The Art of Survival [Taro x Root]

Taro spat up the blood from inside his mouth.  Not because of Root's punch, because that resulted in his black eye.  He spat up blood because he accidentally bit his tongue.

"So, obviously it was Wendy on the ElectorID's found footage montage.  And I was also right about you and Mariko.  The main problem here is for a super genius, you are being a bigger idiot than I am pretending to be.  There is a one in four chance that your girlfriend is behind all of this.  And, more importantly, I'm almost certain that she will kill someone before this game is over.  If not behind this, she will snap under pressure.  And you are going to have complete faith in someone like that.  I know she only reminiscent of Wendy that's, well let's face fact, dead right now, but you are being an idiot for falling in love with someone like that.  Stop being so blind to that truth."

He lightly patted his cheek a few times, almost as to say Good boy.

"Now that's out of the way, any books that I might have read from your mother?"

Taro rubbed his cheek with the water bottle, still cold enough to make as a substitute ice pack.  

"You dumb cunt."  Taro said in monotone.  "Do you really think Mariko, if she is the mastermind, gives two fucks about you?  Hell, Mrs. Mastermind probably desecrate your mother's corpse with a gleaming smile.  If she isn't the mastermind, then you know for a fact that she can easily manipulate a puppy dog like you into becoming her victim.  It's the perfect crime if they victim makes sure everything works out perfectly.  No notes, no struggling, no problems.  I could understand if you were crushing on literally anyone else."

Taro spat out more blood from his mouth.  "Besides, loving someone that you are willing to die for them less than two weeks in is just some bad RPG mechanic.  Wendy?  I understand.  You knew Mariko way before all this?  I understand.  But she isn't and you didn't.  That is why you will crash and burn."

Blood started dripping out from the corner of his mouth and preceded to wipe it down with his coat sleeves.  "Now, was your mother a horror writer, a romcom or, hell, maybe she was an erotic fiction writer.  She'll need some escape from marrying your deadbeat father.  Probably why you have such a fucked up concept of love."

Despite Root's rage, not a lot of damage was done to Taro.  Sure his face was cut, bruised and even covered in blood, but he's seen worse.  Luckily, Root didn't go for the arm.  Secretly, while Root was not facing him and overall distracted, he reached into his pockets.  Previously, after the first trial, Taro took one last look around the shop which had been completely cleaned.  While touring, he found something no one else had mention: a recorder.  The previous purpose of such a device was to let kids with learning disabilities record the teacher's lecture.  However, Taro decided to use it to record his conversation with Root after the first punch.  He turned off the device, after acquiring what he came to Root for.  All that was left was to deflect suspicion off of him.

"You know, you don't keep your thumbs into your fist when you punch.  That will just end up breaking your thumb.  We have nothing better to do, so why not ask Mamouro if he can teach you how to fight.  Hell, nobody here will consider that course of action unreasonable."

He continued to straighten his tie again and fixed his collar and sit next to Root.

"My mom and I were driving when we came across a railroad crossing.  Just then, the train derailed due to a rock slide that just happened a minute before the collision.  It literally smashed into our car with full force.  I was quadriplegic temporarily while she became ten pints of blood scattered in the car.  When you get the experience I get, it's no one's fault what happens to you.  Sure, I was the one who needed a lift, but I didn't cause the rock slide.  Nature did that one.  Because mother nature is a bitch.  If you really did kill your mother, you would have been in prison.  Which means, you would have known how to fight.  But, because you don't, you didn't kill her.  And she is not going to let you die over a complete stranger.  She is still watching over you like a haunting, but one that you want to have happen to you.  Take my advice, don't fall that hard in love unless we have figured out who the traitors are."


He took out the water and poured it on a napkin that he previously ate an apple with.  He then started to clean the wounds out of Root's hands. 

Taro sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Obviously this attitude of yours is suicidal at best.  I hope you do realize that.  If you could just tell me how she died, I can convince you that you are not at fault here.  Wendy would back me up on this.  You are not at fault for any deaths whatsoever."

Taro allowed Root to be in silence for a minute or two after he was done.

"I can tell you one thing.  People have a tendency to be completely blind to the obvious solution when they were so worked up about the issue.  I know for a fact that you want to try to fix everything that is possible to fix, and the best way to do that is to drop the issue for a few weeks and seek therapy.  You have classic PTSD.  Hell, you might be subconsciously not solving the problem because it's the only thing that still keeps her memory alive.  I've seen stranger things before.  Instead of focusing on the physical problems, like your memory or only god knows what happen to Wendy, assuming she didn't get off with scrapes and bruises, focus on the emotional problems that occurred.  I highly doubt that she doesn't feel partly responsible, no matter how much of a stretch it is."

Taro drank some of his water, which reasonably got tainted with blood.  

"The only other way I can explain this to someone is by example.  A lone surgeon is currently stationed in Africa as part of the Doctors Without Borders.  During his stay, he learns of a boy who has six months to live if he doesn't get a surgery immediately.  On the way over to the boy, he gets into a car crash.  The crash severely damages his leg.  As a result, he needs five months of rehabilitation before he can use it correctly.  If the surgeon instead goes and perform surgery on the boy, the pain in his leg will make it difficult to concentrate on the surgery.  As a result, he will most likely kill his patient on the table.  So, what is the doctor going to do?  Does he perform the surgery or not?  The smart move will be to heal himself before he heals the boy for a greater chance at success at the surgery.  He still has a month of time left before the boy dies, but it's better than potentially making a fatal error on the surgery."

"Do me a favor.  Don't just pass my advice off as just nonsense.  Just think it over for a bit.  Always keep it in the back of your mind.  And there's absolutely no reason why you can't go to therapy and do the science behind finding a cure.  Trust me on that."

"You shouldn't trust me.  Hell, it's like those Verity Jones novels.  I don't trust a single person she's investigating, especially when it comes down to anything surrounding the father.  Unfortunately, the last book in the series, A Shadow in the Past, was taken by Monokuma before I could finish it.  Bear certainly knows how to bring despair.  Anyways, I digress.  It's completely normal for you not to fully trust in me.  And I am truly sorry about insulting your family.  I just had..."  Taro stopped himself short.  He cannot reveal the tape.  It's absolutely necessary for later.