Mirai Nikki: Dead End

[Shinobu Oshino]

Going to update you guys on some stuff. My birthday has come around, which has been nice, and a friend has come over to stay for a bit before going up the east coast.

Though, during this time, another friend of mine of ten years suffered complications of the heart and has been admitted to the ER. He's stable now, though things are turbulent with things like renal failure and problems with the liver. I'll be putting the quest on hold for a while until things clear up, whether that be for better or worse. So as of now, MN will be temporarily on hiatus. I thought to let you guys know so I didn't just end up disappearing on all of you. This is the reason why. Please, give thoughts and prayers -- I think my friend needs them now more than ever.

Edit: My friend has passed away. I'm currently in contact with his family to make arrangements to attend the funeral (should they have one) so the hiatus has been extended. I'm sorry for the delays.

And another thing, guys, please take care of yourselves. Well wishes to everyone.

 

[Shinobu Oshino]

Talking to Kosaka could be a bit of an experiment. To get a feel for how one event changes the outcome of another. And while I may find him a little annoying, not so much that I couldn't hang out with him after school. Honestly, playing basketball does sound like fun after everything I've been dealing with.

"Hey, Kosaka." I walk over to him.

"A-amatani?" His eyes go wide in surprise.

His friends struggle to stifle their laughs. I'm not sure what was so funny about me walking over here. I just shake my head. "Hey, guys, shut up!" He slaps his desk in protest. "A-anyway, uh, what's up? Can I help you with somethin'?"

"Not really. I just wanted to talk a bit because we had time."

"Oh, okay." He stops. "What… did you want to talk about?"

"Anything, really."

More laughter from his friends.

"Guys." He throws his hands up. "Stop. Seriously, okay?"

"Sorry." One of the boys lets out a small whimper.

"I apologize, they're…" Kosaka mumbles to himself.

"It's fine." I smile. Honestly, it didn't bother me too much. They weren't really laughing at me, it was Kosaka being caught off guard. It was honestly nice just to talk to someone without any strings attached. Though, that's going under the assumption that Kosaka himself isn't a part of the 'death game'. My diary hasn't said anything about it, and I doubt Kosaka is the type to be subtle.

"How about that weather, huh?" Kosaka breaks the silence. He motions to the cracked window. Sunlight trickles in from the open blinds. "It's kind of nice. Like, you know, for playing basketball or somethin'. Actually, say, uh… that reminds me!" He scratches his cheek. "Me and the boys are gonna head to the park and shoot some hoops after school. Would you… want to come?"

So, from what I can tell, Kosaka was going to ask me to play with him after school regardless of what I did here. That much is evident. However, what happens if I refuse? Does it just affect my future? I would like to test the limits of the diary, but… I'm not sure I want to do that at the expense of Kosaka's feelings.

[_] "Sure, I would love to. I'm free today."
[_] "No, I can't. I have to go home after school today."
[_] Custom
_____
3/3 Deja Vu

 

[Shinobu Oshino]

Using Kosaka to test out the limits of the Future Diary doesn't feel right. And even then, I'm not sure what sort of adverse effects it would have. "Sure." I nod. "I'm free."

"Really?" Kosaka's eyes go wide. "O-oh, awesome." He scratches the back of his head, giving a thumbs up to his friends. Did he just forget that I'm standing right next to him? I don't move, I just gaze at him.

"... Huh?" Oh, good, he didn't forget about me. Now he's staring.

"Is something wrong?"

"No, not at all, everything is great. Haha… ha." His laugh dies down as the class's door slides open.

"Children, take your seats." The teacher calls out.

The impromptu recess had come to a close. I walk back to my desk and take my seat. I'm half-tempted to check the diary, but I choose not to. I hold my head down, crack open my book, and wait for the next period to end.
___________
4/20, Wednesday -- 12:32 AM, Sakurami City, Sakurami Middle

After having some time to think about it, I don't really have anything to go on. I don't even know if the 'Death Game' has started yet. Thinking too hard about this isn't going to make things happen any differently, either. Honestly, clearing my head seems like a good idea. I'll just--

"Hey, Yukiteru! Hey!" Kosaka yells.

Did he just wait for the teacher to leave to do that?

"You gonna pay attention, pal?" He slaps the desk.

"A-ah, Kosaka. Um…" Yukiteru diverts his eyes.

This guy was fidgeting a little under an hour ago, but now he's bullying Yukiteru? Again? Wait, where's Yuno? She's not in the classroom. Did she have to leave early?

"Come on, we're your friends, right?" Kosaka says, placing a hand on Yukiteru's shoulder.

"Yeah…" He solemnly nods.

"Well, we're talkin' to ya, and you're just gonna mess with your phone? Come on, give me that." Kosaka reaches for the phone.

"Hey! Kosaka!" Yukiteru raises his foot to push Kosaka away. "Get off of me!"

"Ah, come on, let me see it!"

Really? This is the same way he treated me last year.

[_] Step in and defend Yukiteru. If Yuno isn't here to do something, might as well.
[_] Sit and wait. Yuno is bound to do something to stop it. Maybe.
[_] Write-in

 

[Shinobu Oshino]

Spoiler: ...

Boo.

Inverted Fractal (Yukiteru I)​

In another time, past or future…

I lay over the precipice. A place in a time that I do not know. The glint of a knife hangs over my head, almost a guillotine, ready and waiting to drop. My hands press against Yuno's deceptively thin arm. She's not paying attention to me, her attention is elsewhere. "Yukki, she has to die. She has to!"

"Yuno! Get off of her!" Yukiteru yells, pleads, but to no avail.

"No." A shake of the head. More force pushes into the knife. I angle my head to the side. The cold air hits me. I'm at least two or three stories up. It's night. Death by knife or death by drop. Either way, I'm definitely going to die. "She has to die, Yukki! If she lives, you might…"

"Yuno, she doesn't have to die!" Yukiteru says. "Because… I-I…!"

"Eh?" She stops for just a moment.

I headbutted her and wrench the knife from her hand.

"Ah!" Yuno cringes from the pain.

I roll to my feet, putting myself between her and Yukiteru.

"A trick…?" Yuno mumbles to herself before gnashing her teeth like a wild beast. "You made him do that, didn't you?" Her eyes shrink, narrow, and focus. "You made Yukki betray me! You witch!"

I brace myself for her next attack. The diary said I was going to get into a fight with Yuno, and here we are, on top of a building in the park.

"Stop!" Yukiteru scrambles to get between us. "You two don't have to fight like this. Vera doesn't have to die. She's not our enemy!"

"She'll betray you, Yukki." She slowly walks toward me as if a zombie. Yukiteru manages to stop her with his arm. "So she has to die. If any Diary Wielder lives, even if they're not part of the Death Game, they're an obstacle. We have to get rid of her now."

"That's nonsense. She's only ever helped me. If it wasn't for her, then Minene would've--"

"She's just using you." Yuno stares. "She's just using you for your diary."

What nonsense was she spewing?

"Amatani." Yuno actually acknowledges me. "What happens if you win the Death Game?"

"What?" I throw the knife off into the darkness below. "I don't want to win. I want to put a stop to it."

"How?"

I didn't know the answer to that question. I genuinely didn't, considering who has already died. It didn't mean that I wasn't considering my options. Nothing has come to mind yet, even with all of my thinking. "I don't know." I shake my head. If I even tried to lie, there's no way that Yuno wouldn't see through it. "But just because I don't know now doesn't mean I won't know later."

No hostility? I was expecting her to run at me after I finished talking.

"I want to help you guys because I don't want either of you to die. I don't want anyone else to die." I lost my Mom, I lost my Dad. I don't want to lose anyone else. That's not wrong. I know it's not. "I don't care who wins the game because when I'm through with it, there hopefully won't be a winner. I just want everyone to be happy, for God's sake." I sigh, pinching the bridge of my nose. "That includes you. I know you have beef with me, but I don't want to get in your way. I want to help you."

The world turns to static, fluctuating, before it snaps me back to the present.

[_] Step in and defend Yukiteru. If Yuno isn't here to do something, might as well.
[_] Sit and wait. Yuno is bound to do something to stop it. Maybe.
[_] Write-in
______
2/3 Deja Vu

 

[Shinobu Oshino]

Anytime I think about giving Kosaka the benefit of the doubt, he makes an ass of himself. I'm not going to bother hanging out with someone who makes a habit of picking on people. As much as I want to help, Kosaka is ultimately harmless. Giving Yuno the wrong idea about my feelings toward Yukiteru was a ticket to an early grave. In the interest of living the rest of my life in the next twenty four hours, I'll relent. Actually, even that wasn't a guarantee - there were ten other diary wielders prowling about. I have no knowledge of them at all. Yuno and Yukiteru are the only one's I can even consider, thanks to those weird visions.

"Kosaka, can you… please … um…" Yukiteru shrivels in his seat.

"Tch." The bully mumbles, biting his lip. "You know, Yukiteru, you're not even worth it." He rests his hands in his pocket, pivoting and walking up toward me. Wait, why is he walking up to me? It's lunch. I'm about to get up and go eat. Come the fuck on.

"Hey, Amatani--"

"Kosaka, not now." No, I'm not talking to you. Get out of my face.

"Huh?"

"I'm about to go eat."

"Oh, well, then can I--"

"No."

"Ah, oh, uh…" His face loses color. "Okay. Have a good lunch then, I guess." He stares at the ground, looks up, looks down, then walks out of the room. Part of me felt bad, but the other part feels he deserves it for what he was doing to Yukiteru. I don't care if he picks on me, but seeing him do the same to others… No, it's not something I'll really stand for. If Yuno didn't have a metaphorical knife to my throat, I would have reamed his ass for what he was doing to Yukiteru.

"Good God, why me?" I pray not to the god I know exists, but to any other one that's willing to hear my plea.

And then, my stomach growls. I didn't pack lunch again, and Nishijima didn't leave me any lunch money. I've been so anxious about all of this Diary business I haven't had the time. Between the visions, fear of death, and trying to figure out an approach -- I have no time to actually live my life. Why couldn't someone else have been cursed with this? Why me? Why am I special?

This sucks.

I smack my head into the table as if it would help anything.

"Amatani."

That voice.

Oh god. Oh no. Oh shit. Oh fuck.

"Y-yeah, Gasai?" I force a smile. Be polite, be nice.

"I thought a bit more about the conversation that we had."

"Oh?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to eat lunch with me."

I'm dead. I'm actually screwed. Well, actually, given the vision I had, I won't go down easy. I'm a little out of practice, but… no, calm down Vera. You were at school. Would she really try anything that crazy here on school grounds? No, Yuno had more tact than that. Still, though, she's offering… I don't know.

[_] Accept her offer. Defending yourself was easy enough.
[_] Refuse her offer, this was not going to end well.
[_] Custom
______
2/3 Deja Vu

 

[Shinobu Oshino]

Accept it. She is willing to talk, that's already more progress than I figured I was going to make today. If Yuno was going to twist a knife into my body, I'd rather she did it while I was facing her rather than with my back turned. Think about what you were going to talk about and discuss. Broaching the topic of the death game too casually would end me. Speaking about Yukiteru could end me. Actually, saying anything that wasn't carefully measured to Yuno's tastes would actually just kill someone. The fact she's been able to keep up a facade of the ideal student is as shocking as it is interesting.

"Sure, Gasai." I smile.

"Okay. Let's go." She says, no perceived intent to speak of.

We leave the classroom and walk down the hallway. Some students pass by, even saying hello to Yuno, who returns a rehearsed greeting. Though, the fact that I can tell it's rehearsed affords me an advantage. I didn't want to think of my interactions as a battle, but given recent circumstances, it's becoming a necessity.

From the deja vu, I could tell there was more to her. There had to be a method to the madness. There had to be a reason that she behaved the way that she did. It was likely buried in her past. I wasn't going to ask about it, of course -- again, cause for an early grave. She was certainly a frustrating person to communicate with. Even being aware of her behavior, or perhaps a condition? It didn't make it any easier to deal with her.

Yuno opens the door for me, smiling as if it was a gesture of good will. Again, it was an act. I force a smile, then stop. "No, after you."

"Oh." She blinks.

"I got the door. Don't worry about it."

"Okay." She relents.

Am I being too paranoid? If this was a normal student, yes, but with Yuno? No. Absolutely not.

I walk behind her as she takes a seat. I sit across from her, pulling out my makeshift excuse for lunch. A granola bar and a juice carton. It was all my meager savings allowed me.

"Amatani, are you eating well?" Gasai says, pulling out her homemade lunch.

"As well as I can be." I try to be casual.

"That doesn't seem to be much."

Was that a jab? "Hah, well… yeah. Don't have much of an appetite these days anyway. Considering…"

"Oh, I'm sorry."

I shake my head. "It's fine."

"W-well, you can have some of my lunch, if you want. I usually make too much anyway."

"No, I'm good. You eat."

"Okay."

Her lunch was what you would normally find with a bento box. Nothing too extravagant, outside of an extra helping or two of rice.

What was her game? There was no way she just called me out here to legitimately talk. It could be that she's thinking ahead, but even then… how much is too much with Yuno? Well, if there was no proof of an upper limit, then I'm not going to try and find it. Caution it is.

Then again, if she doesn't talk about the Death Game, that means I'm going to have to be the person to bring it up. That means outing myself. Immediately. That's under the impression that--

"Amatani."

"Yeah?"

"You're a Diary Holder, aren't you?" Yuno says that… not even looking at me. Just biting into her salad. She was casual. No hostile motions.

Was she fishing? Did she know? How could she know? Was it a hunch? I can't think straight. Did the Death Game already start? Actually, yeah, considering Deus already spoke to me about the thing, it was fair to assume that it has.

Considering my options here. If I tell her 'yes', and she didn't know, I confirm it, I'm a target, and then I have to fight off Yuno. If I say 'no', and she already knows that's wrong, I'm an enemy and I'm dead anyway. If I say 'yes', and she already knows, that may prove me trustworthy, at least in the short term. Regardless of the outcome, she was playing dirty and fishing.

Yeah, I can't be careless. So I…

[_] Tell her. Lay it on the table, try to negotiate a truce.
[_] Don't tell her. If she doesn't know and she's fishing on instinct, don't play into her hands.
[_] Play dumb. Not likely to succeed, but it's still an option to consider.
[_] Custom
______
2/3 Deja Vu

 

[Shinobu Oshino]

Inverted Fractal (Yuno II)​

In another time, past or future…

It's been less than a week or so since my mother died. Thrusting myself into my studies hasn't done much to help. My pencil hovers over the blank sheet of paper. Not a dot nor scribble to be found. It feels like I'm cursed with an almost terminal lethargy. I'd rather shrivel up and die than continue living like this.

Actually, no, living isn't how I would describe this.

Existing.

I haven't eaten anything in over a day, and what I did eat couldn't be called a meal. I feel like I'm one bad day from becoming a corpse. Ironically, I'm at the lunch table with an open book in front of me instead of a meal. I don't have the appetite for knowledge or actual food, yet I'm here. Why?

"Amatani?" Yuno calls out to me. A girl who began speaking to me after my mother died. We share the same class, but she's never approached me before now.

"Y-yeah? What's up?" I stare more at the open air between us than at her face.

"You look sick. Are you eating well?"

"Yeah, I think."

She narrows her eyes. A boxed lunch hits the table. It flips open, revealing what could be described as your basic bento box. Nothing extravagant, save for an extra helping of rice. Evenly spread lettuce, a bit of chicken and some carrots. "Do you want some?" She asks, holding out a pair of unused chopsticks.

"No." I can't look her in the eye. "No, thanks."

"If you don't eat, you'll get sick."

"Good."

I don't have it in me to carry on a conversation. I'd rather she just got up and walked away. I'm part of a Death Game, so I'm probably going to die regardless of whether or not it's self-inflicted. Dying is a scary thought, and so is ending your own life. I don't want to, but I can't say I have much motivation to keep going either.

"Why is that good?" Yuno asks, staring straight at me.

"Because I've got nothing left." My pencil rolls to the center of the table as I rest my head on my notebook.

"So that's why you were chosen." Yuno whispers into my ear.

Chosen? So, she's a part of it too. How did she know? I haven't exactly been shouting this from the rooftops.

It didn't matter. If the grim reaper was going to come to me in the form of a cute, pink-haired girl; I wasn't going to complain.

"Oh, that saves me some trouble." I don't feel any fear. I'm too tired for fear or anxiety. I just want to sleep. "So, going to do the deed here? Or do you want to wait till after school?"

Yuno doesn't respond. She simply looks at me. There's no hostility, no killing intent, and of course, no pity. "What are you fighting for?"

"Nothing. I don't get a wish, so there's no reason to bother." I hit my head on the table. "What about you?"

"Yukki."

"That makes sense. You've got someone worth fighting for."

The conversation distorts into static. My consciousness shifts forward, back into the familiar present.

[_] Tell her. Lay it on the table, try to negotiate a truce.
[_] Don't tell her. If she doesn't know and she's fishing on instinct, don't play into her hands.
[_] Play dumb. Not likely to succeed, but it's still an option to consider.
[_] Custom