Finale

(chapter originally by doragom333 at writing.com)

Back in the PA room, Odagiri and Chihiro stared indescribably at the screen where the camera footage was playing as well as Mitsuru, sitting in the chair in front of the computer. The video had reached its climax, with Mitsuru being **** to perform that awful dance while Chihiro was being held for hostage. Though the video was muted in this room, it was likely that every gasp and moan could be heard in the auditorium right now, where the audio rang clearly. Mitsuru herself betrayed no emotion, simply setting down Emiko's phone on the desk after Arata hung up, just staring at the monitors, not making a single response. Even Emiko had shut up, utterly baffled at Mitsuru's final option. Unable to take it any longer, Odagiri was the first to break the silence. "Mitsuru-san, are you... alright?" he asked.

"No, I am far from alright," Mitsuru responded, her voice as cold as her element. "It goes without saying that I am greatly disappointed in this entire affair. The most intimate details of my body are now common knowledge amongst the entire school, that vile video exists on everyone's phones, and to add insult to injury I am nearly dying of hunger, but at the very least I can take solace in the fact that everyone will know Arata's true role in this debacle, as well as that the video they have just recieved is nothing more than a gross distortion of the truth."

"Wh-What's gonna happen to us?" Emiko asked, beginning to cry. "We were just following Arata's orders, nothing more!"

"Of course you were," Mitsuru said dismissively, keeping her back towards the room. "Due to the **** lengths Arata himself went to, any one of you could claim to the proper authorities that he **** you into this, and they would most certainly believe you. However," Mitsuru turned her head to look Emiko straight in her eyes. "I will never forget what all of you did to me, Odagiri, and Fushimi. Any further disloyalty will be met with the most severe consequences."

"Ah! I'm sorry, I'm so, so, sorry!" Emiko launched into a string of feeble apologies. Mitsuru didn't pay much attention, though she did feel the slightest relief that the proper order had been restored at last. She turned back to the video, where their first struggle had ended in disaster, where all three of them were tazed into unconsciousness. With all of the relevant information having finished its broadcast, she contemplated letting the video continue to play further, but stopped it as she saw them gather around Chihiro and Odagiri's bodies and began to fiddle with their uniforms. There was no need to let it go any further.

"What's going to happen to Arata, anyway?" Chihiro asked, shuddering at the last image she saw before the view cut off.

"Sexual Harassment of multiple students, confining them against their will without proper nutrition, drugging them, conspiracy to frame one of those students as a perverted, sexual deviant," Mitsuru rattled off. "Expulsion at the very least. That is, if they're able to find him after he ducked out of the assembly. If he's smart then he's probably at the train station, booking a ticket to 'I Don't Give Two Shits'-ville."

The others shrunk back at the sheer venom in Mitsuru's voice.

"KIRIJO!" A voice cried out, slamming at the door. "You bitch! Open this door!"

"But we all know better by now, don't we?" Mitsuru asked rhetorically. "I see no reason to, Arata," she called out. "Why did you come crawling back here anyway?"

"I'm ruined thanks to you!" he yelled. "If I'm going to burn for this, you can bet I'm taking you with me!"

"Funny," she continued, her voice completely serious. "Because from my perspective, that's exactly what you **** me to do to you. I tire of repeating myself to fools who fail to grasp basic concepts such as that."

"Oh, you thought I was bad before!?" Arata yelled, nearly incoherently, pummeling the door with all his might. "When I get in there, I'm going to make you regret ever standing up to me! Regret ever being born, even! Five minutes is all I need to- GUH!"

The sudden outburst was the last noise he uttered, silence filling the room.

"That's enough out of you," a male voice spoke from outside.

"Mitsuru-senpai, are you in there?" A familiar female voice rang clearly.

"Minako-chan!" Odagiri and Fushimi shouted.

"Let them in," Mitsuru directed towards the door, swivelling around in the chair to face the door.

Just as she expected, she recognized the two figures standing to greet her outside the door. A young brunette girl wearing the school uniform, Minako-chan, and a silver-haired boy around Mitsuru's age, wearing a vest and holding his jacket off to the side. The two were quite shocked to see Mitsuru sitting in the chair wearing only her serious expression, but with her arms and legs crossed to conceal herself.

"It's about time you showed up, Akihiko-kun, Minako-chan," Mitsuru greeted them, shaking them free of their stupor. "It's rude to keep a lady waiting, you know."

"Akihiko-senpai, your coat!" Minako said.

"Oh, right!" Akihiko replied, handing it over while Minako rushed to Mitsuru.

"Mitsuru-senpai!" Minako wept, barely able to contain herself, handing over the jacket. "I couldn't believe my own eyes. The nerve of that guy! When you didn't show up at the dorm I checked back at the Council room for you-"

"I know, Minako-chan," Mitsuru interrupted as she put it on. Fortunately, it was able to stretch down her thighs, but only barely. "They kept us imprisoned against our will, and lied to prevent anyone from checking for us."

"Oh, Mitsuru-senpai... Chihiro-chan, Odagiri-kun," she addressed to the other members standing in the room. "It must have been so horrible..."

Chihiro broke down into tears and embraced Minako tightly. "It was rough for all of us, but Mitsuru-san most of all," said Odagiri.

"All this, and you still put yourself on the line to make sure that dirtbag wouldn't get away with it," said Akihiko.

"He still was able to cause irreparable damage," Mitsuru said morosely. "I don't think anyone will ever forget that video, and the worst of them have the version he made sitting right on their phones for their personal amusement."

"Perhaps, but fortunately they won't ever get a chance to see it again," Akihiko grinned.

"What?" Mitsuru fixed him with her stare.

"As soon as the video ended, and realizing that the mail everyone received was Arata's dirty ploy, the faculty blocked the exits and confiscated everyone's phones," he continued. "Thing is, most of the students were handing them over willingly."

"Yeah," Minako added. "I took a look at the people's faces during the crowd, and as soon as Arata started threatening you and Chihiro, almost everyone changed from laughter to hate. People were actively turning away during that **** dance and outright booing after he shocked you all ****!"

"Though not everyone, I take it?" Mitsuru asked. She was not naive enough to believe that the video was completely eradicated, nor was her humiliation completely met with revulsion.

"Er... no..." Minako replied glumly. "But there's always those creeps sitting out there, caring about nothing but their own sick fantasies. You can't let them get you down!" she said, attempting to cheer Mitsuru up.

After a pause, Mitsuru sighed and took a great big stride forward, walking towards the exit. "Enough standing around here," she said. "It's time we all got something decent to wear and a nice, hot meal to eat."

Everyone gathered around her. It was a very good idea at this point.

"What do we do with him?" Akihiko pointed at Arata.

Mitsuru took a long look at Arata's body collapsed on the ground, his cheek swollen and glasses cracked from Akihiko's punch. She wanted so badly to give him a kick between the ribs, but she had to be the bigger woman here. It wasn't easy being President, after all. "Take him to the faculty offices," Mitsuru commanded. "I wish to be rid of him as soon as possible."

"You got it," he replied, hoisting the body over one shoulder and taking it away.

Arata's punishment was as swift and severe as Mitsuru had predicted. Fortunately, this also resulted in Mitsuru never having to see his ugly mug ever again. The other conspirators quickly fell back in line, and were more than willing to give up to triple their previous work efforts, given the right incentives from Mitsuru, Chihiro, or Odagiri, of course. Just as Mitsuru had worried, however, her ears still picked up occasional snickers from various students, and even a couple of teachers. These remarks would occasionally **** her to remember that horrible dance, but only for a second. Under her withering stare, these noises were soon silenced every time, without fail, and life would carry on.