Das Wandern

[Skraal]

Pu-re-ku...

Yuko sat silently as she struggled to take in Mizuho's words. So, it wasn't a one-off joke - she was serious about the name thing. The whole situation was beginning to make Yuko more than a little annoyed, to be honest. Did this girl think their situation was a joke or something? It was hard to fathom what other reason she could have had for wasting everyone's time with this nonsense. Whatever the bit was supposed to be, it wasn't funny, and Yuko wasn't very much interested in playing along. What kind of stupid name was that, anyway? Was it from a manga or something?

Whatever. Yuko shook her head, doing her best to focus on the relevant bit of Mizuho's question. She thought back to the moment she had left the school, retracing the events of the past couple of hours. As far as she could tell, she hadn't encountered a soul since she had pushed her way out of those doors, not even during those terrifying minutes of searching the supply shed. The first people that she had met since then were Mizuho and Kyoichi, the latter of which was still down below on the hill. Yuko hoped that he was going to stay that way as long as possible; Mizuho was alright, if a little frustrating to deal with, but keeping a boy around for any length of time was going to be nothing but trouble.

A moment of silence hung in the air as Yuko glanced back down in Kyoichi's direction, before turning back to Mizuho and speaking in a quiet voice.

"No, I haven't... To be honest, I've been by myself pretty much all night. What about you two?"

[Catche Jagger]

“Oh, I see.” Mizuho deflated slightly at the news, her posture sinking as it became increasingly clear that she was unlikely to find Megumi or Kaori that night.

Still, she had granted runic markings to the two of them as well as herself, markings which granted the blessings of good fortune and the dawn. With that assurance, the three of them would be sure to meet with the coming morning.

It would happen.

For now, though, she had Motobuchi at her side. Well, at least she had him in her vicinity. And possibly…

“Sakaki, I hope it’s not too much to ask, but would it perhaps be possible for Motobuchi and I to, um, you know?” Mizuho fumbled over the words, feeling odd in saying them, though doing so seemed foolish.

“Perhaps we could rest for the night with you…?” She asked, her tone almost apologetic.

[almostinhuman]

His pack held little, as it turned out. Food and water rations, his dartboard "weapon" with complimentary darts, a small compass, a map of the island, and a digital watch. He fastened the last of these to his wrist, returning everything else to its place in the bag. It was less than he'd hoped for. He'd abandoned his own bag back in the classroom - or had it even made it there? He'd fled the room in such a panic that he hadn't bothered to check. Not like its contents would be helpful out here; just a set of notebooks, a few pencils, and some school textbooks. Hardly anything that would help him survive.

He felt a bit less rough now, so he got back up, limping up the path to the peak proper. He arrived as Inada asked Sakaki if they could say. There wasn't much he could add, so he stood sheepishly behind Inada, waiting for an answer.

((Kyoichi Motobuchi continued in Six White Horses))

[Skraal]

Yoko paused for a moment, considering the offer. She still didn't fully trust Kyoichi, but Mizuho appeared to have him in check. She herself didn't seem like much of a threat either, at least for now. Trusting anyone had an element of danger to it, no matter who, but at this point, being with them felt safer than being alone. She turned to Mizuho and spoke in a low voice.

"Yeah, alright. Just try not to make too much noise, okay? This is a pretty good hiding spot and I'd rather not give away the location to any more people if possible."

She hoped that she wasn't going to come to regret this decision.

((Yuko Sakaki continued in Fast Times at Fort Kiriyama))

[Catche Jagger]

A grin returned to Mizuho’s face, which itself seemed somewhat inappropriate, but which she wouldn’t have been able to suppress if she’d wanted to. In spite of how awful things seemed, the runes were working. Mizuho had met two of her classmates within the Program and, though neither of them had been one of her pair of closest friends, they had both been happy to keep things peaceful and perhaps even help her on her quest.

“Of course! Subtlety is one of the many gifts I’ve been granted in order to protect those in need.” She nodded before raising a finger and reminding herself to remain silent for the rest of the night.

Still, Mizuho’s smile did not fade as she sat down to settle in for the night. Come the morning, she and Motobuchi and maybe even Sakaki would set out and find her friends, and perhaps even a few more. A team of heroes to stand against the darkness.

An odd-sounding half-laugh, half-cough emerged from her throat, and Mizuho quickly covered her mouth.

((Mizuho Inada continued elsewhere...))