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"a day with despair" ( mastermind drabble; complete )
( note: mastermind au the week after adachi dies because i am a pile of trash and i had this idea in my mind for months but never had the nerve to actually write all of this shit. i apologize in advance to all parties involved except i'm never sorry who am i kidding.
also as a note: i left the ending open-ended for two reasons: 1) i might actually write several prompts diverging off of sonico's choice -- basically several paths that branch off and 2) it seemed more ~*mysterious*~ that way?? )
It was a lazy Friday morning — around midnight — when the hands of a certain crow haired girl knocked on the door of her friend. Of one of the people who she could call her very best friends, actually. Seeing as it was still rather early as well as keeping into consideration the sheer fact that the girl behind the door was a deep sleeper, the young teenager took out her special, personalized ID and was about to open it herself before--
Creak.
The sound of the door opening just slightly, revealing the busty pink haired girl who wore headphones over her ears a good percentage of the time, only having roused from her sleep. On a normal day to day basis, she would have slept through the knock. But here, at this murder school, it was a lot easier for her to wake up. Blearily opening her eyes, she stared at the girl who stood in front of her door, her mind not catching up with who she saw as she sleepily mumbled a single question. One that was on her mind, even though she should have known the answer to it immediately.
Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes as she received no answer, the girl — her name was Sonico, Super Sonico — stared at the younger girl in front of her, taking in the sight of the girl's amusement as her crimson eyes widened in sheer surprise and shock. Surprised that her friend was alive. Shocked that she would come to her so openly like this. And then realization washed over her; this had to be some sort of dream, a trick. She had felt the girl's cold body during the investigation, had seen how her heart had been punched out by the false priest - who she thought had been righteously executed in the end. He punched her friend's heart as well as killed a father for so many children. He deserved all that was coming to him, and she felt no remorse over his death.
But seeing the girl in front of her-- she didn't know how she was supposed to feel. Instead, she just spoke the name easily from her lips, barely a whisper.
"Himeko... -chan?"
A haughty laugh left the other girl as she threaded fingers through her hair, the color of the midnight sky, adjusting her footing, placing her hands on her hips, bolstering a confidence that Sonico herself had never seen her exploiting before. Not even when she made that embarrassing announcement. A shiver ran down Sonico's spine as she took a closer look at Inaba, noticing that the younger girl's amber brown eyes showed nearly no life in them, as if they were emotionless.
No, she told herself quietly, trying to shake off the uneasiness that washed over her. The look that the younger girl threw at her made her feel like a frightened kitten running away from a larger, stronger animal.
Just when the door was about to close, Inaba placed her foot as a stopper before finally speaking up, her tone eerily calm and gentle. "What are you afraid of, Sonico? It's just me, Inaba." She took another step closer while Sonico took another step back. "I just want to talk, that's all. Did you miss me? It's been two weeks."
Two weeks since 'she' died.
A week since Adachi died.
"Of course I--" Sonico's voice was caught in her throat, forming a lump that stopped her from talking. Hearing Inaba's voice, Himeko-chan's voice again made her happy, and she could feel the hot, wet, tears already trickling from the edges of her eyes, but she blinked them away. She couldn't cry yet until she was absolutely certain that this was the real Inaba Himeko. Swallowing her nerves down, she stared at the other girl, steeling herself. "Are you really... Himeko-chan?"
"Yeah, I am. Do you want me to prove it?" The contemptuous tone never left as she took another step closer, further into Sonico's own room as she allowed the door to shut behind her. "I'm not a zombie, Sonico. If you want me to prove that it's me, that I'm alive, you can feel my heartbeat. Or maybe you'd like to hear something that only we would know? Perhaps something about Heartseed?"
That made it all click in the pinkette's head. This was definitely the real Inaba Himeko in front of her. And now that she knew for certain that this was her, that this girl was her friend, the tears began to flood from her eyes, unable to stop. "Himeko-chan! You're... really... how?" She wanted to run up to her, the girl who was well versed in technology, and just hug her. But something, deep down, had made her stop.
The single unanswered question that had just fallen off her gentle lips.
Humming to herself inquisitively, Inaba tapped her chin, deep in thought. Almost as if she were keeping a deep secret and wasn't sure if she should tell Sonico or not. "Well, you see, I didn't actually die. I just faked my death."
What? Sonico froze in her tracks, her eyes widening at the implications of her words. She couldn't speak. She just willed for Inaba to continue, to explain herself. Faking her death? Why would she do such a thing? But as her mind reeled, she remembered something that the girl had told her a few weeks back.
"No. . ."
"Oh?" Inaba's expression grew curious as she heard Sonico's stunned voice, as she watched the older girl's expression nearly shatter. "Did you realize it yet? If you did, congratulations. If you didn't, well... I wasn't expecting you to be bright enough to figure it out. But that's alright, Sonico. I'll tell you anyway. You'll be the only one here that knows." Twirling around playfully, Inaba's grin widened, looking like a child who had just received their first Christmas presents. "Because you see, I'm the mastermind behind all of this."
"The mastermind?" She didn't want to believe it. Just like how she didn't want to believe that Adachi was the mole and she wanted to protect him at all costs, she didn't want to believe that this girl could conjure up such a devious plan. Not after all they went through together. As silence took over the room, the two of them just simply looked into each other's eyes. Inaba seemed serious. Dead serious. Of course, she knew the younger girl well enough to know that she could possibly be trolling, but... that didn't seem to be the case. Yet, she refused to think that this Inaba was the same as her friends that she had grown to care for. So, instead, she just laughed. It was a hollow one, but it was one nevertheless. "You're joking, right, Himeko-chan? You're just going to say, 'I'm just kidding, Sonico' and then we'll all be alright. Right?"
In response to Sonico's question, Inaba just snickers, clearly amused. "Seriously? Did you honestly think that I was joking about something like that? No, I was totally, definitely, seriously serious. Of course, I didn't get to remember everything until the week before my supposed 'death' since that's how I wanted it all to play out, but whatever. It's not like I came here just for fun and games, after all."
Clenching her hands into balled fists in sheer annoyance and anger, seeing the person in front of her was a lot different from the girl she used to know. How had Himeko changed? Did she even change? Or was she pretending to begin with? She was already nonplussed by this whole situation, but there was also a tinge of revulsion -- she couldn't keep up her composure when this was happening. With a shaky voice, feeling small, Sonico spoke through gritted teeth, "What do you want, then?" She couldn't stop herself from trembling anxiously in front of the younger girl whose smile didn't fade even as that question.
"I want to offer a proposition."
"Huh?" Blinking innocently like a deer in the headlights, she froze in place, confused. Himeko - the mastermind - she was offering her something, a proposition? What was it for? She couldn't help but be curious.
"Do you want to know?" Inaba rested a hand underneath her chin as her smirk widened, wondering what choice Sonico would make. As she watched the rock star press her lips together, she continued, regardless of her answer. "Well, I'm going to tell you." And as she said those exact words, she reached towards the hem of her skirt, lifting it slightly —which caused Sonico to fluster somewhat, her cheeks burning a bright red — before grabbing a pistol, twirling it in her hands as Sonico froze in place.
She couldn't do anything, couldn't move. The anxiety was bubbling up inside of her, ready to burst any moment. It was difficult to keep herself from running away, but there was nowhere to run. After all, Inaba stood right in front of the door, blocking her way. Words couldn't come up, especially as she watched her raise the pistol towards her, aiming directly at her heart.
As if her heart hadn't been broken a million times over before.
"I don't plan on killing you, Sonico," the self-proclaimed mastermind spoke evenly, lowering the pistol slightly. But that made Sonico take a step back regardless. How could she trust someone like that? Regardless of the other girl's reaction, she shrugged her shoulders without a care in the world. "I'm giving you options. I like you, so I want you to join me. I'll lend you this gun and you can kill whoever you like. I'll erase all evidence towards you so nobody will be able to figure it out during the trial. Then we'll execute everyone else!"
"You..."
She could only say that one single word, gulping her words down. She couldn't do such a thing. It was impossible. But she couldn't say no, either. But it seemed that Inaba wasn't finished. "If you don't want to do it, you can just shoot me, too." Crouching down, she placed the gun on the floor, kicking it towards the other girl. "If you do, you'll be able to leave with everyone else that way, too. But, it won't bring back Adachi."
"You...! Why would you do such a thing, Himeko-chan?"
In a dull tone, she replied with, "Because it's more interesting that way?" It sounded as if were quoting someone, but she soon shrugged her own shoulders, a heavy self-deprecating sigh slipping. "This is all an experiment. And it worked. Erasing everyone's memories... all of the powers that I gained, it all worked. I can now proceed with the next stage of the plan. Mm, you'll be the perfect vessel for this last trial. With my calculations, this should work."
Gritting between her teeth Sonico snarled at Inaba's words, angry. "What do you mean by vessel?!"
"Didn't I tell you? I experienced a phenomenon that allowed me and several others to switch bodies with one another."
"And?"
"You're going to become the vessel for the soul that I need to place in that body. So at the very least, your body will remain alive. Your soul will then be sent to where Adachi is. A fitting ending for you, don't you think?" She chuckled at her own joke, even though her words were all honest.
"What..." Sonico's words trailed off, both in disbelief and fear, frozen still. "Why...?"
But as soon as that single worded question left her, she immediately knew why. She mentioned a vessel. Inaba would use her body to place a soul there. Whose soul, however? There was only one answer. "You can't! If you do that, he would notice right away, wouldn't he?!"
"Normally that would be the case."
"He wouldn't forgive you after all these people have died!" She was definitely angry by now, infuriated.
"He doesn't have to know. I can make him believe that he's still in his own body. I can manipulate memories, remember? But I guess if you refuse either of my offers, I could always just rip your soul out of your body without question. That would be much, much simpler. But I wanted to give you the choice, you know. Because this way, Taichi will be brought back to life. And then, after that, I can finally pay my respects for Junko-senpai for ruining my life!" Inaba gritted her teeth, stomping her foot on the ground with a twist.
"So, what's your choice, Sonico?" Let the girl live, only to have her soul ripped out of her body and possibly be sent to another one -- one where she could live with Adachi, possibly even forever, or kill Inaba right now? It was a difficult decision to make.
Crouching down, Sonico took the gun beneath her feet, steeling herself as much as she could with a nod, pressing her lips together as she spoke cooly.
"I've made my decision."
also as a note: i left the ending open-ended for two reasons: 1) i might actually write several prompts diverging off of sonico's choice -- basically several paths that branch off and 2) it seemed more ~*mysterious*~ that way?? )
It was a lazy Friday morning — around midnight — when the hands of a certain crow haired girl knocked on the door of her friend. Of one of the people who she could call her very best friends, actually. Seeing as it was still rather early as well as keeping into consideration the sheer fact that the girl behind the door was a deep sleeper, the young teenager took out her special, personalized ID and was about to open it herself before--
Creak.
The sound of the door opening just slightly, revealing the busty pink haired girl who wore headphones over her ears a good percentage of the time, only having roused from her sleep. On a normal day to day basis, she would have slept through the knock. But here, at this murder school, it was a lot easier for her to wake up. Blearily opening her eyes, she stared at the girl who stood in front of her door, her mind not catching up with who she saw as she sleepily mumbled a single question. One that was on her mind, even though she should have known the answer to it immediately.
- "Who is it?"
Rubbing the sleep out of her eyes as she received no answer, the girl — her name was Sonico, Super Sonico — stared at the younger girl in front of her, taking in the sight of the girl's amusement as her crimson eyes widened in sheer surprise and shock. Surprised that her friend was alive. Shocked that she would come to her so openly like this. And then realization washed over her; this had to be some sort of dream, a trick. She had felt the girl's cold body during the investigation, had seen how her heart had been punched out by the false priest - who she thought had been righteously executed in the end. He punched her friend's heart as well as killed a father for so many children. He deserved all that was coming to him, and she felt no remorse over his death.
But seeing the girl in front of her-- she didn't know how she was supposed to feel. Instead, she just spoke the name easily from her lips, barely a whisper.
"Himeko... -chan?"
A haughty laugh left the other girl as she threaded fingers through her hair, the color of the midnight sky, adjusting her footing, placing her hands on her hips, bolstering a confidence that Sonico herself had never seen her exploiting before. Not even when she made that embarrassing announcement. A shiver ran down Sonico's spine as she took a closer look at Inaba, noticing that the younger girl's amber brown eyes showed nearly no life in them, as if they were emotionless.
No, she told herself quietly, trying to shake off the uneasiness that washed over her. The look that the younger girl threw at her made her feel like a frightened kitten running away from a larger, stronger animal.
Just when the door was about to close, Inaba placed her foot as a stopper before finally speaking up, her tone eerily calm and gentle. "What are you afraid of, Sonico? It's just me, Inaba." She took another step closer while Sonico took another step back. "I just want to talk, that's all. Did you miss me? It's been two weeks."
Two weeks since 'she' died.
A week since Adachi died.
"Of course I--" Sonico's voice was caught in her throat, forming a lump that stopped her from talking. Hearing Inaba's voice, Himeko-chan's voice again made her happy, and she could feel the hot, wet, tears already trickling from the edges of her eyes, but she blinked them away. She couldn't cry yet until she was absolutely certain that this was the real Inaba Himeko. Swallowing her nerves down, she stared at the other girl, steeling herself. "Are you really... Himeko-chan?"
"Yeah, I am. Do you want me to prove it?" The contemptuous tone never left as she took another step closer, further into Sonico's own room as she allowed the door to shut behind her. "I'm not a zombie, Sonico. If you want me to prove that it's me, that I'm alive, you can feel my heartbeat. Or maybe you'd like to hear something that only we would know? Perhaps something about Heartseed?"
That made it all click in the pinkette's head. This was definitely the real Inaba Himeko in front of her. And now that she knew for certain that this was her, that this girl was her friend, the tears began to flood from her eyes, unable to stop. "Himeko-chan! You're... really... how?" She wanted to run up to her, the girl who was well versed in technology, and just hug her. But something, deep down, had made her stop.
The single unanswered question that had just fallen off her gentle lips.
- How was Inaba Himeko still alive?
Humming to herself inquisitively, Inaba tapped her chin, deep in thought. Almost as if she were keeping a deep secret and wasn't sure if she should tell Sonico or not. "Well, you see, I didn't actually die. I just faked my death."
What? Sonico froze in her tracks, her eyes widening at the implications of her words. She couldn't speak. She just willed for Inaba to continue, to explain herself. Faking her death? Why would she do such a thing? But as her mind reeled, she remembered something that the girl had told her a few weeks back.
"No. . ."
"Oh?" Inaba's expression grew curious as she heard Sonico's stunned voice, as she watched the older girl's expression nearly shatter. "Did you realize it yet? If you did, congratulations. If you didn't, well... I wasn't expecting you to be bright enough to figure it out. But that's alright, Sonico. I'll tell you anyway. You'll be the only one here that knows." Twirling around playfully, Inaba's grin widened, looking like a child who had just received their first Christmas presents. "Because you see, I'm the mastermind behind all of this."
"The mastermind?" She didn't want to believe it. Just like how she didn't want to believe that Adachi was the mole and she wanted to protect him at all costs, she didn't want to believe that this girl could conjure up such a devious plan. Not after all they went through together. As silence took over the room, the two of them just simply looked into each other's eyes. Inaba seemed serious. Dead serious. Of course, she knew the younger girl well enough to know that she could possibly be trolling, but... that didn't seem to be the case. Yet, she refused to think that this Inaba was the same as her friends that she had grown to care for. So, instead, she just laughed. It was a hollow one, but it was one nevertheless. "You're joking, right, Himeko-chan? You're just going to say, 'I'm just kidding, Sonico' and then we'll all be alright. Right?"
In response to Sonico's question, Inaba just snickers, clearly amused. "Seriously? Did you honestly think that I was joking about something like that? No, I was totally, definitely, seriously serious. Of course, I didn't get to remember everything until the week before my supposed 'death' since that's how I wanted it all to play out, but whatever. It's not like I came here just for fun and games, after all."
Clenching her hands into balled fists in sheer annoyance and anger, seeing the person in front of her was a lot different from the girl she used to know. How had Himeko changed? Did she even change? Or was she pretending to begin with? She was already nonplussed by this whole situation, but there was also a tinge of revulsion -- she couldn't keep up her composure when this was happening. With a shaky voice, feeling small, Sonico spoke through gritted teeth, "What do you want, then?" She couldn't stop herself from trembling anxiously in front of the younger girl whose smile didn't fade even as that question.
"I want to offer a proposition."
"Huh?" Blinking innocently like a deer in the headlights, she froze in place, confused. Himeko - the mastermind - she was offering her something, a proposition? What was it for? She couldn't help but be curious.
"Do you want to know?" Inaba rested a hand underneath her chin as her smirk widened, wondering what choice Sonico would make. As she watched the rock star press her lips together, she continued, regardless of her answer. "Well, I'm going to tell you." And as she said those exact words, she reached towards the hem of her skirt, lifting it slightly —which caused Sonico to fluster somewhat, her cheeks burning a bright red — before grabbing a pistol, twirling it in her hands as Sonico froze in place.
She couldn't do anything, couldn't move. The anxiety was bubbling up inside of her, ready to burst any moment. It was difficult to keep herself from running away, but there was nowhere to run. After all, Inaba stood right in front of the door, blocking her way. Words couldn't come up, especially as she watched her raise the pistol towards her, aiming directly at her heart.
As if her heart hadn't been broken a million times over before.
"I don't plan on killing you, Sonico," the self-proclaimed mastermind spoke evenly, lowering the pistol slightly. But that made Sonico take a step back regardless. How could she trust someone like that? Regardless of the other girl's reaction, she shrugged her shoulders without a care in the world. "I'm giving you options. I like you, so I want you to join me. I'll lend you this gun and you can kill whoever you like. I'll erase all evidence towards you so nobody will be able to figure it out during the trial. Then we'll execute everyone else!"
"You..."
She could only say that one single word, gulping her words down. She couldn't do such a thing. It was impossible. But she couldn't say no, either. But it seemed that Inaba wasn't finished. "If you don't want to do it, you can just shoot me, too." Crouching down, she placed the gun on the floor, kicking it towards the other girl. "If you do, you'll be able to leave with everyone else that way, too. But, it won't bring back Adachi."
"You...! Why would you do such a thing, Himeko-chan?"
In a dull tone, she replied with, "Because it's more interesting that way?" It sounded as if were quoting someone, but she soon shrugged her own shoulders, a heavy self-deprecating sigh slipping. "This is all an experiment. And it worked. Erasing everyone's memories... all of the powers that I gained, it all worked. I can now proceed with the next stage of the plan. Mm, you'll be the perfect vessel for this last trial. With my calculations, this should work."
Gritting between her teeth Sonico snarled at Inaba's words, angry. "What do you mean by vessel?!"
"Didn't I tell you? I experienced a phenomenon that allowed me and several others to switch bodies with one another."
"And?"
"You're going to become the vessel for the soul that I need to place in that body. So at the very least, your body will remain alive. Your soul will then be sent to where Adachi is. A fitting ending for you, don't you think?" She chuckled at her own joke, even though her words were all honest.
"What..." Sonico's words trailed off, both in disbelief and fear, frozen still. "Why...?"
But as soon as that single worded question left her, she immediately knew why. She mentioned a vessel. Inaba would use her body to place a soul there. Whose soul, however? There was only one answer. "You can't! If you do that, he would notice right away, wouldn't he?!"
"Normally that would be the case."
"He wouldn't forgive you after all these people have died!" She was definitely angry by now, infuriated.
"He doesn't have to know. I can make him believe that he's still in his own body. I can manipulate memories, remember? But I guess if you refuse either of my offers, I could always just rip your soul out of your body without question. That would be much, much simpler. But I wanted to give you the choice, you know. Because this way, Taichi will be brought back to life. And then, after that, I can finally pay my respects for Junko-senpai for ruining my life!" Inaba gritted her teeth, stomping her foot on the ground with a twist.
"So, what's your choice, Sonico?" Let the girl live, only to have her soul ripped out of her body and possibly be sent to another one -- one where she could live with Adachi, possibly even forever, or kill Inaba right now? It was a difficult decision to make.
Crouching down, Sonico took the gun beneath her feet, steeling herself as much as she could with a nod, pressing her lips together as she spoke cooly.
"I've made my decision."