Battle Royale AU.
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This story is supposed to take place in the universe Takami Koushun creates for Battle Royale.
A word of caution: Expect the girls to be out of character. This is supposed to be a harsher world than the one K-on! is set in.
Disclaimer: K-On! belongs to Kakifly, and the Battle Royale universe belongs to Takami Koushun.
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"Listen!"
[We chose the same dream; that is the power that drives us for tomorrow]
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Arc Two: Fuwa Fuwa Time.
Chapter Nine.
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Ritsu was just thanking Mugi for the cake when Mio finally emerged from the store room, hefting along some metallic contraption as she did. The drummer could only raise an eyebrow when Mio deposited the device on the desks. Silverware clattered as the desks shook under the object's substantial weight. Ritsu found it rather impressive that not a drop of tea was spilled although the teacups rattled quite a tad against their saucers. From the corner of her eye, Ritsu caught Yui and Mugi leaning forward to get a better look of what Mio had dug out in her attempt to clear the store room.
"A boombox, Mio?" asked the club president, head tilted to the side in curiosity.
Mio nodded in affirmation; it was indeed a boombox, and it was an absurdly filthy one. Ritsu had to steel herself against the temptation on blowing the dust up into the air; it didn't take a genius to figure out that Mio would have her head for doing that. The portable cassette player that Mio had found was simple in its design, with two loudspeakers, a radio tuner and a small pocket to house a cassette tape. It didn't take long before keen amber eyes noted something that might have sparked Mio's interest in the vintage music player.
"It has a tape in," Ritsu murmured more to herself than for the benefit of anyone else in the room.
The drummer's fingers skimmed over the buttons, collecting grime as they did. She brushed them over the grooves on the plastic buttons till she found the one that she was looking for: the eject button. Without a second thought, Ristu plucked the cassette tape from its holder and flipped it over to find symbols that she couldn't quite recognise scrawled over it in marker.
By then, the other girls of the light music club were congregated around their club president, each peering curiously at the object in their leader's open palm. Ristu rolled it over in her hand a couple of times. She looked towards her best friend – the brains of their little duo – and raised her eyebrows when Mio caught her glance. The bassist shook her head; no, Mio couldn't identify the markings either.
The blonde of quartet, however, had been staring fixedly on the plastic cassette. Yui nudged her captain and discreetly pointed at their friend. This was one of the rare times that Mugi had a frown on her face; the pianist's distinctive eyebrows were knitted as she focused on the tape, as if she was determined to figure something out.
Taking the cue from Yui, Ritsu asked, "Thinking hard there, Mugi?"
"It's in romaji," was Mugi's quiet reply.
At Mugi's gesture, Ritsu handed the cassette tape over to the blonde. She watched as Mugi's lips seemed to frame the indiscernible scribbling to herself. Ritsu asked:
"Are you familiar with the Outsider language, Mugi?"
"A little," admitted the pianist. "Some of the contracts that otou-sama got me to read through referred to material in the language of the outside world; otou-sama taught me some of the more rudimentary things about the language. I'm not fluent at it but I can read – if given time. These words on the cassette… It says [Death Devil]."
"'Desu Devuiru'? What does that mean?"
"I'm not very sure because I don't come across these words very often but I think it has something to do with… death."
The silence was so complete that it might have been possible to hear a pin drop in another classroom. The four girls stared down at the innocent-looking cassette tape, a little horror mixed into their inquisitive stares. Being the one who usually broke the tension, Ritsu started talking before she could even register what it was that she was saying.
"How about that, Mio?" Ritsu said with a thin chuckle. "Leave it to you to find some cursed object. Maybe it's a sound recording of some satanic ritual - a curse waiting to be unleashed on a sweet, unsuspecting – OUCH!"
"Shut up!" Mio cried, clobbering her friend. The bassist pried the tape from Mugi's grip and shoved it at Ritsu, who was gingerly tending to the bruise on her head.
"Put it back in the cassette player and get rid of it," Mio said firmly.
Ritsu knew better than to retort. She had spooked Mio; Ritsu could see it in Mio's grey eyes that the bassist was afraid. The raven-haired girl was just trying to hide the fact that she was rattled. Ritsu understood; where they came from, fear was an indicator of weakness. Shy, timid Mio had learned to tuck her fear behind a stern mask in defence.
She was just about to pop the (cursed) tape back into its player when Ritsu spotted a scrap of paper wedged in a small crack. Not one to look before she leaped, Ritsu pulled it out. The piece of paper was folded on itself over and over again till it was about the size of the girl's thumb nail. She made a quick job of unfolding what was apparently a note.
{I see you've found our note. Good job, maggots.
We had to get all our crap destroyed when we graduated – can't leave evidence behind and all that jazz – but we thought we'd try to sneak a little something in for our… successors.
Play the tape for yourselves if you think you're woman enough for it, kids. Let us warn you that our music isn't for the faint-hearted.
Still think your light music club is band material?
- [Death Devil]}
"Huh," Ritsu exhaled, partially in relief. She wouldn't admit it but the whole idea of finding a haunted cassette tape had shaken her up a little as well. "It looks like it's a 'gift' from a light music club some years back."
She flipped the note over, wondering if there was anything on the back of it – and there was. In her hand was a photograph. The picture was a little blurry, damaged by the elements over time. All across the picture were faded white lines, marking the creases along the folds. Frozen in time were four young women. Although they each wore at least one item of black, they seemed to have a colour scheme going for each of them: blue, red, purple and white.
"What do you think?" asked Ritsu, throwing the question out in general but her eyes were set on Yui. The guitarist had been squinting at the photograph, as if she was trying to figure something out.
"They look… kind of goofy," murmured Yui, eliciting a laugh from Ritsu. The 'captain' gave the other girl a good-natured slap on the back. Yui responded with a carefree smile, flashing a 'peace' sign.
Shaking her head and chuckling to herself, Ritsu popped the cassette back into the boombox and hit 'play'. All the members of the light music club leaned in, more than eager to see if they could match their predecessors.
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Not too long after, all four girls sat in stunned silence. They were partially in shock of the gravelly voice screaming at them at the end of the tape but they were mostly steeping in awe. Goofy or not, Death Devil was good. Their tracks were consistent with their image, and it was clear that the members of Death Devil knew exactly what their musical direction was. Sure, the music might not be quite their cup of tea but the talent was undeniable.
"Wow," Mio breathed out under her breath. She turned to look at her best friend and was able to tell what was on Ritsu's mind from the look on the drummer girl's face.
The current light music club really needed to step up their game.
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"We really need to figure out what we want our music to sound like," said Mio to Mugi.
The blonde hummed in agreement as she continued to fold her freshly laundered clothes and putting them away. Yui would join them after dinner with Ui, and Ritsu should be returning from goodness-knows-where soon enough. Mio turned sharply around when she heard Mugi emit a squeak of surprise. There was a rapping on the window – and their room was on the third floor of the building.
The bassist headed over to the window, unlatched it, and swung it wide open.
"Oh my," whispered Mugi as Ritsu tumbled through the open window in a heap.
Ritsu lay on their floor spread-eagled, her chest rising and falling rapidly as she tried to catch her breath. The girl's cheeks held a rosy tint, both from exertion and the cold night's air. She grinned the way only Ritsu could – raw and exuberant enough to light up the room. Ritsu flung an arm across her eyes, shielding them from the light.
"You could've just used the door – you know, like a normal person would."
Mio shook her head as Ritsu (once again) waved off her comment. In spite of herself, Mio smiled. Some things never changed, and Ritsu's need to blow off steam through exercise was one of them.
"What were you up to this time around?" Mio asked.
"Parkour."
"Nice. So you're all worked up and sweaty. It's only a matter of time before the pong of your sweat stinks up the place."
Ritsu stuck her tongue out in retort, fully aware that Mio was just teasing. Mio tuned her bass as her two friends engaged in chit chat. Ritsu was filling Mugi in on the idea of parkour. Soon enough, Ritsu excused herself to go take a quick shower, promising to return in time for their meeting,
"Ricchan really is something, isn't she?" the blonde girl giggled after the door shut with a click.
Mio shrugged noncommittally despite the smile that tugged at her lips. "Yeah. I guess she is. She can be a little much at times, though."
For as long as Mio knew her, Ritsu has been brimming with a sort of confidence that Mio didn't possess. Be it the hyperactive six-year-old, the beat-up twelve-year-old or the daring seventeen-year-old, Ritsu always has an air of energy and self-assurance about her that compelled people to follow her lead. Sure, Mio's best friend might not be the most responsible person around but she was charismatic enough that people believed in her. Coupled with Ritsu's self-sacrificing and loyal ways, Mio would follow Ritsu to the ends of the earth (even if Ritsu does do something stupid every so often).
It was Mio's job to keep Ritsu in check so that the club president could do her job – and Mio wasn't really as bothered by her role as much as she made it out to be. Mio would be the first to believe in Ritsu and the last to give up on her. She would stand by Ritsu through thick and thin.
That's what best friends are for… right?
Knowing that her friend would forget it if Mio didn't remind her, Mio decided to drop Ritsu an email telling her to bring 'the box' along with her.
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"So what do you think? Pretty awesome, isn't it?" asked Ritsu, beaming from the concert recording that they had just watched.
Yui nibbled a stick of Pocky. She tilted her head a little before asking, "Would we have to ruin our instruments after a concert?"
'Of all the things that she could have asked,' thought Ritsu to herself, brow twitching slightly.
From the opposite side of the room, Mugi giggled. It didn't take long for Ritsu to figure out that Mugi had caught sight of the look on her face. The drummer offered a sheepish smile in response; the tips of her ears were tinted pink with embarrassment.
"I don't think that's a good idea," Mio supplied Yui with an answer.
There goes the calm and collected Mio. Ritsu knew that if she were the one to have asked the question, the Akiyama girl would have rewarded her with a smart rap to the head. It was not like the punch really hurt Ritsu or anything, though – that was just the dynamics of their friendship.
Sometimes, Ritsu couldn't help but imagine what it would be like of Mio hadn't become her friend when they were children. Sure, younger Mio might be shy and timid, but her younger self… Maybe she was a little obnoxious in her childhood days (and perhaps even then, at seventeen years old). People thought that Mio would have had trouble making friends if it weren't for Ritsu but Ritsu would beg to differ; Mio would be the type to keep a few dear friends close to her heart whereas Ritsu would probably have a load of 'hi-bye' friends but none that actually knew her.
Ritsu was glad to have met Mio but it might be time for Ritsu to expand her circle of 'true friends'. The drummer knew that it was hard for others to get to know her because the first person that Ritsu would turn to in any situation was Mio. Sometimes, the two best friends would slip in their own little world without either party noticing it; it was completely unintentional but the two of them just had a way of making others feel left out because of their closeness.
Despite being submerged in her thoughts, Ritsu noticed Yui saying something that made Mugi giggle and Mio smile.
The Tainaka girl might be friendly in general but she chose her friends extremely carefully. So far, only Mio was allowed into her world. Perhaps… Perhaps she should start letting Yui and Mugi in as well.
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"Mio-chan and I looked through what we have so far and we seem to be gearing up towards…"
Here Mugi trailed off to send an uncertain glance towards Mio. The dark-haired girl gave a firm nod and concluded.
"Rock music."
"Eh!" exclaimed Yui, bolting upright. "Isn't rock music sort of banned?"
Mugi looked towards Mio, and then Ritsu. Rock music was practically anathema in the Republic of Greater East Asia, and many people considered it illegal after the Nanahara-Nakagawa case – just to be safe. As far as she knew, Mio and Ritsu had thought that rock music was banned altogether – it actually wasn't; music that contained anti-government sentiments, however, was. She really should tell them, seeing as Ritsu had begun arguing for rock music, but it was always a risk to perform rock in public. Mugi really just wanted to have a great time playing music with her friends. She didn't really want people keeping tabs on them.
"We could always play rock music in private!" argued Ritsu, only to be shot down by Mio.
"We're supposed to be preparing for a performance, Ritsu."
"But, Mio, I know you like playing rock, too–"
"My preference doesn't matter," countered the bassist. "Rock music isn't safe for a public performance; people might get the wrong ideas."
Ritsu opened her mouth, an argument on the tip of her tongue, when Mugi cut in.
"We could always play pop," suggested the blonde a little too eagerly.
The ojou-sama just wanted to diffuse the situation before it escalated any further. Mio and Ritsu may be best friends but they do disagree too frequently for comfort. Sure, they always made up but Mugi hated seeing her friends fight.
Yui was quick to agree: "Mugi-chan has a great idea! I like J-Pop."
Mugi and Yui held their breath as they watched Ritsu. The Tainaka looked thoughtful albeit undefeated. Mugi mentally prepared herself in case Ritsu decided to re-ignite the debate. Eventually, the drummer sighed.
"Maybe we should ask Sawa-chan-sensei; she is our advisor after all."
The concert was in twenty-seven days. Ritsu has got less than a month to change their minds.
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Unbeknownst to the rest of the girls, a certain guitarist had nicked the photograph and cassette tape they had found when they finally left the music room. While Ui got ready for bed, the elder Hirasawa played the tape on low volume, staring fixedly on the picture in her hand. She couldn't place her finger on it but that voice on the tape and two out of the four faces in the photograph were familiar. It unsettled Yui.
"Onee-chan, it's time to go to bed!"
"Alright. Goodnight, Ui."
"Goodnight, onee-chan."
With her eyebrows still knitted, Yui slipped into bed. The tape and picture was grasped in the hand placed under her pillow. She would figure it out.
She turned under her blanket.
Yui knew she was intuitive. The fact that the familiarity had gotten her feeling so uneasy signalled that there might be danger afoot.
The guitarist stared up at the ceiling until the sound of her sister's steady breathing filled the room.
As far as she was capable, Yui would be there to protect Ui – and she has more people that she wanted to protect now.
Yes, she would figure it out for the sake of her newfound friends.
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