Bright fluorescent lights lit the hospital lobby, giving the tiled floors a glossy shine and illuminating the room in their sterile light. The room was crowded, the nurse manning the reception desk clearly flustered as concerned relatives and waiting patients harassed the young woman with a barrage of questions. Nearly every chair in the lobby had been taken up with the sudden influx of people, and it was almost impossible to hear anything over the din created by the increasingly aggravated crowd. People jostled each other as they struggled to be heard, and nurses and security alike worked to herd people away from the front desk, pulling them aside and speaking in quiet, strained voices. In one corner of the lobby, huddled against the wall, sat a young girl, her hair decorated with flowers and her fingers working furiously at the keys of a laptop.
Hospitals had always made Uiharu a little nervous. She appreciated them, certainly, and was grateful for all the hard work of the doctors and nurses, but she was always tense whenever she had to spend more than a few minutes in one.
She glanced briefly up from her computer, noting with some discomfort that she didn't seem to be alone in that. Everyone was always on edge in these places. There were really very few happy occasions that might lead one to a hospital, so she supposed it made sense. Who would want to spend time in a building full of the sick and dying, after all? Having an aversion to hospitals was perfectly normal. Now if only she could untwist the knot that had been forming in her stomach ever since she got here.
The ride to the hospital had been tense, and the medics examining Awatsuki-san had given them very little time to question the girl about what exactly had happened. Upon their arrival, Konori-senpai and Shirai-san had immediately taken off, Shirai-san to accompany Awatsuki-san, and Konori-senpai to try and track down the doctors that had been treating the other victims of the "incident", as it was being called. No one seemed to want to call it an attack, but the circumstances were too suspicious to really label it an accident just yet. She'd caught a couple glimpses of her colleagues over the last few hours, but hadn't been able to get more than a few words out of them.
Not that she blamed them for being a little short. Things were ugly when they arrived, and they'd only gotten worse. The incident hadn't been large scale, so all the victims had been brought to the same hospital, and friends and family had flooded the place once they heard the news. Uiharu had spent the first two hours trying to help direct the flow of people and maintain order, before being relieved by one of the nursing staff. It was just as well. Uiharu wasn't sure how much longer she could have handled being screamed at by people trying to figure out what exactly was going on, especially when she had no answers to give them.
So she had retired to what passed for a quiet corner in the chaos, and resumed her research on Power Pox. It was a small lead, but it was all she really had to go on at the moment. Uiharu frowned as she stared at her computer. Unless Wannai-san had lost control of her ability in some completely unrelated fashion, there was a good chance she was another victim of the mysterious ailment, whatever it actually was.
Her brow crinkled in concentration as she studied the screen. The first case she could find that seemed to be related to Power Pox was dated more than a month ago. Since then, more than a dozen cases of espers with similar symptoms had been reported. All of them were located in district seven, which wasn't terribly surprising, given that most of the espers in the city were students. If Power Pox was contagious that would make sense as well, though she couldn't seem to find much of a connection between the espers afflicted. The only lead she had in that regard was actually Wannai-san. She was the second Tokiwadai student to succumb to Power Pox, if that was indeed what had happened.
A frustrated sigh escaped Uiharu's lips, and she rubbed her eyes, leaning her head back against the wall. She was beginning to feel rather drained. They had enjoyed a full day with Misaka-san and Saten-san before this whole mess, and now she was practically running on empty.
"Any luck, Uiharu?"
Uiharu opened her eyes to see her fellow Judgment member standing in front of her, holding out a can of juice.
"Nothing that we didn't already know," she said, accepting the can and popping the top. She gulped down its contents, the cool liquid soothing her and relieving some of her fatigue. "How is Wannai-san?"
"It's nothing life-threatening, but she hasn't regained consciousness yet," Kuroko said, sliding in next to Uiharu and taking a seat. "Awatsuki-san is doing a little better. Kongou-san arrived not long ago and has been fretting over them, which I think made her feel a little better. I don't particularly care for that woman, but she does seem to care a great deal about her friends."
"That's good," Uiharu replied, a small smile forming on her lips. She had only met the trio a few times, and had never really had much of a chance to speak with any of them, but they had all been very kind to her. It hardly seemed fair that they would have to endure something like this. "I hope Wannai-san recovers quickly."
Kuroko nodded. "The doctors say she should make a full recovery, so that's a relief, at least. I'm more concerned with the fact that they don't know what happened, or at the very least they can't tell us. The most I was able to get out of them is that this isn't the first case of an esper losing control of their abilities that they've seen."
"That makes sense. I've been able to find fourteen other cases that look similar to Wannai-san's. There may be more cases that were either mild or went unreported, but from just this I think it's safe to say that Power Pox, whatever it is, is real."
A sigh escaped Kuroko's lips, and she began massaging her temples. "What a mess. For once, I wish Saten-san's intuition about these things would be wrong. I'm getting rather tired of stumbling into these messes all the time."
"Well, her original thought was that Misaka-san was the one suffering from Power Pox, and that doesn't seem to be the case, given what we know now," Uiharu pointed out.
"I'll count that as a blessing, then," Kuroko replied dryly. A thoughtful look passed over her face. "But now that you mention it, the reason she thought it might be afflicting Onee-sama in the first place was due to her… erratic behaviour. But from what I was able to learn from Awatsuki-san, Wannai-san hadn't displayed any unusual behaviour at all up until her episode this afternoon. Those two are practically joined at the hip, so I'm sure she would have noticed if something was wrong."
"That's something I haven't been able to figure out," Uiharu said, eyes narrowing in thought as she scrolled through another page. "I've reviewed everything I could find on the net about Power Pox, and the reports seem rather inconsistent. Some of the victims display earlier symptoms like those described by Saten-san; irritability, paranoia, insomnia, and other abnormal behavior, while others don't seem to have shown any indication that anything was wrong prior to losing control. I'm trying to establish a timeline, so hopefully we'll be able to get an idea of how this is progressing. But if Wannai-san's breakdown is related to these other incidents, then it's easily the most violent one to date. Which means…"
"That it's getting worse," Kuroko said, biting her thumb. "This could be bad. We're lucky more people weren't injured as it was. Wannai-san is only level three as well. If this really is getting worse, then we might not be as lucky next time. We really don't have any idea what's causing it?"
Uiharu shook her head. "No. There's no common thread that I can find. The only possible lead I found is that Wannai-san is actually the second Tokiwadai student to suffer an incident like this."
Kuroko perked up at that. "Really? Who was the other student?" Tokiwadai wasn't a terribly large school, being primarily aimed towards the wealthy and elite. News of Wannai-san's accident would likely already be circulating through the campus. That she hadn't heard about a similar incident was quite strange.
"Just a second, let me check," Uiharu said, her fingers working quickly at the keyboard. "Yukimura Shiemi, level three clairvoyant. It says here she collapsed in between classes and didn't wake up for almost three days."
"Hmm…" Kuroko's eyes were closed as she searched her memory. "I don't remember hearing about that. Then again, that might not be so unusual in this case, since it doesn't sound like there was any overt ability usage involved. Was there anything else related to her?"
Uiharu shook her head. "Not really. The only reason it's even on the boards at all is that her roommate talked to the doctors, and they couldn't find anything wrong with her after she woke up. She said Yukimura-san mentioned something strange about her ability, but there aren't any more details than that."
Kuroko stood with a sigh, dusting off her skirt. "What a mess. It sounds like it's just chance, but we don't really have anything else to go on. Anti-Skill is ruling the incident with Wannai-san an accident for now, but there's some talk of placing her under guard, which would suggest they might change their mind about her innocence."
"That's terrible!" Uiharu cried, eliciting a few glares from the people around them. "Wannai-san would never do anything like this on purpose! And they have Awatsuki-san's testimony to back that up."
"That would only get her so far, given their connection. If Anti-Skill decides it was an act of terrorism, rather than an accident, things could get rough for both of them. Normally I'd say the fact that the damage far exceeds what Wannai-san should be capable of is a point in her favor, but after the whole mess with the Level Upper, it might actually do more harm than good." A grim look crossed Kuroko's face. "Honestly, as awful as it is, I think the fact that she was as injured as she was is actually the factor working most in her favor here."
"Couldn't we just tell them about Power Pox though?" Uiharu asked, a note of desperation in her voice.
"Come on, Uiharu, you know better than that. They won't listen to us if we can't present them with solid evidence, which is exactly what we don't have at the moment."
Uiharu seemed to deflate, closing her laptop and letting her head fall back against the wall. "I know. I just don't want Wannai-san to get in trouble for something that wasn't her fault."
"Don't worry," Kuroko said, offering a hand and helping Uiharu to her feet. "Odds are nothing will come of it. They're just being cautious. I'm sure Wannai-san will be fine."
"I hope so," Uiharu said, stretching her arms above her head. Her muscles were sore and cramped from sitting on the floor for so long. "I just wish there was something we could do. I hate feeling helpless at times like these."
The pair made their way through the lobby towards the exit. Things were starting to die down, and most of the people still in the lobby were seated or simply milling about. The nursing staff looked both exhausted and relieved. It was a feeling both Judgment members could sympathize with.
"Well, for now all we can do is try to pursue what leads we have," Kuroko said as they stepped into the cool night air. "I'm going to try to get in touch with Yukimura-san and her roommate; if she really suffered a similar episode then she might be able to give us an idea of what exactly is going on."
"Okay, in that case, I'll dig a little deeper in the hospital records for the other victims." A frown passed over her face. "I can't help but feel like I'm overlooking something. I've gone over all the reports twice now, but I can't get rid of the feeling I'm missing something important."
Kuroko gave her friend a sympathetic smile before clapping her on the shoulder. "Don't push yourself too hard. Go home and rest. We can keep working on this tomorrow, but if you burn yourself out, then you'll never see it. I know you'll find it if you keep at it, so don't worry, Uiharu."
"Thanks," Uiharu said, letting out a breath. "You're right. I just need to get some rest. Let me know if you find anything new."
"I will. See you tomorrow, Uiharu." Kuroko gave her friend a small wave, before disappearing into the night.
Uiharu's eyes lingered on the spot her friend had vanished, before she started walking home. Though she was praised for her analytical thinking and computer skills, Uiharu was the first to admit that she could sometimes let her emotions get the best of her. Kuroko had long been her anchor, keeping her focused on the task at hand and making sure she didn't overdo it while still pushing her enough to improve herself. It had been that way back when they were in training, and it was still that way now, though thankfully she had largely learned to stand on her own.
Those thoughts quickly faded as she ran over what she had learned, trying to find some way to connect all the incidents to date. Unfortunately, no matter how close it felt like she was getting, no epiphany ever came, and she was still pondering the problem when she finally made it home.
She let herself in and kicked off her shoes with a sigh. It was always frustrating, not being able to find the right solution. It was out there, she knew it. Maybe she was just looking in the wrong place.
As she crawled into bed, Uiharu forced herself to let it go for the time being. She would be able to resume her search after school the next day, and by then they might have have more information. She just hoped the uneasy feeling in the pit of her stomach disappeared by then.
The halls were nearly silent, dimly lit in the early hours of the morning. The overhead lights had been dimmed, and when combined with the pale white light from the floor lights, gave the hospital corridor a gentle, cozy feel. In their rooms, patients attempted sleep, though it came more easily to some than others. At this hour, most of the hospital was calm. Those patients requiring urgent or constant attention were housed elsewhere, and so the halls were almost deserted.
She walked with practiced ease, her shoes making almost no sound as she walked across the tiled floor, searching. Most of the rooms were dark, but she made a point of hurrying past those that still had lights on. Though it was unlikely she would be questioned, there was always the chance someone might wonder what she was doing, so late at night, and she didn't want to have to answer any questions.
Drawn more by feeling than memory, she made her way through the building, until finally she reached her destination. The window looking into the room was dark; a good sign. A frown formed on her face as her hand rested against the doorknob. The feeling was back, stronger now that she was closer, but she still couldn't quite tell what it was. It was almost aggravating in its vagueness, and the urge to investigate grew stronger, but still she hesitated.
It had started as something akin to a tingle; easily disregarded and very nearly forgotten. She had been going through a transition, and such things were to be expected. But the feeling persisted, growing stronger over time, until she could ignore it no longer. Today it had been felt more powerfully than ever before, and the time to investigate had come. There was no sense in delaying, nothing to be gained through inaction.
She opened the door.
The room was silent, save for the steady hum of equipment. She took careful steps, not wanting wake the sleeping girl. As she approached, that familiar sensation grew stronger, and she felt goosebumps raising on her arms. A peculiar feeling, but still one she couldn't quite place.
Finally, she stopped, standing at the girl's bedside and looking down with curious, searching eyes. Injured though she was, she appeared to be sleeping peacefully. Her chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm, her gentle brown curls framing her face in the moonlight. But still, despite her calm appearance, there was something off about her. Something that the intruder couldn't quite place, but knew she had felt before. It was faint, a mere echo, but unmistakable. Alien to the sleeper and comfortingly familiar to her observer.
She stood there, pondering over the sensation until the girl began to stir, and she took a step back. Her eyes opened slowly, searching blearily around the room, until they landed upon her visitor. She stood stock still, unsure of how to react. She simply stared back, unable to break her gaze, or even move.
The girl's eyes stayed locked on her for several long moments, and she was sure that the girl in the bed would speak, or scream, or do something to acknowledge her presence other than stare, but finally her eyes lost focus before slowly closing again as her head slumped against the pillow. Her breathing evened out again, and the girl standing over her turned, leaving her in peace.
Whatever the feeling that had drawn her there in the first place was, seeing the girl close up had done little to help her identify it. A feeling she was unfamiliar with bubbled up in her chest as she quickly and quietly took her leave. Frustration, maybe? Or perhaps curiosity? In either case, it warranted further investigation, and she knew just the people to talk to.
Bright sunlight filtered in through the curtains, a stray beam striking the sleeper's face, and she stirred. Pale blue eyes cracked open, and she winced as the light struck her eyes, flinching away from the brightness of the sun. Pain throbbed in her head, a constant drumbeat against the inside of her skull, and for a long moment she simply lay there, waiting for the pain to pass. After nearly a minute with her eyes screwed up tight, she relaxed, some of the pain receding, though a dull throb remained. Slowly, she opened her eyes, blinking as they adjusted.
The room was unfamiliar. Certainly it looked nothing like her dorm room. Actually, it rather resembled a hospital room. A frown passed over her gentle features, her forehead scrunched up in thought. Her mind struggled through a thick haze, attempting to reconstruct the events that would have led her here. She attempted to sit up, wincing as a sharp pain shot up her back and left arm. Well, at the very least it seemed like there was a good reason for her to be here. Now if only she could remember what it was.
Looking around again, she saw the room was empty, save for an assortment of machines by her bedside, the arcane workings of which she couldn't begin to understand. her eyes traced a series of wires from the machines onto the bed, noting with some alarm that they led to a series of pads stuck to her skin. How had she not noticed that? Her first instinct was to rip the offending things from her body, but she stopped herself before her fingers had more than grazed the pads. They were clearly in place for a reason, and she didn't want to create a scene if someone was monitoring her condition.
Bit by bit, the events of the previous day came back to her. Planning to meet with Kongou-san. the trip to the grocery store with Awatsuki-san. The walk home. She frowned. The walk home? That was the last thing she could remember, but….
The sound of a door opening tore her from her thoughts, and she looked up in time to see a rather young looking nurse walk into the room. The woman caught her gaze and blinked. It seemed she hadn't expected to find her awake. Her surprised expression quickly gave way to a warm smile.
"Ah, looks like you're awake," she said, walking over to her bedside and checking something on the nearby monitors. "You gave your friends quite a scare, Wannai-san."
Kinuho opened her mouth to reply, struggling into a sitting position, but the nurse placed a comforting hand on her shoulder, silencing her and easing her back down. "Easy there. You're going to need to stay in bed for a while longer. You had quite the accident, and we're still trying to work out just what happened." Her eyes softened as a smile tugged at the corner of her mouth. "Although, there are some people here that have been waiting all night to see you, so I suppose a little bit of a visit wouldn't be too much for you to handle. Just make sure you don't overdo it, alright?"
Kinuho stared at the woman before nodding. Internally, she was trying to make sense of the woman's words. There had been an accident? Why couldn't she remember? She flinched as the pain in her head began to grow again, and she screwed her eyes shut, willing it away.
"Wannai-san!"
Her eyes snapped open when a very familiar voice called out, and soon a head of silky black hair was pressed against her chest as she was pulled into a tight embrace.
"I was so worried! When you and Awatsuki-san didn't show last night I thought something might have happened, and then I get a call from the principal's office telling me you two were in an accident! Are you alright? What happened? Oh, thank goodness you're awake!"
For her part Kinuho was left momentarily speechless by the outpouring of emotion. After a moment though, she relaxed into the embrace, carefully hiding her discomfort and gently encircling the other girl in her arms. "Sorry we worried you, Kongou-san," she said, forcing a smile. "And I'm sorry we missed our date. I really was looking forward to it."
Kongou Mitsuko pulled away, wiping a tear from her eye and offering her friend a smile of her own. "Don't be ridiculous. We can always do that some other time, the important thing is that you're okay."
"Indeed," another voice spoke from near the doorway. Kinuho tilted her head, peering over Kongou-san's shoulder to find Maaya and Kuroko standing back, one with a relieved smile on her face, and the other apparently unsure of what to make of the display.
"Awatsuki-san!" Kinuho cried out in relief, some of the tension easing from her body, "I'm so glad you're okay."
"Ah? What, no greeting for me?" Kuroko said, a teasing grin on her face.
"Oh!" Kinuho flushed. "I'm sorry, Shirai-san. Thank you so much for coming to visit me."
"Please, no need for that," Kuroko said, walking over with Maaya and taking up the spare chairs next to the bed. "I was simply teasing you. I am relieved to see you awake. We feared your injuries were rather more severe when you didn't wake up."
Kinuho stayed silent at that. She hadn't realized it had been that bad. Her body ached, but she didn't feel as though she had been grievously injured. That, at least, was a relief, but she still couldn't quite remember what had happened. That in itself was disturbing, but even more than simply that, there was an uneasiness in her chest, a feeling she couldn't quite place. It was… disconcerting, to say the least.
She was drawn out of that train of thought when a pair of soft hands closed over her own, and she looked up to see a teary-eyed Maaya. "I'm so glad you're okay," she said, trying to fight back the tears. "I was so scared, I didn't know what had happened, and then they took you away in the ambulance, and then they wouldn't let me see you all night. I was so worried!"
Kinuho gave her friend's hands a reassuring squeeze, and pushed down her own anxious feelings. The last thing she wanted to see was Maaya's tears. "Don't worry, Awatsuki-san. I'm fine, really. I'm just a little sore, that's all."
Apprehension was still clearly visible in her friend's eyes, but some of the tension eased from her body, and her grip loosened slightly, and for the first time Kinuho noticed the bandages around Maaya's forearms.
"Ah! Awatsuki-san, were you hurt?"
Maaya, gave her a confused look, before transforming into one of recognition. "Oh, no, it's really nothing. Just a few scrapes; they just wanted me to wear these to prevent infection."
"Awatsuki-san was much more worried about you," Mitsuko broke in. "When I arrived she was pacing outside your door. They had to practically order her to get some sleep. Otherwise, I imagine she would have tried to sneak into the room at some point in the night."
Something about that statement tickled something in the back of Kinuho's mind. She frowned, eyes narrowing in thought as she tried to pin down exactly what it was. "I think… there was someone, but I can't remember." She shook her head, the fleeting image already fading. "Maybe it was just a dream. I'm afraid my head is still a little fuzzy."
"That's to be expected," Kuroko said. "The doctor said that you had a rather nasty head injury, though thankfully you weren't concussed. It was probably just a nurse coming in to check on you"
Kinuho brushed a hand through her hair, her fingers feeling tentatively over her scalp. "I suppose that makes sense. I just thought… well, I thought maybe I recognized them, but I don't know. I'm sure it was nothing." She winced as she gently probed at several rather tender spots, but fortunately, it didn't feel as though there were any fractures or stitches to indicate anything too severe. Her head was still throbbing, but some of the anxiety she had been feeling dissipated. It could have been a lot worse, presumably.
Something occurred to her, and she turned her attention back to her friends. "I'm glad all of you came, but shouldn't you be in class?"
"Actually, I haven't been released yet," Maaya replied. "They admitted me last night, shortly after you got here, and the nurses said they wanted to keep me around to keep an eye on me for another day or two."
"Well of course," Mitsuko said, giving Maaya's shoulder a gentle squeeze. "There's no need for you to hurry back to school. I'm sure the administration will understand, and even if they don't it's not as if they can punish you for following the doctor's orders."
Kuroko nodded. "Quite right, though it pains me to agree with you." Mitsuko shot her a half-hearted glare, but Kuroko ignored it. "Unlike Kongou-san, who is very clearly skipping class—don't worry, the principal will make an exception given the circumstances—Anti-Skill requested my presence since I was one of the first Judgment officers on the scene and I happen to have a personal connection to two of the victims. To be honest, I'm not sure what they expect me to do. It's not as though I have access to any information that they don't. I suppose they thought you might be more comfortable talking to me than to some random officer or investigator.
"They actually wanted to talk to you last night, but the doctor's wouldn't let them in to see you." Kuroko frowned, clearly displeased. "I have to say, those Anti-Skill people can be rather insensitive sometimes. I can certainly understand the need to get the facts straight, but you were clearly in no condition to have your testimony taken."
"I find myself inclined to agree," Mitsuko said, some of her haughty air returning. "I had to tell them on no less than three occasions that you were not to be bothered. I even had to have the doctor's convince them! As if my word wasn't enough."
Kuroko simply rolled her eyes. "Their behavior leaves much to be desired, but I do understand their urgency. We have a reasonably clear picture of what happened from talking to witnesses, including Awatsuki-san, but we really don't have any idea of what caused it. I don't want to push you, but if there's anything you can tell us, then I would be grateful. Judgment is assisting Anti-Skill with the investigation, so I will be expected to submit a report."
Kinuho nodded absently, wracking her brain in an attempt to reconstruct the sequence of events that had led her here. It was so hard to focus, but she was able to piece together a loose timeline. "I… I don't remember much, but I'll tell you what I can."
"Take your time, it's alright," Kuroko encouraged, giving the bedridden girl a warm smile.
Maaya and Mitsuko nodded in encouragement, and Kinuho's brow crinkled in thought. "I was with Awatsuki-san. I remember we had been at the grocery store. Then, we were on our way to meet with Kongou-san, and… I felt something. Like a pressure building inside my head. I don't know how to describe it, really. It burned, and… I don't know, it was like my skull was being crushed or twisted. It hurt, and then I couldn't breath." She took a shaky breath, fingers rubbing at her temples. The other occupants of the room were silent, listening intently.
"It was terrifying. After that, all I remember is this strange rush of energy. It was like when I first learned how to use my ability, like I could barely keep hold of it. Then a noise, and I was waking up here."
Kuroko nodded. "I expected as much. Either the head trauma is still interfering with your memory, or whatever happened wasn't something your testimony would help us identify. I am curious about what you said about your ability though. You felt as though you were struggling to control it?"
Kinuho shook her head. "No. Well, yes and no. It's sort of hard to describe what it felt like, and I still can't remember it very well. I still felt as though I had control, but I couldn't hold onto it. It was like trying to hold onto a bar of soap in the bath. Everytime I felt like I had it, it would slip away, and then there was this rush and I don't remember anything after that. It all happened so fast, I can really only describe what it felt like, and even then only generally. I really don't know how to put it into words. I'm sorry, I wish I could be more help."
"I'm sure you've been more than enough help!" Mitsuko interjected. "Isn't that right, Shirai-san?"
"Ah, yes," Kuroko said, putting away a notepad Kinuho only just realized she had been writing in. "Really, I wasn't expecting to get much. Whatever happened, I seriously doubt that it was anything you would have had any control over."
"Wannai-san would never hurt anyone on purpose," Maaya said softly.
"Of course," Kuroko replied. "I just wish we had a better idea of what was going on. It's beginning to look like this mess is going to end up filed away as another one of Academy City's mysteries, and I can't say that sits well with me."
Kinuho considered this, trying in vain to wrestle any more details from the depths of her consciousness. Her search was interrupted by a knock at the door, and a woman in a white coat slipped inside.
"Sorry to interrupt, but I'm afraid I'm going to need to steal Wannai-san from you for a bit," she said with an apologetic smile before turning her attention to Kinuho. "We need to run some additional tests now that you've regained consciousness. You're friends are free to wait for you, but this may take a couple of hours."
Kuroko was the first to stand, brushing off her skirt and nodding at the doctor. "Understood. I need to be getting back to the Judgment office anyway." She turned back to Kinuho, smiling. "I'll come back and visit you again this evening. I have to get in touch with Anti-Skill and start writing up a report, but I might be able to bring Onee-sama and Uiharu-san with me when I return. I know they're both very worried about you as well."
That brought a smile to Kinuho's face. "I'll be looking forward to it."
Kuroko bid Kinuho farewell before taking her leave, with Maaya and Mitsuko following behind only slightly more reluctantly.
Once her friends were gone, Kinuho collapsed back onto her bed with a sigh, closing her eyes. As much as she appreciated the visit, she was still exhausted.
"Sorry, but I'm afraid I can't let you relax just yet," the doctor said, a hint of apology in her voice. "Come on, if we get these tests done quickly I promise you can go back to resting. Up and at 'em, girl!"
Kinuho groaned.
Kuroko frowned, tapping her fingers against her bicep and replaying the conversation in her head as she walked out of the hospital and into the bright sun. A weight had been lifted from her shoulders upon seeing Kinuho in good health, at least relatively speaking. The doctors had been rather sparse with the details, other than to say the girl was stable and in no immediate danger.
Unfortunately, her sense of relief had given way to a familiar anxiousness when Kinuho had related her experience. It fit almost perfectly with the accounts Uiharu had uncovered of the incidents that were supposedly related to Power Pox. That was good and bad, she supposed. On the one hand, it was good to have at least some confirmation that their hypothesis was correct. On the other, they still didn't have any hard evidence, and she didn't dare bring it up with Anti-Skill until they had something a little more concrete.
That was without even mentioning the fact that even if it was Power Pox, they had no idea how to combat it, and things only appeared to be getting worse.
Another sigh escaped the young girl's lips, and she massaged her temples as the beginnings of a headache made themselves known. She still had that other Tokiwadai student to look into as well, and she hadn't even gotten started on getting in touch with her.
"Saten-san is going to be right about this one too, I can feel it," she grumbled, before turning to face the direction of the Judgment office and disappearing, leaving only an empty sidewalk to consider the implications of her words.
A/N: Well. Nearly six months of absence, and all I have to show for it is a chapter in which almost nothing happens. Unfortunate, but it's what I've got. Consider this attempt number two, or perhaps three, depending on how you want to count it, of me trying to write more. New chapter though, regardless of content, so that's something.
Keeping the forms of address for the characters consistent is a problem, when trying to maintain a single perspective but also not getting too clunky. I've talked about this before, but it frustrates me, so it bears mentioning again.
In spirit, this is part one of a two-parter, similar to chapter's four and five. In practice, it probably stands well on its own, provided you don't mind a whole lot of mucking about in the wonderful world of expositional dialogue.
Also, thanks to everyone that has reviewed so far. I'm also going to try to get better at returning those with personal messages, so you can feel at least half as loved as I do. Keep it up! I really do appreciate the attention. My goal is to release the next chapter with something that might resemble expediency. Also, changed the description to more accurately represent where this is going now, though as I say that, I remember I can't write descriptions that descript, so really, it's about the same.