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Misaki could feel the others shivering against her even through her suit. The heater had died about ten minutes ago and the heat in her heavily-insulated suit was starting to seep out. Kaoru had stilled next to her and her lifeless body was still elegant in death, draped over Michelle’s leg. Misaki had panicked when Kaoru’s shallow panting turned to nothing but now she had accepted what was happening. Kokoro was still quietly singing, her voice wobbly and rough.
“C’mon guys,” she breathed out. “Why aren’t you singing?”
Misaki was upset with Hagumi and Kokoro at first. They had brought them all up a mountain without proper equipment just because “it would be fun” and now they were dying. There were no people in suits coming to save them. They might not have even survived. Misaki was less mad at Kokoro when she realized she’d be dying with her. She had waited too long to try going back down now and her chances of survival were too low for her to want to try. She’d rather stay with her friends till the end, since there was no way she could help them.
“Michelle?” Kokoro asked weakly. ”Did you have fun?”
“Yeah, I did.”
“I’m…really… happy about that.”
A few minutes later Kokoro’s body was completely still. Misaki realized Kokoro died not knowing who Michelle was. Kanon started to cry and held on tighter to Hagumi. Hagumi was in denial. Maybe the cold was messing with her head because none of this had registered for her. She just stayed still and quiet, sometimes saying “it’s cold” when the peak was silent except for the wind.
The fact Kanon’s red cheeks were getting further streaked with tears was probably not good. The moisture would just make her colder.
At some point over the next hour, Kanon and Hagumi both died. Misaki wasn’t sure, she wasn’t really aware of what was going on anymore. It was getting late. Seeing the snow piling up on the cold bodies of her bandmates was sobering. Misaki ended up breaking down when she realized they were all dead. She wanted out of Michelle, she wanted to lay there with them. She took off the head and tried to take off the rest, but her hands were too shaky to unzip any zippers. Misaki sat there and cried until she couldn’t remember why she was crying and she couldn’t feel anything. Then she was with her friends.