Notes

Killing Harmony

Kaede's hands shook violently as she unzipped her backpack, lifting the only chance they had to escape. Nobody deserved to die, but she'd rather the monster who trapped them in this sick game go rather than any of her new friends. Invasive thoughts were clouding the blonde's dizzy head, what if it didn't work? This wasn't the most expertly crafted plan after all. Shaking her head in an attempt to clear her rapidly distorting mind, she let the ball drop to the floor with a small thud.

The pianist was on her knees now, fingers curling around the vent's shield. What if I kill the wrong person? Kaede's fear clawed at her arms, lodging its grip into the goosebumps littering her shaking limbs. Either they would all die and she would live as a disgusting murderer who had sentenced the people she would kill for to death, or... If this erratic plan failed, that's the outcome she would want. The latter option.

What am I even thinking? She questioned, clutching the vent cover against her bosom. It was so cold, her fingers started to feel numb. The girl heaved, instinctively raising her hands to cover her mouth, the metal fell to the floor with what seemed like a deafening cry. Hot tears rolled down the blonde's quivering cheeks, she stared at her fingers, now covered in bile. She rubbed them against her backpack, and grasped the shot put ball, wiping away the excess fluids shamefully dripping down her chin with a palm.

This was supposed to take a few minutes, but it had been an eternity longer. Shuichi must be anxious now, suspicion polluting his fragile mind. Kaede felt so sick from these vile words the voices in her head were spitting. All he needed was a little confidence, he was stronger than he thought.

"How dare you insult him..!" She ended up choking out, her face scrunching up in an enraged expression.

This was insane. Kaede had been rallying everyone that morning, being strong for them all. She'd do anything for those smiles, she believed in them with every thud of her breaking heart. Now she was in a dark classroom, bile gluing strands of hair to her wet face, hysterically fighting at herself. Planning to murder whoever happened to open that secret door.

Glaring at the object of desire, the blonde's tears fell from her wartorn face, causing identical streaks to trail down the sides of the ball, like sadness of its own.

Kaede placed the weapon at the edge of the vent, exhausted. I am okay with this, she reminded herself, if I don't take this chance everyone WILL die. Like ripping off a bandaid, she quickly released the ball, it swiftly rolled through the tunnel and out of sight.

Done.

The girl sniffled, wiping away anything gross from her face with a pale sleeve. She zipped up her now lighter backpack, and pulled the straps calmly around her shoulders. Kaede double-took, she had almost forgotten to set the vent's cover back as it was.

Time was up.

Shuichi threw open the door, his eyes wild.

"Ka..."

She gripped her backpack straps, blown away by the anxiety radiating off of him.

"Oh, I'm so sorry, was I really that long?"

"I'm sorry... I thought you were-"

Raising her fists to her shoulders, the blonde brandished a bold smile. "You know I'm a fighter, that'd never happen."

"Yeah, you're right." The boy weakly smiled in relief, staring at his hands.

This exchange was so strange. He trusted her so much. He didn't even mention it.

Kaede approached her shaken friend, and wrapped her fingers around his. She disregarded how nasty they probably were in favor of comforting him.

"Let's get going now."

The only words bouncing around her skull now were ones of fondness, so she left her betrayal behind and the vent uncovered.

---

Time felt null as they walked, hand in hand. Passing by the barb wire windows, heels clacking on the hollow floor, not flinching in fear as that erratic music blasted from every television in the school- it all felt so empowering. While they had nothing, Kaede felt like she had everything. The blonde glanced over at the boy matching her strides, to see his head dipped, that shield blocking his teal eyes from view.

She stopped. Heart still singing in her chest.

He stopped. Heart suffocating in his chest.

Kaede pushed the tip of his hat up, revealing his sunken, sleep deprived gaze.

Shuichi's face erupted in red, and he flinched backwards, hiding his shame with shaking hands. She hadn't realized how much that'd embarrass him, but to lighten the mood, she smiled through it.

"Hey Shui... It's okay to feel things, you know?"

The girl slowly approached her nervous friend, ignoring the voices caving in her skull with their screeching. Follow your own advice, Kaede. You can't cherry pick what to feel when you carry everyone else's pain.

Grabbing his shoulders, she-

"Kaede, the camera!"

The detective boldly grabbed her wrist and yanked her. The girl almost tripped over herself, but a newfound adrenaline stopped her. They bolted down the halls with a vigor.

Running like this felt like freedom, for a moment, Shuichi and her were bounding away from this place. Any minute now, the flashy music and gory images would stop. The gates would open and it would be all over. They could all go home to their families, the people behind this would be arrested. She would play Clair De Lune at their celebration party. Everything could go back to normal.

Kaede's daydreams ended when Shuichi halted, and tightened his grip on her wrist to prevent her from tumbling down the stairs.

He mumbled a sheepish 'sorry' while she rubbed her sore wrist with a good-natured grin. The dizzy girl's ears were roaring with blood. The sound so strong that she hadn't noticed the lack of a murder anthem. Shifting her focus to the nearest monitor, the screen had frozen. On an image so vile, that Kaede almost heaved again.

The grass tickled at the blonde's ankles, and her exhausted stomach twisted into consecutive cramps.

Someone had died.

Kaito and the rest of the stubborn students had barreled down the shadowy staircase earlier, apparently plotting to fight off the exisals or something even more outlandish than that. Just because the music had stopped, didn't mean her plan had necessarily worked, maybe the mastermind had struck first. Maybe they were still on the prowl, bloody weapon in hand.

That possibility ignited a fire in Kaede's heaving chest, and she flew down the steps with ease, leaving a gasping Shuichi behind, and ready to rip apart the aggressor who would dare hurt a hair on any of her friends' heads.

Rantaro.

He said he'd deal with this. And for the rest of them to stay out of it. No one knew where he had gone to though, everyone was too busy either panicking or rallying inside a dark classroom.

Kaito must have had the same idea as Kaede, almost slinging the class door off its hinges a few feet in front of her. She screamed, and he mirrored her in retaliation. After a brief panic, the boy dashed away in the direction of the library.

"Come on Kaede, I know I heard something over here!" He said, not even out of breath, "everyone in our group is a-okay so don't worry, Tenko is watching over them while I investigate this noise."

The girl lunged at his arm, inches away from the library door handle, and squeezed his sleeve, the rough fabric against her skin reminding her of how real this was.

"What are you doing? The mastermind is getting away-" Kaito asked in his worst inside-voice-whisper he could possibly have.

"Are you serious?" Kaede hissed under her breath, keeping her grip intact, "That music turning off means someone is hurt- or even dead!- you can't recklessly go in there, especially with no support. What if the mastermind..." She was preparing to go on and on, but he stopped her.

Rubbing the back of his head, the boy sighed, "Alright, alright. I get it, now let's get going, I won't do anything stupid again."

Kaede hung her head, shamelessly holding onto Kaito for support as he nudged the double doors open with an elbow. Her pale eyes were squeezed shut, vision utterly black, her brain was ready for a scene that her heart never would be. They could only hope for the best.

"Is... is everything okay?" The blonde muttered softly, hoping he'd hear her. He hadn't screamed in terror or flinched yet, so her chest was slowly but surely calming down. Everything was fine, why would she even worry?

"Kaede... Turn around and go get everyone, tell them to go to our meeting place." The astronaut said in such a somber tone she couldn't recognize it as the boisterous boy she'd come to know.

"I can't just leave you here," She began, feeling completely numb, there was something horribly wrong, it was right there, but she couldn't see it. Her eyes were glued shut by denial.

"Don't worry about me, I'll be fine. Just... Do what I said." This time more assertive, like a gear shifting back to its normal rhythm.

The girl's legs were shaking, so he awkwardly led her a few feet down the hallway, hands in the death grip around his arm. Her knuckles were surely white, and she smelt blood.

His presence fazed away from Kaede, and she finally opened her teary eyes. The dismal light emitting all around her felt blinding. The blonde could only carry on, securing her arms beneath her bosom and shuffling forward. Her deadened limps caught Tenko's attention, who had been peering out vigilantly from behind the classroom door. The exuberant female wasted no time sprinting to Kaede's aid, and in moments there were two firm hands on both of her shoulders.

"Miss Akamatsu, did that awful boy do something to you?" She demanded in a disturbingly discouraged tone, almost as if she knew that wasn't it at all.

"No, Tenko, thank you for your concern though," Kaede went to smile, but she couldn't, "Can you make sure no one leaves the classroom while I gather everybody else?"

"Oh-? Of course!" The girl flushed pink, hand raised to the side of her mouth in alarm, "Should I come with you?"

Kaede knew she was trying to protect her, but the others needed it more, so she assured her friend she'd be fine and stumbled off toward the staircase.

For all the strength she prided herself on, it was no where to be seen. The caged school had drilled holes into her chest, smirking as her confidence poured out into a pitiful puddle. They needed her more than ever, Kaede reminded herself, tracing her fingertips against the wall. My heart will break so theirs won't have to.

---

Ryoma had been in the dining room, clutching a mug of coffee with his signature exhausted look. Korekiyo was reading something he'd snagged from the library earlier, sitting near the shorter boy oh so contently. Kirumi was sweeping whilst fussing over both them, probably for not letting her retrieve what they had wanted in the first place.

Kaede had managed some offkey, friendly small talk, before directing them toward the assigned "headquarters" for the horrified students. Kiyo's interest was piqued, so he didn't question it. Ryoma said nothing as he pulled his beanie down, then shuffled away, hands in pockets. Kirumi, faithful to any command, thanked Kaede for collecting them and followed close behind the duo.

She searched on for the others. Unfortunately, Kaito had only reeled in a few students for his insane plan: Of course Tenko; Gonta, who was eager to protect any and everything; Himiko, who had only followed along after Tenko had insisted they needed her magic; Keebo, who was brought along against his will; and Maki. Kaede wasn't sure why she had tagged along, but she assumed it was to watch over them and prevent any "idiots" from doing anything drastic.

The blonde found Angie sitting cross legged beside the dragon statue, smiling happily while obviously praying. She claimed to be asking Atua to welcome them to his kingdom, oblivious to the finality of death or simply not caring. Kaede was worried either way. Sharing Kaito's request, Angie wasted no time chirping a thanks and skipping off.

Rounding a corner, the girl felt her stomach cramp again.

Echoing of the walls of the ominously silent hallway, Kaede heard a faint scream. It was soft in tone. Filled with bewilderment. It sensed of an overwhelming terror, and it continued, into resonating, choked sobbing. It sounded far away. Probably downstairs, she thought. It could only be him.

"Shuichi!" Kaede screeched, vocal chords tearing through her throat, as she staggered into a primal sprint, barely avoiding crashing into walls or tripping over uneven tiles.

He continued screaming, each wounded sound from his mouth weaker than the last.

The ballistic blonde felt her heart scream in unison through her heavy chest, "SHUICHI!"

As her frantic footsteps pounded the floor, a cold wind rushed over her face, leaving goosebumps trailing down her entire body.

He was silent now.

Falling down the stairs hadn't even crossed her jumbled mind, her eyes were burning, as were her lungs, which heaved with exhaustion, and everything was just a blur. Kaede could only make out distant shapes, but most things blended together.

Before taking her leap of faith, the girl narrowly missed clashing head on with somebody, who she slammed shoulders with anyway. A pseudo-whine giving her a clear idea who it was.

"Kokichi, MOVE!"

Grabbing the boy's frail arm, she shoved him forcefully into the wall. He let out a dramatic cry. Instinctively, she whipped her head around to check on him, completely forgetting the context.

Kaede tripped, distracted by Oma's obnoxious display, and barreled directly into the wall. There was the searing pain she needed; it blossomed into a new pump of adrenaline. The blonde huffed in defiance; she would apologize later.

Down the dark hallway, a group of people had clustered.

She noticed Tenko, in a battle stance, standing by a glaring Maki. Both girls were confronting Kaito over something. The boy, face absent of blood, had his back glued against the library door in an effort to protect the insides.

Gonta was hulking over someone Kaede couldn't make out, due to the cluster of students hovering around them. Korekiyo was watching the scene unfold like an outsider, petite hand covering his masked mouth in surprise.

On the cusp of seeing the hidden victim, Kaede threw the distressed Keebo and slouched Himiko to either sides of her.

Shuichi.

Without thinking, her numb arms wrapped around the shaking detective in a hostile manner, and to her surprise he clutched back, holding on for dear life. Wild amethyst eyes swirled target to target- searching for someone to blame for his pain and promptly destroying said monster.

"What did you do? Just like you degenerates to hide things!" Tenko shouted at Kaito, readied for attack.

"Step aside before I make you," Maki threatened with a gaze that would cause even the most disobedient children to quiver, "We already know something happened."

"Like Hell I will!" The unwavering boy boomed back, then defensively yelled: "And I didn't do it- and I damn sure ain't hiding nothing!"

It?

Hide?

Before I MAKE you?

"What's wrong guys?" Kaede piped up in a purposefully ignorant way, hoping to curb the growing tension.

"It would appear a tragedy has occurred," Kiyo answered in a musing tone, "And being the stubborn, kind-hearted soul he is, Kaito wishes to spare us the details."

The blonde, gently sobbing boy still clutched to her chest, studied the scene. The sweat beading on the astronaut's forehead gleamed, and he had slammed his white knuckled fists together, loudly proclaiming his innocence. The more Kaito said, the further he dug his own grave.

In some sick twist of fate, the child Kaede had shoved earlier came bounding down the halls, halting on his heels and faking a shocked look- at least she thought it was fake.

"What's up?" Kokichi grinned, arms behind his head in a relaxed way.

"Kaito won't move." Ryoma mumbled with zero energy, skulking in his own pool of darkness beside Gonta.

"Is that so?" The little boy asked in a lower tone, his mischievous gaze locked onto Kaito.

Then he lunged for him.

The taller teen let out a girlish scream- he was being tickled?- and flailed to the left, a string of profanities following his wobbles. As soon as Kaito budged, Maki swiftly strode forward and swung the double doors wide open. Her uninterested demeanor didn't waver as she took in the heavily guarded scene.

Shuichi turned his head hesitantly to the library, like he had already seen it a hundred times. That didn't stop him from vomiting onto Kaede's rosy vest. The blonde patted her friend's back, but he was frozen and red-faced.

Korekiyo glanced their way, narrowed eyes squinted in disgust, "How... Distasteful."

Kaede shot him a glare, and Kirumi was quick to the kids' aid.

"Don't fret, I'll clean your clothes as soon as this ordeal is settled."

"Thank you, bu-"

The pianist paused, her senses were overwhelmed with the stench of iron. Heavy and dizzying.

"HIYAAAAAAAAH!" Tenko screeched, shielding her view with shaky arms and leaping in front of Himiko, "Miss H-Himiko, don't look!"

"Huh?" The short redhead drawled in confusion, "Why not?"

Kokichi was struggling with Kaito, twirling around and giggling at the taller boy's frustration. He was almost thrown onto Maki, who scowled and turned away from the library's entrance. Nosey as always, the purple curls of the boy's seemed to perk up in interest, and he stared into the library.

"Yikes-" He gnawed at his thumb, "That's a mess mama will have to clean."

Kirumi, clutching her skirts, sighed with furrowed brows. Not protesting in the slightest at the unwanted nickname he had assigned to her as soon as they had all met.

Kaede tore herself away from Shuichi, he was pasted in a feverish way to her, the sweat of despair sticking them together. Her legs carried themselves as she took in the foreign, unreal scene. The vomit drying on her vest had finally registered as unpleasant in the blonde's preoccupied mind. That thought didn't last for long though.

---

The state of the library was something that could only be described as total carnage.

Doubled over in the dimly lit corner was a boy, several puncture wounds to his stomach left it a disemboweled mess. The light reflecting off a lifeless ringed hand giving away who it was. Kaede couldn't bare to look at the intestines spilt all over his lap.

A drenched knife lay near the feet of the second victim, who was facedown in a puddle of what could only be her vomit. Sticky blue strands of hair stuck to the floor, her back, and surrounded her discolored face. There was blood everywhere, soaking into her dress and pooling from her broken nose and creating a disgusting mixture with what she'd emptied from her stomach. Stains splattered against the bookshelves.

Nothing stopped the blonde from quietly approaching her friends' bodies, dry heaving several times in the process. The stench of death was too much. The ugly wound emitting waves of bright red blood from the back of Tsumugi's fractured skull was too much. The blinding rays reflecting off Rantaro's rings was too much.

Kaede gently tiptoed around the deceased girl, careful to avoid disturbing her body out of respect- or staining her shoes with blood. On second thought, she settled with pulling her shoes and socks off, and placing them on an unsoiled shelf, right beside the thick, yellow paged books.

Digging around her backpack, Kaede pulled out the vest she had wrapped the shot put ball in, and- without a second thought- threw it over the red glazed floor beside Rantaro. As expected, it bled through instantly, but she didn't mind that, carefully getting on her knees atop the makeshift blanket anyway. The pianist's knees were slick with warm blood as she reached out a shaking hand toward her friend's expressionless face. His eyes were so glossy, sheathed and doll-like.

Kaede brushed the bangs out of his eyes with her fingertips, smiling bitterly, with a painful, growing lump in her throat.

"You promised to get us out of here Rantaro."

Saying his name and receiving no reply felt like fire in her lungs.

They had only known each other for a month, but trapped in this hell, that felt like forever. She'd already memorized every little thing that had made her so fond of him. The way he would twirl his rings when nervous, the way his eyelashes would brush his cheeks after grinning, his limbo between being completely laidback to diligently attentive. Everyone here was his little sis or bro, no one was too sneaky, outspoken, or distant for him to care for- nothing was asked in return. He simply loved without a worry in the world.

Someone had stained their hands with his blood.

Cornered him and Tsumugi.

The possibility of him interfering with Tsumugi's murder hadn't left her mind.

She was on the ground. He had heard. Bursting through the doors, the monster noticed. He went to subdue it. It pulled out a knife.

Behind her, a woman cleared her throat.

"Miss Akamatsu, it's time to go." Kirumi calmly stated, hands clasped together. The platinum blonde's face was scrunched up, as if holding up her composure was increasingly difficult.

---