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Sara Chidouin’s knees wobbled as she made her way back into the 5th floor locker room. She glanced around nervously and slowly made her way forward, on high alert after the multiple incidents taking place in such locker rooms thus far. If she stepped on a wrong tile, would the magnetic ceiling reactivate? Only when she made it to Reko’s side in the middle of the room did she afford herself a deep sigh of relief.
As always, the Death Game was overwhelming. How could it not be, when at every corner there was a new trap threatening to kill her and her allies if they made the slightest mistake? Her shoulders slumped, the stress of everything crushing her as she struggled to maintain her razor thin aura of composure.
Seeing her distress, Reko stepped closer, placing an affectionate hand on her shoulder. “Sara...hey,” she began, looking the fraught girl in the eye, “don’t push yourself too hard, got it? I know you wanna stop that bastard Midori and help Keiji as soon as possible, but tryin’ to do so when you’re all worn out won’t do anyone any good. Pace yourself if you need to, alright?”
Sara nodded, straightening herself up and readopting her usual determined expression. Even now, she couldn’t bear to show weakness in front of her allies who depended on her so much… “Thank you, Reko,” she replied, “but I’m alright, really. For now, we just have to keep searching, and I want to do everything I can to help. If I really need a break, I’ll take one, but for now, I’d really like to keep moving.”
Reko sighed, obviously worried for the poor girl’s rapidly deteriorating mental well-being. Despite this, however, she didn’t fight her on it, likely aware that the firmly obstinate Sara wouldn’t take no for an answer. Instead, she gave the girl’s shoulder a light squeeze, before hesitantly pulling away. “Alright, but let me know if you need anything, got it? I’ll be there to help you whenever you need me, Sara,” she conceded, hoping that her offer would provide at least a little more support to her in the case of yet another emergency.
“Thanks, I will...” said Sara, surveying the room once more in the meager hopes that they had missed another clue or tool that could help them. Somewhat sheepishly, she turned to Reko for guidance, still far from her top form. “Have you found anything, Reko?” she asked, expecting the disappointing but realistic reply of a “no”.
Surprisingly, Reko seemed to hesitate before responding, her eyes flicking in the direction of the lockers to their right. She then locked eyes with Sara, watching her expression as if gauging her determination. When Sara remained steadfast and didn’t look away, she nodded and pointed to a locker in the middle of the right wall. “Well, that’s the thing. I tried to open all the lockers again, and…” She swung the locker door open. “This one’s got something inside all of a sudden.” She pulled out the locker’s contents and showed them to Sara: another lantern just like the other they had found in the same room earlier. “Now, I didn’t want to try turning it on in case it triggered another trap, so I was gonna show it to everyone when we regrouped, but…” She held it out to Sara. “If you want to try something now, I think we might be able to handle it as long as the passage to the charging room doesn’t close.”
Sara nodded, eager to investigate the new clue as soon as possible. “Let me go see if anyone else is in there, they might be able to help us…” she mused, peeking her head into the dark passageway for the sign of anyone besides the incapacitated Kurumada who could offer them assistance in case of an emergency. As she did, she noticed a familiar bright yellow hood and called out to its owner. “Anzu! Could you come help us with something quick? It shouldn’t take too long!”
Hearing her call, Anzu bounded forward, her colorful pointed clown shoes pattering against the floor. “Uh, what is it?” she asked, looking the girls over nervously.
“We found this lantern,” explained Sara, now carefully holding it up. “There’s a chance activating it might set off some other kind of trap, so we thought we could use an extra hand just in case. Do you mind just standing by while I try to use it?”
At the suggestion of another trap activating, Anzu’s eyes went wide and she let out a small meep. “A-Another trap!? Are you really sure I’m the person you should be asking for help!? Sh-Shouldn’t you go grab Ranmaru or Hayasaka or...or Sou or something…!?”
Sara considered her proposal for a minute. “Should we gather everyone together after all?”
Suddenly, Reko interrupted her with a thought. “Ya know, what if we just...took it out of the room? There’s a good chance nothing will happen if we use it in the hallway.”
Sara turned to her and blinked. That was...a great idea, wasn’t it? How could she not have thought of something so simple herself? Was her judgment being clouded again by the stress of the situation? But still… “Do you think we can just take it out without anything triggering?”
“Well, it’s worth a shot, isn’t it? Here, let me try it,” Reko asked, gently taking the lantern from Sara’s hands. She walked to the door cautiously, looking back at the two girls as she approached the threshold.
Sara’s heart raced as she watched Reko step into the hallway. Cold sweat ran down her face, the tension of the Death Game making even something as simple as this a potential terrifyingly dangerous threat...if something happened to Reko because of her, if another one of her allies fell to some cruel trap…
Reko looked back at them from the hallway. “Yup, seems like it’s alright. Do you two wanna come out here and try it from over here?” ...So she was okay...Sara took a deep breath and steadied herself before quickly following her lead. The Death Game just had her on edge, that was all. Everything was fine. She needed to stop panicking.
“Reko, please, let me do it,” Sara insisted, taking hold of the top of the lantern as Anzu scampered to her side.
“Sara, are you sure?” Reko asked, fearful of putting even more pressure on the exhausted girl.
“Yes, I am,” she confirmed. “There’s...probably little chance that something bad will happen, and the other lantern doesn’t even work on me, so...we might have to test it out on you anyway. Even so, I’d still like to try. So, can I?”
“Alright,” Reko sighed. “There’s no way I can stop you if you’re gonna look that determined about it. But hey, Anzu and I are right here if anything weird happens, alright?” She loosened her grip on the lantern, allowing Sara to take it for herself.
“Of course. Thank you.” Trepidation crawled up Sara’s back as she looked at the lantern in her hands. If the others could recover memories from the other lantern, maybe this one would make her remember something too? If she hadn’t signed a consent form, would there even be any memories to remember? What if there were? Could they be painful? Could they aggravate that awful scratching in the back of her head, telling her to survive no matter what it cost? Her grip on the lantern faltered, her hands slick with sweat. Could she...really keep doing this?
No, of course she could, she had to! For her sake, for everyone’s sake! She couldn’t keep running away! She took in a deep breath, swallowed, and pushed the switch before any more negative thoughts could flood her brain. She was strong, she could handle this, she told herself as the lantern began to glow a pale red hue. It was, honestly, quite beautiful. However, Sara wasn’t experiencing anything, so she must have been immune to this too-
But then, her mind flooded with a deep, vivid memory she couldn’t possibly deny.
It was a crisp December evening, and Sara had stayed long after the end of classes for a particularly intense session of club activities. Normally, one of her friends would find something to do in the meantime and meet up with her at the gates to accompany her, but Ryoko was on a vacation this week, and J̷͇͊͛o̸̭͘ͅe̷̟̓͠ was busy helping out at home. And so, Sara trudged home through the snow, following the pale glow of streetlights as she carefully made her way through town. For most girls her age, this would be enough to cause significant anxiety, especially given the dark figure watching her from a distance, conveniently out of sight…
However, she walked confidently forward, seeming to not care at all about the potential dangers around her, and instead focused on what kind of snack she would have when she got home. As she rounded the final corner to her house, she began to shake excess snow off of her feet, oblivious to the figure now approaching her from behind, closing in until practically breathing down her neck, and grabbing at her shoulder as she began to straighten up…
But Sara didn’t turn around, didn’t yelp, didn’t even shudder. She simply smiled, regarding her “attacker” warmly.
“The coast is clear, miss Sara,” he reported, stepping in front of her and heading towards the door. The dark-haired man wore a black coat, unzipped to reveal his favorite red apron underneath. He pulled a key out of his coat pocket and unlocked the house’s front door.
Sara followed his lead, walking inside and taking off her shoes as always. “Thank you, Kai,” she said, handing him her coat to hang up, “but you know you don’t have to stand so far away when I’m alone, right? It would be a lot less lonely if we could talk together on our way back…”
“Come now, miss Sara,” he retorted, “what would people say if they saw you walking around with an older man such as me? Wouldn’t some nasty rumors spread about how you’re a ‘floozy’ or some such nonsense?”
Sara giggled as she walked towards the kitchen. “Kai, no one’s said the word floozy in decades! Plus, I’m pretty sure girls with older boyfriends are seen as cool and mature, so long as they’ve only got one of them…” She gasped as she noticed the treat waiting for her on the kitchen counter. “Oh, you made me Koshian toast?”
“Indeed. Freshly toasted right before I left to pick you up. With hope, it should still be warm.”
Sara sighed dreamily as she looked at the wonderful snack laid out for her. “Aww, you didn’t have to!” she said, mere moments before greedily chowing down on it, signaling her lack of actual restraint in respect to Kai’s kindness.
“Oh, but of course I did, miss Sara,” Kai insisted. “Taking care of the housework in the absence of your parents is a major part of my job description.”
Sara, the admittedly occasionally inconsiderate girl she was, responded with her mouth half-full. “Yeah, but that doeshn’t mean you have to-” She swallowed. “...have it ready for me the second I get home. I wouldn’t mind waiting a while every now and then, you know?”
As Sara talked, Kai quickly moved to the living room, bringing a box of assorted Christmas decorations with him. “Come now, miss Sara, do you think your father would let me get away with something like that? ‘Sara’s happiness always comes first’, his exact orders. I couldn’t exactly betray his expectations like that, could I?” He grabbed a plastic holly decoration and began to affix it to a cabinet.
“Hmm...that does sound like Dad…” Sara sighed, growing embarrassed at the thought of her father’s obsessive overprotectiveness...and his cringey texting style. “But you know you don’t actually have to listen to that, right? Honestly, being pampered all the time feels a bit excessive…” Despite saying that, she proceeded to take another eager bite of the toast. Well, okay, perhaps she was a bit hypocritical, but...she really meant it!
For some reason, Kai stopped in his tracks at her comment. “Oh no, miss Sara, I wouldn’t dare go against your father’s word. Even I would not stand against his...passion for his daughter’s well-being.”
Ugh, so embarrassing! “Geez, is that why you don’t walk with me, Kai? Because my stupid dad tells you not to?” she asked to vent her frustration, not seriously expecting that to be the real reason.
In response, Kai let out a rare sigh. “Miss Sara, even if your father permitted it, can you imagine the kind of attention you’d get? I couldn’t bear to put you through that…”
“Aww, come on!” Sara pouted. “A girl in my class sometimes walks home with her older brother! Couldn’t it be like that that, a nice family thing!?” She stuffed another piece of the toast in her mouth angrily. “Plus...even if people did see us like that, does it really even matter? Sure, I might get the odd comment or two, but I like spending time with you, you know! And...and…” Her cheeks quickly began to flush. “Honestly, that kind of misunderstanding...might not really be that bad…”
Kai dropped the bell ornament he was attempting to put up, and it slammed against the counter, making a soft jingle as it settled into place. “Miss Sara...you…” Taking extra care not to face her, he rifled through the kitchen’s drawers until he retrieved a suitably large pan. Now armed with protection, he turned to face her, the pan carefully blocking her from seeing his expression. Although, judging by the pink at the tips of his ears, she could easily imagine what it was like. “Miss Sara, please don’t suggest such absurd things…” he muttered.
“Hey, I mean, I’m not saying I want it to happen! I just think we shouldn’t worry about it so much, that’s all!” Sara claimed in a panic, jumping out of her chair and gripping the counter as she looked up to Kai’s shielded face. “It’s just...so quiet and lonely when I have to walk home with you so far away…” She slumped back into the chair. “Couldn’t you walk with me just once? I’d really like it if you did…”
“M-Miss Sara...It would be my greatest pleasure to do something like that for you if it was what you really desired…” Kai admitted, slowly lowering the pan to expose his smiling, blushing face. “But...unfortunately, I do not think it can hap-pan.”
“What!? Whyyyy!?” Sara whined, Kai’s pun doing little to lessen the blow.
“Because, put simply, miss Sara, your father would kill me.”
“Noooooooo!”
With that memory, others came too. Sara’s first meeting with Kai, her real first meeting with him. Countless days spent chatting in the kitchen, or else watching him clean and trying to help when she could. Hundreds of cute new desserts he made for her. Playful teasing from her friends about having her own personal butler. All the years they had spent together came back to her at once.
That year, she had been especially excited for Christmas. She had saved up to get Kai an exciting new kitchen invention, the Suplex-tula. He had given her an exquisite homemade collection of sweets, a pack of cute barrettes, and a practice sword to honor her kendo days. That night, with the two of them smiling together, it had really felt like Kai was a part of the family.
When Sara came to, she was on her knees, the lantern still glowing red in front of her. That’s right...she was here...this horrible, horrible Death Game…
Kai was gone. He was the Sage back in the first Main Game, and she had failed to protect him. He died with Sara still internally cursing him as some kind of evil stalker. But...he wasn’t a stalker at all...he was her close companion, a crucial part of her family, her greatest ally, someone she loved, someone she...maybe really…
truly…
...loved….
Hot tears dripped down onto her face. How...how could she have forgotten everything? Everything that mattered so much to her, gone in a flash...someone so close, reduced to nothing but a strange stalker…
“Sara, what’s wrong!? Are you okay!?” Reko quickly kneeled by her side, holding her shoulders in a desperate attempt to comfort her. In reality, her cascade of memories must have only taken a few seconds, despite it feeling so long, and so very real…
“I...I...K-Kai…” Sara sobbed, the cruelty of everything weighing down on her threatening to crush her into a fine paste. She couldn’t bear it, this horrible feeling of having betrayed someone so important…
“Kai? Wh-What about him? Sara, did that lantern make you remember something!?”
Sara couldn’t respond. She could only sit there, wallowing in despair, despondent and broken. If...if she forgot something as important as that, what else could she have forgotten? Wasn’t...wasn’t there some other person in the corners of those memories? What...what was their name? Why couldn’t she remember!? She held her head, bracing herself against the throbbing aches pounding through it. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t put a face to that figure in her memory.
Before she knew it, she was screaming. And then everything went black.