vandalism and punishment

[poetaste]

Who: Yakuyoke girls (they're unforgettable) and YOU
When: 9/11-ish, post-Kenkougate
Where: The Equipment Shed
What: Yakuyoke does a class assignment to try opening the equipment shed, with predictable results, and loses a member along the way (Nei's hiatus)
Warnings: Forced silencing, potential references to kidnapping/trafficking/imprisonment, possible violence because it is Yakuyoke?

[As of the 11th, the (still locked) equipment shed has been vandalized with the following chalk graffiti messages:

"help us"

"just give us a little peek, please 💜"

"I kindly request for this door to open. If not, please let us know the requirements and we will do our best to fulfill them within reason."

"I once found a locked door that perplexed me.
Locked equipment? Now, what help could that be?
This mysterious shed
Had me scratching my head;
To the shed now, I say: “Open Ses’me!”"

Well. It's actually not chalk anymore: It's blood now, running into the grass and staining everything.

Also as of the 11th, anyone within hearing distance will bear witness to a huge commotion: Several people screaming loudly (albeit muffled). The Yakuyoke girls, sans the one called Rin, are swarming around the equipment shed, probably going nuts somehow. It is Yakuyoke. All of their mouths are taped firmly shut.

There are a couple of different headers in the comments for your threading needs! Feel free to make your own also reacting to the damage or the missing Nei.]

Comments

[isdf]

[While he can't fault her for being angry, that rage will only hinder her right now.

Yuma holds her by the shoulders, his palms pressing her back with the exact strength to keep her in place. The last thing he wants to do is hurt her and create more problems. In the resultant contact, he transmits an experienced calm that's faintly disrupted by a thread of concern for Mizi and Nei, who are both important to him.]

I would like to free her as well. Let us assess the situation calmly and come up with a solution together.

[He once told her that he'd do everything he could to assist her. It remains to be seen how useful he can be, but that wasn't a lie.]

[tiebroken]

[ The transmitted calm does help... a little. Enough to allow her to feel something other than anger and the need to lash out. Futilely, she tries pushing against his grip for a few extra beats, before the fight slowly drains out of her, her breathing gone heavy from the exertion.

Since she can't say anything, though, she puts both hands on her face momentarily, clutching her temples and wracking her brain for a way to communicate. Mamoru couldn't have seen what happened, she should try to communicate that, first...

So, she roughtly grabs his shoulder to try to turn him back around towards the shed, pointing firmly at the shed's very closed, very un-openable door. Rin is inside, she wants to say, but can't. So she settles for pantomiming opening the door, hoping he might understand that that's what they ultimately need to do. Or try to do, at least. ]

[isdf]

[Nei's absence weighs heavily on Mizi. Even he can tell when he sees the latter clutch at herself so desperately. But their options are far too limited . . .

He's suddenly grabbed and shown the shed, where his gaze lands on the door while Mizi gestures around it. Combined with his exchange with Raven, there's no doubt now as to where Nei must be.

For the sake of being thorough, he gives the door a go. When the lock doesn't budge, he pushes against the panel to no avail. Once again, he's reminded of the awesome power that shrouds this place . . . though it's also a fact that he's weak, regardless of how much strength he amassed in life. Still, he slides his hand along the wall beside the door before giving that an experimental push.

Shaking his head, he turns to Mizi.]

Your class implored entry into the shed, only for Rin-senpai to be taken. Did anything else happen? Perhaps there is a clue to be found in the sequence of events that led to this.

[tiebroken]

[ Her head shakes unsteadily, wracking her brain for any other sort of sign that the shed may have given them. Currently, there's only it's current state — the bloodstained walls — that leave any sort of clue. Her hand reaches out to soak her palm in it, turning it towards him when it's thoroughly stained. Just in time for him to push against the door, with it locked firmly shut.

Not caring if she gets punished more, she traces out a phrase against the shed's wall with her bloodied fingers, thinking about Snowdrop and the way she had communicated at her party.

'It said "vandals"' ]

[isdf]

"Vandals" . . . ?

[It hadn't occurred to him to use what looks like blood to communicate via letters. It hardly makes for good ink, but she gets the most important part of the message across as he cups his chin.]

Perhaps it is upset that the shed has been defaced, regardless of your class' intentions. Cleaning the walls may appease it.

[tiebroken]

[ Very stubbornly, she shakes her head. SHES NOT DOING THAT SHIT!!!

'RIN 1ST', she writes, absolutely unwilling to bend the knee. It's different than the alien masters she knows; they could be cruel and punishing, too, but they were her caretakers, as well. These ghosts are just nobodies, as far as she's concerned. She's under no obligation to cooperate. ]

[isdf]

[A bit of tension settles in his brow, pinched slightly out of worry.]

I understand that you're concerned. I am as well, which is why I think we should try every possible option before us, especially if this was an act of retaliation.

[tiebroken]

[ It's hard — she can't say anything in return, and she can't think of anything coherent and short to write, either. So she just glares at the blood-stained wood in front of them, eyes starting to well up with angry tears.

She's not angry with him — just at the situation. At the people around her being taken away because of the whims of others, their lives treated like nothing. At least Mamoru can be level-headed, and it's more than than her declining energy that causes her to cease struggling to no avail against the silent building, which offers little in the way of information or results.

A few hot tears slip from her eyes when she turns to look at him again, eyes questioning. What other possible options are there? Her mind is racing too much, too hyperfixated on the locked door before them to imagine other alternatives. ]

[isdf]

[The moisture in her eyes reminds him of their very first meeting, where she took it upon herself to initiate contact for what must have been comfort. That was because Yuma is more experienced in spilling blood than halting tears. Still, his chest twists at the sight when he recalls what Ena said to him before about the power of certain gestures.

He reaches for her hand to hold if she allows it, intending to share his desire to help her—to bring what peace he can in an otherwise terrible situation through the force of his affections for her and the woman in the shed.]

I shall bring something with which to clean the shed. If we pacify the entity, it may provide us with a clue. You can come with me, or stay here and keep watch for signs of Rin-senpai.