CH. 116 - The Sun Shines Again Even After Tragedy

In a hospital bed, Shiori slowly wakes up on her back with a heart rate monitor beeping next to her and other things attached to her for her wellbeing. Her eyes suddenly snap open as she sits up, her heart racing. Her head pangs from the sudden motion. She shuts her eyes and holds her head with one hand before slowly realizing where she is. She tries to calm herself as she looks around before noticing her arm in a cast and bandages around her hands and body. She tries to steady her shaking breathing as her heart continues to beat quickly, the rapid beeping telling her that. Suddenly, the door to her room swings open with careful urgency as a nurse comes in. She’s worried for a moment before realizing Shiori is awake and instantly calming down.

“Oh! You’re awake. How are you feeling?” The nurse asks while approaching gently and checking on her. Shiori doesn’t respond and only lowers her head with a sad look. Soon, she steps out of the room with the nurse close behind her. She limps with a crutch as her left leg is cast as well. She looks over as Hamasaki rushes to her side, almost falling to her knees with tears in her eyes.

“Oh, my sweet girl! I’m so glad you’re awake.” She says as tears roll down her face, pulling Shiori into a soft embrace. Shiori enjoys her mother’s hug as they pull away, Hamasaki putting her hands on Shiori’s shoulders. “Papa and Riku are at home waiting for you. Let’s go tell them you’re awake.” She says before looking at the nurse. “Is that okay?” Hamasaki asks her.

“She’ll need to come back and continue her stay for a few days but she’s recovering remarkably well given what happened to her.” The nurse explains. Hamasaki looks sad at her words but nods. Hamasaki turns away and takes a step.

“Let’s get you some fresh air-” she says but Shiori doesn’t follow, she only gently grabs her mother’s sleeve, stopping her. Shiori shakes her head just a bit as she stares at the ground with a concerned look. Her mother looks at her in surprise as Shiori struggles to speak for a moment before her voice comes out, scratchy and still recovering.

“Wh.. where’s Hiki?..” She asks softly. Hamasaki gets a soft look as they enter his room. Hikigaya is still unconscious as he lays in bed. Asami lays by his side, crying into her hands.

“Please… not my baby… don’t leave me too…” Asami whimpers as Shiori watches them with a sad look.

“You were passed out for two days.” Hamasaki says as Shiori’s eyes grow wide. She turns and looks at her mother with worry and concern on her face.

“Where’s Chizuru??.” She asks. Hamasaki pauses with an anxious look.

“She’s… here too… You shouldn’t worry about that right now. Come on.” Hamasaki says before gently encouraging Shiori out. Shiori and her mother step outside of the hospital as the sun sits overhead with grey clouds lining the sky. Hamasaki then puts a jacket around Shiori’s shoulders for the cold air outside. Shiori notices something attached to the collar of the jacket and looks down to see the ‘Stray Cloud’ pin Amber gave her pinned to it.

She looks at her mother, who nods with a soft smile before walking away with her bag. Shiori looks around, taking in her surroundings, trying to get her bearings before coming to a small grassy area with a few benches under a few canopies where Sugawara and Ryuji talk. She looks surprised and immediately starts approaching them. As she gets closer, Sugawara notices her and smiles widely.

“Shiori!” He gets up and rushes to her, hugging her tightly as Ryuji gets up as well. “I’m so glad you’re okay!” he says with tears in his eyes. 

“I’m glad.. you’re okay too.” Shiori says with a hint of pain in her voice from Sugawara’s hug. She looks up at Ryuji, who smiles in relief at her. They begin talking as by the entrance of the hospital, Pastel and Henry approach. Henry stops when he notices them in the seating area. He glares at them for a moment before walking their way, leaving Pastel with a surprised look.

“Henry? What are you…” She trails off as Henry walks towards Shiori.

“Hey.” Henry calls out. Shiori turns around with a surprised look and a soft smile only to be met by Henry’s hand slapping her across the face, dropping her pin to the ground. 

“Hey!” Ryuji shouts angrily.

“Henry!” Pastel screams as Henry stares at Shiori with an angry look.

“This is all your fault. From the moment you showed up in her life, all of you, things have only gotten worse.” He says coldly to her before looking at Ryuji and Sugawara. He looks back at Shiori who keeps her gaze fixed to the ground, not moving as her bangs cover her eyes. “Stay out of my daughter’s life.” He commands before turning around and walking away. Stomping his way, Pastel charges him with a furious look. She grabs him by his shirt and slaps him across the face as well before shaking him aggressively as tears roll down her face.

“What the hell is wrong with you?! Our daughter is dying and all you can do is push her friends away?! For once in your fucking life, can you think about someone other than yourself!?” She screams. Henry struggles to pull her off him as they shout and argue in the background. Shiori looks at the pin on the ground.

“Are you okay, Shiori?” Ryuji asks as she crouches down the best she can, shaking a bit and still not totally able to move. She reaches for the pin with her bandaged hand and tries to pick it up but her numb fingers won’t listen. The pin falls back into the grass. She tries again but is still unable to grab it so she palms the pin and grabs it with her whole fist as tears start to fall to the ground and on her hand. She cries as she grabs the pin and shakes as she lifts it up in the palm of her hand.

“I’m.. sorry..” she cries as she crouches on the ground, looking at the pin in her hand. Sugawara and Ryuji look sad but don’t say anything. Unsure of what else to do, they crouch around and hug her warmly as she sobs.

Hours pass as the others do their best to recover from what happened a few nights ago. Alice sits on her bed, leaning against the wall as she holds her side with her bandaged hand, panting in pain. She winces a little before slowly bringing her knees up to her chest and laying her head on her arms as she sobs silently, alone in her dark room.

Haru sits at a table with his head down. He has one arm on the table while his other sits in a cast and sling in his lap. His sister Aki sits gently next to him with a worried look as she rubs his back, listening to her brother crying to himself.

Touma is in the woods at the top of a hill as the sun begins to set. He swings an axe against a large tree, hacking at it again and again. He grunts in frustration with each swing, bandages tucked away under his shirt around his body. He swings and as soon as his axe lodges into the tree, he flinches hard as the sound of something snapping in him can be heard. He coughs as a bit of blood escapes the corner of his mouth but, despite this, he pulls the axe back and swings hard into the tree again. He grunts harder and harder with each swing, the pain in his body a reminder of his weakness as his eyes only get more and more intense until he pulls the axe back behind his head with furious eyes.

He shouts as he slams the axe in the tree, completely chopping through it. The force of his swing and the pain of his body causes him to fall forward, tossing the axe over and collapsing to his hands and knees. He coughs some more with small bits of blood coming out as the tree collapses to the ground. He grunts and whimpers as he sobs quietly to himself before Emiko rushes up to his side. She gets on her knees next to him and pulls him in for a tight embrace as Touma sobs loudly into her hug.

In the deep of night, Hikigaya lays in his bed alone as the dim blue light from the moon flows through the window of his room. Suddenly, he sits up coughing. He coughs into his hand as a bit of blood comes out. He breathes heavily with his vision blurry. He looks panicked as he quickly tries to get out of bed, removing the medical equipment attached to him. Lifting his legs out of bed, he goes to stand but as soon as he does, his legs don’t respond and he collapses to the ground. He looks up at the door and pushes himself up, stumbling his way to the door and pulls it open.

“Chizuru… Shiori.. Shiori!” he shouts desperately, quickly gaining the attention of the working nurses. He falls to his hands and knees as a couple nurses rush to his side. They try to help him as Shiori comes stepping the best she can from around the corner. She looks around worried before seeing Hikigaya. She stares at him for a moment before her eyes start tearing up. She drops her crutch as she quickly limps his way. In her desperation to be with him again, she trips to the ground, but she doesn’t stop and quickly crawls towards him. Despite one eye still not properly working, Hikigaya sees her and turns towards her crawling a step before opening his arms and grabbing her tightly. Shiori wraps her arms around his neck as he holds her tightly around her back and her head. They start crying as an overwhelming sense of relief floods them.

“I didn’t- I w-wasn’t- Y-You were-" Hikigaya stutters out.

“I know, baby. You’re okay. I’m right here. You’re right here..” Shiori says back as tears roll down her cheeks and a soft smile finally appears on her face, pressing themselves together tightly, never wanting to let go again. They hug each other for a moment more before pulling back and placing their foreheads together, sighing and smiling in passionate relief. 

At his home, early the next morning, Kitaro leans forward on the couch playing a video game with a tired and worn out look. Hisana sits next to him, pressed into the back of the couch with her knees brought up to her chest and a sad look on her face. 

“Kitaro?.. Do you think you should stop for a while?.. you haven’t slept in three days…” Hisana says with a concerned tone. Kitaro doesn’t acknowledge her words making Hisana lower her head. She sits in silence for a moment before pressing her lips together with an anxious look. “Do you think… Chizuru is gonna be okay?..” She asks softly. Kitaro doesn’t shift his gaze from his game as he answers coldly.

“She’s in the ICU. What do you think?” He asks rhetorically as he clicks away on his controller. Hisana looks at him as his glossy eyes stare at the screen. She doesn’t seem bothered by his words and instead stares at him. Kitaro exhales softly with shaking breath as he slowly looks down. “I’m sorry…” he whispers. Hisana is surprised as Kitaro slowly lowers his head into his hand, covering his eyes. “I’m sorry…” he says even softer with a trembling voice as he struggles to hold back his tears. Hisana crawls close to him on the couch and hugs him tightly as he sobs.

In her dark room, Suiyoubi looks around frantically. Her room is a mess with books, scripts and materials thrown about. She quickly paces around as she searches through her bookshelf. She pulls out a book and quickly starts reading through the pages as if searching for something desperately, her hands shaking as she traces the page with her finger. She mumbles to herself before looking upset and dropping the book on the floor. She rushes to a chest and opens it, digging through it.

“something.. there has to be something.. I need..” she mutters as she pulls out some old scripts. She reads them before clenching her hands in frustration and tossing the pages away. She gets up and paces back and forth for a moment, still muttering, before she looks up as if getting an idea and rushing back to her bookshelf. She quickly reaches for a book, but where she grabs, there’s nothing there. She stops for a moment before turning slightly and seeing the book she reached for she just dropped to the floor a moment ago. Seeing this, her hands start to shake as her breathing starts getting erratic. She starts shaking her head a bit as she looks around desperately before coming to her desk. She leans on it for a moment as she starts hyperventilating, grabbing her chest with her right hand. As she panics, her door opens up and Mormo steps on through casually.

“Oi, darkheart! I’m back! Sorry I was gonna for so long, Frankle wouldn’t let me go-” he says before noticing the state of her room and her hyperventilating at her desk. He stares at her for a moment before speaking. “You okay?” He asks. Suiyoubi shakes her head repeatedly without looking at him. Mormo stands there for a moment before lifting his arm and opening his mouth to say something but he can’t figure out the words. He stops with a sympathetic look before gently making his way to her desk. He climbs up and steps in front of her, looking at her. Suiyoubi’s sharp nails claw into the wooden desk and stab into her clenched palm over her chest, causing her to bleed a little onto her sweater and down her hand, her fist shaking as she hyperventilates. Mormo stares at her before speaking softly.

“I’m.. sorry.” He says before lifting his stuffed teddy bear arms towards her as if offering a hug. Suiyoubi looks over slightly at him before her breathing slowly starts to settle and her clenched fist relaxes. She stares at him before tears start to roll down her cheeks and sadness overwhelms her. She cries out as she grabs into Mormo and hugs him tightly against her face, crying out loudly into him as he does his best to hug her back.

Not long later, well after the sun has risen on a new day, Haru walks down his street with his hand in his pocket and a sad look on his face as he kicks a small rock. He stops and looks up to the sky for a moment as the sun shines brightly above him. He stares through the sun’s rays, taking in the light when suddenly his eyes grow wide. He takes a sharp breath in then turns and takes off running. Sugawara and Ryuji talk and smile softly as they make their way to the entrance of the hospital with a care package in hand when they stop for a moment, noticing something.

“Haru?” Sugawara asks, surprised for a moment before getting a worried look as he sees Haru running straight into the hospital. Ryuji and Sugawara freak out and rush after him. Shiori and Hikigaya sit on his bed and giggle a bit as they gently push each other with their shoulders before they notice a few nurses rushing past the room, calling out a crash and emergency. Concerned, they both get up and exit the room.

“Wait, Chizuru? Chizuru!” Shiori calls out and tries to go after them, but a nurse from the desk stops her.

“I’m sorry, but you can’t follow them, love.” She says softly. Shiori looks at her before looking down the hall where the nurses and doctors rush to. Tears start to form in her eyes as she sees from the doors the doctors are running into, a nurse frantically escorting Lucy out of the doors before rushing back through them with the rest of the staff. Lucy looks panicked and worried as tears stream down her face, her hands pressing against her head as she stares in disbelief. Lucy stumbles a couple steps back, shaking her head gently before crouching to her knees and sobbing into her hands. Hikigaya watches this as all the sounds around him begin to fuzzy out and deafen. Haru, Ryuji and Sugawara rush in and stop when they see the others before them.

“Hikigaya! Chizuru, is she..?” Haru asks, but slowly stops as the sight sets in around him.

As Haru calls out, Hikigaya slowly turns to look at Henry and Pastel standing with scared looks. Pastel has her hands to her mouth and a begging look as a doctor reluctantly steps out from another room and approaches them. She speaks as if explaining something to them, but the meaningless words do nothing. As the doctor continues to speak, Henry steps up with a worried and almost angry look, saying something back to the doctor. Pastel seemingly hears none of it though, as her gaze simply drops and she gently lowers her head, staring at the ground. Her tense body softening as her arms go limp to her sides. Hikigaya watches as his eyes grow wide with shock filling them. He struggles to breathe as steps back. He trembles before stepping again. Hikigaya then turns around sharply and takes off running down the hall. He rushes past his friends and out the front doors of the hospital, running until he stops at the grassy seating area in the front. He stands as his eyes shake and he breathes heavily. He lifts his shaking hands and grabs his head tightly with both as he begins making noises, choking on the words. In that moment, he suddenly crouches down and starts screaming as the tears roll down his face. The others rush out after him, hearing his cries. Shiori falls down next to him with tears falling from her eyes.

“Hikigaya! Hikigaya, please!” She shakes him for a moment before he turns and grabs her wrist, still screaming. 

“No! I did this! I killed her! I killed her, again!” He shouts as Shiori looks at him with a sad look in her eyes. Haru grits his teeth and clenches his fist before grabbing Hikigaya by the collar and yanking him up. 

“Hikigaya, stop! You know it’s not your fault!” He yells aggressively as Ryuji covers his face with his hand, sobbing with his back turned to them.

“I killed my sister and now I killed her! I can’t protect anyone!” Hikigaya cries out.

“That’s not what happened! I was right there too! I could’ve saved her! I could’ve done something!” Haru shouts in Hikigaya’s face as he cries too. Hikigaya grits his teeth too before shoving Haru off of him.

“So what?? You want me to say this is your fault?! Is that what you want?!” he shouts as Haru growls at him. Sugawara is shocked and shouts to them.

“Guys! Stop! This isn’t..” He cries out as Haru shoves Hikigaya back.

“You stupid asshole! This isn’t about you!” Haru shouts back. They get more and more aggressive as Sugawara cries out to them, falling to his knees and shutting his eyes tightly.

“Stop it, stop it, stop!” He repeats. Shiori watches on her knees with a sad look as her friends break down in front of her and tears fall down her cheeks. She cries as she slowly lowers her head, placing her hands over herself. As they yell and cry, Lucy walks towards them. Ignoring the arguing and crying, she steps past them right towards Shiori. Lucy stops just before her, looking down at her, before slowly crouching down and tapping her shoulder gently. Shiori looks up with pained eyes as Lucy looks at her with teary eyes but a look that tries to offer comfort.

“Shiori. It wasn’t your fault.” Lucy says softly as Shiori looks at her. The others finally stop for long enough to notice Lucy and Shiori on the ground. Shiori tries to hold it in, but she breaks down and starts sobbing while latching onto Lucy. They hug each other tightly as they cry and sob into each other’s embrace. Watching this, the others can’t help but be flooded with the emotion of the event that just occurred and all begin to break down. Hikigaya falls to the ground on his knees as Haru starts sobbing, covering his eyes with his arm. Sugawara cries on his knees too as Ryuji sobs into his hands. Unable to do anything to make their situation better, they simply cry in the grassy seating area in front of the hospital where their lifelong friend just passed away. 

News of Chizuru’s unfortunate passing spreads quickly. Samuel sits at home in the arms of Ashley as Samuel cries out loud for her student, a bandage on her cheek where she was hurt. At school, Henry berates Principal Ai over the phone for allowing the trip in the first place, blaming her for putting his child in danger. She accepts full responsibility for what happened and listens as Henry yells and shouts angrily before hanging up. Ai lowers her phone and places it back on her desk when her hand begins to tremble. Quietly, Ai holds her head in her hands as she begins to sob.

Days pass as each student, teacher, friend, and family that Chizuru affected cries for her. Tsuki and Milo walk down the street holding hands when Tsuki’s phone begins to ring, so he answers with a smile. His smile slowly fades as he’s told what happened. He responds softly before hanging up and lowering his head a bit as Milo looks at him confused. She’s then shocked when Tsuki begins to cry, so she hugs him, not yet aware of what happened to their friend. 

Days later, under the light of the moon and stars in the sky, Touma sits on a large log lying on the ground. He stares at the sky with a sad look on his face when Ryuji slowly makes his way towards him. He sits down next to Touma quietly as they sit in silence for a moment.

“You okay, Touma?..” Ryuji asks softly. Touma doesn't respond before Ryuji continues. “I just.. wanted to check on you. I know that.. you really loved her.” Touma still watches the sky as Ryuji speaks. Tears start to form in Ryuji’s eyes as he looks down, sniffling as his feelings well up inside. “I’m just.. I guess I just wanted to see if you’re okay.. Make sure you don’t.. shut us out..” Ryuji says softly. Touma chuckles a bit, a soft smile spreading across his face as he looks down.

“Chizuru did a lot for me. So much more than I’ll be able to tell her now. But best of all, she gave me you guys.” Touma says, looking at Ryuji. Ryuji is surprised by his words as Touma smiles and looks back to the sky. “I promised her the night before everything happened that I would never go back to being quiet. That I’ll keep my head up and voice heard.” His eyes shine as Ryuji starts to cry at his words. “She helped me be better. I’m going to keep my promise, I think she would’ve wanted that.” He says with a smile as Ryuji sobs next to him under the night sky. 

In Sugawara’s home, Haru sits on the couch next to Sugawara. They sit in silence for a moment before Haru speaks.

“Sugawara, do you think I’m pathetic?” Haru asks with a blank stare at the ground. Sugawara looks at him shocked and sits closer to him.

“No. No, baby, why would you ask that?” Sugawara asks with a concerned look. Haru smiles sarcastically as tears form in his eyes.

“Because I think I am.” Haru says. Sugawara watches him with a sad look, unsure of what to say. “My whole life, I’ve always been so weak.. I watched as Hikigaya, Ryuji, Lucy, even Shiori, stood up to bad guys and protected the weak.. Protected me… And for once I thought, maybe.. I could protect someone… …I guess not.” His voice cracks and shakes as he speaks. He lifts his cast arm up and squeezes it tightly with an upset look. “It seems the only thing I’m good at is making people laugh, acting like an idiot… even when lives depend on it…” Haru says softly as Sugawara watches him with a caring and sad look.

“Is that why you always try so hard to make the group happy? You think it’s the only way you can help?” Sugawara asks softly. Haru nods. Sugawara looks down a bit before leaning his head on Haru’s shoulder. “Haru.. things don’t always end up the way we want them to. You’re only human, it’s unfair to put that expectation on yourself.” Sugawara says as Haru only looks more upset with himself. Sugawara pauses before turning his head and looking at him, putting his chin on Haru’s shoulder. “And I think having such a bright smile does more than enough to help people.” He says softly. Haru’s eyes widen a bit as his words remind him of Chizuru.

“Stay bright, Haru.”

He remembers her words from that Valentine’s Day years ago. Tears well up in his eyes as he smiles softly, feeling her love and Sugawara’s together within him.

At Shiori and Hikigaya’s house, Shiori sits on her bed as Hikigaya sits on the ground leaning against her bed. They both have tired, blank expressions on their faces as they sit in silence for a moment, still recovering from their injuries a bit. Shiori looks worried before speaking.

“Hiki?..” she says softly.

“Yeah?” He answers plainly as he stares at the wall. Shiori sweats nervously.

“I was thinking… since everyone knows about our powers now, how long do you think it’ll take for people to realize we are Fullsky and Watchdog?” Shiori asks. Hikigaya just shrugs without thinking about it much.

“I don’t know.” He says. His empty demeanor doesn’t comfort Shiori as she holds herself a bit tighter.

“I’m just concerned about.. your mom.” Shiori says softly. Hikigaya finally perks up a little hearing her words as she continues. “She never liked vigilantes to begin with and as far as she’s concerned, they’re the reason her daughter is…” she trails off. She takes a deep breath to calm herself. “What if.. she realizes it was us?..” She asks, scared of what she might say. Hikigaya’s eyes widen just a bit as he turns and looks at her. 

“I… don’t know...” he says softly. Shiori only looks more concerned as Hikigaya stands and faces her. “Shiori, you know it’s not your fault. We… she probably won’t understand but… you’ll be okay, I promise.” He says, rubbing her shoulders gently to comfort her. Tears form in Shiori’s eyes as she nods, shaking a bit. Just then, Asami can be heard calling them from the first floor.

“Kids. Get down here.” She says loudly, causing Shiori to flinch. They approach the stairs reluctantly and see Asami standing at the base of them with an intense look. “We need to talk.” She says. The two walk down the stairs, Shiori with a slight limp in her steps as Asami stands in the dimly lit living room staring at them with crossed arms. The two step in front of her, a bit back with their heads lowered like children in trouble. Asami stares at them before looking down and shaking her head a little.

“I wanted to give you some time after what happened. But now’s the time. Have anything to say to me?” She asks tossing her hand at them before putting them on her hips. Shiori and Hikigaya stand quietly, not saying a word, scared of what she might say back. Hikigaya sweats before he goes to speak.

“I-… we, mom, let me explain.” He says weakly.

“Please do. Please explain to me why it took a doctor trying to save your life to tell me that the only reason my kids aren’t dead is because of some powers they have. That they felt the need to hide them from me their entire lives, and why I just got off the phone with the chief of peace explaining to me that you’re vigilantes? Both of you? And worse yet, you’ve been doing it for years, using your powers openly like that? Are you kidding me?” She asks with a frustrated look on her face. Shiori looks down as Hikigaya steps forward.

“It’s not that simple. We didn’t mean any harm. We just wanted to protect people with our powers.” Hikigaya says. Asami looks at him with confused and concerned eyes as she lifts her hands to them.

“You’re children! That kind of responsibility shouldn’t be on your shoulders! Fighting super villains who kill and torture people? You could’ve been killed just like-” Asami suddenly stops at her words. Shiori and Hikigaya look away with pained looks as Asami lets out a breath. She then turns her attention towards Shiori.

“Shiori. You were there that night, right? At Fawn Tower?” Asami asks. Shiori nods. “That vigilante Fullsky just trying to save my daughter…" Asami says in a low tone. Tears start to form in Shiori’s eyes as Asami steps towards her. Hikigaya gets a defensive look.

“No, mom, she didn’t-” Before he can finish, Asami raises her hand as Shiori closes her eyes, waiting for punishment, but then she feels a warmth wrap around her. She opens her eyes wide as she feels Asami’s warm embrace. Asami cries a little, holding Shiori close.

“You were right there for both of them.. I can only imagine what that must feel like.. That responsibility shouldn’t be on your shoulders..” Asami says softly as Shiori begins to cry, nuzzling her face into Asami’s embrace. Hikigaya sighs in relief realizing her mother is not angry but sad for Shiori. Asami lets her go as Shiori sobs with her head lowered. “Such a kind girl shouldn’t have to suffer so much pain.” Asami says before she turns to look at Hikigaya as Shiori tries to wipe away her tears.

“And such a caring boy shouldn’t have to lose his sister and his friend.” She says softly, offering her hand to him. Hikigaya’s eyes tear up as he looks away but steps closer to his mother to accept her hug. “My children, please keep your heads up. It isn’t fair that your lives have had to be so brutal. Your powers are not meant to burden kids so young.” She says softly as she hugs the two of them lovingly. “It’s going to be hard for you, but please.. stay strong.” She says as she holds her sobbing children in her arms. Riku stands behind them, watching them softly before lifting his hand a bit.

“Is this a bad time to say I have the same powers she does?” He asks as Hamasaki pops her head in from the hall, looking at him shocked.

“Riku!” She says with a gasp as he sweats.