(A/N: There wasn't a good place to cut it so... Have the longest chapter so far.)

Bodil was sitting upright on the bed, staring at the sling supporting his right arm with curiosity. He glanced at the group the moment they entered and surrounded him, his tawny eyes beaming with delight. "W-Woah, that's a lot of visitors..." he said, laughing a little.

For a moment, no one knew what to say. Bonks was hiding in the very back, quivering in fear. Finally, Seto mustered the courage to speak. "How... are you feeling?"

"I've definitely felt better..." Bodil admitted as he stared at his elevated legs, which were still covered in casts. "But it doesn't really hurt as much as it should. It's probably because of the painkillers."

Seto nodded. "That's good to hear..."

"How long will I be stuck in the infirmary?"

"With healing potions? Not for long. You'll need a lot of rest, though."

"I see," Bodil murmured. He observed the group again, his smile widening. "Hey... Where's Ashley? Bonks said that she would be here..."

Bonks let out a squeak of terror and looked away, unable to meet Bodil's questioning gaze.

"Husky's not here either..." Bodil's eyes widened. "Is Ryan still missing?"

Seto's mouth was dry. "...How much do you remember?"

"Um, not a lot. I remember falling but I can't remember how or where..." Bodil wrung his hands nervously. "I remember MonoWither revealing the motive... And Husky and I went to go look for... Jordan...? No, Ryan! Yeah, and then, um... Oh yeah..." Bodil looked away awkwardly. "S-Sorry Seto... Husky probably already told you, but I'm really sorry about accusing you like that..."

It took Seto a moment to realize exactly what Bodil was talking about. Had it really just been a little over a day ago? It felt like weeks... "It's okay, just keep going."

Bodil nodded. "We were searching and searching... and then... then..." He trailed off. "I don't remember after that, besides falling... I think it might have been down the elevator shaft? I remember trying to grip onto something... but it was so dark..." Bodil grinned. "Ashley's probably super mad at me for getting hurt... Where is she? You guys didn't tell me yet!"

Seto opened his mouth to reply but closed it. He thought he'd been mentally prepared to tell Bodil everything, but the innocently eager look on Bodil's face stopped him...

Before Seto could reply, the PA system turned on.

Let's kill merrily, we don't need the adults~!
Can we make one hundred corpses~? Let's have a competition~!

The reaction was instantaneous. Bodil immediately clamped his hands over his ears and started to tremble violently. "No- No stop it- No- Nononono- Turn it off please-! Please-!"

"Bodil?!" Bonks exclaimed in shock.

"Calm- Calm down Bodil!" Tyler shouted, grasping his arms and trying to pry his iron grip on the sides of his head. "You're- You're okay now, no one can hurt you now- The song can't hurt you, you're okay..."

Bodil shook his head and closed his eyes tightly, whimpering as though he was being tortured.

"What's happening to him?!" Steven demanded in horrified confusion. "Why would he react to the song like that?!"

"It's the song that... was used to lure them..." Seto mumbled without thinking. Bart nodded in agreement.

"And how did you know that exactly?!" Annie snapped. "Bart I can understand, but you?! You weren't there!"

Seto's face paled. "I- Um-"

The music stopped. "Upupupu... What do we have here? A poor lost soul who missed the last episode?" MonoWither appeared before them, grinning in anticipation. "Well that won't do at all, no sir!"

"We were going to explain ourselves," Jordan said, glaring at them.

"You? Give an episode recap?" MonoWither scoffed. "Oh please, you don't have the proper experience. As your hosts, we have the charm! The smiles! The pizzazz! The-"

"Why can't you just leave us alone for once?" Jordan demanded.

"Well isn't that quite interesting for you to say, isn't it? After all, it seems like you've done just that to something you supposedly care about... You left them all alone in your room..."

Jordan fought to keep his voice steady. "That's because Jerry was asleep and I didn't want to wake them."

"Well we couldn't help ourselves! They were just so peaceful looking, we had to do something!" MonoWither giggled mischievously.

"What did you do to Jerry?" Jordan asked, his voice trembling slightly.

"So upset over a slime! It's like your own child at this point, huh? Is it your strange way of coping with your grief over the death of a certain someone?"

Jordan stayed silent.

"Well in any case, don't you worry your pretty little head, Jordan! We just gave them a little wake-up call, that's all!"

"And what exactly do you mean by a 'wake-up call'?"

Right at that moment, a squelching sound filled the air. Everyone turned to face the door to the infirmary as a familiar slime slid their way through the small crack before coalescing with a loud pop. The slime hopped towards the group frantically. "Jerry!" Jordan cried out, picking up the slime and cradling it protectively. "They- They didn't hurt you, did they?"

"We just said that we didn't, all we did was wake them up, sheesh! But by the way, just a fun MonoWither fact of the day, did you know that slimes are actually edible? In certain villages, villagers stuff slimes full of food until they can't dissolve any more of it, and then while the taste is still fresh they cut them up into tiny, delectable cubes and eat them alive!"

Jordan drew in a sharp breath and backed away.

"You know, we've always wondered how stuffed slime would taste..." MonoWither's red eyes gleamed ravenously as they shifted to stare at Jerry.

"I... bet it wouldn't satisfy you. Too, um, gluey, you know," Jordan said, trying not to sound as unnerved as he really was.

"But it wouldn't hurt to just try at least once! We bet it would have the same texture as gelatine! Now wouldn't that be quite the tasty treat!"

"You have plenty of slimes already, why don't you try some of those?" Jordan asked as calmly as he could. "Besides, Jerry's too small."

"Oh, but Jerry's so cooperative, they'd probably do whatever you said!"

Jordan's eyes glinted behind his red sunglasses. "I would never let you harm them- Not over my dead body-"

"R-Ryan-! RYAN-! RYAAAN!!!" Bodil gasped suddenly, tears streaming down his face as his eyes widened. "No- It's not real- He's okay- He's okay-! It's just a nightmare! It can't be real!"

"Oh dear, looks like Bodil here is already remembering what happened a little bit!" MonoWither said, turning away from Jordan and Jerry.

"...Remembering?" Bodil whispered.

"That's good and all, but we want a live reaction! So before he spoils too much for himself... It's time for a recap of the killing half of Part 03!" MonoWither turned around, lowered themselves to the ground, and looked up at the wall in front of the group. They opened their mouths and projected a black screen onto the wall.

Bodil gulped. "What... What's going on?" he whispered. "G-Guys? What do they mean by 'killing half'?"

No one knew how to respond to him. Steven wordlessly placed a hand on his uninjured shoulder for support.

"Woohoo!" MonoWither's voice shouted through the PA system. "Lights, camera, action!"

The image then changed to show a video clip of the participants sitting in the cafeteria, talking animatedly in front of MonoWither.

"So to start this recap off, things were being a bit too boring after Mitch and Jerome died, so MonoWither decided to spice things up and reveal the next motive: if the next murderer succeeded, they could have all the money they could ever want in the world! However..."

The clip changed to show Husky and Seto yelling at each other, with everyone else crowded around them.

"...the discussion got a little heated up, and many despairing accusations were made!"

The clip showed Seto fleeing from the scene and Husky chasing after him before the image faded to black. Then it showed Husky sitting in his room and writing in his notebook.

"Ultimately, Husky was a noble yet despairingly foolish person! He made it his personal duty to preserve the lives of the remaining survivors, so he tried to go look for the still-missing Ryan! He wrote letters to three people he trusted; Bodil, Jordan, and Jason; and told them to meet him in the central hall at 11:00 pm. However, the one person he thought he knew would certainly show up... Dun dun dun!" The footage showed Jason staring at the letter in his hands before slowly crumpling it up and dropping it in the trash can. "Jason made the smart decision by not trusting his closest friend since childhood! Good thinking, Jason!"

Seto noticed Jason cringe as he turned his head to look away from the screen, which changed to show Bodil talking to Husky.

"Bodil, always the cautious one, actually went to Husky's room to confirm that the note was sincere. Ultimately, Husky's explanation eased his worries! However, Husky also told him that Jordan was one of the other people he had given the note to..."

Now it showed Bodil talking to Ashley in her room. Seto couldn't stop himself from shuddering as he watched the scene, specifically Ashley's stone-cold expression. Her dark eyes seemed to harden, reminding Seto of cold frost slowly crystallizing into thin ice. Had Bodil telling her about Husky's plan triggered the idea, or had she already been planning out the murder attempts before his arrival?

...Was she looking at Bodil in that way because she was already considering him as one of her victims?

Seto would never know the answer...

"Bodil, also an incredibly naive fool, proceeded to tell Ashley about everything that Husky had told him. He asked her if she wanted to join them in their noble quest to save the long-lost Ryan, but she said no! Hmm... We wonder why!"

Before Bodil could question their peculiar statement, the scene changed once more. Now it was a fast-forwarded clip of Husky and Bodil running around as they searched for Ryan. "There's really nothing interesting about this, but we're approaching the exciting part! After all, now we're at the part where Bodil's memory... ends..."

Seto felt chills run up and down his spine as the footage shifted to show him walking down the steps from the second floor to the first. It was still Night Time, as seen by the dim lights in the background, so that meant that this was showing what happened that night...

The lights suddenly turned off, plunging the footage into darkness, before the camera's night vision activated. Seto saw himself halt in his tracks and look around wildly for a few moments as that chilling song echoed in the distance. Then the body discovery announcement rang and Seto ran towards his room before being stopped by Annie.

"What the hell were you doing outside before the blackout?!" Annie asked accusingly, shifting her gaze from the footage to glare at Seto. The others also stared at him in bewilderment.

"Hush, hush! Stop interrupting the recap!" MonoWither chided.

Annie pursed her lips together before reluctantly looking back.

"I'm more curious as to how you were still able to film us during the blackout," Jordan muttered.

"Do you really think we would let a silly little blackout stop us from watching your pretty little faces? Of course not! Now shush, all of you! Only despair-filled sounds allowed from here on!"

Now the recording showed them gathered outside their rooms, unsure of what was going on. "Everyone was disrupted from their beauty sleep by the dreaded body discovery announcement!" MonoWither commented. "Truly a wonderful wake-up call! However, certain people were missing... Certain people like Ryan, Husky, Jordan, and Bodil!"

"Why do we have to sit through this again?" Jason complained. "Why can't we just tell Bodil what happened ourselves, why do we have to sit through your god-awful retelling-"

"Anyway, there was a long hard search for these missing people and there was no luck until...!" Without warning, MonoWither flashed an image of Jordan's unconscious, crimson-stained body.

Bodil let out a piercing scream of terror and jerked backwards. "No- No no no- NO! JORDAN?! JORDAN!!!"

Jordan quickly grabbed his shoulder and moved so that he was right in front of Bodil's face, blocking the screen. "Bodil, I'm right here. I'm perfectly okay, I'm fine," he reminded him.

Bodil's eyes darted between Jordan and the image in front of him, trembling. "But- But- But you- What?"

MonoWither cackled. "We can't believe the prank worked so well! You had the best reaction yet, second to Tyler's! You... ahem... fell for it so hard, huh?! Huh?!" There was silence, save for MonoWither's pleased giggles. "Eh, whatever. Anyway, they found Jordan stashed inside an instrument case of all things, but the red stuff was just ketchup!"

"Who- Who would do something like that, though?" Bodil asked.

"That's the million-dollar question of the day! Who? Who would do this to Jordan of all people? Who do you think would do this, Bodil?" MonoWither asked dangerously.

"Y-You-?" Bodil stammered, although he sounded unsure.

"Upupupu... We'll see..." MonoWither fast-forwarded the footage again and resumed their commentary. "So Jordan was being really unhelpful because someone had hit him with a sleeping potion and he couldn't remember what happened! So our determined participants kept searching for the others until Seto, always the smart one, came to a realization..." The footage slowed down to show Seto stopping in front of one of the elevators and attempting to open it with his magic. "Hey Bodil, guess what he found inside?"

Bodil was too scared to reply.

"Ding ding ding! We'll give you the benefit of the doubt and say that you're correct! It was you!" Bodil let out a horrified yelp when he saw his own broken body lying on the floor. "And you would have died had Seto and Jordan not helped persuade us to spare you! We were so ready to just watch you perish along with the others! You owe them!"

"Along with the others...? What do you mean...?" Bodil gulped and looked around, visibly starting to connect certain pieces of the puzzle...

"Well you see, they found an even better surprise in the other elevator! Guess who!"

"R-Ryan, right? But... But wasn't he in the same elevator shaft that I..." Bodil's face paled. "N-No..."

"Ding ding ding! Right again!" The image of Husky's corpse flashed on the screen. "But he wasn't lucky like you were! No, someone had attacked him with a knife and slit his throat open! Somehow he managed to survive because of a Potion of Strength (Those things are ridiculously strong!), but only long enough for one last heartfelt goodbye with Jason, the one who had betrayed him!"

"I didn't betray him!" Jason insisted, although the guilty expression on his face indicated that he felt otherwise.

"Sure Jason, sure... Keep on denying it!"

"It wasn't his fault, leave him alone!" Tyler shouted.

"Fine, fine! Anyway, we were really disappointed when no one found Ryan's body, so we had to direct Steven to the right location!" Steven shielded his eyes when Ryan's dangling body flashed on the screen. "Eh, at least we didn't stage the deaths like some other low-budget reality TV show would!"

"But- But Husky... who did that to him?" Bodil whispered.

"What, don't you remember someone charging at you before you stupidly fell down the elevator shaft in an attempt to dodge? Well maybe it wasn't that stupid since you ended up surviving, unlike Husky..."

Bodil stared down at his lap. "It's just... I can't think of anyone who would do something like that..."

MonoWither stopped projecting the footage and flew up, turning around to face him. "You can't possibly be that stupid! Come on, process of elimination! Who isn't here with us anymore?"

Bodil looked around for a few moments, mentally counting the people, before glaring at MonoWither. "Stop it with your stupid pranks! I know it's not Ashley!"

MonoWither couldn't keep themselves from chortling. "Oh- Oh really-? Who- Who is it then? If it isn't Ashley, then who?"

"Um- Um- Ryan! Ryan, he faked it with- with a dummy!"

"Faked it with a dummy?" MonoWither giggled. "Oh man, that's something... In this filming area, we have never used and will never continue to use any dummies for dead bodies! That's just a cheap cop-out! Come on, who else other than Ashley?"

"...Husky... killed himself...?" Bodil suggested quietly.

Jason exhaled sharply, a harsh mix between a growl and a sigh. "For fuck's sake, I'm so sick of this shit! I really am, okay?! Just accept the fact that it was Ashley, it was Ashley who did it!!!"

Jason's voice echoed in the silent room. Bodil's eyes widened in absolute horror as he stared at him. "J-Jason...?" he said, his fragile-sounding voice trembling like a leaf in the wind. "Why... Why would you lie like that?"

"The only liar here is you!" Jason snapped. "You're lying to yourself!"

"I'm sorry Bodil, but... Ashley really did do it..." Jordan murmured.

MonoWither cackled raucously. "Jason and Jordan are right! Everything they said is right! Your precious darling Ashley was the one who attacked you and murdered Husky!"

"No- No you're wrong! You're ALL wrong! I KNOW YOU'RE WRONG!!!" Bodil pointed at Bonks. "Bonks already told me that she was here! Right, Bonks? Tell them they're wrong!"

Bodil's tawny eyes were filled with such innocent hope, Seto had to avert his gaze.

Bonks whimpered and looked away as well, shame twisting her face. "I-I'm sorry Bodil, I- I lied to you..."

Bodil looked like he had just been shot in the chest. "...What...?" Once again, his voice had been reduced to a faint whisper.

"I'm so sorry, I just couldn't bring myself to tell you the truth..." Bonks shut her eyes tightly.

Bodil sat there, motionless for a few moments. "...No..." he mumbled, shaking his head slowly as he stared blankly into space. "It's... not true... No... It can't be... Ashley would never do something like this... She would never hurt anyone, let alone kill... Husky must have been murdered by someone else... This is a mistake... This can't be true... S-Seto!"

Seto flinched as Bodil turned to face him. "What?"

"You were there with her last night! I saw you!"

Seto felt all the blood drain from his face. "I- I don't know what you're talking about-"

"You were watching over me!" Bodil recalled. "Y-Yeah, I remember that! You made the pain go away... You were sitting right over there, I saw you!" He jabbed a finger right at the chair where Seto had indeed been sitting.

Seto swallowed. "I was, but what does that have to do with anything-?"

"D-Didn't you see Ashley?! She was right there the whole time!!!" Bodil was now gesturing to an empty chair on the opposite side of his bed. "She was talking to me too, saying how I was going to be okay!"

Seto's face was as pale as a ghost's. "I... I don't know what you're talking about... No one else was there..."

"But you were unconscious yesterday," Steven pointed out.

Tyler cringed. "You, um, were probably just dreaming-"

"Why are you all lying to me?!" Bodil shrieked. "Why are you doing this?! Just tell me the truth, where is she!!! I know she didn't kill anyone, I just know it!!!"

"Do you want proof?" MonoWither asked with three dark, devilish smiles. "Because if you do, we have all the video evidence you could ever need..." They positioned themselves on the floor again and projected a clip of Jordan walking out of his room and heading towards the central hall, Jerry following closely behind him. He stepped out of the hallway and glanced at a nearby clock, which showed the time as 10:30 pm. Suddenly, without warning, a potion flask struck the back of his head and he collapsed to the floor, unconscious. Jerry rushed to Jordan's side before seeing something that forced the slime to flee. A girl emerged from the shadows, a girl Bodil distinctly recognized...

"Jordan was supposed to meet you guys at 11:00, right? But for some reason he was there thirty minutes early. We wonder how Ashley knew he would be there! Hmm, maybe she took the information a certain individual gave her and... made a plan..." MonoWither didn't give Bodil any time to process what he had just seen before showing another clip, this time of Ashley slipping a piece of paper underneath Jordan's door.

Bodil struggled to keep his voice steady. "N-No- No this isn't- This isn't true, this is just a misunderstanding-"

"Or maybe you want to see her actually committing the murder! In that case, here you go! We're so glad we invested in night vision cameras!"

The footage showed Husky and Bodil examining the wrestling room when all of a sudden the dreadful song started playing. They looked at each other before rushing out of the room and up the stairs toward the source. Then it cut to Ashley standing in the music room, her finger pressing on the play button of the DJ mixer.

Husky and Bodil reached the third floor and stopped, staring at the loudspeaker right in front of them. They looked around, bewildered, before Husky finally screamed in horror and pointed at Ryan's dead body hanging in the elevator shaft. Seemingly in disbelief, Bodil rushed towards the body and grabbed Ryan's hand before jerking his arm back as though he had been burned. Husky and Bodil stood there, completely paralyzed by shock, when they were suddenly plunged into darkness.

Ashley emerged from the music room, clutching a knife. She raised the blade and lunged forward at Bodil, who was the closer one. Although he hadn't been able to see a thing, Bodil's reflexes allowed him to dodge the attack. However, his victory was short-lived as Ashley quickly shoved him aside. He screamed in terror as he misstepped and plunged all the way down...

Without hesitation, Ashley ran towards Husky, who had just consumed a Potion of Strength. He tried to dodge the swipe of the knife as well, but it still grazed his side. Husky cried out and clutched the bleeding wound, gasping for air as he blindly staggered away towards the steps.

With the poison of the blade quickly taking effect and the darkness impeding his vision, he didn't get very far. It only took a few seconds for Ashley to tackle him to the ground, pin him down, and slash his neck with one quick slice.

Bodil let out a small whimper at the sight, clamping his hands over his mouth.

Ashley breathed heavily as she waited for him to go still before standing up. Blood stained her clothes and the floor around her. She looked up at the camera, her expression unreadable, before dragging Husky's body over to the second elevator shaft.

"...Is that enough proof for you?" Jason asked coldly, staring at the image of Husky's dead body as Ashley dropped it down. "Are you still going to deny what Ashley did?"

Bodil looked around helplessly, still struggling to find some sort of reasonable explanation. "No- No you're all lying- You're all lying!!!" he shrieked.

Seto watched as MonoWither quickly changed the footage to show a certain point in the trial.

Ashley opened her eyes and took a deep breath. "I won't argue anymore, Seto. There isn't anything left to say. After everything you just said... After everything you managed to figure out despite my best efforts... there's no point in drawing things out any longer. I failed, and that's all there is to it. So I'll just admit it right now."

"...You're right, Seto. I was the one who killed Husky."

"Liars! LIARS!!!" Bodil cried out, shutting his eyes tightly and clamping his hands over his ears. "THIS ISN'T TRUE!!! YOU'RE ALL LIARS!!! WHY WOULD SHE EVEN DO SOMETHING LIKE THAT?!"

"Upupupu, you thought our motive was harmless, but we choose all of our motives for a good reason! And Ashley knew it too!"

"None of you truly understand, do you? Well, maybe a few of you do, I don't know. I was once a girl in a run-down neighborhood who had to steal money for food to eat. And sure, my parents managed to move us to a better place eventually. But I never forgot what it was like. Most of you started off with a decent standard of living. Most of you don't know the feeling of being stuck in piles of debt like I do right now. Most of you don't know the feeling when money is all you need to save your life, and you don't have enough. And I'm glad you don't, to be honest. But for people like me... Money is survival."

"What?" Bodil whispered, his voice filled with dazed confusion. "What did she mean by that? She never said anything to me about being in debt..."

"Oh! Oh! Let us explain!" MonoWither cut in. "You see, remember in Part 02 when the secrets were introduced?"

Seto looked bewildered. "P-Part 02, what the hell are you talking about-"

"Part 02 of this show of course! Anyway, remember that? Ashley here didn't kill anyone in Part 02, but she did have a terrible secret of her own! Ashley, would you like to take the special honor?"

Ashley clenched her jaw. "...Must I?"

"Of course you must! Everyone's practically dying to know how you're in Stage II of breast cancer- Oh dear, we said it for you on accident, our apologies..." MonoWither said, their smiles indicating that they were not sorry at all.

Bodil sucked in a sharp breath. "C-Cancer? She... had cancer? But- But she never told me!" He was shrieking again. "Why- Why didn't she tell me she was dying?! Why didn't she say anything?!"

"Maybe it's because she didn't trust you at all! After all, why do you think she tried to kill you?" MonoWither mocked cruelly.

Seto glared at them. "Shut the hell up!"

The footage of Ashley as she went on to explain her reasons for murder continued in the background as Bodil rocked back and forth on the bed. "This- This isn't true- No no no- This is all a lie- No-" His chest heaved as he hyperventilated. "No! NO!!! I WON'T BELIEVE THIS!!!"

"Bodil, please- You need to breathe-!" Steven tried to tell him.

"SHUT UP!!! YOU'RE ALL LIARS!!!"

Annie tried to reach for him comfortingly, but he shoved her away with a violence that Seto had never seen in him before. "LEAVE ME ALONE!!! I HATE YOU ALL!!! LIARS!!! LIARS!!!"

"Hey Bodil, don't you know what happens when a murderer is caught?" MonoWither asked gleefully, relishing in his agony. "An execution, of course! You've seen it happen twice before, now you get to see a rerun of Ashley's in full HD!"

Ashley was now chained to the inside of the MRI machine.

"No no no- This isn't happening-!" Bodil moaned.

The MRI machine blasted forward towards the side of the snowy mountain.

"Stop it! STOP IT!!! STOP IT PLEASE!!!" he begged desperately.

Ashley tumbled out of the machine right before it crashed into the cliff side. A few seconds later, her bruised and battered body could be seen amongst the wreckage as she struggled to keep moving. She was coughing up blood and her right leg was broken.

"STOP!!! STOP!!!"

The mountain shook violently as the snow on top of the cliff broke free and tumbled downwards towards her.

"No... No no no... No..."

Ashley stared up at the approaching avalanche before closing her eyes, her face strangely peaceful.

Bodil was tugging at his hair so tightly, Seto was afraid he would tear them right out from the roots.

The snow ruthlessly barreled down towards her, enveloping her in white, before burying her completely. And then she was gone.

For a few seconds, there was only silence as the footage ended. MonoWither resumed their hovering stance and grinned at Bodil. "Well? What did you think?"

Bodil's eyes were almost bulging out of their sockets. Tears streamed down his face as he breathed heavily, gasping for air.

"...Bodil...?" Bonks whispered.

Bodil didn't respond. Instead... he started to laugh. It reminded Seto of the time when Bodil had burst into uncontrollable laughter after watching the motive video, only it was much worser. Now it seemed like he had completely lost it.

"I... I'm dead, right...?" Bodil asked breathlessly in-between broken giggles. "Oh- Oh god- I'm dead! That's the only explanation! I'm dead, and this is hell! I'm trapped in hell! Right?!" He couldn't stop laughing, even though his entire body was wincing in pain from the exertion. "None of this is real- None of you are real- Ashley's death isn't real- This is just hell- Please let this just be hell-"

"Why can't you just get it into your fucking head already!" Jason shouted angrily. "ASHLEY IS DEAD AND SHE KILLED HUSKY!!!"

"Stop that!" Annie scolded. "Just leave him alone!"

Bodil shook his head and giggled. "It's not-! Hahaha-! It's not real-! It's not real!" He grinned at all of them with some sort of sick triumph. "Not real... You can't fool me..."

"Bodil, please! Stop laughing like that!" Steven cried out, visibly disturbed.

"Not real, not real, not real!" Bodil chanted in a sing-song voice.

Tyler grasped his uninjured arm and tried to get Bodil to face him. "Bodil, just calm down and listen to us-"

Bodil shut his eyes tightly. "Not real, not real, not real!" he repeated as though his life depended on it.

Bonks was in tears. "What- What do we do-?"

"Hah! Hahaha! HAH!!!"

Seto wordlessly approached Bodil and reached into his pocket, pulling out the hair ribbons. He ignored everyone's shocked, suspicious stares as he placed them on Bodil's lap. "I'm sorry," he mumbled, drawing back.

Bodil stopped laughing as he stared at the ribbons, his Adam's apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed nervously. He tentatively picked them up with shaking hands and began rubbing them almost feverishly, feeling the red fabric with his fingers as though he was trying to see if they were real. Bodil drew in a trembling breath. "N-No..." he murmured. "It's... not real... Ashley... she would never..." His voice broke as he clutched the ribbons tighter. "No- No no no- I was just talking to her- Last night- She was comforting me- I saw her, as clear as day-! Ashley- Ashley would never do something like this- Ashley can't be dead- Not true not true not true-" All of his words got stuck in his throat as the heartbroken man began to wail, burying his face in the ribbons. "Ashley... Ashley...!" he sobbed in anguish.

"...Have you finally realized it?" Jason snapped.

Bodil looked up at him with terrified eyes. "H-Huh?"

"I asked if you finally realized what Ashley did to Husky!"

The man started to panic. "I- I don't know- I-"

"SAY IT!!!" Jason yelled.

"What the hell is your problem?!" Annie shouted. "Can't you see he's suffering?! Leave him alone!"

"I want him to say it! I want him to realize exactly what Ashley did to Husky! Maybe the rest of you could learn a lesson from him!" Jason retorted.

Annie's green eyes flashed. "What are you, a sadist?! I can't believe you're actually doing this!"

"What exactly do you want, Jason?" Jordan asked, glaring at Jason. "What are you looking for? Because I don't think it's worth hurting Bodil like this-"

"I don't fucking know, okay?! I'm just so fucking sick of all of this! Husky is dead and it's all because of what Ashley did!"

"I'm- I'm sorry Jason-" Bodil mumbled. "I'm sorry Husky is dead-"

"Damn right you should be sorry," Jason muttered under his breath. "You should be sorry it wasn't you who died instead."

Bodil gasped in pain, staring at Jason in horrified disbelief.

Before anyone could react, Annie lunged forward and slapped the left side of Jason's face as hard as she could. She would have struck him again had Seto not grabbed her and held her back. "YOU TAKE THAT BACK!!!" she shrieked, struggling to free herself from Seto's grip as she reached out her arms toward him. "YOU TAKE THAT BACK RIGHT NOW!!! HOW DARE YOU SAY SOMETHING LIKE THAT TO HIM???!!!"

Jason looked shell-shocked as he stared back at her, numbly touching the reddening mark on his cheek with his hand.

"GET OUT!!!" Annie cried out. "I SAID GET OUT RIGHT NOW!!!"

After a few stunned moments, Jason silently left the infirmary.

Seto let go of Annie, who breathed heavily as she clenched her fists. No one knew what to say, not even Bodil, who was still sobbing quietly to himself.

"And that, viewers, was our episode recap! We hope you enjoyed watching, we know Bodil certainly did! And now we'll leave you guys with some filler! Upupupu!" MonoWither giggled before disappearing.

"What- What's happening to us?" Bonks whimpered. "Why are we acting like this?"

They all knew the answer.

"I'm not going to apologize for slapping him," Annie muttered. "He deserved it."

"He is going through a lot right now," Jordan reminded her.

"I'm perfectly aware of that! But that doesn't give him the excuse to put Bodil through even more pain!"

"I'm- I'm sorry-" Bodil whispered repeatedly. "I'm sorry, I- It's all my fault this happened- He was right- "

"N-No he wasn't," Steven said quietly. "He was just saying that out of anger, he wasn't right at all-"

Bodil shook his head. "I- I told Ashley everything- I didn't protect Husky at all-"

"Stop it," Tyler said. "You couldn't have known what Ashley would do."

This only seemed to make Bodil cry harder. "But- But I should have known!" Bodil wailed. "I- I thought we were best friends- Why didn't she tell me she was going through all that?! What did I do wrong?! Why didn't she trust me?!" Bodil stared down at the ribbons in his hands. "She... She must have hated me, she tried to kill me, after all-"

"MonoWither left out a certain part," Seto cut in.

"What do you mean?"

"...MonoWither mentioned Jordan and me persuading them to save you, but they didn't mention how Ashley was the most vocal about it. When she realized that you were still alive, she was the first to demand MonoWither to save you."

"That- That doesn't mean anything! Why did she even try to kill me in the first place if she didn't hate me?!"

"She knew there was a chance she would be caught," Seto continued. "She didn't want to take away your chance of survival. Yes, she tried to kill you. But she was driven to desperation because of her situation, you know that. It wasn't because of you specifically. She still cared about you even after what she did."

"...Why didn't she say anything to me?" Bodil asked weakly. "Why did she keep it all to herself? I... I thought she trusted me... I could have done something... to help her... anything..."

"That was her decision, it wasn't your fault at all," Jordan remarked. "She didn't tell a single soul about what she was going through, it wasn't just you. Stop blaming yourself for what Ashley did."

Bodil sniffled as he clung onto the ribbons. "Ashley..." he whispered to himself again, his voice a lost, irrevocable sound. He closed his eyes, which were swollen with tears, and softly wept in anguish.

"...Someone should check on Jason..." Steven mumbled. "Just in case he... does something irrational..."

"I'll do it," Seto replied. Without waiting for a reply, he left the room as well.

~~~

Seto found Jason lying on the dance floor, staring up at the star-studded ceiling. He was clutching the silver star that Husky had given him just a few days ago to his chest. His eyes were closed.

Seto watched him for a few moments, wondering if he had actually fallen asleep.

"...I know you're there," Jason muttered, still keeping his eyes closed. "Is it you, Annie?" He cracked open his eyes and turned to face Seto. "Oh, it's you."

Seto hesitantly stepped forward and stopped when he was staring down at him.

"You know, lying on the ground is actually kind of relaxing," Jason said with a sigh. "Maybe you should try it."

Seto silently laid down beside Jason and looked up at the ceiling.

"So... Are you gonna say anything? Or are you just gonna keep quiet? Because I guess that's fine with me..."

"...Did you really mean to say that to Bodil?"

Jason cringed. "N-No, I mean yes, I mean-" He swallowed. "I don't know," he said quietly.

Seto closed his eyes and thought carefully. "Mmhmm..."

"...I- I know I was being a douche, okay?" Jason admitted. "I- I knew what I was saying was completely uncalled for, but... for some reason I didn't want to stop..."

"So do you actually blame Bodil or not?"

"...I don't know," Jason repeated in a hollow voice. "I don't know about anything anymore, really. I just... get so angry whenever I think about it. I think that stupid episode recap thing MonoWither did made it worse."

Seto chose his words carefully. "...We all know that what Ashley did wasn't right, but she was our friend too. We can't help but mourn for her. But mourning for Ashley won't take away the fact that Husky's death hurt us as well..."

"I know that!" Jason snapped before going silent. "At least that's what part of me knows."

"And the other part of you can't accept it?"

"Y-Yeah... Something like that..."

"So who are you angry at? Just list them out."

"Ashley. MonoWither. Whoever's controlling MonoWither." He paused. "Um..."

"Don't feel bad if you think it's something I wouldn't like to hear. Just say it."

"...All of you guys, especially Bodil," Jason confessed softly. "I don't know, I guess it's because... Husky's not here anymore... And you guys still are..."

"Anyone else?"

"...Husky... for breaking his promise..." Jason laughed bitterly. "That sounds selfish, huh? I mean he's dead..." He looked up at the stars. "They say that the people you care about will always be with you in your heart, but that's just a bullshit way of comforting people in my opinion."

"How so?"

Jason inhaled sharply. "I want him here with me! Not that stupid 'he'll always be in your heart' way, but physically here! And the fact is that he's dead and gone forever and I'm never going to see him ever again!" He breathed deeply. "Why did he have to go and play the hero? In the end, Ryan was already dead... It was all for nothing... It was completely pointless..."

"...It was pointless," Seto agreed. "Everything could have been avoided if Husky hadn't tried looking for Ryan."

"Gee, thanks for the comforting words," Jason muttered.

"But you know that Husky died trying to keep everyone safe..."

"Yeah, and he ended up saving no one."

"...That isn't really true..." Seto mumbled to himself.

"What?"

"I- I mean... There's no point in rationalizing what happened. It wasn't fair. It wasn't right. But focusing how unfair it is will just make you feel worse..."

There was a long silence before Jason released a long sigh. "I think the person I hate the most is myself... I could have done something, I should have trusted him... If I did, maybe things would be different..." His eyes drifted shut. "Maybe he'd still be alive."

"You also could have died."

"...So?"

"You couldn't have known. You had the right to be suspicious and I doubt Husky blamed you for it. Plus, if you died and Husky survived somehow... Do you really think things would be better?"

"Obviously yes-"

"Why?"

"Because Husky would be alive!"

"And what about you?"

"Who- Who cares about me?" Jason asked, his voice breaking.

"...Jason..." Seto mumbled, horrified.

" You'd think I'd have known better than to distrust him... He was always there for me when I needed him... We were best friends since we were little kids..."

"...So were Bodil and Ashley..."

Jason's eyes widened in recollection.

"So you can understand why Bodil was in such strong denial."

Jason stared downwards. "Shit, I... I was such a jerk to Bodil... the more I think about how I would feel if our roles were reversed... If someone had told me that Husky had tried to kill me and murdered someone else, I..." Jason swallowed. "I'd think I'd go crazy."

Seto was silent as he felt the amulet in his pocket.

"...I deserved that slap, didn't I? What the hell is wrong with me?"

"You're angry at a lot of things. Mostly yourself. It happens."

"Yeah... I guess that's true..."

They laid there in a comfortable silence for a few minutes before Jason stood up, pocketing the star. "Hey, thanks a lot. I really needed that."

Seto smiled briefly as he stood up as well. "It was nothing..."

As they left the dance room, he tried not to look at the elevator and think of who he had seen hanging there...

~~~

The two found the rest in the cafeteria. Even Bodil was there, although he was sitting in a wheelchair. Most of the color had returned to his cheeks, but his eyes still seemed listless and lackluster. They all turned to face Seto and Jason when they entered.

Jason, overcome with guilt, shifted awkwardly. "Um... I owe you all an apology..." he mumbled. "I had a lot of anger over what happened and lashed out at everyone, especially you, Bodil..."

"Apology accepted," Jordan said with a soft smile.

Jason's eyes widened. "You're forgiving me just like that?"

"Of course we forgive you!" Tyler said.

"Yeah, we understand," Steven said reassuringly. "At least you came to your senses!"

"The picture frame was MonoWither's anyway, I really could care less about it," Bonks pointed out.

"Just don't give me a reason to slap you again," Annie sighed. "I don't like hurting my friends."

Jason winced and rubbed his cheek. "Yeah, that's a good idea..." He turned to Bodil. "I understand if you won't forgive me-"

"It's okay," Bodil said quietly, not meeting his gaze. "It was my fault, anyway."

Annie sighed. "Bodil, we've been over this-!"

"I could have done something..."

"N-No, that doesn't make it your fault," Jason tried to say.

"If I had known about what Ashley was going through-"

"She kept that hidden from everyone!"

"And- And I was supposed to protect Husky but I failed horribly-"

"And you barely managed to survive. Look at yourself!"

Bodil stared down at the casts on his legs for a few moments. "...It should have been me, like you said-"

Jason scoffed. "That's supposed to be my line, not yours!"

Bodil looked confused. "...What? What are you talking about...?"

"Your whole 'it should have been me schtick' was borrowed from me."

"I don't understand what you mean-"

"I swear, you're just trying to copy me... Well too bad! You can't ever be like me, sadly... No matter how appealing my self-loathing is..."

There was a stunned silence. No one knew what to say before all of a sudden...

...Bodil started to laugh. A real, genuine laugh.

"...Well- Well maybe you blame yourself for Husky's death, but did you ever consider the pain of... betrayal by a very close friend?"

Jason grinned, relieved. "Betrayal? Oh please. You were just on the receiving end, but I? I was the one who did the betraying!"

Bodil started to giggle even harder. "Well what about the overwhelming urge to die?"

"Been there, done that! While you were sleeping, I was wide awake with that thought! Beat that!"

"I hear that and I raise you with a 'almost murdered by someone you trusted with your life'!"

"Aw, that- I think that wins," Jason said sheepishly. "For now! I mean have you ever watched the love of your life die right in front of you?"

"Sounds horrible. I only saw mine through a crappy recording, not the real deal... But I did have the whole delayed reaction thing going on... And a super horrific execution to go with it..."

"MonoWither is so extra sometimes, huh?"

"Definitely... And he made me watch it the moment I woke up! Who does that?"

The two of them were laughing and crying at the same time as they continued their... discussion... (?)

Jordan blinked in bewilderment before looking away ("Jerry! The paintings are not food!"). Annie merely rolled her eyes in exasperation, giving up rationalizing their actions. Bonks looked like she had no idea whether to feel horrified or glad. Steven and Bart stared at them with total confusion while Dave seemed to relish the dark humor that was going on, if his attentive gaze meant anything.

Tyler inched closer to Seto. "Um... Are they okay...? I mean, just a few minutes ago Bodil was crying and grieving and we could barely comfort him, and now he and Jason are bonding over their traumatic experiences or something. Not that I'm not glad they're happier-looking, but..."

Seto smiled hopefully as he stared at Husky and Ashley's pictures sitting side-by-side in the memorial.

"...I think they're getting there..."