so_shik | Fifty-Second Spool of Thread

Fifty-Second Spool of Thread - [Voice]

[It was a normal day in Luceti for Shiki. She woke up in her room at house 10 without the threat of an experiment settling in today. She had her breakfast, she got dressed, and she headed out with Mr. Mew to All Passions. She walked into the shop and turned on the lights, noticing that the door to Minato's special little room was open. That in itself was strange, seeing how it was meant to be a dark room.]

Minato? You here? [She walked forward, approaching the boy's workspace and pushing the door open only to find it empty save for a stack of letters.

She instantly knew what it meant, but she wasn't going to react yet. She decided to look through the letters first, tracking down hers. Upon reading it, she knows it's true...and she knows she has to let the others know. So she's grabbing her journal and begins recording a new message for the village.]

...hey, hi guys. Um...wow, this is really hard to say. [It's awful. Minato's been here nearly as long as she has and now she's lost one of her oldest friends without a real chance to say goodbye? That's great. It takes her a few moments to pull it together, but she addresses the journal again.]

Minato's gone. Minato Arisato. I guess he only left us last night but these letters weren't here yesterday. If someone could confirm he's really, really gone...that'd be great.

But either way? Nephry, Akihiko, Yuri, Ange, Keiichi,Haruhi and Kyon? I've got letters for you guys. I'm at the shop all day whenever you feel like picking them up.

[Filtered to members of House 10]

In light of people disappearing, I wanted to ask you guys...can we do something special to celebrate the friends we still have here? Like a potluck or something. I made a new friend who asked me to hang out with her, and with Minato leaving...I've realized I can't keep putting things off. Let me know what you guys think.

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[He knows locking himself in a room isn't the way to go, for many reasons among the ones is the fact that Shiki is suffering just like him, and he knows that bearing sadness alone isn't good for anyone. So no, it's not that he doesn't want to see Shiki or anyone else, actually he would very much like to see everyone he knows right there, just to make sure they are still there. But at the moment he's too happy with sitting in Minato's empty and bare room, mopping and crying like a baby, he doesn't really trust his legs to stand even.

Still he wants to see her and talk, or whatever. But right now he can't.]

I know...

[There's a long pause before he speaks again.]

See you at Good Spirits after you're done there?

[No, he's not going to get drunk but a bar sounds like a must when meeting someone and you both are sad, depressed and kicked in the guts by life.]

The bar tender's a good friend. I'll meet you there around five? Give us both time to finish things up. [She sounds a little relieved that he's agreed, but also a little nervous. She's trying to give herself enough time to pull everything together so that Keiichi doesn't see her fall apart on top of his own breakdown. And anyway, it's also a mental preparation. She's not sure what she's going to find when she meets the boy, but she knows it can't be good. But it has to be done. ]

Sounds good. Perfect.

[Lots of time to finish things up, will he be finished by then? With no more tears for the day at least? At least it gives him a time limit, a chance to try to compose himself as decently as he can because he knows that right now he's just downright pathetic. A grown-up baby crying his eyes out. The last time something hit him so much was when Rena returned and vanished in a matter of days... At least this time he's not locking himself in an apartment and going paranoid.

It will be with great effort from his mind that his body eventually moves and ends at the bar as he promised. He doesn't really know the time but he doesn't think it's too late or early. He has managed to look half decent, overly depressed and clearly not in his best time, but he's dressed and no longer a crying mess, for now at least. His face is all red and swollen though, with puffy eyes and a raw nose, not that he looks up much other than to find Shiki and/or a place to sit down.]

[She's a little late herself and by the time she bursts into Good Spirits about fifteen minutes late, she spots Keiichi by himself...and she stops because she can see how heartbroken he looks. This sucks. This totally, totally sucks. She quietly approaches, tapping him on the shoulder so she doesn't startle him.]

Sorry I'm late...

Eh?

[The way Keiichi looks up at her betrays the fact that he hadn't really noticed she wasn't there yet, he had noticed it enough to choose a place to sit alone while waiting, but after that he had just gone back to his own thoughts. She could have never appeared and he would have only noticed it when the bar closed. The realization of this makes him feel worse.]

No. I-It's okay, I... I was just thinking. I didn't get here much earlier either.

[He thinks as he stares at the glass of untouched juice sitting in front of him. When had he ordered that?

He sighs and looks at Shiki forcing out words to make up a conversation, trying in vain to not look as down as he feels.]

So, everyone picked up their letters already?

[You sad, sad little man. She's going to take a seat across from him, setting Mr. Mew in her lap as she examines him. Your face is betraying you, Keiichi. Either that or Shiki just knows how he feels.]

Yeah, they've all been passed out. It sort of feels weird knowing there's nothing left to give. Ange came by and picked up hers and yours.

[He nods.]

There could be more if possessions didn't vanish with those who leave... I hate it, it's as if this place denies that he was ever here. It took even the gifts I gave him.

[The pictures... They keychain he made as proof of their friendship... Everything gone as if it was never there.]

...are you sure? He said he left me some things I made him, but I haven't checked if they're still here.

Well, the things I made him are gone at least. Maybe yours are still there. I didn't check that much.

[Just enough to confirm that Minato wasn't hiding somewhere after putting everything away.]

I bet they aren't gone. Not really. Maybe they're all just collected in one place.

That only makes me think it's done on purpose. Wonder why they bother with collecting someone's possessions when they leave but don't bother erasing memories of them. Since they are so set in making it seem as if they were never here in the first place, it would make sense.

[And that's just his idiot and sad brain sputtering out nonsense. Feel free to hit him, Shiki.]

Oh come on. You wouldn't really want to forget about him, would you?

[He laughs bitterly.]

I would really want for him to still be here. Or at least for him to not return to... That.

[To be a seal, to be dead. It would still hurt but at least he could think that he was going to be fine.]

You're saying that like the rest of us wouldn't want that.

I know we all do. I know we're not the only ones hurt. I know that his friends back on Earth went through this once already.

[He shakes his head.]

I'm sorry.

It's okay...I know this isn't easy. We just...we just have to believe he'll come back someday.

I'm not sure I want that right now, to be honest. I want him back of course but... What if he doesn't remember us?

I know it's not like with other people, he's special, he has Social Links and we had... How was it? Maxed them? So even if he doesn't remember, they should still be there, something will remain but... I don't think it would be the same.

But even if he didn't remember, we can at least try again. That's better than nothing, isn't it? [That's what she had to do with Neku, Beat and Rhyme, after all.]

[He nods, because there's not much else he can do.]

I just hope he would still be willing to put up with me. I bet that even if I try I will end being a burden to him again.

You're being a little hard on yourself, aren't you?

You haven't seen me without the medicine, Shiki. It's not pretty and it's not easy to deal with... And I really need it and someone has to make sure I take it because I may end like not long ago and not taking it, thinking that I'm fine even without it. It's a burden. Minato already was used to it because he was friends with Rena but... If he returns and he doesn't remember... I can't be so selfish to risk dragging him to it again, can I?

Well maybe not...what about Ange?

She's... Better than me at least. Though I don't know if it's because I'm so bad that she's being the strong one for both of our sakes or because she knew him less... Or because she has experience.

[That may not be what Shiki's actually asking, since she already saw Ange, but Keiichi takes it that way.]

No I mean like...couldn't Ange take over what Minato was doing to keep you...you know, stable?

Ah, no... Well, I mean yes, she can. She already does. As long as I take the shoots with the medicine I'm bond to be stable unless there's a lot of stress or something. In that aspect Minato didn't do much other than just be there but when I got paranoid or stressed he always was there to calm me down. But even if the whole village knew and could do something to help if something bad happened, do you really think Minato wouldn't walk in the mess himself to help a friend?

He got himself involved with me just because we both were Rena's friends, he had no reason to bother with me a total stranger, but he did.

[Keiichi sighs, looking down at his hands. If he really doesn't want to bother Minato again if he ever returns without his memories, he will have to just go and avoid him forever and ever.]

Fifty-Second Spool of Thread - [Voice]

[Voice] - FIltered

[Voice] - FIltered

[Voice] - FIltered -> [Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]

[Action]