Gamer4 in. If you've only read my Danganronpa stuff before, you may have yet to realize this, but I have a near-pathological obsession with references. Or maybe not, I've not exactly been good about keeping that a secret over these first few chapters. I'll try to restrain myself a little, but it's kind of ingrained into me at this point. If it ever truly becomes an issue, feel free to let me know. Alright, onwards- I intend this to be the end of the whole 'Melancholy' arc.
Disclaimer: She held me spellbound in the night- dancing shadows and firelight!
Chapter VI
The Melancholy of Junko Enoshima (Part III)
The last thing Chiaki Nanami had expected the previous week was to open her door to find Junko Enoshima on the other side, asking to play video games with her. If anyone had told her that the Ultimate Fashionista was her future gaming buddy, she'd have... probably been asleep. And would think it was a dream- not 'aspiration' dream, but 'holy crap, I'm about to be eaten by mummified jelly beans' dream. That had been a strange phase in her life.
But nonetheless, when she heard a knock at her door and opened it to find Junko Enoshima standing there, a smile graced her face. "Ah, Enoshima-san! Come in- would you like to continue Bloodborne?"
Junko's skill in video games had been surprising, but it seemed that even she struggled with the notoriously difficult Bloodborne. She was still doing better than Chiaki might have once expected from her, but she was far from being as proficient in hunting the creatures of the night as she had been the heartless.
"Later days," Junko mumbled as she crossed the room and plopped down on Chiaki's bed. It was an odd turn of phrase Chiaki hadn't heard anyone use before, but its meaning, at least, was clear. "I don't suppose you've got the Yakuza games somewhere in here, do you? I feel |ike singing some karaoke."
Chiaki blinked. "Yakuza... games? Do the Yakuza even play games?" She raised a hand to her chin in thought. "I suppose I could talk to Kuzuryu-kun, but-"
"Like a Dragon," Junko corrected herself, briefly introducing her face to her palm. "That's right, over here, it's called 'Like a Dragon.'"
"'Over here?'" Chiaki repeated, nonplused. She'd heard Junko was an odd person to deal with at times, and their gaming sessions had only served to bolster this hypothesis. "Well, I can't say I've heard of a game like that, either. I'm sorry..."
"Hmm... Never even heard of it...?" Junko was speaking more to herself at this point. As Chiaki drew closer, she could make out the telltale signs of exhaustion on Junko's face. She certainly wasn't anywhere near as lively as she'd been the past few days. There was an emptiness in her eyes that simply hadn't been there before.
"E-Enoshima-chan? Are you okay?"
Junko folded her hands in front of her, eyes fixed on the ground. "Enoshima...Enoshima... is that really...?" She shook her head rapidly, causing her pigtails to flop around, before rising to her feet with what was, to Chiaki's eyes, a very phony smile, accompanied by a peace sign. "Yeah, of course I'm fine! I just... need to think for a bit!" She was gone before Chiaki could say anything more.
For a moment, Chiaki considered following, before recalling the time- it was almost time for class. It looked like Junko wouldn't be attending classes today, but as Class 77's rep, it wouldn't do for her to do the same.
XXXX
Indeed, Junko did not show up to class that day, earning several nervous looks at her seat from Makoto and Mukuro alike, though Mukuro suspected his nerves were entirely different from hers. He hadn't lived with Junko for so many years, coming to intimately understand the ways in which her mind worked. He didn't know just how radical the shift in her behavior had been, and had no particular need to fear a relapse into that previous state- because as much as she tried to deny it to herself, Mukuro much preferred the new, cheerful Junko to the old, despair-obsessed one. She tried telling herself that she'd stick by her no matter what, but after tasting the sheer joy of what felt like an actual bond with her sister, she wasn't altogether sure that she could go back to how things had been before.
Finally, of course, Makoto hadn't shared her nightmare the previous night- no matter how much she fought it back, she kept witnessing that terrible hit-and-run in her mind's eye, her sister dying alone on the pavement even as she fought her way through the crowd. In her heart, she knew it had to just be a dream- just a stupid dream- but some part of her kept insisting it was something more.
The song, too, wore on her- if she were to take it at face value, it would seem that Junko had fallen in love at some point, only for whatever man it had been to simply disappear. But Mukuro could remember nothing of the sort happening- and surely, if it did, Junko would have said something about it by now, no? The only person Mukuro could think of that possibly fit the bill was Yasuke Matsuda, but Mukuro had her doubts about how much 'love' there actually was between them. Still, if anyone might have some insight into why Junko was acting so strangely lately, the childhood friend who was attending Hope's Peak as the Ultimate Neurologist seemed a safe place to start.
The moment the bell rang, she was the only one who rose to her feet even before Taka had let out his traditional "Stand! And bow!" After a moment of consideration, Makoto leapt to his feet and followed. "Where to now?" he asked, jogging to keep up with her brisk pace.
"To talk to a friend of Junko's... I think he may have an idea of what's going on with her."
"Oh- do I know him?"
"I doubt it. His name is Yasuke Matsuda, the Ultimate Neurologist."
Abruptly, Mukuro stopped in her tracks. The thought occurred to her that, if she was going to talk to Yasuke about everything that had been happening... it seemed a very poor decision to have Makoto involved in the conversation. Wishing Junko were here- she was always far better with subterfuge- she came up with an excuse. "Naegi-kun... Yasuke isn't exactly the most... sociable person in the school." That much was true at least, though she knew she was hardly one to talk. "Junko and I have known him for a while, but I don't know if he'll be willing to talk to... someone else."
"Someone- oh!" Realization crossed Makoto's face. "Oh, I get it! Right... I'll... go do something else then!"
Mukuro's heart hurt having to turn away Makoto like that, but for their secrets to be kept, she had to. Quickly, she came up with something else. "I think she's been talking to some of the upperclassmen lately- maybe one of them will know something?"
Makoto paled slightly. "The... upperclassmen?"
"I would start with their representative, Chiaki Nanami," Mukuro quickly added. "I hear she's a little more... stable."
"Right... okay, I'll do that. Let's meet up in the cafeteria afterwards, alright?"
"Roger," Mukuro nodded, and the two broke up- Makoto to the upper floors, Mukuro to the dorms. If there was anyone who wouldn't be in class at the moment, it would be Yasuke Matsuda.
XXXX
Junko, meanwhile, had found her way to the batting cages. "Hmm... if the Yakuza series doesn't exist in this universe, I wonder if that means it's real, too? Am I going to walk into this place and see Kiryu trying his hand at the batting cages?"
There was no such person on the inside, so she settled for talking to the person behind the counter who handed her a baseball bat in exchange for yen.
She twirled the bat lightly in her hand. It felt... friendly, like it belonged there. *Something else I'm picking up from Jack, I suppose...*
The thought drove her closer to absolute hysteria. *Goddammit, I don't even know who I AM anymore!*
She stepped up to one of the open plates. Across the field was a hi-definition screen portraying a pitcher, the machine right behind. The pitcher wound up, and in tune with his pitch, the machine slung a ball at her at around seventy miles per hour. She swung her bat, and hit the ball with a satisfying *CRACK!*
*Jack.*
The next ball was a curve- it tipped the edge of her bat and flew over.
*Junko.*
She maintained focus on the next ball, and sent it flying as well.
*Jack.*
Another curveball, but this time, she caught it and sent it into the foul zone.
*Junko.*
*Jack.*
*Junko.*
*Jack!*
*Junko!*
*JACK!*
*JUNKO!*
"Goddammit!" It was no good, she couldn't focus. She threw the bat aside and stepped into the lobby again, taking a seat on a bench and burying her face in her hands, her mind running a mile a minute.
*This shouldn't be so surprising, I guess- the only surprising thing is that this didn't happen earlier.*
*But why now?*
*Because you saw Mondo and Taka last night, and it reminded you... you're alone. All Jack's friends are still back in Los Juicio, and Junko never made any to begin with. Who could you even bond with anyways? Who could even begin to understand what you really are?*
"Oh, hey, Junko! Didn't plan on seeing you here!"
Finally, she looked up- standing over her was Leon Kuwata of all people, scratching at the back of his head.
Junko quickly fought to hide her inner turmoil. "Oh, Leon- didn't think I'd see you here, either- thought you were sick of baseball."
Leon balked slightly. "Well... yeah... the thing about that is..."
Junko picked up her discarded bat. "I... used to play a bit, in another life." *Literally.* "Not so much anymore, but every now and again..."
"You any good?" Leon asked curiously.
Junko thought back to a few minutes ago. "Well... let's find out, huh?"
She stepped back up to the plate, tapping it lightly with her bat. She fought to keep focus- something that used to come so naturally to her- and when the first pitch came, she knocked it out of the park.
"Oh, nice one!" Leon smiled, shielding his eyes with his hand as he watched the ball soar into the air.
She hit three more home runs before getting a strike, which flustered her a tad, leading to another. By then, she'd gotten control of herself again, enough to hit the next ball, but not quite enough for a home run.
By the time the last ball flew, she'd hit sixteen of twenty- ten of which had been home runs.
Leon whistled. "Didn't know you were so good at this!" A smirk crossed his face as he stepped up to the plate himself. "But let me show you how a real pro does it!"
To nobody's surprise at all, he hit twenty home runs in a row. *How despairingly predictable.* Nevertheless, she didn't feel like breaking the smile he wore when he turned to her.
"As expected of the Ultimate Baseball Star," she nodded. "Which... brings me to my earlier question. I thought you were tired of baseball?"
"Yeah, I thought so too," Leon admitted. :"But then I came out here to Hope's Peak, and after being cut off from actually playing seriously for so long..."
The corner of Junko's lip twitched. "'Don't know what you have 'til it's gone,' huh?"
"Something like that," Leon grumbled. "I don't know... ever since I got scouted as the Ultimate Baseball Star, it was like... like I was trapped. Even if I wanted to do something else with my life, that's all anyone would actually want of me, y'know?"
"Yeah, I think I get what you're saying," Junko nodded, prompting him to continue.
"I wanted so bad to get out of that fate, go off and do my own thing... and here I am, crawling back to it after just a few months." He let out a humorless chuckle. "Freakin' lame, am I right?"
"That's one way of looking at it," Junko pondered. "Definitely one way... but then, if it's what you enjoy, why worry about it so much?"
"Huh?"
"Who gives a shit if people want you to play baseball or not- to do something else with your life, or not?" Junko didn't feel quite as strange as she'd expected- thinking about it, even prior to her accident, she had been an advocate of doing whatever one wanted, and damn the consequences- albeit that what she wanted tended to end with a pile of corpses. "Just do whatever you want, and if anyone else complains about it, show them your favorite finger." She punctuated it by demonstrating.
Leon chuckled. "That's, uh... that sure sounds like you, Junko," he admitted. "Just do what I want, huh?"
He glanced around. "Yeah... sounds like something Kanon would say..."
He glanced at his phone and grimaced. "Crap... guess I oughtta head back, Taka'll go ballistic otherwise... wanna come with?"
Junko shook her head. "I think I'll stay out on the town a little longer."
"You sure?" Leon quirked a brow. "I mean, Taka's already freaking out over you missing the first half of the day."
"I'll be fine," Junko cricked her neck as she rose back to her feet. "He gets too annoying, I'll threaten to tell everyone about that time he ran in the halls in the third grade or something."
Leon laughed. "Try not to break him too hard." He gave one last wave and took off out the doors.
Junko glanced at the bat she'd just been using, thinking of how friendly it felt in her hands. After a moment's consideration, she'd purchased it before heading out the doors and back into town.
On her way out, she passed a tall, burly man in a white suit, sideburns merging with a short beard on his chin. He glanced back at her as she pushed by. "That girl..."
Before he could think too hard on it, a cry rang out from behind him. "KIRYUI-CHAN!"
"Oh, God..." he groaned as he turned to face his one-eyed rival for the third time this week.
XXXX
Mukuro hesitated only briefly before knocking on Yasuke Matsuda's door. Immediately, she heard shuffling on the other side. A second later, the door was opening. "Well, it's about damn ti- oh. Mukuro."
On the other side of the portal was the man she sought- Junko's childhood friend, to the extent she was capable of such a thing, Yasuke Matsuda. Manga in one hand, sandals on his feet, and long-weary grimace on his face. "Thought your sister might finally be showing up- she was supposed to be here four days ago, but what do I know?"
He stepped back to allow her entry, continuing to grumble. "I'm guessing she sent you with a message- mind taking one back for me? If she's trying to 'fill me with despair,' or whatever, it's not working. She's filling me with annoyance. Two different things."
"Actually, she... she didn't send me," Mukuro admitted as Yasuke closed the door behind them and plopped himself down on his bed. She, for her part, remained standing. "I'm here on my own."
"Goddammit," Yasuke muttered, rubbing his temples. "I know she likes to make things up as she goes along, but this whole thing was her idea, you'd think the least she could do is show up for the procedure..."
"Procedure?" Mukuro asked, nonplused.
"The Otonashi project," Yasuke waved his hand around in agitation. "I thought I made it clear to her at the outset that creating this new persona for her when we take her memories was not an easy thing- that it would take careful planning and precision, and here she is, going radio silent for a week- not even bothering to send a message four days after missing her last session. So you go back to her and ask her, does she want to go through with this project, or doesn't she?"
Ah- now Mukuro was remembering something- that was a plan Junko had been setting up, wasn't it? A test of Yasuke's memory removal technology, and the construction of a new persona in the meantime. Why Junko wanted to go about it in that manner was beyond Mukuro, but of course, she'd only started questioning her sister's actions recently.
Speaking of which...
"I wasn't sent by Junko, but I am here to talk about her," Mukuro began. "She... she's been silent for a week, you say?"
"Week, week and a half," Yasuke waved his hand again. "She's clearly not bothering to keep track, why should I?"
"I... think I may have some insight into that," Mukuro offered. "Last week, there was an accident on the staircase- she slipped and hit her head."
For the briefest moment, genuine concern flashed in Yasuke's eyes- Mukuro didn't see it, probably because she hadn't explicitly been looking for it, but she knew it was there nonetheless. "Is she okay?"
"Physically, she's fine," Mukuro assured him. "A full recovery, but..."
"But...?" Yasuke prompted.
"She's been acting... strangely since."
Yasuke's lids lowered halfway. "Mukuro, we're talking about a girl who wants to bring about the apocalypse for shits and giggles- do you want to define 'strangely' for me?"
"She doesn't want that anymore," Mukuro answered as best she could. "She told me she's... she said she's getting bored with despair."
Yasuke almost did a double take. "She said what?"
"She said... everything gets boring eventually, even despair," Mukuro recalled.
Yasuke pondered this for a moment. "So... she's even bored of that, now... that can't be good..."
"That's the thing, though- she doesn't seem all that bored," Mukuro interjected. "She's been far more outgoing- she goes to play games with Nanami-san- er, the Ultimate Gamer- every day, and when she gets back, we've been watching a show together. And she... she seems to actually be enjoying it all."
Yasuke fixed his gaze on hers. "Junko... playing games and watching tv with you?"
"Yes."
"What kinds of games? What kind of shows?"
"I can't speak for the games, but we've been watching a show called Twin Peaks."
"Never heard of it."
"It's..." Mukuro fumbled for the words, before finally offering the same succinct description Junko had given her before they began. "It's a murder mystery."
"Hmm..." Yasuke drummed his fingers on his bed. "And this all started after she slipped and hit her head?"
"Yes."
"You're sure nothing else happened around the same time?"
"I... not that I'm aware of, at least. Earlier, we found her in the music room, playing this song... something about leaving her lover behind her. I don't remember anything like that happening, but of course, there was that time..." *The time I abandoned her,* she didn't say aloud, but she could tell Yasuke understood regardless. "I thought maybe you'd know something."
Yasuke threw his arms in the air. "You got me. This is the first time I'm hearing her talk about love at all- outside of manipulating it, of course."
His finger-drumming slowly came to a pause. "This... is a very unusual turn of events."
"Indeed."
More silence.
"Well... I suppose the only way I'll understand any more is if I talk to her face-to-face."
"Very well. I have a... a friend trying to find her- she didn't come to class today."
"Alright- when you find her, tell her I want to talk to her. I need to see this with my own eyes."
"Understood," Mukuro nodded her confirmation as she turned to take her leave.
The second she was gone, Yasuke slumped into his bed. *Junko? Cancelling her plans?*
He'd be lying if he said he didn't hope so. Junko would have scoffed, had she known- the old Junko, at least- but yes, he definitely hoped Mukuro was correct. The last few years had become a living nightmare, torn between his loyalty to his childhood friend and his own conscience. Talking her into the Otonashi Project had been no easy feat, but in his mind, it was the only way to prevent disaster and keep her alive all at once- but if she had really just changed her own mind...
Yes, the old Junko would surely have scoffed, but he just couldn't help hoping.
XXXX
"Oh, Naegi-kun? That's your name, right?"
"Yeah, that's me," Makoto agreed, nervously scratching at the side of his cheek as he stood before Class 77's rep.
"I didn't expect to interact this much with my underclassmen," Chiaki admitted, stepping back to permit him entry nevertheless. "You know Junko? She's been coming up here almost every day herself."
"Yeah, so I hear," Makoto nodded. "That's... why I'm here, actually. She didn't come to class today. Any idea where she might have gone?"
"Hmm..."
Chiaki plopped on her bed and cracked open a can of Mountain Dew. "She stopped by for a little earlier, but she wasn't making much sense- she was asking about a game that doesn't exist- as far as I can tell."
"A game that doesn't exist?"
"She called it 'Yakuza' at first, then she sort of... corrected herself, I guess, started calling it 'Like a Dragon.' It doesn't really matter- I've done as much research as I can, and as far as I can tell, there was never a game called either."
"I'm willing to take the Ultimate Gamer's word on that one," Makoto decided, scratching at his cheek again- sort of a nervous tic, he supposed.
"Something similar happened the other day," Chiaki reflected. "I mean, that game did exist, but... she called it Earthbound at first, and when I was confused, she thought about it, and kind of... corrected herself? I think? The game she was actually looking for was called Mother, but it was called Earthbound over in America."
Chiaki glanced at the ceiling, raising a finger to her chin. "Hmm... I wonder if she's ever been to America? It would explain why she keeps calling these games one name, then switches it over..."
"But you said that... er... Like a Dragon game doesn't exist at all, didn't you?" Makoto recalled.
"Yes... I still don't have an answer for that," Chiaki shrugged.
Makoto glanced around, pondering this strange new information for a moment before remembering the biggest reason he'd come here in the first place. "Did she... did she say where she was going when she left?"
"I think she said something about... karaoke?" Chiaki shrugged. "If she's not there, I'm sure she'll be back soon."
"Right," Makoto nodded. "Well, thanks for the help..."
"No problem," Chiaki smiled. "When you find her, tell her I said hi, would you?"
"Of course," Makoto nodded before taking his leave.
He'd hardly made any progress down the hall before Mukuro appeared before him. "Oh, Mukuro! What did you find out?"
"He didn't know anything," she admitted. "Junko hadn't spoken to him in a week. You?"
"Apparently, she said something to Chiaki about going to do some... karaoke?"
"Karaoke? Junko?" Mukuro repeated, blinking in surprise.
Makoto shrugged. "Only lead we've got."
Overhead, the bell rang, signifying the start of afternoon classes.
Mukuro closed her eyes. "If you don't want to come with me, I'll understand-"
"No, I think Junko needs as much support as possible right now," Makoto shook his head. "I'm sure Taka will be upset, but this is an emergency."
Mukuro paused, then nodded. "Agreed." She turned and had made it only a few steps down the hall before slowly turning back, the barest traces of a blush dusting her freckled face. "Naegi-kun... where is the nearest karaoke bar?"
XXXX
As it turned out, the nearest karaoke bar was less than a mile from the school- which was fortunate, because it was the only one that Makoto was aware of. Perhaps due to his luck, they had to look no further- immediately upon stepping in, they saw Junko at the head of the bar, singing along to a slow, sad song.
"I am such a fool...
Still acting like a child.
You fell down, you got hurt chasing my dreams.
I'm too good, hiding the truth in my eyes.
So you never saw my smile was a lie."
The two remained silent, finding a seat as Junko continued her singing, seemingly oblivious to their presence. She wasn't singing along to the exact lyrics, but she was close enough that most of the other patrons likely weren't sensing anything strange.
"'I love you,' is
Something you never heard.
Couldn't get it out, always just pulled away.
So then why, please won't you tell me why
I still could find the words to say goodbye..."
Abruptly, the song picked up.
"I'm such a mess,
I'm lost , I don't understand
Feelings of love, feelings of love,
Feelings of love for you!
Hard as I try,
I can't drink the pain away-
My thoughts of you
They twist my view...
I'm such a fool!"
The music continued a little longer, but Junko had already abandoned the mic and headed to the actual bar portion, where a glass filled with a very small portion of a very strong-smelling liquid waited.
"Junko!" Mukuro called, quickly approaching her.
"Oh, Muku-nee!" Junko grinned tipsily at her- the drink she took as she was approached was clearly not her first. "What're you doin' here, huh?"
"Junko, what's wrong?" Mukuro asked. "I'm your sister, you can tell me!"
Junko glanced at the glass again, and, after a moment of consideration, pushed it away. "'M fine," she grunted. "Jus' a little... out of it..."
Makoto appeared behind her. "We've been looking for you- you've seemed so sad since last night, we wanted to-"
"Let me guess, you wanted to be there for me?" Junko mumbled, her head struggling to stay upright. "'Preciate the thought, Muku-nee, but it's not like I was ever there for you..."
Makoto glanced curiously at Mukuro, who waved him aside for the moment. "You said yourself that's all over now- things are going to be different, right?"
"Dif'rent? I'd say things are *hiccup* dif'rent." She laughed, seemingly to a joke neither of them were in on. "Ev'rything's changed, n' I'm the only one who can even understand how much..."
"Try telling us anyways!" Makoto implored. "Clearly, something's wrong, and okay, maybe we won't understand, but we definitely won't if you don't even try to tell us!"
Junko struggled to focus her gaze on him- there was a look in her eyes that he truly didn't understand. The slightest smile crossed her lips. "You... kinda r'mind me of Tom, y'know that?"
"Tom?" Makoto repeated, nonplused.
"Nevermind..."
Junko rose to her feet- despite her apparent tipsiness, she was able to stand without too much difficulty.
"Guess we oughtta... *hic!* get back to Hope's Peak, huh? You two... getta classssssh... Taka's gonna go berserk... I'll just... sleep a while..."
"I think that might be best," Mukuro rose to her feet and allowed her sister to lean on her.
"I'll... tell ya what's happenin'... tomorrow," Junko decided. "Not alla it... just a bit... see whatcha understand..."
"Sounds good," Makoto nodded, glad she had conceded even this much.
"Mmmm... thanks for the help... Muku-nee," Junko mumbled as they led her out the door. "Heheh..." And out of nowhere, she was singing again, though not nearly as stable as the song from before. "Shome...times in our lives... we all feel pain... we all have sorrrrrrroooooooooowwwww..."
It wasn't one either of her companions had heard, but they allowed themselves a small smile nonetheless.
XXXX
They were at the gates of Hope's Peak when Junko finally separated. "Alright, I'm feeling... a little better, I can walk the rest myself..."
She turned around and immediately ran into a blond girl who was none too happy with the collision. "Hey!" she roared. "Watch it, you skank!"
Makoto and Mukuro both stared, wondering how a lightly- inebriated Junko would take that affront.
"Hey, hey, hey," she grumbled as she pulled herself to her feet. "No need fer... name callin'..."
The other girl glared. "You'd best get back down on your knees and apologize, slut- do you even know who I am?!"
Junko was swaying again, struggling to even focus on the girl in front of her. "...Kaede Akamatsu?"
The girl was clearly seeing red. "Who the hell is-"
"What's going on over here?!"
As if the situation wasn't tense enough, the head of security Juzo Sakakura had arrived. He glared between the girls. "Picking fights again, Kuzuryuu? With an actual Ultimate, no less?"
The girl's face twisted into a grimace, but she was far from fool enough to pick a fight with a man nearly three times her size. "No sir."
"That true?" Juzo asked of Junko.
"Nah, nah, no probl'm," Junko shook her head. "I ran into her, 'ts all good now."
The girl's expression screamed that things were, in fact, not 'all good,' not that she could say anything about it.
"Alright, I'll let you off this time," Juzo decided. "But you only get so many more warnings, Kuzuryuu- I don't give a shit who your family is, there're plenty of normies out there just clamoring for your spot- keep that in mind."
The girl's fists were clenching and unclenching. "...Yes, sir."
"Hey, hey, heeeeey," Junko interjected, looking somewhat reproachful at the large man. "No need to be a douche about it- I told ya, it was just an accident..."
"What did you just call me?" Juzo glowered at her.
Makoto, seeing where this was going, panicked a bit and grabbed Junko's shoulders. "Sorry, sir, she's had a rough couple days! Mukuro and I will take care of her!"
Mukuro nodded, grabbing her sister and dragging her (weakly protesting) into the main building.
"Ah, you two're lame..."
Finally, they deposited her in her room and hurried back to class, ready to face Taka's tongue-lashing.
Junko lay face-down in her bed for several hours before something finally clicked in the back of her brain.
*...Wait a minute... something that just happened... shouldn't have... it's not possible...*.
Unfortunately, before she could touch on what, exactly, that impossible thing had been, sleep had moved in to claim her at last.
XXXX
A bit of rough translation going on here- whatcha gonna do, when transcribing a song in a different language. If you didn't catch on, it is, of course Baka Mitai, the flagship song of the Yakuza franchise. Just look up Dame Da Ne on Youtube- I'm sure you'll find it.
With this, I declare the Melancholy arc officially over- not that the melancholy is gone altogether, but we can't spend too long focusing on that one element when there's so much more going on. One conversation isn't likely to solve everybody's problems, but maybe it'll ease them up a bit. See you all next time, when we start delving into the art of the possible. Until then, please R&R, Gamer4 out.