Archive of Our Own

     “Are we really going to do this?”

     Shiori takes a good long look at the large mansion before her. Admittedly, it was unassuming. Grand, no doubt, not unlike the several ones Shiori had visited throughout her career. Yet, gazing upon this particular mansion, a dark pit settles in her stomach.

     “We have no choice, if we don’t go we’re basically waving a large red flag with the words ‘We don’t like you! Let’s fight!’ in front of their faces,” Shiori turns to Biboo who doesn’t turn to face her but even then, the former could practically see the trepidation in the latter. “We might as well entertain them.”

     Shiori hums as she crosses her arms. “Where are the twins then?”

     “They’re not coming.” Shiori furrows her brows, the pit growing. “You know Fuwamoco’s reputation, if we bring them along people will think we’re here for other reasons,” Biboo explains, “Besides, it’s not like those two enjoy these kinds of fancy events anyways.”

     Shiori clicks her tongue, “True.”

     “If you’re worried about it just being the two of us, don’t be. I got a replacement who’ll be here later to fill in for them. We’ll still be outnumbered by one but that’s okay, I heard there were a lot of third parties invited to mediate,” Biboo assures but Shiori only scoffs in response.

     “Yeah. Strangers who all have their own motives and agendas and emotions and–”

     “Hey, worse comes to worse, I hear the manor has history,” Biboo cuts in, finally turning to meet Shiori’s gaze. “You know, the paranormal history kind,” she wiggles her brows for added effect and Shiori rolls her eyes. “Really Beebs?” “Hey, it’s pretty common for houses that look like this, no?”

     Shiori pinches the bridge of her nose, “You know that isn’t how this–”

     “Oh I’m sure you’ll be fine, now come on let’s get this over with.”

     Shiori grunts as the shorter woman walks on ahead, effectively cutting her off. She couldn’t exactly argue with that second statement however and so she obediently follows behind. As soon as Shiori reaches the top of the stoop and stands beside Biboo, the large door swings open to reveal a red haired woman wearing a flat cap. 

     “Ah, Advent! Come on in, come on in,” the woman greets warmly, opening the door wider to let them in. “Thank you Bae, sorry if we’re late,” Biboo apologizes and Bae flashes a smile before closing the door behind them. “Not at all, the other guests are here but the party absolutely hasn’t started yet. Can’t start without everyone and all that, you know?”

     The three share a chuckle before Bae gestures for the two to follow, “Now, right this way. The party is in the main lobby.”

     Passing by a flight of stairs and walking down a hallway, it’s not long before they arrive at the main lobby where the other guests are, all of them already separated into their own little groups talking amongst each other. Bae turns around to look at Biboo and Shiori.

     “The party will begin shortly, or whenever Gigi decides. In the meantime, please, enjoy yourselves and don’t hesitate to ask if you need anything.”

     After giving a curt bow, Bae walks past them back into the hallway and leaves the only two members of Advent in the mansion to their own devices. Shiori glances around as she asks, “So, what do we do first boss?”

     “Let’s go find Gigi real quick, extend our thanks, exchange pleasantries and all that first,” Biboo says to which Shiori agrees with a simple nod. 

     Gigi Murin would be best described as someone with a very distinct personality. Eccentric whilst also charming in her own endearing little way. Crafty, with a natural born talent to direct the spotlight where she pleased, whether it be on herself or others in the name of entertaining all those around her.

     Shiori had always felt like she needed to watch her step around her. 

     Regardless, it is those very traits that allow for Shiori and Biboo to find Gigi with ease, talking with Ouro Kronii rather animatedly. In the midst of her laughter, Gigi catches sight of the two approaching and shows her widest smile. 

     “Biboo! Shiori! Welcome, welcome!” she says excitedly as she extends her hand, “I was worried Advent wasn’t going to show up, that wouldn’t have been good, wouldn’t it Kronii?” Biboo huffs as she shakes Gigi’s hand, “It’d be rude not to show up.”

     “Thank you for your consideration!” Gigi exclaims. “Trust me this’ll be well worth your time. I myself cannot wait to get things started, to see Justice and now Advent in the same room, it warms my heart and fills me with adrenaline to… well… I’ll keep that as a surprise, okay?” she gives a wink. Biboo and Shiori exchange looks but say nothing. 

     A hearty chuckle leaves Kronii’s lips, “It’ll be very interesting indeed, just a shame I’ll be losing out on business.” “I didn’t expect to see you here Kronii,” Shiori says, the comment having come out involuntarily but she doesn’t attempt to take it back. She was curious after all.

     “Well Kronii is part of the reason this is all possible! Helped me set it all up, the guest list, the funding, everything,” Gigi explains as Kronii nods along, “A little favor, alongside my own reasons of course.” The Lord of the Mansion glances at the time before clapping her hands together. 

     “Right, I must tend to the other guests before getting ready. Enjoy the atmosphere you two and don’t worry, we’ll wait for your final plus one before beginning. For now, farewell,” Gigi says and with that, they go their separate ways. Gigi and Kronii disappear into the crowd while Biboo and Shiori continue on as usual, finding a quiet unoccupied corner to stand in and wait. 

     “Where is this replacement by the way? They going to take any longer to arrive?” Shiori asks which has Biboo checking for the time from the clock on the wall. “She should be here by right about…”

     Just then, they hear Bae loudly greeting someone in the distance. Another guest.

     “Speak of the devil.”

     Shiori furrows her brows as she turns to eye the doorway leading to the hallway they came from with bated breath. First she sees Bae, then the figure following behind her. A woman, much much taller than Bae, dressed in mostly black accented with dark blue. Golden eyes meet wine red and Shiori feels her breath hitch in her throat. 

     She remembers feeling sweat on her body from head to toe, frigid on top of her sweltering skin. There’s a hand caressing her thigh, exposed in a way she doesn’t remember it being mere moments ago and the only thing that pulls her mind away from the sensation is the lips that trail her neck up and down hypnotically. 

     She remembers wondering how quickly things had escalated but the room was dimly too lit for her to think properly and the haze from the alcohol in her system definitely wasn’t helping. A firm arm wraps around her waist and pulls her close, the wandering hand on her thigh wandering up further to trace patterns on her midriff. A whisper in her ear sends shivers down her spine.

     “Shiori?”

     The woman in question blinks rapidly, hesitantly turning to look at her friend. “Yes?” “You okay? You looked out of it for a second there,” Biboo asks, genuine concern laced in her voice. “Was it ghosts?” “No,” Shiori answers immediately, so quickly in fact she herself winces. “No… just…” Her mouth snaps shut abruptly. 

     “So this the party huh?”

     “Nerissa, nice of you to finally join us,” Biboo says and the corner of Nerissa’s lips curl into a small smile. “Sorry for being late boss,” she apologizes. Biboo sighs as she waves her hand, “I’ll let it slide since we’re technically off the clock now.”

     Nerissa laughs softly, muttering her thanks when her eyes land on Shiori once more. 

     “Nerissa.”

     “Shiori.”

     “It’s quite a surprise to see you here,” Shiori comments to which Nerissa raises her brow inquisitively. “Is that a bad thing?” despite the phrase, there’s a certain playfulness in Nerissa’s tone as she says it. One that puts Shiori on guard. She’s unaware of who she’s speaking with right now and ultimately decides to play it safe. 

     “Not at all, just pointing it out. It’s good to have you here, safety in numbers and all that,” Shiori replies, hoping the waver in her voice goes unnoticed. If Nerissa did notice, she didn’t show it. Instead, all she does is grin and roll her eyes lightheartedly, “I got you the first time darling no need to panic, but I will take the semi-compliment.” She winks and Shiori merely hums. 

     Biboo eyes the two curiously before clearing her throat to break the obvious tension starting to form. “Nerissa, you should tell Gigi you’re here now so the party can officially get started. They said something about wanting everyone to be here,” Biboo informs and Nerissa nods. “Where do I find her then?” 

     “We last talked to her there,” Biboo points in the direction they briefly spoke with Gigi, “Don’t know where she is right now but with your height, you should be able to find her no problem.”
“You got it boss,” Nerissa says before she starts walking away in search of Gigi. As soon as she’s out of earshot, Biboo begins her investigation. “What was that?”

     “What was what?”

     “Shiori,” Biboo gives her a look, “We’ve known each other for long enough and I’ve seen you through so many different situations often enough to know what that reaction is. Come on, what was that?” Shiori sighs as she avoids eye contact with Biboo which was difficult considering the latter was shorter than her. Looking at the ground just wasn’t an option. 

     “Is there some sort of bad blood between you two?”

     Shiori shakes her head. “...just lingering things we haven’t talked about…”

     “So you have talked,” Biboo concludes and Shiori shrugs, unfazed that that got out, “It’s more we don’t talk that’s the problem.” Biboo’s brows furrow as she stares at Shiori, racking her brain to piece together a logical explanation.

     “So you guys didn’t talk long… but something happened and now…! Wait is she–?!”

     Shiori shushes her harshly, very nearly reaching out to clamp Biboo’s mouth shut with her hand but she just manages to restrain herself. For now. She glances around to see if anyone heard, thankfully that didn’t seem to be the case.

     “Yes! Yes! Can we not tell the rest of the party while we're at it please?” “Sorry… didn't expect that…” Biboo whispers, “I mean at least things aren’t… bad, right? Just awkward?” For a brief moment, Shiori recalls the memory of waking up. Waking up to the sight of a woman in her bed. Of that woman, Nerissa , silently putting on her clothes before leaving the room without a word. 

     Shiori never tried to stop her. 

     The present Shiori shakes her head slightly and nods. “Yeah, I think we’re good.”

     “Are you sure you’re going to be okay though?” Biboo asks and Shiori nods again despite the way her arms wrap around herself. “For this night? I’m going to have to be,” Shiori inhales deeply then exhales just as heavily, “Don’t worry about me, I’ll be fine.”

     Biboo opens her mouth to speak, perhaps to protest more but before she gets the chance, she’s cut off by the sound of another, much louder voice echoing throughout the main lobby. 

     “Okay! Gather around everyone, gather around!” Gigi exclaims, “The event is about to start! Please, come in close, don’t be shy!” At her request, everyone stops what they’re doing and makes their way over to form a small crowd around Gigi who was standing before a large aquarium placed by an L-shaped staircase leading upstairs.

     Shiori for her part stayed an arms length away from the crowd, close enough to not seem out of place but far enough that she still had her personal space which happened to be close to the very back but she didn’t particularly mind. Once everyone is settled and the murmurs quiet down, Gigi speaks out again. 

     “First and foremost, I want to thank everyone here in attendance tonight for coming,” Gigi begins, taking a glance at all the faces in the crowd. 

     “My dearest friends, revered members in Advent and of course all my esteemed guests, while I have invited you here today to indeed celebrate my birthday, there happens to be another reason for why I have gathered you here tonight,” Gigi beams as she places a hand on her chest, passion dripping from every word she speaks. 

     “After years of conflict, I hope to bring Advent and Justice together for peace. A wish of mine I’ve always dreamed of fulfilling ever since I was brought into Justice. A wish and a dream that I hope will be realized on this very night! ”

     Shiori wasn’t one to not give credit where credit is due. It was awfully admirable of Gigi to attempt this. 

     “But first! Before we begin, I would like to perform a trick for everyone. A little display of my ability to perhaps prove that I am up to the task,” Gigi announces before giving an exaggerated bow followed by an equally exaggerated wink, “If I can’t do this then peace may take a long while.” 

     Shiori raises a brow, watching alongside the rest of the crowd with interest and amusement as Gigi makes her way up a small set of stairs with a platform placed at the side of the aquarium. When she reaches the top, she turns to face everyone. 

     “Now, esteemed guests! What I have here is of course a large tank filled water but what you may not know is that it is filled with vicious piranhas,” Gigi explains as she removes the cover of the aquarium, “In just about a few minutes I will be entering these dangerous waters and tasked with opening a box that will be dropped into the water with me. When I emerge, then I shall prove–!”

     Click . 

     In the blink of an eye, darkness envelops Shiori’s senses and several whispers of confusion are heard from the rest. Shiori perks up at the sound of commotion and tries her best to make out what it was to no avail. 

     All she can rely on is her hearing. What she hears is first a loud crash, then water splashing and just as quickly as it had happened, the lights flicker back on to reveal a horrifying scene. 

     Shiori hears the ear-piercing scream first before she registers the red, the blood, in the water.

     “ GIGI !”

     The piranhas were in an absolute frenzy, everyone forced to watch as they tore into Gigi like a pile or bag of meat. The water now a whirlpool of blood and flesh with bits of Gigi’s clothes floating around in the crimson water. 

     Panic ensues as people try to help but it’s no use. The damage was done, the piranhas unrelenting in their feeding, ripping and tearing until not even a morsel was left. And there was none. When the realization slowly starts to sink in, the atmosphere becomes completely silent for several long excruciating minutes. 

     Justice are the first to break out of their state. 

     Shiori watches from behind as Cecilia falls to her knees, a shaky hand reaching up to cover her mouth and muffle the cries that follow. The pink-haired woman Shiori recognizes as Raora, is quick to kneel beside Cecilia in an attempt to try to comfort her but Shiori sees it even from a distance, the way her own shoulders shake.

     The leader of Justice, Elizabeth in spite of her more put together composure seemed unable to process a single thing around her, staring right at the tank with nothing but a blank stare. 

     Off to the side, Shiori notes another pink-haired woman she doesn’t recognize kneeling in front of a small child, their words inaudible to her ears. She spots Ina in her own little corner with her back to her and looking away from the tank. Shiori can only assume she was just as distraught.

     “So what do we do now?”

     “Give the people a minute Bijou… one thing at a time,” Shiori turns to the last group and eyes the green-haired woman talking to Biboo, dressed undoubtedly in the most lavish outfit of them all. She even had an umbrella to boot. Shiori doesn’t have a name for that face, she was sure she’d remember if she did. 

     The other two in the conversation, she recognizes.

     “That was brutal…” Mumei, a fortune teller comments in a hushed tone and Kronii nods in agreement, her face tight as she crosses her arms. “It was.”

     Just as Shiori was about to approach to add her thoughts on the matter, she felt someone grab her by the wrist and try to pull her back. Flinching, Shiori is quick to tug her hand free before turning on her heels to see who would dare do such a thing unprompted. Light viridian eyes meet rich gold.

     “Shiori!” Cecilia shouts loudly, “You're known for talking to ghosts right?” Shiori blinks, taking a moment to gather her bearings before answering. “Yes, I am.”

     “Oh fantastic… could you… I don't know, contact Gigi then?! Find out who did this?!” Shiori opens her mouth for a split second only to close it back shut, effectively biting back the retort that very nearly made it out of her throat. In her mind, she counts to three. 

     Justice has just lost a member of their gang Shiori reminds herself.

     Taking a deep breath, Shiori intended to reply to Cecilia in a calm and measured tone, the latter clearly waiting expectantly for an answer. But when she taps into her ability and the ensuing response doesn't follow, Shiori’s heart sinks.

     Shiori is sure nothing is amiss. She feels fine. There are no disturbances in the room.

     Using her ability should be like second nature to her. Yet when she forms a connection with the spiritual realm and pulls for a response, nothing. The hairs on the back of her neck don't raise and she doesn't feel that familiar feeling of several eyes watching her every move. 

     Cecilia obviously takes notice of the psychic's prolonged silence. “Shiori.”

     The woman in question comes to herself, suddenly unsteady on her own two feet. Cecilia raises a brow and Shiori gulps. “I…” there's a long pause, “I can’t.”

     “You what ? ”

     “I can't find her ghost,” Shiori mutters, her brows furrowed as she stares down at the palms of her hands. “She's not answering or something I don't know. All I know is that I can't–”

     Cecilia scoffs loudly, cutting Shiori off mid sentence. “Are you a fraud or something?”

     Shiori's head snaps up to glare at Cecilia, the indignance purely evident on her face. “No!”

     “Then what can we interpret that as, hm?” Cecilia counters, calm as ever to start but her tone slowly begins to increase in volume with every word that comes next. “Because we all clearly saw Gigi just… die in front of us and if you're saying you're not a fraud then one of those has to be wrong.”

     Cecilia narrows her eyes at Shiori, gaze sharp. “Your claim is weaker by default… how do we know you’re not just feeding us information you want us to hear? That Gigi isn't talking to you right now and you're just holding her hostage? Even in death ! You sick–!”

     She moves forward as if to pounce on Shiori but before that can happen, someone steps in front of the latter, holding an arm out protectively to keep Shiori behind them. A familiar fragrance fills Shiori’s nose and she catches a glimpse of dark blue in the black hair that cascades down to their shoulders.

     Nerissa.

     That doesn’t seem to stop Cecilia however but again, before she gets the chance, she’s stopped by Elizabeth who reaches out to pull her fellow gang member back. “CC, that’s enough,” Elizabeth says.

     Cecilia tries to wriggle free but Elizabeth’s grip on her forearm is strong. “Elizabeth! Let me go!”

     “No can do CC, not until you promise you won’t do anything,” Elizabeth glances at Shiori then breathes out a sigh before looking back at Cecilia, still stubbornly trying to break out of her hold. “I understand you’re upset, we all are but what good will attacking Shiori do?”

     “So what?! We’re supposed to just ignore that she could be the reason Gigi is dead!” Cecilia bursts out angrily, little droplets of tears running down her face and with one final tug, she’s able to free her arm but instead of going for Shiori, she continues to stare daggers into Elizabeth. “What happened to watching after each other huh!”

     Elizabeth opens her mouth to speak but no words come out. She bites down on her lower lip and looks away. Cecilia scoffs as she turns to look at Shiori but her view is obstructed when Nerissa steps between them. 

     “Going to try to defend her too?”

     “Just as easy as it is for you to accuse that Shiori did it, I can prove she didn’t,” Nerissa asserts firmly. “For Shiori to go all the way there to the tank to push Gigi without anyone noticing is practically impossible, closing the lights like that too? No way. Besides, she was all the way at the back and as for her ability,” she looks back at Shiori for a brief second, “With how complicated the thing can be, we can’t judge her. But also, who is to say you’re not just making assumptions too?”

     “Excuse me?” Cecilia scoffs but Nerissa doesn’t falter. “It’s physical evidence against potential bias. Your claim is weaker by default.”

     The room falls so silent you could hear a pin drop from the next room over. 

     A beat.

     “Cecilia?” Elizabeth calls out softly and the woman in question merely huffs in response, crossing her arms as she turns away to stand beside Raora. “Fine. Whatever.”

     Several uncomfortable seconds pass but now with the major dispute now somewhat settled, everyone lets out a collective breath of relief though the tension is still thick in the air. Elizabeth is the first to break it, “We have to investigate this further, there’s no way we can allow a killer like this on the loose.” She takes a quick look around, “Does anyone have any leads to go off of?”

     “Clearly not,” Cecilia mutters and Elizabeth sighs. 

     “Well it can’t be us, I was basically right beside you and Nerissa already said her piece about Shiori,” Biboo chimes in. “As if she isn’t on your side. Are you really about to call this a freak accident then? Because if you do, you do know Gigi wouldn’t just–”

     “Cecilia,” Elizabeth cuts in.

     “She might be onto something,” Shiori partially defends. “Those piranhas were way too ravenous to be considered normal,” she holds up her hand to stop a certain someone interrupting, “I’m not implying anything, just pointing it out. An observation.”

     “So what do we do now…?” Raora asks meekly. Advent and Justice’s leaders trade looks with one another before an unsaid mutual agreement follows suit. “We find the killer,” Elizabeth concludes. When Shiori and Nerissa look to Biboo for confirmation, she nods. “It’d be beneficial for all of us if we get rid of whoever is responsible for this,” Biboo adds.

     While Elizabeth and Raora voiced their agreement, Cecilia of course had her reservations. She didn’t seem to even want to entertain the idea at all. 

     “Come on Cecilia,” this time, it’s Raora’s gentle voice that tries to coax her. “It’s what Gigi deserves, if we accuse Advent and it’s not them, then Gigi will never get justice. If it’s them we atleast have proof to prove it.” Elizabeth walks up behind Raora and places a hand on her shoulder, a pleading look on her face.  

     Feeling guilty and outnumbered, Cecilia bites down hard on her lower lip and reluctantly agrees. “For Gigi.”

     The members of Advent on the other hand need only spare brief glances with each other to confirm they were on the same page. With that, Biboo and Elizabeth separate themselves from the rest to presumably discuss further on how to handle this, leaving the rest to wait. 

     For the first time in years since their conception, both gangs had a final goal to reach that required their explicit teamwork. In spite of the very rough start, Shiori was genuinely surprised. She hadn’t expected anything of the sort to come out of this at all, at least not without a lot of fighting. And not just the verbal kind. Shiori snorts. 

     They do say things like these have a tendency to somehow bring people together, one way or another. Shiori stares at Nerissa from the corner of her eye before looking away. … a whole bunch of baloney.

     “Alright,” Elizabeth announces, walking back to the rest with Biboo at her side. “The plan is going to go like this. First, if we may, we ask that the other guests also stay in the mansion until we get this whole matter sorted out.” 

     There are murmurs in the crowd but without any direct protest, Elizabeth continues. “Second, all of us are going to search the mansion. Top to bottom, from one corner to the other, we can’t leave any stone unturned. There are three floors and twelve of us not counting the child so we’ll split into groups of four, each taking a floor with the last floor having less people since there’s only one room. Then we’ll all gather back here at the main lobby to discuss everything we found before doing one final sweep. Any objections?” She waits for a moment and no one says a word. 

     “Okay, for groups–”

     Once the last of their instructions are given, everyone splits off to their designated groups, Shiori choosing to stand in one unoccupied corner of the lobby with Nerissa as they wait for the other two members. One of them being Elizabeth who was still talking with Biboo but after exchanging a few more words, she immediately makes her way over. Elizabeth raises a brow as she looks at them, “Where’s Bae?”

     “We thought she was with you?” Shiori replies.

     “No, is she not with you?” Shiori brows furrow as she too takes a look around only to find no sign of the other woman with red hair. “No…?”

     “What… I swear I saw–”

     “Looking for me?”

     A yelp escapes Elizabeth’s lips as she jolts to the side, revealing none other than Bae standing behind her. Shiori just manages to stifle her laughter out of respect but she swears she hears a sound from Nerissa next to her. 

     “Frigg–! You scared me Bae!” Elizabeth hisses through gritted teeth, suddenly out of breath, “...you move so quietly, you know that?” 

     “Gigi used to always say that,” Bae says with a shrug, “I didn’t mean to scare you, I’ve just been away… taking time to process you know?”

     Elizabeth lets out a heavy exhale and places a hand on Bae’s shoulder before giving it a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t apologize, all the more reason to do this, right? To get justice for Gigi?” she says and the corner of Bae’s lip curls into a smile. “Yeah… I promise I’ll help as much as I can. I basically know this whole place like the back of my hand.”

     “Well then we couldn’t ask for anything better,” Elizabeth nods then she turns to look at Nerissa and Shiori, “Are we ready to get started?”

     She receives a chorus of agreements in response. 

     And so together all four members of the first group arrive at the first floor.

     “We have two rooms to check,” Elizabeth starts off, “The kitchen and the bedroom. To save time, we can split into pairs and search both at the same time then come back. So who wants to go with who?”

     Shiori clenches her jaw. To her, this was a less than ideal situation.

     “Shiori, why don’t you pick first?”

     Damn it.

     “Uh…” Shiori trails off in an effort to stall time, “...Nerissa.”

     Though the tension between them was still palpable, Shiori figures this would be the lesser of two evils compared to picking Elizabeth or Bae, both of which were members of Justice. One being the literal leader of Justice, the other an honorary member. 

     Elizabeth nods, seemingly expecting that answer and Shiori tries to not let that get to her. “Which room will you be taking?” she asks. 

     “The kitchen,” Shiori gives the answer no thought, eager to just get out of the situation on account of how much she can feel Nerissa staring holes into her. Good god, is this woman not afraid of eye contact?

     “Alrighty then Bae, I guess you’re with me to check the bedroom. We’ll meet up back here in this hallway when we’re done before going downstairs together, is that okay?” Elizabeth asks to which Shiori and Nerissa nod. 

     “Okay, good luck then you two.”

     After bidding Elizabeth and Bae good luck in return, Shiori and Nerissa head over to the kitchen. When they open the door to enter, Shiori winces as the smell of something rancid hits her in full force. Her hand reaches out to cover her nose in an instant, holding back the urge to gag. 

     Her fellow member of Advent seemed to be equally bothered by the smell, but she bravely pushes through to enter the kitchen and Shiori follows her. When they enter after a bit of reluctance, they immediately find the source of the smell. 

     A pile of rotting meat just sitting out in the open on a cutting board on the kitchen counter. 

     “Good god…” Shiori sways a little on her feet, just managing to catch herself before falling. The sheer odor permeating in the air enough to make her feel nauseous.

     Shiori feels a hand on the small of her back. Feather-light yet the feeling causes a full shiver to run down her spine. 

     “You okay?” she hears Nerissa ask gently from behind, the lilt in her tone wholly different from the one before in the lobby. It was as if Shiori was talking to a whole new different person. 

     Shiori nods and answers after swallowing with a bit of difficulty, “All good, just the smell really bothers me.” Nerissa hums, wordlessly walking past her and Shiori figures that was the end of it.

     She makes her way over to the kitchen counter furthest away from the meat to begin their search when in the corner of her eye, she spots Nerissa attempting to clean the biohazard on the cutting board. She places it in a plastic bag, ties it tightly and throws it in the nearby trash before going to wash her hands diligently at the sink with more than one pump of soap.

     It does little to mitigate the awful smell already in the air but Shiori appreciates the gesture regardless.

     “Thank you.”

     “Don't mention it.”

     Unbeknownst to Shiori the Psychic, a ghost of a smile plays on Nerissa's lips. 

     With that out of the way, the duo properly begin their investigation. Unfortunately, the first few minutes don't yield much results as all they find are the usual things you would find in a kitchen. The basic utensils, cookware, dinnerware and a lot of food.

     If you could count snacks, snacks, more snacks and leftovers snacks as food. Shiori clicks her tongue as she gets a brief moment of clarity. I guess I can't really say much, can I?

     She goes to open the fridge but she immediately regrets the decision as a familiar scent wafts past causing her to close it back shut. “Good god, this is even worse than me… who has a need for so much meat…”

     “Think they have an air freshener around?” Nerissa asks and Shiori shrugs as she moves to check another spot. “I don’t know, but it would really help.”

     Since she was already going through the base cabinets, Nerissa tries searching for any sort of cleaning supplies but when she does find it, she frowns. Inside all there was was a large bucket, two scrub brushes, a huge jug of cleaning detergent that looked even less than half full and no air freshener. “Damn, there’s only actual cleaning supplies here. Do you think cleaning with detergent will help? There’s only a bit left though…”

     “No need then,” Shiori tells her, “Too much work anyways. We’ll just have to power through it, maybe use it as a motivator to get this done faster.” And so they double their efforts, Shiori searching one side of the kitchen and Nerissa searching the other with no words exchanged whatsoever.

     At first, it was easy to ignore the awkward silence due to the distance and them being equally focused at the task at hand, but eventually they meet in the middle. Even if all they were doing was checking cabinets next to one another, the close proximity has Shiori forgetting how to breathe. 

     She blinks rapidly, forcing herself to think about something else before the memory of that night conjures back up in her mind.

     “Uh… hey,” she blurts out without thinking and never before has Shiori ever felt like she wanted to slap herself in the face more than has in this current moment. 

     “Yeah?”

     Shiori racks her mind for something to say. “I just… wanted to thank you. For earlier. For defending me and my… failure to do the one thing I’m supposed to be good at. You didn’t have to,” she says softly, a half-hearted chuckle leaving her lips. Shiori closes the cabinet she was searching through and leans back against the kitchen counter to rest, the marble cool underneath her fingertips when she feels a warm hand on hers. 

     Shiori glances down at the hand then up at Nerissa who looks at her with a gentle smile. “Hey, it’s no problem at all. I happened to have my eye on you and well, what Cecilia said about you just wasn’t true. I wasn’t going to stand for that.” Shiori finds herself unknowingly mirroring Nerissa’s smile, the two sharing a laugh.

     After it dies down, Shiori’s eyes glance to their hands that have somehow ended up intertwined and her eyes widen. Before she has the time to think, she pulls it away whilst turning her head to clear her throat, missing the way Nerissa lips curl into a frown. Shiori forces out a laugh.

     “You must be really good at your job huh? Good thing you’re on our side.”

     Nerissa’s brows furrow, confused for a second before she gets the message. “I-I mean it genuinely!”

     “Well I appreciate it,” Shiori snickers as she looks at Nerissa from over her shoulder, “Now how about we get out of here and check on Elizabeth and Bae? I think it’s safe to say there isn’t anything else here worth checking.” Shiori wasn’t technically lying but she would also be lying if she said she didn’t have some ulterior motive to want to check on the rest. 

     A second more alone with Nerissa and she doesn’t doubt the possibility of her ending up recreating the images from both the past and in her mind. And that wouldn’t be good for anyone , as much as Shiori tries to tell herself otherwise. 

     Nerissa, oblivious to the conflict in Shiori’s head, follows the latter as she leads them to the bedroom down the hallway. 

     Opening the door reveals the place to be thoroughly searched. The bedsheets are pulled, all the bedside drawers have been opened and the floor was a mess. Right in the middle, standing before the fireplace, is Elizabeth who seemed to be spacing out. 

     “This feels like we’re breaking some form of ethics here,” Nerissa comments from beside Shiori. Elizabeth breaks out from whatever trance she was in and looks over at the two. She sighs, “We have to find Gigi’s killer… did you two find anything?”

     “Nothing much,” Shiori informs regrettably, “You?”

     “No luck either, nothing of significance. Even with Bae’s knowledge of a whole bunch of secret compartments,” “Secret compartments?” Shiori repeats, raising a brow. She looks past Elizabeth and spots Bae sitting on the floor, a part of the wall opened like a trapdoor revealing a bunch of papers inside. Considering the closet looked to be pushed out of place, Shiori assumed the trapdoor was behind it. 

     A lot of secrecy.

     “Just documents and wills. Interesting, but not at all related to finding out what happened to Gigi,” Elizabeth adds and alarms blare in Nerissa’s head but she dares not say a word. “You never knew about the secret compartments?” Shiori asks curiously to which Elizabeth shakes her head.

     “The manor is hers, not Justice’s or anyone else's. Just hers,” she explains, “I know she renovated the place a good amount after she bought it, like the lobby but secret cubbies? Not at all.” Elizabeth lets out a hollow laugh and Shiori feels nothing but pity for the person who she used to see as nothing but an enemy all this time.

     “I guess that’s just like Gigi to do…” Elizabeth mutters her tone, a blend of fondness and regret. It falls quiet for a moment before Elizabeth seemingly remembers something, “Right, I forgot to mention this, we did find this blacklight.” She holds it up for Shiori and Nerissa to see. “Though it’s not of much help, we used it all over the room and nothing.”

     Shiori hums as she walks over to Elizabeth, holding her hand out. “May I?” she asks politely and Elizabeth passes the item over without question, “Sure, be my guest.”

     Shiori takes the blacklight and tests it briefly, switching it on and off once before saying how she’ll be right back. She makes her way out of the bedroom and Nerissa wordlessly follows. “Where are you going?”

     “Testing.”

     She switches the blacklight back on and flashes it all around the hallway in search of something. Anything. But so far, just like the kitchen, nothing. “Good god it is so dark…” 

     Reaching near the end of the hallway, Shiori makes a turn to start going down the stairs and stopping at the landing. Nerissa however stays at the top, watching Shiori curiously. “Are we going down already? Shouldn’t we wait for Elizabeth and Bae?” she asks.

     “I’m just checking if any of the others are already downstairs,” Shiori answers before getting the idea of trying the blacklight only for it to reveal nothing. “Darn.”

     She lets out a disappointed sigh before making her way back upstairs but just as she nears the top where Nerissa is, she trips and loses her footing. Shiori’s eyes widen as she feels herself falling backwards, time feeling like it had slowed down significantly as her life flashes before her eyes.

     For a moment Shiori really thinks that this was how it was going to end and she had no way of stopping it. A cruel fate.

     That is, until she feels a hand grab hers and warmth embracing her right after. 

     Shiori would’ve happily sinked into it if it wasn’t for the rapid beating of her heart distracting her. The adrenaline pumping through her veins from such a close call. 

     “Shiori,” she hears faintly, “Shiori, are you okay?”

     The woman in question nods after a bit, swallowing thickly before reluctantly pulling away. “I’m fine,” she whispers, unsure if she was trying to reassure herself or Nerissa at this point but she says it anyway. “I’m fine.”

     Even separated, Nerissa keeps her hold on Shiori’s forearms firm, pulling the latter away from the stairs just in case. Still Shiori manages to spare a look behind her.

     “Long way down…” 

     “Yeah.”

     “Thank you… I would’ve definitely died there had I fallen,” Shiori says and Nerissa nods, squeezing her arms reassuringly. “Good thing I caught you then,” “Yeah.”

     Nerissa cracks a small smile, trying to lighten the mood, “Don’t die on me so quickly now detective, there’s still a murder to solve. We still need you.” Shiori laughs breathlessly in spite of herself, the adrenaline clearly still taking a moment to taper off. “Yeah that would suck.”

     The both of them look down to Nerissa’s hands still on Shiori and instead of flinching away like they did before, the former just takes a moment to let go. Regardless, that doesn’t stop either of them from looking away from each other out of embarrassment but as Shiori turns slightly to stare down at the floor, something catches her eye. 

     She walks closer to inspect the last step of the staircase and notes it was several times shorter than the rest. A difference obvious enough that she was able to discern it just by look alone. “That explains it.”

     Nerissa, curious as to what Shiori was looking at, takes a peek as well. “Holy– that has to be a safety hazard.” Shiori's eyes narrow as she continues to stare, “Now I get why I nearly tripped earlier at the landing, the one there was super tall so to fix it they made it shorter here. But the question is why?”

     “Human error?” Nerissa suggests but Shiori shakes her head, “Too deliberate, why just the start and the end when the rest are fine?” “What if it’s the aquarium? Maybe for headspace or something else?” Shiori presses her lips into a thin line. 

     It wasn’t a completely outlandish answer yet Shiori couldn’t help but think that just wasn’t it either. There was still a missing piece, something nagging at her mind but it wasn’t like Shiori had any other clues to go off by anyways so she decides to push the thought aside and file it away for later. 

     Shiori stands back up and looks at Nerissa, her hand brushing lightly against the other’s as she walks by. “Let’s go back to check on the other two?” Nerissa nods and together they return to the bedroom to see Elizabeth still standing by the fireplace with Bae now sitting on the bed and the closet moved back into place. 

     Elizabeth turns to them with a smile, one that Shiori returns but as she gives the leader of Justice a once over, her eyes narrow at the sight of a lighter in her hands. She makes no comment of it whatsoever, instead asking, “Not going down yet?”

     Shiori watches Elizabeth's movements closely, how she glances back at Bae before turning to look back at her. “Are the others downstairs already?” “No, but we’re done here right? Might as well,” Shiori replies coolly, looking for the right pull for a response. “I suppose but don’t you think–”

     “Come on Liz,” Bae suddenly cuts in, appearing behind Elizabeth to gently push her forward. “She’s got a point, we’ve searched everywhere and nothing. If we go down we can get a headstart on searching things can’t we?” Elizabeth looked like she wanted to protest further but another push from Bae has her begrudgingly agreeing. “Fine, I guess we could…”

     Elizabeth passes by Shiori and Nerissa without a word or even sparing them a glance but when Bae passes by, she gives Shiori a look, her eyes flitting towards the fireplace then back at her. Shiori nods ever so slightly and waits patiently for them to leave. 

     As soon as they’re out the door, Shiori goes to grab a fireplace poker to sift through the fireplace. “Do you actually think there’s something here?” Nerissa asks. “I suspected something but after the look Bae just gave me, I’m inclined to think there is,” Shiori answers.

     Lo and behold as Shiori moves a piece of log half buried in the ash, she spots something and wastes no time reaching in to grab it with her hands. It was paper and what she pulled out wasn’t just one or two pieces, but multiple . “It’s mail…”

     Wiping off the ash, Shiori reads what she can while Nerissa watches and waits with barely contained patience. “What is it?” she musters the courage to ask, the curiosity getting the better of her. “It’s mails between the Justice members, and by the looks of it, neither of them except Gigi really seemed keen on the idea of coming to a truce with us,” Shiori relates to her, “Yet this whole party happened anyway.”

     “Internal conflict?”

     “Definitely seems like it,” Shiori furrows her brows as she reads another, “Now that Gigi’s gone though, why go through the trouble of wanting to burn these? What purpose would that serve?”

     “A good alibi…”

     “A good alibi?” Shiori repeats with a raised brow. “It’s a pretty simple and straightforward manipulation tactic,” Nerissa explains, “You do something no one expects you to do then pin the blame on someone else who is more likely to do it. You won’t believe the amount of times you can walk away scot free. Bias and all that you know?”

     “A crime to kill two birds with one stone… keeping the status quo and freely eliminating Advent under the guise of avenging their own member,” Shiori mutters and Nerissa hums in agreement. “I guess since they failed at accusing you earlier, they’re trying to get rid of anything that can be possibly used against them,” Nerissa reasons but even she seems doubtful, “Still, it’s hard to imagine Justice killing their own members like… that out of all ways. What about Bae? Why would she hint at you about this?”

     Shiori bites down on her lip, folding the mails and keeping them on her person. “Guilt maybe. She wasn’t officially part of Justice but she was close to Gigi, maybe her revealing this is her trying to get justice as ironic as that sounds.” She shakes her head and grabs Nerissa by the hand to pull her towards the door. 

     “Whatever it is we’ll have to put them aside for now and head downstairs before they start getting suspicious,” Shiori says before looking over her shoulder with a grin. “Nice deducing skills John,” she jokes and Nerissa rolls her eyes lightheartedly, content with saying nothing in favor of letting Shiori pull her along.

     They arrive back in the main lobby to see Elizabeth and Bae just sitting around when not long after, the group from the second floor, which had the most members also return, consisting of Cecilia, Fauna, Biboo, Ina and Raora. Strangely enough, Irys who was supposed to be with her father on the third floor was there alongside them too. 

     “Irys, what’re you doing here? Where are the rest?” Fauna asks. “Oh, Daddy and the other two are still busy searching. I just got bored so I came down here!”

     Whether intentional or not, everyone unanimously decides to just accept the answer and move on from the topic to the more pressing matters at hand. Why did we even agree to involve her in this Shiori thinks. 

     Getting back on track, Elizabeth of course leads the discussion. “While waiting for the third group, let’s all quickly share what we have so far. For the first group we regrettably found nothing–”

     Nerissa makes a motion to step forward but Shiori is quick to hold her back, tugging her gently by the arm, a silent request to stay quiet. Nerissa, though skeptical, obeys and stays firmly at Shiori’s side.  

     “-nothing of importance. So do you girls perhaps have any better news for us?” The members of the second group all spare glances at each other. “We only got our hands on the receipts for comparison,” Cecilia reports and Elizabeth tilts her head ever so slightly to the side, “Comparison?”

     “I figured I’d check to ensure there were no suspicious items on the list considering I funded everything,” Fauna explains, “Everything seems to line up. Groceries, the usual decorations, even new cleaning supplies all bought about a day ago, nothing out of the ordinary at all compared to mine.” 

     “Basically what we have is nothing,” Raora says and Elizabeth visibly deflates. 

     “What about food?” Shiori tries but Raora is quick to answer that too, “That was under groceries. It was like, a lot and a lot of meat we bought and sent here. The piranhas shouldn’t have been hungry.” Shiori glances at the aquarium, watching as only the piranhas swim about inside. “Huh.”

     “So we’re back at a dead end?” Biboo concludes and the silence she gets in return speaks volumes. “We can wait on the third group…?” Ina attempts to boost the morale even if it dampens by the second but just as Elizabeth opens her mouth to respond, they hear the sound of multiple footsteps descending down the stairs. 

     The last of the guests, Calli, Kronii and Mumei, arrive back at the main lobby. “Woah seems like everyone’s already here, anything we missed?” Calli asks curiously, to which Elizabeth shakes her head with a defeated sigh. “Nothing much, we were hoping you girls would be the harbinger of some good news for once.”

     Calli opens her mouth to speak but ultimately hesitates and Elizabeth visibly perks up. “Did you?” The pink-haired woman scratches the back of her neck, nervously glancing to the side. “I mean… I guess, it is good news? But it’s also bad news but I suppose it’s not cause– look, I don’t really know about gang stuff and–”

     “Calli. What did you find?”

     The woman in question shrinks under Elizabeth’s gaze and she spares a glance at Kronii and Mumei. With a deep breath, Calli pulls out two things from her lab coat to hold out towards Elizabeth. A letter and a note.

     Before Elizabeth has a chance to take the items however, Cecilia is quick to snatch them first and go through them herself. Elizabeth doesn’t fight her for it. As for Cecilia, with every flit of her viridian eyes from one side to the other, the anger becomes more and more obvious on her face. 

     “And you said you couldn’t have done it…” Cecilia hisses through gritted teeth, gripping the piece of paper in her hand hard enough that the edges start to crumple. “Yet you threatened her.” Shiori’s brows furrow, managing to look over at Biboo for only a split second before a piece of paper gets shoved in her face. 

     With nowhere else to look, Shiori reads through the mail and only then does she understand Cecilia’s ire. 

     It was a letter from Biboo to Gigi. A thinly veiled threat stating that coming to a truce was nothing more than a laughable idea and that if Gigi were to go through with her plans anyways, unfavorable outcomes will be all they get. 

     The note on the other hand was much shorter, much more succinct. 

     A warning from Kronii to Gigi that Advent had plans on killing her and that she should tread with caution.

     “You chose this time to strike huh? Right at the dawn of the party, during her birthday, ” Cecilia accuses, not even bothering to hide the contempt in her voice. Shiori would’ve denied it. Would’ve tried to deny the authenticity of the mail but the familiar signature at the bottom blows that excuse right out of the water. 

     Still Shiori can't believe it.

     “Beebs, did you…”

     “I did,” Biboo admits guiltily, “But it was only a threat meant to scare her weeks ago, I never had plans to kill her coming here, you know that.” Shiori does. Truly she does but her and Biboo were close friends, the rest would evidently be harder to convince. “Oh really?” Cecilia scoffs as she hands the evidence over to Raora, “Do you really expect us to believe any of you now after that?”

     “Look, even if we did have plans to kill Gigi, we don’t have the means to. If we wanted to be a little more threatening the twins would’ve come but they aren’t here now, are they?” Biboo reasons. It was a weak defense admittedly but one worth bringing up regardless. The twins after all were known for their violent tendencies, 

     “You could’ve used the piranhas,” Raora points out and Shiori figures now was a good time to intervene. “We couldn’t have possibly known there were going to be piranhas. Even if we did, it would’ve been too risky for us to assume they were hungry enough to eat a person whole,” Shiori retorts and in that moment a metaphorical light bulb lights up in her head. 

     “And since the piranhas were hungry enough, that means part of the blame falls on whoever didn’t feed them, which definitely can’t be us.”

     “What are you trying to imply here? That we’re the ones responsible?” Elizabeth asks and Shiori unexpectedly shakes her head. “I never said any of you, I just said whoever. It was just an observation, all in an effort to try to defend ourselves. Instead,” she clicks her tongue as she pulls out some evidence of her own, “I’d like to see Justice defend themselves against this Ms. Bloodflame.”

     Shiori waves the mails from before around, ash still sticking to some of the sheets and she watches as Elizabeth’s eyes widen. “Justice clearly didn’t want us here.”

     Cecilia rolls her eyes, not at all perturbed. “Is that surprising?”

     “No, but Gigi did,” Shiori says before pointedly looking at Elizabeth, “You were going to burn these right before we walked in, weren’t you? So quick to accuse that us not liking a truce between the gangs has to mean we killed Gigi when in reality the rest of you thought the same.”

     “Oh! Are you seriously trying to spin this as our fault?!” Cecilia shouts, “Might I remind you Gigi was a member of Justice?!”

     “There’s no need to get so worked up if it isn’t true,” Nerissa adds calmly and that sets Cecilia off.  “Shut up!” she screeches at the top of her lungs, “Easy for you to say isn’t it! You weren’t the one that lost someone, you monsters just see people as nothing more but fat bags of meat!”

     “That’s enough!” Fauna exclaims, stepping between the two gangs and creating distance with the help of her umbrella. “We’re not getting anywhere with this investigation. We barely have any evidence to go off of yet you people are leaping at each other’s throat at every opportunity!” she continues, glaring at both sides. Advent and Justice keep their mouths shut, surprisingly compliant. 

     “Both parties clearly have their faults but we can’t be losing sight of the bigger picture here. If neither of you don’t put this petty squabble aside,” Fauna looks at Justice, “You can say goodbye to finding the truth of Gigi’s unfortunate death.” She looks at Advent, “And live with the looming threat that there is potentially a killer in our midst that only cares to see everyone caught in a bloodbath.”

     Fauna lets out a loud sigh. “Can we please practice some civility here? I understand it may not be the… norm for gangs, but at least try ?” she coaxes before taking a step back whilst pointing her umbrella at both sides. Strangely, Shiori feels threatened by the gesture but doesn’t linger on the thought long. 

     For a moment, nobody moves until like always, it is Elizabeth who goes first. The leader of Justice clears her throat and in spite of her confident outward appearance, she speaks rather sheepishly. “I apologize for the confusion over the mails, I didn’t think it was necessary to bring up cause Justice eventually agreed to coming to a truce. As for the burning…” Elizabeth takes a deep breath, “We agreed to burn the mails months back, to remove any lingering doubts about our decision. Those ones you have there are ones I missed. I chose to burn them now because…”

     She balls her hands into fists and Shiori watches as her shoulders noticeably sag. “I thought it’d help keep the doubts at bay…” she glances at her fellow members of Justice. Cecilia. Raora. Then she turns to Advent. “But I guess having your one fear happening after trying so hard to tell yourself it wouldn’t, it was just too much to handle. Hence all the accusations… it doesn’t excuse how unfair we were being however, and for that, on behalf of Justice, I’m sorry.”

     Raora walks up to stand beside Elizabeth, the former with her hand on the latter’s back to rub it comfortingly. She briefly looks up and gives Advent an apologetic smile. A show of good faith.

     Even Cecilia, who was so often the most fierce in her accusations, steps forth towards Advent with nothing more than dog-eared resentment. She approaches, not to fight, not to yell in their face, but for them to hear her sincere words clearer.

     “I’m sorry too. For everything and so much more,” she says as she wraps her arms around herself, gripping tightly, “Emotions got the better of me and like Liz said it’s no excuse… but we would never kill Gigi. Especially not like that. Never.” 

     There’s a deep frown on Cecilia’s face but for just for a moment, Shiori catches the barest hint of a fond smile on her lips, there for only a second. The very look you’d see on someone reminiscing sweet memories of the past.

     “She was the heart of Justice after all.”

     The admission causes the room to fall into a somber silence. A moment to properly mourn but alas the clock was ticking, 

     Shiori, regrettably, has to be one to break it. “We’re sorry too,” she starts off softly. “Those accusations we made were far-reaching and cruel in context and… while I doubt this’ll solve every single conflict between us,” she holds out her hand to Cecilia, “At the very least, let’s solve this problem together. For Gigi.”

     To Shiori’s surprise, that was enough for Cecilia to take her hand and give it a firm shake. No malice nor hesitance but a genuine show of acceptance and agreement. 

     “For Gigi,” she repeats and Shiori nods. 

     I guess it wasn’t just a whole bunch of baloney.

     “So what’s the plan now?” Biboo asks. The two pull away and Shiori looks over at Elizabeth. “The original plan was to sweep the main lobby wasn’t it?” 

     “It was,” Elizabeth confirms with a nod, “It’s going to be more tedious than difficult if anything since we have to be careful with the evidence present here.” Someone clicks their tongue and all heads turn to the source.

     Mumei.

     “Still can’t call upon the spirits to save time, Novella?” Shiori furrows her brows, biting back the quip at the tip of her tongue. 

     She and Mumei had always had a strained relationship with one another, due in part because they were business competitors. Yet in this particular moment, Shiori couldn’t help but feel like she was being intentionally poked for a response. 

     For what reason she couldn’t fathom, so she answers.

     “No,” Shiori huffs, screwing her eyes shut when she feels a hand on her shoulder. Shiori sighs, “Nothing’s really changed since then, I don’t see why it would suddenly work now.”

     “How about try this then?” Mumei says as she walks over to Shiori, reaching into her sleeve to grab something then placing it firmly in the latter’s palm. When Mumei’s hands pull away, it reveals a small vial filled with an unknown liquid.

     “A recipe of my own. Used to clear your head and all that stuff,” she informs. Shiori eyes the vial curiously, “I see, thank you.” 

     “Now that that’s settled, are we ready to continue?” Elizabeth asks but another voice interjects. This time, it’s Kronii.

     “Actually, since there are so many people down here already, why don’t we have a small team going through the other floors just to make sure we missed nothing?”

     Elizabeth places her chin between her fingers, thinking the suggestion over for a moment. “I suppose that could work,” she looks at Kronii with a quirked brow, “Do you want to be the one searching or are you suggesting someone else do it?”

     “I’ll do it,” Kronii answers instantly, “Gives you guys a chance to make up, bond and all that. Mumei, Ina, come on. Let’s go.” Without waiting for anymore input from anyone else, she heads upstairs with the other two following after her dutifully. Neither of the rest try to stop them.

     “She just does what she wants to the tune of her own beat huh,” Shiori mutters under her breath. “Must be nice,” Nerissa adds to which Shiori hums in agreement.

     She looks down at the vial still in her hand, perplexed and contemplating. Only intending to get an idea of what it is, Shiori opens the vial just slightly before bringing it close to her face to investigate, when an overpowering sweetness hits her nose. 

     So strong is the smell that it is enough to cause her to recoil and unintentionally trip on the carpet. 

     “Shiori!” Nerissa cries as Shiori falls backwards, the vial falling out of her hand but not spilling. Her back slams against the aquarium with a heavy thud and the fall leaves her a little disoriented, vision getting a little blurry.

     Nerissa is next to her in a heartbeat, Shiori faintly able to make out the former repeatedly calling out her name. She feels a comforting hand over her own and a whisper against her ear. “Shiori?”

     “I’m good,” Shiori manages to say through gritted teeth, shaking her head before attempting to get up on her feet. Nerissa of course is there to help but as Shiori leans against the aquarium for support, with her face so close against the glass, something catches her eye. 

     The tank was, smaller than she originally thought. 

     Her brows furrow as she stares longer, something that doesn’t go unnoticed by Nerissa. “What’s wrong?” she asks but Shiori gives no response. Instead her attention is focused solely upon the stairs.

     “The aquarium isn’t underneath the stairs,” she blurts out. 

     “Well obviously,” Cecilia says matter-of-factly from behind, “Why would it be? That would make trying to maintain it ten times harder.”

     “Then why are the stairs the way they are?” Shiori thinks out loud and the gears starting to turn in her head. She looks over her shoulder to the rest of Justice, locking eyes with Elizabeth in particular. 

     “Elizabeth, do you or any of Justice remember what the lobby looked like before Gigi started renovating?”

     “Not really…” Elizabeth replies, “It’s always looked like this to me and the only change I can remember is her adding the aquarium for the trick but that’s about it. Like I said, the manor–”

     “-the manor is hers, not Justice’s, I know.” Shiori chews down on her lower lip as she walks towards the wall the tank was pushed up against, grazing her fingers ever so lightly against the surface. “Couple in the fact she never disclosed adding secret compartments… who’s to say…”

     She walks along the wall, everyone else in the room watching her every move until she reaches the corner and stops in her tracks. Shiori leans in close to test her theory, positioning herself in such a way that the light shines on both walls she’s looking at and she sees it. 

     The paint on the wall the tank was up against was darker. 

     “This is new,” Shiori comments as she knocks against said wall. Hollow . A look of determination crosses Shiori’s face as she pushes against the wall but it doesn’t budge. She tries again with her full weight this time but again nothing. 

     Still, Shiori is unwilling to give up. 

     “Nerissa–” Shiori grunts as she feels the slightest movement from the wall budging yet it doesn’t fully give. “Rissa, help please.” 

     The nickname slips past her lips unintentionally, having been only used during that fateful night whilst in a drunken haze but Shiori pays it no mind nor does she try to correct herself. Not when she was this close to discovering something for this mystery that had been nothing but fruitless so far. 

     Nerissa makes her way over to Shiori and together with their joint effort, a secret door previously unknown swings right open. With it, the smell of rot spreads into the main lobby that nearly has Shiori keeling over. 

     Covering her mouth and nose with her arm, Shiori enters the newly discovered secret room with Nerissa following closely behind. “So this is what they needed a little headspace for...”

     The room was dark. Very dark, with only the light from the lobby being a source of illumination. Shiori squints her eyes as she feels around for a light switch against the wall and when she finds one, she tries to switch it on. To everyone’s surprise, the lights in the main lobby get switched off. 

     “What the–” Shiori flicks the switch again and the lights in the main lobby turn back on. “Would you look at that…”

     Not wanting to waste anymore time, Shiori gives up on finding another light switch and resorts to using the blacklight from before. “I wonder when you were going to pull that out,” she hears Elizabeth say from the entrance and Shiori chokes out a laugh.

     “Better late than never you know.”

     Now equipped with the blacklight and shining parts of the room in a purple hue, Shiori spots as well as notes a number of things. 

     One, in the corner of the room there seemed to be an extra set of clothes haphazardly strewn about. 

     Two, on one side there was a long narrow table filled with all sorts of  things. Pens and paper, leftover takeout boxes, a map with small familiar looking figures and a set of keys.

     What was more important however, was what Shiori saw on the other side of the room or better yet, what the blacklight revealed. 

     A splatter against part of the wall and the floor. 

     Shiori gulps, only one answer coming to mind of what it could possibly be. 

     “Is that…” 

     “Let’s not get too hasty here,” Shiori cuts Nerissa off before she can finish, speaking in the calmest voice she can muster and frankly trying to convince herself more than she is the other. “Before we start jumping to conclusions… let’s confirm what we’re looking at is what we think it is.” But how?

     Just as Shiori tries to rack her brain for a solution, a high pitched voice calls out to her.

     “Ms Novella, try this!” when Shiori turns around, she is met with Irys holding up a spray bottle to her. “What is it?” Shiori asks, already skeptical from the previous incident.  

     “Luminol.”

     Shiori blinks. “ Luminol? ” she repeats incredulously.

     The child nods oh so innocently and Shiori takes a glance at Irys’s father Calli who was standing outside the entrance with the rest. She didn’t look one bit bothered and Shiori briefly wonders if it was Calli who passed Irys the luminol to give to her. Which still begs the question,

     “Why… do you have luminol?” Shiori ventures to ask and she notes with interest how Irys hesitates for a split second. 

     “Daddy and I work at the morgue,” she answers, tone shockingly steady. Shiori had questions, several in fact but decided to put them all aside in favor of answering the current more important question at hand. 

     Trusting in Irys and Calli, Shiori grabs the bottle and sprays the luminol onto the affected area. As she does so whilst shining the blacklight, everyone watches in real time as the splatter instantly begins to emit a neon blue. A clear cut indicator of blood. 

     “Oh good god…”

     There are several gasps behind Shiori as the realization starts to sink in. 

     “But… but Gigi died in the tank…” Raora says to which Shiori shakes her head, divided on what to feel now that one of her long standing questions have been answered. “But the piranhas never left any bone. No matter how hungry, there’s no way they would’ve eaten an entire human skeleton like that,” she explains. As morbid as it was to say, it had to be said. 

     “It must’ve been a dummy we saw and the real Gigi must’ve gone through here,” Shiori deduces. “How did neither of us notice anything then?” Nerissa points out when suddenly they hear a thud.

     Shiori is momentarily blinded as a new source of light shines into the cramped room. When her eyes adjust to the abrupt change in brightness, she sees Fauna standing beside another newly discovered door that looks to lead out to the hallway connecting the entrance and the main lobby.

     “I guess that answers how the culprit got out…” Shiori says before letting out an audible tsk. The other set of stairs. Damn it she chastises herself. 

     “This is ludicrous,” Elizabeth mutters, “All these secret rooms making the place into a bloody maze. Using it to murder Gigi– How and who would even know about this…”

     Bae Shiori thinks immediately but as she tries to look around for said woman to interrogate her, Shiori discovers she was coincidentally missing. 

     “Looks like we have ourselves a proper suspect…”

     “We have to warn the others,” Fauna says urgently but Shiori had other things in mind. “Wait,” she stops Fauna in her tracks before looking over at Calli, “Calli, humor me on this but where exactly did you find those notes?”

     “Oh uh, well I didn’t exactly find them.” she admits sheepishly, “It was… Mumei, I think? She passed them to me and told me to present it to all of you when we went back to the lobby. And that was after I caught a glimpse of the tall blue lady passing those notes to her. I do admit it was pretty weird they found that stuff in the bathroom of all places but since everyone seemed to trust them I didn’t really think twice about it.”

     Shiori presses her lips into a thin line as she starts to see a growing pattern. The puzzle piece slowly falling into place. 

     “Gigi said Kronii helped her a lot with the party, guest list included,” Shiori recalls. Her eyes lock with Biboo’s purple and little by little, Shiori watches as it too dawns upon her friend. “We sent our reservations weeks ago…” 

     “She should’ve known that Fuwamoco weren’t coming. That we had no intention of actually harming anyone, yet she still gave Calli that note,” Shiori finishes for her. “Yeah… dang it, why didn’t we question them when we had the chance!”

     “There’s no use in regretting about the past now Beebs,” Shiori says, dusting herself off as she stands. “What matters is what we do next. WIth Kronii deliberately sharing outdated and wrong information and Bae leading me to those mails by Justice, it’s clear they’re trying to drive a wedge between us.”

     “What about the other two?” Cecilia questions.

     Nerissa scoffs. “Considering this?” she holds up the small vial from before between her fingers, “Suffice to say I don’t think Mumei is so trustworthy either.”

     Fauna raises a brow as she eyes the liquid sloshing around in the vial. “What is it?”

     “A common sedative informants in the gang use. Sweet smelling, very powerful. Clearly meant to knock Shiori out,” Nerissa hisses, “And if we’re putting all the suspects on the table, since Ina is with them, we can only assume she’s working with them too.”

     Shiori nods in agreement. 

     “So what do you suggest we do next then?” Elizabeth asks to which Shiori lets out a giggle, a smirk tugging at the corner of her lips. 

     “I think it’s time we take a big bite out of the hands that feed.”

__________________________________________________

     With no time to lose, Advent and Justice alongside Fauna, Calli and Irys rush upstairs in search of Kronii and the others who they find relatively easily in the second floor study.

     Ironically enough, they seemed to be in the middle of discussing something.

     “Woah woah, what’s going on here?” Kronii exclaims as soon as they barge into the room. The other three don’t say a word but the look of shock is undeniable on their faces. Like deers caught in a headlight.

     “Shame you’ll be losing out on business, was it?” Shiori taunts as she walks towards Kronii with slow deliberate steps, “Did you have fun at least leading us around like pawns just so you can keep your business empire going? Going so far as to kill Gigi even when she asked for your help?” 

     Shiori scoffs loudly, crossing her arms. “That’s low Kronii. And this is coming from a gang member.”

     She eyes the others with a sharp gaze. “You made a spectacle of her death, spat on her dream for Justice and Advent then merely watched as we went at each other’s throats from the false evidence you placed,” she grits out, balling her hands into fists so hard her knuckles begin to turn white. 

     Even if she and Gigi weren’t necessarily friends nor anywhere close to allies, Shiori wasn’t one to stand for disrespecting the living or the dead. Coupled on top of that the other tensions she’s had to face tonight, it would be an understatement to say Shiori’s anger has been gradually building to a boiling point. 

     Kronii laughs out loud mockingly, abruptly standing up from Gigi’s study so quickly the chair nearly falls over. She walks up to Shiori with long strides before getting up in her face and causing the latter to wince ever so slightly.

     Shiori is unwilling to back down. 

     “So you caught me, big fat win to you but can you honestly blame me? With how quick you guys are to lash out at each other, who wouldn’t see an opportunity?” Kroni leans in even closer, not paying any mind to Nerissa who glares daggers into her from behind Shiori. 

     “Hell, you're all so bloodthirsty I bet neither of you will be able to even differentiate a toy gun from a real one if it meant getting a chance at killing each other.”

     So close to Kronii like this, Shiori hears her heartbeat in her ears in a way that sends alarm bells blaring in her head. Her body is tense as she waits for Kronii’s next move. A push. A shove. A grab. Something.

     What she doesn’t expect is for the taller woman to pull away.

     “Credit where credit is due though, you figured me out,” Kronii sighs as she reaches into her coat, “And you know, I made a bet with myself. If I could get away with it, I got away with it. If someone found me out well…” Shiori’s eyes widen as Kronii pulls out a gun from her coat, only to unexpectedly hand it to her.

     “I lose.”

     Shiori's golden eyes stare at the gun warily, her hand shakily reaching up to take it from Kronii.

     “Come on Shiori,” Biboo encourages from the sidelines.

     “She has to pay for what she did,” she hears Cecilia add and the others all begin to egg her on. To end the conflict. To kill Kronii. To avenge Gigi.

     For Gigi.

     Shiori rests her finger on the trigger, her aim unsteady as she points the gun straight at Kronii’s head. She feels Nerissa’s presence closeby, the latter’s hand on her shoulder, squeezing tightly and keeping her grounded as her heart hammers against her ribcage. 

     For Gigi. Shiori repeats to herself, almost like a chant. For Gigi… Come on Shiori don’t–

     “... it still doesn’t make any sense…” she says, her tone barely above a whisper. 

     “Shiori–”

     She drops the gun altogether and Kronii quirks her brow curiously.

     “ Why make the room, why the tank, why anything –” Shiori starts to ramble, her breathing becoming increasingly ragged with every passing second despite Nerissa’s best efforts to calm her. “That blood in the room was too old. It smelled. Like old meat. And the cleaning… someone must’ve noticed… unless…” 

     We haven’t found her body and I can’t see her ghost.

     Shiori narrows her eyes at Kronii, her stare more perplexed than accusatory.

     “Some things aren’t adding up. So I’m going to ask you this once, Kronii,” Shiori clenches her jaw and her throat tightens, the words needing to be forced out past her lips.

     “ Where is Gigi? ”

     A beat

     “Huh,” Kronii blinks for a moment before chuckling to herself, “Oh you’re good… you’re really good.”

     Faster than Shiori can react, Kronii snatches the gun right out of her hand and points it right between her eyes.  

     Shiori stares down the barrel of the gun and unlike her, Kronii doesn’t hesitate to pull the trigger. 

     And yet, Shiori doesn’t meet the untimely end she expected to.

     Is this what death feels like? Shiori wonders but somehow, she highly doubts it.

     What she gets instead is the feeling of something poking her lightly on the area between her eyebrows. She still feels Nerissa’s strong grip on her shoulder which signals to her that surely she must be alive. 

     When she musters the courage to open her eyes, Shiori locks gaze with Kronii still in front of her and the gun still firmly held in hand. 

     Shiori is understandably confused and when she moves to see what was going on, she sees it.

     A little flag poking out of the gun with the words ‘You’re a Winner!’ on it.

     “What–”

     “Congratulations! You’ve sold the case! Huzzah!”

     Shiori’s eyes widen and she doesn’t quite believe her ears yet she’d never whip around so hard in her life. The same can be said for the rest as they turn to the source of the voice to see a bookshelf has been moved to the side to reveal a truly unexpected sight. 

     Gigi Murin, walking out of yet another secret room, very much alive and well and in one piece. 

     “Good stuff Shiori, you ever think about being a detective in the future besides a psychic?”

     “GIGI?!”

     The woman in question giggles so giddily as if she hadn’t just tricked all the guests she invited to her manor that she had died a gruesome death in front of them.

     “Surprise! I survived~ Are you surprised! I bet you’re surprised, look at all your faces!”

     “Of course we thought you died!” Cecilia exclaims incredulously, “We thought you got eaten for–!”

     “But I didn’t!”

     Elizabeth doesn’t even say a word, too busy pinching the bridge of her nose and muttering incoherently to herself. Shiori swears she already heard a number of obscenities from her.

     “What for Gigi…” Raora whispers and for the first time since her shocking reveal, Gigi gives her most genuine smile. 

     “Because it was the best way to get Advent and Justice to work together.”

     Everyone except for those involved glance at each other skeptically.

     “Okay mayyybe it wasn’t the best or the only way but it was something that had to be done if I wanted this to work. Besides, it isn’t like we’re not used to a little rough housing, right? Right?” Gigi grins as she takes a seat at her study. 

     “Oh! To Calli, Irys and Fauna, so sorry about getting you involved! I know this was supposed to be a fun party and I promise you, it’s still happening! This one was just me acting out my grand plan which of course couldn’t have been done without the help of my amazing crew and–”

     “ YOU planned all of this?!” 

     Gigi flinches, taken aback for a second before she easily bounces back. “Well of course!”

     “Gigi,” Elizabeth pauses and inhales deeply, “We could’ve killed each other.”

     “But you didn’t! Isn’t that great!”

     “Why you…” Biboo appears next to Elizabeth, the stark difference in height admittedly hilarious to look at but the leader of Advent was currently a ball of raging fire that burned at the same heat the leader of Justice was known for. Neither of them to be scoffed at at all.

     Together the two approach Gigi menacingly, slowly cornering her into the very bookshelf she had hidden behind. 

     “I hope you’re ready to regret this Gigi,” Biboo says with a shadow over her eyes. Gigi laughs awkwardly in response, glancing at her crew but they merely watch on in amusement. 

     “Wait! Wait!” she cries desperately, “Look! See, you guys are working together now, aren’t you? That means my plan worked right?”

     Elizabeth and Biboo turn to look at each other. They share a nod.

     “Collaboration Ms Bloodflame?”

     “I thought you’d never ask.”

     “Wait, please–!”

     Shiori winces as she watches the scene unfold, letting out a breathless chuckle as the exhaustion rolls over her in a wave. Just as she feels herself swaying back and forth, Nerissa is there to hold her from behind. 

     “You okay?” Nerissa whispers gently and Shiori hums without a word, unable to help herself from nuzzling into the taller woman’s embrace. After all the stress and thinking and overthinking, it felt nice to be engulfed with warmth, safety and familiarity. 

     “I’m glad this is over…”

     Nerissa nods, tightening her hold around Shiori as she nuzzles her face in the back of the shorter woman’s head. 

     “Same here. Good job on finding the culprit detective.”

     Shiori giggles, light and airy. “Couldn’t have done it without ya John.”

     “At least call me Nerissa…”

     The two spare a look at each other and can’t help but laugh a little harder.

__________________________________________________

     True to Gigi’s word, she hosts yet another party, an actual one. One specially in celebration for Advent and Justice agreeing to a truce.

     A masquerade party to be precise.

     For what reason, many of the guests weren’t exactly sure. In Gigi’s words; “It’d be so much fun!”

     So the party was set, days after the previous one to give people time to settle, in a completely different venue with all of Advent and Justice invited. 

     Shiori Novella of course was one such in attendance, currently wandering around the large hall and taking in the vibrant and admittedly fairy-tale-like atmosphere. The grand decorations, the catering, live music, all the well-dressed guests, there was no shortage of things to look at. 

     Gigi really did pull out all the stops.

     Considering the special occasion, Shiori figured she’d dress more nicely for a change too. Nothing too elaborate but she did put effort. A black backless dress, a pair of heels she’d truthfully only worn once in the past and as the final touch, to keep with the dress code, a mask with a butterfly motif, the colors a fitting black and white to match her hair. 

     The atmosphere so far was very laid back. Guests, Justice and Advent, mingling and talking amongst each other as well as some other guests not linked to either gang. Shiori thought she’d never see the day. 

     Irys and Calli were attending despite the recent discovery that Irys was somehow an undercover cop. She had agreed not to report a single thing to her bureau however, stating that since the incident involved only Justice and Advent, and the outcome was favorable, she was willing to overlook it. At least this time. 

     Kronii was present too, on account of the confusion surrounding her being quickly cleared up after that first party. Gigi had gone to explain that the both of them had made a deal to help one another out. What they both got out of said deal was unknown to anyone but them but according to Kronii, she looked forward to the business opportunities working with the two biggest gangs would bring. 

     Although, Shiori swore she heard Kronii whisper under her breath right after something about ‘finally getting back at Biboo for that embarrassing incident’ but Shiori supposes that was just the wind. 

     The other guests at the manor like Ina and Fauna were also present, invited so Gigi could fulfill her promise of a fun party to them. 

     Speaking of Gigi, Shiori had caught a glimpse of the eccentric member of Justice off in the distance not too long ago. Shiori would have loved to talk but Gigi had been in the middle of entertaining a large crowd of guests so she decided perhaps they could talk later. Ever the entertainer Shiori giggles to herself.

     She had to admit though, she felt admiration for Gigi. To be so willing to take on likely weeks of bullying albeit lighthearted bullying for the sake of bringing Advent and Justice together. Being able to trust her allies, her friends so much as well as Advent to not kill each other, it was impressive. 

     Back in reality, Shiori starts scanning the crowd in search of a certain someone and it doesn’t take long until she sees them.

     A woman, much taller than the rest, with raven hair and hints of dark blue, dressed in a more regal blue dress accented with jewelry and donning none other than a raven mask. 

     Shiori can’t wipe the grin off her face as she makes her way over. 

     “Rissa.”

     “Shiorin,” the other responds with a soft smile. 

     “Even in a room full of strangers, we gravitate to each other huh?” Shiori says to which Nerissa rolls her eyes, that smile turning into a smirk. “Says the one who approached me and with your flair darling? Everyone knows it’s you,” she coos teasingly. 

     “Still, of all the people, I came looking for you didn’t I?”

     That smile from before returns to Nerissa’s lips, now accompanied by a light dust of red on her cheeks. “That you did.”

     Shiori giggles as she chooses to spare Nerissa this time. “Been quite the past couple of days hasn’t it?” Nerissa lets out an exaggerated sigh and speaks in an equally exaggerated tone, “Please, don’t even get me started on that.” She hadn’t meant it seriously of course yet Shiori remains respectful.

     “We don’t have to if you don’t want to,” she says gently and Nerissa doesn’t have the heart to tell her she was joking. 

     “What I do want to say is that you did a really good job handling yourself that night and… considering how you ended up with Advent because you had no choice and the rules about having no choice to get out…” Shiori pauses for a second, “I wanted to tell you I think it’d be possible to bend the rules a little bit to get you out.”

     “Oh… Shiorin…”

     “I could talk it out with Biboo, I’m sure she’ll understand–”

     Shiori gets cut off as she feels a hand take hers, the contact of soft skin against her own more callous skin briefly short circuiting her brain. 

     “Don’t worry about that Shiorin,” Nerissa whispers, bringing up Shiori’s hand to her lips to give it a kiss. “Don’t get me wrong, I appreciate the offer but… I think it isn’t so bad. I kind of like things, especially right now. Maybe in the future I’ll consider your offer, is that okay?”

     Shiori nods but the look on her face hints that she isn’t completely satisfied. 

     “But what about now? At the very least let me compensate you somehow now,” Shiori says with a pout. Nerissa stifles her laughter, the sight too adorable for her heart and before she can struggle to come up with something, a ballad starts to play. 

     Nerissa beams, the timing couldn’t have been more perfect. “How about you compensate me with a dance?”

     “A dance?”

     “You said you wanted to compensate me somehow. Well this is how,” Nerissa says and although Shiori seems hesitant, maybe even a little embarrassed, she agrees. 

     Nerissa holds out her hand to Shiori and the latter takes it with ease. Slowly moving to where everyone else was dancing, the two begin to waltz around the room in a complete bubble of their own. Shiori for her part is thrown to that night many moons ago and when she stares up into Nerissa’s wine red eyes, darkening to a more blood red, Shiori knows she too was feeling the same way. 

     “Seem familiar?” Shiori breathes out, keenly aware of the feeling of Nerissa’s arm around her waist. 

     The taller woman hums. “Very.”

     “Less hazy.”

     “Absolutely.”

     I guess there’s no better way to go about this .

     Shiori gulps after some difficulty, stuttering over her words for a moment before she gets them out. “I’m sorry for avoiding you before the party.  I didn’t know how to handle the matter.”

     Nerissa laughs softly, a deep and mellow sound. “Don’t beat yourself up too hard about it, it’s not like I don’t have anything to apologize for either, I literally walked out on you,” she laughs again, this time more half-heartedly. “I just got scared. Sleeping with one of the big names in the gang? I thought I’d be killed on sight or something.”

     Shiori feels her cheeks turn several shades of red at Nerissa’s crudeness but makes no further comment on it. 

     “But hey, at least that crazy dinner party did us something good right?” Shiori tries to lift the mood and Nerissa rolls her eyes playfully.

     “Yeah it did, but I don’t think I’m going to be relying on Gigi to plan anything from here on out for me. No offense.”

     “It was pretty fun though!” Shiori exclaims before she gets that teasing glint in her eyes. “Also… plan anything for you huh? What exactly did you have in mind?” Shiori looks at Nerissa knowingly who is helpless to hide the blush on her face. “Uhm… I may have… did I–?”

     Shiori giggles as she stands up on her toes to finally close the distance between them, sighing in content as she feels Nerissa’s soft lips on her own. Nerissa, although taken back at first, wastes no time in kissing back with equal fervour. Unfortunately for her, Shiori pulls away. 

     “You’re all good, I think that party definitely had its goods and silver linings. As crazy as it was,” she says but all she gets in reply is a barely audible ‘uh huh’. Nerissa was obviously not listening, if the way her eyes were still on Shiori’s lips were any indicator at all. 

     Shiori rolls her eyes as she reaches up to place her hand on the back of Nerissa’s neck, allowing her to pull the taller woman down for a better kiss. Nerissa hums, very much happy with this decision while Shiori smiles into the kiss before firmly pressing their lips together. 

     A silver lining indeed…

     And the rest of the night was history. 

__________________________________________________

Fin.