His first failure was when Mami Tomoe died.


He’d seen her potential, how she could become a pawn in his plan to contract the most powerful girl in the world. Setting up the car crash was easy.


But the night before, there was a thunderstorm which caused several trees to fall. This unexpected variable-which blocked off the route they were planning to travel-forced him to hastily change his plan. Despite the sudden change, it all worked out.


The cars crashed, five people died, and she was in perfect position to make a wish. And then he slipped into a pond.


It was always the little things that screwed up his plans. Everything would be in place, and some small detail would blow it all up. His supervisor once said that a butterfly that flapped its wings in Texas could cause a revolution in Estonia.


And this butterfly killed Mami Tomoe.


(---)


His second failure was when Homura Akemi committed suicide.


Every plan that he’d come up with to grab Madoka relied on her being alive, perfectly ready to run through hell for the one person who’d cared for her. But Mami Tomoe was a crucial piece in every one of those plans, and she was dead.


So he set out to break her a little earlier.


worthless…. that’s who you are…. you won’t account to anything, unless you contract with me…. you won’t be ill anymore, unless you do so…. your friends won’t hate you anymore….


Maybe witch’s kissing all of her schoolmates was a bad idea, as on November 4, Homura Akemi was found dead in her hospital room.


No one attended her funeral.


(---)


His third failure was another death. But this time, he didn’t cause it.


Kyousuke Kajimou was killed in the same car crash that should’ve mangled his hand beyond repair. Maybe the driver was driving just a little quicker, or drunk a little more beer than he’d expected him to.

Why did this butterfly fall out of place?


However, the event brought about Sayaka Miki’s new contemplations on life, a thought which was also adopted by Hitomi Shizuki and Madoka Kaname.


Life is short. Enjoy the moments we have together.


Everything could disappear tomorrow.


(---)


As expected by his superior, his fourth mistake was failing to contract Sayaka Miki.


With three of his expected pawns currently dead, all he could do was warn her about the impending apocalypse heading for Mitakihara.


However, she didn’t have a wish.


“What more do I have to wish for? I have everything I could potentially want right now, and besides, I’ve learned a lot from….”


“You could resurrect him. I believe that you have enough power to do that.”


“No…. I think…. it’s better if he stays dead. I mean, if somehow he wasn’t, I’d gladly rewelcome him. But I’ve begun to believe everything happens for a reason. I sound really insensitive….. but it’s my way of coping with his death.”


The reason it happened was to save her life. But there was no way he’d tell her that.


(---)


Contrary to popular belief, his fifth mistake wasn’t failing to contract Madoka Kaname. Instead, it was ignoring Kyoko Sakura.


He’d forgotten about her role in causing Sayaka’s fall from grace. But without him, she was just another ordinary girl.


He only remembered when she died of starvation.


(---)


Telling the entire story to Madoka worked in every single timeline. Every single timeline, except this one.

When he told her about potentials and Mami and powers and Homura, she’d blown up at him and called him a monster for all of the strings he was willing to cut for her.


He never understood humans. There were 7 billion people on the planet and 140 thousand died each day. Why did she care so much about three or four people?


Didn’t she know that it was all for the greater good?


(---)


Kyuubey’s final mistake, I suppose, was underestimating chaos. He believed that everything would go according to plan.


But humans are not fond of plans. They prefer to live ruled by chaos and emotion.


Every single day, life throws a curveball at you.


Enjoy it.

Where… am…. I…..
Why….. haven’t….. I….. died….
“Miki? Wake up!”


Miki… yes, that was my name…. once upon a time….
“Don’t worry. Love, I’m fine. After all, I’m perfect, right?”


That’s my voice…. or at least I think it’s my voice…. but why would I say that?
(——)


“…you have your whole life ahead of you, as a model or dancer, and I’m just going to spend the rest of my life stuck in the hospital.”


You remind me of him…. but I can’t tell you that.
According to everyone in Clower Town, my name is Miki Aono. I’m 14 years old, my mom and dad are divorced, and I have a brother named Kazuki. I’ve been friends with Love and Buki since we were kids and dance with them on the weekends. My goal in life is to become a model and I have exceptionally high self-confidence.


Sometime I wonder if I should tell them that I’m actually Sayaka Miki. I’m 14 years old and an only child. I’ve been friends with Madoka and Hitomi since we were kids and may or may not have had an unrequited crush on Kyousuke. My goal in life is to become a doctor and I often don’t understand why people like me.


And I sold my soul to the devil, committed murder, and am supposed to be dead right now but randomly woke up in someone else’s body yesterday (who sounds a lot like me, for some reason), but there’s no way I’d tell anyone that.


“Nakewameke, heed my bidding!”


(—-)


What’s happening? Why is the pool being flooded with orange juice?
“Miki…. could you leave me here? I don’t want you to die because of me.”


“Kazuki, I’m going to protect you! We’re going to get out of here. After all, I’m perfect, right?”


I also don’t want to kill anyone else. Who knows how many people have died due to Oktavia…. and then there’s Kyoko.
If a serial killer kills another serial killer, who is the morally right one?
A sudden beam of light fills the pool and a phone and key fly into my hands.


“Change! Precure…. Beat UP!”


What’s going on? Why did i just say that?
“The blue heart is the symbol of hope! Freshly gathered, Cure Berry!”


(—-)


“We’ll be famous, won’t we, for defending the town from evil? And then we’ll show up in the news, and get a TV show, and…”
Notice me. Love me.
Shut up, Oktavia!
“…. and then we’ll throw the first pitch at baseball games and become idols!” Love continues, acting as if my outburst is perfectly normal. Maybe Miki was like this.


“No. You must keep your identities secret” the talking ferret, who is apparently named Tarte and (hopefully) seems to have nothing to do with Kyuubey, says. “If Labyrinth found out about you… who knows what could happen to those you love.” He shudders, and so do I.


That word is still evil in this universe.


(—-)


Setsuna Higashi…. I didn’t want to believe it at first.


But Eas always showed up when she was with us, yet Setsuna was often nowhere in sight. And there was the incident at the bowling alley, where Love left her phone with Setsuna…. could it be that she was trying to steal it? And then there were the donuts.


Granted, I’ve never tried them either, it’s just that I’m a good liar.
“Love, she’s Eas! She’s going to backstab you and kill you!”


“I don’t believe it! There’s no way she could do that. She’s our friend!”


Madoka thought the same about me when I became Oktavia. And then I tried to kill her.
“What if it was all a lie? You wouldn’t want to have built up so much hope, and then, when it all comes crashing down around you….”


….just like what happened to me, once upon a time.
“So you’re saying…. that everything was a lie?”


Yes. Just like how I sold my soul to the devil for a wish. He deceived me into believing that life wasn’t a zero-sum game.
“I DON’T BELIEVE IT! THERE’S NO WAY THAT SETSUNA COULD BE TRYING TO KILL US!”


She rushes out of the room and down the street, slamming the door behind her.


When I discovered the awful truth as Sayaka Miki, I hurt Madoka and never got a chance to apologize.


When I discovered the awful truth as Miki Aono, I hurt Love…..


No! I don’t want my history to repeat itself!
And I throw open the door with a bang and begin sprinting down the street.


(—-)


“What is your greatest fear?” Setsuna asks me as we’re sitting on the steps of my house.


Apparently, this universe has an infinite amount of second chances, for she’s been given one to redeem herself as Cure Passion.


It’s almost like a reverse of the witch system, where those who were born evil get a second chance to be good.
“Octopi”
Wrong. That’s Miki’s.


“Mine is…. losing all of you guys.”


That’s one of mine. Just add the clause “because of me” and you’ve got it.
My other one is being unloved. But I’m not going to tell you that.
(—-)


“Why are you saving me?! You’re my enemy!”


“Didn’t I tell you that my idea of happiness was a future with everyone? That includes you, too.”


I also don’t want anyone else to die because of me…. even though you were trying to kill me….
“Up until today, I’ve believed that what I was doing was correct…. and look where it got me.”


Once upon a time, I believed in Kyuubey, which cost me my soul and killed hundreds of people, including myself. Be glad that you’re in a world with second chances.
“Hang on! I’m going to get us out of here!”


I may have not been a heroine of justice last time, but this time, I will be.
“When we get out of here, we’re going to build a future together, right? It’s too bad that we’re out of time.” He releases my hand.


NO! I don’t want to kill anyone else!
“Goodbye, Cure Berry.”


(—-)


A second chance is a beautiful thing.


When God granted me one, I was able to become a heroine of justice, make new friends, improve my self-confidence, and fall in love.


This world is not a zero-sum game. Instead of hope and despair canceling out, hope will always win.
Thank you…. God, if you exist, for doing this to me.


In heaven, Madoka smiles.

Finally, someone’s picked me up!


I always thought people were attracted to shiny and intricate things, but it took me hours to find a host.


“Terada will love this!” she muses while walking out of the door.


She has a strong heart, which is perfect for me to (finally!) exert my power. And I begin to take her over.


(—-)


I don’t know what compels me to head to the house of her classmate, but there’s an odd spike in power that drags me there like a magnet.


“Rika? Why are you here? Isn’t it a bit cold to be outside without a coat? Hey, isn’t that the….”


Rule number one of war: you never catch your opponent off guard.


She’s noticed me, so let our fight begin.


(—-)


Why? Why? Why has it all come to this?


How did I not notice that the classmate was his reincarnation?


Well, I fought bravely, even though my primary opponent was a giant pile of flowers. And why are people so distracted by the ones they love, anyways?
“Return to your original form!”


No! I’m going to hold on with all of my power! You will not become the master of me, Miss Sakura Kinomoto! The only one who will control me….


Too late. I’ve reverted into card form.


(—-)


At least I’m not spending the rest of my life stuck in that book.


She begins to fight with me, though she prefers the use of others. If only she used me more often, for I’d be able to exponentially increase her powers.
In time, I grow to enjoy her kindness and enthusiasm.


(—-)


It’s been twenty years since we’ve awoken. She’s married now and expecting her first child. Her husband is the absolute last person I’d expected her to marry, but maybe things changed between them.


The girl with the videocamera visits often to congratulate the happy couple, as do her brother and his husband. (Strangely enough, her brother’s husband is the one I thought she would marry, but futures are never set in stone)


She asked if I’d like to be placed on the wall in sword form. Twenty years ago, I would’ve said yes in a heartbeat.


Now, I’m content to stay in the book and witness the life of my mistress.

Open me…. please….


OPEN ME! FIND ME AND OPEN ME!
I had to be hallucinating. Apart from my mother’s bodyguards, my house was usually empty right now, and they rarely interacted with me. Yet the voices felt real, like I’d heard it in a dream…. and it seemed to be dragging me into my mother’s study.


For some strange reason, she’d left the door open. I slipped through it, hoping that none of the bodyguards would notice.


There was a large, ornate book sitting on the bottom shelf that immediately caught my eye. Impulsively, I rushed over and opened its latch.


“Nice to meet you, whoever you are.” the stuffed animal inside the book said. “I’m Kero, and you are?”


This couldn’t possibly be real!

Kero’s explanation for what was going on seemed like some sort of fantasy story. Apparently, a magician named Clow Reed had created a deck of magical cards thousands of years ago, which were sealed in this book to prevent them from wreaking havoc.


“And now that I’ve opened it, does that mean that they’ll be free to create chaos?”


“Unfortunately. Don’t worry, though. If you were able to open this book, you must posses great magical power…. hey, I think you’d make a great cardcaptor!”


“I’m sorry, but what exactly is a cardcaptor?”


“Someone who wields magic to get the cards back into the book. Kind of like those magical girls on TV…. don’t judge me for liking them, okay? I spent a lot of time in Osaka with a family who had three daughters!”


Magical girls…. I’d always loved and admired their commitment to justice, beautiful outfits, and how they were seen as heroines by everyone despite just being normal girls…. and now I had a chance to become one!


I wanted to jump up and down excitedly in front of Kero, but I didn’t want him to get a bad impression of me, so I just said calmly, “Does that mean that I’ll get a fancy outfit and all sorts of cool wands and become a heroine of justice?”


“Outfit: no, unless you make one. Wand: yes, here you go.” he said as he tossed me a pink staff with a winged top. “It’s for sealing cards and getting them back into the book. And heroine of justice: as long as you don’t lose the Final Judgement, you should be good.”


“What happens if I lose?”


“Something horrible will happen. And it’s not an earthquake or tsunami or anything like that; it’s more…. personal.”


“Could you be more specific?” I wasn’t sure exactly what he meant by more personal. Maybe everyone’s greatest fear would come true at the same time?


“I’ll tell you later. I don’t want to worry you.”

It was the first day of summer when all this happened, and I couldn’t wait to tell Sakura about how I was now a magical girl.


Sakura Kinomoto was my best friend. Ever since we’d been in the same third grade class and she’d given me her eraser, we’d become nearly inseparable, and I’d also fallen in love with her. Oddly enough, my mother had also fallen in love with her mother when they were children. I guess that was why she liked her so much.


“Sakura, wait for me!” I said as I saw her rollerblading down the road. I ran towards her, my excitement growing with every step. I’m now a magical girl! Could you please film me? I have so many things to show you!


“Ah…. Tomoyo….. could you please look into that pond over there? Naoko said that there was a g-ghost in there!”


I looked into the pond and saw…. myself in a pink dress fighting monsters.


Well, it’s not a ghost…. but what’s that doing in the pond?


“See, Sakura, there aren’t any ghosts in the pond. It’s just another one of Naoko’s stories.”


“Thanks, Tomoyo” she said while turning to face the pond. “I’m not going to be…. Mom? What are you doing here?”


And then she jumped into the pond.


SAKURA! She can’t swim very well, and I don’t know what’s going to happen to her!

“KERO!” I screamed as I ran into my room. “Sakura-my friend-is in trouble! She thought she saw her mother in a pond and jumped in and she can’t swim very well and I don’t want her to die!”


“Calm down, please. So your friend thought she saw her mother in a pond…. hey, that sounds like a card. Did you see anything?”


“I saw myself wearing a pink dress and fighting monsters-but what does that have to do with anything! She could be dead right now! We have to hurry!”


“Hm…. I think I know what this one is. Did you happen to be thinking about yourself while you looked into the pond?”


“Um…. I was going to tell Sakura that I was a magical girl?”


“Okay, got it. It’s the Illusion card. And now, here’s your first mission has a heroine of justice! Use these cards.” he said while tossing four to me. “You left them in the book.”


Watery, Windy, Jump, and Fly…. but how am I supposed to use those to save Sakura?
(—-)


“WATERY!” I screamed, desperately hoping that Sakura wasn’t dead. I hoped that my bubble would last long enough to save her and capture the card.


It’s showing me…. her dead body!? But it’s just an illusion! I can’t make myself lose hope on my first mission as a heroine of justice!
I began descending into the water and pedaling my bubble closer towards the card’s illusion.


Thankfully, when I got there, Sakura wasn’t dead, but she seemed to be losing consciousness and kept whispering the word “Mother?” to herself.


I need to get her out of here! But I can’t lift her out after I’m finished with the card-she’s dying! If only I could levitate her….
“FLY!” I desperately yelled while aming my wand at her body, hoping that my idea would work…. She began to float upwards.


Yes! Now onto the card….


“Key that conceals the power of darkness, show me your true form! Under my power, I command you to…. RELEASE!”


What did I just say? Then again, all magical girls experience this the first time they transform or attack, so I’m an official one now?
Sakura’s body turned into a card with an odd design on the front that looked like a bunch of snowflakes.


It floated into my hand.

Sakura had woken up in my bed after I’d saved her from drowning. She didn’t seem to remember exactly what had happened to her, only that she’d somehow talked with her dead mother.


“You saved my life?! Tomoyo, you’re amazing! Of course I’ll film you! I love you, you know?”
“I love you too. Just in a different way…. I guess.”
“What do you mean?”
“Nevermind. I’ll tell you when you’re older.”
(—-)


Our first mission after Sakura became my filmmaker was at our school’s summer athletics festival.


My mother insisted on competing every year against Sakura’s father, whom she hated for marrying the woman she loved. This year would be the year she’d finally defeat him, she said every year, only for him to never show up or defeat her.


After Kero was lured out of the kitchen with promises of delicious food and placed on my head, we left for the festival.


However, the parent’s race was almost canceled due to a bizarre hurricane of flowers flooding the track. Kero told me that it had to be a card, and I agreed instantly. What else could cause all of those flowers to fall at once? Sakura was dragged away from her brother’s and Yukito’s picnic, and we headed to the roof of the school in search of a card.


However, this one didn’t seem to be interested in combat like the Illusion. When it saw me, it began to dance with me and forget about its mission of scattering flower petals everywhere.


“Should I keep this video?” Sakura asked while Kero explained that the Flowery card was generally nice and easygoing.


“Key that conceals the power of darkness, show me your true form! Under my power, I command you to…. RELEASE! And Sakura, you should keep this video.”


(—-)


Our second mission generated a much more interesting video than the first.


Trees had been sprouting up everywhere in town, and their branches formed a criss-crossed quilt above the roofs and power lines. However, the canopy was so thick that it began to block out the sky and the sun.


The three of us came to the conclusion that this had to have been the work of a card, but had no idea where its location was. After Sakura and I both mentioned that the first tree sprouted up near her house, we decided to look there for it.


It was dark despite it being daytime, so we grabbed flashlights from my basement and began finding our way through a maze of trees.


Eventually, we found Sakura’s house, the only place where it wasn’t completely dark. The card was nestling in between some shingles on her roof.


While the Wood card was just as noncombative as the Flowery card, I did have to climb a house and several trees before reaching it. Once I sealed it, the trees disappeared instantly, leaving me stranded on Sakura’s roof until she got a ladder.


Kero proceeded to scold me about how I could’ve flown down.

The rest of the summer passed calmly, and before we knew it, school started.


Sakura and I were in the same class this year, and our teacher appeared to be new. I hadn’t heard of anyone named Mizuki Kaho, but Sakura said that her brother knew her. Unfortunately, his only response was for us to “stop meddling in his romantic affairs”.  She seemed nice, though, and was really pretty-no wonder Sakura’s brother loved her.


We also got a new student in our class. His name was Syaoran Li, and he seemed to irrationally hate me. Sakura was oblivious to this, and invited him to sit with us during lunch, but he declined and said it had to do with me “being his rival in cardcaptoring.”


Hmmm…. so I’m the type of magical girl who has a rival? Well, he’ll come to his senses eventually…. and maybe Mizuki is some sort of mentor?
(—-)


“Tomoyo, there’s something wrong with Rika! She’s swordfighting me!”


I grabbed my staff and began sprinting over to Sakura’s house. After she’d almost died, I’d given her a phone my mother’s company made so she could contact me in case something began happening to her. I didn’t want anything else to happen to my best friend because of me.


Sakura was pinned against the hallway wall and screaming at Rika.


“Please come to your senses, Rika! I’m your friend! Why are you trying to hurt me! I don’t know what’s going on, but please! STOP!!!!”


“She’s not going to! The Sword card takes over a person’s heart!” Kero tried to inform her, but he couldn’t be heard over Sakura’s screams.


I need to distract her….
“FLOWERY!” I screamed, causing a giant storm of petals to blind Rika.


“Sakura, run! She’s distracted now! And key that conceals the power of darkness-”


“WAIT! If you do anything, it’ll kill her! You just need to free her!” Kero screamed at me. “Use the-”


“I know what to do! ILLUSION!”


(—-)


“Don’t you know that it’s dangerous to involve her in this?”


After I’d captured the Sword card, I began looking for Sakura, as she wasn’t in her house, only to be greeted by Syaoran Li.


“I know full well exactly what she’s getting into-in fact, I’ve saved her life!”
“Well, so have I. After you distracted Rika with those flowers, I was able to get Sakura out of harm’s way. And before you ask how I found you, my compass is capable of finding cards.” he says while thrusting a device shaped like an eight-sided star into my hands.


“Why couldn’t you have showed up earlier?! Did you deliberately corner her, knowing full well-”


“If I had shown up earlier, I would’ve either killed Rika or gotten severely injured by either the sword or you.”


“I wouldn’t have hurt you!”


“That’s beside the point. Anyways, as I was saying, let’s end this before it gets out of hand. I challenge you to a swordfight over the remaining cards.”


What’s going on? What does he mean by “getting out of hand?” Does he even have any cards? Is this the scene where he comes to his senses? Isn’t it a bit early?
“So, if you win, you’ll get all of my cards and if I win, I’ll get all of your cards. And I do have some; I’m not lying.”


“Why are we doing this?!”


“I don’t want to hurt anyone else. And now, we begin.”


Exactly which sort of rival is he? What happened to him?
(—-)


Despite using the card, I did not have any sort of advantage over him. Apparently, his own sword was imbued with some sort of magical power.


I was sure that this would be the scene where he would be redeemed, but now I wasn’t so sure.


Even though this sword is thinner, there’s no way for me to knock it out of his hand! It’s as if there’s a sort of invisible force-field around it…. but if I were to catch him off guard…. and there’s no rule against using cards….
“ILLUSION!”


please work…. please work….. I need to prevent the end of the world…. somehow….
“No, it’s just an illusion…. please, I’m sorry.”


In his moment of distraction, the shield falters and I’m able to remove the sword from his hand.

“Where am I?”


The last thing I remember is receiving his cards…. but how did I end up in a hospital?
“You fainted.” a nurse says, handing Kero to me. “Someone brought you in a few hours ago with this stuffed animal.”


(—-)


“Tomoyo?”


There’s no way my daughter could be in my office right now, for she wouldn’t skip school, yet here she is…. writing something in black sharpie on all of my files.


“What are you doing?! You’ve always been such a good girl, so why are you acting like this!? Shouldn’t you understand how important those are to the company!”


She’s gone, and I have to throw out fifty pages of files. I grab the pile and am walking towards the trash can when I notice exactly what she’s written.


notice me…. love me…. i’m not nadeshiko…. notice me…. love me…. i’m not nadeshiko….
It’s written on every single one of those fifty pages, over and over like some sort of chart.
notice me…. love me…. i’m not nadeshiko…. notice me…. love me…. i’m not nadeshiko….
Could my daughter have randomly skipped school today and wrecked all of my files just as a ploy for me to notice her?


(—-)


As expected, she won our swordfight despite me imbuing my sword with the Shield card. I had expected her to notice that I’d never banned the use of cards.


But why did she have to show an image of her?


I claim to have moved on from accidentally killing my partner in my search for the cards, yet when faced with a card that displays your first thought, she shows up. It’s why I’m against her involving Sakura in any of this.
What I didn’t expect was for her to faint while transferring her power to the cards. I guessed our fight took more energy out of her than I’d expected.


Sakura is as optimistic as usual. She’s going on about Yukito and how she’ll finally work up the courage to confess her love to him and how glad she is that Rika is okay. I guess that’s why she ended up cracking my mask in half and throwing in out the window.


Even after almost dying (twice?) her optimism is still intact.


(—-)


“Do you think Yukito would like this?” she says while handing me a set of ornate bowls. “He really enjoys food.”


“I don’t think he’ll like it. In fact, I think he’s in love with someone else-your brother.” someone says out of nowhere.


“Tomoyo? You’re better now! Why weren’t you in school today?” Sakura exclaims, leaving me to wonder how she recovered so quickly from her fainting spell.


Wait…. from all I know of her (which isn’t that much) she’s extremely supportive of everything Sakura does…. so why is she trying to prevent Sakura’s romantic relationship with Yukito?
“What are you talking about? And anyways, shouldn’t you be buying those for someone who loves you? Like me?”


“But I love you too! It’s just that I love him….”


“He loves your brother.”
There’s no way this could be Tomoyo. It’s got to be some sort of mirror…. it’s the card!


“Key that conceals the power of darkness, show me your true form! Under my power, I command you to…. RELEASE!” I’m also capable of sealing cards, due to my descendance from Clow Reed.


Mirror-Tomoyo jumps away at the last minute.


(—-)


“What are you doing to Tomoyo?!” Sakura exclaims as I’m trying to seal her.  


“It’s not her!” I exclaim while standing on top of a display case. “Would she really say that to you?!”


Luckily for us, the store’s cleared out, so I don’t have to explain to anyone what’s happening.


Mirror-Tomoyo and I are chasing each other across the shelves, attacking and dodging attacks and falling cabinets. I narrowly miss getting hit by a falling lamp, and Sakura is filming the whole thing.


I finally seal her after a cabinet of plates fall on top of her.


(—-)


“Hmmm…. so you only have four more cards to go until Final Judgement. Nice work in the swordfight!” Kero says as I look over the cards I’ve recently obtained from Syaoran. My mother picked us up from the hospital, and was apologizing for not really paying attention to me? I’m not sure where she got that from.


So, in magical girl terms, I’m heading towards my final battle.
“Nice to see that he’s given you one of my cards.” Kero says while gesturing towards the Firey card. “Once we get the other one, I’ll be able to show you my true form. It’s really cool! I’m not going to be mistaken for a stuffed animal again!”

“It’s nice to see that you’ve come to visit me outside of school.” Mizuki says as Sakura and I head to her shrine. “Are you excited for our school trip to the beach tomorrow?”


“Yes, but we’re here for charms.” Sakura says, gesturing towards a pile in front of her. “I’d like one for…. love, and Tomoyo will have one for good fortunes.”


“I’m sorry, but we’re out of love charms. There’s probably some inside; do you want to check?”


Sakura and I head into the shrine…. which turned into a maze the minute we stepped through the door.


This is definitely the work of a card, but how are we supposed to find it?
(—-)


Why is it taking them such a long time to find the love fortunes? I’m sure I left them by the front door….
As I walk into the shrine, everything falls into place. Somehow, the entire thing has become a maze.


Even though Tomoyo is the Cardcaptor, I doubt that she-or anyone, for that matter-would be able to find their way out of this maze without help.


“Sakura? Tomoyo? Can you hear me?” No one answers.


I remove the bell from my pocket and begin pressing in against the walls, and they crumble away. A friend of mine in England gave it to me.


The bell draws me to the pair of them like a magnet.


“Mizuki!” Sakura exclaims “Could you please get us out of here?”


“Don’t you have something to do here, Tomoyo?”


“Oh…. right. Don’t look, please.”


(—-)


“….and they never came back. The end.”


Naoko is telling yet another one of her ghost stories, although Sakura is the only person who is scared about our courage test in the cave.


I have three cards left until the Final Judgement, and from what Kero says, it seems like I’ll have to fight Mizuki. I just thought that it was odd that she was able to find her way through the maze, but, according to Kero, she has extremely powerful magic related to the moon-which means she’s the reincarnation of Clow’s moon related guardian, Yue.


I don’t want to fight her. Yet, in some magical girl shows, the final villain is revealed as the heroine’s best friend or mentor-maybe this is the type of show I’m in?


(—-)


“Ahhh!”


“Sakura, that was a shadow. There are no ghosts in here.”


No one responds.


“Sakura?”
She’s gone, vanished into thin air like the children in Naoko’s story.


This has got to be a card! They always cause these weird disappearances and events…. but where is it?


Someone bumps into me in the total darkness and I jump a bit.


“Do you know where everyone went?” Syaoran asks me.


“I was going to ask you the same thing, as Sakura just vanished into thin air a few seconds ago.”


“She’s fine…. right? They’re not dead or anything….”


“I don’t think there’s a type of card that can kill people…. and why are you so worried about that?”


He doesn’t answer, and we continue stepping through the silent cave, hoping to find the card with the aid of his compass.


(—-)


“FLY!” I yell into the chasm, hoping to levitate the card out of there. The card does move, but snags on the roof of the cave.


I’ve got to save Sakura!
“FLY!” I yell again, and begin to levitate myself towards the card, except my shirt snags on a stalactite and I begin falling, only to be caught by Syaoran.


“Why did you save me?”


“I don’t want anyone else to die because of me!”


What is it with him and death?
“JUMP!” I yell, propelling the pair of us into the air towards the card. I aim my wand like a gun and yell “Key that conceals the power of darkness, show me your true form! Under my power, I command you to…. RELEASE!”


And an earthquake starts.


(—-)


“Key that conceals the power of darkness, show me your true form! Under my power, I command you to…. RELEASE!”


I’m screaming this and aiming at nowhere in particular, hoping to stop the earthquake. Syaoran and I got out of the cave before it collapsed, but Sakura and the others are still in there…. I don’t want them to die, please! Keep them safe!


What stops an earthquake?! In school, they say that you need to get under a table, but I don’t see anything that could help that…. everything’s moving except that tree….
That’s it!


“WOOD!” I desperately yell, hoping that it’ll temporarily stop the earthquake. The trees’ roots begin spreading across the beach, stabilizing everything and allowing me to pinpoint the location of the card.


Trapped in a maze of trees, there’s no way for it to escape.


“Key that conceals the power of darkness, show me your true form! Under my power, I command you to…. RELEASE!”


(—-)


“Tomoyo! Syaoran! Are you okay?”


Miraculously, Sakura and all of her friends got out of the cave alive-but how?


When I ask her, she responds with “Yukito found us in the house after the courage test and got us all out during that earthquake.”


So he wasn’t erased? But the only people who were fine possessed magical powers…. and how did he even get there so quickly?
“Congratulations, Cardcaptor Tomoyo Daidouji. In order to unlock the final card, you must face the final judgement…. against me.”


That doesn’t sound like Mizuki’s voice; it’s much lower and sounds like a man…. so I don’t have to fight her, (yay!), but I’ll have to defeat….


"Yukito?"

"Who’s that? I’m Yue, the other guardian of the Clow Cards. And now, let’s see if you can become their true mistress, Miss Daidouji.”


He fires a flock of winged projectiles at me and I attempt to use the Shield to reflect them, but they’re strong enough to go through and nearly hit me. More flocks of projectiles fly at me, and I keep trying to dodge them with Fly and Jump.


“Heh…. so you’re strictly defensive? If you don’t try to injure me, the disaster Keroberos warned you about will happen!”


“I’m not going to hurt anyone Sakura loves! And why are we even fighting? What is the disaster?”


“Want me to show you?”


(—-)


Sakura….  who is Sakura?
Strangely enough, my mother doesn’t have a picture of Nadeshiko in her living room.
“Mother, where’s your picture of Nadeshiko?”
“Who’s Nadeshiko?”
What’s happening?


“Tomoyo, don’t you want to come over today?”
“I’m sorry, but I’m not sure why you’re asking me.”
Who is this girl? I have no idea who she is, yet she acts like I’m her best friend.
“That’s the disaster. You’ll forget about the person you love most.”


So my mother lost Nadeshiko…. and I lost Sakura!
“This can’t happen! There’s no way I’ll ever let this happen! Even if I’ll have to injure someone Sakura loves, I’ll make sure a loveless world will never happen!”


Light expands out from my body as Mizuki throws her bell at me.


“Congratulations, Tomoyo Daidouji. You’ve unlocked me. I was always sealed inside you, waiting for you to show significant strength of heart.”


Yue launches another fleet of projectiles at me, but this time, a wall of cards surround me, blocking his attack.


“Tomoyo!” Mizuki screams. “Use the bell!”


I ring it, and it floats to the top of my staff and merges with my staff, becoming the star on top.


“Key created by Clow! Accept my new power! RELEASE!”


“So you’ve managed to defeat me without injuring me…. well, you are now the true master of the cards, Tomoyo Daidouji. Congratulations.”

round one:


This was an official Precure party, and Erika was here to have fun.


Of course, they were annual events, but after hearing that one of the new Cures this year was an idol, she’d grabbed her the minute she’d walked to the party and started asking her about her life as an idol and the fashion and do you want me to design stuff for you and….


However, Makoto Kenzaki was probably the most depressing person she’d ever met.


She’d hoped a session of dress designing would cheer her up (and dragging Tsubomi and Urara with her for moral support, maybe she was just shy or wanted to discuss music with the only other idol in the group.), yet she remained as stoic as ever.


Dammit! This worked the last two times with Ako and Reika, why isn’t it working on her!


“Um…. maybe you’d prefer blue instead of purple on the top, and have it fade to white? Also, you seem to enjoy that wig Miki lent me, and blue does go better with pink than purple?”


“I’d prefer not to disrespect her memory, but yes.”


Finally, I’ve gotten her to react! Maybe she is just shy….
The design flew out of her hand like a rocket. Almost instantly, the puzzle pieces fell into place.


“Here you go! What do you think!”


I know she’s going to love it!
“Ah…. it’s…. Marie-Ange?! How do you…. anyways, I’m not sure how you know that I failed to save her, but thanks for reminding me of how she’s probably dead right now. I really appreciate it. Now if you’ll excuse me, I’m going to talk to Yuri right now.”


How…. what the hell is she talking about! How could I have possibly known any of that?!
round two:


“MIYAKO TOUDAIJI!”


Huh…. I swear that I was going to Itsuki’s house…. I’m sleepy….. zzzzzzz
“It’s so unlike you to be falling asleep on the job, especially when both Jeanne and Sinbad have sent out their arrival notices!”
“Who…. what…. where…. are…. you…. no…. idea…. help?”


“You’ve got to be kidding me. I can’t believe that you’ve forgotten the names of those art thieves we’ve been trying to catch for the past month! We should’ve gotten them so much sooner, as they sent out these arrival notices every time and wear strange outfits and claim to be doing all this in the name of God, but they always. get. away!!”
The policewoman slammed her cup on the table with every word, which woke Erika up.


So I’m someone named Miyako Toudaiji who’s a junior policewoman? But this Jeanne person…. she sounds kind of like…. a Precure. And she reminds me of Itsuki for some reason.
“Why?! Why are we doing this?! It sounds like she’s doing something good, despite breaking the law!”


Erika was almost hit by the coffee the policewoman had spit out in shock.


“You have lost your mind, Miyako! Just because all of those people claim to recover and become better people doesn’t mean that what they’re doing is right! The law is the law, and we will follow it to the letter.”


“Doesn’t that just give us even more reasons to stop!”


And on that note, she vanished and left Miyako Toujidai with a policewoman who was convinced she’d gone insane.


round three:
Minako was right-she did look quite good in a tuxedo.


Erika had met her at some interdimensional magical girl Christmas party hosted by “Serenity” (who Minako claimed was anything but) and quickly became friends with her. The same had happened with the others-Tsubomi had gravitated towards a pink-haired girl with a rose-shaped bow, a girl with a brown ponytail and rose earrings was teaching Itsuki how to cook, and Yuri was…. probably somewhere with a book. (Well, there was at least one other person who’d been reading.)


It was like the first time she’d headed to an official Precure party, except about five times bigger.


She said that I just needed to look for a silver and red door floating around…. oh look, there it is!
And Erika ran across the pond.


(—-)


“Mamoru!? I can’t believe you’re alive!” were the first words she heard once stepping out of the door.


A girl with blonde hair done up in two buns ran towards Erika and hugged her, ignoring for a second the monster that was attacking her.


Minako? Why did you send me back in time!?
“Shouldn’t we….”


“Oh, right.” she said while aiming her wand at the monster. “Starlight Honeymoon Therapy Kiss!”


What a silly name…. Erika, you need to find Minako! This person is now convinced that I’m her boyfriend….. but neither of them have met me yet! How am I supposed to explain…..
“Erika, how did you get into the pond?”


round four:


“I was….” were the only words she could say to Tsubomi before disappearing and landing…. in the ocean.


What is it with me and water?
“Hmph. So you haven’t given up on your sister. We’ve made it quite clear that she’s dead because of Rina, and you still refuse to accept it.” said a fish.


“I’ll never give up on her! And for you…. Marine Dynamite!”


Instead of the energy she expected to shoot out of her fingertips, thousands of gleaming music notes fell from her hands.


(—-)


The question of who she was began to fall into place after emerging from the water and colliding head first with a girl with blue hair who instantly started excitedly babbling.


“Hanon? I’ve-”


“How do you know me?”


“I…. met you….um…. um…. at that convention five years ago!”


“What are you talking about? I-” Hanon began, before being cut off by a scream.


“Noel? You’re alive!”


What!? Oh god, not this again….
“Oh. Sorry for mixing you up with your sister…. Caren?!”


For Erika has disappeared into thin air, cutting the reunion short yet again.


round five:
“Now you’ve hurt Erika, and even killed the flowers! I-I’ll never forgive you! Precure…. Pink Forte Wave!”


I’m Tsubomi?
Well, I got back into my own world, but…. there’s two of me!
“Her Heart Flower is saved! Now you can put it back-desu!” Coffret exclaims, while holding up the ball that her soul was currently trapped in.


Oh well, what’s the worse that can happen?
(—-)


According to a phone call Erika got from Minako the next day, it took Setsuna hours to set the timestream right as she almost blew up the universe and caused a time paradox.


bonus round:
But before she got to the right world and the right time, she took a quick detour into a hospital’s waiting room.


“Miss Akemi, there’s someone here to see you.” the nurse says while leading Erika into room B-29.


There’s a girl with long black hair in two braids lying in bed.


“I’m Erika Kurumi! It’s nice to meet you, Homura!”


Luckily, the nurse doesn’t need to know exactly how she knows her first name. And the patient is still shocked over the fact that anyone would visit her.


After an entertaining afternoon of dress design, (she likes the pink one best, for reasons she herself cannot fathom yet but Erika knows why), her hospital stay is up and it’s time to go back home.


And for once, Erika Kurumi’s adventures in dimensional travel saved a life.

I'm hungry.... well, the sewing room is right next to the cafeteria, and the kitchen should probably be nearby....


The map on the cafeteria table said that the kitchen door was near the back of the cafeteria. I grabbed the white door and shoved it open, unmasking a cheerful kitchen with a red and white tiled floor, a black and white U-shaped counter, and several stools. Ako and Madoka were having a conversation over cake about desserts and family. 

I was debating if I should leave, for I didn't want to disturb them, until someone grabbed my right hand and dragged me over to a grill. 

"Ahhh!!!"

"Oh. Sorry. And you're Tsubomi, right? Well, in any case, you're just in time for my cooking lesson!" 

My vision stopped blurring, and I realized that Akane had dragged me in here while holding a spatula in her right hand.

"Yes... what are you cooking? I'd be glad to learn how!" 

Well, Akane doesn't seem to be annoyed by me.... although she does remind me a bit of Erika.... 

"Okonomiyaki! It's my dad's favorite, and I'll be glad to follow in his footsteps and teach you!" she said while pulling a cutting board and some cabbages. 

"Could you show me how to make it?" 

I've never cooked before, and the one time I did, I ended up burning myself.... Grandma ate some of it, but I think she was being polite.


"Sure! I just need to see if they have sauce. For a school being run by an insane teddybear, there's a lot of food here."

I'm kind of surprised he hasn't threatened to kill her yet; just about everything she says about him is an insult and he threatened to kill me yesterday over much less....


Something brushed against me while I was lost in my train of thoughts.

"Tsubomi, could you move-" Akane began, before she was cut off by the nearby TV turning on.

"Upupupupupuppuu... you sure are boring. No murders yet? I thought you'd be more desperate to get out of here... maybe you need some motivation? Just so you know, every single room in here is soundproof. No one will hear you scream when you die.... I love that sound."

Akane, Ako, Madoka, and I were staring wordlessly at the TV. My mind was paralyzed with fear as an image of a masked man with a knife came into my mind, and he was slowly stabbing me.... or-

"Oh, by the way, everyone needs to be in the computer room in five minutes if you don't want to die." he said as the broadcast faded away, leaving the room in a state of total paralysis, like we were frozen in a sheet of ice....

And Akane was the first to break it. 

"Sorry for being unable to give you your cooking lesson, Tsubomi. Tomorrow, I'll make sure to teach you."

"No... it's fine, I don't want to disturb you.... could you just write the recipe down for me?" 

I don't want to disappoint her when I inevitably fail at making her dad's favorite recipe. 


"Sure-just give me a second." she said while rummaging through her pockets before grabbing a pen and post-it note; she wrote down the recipe at near the speed of light. 

Rice.... eggs.... cabbage... you can add anything else you like, just don't forget the secret ingredient and sauce.


What's the secret ingredient? It's probably some obscure spice that I've never heard of, let alone can cook with....


"Sorry if it's really messy, my handwriting's horrible."

"No.... it's fine. Just... what's this secret ingredient?"

"It wouldn't be a secret if I told you!"

And on that note, we set off for the computer room.

The computer room looked just like the one in my school, except for the fact that the desks were arranged in a circle around a short cylindrical table. 

Honoka and Rikka were the only other people in the room besides me and Akane. 

"Here's yours." Honoka said while handing me a disc with my name written on the front. 

"Thanks.... so you got here early?"

"Actually, we've been here the entire day." Rikka added after handing Akane her disc. "Honoka and I were trying to find out exactly what was going on, but all we got were error messages no matter what we did, and then that bear popped in here and dropped off this box of discs."

"Monobear also told us to tell you that the punishment for not watching them was death." Honoka added as more people filed into the room. After the last person (Yuri) was seated in front of a computer, we all popped the disks in.

A video began playing as the lights dim. 

"Tsubomi! We're so proud of you for getting into Hope's Peak! I hope you'll follow in our footsteps as botanists someday." my parents say while sitting on our sofa with my sister. 


"My big sister is awesome! I want to be like Tsubomi!" Fubata says while cuddling her doll. 


The scene switches to our greenhouse. Grandma, Erika, and I are tending her cherry tree and planting daisies. 


"I'm so proud of you two. I love you both and I wish you good luck. Hopefully it's just as wonderful as it was during my time there."


"We'll tell you all about it! Come on Tsubomi, let's go!" Erika says while dragging me out the greenhouse door. 


And then the scene changes to my sofa at home, only it's destroyed and covered with.... my sister's body!? This can't be happening! 


Our greenhouse is destroyed, and... my parents.... their research.... the tree... Grandma's statue of Grandpa.... is all gone.

"Finally, we meet again, Karouko." a man says while pointing.... a gun... NO! Why! Why! WHy!?


"3.... 2.... 1...."


"AHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!" I screamed as the lights went back on.

There's no way my family could be dead! Mom... Dad... Fubata.... Grandma.... this can't be real!


Yayoi, who was sitting to my left, was crying and whispering "Why? Miyuki, why?" at the screen. To my right, Erika was staring at the screen like a statue. Mana, Rikka, Honoka, Miki, and Karen appeared to be loudly convincing themselves that the video was just a fake. Akane looked like she was about to punch the computer. Iona and Makoto seemed to be muttering names underneath their breath, Madoka had nearly collapsed over the keyboard, Ako was frozen with shock like Erika, and Itsuki was muttering the words "don't kill him" over and over. 

The only one of us who didn't react at all was Yuri. 

How is she so calm right now? 


"Uupupuppupu.... such lovely despair. I'm expecting a murder tonight!" 

After Monobear's words snapped all of us out of our minds, the room began to slowly clear out. I was waiting for Erika to leave, but she stayed frozen in front of the computer.

This is nothing like her! I though she'd either deny it or try to destroy the computer, instead, she's frozen?!


"Ah... Erika?" I said while lightly tapping her shoulder. 

"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" she screamed, and then sprinted out the door like she was being chased by a rampaging bull. 

"Erika! Wait!" I screamed, and began to run after her, except I collided with Yuri.

"Ah.... sorry!!! I just need to find Erika!"

"I understand." she said calmly. 

"Thanks.... hey, Yuri, what did you see on your disc?"

"I didn't have one."

Huh?


That's strange...

"don'tleavemeidon'twantobealonei'ddie..... HELP ME! SAVE ME FROM THIS HELL!"

Erika was curled up into a ball on her bed and alternating between whispering and screaming when I found her.

The first part sounds like something I would say! Well, I'm her friend, and she's done so much for me....


"You're not alone. I'm here for you, Erika."

"Tsubomi?" 

"Yes?"

"Promise me that we'll get out of here together. Please. And once we do, we'll go follow our dreams and head to Paris for the fashion and flowers..."

"I will. Should we shake hands?" I said while extending my right hand. 

"Yes. Let's vow to get out of here together." She shakes my hand and heads over to her sewing machine with pink fabric. 

"Do you want me to sew that shirt you designed for Miki?" 

"Yes... thanks, Erika."

She seems fine, but when I leave her room, I'm pretty sure I hear sobbing and loud bangs. 

Then again, they're probably all imaginary.


I head down the hall to my room and go to bed with death and insanity dancing in my head.

DING-DONG! DING-DONG!

"Uupupupupu.... good morning. Today's going to be fun, isn't it, Miss Hanasaki?"

What does he mean?!


I've got to check on Erika, and make sure she's okay.... I hope she's calmed down.


I push open the door to her room.

"Erika? E-ri-ka?"

ERIKA!!??!

Where... am.... I? 


"She's awake!" someone said, but I couldn't determine who.

"What's... going.... on... why...?"

A few people exchanged a series of glances before someone spoke. 

"This morning, we noticed that you and Erika weren't at breakfast. As you were also late yesterday, we didn't really find your absence that unusual, but it was kind of odd for Erika to be late, so Mana suggested that someone should find her." 

My vision had stopped blurring, and I realized that Itsuki was holding my shoulders and talking to me. She gestured to Iona, who continued filling me in. 

"I volunteered to go find Erika, and Mana went with me. We went to Erika's room and found her lying with her head in her hands in front of her sewing machine... and you were lying by the chair holding a knife."

Suddenly, a stream of images flew into my head.

Erika's body... the bloody wound on her forehead.... I though she was asleep, but.... 


I choked back a scream as Mana continued Iona's story. 

"We were trying to figure out exactly what had happened when the TV turned on, and Monobear told us that a body had been discovered.... and then we realized that one of you was dead. We weren't sure who it was at first, but he then popped into the room and handed us a file detailing the death." 

She handed me a black folder labeled "Monobear File 1". I began to read it while she continued explaining what had happened. 

Victim's Name: Erika Kurumi
Time of Death: Around 12:30 am
Cause of Death: Wound to head. 
In addition, there is also a minor wound on the back of her right hand.


My best friend... is dead. And I'm reading the details of her death. 


Every day in this school feels like a surreal nightmare...


"Would it really be wise for her to read that? She is the most logical killer, after all." Miki's words snapped me out of my thoughts, and she wasn't the only one who held that opinion. Karen, Ako, and Madoka seemed to agree with her, and Yayoi was crying and standing ridiculously far away from me. 

"Why would I kill my best friend? There's no way I'd do that! The only thing here with any motive to kill someone is Monobear!"

"Uupupupuppuuuuu.... no." 

Somehow, as if I'd summoned him, Monobear popped into the room and landed right in front of me.

"Idiots. Do you really cling to the hope that you're all just innocent pawns? One of you killed Miss Kurumi. And it's the task of the other 14 of you to find her killer."

WHAT!? It's like the horror story just mutated into a murder mystery!


"If I may ask, does this have to do with the second part of your conditions to escape?" Karen asked.

"Miss Minazuki is correct. The death is just the prologue to the real source of entertainment-a class trial of life and death!"

"If the 14 of you dolts can correctly identify Miss Kurumi's killer, the culprit will be executed." He was about to continue when Akane burst out laughing. 

"Miss Hino, this is not a joke. Shall I give you a sample of our executions? We have death by firing squad, being eaten alive by sharks, beheading.... ah, I love that one."

Akane looked extremely disturbed, while I was paralyzed with fear. 

Even if we win.... we'll have to subject someone to such a horrible death? 


"If the 14 of you do not identify her killer, all of you except for the culprit will die. The culprit, having managed to fool all of you, will graduate and leave the school. Any questions?" 

Leaving us on an ominous note of death and gruesome executions, he vanished.

The room was frozen in an eerie silence before Yuri spoke. 

"Shouldn't we assign someone to guard the crime scene?"

How can she be so calm!? First with the DVDs, and then after learning about our fates if we lose... or even win, for that matter.


"I'll do it." Itsuki said, releasing my shoulders. I almost fell, but managed to regain my balance just in time. 

She was about to leave the room when Ako said "Shouldn't someone else go with her? If the killer is who we think it is, Itsuki is the closest to her out of all of us and could be motivated to save her...."


"I'll go with her." Makoto said, before the two of them left the room. Iona, Akane, Rikka, Mana, Yuri, and Honoka followed them, leaving me in a room with everyone who believed that I was guilty. I quickly ran out of the room after Honoka, hoping that I didn't look too suspicious. 

I'm going to prove my innocence! Even though about 1/2 of them believe that I'm the killer, I'll prove them wrong! 


Erika.... I'm going to avenge your death!

Without thinking, I dashed into her room and ran straight into Makoto.

"Sorry! I'm just-"

"I understand. To witness the death of someone you love...." she began, before trailing off and staring at the bathroom door. 

"W-" I began, before noticing that the doorknob had fallen off and the door was scratched. 

That's strange.... could it have gotten knocked off and damaged by her killer?


Everyone except Akane and Mana were in her room and investigating. I didn't want to disturb them or their investigation, so I headed into the bathroom and tried to collect my thoughts. 

However, I was distracted by a bloodstain on the shower's floor. 

I feel dizzy.... why is this here? 


"Tsubomi?"

"AH!!" I screamed, before realizing Honoka was calling me. "Sorry! I'm just not-"

"It's okay. Anyways, we're just going to share what we've found, and if you want to join us in bringing your friend's killer to justice...."

I followed Honoka out of the bathroom and collapsed onto Erika's bed.

"There's something I'd like to show you on her body." Iona said while lifting... Erika's hand. 

Why is everyone else here so calm around death? First Yuri, and now her too? 


"The wound on her right hand does not look like it was caused be the knife we found, as it's wider it's tip." 

It looks like an eleven.... but....


"Furthermore, her death wasn't caused by the knife either. The head wound is too wide and shallow for the tip of a knife. It's also impossible for anyone to kill someone with the flat part of a knife, so please don't ask me that."

I know she's here for her military talent.... which is probably why she's so used to this, but...


Rikka was sharing her findings, but I couldn't focus. There was a trash can nearby... and I did feel like my stomach... 

Huh? Why is there a shirt in here? It's unlike her to throw clothes away...


I pulled the shirt out of the trashcan... and it was the one I'd designed for Miki. With a large bloodstain in the middle. 

My mind was frozen. I wanted to say something... but my lips weren't moving. 

Maybe I should try to investigate now.... I'm not really contributing anything to their discussion. 


I placed the trashcan by the sewing machine and tried to avoid looking at Erika's body. There was a spool of red thread on it, and I tried not to think about what she was doing when someone broke into her room and....

Huh? Why is there a knot in it? I'm the one who'd get 824908493284 knots in her thread during fashion club-and it randomly got thicker?


This didn't make any sense. 

Maybe the machine will-


DING-DONG! DING-DONG!

"The investigation is over. Please head to the red door by the entrance hall."

The seven of us exited Erika's room and dragged the red door open. The thread spool was lying in my pocket. Karen, Miki, Ako, Madoka, Yayoi, Mana, and Akane were all standing by a larger, golden door. 

"Uupupupuu... so you're all here. Please open the golden door and enter the elevator which will lead you to your fate. 

Madoka twisted the door open and we all got in. 

Erika.... I'll avenge you!


No matter what happens, I'll find your killer!

The elevator ride was silent until it hit the ground with a clank. The doors opened to an ornately decorated room with blue curtains and golden walls. 

"So, what do you think of the trial room? Isn't it perfect for a room that will decide your fates?"

No one said anything. 

"Hmph. Anyways, go take your seat." Monobear said while gesturing towards the circle of chairs in the center of the room. We all found the chair with our name on it and sat down. Honoka was on my right, and... a portrait of Erika with an X on it was to my left.


"Um... why is this here?" Yayoi asked, pointing at Erika's portrait. 

"Upppupuuppu... this is how we'll immortalize your dead classmates! And now, let the trial of Erika Kurumi-"

"Wait."

Monobear paused and turned towards Yuri. 

"Before we start, I'd like to ask you something." 

"What!?"

"Under what circumstances does a body discovery announcement go off?"

What does this have to do with anything?


Oddly enough, Monobear seemed to be thinking the same thing. "Miss Tsukikage, how does this pertain to the case?"

"It pertains quite a bit to the case." Yuri responded calmly. 

"Hmph. Fine, I'll tell you. A body discovery announcement goes off when three or more people who aren't the culprit find a body. Now can we please proceed-"

"Does the victim count as a person?"

"NO!" Monobear yelled. "WHAT DOES THAT HAVE TO DO WITH ANYTHING!"

Yuri's reaction to Monobear screaming at her was as emotionless as a statue. "It means that Tsubomi is innocent. And could you please stop screaming? You're scaring everyone."

How does that... oh! Only Iona and Mana went to find me, yet the announcement went off!

"But Tsubomi was lying by Erika with the murder weapon in her hand. Isn't that evidence significantly incriminating?" Miki asked.

"Only-" I began, but was cut off by Mana. 

"The announcement went off when Iona and I found Erika's body. As only 2 of us went, there had to have been a third person who'd found her body. If Tsubomi had killed her, we wouldn't have gotten one unless someone else came into the room." 

"But.... ah... the knife! Why would she be holding the murder weapon?" 

"The knife wasn't the murder weapon." Iona said, shocking Miki. 

"How?" she began, but was unable to finish. 

"None of her wounds match the shape of the blade. The head wound is the more obvious example; it's much too flat to have been inflicted by a knife." Honoka explained. 

"Isn't there a chance-" Karen began, but she was cut off by Iona. 

"If you were asking me about the wounds being inflicted by the flat side of the blade, that can't have happened. It's impossible to kill someone like that."

"How could you know that she was going to ask about that? Unless you're the killer and covering up your murder, maybe?" Akane blurted out. 

"If I killed Erika, the body discovery announcement wouldn't have gone off. And I'm used to people asking me questions like that." Iona calmly explained. 

"So we've confirmed that the knife wasn't the murder weapon, but why did she have one in her room?" Karen asked. 

That's actually a really good question. Why would a knife suddenly turn up in her room?

"You know, that reminds me.... she did go into the kitchen yesterday." Madoka said. 

"Erika?" I asked. 

Why would she go there? She's never really been interested in cooking.


"Yes. Ako and I were having some tea last night, and she came in around 9..."

"She was muttering a bunch of stuff about under her breath about how she didn't want to die and how she'd rather die than be perpetually alone..." Ako continued. 

"I asked her if she wanted some tea, but she screamed, grabbed a knife, and ran out the door." 

That's strange... wait, she was still affected by that DVD?! 


"I think she took the knife for self-defense, but she was acting really weirdly." 

Madoka and Ako's testimony confused me. 


Why would Erika run away from people? Why would she even bother with weaponry? And isn't she-


"So I understand where the knife came from, but shouldn't we do more work on finding the murder weapon?" Miki asked. 

"Right. I believe that she was killed by her sewing machine." Rikka said, to the shock of almost everyone. 

"Wouldn't it be harder to kill someone with that? There's already a knife...." Karen began, before Rikka cut her off. 

"It would be more logical to use a knife, but that's the only thing in the room which could've caused her wounds. Doesn't the one on her hand look like the ends of a plug?"

"I see. So she was killed with her sewing machine while sitting in her chair?"

Wait.... if that's the case, why is there a random bloodstain in her shower?


"Actually, that does beg the question of why the door to her bathroom was destroyed and the doorknob knocked off." Makoto added. 

"Maybe... the killer wanted to fake a struggle?" Yayoi said nervously. 

"No. The hand wound most definitely points to a struggle, and it wasn't inflicted after she died." Iona explained. "So the most likely course of action is that the conflict got into the bathroom, and she died there."

"Wouldn't there be more blood?" Ako said. "If you were to-"

"I agree with Iona. I found a... bloodstain in her shower and there's a bloody shirt in her trash can."

All eyes turned to me.

I feel dizzy... but I can't stop now!


"If Erika died at her desk, there'd be no reason for this bloodstain to be here." I said, gradually getting less nervous. "However, if she died in her bathroom, then it'd make more sense. The reason why there's a lack of blood has to do with the fact that her killer cleaned it up with this shirt I found in the trashcan."

"Yes, that's probably what happened." Yuri said. "Erika was killed in her shower with her sewing machine. The killer moved her body to her desk, cleaned up the blood with this shirt, and set up the knife as a diversion."

"That's great... except we still have no idea who did it." Miki said. 

"Actually, we might." I said while pulling the spool of thread out of my pocket.

Please work.... I hope I've got this right.


"How is the spool of thread related to the case?" 

"Um... doesn't the texture of the thread change after the knot?" I said while passing the spool to Honoka

Please listen.... 


"You're right, Tsubomi. It feels a bit like hair, come to think of it."

YES!


"So our culprit has red hair?" Madoka asked.

"Well, there's only one person in here with red hair." Yuri said, turing to someone. I followed her glance. 

And... it's...


Akane?!

"Why is everyone looking at me?" she asked. 

"You-you killed Erika!" Yayoi screamed. 

"How? I have no idea what you're talking about!"

I don't want to believe it either... the person who was going to teach me how to cook killed my best friend.... 


"Could I have a look at your hair?" Yuri asked. 

"Sure... what does this have to do with anything?" she said while pulling out a strand of her hair and passing it to Honoka. 

"It's... a perfect match." she said in a soft voice. "I'm sorry Akane, but you have to be Erika's killer."

"Ah.... ahahahahah.... it was in self-defense! She tried to kill me!!!" 

Why?! Why would Erika.... she can't have!


"You're kidding, right?" I asked, hoping that it was just another lie. 

"No! She invited me to her room around 12 am last night and tried to kill me!" 

"Erika... there's no way....."

"I grabbed her sewing machine in self-defense as she was going to stab me!"

This.... this.... there's....


"Miss Hino is correct. The cameras do not lie, Miss Hanasaki." 

"Cameras?" Yuri asked. 

"Haven't I told you that the entire school is security-cameraed?" 

"If you have footage of the murder, then why didn't you just show it to us instead of making us suffer through this trial!" Itsuki exclaimed. 

"Miss Myoudouin, please stop talking unless you want me to kill you. By the way... you've won! The killer of Miss Erika Kurumi is-drumroll please-Miss Akane Hino! And you said you wouldn't kill anyone. Hypocrites, the-"

"What killed Erika was your DVD!" I exclaimed, surprising everyone, including myself. "What she saw on her DVD must've horrified her into insanity and driven her to attempt murder! The only thing we have to blame is you!"

"Hmph. You dolts can't even take responsibility for your own actions. Anyways, onto the punishment! I have a special execution prepared for Miss Akane Hino, our Super High-School Level Volleyball Player!

Volleyball? I though she got into here for her cooking! 


There's so much I could've know about her.... which I'll never be able to know. We could've been good friends...


"Ahahahahah.... it was self-defense! I DON'T-" she screamed. 

"It's still a murder, Miss Hino. Goodbye."

"NO! PLEASE! I'M SORRY!!!!" she screamed as chains wrapped around her arms and legs and dragged her to her death. 

(---)

Execution of Akane Hino: The Soul of a Hotblooded Girl.


Akane is dragged into the destroyed remains of her family's restaurant, only everything is turned 90 degrees. She's chained to the grill, which is heated to 400 degrees (F). In addition, there are also spatulas launching flaming volleyballs at her chest and setting her on fire. 

It's strange for a soul to find its way up here on their own without me, but stranger things have happened in the past. 

She's tall with long pink hair, and carries a sword. Her uniform is black with a white rose and extremely short. 

Her face is a strange mixture of confidence and shock. It's almost like... she's looking for someone here. 

Maybe.... she chose to fall into despair to be with someone? 


"Himemiya?" she calls out into heaven, but no one responds.

(---)


Where am I?


I expected to die after his ritual, yet... I'm alive. Or at least I think I am.

Then again, this isn't the weirdest thing I've seen. Ever since the day I became a pawn....


There are hundreds of girls here, all in dresses. Some of them carry weaponry, and they all... seem happy.

Except I could be looking at a line of a thousand Rose Brides, a thousand broken pieces in a madman's game....


"Himemiya? Anthy?" I call out of some sort of instinct.A few of them turn towards me, but none of them are her. 

"Don't worry. I'm here." someone says. A girl in a white gown floats towards me. 

She's.... not her. This person has pink hair and paler skin, and happiness and sadness and confusion and I-don't-know-what-else rushes through my veins. In my shock, I repeat my words.

"It's okay, she's fine. You have no reason to despair anymore, for I'm here for you." 

I have no reason to believe her, yet her voice feels warm.

Like hope. 


(---)

There's another world interconnected to mine, and I never noticed. 

It's mostly non-magical, however, within Ohtori academy, their lies a world like ours, starring thousands of pawns bound by the will of a madman. 

Just the way our world was... before I rewrote everything. 


I could go in to save them from despair, yet Utena seems oddly resistant to me. 

"No." she says over tea or in between fencing with Sayaka. "You don't need to be their prince. They can save themselves." 

It's an oddly cold view for someone who is usually so idealistic about the world. I've tried to understand, yet she'll only respond with a single name. 

"Anthy Himemiya." she'll say, before starting up a conversation on some random thing. Sometimes she'll add the word "Myself." 

Yet when I tried asking her about if she knew anyone else here, she claimed that everyone'd forgotten her. 

Maybe we aren't so different after all. 

A pair of pink-haired girls who were former pawns in a madman's game. And we became the queen at the end of the chessboard in exchange for our existence. 


Yet there's still... someone out there that remembers. 


"Homura?"