➹𝑳𝒆𝒔 𝑪𝒂𝒅𝒓𝒆𝒔 || ʙᴏɴᴛᴇɴ ғᴀɴғɪᴄᴛɪᴏɴ

𝑽.

[𝑭𝒊𝒏𝒅𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑺𝒉𝒊𝒌𝒂𝒓𝒊]

"What do you mean… Shikari is gone?" Nikooru couldn't believe what she heard. It's as if she's getting crushed by some extreme pressure and she's getting deaf. She's losing sense of her surroundings, she didn't even notice her tears starting to fall and the only thing in her mind is that…

Shikari is gone.

Her best friend is gone. She ran away from home and they don't have a lead where she is.

Her best friend gave up on the pressure and pain. She knew she's suffering but she couldn't do anything to help her and now… she's gone.

Nikooru felt like a useless friend, once again. 

"I'm sorry. I was there but I couldn't do anything. Our guards shot a tranquilizer at me and I lost consciousness. The moment I woke up, she's gone." Hoseki couldn't lift her head in shame. She thinks it's her fault. It's because it took her a long time to fight back.

She fought back when Shikari was at her limit. The force she exerted, even though they were on the same side only ended up contributing to shattering her.

"It's my fault. I swore to be like a big sister to her but I failed to protect her. It's all because I was so scared to disappoint." Hoseki suddenly pulled Nikooru into an embrace as they shared feelings of regret and self-blame.

"I knew, I've known ever since but I still failed to support her." Nikooru voiced her feelings as well.

Kazemi just stood there silently. Watching the two girls weep in regret. While Nikooru's tears fell endlessly, Hoseki is tearless but it's evident in her expression that she's in pain too. And because Hoseki is the more composed of the two, she softly taps Nikooru's back to comfort her.

"What do we do now, Hoseki nee-san?" Nikooru wailed.

"I don't know…" Hoseki answered truthfully. Her mind has been in a haywire ever since she woke up. It's too clouded with so many emotions that she can barely think straight.

Worry for Shikari, anger for her family, regrets for herself.

"I really want to say that we'll find her but…" Hoseki's sentence was cut short when she realized something. Nikooru looked at her in confusion as Hoseki looked at Kazemi.