"I am currently sitting here with our assailant, an eighteen-year old by the name Yuuki Seiichiro. The time is seven o'clock, and we'll now be beginning our interrogation."

Detective Sasori lays down the tape recorder and slides it forward, halfway across the table. In front of her, she saw the grim face of the guilty twin. He hanged his head and had his shoulders slouched.. refusing to look up for even a second. His shackled wrists; restricted by handcuffs, were ordered to remain kept on top of the table for safety purposes.

She tapped her pen against the surface. "So, let me first start with the evidence that's held against you--"

Despite his place, Seiichiro is quick to talk over her heartlessly. "I didn't do it." His voice is so sure, and as much as she wanted to humor him... There are more pressing questions she needed answering. She let out a soft sigh and then went straight to digging into her files dated back to a year ago.

Then she slid a photograph of a familiar corpse, a woman whose white hair is stained in a mass of her own blood. And her dull, lifeless golden eyes as well as her gray skin appears to have lost it's color. "We didn't get to her body until a day later." Detective neatly intertwined her fingers. "You were at Kirigiri's house the same night, weren't you? So tell me honestly.... Did you kill your parent?"

"...."

"......"

Seiichiro coldly stared at the photograph, hooked onto it. He remembered all of the abuse he and his brother would endure while they were kids; sleep deprivation, starvation, emotional neglect... She never bothered to buy gifts or toys, nor would she ever celebrate holidays. Not with them, anyway. He then focused his watch back into his lap, admitting his guilt by a slow, brief nod of his head.

"Good, I see." Sasori is glad that he's at least making things easier for her. Although, she left the picture there for him to gawk at in case he gets bored, they are going to be there for a while, after all. "Won't you care to explain this, too?"

Gesturing towards some more photographs that she laid down against the table, one by one, she acknowledges him as Seiichiro indulged in them-- selecting the photograph of your attic. "We were told that you have been stalking her. By your brother, no less. He actually admitted that fact to the faculty at your school."

Seiichiro's eyeballs threatened to bulge, and so did the veins of anger already appearing against his forehead. "What?" His voice is already raising, "I have not been stalking her!! That's crazy!! If anything, he's the one with the real motive to stalk people!!"

Hearing that, she raised a brow. She had no real reason to believe him .. and frankly, no one suspects Shiro at all. "Mm. Of course.. your traumatized brother." Detective took the time to lean back, asserting herself using a sharp tongue. "A year ago. When police had discovered that gruesome crime scene, we found your brother holed up beside her corpse. He also declared it was only a burglary... Although, he looked so distraught. Record proves that the abuse he was put through resulted in that broken behavior of his. Not only that, but you and your mother deliberately decided to push him into the shadows, which.. only added salt into the wound."

"Shiro... No, he's not what he cl--"
Once again, he found that he was cut off after the woman points at the other photos, they had received the least attention. "Every single trace is lead back to you, Seiichiro. We found your presence inside of miss [L/N]'s attic. Your DNA; a blanket, strands of hair, and also your phone and thumbprints. We also have other evidence that suggests you'd been living there whenever you got the chance to."

He raised the photograph using a quaking hand. Looking at it, Seiichiro's panic kicks in tenfold. She was right .. that was his old burner phone in the corner, tucked behind a couch. Those were his fingerprints planted on those boxes.

And his hair.....

"Bullshit." Seiichiro cursed out loudly. "BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT, BULLSHIT!!!" He couldn't believe this. That he is being accused of something he didn't do. Something that he never dared to do.. ever, in his life. Why would Shiro want to do this to him? When.. when all he wanted to do is protect him?

'I saved him. I actually saved him by picking up his medications and hiding them from [L/N] when I was there.' He thought after freezing up, 'If I'd just let them lay around... I.. I wouldn't have been in this situation at all...!' The young man is contemplating himself, hunched over a bit.

Whenever the guilty party breaks down like that, it usually suggests that they have more to hide. Detective Sasori wouldn't stop until she heard the entirety of this story in full. "You planned on murdering her next, isn't that right? Just like your mother."

A fierce slam of his fists against the table silences her for good. Seiichiro was growling .. he is clearly enraged, but amidst that anger there is sadness in his running behind his eyes. "I don't want to kill her! I.. I...." His brain is running on one-hundred miles per hour. He's aware that they may know everything; but .. but maybe, he still has a fighting chance. There must be something..!

"What about his medical history? Surely that will explain everything!" He blurted out, "Shiro is always taking those pills, every single day. Our mother had prescribed it for him..! I-It must have something to do with his psychopathy!!"

Detective Sasori looked confused. For someone who knew the intricate details in this case, she happened to hit a wall here. "Shiro has been prescribed medicine..?" In turn, she opens her case files again, flipping every page and scanning every line... However as she studies Shiro's history her face remains the same throughout. "Oh. I see, the mood stabilizers. He was prescribed that when he was about eleven years old."

Seiichiro felt his soul quake under dread. She said it as if she was writing the detail off-- like it is only minor, and that pissed him off further. "Your brother is a general ghost, a living enigma, really... The team and I assume this because your mother has kept him holed up for nearly a decade. But, in your instance..." She pursed her lips, flipping the page again. "You have been taking medicine to cure... your borderline personality disorder.. for up to a year now."

"Right after you killed her."

The faintest bit of hope he had is now thrown away, and just then-- there's a flicker of absence controlling Seiichiro. He spaced out, fingertips twitching, while maintaining eye contact towards the person across from him. Right, even if he does prove his innocence, he will still end up with a murder charge.. and not only that, but it looked premeditated. Premeditated because Shiro made it look that way.

Which means that either way this might go, he will either be given life imprisonment, or the death penalty.

The young man starts chuckling, it's soft and defeated at first, yet it steadily turns into a fit of callous laughter. "Well played... Well played, brother..." He mumbled, glaring at the pictures of his planted DNA scattered across your attic. Was all of this.. Was all of this meant for you? When you first moved in, Shiro had claimed he left his pills up in the neighbors attic and wanted to get it. But ever since you two met in that doorway... He could sense the change in his brother that evening.

It's funny to think about; how he destroyed his life. All for a school girl.

"... He's got me beat," Seiichiro admits aloud, keeping up with a distant smile. Instead of running, he's suddenly willing to cope with the misery he might end up facing in the near future. Even if he tells his story, only a select few will hear it. The judge won't be so forgiving, not with his odds.

Shiro might have ruined him, but that won't stop him from protecting him until the end. Perhaps this way, the torture will finally end.

"I did it.. okay? I ... did all of it."

"I'm.. I'm guilty."

G̷̡̧̡̹̈̂̌̐̒͠u̵̘̎̊͂̑͛̈́̓̍͠

̸͇̙̹̩̜̓͒̾͒̏͘͠͝i̴̪̗̺̥̥̾͂̈͌͌̈̾͂̅͝l̷̻̗̯̫̰̅̀̓̊̈́̊̚͝ͅ ̶̨͇̱̲̤̅̽t̸̼̟͚̯̮̙̦̊͛̈́̈͐͠.̸̛͎̗͕̽̋̐̓̊̂͘y̷̛̝̠͉̟̫̬͋̈́͗͑͑̐̚͘͝

.

.̵̣̰̄̓̎ ̸̪́̔͗͒̏́̔̀͐
̵̨̗̜̮̗̰͍̈͑̃̀͘͝͠ͅ
̶̧͈̻͍̜̗̜̊̀̏͜.̴͙̮͈͓̙̲̑͂̌̓̀̋̿̐͝.̸̻͉͇͈͇̱̈̌̉̈̐̅̐̉͘̕.̷̢̘̯̳̗̖͑͆́͐̉̏
̷̠͙͍͕̺̘̄̊̀̽͛͗́ͅ

̶̯̺͍̖͚̮̿̓́̀̀̽

̴̨͖̼̳̩̿͊͗̒̎̋.̷̤̬́̅̅́͋̍̈͌̊

..

̶̼͉̥͚̼̞̗͙̉͐̎̓̚̚͝.̶̥͚͕̙̞̈́̂̏̄

Meanwhile, Shiro's apartment.
>[7:12 PM]<

You finished washing your hair and taking a shower, stepping out of the bathroom feeling exhilarated after a nice wash up. Shiro has left the place temporarily to take care of something, while he didn't specify what it was .. he mentioned something about food and keeping you full.

He didn't seem too worried, though. Especially since he knew that Kazuma would keep you company.

The sweet little dog was following you around, sticking out his tongue as he panted. His sparkling blue eyes glistened by the presence of this newcomer. He clicked with you the instant you walked inside, as if he recognized your aura. He's been behaving awfully comfortably towards you, yet you weren't complaining!

You entered the hallway and clicked on the light. Before he left, he happened to turn off all of the lights, it seems that he's used to being shrouded in the comfort of the darkness. So you promptly filled the living room with some vibrance as you continued rubbing a hand towel against your wet hair.

The pajamas you had been wearing had been Shiro's-- he actually insisted on you wearing his dark blue oversized shirt and pants, because he didn't really want you to leave. Which was slightly ironic considering he's the one who ended up leaving you alone an hour after you arrived. Because of this, you were a little tempted to snoop around a little. He's a very secretive person, I mean you knew little to nothing about him besides the fact he dislikes sweets and prefers a more bitter taste.

Kazuma leaves your side momentarily and then comes back up to you pushing his nose against something that scrapes along the floorboards. It's his dog's bowl... And you might not know much about an animal's social cues but you had a feeling that he was feeling hungry. "Uh! He hasn't fed you all day?"

Seeing him now, he looks like he hasn't eaten in a bit, so you decided to try and feed him. Kazuma barked at you in response, so you lowered your hand towel and then kept it draped along your shoulders. Checking the kitchen pantry, you saw nothing.. and also the other cabinets along with it.

A full eight minutes pass you by... And there wasn't a trace of his dog food anywhere!! "Where did he-- why are complicated people so.. so complicated?! Is it in his basement or something?!!" Hold on. That wasn't a bad idea-- checking the place a guy like him would most likely put it is.. smart, actually.

The studio apartments you lived in are essentially multiple houses sectioned off for multiple tenants to use. Fortunately Shiro is able to have a basement, whereas you're unfortunate enough to have an attic to climb. And not only that, his home space is a lot bigger than yours, nearly double the size... Call the twins lucky or whatever, but they really had everything!

Kazuma followed you as you headed towards a single door in one of the darkest places of his home. When you touched the doorknob, the dog stopped where he was, watching you twist it only to pull it open without much reluctance.

An uneasy silence squeezes into the atmosphere once you peek inside, following the short flight of stairs that leads into more darkness. The light switch is just beside you however, so you also reach to flick it on before casting the one beside you a glance. The two of you were exchanging glances, as if daring each other to descend first.

"..."

"So uh, do you really think your dog food is down there..?"

You asked Kazuma. He didn't say anything in response, but . . It's not as though you were actively searching for a reply from him.

Quietly, your leg budged forward and you stepped on the first wooden plank, gathering shivers the way it'd creak underneath your weight. Then you took another step. Then another. By the time you were at the rock bottom, you noticed the animal who still stood at the surface. His tail was no longer wagging, he just... watched you.

"Awe, come on!" You begged, "For someone who was just following me around like a puppy, you are sure distant!!" Coaxing him wasn't working, either. And so you gave up-- turning to look around the basement with ease.

It's just as desolate and dingy as you might expect... But surprisingly well kept. Things were neat in their place, miscellaneous items such as rope, buckets, planting resources, etc-- it looks like stuff a parent would own. The walls are cemented and so is the floor. It's slightly cold as well.. meaning that little to no sound would ever escape-- should anyone ever get locked inside.

There's also little space, too. However, with a bit of rearranging it'd most likely end up a lot more spacious.

Picking up an old flower pot, there wasn't anything in it aside from old dirt and dry pottery. Regardless, it's in good condition. You sat it back down and shifted your attention towards anything else that might curiously catch your eye... And in doing so, you finally spot a mass of darkness draped in the corner.

Poking out from under it.. there looks to be a stick. Or no, not a stick... But a prop, most likely used for halloween decor. You could've sworn what you were staring at resembled a bone, or possibly a plastic ligament. And next to it;

Laid a single umbrella.

Curiosity gathered the best of you, which is why you were nearly going to approach and sling the sheet off-- yet the sudden wave of barking led you to jump out of your skin violently, only to twirl around on your heel. "Whoa!"

Kazuma was getting all riled up, upstairs. He was yapping at you, but not because you were invading someone's territory-- but because he acknowledged the front door rattling. He is trying to grab your attention. That's when his paws patter away, and you used this opportunity to work your way back up the stairs.

You could hear it, too. The sound of keys hitting the doorknob. "Oh," You beamed up as you travelled up the last step. "Shiro's back! Thanks for letting me know, little guy!"

Due to the excitement of seeing his face again, you were a little careless and left the basement door cracked open slightly. It's a noticeable difference, that's for sure.. although, you naively figured it wouldn't matter.

I mean, it's not like he has something to hide.

[Chapter END]