Hinamizawa Hell

Omake 1-1

Ch. 15: Homecoming

The festivities that night were long and enjoyable; new memories abounding for each person. Detective Oishi and many others, including Tomitake, Akasaka, and even some of the private mercenary group members came by to join in for some merrymaking with the others. Though awkward at first, once some alcohol was brought into the mix the military-like soldiers for hire and Oishi's police force joined in for food and fun. It could even be seen that Tomitake was getting along quite swimmingly with some of them, given that they all had military backgrounds.

Previously to the merrymaking, Akasaka informed Komoto that the villagers were debriefed and satisfied with the answers. Komoto looked at him surprisingly, amazed that the villagers took to the answers given so well. Akasaka responded that the villagers were used to this sort of thing, given the "Tokyo" incident last summer. With that said, Komoto left it at that, and watched as the others got along so well. Though it was almost midnight, Komoto felt unusually tired with all that happened. His body was sore, his bones were still chilled to the core somewhat, and most of all he longed for a nice warm bed. For now, he decided that enjoying the makeshift party would be sufficient given the circumstances to enjoy. In a large crowd of people; however, Komoto wanted to go out for some fresh air.

He slipped past the others unknowingly and exited the Irie Clinic for a few minutes. With a glass of sake in his hand, he sat outside by himself on a nearby stone wall, sipping the alcohol every other minute. Its sweet taste also warmed up his body once it took effect. His chilled breathe floated up into the night sky, separating out as a large puff of fog flew from his mouth. He watched as the full moon glistened in the now cloudless night sky. He smiled, dwelling on memories when he was out in foreign lands looking at the same yet different moon. As he reached down into a bag he brought outside with him for some more sake, he suddenly realized that the young, blue-haired girl had, out of nowhere, sat next to him.

With a jump, Komoto moved back a bit, even falling off the stone wall into the snowless ground below. Rika sat up above him, looking down at him with keen eyes.

"God! Rika, you almost gave me a heart attack!" he said. He rubbed his bottom, as if in a bit of pain from hitting a bone.

However, Rika just looked down at him, expressing some feeling that was distasteful in a way. She sighed and responded a bit coldly to him.

"You mean like the heart attacks you gave me and all my friends, Komoto-senpai?" she said. He looked up to her, his eyes wide, but ultimately full of intent. He looked down into the ground, sighed, got up and brushed himself off. With that, he sat back down next to her, looking down cast.

"If my eyes were still like they were before, I could have seen you coming a mile away…but…I…deserve that I guess," he responded.

"You deserve that and much more. I may have said back there that I forgive you for what you did, but that doesn't mean I'm happy about it," she replied.

"…"

He looked back up into the night sky, but this time smiling a little. He closed his eyes and dwelled on another memory.

"Rika-chan…I remember quite fondly of a time when you yourself kept secrets from others, am I correct?"

Rika blushed a little bit at this one. She was mad at him deep down, that much was sure, but for him to just turn the tables on her when she had every right to be mad? That alone was not going to go without argument.

"That situation and this one…"

"Are what? Different? Rika-chan, you wanted to meet some goal in the end, but your fate decided that keeping secrets from others would be your undoing. When you finally told your friends the truth, only did you escape the grasp of fate's will in the end. But for me…I never once lied to you. That you must surely realize by now…"

Rika looked up at him and became furious. She had some tears in her eyes and, from that, began to wonder how he could make any logic out of the arguement.

"Never lie to me?! I…trusted you and even told you that I would fight with you in this game! How could you go behind our backs and act like we couldn't pull our own weight? Each one of us could…"

"I knew that already! But didn't you already know I would pull this kind of thing?" he asked.

"How could I know…that…" she stuttered. She backed away a bit in fear, seeing Komoto become more serious.

"Rika-chan…think. What is it that tied you and me together?" he stated.

She thought long and hard about his statement on that cold winter night. She tracked back to the first time she met him and everything else after that. Ultimately, she could only think of one thing, and from that she knew he had already won the argument.

"Memories…"

"Yes…our memories. You saw my memories and knew that I had this capability. Even so, you had the facts and knowledge to realize this. Rika-chan…I'm not angry nor am I saying I was right in everything I did, but I had no other options left. The Dark Spector was nearing her goal, and I thought that like other goals accomplished during stages of the Hinamizawa Syndrome that the victim would inevitably commit suicide. I had to stop it once I found out the number was nearing its final toll. I'm sorry…but I tried my best in the clues to tell you I was still alive. I even said to you that 'when I'm not here, I really am…' remember?"

He sighed and took another sip of his sake. She bowed her head and said nothing for awhile. After some time passed, she picked up her head, feeling defeated. However, Komoto didn't want it to end like that. Unbeknownst to her, he pulled something out from his bag.

"Rika-chan…I was intent on doing this for myself and to protect the others. This one time, please…" he kneeled down to her level, smiling a bit "…I ask that you forgive, and I mean truly forgive, my momentary lapse of judgment. So to make it up to you…" he handed her a wrapped bottle of some sorts "…I'll give you this and make a promise on it: from here on out I will trust you all and look to you for help when I need it. I won't do this kind of thing anymore, and I will seek out the advice and consolation of friends when I'm in need, ok?" he smiled.

Rika looked at him, no longer with tears in her eyes, and then down to the wrapped bottle. She took it out and realized that it was a vintage year of her father's and her own favorite brand of alcoholic drink: Bernkastel. She blushed at receiving the gift, and looked back up to him. With a nod, she agreed with the promise, giving him one of her happiest responses.

"Nippah!" she replied.

"And by the way, I don't support minors drinking, but I think you're an exception, right?"

"Hmm…well, I'm sure its safe to say that compared in age, I'm the wiser and older one…nippah!" Rika gave him a cheerful yet unusual response this time, almost as if her darker and wiser self came out and gave a classic "nippah" response. He smiled none the less, and pouring her some sake as well, toasted to the promise and the night. She did, however, still have one question on her mind. "Umm…Komoto-senpai?"

"Yes?"

"Umm…how did your eyes return to normal?" She asked, inquisitively.

"…When Mizu-chan went missing, that's when my own Hinamizawa Syndrome really began for the worst. I cursed myself that day I suppose, only wanting to see her with my own eyes till the day we met up again. Till then…I think I was meant to see and experience the memories of others…be they good, bad…or evil…Thankfully, that day was today when I found her again, and the curse was lifted…"

The next morning was indifferent to Keiichi for once. His head hurt like hell, and judging by the way things looked around him there was some method to the madness. Amongst all that lied before him, trash, cans, and some food items all lay to waste on the ground and couches.

He looked over to a separate couch where Tomitake and Takano were clearly passed out. Those two seemingly drank way too much last night and passed out. Tomitake even had some drawings on his face, probably posted by the other military figures for some odd reason.

To his left in the lobby he saw Rena, Satoko and Hanyuu with a blanket covering them. They slept soundly next to each other, both sporting pajamas instead of cosplay from the previous night's antics. Keiichi smiled at that memory, now having a form of blackmail to use against Satoko; courteous of Dr. Irie and his camera.

Dr. Irie, Shion and Satoshi were already up, cleaning the previous night's party. They carried trash bags and brooms along as they walked from room to room, grabbing every piece of garbage and sweeping up the floors. It seemed that was the least they could do for Dr. Irie's help in the past.

What was odd for Keiichi, however, was not seeing Rika or Komoto and Mizuho. They must have slept in other rooms for the night; at least, that was his guess. Komoto and Mizuho probably had a room to themselves, and Rika probably had some packing up to do in her room at the clinic, given that it was safe to live on her own again.

However, oddest of all to Keiichi was the whereabouts of Mion. He looked around, as best he could with the major headache on his mind, and still couldn't find her.

With a sigh and a groan Keiichi went back underneath the covers of his large bed. He shut the door first, then flopped himself on the rather soft bed. As he did, one of his lingering hands found a much softer object.

"Hmm…auggguuu…really squishy…" he murmured in his sleepy daze. He squeezed the object and found it had a nice feel to it, but couldn't figure out what it was.

"Ahhhh…Kei-kun…stop that…it tickles…" came a voice next to him.

"Mmmm…sorry Mi-chan…"

"…"

"…Wait a sec…MI-CHAN?!"

Keiichi sprung up from his bed and looked next to him, realizing what was happening.

"…M…M…Mi-chan?!" he said again.

As Keiichi picked up the covers, he found Mion sleeping next to him, without her ribbon holding up her hair. He looked up and down her body, realizing that she was partially naked, wearing only her panties and her bra. He instantly got a nosebleed from seeing this, drooling at the sight before him.

Mion stirred from her sleep, rubbing her right eyes and gazing at him sleepily. However, once the light hit her body did she feel a painful headache coming. She rubbed her temples, having a hung over look to her.

"Ahh…damn…sake…ugh…"

She looked over to Keiichi, not even realizing they slept in the same bed that night. Once she realized this, however, did she notice that he turned pale white and statue like.

"K…K…KEI-KUN?!" she yelled out.

They both looked at each other awkwardly, realizing now that both of them were clad in very little clothing. Keiichi, once looking over himself, realized he had just boxers on. Mion, on the other hand, had on her black bra and panties, enticing something Mion clearly unexpected.

Looking down at his boxers, Keiichi could have been easily said to be having some "morning wood" problems. Mion blushed as red as a tomato, her jaw dropping so far down to the ground that embarrassment could kill her that moment. Thankfully, it subsided after they covered themselves a bit. Like most things, however, it went with some fuss.

"W…What are you getting so embarrassed about? I let you do 'that thing' to me and…" stuttered Mion. She was obviously referring to the night they spent together after confessing their love to one another.

"Y…You're one to talk! I'm a guy after all. This happens on a daily basis, at least twenty times a day!" he stated. It didn't help the cause, given that Mion blushed even more. After some struggling for dominance over the bed covers, Mion managed to fall onto his almost naked body, lying against his chest. She looked up to him, feeling every detail of his innermost parts. They practically touched in reality "down there", making it very unusual yet new to the feelings for them. Mion even took into account just how big Keiichi was in his innermost parts, causing her to blush even more but at the same time fantasize about dirty thoughts and ideas. She drooled a bit from her mouth at the thoughts.

However, though they were in that compromising position, they both sighed, trying to get over their headaches.

"Ugh…my head…it's like being punched by you a thousand times Mi-chan…" murmured Keiichi.

"And mine feels like Rena squeezed the life out of me while in "Take it home" mode…ugh…"

After a few moments of regaining their composure, Mion rested her head against Keiichi's chest, feeling the security and warmth fill her body. She smiled at the feeling, not even minding the headache or the embarrassment of being partially naked. She listened to his heartbeat, almost being lulled back to sleep from its peaceful sounds.

"Heh…we're really an odd couple, huh Mi-chan?" he asked. Mion broke out of her peaceful rhythm for a moment, looking up to him with her beautiful eyes.

"I'm still…new to all this Kei-kun. Besides, its not like…you and I really had a lot of time together…these past few weeks…" she stated. Mion buried her face into his chest, not wanting to meet his eyes. However, all she got in response was him gently brushing her hair with his hand, sending a wave of pleasure over her once exhausted body.

"I'm…sorry Mi-chan. I had an idea that you were feeling that way all this time. That and the stress your family placed on you as one of the acting heads of the Sonozaki family…" she instantly picked her head up and looked into Keiichi's eyes deeply.

"You…knew? But how?" she asked, feeling some remorse for worrying him like that.

"Mi-chan…I felt the same way all this time. I wanted to be with you and do things with you, but we couldn't because of this whole mess. But now that it's over…we can actually do things again without worry. And I mean…a lot of things." Keiichi blushed at that last part of his speech, prompting Mion to blush a bit likewise.

"Umm…Kei-kun…what do you mean by that?" she asked. She moved closer to him so that their faces met an inch away from each other.

"Well…when my father phoned me yesterday to make sure I was alright, he told me that since this entire mess was over that he and my mother were going to get away for awhile from Hinamizawa to take a break. They said something about traveling to Europe for a few weeks, and given that my Dad's artwork has been selling quite well lately, he and my mom can afford it. They offered to take me along…but…well…" he smiled down to Mion, who looked a bit stunned at the refusal to the offer. "…I have more important things here. And most importantly…I think you and I deserve a vacation of our own sorts…just us and no one else." He smiled again.

That statement, of which Keiichi would sacrifice an opportunity to travel and see the world a bit, just to be with her, alone made Mion the happiest girl in the world. She gave Keiichi a large smile and hugged him as tight as she could; embracing her love in excitement. He gladly returned her with his own hug, but after a few moments of that he picked her chin up, looking at her with his charms unveiled. He closed his eyes, as did she, aiming to plant a gentle and sensual kiss on her lips. Just as they were brushing each other's lips, the door to their room suddenly slid open.

"Ugh…Sis…Kei-chan…Come on! Get a move on! You helped make most of this…mess…last…"

They both opened their eyes wide and looked into the door way, breaking off the moment and the kiss with that. Standing there was Shion, who at first was stunned at seeing their half naked bodies under the covers together on the floor, but soon after gave one of her devilish grins to them.

"Oh ho ho! My my Sis… I didn't take you for…"

*Slam!*

Mion had rushed to the door in a blink of an eye and managed to close it quickly without Shion realizing it. She locked the door and moved back, satisfied that Shion couldn't manage to get in. With all of Shion's might, she twisted and turned the doorknob, but all in all it was in vain. Heaving a sigh of relief, Mion twisted back to Keiichi, giving him an awkward smile.

"Just…what happened last night, Kei-kun?" she asked.

They both sat down on the bed together, trying their best to remember. After Keiichi looked around the room for clues, only then did he remember all that happened when he saw a bottle of sake on the ground, knocked over near two small drinking cups. Mion saw the same sight and instantly remembered.

"Damn it…when Rika wants us to get drunk and put a show on…she always wins…" they both stated. They sighed, retelling the event to one another.

"I think we first started out by sitting on the couch, and then Rika came back into the lobby after speaking with Komoto-san…" Keiichi stated first.

"…Then she played a trick on us, mixing some alcohol into only Our drinks, and from that we got a bit loose and started playing some more games...crap…I don't even remember which ones or who won, but the penalties still follow…ugh…" replied Mion.

"…And then we came into the room…and…then…"

They both looked over to a pile of clothes on the ground, noticing that it was their own.

"…then…wait…it was 3 in the morning by then. All we did was…"

"Pass out!" they both shouted, happy that they didn't do anything irrational, but none the less it felt pathetic in a way.

They sighed and began to get dressed, though; Mion could see Keiichi get in a few quick peeks as she did so. She grinned on the inside, glad to know that since this mess was finally over things would go back to normal. They quickly hurried and managed to get out into the lobby before the younger ones woke up, however, Shion only gave Mion and Keiichi evil grins, knowing that she had a long discussion ahead of her later… alone with Mion.

"Hey Rika-chan, where did Komoto-san and Mizu-chan go?" asked Keiichi. He just finished grabbing his stuff from the clinic and met the rest of the group outside. It was noontime that day, and for once the sun had shone out all across Hinamizawa. It seemed the dark storms that once brought such cold weather to the village had now subsided.

"Mii… I believe Komoto-senpai and Mizu-chan went to his house. They said something about meeting us for dinner tonight at my place," she stated, with her unusually happy attitude.

"That is so. We're gonna cook a big feast for everyone, and for desert its going to be a lot of creampuffs!" stated Hanyuu even more happily. She drooled at the thought of getting creampuffs for a treat. It was her favorite snack amongst all deserts known.

The group walked along the now muddy path back to their homes for the day till later that night. With the sun shining like it did, they could only hope for the warm weather to return to Hinamizawa soon. As they sloshed through the mud, the group recounted the events of the previous night to one another.

"Heh, Rena-chan, I didn't know that you got so skilled with that meat cleaver. Have you been practicing with that thing lately?" asked Keiichi.

"Yeah Rena-chan, I was quite impressed actually. I could have sworn you were using two blades at one point you were so fast," Mion complimented.

"Auuu…it was nothing really, really…auuu" Rena squealed. She blushed and continued walking, happy with her fighting style's improvements.

"Mi-chan, since when did you ever use a real gun? I didn't even know that there was a place to practice nearby, given that guns are illegal." Satoko looked up to Mion, who laughed nervously and brushed her hair with her hand.

"Well, about that…" nervously spoke Mion. Her friends weren't supposed to know that her family even had arms at their disposal, the very least a firearm.

"Satoko-chan, the Sonozaki family is regarded with a duty to protect this village, no matter what means we use at our disposal. If we had to, we'd even use our family's dungeon basement to hold prisoners in times or turmoil." Shion was adamant about that last fact; however, Satoko somehow received chills up and down her spine, as if being in that area before was not her first time.

"Shi-chan, don't scare my little sister. She was only curious, heheheh…" spoke Satoshi. Shion looked up to him, as if having done wrong herself. She instantly blushed and apologized to him, causing everyone to have a fit of laughter. So far, the days were returning to normal again for everyone.

Before Komoto and Mizuho had left the clinic, Dr. Irie had wanted to speak with both of them early that morning. In his office, Dr. Irie was going over some tests that were performed the previous night after their return to the clinic. He was still wearing his cast, showing some signs of improvement in walking with crutches as he went from room to room.

"Komoto-san, it doesn't look good right now. When you told me you were having some chest pains last night, I made it my duty to determine the cause, but I already knew." Dr. Irie was adamant and serious with Komoto, instilling a bit of worry in him and Mizuho.

"What's wrong then? Or should I guess…the syringes?" he replied. Dr. Irie nodded in response.

"That's correct. A normal human body would submit to heavy health problems and even death if they were to inject such amounts of adrenaline into their bloodstream. The normal human heart can't take that much. But those in Hinamizawa, including you two, are exempt from this. The Hinamizawa Syndrome denotes the physical effects of adrenaline production, in which case, the more adrenaline in the body the higher the level of paranoia. Since you went past level 5, you're body adapted to the syndrome quite well I suppose. However, after looking at your chest scans last night, I could see some stress impressions on your heart and some of the major arteries," he stated as looking over some of the paperwork.

"So does that mean Komoto-kun has a bad heart?" Mizuho looked sternly at the doctor, with worry and anger in her eyes. She still couldn't understand why Komoto even used the syringes for battle.

"Well, no. His heart is stressed a bit right now from all the injections, but that should dissipate in time. So the doctor's order is this: no more adrenaline stimulants and, if needed, use the suppressors. In the meantime, you could even be said to be on vacation right now. It's the holidays, so take the next two months easy, ok?" Dr. Irie sounded genuine to him, persuading Komoto in the end to agree to the terms of his recovery.

"Komoto-kun, why did you even use those things? You're already a great fighter in hand to hand combat…" asked Mizuho. She and Komoto walked alongside one another to Komoto's house, carrying their firearms and supplies with them. Mizuho didn't carry much except for her travel pack and her rifle case, along with her brown cloak. Komoto, on the other hand, carried some ammo boxes and two bags filled with other essentials used for living in hiding these past two weeks.

"Since I'm past treatment for the syndrome, I use the depressors for controlling the paranoia, and I use the stimulants to increase my prowess in battle. But the doctor's right: I don't really need those anymore. I'm just going to need to take it easy for awhile. Plus, he gave me some medication for my heart, so I'll recover even faster," he smiled. Komoto seemed very energetic today, even so, more different than the last real time Mizuho saw him so long ago. Last she could remember, Komoto was a lot less happy in those days, but none the less was still a pleasure to be around. Unknowingly to her, she blushed at seeing him so different.

"Hmm…well then, it looks like I'm going to beat you in training then. To think the great Komoto Hagara needed drugs to fight better…heheheh…."

Komoto looked over to Mizuho, who grinned at him evilly. She taunted him just like she did back in their mercenary days. This didn't warrant anger, but a bit of laughter on Komoto's part. They both laughed for a bit, reminiscing of old days together.

Not long after the walk, they managed to reach Komoto's house. As they walked up the doorstep, Komoto pulled out a set of keys, ready to open the door, but noticed some wrecked police caution tape over his door. He sighed, already knowing what was coming next.

"Darn. I hate unpacking…even my own house items…" he sighed again.

Before him were piles of his items stacked in boxes against the walls. He even saw some boxes marked "evidence" and "dangerous", noting his assumption that it was his guns and C4 bricks. At least Akasaka managed to bring it back to him in one piece.

"Must have been hell recovering these on Akasaka-san's part," stated Mizuho. She looked over some of the boxes after placing her bags on the floor. Whilst Komoto looked over his boxes, Mizuho observed his home, taking into account every detail with her keen eyes. After a few moments of looking the place over, a major blush overcame her entire body.

*I'm…in his home…alone with him! Even so…he said he loved me. I'm so nervous, what should I do?* she thought to herself.

"…You hoo? Mizu-chan?"

"Eh?"

Komoto was standing close to her face, waving his hand in front of her. She came out of her mental daze and cringed back a bit, surprised to see him so close.

"Um…sorry, I was thinking about something. What did you say?" she asked. Komoto looked at her curiously, but shrugged it off. It was at some times now that he wished he could look into her memories, but with the ability gone he had to deal with straight facts.

"I've looked over everything and it all seems to be here. We're gonna need to buy some more food, but we don't need to worry about that tonight, since Rika-chan and her friends are treating us to dinner. Hmm…are you alright? You seem very red now." He asked. She shook her head, dissuading his curiousity.

"Er…I'm fine. Say, um…Komoto-kun…ah…about last night." Komoto looked down to her, blushing a bit now.

"Yeah…about that….um…" he stuttered a bit, trying to form the right words.

"Later…we'll discuss it, ok? For now, I think you and I should get settled first…" she stated, looking at the ground with a red look. She didn't want Komoto to see her face, blushing in all its glory.

In response, Komoto smiled and sat down next to her, looking over all his things.

"I guess you're right. Let's clean this up first, and after tonight's dinner we'll talk."