Good morning/afternoon/evening to everyone reading this. It's been more or less two weeks since my last update and I nearly forgot to post this chapter. Unimportant news: I had a Biology test and we spent our History lesson holding a political campaign. I didn't really pay attention but it was fun so yeah. Important news: I've decided to add a chapter with all the characters illnesses after chapter 5 or so and then more chapters on their back-stories and why they have these illnesses. It's going to take a long time though since Kid has around 8, Maka 5-6, Crona loads etc etc.
Also I've introduced an OC. I've wanted to since I first started writing back in October but I forgot until now. Their mainly here because I wanted more people to work with and because some illnesses just don't match the CC's and I really want them in the story. The OC's name is Halloween and they are biologically female. Their is a reason for their name and no, they do not identify as cis. They also wear face paint 24/7 for personal reasons. I've added Harvar however I'm making him younger than everybody else and putting him on Floor 3 with Kilik, Thunder and Fire. I'm considering putting this story on AO3 as well and if you want you can check out my YOI fanfic. It's not depressing and it's a group chat fic. Also read and review! Please? Just for Maka? Or Soul? Every review you give is a minute added to Soul's life, k?
PagetDaPanda: I love updates too, they're really satisfying and Maka's not really scary she's just a little crazy. I've got plenty of time to write the next few chaoters quickly because Easter + Holidays = Too Much Free Time.
The group therapy room had bright purple walls and blue cushions scattered everywhere. The carpet was a single shade darker than the walls and was light and fluffy, perfect to sit or lay on. There were a few wooden chairs creating a circle in the middle and two or three comfier ones in the corners. A large notice board was hung opposite the door, right next to long but thin window which had limp and poorly hung green velvety curtains. Pleasing to the eye, all colours matching perfectly. Standing in the room already was Justin and Marie, and almost hiding behind them, was Maka, still wearing her clothes from earlier that Kid adored. Even the stitches were symmetrical. At least Kid believed they were and decided not to doubt this thought.
"Good afternoon kids! Today both Justin and I will be monitoring your lesson since we both have sessions with some of you," Marie winked, a hearty laugh ready to leave her lips. "We'll be doing introductions and questions today so nobody will miss much. Soul, go with Justin. Your session is first. Everyone else sit down. Even you, Maka."
The girl in question made her way to a seat once everyone had taken to watching her every move from their own chairs safety. Sadly it was right next to Liz's, who shrieked and demanded she be moved. Maka could barely keep herself from rolling her eyes, a small twitch at her hands. So, to stay in control, Marie showed Maka a seat near to Tsubaki. Maka sat down, keeping her eyes trained to the ground. Next to Maka was an empty chair, clearly being saved for another patient since it was openly avoided. Next to Tsubaki was Patty, Liz and then a black haired girl, Jacqueline. Just behind Liz and Patty was Black*Star, the seemingly obnoxious blue haired boy who was making Liz feel extremely paranoid. Beside Black*Star was a boy with two even more obnoxious looking towers protruding from his head. He kept muttering about needing to live up to his father's name.
Maka whipped her head round to avoid being caught staring as Black*Star's admiral blue eyes locked onto her. Instead, she studied the feminine looking figure who was sat at least three seats away from everyone, wearing a very lengthy checked shirt with a cute oversized hooded jacket. It struck her as odd when she saw the face belonging to the body since it was covered in what could be called 'face-paint'.
Last was Blair. The older girl certainly looked crazy, donned in all purple clothes with cat ears and whiskers drawn on. She sat curled in the berry blue cushions that were underneath a seat. She reminded Maka of a contortionist with the way the elder girl managed to fit in such a place. It was a weird group of people and Maka felt uncomfortable. Her sides still ached and her head was pounding. She really couldn't believe that she had failed. How though? How could she still be alive?
~Little Flashbacks Things will be written like this~
Unbeknownst to Maka, workers fixing the school roof were on break and surprisingly one of them decided to eat on the roof. As Maka's hair was blown around in the beginnings of a terrifying storm the man caught sight of the small and slight shadow. Not bothering with a flashlight the man slowly and carefully walked forward, eyes on the figure. It appeared to be a girl, soaked through from standing in her spot on the roof. She was wearing the DWMA seal of approval, a small little skull that came in many forms and the girl had one clipped onto her skirt and in her hair.
Not fully understanding the situation the worker launched himself at her just as threw herself off the building top. He grabbed her leg, wincing at the sickening crack that meant he'd swung the girl into a wall. She groaned, half unconscious from pain. She reached up, scratching at the hand holding her whilst her conscience sat happily in a corner of her mind oblivious to the commotion surrounding her. The worker hissed when Maka's sharp nails came into contact with his skin but for the moment he refused to let go.
The nails dug into his skin, drawing blood. His hand started to lose its grip. The rain was pounding his back, hand, eyes and face. Eventually all the man was holding onto was a shoe, one that stayed in his fingers as the rest of the child fell onto a jutting ledge, 20 feet down. Stunned, the worker fumbled for his phone in his pocket, somehow managing to call an ambulance, fire fighters and the police.
~end of flashback~
Maka had broken two ribs, her arm and she'd earned herself a mild concussion. Her ankle was fractured and the shock of being caught in mid air and then dropped had nearly killed her itself. Oh, and she'd cracked her head open. The days in the hospital were spent being questioned and diagnosed. The girl in Maka's memory had scoffed when being told she could have multiple personality disorder and insomnia amongst other mental illnesses. Why she scoffed at the insomnia she didn't know. She'd been diagnosed with that a long time ago.
And now because of it, she sat in a room full of mentally ill teens.
"So why don't we start with something about ourselves. We'll go from right to left so Jacqueline then Kid and so on."
"My names Jacqueline and... I... Well... I'm a little shy." She shifted, obviously uncomfortable with the situation. And to think they were only ten minutes into the session. Next was Kid. "My name is Death the Kid and my father didn't want me. I like symmetry and I am not insane." His golden eyes seemed almost defiant, denying his illnesses. He sat down after a minute or two, bowing his head as if in shame. The next to stand up was Liz.
"I'm not telling my name unless that new girl promises not to try anything funny." Maka took this chance to growl at Liz, shrugging at the same time. "She's a feral beast! Did you hear that! She growled at me! I knew it, I knew it, I knew it, I knew it." Marie came over and guided Liz back into her seat, the words still flying from Liz's mouth.
There was a knock from the door as Patty shot up from her seat and began to introduce herself. Justin walked in with Soul following behind him, looking extremely frayed. "Ah, Justin, Soul. I assume you've come for Kid." Justin nodded blankly, the skull decorated earphones blasting music into his head, as Soul took a seat in the empty chair next to Maka.
Kid barely raised his head, just scampered out of the room, Justin leaving as well. Patty had sat back down, content with what she had said. Not that anyone had really been listening but Blair had already stood up, purring. "I am Blair, a magical kitty. Mrow. I have seven lives left so be nice to Blair okay?" She sat back down, pawing at her chair and pouting at Maka. No one in the room commented on the strange behaviour, opting to ignore it instead.
Ox refused to speak so his turn went to Black*Star. "I AM YOUR GOD! WHY DID YOU NOT SAY HELLO TO YOUR GOD ON ARRIVAL! THAT WAS RUDE YOU! YOU ARE A PATHETIC SUBJECT! YOU SHOULD BE CAST AWAY BUT I'LL ALLOW YOUR STUPIDITY TO PASS BY SINCE YOU'RE NEW! NOW BOW DOWN."
Maka blinked and decided to ignore Black*Star. The boy was most certainly insane and Maka guessed he had some sort of extreme God Complex. Black*Star felt insulted as Maka had barely acknowledged him so he popped up right underneath her face. The 13 year old shrieked and jumped, knocking over her chair in the process. Black*Star giggled quietly to himself before squatting down to Maka's face. Marie pressed a little button that she'd hidden in her pocket. It was a mini warning. If she pressed it again, another handler would be sent down to help Marie. The woman sensed a fight was present.
"Now now, Black*Star leave Maka alone. It's not nice to scare people like that. Come on, sit back down." As Black*Star did as he was told Soul abruptly stood. "My name is Soul." And then he sat back down again. Marie fixed her eyes on Maka who was setting her chair upright, anger blazing in her juniper coloured eyes. She silently asked the question that Maka shook her head to, not wanting to go next. Instead the girl with face-paint reluctantly stood.
"I'm Halloween. I have heterochromia iridis." The child opened their eyes, staring right into Maka's. One was a powerful chocolate brown, the other a dull grey-blue. They were fairly breathtaking as the combination worked well. Halloween sat back down.
Maka kept her eyes level with the wall behind Marie as she stood. She refused to let any of the kids here have an advantage over her.
"My name is Maka and I'd appreciate it if you all stopped looking at me. Even you Black whatever." Marie pressed her button again. Maka went to sit down but there Black*Star was, him being slightly taller gave him the right to look down on Maka who calmly gazed at him. Around the room, everyone was being sent to talk amongst themselves, the tension in the air unbearable. Patty was shrieking uncontrollably about giraffes that Liz and Tsubaki took no notice of. Kid spoke with soul in the corner behind where Maka had sat, in a comfy looking lapis coloured sofa. Halloween hadn't moved and Blair had just curled up under her chair again. Ox was dead to the world. And Black*Star and Maka just stared at each other.
"You can't tell me what I can and can't do! I'm a God and you're just a human." He accused. "Oh, so I'm insignificant and you are? Wow I see why you're stuck in a mental hospital. Just leave me alone already." The warning bells were singing in Marie's head but she had to help Jacqueline and Harvar (a quiet boy who Maka hadn't noticed) find their ear plugs.
"No I'm not ill I'm here because they need a God. I help them. So you need to obey me." "Obeying you is not going to help me in any shape or form so go away." Black*Star narrowed his eyes, not following what he was being told.
"Well then, because I am a God, I must give you one last chance to redeem yourself. If you choose not to then I'll curse you and you'll live a lonely life without a family or a single friend to support you. You won't last a day. Then you'll have to come back and beg for help and because I'm merciful I'll let you and heal you."
Maka felt a growl escape from her throat and she knew it was loud from the way Halloween flinched away from her. The 13 year old tried to comprehend exactly what Black*Star had said to her without attempting to harm him. She couldn't believe that he had called her dependent. If she was dependent on others she'd be left in the streets by now, since her parents refused to acknowledge her pathetic existence. She had to learn to live by solely looking after herself and this kid had the nerve to call her weak and someone who'll easily sway to another? Maka could feel her back straighten inexplicably as something in her mind began twisting and turning. The girl was furious with Black*Star and her brain seemed content in making the words he'd said fit her tastes.
"Excuse me? If you think for one moment that I'm going to stoop to your level and beg for forgiveness from a kid with a God Complex then you really do belong in a mental hospital." Maka leaned in close to Black*Star's ear, a sinister smile poking at her lips. "No one will ever love you for who you are. You know deep down you're just a pathetic, worthless kid who's just playing dress-up to ignore the fact that they'll always have a miserable life." A full on smirk present on Maka's face the girl moved away and sat back down, not having anything else to say. Black*Star stood shocked, his eyes dangerously dark. He fully believed in himself and all those who followed him willingly but then this girl comes along and had the audacity to suggest otherwise? Black*Star resorted with the only method he knew.
Black*Star pulled back his fist and flung it towards Maka, aiming for her face. The girl ducked, stunned, before leaping up and sending Black*Star crashing into the ground. The noise of a chair toppling over alerted those who hadn't seen the beginnings of a fight. Jacqueline curled onto the floor, breathing heavily as she lost consciousness whilst Harvar stood unmoving and silent. Maka and Black*Star were throwing themselves at each other, refusing to back down when Marie tried to pull the two apart. Kid, Ox, Blair and Halloween were virtually unaffected by the screams of rage and pain flooded the room, Halloween watching with a sadistic expression. Soul felt a headache begin to form, feeling the presence of his demon. The remaining few in the session had dived for shelter only to find there is none and presently begin to cry. It was chaotic and catastrophic. Chairs were sent flying and punches were thrown. Curses rang out loud and clear as Marie tried to amend the situation. Just as she thought it couldn't get any worse, just as she'd managed to take Maka away from the blue haired boy, the 13 year old sunk tot eh floor and began crying and cowering.
Azusa smartly strode into the Group Therapy room, showing the slightest hint of confusion and a mingled look of fear and pity as she glanced round. Marie had finally gotten through to Black*Star who'd limited himself to throwing objects close to him and continuously screaming. Maka was still on the floor, half of her wanted to give out a high-pitched giggle and the other half just wanted to die. The mixture was not a pretty sight. Azusa sighed and waved at the door, signalling for Dr Stein and Nygus to enter. It took a full hour to gain control of the situation, Maka and Black*Star having been relocated to the 'Infirmary' because of the physical damage they may have imparted on each other.