Time almost seemed to blur together, but Chiori vividly remembered holding the torn cloth to Inori's wrist until her other classmate's screaming eventually attracted the attention that they needed. Teachers and other kinds of administration alike scrambled into the bathroom and before Chiori knew it someone had pulled her away.
"Call an ambulance!"
Chiori struggled, but whoever was holding onto her was much stronger than she was. Someone was yelling outside the bathroom and distantly Chiori thought it sounded like Keiji.
There were too many people talking all at once, but Chiori didn't care. All that mattered was Inori. She flailed in the arms of whoever happened to be holding her, but the mystery person caught them and bound them at her sides.
"Please, Chiori, calm down. It's going to be alright." Ms. Akita's whispered into Chiori's ear, trying her best to soothe, but it didn't appear to do much good. Chiori continued to kick out before eventually going limp. Ms. Akita almost dropped her due to the sudden change. "Chiori... Chiori?!"
Unresponsive, Chiori lay limp in Ms. Akita's arms, staring vacantly into nothing while the adults hovered around both Inori and herself. The paramedics arrived after what felt like eternity and began to move everyone out of the way so that they could work.
There was no telling how much time had actually gone by, but for Chiori it felt endless, like a never-ending nightmare. She was covered in blood and Ms. Akita shifted her grip on Chiori as they watched the paramedics strap Inori down and place a mask over her face. The sight set Chiori off again and she attempted to scramble from the woman's arms.
"She's still got a pulse!" someone said, but Chiori couldn't tell who in her panic. Her teacher held her tightly and Chiori's vision swam as they lifted Inori from the bathroom floor. Fresh tears spilled down her cheeks and Ms. Akita shushed her while Inori was wheeled out of the bathroom.
"It's alright," Ms. Akita whispered gently. "It's gonna be okay. We're gonna call your father, okay, Chiori?"
You aren't going to pass out again, are you?
The voice in Chiori's head scoffed, abruptly shoving its way to the forefront of her mind. Chiori clenched her teeth and gripped her head, trying to will the voice away. She wanted to scream. Ms. Akita noticed her distress and tried to calm her down, but Chiori didn't acknowledge her at all. She just wanted the voices to leave her alone!
I told you, your friend is done for, leave her!
Don't speak to me! Chiori cried. She grew visibly more distressed and thrashed in Ms. Akita's arms, her heels scraping against the upholstery. Ms. Akita grit her teeth and held her through it, unable to understand exactly what was happening.
The paramedics lifted Inori onto a stretcher and wheeled her away from the bloody scene in the bathroom, leaving Chiori and the rest of the staff behind. Chiori had gone still again, crying quietly even as her teacher managed to coax her to her feet and to the main office.
They settled her into a chair and stepped back as she immediately drew her knees up, burying her face in them. The voice didn't make a sound and eventually Chiori went still again, sobbing into her knees. Ms. Akita shushed her and reached out to place her hand upon Chiori's shoulder, but the frightened girl flinched away from her.
Ms. Akita could only watch as Chiori drew her knees further in and wrapped her arms around them, shaking like a leaf in the wind.
The school nurse hadn't been by yet to help clean her cuts because Chiori had left her friend Keiji with a bloody nose that needed tending more urgently. Ms. Akita wasn't sure, but she thought that she had heard the sound of something cracking sharply when Chiori slammed her head back into Keiji's face in order to get him to release her. The boy's nose might have been broken. She sighed and traded glances with the principal and a few other teachers as Chiori cowered in one of the chairs in the main office.
Police arrived on the scene shortly after Inori had been taken away. They wanted to ask Chiori questions about what happened, but she was unresponsive to any and all attempts at communication from them or the faculty.
They tried everything, but nothing seemed to gain any type of response other than the blood-spattered girl drawing further into herself in the office chair. She really was a morbid sight with all that blood soaked into her uniform. Chiori's father had already been alerted and they just hoped that he would arrive soon as they began to close the school early and send the kids home for the day.
When Isshin Kurosaki finally did arrive, he was not the jovial man Ms. Akita remembered from the few encounters she'd had with him. He looked grave, almost wild-eyed and Ms. Akita almost flinched at the sight of him, visibly hesitating. He strode into the office and immediately knelt in front of the chair Chiori had curled herself into.
Gradually, His expression softened and they all had to strain themselves to hear him whisper his daughter's name. "Mr. Kurosaki..." The principal attempted to get his attention, but Isshin held up his hand for silence and for some reason they all heeded him.
"Chiori?" Isshin whispered, reaching out to place his hand atop Chiori's head. "Chiori, hey, we're gonna go home now, alright?" She didn't respond for a long time, but then her head lifted just a bit and revealed tearful, reddened eyes.
Her cheeks were smeared with already flaking dots of blood and Isshin's eyes zeroed in on it before gently coaxing her to uncurl herself and let him look her over. "You said she injured a boy," Isshin said as he addressed the other occupants of the room.
They all seemed to flinch visibly. He flashed them all a smile over his shoulder, but they could still tell how much of a strain it was on him and the room grew even more uncomfortable.
"Uh, yes, Keiji Yoshida," The balding principal replied hesitantly, dabbing his brow with a handkerchief. He pushed his square glasses back up the bridge of his nose and cleared his throat. "We fear she may have broken his nose... Mr. Kurosaki, I'm afraid this kind of behavior is–"
The aging principal halted suddenly at the looks he was receiving from both Isshin and Ms. Akita. Chiori's father was one thing, but Akita was not particularly known for her temper and it took him aback to see her direct such a look at him. He was her boss, wasn't he?
The homeroom teacher didn't seem to care. Her bun had come loose somewhere between the bathroom and the office and strands of dark hair framed her face. She looked worn, but her light brown eyes flashed in a way that was just as bad as the look Isshin gave him from over his shoulder in that moment.
The principal wisely closed his mouth.
Ms. Akita composed herself and directed Isshin's attention back to her, police all but forgotten even as they stood to the side of the office watching. "How about I take you and Chiori to the nurse's station? He should still be there."
She motioned for them to follow her and watched as Isshin whispered something to Chiori that eventually managed to coax the girl from her seat. Chiori clung to Isshin's side and slowly he ushered her along with promises of seeing Keiji. At the mention of Keiji's name she seemed to cry even harder, but before they could actually leave there was a commotion outside the office door.
They watched as the door was thrown open with a bang that caused them all to flinch again. "Oi, oi, easy!" cried the voice of a young boy. Batting away the fuming nurse, Chiori gasped as Keiji forced his way into the office. He had a hand placed firmly over his nose and blood drying all down the front of his white uniform shirt.
"You can't just go barging in here!" the nurse squawked, reaching out for the boy only to be batted away again and dodged. "I have to look your injuries over!" Keiji wasn't having it. The nurse was known to be a bit on the heavy-handed side.
"Well, what do we have here?" Isshin inquired, clearly amused at the sight before him. The nurse, a middle-aged woman who looked to be at the end of her rope, flushed considerably. "I see you're giving this nice young lady quite a bit of trouble, Keiji."
Chiori quickly darted in front of Keiji with fresh tears in her eyes and immediately placed her index and middle-finger together. She pressed them to her forehead and then straightened all of her fingers and jerked her hand down in a chopping motion, signing 'I'm sorry' over and over again until Keiji caught her hand with the one that wasn't currently covering up his broken nose.
"It's alright, Chiori," Keiji said, trying to soothe her. He drew her into a one armed hug as her shoulders began to shake and let her lean on him. "What happened to Inori?" Keiji asked gravely, regarding the adults before him with a steely gaze.
"She's been taken to Karakura General," Ms. Akita replied, pushing the hair that had escaped from her bun behind her ears. "The school is being shut down for the day as we speak, so you can all go home once you're finished here." She addressed the nurse next. "Have his parents been notified?" The nurse nodded and glared balefully at Keiji, who ignored her.
"It looks like Chiori did quite a number on you." Isshin interjected, stepping forward. "How about I take a look at your nose? It's the least I could do." Keiji looked a little bit unsure for a moment and the nurse made to contradict him, but she seemed to change her mind at the last minute, rolling her eyes sharply. With a huff the nurse motioned for them to follow her down to her office, where they could treat the boy without making mess.
Keiji patted Chiori's back and the girl sniffled before pulling away and moving to the side so that Isshin could get a better look. His nose was visibly crooked and blood had caked thickly beneath his nostrils, but it didn't seem to be flowing as freely as it had before.
Isshin clicked his tongue and grasped Keiji's shoulder to steer him out of the office, Chiori and Ms. Akita pulling up the rear as they exited the office. The two police officers and the principal watched them leave without truly knowing quite how to respond, the latter sputtering quietly at his desk.
The nurse gave Isshin everything he asked for once they reached the nurse's station. Gloves plus Q-tips, gauze, and antiseptic were all placed within reach and Chiori and Ms. Akita stood back to watch as Isshin instructed Keiji to sit in one of the chairs. Isshin sat down as well and tilted Keiji's head back, feeling gently around the break, whistling sharply. "Yeah," he chuckled, "She got ya pretty good."
Keiji grunted faintly as Isshin picked up dampened gauze and wiped his face down as best he could. "I'm gonna clean you up a bit," Isshin said, talking while he was working and clearing Keiji's nose a bit with the Q-tips provided.
"I want you to blow your nose as best you can and then I'm gonna set this for you, alright?" He handed Keiji a wad of tissues and sat back, waiting for Keiji to do as he'd been told. Keiji groaned audibly, no doubt in quite a bit of pain as he tossed the bloody tissues away.
Chiori and Ms. Akita grimaced, but kept quiet as Isshin reached out to press the pads of his thumbs to either side of the break in Keiji's nose. "Don't move," Isshin said sternly, "I can't have you jerking your head back, okay, so please don't move." Keiji nodded and went still, breathing shakily as Isshin rearranged his fingers.
There was silence and then a disgusting crunching as Isshin shifted the bones back into place with a well- placed move of his thumbs. Chiori and Ms. Akita flinched visibly and Keiji groaned sharply. Despite the obvious pain he didn't move much at all save for a sharp jerk of his shoulders.
"There," Isshin said, pulling away. He sat back again and watched Keiji lean forward and cover his nose with another wad of tissues, hissing faintly as he tried to deal with the pain. Isshin clasped Keiji's shoulder in a firm hand and coaxed the boy into leaning back again so that he could make sure that everything was in the right position again, then nodded sharply and reached for a thick gauze bandage to tape down over the bridge.
"You should make an appointment with your doctor for a follow-up." Isshin said, rising from his seat once he was finished. He patted Keiji's shoulder again before heading back over to Chiori and placing his hand on her shoulder with a smile.
She gave him a watery smile and a nod of thanks before rushing over to envelop Keiji in another hug, careful not to jostle him too much. "I'm going to take her home now," Isshin said, addressing Ms. Akita while the two kids hugged one another fiercely.
Both Chiori and Keiji stiffened and turned to stare at Isshin. Inori had nearly bled to death that morning, but Chiori remembered one of the paramedics saying that she still had a pulse... at least, she hoped that was 's what she'd heard. Inori was tough, and Chiori had to hold out hope that her friend was somehow still alive.
"No way," Keiji said boldly, tightening his hold on Chiori as she did him. "We need to go be there for Inori." His eyes were steely and determined and Chiori nodded sharply at his side. Isshin and Ms. Akita looked to one another for a moment with identical expression of concern before Isshin finally faced the kids and nodded.
Karakura General was noticeably busy, more so than what was usual even for the time of year. Nurses rushed about and the group of three had to step lightly to keep out of the way as they made their way to the receptionist. Honestly, they must have looked terrible. Keiji and Chiori were still quite covered in blood, having refused to make a stop for a change of clothes. The receptionist eyed them all warily.
"Um," she began, looking from Isshin to the disheveled kids. Isshin cut her off before she could ask any questions. "We're here to see about a young girl that was brought in earlier form Mashiba Middle school." He said, keeping his expression as neutral as possible.
"She, um, allegedly tried to, uh," Isshin paused and glanced at Chiori, whom had begun to look decidedly paler. "She injured herself in the bathroom, there was quite a bit of blood."
The nurse frowned up at Isshin and asked pointedly: "May I have a name, please?" She looked tired and it was obvious why as phones rang off the hooks all around them.
"Inori Yuzuhara," Isshin replied. Suddenly Chiori's knees gave out, but Keiji was there to steady her, calling her name as her vision swam. Chiori didn't acknowledge him as the receptionist stood from her seat and Isshin rushed to help her.
"Chiori?" Isshin asked, his expression becoming more concerned the longer she seemed to struggle. "Chiori, can you hear me?" Chiori nodded her head and made to stand, but her legs were like jelly. "It's alright," Isshin said, helping her steady herself and holding up a hand as the receptionist came around from her desk to possibly try and assist the girl. "She's just a bit tired."
Isshin smiled gently, cradling Chiori's face in one rough hand. "If you want, I could carry you piggy-back style," he said. Chiori came back to herself and stared at her father. She hadn't been given a piggy-back since she was a little girl and the idea made her cheeks flush scarlet.
Embarrassed, Chiori shook her head and reached for Keiji's hand, hiding her face in her friend's shoulder. Isshin's grin lessened somewhat, but he gave Keiji a grateful nod, silently imploring the boy with his eyes to help him keep an eye on her. Watching Chiori begin to cry into the fabric of Keiji's shirt, tore something in Isshin's heart and he released a wary sigh, bone-deep and aching.
The nurse seemed unsure and hovered next to them until Isshin looked pointedly at her. "I'm sorry," he said. "But about the girl who was brought in from the Mashiba middle not too long ago..." He tired for a smile but it was shaky at best and the nurse nodded hesitantly after a moment before returning to her station. She looked through her books hurriedly and eventually seemed to find what she was looking for.
"Okay," She began, "Inori Yuzuhara... She's on suicide watch." Keiji and Chiori both grimaced at this. "The patient has been unresponsive since she was brought in., I'm sorry, but you'll have to wait. Visits have been limited to family only."
Keiji almost started to argue when he was interrupted by the appearance of a woman who shouldered her way past them, panting as she leaned against the desk. Her glasses were askew and she didn't even seem to care. "Please!" she said frantically, uncaring of how rude she was being. "My daughter! My daughter was brought in from Mashiba Middle, her name is Inori!"
Isshin, Chiori, and Keiji recognized her then. Inori's mother wasn't around very often nowadays, but when the children were smaller they'd seen her a bit more often. She looked a bit haggard, but she was still very beautiful. She was understandably more disheveled than they'd ever seen her, but who were they to talk? They looked just as bad as she did.
"Jun?" Isshin said gently. The woman looked sharply to them, her eyes widening. She looked to Isshin and then took in the appearance of Chiori and Keiji with escalating horror. "What happened!" she cried suddenly, rounding on them all. She stepped forward and Chiori unconsciously moved behind Keiji as Isshin stepped forward to block them from the woman's view. "Jun, calm down," he said, placing his hands upon her shoulder only to be shaken away.
"Don't tell me to calm down!" she said. "I get a call that Inori's tried to kill herself, slit her wrists in the girls' bathroom and bled out, and you tell me to calm down!" Isshin's expression grew grave and he didn't answer her right away, choosing to let the woman vent instead. Her eyes were wild as she looked over Isshin's shoulder to get another look at Chiori and Keiji.
"You're causing a scene." A voice cut in swiftly, cool and professional. It broke off anything Jun intended to say and all eyes turned towards its source at once.
Ryuken Ishida stood off to the side of the desk and peered at the unfortunate group before him with cold blue eyes. Despite his unspoken request for order, the tension in the hall only seemed to grow. "Sign in and follow me," he said. He then turned away after a moment of relative silence with the expectation that they would do as they were told.
Without another word, they followed after Ryuken in tense silence and finally seemed to notice the amount of people going about the hospital. "Was there an accident?" Isshin asked, voicing everyone's thoughts. Ryuken didn't answer immediately as they all loaded into an elevator that would take them to the correct floor.
"There have been multiple," Ryuken admitted, drawing all attention to him once again. Indeed, something strange was happening to Karakura as a whole. There had been multiple accidents throughout the city, as well as full-blown attacks and outright disappearances.
They weren't being overwhelmed yet, but Ryuken had a feeling that if it didn't calm down soon it would only be a matter of time before things began to get out of hand.
They exited the elevator and were led midway down the hall. Arriving at what they all assumed to be Inori's hospital room, Ryuken checked the information tacked to the front of the door before opening it and ushering them all inside. Instantly they were assailed by the sounds of machinery and the slow beep of a heart monitor.
Jun moved past them all and stood at the right side of the bed as the others spread out around the room. The only other bed in the room had yet to be occupied, but they all felt that it wouldn't be long before it was.
"She's been in a coma since she arrived," Ryuken said, stepping forward and picking up the clipboard attached to the foot of the bed. Inori's hands were secured to the guardrails of her hospital bed and Chiori and Keiji gripped one another's hands more tightly, hesitant to step forward. Inori looked pale and had a mask strapped to her face along with a breathing tube. Jun sobbed at the terrible sight.
Keiji glared at her back, but held his tongue. He didn't know everything about Inori's relationship with her mom, but from what he'd heard from Inori in a rare moment of weakness, it wasn't the best. It angered him to think that it took something so horrible to warrant an actual response from Inori's mother.
Chiori tugged at Keiji's sleeve and he looked away, scowling at the linoleum instead. It wasn't their place to get involved, but Keiji felt a deep sense of discontent settle low in his stomach at the sight of his friend's mother. Inori had always been the most spirited one of them and the possibility of it all being some kind of act to hide how she was actually feeling from all of them made him feel sick.
Keiji sighed and together he and Chiori moved closer, taking in Inori's prone form. Chiori reached out and touched Inori's limp hand while Ryuken and Isshin watched quietly from further back. They didn't speak, but they looked to one another sharply while Jun and the kids were preoccupied.
Something was terribly wrong with the situation. Inori had slit her wrist and lost a significant amount of blood if the sight of Chiori's uniform and the floor of the girls' bathroom back at Mashiba Middle were anything to go by. She was in a coma, but in truth, after losing the amount of blood that she had, she shouldn't have been alive at all.
At the moment they had her on a transfusion, but it didn't change the fact that something wasn't right with the entire situation. Ryuken had felt the shift in the air right before things began to go to Hell and though Isshin wasn't as attuned, his intuition told him that something was about to give way. He just didn't know exactly what.
Their attention was drawn to Chiori then as she suddenly pulled back from Inori, gripping at her own dark hair and pulling sharply. "Chiori," Keiji asked urgently, "What is it? What's the matter?" Chiori shook her head and opened her mouth in a manner that suggested she were trying to scream. She buried her face in Keiji's neck and Isshin came around the bed to her other side while the other adults in the room watched on.
Chiori couldn't hear them call out to her. In her eyes the room had gone dark and left only the bed holding Inori's comatose form. Limbs sprouted from the underside of the hospital bed like some kind of twisted bloom and curled over it before pulling it down into the murky depths that seeped from below like ink.
"There you are, little girl!"
A now very familiar voice warbled from the debts of the abyss, rasping as if the speaker gargled broken glass and Chiori sobbed as a hand reached up from the depths of the sludge. The entity dug its nails into the watery surface surrounding its forearm and dragged its body attached up from within with a sickening sound, laughing all the while.
Milky white eyes rolled in their sockets before focusing abruptly on Chiori and the face of the dead girl smiled. "I told you," she said, black oozing from between her rotted teeth. Slowly she began to melt and the form of the girl turned more familiar. Inori, now a fetid corpse, stared up at Chiori and grinned.
"I said I was going to take something from you and I did." Somewhere out in the endless black, Inori's scream rose up and thousands of tortured souls echoed back. Chiori's legs gave out and she clawed at the fabric of Keiji's shirt as the laughter of a dead girl and Inori's cries for help echoed painfully in her mind.