As soon as Ayano put her schoolbag away, she flopped on the couch and pulled out her phone. Scrolling through her texts, she searched for a number she hadn't used in quite a long time.

She sent a simple "Hey."

The reply came one tense minute later.

"You want something from me."

It wasn't a question. Ayano flinched, but it made her happy to see her old friend Kuu Dere was as blunt as ever. It made things easier.

"Do you know a girl in your class who runs a blog?"

Ayano realized her mistake as the texts came rolling in.

"Blogs are a creation of the corporation driving the masses to provide reams of personal data for free.

"They compile every thought that's ever traipsed through the vacant head of today's narcissistic young adults into a morass of meaninglessness, an insult to the written word."

"She has long socks," Ayano quickly interjected before Kuu Dere was lost on her psuedo-philosophical train of thought. For a girl who acted apathetic, she sure had a lot of scathing opinions.

Unfortunately Kuu Dere wasn't about to stop and it took several more minutes before Ayano received a text that actually addressed her question.

"How many inches?"

Did Kuu Dere have the length of her classmates' socks memorized...? Honestly, it wouldn't even be surprising.

"They were saggy I think," Ayano answered. She thought back to the running theme of the profile pics of people making fun of Kokona. "Maybe she's blond and tan?"

"Oh. Hoshiko Mizudori."

Ayano stared at the name. It didn't ring any bells, but it wouldn't be hard to find out more.

"Do you know if she has a blog?" she pressed.

"Yes."

Ayano glared at the reply. "Does she have a blog?"

"Yes."

Why couldn't the blogger have been in Midori's classroom? Midori gave away all kinds of info without trying.

"Do you know what the blog is about?" And as soon as Ayano sent the text she quickly added "What about?"

"No. Don't know."

Was this Kuu Dere's idea of fun? Ayano was weighing whether asking any more questions was worth it when a new text appeared.

"I don't care about bubbleheaded blabbermouths. Are we done?"

Ayano felt the light of understanding dawn on her. If she knew Kuu Dere- and she liked to think she did; they'd spent enough years together- Kuu Dere was far from uncaring in this situation.

Kuu Dere and Midori had been best friends in high school, and Midori's chattiness and unawareness had never gotten on Kuu Dere's nerves. But Hoshiko, whoever she was, had done something to make Kuu Dere use an alliterative insult. Kuu Dere hated Hoshiko. But... why?

"You don't like her?" Ayano texted.

"She talks too much."

Kuu Dere wasn't being honest. Midori also talked too much; that wasn't enough to annoy Kuukuu. Something was seriously wrong here... and Ayano was determined to dig it out of this Ice Queen somehow.

"Is she a show off? A smarty pants?" Ayano texted.

Ayano knew it was probably neither. But this was the fastest way to set Kuu Dere off.

And sure enough the texts started flying.

"That poseur extraordinaire wouldn't know smart if it crawled down her throat and choked her. She's a shallow self-absorbed Snappic addict with a God complex and an inability to comprehend that anyone, anywhere, might know better than she does with her all-knowing magic phone."

She went on for even longer than she'd gone off about blog posts. But all of it was vague generalities. If Hoshiko had ever done anything specific to Kuu Dere, the last person Ayano would hear it from was Kuu Dere.

Ayano changed out of her school uniform while Kuu Dere had her rant. She only composed a reply when there was a two minute pause in between texts.

"Kuukuu. Do you remember our Halloween slumber party?"

It had been three years ago but Kuu Dere still recounted the itinerary.

"We met at 6 PM and Midori talked until 6:45, when we made twelve chocolate cupcakes with chopped Mars bars inside. Shortly before 8 we watched Night of the Swamp Women, and then we played Yanvania BloodDawn until 11. Then we had to stop because it was a school night."

Ayano's memory hadn't been that comprehensive, but she'd never forgotten what Kuu Dere had said when the ending credits of Night of the Swamp Women rolled.

"Wow," Midori had said. "Why did that have such a depressing ending? Why did the lizard women win? Did you know Jack Handsome's character was going to die? Did anyone like this movie unironically? Who did the special effects and why didn't-"

Ayano had shushed her. Kuu Dere had been staring transfixed on the screen the whole movie.

"That wasn't an unhappy ending," Kuu Dere had muttered. "Jack was cheating on his wife." Her red eyes had remained locked on the screen.

"Huh?" Midori had asked. "That makes the ending happy? How?"

"Do you remember what you said after the horror movie?" Ayano texted Kuu Dere.

Kuu Dere didn't answer right away. Ayano texted the answer.

"Some people deserve to die."

Kuu Dere still didn't reply.

"Do you still believe that?" Ayano wrote back.

"You could get in trouble for saying that kind of thing lightly," Kuu Dere replied.

And for now, that was all the answer Ayano needed.


It was 11 AM on a Saturday and Ayano had been working on breakfast for three hours.

"Stupid-" Ayano flipped the fifty-third pancake over. Burnt. Just like the rest.

Ayano grunted with frustration as she emptied the pan into the garbage. Now she was out of milk and not a single attempt had worked.

Last night, while Ayano had been looking for Hoshiko's Snappic page, Taro had shared a photo to his own Snappic page of him and his Cooking Club buddies at the crepe stand. He looked too precious for words, per normal. Ayano had known from day one that crepes were one of Taro's favorite foods.

But the comments on Snappic had still surprised her. Taro and Shoku and Saki had gotten into a long, detailed conversation about crepe quality. They had to be fluffy and light, and the taste had to augment the taste of the filling- a crepe that was merely a vessel would not do. Ayano had had no idea Taro was so particular.

Even more alarming, however, was that multiple students commented they never could manage to make crepes themselves, no matter how hard they tried.

Ayano was used to cooking for herself and, to some extent, cooking for small groups. But she'd never made crepes before, and now it was imperative that she become a master, no matter how much batter it took. Taro deserved crepes for breakfast every morning, and she would do whatever it took to make that happen.

For now, however, she was forced to admit defeat. She popped some bread in the toaster for herself and opened the window to air out the burnt crepe smell.

Then Ayano's phone started playing techno music. She grabbed it in surprise; she never downloaded any special ringtones.

The picture of the caller was a silhouette with square glasses and red hair. Info-chan... calling? Not a text conversation?

And she'd taken the liberty of giving herself a custom ringtone to boot. Show off. Ayano swiped to answer the call. "Yes?"

"You've been busy." Info-chan's tone was icy.

Ayano fished her toast onto a plate. "What? Mad that me and Osana are getting along ok?"

"It's not my problem. Do whatever you feel like." Typing keys in the background. Info-chan probably had a headset. "Unlike you, I don't have a singular obsession."

Ayano put the phone on speaker so she could butter her toast. "Then what's eating you? Got anything to confess?"

"Excuse me?"

"You sold photos from my phone without my permission." Ayano scraped her knife against her plate. "Or cutting me a slice for that matter."

"That's your fault for giving away merchandise for free," Info-chan said. "Consider it an early warning to be careful what you share on the internet."

"You think you have anything to teach me about that?" Ayano tore a piece off her toast.

Info-chan just laughed.

Ayano quietly took bites of toast and waited for Info-chan to continue.

"If you knew I was the one who sold the photos," Info-chan said slowly, "and if your issue is really that you want your share of the profits... then why are you trying to bother the blog owner? Don't tell me you think that blog is mine?"

"I know it's not yours," Ayano said. "And since it's not your blog, why do you care if I have a problem with it?"

"Take a wild guess. Use that devious brain of yours."

Ayano swallowed a buttery bite. "JuicyGirl is your client?"

"More than that."

Ayano felt an impish impulse. "Your girlfriend then?"

"No!" There was a loud clunk on Info-chan's end, then a muttered curse. Maybe she'd knocked something over in her surprise.

Ayano gave Info-chan a moment to collect herself, then submitted her final theory. "You need someone like JuicyGirl, don't you? All the dirt you have on your clients- JuicyGirl is the one who makes sure it gets seen. Secrets are only dangerous if they become public knowledge."

"I don't need anyone," Info-chan said icily.

"Really?" Ayano ran a finger along the edge of her plate. "Then you won't mind if anything happens to Hoshiko?"

"Don't think about it," Info-chan hissed.

Jackpot. Info-chan had just confirmed JuicyGirl's identity, and Ayano hadn't needed to take a single panty shot to exchange for this intel.

"You can't afford to cross me, Ayano Aishi," Info-chan muttered darkly. "You have far too much to lose."

Ayano's heart stopped. "You wouldn't... not over something like this..."

"Why wouldn't I?" Info-chan chuckled. "It would be so easy to break you. Just a little message to your Senpai..."

"Don't." Ayano dug her nails into the table. "You can't. If... if Hoshiko goes down who else do you have!?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"That is not what I meant." Ayano's mind was racing. "I'm one of your best customers- and your best supplier! How many other students are there that are willing to do anything- hurt anyone? Are you really prepared to lose both me and Hoshiko from your network in one blow?"

Info-chan paused. "I'd rebuild."

"But why bother?" Ayano tried to calm herself. Info-chan was just keeping a poker face; she wasn't as all-powerful as she was pretending to be. All Ayano had to do was call her bluff and not lose her nerve. "You can always find another blogger to do your dirty work. Akademi has always been a hotbed of gossip. People like seeing the flaws in supposedly excellent students. But ruin my chances with Taro and... and..." Ayano felt her vision darken. "And there may be no Akademi left for you to rule."

Info-chan was silent.

Ayano slowly inhaled, the dark clouds in her mind receding. Her deepest secret was safe.

"Yan-chan," Info-chan said. "You don't want me as your enemy, you know."

"That's fine," Ayano said. "It's always business first with you, isn't it?"

"Mmm." Info-chan's tone was brittle. "What if I told you that something big has just happened that you don't know about? There's more you need from me than just my silence."

"What kind of something?" Ayano's voice was lighter. She'd faced off with Info-chan and won; she felt on top of the world.

"Not something you'll hear from just anyone. Something small... but something that could ruin everything for you."

"And?"

Info-chan's chair squeaked. "I'm not going to tell you. You seem too hell bent on ruining my business, so I'm going to sit back and let you suffer."

Ayano rolled her eyes. "Sure. How much do you want me to pay for your precious news?"

"I don't want money this time. I want you to remind me what you're capable of." Squeak, keyboard sounds. "You've been pretty gentle for a girl who should theoretically be capable of... anything, as you say. It's time for you to prove that these students mean nothing to you."

"What do you mean?" Ayano popped the last piece of toast in her mouth.

"Get me a picture of Kokona Haruka," Info-chan said. "Not panties. Chest. Shirtless."

"Sorry?" Ayano stared at the phone. "How do you expect me to catch that?"

"You're a stalker. You'll find a way." More typing. "And you'd better figure it out before you go back to school, or you'll be in for a nasty surprise."

The call cut off. Ayano was left staring at her home screen.

And then, a text message from Kokona popped up. "My dad says it's fine, but your place would be better. Is that ok?"

Ayano swiped the message in alarm to find a text conversation had been in progress while she was on the phone with Info-chan. Texts to Kokona from Ayano's phone. All the typing she'd heard on Info-chan's end must have been the sound of Info-chan hacking Ayano's phone and sending fake messages. Had Info-chan only called Ayano to distract her? Was this Info-chan's plan from the beginning or was she very good at improvising?

Ayano quickly scrolled up to read what 'she' had told Kokona.

"Hey, I missed you at school today. You OK?" -AA

"Not really, no. Thanks for the cookies!" -KH

"I can't believe what happened..." -AA

"Do you know what you're going to do? Will you be back at school on Mon?" -AA

"I don't know. I just want to find a hole to die in." -KH

"Don't give up! I'm in your corner!" -AA

"Thanks; it means a lot right now..." -KH.

"Hey, do you want to spend the weekend together?" -AA

"Oh- as in a sleepover, or...?" -KH

"That sounds fun! If you aren't busy." -AA

"...the house feels extra empty to me r/n..." -AA

"I get that!" -KH

"I didn't really have any plans... and it sounds like fun!" -KH

"I'll talk with my dad real quick, ok?" -KH

"My dad says it's fine, but your place would be better. Is that ok?" -KH

Ayano was dumbfounded at their whole fake conversation. A sleepover with Kokona... would be the perfect opportunity for the photoshoot Info-chan wanted. That must have been why Info-chan set this up.

Explaining to Kokona that her phone had been hacked would probably require admitting that... that Info-chan and Ayano were working together. And from there... maybe Kokona would realize that Ayano wasn't such a good girl after all.

Ayano seethed. Who did Info-chan think she was? This redheaded needed to get checked and soon... but for now...

"Sure," Ayano typed. "Come at 5:00 and I'll make us dinner?"

"Cool- I'll bring chips!" -KH

Great. That gave Ayano a few hours to meet with someone important.

Ayano left her phone on the dining room table and went to the basement. She pulled a shoebox off a dusty shelf and opened the lid.

The grey nondescript flip phone inside was reserved for emergency calls to her parents. It was a special piece of untraceable technology, but also too specified to use for Ayano's everyday activities. The camera didn't even work well. But this was definitely an emergency.

Ayano knew the number by heart. The answer came after just one ring.

"Hi! Who is this? I don't have a vehicle BTW- can you do a scam that's not about warrantees?"

"Midori, it's Ayano." Ayano could hear the question marks popping above Midori's head. "I've been hacked. I need your help."


Man, I thought the weekend would never get here :p

Sorry most of this chapter is about phones.

It's been busy season in my line of work but that season is wrapping up.