26 May

Kawakami yawns.

"I trust," Principal Kobayakowa says, "that I am not boring you, Kawakami-sensei."

"I'm sorry, sir," she blurts out. "It was-" She is about to say, 'a long night,' but wisely snaps her mouth shut before the words escape. "I'm sorry, sir," she repeats.

Kobayakowa nods and continues to lurch his way forward. Kawakami follows him a half-step or so behind, a respectful distance. They stroll the early morning halls of Shujin. The only students present are those belonging to clubs. Her whole body feels sluggish. It really had been a long night. And it's shaping up to be a long day too.

"You were saying?" The Principal prods.

"Yes. Ann Takamaki," Kawakami says. "There really isn't much to tell, sir. She's a decent enough student. She excels in English."

"Her relationships?"

"I'm sorry, sir?"

He glares over his fat shoulder and spits, "Her relationships, Kawakami-sensei. I'm asking how well she gets along with her fellow classmates."

Kawakami frowns but averts her gaze. "Well, her best friend was Shiho Suzui. And, thanks to Kamoshida she only seems to be friends with Jessikah Shiomi and Ryuji Sakamoto.

"Speaking of which what about Jessikah Shiomi?"

Sadayo blinks. "Sir, if I may ask, why are you asking me about her? Has she done something wrong?"

"I am not in a position in which I have to address your questions, Kawakami-sensei. Do answer mine."

Jackass. "They get along fine ."

"Do you think they are in a romantic relationship?"

"Not to my knowledge. But I don't see them outside of school."

Kobayakowa nods. "Of course, of course."

They round the hall. All Kawakami wants to do is retreat to the faculty office where she can drop her head and grab a few winks before the day officially begins. Why the hell is he asking me about her? The Principal stiffens and halts. Outside his office stands a stern-looking young woman. She wears a jet black business suit and holds a shoulder bag in white knuckled hands. When her eyes pass over the two of them, they narrow, and her lips slide into a scowl.

Whoa. This chick is pissed.

The Principal recovers and opens his mouth to say, "May I-"

"Principal Kobayakowa?" She asks, cutting him off.

"Yes."

She tilts her head up and glares down at the two of them. "My name is Sae Niijima. We will talk in your office."

Sae Niijima? Like, Makoto Niijima? When Kawakami looks again, she can definitely see the resemblance. The woman doesn't look like she'd be formidable, but her tone and body language leaves no room for doubt. Makoto Niijima can be docile at times, but Kawakami has seen her mad on a handful of occasions, and did not envy those students the anger was directed at.

"I'm afraid I'm quite busy at the moment," Kobayakowa replies, and to Kawakami, it sounds like he's struggling to get the words out. When she glances at his face, it is a shade redder than normal. "What is this in regards to?"

Sae Niijima does not move. "It's regarding you blackmailing my sister."

Sadayo's eyes widen.

Kobayakowa's face continues to deepen in color. "Kawakami-sensei, if you wouldn't mind excusing us?"

She opens her mouth to acquiesce, but Sae cuts in. "She can stay. I'd like her input as well." Sae's gaze turns towards Kawakami, and the woman feels her blood go cold. "You are Sadayo Kawakami, correct?" Kawakami nods. "Makoto has, on occasion, spoken highly of you."

"Oh," she replies. "That's, uh, swell."

Swell?

Kobayakowa hurls a glare towards her. "I'm afraid, if would be entirely inappropriate for Kawakami-sensei to be privy to this conversation, Niijima-san, and-"

"As inappropriate as you holding my sister's letter of recommendation hostage? As inappropriate as you hiring a rapist?"

A few students were beginning to cast curious looks their way, and Kobayakowa shakes his head and roots around in his pockets. "Very well, very well," he spits, yanking out his keyring and sliding past Sae towards the door. "We'll speak inside." With the click of the lock, he turns his gaze back towards Kawakami. "Don't you have anything else to do, Kawakami-sensei?"

She recoils, but dips her head in apology. "Of course, sir. I'll be on my way." She takes a step back and casts one last look at Sae Niijima. The woman stands there like a pillar, and when she notices Sadayo looking at her, gives a single, resolute nod, before she turns and follows Kobayakowa into his office.

The door shuts behind them.

What the hell was that all about? What had Sae Niijima meant by holding the letter of recommendation 'hostage?' Kawakami is familiar with the somewhat shady methods by which Shujin instructors distributed their coveted letters of rec, but was something else going on?

She retreats from the hall, all thoughts of a nap banished by the morning's strange events.

Makoto Niijima is right where Sadayo suspects her to be, bent over a book in the Student Council Room, her pencil flying diligently over the page. She looks as tired as Kawakami feels, and the latter has to clear her throat several times before she looks up, blinking.

"Oh, Kawakami-sensei," Makoto says, standing.

"Good morning, Niijima-san," Kawakami says, sliding into the room and gently closing the door behind her. "Tired?"

"I'm alright," Makoto replies, and immediately yawns. "Sorry."

Kawakami shakes her head. "It's okay, I know the feeling. So," and she pauses, trying to find the right way to phrase things, "I just ran into your sister."

Crimson floods into Makoto's cheeks, and her face whips back towards the book. "I see."

As she opens her mouth to speak, Kawakami realizes that at some point, she had gripped her hands tightly together. She unclenches them and asks, "Is everything alright, Niijima-san?"

"Of course, Kawakami-sensei."

"Because I just saw your sister...insist upon a meeting with the Principal." She also said some things.

Makoto nods and looks back up at Kawakami with the faint hints of a smile. "Everything's fine, honest. It's nothing my sister can't handle."

Kawakami stares into the eyes of the girl and sees some real worry there, but all she can think to say is, "Well, okay then. It's alright if you'd like to tell me something." She could kick herself. That's just a line teachers use when they know the student won't actually reveal anything. It's a way to circumvent the guilt. Everyone knows it, but no one acknowledges it.

"Thank you, Kawakami-sensei," Makoto replies.

Kobayakowa does not get to offer Sae Niijima a seat. She simply strides across his office's floor and sits down in a chair, uninvited. He bristles from the rudeness.

What did that bitch tell her? He had banked on Makoto Niijima simply doing what he had instructed. But of course, he's heard the name Sae Niijima. A Public Prosecutor that despite everything aligned against her has made a name for herself in the legal world. "Niijima-san, I assure you that-"

"You are withholding my sister's letter of recommendation until she digs up dirt on other students for you ," Sae says.

Goddammit! He smiles and forces out a chuckle. "I'm afraid that you are mistaken. I have made no such arrangement with your younger sister. I merely asked her to look into a certain situation here at Shujin, and explained that I would provide the already promised letter of recommendation once the task was complete. I am not, as you put it, holding it hostage."

Sae shakes her head. "Please. I am not some naive parent you can string along. You are withholding your letter of recommendation for my sister, Makoto Niijima, until she figures out how involved Jessikah Shiomi , Ryuji Sakamoto was in Suguru Kamoshida's confession."

Does she know about the Phantom Thieves connection? Kobayakowa fights down the urge to swallow. "Again, I-"

"Are you aware that Suguru Kamoshida attempted to assault my sister?"

His mind goes blank. "I... what? When?"

She leans towards him, and despite himself, he reclines further into his chair. "Does it matter?" She asks. "He attempted to sexually assault my younger sister, in this building. In your school."

"K-Kamoshida-sensei's proclivities are-"

Sae slams her hand down onto the hardwood desk, fingers splayed. "You still do not seem to grasp what I'm getting at. So, allow me to put it plainly. You will provide my sister with the letter of recommendation. The letter you already promised her. You will not require her to further probe into the business of her fellow students. If you do not do these two things, I will make life very hard for you."

He reaches his limit, and stands. "Now, see here! I will not stand for-"

Sae stands as well. "You will shut up and do what you're told. Do you expect me to believe you were unaware of a rapist operating on your campus? You were either complicit, or truly were unaware, and therefore, incompetent. Which do you think will play better?" Her words drip from her mouth like venom. "Do what I tell you, or I will come after you with the entire backing of the Special Investigation Department. We will squeeze you until there's not a drop of blood left in your body. We will ruin you. I will ruin you. Do you understand me?"

His hands shake. "I-I have friends in high places!" He spits.

Sae straightens, and shoulders her bag. "I trust I've made things clear. Stop this sham of an investigation and give my sister her letter of recommendation. If you don't, you will regret it." She turns on her heel and marches out the door. She slams it shut behind her.

Makoto steps out of the Student Council room and joins the throng of students pulsing their way through Shujin's halls. Despite everything involving the Principal, Akira, and Kamoshida, she still had work to do as the President.

Sae had accompanied her to school, quelling Makoto's fears about showing up later than usual to her office, but explaining that such an action would necessitate her staying late for the next few nights in a row. Makoto felt bad about that, but once Sae's mind was set upon something, she did not waver.

When they had arrived, Makoto had pointed her sister in the direction of the Principal's office, and retreated to the Student Council room, keeping her ears pricked for the sound of incoming sirens, whether an ambulance or police cruiser. You never call tell with Sis. The school still seems intact, however, and Makoto wonders if Sae is still in Principal Kobayakowa's office, as she descends the steps to the first floor and makes her way towards her classroom. Her thoughts are so occupied, that she does not notice someone calling her name until the third time it's uttered.

"-oto?"

She glances in the direction of the voice. Jessikah is standing close. Makoto stiffens, make a noise that sounds something like, "Meep!" and takes a few steps away from her pressing her back into the wall. Jessikah blinks, then smiles. The thought makes Makoto's chest feel like warm chocolate.

Jessikah walks up to her and leans against the wall alongside her, her posture relaxed, her movements slow. "Hey," she says, softly.

"Hi," Makoto replies. Okay. Relax. Don't let her know you're investigating her. That'll just scare her off!

"Sorry if I kept you up," he says.

A pleasant nerve is struck, and she tosses her a glare she doesn't really mean. "Oh, please. Not everything is about you." She punctuates the sentence with a smile she can't help.

"Whatever you say," Jessikah replies with a shrug, her soft smile twisting into a grin. "I was thinking we could study together on Monday."

"Monday?"

Jessikah nods. "It's right before exams start, I know. But I'd like to get one session in with you before they actually begin."

"I see."

"Does that work for you?"

"I think that works for me," Makoto says, and proudly keeps the excitement from her voice. "I trust that this session will actually be sesson?"

Jessikah's eyes dart up towards her own. "Well, so long as you don't clock me in the face, I think we'll be fine."

A sudden presence gnaws at Makoto, and she stiffens. "What's wrong?" She asks, but then a throat clears behind her.

She turns and comes face to face with Sae. Her sister's arms are crossed across her chest, and a look of distaste is sculpted across her face. "Jessikah," she says, the words like distant thunderclaps.

What happens next is something that takes Makoto several moments to process, because Jessikah yelps. It is high-pitched, squeaky, short and panicked, and Makoto cannot believe a sound like that can come from her.

"Hi, Sis," Makoto says, louder than necessary, trying to redirect her sister's attention. "How'd it go?"

Her eyes don't even flicker away from Jessikah. "There should be no further issues."

"Th-that's good," Makoto replies. "Thank you."

"Jessikah," Sae Niijima says again, and Jessikah straightens.

"Yes?"

"Join me outside, won't you?"

Neither Makoto nor Jessikah says anything for a moment, and then the latter stutters out, "W-well, homeroom is starting soon, so-"

"A minute is all I need."

Makoto is able to issue a strangled, "Sis!" under her breath, before Sae brushes past her.

"I'll see you at home, Makoto," Sae says, and gestures for Jessikah to follow her out to the front steps of Shujin.

Jessikah glances at Sae. Sae is mad, Jessikah angles herself towards the steps, prepared to sprint to safety if need be. A few students rush past the two of them, and into Shujin's hall. Sae stands there, waiting for them to get by, issuing them a cold look to hurry them along.

When they are alone, she says, "I had a talk with my sister last night. About you."

"Oh."

"She told me what you did for her."

Jessikah's mind runs blank. "What I did for her?"

Sae nods. "She told me she was in a room with Suguru Kamoshida, alone. She told me you helped get rid of him."

"Thank you." Her face deflates. A small smile crosses her lips. It looks nice. "If it were not for you, my sister wouldnt have had the courage to speak up. So, thank you." As Jessikah begins to wonder just what he should say in reply, Sae's shoulders slump just a bit and her eyes drop to the ground. "Makoto's still young, and sheltered. She doesn't understand how things work. I was considering throwing you out but Makoto spoke up about it..." She shakes her head.

Sae's eyes snap back to her Her shoulders stiffen, she straightens her posture, tilts her head back. Looks down at her .

"I understand if you-"

"Enough," she says, and Jessikah mouth slams shut. "I know about your past. And im not kicking you out but i want you and Makoto to get along. Do I make myself clear?"

Jessikah's jaw works itself through a slow circle. After a few circuits, she mutters, "Okay. I understand."

Sae takes a step closer to her.

"Good," Sae turns and begins to walk down the steps. "I'll see you at home ok."

Jesiskah watches until she reaches Shujin's front gate and turns into the street. Then she quickly heads inside as shes late for class.