Shadow Play

"Give it up," Zuikaku heard him saying as she began fiddling with the handle of the storeroom door again. It didn't budge, and Zuikaku twitched. He was right when he said trying to open it, especially like that, would be futile.

That annoyed her more than her apparent lack of success. Well, at least I tried something, she grumbled.

Lieutenant Ohtori Kensaku watched as Zuikaku sat on the floor, crossed her arms, and huffed.

"Why didn't you tell me? That this door would lock once you close it behind you?" She demanded.

"Oi, I was about to, but you just have to slam the door shut, don't you? And besides, it's common sense to leave a storeroom door open when you're just getting something out, you know?" Ohtori shot back. A pout made its way into Zuikaku's face as it dawned on her she had no comeback to that, and it was indeed her mistake. And for no good reason, at that.

"Fine, fine. My bad. Sorry," Zuikaku gave up and made a half-hearted apology, all while looking away.

"Really, all you can do is wait. Sooner or later, someone will notice we're missing and help us. Well, probably," Ohtori suggested, sitting more leisurely as if he was anticipating getting locked up for hours.

Zuikaku certainly didn't plan to do that, and she would look at the door from time to time. Every time she did, it would remain closed.

"Ugh, I feel like an idiot," Zuikaku moaned, face well hidden within her knees.

"Don't worry; you're not the first to find yourself locked in this place."

"Yeah, yeah, I know. I heard the rumors. Cursed room and whatnot. No matter how often you fix the damn lock, it'll end up broken," replied Zuikaku, looking up just enough to show a little wry smile before burying her face in her knees again.

Speaking of rumors, she reminded herself to keep Aoba from starting another rumor mill with her articles. If she found out about this, everyone would have a field day, and Zuikaku vowed to keep her silent, no matter what.

"Yeah. Weird. Well, at least I could safely say there's no curse whatsoever. According to Harutsuki-chan, anyway," Ohtori remarked. Still, the room's lack of proper lighting unsettled him a bit. If anything, though, he was glad he had a companion.

"Very reassuring," Zuikaku snorted. "What's the longest someone has been stuck here anyway?"

Ohtori held out three fingers—and Zuikaku audibly swallowed.

"...Seriously…?"

"Yeah, three hours."

Zuikaku shot up, jaw and fists clenched, her face flushed.

"Damn it! I don't want to waste my time like that when I could be training instead. You're going down, you stupid door! Taste my kick!"

Zuikaku would've stomped towards the door to make good of the declaration, but she was held in place instead by Ohtori holding her hand.

As she looked back—incredulous and flustered rolled into one—Ohtori let go, confident she would stop and listen.

"Unless you want to get yelled at by granny or cause a scene, don't."

"But, Shoukaku-nee will…be worried, and..."

"...and is probably looking for you right now. Calm down. Better yet, sit down."

Though begrudgingly, Zuikaku did that anyway, admitting secretly that he was probably right. Her ever-sharp sister would have noticed she had been taking too long with her errands. She figured she could unwind a bit before Shoukaku arrived.

As he did the same, Ohtori noticed his faint shadow on the wall, illuminated by an old light bulb that had seen better days. An idea crossed his mind.

"Hey, rather than moping, why don't we try this?" He suggested.

After a bit of positioning here and there, the shadow of his hand became the silhouette of a dog.

Zuikaku only smirked and tucked her chin.

"What are you, a child?"

"What, you can't make one? Guess I was wrong about you."

"...A challenge, huh? I'll show you what I'm made of."

With that, Zuikaku shot up, scurried towards Ohtori, and sat near him. She formed her hands into the shape of a bird.

"Heh, a bird, huh? Pretty impressive...how about this?"

"Rabbit, eh? Look at this squirrel."

"And this is a bird on a branch!"

"No way, really? I have two swans."

"Fine, see this? An Indian."

"Wha—isn't this supposed to be about animals?"

"I never said that!"

As the two went on with their little game, the door unlocked from the other side, but they failed to notice. Shoukaku peered inside, saw the increasingly bizarre shapes they were making, and left the door slightly open. When they were satisfied, they could leave anytime.

While she was amused, she found the scene quite endearing. The two were such good friends indeed.

Now that one problem had been taken care of, Shoukaku knew there was one more she needed to attend to. Aoba was nearby, likely already aware of what was happening and now was out to get all the juicy details.

"Don't worry, Zuikaku, I'll protect your little peace," Shoukaku vowed as she chased Aoba away.