"Sake wa, nome nome!" The delinquent pitched her head back, downing the shot. Gin fidgeted, wishing he had taken his gloves off to feel Mew-chan's soft, comforting fabric between his pudgy fingers. She coughed, beating her chest. "Ugh. This stuff's awful. Isn't sake supposed to be sweet?"
"You grabbed vodka, meow," Gin muttered, head low, sitting in the stuffy corner of the bar. He didn't want to look at the names. "You shouldn't be drinking, anyway."
"You drink to forget," the delinquent rebutted, "or that's what Mama says. I sure don't want to remember…" She gagged. She cut a very different figure to his dad; slimmer, yet taller with the aid of a straight spine. "Okay, no, this crap's vile. It's fighting back…"
"My dad says that puts hair on your chest, mraowr. If it tastes good, then it's for girls."
"I am a girl!"
"I know, arf! I'm not dumb."
The delinquent sighed. "Neither of us should be in here, huh? But it's not like the cop or that baseball guy give a crap." She looked up at the blackboard. "Can't drink, huh? Guess that's another dummy rule. Maybe I shoulda had more of a clue about the cards…"
"You were drinking before, woof?" Gin asked hesitantly, unused to extended conversations with any girl other than his mom.
"Yeah, I snuck some," she said, attempting to smirk. It came out as an enervated grimace. "That was before I knew they'd start- start slaughtering us."
Privately, Gin thought that 'sneaked' would have been the correct word, but it had been drilled fastidiously into him not to correct his elders. "I'm glad you're okay, meow."
"No kiddin'." She nibbled on her thumbnail, eyebrows creasing fearfully. The gesture fit poorly with the bleach-blonde hair and ankle-length overcoat. "Glad someone's concerned about me." Her voice lowered. "Even if that someone's an eight-year-old…"
"I'm nine, woof!"
"Sorry, uh…"
"It's Gin! I already introduced myself, arf!" He shrank back immediately, metaphorical ears folding. "U-Um, I'm sorry… I- I didn't mean to be disrespectful…"
The delinquent, for her part, blinked. "'Kay?"
She seemed a bit simple, Gin thought, but nicer than some of them had been. It wasn't like there were very many of them left, after all. Almost half of them had been - though Gin felt awful, cold shivers at the word, like falling into a public pool and meeting swamp water - killed.
Gin didn't want to die. Mom needed him.
"S-Seriously, it's okay!" the delinquent yelped. "Y-You don't gotta cry! I know I look mean, b-but…" she trailed off, chewing her lip furiously.
Oh. He was crying. Wasn't that embarrassing? He would be ten years old soon enough, and he was still a crybaby? Lame. How was Mom supposed to be proud of him if he ended up a loser like Dad?
He scrubbed fiercely at the tears. "'M not crying, woof. No way!"
"G-Good?" The delinquent coughed. "Look, I'm not too smart, and I'm not the reliable big sister type either… but do, uh, do you think you're gonna be okay? I mean, I'm pretty fu- f-freaked out myself, so… uh…"
"But," Gin whimpered, "I don't wanna go back out there… Those guys all- they- they…"
"Yeah, they did," the delinquent said, eyes hazy. "That- That girl wasn't much older than you, was she? But Miley just… did it. No hesitation. A-And that guy who had the Sage… h-he was so freaking loud, I- I thought my ears were gonna bleed. I've never been damned before, Gin. I know I'm not a good kid, b-but… I don't wanna go to hell…"
Gin swallowed, thinking of the grating, horrible sound of metal on metal; still kinder than what followed. "Me neither, mew…"
The delinquent and he lapsed into silence.
Before the morning came, Gin would only ask her to please stop drinking.
Hesitantly, and eyes still gazing longingly at the colorful menagerie of top-shelf liquors, she would oblige
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sanitized…
operational…
defective…
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Polling Trust Barter Sub-Game results…
SCENARIO: SOLITARY VICTORY - Conditions Not Met, Outcome Null…
Executing Trial: Arbitration Room…
Big Sis Anzu looked beleaguered in the morning, when they all gathered together at Melon Soda Lady's beckoning. 'Beleaguered,' though, was not a word Gin was proud to know; seeing it in the edges of Mom's eyes, just wrinkled enough for him to spot her exhaustion.
Big Sis Anzu was the same, smiling straight through. Gin didn't feel any better sad than sick.
He nestled her hand into his mitten. The creases smoothed; just a little.
Safalin stood before the fireplace, rubbing a thumb incessantly against the index finger of her opposite hand, legs together and neck craned. Gin felt a cold pang of disgust: it was almost like she was ashamed.
"U-Um," she cleared her throat, evidently attempting to channel the spirit of a public speaker. "I'm- I'm not much f-for ceremony, but I'd like to congratulate you all on your tenacity."
Shorty let out a throaty sound before spitting at Melon Soda Lady, the mucus tarnishing the finely polished wooden floor.
Melon Soda Lady swallowed, giggling nervously. She regarded their silent gazes like pistols gleaming in the low light. "A-Anyway… There's one last procedure we must attend to before continuing. I-If you would…"
She gestured behind herself, and the (Gin only just realized, as artificial as the lounge's sun) fireplace slid up and away, revealing a pitch black passage.
"Continuing, hmm?" Megumi repeated, fingers twitching above her empty holster. Gin shivered. "Onto another Main Game, I presume?"
"... Yes."
Cotton Candy groaned in defeat, fiddling with his bandages. "No use complaining, huh? Damn it all…"
"And if we refuse, we thereby revoke our privilege to functional larynxes, do we not?" Stripey said. Gin hadn't seen such an empty grin since Giggles'.
Gin was a growing boy; maybe that was why his collar felt so much smaller.
Big Bro Shin took his free hand. Gin squeezed strongly as he could through his frustratingly large mitten.
It was funny. He had never felt the need to remove them before.
The receptionist doll, strangely enough, was waiting for them within. A spotlight shone down upon him, stood ramrod straight in the center, caught between two other beams of light on either side.
"The… receptionist doll?" Samurai Girl risked, brow furrowing.
"Ah, y-yes," Safalin replied, hurrying over to the crabstached weirdo's side. "He's here to, um, announce the results."
"Indeed." The doll nodded sharply. Gin wondered if he would see any puppet strings, should he look up into the spotlight. Uncle Crabstache gave him the shivers.
"Indeed. To begin, let's hear resounding congratulations to our winner: Megumi Sasahara." His crabstache twitched upwards in an ugly grin. "Please come forward as we continue."
Megumi scoffed. "Don't suppose there's a choice in the matter?"
Uncle Crabstache's leer only solidified. Megumi sighed and stepped into the center spotlight, Safalin shrinking into her shadow.
"Sara Chidouin, our silver medalist, please step into the light on your left," Crabstache said, expression eerily still. Gin wondered how he could talk while holding that nasty grin so firmly.
"Right," Samurai Girl sighed and obeyed, head craned low with annoyance.
"Shin Tsukimi, in third place, please stand alongside her."
"Ha, hear that?" Big Bro Shin looked down at him. "I get a bronze medal. Gracious of them, huh?"
"Big Bro Shin…" Gin squeezed his hand tighter.
"Sorry, Gin," the older man gently removed his hand from Gin's mitten, placing it on his hood instead. "I'll be right back, okay?"
Gin swallowed. "'Kay…"
Wrapping a hand around the tail of his scarf, Big Bro Shin edged over to Samurai Girl's side. They didn't have much to say to one another.
"Rounding out our superiors, we have Alice Yabusame in fourth place."
Briefly locking eyes with Shorty, Stripey trudged silently towards the left spotlight.
"It really is such a shame about Reko," Uncle Crabstache continued, and Gin's blood froze as quickly as Stripey's form. "I had hoped you'd win as some form of consolation, but I suppose it was not to be."
"You…"
"Alice," Shorty said, voice frigid.
"Your time runs thin," Stripey continued. "Know that."
Uncle Crabstache smiled. "It is certain, Mister Yabusame. That much is true for all who dwell within this place."
Stripey didn't seem in the mood to entertain Crabstache any longer.
"At any rate," the doll cleared his throat, "that rounds out the superiors. The rest of you, who failed to make the cut, please report to the spotlight on your right."
"Failed to make the cut…?" Big Sis Anzu whimpered. "I… don't like the sound of that. Maybe we should have…"
Gin couldn't think of anything good enough to say, so he squeezed her hand tighter.
"In fifth place, we have Hinako Mishuku. Certainly a surprising contender."
"The hell's that supposed to mean?" Shorty scoffed. "Whatever. I'm going." She took her place, alone in the spotlight.
"Sixth, is Ranmaru Kageyama. Do show a little more effort in the future, boy."
Cotton Candy groaned. "You sound like my teachers. Shut up, would ya?" He marched over to Shorty's side. "Before you say anything, remember that you're a loser, too."
"I wasn't gonna," she replied. "You speak for yourself."
He sighed.
"In second to last place, we have Gin Ibushi," Crabstache said, and Gin startled. "Please head over."
"W-Wait, me?" Gin asked. "I thought I'd be dead last, woof! I didn't trade at all!"
"It would be quite unfair to tally the results based on whomever might have the most foreign tokens at the eleventh hour, would it not?" Uncle Crabstache asked, seeming taller than he had before, more spindly bone and stretched skin. "Thus, every single foreign tokens touched by a participant is tallied towards the final result."
Gin remembered suddenly, eyes wide.'The tokens I gave back to…'
Big Sis Anzu swallowed, giggling nervously. "I, a-ah, I feel betrayed, Gin!" she joked, sweat leaking from beneath her hood. "I thought we had something special, y'know?"
"What… do you mean, meow?"
"Well, you said you didn't wanna trade, right?" Gin nodded. "So, I thought… I'll do the same thing! Solidarity!" She coughed. "D-Didn't, uh, account for that. It's probably no big deal, though! At least we'll be together at the bottom of the loser pile!" She turned towards Big Bro Shin, pulling an eyelid down and sticking out her tongue. "Have fun with your new friends, Mister Big-Shot!"
He rolled his eyes, his slouch looking very much out of place between the tight-jawed stone statues around him.
"Ah," Crabstache cut in. "You seem to misunderstand, Anzu Kinashi. As an utter failure who failed to garner even a single token of trust, you shall shamefully stand before the winner."
"Hwuh?"
"Wait, I'm gonna be alone with those two, arf!?" Gin gestured at Cotton Candy and Shorty, both looking reasonably offended. "I want a refund!"
"You've made no purchase, Mister Ibushi." Crabstache tapped his chin thoughtfully. "Piggybacking off of Mister Tsukimi's coffers, if I recall. Now please locate yourself appropriately before I am forced to takeunsightlycorrective measures."
Gin shivered. "O-Okay, I'm going, woof, I'm going!"
And then Gin was alone between Shorty and Cotton Candy. "This bites, arf."
Cotton Candy chuckled. "Oh, I get it!"
Gin stared at him.
"'C-Cause you got the whole… animal thing." He withered. "L-Like the outfit… 'bites…'"
Gin glared at him.
"Um."
"Don't make fun of grade schoolers, Kageyama," Shorty sniped.
Cotton Candy retreated, scowling.
Gin felt greatly disturbed as Big Sis Anzu twiddled her fingers together before Megumi, seeing how easily the policewoman dwarfed the high schooler.
"S-So, uh, how've you been holding up, Offic- Inspector?"
"No need for chitchat," Crabstache intervened, and Gin couldn't help but notice him and Safalin back slowly away from the highest and lowest ranking participants. "You'll need to save your breath."
"Huh?" Big Sis Anzu turned towards him. "Whaddya mean?"
"I mean," his grin re-emerged as Safalin hesitantly pulled a device from her lab-coat. "You'll be screaming soon enough."
"Big Sis Anzu!" Gin screamed, knowing something waswrong."Get away!"
But the world flashed white, and the ground below him roared and shot away, leaving the message lost in the air.
It wasn't that Gindislikedroller coasters. He enjoyed them greatly, on the few occasions his parents (his mom, really; dad didn't have time for amusement parks when he found all the joy in the world at the bottom of a rye glass) had amassed the spare funds to splurge with. However, when Gin was about to ride a roller coaster, he never felt like he was going to fall to his death, no matter how high the coasters may have been.
Shorty's hand desperately grabbing his hood, choking him away from the edge of the rapidly ascending floor, held no comfort in comparison to his mom's quiet presence beside him.
"Wh-What the heck?" he gagged, rubbing his neck. "Why'd the floor go all weird, arf!?"
"I," Shorty started, stopping short as she released him, "don't know."
"H-Hey!" Gin heard Big Sis Anzu's voice, cracking with panic, and his heart thudded wrongly in his chest as he caught sight of her; limbs tied to the ends of a target, like she was the practice dummy of an archery range. A small, maroon laser glow against her arm. A crosshair, Gin realized.
"What's the matter with you!?" she screeched, legs wiggling helplessly as she stared below herself. "You're lucky I'm not scared of heights!"
"The drop is hardly what you need to worry about, Miss Kinashi," Crabstache replied, somehow perfectly audible to Gin despite the distance. He must have had a microphone on his lapel. "Do you understand your predicament?"
"Receptionist," Megumi said, and Gin realized that she was tied to the other side of the target, a glimpse of raven hair peeking over Big Sis Anzu's bright yellow hood. "Let us down.Now."
"Oh, you've hardly anything to worry over, Miss Sasahara," the doll replied. "After all, you're our grand winner! Now, if you'll allow me, I'll explain the rules of the Arbitration Room. Unless, of course, you'd care to fumble about in ignorance?"
"You'd damn well better explain, cur!" Stripey howled. Gin peeked hesitantly over the edge, in time to see the man slam his fists against the bars of a cell holding him and the other high-placers. "You've a nasty habit of bringing back unpleasant memories!"
Uncle Crabstache hummed. "I'm sure. Now, to make things simple: the bottom-ranking Anzu Kinashi is to be punished for her deceitful nature."
"Deceitful!? What kinda crap are you spouting, man!?" Big Sis Anzu cried.
Gin agreed with her offense, but didn't want to risk Crabstache's wrath.
"Shut up, meow! I'll find a way down there and bite you if you say that again!"
Whoops. It slipped out anyways.
"While I'm glad to receive such attention from a candidate, you'll want to hear the rules." Crabstache's neck twisted awkwardly. "Please refrain from further interruptions, lest I hold my silence."
The atmosphere of the room became yet more oppressive. Gin resisted the urge to pull down his hood for air.
"Thank you. Now, as I was saying: should those whom she could show no trust fail her in turn, Anzu Kinashi's failure shall be paid in blood."
The girl's face went white with horror, her struggles ceasing. "Wh-What…?"
"Of course, as this is an attraction, not an execution, we would never permit such a hopeless showing. This is called the 'Arbitration Room' for a reason, after all: those here who neither excelled nor failed shall be the 'arbiters' of her fate."
"What," Big Bro Shin risked, knuckles white around his scarf, "about Megumi? Why is she tied up there as well?"
"Her reward for her steadfast and reliable victory, of course. Such a stolid protector of the peace deserves no less, wouldn't you agree?"
"And what," Megumi hissed, "exactly would this reward be?"
"The privilege to give your live for those less fortunate," Crabstache smiled viciously. "Do you see that button next to you? Press it, and the target will flip. Though I feel I should warn you: the Rikuto Scorpion's venom is known to be exquisitely agonizing. I'm not sure how much better you'd fare than the girl."
Megumi went silent. The target didn't flip.
"H-Hey, Megumi," Big Sis Anzu whimpered. "Th-There's gotta be another way out, so… d-don't even worry about it, haha… The others have got big old brains rattling around in those heads, s-so…" she attempted to brighten, but Gin could clearly see tears threatening to spill over, like shards of ice ready to pierce his ribs, "just ignore the creepy old guy…"
Megumi inhaled. "There must be another way." She raised her voice. "All of you: we're depending on you, shameful though it may be for a woman of the law. These floormasters have attempted to deceive us before. Don't fall for any of their tricks. Find a way to free Anzu and I, if only to boost the numbers for the Main Game."
Big Bro Shin chuckled ruefully. "Brutally pragmatic, huh? I guess you're not the type for emotional appeals." Gin could even hear him grind his teeth. Were there microphones in the collars? "I'm… not seeing anything that can help in this cage, though. I hate to admit it, but I'm a bit stumped."
"Of course. As superior candidates, you have earned the privilege to relax for the time being. The shameful, untrustworthy fools of the Impression Room are the ones who must attend to the hard labor."
"Hey, who are you calling a fool!?" Cotton Candy shouts. "A lesser man'd smite you for that."
"Oh, my. How sublime." Crabstache grinned. "I'd certainly love to see that. Now, I feel as though I've given you enough to work with. Do perform excellently, would you? If you don't mind my selfishness…"
"The hell's that mean?" Cotton Candy scoffed, rolling his eyes. He peeked over the edge, wincing. "Never was one for heights…"
"The drop's not what we should be focusing on," Shorty hissed. "Anzu's life is in danger, moron. Cut the crap."
"Well, I don't know what the hell to do! What's the 'Impression Room' even mean, anyway?"
"Well," Shorty said, eyes gliding over the room. Gin noticed, eyes finally tearing from Big Sis Anzu's helpless form, that there were two LCD screens before them, contrasting against the large blue tiles of the floor. "Those screens… One says '50,' and the other is counting down awfully quick." She swallowed, gripping her skirt in a fist. "We'd better figure this outfast."
"A timer, huh?" Big Sis Anzu keened. "How much- Actually, no! Don't tell me! I don't wanna know!"
"It'll be okay, Big Sis Anzu!" Gin called back. "Shorty's smart, so she can pick up the slack for Cotton Candy, woof!"
"Hey! You realize that makes you at least average, right!?"
"Ranmaru," Shorty hissed.
"Sorryfor not wanting to get bullied by a grade schooler!"
"Ranmaru!" she growled. "Fucking focus! We don't have time for this shit." Her steely gaze turned to Gin. "You too, Gin. Shape up or shut up. We don't have time for a goddamn comedy routine."
Gin withered. "Y-You're right. S-Sorry, meow…"
"First things first, what the hell does '50' mean? It's gotta be referring to something. A unit of measurement? Height, weight, depth?"
"U-Um!" Big Sis Anzu piped up, wiggling against her restraints. "I'm fifty kilograms, last time they weighed me! Usually I wouldn't be so eager to tell somebody my weight, but…" she thrashed once, proving her point.
"So it's weight, then. Specifically, it's referring to Anzu's weight." Shorty hummed, eyebrows creasing brutishly. "But what the hell does thatmean?What do we have to do?"
"Um," Cotton Candy started. "Maybe we need to knock something over? As long as it weighs fifty kilos, that is…"
"But what's there to knock over, woof!?"
"Right…"
"Maybe," Shorty said, "there's a scale somewhere around here. I'm only thirty-eight kilos, but it's not like I'm the only one here."
"Oh, I'm fifty-two!" Cotton Candy said. "Looks like slacking off paid off for once!"
"How fastidious," Shorty drawled. "Jump on every tile, then. And make sure you get some good airtime."
"Ah, shut up," he said, though he did firmly press his weight against the tiles near him as he spoke. "I thought we didn't have time 'for goddamn a comedy routine.'"
"Hey, Ranmaru, do you enjoy having functioning genitals?"
"Screw you. I don't have to put up wi-!?" In the middle of Cotton Candy's sentence, he slipped on one of the tiles, landing hard on his rear. "What the hell!?"
"Cotton Candy found a secret passageway, meow!" Gin realized, peeking at the tile the teenager had slipped on, jostled slightly loose. "Pull it open, woof!"
"Jeez," he sighed, lifting himself into a crouch and sliding his fingers into the crevice. He pulled it off and to the side. "Huh. Lighter than it looked."
Gin crept towards the whole, Shorty at his side.
The tile had been covering a deep, deep hole, with silver spikes decorating the bottom.
The three looked at each other, then back down the hole.
Cotton Candy swallowed, before wordlessly sliding his belt off and dropping it down the pit.
Collectively, the three's gaze flitted to the LCD display. The '50' had been cut to a '49.8.'
"Oh, shit."
"Um, guys?" Big Sis Anzu risked. "Why do you all look so glum…?"
"W-We can… smash those monitors or something, right, mew?" Gin said. "Right?"
"With what?" Cotton Candy asked, still staring down the pit.
"Guys?"
"What the hell," Shorty snarled. "What thefuck."
"Is something the matter, Miss Mishuku?" Uncle Crabstache's voice broke through the quiet.
"You son of a fucking bitch," Shorty snarled, her expression barely human. Gin hadn't seen her make a face like that before.
He quivered.
"Fifty goddamned kilos. I don't weigh enough. Do you think this is funny?"
"Sh-Shorty…?" Gin mewled.
"You piece of shit. I'll… I'll-"
"You'll do what, Miss Mishuku? Kill me?"
Shorty went silent.
"You should focus on the task at hand, young miss," Crabstache said. "The Impression Room's purpose is for a low-tier candidate to leave a final impression. It's quite unfortunate, that our adult candidates are more well-versed with responsibility. Perhaps, if Miss Kinashi were only less foolish, you would be more ripe for choice?"
"Fuckyou," Shorty hissed.
"I'm a-afraid," Safalin said, "that unless it's Ranmaru who descends…"
"I-I'll say it right now," Cotton Candy whispered. "I ain't jumping."
"'Jumping'? 'A final impression'? What the heck are you guys talking about!?" Big Sis Anzu cried, chest heaving. "I-I'm really starting to freak out up here, guys, so would youpleasefill me in!?"
"Calm down, Anzu," said Samurai Girl, pitching in for the first time. "Ranmaru. Gin. Hinako. Don't you remember what this is? An 'attraction,' rather than an 'execution.' We've survived every other attraction with full numbers. There's no reason for that to change now."
"Right," Cotton Candy said. "Right! Of course you're right, Sara! Hinako, don't you remember what we found?"
"What we…?" Shorty's eyes widened, breaking through the ugly haze of her rage. "You mean…? That thing?"
"Hey, I'm a little lost here, arf!" Gin barked. "Don't treat me like a dumb kid!"
"Remember when you found us, Gin? Outside of that strange room?"
"You mean that place in the stairwell, woof?"
"Yeah. Back then, we didn't just find extra Clear Chips in there." She paused, reaching into her jumper to pull out a thin, clear cord. "We found this, too: the web of lies."
"The web of lies?" Gin repeated. "Doesn't that sound really suspicious, mraowr?"
"Sure, it does. But what other options do we have?"
"I- I guess you're right, meow…"
"I still don't wanna go down there," Cotton Candy whined. "How can I be sure you won't cast me down into the abyss? The both of you are half my size."
"You're skinny. You'll be fine," Shorty sighed, twining the rope around her fingers. "Now-" She gave it a sharp yank, testing its durability.
It snapped easily in twain.
Cotton Candy blinked. "Huh. I guess you wouldn't've dropped me."
"Motherfucker."
"Indeed."
Gin mewled wordlessly in despair.
Big Sis Anzu echoed him, writhing against the restraints once more.
"We're out of time, aren't we?" Shorty asked, voice cracking. "Not again… I can't- can't watch something like this again…"
Gin risked a peek at the timer. Ten seconds remained.
No.
Nine.
No!
Eight.
"No!"
Seven.
"G-Gin!? What's the matter!? Did you get hurt!?"
Six.
She was still worrying about him, even now.
Five.
"Goddammit," Shorty growled. "Goddammit! What the fuck were we supposed to do!?"
Four.
Even as a good for nothing. A failure. A waste of breath and food.
Three.
"H-Hey, Megumi, y-you remember what I said earlier?" Big Sis Anzu whimpered helplessly.
Two.
"M-My resolve might have wavered a bit, haha…"
One.
"Goddammit, Safalin!" Big Bro Shin cried. "Stop this!"
Melon Soda Lady didn't respond, shrinking in on herself. Why would she ever be helpful?
Zero.
"S-Stop, please," Big Sis Anzu begged. "I'm… I don't wanna die!"
And then shescreamed,as the dart fired and the venom entered her veins.
"BIG SIS ANZU!" Gin wailed. "No, no, no, no, no, stop it, stop it! Heal her! Heal hernow!"
"S-Stay calm, Gin," Melon Soda Lady murmured, even as Uncle Crabstache watched on, a strangely thrilled look on his face. "This is only the first flag. The attraction is hardly over yet."
Theattraction.They were all sick. Every last one of them. Gin was supposed to believe in people."Treat them with kindness, Gin,"Mom would say,"You know how much it hurts when the other kids make fun of you, right? You won't be any better than them if you treat somebody like that. There's always something you can't see."
But Gin didn't care anymore, what he couldn't see. That was just the sort of thinking that got her stuck with a big, ugly parasite like his dad. Big Sis Anzu was hurt. Big Sis Anzu coulddie.After everything she had done for him, all the kindness she had shown. She had been there for him througheverything.Through Mister Q-taro's death at his hands, she hadn't blamed him, through his stupidity leading to Big Sis Mai's death, through Mister Mishima's sacrifice,through the attractions, through Mister Policeman's failed ploy, through Cotton Candy's betrayal, through Big Sis-
Gin blinked. Big Sis…
Shorty was squeezing his shoulders. "Gin! Calm down. You're freaking out."
"M-Mreowr…?"
"You back on earth? Done visiting the martian petting zoos?"
"I- I don't… Big Sis Anzu…"
"Is alive. But she won't be for long if you don't calm down." Shorty let go of him, and when his vision cleared, he could tell that she was shaken too. Her eyes seemed somehow evenbaggier.Gin was impressed. "It's up to us. The 'superiors' are stuck down there, so we gotta figure this all out." She grinned. "I'm happier not relying on some worthless goddamned adults, anyway."
"Okay," Gin tried. "Meow."
"Receptionist!" Shorty called. "You promise she's okay!?"
"I promise nothing," he replied. "However, there are five doses of the venom set to fire. I'm certain Miss Kinashi is resilient enough to survive. However, should you run out of time again…" He grinned. "Well, I'm no toxicologist."
"Scumbag," she spat. "See, Gin? She'll be okay if we hurry."
"Please do," Big Sis Anzu moaned. "It hurts… I've never even gotten stung by a wasp before…"
"That was a poor show,InspectorMegumi Sasahara," Stripey called. "Letting a teenaged girl take a blow for you? Have you no shame?"
"I made a call," Megumi responded, voice blank. Gin shivered, glad he couldn't see her face. "Don't think I want Anzu dead for some selfish reason."
"Words are cheaper than dirt, Inspector. And yours have never quite matched up with your actions." Stripey harrumphed.
"Do you mean toimplysomething, Alice Yabusame?" Megumi asked coldly. "Because I'm the best person here to show you just how cheap words are. Understand?"
Stripey said nothing.
"The cop doesn't matter," Shorty said. "What the hell are we gonna do? That's the question we need the answer to."
"I'm not jumping," Cotton Candy said, backing away from the pit. "Just making that clear. Anzu's great and all, but you can't ask me to die for her."
"Nobody's gonna die, woof!" Gin hissed. "Nobody! That's what I'm deciding, right now!"
"That's great, Gin, but saying something doesn't manifest it."
The three lapsed into tense silence, staring at each other.
"If," Big Bro Shin risked from the cage, "we can't figure out a solution with what we have here, then let's discuss anything that comes to mind. Sitting around feeling hopeless just wastes the little time we've got, right?"
"But the only thing of note were those AIs," Samurai Girl said. "Those strange dolls from the attractions could qualify, I guess."
"Those… disgusting videos come to mind," Stripey said. "I… can't find it in me to ponder anything else. This receptionist doll has stolen the show from Tia Safalin. There must be some significance there."
"Dolls… What's up with that, anyway?" Cotton Candy asked. "I feel like that word keeps getting thrown around like a crappy motif."
'Dolls,'Gin thought.'Uncle Crabstache is called the receptionist doll, right? Melon Soda Lady is the Crying Doll… And Giggles… was the laughing doll.'Gin's nose twitched.'But they aren'treallydolls, right? When Big Sis Anzu beat the stuffing out of Giggles, she bled, didn't she? Dolls don't do that.'
"The attractions didn't keep up with any consistent theme," Shorty said. "It was strange. I don't understand the thought process behind any of this. Even the floormasters have a weird coordination going on, but… I have no idea how any of it connects."
"There is something that's been bothering me," Samurai Girl said. "Gin can back up my words."
Gin, caught off-guard, mewled confusedly.
"Don't you remember? Safalin's office, yesterday morning: you found me while I was investigating. There was something really off."
"That doll, meow," Gin muttered. "Wasn't that just a cruel joke?"
"Maybe so, but when I went further inside… I found more of them. Doll after doll, all modeled in our image. I even saw the people who didn't make it: one of them was a middle schooler…"
Big Bro Shin hissed. "With green hair?"
"Huh?" Samurai Girl, for the first time, lost her composure. "H-How'd you know that?"
"Because I saw that girl die," he said, eyes dark. "Describe the others, could you?"
"Well, if you insist." Stripey tensed, even as Big Bro Shin put a hand on his arm. "There was the girl; a plain-looking man in a suit; a woman with… a very eccentric fashion sense; a tall, muscular man in a ratty tank top; and an equally buff man with bleached hair. Was that alright?"
"More than alright," Big Bro Shin said. "I'm behind you on this one, Sara. Gin and Alice, too."
"Oh?" Megumi said, and Gin's tongue twisted into itself. "Did you happen to see something grotesque, Shin?"
"You… could say that, yes," he sighed. "That girl and… Alice's sister. Sara just described them fairly well. Alice and I… We're the ones who purchased the victim videos. Gin… found us, and refused to leave until he could watch them with us."
"What the hell!?" Shorty spat. "Why the hell did you show him that crap!? Why did you even bother looking at it at all!?"
"Don't presume it a pleasurable interaction, Hinako Mishuku," Stripey said, cold and twisted and sharp.
Shorty stopped talking. She looked away. "... Right."
"So…" Cotton Candy started. "Dead people, dolls, and sci-fi AI crap. Where does that leave us?"
"I," Big Bro Shin broke into a sweat. "I'm unsure."
"Great. So that was all pointless."
"Don't be so negative, Ranmaru!" Samurai Girl called. "It might be fun whining, but remember that you're in danger too!"
"Me!?"
"You're the only one who weighs enough to stop the darts, remember?"
"Jeez, way to throw a guy under the bus. You been hanging out with Megumi?" Cotton Candy pouted. "You're the only girl I can trust anymore, Hinako…"
"You've got awful judgement, if that's the case."
Gin tuned them out. Something wasn't sitting right. It felt like a carrot was being dangled just before his snout, only for him to meet nothing but bit.
"Dolls…"
"Huh? You say something, Gin?" Shorty prompted. "If you've got somethin' to say, there's nothing to lose sayin' it."
"Dolls… Why… does it always come back to dolls, meow?"
"... What?"
"The Laughing Doll, The Crying Doll, The Receptionist Doll, dolls in the attraction, dolls of us, dolls of people we've never even met, woof!" Gin rambled. "I don't get it at all! And introducing those freaky AIs, too! What was the friggin' point, nya!? Why make a copy of me!? It's not like those people who got killed got to join as double agents or something! Why wasn't stalking us enough, woof!?"
"Wait," Samurai Girl said. "What did you say?"
"Why do they know all that creepy stuff about us!? Why do they know what I wear, what I like to eat, how I feel about school and Mom and Dad, everything!" Gin felt angry tears flow freely from his eyes. "Why!? I don't get it! I don't get any of it, arf! Why won't they just let me go home, mreowr!? Mom misses me! The animals from class miss me! I bet even Dad would miss me if he ever got off his lazy butt to check if I'm gone! I don't get it!"
"Gin," Samurai Girl. "I think… you're onto something. Did you… talk with one of the AIs?"
"Yeah," Gin panted, trying desperately to calm down, not wanting to look like a little kid throwing a temper tantrum. Even if he knew it was justified, that he was far too young to ever have to worry about any of this. Gin didn't like to think about what other twelve-year-old boys worried about; it made him sad. "Yeah, the one… the one of me, meow."
"You said… they knew everything?"
"Pretty much, woof. It scared me a little."
"I," Big Bro Shin swallowed, "think I see what you're getting at, Sara."
"Gin, something you said stuck out to me. 'It's not like those people who got killed got to join as double agents.' What did you meant by that?"
"U-Um, I- I mean… like, you know, espionage or something, woof." Gin flushed a little, unused to the scrutiny. "Like maybe they pump the voice through an intercom to make us think there was another group of survivors, and then they lead us into a gas chamber, woof."
"That's a bit morbid," Cotton Candy winced. "Don't give these creeps any ideas."
"Or," Samurai Girl said, steeling herself, "they could go all the way. Wouldn't it be more convincing…. if they had a fully functioning fake?"
"A fully…" Shorty repeated. "What?"
"You're not saying," Big Bro Shin gasped, eyes wild. "There's not a chance…"
"If those AIs are as accurate as we've seen," Samurai Girl continued. "And those dolls… I felt them. They're utterly lifelike. I swear I could feel bone beneath the skin when I touched them. If those dolls could be controlled by an AI…"
"Then who would ever suspect that one of our own wasn't human?" Big Bro Shin finished. "That's… Holy Hell."
"Sara," Shorty muttered, brows creased and eyes wide, "have you completely fucking lost your mind!?"
"Is it any more insane than the things we've already seen!?" Samurai Girl snapped. "Don't dismiss the possibility just because it seems unlikely."
"So you're saying, what, that one of us is a fake?" Cotton Candy asked, blinking confusedly. "I-If you say so, I'll trust you, but… it seems a bit…" He huffed, collecting himself. He closed his eyes smugly. "Well, I'd certainly hate to have the wool pulled over my eyes. I trust you know what you're doing, Sara."
Gin's outfit felt a bit too heavy. He figured it would be at least a little cooler forty feet above the floor! Shakily, he wiped some sweat from his face; his face mask was getting nasty.
"I-I don't really get what you're saying, meow," he muttered. "Why would there be a fake? I know I brought it up, arf, but isn't that kinda dumb?"
"Receptionist," Stripey spoke suddenly, face blank. "What would the human cost of clearing this attraction be? Must someone die?"
"The human cost?" The doll repeated, a grin forming. "Well-"
"Realistically, yet ideally. If we were to do everything right. I've no patience for misdirection."
The receptionist doll's grin hardly twitched. "Well, certainly no human lives need be lost. Why, at the rate you're going, I suspect Miss Kinashi will be no worse for wear." His head tilted askew. "Physically."
"Hmm." Stripey closed his eyes. "No human lives, eh? Then I've done my part."
"Alice!" Shorty shouted. "Quit it with the cryptic bullshit! What the hell did you mean by that!?"
"No need to lose your composure, Hinako Mishuku," Stripey said calmly, cracking an eye open to take in Shorty's sweat-streaked face and angrily flailing arms. "It's hardly becoming of a bright young mind. I don't have the tools to solve this equation, singularly focused as I was." He chuckled, low and bitter. "You were hardly so foolish. Impress me."
"Jeez, I wonder if he does lessons?" Cotton Candy murmured, not seeming to realize that the microphone Gin suspected was in every one of their collars could not be switched off. "Oh, right, he's in prison. Nevermind."
"Impress you? Oh, fuck off," Shorty spat. "This is a bunch of Sci-fi bullshit. I never fucking asked for this…"
"Hey, Safalin," Big Bro Shin said. "Is there really such a thing? A doll that could act as though it were human?"
"O-Oh! Y-You're talking to me?" Melon Soda Lady gulped. "A-Ah, our, uh, our company does… advanced research into… A-Am I allowed to admit this…?" She quivered a bit. The receptionist said nothing, expresionless. "W-Well… A fully autonomous doll, puppeted by an AI… is certainly possible with our resources. H-Honestly, the procedure's fairly simple when…" She looked up, paling under their stares. "When you… Wh-When…"
"So it's true," Big Bro Shin breathed. "Then… who? How many people are on this floor as we speak?"
"Sara Chidouin, Gin Ibushi, Ranmaru Kageyama, Anzu Kinashi, Hinako Mishuku, Tia Safalin, Megumi Sasahara, Shin Tsukimi, Alice Yabusame, and myself," the receptionist stated. "No others are allowed on the third floor during the subgame."
"That's a bit more than I asked for," he said, "but I guess I shouldn't complain."
"Shin," Samurai Girl said. "He didn't give you a number."
The receptionist remained quiet.
'If he didn't give a number, does that mean something?'Gin wondered.'Why would the number of people matter, unless… there's a fake?'
Somebody here wasn't real. It would certainly be very cruel, and in line with what Gin had come to expect, if it were Big Sis Anzu. It made him itch, but he had to consider it; after all, if they didn't push anybody, Megumi didn't sacrifice herself and a fake got poisoned, wouldn't it make sense that the attraction would be cleared 'without any humans dying'?
"D-Do you think it's Big Sis…" he voiced the possibility nervously, voice hitching on itself, like he was covering up a crime.
'Gin,'he could almost hear,'there's always something you can't see.'
He couldn't see? What was he missing? When would Big Sis Anzu have been replaced, anyway? Wouldn't he have noticed? No matter how good those AIs were,somethingwould have to be different.
"Got some dark secret to share, Gin?" Cotton Candy asked. "Now's the time."
"N-No, meow. I'm… I'm trying to think…"
"Hey," Samurai Girl said suddenly. "Don't you think… we should ask one more question?"
"Hmm?" The receptionist twitched. "Do you have something on your mind, Miss Chidouin? If you'd care to share, then by all means…"
"Receptionist. As we are, right now… Is there still a possibility to save Anzu without any loss of human life?"
"Oh? Oh, my…" The receptionist broke out into another ugly grin, skin stretching enough to escape his face. "How cleverly worded. You seek to eliminate as many possibilities as you can in one strike, hmm? It would seem kendo has shaped your mind alongside your physique, Miss Chidouin."
"... Answer my question."
"Certainly. There is still a possibility to save Miss Kinashi with no loss of life. You'd better hurry, however: that window is running ever shorter."
"So Anzu's out," Big Bro Shin realized. "And since we're stuck down here… that would leave four possibilities, wouldn't it?"
"Yes." Gin went cold as Samurai Girl spoke. "Megumi, as well as the three in the Impression Room."
"I assure you," Megumi said icily, "that I am quite human. I'd slice my arm to show you the blood, but I seem to be indisposed."
"Ha," Big Bro Shin said. "Well, your attitude is as lovely as ever."
"'M not a fake," Big Sis Anzu murmured woozily. Gin tensed; she never sounded so lethargic before. "Dolls can't get tummyaches…"
"We're not suspecting you, Anzu," Samurai Girl said kindly. "Just hang in- erm, k-keep going, okay? We'll get you down."
"M'kay…" she moaned. "O-Ow…"
"So, by elimination, we still have Gin, Ranmaru, and-"
"Just what in thefuckare you saying!?" Shorty roared. If she was a cat, her hackles would have spiked. "This is loony! Batshit! Over the goddamned cuckoo's nest! This whole 'doll' charade is a- a…"
"Hinako," Samurai Girl finished. "What other explanation is there?"
"I- I…"
"If you've got another solution, I'd certainly love to hear it."
"You…" Shorty choked. "I- I don't… know. I don't know, okay!?" She ran a hand down her face. It came away wet. "This is all… I don't know anymore…"
"Shorty…" Gin murmured, inching over to her. "C'mon… We don't got time, woof! What was Stripey saying earlier? It was like he was trying to get you to realize something, meow!"
"I'm supposed to be," Shorty tried, hand brushing across her jumper pocket. "I never wanted to have to deal with this. Maybe if I was fat, we wouldn't have to worry," she chuckled weakly. "It's all too damn confusing. Even if I sit down and think it through… the conclusion I come to…"
The conclusion? Gin thought back to what he knew about Shorty to see if he could follow her train of thought: she was short, obviously; she was rude; she hated adults, yet she spent so much time around Stripey, the criminal; her hair was weirdly fluffy, so she obviously took care of it, despite acting like she couldn't be bothered about anything; and she seemed to enjoy teasing Cotton Candy.
Now that Gin thought about it, weren't Cotton Candy and Stripey the only two she even bothered with? Why would she care so much about the conclusion she came to, if they had to push a dummy she didn't give a crap about?
"Hinako," Cotton Candy said, arms held out placatingly. "Calm down, okay?" He froze. "Wait, if it's one of us…" His eyes flicked to Gin. "I mean, Hinako seems normal…"
'Hey,'Gin remembered sharply, like a soccer ball spiked into his temple.'Calm down, would ya? Tears don't suit you, pipsqueak.'
'Oh. It's Cotton Candy?'
Shorty laughed weakly. "That's a dumb look, Gin. You realized it too, didn't you?"
Gin swallowed dryly.
"Realized what?" Cotton Candy asked. "Crap, don't tell me it's him? Aren't we screwed, then!? He doesn't weigh enough!"
"Ever since," Shorty started, not meeting her friend's eyes, "we came back from the Room of Lies, you've been acting a little strange, Ranmaru."
"Huh? What are you talking about?"
"It's not like we've known each other for very long, so I dismissed it pretty easily. People act weird in stressful situations, and it wasn't like you were a drag or anything."
"I still don't get it. How have I been acting weird?" He shook his head. "Jeez, you're acting just like my classmates. What the hell, Hinako?"
"Ranmaru, when you escaped from the Room of Lies, you lost something, didn't you?"
"I did?" Cotton Candy patted himself down, checking his pockets. "I don't think I'm missing anything."
Head low, Shorty pulled a ratty bandage from her pocket. "Then where'd this come from? When we tried to escape that room, I pulled you as hard as I could, but…"
"My… bandage came off?" Cotton Candy cleared his throat, posture weakening. "But I don't remember having to replace them…"
"'Cuz you didn't," Shorty said. "When you came back out, there was already another in place."
Cotton Candy went silent, staring down at his arms.
"Right under my nose, you got replaced, and I didn't even notice," Shorty finished. "That's my theory. Please, Ranmaru," her voice hitched, "prove me wrong."
"I- I don't… That's fucking crazy, Hinako." Cotton Candy tensed, eyes wild and hurt. "What the hell're you doubting me for!? I thought you, at least, would be on my side! But you're just like everyone freakin' else!"
Shorty said nothing, head low.
Gin felt that he was up to plate now, but any fondness Gin had for baseball withered away four days prior. "Cotton Candy, are you really a doll now?" he asked, instantly regretful.
"Hell no! What kinda crap is this!? Anzu's gonna freakin' die, and we're chasing this whackjob fantasy!? As cool as it sounds, there's a time and a place, don'tcha think?"
"Then prove it, woof!" Gin said. "Show us that you're still human!"
"Ain't the fact we're having this conversation proof enough!?"
"No, it's not enough, mraowr! If it's for Big Sis Anzu's sake, then I'll prove anything!"
"Quit bein' a brat! Are we really freaking doing this?" His gaze sped over to the others, pleading.
"If they're wrong," Samurai Girl said, "then you should be able to prove them wrong, right, Ranmaru?" She bit her lip. "Anzu can't have much time left, so please be fast…"
"Grah! Fine! I'd hate to make you cry, Gin, but the kid gloves are officially off!"
"Good!" Gin yelled back. "I don't wanna be treated like a kid, arf!"
"Alright!" Cotton Candy whooped, pumping his arms forwards and back. "Let's go!"
"Stooooop," Big Sis Anzu moaned. "Quit it… Yelling makes my head hurt… and my stomach… and my arm… Everything hurts…"
"S-Sorry, Big Sis Anzu," Gin whimpered.
Cotton Candy calmed down himself, though still seemed worked up. "First things first, man. Why pick on me? There's nothing special about me! Normally, I'd feel kinda depressed about that, but it's sure coming in handy now!"
"We're only picking on you because you're the only one that fits, woof! Big Sis Anzu and Megumi are out, and so is everybody down in the cage, meow!"
"What about you and Hinako!? Ain't it suspicious how the only two other suspects turn right around and point the finger at me?"
"Shorty and me don't meet the weight requirement, woof!" Cotton Candy's sweating intensified, eyes flickering between Gin and the pit. "And I doubt that anybody else got replaced! They probably planned all this out from the beginning, arf!"
Cotton Candy groaned. "All that barking's giving me a headache… Can't you be a cat while we're arguing?" He rocked his head. "Wait, never mind that! Where's your proof that this was all planned, huh? Isn't it funny that the only one up here who's heavier than Anzu's the one who got replaced? Especially if I got 'replaced' two days ago!"
"You'd have to ask Melon Soda Lady or Uncle Crabstache! I don't know what's going through their messed up head, mreowr!" Gin firmed his stance, unwilling to back down. "But I know they've been watching us! There's no way they don't have some sort of weird data chart or something, woof!"
"That's pure conjecture!" Cotton Candy rebutted. "You gotta give me something tangible, kid!"
"Th-That's-!"
"If I may interject," Uncle Crabstache started, "I'll tell you that Safalin's prediction was for either Mister Ibushi or Miss Kinashi to secure last place. Any more information would be an unfair advantage, I'm afraid."
"That's already unfair!" Cotton Candy groaned.
"See, woof! They would've known to grab somebody over fifty kilograms!"
"Fine, fine, but that still doesn'tprovethat you're not completely off the mark! Who's to say this doll crap is correct to begin with!? You're asking me to prove that I'm human, but how am I supposed to do that? Draw a picture, sing a song!? Do you want me to break a freakin' finger and see if there's stuffing inside?"
"Stuffing?" Gin repeated, eyes widening. "S-Stuffing, woof…?"
"What, you were the one yelling at me!" Cotton Candy scoffed. "Yeah, stuffing! If I'm a 'doll,' then shouldn't I be stuffed?"
"... That's," Gin stammered, "that's exactly it, arf! Show us, Cotton Candy! If you're really human, then you won't have anything weird inside of you, right!?"
"You don't expect me to really break a finger, do you!?"
"No!" Gin barked. "Just cut your thumb or something! I'll do it too if you're gonna be a big baby about it, mreowr!"
"Tch!" The older boy ripped the shuriken necklace away, holding it above his palm. "If you're gonna be like that, then fine! Watch as I seal your doubts away!"
Spurred on by the heat of the argument, he drove the point of his necklace across his thumb. "Shit!" he hissed. "That freakin' hurts!" He bit his lower lip, wincing, before straightening his expression to display his thumb proudly to Gin and the silent Shorty. "Behold: the blood of an honest man!"
Gin's head gained leaden weight, staring at the sliced thumb. "Cotton Candy," he said.
Shorty sighed. "It's not bleeding."
"Wha-?" He turned his palm inwards, staring at it. "What the hell? Bleed, you piece of crap!" He grabbed his thumb, squeezing it. Gin could just make out the separated folds of non-flesh rubbing tensely against one another, producing no blood. His stomach churned.
Cotton Candy roared in disbelief, voice cracking. "Freakin' quit it! Bleed! Bleed! Come," he twisted his thumb as harshly as he could, "on!"
With a harsh jerk, Cotton Candy'sentire hand twisted right off the wrist.
Choking in disbelief for a few long, hellish moments, Cotton Candy yelped in terror, throwing the extraneous limb away, sending it clattering across the floor and off the edge of the platform.
Gin stared. "... I didn't… wanna be right, meow…"
"W-Well," Cotton Candy laughed desperately. "Thatis fucked up. What the hell. What the hell!?" He made to fidget with his jacket, before quickly remembering that he was missing a necessary component. "S-So… What now?"
Shorty's face retreated beneath the heavy shadows of her bangs, terrifying in the low purple lights. "What else can we do? Anzu's fifty kilos; you're fifty-two."
"Hinako Mishuku!" Stripey called, aghast. "What are you saying!? Murder is-!"
"I know exactly whatmurder is!" Shorty screamed, and Gin had never heard such a hideous sound from her, tone usually sardonic or chillingly deadened. Never agonized, like a poor, dying animal hit by a car, begging for life. "I know. Don't you fuckingdaretreat me like a child, you coward." She hissed the last word like a wiccan curse.
Stripey went silent. Nobody filled his place.
"We have two options," Shorty said. "That's it. At least I can realize that."
"H-Hinako, c'mon…" Cotton Candy gasped. "You're losing it!"
"One," she carried on, voice trembling with rage. Gin didn't know who it was directed at. "We do nothing. We sit on our asses and let an innocent girl fuckingdie for nothing."Her tiny chest trembled, her high-pitched voice grew raspy and raw."Two: we kill… this doll, and it'll be our fault, yes. But the real Ranmaru will still be alive. Even if they killed him behind the scenes, that's not our fault." Gin noticed, sharply, that there was something off about the way she said 'our.'
"So I'm not going to sit on my ass again." She craned her neck towards the target, sneering. "Got it?"
"Sh-Shorty…"
She ignored him, taking slow, hesitant steps towards a quaking Cotton Candy. "Hey, Ranmaru, or whoever you are." She wet her lips. "I'll pay for this soon. Don't worry."
"G-Get the hell away from me!" Cotton Candy screeched, stepping far away from the pit. "You've totally fucking lost it! What kind of psycho are you!? You'll kill me just for not being human!? That's fucked!"
"Don't…" Shorty rushed towards him, grabbing his legs. They fell together in a tangle of limbs. "Don't make this difficult!"
"Like hell!" Cotton Candy kicked her, scrambling away. Gin watched helplessly as they circled each other like warring predators.
Mew-chan was gonna be sore later from how hard Gin squeezed them.
His eyes flickered to the timer. Thirty seconds.
"Oh, my," the receptionist said. "Such desperation on both ends. Isn't it simply thrilling, Safalin?"
"... I d-don't know. I wish it was a l-little less, eh, v-violent…"
"Damn it all," Stripey sighed. "I'm unsure who to root for. Conundrums such as this are ill-fitting for a simpleton such as I."
"It's ugly, but Hinako had a point," Megumi said, head held high. "You can't value a fake over a human."
"A fake that can cry," Big Bro Shin said, watching as Cotton Candy kicked at Shorty's knees. "I hate this. Tearing each other apart like animals…" He pulled his beanie over his eyes. "And this is only the first part…"
Ten.
Shorty toppled under Cotton Candy's weight, his knee pressing her chest into the floor.
Nine.
Gin stared, trembling and uncertain.
Eight.
"Stop it… Stop the count…" Big Sis Anzu pleaded, fully sobbing and unable to wipe her face as tears and snot spilled from her onto the floor far below. "Stop fighting… Just stop… I want off…"
Seven.
Gin whimpered, staring at the two prone before him.
Six.
'Gin,'somebody whispered.'Life's all about hard decisions. One dead body can't fill a cemetery. But if people keep dying, that changes, don't it? A doll that can cry and fight and plead is a cryin' shame…'
Five.
'... but it's still just a doll.'
Four.
'Nothing else for it, Gin,'a lighter voice whispered.'I did an ugly thing, too. But I'll never regret it. Because I wanted to live.'
Three.
'Love's a scary thing, young man.'Gin stepped forward as one last voice kindly flowed through his buzzing ears. He felt like he was underwater, chlorine stinging his eyes.'I'd say people do terrible things for love just as often as hate. But if a person has to choose between doing one terrible thing, or letting a terrible thing happen?'
Two.
'Perhaps love's only frightening to the one who spurned its wrath. Ah, but what does an old fool like me know?'
One.
Cotton Candy fell down the hole.
The target hissed and lowered; the platform he stood upon doing much the same. Big Sis Anzu collapsed across the floor, breathing heavily as her tears wet the marble.
Her chest heaved. She could breathe and cry and feel horror at what Gin had just done.
That was good enough.
The sounds of drills whirred behind his ears as he jumped off the platform before it could fully lowered, throwing his arms around a shaking Big Sis Anzu and burying his face into her warm stomach.
The next moment that the world came into focus, Gin was in Melon Soda Lady's office, hearing his own breath muffled against Big Sis Anzu's sweater. Her chest rose and fell steadily.
The outside world came next, with loud voices in his ears.
"Just who the hell are you, anyway?" Megumi asked, standing tall and straight, like she hadn't committed yet another sin.
"Oh, I suppose I never did introduce myself," Crabstache hummed. "You may call me Gashu Satou. I am a researcher of human emotions. I am honored to have witnessed such a splendid clashing of wills." He paused slightly, likely to do that creepy neck thing. Gin's world was Big Sis Anzu's sweater and breath - he did not need to see any more of Crabstache. "I should be impartial, but I'll admit I'm rather thrilled to see the Main Event."
"You mean the Main Game," Big Bro Shin said. "How long do we have?"
"Three hours," said Crabstache. "I do hope you've saved some extra tokens, as you may find yourself in quite the pickle without them. The rolecards are no longer physical starting from this floor, after all."
"On our voting tablets then," said Stripey. "Perhaps that will discourage trading, but it seems whomever shall become the Sacrifice will become ever more desperate. Pitiful."
"Oh, no, A-Alice," said Melon Soda Lady. "Um, trading is a-actually to be, e-er… encouraged, this time around."
"... Silence is golden, it would seem."
"Safalin is correct. As soon as you all return to your rooms, the three hour timer will begin. There will be 'Ring-up Boxes' all across this floor. Please, battle to your hearts contents."
Gin heard crisp, expensive shoes tap against the floor. "Oh, and I feel no need to discuss this information with absentees. If you would fill them in for me, it would be greatly appreciated. Of course, you're under no trueobligation…" He chuckled lowly, and was gone.
"Bastard," Megumi spat. "I've got nothing better to do. I'll head back to my room."
"Ha," Stripey spat. "I was under the impression you were ourfearless leader,Inspector. Strange, to see you retreat with your tail between your pitiful legs."
"Are you implying I'm a coward,Yabusame?"
"As well as a bitch."
"Stop it!" Big Bro Shin shouted. "Just quit it already! If you two want to kill each other, then save it for the damned Game!" He sighed shakily. "Megumi… Don't you have anything to say to Anzu?"
"... I can see I'm unwelcome here. Very well, then." Police issue flats clapped against the tile, fading away.
"What a wretched cu-"
"Alice."
Stripey sighed. "Shin Tsukimi. I'm very tired. I believe I shall retire. Would you do me the courtesy of checking on Hinako Mishuku? I fear our usual conversations too morbid for my present temperament."
Big Bro Shin matched him. "I'll be by later. I promise. Just let me check on Gin and Anzu first, okay?"
"Very well." Bare feet slapped against the tile.
Nobody else moved to speak. It looked like Shorty and Samurai Girl weren't present.
"Gin."
Gin didn't move.
"Gin, I believe in you." Gin felt a slender hand rest on his back, rubbing small circles. "I believe that you did the best thing. It was a hard call, and I'm sorry you had to make it."
Gin didn't move.
"Believe in Anzu too, okay? She's tougher than me, andI'vemade it this far."
"'S my fault, mew."
"Gin… Please don't blame yourself again."
"No, it's okay, meow." Gin lifted his head groggily, pulling off his mittens to wipe his face. Mew-chan was on the floor beside him, so he lifted them up to nuzzle Big Sis Anzu. "I should've taken responsibility, woof. I was scared, so I didn't want to admit that I was an adult."
"You aren't-"
"No, I am, woof!" Gin cut in. "I'm an adult, because I've got lots of responsibilities now. I was scared, so I pretended I didn't get it, meow." Gin closed his eyes, smiling. "But I do get it. Running away… That just makes me the same sort of worthless adult my dad is, woof. I'mnevergoing to be like Dad. Not ever."
"Gin," Big Bro Shin said, hand tightening on the boy's shoulder. "... I'm your Big Bro, aren't I? Don't ever be afraid to share those responsibilities."
"I won't!" Gin beamed. "We're all gonna work together, and we're all gonna get out, arf! That's what I've decided! What just happened… Big Sis Anzu getting hurt… Me hurting Cotton Candy. I'm not gonna let that ever happen again. I'm done playing by the rules, meow."
Gin stood up, walking over to the door.
"Gin!" Big Bro Shin called. "Where are you going!?"
Gin smiled, looking back past Big Bro Shin at the pieces of himself he left with Big Sis Anzu. Even though his hands should have been shaking, that his chest should have been cold, he felt so, so warm. "I'm being a good, responsible adult, woof! I'm gonna do everything that Megumi and Stripey should be! You better not slack off now, Big Bro Shin! Look after Big Sis Anzu!"
Big Bro Shin looked at him like an alien, but that was okay! He didn't have to get it. Gin snickered, feeling very mature.
He scampered off, leaving a bewildered Big Bro Shin in his wake.
He found Shorty alone in the hidden stairwell, on the platform holding the Room of Lies. She was sitting still with her arms around her knees, staring at a particularly uninteresting spot of wall.
"Hey, Shorty," Gin greeted, stopping in front of her. "... Are you alright, meow?"
"You seem well," she said, blank expression unmoved.
"You don't, woof."
"... Honest as ever, huh?" She grinned, an empty movement. "Good to see you haven't changed."
"We all change, Shorty. That's just growing up, mraowr!"
"Growing up…"
"What happened to Samurai Girl, woof? Were you guys looking for the real Cotton Candy?"
"Yeah, she found him."
"'She'?"
"... I was- it was like I was stuck. Just like before, I froze. I always freeze. By the time I woke back up, Ranmaru was already up to speed." She chuckled weakly. "Guess he wasn't too impressed with how I acted. I'm getting the Sara treatment." She pressed her face against her knees. "Whatever. It's not like I don't deserve it."
Gin patted her head. "I'm sorry, Shorty. You should knock some sense into him, arf!"
"No." She shook her head firmly. "I'm done trying. All I'm looking forward to is the next Main Game. That'll be the end of it. Better nobody's attached to me."
"Too late, Shorty! We're gonna be out of here really soon, so you're not gonna get to throw your life away like that, woof!" Gin huffed, puffing out his chest. "I'm done with depressing talk! It makes me tired, meow," he paused, wondering, "so why do you keep doing it, Shorty?"
"I made a-" Shorty cut herself off, pressing a palm against her forehead. "It's over, Gin. For me. The life I'm living now is just… filler. I'm just dragging my feet. Soon," she grabbed her voting tablet, finger tightening around the edges, "I'll be dead, and you won't have to worry about me anymore."
Maybe it made him an unreasonable brat, but Gin just couldn't find the will to accept that.
"Of course I'm worried about you!" Gin shouted, knowing full-well he had the subtlety of a brick through a windshield. His muscles tensed, growing rigid, and he vibrated in place before her. "'Cuz that's my job, arf! Just like I do for Big Sis Anzu and Big Bro Shin, I'll protect you!"
"Huh?" Shorty stared him down like he had spontaneously broken into song.
"I'll prove it, meow! It doesn't matter if you don't take me seriously! That's what I decided!" Overcome suddenly, he rushed forwards to wrap his arms around her. 'Man, her muscles are knotted.'
"However long it takes, I'll prove it to you, woof!"
"T-Too damn… touchy-feely," she choked, arms quaking scantly. "You're gonna wind up with an assault charge when you get older, 'f you grab a girl like this."
Gin grinned, knowing better by this point than to be insulted. "Hey, Big Sis Shorty… You said 'when,' not 'if.'"
She flushed. "So damn what?"
He let go, a bit awkwardly. She probably was uncomfortable with hugs; she - all bones pushing just against flesh and bitter slate stares - didn't seem like she'd received any for a long time. "I'll get you to say it about yourself too, arf. Just you wait!"
She scoffed, craning her head away. "I ain't waitin' for shit. I'm," her tongue tripped over her teeth, "I'm a goddamn project, y'know that? You've already got good enough models, don'tcha? No point patronizing me."
Gin showered her with a cattish smile, though she could hardly see it through his facemask. "I don't have a Big Sis Shorty model, do I?" A hard pierce through the heart sobered him, thinking of navy blue and shiny gold and rusty, bloody red. "I… got stuff to make up for, too, mew… I got rid of that Cotton Candy doll because- because the only other way down was too scary. So you gotta hate me too, if you're gonna be mean to yourself, arf!"
"Be mean to myself," Big Sis Shorty echoed. A weak, frayed giggle escaped her, shockingly girlish. "You don't know… Gin, I don't want you to know. But if you weren't here," Big Sis Shorty's eyes became vacuous, sucking the little light and warmth that could survive in her expression, "then I'd have to assume that whoever brought us here just wanted to punish the wicked. That's why Alice and me get along sodamnwell; we're well-aware this is the last place we'll ever see on earth."
Gin took that in. He cocked his head. "You really have been spending too much time around Stripey and Cotton Candy, meowr. If you aren't gonna like yourself, then I'm gonna like you enough to make up for it. And that's final, woof."
Gin refused to back down as his (only slightly!) glistening eyes met Big Sis Shorty's own.
Long, long seconds passed, Gin stiller than he'd ever been.
She broke, gaze meeting the floor, eyes warming beyond sub-zero once more. "... Big Sis Shorty, huh?" she said, and her voice cracked on the last word. "Fuck it. Whatever. You wanna throw your time into a pit? I guess I just gotta let ya."
Gin stuck out his hand. Haltingly, like it was jagged glass, she took it.