ask-the-shorty-squad

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

S-sorry, Hiyoko!!!

We're here to get Teru..! We're going to be doing our Workout Therapy today!!

AND IT'S GONNA BE AWEEEEEEESOMEEEEEE!!!! ...

I mean..! It'll be awesome..!! ...

OH WHO AM I KIDDIN!? ITS GONNA BE AWEEEEEEESOMEEEEE!!!!!

*Here we go again...*

*Hiyoko rubs her eyes in frustrated annoyance at Nekomaru's constant yelling.*

I'm surprised he's not already awake by now.

"Oh don't worry."

*The three of them look inside the darkness the house as a figure approaches the light of the early sun.*

I was already awake before they even arrived. I don't think I got so much as a few hours of sleep to be honest.

If that's the case, you sure you're gonna be okay for workout therapy?

*Teruteru nods slowly with an expression of reassurance, but his silence clearly presented his exhaustion.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

*They soon arrive outside Terus house, Nekomaru steps forward and bangs on the front door... Ever heard of knocking?*

RISE AND SHIIIIIINE!!!! WE GOT THERAPY TO 'WORKOUT'!!!!

BAHAHAH!!! MAYBE I SHOULD QUIT COACHIN' AN' BE A COMEDIAN INSTEAD!!!!

*Ehhhhh.....*

...Hm.. Teru still hasnt answered the door... Wonder why.

*A real mystery indeed -_-*

*A mystery that is quickly solved the moment the door opened. They're greeted with one of their extremely exhausted pals*

Who... and why... the hell... are you yelling at our door at 5 IN THE FUCKING MORNING!!!

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

'A little scary' is an under-exaggeration..! I gotta be cursed or something..!

I just gotta take my mind off it..

Let's go get Teru..! And after we do we can start the newly reborn...

WORKOUT THERAPY SESSION!!!

YEAH!!! WORKOUT THERAPY!!!

*With that, they continue onward, leaving the FF building and quickly making their way to their dear friends home, all while loudly chanting "workout therapy" to keep themselves hyped and ready.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

Could you two shut up!? I cant focus on anything with you two yelling constant..ly...

.....

Right, of course. We'll tone it down.

Oh, n-no you dont need to apologise. I was really talking about, Yayoi anyway.

I could've sworn I was louder-

Nono! You were fine!!

Say.. You're really handsome. If you wanna grab a bite sometime I'd be down to-

HELL NOOOO!!!! L-lets get outta here, Yayoi!! Forget breakfast I just lost my appetite!!

*Nekomaru grabs Yayoi and dashes out of the Foundation.*

Not again.. Blonde, pink-themed outfit, blue eyes, rude... Shes the type of woman I put an effort in to avoid..

I know. It's like you've got some sort of magnetic curse with those women. It's a little scary to think about.

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

HELL YEAH HE CAN!!! HE'LL PROBABLY PUNCH IT STRAIGHT INTO NEXT YEAAAAAR!!!

But what I wanna know.. Do you think YOU HAVE WHAT IT TAKES???

Heck yeah I've got what it takes! I'll smash that punching bag to kingdom come!!

*The two continuously hype each other up growing increasingly louder by the second. Their now booming voices echo throughout the diner and down the halls till nearly everyone and anyone in proximity can hear them.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

I see... Well.. Think of Workout therapy as like a... Rage room. You put all your anger and frustrations into a workout.

You shoulda seen Teru when he first started!! He was a born natural! And I bet you'll be too!

Well I certainly can't wait! You think he'd be able to break the chain off the punching bag again?

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

Ah!! Goodmorning, Yayoi! Today I made Steamed rice, miso soup, and grilled fish!

Fairly simple today.. It's been hard to focus with all that's going on...

But it is in our best interest to keep moving forward..

Am I missing something..?

*Oh shit right.. He doesnt know about the Haiji situation...*

Oh! U-uhm... One of.. My plants.. died. Mon- ... Monty.. Monty was his name.

*That lie was so unbelievably stupid-*

I see... I understand being attached to things.. Even plants. Monty is dead, but not forgotten.

*That he actually fell for it?*

It was nice saying goodmorning but I should be getting back to work..!

*With an awkward wave Bandai uncomfortably walked back into the kitchen. Nekomaru stared as Bandai walked away, then turned his head back to Yayoi, not thinking much of it.*

So.. Yayoi... You ever done a workout therapy sesh?

Not really. Most of my workouts have been more akin to battle training than anything therapeutic.

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

BREAKFAST!! OF COURSE!!! HOW COULD I FORGET!?

I got so pumped for the workout therapy I forgot about the most important meal of a persons day..!

I wont let myself get so carried away again..!

FIRST, WE DEVOUR BREAKFAST, THEN WE GRAB TERU SO HE CAN FUEL UP TOO!!! AND ONCE WE’RE ALL POWERED UP, IT’S TIME FOR SOME INTENSE WORKOUT THERAPY!!!

LET'S GOOOOOO!!!!

*They quickly rush over to the the dining area. As they enter, they finding a few of the members already present, and a few more entering at the same time they are. Once everyone is seated, Bandai emerges from the kitchen with a kart full of food for everyone.*

Hey there Bandai! What's today's breakfast?

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

*Yayois alarm set his alarm for 5:00 AM, and went to bed.*

(4:30 AM)

BAM! BAM! BAM!

*Suddenly, the door busted open and someone stormed in.*

RISE AND SHIIIIIIINE!!! THE SUN IS UP AND SO SHOULD YOU!!

Wh-why would you break his door down?! Thats- thats- completely uncalled for!!!

I-I'll pay for the damages.. Sorry, Taka..

NOW TIME TO GET UP, WARRIOR!!! WE DONT HAVE TIME TO SIT AROUND!! WE GOTTA GRAB TERU AND HEAD STRAIGHT TO TRAINING!!!!

*There is PLENTY of time to sit around. And what about breakfast??*

Can we at least spare some time for breakfast? Out of every meal it's the most important one and we really shouldn't skip it. Also, the sun's just barely up. We've got more than enough time. Plus, pretty sure Teru wouldn't take too kindly to being woken at this hour. At least not as much as me.

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

R-right.. Hope...

Ah.. I thought I heard voices.. What're you two doing here?

O-oh.. Chiaki..! Sorry... We've been talking about Monaca... We're worried about what they'll do to her.. What if they take her away..?

Hm... Well, I wont say it's not a possibility... But it's very slim.. I mean, at worst she'll be sent to do Rehabilitation with Yayoi.. But I doubt it'd even be that long. And as I said before, the chances are slim.

Th-thats a relief... B-but h-how do you know this..?

Miss. Yukizome told me. She's been keeping me updated on everything.

I really wouldnt worry.. It'll all be okay, Makoto wont let anything bad happen to Monaca. Neither will Fuyu or Teru.

Now then.. It's getting late.. We better get some rest.

...Oh, and Yayoi. Nekomaru called and said you need to be up from the crack of dawn.. He's gonna be picking you and Teru up bright and early.. And since Toko isnt here Taka will be taking her place until she's back..

Alrighty then. Hopefully everything calms down from here. Hopefully...

*With that, everyone leaves to their stations. Ryota and Chiaki to work most likely, and Yayoi to his room. Today was certainly eventful.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

Y-you're right I'm sorry... I should've known you were stressed...

..I-I’m sure they’re not gonna actually do anything bad to Monaca...

*Ryota gave a shaky little smile, trying his best to sound reassuring but his voice cracked halfway through.*

I-I mean.. It got pretty heated.. B-but th-they're probably just as stressed as us.. I-I'm sure they dont intend to cause Monaca harm...

*He trailed off for a beat, eyes twitching toward the hallway again. His hands fidgeted relentlessly with his sleeves.*

...B-but what if- what if it’s not just stress? W-what if someone snaps? Or-or they think Monaca’s a threat or something and they- they say she needs to be ‘stopped’ or ‘contained’ ...

And then they try to remove her from the situation, or isolate her, or lock her away somewhere, or worse, t-they convince themselves it's for the greater good and then- then- they won’t listen to anyone, not even us, and- and Monaca’s just a kid, and-!

*He covered his mouth with both hands suddenly, realizing how loud and panicked he’d gotten. His eyes were wide, filled with horror at his own spiraling.*

...S-sorry... I-I didn’t mean to say all that, I-I was just trying to... y-you know... be positive...

I see now that I'm not very good at it...

Don't worry about it. All we can do at the moment... is hope for the best. Just hope.

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

A-again? You do it frequently..? Y-you should be careful.. I-if it gets infected it could make you ill...

...N-not that I'm one to complain.. Whenever I'm stressed out or anxious I bite my nails.. They get infected more often then not..

Could it be.. A-are you feeling stressed out too..? About this whole... Situation?

How could I not be!? They're arguing about what punishment they should give to someone who's, not only still a child, but my own niece! I'd be insane not to be stressed over it.

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

....Uhm..

*Ryota tried to think of something to say but no words came out of his mouth, until he looked down at Yayois bandaged hand.*

...Your hand.. I-is it okay..?

Y-yeah. It's fine. Just bit my hand too hard again.

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

Intentions don’t change outcomes. The fact remains—Monaca took a life. You're letting emotion cloud your judgment, Naegi.

Exactly!! You're acting like she's the victim!! She built an army of brainwashed kids, treated people like toys, and now we're just supposed to trust that she's "better" because she has a new family?

T-trauma makes people do things... we c-can’t just pretend her past didn’t damage her.

How do we expect her to recover if all we offer is punishment? If we cage every child who lashes out, we’ll never have a future worth protecting.

“Future worth protecting”? Tell that to the people who died because of her! You're all forgetting—she’s dangerous. She always was.

Enough. We’re not here to throw blame like children. We're here to find a resolution—and that means understanding everything, not just the act itself.

Then let’s talk about that resolution. Because right now, Monaca’s sitting at home terrified. Not of what she did, but of you. Of being dragged back here because you won’t believe someone like her can change!

*Amidst the chaos, Ryota slowly and quietly made a stealthy retreat. He knew thing's would only get more heated from there..*

Nope... Nope.. N-not going back in there... C-can't... I-I just can't... I-I'll just go back home.. Far.. Far away from the conflict...

*Ryota’s eyes slowly, hesitantly, darted toward Yayoi. His breath caught in his throat.*

!!

*He tensed his shoulders immediately, but soon lowered them when he realised it was just Yayoi.*

O-oh, Y-Yayoi... I-it's you- S-sorry, you startled me.. N-not your fault, I just- I should’ve been paying attention, I-I should’ve been more aware I...

*He trailed off into a nervous mumble, eyes wide. He flinched slightly at the sound of another distant shout from the room behind them. They're really at eachothers throats arent they...*

You don't need to worry about it. It's nothing really.

*The two stand awkwardly in the hall. They're not sure what to do. Their headspaces are too preoccupied with the current situation to think of any other subject to discuss.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

*I guess they're not doing too well... I wonder what the Future Foundation is planning to do about this..*

Look who was right! The little Psycho finally snapped! That brat killed Haiji. I knew we shouldn't have trusted her.

This complicates everything. We let her leave.. The blood's on our hands now.

Dont say that! We did what was right! Monaca is in a stable home with Fuyuhiko and Teruteru!

Hmph. Clearly, your version of "right" needs a serious reevaluation. She killed someone.

I said it back then; Once a monster, always a monster! But no one listens to me!

U-uhm.. Ru-Ruruka.. I-if it was s-self-defense.. W-we cant treat her like sh-she planned this...

If she fought back to protect herself or others.. I wont call that murder.

Listen! Haiji tried to kill Monaca! And he tried assaulting Hiyoko, and he even hospitalized Toko! We cant ignore that!

Hm.. If she acted to defend herself and others... We have to consider that carefully.

How about you consider this carefully? She's killed people, took over an entire city and the children, then held one of our members prisoner. This isnt her first offense and it wont be her last.

*While the members continued to argue over the events, Yayoi sat in a nearby corridor listening to their discussion. As the their voices grew louder, Yayoi could feel his own nerves shiver and twitch as his anxiety grew. Is this what familial worry feels like? I must be. After all, they were talking about what to do with his own niece. Why wouldn't he be worried?

Out of anxious habit he began biting his own hand. He was biting so hard that he'd eventually break skin. But the pain didn't make his jaws unclench. The feeling never came. In fact, he only noticed when he broke skin the moment he heard the sound of a droplet hitting the cement floor.*

D-dammit... Not again.

*He looked down to find a river of crimson that flowed down across his hand. Not wanting the sound of his foot steps to be noticed if he were to rush to the medical room to fixed his injury, he simply cleaned up the blood using his tongue. Once finished, he took out some spare bandages from his pocket and wrapped up his hand tightly. He'll clean in up better once their discussion is over.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

'Be honest'? ...Huh.

*Kokichi just stood there. Processing Yayois words, before snapping back to reality and walking away further into the hallway. ...Let's see how the others are doing!*

*They're... doing.

The events of today left them completely exhausted. They all return home, the weight of their bodies giving in to gravity as they rest on the living room floor and couch. The house was completely silent. For what felt like hours, no one dared uttered a word if they could even begin to comprehend one. Although the silence, as loud as it was, couldn't even compare to all the family had to process. Hiyoko and Monaca had faced an assault from Haiji, and although many would consider Monaca's justifiable murder a good outcome, the consequences of the act overshadow the thought enough to allow the dread of what's to come to fester till the day arrives. As soon as said dread finally hit it's peak and none of them could take it any longer, Fuyuhiko stood up, and finally broken the ever deafening silence.*

I think... I think we should head to bed. It's getting late. We get discuss this better after we get some sleep.

*The others were quick to nod in agreement. A good nights sleep would do them a massive favor. Although it was definitely a struggle to actually get to sleep. Eventually the mental exhaustion forces their eyelids shut and their heads to ease the rush of thoughts.*

[ask-the-shorty-squad]

Nonono! W-wait give me one more chance!! I-I really want to change Yao-Yao! I'll do whatever you want, just teach me how to be better!!

*How many chances has he been given anyway? I've lost track.*

If you honestly, truly, want to be a better person, then you have to mean it. Quit playing an act all to get a reaction out of it. For once in your god forsaken life, be honest. That's your first step.

*With that, Yayoi left to return to his room for the day. He was quickly growing tired of Kokichi's bullshit at this point. Regardless of whether Kokichi would in fact follow through with trying to be better, Yayoi was beginning to care less about it now.*