#tohaic

Trigger Warnings: Suicidal Ideation and Attempt

After the trial and the shock of Guide being killed, Masa was feeling no better than before. In fact, he only felt worse. Rin and Yuko would have no justice and Guide got murdered just because Atsuko lied to everyone. No justice.

There’s no justice.

There’s no magic.

There’s no happy endings.

Nothing that Masa believed in was true. Absolutely everything he stood for- it’s all up in flames. Magic isn’t real, and happy endings don’t ever actually happen- he was living in a day dream all this time.

Now, he’s seen the world for what it really is.. he wants no part of it.

Masa had been on his way down to the cafeteria to find himself something to eat for a late brunch after having slept in. Perhaps if he felt a sudden stroke of inspiration, he’d even cook a meal for all of his friends. Well.. he wasn’t the best at cooking. Perhaps he shouldn’t subject his friends to that punishment.. But.. he was proficient with baking. Yes, that’s what he’d do. He’d bake some muffins for everyone! When the days get long and dreary in the tower, a simple action such as baking a breakfast surprise for another student may be enough to lift the mood at least a little!

However, Masa didn’t make it past the third floor. As soon as he stepped down into the hallway, Masa felt something… off. He was terrified to walk into something he wasn’t prepared for, but, he didn’t want to ignore the sick feeling in his gut. Masa slowly approached the two rooms. One was Guide’s room.. And the other was the pot room. He had never been inside the pot room before, and he hated to think that his first time there could end up being horrible. But, Masa took a deep breath and stepped inside.

There was no way Masa could have ever been prepared for what he saw in the pot room.

Masa wasn’t sure how to feel about the motive. At first, Masa thought that it wasn’t such a bad motive. It was easy enough to just.. wear a collar around. He’s even worn collars around for fashion purposes before! So, this mustn’t be too different, right?

Now that it’s been a day or so since the collars were put on, Masa has realized just how wrong he was. The aromatherapist found his hands constantly hovering in front of the band of the collar, threatening to touch the plastic, before his consciousness could snap him out of it and force his hands away. Each time, he just barely prevented himself from grasping the collar.

It was difficult not to fiddle with it, but, Masa didn’t want to accidental trigger the explosion. He had no idea how much tampering the collar could handle.

He did receive an answer though, in the form of Yuriko’s collar exploding as soon as she tried to pry it off. Masa didn’t want to be anywhere near the blast location. He just.. avoided the area as much as he possibly could- but, even so, the smell was horrid and it easily pervaded several rooms of the tower. Just knowing that Monofox wasn’t bluffing made it feel like Masa’s collar was growing tighter around his neck. He was sad that Yuriko had to die like that, but, he didn’t know her very well... so, he could handle the trauma a little easier.

He knew it. He knew that there was a reason behind Monofox and Guide being so nice. Why couldn't it have just been a (somewhat) nice movie night?

The minute that he felt Monofox push his foil headphones off and clap the thick collar on, he slid from the seat and onto his knees.

He wanted to bring his hands up and pull the damn thing off, but the fox said there was a bomb attatched to it and any tampering would result in an explosion. He didn't want to test it.

He reached out and grabbed the fallen foil headphones holding them in his lap. With the collar on, they wouldn't fit around his neck. He felt tears prick his eyes. He couldn't cry now. No way, the others were still here.

He simply sighed, staring down at Masa's gift.

Terrified didn’t even begin to cover what Yuko was feeling as he headed to Masa’s room. He had dreaded anyone finding his secret out, sure that people would hate him for it. And here he was, going to reveal everything. Yuko cared for Masa more than he had ever thought possible, and seeing him upset because of Yuko’s secrets wasn’t okay.

Masa may have been the nicest person on the planet, but Yuko was positive that evem he wouldn’t want anything to do with him once he found out. He just hoped that Masa wouldn’t tell everyone his secret once he dumped him.

With only a quick knock to announce his presence, Yuko entered Masa dorm. As soon as he was in however, he turned around and closed the door, locking it. This was going to be for Masa’s ears only.

Masa, who had been sitting on his bed, looked at his boyfriend with a quizzical look, but before he could say anything Yuko held up his hand.

“Don’t say anything. If you talk right now, I’ll probably chicken out, and I need to tell you this.”

Yuko tool a deep breath, trying (and failing) to calm his nerves. Well, time to get it over with and kiss his relationship goodbye.

“You know about my past. Almost all of it. I told you that I ran. I didn’t tell you why I ran. I glossed over it, saying how I had had enough…that’s not exactly true.”

He ran a hand through his hair, and began pacing. His eyes still had yet to meet Masa’s.

“A little over three years ago I was given an assignment by the head of my family. It was a simple name, and I had to locate him. It was top priority. Refusal wasn’t allowed, or else. So I did what I do best and found the guy. It was just another job well done. I didn’t give it another thought until I was reading the news a few weeks later.

“A story came up about how a rebellion was crushed. This ‘rebellion’ was made up of people who just wanted to be treated like people. The ruler of the country was apparently quite the dictator. The name I located was the rebellion leader. The location I gave them lead the country’s ruler right to their hideout. Everyone was slaughtered. Men, women, children, it didn’t matter to this guy. They were against him and that meant the deserved death. Death that I brought upon them.”

Yuko stopped pacing, hands falling limply to his sides.

“They all died because of me. I caused the slaughter of dozens of innocent people. Just because I didn’t want to have to deal with the consequences of refusing. I killed them all…I’m a monster with their blood on my hands.

“And...and I understand if you don’t want anything to do with me after hearing that.”

To say the Yuko was upset with Kouta Oshiro was a huge understatement. He absolutely despised the peace-obsessed Diplomat and never wanted to interact with him again.

But Kouta had tried to get him killed during the last trial. That couldn’t just be left alone. Yuko may not have wanted to talk to the guy ever again, but that didn’t mean he couldn’t get revenge on the jerk.

It also gave him the perfect excuse to use one of the items that he had received from the Monomono Machine. 

Yuko had never enjoyed natto. It tasted like an old boot to him. And smelt like it as well. Up until now, he had left the fermented soybeans locked up in the kitchen freezer. Today, though, he had plans for them.

 Kouta had left his room early. Like always. Heading off somewhere in the Tower, Yuko wasn’t sure where and he really didn’t care. And for some reason, Kouta trusted them all enough to leave his dorm room unlocked. Perfect for what Yuko was planning.

He entered the room slowly, as if Kouta could materialize just by making too much noise. He didn’t want to stay here too long, who knew when the Diplomat might be back.

Yuko quickly made his way to the wardrobe and got to the floor. There was a tiny space between it and the floor, the perfect hiding place for a small box of frozen natto. 

He took the lid off the container, expecting to be assaulted with the pungent odor of fermented soybeans. But because they were frozen, there wasn’t much of a smell..yet. Hopefully by the time Kouta got back.

Yuko smiled and slid the box underneath the wardrobe, all the way to the wall. Hopefully, with a little luck, Kouta wouldn’t find it for quite a while. He got to his feet, taking the lid with him and quickly exited the room.

Sure, he could’ve probably done much worse to the guy who wanted him dead, but Yuko didn’t want to hurt Kouta.

Miserable. That’s what she felt from the moment they found Arisa dead in the kitchen, and from that point on, things gradually had gotten worse and worse. 

Rin found herself sitting in a bean bag seat in the library staring into the distance blankly. She had a book in her hands, but really, she couldn’t focus enough to get past the first page... so she was just... thinking. 

Was her sister alright? What about her father? Her mother? She’d watched her father fall down that cursed chute, but... she was unsure what to believe anymore. She hoped her sister was alright. They hadn’t seen each other in forever, and Rin had so many things to say to her. She had done something bad, and... and... what if she didn’t see her? What if she ended up like-- she shook her head. No... she couldn’t think like that. That wasn’t the way to be thinking in this situation. She had made it this far, after all.