With no way of escaping, Keiji started to panic even more. The last thing he wanted to do was bring out his sword and potentially hurt innocent people… “Dammit, dammit, dammiiit…we’re gonna be subjected to being girls’ pets for good--not to mention the Sisters…what sort of busted ass magic could’ve put them under mind control?!”
Rumble put a hand on his shoulder. “...Bud. If push comes to shove and we get kidnapped by love-hungry girls, then I just wanna say you’ve been one of the only few friends I’ve ever had that actually like me for me and don’t just wanna get close because my brother is a famous soccer player.”
“...Yeah, I’m with you,” Keiji replied with a sigh, “You actually took the time to listen to me and clung to me so I’d eventually chill out and not hate everything in this school. You’re alright, Rumble.”
As they were about to face their doom at the dozens of hands of lovestruck girls…
CLANK!
A ventilation grate above them was forced open. The source of it was a meek girl’s voice who was apparently not affected by the mind control. “This way, hurry! There’s not much time!” She reached her hand down to grab them.
“What the--?!” Rumble looked up into the vent and saw the hand, “How do we know she’s--?!”
“No time for that, dammit! Just go!” Keiji yelped as he hoisted his friend into the air so he could grab onto the girl’s hand, followed by a quick hop to leap into the vent himself, narrowly escaping the clutches of Derpy’s hands.
“Whew…I owe you one,” Rumble muttered as he looked up to see the person that had saved them. “...Oh hey, it’s…you…”
Wallflower idly rubbed her hand behind her neck with a sigh. “...Yeah. I get that a lot. Don’t worry, I don’t blame you for not remembering me. I…made a few mistakes in the past with a certain stone. Come on, I know the way out.”
“If it helps, I don’t even know who you are,” Keiji replied bluntly, “So thank you for saving us. I’m curious though, why aren’t you under the effects of the hypnotism like everyone else?”
“I’m not sure,” Wallflower replied as she led them through the vents, crawling ahead of them, “But if I had to wager a guess, I’d bet it’s because not everyone remembers me well enough so there’s nobody I can even be hypnotized into loving,” she lamented with a low tone of voice that sucked all of the tension out of the vents. She then tried to deny her feelings with a rapid change of tone. “Or maybe I’m just lucky! Haha…ha…”
So much so, that this was a rare instance in which Keiji wasn’t prepared to open his mouth with a snarky or witty response. “...Damn. I don’t have any words for that. If that really is the case, then that’s just sad.”
Even Rumble was stunned into silence for a moment, only breaking it after he had a moment to think. “Erm…well…thanks, Wallflower. Whatever the case, this is already insane. Loads of the other boys have already been captured and taken to god knows where!”
“I know…” Wallflower replied, “Whatever it is, it must be powerful if Sunset, her friends, and the Sirens are being controlled by it. I don’t know how we’re gonna save them…I don’t have any magic anymore, and I don’t know anyone else that does.”
“Well…” Rumble looked over at Keiji. “I think I know someone who does.”
“Who?” Wallflower asked.
“What am I gonna do…how am I gonna fix this? They don’t deserve this at all.” Keiji was staring off into space for a moment, so he didn’t respond right away. “...Huh? Wha? Sorry, my mind was someplace else.”
Rumble nudged him with his elbow. “Everything okay? Don’t worry. We’ll make sure everyone comes back to their senses unharmed…somehow….”
“If you have magic, that makes things a whole lot easier,” Wallflower replied as she made a right turn down the vent shaft. “But we’ll still need to figure out how to deal with them without hurting them. Let’s worry about that later though. For now…”
With a swift push, Wallflower knocked off another vent that led them outside of the school. She immediately jumped down and looked left, then right. She was at the school’s parking lot, and thankfully, no one was around.
“Coast is clear, guys. C’mon,” she called out and beckoned them to follow.
Rumble and Keiji jumped out moments later.
“Whew…I hate being in tight spaces,” Rumble sputtered in between deep breaths.
“That makes two of us,” Keiji added with a shudder, “Still. I’m glad we were able to escape.” He looked at Wallflower and said, “Thanks, Blushy. You’re quite the handiwoman to be able to make use of the ventilation system. Isn’t that low-key illegal?”
Wallflower rolled her eyes. “We can discuss ethical semantics later. Right now, we need to get going. Maybe there are others who’ve managed to escape and we could theoretically get their help.”
“Hoo-boy, everyone’s parents are gonna be worried as heck,” Rumble muttered, “Hopefully we can figure it out before things get worse.”
Keiji was silent the entire time and began to think about what Rumble had just said. “Shit. He’s right. Mr. and Mrs. Rich are gonna be extremely worried if they don’t see their daughter home tonight. How am I gonna explain this to ‘em?”
“...Sunset can’t save us right now. Now it’s our turn.” Wallflower felt the need to take charge as the eldest of the group. “...Alright. Here’s what we’re gonna do: You two come with me to my place so we can discuss what we’re doing and think up a plan. Just tell your parents you need to stay longer for some studying, alright?”
“No issues here,” Keiji replied, “Rum?”
“Beats hangin’ around with no idea what we’re doin’ next,” Rumble replied, “I’m in. Lead the way, Wall.”