shinji_cute's Journal

Hirono and Shinji: "Oh Bugger!" I10 to H10
They stayed like that for a long while, just staring at each other, still in each other's arms. The lighthouse behind them was still smoking, but almost in slow motion. It didn't matter anymore. Staring into his eyes... lost in them. So this is what love feels like? The love when they love you back...?

Hirono never wanted to leave. Just her luck to find this with less than 2 days before their collars would explode... unless someone got either of them first. No, they had good weapons now, and would protect each other till the end. The very end.

Hirono smiled. The noise was over now. Everything seemed so peacefull. Mimura was smiling. He always looked so cute when he smiled, his face amost having dimples, but not quite... dimplets! Hirono smiled back, amused by the thought.

Then, as unpredictable as always, Mimura reached inside his bag, fishing out a pen and small notepad. Hirono raised an eyebrow. That was the notebook he sometimes took on trips to make it look like he was taking notes when in fact, he wasn't paying attention to the teacher at all. It always fooled staff members... what was he doing with it now?

He scribbled something down and handed over the peice of paper. Hirono sighed. His Kanji were always so scruffy. Still, she managed to read it.

"Play along. Our lives may well depend on you acting well!"

Now acting was another of Hirono's strengths. They'd pay more if they thought she was a vir... Don't think about that now! That's in the past!
She nodded uncertainly. Mimura continued.

"That's buggered up our plan. You realise what we have to do now?"
Hirono wasn't sure what he wanted her to answer with, so she remained quiet.
Mimura carried on, putting lots of sadness in his voice. It would have been belivable had Hirono not been watching his face, still grinning as he said it. "We're gonna have to play for real now Hirono. We can't escape, I'm all out of ideas. I'm sorry..."
Now Hirono got the point. She didn't realise exactly why Shinji was doing it, but "Our lives may well depend on you acting well!" wasn't the sort of comment she was going to take lightly.
"Maybe... but can we really win?"
"12 to go... 10 students left to kill! Sure we can try!"
"9 students to kill" Hirono corrected him, "I just got Ryuhei"
She waved the machine gun in front of Shinji's face.
"Hey, an Uzi! We definately have a shot. Whatever happens, one of us has to win! Remember that Hiro..." said Shinji.
"Yeah... whatever happens" replied Hirono sorrowfully.

She was about to question him, but he put his hands to his lips, and scribbled again. He handed Hirono two sheets this time.

"Kitano can hear everything we are saying. He knew about the plan, and he sabotaged it purposefully. He blew the electromagnet by activating the mains"
Hirono gasped as she read this. All of their effort... for nothing? Destined to fail from the very start...
The second peice. "Don't worry... now we know they can hear us, we really stand a change. I have another plan!"
Hirono raised an eyebrow, but before she could ask for the pen to write a message back in neat handwriting, he pulled her back up to her feet. "You ready to move? We don't wanna hang around here anymore. Too much attention so far for my liking. You keep the Uzi, and I'll just take back the shotgun if that's alright with you?"
Hirono handed the shotgun back. They quickly rearanged weapons so it was roughly fair, and then began to set off. "Where are we going?" asked Hirono, not sure if this was OK to say out loud.
"Warehouses. Probably lots of places to hide, ambush people, that sort of thing. We should stay low until it gets to the next report at least, let everyone fight amoungst themselves." Mimura replied, still putting on a voice of sadness.

It was only after they reached H10 that Hirono remembered Izumi.
"Oh God Shinji! I left her all alone here! She'd just been raped! I left her all alone!" said Hirono regretfully.
Stupid Hirono! How could you have forgotten her? She needed your help!
Shinji looked around. "Well, she ain't here now!"
"But there's Sasagawa's body right there... and here is where she was sitting!" said Hirono, pointing frantically.
"Izumi, where are you?"
No reply.

"Izumi?"

The silence of the fog, and the sea below were the only answers they recieved. "Oh God Shinji..." began Hirono. "She's run off! She's all alone again! She's gone..."

Shinji Mimura: Victory? (I10)
Mimura gave the generator a good kick, I’ve tried everything else, rerouting the power, switching the power grids, everything! Goddammit why won’t this fucking thing work? He thought.

“Work!” he cried as he kicked it again, “Work, work, work, work, work!”

On the sixth “work” the rusty generator emitted a splutter then sprang into life, Shinji grinned and threw the door of the outhouse open, it banged dramatically against the woodwork. To Shinji’s delight the bulb in the lighthouse was emitting a faint glow, and what’s more it was slowly getting brighter.

Shinji punched the air with both hands.

“Yessssssss!” he cried victoriously “I fucking rule!”

He wished Hirono was here to see this, he had to find her. He turned to look behind him, the direction she had gone. North, he had to find her. Now. He had done everything he could here, he just had to pray it worked tucking his gun down the back of his trousers he ran back inside the lighthouse and began to hastily throw everything into one kit bag. Water, rations, maps, weapons, personal items both he and Hirono had brought with them. He had to get to her before something awful happened, he just couldn’t lose her. Everything they had achieved would be meaningless without her. He recalled Hirono’s parting words:

"If I don't come back... know… know you meant more to me than anyone ever did."

Oh god, why hadn’t he told her? Why hadn’t he told her how much she meant to him? Now he may never have the chance. He shook that feeling off with a vigorous shake of his head. Don’t think that, he thought, you will see her again. She can’t die not knowing…she just can’t.

This E.M.P better fucking work, it had to work, his plan was flawless, and he had anticipated absolutely everything. He smiled; soon they would be going home.

Just as he was asking himself how the hell he was going to get Keita’s Jitte into and already full bag something happened.

Click

Shinji whirled around looking for the source of the sudden noise. He eyes fell on a little red light above a small switch. The little red light glowed red. It hadn’t been red before, he was sure of it. Even with the generator the light had remained dim. He walked closer and examined the small word underneath the switch.

Mains.

Shinji’s eyes widened, He flicked the switched, once, twice, thrice, yet the light remained bright. It was impossible, the mains was on. The only person who could control the mains was-

“Kitano.” He said out loud. Kitano, that bastard knew his plan all along. Allowed him to get this far, into a false sense of security. Letting him believe he could escape. He had been listening the whole time! The mains power combined with that of the generator (which Shinji had tripled the efficiency of) would be too much for the bulb, too much for the whole fucking tower. He had to get out of there! Now!

Leaving the Jitte Shinji snatched up the kit bag and bolted for the door. He could here the humming sound get louder, and louder. The filament was getting hotter; he only had a few seconds. He ran as fast as his legs could carry him. About forty metres from the lighthouse Shinji threw himself on the ground, he placed both hands behind his head in a brace position.

“Snatching defeat from the jaws of victory,” he sneered under his breath, knowing somehow that Kitano could hear every word he was saying. “Poor move bastard, now your really going down.”

There was a blinding light.

Followed by a deafening explosion,

Hirono: H10 to I10
Izumi? Izumi?"

Hirono bend down in front of Izumi's figure, slumped over in a cradle position, shaking and unresponsive.

Shit... she's gone through more than I have by far...

Although Hirono had been sure Izumi had been playing, she was overcome with sympathy now. Here was Izumi, looking completely helpless, and in need of Hirono's help. Still, the memories of that grenade stayed with Hirono, and she quickly walked over to Sasagawa's body to take the machine gun before Izumi did. Feeling it weighing down her hands, Hirono felt even more powerful. Protecting Mimura, protecting the plan. No harm would come to Mim while she had this baby!

But still... people out there had been playing possibly the whole time. They'd have lots of victims, lots of weapons too... maybe even better weapons. Hirono didn't know what weapons were out there, but she realised that the longer the game when on, the higher the stakes would be. Not everyone would have steel bars and fighting staffs anymore. All the dangerous people would have guns at least...

Izumi sniffed, and looked up at Hirono. As Hiro met her gaze though, she quickly looked away, and began rocking again.

"Hey, Izumi?"
No response.
"Look, me and Mim are finding a way out! Down at the lighthouse... he's worked out how to stop the collars from working and we can all go home! See, we don't have to fight anymore! Let's forget about that time we met and the grenade before, everyone was scared, right? But we can go home now. You want to come back to the lighthouse with me?"
Izumi flashed Hirono's outstreched hand a suspicious look.
Oh for gods sake, just grab it! I know you just got raped but we don't have a lot of time!
"Come on Izumi! I really wanna get back to Mim quickly... don't worry. You've got me protecting you both now. I won't let any harm come to you!"

Hirono smiled at Izumi sincerly, feeling proud of her own confidence. Protector... that was something she really could do, something useful! Protect Mimura... make sure nothing would happen...

The early morning haze was suddenly peirced violently with a dazzling flash from the south. Izumi sheilded her eyes as Hirono lept back, letting a scream out from her mouth. The lighthouse! Oh God...

Then, only a split second later came a loud rush of noise. Low booming and a flashing of high pitched sound, almost like a thunderstorm condensed into one blistering ball. Then yellow and black could be seen through the mist. A great crackling ball of yellow, and black rising from it. Smoke! There were still more crashing noises, like rock hitting rock and crumbling...

Without a thought to Izumi, Hirono rushed forward at top speed, almost ripping the muscles from her body. She had to get back to the lighthouse!
In her haste, she completely forgot about the imminent danger of I9, only just realising in time to adjust her course, running far clear of the path along the coast line.

Hirono could just picture the lighthouse in ruins, and no Shinji to be seen...

He just has to be alive! God damn you Shinji! Why the fuck didn't it work?

She was almost out of breath... her legs giving way. Her second sprint was causing her considerable pain, but she fought against it. The lighthouse was surely not far ahead... the light of the fire was getting brighter...

The path had ended... she was close, and now, through the smoke, she could see something!

"Shinji!" she screamed, running forward, dropping the guns. They both ran into each other, hugging each other as close as possible, not daring to let each other go. Hirono's legs were trembling below her, tears streaming down her face. She could hear Shinji was crying too. That didn't matter! He was allowed cry. It showed how much of a man he really was. HER man

They both pulled away from each other, their eyes meeting, and at the same time both blurted out the words:

"I love you!"

Then there was only silence

Hirono: I10 to H10
Mimura had worked for what must have been half an hour. Fiddling around with wires in the outbuilding. Hirono had stood over him, concerned that it was dangerous. She wasn't completely stupid, and she knew it was dangerous to play with electrical equipment. But Mimura seemed confident. "They've definitely switched off the mains. No electricity means it's safe!"

Hirono did trust him, but still couldn't help feeling worried. They had found some wire in the small wooden shed, and Mimura had said it would conduct electricity even though it was slightly rusted.

After he had joined the mains with the generator, he explained that then he could join the mains wire at the top of the lighthouse to the electromagnet and the electricity would travel from the generator up the mains to it. Hirono didn't really know why he still bothered to explain it all to her. She guessed he thought it was a nice thing to do, but it was making her feel stupid, and useless. As they were leaving the outbuilding to go to the top, they heard a faint sound from the island. It sounded much like a scream.

Hirono began to walk forward, but Shinji grabbed her arm. "Look, that sound could have been anything. A bird or the wind or anything."
"But if..."
"If it's a person, then that means there is a player up there too! So if we're going to go, we get weapons first!"
Hirono shook her head. "No, you have to stay here! If it's the other transfer, we might not come back alive! You have to stay here and make sure the plan works! We can't risk that now, and you're the only one who can do it!"
Shinji reached out and grabbed Hirono's hands in his own. "But I can't let you go! Why do at all?" he said, already knowing the answer to the question.. A small tear was appearing at one of his eyes, but he brushed it away quickly.

Trying to appear strong for me again. That's so sweet...

"Somebody help!"

That was definitely a voice. Hirono knew she had to go. It sounded female, but she wasn't sure. It could have easily be Hiroki from that distance, but more importantly, it might be Mitsuko. No matter what other people thought of her, Hirono wasn't about to let her best friend die out there if she could help it. Mitsuko had been the only one who had ever cared for Hirono. No one else ever showed her compassion. For all her reputation, Mitsuko had been the best friend Hirono had.

"I'll come back" she said. Then, seeing the worry still in his face, she leant forward to kiss him. "And if I don't, then you make sure this works! That's all I could ever ask of you."
She ran back into the house, and grabbed her pistol. As she was leaving, Shinji handed her Kiriyama's shotgun. She hesitated, and then took it in her trembling hands.
"Give ‘em hell Mim" she said, and with that took off.

When she reached a few meters away, she stopped, and turned to see Mimura staring after her from the doorway, his face pained. "Shinji!" she called.
He nodded.
"If I don't come back... know… know you meant more to me than anyone ever did."
Tell him you love him!
"You're... the nicest guy I've ever known...
Tell him you love him!

But before he could answer, they heard another cry.

"Please, somebody! Help!"

Without hesitation this time, Hirono turned and ran, speeding towards the path. As the reached the dirt track, she moved along to the coastline, being careful not to stray to I9. There was a slight wind coming in the opposite direction to her, but she fought against it with all her determination. Not the fastest runner in school, but at least she could get some speed.

There were two people up ahead, definitely kids. Not the exchange thank god. Which two? One seemed sat on top of the other, shoulder length blonde hair falling over the face. Hirono couldn't think quickly of who was still alive, and couldn't begin to recognise the one on the floor till she got closer.

She was still a fair distance away when the kid on top looked up. She was close enough to see the face, gasping as she realised it was Ryuhei Sasagawa. Not good, definitely not good.
Another scream came from the figure below. Definitely a girl, not Mitsuko. From that distance, Yuko or Kanai...
"Shut up!" Ryuhei screamed, hitting at the figure on the floor, as he reached down and slowly held up a gun, pointing at Hirono with a fiery look in his eyes. The same look that Chisato had…

Hirono didn't need time to think. The situation said it all. The girl's shirt was open, and Ryuhei was obviously playing. Raise a gun at Hirono Shimizu? Think again sexist fuckwit!

BANG!

Hirono fired the shotgun as she was still running. The force of the blast knocked Ryuhei off the girl on the floor. The gun reverberated and Hirono was taken by surprise of how powerful it was. She was sent to the floor painfully.

She groaned, feeling the tension in her muscles. As she slowly got to her feet, she saw the girl ahead had sat up, looking around as if confused, her face stained with tears. A face like Utsumi's, drained of life. A girl who only the day before had thrown a grenade at Hirono...

"Izumi?"

(OOC: No need to vote as it's past midnight so Ryuhei has gone NPC. And so has Yamamoto btw is anyone wants to use him ^_^)

Hirono and Shinji: I10
After Hirono had dried herself, she walked back down to the ground floor where they had left their bags. Her school uniform would have taken ages to clean, and she didn't particularly want to put it back on again considering the memories it now brought back, so she fished out some casuals. Some nice light blue jeans and a white and black T-Shirt.

Then she heard the sound of running behind her, echoing down the stairwell of the lighthouse. "It'll work! It'll work!" cried out Shinji excitedly, almost like a child.

When he bounded off the bottom step, the huge grin on his face shone at Hirono. So confident... he believes he can save us!
"The bulb at the top! And the motor... it's all like I thought it would be! This might just work Hiro!" he said, coming over and ruffling her hair.
She grabbed his arm. "Shove it Mim! Now tell me again what we're doing!"
Shinji opened his mouth to explain, "And in Japanese this time!" Hirono said, giggling.
He nodded.
"OK, in the ‘motor‘... the bit that makes the bulb go weeee!" Mim said, spinning around to demonstrate.
"Mim!" shouted Hirono warningly, before shaking her head. "Honestly... you're hopeless!"
"Sorry!" Shinji said, laughing a little. "Anyway, there's an electromagnet in it. If we can get it to emit an electromagnetic pulse... don’t' worry, you don't need to know what that is. But if we can get it to do that, then it should knock out the radio signals. How far the radius of that effect is depends on the blast, but if we give it too much power, it'll just explode, and that's our plan gone."
Hirono nodded, struggling to take it all in. "Right... and once they don't have radio's anymore, they can't tell the collars to explode, right?"
Shinji nodded, almost as if he wanted to correct Hirono, but decided against it seeing how hard she was struggling to understand as it was. "Yeah, that's about right"
"How are we gonna know how much power it needs so we won't overpower it then?" asked Hirono.
"Oh, if there is a generator, that'll be fine. There won't be enough to blow it up with that much power. For an electromagnet that size, you need mains power to blow it up, and Kitano's probably shut that off."

For Hirono however, this was becoming all too much to take in. "OK Shinji... you deal with the sciency bits. What do I need to do though?"
"Well, for starters, let's go have a look at that generator" Shinji said, grabbing her hand, and leading her out to the outhouses.

The outhouses looked friendlier in the light, white and gleaming. Not scary at all.

Inside the larger one, they found a big metallic box that had lots of dials and switches. Apparently this was the generator, and Shinji seemed to have figured out how to use it.
"You see, I can control where the power goes from here, and how much here" he said, pointing to various dials. Hirono nodded.
He turned to her, a large grin on his face. "You have absolutely no idea what I'm talking about, do you?" said Shinji, an air of playfulness in his voice. Hirono raised her middle finger and smiled. "Just don't rub it in, OK?"

After they had looked at the generator, they walked up to the top of the lighthouse, so Shinji could explain to Hirono about what they would need to do up there.
Hirono was very sceptical at first, pointing out that the bulb was broken, but Shinji assured her that didn't matter. All they had to do was redirect the power so it would go to the right place, and just swap around a few of the electronic bits to make it work how they wanted. Hirono was again completely lost. Shinji was a lot more intelligent than her, so she left him to think up the plan, helping him out by holding various things while he played around with the circuits.

Eventually, she went back down to the kitchen in search of caffeine. Shinji seemed fine up there on his own, and she felt like she was hindering rather than helping him. Looking in the cupboards, she found some, and went about making to cups of coffee. She was able to light up the cooker as it ran on gas, and it appeared that the government personnel had forgotten to switch it off, or at least just not bothered.
Soon, with two steaming mugs of dark coffee, she ascended the stairs again, only to find Mimura groaning.
"What's up?" she inquired, placing the mug next to him.
"Oh, thanks" he said, picking it up and taking a few sips. "The connections won't work. I think the cable coming up from the generator is broken... maybe we can bypass it through the mains?"
Hirono's blank stare was the only reply he got.
He smiled gently, and pulled her into his arms. "Don't worry, we'll do this."
Hirono smiled. "Sorry, I'm really no help at all. You'd have been better off with someone like Hiroki or Iijima..."
she cut off, as suddenly the memories of Iijima came back to her. Why did I have to bring him up now? Oh Hiro... how tactless!

Mimura was silent too. The thought of Iijima cast them both into a state of memory. Painful memory. Still, they had vowed never to forget what they had done.

It was looking like a lot of modification would be needed for their plan to work. Still, as the two of them gazed silently over the empty landscape before them, their determination only became greater and greater.

Shinji Mimura: Morning (I10)
There’s you,” he heard himself say, “and I don’t want to hurt you Hiro.”

He bent down and kissed her softly on the head. He then stepped out of the shower and began toweling himself down. Suddenly aware of his naked state Shinji bashfully pulled on his boxers. Hirono paused from washing her hair and gave him a faint look of amusement.

“Not getting a complex now are you Shinji?” she laughed, “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before!”

He winked at her, “Would you prefer me to strut around naked then?” he chuckled,”No offence Hiro, but I know how distracting I am to girls, especially you.” At this point he gently ran the tip of his finger down her wet nose, she batted him away.

“Fuck off.” She replied playfully.

Shinji continued to dress while Hirono finished her shower. God, he thought as he watched her, I can’t believe how close I was to losing her. He recalled the feeling he had in his stomach after he had dropped the body of the transfer student. The fact he had just taken a life was by far the furthest thing from his mind. He was desperately worried about her. He had leapt into the pit clumsily and had dug through the bare soil with his hands, using the shovel hadn’t even occurred to him. As soon as he saw he fingertips poking above the soil he had grabbed them desperately, sick with fear of what he might find. With a sharp pull her head and torso emerged from the earth, she was a mess, bedraggled and covered with Oki’s decomposing flesh. But she was coughing and spluttering and alive. Shinji couldn’t even begin to explain that feeling. It was like nothing he had ever felt before, he had clung her to his body to make sure she was real. That’s when he realised; she meant more to him than any girl ever had. She was more than just a fuck. He loved her.

Whether she felt the same way he had no idea. Shinji wasn’t prepared to tell her about his sudden realisation. Battle Royale was not a place for confessions of love, eyes on the game Mim, stay frosty, and the two of you just might get out of this alive.

Finally noticing him staring at her, a rosy shade of pink suddenly rose in Hirono’s cheeks.

“What?” she asked.

Shinji’s answer was interrupted by Kitano’s voice echoing over the island, Shinji checked his watch. Six in the am, right on time.

“Hey everybody! Kitano here with the 4th report! I'm sure you're all dying to hear how the competition has been cut down since last report! Here are the recent deaths in order!”

Shinji clenched his fists, fucking bastards getting off on this! God, I would love to wipe that lopsided smile off his face, he thought.

“Girls #7 Yumiko Kusaka, Boys #2 Keita Iijima, Girls #9 Chisato Matsui, Girls #1 Mizuho Inada, Girls #20 Kaori Minami, Boys #6 Kazuo Kiriyama”

Shinji took out his map and hastily wrote down the danger zones before he allowed himself to grieve for his fallen classmates. Kiriyama so that had been the name of the guy he had killed. That guy was from hell itself, surprised that he even had a name, he was barely human. Keita’s name he had obviously anticipated but his appearance in the roster added a grim finality on that whole incident. Shinji would never forget the crushed remnants of his best friends face for as long as he lived. But the name that really did surprise him was-

“Oh god, Chisato!” Hirono gasped, all the rosy colour had drained from her face it was now a deathly shade of white. “That was me wasn’t in Shinji? I killed her, it was me!”

Shinji’s chest went tense; he recalled Hirono’s gun firing Chisato’s failing body spinning around, Chisato running stricken into the woods. That was the last time either of them saw her alive. But that didn’t mean Hiro had been the one that killed her, She had shot Chisato in the shoulder, it more likely she had ran into someone else, Mitsuko or one of the transfers maybe.

Hirono was trembling, Shinji realised that this was the time when she shouldn’t be left without support. She needed him. He took her in his arms once more.

“You didn’t kill her Hiro, I saw, I know it wasn’t you.” He rocked her gently, “She was dead the moment she shot Keita. Those bastards, those motherfuckers who run this thing, it was there doing, they are responsible for Chisato’s death!”

She looked up at him, her eyes hot with tears. “Let’s finish this.” She hissed.

One thought and one thought only sang itself through Shinji’s head at that moment.

Mitsuko Souma’s right hand maiden.

Hirono Shimizu

He loved her

Hirono and Shinji: I10
Oki’s internal organs had spilled all over Hirono’s body. Most of them were completely putrid anyway, but she could also feel all the maggots wriggling over her bare arms and under her shirt. Then before she could scream out again, she felt something land on her head.

It had been a large clot of earth, and another, and another. They were coming in to fast for Hirono to climb out! Pushing her down, the weight getting stronger on top of her head. There was some sort of a hollow created between Oki and Hirono’s bodies, but the more the earth was pushed down, the smaller it got, pushing her face closer and closer to Oki’s…

Hirono couldn’t help but to vomit again, causing the vile juices to rise even higher, around her neck. She couldn’t grab hold of the ground underneath, it was soaking everything up and becoming mud. The smell now was invading her nose with no mercy. Pouring relentlessly into her lungs, filling her up.

She gagged again, but there was no vomit left. She had been completely drained.

Then she heard the muffled sound of a gunshot above her, through the earth. She struggled to push upward, try to get out, but she was too weak, she could hardly move. Finding it hard to breath… she felt drowsy, overcome with sleep, finding it hard to stay conscious. The world kept flashing out from her senses, and then she was plunged back again into the underground pool.

Can’t fall asleep now! Must hold on… if I fall asleep my head will fall forward and I’ll drown in… in…

Even the thought made Hirono gag again. Unnatural spasms of movement. Death was creeping up on her…

No, oh god no! Please… not like this!

Suddenly, a flash of light opened up above her, and then two hands reached into the hole, plunging into the horrible liquid and under Hirono’s armpits, lifting her up, out!

She fell lifelessly to the ground next to the hole, showing no signs of being alive, say coughing and struggling to breath. Someone was standing over her now, saying something, rubbing the vomit from her neck.

“Hirono! Hirono!”

Hirono flailed around on the floor a few moments more, before reeling over onto her front, and throwing up just a little more. She could feel someone from behind her, lifting her head up away from it. Her head was pounding, her mind still tormented by what had just happened. She felt like fainting. But she refused. She couldn’t faint, not now! Who had been digging her in? She had to find out.

She forced her eyes open. The light was still faint, but she could see quite clearly. “Shinji!” she said hoarsely. He smiled back at her, a look of relief on his face. The both reached out, and grabbed each other tightly.

“I thought I’d lost you…”

Is Shinji crying again? Crying for me? … No one’s ever cried for me before…

“We’d better get you cleaned up” said Shinji soothingly as they released their grip. Hirono really was a mess, she could feel it, but she refused to look down, afraid of what she would see. Gazing at Shinji, she realised that their embrace had got him filthy as well. “You too” she said, smiling gently.

As they both stood up, Hirono saw the body next to the pit. “Who?” she began.
“A transfer” said Shinji, without a shred of pity in his voice.
“You got a transfer? He… he tried to burry me in there?”
Shinji nodded.
“God, I hope the other one isn’t like that.”
“But… he will be.” stated Shinji. “Why else would they be here?”
Hirono slowly nodded. That’s what she had thought that very first night, and it had just been proven. Still, one of them was dead, one left to go. They weren’t variables anymore, they were targets.
She walked over to the body, trembling a little, and then grabbed him by the legs.
“Hiro?” said Shinji, concerned.
Without paying attention to him, Hirono began to drag the body of the transfer over to the pit. “I’m sorry Oki” she whispered. “He’s not good enough for you. If there is an afterlife… make sure you kick his ass for me.”
And with that, she pushed the body of the transfer headfirst down into the hole. She heard a satisfying splash.
Then she got the shovel, and began to put back some more Earth, covering up the hole. When she was done, the patch of Earth showed no signs that there were 2 bodies underneath.

Shinji has stood watching her as she did it, knowing when not to interfere. A look of confusion on his face. Almost like a mathematician who thinks he has cracked a problem at long last, only to realise that it is a lot more complex than he first imagined.

Hand in hand, the pair of them walked into the lighthouse. Being careful not to touch Utsumi’s body, they climbed up the stairs till they found the bathroom. It was small, and in the moonlight: poorly lit. Shinji flicked the light switch hopefully, and the light buzzed on.
“Oh, Maybe Kitano left the power grid on” he said, smiling.
“Or maybe the lighthouse has a separate generator?” said Hirono, proud to have thought all by herself.
Shinji nodded. “Yes, you’re right! A power cut in a lighthouse?… not a good idea. They probably prepared for that with a back-up power source. Maybe that’s what the outbuilding’s for!”

They smiled at each other. Neither of them felt pity for Kiriyama. In fact, Hirono was glad he was dead. He had no fucking right to come here and kill her classmates. He deserved what he got. She was just sad they hadn’t got him earlier. Maybe that would have saved more lives. At least they knew what to do now if they found the other one.

Hirono begun to run the water in the shower. It was cold, and seemed reluctant to turn warm. She sighed. It was better than nothing. Without really thinking about it, the both of them began to strip out of their dirty clothes, and climbed into the shower together. It was a little cramped, but still, if there was only a certain amount of water, they were better off showering together.

It was only after a few minutes that they actually realised that they were naked together again. Their eyes met uncertainly, almost questioningly.

Gradually, Hirono lent forward. “There isn’t anyone here for us to hurt anymore.” she said nervously, and kissed him gently on the lips.
“There’s you,” begun Shinji sincerely, “and I don’t want to hurt you Hiro.” He pulled back.

Restraint from Shinji? The guy who would fuck anything with tits? He obviously doesn’t like you as much as you think Hiro!

Or maybe… just maybe, that’s because he likes you more than you realise…

Shinji Mimura: Confrontation (I10)
Shinji! What the hell are you doing in there? I need to use the phone Goddammit!”

Shinji looked up from his laptop and heaved a heavy sigh. He quickly minimized the email he was composing and went to his door, opening it a fraction. He was faced with his father’s irate face.

“Chill old man,” he laughed, eyebrows raised, this expression seemed to annoy his father even more. He exploited that fact. “Just sending an email, I’ll be a few minutes max!” winking cheekily he proceeded to slam the door in his parent’s face. No sooner had he returned to his screen there came a heavy banging noise. His father was obviously trying to break down his door. Shinji ignored it and proceeded to finish off his email. It read the following:

Hey Natsuko,
It’s been fun, but I think we should see other people; we’ve grown apart since last week. I’m sure you could easily find someone else.
Stay beautiful honey, signed Shinji.

He clicked send. Hmmm, he thought, breaking up over e-mail, not too harsh Mim. Never mind, the girls know what your like, she’ll get over it. He had treated girls like this for as long as he could remember; his Dad had always said he got it from his Uncle, because he certainly didn’t learn any playboy antics from him. He lay back on his bed arms behind his head, thinking ahead to who he could score with at Ryuhei’s party tonight. Izumi’s gonna be there, he smiled to himself. Target acquired. He closed his eyes and listened to his father still banging on his door, no need to tell him yet, let him sweat it out.

“Shinji!” Mimuras eyes snapped open, he was in the lighthouse, Yukie Utsumi’s body lay in front of him. Defiled. An ugly death, no doubt about it.

“Shinji!”

God, he must be going crazy, he could still hear that voice. But there was something different, it didn’t sound at all like his overbearing father’s voice. Too feminine, more of a scream, it sounded more like-

“Hirono!” Shinji leapt to his feet, grabbing his gun off the floor from by Yukie’s feet. How the fuck could he have forgotten about her? She had gone out to bury the corpses, alone. Shinji didn’t even remember her leaving. He looked out of the window, he could still hear Hirono’s cries, but he couldn’t see her. Where was she? To his horror, Shinji saw something that made his blood run cold.

Outside, by one of the holes Hirono must have dug, stood someone holding a shovel. They were slowly filling up the hole with dirt. Shovelling it in, very slowly. Shinji didn’t recognise him. It was one of the transfers, the psycho, Kazuo something… He had a shotgun slung over his back, so why was he digging? And where was Hirono…

Oh fuck, he was burying her. ALIVE. He had to save her, rational thought completely left his brain. He threw open the doorway and ran as fast as he could towards the transfer student. So someone had followed them. Shinji had always been a superb athlete; he could run the 100m faster than anyone else at Shirowia High. He was already halfway there before Kazuo looked up. A small expression of surprise washed across his face as he dropped the shovel and snatched up the shotgun. Shinjis eyes widened, I’m dead now

At the last minute Shinji spun around and dodged to the right, a basketball dodge he had picked up. The ground where he had just been standing exploded.

BLAM!

He continued to run; he had to get there before the motherfucker could get another shot off, quick! Kazuo pumped the shotgun ejecting the empty cartridges. His finger hovered over the trigger. He was too slow; He was barely four metres away from the transfer student when he pulled the trigger. Shinji closed his eyes.

“Shinji!” Hirono’s screamed from the pit.

Click.

Kazuo barely had time to register his surprise before Shinji hit him. A full on tackle to the stomach, both boys went sprawling in the grass. Shinji positioned both of his knees over the transfer’s shoulders pinning him down. He had him beaten and still the fucking maniac was grinning up at him. That psycho smile, baring all his teeth. The kind of smile Shinji had seem Mitsuko Souma pull off once in a while. This bastard was insane, there was no emotion there.

Shinji raised his Beretta to Kazuo’s face.

“Endgame, motherfucker” he hissed through gritted teeth, “No one fucking touches my girl.”

He pulled the trigger.

(OOC: believe it or not this is my first potential kill, Does Shinji kill Kazuo? The time is 3.30pm London time; the vote will end in twenty four hours. Thank you very much.)

Hirono and Shinji: I10
“Oh god, Hiro,” he whispered, just loud enough to hear. “They took everything from her,”

Hirono could see he was right. Utsumi's face had been completely drained. It wasn't just battered and torn and bloody. It was more than that. Almost as if her life had ended before she was killed. There was nothing of the girl they had known in that face. But not like Chisato's had been. Chisato had been overcome by the game. The girl she was had been replaced. Utsumi... was different. Nothing was replaced. There was nothing in her face, absolutely nothing left. Some fucker had taken it from her, her life.

Mimura sat kneeling by the body, looking removed from the world completely. He looked just like Utsumi now, almost as if the game was taking him away too...

Hirono rushed over to him, and took him into her arms, squeezing him tightly. "Don't leave me now... we still have work to do. Everytime you see a body, make yourself more determined! This is no reason to give up Shinji! This is why we have to do something!"

He turned his head to face her. His eyes had watered up. Seeing one of their classmates, especially Yukie in such a state like this seemed to have broken down that invisible wall Shinji had build between himself and the rest of the world. It was the first time Hirono had ever seen him cry. It gained even more respect from her though. He wasn't being weak at all. Whoever had done that to Utsumi, given into the game so easily... they were at fault.

After holding him for a while, she realised he needed to just be alone there. He was completely absorbed by his own thoughts. He had been good friends with Utsumi, and she figured he needed to say goodbye to her. She decided to search the little out building as there wasn't really anything else to do until Shinji was up and willing to enact the plan.

The out building had already been searched for the most part. Beside it stood a tiny derelict wooden shed, slowly rotting down. Neither of them had figured anyone would be inside... far to damp to spend the night. Cautiously, Hirono walked up to it, and placed her hand on the latch.

The door fell away with her light strength. The hinges hadn't been attached to the frame very well. The interiour was dark and musty, and cluttered with various tools. None would be any good as a weapon though. They were all rusty and far too heavy. Carrying them round would be a waste of time. But at the back, underneath a small pile of more tools lay something Hirono thought would come in handy.

Shinji was still sitting there, in a blank withdrawn state when Hirono returned. He looked up, slightly confused at the object she now held in her hands. She smiled gently, unsure if she was doing something good or whether she was offending him. She coughed nervously. "Err... well we have a while before the first report... and the ground here is really soft..."

Shinji still seemed blank and vacant, but there was a flash of something in his face. Hirono struggled to work out if he was saying yes or not. "I know it might be a little... challenging considering Oda, but it's the least we can do." she said. She waved the shovel she had found in the air, trying to attract Shinji's attention. He still seemed to be looking straight through her. She walked up to him, almost reluctantly. "OK, don't worry about it, you just stay here, and I'll be back when the report is done."
As she was turning to leave again, she hesitated, and then quickly kissed him on the cheek before walking back out.

Yuka was simple enough. Her face and parts of her body had been crushed, and horribly mutilated on the ground, but they were facing down. It seemed to Hirono like she had been pushed. Despite herself, she couldn't help thinking there was still someone up there, looking down at her. Ready to drop something heavy...

She tried to rid her mind of those thoughts. They weren't helping anyone. The ground was slightly wet from the rain, and digging was fairly easy, despite the state of the shovel. Hirono was sweating by the time she finished, but she managed to dig a decent size hole in the ground. It was by no means neat and rectangle, more just a round hole, but it was better than just the ground. She climbed back out, and walked over to Yuka's body. She stood still, breathing heavily for a while, preparing herself. The corpse seemed scary, and Hirono wasn't keen to touch it.

Eventually, plucking up her courage, she grabbed at Yuka's waist, and pulled the body over to the shallow grave. A trail of blood and some various body organs were left behind, and Hirono tried to block them from her mind. She struggled to remember why the hell she was doing this. She wasn't friends with Yuka. Still, it seemed like the right thing to do. More dignified. Hirono laughed at herself. Ha! Dignity? What the fuck do you know about that?

When they reached the grave, Hirono gave Yuka one final push. Memo to self: Next time dig right next to the body! Not a few feet away!" As Yuka's body fell into the grave, it turned over, face up. Hirono was taken aback, and felt herself about to throw up. The corpse had all been beaten and mashed together. Part of the face had been facing up when Yuka was lying on the ground, but now Hirono could see the other side. There was no skin left, just muscle and congealed blood with bits of bone sticking out. Quickly, she rushed to the shovel and began to pile the earth back into the grave. Once Yuka had been covered, Hirono fell back to the ground, panting.

Oda would be worse, a lot worse. Hirono didn't really want to do it, but she had buried Yuka. To leave Oda on the ground seemed insulting.

This time, she began to dig the earth right near the body. It would only be a matter of tipping him in this time. The smell was overpowering, completely filling Hirono's nostrils and lungs. The smell of decay and rotting flesh. She adopted the tactic of breathing through her mouth, as she could smell it a lot less then. It became more bareable, but stil sickening. Digging away at the earth seemed almost theraputic. It was mechanical, and mindless, and seemed to be calming her down. It also made her feel like she had something useful to do, some sort of purpose.

Soon they would be able to destroy Kitano's reign of power, if Mimura's plan worked. She hoped so much it would. There was probably little help left if it failed. Already heavy casualties had been taken. Not much of their class were left. The island felt empty and haunted, and Hirono could hardly imagine that others were still alive somewhere out there... but they had to fight for them. They all deserved to go home. All appart from whoever had done that to Utsumi. Who had it been? The transfers? Maybe Ryuhei or Numai? And of course Niida... probably him most likely of all. Sick fucker...

Hirono had been too caught up in thought, not having realised how much she had dug, and in what direction. She had been slowly excavating the side Oda's body was on, slowly carving out a large overhang. His body was slipping! The hole itself wasn't very big, and as Hirono struggled to get out, she slipped on something. She looked down at her foot and screamed. One of Oda's lungs must have fallen out, and she had stepped on it! She felt the vomit rising again, and this time she let it out. It almost exploded from her mouth, spraying all over her body. She tried to get up again, slipping once more on all the vomit. Her hed hit against the side of the grave, against a small peice of rock. It was tiny but still caused huge pain. Hirono wailed once more, and before she could try to get up again, Oda's body tipped and fell into the grave, ontop of Hirono...

"SHINJI!"

Shinji Mimura: Departed Friends (I10)
As they ran Shinji made sure he kept at least ten metres clear of the left side of the track. He checked his map, he was right, the right hand side of that track lay I9. Danger zone. Shinji had no plans of committing suicide, he was going to keep well clear of that particular booby trap. Personally he had no idea whether this plan would even work, but Hiro was counting on him. To be honest, he didn’t really think Hirono even understood the plan; she was never a one to actually show up to class. What Shinji had planned had been formulated out of information his tutors had taught him and solid knowledge his uncle had drummed into him since he was about eight. One good turn deserves another Unc, gonna bring these bastards down thanks to you, he thought.

He looked past Hirono to his right at the track. Thank fuck that was there, damn map’s so general you cant tell which fucking zone your’e in. But one thing the map did indicate, the track ended in I10. They were safe. He signalled for Hirono to stop and showed her the map.

“We’re clear,” he said, pointing towards the end of the track “But we need to act fast. Go in, get the stuff, get out, ok?”

She nodded and checked her watch, “No doubt about that, the next reports in an hour and a half, H10 goes danger and we are well and truly fucked.”

“Yeah” he responded, squinting ahead of him. The sun was just starting to rise, a beautiful orange tinge illuminated the horizon. It being mid summer, sunrise was always about four thirty for this time of year. It was too risky to use their flashlights now, the less attention they attracted the better. He could see the large silhouette of the lighthouse in front of him; it was still mostly dark so it was difficult to pick out details. They had no idea is there was anyone in there or not. There were no lights on, at least that was one good sign. Still holding Hiro’s hand they continued moving forward, slower than before.

“We need to be cautious,” he hissed, eyes never wavering from the tower “Even this far into the game, there could still be someone hiding out there, if there players we take them out no questions asked, got that?”

“Don’t preach to me Shinji” came the reply, “I’m not completely stupid.”

A few seconds later, barely 20 metres from the entrance of the lighthouse the duo came across something that would definitely not be classed as a good sign.

“Oh my god, Tatsumichi!” gasped Hirono, her hand to her mouth. Shinji had to admit he felt the sudden urge to retch. He hadn’t even recognised the body of Tatsumichi Oki (Male student #3), even though he had practically seen him everyday. He was surprised that Hirono even recognised him. It was barely recognisable as human. His body had been riddled with bullets, there were two in the handball players face, at least four in his chest. It was impossible to see how many times he had been hit in the stomach, not that it even mattered. Shinji could see straight into the contents of Okis stomach, his abdomen was like the bin from a sausage factory. The smell was over powering, despite his state Tatsumichi's organs still seemed to be moving, pulsing up and down. Shinji knelt closer, then instantly pulled away, disgusted.

Maggots

He was literally crawling with maggots. It was obvious he had been dead for a while. And what’s more Tatsumichi’s killer could still be nearby, holed up in the lighthouse. He doubted it though. Whoever had done this was ruthless, a killer, and a killer was not going to get prey by staying in the same place all the time. It was very likely they had moved on. Hopefully.

“Lets go, Hiro, its not like there’s anything we can do to make it better.” He said calmly, even though his mind was racing. “Let’s just finish this.”

She nodded with her hand still over her mouth, there was a small out building about 10 metres from there position, They ran to the wall nearest them. Look around the corner Shinji picked up several rocks from the ground and took aim. Shinji was pretty good a baseball, but he was no Shuuya Nanahara, but he could throw a ball pretty accurately, basketball was more game. The second floor window shattered. Shinji ducked, expecting a reaction from someone inside, if there was any. Best be safe he thought, and threw again, this time at the base floor window. This too shattered. Looks like there was a shoot out here. All of the other windows on the first floor had all been blown out, what the fuck happened here?

They waited for five full minutes until they began their final approach, watching intently for any movement. None came, there was no one inside that lighthouse. He was positive. As they reached the door Hirono hit him hard on the shoulder and pointed to there right. He paused and followed her finger.

It was another body, less decomposed than Tatsumichi but still a complete mess. At least he could still recognise this one. He check over the body for weapons, satisfied he walked back to where Hirono was standing in front of the doorway. She looked at him, arms folded. In his head he smiled despite the situation. Tough, little Hiro still trying to play it cool. It was probably for his benefit, he appreciated the gesture, if you could call it that, anyway.

“Well…?”she asked.

“Nakagawa” he replied.

“Which one?” she sighed, another classmate gone, ”There are two Nakagawas in our class.”

“Yuka” Shinji said flatly, calling on memories of the happier than happy Yuka Nakagawa. Shinji had always found her annoying as hell, but she had a knack of making other people happy. He respected that, she didn’t deserve to die, just like everyone else, she didn’t deserve to be put in this fucking Battle Royale. Yuka deserved a full and happy life just like any other kid, except perhaps the fucker who had done this to her.

He continued ,”Looks like she was taken out by the same guy who got Tatsumichi. That guys ruthless”

“Or girl,” she added. Shinji’s mind was cast back to that incident. The laughter, shot after shot fired into the air, Keita’s ruined face, the sickening crack as his skull bounced off the rock. Yes, he thought, girls could kill too, they are just as deadly. Don’t make no difference if it’s a guy or a girl pointing a gun at your face, doesn’t make you any less dead.

The door to the lighthouse creaked as they entered, they still proceeded with caution despite the fact Shinji was sure there was no one inside. Hirono’s voice came from behind him

“What is this thing we’re looking for anyway? This electro-doowackey?” Shinji snorted and was about to correct her when he saw someone that made him freeze. Feet, he could see feet poking out into hall from the first room on the left. He hurried forward and was aghast at what he saw.

It was the female class representative Yukie Utsumi (Female Student #2) she lay on her back in the middle of the floor, blood spread all around her, oozing from a crack in her head, her nose was broken. Large bruises covered her arms and legs and one on her cheek. Yukie had obviously put up a fight. Shinji feel to his knees, Hirono remained standing behind him arms folded across her chest.

“Yukie?” Shinji called softly, “Yukie what happened to you?” he had always had a soft spot for the representative, she was hot, no doubt about that, but here sheer charisma, Shinji loved that most of all, Yukie could light up a room with out even trying. Now she also had joined the roster of their dead friends. Yukie’s skirt was ridden up around her waist, as Shinji tried to pull it down (she deserved a little dignity after all) he noticed something. Down there, wasn’t just blood, sure there was blood, no doubt about that, pools of it. But there was something else.

“Always” came Hirono’s voice behind him, sounding outraged. “There’s always a little blood…the first time.”

He brought his trembling hands to his face, how could some fucker do this? How could they do this to someone so cheerful and happy, this was wrong, this was worse than any sin. The motherfucker who had done this deserves to burn, slowly. His inside squirmed incessantly.

“They raped her.” He hissed clenching his fists tightly, so his nails cut into his palms. “And then they killed her. Just when they made her feel like she couldn’t get lower, serious emotional torture, the kind that would scar someone for life…then they dashed her brains out.”

He turned to Hirono, who was still standing by the door, he could feel tears trickling down his face.

“Oh god, Hiro,” he whispered, just loud enough to hear. “They took everything from her,”
Link

Hirono and Shinji: G9 to H9 and beyond
After their breif moment of rest, Shinji and Hirono once again prepared to set off.

"Shinji?" Hirono said meekly as they begun to march forward. The strength seemed drained from her voice, and she surprised herself to hear it.
"Yeah?" Shinji's was closer to how it had been before. Strong and emotionless, yet now it was laced with what seemed an essence of guilt, or possibly regret.
"Are you sure the plan is gonna work?"

As soon as she had said it, she regreted it. Stupid Hirono! She had to trust Shinji... not question him! Not now...

She felt him squeeze her hand. "Course I'm not sure. But it's all I've got, sorry."
A silence decended on them. Shinji coughed. "But hey, don't worry! I'll make it work!"

His cheery attitute spread somewhat to Hirono. She smiled, once again thinking of Chisato, Iijima and Yoshimi. They were going to get revenge. Revenge for how much the government had fucked up their lives.

Looking again at their maps they paused, and looked at each other. The light from their flashlights below only highlighted their faces lightly, but they could still see the determination in each other's smiled. "Ready?"
Hirono nodded. Before them lay I9, a danger zone. They were ready for it. Not as scary anymore. Hand in hand, they plucked up all their energy, strength and determination, and ran forward.

[to be continued...]

Hirono and Shinji: G7 to H9
Don't run off on me," he said calmly "I have no plans that contain losing you."

Hirono was slightly taken aback. No one had ever said anything like that to her before. Well... there had been one person...

"Don't worry Hirono, I'm not leaving!" he said beaming. The 8 year old Hirono smiled, and reached out to hug her dad. Mummy and Daddy had been shouting lots, and that made Hirono sad. She used to cry alone in her room because she was scared to go out into the hallway...
But Daddy said he was going to stay! Hirono's dad was the coolest dad in the world... so he meant it!
Hirono didn't really understand what the shouting was all about, she thought maybe it was because Mummy was getting fat. Her belly had gotten really fat, and Daddy kept yelling at her "Don't do it!" Hirono imagined he meant eating too much ice cream. Hirono liked ice cream, but she didn't ever dare to eat any in case Daddy shouted at her too...
Then one day, Mummy went out, and came back a few hours later. She wasn't tubby anymore, her belly looked normal. Daddy went really mad and hit Mummy. Then he shouted something about "killing it". Hirono didn't have a clue what he meant, and he was walking out of the door, so she ran after him. He had already climbed into his car when she got outside. She had ran after the car several streets, as it slowly speed into the distance. She had never run like that, and she had to stay in bed the next day because her legs hurt too much. Daddy never came back...

Mimura reached out his hand, ready for Hirono to grab it. Should I really...? Staring up into his face, she couldn't help to think of Iijima. They had both brought about his death, and probably Chisato's too. Hirono had shot at her... who knows if she was already dead? But could she stay with him? After all they had been through?

He actually trusts me... he says he's going to stay... and he means it! What if he really does mean it...

She slowly reached out, and grabbed his hand. He pulled her up, and she took in a deep breath, trying to calm her racing heart. They quickly gathered up their belongings and stuffed them into the kit bags. Mimura had loosely explained his plan, and although Hirono didn't really understand most of it (Science was never her good subject) she trusted that it would work. Because Mimura said so, and he was the only one left for her to believe in. Where was Mitsuko now? Hirono had already been through so much... she didn't feel like Hirono the sidekick. It was strange to think, but Mitsuko seemed more like an old long lost friend than the girl she had sat next to on the bus such a short while ago.

With the threat of someone approaching, possibly a transfer, they switched their flashlights on, and set of south. The moonlight was diminishing as clouds covered the sky, like a veil of darkness. Hirono couldn't help to think of when the flag was lowered to half mast... it was fitting, thinking about who they were leaving behind. Iijima, Chisato, Yoshimi... this is for you!

A few moments after they had started walking, Hirono felt Mimura reach out and grab her hand. She cast a confused look at him. This time it felt different... with Iijima it had felt weird, almost uncomfortable. With Mimura it felt natural. Their fingers intertwined as they walked further and further away from where the dreaded scene had played out.

Just the two of them, and possibly anyone else friendly they met on the way. Just them two. Hirono was in some way glad. She knew she could rely on Mimura. She felt she understood him. They were very alike, and it was a practical miracle they had never felt that before they got here. Still, it was time to leave all that behind. Anytime she thought about Mimura that way, Iijima's bloody head rose up like a spectre in the front of her mind. She couldn't do that to Iijima. She would never know exactly what he had felt for her, but it still felt like treachery to think of Mimura like she had thought of Iijima only a day ago... Time to focus on the matter in hand. Getting off the island was their only priority. Last time they had let that slip from their mind, they had lost two allies.

It must have been around 3am when they came to rest on the coast of H9. Looking at her map, and checking the coast shape lying in front of her, Hirono imagined they had only just got into the zone. They still had 3 hours left till the next report, by rough estimation.

The two of them sat side by side on the coast, flashlights turned off to stop anyone seeing them. In the near darkness, they took quick drinks from their water too keep them going through the night. The game was getting a lot tougher. Hirono could feel Mimura's presence beside her. She's never felt that close to anyone before. Maybe Mimura was her soulmate? It seemed like an eternity since their first meeting in the forest, Now Mimura was insisting she had a gun.

Then she remembered something else. She had shot Yoshimi, and Mimura had lied for her. Iijima had died thinking Hirono had never killed... his last image of her was a complete lie. If he'd known who she really was, would he have loved her at all? All stupid questions to ask. The government had taken away the chance for an answer. In the dark, a silent tear fell from her cheek. A tear for Iijima. She felt Mimura put a comforting arm around her again. This time, it wasn't initiating anything, it was nothing more than comfort. That's exactly what she had needed...

Somehow, he knew. More than that. He understood...

Shinji Mimura: Run (G7 to G9)
It had been over an hour since Chisato had run away. Leaving Hirono and Shinji with what used to be Keita Iijima, used to be Shinji could feel hot tears running down his face, despite desperate attempts to keep his feelings within him, the tears kept coming. Keita I'm so sorry, he thought gazing up at the sky, anywhere but the mess of gore that just only an hour ago, had been his best friend. Who did he have now? Who did he have to hear his master plan? Shuuya? dead, Yutaka? dead, Nobu? dead,Keita? dead, Chisato? as good as dead, lost to the game. The only person out there he could hope to contact was Hiroki, and who knows where he could be. The Transfers were still out there, as far as he knew, and Mitsuko too, he was fast becoming very short of friends. His last real hope was currently cradled in his arms, breathing softly.

Hirono

He had royally screwed her over, nice job Shinji, he thought. Its a miracle she even slightly trusts you at all. You took advantage of her when she most needed comfort. She'll never forgive you for that. But shes all you have, the fact she hadnt shot him means that she probably felt the same. He looked around from his position on the grass, jesus, what a mess. Three kit bags were strewn everywhere, one soaked with Keitas blood. Shinjis shirt still lay where he had dropped it after Hiro had slapped him. He raised his hand to his cheek, god I cant believe that still hurts. Bitch certainly can bite as much as she barks. Thank god no one was around to see tha-.

Shinjis eyes suddenly widened. It all played back in his head, the yelling, the screaming, Chisato shooting shot after shot into the air, the laughing.

Fuck God Shinji you are such a fucking idiot! So busy focussing on your feelings you forgot you were in a fucking fight to the death? Holy shit, you really are a fucking retard. He shook Hirono awake.

"Wha? Huh? Whats up?" she said dreamily wiping her eyes.

"Whats up? We've gotta get fucking moving!" he said urgently "I'm so stupid, sleeping after a ruckus like that! Who knows who could have heard that?"

Hirono suddenly looked very awake, he saw her mouth the word: Shit. They both lept up. Hirono frantically started stuffing everything into two kit bags, water, bread, compasses. Shinji ran over to get his shirt and hastily pulled it on.

"Oh my god! How could you have let me sleep? Thanks to Chisatos little performance fucking tranfers could be on there way right now!!" she hissed at him.

"I know" he replied curtly buttoning up his shirt, "We took our eyes off the game Hiro, for two seconds I lost control and now look." he gesturing unspecifcally around him. "We've got to get out of here."

Both now fully dressed, he slung both the kit bags over his shoulder. One of them contained Keita's Jitte and rations. He look solemnly at his friend one last time. I'll fucking get them for you Keita, bring these motherfuckers down for you and Chisato, see if I don't. Hirono shoved a new magazine into her gun. Chisato had run off with her original weapon. There was no question about letting Hiro have a gun anymore. He trusted her, he had to, she was all he had. She shared his guilt, and that shared pain had erected what seemed to be a powerful bond between them. One not easily broken. Shinji looked proudly at her, he was starting to feel things for her, he had never felt this about anyone else. He didn't think he was capable of that. He sighed, if we get out of this; we'll talk. I'm not letting my feelings hinder our safety anymore. Eye on the ball Mim, stay frosty.

Holding his Beretta in his left hand, his right found Hirono's. She looked up at him shocked. He grinned at her.

"Don't run off on me," he said calmly "I have no plans that contain losing you."

Hirono still looked shocked. Shinji shrugged, christ, that was practically an outpouring of emotion, and she still looked shocked? Hmmm, he thought, this girls going to take more working out than others. But not now, we dont have time. And with that they ran together, hands still clasped tightly with intertwining fingers. They ran from the body of Iijima, they ran from what they had done, their sin. They would continue wearing the burden of what they had done, he thought. He would be wearing it for the rest of his life.

Hirono: G7
Get dressed,"

Hirono watched Mimura put his trousers back on almost in a trance. It seemed so strange. Why did he even need to get dressed? Clothes had come from civilization, and both of them had proven they didn't deserve that anymore. Iijima, poor Iijima was dead. Chisato run off into the night. If her name came up next report, in 6 hours, then Hirono would never ever know if it was her who killed her. From the way she had spun around, Hirono imagined she had hit her, but where? How badly? She'd never know...

She stood up, her head boiling with emotions. Rage, regret, and sexual appetite. It was still there. Hirono didn't know if that was just because of what she had just done, or partly to do with her previous lifestyle, but either way, she still wanted it. A tear trickled down her cheek. Chisato run off, maybe dying at that very moment, and Iijima dead, his brain splattered over a rock, and Hirono couldn't help thinking about sex. She disgusted herself. Just like an animal...

She stepped over to Mimura. She was so fucking angry... condoms in his bag almost as if he'd planned the whole thing. "You... You took advantage of me, I was mourning the death of my best friends, and all you could think about was getting your rocks off?! This is so you Shinji, this is what you do isn't it? I've seen you do this to so many others, I never thought it could happen to me. I thought I was above this kind of pain." Hirono picked up her kit bag, and threw it at Mimura in anger, trying to find an outlet. He didn't move as it hit him. He was just lucky she didn't have a weapon in it. Although she still wanted to hurt him, him being hurt wasn't making herself feeling any better. It just made her feel worse.

Still, Mimura hadn't moved. Stupid fucking arsehole! Doesn't he care? Does he not realise what happened here? What we did here? Letting me hurt him, and not moving? Trying to get sympathy? Does he not realise?

More and more rage, like nothing Hirono had ever felt. Not as much rage as this for Yoshimi for attacking her, not as much rage when Mimura had almost killed her. She raised a finger, pointing at Iijima's body.

"His death is on our watch!" she screamed, "And look at you? You don’t fucking care do you? It our fault he’s dead, ours. If we hadn't...if" She couldn't take it anymore. What if...? If her and Iijima survived? What could there have been? A relationship, marriage, kids? It might have happened. Now it wouldn't. She certainly wasn't about to let Mimura replace him... Mimura who would do that to her. Not that she could blame him for everything. It's my fault too! I let him! I even enjoyed it! But Hirono badly needed someone to blame. Someone to hate for a while, as she could never forgive herself. Too much pain, she needed to vent it somewhere.

She felt hands come around her body once more. This time she knew it couldn't be Yoshimi. Nor Chisato or Iijima either. It would never ever by Iijima. That chance was gone. If it hadn't been for Mimura! The bastard! Now it would never be Iijima!

She turned, and beat at his still bare chest. Beat as hard as she could. "Don’t fucking touch me." She didn't realise how completely drained of energy she was, and through the torrent of tears, she could see she wasn't hurting him. I still have to try... try beat into his chest and shatter that ice heart of his! Kill the bastard!

As soon as she thought that, she let her hands drop. It was getting to her, the game was right inside her head right now. Trying to get her to kill more! And once again, she was being the good little government kid and letting herself succumb to it. How weak... how pathetic.

It took all of her strength, but eventually, she overcame the anger. She just lay there, still in a complete trance. Iijima... dead. The words wouldn't register, still stuck there in her throat, almost chocking on them. It didn't make sense. That hadn't been Chisato. That was the game, the government standing there right in front of them. Hirono knew that it would take strength not to become like that. But strength she had. Her life had demanded that of her, and she would overcome this. It almost felt as if there was nothing left to fight for anymore, almost as if she had lost everything. Mitsuko was still alive, but where was she? And would she ever play? Play like Chisato? Could Hirono trust anyone now that even Chisato had played...?

Mimura was still holding her. His strong arms around her, almost protecting her. Hirono had always hated patriarchal men. The gang especially. But here was Mimura, acting like the valiant knight protecting the damsel in distress. Instead of feeling oppressed, she felt safer than she had ever felt in her whole life. She realised she needed Mimura. She relied on him now more than ever.

He leant back on the rocks behind them, and she curled up in his arms, squeezing them with hers for comfort. The two of them lay there, holding each other tightly, surrounded by thoughts of their sin. A sin they both vowed never to forget. Hirono gazed over at Iijima's body. She was too sorry for any words that could be spoken. Mimura was the only one on the island who could ever understand that.

She curled up, almost like a child, and fell into a gentle sleep. Sleeping like a baby in the arms of a boy who she hated so much, yet was slowly growing to love.
Link

Shinji Mimura: Aftermath (G7)
He could see it all happen in his head, slow motion. The last few moments reminded him of a car crash he witnessed only a few months ago. It was happening right in front of his eyes, theres was nothing he could do to make it better. Nothing he said to Chisato was going to make her trust him again, he had ruined everything. He was so set on the goal, he refused to think about the reprecussions of his actions on others. He had lost control for a few minutes. Those few minutes had cost Keita Iijima, his best friend, to lose his life. As much as Mimura tried to convince himself that Iijima had been killed by the game, he couldnt get himself to believe it. It was his fault, entirely his. Not only had he betrayed Chisato, whose love for him was so very plain, He had ruthlessly taken advantage of Hironos frightened state to get some gratification for himself. To make him feel better. God, he was such a bastard. He looked up at the now dressed figure of Hirono, she was gazing down at him, tears streaming down her face. She threw Shinjis trousers at him.

"Get dressed," she commanded. He complied instantly pulling up his trousers and fastening the belt. He was still barechested, he glanced around for his shirt. He spotted in a few metres away by the base of a tree, as he bent down to pick it up he felt something hard and warm strike him across the face. He straightened up slowly, his face throbbing. He faced Hirono, she was cradling her hand, she had obviously slapped him with considerable force. He could still feel his face prickling. He couldnt seem to form his face into any sort of expression. He deserved to be punished. Keitas death and Chisatos insanity rested heavily on his shoulders. But he had to keep it together, stay frosty, another loss of control will result in death. Hirono suddenly spoke, softly, but her voice oozing resentment.

"You..." she began her voice choked with tears, "You took advantage of me, I was mourning the death of my best friends, and all you could think about was getting your rocks off?! This is so you Shinji, this is what you do isn't it? I've seen you do this to so many others, I never thought it could happen to me. I thought I was above this kind of pain." She threw her kit bag at him, Shinji didnt even try to catch it, let her get out her agression, god knows she desereved it. He desreved to recieve it. Everything she was saying was true.

Hirono pointed at Iijima's corpse, his face had caved in, it was a mess of blood and bone, barely recognisable as the smiling face of his best friend. Shinji stoumach was squirming with guilt, Keita had died not knowing how much Shinji had betrayed him, he died in ignorance. He hadnt deserved that. And Chisato...when it came down to it Shinji had truely liked her, He had admired her spunk and her upbeat attitude to the game, we will get through it. She had trusted him, trusted his plan even though she hadnt heard it, she adored him but in a fraction of a second he had betrayed that, thrown it all away for a chance with Hirono Shimizu, He didnt deserve to live, knowing what he had done to her. He had turned sweet, smiling Chisato Matsui into a murderer. He will never forget her how she was, but the Chisato he had liked so much, was effectively dead. Still pointing Hirono continued:

"His death is on our watch!" she screeched, "And look at you? You dont fucking care do you? It our fault hes dead,ours.If we hadn't...if" At this point Hirono broke down, she fell to her knees and cried for the boy who had loved her, robbed of his life before she had a chnace to tell him she liked him back. Shinji knew how she felt, his uncle had died in an obscure accident, it wasnt an accident. The goverment had robbed him of the one person he had cared about, before Shinji had a chance to tell him how grateful he was. Still half dressed Shinji approached Hirono and sat down beside her, he held her. Hirono turned and beat his chest, unfutilely, trying to hurt him but being drained of all energy.

"Dont fucking touch me." he heard her whisper, but she didnt draw away Shinji ignored her and drew her closer kissing her head softly, as he would comforting a child. He didnt say anything.

He just held her, until the tears subsided

Hirono: F7/G7
Chisato was quaking now, shaking violently. Hirono had never seen anyone as angry or mistrusting. The wind was picking up, and both Mimura and Hirono desperately wanted to put their clothes back on, but they were both scared by Chisato, and didn’t want to move. Neither of them had seen her like that, not ever. Not when Mitsuko was bullying her, not when her parents turned up to parents evening drunk. Never before had Chisato looked so incredibly consumed by anger.

It’s the game… it must be getting to her… look at her eyes Hirono! Try telling yourself she isn’t dangerous…

However, Hirono was far to stubborn and strong willed to sit around naked in the cold all night. She reached out to grab some clothes. Chisato swung her arm around until the gun was aimed directly at Hirono. Feeling Chisato watching her, Hirono continued to pick up clothes regardless.
Mimura raised his hands diplomatically and began to walk towards the trembling girl. “Chisato… just calm down, OK?”
Chisato swung her arm back around, this time pointing at Shinji. She said nothing, but a quivering noise was coming from her throat, as she fought back tears of pure hatred. Hirono could see that Mimura was scared, and unsure now of what to do. Shinji the smooth talker was finally lost for words.

Hirono took the opportunity to dress. She felt this might help Chisato calm down, but Mimura standing naked feet away from her was probably countering that.
The night air was tense, and the three of them were lost in their own world, unaware of anything happening around them.
“Just put the gun down Chisato, and we’ll talk about this…” Mimura said soothingly. It was clear he had spent time carefully choosing his words. Hirono hoped they were the right ones… Mimura was possibly close to death now. Chisato really looked prepared to pull the trigger.

Hirono walked down the small slope towards the pair of them.

Chisato was still trembling, her face completely red. “You! You…” she said. Her voice was disjointed and full of hate. She didn’t sound sane anymore. Surely she couldn’t have given into the game so quickly? It didn’t make sense, she had been fine just a few minutes ago…

Mimura’s hands were still raised in front of him, and he moved them up and down, trying to encourage Chisato to put the gun down. “Just put it down Chisato… please?”
Chisato shook her head wildly, gasping a little and still trembling. “You were touching her!”
“Calm down Chisato… it’s not what you think”
Bad Move thought Hirono. That’s a crappy line, and if she asks you to explain then you’re screwed. Way to go Mimura…
“Stop fucking telling me to calm down for gods sake!” screamed Chisato passionately, waving the gun around erratically. Hirono could see her loosing grip. They needed to knock her out, or get the gun off her somehow, she really had turned dangerous. This most definitely wasn’t the same Chisato Hirono had known in school.
Mimura wiped the sweat from his forehead. “OK, I’m sorry Chisato…just put the gun down…”
“No, it’s my fucking gun! You’ll give it to her again! You keep letting her get guns!”
Hirono stood, unable to think of anything she could possibly say. She couldn’t defend herself as aggravating Chisato was not a good idea, but her lack of defence was almost confirming what Chisato was saying. “Chisato, I wouldn’t have shot anyone, I promise!”
Chisato’s eyes burned fiery red as they gazed piercingly at Hirono. “But you want Chisato dead! You got the boys on your side… Iijima likes you now, and then you’ve gone and got Mimura! Why did you get all the guys? He was meant to be mine god damn it! You’re all ganging up against me, and now you want me to give you my gun! Ha! I’ve seen past your plan… sorry, it’s not going to work!” Chisato said, her head tilting back as she entered into a pained hysterical laugh.
Mimura sighed. “OK, keep the gun if it makes you feel safe. We weren’t scheming I promise! I promise on my life!”
Chisato whirled back to face him. “Really? On your life?”
Mimura forced and friendly smile. “Yes”

He began to walk forward, but he placed his foot on top of his trousers lying discarded on the floor. Getting tangled in the belt, he clumsily fell forward, not have been expecting it.

Chisato screamed and fired her gun blankly past Mimura. “You’re all trying to kill me! I’ll kill you all first you bastards!” she said, with a bloodthirsty cackle.
Shit… the game’s got her thought Hirono. Oh Chisato…

Then a voice came from behind them “What the fuck is going on guys?”
Hirono and Chisato whirled around to see Iijima rising from his sleep, no doubt awoken by the gunshot. He was greeted with the sight of Hirono and Chisato both standing up near Mimura who was lying naked on the ground. No wonder he was confused.

“You too, you want to kill me!” screamed Chisato.
Iijima looked in horror at the gun now pointing at him. “Wow! Chisato, calm down!”

Hirono was caught in a moment. She could see the completely shocked and confused look on Iijima’s face, his features highlighted by the moonlight. Her heart leapt, and was ripped to shreds in a split second, she knew exactly what was coming next… Please Iijima… please don’t…

“Shut the fuck up! Stop telling me to calm down for fuck sake!” screaming Chisato furiously, as she pulled the trigger.
Hirono was looking at Iijima, but her brain had slowed down so much that it was almost as if she could see the flash of the bullet flying towards him.
It hit him between the eyes. For someone so erratic, Chisato’s aim had been deadly.
Iijima’s head shot backwards against the rock behind him. There was a crack, and the shock ran through his skull, disfiguring his face and causing it to crack open. Then, his head slumped forward, revealing a mess of brains and blood smeared against the rock. His whole body feel forward lifelessly, spilling the contents of his head over all their kit bags in the process.
The look on his eyes the moment the bullet had hit imprinted itself in Hirono’s mind, burning into her retinas. She wouldn’t forget that until the day she died.

Her brain swung back into combat mode again. Completely blocking out any emotion, she leapt forward, scrambling for Iijima’s gun. Chisato was still laughing, and had begun firing shots into the sky. Finally Hirono’s hands came to rest on the barrel of the gun. She pulled it up, and jumped around to face Chisato.

Without thinking about it, she pulled the trigger.

Chisato’s body flew around immediately, making it impossible for Hirono to see what damage had been done. Chisato screamed in pain, a heart wrenching scream that pierced into Mimura and Hirono’s ears. And with that, she began to run clumsily into the darkness, screaming blue murder.
“Chisato!” Mimura called out, his voice trembling with both concern and also hate. Hirono couldn’t bring herself to chase Chisato. Chisato was lost to the game, and that was it. There wasn’t any friend in her to save any longer. She fell to her knees, quaking. Turning around, her eyes once again met with the mess that was Keita Iijima.

Dead… just like that. He died in such fear. I was going to protect him and he ended up dying terrified… Had he died thinking I loved him back? He’ll never know what I did tonight. He died living and thinking what’s now a lie… another deception thanks to Hirono Shimizu. This is one step too far Hiro… you’ve really fucked it up this time. It’s all your fault… if you hadn’t been such a slut, he’d be alive… you idiot!

Mimura came to stand behind the tearful Hirono “Keita…” he trembled. Hirono rose one of her hands over her shoulders. “Don’t Mimura… just please don’t say anything”

That was it. Their plan was falling apart. Chisato had run off, and was playing now. And Keita was dead. There was hardly anything left on the island worth saving anymore. Keita Iijima was dead.

Hirono: F7/G7
Since Mimura seemed to be the natural leader, Hirono had hung back since the decision to give her a gun. She was better at being a sidekick anyway. The spotlight was never a good thing for her, she tended to get carried away. Just look at what happened to Yoshimi when Hirono had taken control of the group.

Plus, having been Mitsuko's sidekick had obviously been a good thing. If she'd been the leader of the delinquents, then there was no way Mimura wouldn't have shot her back when they first met in the forest.

Mimura had decided that Chisato needed sleep more than Hirono did. Despite the large bruise on Chisato's chest, Hirono disagreed. Contrary to what Iijima and Chisato believed, Hirono had just killed a friend. She desperately needed sleep, anything to take her mind of it. Thinking was not a good thing.

"Hey Hirono! You'll never guess what happened last night!"
Hirono turned around. Yoshimi was standing, beaming at her, her mouth eye to eye. "What?" said Hirono, smiling, almost giggling. She knew perfectly well what Yoshimi wanted to tell her.
Yoshimi swept the ground with her foot, looking down at the floor and blushing. "Well... you know I like Yoji 'n all?"
Hirono couldn't help a girlish giggle. "Yeah, course I do, but hey, you wanna wait till class finishes till you tell me?"
Yoshimi thought about it and nodded before walking back to her desk. Hirono could guess that Izumi and Shou (Who were sat in front of them) would be pissed off they hadn't heard. Yoshimi was always talking about things and being surprised when her secrets got out!
After the lesson, Hirono and Yoshimi had stayed behind, waiting for everyone to leave. Once they were alone Yoshimi squeeked with happines. "We had sex!"
Hirono reached out and patted Yoshimi on the head patronisingly. "Yeah, well done Ms. Prostitute!"
Yoshimi shook her head. "Oh no, it's different! This time it wasn't like that sex... I think I'm in love with him Hiro!"
Hirono reached out to grab Yoshimi. "Aww, that's cute! Just make sure you don't fuck it up though! Yoji's quite good looking!" They stood there for a few seconds, hugging and giggling.

Hirono squeazed the hands around her waist. Why was Yoshimi still hugging her? They weren't in class anymore... they were on an island, and Yoshimi was dead, so why was she...

OMG... that's not Yoshimi! Who the hell?

Startled, Hirono whirled her body around. It was Mimura!
She had to take a moment. His hands were up her shirt... what the hell is going on!

Before she could do anything, she felt his hands moving up towards her bra strap. Then Mimura leaned forward and kissed Hirono. She felt his tongue moving in her mouth.

What the hell? This isn't real! Hirono... wake up god damn it! Mimura wouldn't... he doesn't... he...
Wait, why am I not pulling away? I don't like Mimura, I like Keita!
Do I?

Hirono's hands moved to in between their bodies and slowly unbuttoned Mimura's shirt, reaching inside and running themselves over the muscles of his chest...

"So Hirono... which guys in the class do you like?" said Mitsuko, leaning forward expectantly.
Yoshimi laughed and poured herself another drink. "Ooo, go on! Answer Hiro!"
Their attic parties were always fun, but somehow Hirono had managed to avoid this question all the other times...
"Err... well Hiroki is cute but too innocent, so crap in bed I'm thinking. Plus, he likes Chigusa so doesn't have any taste!"
Mitsuko and Yoshimi burst into laughter.
Hirono smiled and thought some more. "Err... Takiguchi is cute as well, but way to dumb. If he actually has any equipment down there, which I doubt, he wouldn't know how to use it!"
Yoshimi snorted up some juice, and Mitsuko fell on the floor cackling.
"And then there's Shinji..." Hirono trailed off, trying to think of something bad to say.
"Oh, but he's slept with almost every girl in the class!" giggled Yoshimi.
Mitsuko nodded. "Yeah, and a few of the guys I bet!"
This time it was Hirono who was laughing.

That had been it... there hadn't been anything true that was bad about Mimura. If Mitsuko couldn't think up anything good to bitch about someone, there wouldn't be anything bad about them. Sure, he did sleep around, but nothing compared to Hirono.

They pulled away from the kiss, and their eyes met. They were both waiting for the other to say something. Both were now topless, and their torsos were touching each other, not at all cold even on the windy slopes.

"Shinji..." Hirono began in a deep voice, completely unsure of what she planned to say. Mimura brought his finger up to her lips to silence her. They both understood each other far better than either had realised. Mimura stood up, and walked over to his overnight bag, and pulled out a pack of condoms. Hirono stood up, seemingly unaware of Iijima sleepign not far from where she stood.
"You brought condoms on the school trip? We were only due to stay for 2 nights! And you called me a slut?"
They stood for a few seconds, Hirono's glare burning into Mimura's forehead. Then, they both collapsed into laughter. Hirono didn't really know what was so funny. Maybe it was that they were both so similar, and had never realised it.

Mimura came back, and stood close to Hirono. They kissed again, more passionately and surely this time, while Mimura's hands reached up Hirono's skirt. She used her hands to slowly pull Mimura's trousers and underwear down. He returned the favor of taking off her skirt.

Still in each other's arms, they lay down on a soft patch of grass, not far from where Chisato and Iijima were still sleeping. Their bodies rubbed against each other, Mimura's body arching heroicly over Hirono's in the center of the circle of disgarded clothes. They both felt free, and as if they were one being. All thoughts of the island and all the death surrounding them faded. Mimura reached out on the ground for the pack of condoms, his hand returning with one.

He slipped it on gently, and Hirono positioned herself, ready for him. The two of them were both very practised at this, and the movement was fluid and professional. Hirono gasped and groaned as Mimura's warm body rubbed against hers. He moved up and down gracefully and respectfully, both being acutely aware of each other's bodies. Hirono's arms reached out around Mimura's torso, and she tried to gain some control over his movement. It felt so wonderfully good, a physicall passion far more intense than any Hirono had encountered in her large experiance. The moans from Mimura suggested he was feeling the same way.

Just then, the mood was broken by a bright light shining in their eyes, Mimura withdrew, cursing, and looked in the direction of the camp.

Chisato was standing, gun raised in one hand, and flashlight in the other. Her face was icy and cold, penetratively staring at Mimura and Hirono who were both lying naked on the ground. Hirono gasped, and reached out to grab some clothes lying near her, regardless of if they were Mimura's or hers. Mimura had fallen back on his ass, cursing quietly, and blushing like Hirono had never seen anyone blush. She could feel herself doing the same.

Nothing was said, all 3 of them were completely silent. Neither Mimura or Hirono daring to say anything to Chisato, who had caught them right in the middle of their act. The two of them just sat there, shivering in their new found cold.
Link

Shinji Mimura: Control
It was gone midnight, Shinji Mimura sat very still, listening to the crickets. It was so quiet, he had not heard the sound of gunfire for at least a few hours. Iijima was exhausted by the time they had eaten, it didnt take much persuading to tell him to rest. To Shinjis slight disgust Keita didnt ask his permission before handing his gun straight back to Hirono before he lay down. Dumb fuck, he thought, he trusts her completely, what does he even know about her? Basically they had decicded to take turns on watch, two people at a time, Shinji could tell Chisato wanted to be on watch with him, but he declined. Using the excuse that she needed to catch up on sleep. Really he just needed to keep an eye on Hirono. There was no fucking way he was going to leave her under anyone else charge. He had saved her life, metaphorically speaking, she was therefore his responsiblity. She was not leaving his line of sight. No way. He trusted her more than he ever thought he could trust a delinquent like her. Sure, she could talk to talk, and she could walk the walk (shown by her dispatch of Yoshimi) but Shinji being Shinji, he was not going to let himself be sleeping while she was holding a gun, thats giving her too much control. He needed to have control otherwise the plan was never going to work.

The plan, it was crazy, no doubt about that. But there was still a chance they could pull it off, as long as that area didnt go danger zone...it could work. He would tell the others at daybreak. Not now, for the moment they needed rest. Shinji didnt need rest, he was a lot tougher than your average school kid, but he needed to accomodate for his troop's needs. And at the moment they needed some shut eye.

Shinji turned to Hirono she was sitting a few feet away from him, gazing out at the view, her knees were together, hands clasped around them, her orinigal weapon, her gun, lay in her lap. She was shivering like crazy, hmmm, he thought, it is midnight bound to be cold, dont chastise her Mim, everyone feels the cold. He sighed.

"You ok Hiro?" he asked, not really caring about the answer, he just wanted to get her damn teeth to stop chattering. She turned to him surprised, he even managed a smile.

"I'm fine, dont I look fine?" she said with a forced optimisum. Jesus Mim, he thought to himself, not too coldhearted, cut her some slack not everyones as adaptable as you. He sighed and got and sat down behind her, so the were both facing the same way, he postioned his legs either side of hers and wrapped his arms around her torso. He almost caught himself, what the fuck are you doing, your practicaly hugging Hirono Shimizu. As beautiful as this girl was (Yutaka had always said so and Shinji had half agreed) Shinji swore he would never go anywhere near her, she was hardcores sidekick. He could feel her small body shivering against his chest. She was smaller than he had thought, so much more frail than he had always been lead to believe. He could faintly here Keita snoring softly at least ten metres behind him, thank god, if Iijima saw me do this he would crucify me. What does he see in this girl?

Well...she was cute, more than a little cute really. She was no Takako or Sakura or even Mitsuko (if you were into your psycho bitches from hell) but she had that quality that set her apart. She stood up for herself, forceful, but not arrogant like Shinji himself. Holding her close to his torso, Shinji began to realise, she was just a girl, a beautiful, msart girl, sure she had been led astray but when it came down to it, she did right. Instinctlively he ran his hands up and down her arms, trying to get her warm, but he wasnt moving them fast enough, he ran them down her arms until his hands were on top of hers. He curled his fingers around her small hnads, intertwining their fingers. She respoonded by squeezing his hands.

Suddlenly Shinji didnt feel so cold anymore, in fact her was feeling quite hot, hotter, he thought, than he should do. He couldnt seem to be able to control what he was doing, his body seemed to be moving on its own. It saw the goal, just like basketball, shoot, shoot, win. His heart was thumping. He unclasped his hands from hers and reached under her shirt, they were still in the same position looking out over the coast, He daren't look what he was doing. he ran his hands over her smooth stomach, he felt her instinctively flinch under his fingers. He felt a hot sigh escape from her lips. Her lips, he wanted them. More than anything he wanted them.

Hirono suddenly whirled around to face him, she was practically sat on his lap now, his hands swarmed up her back feeling for her bra strap. He looked up into her face, she looked beautiful...and her eyes...they burned He felt the catch come loose in his fingers and at the same time he pulled her towards him, their lips met fiercely, he felt her tounge surge into his mouth. She wanted him.

And despite how much his mind was yelling for him to stop, its too risky! what if Keita or Chisato woke up? What if they were attacked?

Despite all this, Shinji Mimura just couldnt stop himself, he couldnt stop, not until he got want he wanted. And Shinji Mimura always got what he wanted. He would not lose. He wouldnt stop until he won.

Hirono, Shinji, Keita and Chisato: E7 to F7/G7
The group had left the scene behind them quickly, not only because Iijima was having a really bad reaction to the smell of the rotting flesh, but also because they wanted to press on. Seeing two classmates like that made them all far more determined to beat Battle Royale. There were 18 other students somewhere on the island, and they were all going to make sure that as many could survive as possible. There were also the 2 exchanges who hadn’t been on the death lists yet. The four of them were still unsure about them, but decided to ignore their existence until they met one as it was just one more thing they didn’t want to have to think about. Worrying wasn't going to make anything better...

As they emerged into F7, the ground became far more rocky and open. The slight lack of trees worried Mimura, and he insisted everyone kept a good lookout for any assailants. Hirono was forced to walk in the middle of the group as Mimura had ordered that the people at the front and back should have guns. Seeing as Chisato was back to her normal self, apart from some bruising, Hirono had given the gun back, not really trusting herself with it.

Chisato walked at the front, her arms held up, and her gun following her gaze, aimed at every patch of dark or possible hiding place before Chisato was happy no one was there.
In the middle walked Iijima and Hirono. They had given up holding hands as it seemed pretty pointless, and they wanted to be prepared to defend themselves in an attack. Mimura walked at the back, occasionally casting a look over his shoulder to make sure they weren’t being followed before running to catch up with the others. Their movement was all very methodical, and this seemed to lift their spirits.

Eventually they came to rest at the point between F7 and G7. None of them were good enough with compasses to pinpoint their exact location.

They set up camp on a small ridge on the side of the summit overlooking the south coast. The view was spectacular, although the light was fading a little so they couldn’t see far very clearly. The summit rose above them majestically.
Hirono got to work setting out all their spare clothes to make beds just next to a pile of rocks that offered some wind protection while Mimura and Chisato walked around, trying to find the best places to keep watch from.
Keita was leaning against a rock taking gentle sips from his water bottle. He had puked up a lot after seeing Tendo and Fumiyo, and so hadn’t really been in the shape for a long hike. When they had reached the spot they set their camp up at, he had practically collapsed, and the others had to sit him up. He seemed to be recovering now, but Hirono was still a little concerned about him. He wasn’t really in the shape for keeping watch (At least, Hirono wouldn’t feel safe if he was the only one watching) and if they were attacked, he would simply not be able to use the gun.

Hirono called over Mimura and Chisato and voiced her concerns to them, just out of earshot from Iijima. Mimura nodded sternly. “Well, you proved you aren’t gonna shot us if you got a gun. I don’t see why you should take his and keep watch for him. Chisato, what do you think?”
Chisato shrugged her shoulders. “Yeah, I guess.” she said, before folding her arms across her still painful chest.
Hirono could tell Chisato wasn’t really too keen on the idea, and to tell the truth, neither was Hirono. Still, she couldn’t expect Iijima to take watch, or for Chisato and Mimura to do it themselves. “OK, sure” she sighed.

They all decided to have a meal before they started to take watch or sleep, so they sat by the boulders all close together, trying to share body heat. The island was getting colder during the night.
It was relatively quiet, and Hirono could only hear the sound of the others eating. Glancing at her watch, she cursed. The others looked at her questioningly.
“Nearly time for another report.”
Mimura rolled his eyes. “That’s one thing I could do without”
“It’s just Kitano’s voice… he’s so cold and cruel about the deaths” muttered Chisato. The others agreed.

Then, right on cue, The report came blazing over the island. The group all reached out holding hands with their eyes jammed shut as the names were called out, wishing there wouldn’t be friends on the list. When Yuka and Utsumi’s names were called out, Chisato started crying. “Oh god! They’re gone, we were too late!”
Mimura reached out, and took her into his arms for comfort. This didn't really seem to help. "Kitano you bastard! Why the hell did they have to die?" she screiched.
Iijima and Hirono both took out their maps to make sure they didn’t miss any danger zones. Thankfully, the zones that were read out were no where near them, so they didn’t have to move that night.

Hirono sighed. 6 new names. They had known Yoshimi would be called out, but the other 6? The class was dropping like flies. Now apart from the four of them, there were only 12 students left and the 2 exchanges. The longer they left it, the less of a victory it would be if they escaped. They were running out of time.

Less than half the class left, and only one day gone. Once again, Hirono was scared.

Iijima reached out and squeezed Hirono’s hand. “Don’t worry Hiro, we’ll find a way out. We always knew we couldn’t save them all.”
Hirono didn’t answer. Yoshimi had been playing. How many more? Out of those 12 other students, how many would actually be worth saving? Could they save the players, or were they already lost to the game? What if they were the only ones left on the entire island who weren’t playing.
Looking at the list of students, she struggled to think who they could actually trust.
Kusaka… she was a really bubbly sweet girl. Hirono just couldn’t imagine Kusaka playing, but Yukiko had been dead for a while. If Kusaka had been on her own all that time… Hirono couldn’t imagine what she might have been through.
Yuko, the quiet girl at school. A little weird but not a murderer.
Mitsuko. Everyone else was sure she’d be playing, but Hirono had hope in her. But… Yoshimi had played. If Yoshimi had, maybe Mitsuko would to? Hirono refused to believe that.
Chigusa. Way too competitive, but still a nice girl. She was a possibility but Hirono wasn’t sure.
Sigimura. He definitely wouldn’t play. And he was the most likely person to convince Chigusa not to play too… they really needed to find him. Hirono hoped he would be south somewhere in thr south…
Yamamoto. He had met Chisato and Mimura and gone to find Ogawa, he hadn’t been playing then. But Ogawa was dead? What if Yamamoto had found her and then killed her? Was that paranoia or logic?

Everyone else… were just too big risks. Either Hirono just didn’t know them well enough, or knew them well and knew that they’d play. It was a horrible thing to accuse someone of, but in this situation, trust wouldn’t come easily. Hirono knew that most of all. Out of 18, Hirono trusted 10. That was better than nothing, but would any of them survive at all?

Who doesn’t Hirono trust?

Hirono, Keita, Shinji and Chisato:
OOC: shinji_cute is away for the weekend, so yeah, she's asking not to kill her! ^_^ And also, we are both asking that no one kills either Chisato or Iijima just yet becuase when she comes back on Monday something fun will be happening then! ^^ If you kill any of us we can't do it so then you'll just never know...)

“Let’s move south. It take us more central, and I guess it’s gonna be safer there. The more danger zones, the more likely you are to get trapped around the coasts.” Mimura said sternly. Hirono could see in his face that there was more to this than he said, but Mimura had yet still not told her his plan. She suspected Chisato knew, and Keita probably did too. But either way, when she’d asked, he’d bee more than reluctant to give specifics.

The four of them took up all their belongings. Chisato had asked about Yoshimi’s kit bag, but none of them knew where it was, so they had no more water or food than they had before, and it was running out. In the distance (Hirono imagined in F7 or G7) There was what looked like some sort of lookout point; a rusty tower, but not much of it could be seen from so far away. Perhaps Mimura’s plan had something to do with that…
Hirono sighed. Knowing Mimura, the plan could be anything…

As they set off, Keita once again reached out and grabbed Hirono’s hand. This time it felt a lot more
Natural, and Hirono supposed it felt quite nice. Nice to have someone who would hold her hand for no particular reason. He really seemed taken with her, and even considering the situation, and how much she had wanted to get to know him, she still found this all a little strange. The boy who would never even look her in the eye before…
Hirono guessed that made her lucky. Could something good come of this game?

“Well, I hear Yoshimi likes a guy!”

Hirono smiled with the memory of Mitsuko's voice. In their group of friends, it was almost customary to tell the other two girls about any crush so they could all plan how to 'get the guy'. She still remembered the day Yoshimi had told Mitsuko and Hirono about Yoji. But of course, Yoshimi wasn’t here to tell about Iijima, and Mitsuko was somewhere else. Hirono wished Mitsuko would find them. Maybe then Mimura and Chisato and Keita could all see she wasn’t such a bad girl. They’d all think she was playing, but they had thought that about Hirono too...
HIRONO THE MURDERER
No! I had to kill her!

Keita had stopped. Hirono whirled around. Have I been thinking out loud again? Oh God, please no!
But Keita wasn’t looking at Hirono, he was looking past her.
An auror of shock and wonder had filled the group. Chisato and Mimura were looking the same was as Keita too. Slowly, Hirono turned around.

Hanging from a tree just meters away were the bodies of Mayumi Tendo and Fumiyo Fujiyoshi. Hirono was completely taken aback, shocked to see them there, the last thing she had expected. She could think of nothing to do apart from walking closer, staring in utter disbelief.

The flies had set to work on them, and their faces had become a little unrecognisable, but it was still obviously them. Their flesh had turned a horrible dark red colour, black in places, and in others, peeling off. Up closer, Hirono could smell the decaying of the flesh. Keita vomited somewhere from behind her, and Chisato whimpered, no doubt grabbing Mimura for comfort.

However, though the torrent of her own tears, Hirono was smiling. Tendo and Fumiyo were swinging gracefully in the wind, still holding hands. They hadn’t been gotten by a player. They hadn’t been killed like Yoshimi had. Their deaths had been through choice, and they would be together forever…

Despite the decaying of their flesh and the lack of any muscular expression, they were the happiest two faces Hirono had ever seen. As what appeared to be two disgustingly putrid, rotting corpses swung from the tree, Hirono had to take a while to take in how stunningly beautiful it was. Fumiyo and Tendo were at peace. They had been able to escape the game. Hirono couldn’t bring herself too, not when there was hope, but it seemed as if it would take more courage to give up than to press on.

Hirono hoped that one day she would be able to find peace like they had. Gently swinging from the tree, suffocated, putrefying and happier than they could ever have been in life…

Hirono stepped closer, reaching out and touching each in turn, one last time. Then she bowed in respect, saying her final goodbye to her deceased friends.

“Revenge for this. You shall not be forgotten… I promise.”

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