shslbabybrows-blog

[shslbabybrows-blog]

✧ FOOL’S GOLD ✧

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✧ Devil's Speech ✧

All was dark even when Kirie opened his eyes. Immediately he moved to stand, to flee, but he felt his arms and legs bound in a metallic grip. With a booming clap, the spotlight spilled down onto the stage, illuminating Kirie and the throne he was strapped into. The chair dwarfed the boy, white and gold with a tall, decorated back. It was a beautiful centrepiece, but still Kirie struggled to escape it.

The white light bore down on him with such force that he found himself growing hot. Beads of sweat prickled at the back of his neck as he sweltered in his clothes, skin growing feverish as the spotlight burned brighter.

It was not long before the heat had grown scorching. Eyes wild with panic, Kirie looked out into the blackness as if searching for someone to help him; in fact, his face demanded that someone help him, and for every second that passed without a savior, it grew more twisted with rage. He looked at Enou, at Izaya, at Saeko, all useless faces in the crowd. Kirie could not let it end this way, not here, not so early. The low hum of the light shook him down to the bones, and just as Kirie feared he might ignite from the heat, the spotlight clapped off.

Another took its place in front of him, this time with a wider scope. It did not burn; instead it brightened the stage. Kirie could see a red carpet unfurling at his feet, stretching out into the dark. With everything so dimly lit, Kirie could make out the suggestion of curtains at either side of the room, from which he could hear a distant, rhythmic rumble.

Clink clink, clink clink. It grew louder, closer, until a row of humanoid figures marched out onto the stage with thunderous steps. It was only when they met the light that Kirie noticed their armour, golden and shimmering. A regal melody trumpeted out, and in perfect succession they lined each side of the carpet in front of the throne, halting with a final stomp. The two closest to Kirie raised their spears, and it was almost comical the way they thwacked them against the iron that bound Kirie’s wrists and ankles. The spears pinged against the restraints, a seemingly useless effort until the metal crumbled apart like stone.

Bewildered, Kirie found his footing and stood up from the throne, and in that moment, one final spotlight lit up the object at the end of the red carpet; a podium. With a row of helmed knights flanking him at either side, the small student wandered down the path laid before him. Ringing out from the blackness ahead, he could hear it; applause. Cheers and claps resounded from every direction. From the immense weight of the noise, the room must have been as big as a theatre, perhaps bigger. Flashes of white flickered from every direction like twinkling stars.

The joy and relief in Kirie’s eyes was unmistakable as he approached the podium, facing the audience with a charming smile. Beneath all the uproar, the sound of a shrill beeping could be heard, but he paid it no mind, enraptured by the applause. With a straight back, Kirie placed his hands upon the podium, opened his mouth, and drew a breath to speak.

The explosion incinerated him on the spot. Plumes of smoke and chunks of burnt wood branched out from the spot Kirie had once stood, and high up above, fireworks cracked in the air. They blossomed in magnificent colours, screeching into the sky and fizzling to make way for more. One even took the shape of a certain familiar bear, and the show went on. [ Kirie, SHSL Philanthropist, has been executed.]

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie’s brows furrowed as he was addressed. The girl’s demeanour set him on edge—no, her very presence had filled him with a sense of unease. In any other situation, Kirie would have approached her, listened to her, but now . . . At what felt like the very end of the hell they had all been put through, Yin was nothing but an obstacle. 

His eyes squinted at her words of blame and he bit his lip. Whether he was upset or angry was unclear, as those words did not evoke a response. When she adopted a familiar voice, however . . . 

“Yuu-san . . .” Kirie’s voice was distant, but his next words had more force behind them. “Of course he was important. Don’t insult him by speaking in his voice. We’ll avenge everyone that died here.”

Although Kirie wanted nothing more than to tear himself from this spot and ignore Yin’s taunts, the possibility that she knew something important was too strong to pass up entirely. With a stubborn expression, Kirie listened. 

“You really . . . didn’t do this?” The doubt was clear in Kirie’s tone. “Then . . . what did you do, Yin-san? Do you really know why we’re here?”

✧ The Finish Line ✧ OPEN

“Huhuhu.”

She couldn’t help but laugh. This small little shrimp was threatening her? How adorable! Threats were utterly useless, of course, but nonetheless, they were adorable!

“Huhuhuhuhu…. that’s cute that you think I’m behind this. I know I’m innocent, but can you say the same about yourself, or for anyone here? One of your friends is the murderer, Kubo. Whether or not you want to admit it, that’s on you. But it’s the reality, and I’m here to deliver it!”

He… he really gave a monologue? This kid was rich, and not even in the material sense.

“You already let them down, you idiot. You let them die. All of you, too weak and powerless to stop the murderers.”

She winked at Kirie, noticing how he forgot to mention someone important, or at least to everyone else here. Clearing her throat a bit, her voice shifted to imitate Yuu’s.

“So, what, I’m just not important enough to mention? You won’t avenge me, Kubo-chan? Man, that’s a bummer.”

Once again, she couldn’t help but emit a laugh. These kids, these IDIOTS, were so easy to fool, so easy to manipulate. But even despite all that, she was still innocent.

“Y'know, I like how everyone seems to rush to accuse me of being the murderer, yet I’m the one with all the answers. Kind of ironic, really. Is human life more important than knowledge? Are you all so hung up on bonds that you’re not even slightly curious as to what’s been going on here, who I am, or why you’re here?”

She clicked her tongue. It was an ironic thought, honestly. All of the answers were right in front of them, but they didn’t even want them. Was that her fault?

Nah. That was all on them. She gave them the chance to ask, but nobody was curious. Oh well.

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie followed suit in taking out his I.D, studying the files as Saeko made her observations. She was right—all three deaths had happened in the span of one hour. The killer had worked quickly.

“Yoshida-san . . .” Kirie echoed distantly, looking off in the direction of her body. It was certainly the least gruesome of the three, and therefore the easiest for Kirie to stomach investigating. He followed a step behind Saeko, stumbling to a stop when his classmate walked face-first into a wall. 

“Koriyama-san—?”  Kirie flinched at the snap that followed. 

“Aaah . . . you can count on me, Koriyama-san.” Kirie gave a little nod and took Saeko’s hand in his, guiding her slowly to the storage room. He cringed visibly at the sight of Kyohei, stepping quickly past him to get to Haru.  “I’ll do my best . . .” It was unclear as to whether Kirie was speaking to Saeko or himself. Drawing a deep breath, the boy crouched at Haru’s side and examined her body.

Out Of the Frying Pan: Open

Saeko nodded, and looked down at her student ID. 

“Three files, all within an hour. Very concerning, and unlikely to be a coincidence, but we can’t rule it as relevant unless we find a connection. It would seem Yoshida-san is the easier of the three to investigate, considering we can potentially trace the cyanide to a single source. I’ll take the lead, and we’ll start there.”

Candidly, Saeko made haste towards the room in which Haru supposedly died, but didn’t realize she could hardly see two feet ahead. Soon, she collided with a wall and ended up falling flat on her behind, which resulted in an unsettling snap.

“Oh…there goes my glasses……on second though, Kubo-kun, you take the lead. Investigating’s going to be a little hard for me.”

“But don’t worry! I’ll still be able to pull my weight! Just get us to the room!”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie looked from Enou’s shaking hand to his face—the tears surprised him, and he was unable to hide the flicker of alarm that crossed his eyes. Were these happy tears? Sad tears? Kirie’s brows furrowed slightly, but he kept his hand in Enou’s grip until it was released. 

When Enou finally spoke, Kirie listened carefully. He even leaned in so as to catch every word. 

“Enou-san . . . it’s okay . . . as long as you do your best, it’s okay.” Kirie carefully lowered himself into a crouch. For a moment he was silent, gaze flitting about in thought.

“Everything counts, Enou-san. Even if you only do a little, it will help all of us. You don’t have to push yourself—I know looking at . . . at their bodies . . . will only hurt you, so . . . I’ll look extra hard for you, okay?” He shuffled closer and patted Enou’s hand.  “Maybe you could take a look around the other rooms. We’ll be out of here soon, Enou-san. Surely we will.” He gave a strong nod. “We’ll do something fun, right? We can make a promise of it!” Kirie looked searchingly at the other boy, offering his pinky finger—a child-like gesture, but an attempt to pull Enou back into reality all the same.  

✧ The Finish Line ✧ OPEN

Tears dripped from Enou’s chin as he listened. By the time he thought to reach for Kirie’s hand, the smaller boy had already let go. Enou reached anyway, his grip on the smaller fingers tense. Though he couldn’t feel much, he could feel the pulse underneath, the one that didn’t belong to him. His friend’s.

“…i…”

“…”

His hand shook along with his shoulders, but he refused to let go.

“y… yeah… let’s…”

He sat silently for a while before letting Kirie slip out of his grasp.

“i want… to help… ‘m not good at investigating… i… can’t really… cheer anybody up right now…”

He fell silent again, staring somewhere, anywhere that wasn’t one of the corpses in front of him.

“what do i do…”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Saeko’s confident smile provoked an equally confident smile in Kirie. He gave a firm nod, his eyes gleaming bright. 

“I’m ready, Koriyama-san.”  Despite the circumstances, Kirie seemed invigorated. This was the end—he could feel it. Perhaps soon, he would see the sky again, see his home again. First, though, the task at hand would require all of his focus, and he was prepared to fight against all of his weaknesses to face it head on.

“Where should we start?” Kirie stood at the ready, his hands neatly at his sides. “I trust in your abilities, Koriyama-san—I’ll follow your lead!”

Out Of the Frying Pan: Open

Saeko nodded and slid a hand across the side of her face.

“As much as I don’t trust that bear, you’re right, and we’ve got to bank on this. We may have one shot to get out of here, and I am absolutely done with this place.”

With that, Saeko threw her hair back and smiled at Kirie confidently.

“So, ready to do one last investigation for old time’s sake?”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

The warmth of Saeko’s hug took Kirie aback. With a briefly stunned expression, Kirie tightened his hold on Saeko before pulling away to look at her face as she spoke. 

“I understand, Koriyama-san.” Kirie gave a small nod. Who in this room hadn’t been paralyzed by the death of a classmate? The memory of discovering Yuuki’s body flickered through Kirie’s mind, but he set his thoughts elsewhere. There were more important things to do than dwell on the past—with this last investigation, it was time to create a new future. 

“What matters is that you’re here now,” Kirie said gently, straightening his posture as if readying himself for what was to come. “If what that bear said is true, we’ll all be free soon . . . if we can see this to the end.” He laid a hand across his chest. 

“And I know we can.”

Out Of the Frying Pan: Open

Saeko hugged him back warmly as ever. She felt heavy on Kirie’s shoulders, but managed to crack a smile anyway.

“Hey, don’t worry about it, Kubo-kun. I’m glad you’re okay too.”

Saeko’s smile slowly dissolved as she looked over Kirie’s shoulder. She stepped back and gripped her shoulder, not exactly looking like a stunning model of confidence.

“I really needed that time alone, though. Yuu-san’s death took…a bigger toll than expected, I suppose. I didn’t want to blame myself for any more deaths, but the guilt was still there, and I felt so powerless. I needed time to think over all the mistakes I made. Only now, I sort of regret staying in there for so long…”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie turned when he heard Enou’s voice. At this point, the other boy’s state was unsurprising. Every murder seemed to chip away at his fortitude, and now Enou had all but shut down completely. Kirie knew he had to go to him. 

“Enou-san . . .” Kirie put a hand softly on his classmate’s good arm. He decided the best thing to do was to talk to him, to let him know he was there and that this was real.  “I know none of this is fair,” he said, lowering his gaze. “No one here deserved any of this, not one person. The others . . . they’re counting on us, right? Counting on us to survive. Because if we lose here, and that headmaster wins . . .” Kirie swallowed, but he kept an air of strength in his voice. “It will all have been in vain. No one will ever know what happened to us here . . . no one’s families, no one’s friends . . .”  Kirie trailed off and stood in silence a moment. He gave Enou’s arm a brief squeeze before letting his hand fall back down to his side. 

“You’re a good person, Enou-san. A kind person. I know how much . . . how much you care about everyone. I know how much it hurts . . . but I don’t know what I would have done without you. So . . . thank you . . . for being who you are.” Kirie looked down almost shyly, maintaining his small smile. “When we make it out of this place, let’s do something fun, okay?”

✧ The Finish Line ✧ OPEN

Though Enou’s eyes had been open and unblinking for some time now, it couldn’t be said that he was truly seeing anything. It was all some distant buzz, a movie flickering on a screen that he wasn’t paying much attention to.

Kirie entered stage left. Enou’s eyes tracked him, although the blonde student’s voice was only made smaller by the drifting music droning in Enou’s ears.

No one here, huh? That wasn’t true. Someone here had done something like this every time. Why would it make any sense for it to change now? Sure, three murders was especially brutal, but maybe Chiasa had just come back for another round. Who knew.

Enou’s vision swam. Haru, Kyohei, Aiko… Surely they weren’t really…

“………..”

As Kirie turned to face him, his music slipped away from what little focus he had, his friend’s words threatening to penetrate into his mind.

His heart twisted at the too-long lists of victims and the pain it was causing his friend even now. Nothing he could do to stop that. Nothing he could do to fix any of it. All he could have done was prevent it, and even that, he…

At least they hadn’t died on his watch, if the files were right, but… Dead was dead…

His eyes squeezed shut as Kirie continued.

“…i… i w-want…”

His jaw went slack again, but his hands clenched fistfuls of pants fabric, and his emotionless gaze was registering some pain.

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie could not help but do a double-take as Saeko came upon the scene. She was a welcome sight—Kirie had come to rely on her competence, although their last conversation had been a tearful one. His brows furrowed in a show of concern as he approached her. 

“Koriyama . . . -san?”  Kirie hesitated. By looks alone, Saeko did not seem herself. Had she really given up somewhere between their last conversation and now? Perhaps not entirely, Kirie thought. After all, she had shown up. 

“I . . . I’m happy you’re alright,” he said quietly, carefully. So much was happening so quickly; three deaths, three more, and an ominous stranger none of them had expected. Biting his lip, Kirie pulled Saeko into a hug. 

Out Of the Frying Pan: Open

Over in the dorms, in the midst of death and confusion, a door cracked open slowly. A young woman peered out into the open before slowly walking through. She looked as if she’d been stuck in there for some time, so it was safe to say she didn’t look quite herself.

“I guess something happened…it’s to be expected, I suppose.”

Saeko’s glasses were gone, her hair was down, and her suit was dirty. She was drawn out by the alert caused by the deaths of three of her classmates. When she quarantined herself after the execution of Chiasa, she almost believed she could escape the world of murder and deceit she was thrown into who-knows-how-many days ago. She didn’t blame herself for anyone’s death, but she’d stopped caring, as there wasn’t really anything she could do but wait her turn. Still, she knew the trial would be soon, so someone would need her, maybe. Still, she couldn’t clearly see whoever was approaching her.

[shslbabybrows-blog]

✧ The Finish Line ✧ OPEN

Try to impress me just this last time, got it? The bear’s words were in Kirie’s mind as he looked at the brutal scene before him—three of his classmates dead, an unwelcome stranger with an unsettling smile . . . was this truly the end? 

“No . . .” Kirie eyed Aiko’s lifeless body with discomfort. The memory of Kyohei’s gruesome state was enough to make Kirie wince right there, a hand flying up to his mouth as his mind reeled. More than anything, he knew he needed to keep going, to push forward just as he had been telling the others. Who was this girl who called herself Yin? Who would pay for this series of murders? If this was to be their last investigation, their last trial, Kirie would summon every ounce of strength he had to reach the end.

“No one . . . no one here would do such a thing!” Kirie clutched the front of his shirt, forcing himself into a steady stance. Drawing in a shaky breath, Kirie extended a hand to point to Yin. Even from such a short time, he knew she was dangerous, but he addressed her all the same. “If you did this to our friends,” he started quietly, “then we will find out. That’s a promise.” Kirie gave an assured nod before turning to face the other students. “Please . . . we can’t lose to this now. For Yoshida-san, Tachibana-san, Noriaki-san . . .“ A pained look crossed his features. “Miki-san, Yoshinoya-san, Morikawa-san, Ishikawa-san, Senge-san . . .” 

“We can’t forget them. We can’t let them down . . . so let’s finish this!” Kirie straightened himself up with an impassioned look of determination in his eyes. He looked at every face around him, every classmate he had come to know since they had woken up in this building so many days ago. 

“We’re leaving this place together.”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Race? Kirie wasn’t much of a runner—in fact, he wasn’t one to exert himself in the first place, but a race would mean hurrying out of this gruesome room, so he seized the opportunity. 

“Ehe~ Alright, Fujiyama-san!” Kirie took a ginger step back. “On your mark . . . get set . . . Go!” 

With that, Kirie turned on his heel and pushed through the door as fast as he could. He was halfway down the stairs before he looked back.

Stratus//Shiori//Help him(POST TRIAL)

Shiori had been unaware of the stain on the floor, and by extension, the possible evils that the ball pit may have contained. Shiori had called out to his friend, unaware of how off put the other had been. Maybe it was just Shiori now, corrupted by the environment, where he had to watch yet another best friend die. 

“Kiwie! ‘s super fun, yea? Come on, carman! Join me, yea?” Shiori gave another grin as he called for the other, before hearing the other’s suggestion.

“Ya wanna go…aight…if ya say everyone’s havin fun, let’s race!” Shiori gave another grin as he laughed, pulling himself out of the pit. 

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie lowered his gaze at Enou’s first comment—there was no denying its truth. So many of their classmates had already been murdered, all so that the killer could achieve something. He decided to focus on Enou’s later words. 

“Just so!” Kirie gave another hopeful nod and linked his hands behind his back. For a moment he was silent as he looked around—the two of them had spoken to the dangers enough. Perhaps Enou would be put at ease if Kirie were to make more enjoyable company of himself. 

“Enou-san . . . have you eaten lunch yet? It’s been a little while since I’ve eaten and I thought . . . maybe we could go together?” He stuck a hand out of his coat and extended it to Enou. 

✧ Squeamish ✧ OPEN

Though Enou nodded firmly at “promise,” he seemed a bit less certain at the next topic.

“��…’ve killed for less……”

Denshi’s and Masami’s bodies flashed across his vision for a moment, only the music able to eventually drown it all out again.

“Y-yeah… Definitely not. Especially with us lookin’ out for everybody, right, Kirie-kun…?” He swallowed.

“Doesn’t matter if they want to kill someone or not. They won’t.”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie blinked, clearly bewildered by Shiori’s behaviour. For a moment he didn’t know what to say—there was no chance of him getting any closer to that blood by the ballpit. Apparently Shiori did not feel the same, Kirie found out with wide eyes, as his classmate dove into pit. 

“F-Fujiyama-san?” The boy took an uncomfortable step back, a hand hovering defensively over is chest. 

“W . . . Why don’t we go somewhere else, Fujiyama-san?” Kirie laughed weakly. “No one’s here, so . . . everyone must be having fun downstairs, right?”

Stratus//Shiori//Help him(POST TRIAL)

Shiori gave another small smile with a tilt of his head. It seemed that Yuu had gone back to his room, since the ball pit was strangely empty now. However, even if Yuu was napping, he found that he would still play there, and catch up with Yuu later. 

“Yea, ya know! Carman Kirie-chan, won’ be the same without ya! Come onnn!” Do not become a whiney pissbaby, Shiori. Please…Anyways, Shiori found that he wanted to have some sort of company inside the pit. To prove it, he gave a few uncharacteristic hops in place as he tilted his head, giving a little pout to the other. 

“Kiwiee….pwease….” Shiori gave a small pause, but when he heard a challenge, he backpedaled into the pit, before beginning to swim in the bloody mess… why this…

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie tensed up at the hug before relaxing and hugging himself close. 

“Then it’s a promise,” he said, putting strength into his voice to override any doubts that might have come through. He pressed the side of his face into the other student’s arm. When he spoke again, his voice was so quiet that one would have to strain to hear it clearly.  “. . . Be careful, Enou-san . . .”  Kirie lingered there in the hug a moment before pulling away, aiming a hopeful smile up at Enou as he straightened his coat.  “Maybe this will be the end of it after all,” he wondered aloud. “After hearing what . . . the headmaster said . . . Surely no one would kill . . . for money.” Perhaps the naïveté that his upbringing brought was showing. Nevertheless, he continued with an air of certainty. 

“The lives of everyone here . . . you couldn’t put a price on such a thing, don’t you think?”

✧ Squeamish ✧ OPEN

“I mean, technic’ly…?” Swallowing, Enou engulfed the fretful Kirie in another hug. “But ‘s fine… Somebody’s gotta do it, an’…“

He managed a little laugh.

“ ‘m the biggest guy here, right? Nobody’s gonna get me, I promise. Even ‘f they try, I…”

“…” The unsavory thought bounced around his head for a minute before he shook it off.

“I’ll just shove ‘em back ‘n their rooms an’ close the door. Nothin’ too hard.”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie surveyed the rest of Haru’s painted flowers and smiled up at her. 

“The outdoors . . . it’s been a while since we’ve seen the sky, hasn’t it?” Kirie’s smile softened a bit as he tucked his hands into his pockets. 

“Surely there are people still looking for us. There must be, don’t you think. . .? We’ll escape this place soon, Yoshida-san.” The boy gave a little laugh before placing a closed fist on his chest. 

 “King Kirie will make sure of it somehow!” 

Painted flowers\Reaction + open

“Yeah,” she nodded with a smile. She didn’t even know she could still smile. So he remembered the hat. That… It looked like it had been so long ago, but it didn’t, “I kind of missed the outdoors,”

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie had just been leaving his room when he noticed Haru’s at the wall. A closer look told him that she was decorating, though she was using rather unconventional materials. He smiled. 

“Yoshida-san?” Kirie approached her, tipping his head back to admire all of the flowers she had drawn.  “Is that one an iris?” He stuck a hand out of the sleeve of his fur coat and pointed to one of the pictures on the wall. “Ehe~ It reminds me of your balloon.”

Painted flowers\Reaction + open

There wasn’t muh Haru could at that point. Except there was, but it was a disgusting idea. Why was she considering that? It was disgusting. She wasn’t a bad person, after all, was she? If she could… If she could, she’d ask Monobear to kill just her and free everyone. Her parents would understand, wouldn’t they? It’d be a needed sacrifice, wouldn’t it?

And was Haroo tired enough of being trapped inside she was using some lipstick she never wore to draw flowers in her bedroom’s walls? And once she thought her bedroom looked enough like a garden she settled for doing in the walls outside her room. It was a beautiful pink flower garden?

[shslbabybrows-blog]

Kirie’s face relaxed when Izaya took his word for it and agreed to leave the floor. With a brighter smile, the boy took Izaya’s hand in a soft clasp. 

“Yes,” he answered cheerily. “It sounds splendid~” 

As they descended the stairs together, Kirie thought back to the last time things were this lighthearted—it had to have been before these deaths had ever happened, when there was a new cafe and a fountain and a room full of classmates to meet. So much had happened since then. Kirie looked up at Izaya with a soft smile. 

“Izaya-san,” he said quietly. “I’m happy you’re still here.” As they rounded the corner into the cafe, Kirie let go of Izaya’s hand and rushed over to the display of desserts, piling a generous helping of tarts onto a plate. 

“Ehe . . . deja vu . . .” 

✧ Squeamish ✧ OPEN