It had been quite awhile since the other Shiroko was accepted by the Forcloser task force. She helpped around where ever she could, and she seemed to be really enjoying herself with everyone. Once again, she was with Hoshino, working on paperwork which had become a common occurrence.
"Do you know what the others would be up to right now?" Shiroko asks her pink haired companion.
"Yeah, Serika is working at some new cafe that just opened up near Schale. I hear it gets really busy sometimes." Hoshino tells her. "I don't think I could do something like that. It'd be too much stress for my poor, old, back."
"Heh, yeah. But thats something pretty on point for Serika." Shiroko agrees.
"Mm. Nonomi decided to go and try said cafe. Shiroko... the other Shiroko is probably scouting out nearby banks." Hoshino continues.
"Sounds like fun." Shiroko says as she finishes a paper and moves to the next.
"Yeah... do you think we could get you a nickname sometime? Calling both of you Shiroko is confusing. My old mind can't keep up." Hoshino jests.
"I'll think about it." Shiroko laughs. "I suppose it would especially be confusing to anyone outside the Taskforce. Whats Ayane doing?"
"Ayane? She's salvaging more scrapmetal." Hoshino responds.
"Out in the desert? Alone?" Shiroko questions.
"Like she always does." Hoshino confirms.
Shiroko looks out the club room window to see the sky get progressivly darker. Hoshino merely watched Shiroko as she stared into the darkness of the night. She then suddenly bolted out of her seat and rushed out the room. Hoshino could only sigh once Shiroko was gone.
"Ayane, what horrible fate had befallen you in another time?" She wondered to herself.
Shiroko rushed out of the school and into the vast deserts of the Abydos district. While she didn't know where Ayane would be exzctly, she had a general idea of the area she most commonly searched for salvage. She knew it was irational for her to leave Hoshino and run out to find Ayane with no warning, but she just couldn't calm her nerves after hearing the situation was so similar to last time. She knew she would never think properly until she saw Ayane was okay with her own eyes. As she ran, she pulled out her pistol and a flash light so she could quickly defend herself if she was attacked. She ran for quite awhile, maybe an hour at the most, but to her it felt like a the whole night. She kept running until she finally heard something from the dark.
"W-who's there?"
Shiroko quickly swerves in the direction of the speaker and in her sights is Ayane, also aiming down her own pistol. The two lower their weapons after seeing recognizeing one another. "Shiroko? What are you doing out here?"
"N-Nothing. Just came out here to make sure you got back safe." Shiroko replied.
"Y-Yeah. Sure." Ayane didn't buy it. Awhile ago, she overhead Serika tell Hoshino about how Shiroko, the other Shiroko (they really needed to work out a nickname for her or something because this was getting confusing) broke down when the cirumstances reminded her of when that timeline's Serika died.
'It must have been a similar circumstance with me' She thought.
"Just try to help her throught it best she can." She remembered Hoshino told Serika. "Its best if she lets it all out. That way, it might lead to an easier recovery."
"Could you give me some company going back to the school?" Ayane asked.
"Yeah." Shiroko moved over to walk side by side with Ayane as the shorter girl pushed her wheelbarrow of scrapmetal through the sands.
"Say, when did you get that pistol? Shiroko... the one who isn't you doesn't have one as far as I'm aware." Ayane chose a random topic of conversation.
Shiroko took out the pistol in question and looked it over almost painfully. "I... got it from you."
It was then Ayane noticed the pistol in question was a P226 same model as her own. It looked a bit worn down and had a bit of rust now that she got a better look at it. She then came to the realization that that indeed WAS her pistol. At least, the pistol that belonged to the Ayane in the other timeline.
"I see... It is mine, isn't it?" Ayane asked for confimation, her voice low.
"Yeah. I have all the weapons of the other timeline's taskforce." Shiroko admits. "Well, except for Serika's. I never found her rifle." Ayane was familair enough with Shiroko's facial expressions to tell she felt anguished when looking at the pistol. "I never took good care of them. They were precious to you and I didn't even think to at least clean them."
This heavy topic was starting to weigh heavily on Ayane as she held back tears on thinking on what this Shiroko had been through. "I-Its fine!" She blurts out. "Y-you kept them and thats all that matters, right?"
Shiroko seems to notice the state Ayane is in. She was never good at hiding her emotions. "Sorry to make you sad. I-I shouldn't unload all this on you." She hastily puts the pistol away.
"N-no. Tell me more. It might make you feel better to get it off your chest." Ayane quickly said.
"I'm not sure you can handle it-"
"And you are just barely handling it." Ayane interupts her. "Just let it out, Shiroko." She didn't want to mention she had already done so with Serika. She might feel like it Ayane was invading her privacy by knowing that. "Why did you run out here for me?"
There was a few moments of silence before Shiroko spoke.
"You were on another scavenging run. You had been working at it harder than usual ever since the others... you went out one day, but then a sandstorm rolled around."
Ayane knew sandstorms were a death sentance for anyone in Abydos unless they found some decent shelter. Shiroko continued with more emotion laceing her voice. Nonomi and I went out as soon as it was over to find you. It took us two hours until we found you, but the damage was already done. You were suffering from dehydration and heatstroke and having been exposed in the sandstorm for too long. To make matters worse, we later found out you were attacked by the helmet gang. I don't know the details, but they made your chances in the sandstorm that much worse."
Ayane's fear spiked at haveing imagining what her counterpart had went through. It had to have been painful to go out like that. She then felt for Shiroko for haveing to find her like that. If there positions were reversed, Ayane would be devastated to find any of her friends like that.
"Nonomi and I were so hopeful when you found out you were still alive. We rushed you to the hospital as fast as we could. You were still alive, even if you were in a coma. We thought you coupd be saved. But a few week later, the doctors declared that you would never recover."
Tears go down Shiroko's cheeks as she tells the story. Ayane's eyes start to water just watching her in that state.
"They were going to unplug you from life support so you wouldn't have to suffer. Nonomi and I were there when you were unplugged and subsequently passed away."
Ayane quickly drops the wheel barrow and tackles Shiroko in a hug. Not only to comfort her friend, but to hide the tears that have also begun to fall from her.
"Its okay, Shiroko! I'm here now and I'm not going to let you find me like that ever!" She declares from their hug. "I'll always watch the weather before I go out! I always have someone with me! You don't have to worry about all that anymore!"
"Ayane..." Was all Shiroko could let out as the two fiercely hugged each other. They didn't know how long they stayed like that, and they couldn't really find it in themselves to care. So long as one felt like they were comforting the other, it didn't matter to them.