Yadonashi-hen ~No Place to Go~

Prologue

It's the 63rd year of the Shōwa period. June has come and the air is very warm already. Somewhere in Nagoya City, Aichi Prefecture, two women get out of a car and walk across a busy street. Each of them is carrying a large bag. They are heading for a tall block of flats. One of them is about forty years of age while her companion seems to be around twenty. The older woman walks energetically, while the other one has some difficulties to keep up with her. Her physique is rather fragile, and she doesn't seem to be very self-confident. Sometimes she looks around in confusion because she is obviously not used to such a lively environment. The older one calms her down by talking casually to her, and gradually the young woman seems to adjust to the situation.

When they arrive at the block of flats, the older woman smiles and tells her to relax. Putting their heavy bags down for a moment, they look at the building and talk about what it's like to live in a place like this. Then they enter the block of flats and start climbing up the stairs, instead of using the lift. The young one gets exhausted a little, but now she smiles too. When her companion asks her if they should use the lift now, she declines, saying something which apparently has some deeper meaning to her:

"Let's keep going ... I won't lose."

Finally they reach the seventh floor. The older one takes a key out of her handbag and opens the door of a small flat. Both of them enter the narrow corridor and put their bags down. The younger woman gets excited as she walks around, looking at the bedroom, the kitchen and the bathroom. Everything is tiny, but she looks happy now, evidently rearranging the flat in her mind. The other one appears to be satisfied. When her young companion has finished her inspection, the older woman gazes at her worriedly. But soon her face lightens up and she gives some advice about living one one's own. Then she says goodbye to the young one, who smiles thankfully. After exchanging glances for a last time, she leaves and closes the door. With the door between them, the older woman allows the worries to return to her face. She stands there for a few minutes, doing nothing but looking at the door, wondering what will happen when she will have gone. But she knows she can't do anything at this moment. Her job is done, so she slowly walks to the lift and pushes the 'down' button.

Meanwhile, the younger woman has calmed down a little, though she is still nervous because of all the unusual sights she has come across during the day. She sits down at a desk and takes a book from one of the two large bags. It is a nice-looking scrapbook. She opens it and produces a pen. After thinking a while, she writes a few characters on the first page.

"Diary of a Madwoman"

She looks at the words for some time, frowning, then she crosses the characters out resolutely. A smile appears on her face as she removes the page gently, careful not to damage the book more than necessary. She looks up in the air. Her vision wanders across the small, clean room towards the window. The features of the young woman release the tension which was built up during a long and exciting day. Her expression becomes somewhat dreamy and she gazes at the sky for a while.

Then she flattens the next page and writes some new characters.

"My New Life"

Looking at the words, her face is lightened up by a feeling of hope as she thinks about the meaning of these words. She stands up and opens the window, then takes a look at her watch. What is she waiting for? She sits down again, leaving the window open and listening carefully from time to time. Then she starts to write into her diary. While she writes, feelings come back which she thought she had forgotten for a long time ...

"So now I'm here ... why on earth did I make it, of all people? This is Nagoya, a big city, noisier and busier than every place I have ever seen. I feel confused. Is this real? Or did I die years ago? Is this some otherworldly dreamland? Once there was a boy in my class ... people said he had gone to Nagoya, but no-one heard of him since he had disappeared. Will I meet him among the shadows who walk around restlessly in this city of lost souls? Maybe this is where all the cursed people go ... maybe I will meet them all here. All who fell victim to the curse. I'm not sure whether I should be afraid or look forward to meeting them.

"Or should I just relax and think about the future? I really don't know. Perhaps this is not an illusion. I was given a new chance. This is my second life. I must not ruin it. I won't lose! Back then, sometimes I said that and lost anyhow. But we all laughed about that. I wonder if I will hear such cheerful laughter ever again. When the next game began, I used to say the same words and it felt good. I can't believe these times have gone forever, forever ..."

Suddenly her eyes become wet. She stops writing and covers her face. Some tears fall on the page, blurring the characters. The young woman sobs quietly for a while, then she regains her look of strength and determination and resumes her writing.

"But I can still do one thing for my friends. I will do as I promised them. I will fight to make my way through this strange world. It's all up to me now. I will carry the precious memories with me, all I remember about them. They told me to fight and keep going all the way. Back then, it was just a phrase to me, but now I draw hope from it like water from a fountain.

"It's strange I was saved ... why should someone like me survive? I took other people's lives. Of course they were my enemies. Nevertheless, I should have solved my issues with them differently. I could not forgive them what they did to my father. But there must have been another way. I still remember how I felt when I killed them. I can't describe the feeling when I watched their bodies tumble down like heavy life-sized dolls. But somewhere in my soul that feeling is still alive. It's like a dark room without windows. You can shut the door and walk around in the brightly lit corridor, but the darkness is still there, even if you don't see it. I will never return to that dark room. I won't forget about it, either. Its existence will remind me that I should not take this chance for granted.

"I wonder if I will see Hinamizawa again ... they say you can't go there until the blockade will be lifted. But I'm going to wait patiently for that day, even if no-one will come with me. I will never forget Hinamizawa as long as I live. I will always remember the people who used to be kind to me. Especially ..."

She pauses and takes another look out of the window. The pictures of a distant summer come back to her mind. A person appears. Someone with melancholic dark eyes and an enigmatic smile.

"... her, who was just as lonely and forsaken as me."

Hello, I'm Draugur. This is my first fan fiction and it's about the world and characters of Higurashi no Naku Koro ni, a series which I love deeply. This fiction, and the others which I'm going to write hereafter, are meant to be small signs of gratitude to the author of the original novel, Ryukishi07, and all the artists, producers and other people who helped his magnificent creation to become a manga and an anime series. But I also want to thank the authors of the fan fictions around here who add new visions to the Higurashi world. About myself: I'm German, so I'm not a native speaker. If I you find mistakes or strange expressions in my stories, I would be happy if you let me know. Of course, I would also like to know whether you like my stories. Concerning the first one, I wanted to make it a mystery, so I'm going to hold back some important information. I hope I didn't go too far about the two anonymous women in the prologue. I think most readers will be able to identify the younger woman. This is what I enjoy myself when reading: Exploring mysteries step by step. I hope some of you will accept the invitation to explore the little mysteries of this story.

The japanese word yadonashi means "homeless person" and relates to this story in more than one regard.