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The Flowers Have Fallen | Rowan | Chapter 5 | Re: Execution

‘You’re… you’re my best friend, Rowan.’

Numb. That’s what he felt the moment Takumi let go of him and faced his fate. The other’s trademark jacket rested heavily in his arms. The white ribbon used for doing Takumi’s hair wrapped tightly around his hand. Tears seeped through his clothes and onto his shoulders. That was what he had left from his friend. Then, all traces of Takumi’s warmth vanished, leaving behind an unsettling chill.

Huh. Rowan was going into shock, wasn’t he? He idly thought as the execution flashed before his eyes. He couldn’t flinch. He couldn’t look away. He couldn’t do anything.

‘You’re… the first friend I’ve ever had, and I’m… so grateful. I’m so glad we… got to… be friends… even if it’s… even if I…’

Everything was coming up blank.

How utterly useless of him.

His brain was on autopilot. Or it should have been. Everything was hazy, a fog of some sort. He needed to go check up on the others. He needed to do that right now. Offer to make tea. Offer tissues. Offer hugs. Offer some kind of comfort.

The brunette didn’t budge. He couldn’t. His hands refused to work. Distantly, it reminded him of previous trials, ones where he couldn’t move an itch but was more than aware of everything happening around him.

Usually, the thought would have terrified him. He already lost his legs. He didn’t want to lose sensation anywhere else. It was a fear that gnawed at him. But now? He felt as though his insides had been scooped out. He felt.

What did he feel?

His shoulder was wet again. That was something he felt.

Was Takumi crying again? Oh, dear. Of course he’d lend a shoulder out to the other. Of course he’d be there to listen. Of course he’d be there to reassure that he was there for him.

Always–

‘…I’m going to miss you.’

Those weren’t tears.

That was blood.

That was Takumi.

He screamed.

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Rowan defaults in a vote for himself. Thanks, Rowan. Thanks.

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Con-cedar This? | Rowan | Trial 3.2 | Re: Nothing in Particular

Left-handed. Well, that goes to show that Rowan shouldn’t have spoken, especially when the little he contributed was wrong. Mistakes like that had no place here. Step out of place, and it’d be the death of him. At the very least, everyone was preoccupied, but could he really consider that to be fortunate? He didn’t want to be here. The accusations were being thrown, and he wanted no part in it. Consider himself tapped out.

After putting in his vote, he settled for curling up behind the podium, hands clamped over his ears. Maybe it was lingering paranoia from earlier, but…. yeah, no. He didn’t want to risk rolling over any toes.

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Poplar Findings | Rowan | Trial 3.1 | Re: Takumi; Touma; Mao

Upon entering the trial room, the brunette couldn’t help but spare a curious glance at the new sights. There was Lugnen again. Hopefully, there wasn’t going to be a repeat of last trial? That said, there was also the addition of the empty podium by the Creator. Huh. He tried to not pay it much thought, considering how cryptic these Volitions could be.

For the duration of the trial, Rowan found himself staring at his hands. So much for his prayers that his peers wouldn’t mess with the chloroform. Chemical burns… Smelling it… Goodness. Y’all, please. Don’t test out dangerous substances on yourself. Still, he kept quiet. With how much the others covered, he didn’t have anything to contribute that wouldn’t be redundant. Besides, wasn’t it for the best that he left the talking to everyone else? He wouldn’t make a mess of anything if he did that.

Unfortunately, he was being referred to. He flinched upon hearing his name, internally blanching about how Takumi dragged him into the discussion. Don’t look at him! He told the other how much he preferred to not speak during trials. Not with everyone around. Not with so many eyes. Yet, the lawyer still…. Deep breaths. He was still behind the podium like usual. He could manage.

“It was indiscernible. From what was found, most of the adhesive was gone, and the leftover residue was skin and hair too fine to distinguish.”

He softly continued on.

“Most of the blood seemed to be soaked into the right sleeve of the outfit. The knife is fairly bloody, but the handle itself is clean. There’s a clear area where the blood stopped. At the very least, the culprit used their right hand?”

And that was it. There was already hard questions being flung, and he didn’t want to be a part of this, especially if it had the potential to resemble last trial. No yelling. Please.

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Over-elm-ing | Rowan | Trial 2.4 | Re: Results

Rowan merely kept to himself after his small quip. He considered it more of an explanation rather than a defense, just something to add to the discussion. Something that didn’t involve all that… attention. There was more than one side to a story. He merely relayed what he knew. Maybe it was sympathy? He couldn’t imagine being at the center of everyone’s focus like that. If that was him… he supposed the thought didn’t matter anymore.

He should have kept quiet from the start. Everything was handled. The culprit was found.

Except, it didn’t settle well with him. Tomie, or Hoshimi even, killed Huang. That was fact. Unfortunate, but true.

It was the words, accusatory and biting, thrown out that struck a chord. Ah. Feelings were understandable. Everyone was subject to their own opinions. But that. That. That. THAT.

J U S T I C E ?

By no means did he side with Tomie’s actions, but to demand someone’s death in retribution…? To wish that upon anyone? For a brief moment, he only saw, only heard…

Perhaps it was the fact that his door loomed ominously behind him. He knew what lurked past there. It was clouding his vision, muffling his hearing, and seeping into his thoughts.

He was next, wasn’t he?

It was irrational to think that, but it was there, permeating into his being. He spoke up, and as a result, it’d only lead to…

Hhh. He was going to stay out of the discussion. Everything. He didn’t want to be a part of this. He merely hid himself behind the podium, curling up and covering his ears. The brunette was sitting this one out. Consider himself benched.

Thanks for the contribution, Rowan.

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Rowan defaults in a vote for himself.

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No One Axed Yew | Rowan | Trial 2.3 | Re: Zenjirou; Tomie

“I can back up Himuro-san for their current state. This was occuring prior to all of this. I can’t say much since that is up to Himuro-san’s discretion, but Shirayuki-san can follow up on that as well? Perhaps?”

Rowan chimed in softly from behind the podium.

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Septimber | Rowan | Trial 2.2 | Re: Mao

Even after Mao had given the okay, Rowan hesitated. The following scramble from the others merely skyrocketed the tension in the air. Even if it was out of sight, having a gun out didn’t seem like the best idea. It seemed as though it’d only add to it.

He politely shook his head.

“Apologies, but I’ll refrain from taking it out.”

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Pleasantrees | Rowan | Trial 2.1 | Re: Pockets

It was quiet on Rowan’s end. He had taken to hiding behind the podium similar to the previous trial. It wasn’t particularly difficult for him to do so with the stand taller than himself. At Minori’s request, there was a hesitant pause before he began to dig through his pockets–only to pause upon seeing Touma’s reaction out of the corner of his eye. He gingerly peered around his podium, following her frightened gaze over towards Tomie and their hefty arsenal of ammo.

Oh. He removed his hands from his pocket and lightly placed them on his lap instead.

“Perhaps it may be best if I don’t…? Apologies, I have one with me as well.”

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Stardom at its Roots | Rowan | Chapter 2 | Re: Body Drop

Early. He was used to it. Things took him longer. He had to prepare ahead of time. Though, there wasn’t enough time in the world to prepare for Alaric’s alarmed voice. Everyone had rushed over to follow after Alaric, and it was much too fast for Rowan to count the heads, spot which face was missing.

He found out soon enough. He had braced himself upon peering into the shed, only to falter. Huang Xiaozhu. Rowan hadn’t had many opportunities to speak with the other, only brief moments. From what he had glimpsed from their encounters, Huang had seemed terrified, held up by a thread known as pride in an attempt to mask that. Except that thread had now been cut by Death’s scythe, and all that was–.

Stained with grass and mud, marred with scrapes and signs of struggle, there was no doubt that Huang had struggled.

He couldn’t do anything for the deceased, not when their clock had stopped beyond what was repairable. It was the living he needed to tend to, especially when their wails, their sobs, and their crying reached his ears.

It didn’t stop him from making his way over and gingerly closing unseeing eyes, whispering a soft apology under his breath, before heading back to the others with tissues in hand.

Adapt. Stay calm. Be there for them.

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Stage fright? Or just… introvert things, she guessed. Mao had a hard time relating, even if she vaguely understood the concept, it just wasn’t a position she found herself in. Well, no, that wasn’t quite right. Her reasons were just… vastly different, she supposed. Elaborate responses were a touch difficult. Mao set her hands in her lap, a smidge more reserved.

“Yeah. That makes sense. There’s nothing wrong with that, I think!! Whatever makes you comfortable. If you ever wanted to do something like that in a smaller setting though, let me know. It’d be fun!! I don’t think someone would care about being dragged down by a teammate if it was just for fun, yeah? I’m sure you’re good at it, anyway.”

At the very least, Rowan’s mom clearly liked the food. And Mao was easy to please food-wise (with some exceptions. She wasn’t really a dessert person, and was averse to other kinds of foods, but more out of being health-conscious than flavor hating). 

And she’d partnered up with Alaric, hadn’t she? If she actually cared about winning, that was a terrible choice. Alaric had fun, and that was enough.

Mao stared at the screen as the keyboard came back in her possession. She shrunk a little, staring at the screen. What was the intentions behind this? The connotation? A little more difficult to outright decipher. Mao placed her hands on the keyboard and quietly removed the comment from her name. No words left her lips on the situation, but the discomfort was obvious enough.

She added a few more comments.

Rowan could only muster a sheepish shrug, unsure of how to quite explain it. He doubted a smaller setting would make it any easier on him. It’d be less eyes for sure, but the thought of the spotlight being on him, for even a brief moment, swayed him otherwise.

“I’m fine with watching. I’d still be amused nevertheless seeing everyone have fun. Though, if you need help with cleaning up or anything of that sort, I can certainly do that.”

He politely mentioned, gingerly drawing a line on what he could and couldn’t do.

His eyes flickered from the screen to Mao, taking note of the discomfort, and he winced. He can already hear it. A voice, distinct and clear as ever, rang in the back of his mind, reminding him how it was for the best that he kept to himself.

Less he ruin it all.

Oh, dear. Rowan weakly smiled.

“Apologies, Kakuma-san. It was a jo--”

A grimace and a pause. He took a moment before attempting again, voice hoarse.

“--Well, I suppose there’s some truth to me thinking that about people, but I’ll be more serious about this. I’m still sorry for making you uncomfortable.”

Once the keyboard was passed over, he erased his earlier input as well as himself again and instead added in more serious compliments.

Whirlpool || Mao + Rowan

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Groan. She coughed a little, hacking up the last of the pain. There were worse lies to be caught in, of course. Small, tame lies? No big deal. Just… embarrassing and painful. Ugh.

Focus on the rest of the conversation, Mao. Sticky notes. Cookies. Goodness. Maybe that was the opposite kind of mom note Mao expected. A taker, rather than a giver. Not that it meant immediate bad. It was just different. 

“N-No. I don’t need ice.”

Still going at it, huh? Well, this one wasn’t a lie, at least, as not averse reactions stemmed from the sentence. Just a little bit of awkward and contempt as she clacked her fingernail on the handle of her umbrella repeatedly.

“Trengrove-kun, why didn’t you participate in the cook-off? Is cooking tiring? I mean… You talked a little about your mom, so I guess I can see why, but maybe this would’ve been different? You didn’t have to, I’m just curious, really.”

Mao took the keyboard back and shittily retyped Rowan’s name and the compliments associated with it. Not getting away with it THAT easy, especially when the list was only two names. Too easy to spot one missing like that, ya silly.

She pulled out her ID and swiped through the roster section, quickly writing in everyone’s names, clackity clack. Like one of those long-nailed secretaries you see in movies, with the noticeable sound, or even the ridiculous Youtube videos of people mimicking it online.

“We could do this one by one like… I’ll put something down for Touma-chan.”

‘Clever and generous.’ That one was easy enough, she knew Touma real well, along with a handful of others. Other students would be a bit more of a reach for her to grasp, but hopefully she’d figure it out.

Alrighty. Rowan still sent Mao his best wishes for her to feel better. He blinked owlishly at the question before chuckling almost nervously. His usual response would have been given, had he not been reminded that he’d easily be called out upon thanks to the motive. Mao’s earlier incident was a reminder of that. He had to choose his words carefully.

“By no means is cooking tiring for me. Regardless of what I say about my mother, it’s all in good humor. I enjoy cooking. It gives me the opportunity to be independent. While I do appreciate my father’s efforts to make life easier for me, he could be rather overzealous in that regard. It was understandable though. He’s the type to be easily worry and fret, and he merely wanted the best for the family. Nevertheless, it was refreshing to be able to do things on my own once I moved in with my mother.”

Then came the harder part. He smiled weakly.

“There’s plenty of factors, such as fearing that I’d drag my teammate down and what not, but the biggest one is that I’m not a fan of the spotlight. A bit odd-sounding considering what title I hold, but I still stand by my point. It’s…. nerve-wracking to say the least. Ultimately, it’s for the best that I didn’t participate.”

The brunette turned his attention back to the monitor, watching as his name was reentered along with a list of everyone else’s. Welp. After Mao had finished up, Rowan supposed it was his turn to add to the list--

Wait.

Did he just label everyone as ‘Adorable’? 

.....Yes. With the exception of himself, of course.

“Here’s my contribution.”

Whirlpool || Mao + Rowan

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Huh. Was that really considered flattery? Mao shifted from side to side in her chair. Not really, in her opinion, but maybe others saw it differently? Words held different meanings for each person, like herself and— don’t think about that right now, Mao. Not a good time. She was with a friend.

“I can’t control if you think calling you a friend is flattery, but if it is, it’s not empty!”

Mom notes. Heheh. It seemed like a pretty classic loving mother thing, right? Little ‘I love you’ notes in lunch boxes and whatnot. She hadn’t gotten one of those since she started making her own lunches in middle school. This was kinda like that, huh? The idea of someone pulling up to document was growing increasingly appealing.

Keep chins up even in the sadder times. Like finding a treasure chest or a gem at the bottom of a lake. She tapped her fingernails on the desk. They were a LITTLE long for typing, huh? not impossible, but kinda inconvenient. Oh well.

“Reminders that there’s something good about them. Right?”

Wait, hold on a second. W-Wh… Rowan…. Rowan why.

“…. Th-That doesn’t make me ha– COUGH”

Blech. Bwech. The spicy flavor seared up in her throat. Even if she did enjoy spicy food, this was WAY too much. Goodness gracious. Ugh. She leaned forward and bonked her forehead against the desk, taking some moments to recover.

You know what, Rowan? Fine. Fine. Mao sat up a little, still in pain, and typed up Rowan’s name. ‘Considerate and calm.’ Take your food and eat it.

“I-If you want to write that stuff down, you can do it yourself.”

Rowan nervously rubbed the back of his neck. Not empty. Huh. Being told that someone liked his company? He wasn’t entirely sure what to make of that.

“And I suppose you’re free to think what you will. Ehehe...”

He chuckled lightly before tackling the next topic. Nostalgia was already seeping in.

“Well, it was more as though my mother jotted down reminders begging me to make cookies and what not. That or I would wake up to find every surface of my belongings or myself be covered in sticky notes. She could be quite childish sometimes.”

Oh, how that was a fond memory to look back upon. Exasperating? Yes. He never took it to heart. He did take his revenge though. There was too much power in being the only one who could cook out of the two of them.

Rowan pressed a hand to his mouth, covering up a smile, as Mao’s face tinted red. His amusement was short-lived once he heard the ‘thunk’ against the desk. Well, no. It was still there. He may have looked concerned, but there were traces of mirth in his eyes.

“Are you alright, Kakuma-san? Should I get some ice for your head? Or that burn?”

The sick burns, yo. Of course, he stopped in his tracks once he saw Mao type in the next part.

‘Considerate and calm.’

He internally winced. As Mao gave him control of the keyboard, he tacked on the description he had given her…. while deleting his own name. No need to include he. It’s all good.

“Who’s next then?”

Whirlpool || Mao + Rowan

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i forgot i never posted this on here, but this was for rowan’s birthday all that time back.

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“I think I mind in the good way, heehee~ You’re my friend and I like hanging around you! So, yeah. Please stay!”

As long as Mao didn’t hover over the ‘recently viewed files’ tab and Rowan didn’t go for it himself, it’d be fine. There was no guarantee he wouldn’t check it out after Mao left, though, she guessed, but. She eyeballed Rowan. Rowan would probably look, huh? Darn. No need to TALK about it, though. At least not now, it would come back to haunt her later. 

Scandalous, though. W-Well. That was a very Rowan thing to say, she supposed. Dear gosh let this not lead to teasing.

“I wasn’t writing anything. But it might be fun, right? Someone could come by it while looking around or whatever. Like we could write a nice note or a list of things we like about people here. I like the latter option, actually. It’d be nice to find, right?”

Nice, kind, fun, etc etc. That was actually easy to do and didn’t require any sort of complicated grasp on language. Fancy novel writing and 5000 words and whatnot. She wasn’t bad at it, but she was hardly good, either. She sat back in the chair and scooted over, leaving enough room for Rowan to swooce right in and still see the monitor properly.

“What do you think? Do you have any ideas?”

Friend. How strange to hear that, but it had a pleasant ring to it. His polite smile turned bashful. He waved it off with a soft chuckle.

“Kakuma-san, no need for flattery. That said, eheh, I enjoy your company as well, so thank you.”

He chose not to comment any further on it and instead turned his attention back to the blank document before them. Nice note. Huh.

“That does indeed sound fun. It’s rather reminiscent of what Mum-- my mother does. Though, it’s not necessarily all kind notes and what not. More like reminders. I wouldn’t mind listing alongside you though.”

He inched in closer, but he kept his hands away from the keyboard. Listen, he didn’t touch tech often. He’ll leave that to Mao.

“We can start off with you, Kakuma-san? Very sweet and thoughtful.”

:3c

Whirlpool || Mao + Rowan

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Ehehehe…. hehe… Well, it was fine. If Rowan reacted like this, he probably hadn’t seen it during investigations, right? …. Probably!! It’s no biggie. (What kind of life was Mao leading?)

“Nothing IMPORTANT, no. I can get back to it later, or whatever. Just wandering around to chat or something? I don’t mind hanging out.”

Admittedly, she was at a loss at what exactly to DO if they did, though. Unless they…. Mao’s eyes trailed to the computer, then slowly back to Rowan. R-Rowan probably wouldn’t be the type to read fanfiction with, huh. There were plenty of other things to be had, though. Like… The computer probably had base game programs, like how old computers used to have minesweeper and pinball. Though if they wanted to actually play games, there was a game room around here, somewhere.

Mao booted up the word program again, and set up a blank document.

“We could always try writing something for someone else to find. What do you think?”

Mao tossed a piece of popcorn into her mouth and offered some to Rowan.

Rowan quirked an amused brow at the emphasis of it being nothing important. He was fairly certain he caught sight of some familiar names, but if Mao said so. He dropped the thought for the time being and gave a soft nod.

“As long as you don’t mind having my company.”

He closed the door behind him and made his way over to Mao. Even if he chose not to inquire further, his curiosity lingered, especially with Mao’s gaze shifting over to the computer once again.

“Write something for someone else?”

That brought back memories of Marco’s tall tale from a more recent trial. The brunette chuckled, teasing lightly.

“Does that mean you were writing something before I came in? Something scandalous?”

He accepted with a soft ‘thank you’ and gingerly took a single piece. No handfuls around here.

Whirlpool || Mao + Rowan

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Rowan had never been a part of a club before. That didn’t make him any less curious about each one though. Considering how relatively empty the campus was, Rowan had taken to peering and exploring the practice building. Today happened to be the drama club’s turn. 

As he entered, Rowan caught sight of Mao, popcorn in hand, in front of a computer. Well, he didn’t want to disturb her-- Shame that he wound up doing so anyway, considering how silence wasn’t necessarily his forte. He didn’t catch much on the screen since Mao had immediately closed it in her surprise. Much. Did he catch sight of some names…?

He looked sheepish as he lingered in the doorway.

“Pardon me, Kakuma-san. I didn’t mean to frighten you. Was I intruding on something important? Should I leave you be?”

Whirlpool || Mao + Rowan

Drama club. Mao had still been actively avoiding the newer areas outside of that one library trip, so she found herself limited to club rooms for entertainment. On one hand, it’s a shame. There were probably all sorts of fun romance novels and movies, and other things to be done when she wasn’t being social. On the other hand, she spent most of her time being social, anyway.

Besides, there were other romance novels to be read, like right there in the drama room. Mao threw together a small bowl of popcorn (which definitely shouldn’t have been eaten next to a computer, but there were bigger worries), sat down, and buckled in for a ride.

A ride of a word document.

The motive wasn’t nearly as much of a problem as the last one, and Mao felt she had far more freedom to just sit down and enjoy things outside of just trials. Like stress cooking or talking, or even kicking back and reading supremely bad fanfiction.

Sucked into her own world, she noticed a little too late when someone entered. Once the noises behind her registered, Mao jumped from her chair and closed the document.