[Video/Action]

[moraloutrage]

[The video feed displays one intense young man, who seems to be finding his bearings. He's in his room, with the first nine drawers of his advent chest opened and its contents strewn across a study desk, along with reading materials about Wonderland. The items include seed packets, a fruitcake, a pink disposable camera, some fortune cookies that have yet to be opened and a caricature of Ishimaru.

Right now, his attention is focused on the video feed. He greets everyone with a salute.]

Good day, people of Wonderland! My name is Kiyotaka Ishimaru! In the eyes of Hope's Peak Academy, I am known as the Super High School Level Public Morals Committee Member! I would like to apologize for my apparent absence, and for how messy my room is at the moment. I have practically just returned, and I am in the process of regaining my bearings! Am I correct to understand that the Queens are truly gone? Such a noble sacrifice...

In any case, I would like to re-establish connections! H-has anyone else returned here as well? Please, feel free to announce your presence! And be sure to let me know if there is any other information that I should know! Thank you for your time, everyone. Let us all do our best to get along and work hard as we carry onwards!

[With a formal bow, the feed ends.

Beyond that, he could also be found wandering the mansion's halls, or settling down for tea in one of the tea rooms.]

Comments

video;

[entreats]

[ So energetic as always, Ishimaru. Everything about his message is so typical of him, but.. in a good way. It's not as if Ange can claim that she isn't happy about seeing him again, after all, despite her - typical in turn for her - way of replying with a flat tone.

(Listen, it's the easiest thing to fall back on when you don't like showing your emotions.) ]

Is there a category for people who haven't returned, but who have just been here all this time? Or am I just not allowed to reply?

[moraloutrage]

U-... Ushiromiya-kun! [He gasps out her name, tears welling in his eyes as he sees her.]

Of course!! Of course you are always allowed to reply to my messages! I apologize sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, for making you think otherwise! I also apologize for leaving you here for some amount of time! Considering the depths of our friendship, I cannot imagine how many tears I must have made you cry!

[Do you still miss him]

[entreats]

[ Regret is slowly starting to seep in... ]

I didn't cry. [ Let's get that out of the way first!! Ange doesn't cry, she's totally cool! Cool people don't cry! But after that instinctive tsun-tsun reply, she figures she owes him at least some of the truth instead of letting him think she doesn't care at all. ]

.. but I guess it was a little sad to see you go, yeah.

[moraloutrage]

Then I would like to add on one more apology, for assuming such a thing! Of course, you are a very strong, stoic and private young lady Ushiromiya-kun. You would not allow yourself to shed tears on the matter, no matter how much it hurt inside! [Is he just making it worse.]

In any case, if you are still willing to accept me, then it would be my sincerest hope to reconnect with you and catch up on lost time! Please tell me, how have you been!?

[entreats]

[ For a moment there's just. A silent pause.

Because oh my god, Ishimaru, was she ever not ready for your levels of intensity. The memories of it truly can't live up to the real deal. What does she even say to most of that? The answer is nothing useful, so she just ignores it. It's for the best. ]

Pretty much the same as always. [ You know, just hanging around.. Eating.. Writing in her emo diary.. The usual. ] Aside from it getting a lot more quiet around here, nothing really important changed ever since you disappeared. We almost all got eaten by a giant monster, but it was stopped at the last moment.

[ Just tacking that last part on casually. A normal thing! No big deal. ]

[moraloutrage]

[He just... immediately homes in on that last part, while wiping tears and snot from his face.]

Ea-eaten?! I am so sorry that such a horrible thing almost happened to you! I wish that I could have been there to help... [Or just act as a meat shield.]

I promise not to leave you again! Please, call upon me whenever you may need assistance! I hope to always be there for you, Ushiromiya-kun!

[entreats]

...

[ Another pause, although shorter this time. Then Ange lets out a breath. ]

You really haven't changed at all, have you? [ It doesn't sound quite as biting as it might usually have though. There's something slightly soft to it. ] If you want to be there so badly, let's go eat some cake together right now.

[moraloutrage]

[He nods along at her question! Of course, he's had no opportunity to change given no time passed back home. He isn't bothered by her comment, especially as he can feel the fondness in his words, although he probably sees even more in them than there is. And then he's surprised by her offer.]

Ah...! Yes, absolutely! I would be honored to indulge in such a treat for your sake, Ushiromiya-kun! Please, just name the location and I shall be there as swiftly as I can possibly manage!

[entreats]

Let's meet up in the dining room. [ Considering that there aren't as many people around the mansion anymore as there used to be, she figures they can just sit there rather than picking some more private spot. There will probably be no one to witness her perhaps indulging in a moment of friendship. ]

You still know where that is, right? I'll be waiting over there.

video

[testcase]

[new phone who dis

Wait, that's not right, what does her notebook say about this? Nothing. Okay, that's not helpful either! But her notebook does mention Hope's Peak and SHSL students (apparently Ryoko's one? That's news to her). But anyways, since her notebook mentions that and she has no memory of this guy, there's a very surprised Ryoko responding with...]

You're from Hope's Peak Academy?!

[moraloutrage]

[More like new journals who dis

Ishimaru smiles as he beholds another familiar face!]

Of course I am, Otonashi-kun! Do you not recognize me? ...Er, or should I say, have you not yet found me in your journals? In any case, I am overjoyed to see you again!

[testcase]

...um.

[She'll go through her notes and nope nothing.]

This happened with someone else. If we met when I was here before, I don't have those notes anymore.

[She could probably get them back from the vendors or somewhere else but that thought hasn't occurred to her.]

[moraloutrage]

Wh-what? [He turns pale as he responds.]

What are you saying? The notes that you had... with all of the times that we've had here in the past... They are gone??

[testcase]

I think so. I just have my notes from before Wonderland and the ones I've made since arriving here.

[And she's gotten by okay, so it must be fine, right? But she'll still ask a little bit more about it.]

But when you say all the times in the past, um, am I missing a lot?

[moraloutrage]

All of those good times...! [He whimpers and then takes a breath.]

...Yes, I am sorry to say that you are. I was in Wonderland for about two years, and you were there the whole time! In fact, you were there for some time before me!

[But then there's a beat as something dawns at him.]

...Ah, of course! How could I have forgotten? Near the end of my time here... You had disappeared. It was quite the sad time! [Not even having another dear Hope's Peak friend, Junko Enoshima, around could fully raise his spirits.]

[testcase]

I was here for years?!

[She knew she was here before but not for that long. Or if someone told her, she forgot, so she's freaking out about that one.]

You're right then! That's a lot to be missing, I must've had tons of notebooks! Um, but then...they must've all vanished after I disappeared.

[Because she definitely disappeared! That's what happened! And she has no idea about anything that happened after that.]

[moraloutrage]

Ah... Yes, you were. I apologize if this is a difficult truth to accept! But that is the fact of the matter.

[He frowns deeply, saddened at all of their missing memories.]

To think that they could all be gone so easily! But I know that to be a fact. Everything I used to have when I was last here seems to be gone as well. It is a shame... this sets us back very far!

Video; this is the true CR everyone's been yearning to revive right

[ssmisery]

You?

Video; yes, the long awaited reunion... but actually rereading their last thread was honestly great

[moraloutrage]

You!

[It's been a long time, even with his time away from Wonderland aside, but he still recognizes and remembers her. His eyes widen with recognition!]

I recall you very clearly! You... you are Lapis Lazuli, the living gem whose privacy I accidentally invaded! How good it is to see you again!

[ssmisery]

[Fortunately, it's been literal years and she's a lot more chill nowadays. She's still gotta give Ishimaru some degree of a hard time, though. It's the principle.]

Oh, you still remember that. You must not have been very busy since then.

[moraloutrage]

Huh? No, that's wrong! Of course I kept myself busy during all of my days in Wonderland! Such is the path of hard work that I have chosen to traverse! However, I also happen to have a very good memory. I refuse to forget any mistake that I have ever made, including offending a friend!

[ssmisery]

I'm not sure we ever actually made it to that word. The whole thing kinda fell out of focus, didn't it?

[moraloutrage]

I suppose you are right... We did not solidify true friendship! I apologize for being lax on that front. But now that we have been reunited by chance after all that time, we should get back to work on that! Let us obtain the best friendship that we can, Lapis-san!

[ssmisery]

You really are pretty weird, you know.

[She says this with no malice whatsoever. It's just there. Ishimaru must know what he's getting into by now.]

[moraloutrage]

[He has some idea.]

Ah... Thank you, Lapis-san! I take it that you are not opposed to my plan of action? Let us set it into action right away! What better way to bond in a casual manner then by 'shooting the breeze' together? Please, suggest any topic of discussion!