I'm sorry for the late update. I kinda got stuck with something, and got distracted and momentarily lost all inspiration to even get off of bed. Anyway I hope you guys like it. Please review. Thanks!
~23 April 2016, Saturday~
Shinjiro tried his best to ignore the girl calling him and to focus on their teacher scribbling on the blackboard. But the girl was persistent and resorted to throwing a crumpled piece of paper to him. He glared at the girl. "What?" he whispered threateningly. Minako flinched before pointing at the paper she threw and making a gesture with her hands which, Shinjiro assumed was to unravel the paper. He glanced at their teacher, who unfortunately was Edogawa ("There's really no escaping this guy," Minako and Ryoji said the very moment they the old man first entered the room, stern and prim as ever.)
When do you want to finish up the cake:
lunch or after school?
The male sighed then lazily circled "lunch". The sooner it's done, the sooner I can give my head a rest, he thought. He folded the wrinkled sheet then slipped in on Minako's chair; he tapped her to let her knows that he left the note behind her. She searched for it with her hands for a while before she grabbed the paper and unfolded it discreetly. After reading it, she gave him a thumbs-up without looking back and stopped harassing him.
With no one disturbing him, Shinjiro's thoughts drifted once again to the child who vanished into thin air. He wondered why she looked so much like the girl who sat in front of him. He pondered why she asked for their help. He felt his heart skip a beat at the thought that the child was speaking for his friend, that she needs help too.
"Hey Shinji?" the girl called as they walk side by side towards the HE Room. "Did something happen, last night? You guys have been spacing out since this morning."
"Do you remember that kid with Fuuka?" he asked.
"What?"
"I'll take that as a 'no'." The pony-tailed boy slid the door open and surveyed the room and saw that there was no one inside. He placed their lunch on the table and turned to get what they needed to finish. On the fridge, there was a note from their classmate - a member of the Cooking Club - saying that Aigis paid her yesterday for all the ingredients they used and the box they needed for the cake. "Well look at that..." He slipped the note in his pocket and took the cake and the icing out.
On the other hand, Minako was washing a spatula. She flicked it before drying it with a cloth. "So what about the kid?" she inquired, placing the spatula over the bowl of icing.
"She looked just like you," he grabbed their lunchbox and handed the girl her own - something he didn't know why he made that morning, each for everyone in the dorm. "The girl said her name was Reiko. You have something to say about that?"
Minako gazed at him as if considering what he said before opening her lunchbox. "What the hell possessed you to make all of us lunch?"
"Stop changing the subject," he growled, trying to hide his embarrassment.
"I don't really know. But, I do remember using Reiko to introduce myself to people before."
He looked at her, perplexed. "Why would you do that?"
Minako chuckled, as if remembering something happy from the past. She looked up to the ceiling with a soft smile on her face. "Because I was stuck in my little happy place. When I was a kid, me and Makoto would play in our own little world. We used different names - me as Reiko and him as Ryu. Sometimes people would talk to us, so instead of giving our name, we give that. Even though we were using those fake names, we were still us, running around as if nothing's wrong. Then again," she averted her gaze from the white surface to her pony-tailed friend, "that's normal, for kids to be all innocent and stuff. But it was different for the two of us."
"What do you mean?"
"I don't really know how to explain it, but we were always happier together."
"Ah..." Shinjiro stared at her for a while, thinking of what she just said. For the first time since he met the girl, he realized how little he knew about her. He took the lid of his lunch box and sat across the girl to eat his meal. Does that mean she never felt happy with us? he thought as his hold tightened around his chopsticks. "So where is she, this Reiko girl I mean?" he heard her ask. Without looking at her, he said, "She disappeared before our eyes. All that's left of her was this red feather-something mask, with Makoto's name on it."
"Oh... Strange."
"How is she?" Akihiko asked Mitsuru. At the corner of the room, Fuuka slept peacefully on the bed.
"Exhausted, but overall, fine. That aside, I thought you have work today Akihiko."
The silver-haired man furrowed his brows and looked at his friend in confusion. "What are you talking about Mitsuru? Today's Sunday."
"Akihiko, it's Saturday." Mitsuru took her phone out and showed it to Akihiko.
The male eyed the phone before checking the day. 13:33 Saturday, April 23 "Oh... Shit." It finally hit him that he unknowingly ditched his work that day. "Kurosawa-san's gonna have my head for this."
Mitsuru gave a chuckle before patting her friend's back. "Better late than never. Come on, I'll help you explain to him why you couldn't make it on time."
"You're gonna tell him I thought it was Sunday?"
"That and I'll tell him you went to Fuuka to ask her for some info. Maybe stretch the truth a little to lighten the punishment."
Akihiko stared at the queen of executions incredulously. He couldn't believe his ears; the strict leader of the Shadow Operatives was going to lie for him. He wanted ask the heavens what they did to his friend to make her bend her principles, but decided to just thank him instead so that Lady Luck won't leave him just yet. "You'd really do that?" Mitsuru nodded. "Whoa, thanks!" He opened the door and the redhead slipped out.
"What kind of friend would I be if I didn't help you in something as minor as this?" Mitsuru said. She smiled at her grinning friend, who looked like a child he was just praised for something he did. But deep down inside, she anxious. She recalled the day she told him of Fuuka's disappearance.
Mitsuru patiently waited for Akihiko at the front desk. She tapped her foot to match the ticking of the clock.
"Are you waiting for Sanada?" Kurosawa asked when he passed her. The woman looked up to him and nodded. "I see... I have a favor to ask you, something that has to do with him."
The tapping stopped as she straightened to listen to the detective. "What is it?"
"That guy's been submitting reports late; sometimes he doesn't even know he has something to hand over until I tell him. Can you talk to him, and maybe knock some sense into him about responsibility?"
"I'll see what I can do."
"Thank you." They gave each other a curt nod before the male left.
Alone once again, Mitsuru pondered over what the man told her; she could feel dread rising from the possibility that what she was thinking was the cause of her friends actions. "It can't be that..."
The sound of footstep approaching her brought her out of her thoughts. She lifted her gaze and saw her silver-haired friend. "What are you doing here, Mitsuru?"
"What do you mean what I'm doing here? Akihiko, I called you last night to meet me at the HQ; there is something I need to discuss with you."
"You didn't call me last night."
"Akihiko, I called you twice."
"No you didn't," Akihiko reached for his flap pocket to get his phone. He fumbled at it,"...so you did call, must have slipped my mind."
Mitsuru clenched her fist. She glimpsed at her friend beside her. He won't like it, but he has to know.
Minako held a cup of tea as she sat at the rooftop floor, leaning on the wall beside the door. Though her friends are all on the first floor, she could still hear them - Teddie - celebrating. "A kid that looks like me... What's with that tower? First, it abducts people, then does weird stuff like make me weak or give people their memories. Now it's giving birth to clones of young me... maybe. Dammit!" She hastily drank her tea and regretted it because it was still too hot. She fanned her tongue with her hand and searched her pocket for something to soothe it. Mint bubblegum... Lucky me. The brunette unwrapped the gum and quickly chewed it. Why are things so confusing?
She silently watched the sunset and waited for an answer. But all that she got where some recollections of her conversations with the denizens of the Velvet Room. If I did forget some things, I wonder how I'm going to remember them. "Maybe I need to start camping in that stupid tower then." She blew her gum until it popped. "Nah, I won't last long there."
"Minako-san, there you are."
The girl flinched in surprise. She looked up and saw Aigis, her hand on the doorknob. The blonde closed the door and sat beside the crimson-eyed girl. "Were you looking for me?" The android nodded. "Is it because of this Reiko kid?"
"Yes." The two sat side by side, enjoying the cool spring breeze. Though it stung Minako a little, she didn't mind, she just enjoyed the moment while chewing her almost-insipid gum.
Meanwhile, Aigis listened to rhythmic bumping of the other girl's shoes. The action made the brunette younger than she was now that it reminded her of certain child. The child who trembled at the sight of her bionic figure, who looked at her with terror filled eyes before disappearing, leaving only a mask to prove she was real. Though she was not sure who the child really was, the fact that "Reiko" knew who Makoto was, and how scared the child was of her made her wonder. If Reiko-san was Minako-san's past self - if that is even possible - then could it be that she was talking about what I did to Makoto-san? When I sealed Ryoji-san in him, was Makoto-san frightened just like her?
"Shinji told me about it, about what happened after I passed out... The mask, do you have it?"
"Fuuka-san has it. Why do you ask?"
"I just wanted to see it."
Aigis leaned on the wall and moved closer to Minako. "I will try to ask Mitsuru-san then."
"Thank you." The two enjoyed the silence as the sky slowly turned darker. Occasionally, they would laugh at the screams they would hear from the first floor. "My gum's stale now," she fished the wrapper from her pocket and spat the gum there. "I'm gonna go now. See you tomorrow, goodnight!"
"Goodnight, Minako-san."
The wild card gave one last wave before heading back inside. Spotting a trash bin, she positioned herself to shoot the wrapped, used gum. "I can do this. I. Can. Do. This." She throws the ball of garbage. It created a perfect arc, but it failed to go into the trash. The wrapper bounced of the wall and landed in front of the Command Room door. "Aw, I missed."
The crimson-eyed girl walked over to the door and bent down to grab the litter. She pondered whether she should throw it properly, or to shot it like some prodigy she saw on a basketball manga. She chose the latter. She got into position again and threw it, this time weaker. "Yahoo!" she exclaimed when it made it through. She quietly cheered in joy. As she did so, she felt arms wrap around her. "What the-" but before she could say or do anything else, it covered her mouth and knocked her unconscious.
"Minako-san?" Aigis peeked through the door, but saw no one. "Must be Teddie." She got back inside, Minako's empty cup in hand, and went downstairs to the party. The blonde failed to see the Command Room door slightly open.
Mitsuru ran towards Fuuka's room. After getting a call from Kikuno that her junior was looking for her, she quickly got to her feet and rushed back home. "How is she?" she asked her maid.
"She is fine miss," answered the maid. "She says she senses something." Kikuno knocked on the door before opening it for Mitsuru.
Inside the room, Fuuka stood in front of the TV, one hand stretched towards it. "What's wrong Yamagishi?"
Fuuka slowly turned to her. "Something strange is happening inside the TV World. To be exact, the tower."
"Don't worry, we'll investigate it tomorrow."
"No senpai! There someone in there. What if it's Reiko-chan? What if she's in danger?"
"Alright. Tell me, do you know if something dangerous is happening?"
The teal-haired woman shook her head. "I can't tell. The tower is clouded by something."
"I see. Kikuno, please contact everyone and tell them to come here ASAP."
The maid bowed. "Right away, miss."
Thirty minutes later, sleep-deprived Investigation Team - minus Yukiko - arrived. Not long after that, Junpei, Yukari, and Akihiko came. Fuuka paced impatiently as they waited for the younger half of the group. "What's taking them so long?"
"Mitsuru-san," Labrys came in running, with the rest following close behind her. "Minako-chan is missing!"
"What!?" Fuuka cried.
"Aigis last saw her just this evening, at the rooftop. They were talking."
"Maybe she just went out," Junpei voiced.
But Ken quickly rebutted him, "That can't be. Ryoji-san was blocking and guarding the door ever since the party started."
"Wait a minute, 'party'?" Yukari jabbed him and whispered to him that they don't have time to talk about parties.
"She must be in the tower," Fuuka concluded.
"But what would she be doing there?" the capped-man asked. With that asked, Mitsuru began explaining about the what Fuuka sensed what was happening, and expressed that a child might be trapped inside. When asked about the child, she began explaining about the disappearance of Fuuka, and how she was trapped with a girl who called herself "Reiko".
It surprised Yukari and Junpei to know that their friend went missing without them knowing. But Naoto spoke for Mitsuru and said that they had everything in control, and that the news might disrupt their life and job. The two were not satisfied with the answer. They were ready to speak their mind, but they knew there was a time for that. Right now they have a new mission: investigate what was happening inside the TV World and save anyone who might be trapped inside. With their minds set, they raced to Gekkoukan High.
"There's no one outside the tower," Rise said as she used Kanzeon to survey the area. "And Fuuka-san is right. There's some weird stuff happening inside the tower."
Mitsuru glanced around the school rooftop. "We should head inside now. Is everyone ready?" The question was answered by some "hell yeah" and "you bet".
"Remember to stay cautious. We don't know what's in there now. Am I clear?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Alright, let's go!"
I was only three when I learned the meaning of the words greed, sloth, envy, lust, wrath, and pride. It was morbid for a child to thinking of such word and use it to identify the people around her. People would get mad at me when I call them as such, but I can't help it because mommy told me it was bad to lie. When I told that to mommy, she looked at me strangely. I couldn't hear what she was thinking, but I could feel it, her thoughts. And I'm sure she was thinking, "This girl is not my child." I'm not sure why she would think of such a thing when I am obviously her daughter. To make mommy and daddy proud, I decided to just keep my lips shut. But it only made them worry.
Sometimes, at night, I would hear my parents talking about how strange I was compared to other children, how I only had one friend, and how they wanted to introduce me to other kids in hopes that I'd be like them - that I'd be normal. I tried to please them, but those kids were just as greedy as some of the people out there. I don't want them around me. I only want Makoto and no one else.
Makoto is not like them. I know that very well. Because he only wants for everyone he loves to be happy. Because he was the only one who actually thought of me as normal person… and as a friend.