Crafty's One-Shots (Jan 1st, 2025: Roots in the Frost)

[Craftyatom]

"Are you happy with yourself?"

The meaning of those words changed a lot, depending on how Misha said them in her head. Often, they conveyed disappointment, like her parents chastising her for something - the implication was that she should not be happy. But they could also represent a sick reversal of that sentiment: when someone else was upset by her actions, but Misha herself felt perfectly happy about it.

Or at least, that's how she wanted to feel.

In the heat of the moment, when she was finally able to feel something, a sick, malicious grin would rise up through her throat and onto her face. And in those moments, she would ask whether she was happy with herself, and, without fail, answer "yes".

But with all of that now in the past, little more than memories floating in a familiar sense of emptiness...

Was she happy with herself?

Sitting alone in the student council room, with her time at Yamaku all but complete, the answer was beginning to worry her.

Admittedly, this was roughly where she had wanted to be, back at the start. She was going to school for education: she would get invaluable experience with sign language, and passable grades in whatever other subjects would get her into a half-decent university, and that would be that.

But that had all changed years ago, when she had first entered this very room. The only person there had been a single girl, with short hair dyed a medium shade of blue, staring intently through a pair of glasses at the paperwork spread out in front of her.

She had looked up and locked eyes with Misha, with a stare that was powerful and yet also welcoming. And as she had described, in sign language more fluid than Misha had ever experienced before, that she was part of the student council and already knew who Misha was and why she was here, something within Misha melted into a small puddle, never to regain its original shape.

And that had been the status quo for quite some time. Sitting near that fire of a girl to stay warm, but never coming close enough to get burned. But the longer it went on, the harder it was to live with.

And then, on Christmas Eve, a miracle had happened.

~~~~~

Misha felt unnerved, standing alone in a small changing room - she hadn't been to any hot springs since childhood, and this one was completely new to her. Apparently Shizune's dad knew the guy who owned it, though she had gathered that the less she knew about that arrangement, the better.

Still, it meant that there was space for the two of them on Christmas day - though Misha hadn’t really understood why they would need to reserve “space”. Regardless, without any other plans for the holidays, Misha had taken Shizune up on her last-minute offer, they had packed their things on the night of Christmas Eve, and now, on Christmas day, wrapped in only a towel, Misha stepped out of the changing room and onto a stone-paved patio.

Whatever surface-level nervousness she had felt before, it suddenly morphed into a deep and gut-wrenching anxiety.

In front of her was not a large pool for many groups of people to soak in, but rather, a small pond of steaming water, only big enough for four or five people at once, with tall wooden walls surrounding it on all sides.

This was one of a set of private hot springs.

The only people who would be using this specific bath tonight were Misha and - already in the water, her eyes closed - Shizune.

Misha's mind began to run wild as she made her way across the smooth stone floor. Shizune had invited her, just her, nobody else, to a private hot spring, on Christmas day. Was there any other way to interpret it? Surely this was... romantic?

Trying not to let her nerves shake her too much, she lowered herself into the water - it was nice, but it didn't help calm her racing thoughts. At first she expected Shizune to do something, to make a move now that they were together. But nothing of the sort happened.

Maybe it would take time. But as the seconds passed, Misha found herself unable to bear the wait. She would have to do something.

But what? And how?

She needed to say something. After swallowing nervously, she turned to her right and tapped Shizune on the shoulder.

The girl next to her had to quickly wipe off her fogged-up glasses, but then waited for Misha to speak - something which took longer than usual.

[I... Thank you for taking me here.]

[Of course.] Shizune knew there was more than that, and didn’t look away.

[So... Why did you bring me here, anyways?]

[Because we both deserved it. The student council puts in a lot of work - we could use some downtime.] Focused on work, even when she was relaxing.

Unfortunately, that didn’t really answer the question Misha had been asking. [Did you invite Lilly?]

[I think she had some sort of family thing for Christmas.] That made sense, she was quite close with her sister. And Misha knew better than to bring up Shizune’s family - plus, she wasn’t exactly eager to discuss her own.

She decided to try something out, and play it off as a joke if necessary. [I mean, with just the two of us here, it’s almost like a date!]

She watched closely as Shizune smirked for a second, but didn’t say anything.

... what did that mean? Was it a mild chuckle, or a knowing smile? Shizune’s laughs were generally rather timid, but that face had also been kind of like the face she made when she was in the middle of a game. Was she calculating a strategy, somewhere in her head? Or was she not thinking of much at all? Misha wasn’t ready to give up... but she also didn’t know where to go.

Completely lost, she tried to think about all the romance books she had read that were like this. What was it that those characters always did in these situations? When they were nervous and awkward, how did they manage to push through to the cute stuff?

She locked eyes with the girl next to her. [Shizune, I... I really, really care about you. A lot.]

Shizune smiled - this time a calm, relaxed smile. [You mean a lot to me too.]

That had to be it. No more waiting, no more wondering, no more stalling. Misha was finally going to turn the page and step into the flames. As her heart pounded in her ears, she leaned forward, watching as Shizune’s face drew nearer. Slowly, she closed her eyes and puckered her lips, reaching out, hoping desperately to feel Shizune’s touch.

Unfortunately, it didn’t arrive the way she wanted - the next sensation Misha felt was the sharp slap of Shizune’s palm against her left cheek, causing her to recoil.

Misha quickly pulled up one hand to cradle the stinging skin, and opened her eyes. Before her, Shizune was looking at her own hand, an expression of disbelief on her face. She looked up, and briefly locked eyes with Misha again.

[Misha-]

It was too late. Misha quickly turned around and left, tears welling up in her eyes.

[Craftyatom]

And yet, at least on the surface, life had continued... pretty much as normal. Neither of them had ever spoken about that night again.

But inside, Misha had felt like a hole had been torn in her. She had expected it to be painful, but it hadn’t been an acute pain - it had been more like hunger, with her stomach slowly collapsing in on itself out of sheer emptiness.

She had tried so hard to satiate it. With food, with friends, with the student council. With books and music about love, about sadness, about anger. But finally, she had simply given up. She would be empty forever.

Or so she had thought.

~~~~~

Translation was a difficult job, and this was never lost on Misha. Yet, despite her emptiness, she remained dedicated to it; in some ways, it made her feel better. She was still empty, but it didn’t matter: she could do something useful anyways. And, for all of the strange feelings she felt about Shizune, she never wanted to deprive the girl of her surrogate ears and mouth - that much would simply have been unfair.

But her translation duties kept her, in some ways, chained to Shizune. Every day of school was a day of understanding and repeating whatever Shizune said. Long ago, Misha had relished the chance to gain insight into her friend; now, she generally felt more like a rubber hose, with words being stuffed in one end and simply falling out of the other.

But one late night, as she sat in the student council room with Shizune and Lilly doing paperwork, the latter sighed and got up from her seat. She organized her papers, filed them away on a nearby shelf, and headed for the door.

Shizune tapped Misha on the shoulder. [Where are you going?]

Lilly stopped, a tired expression on her face. “Home. To get some rest.”

[But we’re not done.]

She let out another defeated sigh. “I don’t have the energy. I need to sleep.”

[We need these done by tomorrow morning.]

Lilly pursed her lips. “That’s a shame, then.” She turned around, trying to leave again.

[You’re just leaving work for me to do. I’m going to have to stay even later.]

“No, you don’t! You can go home too!” Lilly pinched the bridge of her nose. “This is a deadline that we can afford to miss.”

[It’s a deadline that we would already have met if you had spent more time on it the past few days!]

“I didn’t have more time to spend on it!”

Shizune narrowed her eyes. [Funny, I remember plenty of times when you weren’t here helping.]

“Yes, because I had other things to do!” She paused briefly to regain her composure. “The deadline you set was too tight. Just let them know that, and they’ll cut us some slack.”

[My deadline was fine. You chose not to stick to it.]

“I chose? Yes, I suppose I did choose to have a life outside of this awful room! And I’m sorry that you chose not to!” With that, Lilly turned around, fumbled momentarily with the door handle, and left.

Misha half expected Shizune to simply put her head down and get back to work, but instead she stared blankly at the door for a while, lost in thought.

Misha felt uniquely aware of the silence in the room, and eventually tapped Shizune on the shoulder to try and break it - though she wasn’t really sure what to say herself. [Are you okay?]

[Of course. She was just angry, she didn’t mean anything by it.] Another long pause. [I wish it wasn’t like this, though.]

[Like what?]

[Lilly means a lot to me. She’s one of the few people I can talk to as a friend. I just wish we weren’t so at odds with each other. Arguing with her doesn’t make me feel bad, just... empty.]

Misha’s brain lit up at the word, and was about to reply with “I know what you mean” when she stopped herself.

She knew that feeling because of Shizune. And Shizune wasn’t stupid; she would probably figure out what Misha meant. And that would break their unspoken promise, to forget that night.

But in the time it took her to realize that, another part of her realized something else: that she didn’t actually feel very empty. Something about this moment made her feel... better.

And finally, it clicked: Shizune’s face, clearly conflicted, betraying how empty she felt. Misha’s chest filled with some sort of emotion, though she couldn’t really describe it. And she didn’t need to.

All she needed was to get more of it.

[It’s not your fault.]

That was her strategy, her master plan for the weeks that followed. She took care to seek the pair out at every turn, to get every conversation going. If they were both there, she translated dutifully for them, and whatever happened happened. But if she could get either of them alone, she made sure to reassure them that it wasn’t their fault.

And finally, after all that work-

“I’m DONE! I’m done with your demands, I’m done with your rules, and I’m DONE with this stupid club!”

Misha did her best to soak in the look on Shizune’s face as the door slammed shut, but the true prize was one she wasn’t even expecting.

Later that same night, she was woken up by a knock on her door - which was odd, because when she checked her alarm clock, it was midnight. Wearily, she got out of bed.

On the other side of the door was Shizune, in her pajamas, looking... uncertain. [Can I talk to you for a bit?]

It took a moment for Misha’s eyes to adjust to the hallway lighting, but once she did, she finally noticed an extra little shine in the corner of Shizune’s eyes - just as the feeling began to grow inside of her again.

Long ago, she would’ve jumped at the chance to offer that helping hand, to be the confidant. But now, with her newfound emotion?

[Sorry, I’m really tired after all that paperwork earlier... Can it wait until tomorrow?]

Shizune’s face grew even more cloudy, but eventually she nodded, trying desperately to keep her lips still, and went back to her own room.

Misha closed her own door, and was barely able to contain herself any longer - the feeling took over. Images of Shizune flashed through her mind, forming a collage of a girl - a girl wearing an expression that made it look like she had nothing left.

Misha, meanwhile - without even noticing - had begun to laugh.

[Craftyatom]

Misha had been completely reinvigorated by her newfound hobby. Watching and talking with Shizune became interesting again - Lilly never quite scratched the same itch, but that didn’t matter.

All that mattered was that Misha felt alive.

She got more work done, she spoke more confidently, she felt better - in fact, she felt like she could do anything. She styled and dyed her hair; Shizune hated it, but Misha felt like it suited who she had become.

And when Shizune had finally gotten close with a new boy in class, Misha kept up every step of the way. She had acted as a perfect accessory to the relationship - until, finally, her chance had arrived.

The feeling had been incomparable. Not for any of the usual reasons; rather, because when she closed her eyes, she could imagine Shizune’s reaction, and it had made Misha feel unstoppable.

And then... nothing.

The school year had drawn to a close. Shizune’s slow fall away from her last attempt at having someone special in her life had been fun, but now it was over. They would likely never see each other again.

And Misha realized that the emptiness within her had never left - only been momentarily satiated.

Worse, she knew that other people couldn’t fill that void. Lilly and Hisao never did. Only Shizune ever filled that gap, and now... she was finally gone, off to exist somewhere else.

And so Misha sat alone in the student council room, wondering where she herself would exist, if at all. Wondering whether she was happy with herself.

Or at least, she felt like she was wondering - but she hadn’t really thought much of anything since she came here early in the morning, and it was now afternoon. She was empty; kept company only by the ticking of the wall clock.

And then, that too disappeared.

For a moment, she wondered whether time had stopped. Or if she had died.

But a quick glance up - though something felt off - showed that the clock was still moving... just not ticking.

She stared at it for a bit before realizing why it looked odd: something was near her eyes. She could feel it on her nose.

She reached up and removed a pair of glasses that she swore she recognized; the world went blurry without them, and they made no sound, even as the tips of the frame fell inward and contacted the lenses.

Slowly beginning to piece everything together, she put her hand up to her hair, ruffling some of her bangs into her field of vision, and saw a mid-tone blue.

She was lost for words - though she also quickly realized that she couldn’t really say anything anyways. Whatever had happened, she was unmistakably Shizune.

And so she put the glasses back on, and began to think.

There was no point trying to figure out what had happened; this kind of thing didn’t happen. It made just as little sense to try and ask why it had happened, but part of her felt like maybe she knew the answer to that one.

Maybe she deserved it.

And, as if in response, the door opened, not making a sound. Misha - or rather, the girl who had once been Misha - looked up to see who was there.

It was a girl with long brown hair, looking somewhat lost.

It was Misha - or rather, Shiina, soon to become Misha - walking into the student council room for the very first time.

Once-Misha instinctively knew what part to play here. She locked eyes with the girl, who froze. [Shiina Mikado?]

[You... know my name?]

[I’m in the student council; I’ve read through your file a bit.]

[Oh. Um...]

[You’re here because you want to be a sign language translator, correct?]

[Oh, uh, yes!]

Finally, it was clear to Once-Misha what was happening here. She was about to watch herself grow, over the course of her years in the student council, from a passionate young girl into a woman who wanted nothing more than to hurt her closest friend.

And she would finally feel, once and for all, exactly how it felt to be on the other end of that relationship.

And despite the horrifying prospect of being trapped there for years, in another body, just to let herself be abused, she felt... nothing.

Empty.

And maybe that was why.

[If you want more experience with translating - more than you’d ever normally get - then I have a proposition for you.]

Because this was what she deserved.

[Craftyatom]

But... was it?

They hadn’t yet gotten to the point where Now-Misha would begin hurting her, but it was drawing close. And yet, Once-Misha still felt... nothing. No fear, no anger, no sadness. If this was happening because she deserved to be punished, then why didn’t she feel bad? Surely it was supposed to hurt?

Alone in the student council room, she knew that she had to go and tell New-Misha about the hot springs trip she had reserved for tomorrow. That much was set in stone.

And then, of course... well, she knew how it would go. She knew that better than anything else.

But did it have to?

She had done so much wrong, all because of that one moment. Did it really have to happen the same way again? After all, she hadn’t yet been compelled to follow things the way they had originally happened to her; was it possible that her own agency could prevent everything from happening over again?

Maybe. But did she want to? After all, to make that encounter end differently, she would have to... accept her own proposition. And that wasn’t something she wanted.

But none of this was what she had wanted. All she had ever wanted was Shizune, whether as a lover or a toy. And she couldn’t ever get that back, but maybe she could give it to Now-Misha.

Maybe her punishment didn’t have to be about making her feel sad. Maybe it was enough to make someone else happy.

The moment that thought crossed her mind, she got up and hurriedly headed for the dorms.

~~~~~

The warm water lapped silently against Once-Misha’s skin as she sat and waited, her eyes closed.

The last time she had been here, the slightest wait had been a source of anxiety - but now, she was more than willing to take the time to relax. Or at least, forestall the inevitable.

Nevertheless, eventually she felt someone else get into the hot water next to her. And, after not long at all, Now-Misha tapped her on the shoulder. Once-Misha wiped off her glasses, turned to her left, and prepared herself for what was to come.

Now-Misha took a while to formulate her words. [I... Thank you for taking me here.]

[Of course.]

[So... Why did you bring me here, anyways?]

[Because we both deserved it. The student council puts in a lot of work - we could use some downtime.] It was too easy to stick to the words she had played over and over in her head.

[Did you invite Lilly?]

[I think she had some sort of family thing for Christmas.] The moment drew nearer and nearer.

[I mean, with just the two of us here, it’s almost like a date!]

Once-Misha could help herself from smiling wryly at that. She wanted to laugh and sigh at the same time. But she kept quiet. And finally, the end approached.

[Shizune, I... I really, really care about you. A lot.]

Once-Misha smiled. [You mean a lot to me too.]

Finally, as if in slow motion, Now-Misha leaned forward, closed her eyes, and puckered her lips.

And, at long last, Once-Misha broke character and returned the favor.

Their lips touched softly at first, but after being frozen in shock for a few seconds, Now-Misha seemed to explode with pent-up emotion, putting her hands on Once-Misha’s cheeks and leaning deeply into the kiss, trying desperately to get all of it, as if it would evaporate at any moment.

Once-Misha, for her part, tried to put in some effort, to make it feel real. She didn’t feel much herself, but there was a momentary spark of comfort - she was helping someone, and it felt right.

Finally, they pulled apart, and slowly opened their eyes again. However, much to Misha’s surprise, the girl in front of her wasn’t the girl she had once been - instead, it was a girl with short blue hair and a pair of glasses.

Now it was her turn to freeze for a moment in disbelief. She put one hand to her face, pulling some hair into her field of vision: it was long and brown.

She was back.

Her next thought was worrying, and she looked at Shizune - or at least, the girl she once knew as Shizune. [Are you... me?]

Shizune raised an eyebrow. [What?]

Hope began to bubble up through Misha’s chest. [Was that kiss... real?]

Shizune smiled, rolled her eyes, and leaned forward to kiss Misha again.

And as she began to understand that she had somehow found her way to where she had always wanted to be, and tears began to well up in her eyes, Misha wrapped her arms around Shizune, feeling more whole than she ever had before.

[hdkv]

My, my, thank you, Craftyatom, you delivered me a wonderful gift for New Year's Eve!

I really liked your take on Misha becoming Shizune, this was interesting to read. Also, a happy ending story, yeeeeeee! After reading other charming, but bittersweet stories that were posted on the forums lately I'm glad that two girls literally found themselves in the end.

Hope you liked thinking around my prompt and thank you again

[Mirage_GSM]

Ah, that was sweet...

And nice to see the story have a happy end after it took a dark turn in the middle.

[Craftyatom]

Well, it's that time of year again - hang on. What do you mean it's not even the right year? The pinned posts says the deadline is January 1st, and it's still January 1st in... Hawaii, for 20 more minutes. Still counts!

Seriously, though, this year's secret santa was made more complicated for me by a handful of things, including other personal projects and some emergent work at work, plus a good old dose of being too tired and/or lazy. But we're here now, and that's what counts! I am a little worried that the result may not be as polished and tasteful as usual, but I worked around that by... well, you'll see.

My victim this year is fellow writer and friend Razoredge, with the following prompt: It should include Saki (whoever she's dating is up to the writer's choice), and she's spending the Christmas Holidays at home. Her mother is sweet but her father is an asshole, and he makes her life hard by constantly criticizing her for almost everything. Yet, on Christmas' day, the person she's dating comes, with gifts (yes, several) for her, thanks to her mother doing it as a surprise. The rest is up to the writer' discretion.

I hope you enjoy: Roots in the Frost!

[Craftyatom]

Roots in the Frost
Hisao carefully folded a large selection of clothes, placing them one by one into a large bag. Nothing fancy or formal - just casual clothes to be worn while on vacation. T-shirts, shorts, socks, sweatpants, skirts, and of course, plenty of underwear.

He rather enjoyed the process; not only was there some impish joy in getting to handle Saki’s panties, it was also just a simple, relaxing chore that he could do while letting his mind wander.

It was just as well that he enjoyed it, because Saki was lying in bed next to him grumbling to herself, very much not in the mood to pack.

He stopped briefly to reach over and scratch her head a bit. “It’s just a week - you’ll be back here in no time.”

Saki was trying her best to remain angry, despite Hisao’s affection, but was clearly having trouble. “It’s gonna suck so much. I’m gonna hate it the whole time.”

“And here I thought you were an optimist.”

She sighed, ignoring his little jokes, and kept staring at the ceiling. “Honestly, getting to see my mom is fine. I didn’t always get along with her as a kid, but I think we understand each other now. My father, on the other hand...” She groaned. “Don’t get me started.”

Hisao zipped up the bag, having packed almost everything. He pulled himself up and sat on the edge of the bed, putting one hand on Saki’s shoulder. “You should vent about it while you can.”

Saki clenched her eyes shut briefly, and when they opened again, they were filled with rage. “He’s so controlling! He wants everyone to do what he says, like he knows what’s best for us all. He butts into everything, and never takes no for an answer.” She took a deep breath. “But somehow, despite wanting to have a say in everything and keep everyone within arm’s reach, he’s only interested in his work! He only ever spent time with me as a kid when he was telling me what to do - if I did something right, or needed his help, or just wanted to talk, he was always busy! What’s the point of trying to micromanage your family if you don’t give a shit about them most of the time‽”

She pursed her lips, seething for a moment, and Hisao took the opportunity to scooch closer, now sitting cross-legged on the bed, so he could reach both of her shoulders. “This is going to sound stupid, but have you thought about not going? We’re 18 now - you don’t have to do what they tell you to.”

Saki brought her hands up to her face, squishing her cheeks inward as she groaned again. “God, I wish. But my father is the one paying for me to be at Yamaku, so I have to keep him happy. If I couldn’t pay my tuition here, I’d just end up moving back in with my parents anyways...”

“You could elope to my room. We could probably figure out a way to hide it from the school.”

She chuckled, but then quickly groaned again. “Ugh, the thought of my father looking for me if I tried to leave, him and his stupid...”

After a moment to regain her composure, she moved one hand up to hold one of Hisao’s, then tilted her head back so that she could look him in the eye. “We can’t do it now, but... someday, can we run away together?”

“Wherever you want to go.”

She closed her eyes. “I don’t know how long I’ll last, but-”

“It’s okay. I can’t run for very long either.”

That brought a wry smile to her face. She knew that he knew that she had meant something else, but also that his answer would be the same either way.

Hisao kept rubbing Saki’s shoulders for a while, both of them relaxing. The sun had already gone down, and they’d have to sleep soon... but maybe not right away.

“Want me to try and take your mind off of things?”

Saki giggled, then sighed. “Sorry. With packing, and ranting, and thinking about this stupid vacation, I...” She yawned. “I’m too tired. I’d be like a dead fish.”

Hisao lowered his voice to a husky tone. “I can handle you in dead fish mode.”

Saki barely managed to suppress a laugh. “Please never say that again.”

“My poetry is wasted on you.” Hisao chuckled, then leaned forward and kissed Saki on the forehead before getting up. Her eyes were half closed as he got his things and prepared to leave. “When will you get to your parents’ house? I can call you.”

Saki groaned, though it was hard to tell whether that was due to annoyance at the thought of being at her parents’ place, or just at having to keep herself awake. “The cell reception there is terrible, and the landline... has problems.” She propped herself up with one arm, turning to look at Hisao again. “I’ll have to call you when I get a chance. You can try texting me, but no promises it’ll get through.”

That part hurt Hisao the most - he felt like he wouldn’t have anything to do if he couldn’t at least text Saki. Plus, he wanted to help her through the week, and he couldn’t do that without some sort of communication. “Okay.”

Saki lied down again, but before Hisao could leave, added a muffled “I love you.”

“I love you too.”

~~~~~~

Hisao stared out of his window at the trees outside - their leaves were long gone, but it hadn’t snowed recently, which meant that instead of looking wintery and festive, they just looked... barren. Empty. Kind of like how he felt.

That wasn’t entirely true - there was plenty of stuff he could’ve been occupying himself with. Plus, he had gotten a lot better at looking forward to things since he arrived at Yamaku and met Saki.

She would’ve called that ironic. He would’ve kissed her to shut her up. Sigh.

In hindsight, the decision not to go to his own parents’ place during the holidays seemed like a poor one, but he knew that it would’ve been more trouble than it was worth; his parents barely took any time off, so he would’ve been just as alone, except in a place he wasn’t as used to. He briefly thought about the prospect of meeting up with his friends from his old school, but the thought alone felt strange. He didn’t know why, but there was no use trying to figure that out now.

He looked over at his phone, as if it would have any more messages than it did 30 seconds ago - it didn’t, of course. Saki must’ve been right about the phone situation at her family’s place, though it seemed strange for them to be so disconnected. It had already been two whole days - and the fact that that was less than a third of the way through made it seem even worse.

Still, part of him wanted to stay bored; in a way, it meant that he was-

A sudden loud noise made him jump, and he jumped again once he realized what it was: his phone was ringing!

Hurriedly, clumsily, he grabbed his phone and flipped it open - it was from an unknown number, but that was probably Saki’s parents’ number! He quickly pressed the green button and held it to his ear. “Hello?”

“HISAO NAKAI.”

Whoever he had been expecting to hear on the other end, it wasn’t this. The voice was deep, warbly, and almost eerily robotic. It was impossible to tell what tone it was trying to talk in, as if there was no emotion behind it at all.

In his shock, he said nothing, until the voice repeated itself: “IS THIS HISAO NAKAI’S NUMBER.”

He understood now what was being asked, but began to wonder whether he should even respond - this sounded like something out of a bad horror film. Unable to decide quickly enough, he instinctively responded with “Um, yes, it is.” The shock slowly faded. “Who is this?”

“THIS IS SAKI ENOMOTO’S MOM.”

It took him a moment to realize what those words meant, but they still didn’t make sense.

“... What?”

“YES, I. WAIT A MINUTE. HOLD ON, IS THIS. OH, I SWEAR TO-”

The line abruptly went silent for a few seconds, leaving Hisao baffled, until a woman’s voice spoke. “Okay, how about now?”

Somehow even more shocked now that he was speaking to a normal person - or at least, what sounded like a normal person - Hisao stuttered a bit. “Okay, it, uh, it’s... It’s working now? Hello?”

“Yes, hello, I’m so sorry about that, this phone is garbage, and sometimes it just does that.”

Hisao hadn’t been sure what Saki meant when she said the landline had “problems”, but he definitely hadn’t been expecting it to turn this woman’s voice - Saki’s mother’s voice? - into a garbled robotic one. “Oh, ha, it’s okay, Mrs... Enomoto?”

“Oh, come on, I’m not that old - just call me Juri.”

“O-okay.”

There was a brief expectant pause before she started again. “So, you’re the Hisao?”

“Yes.” He wasn’t quite sure what Saki had told her mother about him, and suddenly realized that he’d have to play it by ear.

“The same one who’s been dating my daughter the past few months?”

In the span of one sentence he had gone from playing it by ear to flying by the seat of his pants. “Ah, yeah, that’s me.” The call was starting to feel scary again.

“Awesome! Saki’s been talking about you non-stop, so it’s great to finally put a voice to the name.”

“Oh!” Hisao tried to lighten the mood, mostly for his own sake. “Mostly good things, I hope?”

Saki’s mother chuckled on the other end. “Yeah, ‘mostly’ is about right.”

Hisao chuckled nervously in response, hoping that his first impression hadn’t been ruined - and also that it wasn’t in the process of being ruined. “So, is, uh... Is everything okay? With Saki?”

“Oh, yeah, no, don’t worry - I’m not calling you to tell you she died or anything.” She laughed, but Hisao didn’t. “I’m mostly calling because I think she’s going a little stir-crazy without you around.”

“Ah.” Now was his chance - Saki’s mom would just have to call her over, hand her the phone, and they could finally reconnect. “Do you want me to talk with her a bit?”

“Well, actually, I had something else in mind - just depends what you’re up for.”

Hisao instinctively replied “Anything!” before he could clamp his mouth shut - he had no idea what he was getting himself into.

“Haha, I like your attitude! In that case, how about you pack a few days’ worth of clothes and stuff, and tomorrow morning we can drive you here?”

It took a moment for Hisao to realize what was being proposed. “As in, have me over to spend the vacation with Saki?”

“Yup! She mentioned that you were staying at Yamaku for the holidays, so I figured, why not invite you over to our place? It’d be a nice little Christmas surprise for her.”

A number of worries swirled through Hisao’s head: he had no idea whether this woman was actually Saki’s mother, especially given the strange voice at the beginning of the call. He wasn’t going to be able to speak to Saki until he got there - and he had no idea where “there” was, or how far away it was, or who would be driving him there. And hadn’t Saki said that her father was the controlling type? How would he react to meeting his daughter’s boyfriend? Did he even know that his daughter had a boyfriend?

Somewhat to his surprise, before he could quell any of those worries, Hisao was already packing his things.

~~~~~~

Hisao stood outside in the cold winter air, the sun still relatively low in the sky, waiting for his ride.

He had no idea what kind of ride to expect - Saki’s mother hadn’t specified - but the campus was so quiet, given that it was the middle of winter vacation, that his was the only car likely to show up that day anyways.

But who would be driving it? Saki’s mother had seemed nice over the phone, but would she be the one in the driver’s seat? Or would she send her husband - who Hisao was already worried about meeting? And, whoever was driving, would Saki be with them? Hisao tried not to worry about it too much, but other than shivering and checking that his bag was still at his feet, there wasn’t much else to do.

Eventually, finally, a car appeared on the horizon: a large black sedan. It seemed imposing, even at a distance, but Hisao gathered himself. If that car was the way to Saki, it didn’t matter what it looked like, or who was driving it.

When it finally pulled up to the front gate - much more quietly than Hisao had expected from a car of its size - the driver’s door opened. Hisao’s breath caught in his throat as a gigantic man, decently tall but impossibly broad-shouldered, stepped out. His head was shaven bald, and he wore a pair of dark sunglasses, despite the dreary weather.

As he stepped around and onto the sidewalk, Hisao saw that the driver was wearing a sleek black suit - one that must’ve been tailored to fit his abnormally-large frame - and a pair of dress shoes that almost didn’t seem big enough to support the man above them.

They locked eyes, and the man spoke; instead of the booming yell or the ragged growl that Hisao was expecting, however, it was calm, refined, and almost gentle.

“Mister Nakai, I presume?”

“Ah, yes, that’s me.”

The burly man extended his right hand, revealing a shiny watch around his wrist. After staring for a moment, Hisao realized what was meant, and reached out to shake it. Again, despite the difference in size between them, Hisao was taken aback at how gentle the man’s handshake was.

“A pleasure to meet you - call me Butler.”

Yet another surprise - Hisao had spent this whole encounter thinking that he was meeting Saki’s father. Or maybe this was Saki’s father, and Butler was his name? He decided to fish for answers.

“So, you know Saki?”

“Indeed,” the large man replied as he turned around and opened the rear door of the car, “I’ve known Miss Enomoto since she was born, and I’ve been working for her parents since well before that.”

Perfect, so this wasn’t Saki’s father - that put Hisao a bit more at ease. He let the large man take his bag and put it in the trunk as he climbed into the back seat and put on a surprisingly comfortable seat belt. He barely noticed the engine start up again - it really was quiet - and soon enough he was watching Yamaku fade away.

More at ease around his driver than expected, Hisao decided to start up a conversation - maybe this man could help prepare him for whatever awaited him at Saki’s house. “So, are you used to driving to Yamaku?”

“Yes, it’s almost automatic by now - I drive Miss Enomoto home for every vacation, and back to the school afterwards. It’s quite nice to see how the trees have changed each time I come back.”

“Oh, yeah - it must be a pretty drastic change, if you’re only here every few months.”

“Indeed; I drive past plenty of trees around the estate, but Yamaku is a much more open environment. I’ve never been a student here, of course, but I can’t help but feel welcome each time I show up at that gate.”

Hisao briefly thought about his own experiences with that gate, but quickly caught on to something Butler had said: “the estate”. He wondered what that phrase implied about Saki’s house - that it was large, of course, but also maybe that it was rural? And yet, not nearly as “open” as Yamaku? He realized that he had absolutely no idea where he was being taken.

“So, about how far away is Saki’s house?” He felt a bit odd calling it that, compared to “the estate”, but he didn’t exactly have a better word for it.

“A couple hours, unfortunately - it’s quite the drive.” Hisao barely had time to consider that before Butler remembered something. “Oh, of course, speaking of which...”

He pressed a button on the dash of the car, and suddenly the rear windows and windshield all faded to black, as did a window between the rear and front seats that Hisao hadn’t even noticed until now.

As Hisao’s eyes adjusted to the light, Butler chuckled, in a way that would have been reassuring were it not for the rear seat being completely dark now. “Consider yourself lucky, Mister Nakai - before we got these electrochromics installed, I had to blindfold everyone!”

He laughed heartily, and Hisao chuckled nervously, trying not to wonder what he had just gotten himself into.

~~~~~~

Hisao stepped out of the car, hoping to finally get his bearings after the arduous drive, only to end up just as confused as before. In every direction was concrete: concrete walls, concrete ceiling, concrete floor, and only painted markings and metal supports to break it up. The closest thing he could compare it to was an underground parking lot, but even then, it felt... bigger, somehow.

Not entirely sure who would build an underground parking lot on their estate, he went to grab his bag, only to find that Butler had already picked it up. Hisao considered offering to carry it, but decided that it was probably better for both of them if he didn’t.

He followed the burly man over to a large metal door set into one of the walls - were it not for the control panel next to it with buttons for “up” and “down”, it could’ve been mistaken for the entrance to a bomb shelter.

After a brief wait, the doors slowly slid open, revealing a spacious but plain interior - just as there had been concrete in every direction before, now it was metal in every direction, painted matte grey with the occasional hazard stripes. Instinctively walking to the back wall, Hisao rested against it as the elevator jolted and began to travel.

No sooner had it started to move than a booming voice came out of the walls - unlike the one he had heard over the phone yesterday, however, this one was clearly a normal man’s voice, albeit with some subtle effects layered on top.

“So, our guest of honor finally arrives!” He laughed, and somehow it felt... wrong. “Tell me, Mister Nakai, what do you think of the place so far?”

It took a moment for Hisao to realize that he was supposed to respond - he had never spoken to someone through the intercom of an elevator before. And, wait, hadn’t this elevator been moving for an awfully long time?

“It’s very, uh, spacious.”

Another bout of unsettling cackling from the speakers. “But of course! When you work in a business like mine, you can simply never have enough space.” A low chuckle. “But I won’t spoil the surprise. Let Butler know if you need anything, and try not to wander off - after all, we wouldn’t want you to be late for... dinner.” He laughed again, and the intercom slowly faded to silence.

Butler gave a calm smile. “I daresay he’s fond of you already - it’s been a while since he had a guest.”

Hisao got the feeling that one of them knew something the other didn’t, but he wasn’t quite sure which.

Luckily, before he could think about it too much, the elevator shuddered to a stop. Finally, he could see the outdoors, just as soon as the doors opened.

Unfortunately, they opened to reveal even more metal and concrete - how had they traveled for so long and not reached the surface? Before he could finish that thought, however, he noticed someone standing there, clearly waiting for the elevator.

She wore blue jeans, sandals, and a loose white t-shirt. Her arms and face were heavily tanned, and her long blonde hair was tied back into a simple ponytail. Perhaps it was the makeup she was wearing, but she looked fairly young - in fact, she looked even younger once she spotted Hisao and gasped, a wide smile taking over her face.

“Oh my gosh, Hisao!”

She ran forward, surprisingly quickly, and grabbed him in an entirely-unexpected hug. Hisao froze up, his arms stuck rigidly at his sides as the woman embraced him, squeezing surprisingly hard. He glanced over at Butler, who offered only the same warm smile as before.

After a few seconds, the excited woman pulled back, looking Hisao in the eyes and patting him on the shoulder. “It’s awesome to finally meet you! I haven’t told Saki yet, but she’s going to flip when she sees you.”

Only now, at the mention of Saki, did it dawn on Hisao who he was talking to. “... Mrs. Enomoto?”

Her smile faded as she pursed her lips. Before Hisao could worry that he had gotten it wrong, however, she lightly smacked him on the head. “Either you’re going to call me Juri, or I’m going to make you call me Juri.”

Given the strength of the hug prior, Hisao believed her threat. Still, despite the whirlwind of surprises, he managed to remember the phone conversation from yesterday. “Right, sorry, J-Juri.”

She smiled again, but in contrast to her earlier excitement, this one was much calmer, more... motherly. “There we go.” Hisao suddenly saw it: the long blonde hair, the calm smile, the tone of her voice - she was undoubtedly Saki’s mother, despite the tan skin and excessive energy.

As quickly as it arrived, however, the moment passed, and the woman’s excited smile returned. “Come on, let’s go put your stuff in the guest room, and then we can go see Saki.” She grinned. “Or will you be sharing her room?”

Put on the spot, Hisao chuckled nervously. “Let’s put my stuff in the guest room.” He did want to share Saki’s room, but they’d figure all that stuff out later - preferably without much input from her parents.

“Alright, alright. Come on, it’s this way.”

Only as he started following her, with Butler right behind him, did Hisao notice that they were heading down a long concrete hallway, illuminated by thin fluorescent lights on the ceiling, and with just metal pipes and painted markings for decor. It clashed terribly with the upbeat, animated woman he was walking behind.

Still, as weird as this place was, it wasn’t like he could turn back now.

Come to think of it, he wasn’t sure what the last point he could’ve turned back at had been.

[Craftyatom]

“Okay, okay, stand over here, and wait until I say the word, got it?”

Hisao nodded, and stood to one side of the door - a surprisingly imposing one, given that it notionally only led to Saki’s room - while her mom pressed a button on the wall next to it.

“Saki, can I come in?”

The panel on the wall responded with a voice that Hisao knew all too well. “Yeah, sure.”

Another button press, and the door slid open with not nearly as much noise as Hisao had expected. Still, he remained to one side, only able to listen in to the conversation.

Saki opened. “What’s up?”

“Well, I know you’ve been getting a bit bored around the house, so I figured I’d get something to cheer you up!”

“Oh!” Hisao recognized the sound of Saki being apprehensive, but not wanting to seem ungrateful. “Didn’t you want to wait for Christmas before exchanging gifts?”

“Yeah, but I figured that you could have this one early - you deserve it!”

“Okay, I guess. So... what is it?”

“Oh, you know, nothing much, just... the one thing you want most on this planet!” The room fell silent, and Hisao was confused for a bit, until a fake whisper - clearly audible to Saki as well - called out to him: “That’s your cue!”

It was? He stepped around the corner, getting his first good look into the room, but giving up on most of it so he could look straight at Saki, who was sitting on her bed, and whose eyes practically popped out of her head once she realized who had just walked into her room.

“... Hisao?” After being stunned for a moment, she finally got up and rushed towards the door, grabbing Hisao in a hug that he was all too happy to reciprocate. It had been one hell of a day so far, but this had made it all worthwhile.

After a few seconds holding Hisao close, she stepped away a bit, while keeping both hands on him. “When did you get here? How did you get here?”

Hisao started to respond, but got cut off by Saki’s mother. “I called him up yesterday and asked if he wanted to come keep you company.” Saki seemed surprised - as expected, all things considered - but also a bit worried. Hisao resolved to ask her about it once they- “Well, anyways, I’ll leave you two alone.”

“Mom... thank you.”

“Anything for you.” She turned to leave. “Oh, and try not to get up to too much trouble before dinner, okay?”

Saki opened her mouth to say something, but the door had already closed. She stayed silent, pressed her face into Hisao’s neck, and then... groaned.

He had been right. “What’s up?”

She sighed. “Hisao, can I be honest with you?”

“Wait, you mean you were lying to me before?”

She chuckled. “Shut up, you know what I meant.”

“I do. What’s up?”

It took her a moment to work up the courage, and even then, she kept her head pressed against him while she spoke. “I really, really didn’t want you to come here.” She squeezed him a bit harder “Not because I didn’t want to see you - I missed you a lot - but because I didn't want you to see...”

“... The massive underground bunker your family lives in?”

She sighed, and it turned into a slow chuckle that bordered on light sobbing. “Yeah, among other things.”

Hisao gave her his own reassuring squeeze. “Come on, let’s sit down.” They walked over to her bed, and he sat down on the edge. Saki, however, decided to lie down instead, resting her head on his lap.

As he began to idly play with her hair, Hisao took his first good look at the room, which felt surprisingly like a normal bedroom, given what the hallway outside was like. The bed wasn’t far from the ones at Yamaku, aside from being a bit larger. A desk, a set of drawers, and some shelves lined the edge of the room, all made of wood. The walls were painted a sort of foggy blue, and there were some posters and pictures taped in certain places. There were fluorescent lights mounted on the ceiling, just as in the hallway, but they were off - a handful of lamps in the corners cast warmer light around the room, though they definitely weren’t as bright.

“So, I assume you chatted with my mom a bit?”

“Yeah.”

“What did you think?”

“She... did not seem like your mom at first. But after a little bit, I definitely started to see it.”

“Oh?”

“Yeah, like, sometimes when she’s thinking she gets this look, and it’s almost exactly the same as you.” Saki groaned, and Hisao quickly added, “And your hair. Her hair’s almost exactly like yours, just that she keeps it tied back.”

“Okay, that one’s fair. I definitely got my hair from her, and it’s nice.” She sighed. “So she said she called you. Was she... pushy about it?”

Hisao thought about that for a bit. “Not really. Though, to be fair, I was basically on board with visiting you as soon as she mentioned it, so it’s not like she ever really got the chance to be pushy.”

“Well, that’s something, I guess. I was worried that she forced you into all this. She has a tendency to do that.”

Hisao suddenly remembered something. “Oh, and when she first called me, her voice was... weird. Like, sort of robotic. It went away after a bit, but I-”

“Dad.”

“Huh?” Hisao looked down at Saki, but instead of looking up at him, she looked down slightly, as if trying to hide her face in his thighs. This muffled her voice a bit, but luckily it was otherwise silent in the room.

“My dad, he... he gets really paranoid about people finding out where we live. Like, stupidly paranoid. So he puts all these stupid locks and restrictions and filters on everything. The weird voice thing on the phone is one of those.”

“Huh. I guess that does also sort of explain the whole underground bunker thing.” But then, why had Hisao been allowed in? “Oh, right, and why the windows of the car got blacked out.”

“What‽” Saki brought one hand up and grabbed one of Hisao’s calves - hard enough that it was a little uncomfortable, even through his pants.

“Oh, on the drive over here, Butler pressed a button and all of the-”

“I know what it is, I just can’t believe they did it to you! That’s supposed to be for, like... intruders or something, I don’t know. I don’t know what goes through my dad’s head sometimes. Or ever, really.” She took a few deep breaths, but retained her grip on Hisao’s leg. “So have you actually seen my dad yet?”

“No.” He was relieved to feel her grip loosen, then remembered something. “Oh, but I think he spoke to me while I was in the elevator.”

Her fingers dug into his leg hard enough that he could swear some blood flow was getting cut off. “What did he say?”

“I, uh... Honestly, nothing important?”

“Tell me.”

“I don’t know, something about me being his guest! And then I said the house was big, and he said something about his business! And that I should come to dinner! That’s it, I swear!” Saki relaxed her grip a bit, and it was enough of a relief that Hisao forgot to keep his mouth shut. “He did speak really weirdly, but I mean-”

Saki groaned loud enough that it almost became a yell, and let go of Hisao’s leg - only to slap it once or twice in frustration.

“Hey!” Hisao put one hand under her head and turned it to look at him - and saw tears in her eyes.

They stared at each other for a moment before he leaned down and kissed her on the lips.

It felt incredible, but it wasn’t the way he felt that Hisao was worried about - it was whether Saki would feel any better. He didn’t really know a lot about how she felt - other than very angry - but he didn’t have that many things to try, and this seemed like as good an option as any.

He was excited to feel her move her lips against his - she wasn’t saying no, at least. Maybe he had a chance to help out after all.

After just a bit, however, he pulled back, and opened his eyes. Saki had rolled over onto her back, and was staring straight up at him from his lap. “What was that for?”

“I don’t want you to be angry.”

She groaned again. “I don’t want to be angry, but my family-”

“I know.” He put one hand on her face. “I know what they’re like. I know that you don’t deserve that. But you can’t just let it fester in you. You either have to do something about it, or you have to figure out how to let go of it.”

Saki’s lips quivered, just a bit, and she turned over onto her other side, facing Hisao’s stomach. “Mom always dealt with it by being active. That’s what she always used to tell me, to work it out of my system, until... well, until we found out.”

Hisao’s heart sank, but Saki kept going. “I think she kept trying to help, but for me, it felt like a pretty clear transition: instead of exercise, I would simply have to wait.” She swallowed. “Yamaku made it even easier. I only had to go home a few times a year, and there were only a few years left. No matter how bad it was when I came home... at least it would be over eventually.”

Hisao brushed some tears off of her face. “You don’t need me to tell you that you deserve better than that.”

“I know. But... so what? We can’t always get what we want.”

“I think you’d be surprised. There’s a lot you miss out on by assuming the worst.”

Saki chuckled, then coughed a few times. “Is this that ‘optimism’ thing you’re always going on about?”

Hisao laughed. “Maybe.”

“I see.” She looked up at him and smiled, despite the tears still on her face. “I think I understood it better when we were kissing.”

It briefly crossed Hisao’s mind that they’d have to get ready for dinner at some point - the combination of the drive here and the lack of windows meant that he had no idea what time it was - but he figured that it wouldn’t be too bad, even if they turned up late.

~~~~~~

Each time a new plate arrived at the table, Hisao was surprised at how good it smelled - even Yamaku’s cafeteria didn’t have this many options, and it had to cater to a bunch of different dietary restrictions.

“This smells incredible!”

“Ha!” Butler smiled. “Don’t thank me until you taste it.”

Hisao wanted to, but couldn’t yet: it was fairly obvious that Saki and her mother were both waiting, and he had a guess at what - or rather, who - they were waiting for. He still hadn’t seen Saki’s father, and each extra minute made him more worried about how that exchange would go.

Eventually, the table was practically full of different dishes, and Butler disappeared back into the kitchen - Hisao had hoped that the man would have a seat at the table, but apparently not. There were only four chairs: one on a long side of the table for Saki’s mother, two opposite her for Saki and Hisao, and a larger chair at the head of the table. Behind it was a door that Hisao hadn’t seen open since he arrived.

But, at long last, it slowly slid open, and wisps of fog poured through. A shadow slowly became visible through it, and with a few commanding steps, a veritable nightmare strode into the room.

Thick black boots stomped onto the hard concrete floor. They led up to a sleek, dark purple jumpsuit, with teal stripes along the sides of the legs and arms, along with thick teal gloves. Centered on the chest of the uniform was a teal circle with a red raven inset, its feathered head depicted looking straight at the viewer. Finally, where the jumpsuit ended, a clean-shaven man’s mouth was visible - but his nose and eyes were hidden behind a dark tinted visor, which was attached to a bright red helmet that covered the rest of his head.

Hisao had no idea who this man was, but suddenly got the feeling that he should.

The man stomped forward, his strides imposing but also somehow not quite right. He stepped around the large chair at the head of the table, sat down in it, and pressed a button on its armrest, causing it to automatically slide forward.

Hisao couldn’t discern whether the silence that followed was awkward, icy, or both.

Finally, the man grabbed a large glass at his place, and lifted it into the air.

“A toast,” he said with a voice that was impressively loud but also sounded like it had been run through a cheap megaphone, “to our guest of honor.” He nodded at Hisao.

Across the table, Saki’s mother also raised her glass, and Hisao grabbed his to do the same. Saki was already grabbing food to put onto her plate, and seemed uninterested in following suit.

The table was too large for the three toasting participants to touch their glasses together, but the oddly-dressed man made a quick gesture with his glass, took a drink from it, and then began to grab food from the table.

The food was incredible, but Hisao couldn’t help but notice that everyone at the table was focusing on eating instead of talking, leaving an odd silence broken up only by silverware - the man at the head of the table, in particular, seemed to grind the metal into the ceramic of his plate with little regard for the noise it created.

Still, perhaps this was better - good food, reasonable company, and not too much talk to-

“So, Hisao.” So much for that. “You met my daughter through your classes?”

Hisao hurriedly swallowed the mouthful of food he had been working on. “Ah, not exactly - we’re actually in separate classes. I met her through physical therapy.” That wasn’t the most accurate way to describe it, but getting into the mess of how he had ended up swimming at Nurse’s request following various problems with jogging was probably a bit much.

“Mmm, yes, I’ve heard good things about the physical therapy at Yamaku.” The man took another bite of his food, swallowed, and then continued. “So, am I right in thinking that you have a... condition similar to my daughter’s?”

Hisao noticed Saki throw a glance at him, but it seemed more like pity than anger. He felt that the question was strange, but perhaps it only seemed like it because he was used to the etiquette around such things at Yamaku. Regardless, there was no point saying anything but the truth. “Sort of, but not quite. I have a heart condition that makes exercise difficult.”

“I see - but, other than physical education, it doesn’t impede your academics?”

“No, sir.” shoot, was that too formal? Whatever, roll with it - Hisao actually still hadn’t learned the man’s name yet anyways. “I’m excused from physical education, but the rest of my classes are normal.”

“So really quite similar to my daughter’s, then! Saki is somewhat hindered when it comes to athletics, but is still blessed with a bright mind.”

Saki pursed her lips, and Hisao decided to refrain from discussing the differences in prognosis between them. “I think that’s true for many of the students at Yamaku - they’re all quite intelligent, just with some physical impediments.”

“Fair - I was struck by the same thing when we first visited.” Hisao wondered how that had gone.

The man went back to eating, but Saki’s mother picked up the conversation. “So do you like the school?”

“Oh, definitely. I wasn’t sure about it when I first joined - I hadn’t ever been at a boarding school before - but I really enjoy it now.” He thought about comparing it to his old school, but that felt wrong, somehow.

Unfortunately, Saki’s father had other ideas. “Interesting! How do you think the curriculum compares, between the school you were at before and Yamaku?”

“Hmm.” He immediately thought of his science class. “The curriculum itself, I think, isn’t very different. But I do think the teachers are different - I think they’re better at helping students get excited about the subjects.” Whether his peers would agree, he decided not to discuss.

“Oh? Anything in particular that has piqued your interest?”

“I’ve found myself really enjoying science class.” He was about to say more, but noticed a smile growing across Saki’s father’s face.

“A man of science! That would make us comrades, then - I can appreciate anyone with such a rational view of the world.”

Saki’s mother leaned in, as if to share a secret, though the table was nowhere near small enough to permit her to whisper. “Enji’s been a scientist since before he could walk.” Was that his name? Hisao tried to commit it to memory, along with her name, which was... uh...

“Yes - whether or not the universities see fit to recognize it.”

Hisao sensed a pain point, and ate some more food while waiting for the topic to change. After a few seconds, he almost got his wish.

“So, then, have you been helping my daughter study? She could use some help with the hard sciences.”

Saki’s eyes narrowed, and she began to chew more slowly.

“Well, we have been helping each other study - she’s really good at some other subjects, so we cover each others’ weaknesses.”

“Ah, but a good scientist can figure his way through any subject - the commonality between all things human is reason!” He smiled. “It’s like I always say: teach a man a subject, and he can do one thing. Teach a man to learn, and he can do anything.”

Saki hadn’t put new food into her mouth for a while.

“That’s what worries me about my daughter. She is bright beyond her years, but fails to apply it. She misses the forest for the trees.”

Hisao had run out of polite ways to respond, and didn’t get the chance to think of any more.

“I am not becoming a scientist.”

Her father sighed. “I’m not asking you to become one of those white coats in a lab, fighting for scraps from the government. I’m asking you to consider my example, of-”

“Of dropping out of college?” The two locked gazes, and despite the visor covering the man’s eyes, Hisao could tell they held just as much anger as Saki’s.

“My example, which is to say, using real-world skills to make a real-world difference - one valuable enough to let my daughter spend her days at an expensive school, learning nothing but useless theories in a frictionless vacuum.”

Saki stood up. “Maybe, if you were as smart as you think you are, you would’ve realized by now that I don’t go to Yamaku to learn.”

“Oh? And for what purpose, then, am I paying such an exorbitant tuition?”

“So that I can spend time away from you.”

For the first time, the man took a moment to respond - though his tone hadn’t changed. “And when you finish your schooling, then what? What value do you plan to create, with your lack of knowledge? Or will you simply end up back here, where you started?”

“If I’m lucky, I’ll be DEAD before I ever have to come back here.”

With that, Saki turned and walked out, hurrying as much as she could with her cane in hand.

A silence - this one definitely awkward - fell over the table. Both of Saki’s parents, each normally boisterous in their own rights, were noticeably cowed.

Hisao, on the other hand, felt a strange compulsion to say something.

A. “We should give her some space.”
B. “I should go talk to her.”
C. “You should apologize to her.”

[Craftyatom]

“We should give her some space.”

It took a few seconds of silence, but eventually, Saki’s father nodded. “Perhaps that is for the best.” With that, he and his wife both went back to eating, and Hisao followed suit, though the lack of conversation was noticeable.

After a few minutes, however, Saki’s father spoke again. “So, Hisao, do you get along with your parents?”

“Yeah, we’re... a family, I guess.” He paused to think about it. “I haven’t spoken to them in a while, but they’re often pretty busy with work, so it’s hard to find time to call them.”

“Ah, I see. Do you ever... wish you could see them more?”

“A little, but not really. I know that they really like their job, and that it pays for my tuition, so I guess I can’t complain too much.”

“Ha! An astute observation - they clearly want what’s best for you, even if that means not getting to interact with you as much.” He sighed wistfully. “If only such sense were common.”

Hisao didn’t particularly like the implication, but decided to keep it to himself. Luckily, it paid off.

“You know, Hisao, I think you’re a good influence. You seem level-headed, intelligent, and sociable - it’s easy to see why Saki likes you.”

“Thank you.” Again, he didn’t feel that good about it inside, but he let it go.

For the first time in a while, Saki’s mom spoke. “You know, you get along pretty well with both Saki and Enji - do you have any ideas about how to... fix things up between them?”

Hisao was surprised that she would put it so bluntly when her husband was at the table, but he nodded in agreement.

Maybe there was a chance to gain some ground.

~~~~~~

Hisao had no idea how these door controls worked. He pushed what he thought was the right button - hoping that he had also remembered the right door - and spoke.

“Um, Saki, it’s me. Can I come in?”

There was no reply, and he briefly thought that he had gotten the button wrong, until the door slid open to reveal Saki standing on the other side. She grabbed him in a hug, pulled him into the room, and the door slid shut behind him.

“Thank you. Thank you thank you thank you. You have no idea how much I needed to see you right now.”

He started running his fingers through her hair. “It’s okay. I know.”

Saki sighed, then pulled away, and walked over to sit on her bed. Hisao followed suit, putting one arm around her as she began to speak. “I feel terrible. I made such a scene, I... ugh.” She laid her head onto Hisao’s shoulder.

“I don’t blame you. Your father said a lot of things that weren’t okay. That much was obvious.”

Another sigh. “But me yelling about it isn’t going to help. We’re not going to change anything like this.”

Hisao smiled. “I stayed and talked to your parents for a while. I think they learned a thing or two.

Saki scoffed, but when Hisao didn’t laugh, she was shocked. “Seriously? You tried to fix them?”

Now he laughed, albeit at the terminology. “‘Fix’ is a strong word. Let’s just say that negotiations are open.”

Saki groaned. “Dear god, he’s rubbing off on you.” She put both arms around Hisao, and pulled him close. “But thank you. I don’t know if I believe that things can change, but I should’ve known you’d try.” She smiled. “You’re too good.”

“Hey, don’t say that yet, you haven’t even opened your presents!” Hisao pulled a small gift-wrapped box and an envelope out of his pocket.

“You’re kidding - now you really are too good.” She stared at the box for a bit, then looked back at Hisao. “Shouldn’t I not open these until Christmas?”

“It’s up to you. I just thought that you might need something to cheer you up before then.”

She thought about it for a moment, then set the box down on her desk. “I think it can wait a few days. In the meantime, though, you should grab the rest of your stuff from the guest room.”

“Oh? Why’s that?”

Saki grinned. “There’s no way I’m letting you sleep in a bed down the hall when I could be using you as a pillow myself.”

END.

[Craftyatom]

“I should go talk to her.”

Neither of Saki’s parents disagreed - if anything, they seemed somewhat relieved that Hisao would be the one handling things. Or maybe that was just his imagination, given how quickly he got up and headed down the hallway towards Saki’s room.

Despite hurrying out of the dining room, however, Hisao actually slowed down quite a bit once he got into the hallway. He could easily have caught up with Saki - he might’ve been out of breath, but he wasn’t using a cane - but he didn’t want to. He wanted to let her get to her room first, so that they could talk in a place where she felt more comfortable.

He arrived at the door to Saki’s room - or, at least, he was pretty sure this the door - but, without any idea how the panel next to it worked, he just knocked.

For a moment he wondered whether it would even be audible through the thick metal, but before long it slid open to reveal Saki on the other side. He only got a glimpse of her face, still full of anger, before she pulled him into the room and closed the door behind him.

Hisao had barely regained his footing when Saki began to yell. “I hate him! I hate him I hate him I HATE HIM!”

He walked over and hugged her, and she practically growled before laying her head against his shoulder.

“I told you this week was going to suck, I knew it, and what do you know! Every single fucking time!” Hisao did his best to just hold on.

“This, I... I’m sorry, I need to vent, but the more I yell the more I hate him!”

Hisao tried to think of ways to help. “Do you want to go for a walk?” Sometimes that helped calm him down... though when he said it, it suddenly sounded rather pathetic.

“No, this place is terrible for walks, it’s just endless concrete corridors with no windows or plants or anything. I hate it, I hate that built it this way, I hate it, I hate him...”

Before Hisao could think of another suggestion, Saki pushed away slightly, looking into his eyes with an expression that said she had thought of something herself.

“We’re gonna need to work it out in this room.”

Before Hisao could get very far along that train of thought, a wicked grin took over Saki’s face, and Hisao barely had time to react before she pressed her lips frantically into his.

He hadn’t really seen this side of Saki before - sure, she would take the initiative sometimes, but she felt almost rabid now. Indeed, after only a few seconds she began undoing his belt, and he realized that he was in for one heck of a ride.

They weren’t exactly graceful about taking each others’ clothes off, given that they were desperately trying not to break their kiss, but eventually they were both basically nude, and Hisao was more than ready-

“Oh. Oh no.”

“What?” Saki’s voice was breathy.

“I don’t have any, uh...” he motioned towards his erection.

It took a moment for Saki to realize what he meant, but when she did, she put her hands on her face and turned around. “FUCK!”

Hisao felt even worse now. “I’m sorry, I was packing to visit your parents’ house, I didn’t-”

“I know, I know, it’s not your fault. She turned back around. “Ugh... Well, we can fool around anyways, just as long as-”

Saki was cut off by a strange thump and a metallic clunk from one corner of the room. They both turned to look, only to see a small plastic canister lying under a small hole in the wall. Hisao walked over to pick it up, and since it was made of transparent plastic, he could immediately see what was inside: a condom, still in its wrapper.

“Oh, hey, look what-” He stopped once he saw the look of terror on Saki’s face. It took a moment for him to realize why, as she stared at the hole it had come from.

That hole was hooked up to the network of pneumatic tubes running through the complex - and its timing had not been coincidental.

Someone had sent it in response - which meant they knew what was going on, and in real time.

Saki clenched her teeth, shaking with rage, reared back, and yelled “YOU MOTHERFU-”

And then she stopped.

Hisao was surprised, and concerned - he had been trying to help Saki vent, and this was definitely not helping. But when she turned around to face him, she looked calm.

Too calm.

“Saki...”

She grabbed his hand and pulled him over towards the bed, not saying a word.

“Saki, please, keep it together...”

She laid down on her back, and pulled him down on top of her, one of his hands still holding the plastic canister, and his erection quickly losing steam.

“Saki, listen, it’s going to be okay-”

She lifted one finger and pressed it against his lips, silencing him.

“I love you, Hisao.”

He was still very wary. “I-I love you too, Saki.”

“I want to be with you until the end.”

That was very worrying. “Saki, don’t-”

“But that’s not for a while. I still have some time. And I want to make it count.”

Hisao wasn’t sure where this was going, but it wasn’t in the direction of anyone dying today, which was a win.

Saki lifted her arms up, putting her hands around the back of Hisao’s neck, as if to keep him close. “I will never meet anyone else like you. I will never feel this way about anyone else. And I want the world to know that - even after I’m gone, and even after you’re gone.”

Hisao had somewhat lost the plot, especially near the end there. “Saki...”

“So I’m begging you, Hisao, please: get me pregnant.”

It took him a moment to process that, and it still didn’t quite fit. “What?”

“Get me pregnant.”

“Saki, we can’t just- I mean, we have to talk about this stuff, I can’t just-”

“I don’t want to just appease my parents until I die. I want to experience life while I have the chance.”

“Saki, this isn’t just something you can put on a bucket list, this is a big deal!”

“And you’ll be able to handle it. You’re the best person I can possibly imagine to be a father. And I’ll try to be the best mother I can, while I can.”

“Saki...”

She leaned forward and whispered into his ear. “Please, Hisao. Get me pregnant.”

His lower body betrayed him, too excited by the sound of Saki’s voice to fight any longer.

Slowly, the canister slipped out of his hand and onto the floor.

“I love you, Hisao.”

END.

[Craftyatom]

“You should apologize to her.”

It took a moment for Saki’s father to realize who that was meant for. “Me?”

“Yes, you.”

He scoffed. “For what? Giving her decent advice? Trying to help her find her path in life?”

“How about for the stress you caused her?”

“I hardly think that one argument over dinner-”

“How about all week prior to coming here?” Hisao interrupted. “Saki was worried sick about having to come here. She was fine with the travel, she was fine with the room, she was fine with seeing her mother, but she spent all week stressed about having to see you.”

Before the man could respond, Hisao continued. “And once she got here, she was so stressed that your wife had me come over, because nothing else could cheer Saki up. Ask yourself: why is it that nobody here but you seems to be such a massive and persistent drain on her psyche?”

“You think it’s my fault? I built this house for her, I raised her, I kept her safe, I’ve bought her anything and everything I could imagine to give her a better shot at life, and it’s my fault that she hates me?”

“I can name ten people who she enjoys spending time with who have never spent a dime on her - and until we started dating, I was one of them. If they’ve all managed it without all those things, then yes, YOU are the one who has failed.”

“She has a choice in such things. To reject me specifically, despite all I’ve done, is a decision she made.”

“Then why do you care? Why force her to come back here? Why decide that you need to have her here? Or is it fundamental to love her, because she’s your daughter - and should it not be fundamental for her not to hate you? I’m gonna say it again: YOU HAVE FAILED HER.”

The man sighed. “Fine, then. Maybe I have. So what - you’re here to gloat that she loves you, but hates me?”

Hisao walked slowly towards the chair at the head of the table. “I’m here to give you a chance, because I hate seeing Saki sad and angry and stressed, and if you can fix things with her, we will all be better off. And that is why I am telling you, unambiguously: APOLOGIZE. TO. HER.”

After what felt like an eternity of silence, the man pressed a button on his chair, and it slid back, allowing him to get up and walk away - towards Saki’s room.

It was only once he turned the corner that Hisao let out a breath he hadn’t realized he was holding. He heard his heartbeat in his ears, though luckily it subsided fairly quickly.

He was startled, however, by an unexpected voice. “Impressive.”

He spun around to face Saki’s mother, who had an odd grin on her face. “I haven’t seen anyone talk to him like that in a decade.”

Hisao breathed a sigh of relief. “I’m surprised I could do it. I’m not usually like that.”

“You should be! It suits you.”

“I... don’t know about that.” He certainly didn’t want to be like that around Saki, or his friends, or his classmates, or-

“Come on, don’t be so coy! You’re just the protective type - not that different from Enji, really.” Hisao wasn’t sure he liked the comparison. “That was what drew me to him, back in the day: if he really loved someone, he would do anything to protect them. That seemed like the best thing in the world.” She sighed. “But it also meant he wanted to do... all this.” She motioned at the concrete walls around them. “I realized too late that what I actually liked was being kept safe from things.”

Another awkward silence descended, as Hisao didn’t want to say anything, and Saki’s mother was lost in thought. Eventually, however, she gathered herself.

“Anyways, they’ll probably be a while, and my appetite is gone. Want a tour of the place?”

If nothing else, maybe it would help calm his nerves.

~~~~~~

“And this is my room!”

It wasn’t as thoroughly-decorated as Saki’s room, but Hisao could tell that it had been set up to feel cozy - once again, the overhead fluorescent lights had been replaced with some warmer ones, and there was wooden furniture spread around. “It’s nice, very comfy.”

“Right? Oh, and that reminds me - wait here a minute, I know something you’ll get a kick out of.” Saki’s mother - Juri, Hisao didn’t want to get that wrong again - disappeared into a walk-in closet, leaving Hisao alone in the bedroom.

He sat down on the edge of the bed, thankful for the opportunity to catch his breath. Yamaku had helped with his fitness, but he still wasn’t the best at walking long distances - especially when he had to keep up with the bundle of energy that was giving him this tour.

After a minute or two - enough that Hisao was feeling a bit better - Juri finally came back. And once Hisao turned to look at her, his heart was suddenly back to working overtime.

She was wearing a sleek black catsuit, which had a shiny outer layer and was very form-fitting - with the exception of her chest, where it opened up to reveal what most designers would’ve called too much cleavage. On her head, she wore a thin black masquerade mask, which covered her brow and cheekbones. She skipped into the middle of the room, then did a pirouette, giving Hisao far too many angles of the design.

“This was my outfit, back in the day - back when we actually went out for work. Still brings back memories.” She jumped up and down, and Hisao once again felt that he was seeing more than he probably should. “What do you think?”

“Wow, it’s... It fits you really well.”

“Oh, stop it - I don’t fit into it like I used to. Becoming a mother changes a woman... maybe it’s better that I don't go out anymore.”

“I’m serious, it looks really good on you! It’s very athletic.”

“Athletic, huh? Well, since you asked, I might still remember a thing or two...”

After a few deep breaths, she roundhouse kicked the air to her left, then swung her fists at the air to her right, before finally performing an incredible front-flip directly towards Hisao-

And landing with her legs spread out to either side of him on the bed, resting neatly above his lap.

“Maybe I do still got it.”

“Y-yeah.” Hisao waited for her to get up, but instead, she sat down on his lap, pressing into his thighs.

“Phew, you can tell I’m not used to it, though. I’m practically out of breath... even worked up a sweat. I should probably take the suit off, or else I’ll have to wash it.”

“O-Okay, you can go get changed - I’ll wait here.”

“Oh, but wouldn’t it be easier if you helped me change?”

Hisao had finally run out of defenses. He swallowed nervously. “J-Juri, I’m dating your daughter.”

To his surprise, she smiled - a kind, motherly smile. “I know. And no matter what happens here, you still will be. I’m not trying to take you from her; I just want a taste of what it’s like to be young again.”

“C-Can’t you get that from someone else?”

“The best plan is the one that presents itself - that’s what my husband used to say when we found a security guard working solo.” She giggled. “I swear, some of those guys took the job only because they heard the rumors about the dancer in black.”

Hisao was quickly running out of mental capacity to deal with the situation - not least due to the zipper in front of him slowly losing its fight to a pair of sweaty-

“Ah, yeah, I’ll definitely have to wash this suit. In which case, we might as well get it properly dirty, don’t you think?”

Hisao’s heart suddenly had a lot more to worry about than a long walk.

~~~~~~

Hisao stepped out of the large black sedan, his eyes slowly adjusting to the sun, as Saki did the same, and Butler got their bags.

It had taken an hours-long car ride, but he had come to terms with it.

Some things were meant to remain secret. That didn’t make the people who kept them liars, per se; they were just keeping the peace.

Maybe dying with such a secret was the right thing to do: taking a piece of evil and removing it from the world. It might not be easy, but it was a price worth paying.

Butler waved them goodbye, the large black sedan began to drive away, and Saki put one hand on Hisao’s shoulder. “It’s going to be okay.”

He smiled back. “What is?”

“The fact that you slept with my mother.”

Hisao’s eyes practically burst out of his skull, and he could’ve sworn that his heart stopped for longer than it was supposed to. When he finally finished coughing, having inhaled some of his saliva, all he could muster was a shocked “WHAT‽”

“Don’t worry, I know.”

“How‽”

“She told me.”

“She told you‽”

“Yup. And she was very, very clear that it was her fault, not yours, and that I shouldn’t blame you at all.” She nodded. “So I won’t. I’ll blame her instead. And trust me, she is doing a lot to make it up to me.”

Hisao was lost for words. “You... She... What?” Saki rolled her eyes. “You’re okay with this?”

“Yes, for three reasons. First, like I said, she’s pretty clear about it being her fault. Second, like I said, I’m getting a pretty sweet deal out of this. And third, you should’ve seen the look on my dad’s face.”

“WHAT‽” Hisao’s heart was taking more of a pounding now than during the event itself. “She told your dad, too?”

“Oh, no - she didn’t need to.” Hisao just stood there, looking confused, until Saki elaborated. “Like I said, my dad’s really controlling and overprotective. The whole house is full of hidden cameras.”

If his heart had been taking a beating, now it was his soul’s turn to shrivel up inside of him. “Your... He... After I...” He put his hands on his head. “Oh my god. I... I don’t know what to do.”

“How about coming to my room and helping me unpack, because you’re my boyfriend and I love you?” She leaned forward and kissed him briefly on the lips, then began walking towards the dorms, giving him no choice but to follow.

“Are you sure you’re not just waiting for me to fall asleep so you can poison me? Or cut my balls off?”

“Nah, don’t worry.” She paused. “Unless you try to pull this stunt again, in which case, no promises.”

She winked playfully - despite her face clearly being tired from the trip - and Hisao began the long process of trying to convince himself that he had, indeed, dodged a bullet.

END.

[Razoredge]

Weeeeeeeeell... What could I say? I wasn't expecting any of that. And I'm pleasantly surprised, to say the least. Saki's family being loaded enough to get a full butler working for them for more than 20 years, and yet living in a nuclear bunker was the last thing I thought about, but you got me there.

Saki's father, literally being a comedy villain as he enters the room is so out of place, I love it. You know, I had something in mind when it comes to him, but you literally took it, put absolute nonsense times ten, and made it even better as a comedic loathsome character, great job.

Adding choices to establish different endings is a nice touch, I like that. The first ending, in my opinion, is the most coherent one, simple, yet cute at the end. The second ending is the best one, the one I'm definitely up to. That's the kind of stuff I approve. But the third one... What the fuck? I mean, I think I can say most of us wouldn't say no to more Mother I'd Like to Buy Flowers for stuff. It diverges so much from the rest of the story, and yet... Even if it's ill-timed, like a lot, I still liked it. Even if it goes totally against what I consider canon about Saki. And that's some kind of stuff I like, breaking other people's canon like this, when it's well made.

Long story short: Great job, Crafty. Thank you for that. A great piece, with lots of surprises, some pleasant ones, some... Unexpected ones. Thank you.

[SilentM]

I don't know how you managed to make this both incredibly sugary sweet and utterly terrifying at the same time, but I'm impressed at how you've perfectly intertwined both tones.

[hdkv]

Jesus fucking Christ, the third ending takes this to a Fancopter level of crackfiction.

And I'm totally fine with it. Bless you.