Hinamizawa Hell

"Revealing Demons" Arc: 2

Ch. 4: Weight of the World

Author's Note: Hey everyone, back with a new chapter. Finals are almost over, and soon I'll be able to write more fan-fiction again. I'm definitely looking for it.

This chapter is mainly concerning the beginnings of Mion's responsibility and the aftermath of Oryu's funeral. However, just when things are seemingly getting back on track, the paths taken will soon take a new twist, for better or worse. Can you solve the riddle yet of what the next disaster will be?

"Mion-sama, you have really become Oryu's heir for the Sonozaki family. I wish you good luck in the future meetings of the village heads. Please, remember our prior discussion about the plans for the Crimson Lotus Festival. I don't think we'll be able to uphold your grandmother's wishes for the festival in the same month, so we should probably hold the Watanagashi festival first this June and then the former the next month. That should be ample time for…"

"Thank you Kimiyoshi-san, but I'm sure we can talk about this at the next meeting. Please, for the meantime return home and get some rest. You look tired"

Mion bowed to Kimiyoshi as he thanked her for the hosting of the funeral, and took his separate way. Other guests came and left from the meeting house, and the proceeding funeral meeting was almost over. The day was long for everyone, especially the Sonozaki family. From what Mion could perceive, her mother was doing better after receiving the support of her friends and village members. Her sister, Shion, was with Satoshi and Satoko most of the night, not really talking despite Satoko's attempts to get Shion to smile. Satoshi did what he could for Shion, which probably did the most out of anyone else. She still seemed very down about her grandmother's passing, as if unable to have ever buried the hatchet personally with her. But for Satoshi, simply holding her hand and letting Shion rest her head against his shoulder offered the best comfort in this situation.

As for the others, Rena, Rika and Hanyuu had left not too long ago. Rika had conversed with Hanyuu before, hoping to go home and drink one of her favorite wines. Rena, however, did what she could that day and decided to go home to her father. The next day would be a Saturday, so she was most likely than not going out to see her new boyfriend. For the meantime, they bid Mion farewell, however awkward it was now. Mion gave Rika and Hanyuu farewells, but when Rena came up to see her, only did the situation turn a bit sour.

"Mi-chan…I'm sorry for what happened. If there's anything I can do…or if you need to talk to someone…"

*You can do me a favor and not be with Kei-kun so much…*

Rena, at seeing Mion stare blankly at her, stood there without as much as a word. Lately, Rena had found Mion rather odd, subtly making stares at her all day. It unnerved her somewhat, not understanding why her best friend would act so coldly towards her. Her woman's intuition tried to alert her of something, but for all it was worth Rena couldn't tell what it was.

Mion came out of her thought process, bit her lower lip, and tried to regain her composure. She mentally abused herself for thinking like that, and gave a weak smile in return to her friend.

"I'm sorry…today's just drained me. Thanks…for coming. I'll be fine…I'm sure…"

Rena stared at her for a long moment, almost as if, from what Mion could tell, was an act that delved deep into Mion's soul. Rena's eyes seemed a bit darker to Mion, with some power that could pierce the shadows of her mind and read Mion in every way. However, after a few more moments Rena smiled and bowed to Mion, taking her leave as well.

*…What…was that? I must be tired…at least everything is ending now. I wonder…if I can find Kei-kun…* she thought.

She searched for him from room to room, having to also deal with more villagers and village heads as she journeyed to find Keiichi. It was strange to her, in that this was most of her upbringing around these types of people, but at the same time so new and terrifying to her. She was drained of energy, that much was sure, but as every minute passed by she lost that much more hope of finding him.

*I guess…he left already. I don't blame him…with everyone around it would be hard to talk to him. Damnit…*

She sighed and sat down in a nearby chair, letting her funeral-attire kimono slump over her feet. She lowered her head from everyone else's view, hoping that no one saw her eyes welling up with tears. At the same time, thoughts whizzed through her head, as dark as they were. The more this went on, the more she became light-headed with tension, as well, her back paining her.

*…Kei-kun…Kei-kun…* His name reverberated throughout her mind over and over.

"…I don't know why you are persistent on this Maebarra-san…"

"This is something that needs to be done. I'm convinced in my mind already that this is something we'll both want…"

Mion lifted her head at hearing his name. Her glance shot out across the room, where her respective parents now stood side by side in front of Keiichi, as if in deep conversation away from others. She couldn't make out the rest of the conversation, but it sparked her interest somewhat. Instantly, she rose from her seat and headed over to Keiichi with earnest.

"Kei-kun…I've been looking everywhere for you…what's going…"

"Ah, Mi-chan. Keiichi-san was just telling us about…his intentions for his future career."

While her mother was sweet to her expression, her father remained stern on some part of the prior conversation. He examined Keiichi right down to his bare character as if trying to gage a worthy adversary. It worried Mion a bit, but when it came to the mentioning of boys, her father was always overprotective.

"Future career? Like what Kei-kun?" she asked, wholly interested. She knew their schooling would be almost high school level soon, but to see Keiichi talk about his future career was a bit odd.

"Ah, Mi-chan. Well…I was thinking somewhere along the lines of…maybe policing…"

"Hmm…it's a good idea, but it'll take more than that to…"

"Dear!"

Mion looked at her father, who suddenly gritted his teeth and mentally chided himself for talking. At the same time, her mother elbowed him in the side, telling him to keep his mouth shut.

*What's going on? Is Kei-chan hiding something from me?*

Keiichi looked at Mion, seeing that she was staring at him with some confusion. However, he was saved when her mother tried to switch conversation.

"Umm…Mi-chan, your father and I are going to head home. Will you come with us or will you have Maebarra-kun escort you home?" she asked, lovingly. Her mother almost had a whimsical look about her, as if she had some kind of good news told to her.

"Umm…yeah, I'll go back with Kei-kun. I'll see you at home," she replied. Her parents, bowing respectfully, turned and left, leaving Keiichi and herself alone for once.

The walk back was a little more awkward and quieter than usual. Mion held Keiichi's arm, enjoying for once just being near him and alone for that matter. However, the situation felt different for her, as the mere utterance of a word would set off a chain reaction. Keiichi, meanwhile, avoided looking her directly in the eyes, as if fearing being caught red-handed from something.

As they walked, the cicadas, with their songs dying slowly with the coming night, gave a serene feeling to the atmosphere now that the skies cleared up. The storm was long over, but some thunder could be heard in the distance, giving a forewarning mention of dark skies. However, with the storm's passing the night sky soon filled with bright stars for all of Hinamizawa.

Nearing the halfway mark of their journey, and making sure to stay on the road and away from the puddles of water, Mion decided to take the lead and get to the heart of the matter.

"Umm…Kei-kun…"

"Ah…yes, Mi-chan?" Keiichi stuttered nervously, trying his best to keep his stature.

"…you're not hiding something from me or anything, are you?" she asked, stopping in their tracks. She looked him in the eyes, caringly but sternly. She knew that if Keiichi really loved her, even through all they've gone through, that he wouldn't lie to her. However, his next words didn't satisfy this part, nor make her angry. It only confused her.

"Yes…I am hiding something, but if you'll trust me Mi-chan, then you don't have anything to worry about…" His voice wasn't as shaky as before, but more confident and resolved.

"…K…Kei-kun…why won't you just tell me? I know you and my parents were talking before, but…what is so important that you can't just be honest with me…"

Keiichi turned to her and simply patted her head. He looked at her with those same eyes she fell in love with, the eyes that told Mion truthfully that nothing was wrong and that he meant well for her. The same eyes that said Keiichi cared for her straight from his heart. She blushed at this, while trying to think of something to say to him.

"Mi-chan...What I'm doing…is for us…" was all that he could utter.

"For…us?" she tried pressing the situation, but before she had a chance Keiichi pressed his lips against hers, holding Mion closely in a kiss. His arms wrapped around her body, as she fell into the mood and returned the kiss herself. They stayed that way for a while, not wanting to let the other go. When they did, Keiichi did his best to put Mion at ease.

"For now, trust me ok? That's all I need to do what I need to do."

"…Ok. I'll trust you if that's what you want."

It was sincere. That's all she could do for the time being. She didn't pursue the subject further, but her mind worried constantly over the situation.

*Kei-kun…what are you up to?*

"So…it's the weekend tomorrow. Would you like to do something?" asked Mion. Keiichi looked up to her, as they neared the entrance to her house. He seemed happy, but after a few moments of thought, he casted a downtrodden look.

"Umm…I can't actually. I promised to help Rika with some things at her home tomorrow, and then Satoshi wanted to go play some baseball at the field. But if you want you can come along and help out, then you and I could go…"

"Ah. Mion-sama, it's good that you're home. The village heads wanted me to make sure that you remember the meeting tomorrow at the usual place. You should get a good night of sleep before you go tomorrow. If you will, please…"

Kasai, suddenly appearing from the entrance door, pointed for Mion to return inside. It was getting late, and Kasai seemed like he wasn't in the mood to debate it. However, Mion looked sternly at him, and responded without fear.

"I'll come in when I will…Kasai…" she said, rather darkly. Kasai sweated a bit, shaken to his core at seeing Mion act so…coldly. Without another word, he went back inside, believing that Mion was just as stressed and tired as he was.

Keiichi noted this sudden change in tone and demeanor. However, he was surprised when she turned back to him that she smiled for the first time that day.

"Guess it can't be helped Kei-kun. Maybe another day I guess…"

"Yeah…I guess that does put a damper on things. Well, tell me how everything goes tomorrow with the meeting and all. If things go right this month, maybe Watanagashi this year will be better. Besides…my parents are going on their second honeymoon right after the festival, so you and I, well…you know…can be together…and…maybe even more…"

Mion looked at him, surprised with his last statement. She remembered last Christmas that his parents were going away for awhile, but the time specified or how long the trip was wasn't clear. Hearing this sudden possibility of being with Keiichi was worth putting up with the first few weeks of her new position. She smiled at him, embraced him lovingly in a hug, and kissed him thereafter.

As quickly as the kiss started, it ended, despite both teens' protests. Keiichi gave her one last peck on the cheek, said his goodbyes, and then left back down the road. Mion watched as he left, smiling till he was out of view.

But once he was gone, Mion's smile quickly soured. She headed back into the house, praying for the poor soul that crossed her path. Kasai's previous request, even just the mentioning of her work tomorrow, irked the hell out of her. All the while, on her mind, was the constant nagging of everyone taking her time away from Keiichi.

*Not even an hour alone with him…everyone…just go away...*

"Ok everyone. Our agenda today is for the upcoming events this summer. If Mion-sama would like to start, then by all means go ahead."

All the village leaders were gathered today for the monthly meeting of affairs within Hinamizawa. At the same meeting house used for the funeral procession the day before, now sat many leaders including Mion, Rika, Kimiyoshi and even Dr. Irie. The village's budgets, activity's council, and other such political subjects were presented before this meeting of elders. Today's agenda, as per Mion's presence on the matter, was important regarding three areas today. To start on the first subject, Mion sat forward and addressed the group.

"Good morning everyone. Our first topic today will be in regards to the Watanagashi festival being moved up before the Crimson Lotus Festival. I know this may put burdens on some of you, but in all due respect it has been this village's tradition to hold it during the month of June. The festival will be on the same date, and the following Crimson Lotus Festival, our second topic today, will be set in the following month. Any objections?" she asked, emotionless.

The rest of the group smiled in response, giving no worry on the matter. In accordance, a vote was taken, and the motion for the festival date was passed. However, on the second subject, Dr. Irie questioned what the Crimson Lotus Festival was exactly, not being too particular on the past meetings about it. For a good while, he was on leave from the committee, trying to recover from multiple surgeries on his leg. Ever since the Dark Spector incident, Dr. Irie's leg hasn't been too good, but within the next few months of therapy doctors were hopeful he would make a full recovery.

"So what exactly pertains to this festival, Mion-sama?" he asked.

"My grandmother had hopes of purifying the bad luck in this village for some time. This year seemed appropriate for that. The festival will entail a purification ritual, following what will be normal festival activities such as food shops and such. However, the festival will, mainly, pertain to the blossoming of Hinamizawa's rarest flower, the Crimson Lotus. We were told by local agriculturalists that the lotus's bloom once every hundred years, and on the date of the festival this year they will do so. It's a nice addition, I must say, for this festival in July. Otherwise, my grandmother had hope of what would be called "Courtship" to occur."

Everyone in the room discussed in silent whispers about this festival. With the specifics now known to everyone, the festival seemed appropriate enough for the village. However, this "courtship" mention was new, as even Oryu had never said anything about it.

"And of this courtship?" asked another village leader.

"Courtship, as my late grandmother put it, was an old tradition of common families in this village and most of Japan. The female would pick a male to go out as a form of courtship, but this year it will be applied to the festival instead. It was my grandmother's way of beginning new formal relations with families in the village, and I agree on the matter completely."

Everyone thought over this concept for a few minutes. No one seemed to have any objections to this addition to the festival, so the only thing left was to accept it. After a unanimous vote occurred in favor of the festival, the motion was passed.

With that said, and with most of the unnecessary topics already completed, that left the last item on the agenda.

"Now everyone, I know this village's history with outsiders has been rather…unfortunate. I happily, though, would like to bring up something everyone may or may not have heard of yet. I have received confirmation from the government that the Dam Project will ultimately be ineffective, and two weeks before the Crimson Lotus Festival the area will be demolished for good. This burden that has been on the village for so many years will finally be gone once and for all."

Everyone in the room grew loud with talk after this announcement. However, the opinion was clear: the demolishment of the Dam Project would cause joy for everyone in the village. Mion was glad to know that a scar of the village would finally be healed forever, and that with so much happening this month that Hinamizawa would be bursting with life.

After that was all said and done, the meeting was adjourned and the next scheduled for the following weekend. The day grew late, and after spending many hours at the meeting house Mion was ready to go home for a bit.

"How are you doing, Mi-chan? Did you sleep ok after last night?" Rika, appearing next to Mion suddenly, patted her on the shoulder as everyone left. She seemed more cheerful than usual that day, probably just happy to know that the dam would be demolished soon. Mion just smiled back to her, somewhat tired though.

"I did, but I'm just a bit tired. All this responsibility now…it's kinda overwhelming…" she said, looking sad at the thought.

"Mii…Don't be sad Mi-chan…you'll get used to it. It's not that bad, I'm sure. Besides, if you need help you can always come to me and ask. I'll be more than happy to aid you in whatever way I can…"

Mion nodded, but deep down she didn't want any help. She knew she was strong enough for this, and that anything coming her way was manageable somehow. The meetings were stressful, but otherwise from managing the family businesses and affairs nothing in this position was that bad. The hardest part was just balancing her life and everything else.

"Don't worry. This old man can take it. Besides, with that done I can spend some time with Kei-kun tomorrow at least. He went to your house today, right?" Mion was hopeful to see him tomorrow, seeing as it would be the first time in a few weeks she could do something with him.

"Yes, he did. You know, Keiichi's quite strong for his age. He was able to help me move all my stuff around at home before I left for the meeting. He's probably with Satoshi right now at the baseball field. They went to play catch for a bit. Nipah!" she went, grateful for Keiichi's help. They walked outside to Kasai's car, from which they would head to Rika's house to drop her off.

"Hey, Keiichi's supposed to be my slave for the entire summer. If you wanted to use him then you needed my permission," she stated, laughing.

"I'm sorry Mi-chan. It's just that Kei-chan's a big help to a lot of us. When we're not playing it seems like Keiichi's always helping someone. Just the other day I saw him helping Rena on another one of her treasure hunts at the dump. He was all dirty and tired after that one…"

Kasai opened the door for Rika, who jumped inside. She buckled herself up, but when she turned to Mion she noticed that she was still standing outside. What struck her as odd was Mion's blank expression, her eyes almost dull with their bluish-green pigment.

*Rena…was with Kei-kun again?*

Mion's fists balled up, her veins popping out of her hand. However, her blank expression didn't show anger oddly, something Rika instantly noticed as a bad sign.

"Um…Mion-sama…" Kasai nudged.

"…yes, I know damnit…"

Rika's fear instantly went from ground zero to an all time high. Mion's attitude, her cold glare at Kasai as she came in to sit down, and even her angered movements in buckling the seat belt all instigated some warning level in Rika's mind. But, what scared Rika the most was Mion's tone of voice, something filled with jealousy and hatred. She had never seen Mion outwardly burst out like that at Kasai in her life.

"Mii…its ok Mi-chan. I'm sure Kei-chan's just doing it out of the goodness of his heart. You said you would be spending tomorrow with him, right?" Rika did her best to bring some good out of Mion, as Kasai, who couldn't respond back to Mion's shear, terrifying manner, fumbled with starting the car.

Surprisingly, for the second day again, Rika was taken off guard, with Mion's quick change of expression and attitude. She went from terrifying to humble in mere moments, looking to Rika and smiling.

"Oh, don't worry about it. Everyone loves Kei-kun for being Kei-kun…so it's no wonder that everyone needs him for something…"

Mion waved goodbye to Rika, dropping her off at the shrine. The ride back was rather quiet, all the while with Mion keeping her eyes closed in quiet thought. Rika couldn't help but stare at her all the while, trying to figure out what was wrong. Was this the fear that nagged on her mind all the while, ever since last Christmas? Or was this just her paranoia of another disaster on the horizon? Or could this have all been her imagination of Mion's stress being outwardly projected on everyone else? These questions swirled inside her wise mind, as Mion said goodbye and left without another word, her car driving down the dirt road.

Hanyuu came out to greet Rika, smiling at her return. She brought out an iced drink for her, knowing Rika was probably tired from all the work that day. However, she noticed Rika sit down on the top steps of the stone stairway, her head in her arms.

"Hau…Rika-chan, is something wrong?" she asked, worried.

"Hanyuu…" spoke Rika, in her wiser state of existence "…Mion just had an outburst in a way I've never seen before. I'm know that something's wrong with her, but I'm not sure as to what." Rika sighed, accepting the drink from Hanyuu, whom immediately sat down next to her. She patted Rika on the head, trying to reassure her that everything would be ok.

"Don't worry Rika-chan. I'm sure that Mi-chan is just stressed out. I think its best to just wait and see what happens, Hau…" This response, though sincere to Rika, wasn't something that satisfied her.

"Hanyuu…if we do that, then regret will be the least of our worries. We need to watch over Mion for awhile, just to make sure everything's ok…I don'twant it to be a repeat of that time…"

"Rika-chan…if we trust our friends I'm sure that everything will be fine. So why not give Mion the benefit of the doubt and trust her for now? I'm sure she's just really stressed from all that's happened lately."

"…you're probably right Hanyuu. I'm probably just worrying too much. Peaceful times make you rusty I guess…"

"Good. So tell me…" asked Hanyuu, as Rika got up, brushed herself off, and walked with Hanyuu back inside "…how was the meeting?"

"Oh, it was ok. Just the same business on the Watanagashi Festival and this new festival…it's called the Crimson Lotus Festival I think," she responded. Rika sipped on her iced-tea as she stepped inside. "…the Dam Project will also be demolished soon too. I bet Komoto-senpai probably wants to be the one to blow it up!" Rika stated, trying to sound cheerful and jokingly for once.

Unbeknownst to her, Hanyuu had stopped in her tracks, looking at Rika behind her back. Her eyes glowed crimson a bit, as she stared at the house with an emotionless expression.

"So…it's almost time? The Crimson Lotus Ritual approaches…" whispered Hanyuu, in a different tone that Rika would never hear.

He sat alone in his study that night, looking over books acquired from local historians on the village's history. The night was humid, with the coolness of the dark sky surrounding Hinamizawa and its people. Komoto eased into his chair, sipping on some black tea as he studied multiple books all at once. These books were sprawled across his oak desk, amongst stacks of more books that lay strewn in towers around him. Illuminated by a few overhead lights in his study, Komoto silently thought over his interrogation of the Dark Spector and what she had said to him. These thoughts reverberated in his head, causing headache after headache all that Sunday night.

"Onigafuchi…the village of demons. Watanagashi is celebrated to cast out the sins of this village and its people, but in a historical perspective it was a festival of sacrificing to the demons…Damnit! Come on, there has to be something I'm overlooking here. Something about how demons are born? Or maybe there's a specific demon-god in this village I don't know about? DAMNIT! What were you talking about? What did you mean by a "demon born ages ago"?"

Komoto was tired and stressed. He closed his last book and began to rub his eyes. His studies were getting him nowhere, doing no good, but causing his mind to go into overdrive. He balanced his chair back on its hind legs, expertly angling himself against gravity. His closed his eyes, trying his best to put his mind at ease.

"Komoto-kun, are you still up here?"

In a comical outlook, Komoto suddenly lost his concentration and fell backwards into the floor from his chair. His body mangled itself, as the impact sent him into stacks of books around him. Though he wasn't injured, the towers of books fell over his body, almost burying him in a literature grave.

"…Yes…I'm Fine!" he said, cursing under his breath that he had so many books with him.

Mizuho had opened up the attic-ceiling doorway, popping her head above. She looked over the room, but only found Komoto under all the books. She went up, and chuckled at his unfortunate predicament.

"Ah, what would I do without you, love? You certainly provide me with entertainment during my summer break." She laughed.

"Dear, was there something you needed? I'm kinda busy, you know…staying buried under these books?" She got the hint, and pulled him out of the pile, helping him pick up the books and neatly stack them in their proper places.

"Maebarra-san is here to talk to you. He's downstairs waiting in the living room. Also, dinner is ready when you are."

"Hmm? Kei-chan? What could he want at this hour…"

They both closed up the attic ceiling and went downstairs. Komoto went into the living room and greeted Keiichi. Meanwhile, Mizuho began to set up the table for dinner.

"Ah, Kei-chan. What's up? You need help with something?"

"Actually…I need to ask a favor of you Komoto-san…"

Mizuho listened in on this, and set the cooking food on low heat to prevent any burning. She watched the two from the kitchen, hearing the conversation as well.

"A favor…what kind?"

"…If you help me with this…Mion can't know…and I mean she can't know about it…" he stated, with utmost honesty. Komoto sat down, looked Keiichi in the eyes, and made him do likewise.

"I can't promise anything until I know the favor, Kei-chan. That's as good as signing a contract for a cheap scam. Tell me first before I agree to anything…"

"Ok then… it's like this. You see…"