week 1

[airlockedmods]

Week 1

[After the initial introduction of the Overseers on Sunday, the Champions were left to their own devices in investigating the part of the ship they have access to to their hearts' content. However, the doors that Jamie and Bolton came through are locked tight and cannot be unlocked via PIP.

On Monday morning, the same voice that awakened them the previous morning chirps at them again from their PIPs at 7 am on the dot. There's also a pop-up message waiting for them: a notice announcing "office hours" for Bolton in the library and Jamie in the art room every day from here on out.

Enjoy your week, Champions.]

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday

Comments

[bylight]

[Ah... So the regret comes from not being able to remember?

Lightning listens and nods. She'll let Chitanda go on with the story.]

[kininaru]

We had decided to try and look for the anthology that the Classics Club had made, during the year my uncle had been a part of it. But, it had went missing, so we had to settle for the next one. On top of that, we also made a decision to get the other members of the Classics Club involved, too; my friends, Mayaka-chan and Fukube-san. I...was a bit hesitant to do that, you understand, but, it turned out to be a pretty good idea, and everyone had presented some valuable theories, based on the information we had. As I expected, though, the one who actually got to the bottom of it, after we managed to track down who wrote the preface to the anthology we had, was Oreki-san. And while she did confirm his theory for us, he more or less came up with the answer all on his own.

[ Chitanda takes a deep breath. Her uncle had carried this story with him for his entire life. And the one time he told it to her, she had completely forgotten it. ...But, now, she can carry it with her for as long as she lives. She won't let his story be in vain. ]

The year my uncle, Sekitani Jun, was part of the Classics Club, the teachers had announced that they would shorten the annual festival from five days to two. The festival was an important part of student life, at the time, and the student body didn't take kindly to the idea, so, they began to protest. Peacefully, at first. But, one day, the protest got out of hand, and the Martial Arts Center caught fire. The whole building burned to the ground, and because of that, the school board ended up giving in to the protests...but, action needed to be taken.

The preface to the second Hyouka, the anthology published the next year, said that Sekitani Jun was a hero. The man who had saved the festival. And that couldn't be further from the truth.

[ She clenches her hands into fists on the paper; it crinkles in her hands, as she speaks. Chitanda, just a bit, starts to tremble. ]

Four months had passed. The incident was over and done with, but the school board needed to punish someone for the fire, and no one from the protests was willing to take responsibility and step up as the leader. In desperation, someone had said that my uncle was the leader, and the entire student body had decided to put the blame on him. Against his will, Sekitani Jun was forced to pretend he was in charge of the protests, betrayed by his own peers, and be a sacrifice for something he had nothing to do with. He was expelled from the school, forced to abandon his future, while everyone else stood back and did nothing.

That's Hyouka, Lightning-san.

[bylight]

[That.........

Was a much harsher story than Light had imagined Chitanda would tell her. It wasn't sweet, but instead seemed so painful.]

You're doing it for your uncle.

[If she was the comforting type, she would do something... anything... sorry, friend. She's not good at this.]

[kininaru]

That's right. It's...it's my way of saying goodbye, to him. When Oreki-san had told me his theory, I didn't quite believe it at first, but...let me put it this way, first, Lightning-san.

You may be asking, "Why did he call it Hyouka? What did he mean when he called it 'ice cream'?" And I remember, now. When he told me the story, he told me...he told me that I needed to become stronger. He told me that if I were to be too weak...there would be a time where I wasn't even able to scream.

[ I scream. ]

Hyouka was a message. It was his scream, the scream that no one could hear, because he had been betrayed by everyone he had thought he could trust. I...I'll carry that scream with me, as long as I live. And I swear, I won't let what happened to Sekitani Jun happen to any of us. If I have one goal here, it's that.

[bylight]

[For such a young girl, Chitanda has a very strong resolve. It's admirable.

Lightning almost smiles as she nods.]

I won't betray you or anyone else here. I promise.

[kininaru]

I had a feeling you wouldn't be the type to be. I can tell by looking at you that you're a good person, Lightning-san.

...That's why I wanted to ask you a favor. You don't have to, if you don't want to, but...the reason I told you this is because I want you to help me become stronger, if you can. When I look at you, I feel...safer. And I know you're very busy, and you have people you want to protect, but...

[ She gets up from her seat, just to give her a bow-- ]

I want to be able to protect the people I care about, too, in more ways than I'm able to right now.

[bylight]

[Her eyes go wide as she processes just what Chitanda was asking. After a moment she looks away, trying to hide her surprise by crossing her arms.

It would be a way to keep an eye on her... Light looks at her with something like a smirk.]

I won't go easy on you. We can start with some basics.

[kininaru]

A-ah! I wouldn't expect you to! Please, don't hold back on me!

[ She bows again, deeper, this time. ]

I may not be very tough, but, I'm in your care! Thank you so much, Lightning-san!

[bylight]

[She'll hold back enough not to break bones or bruise Chitanda too hard.]

Don't thank me just yet. I'm starting you off with the basics first. [LIKE-] How are you at running?

[kininaru]

[ Well... ]

U-um...well, I can run? I'm not the fastest, but, I have pretty okay stamina from gym class, I think!

[bylight]

We'll still have to build it up more. Flexibility is important, too.

[Which means stretching.]