"Is it about Owari?" Hinata asked in a panic, voicing the concern for all those around him. Kirigiri looked at him before giving a curt nod, causing all the survivors to tense up.
"Yes, she has just gotten out of the pod, but I need you all to listen to me. She is currently in an incredibly weak and disoriented state. Our attempts to help her body while she was in the simulation proved unsatisfactory. We need you all to leave this room so that we can give her the medical attention she needs." Kirigiri said in an austere manner as she opened the door wider to usher everyone out. However instead of leaving the room, its occupants stayed rooted to the floor as they stared at her in shock.
"Hey, she's going to be alright? Right? You're gonna save her?" Kuzuryuu asked softly as he looked at Kirigiri dead in the eyes.
"We will save her. That is a promise." Kirigiri said confidently, never breaking the neutral expression she came in with.
"But..why do we have to leave? I mean…this room is big enough to hold all of us and then some. We won't be in the way at all while you treat her." Souda questioned as he attempted to reason with the lady to let them stay in the room.
"Yes, we wish to be there for our friend even in her state of-" Sonia began before she was quickly cut off.
"Listen, I'll explain everything afterwards. I really need you all to leave this room and go to the break room around the corner down the hall. " Kirigiri interrupted with urgency in her voice.
Sensing her desperation, their urges to question and argue with Kirigiri vanished. They quickly did as they were instructed and left the room to head for the break room without another word. Some of them cast worried glances behind them, but no one dared do anything more.
It took them a few minutes to find the break room after rounding the corner, but they eventually found it to be the third door on the left. It was a room slightly smaller than the one they previously occupied, however it felt a lot less spacious due to the furniture. Sofas took up most of the space as groups of them were placed against the walls or simply in the middle of the room. Each group of sofas had a small table designated to it as one was always found centered nearby. A fridge and microwave sat isolated near the wall next to door as they seemed to be the only electronic device in the room.
The friends all sat together in silence as they all worried over Owari. They were feeling a variety of negative emotions as the sudden news left them horribly shaken. Kirigiri's vagueness on the whole situation left them to the mercy of their imaginations as they subconsciously created their own reasons and scenarios for Owari's detainment. It is human nature to think of the worst case scenario; with no information to go by, the group expected the worse. However, none of them thought of the possibility of her actually dying. They all had enough hope to cling onto that prevented them from thinking such thoughts, especially after promising one another to create their own futures.
While everyone else lacked information to form a definite conclusion about Owari, Hinata had an advantage over them. Based on how Kirigiri spoke, he reasoned that Owari's current condition was due to her time in despair and not due to the side effects of the simulation. He tried to search through his newfound memories in an attempt to find a clue on how Owari looked and acted to get an idea of her current condition. It was giving him an unusual feeling as the only memories that he retrieved without any effort were all about himself.
Hinata was able to recall seeing Owari multiple times in the past, but he could not grasp any detailed information about her. The more he tried to remember, the more his memory began to replace her image with the one he saw on the island; the happy-go-lucky, always-hungry, laid back Owari. Despite it paining him to do so, he attempted to shake that image of her away so that he could see the truth, even if it were to cause him grief.
A beeping sound snapped Hinata back to reality. He looked around in confusion before his eyes fell on Souda who was getting something from the microwave by the door. Hinata was so deep in thought that he didn't even realize that Souda had gotten up. He watched the mechanic walk back to the group and set the plate on the table before sitting back down. Almost overflowing the plate were pieces of some type of fried meat that didn't look too appetizing.
"Couldn't you have gotten something else?" Kuzuryuu grumbled after it became apparent no one was going to take one.
"It was the only thing that looked edible in the fridge! I don't know how long the foods been in there!" Souda defended, as he grabbed a piece and stuck it in his mouth. "Owari would have eaten the entire plate by now." He mumbled between his chews.
"No she wouldn't." Hinata blurted out quickly before he could even process the words he just said. His friends stared at him as they expected him to explain his outburst, but he was unable to. He didn't know why he said what he said, it felt natural to say it as if it was common knowledge.
That's when he saw her, the real her.
He stared at what appeared to be a skeleton of a women with tattered clothing leaning against the wall of an alley. Junk and debris were scattered around the body as a nearby building had collapsed, causing him to almost completely miss her. However, his talent allowed him to see through the garbage and find what he was looking for. He walked past the debris to move closer to the skeleton and only stopped when he was only a few inches away from it.
He wasn't at all surprised to see that the skeleton was still covered in skin. The body was completely devoid of fat or muscle; without a barrier between the two objects, the skin wrapped against every bone like a seal. The skin hugged each bone so tightly that it appeared as if the bone would pierce the skin at any second. The light of the sun behind him made each separate piece of bone on the body cast a shadow, emphasizing how emaciated it truly was. Most of her once beautiful brown hair had fallen out; the few that remained were thin and dry as her body lacked the proper nutrition to keep anything healthy.
"You aren't useful to us like this at all Owari." He stated with a sigh as he looked down at her unimpressed. Hearing this, the body very slowly tilted her head to the side and looked at him with distant, sunken eyes that seemed like it would collapse within her head at any second. A few seconds later, a huge smile stretched across her face. Her teeth looked like stones inside her mouth as the gums were receded back.
"I'm useless and weak aren't I? I'm such a disappointment… It gives me such despair." Owari replied weakly with a dry laugh before her head dropped back down, her smile still plastered on her face.
How boring
Hinata screamed in terror, grasping his head in his hands which startled all those around him. Though they weren't too far to begin with, his friends all jumped to his side to comfort him.
"Hinata-san, are you alright?" Sonia asked, placing a hand on his shoulder.
"Yes I'm fine! Just leave me alone!" Hinata shouted as he got up and walked to the opposite side of the room to get away. He placed his hand on a wall, leaning on it for support. His heart was painfully pounding against his chest and he could feel his body shaking with fear from the memory. He was breathing so heavily that his friends could hear him despite being a few feet away.
"You're obviously not okay, tell us what's wrong!" Souda said pleadingly as he expressed his worry about his friend. Despite their concern, none attempt to close the distance between them as they expected him to lash out again.
"Did you remember something?" Kuzuryuu asked quietly after it became clear Hinata wasn't going to talk. Sonia and Souda gasped at his question as they began to think of what memory caused him to act this way.
"Yes." Hinata answered after a few breaths of air. His friends waited for him to clarify but Hinata remained silent after his response. He was having an internal conflict within himself on whether or not he should share the horror of what he remembered. Will his memory be the catalyst that will lead his friends to fall into despair all over again? Will he burden it all to keep them safe? Ignorance is bliss after all. However, he knew that they wanted to know the truth about the past despite how ugly and terrible it was. In spite of the terrors of the past, he knew they each had a powerful strength within them to continue and create a bright future for themselves. If he doesn't tell them now, Hinata knew their curiosity would lead them to the truth eventually. With or without his help.
Hinata collapsed onto his knees as he began to calm down. His friends rushed to his aid immediately and helped him back to his feet. He stared at all of them straight in the eyes as he could easily see them quietly pleading for answers. With a slight smirk and his head staring at the ground, he finally spoke again.
"I remember seeing Owari back when we were all in despair. I now completely understand why Kirigiri didn't want us to see her. She was…..She was in a terrible condition, I don't think I can even fully describe the horror I saw with just words. What terrifies me is that I remember not feeling anything when I saw her back then, but now…." Hinata shut his eyes as if that single action would remove that memory forever. However, he knew he had to keep that memory so that they could all learn from their mistakes. So that they could never repeat the past ever again.
Hinata lifted his head and took a deep breath. He told his friends everything about Owari that he remembered. How he saw the nearly lifeless shell of the girl they had all known to love. How the once powerful, courageous girl who challenged Monokma decayed and became something that could have easily been snapped in half by a gust of wind. He described to them her empty eyes, her crooked smile that seemed too big on her face, and her hollow laugh that was once so boisterous.
As Hinata told his story, he watched his friend's faces transform from curiosity into horror and disgust. Despite this, he continued as he knew that this was the ugly truth they had all waited and fought for. After telling them everything,
"Wow, you weren't kidding." Souda said with a dry chuckle as he rubbed the back of his head.
"Do you think Owari-san will be okay then? Kirigiri-san promised to save her!" Sonia asked Hinata in a panic as if he held all the answers.
As if on cue, the door opened and revealed Kirigiri who wore the same nonchalant expression on her face. As she walked in, the others rushed to her desperate for news about Owari, even more so as they all knew of her previous conditions.
"Sorry I had to make you all leave. We couldn't risk Owari getting too excited in her weakened state and injuring herself more. Luckily we were able to stabilize her, but due to the severity of her conditions, it will take her some time to recover. You are able to see her now, but I warn you that she appears quite different from what you saw in the simulation. " Kirigiri quickly explained, hitting all the possible questions she knew she was going to be bombarded with when she stepped into the room. Wasting no time, Kirigiri turned around to lead them back to the room they had previously occupied. The others stayed close behind her as if they were taking extreme caution to not get lost and lose their opportunity to see their friend. To the four friends, it felt like forever for them to reach their destination.
With only a slight hesitation, Kirigiri opened the door and allowed the group to slowly enter the room. Despite their anxiety, they were all able to control their nerves in this tense situation. Kirigiri was the last one to enter and closed the door behind her, never leaving her sights on the friends who had gathered around the bed in the far wall where a brunette lay.