Katawa Cookies- Prologue

Ahoy-hoy! As I said in my previous post, I've been trying to do some writing to get through the comic burnout I'm currently experiencing. I said that if I thought what I was making was any good, I'd share it here. I think I've got some fun stuff brewing, but I suppose I'll let ya'll be the judge.

This is an alternate universe story featuring the cast of Donut Delinquent and the 2012 visual novel Katawa Shoujo. I've been replaying KS recently, and a bunch of ideas for a crossover started flowing.

Dunno how long this project will be, not promising I'll even finish it as it's kind of just a little side fanfic thing, but we'll see how it goes! If this is successful, I may do more text-based stuff like this in the future too.

Expect every chapter to have an illustration or two.

With setup out of the way, enjoy!

                                                                        ...

Prologue: Lullaby of Open Eyes

Leo could feel something was wrong as he watched students walk down the street from his bedroom window. Of course, he felt that way because he was supposed to be there alongside them, walking towards the first day of his final year of high school.

At least, he was supposed to before his world crashed around him the week before, his illness flaring back up at the worst possible time. He had been touring the school with his mother and fainted right in front of the administrator, creating all sorts of questions about accessibility and their ability to accommodate, offering alternative options. Options his mother was all too open to, her overprotective side coming to the surface after months of Leo trying to convice her he was better.

The feeling Leo had was deeper than all that, though. For the most part, he had come to terms with the fact that he couldn’t attend Kabocha High for his final year, that he wouldn’t get the “normal” high school experience he so greatly craved. No, he just had the feeling that he was missing out on something greater, as if by not walking out that door today, he was missing out on a pivotal moment in his life, the door closing forever.

As that metaphorical door shut, his bedroom door opened to reveal his mother, Ryoko Tachibana. Her hands were on her hips, a concerned expression on her face.

“You can’t just sit here and rot, kid.” she said, walking into his room and starting to tidy things up. “This isn’t easy for me either, y’know? The decision we made is gonna be hard on me, too, not seein’ you for a year…”

After he had fainted, the school administrator had brought them into his office, showing them potential alternatives to attending Kabocha high. Leo had wanted to just resume the life he had before, studying at home if he couldn’t go there. Ryoko however, was immediately drawn to one of the other options. It was a school up north, completely dedicated to assisting students with disabilities. Leo had tried to shoot down the idea, bringing up the cost, but the administrator was all too quick to assure Ryoko that they could pull enough strings to get the tuition down to nearly nothing.

From there, it was settled, and Leo would be leaving on a train later that day. He didn’t lose just the ability to go to school like a normal person, he had also lost his home, he had also lost…

“Do you think I’ll be able to bake up there?” Leo asked, flopping out of bed. “I’d hate to get rusty, without access to a kitchen…”

Ryoko sighed. This had been a contentious point between them for quite some time. Leo dearly loved baking, having been raised in a bakery all this life. Unfortunately, he was absolutely awful at it, unable to make something even halfway edible.

“I’m sure you’ll be able to, sweetie.” In truth, Ryoko hoped he wouldn’t, and that he’d find a new hobby up there, away from the kitchen. She hated being so negative about it, but no matter how hard he practiced, he never improved.

Walking downstairs into the bakery portion of their home, Leo was met with the one person more distressed about the school decision than he was. Leaned up against the counter, sweat drenching her skin-tight uniform, Lisbeth Hanezawa gasped for breath.

“What’s the deal, Lis? Did you run all the way over here” Leo said, hobbling with his cane over to the counter to give Lisbeth some water. He tried to give her the benefit of the doubt, but he knew that considering Lisbeth’s massive size, she’d get this winded from just walking, not running.

“I-I just wha-wanted to see you off b-before you left…” Lisbeth whimpered between breaths, sweat intermingling with tears across her flabby face.

Lisbeth was Leo’s best friend, his only friend. Every day before and after school, she’d visit him, and the two would hang out, reading manga, playing video games, and in Lisbeth’s case, stuffing her face with the bakery’s sweets and treats.

“I’ll text you every day, and mom said she’d still let you hang out here after school…” Leo said, trying to make her feel better.

Lisbeth didn’t have very many friends either, the only other one being her school friend Kimi… who coincidentally would also be leaving Kabocha that day for family business. Lisbeth would be left all alone in Kabocha for the next year…

“Th-there’s no stopping th-this, is there?” She stuttered, looking at Leo through tear-fogged glasses.

“Nah... Believe me, I don’t want it eith-…” Before Leo could finish, Lisbeth took him up into a tight hug.

“Th-there’s something I n-need to tell you, Leo….” she stammered, barely able to get the words out.

“Y-yeah?” Leo asked, unable to breathe with how tightly she was holding onto him…

“I… I…. I’ll miss you.” Lisbeth said, unable to get her true feelings out. She loved Leo more than anything, but she couldn’t tell him. Not now.

“I’ll miss you too…” Leo said, breaking away from the hug. He was thankful she didn’t say what he was expecting she would. He knew Lisbeth had feelings for him, but they were feelings he didn’t share. Lisbeth was his best friend, but he doubted there was any world where she’d be his girlfriend.

“Hate to break up the moment, but you better be off before you’re late, Lis…” Ryoko stormed down the stairs, two empty suitcases in hand. “You might want to leave before I really tear into Leo here…”

“W-why would you…”

“You’re leaving this afternoon, and you haven’t packed anything at all!”

                                                                    …

Later that day, Leo waited at the train platform, full suitcases in hand. Ryoko was inside the station getting tickets sorted, leaving him alone with his thoughts.

He’d been at this station numerous times before, always going to the bigger hospitals in the city for extended stays full of tests and procedures. This felt much like that, just an extended, school-flavored hospital stay.

He was startled by a loud bang behind him, turning around to see a girl violently punching a vending machine.

“Stupid thing…. First the school one takes my money, now this one?!”

She was a petite girl with short brown hair. She wore the Kabocha High uniform, her face obscured by a mask.

For some reason, it was an intimately familiar sight for Leo, but he couldn’t quite figure out why.

“Need some help? I can spot you some change…” Leo said, walking up to her.

“Huh? I don’t want no handouts, assho-” Before she could finish her thought, the girl froze at the sight of him. She too felt the familiar feeling he did. Like Leo though, she couldn’t place her finger on why.

“Well if you don’t want money, how ‘bout this instead...” Leo smiled, digging through his suitcase and unwrapping a bagfull of heart-shaped sugar cookies. “Donuts are my forte, but I’ve got a trip ahead of me and cookies last a little longer...”

“What’d I just say?! Mind your damn business…” despite saying this, she still swiped the cookie from Leo’s hand.

Before Leo could say anything in response, the girl’s phone rang and she turned aside to answer.

“Yeah? Oh, M-miss Masako? Yeah, I’ll be there tomorrow… Okay, bye…”

Hearing that name, Leo perked up.

“Masako? That’s my sister! How do you know her?”

“What’d I say about minding your own business, creep?” the girl barked, before quickly simmering down when she looked at him again, that strange feeling tearing at her.

“Sh-she’s hiring me… don’t tell her I yelled at you, I don’t want to get fired before I even start…”

“Don’t worry! You’re fine… besides, I’m leaving as we speak…” Leo sighed.

“Who are you, anyway? Looks like you’re my age, but I’ve never seen you at school…”

“Ah, I don’t go to Kabocha, in fact, I’m…” Before Leo could finish, Ryoko bounded out of the station.

“C’mon kid, haul ass! I was wrong, the train up north is on the other platform, and about to leave!” She grabbed him by the sleeve, dragging him along.

“I’m Leo! Nice to meet you!” Leo yelled out to the girl.

“Hana!” she yelled back before turning away.

Alone at the train station, Hana took a bite out of the cookie. For the briefest moment, it tasted like heaven, filling her with the same warm feeling she had when she looked at Leo . But as she chewed further, the taste soured, almost as if her tastebuds had rearranged as she ate it. She couldn’t even finish the last bites, spitting them out.

Far away, Emi Ibarazaki finished her last lap around the Yamaku Academy track. As she caught her breath and wiped the sweat off her forehead, her stomach rumbled. She had the strangest craving for sugar cookies...