_{❝ それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
   騙せない人や物も無くなって
  『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
   ･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Danchou」}

 _{{ K } ➤ He would not have noticed the burning if it weren’t for the smell.}

       _{Smoke carries a rather specific smell, a smell he would rather not fraternize with. It was thick, demanding to be acknowledged. And it was also pretty gross. “Achhoo!”}

       _{A…ah… Putting the food in the oven without setting any timer in advance was a pretty foolish idea, even for him. What was he thinking? Could it be that he wasn’t thinking at all? He could not cook, could not do much housework besides lounge around and wander about without notice. What a selfish life he led…}

      _{I wanted to do something nice.}

      _{It was usually Kido or Seto who was in charge of the cooking. They were the responsible ones of the group, the ones who were actually willing and able to do these types of things. Kano, on the other hand, would probably burn the house down if he even attempted to work with fire. Which was pretty much what was happening now.}

       _{Oh, man. He really should have thought this through… Fanning away the smoke with an already ash-black hand did not good. Let’s see, let’s see… He could take the cake – which was what he had intended on baking prior to the incident – out of the oven now, but wouldn’t that just add to the amount of smoke in the air? Kido, God bless, should be arriving soon… With the smoke alarm screaming blooding murder, it would be pretty hard not to notice the fuss.}

      _{Oh God, oh God… What excuse could possible seem suitable for a situation like this? That he was only trying to help? Hell, no. How could she believe a line like that, given that he seemed far from helpful? A terrible flirt with a yearning for mischief, sure. But not helpful. Certainly not.}

      _Wait…

                              _{…She should be arriving here any moment now.}

                _{D A M M I T .}

       _{Please don’t kill him, he has a hopefully long life of babes and masks ahead of him. Please don’t punch him again, oh please, oh God.}

      _{Putting on the smile – the only thing he really could do given this situation, he turned to the source of the footsteps with a somewhat pleasant grin.}

      _{“Hello, Danchou~ Everything’s under control, no need to worry here, ahaha~”}

      _…Not.

_{❝ それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
   騙せない人や物も無くなって
  『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
   ･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Kuroha」}

 _{{ K } ➤ He looked familiar.}

       _{Not really, no. After a moment of staring, rather uncouth of him though what he did and what he appeared to do were entirely different subject matters, the boy before him seemed like an absolute stranger. Had they even known each other…?}

      _{Y E S .}

      _{Would he believe that? Hell, no.}

      _{The adolescent had dark black hair, not an uncommon color, but it was pulled into a familiar short ponytail at the back. His pupils bore a darkened color, and his face just reeked of nostalgia. It hurt to think, it hurt to process the information. Who was he? Who the hell was this guy?!}

      _{Memories were failing him at the moment, and if that were the case, there would be no point in racking his mind to find the identity of one little pawn in this world. They were all pretty much pawns in the end, huh? Ahaha… What was he saying? He didn’t even know how to properly play chess… He would just chuck the pieces at Kido whenever she wasn’t looking. Pffft. Too bad that ghost had eyes at the back of her head.}

     _{"Hi, there, uhh…“}

      _{Huh? Had the atmosphere shifted? Eyes narrowed, though he outwardly maintained the smile and wink. He could have sworn time slowed. Or maybe he was just imagining things…? Maybe. He really should leave now. He really should abandon all hope of interacting with this half-stranger, half-acquaintance. He really should not ask anymore questions…}

      _{"Are you lost, perhaps? Haha, don’t mind me! You just have the” – stupid – “look of a lost person!”}

_{❝ それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
   騙せない人や物も無くなって
  『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
   ･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Danchou」}

 _{{ K } ➤ “Danchouuu~”}

      _{A light-hearted singsong voice seemed to suit her title well. Would she like such childishness from a loser friend? Hm… Didn’t matter! Danchou was Danchou, and he would enunciate her name as he wished! …Unless if she reacted on such thoughts. Oh God, he should really be more alert for her fist. It hurt, but to be honest, he didn’t really mind the constant abuse either.}

      _{Danchou is Danchou, and such a cutie too~}

      _{God forbid she heard him think that. Cue the giggle fit.}

      _{“Haha..ha… Hey, Kido-chan~” Cheeriness not faltering, he took a bold step towards her.  Awh… Perhaps he should bop her head to make sure she was listening? Nono, that would be too rude! Besides, no matter how bored she managed to look, there was always that embarrassing (yet super cute) memory from not to long ago.}

      _{{ Please     s a v e     me. }}

                _{{ I’m going to disappear! }}

      _{It was wrong of him to romanticize and make a  joke of the scene. Hell, he never really wanted to in the first place. None of them had the perfect life, and it would be inconsiderate to regard their past as anything of the sort. But the temptation of flustering her, the urge to just make her blush, just once…}

      _{In the end, he always turned something sensitive to him into a joke.}

      _{But not that it really mattered. Pfft, it won him laughs, some punches too, but at the end of the day, it would appear that he had smiled more than before. He had yet to learn if this meant anything, but it seemed noteworthy in the book of utterly boring activities. Life had gotten to mundane in the Mekakushi Dan, too. Seto was always working, and even with the new members, things seemed to have taken a more mellow tone. Not good, not good. Melancholy was just  one tone he refused to play to. Especially in this cold weather. Things were too quiet to be considered fun. Hm…}

      _{“Danchou, what'dya say we make a snowman?”}

_{❝ それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
   騙せない人や物も無くなって
  『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
   ･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Maizono-san」}

 _{{ K } ➤ His original intentions were to find Kisaragi Momo.}

      _{He had never met her before, but rumors had their way. The mere description that she could “captivate the eye with only a glance” was the first red flag. Captivate the eye. Interesting. Brief stalking, though he preferred the term “background research,” only supported the idea that she would be a valuable recruit. Kido wouldn’t be too happy if he invited a new idol to the gang without informing her, but screw her opinions. It was a surprise, after all!}

      _{…So how exactly did he get here?}

      _{A habit of wandering did him no good. He was not at Kisaragi Momo’s winter concert, but another idol’s. Huh… She looked a bit familiar, but not quite. Idols and divas were usually all them same. Make-up, fake-ups. Pathetic, to say the least. Oh… But that would be rude. And that was far from his intentions as well. Huh…}

      _{She had a good voice. It was clear why she was on stage, dancing and singing with those fake backup dancers. Perhaps he should compliment her after the show? Kido wouldn’t mind a late return, would she?}

      _{So until then, he would remain seated and clap politely at the end of the performance.}

_{❝ それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
   騙せない人や物も無くなって
  『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
   ･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Hagane Miku」}

 _{{ K } ➤ “Hey.”}

      _{Small-talk, small words. He was bored, bored to death maybe, but boredom would be a pretty stupid way to die. Death in general was pretty dumb, but what was mourning supposed to do? No use trying to avoid the unavoidable.}

      _{Eyes narrowed with impending playfulness now, upon finding a certain... playmate. It was rare to find someone sane walking about at this hour. He had snuck out at exactly twelve, when he was sure that the others were sleeping. What a convenient time, huh? The sky had already turned dead black, and if it weren’t for the dim streetlights, he would probably walk into a wall.}

      _{Which he had.}

      _{…Kind of.}

       _{Bumping heads with Little Miss Goth Punk strangers was not on his agenda. Rude, uncouth, clumsy. Pssh, if he just smiled and laughed it off, external embarrassment should not ensue. A laugh and a tease seemed to be a solution for just about everything now. Laaaaame.}

      _{But now it was time to apologize – genuine or not, a phrase or two could lead to potential conversation. At daytime, when the other half of his brain worked, he probably would stray away from girls like this stranger, just on the account that Kido would lecture him for an hour on stranger danger.}

_{{ She’s looks like someone from a horror movie, Kano! A horror movie! }}

      _{He didn’t really care too much about appearances as most of them were fake anyway. But Kido would genuinely be scared of these types of people – “oh, how cute!” he would tell her if it weren’t for her fist hovering inches away from his face – so it would be best to follow her wishes. At least when she was watching. But now, she was not, so screw it all. Besides, eccentric clothing usually went hand-in-hand with interesting victims friends.}

      _{“Oh. Sorry about that… Haha, really should pay more attention where I’m going, huh~?”}

_{❝ それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
   騙せない人や物も無くなって
  『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
   ･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Megurine Luka」}

 _{{ K } ➤ “Hey, aren’t you that singer?”}

      _{Damn. He sounded really bored, didn’t he? Wow. Oh, well. It was not like it actually mattered. He was bored to some extent, and if he wanted to express this or not was his own decision. He did have some freedom, after all.}

      _{Speaking of bored… What was this now, the third time this week? Probably. Another fight with Kido, something dumb about teasing her, and he finds himself camping outside with crumpled bills in his pocket and no cellphone. How incredibly smart of him.}

      _{If was not like this was unusual though. Arguments occurred regularly, though he was sure nothing was meant by them. But in the end, he would always end up outside alone, wandering about with that triumphant smirk and suppressed embarrassment. Consider it a daily routine. Hnn… Daily routines were really boring, right? Figures. Too many things had grown boring. The way he would always laugh, even when things weren’t that funny. The habit of teasing during sensitive situations. Just that ugly human tendency to screw up and break. Wow, humans are really stupid, huh…?}

       _{But we’ll always be humans.}

       _{Pfft. Perhaps he should serenade someone with that line? Maybe steal borrow buy a cheap pair of glasses to push up to the bridge of his nose while he’s at it. Heck, a college degree or two wouldn’t be so bad either. Wow, he was really cracking himself up here.}

       _{He didn’t really care for singing much either. He went to some concerts, messed around with a drumset once or twice in his life, but that was the end of his music passions. But that clearly was not the case for the girl before him…}

      _{She was that singer, right? The one with the bright hair and big curves? Oh God, don’t let Kido hear that. Yeah… It must be. Pink hair was pretty much impossible to find, even with the crazy fads this city was going through.}

      _{“…Megurine Luka, was it?”}

_{❝ – それ以来、僕は嘘つきで 
騙せない人や物も無くなって
『怪物』に成り果てちゃってさ
･･･ああ、ごめんね　泣かないで！　全部法螺話だよ？}

      ．．．ｊｕｓｔ         ｋｉｄｄｉｎｇ

                                 _{Welcome to reality,「Kisaragi Momo」}

CLOSED THREAD ;; HYPOCRISY

 _{{ K } ➤ “Oi… Momo-chan.”}

       _{Voice remained heavily laced with tease and perhaps a tinge of flirtatiousness, too? My, what a terrifying combination coming from him. Aha… Speaking of terrifying, consider this situation!}

       _{C h r i s t . Here he was, casually conversing with popular idol and perhaps klutz Momo. That wasn’t too intimidating. Idol or not, she was still human. They all were, to some degree. Still pathetically breathing and screwing up and repeating the process. Human, indeed. Oh God, he was human too, wasn’t he? …Yeah. That was true and he’d be a fool to think otherwise. He was still breathing, reason unknown, and screwing up perhaps whatever humanity he had left in him. He was broken, stupid, stubborn, masochistic, and human.}

      _{Maybe that was why he partially a sadist? After all, it did help to see others undergoing the same struggles… No, but that would only be too cruel. Ahaha, too cruel indeed! This wasn’t some lame shounen manga where things like hate and lies were to be considered cool!}

      _{Pfft… What a joke! If he were to burst out laughing now, that would be sure to mess with his intentions.}

      _{Oh, right. He had intentions. To examine that neet’s sister, to evaluate her charm and whatever. She did have some charm, no? That captivation thing? Cute, indeed, but still not quite his type. But hey, imagine Shintaro’s reaction to seeing them together! Huehue…}

      _{“Momo-chan… Do you like Shintaro-kun?”}

       _{A bored drawl now. Wow. …Oh, sadism was showing now. He was curious indeed of the behavior she expressed towards her brother. To have a shut-in as a sibling must sure be lame. Especially for an idol. But humans were weird. Broken, stupid, pathetic, and weird. They surprised him. Hell, he sometimes surprised himself. Could there be a chance that Momo actually cared for that neet? Hnn… He did not necessarily hate Shintaro, nah, he was an okay kid. Arrogant and pathetic, sure, but decent. Momo was a sweet girl, too. But he still wanted to see another side to her. A desperate side, an angry side, a defensive side.}

      _{ǝɹɐ suɐɯnɥ ǝƃuɐɹʇs ʍoɥ ʇsnɾ ɯıɥ ʍoɥs oʇ ƃuıɥʇǝɯoS}

             _{"Oh, pfft… Don’t mind me. I’m just curious about your relationship, that’s all.“}

❝ _{Up for a little talk?}

         _{[ …No, it’ll be short, I promise.]}

      ｉ＇ｌｌ         ｄｅｃｅｉｖｅ       ｙｏｕ ！

                                 _{…Prepare yourself,「Mѕ. Mαrlση」}

_{{ K } ➤ Oops.}

       _{He had not quite bothered thinking of an excuse. The need to rehearse facades no longer applied to him. At this point, the words could just flow out and to be honest, he couldn’t care less. A lie was a lie, who was he to interfere.}

       _{But the deal with lying was that it grew boring. Stressful, even. It was nice to play a prank and run, to ring and ditch, to lie and spy. But the problem was, it had gotten to the point in which there was no running, ditching, or spying. Cheh… He really should learn his limits, but the word was foreign to his ears. Lying was a nasty habit, but how could he possibly escape?}

      _{O o p s .}

      _{There was the word again. Perhaps his entire life was one big oops? Ahaha, he almost fooled himself there. He was honestly a pretty happy guy. Melodramatic, sure – but in the end, the world would keep spinning and never stop, not even if the temperatures grew too hot to allow further rotation. But that was just silly. Pfft… Screw theater, a job in  the comedy field would do him good…}

      _{Huh? He had been standing outside the house for a good few minutes now. Maybe longer if he bothered to actually keep track of time. Oh God, perhaps no one was home…? But that would be no fun… After all, he had chose this house for a reason. Huehue, just the look of it gave him a chill!}

      _{Maybe he should knock again?}

❝ _{Up for a little talk?}

         _{[ …No, it’ll be short, I promise.]}

      ｉ＇ｌｌ         ｄｅｃｅｉｖｅ       ｙｏｕ ！

                                 _{…Prepare yourself,「Sєтσ Kσυѕυкє」}

_{{ K } ➤ To be honest, he had something against footsteps.}

      _{It was not that the sound annoyed him, though the constant clacking did perhaps hold potential for driving one to the mental hospital. It was not irritation that stemmed from footsteps, but vulnerability. A liar, a truth-teller, a lover of tall tales. Whatever stupid disguise he wore, his footsteps could be counted on to give him away. He could only deceive the eyes, not the ears. A life without either would be best. Huh…}

       _{And so, when he heard those footsteps grow louder, he could not help but tense. Those were familiar sounds. Hnn… But it was night, oh God. Who would want to move about at night? Fear was prominent, but hidden nonetheless. The confident smirk would never falter, even if his footsteps did.}

      _Click…

              _Click…

                        _Click…

_{.                                  – C L I C K .}

      _{Hm, if his heart were to beat any faster, he’d rather see himself dead. Heartbeats weren’t meant to be audible, but if the stranger had keen enough ears… Ba-dump, ba-dump.}

       _{"A-ah!“ A quick scream, cut short from hasty realization. Embarrassing. Could he perhaps feign a laugh now? Hm, he had no reason not to. He valued his pride and had some form of self-respect. "Aha…ha…ha… W-wow, Seto-kun. You might want to try not sneaking up on me?”}

       _{He wasn’t quite sneaking up, merely walking though.}

      _{“…Just kidding. How was that for a scream though~? Pretty good, huh?”}

      _{Oh, yes, send him straight to the theaters. He’d be a great riot there, all lies and flirts and stuff. No, it wouldn’t suit him. He did not like publicity anyway – too much stress and unnecessary exertion. Pssh, a life like this suited him well. Right?}