Marlowe

「 Persona: Reflections 」

MENTIONS: All y'all

The others weren’t that pleased with her decision to bring the bird indoors. Masashi and Chen appeared to expect the worst, with the former threatening to lock everyone in there if the bird decided to take flight. Akira and Hoshiko, on the other hand, were just as curious as she was. The crow seemed to bristle at Hoshiko’s mockery and raised its wings in order to take off, though its body shuddered and it slumped back against the sweater. Its small form trembled profusely. Asumi frowned, her chest swelling with pity as her eyes settled on its right wing. It was crumpled and laid awry against the soft fabric.

”I don’t think taking him back to Kuro’s is a good idea. I think his wing is broken.” Asumi bundled her sweater even tighter around the crow. Her crude attempt of swaddling it only made it squawk in complaint. She glanced in between Hoshiko and Akira before she gave them a small smile. ”I think some crows have reddish-colored eyes. And I don’t think I’ve seen other birds with a wrapped leg. Maybe it’s just a pet?”

She scratched the back of her head. Well, she had gone outside and grabbed the bird. She had brought the bird inside. Now she knew that the bird was injured, which meant that it would have to go to a veterinarian. Did the vet in Fujihama even take care of birds? Would she even be able to afford a vet visit? Asumi grumbled under her breath as her face screwed up in intense thought. Her gaze flitted towards the window and out at the darkening sky. It was obvious that her already frantic mind was running away with yet even more ideas.

”Hey, uh, I think I’ll bring him home! I can take care of him, and that way I can post pictures online and see if he got away from anyone,” she suggested, reaching for her school bag again. Asumi bunched the sweater underneath her arm and made to get up, a nervous giggle coming from her lips. The crow only stared into dead space with a less than amused expression.

”Anyways, it’s getting dark, so I should get going. Try not to leave so late, m’kay?”

After bidding everyone farewell, Asumi was on her way. She figured she’d have to get home quick if she wanted to get a headstart on tending to the poor bird. The last thing she wanted was for it to peck her the whole way home. Don’t worry, little guy, she thought to herself as she tenderly patted the bundled bird. I’ll take care of you with some TLC!

---

April 25th, 2025.

Fujihama High

The day passed normally. Too normally. It was almost as if Miss Okamoto had forgotten about what happened yesterday. For a moment, Asumi thought the whole thing had been a bad dream. Though, at the end of it all, she guessed that she was asking for too much. There was no amount of wishing or pleading or rituals she could muster up that could change what occurred the day prior. The very thought dampened her mood. Damn Munehisa– not only had he ruined everything for everyone, but he couldn’t even show up to a study session! And he had to go and drag Nagi along with him, too. Ugh. At least it wasn’t raining… and everything winded down rather peacefully by the time the last bell rang.

Asumi was rather quiet as she followed Munehisa, Nagi, and Masashi towards the entrance of the school. She wondered how that crow was fairing; she had brought it to school with her and hid it in the middle of the bushes outside. It still didn’t appear to have the energy to escape, and even if it did, there was no way it’d turn down the comfy nest she had made for it or the snacks that she left for it to munch on. If she were a bird with a broken wing, she’d feel like she was in heaven. Her stomach let out a little grumble at the thought of all of those snacks. Man, what she wouldn’t do for some Pocky right now…

”So, what were you two doing yesterday? Masashi and I got arrested.” Asumi asked Nagi and Munehisa, pouting. ”We found a dead body and the cops just came and whisked us away like we were criminals! Can you believe that? Us, criminals!”

「 Persona: Reflections 」

???

MENTIONS: Nagi [@Psyker Landshark], Munehisa [@Solace]

In the midst of Munehisa’s awakening, “Miss Okamoto” had become a horrified yet confused mess of a woman– if she wasn’t one already. As the bee-monsters were slain by the strange presence, two of the creatures who hadn’t been attacking had grabbed their teacher and pulled her into the air. She snarled down at the retreating figures as she retreated into the dark. “Do you really think you’ll be leaving here alive?” she growled. “My reinforcements will come for your heads soon! Try all you might, but you’ll never escape!”

As the two retreated, they found more of the same sights they had seen before; several classrooms with closed doors and paths that seemed to wind deeper into the “school” stretched out to their left and right without giving any signs to where they led. After only a couple of minutes of running in their attempt to find some semblance of an exit, they reached a dead end. Two paths stretched out to their left and right sides. On their left was a fairly well-lit corridor, its floors surprisingly clean and void of the sticky honey that might have slowed them down. On the right was another hallway lit up by fancy chandeliers that practically sweltered with blazing embers. Further down the hallway, one could hear murmurs and perhaps even groans…

“Oh, this is such bullshit.” Nagi exhaled as they ran through the halls, only slightly winded from the amount of sprinting they’d done so far. Good thing cardio was part of her workout routine. “Who’d be stupid enough to go down that way?” She waved her hand in the direction of the right path, where all the chandeliers and moaning was.

“We’re going left, right?” She glanced to Mune, giving him a once-over now that she had a brief opportunity. “Like the new drip, by the way. That come standard with the magic and your imaginary friend?”

Munehisa hadn’t even noticed his sudden change in attire, his breathing labored as he was overcome with a dizzy spell. He found it difficult to focus as he fought to stay on his feet, casting a bit of an awry look towards Nagi. “Left? Oh, right,” he muttered before falling to one knee, evidently fatigued. Her mention of his uniform gave reason for the boy to observe the difference in his clothing, astonished with his new wardrobe. “What the hell? What’s up with my clothes?”

The eerie sounds that crept from the right hallway interrupted his amazement as Munehisa struggled to rise. “I dunno what’s even real anymore,” he mustered enough strength to stand, starting towards what was presumably the exit. “Did you hear it, too? Calling itself Persona, or whatever?”

The pair decided to head to the left, and much to their delight, they seemed to be headed in the right direction. As they traveled down the hallway, light seeped in from an unknown source and glinted across what looked like the type of windows they’d see at their school– but when they turned to look at them, they were only met with the sight of the patterned walls.

Despite the fact they seemed to be nearing the exit, something seemed off; it was almost as if they were being watched. The sensation persisted as the hallway opened up into a large room. Rectangular storage units shot up from the floor, though each of the compartments were sealed shut with several layers of sticky film. Multiple sets of doors rested all of the way on the other side of the room, though they seemed unnaturally far away. Hopefully, they wouldn’t be sealed shut. Several pairs of eyes continued to sear into their skin and the air thickened with intent. Whatever was watching them appeared to be waiting for their next move.

“What? No, I didn’t hear shit.” Nagi blinked, helping Mune along as she slung his arm over her shoulder to support him as they ran. “This’s bad, though. If you’re gassed already, we might be screwed if that bitch Okamoto decides she wants another round.”

As they entered the next room, Nagi frowned as she looked around. This was…creepy. Which meant that it was probably bad.

“Ah, crap.” She groaned, still supporting Mune. “Don’t like any of this. What’s the odds we even make it across this fucking room before something bad happens? Looks like a goddamn horror movie in here.”

The sound of fluttering wings reverberated from the hallway they had just traversed. Three smaller bee-like drones emerged from the corridor, though two of them struggled under the weight of carrying the Okamoto look-alike. A smirk played on her lips as the creatures hovered in one corner of the room, drawing another puff from her pipe.

“Trying to leave, are we?” Okamoto hummed. She motioned to the doors all the way on the other side of the room. “Well, you’ve made it this far… so go ahead. The exit’s right there.”

Nagi frowned, glaring up at Okamoto defiantly. The fuck was she playing at now? This was definitely rigged in some way, but…well, they didn’t exactly have a choice. It was either move forward, or be stuck in this shithole.

She started to help Mune across, but murmured into his ear as they did so.

“How good’re you for a fight right now? She’s probably gonna jump us.”

As fatigued as he was, Munehisa felt that he had enough for the last mile, offering Nagi a tired smile. “I got this,” the boy waved a hand off, removing himself from the girl’s assistance. He stood with a slight hunch as his lingering will manifested once more, the stalwart visage of Peter Pan floating at his side and prepared for another battle. “Make a run for the exit while I distract ‘em, and I’ll follow up after.”

“Miss Okamoto” watched with a sneer as the two children carried out their plan right in front of her, with Nagi starting to head towards the entrance and Munehisa turning towards her. A laugh left her lips before she stared at Nagi’s retreating figure. “Why, are you so intrigued with me?” she asked. “I know I’m too beautiful to ignore, but you should probably concentrate on your friend over there.”

At that moment, a large figure dropped from the ceiling and landed between Nagi and the exit. Its form resembled the other wasp monsters that had been tailing them, though it had a small set of wings and multiple limbs that were long and spider-like. Its hands bore four spike-like fingers, and a long, sharp proboscis with an opening at the end. Crimson eyes glimmered above a maw of sharpened yellow teeth.

“Where do you think you’re going?!” the beast roared. One of its legs swept towards Nagi, attempting to slam her against the ground as if she were an insect herself. “Creatures like you have no right to turn your back on Lady Okamoto!”

“Not into other girls,” Nagi shot back as she carefully inched towards the exit. “Tried that in middle school, didn’t work ou-OH SHIT!” She cried out in alarm as the…superwasp dropped down on her. She raised her arms to block just in time, and the creature’s leg slammed into them, sending her skidding backwards along the floor.

“Motherfucker…” She groaned, feeling a sharp throbbing in her arms. Taking that straight to the gut would have been real bad, but even blocking it hurt like an absolute bitch. Years of getting into scraps had her assessing the situation quickly, and a slight amount of panic started to creep in. Mune was dead on his feet already, this big shithead was obviously more of a threat than the little bitch-tier wasps Okamoto was throwing at them before, and she was borderline useless in this situation.

A seething rage started to boil in Nagi’s gut at the thought of her being helpless, and she raised her brass knuckles defiantly, her eyes wild.

“Come on, asshole! I’ll fucking bury you, then Okamoto!”

▂▂▃▃▄▄▅▅!

A faint whisper echoed in Nagi’s head, but it barely registered in her mind as adrenaline coursed through her. They could go down here. They probably would go down here. But she’d make that thing hurt before she did.

“Oh no, you don’t!” Munehisa flinched at the sight of his friend being purposefully targeted with a hefty blow. He rose with a defiant step, placing himself between Nagi and the larger foe that blocked the supposed exit. If I can just divert its attention and get it to move away– better yet, I can just bring it down like the others, no problem. With his heart set on the objective, the boy steeled himself for the encounter. “Outta the way, bug!” he taunted his opponent, sending his Persona in for a direct confrontation. Peter Pan’s knife hand crossed blades with the bee’s spiked fingers, attempting to overpower the enemy enough to push it aside.

The larger bee proved strong enough to not be manhandled, breaking the clash and propelling the Persona back by a few feet. “Break its wings, Peter Pan!” Munehisa chanted in a decisive moment, channeling its powers from the mask as its flute hand rose to fire a double shot. The bullets of energy smacked into the figure of the large bee, but unlike its smaller brethren, it seemed to resist the damage, letting out a mocking chuckle in response.

Dumbfounded by its resistance, Munehisa looked on in horror as the monstrosity twirled in a circle, feeling the wind begin to coalesce around him. A gust of green energy spun around his figure before closing in on him, feeling the cut of the bladestorm far more immensely than his previous injury. It was the greatest pain that he’d ever felt in his life– his scream reverberated across the distorted walls as the boy fell to his back. He was unable to act in the following moment when the larger bee seemed to pick up its stride right after, immediately firing a large projectile from its proboscis towards him.

Too stunned to react, it struck the boy directly with such force that it flipped Munehisa onto his stomach, collapsed by Nagi’s feet. His life force had slipped away into a dangerous threshold, finding himself unable to stand back up as he reached out towards Peter Pan. The image of his Persona was weak, barely maintaining its form as it began to dissipate from the world. “S-shit,” the boy cursed with a shallow breath, his upper body propped up by his right arm. It’s way too strong!

Okamoto’s features wrinkled up in delight as she watched the scene unfold in front of her. A long, bubbling giggle blustered from her lips, and she covered her mouth with a gloved hand. “I told you that you wouldn’t be leaving here alive. Why would I let you two escape? Disgusting insects such as yourselves should be culled on the spot,” she hissed. With a lazy wave of her hand, she added, “Take care of them, dearie.”

“With pleasure,” the beast rumbled again. It reached out to grab Munehisa in its claws, squeezing the boy tight within its spiney fingers before it turned back to Nagi with a hungry growl.

“All you had to do was submit,” Okamoto chimed childishly. “It’s too late to ask for forgiveness, now.”

“Shit! Mune!” Nagi cried out in alarm as he stepped in and started to cover for her, only to be taken down. It all happened quickly enough that she hadn’t been able to maneuver around Mune and Peter Pan to help in time. And then Okamoto opened her mouth again.

“Holy shit, do you ever stop talking?!” Nagi screamed in fury up at her, her mind racing to try to figure out how to handle the situation. If Mune couldn’t take it, what chance did she have? Surrender wasn’t an option. If Nagi had thought Okamoto was sincere in her offer, she might have considered it, if only to bail Mune out. But everyone in the room knew she was just fucking with them.

“You want me to just up and quit? Get the fuck down here and make me.” She hissed defiantly. “You wouldn’t be shit without your stupid goddamn bee fetish.”

Her laughter caught in her throat after Nagi’s reply, which earned her a severely judgemental “ahem” from Okamoto. The bees brought her closer to where Nagi stood, though they remained hovering out of her reach. Okamoto peered down at her through narrowed eyes. “It amazes me that you’re still squealing, worm. Though, I fear that I may be asking too much of you when I tell you to lay down and die quietly… Nakano, wasn’t it? Can you not process such a simple request?” she asked with a lazy shrug. “Not surprising, seeing that you come from a family of filthy-blooded criminals.”

Nagi’s fists clenched reflexively at Okamoto’s insult, and a haze of red started to tinge her vision. This bitch fucking dared to go there? So help her, Nagi almost forgot about the imminent threat to her life as she started to talk back.

“Say that again. My old man rips people off, but he’s still a damn sight better of a person than you’ll ever be. At least he shed blood, sweat, and tears for his place in life. Tell me, you ace your job interview flat on your back, or beneath the principal’s desk?”

“You insolent wretch!” Okamoto’s face morphed with anger at Nagi’s response. “How dare you speak that way to me?! How dare you know anything about what I’ve been through! I have spent years of my life raising children so they can be more than just crude-minded grubs writhing beneath my feet! So that they can be model citizens worthy of good lives!”

She practically burned with rage, continuing her tirade as she bared her fangs down at Nagi. “What does a bitch like you know?! You’re slated for failure anyways. Why, I bet that in a few years from now, you'll be rotting in prison alongside your worthless father!”

「 Persona: Reflections 」

MENTIONS: Masashi [@Zombehs], Akira [@DJAtomika], Hoshiko [@Fabricant451], Akio [@Lord Orgasmo

”Don’t worry about me! I totally got this.” Asumi waved Masashi off as she furrowed her brow. What, didn’t he believe in her? She was so pumped up, she was certain she’d beat anyone that tried their hand at her.It was because of the left-over adrenaline from before. She turned to Akira, smirking. ”You should check out the arcade’s new Street Fighter game! They installed it just last week.”

She turned to Hoshiko when she gave her a suggestion on who to play. The sumo wrestler, huh? Asumi was about to reply when one of her wild movements knocked over objects on a shelf. She winced in alarm, though the moment quickly passed. In her nervousness, she couldn’t help but laugh. Though, this didn’t stop her from turning to their host. ”Sorry about that. We’re both pretty clumsy.” Asumi said with a slight frown. Hopefully Hoshiko wouldn’t make any other weird movements like that. Chen would understand a mistake, but if it happened again, it’d be even harder to cover for her. She reached forward to grab her bag and pulled it closer to them so Hoshiko could nab one of the snacks that remained inside. ”A-anyways, I’ll show you how to win at this–”

THUMP!!

Asumi flinched, her eyes glancing up at the window. A grayish smear stained the glass. ”Oh no!” she yelped. ”One of the birds must’ve hit the window… I’ll be right back!”

She pushed herself onto her feet and scrambled out of the room before anyone could react. If the poor bird was smart enough, it’d stay in one place to recuperate…

It didn’t take Asumi long to return with something bundled in the sweater that was previously tied around her waist. She stepped carefully towards them without a second thought and knelt down on the ground. Gently, she set the bundle on the ground between them all. ”I’m glad he didn’t fly away. Poor guy’s dazed outta his mind…”

Asumi pulled away one of the sleeves that she had used to keep the creature in place. A normal crow rested in the midst of the wool, though it was hardly moving. It let out a low croak and ruffled its wings, but that seemed to be all that it could do for now. Its red eyes blinked up at her. She frowned and reached out to feel one of its legs. There didn’t seem to be any broken bones in either of them. Her eyes settled on the purple band that was wrapped around its left leg. Hadn’t she seen this bird before?

”Oh!” Asumi perked up. She glanced up at the others, a blush crossing her cheeks, before she finally looked back at Chen. ”I hope you don’t mind that I brought it in… I was just so worried about it.”

「 Persona: Reflections 」

???

MENTIONS: Nagi [@Psyker Landshark], Munehisa [@Solace]

Nagi’s attack had rendered the bee-monster disoriented as it crashed to the floor in a mess of twitching antennae and thrashing wings and legs. The rest of the bees, though, became even more furious, their venomous stingers pressing closer and closer with every passing moment. They were within seconds of turning the two teenagers into swiss cheese when–

“How now, my lovelies, what seems to be the problem?”

The angry fluttering stopped; the bee-like cryptids seemed to purr with pleasure as the circle suddenly became much looser than it had been before. The impenetrable wall of rapidly fluttering wings and hairy, segmented bodies spread apart, leaving enough room for a figure to slip between their numbers.

It was a woman with blonde hair that fell past her bare shoulders and perfect, fair skin. She wore a long, brilliant black-and-yellow striped dress that was short at the front, which revealed slender legs and black high-heels, and long in the back, where the fabric trailed behind her like a cape. Her breasts seemed to be on the verge of bursting from the dress’s bodice, though this did not appear to bother her in the least. A very fluffy, black feather boa wrapped around her neck as if it were concealing something, and ivory white gloves reached her elbows. Her head was crowned with a black Victorian-style hat complete with delicate white lace and bright yellow dahlias. Her cheeks were powdered with rosy pink blush, and her lips were colored a deep crimson.

The strange woman watched the two children with a complacent expression as she stepped closer, her high heels unrestrained by the stickiness of the floor. Her right hand held a slender, long tobacco pipe, which she brought up to lips. Even the way she took a draft from it was the very definition of posh. She seemed to be the spitting image of a certain Miss Okamoto… if it weren’t for the dangerous look in her glowing, yellow eyes.

“Well, well, well… what do we have here?” A billow of white smoke followed her churlish words. Her glower cut through them as she scanned them up and down. “It seems like two little roaches have crawled into our home…”

The bee-monsters let out another hum, their wings drooping. One of them drifted closer to her, its wide head bumping against her shoulder. “Miss Okamoto” pouted and reached up to stroke its head, then one of its feelers. Her delicate fingers drifted up the coarse antennae and produced a pleasured hum from the creature. “Oh, my poor babies…” she coddled, her voice one of pity and sadness as she gazed tenderly at the monsters. “No wonder you’re all so upset.”

Then, with a fire burning in her gaze, she pulled away from the bee-creature and slowly made her way up to Nagi and Munehisa. She glanced up and down them one more time, smoke curling from the tip of her pipe as she pursed her lips. Then, when she finally finished her observations, she wrinkled her brow and tipped her chin up at them. “Who are you…?” she snarled, venom dripping from her words. “... what are you…? And what are you doing in here?!”

Honestly, Nagi hadn’t expected her punch to actually be that effective, even with the aid of brass knuckles. This was good. It didn’t matter that the other bees were closing in, she could take them-

What the actual shit? Was that Okamoto? With tits? And with absolutely no fashion sense? The striped dress and boa were tacky as all hell. Someone was watching too many foreign dramas. What was this, the bitch’s identical twin blessed with a better rack? Of course, the fact that this look-alike of her history teacher was evidently controlling the bee monsters should have made Nagi wary, but sharing Okamoto’s face meant that her caution was overtaken by a brazen desire to assert dominance over the useless bitch who was trying to make their lives more difficult.

“Look, we didn’t come in…wherever the fuck this is by choice. We were supposed to be walking out of school, then shit goes weird and now there’s bees trying to murder us. So if you could just point us in the direction of the exit, that’d be real nice of you.”

Munehisa continued to cower behind his backpack in fear of their attackers, only peering out upon a familiar voice. His guard dropped slightly as he lowered the makeshift shield to his stomach, recognizing both the voice and face as Miss Okamoto. Yet, the amber glint in her eye spelled out a threatening intent– though her excessive appearance triggered his boyish impulse and easily caught his eye, their predicament and the great exaggeration of everything inspired vigilance. First, a beehive. Second, gigantic killer bees. Third, boobs straight outta an eroge. Even I’m not impressed…

Seeing Miss Okamoto coddle one of the killer bees caused Munehisa to raise a brow, looking between Nagi and the older woman with confusion. The hell’s she embracing it for? Lovelies? The sound that it produced in response to her stroke somewhat bothered him. None of this felt right at all. “Yeah, what she said,” Munehisa nodded in accordance with what Nagi said. “We’re supposed to be studying, not playing around with these, uh… robots! Jeez, the robotics club really nailed the realism with those things, haha!”

The Miss Okamoto look-alike did not seem pleased with their responses. She glared down her nose at them as she scrunched up her face with contempt. "Exit? There is no exit here. Once you step foot here, there's no leaving. Everyone and everything stays here for good," she hissed. "That includes you filthy worms. But no worries. You'll find your place in the hive soon."

She turned back to her "lovelies", thinking for a moment, before she looked back at Nagi and Munehisa with an unamused sneer. "I suppose you do have some potential… so I'll extend you an offer. You can join my lovelies in tending to my very wish, and I'll make sure you spend the rest of your little lives in peace and prosperity. What do you say?"

She waited for their response as she took yet another draft from her pipe. The bee-monsters hovered there aimlessly, their heads obviously void of any thought.

Oh, great. That was just dandy. Hopefully, not-Okamoto was as full of shit as the real one, or they were outright fucked. But either way, well…

“Yeah, I’m gonna have to go with hell no.” Nagi drawled, putting her guard up as she slowly backed away from Okamoto and the bees, preparing to take Mune by the hand and make a run for it. “Really not into the bee fetish you’ve got going on here. Stripes’re tacky as shit, you know.”

This’d probably get her killed. But bending the knee to this bitch? No way. Nagi had some kind of class, damn it.

Munehisa let out a small sigh of confusion upon the supposed doppelganger’s offer. “Is that really Okamoto?” the boy only found himself even more lost as the exchange dragged on, scratching the side of his head. The humidity of the atmosphere, coupled with his mounting distress, caused his expression to twitch with impatient annoyance. Slinging the backpack over his right shoulder, his face hardened as he brought up a hand to wave off Miss Okamoto.

“Look, we– I’m not into this shitty roleplay you’ve got going on,” Munehisa snapped a little as he looked around for a stairwell, completely dialing out the unfamiliar environment. “Don’t even know if the principal allows all of this,” he was forced to change his footing, having felt as if his feet were sinking into the goopiness of the floor. “But I honestly don’t care. If you won’t show us the stairway, then go away. C’mon, let’s just go.”

The children’s reply only kindled Okamoto’s fury. She straightened her head, staring at them head on with a ferocious smolder. “How dare you?!” Her words escaped her in a snarl. “Don’t you know who I am?! You have no right to speak to me in such a disgusting manner!”

Her fury seemed to roll off of her in waves as she stalked even closer, her lip curling to reveal shining white teeth. Okamoto’s eyes flickered up and down them once again, this time in a much deadlier fashion than before. “If you do not wish to submit to me, then I do not have any use for you. Dears, you’ve had such a hard day today,” she turned over her shoulder and motioned for the bees to resume their assault on them. “Enjoy your dinner~”

The bees were more than happy to encroach on the two again. As if they had been especially angered by Nagi’s attack on one of their numbers, they focused mostly on her, seeking to restrain her with their many legs and grabby pincers. They also pressed closer to Munehisa, growling angrily.

“Now that I think of it, you two do seem familiar… aren’t you two from Class 2-B?” Okamoto raised her voice so it could reach past the angry flutter of wings. She sent a sidelong glance down at Nagi before she raised her eyes back up at Munehisa. When she spoke again, her voice dipped low into a brooding rumble. “Especially you. You’re that worthless student in my class, aren’t you? The one who drew that horrible picture of me.” A wicked grin spread over her lips as a giggle bubbled from her throat. “To think that a shitty, no-good artist is going to get everyone in his class expelled… and there’s nothing that he can do about it! What a waste of talent… it’s sad, really.”

Nagi snarled, her face locked in a rictus of fury as she struggled to free herself from the bees restraining her. She’d managed to smash her fist into one more bee before she was swarmed, the rest keeping her pinned in place. Still, even through the haze of rage in her mind, one fact stood out. This was Okamoto. Somehow. And she knew it was Mune already? Why fucking go to that entire show, then?

“Shut your cock hole, bitch!” Nagi spat, simultaneously straining her limbs against the bees while trying to angle her head toward one enough for a headbutt.

“Why even waste your time dicking around trying to expel us all if you already knew he did it? What, you can’t be bothered to teach even less than you already do so you decided to just ax a class entirely? Hell, while we’re here, you compensating for your flat fucking chest in real life or something? Seriously, this silicone job you got going’s goddamn pathetic.” She hissed spitefully before catching Mune’s eye.

“The fuck are you still doing here? RUN, dipshit!” Nagi roared at Mune, hoping her little tirade pissed Okamoto enough that she’d take her attention off him and onto her.

The gravity of the scenario weighed back on Munehisa as his lackadaisical moment drew the furor of Miss Okamoto, and inspired her minions to draw forward once more. He’d thought of the killer bees as nothing more than mere contraptions, and yet, his eye for the smaller details only verified their general authenticity as the creatures inched closer. Just what the hell was going on?

The boy’s face tensed as he stepped back, his brow narrowing upon her apparently recollection of their identities. “You… what? You already know?” Munehisa gasped, the sting of the words that followed evident in his expression. Despite her knowledge, Miss Okamoto was knowingly exacting punishment upon the entire class, just to spite him. “All over some stupid drawing, that you took too seriously?” he took offense to the wound inflicted from her insult. “Why drag everyone into it if you know I’m the only one responsible, then?”

“Silence!” Miss Okamoto roared in Nagi’s direction, though her rambling did little to distract her from her true prey. She narrowed her brow at Munehisa as she took a step closer to him. “Of course I knew. What do you take me for, an idiot? I even knew that you would be trouble as soon as you set foot in my classroom. What else can I expect from someone with a tarnished name?”

“Oh yes, about your mother, she embezzled all of that money to the Yakuza, didn’t she? What a worthless bitch, destroying you and your father’s lives just to line her pockets with cash. That goes to show how much she cared about you two,” Okamoto continued in a hiss. “And your father’s almost as useless as she is! What a waste of space. You know that it was because of me that he was able to get a job in my school?! If it weren’t for myself, you two would be rotting on the streets… oh, to see how things have turned out just breaks my heart…”

Munehisa’s dejected gaze casted down to the ground below Okamoto’s feet. “That’s… that’s not true at all…”

“To think that your criminal whore of a mother spawned someone who is just as vile as she is. How funny that you’re following in her footsteps– dozens of other kids are going to suffer and fail because of what YOU did!” Grinding her teeth, she practically seethed in front of them before she finally jabbed a finger in his direction, roaring out her next words. “Tell me, how does it feel to be the root cause of your friends’ downfalls? How does it feel to know that this is all of your fault?!”

「 Persona: Reflections 」

MENTIONS: Masashi [@Zombehs], Akira [@DJAtomika], Hoshiko [@Fabricant451], Akio [@Lord Orgasmo], Kenzan [@PrankFox]

Asumi would be lying if she said she wasn’t disappointed that Masashi didn’t accept her offer of a diabetes-inducing dessert. Leaving it at Chen’s house like he suggested was a no-go, either; what if he ate it all when she was gone? Was he the type of guy to eat a girl’s hidden candy? That’d be shameful! It was better to just eat it all now and make sure he couldn’t get his grubby hands on them. She gave Chen an inflated, yet playful glare once he took one of the Kitkats away from her. Hmph. He better just take one... for now.

She ripped open her pack of Pocky and nibbled on one of them, her eyes scanning the group as they discussed what to do. Video games or board games… hmm. Just as she was about to give her own input, Hoshiko voiced something about dirty magazines. Asumi’s eyes snapped to Chen in alarm. Wait, that was right. Chen was a guy. Guys liked that kind of stuff, didn’t they? A light blush dusted her cheeks. ”Oh my god…” she whispered, her eyes wide as if she had just found out the biggest secret ever. Her eyes blinked back to Hoshiko and Akira, and she leaned in close to whisper to them, despite the fact that the two boys in the room could definitely hear what she said. ”Do you think he really has those types of magazines?”

Eh. She wasn’t that much of a fan of judging; to each their own. Though, it was good to set a decent example. That was what her parents always said, anyways.

She quickly changed the subject after she was done chewing on another piece of Pocky. ”Anyways, we should totally play some Street Fighter! I’ll kick your butts at it!” Huffing a challenge, Asumi got onto her knees and crept towards the television as she pulled out another strawberry-chocolate covered treat. She stuck it between her lips like a cigarette as she sat down in front of the TV. The birds that sat on the wire outside Chen’s window scattered, squawking and chirping all the while. She looked at Chen, then Masashi, Akira, and Hoshiko. It was unfortunate that that one third-year student went away after dinner, because that would have meant one more challenger she could toy around with. A teasing glint shone in her glare. ”Who wants to fight me first, huh? Huh?”

It suddenly dawned on her that she had never played Street Fighter. Asumi assumed that was a bad thing. Welp, too late now!

the alphabet game. lol

Lamprey

「 Persona: Reflections 」

MENTIONS: Masashi [@Zombehs], Akira [@DJAtomika], Hoshiko [@Fabricant451], Akio [@Lord Orgasmo], Kenzan [@PrankFox]

The feast that waited for them at Chen’s house had to be sublime. Crab rangoons? Spring rolls? Asumi could taste them already. It seemed like everyone else around her was hungry, too. She couldn’t help but giggle at the sound of Masashi’s yearning stomach, and it seemed like Kenzan was actually hungry enough to tag along. Yeah, they kind of had a crappy day, but that didn’t mean they had to go home hungry, even if it meant there wouldn’t be enough time to study afterwards. She perked up when Akira asked if they were going to cut up the body. ”I think that only makes sense if the cause of death wasn’t so obvious,” Asumi answered. ”And it’s kind of obvious how he died, right? Some guy cut his throat wide open.”

That was when Hoshiko had chimed in. It hurt Asumi to see her so crestfallen, and so she slowed her pace to walk next to the younger girl. ”Hey… if there’s anyone we should blame, it’s me. I’m the one who stumbled over the body and freaked out, and I’m the one who suggested everyone get together to study in the first place. If I hadn’t done any of that, we wouldn’t be in this whole situation! Don’t get yourself so down, okay?” She smiled broadly at Hoshiko, nudging her in an attempt to cheer her up. To anyone that didn’t know her all too well, they might get a bit caught off-guard over her willingness to take the blame for things she didn’t have any fault over. Her friends, on the other hand, very much knew she was just that type of person– the girl who would throw herself under the bus for others. Her parents warned her that she could get in a lot of trouble for that one day, and Nagi always called her out for her inclination to roll over and take punishment for the people she cared about.

That whole thing with Okamoto, though… that was a completely different story.

The smell of stir-fried vegetables wafted through the air as they got closer to Chen’s house. Her stomach roared even louder than Masashi’s. ”That food smells so good! Please tell me that’s your dad’s cooking.”

Luckily for them, it was.

The lot of them discussed what happened over dinner. Asumi, who had devoured the chow mein with all of the voraciousness of a hungry orphan, only punctuated their explanations towards Chen’s dad with rapid nods of her head. Luckily, Chen’s dad seemed like he understood the absolutely bizarre predicament that they had just gone through. When mealtime was over and the dishes were cleaned, they were invited to Chen’s room. She was surprised to see how big it was. Well, she had a big room too, since she was also an only child, but still. It felt nice to be in such a big space after spending so long in an interrogation room…

Stuffed with chow mein and other types of scrumptious Chinese delicacies, she let out a long sigh as she sat against the wall. Asumi tucked her legs close to her chest, wrapped her arms around them, and set her chin on top of her knees. Last time she checked, her phone read that it was about 6:30-ish. That was about three hours before she had to be at home, which meant that there was ample time to kick back and chill before she headed out. Her mind went back to what Naoko said. What would actually happen if they were caught on the streets after ten? Would they get thrown in jail? She was pretty sure that was worse than getting expelled. She shoved away the thoughts. No, she’d think about that stuff when she was with the rest of her friends. They were probably planning something while she was here.

Asumi jolted in realization. That was right– she still had her snacks! ”Oh yeah!” She took her schoolbag and turned it upside down, and a ton of wrapped candies and snack bags came tumbling out. Chocolate and strawberry Pocky, crunchy Sucorn, caramel Kit Kats… a variety of snacks were quickly sorted out in front of her. An excited spark reappeared in her blue eyes at the sight of them. ”I still have the snacks from before. It’d be a shame if we all let them go to waste!” She grabbed a bunch of them and held them out for them to take. Then, with a threatening yet over exaggerated glare, she added, ”don’t take the strawberry Pocky, though. That’s mine.”

They had just eaten, but who couldn’t make room for a yummy dessert? She knew she could!

---

???

MENTIONS: Nagi [@Psyker Landshark], Munehisa [@Solace]

They were still in school, alright. Though, anyone with a drop of sanity in them would doubt that statement. A sickly sweet breeze rippled through the halls again, as if someone had left windows open and allowed the perfumed wind to slip inside. Which would make sense, if there were any windows in the first place. As Nagi and Munehisa delved deeper into the wide-walled corridors, they might have gotten the sense they were being watched. Not watched in the normal sense, like being eyed by a curious individual or a secret admirer. No, they were watched with all of the malice of a hungry pack of wolves.

Golden, hexagonal-shaped chandeliers swayed gently in the wind. To their right and left, honey-wax candles, perched delicately within sconces, flickered with amber flames. While the establishment was so different from their school, it also displayed eerie resemblances. Gaps in the walls, human-sized and honeycomb shaped, led into smaller rooms with smooth, off-white– yet, all the same, sticky– walls. Desks that once lined the classrooms were replaced with giant, lumpy, yellow sacks, and whatever spherical objects that were encased inside the slimy pouches seemed to writhe and throb with intent. The deeper they traveled, the more overpowering the aroma became. The goop that covered the floors in a film stuck more and more to the bottom of their shoes and seemed to engulf their soles in honey. The viscosity of it might have even made it difficult to walk without losing their shoes, at times.

They couldn’t have walked for more than ten minutes before something stirred from the depths of the pools of honey that they had just walked past. Several globs of pitch black, slimy liquid slipped out of the gaps and slithered along the floors in hot pursuit of the two intruders. Steadily, more of the black slime-like entities plopped to the ground and tailed the pair. The final set of slime-like substances leapt out from the walls, right in Munehisa and Nagi’s path.

Hissing, the black puddles stretched up from the ground, their shapes wrenching and morphing until they finally solidified into hideous, bee-like creatures that were about the size of a medium dog. Their wings flapped rhythmically, producing a vicious buzz that kicked up the air around them and produced a storm of wind that lashed at their ears. They had become surrounded by about four or five of them, and little by little the circle the monsters had formed around them became smaller and smaller. Their faceted crimson eyes glowed with demonic energy. The largest of the devil-like bees, mandibles opening and closing in excitement, charged at Nagi with the intention of piercing her with its three-foot long stinger.

the alphabet game. lol

Eel

PMD: Explorers of the Unknown

She wanted to cry so bad. It was hard to just not lay on the ground and cry until her stomach hurt. She was hungry, cold, and scared, and now they had to walk the rest of the way home without their brothers. Either way, she maintained steady footing on the cliff side and followed after Sora. Her eyes, once bright and upbeat, were now downcast and glued to the rocky floor. Her legs trembled with every step she took after him and her whole tail dragged on the floor. Her skull throbbed; had she touched the Sage Stones without realizing it? Was she going to turn into a brainless monster, too? The thought scared her, though she guessed that Cane was lucky. At least he didn't have to suffer with what he did.

As for them, she was sure that not even Arceus knew what was going to happen.

Clans of the Coast

Wait, what? They were the same Clan, now? Her tail shivered in shock. That whole thing was... ridiculous? Cool? Was it even a good thing? Frostpaw sent another glance towards the fresh-kill pile. It seemed full enough. If FireClan and BreezeClan had merged, that would bring in more prey for both of them. That, and they could learn things from each other, right? Despite the fact it all seemed fine and well with everyone, even her, there was something deep inside that made her feel like this was just a little bit wrong. Maybe it was just her being negative.

"Whatever..." She gave her shoulder a nervous lick. "It's not like we can tell Dawnstar and Whitestar 'no'. We're only apprentices."

Oh, that was right. She still had to go and see if she could find Nightwater. Her stomach still grumbled as she looked around camp. There was Goldensight and Beetlestep sharing tongues in the bright sunlight, then there was Albatrosspaw carrying some moss to the medicine den. Barricudashade was eating a big fish in the shadow of the camp's walls. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw a flash of long black fur. There she was! "Let's go," she told Reedpaw and Lionpaw as she strode in the direction of her mentor.

"Nightwater!" she called, "Can I ask you something?"