Frontier 02: Randomness
Punishment

madjack89: Hey guys, it's that time again! Time for more randomness! Woohoo!

Kouji: *sigh* What are we parodying this time?

madjack89: Higurashi!

Everyone: …

Kouji: You're joking, right?

madjack89: No, no I am not.

Kouji: …I need some aspirin…

madjack89: Aw, quit your whining! You're not even in this one-shot.

Kouji: Oh, okay then.

madjack89: But Kouichi is!

Kouichi: What?

Kouji: …Aspirin…

Kira: So, is Chief just gonna go crazy and kill us all or something?

Kouichi: I…but I…

madjack89: Calm it down, Kouichi. You don't have to commit any murders today.

Kouichi: *sighs in relief*

Takuya: If Kouichi's not gonna be the crazy one, who is?

madjack89: Oh, you'll see…you'll see…

Disclaimer: Okay, do you guys really think I own Digimon or Higurashi? Do you think I'm Akiyoshi Hongo or Ryukishi07? Well, I'm not. So there.

—

"Since you missed club today, we concocted a little game for you with these ohagi Kouichi's grandma made. One of them was made by me. Guess the right one and you win! Guess wrong and…well, you know what happens."

It all seemed so innocent. Why did this happen? Why…?

"Oh, and one more thing before we go…please DON'T be absent from school tomorrow."

The way their eyes would suddenly change, and their tones of voice would become harsh; it almost seemed like they were possessed. But of course, that was impossible. There are no such things as demons. No one gets "spirited away." Still, their mood swings were unexplainable and frightening. And then there were those ohagi…

"A…a needle…?"

They tried to kill me with that sewing needle. Kouichi even confessed to it.

"We didn't mean to hurt you! It…it was just supposed to be a joke…Takuya thought it would be funny…that it would make you smile again…"

They thought sticking a needle into my food was funny? They weren't trying to hurt me? These were blatant lies told straight to my face. I realized then that my two friends really were trying to kill me, and I had no idea why. But I was ready for them. I'd taken precautions; carrying around a baseball bat for protection was just one of them. Still, I couldn't have predicted what Takuya did next.

"Don't worry…there's no chance in hell I'm gonna let you transfer. Got it?"

That word "transfer." I'd already come to identify it as synonymous with "spirited away." So, had I been pegged as the next victim in our village's yearly curse? From what Takuya had said, there was no doubt of this. But he wasn't going to let me transfer…was transferring a fate even worse than death? Were he and Kouichi trying to do me a favor by killing me? Well, I wasn't about to die without receiving any answers to my questions. But Takuya…

"You're just gonna have to trust me for now."

…following me…

"Friends need to be able to trust each other."

…with that giant cleaver.

"Zoe…"

Zoe shot up so fast that her head was spinning with dizziness, so it took her a few seconds to figure out where she was. All these familiar articles of clothing, her books, her baseball bat…she was in her room. But how in the world had she gotten here? The last thing she remembered was running through the woods, with Takuya's crazed laughter bouncing around the trees…

"Hey Zoe. Welcome back!"

His voice caused all of Zoe's limbs to stiffen simultaneously. In her haste to identify her surroundings, she hadn't even noticed Takuya sitting next to her futon, a cheerful grin plastered on his face. She could tell the hyper energy in his expression was mostly for her benefit, as beneath this there was a look of genuine concern for her. Zoe would have been moved had she not seen through her friend's act long ago.

"What are you doing here?" she growled distrustfully, scooting closer toward the wall at her back; she'd noticed her bat was placed against the dresser that stood just inches behind her. If she could grab that bat…

A sad look cross Takuya's face, but it was quickly masked by the cheerfulness. "You hit your head earlier and ended up passing out, so I brought you back to your house. Since your parents are out of town right now, I decided to call—"

Suddenly, there was a soft knock-knock at Zoe's door, practically causing her to jump out of her skin. Takuya, however, wasn't fazed. "Come on in, Kouichi. She's awake now."

Zoe's door slowly slid open and in walked Kouichi, a small relieved smile on his face. "Thank goodness," he muttered, taking a seat next to Takuya. "I was starting to worry."

"Oh, there's nothing to be worried about," Takuya said, waving off Kouichi's concern. "Zoe's no pushover, after all!"

For a moment, just one moment, Zoe felt as if she'd been transported back in time. She was the new transfer student again, and these were the two boys who were trying to make her feel at home in this mountain village. They would go on picnics to the shrine, where they would meet up with JP and Tommy and have a great time. On school days, they would stay later than everyone and participate in club activities, playing game after game and punishment game after punishment game. She'd laugh and truly be happy for the first time…

"So anyway, did you call the coach yet?"

Takuya's question shattered Zoe's fragile illusion. "Who's the coach?" she asked, unfamiliar with this name. Had she met any coaches since she'd moved to this village? None whom she could recall.

Kouichi shot her a blank look. "Zoe hasn't met the coach?" he muttered more to himself than to anyone else. "Huh, I guess she's still not familiar with everyone in the village yet."

"Stop talking like I'm not even here!" Zoe snapped, causing Kouichi to flinch a bit.

Takuya, however, managed to cover for him. "You've been getting into the habit of practicing your baseball swings a lot lately, Zee. Well, when the coach hears that, he'll be really excited!"

Kouichi nodded, agreeing with Takuya's statement. Zoe just glared at the two. "Stop dodging the question and tell me who the hell this 'coach' guy is!"

"The coach is the coach!" Takuya replied, giggling at his own inside joke.

Zoe was not amused. "Who is the coach? Tell me right now!"

"Well…" Kouichi began hesitantly, fueled by Zoe's apparent need for an answer. "He's…I'm not really sure how to put it…"

"He's just the coach!" Takuya stated, descending into another fit of laughter. This time, Kouichi joined in, and the two cackled away at their jokes while Zoe's paranoia grew.

Why won't they answer me? Zoe wondered, reaching back until her fingertips were touching the bat. I should wait and find out who the coach is…I want to know the truth behind the murders…but not if I end up dead, too! Just give me a reason, I dare you two…

"Hey, I just remembered something!" Takuya announced in his falsely happy voice. "We've still got a punishment game to administer, since Zee never guessed which ohagi I made."

"Punishment…?" Zoe's voice squeaked on the last syllable of the word. They were going to play a punishment game with her now? It hardly seemed like an appropriate time for it…unless this was more than a childish game.

Kouichi seemed to agree with Zoe's thoughts about bad timing, but he just shrugged. "If you think we should," he mumbled, rummaging through one of his pockets as he stood. "You're lucky I brought this with me."

Zoe would have asked what mysterious item Kouichi had brought had she not suddenly been grabbed from behind. "What in the—?" Within the scope of her peripheral vision, Zoe could see Takuya kneeling behind her, his arms wrapped securely around her shoulders. No matter how much wriggling she tried, she knew she wouldn't be able to break from her friend's hold. But this fact barely held Zoe's attention. What she was truly concentrated on were Takuya's eyes. As suddenly as always, they had changed. No longer were his pupils round; they were long and slit like a cat's. And unlike a normal human eye, his gaze reflected no light from the lamp on Zoe's ceiling. His whole expression was devoid of any emotion save one; homicidal delight.

The blonde turned, hoping to find solace in her other friend's gentle face, but she had no such luck. Kouichi had changed as well. His dark, cat-like eyes were fixed on the item clutched in his hands, and as he fiddled with his treasure, a demonic smirk crossed his face. "Okay, it's ready."

Zoe's eyes grew wider and wider as Kouichi opened his fingers, revealing what was clutched there; a syringe filled with a mysterious clear liquid. As her friend lifted the needle, it dawned on Zoe what they planned to do. Takuya and Kouichi were going to inject her with whatever substance that syringe contained. What was it she'd found out about the death of that photographer? They'd found his body after the festival, and autopsies had confirmed that he'd clawed out his own throat. There were no traces of drugs in his system, but the police still suspected a mystery drug in the murder…

This was it. They were finally going to do it. Takuya was going to hold her down while Kouichi injected this "mystery drug" into her veins. They'd probably watch with those cold cat eyes as Zoe dug into her own flesh, clawing away until she reached the jugular and tore out her life's blood, letting it spill out across her floor…

"No!" She refused to let it end this way. "Get off of me!" Somehow, she had to stop this. "Don't do this!" She had to protect her life, now that she'd figured out so much. The police had to know!

"C'mon, Zee, don't fight it." As she wrestled for freedom, Zoe felt Takuya's breath in her ear. She flinched away, but he only held her tighter. "Just take your punishment and get it over with…heh heh heh…"

"It'll be over before you know it." Kouichi's hand was descending toward her arm. She pulled it back, but he just reached out and grabbed it, forcing the elbow open. He was really going to do it. Her friends…her best friends were going to drug her… "Trust me on that."

"Mornin', Zee!"

My gaze was trained on the needle as it crept closer and closer to my skin. How had it come to this? Why was I the one chosen to be killed in this way?

"I was just wondering, Zoe…would you like to join our club?"

What had happened to those peaceful, sunny days? Why couldn't I reclaim them? I wanted my friends back.

"Zoe!"

I was going to expel these demons that had ruined everything.

"Zoe…"

I would not be the one to die!

"I'm sorry."

My arm twisted out of Takuya's grip.

—

Kouichi was already dead. That was a likely conclusion. Takuya couldn't see very well anymore; she had accidentally smashed her lamp on the back swing. For whatever reason, she'd gone after Kouichi first, giving him a good crack across the skull before descending on him. The only consolation was that her first blow had probably been the killing blow. Their friend hadn't felt any pain as her frenzied beating sent splashes of blood across the room, making it look to Takuya like one of those modern art paintings with the colors thrown haphazardly across the canvas. Well, if he could see.

But he couldn't, it was dark inside and out. The moon shown without providing much illumination; Takuya could just faintly see the outline of his friend as she swung her bat again and again, landing blows across Kouichi's already mutilated corpse. He'd tried to stop her at first, so she'd lashed out at him, breaking the bones in his arms against the hard metal surface of her baseball bat. Seeing her practice, he still never would have guessed her swings had so much power. He could no longer feel his arms; there had been pain at first, but watching his friend's crazed frenzy had caused him to go numb. He was going to die. He knew this.

Finally, her senseless corpse brutalization was over, and she turned to Takuya. Even in the low light, Takuya could see her eyes; the pupils had shrunk to pinpricks. She was hysterical, insane, but she was also frightened. He could see tears in her eyes. Even as she killed Kouichi, perhaps she had felt some regret. Maybe Takuya could tap into that regret.

So he smiled as she approached, her teeth clenched, holding her bat tightly above her head. He grinned the same grin he'd greeted her with since the day they'd met. He tried not to look at the puddle of dark liquid making its slow way across the floor. He tried not to see Kouichi's wide, blank eyes. None of that mattered. Now, it was just him and her. As always, he was determined to win.

"C'mon, Zoe…don't you trust me?"

—

Light…there's so much light…

Oh, of course. It's morning! Time for me to get up and get ready to meet Takuya for school. Kouichi will join us along the way, and then we'll see JP and Tommy when we get there. It'll be another perfect day in this perfect little village. Perfect…

It wasn't so perfect.

Her room was practically coated in dried blood.

There were two bodies lying in the middle of her floor; one belonged to Kouichi, the other Takuya. They were covered in blood as well. Their own blood.

Zoe was sitting against the wall, unable to comprehend what she was seeing. But there was something clutched in her hand, so she looked down.

In her grip was the baseball bat she'd found in a locker at school. Once it had been grey. Now it was dark red, smeared with red, caked with red. Blood. Her friends' blood. On her bat.

Punishment…

—

madjack89: Wow, I really got experimental with that one.

Zoe: Wait, I went crazy and killed Takuya and Kouichi?

Kira: If I had to kill Taki in these things, so do you.

Takuya: *shivers* Oh geez, don't remind me about that…

Kouichi: Heh…wow, that was…wow…

madjack89: Yeah, the way I wrote this was kind of weird, but I wanted to try a little edgier style of writing, especially toward the end. Tell me what you thought of it!

Kouji: I have one question before we go.

madjack89: Ask away!

Kouji: I'm Shion and Kouichi is Mion?

madjack89: …See ya later! Don't forget to R&R! And yes, I'm still working on the Kingdom Hearts parody, but it's gonna be longer than these short little things, so be patient!