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Kirari knows a little of everything. From flowers to buildings, she has always been titled as a genius since she was a child, and her curious mind is 24/7 hungry for knowledge. Fishes are her passion, if she didn’t have the clan responsibilities, she would spend all her hours researching about these animals, lifestyle, anatomy, physiology, everything.She was like Sayaka on this topic. Kirari would devour all the books she had, reread them, hold them like they were her lovers, spend the whole night caressing the white written sheets, lusting her eyes in new and old facts and pictures of the theme of the book.However, if there is a thing Kirari isn’t fond of, it is the internet. She refused to use it daily, no reports from there are not on papers, on physical editions. And misinformation is a plague she would like to avoid, keeping her mind unconfused and protected from dumb, unfounded theories.Sure, she acknowledges its importance for humanity, the boom it brought to the world and to intercontinental connections. It’s much easier now to buy a low priced batch of chicken from a far, far away country, to keep in touch with one’s hatred enemies, to launch a missile and remark it was just a military test without making a fuss over it. Good things came from its advent, but even an apple can be a weapon in the wrong hands, which got the girl a little interested in the matter when she heard about the internet. Steal data just and mock other’s private contents could be her new pastime. That’s it, until she realized it would take years to master the hacking subject. “Boring.”And her logic is as clear as her criminal record: no fun means no use of learning more than the basics. Sayaka seemed to disagree with her objectiveness way of thought:
“One can say that I follow a logical path, don’t you think, Sayaka?”
“No offense, president, but using boredom as a parameter is hardly logical.”
“Fufufu~ is that so?”
Speaking of Sayaka, Kirari just couldn’t keep her out of her mind. Be it her beautiful face, be it her cute actions, the older girl’s brain was under Igarashi’s features control. Her darling was like coke, not that Kirari has ever tried doing it, but she knew the effects of it while researching about it — educational purposes. — So much like it, that she has been wondering about everything the whole day, trying to find a treat to give to her not-yet-girlfriend, as a court move and just because she can.Suddenly, an arrow hit her brain, the impulse it needed to come up with a magnificent idea. She knew Sayaka preferred useful items over ornamental ones, but Kirari couldn’t give the girl she was wooing something without her heart embroidered on it, could she? She wanted Igarashi to remember her whenever she glanced at the gift. What’s better than a mix of utility and adornment?A manufactured napkin with their names sounded good. Perhaps the worker could even sew a silhouette of them together, make it unique. Golden threads in some parts would bring the cloth a charm and the silk texture would never abrade Sayaka’s precious skin.Object set, one less trouble to think of, because, now the problem was another one: who was capable of zeroing this present, sew it perfectly and not leave any flaws between the seams?Leaving her mind’s own world for a moment, she now noticed how silent the meeting room was. Everybody was staring at her, perhaps waiting for a half-done response to an unheard question.Terano, not standing Kirari’s attention lapses anymore, acted like a mother when her child drew an outstanding modern art: she pulled out a leather belt an–. No! Why would a mom do this to her little angel? Even if one did it, the Totobami couldn’t even consider doing this in front of everyone. She rigidly scolded her:— Kirari, take at least this seriously, if not for the clan, for yourself! This is a life or death situation we are dealing with, and you have your head in anything but this!Welp, it was a little effective, just a little.— I assure you that whatever I had in mind was also a life or death situation — Kirari threw the bait and now she just needed to wait a few seconds to get it bitten.The floater plunged as Terano now rested both of her hands on the table:— What is it, then? What is more important than an almost bankrupted branch of our family?— People come to this world to complete their missions and fade away in their ashes in the end. Acknowledging one’s deeds is making them realize how close to finishing this temporary bingo of life they are, isn’t it? — Kirari started with her philosophical shit. — Showing someone’s feats some appreciation makes the gift giver the pen which covers the bingo card, mark themselves in the other’s life.All of the attendants stayed quiet while their leader babbled about this random theme.— And I wanted to be the one to paint all of the numbers on my secretary’s card.And then, everybody gasped at the confession, until they realized that it wasn’t a surprising thing, given how touchy she was with Sayaka, how she always found a way to include her in their chats, how she had two dakimakura with her secretary’s face stamped in both of them — front and back.— Who would have imagined, Kirari? — Rin decided to laugh lightly, a masked mockery. — And what are you going to get for her?— Hm… — the girl considered whether she should say it to this snake and the lions, which were waiting for their prey to get distracted by a butterfly, or keep her mouth closed. Kirari pondered the cons and reached the conclusion that, if she doesn’t speak now, they would still find a way to disturb her plans. Why not make things interesting right now? — A handmade napkin should do the job, don’t you think?— Why, yes, it indeed should, Kirari — and then, Rin decided to poke the beast with the shortest twig he had found in his life years. — But to be honest with you, I didn’t know you had the abilities to produce one yourself.He has a death will, but Kirari is a monk, she wouldn’t give what he wanted too soon, the girl knew how to wait. She would play with him first, take his things slowly, barely noticeable in the beginning, but in the end, this snowball would be able to swallow a building. She sent him a warning glance, but before she could put the first step of ruining Rin’s life in action, Miyo intruded in the conversation:— If I may, Kirari, I know a renowned couturier who can make whatever his client asks for, even if it’s a labored one.Now, this is interesting, and for sure, got the girl’s attention. The Obami’s pride is going to stay one more day intact. Aware of that fact, the other continued like she was a saleswoman:— For his clients’ facility, he only gets orders on his website. It’s like he always says: “practicality doesn’t kill anyone” — Miyo gestured at her cellphone. — He can get perfectly what one wants by giving him their measures.From the Inbami’s front, her sister started to talk to her almost telepathically:
“Miyo, whom are you talking about?”
“Don’t you already know? It’s Kureijī Hijōshikina.”
“Isn’t he the supposed anonymous kidnapper from the internet!?”
With no need to answer, a smile was everything the taller one gave to her sister.Miri’s outburst (she blinked twenty times instead of the normal eighteen in that time interval) was unusual, but she was right to react this way . Kureijī was not a common name to be heard on a daily basis, however, if a person recognized it, it was impossible to not tremble.— I’ve once requested his services and I can assure you that he didn’t let me down. He did an awesome job, didn't leave any loose ends.A blatant lie — at least it is for Miri’s ears. Miyo had never gotten in touch with this psychopath, neither knew whether he was real or just a little known urban legend made for scaring people at getting in darkweb.The mutual smiles said everything both needed in order to understand the other’s thoughts. Miyo spoke a little more about the worker; Kirari paid full mind in those words.The guy’s and site’s names, his skills in sewing and arts, the supposed garment she got with him, everything superficially were mentioned in her subtle prattle.And now Kirari wouldn’t need to worry herself with the manufacturer.— Are you finished? Can we go back to our previous business? — Terano asked rhetorically for all of them. And with no more distractions, they kept discussing bankruptcy and other posterior affairs.How great it was to have family around to help a useless romantic.When they finally got every important topic over, the gathering was adjourned, all the presents walked away. Kirari was no exception and headed to her bedroom while thinking about her cousin’s suggestion.Most of her relatives want her dead, their opinion must be examined from the first capital letter until the last symbol of the sentence, and even then, keep a foot behind. You know, just in case it’s a scheme against her. However, Kirari’s closest cousins could be nice and sometimes offer her good words, like the time when her favorite fish died and Nozomi kept her company, saying that it was normal to feel this way with her loss, even though Kirari herself showed no saddened expression about the deceased.Miyo was not a petty person when the subject was clothes, but Kirari knew that she occasionally would get one dress or another to special appointments. This guy must really have been the hired dressmaker, for the way she talked about him.Why would Miyo lie about her couturier? Kirari decided to take the risk.Kirari sat down at her desk and turned on her computer. She made up her mind, nothing would stop her from offering her beloved secretary an unforgettable gift.She typed the name that Inbami has told her earlier, but no results were found, at least not of a stitcher. It was shown to her tons of news websites about a kidnapper with the same name in question, but not a dressmaker. She was foolishly in love and a little too desperate for it to be reciprocal as soon as possible. Kirari considered the theory that the guy who she was looking for and this criminal were the same person, but it was readily discarded. It wasn’t impossible for two different people to have an identical name, mainly considering how small this world is.It still was weird, though, because, why wouldn’t a reputed couturier be at the top of a searching result?She needed answers, not more questions. Miyo might be handy at showing his website link herself, since the girl had had once contact with the man.Kirari collected her phone and pressed the correct buttons to contact the Inbami teen. She had just needed to call that number five times until it was answered:— Hello? Kirari? Are there still any matters to discuss right now? — Miyo tried to sound neutral, but her voice held a string of exasperation. — From what I know, the meeting ended a few hours ago.— It’s not business related, I assure you. I happened to search on Google the couturier’s name and nothing redirected me to his website — her voice tone changed subtly. — He does exist, doesn’t he?— Yes, he does, but I’m still on my way home. It’s better to wait until I get in ther–.— Do you need to be at your house to send me a simple link? — Kirari cut dryly her utterance.A moment of silence hung in the air. Kirari kind of had a point in demanding a mere thing, and the Inbami girl had to acknowledge it. The truth is that the link she has is not an usual one and it wouldn’t work on Google.Lucky for her rescue, she had arranged for Miri to get a ride in her limo earlier and signaled to her to try to find the strange line of characters wherever she had gotten at the first time. The smaller one promptly started searching in forums for the said link, while her sister would stall and gain some time with Kirari.And then she realized something more.Miyo found herself facing the biggest dilemma of her life. She could make this prank run healthily, just give Kirari the scariest experience of her existence and keep this story as a future remembrance… however she could also end the Momobami reign once and for all, kill this craziness she and her sister have always been victims of.Freedom seemed to taste better than these sour chains of fate, but would Miyo really be free, knowing that she made a close relative die because she had the power to choose her destiny?The answer is obviously yes, she didn’t care for anyone but herself and Miri, however, she knew her mother wouldn’t like it. Her grandparents would be ashamed of this low blow, her pride would be devoured by every single person who shared the same blood as her.And in the worst scenario, if Kirari gets to survive whatever the darkweb freaks would do to her, the branch her family holds high will be pruned, her place besides the Sun would be taken and this event be marked forever in History.So, the tiger went to sleep hungry for another night.— Kirari, his site is hosted on a different part of the internet, an exclusive one.Oh, the exclusive part of the internet? How has she stayed for this long unaware of this hidden kingdom?— In order for you to enter it, you’ll need to follow a few steps — Miyo felt that this would end nicely for her, with everything going smoothly as now. — You’ll need to first get a VPN…Miyo teached the whole process in order to get into the darkweb, and opted to not mention the protocols of a prudent web user. Oops, it slipped from her head, how foolish of her part. But, reader, consider it: if something not so pleasant happens to Kirari, no person couldn’t blame her for it. In order to use this layer of the internet, one should explore using some common sense. Whether her cousin has it or not, it’s not her problem anymore.With the shallow tutorial, it was now time to share the dubious site with her, which luckly Miri had found in a chan, along with many other links in that thread. Now, why would you give a fish to a hungry fellow, when you can give them the fishing rod?— Okay, Kirari, I could spell the link, but it’s too different from the usual ones that most people are used to — and before Miyo hung up, she said one last thing: — I will send you the site where I’ve found it and the only thing you’ll need to do is copy the third line of that post and paste it on the other browser.The voice call was over, and Kirari opened the site that her cousin had sent. There was nothing unusual there, so she went straight to the list and followed the instructions left.The site has an uncanny vibe, it was too adorned, like it came from the 2000 marketing PowerPoint slides. The bluest background almost burnt her pupils and the yellow text made her feel like dying. But the gifs were the demons of dizziness. There were too many, and they weren’t even synced.It was almost a crime to host a website like this on the internet, really.When her eyes grew accustomed to the interface, she soon clicked on a red button written “ORDER HERE!”, which redirected her to another window.Pinning your eyes on this new tab, it was like a full job interview. The page was filled from its header until its footnote with the most random, but personal, questions. “What’s your name? How old are you? Do you have family members living in your house? How many cellphones are there in your house? What is the average wage of the people around you? Would your family miss you if something happened to you?”And then, by the end of the form, there were the questions about the item the person would like to order.Kirari had a laptop and a dream. Nothing would stop her from getting what she wants, so promptly she typed the data in every asked spot and sent the request.Wew, filling everything up had been tiresome. She spent great fifty minutes just to complete a form and it got her drained up, how come? The girl now needed to do something fun to recover her energy.Maybe surfing on the internet, with no objectives this time, could bring her mood up.Unfortunately, Kirari didn’t stop at that site. She got enticed by the vastness of links to surf on this browser and let her inner dog sniff the “exclusive part of the internet”.There were silicon body parts, for Halloween’s decoration; white dust, for simulating snow on Christmas; true crimes stories, for those who love a good fiction. There was even a gardening site on the list, which got her bewitched and with a new idea. Some flowers would be a great addon to the napkin.She clicked and soon noticed a pattern in every plant which was sold there. They all had five green leaves and cost the price of her kidneys. Kirari got worried seeing these herbs, her breath unstabilized a little and her hands trembled along the clacking noises of the rain pouring over the roof over her.She knew this kind of leaf very well, it was pretty familiar to her, she remembered finding one of this in a country she had once been in, but it didn’t have this color. Her lungs couldn’t get enough air, while she recalled the red tinge of the plant.Was she getting daltonic???? Why is Canada’s maple leaf green instead of its original color??????It was now a Friday afternoon, classes ended some hours ago, and no more council matters are pending. Kirari was doing the same path as she always did, not so eager for the weekend, considering her role as the clan head and all the burden on her shoulders.As she approached the long vehicle, she noticed Ririka leaned on the black carcass, sweating bullets, static. Kirari knew that her sister is going through an anxious phase of life, so she didn’t give it much of a thought. Ririka would overcome this feeling in some months… maybe years, but that’s not the case.The peculiar detail in this horizon was an one-eyed fellow with an arm over her sister’s shoulders. Midari was standing by her side, spinning her gun on her free hand’s index finger, looking kind of bored. When she noticed their new companion, her face adorned an excited smile.— Hey, prez! — Kirari answered her with her standart smile. — I know classes ended a few minutes ago, and we don’t have any meetings today, but i got a thing for ya.Everything happened too fast to associate the domino effect. In a moment, Kirari was standing outside her car, listening to Midari sentences, in the other, she was rudely thrown on the backseat, having her hands tied in front of her and being blindfolded. Midari even put on some weird gloves so she would not remove the cloth over her eyes.And one doesn’t need to be Sherlock Holmes to put two with two: Ririka was also a victim of this procedure.As soon as they were totally restrained, Ikishima sat down in the passenger seat and commanded her partner to drive away, turn on the privacy glass and not stop at any red lights.There they are, with no family, no course. They were on the run and it would now be their new life. Kirari didn’t seem to mind it at all, but on the other hand… Ririka would rather eat raw chicken covered with Donald McDonald’s secret sauce than stay in this car a second more. The younger might have smelled her sister’s sour mood and decided to worsen it:— Riri? How are you doing?— …Oooohh, silent treatment. Kirari could live with this. Yes, she could, but what are siblings made for if not to bother each other? She was about to test if Ririka’s determination was as solid as she was trying to show it:— What an exciting experience, don’t you think?— …— I’ve grown quite fascinated in this sort of activity the past month. The modus operandi varies depending what kind of kidnapper one is dealing with.— …— Some are merciful enough to let their victims wander inside their houses, others are restricted, and the people in hostag–...Even the driver could hear the sound. Snap!— We could’ve already been home, Kirari! It’s your fault we are here!Forty seconds. Kirari is going to be stamped on the next Guinness World Records book edition.Soon, she got too bored to keep up this jest, so she really shut the fuck up and tried to imagine where they are and where they are moving to. Gravel clinked each rotation of the wheels for a long time, until it was substituted by dirt and less sound could be heard.After a while, the car came to a stop, so did the motor. The wind whispering and a few birds chirping would bring calmness for the soul. What a shame Kirari was in this peaceful place under the aim of a gun, really.For those who are not blindfolded like the twins, the place was a small ranch, with no animals, no barn, no plantation. Just a house with a big pool, both hidden by large common trees. It’s the ideal spot to kill someone and bury their body in the soil, and the police wouldn’t be able to find a single hair.— Okay, it’s time to get inside, you two — Midari stated as she opened the back doors, allowing the siblings to get their feet on grass. She turned around to speak to her partner. — Hey, put ‘em in the basement and call her.Big hands held one shoulder of each girl brutish and guided them inside the house. The three of them didn’t walk for too long, they reached the specified room in some paces and went down, step by step, until they touched a cemented floor.They couldn’t see anything, but they could feel the dustiness of this room. At least, if they get cold at night, they could always cover themselves in a thick layer of this powder.With little time to make their other senses study the place, nothing could’ve been recognized, even if they wanted to. The stranger pushed, out of the blue, both of the twins, Ririka, in direction of a weird chair; Kirari, into the floor.The grunts which left their throats were silenced by another pair of footsteps. It was Ikishima surely, if the maniac laughs coming from the “clec, clec” sounds says something.When the tallest one squatted in front of the girl on the floor, she proposed:— What about a match of Russian Roulette? If I win, which means “when I get a bullet right in the middle of my brain”, you are free to go. If you are the winner, the vice-prez will still get locked here until I make up my mind.Betting two lives against one. This gamble wasn’t very fair, but once again, this world also isn’t. And it may be fun if she “wins”. Would despair take control from her sister’s mind? Would Ririka create a killing game, put the whole Council to mandatorily participate and share with them this thrilling feeling?Ikishima brought two dice and whoever got the lower sum, would take a try on the trigger. They could, if they wanted to, spin the barrel in their correspondent turn to make the opponent lose the track of the two bullets.And in order to start the game, Midari untied Kirari’s blindfold and collected the weird gloves.Being the guest, the president was the one to play the cubes, so Ikishima launched them soon after her.Twelve and nine. Clink. Empty slot.Eight and four. Barrel spinned. Clink. Empty slot.Two and four. Barrel spinned. Clink Empty slot.Five and three. Clink. The gun failed.Was this luck or its opposite?The last two throws of the dice, one for each player, their last chance before a draw.And… six and eleven, with this big span between the numbers, it was clear who was the loser.Kirari picked the gun from the floor and made the barrel rotate for the last time. Her fate was in Lady Luck’s hands and no one else. But before any damage could be done, she had a question roaming her head for a while and she wouldn’t die before asking it:— Say, Midari, there isn’t any customized napkin with you, is there?— Why had you required my fake job, prez? It was kinda clear that most of that ol’ site of mine is a scam — Ikishima counterasked, opting to not answer that frivolous question. — No one in their sane mind would visit that link.— It’s a pretty normal site, Midari, I wouldn’t have guessed it was a kidnapping file to fill instead of what I wanted.The receptor just laughed crazily. Was that usually imposing woman, the one who had no scruples to end a life, that innocent while using the lawless land called internet? Midari could use this golden piece of information for not doing her paperwork properly.When she calmed down a little, she signaled to her opponent to pull the trigger for once. It happens that the said opponent wanted to keep a dialog running:— So it’s just a few people who try to hire “Kureijī Hijōshikina”? Then, not many people come here, I suppose? — the speaker gave the basement a good look. — What an honor.— Are you trying to buy some time? Hah! What are you waiting for? Help? Nah, they can’t find us here! Pull it! PULL IT!— So we are in a remote area? They really can’t find this place easily? How interesting.— Shoot it, shoot it now! Press the trigger, make the adrenaline flush your blood for once! No one will hear you when the bullet goes through your chest!— This basement remembers me about one of the Mushibami’s chambers, dark and full of torture devices…This behavior resembled a stubborn child asking their parents “why is the sky blue? Why is it not red? Purple? Green? Why not? But mom, why is the sky blue, then?”, and the man couldn’t stand it anymore.— OH! You said torture devic–...!?— Cut this bullshit out, bitch! We have more important things to do here! — the unknown man interrupted his boss without wanting to.— Woah, calm down, pardner. I’m still in charge of this, ain’t I? Go get some chamomile tea for yourself — Midari shooed the big guy, and before he could reach the stairs, she added an observation: — Just don’t spill the hot water over you, alright? Uhe heh.After Midari changed her focus from him to her, Kirari held her finger on the trigger calmly, ready to accept the consequences of her actions. Her index was pulling the metal at a snail’s pace, just for Midari’s tears of joy to fall faster. This surely was building an unhealthy tension in the air, so much that Kirari was apprehensive that the other would start touching herself right here, right now.Before pulling the finger to reach a point of no return, a loud thump could’ve been heard from above the basement, followed by the acutest scream that even a dog could barely hear.Everybody’s attention turned to the hollow sound that was approaching at each second past. When it was coming from the door, it suddenly stopped. Kirari and Midari glanced at each other, wondering why the silence, while Ririka stood in the corner, like the good girl she was (totally not because she was tied in a chair for… Bible Discussions and Sunny Mornings activities).They stayed like this, dead muted, for long minutes, until an abrupt loud sound resonated once, then twice, as if one was trying to break in by tearing the door down. The wood finally gave in, splinters flew at everywhere on air, and let the insane person step into the room.— Sayaka!? — two of the four people in there were surprised; one was breathing heavily; one had passed out some seconds ago.— President! What are you doing here? — the newcomer ran into Kirari’s direction and removed the handmade knot from the piece of cloth on her wrist. — Are you okay?Kirari just nodded, and it was enough to appease the worryness in Sayaka’s heart. And when she moved her eyes a little, just to see what expression Midari was wearing, Sayaka noticed the action. She slowly rotated her neck towards the Beautification Committee President, almost as if she was an owl.Adding to the Exorcist head move, Igarashi got up from the floor warily and put a sinister smile on her face.— Ikishima…— Woah, Sayaka, calm down, it was just a jok–... PUT THIS STUN GUN AWAY!Oooh, what a happy ending, I’m even feeling a little emotional here.When the dust had settled, they were kind of in good graces (Sayaka is still uneasy with Midari and ready to strangle her if she tries to do anything, but still, good graces). But not everything ended when Igarashi had broken in the basement, there is one detail in the open.— Uheheh, hey, prez, com’ere. I got you something real this time — spoke the one-eyed while walking away from the living room, heading to the pool section.Kirari just followed, curious about what Midari could possibly do right now that the secretary was here to protect her not-so-fragile princess. She noticed that the younger one didn't stop by the water, and kept her pacing uniform. The president inquired about this, and the other’s answer was:— Nah, not here. You wouldn’t like to have Sayaka to listen to what I’m gonna tell ya.They just stopped cracking the twigs and leaves when the house wasn’t in their view field anymore. Midari looked in every direction, seeing if anyone had followed them, walked suspiciously close to Kirari, bringing slowly her right hand to Kirari’s shoulder and holding it tightly.— You wanted this, didn’t ya? — and pulling out an item from her pocket with her free hand, she offered it to the unbothered girl.Well, at least now it’s really the napkin, not a new kidnapping.