Stood Up

[MurderWeasel]

((Shinji Mimura continued from Calculated Risk))

Shūya hadn't turned up.

They'd waited a little longer than prudent, even, but it quickly became clear that everyone who was going to depart the classroom had, and so Shinji had turned to more practical matters.

Most of the town was old-style, and as far as salvage went, there hadn't been much to find in the first three houses they searched. As weaponry went, they were already better-armed than anything they might scrounge. There were provisionsto a degree, but food was the last thing on Shinji's mind, and how would you cook rice out in the woods anyways? And, so far, the technology on offer had been meager.

There had been a little more gunfire, and also the faint reverberations of an explosion off in the distance to the north, maybe half an hour ago. Someone was running around with some serious equipment.

Shinji really wanted to grab what he could and then take off for somewhere more isolated before daybreak. He and Yutaka would be safer a little further from this place, and then he could start thinking about how they were going to actually deal with this situation.

Oh, and Oda was still here too, he supposed.

[Namira]

((Toshinori from Calculated Risk))

Why precisely had Oda remained here?

[WorldFat]

((Yutaka continued from [insert link when I'm on PC]))

Where was Shuya? I mean, he did seem like he could've gotten on the death game runners nerves but...no! Don't think the worst just yet! Shuya is stronger than to already be dead.

But that thought didn't exit his mind, yet.

Oh. Yutaka had hardly noticed Oda following as well. Well, he's glad to have them tag along at least.

"So...is there a long term plan for this? I mean, there's gotta be a way out, right Shinji?"

[Catche Jagger]

((Kayoko Kotohiki continued from Go))

Just a moment after Yutaka asked his question, Kayoko Kotohiki awkwardly stumbled out from behind one of the buildings near the three boys. A skeptical, even nervous expression briefly crossed her face before softening into a weak smile.

“Oh, um, hey. I’m really sorry for barging in here guys.” She began, bowing her head earnestly.

“So… I couldn’t help but overhear you guys mentioning something about getting out?” She asked slowly, taking a few steps closer, though she still kept several feet between herself and any of the boys. A realization seemed to reach her, then.

“Oh! I-I promise I’m not a threat or anything. All I’ve got are some nunchaku.” She explained with a nervous laugh, her gaze mostly focused towards Seto and Oda, only sparing Mimura a brief, careful look.

[MurderWeasel]

Shinji didn't even get to respond before they were interrupted. At first blush, Kotohiki was a somewhat more welcome distraction than Oda, but that was at best a neutral compared to a negative. And while Oda's presence was working out better than it had any right to, which was to say he was mostly staying quiet and out of the way and not causing trouble, Kotohiki's particular brand of haplessness already had Shinji on edge.

"We're hoping there's a way out, yeah," he said. "I think we all are. That's all we can do, right?"

He shot a quick glance to Yutaka. There was a little more than that, of course, but here and now was absolutely not the place to get into it. His uncle had taught him a lot about secrets and the peril of leaking them, both directly and by unfortunate example.

"At least nunchaku can keep your hands busy," Shinji added. "It wouldn't do for me to fidget with this."

He raised his hand and revealed the Luger, but kept it pointed at the ground.

The truth was, Kotohiki's reassurance made him trust her significantly less than he would have had she simply remained silent. Shinji had a good memory for the girls in class, and as far as he recalled, Kotohiki was into very traditional things, flower arranging and tea ceremony, not really his scene. They seemed like hobbies that spoke to some measure of self-control or composure, but her actions didn't really back that up. She was a little like Yutaka in that she was prone to just saying things without thinking about them, but without the years of trust Yutaka had built up, the deep understanding of his inherent goodness.

This was all to say, Kotohiki would be unpredictable and a liability, and also she was acting strangely. The sooner she was out of their hair, the better off they'd be.

"If you want to hide out here, we can leave," Shinji offerred. "If we find anything that goes beyond just hoping, we'll make sure to let you know."

[Namira]

Remaining with the pair was a strategic consideration, Toshinori settled on telling himself. As much as Toshinori was loath to admit it, Mimura was well-liked, attracting barnacles such as Seto and the admiration of many a shallow girl, whether in their own class or no. Whilst he certainly could not be trusted, extending trust to anyone in this scenario was foolhardy. Even still, Mimura's presence was advantageous in the short term, his popularity a barrier to the hostilities of others. It would not hold indefinitely, and would doubtless fall away once the class realised that scruples were foolish, but it would do for now.

Besides, if Toshinori could cultivate Mimura's trust, why, would that not be a most unexpected tool for later use?

He held his tongue as Kotohiki showed up, though it rankled a little that Mimura simply offered to vacate without even conferring, but this was hardly prime real estate, he could abide.

[WorldFat]

The others may be wary about trusted any odd person, but those kinds of worries seemed to elude Yutaka Seto. Surely, none of his schoolmates and peers would do what the students told them.

"Or, we could all travel together maybe? It's really up to you. A bigger group is definitely more intimidating to any people who could be creeping along. We don't bite, and you can trust me on that!"

Yutaka had a smile on his face, just trying to make the new person comfortable. Of course, anyone could see that he was being quite naive. But, nonetheless, his intentions at least were clear.

[Namira]

Why.

[Catche Jagger]

Kayoko’s gaze lingered a while longer on Mimura. Like Chigusa, he was someone to be wary of in the Program, athletic and charming enough to have strung along a long series of girls, if rumors were to be believed. The two also shared the position of not giving an inch to Kayoko the moment she showed up.

Oda wasn’t deserving of much notice, the type to mutter insults only when backs were turned and otherwise carry himself with the air of being above all others. Unless he’d stuffed away something truly dangerous in his bag, he’d probably just stand by, and his apparent alliance with Mimura and Seto meant that the former scenario was unlikely.

On to Seto, he was known to be best friends with Mimura, so obviously the two of them would be together. In contrast to his friend, though, Seto seemed keen to offer Kayoko a spot among them. It was a kind gesture, rather ridiculously so, considering he was going against Mimura’s line in doing so.

And so, even as Kayoko’s eyes wandered towards Seto as he made his alternative offer, her mind remained focused on Mimura and his weapon.

“Oh! I mean, I definitely wouldn’t say no to some company, considering the situation and all.” She began, giving Seto a gentle smile, before returning her focus to Mimura.

“But, you know, I wouldn’t want to impose or anything. I know there’s… reasons to be cautious out here.” Kayoko’s tone dropped lower, expression sympathetic.

[MurderWeasel]

Dammit, Yutaka.

Shinji couldn't be angry at his best friend's unending optimism and naïveté. It was one of Yutaka's best qualities, and surely Shinji had himself benefited from it more than once over the years. But that was different. It was one thing to casually trust classmates in Shiroiwa, when the worst that would happen was getting shaken down for your pocket change by one of the gangs (well, at least for someone like Yutaka, who wasn't deep into the anti-government scene like Shinji was). It was another entirely here, when surely people would start dying soon, if they hadn't already.

This was the sort of decision Shūya would make. Shinji found himself sharing a suffering glance with Oda, of all people.

How to extricate themselves cleanly? How to do it without hurting Yutaka's feelings? Shinji couldn't just slam the metaphorical door. He needed everyone on the same page here. They wouldn't have time to soothe egos and coax each other out of sulks.

Maybe he was overthinking this. Kotohiki was a girl, after all, and not the sort like Souma, or even Chigusa. She didn't seem to pose any sort of threat. She was into flowers and tea ceremony. She had nunchaku, which looked cool in movies but Shinji was pretty sure you needed to know what you were doing to be at all effective with. He was pretty sure the only one in their class who would have that knowledge would be Sugimura, or maybe Kiriyama, who seemed to somehow know his way around everything.

"Yeah," Shinji said. "There are."

He didn't look at Yutaka. He could imagine the boy's face starting to fall well enough that he didn't have to.

"...but it's early, right?" he added. "I don't know. What do you guys think?"

He was asking both Yutaka and Oda, but really was pinning his hopes on the latter. Oda was only here by Yutaka's graciousness, but surely being hypocritical about that and denying the same charity to others was something he could be counted on for, right?

And if not, well, Kotohiki couldn't be all that bad.

[Namira]

Fixated on his disdain for Seto's foolish olive branch, it took Toshinori a moment to ascertain that Mimura had opened the matter of Kotohiki to the floor, so to speak, which was most unexpected. Mimura scarcely lacked for confidence, and Toshinori doubted that he particularly cared about making decision democratically. Unlike Seto, that was not born out of an inability to apply critical thought for three seconds.

Toshinori held Kotohiki in indifference, but that was precisely why to simply invite her along was not a good idea. In the absence of any compelling reason to incorporate an addition to the group, one's default stance should remain not to expand. The benefits of allegiances rapidly became a case of diminishing returns. While Toshinori would have preferred Seto had not happened along slash rendezvoused with Mimura, he could at least see the utility in allowing the presence of somebody who, to be frank, could not betray their way out of a paper bag.

Mimura was intelligent enough to know this, so why... ah, of course. Mimura lacked the heart to say no, and hence was setting Toshinori up to decline on the group's behalf.

Well, far be it for him not to oblige.

"Attracting too much attention is not a good idea," said Toshinori. "With so little time passing, a large group will be seen as a threat. Perhaps we could agree to meet with Kotohiki later, at a specified time and location."

[WorldFat]

Seto had turned his attention to Oda for a moment, and also to Mimura. We have to try and help this new person! We are obligated to. Seto looked to the others.

"But we really should try and help her! Maybe attracting attention isn't a good idea, yes, but if we have a big group of people, people will think twice about messing with us. We'll look tough!"

Seto's reasoning was probably sound, but anyone could see all the things wrong with it. Seto, blinded by naivety, wanted to trust this person. Would it pay off?

[Catche Jagger]

Debate had begun and already things had swung against Kayoko’s approach. Though Seto made a case for allowing her to remain, Oda offered some convoluted solution that was almost certainly a pretense for ditching her. No doubt Mimura would agree with that idea.

The result was to be expected, though. She’d already taken a few steps toward Mimura once his attention had turned toward Seto and once she seemed fully out of focus, she took a deep breath and rushed forward.

She would not be leaving empty handed.

Kayoko reached out and took hold of the gun at Mimura’s side.

[MurderWeasel]

There, just like Shinji had hoped: Oda spoke logic. Maybe it wasn't for good reasons, but in this case it was the results that counted. The more unpredictable factors were in play, the worse everything could turn in an instant. They didn't need anyone else.

But of course Yutaka didn't see it that way. It wasn't exactly that he was wrong, either; having a big group would be intimidating to anyone who tried to attack them. The problem was just that it would make it impossible to have any trust internally. Conflict between members would be inevitable, and their ability to move with speed or subtlety would be severely compromised. It was, at best, morally neutral and pragmatically poor, a way to defend themselves without accomplishing anything until they were picked apart like everyone else. And that was putting aside how many members of their class were lacking in loyalty and would let cowardice lead them to preemptive betrayal.

Shinji was looking at Yutaka, figuring out how to frame it. He was going to say something like, "Maybe Kotohiki can find other people and get them together while we work on the collars," which would get her out of the way until a point when she couldn't cause harm, while hopefully letting Yutaka down gently.

That didn't matter, though, because a second later the Luger was wrenched out of Shinji's hand.

Eyes were off the prize, he thought, and then: damn. Already he was spinning back to the girl who did flower arranging and tea ceremony, but it was too late to snatch it back from her; she'd already skipped back out of immediate reach and was holding the weapon out in front of her.

[WorldFat]

Yutaka saw the entire thing act, almost in slow motion. Jesus, Shinji and Oda were right! He shouldn't never trusted this person! He has to protect his friend...he has to!

Seto tried to raise his gun as fast as he could, but it was slower since he struggled with the weight of his assigned gun. God, a magnum was NOT the right weapon to give this kid!

Hopefully he can raise it in time..