Blades of Despair

-Chapter Thirty-Three-

Fingertip Kisses

I can't sleep.

No matter how many times I rolled over in my bed, sleep never came. All night, the sight of Tokunaga's body flashed through my mind, accompanied by an orchestra of Yoneda's screaming as the trial concluded with no result. That had been the hardest trial so far, and I had to agree with Yoneda: it had been the most unfair trial. Ouji, who sacrificed herself for nought, and Tokunaga, who died so needlessly. In truth, the trial had been a farce from the first instant. Ouji had tried to save us all, and the traitor that the bears had mentioned over and over had stopped her. But why remove Tokunaga's arms and legs, and what have they done with them? The trial had left a bitter taste in my mouth and many questions in my head, which were promptly interrupted by a sharp tap at my door. Recognising the pattern of the knocks, I jumped out of bed, ran over to the door and swung it open, a huge smile instantly on my face.

"Mimi! You're here!" At my door stood Mitsumi; in his arms he cradled the basket he had after Uehara and Edward's trial. I knew instantly why he was here. He shushed me.

"Don't use that nickname, Nishi, it could be embarrassing," he murmured, but I only smiled more widely.

"You know as well as I do that the rooms are soundproof," I reminded him, "so I could shout your nickname as loudly as I wanted, and nobody would hear." Mitsumi blushed and giggled. I could tell that behind his mask, he was smiling.

"Okay, then you can keep using it," he said. Without another word, he outstretched his hand, which was holding the black ribbon that we always used to walk together. I took the other end of the ribbon in my palm and tugged it lightly, letting him know that I was ready to leave for the garden. After about ten minutes, chatting about this and that, ribbon in hand, we arrived at the garden's entrance. We planned to add Ouji and Tokunaga's portraits to the gravestone; I would draw their likenesses, while Mitsumi would collect flowers to display by them. However, a curious sight awaited us and made us stop in our tracks. Mitsumi let go of the ribbon, and there was a sudden drop in heat around my palm.

"Yoneda? What are you doing here?" The Ultimate Polyglot, accompanied by a flickering amber torch, was walking around the garden area, his eyes scanning the ground methodically and swiftly, never seeming to look at the same spot twice. Upon hearing Mitsumi's voice, he looked up in surprise and pushed the frames of glasses to the bridge of his nose.

"Oh, it's just you two," was all he said before returning to his search.

"Hey, Yoneda. Mitsumi asked you a question," I said, a hint of annoyance in my voice. Yoneda simply shrugged without looking at me.

"And? Who says I have to tell you what I'm doing? Mind your business." I was taken aback. I knew that Yoneda was acting different after the trial, and understandably so, but this was completely out of character.

"Is something the matter, Yoneda?" I asked. Yoneda grunted.

"Must you pester me with questions? Fine, I'll tell you if you shut up. I'm looking for clues."

"Clues? For what?" Mitsumi questioned.

"For Tokunaga's death. We didn't solve the case during the trial, since nobody else cared about him."

"Hey, that's-"

"The truth," Yoneda spat. "You were all so concerned with Ouji's death. Poor Ouji, the victim so wrongfully taken away from us." he was talking with a mocking tone, like a child mimicking its parent.

"What do you mean, Yoneda?" Mitsumi queried worriedly. "Why are you talking about Ouji like that?"

"Nobody cared about Tokunaga, and now he's dead too! But throughout the trial, every conversation returned to Ouji's death. Every time I thought we were heading towards an answer to Tokunaga's mystery, we stopped and refocused the conversation to Ouji. Tokunaga's death meant nothing to you, simply because your survival didn't depend on solving his death. It was selfish and I'm the only who still cares!"