Chapter Text
Dice didn’t have his chance to leave until about a week later.
Otome had been insistent on having him involved in whatever she was planning. It was… weird, to say the least. The Otome he was used to had given him the cold shoulder, left him to his relatives. The most he had remembered of her were foggy memories of a once happy time, where he had both of his parents and they were happily married and in love. Then, the scandal happened and he lost his father, as well as his mother in the process. He remembered vaguely that he used to be in his grandmother’s care before being shoved off onto his great aunt when he didn’t meet her expectations. This new Otome, the one who had followed them here from the future, she was more- how should he put it- caring. She was more involved in him and his life. It was unsettling. Something was happening, but he didn’t know what.
Closing his bedroom door, Dice made sure to lock it behind him. A habit he picked up while on the run from Chuuoku. Walking further into his room, he began to strip out of the clothes he had been wearing for dinner. As he threw on more casual clothes, his eyes landed onto his jacket. It had been a gift from his mom a few years ago, and he remembered how happy he had been when he received it. At the time, it was proof that she at least still cared for him somewhat. Now, it laid there on his desk chair, bare of its division symbol. After a few moments of thought, Dice grabbed the jacket and threw it on as well. It was still big on him, having not yet grown into it like he did in the future.
“Aight, let’s see if I can get out of here.”
Dice opened his window and grabbed the empty crate, throwing it down to the ground. It landed with a soft thud sound, thankfully not making much noise. As Dice himself prepared to throw himself out of his window, he stopped. Looking back into his room, he bit his lip. He didn’t know how long he’d be able to be gone before Otome sent people after him. Walking back in, he grabbed his spare sheets and blankets and tied them together into a rope, like he’d seen in those cheesy American movies Gentaro would force him to watch. Dice then grabbed his desk chair and moved it over next to the window, tying one end of the rope to it. He then threw out the other end, watching as it fell and ended next to one of the lower tree branches. Nodding to himself, Dice then hopped down. He misjudged how sturdy the branches were that he was aiming for and they ended up snapping once he landed on them, sending him down to the ground.
“O-Ouch…” Dice groaned, laying flat on the ground. His entire body hurt after that fall, and he was pretty sure he was now covered head to toe in scratches. Forcing himself to roll over, Dice winced as his sore body protested. He didn’t have time to sit around though, so he grabbed the crate and made his way over to the wall. Placing it on the ground behind a convenient bush, he stepped up onto the crate. Lifting his arms up was a pain, but he was eventually able to climb up and over the wall. Hopping down, he gasped a bit and fell to his knees.
“Damn, I must’ve done more damage than I thought to myself,” He grinned and used the wall to stand back up, leaning his weight against it. “But at least I got out. Now, time to find the others.” Picking a direction, he began to walk.
Nemu frowned as she sat down on the bed. She was currently inside one of the guest rooms in the Tohoten manor, but she didn’t quite understand why. Something in her mind was telling her that she needed to be here, that it was important that she was here. Rubbing her wrist, she wondered when she had taken the family bracelet off. Nemu could’ve sworn she had it on when she got ready this morning, she was sure of it. Or… not? Her frown deepened as she tried to remember what she’s been doing recently. The last thing she really remembered was arguing with Samatoki again, then everything got foggy until she was at the manor gates.
Standing up, Nemu walked towards the vanity that was in the room. Looking at herself in the mirror, she tried to see if she could see any physical differences with herself. “I must complete my duty…” She muttered, “What did I… mean by that?”
“I wonder if nii-san is okay,” Nemu turned to look out the window. It’s been about a week now since she arrived at the manor, and while Otome and Ichijiku have been wonderful hosts, she can’t help but worry about her brother. Was he eating enough? Was he getting into more dangerous fights? In her honest opinion, she wishes that Samatoki would just stop being involved with the yakuza. It terrifies her, and she can’t help but worry that Samatoki might one day turn into their father, violent and angry all the time. “And, that other boy…” She trailed off, thinking about the boy who had been sitting across from her during dinner. How nervous he seemed to be there, eyes darting between each person.
A knock sounded at the door and Nemu startled. “Ah! Coming!” When she opened the door, she was met with the tall figure of Ichijiku.
“Nemu,” The woman smiled, and Nemu felt a foreboding chill run through her body for some reason, “How about we spend a little woman-to-woman time together? It feels like it’s been so long since we last chatted.”
Then, Ichijuku entered.
Dice groaned as he walked down the streets. Somehow, he had found his way into Yokohama, which is not where he wanted to be. He wanted to be in Shibuya, where his team waited for him. His team… Dice wondered what his teammates were doing at the current moment. Gentaro was probably holed up in his apartment, trying to finish whatever he was writing before deadline hits, and Ramuda was most likely in a similar situation with clothes. Either that, or they were making plans.
Scratching his head, Dice tried to figure out where to go from here. He could try to catch one of the trains to Shibuya, but he honestly didn’t know when they ran. Another option was finding where the Mad Trigger Crew members were. The cop dude was probably in the Yokohama police station, but Dice was unsure how safe that was. Rio was another possibility, but who knows if he’s set up in the same place he was in the future. Sighing, Dice decided to keep walking, staring at his feet as he went. Which was obviously a bad idea as he bumped into someone just an instant later.
Stumbling back, Dice had apologies already at the tip of his tongue as he looked up to see who he ran into. His eyes widened in shock when he saw who was before him.
“Ah! Rio buddy!” Dice grinned, grabbing the surprised man’s shoulders. “Lady Luck must really be on my side right now!”
“Arisugawa?” Rio asked in surprise, looking down at the now much shorter man. “What are you doing here?”
“I got lost trying to get to Shibuya.” Dice admitted, a huge grin on his face. “How about you?”
“I’m on my way back to my camp,” Rio told him as he stepped out of his hold. “Do you need a place to stay?” Dice nodded and began to follow as Rio started to walk. It was a quiet walk, with Rio not being much of a talker and Dice still hurt from his earlier fall. When they finally reached the camp, Dice took in the sight. It still looked the same as it did in the future, just with… less. As if it weren’t prepared to host more than Rio. There also weren’t the little trinkets and other things left behind by Dice and the other MTC members from their many stays with the navy vet. Sitting down next to the firepit, Dice winced as his muscles relaxed, letting more of the pain come through. “You’re injured?” Rio asked, moving to grab his first aid kit.
“I had a bad fall, that’s all. Nothing to worry about,” Dice reassured him as Rio placed the kit down next to him. “No need to use your supplies on me.”
“Nonsense,” Rio looked up at met Dice’s eyes, “I care for those I consider my friends after all.”
“O-Oh…”
Dice’s blush didn’t leave his face for the next few hours.