Act 48: The Light

8 2 7
                                    

It was a race against time. Kyoko must find a way to hack through Nana's social media accounts before the seventh day arrives.

"I have to do this as soon as possible!" Kyoko thought. "I can't... let my 'light'... die!"

"Shino is my light! The one that guided me away from darkness!" Kyoko continued. "If I can't save her... I won't be able to forgive myself...!"

FLASHBACK
1 Year Ago

-Kyoko's Apartment 11:45 PM-

A year prior, Kyoko was in a tight spot. Her social media accounts have been hacked into, and her personal details revealed by a bunch of Internet trolls, who then outed her as the one who hacked the website of the Tokyo Metropolitan Police Department.

She was disowned by her parents, calling her out for her actions and how she used her smarts for malicious mischief. She also runs the risk of being arrested by the TMPD for her hacking attempt.

In the end, the only person by her side at the time was Shino, who, at the time, only knew her on the internet as "anti-everything444", a name she derived from a DED song.

That night, Kyoko, alone and desperate in her apartment, talks to Shino in a chatroom, under her usual username of "ichiban_bloodskull".

"ichiban_bloodskull: Anti..."

"ichiban_bloodskull: Can I... talk to you for a bit?"

"anti-everything444: Sure. Why not?"

"ichiban_bloodskull: I wanna ask... what would you do if one of your friends turned out to be a criminal?"

"anti-everything444: Huh?"

"anti-everything444: Ahaha! What are you talking about?"

"ichiban_bloodskull: I want to confess something to you..."

"ichiban_bloodskull: I... was the one who hacked through the TMPD website."

"ichiban_bloodskull: I simply did it out of mischief, and didn't have any ulterior motives.

"ichiban_bloodskull: Then those trolls revealed my identity... and my parents disowned me. I may have become a criminal in the eyes of society."

"ichiban_bloodskull: If you want to leave me, I won't fight. After all, I deserve to be hated."

"anti-everything444: Don't worry, I wont."

"ichiban_bloodskull: ... Anti?"

"anti-everything444: I mean, yes. What you did is reprehensible, but that doesn't mean you can change for the better, right?"

"anti-everything444: I know that you're a kind person, if a bit mischievous. I can see that ever since we first met."

Kyoko was left speechless for a while, as tears start flowing down her eyes. Eventually, she replies.

"ichiban_bloodskull: Anti... Help me. I'm in... such a dark place right now..."

"anti-everything444: If so, then allow me to be your light."

"anti-everything444: The one to guide you from your dark past."

From there, Kyoko proceeded to break down in tears. She was so moved by Shino's words to her, that... she couldn't help herself.

"ichiban_bloodskull: Thank you, Anti..."

"anti-everything444: Call me Shino. Shino Sato."

"ichiban_bloodskull: Mine's Kyoko. Kyoko Okamura."

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