Harmony Never Really Dies
Chapter 4
Where Fears and Lies Melt Away
(Uploaded on November 22, 2018)
Summary: It was him.
Rantaro Amami.
The Ultimate Question Mark.
The first victim of the Killing Game.
The one Kaede murdered so callously.
…of course. It couldn't have been anyone else.
(After all: it wasn't like she deserved to be free.)
Kaede stared at the door to the library, her anxiety exponentially growing as it continued to loom overhead, despite the fact that it wasn't all too big to begin with. Unconsciously, she balled her hands into fists. This was it.
The mastermind was through here.
"Kaede…" Shuichi said, right beside her. "Let's go inside."
"…Yeah," Kaede replied. "Let's do it." She watched as Shuichi reached a hand for the doorknob, desperate thoughts racing through her mind. It'll be fine. Everything will work out. We'll make this work. Somehow, it sounded… hollow in her head. (Especially given what she'd let happen earlier.)
She was still trying to convince herself when Kaito and Tenko came into view from the corner. The self-proclaimed 'Luminary of the Stars' looked a little surprised as he asked, "Huh? What are you guys doing here?"
The Pianist and the Detective turned to his direction, and Kaito soon dismissed his earlier question by saying, "Well, never mind. Your timing's perfect. You should join our strategy meeting."
Tenko chimed in, "Kaede's definitely welcome to join!" She jeered at Shuichi. "Not you, though. You're just a degenerate male." He looked a little disgruntled – but it was nothing he couldn't handle, given the past few days.
Meanwhile, Kaede gained a questioning expression. "Strategy meeting?"
Pumping his fists together, Kaito explained, "The time limit's gonna be up soon – so I've decided: when that happens, we're gonna fight Monokuma! We've gotta plan for when that happens. We thought it'd be harder for Monokuma to get to the basement, so we're going to the Game Ro—"
I don't have time for this! the Pianist thought. I—we—gotta find out who's in there! (And who it is that I…) "H-Hold on!" she interrupted him aloud. "Both of you, come with us! The mastermind's in the library!"
"H-Huh?" Tenko looked startled. "Mastermind…?" Oh, that's right, we never explained our suspicions to anybody…
"We'll explain later," Shuichi said, "but right now, we need you to come with us. We… might really be able to end this killing game."
Kaito's eyes widened. "A-Are you serious!?" he exclaimed.
"I-I don't really understand," Tenko said, "but you just need me to Aikido throw whoever's inside, right!?"
"No, I'll do it! I'll be the one to take them down!" Kaito declared, his eyes growing sharp.
It's nice to see they're enthusiastic, but now isn't the time for this! "This isn't a competition!" Kaede chided them. "I'm gonna open the door right now, okay!?" The Pianist walked over to the door, her mind still ringing with fears and worries. What if no one's in the library? What if everything was all for nothing? What if—!?
No, no—she couldn't worry about that now. She had to do this. She had to.
It was the only way.
And so, she pushed upon the door, and rushed into the library.
She was just in time, too: she was just in time to see the moving bookcase at the end of the room, the secret passage Shuichi had told her about earlier, moving back into its closed position. But despite that, there was no sign of the mastermind at all.
So where did the mastermind go?
"Where is… the mastermind…?" Shuichi asked, speaking her own question aloud. The Pianist and the Detective ran on over, to investigate any clues the mastermind might have left behind—but nearby was something far more sinister than any clue could've been. Something that would seal her fate for good.
For not too far from the moving bookcase…
Rantaro Amami, the boy who had yet to reveal his Ultimate Talent…
…laid limp and dead on the ground, a bloody shot put ball right next to him.
"O-Oh…" Kaede stammered, unwilling to believe it. "Ran… Rantaro…?"
"What in the world!?" Kaito shouted. "Wh-What the hell is going on!?"
Her vision began to swirl.
Her legs wobbled beneath her.
It… It was him…?
It was him all along…?
He's the one…
…who I killed…?
Castle Dedede – Library
Kaede couldn't believe it. She couldn't believe it at all.
Rantaro Amami was there.
Rantaro Amami was there, and he wasn't bloodied.
He was alive.
(And laying in the exact same position he was in when he was dead. Convenient, that. And the whole library thing, too.)
In some way, it wasn't like it was all too surprising. I mean, Kaede herself came back to life a night prior when by all accounts she should have been dead.
But somehow, this just felt so different.
But of course it would be, her inner demons hissed again. You remember what you did—and he certainly will, too. Do you think he's honestly going to forget that, just so you could feel better about yourself? Do you?
She shivered. Her legs refused to move. She couldn't take another step. How could she? What right did she have, after what she had done? After her promise to make sure no one would die, after her promise to make sure everyone would stick together – and after she broke those promises right in half for her own selflessly selfish desires?
(And the noose 'round her neck continued on crushing her with her regrets, not to mention her lies and her crimes)—
I… I can't… Wh-What will he think of me…?
Kirby caught her distress easily, seeing as she was practically vibrating in place – though it was clearly not in excitement. In fact, it was basically the direct opposite emotion. (One might say… it was full of despair.) "…hey," he tentatively started, "are you… alright, Kaede?" His voice sounded concerned, and his face was probably the same, too—but she was too focused on the sight in front of her to take an actual look. "Is… Is there something about this guy you're worried about?"
"…no," she lied after a moment's hesitation. "It's—It's not about him specifically," she tried to clarify—Though it kinda is, really, just not in the way he's probably thinking—"it's just… something else that happened. Yeah. Something else." Maybe if she convinced herself of that, the ache in her heart would go away, even if it was just for a little bit. But we know that's not gonna happen.
The puffball didn't looked convinced, but for now, he'd let it go. They had bigger things to worry about. (And it was nothing being a good friend couldn't cure, hopefully.) Temporarily sheathing his sword, he gave Kaede a little nudge forward to break her out of her paralysis. "Go on," he said. "If it's nothing really that bad," left unsaid was the implication that it probably was, "then… you shouldn't hesitate with heading on in." He gave out a sympathetic smile. "Besides… If you need me, I'll be right here behind you."
"…a-alright," the Pianist finally conceded. "I'll… I'll go."
She couldn't run away from this, after all. Wasn't she always saying to Shuichi how he shouldn't run from the truth – how he should always face it head on? She should really be listening to her own advice. And now was a good time as ever to do so.
No matter how much it hurt.
Slowly and silently, she walked on forward, propelled onward by her determination to make things right, somehow. Helpfully, the Waddle Dees surrounding Rantaro's unconscious body separated enough for her to get closer, and she tried to pay no mind to the fact that everyone – Kirby, King Dedede, Bandana Dee, and all the other Dees – had their eyes all on her. Keep them out of your mind, she thought. Just… Just keep your eyes forward. Don't look away. (Don't imagine blood where it shouldn't be.)
She crouched down after closing the distance between him and her. From up close, he looked rather peaceful, laying there and breathing perfectly fine. It was almost as if he hadn't died to begin with. Just like with her.
She swallowed a gulp and carefully put a hand on Rantaro's shoulder. "Hey… Rantaro?" she called out to him quietly. "Are… Are you awake?"
Stupid, stupid, she chided herself. Of course he isn't awake. Why would he be laying on the floor if he was?
A soft groan emitted itself from Rantaro's throat, making all of the Waddle Dees instinctively jump back and aim their spears at the poor boy. She paid them no mind; the only important thing in front of her right now was Rantaro. Slowly, his eyes fluttered open, his head lifting up from the prone position it had been in.
He met Kaede's eyes. "Kaede…? Is that you…?" he asked, though he was clearly still a little groggy.
But that didn't matter. Tears unconsciously fell down the Pianist's eyes. It—It really is him.
He's here.
He's actually here.
"Rantaro… You're alive…!" she whispered, her voice cracking in relief.
His brow furrowed. "…huh? Alive?" he repeated. "Did… something happen?"
Gradually, he got up into a sitting position, his face conveying all sorts of unspoken questions. He looked around the room, clearly not recognizing his given surroundings at all. Upon seeing the other figures in the room—most of them with a weapon targeted toward him—he raised an eyebrow and added, "Well… This definitely doesn't look like the Ultimate Academy. And I don't remember seeing any of these creatures before, either. You know anything about this, Kaede?"
"A little," she admitted, "but not much. It's—a long story, trust me." A long story you're not gonna like.
"Hmm…" Rantaro crossed his arms. "Based on your tone," he starting surmising, "I'm guessing this isn't because of anything good." Then he shrugged. "Well, I've been in worse situations. You can tell me the whole thing later. Lemme deal with this first."
He stood on up, remarkably sprightly for someone who had been dead (and laying bloodied on the floor, never to get up again) as he turned his attention to King Dedede and Bandana Dee. "Hey there," he greeted the two aloud. "I dunno what I've done to incur such a…" He took a glance at the other Dees still surrounding him. "…big reaction, but I assure you—I'm not a suspicious guy or anything. You can put the spears away."
"H-H-How are we s-supposed to take you b-by your word!?" Bandana Dee stammered, a bucketload of sweat rolling down his forehead. "F-For all we know… Y-You might be an e-evil villain hiding b-behind a costume!"
That seems a little overly paranoid, Kaede thought. Rantaro would never do anything like that! …I hope.
"I don't ever remember being a bad guy or anything," the Ultimate Question Mark reassured him. "You really don't have to worry. See?" He held his hands up in the air. "No weapons."
Dedede pursed his lips. "I'll take you by your word, then," he reluctantly conceded. If he was able to act so amicably in such a delicate situation, then there clearly wasn't any immediate danger. "Dees, spears down. He's safe… as far as I can tell, anyway." Obediently, the Waddle Dees put their spears back into standing positions, and separated out into rows in a hallway-esque formation – though Rantaro's position never left their sight (security, you see).
"G-Great King!" Bandana Dee cried. "A-Are… Are you sure?"
"Sure as I can be right now," he replied. "Though if it makes you feel any better, we've got Kirby on standby just in case. If this guy gets hostile, he's got things covered." The aforementioned puffball (having followed behind Kaede) gave a wave from nearby the Ultimate duo, which happened to attract Rantaro's attention.
"Huh. What a tiny little guy," he remarked. "You look like you're more than you look, with that sword of yours. Something tells me I wouldn't want to get on your bad side."
Kirby smirked. "You better believe it!" he said. "So… Hiiiiiiiii~! I'm Kirby! And my friends over there—" He pointed to the two sitting on the sidelines. "—are King Dedede and Bandana Dee. I hope we can be great friends, just like Kaede!"
…he believes in me too much.
"I'm Rantaro Amami," the green-haired boy finally introduced himself. "Nice to make your acquaintance." He smiled a little, his arms shrugging in some sort of amusement. "I gotta say, you're looking pretty upbeat. Guess that means we're really not in the killing game anymore. That's good, at least."
"…killing game?" Kirby muttered to himself, a questioning look immediately appearing on his face. In response, Kaede clutched at her arm, her eyes averting the puffball's curious gaze as she struggled to stop shaking. "I'm not sure I want to know what that means…"
…way, way too much.
"Sounds like there's a really long story behind all this," Dedede assumed, rubbing a gloved hand behind his hand. "Let's sit down, and… how 'bout you guys tell us whatever else you've got to tell us? I get the feeling we're gonna be in for the long run."
"But we-we'll be w-watching you, you—you hear!?" Bandana Dee stammered. "S-So don't t-try anything funny!"
"That's fine with me," Rantaro said, moving over to a nearby table. Kirby, Dedede, and Bandana Dee followed suit, though it took Kaede a little bit before she could bring herself to.
It's not him you should be watching out for, she thought mournfully, staring at the ground.
It should be me.
(And you know you deserve it.)
"So, how much has Kaede told you about us already?" the Ultimate Question Mark asked, once the five were properly seated around a circular table in the library. "I wouldn't want to repeat information you already know. That'd just be redundant."
"She told us about the Ultimate Initiative and that she's the Ultimate Pianist, but beyond that… eh, not a lot," Dedede responded. "I imagine there's a lot more than just that, though." Left unstated was the way Kaede had reacted to the mere sight of him, though Rantaro had little methods of knowing about that.
"You'd be right. You see, the Ultimate Initiative had chosen sixteen of us for our talents, though we didn't exactly get to know each other until recently. Then, all of us got kidnapped a few days ago, so we could participate in a killing game hosted by this monochromatic robot bear."
"There's that term again…" Kirby muttered, his eyes narrowing. "'Killing game'… What do you mean by that?" You really don't want to know. Trust me.
"The sixteen of us were challenged to murder each other and get away with it in order to gain freedom back into the outside world," he stated blithely. The three non-humans' eyes promptly widened in shock, having not expected such a description to come out from his mouth. "Afterward, we were to take part in a class trial to discover who the murderer was—the 'blackened', they called them. If we failed, we would all get executed. If we were successful, only the blackened would be executed. And according to the rules…"
Rantaro pulled out his Monopad and turned it on, opening up the 'Rules and Regulations' page and skimming to the specific rule he was looking for. He turned it around and displayed it clearly:
#6: If innocent students (hereinafter referred to as 'the spotless') continue to survive class trials, the killing game will continue until only two students remain.
"…the game would've continued until only two of us remained."
Kaede gasped a little. She had forgotten about that rule; it hadn't mattered to her then, what with all the chaos over the class trial and all. But to the trio in front of them, it got the point across very well.
The silence in the room was palpable. With just a few hard-hitting sentences, Rantaro had rendered the Pop Star natives utterly speechless. Three pairs of eyes remained fixated on the Monopad for several moments, before they flickered up toward Kaede and Rantaro with what looked like unadulterated horror. I really can't blame them. I thought it was unbelievable myself.
"Pretty morbid, huh?" Rantaro chuckled darkly. "They—Monokuma—was pretty adamant on us following through with it. Even gave out motives to get us enticed."
"…You're… You're not… serious, are you?" Dedede asked, his jaw practically unhinged from his mouth. "Please tell me you're joking with us. Please tell me it's all a joke."
"T-That's—That's so… h-horrible!" Bandana Dee gaped, unable to truly comprehend the type of horrors being laid before him. "Would—Would p-people actually… d-do something like that…!? W-Who…!? How!?"
Kaede began hugging herself tightly. (It didn't escape Kirby's notice.) And I fell for it. I fell for Monokuma's motive. It doesn't matter that he threatened to kill us all—I still fell for it. Hook, line, and sinker. I let him win. I let everyone down. I let him turn me into a murderer.
And Rantaro paid the price for it.
A big, big price.
She choked, barely holding in her sobs. I—I can't do this. I can't keep deluding myself anymore. I did this. I killed him. And—and—I can't sit here, k-knowing what I've done, while he—he's right there, talking about everything like this, and he doesn't even know…! He—He doesn't…!
She was breaking. She was breaking, right here, right now, and all the turmoil within her – the turmoil that had been mostly subdued (for a certain manner of 'subdued') over the past dozen-or-so hours – was finally building up to an explosive climax.
I bet he already knows, Kaede. That you were the one who pulled the trigger, that you ended his life for your own selfishness. Do you feel guilty? Do you feel ashamed? Do you think he'd ever, ever forgive you for what you've done?
"Last thing I remember," Rantaro continued, oblivious to the Pianist's growing distress, "before I came here, I was in the middle of trying to stop the killing game myself. I found this secret passageway in the library and was investigating in when I saw a shot put ball fall—"
"I'm sorry!" Kaede suddenly interrupted him. The library fell silent again.
"Huh?"Rantaro blinked dumbly, his face spinning around to look at his fellow Ultimate. "Kaede? Are you okay?"
(Kirby, Dedede, and Bandana Dee brought their gaze on her. "What's she doing?" the King whispered to his pink friend. "What's she got to be sorry about…?"
"Shhhh! Let her talk." The hero of Pop Star eyed Kaede with a solemn expression. "…I get the feeling she really, really needs it." Just as much as she needed a hug yesterday, he could guess.)
The two Ultimates (or more accurately, the Ultimate and the amnesiac) gazed at each other – Kaede's eyes glimmering with yet-to-be-released tears and fears, and Rantaro's eyes shimmering with curiosity – before the Pianist abruptly and suddenly dove into the amnesiac's chest, arms slung over his shoulder in a sort of makeshift hug. She started rapidly babbling, "I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm sorryyyyyy—!"
For a moment, the Ultimate Question Mark looked at Kaede's sobbing form in confusion (What's this all about?), before the gears started turning around in his brain.
Shot put ball.
Shot put ball.
Shot put ball.
"Oh," he realized. Of course. "That was you, wasn't it? You were trying to take down the mastermind." In the days he had known the plucky young lady, she didn't look like the type of person to murder without strong justification. By that logic, she must've set a trap – and Rantaro just happened to be unfortunate enough to get caught up in it.
And it was clear that she felt extremely guilty about it. (What else explained her now unkempt appearance and tearful reaction?) "It's alright, you know," he soothed her, patting her back calmly. "You tried your best to do the right thing," no matter how loose that term may have been, given the circumstances. "I don't blame you for what you did."
"Y-You—You sho-o-o-o-ould!" she sobbed, her fists vainly beating at Rantaro's chest. She was hysterical. "I—I shouldn't have done it! It, it, it—it got you killed! I did that! Me! H-How can you… How can you f-forgive… something like t-that…?"
He smiled. "Because I know you, Kaede. I've known you long enough to know you're a good person, even if you don't think so."
"B-But… You—You didn't even… get to f-find out… what your talent w-was…! A-And—And I f-failed… everybody…! I… I don't d-deserve…!"
"You didn't fail everybody. Under the circumstances, there wasn't much else you could do." (Something tingled in the back of his head at that.) "I'm sure that back at the academy, they'll know what you were trying to accomplish. And talent doesn't matter right now. Don't beat yourself up over everything. Come on. Just let it all out. It's okay now."
"Ran—Rantaro-o-o-o-o…" Kaede continued to sob uncontrollably while Rantaro held her close, treating her like she was one of his own younger sisters going through a similar reaction. It may not have been that long since the conclusion of their participation in the Killing School Semester, but that didn't mean the pain and suffering they went through didn't deserve to be released.
Perhaps now, with Kaede and Rantaro reunited and the former's turmoil mollified to an extent, the Ultimate Pianist could begin to heal for real. It was going to be a long road to recovery, especially given what had happened, but… there was no reason why she couldn't have support along the way. Like what was stated before: this was a second chance. And there was no way they – Kirby, Dedede, and the rest – wouldn't find a way to help her make the most of it.
(After all… she was never one to callously break her promises.)
"…something tells me this is only the beginning," Dedede mused as he watched the two humans in front of him hug things out. "Kaede—and then Rantaro—showing up out of the blue, their insane story, Kaede's fears and overflowing tears… Not only that: I don't know why, but I know they won't be the only ones coming to Pop Star."
"W-What could all t-this mean…?" Bandana Dee worried, rubbing his hands together in an attempt to relieve stress. "W-Why are t-they even here…? They—They seem l-like they'd be good friends, b-but…"
"…you're worried about what kind of dangers might be awaiting us ahead now," Kirby concluded for him. He couldn't miss the signs, not with his experience with saving Pop Star and the Gamble Galaxy several times over. "Don't worry," he ruffled his friend's head. "Whatever happens, we'll deal with it just like we always do. If Void Termina couldn't get us, then we'll be able to tackle anything that comes our way."
"Yeah, don't you worry your head, Bandana Dee!" Dedede agreed. "Besides… I wouldn't want to leave these guys alone. And I know Kirby won't let them be, either."
"…o-okay," Bandana Dee relented. "I—I trust you, Kirby, Great King. A-And… I want to trust Kaede and Rantaro, too!"
"That's the spirit!" the pink puffball grinned. "Friendship is always something to strive for. And…" He looked to the aforementioned Ultimates, still engaging in a little comfort session. "These guys? They're gonna need it a lot. Trust me on that."
This chapter's title is derived from the lyrics to Sanctuary, by Utada Hikaru.
Man, I've somehow been pumping out updates pretty regularly. Something tells me that's not gonna last.
Fun fact: Originally, I was going to put a flashback to Kaede's second first meeting with Shuichi in Chapter 2, but I scrapped it because it was just padding. The flashback scene here should be far less of that – primarily because it's not as long as the aforementioned deleted scene. (Trying to keep to shorter chapters here, folks.)
I revived Rantaro relatively quickly because I want to try and have the revivals happening in about the same timeframe as the killings happen in Killing Harmony – and thus, I can't go without Rantaro too long. I hope you understand, and if you don't… eh, nothing I can do.
Kaede's breakdown is partly because of how quickly I brought back Rantaro relative to her own resurrection. I mean, wouldn't you be extremely distressed after you A) accidentally killed someone, B) got executed in a most cruel manner, C) know you failed everyone in your promises, and D) find your victim alive again like nothing ever happened? She's only human, after all. By no means does this mean this is the end of her angst, though – remember, there's still plenty more people to go.
Well, that's all for now – tune in next time for some relative fluff sessions! See you then.
