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Break time. Kirigiri sits at a table in the cafeteria across from Naegi. She peruses a mystery novel with a cup of coffee in hand, minding her own business. The rest of the students are gathered around a table on the other side of the room making something of a ruckus.
Excited, unintelligible whispers are punctuated with enthusiastic gasps and ecstatic giggles.
It was quite distracting. With some luck they'll quiet down soon.
Kirigiri notices Oogami leave the group and exit the cafeteria. Glad she has some sense not to deal with whatever nonsense they were coming up with.
"Naegi-kun! Kirigiri-san! By the regulations of this establishment, we have a task for you both! If you elect not to conduct the assigned task, you must return to your dorm rooms!" Ishimaru's voice booms across the room, to the giggles of the other students.
Naegi turns around to face them, curious. Kirigiri rolls her eyes, and continues reading.
"Ready for this, Mister Luckster n' Miss Detective? I'll tell ya what ya gotta do!" Enoshima grins at the two.
She lets the silence hang for a bit. A dramatic pause, if you will. Naegi stares with bated breath, while Kirigiri turns a page of her novel.
"You gotta kiss! Here! In the cafeteria! Right now!" Enoshima declares, smiling ear to ear.
"No." Kirigiri doesn't even look up from her novel. She also pointedly ignores the sudden warmth of the room she was experiencing. In doing so, she misses the luminescent blush blooming on Naegi's face.
Celes chuckles lightly. "Oh, that's not an option, you see," she says casually.
"We're makin' SURE it happens!" Enoshima is grinning. She adds, "Of course, I'm not completely heartless. I'll even give you a choice! If at least one of you can make it to your dorm room beforehand, I guess that means we have to give up." She pauses, smirking. "...Not that you will." There's a hint of danger in her voice.
"Nothing personal," Ikusaba says, from right behind Kirigiri.
Kirigiri's back immediately stiffens as she feels a chill. Wait, when did she get back there?
"Yeah Naegster, nothin' personal, heh heh," Oowada walks up to Naegi.
"Wh...wha--" Naegi doesn't get a chance to protest before Oowada grabs his arms.
Kirigiri immediately abandons the novel on the table, leaping out of the way of Ikusaba's stealthily approaching hand. The rest of the students' eyes are glinting at her dangerously. She glances towards Naegi. It was too late for him now, Ishimaru and Kuwata are also on top of him.
Tch. He'll be safe, so long as she wasn't caught.
Kirigiri darts towards the entrance of the cafeteria. Ikusaba just looks on, not particularly giving chase. They had a contingency plan.
"We're not letting your Naeggle-kins go til we catch you or til we can verify you're in your dorm!" Enoshima calls out after Kirigiri, and she responds by shooting back a stone-cold glare mid run before turning away.
As Kirigiri disappears out the cafeteria entrance, Maizono giggles. "Did you see how they were both blushing? And I've never seen Kirigiri-san get so excited. I think you might be right, Enoshima-san."
"Hahah!! Told ya so!" Enoshima smirks as the detective disappears from sight.
"P-p-pretty obvious, honestly," Fukawa sulks in a corner.
"We're just doing our part as friends," Asahina nods sagely, determination on her features.
Meanwhile, Naegi is struggling against the combined power of Oowada, Ishimaru, and Kuwata, and failing spectacularly.
"Settle down, Naegi. You will not be harmed," Togami glowers down upon the tangled mess of limbs as the three pin a struggling Naegi on the cafeteria floor. Naegi responds with a muffled protest.
***
Kirigiri sprints past the entrance of the cafeteria and is about to make a beeline for her dorm room, when she spots an ominous shadow. No, a mountain.
Oogami stands, blocking the entrance to the dorms.
Kirigiri skids to a halt, evaluating Oogami briefly. Was she in on this?
Oogami looks up and makes eye contact with Kirigiri. Kirigiri keeps her facial expression neutral, inspecting Oogami with caution.
The martial artist's lips curl up in a smile.
A chill goes up the detective's spine, and her instincts go on high alert.
Not safe, nope.
Oogami takes a single step forward and Kirigiri immediately turns around, throwing open the door to the classroom wing. Slamming the door behind her, she could hear the room behind her thundering from every step Oogami takes, and her mind starts racing.
Being a detective, she spent a good amount of her free time discovering secret passageways, and knew the school better than any of the other students. She was confident that Oogami wouldn't be able to keep up with her.
She turns and grabs the doorknob into one of the classrooms, closing it behind her and making her way to a large supply cabinet. Shifting the cabinet slightly forward, she squeezes into a small opening, and then pulls the cabinet back into place. Before her is a ladder. This would take her to the second floor classroom.
She breathes in and out, her heart still racing. She should give herself some time to recover.
After a period of shuffling sounds in the distant hallway (and a few times where the entire floor shook), she hears no sounds outside for over a period of five minutes. It seems things might be calming down, so she grabs the ladder and starts climbing. She'll have to find another way back to her dorm.
***
Classroom, 2nd floor. Peering out the crack of the closet, the coast is clear.
Carefully, quietly, she opens the door into the empty classroom, shutting it carefully behind her.
What were her options?
She could get back to the dorms using the hidden exit in the game room. It was the route closest to her current position, coming out to the boy's bathroom on the first floor, just out of sight from the position Oogami had been keeping guard. Sure, it was the boy's bathroom, but given the situation, that was hardly an issue in her mind.
Having decided her next destination was the game room, she opens the classroom door a crack and looks into the hallway.
Satisfied nobody is nearby, she leaves the classroom, taking measured, careful steps. The game room is just around the corner.
The game room's door is ajar; she peers into the room, and nobody is around. She slips inside, heading towards a shelf in the far corner of the room where the secret passage was located. She'll need to shift the shelf slightly, but it shouldn't be a problem; she had done it before. Edging close to the wall to reduce the field of view she would have to keep track of, she advances with swift but measured, silent steps.
She suddenly freezes, senses on high alert.
WHSHH--TKK!
She leans back, inhaling sharply in surprise when a playing card--the Queen of Hearts--embeds into the wall in front of her. No, wait; upon closer inspection, the card had just lodged in the narrow slit between the frame of the bulletin board and the board itself just in front of her. Whirling around, she meets crimson eyes, and a finger presses to her lips, her back against the wall.
Celestia Ludenberg.
Kirigiri's eyes widen; Celes must have been hiding somewhere, possibly behind the door. She inwardly curses at her own carelessness; she wasn't expecting people to be lying in wait in this room. She thought she was the only one aware of this passage.
"I wager, these lips will be against the man of luck by the end of today."
Celes' finger was against Kirigiri's lips, her face touting a coy smile as the gambler places her bet. Despite herself, the image of Naegi's lips pressed against hers materializes in Kirigiri's mind, and she feels a faint bit of heat rising up the back of her neck. Celes's eyes glint as she appears to savor the hint of pink in the detective's complexion.
Kirigiri blinks, hardening her expression, eyes darting towards the center table just behind Celes. As if on cue, Asahina shoots out from underneath.
"Kirigiri-chan, got you! You can't escape!" she leaps at Kirigiri. Kirigiri quickly dodges off to the side away from Celes, just barely avoiding Asahina's grasp.
Eyes on the game room's exit, she breaks into a sprint. Asahina, her full weight thrown into the leap, falls on the floor where Kirigiri had just been a moment ago.
"Aahhh! Kirigiri-chan! Come back!" Asahina calls out. Celes simply chuckles, watching the retreating back of the detective.
Kirigiri clenches her jaw. The game room passage is no longer an option. Did they know about it beforehand? It was a possibility, but there was no time to dwell on that now.
***
Bursting out of the game room and slamming the door shut behind her, the hallway is thankfully empty.
Next option--the library. It also connects to the first floor, but instead to the garbage disposal room. This was just next door to the boy's bathroom, and adjacent to the dorms. Asahina would soon be back on her feet behind her and she didn't have much time. The stairs were also a bottleneck; if she met Oogami there, then she was done. The library was the closest viable option.
She skids to a halt in front of the library door, which is ajar, and quickly looks inside. Looks clear. She slips in, checking behind the door this time. Also clear. Weaving through the shelves, she makes for the bookshelf with the secret passage immediately. With a deft flick of a switch hidden behind a book on the shelf, she then opens and slides into an otherwise invisible trap door underneath.
She hears the lock mechanism reset itself, and hears distant footsteps not long afterwards.
"Kirigiri-chaaan!!!" Asahina was calling. It sounded like they were still in the hallway, and hadn't entered the library. The sounds slowly faded away. She probably lost them. Hopefully.
She crawls silently along the passageway. She'll need to be careful; she wasn't entirely sure what to expect from her classmates, nor what had possessed them to do such a thing.
She quickly checks over what she has on her. Her handbook, a pen, her room key, and a pocket swiss army knife with a flashlight. It would have to do. She turns on the flashlight to navigate towards the passageway exit.
***
She reaches the garbage disposal room without event.
The room was rather quiet. Nobody seems to be around, although she knew better than to let her guard down. She waits for a few minutes, making sure no one was nearby before she proceeds.
It was probably safe. She dislodges the air vent covering as silently as she can, and drops down to a shelf, and then to the floor of the room. She stays knelt, listening carefully for any sound, before slowly standing back up.
Seems all clear.
Silently, she makes for the walls, edging towards the door.
"Hahah, you really think she'll come out of the boy's bathroom?" Maizono's voice. Kirigiri freezes. The voice is distant, coming from somewhere on the other side of the wall, likely in the hallway just outside the bathrooms.
"Fujisaki said we should station here as a precaution." Ikusaba's voice.
So they knew about that exit. No wonder Celes and Asahina were there. In some ways it was lucky that they had opted for redundant interception and she was stopped from using this passageway earlier; she would rather not deal with the Ultimate Soldier.
It seems her classmates are speaking outside of the bathrooms down the hallway to the right of the garbage disposal exit. Her dorm, on the other hand, was down the hallway straight ahead. She was close; she would just need a distraction.
"Hey, everyone! It looks like Kirigiri-chan took a different route! I can't find her anywhere now! Have you seen her?" Asahina's panting voice calls out. She heard the door from the classroom wing close; Asahina must have just arrived after coming down from the second floor.
"Not yet," Maizono answers.
"Where was she last sighted?" Ikusaba asks. Kirigiri bites her lip. It was possible they'd start searching the area nearby; they might come towards the disposal room if she didn't move quickly. She stands silently beside the room's exit, glancing out the doorway. The dorm room hallway was clear; all she would need to do is to cross to other side and she could make a break for her room.
"The b-b-boys should lend us a hand..." Fukawa mutters.
"No, we girls said we'd take care of Kirigiri-chan! Naegi-kun is with the rest of the boys right now," Asahina says.
"Is Naegi-kun doing alright? Maybe we could check in with them," Maizono says.
Perhaps they were distracted now. She pulls out her pocket knife, and glances around the corner of the door using its reflective surface. Indeed, they were facing away, several meters down the hallway by the bathrooms. All of them were looking towards the cafeteria now, Asahina being the furthest away next to Maizono and Ikusaba, with Fukawa behind them, whose position was closest to Kirigiri. She could dart to the other side of the hallway easily.
Her heart rate picks up. This is her chance.
***
She steps quietly into the hallway.
Her boot makes contact with the ground, unnoticed. So far so good. Picking up the pace, a few more steps--
"AHH--TCHOOO!!" Fukawa sneezes, and Kirigiri's heart jumps into her throat. Maizono turns towards Fukawa, and then to Kirigiri.
"Ah!! There she is!" Maizono exclaims.
She was spotted.
Kirigiri grits her teeth and her mouth tightens into a grim line. Head bowing down, she breaks into a sprint.
She turns the corner of the dorm room block, running towards her room. Hers is the farthest, at the very end of the hall before it opens up into the atrium.
Oogami is nowhere to be seen; perhaps she was investigating other floors. A stroke of luck. Just a few more steps--
WHHP--WHHP--
A rope collides against Kirigiri's back, causing her to stumble forward. She just barely catches herself from falling as three lead weights quickly wrap against themselves in front of her, locking her arms in place.
A bolas. Most likely the Ultimate Soldier's doing.
She's already in front of her door; all she needs to do is unlock the door and turn the knob, although she can't quite move her arms high enough under her bindings. Not a problem; she's prepared. With a bit a difficulty, she pulls out her pocket knife, flicking it open, and makes to cut at the rope. She only needs to loosen it up a bit; it would only take two seconds.
SHKLANG--!
A metallic object collides forcefully with her pocket knife, knocking it out of her grip and sending it clattering to the floor. Seriously? What was it now? ...Ah.
Scissors.
"GYAAAHAHAHAH! Little missy, we can't have that ehh? Jus' surrender now!" Syo's screeching laughter fills the air.
Then the floor quakes.
Kirigiri turns towards the sound's source, and finds Oogami had just emerged from her dorm room on the opposite end of the hall with a thunderous step.
So that's where she was.
Pale blue eyes meet lavender eyes in a moment of tension.
Immediately, Oogami begins sprinting towards Kirigiri, the entire floor shuddering with each step. She looks quickly towards her knife, and notices that Maizono had picked it up. Asahina is holding the Genocider's scissors. They really weren't going to let her get rid of this rope easily, were they?
Her options were running thin. She takes a quick, shallow breath and exhales. Stay calm.
She turns back to Oogami.
As Oogami closes in, her eyes hold a frightening intensity that Kirigiri had never seen before. In that stare, she could see something terrifying. Maybe it was just the fact that she was feeling cornered, but right now it was not unlike the sight of impending death.
SLAM
SLAM
SLAM
Every step left an impact she could feel from where she was standing. She could feel her heart pounding in her chest.
Oogami wouldn't do harm, right...?
But she was approaching with nearly inhuman speed. The intensity of her ruthless glare was telling her otherwise, and was rapidly coming into clearer focus the closer she came.
Doom rapidly advances. Her blood runs cold. Dread.
The detective's eyes widen, panic rising from her chest straight into her head.
She needed to get away. Now. Nothing else mattered.
She turns away from her door towards the atrium only to be blocked by Maizono and Asahina.
She had no time for this. Despite her arms being bound, with quick footwork, she shifts her weight and dodges past the two, making a break for the classroom wing door across the atrium. It was surprisingly easy. However, it seemed that Maizono and Asahina were also keen on getting out of the way of Oogami.
SLAM
SLAM
SLAM
Oogami is quickly gaining on her. Kirigiri's heart threatens to leap out of her throat with every thunderous step from her pursuer. Against her better judgement she steals a glance behind her, and beholds a terrifying mass of undulating muscle, hair splayed out like a beast, chasing after her. She quickly turns back to look at the classroom wing door, face rigid, epinephrine surging through her bloodstream.
Do not want. Must escape.
She still has to deal with her bindings. Her mind races, thoughts spilling out in a torrent as she runs toward the classroom wing. Kitchen knives? No, that's past the cafeteria. Shears in the Nurse's office? How'll she open the classroom wing door? The supply room? No, the supply room's already behind--
Her thoughts are interrupted as the classroom wing door opens. Celes stands in the doorway, her lips turning up in a smile as she quickly surveys the detective's bound arms and stiff expression. Kirigiri briefly hesitates, caught between the two. No, wait, this was good, the door is opened for her; she'll just have to run forward and shove past Celes. She was still several tens of meters away from the doorway, and behind her, Oogami was closing in.
Her calves burn as she picks up her pace. She had to get away. She--
"Ooof--!"
Kirigiri lets out a grunt as Oogami collides with her.
Oogami clamps her arms around Kirigiri from behind, shielding Kirigiri from impact on the floor while firmly wrapping around her shoulders and arms, decisively locking her in. Kirigiri's muscles tense as she tries to break free, while Oogami slowly stands back up, lifting Kirigiri upright such that her feet are just off the ground. The captive detective's height just barely reaches the middle of Oogami's chest.
Kirigiri continues to struggle for a brief moment, her expression rigid and tense, but against the rope and Oogami's strength, she soon recognizes it was futile. She was trapped. Her ribcage heaves in and out, her heart pounding and her head still buzzing with adrenaline. Her eyes dart across the faces of her classmates, who had started crowding around her. Their expressions ranged from broad smiles to insufferable smirks.
As the adrenaline in her system dissipates, she realizes her life, in fact, was not in danger, and her breathing eventually slows to a normal rate.
It was over.
A few of the girls giggle.
Kirigiri closes her eyes and sighs.
If she were better prepared, she would have had no issues setting up proper distractions to secure an opening to return to her room, she thinks. But they had sprung this whole ordeal on her on a whim.
"...Tch." Kirigiri concentrates her gaze on the floor, offering no further comment.
"We caught ourselves a detective!" Asahina cheers with Maizono.
Enoshima struts in from the cafeteria, grinning delightedly at the sight of the detective in Oogami's arms.
"Ahahahah! Perfect timing! Alriiight, bring 'er in!" Enoshima throws her arms up in the air as she shouts, sounding way too excited about this.
Oogami walks towards the cafeteria entrance, with Kirigiri in tow. Kirigiri scowls and shuts her eyes, wishing with all her might to disappear on the spot.
***
"Kirigiri-san!" Naegi calls out in surprise from across the cafeteria. He's held in place by Oowada.
"We went through a LOT of trouble to get her, but your girl's here!" Enoshima skips over to where Naegi stood, and watches her being carried towards Naegi. Kirigiri's eyes are still shut tightly, as if she's trying to block out every sensation possible. Or perhaps she was trying to will herself out of existence.
"Uhm...honestly I'm starting to feel kinda bad for her..." Asahina mutters.
"Ahhh, don't worry 'bout that, she'll get over it, Gyaaahahahahah! You know she wants what's coming... ...OH, MAAASTER, MY LOVE!" Syo spots Togami and immediately bounds over to where Togami stood. Togami adjusts his glasses and doesn't budge, although he emits an audible sigh.
"K...Kirigiri-san...?" Naegi's voice is much closer now. Her eyes are still closed; she refuses to open them. "A-ah, w-wait!" Naegi stutters.
Kirigiri suddenly can feel Naegi's breathing against her face. She swallows; her mouth is dry. Her heart thunders in her ears. She curses inwardly, trying desperately to force herself to calm down. It wasn't working.
"NOW KISS" Enoshima squeals in excitement. Asahina gasps inwardly, holding her breath. All the students look on in anticipation.
"A-ah--Mmph!!" Naegi's voice muffles into a warm sensation on her lips. It was soft. Her entire body stiffens, the contact sending a jolt through her body.
It was...not unpleasant.
Her scowl softens, although she doesn't open her eyes. If she's stuck like this, she might as well enjoy it. She leans into the kiss slightly, savoring the sensation. Naegi makes a noise of surprise. She smirks inwardly as she feels him squirm.
"KAY PERFECT" Enoshima's voice snaps her out of the moment, and Oogami and Oowada pull them apart. The warmth of his lips vanish. Kirigiri opens her eyes, disappointment and confusion apparent on her face. She sees Naegi's face in front of her, beet red, and Oowada holding him, grinning broadly. The sight brings the reality of the situation back to her, and she feels burning heat rising to her face as well. She couldn't believe she had let herself get carried away.
"Okay take 'em to their room! Oh, and make sure you close and blockade the door so miss Detective can't kill me for doing this, thanks!" Enoshima waves them off.
Oogami and Oowada both carry the two, who remain in a state of stunned silence the entire time, out of the cafeteria to the dorms. They are both let out in Naegi's dorm room, and Oogami undoes the rope binding the detective. Kirigiri immediately tries to protest, wanting to be let back in her own dorm instead of Naegi's, but Oogami smiles gently at her and shuts the door, standing guard with Oowada outside.
"...I can't believe they'd do this." she glowers at the door.
"Y-yeah..." Naegi stares at the floor apprehensively.
Her annoyance was probably showing. She takes a deep breath, trying to calm herself. Things would be fine if she kept a level head.
After some silence, her eyes briefly catch sight of Naegi's lips and her heart does something like a flip. She immediately redirects her gaze to a suddenly interesting blank spot on the wall, her face burning. She coughs. So much for being calm.
Some more silence.
"U...uhm, do you want to take a seat?" Naegi is luminescent red.
"...I suppose," she answers.
They both walk over to sit at the edge of his bed.
After some more silence, Kirigiri sighs.
...Well, they might as well make the best of things.
"....Do you...want to finish where we left off?"
***
In the cafeteria, the rest of the group celebrates.
"Maaaan, I'm suuuch a genius!!! Now those blockheads will FINALLY be together!" Enoshima is squealing.
"I'm glad we were able to assist." Ikusaba is polishing a firearm.
"The operation is a success!!" Ishimaru exclaims. Fujisaki smiles at him.
"Yeah man, we were AWESOMEE!!" Kuwata's popping off.
Maizono giggles. "Seems like they really enjoyed that, hehehe~"
"Yeah! They were so cute!" Asahina chirps with glee.
"OHHHHHHHH!!!! MY MUSE SINGS!!!" Yamada scrawls madly in a notebook.
Sitting on the side, Celes smiles. "Hm hm, I never lose a bet."
"Yeah, I totally predicted this'd happen!" Hagakure sits smugly in front of his crystal ball.
Asahina glares at Hagakure. "You didn't do anything."
Togami doesn't bother to comment, making a hasty exit, and Syo promptly follows.
***
~Fin
***