Fuka: the Final Chapter (Haruka)

[Corwin]

<--->

[15:56] The nun is silent. "You know... about Hime?" she asks Haruka at last. "How?"
[15:59] "I just said, I am one." She raises her hand, then thinks twice. "This is just for demonstration, okay? Don't be alarmed." The ball and chain materialize and Haruka hefts it into the air a couple times, then makes it vanish again.
[16:01] Yukariko trembles, asking, "What do you want from me?"
[16:04] Haruka notes the nun's demeanor and sighs. "Well, first I just need you to relapse. I'm not here to drag you out of that bed and make you fight. But I need to know everything Fujino told you, because with her gone *someone* will have to hold the Hime together." It goes without saying that that someone is Haruka, of course.
[16:07] "That someone exists," Yukariko says, clasping her hands. "The angel! All we have to do is follow his words!"
[16:09] "The...angel? Look, Sister, I only have a couple minutes here. I need you to be serious."
[16:10] Yukariko struggles to rise from her bed. "He came to see me, in a dream. He was majestic and pure! He loves us all, and only wants us to help him for a better tomorrow!"
[16:14] Haruka puts a hand on Yukariko's shoulder, meaning to suggest (gently!) that the nun is in no condition to get worked up into a religious fervor. She leans in close, her tone deathly serious. "That's great, Sister, but I don't know any angels. I DO know that there are a bunch of frightened girls at Fuka and that they'll only get through this if they work together. I NEED to know everything Fujino knew. Help me help Fuka."
[16:17] Yukariko shies away from Haruka's touch, giving her a strange look. "You were the one who came to me with tales of angels," she says, her voice growing hostile. "Were you deceiving me all this time? Are you in league with the sinners?"
[16:19] Haruka sighs. Could this woman be any more useless? "I said people reported seeing an angel, Sister. I didn't say I knew one personally. The only side I'm on is Fuka's. If that's not getting through, I don't know what to say."
[16:21] "I think we've said enough," the nun agrees coldly. "I've misjudged you."
[16:22] "The feeling's mutated," Haruka huffs, stalking towards the door.
[16:24] The cops wait for her in the corridor. "Good, you're right on time," the younger officer says as the door closes behind Haruka. "Ready to leave now?"
[16:24] "Absolutely," she says. "Let's hit it."
[16:28] Haruka is taken to an unmarked car, and shown to the back. "So how is the nun?" the officer asks her, getting behind the wheel. His older partner is a ways off, flagging down a squad car.
[16:30] Haruka searches for the proper word. Flummoxed? Flabbergasted? "Pretty out of it. I don't think my stopping by did her any good."
[16:33] He starts the engine, nodding. As they drive off, Haruka slowly determines that they are headed for campus. "When you talked with Detective Oiishi that time, where were you?" he asks conversationally, glancing at Haruka in the rearview mirror.
[16:35] "I was in the infirmary at Fuka when I called him."
[16:37] "Were you injured?"
[16:38] Haruka shrugs. "Nothing serious. Just some fainting spells going around. My staff and I have been working around the clock lately."
[16:38] He nods once more. "And the call you mentioned receiving from him? Were you still in the infirmary at that time?"
[16:39] "No, I was out on the grounds at the time. Taking a walk to clear my head." Well, part of that statement is completely true!
[16:41] The conversation devolves into small talk. The car arrives at the gates of the Fuka Academy, where a police presence is already felt. Executive Committee members are being questioned, and several patrol cars are parked nearby.
[16:42] Haruka has to check in with her underlings immediately to make sure they're not being excessively badgered by the police!
[16:46] Time passes. The interrogation seems over, and Haruka's underlings are released for their duties. Haruka herself, however, is asked to stay for the time being. She's also requested to make a full statement, herself.
[16:47] Haruka cooperates all the while, giving any and all information pertinent to finding Oiishi and mentioning nothing at all about Hime or the cave in the woods.
[16:50] Excitement -- or anxiety -- seems to come over the cops as they receive a report over the radio. "We've found something," the officer who drove Haruka to school tells her. From what she'd observed so far, he seems to be in charge. "Just a mile away. Are you coming?"
[16:51] Haruka shakes her head. "No, I have to meet someone in town. She'll worry if I don't show up, what with all the crazy stuff that's happened lately."
[16:53] Haruka does have a chance of making her appointment, if she takes another cab into town. But she would indeed have to leave right now.
[16:53] "I understand," the officer tells her. "Where in town are you meeting?"
[16:54] "At the mall."
[16:55] He doesn't seem to have a response for that.

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

[16:56] Haruka does indeed run to grab a cab immediately! Can't have Nao assuming the worst and wandering off. She'll head to the mall with all due haste. Speed limits be damned!
[16:58] Nao is loitering around the main entrance, not looking inconspicuous at all in Haruka's ill-fitting clothes. Definately not amongst the shopping housewives. Ugh.
[16:58] Haruka runs over to her, eager for any news. "Hey! Find anything out?"
[17:00] "Yeah. Sugiura's been missing since last Tuesday. I tried her cell, and she's... not around. Maybe she'll call back, I don't know. N'much else, though. That is, that we didn't already know. Oh, yeah, I got you a present."
[17:02] "Is it a phone that works? And that's just...*urgh*. Everyone's disappearing on us. Yukariko was totally useless and doesn't trust me now because I don't believe her when she babbles about angels, and I haven't been able to find Yukino since last night."
[17:04] It turns out to be just that, though the cell is cheap and obviously snatched from some bargain bin, but at least it can send messages. "She doesn't trust you? You should've hit her again,
" mutters Nao. "I swear, the next person to give me shit for no reason is going to find out what happens when I really try to earn it. Also, you owe me 8000 yen, cash only, please."
[17:06] Haruka nods. "The Suzushiros wouldn't be where they are now if they didn't pay their debts." Presumably Haruka has the cash on her. If she doesn't, there's always an ATM somewhere, right? "Alright, so if Sugiura's out...who's left?"
[17:07] "Fumi, though she's Mashiro's pet. Searrs and Higurashi are kinda... out of reach right now. And I don't have a clue where M&M are."
[17:10] Haruka suddenly remembers that she was supposed to talk to Mashiro anyway--about the cops that are now swarming the school grounds. Oh well. "I can tell my staff to keep an eye out for them and call me if they show up. Right now, I think I'm due to have a good long chat with Miss Mashiro myself. Unless you know how to find Nagi, that is."
[17:11] Nao snorts. "The last time we spoke, I turned my back on him for a second, and he was gone. We're not gonna find him. But I'd love to know how he stays informed."
[17:12] "It is a gift," Nagi's voice sounds behind Nao.
[17:12] "Yeah. No one at this school should know more than I do--" She whirls around suddenly.
[17:13] Nagi gives Haruka a friendly wave. "Hello, fake Hime!"
[17:13] Nao steps aside, looking rather pained, all told.
[17:14] Haruka scowls. "What the hell does that mean? I've got a ball and chain which is completely real when it comes to hitting people in the face, so do you want to tell me what you're talking about?"
[17:15] "Your ball and chain?" Nagi looks confused. "Yukino-chan? Why would she make me talk?"
[17:15] Nao can't stop herself from snorting.
[17:17] Haruka glares at Nao. "Do you want to help me out here, or not?" Back to Nagi: "In all seriousness, I have good reason to believe you know a lot about what's going on at Fuka, and as a member of the Executive Committee I require you to diverge this information. Right now would be good."
[17:18] "No."
[17:20] Haruka practically chokes on her rage. "No? NO?! People are dying here, and if you know anything about why or how to stop it, you ARE going to tell me. This isn't a request, this is a statement of your social obligation as a student at Fuka, and you will be SEVERELY reprimanded if you don't compile."
[17:22] Nagi shrugs, spreading his arms for good measure. Ignoring Haruka, he turns towards Nao entirely. "Isn't it annoying to hang out around someone like her, Nao
Hime? Just take care of that fake Hime and go on to seize the win!"
[17:22] Nao looks around. They're in a mall, quite possibly the worst place ever to force a physical confrontation (never mind the inherent risk involved in starting a fight.)
"Why bother? I've heard the victorious hime dies anyway," she replies, shrugging. "Hardly seems worth the effort."
[17:24] "That's not true!" Nagi insists. "Who told you such a dirty lie?"
[17:29] "Dunno, my memory is hazy, lately," replies Nao, glancing at Haruka. "Hey, what's the difference between a real Hime and a fake one? She's still got a dirty big
mace, it's a compelling argument to take her seriously."
[17:30] "My memory is also hazy all of a sudden," Nagi says sullenly, turning around and starting to walk away.
[17:30] "HEY!" Haruka steps forward, reaching for Nagi's shoulder to turn him around. She's not about to let this creep walk away just like that!
[17:32] "Know your place, you fake Hime!" Nagi says angrily as Haruka whirls him around, brushing her hand off with his own. The decorative lights overhead shatter.
[17:34] "I know my place just fine!" she insists. "No one knows my place better than I do. And that place is SOMEONE WHO HAS DAMNED CONSCIENCE, UNLIKE YOU. ...Wait, are
YOU the anticross?"
[17:37] As glass rains below from the ceiling, people hurriedly get away. No one seems hurt, but those nearby are giving Haruka, and Nagi and Nao, by assosiation,
worried glances. Nao thinks that one man in particular is very focused on them.
[17:38] Nagi, for his part, looks confused. "The what? Did you have a troubled childhood?" He no longer seems angry, at least.
[17:41] "No, but you're about to if you don't coagulate! I know some boy at Fuka is the cause of all these problems. I'm thinking MAYBE it's you."
[17:41] "And see, when I find this person, I'll have to make them stop...whether they want to or ont."
[17:43] "I'm thinking, maybe this person, this source is closer to you than you think," Nagi says with a smirk, jumping back lightly. His agility is inhuman, as is the
distance he clears in a single bound. "Until next time, my Hime~!" He moves back, getting lost in the gathered crowd.
[17:44] "What the--hey, come back here! I'm not done interrogating you yet!"
[17:45] Nagi does not return, though Haruka's outburst refocuses people's attention on her.
[17:47] Cop? Spy? Friend of another Hime? Interested journalist? The possibilities are endless. "Let's go," she mutters, grabbing Haruka's hand and quickly taking off from
the mall. "He's got nothing for us. All he's interested in is having us fight, you see? I can't see much point bothering with him."
[17:48] Haruka practically seethes in place, but complies (*not* compiles) eventually. "Grrr...alright. I need to talk to Miss Mashiro after all this. I'm out of other leads."
[17:49] "There was a guy watching us back there," replies Nao, using nearby windowpanes to see if he's tailing them. "It just had to be in the middle of a damn mall,
didn't it?"
[17:49] Someone is, wearing similar clothes. Nao can't determine better than that, her eyesight being what it is.
[17:50] She pauses just long enough to buy a pair of sunglasses from a nearby vendor. "Yeah, he's following us. Think we should grab him?"
[17:52] "Well, Nagi had to show up in public, otherwise I would've clobbered him. And yeah...let's see what the mystery man has to say for himself."
[17:55] Spiders weave a beautiful web, a thought crosses Nao's mind. A web of lovely, sturdy silk.
[17:56] Nao winds around a corner, twisting back and forth between different stalls and shops and intending to eventually stride up behind the man and put a hand on his
shoulder.
[17:58] The man passes by Nao's hiding spot; the red-head can see him look around once he notices that Haruka is alone. He reacts as soon as he's grabbed, trying to twist
out of Nao's grasp, as one hand goes into the folds of his jacket!
[18:03] "Calm down," whispers Nao, sliding her arm down to link with the guy's arm, like she's his daughter or girlfriend (whilst keeping it from getting out, say, a gun.)
"Let's just... find somewhere and talk, hmm? Ah, the cafe will do nicely."
[18:56] He stiffens, caught off guard by the schoolgirl's speed. Nao feels him test her hold on him, and once he realizes his efforts don't bear fruit, the man's
efforts cease.
[18:59] Haruka casually makes her way over to Nao and her quarry. Nothing strange going on here, nope!
[19:00] Nao saunters over to a nearby cafe, gesturing for Haruka to join her. "I'm feeling chatty, so this could be your chance to learn something. But only if you're on your
best behaviour," instructs Nao. "We'll start with you." She tightens her grip slightly, emphasing how very strong she is to the man, before slowly, slowly releasing his arm
and allowing him to sit down, flanked by herself and Haruka.
[19:05] The man follows Nao's orders, keeping his hands in plain sight on the table. "What am I going to be learning about myself?" he asks, his voice sounding bland.
[19:06] "Just spill it, G-man! Why were you watching us?"
[19:06] "That you need to work on your technique, for one," replies Nao. "I'd like to know who you are to be so interested in us."
[19:07] "After that little show back there? Why wouldn't I be curious?" he returns.
[19:09] "Sure, but everyone else scattered when the windows broke. You had a *reason* to be watching us, didn't you?"
[19:09] "You've caught me," he deadpans. "I like watching high school girls."
[19:12] "Most people wouldn't go for their inside pocket when someone taps their shoulder," replies Nao, dryly. "Mister, we can trade barbs all day, but that won't get you
or me what we want."
[19:13] "And what is that you want from me, besides my company?" Nao's unnamed friend asks.
[19:14] "Who are you working for? You're not a cop, or we would've seen a badge by now."
[19:15] "All this time you've wanted to see a badge?" He snorts. "Badges, I've got plenty of them. Which would make you happiest?"
[19:17] Nao slips a hand into the man's pocket, intending to pull out a wallet or similar article. "Oooh! Can I pick from a list?" she responds, rolling her eyes.
[19:17] Haruka rolls her eyes. "Enough wisecracks, alright? You know what kind of people you're dealing with here, don't you?"
[19:19] Nao's hand closes around a somewhat familiar object. She thinks it is a cell phone, and her guess is confirmed once she retrieves it from his pocket. "People?"
he asks, the only sign that he noticed Nao's actions a slight twitch of his eyelids that the red-head spots. "Yes, I suppose you are."
[19:19] "Ah, you must be with Searrs, then," replies Nao, opening the phone and going through the messages and contacts within it.
[19:21] "As good a guess as any," he says with a shrug. The phone is perfectly clean of anything, as if freshly purchased.
[19:21] "Nao, this guy's pissing me off. Maybe we need to rough him up a little, then he'll take his situation more seriously?"
[19:23] "Yes, by all means, do 'rought me up'," he says, raising his voice. A few people nearby give the booth the trio has claimed for themselves strange looks.
[19:27] "I'd rather not, but, you know, I'm pretty desperate, lately. The thing is, you can either tell us who sent you, what you're doing, and do so quickly, or I'll just
kill you. Right here." Nao leans closer to the man, putting a hand on his knee. Mostly covered by the sleeve of her jacket, tiny points exude from it, only slightly piercing
the man's skin.
[19:32] "Like I said. It's better if you talk, for everyone involved, but if you don't, I'll assume you're my enemy. Are you? Or aren't you? The choice is, of course,
yours." The black marks across her fingers should be plainly visible to him at this point, though not so much to passerbys.
[19:32] He winces. "I'm Smith. John Smith." Trying to smile, the man places a hand over Nao's, pressing it against his leg. Despite his words, he doesn't look
particularly foreign. "If you're desperate, there's really no need to threaten me into helping you with all that tension. All you need to do is ask."
[19:33] "And what can you do for me, Agent Smith?"
[19:34] "That is SUCH a made up name," Haruka huffs.
[19:35] Rolling his eyes at Haruka's outburst, John leans ever-closer to Nao. "Quite a lot. Why don't we discuss this in private, without your loud... friend?"
[19:37] Haruka could not possibly be more affronted. "Hey! Don't go anywhere with this creep, Nao. He hasn't given us any reason to trust him."
[19:37] Wouldn't be the first time, a stray thought crosses Nao's mind. And none of the others had been a match for her, thus far.
[19:40] "I'm willing to entertain privacy, but my friend will hear what I do regardless," replies Nao, glancing briefly at Haruka, before releasing her pinch on the man's
knee and standing up to take his arm again. "I'm not into wasting time, Agent Smith. Do you have... a car?"
[19:42] "A car could be easily procured," he agrees smoothly, standing up after Nao. He towers over her slightly. "And it might not be as much a waste of time as you
think. What I have to offer is for you and you alone; of course, what you do with that information afterwards is of no concern to me."
[19:44] Haruka frowns, hands on her hips. "I don't like this, Nao...at best, this guy's full of crap. At worst, he's a megaperv. You have to keep me updated on a regular basis
if you go anywhere with him, okay?"
[19:46] Nao twists her head back to Haruka. "What could he possibly do to me?" she asks, smiling dreamily at Haruka. "The parking lots are pretty deserted. We'll speak there.
If you want her not to hear, my friend can wait nearby, but we're not splitting far."
[19:47] "Fine, fine. A parked car, a teenaged girl...." John nods. "I can work with that. Let's go?"
[19:48] "Mmhmm." Nao tosses Haruka the man's phone. "Wait near the exit for me. I'll be back in a couple. If I scream, kill him."
[19:50] Haruka does so. "Don't worry, Nao. If anything happens, I'll avenge you!"

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

It's hard to tell, but Nao seems to move around a lot in the car, and at least once she seems to go for the man's throat.

Eventually she emerges unharmed and mostly unruffled, though, trudging back towards Haruka with an unreadable expression.

Haruka has to restrain herself from rushing in and putting a stop to any possible impropriety on Smith's part, but does so with great effort! "What happened?" she asks, rushing towards Nao and grabbing her by the shoulders. "What'd he do?"

"We talked, that's all," she responds, putting her hands back on Haruka's shoulders to steady herself. "He said some pretty crazy stuff that I can't really believe, but for now, we're working in the same direction."

Haruka looks confused. "Okay...so that means we don't beat him up?"

"Not yet. Let's go back inside, first," she replies, heading back into the mall. "Ah, you still got his phone?"

"Mmhm," she says simply.

"Gimme. You know how Higurashi was supposed to be a HiME? He said she's been taken prisoner by the First District somewhere. He'll be sending me the address. I think I can trust that much, at least. Looks like she wasn't eloping, after all."

Haruka hands over the phone. "What's the First District? And h ow do we know this isn't a trap?"

"Some kind of organisation that has something to do with us HiME. I don't know what exactly, but I do remember hating them. And.. well, I don't think so. Suzushiro..."

Nao sighs. "You're not a ghost, right?"

Haruka punches Nao in the shoulder. *Playfully*, but that word probably doesn't mean the same thing to Haruka as it does to other people. "You tell me. If I'm a ghost, it was rude of someone not to tell me before now."

"Seems like you might be. I don't get it myself, but he basically told me that you died. Except you're still here. And you're not the only one."

"I am *totally* still alive, Nao." Haruka thumps one fist into the opposing palm for emphasis, with a meaty *smack*. "I think he was playing a joke on you. *I* know I'm still alive, so I'm not going to worry about it. If Higurashi is someone's prisoner, though, then *that's* our main concern. I will NOT allow a Fuka student to be incalculated without good cause."

"It's incarcerate- no, this actually happened! I remember losing my child, you know? My mother... she died when I lost. But she's still alive, and... so's Takumi Tokiha, isn't he. I knew he died, I remembered he was dead, but he's still alive, in that hospital."

Nao's mouth stops moving for a moment, and she slumps on a bench, looking at Haruka with pity, of all things.

"The festival happened. But then it somehow unhappened. And now it's happening again. Definately not a joke. If I can remember bits of it, can't you? How do you forget dying? Was it because Yukino lost, or something else?"

Haruka radiates confusion. "Huh? I don't have to forget dying, because it didn't happen. Look, Nao, I don't know what that guy told you, but I don't remember any of that stuff happening. And I'm not going to waste time thinking about it, either. If what he told you about Higurashi is true, then we'll go find her. That's something we can *do*."

"He'll give us the details when he gets them," replies Nao, dispiritedly. "He did say that given the circumstances, fighting out the festival might be a bad idea due to some metaphysical crap. I guess that's a bright spot."

"I knew that much already, metababble or not. So, if we can't do that right now, I'd say we owe Miss Mashiro a visit."

"Yeah, I've got to ask her about a robot."

"Robot? Whatever, we'll add that to the list of questions. Let's go. Oh, and there are cops all over the school. They were real excited when I left, so I think they might've found the cave. If they ask, we didn't know anything about it. So, ready?"

"Oh, great, cops! They weren't interested in me, were they?"

"No. A detective of theirs vanished. Oiishi. They were looking for him. ...They don't have reason to be interested in you, do they?"

"Well, I killed someone, and then didn't attend class for the next few days," mutters Nao.

"Yeah, but I don't think they know about Arika. And skipping class is something for the Executive Committee to worry about, so we should be okay."

"No, I don't care about getting caught for skipping class, but if they put two and- I mean, yeah, you're right. Let's head back. I'm curious to know what happened to the detective, too. There's a lot of people around who wouldn't appreciate a nosy cop."

Haruka thinks she'd already met the cabbie taking them back to campus. It feels quite possible, with the way she keeps on shuttling to and from town that the day she is on a first name basis with all of them in Fuka isn't far.

The police presence at the Academy seems lessened, at least judging from the gates. Executive Committee members have been dismissed from their posts, and a pair of cops in uniform are standing guard in their stead. Neither Nao nor Haruka are accosted as they approach, seeking to enter the complex.

If the cops aren't interested in her, she doesn't care about them. Haruka means to head straight to Mashiro without wasting any time.

Nao could stand to be interested in cops, but she doesn't want them to be interested back, so she toddles after Haruka. If she put on some glasses- wait, she already has.

It's a sad day.

There is no answer at Mashiro's office, Haruka discovers.

Haruka looks around. "I wonder if we could break the door down..."

"Huh? Why go to that much trouble? I hate to ruin a perfectly good door."
Nao walks forward and proceeds to give the lock the same treatment she gave Shizuru's. "Besides, that's noisy."

"Well...I guess. It *does* get around damaging Fuka property."

Nao is yet to meet a lock that stands firm against her wiles. The door opens at her prodding.

No maids assault her at the insolence.

"So this is where another dead person lives," muses Nao, heading inside and closing the door behind. "You think she might've left something interesting here, though?"

"Let's find out!" Haruka's likely to scan for any conveniently incriminating documents, first.=, if there's a desk around.

"Even if there's nothing, it's fun to snoop around~"

"Yeah, well, don't make it a habit, Nao. Under *normal* circumstances, no student should ever be poking around in the headmistress's office."

"Aww, Haruka-chaaan, I'm the very soul of common decency! You don't need to tell me!"

There is one in Mashiro's room, down the corridor. Easily locating it, Haruka and Nao toss the place around! Mashiro's calendar reveals the first useful bit of information -- the Chairwoman is apparently away on business. She is expected to return somewhere within the week; if she is to return earlier, there are no appointment scheduled for her eariler.

Haruka expresses her skepticism of Nao with a simple "Huh, sure," then continues the search. the calendar suggests that they don't have to worry about anyone barging in on them, at least. "Though, isn't it strange for her to leave when there's this 'Festival' going on?"

"No, it makes a lot of sense. Her maid, Fumi, is a HiME. Why not spirt her away and let the others kill each other while you're gone, then come back and clean up the rest?"
Nao suddenly coughs. "Not that I thought of doing that."

Haruka considers this. "Huh. You're right. That's just...devious! I really didn't know her at all."

"You've got to think one step ahead of the enemy! And people who think they're your enemy. And people who think you're their enemy. Even if you don't want to be. Yep, that's the ticket. Come on, let's check out the rest of the place."

Searching further, Nao and Haruka discover that the Chairwoman keeps a lot of cash in a locked drawer of her desk.

Haruka doesn't care about the cash. The lack of a computer is frustrating--though Haruka wouldn't know what to do with it if she found one, she could probably coerce someone into hacking it for her!

Nao does care about the cash, but, you know, cops (and Haruka can pay for everything important, anyway.)

"I don't think we'll be finding anything helpful around here, though. I mean, would you leave 'secret master plan to have a dozen students kill each other' papers lying around where anyone could find them?" asks Nao, forgetting who she's talking to.

"No, I'd just ask Yukino if I forgot anything," Haruka admits, in a rare moment of self-deprecation. "Got any other ideas? Maybe she has a secret room hidden here somewhere?"

"What, you want to go around pulling on books and all of that to see if something opens? We'll be here all night, it'd be quicker just to knock the house down and see what's left."

Haruka shrugs. "Well, it's that or we go see what's up with the cops. I mean, come on, she's the headmistress. She has to know *something*!"

"She has a brain, even if it is tiny. She's probably keeping it all in there," replies Nao, snorting. "Cops, sure. You do the talking?"

"Yeah, yeah. They know me already anyway."

Heading towards the front door, Nao and Haruka both hear someone approaching it from the other side.
Nao blanches, and darts into a nearby room, deciding that discretion is the better part of valor. There are.. windows and backdoors and things! Common sense.

Haruka is totally entitled to go wherever she wants. She's on the Executive Committee, right? So really, there's no reason for them to look guilty about being here! ...Though, she kind of has to follow Nao's lead, now. She's not very happy about that, but she runs after the redhead.

It doesn't even require a Hime's speed and agility to make a clean getaway. Either their presence has gone undetected for the time being, or whomever it was lacked the desire to go in pursuit.

"I'm gonna stay hidden around here for a while and see if they come out again," mutters Nao. "You wanna go talk to the cops?"

"Yeah, you can find me later. Just use my new number."

Nao mutters something about 'voice' and 'loud' and 'other side of mountain'.

"Got it. I put mine on there already, too."

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Haruka looks around for a good place to exit Mashiro's residence undetected. She's not used to sneaking around!

The two are in Mashiro's garden. It shouldn't be too difficult to get anywhere Haruka would like, if she's brave enough to travel through the hedge maze.

She'll probably get lost once or twice, but it's not like she's in a rush. I mean, who goes to class anymore these days?

Though time has passed while Haruka went through Mashiro's private things, the two cops she had seen at the gates upon returning to campus are still there. Their shift must be a lengthy one.

Haruka assumes her usual authoritarian manner instantly. "Hey, you two! Did you turn up any sign of Oiishi while I was in town?"

Haruka had never experienced two adults going on guard so swiftly before, at the expense of a few words from her, even including her previous experience with cops. "What about Detective Oiishi?"

"What do you mean 'What about Detective Oiishi?' I asked you a simple question. You guys came here looking for him. I know, because the officer in charge brought me along. So if you two don't know anything, point me in the right direction."

"You want information? Go ask at the station," Haruka is told rather rudely.

Haruka scowls. They can't take that tone with her. This is *Haruka's* turf! "I've been in town already today. Look, I was the last one to talk to Oiishi. Your superiors thought I was impotent enough to bring me along when they came to look for him. I might just turn out to know something useful, so you can send me to 'em now or face the consequences for obstructing justice later."

They exchange looks. "Do you know anything useful?" she is asked, far more nicely this time.

"I just said I was the last one to talk to him, didn't I?"

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

[18:13] "Anything useful that you haven't told Detective Ootori already," one of them clarifies.
[18:14] "New information," the other helpfully supplies.
[18:14] Haruka doesn't, actually. So: "Well, sure," is all she says.
[18:15] "Looks like you'll need to go to the station after all, then," Haruka is told, and it doesn't sound like a request.
[18:17] Well hey, she didn't have any other immediate plans, right? Maybe the cops will actually tell her something useful this time! But probably not.
[18:19] It isn't necessary to use a cab this time around. Haruka gets taken to the police station in a squad car, and then lead in the direction of the interview rooms; not to the one Natsuki had made her escape from previously, however.
[18:19] Oh, nice. Who did they capture this time?
[18:20] No one seems to be in the room when Haruka is shown inside, and left there for the time being.
[18:23] Well, surely they'll bring whoever it is in soon enough.
[18:24] The detective she had spoken to earlier that day finally makes an appearance, claiming one of the seats in the sparsely-decorated room for himself. "Hello again, Suzushiro," he greets her. "I was told you had some new information to help in our investigation?"
[18:28] Oh right, Haruka doesn't actually have anything new to say. Time to improvise! "Oh, well, I dropped by headmistress Mashiro's place to tell her you'd be investigating around the school grounds, but I couldn't find her. Everything was locked up and it didn't seem like she was there. Don't you think it's strange for the headmistress to be gone at a time like this?"
[18:30] Ootori blinks. Placing the pen he had taken out back on the table, he says. "You are suggesting that Miss Mashiro knew in advance of these events and left in advance?"
[18:33] "I'm not sure what it means. She could be missing for other reasons. I mean, she wouldn't be the first important person to vanish in the last week. But either way, this is exactly the kind of saturation she should be here for and there's no trace of her."
[18:36] He sighs, and flips through his notepad. "The chairwoman left on business. We've managed to confirm that, and her trip was planned in advance. I can understand how it would be easy to jump to hasty conclusions without having all the facts, but at the same time, I would appreciate it if you didn't go around spreading rumors which lack any proof."
[18:38] "Alright, so did you find out anything important after I left this morning?"
[18:44] "Here's the thing," Ootori says, gesturing at the other folding chair. "We've discovered Detective Oiishi's car. It was some distance off the road to Fuka Academy; it does not seem likely that it could've merely strayed from the road on its own. Despite our search teams, we couldn't locate the detective himself. There are no tracks -- nothing, as if he disappeared. Judging by the way his car was smashed and the blood we found within, however... it doesn't look good."
[18:50] Haruka nods respectfully. "Well...I guess I do have one more thing to add today. There's a boy at Fuka named Nagi, and he's implied that he knows all sorts of things about the strange events going on lately. He could just be looking for attention, but he's kind of a bad seed, so I think it's possible he could be involved in something criminal here. I haven't been able to corner him and get answers. Maybe you guys would have better luck?"
[18:51] "Nagi?" The detective writes the name down. "Is that his first name? Last? Can you describe him?"
[18:54] "First name. I'm afraid I don't know his full name. I'll ask around when I get back to school. He's a short kid, kind of sinister-looking, red eyes, pale blue hair. And he might look like a harmless kid, but he's not. I saw him at the mall and tried to get some answers out of him but, well...I didn't think a kid his age could jump like that."
[18:56] "I see," Ootori comments, flipping through his notepad again. "Very interesting. Alright, we'll look into it. In the meantime, would you be able to help me get in contact with Kikukawa Yukino? I have a few questions for her as well, I'm afraid."
[18:58] "I wish I could," Haruka says in all honesty. "I haven't seen her all day. She's usually right behind me. I can give you her number but that phone's probably dead, like a lot of them these days." She gives the detective her own new number, at least.
[19:00] "Yes, that's what we heard from the other students," he says, writing it down. "The two of you were apparently quite inseparable, and then, you were no longer seen with her. I believe it was about that same day that you last talked to Detective Oiishi?"
[19:02] "That's right. She was in my room the last time I saw her. I went out to go on patrol around the school, and when I got back she was gone. She must have left on her own, because it didn't look like anyone broke in or anything."
[19:04] Ootori nods once again. "It is most troubling. Kikukawa was from class 1-A of the highschool section, I believe?"
[19:04] "Yes, that's right."
[19:06] "We've found out that Detective Oiishi was investigating the girls in that class just before his disappearance," Ootori tells Haruka, observing her as his notepad lies on the table, forgotten. "And now five girls from it have gone missing, two of them connected to you in some way."
[19:07] Haruka simply nods. "And believe me, I'm just as determined to find out where they went as you are."
[19:10] "It is quite admirable," he agrees. "Was that why you sought out Yuuki Nao, who happened to be Senoh Aoi's roommate?"
[19:13] "We kind of found ourselves in the same place at the same time." The infirmary, actually! "And I'd heard she was in town with the other girls when Fujino was killed, so I thought she might know something. We've kind of just been working together since then."
[19:15] "Oh? We didn't know that part," Ootori muses. "You mean to say that Yuuki had been on the outing with Fujino, or just coincidentally in town at the same time?"
[19:17] "They went into town with a group, I think."
[19:18] The detective writes something down on the pad, again. "Any reason why?" he asks, not raising his eyes. "From what we've been able to ascertain, Yuuki is a loner, not to mention several years younger than Fujino. They seem like they would move in different crowds."
[19:19] Haruka just nods. "It surprised me too."
[19:19] "You don't know," he agrees, nodding himself. "Quite understandable. You're not there to police the social lives of students, after all."
[19:20] Haruka nods again. They'd better not take it into their heads to do that!
[19:21] "And has your joint investigation with Yuuki turned up anything, besides this Nagi character?"
[19:22] "Not much," Haruka admits, the disappointment here honest and quite obvious from her tone. "It's very flustrating."
[19:23] "You are not alone in this," Ootori says, standing up. "Thank you for coming in. You can be assured that we'll catch whomever's responsible for all these abductions."
[19:24] Haruka also stands up. "I hope so."
[19:25] "I know it's hard," he tells her sympathetically. "Knowing that your friend might have been abducted, and helpless to do anything about it."
[19:27] "Oh, I'm not helpless. I'll keep looking until I find her. No one can stop the Suzushiros when they put their minds to doing something!"
[19:28] "So will we," Ootori promises.
[19:28] Haruka nods, though she remains far more confident in her own methods!

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Nao's phone dials Haruka's... and dials... and keeps dialling...

Haruka answers, of course. "What's new?"

"Precious little. Where are you?"

"Police station. Well, leaving it. I'm coming back to Fuka now. Guess I'll meet you there?"

"Mmmhmmmm they know anything, or are we all still in the dark?"

"They found Detective Oiishi's car outside the school, and there was blood inside it. No idea who or what got to him. Other than that, they don't know anything that we don't. I told them to keep an eye out for Nagi, at least."

"Oh, great. Worse luck, they'll find him, and he'll tell them about us. Did they tow his car away already?"

"What could he tell them that they'd actually believe? Anyway, I didn't ask about the car, but I think it's a safe ascension that they took it."

"Uh-huh. Find out where it happened or something? Still got time to kill until we learn where Higurashi is."

"They didn't tell me. But they did say that there wasn't a trail leading away from the car or anything. Like he just vanished? ...Or like something flew away with him."

"...then it could be anywhere. Better have your goons keep an eye on the sky from here on out, eh? Anyway, I'll meet you in the library."

"Sure thing." Haruka hangs up and hails a cab to ride back to school. She wonders if the cabbies know her by name yet.

The one who takes her back to campus doesn't, but the belief that it's only a matter of time gets stronger.

In any event, arrival at the library and looking for Nao proceeds, posthaste!

Nao seems to be at one of the computers, using it to try and look up architectural plots of the school.

"Hey," she grunts, glancing over at Haruka. "The guy snooping around the mansion was a cop or a detective or something, I think. He just looked around and left."

Haruka nods. "I asked about Mashiro while I was there. They know she planned to be out of town in advance. Also, I might have said something that leads to them being interested in you but they don't think you did anything so don't worry. Anyway, what are you looking at?"

"Maps," replies Nao, turning back to the computer. "Rather, I'm looking *for* maps, of the school. I keep thinking about that cave I saw, and it's got to be on Fuka, somewhere. Since all the weirdness seems focused around here, I thought there might be a clue."

She rocks back in the chair with a sigh. "God, I'm sick of this, though. I don't even know exactly what sort of stuff I'm looking for on these. It looks like so much scribble."

"-and wait, what? Well... whatever," she adds, before her voice grows suddenly soft and pleasant. "I lost my memory, detective, so I might not be very helpful to you," she mews, overwhelming Haruka with false sweetness.

"Exactly. It's nothing to worry about. Anyway, I guess there are no blueprints that say Hidden Secret Cave or anything?" It's hard to tell, but she actually sounds serious.

Nao gestures at the computer. "Check it out yourself, my eyes are getting sore."

Haruka doesn't really know anything about computers. That kind of thing is Yukino's job, you know? "I'll take your word for it. Anyway, I'm pretty much out of leads until we know more about where Higurashi is."

"Probably in for a wait. Why don't you go get some food or something?" replies Nao, standing up. "I've gotta go check if Sugiura called me back, too. I'll let you know when I know more."

"Sure thing." Haruka may as well check in with the goon squad and see if anything new's happened, or if Yukino's been around.

Nao intends to go back to Shizuru's room and check if Sugiura called back, as well as find out if her own dorm has, in fact, been opened up again or not.

<--->

Yukino hasn't been seen, and not just by Haruka. The blonde's inquiries only serve to increase the worries of fellow Executive Committee members, while not providing her with any fresh information.

Nao is no more successful than her partner, as Shizuru's room looks exactly the same as the last time she'd been there. Midori hadn't called back, which could mean a dozen different things. Her new, blank phone does get a call, however. It is still on silent mode, and Nao doesn't realize it at first, but she had been sent mail.

Nao reads the message (was it from a private number?)

Nao can't tell where it came from. On opening the message, she sees that it is very concise, containing only a set of numbers. Fiddling with the phone further reveals that amongst its installed programs is a GPS tracker.

Using phones comes naturally to Nao, so she inputs the directions on the one hand whilst calling Haruka on the other.

It turns out to be a good call, as the phone she had been given cannot handle both actions at once. While calling Haruka on her private cellphone, Nao sees the numbers resolve into coordinates. The location is not in Fuka, but still in Japan. She thinks it would be about half a day's drive from the Academy.

"I've got the place, but it's half a day's drive away. You don't have an easily-bullied friend with a car, do you? Or can your wallet handle the taxi?"

It is getting late. Nao knows they won't make it to their destination, whatever it might be, while there's daylight left. Any attempts at diplomacy might be harmed by that, though a nightly infiltration is another thing entirely.

"I'm sure it's getting used to the strain," Haruka says. "Besides, this mission is more important than money! This is about FUKA."

"Alright. Call a taxi, and I'll meet you at the roadside, just down from the gates."

Haruka does so, heading out from the gates to meet Nao.

The driver is one who recognizes Haruka, though she can't actually recall his name. "Where to?" he asks, rolling down the window.

"You up for a long drive?" asks Nao. "We're talking most of the night, here."

"It's a sacrifice I'm willing to make," Haruka says nobly.

"Not *you*."

The cabbie snorts. "It's a special rate at night, but your friend here knows all about it. Seems like she could afford it, too."

"You're loaded, aren't you, Suzushiro? We should just buy a frigging car or something," replies Nao, before giving some general directions to their destination.

Given that the cab lacks a GPS tracker of its own, Nao would have to provide directions as they go. Other than an inconvenience to her, however, it shouldn't be too difficult to get to their destination with the tools at their disposal.

Haruka just shrugs. It's not like her family didn't earn it all.

The drive takes them to the mainland through the bridge connecting the island to it, and Nao is once again melancholic as she passes it. There is a sense of wrongness in the bridge existing, she feels, but it soon disappears as they leave it behind. Darkness falls, the cab taking what feels like the scenic route at times, following the shore.

Eventually, the road takes Nao and Haruka further inland, beginning to rise soon afterwards. They pass through several tunnels, and Nao and Haruka can both see their phones' reception go inside, the cab's radio playing static for the duration. The GPS tracker never stops displaying information, however, its connectivity bar unchanged whenever Nao looks at it.

Hours after departing, around two o'clock, Nao can see them begin to reach their final destination. The maps displayed on her borrowed phone get smaller and smaller in scale. There is nothing on the map -- no cities, towns, villages or settlements of any kind. No gas stations. No industrial compounds. Yet the coordinates lead her ahead.

"I knew we should've stopped for food an hour ago," mutters Nao. "We're almost there, though."

Haruka is quite prepared to solider on without dinner! ...But a meal would've been nice, yeah.

As Nao stops the cab roughly a mile away from the coordinates, the driver looks at her. "Is this some kind of prank? Or a satanic ritual you kids are into these days?" he asks, seeming quite tired after the long drive.

"Sanatic ritual. We're off to meet with the coven. You get paid, so it's all the same, right?"

Haruks scowls. At the cabbie or Nao, it's hard to say. "Let's go already," she says, stalking off.

"Yes, about payment. If you want me to wait here, I'll need the fare back as well."

Haruka can cover that, so they may as well have him wait. They don't have any other way back to Fuka, do they?

It might be interesting to steal a vehicle from the place they're going, but there's no counting on that! Nao slips out and trails after Haruka.

"Ok, Suzushiro, I know this isn't your style, but we're *sneaking* in, not *breaking* in, right? I mean, there'll be breaking, but it should be quiet breaking."

Nao won't approach directly from the road, but will use the GPS to go around the.. whatever it is and come in from the side!

Haruka looks skeptical. "I'll do my best."

As Nao and Haruka travel on foot, the former discerns a building of some kind ahead. It appears blocky and unimaginative in design, perhaps two stories at most.

Haruka sees blurry darkness.

Nao squints to see if there's a wall surrounding it (for all the good that might do). Once they start getting close, she'll proceed more carefully until she's got a better picture of what needs to be done to get inside.

No walls, but there is a chainlink fence, as well as at least one guard post off to the side. The compound is dark.

"Are they even using this place?" murmurs Nao, glancing at the guard post- can she tell if any actual guards are there?

Given that it is more like a shack where guards would presumably be, she can't tell without actually coming far closer to it than she currently is. Nao can tell that if she'd continued on the original approach, she would have arrived at it, so the front gate is apparently located there.

Nao creeps up to the back of the guard post and listens for signs of inhabitance!

Haruka can barely see anything here, so she's mostly following Nao at the moment.

As Nao and Haruka make their way to the post, they are able to confirm that there is someone within. They also appear to have just heard something, debating their next move in hushed voices.

"So much for subtlety. Ready?" mutters Nao, creeping around to the entrance as a prelude to rushing inside and punching out all three.

"They're onto us!" Haruka whispers. "We'd better jump 'em!"

Nao rushes inside, having no difficulty seeing in the darkness. The guard post is manned, indeed -- there are three men in a uniform of some kind which she had not seen before, one sitting by a console which could be anything from a radar to a high-tech microwave. He has some kind of headphones on, which don't connect into anything, appearing wireless. Two others are holding automatic weapons, one in the center of the room and the other by a wall.

Like some kind of demented monster, Nao leaps through the door with blinding speed, almost bouncing off the walls. With a kick, she aims to send the central guard flying into his similarly armed friend, and intends to send his nerdy companion flying after them shortly thereafter.

The two guards go down, even as their seated companion whirls around at Nao's entrance! Nao is certain she heard a thump as her leg met the guard's chest, an uncomfortable feeling of ribs breaking under her foot, but then she has other issues more pressing to worry about, as the light switch it flipped. The guard post is illuminated in a flash, and Nao feels herself go blind!

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Looks like it's finally time for Haruka to put her alternate self's gift to work! She materializes her mace and darts in after Nao, meaning to knock down whichever of the guards is left before than can move against the redhead.

Nao heart leaps into her throat, even as she throws herself into a clumsy roll away from where she was. "The light, fuck!"

That which takes Nao out of the fight allows Haruka to see the situation clearly. Only one of the guards is still in any shape to resist; it is the one manning the technical station. Haruka has no better luck identifying it than Nao on such a short notice, and then it largely becomes moot as the mace makes contact with the man's face, brutally sending him careening to the ground, and continuing to embed itself in the equipment. Sparks fly into the air.

Nao manages to duck behind a group of chairs, crashing against them with her back.

A guard tries to get up, pushing his downed comrade off himself.

Tangled up in the chairs and mostly unaware of what's going on, Nao isn't in much shape to react to that.

...Well. Probably best she avoids using that thing on regular people very often. The man trying to get up earns himself a good kick in the face instead.

Haruka crosses the guard post to deliver the kick before the man can even get back to his feet. His head snaps back, meeting the wall, and he sags back to the floor slowly.

A glance around to make sure all three of them are down for the count, then she checks on Nao.

Nao fishes around in her pockets for her sunglasses, and slowly puts them on.

Haruka doesn't think they're all unconscious, but it is quite doubtful any of them would be getting up any time soon. Or at all, in the case of two of them, if they don't receive medical attention soon.

And if they don't do any good, she struggles out of the chairs anyway. "We'd better hurry," she mutters, stumbling the door. "They got anything interesting in here?"

Haruka glances around. "Well, whatever that thingy was, it's wrecked now," she says, pointing to the ruined equipment.

Nao struggles to an upright position, although attempts to open her eyes and test the sunglasses are greeted with residual flashes. Perhaps, after a minute or two of giving her eyes time to adjust, the results would be different.

And sound beyond Nao and Haruka's returns, sudden. There are no screams from the guards, either in panic or pain. Only groans.

Haruka sees the outside illuminate, as if it were daylight.

Haruka squints and shields her eyes. That can't be a good sign.

"We've got to move," mutters Nao. "I can't see shit, but we should try and get inside before someone comes out here."

"I see no faults with this plan," Haruka announces, full of bravado as always. "Forward!" If there's anyone waiting for them outside the shack, they're getting a face full of mace.

"-the roof. We can jump to the top and go in that way!" grunts Nao, squinting as she gingerly heads through the door, hoping she can see better outside than she can in.

"*Jump* to the roof. Nao, I think I'm in pretty good shape, but not THAT good."

"'snot that hard," mutters Nao, opting to rush outside and make good on that once her vision has cleared up just enough to see dimly by.

Nao's vision clears up, and with the help of her shades, she can see that spotlights cover the entire compound. The majority of them seem to be coming from the main building's roof. Haruka's sight tells her much the same picture, albeit blurrier.

An alarm sound, jarring to their ears.

At that, Nao bolts, heading straight for the building and putting all her strength into a single leap to the heavens!

...Well, if Nao can do it, *Haruka* has to be able to!

Nao's practices come in handy as her legs catapult her at just the right height to land comfortably on the roof. She floats down through a column of light, hair trailing behind her, and other projectors try to focus on her, but they are slow, oh so slow to her tearing eyes.

Haruka follows, and her inexperience shows. Her jump is wasteful, taking her to easily two or even three times the necessary height, and then, she has to deal with the descent. A small mercy is that the operators of the projectors don't appear to anticipate an assault from such a height and angle, and Haruka enjoys what relative shadow there remains in the area.

Haruka crashes to the roof, stumbling to keep her footing. "I really shouldn't be able to do that," she announces...but hey, this isn't the time for questions. If she *can* somehow leap tall buildings in a single bound, she's going to put that ability to good use. For JUSTICE.

Haruka's legs hurt from foot to thigh. It's not the familiar pain of a broken bone or a twisted ankle, or even of overworked muscles. They merely protest, for lack of a better word. The roof where she landed groans, cratering, a spider web of cracks spreading from the point of impact.

Nao doesn't have time to catch Haruka; she's stuck running to punch out as many of the people here as she can- all but one. Half-blind as she is, it's difficult for her to pull her blows, but she does try to go for the torso and avoid the face.

"Ow ow ow." Prooobably not a good idea to stay there. She bounces away, hopping lightly across the roof towards Nao.

The roof doesn't collapse, and as Haruka hops after the blur that is Nao -- due to her speed, the blonde thinks, rather than a defect of her eyes -- she realizes with dismay that the pain in her legs does not go away.

Meanwhile, Nao has taken out three of the four people manning the rooftop projectors. As she punches the last one square in the face, the access door to the roof is thrown open. Something is thrown through it, bouncing a few times. It probably makes a sound of some sort, but the alarm makes that impossible to make out.

Nao grabs Haruka and pounces to the side of the access door, shielding her eyes.

"Is that a grenade? Oh shi-" That's all Haruka can say before Nao tackles her.

Even through her impromptu shield, Nao feels the flash go off, leaving her dazed. Haruka tastes dirt, tackled out of the blast area, and as she raises her eyes she sees two red-heads with their right hands over their faces.

There is the sound of boots stomping, louder and louder as people rush onto the roof.

"Play with them, Arach," spits out Nao, putting one hand against the wall and catching her breath for a moment.

There is gunfire. Nao can smell the gunpowder, but she and Haruka remain protected as Nao's Child materializes betwen them and the soldiers. With a metallic clicking sound, Arach's limbs split at the joints, blurring in the air in front of it. There is a drilling sound, unpleasant, bringing with it worse assosiations than sliding one's fingernails across a blackboard.

It's music to Nao's ears. She drags her claws across the back of the shack, opening a new door to drop through whilst Arach handles anyone stuck on the roof.

To Haruka, it contributes mightily to her budding headache.

"What the hell is that?" Haruka babbles, pointing to the spidermech. "Nao? Hey!" ...Well, at least it's shredding the Bad Guys. Haruka can't help but feel a little left out, though.

Nao cuts with her claws twice, and a doorway is made. Two surprised soldiers are behind it, and the one further back starts to aim his weapon towards the red-head.

"My beautiful Child."

Claws still out, Nao lunges at the man through the dust and haze created by her impromptu excavation, ready to do anything to remove the threat of the rifle. Ten scarlet strings spit forth before she realises it, dancing towards the armaments of the men and tearing them away.

Haruka was about to send a mace flying towards one of the men, but this is hard to do with Nao jumping in front. Oh well, she'll have to clean up the leftovers.

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

The wires tie themselves around the weapon of the soldier at the front. Rather than tugging it loose, however, they slice cleanly through the metal. The other soldier's weapon is trickier -- to get to it, Nao would need to send her wires through its comrade.

...Or, they could just knock #2's comrade into him! Haruka dips to one side of Nao to aboid hitting her, and then sends her mace flying towards the disarmed man's midsection, intending to knock him back more than actually injure him (though the latter is probably inevitable too).

The burst of gunfire from him merges with the other sounds of automatic weapons discharges to their side. Something grazes Nao's right arm, several inches above the elbow. Both soldiers topple over, and fall down the stairs.

Nao yelps in sudden shock, clutching her arm and exaggerating the pain that surely exists.

Putting it aside is difficult, but she tries to peer through the gap she's opened before jumping down- diving in front of more guns is the last thing she wants to do.

No soldiers remain on the stairwell that Nao can see; those two must've been the stragglers of the group.

Onwards, then! Haruka glances at Nao first. "Are you okay? Also, how do I get one of those crazy spider droids?"

Haruka's own voice sounds strange to her.

Haruka can only peer around the stairwell in confusion. Is there an echo in here?

With that, Nao drops through and dashes down a couple of flights, before she pauses for a moment to take a five-second breather.

"You don't have one?" asks Nao, raggedly. "And I'm fine. I think." Mild concern gnaws at her, but Arach shouldn't take long to deal with the other soldiers. "Are you coping, Suzushiro?" she adds, giving the blonde a weird look.

"Coping with what?" she asks, honestly oblivious to whatever it is that should be bothering her. Hey, she's on a MISSION here. There's no time for self-doubt.

The stairways are illuminated with a harsh red light. Nao and Haruka don't hear gunfire anymore.

Nao stares at her companion for a second, before sighing. "I guess I thought you might get scared. But you're the actual scary one," she opines, before dashing down the stairs to the floor below, ready to kick anyone in her way.

"Arach, begone," she mutters to herself, suddenly paranoid about leaving her Child alone. She has to take care of it, after all.

"I'm just determined, that's all!" Haruka shouts, chasing after her companion. Man, she really has to get one of those awesome robots.

There is no answer, audible or otherwise.

The door exiting to the first floor is before the two Hime. Haruka's finding it difficult to keep up with Nao's pace.

"Nao, slow down a little! I'm not used to this whole filtration thing."

"We're right past infiltarting and into invading," replies Nao, pausing at the door to both give Haruka a couple of seconds and to listen- and then bursting through, blurring through the flashing lights and searching for someone to punch or grab.

Nao shoulder rams the door off its hinges, arriving at the inner corridor. The area is well-illuminated, the red ceiling lights flashing in tune to the alarm's wail. No one is in the immediate vicinity.

Well, that's convenientL it means Haruka can actually catch up. "Do we have any idea where in this faculty Higurashi is being held?" she asks, glancing around.

The corridor goes to a T-shaped intersection at one end, and to a set of double doors on the other. Nao and Haruka are roughly in its middle.

"Double doors always lead somewhere important. I say we go there next."

Nao bolts for the doors and goes straight through them, letting them swing in her wake. Even as she goes through them she anticipates trouble, rolling to the left (on her good shoulder.)

Haruka chases after her (again), stumbling a little as the doors swing back and hit her. That's it, she needs to take the lead next time.

Nao's hunch is on the money. As she rolls to the side, completing a turn, she spots five soldiers taking aim at the doors, which haven't even finished closing back. This appears to be a reception hall of some sort. Two of the soldiers are using the reception desk as cover, while the other three have overturned a sofa to use as a makeshift barricade.

Focused bursts of gunfire from two different spots greet Haruka in a crossfire, as she rushes into the room after Nao. The stumble she took after hitting her head on the swinging doors saved her brains from getting pasted all over the wall behind her, but she is hit all the same -- twice in her right leg, above the knee and higher up the thigh, and a lucky bullet in her side.

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Haruka falls backwards, back into the hallway, hitting the wall and sliding to the floor. The legendary Suzushiro determination doesn't have a lot of experience dealing with gunshot wounds. She also has to wonder what exactly Nao has been up to lately if she's totally at ease running into a room full of armed soldiers.

Dammit, this whole thing would be easier if she had her own awesome spiderbot to send after her enemies. Then again, maybe she does? The other Haruka mentioned something about Orihime...well, it's worth a shot. She reaches her hand towards the door, gesturing dramatically! "Orihime...Go crush my enemies! Everybody who's not Nao!"

Already concussed, yet another blow to the head doesn't help Haruka's condition. As she floates in and out of consciousness, her injuries almost decide the battle before her reaching hand is firmly grasped.

"What the hell are you doing?!" Haruka angrily asks herself.

"Well, I was trying to make a heroic stand...seemed like the right time and everything...But in the long run, we're rescuing Higurashi."

"By getting your full head shot fool of holes?!" Haruka asks incredulously. She pulls Haruka back up, slapping her upside the head. "You need to take this seriously! Do you know what kind of responsibility you have? What if you'd already signed the contract? What then? Will you die and take someone else along with you, just because they happened to be close to you?"

"Hey, my head is completely intact. There's nothing wrong with me at all, except that I'm bleeding heavily. I thought, hey, maybe I could summon something to help too!"

Haruka looks frustrated with herself. "It's not a thing! Your Child is your most important person's soul!" Letting go of Haruka, Haruka crosses her hands in front of her chest. "You can't have it until you have the determination to die before allowing anyone to destroy your Child."

"You're me, right? You KNOW I'm determined. You know I'd rather die than let anything bad happen to Fuka. That's why I'm lying in a pool of my own blood right now! So you should know damn well that I'm qualified and I'm not sure what else there is to discuss."

"It's not a pool just yet," Haruka notes with a snort, her eyes dipping briefly to glance at the floor. "And maybe I'm not you."

Yukino is standing there now, peering at Haruka from behind her glasses. "Are you going to sacrifice me for Fuka, Haruka-chan?" she asks, keeping her voice neutral.

Haruka seems to miss the point of this whole display. "What, Yukino?" She climbs to her feet and grabs her friend by the shoulders. "Where have you been? No one's seen you all day and I've been worried to death!"

Yukino slaps her calmly across the face. "Focus, Haruka-chan. I can't be yours if I don't know your true feelings."

"My feelings are that it's not a victory for Fuka if we have to sacrifice any of the students to save it. You should know that much."

The first emotion Yukino shows Haruka is disappointment. "You're avoiding an answer. Unless this is it. Don't you have anyone more important than anyone else in the world? Is every Fuka student exactly the same to you? That would make me very sad, Haruka-chan. I don't think I could help you then."

"Yukino, you know I've watched out for you in particular, and I always will. And I don't know who else I could rely to point out whenever I mess something up." The admission of Haruka Suzushiro actually being incorrect about something sounds like a fast she wouldn't acknowledge to someone else. "You should know that."

Yukino's expression mellows. "Let's form a contract, then." She offers Haruka her right hand. "As long as you don't sacrifice me--" Yukino's left arm reaches for her glasses, and when she takes them off, Shizuru is staring back at Haruka, an amused smile on her lips. "--it doesn't matter who I am. But you always have to treasure me, and place my life above even yours. That is what our contract is. You can't live without me."

Haruka is silent for a moment, and then nods. "Let's do it," she says seriously. The words may be simple but, well, so is Haruka. Her tone should get across everything that needs to be said here. She takes the other's hand, whoever's it may be.

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

The instant their hands touch, Haruka feels a discharge of energy course through the point of contact. Unable to stop her muscles from twitching, she falls back, impacting against the wall once again.

Nao emerges through the doors, illuminated by the corridor lights. The gunfire seems to have tapered off.

A bronze statue is standing over the fallen Haruka. She turns towards Nao, and her hair lashes out at the red-head, stopping a foot away from her for some reason as she looks at Nao curiously. Framed by the unnatural hair is Shizuru's face, or pretty close to it. The statue lacks a mouth.

Nao darts backwards, out of reach of the hair. "Haruka! Shizuru?" she gapes, momentarily stunned. Her claws elongate, ready to deflect any blow, but she hesitates for a moment, allowing the statue time to make another move.

The bronze Shizuru is holding perfectly still.

Haruka waves both parties to a halt. "It's okay, I found some help. ...Um, Mecha-Fujino? Nao's our friend."

For once, Nao looks completely at a loss.

Haruka glances at Nao. "Look, I'm as surprised as you are. I'm also *bleeding*. So, I don't know if you know anything first aid, but, uh..."

Haruka also discovers that her headache and disorientation return with a vengeance.

"I.. how bad is it?" winces Nao, gingerly walking past the... Fujino thing... and closer to Haruka. "There's probably something around here.. somewhere. Bandages. I don't know."

"I, uh...it's the first time I've been shot, so I don't exactly have a frame of inference. 'Not good' is a place to start, though. Bandages would be a help. And we've got to keep moving, before more of them find us." She looks up at the...statue. "So, Mecha-Fujino...can you carry me for now and still be able to protect us?"

Silence is Haruka's only response. Orihime doesn't move one bit to acknowledge her.

"Um...let's try it this way: Orihime, pick me up before I bleed to death!"

Nao glances at the soldier she dragged in. If he doesn't have a medkit on him, his clothes will become improptu bandages, at least until they find something better around here.

Regardless of the circumstances, Haruka will probably need a doctor after this.

Orihime complies with Haruka's orders orders. The Child flows rather than moves across the short distance. Its arms elongate, wrapping around Haruka, and raise her, pressing the blonde against her Child's chest.

This seems to have no effect on the bleeding.

After searching the soldier, Nao discovers that he seems to have some emergency supplies, handily marked off with a red cross. There is a sterile packaged bandage and a syringe with liquid of some sort.

The syringe is probably anaesthetic, but Nao doesn't know how to properly apply it.

She can handle the bandaids, though, and ties them to Haruka's wounds as quickly as she can- speed is more important than efficiency.

With that done, she nods. "That way," she indicates, heading back down to the T-intersection. This time, however, she intends to let her Child take the lead, with Orihime bringing up the rear.

Haruka nods. "Orihime, follow Nao."

The instant Arach steps into the intersection, it is sprayed with gunfire from both directions. Bullets bounce off its form, some ricocheting on dangerous vectors, but Arach's limbs prevent them from reaching Nao.

Orihime's hair is spread around the Child in a golden halo, forming a protective circle around Haruka, who is cradled in its arms.

Haruka can't do much on her own to help with this fight. Unless there's somewhere safe Orihime can set her for the duration, that is.

Orihime provides no fresh insight on the situation.

"Get back to the stairwell," mutters Nao, backing away there herself, away from any guards. "Arach, deal with them," she adds, letting the monstrosity deal with the mundane for the time being.

Haruka can't disagree. "Orihime, follow Nao...again!"

Orihime executes Haruka's orders, retreating after Nao even as screams sound from across the bend.

Through the opened door, Nao can't see any fresh guards charge at them from the stairway.

Eventually, the screams should stop, and once the sound dies away, Nao will determine it to be safe to emerge once more.

It takes the better part of two minutes.

"They'll run out of these guys eventually, I hope."

For that two minutes, Nao squats back against the wall, cupping her face with her hands and constantly massaging her temple.

"If they're smart, they'll all have run off by now," replies Nao. Her voice is flat.

"Smart? They're guards. Intelligence is not in the job deposition." She nods. "Anyway, let's move on. Arach takes the lead still, I guess."

"If they're stupid, and you got shot by them, what does that make you?"

Nao peers out either side of the corridor before emerging, and goes back to the T-junction.

Haruka thinks that Orihime is leering at her.

It makes her very lucky to have Mecha-Fujino, basically, but that's not much of a comeback. She scowls at her Child and turns her head away. "And no sass out of you, just follow Nao."

Bodies litter both ends, Nao sees. None move, though they're all still in one piece, if bloodied. She can't tell more without stopping by each one to check for vitals.

As Orihime follows Nao, Haruka can distinctly feel someone tracing their fingers lightly down her spine, agonizingly slowly.

Each new corridor before Nao ends in a reinforced door.

Haruka shudders. "Hey Nao, out of curiosity, does your Child ever behave...inappropriately?" Presumably the bodies lining the hall have nothing to do with Haruka's query.

Nao slowly trudges towards the door, briefly stopping to check the pulse of one of the soldiers.

"Haruka... it's the second time, today, that I've used him to fight," whispers Nao, peering through the window in the doorframe.

"That's not really what I meant," Haruka replies, quietly now that they're entering a new area.

There is a faint pulse on the soldier Nao stops by. Beyond the window, there is a row of similar doors, their distance from each other suggesting they lead into rooms. The corridor ends after seven such dorways.

No living soul can be seen beyond the door.

Something is nibbling on Haruka's left ear.

Hey! Mecha-Fujino didn't even have a mouth! How's that possible? "Stop messing with me," Haruka commands. "That's an *order*. We have an important job to do here."

It doesn't seem like there will be much reason to fear here, so Nao slits the door open with her claws and pushes it open.

"In the end, the Child does what I tell it to," she responds, heading through the door to peer at these other rooms. "Can you identify Higurashi?"

"Yes, it won't be a problem," Haruka says, still monitoring Orihime for any signs of insolence.

The first two rooms are empty, looking like they would fit in a psychiatric ward. The insides are sterile white, and appear padded. The third is similar, but Nao notices pictures hanging on the walls. It's difficult to discern then from the corridor.

Haruka confirms that Orihime still lacks a mouth. Its hands continue to hold her closely to its chest, and the Child follows Nao around as ordered. If only the damned nibbling would stop, too.

Arach stands guard at the intersection. It seems alert to Nao, but does not react to her advancing past the now-ruined door.

"Found anything, Nao?" Haruka asks, doing her best to ignore Orihime's rank insubordination.

Nao knocks briefly on the door. If no reaction is forthcoming, she slits this one open and heads inside. "Maybe."

The room is empty, no response forthcoming. Taking hold of the door's handle, Nao notices that this door is open, and there is no need to ruin the lock.

Nao bursts inside, rolling into the centre of the room and looking for inhabitants.

Nao is met with no resistance as she executes her plan.

The only things of note inside the room are the drawings taped to the walls. They all seem to be of a smiling boy with shaggy brown hair. The drawings feel like they've been made by a child.

Haruka motions Orihime to walk over to the door so that she can look inside and see what Nao's found.

Nao stares at them uselessly and then heads back outside, intending to check out the rest of the rooms.

Haruka is carried into the padded room at her request. It feels very comfortable, and she gets a strange urge to spend the rest of her life there.

The remaining four doors lead to rooms just like the first two, all barren.

There's the other side of the corridor to check out, then. Nao uses Arach to open the first door, though, and checks out the rest in succession. "There's still the second floor," she reminds Haruka, but her heart isn't in it.

Five more rooms are behind this door, equally empty. Unlike the other corridor, however, this one leads into a set of double doors much like the ones in the reception room.

Upon checking, only the third door at the other corridor was open. The rest of the rooms are locked away.

Haruka orders Orihime to take her back out of the room. "Nao...I think this was Higurashi's room. The drawings are blurry, but I remember her boyfriend had brown hair."

Haruka's sides are being tickled mercilessly. Unfortunately, she's feeling too nauseous to enjoy the ministrations.

"They must have taken her away when the alarm sounded," replies Nao, ordering Arach through these doors and trailing after him, picking up the pace.

"Yeah," Haruka says, squirming in her Child's grasp. "Unless we can find someone who knows where she went, and fast, we should retreat. I don't know much longer I'll be conscienscious."

"-oi, don't fall asleep! I can't just have your Child carry you into the ER, you know!"

"Right. I hate to say it, but we might need to leave now, then."

Nao moves past Arach, no bullets greeting them as they cross the threshold. The chamber is large, and resembles an operating room. A hospital bed dominates its center, a variety of instruments which see entirely high-tech even for surgeons surrounding it.

A girl in a blue hospital gown is seated on the bed. She has short brown hair and reddish eyes that seem a bit dull to Nao as she turns its head to stare in the red-head's direction -- but that could be the fault of the emergency lighting meddling with the regular illumination.

Haruka steals a glance down the hall, at the room Arach's entering. "Wait a mi--I think that's her!"

Beyond the bed, there is another exit from the room. It resembles the locked door at the T-shaped intersection.

Nao rushes over to the girl, crouching next to her. "Akane? Higurashi Akane?" she asks, trying to force some cheer into her voice. No matter what, this trip hasn't been a total waste, then.

Arach blurs, reappearing before Nao halfway towards the girl. It feels more alert to Nao than at any other point during her assault on the base.

The girl on the bed tilts her head slightly, not reacting to Nao's words. "What was that, Kazu-kun?" she asks softly. "You want me to defeat her?" She jumps off the bed, reaching down, and a pair of large tonfa appear in her hands. "Alright, Kazu-kun. If it's for you."

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Haruka is speechless for a moment. Then: "Whoa, Higurashi? We're here to *help* you, so it would be best for you to not attack us."

"He's not here, Akane. It's just us," replies Nao, in a low voice. "Fighting isn't... good."

"I was afraid of fighting, too," Akane says, looking at Nao and Haruka. Her eyes seem dull, lifeless. "But then, one day, Mai-chan gave me courage. Kazu-kun accepted me for what I am."

"Akane, did Mai also tell you that it would be a bad idea to fight your classmates? Because it totally is."

Mai? Nao is going to have to have words with Mai about this, later.

"Right. Mai is your friend, right? She wouldn't want this," adds Nao, doing her very best to be soothing. "Let's... go back to Fuuka, okay?"

"Go back to Fuka..." Akane says quietly, before her head tilts once again. "I'm sorry, Kazu-kun. I won't leave you!" she promises, showing emotion for the first time.

Arach presses against Nao, pushing her back.

"We'll just bring him with us!" Haruka says hurriedly. "Right?"

Nao doesn't resist her Child's urges, backing away from the unpredictable girl. She nods at Haruka's words, but dread wells up in her regardless.

"No! I won't let you take him!" Akane yells. "HARRY!"

A beast materializes before her, twin turbines welded horrifically to its back. They begin to whirl ominously.

Haruka thinks the Child has a disctinctive green tint.

That's it. If she's gonna live in a dreamworld, Haruka will have to push her into a different hallucination! "Akane Higurashi! In the name of the Executive Committee, I demand that you stand down this instant! Students fighting is strictly against the rules of conduct of Fuka Academy and you WILL be held accountable for breaking if you precede with violence here. DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME?"

"You're... what happened to you?" blurts out Nao, even has her claws spike from her fingers and she makes ready to attack herself, ignoring Haruka's tirade.

"I'm talking SERIOUS detention here, Higurashi!" Granted, this whole tirade would likely be more impressive if Haruka could walk on her own.

"Harry... eat them."

The whispered command might be lost in the torrent of Haruka's yells, although a Hime's ears pick it up easily enough. It helps that the alarm is no longer blaring; when did it stop?

Akane's Child, a fierce feline the size of bison, leaps at the closest being it recognizes as an enemy -- Arach!

"ARACH!" screams Nao, and her strings fly forth to wrap around the unnatural tiger's leg, dragging it away as to ironically protect her guardian.

Nao herself runs to the right with terrible reflexes, every hurried step leaving a dent in the floor.

"Great, just great," Haruka bitches. "Orihime? I need Higurashi immobilized as quickly as possible. Not hurt, just make sure she can't do anything to us. Set me down in a corner somewhere if you have to." She summons her mace--she can at least fend off anyone moving towards her, if not really FIGHT.

Nao weaves a web of red from her claws to Harry's legs, using all her strength to redirect it to the right. In that, she fails, just as she finds herself unable to cut through the beast's appendages. An unexpected result of her actions, however, is tying both of the massive tiger's front paws together just as Arach slams a limb into the beast's head. The limb breaks with a metallic tearing sound, but Harry topples on its side as a result.

There is a rustling; it is Arach, Nao realizes. Her Child is the source of the noise, and it doesn't make a follow-up attack.

Orihime flows around Haruka's body, the crossed arms it cradles Haruka in becoming liquid and covering the blonde in a sheaf of bronze-tinted see-through metal. Her vision is distorted, but still serviceable enough in close quarters. There is a leap -- Haruka flies through the air. Over Harry, a bit off to the tiger's side, and she can see the twin whirlwinds sucking in the very light near them like miniature black holes. Orihime's outline distorts as it passes near Harry, some of the same liquid bronze making up its body being sucked into the nearest turbine.

But then Orihime has made its way through, and reforms into a humanoid form again. Its hair lashes out, clashing with Akane's tonfa in showers of sparks. The other Hime manages to defend against the attack, but she only has two arms while Orihime's attacking hairs split and flow and split again, ever-increasing the pressure on the brown-haired girl. Now at close quarters with her, Haruka realizes to her shock that Akane's eyes truly are dead, unseeing.

Haruka might have her hangups. But Nao doesn't. "We can't fight like that, Haruka! With Hime, it's kill or be killed!" she shouts, lunging towards Harry's exposed stomach while the whirlwinds are directed elsewhere, and shoving her ten-inch claws into any gaps she can find!

Haruka isn't going to kill anyone if she doesn't have to. ...Although from the looks of things, Akane's already gone. "Akane isn't the only one that dies if you do that, Nao! Remember?" Maybe the Child can be...bargained with, even if its master cannot? "Child of Akane Higurashi, 'Harry!' Stand down or Orihime WILL strangle your master to death!"

"Better him than me!" snarls Nao.

Nao's claws bounce off the tiger Child's stomach with a dull clang. The worst part about the attack, however, is the pain. Nao once had a nail torn off, in an accident, but this feels like all ten of them on her hands had suffered the same fate.

Arach sends a torrent of some foul-smelling web at the topmost turbine on the downed tiger's back. Nao is close enough to see it slow down, turning erratically now as it tries to cut through the webs clogging it up.

Orihime keeps on scaling up its attack, and Akane is now pushed back, the hospital bed's metal supports groaning and then snapping free of the ground, the contraption crashing backwards. Akane's forehead creases with the efforts, but her eyes never show any intelligence within them.

At Haruka's words, Harry struggles anew, and the wire holding his front legs togehter snaps, Nao no longer holding it tight together.

"Dammit. Orihime. I need her down for the count, NOW. If she's still alive afterwards, that's a bonus, but I need her to stop fighting immediately."

The claws had to have trouble with what most needed breaking. But there's more than one way to skin a cat, and Nao pounces back, intent on tying up all of it's legs, this time.

Rather than bashing against Akane's tonfa and keeping her occupied and on the defensive, Orihime's hair ties itself against the weapons, and pulls away sharply. Akane is strung in the air like a doll, crucified, wet pops sounding from her joints. She doesn't remains hanging long, however, as Orihime follows up by cleanly slicing through the exposed flesh of her arms, just above the palms.

The girl crashes back down, hospital gown splattered with her own blood, only to be impaled by Orihime shoving one of its reformed hands through her chest.

The blow avoids the heart, Haruka can tell that much, as well as any other vital organ, since Akane still draws breath.

Harry pounces at Orihime's back, shredding it mercilessly with its claws. Nao and Arach, working together, make use of its distraction. The beast's turbines have trouble working, one due to blunt damage to it and another from Arach's attack, and nothing is there to prevent Hime and Child from tying it up in a web so strong it cannot rip itself free from.

Nao's hands can't stop jittering. She clenches her fists to try and stop them, and to hold the web in place, and stares at Haruka's Child with what could be any of fear, respect, relief or awe.

Swallowing, she tries to speak. "Yeah. That's real better," she affects, determined to sound callous.

Haruka can only hope that Orihime wasn't severely damaged by that last-ditch attack. It's not like she can ask her Child and get a response, after all.

"That's it, we're getting out of this nuthouse. It looks like Orihime can walk me out and carry Higurashi...but I don't know what we could do with her once we get back to civilization anyway."

"Are you nuts? I can't hold her Child forever, and you cut off her fucking hands, Suzushiro! She'll come after you!"

Harry continues struggling, though the rate at which Arach can supply fresh adhesive exceeds the tiger Child's ability to cut through it. In such a state, Nao finds herself just able to hold it in place, but even she is human and would need to rest eventually.

"I know," Haruka says solemly. "And I'm not sure there's anything left of Higurashi in there anyway. ...Orihime? Finish her. Make it quick and as painless as possible."

Orihime's hand withdraws from Akane's chest, before sinking anew into the wounded girl's body before she had a chance to fall down. Akane is dead before Orihime's limb even exited from the back of the girl's head.

Harry lets out a keening wail.

Nao stares at Haruka for a long moment, and then at Harry's entangled form.

The weight of everything suddenly catches up to her, and she leans a hand against Arach, starting to breath heavily. "You know the deal," she manages. "We didn't have another choice, right?"

"That's what I'm telling myself, yeah." Haruka will worry about the ramifications of this later. Right now, it would only complicate the business of getting out safely. "You think that John Smith knew this would happen when he sent us here?"

The web holding Harry burns, as it ignites with bright green flames. It never stops its animalistic cries, not even when most of its body is gone.

At least, that's what Nao sees. Haruka can only watch in confusion as the web holding Harry down disintegrates slowly, freeing the beastly Child!

"I don't know," replies Nao, after the fact, wandering over to the sides of the room and looking over the equipment for anything... recognizable. "Maybe.

He's the only source of leads we had..."

She kicks a nearby wall. "You're gonna need to get to a hospital. I don't know what's going to happen then. The cops will ask about the bullet. They'll ask why you came way out here. Fuck, we won't have time to waste with all that shit."

"Well, the four of us are going to have a good, long chat with him when we get back to town. ...And if the cops find out about just this much, we'll have to tell them everything. I'd almost rather see the nurse at Fuka--I know she's not as qualified to treat bullet wounds, and it is my health we're talking about here, but at least I'm sure we can trust her."

The hospital bed and the immediate equipment near it are irrevokably damaged, as far as Nao can tell. On closer inspection, it had restraints on it -- in just the right places for a girl of Akane's size, she realizes. Nao feels quite certain in this knowledge, in fact.

Harry shakes off the rest of the burning web, and turns towards Haruka. Its jaws open, letting loose a mighty roar of anger and loss, and it leaps at the blonde!

"Oh sh--" Wasn't it supposed to die along with its Hime? Nothing here makes any sense. "Orihime, dodge!"

Nao pulls a sheet from the bed, and drapes it over Akane's body, kneeling down next to it.

"Was she like this when she came here? Or did they twist her mind, somehow-"

At Haruka's voice, Nao's head snaps up, and she darts aside herself, looking for an opponent.

Orihime flows across the floor, moving away from the attacking beast. The liquid Child's speed is less than before, but still enough to safely take Haruka away from the tiger, and from Arach and Nao.

Nao briefly asesses the situation, and stares at Haruka. "What the hell are you doing, Suzushiro? There's nothing here but us."

Nao speaks, but the tiger roars again, louder than before, drowning out her words. It prepares to strike again, and its left turbine seems to be returning to a semblance of working order.

"The tiger, it's up again!" She readies Orihime to make a flying leap whenever the beast jumps at her, hoping her Child can jab at something vital in Harry's head as it passes beneath her.

Watching Orihime and Haruka prance about the room is disturbing to Nao, to say the least. Does everyone brought here go mad?

"Stop it, Suzushiro! We don't have time to play around! You're injured! We need to finish searching this place and get out!" she yells, directing Arach to start leaving the room through the other side, intending to follow after he clears anyone behind the door.

At Arach's movements, Harry switches targets, and leaps at the monstrous spider's unprotected back! Orihime remains unmoving.

"Nao, what the--?" How can she just walk away like that? There's a killer monster in the room! ...Right? Haruka shakes her head. Is the creature still there?

Maybe it's the massive blood loss at work here. "I'm not going crazy here. I'm NOT." Maybe Orihime can be relied upon more than Haruka's own senses? It's worth finding out. "Orihime, if Nao's in danger, protect her!"

"You ARE going crazy, and I am NOT in danger already!" replies Nao, turning to scream directly at Haruka. "Get a grip, Executive Officer Suzushiro Haruka! Or do you want to wind up in the asylum?"

Orihime's hair shoots off in Nao's direction!

"Call her off, for god's sake, Haruka! I don't know what'll happen if you don't, but it won't be pretty!" yells Nao, diving to the side, away from the awful, arm-severing hair.

Orihime's hair tendrils impact against the ground all around the spot Nao had just been occupying, gouging deep marks in it. Harry backs off at the last moment with a whine, looking at them warily.

Haruka grits her teeth--how can she not trust her own eyes? But wouldn't Nao KNOW if something was attacking her? ...Alright. Haruka closes her eyes and calls back Orihime. "Stop! Just...follow Nao, okay? Don't harm her or Arach under any circumstances. ...And Nao, we need to leave this place, imminently."

Rather than retrieving the hair, the rest of Orihime's body flows towards it.

"That thing does exactly what you say, Haruka, don't be so flippant. And... augh, I know!" she adds, stalking after Arach towards what lies beyond the door.

"I just want to see if there's anything more."

The door's lock is nothing against Arach's might. The room has no other exits.

A woman and a man, both in their thirties and wearing white lab coats, are crouching behind a large desk. Atop said desk, there are several computers, each with a pair of monitors or more. A metal cabinet in a room's corner completes the room's decor.

"Come out. Hands on head," orders Nao, flatly. "I'm in charge. Do as I say and I won't kill you both for what just happened in the room behind me."

They follow Nao's orders to the letter, remaining silent.

Haruka decides to let Nao take the lead here, as she's starting to conclude that, for whatever reason, she can't trust her own senses right now.

Now that she has them, Nao isn't exactly sure what to do with them.

"You two are doctors, correct? What were you trying to do here?" she demands, narrowing her eyes. "I require a good explanation from you."

"If anything happens to us, the Elders would never forget it," the man speaks up. His bravery feels faked to Nao, who is able to taste his fear as a tangible thing. "We're here on... on direct orders from them. The research being done here falls under their jurisdiction!"

"WE don't fall under their jurisdiction, and we're PISSED," Haruka scoffs. "Try harder."

Nao raises her claws to her lips, licking the edge of them slightly. Audiable clicking sounds can be heard as she flexes her knuckles.

"Consider this a hostile takeover."

The gestures reminds Nao of the pain at her fingertips.

"You could never go against the Obsidian Lord!" the researcher cries out. "He will destroy you all, and recreate Japan in its image! We'll be the chosen few at his side!"

"Arach, he's annoying. Tie him up."

The man startles, but he doesn't get a chance to do much more. Arach envelopes him in web strands from head to toe. A small space is left for the mouth, and Arach pauses, turning its head to look at Nao.

Nao smiles, and then glances at the woman instead. "Perhaps you would care to speak more plainly?" she asks, hopefully.

Perhaps she is. The male researcher's screams put that on hold, however, making her pale and clam up.

Nao wanders over and rolls him over. "Shut up, ingrate. Now, I'll ask again- what were you trying to accomplish here?"

"A controllable Hime. A weapon," the woman says curtly, visibly composing herself. She pushes her glasses slightly up the bridge of her nose, straightening up. "It was going quite well, too, until you two showed up."

"How did you capture a Hime without her will?"

"I don't look a gift horse in the mouth. That's how she got here, and I don't know more than that."

"Controllable? You turned her into a lunatic?" Haruka exclaims.

"She was quite lucid, thank you," the woman reacts icily to Haruka's outburst.

"Emphasis on was."

"What about her most important person? Did you capture him, too?"

"So, we just...killed...oh, that is it. That is IT. Give me one good reason I shouldn't have Orihime disassemble both of you right this second?"

She smirks. "Our best achievement, the one leading to the big breakthrough. Yes, we captured it."

The smirk disappears at Haruka's words, replaced by a terrible scowl. "I don't see a reason to dance to your tune, you freak. Both of you! What can a normal human do against the likes of you? How can we defend ourselves? I've seen just now how you treat your own kind." Her face twists in disgust. "Dismembering a regular person me probably comes even easier to Hime! There are no qualms, are there? Just the clear certainty of righteousness?" She crosses her arms in front of her chest, tapping her foot rapidly against the ground. "Hmph. Unlike that fool I know we're dead already. But there's something you should know. We can fight back, even if it costs us a lot in manpower. This facility might fall, but it's not the only one that would make a difference in this war. In the end, I'll be the one with the last laugh!"

"You... I spared them all. I spared every single soldier here. Haruka got SHOT because I wanted to SPARE your WORTHLESS FUCKING LIVES!"

The woman doesn't look especially convinced by Nao's words, staring at her with derision. The fear is there as well, quite present, but she almost seems past it.

"I've tried to avoid hurting people every step of the way! I've done everything possible to avoid killing ANYONE, but somehow people keep interfering, and nudging every saturation towards violence. What I WANT is to protect Fuka and all the students there. It's people like YOU that won't let me do my job. You have no one but yourselves to blame for us being here."

"Yes. Because we've invaded Fuka and hamstrung a bunch of your staff and then threatened to kill the rest at gunpoint. Slipped my mind, that."

"Oh, I don't have a gun," Haruka says, ominously.

"Oh, good for you," the scientist says flatly.

She makes a motion to look at her hand, where a watch would normally be. "Are you going to be killing or otherwise horribly torturing me, now, or can I go?"

Haruka grinds her teeth. "I'm still thinking. Tell us about this Obsidian Prince first."

"Every second you waste with us is one you could be using to prevent people out there becoming cripples for life, doctor. If you're going to pretend you care, answer our questions."

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

[16:43] "Hmph. What about the Obsidian Lord?"
[16:44] "Where is he?"
[16:44] Haruka rolls her eyes. "You could tell us who he is, also."
[16:46] The woman mirrors Haruka's expression, looking angry with herself afterwards. "In Fuka. He leads our country to glory and riches, not that you two would care about any of that patriotism crap."
[16:47] "Yeah, yeah, yeah. When you're the pawns being sanctified, patriotism looks a whole lot different. So, what does this Prince look like?"
[16:48] "Sacrificed," mutters Nao, wandering around the room and inspecting the contents, idly tossing aside stuff that doesn't seem relevant.
[16:49] "I can't talk to this one," the scientist addresses Nao, shifting so that she is facing her directly while snubbing the blonde. "She's mangling my intellect by breathing. And is bleeding all over my clean floor."
[16:49] The latter part is an exaggeration; while Haruka's clothes and bandages are soaked with blood, she's not leaving puddles of it over the floor as she travels.
[16:50] "Who. Is. The. Obsidian. Lord."
[16:50] "Yeah, well I'm sorry your soldiers SHOT me for trying to find out who kidnapped one of my classmates. Next time I'll just roll over and DIE, okay?"
[16:51] "Don't tell me that's his whole name."
[16:52] The woman appears to struggle with her temper, before her eyes brighten at Nao's follow up. "Why, yes. That is the name I know him by. We don't exactly hang out after work. Or even met each other. I'm sure his closest friends call him Jiro or Sanada or Bob, but I'm not one of them."
[16:54] Haruka wanders over to the computers. Not that she's any good with them, but she may as well see what she can find while Nao's talking with the woman.
[16:54] "How are you intending to control us HiME?" Nao glances back into the room outside. "Where are the others?"
[16:57] Upon touching the nearest mouse, the screensaver on a pair of the closest monitors -- floating fish, of all things -- turns off, replaced by a password prompt.
[16:57] "Controlling you is easy enough," the scientist tells Nao with a shrug of her shoulders. "Ironically, it happens through the unnatural link you have to another. It goes both ways, although I bet neither of you expected that."
[16:59] "Hey, Miss Scientist, what's the password here?"
[17:00] "Hime must die. In one word."
[17:00] Haruka scowls, but types it in.
[17:01] That doesn't appear to be the right password. The woman laughs.
[17:01] Nao sits on the table and crosses her legs across the bench. "Just what do you think we are, anyway? A HiME kill your goldfish or something?"
[17:02] "Is that case sensitive?" Haruka asks, oblivious to any mockery.
[17:04] "I think you're a bunch of freaks with no inhibitions running around and doing as you please, not thinking about us real people one bit. And the one who happens to be the most ruthless of the bunch ends up being the Obsidian Lord's bride and dictates our lives for a few centuries until the circle repeats."
[17:04] Chuckling at Haruka's question, she says, "It just might be. Why don't you try all the permutations?"
[17:07] Haruka whips around to glare at the woman. "Wow, teenagers behaving unpredictably? Who would have imagined something like that could EVER happen? Listen, try to magine a REAL PERSON like yourself, in high school, being told you have to kill your friends and marry someone you've never met. I'm sure you'd handle it REAL well." Haruka crashes her mace into the monitor out of sheer frustration.
[17:08] The woman doesn't react to the destruction of her property. "Ah, yes, the good old way to hack into a computer."
[17:09] "Is that was this is about, then? You're going to have your mind-controlled HiME win, thus allowing you to dictate the course of the world?"
[17:10] "Why, yes!" she says, showing surprise. "That is exactly my plan. The Obsidian Lord's on our side and all, but it's a marriage of convenience. Why should we remain eternal second strings to him?"
[17:10] Haruka stalks over to the woman (or, rather, has Orihime do it). "Look, none of us CHOSE to take part in this stupid 'festival!' You guys DID choose to play with the lives of schoolgirls like it was your god-given right. If anyone here is accountable for being out of control, it's you people."
[17:10] "Haruka, shut up."
[17:11] "Nao, how can you put up with this creep?"
[17:11] The scientist looks amused by the apparent discord.
[17:11] Nao receives mail.
[17:15] Nao starts checking her phone. "Look, it's the same for us. Playing this sick game to marry some freak. All I want is to find a way to end this stupid festival once and for all. You get me? If that's done, then I won't need this power anymore." She glances at the scientist before reading the message. "You understand me?"
[17:19] She shrugs. "I almost had the means to do that within my grasp, and now they're splattered all over the floor next door. You'll understand why I'm not terribly sympathetic." A level look is directed at Haruka, next. "Every kid has their future planned out for them by something -- their parents, the world, you name it. Not all get the nice, cushy life. Cry me a river."
[17:19] The message is brief, and reads, 'Get out of there.'
[17:33] "Haruka, we're leaving," announces Nao, after a short pause, and she jumps on Arach's back, and briefly glances back at the scientist. "As promised, I won't kill you. But I find it hard to be sympathetic, too. Your way would still have me six feet under- or at least a dozen others."
[17:34] "If you're serious, find another way, and tell me." She snorts. "But I'm not expecting much. Arach, get me out of here."
[17:35] The scientist snorts, herself, as the spider Child picks up Nao and scampers out through the door.
[17:36] Haruka can only assume something important was in that message. She's not going to take chances, given the tone in Nao's voice. "Alright." She turns to the scientist before leaving, unable to restrain her vindictiveness any longer. "Orihime? Knock this bitch out. Then follow Nao."
[17:37] A hateful glare is Haruka's reward, but that's all the woman can manage before a tendril shoots out of Orihime's body, slamming into the side of her head and sends the scientist flying into a cluster of monitors. She doesn't move after crashing through them on the table.
[17:37] Orihime travels after Nao obediently.
[17:45] Once outside of the facility, Arach proceeds to retreat on a straight course towards where their cab once parked. Orihime follows, and the difference in their relative velocities becomes apparent; At full speed, even without making any great leaps Nao had seen Arach execute, he travels so fast that Orihime is unable to keep up.
[17:45] The cab that took Nao and Haruka from Fuka isn't there, they discover upon getting close enough.
[17:45] Haruka hears a great roar coming from the sky, getting louder and louder in its anger.
[17:47] "Arach, pull up a moment! Haruka, get on!" calls Nao, reaching out to the blonde.
[17:48] Haruka was about to ask for that, and isn't about to utter a word of complaint. "Orihime: uh, demat..erialize? Yeah, that," she says, once she's safle aboard Arach.
[17:48] "Hold on," mutters Nao. "Arach, go, get us away from here."
[17:49] She dimly remembers those glittering green wings. "Fly, if you can."
[17:50] A mighty oriental dragon swoops down from the skies! Orihime flees before its presence, becoming a puddle and flowing to the ground, where the Child is absorbed. Arach proceeds to leap; the Child cannot remain flying, but its speed increases further, at the expense of banging its passengers against its body in a way that is sure to leave bruises.
[17:52] As long as it's faster than that dragon, Haruka is fine with a bumpy ride. Bruises are the least of her worries right now. "What the--who is that?" she says, glancing back.
[17:52] Nao grunts. "Just running's fine," she mutters, before staring back at the sky. "What the..."
[17:52] The dragon chooses that moment to breathe fire! The entire compound Nao and Haruka have just escaped is engulfed in its cleansing flames!
[17:53] "Holy--is that thing another Child?"
[17:54] Nao stares at the dragon, with no small degree of awe. "Must be." Suddenly, she starts to laugh. "God, what a waste of time."
[17:56] Arach continues to distance itself and its passengers from the area. Nao's phone rings again.
[17:56] Nao checks it. Good that even the middle of nowhere has coverage.
[18:02] The phone she had liberated from John Smith has yet to run into an area where it lacks coverage. The message this time is similar to the first one, with what must be coordinates. It is followed by another set of numbers, however, separated by dashes. The first four correspond to the present year, the next two to the month. 15T13:00 concludes the message.
[18:02] Meanwhile, Haruka sees the dragon soar away, before coming for another pass, fires blooming anew over what used to be the First District laboratory.
[18:04] Nao uses the GPS to figure out where this place is, because that's where she'll have to go.
[18:05] It is in Fuka, somewhere. She recognizes the geography. The location is somewhere in town near the mall, Nao believes.
[18:05] The dragon flies off, and does not return again.
[18:06] Haruka can only mutter "Wow," as she watches this mystery Child torch the lab. And Haruka was stressing out over killing ONE person. Whoever's behind that one is bad news for sure.
[18:07] "They really weren't that different from us. Scared to death of things they don't really understand."
[18:10] "Sure," Haruka says, not sounding very sympathetic towards the staff at that facility. "Nao, where are we going right now? Other than Away?"
[18:11] Arach is traveling down the road Haruka and Nao came through on their way to the facility. For now, the surroundings are barren, but they're bound to run into other people eventually.
[18:13] "We need to get you to a hospital. I need to get back to Fuka," replies Nao, using the GPS to check out possible travel options.
[18:14] Haruka grumbles a little--she's not too eager to go to an actual hospital. The doctors will undoubtedly contact the police once they notice the bullet wounds.
[18:15] "Look, we still get hurt and die like anyone else. Our freakiness is in all the wrong places."
[18:16] The area is mountainous, and the closest spot to rest and recover would be at a gas station twenty miles away. Arach could likely make its way there in under an hour, but the ride would be bumpy and clearly felt for days to come. Beyond that point, it would be possible to travel either towards the coast and find a settlement there, or proceed further inland.
[18:17] Haruka relents. "Alright, alright." At least if it's the hospital near Fuka, she's not likely to run into the local cops. She can probably talk her way out of whatever happens, then.
[18:25] They need to go to the coastal area- that's closer to Fuuka. Nao takes Arach in that direction. "Look, once we're close to this city, we'll call an ambulance and get them to pick you up. We can't just go in there on my Child's back, so that's how it's got to be. Unless there's a private surgeon around or something. Your family know anyone?"
[18:29] "Maybe." Haruka sighs. She probably can't afford to wait around for the best option, here. "The hospital's probably closer, though...let's just go."
[18:34] "Yeah. Look, get back to Fuuka and contact me when you're taken care of, alright? I'll see what else I can dig up." Nao pauses. "I don't know what you're going to have to tell the cops. Keep it quiet if you can. At the least, don't let them spread it all over the news."
[18:35] Nao plans to reach the outskirts of a settlement and use Haruka's phone to call emergency services, pulling in an ambulance. She'll loiter around to make sure it arrives, but vanish as it does and start making her own way after that (helping herself to any cash in Haruka's wallet, first, since she clearly needs it more.)
[18:41] Haruka's phone works in what is almost a refreshing change of pace from all the battles Nao had been part of. The contents of Haruka's wallet should let Nao travel wherever she wants twice over and have cash enough to spare to get through high school in a private high school of her choice.
[18:41] After calling emergecy services and hanging up on the operator, the relevant details delivered, Nao hides herself and sees an ambulance pull up by Haruka's side.
[18:43] Haruka glances up at the ambulance, doing her bes tto look like someone in dire need of first aid. Fortunately, this takes little effort on her part.
[18:44] The paramedics look shocked at the extent of her wounds; more than a few times their eyes are drawn towards the bloody bandages clumsily applied to Haruka's wounds.
[18:47] Less looking at the wounds, more treating them, thanks. Not that Haruka can really say that. She's playing the Shocked Speechless angle here; it'll make it easier to be vague when people ask questions later.
[18:48] Nao lurks, waits, and watches until the ambulance pulls away.
[18:49] They get to work with professionalism, placing Haruka on a gurney and into the back of the ambulance. An oxigen mask is placed over her nose and mouth, fastened behind Haruka's head. The ambulance begins driving off, siren blaring. One of the medics remains with Haruka in the back, slowly peeling away the bandages from her legs. Haruka starts to feel drowsy.
[18:50] It's all too easy to drift away in the back of the ambulance--and frankly, Haruka isn't inclined to resist anymore. It's been a long night, she's lost a lot of blood, and it's all starting to catch up with her. Surely a good nap would aid her recovery!
[18:53] Those are Haruka's last conscious thoughts.
[18:53] Once the ambulance had left, Nao stealthily heads into the town, liberating a coat and then using her newfound disguise to purchase some clean clothes for herself. No one impedes her during her impromptu shopping trip, or when she takes a train to a station near Fuka, close to the bridge connecting the island to the mainland.
[18:54] It is late in the morning when Nao finally returns to Fuka.

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Haruka wakes up, exceptionally groggy. Everything seems quite blurry.

She should be getting used to that, not that it makes it any better. Presumably she's in the hospital.

She is aware of sounds filtering in. There are at least a pair of voices. A blurry face appears in Haruka's sight.

Haruka blinks, rubs her eyes. Does that help any? She should be able to tell if the voices are familiar, at least. Man, if she has to start wearing glasses...

It does seem prudent, although blinking helps. A nurse is leaning over her. Haruka's throat is parched.

"Water. Like, right now," Haruka demands, grasping as always to the assumption that she's an authority figure in all public spheres.

Haruka isn't particularly articulate, but she gets the intent across, at least. The nurse disappears, and the background noise settles somewhat. A short time later, the woman returns, and helps raise Haruka's head, bringing a drink to her lips.

Haruka drinks it down. Hopefully she can speak more clearly when she's less parched?

"Does anything hurt?" an unfamiliar voice asks outside of Haruka's field of vision.

Everything hurts. Haruka's muscles tingle, and not in a bad way. She can't really feel her feet, which likely means they've fallen asleep and she's in for some pain from there as well once she tries to get up. And, of course, her actual wounds take the center stage.

"Only where the bullets went in," Haruka croaks optimistically. "Who are you?" she asks in the general direction of the voice.

"I work here," she responds, returning. It is a nurse; the same one as before, perhaps, and Haruka's vision recovers enough to see her features. She is a redhead in her late twenties. 'Misora' is written on her nametag. "Ah, yes. The bullets. We recovered a hollow-point slug from your thigh. It was wedged in pretty snugly. Would you be able to tell me how it got there?"

"Someone fired it. From a gun," Haruka supplies helpfully. "It had friends. Did you get them, too?"

The nurse sighs, perhaps in frustration.

"Is that any way for a Suzushiro to talk to a person who saved their life?" a fresh voice asks sharply. Hiro Suzushiro, Haruka's father, comes up to Haruka's hospital bed from the other side.

Haruka sits up (or at least struggles to do so, depending on her condition). "My apologies, father. Last night's ordure took a toll on my composure."

Haruka's father and the nurse exchange looks.

"What date do you think it is right now?" Hiro asks carefully.

Haruka can't be certain, but the joint assault with Nao on the First District research facility took place over the night from the 13th to the 14th.

Haruka also notices that she can't get up. Her forearms are secured to the bed by leather strips, preventing the movement.

Oh boy. That's not encouraging. "It should be the fourteenth," she says.

The look Hiro and the nurse exchange this time is longer.

"What happened?" Hiro asks before the silence stretches uncomfortably. "Who shot you?"

"Villains," Haruka spits. "Father, I would prefer to discuss this with you alone." She nods to the nurse. "I mean no disrespect for you taking care of me, but this is a private affair."

He nods curtly. 'Misora' smiles down at Haruka, and moves back. There is the unmistakable sound of a door opening quietly, then closing.

"Talk," Hiro tells Haruka, drawing a chair up to her bed.

Haruka draws a breath. "There is something wrong with Fuka Academy...well, there's something vile going on AT Fuka Academy," she corrects, never willing to defame her alma mater. "Some of it will be hard to believe, so...I think a defenestration will make it easier to believe the rest of the story. Don't be alarmed, father."

She summons her mace, not doing anything with it beyond letting it sit in her hand for a moment before dismissing it again.

Summoning the mace sends fresh waves of pain down Haruka's hand. The restraint around it snaps; luckily for the blonde, the IV is attached to her other arm.

Hiro appears speechless, though knowing her father, he wouldn't remain such for long.

Haruka grits her teeth. "Ow." Hopefully that's all the demonstration he needs. "There's something called the Festival going on at Fuka. I'm only just learning about it myself, but I'm told it happens once every few centuries. Hime--girls with strange powers, like me--are made to fight each for the sake of some outside party I FULLY intend to throttle personally when I find them."

"How long have you had this... strange power?" he asks with a tight voice.

"Only a few days," she says, quick to make it known she hasn't been hiding things from her father. "If I had it before then, I nevew knew. When I found out, I decided I wasn't going to play by their rules. another girl and I have been trying to find out who's running this 'Festival' and shut them down. We were trying to rescue another student from these people last night when I was shot."

"Another girl? Do you mean Kikukawa?"

Haruka sighs. "Yukino's disappeared. When she found out I was a Hime, she didn't take it well. I haven't seen her at school for at least twenty-four hours and I'm afraid of what might have happened to her."

Hiro doesn't look happy to hear that. "Was she involved with the mess you were dragged into? Were the other girls from your school? I've looked at the numbers. Too many have gone missing over the recent period."

"She is a Hime, but no, she wasn't with me there. I lost track of her the night before that--we were in my room, talking, I stepped out for a moment and she just left while I was gone--and I would NOT have put her in that kind of danger anyway. Another girl, Yuuki Nao, was with me. We'd tracked one of the missing girls to a...research facility."

"Someone was brainwashing her to fight the rest of the girls! She attacked us and I...I didn't have any choice, father. I killed her. She was out of her mind, I tried just stopping her, but she was just..." Haruka shakes her head. "...gone."

His face turns stony at the news. "So the police had cause, after all," Hiro says quietly, perhaps to himself.

"Cause for what?" Haruka asks, thinking. Great, there are officers outside the door, aren't there?

This refocuses Hiro on his daughter. "Who was the girl you killed?" he asks directly. "Was she the only one, or are you related to other disappearances as well?"

"Akane Higurashi, and of COURSE she's the only one. I've spent every moment of the last few days trying to figure out the disappearances. When I found Higurashi, I thought it was going to be a breakthrough. Instead, someone had turned her into a tool. Someone was using her to win the Festival by epoxy. They talked about her like she wasn't even human."

"Was that where you also got shot?"

"Yes. Some goons attacked us when we broke into the building."

Hiro gives Haruka a long-suffering look. "The security forces of a shadow group which managed to escape my notice and had the resources to kidnap someone with 'strange powers' to experiment on, you mean?"

Hiro's skepticism earns a glare from Haruka. "Yes! Do you think I'm making this up? This is serious, father! These people think they can control the world by influencing the outcome of the Festival, and they're not going to stop. I need you to believe me about this."

Hiro reaches into his pocket, retrieving a squished bullet. "This hollow point shows how serious things are. What I don't understand is why you just rushed into it on your own, without any backup. Without even talking to me. If there's any family who can field a private army at a moment's notice to fight with your shadow syndicate enemy, it would be us."

Haruka sighs. "All I can say is that I didn't expect it to be this bad. I apologize for not confiding in you sooner. When I found out where Higurashi was, I just had to go before anything bad happened to her. Watching out for the students of Fuka is MY responsibility."

"Not when it escalates to killing them," Hiro chides.

Haruka can only nod at this. It's true, after all, and she's not going to make excuses.

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

(14:57) Haruka sighs, looking downcast. "I have to admit I haven't done a very good job of protecting anyone...Harada and Senoh are still missing. The Hime are scattered--I don't know where Mai or Mikoto went, I can't track down Miss Sugiura, I can't even find Yukino any more!"
(15:06) There is the unmistakable shuffling of paper as Hiro produces a small notebook. Holding a pen, he says, "Being scattered is the problem, then, and by bringing you all together you feel you could unite and resolve the matter?"
(15:10) "Well, that's what I've been planning. Nao and I at least have managed to work together. I'm sure if we had everyone, we could find whoever's behind this Festival and beat them into succession...well, Yukariko might not be dependable. She's kind of crazy aaand last time we talked she decided I was working for the antichrist or something. But everyone else should see reason."
(15:12) Hiro frowns, asking, "Do you know all the others?"
(15:15) Haruka counts them off on her fingers. "Mai Tokiha, Mikoto Minagi, Midori Sugiura, Nao and Yukino, Sister Yukariko...and Natsuki Kuga, if she's still alive. Those are the ones I know of."
(15:18) Her father writes them all down diligently. "Alright. I'll start working on this at once. Do you think they would still be in Fuka?"
(15:21) "I think so. That's the place to start, at least."
(15:25) He nods. "There is more we need to talk about, but you should rest, first, and recovery your strength more. I understand the desire to run out and just do something, be active-- but this sounds like a case where planning ahead would be welcomed. I might be able to gather your Hime... but it would be up to you to keep them together. If every one comes with a handy mace, there won't be much we could do to force our decisions on them, would it?"
(15:28) "Not really, no," Haruka says with a touch of pride. "We need to be careful approaching them. Some of these girls are paranoid. And weapons aren't all we have. Each of us is assigned a 'Child.' I'm not sure what they are. Part machine, part monster. They can be more dangerous than the Hime herself." She remembers the dragon torching the research facility, and shudders.
(15:30) Hiro looks concerned, but quickly smoothes out his expression. "We'll be careful," he promises. "Just work on what you can accomplish right now."
(15:32) "Right," she responds, sourly. "Sitting in bed."
(15:33) "Lying might be even better, but I'll leave that for you and your nurse to sort out," Hiro says with a small smile, heading towards the door. "I'll start working on your list straight away," he promises again, his hand on the handle. He turns it, then, and walks outside with a parting nod at Haruka.

The door remains slightly ajar.
(15:35) If one of the two people she actually listens to is telling Haruka to stay in bed, she's going to (not that she has to like it, though). There's got to be something she can do from here, though. Is her phone around?
(15:37) Haruka can't find it, and her nurse doesn't enter to help with any more thorough searches. Now that her father isn't there to talk to, Haruka finds it harder to stay awake.
(15:38) After being asleep for god knows how long? They probably gave her something to make her sleep. She shouldn't be resting at a time like this! Haruka can only grumble to no one in particular as she drifts off again.
(15:40) "Haruka-chan."

Someone is shaking Haruka awake. And she had only closed her eyes for a moment to rest, too. How can she be so sleepy?

"Haruka-chan, Haruka-chan...."
(15:43) Haruka's first instinct is to brush aside whoever's denying her her well-earned rest...but wait a minute, only Yukino calls her "Haruka-chan." "Mrfluh?" she mumbles as she rouses.
(15:46) Hands are on her shoulders, whether pushing her down or shaking her awake, her sleep-addled mind cannot determine.

"Haruka-chan!" a voice exclaims, albeit hushed. Yukino's voice.
(15:51) "Yukino?!" Haruka says, considerably less hushed. "Where have you been? I was worried to death!"
(15:58) "Busy," Yukino responds, shifting so that she's pushing Haruka up. "Working. Trying to help you, Haruka-chan!"
(16:01) "Telling me where you went would've helped. Telling me you were leaving in the first place would've helped! You just disappeared, Yukino."
(16:05) "I couldn't stay," Yukino says, and Haruka's eyes fully adjust -- it is night out, and the only light is coming from below the closed door outside the room -- just in time to see Yukino let go of her, once she finally gets Haruka into a seated position, and bring her hands together, as if in prayer. A mirror appears, ornamental, floating in midair leisurely, and Yukino spreads her arms out, causing doubles of it to surround her. "I always keep watch on things, Haruka-chan, and I saw something that couldn't wait. I had to go and take care of it before it was too late."
(16:07) Haruka can only blink and nod at this display, but after a moment just takes it in stride. She's seen weirder things lately, right? "Oh. Okay." she doesn't waste any time in returning to her normal, businesslike demeanor. "What's the situation, then?" 
(16:07) "We have to get you out of here. There isn't much time!"
(16:08) "What do you mean? What's happening?"
(16:13) An expression of annoyance crosses Yukino's face, but instead of speaking, she gestures. The mirrors dance around her, until the one that was previously at Yukino's left is now facing her. It flips obediently of its own accord, and Haruka finds herself staring at her image in the low lighting.

And then the image ripples and Haruka sees herself being transfered by an ambulance. She is sedated in the image. Another ambulances passes them, visible through the tinted windows, going the opposite direction. Another ripple, and her arms are being tied to the bed. A pair of doctors in lab coats discuss something, and then leave her room, which bears a striking resemblance to the same room Haruka is now in, and head outside. In the corridor, a pair of security guards stand, one on either side of the door. Each is carrying an automatic weapon.

"Do you understand now, Haruka-chan?" Yukino asks at last. "You can't stay here! It's all a trick!"
(16:13) "What? Where's my dad?"
(16:16) Haruka hears something coming from the corridor, a faint sound. Someone shuffling their feet before her door. Yukino must have heard it, too, because her expression turns frantic. "We have to go, now!" she whispers hoarsely.
(16:18) Haruka considers this for approximately two seconds before swinging her feet off the bed and trying to stand. Yukino would never lie to her, right?
(16:22) Haruka's legs feel sleepy, and not the good kind. Her stomach feels like it was shot recently, an entirely alien and unpleasant feeling her life hadn't prepared Haruka for.

Yukino supports her friend, taking the initiative by slinging one of Haruka's arms over her shoulders and slipping one of her own hands across Haruka's back to support her. She leads the two of them to the window; it's open, and on the third floor, Haruka notices. Then, she feels the need to shield her eyes from the light as the door to her room opens.

Tentacles shoot all the way up from the ground, wrapping around Yukino and Haruka!
(16:23) "What the--" Haruka instinctively struggles at this. Nothing good can come from tentacles, right?
(16:25) "Diana, take us away!" Yukino commands, and the two are whisked out of the room, Haruka's struggles being futile. A scream is heard from Haruka's room.
(16:26) "Ungh. Um, Yukino, is this thing yours?" There doesn't seem a lot else to say.
(16:30) "Diana would never hurt you, Haruka-chan," Yukino says. She sounds calm even as she plummets to the ground at what is surely neck-breaking speed. "Don't worry."

As far as the fall is concerned, Yukino is proven right. Just before touching down, the tentacles disperse, seeping into the ground. Having to stand on her own again is a bit much for Haruka, but Yukino is already there to help her friend keep her balance. She doesn't waste much time in directing them away from the building. Other voices shout from what was Haruka's room, but she can't discern what is being said.
(16:32) Haruka follows Yukino's lead as best she can in her present state. If it seems like she can't keep up a decent pace, though, then she'll have to have Orihime carry her rather than slow them both down.
(16:35) Haruka certainly feels stronger than how she in the final stages of her joint assault of the First District laboratory with Nao. With Yukino to help, they reach the wall fencing off the hospital she had been staying at in no time. There is already a hole in it, large enough for them to pass through.

"I prepared for it in advance," Yukino says without prompting. "I just knew you would believe me and come with me, Haruka-chan!"
(16:38) Haruka crawls through the hole. "Good work, Yukino. Where are we going? Back to Fuka?"
(16:39) "No, Fuka isn't safe. I have a place. You'll see when we get there." Yukino gestures, and plantlife around the wall moves, shifting to cover the hole they had crawled through.
(16:42) "...Alright," Haruka concedes, having difficulty with the basic concept of a Fuka she can't rely on.
(16:52) The two make their way to a parking lot, and Yukino continues leading the way, headed towards a black Toyota. "It's not far, Haruka-chan," she says. "We'll be there before you know it!"

<--->

[Corwin]

<--->

Does Yukino own a car? Whatever. "Right. Okay. Um, Yukino? If you can see things elsewhere, do you know where the other Hime are?"

"That vile Yuuki girl is off plotting with Mai-san," Yukino responds, a scowl crossing her features briefly. She helps Haruka into the front seat before closing the door behind her, and getting around the car to fit herself behind the wheel. Mikoto-chan isn't far behind. She's being tricked, the poor thing."

"I've been working with Nao, Yukino, and I think we can trust her. All of us HAVE to work together to stop this. We can't turn her away because she used to be a delinquent." Haruka glances behind her, making sure the car isn't being followed. "What about Minagi? Who's manicuring her?"

"Mai-san... Mai-san said she would kill people!" Yukino turns the key in the ignition. "She told Yuuki not to stand in her way. But Yuuki was sly and... and she...." Yukino squirms. "I think she's trying to seduce her!" Yukino says harshly, her voice dropping to a whisper, barely audible over the revving the engine.

Haruka looks skeptical about this. "Well, that's...that's better than having Mai kill people," Haruka admits, somewhat surprised to herself say this. "We can't have the Hime fighting. I won't allow Fuka students to kill each other."

"No!" Yukino shouts suddenly, slamming her foot on the gas pedal. The acceleration presses Haruka into her seat, the car tearing out of the parking lot. "She's only seducing Mai-san so that Mai-san would kill all the competition like you! We can't let her get away with it!"

"YUKINO," Haruka returns, taking her friend by the shoulder and squeezing. "Get ahold of yourself! You're being irrational. I trust Nao. Did you hear her SAY that she was going to kill the rest of us? Trust ME, okay? I wlll not let the Fuka students get killed. I'm on the executive committee. This is my JOB. So just calm down and give me the facts."

Haruka's touch causes Yukino to swerve dangerously into the other lane. Due to the late hour, there is no incoming traffic, and she gets the vehicle back on course.

"Well, no," Yukino admits. "But who would say that while being sneaky? I know how she thinks! And Mai-san... she said that she sent a dragon to attack you! I'm sure she said that!"

"A...dragon. You're sure she said that? That she specifically sent it to attack ME?"

"N-Not specifically," Yukino stutters. "It sounded like she wanted to kill everyone inside...."

"Okay," Haruka says, oddly relieved that Mai's goal was mass murder instead of a single homicide. "I can understand that! The scientists there, they had Higurashi and were doing experiments on her. I don't know how Mai found out about them, but...I guess she was mad."

Yukino doesn't seem satisfied with the explanation, but doesn't argue the point, gripping the wheel tighter.

Haruka sighs. "I said to trust me. You do, don't you, Yukino?"

"How could you ask me that, Haruka-chan?!" Yukino exclaims, looking at the blonde. Her eyes are pleading with Haruka to take her words back. "After everything I've done for you, you still doubt me?"

"I don't, Yukino. But I don't want to hear you talking about Hime killing each other. That is NOT going to happen any more."

"Anymore?" Yukino asks. There is a trace of fear in her voice, hidden so well only Haruka would be able to spot it.

Oops. Well, there's no way around it now. "...Akane's dead. The people at that facility, they brainwashed her to make her fight for them. She attacked us. Nothing I did would make her stop. I didn't have a choice," Haruka insists, sounding like she's trying to convince herself as much as anyone else.

The car swerves again, and this time, Yukino doesn't seem to be in any hurry to adjust its path, staring silently at Haruka instead.

"Yukino, the car!" Haruka shouts, ready to grab the wheel if Yukino's gone totally catatonic on her. There'll be more dead Hime real soon if someone doesn't change their course.

The loud blaring of a car horn reinforces the urgency of the situation.

<--->