2026-08-05: A Fault in the Ice
- Log: A Fault in the Ice
- Cast: Shinichi Nagisa, Katsuko Yoshinaga
- Where: Shujin High School
- OOC Date: 2026-08-05
- IC Date: Thu Dec 20 2012
- Summary: Set on dealing with the Homunculus piloting Shinichi's body, Katsuko makes a move to see if she can finesse any usable information from it. But even the ice queen is all too human, and it's enough to give the Homunculus the advantage.
(|=================== Shujin Academy - Classroom Building ====================|)
-==================================================== Tokyo/Aoyama-Itchome ====-
Shujin Academy is split between its main classroom building, which faces the
back streets of Aoyama-Itchome, and its practice building out back. The
classroom building is a grim concrete building with sleek glass doors, three
stories tall, with classrooms for the third years on the ground floor, second
years on the second, and first years on the top. The faculty office is on the
second, and the student council room and the library on the third. Vending
machines dot the hallways here and there, and the bathrooms are kept clean. Its
front gates are wrought iron with a circular design, and a stylized clock on the
eastern wall informs students just how late they are.
The foyer is lined with glass cases proudly displaying trophies earned by its
top students, and just past them is the school store, though the yakisoba bread
there is almost always sold out. Billboards across the school announce various
articles and notices of interest. Past there, the walls are gray and white, the
floors are wooden, student lockers line the walls, and the sliding classroom
doors sport diamond windows. The classrooms themselves are rather more sober,
with simple desks and chairs for the students and a taller desk at front before
the chalkboard for the teacher. The windows to the outside seem simple, and even
have yellow curtains that can be pulled shut, but are lined in a diamond pattern
to prevent shattering. We wouldn't want our students to escape, now would we?
There is a fenced-in roof, but the door to it displays a sign stating students
aren't allowed. Despite this, it isn't locked, so nothing stops anyone from
hanging out there anyway--at least, not until they get caught. Oddly, there's
also several small planters there too for growing flowers and vegetables.
(|============================================================================|)
<Pose Tracker> Shinichi Nagisa has posed.
It's a chilly Thursday afternoon, and the bell rang hours ago. That doesn't mean everyone is gone though. There's clubs, and people staying over to watch the clubs.
Case in point, Shinichi Nagisa, once again on the Lacrosse Club's team, is standing in the breezeway between Classroom Building and Practice Building.
There's a portion of the walk about halfway where it becomes a bricked in alcove with a table and a couple of vending machines.
Right now he's in his track suit, and balanced against the wall with a single arm. Right between him and the wall? A giggling first year girl with a dark bob cut and a ribbon in her hair.
"You were really cool out there during Practice..."
"What a coincidence." He says with a wolfish smile and a certain gleam in his eyes, "You were really cute out there during Practice, I saw you watching."
The girl blushes some, at the implication that she was noticed. "... You wanna head out of here? We could go somewhere nice, just the two of us..."
"A-Ah... well..."
She's hesitating, not because she's not into the idea some, but- it's also moving a little faster than she ever has, and she's trying to figure out whether she wants to go with him or not.
But in the end, it feels like there's only one way this could go...
<Pose Tracker> Katsuko Yoshinaga has posed.
Though the bells had rung hours ago, Katsuko still lingered within Shujin's halls. Part of it was club attendance - the literature club had just about reached the end of one of their projects, and called for all available hands to make that last push before the semester was out. The other part of it was that she still felt that uneasy presence within the vicinity. It was a teeth-itching, flesh-gnawing thing that left her on edge no matter where in the halls she strode, but that just made it all the more imperative that she keep tabs on it.
It hadn't been hard to piece together who - or, rather, what - the source was. The rumours surrounding Shinichi Nagisa were widespread, and she'd been involved enough with the events surrounding Kazusa's Homunculus that she could confidently put two and two together. The problem, then, was figuring out how to deal with it. She wasn't close to him, nor to any of his friends, and what information she'd finagled out of others was mostly hearsay. Much as she hated to admit it, it was perhaps one of those times where she needed answers straight from the horse's mouth.
Or the wolf's maw, as it were.
She did not have to search far. Whether some first-year had bitten off more than she could chew, or he'd cornered some unfortunate target of his affections, it mattered little. She seemed hesitant, if not outright cautious, and there was every risk that her lashing out as a result could agitate the Homunculus. And the last thing she needed, Katsuko thought, was some shambling monstrosity puppeteering Shinichi's body through the halls. There was far too much chance that it would make him unpredictable and thus liable to interrupt scheming or or reading time.
"Nagisa-san." She said, her voice as sharp and cold as an ice-wreathed dagger. "I thought you were with Fuyuki-san. Have you broken up already?"
<Pose Tracker> Shinichi Nagisa has posed.
"A-Ah...!" The girl stammers, as Katsuko approaches embarrassed at being caught, and an unconcerned Homunculus in Shinichi's skin glances sideways at Katsuko.
"Last I heard, she was still together with her boyfriend. If she wants to be exclusive, then she needs to break up with him first."
He then looks back to the other girl with a smile, "Until then, there's nothing wrong with exploring other options, right?"
This gives the girl some obvious mixed feelings, but at the same time, she seems to still be cautiously on his side, "Right yeah? There's uh- nothing wrong with him, being around other girls if she's still with him."
"Exactly. Same way I wouldn't try to tie you down either." He smirks, "... Unless you wanted to be..."
Now the other girl is a deep red, speechless at the innuendo inherent in the exclusivity. Shinichi now glances back at Katsuko.
"Why are you hanging around here so long after school anyway? Don't you need to rush home to take care of the cripple?" He says, dismissively of Katsuko's presence.
<Pose Tracker> Katsuko Yoshinaga has posed.
The corner of Katsuko's lip twitched the faintest fraction of an inch, spurred on by consternation at the events unfolding. She'd been banking on shame or awkwardness spoiling the mood between Shinichi and his latest target, but that had clearly failed. Neither seemed to have much shame to speak of, and her remark had done little to sour tension - romantic, lustful, or otherwise - that hung like fog between them. Her mind raced, positing different options for dialogue and branching out his potential responses. She pruned the tree based on her summations, constantly whittling it down in the scant gaps between speech until she could think of something that would resolve the situation.
Katsuko intended to make some pithy remark about how she had fallen for some cheap playboy's ploy, and insinuate that she was expecting far too much of a *thing* that would give far too little, but Shinichi took an axe to the base of that tree when he made his own remark at her. She knew well who he meant by 'cripple,' and despite her conscious mind demanding that she rein herself in and keep from losing her calm, she was still far more human than she was at all comfortable with.
Her gaze grew sharp as a razor's edge and cold as the depths of winter, until ice verged on forming across the surface of her eyes. She grew still, to the point where even the subtle rise and fall of her chest became almost imperceptible. Behind it all, every gear and thought in her mind turned towards biting back, the Homunculus and her plans be damned.
"He can take care of himself." She snapped back, outwardly calm, but in the same way that the frozen surface of Arctic waters could be described as 'calm.' "But you clearly cannot. Are you so desperately lonely that you have to force yourself on women who are without the benefit of experience?" Her head snapped to the girl, fast and sudden as the north wind. "And you. Do better. Try to set your standards for a fling a little higher than... that."
<Pose Tracker> Shinichi Nagisa has posed.
Whether the Homunculus marks a change within Katsuko or not, is not quite clear, it's like she's only on the periphery right now and down his list of concerns to being 'tertiary' at best.
'He can take care of himself.'
"...That's not what I heard."
This monster had to draw from his memories to know that Katsuko's father was badly injured and now disabled in that accident. It's unlikely to make something up from nothing.
Which means, that people around the school have been talking, and he's just forming his own conclusions to what Shinichi Nagisa heard.
Right?
'Are you so desperately lonely...?'
Now he stiffens and stands up straight, peeling his hand away from the wall. "Babe, hate to be the one to break it to you- but I'm not exactly struggling for company..."
Then the girl got berated and- "I- what- my standards aren't- what's wrong with-" She stammers, getting tongue-tied on trying to defend herself.
And Shinichi looked her way. "Why don't you go home while I deal with this? I'll text you later..." He already had her phone number!?
The girl nodded wordlessly twice, then fled, with her head down. Shinichi watches her go for a moment, waiting until she's out of sight, leaving the two of them alone.
Then abruptly, unless Katsuko is lightning fast, she'll find him on top of her, and her right arm being wrenched in the grip of his left hand. "The fuck is your problem?"
His eyes gleamed strangely. "You so fucking miserable from being single and saddled with your cripple of a Dad that you have to inflict it on everyone else around you?"
He looms close to her, being a good deal taller, his build athletic, as he angrily makes a sound akin to a snarl, "Giving everything to someone worthless like that. It's turning you into some bitch that can only take from the people around her- and give nothing worthwhile back."
<Pose Tracker> Katsuko Yoshinaga has posed.
The first objective, be it through instinctive guile or mere coincidence, had been achieved. The nameless first year was, for the time being, beyond arm's reach. With any luck, Katsuko hoped, she would come to her senses and decide to focus her attention on someone that wasn't possessed by something masquerading as a human. She had no room for relief, however. At first it was because of rage - cold as ash, rather than some blazing inferno, but all-consuming nevertheless. Then it was when she felt her body thrown about like a ragdoll, her wrist already gripped.
Grim was a shadow - preternaturally fast and quiet, ascending beyond human limits to become some dark and deadly force. Katsuko Yoshinaga was, regrettably, human. She made some token effort and wrenching herself free or gaining some breathing room, but it was clear from the outset that there was no way she could break free of him with brute strength alone. Slowly, subtly, and gently, she drew in a long breath, and used that singular force of will to clear some portion of her mind. Rage still burnt cold, and panic borne of the primal part of her all-too-human mind screamed at her to fight back, but she had to focus.
Time slowed to a crawl, and in a blink, Katsuko focussed on the practical.
The objective was to release herself from Shinichi's grasp. She had no idea what he intended, but there was little chance it was anything good. As brute force had proven to be ineffectual at best, she wracked her mind for other options in the rapidly-dwindling fractions of a heartbeat she had before he acted again. Her bag was to her side, and the stationery in there was sharpened to a point. A brazen attack could distract him - but that would require her reaching in with her free hand. Impractical at best, inviting more danger at worst. Her nails, perhaps? They were sharp enough to scratch a bleeding wound into him. With the right timing, one above his eyes could leak blood into them, and grant her some precious few seconds to escape. But the Homunculus, for all its fumbling with his memories, seemed to Know Shinichi's body well. If he moved faster, it would prove disastrous.
It was to be guile, then. She would have to strike some balance between taunting him enough to distract him, while not inviting further retaliation or sending the Homunculus spiralling out of control. Then there was the small matter of avenging her father's honour. To have attacked him so... Even Katsuko, whose face never twitched further than a fraction of an inch when shifting expression, bore some semblance of a tight frown at that personal attack.
"And what exactly do you 'give' people?" She asked, her voice as still and level as floe. It was a concerted effort to keep it that way. She was in danger, and she knew it. But she had to keep him talking and distracted, if only to find the right moment to lash out or break away. "Enlighten me, Nagisa-san. What has your bravado done for you that you can feel proud of?" It was a stupid question. of course he'd feel proud about his 'conquests.' But any chance to keep him spouting drivel was one she'd take.
If it gave her an opening to put a mark on his face, then all the better.
<Pose Tracker> Shinichi Nagisa has posed.
Indeed, as a monster in human skin, it isn't necessarily stronger, or faster than Shinichi Nagisa. It's just that it isn't bound by the things that would cause most people to hold back.
Most boys wouldn't just ambush a girl without warning. They certainly would be hesitant to lay their hands on them. And even if they did, they'd likely hold back all the same.
This Homunculus has no care about abiding by the limits people set upon themselves for the collective good, even when they're acting poorly.
Then she asks a question of him, and he arches an eyebrow, as if incredulous at the idea of it. Then- he smirks at the next question.
"Haven't you heard? I'm back on the Lacrosse Team, and I'm already outplaying everyone on it. Don't you know what a man is supposed to provide women, hun? Safety, security... is dear ol' Dad so useless that you've forgotten that much?"
He leers at her, "Real men don't just let some dumb bitch like yourself walk up and degrade another woman like that without consequences. They protect them. They teach them the right way to act."
He looks her right in the eyes, and there's an odd- sheen, behind them. As if his eyes would shine in the darkness, like some feline stalker's.
"So here's what you're gonna do. You're gonna apologize to her next time you see her. You're gonna apologize to me right now for getting up in our business."
A beat.
"And I don't mean just any apology. Down on your knees, forehead to the ground. I want full dogeza. You say you're sorry - and you promise you're gonna act more like a girl ought to from now on. ... You do that, and I'll let you leave."
<Pose Tracker> Katsuko Yoshinaga has posed.
"I'm sure women feel *very* safe and secure around someone that barges into their locker rooms."
Emotionless as she made every attempt to appear, even she could not keep from letting a sarcastic lilt plague that reply. She'd heard what had happened with Isabeau - it had been hard not to, in fact - and her pride refused to let her simply take that insult to her father without biting back somehow. She wished she could say more, and lay into that Homunculus about what she truly thought about its macho act, but it wasn't just her at risk. Regrettably, she bit her tongue.
She was, however, a little surprised that he managed to keep from mentioning the women he'd somehow managed to convince to spend time with him. An insight into the Homunculus' mind, perhaps? It was a tidbit she'd have to analyse later. Much as she wished to spend time poring over what it had said to her and compare it to every other piece of information she'd collected, the reality of the situation was that he'd made a demand of her. He wanted her not to just feign an apology, but to outright grovel.
It took her every mote of restraint she had not to simply tell him to take his demands and choke on them in the most biting way possible. She deserved to have her vengeance for that, and for all the things he'd said about her father. There was a need in her, deep and cold as a pit, that demanded she take her pound of flesh from him. But time and again, she reminded herself that it was a Homunculus. It wasn't Shinichi. There was no point to any of this without the prospect of usable information, and agitating it would only cause the situation to spiral out of control. Worse, it might kill Shinichi - and having the Homunculus around permanently was a nuisance she could not abide.
The sheen of his eyes met the cold glare of a sheet of ice - she was stoic and impassive against him, no matter how her mind raced. And race it did, all towards finding a solution. Somewhat ironically, it was his demand for submission that allowed her the chance she needed, though not out of placating him. He'd need to let her arm go for it to happen properly. A true dogeza needed proper hand placement, after all. But for her to suddenly acquiesce to dropping down after all that had happened would seem suspicious, she thought. There had to be some measure of resistance, but not enough to truly agitate the Homunculus.
"You're not serious. Do you really expect me to bow just for that?" Katsuko said, injecting just enough of a hiss into her flat tone to sell the illusion. She was not truly rattled, after all. Being assaulted by a man stronger than her, making demands that she submit without question and conform to her place in society, was not something that could affect her at all. No - it was simply a facade. A ruse. An act to lure him into a false sense of security, and not a desperate attempt by her adrenaline-flooded mind to rationalise why her jaw clenched as tight as it did. Besides, outright anger, rather than shock, risked invoking the Homunculus' wrath. Surprise, hesitation, and just a grain of fear, were something she suspected it expected.
<Pose Tracker> Shinichi Nagisa has posed.
There's a very exaggerated eyeroll at her words, "Oh grow up. I stayed just inside the door and behind the wall where I wouldn't see anything. I just went in to teach Fontaine-san a lesson."
There's something smoldering on his expression now, "Every single girl in that room was on my side, that fat dumb Gaijin bitch had been bullying them all for ages and didn't feel like they could do a single thing about it."
His expression is growing more taut, angry, it's a gradual thing as they walk, "It was a man's job to teach her she's not better than anyone else here."
It is interesting, isn't it? Why isn't he mentioning all the girls? Well, perhaps it's because the Homunculus parodies Shinichi as some sort of 'gentleman'.
A hypermasculine 'protector' and 'ally' of women.
Even when his behavior is the opposite, it's what many teenage boys would believe is the right way to act, isn't it? He merely takes it to extremes.
When she started to drop down, his grip did loosen in response some, though remaining present, as if to help guide her to the ground.
However- unless she reacts quite quickly, it grasps back hold of her when she says fearlessly that 'You're not serious. Do you really expect me to bow just for that?'
"Heh." One might think that her show lacking any fear might be intimidating enough. But there is one place wherein Katsuko has miscalculated.
There is not a teenage boy in this country who doesn't think they can't overpower the average teenage girl physically.
That 'Heh.' and the smirk that follows is the only warning Katsuko gets, before his opposite hand whips up, trying to strike her hard across the face with the back of his hand in a jaw-rattling slap.
"Not serious... I want to know." As he tries to hold eye contact after the act, "What part of what I said was a 'joke' to you?"
<Pose Tracker> Katsuko Yoshinaga has posed.
Shinichi was not the only one primed to move. Readied like a hawk catching the essence of prey on the wind, her muscles were taut, wound like springs as she waited to release them. She feigned submission as best she could, trying to sell him the idea that even if she did not believe in his ideals, could be browbeaten into following them. She lowered herself slowly, swallowing down both her bride and the bile that rose from her stomach, waiting for just the right moment to enact her plan. It was a foolhardy thing that required a man with limits and a woman with far superior athletic traits, but rarely were all the pieces aligned in such a perfect manner.
The moment she was low enough to dart past him, and in the scant few moments that his grip was loose enough for her to wrench herself free, Katsuko seized the opportunity tighter than any predator sinking talons into its hapless target. It hurt, leaving her wrist aching as she leveraged the weight of her entire body to rip herself free. Combined with the awkward angle her arm bent at as she surged past him, there was no denying the jolt of pain that shot through her arm like a bolt. But it was a small price to pay for escape.
The swing hit nothing but the ends of her hair, those raven locks trailing behind her as she darted behind him. She was no match for him athletically - she was a scholar first, and an artist second. But she knew how to run, as any who sighted her in the early morning would attest, and she put every ounce of that experience and stamina into fleeing like the wind. Despite the adrenaline that whipped through her veins, Katsuko did not simply run blindly, however. Her mind raced as her body did, using every spare second she had to her advantage.
He was stronger than her. Katsuko knew that, and thought it a reasonable assumption that he was faster too. Even with the headstart she no doubt had, he would catch her if she simply made for the nearest exit and bolted in a straight line until she was off of school grounds. But if she found safe harbour in a room nearby, then she stood a fighting chance. But where? Dr Maruki's office wasn't close enough. She couldn't be certain Kawakami was even in. Her peers were useless - they would hesitate to step on an ant for fear of getting their shoes dirty. There was no telling which classrooms were open, or even if the teacher inside would be inclined to get involved.
But the staff room... One teacher would be able to turn a blind eye, two could collaborate, but a whole host of them? The expectation to do *something* would surely be there. It was a long shot, but her only one. Her path resolved, Katsuko fled, eyes forward and hand digging through her bag for something sharp.
It never hurt to have a backup plan.
<Pose Tracker> Shinichi Nagisa has posed.
The Homunculus seems startled for a half second as she slips his grasp, and avoids the slap.
It's wise to think he might run after her- indeed, given how angry he seemed, it feels very likely!
But instead, as she takes off running, he yells after her.
"Cowardly bitch!" He barks, clenching his hands at his sides, "You think you can mouth off to a man and avoid taking responsibility for it? Go ahead and run! Run and hide behind your 'Daddy'! You'll still get yours!"
That she got away? That's fine. A Homunculus is a predator.
And it can enjoy the hunt just as much as the toying with its prey that comes after.
Just like with Motojima. He'd do whatever it took to make sure she paid for it before long.
<Pose Tracker> Katsuko Yoshinaga has posed.
Katsuko had any number of pithy remarks to shoot back at him, and no shortage of venomous ones too. There was little she wanted more than to hold that Homunculus at gunpoint and make it know the full extent of her wrath before executing it for all that it had had the temerity to say and do. But to turn around now just for the chance to taunt something she knew she would kill, one way or another, was unwise at best. Even when practically drowning in adrenaline, Katsuko knew that much. Thus, she kept running.
Only when she came to the staff room did she think to stop, but even then, it was a slow and stumbling motion that ended with her all but falling through the door. Hair messed and sweat beading down her face, she was far from the solemn and dignified girl that her teachers had all grown used to seeing, so it surprised her little when they glanced towards her with a mixture of curiosity and vague worry.
"Yoshinaga-san? Is everything alright?" One asked, polite concern - likely faked, she suspected - set into their words.
Katsuko parted her lips, thinking to tell them in no uncertain terms what Shinichi had been doing. But then a thought occurred to her. Word of his 'exploits' had no doubt already spread like wildfire, with no shortage of eyewitnesses either. There was little chance that, if news had spread through the student body, the faculty was completely unaware. They could not claim ignorance - they were complicit in covering things up, if not outright abetting such actions. She wished she could say the thought was a surprise, but it was Shujin. It'd taken vigilantes to bring Kamoshida to justice... What use was expecting them to deal with Shinichi?
"...I'm fine." She said dismissively. "I just needed to ask for clarification regarding next semester's curriculum."