vi.
a cracked piece of amber

A district with little to no signs of life. A notable number of back alleys are around the area, away from the main streets and prying eyes - the spaces were not too narrow for a small group to crowd in, but not too wide to allow people to exit or enter too freely as they please. Some of the alleys had surrounding buildings that were rather high, so little light hit these areas and the light posts present were too far from the back alleys to speak of. In addition, there seemed to be some old passageways in the alleys that could also be accessed by anyone - if used carefully to one's advantage, a sneak or a pincer attack could be possible assuming a well-thought out strategy and the proper people were in play.

Perfect for an assassination, Yukiko mused to herself as she noted the further areas of the Gion District into her itinerary with a smile on her face. Perhaps if she and her group were to visit and study the area themselves, they could brainstorm possible methods of attack while they surveyed the area, and afterwards they could report it to the whole class for consideration.

But now, as she stood in one of those alleys that she studied meticulously without anything to defend herself (or her group), she couldn't help but wonder if she was wrong for even considering the area in the first place - the toothy grins, perverse eyes, confident strides, and mocking voices of the three high schoolers that backed them further into the alley didn't help much for her already spinning thoughts.

It really is perfect, one high schooler had said.

Now why would you walk in an area like this, where abduction is a piece of cake, the other one added.

Faced with that question, the reality of their situation becomes painfully clear to her than it already had been earlier. Silly Kanzaki Yukiko, thinking too much of assassinations and how to possibly contribute to the cause without even considering her own - or her group's, her friends' - safety. What an arrogant child - a girl, even - to think that there would be no possibility of danger lurking about, even in what was said to be an isolated district. How over her head had she been, thinking that the only potential threat in the world - in her world, to her life - was her homeroom teacher?

A strange taste stings her tongue, her mouth (it's probably guilt, she muses with scorn for no other than herself) - it becomes simply acrid when Akabane Karma falls to the ground after being struck with a metal pipe on the back of his neck right in front of her eyes, and all she can do is just stare at his fallen figure with her legs frozen in place. He falls a few steps from where she stood, and the sound of his limp body hitting the cement is loud, clear, and also echoing in her ears.

She had to help him.

But she couldn't even find the strength to scream against the grubby hand that clamped itself forcefully over her mouth, nor struggle free from the tight grip on her forearm.

All that she could do as she was dragged away was watch Sugino Tomohito crumbling to the ground, doubling over in pain after one of the highschoolers struck his stomach harshly with his knee; and Nagisa Shiota dropping down to his knees after he had been punched in the face. Perhaps the only good thing the two had going for them so far was they were both still conscious, and the highschoolers seemed to enjoy the sight of them reveling in pain instead of adding their injuries.

Akabane was a different matter - her amber eyes quiver, but Yukiko couldn't bring herself to look away as she attempted to check if his body was still there, and if he was still breathing.

(She doesn't get to see him as the car door slammed shut on her face though, leaving her and Kayano in the darkness.)