She never had a student just flat our run away before. It was beyond stupid to do so. Where would Vikky run to? They were on an island and the only place where she could get food was from the school. Of course, if a monster decides to find her and keep her at this point, there was nothing protecting her. A girl who refuses to obey and graduate is already a slave in the end. Vera did not chase the fleeing student she merely said one thing. "Miss Nyberg, you forgot your hairpin..."

Assuming Vikky did not regain any sense from between the desk and the door, Vera would pick up the hairpin and sigh softly. The school did tend to pick up any pretty thing that applies, even the most immature brats. Where Vikky flees to is irrelevant to the Head Girl. She simply wrote up a basement slip and had it sent to Vikky's dorm room. It would list a room number and time to be there. Lets see if the student actually figures out what exactly she is doing to herself. These sort of troublemakers were actually easier to deal with. If a student proved incapable of attending class like a good little girl, they were removed and put to better use elsewhere. For Vikky's sake, she better learn how to act like a proper student and quickly.

Vikky knew fleeing was stupid, assuming one didn’t have a destination. If she didn’t have the plan she now had, she wouldn’t have run. But… to accomplish the plan she now had, being punished by the Head Girl would be bad. For now. As such, Vikky completely ignored her lack of hairpin and ran out through the door. So… Vera hadn’t followed her? She didn’t relent. She couldn’t be sure she was safe until she was long gone from this place. Actually, not even then. But for now, Vikky was hurrying down the stair as quickly as she could, not counting on that Vera wasn’t calling staff or her prefects to apprehend the rebel on by the front door. So she made her way down and…

… Nobody was stopping her? Vikky successfully managed to exit the tower and so. Vikky stopped momentarily below it just to stare up. Sh-she must be really screwed if there was no reason to pursue her, wasn’t she? Oh, gee… that’s right. Vikky would be forced to return anyways. There was no rush. Vera could pretty much collect her anytime she wanted. A small detail which actually worked in Vikky’s favor. Now she had time to do as she pleased… for a dangerously short time. OK… and now for the adventure that would cost her, no matter what happened. But she had to do this. She had to do this at least once. Just lying down and just accepting this system… wasn’t something she could do without a meager struggle. Vikky wasn’t strong. She didn’t have any life-changing powers or anything like that. A normal little girl, trapped in this cage like so many others. Even so… she had to do her part.

With this childish determination to not give up that easily, Vikky ran off. Her direction was out towards the forests of the island, towards the places where she had known to encounter monsters. One way or another, she needed to drag one in front of Vera. One way or another… she had to get one in front of that oblivious Head Girl…!

Of course, such a quest was entirely futile. But Vikky refused to believe that as she charged headlong in off the road and between the trees.

Between the trees. Over the bushes. Across the leaves. Vikky continued her flight through the woods, keeping her eyes peeled left and right. She needed to find a monster. As such, she kept off the road and continued running. She could no longer return to the school like normal. Before this was over, something was going to change. If what changed was Vikky’s position in the school or her mindset would be proven soon. Vikky ran through the somewhat warm forest, looking constantly left and right. She expected to be jumped by a monster with every step. She knew they were out here. Every step made loud noises breaking branches lying about or just hitting the ground. C’mon. I know you guys are out here. Vikky continued navigating the trees, her eyes searching the surroundings. Attack me. I’m a defenseless little girl. C’mon. Take my bait…!

…

Vikky stared out over the waters, looking out towards the horizon. She had run out of forest. This was the edge, a cliff down to the sea was all that remained. The girl blinked a moment in slight confusion. She had… managed to run straight through the woods she thought were riddled with monsters and hadn’t encountered a single one? That’s… impossible. Vikky span around and ran into the forest again. There was no way. She needed a monster. For this one time, she needed one. Were they… not going to show up…?

…

None. Nowhere. Why? It was several hours later, and the sun had descended rapidly. Vikky was hungry. Already hungry. She couldn’t run anymore, running too much had exhausted her. The night was getting cold. And… she was in the midst of the supposed monster-forest, scared out of her wits. Hugging herself, she looked around frightfully. One part of her feared being attacked in this dark environment. Another… feared not being attacked and being forced to return to the school. Vikky had challenged the school. But… now it seemed she no longer had any allies. This forest was her enemy. The school was her enemy. The monsters she was seeking were her enemies. Any student she’d talk to would be dragged along with her, as such she could only do this herself. But… it felt like she had been abandoned. This… this was terrible… Why couldn’t she find any blasted monsters!? GEE…!! But… this was during the night. Maybe… she had a better chance at finding a monster during the dead of night…?

…

It was way past the time she should be sleeping in her bed. Vikky snuck herself back into the dorm, into the school. Silently hoping, wishing, begging that she wouldn’t be… she couldn’t handle being out there anymore. She was hungry, exhausted, and freezing. This… this was just stupid. Why hadn’t she been able to find any monsters…!? What penalty would she get…? Vikky cheered silently as she managed to get back to her dorm-room and find it exactly like she had left it. Save… for one detail. A note, on the floor. A piece of paper, telling her to report to the basement at a specific time… They, they weren’t even going to collect her? They’d just… ask her to come to them? They… they knew she couldn’t escape. But, but… but Vikky was trying to free herself! She couldn’t just give up that easily! Tomorrow, she would go out again. She’d seek a monster again. As long as they didn’t collect her personally… she had time. Vikky only needed to encounter a single monster for this to work… Then it wouldn’t matter how much punishment she had racked up… Tomorrow… once again…

…

After an unruly sleep in her own bed without feeling safe at all, Vikky went to school. She was intending on skipping her basement appointment, but she still could go to school as before. Like hell she’d let this affect her grades. Though whenever she saw a prefect or a, god forbid, Head Girl on the grounds she shied away and quickly took an alternative route, otherwise Vikky went to school as normal. Then, when the afternoon came to an end, she immediately set off into the wild again to seek a monster. Skipping her basement appointment was… foolish, but if she could find a monster that would comply to her it would all balance out. Just… find one.

…

Once again, she found nothing. No monster. No monsters at all. Desperation clenched her heart as she made her way back in the darkness another night. Why? Why wasn’t she meeting any monsters? The notion that the school was actually the ones deciding who would be attacked by what occurred to her, and that they had decided that Vikky’s quest for a monster would be fruitless. If… if that was the case, Vikky was already done for. She had to assume that wasn’t the case. As she came back into the dorm-room, she found another note telling her to go to the basement at a new time… … Why? Why didn’t they apprehend her? Why were they just… sending another note? Vikky didn’t know. But… she’d use this chance to seek a monster… once again.

…

The days were starting to pile up. Day after day, the same repetition. Go up, go to school, wait for afternoon, seek monsters, find none, come back to dorm, another note… It continued. Day after day. Vikky ignored the basement appointments time and time again, but she was getting more and more terrified. It… it was impossible. She was actively searching for monsters, yet she was approaching her record for amount of safe days between attacks. The notes… ignoring this many, it could only be bad. Now Vikky was so afraid of what would happen if she actually went to the basement that she stayed away. Soon she was sure she had explored pretty much all of the island, and yet… no monsters. No. God. Damn. Monsters. WHERE WERE THEY!!?? Vikky’s fear and desperation led to sleepless nights and pure exhaustion. She was doing badly in school, too. This… this was so unfair…

…

She had lost count on how many days had gone since her meeting with Vera. Vikky just knew this couldn’t continue much longer. Currently, Vikky was making her way through the dark dorm of the school, back towards her room after another failed day of monster-hunting. She reached her door, tired after everything that happened, just wanted to sleep. So she took up her key, inserted it and… … …

“No.” Vikky stared wide-eyed. Her drowsiness was shook right away. The key… didn’t… fit…? She helplessly tried turning the key. “Open. Open.” It didn’t work. Her key couldn’t unlock her own door. “Open. Don’t. Do this. Open. No.” She pulled more violently. Panic. Panic was etching through her heart. She pulled the doorknob. Didn’t open. Vikky stared at her key and her door in terror. They… they locked her out. “Don’t. No. Please open.” Vikky tried pulling the door again, more violently this time. Tears were springing out of her eyes. This… this couldn’t happen. “Open. Open! OPEN!!” Vikky pulled the door inwards and outwards on the little space it had to move while trying to turn her non-fitting key in the lock. The noise was horrible. “OPEN, DAMN IT!!” She kicked the door. It amounted to absolutely nothing. The key was now slightly bent due to her troubles. Tears were dripping from her panicked expression. They… they couldn’t do this. Vikky… turned around. And ran.

…

H-here. Th-this was the stair… down to the basement… Vikky’s legs were shaking. Just the thought of entering this place… terrorized her. But. Th-there was no choice anymore. The school… was just playing with her. As if they had already known what she’d do. Tears were streaming down her cheeks. Panic was still fully present in her expression and pose. This… this was the time. Vikky took a shaking slow step down. It was as if she was willingly walking down into hell. It felt terrible. She was… giving up. She couldn’t… live like this. She had to… try… to restore herself to how she was. Vikky had been a normal student, clean record and all that… No more… Vikky took a shaking second step, completely filled with despair. Soon enough, she had gained a slow, shaking but inevitable rhythm to her fearful steps downwards. She didn’t know what waited down here. But… but… but whatever it was… Vikky bit her lips in regret. She couldn’t stop crying. Just… just the feeling of treading down here on her own accord… felt so traumatizing. There was no way she’d ever want to do it again. But, but… this school… WHAT WAS SHE SUPPOSED TO DO…!!??

Vikky continued downwards, absolutely terrified, unsure what would await her…

Just like dealing with an unruly child stomping her feet, the best course of action was just to ignore her. Vera did prepare a room down in the basement at first. But after being ignored the first time, the Head Girl knew what the girl was going to do. So she did nothing beyond have another slip and add an additional notice each time. Vikky was no longer attending class which meant the staff were already doing their part in deducting her grade down. Source revealed that the foolish student was constantly going out into the woods. No doubt the woan was trying to find proof that did not exist.

Within a couple of weeks, it was apparent the woman did not wish to attend this school any longer. It took very little effort at this point to convince the staff to remove all rights and benefits of a student from Vikky. That meant losing the dorm room, her gym locker, and access to all campus facilities including computers, food, and any merchants in the mini mall. Effectively, she was no longer a student in the eyes of Shokushu but a trespasser.

Vikky would find the door locked to her room and there were no longer notes waiting for her. No point in leaving basement slips for someone who is not even a student anymore. This was worse than being ignored, it was more like she was forgotten completely. The only places she could go were to the basement or back to Vera herself. The trip down the basement was frightening, navigating concrete halls that were all dimly lit with flickering bulbs. Sounds echoed from an unknown distance and every path seemed to look just like the one before. The doors had numbers but most were barely legible. While Vikky wanted to return for her punishment, there was no way of knowing where she was supposed to go or even what time she would be there without a basement slip. It was doubtful that anyone would just be waiting down here for a student who has shown no interest in complying with previous invitations.

The doors were all locked down in the basement though there were sounds coming from behind some of them. Perhaps other students were being punished. But any attempt to knock or bang on a door brought no response. There was nowhere else the terrorfied woman could go but back to the Head Girl she ran away from. Maybe... Just maybe... She can help fix everything.

What… what was the point of this place? Halls… halls seemingly created to make her feel locked in. And they succeeded. Vikky edged herself forward slowly and carefully, terror echoing through her with every step. There… there was nobody waiting for her. No destination. She had to lead herself along the wall. By understandable reasons, Vikky had never been here. She had only heard the rumors. Which… um… were not… uh… very positive. And here… she could understand why. The lights… were as constructed to scare students, so dim, flickering. Somewhere in the distance, there were sounds… Strange sounds. Some of them came from behind doors. Sometimes as if someone was there, other times like… like someone was being… no, Vikky didn’t want to... She edged her way, tried a few doors… but no. They didn’t let her. She went on, but… no matter where she went… She felt uninvited. The corridors looked the same. And she couldn’t shake the feeling she didn’t want to encounter whatever was making those sounds…

Vikky, speared straight through by terror, despair and panic, fled once again. She couldn’t handle this. She fled. Spun around, dizzily trying to retrace her panicked steps, her tears running constantly. She couldn’t help but feel like the dark shadows she couldn’t see her would attack. This… this place didn’t feel safe. She wanted out. Help.

… She got out. With ragged breath, Vikky once again found herself outside the basement. She was leaned against the wall, sweating, panicking. What… what was she supposed to do now!? She… she was supposed to come to the basement because the Head Girl had… oh… That’s right… she could… go see the Head Girl…

…

If going down to the basement had been like going down into hell, going up to the Head Girl was like going up to face the divine judge on a platform of the accused at a trial. This… this wasn’t the way Vikky wanted to return. But… she no longer had a choice. This was all she had. And… it was taken from her so easily… If this was the purpose of her life, then… Vikky couldn’t stop the tears. She knew she’d be punished. So, she… she got up in front of that same door… still wearing the uniform of the school, despite things that had happened… Then… Vikky supposed she had to knock. A fearful shaking fist was raised, intending to carefully knock, almost as if hoping she wouldn’t hear the knocks…

Vera did not even need to look up to know who was fearfully knocking at her door. How long has it been? Two weeks? Three? Long enough for the Head Girl to do everything in her power to ensure she crushes any further thought of rebellion from this troublesome pest. "Come in," she called. The Head Girl was typing away at her computer and did not bother giving Vikky a glance as she approached. Whether the student took a seat or not did not matter to the silver haired woman. It was almost as if she were ignoring Vikky's existence entirely.

"And what are you doing here?" the Head Girl asked after a painfully long silence, "My open door policy only applies to students, child. Why are you wearing this school's uniform? That does not belong to you. Please remove them." Vera looked at the crying woman with not an ounce of sympathy. This student disobeyed orders and ran off into the woods like some wild child. This girl has skipped countless classes to the point that may very well make this semester nothing but a huge black spot on her record. Vikky was no longer a student and Vera had no reason to show any respect to this disobedient piece of trash.

Come in. Come in, she said. Vikky recoiled at the words. … There… there was no doubt about it. Vikky had lost… whatever game she had got herself into. Her shaking hand slowly opened the door. For a moment, she considered running again. But… there’d be nowhere to go. She couldn’t stop her tears. So she slowly… slowly, on terrified legs, walked across the Head Girl’s room to stand in front of the desk. Vera hadn’t even looked at her. Vikky stood, terrified, in front of the desk. She knew she’d be punished… soon enough Vera shifted her attention and spoke… Eh? O-only for students? But she was… … she’d been… expelled…? But… they’d never let her return home…

“I…” Vikky sobbed as she looked on the sitting Head Girl. “I don’t have anything to change to here…” That… that was most likely her last defense. Her changes of clothes were all inside the dorm-room which she couldn’t enter anymore. So now she didn’t have anything else to wear. But… Vikky knew her pathetic defense would never hold… She lifted her shaking hands, and started undoing the uniform’s tie and the buttons…

The Head Girl's expression did not change as Vikky tried to explain that she had no spare clothes. She did not care. Vera gave an order and expected to be obeyed. The young woman did finally give in and remove her uniform every slowly. While she did that, Vera decided to inform her exactly how much trouble she was in. "You ignored mine and the staff's requests to go to the basement to be corrected. You skipped over two weeks of class. Your grades dropped to below acceptable. But instead of straightening up your act, you continued to run wild in the forest. It became obvious you had no intention of being a functional student of this school. So you were granted your wish. You are no longer a student and thus have none of the benefits of being one. I fail to see how this will help you get back a baseball bat much less get you home to your boyfriend's arms."

"So I will ask again, why are you here?" Vera repeated, "If you do not answer, I will have to assume you are trespassing and will have you removed from the building." Her voice was ice cold, holding no sympathy for the creature stripping before her. Compared to other students who find themselves in trouble before the Head Girl, Vikky was so far below them. She had alot of climbing and convincing to do if she was ever going to get herself out of this pit she dug herself in.

Vikky took off the tie, and shyly took off the vest behind her and folded it and placed it on the desk. Then she removed the unbuttoned shirt, pulling it off while listening to the painful words coming out of the Head Girl’s mouth. So… she had been expelled, but with no intention of shipping her home…? Now she was only a lost individual, left to fend off for herself on a distant island? That was… so cruel…! Vikky took off her skirt, and now she was standing in only her white underwear. She left the clothes folded in a corner of the table which Vera didn’t appear to be using at that moment. … So… now she simply needed to be as good a student as she possibly could… but she wasn’t even a student…

“I, I’m sorry.” She said, voice cracked with the despair which flowed through her. “I di-didn’t want this. Pe-please let m- please give-” Vikky bit her lip. She couldn’t just go babbling and make mistakes again. She had to… say… exactly what she wanted. “I… I’ve been acting out of line. I’m here to make amends. I want to be a student again. I’m-I’m sorry for everything…” Vikky kept her eyes fixed on the clothes she had been forced to take off. She couldn’t look at the Head Girl. She was… so ashamed… at the same time Vikky knew that she had acting from sensible logic… kind of… but it had not worked… and now she was standing here…

"Didn't want this?" Vera repeated, "I told you exactly when and how you will receive your precious item. Instead, you did everything in your power to prevent it from happening while blaming myself and the school for your wrongdoings. You are no longer a student. Do you know what that means? It means the school has no reason to protect your belongings anymore. That includes the items that were confiscated from you upon arriving here. You wanted to keep that bat safe but in the end, you could have not put it in any more danger than if you had thrown it into a fire yourself." The Head Girl let that sink in a bit. Biting the hand that feeds you comes to mind with Vikky's behavior so far. Vera wanted to make that fact abundantly clear.

"Your grades are abyssmal and you have proven to myself and the staff that you are less than stable," the Head Girl continued, "You do not trust this school or myself and think we are your enemy when we have done nothing to you but protect you. Right now, you are nothing but a danger to yourself and other students. With your current attitude, why should I even bother asking the staff to take you back? I am not in the mood for your childish games, girl. You insulted me, lied to me, and wasted my time. You certainly look sorry but not for what you did or how you have been acting. If you utter a single lie, you are going out that door. I suggest you choose your words carefully in deciding how you are going to convince me that this is not a complete waste of my time."

Th-that’s not true. She didn’t do this to retrieve her bat. She tried to… she tried to show the Head Girl that monsters really existed. Vikky had attempted to show that monsters really existed. That she had not been fabricating anything. But… but… there was… complications. She never meant to… this. It made sense… what she had been doing should have been making sense… but she hadn’t encountered any monsters… Why? Why had it happened like this? She hadn’t been lying… a single time. But… there was no truth to that. There wasn’t any proof that she had been lying, either… But that didn’t count… Her truths… became lies…

She couldn’t say she had never lied. She couldn’t say anything that was the truth, as it was but lies to her. But Vikky couldn’t lie. Which meant that the only things she could say were in that thin line of sentences between what would be lies should she tell them and actual lies. That line… wasn’t very long. It was… so unfair. Gee… Why had she ended up like this? This was terrible. She hated this. Damn it. Damn monsters. Damn school. Why had this happened to her…?

“I-I’m sorry. I’ll do anything. I’ve seen the futility in my actions. Please let me try to rebuild… I don’t have anything but these words to support me… But please. I-I don’t have anywhere else to go.” That last was certainly not a lie. “Do anything to me… but please… let me back in school… I’ll be good…”

"Good?" the Head Girl replied, "Do you even know what good means? I have no idea what you are implying I 'do' to you. The only thing I care about is ensuring students here take advantage of their potential and not become useless wastes of space. But since you are incapable of listening to others especially from this school, I will give you new motivation." Vera opened the drawer of her desk and gently sets the hairpin Vikky left behind on the desk. "Holding on to an item and preventing it from being damaged is simple task anyone can do. Despite being expelled, I requested your belongings to remain untouched. But, such a request can be withdrawn. If I find your behavior and grades have not improved, I will assume the bat is still distracting you from your future and will have it removed. Do I make myself clear?"

She had no qualms with using the bat as a carrot or rather a hostage. This student ignored this school for weeks and she did not like being ignored by a mere clueless student. "Before you so rudely ran away from me, I was going to suggest speaking to someone about your hallucinations," Vera continued, "Being isolated on an island away from everything has been known to have strange effects to the minds of some people. But I suppose it is useless to speak further on the matter. It is not like you are listening to me or believe a word I say, correct? The fact of the matter, if you think everyone here in this school is your enemy, there is no hope of ever helping you through what problems you have been having."

... There she was standing, in only her white underwear, white panties and bra, being scolded by the Head Girl. It was pretty much Vikky’s first experience with such. She had always, throughout her life, been a very good girl. Never got into trouble with anyone, always sought to be a model example of a proper person. But…

Her… her hairpin. Vikky had left it behind so long ago. She was actually wearing a new one now, simply having picked another at home since she had a few and was used to always wearing one. But… the one she had left behind. It was still… here. Why had Vera bothered to keep it…? … The bat… it hardly mattered anymore. Vikky’s lost war against her situation was far greater in her mind at this point. But… she understood. Vikky nodded when Vera asked if she was making herself clear.

Vikky precisely managed to stop herself from speaking out of term when Vera called what she had experienced for ‘hallucinations’. That was a lie. That had happened. She had been raped, multiple times, by different monsters. There was no way that, along with talking to several students with similar experiences, was all hallucinations. Not unless… it was all controlled hallucinations. And Vikky refused to believe that. Yet… as Vera said, talking on the matter was useless. For both sides. And… and Vera was right. Not everyone at school was an enemy. Many of the students were in the same situations… not all teachers could be… maybe even Vera… Vikky nodded to what Vera was saying. There… simply wasn’t any questions asked that needed a verbal answer from the miserable expelled half-naked student.

"Do not just nod like a mindless doll!" the silver haired woman hissed venomously, "You came here because you wanted to become a good student, correct? You are supposed to be an adult. If I provide issues with your return, I suggest you figure out ideas that will help you get in the Headmasters' good graces. Do not just stand there. Think and provide feedback or I will find talking to a mute wall a waste of my time. So far all you have done is agree with me or perhaps you are not listening and nodding off. How do you intend to fix these issues. At this point, I have zero reason to put forth any effort to help you, especially when you have done nothing but ignore me and this school to do god knows what out there in the woods. Misbehavior, failed semester, unstable mental state, complete mistrust of the system; solutions... provide them... now."

This was Vikky's opportunity to prove she capable of something other than just running away or nodding her head. Right now, there was no reason for the school to take her back. Eventually, monsters would find her and rape her brains out which would cause no real harm to overall student body. This was a chance for Vikky to at least have the comfort of studying and pursuing a degree or some other goal to give her something else to focus on besides her encounters with alien monsters.

The sobbing girl flinched at being told not to just nod. Feeling forced to act, Vikky turned to looked at the Head Girl… But… but she didn’t know what else to do! She had already forwarded her plea! It… it wasn’t enough. It didn’t do it. S-so… she had to say something. Vikky opened her mouth, trying to force something out of it. But… she had to consider. B-but… Vera said now. Now. Vikky felt forced to think through what she should say while at the same time felt forced to say something as quickly as possible.

“I, I…” She didn’t know what to say. So she merely said everything that came to mind. “I’ll take extra duties. I’ll volunteer for any tasks the school needs assistance with. I’ll widen my schedule to fill in the extra classes I might need to take to make up for what I’ve missed. My intention was always to become a manager or coach for a sports-team, so even if I’m not in any club right now I can join one to help out if necessary. I’ll see any councilor or nurse for my mental health as necessary. I’ll work hard to ensure you don’t need to hear about this again…”

Vikky was shaking where she was standing… having just… said anything that came to her mind. She swallowed a bit of air that had entered her mouth. Her tears were refusing to disappear. “Th-that should be… would that be enough…?” If… if that were to be done, Vikky would barely have any free-time left…