Kaede spent the next 30 minutes, give or take, watching Tenko cause a huge scene in the latter's research lab, trying to pull out her hair and rip the tatami mats up, and then freaking out when her current reduced strength did not allow her to do so. At the end of all of it, the former Ultimate Aikido Master lay on the floor, panting, sweating, and crying.
"Tenko tried to do her meditation exercises like Master taught her, Tenko I couldn't remember how to do them at all!"
"I think that was the point. I'm really worried that someone else who's lost their talents might be desperate enough to try something risky to get them back." <em>Like killing.</em>
"Don't worry, Kaede! Tenko will keep a sharp eye out for all the degenerate males and make sure they don't do anything stupid! If they do...um...Tenko will throw them in her head!"
"Yeah."
<em>I don't think that's going to help anyone but you, Tenko.</em>
However, the mention of Tenko looking out for all the Ultimate Students left made a thought blossom in Kaede's mind. A way that they might be able to beat the horrific motive that Monokuma had sprung at them. A method they had sort of botched last time, but might help in this situation.
"The Athena Student Council," Kaede muttered subconsciously.
Tenko's eyes widened. "Yes! We can start the Athena Student Council again and make sure no one does anything sneaky! Kaede is a genius!"
"Thanks," Kaede grinned, pleased that at least one person approved of her plan. "I think I'll go and round up the rest of the people in the Athena Student Council and tell them about it. If everyone works together, we'll be able to defeat the motive!"
<hr>
"And that's what happened," Kaede confided in Kirumi a few minutes later, as the two of them absent-mindedly wandered through the corridors of the Ultimate Academy.
"I see," the latter girl put a hand on her chin. "If we can get everyone else to listen and try to ease the pain of the situation at hand, even a little, we might be able to buy a little time."
Right. Even with their best efforts, the chances of all of them surviving talentless were pretty much hopeless. Kaede was aware of that, but she tried to keep that little fluttering light in her heart. She didn't want to lose any more people. Monokuma had taken so much from her...her freedom, her friends, and now her talent? She needed to minimize the damage done to the second thing as much as possible, while trying her best to retain the first and third.
"I would have like to consult with Korekiyo for these matters...he was the one with the most level head, the most common sense, but with his current situation, that is unfortunately not an option," Kirumi remarked, shaking Kaede out of her thoughts.
"What happened to him?" Kaede was ashamed to admit that she didn't really know what happened to her former fellow Ultimates---she had been one of the first to leave the kitchen with Shuichi. Then she remembered who went before her. "Oh, right. You went to his lab with him, right?"
"Monokuma had apparently taken all of the equipment needed to conduct a seance. Korekiyo was very distraught...he went back to his room, as did almost everyone else. Gonta is with Angie in her lab now,"
<em>Wait, isn't that the worst combination ever?</em>
"There is no need for concern," Kirumi added, reading the worried expression on Kaede's face. "When I last checked on them ten minutes ago, Angie had fallen asleep. Gonta informed me that she was so distressed and ran out of energy to continue thrashing. Even if she happens to wake up, I imagine she would be too mentally disoriented to ever even think about trying to manipulate Gonta in any way."
"I sort of wish that there was a way for us to communicate over long distances in the Ultimate Academy..." Kaede mused. "If we had a walkie-talkie of sorts, maybe we could have prevented Maki from dying. If she had taken one and rushed to the Ultimate Maid's lab, we might have been able to hear that she was in trouble and help! If only Miu was alive, she could have made them for us,"
Kirumi stared at the floor. Kaede knew she was running over everything Kaede had said in her mind. She also knew what Kaito would say, had he been here with them. "There's no point wasting time on the what-ifs! We have to look straight and go forward!"
They needed to go forward, not randomly ferment here like a can of sour milk. Their lives might be on the line again if Kaede failed to bring them all together and find a direction.
"Let's try to round up the other members of the Athena Student Council then! We can work together to try and brainstorm some more ideas!"
"Kaede, there is only Shuichi left in the Ultimate School Council who is unaccounted for. Should we go look for him?"
<em>Wait, what? There were half of twelve people last time, so six. Me, Kirumi, Kiyo, Shuichi, Maki, and Kaito. Oh, wait, Maki and Kaito are dead. Mood.</em>
Kaede didn't exactly want to go approach Shuichi at that point in time, though. She knew it was stupid and illogical(what made her so uneasy around the Ultimate Detective, anyways? A mere whim?) Shuichi had been one unmovable thing during this whole Killing Game, the one who had helped her find all the clues and helped find the killer, two times in a row. There was no way, absolutely no way, that he was suspicious. But still...
"I think we can go talk to him later," Kaede said, hoping that Kirumi would catch on. "He's really busy and all that. Something else I was worried about is where we can hold our meetings. Your lab was really great, Kirumi, but after everything that's happened..."
"I have also avoided my lab for the time being," Kirumi nodded. "If the circumstances were different I would have to enter it to retrieve my cleaning supplies, but since my talents as a maid are gone, there is really no point."
"Let's look for another place to meet, then! Let's see...the library is out, the three creepy rooms are out, the cafeteria just might work, Miu's lab is out, so Kiibo's lab is also out, Ryoma's lab is too open, Tenko's lab is...broken, Shuichi's lab is too small..."
"We could use your lab," Kirumi interjected. "If you don't mind, of course. It seems reasonably roomy, and we could bring some chairs in. Nothing serious happened in it, either. Oh, look, here we are now."
She was right. The pair had somehow ended up in front of Kaede's lab. Her fingers twitched, as if reminding her of her unfortunate predicament, but she kept forging forward.
And almost stepped on the bloody mess that used to be Gonta Gokuhara.
