the many pockets of his jacket. With that done it was time to explore those squeaky floorboards.

Miki kicked back the rather tasteless rug and tapped the boards with the tip of shoes, gingerly nudging the wood until one of them gave a shriek of protest. "What's this?" he crouched down, "one of the floor boards is loose." Miki pulled it free. Blue-eyes widened in surprise, "A safe." He breathed, "An electronic safe. Why in the world is this here?" In vain he tried the logical passwords: Juri's birth date, her telephone number...Shiori's birth date-nothing. "Damn." Another obstacle to overcome. "Those copies might be in there..." Although it was probably unlikely. A hopeless sigh. "Might as well see if I can get this fur sample checked out." He mumbled to himself, which he'd been doing a lot of lately. Perhaps he needed a sidekick, the thought made him smile ruefully.

"Thought I'd find you here." Miki started violently at the voice and ended up shutting the door with a bit more force than necessary. He could barely make at the figure across from him, her dark coat, pants and matching scarf blended in perfectly with the shadowed doorway.

"What are you doing here, Kozue?" Kozue pushed away from the wall and came to stand very close to her brother. Blue clashed with blue until Miki looked away, unable to stand that probing gaze any longer. "Utena and her pet came by looking for you." She said, "They asked me where you were and for the first time ever I didn't know." Miki flinched, "Kozue..."

"Why can't you let the police handle this?" She wanted to know, "We are all concerned about Juri but honestly there is nothing we can do ." Kozue didn't sound very worried, in fact her voice was tinged with a familiar darkness.

The young duelist uttered a sound of disgust, "You're jealous?" He said, incredulous. His twin remained silent; her gaze steady, never wavering and Miki read the answer there.

"You've got to be kidding!"

"This is becoming an obsession. You're hardly home. You fall asleep in class. You barely eat and now you're breaking and entering." She sighed, her whole demeanor suddenly softening. "Does she really mean that much to you?"

"Yes." Miki found himself answering without hesitation.

The younger of the two twins turned, rubbing her arms through the rough fabric of her London fogger, "And you wonder why I'm so jealous." She said under her breath, "We're going home now." Her tone held no room for argument. "I made coffee. It should still be warm." She stomped down the stairs with Miki right behind her. "You're going to tell me everything." Kozue said once they were on the sidewalks enjoying the cool winds of early winter. The sun was low in the sky, shining dully. In the distance clouds were gathering. It was suppose to rain tomorrow...

"Everything?" Miki echoed. Kozue cut her eyes at him, "No secrets." He nodded his agreement. No more secrets. They were quiet the whole way home.