KATAWA SHOUJO – THE D20 ROUTE

By Narastar

AUTHOR'S NOTE(S): This story is not written with any one specific route in mind. Consider it an in-between route that may or may not end with a romance, likely not. Knowing my limitations as a writer, I cannot in good faith write Rin into the story with any regularity, but I do not intend to completely ignore her. I can write Emi, but I don't feel that she fits as well into the story as the two gamers and the two they depend upon do - I'll write up a few chapters and see if any inspiration for her hits, but for now I'll write what I'm most comfortable with.

This story is written using the D&D 3.5 system, as it's the system I am most familiar with. Most of the information available here is obtainable through math and the d20 SRD. This is not an endorsement of 3E as the definitive edition of D&D, but should I do my job correctly it should teach you enough about the system to play it at a beginner's level over the course of the game.

As I can imagine that not getting to the point of the story quickly would lead to a boring story early on, I'm going to start slightly in medias res, filling in some of the background events in later chapters. Furthermore, I'm writing this from Hisao's perspective, but I may at a later date write chapters from one of the girls' perspectives, or even a chapter based around the perspective of one of the D&D characters', likely Hanako's.

Do give me feedback if at all possible. I will probably not be as receptive to negative feedback as I'm not necessarily doing this for attention but rather just to give form to an idea I had and to get it out of my system.

I'm also going to state right now that this writing is not on par with Act 1's writing. Don't expect that out of me.

Thank you and enjoy if you can.

CHAPTER 1: Earth Elementals

I idly wonder if a surprise encounter is a little too cruel to spring on them when they're just now getting the hang of the game.

Then again... they are exploring a dead Wizard's tower. It'd make sense for earth elementals to be on patrol in the entrance tunnel, wouldn't it? More importantly, they're only doing this because Shizune wants to get even more spells than she already has. Maybe I don't understand her class well enough, but I'd think that fifteen different spells would be plenty.

Then again, Misha and Lilly's characters already know all of their first and second level spells. Maybe letting Misha play a Druid wasn't the best of ideas...

...

Maybe I've been silent too long, too. The girls are looking at me curiously, wondering what my next move is.

Time to move, then. I breathe deeply...

"Andalus!" I call out. Hanako jumps to attention the instant that her character's name is said. I wonder if that's a little too cruel, too. "You and Rana sense tremors under your feet!" I deflate before I can finish saying anything more, letting the words sink in before I continue.

Immediately Misha's silly grin drops and her eyes dart to her character sheet. Even with her attention focused on her sheet and the hastily scrawled page detailing her animal companion, she's still signing everything I'm saying to Shizune. I have to admit, I'm a little envious of her skill.

Hanako grabs her twenty-sided die, looking just a little nervous. I think she's got an idea of what's about to happen, definitely more so than Misha does. Lilly and Shizune look confused... or they're holding back on acting because their characters don't know about this. I can't distinguish between the two quite yet. Hopefully, that'll change.

...

Nobody says a word. They're still waiting on me, I think.

"The rumbling underneath the party intensifies until two earth elementals, each the size of a man, burst through the ground! Roll initiative."

Hanako rolls the die just a blink of an eye after I tell her to, her eye trained on the spinning twenty-sided die with such intensity that I have to wonder if that's actually Hanako or if Shizune's body-jacked her. Her enthusiasm fades once the die stops and she hangs her head.

Well, that didn't last long.

"F...five," she announces, the dejection in her voice so strong that I feel a pang of guilt. I feel at least some relief that I don't have to press her while she's down, since she's into it enough that she announces her total initiative roll and not just the die result.

The rest of the girls roll and I tally up their initiatives as Hanako and Misha tell me the results, mentally sorting them.

Huh. Rana goes first... and then her animal companion. Now the first two turns are monopolized by Misha. I can barely believe how lucky she's been throughout this game... not only were her stat rolls out of this world, she doesn't roll low all that often.

I roll the earth elementals' initiative. I can't really say that I'm surprised when I get snake eyes.

On two twenty-sided dice.

I stifle a sigh. At least Misha's not the one running; she'd kill us all by being stupidly lucky.

"Rana and her animal companion go first."

Misha puts on one of her trademark grins as she prepares to make her move, but she's stopped by Shizune signing her just a couple of movement. Likely instructions.

"Flank them? Okay~!" She turns back to me, grinning like a madman.

"HICCHAN! Rana runs up and waits for her wolf to get behind the elemental and then hits it!" she says enthusiastically. Of course, it's at her usual ear-bursting volume.

I have to think about that for a second... That's not something she'd come up with on her own, I don't think, and I doubt the couple of signs I saw could have conveyed that much. Dammit, Shizune! I glance her way, witnessing her simply watching me with a smirk on her lips.

I force myself to think about the game for a second, just long enough so that I can tell Misha that it's her turn to roll, but Shizune's smug face makes it a little hard to keep my attention off of her. Instinctively, I feel the urge to wipe that smirk off of her face, but rationally, I know that she has just as much right to enjoy this game as anyone else here. I'm actually quite glad that everyone's put aside their grudges and the passive-aggressiveness I had expected to show up, if only just for the duration of the game.

Maybe I am doing some good here.

I refocus as Misha announces the results of her rolls. Wolf eighteen, Rana five. Damage dice go out; wolf with six, Misha with two.

"The wolf hits... and gets to roll a trip attempt," I say, trying to keep any hint of bias from creeping into my voice. As much as I hate to admit it, Misha being responsible for two attacks a turn, one of which happens to be pretty decent, seems a little unfair when everyone else just gets one. "Roll the wolf's Strength."

Misha immediately picks up the die again and rolls. As she sees the die stop, her eyes light up and she starts laughing loudly enough to wake the dead... not that she doesn't do that most of the time.

"Let me guess. Natural twenty, " I state flatly. I don't have any doubt in my mind, but she seems a little taken aback.

Right on target.

"How'd you know, Hicchan?" she queries in a serious manner. I seriously hope it isn't.

"Just a feeling," I reply sarcastically. Well, whatever. Time to roll the earth elemental's opposed Strength check...

...eleven. Dammit.

"The elemental topples to the ground, flailing aimlessly on the ground as it tries to right itself!"

I can definitely feel the air of relief as everyone realizes that if they act fast, they only have one of the elementals to deal with. Nobody says it out loud, however.

I glance back down at my scribbled initiative order, then glance back up at the group.

"Lilian."

Almost immediately, Lilly responds. "I approach Andalus and cast... what was it... ah, Bull's Strength on him." I'm taken aback at the speed with which she had made her choice... but now that I think about it, she's had all of Misha's turn to think about it.

Which means that she's taking this more seriously than I had expected her to, whether for her sake or Hanako's sake. I... can't help but feel a little envy and joy for the two.

"What do I need to roll?" I blink, not for her sake but because I actually need a second to think of why it's an issue... of course! She's so used to actions requiring dice rolls that she doesn't realize that combat actions without dice rolls involved even exist. She only knows that the spell exists because Hanako helped her out with understanding what she's able to do.

Idly, I wish there was a Braille Player's Handbook on hand. No such luck.

I open my mouth to speak, but before even a single word flows out Hanako's already got my back. "Um... you... you don't roll for that, don't worry."

"I suppose that will be it, then," Lilly replies, returning to her tea. The fact that it's possible to combine Hanako and Lilly's teatime with a game is probably one of the best things about us playing, if I had to be blunt; I know how much Lilly loves her tea.

I smile at the purple-haired girl and give a nod to Lilly just out of sheer dumb habit - I know she can't see it, but it just feels rude to not acknowledge someone like that. I'm sure Shizune knew, too, but fat chance she's going to go out of her way to clarify something for Lilly. She doesn't even let ME know when I make a rules screw-up that benefits her.

The sound of Lilly delicately sipping from her teacup causes me to fixate on tea for a second... I really hope Misha doesn't cause a tea spill. Like hell I want any of us to clean that up during game time and I just know that Shizune's going to try to force me into doing it if it happens.

...

I snap back to reality, glancing back down at the initiative tracker.

"Tomoko."

I kick back, leaning back into my chair, sure that I'll have plenty of time to think now that Shizune's got a minute to think her action through...

...only to have that hope dashed immediately as Shizune's hands blur through the air, that same stupid smirk on her face. Thankfully, Misha can keep up with the speed of communication.

Misha's voice tones in with pride, deafening everyone present. I have to think about whether she's loud because she can get away with it around Shizune or whether Shizune's her closest friend because everyone else can hear her.

"Tomochan enchants Andalus' greataxe to bolster his offense then moves away from the elementals!"

My breath catches in my throat and I tense up. Across the table, I can see Lilly's nose just barely twitch and Hanako's expression of mild shock. For one moment - just one moment - it feels like everyone at the table is working together as a complete unit. rather than two girls separate from the other group of two girls who all happen to be working against me.

That feeling almost overwhelms me and my stomach begins to feel light and fuzzy. I suck it up; I'm not here to let my emotions take control. I'm here to DM.

I take a look at Shizune before announcing the next turn. Now, it's not so much smirking as much as it is a self-satisfied smile.

If I didn't know for a fact that she's wearing that smile because she's destroying my plans, I wouldn't hesitate to call it cute.

"...Andalus."

Hanako looks at me, doubly surprised. Being the party's buff receptacle and not going last?

"The elementals got snake eyes for initiative. Talk about unlucky," I answer, addressing the silent question. Hanako smiles lightly, but just enough to brighten this game up. I really should have thought this out more thoroughly; Shizune's got the elementals on initiative, they have bad saves, Misha's got power and control, and Lilly...

...actually, no. I need to stop thinking that way. Those are their characters, not themselves, and I'm looking at one element of the characters, not their abilities as a whole. Tomoko's got great initiative and crowd control, Rana's got an animal companion and the ability to provide flanking to two different people at the same time, Lilian's got healing to patch up what they dish out, and Andalus complements everyone else's abilities perfectly.

I think. Part of me wonders whether I'd look like a flailing idiot to any experienced DM for thinking this way. Maybe my thoughts are wrong.

I'd like to think that the game worked best while everyone was working together. That's what team games are about, right?

I stop second-guessing myself long enough to look at Hanako. She's eagerly scribbling something on her character sheet... probably double-checking her math from the buffs. At least, that's what I'd be doing if I were in that position.

She's still smiling while continuing to write. I almost instinctively check my heartbeat... no, completely normal.

Good. Hanako won't get me this time.

I think even if I'm probably not going to do a whole lot this game I can still call this a pretty good session.

Her pencil stops and she looks back up at me, smile intensifying as she prepares to say something.

"Andalus charges the prone earth elemental, raging and screaming his battle cry all the while! Down his axe goes!"

Oh jeez. Maybe this is how Hanako really is, or maybe it's how she wants to be.

Or maybe Hanako's ignoring her own limitations for a little bit just to act out someone else's part.

I honestly can't decide. To me, it doesn't matter. Not so long as she's having fun.

"What's his battle cry?" I ask of her.

She freezes, smile fading into thought. "Um... uh... For Kromgol!" she responds, trying to keep her enthusiasm up despite the pause.

I can't help but crack a heartfelt smile and I can't help but notice Lilly doing the same. Misha's laughter over the subject, like always, is hard to miss, which makes Hanako sink back into her chair. I deign to speak for Misha for this one because there's no way I'm letting assholery or a misunderstanding ruin the game or Hanako's fun.

"She's laughing with you, don't worry," I say, trying to be as reassuring as I can. That's actually kind of hard when Misha's laughing is trying its hardest to make me start laughing at the ridiculousness of the situation.

Hanako eases up, lurching forward and rolling a single twenty-sided dice. One less thing to worry about.

The die clatters across the table, losing its forward momentum and beginning to spin in place. That's kind of cool, but frustrating because it's holding the game up.

I close my eyes briefly, letting my ears be my guide.

"Ah! Power attacking for minus three!" Hanako chimes in hastily, drowning out the roll of the die. By the time she falls silent, the die sees fit to follow suit.

I watch Hanako's face. I might not be able to observe the die result from here, but how it impacts people will let me know what ballpark it's in.

And given Hanako's new smile, I think that ballpark is somewhere above thirteen or so in number.

"...Twenty-eight..." She quietly announces her attack roll's result, then reaches for another die. I can't think of that die's sides offhand.

"Yeah, that hits."

Wait.

Yes I can. Dodecahedron. That's twelve.

Not that that really matters. Hanako rolls the die, and I'm pretty sure that despite the hefty chunk of HP left on the earth elemental, Hanako's berserker is about to take it down in one shot.

The die stops on a seven. "Twenty-four!"

...Which just so happens to be the amount of HP left on the elemental. Imagine that.

"Andalus' axe strikes true, cleaving through the magical binding agent deep in the elemental's body and reducing it to a pile of soil and stone."

Hanako's still smiling, maybe just a little maliciously this time. Her methods are different, but she's just a little bit more like Shizune than I had taken her for.

"The other-"

"Cleave!" Hanako quickly interrupts me, picking up and rolling the twenty sided die again. She's still smiling as the die comes to a halt and she's not stopping.

I know the game was her idea - hers and Shizune's - but I had never taken her for the type to get this into the game.

Maybe I don't know as much as I'd like to, but if these are the kind of surprises that await me for being ignorant, maybe that's not such a bad thing.

"Twenty-nine!"

I hold my breath as she rolls the twelve-sided die towards me. This time, she hadn't power attacked, so she's losing three damage. No, wait, six. Two handed weapons double the power attack damage bonus, forgot about that.

The die lands precariously close to my edge of the table, and all of my hopes of them getting unlucky so I can do anything fade away.

"You rolled an eleven," I state, trying to keep my defeated tone hushed.

"Twenty-two damage, then," she replies, this time matter of factly. Hey, her turn had to end sometime.

Great. It's now down to eight HP, otherwise known as sucking wind out of its earthy non-lungs and Misha plus Shizune are waiting in the wings to kill you.

I breathe deeply. Time to make the best of its one turn.

Wait. Why is it even fighting if it knows it's...

Oh.

Wait.

"The earth elemental melds into the ground in response to the axe blow, retreating," I inform the girls while trying to keep a poker face. That thing is going to make a comeback.

A comeback so devious I'm going to have to specifically write this one down for next session. They'll rue the day they destroyed Hisao Nakai's encounter effortlessly, they will!

Next session... now that I think about it... I glance at my watch. Eight PM and I'm starting to feel fatigued. This medication does not play well with my sleeping schedule, that's for sure.

I take a look at the girls one last time. Misha's showing some signs of fatigue, but nothing too serious. Shizune's smirking again, clearly because of them taking down a threat that was - by the book - "very difficult" without taking any damage... I think I need to examine the challenge rating system more thoroughly or just ignore it.

I can't lie, though. Shizune's arrogance is getting to me, but I have to wonder whether it's a facade or just part of her competitive nature. I don't think it's a healthy attitude to have when we're talking Dungeons and Dragons, at the very least.

Lilly... I can't really read Lilly that well. She seems to be enjoying herself, but I don't know whether she is because she's playing with Hanako, whether she's enjoying the ambiance plus Shizune not taking pains to insult her, or whether she's genuinely enjoying playing the game. I suppose it doesn't really matter, but I'm supposed to make the players enjoy the game, right?

I don't even have to look at Hanako to know she had fun playing. I wasn't expecting her to get that into the game that quickly... too bad that making the characters took so long because I really do want to see more of this enthusiasm in the game.

With any luck, it'll be infectious.

I stow away my wishful thinking, sighing and standing up.

"Alright, girls. Thanks for playing, but it's getting late and I'm getting tired," I state, voicing my own disappointment. "Gonna have to call it a night."

There's a look of mild disappointment on the girls' faces as they begin to pack up. That...

That's what tips me off to them actually enjoying what they got to play.

I feel light as air as I fold the DM screen over my personal notes and dice then stow it in the gaming bag, hefting it. Thankfully it's not all that heavy and I'm not putting myself at risk here.

I trust Shizune, but I don't trust her enough to not do something petty to Lilly's character sheet when nobody else is here. Therefore, that bag's coming with me.

On the other hand...

I do have to say that it was very nice of Shizune to lend us the student council room for the sake of the game. It can't possibly be as nice as allowing Lilly in and being moderate enough to not cause trouble over it, though.

I shiver as I think back to my first day in Yamaku.

"Uh... Hey, Shizune," I say, just audible enough to catch Misha's attention. Of course, I do.

Misha's signs out what I say, but Shizune's packing keeps her from even looking Misha's way.

"Actually wait, no, Misha."

I end up grateful for being able to blame anything ambiguous or dumb on my current condition pretty quickly.

The pink-haired girl perks up, interested but confused. "Huh?"

I'm not a middle school kid. Don't be an idiot, Hisao, don't be an idiot, get to the point...

"You and Shizune had fun tonight, right?"

Misha grabs her character sheet plus the scrap paper her animal companion's stats are scrawled on and thrusts them into my hands, grinning like a madman. "Yes! Hicchan, we should do this more often~!" she states, far, far too loudly.

I can't help but see the double entendre in there and flush a little. I also really hope that no bystanders are nearby to hear that, either, because the last thing I need is to be accused of sexing up Misha within a week or so of being here. Still, best not to be distracted. I take the sheets and toss them into the bag "So... Same time next week, then. Anyone have a problem with that?"

Nobody responds. Good.

I join the other group of ladies before departing for the night. "Lilly?"

"Yes, Hisao?"

I have to admit, I'm not actually sure if she enjoyed it as much as the others did, and I voice my concerns. "You enjoyed the game, right?"

She hesitates and I feel my good mood deflate preemptively. "...Yes, actually, it was fun enough," she states.

...and never mind. I might be bad at lying, but I'm not bad at telling when someone else is lying.

Lilly's telling me the truth, straight up. I respond with my personal thoughts. "I was thinking it might have been better if we hadn't spent so much time making characters..."

She gives a small nod, non-verbally agreeing with me, and I move on.

I finally collect Hanako's character sheet and the dice scattered around the table, storing them in the gaming bag and finally zipping it shut. I sigh contentedly, letting my shoulder hold its weight via strap better than my hand can, and move towards the door.

A meek voice and my name stops me in my tracks.

"...Hisao..." Hanako squeaks out. I mentally imagine her fidgeting as she says that - it only seems fitting. Maybe too stereotypical, though.

I turn to face her, not really expecting her to say much. It was common sense that she'd enjoy the game, but-

My thoughts are halted immediately by something that threatens to seize my heart.

"Thank you," Hanako says in such a heart-string pulling manner with the most adorable smile I've ever seen in my life. "Tonight was... was lots of fun."

"You're welcome," I barely stutter out, "...and I agree."

I walk back to my dorm that day with a stomach full of butterflies and a heart full of hope.

CHAPTER 1 END