Happy End.

Day 2. Part 2



[11th ]



John Bacchus turned around in his office chair, small portable phone in hand. He looked out over the rooftops of Sakurami City, watching the sun glow and reflect back in countless mirrors. Bacchus grinned.



‘It has begun.’



[9th ]



At around the same time, Uryuu Minene was sitting on the river bank, knees drawn up and slightly peeking out from under her ruffled summer dress. The phone in her pocket beeped. Minene narrowed her eyes. This was it, she was expected to make her move now.



[5th ]



The first bells rung in the Omekata cult shrine, just like every other day. But Houjou Reisuke watched his parents dress with even more contempt than before. Even today, even the day that his diary had three entries, their eyes were still dull and lifeless. His mother moved to collect the futons, muttering stupid prayers under her breath.



‘Our Lady Kasugano, Lady Kasugano…’



Did she know Lady Kasugano was half her age, and her husband had slept with that bitch many times, like all of Kasugano’s stupid followers?! Reisuke huffed, pulling the cap over his head. At least now he could make a difference, it was time to change things around here!



[6th ]



Kasugano Tsubaki gasped. When she unrolled her scroll to put down the last dream she’d had, she noticed it was full. That was strange, as yesterday, she was sure there had been enough space left. Tsubaki raised a frail hand and called out



‘Mouto! Mouto! I need a new scroll!’ she said.



Quickly a young man came inside her cage, performing a ground-sweeping bow.



‘So soon, Lady Kasugano?’



‘Yes, it’s strange…’



She showed him her diary scroll, and he leaned over, reading it. Mouto took a step back, his mouth fell open, arms falling limp at his sides.



‘Mouto, what’s wrong?’



‘L-lady Kasugano! I must inform Funatsu right away!’



And he ran, his feet carried away, to the door, where Tsubaki couldn’t see him any longer.



‘No, wait!’ she cried out.



But it was too late, Mouto was gone and in front of her was the ink-filled scroll. What could he have seen in it? Tsubaki leaned closer, practically touching the parchment with her nose in the dim, ‘holy’ light. She froze. The date, that was tomorrow. She unrolled the scroll a bit, the more she did, the further into the future she went. She ended up in May. Impossible! That was one month from now. And then, clearly visible, was the final stroke: ‘we watched Lady Kasugano die, and decided to follow her into the next world’.



[10th ]



Tsukishima Karyuudo woke to his phone buzzing nearby his ear – he always slept like that, in a two-person bed with his cell phone on the vacant pillow. He was waiting for his ex-wife to call. But instead a small text message appeared: [the game has begun].



‘What the Hell is this?!’



He checked sender, but it was sent anonymously. Some stupid prank, Karyuudo decided. A new message appeared.



[April 1st, 12:00 o’clock, met an asshole at the Pet shop – they’re out of Dog Chow.]



Karyuudo watched as more and more messages began to appear, flooding his inbox. This was some sort of April fool’s prank, he was sure.



[2nd ]



Gasai Yuno sat and waited. She listened to the silence surrounding her house. Very soon, it would be time, not now, not yet. She remembered the first things she’d say to Yukki, rehearsed them over and over in her head. She must not forget. No, this time things would go differently. This time, she wouldn’t let poor Yukki die. A beep came from her pocket – it was time.



[1st ]



Amano Yukiteru slept through all of this, oblivious to the schemes that were already running around him. He rolled over under his thick, safe covers, and smiled. Wakaba Moe was in his dreams, they shared an ice-cream cone...strawberry pink.



[8th ]



‘Do I have a choice?’ said the woman, sounding cynical and sad.



Deus smiled.



‘No.’



‘Then if it’s possible, I’d like to share my powers with others. At least that way, I can do something useful.’



Deus Ex Machina gave a start. This woman had more balls than he gave her credit for, it seemed. Ueshita Kamado crossed her arms, standing as tall as she could – which wasn’t much.



‘Very well, you can share your Diary powers with others, but they won’t be that strong. The more people you connect to your network, the weaker their powers get. Keep that in mind.’



Kamado nodded.



‘Thank you. If things come to their worst, know that I am prepared to die, if it means life for the people around me.’



No, he had been right, she was unfit to be his successor. She was too kind. Deus shook his head as Kamado’s image dissolved, leaving him once again alone. Where was Muru Muru when you needed her?



[7th ]



Kamado shook her head – some things would never change. Apparently Ikusaba Marco had snuck out of his room again, while she was out. She knew exactly where he would be. Kamado walked down the corridor, to the door that had ‘Mikami Ai’ scrolled over it, and gave a few sharp knocks.



‘Yes?’ said a girl’s voice.



‘Marco, you can stop pretending you’re not hiding here…we all know it’s not true.’



There was a rustle of clothes, fabric, the mattress got shifted around. This was becoming such a common occurrence, it gave Kamado a headache. She gave them one more minute before bursting inside the room.



‘You’re both way too young to be doing that!’



Kamado paused. Both teenagers sat at Ai’s desk, holding their cell phones. A lamp glowed in the corner, they were fully dressed and their hair was unruffled. Had she been hearing things…? Ai and Marco looked up at once.



‘Mom, there’s something we should tell you…’



Ai held up her phone, showing the screen. Moments later Marco did the same.



‘Our diaries,’ he said. ‘they can predict the Future.’



Oh no.



[4th ]



Kurusu Keigo slept through the morning, holding his wife close. No dreams or nightmares passed his head – just a blank, warm void. It’s always calm before a storm.



[12th ]



In his basement room, down in the industrial center of Sakurami City, Hirasaka Yomotsu moved over the carpeted floor, feeling his way forward. The usual morning noises invaded his ears – footsteps from above, opening and closing doors, cars, voices. Yomotsu didn’t care much about them. All he cared about was



the tape recorder!



currently in his hand. Yomotsu grinned with glee, pressed play. He was about to listen to the record he’d made yesterday night, tuned in his ears, ready to hear that familiar voice – his own. But instead, the tape crackled and buzzed, a weak voice, overpowered by sounds of traffic played over it. What the hell was this?



‘Friday, thirteenth of April, murder in the city hall.’



He pressed pause and rewind, playing it over and over again, till his head was spinning. Yomotsu sat down at his chair, patting the bag that was always over his head.



‘I’ve got to put a stop to this!’ the hero said.



[3rd ]



Coffee was the only thing that got Amano Rea through her mornings, coffee and the promise of her six PM call, a number she dialed every day – it had become a part of her, a part she could never really forget. And even as she logged on to her computer, that number stayed in the back of her mind, never leaving. Two pairs of bright blue eyes shone back at her – father and son, smiling at the camera. Rea sighed, she didn’t know why she still kept the same desktop background. It comforted her, maybe. At least in this picture, Yukki wasn’t all alone, at least in this picture, he still had his father.



She unlocked her desk drawer, and pulled out her Business Diary, to go through today’s appointments. Then she stopped. What was this?! Someone had scrolled all over her Diary in green marker pen. Rea frowned, flicking through the pages, further, further in time.



[Yukki’s girlfriend comes over, make red bean paste for Dango ~ May 3rd ]



Another entry read



[appointment with Design Team, prepare ppt presentation ~ May 16th ].



Rea shook her head. She couldn’t make heads or tails of this. Could it be some kind of practical joke? It was April the first, after all… The new assistant was kind of young, too, but had she given him the key to her desk drawers? No, she would’ve certainly remembered that. Whoever it was, they had a poor sense of humor, Rea noted. As the last entry was in June.



[Kurou needs medical assistance, buy more bullets ~ June 21st ]



Why on earth would she be with her ex-husband??? Or need bullets? What for? Rea smiled – what a joke.



[End of Fifth Chapter]