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A couple of days passed. The warrior spent them contemplating, watching out for any signs of the [color=red]schemer[/color] being home, but whatever business she had, they had always missed each other. Therefore, her plan was likely safe to execute. And even if it was not completely so, Kiyo would know what to do for sure. So she cut her time short in the city, making her way through the eerie streets.

Ever since the ‘gas leak’, she had taken to them with extreme vigor. She no longer needed to go to school, so she could raid all the arcades she liked, mess with the idiotic shopkeepers who did not let her window-watch or ransack wallets for money, then disappear into the shadows as the locals tried to give chase. She also visited her favourite ramen stand many-a-times, silently eating well into the night. But not even these routines, new or old, returned her sense of normalcy.

That died with the damned light girl, along with Michi. The girl who just [b]had[/b] to be related to the source of Hotaru’s woes. The timing of it was too coincidental, no matter what Ember or Sylvia believed. It would be a freezing day in hell before she was convinced otherwise.

Shaking her head so it would be cleared of unimportant stuff, Hotaru marched home, where, much to her displeasure, she saw another body moving around. What was even worse, it did not quite look like the body of Takae Shuuko. Which could only mean-

[color=#D8CD9F]”What the hell are you doing here, Ember?”[/color] Hotaru grit her teeth.

[color=red]”Am I supposed to abandon my own home now that you have decided to be a petulant child?”[/color] Ember’s reply did not contain even a hint of warmth. [color=red]”That is low even for you.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”You’re breaking your own rules!”[/color]

[color=red]”If you’d talked to me in a calm and rational manner, you would have known that they are no longer valid. Many are already aware of what we are and it was only a matter of time until we were found out. I decided that it was better to rip off the gauze and change it instead of letting the wound fester.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”And of fucking course, we always have to go along with that decision, don’t we?!”[/color] Hotaru snapped before slamming her fist into her palm. Her voice exploded into the relative silence like a whip, but she did quiet down when she continued. [color=#D8CD9F]”Damnit, Ember, you’re almost as bad as a light girl!”[/color]

Ember would have started to reply, however, before she could say as much as a syllable, the door only a few feet away from them creaked open, revealing what had to be a surreal sight: Takae Shuuko arguing with a Takae Shuuko who cut her hair shorter and had the tips of her hair painted a crimson red.

Kiyo appeared in the doorway, in her long and oversized maroon t-shirt, black dolphin shorts and and cat slippers, squinting as she adjusted to the light outside. [color=firebrick][b]"Is it that delivery driver again..?"[/b][/color] she mumbled, recognizing the sound of Shuuko loudly arguing with someone outside. She rubbed the impotent desire for sleep out of her eyes, blinking as the two figures came into focus. Shuuko, and... [color=firebrick]"Shuu... ko."[/color] A beat of time passed.

The color drained from her face, and the hand holding the door handle trembled. This could only mean one thing. Black Gate was back. Unable to rationalize the situation, she slammed the door shut, as if Shuuko just wouldn't have a key to their shared apartment, for some reason. Hasty footsteps sounded from behind the door as she ran to the bathroom to do the only thing she knew to try in this situation—which hadn't worked last time, but there was no Michi here to snatch the mirror out of her hands this time. [color=firebrick][b]"Wake up, Kiyo. Snap out of it. You're asleep. This isn't real,"[/b][/color] they would find her repeating to her reflection, like a mantra.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Kiyo!”[/color] Hotaru blitzed after her teammate, rushing through the small apartment. Without hesitation, she grabbed the other girl’s shoulder, gently pulling her away from her reflection to face her. [color=#D8CD9F]”I’m real! You don’t have to worry about… that damn nightmare.”[/color] She forced her words through grit teeth that tried to conceal pain. [color=#D8CD9F]”We got rid of that asshole together.”[/color]

[color=red]”She is quite correct in her assertion. As far as I can tell, we are not in the illusion created by the black-clad girl.”[/color] Ember entered only seconds ago, stepping forward to a confident stride. [color=red]”At the same time, Kuroki-san, I believe this will be a most difficult conversation. Not just for us, but also for-”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”It wouldn’t be if you arrived two seconds later.”[/color]

[color=red]”Do you really want to be this much of a disaster right in front of her?”[/color] Ember gestured towards Kuroki with a faint, superior smile on her face. [color=red]”Please, Hotaru-san. We have been through this once already and I do not want to repeat our argument. It will go nowhere.”[/color]

Hotaru balled her free hand into a fist, but she did not reply. Instead, she looked almost as though someone had insulted her mother, her eyes narrowing before she shook her head and slammed her hand into her thigh.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Fine. Let’s get this over with. Kiyo? Will you be all right?”[/color]

Kiyo, hyperventilating in a way that reminded Hotaru of a small, cornered animal, took a moment to calm down in the warrior's firm grip. [color=firebrick][b]"Okay. Okay, I'm fine,"[/b][/color] she breathed, closing her dilated eyes. [color=firebrick][b]"Just, let me get some water."[/b][/color]

Rather than pushing past the two of them to get to the kitchen, she took water from the sink and washed her face with it. She toweled off the dampness and the redness on her cheeks at once. She'd lost her composure. She was supposed to be the elder in this dark magic Sisterhood: the responsible one, the reliable one. Like Earthshaker, she had to be the one who couldn't be broken. Her breathing slowed, she turned back to the two Shuukos that stood beside her, bickering. That was, perhaps, the most unexpected part of this.

[color=firebrick][b]"Alright,"[/b][/color] she exhaled calmly. [color=firebrick][b]"Let me start with this. I always knew there were two of you,"[/b][/color] she explained, seeming to let go of a burden as she admitted this. [color=firebrick][b]"I didn't say anything about it because I wasn't sure what that would do to you. But I could always tell the difference."[/b][/color] She nodded, sage-like and proud of herself. [color=firebrick][b]"The responsible and caring high priestess,"[/b][/color] she said, pointing to Ember. [color=firebrick]"And the fun-loving friend who's a little overprotective."[/color] She poked Hotaru's cheek fondly. [color=firebrick][b]"You always had that one thing in common. It's a little weird to see you arguing, to be honest."[/b][/color]

The warrior’s face coloured slightly when Kiyo touched it. She also gave Kiyo a slight, worried yet happy smile that showed her teeth before she landed her eyes on Ember, causing her visage to harden. A second or two passed like this before the [color=red]schemer[/color] took the initiative.

[color=red]”I should have been more aware of your perceptive nature, Kuroki-san, however, I must also dispel your illusions. There are three of us you should know about.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”Ember, what the hell! Weren’t you the one always against this?!”[/color] Hotaru’s confusion and anger was almost palpable as she yelled.

[color=red]”As I have already said before, what protected us and what gave us shelter is no longer tenable. If we want to be a part of the Detention Club, if you want to live your own life, then this is the right way to proceed forward. If not even the ones we trust the most know about our fundamental nature, how are they to help us in our times of need such as this?”[/color]

Hotaru cast her gaze to the floor at the schemer's calm explanation. She wanted to yell, wanted to slap the idiocy out of Ember and make her eat her own hypocrisy, but she could not. Not with Kiyo around. Damnit! Even when she thought she had the upper hand, the schemer somehow still managed to win.

[color=red]”So yes, Kuroki-san. There are three of us. Sylvia, who can not be here right now. Hotaru,”[/color] she pointed to the warrior, [color=red]”and myself, Ember.”[/color]

Kiyo stood in stunned silence for a moment. [color=firebrick][b][i]So there were three. How could I not have noticed? I couldn't even conceptualize what the third would be like.[/i][/b][/color] Slowly, the silence became noticeable, and she recovered, trying to smile. [color=firebrick][b]"I guess I'm making food for a family of four again,"[/b][/color] she remarked, her face an emotionless mask of calculations. [color=firebrick][b]"But you mentioned a time of need, so I assume this is about more than just dinner plans."[/b][/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”Of course it is! Listen, Kiyo,”[/color] Hotaru moved in front of her, her expression almost desperate. [color=#D8CD9F]”She’s telling me I hurt Sylvia. I’d never hurt her! And even if I did, Ember's in the wrong, because she let that stupid light girl fester among us.”[/color] Hotaru sounded confident, assured of her conclusions, unaware of the feelings Kiyo held for Haruna. [color=#D8CD9F]”It’s all that vile bitch’s fault! Ember should have convinced you to just throw her out; not only is she self-righteous, she's brought in that black-haired girl that turned everything into a nightmare.”[/color] Hotaru balled her hands into fists, looking as though someone had insulted every single generation of her family. 

[color=#D8CD9F]”And then she’s surprised I started shouting at her! Not at Sylvia. At Ember. And I think Sylvia thinks that I was shouting at her instead. So it's all Ember’s fault. And that light girl's! Right?”[/color] The warrior sounded downright hopeful as she asked her question, [I]knowing[/I] in her very bones that Kiyo would agree with her.

[color=red]”And by doing so, you have hurt Sylvia. She never took it well when people shouted around her, because it reminds her of where we came from.”[/color] Ember remained calm. Her voice even had a tired edge, like she had explained this many times already. [color=red]”Even if you didn't want to harm her, you did. And now you can't even apologise for it.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”That’s bullshit! It’s like saying you busted someone's lips without punching them!”[/color]

[color=red]”So, do you claim your punches have never once went awry? That they always hit their intended target?”[/color] Seething silence answered Ember. The warrior had no argument against that, but surely… surely! Surely, Kiyo did!

Kiyo looked at her desperate partner and sighed. [color=firebrick][b]"Let's not have this conversation in the shitter, alright?"[/b][/color] she replied wearily. Gently, she moved around Hotaru and passed Ember into the kitchen. What exactly was she supposed to say to keep the peace in this situation..? Always, [i]always[/i] she was searching for them—the 'right' words—and they remained elusive, no matter how long she stalled to find them.

Ember kept careful watch from her position, maintaining a comfortable distance while Hotaru followed the Detention Club’s watchful big sister closely. The former noticed the delay in Kiyo choosing her words, of course, but she chose not to mention it given the difficulty of the situation. It would be just something she would have to talk about later, when they were alone.

[color=firebrick][b]"Look,"[/b][/color] she said, grabbing another energy drink from the fridge and cracking it open before the other two could protest. [color=firebrick][b]"Encouraging Michi to engage with the Detention club and the school was my idea. Haruna went along with it, but it was mine. The responsibility was also mine, because I didn't consult Rei or Roche as much as I could have. Now, if Haruna has done anything [i]else[/i] worthy of disciplinary action, please say so, but this is my mess to clean."[/b][/color] She didn't drink right away. She sat on the couch and kept the can in her lap.

Hotaru’s eyes widened. She looked at Ember as though that would change anything about the situation, except the [color=red]schemer[/color] remained unreadable while she thought about these revelations. The [color=#D8CD9F]warrior,[/color] however, took a step back, her lips opening slightly as she stared in disbelief.

[color=firebrick][b]"Setting that aside... I'm uninformed. I don't know anything about Sylvia. I'm not sure she's ever even talked to me. My opinion on her is irrelevant. I [i]do[/i] know you wouldn't hurt her on purpose, just like you didn't mean to say something hurtful to me just now. I stand by what I said before... If the air isn't clear between you and someone you care about, just clear it. Life is too short to worry about whose fault something is. If you both just apologize together, we could all probably be sharing a meal tonight, you know..? I could even go with you and... apologize for not noticing her existence."[/b][/color] She smiled wryly at the tatami floor at her feet.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Kiyo… you… you were the one who suggested that we accept that dark girl?”[/color] Hotaru sounded like she could not believe it. [color=#D8CD9F]”You’ve lead the enemy straight to the club! How the hell did something like that happen? Never mind Sylvia, what did that bastard of a light girl do to you?! I’m going to punch her in the face the next time I see her!”[/color]

In the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior’s[/color] mind, this all had to be wrong. Kiyo would never make a decision like that without some sort of outside influence. She was not infallible, but she was definitely never foolish. In fact, Kiyo sometimes thought a little bit too much. This was definitely not in character at all. So there [i]had[/i] to be some sort of trickery in play here.

[color=red]”We do not know how the new girl may have presented herself to Kuroki-san or Maedasa-san, Hotaru-san. It is entirely plausible, even for Kuroki-san to misjudge someone, even if she has eyes in the sky at all times.”[/color] Ember nodded towards Kiyo and let a small, reassuring smile take over her face as she spoke. [color=red]”Thank you for the offer to meet with Sylvia, too, Kuroki-san. I am sure she will be happy to hear it when… when she is better.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"If Michi's been peering into all of our dreams, then I'm sure she knew exactly how to present herself to me: like a broken little girl who's never had anything go right in all her life, who's lost her sense of purpose since the darkness took her."[/b][/color] Kiyo didn't sound angry—not at herself, not at Hotaru, not at anyone. She didn't even seem to have the energy to be disappointed. She chugged about half of the drink in her hand, as if that would help, somehow. [color=firebrick][b]"And Haruna..."[/b][/color] Her voice softened, as to almost make her words about Michi seem to have had an edge to them, even though they didn’t.

There was a long silence as she contemplated her words. [color=firebrick][b]"Honestly? I have more in common with her than anyone else in this Club, and I'm tired of pretending that I don't. She's exactly the kind of light girl I was three years ago, Sh—Hotaru. When she embraces the dark, I'm sure she'll be just like me, too. You'd probably even like her."[/b][/color] She smiled with the kind of amusement that a drunk would have when having a thought that no sober person could possibly share with them, like being in on a joke nobody else would 'get.' That word, "when," rang more hollow each time she assured herself of this. What if it never happened..? ...They would probably part ways, eventually. Or one of the GEMs would chase her away for being a 'bad influence.' Easy come, easy go. The thought hurt enough to wipe the smirk from her lips. [color=firebrick][b]"Is Sylvia... going to be okay?"[/b][/color]

The more Kiyo spoke, the bigger Hotaru’s eyes got. By the end, the warrior looked as though she had been physically struck. She took a step back from the conversation, putting distance between herself and the Detention Club’s watchful eye. Her hands, hanging by her side, squeezed down more and more with every second before she-

[color=#D8CD9F]”You’re lying. You… Kiyo! What! Why are you defending her? She’s…”[/color] There were no words. Only a knife stuck right between her ribs, gouging out her heart.

Ember, on the other hand, gave both Hotaru and Kiyo a sympathetic look. She nodded towards the latter, letting her know that she was on her side for this debate, but she did not want to interrupt their conversation right now. The [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] would not take it well.

Kiyo's eyes darkened, but her face still didn't show any emotion. [color=firebrick][b]"...She's... what, Hotaru? Self-righteous? Shit, never mind my light girl days, I'm [i]still[/i] self-righteous. Tell me I'm not with a straight face."[/b][/color] Kiyo didn't wait for an answer. She finished her drink and crushed the can on the side table. [color=firebrick][b]"A sycophantic people-pleaser? My fellow lighties called me that, too. Not with those words, but they may as well have. And now? What's changed? I care too much about the Club. Always trying so hard to keep it together. All the outside threats and infighting stressed me out so much I could die, but look! Like a lost little kitty that ran away from home and got hungry, I came back for more."[/b][/color] There was an uncomfortable truth to her words. She pretended not to care, acting cool and above it all, emulating whatever passed for "maturity" among the immature dark magical girls, but her actions showed it to be a farce.

Her expression finally started to sour a little. Maybe she really did need a burst of energy to muster some kind of feeling behind her words. [color=firebrick][b]"All I ever wanted as a child was to be a 'good girl.' Fat load of good that did for me. I was just fucking useless, to everyone. I thought if I embraced the darkness, I could at least be happy, and give being 'bad' a try. And all I've done is fucking [i]roleplay[/i] some mad scientist character—the villainess I wish I could've been, the one this rotten world deserves. But I can't even be good at being 'bad.' I'm just—[i]mediocre.[/i]"[/b][/color] She punctuated the end of her rant by throwing the crushed can into the wall just above the trash can. Infuriatingly, a few drops of the red liquid left spots on the wall that would have to be cleaned up before they left a stain. Kiyo pretended not to notice, at first. Then, livid, she stood up and slowly walked to the kitchen to take care of it herself.

Shaking, she let out a ragged breath as she wiped the wall clean. [color=firebrick][b]"So, you two didn't get along,"[/b][/color] she remarked, as if she could just easily change the subject after venting like that. [color=firebrick][b]"Thanks for setting whatever differences you have aside to be 'Shuuko' for me, and put up with my nonsense for all this time. It means a lot."[/b][/color] The two Shuukos could tell her words were heartfelt. They could also tell that the girl's heart felt absolutely miserable.

Normally, Hotaru would have hugged Kiyo or said something silly, violent or both to cheer up her friend. The [color=#D8CD9F]warrior’s[/color] hand would have landed on the other dark girl’s shoulder with a comforting smile or the shit-eating grin of someone who wanted to get into trouble just so they could get away with it together. Or the reassuring smile of someone who knew what sort of snacks to get to cheer Kiyo up. Now, however? Hotaru actually had to sit down.

Her hands impacted her thighs, the sound filled with frustration, fury and betrayal. Her [color=#D8CD9F]yellow[/color] eyes wavered as she kept her eyes on Kiyo, not knowing if she really was looking at the girl who would always watch over her? The one under whose aegis they would never be harmed?

[color=red]”Even if it might be presumptuous of me to pass judgement on another, I never thought you were mediocre, Kuroki-san.”[/color] Now it was Ember who stepped closer. She offered Kiyo a genuine smile, though she did not reach out to her just yet. [color=red]”Please don’t talk about yourself as though you are supposed to be above it all. We have just lost our home along with… many precious things.”[/color] She closed her eyes. Her voice wavered and this time, she did reach out to touch Kiyo’s hand, gently bringing one to her cheeks.

[color=red]”For what it is worth, I think what you wished for is admirable and it is still possible.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"...Thanks,"[/b][/color] she replied, but her downcast eyes told all. She didn’t really believe that.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Or it would be if we hadn’t fucked up, Ember! What the hell!”[/color] Hotaru leaned forward as she almost shouted it at the top of her lungs. [color=#D8CD9F]”This… what’s so good about that… that light asshole, anyways? She doesn’t belong and I don’t like her one bit! So why do you two like her so much?!”[/color] Frustrated tears were starting to appear in the corner of Hotaru’s eyes.

[color=#D8CD9F]”It’s… it’s unfair, that’s what it is! You two never think of me!”[/color]

Kiyo's eyes narrowed somewhat sternly, in that way they did when she acted as the third-in-command (unofficial) of the Detention Club. [color=firebrick][b]"Enough. You know that's not true. Those nights that we got up to trouble together were the best. You made me feel like I could really have fun being 'bad.' Both of you—all [i]three[/i] of you must have realized you were my favorite 'Shuuko,' even if I tried to hide my bias."[/b][/color] She shot Ember a sidelong glance and a patient smile. [color=firebrick][b]"...No offense to this High Priestess."[/b][/color] It was true. When Shuuko was being "good girl Shuuko," Kiyo was always egging her on to let her hair down and have more 'fun.' Conveniently, her omnipresent eyes would make themselves scarce when needed, too.

[color=red]”None taken at all, Kuroki-san.”[/color] Ember meant it, too. She did not want to be the first in anyone’s heart, because such roles were reserved for the others.

[color=firebrick][b]"Hotaru."[/b][/color] Kiyo spoke her name softly, approaching. [color=firebrick][b]"Have you noticed? The GEMs haven't made a move against us in a while. They haven't blamed us for what Michi did or used it as an excuse to attack us again."[/b][/color] She sat on the floor next to where Hotaru was seated, so that she looked up at Hotaru instead of down, as if she were judge. [color=firebrick][b]"I asked Hizuki if she could get them to back off. She took on personal risk to make it happen. She [i]cares[/i] whether we live or die, Sh—Hotaru. How long has it been since anyone outside the Club cared about us at all?"[/b][/color] She found an interesting spot on the floor to stare at. [color=firebrick][b]"I'm sorry Michi didn't work out, but Hizuki has done nothing but help. Roche and Rei don't blame her for this, either. If you don't trust my judgment anymore... at least trust them. Please."[/b][/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”And it’s all a lie, Kiyo!”[/color] Hotaru seized Kiyo’s hands, leaning forward. Their noses almost met, the desperation clearly visible on the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior’s[/color] face as she tried her damndest to convince someone dear to her.

[color=#D8CD9F]”She’s their spy! How else could they have hit our clubroom? They only agreed to back off because they’re waiting around the corner to stick their spears up our asses! They… they… None of them can be trusted, Kiyo. Both Rei, Roche and you are all wrong.”[/color] Her knuckles started to turn white. She did not even realise that her desperate, terrified hold could be hurting Kiyo.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Please, believe me, Kiyo. You… she doesn’t care! Because every light girl is a filthy fucking two-faced liar who lies for breakfast, lunch and dinner! Please! You… you can’t do this to the club! We’ll have to be on the run again!”[/color]

[color=red]”Not every light gi-”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”Shut up, Ember! This isn’t about you! You can’t be saved anyways!”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"Uh... huh."[/b][/color] Kiyo could see the desperation on Hotaru's face. Her own desperation mostly manifested as a look of tired impatience. [color=firebrick][b]"I suppose that's why they're attacking us right now, while we're all weakened from fighting Michi. . .   ...They aren't, though,"[/b][/color] she added, as though that would help.

Her sarcasm wasn't going to assist, though. She knew better. [color=firebrick][b]"Can we... unpack your unconditional hatred of light girls, or something? I know I've trauma dumped on you about one of my old comrades banging my ex while we were still [i]supposedly[/i] going out. At least once."[/b][/color] She said it so easily, like she was totally over it, but most people did not simply 'get over' a betrayal of such magnitude. Perhaps that was why Hotaru found it so unbelievable that she would ever show her favor to a light girl. [color=firebrick][b]"Something like that happen to you?"[/b][/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”You… you don't understand.”[/color] Hotaru's hand dropped and she collapsed backwards, looking as though she had been struck by a whip. Her face spoke volumes about the shock, which had driven that pain even deeper inside of her. She became pale as a ghost, the colour leaving her as she realised that the one she trusted the most had a knife aimed straight at her heart. And it happened for the second time in her life. Maybe the third, if she counted before they became Takae Shuuko.

[color=red]”She doesn’t understand because she doesn't know our circumstances, Hotaru-san.”[/color] Ember spoke up. Her voice remained calm, but compassionate as she stepped closer to the two other girls. [color=red]”Kuroki-san has not even the faintest clue about how much we have suffered or why your anger burns so bright.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”You know and you still take [b]their[/b] side!”[/color] Hotaru snapped at Ember, desperation evident in her voice. [color=#D8CD9F]”Why can’t either of you understand?!”[/color]

[color=red]”Kuroki-san can’t even start to understand if you don’t tell her and I find myself reluctant to speak of a story that is so dear to you.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”It doesn’t matter, does it? Listening to how shitty light girls are won’t change your mind.”[/color] By now, life had drained out of Hotaru. She felt as though the walls were closing in on her, leaving but one option: To run away like before. To break free of the Detention Club along with everyone who wanted to hurt them from behind a facade of kindness.

Kiyo continued to look away from Hotaru, as if she were suddenly very interested in Ember's shoes. She could easily imagine the kind of face Hotaru was making. She could just as easily imagine her bouncing back like nothing even happened, if she were just willing to concede and call Haruna a bitch, and promise some token attempt to 'relay her concerns' to Rei of whatever supposed danger she posed. It used to feel so easy, talking out of both sides of her mouth, acting as the mediator, somehow letting both of her arguing friends feel justified, yet willing to apologize. For someone so obsessed with Truth, she sure was willing to play the sole arbiter of whatever the 'Truth' was and get her friends to agree to her version of it, if it would keep the peace. Imagining herself doing that now... made her want to vomit.

[color=firebrick][b]"You're right. It probably won't,"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied with a chilly calmness in her voice. Ember watched as she stood up, returning Hotaru's juvenile tantrum with her own version of childish behavior. [color=firebrick][b]"Help yourself to the bento in the fridge. When you're ready to talk, I'll listen. Until then, I'm heading out."[/b][/color] Having said that, she walked to her room, which had all its lights off as usual.

Hotaru remained on the chair, her collapsed posture mirroring her world-view. Everything slipped from her hands from her relationship with her comrades to her friendship with Kiyo. She had also failed to stand her ground as the[color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] within that nightmare and… was that really the light girl's fault?

She had no idea. So she kept staring in front of herself, hoping the answer would materialise.

Ember, however, waited for a moment or two before she followed after Kiyo and knocked on the door frame.

[color=red]”Would it be permissible for me to come in, Kuroki-san?”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"Mm."[/b][/color] Kiyo responded in the affirmative. She hadn't bothered to lock the door, since she didn't plan on staying there long. It wouldn't be the first time 'Shuuko' had seen her indecent, either, but she was almost fully dressed in her usual biker getup by the time Ember came inside. There was, of course, no bike to be ridden, but she relished each chance she got to wear anything other than her school uniform. Rather than push by Ember once she was finished, though, she sat on the edge of her bed and waited, as though expecting a lecture. [color=firebrick][b]"Is this the kind of conversation we can have outside? I'd rather walk and talk if we can."[/b][/color] Like Roche, staying busy was something Kiyo did when she was stressed.

[color=red]”If you do not want to talk about subjects which are better off unheard by the ears of bystanders, sure.”[/color] Ember allowed herself a small smile. [color=red]”Maybe we could even look for that bike I promised you, Kuroki-san, though I confess that as the responsible and caring high priestess,”[/color] her smile stretched a little wider to sell the joke, [color=red]”I will have to warn you away from committing crimes for money.”[/color] She let the joke sit for a second. 

[color=firebrick][b]"I make my money in [i]honest[/i] competition!"[/b][/color] Kiyo objected, feigning offense. [color=firebrick][b]"The law against doing it at 'my age' is [i]stupid,"[/i][/b][/color] she grumbled, with a bit more honest petulance. Once she saw that no lecture was coming, she made her way to the front door to retrieve her boots. Ember followed Kiyo outside, leaving the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] behind to sit with her demons.

The [color=red]schemer[/color] let the two of them walk for a few minutes before she spoke again.

[color=red]”Kuroki-san. Please be honest with me. Are you really all right?”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"No,"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied flatly. [color=firebrick][b]"My project deadline is crushing, my best friend is suffocating, Haruna is in the hospital—that's where I'm going—and I worry that Hotaru might get angry enough to [i]actually[/i] kill her if she finds out I've been visiting every day."[/b][/color] She bit her lip. [color=firebrick][b]"Then there's the [i]one year[/i] deadline,"[/b][/color] she emphasized, so Ember would catch that she was talking about Ashbringer. [color=firebrick][b]"We handed our opponent a new team member with intel on [i]our[/i] team comp on a silver platter, we're not strong enough, and if what that other girl said was true, we never [i]will[/i] be, unless we get out from under the shadow of our MVP. And my [i]mom[/i]—"[/b][/color] She halted. Perhaps she hadn't meant to let that one slip out.

[color=firebrick][b]"Ember..."[/b][/color] Her breath hitched. [color=firebrick][b]"I know Hotaru thinks highly of me. Sometimes, it feels like she [i]worships[/i] me. I just... need her to understand that 'the observer of the heavens' is just another girl trying her best with her best guess. And my best... doesn't seem to be enough, these days. ...I don't know what to do."[/b][/color] Kiyo closed her eyes, and it seemed like she might cry, but she never did—not unless there were Miseria to slay, and Sorrows that needed summoning.

Something was left unsaid. Whether Kiyo did not want to share it with the ‘high priestess’ or if it was perhaps too much to bear at once, Ember noted it along with the crushing weight that settled onto Kiyo’s shoulders. Like with Ryoba, her care both for the Detention Club and Hotaru meant she shouldered so much… that the [color=red]schemer[/color] had been turning a blind eye to. She may have hidden it behind grand conspiracies or grandiose words, but Kiyo was just as vulnerable as any one of them. Her attitude just made it more convenient to forget about that.


A pang echoed in Ember's chest. Could she even extend a helping hand here, when Hotaru rebuffed both of them? What would the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] think when she was left alone, subject only to what she faced as hatred, just like [I]that time?[/I]

[color=red]”I wish I could claim you are wrong to worry or that I have a solution in my hand. A key that would open the gateway that seals away the heart of Hotaru-san. Or one that lifts this mantle from your shoulders. However…”[/color] Ember’s voice grew heavy. She let some of her frustration with Hotaru bubble up into her voice. [color=red]”She thinks me an enemy just because I side with someone whom she believes to be one.”[/color]

[color=red]”It is her story to tell, but they have not treated her kindly at all. All I can do is accompany you.”[/color] She had believed this talk would alleviate the issue, even if it did not outright fix it. Instead…

[color=red]”I am sorry, Kuroki-san.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"I suppose she'll think of me as an enemy, too?"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied, feeling the beginnings of resentment trying to simmer in the pit of her stomach like the base of a witch's brew. Why was she being forced to choose between two people that she cared about—or perhaps three, if Ember really was an "enemy" of Hotaru—for reasons she could not know, and nobody would tell her? This was why, she reasoned, that dark magical girls had to be stronger than their base forms. Positive feelings were always frail and fleeting, and any kindness shown to others for the sake of building one's own power was no true kindness at all. A grudge was so much stronger, killing miseria was so much easier—and a true service to the public, one thanklessly done behind the veil. Sometimes it seemed that light girls only bothered to kill them so the dark girls couldn't get to them first. Truly, it wasn't as if Kiyo didn't understand Hotaru's hatred, but Haruna had proven herself to be more than Evil Eye's go-to words like "useful" and "gullible." She was earnest, caring, and just [i]better[/i] than any other light girls she'd known. Maybe Boleite was cool too, but she was still very much an enigma.

Kiyo had seen both the light and the dark, but in the end she had only replaced one group of allies with another, and one lie with an equal but opposite farce. [color=firebrick]"I guess this is what I get for pretending to be something I'm not. I've been doing that a lot longer than three years."[/color] The words on her lips dripped with self-contempt. [color=firebrick][b]"I wanted to take her to see my hometown, but I guess that's off the table if Haruna is going with me. ...What a pain."[/b][/color]

[color=red]”I don't know if she will view you like that, Kuroki-san. I truly do not.”[/color] The bitterness in Ember's voice was unmistakable. Before the conflict around Haruna and Sylvia, she would have been able to predict Hotaru's actions, yet the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] had become so hostile to her. She could understand why. She just did not understand the depth of the grudge.

[color=red]”She believes that light girls are two-faced liars who are only pretending to help. She might convince herself that you are only a victim of their elaborate machinations if she wants to keep being with you.”[/color] She too, started to feel a tightness in her throat. A desire to cast off these shackles that were imposed on her by the wills of others, chief amongst them… what she really did not want to think about. Chiaki. She did not know how she could even bring that up.

[color=red]”And as you said, Ashbringer is looming over us, stacking the deck higher than ever. Right now, we should stand more united than ever and yet the seeds of conflict Michi intended to sow have not even bloomed fully. You- we have lost so much.”[/color] Once again, she looked into the distance, where the ruins of the school were. Countless nights without sleep, rest or even the basest of certainties floated to the surface of her memories in response; the harsh reality of survival without a home.

A dreadful thought surfaced in Ember's mind. It would be one way of treating the problem, yet…

[color=red]”Kuroki-san. How cruel do you think you can be to your best friend?”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"...About this much?"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied weakly, referring to her walking out on their conversation, uncertain what Ember was getting at.

[color=red]”Then consider anything I may have said to be null and void. Even for the High Priestess, there are threads of fate she should not pull on, not even when the Observer of the Heavens is by her side, helping her navigate the celestial realm.”[/color] Ember replied with mock cheer in her voice before she dropped her obviously fake smile.

[color=red]”Kuroki-san, this really can not go on like this, can it? Hotaru-san needs to yield. And we have to face cruel reality.”[/color]

[color=red]”We can not defend our home. We can not even start to realise your wish.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"Well, something needs to change, yes. How is being mean to Hotaru supposed to help, though?"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied, turning a corner to a nearby convenience store. [color=firebrick][b]"And what do you mean, my wish?"[/b][/color] she asked, her face blank with confusion.

Ember's eyes widened slightly.

[color=red]”Our haven. The home for dark girls which breaks their fall.”[/color] It looked like it was much closer before, when the threat of Ashbringer seemed a distant calamity, along with her underlings. But with Michi’s act of havoc and the attack of light girls on the club…

[color=red]”It's as far as the moon right now, isn't it?”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"Oh,"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied dully, as if this wish of hers didn't really matter after all, even though it had seemed important to her before—as recently as a moment ago, in fact. She entered the convenience store without further comment on the matter. [color=firebrick][b]"The moon might be closer, seeing how it's at least visible most nights,"[/b][/color] she joked dryly, grabbing a bento from the wall of refrigerators.

Curiously, Ember followed her inside the store, stopping beside her.

[color=red]”I am sorry to interrupt, Kuroki-san. Is there something here that Maeda-san would like? I do not want to visit her without at least a meagre offering.”[/color]

Kiyo faltered in her quick steps, taking a look around the store. It occurred to her rather suddenly that she didn't actually know much about Haruna's likes and dislikes—and that she would probably accept the latter and eat it with a smile, anyway. Much like Kiyo right before a deadline, she seemed the type to eat instant noodles, but that didn't mean she [i]liked[/i] them, per se. A convenience store bento wasn't as good as the homemade one she left in the fridge, but it was a step up from instant noodles, at least.

[color=firebrick][b]"Uh,"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied haltingly. Her eyes passed over all of the 'healthy' ‘protein’ snacks that were quite indistinguishable from candy (and potato chips, for some reason?), and rested on a colorful variety pack of hard candies. Surely, there was at least one flavor in there Haruna would like. She and Ember would be out of the hospital before she'd be left with the ones she didn't like, so she wouldn't have to eat them if she didn't want to. It was a 'safe' option: her 'best guess.' It wasn't good enough, but maybe just for today... [color=firebrick][b]"Here."[/b][/color] She gave Ember the bento and kept the bag of mixed sugary goodies for herself. [color=firebrick][b]"Problem solved."[/b][/color]

Ember gave her a genuine smile. Like Kiyo's expression showed, it would have to be good enough and over time, they could learn more of the light girl's preferences. Especially given that Hotaru was now out of the picture, Ember would have some time to spend with their one and only light girl.

[color=red]”Thank you.”[/color] Ember replied with a genuine smile.

Kiyo paid with a credit card without thinking about it, and left. It was a moment later that she spoke again. [color=firebrick][b]"You make that 'wish' of mine sound really noble—but really, I'm just addicted to the feeling of having others relying on me. That's why I said Haruna and I are so similar. It's amazing that Hotaru still doesn't see it, but an outsider to the Club spotted it no problem,"[/b][/color] she scoffed.

[color=red]”Do you really believe she is as selfish as the rest of us, Kuroki-san? After all, she still had not started darkness in the face yet and I do remember the earliest days of being a light magical girl myself.”[/color] Ember’s comments came across as casual, though she did have a point. [color=red]”Because I… have started to believe assumptions are dangerous. And so far everything that happened only reinforced this fact.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"N-No. I'm not saying Haruna is selfish,"[/b][/color] Kiyo quickly corrected. [color=firebrick][b]"But I know myself, and I know the path I went down, and if nothing changes, Haruna will probably follow in my footsteps. Someone will use her until she has nothing left to give, and she'll fall into despair. That's what—"[/b][/color] she was afraid of? What she was hoping for? She still didn't know. [color=firebrick][b]"—will probably happen."[/b][/color]

The hospital loomed at the end of the block, like a courthouse. After her argument with Hotaru, it had become the sort of building that made Kiyo feel unwelcome and watched, as if all of the people outside were casting preemptive judgment on all who had business within. Why did Hotaru's feelings have to make [i]her[/i] feel like she was doing something wrong? Could it be that she was? Friends visited friends in the hospital, but was she doing this because it was the 'right' thing to do, or because she wanted to endear herself to someone she wanted to keep in her life, for her own selfish reasons? She realized that she was spacing out, and suddenly felt exposed, as if the High Priestess could read her mind just as well as Haruna, and this caused her to subtly pick up her pace.

[color=red]”Then would it not be the job of the Detention Club’s big sister to ensure she never knows the pain of being broken and shattered?”[/color] Ember reached for Kiyo with her free hand and turned her around so they faced each other. [color=red]”You chose to forget that I have watched you for hundreds upon hundreds of hours, Kuroki-san, so I am very much aware that you are choosing to keep something for yourself regarding Maeda-san.”[/color] Blue eyes met red ones, a clear sky reflecting a murky lake of blood.

[color=red]”I… will not force your hand to reveal it. Not unless you wish to, Kuroki-san. However, I do see that it pains you to no end.”[/color] Ember let go of Kiyo, then let out an explosive sigh. Her voice turned remorseful as she realised she may have overstepped. [color=red]”I am… sorry if I scared you. I should not have manhandled you like that.”[/color]

Kiyo met Ember's gaze guiltily, like a child caught with her hand in the cookie jar. [color=firebrick][b]"I... I don't know what I want,"[/b][/color] she replied, averting her eyes hastily. [color=firebrick][b]"She's... suffered more than me, yet she still clings to light. I have to know why—and how. Maybe then... I'll have my answers."[/b][/color] She turned and began walking again.

[color=red]”Then let’s try to figure out what you really wish for, Kuroki-san. Perhaps the beliefs you hold to no longer hold ground. I am very familiar with that feeling myself, for once, I have readily subjected myself to the whims of gods,”[/color] a bitter frown appeared on Ember’s face, [color=red]”only to discover the ones I have served stand against those I wish to keep away from harm at all costs.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"How can someone... raised to serve others, know what she wants?"[/b][/color] Kiyo asked out loud, to seemingly no one in particular. [color=firebrick][b]"What if what you want is for someone else to be happy, but that person doesn't [i]want[/i] to be happy? What would you do then?"[/b][/color] she asked, more directly to Ember, pulling her biker’s jacket tighter around herself. If her beliefs about light and dark didn’t hold true anymore… she didn’t want to think of it.

[color=red]”Truthfully, it is the longest and most difficult process of them all. To know oneself is to not be in the service of others, yet can we say what we do for ourselves is not also in service of others?”[/color] Ember looked into the distance as she considered her own words and the situation of Takae Shuuko, especially Sylvia. [color=red]”I would ask such a person why they wanted to be unhappy and why they think that their own happiness is not important. And I would listen to what they say, no matter how strange it sounded to my ears. It is the only way you can even try to change their mind, if that is what you truly want to do. It is a most difficult question… Do you believe it has any relevance in our club?”[/color]

Kiyo appeared to be deep in thought for a moment before she replied. [color=firebrick][b]"No. Nothing to do with the Club. It was a selfish question. I thought if I asked one, it might help me understand something."[/b][/color] With that, she approached the doors of the hospital, and entering the company of strangers typically meant she was done with these kinds of personal conversations. When she crossed that threshold, it was like a declaration that she would make no further comment regarding her elusive train of thought. If it truly had nothing to do with the Club, then perhaps it was about Kiyo's family—a topic that was usually off-limits, even for Shuuko.

Haruna's room was only on the second floor, but it was far enough down the hallway that the elevator was still faster than the stairs. Approaching the hospital had seemed an emotionally burdensome task earlier, but by the time their elevator reached its destination, the pall over Kiyo's mood seemed all but gone, save a sliver of uncertainty as she knocked quietly on the door of room 224. There was always the chance that Haruna might have been sleeping.

[color=fff79a]"Come in,”[/color] a familiar voice from within called, carefully pitched to avoid disturbing any of the other denizens of the ward. On entering, the two saw Haruna, who probably looked healthier than any other time they’d met her, if only because the bags under her eyes were blessedly absent. Her expression brightened when she laid eyes on Kiyo, then colored somewhat with a measure of uncertainty when she was followed by another. [color=fff79a]"Shuuko?”[/color] The name carried with it more than one question.

[color=firebrick][b]"Yeah,"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied, also looking rather pleased to see Haruna's brightened face. [color=firebrick][b]"She was just catching me up on some stuff, so I told her to come with. I hope that's okay."[/b][/color] She glanced between the two, a few questions in her own eyes as well; namely, how much Ember wanted Haruna to know, and whether or not these two were going to be cool with each other.

The Takae Shuuko before Haruna resembled the two she has met, but upon a closer inspection, there were some differences. Firstly, her back was straight and she held herself with confidence, unlike Sylvia, without a trace of the playfulness Haruna saw when she first met Takae Shuuko. Secondly, this one’s hairtips had been dyed red, not to mention the blue eye colour definitely did not match. Further differences in mannerisms presented themselves as Ember approached the bed with a gentle smile.

[color=red]”How are you feeling, Maeda-san?”[/color]

[color=fff79a]"Restless, mostly. I think I’m getting out soon, partially because the doctors can’t really diagnose ‘magical burnout,’ I think. But I feel better,”[/color] she adds after a moment, realizing her initial statement was less than reassuring. [color=fff79a]"I wasn’t really expecting a visit from you, honestly. You seemed like you had a lot of stuff to deal with.”[/color] She spoke a bit slowly, continuing to be unsure of how, exactly, to approach Shuuko. Evidently, after a moment, Haruna chose an approach, as she gave voice to her questions (in a way.) [color=fff79a]"You, uh, look different.”[/color]

[color=red]”It seemed appropriate to signal to you that there has been a change of perspective regarding your… treatment.”[/color] Ember looked remorseful as she spoke, averting her eyes for a split second before she refocused back on Haruna. [color=red]”I must admit that I do not have the best of experiences with light girls and…”[/color] She paused. Sighed. For a moment, her shoulders seemed like she carried an entire world on them.

[color=red]”I… I am sorry. I do not want to lie to you, but I also do not want to burden you.”[/color] She looked back at Kiyo for a moment, almost as though she sought the all-seeing eye’s permission. [color=red]”There is something important that I want to tell you, but I am not sure if it would be too much for you to bear. I am sorry, Maeda-san.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"Isn't she going to find out eventually? I just didn't want to pre-empt you,"[/b][/color] Kiyo offered in reply to Ember.

[color=fff79a]"It’s probably not anything worse than what’s already going on.”[/color] Haruna gave a meaningful glance to Kiyo as she said this. [color=fff79a]"Plus, if it’s about you. . . I’ve already got a decent idea of what might be going on, but it would be nice to hear it outright. I don’t really want to pull people’s secrets out of their heads without permission.”[/color]

Filing away that notion for later, Ember broke the ‘news’ without mercy.

[color=red]”There is more than one Takae Shuuko, in a manner of speaking. It is a long story that is not wholly mine to tell, but…”[/color] Her voice became sorrowful as she spoke, her eyes fluttering closed. [color=red]”There used to be a young girl who dreamed of saving the world. But alas, she wished for far too much and her tiny shoulders could no longer support the weight. So, that one girl - she chose to become three to bear the burden.”[/color] Even though she only summarised the story, it was clear to everyone that Ember struggled with her past. Her words radiated myriad emotions; hurt, confusion, pain, betrayal and more. Her voice shook as she spoke.

[color=red]”Now the one that stands before you calls herself Takae Shuuko Ember. And the others are Hotaru and Sylvia. I think you have met them already.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b][i]Shuuko wished for something pretty crazy, huh,[/i][/b][/color] Kiyo thought. Was that why Hotaru needed things to be so black and white? She was the hero, and light girls were bad? She decided not to comment on it, for now.

Haruna nodded. [color=fff79a]"Thank you for telling me. If you need to talk about it. . . I know people don’t always trust me, but I can do my best to be sympathetic if you get past that.”[/color] She shrugged, the gesture seeming a bit self-depreciating. [color=fff79a]"Hotaru, Sylvia, and Ember, huh. . .”[/color] Haruna paused for a moment, thinking. [color=fff79a]"So. . . you visited at me at my house, I think?”[/color] That didn’t sound right, but that was her best guess. [color=fff79a]"And either Hotaru or Sylvia is the one who tried to attack me, and the other one is who I met on my jog.”[/color] She decided not to detail that meeting, for the sake of not unveiling private information. (She also wasn’t sure if it should be private if it was technically the same person, but she erred on the side of caution.) [color=fff79a]"Is that right?”[/color]

Ember hid it well, but Haruna’s revelation struck her with the force of a freight train. It confirmed the suspicions she had been harbouring since her talk with Ryoba: that there was a fourth one who was active. But they had decided to put Chiaki to sleep a long time ago, so who could it really be? There was no activity from that part of their soul and Ember would know, for she sensed everyone at all times. The whole thing sent her reeling, yet the only thing she let show on her face was slight surprise.

[color=red]”The one who attacked you is called Hotaru and the one whom you tried your best to console is Sylvia. She is really hurt at the moment, so she can not talk with you and I would rather not risk Hotaru doing anything to you.”[/color] She put on a mask of fake confidence, aiming for a reassuring tone as she spoke with Haruna.

[color=red]”I am here to apologise in both of their steads and to see if I can make your day a little better.”[/color]

Haruna shook her head. [color=fff79a]"I’ll be okay, but I appreciate the apology. From Hotaru, anyway; I don’t really think Sylvia needs to be sorry. She does too much of that, as far as I can tell.”[/color] She frowned; Ember’s step around the question was jarring. [color=fff79a]"I want to try to talk to Hotaru when I’m out of here, too. I don’t know what happened to make her hate light girls, but I can at least try to work something out so she doesn’t hate me enough to disrupt the Club.”[/color] The frown remained as she spoke. 

Kiyo scratched at the back of her neck sheepishly. [color=firebrick][b]"I uh, overslept a bit. So it's convenience store food today."[/b][/color] She laid her offering of fruit candies on the side table. [color=firebrick][b]"I'm... not sure we can reason with Hotaru. I kind of... tried that. Multiple times."[/b][/color] She frowned, not meeting Haruna or Ember's eyes directly. 

After a brief moment of silence, Haruna shook her head. [color=fff79a]"Sorry, but, uh. . . you didn’t actually say that you were the one that met me. You sounded surprised.”[/color] She let the statement hang, seeing how Ember would respond.


Seeing that Haruna picked up on her deception, Ember changed her approach and shook her head to show regret.

[color=red]”I am afraid that you have been deceived, Maeda-san. I have not visited you before, so it must have been someone who used my likeness to get close to you. I am sorry.”[/color] Ember held her voice steady even as in the background, she tried to figure out how it could be possible that there was another not even she could see.


[color=firebrick][b]"Ember, is it even... [i]slightly[/i] possible that there may be a fourth Shuuko neither of us knew about?"[/b][/color] Kiyo replied, her eyes begging for it to be true. [color=firebrick][b]"That would be far preferable to having a doppelganger running around Hibusa town, on top of everything else."[/b][/color]

[color=fff79a]"It’d be pretty bad if that were the case, yeah.”[/color] Haruna nodded her agreement with Kiyo. [color=fff79a]"It was a little strange, since I only read one set of desires from her, but now the same thing’s happening with you, so. . .”[/color]

The [color=red]schemer's[/color] eyes narrowed slightly as the two came closer to discovering the truth.

[color=red]”While it may sound like the superior and less concerning solution to the problem,”[/color] she let slight displeasure colour her voice, [color=red]”it would be akin to saying that a stranger has moved into our home with Kuroki-san and neither of us have discovered any signs of their existence. Even if I were so blind, deaf and clueless, I know that Kuroki-san is far too observant to let that slip by.”[/color]

Kiyo scoffed lightly. [color=firebrick][b]"Right. Me, who didn't even notice Sylvia suffering in silence,"[/b][/color] she responded with a toothless sarcasm. She had picked up enough of the pieces to know that Ember was lying. The weight of Shuuko's wish had broken her—[i]shattered[/i]—her. If Ember could brag that she had observed Evil Eye for hundreds of hours, there was something to be said for how many times Evil Eye had observed her own distorted doppelganger in that shattered mirror, reflecting upon the cold reality that her best friend had been permanently scarred and there was little to be done to make it right—except, perhaps, to become the kind of person Shuuko could show her 'true self' to, whichever personality that may have been—but she had failed to do even that much.

The three equal pieces of the mirror mocked her in hindsight with their obviousness. The fourth piece of that mirror—small and off-color, its distinction from the other three practically shouting its significance from the rooftops—stuck in her craw, like a cracked shell stuck painfully between her teeth; but no matter how much it hurt, she kept her mouth steadfastly shut. Keeping the peace with the one Shuuko that had her back was more important than dispelling the lie; maintaining order in the Club was paramount.

Haruna could hear the white noise coming from Kiyo again, drowning out her desires. It was so loud this time that it almost seemed to have a voice of its own.

[sup][sup][sup][color=dimgray]Just do your duty.[/color][/sup][/sup][/sup]

The light girl looked between the two, then sighed. Ember was digging her heels in far too hard for this to be incorrect. There was a fourth Shuuko, almost certainly. Kiyo was getting more stressed by the moment, and was abusing herself once more. This whole interaction almost hurt to be a part of, and it seemed that Ember wasn’t going to relent and trust the others. Trust Haruna. [color=fff79a]". . . If there is a doppelganger running around, Kiyo will find her,”[/color] she said eventually, deciding to join Ember in dodging the issue. The deceptive Shuuko would have to come to her own conclusion on when to confront this fact, evidently.

They did not believe her. Not a single bit. She would have to talk with Kiyo about supporting her on this, but for now, there was nothing the [color=red]schemer[/color] could do besides leaving it to think and address later on. If it could even be addressed.

[color=red]”Please let me know if any one of you see her,”[/color] she added before she let out a breath, then retrieved the bento with a troubled smile. [color=red]”I did say that I wanted to make your day be-[/color]

Her face fell without warning. Clouds gathered on her forehead and she looked into the distance for a second or two before her gaze returned to the present.

[color=red]”Hotaru-san just informed me that she wants to talk to all of us. She specifically promised not to hurt Maeda-san.”[/color] As if having to deal with the unknown Shuuko and the fallout of her existence was not enough. Not that Ember let it show in her voice. [color=red]”I leave the choice to the two of you. I do not want to bring her in if you do not feel safe.”[/color]

She meant it, too. She did not know if she could trust Hotaru's word when it came to light girls.

[color=fff79a]“I can mind myself, but if things go wrong, I can trust you and Kiyo to help.”[/color] Haruna nodded. [color=fff79a]“Having a chance to talk to her would definitely make my day better. Even if it goes poorly, that just means I don’t have to worry about smoothing things over with her any more.”[/color]

Haruna's response teased a smile from Kiyo. [color=firebrick][b]"If the confrontation is inevitable, why put it off, huh?"[/b][/color] She shrugged. [color=firebrick][b]"I just hope she's willing to finally tell me what this is all about."[/b][/color]

[color=red]”Unfortunately, I can make no guarantees on her behavior.”[/color] Ember made sure to really sell the bitterness in her voice before she called upon her magic, which manifested as the illusion of red-hot cinders appearing around her. The air seemed to billow, yet neither Haruna, nor Kiyo could feel heat coming from the woman. At least, not the usual kind. Their magical senses could pick up on Ember reaching for something, which was followed by the sensation of two hands joining one another.

A streak of [color=#D8CD9F]yellowish[/color] light followed, which then formed into a new Takae Shuuko by the side of Ember. This one had the normal features, save for the yellow-coloured eyes, which glared death at Haruna. The gaze of the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] was followed by her fingers along with a teeth-shattering grimace.

[color=#D8CD9F]”So what’s so good about her that you’re willing to throw me to the wolves, Kiyo?”[/color] Her tone all but demanded confrontation and Ember had to hold back her response. She wanted nothing more than to interrupt, to put down Hotaru for her rude tone. She held back only for the sake of everyone else in the room.

[color=firebrick][b]"I'm [i]not[/i] throwing you to the wolves. I'm waiting for you to calm down and talk to me."[/b][/color] Kiyo replied, holding back a heaviness to the sigh that followed. [color=firebrick][b]"I've said my piece. What I need to hear from you is a [i]real[/i] reason for your hatred."[/b][/color]

Ember wasn’t the only one forcing herself to stay quiet. Haruna visibly bit back her own retort, not wanting to rise to Hotaru’s provocation in any number of ways that came to mind. Instead, she took a breath, then added to Kiyo’s comment. [color=fff79a]“Nobody knows why you have it out for light girls, Hotaru. We can’t exactly do anything to address things if you won’t say anything.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”That’s exactly what you’re doing.”[/color] Hotaru insisted through clenched teeth. [color=#D8CD9F]”Look at her, she’s so sparkly and pretty! Her words are pretty too! It’s too bad they’re shitty lies.”[/color] She withdrew her hand and smacked her fist into an open palm. [color=#D8CD9F]”She’ll just sit there, prettily, watching as we all bust our asses.”[/color] Pain, though difficult to hear, lurked beneath the anger when Hotaru spoke. She paused only for a brief moment to gather her breath, then turned to Kiyo.

[color=#D8CD9F]”And you! I thought you cared!”[/color] Her voice grew shaky, bitter. Betrayed [color=#D8CD9F]”But you… why? Just because she’s…”[/color] Hotaru choked, but she did not let any tears fall. Instead, she drew herself taller and her hands balled into fists by her side.

[color=red]”Hotaru-san. I have lived the very same thing you did and…”[/color] One last time, Ember told herself. She will reach out one last time before she tried to do something drastic. [color=red]”You aren’t wrong about those girls. They didn’t help.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"God, just..."[/b][/color] Kiyo pinched the bridge of her nose, frustrated. [color=firebrick][b]"I'm no stranger to useless light girls, Hotaru. I know the sort you're talking about, but Haruna's running herself more ragged than half the Club by herself. What you're saying isn't even making sense. It's like you're looking at an entirely different person."[/b][/color] Kiyo also wasn't sure what Haruna being 'pretty' had to do with anything, either, but she wasn't going to confirm or deny the allegations when it would only add fuel to the fire regardless of her answer.

[color=fff79a]“Don’t talk about me like I’m not right here,”[/color] Haruna said, a flash of irritation slipping through. [color=fff79a]“I don’t know if you noticed, but this is a hospital. I almost killed myself fighting Black Gate to give all of you a shot at that giga miseria.”[/color] She paused for a moment, and almost seemed like that was all she was going to say, but something shifted in her expression. [color=fff79a]“I’m not going to sit here and let you talk about me like I’m garbage. I don’t know what else you need from me. I’ve done my best to reach out to the Club. I’ve helped you guys out where I could. I literally overlooked you, specifically, trying to kill me, and got over it when I had to deal with Suki doing the same thing. I get that some fucked up things have happened to you. I know that’s true of literally everyone in the club. I’m also getting the impression a lot of it was at the hands of light girls. I can apologize on their behalf, I can try to be better than them, but I can’t go to the past and undo that. More importantly, [i]I’m not them.[/i] If you’re going to hate me, hate me for something about me, not because of something someone else did to you.”[/color] Her tone stayed firm throughout; if anything, she seemed less angry than when she’d begun.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Bullshit. You're just saving the worst for later, when we can get utterly screwed by it.”[/color] The warrior scowled and crossed her arms. [color=#D8CD9F]”And stop trying to look down on me. I'm not an idiot. You've deser-”[/color]

[color=red]”Do you never want to be able to go outside again, Hotaru-san?”[/color] Ember’s cold question sliced through the warrior's words like a hot knife through butter. [color=red]”Because if you continue to not listen to what Kuroki-san and Maeda-san are saying, I will find a way to stop you from surfacing ever again. Even if it means hurting Kuroki-san.”[/color] She nodded towards Kiyo in an acknowledgement of how much she did not want that to happen, but at this point, she felt like they were running out of options. Hotaru insulting everyone in the room would never end well.

[color=#D8CD9F]”You’re sticking up for her again!”[/color] Hotaru's retort sounded like an accusation in court.

[color=red]”Because you are making it exceptionally difficult to speak up on your behalf, Hotaru-san. And you have been exceptionally difficult to speak up for ever since you saw Maeda-san. You refuse to listen to anything that concerns her and more than that, you refuse to acknowledge anything that may point to her being a decent light magical girl.”[/color] Ember turned towards Haruna. [color=red]”Please tell me if she is too much for you to bear, Maeda-san.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”You’re all acting like you don’t know that light girls are only good for stealing boyfriends and betraying you! Especially you, Kiyo. Why do you believe [b]anything[/b] she says, damnit?! Say something that makes sense!”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"Don't shut her out, Ember,"[/b][/color] Kiyo insisted, despite her exasperation. [color=firebrick][b]"Just..."[/b][/color] Just... what, though? She wasn't even sure how she wanted to end that statement. [color=firebrick][b]"[i]God damn[/i], this argument is tedious,"[/b][/color] she said coolly. [color=firebrick][b]"I'm pretty sure I've said everything I want to say, but you keep making me repeat myself, even though you know I hate it. Are you trying to exhaust me into submission like a fucking child?"[/b][/color] She exhaled forcefully. [color=firebrick][b]"You know what? Fool me twice, shame on me. If Haruna stabs me in the back, maybe I deserve it for giving light girls a second chance. Maybe it's not your [i]responsibility[/i] to protect me from myself! Tell me [i]that[/i] doesn't make sense to you,"[/b][/color] she spat, trembling.

Haruna held up a hand, taking a deep breath and attempting to forestall any further vitriol. [color=fff79a]“Hotaru,”[/color] she said firmly. [color=fff79a]“What, [i]exactly,[/i] are you accusing me of? Specifically. What do you think my plan is for the Detention Club?”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”You already did it. You sold us out to the GEMs.”[/color] Hotaru crossed her arms. [color=#D8CD9F]”How the hell else did they know how to find us? And what about that black-haired girl who fucked us up so bad that Sylvia’s-[/color] Her mouth suddenly clacked shut. Her voice had spiked with pain as soon as she mentioned the [color=teal]protector,[/color] changing tracks. [color=#D8CD9F]”She hates me now because of you!”[/color]

[color=red]”She doesn’t hate you. You scare her.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”Except she obviously hates me.”[/color] She sounded genuinely frustrated, sorrowful and angry about it. Her voice trembled and her head fell a little as she spoke, the storm of emotions threatening to boil over into a hurricane.

Kiyo seemed close to snapping herself. [color=firebrick][b]"Oh my [i]God,[/i] Hotaru. I don't know, maybe they followed us from the beach they [i]saw us[/i] destroy? Maybe Haruna went along with my idea, like I already fucking told you?"[/b][/color] Kiyo interjected, unwilling to wait for the light girl to 'incriminate' herself to Hotaru under the guise of taking responsibility for 'her' mistakes. [color=firebrick][b]"Have you already written me off as a lost cause? Is that why [i]nothing[/i] I say matters to you anymore?"[/b][/color]

Haruna took a deep breath. Tensions were running high, and as much as she wanted to call Hotaru a coward who would do anything and everything to make someone else bear the weight of her own problems, that wouldn’t actually help anyone. It wouldn’t even make her feel better for more than two seconds. [color=fff79a]“I’m going to talk as if you’re actually going to listen to anything I say. Okay?”[/color] Her pause for a response was largely theoretical, and she continued. [color=fff79a]“I’ve intentionally had as little to do with the GEMs as I can. I don’t like how they do things. I think they’re self-righteous, and that makes them always assume the first thing they thought to do was the correct thing. In case you forgot, I’ve fought against them directly. “[/color]

[color=fff79a]““Since you don’t know as much about my power as Kiyo does, I’ll explain something to you. I can hear people’s desires. It’s not always very precise, and more importantly, it’s harder to tell with most other magical girls. This means that I can also find other magical girls trivially, even when neither of us is transformed. If I’d wanted to ‘sell you out,’ you would never have met me. I would have just walked past the school, listened for the dark girls, and noted down where you were before leaving and telling the heavy hitters where to go.”[/color]

[color=fff79a]“Because I can hear people’s desires, I can also tell you what’s going on with Sylvia. It’s pretty simple what she wants. She wants all of you to stop hurting her.”[/color] Her gaze flicked over Ember as she spoke, indicating that the schemer was far from clear in this regard as well. [color=fff79a]“She thinks she’s a bad girl, and that’s why she deserves to get hurt, but I don’t think I need to explain everything wrong with that.”[/color] She took another, shorter breath. [color=fff79a]“What I want out of this conversation is for you to look at things reasonably so I don’t have to watch my back while I keep trying to help the club. That’s my goal. So, Hotaru, what exactly do [i]you[/i] want out of this?”[/color]

The [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] looked genuinely hurt, confused when Kiyo snapped back at her, the confusion further intensifying as Haruna continued to talk regardless of what she did. She opened her mouth a couple of times to interrupt, to dispel the trap she felt closing in on all of them, yet Haruna did not let her and for the first time in the conversation, she looked off-balance. Her gaze kept hopping between Kiyo, Ember and Haruna. Her body stiffened. Almost like she had been struck.

What Haruna said was surely impossible. They were not the ones who hurt Sylvia. That dubious ‘honour’ belonged to the old bitch and the old bastard. Sylvia just hated Hotaru. Right? Except, she did remember Sylvia’s tone when she [s]shouted at them[/s] begged them to stop. She remembered the [color=teal]protector’s[/color] voice trembling not with anger, but with fear.

Perhaps it was the relentless barrage of opposition. Perhaps it was the fact Haruna brought up Sylvia as well. Whatever the case, everyone could see that Hotaru was starting to waver.

[color=#D8CD9F]”Why do you think I hurt Sylvia?”[/color] She forced those words through clenched teeth.

[color=red]”She has told you and I countless times, Hotaru-san.”[/color] Ember spoke up with her usual, calm tone. [color=red]”She wanted us to stop shouting, which would not have happened in the first place if you actually listened to what I had to say instead of looking at an illusion in front of you.”[/color] She moved closer to Haruna, regarding the light girl with an appreciative eye.

[color=red]”Look at her, Hotaru. Truly feast your eyes upon her visage. She has risked magic, limbs, heart and soul to save [b]your[/b] Detention Club. [b]Our[/b] Detention Club. The home that Sylvia bled for and suffered on the altar of for years without end. If you choose to still distrust her because of what we lived through back then when we were still within chains… I don’t know what to say to you.”[/color]

[color=#D8CD9F]”But she’s a light girl. Light girls vomit lies and betrayal for breakfast.”[/color] The objection was nearly the same as before, but much weaker. Hotaru was clearly grasping at straws. [color=#D8CD9F]”Hey… Kiyo… am I really, really in the wrong here? I… I don’t understand.”[/color] She truly did not. Confusion had replaced anger. After all, how could she be wrong on something this important? Reality warred with the truth in her heart, fighting about the nature of this one light magical girl in front of her.

[color=red]”You are right and wrong at the same time, Hotaru-san. The light girls we have encountered really have been the worst of the worst.”[/color] Ember did not really think so, but she lied smoothly and poured sympathy into her voice to make Hotaru feel as though she had someone on her side. [color=red]”But Maeda-san is not one of them. That is what I have been trying to tell you for a long time.”[/color]

Kiyo took a deep breath. She couldn't decide if she'd said too much and caused irreparable damage just now, or had minced her words far too much until then. Regardless, she regained her cool tone of voice. [color=firebrick][b]"What's more likely, Hotaru? You're wrong on this, or the entire club and Rei are all wrong and you're right? Two people who happen to know each other both had really shitty light girl experiences in the past, or all light girls everywhere in the world are just [i]like that?[/i] You need to learn some chill, or Sylvia won't want to see you again. Then you'll just be wondering if she hates you forever, when you could just talk to her instead—and that would be even dumber than fighting with your best friend."[/b][/color] She tried not to sound guilty of the same. [color=firebrick][b]"I made a mistake with Michi. I got ahead of myself because we needed more fighters and Haruna worked out really well for us—but I always had good feelings about Haruna. With Michi... there were signs she was... unstable. I just... ignored them. Because I wanted to help her. Just like I try to help the rest of the Club, which includes you—and now it includes Haruna, whether you like her or not."[/b][/color]

Hotaru flinched as something Kiyo said hit the mark, the [color=#D8CD9F]warrior[/color] shaking her head without intending to dismiss anything. If anything, it looked like she was trying to shake something loose or perhaps get rid of a thought stuck in it. A shiver followed suit, of a revulsive kind.

[color=#D8CD9F]”You really do think that. You all think that. I…”[/color] She grit her teeth. She seemed like a lost lamb; almost like she was Sylvia at her lowest. The resemblance caused Ember to let out a barely audible gasp before the illusion shattered when Hotaru smashed a fist into her palm, all the while sucking on her teeth.

[color=#D8CD9F]”I won’t hurt the light girl. Just as I never hurt Sylvia. Damnit.”[/color] Another shiver ran through her. [color=#D8CD9F]”I don’t get any of you. And if I’m right, I’ll be dragged into a mess I can’t even escape because of her,”[/color] Hotaru gestured aggressively towards Ember, her other hand dropping beside her. [color=#D8CD9F]”I can’t leave. I can’t even disagree! Are you guys happy now?”[/color] Her lips turned into a thin line as she shook her head once again. [color=#D8CD9F]”Damnit, damnit, damnit…”[/color]

A deep breath.

[color=#D8CD9F]”And you!”[/color] Her finger turned from Ember to Haruna. [color=#D8CD9F]”I swear that if you betray us, I’ll gut you like a fish.”[/color] The thunder in her eyes showed she took her promise seriously.

[color=fff79a]“Pretty sure you’d have to get in line for it,”[/color] Haruna said with a nod, [color=fff79a]“but I understand. I know my word isn’t worth much, but I’d hope my actions would continue to earn your trust.”[/color] She took another even breath. [color=fff79a]“I’m not going to try to change your mind about light girls, either. And for what it’s worth, I’m sorry about my part in Michi wrecking everything the way she did. I thought. . .”[/color] She seemed to deflate, the resolve and calm Haruna had been maintaining leaving her frame all at once. [color=fff79a]“I thought we were friends.”[/color]

[color=firebrick][b]"We shouldn't have been enemies,"[/b][/color] Kiyo agreed, slowly approaching Hotaru and burying her face in her shoulder. [color=firebrick][b]"My predictions have never been perfect, Hotaru. Just trust me on this one thing. And please don't tell me I don't care. That hurts."[/b][/color] She squeezed. [color=firebrick][b]"I won't ask for anything else."[/b][/color]

For a moment, Hotaru looked as though she were about to rebuke Kiyo, her accusing finger still pointing at Haruna, then her shoulders loosened and her gaze softened. Not quite enough to get rid of the tension in her frame, nor enough to reach out towards the black-haired girl, but enough to let the heightened emotions dissipate. Her hand dropped a second or two later, becoming a fist by her side as she closed her eyes.

[color=fff79a]”You owe me all the icecream in the world after this,”[/color] muttered the [color=fff79a]warrior[/color], barely audible to everyone else. Unfortunately for her, Ember happened to have sharp hearing.

[color=red]”That is perhaps the best idea I have heard from you in a while and though I am sure the staff would be rather upset if we brought some in…”[/color] The [color=red]schemer[/color] showed a deliberately sly grin as she gathered her magic, [color=red]”I’m sure the town can deal with one more ghost story. Isn’t that right, Maeda-san?”[/color]

A part of Haruna wanted to admonish Ember for immediately resorting to theft, but. . . [color=fff79a]“A little missing ice cream isn’t going to hurt anyone,”[/color] she agreed, before shifting her gaze to the warrior. [color=fff79a]“I promise you won’t regret this, Hotaru.”[/color]