[center][img]https://i.imgur.com/h5xf31C.png[/img][/center][hr][i][b]//Night 0 | Location:[/b] Nameless Forest - Clearing[/i]

[sub][@baraquiel][@AThousandCurses][/sub]

[b]“Ehehe…”[/b] Kumi scratched the back of her head bashfully at Asahi’s comment, sneaking a glance over towards Sasuke for his own reaction. The youth took a small, delicate bite, and then, after a moment of deliberation, nodded with his approval.

Well, he nodded with approval for most of the things he ate, so it was hard to tell which ones stood out over the others, and more importantly, Kumi wasn’t so blinded by Asahi’s moves that she didn’t catch him taking the opportunity to lean in closer to Sasuke. She pursed her lips, considered all her possibilities, calculated emotional damage, and then, at the end of it, decided to go for her suicide move. She would utilize Asahi’s question as an excuse to drag him away, ensuring that [i]this[/i] nighttime encounter was a draw!

That was, until Shun showed up out of the blue.

[b]“Oh, uh, I’ll make another for you real quick,”[/b] the gourmet girl said by reflex, only to immediately internally scream after. [b]“And Asahi, I just rendered some fat from the giant wolverine to grill ‘em up. You…should come over. I’ll show you how!”[/b]

And with that, Kumi shuffled back over to the fire, crouching beside Masami, who clapped her on the shoulder in a consolatory manner.

[b]“Our group,”[/b] Sasuke spoke, brushing the last grain of rice from the corner of his mouth with his thumb, [b]“headed further away into the woods to collect wood. There was enough deadfall, but it would have been better if we had a saw.”[/b]

A pause.

[b]“I heard you were alone in checking over the bags, Asahi. Thanks for that.”[/b]

[sub][@OwO][/sub]

Around Kuroshio Ogata Middle School, there were two ways of telling the Ito twins apart.

The first way, the [i]boring[/i] way, was by checking to see which one wore glasses. If they did, they were Sohei. If they didn’t, they were Kunio. Rumors, of course, were such that Sohei [i]only[/i] wore glasses to make himself look more respectable and responsible than his freespirited younger brother, but the fact of the matter was that when Sohei was playing sports, he would take off his glasses.

The second way, the [i]fun[/i] way, the way that works when there were no glasses involved, was to see which one of them could be surprised in any way. If they could, they were Sohei. Kunio, after all, had developed a sense for danger a long time ago, obviously rooted in some dramatic trauma. And now? Kunio’s sense of danger popped up once more, and even before Rin could rustle her way into their conversation, he said “good luck”, flashed a v-sign with his fingers, and disappeared to join the others.

Rin had certainly [i]heard[/i] two people talking, but by the time she poked her head out, there was only one left: Sohei. And Sohei, confused and certainly not too prepared, could only look at the wooden stick that Rin had handed him and say the first thing that came into his mind.

[b]“This is a spear, right? Why are we swinging them?”[/b]

[sub][@Yankee][/sub]

[b]“Ah, Masato,”[/b] Mayumi turned, shifting over to give him some space to sit down. [b]“Given up following uniform regulations?”[/b]

It was a joke, but delivered like that, the only response from the entire group was a total silence. Awkward…

[b]“Yo, Prez,”[/b] Hiroshi said, restarting whatever the hell that was with his trademark sharktooth grin. [b]“We were talking about that sorta stuff too. Night watch and all. Not that you’re going to stay up all night doing that, though you’re good for going first if ya want.”[/b]

[b]“Keep the fire low if you are.”[/b] Hana glanced towards the night sky. A half-moon stood above, patchy clouds covering foreign stars. [b]“It’ll ruin your vision.”[/b]

Mayumi spoke up as well, having coughed out whatever had possessed her in that moment. “It’d be best to move, but we can’t really, right? Considering all those that got hurt. The bus is destroyed, but we can build around it. Make a better shelter out of it.”

[b]“One got away,”[/b] Hana replied. [b]“Three is too small for a pack. They’ll be back here.”[/b] And even if the smell of a gasoline fire was gone, the smell of a cooking fire took its place.

[b]“Read in the news that the incident in Mexico three years back took two weeks to resolve.”[/b] As always, Hiroshi had remembered what most others had forgotten.

A flight headed to Cancun from Los Angeles disappeared partway through. Search and rescue parties had taken a half-day to arrive at the last pinged location of the missing aircraft, within which they found a Portal, and from there, the UN established an elite strike force to retrieve the missing passengers. The operation began two days after locating the Portal. And still, despite all that, it had taken thirteen days after, for the Portal to be closed and those within it to return.

The strike force had survived with no casualties. The passengers and crew, despite the safe landing their airplane had made on the Otherside, had their numbers cut down by 338, from an original number around 500. Perhaps the larger number meant they attracted more attention from the monsters of the Otherside. Perhaps the environment there was harsher than the summer-kissed forest that the students found themselves in. Perhaps there were extenuating circumstances.

But Masato knew. If he hadn’t [i]changed[/i] in some way when he arrived upon this Side, he would be dead. If [i]none[/i] of them had changed in any way, they would all have been dead.

[b]“Two weeks,”[/b] Hiroshi continued, [b]“is too long to be staying in one spot. If nothing else, it’d be good to find a place closer to water. Still. We’d have to make stretchers too.”[/b]

[b]“Medicine first,”[/b] was Juro’s sole contribution.

There was something about Hiroshi's expression that made it appear as if he was already dismissing the idea, even before he spoke up. [b]“Medicine...dunno how you and Duncan did it, Prez, but water and cloth won’t cut it for what Yuudai and Yuki’ve got.”[/b] Hiroshi leaned in closer. [b]“Don’t suppose you came across any herbs or something in the forest?”[/b]

[sub][@Nakushita][/sub]

[b]"We share the same family name,"[/b] Ayano responded, flicking Ayana on the forehead. [b]"Of course they know. Not like I'd lie when they ask."[/b]

It really could've been worse though. On the lower end of the spectrum, Ayana could have been bald by now, while in worst case scenario, she'd be dead, having accomplished nothing. Ayano had always figured her half-sister to be on the reckless, airheaded side of things, but in this case? The short-haired girl fell into a quiet contemplation. Was it just luck? Or was there something else at play here?

Well, not like she had a way to figure that out.

[b]"Some of the others had the same thing happen. Heard Duncan had it the worst, but made it out alright."[/b]

[b]"Not that your clothes are in any sorta good shape, Ayana~"[/b] Ayane spoke up then, looking over the scorch marks and tears that marred the school uniform she was in. It wasn't nearing levels that would be considered risque, but the light material used for summer uniforms hadn't stood the test of a suplex inside a burning bus all that well. [b]"Got anything you could swap out into?"[/b]