Just be warned – this episode isn’t pretty.

So, without further a death…I mean ado…

*

Haley: I’m sorry about this…

Fai: It’s O.K Haley-kun…but…

Kotone: (struggling) I’ve not got Aoi’s strength…how can she deal with this sort of thing all the time?

Aya: Ran…could probably handle this…

Seta: Well…it was kind of my property and as sick as it sounds, it was very valuable and important in terms of research. I hate to ask, but…

Ban: No, he didn’t bring a camera in – the only evidence we have are of clothes.

(Seta thinks for a moment…)

Seta: O.K…well…I have to sort this out. (sighs) And I guess Suzuhara-kun will need to know…he already has enough troubles…

Negi: That would be Touji right?

(Tamahome ducks, puts a hand on the floor and sweeps Hinata’s legs from her…)

Tamahome: Heh…nearly but not qu…what?

(‘Hinata’ turns into a piece of wood as the real Hinata emerges behind the bushin clone and aims a kick. Tamahome blocks, but the power forces him back.)

(Cue the open mouth of Shiine-chan as Tamahome realises this is serious…)

(Hikari thinks…and nods.)

Hikari: Yes. Yesterday morning…I got my phone bill. If I remember…I was calling one of my suppliers, ‘Diamond Daydreams.’ I can confirm that and if you want to contact them…

(As Triela gets the details, Ban checks the phone bill…and indeed.)

(This is a confirmed phone bill from the phone companies to Hikari’s house…and if they can get in touch with DD, then they have an alibi for Hikari.)

Shiine: We originally confirmed there was a number of people that were under investigation – and since then we have narrowed down the hunt for Kalos’ murder to some select people.

Kino: Can you confirm who these are?

Shiine: I’m afraid I can’t at this time, but I can rest assure we are definitely looking into these people and with recent events occuring, we are stepping up.

Fakir: World Arts - would this imply the recent passing of one Kensuke Aida?

Shiine: We are obviously aware of the circumstances, and some evidence showing on Kensuke is a vital clue to both his murder and the murder of Kalos.

Ringo: Ringo Seto – World Culture – as a fellow idol in the world, why do you think something would kill Kalos?

Hinata: We-we believe there are several motives involved, personal…financial…possible blackmail…but we don’t want to speculate until more evidence is coming in…

Satoshi: I’ve looked through the work today and yesterday. I was looking for things not necessary to make an excuse who to vote for. I was looking for talent. I was looking for someone who really was playing the game – but not an obvious target. Someone who was playing well and going under the radar because of his or her performance.

(Satoshi paces around…)

Satoshi: Yet, at times, this person can be the sneakiest among us. This was prove on Day 1’s inquiry, where she even fooled her partner.

(The she and partner makes a few people’s eye go open…as everyone realises who he’s picking. Especially…)

Satoshi: So…as both at times a weak point, and at others the strongest in the game, I will vote tactically, and vote for Hinata Hyuuga to play the killer’s game.

(It’s been over a week since the original 12 detectives took a trip from Scotland Yard to Los Angeles to solve the mystery of Kalos’ death. However, the most mysterious thing about the murder is the way people are playing the game. Satoshi seems to be playing mind games with everyone and it’s working for the most part…but what will today bring?)

(The sun is on the horizon as only 2 people are up at this time. One of them is Triela, and the other, making orange juice is Aya.)

Aya: Wonder what today will bring?

(Aya looks over at her new roomate…but is Aya aware of Triela’s after her blood to start with as well?)

Aya: No…not the best time…

(Triela enters with a yawn…no breakfast on the grill yet, and it’s not like the GSG are considered great cooks as Henrietta once proves. Still, it’s not like just a couple of people to be up, as we usually see Ban up by now smoking outside, or Negi and Hinata with an early warm up, or Satoshi looking through the notes…)

Aya: The game has hit everyone now I think…tiredness has finally kicked in…

Triela: Maybe, but the strain and relief really adds to that effect.

Aya: Satoshi…he’s definitely out there to make trouble.

Triela: True…problem is…he’s so good at this, that 9 times out of 10 his team will pass. So the leader will most likely be the one to eliminate him…

Aya: That’s a point…who would Fai choose?

(Triela pauses…)

Triela: Not a clue…he was a bit on the unpredictable side…

*

Aya: Ban…it’s really hard for me to take you seriously…

(Ban and Aya may not be buddies, but the image of a wide eyed Ban with a piece of toast stuffed in his mouth isn’t exactly an image she can take seriously…)

Triela: Ban, I think you should try out for Kaleido Stage…I hear they are looking for a new comedian…

Ban: Mfeey mfunny…

Triela: Yeah…

(The air is still clear as Shiine-chan gets up, a bit disappointed that Aya is doing the cooking…)

Shiine: …it just makes me relax…

Triela: You had a wicked master…

Shiine: Hmmm…I know people have called her wicked Dorothy-san…

Ban: Kids, you don’t even know evil until you’ve met Hevn-san…

Triela: (under her breath) Personally, Rico’s handler Jean…

(Before Triela does something that will incur the wrath of complete and utter bastard Jean forever, the sizzle of eggs overtakes everyone’s thoughts, as half of the group are up, and the other half are taking their sweet time…)

*

Satoshi: It only just occurred to me that there are 8 of us left now…

(And Satoshi begins to make everyone uncomfortable, as is his speciality…)

Ban: How many finish the game?

Satoshi: 3.

Ban: So 5 more of us have to go before we find out everything…

Shiine: (sweatdrops) Talk about your breakfast topics…

(No sign of Kotone, Hinata and Negi as they begin finishing off breakfast. Shiine shouts…)

Shiine: NEGI, ARE YOU GETTING UP?!!!

Negi: (shouting back) Hold on…

(A few moments later, and Negi goes downstairs, seemingly writing something down on a letter…of course, this is bit different – it’s a magic letter to his sister back in Wales, most likely discussing the events so far of the case…)

Negi: …ah, sorry everyone, I guess I overslept…

Triela: I think we keep forgetting that you’re 10 years old under all the wizardry, teaching and martial arts you have under your belt Negi.

Aya: Come on Negi…scrambled eggs like home used to make…

Negi: Well…not quite…

(Negi doesn’t really want to talk much about his family, Inside HQ for the ins and outs of the family…)

Ban: Where are the other two?

Triela: I know…unusual for them to be oversleeping…then again, I guess the killer’s game was a rather draining experience…

*

(Indeed, it takes 20 more minutes before Kotone is up, and then Hinata follows a couple of minutes after…)

Kotone: Morning…

Shiine: You guys were almost as late as I was the other day…

Kotone: I think we know…well…I think Hinata knows how you felt Shiine-chan…

Aya: Well, still some toast and rice…

Hinata: It’s O.K…I’m not hungry…I’ll just have some milk…

Kotone: Hinata-chan…

(Looks like Hinata is still hurting despite her victory – we can see bandages over her hands as well…)

(Few dare to look at Satoshi’s face, who is the calmest in the room…but that will soon change…)

*

Female voice: (polite tone) Thank you…keep the change…

*

(Kiddies, have you guessed who it is yet? Well, we’ll find out in a second…)

Shiine: I-I don’t want her to fall into the same trap I fell into…

(Shiine looks concerned over Hinata, who seems to be in a meditative state in the living quarters. In the recreation room, Ban is shooting pool with Triela whilst Negi plays the Air game…^_^)

Triela: Well…I wonder who we get this time?

Ban: I would vote for crazy…after all, so far everyone who has become the lead investigator has been a certifiable nut job…

Triela: Well, there was Yukino, Giselle, Tsuyoshi, Nabeshin…(thinks for a moment)…O.K, you’re right but…

*

Kotone: This makes me feel a little calmer…

Aya: The breeze does you good…

Kotone: Yeah…but it felt harder because I heard her whimpering slightly…

Aya: Yeah…sadly, I know how that felt early…

Kotone: With Mizuki?

(Aya nods and fails to notice the fairly polite stepping beautiful young lady pass by the back door…)

*

Satoshi: Personally, I think it just helps me out to be honest…

(We see Satoshi making some more notes in his book when a knock on the door interrupts his thoughts…)

????: Excuse me?

Satoshi: Hmm, what?

(Satoshi turns…and he is stunned by the young lady in front of him. Satoshi isn’t exactly one for giving girls a look but…)

(She appears around 16 years of age, maybe slightly older, she is wearing a nice pleated skirt and a simple jacket on her thin figure. Unlike Giselle though, her smile is one of delicateness and simplicity, only aiding her beauty.)

Satoshi: And…you are?

(Satoshi getting nervous? Nah…)

????: Oh, I’m your new lead investigator.

(Triela hears it and goes over…she leaves Ban in a heap after beating him at pool…)

Triela: Huh?

????: Hmmm?

Triela: You seem…normal…

(The girl giggles…)

Satoshi: Sorry, not a sight we’re used to…

????: Oh, that’s O.K. I’m just here because of a loophole…and it gave me a chance to find someone as well…

(They both look confused, until her name is said…)

????: …oh, let me introduce myself. I’m Rika. Rika Sasaki.

Satoshi: R-Rika? As in…

*

Ban: …so…you’re the girl that was with Chiriko? (He looks at her and even mighty Ban falls for her charms) I can see he has excellent taste…unlike those two fanged vamps before…

Triela: Negi, use that wand for hitting him please…

(Shot of all the detectives now in the investigator’s area as Rika smiles. Her introduction all done, and people realising she actually has a direct link with the case makes things even more interesting…)

Rika: Nabeshin-san has briefed me on things, so I know what’s happening. The first thing is that Hinata-san returned from the killer’s game with what appears to be a sword…which we believe is the murder weapon. Also, we can also confirm…it belongs…and has fingerprints…to Seta Noriyasu.

(This is a big shock…)

Rika: It seems open and shut, but we know that the Third Eye was stolen from him during the safe destruction, and I’m not going to assume that this was a similar situation, but we need to keep that in mind.

(Rika has everyone’s attention – as in the front row, Shiine, Negi and Triela, middle row, Hinata, Aya and Kotone, and at the back, Satoshi and Ban.)

Rika: So Fai-san didn’t return, but he did leave a message. This will allow someone to be exempt from playing the killer’s game tomorrow night. So who did Fai-san pick?

(This one is tricky…Ban seems to hope it’s him, but Fai was very unpredictable, so his choice should be interesting…)

(A video flare up comes and Fai’s face appears for the last time…)

(Shiine is pretty surprised, as are a few of the other detectives, but the Akazukin Chacha (FANFICTION IMPLANTATION: GO WATCH CHACHA, WATCH MORE CHACHA) representative takes the Team Leader’s seat. Rika smiles at him, making him even more nervous, before the CCS girl continues.)

Rika: Now, we got word that as I was coming here, that Jet Black has managed to break out of his prison cell. We are still uncertain if Jet could be the killer of Kalos, if we associate Kensuke’s murder with his, he couldn’t have been there…but…the hole in the wall suggests he may have escaped now…could he have escaped earlier before? Doubtful…but the truth is, we need to find him.

(Rika turns to Shiine.)

Rika: Shiine-chan, I want you to pick a team you believe is strong enough that is capable of stopping this man and making sure he is brought to justice…we will be using some firearms as well, so keep that in mind. Pick three people.

Shiine: Firearms…

(He smiles…)

Shiine: Triela-san…

Triela: Good choice.

(Shiine thinks long and hard for a moment before picking…)

Shiine: …Ban-san and Satoshi-san.

(Triela gets paired up with Ban for the second time in a row – and considering last time out they passed, it seems good right? Ban doesn’t seem to mind, though he gets the creepy feeling when Satoshi smiles. Yep, I’d say Getbackers has more of it’s fair share of yaoi innuendo a la DN Angel but let’s recap…)

Rika: Team 1 is Triela, Ban and Satoshi. Your inquiry is to locate Jet Black and arrest him. We’ll be arranging a helicopter for your inquiry and arming you just to be on the safe side.

(TEAM 1 – BAN/SATOSHI/TRIELA – LOCATE JET BLACK AND ARREST HIM – USE FORCE IF NECESSARY)

Rika: O.K…next…Team 2. Again, we need a couple of strong people. We established recently about the Hoshino/Church co-allation but they are being very difficult. A search through the Church wasn’t successful if I recall…

(Shiine’s head drops down remembering that…)

Rika: …so whilst we’ve done well with the Hoshinos, we have to see if Anna and Tenchi are hiding anything. So pick two others Shiine-chan.

Shiine: Um…Negi-kun and Hinata-san.

(Yesterday, Hinata was with Shiine, now she is with Negi, like their debut made them pass – will Hinata though fall into the same trap as Shiine-chan?)

Rika: You two will infiltrate the church. We have got an official search warrant though so don’t worry about any problems. Just be careful, as you may receive resistance.

(Hinata seems a bit more relieved working with Negi, as Negi smiles. Hinata smiles back.)

Rika: That leaves Aya and Kotone as Team 3.

(Aya seems pleased as does Kotone. But what do they do?)

Rika: We need to speak to Seta. This sword is his, and the victim’s blood is on it. He could be the prime suspect because of this…we need to hear his story. Again, be wary. Find his story.

Rika: I think that will be all for this morning. Everyone, good luck…I think you are going to need it.

(Rika leaves, as the group seem much more relaxed now that someone sane is their leader…that is, Rika…not Shiine of course…)

Ban: So…we’ve got a sane lead investigator, who has a past with a suspect? It’s all coming full circle…

Triela: Not to mention we may have the murder weapon – why else would it be a killer clue?

Satoshi: In any case – we have to leave Aya-san and Kotone-san to deal with that…we’ve got our own problem to deal with…

Ban: Gah – I’ll rip his arm off…

Triela: Considering how well you did against me in arm wrestling, I doubt that…

Ban: Did you have to bring that up?

(Satoshi smiles slightly, but the battle won’t be any laughing matter…)

*

Negi: …you’re not going to be a Shiine-chan, right?

(Hinata nods…)

Hinata: I won’t…you helped me through it Negi-kun…so I won’t be a burden to the team…

(Negi smiles)

Negi: That’s more like it. Come on, let’s replay what we did the last time we were together.

(Hinata nods with a cute smile as the two head off…)

*

Aya: We’re here again…without Fai..

Kotone: Yes…I do feel guilty…

Aya: …but in a way Satoshi was right – this is the game, and we have to live by our decisions, whether we like them or not.

(Kotone nods…)

Aya: Now let’s live by our decision in passing this inquiry and making sure Shiine-chan doesn’t paint a bullet on our backs…

Kotone: (nods) Right, let’s go Aya-san!

*

(Whilst Teams 2 and 3 head off in the direction of the vans, Team 1 wait for the helicopter…)

Ban: Holy…

(Ban, who is the only one actually who isn’t experienced with these, is in awe, whilst for Triela and Satoshi, is surprisingly like another day in the office. )

Triela: Here we go.

(Shot of the helicopter pilot, and we bring in another cameo here…)

(…there a fainting off set as Chromus swoons…)

Ban: Whoa…she’s gorgeous…

(Time for the inevitable Yui Horie character, but it’s not Naru, Tohru or Makie. Instead, it’s half Brit, half Japanese, all snide remarked, rich in wealth and looks, the wonderful Eri Sachikawa (School Rumble) makes her debut in reality fanfiction as she slowly lands the helicopter – yep, she’s flying…)

Eri: You guys here’s for the ride?

(Eri sees Ban’s confused look – she’s speaking in English. Satoshi and Triela however do understand…)

Satoshi: (in English) Excuse me, our friend over there can’t speak English, so if you can change to Japanese…

Triela: (in English) Yeah, the big stupid lunkhead over there…

Eri: (in English) Ah yes, that lunkhead…

(Ban, oblivious to being insulted, is revealed when Eri reverts to Japanese…)

Eri: O.K, we’ve got to track Jet Black…

(The three head up, as another new type of inquiry hits the detectives…)

*

(Hinata and Negi are on a date to the Church (Shiine’s probably jealous) with a search warrant ahead…)

Hinata: …Shiine was a bit…scared of her despite that I think…

Negi: He actually hid behind you when you went over?

Hinata: It…was a bit embarrassing…I just hope they don’t think we’re bothering them…after all…

Negi: Yes…

(Negi is outside the church, where if they wanted any more proof…)

Tenchi: Hyah!

(Shot of shrine swordsman, Tenchi Masaki, using a kendo sword with speed and power, as the Jurian prince seems to impress the two youngsters, though they don’t lose too much focus…)

Hinata: Masaki-san?

(The call interrupts Tenchi as he turns. He seems…a little annoyed at the detectives as they approach…)

Tenchi: You bother us now – surely there are…

Negi: We’re sorry…but…

(Negi shows the search warrant as Tenchi looks it over…and curses under his breath…)

Tenchi: I guess…(looks over Negi)…and you are…

Negi: Detective Negi Springfield, at your service…

Tenchi: (scratches his head) They’re getting younger…

(Negi tries not to vein at that comment…but Tenchi sighs…)

Tenchi: Anyway…I do need to go anyway, so I guess I have no hold against you…

(Tenchi bows and begins to head around the church…the two youngsters are slightly confused…but nod.)

Hinata: Let’s go…I can keep an eye on him remember…if he’s spying on us…

Negi: Of course. Shall we?

(The two enters the church – where the first thing they notice…or rather…don’t notice…)

Negi: (calling) Anna-san?

Hinata: Polite to see if she’s here?

Negi: I think she needs to know we’re here…

(Negi calls, and Hinata Byakugan’s, but no notion of Anna. However, Hinata notices that Tenchi’s ki waves also vanish, as he begins to move away from the Church…)

Hinata: Masaki-san seems to be in a hurry…

Negi: Even with the warrant, I’m nervous considering what Shiine-chan said before...

Hinata: Let’s find what we can and go, right?

Negi: Right!

(The two begin searching, a real chance to do some real soul searching, whilst Team 3 begin searching for what, or should I say who could be considered the prime suspect…)

*

(Shot of Kotone, a familiar faces to the people here…even worse after the death of Kensuke…)

Kotone: …how bad was it Pedro-san?

Pedro: Senorita Hinekawa…it was a disaster. People could not believe it…and Senor Seta seems to have gone into a funk since then as well…

Aya: Yes…I can imagine…

(The voice of suspicion cuts deep…)

Pedro: …he’s actually gone out today because he can’t work. He makes his own rules that man…(Pedro shivers…)

Aya: Seta isn’t here…is it O.K to visit his quarters then?

Pedro: I see no reason not…you are here to try and make sure he’s not part of this…surely…

Kotone: No, nothing like that! We’re just following up on a theft he reported…

Pedro: O.K senorittas…

(The two girls head in)

Aya: So Seta isn’t here?

Kotone: Maybe if he is the killer, he realised we were visiting after finding the weapon…so…

Aya: Well, I guess…

Kotone: Huh…

Aya: Kotone-chan?

Kotone: I sense something…

(Kotone steps forward, as her psychic sense begins to hit overtime…but the figure senses her, and leaps…)

Kotone: KYAHHHHHHH!!!

*

Eri: (over helicopter blades) Just look for him, and give me directions!

Satoshi: (shouting to make sure he’s heard) Head for the prison first, and we’ll go through a general direction – from what Sasaki said, he couldn’t be too far as he’s only had a time of about an hour and 15 minutes to get a far from there as possible…

(Eri nods and begins to take the ‘copter over to the prison, followed by some good map speaking from Triela, helping Eri in the general directions. As the people of LA walks around their daily lives, the hunt of an escaped con, who admittedly put a bounty up for grabs for Kalos’ death, is on the run…)

Eri: O.K, steady as she goes…

(Eri looks ahead as Satoshi asks her to manoeuvre around the prison. It’s soon easy to figure out why…)

Satoshi: So he escaped from the west entrance…

Ban: That doesn’t mean anything though, he could have got round and ran…

Satoshi: No, look further…

(The stones along the path are slightly damaged, but there is a deep movement on the grass from the wall…)

Triela: Jet was quite big remember, his frame may not settle simply on soft ground. Which means…

Satoshi: He went west.

Ban: Go west young Eri!

Eri: (veins) I sense a sudden urge to throw someone off…

(The trio and Eri continue to follow Satoshi’s directions…)

*

Negi: This is more like an investigation…

(Whilst only past the main hall in the past, Negi and Hinata are investigating the upstairs, the back entrances and all things that are and aren’t holy in the Church of the Returners…)

(Hinata is in Byagukan overdrive, seeing if there is something hidden, whilst Negi’s natural skills (including being so small and quick helps here) and indeed, it is Negi who is the first to find something which seems interesting…)

Negi: This seems…rather private…but…

(Negi finds Tenchi’s diary…)

Negi: …forgive me if I find something…

(Negi turns red, the ecchi little Welsh wonder…^_^)

(Negi begins to read and especially prior to November 5^st and just after…)

Negi: That links with the killer clue…

Negi: …and that links with the airport deal they had a few days ago…

(Negi’s eyes pop up)

Negi: Whoa…so…did Tenchi have the sword…or was it Seta?

(Confusion clouds the mind of the young Negi-kun. Meanwhile, Hinata is also scouring…and also finds something interesting in relation to Anna…)

Hinata: O.K…

(We see a picture of a few people in a crowd, in a 3 Musketters like pose – there are four of them…Tenchi, Touji, Ruri and Tamahome…all with fencing swords…)

Hinata: What’s this doing in Anna’s room? And…

(Is this a clue? Four people with swords? And what is it doing in Anna’s room? Hinata takes it, as speaking of the sword, an attacker strikes out at Kotone with…)

*

Kotone: YOU SCARED ME!

Chiriko: AND YOU SCARED ME AS WELL!!!

(Yep, the evil killing intent was from Chiriko…who was in fact terrified of the detectives discovering him. Aya plays peacemaker as they wonder why the scholar is here…)

*

Chiriko: I’m sorry…but I needed to speak to Seta-san – but I guess he isn’t here…

Aya: Why did you need to speak to Seta-san?

Chiriko: I needed to give him some information…

(Chiriko seems a bit nervous…Aya presses him.)

Aya: What about?

Chiriko: Well…stuff that had happened…

Aya: About anything that was taken…used…

(Chiriko nods…)

Kotone: Please Chiriko…we need you to tell the truth. If anything can help us, considering…

(Chiriko nods again…)

Chiriko: I know. Kensuke-san’s death was something I needed to talk…I was nervous that Seta-san…was…well…

Aya: Involved?

(For the third time, Chiriko nods…a bit upset…)

Chiriko: Yes…he told me of the Third Eye being taken…and also about his sword that he claims has gone missing…

Aya: (feigning ignorance) Sword?

Chiriko: A sword that I gave to him – it was originally going to be bought by Tamahome but it’s supposed to be a ritual blade – hence why I didn’t think it should be used for Tamahome-san’s purposes. Seta is an antiques man after all…I felt he would put it to proper use. But he has reported it stolen recently…

Kotone: Stolen?

Chiriko: Yes…he’s had it for the past 3 months. My guess if it was stolen, then it was stolen with the Third Eye – but I can’t remember Seta saying that he kept it in the safe…it seemed more of a…personal property…

Kotone: Personal?

Chiriko: It was blade made from the blood of the emperor Hotohori – the Emblem of Suzaku it was called. I managed to get the approval stamped on the notice of the sword…remember…the business I had to take care of the day of the murder?

Aya: Yeah?

Chiriko: That was it…I got the clearance today, but now, it’s been stolen…

Aya: Wait…if you got the clearance today…then does it say when it was issued?

Chiriko: Yeah…on the day…

Aya: Can we see these?

(For the final time, Chiriko nods…)

Chiriko: Sure…but they are back at the temple.

Aya: We’ll come along…oh…and we have some other information you may want to know…but we’ll let you know in a bit…

(Chiriko seems confused, but let’s them play the angle for a while anyway…)

*

Eri: Across there?

Satoshi: Yeah…see?

(A bar on a bridge over a river looks a bit damaged…but the bar is metal. Only someone…)

Ban: Keep it up, I know he’s here…

(The three pass over…and then they notice that the pathway is now quite hilly, and hard for someone to not be noticed…and considering this is where they think he is…)

Triela: Where is he?

(Satoshi thinks for a moment, eyes the bridge…)

Satoshi: Eri, circle round!

(Eri complies as she takes a long circle around the bridge…where Satoshi smiles.)

Satoshi: There he is!

(Shot of the river flowing, and Jet is crouching, UNDER the bridge. He thought he could be avoided…but against Satoshi, he loses.)

Eri: Land?

Ban: Oh hell yeah!

(Jet hears the descending helicopter blades and panics. He runs out from under the bridge, and realises he’s in front of the helicopter. He gets out of the water…and draws a gun.)

(Ban, Triela and Satoshi step out as Jet realises he won’t be able to outrun them all…)

Jet: Freeze!!!

(They stop…)

Jet: Knocking out a cop may not be the best way to get away and getting a weapon, but I’m not standing for being guilty when I’m innocent…

(Triela draws her weapon quickly, but Ban puts a hand on her shoulder…)

Ban: Leave this to me.

(Ban steps forward once as Jet clicks his weapon…)

Ban: Jet, my man. We’re in the same business, y’know? We get paid for doing other people’s dirty work.

(Ban goes into his casual drawl…)

Ban: And it gets really tiring…

(Ban adjusts his glasses…)

Ban: …so have a nice DREAM! JAGAN!

(Before Jet can even have a chance to react, he is caught in Ban’s one minute spell. Ban nods over to Triela, who moves forward slowly before being confident that Jet can’t retaliate. She disarms Jet and heads back…)

(A minute of dreams of being millionaires, or nightmares of Spike’s death a million times…whatever Jet saw didn’t matter, because 60 seconds later…)

Ban: Did you have a nice dream?

(Jet realises where he is…and he doesn’t have a weapon…)

Jet: Shit…

Triela: Care you talk Mr. Black?

Jet: About what? Everything I said…it’s true…sure I put a bounty up, but some poor bastard wanted to put everything on Yomi or she did it herself…I’m still sure it was…

(Suddenly a sound similar to Jet is captured. Unfortunately for him, it was captured in him…)

(Jet clutches his heart for a moment before an explosion of blood hits his chest. He does a death scream as a shadow from on top of the hills disappears…)

(…as Jet plunges into the river, as it’s blue colours are momentarily dyed the colour red…)

(…emphasis though on ‘dyed’ as in ‘died…’)

Ban: Crap…

(Eri begins to throw up…)

Satoshi: Unbelievable…

Triela: Where did that come from?

(Satoshi begins to call Shiine as Triela looks at the body…and notices the very familiar mark of a bullet hole in Jet’s chest…)

Triela: Damn…

Ban: Where the hell did that come from?

(They look around, out of sight and out of mind, as they can’t pinpoint what happened…or how…but it I guess can be confirmed as offical…)

(Satoshi quickly calls Shiine again and requests a squad to investigate this…after that, he is the calm soldier in the war and begins to see to make sure this is shown as a crime scene – and also if there is any way to actually find any evidence on him…)

Ban: Damn…why did this happen?

Triela: It happened…because Jet knew something. Remember – he said something when Kotone-tachi was speaking to Jet during their investigation, he said beware…

Ban: Yomi would be my first guess to be honest…after all, the money was put into her account and she could blame him for getting involved…

Satoshi: But then you’d have to establish a motive of why she killed Kensuke.

Triela: But we do…remember…the photo of her and Seta?

(Satoshi looks surprised – about the revelation or that he forgot about that? Either way, he quickly resorts to his normal calm…)

Satoshi: Indeed. I guess you could be right then Ban.

(Ban whispers a ‘thank you’ (10 quid says he forgot as well) to Triela, as they begin to investigate the murder…)

(The three begin to clean up…)

*

(…as back at the church, Negi and Hinata are now together, looking through anything further…)

Negi: I think a lot has already been established here, that these two are having a relationship…but at the same time, trying to avoid certain issues…

Hinata: A handsome young darked haired man and a beautiful young girl with blue hair? What’s wrong with hiding that?

(A younger darker haired young man and blue haired young girl look at each other a moment, blush and continue searching…and it isn’t long before something else comes into the equation…)

Negi: Receipts for Kaleido Stage?

(Negi has found these on Tenchi’s table, with a photograph on their as well – there are two girls…but strangely, they are BOTH Anna.)

Negi: Anna has been duplicated?

Hinata: What?

(Negi looks through the receipts – they are paid performances from Anna Respighi throughout the last few months…at least, until when problems occurred between the two factions…)

Negi: No…this seems something else…

(Hinata Byagukans, and in the corner frame, there is a written note…’ANNA AND ELAINE…TOGETHER ONE MORE TIME…’)

Hinata: Elaine?

Negi: Anna’s twin sister maybe?

Hinata: A relative…

Negi: No idea…

Hinata: (confused) Why in Tenchi’s r…

(They both figure out the reason for that seeing the double bed…and blush…)

Negi: But these notes for Kaleido Stage…it’s odd. It seems that BOTH Anna and this Elaine were part of this…but then, it just became Anna…before neither came about.

Hinata: So…they were both part of the act?

Negi: Maybe sense…

Hinata: Maybe we should talk to Akari-san? She may know more about this…

Negi: Hmmm…it’s a thought. I’ll ask Shiine-chan if we can arrange an interview with her…

Hinata: (nods) Shall we go in a moment? We’ve searched for a couple of hours now…

Negi: Let’s check a little longer…or are you tired from…

Hinata: (nods) A little…I can handle it a little longer, but it’s been a while since I’ve held my chakra this long…

Negi: (nods) Understood. Just a bit longer…

(The two continue to search – realising they’ve got an interesting possession in their hands – some records from Kaleido Stage – but does this information reveal anything important other than of Anna’s twin sister Elaine? Stay tuned…)

*

Chiriko: Alright, here we go!

(Meanwhile, we see Chiriko hands Aya and Kotone some key evidence…not for the case…but…)

Aya: Letter clearance of approval of Ancient Chinese Medicinal Centre from Tasuki – hey Chi-chan…

Chiriko: (pouts) He got wind of that nickname a while ago and has teased me about it since…I’M NOT A KID ANYMORE…

(Chiriko’s best Skuld impression doesn’t quite work but the evidence does. Continuing on, this was what Chiriko was on about on the first day they spoke to him…)

Aya: …signed Mu Xu, Mei Long and Gendro Tasuki…at 7.57pm on November 5^th.

Kotone: (smiles) I think Sasaki-san will be happy.

(Chiriko smiles, as tears well in his eyes…)

Chiriko: I…I was wondering…

(Aya and Kotone smile…)

Aya: Of course…

(Aya begins to call, as an inprompt meeting between husband and wife is met…but as Aya calls, another pretty young lady enters…looking a little stand-offish…)

Duplica: Chi-chan?

(Duplica is looking a little dishelves, with leaves on her shoulders and jeans, as Chiriko sees the young lady and waves.)

Chiriko: Duplica, long time no see!

Duplica: Hey th…

(Suddenly she spots Aya and Kotone…and steps back, mutters a slight curse before returning to normal…ish…)

Chiriko: Duplica? What’s wrong?

Duplica: Erm…nothing…just a bit…

(Duplica rubs the foilage off the clothing – Kotone however notices them…)

Kotone: Are you alright Imite-san?

Duplica: I’m fine…just a bit tired…been working a lot…

Chiriko: It’s still being finalised right?

(Duplica again seems a bit nervous, but nods…)

Duplica: Yeah…listen, I just wanted to come round and just check that my order has gone through…

Chiriko: Oh, for the blazed katana, yes, it will be hear at the turn of the week…

(Kotone’s ears prick up – Duplica looks nervous…)

Duplica: Yes thanks, I gotta go – they’re awaiting me…bye

(Duplica runs pretty face, as a certain blob face appears on her shoulder…Kotone looks confused…)

Aya: …O.K, thanks Shiine-chan, bye. (turns phone off) Huh, what happened?

Kotone: Duplica visited…she seemed a little nervous…

Aya: Did you speak to her?

Kotone: (shakes her head) Ran away as fast as possible…but she did mention about ordering a katana to Chiriko…

Aya: So…she has knowledge about swords…interesting…

(I wonder how this endeavour will end, but one thing is for sure, it will be a joyous reunion between Chiriko and Rika because…)

*

Ban: …what a mess!

(It seems all the teams were a bit late after a few things they all had to deal with…in fact, the lead investigator seems to be quite tired as well, a rare occasion he’s been having to do things for everyone…arranging police, an interview with Akari later, and also with Rika…)

Shiine: …so you’ve marked it off as a crime scene?

Satoshi: Indeed. We didn’t even notice where the killer came from – we guess considering from the direction of the hills when the bullet struck…Triela seems to think it could be Yomi.

Triela: No Ban did, I just corrected you.

(Satoshi’s attempt to save face failed…fortunately Shiine interrupts…or is that unfortunately…)

Shiine: So…with Jet dead, aside from…

Ban: Almost anyone that Aya and Kotone said the other day…

Jet: Yeah…I guess. The Suzuharas would undoubtedly have a motive – both financial to fix Touji up, and emotional because Kalos bastardized them in the first place.

Kotone: I thought you was close with Touji?

Jet: I am…but that doesn’t mean I want to be put down for murder when I didn’t. Hey, when I’ve got a gun to my head, I prefer to get out alive if you know what I mean.

Aya: Financial motives…wouldn’t a lot of people be interested in that?

Jet: I guess…greed itself is a motive as huge as the ocean, but it’s a two for one deal so to speak. I mean, the cook girls…Hikari obviously for her husband, and that okonomiyaki one…she is probably the person surprisingly most adapt for murder, more so than myself or Tamahome.

Kotone: Ukyo? Do you think so?

Jet: In a way…but a hacker? I doubt it…

Aya: I’m not distinguishing if Yomi’s account was hacked by the killer…I mean…do you know who would be a good hacker?

(Jet again thinks…Aya’s method seems to work a lot better than Satoshi’s for some reason…then again, Jet seems to soften up sometimes with teenage girls…)

Jet: Well…the Hoshinos. Definitely. Ruri and Haley are evil geniuses when it comes to this sort of stuff…hell, along with Yomi and Chiriko, they were the ones which helped decipher the Evan Virus…

(This is news…)

Jet: …and helped fix me without being blackmailed by Kalos.

Kotone: (whispers) Did the Hoshinos perhaps tell this to Kalos or something?

Aya: (whispers) Doubtful…considering the way he treated them, unless it was another form of blackmail.

Jet: And there’s that Anna girl…she’s…different. I wouldn’t be surprised if she had some skills in hacking. She’s from the future and that stuff…I mean so’s Ruri and Touji and Haley…it just seems so convenient…

Aya: So in other words…could have been pretty much anybody…

Shiine: It’s tough…but it could narrow down the closest amount of suspects…considering Chiriko is now out of the running as well…

Triela: Chiriko is cleared?

Shiine: Yep…Aya-san and Kotone-san cleared him – and Rika-san is probably enjoying a nice reunion…I WISH I COULD WITH CHACHA-SAN…

(A few sweatdrops as we see Negi and Hinata enter the door…)

Hinata: Back…

Negi: …and exhausted…

Ban: You guys O.K?

Negi: We’re just a bit tired…and my backs hurting…

Triela: Negi, you sound like an old man…

Negi: Very funny…

Hinata: I’ll…I’ll help you Negi-kun…

Negi: Thanks…I need some help…we kinda went overboard right…

(The two head up, as Satoshi, always on the mark…)

Satoshi: Those two…are close right?

(Triela nearly facefaults…)

Triela: In regards to me swearing here with my young age, I apologise…but…NO SHIT SHERLOCK!!!

(Kotone appears from the kitchen with some tea as Aya smiles…)

Aya: I’d say so. They can say what they want back home but they enjoy each others company probably more so here…

Kotone: (jokingly) I know…I’m jealous…

(Kotone may be joking but Shiine looks with confusion…)

Shiine: How close?

Triela: Well…

*

Triela: Let’s listen…

Ban: This is so wrong! They are just kids, can’t they have their privacy, I mean…

Triela: So why are you here as well Ban?

(Shot of Triela, Ban, Kotone, Aya and Shiine (only Satoshi isn’t sp…er, I mean trying to listen in…O.K, same thing…)

Ban: Er…that is…

Shiine: WHA…

(Triela covers his mouth…)

Triela: NOW WAY, HOW OLD ARE THEY? 10 AND 13 RIGHT?

Kotone: B-but Negi kun does room with two 15 year old girls right?

Aya: And he’s a teacher of 31 girls…I’d say he’s more mature perhaps? Or knows m…

Ban: That is still so wrong!!!

Kotone: Well…(blushing)…it…well…

(Negi screams…)

Triela: What the…

(Triela runs forward, as they have to restrain Shiine-chan as Triela puts an ear to the door…)

(Triela casually opens the door…O.K…she kicks it in…)

Triela: O.K, what the…eh?

(Shot of Hinata putting a hot particle on Negi’s back using a pair of chopsticks – she seems to be reading a plan…in fact, it’s a moxibustion plan. Negi has his back exposed but appears fully clothed apart from that. Two marks from the sparks where the heat has infected him are showing…)

Negi: Huh? What’s going on?

Triela: Uh…well…

(Shot of Shiine being restrained by Ban, with a red-faced Aya and Kotone already retreating…)

Negi: Kufei-san has shown about this moxibustion technique…designed to help with back pain…and Hinata-san knew a little about it as well…so…

Ban: Are you sure you’re 10 years old and not an old man?

Negi: Er…

(Shiine looks ready to faint, whilst Aya and Kotone, especially Kotone slink off…)

Triela: I’m beginning to wonder about us now…

*

(The phone rings…Team Leader, a recovered Shiine-chan, answers…)

Shiine: Team Leader Shiine here, but please call me Shiine-chan…huh…right…Jerry-san…what’s wrong…

(A few minutes later and Shiine is nodding and writing down information…)

Shiine: Right…O.K…I’ll have some of the team head down there…it’s O.K, we’ll talk to her and give her a lift home. Right…bye.

(Shiine puts the phone down and calls to the first available detective, Aya…perfect.)

Shiine: Aya, can you and Kotone go down to the police station?

Aya: Huh, something happened?

Shiine: Yeah…Yomi got caught in a drunken stupor by the police for…apparently getting paranoid about the hacker into her account trying to frame her for murder. I think she’s getting released but Jerry would like you guys to speak to her and accompany her back...

Aya: I thought she was bringing her life back around…

Shiine: Guess not…

Aya: (calls) Kotone-chan? We’ve got work!!!

Kotone: (upstairs) Hai…

(The two girls get ready, just as Negi and Hinata head outside and say goodbye to Aya and Shiine. Shiine looks a bit suspicious of the two despite the misunderstanding earlier…)

Shiine: No…it’s not that…I’m loyal to Chacha-san…loyal…

(Shiine looks at his desk and sighs…)

Shiine: Dammit.

*

Negi: Interesting…place…

Akari: Well, it’s like a mobile home when I’m on the move – you don’t realise how many miles I fly when travelling the world…and different times make it even worse…

(The inflatable mobile home, which indeed looks like the infamous cardboard boxes which Akari used to hide in, looks good on the inside with a kitchen, a basic room with bed and an exercise bike, but both detectives obviously not really in the seeing is believing category…considering their lives I’m not surprised…)

Akari: So…you two sweeties needed to speak to me?

Negi: Hai Akari-san…well…we need to speak to you about a friend of yours…

Akari: (sighs) I figured.

Hinata: Respighi-san…can you tell us a few things about her?

Akari: I guess…I hate speaking about a friend…

Negi: No, it’s not like that, we just need to establish some things…

Hinata: Um…we need to know what, if any relationship, Anna had with Kaleido Stage, aside…from…well…

Akari: (nods) I know…the problems Kalos put on for her were unbelievable – it was an innocent gesture as a step for people to guide them to their dreams, and he brought them down for blasphemy.

Negi: So, did she have anything else to do with Kaleido?

Akari: (nods) She was a performer for them for a while, as a star guest along with her sister Elaine.

Negi: A sister?

Akari: (nods) Her twin sister. However, she suffered a relapse one day of an injury she suffered…

Hinata: An injury?

Akari: Yes…it’s a bit of a touchy subject in their household, but I have a feeling you’re not going to go away without me telling you right?

(A unifed nod greets the Cosmo Beauty)

Akari: You see…back home, we have a chance to become the greatest athlete in the world, known as a Cosmo Beauty…currently…myself…

(Akari seems a little embarrassed but continues…)

Akari: Anyway, depending on where you come from, there are different ways of qualifying…for Anna…it was…tough.

Hinata: Tough? How tough?

Akari: It was down…between her and her sister…at tennis. Both were good, but Elaine was better. So…Anna’s…dark side emerged then…and she won…by injuring Elaine.

(Both are stunned…)

Negi: Injure? How?

Akari: She…threw the tennis racquet at her – and it hit her on the side of the head. At that point, she went into a coma, and took several months before Elaine recovered…and Anna obviously was distraught – she nearly killed her sister.

Hinata: So…the two of them at Kaleido Stage?

Akari: They came through thanks to my friend Kris’ work as a Returner on the moon…

(The two look confused)

Akari: Don’t ask.

(They nod.)

Akari: Anyway, they were working as acts on behalf of the Church, and also to help plug their patiserrie back in their native Switzerland. However, Elaine got into a relapse and nearly died on the trapeze…

Negi: Oh….

Akari: Yeah…Anna was distraught, and to this day I think Elaine is still in hospital. So she went to Kris for advice…which led…

Hinata: (putting the pieces together) …to her creating the church.

Akari: (nods) Yes – she did work on her own for a while, but the image kinda died when Elaine was taken out. Fortunately, she met Tenchi-san, who has brought her back to life, and now they work together.

Negi: So…Anna-san was working for Kaleido Stage as well – meaning does she hold it responsible…

Hinata: (whispering) It’s similar to Imite-san’s…

(Negi nods)

Negi: Anyway, is that all Kanzaki-san?

(Akari nods)

Akari: Do you have any other questions?

Negi: No, that’s fine…we’ll be on our way. Hinata-san?

Hinata: (nods) Thank you Kanzaki-san.

Akari: You’re welcome.

(The two leave, with a bit more information…and additional motive…)

Negi: Do you think Respighi-san blames Kalos for Elaine’s injury?

Hinata: I think she blames herself…but it feels better to take out the additional cause to the problem…

Negi: I dunno…it still seems too open. Anna-san I agree probably has a good motive as well, but so does Tenchi…

Hinata: I know…there is more to this than meets the eye…

(The two stops in mid-sentence when they see their van. It seems someone has had their way with it via the form of graffiti…)

(…problem is, this graffiti is all RED.)

Negi: I think…I’m gonna be sick…

(Dripping blood is bad enough when it’s the words of the next killer’s game…but when bits of meat, intestine, entrails…I don’t know, but it’s not pleasant to look at when it’s dripping down the windows and landing with a splat on the ground…)

(…both youngsters are forced to cover their mouths as the stench isn’t nice…)

(…inside, the driver has been locked in somehow as Negi and Hinata see someone has put a metal bar across the lock. The two nod as Negi goes to make a note of these killer locations…)

(…Hinata smacks down the lock as Negi has to hold his nose at the macabre stench.)

*

(Shot of Kotone and Aya sitting with a now sobered (but more like tired) Koyomi Mizuhara.) She has a cup of coffee (no sugar of course, it’s Yomi) and in the background…)

Jerry: How did Officer Takino end up in the hospital?

Yomi: Who knows? She’s always getting into accidents…

(It seems they want to let this one slide – not too surprising considering it’s Tomo…)

Kotone: …so, you were upset after the whole episode…

Yomi: Yes – somebody hacked into my account – could have taken all my money…but instead, puts a wad of cash into my account. Normally, not a bad thing…but it showed that the money from the bounty on that bastard Kalos…

Aya: (whispering) Don’t mention Jet’s death…I don’t think she knows…

Kotone: (nods) Mizuhara-san, that isn’t an excuse…

Yomi: I know…just it feels like the day of that bastards death, I was down the road drinking after speaking with that Tamahome, that Ukyo, that Seta on the phone…

Kotone: Huh?

Yomi: Yeah…I can remember that, but I still can’t remember what the heck I did after that…I drank way too much…

Jerry: I could appreciate that…

Yomi: Heh. Well, I hope you don’t mind if I can go home and throw up…that’ll be a lot of fun…

(Aya makes a quick note of what she said as the two girls pick her up and almost drag her out to take her for a ride home…and they keep the windows open just in case…)

Yomi: …dammit…if Tamahome hadn’t…Seta-san…

(Aya’s ears prick up…)

Aya: Tamahome?

Kotone: Seta-san?

(Yomi nods…)

Yomi: I’m sure he’d…I’m sure that considering what was going on…he was at that meeting…if this bounty was true…then…he’d be the type…

(Yomi coughs…)

Yomi: Bastard…Seta-san…he led us all down the wrong path…

(The girls let her in, as Yomi is now in green mode…both make sure they are well away from here…just in case…)

*

Satoshi: …so basically, Yomi was saying people were meeting at the night of the murder, and she suspects that Tamahome was the one…

Aya: (nods) I’d be surprised considering it’s not really his nature to be a hacker…but he does know Chiriko, and if any ancient Chinese person could do that, I’d suggest he could have something to do with it…

Satoshi: Not to mention back with the Eva virus motive, they considered Yomi and Chiriko the only ones capable of doing such an operation…

Kotone: Of course…

Aya: So…all these seem to link together…

(Kotone seems fidgetty around Satoshi, as he looks upstairs.)

Satoshi: They got the information from Kanzaki, about Anna’s twin sister…and their past. It seems her dark side originated from some accident with the two of them…

Ban: (calling) Damn…almost makes me wish Fai was back…AT LEAST I CAN BEAT HIM AT THIS!!!

(A smug looking Triela plays Halo 2 on the XBOX, realising that Triela gunslinging girls don’t just resort to killing on the field…)

Aya: Why they so relaxed?

Satoshi: Rika called saying there wasn’t going to be a meeting…I’ll let you figure out the reasons why…

(Two innocent girls blush…)

Aya: We’ve got to go through the regular meeting as well right?

Satoshi: About that…

(Satoshi looks to the main room, where there is no Shiine-chan.)

Satoshi: He seems a bit out of it, and I guess when Rika called, he assumed there isn’t a normal meeting. I would protest, but Hinata and Negi shared the info they got as well…making a change instead of stealing it…

(Kotone’s face changes from embarrassed to furious…Aya looks a little confused…)

Aya: What’s that about?

Kotone: Nothing.

(Kotone storms out as Aya looks confused…)

Satoshi: What?

Aya: Hmmm….

*

(Shot of Shiine in his room where he’s making some notes, but every so often he stops and almost snaps his pencil.)

Shiine: Damn…what’s taking Negi?

(Shiine opens the door, and heads over to Hinata/Kotone’s room…he listens for any noise…)

(…none…)

Shiine: This is…

Negi: Shiine-chan?

(Shiine nearly jumps out of his skin as Negi comes from behind him…)

Negi: What are you doing?

Shiine: N-n-nothing, I was just waiting for y-you and I was lo-looking for K-Kotone-san and Hinata-san…

Negi: (yawns) Hinata-san is outside training, probably imagining a tree is Satoshi-kun’s face…Kotone-san is downstairs somewhere…you already got their information though right? I told you ours?

Shiine: I-I know, I j-just wanted to clear some things up…anyway, it can wait…so want to go over the killer?

Negi: (nods) Satoshi is right about one thing, and that’s the fact that we need to narrow down our suspects on the killer…Anna has shot right up since the latest…

Shiine: You think Anna did it?

Negi: It could be…but my money is still on Ruri…the hacking, the powers, the abilities, and motive – she has everything on the money. Touji and Tamahome would also figure in well considering the recent evidence but…

Shiine: Negi…

Negi: Hmmm?

Shiine: Are you…well…do you…

(Shiine coughs…)

Shiine: No…never mind…

Negi: You’re bothered about that incident? Shiine-chan, it was a misunderstanding with you guys…Hinata-san and I are friends, and that’s it! (chuckles) I have enough problems with blue haired girls at him…not to mention blondes, redheads, brunettes…

Shiine: I see…

Negi: …but she is cute…and nice. And she’s helped me whilst Kufei-san hasn’t been here with a different style…

(Shiine looks a little pissed off…)

Negi: Shiine-chan?

(Shiine snaps out of it…)

Shiine: Uh…sorry. Anyway, where were we?

*

(Outside, Hinata wipes her nose as she wonders why she’s sneezing…it’s not cold tonight…)

*

(The morning dawns…and it’s been a weird night for the team…no real meetings and some uncertainties about…well…everything. Suspects and the team.)

(Shiine seems to not be in a cooking mood and headed straight to his desk as the Team Leader. So in charge are Hinata and Kotone, who are concerned about Shiine’s behaviour…)

Hinata: Did anything happen to Shiine-chan yesterday or something?

Kotone: I think he’s still a bit embarrassed after the mess up between you and Negi in the room…

(Hinata blushes…)

Hinata: Th-that was…

Kotone: (smiles) Don’t hide any thoughts Hinata – you’re so innocent it’s so easy to look into your soul…

(Kotone flips some eggs…)

Kotone: …but I’m a good girl, so I won’t probe any further. Your man back home might get jealous…

(Now Hinata gets really red, as in ‘faint’ red. Before she does, Triela catches her…)

Triela: You’re too much fun to tease you know that Hinata?

(Outside, Ban is intrigued by these turn of events…no-one else is inside, so he voices his thoughts out loud…)

Ban: Hmm…I can see a pattern here…both with the guys here and the remaining suspects…it all leads to one link…

(Ban breathes out a puff of smoke…)

Ban: We just need to make sure you cut off the weakest part…of each side…

(He looks through the window where Shiine is working hard, and getting talked to by Aya…)

Aya: …as long as you’re O.K…

Shiine: I’m fine…I’m just worried…about y’know…tonight…

Aya: Shiine-chan, whoever you have to vote for…I’m sure they won’t hold it against you…

Shiine: What about if it’s you?

(Aya is taken back for a second…but smiles.)

Aya: I guess…yeah…I’ll be upset. But if you have a valid reason…and not like a personal shot like Ban did with Miyabi…

(Fortunately, Ban outside doesn’t catch that…)

Aya: …then it might make the blow a little better.

(Shiine sighs…)

Shiine: That’s the problem…my heart says one thing, but my mind says another thing…

Aya: Huh?

Shiine: (sighs) Never mind Aya-san…I’ll head into the kitchen now, and hope a bit of breakfast helps…

*

(Inside, we see Negi by Triela as Shiine sits opposite him (with Aya opposite Triela) with Satoshi by Triela on the other side and Ban by Shiine. On the far ends are Kotone and Hinata.)

(…it’s pretty quiet, as it seems there is a selection of nervousness around…)

Triela: Eh, did someone turn the volume off everyone?

Negi: Yes…it does seem we have a bit of edginess around us…

Kotone: I guess…it’s because of the fear of…you know…

(Another moment of awkwardness, as everyone is nervous…Satoshi looks at Hinata briefly who seems to avoid his glance. Ban on the other hand seems to delight in the silence as he calmly eats…)

Aya: I don’t think we should mention this…I think Shiine-chan feels bad about this already…

(The best part of being a TL is knowing you are safe for another episode. The bad thing is everything else…)

Shiine: It’s O.K Aya-san…it’s O.K…

(Just as things look their worst…a source of light makes things better…)

Rika: (calling) Hello?

(Rika Sasaki comes in through the kitchen entrance…)

Rika: Oh, you’re finishing breakfast…I came a bit early then…I’m sorry…

Negi: It’s O.K Sasaki-san, join us!

Rika: Are…you sure?

Ban: Trust me, we compare you to that Giselle girl who barged in, and trust me, you are definite more our style.

(Rika blushes…)

Rika: Thank you…

(Rika goes over to what’s there and breaks a couple of eggs herself. The team are surprised at how quick and skilled she is in the kitchen and within seconds has an omelette with some asparagus ready. She joins as Ban finishes.)

(Go to HQ to check what they have to say to her, especially about Chiriko…but until then…)

*