Satoko's eyes were wide, her face pale. Her limbs were bound tightly, her inability to move only adding to her mounting terror.

As Shion stepped into view, dressed in a white Kimono, Satoko felt her terror increase further as she saw the cold, alien look on Shion's face.

"Murderer!" Satoko cried, her voice not as strong as she was hoping.

Shion looked to her left. "Ah, did old man Kimiyoshi finally die?"

Satoko winced, forcing herself to not look over at the poor old man hung by a chain.

Shion chuckled. "I see, you saw his last moments."

Satoko closed her eyes. "How could you do this…Rika…"

She opened them, looking at Shion in fear. "What are you going to do to me?"

Shion smiled cruelly and began to walk forward. "Hmm, what am I going to do to you? Well, that all depends on you."

Shion leaned down. Satoko tried to move away, but had nowhere to go. Shion lowered her head so that her mouth was close to Satoko's ear.

"I'll be honest Satoko, I hate you."

Shion's whisper sent a chill down Satoko's spine.

"I hate how needy and whiny you can be. I hate how much pressure you put on Satoshi and how much of a burden you were to him. The demon inside of me wants to torture and kill you."

Satoko began to tremble, and it took all her willpower to not start crying.

Shion's voice became even quieter. "But, I love Satoshi. I love Satoshi with all my heart. And he loved you, and I know he would never forgive me if I allowed anything to happen to you."

Shion's voice hardened. "But, my sister still needs to be punished."

Shion moved back so that her face was right in front of Satoko's, her cold eyes staring into Satoko's terrified eyes.

Shion pulled out a knife, a sick smile creeping onto her face as she continued to whisper. "So here's what we're going to do. I'm going to drag Kimiyoshi over here, and I'm going to stab his body. While I'm doing that, I want you to scream and cry like you're the one being stabbed. Just play along and I won't hurt you."

Shion's smile faded and a cold fury erupted on her face. "But if you refuse, or if you try to tell Mion what's really going on, I will start stabbing you. So don't even think about disobeying me, got it?"

To emphasize her point, Shion held the knife an inch away from Satoko's eye. Satoko flinched and hastily nodded, her small body still trembling.

"Good."

Shion smirked. "You won't have to do it for too long. After a bit you can pretend you passed out or just don't have any strength left to scream. But stick to your role."

A few moments later Shion had dragged Kimiyoshi's body so that it was lying directly underneath where Satoko was restrained.

Satoko shuddered and closed her eyes, horrified at what Shion had done, what she was about to do.

Shion leaned toward Satoko and whispered once more. "Remember, play along unless you want to get hurt."

She then walked over to the nearby doors and pushed them so they swung open into the dungeon.

Shion raised her voice. "Hey Mion, guess what? It's time for Satoko's punishment!"

"No!" Mion cried. "Let her go!"

Satoko felt her stomach drop, feeling utterly sick about what was going to happen.

Shion laughed and began walking back toward Satoko. "No, I don't think I will. I'm in a vicious mood, and I'm going to torture her to death."

"No! Please don't! Please don't kill her!"

Shion glanced back at the dungeon, the cold fury returning to her face. "Oh, you're begging for her to be spared? But you didn't do that for Satoshi. That was your sin, and this is your punishment."

Shion raised the knife and glared at Satoko. Satoko whimpered in terror, and obediently screamed as Shion's knife plunged into Kimiyoshi's body with a grisly thud.

"Please, leave her alone!" Mion pleaded. "Do whatever you want with me, just let her go!"

Shion's eyes went wide as she twisted the knife. Satoko let out another cry.

"I was crying and begging back then just like you are now. But you ignored my pleas, so I'm ignoring yours. Yell until your throat is sore, it won't make a difference, just sit back and taste her suffering!"

Shion stabbed the knife into Kimiyoshi again, the action once again causing grisly sounds that made Satoko's skin crawl. She continued to cry out, only partly acting.

"Stop it!" Mion shrieked. "Stop it stop it please!"

Shion's face twisted in fury. "Why should I? You didn't ask them to stop when I was the one being tortured. All you did was do the same thing to yourself later, as if that somehow made it okay. But that was your choice. I didn't get a choice, did I? And you probably didn't do it while tons of people were coldly watching, no, you probably did it by yourself after taking a shit ton of pain killers so you wouldn't even feel it! It was a hollow gesture to manipulate me into thinking you cared when you don't, because you're a liar! Liar!"

Shion continued to shout liar over and over, each shout accompanied by another thrust of the knife into the body, blood spraying and splattering each time.

Satoko had stopped screaming, but tears were pouring down her face. Shion didn't seem to notice or care.

"Please stop." Satoko whispered.

From the back Satoko could hear Mion repeatedly saying I'm sorry, desperate that her sister would listen. Satoko wasn't sure which was more horrifying, the sounds of the knife, or Mion's frantic cries.

"Please…nii nii."

Shion let out a shriek of laughter. "Hey Mion, you probably couldn't hear, but Satoko was crying out for her nii nii! But her nii nii will never protect her again, never! And whose fault is that, huh?! Whose fault is that?!"

Shion continued stabbing the now unrecognizable body with even more vigor, clearing trying to make sure the sounds were as audible as possible.

Mion's voice had dissolved into a mess of screaming and crying, and Satoko couldn't distinguish any coherent words anymore.

Satoko whispered. "Please…isn't this enough?"

Shion glared up at Satoko, and for a moment Satoko was sure she was going to die, her body trembling more than ever.

But after a pause Shion let out an irritable sigh and nodded. She slowly stood up and raised a finger to her mouth, signaling Satoko to remain quiet.

"Hey Mion, looks like Satoko has passed out. What do you think, should I just finish her off?"

"No!" Mion wailed. "Please don't kill her!"

Shion cackled. "You're right, that would be a waste. I'll bandage her up and after she's had a little time to rest and recover I'll torture her again! What fun we'll have!"

"No!" Mion screamed. "Please, leave Satoko alone! I'll do whatever you want, anything at all!"

Shion walked over to the doors. "Oh? But you don't understand sister. You're already doing exactly what I want you to do. Suffering for your sins."

She then slammed the doors shut, cutting off the dungeon from view.

Tears were streaming down Satoko's face, though she was careful to not make a sound in case it made Shion angry.

Shion stepped in front of Satoko. Her face softened, but it didn't quite reach her eyes.

"You did well Satoko, very well." Shion whispered. "Thank you."

Satoko didn't say anything. She was glad that the tears were pouring out of her eyes, as it made it impossible for her to be able to clearly see the bloody mess just below her feet.

Shion leaned forward, her voice still a whisper. "Don't worry. You don't have to do that again, and when you wake up you can tell Mion what really happened."

Satoko blinked. "When I wake up?"

Satoko suddenly felt a pressure on her neck, an intense jolt of pain shooting through her body, and then everything went black.

Mion was shaking, her arms wrapped around her body.

She'd cried for so long that she felt that she might never cry again. All the horror and fear and sorrow had faded for the moment, and she just felt numb.

She wasn't sure if the silence after Satoko's punishment had lasted for minutes or hours, but she suddenly heard the doors opening again.

She looked up, a sick feeling of anticipation settling on her.

What is she going to do now?

It sounded like Shion was dragging several items. After a moment Shion came into view.

Shion looked at her coldly. "Hey sister. Move to the very back of the cell."

As she was still holding the bloody knife, Mion obeyed without question.

Once she was satisfied that Mion couldn't try to escape or jump her, Shion opened the cell door and pushed a tray through.

"I haven't made up my mind on what to do with you yet, but at the moment I don't want you dead. So here."

She violently shoved the tray so that it slid along the ground and came to a stop next to Mion, its contents falling out.

Mion's flinched, then her eyes widened as she realized what was on the tray.

It was a mixture of packaged food, bottled water, towels, and hygiene products.

Mion looked at the items in confusion.

She…she wants me alive? Does this mean she's not going to kill me?

"Oh by the way, it seems I went overboard."

Mion looked up sharply, and saw Shion dragging Satoko into view by the hair, her face to the ground.

"Satoko died from her injuries."

Mion's eyes widened in horror as she realized that Satoko was almost completely drenched in blood.

Tears filled up Mion's eyes. "No…"

Shion tilted her head. "Yes, it's such a shame, I was looking forward to torturing her again later. Ah well. I figured I'd leave her with you, that way you won't get too lonely."

She abruptly tossed Satoko's body into the cell and slammed the door shut.

Mion buried her face in her hands and began sobbing again.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. Please…"

"I told you, your apologies mean nothing to me." Shion said coldly. "Try apologizing to Satoko, maybe she'll listen. Well, see you later."

Shion walked away, laughing insanely, before the door to the dungeon closed once more.

Mion peaked through her fingers, saw Satoko's body, and once more dissolved into tears.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Sniffling, she slowly crawled over toward Satoko, the younger girl's pale skin almost completely invisible beneath the crimson stains that covered her entire body. Only her head wasn't drenched in blood, though there were a few flecks here and there.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry."

Mion looked at Satoko's body, tears streaming down her cheeks, then suddenly froze.

Small exhales of air were coming out of Satoko's mouth, and her chest was slowly rising and falling.

Mion slowly reached out and gently touched Satoko's arm.

"She's not dead." Mion said, her voice a mixture of relief and bewilderment. "She's not dead. But how? She's lost so much…"

Mion trailed off as she noticed something very strange.

While Satoko was almost completely drenched in blood, there weren't any visible wounds at all.

Mion frowned. "What the hell? Why are there no injuries? I thought Shion was…"

Mion froze, and her eyes went wide as realization hit her.

Shion…she lied…she was faking it. She wasn't actually stabbing Satoko at all, she was just pretending, and terrified Satoko into pretending too. All this blood must be…

Mion retched, and before she could stop herself she found herself depositing the meager contents of her stomach onto the floor of the cell.

She remained bent over on all fours for a bit, sobs once again wracking her body as she heard the soft sound of Satoko's breathing.

"Satoko! Mion!"

Mion's head jerked up at the sound of his voice.

Satoko looked toward the front of the cell, her eyes wide. "Nii nii?"

"Keiichi!" Mion cried.

They both rushed toward the bars, beyond relieved to see him.

Keiichi smiled. "It's okay. Everything is going to be okay."

Mion and Satoko seemed reassured, but then noticed Shion was right behind him.

"No!" Mion shrieked.

Before he could react, Shion pressed the stun gun to Keiichi's neck, and he abruptly collapsed to the ground unconscious.

"What are you doing?!" Satoko shouted, her voice trembling.

Shion jerked her head dismissively. "Relax, he's just knocked out."

She brandished the stun gun. "Both of you, back away."

They both moved to the back of the cell, still fearful of what she might do.

Shion unlocked the cell door, and tossed in a small bundle of rope.

"Satoko, use this to bind Mion's hands and feet."

Satoko looked down at the rope uneasily.

Shion's face contorted with fury. "Do it, unless you want me to gut Keiichi like a fish!"

Shion pulled out the knife and pointed it threateningly at the unconscious boy.

Satoko flinched. "Y-yes."

Satoko picked up the rope and brought it over to Mion.

"Sorry." Satoko mumbled.

"It's okay." Mion whispered.

A moment later, Mion's hands and feet were bound. After Shion was satisfied that they were tight, she tossed another rope next to Keiichi.

Shion prodded him with her foot. "Now, do the same to Keiichi."

Satoko hesitantly walked out of the cell and approached the unconscious teenager. But as she bent down to pick up the rope Shion suddenly pressed the stun gun to her neck, knocking her out and causing her to collapse right next to Keiichi.

"No!" Mion cried. "What are you going to do to them?"

Shion sighed. "Nothing. The jig is up. The police have this place surrounded, and they'll storm the estate in about twenty minutes, maybe less."

She entered the cell, looking coldly down at her twin. "There's just one more thing to take care of before then."

Shion grabbed Mion by the hair, and dragged her across the rough floor of the dungeon. Mion winced, but with her hands and feet bound couldn't do much.

Before long Shion had dragged Mion to the very edge of the well, allowing Mion to see the dark black pit below.

Mion swallowed nervously, but then realized that Shion had let go of her hair and was now leaning against the opposite wall, her eyes fixed on a spot on the wall just across from the pit.

Mion frowned. "Shion, what are you doing?"

Shion turned her gaze toward her, an unreadable expression on her face.

"I only have time for one more thing before it's all over. I've been wondering what it should be."

She held the knife casually in her hand. "I thought about killing Keiichi. After all, you took Satoshi away from me, so it would only be fair."

Mion stilled, worried that she might change her mind.

Shion smiled ruefully. "But, Keiichi hasn't done anything wrong, and I am fond of him."

Her smile grew cold. "I thought about killing you sister."

Her smile became a grin, and her eyes went wide. "But then…I realized…that would be too quick, too easy. So instead, I'm going to do something that you'll remember for the rest of your life. And never forget: you're the one who drove me to this."

She raised the knife above her.

Mion stared at the blade in terror, then shut her eyes, not wanting to watch as Shion stabbed her, hoping that it wouldn't be too painful.

A clattering noise echoed in the enclosed space.

Mion opened her eyes, and saw that the knife had fallen to the ground.

Shion's hand remained open, and she was staring at the wall across from the pit intensely.

"Satoshi, it's time." Shion whispered, the grin still fixed on her face. "I'm coming. I'll be with you soon. We'll be together forever. Catch me Satoshi!"

She then started laughing, ran to the edge, and jumped.

"SHION!" Mion screamed.

The laughter continued but grew fainter and fainter until it suddenly stopped.

Mion went limp, tears once again pouring down her face.

Ooishi frowned seriously. "How are they doing?"

Irie looked out of the nearby window grimly. "Physically they're all fine, nothing to really worry about. But mentally…"

"Not so much." Ooishi finished.

Irie nodded, his face solemn. "Keiichi was probably the least affected, but he's still pretty shaken up by the whole thing. Mion and Satoko on the other hand were deeply traumatized by what happened to them, and the emotional scars are unlikely to ever fully heal."

"I see."

Irie looked at him sharply. "You aren't planning to interrogate them are you? They've been through enough."

Ooishi shook his head. "No. According to standard procedures we should question them and get more detailed accounts, but under the circumstances that isn't really necessary."

He walked over to the nearby window and stared out at the setting sun. "We found all of the missing people at the bottom of the well, including Shion Sonazaki, and all of the evidence matches up with the accounts of the various witnesses. So as gruesome as this case was, at least we can say it's been concluded."

Irie grimaced. "In a horrible way."

Ooishi sighed. "Yes. But it could have been worse. At least Mion, Satoko, and Keiichi were spared."

Irie looked at the floor, his face anguished. "I know. But still, considering Shion's reasons for what she did, I can't help but feel…"

He trailed off.

Ooishi looked at him curiously. "What?"

Irie shook his head. "Nothing. I need to check on my patients."

Irie left the room. Ooishi returned his gaze to the window, the sun setting in the distance, the crying of the evening cicadas the only sound.

Author's Note: So lately I've been rewatching Higurashi, as it's been years since I saw it, and I forgot just what a good horror series it is. When it got to the part where Shion killed Satoko, and then immediately freaked out because she realized she'd forgotten and broken her promise to Satoshi, I suddenly began wondering how things might have played out if she had remembered. The end result was this story. I'm pretty pleased with how it turned out, and in some ways it's arguably more disturbing than what happened originally, though I'll let you guys be the judge of that.

I'd intended to have this done and posted on Halloween, but obviously that didn't happen. Oh well. Be sure to leave a review and let me know what you thought.