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“Whad’ja bring? Whad’ja bring?” Miu practically pounced on Korekiyo when she saw him enter the house carrying two large, unmarked bottles. She always made sure to suggest inviting him to any party anyone was having because he always brought the most amazing drinks. And sometimes other intoxicants. “It’s the traditional hallucinogenic drink of the-” Korekiyo began explaining, a look of reverent joy crossing his face. “Yeah, yeah, nobody cares, Creepshow,” Miu rolled her eyes, far too impatient to waste any of her time listening to his boring lecture. She grabbed the bottles from him to take to the kitchen. Korekiyo glared, “You’re abysmally rude.” The entire reason he enjoyed bringing samples for his classmates to try is that, with a gustatory component, they could generally be persuaded to be interested enough to listen to the relevant contextual information for the experience. Unfortunately, Miu was not as easily convinced of the information’s value, and didn’t care to honor the social customs of her own culture. “How much is safe to drink?” Miu decided to keep further comments to herself, in case he decided he was angry enough to refuse to tell her. “The effect is magnified by more consumption,” Korekiyo sighed. The information was his only leverage to get the chance to infodump about it, but if he didn’t answer her, she may simply decide to guess and he’d rather not have to deal with his classmates in a state of mass panic. “Start slowly, with sips, do not exceed half a cup.” “Alright! I am ready to trip balls!” Miu grinned, bouncing back to the kitchen to pour everyone a cup. Korekiyo’s arms wrapped around himself and he caressed his face. Her selfishness was lovely, even if he didn’t particularly enjoy being on the receiving end of this type of callous treatment. Every bit of humanity was beautiful, especially the ugly parts. Petty cruelty and insensitivity weren’t as fascinating as the darker sides, but they were of interest all the same. He wandered further into the house, looking around for Ryoma or Gonta. Both of them were typically kind enough to indulge his desire to share information and had very interesting perspectives as well. Miu burst into the kitchen to find Kokichi crouched on the counter, swapping the labels on the canisters containing sugar, flour, corn starch, and salt. “Shota, you look like a fucking gargoyle like that,” Miu giggled, getting out the solo cups and a half cup to measure. Korekiyo had given her one amount, and not any detail, which was slightly concerning. Himiko and Gonta should probably not have the same maximum safe dose of anything. But Korekiyo was relatively responsible, so he probably gave her a conservative estimate. “I do not,” Kokichi giggled back, “I look absolutely adorable. You’ve just still got too much cum in your eyes to see it.” “I do not let dudes cum in my eyes, dumbass,” Miu scoffed, measuring and pouring 15 cups of the rather unsettlingly green liquid. She still hadn’t worked out an eating or drinking function for Keebo, though it was in the planning stage. She assumed he wouldn’t mind skipping out on this anyway, he’d expressed some concerns about the human desire to reduce self control in previous conversations. “And anyway, what are you up to?” “I’m mixing up all the labels so Kaito’s grandma won’t be able to cook,” Kokichi explained, pulling off another, “It’s kinda a cliche prank, butttttttt it’ll still be funny.” “If she catches you, she’s gonna spank that ass with a wooden spoon,” Miu cautioned, counting the cups she already had poured, “And, I mean, shotas need spankings, but I’m not sure that’ll be fun. And Kaito might punch you if he finds out.” “It’s alright,” Kokichi hopped off of the counter and onto the floor, then stood up, “I laugh in the face of danger! Anyway, what’s that weird stuff? It smells like cactus juice.” Miu shrugged, “Some cool shit Creepshow brought. We’re gonna be seeing all kindsa shit!” she sniffed at the cup in her hand and frowned. It did smell kind of acidic. “Wait, what the fuck does cactus juice smell like? What even is that?!” “That was a lie!” Kokichi beamed, tucking both hands behind his head, “I have no idea!”“Degenerate male!” the shout was followed by a loud crash, and muffled groan, “Don’t look at Himiko like that!” Miu and Kokichi both ran into the living room to see which of their friends had gotten assaulted by Tenko this time. Shuichi lay, dazed, on top of the broken remains of a coffee table with Tenko leaning menacingly over him. Himiko was curled up on the couch, pulling her hat down over her face to avoid the situation. And everyone else looked on in confusion and discomfort. “What is your fucking problem, you man-hating bitch?!” Miu stormed over to Tenko, glaring furiously, “Why the fuck are you beating up on Shuichi?” Tenko squared up to her, answering the physical challenge. “I caught him trying to look down Himiko’s shirt!”Gonta slipped forward and pulled Shuichi from on top of the rubble, commenting quietly, “Gonta think Shuichi should come over with Gonta and be safe.” Shuichi had absolutely no problem being moved by his possibly current favorite friend and just nodded. He appreciated Miu sticking up for him as well, though he wished it wouldn’t start a fight. And he was honestly quite relieved that Gonta would protect him from anything further. Being thrown hard enough to break a table was quite painful. “Oh please,” Miu rolled her eyes, “When he’s got my gorgeous body to look at whenever he wants to, why would Shuichi go perving on Titless?” “Okay,” Kaede clapped her hands together, interrupting the fighting girls, “Let’s not insult Himiko. And I don’t think Shuichi was doing that either, but you know, it’s good that Tenko’s on the case. Maybe next time we can tell people to stop before we throw them though.” “He’s just a degenerate male, don’t act like he’s a real person!” Tenko crossed her arms, feeling rather defensive, “I was just trying not to let him bother Himiko.” “Wow!” Kokichi giggled, popping back into the room with an ice pack, “That is quite some misandry there!” he scurried over to Shuichi and handed him the ice pack. “Here you go, Shuichi-chan! Want me to kiss it all better?” he batted his eyelashes. “Tenko,” Angie’s voice drew her attention away from yelling at Kokichi, “Maybe you should ask Atua how not to bother Himiko. He tells me all kinds of ways to make her happy.” She shifted back and forth, pressing her hands against her cheeks. “Alright,” Kirumi called for everyone’s attention, appearing in the doorway with the cups of Korekiyo’s drinks on a tray, “Everyone sit down. I have the main refreshment and will pass it out while Korekiyo regales us with knowledge about it.” Kaito had requested that she keep this party from getting out of hand, and she intended to do just that. “Gonta, please put the broken table outside, I will address it later. Korekiyo, the floor is yours.” She began going to each person, allowing them to select a cup. Everyone complied fairly happily, though Tenko curled protectively around Himiko when she sat down next to her and Miu grumbled to Shuichi about having to stop yelling at Tenko. Gonta picked up all of the broken pieces of table and carried them to the porch, then sat back down next to Shuichi. Korekiyo was delighted at the opportunity to deliver his lecture on the drink, though also very, very interested in the conflict that preceded it. Tenko’s revulsion towards men was interesting enough that sometimes he wished that Sister trusted her enough to talk to her through him. He wondered if his own gender would affect her perception or if she’d support Sister unquestionably, as she did with most girls. He was also anxiously awaiting the spiritual experience that was to follow and observing his classmates reacting to their hallucinations. “... Alright, that said, everyone please feel free to imbibe. I recommend caution, it may be wiser to get used to the feeling in small doses rather than consuming your entire portion at once. However, do let your hearts guide you. I’m sure the response will be interesting regardless,” Korekiyo smiled, being the last to take his own cup. “Does anyone have any questions?” “Yeah, just how wild is this stuff?” Kaito asked, looking mildly apprehensive, “Nobody’s going to destroy the house or something, right?” “Kaito!!!” Kokichi laughed, “You missed the most important parrrrrrt! He said we could commune with visions of the departed!! Don’t you know what thaaaaat means?!” he paused for dramatic affect, “You’re gonna see ghosts!!!!” Before Kaito could respond, Maki had stood, stepped in front of him, and glared at Kokichi, “Do you wanna die?” “Easy, Maki Roll,” Kaito’s laugh was slightly shaky, but he reached for her hand, “You’ll protect me from the ghosts, right?” She gave a slight nod, not taking her eyes off of Kokichi. “Geez, you’re nooooo fun,” Kokichi whined, “It was just a lie! Momo-chan wouldn’t see ghosts! He’s not brave enough!” Kaito shook his head, “Nope, I’m not. So, they’ll stay away.” It wasn’t long ago that he would have been uncomfortable admitting his fear, but he’d realized that, if he were best going to help his sidekick feel more comfortable with himself, he’d just have to embody more radical self acceptance. Including fear. “Whoa, this is fun,” Himiko giggled slightly, looking all around, “I can see the magic. It’s making shapes on the wall…” She sat her apparently empty cup on the ground and relaxed back onto the sofa.“I don’t think you were supposed to gulp it down like that!” Tenko worried, looking her over to see if there appeared to be a problem. “Relax,” Korekiyo’s voice was a bit more high and melodious than usual, as he was blurring with Sister in new and interesting ways, “She will be just fine. Himiko has a wealth of experience in handling herself while taking various recreational substances.” “Wow, what a polite way to call someone a junkie,” Miu giggled, sipping on the odd liquid. While it had a strong smell, there was very, very little taste. But that may have been because it made her tongue go numb at the first taste. “I don’t think she’s an addict,” Korekiyo smiled behind his mask, tucking his arm around himself and resting his hand on the opposite hip, “But it would be wondrous if she were. You’re all so beautiful. Humanity is beautiful…” he paused, seemingly lost in thought for a moment, then added, “Keebo, I also think you’re beautiful. You’re the product of human innovation and love and every bit as fascinating as anyone else here.” Keebo blushed, smiling bashfully. Korekiyo was inclined to mild, indirect robophobia as he all but worshipped humanity and would rarely praise anything else, so to hear him be so directly complimentary was an incredibly pleasant surprise. “Hey, that hot piece of robot ass is mine,” Miu laughed, batting at the floating concept of the color red, “Don’t get any ideas!” “Wouldn’t dream of it, dear,” Korekiyo smiled widely, “If I’ve made you uncomfortable, I apologize.” He wasn’t sure where he began and ended anymore. Sister’s voice sounded like his own in his mind and the one coming out of his mouth almost sounded like hers, but he knew it couldn’t be because he was still speaking. If he’d been in a more coherent mental state, he would have recognized the feeling of depersonalization, but then he wouldn’t have needed to. Maki swirled her drink in her cup. She’d pretended to take a drink, twice now, but she didn’t actually want this. If it had been something more straightforward, she’d would have happily had some. She trusted this group enough to be drunk around. But not nearly enough for whatever experience Himiko and Korekiyo seemed to be having. She edged closer to Kaito. “Is he… girlier than usual?” Kaito asked, gesturing with his half full cup toward Korekiyo. He was trying to be more accepting, though Korekiyo still gave him the heebie jeebies, but it was still rather striking to see a boy behave so femininely. “Aw, are you being all homophobic again?” Kokichi laughed, bouncing up and down. His face was flushed, and his cup nearly empty, though not a drop had touched his lips. He was happy to pretend and have fun with everyone, but there was no way he was giving up any of his mental clarity. He did this every party and so far, nobody had ever mentioned that he was lying. It was an absurd thing to lie about, so he doubted it would be suspected. He feigned fascination with an empty spot on the ceiling, then looked back at Kaito, “Not cool, man. That is soooooo last year. It’s totally hip to be gay now.” “I’m not homophobic!” Kaito snapped, “I totally support the gays! It’s, like, super cool!” he glanced over at Shuichi, who was leaning on Miu and staring at a houseplant. “Good, ‘cause you’re definitely a bottom if you haven’t figured it out yet!” Kokichi giggled. “What?!” Kaito’s eyes went wide and he clenched his fist around the cup, crinkling it in the middle. “Gonta have questions! First, is Gonta new bug friend real?” Gonta called, holding his hand up in midair, no doubt seeing an insect resting on it. “Yeah,” Himiko answered, “Only you can see it though. It’s like maaagic.” Gonta looked so happy about this interpretation that nobody had the heart to tell him that it wasn’t true. “Second, what is bottom?” Gonta added, petting his illusory bug. “A bottom’s the one who gets FUCKED,” Miu shouted, cackling at the idea, “And yeah, I bet he’s totally getting it from Maki!” “That wouldn’t be gay then!” Kaito objected, putting his arm around Maki to prevent her going over to threaten Miu. “Maki’s a girl.” “Eh, that’s complicated,” Kokichi shook his head, “But getting fucked is still pretty gay.”“Maki Roll,” Kaito whined, having a hard time focusing on her through the galaxy exploding in his mind as the drink began to take effect, “Do you hear this?? Why are they like this?” Maki gave a small smile and took his hand, “Come on, Kaito.” “Wha? Where are we going?” He was easily lead, standing and following her toward the stairs. “Your bedroom.” She was aware of the implications and she rather meant them, it would be far more comfortable for Kaito if everyone started going on about them having sex more generically than if they continued with the notion of anything homosexual relating to him. Everyone sat for a moment in silence as they left, too stunned by Maki being brazen about anything intimate to respond. Eventually, Korekiyo, pulled up and into a pose of reverent admiration, arms open and head tilted to the sky, with tears streaming down his face, gushed, “High school is so beautiful.”