/!\ WARNING: HIGURASHI AND UMINEKO SPOILERS /!\
This IS a Higurashi Fanfic so please do expect major spoilers. And there's going to be some Umineko ones as well. Just a heads up.
This IS a Higurashi Fanfic so please do expect major spoilers. And there's going to be some Umineko ones as well. Just a heads up.
Spoiler : Chapter 1 :
Chapter 1
The soft pitter of rain against a glass window woke Keiichi Maebara up. It was only natural. June was almost over, and Tokyo was pretty much midway through it's early summer "rainy season", or tsuyu as it's called. Pulling back the curtains, he let what little sunlight there was peeking out from behind a sea of grey clouds enter the room.
Keiichi sighed and turned his alarm off, despite it's silence. It was early, early to the point that the clock hadn't even had a chance to ring yet, but that had become typical routine for Keiichi. Cleaning himself up and slipping on his uniform, Keiichi headed into the kitchen. Toast had been prepared. The typical, boring breakfast of the growing student. Accompanying him for the meal was the drone of the television in the background.
"...Great Hinamizawa Disaster... Thousands dead... Volcanic gas... Still looking into causes-"
*Click*
The background noise came to an abrupt stop, as Keiichi pressed the power button to the tv, silencing it. And with that, he put on his shoes and picked up his bag, heading out the door.
The thing about Tokyo, is that it is a large amount of people put into a small amount of space. This was not news to Keiichi, as he was engulfed by the sea of salarymen heading to their jobs and students rushing to their schools. This same suffocating effect was only magnified by the way everyone was crammed into a single train. Keiichi couldn't help but make a mental comparison to sardines in a can. Being shaken about as they move down the factory conveyor belt. Keiichi sighed. Had everything always been this grey? Was there always something... missing from his days? It was strange, really. After the incident, he really had no reason to think that anything would have gotten better. And yet he couldn't help but think that it was just a temporary fix. Something that would blow over as quickly as it had begun.
Hey, I apologized, didn't I? So why haven't I been forgiven yet? Was my crime really so bad that it couldn't be forgiven?
The usual robotic announcement, and series of notes played out as the train reached the station. With a hiss, the doors slid open and Keiichi stepped out onto the platform, back into an overwhelming ocean of humanity. Steering himself through the current, he made his way onto the street.
"Maebara-san?"
"Huh?"
The voice belonged to a young man, probably in his 20's, with jet black hair and reddish-brown eyes. He wore a blue suit and a lighter blue tie. Accompanying him, was an older man, greying and plump, wearing red suspenders and a red tie. Under his arm, he carried a light brown to cream coloured jacket.
Needless to say, Keiichi knew neither of the men.
"My name is Akasaka Mamoru," the younger man began, "and this is Detective Ooishi-san from the Okinomiya Police Department." He gestured towards the older detective
Keiichi froze. He wasn't a stranger to interviews with the police, but he had figured that what had happened had long blown over by now. Surely a year was enough time for everyone to forget and move on with their lives.
"If you could please follow us," it was the older man this time. "Our car has heating. I think you'll find it much better for a conversation, than standing out here in the rain."
There was something about him, despite his friendly and calm demeanor, that made him seem... off.
"...Why?"
"Hrm?"
The older detective raised an eyebrow at Keiichi's 'question'.
"Why should I follow you? That incident was well over a year ago, now! Whatever's happening now's got nothing to do with me. Besides, there's nothing to indicate that either of you even are detectives. Why should I just blindly trust you?"
Keiichi's retort left both men unfazed. In any case, not waiting for an answer, Keiichi turned around and began to walk off. The detective had a point; there was no point in standing around in the rain and if he didn't hurry, he'd be late. Considering his current status, that wasn't an option.
However, before Keiichi could get more than a few steps away, he felt a sudden sharp pain blossom in his shoulder. Thick fingers grinded down into his shoulder, like a vice.
"Wait, Maebara-san. We haven't gotten a chance to talk yet."
The older detective's voice hadn't changed, but there was now a definite edge to it. A hint of a threat, of malice. Turning around, Keiichi could see him holding his badge out in front of him.
"Hey." The younger policeman began. "Don't hurt him. He's still just a kid. And he's our only solid lead so far."
There was a certain stern tone in the way he talked that made it hard to ignore what he said. His partner let go of Keiichi's shoulder, and pushed him slightly towards the car.
"Ah... Well, this is still police business, isn't it? You know what that means, right, Maebara-san? Nn-fu-fu-fu..."
The older detective chuckled to himself, as the younger detective opened the door to the back seats of the car. It seemed, so far, that Keiichi didn't have a choice as he was practically herded into the car.
As the car began to drive off, the younger detective turned to face the passenger in the back of the car.
"Maebara-san. Let me ask you a question... What do you know about the Great Hinamizawa Disaster?"
"Eh?! Is that kind of move really okay, Auaurora?"
The blonde witch wore a pink outfit, decorated with sweets. Practically bouncing upon the chair she sat on, she helped herself to handfuls from the popcorn bucket she held in her lap.She tossed a single kernel into her mouth as she surveyed the gameboard before her.
"I mean, isn't this a major contradiction with the rules? Starting after all the exciting stuff happened? And killing off most of your main pieces as well, to boot? Surely this kind of <LAME>, <BORING> and <GROSS> strategy is against the rules, right?"
Her opponent, an elegant purple-haired witch of high stature, remained unfazed. Her horns glimmering in the light that filled the library, she smiled calmly as she spoke.
"There are no rules that forbid this sort of action on my gameboard, Lambdadelta. Even the highest members of Ersine Jungfrau would allow this sort of story to unfold, if they were to witness it. After all, neither Knox nor Dine demand a mystery begin at a certain point."
"Ah, really?! I could've sworn there was something against doing this kind of thing."
As if she were a spoiled child, Lambdadelta proceeded to sulk. For such a high ranking witch, she was nothing like the expected lady-like or elegant portrayal one might have imagined. No, in fact, a comparison to an unruly child would not have been entirely unfounded. What Lady Auaurora could have possibly seen in her to invite her to be her opponent in her game practically boggled the mind!
"Well, then." Auaurora began. "Shall I explain the rules to you once more, before we begin our current round?"
Lambdadelta scoffed.
"No need! I've been following the previous games pretty closely. I think I get it by now."
Auaurora continued anyway. A ditz character like Lambdadelta, she figured, could always do with a quick recap.
"Your goal is to disprove the existence of Oyashiro-sama. To this effect, you may use the tactics of 'Blue Truth' and your own personal pawn on the current board. However, your pawn is limited. They may not perform any action that could be deemed out of character for them. They also may take the objective view, however... As the one weaving this tale, I am in control of what is the current point of view. Furthermore, I am in control of all the other pieces, and may wield the 'Red Truth' to combat your own 'Blue Truth'. Any further questions?"
Puffing her cheeks up, Lambdadelta pouted.
"I told you I already got it. You didn't have to say anything..."
"Well, then. My sincere apologies." It was quite clear, that the apology was anything but sincere. "But if you don't have any more questions, than I shall finally begin this round."
The soft pitter of rain against a glass window woke Keiichi Maebara up. It was only natural. June was almost over, and Tokyo was pretty much midway through it's early summer "rainy season", or tsuyu as it's called. Pulling back the curtains, he let what little sunlight there was peeking out from behind a sea of grey clouds enter the room.
Keiichi sighed and turned his alarm off, despite it's silence. It was early, early to the point that the clock hadn't even had a chance to ring yet, but that had become typical routine for Keiichi. Cleaning himself up and slipping on his uniform, Keiichi headed into the kitchen. Toast had been prepared. The typical, boring breakfast of the growing student. Accompanying him for the meal was the drone of the television in the background.
"...Great Hinamizawa Disaster... Thousands dead... Volcanic gas... Still looking into causes-"
*Click*
The background noise came to an abrupt stop, as Keiichi pressed the power button to the tv, silencing it. And with that, he put on his shoes and picked up his bag, heading out the door.
The thing about Tokyo, is that it is a large amount of people put into a small amount of space. This was not news to Keiichi, as he was engulfed by the sea of salarymen heading to their jobs and students rushing to their schools. This same suffocating effect was only magnified by the way everyone was crammed into a single train. Keiichi couldn't help but make a mental comparison to sardines in a can. Being shaken about as they move down the factory conveyor belt. Keiichi sighed. Had everything always been this grey? Was there always something... missing from his days? It was strange, really. After the incident, he really had no reason to think that anything would have gotten better. And yet he couldn't help but think that it was just a temporary fix. Something that would blow over as quickly as it had begun.
Hey, I apologized, didn't I? So why haven't I been forgiven yet? Was my crime really so bad that it couldn't be forgiven?
The usual robotic announcement, and series of notes played out as the train reached the station. With a hiss, the doors slid open and Keiichi stepped out onto the platform, back into an overwhelming ocean of humanity. Steering himself through the current, he made his way onto the street.
"Maebara-san?"
"Huh?"
The voice belonged to a young man, probably in his 20's, with jet black hair and reddish-brown eyes. He wore a blue suit and a lighter blue tie. Accompanying him, was an older man, greying and plump, wearing red suspenders and a red tie. Under his arm, he carried a light brown to cream coloured jacket.
Needless to say, Keiichi knew neither of the men.
"My name is Akasaka Mamoru," the younger man began, "and this is Detective Ooishi-san from the Okinomiya Police Department." He gestured towards the older detective
Keiichi froze. He wasn't a stranger to interviews with the police, but he had figured that what had happened had long blown over by now. Surely a year was enough time for everyone to forget and move on with their lives.
"If you could please follow us," it was the older man this time. "Our car has heating. I think you'll find it much better for a conversation, than standing out here in the rain."
There was something about him, despite his friendly and calm demeanor, that made him seem... off.
"...Why?"
"Hrm?"
The older detective raised an eyebrow at Keiichi's 'question'.
"Why should I follow you? That incident was well over a year ago, now! Whatever's happening now's got nothing to do with me. Besides, there's nothing to indicate that either of you even are detectives. Why should I just blindly trust you?"
Keiichi's retort left both men unfazed. In any case, not waiting for an answer, Keiichi turned around and began to walk off. The detective had a point; there was no point in standing around in the rain and if he didn't hurry, he'd be late. Considering his current status, that wasn't an option.
However, before Keiichi could get more than a few steps away, he felt a sudden sharp pain blossom in his shoulder. Thick fingers grinded down into his shoulder, like a vice.
"Wait, Maebara-san. We haven't gotten a chance to talk yet."
The older detective's voice hadn't changed, but there was now a definite edge to it. A hint of a threat, of malice. Turning around, Keiichi could see him holding his badge out in front of him.
"Hey." The younger policeman began. "Don't hurt him. He's still just a kid. And he's our only solid lead so far."
There was a certain stern tone in the way he talked that made it hard to ignore what he said. His partner let go of Keiichi's shoulder, and pushed him slightly towards the car.
"Ah... Well, this is still police business, isn't it? You know what that means, right, Maebara-san? Nn-fu-fu-fu..."
The older detective chuckled to himself, as the younger detective opened the door to the back seats of the car. It seemed, so far, that Keiichi didn't have a choice as he was practically herded into the car.
As the car began to drive off, the younger detective turned to face the passenger in the back of the car.
"Maebara-san. Let me ask you a question... What do you know about the Great Hinamizawa Disaster?"
---
Meta-World"Eh?! Is that kind of move really okay, Auaurora?"
The blonde witch wore a pink outfit, decorated with sweets. Practically bouncing upon the chair she sat on, she helped herself to handfuls from the popcorn bucket she held in her lap.She tossed a single kernel into her mouth as she surveyed the gameboard before her.
"I mean, isn't this a major contradiction with the rules? Starting after all the exciting stuff happened? And killing off most of your main pieces as well, to boot? Surely this kind of <LAME>, <BORING> and <GROSS> strategy is against the rules, right?"
Her opponent, an elegant purple-haired witch of high stature, remained unfazed. Her horns glimmering in the light that filled the library, she smiled calmly as she spoke.
"There are no rules that forbid this sort of action on my gameboard, Lambdadelta. Even the highest members of Ersine Jungfrau would allow this sort of story to unfold, if they were to witness it. After all, neither Knox nor Dine demand a mystery begin at a certain point."
"Ah, really?! I could've sworn there was something against doing this kind of thing."
As if she were a spoiled child, Lambdadelta proceeded to sulk. For such a high ranking witch, she was nothing like the expected lady-like or elegant portrayal one might have imagined. No, in fact, a comparison to an unruly child would not have been entirely unfounded. What Lady Auaurora could have possibly seen in her to invite her to be her opponent in her game practically boggled the mind!
"Well, then." Auaurora began. "Shall I explain the rules to you once more, before we begin our current round?"
Lambdadelta scoffed.
"No need! I've been following the previous games pretty closely. I think I get it by now."
Auaurora continued anyway. A ditz character like Lambdadelta, she figured, could always do with a quick recap.
"Your goal is to disprove the existence of Oyashiro-sama. To this effect, you may use the tactics of 'Blue Truth' and your own personal pawn on the current board. However, your pawn is limited. They may not perform any action that could be deemed out of character for them. They also may take the objective view, however... As the one weaving this tale, I am in control of what is the current point of view. Furthermore, I am in control of all the other pieces, and may wield the 'Red Truth' to combat your own 'Blue Truth'. Any further questions?"
Puffing her cheeks up, Lambdadelta pouted.
"I told you I already got it. You didn't have to say anything..."
"Well, then. My sincere apologies." It was quite clear, that the apology was anything but sincere. "But if you don't have any more questions, than I shall finally begin this round."
---
