Darkness. 

For a time there’s nothing but darkness. 

A churning and heavy darkness that wraps around the small bathysphere as it lowers in an unsteady drift from above. It’s lights, shining bright, illuminate the empty eyes of a deep sea fish and it’s unhinged jaw, before it swims away. 

<https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fztkUuunI7g>

Bubbles rise from deep sea vents, traced by the eyes of the dark haired man bound within the bathysphere’s confines. Chains wrap around his body, binding his arms, legs and torso to the controls as his fingers flex tightly around the only one that seems to work…the controls for the headlamps. 

A gag smothers his mouth, as panicked green eyes flick around at every little movement in the darkness beyond. As much as they can, shoulders rise…fall…and rise again in panicked, heavy breaths. 

A small screen lights up on the console before him, and a bear appears with a strange smile…one half of the bear white and like any child’s toy bear….the other half a deep black, it’s smile a wicked slash across its face and its eye a jagged , glowing red.  

The man’s eyes widen in fear, recognition. He thrashes in his bonds as the bear begins to shake in laughter. It’s paw comes down on a small button beside him….and the chain holding the bathysphere suddenly goes taut. 

It’s pulled, tearing through the water like a bullet, the speed and  the water’s weight causing the glass to buckle before him. Screws begin to pop, as water sprays into the confines of the small space, and the man has enough time to scream before the mounting pressure and erratic movement finishes the job. 

Far about…a massive cruise liner sails silhouetted by the sun’s light cuts through the water, a bathysphere’s chain dragging behind it like an ineffective anchor to the sound of malicious laughter booming from countless speakers. 

 

**Danganronpa: Despair on the Open Sea**

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 

Framed in the early morning light stands a building. A school. It’s high clocktower faces the surrounding city in stark silhouette, always reminding the people of Tokyo that this…

This school was the center of the universe. 

A school unlike any other. For this was Hope’s Peak Academy. 

It’s students were carefully selected, picked by a special council, and invited to attend it’s hallowed halls with the utmost care. For the Students of Hope’s Peak possessed something few others did. 

Talent. Incredible Talents that far outstripped their years. These cream of the crop. The best of the best…these Super High School Level talents were the lifeblood of Hope’s Peak that passed through it’s halls each and every day.

Future leaders of industry, Heirs, Artists, Soldiers, and great thinkers. To graduate from Hope’s Peak was to find yourself among society’s elite…and to graduate into a life of grand success and endless possibility.

And yet, standing before the path to its front door…there is but a single figure. With all the other students having filtered inside long ago…he stands on the precipice of greatness. 

The wind blows, knocking flowering petals from the trees lining the path  and sending them cascading through the air and overhead…the birds sing their morning calls as even the sound of traffic begins to fade away before the school’s imposing aura…and Nagano Shinya stands alone.

Shinya stood before the school and looked up at it, hands clasped behind his back, and chin raised. He too a moment with the venerable institution to bask in the aura of awe that it projected, giving it a moment of the respect it deserved, perhaps, with a small, mysterious smile on his pale face. 

_Hope’s peak academy. People might say that he didn’t deserve to be there. He’d prove them wrong, of course._

_Didn’t deserve to be there_. 
Yes, there were some that had said that…but upon his invitation to the illustrious academy, the Talent Scout had been quite enthusiastic.

No matter what others may say…he was to be part of Hope’s Peak’s 80th class…and he belonged there as much as anyone else.

“No point in delaying much further,” he purred to himself, and–shifting his hands from behind his back, into his pockets– took his first step past the gate of the school.

It was his first step into the halls of Hope’s Peak.

The first step of the rest of his life…so why did it seem like the path was shifting? Swaying…as his foot came down, he felt as if his world had taken a tilt…shifting back and forth in an uncomfortable rocking sensation that warped the edges of his vision.

The smell of salt…and iron…and blood leaked into understanding as the world pitched wildly to the left.

Shinya groaned, and raised his head, rubbing his cheeks with confusion. For a single moment he wondered if he’d fallen asleep somewhere– his desk at home was favorite– but no. The smell was wrong.

He felt a strange, ringing pain at the back of his head….like a pinbrick that bloomed into an all consuming flood of pain…and he found the ground rushing up to meet him in a dead faint.

*Well…. I didn’t expect that.* Shinya’s feet went out beneath him, and then darkness.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Darkness.

For a time there was nothing but darkness.

A churning and heavy darkness that swallowed all conscious thought and dragged everything but the barest sensations into the abyss. 

But soon, the darkness began to ebb. Light glowed behind what must have been his eyelids as sensations trickled in. A hard floor with a rough carpet…the slow rock of the world around him…the smell of carpet cleaner…a pounding in his head and an ache of his limbs.

Of all things, maybe the carpet cleaner smell annoyed him the most. He groaned, and tried to peel his eyes open.

He found himself staring into the fibers of a rug, it’s pattern a black diamond imposed upon a white background…repeating over and over before him in his field of vision. 

His body felt sluggish….stiff…but functional, especially as the drowsiness began to ebb away.

Shinya blinked repeatedly. The diamond pattern was _not_ doing wonders for his clarity of mind or vision.  He closed his eyes for a moment and rolled onto his back to escape it.
He tried to think of what the last thing he remembered was. Walking into the school?

As he lay flat upon his back , he saw  wood paneled walls on either side of him, and a pale blue ceiling painted with cloud-like white swirls. A chandelier hung above him, glittering in the light cast by the bulb nestled within it’s hanging strands. 

He also became aware of a figure standing over him with a puzzled look on his face.

A tall, tan skinned young man with broad shoulders and dark, messy hair stood over him with his hands in his jean jacket’s pockets. He had long lashed eyes, a deep grey in color, and hair that fell over his face in loose waves. Under the jean jacket, we wore a garish black and red pinstriped shirt. 

“Funny place to take a nap, fella.” He said in a deep, scratchy voice.

_Drugged? HIt on the back of the head? Memory loss?_
The ideas flitted through Shinya’s head one by one.
He peered up at the newcomer.

“Funny you should say that, I was thinking the same thing.”

As his thoughts evened out ….it was clear that whatever happened, he wasn’t outside Hope’s Peak anymore. Drugged was possible, given how he was feeling.

The young man laughed, running his hand through his hair with a smirk “eyup. Need a hand up, or are ya good? Because you’re kinda blockin’ the hallway.”

Shinya reached up his slim, long fingered hand for an assist.

“If you please,” he purred. “I’m not certain how steady on my feet I’ll be.”

The young man pulled one of his hands from his pocket, and snatched Shinya’s hand with his own. His fingers were rough, calloused, and his grip was strong.

He helped Shinya to his feet with a nod of his head “Yeah. I wasn’t too steady when I first got up too. It’s like the world keeps **rockin’ back and forth**.”

Shinya stood with the young man’s help, but true to his word _was_ unsteady on his feet. The floor seemed to rock beneath him, and he thumped against his new friend, chest to chest.

“Ah! So I see…..”

The young man placed his hands on Shinya’s shoulders to steady him, a slightly flustered edge to his smirk. “Yeah. Got a few ideas on what’s up with that..but for right now, I’m tryin’ to find other folks in the same kinda predicament as you and I. Teachers orders.”

“Teacher’s orders,” he mused. “You’re from hope’s peak then?”
Shinya straightened his hair.

“That’s right.” The boy said with a cocky grin before taking a step back and pointing to himself. “Name’s Munenori Tsuda, SHSL Sharpshooter.”

He leaned on the wood paneled wall with a wink.”and you?”

“Nagano Shinya,” he nodded. “Pleased to meet you.”

Tsuda grinned at him “Are you a Hope’s Peak student too? Or are  you just some poor bastard who wound up int he same shit as the rest of us?”

“I suppose that depends on how you count it, Tsuda-kun,” he said, peering down the hall. “I’d hardly walked past the front gate before I would up here– but it WAS the Hopes Peak gate.”

“You too, huh?” Tsuda shook his head, looking at him with a slight furrow of his brow. “Stepped inside on my first day and boom…passed out and woke up buried on a chair in the lounge area.”

“You should be thankful you got the chair,” Shinya answered with a slight smile. He carefully tugged at his clothes, thankful he still had the silvery windbreaker over his uniform and turtleneck.

“Yeah, Shinya-kun” Tsuda chuckled “you say that, but my spine certainly ain’t thankful.”

“We all have our crossed to bear I suppose,” he sighed. “You said something about a teacher, Tsuda-kun?”

Tsuda startled, before miming a pair of finger guns his way “oh , yeah. We ain’t the only ones who woke up here. Couple of other students so far, and our homeroom teacher from Hope’s Peak.  Ms Sakai Kira.”

“Ah, I see,” Shinya nodded, wiping a smudge off his round glasses. “Well, if our homeroom teacher is here, I suppose the most _prudent_ thing would be to  follow instruction for now.”

“Damn right. I ain’t one for following authority much, but in this case? I’ll take it. There were two others nearby when I first woke up. Sakai-sensei seems to think there’s probably more of us about, too…and going by the fact I found you, she’s on to something.”

“Well then, we should probably start looking, shouldn’t we?” he smiled, and looped a hand around Tsuda’s back.

Tsuda’s face turned the slightest bit pink as he cleared his throat “you’re uh… a familiar kinda guy aintcha?”

“I’m a little off balance,” he admitted. “Both on my feet, and in this new fun little situation. But, if you’d prefer your personal space of course….” he withdrew his hand, and placed it against the wall instead.

Tsuda pat Shinya’s shoulder with a chuckle “nah, s’fine. I’ll keep you steady, alright?” 

he gestured down the hall to where it opened up into an open area “you’ll run outta wall soon enough, anyway.”

Shinya chuckled slightly and gave Tsuda a grateful smile. “I suppose I will. Well, you’re kind to let me lean on you, Tsuda-kun. Lets find some other students, hmm?”

Tsuda winked “uh huh. Hey, what can I say? I’m an agreeable kinda guy.”

He started walking down the hall….and one of the first things Shinya could see were the windows…or rather, what _were_ windows. 

Each one was covered by a heavy steel plate…bolted onto  the wall and soldered tight. No light from outside…no view…nothing but thick sheet metal in place of the windows along hte hall.

“Well…. that’s ominous, ne?” he offered. He leaned toward the nearest window and ran his finger over some of the soldering.

It was fresh…not ‘still burning’ fresh…but it could have been put up only a few weeks ago. It was certainly not about to crumble or rust away. 

“Ain’t it? I’ve noticed that pretty much every window on this floor’s like that…so far at least.”

“Fascinating,” he purred, leaning slightly on Tsuda again as they kept moving down the hallway. “Not enough information to venture a guess yet though.”

Tsuda kept a hand on his shoulder as the two of them moved down the hall. “Yeah…so far I got nothin’…though, the direction we’re headin’ is supposedly where the kitchen is.”

In fact, as they passed a small inlet with a few vending machines, they saw a sign marked ‘Kitchen, Dining Hall’

Shinya glanced at the vending machines. “Well, its an at least semi-public place in any case. That’s interesting information.”

There was a coffee vending machine, one for various sodas….one for snacks…

And one simply labeled ‘Harmful: Do not touch’  with an opaque front panel. 

Tsuda nodded. “probably gonna find someone there, ya know? It’s the kinda place people might think to look for other folks.”

“That’s just what I was thinking,” he agreed, tugging Tsuda slightly toward their destination. “When in times of trouble people often follow their stomach.”

“That some kinda proverb?” Tsuda joked as he walked alongside him, his pace quickening as he was tugged.

The two of them walked into an open area. It was a lounge, with a television bolted to the wall,  a security camera beeping away, and a circular pattern of couches and chairs around a large table.

Just beyond were a pair of double doors marked ‘Kitchen/Dining Hall’. 

It looked like there were halls on either side of it, as well as on the side opposite the one they’d come out of, leading back the way Tsuda had come.

“I suppose its as good as any proverb,” Shinya mused. As they came to the open area he paused and looked around. He narrowed his eyes at the flashing camera for a moment. “Comfortable, I suppose.”

As he looked, he became aware that there were…more of them. Looking down the halls, catching different angles.

This entire place was monitored from every angle. 

Tsuda took a stop forward, and gasped “shit, there’s someone on the couch!”

He hurried over, looking down at what turned out to be a figure in a suit and tie, his pale green hair tousled around his face as a pair of glasses sat askew upon his nose. He was snoring softly, delicate chest rising and falling as he slept.

“So there is,” Shinya said, striding over to the couch and looking down at the figure. “It almost seems a shame to wake him. Almost.”

Shinya leaned down and fixed the figure’s glasses. “Goodmorning….”

He was a handsome, if slight and elfin young man. Freckles crossed over his upturned nose, and as Shinya fixed his glasses…great blue eyes slowly blinked open to look around “mmmhhh?? who?…who are you?”

“Nagano Shinya. Pleased to meet you. Are you a hope’s peak student?”

The young man sat up with a start, smoothing out his hair into an orderly bob, and adjusting his rectangular glasses with a quick nod of his head.

He adjusted his tie, and flashed Shinya a thumbs up and a broad smile “That’s right! Well spotted sir! Well spotted! My name is Noda Sadahiro! I’m the SHSL Secretary, working for major corporations since I was 11 years old, sir!”

“How interesting! I’m surprised you had time to go to school with all that work, ne?” he mused. “We’re not certain what’s going on here, but homeroom teacher said to round everyone up.”

“My employers thought it prudent that I get the best education I could, despite my duties as secretary.” he chirped “So I spent 8 hours at work, and 8 hours at school!”

“Ain’t a lotta time for like, I dunno, Sleep and being a kid and shit.” Tsuda drawled. “Amazing how you’re so chipper.” 

“what can I say? It’s part of being the best secretary I can be! A positive attitude!” Sadahiro beamed. “Homeroom teacher? So…this must be Hope’s Peak, right?”

“That would seem like the most logical conclusion on the surface of it, wouldn’t it?” Shinya offered.

“Hope’s Peak don’t generally sway, but who knows. Maybe I’m still fucked up from the druggin’ I got.” Tsuda shrugged.

“…sway…” Sadahiro frowned, shifting his feet to the floor and closing his eyes “well. That’s certainly not normal.”

“No, it isn’t, is it?” Shinya nodded. “It reminds me of something… but I’m sure we’ll find out more in time. Or maybe one of the other students knows for certain.”

“Well…if nothing else, I’m certain the teacher would know what’s going on!” Sadahiro bobbed his head, not unlike a bird. “well, no worries. Things are gonna be just fine. _just_ fine.”

Tsuda shook his head “sure, sure, sure. Whatever you say, man”

“Did you say where the teacher is waiting, Tsuda-kun, or are we bringing Noda-san with us like a game of Wizard of Oz?”

“Fuck no we ain’t.” Tsuda slapped Sadahiro on the shoulder with a grin “Go on fella. She’s waiting in the lounge by the ballroom down the right most hall, and towards the rear. Can’t miss it.” 

“Yeeep!!” Sadahiro yelped, his eyes widening and his suit almost seeming to prickle as he jolted back at the slap “Y-y-y-y-yes _Sir!_”

Shinya smiled. “There, see? See you soon, Noda-san.”

Sadahiro nodded, and hurried along down the hall at a brisk, hurried pace. 

“Lookit the guy, he scampers like a startled mouse when he runs.” Tsuda drawled. “SHSL Secretary, huh?”

“I almost feel bad for not letting him sleep longer,” Shinya said, nodding.

“With a 16 hour work/school day, every day? Guy needs every minute of sleep he can get.” Tsuda snickered. “Come on, let’s look for another poor bastard to wake up.”

“So indeed,” he nodded. He straightened up, and fixed his hair, then motioned for Tsuda to follow him.

Tsuda followed close beside him, his hands going into his pockets once more. “So. Shinya-kun.” he mused as they walked across the jarring diamond-print carpet and towards the double doors “this whole thing’s real weird, ain’t it?”

“Its rather surreal,” he agreed, walking along closely with him. “Do you feel like you’re going to wake up– again– at any moment?”

Tsuda’s eyes squinted for a moment in thought, before he shook his head. “nah. I feel awake enough, but I feel… I dunno.”

he put his hand on the door. “I got a bad feelin’ is all. I get these inklings sometimes, ya know? Not visions or nothin’ but..”

“Feelings,” Shinya nodded. “I see. Honestly, we’re on the same page too then. I _certainly_ don’t think this is hope’s peak academy.”

“Nah. It’s too long.” 

He paused a moment before he said “Layout ain’t right, you know? It’s…long, with rooms in the center and halls on either side. I’ve been on a tour of the place before, you know? It ain’t shaped like this.” 

He pushed the door open to the sound of quiet chatter.

“Interesting,” Shinya purred. “The layout reminds me of something. Hmm…” he oriented on the sound of the chatter. “Seems someone is awake.”

The dining hall was a rather spacious area of circular tables, with one long table set up one either side. At the back wall was a semi-open and semi-automated kitchen.  And once more, a large chandelier hung from the ceiling, illuminating the area in a bright, warm-toned glow. 

At the tables were two students, awake and talking amongst themselves. 

However…it was one of the two girls that stood out jarringly against her surroundings…a clown. The girl had deep blue hair hanging in messy pigtails around a greasepaint-covered face. Pale skin, dark and wavy patterns around her eyes and a dark painted on smile. She was gesticulating wildly as she talked, even in a hushed tone, which caused her deep blue and black diamond-patterned dress to shift in a way that caught light in the glittering sequins on the diamonds.

The other student was a little bit more normal looking, wit messy pink hair cut around her chin, and a pair of overalls instead of uniform pants. She was chattering with the clown in a hushed tone.

Shinya paused on the threshhold, taking the sight in, and glanced at Tsuda quizzically, as if to ask if he was seeing the same thing.

Tsuda nodded, giving him a little shrug as he stepped into the room.

It was the clown who first noticed them. She jumped up with a wide grin on her face, her eyes ice blue half moons that never quite opened and gave her an almost **zoned out** expression. “Woahh hey! New faces, new faces!” She chirped.
“Momo-chan, look, we’ve got an audience!”

“Huh?” the pink haired one, Momo, looked up, pushing her hair back away from her eyes. “Oh, hey, wild. What’s up?”

“You two seem cozy,” Shinya purred. “You wouldn’t happen to know where we are, would you?”

“In a kitchen!” The clown said, bouncing on her heels so her messy pigtails bounced against her chest. 

“Yeah, we got that.” Tsuda said. “But we mean more…ya know, generally!”

“On planet earth!” The clown said, poking her fingers against her cheeks with a grin

“Probably anyway,” Momo nodded, leaning against the table.

“Probably,” Shinya agreed. “Are you students who woke up here, then?”

“Yuh huh.” The clown said, putting her hands on her hips with an impish smile…despite how utterly exhausted she looked otherwise. “I’m the comical, sensational Uruno Chitose! Headliner for the Endless Night’s Circus and SHSL Clown! honk honk!” 

She produced a horn from seeming nowhere , and honked it in time with her introduction, “Yayyyyyy”

“Hurraaay,” Momo added before yawning. “And I’m Momomi Momoko, the SHSL Poker Player. You can call me Mo-chi.” She put her fingers to her cheeks and smiled.

“Well what an adorable pair you are,” Shinya purred. “Wouldn’t you say so, Tsuda-kun?”

“Absolutely adorable. yep.” Tsuda said with his hands jammed in his jean jacket pocket. “You ladies sure got a way about ya. It’s nice.” 

Chitose gasped, bringing her hands to her face as it flushed a light pink. “us, adorable? Oh Mo-chi, I!….I…I…”

 Stepping back, she dramatically slipped, her arms pinwheeling around as she tried to keep her balance. With a whoop, she failed spectacularly, stepping back into a bucket left by a mop, and slipping, Her foot kicked up, her arms spun…and she stuck the landing on one foot, taking deep breaths as she glanced around with a bleary smile and half closed eyes “whew. That was clo—.” 

With perfect comic timing, the bucket she kicked off her foot came down, turned…and splashed upside down atop her head. “ooooooooh.”

With her face still hidden by the bucket, she squeezed the bulb on her little horn, and it let out the saddest little “hoooooonk”

Mo-chi giggled. “Oh man… you okay, Chitose?” she asked.

Shinya clapped with amusement. “Bravo.”

Tsuda whistled softly “A free show, too. Generous.” 

Chitose peeked out from under the bucket with a cheerful smile and a sleepy look. “Thanks everyone. I’m okay.” 

She dipped into a curtsy . “anyway it’s nice to meet you! Sorry I don’t have any answers.’

“That’s alright,” Shinya nodded. “I wasn’t really expecting it. We’re rounding everyone up for the teacher, actually.”

“Huh…. yeah?” Mo-chi cocked her head.

“We have a teacher?” Chitose gasped, her hand over her mouth as she finally took the bucket off. “where??” 

“Back the other way.” Tsuda pointed over his shoulder “Waitin’ by the ballroom.”

Mo-chi yawned and stretched before getting up fully– she was surprisingly tall. She shoved her hands into her pockets and slouched agian. “Wanna go see?”

“Lead the way-ay~ Mo-mo-chi” Chitose chirped. “And we’ll zip on over and see what the hubbub’s all about!”

She turned and grabbed Mo-chi’s hand. “Come on, buddy!” 

“You two know one another long?” Tsuda asked before they headed out.

“nope!” Chitose drowsily beamed “But I get good vibes from Mo-mo-chi!”

Mo-chi nodded. “Yeah, good vibes all around. C’mon.”

Shinya watched as they departed. “What an interesting pair.”

“Damn right about that.” Tsuda chuckled “ain’t every day you meet an expert poker player and a famous clown hangin’ out together.”

He glanced over at Shinya “You ever see her act? Either of ’em? They both were on tv a ton back a few years ago.”

Shinya touched his chin thoughtfully. “I may have seen the clown, come to think of it. On some morning show or another.”

Tsuda nodded, a half smile on his face ‘Yeah. She was makin’ the rounds for a while. I remember we bumped into one another once when I was doin’ a sharpshootin’ segment. Doubt she remembers me, though.”

“I suppose a lot of Hope’s Peak students will have had little meetings like that, hmm?” he nodded.

“happens , I guess.” Tsuda chuckled “talents intersect and all that jazz.”

He shook his head. “anyway, I think we should see if we can find anyone else.”

“I wonder if we’ll find the whole class,” Shinya mused as he went to move on.

Tsuda put his hand on the door, chuckling under his breath “…what, like…16 students and a teacher? Maybe this whole thing’s like…I dunno, a weird idea for a school grip. A fucked up entrance ceremony.” 

He pushed the door open, and nearly clocked someone in the face.

No…. not nearly, it _did_ clock them in the face, and sent them staggering backward, before Shinya reached out to grab them, catching their sleeve.

“Ow!! Oh! oh…. I’m sorry!” the hesitant figure squeaked dizzily.

Tsuda winced, his hand going to his hip as he leaned on the doorframe with a grimace “you alright there, partner? Nearly caved your face in, there.”

The soft featured figure had a cascade of purple hair in his face, and he patted himself to make sure he wasn’t bleeding. “I…. I think I’m alright….”

shinya looked him over. “Well, you’re not dead, anyway!”

“Could be worse.” Tsuda chuckled “coulda gotten the sense knocked outta ya.”

He offered a hand “sorry ’bout that.”

“It’s okay, really,” he said softly, taking Tsuda’s hand. “I shouldn’t have been standing there…”:

Tsuda shook it gently, and made sure the man was steady. A slim smile crossed his face “don’t be like that, fella.”

He shrugged “Let’s let bygones be bygones and all that. You ‘re alright, and I didn’t kill a man with a doorknob. So we’re all good.”

He winked “what’s your name, pal?”

“O-oh, um, its Ishida Naoki,” he stammered. “I’m attending Hope’s Peak as the SHSL Calligrapher, I guess….”

“Name’s Tsuda.” the sharpshooter replied with a lazy  salute. 

“SHSL sharpshooter”

“Oh, sharpshooter?” Noaki asked softly. “But that’s such a cool talent! Congratulations!”

Tsuda grinned, brushing his hand through his hair “ain’t it? Comes in handy now and again. Trick shots pay the bills, ya know?”

He winked “Calligrapher ain’t bad, maybe you could design me a card sometime, huh?”

“O-oh, um, if you wanted,” he murmered. “I’m not really good at anything but the calligraphy part though…”

“works for me.” Tsuda laughed “my handwriting’s shit.  Rest of it I can handle.”

He winked at the other young man with a smile on his scarred face. “b’sides. I’m sure it’s gorgeous. The work ya do, I mean.”

Naoki bowed and gave an embaressed smile. “Yo’re um… you’re very kind but…. can I ask… um do you know….”

“Where we are?” Shinya finished. “I’m afraid that we don’t.”

“Not at all.” Tsuda rustled his own hair with a frown “Woke up here only about a half hour ago, feeling like shit. The teach told us to gather everyone up so we can try an’ figure it out.” “

“O-oh, our teacher’s here?” he cocked his head. “That’s a relief….”

“Yeah, Sakai-sensei.” Tsuda said “She seemed pretty confused by the whole thing too, but maybe she’ll be able to, I dunno, help us sort it out.”

“D-do you mind if I go talk to her? I’ve been pretty nervous here all alone….”

“Nah, She’s right down that hall.” Tsuda pointed. “Near the ballroom. There’s gonna be a few people there already.”

Naoki grabbed Tsuda’s hand briefly and squeezed it. “Thank you…. u-um, I’ll see you soon then!”

Tsuda squeezed back, reassuringly, and nodded. “See ya around, Naoki-kun.” He winked. “don’t worry, things are gonna be alright. Now shoo. Teach is waitin’.”

Naoki nodded, and scurried off. Shinya watched him depart, with a little smirk.

“How charming,” he mused.

“Very.” Tsuda chuckled “reminds me of a couple guys I knew back when I was younger. Nervous little fellas.”

Shinya chuckled. “Nervous little fellas. I suppose yes. Is it nostalgic for you then?”

“huh?” Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “Nostalgic? When ya mention it, yeah.. it kinda is.”

He stretched, and shook his head. “c’mon, let’s see if we can find someone that triggers _your_ nostalgia , eh?” he joked.

Shinya chuckled. “Oh yes, let’s certainly. Lead the way, Tsuda-kun.”

Tsuda strolled out of the doorway, his hands jammed in his pockets. “So hey.” He walked  out, and towards the hall opposite where they first came in as a camera turned to lazily follow them.  “you never actually told me what you were scouted for. Gotta admit, I’m kinda curious.”

Shinya followed along with him and smiled. “Curious, are you?” he chuckled. “I admit…. I’m a bit curious myself…”

Tsuda’s steps slowed as they passed a row of paintings opposite the bolted up windows in the hall leading deeper into their confines. 

The first of the paintings depicted women in bear masks dancing in a fever pitch as they tore someone apart in some kind of frenzied ritual. It was well painted, if …grim.

“Curious yourself, huh ? Whatcha mean by that fella, break it down for  me. I ain’t bright.” He chuckled.

Shinya paused and looked at the strange ritual painting, his hands clasped behind his back. “Well, simply put its that I can’t remember!”

‘…..” Tsuda stopped to stare at the painting too. “….what, like you’ve got that..whatcha call it…agnostic? Amnesty?”

“Agnostic?” Shinya chuckled. “Well, maybe…. but I think the word you’re looking for might be amnesia.”

Tsuda snapped his fingers. “that’s right, that’s the one.”

He shook his head “…so what? You’ve got that amnesia or soemthin’?”

“It would seem so,” he nodded, rubbing his head. “Is there anything you don’t remember?”

Tsuda narrowed his eyes as he thought “…I don’t remember how I got here…and….I dunno…”

He paused, before shaking his head “…I dunno. I guess the trick of it is that if there _was_ something I didn’t remember , I wouldn’t remember I forgot it.”

Shinya chuckled. “Huh, well that’s very astute, Tsuda-kun! I suppose if I ask you something you don’t remember, you can just tell me so!”

He started walking again, past the painting.

Tsuda followed him with a chuckle ‘yeah, I got my moments.”

The pair of them walked down the hall, past more paintings (There was one in which a bear was catching salmon inexplicably dressed in school uniforms, another of a beautiful rock garden, with a pair of figures sitting with hands upon their laps….and weird bear masks over their face.

“Lotta bears.” Tsuda murmured “I hate bears.”

“I’m not sure I like them much myself,” Shinya said. “Unless they’re teddy bears I suppose. There _does_ seem to be something a little…. unwholesome… about these.”

“I’d take a stuffed cat any day. A dog. I dunno.” He shook his head “there uh, seems to be kind of a theme, huh? Don’t like it much.”

“Nor I…” he admitted. He looked for any kind of plaque, or labeling on the artwork.

There were labels on each.

The dancing bear painting was labeled “Dance of Desbear: 2019”, the one with the fish in school uniforms and the bear was labeled “Like a Bear Catching Salmon: 2022”  and the last was labeled “Rock Garden, but I can’t Bear to think of a title: 2024”

“Well. The bears are certainly not a coincidence anyway,” Shinya mused. “Some kind of intentional theme….”

“Yeah. Someone’s really missin’ their teddy bear.” Tsuda drawled “ugly pieces of work, though. Damned ugly.”

Shinya shook his head. “Well, art ins’t always meant to be beautiful. Maybe it represents something?” he paused. “But right now I think it represents a useless digression.”

“Yeah, we probably ain’t gonna find a fellow student in one of these pictures.” Tsuda drawled “that’d be fuckin’ stupid and I’d know it was a dumb dream.”

“Like Mario 64,” Shinya chuckled. “Well, come on then,” he said, moving past them.

Tsuda followed, humming as he walked. However, as they turned they could see another pair heading their way.

Two figures…one of them a slim young woman with a  braided bob cut of striking pale blue hair set around rectangular glasses, deep cerulean eyes and a stern frown. She wore a dress shirt with an ascot pinned by a jewled broach, as well as a long brown trenchcoat that  she wore open under a professional pencil skirt and the white blouse. 

She walked with an air of haughty confidence, glancing at Shinya as they approached and only regarding him with a small “hm.”

The other figure was another serious faced young woman, with a cascade of pale brown, or perhaps dishwater blond hair, loosely tied over one shoulder. She was wearing a boy’s uniform from another school, with the shirt collar open, and the jacket loosely around her shoulders. 

She cocked her head. “We were right. There _are_ more people.”

“My intuition’s rarely wrong.” The blue haired girl said, brushing her hair away from her face with the back of her hand. “More creedance to my theory that there’s **an entire class** worth of Hope’s Peak students here.”

Tsuda waved at the blue haired woman. “yo. Karuma-san.  Looks like you managed to find someone, huh?”

Shinya cocked his head. “Oh,, you know this one then?”

“Yeah, Karuma-san woke up in the same lounge as us.” Tsuda grinned “ain’t that right, doll?” 

“Call me doll again and see what happens, fool.” She turned her head to look at Shinya. “Karuma Miyuki. SHSL Prosecutor. And _you_ are?”

“Forgetful student, Nagano Shinya,” he said, bowing. “Its a pleasure to meet you.”

“Forgetful student?” the other girl asked, narrowing her eyes.

“He’s got agnostic.” Tsuda said, folding his hands behind his head with a grin. 

Miyuki stared at him “and I’m a firm believer in how little I care.” She turned to look at Shinya again before continuing. “forgetful student. I highly doubt that. What’s your talent, hm? What the men in suits scouted you for?”

“I’m afraid ever since I woke up, I don’t remember!” Shinya declared blythly. “You can call me the SHSL Amnesiac if you like.”

The other girl put her hands on her hips. “Huh.”

“How delightfully convenient for you.’ Miyuki said with a thin smile. “Not to remember anything during a kidnapping incident.”

“We don’t know it’s a kidnappin’, Karuma-san.” Tsuda drawled. “we don’t got any guards or nothing. It’s probably just some Hope’s Peak nonsense.”

“I don’t know how many schools you’ve been to but speaking as the SHSL Dungeon Master this seems much more like the set up for a mystery than for a school year,” the other girl said.

“SHSL Dungeon Master.” Tsuda whistled “interestin’. Maybe. Maybe. I’m just sayin’ it probably ain’t as dire as Miya-chan thinks.”

Miyuki bristled, and crossed her arms “Don’t speak so familiarly to me. And I have to agree with my companion here. There’s clearly _something_ going on. And if it’s a mystery, I’m damn well going to solve it.”

“I tend to agree,” Shinya nodded, pushing his glasses up. “Though I really admire Tsuda-kun’s optimism. Dungeon Master… you’d be Kanzaka Tomoyo then, yes?”

She tugged at her hair, and pouted. “That’s me. You’re a fan, huh?” 

“I read the occasional magazine,” Shinya smiled.

“oh SHIT!” Tsuda gasped. “Oh _man_ yeah, I’ve read your stuff too, actually. Loved that one in the desert, Kanzaka-san. It was good stuff.”

Tomoyo smiled and fussed with her hair. “Well thank you, but my adventures really aren’t the most important thing here at the moment. Right, Karuma-san?”

“As interesting as they may be, no.” The prosecutor said with a shake of his head. “the most important thing is **this situation**. We find ourselves missing time, in a secondary location, and  barred in by sealed windows with what I suspect is the entire 80th class of Hope’s Peak. Or what **would have been** if we weren’t all immediately kidnapped.”

She put her finger on her chin, before pointing to Shinya. “it’s obvious from all the evidence that a **crime has been committed**, and I intend to get to the bottom of it, an d root out the guilty party.”

“We-ell!” Shinya smiled. “That’s very admirable, Karuma-san. If a crime _has_ been committed then it follows that *someone* is the guilty party.”

“Says Mr. Suspicious Amnesia,” Tomoyo sniffed.

“precisely my thought.” Miyuki said with a thin smile “I’m afraid so far you’re the most suspicious party Nagano-san.”

She spread her hands and gave a mock-casual shrug “but. Until we have more evidence either way, I won’t condemn an innocent man. Just know I’ve got my eye on you.” 

“Tch” Tsuda crossed his arms “man, he’s just got some memory issues. Lay off, Karuma-san. It ain’t like that automatically makes him some kinda criminal mastermind, fuck.”

Shinya held his hands up in defense, smiling. “Now now, I have to admit I suppose I _am_ a little suspicious. I appreciate your discretion, Karuma-san. Oh! but we’re rounding up students for the _other_ suspicious party!”

Tomoyo raised her eyebrows. “_Other_ suspicious party?”

“by which you mean our teacher.” Miyuki said with a serious frown. “foolish.” 

She shook her head, resting her fingers on her chin in thought. “While I understand your suspicion, it’s likely she’s as much a victim in this as the rest of us. She doesn’t seem to have a clear memory of how she arrived, and it would stand to reason that the homeroom teacher would be kidnapped in the same incident that took the rest of us.”

She pointed to him with a wry smile “But delightful attempt to divert suspicion. Very charming. But not good enough.”

“Ah, but she could just as easily be lying about not knowing how she arrived,” Shinya pointed out. “whereas if I were the culprit I’d be careful to blend my story with everyone else’s rather than making up suspicious details like not knowing what my talent is, don’t you think?”

“hmhmhmhmm” She laughed, her eyes lidded as she stared him down. “So one would think…if they were a simpleton.” 

“Hoo fuckin’ boy” Tsuda muttered under his breath.

“But there’s something to be gained from being the ‘mysterious outsider’. While you may seem suspicious now, if you’re a fine enough actor you can play the situation for sympathy…and as a convenient excuse when you wish to hide key details, or dodge a question.”

“Oh, so you’re saying that I’m setting myself up as a suspicious party in order to later divert suspicion?” he chuckled. “That would be terribly clever of me, I wish I’d thought of it.”

Tomoyo crossed her arms. “Well, maybe you did. But we’re not going to find out just by standing here and arguing.”

“No, we certainly aren’t.” Miyuki said with a nod. “Kanzaka-san, shall we continue the search?”

She turned to smile at Shinya. “I’ll be seeing you around….._SHSL Forgetful Student_. Don’t wander too far, now.”

“Of course. Ta-ta, Karuma-san. Kanzaka-san,” he smiled.

Tomoyo huffed a sigh and started to march off with Miyuki.

Tsuda watched them go before he said “man, Shinya-kun, you sure got a way with the ladies.”

Shinya laughed and gave a wide shrug. “I suppose I do…. ah well…”

“Well, plenty of time to prove her wrong about ya later, I guess.” Tsuda shrugged. “Especially if it turns out it ain’t anything worth getting riled up over.”

“You know I was serious– I really do admire your optimism,” he said with a smile. “Come on, lets go collect the others. We’ll probably have a full class when we’re done.”

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck with a little grin. “well damn. Glad ya like it. Gotta be optimistic at a time like this, right?”

He pat Shinya on the back, before he started down the hall “yeah, we very well might.”

Shinya walked side by side with them as they proceeded, taking careful note of their surroundings.

Between the black and white diamond floor, and the swirling pattern of the ceiling, it felt like walking into a headache waiting to happen…the windows in this hall, too, were sealed shut, and there was more art in the same vein as the rest along this hall.

As they approached the mouth, however, they could see the lobby beyond. It was a bit bigger than  the last…A huge room dominated by the door at the back wall. It was currently locked, displaying a digital sign that said “closed until after the opening ceremonies!!!”, and was dominated by a massive neon sign over the doors reading “Monokuma Mall!” And a big , black and white bear holding a pair of shopping bags in each arm as he trotted along. It was backlit, so it’s glow was cast on most of that wall. 

“huh.”

There was an area with a minibar along the rightmost  wall labeled “Snacks, Snacks, Snacks” (which had someone loitering around it) and a few vending machines, and on the wall oppostie the shopping plaza, leading into the area that must have been behind the kitchen they’d just come from….A glowing neon green sign reading “School Store.”

_An indoor shopping area…. the way the floor seemed to rock back and forth beneath them… Shinya was starting to have an **unnerving guess** about where they might be._

He smiled anyway and looked up. “Well! Isn’t that the most tasteless mascot you’ve ever seen, Tsuda-kun?”

“yeah, I ain’t so much a fan of it.” he murmured “Fuckin’ hate bears, man. I hate ’em a lot.”

The mascot had one half of his face adorably cute and smiling. The white half, and on the black half…a big slash of a smile and a jagged red eye that pulsed and flickered with the backlight. 

There was a sudden banging by the snack bar. A figure in a sailor suit uniform in vivid pink and white was slamming their shoe into the face of one of the snack machines. A black leather jacket hung over their shoulders, and they could see the dyed blond , highlighted curls of their hair falling over their neck from behind in a loose, messy bob.

Shinya blinked when he saw it, and walked over toward the figure. “Anooo, excuse me, friend, is something the matter?”

The figure turned and stared at him with large, vivid pink eyes ringed with long lashes coated in some glitter. They were quite tan, offset by the bleached blond of their hair, and had pretty features with a smattering of freckles across their nose. 

Upon looking Shinya over, they smiled …showing slightly pointed teeth “well, well, well. Hello there handsome.” they purred in a voice that…as with the rest of their features , was fairly androgynous.

Shinya chuckled. “Need some help there?” he offered.

“I want the cigarettes!” They whined, pouting as they pointed to the machine’s glass front. In addition to a number of snacks like red bean bread and candies were a row of cigarettes bearing the same black and white bear mascot. “All i’ve wanted since i woke up was a smoke and someone _stolllle_ mine!” 

They began to sniffle “and…and I musta been mugged ’cause I ain’t got my wallet…”

“Oh I see… there there…” he patted the person on the shoulder. “Let me see if I can help…” 
He searched his own pockets for any money.

They smiled up at him, showing their canines as they did. “You’re _sooooo_ sweet, oh my _gosh_, thank you!” 

He came up short…the only thing he found was a small card in his pocket (half black, half white) that read “whoopsie, lose something?”

Shinya frowned, his brow furrowing. “Ah… I seem to have been mugged as well. Tsuda-san, how about you?”

“nada.” Tsuda said with a shrug “I woke up with nothin’, not even my airguns.” 

The sailor suited kid groaned, and punched the window of the vending machine with a balled up fist “Dang it! Stupid machine!”

Shinya held up his hands. “Now now, there’s no reason to take it out on the machine… maybe our teacher has some cigarettes on her you can borrow, ne?”

“Teacher? Oh! Yeah, what the serious chicks were talkin’ about a moment ago, right?” The figure put their hand on their hip with a grin. “sick, That ain’t a bad thought, handsome.”

“I’m glad you think so,” he said with a smile. “I’m Nagano Shinya, by the way, and this is Munenori Tsuda.”

Tsuda waved. “Hey gorgeous.” He said with a smirk.

“ooooh, Tsuda-kun and Shinya-kun~” They beamed a bright smile. “I’m Tokiwa Tomo~ SHSL _Boyfriend_.” 

“huh.” Tsuda said “can’t say I expected that.”

“How charming! I had no idea one could obtain an official title like that,” Shinya nodded. “There must be lots of envious people.”

“Welll.” Tomo put his finger to his cheek with a smile “I’m a  paid date, ya know? But I’m the best there is at what I do, and what I do is…”

“Yeah, I get the picture.” Tsuda nodded. “I’ve seen ‘paid date’ services around in the city. Ain’t that uncommon.”

“mm hmm.” Tomo leaned on the vending machine. “But you’re right about one thing. There’s _lots_ of people envious of little ol’ me.”

Shinya chuckled lightly. “I can see why! Well, it seems unfortunately we can’t get any cigarettes out of this machine for you now, Tomo-chan. But like I said, maybe the teacher has some.”

“The teacher huh…yeah that sounds good to me.” He bobbed his head in a nod. “wanna walk with me~?”

“nah.” Tsuda shook his head. “we’re uh, lookin’ for the rest.” 

“oh.” Tomo pouted.

“Sorry about that, Tomo-chan,” Shinya said. “But we promised that we’d gather everyone.”

“alright…” He sighed, and kicked the machine one more time, before blowing them a kiss “laters, fellas!” 
With that, the pink-clad young man sauntered off and down the hall.

“huh.” Tsuda said dryly

Shiny nodded. “Huh. I really had no idea that was a talent recognized by Hope’s Peak. how fascinating.”

“Talent comes in all shapes and forms , I guess.” Tsuda shook his head.

“Something to keep in mind I suppose,” he chuckled. He knelt down by the vending machine, and checked to see if he could fit his arm up it to steal something.

As a matter of fact…he could. His arm managed to wriggle it’s way up to the bottom row.

Shinya grabbed at the cigarettes that Tomo had been after.

“Huh.” Tsuda grinned at him “nicely done, Shinya. Nicely done.”

Shinya snatched them out of the machine and put them in his pocket. “I’d have tried before, but I didn’t want to get Tomo-chan’s hopes up.”

Tsuda chuckled. “Yeah, fair enough. You gonna give ’em to him?”

“Well, we’ll see if it comes up, don’t you think?” he smiled, as he stood up. “I suppose we should look for the others.”

“Guess we will.” Tsuda laughed. “…you’re a funny guy, Shinya.”

He walked towards the school store. “Shopping area looks closed, so let’s check out this school store, see if anyone’s in there, then loop back around…”

Shinya nodded. “Good idea, Tsuda-kun,” he agreed, heading toward the school store. “I wonder if we;ll find anyone hre.”

“probably , given our luck so far.” He chuckled, and opened the door.

Inside, there was a chaotic mess. The ‘school store’ was actually a small room absolutely packed to the brim with items and advertisements. A mannequin dressed in a spiked dress stood behind the counter, a hat stand with various hats from a naval commander’s cap to a magic top hat, posters for hot rods and bike babes, a fake palm tree and some spilled sand on the ground…and in the center of it all…a large machine filled with colorful balls. It stood there with a complicated spiral down from the ball-chamber, down to a prize slot below. It was black, white, and covered in lights and digital readouts. 

It was labeled “the Mono-Mono machine!”

Two figures stood before it. One, in a straight cut dress that draped around her thin, but athletic frame, and a deep crimson fluffy bob cut, was tapping her fingers against her arm as she tried to figure out how it worked.

The other one wore a neat black women’s suit and blood red button up shirt, with a little hat pinned into her chin length black hair. She, like the other girl, was examining the mono mono machine. She tried to twist the knob.

“I can’t tell if it takes coins or not….” She paused and looked up. “Oh. Company.”

“I suppose it could take some sort of company or localized curren…” The other woman started before she jolted, and looked over her shoulder with a subtle frown “oh you mean…ah.” 

She sighed, and put her fingers to her chest. “well, hello gentlemen.”

Shinya smiled. “Hello, ladies. Hard at work already, I see?”

“mmm hmmm.” The redhead said with a dismissive expression on her face “When I find myself somewhere unfamiliar, I make it a point to rectify that.”

Her dress had a bead fringe  at three points on it’s length, and she wore a filmy shawl over her narrow shoulders,  A lily was pinned in the locks of her hair. 

SHe looked him over with deep green eyes. “and who are _you_?”

“Why, I’m Nagano Shinya, and this is my new friend, Munenori Tsuda-kun,” he said. “And you charming ladies?”

“Suzuki Masako,” the tiny, dark haired one said, crossing her arms. With her tall, 4 inch heels she just barely crossed 5 feet. “SHSL Assassin.”

“Assassin.” Tsuda whistled “hot damn, that’s a cool talent. Lucky lady.”
He grinned “we should work together sometime. SHSL Sharpshooter.”

The other woman tossed her hair off her shoulder and met his eyes before she sighed. “SHSL Gymnast. Fukazawa Eriko. The pleasure’s all yours.”

“It certainly is,” Shinya drawled. “Well, how nice to meet you!”

Masako looked Tsuda over with eyes hooded by long, dark lashes thick with eyeliner and mascara. “I _do_ like a man who can handle a gun.”

“you’re in luck, doll.” Tsuda smirked “ain’t nobody out there who handles one better. Cept maybe yourself. Maybe I’ll get lucky and see you in action sometime.” 

“Ugh.” Eriko leaned on the Mono/Mono machine with a sidelong glance at the other two.  “Downright dandy to meet you, Nagano-san. I imagine you woke up  penniless and memoryless in this tacky dump too?”

“Indeed I did,” Shinya nodded gravely. “Dare I ask what the last thing you recall is, Ms. Gymnast?”

“Well…my driver dropped me off in front of this swanky school, Hope’s Peak.” She mused, tapping her chin. “where I’d been invited to be part of the 80th class…only then I get this real nasty bastard of a headache and…”

“And then you woke up here?” Shinya guessed.

“Got it in one, buster.” She sighed, running her hand through her hair with a grimace. “of all the stupid shit, you know? I had a party to get to after school. A real good shindig for my PR, and here I am stuck in a weird building with no exits and the most interesting thing I could find is a gatcha game that doesn’t _work_.”

“No exits, hmm? You’ve had a chance to look around then?”

“Unlike most people content to sleep away their crisis, I did a whole circuit. There’s no exit.” She sniffed. “irritating.”

“That _is_ irritating,”  Shinya agreed. “And quite mysterious, wouldn’t you agree, Tsuda-kun?”
Shinya looked over to Tsuda, only to find him deep in a conversation with the assassin.

“I’m pretty partial to the Smith & Wesson Performance Center Competitor 686 magnum, myself.” Tsuda was saying. “Sleek design, good handling, the recoil’s manageable for a magnum, too.  That’s for when a sniper rifle ain’t gonna do you much good.”

“…._ugh_.” Eirko rolled her eyes. “firearms, how crass.”

“Managing recoil is important, “Masako agreed, “I’ve always– oh I think your friend wants you.”
She gave Shinya a sour look.

“Yeah it…” Tsuda was about to answer when he blinked, and ran his hair through his hair “huh? what’s up, Shinya-kun?”

Eriko smirked, crossing her arms “your friend wanted to know if you found this whole situation _mysterious_, cowboy.”

“Eriko-chan was just telling me that she had looked around the whole area, and didn’t find any exits,” Shinya explained.

Masako scowled. “we can always _make_ an exit if we have to.”

“Damn right we can.” Tsuda agreed. “Once we get our bearings, all we gotta do is find a weak part and something to break through it with.” 

“Or maybe we can use the vents.” Eriko shook her head. “or maybe it won’t be that easy. I’m willing to bet on the second one.”

“Oh? Why the pesimism, Eriko-chan?” Shinya asked. “Not to disagree, but I’m curious about _your_ reasoning.”

“Because.’ She scoffed. “Because someone took the time and energy to **solder the windows shut** around us, and bolt off some of the doors.”

She waved her hand “Plus, it’s **clear** this isn’t Hope’s Peak, so who knows **where** we are. Nobody goes through that kind of effort and just…leaves the vents unsecure, or makes the walls easy to breach with common household crap.”

“Not to mention they were able to get the drop on people like me and Munenori-san here,” Masako agreed.

Shinya nodded. “Indeed, that’s what I’ve been mulling over myself. It seems that once we gather all parties, we’ll have quite the mystery to crowdsource.”

“That’s right.” Tsuda nodded with a frown. “….honestly, the more I hear the more this is lookin like some kind of fucked up kidnapping.”

“Gee.” Eriko put her hand to her cheek “you don’t say? Gosh. And here I thought we all signed a waiver to be here , and got the VIP treatment.”

“Now now, there’s no need to be so sharp, Eriko-chan,” Shinya cooed shaking his head. “But I can tell we’re all a little bit on edge here. Would it help if I told you our teacher is here as well?”

“Unless the teacher’s sitting on a big switch marked ‘Press this for the way out’, then no, not really.” 

She sniffed, shaking her head. “But I’ll accept that a teacher may know what to do.”

“They might have information,” Masako nodded. “Where are they?”

“Over by the ballroom.” Tsuda pointed the direction. “just head on that way and you’ll find the crowd.”

“Are you coming?” Masako asked.

“Soon,” Shinya said. “We’re rounding everyone up.”

“We’ll meet ya over there , Masako-san.” Tsuda saluted her with a grin. “You too, Eriko-san.”

Eriko sniffed, but nodded, before moving to saunter out of the room. “Don’t dally too long. I’d like to get this mystery solved ASAP. I’m a busy woman.”

“Of course,” Shinya said with a smile. “we’ll do our best!”

Masako smiled at Tsuda and saluted him back, before hurrying out on her tall heels.

Eriko nodded, before heading out of the room.

The door closed behind them, and Tsuda chuckled. “Now Masako seems like a pretty cool lady. Eriko…I dunno about.”

“A bit rough around the edges,” Shinya drawled.

“I mean, can’t blame her. This whole situation’s got ‘stressful’ written all over it, but everyone else’s keeping it together.”

“So far at least,” Shinya agreed. “To be fair, she IS the one who noticed there were no exits.”

“She is.” He nodded. “Which is damn good. Tells us a lot more about what’s going down…”

“yes, it tells us that we’re meant to stay put by whoever put us here,” Shinya nodded. He gestured for Tsuda to follow as he started moving again.

Tsuda followed along behind him, his hands in his pockets as he whistled a little tune. “Yep. and they ain’t keen on letting us leave. Not any time soon, at least.”

As he turned the corner, he heard a pair of voices from over by the opposite hall they’d come in from…the one running parallel on the other side of the school store and kitchen area. Around from where the snack nook was on the other side.

“Ahh….. we found someone,” Shinya purred. And then he called out. “Hello! Pardon us!”

A tall, square shouldered man in a white robe and small hat turned, his gaze, piercing. He had been standing, peering at a vending machine that said DANGER.

Beside him stood a pale young man stepped out from the snack nook. His eyes were lidded, and a brilliant and unusual yellow color, and his face was partially obscured by the pure white hair that fell down his shoulders. He wore a men’s kimono in a deep crimson patterned with what looked like curling black threads, and a black overcoat that draped over his too-thin body. 

He raised delicate fingers to his chin with a soft “hmm….” before he added quietly. “Hello.”

Tsudo whistled “hot damn, these guys got style. not _my_ style, but hey. Style.”

“I quite agree,” Shinya murmured pushing up his glasses. “Hello there. I wager you two are hope’s peak students.”

The black haired man in the hat thought for a moment, and then nodded. “That’s right…”

“Either that or historical drama extras.” Tsuda snickered.

“hmph…” The delicate looking man with the waist length hair crossed his arms. “Do you always run your mouth, or are you simply feeling rude on account of the situation?” 

He shook his head “….but no. We are not from a drama…I am the SHSL Dollmaker of the 80th class Muranaka Morio….”

“And I’m the SHSL Sushi Chef, Shiba Yo.” He bowed politely.

“Nice to meet you both,” Shinya said.

Morio bowed as well, before straightening up and brushing his hair from his face. “…a pleasure…” he murmured. “I take it you’re as in the dark as either of us in regards to our…predicament.”

“I imagine we are indeed,” Shinya said, “Unless the two of you know something significant.”

Yo shook his head. “No… not really. I just woke up here. It doesn’t uh, seem to be a school.”

“I had been waiting in the lobby , and I was put to sleep and woke up in the most dire and unpleasant dream….this…enclosed space.” Morio bemoaned

Tsuda blinked “the most dire and unpleasant dream. And he says he ain’t from a drama.”

“Well it _does_ seem dire,” Shinya agreed smiling at Tsuda. “But I don’t think it’s a dream.”

Yo cocked his head. “I don’t usually know when I’mm dreaming. Perhaps we are all dreaming?”

“A shared dream brought upon by some strange and unsettling circumstances…” Morio agreed

“Nah, I’m awake. Usually my dreams got more ‘nightmare’ to ’em. This is pretty low key for me.” Tsuda shrugged

“Well, I suppose if it _is_ a dream it may not have hit its stride yet,” Shinya shurgged. “Nonetheless, its probably better to act as if it isn’t a dream, just in case.”

“Huh, maybe,” Yo nodded. “But it’s still probably a dream.”

“I’ll simply take things as they come.” Morio said quietly, folding his hands in his sleeves before producing a small stuffed white tiger from his sleeve. 

“Here, to keep you company should this become a nightmare. Consider it a ward of good luck.”

Shinya blinked. “Is that, for me?”

“for you.” Morio nodded.

Shinya took it into his arms and bowed. “Thank you, Morio-san, I shall treasure it.”

Morio bowed back. “I’m pleased you like it. When it comes to dolls, my intuition is rarely wrong.”

Shinya smiled. “I’ll remember that, Morio-san. Oh, if you’d like, we’re helping everyone to gather by the ballroom with our teacher.”

“ah.” he nodded slowly “of course I’ll make my way there now.”

Yo nodded. “Mind if I tag along? I might get lost on my own, I’m afraid.”

“not in the least, Yo-san.” Morio said with a polite smile “I would be delighted.” 

He nodded for him to follow, before he began drifting down the hall.

The sushi chef followed along with him, leaving Shinya and Tsuda in the little corner.

“How many is that now?” Shinya asked.

“fifteen, including you and me.” Tsuda said, fussing with his jacket. His fingers tapping gently against the fabric.

“There can’t be too many more to find then,” he mused. “Unless we have a very large class, or something else is going on.”

“typical class is 18.” he agreed with a nod. “…maybe we’ll find the last of ’em soon? That’d only be around 3 more.”

“Let’s keep s–” he paused and finally registered the “DANGER” machine, looking it over. “Hmmmm….”

“what, the danger vending machine?”

Tsuda laughed “I mean, maybe it’s busted. Or maybe it’s full of , I dunno, novelty fake weapons or some bullshit like that.”

“Maybe,” Shinya said, looking it over curiously. Could he see anything that was inside of it, or did it have any other markings

It was opaque, marked with “Danger” and had buttons that were all taped over with question marks…and a strange slot, too big to be a card slot.

“Well… I suppose that’s a problem for later, hmm?” Shinya nodded. “Before then, lets find the rest of the class.”
He put an arm around Tsuda’s shoulder again.

Tsuda walked with him, smirking slightly as he went. “Still feeling unsteady on the feet? Either way, you won’t catch me complainin’.”

“It comes and goes,” he answered with a smile. “You feel it, don’t you? the motion beneath us?”

“I do, yeah.” he said with a nod. “That slow kinda rock….I got a good sense for this kinda thing. It’s like we’re flyin’ or floating or something.”

“A keen observation, Tsuda-kun,” he nodded. “Its not certain, but it does seem likely its something like that.”

“does.” he said, half leaning on Shinya as the two of them made it down the hall. “….which makes me wonder about the uh ‘busting through the wall’ idea, as much as I like it. I mean…if this is some kinda plane, that’ll kill us.” 

As the two of them made it down the hall, they could see the Lobby before the kitchen coming up…and inside it….a young man.

In the lounge where they had met the SHSL secretary not too long ago there was now another figure. Peering at the flashing camera, and making notes in a little book was a small, delicate featured young man with a serious look on his face. He wore a tightly buttoned uniform, and small, round black glasses. He didn’t seem to notice as Shinya and Tsuda approached, intent on whatever he was doing.

Tsuda paused as they entered the room, whistling softly as he noticed the other man in the room. “well, He looks awful wrapped up in what he’s doin’.”

“He certainly does,” shinya agreed softly. And then he cleared his throat. “Um, excuse me.”

The little young man whirled, and pointed his pen at them. “Who are you! I demand to know what’s going on!”

“Name’s Munenori Tsuda.” Tsuda explained, raising his hands like he’d had a gun pointed at him. Still, he kept a rather lazy and relaxed smile on his face. “As for what’s goin’ on…well. We’re workin’ on that one.”

He scowled. “Takohachi Goto, SHSL Cyberneticist,” he declared, straightening up. It didn’t help much. he wasn’t as short as Masako, but he was definitely the second shortest of the students they’d encountered. “You’re in the dark as well, then?”

“So we are, I’m afraid,” he nodded.

“woke up not knowin’ how I got here and without any of my shit.” Tsuda said with a nod. “that’s right. Don’t even got my tournament pistol, which is concernin’.”

“Pistol?” Goto scowled. “What are you, the SHSL American?” he snorted. “Never mind, if you don’t know anything then don’t bother me. I’m trying to ascertain where we are.”

“Ouch.” Tsuda drawled. “You’ve got a sparklin’ personality, dontcha? A real winner.”

He shrugged his shoulders with a huff. “SHSL Sharpshooter. I do competitions, alright? and if you think you can figure out where we are from a buncha cameras than godspeed to ya. But I think you’d be better off shooin’ on over to the teacher so we can maybe pool our thoughts and brainstorm a lil’.”

Goto snorted, and snapped his book shut. “What teacher would that be?”

“I believe Tsuda-kun said her name was Sakai Kira,” Shinya offered. “Our homeroom teacher, if I recall the schedule correctly.”

“Yeah, it’s startin’ to look like maybe our whole class got taken on this little trip…teacher and all. Hopin’ that maybe she’s got some answers.”  Tsuda agreed. “if it’s actually the whole class, you’re one of the final three to be found.’

“Sakai?” Goto said, thinking. “Bah! A useless _public speaker_. She’s unlikely to be any help here. Unless this is some moronic _team building_ exercise I suppose.” He pursed his lips. “Fine! Where can I find our dear homeroom teacher?”

“over there, pal.” Tsuda gestured down the hall. “Just do us all a favor and try to play nice for Sakai-sensei, will ya?”

“Hmph. We shall see about that,” he said, tugging on his collar. He put the book away in his pocket, and said stiffly. “Thank you for the information.”

“Of course! see you soon, Takohachi-san,” Shinya said. he gave him a wave, as Goto turned, and, without another word, went in the direction Tsuda gestured.

“well now.” Tsuda shook his head. “Friendly guy, ain’t he?”

“Not quite as personable as you or I perhaps,” Shinya shrugged. “Oh well, I suppose.”

Tsuda lightly punched Shinya’s arm. “ah well. Ain’t gonna get along with everyone. Let’s find our missing classmates, huh?”

Shinya nodded. “Indeed! we should find them soon, unless they’ve already beaten us there.”

Tsuda nodded, and started down the hall …only to hear a clatter and a loud **SQUEAK** from the kitchen behind them.

“….. or they’ll find us.” He drawled.

Shinya turned. “So they will,” he said, heading toward the kitchen.

“Hello?” he called.

Tsuda threw the door open…and inside they saw two people…one of whom was a young man holding an upside down bowl in one hand with a big frown on his face and tears welling up in his single red eye, the other covered by a white medical patch.  He wore a red and black bomber jacket with a demon emblazoned on it’s back over a t-shirt bearing the logo for ‘Penultimate Desire 7’ and a pair of baggy jeans. A pair of red , demonic horns stuck out of curly, fluffy black hair  from a secure headband. 

He looked up, a whole bowl’s worth of ramen spilled on the ground…and on the shoes of the other boy in the room. “i…I…I’m sorry, I uhm…uh…hahaa…whoo boy, what a mess, right? I just…”

“Glk- gk… guuuuuhhhh….” the other boy stared down at his shoes, his eye twitching, seemingly incapable of coherent speech– at least for the moment.  He had neatly trimmed blue hair, and a starched uniform shirt and tie, not a hair out of place– aside from the ramen on his shoes.

“Oh dear,” Shinya cooed, upon witnessing the scene. “That _is_ a mess, isn’t it?”

The dark haired young man’s eye narrowed, as tears began to flow down his cheek “J-just let me…lemme get down there and do my specialty…crane ga-game maneuver….”

He was reaching down, only the fake horns on his head jabbed the blue haired boy in the stomach as he bent over.

“Well. ” Tsuda said, “this is stupid.”

“Hhhhh!!!” the blue haired kid toppled backwards as the one with the horns jabbed him in the stomach.

“Oh my…..” shinya watched in quiet dismay.

Tsuda pat his shoulder ” ‘scuse me a moment.”

He swooped in and caught the blue haired kid before he hit the ground. “Careful there, fella. Don’t wanna get instant ramen on your nice suit any more than it’s already got, eh?”

The other boy backed away, looking a little like a panicked animal. His single eye flicked towards Shinya, and he waved “uhhhh h-hey, yo, what’s up, dude?”

Shinya chuckled. “I was just thinking that I thought I had already _met_ the SHSL clown, but the two of you seem to be working on your double act.”

The boy in Tsuda’s arms wimped. “Nnnn…. th-thanks! My shoes are already ruined!!”

The shorter of the two  young man pouted, crossing his arms as he met Shinya’s eyes with his own. “hmph…I’m not a _clown_, you know. I’m the SHSL Crane Game Master, Nakayama Hayate! And I just…look, i didn’t expect to trip, you know? and then he flipped out so what was I supposed to do??”

Tsuda pat the guy’s shoulder, shaking his head. “Look, there’s a shopping area around here, we can grab ya some new shoes, buddy. alright? calm down.”

“These are genuine italian leather!” the boy continued to complain. “It’ll be a bitch to replace them!”

Shinya meanwhile held up his hands, and shrugged at the crane game master. “Of course, sorry I musunderstood.”

Tsuda pushed him until he was moderately on his feet, and then let go “Look man, i dunno what to tell ya.” 

Hayate sniffed, rubbing the back of his neck “no it’s…it’s fine. The whole thing’s a dumb mess and this guy’s like…as high strung as they come, ya know?”

“I can tell,” Shinya said. he put his hand on Hayate’s shoulder. “Maybe slip out while he’s distracted? Everyone’s meeting in the ball room.”

“I can’t believe this happens, first I’m drugged and taken to a secondary location!” the blue haired boy complained. He slipped out of his shoes and started hunting for a towel.

Hayate nodded nervously, before hurrying out of the room with a tense grimace “m-maybe we can talk more later. Buh bye, bros!” 

WIth that, he was gone, and Tsuda was left with the panicking young man “look uh, I get it, it sucks but it’s gonna be alright. Our teacher’s here , you know?”

He looked up from where he was trying to daub his shoes with paper towel. “Teacher? The teacher’s here?”

“That’s right.” Tsuda nodded with a thin smile “she’s over by the ballroom, roundin’ everyone up ta try and figure out what happened. You’re the last fella, if our count’s right.”

He daubed some more at the shoes. “Last? I’d better hurry then! damn it!!”

Shinya nodded. “wouldn’t want to be late.”

“Look, your shoes are fucked anyway, right?” Tsuda said “why don’t we.. you know, head on down and you can worry about them later, eh?”

“In my _socks_?” he demanded, voice breaking slightly. “Fine… fine…. it’ll be fine….”

“You uh, gonna be okay there? You look like you’re gonna self destruct.” Tsuda drawled

He smoothed his hair and took one, long breath. Suddenly his entire demeanor changed, and he was smiling calmly. “see? Just fine.”

“Bravo…” Shinya raised his eyebrows.

Tsuda clapped “A+ repression you got going there, my man.”

“The situation was a bit tense, don’t you think?” he sighed. “Anyway, I’d better get going. ‘

Tsuda nodded “we’ll meet you there in a moment, alright?”

“See you then! Oh… I’m Watanabe Ryota, by the way. SHSL Public Relations.”

“Oh! I wouldn’t have expected that,” Shinya chuckled.

“Neither would I.” Tsuda chuckled “but hey, if I’m ever in a bad spot in the public eye? I know who to call.”

Ryota produced a card, handed it to Tsuda, and then disappeared down the hall, carrying his shoes in his hand.

Tsuda glanced down at the card with a raise of his eyebrow “weird guy, huh?”

“High strung doesn’t begin to cover it,” Shinya nodded. “I feel stressed out just from having been around him.”

The card was neat and elegant, and had the SHSL PR’s name and contact information.

Tsuda stuck it in his pocket. “well. The sooner we get out of here, the better. That way I can go back to doin’ what I _would_ do back at school…”

he grinned “staying half a class away from Captain Anxiety at all times.”

“Yes that might be the best bet,” he agreed. “Unless you’re looking to unleash some kind of piranha.”
He headed back out of the kitchen.

He snickered softly as they walked out into the hall again “i dunno, I feel like he’d eat _himself_ alive if he so much as got a drop of mustard on his suit.”

“You’re right. I suppose that makes mustard a deadly weapon,” Shinya chuckled.

“Terrifying.” Tsuda laughed as they headed down the familiar hall that Shinya had woken up in.

Shinya followed along with him, practically shoulder to shoulder. “Well I’d say we did our due dilligence as far as rounding people up.”

“I think so too, Shinya-kun.” Tsuda said, lightly punching his arm “Not too shabby, if I do say so myself.”

Not too far ahead…at the end of the quite long hallway….there were the sound of quiet voices.

Shinya listened curiously as they approached. They’d gathered quite the crowd….

As the two of them rounded the corner, they came to a room Shinya hadn’t yet seen before.

It was a large chamber

Along the back was a pair of double doors. A sign stood over them, but it was covered in a sheet  that obscured all but it’s sheer size. The door itself was locked tight with several electronic locks…and they didn’t seem like they were going to budge.

The rest of the room was the peak of opulence however.

From the ceiling hung a large, crystal chandelier that illuminated everything in a cascade of blood-pink and warm golden light, Large arch windows were shut tight with metal planks and panels, but what they could see was decorated with an ornate silver finish. 

The students they’d met were all gathered by the carpet in front of a triple set of double doors covered in plush velvet under a massive neon sign that read, in careful, elegant calligraphy “The Grand Ballroom”

For whatever reason, however, someone had added a flickering neon sign to the end that read “of Lost Souls”

The chatter was mostly from the students…but at their head, with her back to the doors, was a woman.

She was not a particularly tall woman, with pale brown hair that tumbled over her face and down her mid back . It parted around her warm, kind-featured face and the oval framed glasses that rested over nervous hazel eyes. She’d been dressed professionally…in a deep red turtleneck with a small key around her neck, and navy blue blazer and dress pants. 

Once Shinya and Tsuda came into view she sighed with relief and clapped her hands. “Alright , everyone, listen up please…. I’d like to make an announcement now that we’re all here!”

Shinya gave a little wave and a nod, leaning against the back wall to listen curiously.

Tsuda waved at the teacher, before settling down on the carpet in a relaxed sit. 

The teacher cleared her throat “I’m Sakai Kira…your homeroom teacher. ” she began “I recognize each and every one of you from my file…I was to lead your educational journey through Hope’s Peak as the 80th class this year . I do wish it was under better circumstances but…”

She bowed deeply “it’s a pleasure to meet you.”

There was a murmur of agreement from some of the crowd.

Shinya nodded, and murmured his own agreement.  He glanced at Tsuda, and at the crowd, before letting his gaze rest on the teacher again.

Tsuda was nodding along, as were a few of the others.
There was even a hesitant nod from Mayuki, as well as Chitose and Hayate. 

The teacher rose back up with an attempt at a smile. “now, I’m sure most of you are nervous about what’s been happening. After all, this is pretty clearly **not hope’s peak**…and none of us remember how exactly we got here…but I would like to ask you all not to panic”

Goto, who was standing near the front with his arms crossed, demanded. “And what would you like us _to_ do?”

The teacher met his eyes, and even as unsure as it is her smile didn’t waver “Well…that’s obvious, isn’t it?”

She clapped her hands together. “We work together. Anxiety is to be expected…you’re frightened…but you aren’t alone. You’re students of the 80th class. Brilliant, each of you, and capable. Alone, you can do great things…but together? Together we can change the world! You, and all your classmates, are hope…and whoever orchestrated this …diversion…well, I’m certain we can overcome it if we work together.” 

Eriko snorted “your optimism’s as fake as your tits.” she snapped at her teacher “For all we know someone here could be **in on it**.”

“hey!” Hayate jumped up and pointed at Eriko “don’t be such a jerk, huh? She’s our teach! And she’s just tryin’ to be nice, ya know!”

“And there’s no need to jump to conclusions and create paranoia,” Tomoyo said. “That;s how you wind up…. with a bad situation.”

Yo nodded, rubbing the back of his head. “Anyway, this is all probably a dream, anyway, right?”

“A dream?” Naoki asked, with big eyes. “I don’t _think_ I’m dreaming….”

Chitose , in her thick clown makeup and dazed expression, looked around with a bleary smile “nope, nope nope… I’ve been awake in dreams before, and this isn’t that. It doesn’t feel floaty enough!” 

“Says the clown.” Miyuki pushed her glasses up, “but no, there’s no need to jump to conclusions. While we’re all strangers here, we _were_ meant to be classmates. For the moment it’s prudent to stick together.” 

Sadahiro flashed a bright smile, clasping his hands together “that’s right! after all, if we just treat this while mess like a corporate retreat…a team building exercise….”

“exactly.” Sakai-sensei chirped, gesturing towards Sadahiro with a nod of her head. “Think of this like a team building exercise…one your teacher’s all too happy to help with…and we’ll work together to find out who, why and how we all wound up here! And perhaps where _here_ is!”

Goto snorted. “Tch. Exactly the kind of nonsense I expected to hear.”

“Has anyone tried the big doors yet?” Masako asked.

Mo-chi grinned. “That’d be great. Maybe its that easy….”

Morio stared at the doors with his heavily lidded eyes, a frown crossing his fine featured face. “it couldn’t possibly be so easy…. why would our captors go through the effort if…escape was only a door away.”

“maybe it ain’t a trap.” Tsuda murmured “maybe it’s just a weird prank…” 

Chitose jumped up and pointed to the door. “You never know until you try! Carp Diorama!”

“……” Miyuki grimaced in disgust “I think you mean _Carpe Diem._, you foolish little clown.”

Tomo snickered, and slid to his feet with a sly smile on his half-hidden face. “hey, if the clown chick wants ta try the doors, I’m gonna help her out.” 

“thats right!” Sakai said “let’s try the doors..and if at first we don’t succeed…we stop being so negative, Fukazawa-san, Takohachi-san and try again.” She said, looking at Eriko and Goto in turn.

“Well, since _you_ suggested it, why don’t you try it, hmm?” Goto said to Masako.

Masako frowned slightly, flushing and playing with her dark gloves. “Alright…. alright, yes. Allow me.”

She drew herself up to her full tiny height and swaggered over to the doors, looking for some way to open them.

Chitose jogged over and leaned near them with a  sleepy smile “I can help, Masako-ko-ko.” She cooed. “if you’ll let me.” 

Tsuda also hopped to the front, cracking his fingers. “I may not have my guns,but I’ve got your back if anythin’ nasty’s on the other side.”

Sakai nodded her head, taking a step towards the door….

When they all opened on their own. All three sets of doors just  **swung open** to the sound of a classic waltz filling the air.

Shinya, who’d been watching intently to see the result of all their busy discussion and action snapped to attention. 

_They opened by themselves? Well, that’s… unexpected. I doubt it’s as good an omen as it appears though._

Masako seemed to agree with Shinya’s thought– he watched as her hands went for a weapon that wasn’t there.

Tsuda’s hand also had shot to his hip at the swinging of the doors…but closed around nothing as the doors clattered open and gave them each a view of the room beyond.

It was a ballroom….an elegant ballroom ringed by strange **concave mirrors**. 18 of them in all, and set into the walls of the grand chamber’s perimeter.  High above stood another chandelier, this one made up of hundreds of tear-drop shaped crystals that glittered in the dim light of the room, and great curtains hung from the ceiling to sway like ghosts about 5 feet off the ground in areas of the room. 

Tables ringed the back half…and the dance floor lay clear along a black and gold dancefloor. It was a solid black, covered in seemingly random golden lines like kintsugi all along it’s the floor’s space. 

Pillars stood at each of the four corners, holding up the arching roof.

And at the front of the room….a grand stage with an orchestra pit and heavy velvet curtains that lay closed. 

Bisecting the tables from the dancefloor however, was a large glass sculpture of a woman holding a bear in the air. She was featureless, save for the long hair flowing in glass-blown waves, and she held the bear in the air above her head with a carved smile. On either side were tables laden with snacks and a small sign pointing to the plates upon it.

Naoki craned his neck, peering through the door as he stood well away from it. “What kind…. of room is that?”

“Doesn’t look like a way out,” Watanabe said cautiously.

Shinya, curiously, stepped forward. “Now this is interesting, wouldn’t you say?”

“A ballroom, from the look of it.” Eriko said, sniffing as she sauntered inside. “have none of you ever been to a society party?”

“I don’t get invited to those kinds of shindigs, honey.” Tsuda drawled as he walked inside with his hands in his pockets, followed closely by Hayate, who was looking around a little bit like a spooked rabbit.

Tomo strolled into the room with a feral grin “I’ve been to a few, Eri-chan.” he purred, looking at her with a long-lashed leer. “rich guys pay the big bucks for dates with a guy like me in a place like this..” 

Their teacher stepped tentatively inside, hurrying along to be at the head of the group slowly entering the room. “Stay behind me class…”

Masako obediently dropped behind the teacher, and Shinya did as well. The two of them shared a brief look.

Goto crossed his arms. “you couldn’t pay me to go in there.”

Morio sighed, shaking his head. “would it be better , or worse…” he asked softly “to be the only one left behind? I think we should follow…for now.” 

Chitose hesitantly entered the room, looking around with her sleepy smile “…wow. it’s big. I could fit like…50 elephants in here, easy.”

“Uh, I’m not sure its _that_ big,” Yo said, scratching his neck. “But its still pretty big….”

Shinya looked for Tsuda, and gave him a questioning glance.

Tsuda frowned, looking at the statue and the grand stage “I dunno.” He said quietly. “I got a nasty feelin’ about all this. Real nasty.”

Shinya nodded. “I’m afraid I have the same feeling,” he murmured, staring at the stage as well. Most of the rest of the students filtered in– even Goto.

Despite Goto’s reluctance…the last person to step into the room was Miyuki, who scanned it with cool and analytical eyes. “we’re being herded.” 

She walked past Shinya, and towards the statue. “someone wants our attention.” 

Hayate had snuck over to the snack table, and was reading the sign. “they gave us free snacks, at least?”

“Don’t _touch_ them, you _idiot_” Eriko snapped. “what if they’re drugged!” 

“Lady ain’t nice, but she’s got a point.” Tsuda drawled

“Poisoned, even” Tomoyo considered. “I wouldn’t trust them just yet.”

“Everyone’s so paranoid,” Shinya chuckled.

“Well can you blame us?” Watanabe demanded.

Sadahiro was jotting things down in his little book, pursing his lips “I can’t. I mean….we are in kind of a tense situation, right?”

Chitose tapped her lip “uhmmmm.” She spread her hands with a goofy smile “honestly like, why would they wanna drug us? Shinya-ya-ya is right…and I mean…they already did! We’re already here! There’s nothing to gain from it!”

Tomo shrugged his delicate shoulders. “hmmm.” He let himself drift closer…closer…closer until he bumped his shoulder on Goto with a “Kyaaaa….I’m _scared_.  this whole thing’s just too much! it’s too scaryyyy!~”

Goto looked up at him with a narrow-eyed scowl, though flushing slightly. “Get a hold of yourself, you simpering idiot.”

Masako sighed. “Whether or not the food is drugged is irrelevant right now, isn’t it? Its not what we’re trying to figure out. Why doesn’t the strongest person here try smashing a mirror?”

“I could…” Tomo sniffled . “if I had someone’s arm to hold onto~” He bat his long eyelashes.

Tsudo gestured with his thumb. “I’ll do it. Lemme just grab one of the chairs and….”

He never got the chance. Hayate was halfway to lifting a strawberry parfait to his mouth when music began to fill the room. 
 
It was an instrumental version of a rather famous foreign song. La Mer. It filled the room, the sound seeming to surround them as the doors slammed shut in unison behind the crowd of 18 students and their teacher.

Hayate yelped, dropping the parfait, as even Miyuki hissed out a soft and harsh hiss of surprise.

Morio sighed softly “….I should have known something of this nature would happen…”

Sakai turned, her hands raised as she bit her lip “alright everyone. Deep breaths. Let me handle this, alright? Whatever happens, just…let me handle it. I’ll make sure we all get back to Hope’s Peak so you can begin your School Year of Mutual Bonding and Talent Development.”

Naoki screamed as the doors slammed shut, and jumped– almost knocking watanabe over.

Tomoyo sighed. “Well, that was an obvious trap.”

Shinya frowned. “But what will happen now that it;’s been sprung?”

Miyuki pushed her glasses up. “It was, but sometimes you have to spring a trap to disarm it.” 

Chitose wandered past the snack bar…slowly moving her way towards the stage “Music’s coming from up here….I wonder if someone’s planned a show for us…”

“Chitose-san, please!” Sakai hurried forward, putting a hand on her shoulder….but it was too late.

The curtains began to pull back, revealing a large backdrop behind an automated orchestra. They were machines…automatons made of brass and steel with featureless faces and bodies clad in western-style suits and cocktail dresses. THey were repainted….half their bodies painted black, and half white as they played the melody in automated, pre-programmed movements with the instruments in their hands and attached to their faces. 

The backdrop was of a sunken city, the remains of it battered and in flames. A massive black and white bear with a jagged smile and gleaming red eye was raking claws through one of the few remaining buildings left standing…and pink paint, like the color of blood itself, dripped down to form the words….

“WELCOME HOPE’S PEAK 80TH CLASS, TO THE CRUISE OF DESPAIR!”

Shinya stared at it. “No. That’s _definitely_ ominous. Unsettling even.”

“You don’t fucking say,’ Masako hissed.

Sadahiro laughed weakly “well shucks , guys. It’s…it’s probably just…you know…someone’s…theatrical debut?”

“How stupid _are_ you?” Eriko snorted, staring up at it with wide eyes. “….this is someone’s idea of a sick joke. Like, one they’re pulling on us while we’re trapped and helpless…” 

Tsuda tensed, gritting his teeth “…..Cruise of Despair? The fuck is **that** about?”

Miyuki simply frowned….her eyes trained on the sunken city  in the picture “…it means ….that we shouldn’t try breaching the walls.” 

Sakai frowned, turning to stare at it with narrowed eyes, brushing her hair away from her face. “what….who ….”

“Upupupupupupupu” laughed a voice from the speakers, rising even above the orchestra. “Welcome, welcome WELCOME!!! It’s about time you _slowpokes_ showed up”

_And here’s the star of the show, I suppose…._

Shinya, along with most of the rest of the students, looked toward the source of the voice.

As all eyes fell upon the stage….a shape leapt from behind the orchestra. It flew through the air, flipping three times before sticking a perfect three point landing at the podium at the head of the stage. 

“Ta daaaaa!!!” it crooned. “It’s everyone’s favorite **Captain**….MONOKUMAAAA”

It was a bear. A three foot tall ….teddy bear. Half of it was pure white, it’s little black eye blinking over a little c shaped smile…but the other half was painted black. Black with a wicked smile of jagged teeth and a red , jagged slash in place of an eye. 

A dull red light glowed behind it as the bear turned to look at each of them in the room. “Awww…..no applause? After I went through all the trouble to set this up too….” He sagged “Not even a big smile for your **Headmaster and Captain**…”

Goto snorted, crossing his arms. “Headmaster and captain? Some sort of toy bear? This has to be a joke!”

“Hmmm….” Shinya pushed up his glasses. “Pretty far to go for a joke, I would say.”

Tomo cackled out loud, slapping his stocking-clad knee in giddy amusement. “you’re kiddin’ me? Yeah, the Headmaster of Hope’s Peak Academy’s a fuckin’ build-a-bear. That’s _rich_”

“….” Miyuki frowned  and raised her hand.

“First of all!” Monokuma stomped his little paw down with a digital sounding growl “i’m  NOT A BUILD-A-BEAR! and I’m NO TOY! You’ll stop that right now if you know what’s good for you!”

He pointed to Miyuki “you there, the kissass in the front.”

“tch.” Miyuki lowered her hand. “Wretched…regardless, you’re an animatronic of some sort. One that’s remote controlled aren’t you?”

Ms. Sakai looked for a moment…completely stunned by the scene before her. She swallowed “I’m sorry but…you aren’t my boss. This…this isn’t right.”

Tomoyo stepped forward next to Miyuki and addressed the bear. “Alright, if you’re the big NPC, give us the speech. What’s the info dump?”

Yo blinked. “Huh? NPC? You mean like its a game or something?”

Chitose clasped her hands together with a sharp gasp “oh no he’s _adorable_ what a Friend-shaped Captain we have! Mr. Monokuma-ma-ma? Are you soft or hard?”

“Don’t fuckin’ ask him _that_” Tsuda tried to interject “it sounds like you’re sa–“

“Hey now, hey now Clown Girl!” Monokuma chirped “while I’m _allllllways_ raring to go, we gotta keep the ratings down, don’t we?” 

There was a whirr, as the white side’s eye closed in a wink. “but I’m solid as a rock babyeeee”

“oh.” Chitose nodded “bad for hugs.” 

Morio tapped his chin…and threw something. It was one of the kitchen knives from the snack table and it soared through the air and thunked in the backdrop. He paused another moment before he said “…no strings. Not a puppet.”

“WOAH!” Monokuma held his hands up with a wriggle of his body “hey now, watch it, alright? You’re not the kinda guy who goes around killing everyone in the starter town for kicks, are you??”

He pointed to Tomoyo and continued “the SHSL Dweeb’s on the right track! Quiet down and listen to Ol’ Man Monokuma give you your **starting quest**, alright?”

“NO!” Sakai suddenly shouted, stomping her foot down “no, absolutely not! I don’t know _what_ you are, but these students are my responsibility, and I…I’m not going to sit here and let you prattle on with your silly comedy act. I …I want to speak to the person controlling you, bear. Now!”

_Something tells me antagonizing the bear isn’t exactly in our best interests…_

Shinya stepped slightly forward. “Ah… Sakai-sensei…..”

“Yes, Nagano-san?” She asked, looking over her shoulder “if it can wait…I’m confronting our captors…and I’m going to try and reason with them….you can ask your question then.”

“OoooOOOOhhh.” Monokuma leaned on the podium with a cock of his strange head. “Sakai-sensei, look at you! Tight sweater, short skirt, and those _stockings_, rawrrrrr. If you’re that excited to hop up here and meet me, I’m not gonna stop you!”

He slapped his paw on the podium. “But there’s **nobody** controlling this bear! I’m 100% Free Range! A bear carving his own path through the **endless sea**!, a hero to some…a lover to others…a lovable mascot for teethwhitening toothpaste to one small town outside Osaka… but no matter what I am, I’m only **Monokuma!**”

“Mono…kuma?” Mo-chi asked cocking her head. “I mean, you look more like a _duo_ kuma to  me….”

Eriko took a few steps back “ugh…the bear’s a _two bit pervert_”

Sadahiro suddenly shook off his stunned silence, and dipped into a deep bow “Hello sir! Honored to be invited to your school, sir!”

Hayate rubbed the back of his neck “hey come on , don’t **encourage** the guy, Sadahiro-san…” 

With a shake of her head, Sakai Kira attempted to climb onto the stage.

Shinya frowned. “Ma’am I really don’t think….. well…. oh welll….”

Miyuki’s lips tightened, and for a moment she looked like she was going to protest the teacher’s action as well.

But she fell silent, and flipped to a new page of her notebook. “hm.”

Monokuma snickered “I’ve got more than two bits…trust me on that, dollface.” the bear blew Eriko a kiss, which make the girl visibly shudder. 

But once Sakai got on the stage…that was when she got his full attention. “Wah hey, teach! Didn’t expect you to actually come up here!”

“Of course I did.” Sakai put her hand to her chest as she stepped towards the bear. “I’m their teacher, you must have known this when you kidnapped us all, but…that means these children are my responsibility.”

“yeahhhhh.” Monokuma said, the red eye’s glow intensifying for a moment. “Why don’t you hush up for a second and let me **properly** welcome our 80th class, and **then** we’ll talk, huh?”

Shinya drew in a breath. “….”

“I….” Sakai opened her mouth to protest…when the bear flexed his little paw and out sprung three gleaming blades. 

“Real hard for someone to prattle on without a throat, you know?” Monokuma said, just as cheery as ever, “even the **Ex-SHSL Public Speaker**” 

Sakai paled, her hand shooting to her throat as she took a hesitant step backwards. After a moment, she swallowed thickly and nodded. 

“Good! Now let your Headmaster take the floor!”

He turned back to the crowd and it’s mix of expressions from Horrified to morbidly curious. “where was I? oh. Yes.”

He cleared his ‘throat’, and jumped up “WELCOME HOPE’S PEAK’S 80TH CLASS! TO YOUR SCHOOOOOOOOOL TRIP!”

Tomoyo offered her hand to Sakai silently, inc case she wanted to step off the stage.

“Class trip?” Masako asked, narrowing her eyes.

Yo grinned. “Oh hey! class trip sounds fun!”

“Yay! Class trip!” Chitose jumped up and down, before quickly growing bored and exhausted by the effort and simply hugging herself “Very fun…very _very_ fun.” 

Morio cocked his head “is it customary to have school trips on the first day of school?”

“Yeah, as customary as it is to drug and kidnap the students going on it.” Eriko snapped “Obviously it’s _not_”

“chill out.” Tomo brushed his hair out of his face. “Even if it ain’t ‘normal’ it’s what’s happenin’ ain’t it? Can’t change that.” 

Sakai looked at Tomoyo, before giving her a nervous…but genuine smile. She shook her head ‘no.’

Monokuma cackled “let’s just say this is a very, very special trip! One that’s gonna go on for a **lot longer** than you’d expect!”

“As long as it takes for our families to pay the ransoms?” Miyuki asked dryly.

“nope!” Monokuma cackled. “I couldn’t care less about how much your parents can, or can’t pay! They’ve already sunk plenty into our failure of a school system! You’re all the proud winners of a **Lifetime of Cruisin’ Easy on the Open Sea**.” 

“W-what…” Sakai turned her attention towards him with a shocked frown.

“L-lifetime?” Naoki gasped. “What do you mean by that?”

“Isn’t it obvious, you dunce?” Goto snapped. “Its clear the bear has malevolent intentions.”

Miyuki put her hand on her chest, “how utterly foolish.” She hissed “you’re saying that we’re….”

“Let me stop you there, your honor!” Monokuma cackled. ” You’re on a **beeeauuutiful Ocean Liner**, sailing the great blue sea far from Hope’s Peak, your friends, your loved ones…everything! and you’re gonna be out here with me **forever and ever**. It’s for your own safety, you know!”

“For our own safety?” Watanabe demanded. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Nonsense,” Goto growled.

“Absolute nonsense.” Eriko agreed, crossing her arms with a soft huff of breath “If this bear expects us to believe that we’re…..”

There was a soft whine , as the space between the concave ‘cubbies’ in the wall suddenly began lowering towards the ground. 
Light spilled out into the dim ballroom as the wall itself vanished into the floor…and beyond…all around them …were large arched windows.

Windows that gave each of them a full, unbroken view of the churning ocean’s surface under a dark and cloudy sky. 

They were on a boat…exactly as the bear had said.

“Ta daaaaa!” Monokuma gestured out with his arms “Welcome to the CRUISE OF DESPAIR, kiddos! Trust me, you’d rather be on here than back at Hope’s Peak! Things back home? well…not to be _alarmist_ or anything, but they’re kinda dicey!”

He cackled “but don’t worry! You’re safe and sound here! We got everything! Accommodations! Plenty of food! Shopping! A pool! Unending confinement inside a waterbound prison from which there’s no escape! Everything a growing student needs for an **eternity at sea**. All ya gotta do is deal with it and give up any hope of seeing your families and friends again!” 

Hayate went pale, his single eye going wide “w-we…but….what if we…my s-sister! I need to get home to my sister!”

Tsuda grimaced, his fingers tightening into fists by his side “the fuck….” 

Sadahiro’s eyes widened “b–but I have work in the morning…I can’t…” 

Sakai’s hands tightened by her side as she listened, and it was clear…she was just barely holding herself back from launching into another speech towards the monochrome bear.

_An eternity at sea… Well, its strangely romantic as far as kidnapping plots go, I’ll give it that. Everyone’s going to panic though, aren’t they?_

“That can’t be!” Noaki squeaked.

Watanabe started to shake. “Hey just what do you mean dicey? what the hell? is this a threat? Are you threatening us?”

“I’m surrounded by idiots,” Goto complained darkly, crossing his arms and fixing an angry stare on the bear. “of course he’s threatening us!”

“The question is _why_,” masako said quietly.

Tomoyo nodded. “Why indeed….”

Chitose chewed her lip, looking thoughtful in her own sleepy way. She tipped onto one foot, and then the other before she said “Gosh Monoku-ku-ku…won’t we run out of food eventually? I don’t mind being here I guess but…”

“Don’t mind being here?” Morio asked , looking at her “…what of your dreams? your circus…and of these vague threats he’s spewing.” He sighed, and brushed his pale white hair from his face. “….it’s all for some end.”

Tomo had gone pale, and the smile dropped from his face. He had started to shake, fussing with his manicured nails as he swallowed “food’ll run out…we’ll _starve_. And…and what if there’s something happening back home? what about my clients? My friends? I got…I got people to…I…”

Miyuki’s eyes grew hard. “He’s sowing panic, discord, alarm.” she said coldly. “The threat’s only meant to rile people up, get them on edge for whatever drivel he’s about to say next. I guarantee it.” 

“Perceptive! VEEERRRY Perceptive.” Monokuma nodded his head. “see…we have ways to keep you from starving, don’t worry about that.” He leaned on the podium with that unwavering sharp toothed smile. “and I’m not a **heartless bear**. Your whining and sniveling has tugged my little heartstrings, and moved my soul. Like a salmon swimming upstream a little too late to find all the mates have already gone and died.” 

He put his paw on his chest “I’ve included a **loophole** to your eternal cruise. I know some of you are just **dying** to get back home….so why don’t you **kill** instead?”

Tsuda grit his teeth, raising his arm towards his face with a muffled curse as he hid his face. “you’ve gotta be kidding me.”

Tomoyo sighed, nodding along with Miyuki as she spoke. “I don’t think he’s kidding, so why don’t we hear what he has to say? we can riot afterward. Together prefrably.”

Yo scratched his head. “You know I’m starting to get a bad feeling about all this.”

Mo-chi had covered her mouth with her hands, looking on in shock.

Hayate’s eye began misting over with tears as he took a hesitant step back “k-kyaaa……” he managed out a small squeak of fear “k…Kill???” 

“That’s right!” Monokuma said, leaning on the podium. “See…whichever one of you kills a classmate and gets away with it gets a lifeboat home! An express ticket back to your old, average life far from the rest of these losers.” 
He snickered , his mechanical shoulders rising and falling with the laughter. “Primo deal, huh?”

Morio glowered under the curtain of his hair “hm.” 

Eriko hissed between her teeth, turning her nose up “oh is that all? Just snuff someone out…give them the big sleep and **poof** happily ever after?”

“no.” Miyumi said with a shake of her head “listen carefully, Eriko-san. He said **if you get away with it.**.” 

“DING DING DING!!! See…the graduation clause? it’s not for slackers. you’ve gotta WORK for it.” Monokuma cackled. “see, when one of you idiots die, we’ve got to call a class trial to try and suss out which of you sus troublemakers did the deed. Can’t have anyone disrupting student harmony after all!”

He clapped his hands together. “If the killer deceives the rest and gets away with it? Goodbye Despair! Off home they go!”

Sadahiro asked hesitantly “and if the killer’s caught?”

“Same thing that happens to real criminals on the mainland!” Monokuma crowed.

“Jailtime?” Chitose asked with an innocent cock of her head.

“No you ABSOLUTE CLOWN!” Monokuma shouted “EXECUTION!”

“E-execution?” Naoki gasped, grabbing his throat. “Murder?? All this…. its horrible!”

“You can’t really expect anybody to commit a murder, can you?”

Masako  had quietly started edging away from the center of the room.

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck, his eyes downcast as he hissed softly through his teeth “shit….this is…this ain’t good.”

“A killer would be ferreted out with little effort.” Miyuki declared. “So says the SHSL Prosecutor.” 

Monokuma shook his head “ah, the confidence of youth…the sweet cries of Despair….I’ve missed ’em.” 

“This is a joke!” Hayate declared, sniffling as he stepped to the front of the crowd “A big, dumb joke! You’re …you’re not serious!!” 

The bear cocked his head “of course I’m serious! I never kid around. Bears are impeccably honest, you know!” 

“b-but why?” He sniffled

“Because…I want to watch **as the hope that’s grown inside you explodes into a glorious cascade of despair**. ” He shivered “Hope’s Peak descending into the abyss of it’s own making, as each of you find out just what you’re capable of when all **hope is gone**.” 

Tomo shuddered “fucking shit, you’re crazier than I am!” he declared.

“So… you’re saying this is some kind of twisted psychological experiment to push people to the breaking point?” Watanabe demanded. “That’s almost as genius as it is disgusting.”

Morio paled more than his already pallid complexion seemed capable of, hiding his face with the sleeve of his kimono “….nightmarish…an affront to stuffed bears everywhere….terrible aesthetics and terrible mind…” 

Chitose bit her lip “**a cascade of despair…**” the clown whispered almost to herself. “no…I can’t…” 

The quiet murmur of fear spread through the crowd as Monokuma drank it all in. “I want the world to see just what **Despair can do**.” he cackled “so sooner or later…one of you’ll snap. Maybe some of you are already thinkin’ about it…”

Sakai had backed towards the backdrop behind Monokuma, tears falling down her face as she reached up. Unseen by the bear, she grabbed the knife that Morio had thrown, and steeled herself.

Yo noticed her. “Uh…. Sakai-sensei… what are you….”

Shinya raised an eyebrow. “Oh dear…”

_I knew it. Everyone’s panicking. This isn’t good…_

Sakai rushed forward and plunged the knife into the back of the bear’s head with a choked shout,  tears streaming down her face. “these students are my responsibility!” she said “I’m their teacher, and It’s my duty to make sure they all thrive, prosper during their time at Hope’s Peak.”

She twisted the knife, and ripped it out, plunging it into the bear’s eye over and over and over again with a tearful sob “As long as I live….”

Her eyes narrowed in resolute anger “as long as I live I won’t let *anything* happen to them! I don’t care who’s behind you, this sick game is **not** going to happen on my watch!” 

Monokuma shouted…and the shout turned to a garbled, mechanical scream as the knife tore through his circuitry. He twitched…jerked….and collapsed in a heap on the podium before the panting Ms. Sakai, her eyes set on the bear and the knife in her hands as she laughed weakly “you’re safe now, kids….I…I’ll find a way to steer us home.”

Tomoyo reached out to grab her arm. “Good job, Sakai-san, no come on, get away from there….”

Yo breathed a sigh of relief. “well, I guess it wasn’t as bad as it could have been…”

Sakai took Tomoyo’s arm, smiling shakily at them….as the bear suddenly began to beep under her feet. “…what?”

Tsuda’s eyes widened, and he made a choked sound as he ran forward. He pushed Tomoyo out of the way with a muffled ‘sorry’, and vaulted up onto the stage. Grabbing the bear he **Hurled it** out and towards one of the windows. 

A moment later…the entire room was filled with the deafening sound of an explosion…a blast wave of heat, and the smell of gunpowder

Shrapnel flew, missing the students thankfully as it exploded against the window. The window somehow stayed perfectly intact, even as everyone was blown off their feet by the blast.

Shinya leaned up, rubbing his ears and squinting. “Good throw, Tsuda-kun.”

Tsuda was collapsed on the stage , taking deep breaths as he attempted to stand. He gave Shinya a thumbs up.

Somehow, Tomo had been blown off his feet, and wound up atop Yo in a tangle of limbs, as Hayate screamed incoherently, scooting back until he bumped into Tomoyo, and turning in a rabbit like panic towards her “AHHH??”

As the smoke settled, and the smell of gunpowder hung in the air…Sakai’s hand tightened on Tomoyo’s arm, and she started to stand with a shaky breath “oh…he was explo….”

“UPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPUPU~” The laugh boomed through speakers all around them…as a second bear, identical to the first, popped up from behind the podium. “You didn’t think it’d be that easy, did you?”

Miyumi pressed her hand to her head. “…..disgusting vermin. Like a roach…”

Goto grimaced. “Wonderful, of course there’s another one….”

Shinya shook his head. “Oh dear….” he moved toward Tsuda to help him up.

Tsuda stood with Shinya’s help, his legs shaking for a moment as he tried to steady himself. “Been a while since I had to shake off an explosion.” he murmured. 

Morio cocked his head “like a demon of folklore…more come as one is slain.” 

Sakai turned, and raised the knife again with a determined frown “Fine….fine there’s more than one of you. B-but…” She raised the knife , her glasses cracked and askew on her freckled nose “I still won’t let you hurt them! I’ll…I’ll break as many of you as I need to!”

“awwww…that sounds like a **lotta hard work**.” Monokuma whined “and….well…I figure I should let you guys know something right now.”

He hobbled over to the edge of the stage, and plopped down into a sit, leaning on his paw. “Violence against the headmaster is absolutely, one hundred percent **Forbidden**.” 

He leaned slowly forward, towards the shaking tip of Sakai’s knife. Enough that the edge of it scraped against the metal of his nose as her hand trembled in the pulsing, intense red light of his eye as it blinked on and off. “But kids these days don’t appreciate rules…if it’s written somewhere, they chuck it out. If it’s on the radio? They flip it to prog rock. No…no.. kids only learn by **example**. And …I was thinking that maybe having a teacher around makes the game kinda boring, huh?”

He snickered “can’t go all lord of the flies when teach is here giving it her all.”

Sakai’s eyes widened behind her cracked glasses, and her fingers clenched around the blade as it’s shaking tip carved a small line in the paint of Monokuma’s nose. 

“Yo….you’re a monster.” She whispered. “i…I have to protect these children….as long as I live….”

“You’re right!” Monokuma cackled, and hopped back “Don’t let it be said that Monokuma’s gonna make a liar out of a pretty lady like yourself. As long as you live, right? Guess that just means it’s time to **die!!**”

“No!!” Tomoyo gasped, her single eye widening. “Sakai-sensei don’t say something like that!”

Shinya grimaced, letting Tsuda lean against him as he watched in a mix of horrified curiosity and disbelief.  _Is something like this really happening?_

Tsuda leaned against him, as he reached down for something that wasn’t there on his hip “Fuckin’ bear….he better no….”

There was a flash…and a chain snapped down from the ceiling. A mechanical clasp opened up , and closed rather violently  around Sakai’s neck as it struck her, and sent her stumbling forward. The chain rattled behind her as she tried to reach back and grab it in horrified shock “w–w…what…no I…”

Miyumi shoved Shinya and Tsuda out of the way as she rushed to try and help…Chitose hot on her heels with fully alert eyes…but by the time she reached Tomoyo and Sakai it was too late. 

The chain went taut, and Sakai was violently yanked into the air with the sound of straining bone and a choked gasp. 

Monokuma cackled, and clapped his hands “man her death flags are popping up ALL OVER THE PLACE huh?” he pointed up at the teacher as she swayed from the ceiling, her hands tight around the clasp as she tried to pull herself up to keep from choking. “but too late now…. it’s **punishment time**.”

Tomoyo made a grab for her as she was yanked away. “No!!”

The rest of the students stared in horror at what was happening, not least of all Shinya.

_How can this even be happening?_ He found his grip on Tsuda tightening.

Tsuda gripped his chest, over his heart as their teacher slipped out of grasp. Her leg brushed Tomoyo’s hand…but soon she was dangling above them , struggling to breath as he legs kicked and tears fell down her cheeks, and pattered to the ground below along with her glasses as they slipped off her nose. 

They shattered as they hit the ground, and Monokuma began to laugh. “Sorry folks, Ms. Sakai’s not gonna be _hanging around_ much longer!”

“S-stop that!” Chitose spoke up, fighting back tears “just stop this, she didn’t know!”

Morio covered his face with his sleeve, tense as their teacher’s breaths became labored with the effort of keeping herself from suffocating. 

“but it’s a demonstration of the rules!” Monokuma cocked his head. “You won’t learn anything until ya know how serious I am, right kids?”

“I really don’t think that’s necessary…” Shinya offered, unable to look away.

Mo-chi stared. “You let her down right now!!”

“let her down?” Monokuma asked..

Miyuki hissed “don’t you dare…don’t you…”

“ALRIGHT!” 

Suddenly, the floor opened under their teacher, and a panel rose from below. The panel was deadly as it was simple. A panel covered in jagged, serrated spikes….for a brief second she hung there in grim anticipation. 

Sakai stared down at it with wide eyes, her breaths quick and short as she held herself up by the neck brace…only for it to suddenly deactivate.

She slipped, her fingers scrambling for purchase…but it was too late. With a scream, she dropped to the ground below. There was a wretched tearing sound , the splash of hot blood across the faces and arms of those closest to her, and a sudden and violent end to their teacher’s scream as she landed atop Monokuma’s death trap. 

As the students stared in horror, and Tomo took a few steps back with a shuddering breath, Ms. Sakai’s body went from twitching  …to still. 

“I bet that’s how she wanted to die” Monokuma said cheerfully “no regrets. You can tell by the look of terror on her face!”

Naoki fainted dead away, and was caught by Yo, who stared in horror. “No…. this isn’t a dream, it’s a nightmare….”

Watanabe started shaking. “Glk…gk… hhhh…. nn-n….”

Mo-chi’s eyes went wide. “Noway. No way…. she can’t…..”

Goto was silent, and Masako looked away with a small noise under her breath.

Tomoyo screamed. “Teacher!!!”

Shinya felt a wave of vertigo come over him, but unlike Naoki, he mastered was in enough control not to faint. Still, it was a very near thing.

“She….. he…. oh my,” Shinya’s mouth feel open as he tried to make sense of the horrible occurence.

Hayate was frozen with his hand clamped over his mouth to smother a scream, tears flowing from his single eye as he struggled to stay upright.

Miyuki’s fingers were tightly clenched around her notebook. Her eyes focused firmly upon the teacher, positively burning with righteous anger and dismay. “you…bastard bear…you..” 

Tomo choked out a sharp sob, and hid his face behind his hands to avert his eyes from Ms. Sakai’s corpse  as best he could. He was shaking…legitimately scared. 

Morio closed his eyes with a soft “Regrettable” As Eriko raised her arms , splattered with her teacher’s blood, and mouthed out words that wouldn’t come. 

Chitose stared at the corpse with wide eyes, before looking at Monokuma with a dismayed frown. “….you…killed her.” 

Tsuda gripped Shinya tightly “…I coulda stopped it. I shoulda done somethin’ I…I…” 

Sadahiro gripped his throat, swallowing tensely as he tried to look anywhere but the body.

And Monokuma laughed. “Now you get the kinda stakes we’re playing for, right kiddos? WIthout your deadweight teacher around you’re free to **jump right into your new lives** here on the CRUISE OF DESPAIR”

“You’re _sick_,” Tomoyo hissed. “I doubt it matters to you, but you _are.”

“This is…. insane,” Goto muttered. “Sheer madness.”

“I… I think that bear’s some kinda psycho,” Yo said, holding on to Naoki.

“no SHIT the bear’s a psycho!” Eriko shrieked “he killed Sakai-sensei and now he’s gonna make US kill eachother!”

“Calm down.” Miyuki frowned, her hand shaking as she shut her notebook. Blood was splattered across her face, and she raised a shaking hand to wipe it off “…calm down and stop **shouting** , you insufferable fool.” 

She hissed through her teeth “…this goes beyond madness…this is something far, far worse.” 

Tsuda made a move to grab their teacher…but the panel lowered slowly into the ground, and shut behind her…leaving an empty space in the floor surrounded by a glistening pool of blood. 

“Crazy, sane…who really **cares about that kinda thing**” Monokuma asked “what REALLY matters is you idiots are stuck here with me ! Forever! So you’d better get used to it, huh?”

He bonked his fist on his head with a cackle “on that note, I got a gift for ya!”

“A gift,” Tomoyo snapped.

“N-nobody wants your cr-creepy gifts you freak bear!” Watanabe shouted.

_A gift? what kind of gift could he mean?_ Shinya was reasonably certain it would be some kind of weapon, or potentially worse.

Tsuda gripped Shinya, looking sick as he slumped into his hand “fuck….fuck…I…I don’t feel so good.” 

“Creepy?” Monokuma sighed as he reached behind the podium “you kids need to learn a little respect! Is it **creepy** to brutally murder a teacher to demoralize her students? ” 

“YES!” Hayate said, his voice tight and choked with smothered sobs “it’s REALLY creepy!”

Shinya wrapped his arm around Tsuda’s waist. “Hey… stay with me. Are you hurt from when you dove on stage?” he murmured.

Tomoyo didn’t take her eyes off the bear, her single eye glaring as if to bore a hole into him. “Get it over with then.”

Miyuki glowered at the bear, her fingers digging into her arm over her sleeve as she shot him a look that could have killed. “Please. you **bastard** , say your peace and leave.” 

Tsuda nodded, looking up at him with a nervous smile. HIs face was covered in the teacher’s blood…as was his jacket and hands. “heh. I’m great. Don’t worry about me…” 

Monokuma hopped back up with an armfull of tablets…they weren’t especially large, a little larger than a phone. He dropped them on the stage and gestured. “your MONOPADS! See, these are your new best friend! They’re a key to your room and secure locations! They’re your notepad! Your Alarm clock! Your Pet Sim! Your Camera! Your new guide to your new buddies! It’s everything ya could want and MORE!”

“Digital pads?” Shinya asked, raising an eyebrow as he held onto Tsuda. _Well, that isn’t what I was expecting at all._

“What? What the heck are they for?” Yo demanded.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Tomoyo asked.

Tsuda blinked “pads. Man, I suck with tech like that.” 

Chitose bit her lip, wiping tears off her face and smudging her makeup “p-pet sim?”

Hayate was the first to inch towards the stage, still trying to force down his tears. “i …I …I uhm… I’ll take one.” 

Miyuki huffed a soft breath “…it’s part of his game.”

Morio brushed his hair out of his face. “Are you going to ask us to keep a journal?” 

Monokuma cackled “AS IF I CARE about whatever dumb thoughts go through your head!”

Tomoyp nodded at Miyuki. “Exactly.”

Shinya rubbed his chin. “Well, I suppose we’d better all take one. Not having one could be worse.”

Hayate picked one up, and it flashed on.

“this one says it’s for Naoki…” he tried tapping on it. “it won’t let me access it, though.”

“that’s right! They’re LOCKED.” chirped Monokuma “Thumbprints and all that! Don’t want you kiddos snooping on one another, do we?”

“I thought you said there wasn’t a diary,” Tomoyo considered. “What could we hide on our pad?”

Mo-chi shrugged. “Naoki’s out cold right now.”

“That’s a secret!” Monokuma snickered. “I’ll let you figure it out for yourself. Kids these days want things just HANDED to them, bah.” 

Tomo walked forward, makeup streaming down his face as he fished through the pads for his, and snatched it up. “Fuck you.” he hissed to Monokuma…and then he turned and stormed out of the room. “And FUCK THIS PLACE.”

Goto was next to grab his own pad. “I _quite_ agree with that sentiment,” he hissed, turning and following. He looked back over his shoulder. “You will NOT be able to keep me here, bear.”

“Oh my….” Shinya bit his lip. “Tsuda-kun, lets get our pads and see if we can find somewhere to clean you up, ne?”

Yo took his own pad, and Naoki’s. “I hope he’ll be okay,” he murmured.

Hayate found his after a moment, and tensed before scampering off. 

Morio approached, picking up his pad like it was something disgusting and squirming, he frowned and stormed off in an elegant huff as Sadahiro nervously inched over and took his. 

He bowed to the bear “t-thank you for the pad!” he chirped before he hurried off. 

Eriko hissed “….I guess we need these damned things. Fine. But I’m not sticking around and risking one of you idiots getting _me killed_ like Ms. Sakai.” 

She turned in a huff and drifted off with her pad, leaving Miyuki staring at the dwindling pile, and Chitose collapsed on the ground. The clown had actually begun to sob in the waning aftermath of their teacher’s death.

Mo-chi came forward, and knelt down next to Chitose. She didn’t say anything. She just took her pad, and handed Chitose hers, before leaning on her shoulder.

Tomoyo took her own pad, stepping back, and watching the proceedings.

Masako took a pad as well, silent, and stoney faced.

Watanabe meanwhile was still shaking. he hadn’t yet come forward.

Chitose sniffled, her narrow shoulders shaking as she fell leaned against Mo-chi and took her pad in her dainty fingers, holding it to her chest with a soft , sobbing sound. 

Tsuda squeezed Shinya. “…we should get ours, man…”

Miyuki pushed her glasses up, and stared the bear down. Her lips formed a tight line, a scowl as she held her balled up fists by her side.

Shinya nodded. “Yes…. let’s,” he murmured. “I don’t think it’ll do any good to hang around. Maybe we can find somewhere to clean you up.”

Tsuda nodded “yeah I…kinda need a shower or something. I can’t…I mean…” 

Chitose leaned her head on Mo-chi, and poked numbly at her pad. “uwaa…there’s s-s..so many options and stuff…” she murmured distractedly. 

Miyuki still hadn’t grabbed her pad, but she took a step forward. “Monokuma.” she said darkly “…I’ll make sure that you’re prosecuted to the full extent of the law. I’ll play **judge, jury, and executioner** if I must, if it means wiping your wretched existence from the planet.” 

She bent down and grabbed the pad. “Once we find our way out of here…whoever you are behind those cold dead eyes…your days are numbered.” 

Monokuma shivered “oh no…I’m shaking. I’m quivering in **terror**….” he shuddered. “S-s-s-step on me MORE Lady Justice!”

Tomoyo pointed her pad at Monokuma. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking she’ll be the only one you have to deal with either.”

Shinya bit his lip, watching. “Oh my….” He took his and Tsuda’s pads. “Hmmm… count me in too of course.”

Tsuda nodded, staring Monokuma down. “That’s right, Cap.” He said with a thin smile. “See….once we’re outta here? I’ll be your one man firing squad.” 

Miyuki held the pad up “I won’t play your game…but I’ll damn well stop whoever tries.” 

She looked at Tomoyo and Shinya with a nod . “Good.”

Monokuma sagged, scuffing his foot against the ground “awww….and here I thought I made a great first impression, but you guys seem to really hate me!”

“I can’t imagine why you would think that,” Shinya said, pushing up his glasses. “Come on, Tsuda-kun, lets see if we can get you that shower.”

“Tomoyo-san?” Miyuki asked “…may we walk and talk? I have something to discuss with you.” 

Tsuda nodded, brushing his hand through his hair “y-yeah, that sounds like an aces idea, man. Real aces. Let’s get on that.”

The room fell quiet…save for Chitose’s sobbing.

Shinya walked out of the room with Tsuda, lingering just long enough to see Tomoyo’s nod to Miyuki.

The two of them walked out into the open lobby to find it empty…and it was little surprise to see why.

After all, the door that was standing opposite to them…that was once locked tight, was now wide open…the sheet had been torn away from what turned out to be a massive neon sign reading “Monokuma’s DesBEARful Room and Board!” with a winking monokuma giving a thumbs up.

“huh.” Tsuda said.

“Well… that’s… new,” Shinya said. “I suppose he does need somewhere to put us while he’s plotting for us to murder one another.”

“yeah.” Tsuda chuckled “hoo boy. Looks like this death game’s got free room and board. Maybe even built in central air.”

“Given that it at least _appears_ to be a cruise ship, I’m willing to bet on it,” he mused. he led Tsuda toward the new area.

Tsuda followed, trying to wipe more of Ms. Sakai’s blood of his face. “heh..yeah.”

He was quiet a moment before he said “i can’t believe he killed her. She was just tryin’ to help us and…”

Shinya sighed and paused mis step, closing his eyes. “Its tough to believe , ne? Already it starts to feel like a nightmare….”

Tsuda nodded. “yeah. Like it can’t really be happenin’. I’m gonna wake up in the nurse’s office and they’re gonna tell me it was all a case of jitters, and I’ve been passed out or somethin’.” 

He grimaced. “…evil robot bears…murder….trapped on a cruise ship..”

“It’s… unique, I’ll give it that. Uniquely horrible.”

“yeah.” Tsuda chuckled. “Like a deathtrap cooked up by an AI generator or somethin’. heh…”

He pressed his hand to his head. “fuck. But it sure feels real.”

“Real– and deadly– enough,” Shinya agreed. “We’ll just have to figure it out….”

Tsuda brushed his fingers together, smearing some of the blood that had gotten on them with a grimace. “yeah…yeah. Shit, sorry. I’m just….shook, I guess. Real shook.”

He nodded, “I’m shaken myself… honestly Im not sure what the word is for how I’m feeling.”

Tsuda nodded, and walked into the hall. “Tell me about it. LIke we stepped into a whole new world or somethin’. Nothin’ seems appropriate enough to describe it.”

It was a wide hall, with a carpet that took on a ‘sand’ like pattern…like shifting lines in the dunes of the desert, and a ceiling marked with pale blue and white bubbles on a deep blue background. 
On either side were doors, each one marked with a plaque.

Shinya looked around and glanced at the plaques. “Like another world…. it does. And this section seems… beach themed? desert themed?”

“underwater.” Tsuda said “like we’re buried undersea.” He said, “Sand below us, water above.” 

He reached into his pocket like he was expecting to find something there, but came up empty. “That’s what I reckon’ anyway.”

The plaques were each of a little pixel figure and a name. As he walked past, he could see one with his own name upon it…with the pixel figure looking like a chibi version of himself. Each of the other doors were the same, but with his classmates.

“Underwater…. yes! I think you’re right about that,” he nodded. “Hmmm, seems like we have assigned rooms…”

“Looks like.” he said with a chuckle “Hope you like your neighbor, ’cause I figure we’ll be stuck here a bit…least until we figure out the trick to gettin’ out.”

“I wonder how thin the walls are?” he asked with the trace of a smirk. He moved to see how he could open his own door, beckoning Tsuda to follow him.

“Depends.” Tsuda said with a look of amusement. “Gonna test it?”

He followed, his hands returning to his jacket pockets.

“I might,” he purred. He took out the monopad, reasoning that it might be used to unlock the door, since they were also personalized. He also glanced at who’s door was beside his.

It looked like his neighbor was…of all people…Miyuki. 

There was also a small slot, the size of the monopad under the handle.

“Mmm. Miyuki-san….” He plugged his monopad into the slot.

“Well, that should make for some delightful mornin’ banter.” Tsuda snickered. 

There was a soft beep…and he heard the lock to his door click open. “Wonder where I am.”

He looked over his shoulder and paused. “Never mind. Figured it out.”

Shinya waited and didn’t open his door just yet. He glanced to see where Tsuda was looking. “Oh?”

Opposite them, and one door over to the right was a nameplate bearing Tsuda’s name and likeness. “yeah. Right over there.”

“Not too far then,” he nodded. “Don’t go in just yet. Safety in numbers, ne? Come check mine with me.”

“Sure.” Tsuda said with a slight smirk “Thinking of testing the walls with me, then?”

Shinya smiled widely. “Why Tsuda-kun, what a scandalous suggestion.”

He pushed the door open.

Tsuda snickered “what can I say? I’m a real crude kinda guy.” He said with a shrug, before leaning over Shinya’s shoulder to look inside.

Shinya let him lean almost against him, standing unnmoving in the door way, but tense, incase it was trapped. He peered inside.

Nothing exploded…nobody jumped out…and no spike pits opened up. Instead, the two young men got a nice view of a relatively sparse room. 

A comfortable bed with sea-green sheets and a pale wood headboard in a cabana style. A few drawers, a closet along the far right wall…a large monitor at the foot of the bed, and a porthole window looking outside. 

A simple, if comfortable room with plenty of space and even a small fridge. 

…..the only thing off were the cameras fixed in each corner of the room, pointing at every angle.

“Well…. aside from the cameras, its rather nice, ne?”

“yeah, real cozy.” Tsuda said with a nod. “.. But…kinda like a hotel room, I guess. Real sterile.”

“Unsurprising I suppose,” Shinya said. “Although I did wonder if they’d have been customized for us.” He stepped inside and waved Tsuda to follow him in.

“Woulda been nice, huh?” Tsuda agreed. 

Though…as Shinya said that…he began to notice **something**.  There were slight lines in the wall…and atop one of the cubbards there was a small sliding panel. There was something more to this room. Something much more than met the eye.

And as he entered he caught sight of something peeking out from a half open drawer. Something familiar. He could just barely see the lower half of a white mask with a wide, grimacing smile inside it.

Shinya sauntered into the room, and leaned casually against the open door to close it, crossing his arms, and relaxing, as if to get a better view of the room.

_Well… it looks like there’s more than meets the eye after all._

“A bit much to expect from a murderous bear I suppose,” he said.

“nah.” Tsuda said, as he strolled in and looked lazily around “Maybe we’ll find some crap to decorate it with later, huh?” 

He walked over to the television stand and bent down to look it over. “huh.”

Shinya cocked his head. “See something interesting?” he asked.

“maybe? Something’s weird is all.”
He traced his fingers over something on the table. Like, probably just a shoddy tv-table I suppose but…Top part between the board and the drawer seems a mite bit too thick.”

“Oh, ne?” Shinya walked over and looked the table over. “You think there might be a secret to it? I didn’t know you were so observant Tsuda-kun!”

“eh, I have my moments.” Tsuda shrugged with a smile. “Gotta be observant to be a sharpshooter, ya know? Part of havin’ a good eye.” 

He tapped his temple. 

“Maybe, though. Hell if I know how to open it.”

“Would you like to figure it out with me before or after you’ve had that shower?” he asked. “Assuming there’s a bathroom in here– I suppose I haven’t looked.”

The room was L shaped, with a set of two walls to the left with a door upon them. That, likely, was the bathroom. 

“Gonna have me shower in your room, huh?” He stretched “…after. I don’t wanna get Ms. Sakai’s blood all over your uh, trick desk.”

Shinya nodded. “Appreciated. As for showering in my room– well, I suppose I thought you might want someone watching your back during such a vulnerable moment…. considering the circumstances.”

“….” Tsuda grimaced “…you know, point. Yeah. Thanks for lettin’ me use your shower.”

“Its no problem, really,” he smiled. “Why don’t we see what we have to work with, ne? Maybe we’ve been given a jacuzzi.”

“If we’re lucky.” Tsuda smirked “jets and all, eh?” He gestured towards the bathroom. “After you, fella. “

Shinya nodded, and headed around the L curiously.

His keen eye noticed more… a slight divet under the bed, trace of a mechanism in the lamp…little touches here and there.

Like someone had made an escape room fashioned after a cruise liner’s bedrooms. 

The door for the bathroom came open fairly easily as well, though it did stick a little bit, and on the other side…stood a jaccuzi bath, with a shower attachment, a sink, and a toilet with a bidet. 

Fluffy towels sat on racks, and a round mirror hung just over the sink with a ring of small bulbs around it. 

A simple, cozy bathroom. At first glance, anyway.

_I wonder if all the rooms are like this. I’ll have to find an excuse to check out Tsuda-kun’s._

“Goodness… it looks like we _did_ get a jacuzzi. My, my– murder christmas has come early, Tsuda-kun.”

“Can I skip murder christmas, and go straight to the regular one?” Tsuda drawled. “But hell. Can’t say I’m unhappy ’bout the jacuzzi.”

“I suppose I’d prefer we did that too,” he nodded. _Assuming the jacuzzi isn’t **equipped specifically** for murder._ “Why, it looks big enough for two people even.”

Tsuda walked over, and turned it on…warm water began to flow from the spout and worked slowly to fill the large tub with crystal clear water. “sure does, if ya wanted someone to scrub your back an’ all that jazz.” He said with a chuckle.

“I can’t say I’d object,” he purred. “but for now I’d probably better let you just get clean, ne? While you do that, I’ll check out what’s on this pad we’ve been given.”

Tsuda nodded, and gave him a little salute before shooing him out of the room to strip. 

For the moment, Shinya was alone with the sound of a filling tub filtering out from beyond the bathroom door.

The first thing shinya did was move to take a look in the drawer that had been open when he entered.

The drawer opened easily, and he saw a familiar mask. A white carnival mask with a blue domino design on the cheeks and eyes…and a wide, grimacing smile. 

Under it was pinned a note.

With a curious frown, he checked the note.

“I know you like keeping secrets, but I thought you might want this 😉
-Monokuma”
The note was written in cheerful comic sans font, in English.

“Hmmmm…”  _So whoever’s running this situation already knows. I suppose he’ll try to hold it against me then… I could burn the note just in case, but I might need it in some way. _

He closed the drawer back up, leaving the note with it.

He got out his monopad, and opened it up as promised.

It opened to a screen displaying his name, and a small place to put his thumb for a fingerprint scan.

“Hmm…” He pressed his thumb to the scanner.

The screen flashed, and then opened to a state of the art interface.

It featured small, slowly turning icons , each labeled with their function over a background of Hope’s Peak’s crest. 

“Map
Monocoin Counter
Item Description
Truth Bullets
School Report Cards
Petsim
Music Player
School Regulations
Photo Mode
Personalization”

One of the options, strangely enough, was blanked out.

“I see…..” he tried to click on the blanked out space first.

It glitched, and an error screen popped up reading “Locked: Only Available During the Class Trail!” With Monokuma’s grinning face signing off on it.

“I see.” He sighed and clicked school regulations instead.

Up came a list of rules with animated sprites acting in demonstration of each.
“Rule #1: Don’t Litter! Keep our Oceans Clean!!. Any student caught throwing anything, themselves or others included, from the ship will be dealt with severely.
    Rule #2: “Nighttime” is from 10 pm to 7 am. Some areas are off-limits at night, so please exercise caution.
     Rule #3: Once a murder takes place, a class trial will begin shortly thereafter. Participation is mandatory for all surviving students.
    Rule #4: If the blackened is exposed during the class trial, they alone will be executed.
    Rule #5 If the blackened is not exposed, the remaining students will be executed.
    Rule #6  As a reward, the surviving blackened will be forgiven of their crime and given a lifeboat home
    Rule #7: The Body Discovery Announcement will play as soon as three or more people discover a body for the first time.
    Rule #8: Destroying any school and ship property is expressly prohibited. This includes the surveillance cameras and monitors.
    Rule #9:  You are free to investigate this ship at your own discretion. Your actions in this regard are not limited.
    Rule #10: Violence against Headmaster Monokuma is strictly forbidden
    Rule #11: Additional School Rules may be added at the headmaster’s discretion.”

“Don’t litter,” he repeated.  “And don’t break anything.”
_I suppose the no littering rule is to keep people from disposing of any evidence._
He checked the _personalization_.

There were some options there… 
“Color Theme
Background
Notification Jingle
Alarm Settings”

“I see. Not much to customize then.” Out of curiosity, he checked the backgrounds.

There were a number of locked options…but a few were available. 

There was 
“Custom Photo
Monokuma Beach Party
Hope’s Peak
XXX Monokuma
Rave monokuma
Gentle Summer
Flying Toasters”

“Oh dear,” he mused. “XXX monokuma… no. I think not.”

He switched to the photo application.

It gave him a pretty advanced spread of photo options for the handheld camera built into it’s casing.

 (pinned)
He flipped the camera option to face himself, smiled brightly and held up a _v for victory_– and snapped a selfie.

There was a satisfying click and the photo saved into the gallery linked off to the side of the screen.

He returned to the personalization menu, and set his selfie as his backrgound.

And just like that, he could see himself grinning every time he turned on his monopad! Dandy!

“That works then,” he mused. He thumbed curiously through the other options.

The School Report cards turned out to be a list of his fellow students, each with a  small blurb of likes/dislikes on it, and several bits of locked information.
The Item Description was a list of…items, it seemed. It already had logged the Cigarettes in his system as 
“Mono-Mono Deathsticks: For when you want to die SLOWLY”

The Music player was a MP3 player with only a few songs unlocked, and the Monocoin counter had…50 coins in it? It seemed to be some kind of reward system…

The Petsim, however, was a fully playable pet simulator with an important feature embedded inside it….

‘Peer to Peer Chat Client’.

“Oh I see. Hidden away in here, hmm? Well, let’s see how it works.” First of all, did it list the people available to message, and did he recognize thier names or handles.

As it opened up, he saw a list of names. 

Names he recognized as the people he’d just me moments ago within the ship. 

the 80th class, and Ms Sakai…who’s name was crossed out with a line of pink. 
There was, however, an option in there to change the ‘nickname’. But it’s default seemed to simply be their names.

“I see.”

He considered a moment, running down the list of names, and selected Tomo. 

He sent a message. `[Pardon me. Does this message you any kind of alert? Can you see this?]`

A moment later a response came through with a small **ping**, and a popup notification that illuminated the petsim’s icon.

`[Holy fuckin shit, lol, this thing’s got some kinda IRC client? Yeah, sure did!]`

`[It looks like it does. Thank you for helping me test it, Tomo-chan ^_^]`

`[Gladly, handsome~ \(^u^)/, hit me up anytime.  I’ll see if I can spread the word around, huh?]`

`[Thank you!! I’ll be in touch! :)]`

He closed out of the chat client and listened to hear if Tsuda was still busy.

He heard the water draining from the bathroom, and a bit of humming coming from within

Shinya nodded. He decided to take a more thorough look around while he had the opportunity.

As Shinya took a closer look he began to realize…there were small puzzles hidden all around his room. In little details like the painting over his bed (Of Monokuma dancing through a field of blood covered flowers) being slightly too far off the wall, or the barest trace of wires hidden at the corner of the room….

“How fascinating,” he mused. _I wonder what it all leads to?_

He didn’t have the chance to answer as the door swung open, and Tsuda walked out in a fluffy towel and not much else. “Thank ya for the tub, partner.” He said with a grin “feel like  a new man.”

Shinya’s eyes were drawn to Tsuda to look him over with a smile. “Glad to hear it, partner.”

Tsuda was a well built young man. Strong figured, with wide shoulders and a deep tan complexion. It seemed he’d seen a bit of a rough life…because  criss crossed here and there were signs of scars , pale gouges against the rest of his skin. “mm.”

He brushed his wet hair away from his face. “now to see if there’s any clothes for me to snag in my room. or if i’m stuck with the bloody ones, huh?”

Shinya felt himself flush just a little at the sight, but gave no other particular sign of interest or disinterest. “I suppose if we have to, we can wash them, ne?”

“Yeah.” Tsuda nodded. “But that’ll take a bit and I ain’t keen on wearin’ Ms. Sakai’s blood that long. Not when I just got done washin’ the poor lady’s last moments off m’self.”

Shinya nodded, and frowned. He picked up Tsuda’s pad from within his clothes. “Hold on to your towel then. Let’s cross the hall and see about those clothes.”

_Well this is certainly a perfect opportunity to see his room, isn’t it._

It would be…after all, he could just follow him in.

Tsuda stretched, and hiked up his towel. “Alright, alright, let’s head on over, huh?”

“Hope we don’t run into nobody.”

“Fair! Though I’m certain there are people who might feel they were missing out,” he chuckled. He opened the door for Tsuda.

“Well, they certainly are.” Tsuda snickered as he stepped out of the room…and nearly bumped into Miyuki, who gave the two of them a dubious look. “hm. Tsuda…you seem to have lost your shirt.”

“whoops! Hello, Miyuki-san. Tsuda-kun was just looking for a change of clothes after the nasty incident, ne?”

“Oh of course.” She said, holding her hands up with a dry smile “I’m not going to judge. Just so you’re aware…it seems the walls are soundproof.”

“Oh? you tested them, then? I hope you weren’t screaming for help if so.”

“Not that it’s any of your business.” MIyuki pushed up her glasses. “but I was simply testing to see if it’d carry. Tomoyo was assisting me.” 

She smiled thinly “so when the worst inevitably happens, we can be reasonably sure that there’s a chance **nobody will hear the deed** if it’s done in the right location.”

“Unsurprising,” Shinya nodded. “If the bear wants someone to become a murderer, he’s going to give them a sporting chance I suppose.”

“I suppose it makes the game all the more interesting. “She shook her head with a frown.

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “yeah, that’s all well and good but uh, I’m gonna…”
He gestured, one arm still holding the bundle of his pad and old clothes “mosey on over to my place and see what I can find, huh?”

Shinya smiled. “I’ll accompany you, Tsuda-kun. Thank you for the tip, Miyuki-san.”

“mmmmm. Hope you can find some pants there ‘cowpoke’ ” Miyuki drawled , “do be safe.” 

Tsuda flushed, and shrugged his shoulders. “you got it, Miyuki-san.”

Shinya chuckled and walked across the hall to Tsuda’s door, giving Miyuki a friendly wave.

Miyuki waved back, but turned back to her monopad with a slight shake of her head.

Tsuda was already slipping his own monopad in the door’s slot, and it clicked open with a soft **beep**

Shinya stood just behind Tsuda, watching to see what his interior would be like.

The door swung open…and Tsuda’s room couldn’t have been any more different than his. 

While it still had the same shape (L-shaped main room with the block of the bathroom accessable by a door, as well as a large closet along one wall and a bed/tv stand combo with a porthole to the outside)….it’s decor was…quite themed. 

In this case, it was some kind of cowboy theme. A pistol hung on a plaque in the back wall, along with a large mural on the wall by the headboard depicting a man shooting behind him while lawmen followed. 

The bed had a furs on it instead of traditional blankets, and the whole thing had a kind of ‘American Western’ vibe to it with the furniture choice and general decor. 

Tsuda snorted through his nose. “Awww, fuck you too, Bear”

Shinya chuckled. “Ah, so yours is themed then. I’m missing out.”

“Looks like.” Tsuda murmured “I ain’t _that_ much of a cowboy type!” he protested. “I mean, yeah, i got into guns ’cause i really loved those American cowboy flicks but…”

“Do many people know that, Tsuda-kun?” he asked curiously. he stepped into the room with Tsuda, closing the door behind both of them.

“not…really.” He murmured. “maybe my coach and a few of my …old friends. But nobody else far as I know.”

He stepped inside, and walked over to the closet. 

With a huff, he threw it open…and froze “you’re kiddin’ me.”

Shinya followed him, and peered over his shoulder. “Hmm?”

Inside the closet were….copies upon copies of the exact same outfit he’d been wearing.

And at the far end….one cowboy outfit, complete with hat. “Fuck me.”

“I…. see,” Shinya said. “So… we were out long enough to have our outfits copied.”

“Y..yeah.” He said with a frown “…like, why’d the bear think I’d wanna wear the same outfit every fuckin’ day?”

There was a sharp musical sting through hidden speakers and…out jumped Monokuma , dressed in a pair of chaps and a ten gallon hat. “Why, cowpoke, I reckon that’s so we can make a nice, easy to draw datin’ sim outta this whole adventure when it’s said and done. Too many outfits means more work, and we’ve already gone through three artists on account of the spectre known as ‘exhaustion’, and ‘heart attacks’. “

Shinya looked down at the bear with a suspicious eye. 

*It seems like the bear like to make jokes. Though, I wonder if there’s any truth to this one.*
“I shouldn’t be surprised you’d be as heartless with your artists as your students, Monokuma-san,” he said lightly.

“Well, they ain’t any good unless you work them to death, right?” Monokuma said “that’s just the industry nowadays. Work ’em till they drop, then drag in more fresh off the line to the chopping block. Like a sushi joint for the desperate!”

Tsuda raised his eyebrow. “….okay, whatever. I don’t care. You want us to have one outfit, two at most as some kinda dumb joke, fine.”

“Anything else you want to explain while you’re here?” Shinya asked, pushing up his glasses.

“HmmmmmMMMmm” Monokuma tapped his chin. ” hm. Hm hm hm hm. Nope! Sorry! Fresh out of helpodium today!” 

“….helpodium?” Tsuda snorted

“The compound that makes our friend here helpful, of course, Tsuda-san,” Shinya explained.

“Oh yeah, of fuckin’ course. How could I be so fuckin’ dumb.” Tsuda drawled.

“Annnyway.” Monokuma said “if you guys don’t have any more questions, I have some puppies to kick, kittens to drown, you know, that kinda thing.”

“Of course, Monokuma-san, we wouldn’t want to keep you from important business,” he nodded.

“Lemme just mosey on outta here, partners.” Monokuma said in a drawling accent…before he sauntered into the closet and vanished. 

“…..I hate that the fella can just go walkin’ in to my room like that.” Tsuda murmured

Shinya watched the little mechanical bear go, and nodded. “I was thinking just that,” he agreed. “It certainly makes me feel less safe sleeping alone in my room…”

“Yeah, likewise.” Tsuda murmured. “…but i think we can rest assured the guy ain’t gonna hurt us.”

“Not directly, almost certainly,” Shinya nodded. “Though his sense of humor may do someone in.”

“I Know it’s killin’ me.” Tsuda drawled, his eyes half closed. “mind uh, takin’ a step out while I change?”

“Oh! Well, of course, if you’re embarrassed,” he chuckled and turned to move to the door.

“What can I say. I don’t usually strip on the first date.” He drawled, and took one of the outfits off the rack. One of the duplicates, not the cowboy outfit.

Shinya chuckled, and stepped out the door, closing it behind him. He rested his back on the wall beside the door and glanced either way down the hallway.

He could see the hall stretch out on either side. Miyuki had gone…wandered off somewhere or back into her room…but he did see Chitose. She was leaning against one of the doors with her eyes closed.

Shinya waved to Chitose, and wandered toward her. “Chitose-chan, is your makeup alright?” he asked as he approached.

Chitose turned to look at him. Her makeup had gotten smudged, it sort of…trailed down her face from all the tears. He could see the traces of pale skin underneith the white greasepaint.

To her credit, when she saw him she tried to flash that easy smile she’d had earlier, projecting cheer as she waved. “Of course, Shinya-ya-ya. Just need to touch it up in my room, is all!”

“Have you been in your room yet?” he asked. “I’d wager it has plenty of supplies for you to fix it afetr you wash up.”

“oh, I’ve been in.” She nodded , her hair bouncing over her shoulders. “It’s got the stuff I need, I just…needed a moment is all”

Her voice was quiet, more sober than would normally come from someone so garishly dressed. “Ms. Sakai was a good person. I’d met her a few times when I went to the elementary school…Hope’s Peak Elementary, and…”

Shinya put a hand on Chitose’s arm. “I’m sorry, Chitose-chan. I don’t recall ever meeting her myself, but what happened to her was terrible. We’ll have to find a way to honor her memory.”

Chitose nodded, biting her lip with a quiver of her shoulders. “I want to. Even if it’s just b-being the best clown I can be even in a place like this.”

“I’m sure your presence will help remind us all to smile,” he nodded.

Chitose poked her cheeks as she gave him the biggest smile she could, her eyes closing despite how red and puffy they were. “That’s what a clown’s for, right? To remind everyone to smile…to be happy. That no matter how bad things are, there’s a reason to smile…they help people…they do something good for the world.”

“Is that why you pursued your talent as a clown, Chitose-chan?” he asked with a smile. “To do something good for the world, ne?”

Chitose nodded excitedly “Yeah, Shinya-ya-ya! Exactly! I’ve always wanted to make the world a better place…so I poured my heart and soul into being the best clown ever!”

He smiled and gave her a thumbs up. “I believe in you, Chitose-chan. Oh, ne, by the way, did you know our monopad has a camera? When you’re cleaned up, we should take a picture together.”

Her eyes widened, and she gasped “oh wow, really??? I’d Love that!”

“That’s make it a plan then, ne?” he smiled.

_It looks like I was right.. she’s not too hard to cheer up at least._

“A plan!” She bobbed her head again…and whacked herself with one of her pigtails with a startled “**OOF**”

“Whoops!” he chuckled, and carefully tucked her pigtail behind her shoulder for her. “You know, I can’t tell if you’re doing that on purpose.”

She laughed into her hand. “That’s part of the magic of clownery, you know!” 

She looked up at him with a cock of her head. “You seem like a pretty nice guy, Shinya-ya-ya.”

“Well thank you for saying so, Chitose-chan! you seem pretty nice yourself.”

“Me???” She gasped, her eyes once more half closed. “woooow…well. I suppose some of us have to be if we’re gonna stop mr. Monokuma-ma-ma from getting us to play his game!”

“Its true,” Shinya nodded. “Being kind to one another and spreading an atmosphere of trust is the only way to open the golden path in a game like this.”

“The yellow brick road.” She nodded. “The golden goose. The gilded lamb. Gold-i-locks’ perfect bed.” 

She grinned at him under her lazy eyes. “Uh huh, uh huh, I get it. And I’ll help you , promise!”

He bowed slightly to her with a smile. “Well thank you! I hope we all work together.”

_Its certainly too much to hope for, but I do hope it anyway._

She bowed goofily back, dipping low. “Yah-huh! Yessir, boss man! You’ve got my horn!” 

She pulled a horn from behind her back, and looked up as she honked it three times in a row with a grin “honk!”

He chuckled. “Honk,” he said out loud.

She beamed, and wiped the remaaining tears from her face. “by the way…did you room have a bunch of the same outfits and like…one different one?”

“That’s right,” he answered confidently, despite not having actually checked.

“geeze.” She said “at least i’m not alone in that…”

“I believe the same is true for Tsuda-san,” Shinya nodded. “Likely for everyone.”

“I wonder why.” She chewed her lip thoughtfully. “to mock us?”

“Well, Monokuma said it was ‘for the artists’ when we asked him about it,” Shinya said. “But its probably another tactic for his game when I think about it.”

“Tactic?” Chitose looked puzzled “huuuuh…I don’t get it.”

“Well, if we all have to wear the same clothes every day we’ll be recognizable at a glance, ne?”

“at a glance.” She repeated. “…so people could instantly tell who was who…meaning …”

She pursed her lips “that it’s for a show? Or…do you mean for **murders**?”

“well I suppose for either,” Shinya nodded. “But I did mean for murders, yes…. It would certainly help for instance, if someone **caught a glimpse** of a murderer at the scene.”

“They would know exactly who did it!” She said, punching her hand with a nod “and be caught in the act! Or…if someone was sneaky…”

“They could steal an outfit from someone else,” he nodded. “But we would be able to potentially find evidence of that, ne?”

Chitose nodded, chewing her lip “…yes. we could….but I hope it won’t come to that.”

Shinya nodded. “So do I… but now the outfits make sense, ne?”

“They do.” She said with a nod” very very very much so!”

“Well I’m glad we could solve that little mystery. Its not much but its a start, wouldn’t you say?”

“It’s a start!” She agreed. “soon it’ll all come together, right?” she bobbed her head “absolutely.”

“Absolutely,” he nodded. “Now… I suppose I should check on Tsuda-kun, I did leave him all alone….”

“oh! We can’t have that!” Chitose grinned. “Who knows what kind of trouble he could get into !!”

“Who knows indeed,” he chuckled. “I’ll see you around, Chitose-chan. Remember I want that picture! ta-ta!”

With a little wave, he headed back and knocked on Tsuda’s door.

The door opened, and Tsuda stood there…hair combed out, blood free, and in the same outfit he’d met him in. “howdy.” he said with a smirk. “Kept ya waiting?”

“I was having a nice conversation with Chitose-chan,” he said, looking over which outfit Tsuda was wearing. “I hope I didn’t keep _you_ waiting.”

It was just the same outfit he had been wearing before…one of the copies. It seemed he wasn’t rising to Monokuma’s bait just yet. 

“nah, I was tring to get my hair under control.” He shrugged with a grin. “so hey, you said you were talkin’ to Chitose-chan? Think we should split up and see how the rest are doin’?”

Shinya smiled. “Tsuda-kun, what a clever idea! We check on everyone, and then compare notes, ne?”

“exactly.” He nodded “get to know everyone…make sure nobody’s gonna do nothin’ rash.”

“yes, we might be able to head off– or at least anticipate– any problems,” he agreed. He gave Tsuda a thumbs up. “As I said, very clever.”

“I have my moments, man.” Tsuda grinned. “Meetcha at the lobby by the ballroom?”

“Meet you there, Tsuda-kun,” he nodded. “Oh, and if you need to alert me, there’s a chat function in the monopad’s pet sim.”

He tapped the pad with a wink “you got it, pal. I”ll poke around and mess with that , alright?”

“Please do,” he said with a smile. “Til then, Tsuda-kun.”

He gave him a teasing, western style bow, and headed off.

Tsuda snorted, and headed off in the opposite direction.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Exploration Phase Start**

As Shinya walked, he found himself heading down the row of guestrooms…and at the far end, he could see a flickering neon sign reading “Pool Room” just beyond their little dorms.

He hummed to himself as he walked, and curiously headed toward the pool room beyond the dorms.

*Well, a pool is likely to attract _someone_ at least.*

The door to the pool was opaque stained glass with golden accents marking it’s sides and along it’s surface that etched out a scene of mermaids coaxing sailors off a ship and to the water below.

_Now this is fancy. What a luxurious kidnapping_

He examined the glass mural curiously, and then headed inside.

It was really lovely…well put together, and clearly meant to impress.

As he pushed open the door…some steam escaped. The air was warm, humid inside. But not unpleasantly so. 

Just beyond door was a large, large area. It was decorated like an island retreat. Fake palm trees, an area with sand and towels and chairs…a large pool that featured a fake ‘shipwreck’ in the center of it with a slide coming off the main mast, and elegant statues of mermaids looking over from pillars within the room itself. 

There was also a hot tub, which stood off to the side…rather large in it’s own right, and themed like a forgotten grotto. 

And he wasn’t alone in the room by any stretch of the imagination…

Hayate was there, looking between the pool and the hot tub with a squigly little frown on his face.

“Ah! Hayate-san!” Shinya greeted. “Trying to decide if you’re going to chance skinny dipping?”

Hayate suddenly flushed bright red, and whirled around, waving his hands around with a grimace “w-w-wwhat??? No way, nuh uh, no freakin’ way, man.” 

he gripped his jacket and smiled awkwardly “I uh…c-c-c…can’t swim.”

“Oh! well, that’s a shame,” he said. “But is the hot tub really that deep?”

shinya wandered closer and examined it himself.

It wasn’t particularly deep. He could see carved seashells and starfish at the bottom and could feel the warmth rising up from the water. It felt quite nice. 

“w-well no, but…” Hayate murmured, rubbing the back of his neck “but like, whatever, right? Better safe than sorry right? You only live once, so why fuckin’ w-waste it drowning in a hot tub while an evil bear gets off on it, right?”

Shinya chuckled. “Well I suppose that’s true. But it might be relaxing? And I suppose there might be bathing suits around somewhere.”

“bathing suits.” Hayate swallowed. “I..uhm.” He hugged himself. “man, I ain’t gonna stop you if you wanna go dippin’ around in the pool. I’ll even watch, but I just…I mean…” 

He glanced off to the side. “uhm.”

“hey!” He suddenly diverted suddenly “so how about that uhhh, mystery talent of yours huh? Maybe your the SHSL Swim Guy or somethin’?”

“Oh I doubt it,” he chuckled. “But I suppose its worth testing. What kind of swimsuit do you think I’d look best in, Hayate-san?”

Hayate flushed deeper, miming a pair of finger guns his way “man, guy as pretty as you? p-p..probably anything. A speedo?”

He held up his hands ‘Not to sound like, gay or nothin’ not that there’s anythin’ wrong with that, it just uh, well. “

He rubbed his neck “yeah.”

Shinya chuckled. “I would hope not! I’m a bit gay myself sometimes, ne?” He pushed up his glasses. “So I’ll bear your opinion in mind here.”

“Y-yeah?” Hayate bit his lip, glancing up at him from under the fluffy ruff of his dark hair “cool…” 

He rubbed his arm, “Feel free. I ah…ain’t really very fashionable.” He adjusted the horns on his head. “…i mean, I c-can be pretty cool, don’t get me wrong, but crane games are my thing, not…you know, fashion.”

“We’re probably lucky the SHSL Fashionista isn’t here with us, to be honest. I don’t think they’d be very happy about the two outfits rule.”

“Yeah, heh, they’d have a fit.” Hayate grinned “I uh…I …” he rubbed his arm. “Honestly if I’d known this was what I was gonna wear the rest of my life, I’d…I dunno, have planned better. Maybe worn something thicker in case someone tries to knife me in the back or something.”

“I suppose you could layer?” Shinya offered. “But no need to be grim– we could all very well escape and go on to wear many more interesting outfits.”

“more interesting outfits, huh?” Hayate bit his lip, and took off his shoes before rolling up his pant leg and sitting at the edge of the hot tub to dip his toes in. 

His toenails were painted a light blue color. “I’d like that, I think. But it all kinda hinges on getting out and…and you saw what happened to our teacher.”

“Sakai-sensei was very brave, Hayate-san, and brave is an admirable thing to be,” Shinya explained. “But brave is also not often a _lengthy_ thing to be. I think this situation will truly reward the wisdom of cowardice.”

Hayate laughed, brushing his hair away from his face to touch the eyepatch held there. “The wisdom of cowardice. now that’s rich.”

“Perhaps its better to call it ‘caution’ hmm? Lets all try not to do anything too rash.”

“Caution’s a good way to put it.” Hayate said “…honestly, in crane games, there’s a lot of ‘caution’, you now? You gotta take it slow…be careful and precise…”

“And if you grab too early, what you’re going for slips right out of your fingers.”

“exactly.” Hayate nodded firmly “exactly.” 

He smiled at him “you get it, Shinya-san!”

Shinya smiled. “I may not be a crane game expert, but I _am_ fond of games.”

“you too, huh?” He asked “maybe we’ve got some in common then…”

“Delightful!” Shinya grinned. “Maybe we’ll find a game to play while we’re here– one that isn’t the game of death of course.”

“hey, yeah!” He perked up “m-maybe there’s an arcade instead of a s-stupid pool that I don’t wanna swim in at all.”

“We could take a look if you wanted,” Shinya said with a smile.

“oh!” Hayate said with an ear to ear grin  “s-s-sure! yeah, that sounds like fun!”

“Well , shall we then?” he offered Hayate his hand.

Hayate reached out and grabbed his hand tightly with an eager nod of his head that sent his horns tipping almost down to his forehead.

Shinya reached up and slipped the horns back up his head, and then tugged him out of the room.

Hayate followed, the air growing cooler as they left the pool room and reentered the air conditioned residential hall. 

He bit his lip “Heh, you think there’s one around? You think we’d be that lucky?”

“Maybe. Cruise ships have all kind of entertainment after all,” he nodded. He ran a hand through his hair. “Oh dear, the humidity in the pool room….” he sighed.

“yeah , it made my hair frizz out…” Hayate pouted, hand in ahnd with him. His hair had in fact ‘frizzed out’, and was even fluffier than before

“Same,” Shinya sighed. “well, we’ll bare it with grace while we look for this arcade. I didn’t see one while we were looking around before things opened up, so if there is, it’s probably past the new areas…”

“yeah…given that the stuff down here was all like…” he bit his lip “our bedrooms and the pool. Amenities and living stuff. But I saw there was a shopping center, so maybe it’s that way?”

As they walked, Shinya noticed one set of the bedrooms weren’t actually bedrooms….instead, they were labeled “Laundry A and B”

“Ah, so we do have a laundry,” he mused. “As for the arcade, yes, I was thinking the shopping center would be our best bet as well. Let’s head there.”

Hayate nodded eagerly, and walked along beside him “So, you really think we can get outta this with enough patience?”

“Absolutely,” he nodded. “Monokuma-san is counting on us to act in desperation.”

Hayate nodded “w-well..I’m not going to act desperate.” He said boldy “as I said, I’m the most patient guy there is.”

“Good!” Shinya nodded. “We’ll be patient together then. This is not a game that can be won by hasty action.”
He headed down the corridor calmly, curious what they’d find at the shopping area.

They made their way out of the residential area, and towards the Ballroom….in that lobby he once more saw Miyuki, only she was sketching something in her notebook with a frown.

“Ah! Miyuki-san! Working on something?”

“A map.” She said simply . “I’m working on mapping this floor and it’s barred exits.” 

“Holy crap!” Hayate said with a grin “that’s a great idea! Can ya take a picture of it when you’re done??”

“That would certainly be ideal,” Shinya agreed. “What a clever idea.”

Miyuki glanced sidelong at them for a moment before she she sighed and nodded. “fine. I’ll photograph it when i’m finished, hm? Then you all can benefit from the fruits of my labor.”

“heck yeah!” Hayate pumped his fist with a grin. “you da man, lady!”

“Why, Miyuki-san, what a grumpy thing to say in the spirit of cooperation, ne? I was just telling Hayate-san that this whole death game business can only be won with patience and cooperation.”

Miyuki pinched the bridge of her nose. “I’m sorry Shinya-san, I’m just a little **tense** , what with the atmosphere of **anxiety** that the bear fostered by **murdering an innocent woman** in front of me. Forgive me if I’m a little grumpy, hmm?”

“W-well hey, what would that dork with the bad haircut say….the Secretary? Something about positive thinking, right? That’s what he was going on about in the foyer earlier…” Hayate chipred

“Indeed,” Shinya nodded. “Of course, it’s _normal_ to be tense in this kind of situation, but… well.. I’m just trying to stay as positive as possible.”

Miyuki nodded, running her hand through her hair “…I’ll…try to keep a more positive attitude. Alright? But the moment things turn for the worst, I’ll be ready.”

“Being ready is important too,” Shinya nodded. “By the way, you haven’t seen an arcade, have you?”

“not yet.” She said , shaking her head. “but I haven’t ventured into the shopping area yet, which may be your best bet.”

“Well, we’ll check there then,” he said with a smile. “But if you don’t mind, I _would_ like a few minutes to chat with you in a bit.”

Miyuki nodded. “I’ll be in this general area.” She said “…I’m making a very detailed map.” 

Hayate was hopping gently from foot to foot, a smile on his face.

Shinya nodded. “See you soon then!” he put a hand on Hayate’s shoulder and led him off toward the shopping area.

Hayate followed along “She’s a real serious lady, ain’t she?” he said with a chuckle “She’s got it all together, you know?”

“She does,” he nodded quietly. “Assuming she can keep her cool I think she’ll be a valuable ally of justice, ne?”

“Hey, we can always use an ally of justice, right?” Hayate grinned “heheh…yeah, she probably will. But like, assuming she can? she’s frickin’ goals, ya know?”

“Goals, hmm?” he asked, cocking his head with a smile.

“W-well yeah!” Hayate nervously fiddled with a lock of his hair. “She’s among the best in a pretty big field, and she’s got this cool, commanding aura…”

Shinya chuckled. “Oh I suppose that is true. Is it her presence you admire, then, Hayate-san?”

“Y-yeah, you can say that.” Hayate nodded, rubbing his hands together as the pair of them passed the vending machine nooks in the hall. “I..I do, yeah.”

“I’m sure Miyuki-san would appreciate being admired,” he said with a smile. He glanced at the vending machine nook in case anyone was there.

There was, in fact, someone looking over the snack machine…and purchasing a pack of bean buns. 

It was Sadahiro, an ear to ear smile on his face as he held it up.

Shinya gave him a wave and made a mental note of where he was to check on him too.

Sadahiro blinked, and waved to him with a grin. But Hayate and Shinya continued along towards the kitchen…and the shopping center.

Shinya chuckled. “I’m going to have to loop around and chat with everyone. But the mission comes first,”

Hayate grinned “and the mission is…finding an arcade with me, right?”

They came upon the lobby with the kitchen , and continued along towards the area that contained the large lobby with the minibar, school store and the “Monokuma Mall”

“Exactly, Hayate-san!” he nodded. “And we’re nearly to our answer.”

“nearly there!” Hayate agreed.

THere was a triumphant laugh from ahead…and he could see Tomo with his monopad inside the snack machine with the cigarettes “HELL yeah!”

_well, looks like I can keep the cigarettes I got for a rainy day then_ Shinya mused.

He blew Tomo a kiss as he passed on the way to the mall.

Tomo blew him a kiss in return, before tapping out a cigarette and cursing “SHIT NO LIGHTERS”

Hayate winced, and tugged his horns down. Just beyond though were the doors to the Monokuma Mall…which was no longer marked as closed. All the locks had disengaged as well.

_Mental note, keep an eye out for lighters_

“Ah, I see the mall is open, as we expected,” he said, leading Hayate toward it.

Hayate grinned “I guess the bear like, opened it up or somethin’ once we got his briefing, right?”

The two of them came to the door, and it hissed open automatically. From there…things opened up considerably beyond. It was a large open hall that ringed a central fountain of a mermaid reaching for the sky, only to be partially turning to seafoam. Someone had put a bear , crudely placed in the tableau, holding a tiny prince just out of reach. 

“hm.” Hayate grimaced. “hmmm…”

Aside from that, though…there were a number of shops that lined each side, each one decorated with a bright , eyecatching sign.

“well! This is even bigger than I expected! I imagine the bear didn’t want us wandering too far before we’d had our briefing….” he stepped inside curiously.

“it’s huge…” Hayate followed him . 

There seemed to be…well. Plenty of shops. The first two , opposite one another, were a GAME SHOP and a GENERAL STORE.

“Ahhh! Maybe no arcade, but game shop sounds promising, ne? Let’s check it out.” He moved toward it, tugging Hayate along.

Hayate followed him like an eager puppy, a flush on his face “o-okay, alright.” 

He grinned wider “man, I hope they have some video games there…or…or like, board games or something. Or tabletop!”

“Now THAT would keep us all too occupied for murder, ne?” he grinned. “We even have the ultimate dungeon master here.”

“I KNOW” Hayate squealed excitedly “can you imagine the ki…kind of campaign…that we could all have together…” 

They stepped into the game shop, and it seemed to be a combination video game/traditional game store. There were even a few arcade cabinets ‘for sale’. It was a chaotic shop, with a great number of things on display…including a pair of ‘dueling pistols’ locked behind a glass cabinet.

“Oh now this is impressive,” Shinya said. He immediately went over to check to see if the arcade cabinets were set up to play.

They were, in fact, plugged in and active. They seemed to be for display and demonstration. 

Hayate instantly shot over to a fighting game, grinning widely “oh man and you don’t even gotta PAY, it’s FREE.”

Shinya grinned. “Perfect! See, I told you we’d find something, Hayate-chan.”

“you did!” Hayate said with his single eye squinted excitedly “you did and you were right! p-play me maybe? Just one round!”

Shinya grinned. “How can I resist?” he asked with a smile. “We’ll play a round now, and then I’ll check on the others.”

Hayate nodded seriously, and hit start on the arcade cabinet for “HYPER FIGHTER ZERO: THE PUNCH OF LEGEND”

Shinya stood beside him, and hit start as well. “Have you played this one before?”

“Y-yeah, once or twice with my sister.” he shrugged “I’m alright at it.” 

It turned out however, that Hayate was more than ‘alright’ at the game. It was an absolutely brutal smackdown in his favor.

Shinya laughed with good humor, and put up a pretty decent fight. It was clear it wasn’t his kind of game however.

“Well! I’m glad we didn’t start with a wager, Hayate-sensei,” he teased.

Hayate flushed “Sensei…oh man, oh wow.” He grinned “well.”

He rubbed under his nose with a grin “Next time maybe I’ll give you some tips, huh? Then you can use ’em to crush someone in a Real Bet sometime soon.”

Shinya bowed, a grin on his face. “I would be honored, master.”

Hayate turned beet red, and put his hands on his hips in pride before he bowed his head. “And the honor is mine to have such a cool pupil. Shinya-kun.”

“I’m looking forward to training with you– and playing some of these other games too. But for now, I;d better check and make sure the others are in such good spirits. I’m sure you can find something to do in here,” he chuckled.

Hayate nodded eagerly “i’ll look around, alright?”

Shinya gave him a salute, and with a farewell, headed out.

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Tsuda walked down the hall, adjusting his vest as he made his way opposite Shinya…that put him back in the direction of the ballroom and the rest of…what it turned out, was a fuckin’ ship.

Tsuda heard somewhat off-kilter humming coming from the ballroom.

“…….” He whistled along as he pushed the door open with his shoulder, and slipped inside. “now I didn’t think nobody would wanna be in here after….all that.”  he mused to himself.

He saw a pink haired figure poking around at the back of the stage against the wall.

Tsuda strolled over, his hands still in his pockets as he grinned “hey, Mo-chi, yeah? I’d recognize that day glo hair anywhere.”

She turned, the hum fading on her lips as she looked at him with tired eyes. “You would, huh?”

“I mean.” he chuckled “not a common shade, and yer the only one here with it so..’ he shrugged his shoulders with a smile. “how’s it goin’?”

“I mean… about like you’d expect,” she said, shoving her hands in her pocket, and leaning on the wall.

“Yeah. ” he chuckled darkly, “about the same. But hey, looks like you’re findin’ ways to distract yourself, eh?”

“Sort of,” she nodded. “I was looking for traps. Or secrets, I guess.”

“Secrets and traps, eh?” He nodded. “Shit, ain’t a bad idea. Sure this place is chock full of ’em.” 

He hopped up on the stage with a grin “want a lil’ help?”

“I wouldn’t say no,” she nodded, with a shrug. She cocked her head looking at him. “What was your name again?”

“…..wow.” he chuckled. “Forgot already? Name’s Tsuda. Munenori Tsuda.” He brushed his hair out of his face with a wink “Sharpshooter.”

She yawned and nodded. “Sorry, there’s been a lot going on today, don’t you think, Tsuda?”

“I mean, yeah.” He rubbed his neck “it’s been a long fuckin’ day, between the whole kidnapping thing and…Ms. Sakai.”

He shook his head, and looked around the stage before he started towards the mechanical orchestra.

Mo-chi followed him over to the orchestra, hands still in her pockets. “Yeah… poor Ms.Sakai. That sucked.”

“Sucked’s puttin’ it lightly.” he said with a nod “but yeah. Whole thing fuckin’ sucks.” 

He bent low, looking behind it “huh, they’re all hooked in like some kinda fancy automaton.”

She leaned over, bending down at the waist instead of kneeling. “Is it clockwork or what?”

The two of them both inspected the back of the machine. “Looks like.” he said. It’s main movements were powered by clockwork, but they could see a digital circuitboard hooked into the back of each of their heads. Probably to carry the programming for different songs.

“Advanced shit.”

“Clockwork AND digital. Huh. Funky,” Mo-chi nodded.

“don’t see that very often.” he mused, running his hand through his hair ‘Then again, I ain’t much of a machinist. how about you?”

“Not really,” she said, shaking her head. “I’m more of a cards person.”

“you mentioned that.” He grinned “gotta say, I’m hopin’ to go toe to toe with you sometime. I ain’t the luckiest guy around? But I love playin’ a few hands of cards.”

She put her hands on her hips, straightening up suddenly. “Oh you play huh?”

“sure do!” he laughed. “it was pretty big in some of the ol’ friend groups I used ta run with.”

“Oh really?” she chuckled. “Sure, we should play. I warn you, I _am_ the best.”

“Well you are the SHSL champion.” He said with a sly smile “but I got a few tricks up my sleeve too, ya know.”

“Should I be on the look out for cheating then?” she grinned.

“Cheatin’?” He held up his hands “me? never. but i’m sure a sharp gal like you could manage to catch me even if I did.”

“I’m pretty good at catching cheaters,” she admitted.

“Got an eye for that kinda thing? Part of your talent?””

“Goes with being SHSL I guess,” she said with a smile. “you get a feel for it.”

“makes sense to me.” He said “like learning to have a keen eye for detail comes naturally for a sharpshooter.’

“How’d you even get into sharpshooting?” she asked

“it’s uh, a long story.” he chuckled “but basically I had an idol, you know? Someone I really looked up to…and he was a sharpshooter, so I got into the sport in middleschool to follow in his footsteps.”

“Cool,” she smiled. “You had to be pretty ballsy to get into something like that.”

“I like ta think so.” He chuckled “it was hard gettin’ certified and allowed, given the gun laws, but I found a team and took the plunge.”

He smirked “Admittedly, the sound of the gunfire used ta give me a twitch, but It didn’t take me long to get it under control, still my hands.”

“Does it still make you twitch?” she asked.

“nah.” he shook his head. “it was one of the first things I did….got myself used to it. Shot every time I could, with varying degrees of sound dampenin’. It’s a wonder I didn’t go deaf, but…I managed.”

“Go deaf? Is that a thing that happens?” she asked, cocking her head.

“ya ever hear a gun go off?” he asked, miming a pistol as he aimed at one of the robotic musician’s heads. “Bang. it ain’t quiet. It’s a small explosion right by your head. if it’s loud enough and close enough ya can blow out your eardrums real easy.”

“Okay THAT sounds terrifying,” Mo-chi said. “I made the right choice going into something quiet.”

Tsuda laughed “yeah, no chance of losin’ your hearing from a game of cards.” 

he winked “But hey, the price ya pay for your passions, right?”

“_MY_ passion mostly wins me money,” she teased.

“so’s mine.” He said with a grin “don’t let the denim fool ya. I ain’t that broke.”

She looked him over curiously. “Huh, well that’s not obvious.”

Of course, if _she_ was well off, she didn’t show it much either.

He looked at her with a grin “what can I say, I’m a guy who likes his casual looks.”

“It’s very american,” she teased.

“Yee haw.” He drawled, a lazy smirk on his face. “I may have gone to america for a bit, you know. For tournaments.”

“That’s where all the shooting happens, I’m told./”

“all guns all the time over there, yeah.” He said “can’t go three feet without a shootout at the OK coral “

“Which is on every corner, like a starbucks,” she nodded seriously.

“Sounds like firsthand experience.” He snickered “you been there?”

“Its where the poker tournaments are too,” she nodded.

“Gambling, gunfights, it’s got it all.” Tsuda winked “maybe when we get outta here we’ll bump into one another overseas”

“Maybe we will,” she chuckled. “Now we just need the SHSL hooker to complete the america set.”

“hey, who knows. maybe there’ll be a second batch of unfortunate bastards dumped on the ship in a few days time to liven shit up.” he drawled

“Woof, wouldn’t want to be those poor bastards,” she said. “well, I don’t really want to be these poor bastards either.”

“Hey, you know what they say.” He said with a huge grin “you gotta play the hand yer dealt.”

She smirked. “Now don’t lecture me about cards or I”ll tell you about guns.”

“wouldn’t want that.” he said, lightly punching her shoulder. “you’re alright, Mo-chi. I want that game sometime.”

She offered him her hand. “Deal then. We’ll play when we find some cards. Mine were stolen.”

“There’s a shoppin’ mall back the other way.” he said , taking her hand and shaking it with a smile “probably have some luck over there.”

“Maybe I’ll go have a look. I think I’m done screwing around in here anyway.”

“Sounds like a plan.” Tsuda nodded. “i’m gonna poke around a bit more…see if I can find anyone else and make sure they’re doin’ alright.”

“Sure,” she nodded. “Not like we won’t see each other around. Unless I escape anyway.”

“well shit.” he said “do me a favor alright? You find a way out and you holler for me, got it?”

“I’ll keep it in mind,” she smirked. She gave him a wave, and slumped off, hands in her pockets.

He waved as she went, and leaned on one of the musicians. “Interesting lady, ain’t she maestro?”

The musician machine didn’t have an answer.

00000

Shinya decided to poke his head around the rest of the open mall before he headed back to talk to Miyuki and the otehrs.

As he headed out, he saw Morio, the dollmaker, vanish into a shop labeled “Mono-Mono Toyland Palace”

Shinya raised his eyebrows curiously, and followed the dollmaker into the shop.

He entered the chaotic little shop behind Morio, and found himself surrounded by towers of plush dolls, and puppets on strings. It was like a child’s room was hit by a tornado…there were bins and boxes of all sorts of different toys, and more dolls than he could count in every style. 

And he saw Morio messing around with one of the piles…a pile with a number of soft stuffed plushies. He had a serious little frown on his face.

“Find something you like, Morio-san?” Shinya asked, shanding behind him.

Morio turned, holding an arm sized stuffed penguin in his arms with a frown “no. They’re of shoddy workmanship. The stitching is abysmal, and the eyes are misaligned.”

Still, he was hugging it tightly.

Shinya peered over his shoulder curiously at the doll he was holding. “Oh?”

It was just a stuffed penguin, but it was rather cute…in pink and black.

He shrugged, and held it up. In fact, the eyes were a little out of alignment and it was a little overstuffed. “Still, the aesthetics of it…are charming.”

He put it down, and looked up at the hanging puppets. “I was wondering if perhaps any of my own work wound up in this shop…”

“Oh! Well, I’d imagine yours to be a bit higher quality,” he nodded. “But it _is_ cute.”

“it is…” Morio murmured. “….are you a fan of dolls?” He asked, almost timidly, as he inched deeper into the shop. “I’ve been avid about them since I was young.”

“Oh, I’ve been known to enjoy a doll or two in my time,”  Shinya chuckled.

“Then you’ve likely seen my work.” Morio said, drifting quietly around the bend to one of the other displays with a soft ‘oh’.

“Its the best there is, I imagine,” he said. “Also, you gave me one a little earlier.” He followed Morio and glanced where he was looking.

“Are you still holding it?” the young man asked, almost hesitantly.

He was standing before  a rack of dolls…both puppets strung on strings, and beautifully made felt dolls below. cute, unique stuffed animals with bright eyes, and perfectly plush bodies that gave them an unmistakably _adorable_ aura.

The puppets on the string were more classic, with porcelain limbs and smiling faces. They looked like they were meant for professional puppet theater, and were of nearly perfect craftmanship. 

“these are mine.” Morio said with a note of pride. “To think that this ship of all places would carry them.”

Shinya produced the tiger from the pocket he’d been keeping it in. “I couldn’t put him down,” he swore with a smile. “Do you make so many a lot of places would carry them– or is it very remarkable to see them here?”

“A bit remarkable.” He said with a gentle “I make plenty, but…” he picked up a stuffed doll shaped like a fox  and hefted it into his arms “They’re either sold to collectors, or given to children’s charity\ and hospitals and the like…”

“How odd,” Shinya said. “Since you make them all yourself– do you recognize them? Did you make them for someone specific?”

“I recognize every doll I make.” He said “Not a single one is the same, and they’re each special…”

He held up the fox doll “I made this one for a local shrine in my area in honor of a celebration they were having….in honor of their founding. “

he held up a small cat, which had a scar over one eye “this was for a young girl who’d lost her pet cat in a storm…”

“Well! Then finding them here without their owners…. that _is_ troubling” Shinya said.

“It is.” he said thoughtfully, before giving them a quiet hug. “It…makes me wonder…if time has passed between us falling asleep and us arriving…”

“There must have, actually,” Shinya agreed. “I realized it when I saw the outfits in the closets, ne? They must have had time to have them made.”

“exactly.” Morio said with a nod, brushing her pale white hair from his face with a thin smile. “they had time to make replica clothing…time to get things of significance to us…time to prepare this special trap just for us.”

“Indeed. So, its certain that we’re missing quite a large chunk of time. The question is how large, and what has occured during that time.”

Morio waved his hand, his pretty eyes lidded as he held aloft the fox in his other hand “perhaps time has flown by…the world leaving us behind whilst we meander away our hours on the open sea…”

“Hmmm… well, my hair hasn’t grown out so either it hasn’t been _too_ long, or someone’s been cutting it. Or we’ve been in suspended animation.”

“They could have been treating us like dolls.” Morio mused “…keeping us well kempt for the day we’re to be played with.”

“Well that _is_ a thought,” Shinya nodded. “Now I have to wonder.”

Morio nodded slowly “that is my theory…though I have little to support it thus far.”

“I suppose we’ll have to keep our eyes open, so to speak,” he purred.

Morio smiled, his own eyes briefly closed “exactly.”

He paused a moment before he asked “is it true you can’t remember your talent?”

“With everything going on, I’m surprised I’m the only one who can’t, frankly,” he answered.

“You’d think.” he said with a nod. “But it seems most of us do…which implies one of two things to me.” He lifted one of the puppets from it’s place on the rack, and skillfully animated it to gesture towards Shinya as he spoke. 

“…it means your talent is one of two things….something beneficial…or something that the mastermind behind this can **use** to inflame the rest of us.”

He chuckled softly “are you the SHSL Serial Killer, perhaps? The SHSL Detective?”

“Oh now either of those _does_ sound interesting,” Shinya said. “I wouldn’t say no to either one.”

“No?” he said with a smile “or maybe you’re the SHSL Mastermind…or Infiltrator..”

Shinya chuckled. “Well I don’t feel particularly infiltrationist,” he said. “and I hardly think a mastermind would get caught up in all this, ne?”

“No I suppose not, though…our intrepid prosecutor would likely have arguments against that.” He smiled thinly “…but, I believe you mean no harm. I can see a good person behind your eyes.”

He smiled. “Even with the glasses in the way? You have a keen eye, Morio-san.”

” I am a dollmaker.” The young man said, as the doll danced before him, his expression pleasantly neutral. “I have an eye for details.” 

The doll reached up with a flick of his wrist, and poked itself on the eye. “for the spirit of things.”

Shinya chuckled. He reached out and poked the doll on the nose. “Its an admirable talent. And one you have fun with I’m sure.”

The doll made like he was laughing, his hands on his mouth. “It’s very fun.” he said with a soft chuckle “…I understand dolls. People, not so much, but dolls I can understand.” He smiled “and they make the children happy…and people marvel at my skill, which I suppose is a nice enough bonus.”

“I’m certainly marvelling at your skill,” he said with a smile. “And the doll you gave me did make me happy.”

“I hope you treasure it.” he said with a nod of his head. “He’s a good doll. And he’ll serve you well.”

Shinya gave the doll a squeeze. “Does he have a name? Or shall I name him?”

“His name is yours to give.” Morio bowed

Shinya held him up with a smile. “Then I’ll call him…. Shiro-kun.”

“Shiro-kun.” Morio smiled “Adorable name for such a good little friend.”

“I’m glad his creator approves, and I’m sure Shiro-kun is too.”

“You can see it in his eyes.” Morio said with a serene smile.

Shinya nodded seriously. “Yes. They’re intelligent eyes. I think he’ll be a great help through this.”

“I believe so as well.” he purred. “may he solve a great many mystery with you.”

“I certainly hope so. Esspecially if I AM the SHSL detective. Oh, I hope Tsuda-kun won’t be jealous though.”

“jealous of Shiro-kun?” He shook his head. ” Perhaps. Have you chosen him as your partner? Your hand?”

“My hand?” he chuckled. “Maybe, if he’s willing, ne?”

Morio laughed into his hand “oh I hope the best for you.”

“You’re too kind, Morio-san,” he smiled. “I hope you and I get to spend more time together.”

“I hope so as well.” Morio bowed, before looking up at the line of dolls “For now…I think I must meditate with my creations.”

Shinya bowed in return. “Be well, Morio-san. I’ll be…. around.”

And with that, he headed off.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Tsuda had headed back out after Mo-chi, whistling to himself as he wheeled back into the hallway and down towards the other end of the ship. “well. That went splendid. ” He was musing “wonder who i’ll run inta next.”

He heard a low, irritated muttering coming from one of the snack nooks as he neared it.

“Don’t have any of my tools….. stuck in a ship full of complete morons….. some idiotic killing game….”

Tsuda grinned as he whirled around the corner and planted himself in a lean on one of the snack machines nearby “Knock Knock. local complete moron callin’. How’s it hangin’?”

Goto jerked, looking up from where he’d been examining the ‘Danger’ machine. He gave Tsuda a dark look. “Well at least you admit it,” he groused. “Terrible, if you must know.”

“That so? what’s not to love? Nice venue, plenty of grub, a fiendish plot to end our lives? It’s got it all.” Tsuda drawled

“It certainly does,” he agreed dryly. “Are you here to kill me then? I assure you, I’m more dangerous than I look.”

“Nah.” Tsuda shrugged “no offence man, but you exactly worth the stain on my conscience, you know? and I mean that in the nicest way possible. I ain’t gonna kill nobody.”

Goto snorted. “Have a care with your double negatives. But… very well.”

Tsuda glanced at the machine with a smile “yeah, yeah. I’ll work on that. But…seriously man. Nobody’s really happy about the situation but we gotta work with what we got, right?”

“Obviously,” he snorted. “The clock is ticking before someone decides to go and put a knife in someone’s back.”

“probably.” Tsuda agreed. “we can play nice all we want but eventually someone might crack, yeah.” 

He looked over at Goto “But maybe we’ll get lucky and folks are more resilient than ya think , eh?”

“Pfah,” he snorted. “Not very likely. Human beings are spineless and treacherous by and large.”

“countin’ yourself in that number, or are ya the type to think you’re above us mortal men, and all that jazz?” Tsuda asked with a slim smile.

“I’m a worthy man, but even worthy men have their limits,” he grumbled. “If I hit mine, you should hope you won’t be there to see it.”

“i’ll endevour to kick the bucket long before that, pal.” Tsuda smirked “or, you know, stop ya when it comes time to.”

He gestured to the vending machine “curious about what’s in the mystery box too?”

He grimaced, but nodded. “If I had a screwdriver, I’d take it apart. I’m tempted to look for a kitchen knife.”

“you try…I dunno, using some currency?” He asked, shrugging his shoulders “got those ‘monocoin’ things on our pad.”

Goto looked at him like he had two heads. “Are you serious?”

“…you didn’t try it?” He asked with a laugh. “It’s the first thing I was gonna try.”

Goto waved his hand toward the machine.  “Please, be my guest.”

Tsuda slipped around him, and found a slot just under the ‘return’ tab. He slipped his pad in and it jingled with a ‘payment processed’. 

There was a rattling, a thump…and an item came falling into the slot. “Why don’t you grab it?” he said with a grin. “Call it a gift, whatever it is.”

“Kind of you,” Goto said dryly. “But I’ll pass for now. _You_ pick it up.”

Tsuda shrugged, and bent down to pick up the brown-paper wrapped package. 

He unwrapped it and dumped it’s contents into his hand…which landed with a heavy **thwap** against his palm.

It was a revolver with six shots in the chamber. 

He paused , staring down at it. “….oh.”

Goto snorted. “Huh. Just as I suspected.”

He paused. “Wait a moment, is that _yours_?”

“…..” Tsuda nodded slowly, turning it over in his hands as golden engravings glittered in the light of the ship “eyup, sure is.”

“Pardon me, then,” Goto said, stepping up to the machine, and putting his own monopad in the slot.

It beeped…and down came another brown wrapped package.

Goto unwrapped it, and looked down, pleased with what he found there. Some kind of metal gauntlet…

Tsuda leaned over his shoulder with a raise of his eyebrow “now what’s that? some kinda fancy glove?”

“Fancy glove, he says.” Goto smirked, and slippped it over his hand. “Its a multi-tool and personal defense device.”

“what? Like it’s heavy enough to give someone a mighty fine slap?” Tsuda snickered, his hands in his pockets…and the gun slipped in the empty holster by his side.

Goto held his palm outward so that Tsuda could see the circle at the center of it. “In that it administers an electric shock”

Tsuda took a half step back “well hot damn, that’s a useful lil’ gadget. Imagine it’s got rubber on the inside to keep it from shockin’ you by mistake.”

“Astute of you,” Goto nodded. “It does indeed. And its form fitted for my hand. Though I suppose someone with a smaller hand than mine could use it– albeit inelgantly”

Tsuda nodded. “well. I’d keep a tight grip on it, huh?” he said with a wink “we don’t want that kinda thing to be makin’ the rounds, ya know? Might spoil the mood.”

“I quite agree,” he said, making a fist. “Well, now we know what this machine offers.”

“something from our lives back home.” Tsuda said “…erring on the side of **deadly**.”

“Precisely,” he nodded. “A little something to set the mood, that wretched bear probably thinks.”

“eyup.” Tsuda grimaced, tapping the holster by his side. “Figure people are gonna figure it out for themselves, too…”

“I have no desire to hasten the flow of information,,” he snorted. “but If you’re keen to blab about it I can’t stop you.”

“naw.” Tsuda shook his head. “I’m gonna keep it tight to the vest for now. I’ll tell Shinya-kun, but that’s ’bout it.”

“Shinya– ah. the amnesiac, yes?”

“that’s right.” Tsuda nodded. “Seems to have taken a liking to me, and he seems the kinda guy to get stuff done. I trust him.”

Goto snorted. “You must be joking. Of all of us here, he has to be the least trustworthy. Well– aside the _clown_.”

“….Chitose-chan?” Tsuda laughed “now, I can maybe see where you’re comin’ from with Shinya. He’s got the mystery and all, but _Chitose-chan_? “

“Tsuda-san. Give me one good reason why you _ought_ to trust a clown.”

“because I got a good feelin’ about her.” Tsuda shrugged ‘I got a sense of people, and she seems like a good person under that clown paint.”

“Suit yourself,” he snorted. “I prefer people who don’t hide their face under a false one.”

“so you’re scared of clowns.” Tsuda nodded “got it, man. Got it.”

Goto sputtered, grimacing. “I am _certainly_ not _afraid_ of clowns,” he insisted. “But far be it from me to explain the concept in small enough words for you to understand.”

“hey, no I get it.” John held his hands up “person hides their face, means they must be hidin’ somethin’ right? Real psychological, but I don’t think the gal has it in her, you know?”

“Has it occurred to you that perhaps that’s what she wants you to think, nitwit?” he snapped.

“Or maybe she’s just a fuckin’ clown.” Tsuda said with a shrug “look, I ain’t trying to start a fight, but I’m just sayin’….suspecting everyone of bein’ some kind of evil mastermind’s a dangerous game.”

“And trusting everyone blindly isn’t?”

“There’s a balance between a witch hunt and a blind man, that’s all.” Tsuda shrugged

Goto snorted. “I don’t recall advising a witch hunt. Merely sensible caution.”

Tsuda chuckled “alright. well… I’ll be cautious in my own way, you be cautious in yours, alright?”

“I suppose I can’t ask for better,” he groused, nodding. “Now if you’ll pardon me, I want to continue my survey of this area.”

“but of course.” Tsuda held up his hands. “Don’t let me keep ya, partner.”

“Appreciated. Until later, Tsuda-san.” The small young man hurried off.

“…now. That’s one funny fella.” Tsuda mused, shaking his head. “Ah well. He’ll warm up to us.”

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

As Shinya left the toy store, he spotted a familiar face as she eased on by, her eyes focused entirely upon the large fountain in the center of the Monokuma Mall. Miyuki, her pen scratching on paper, was continuing her efforts to map the area to the best of her ability. 

SHe had wandered from the fountain, over towards what seemed to be a crude medical station inside of a ‘pharmacy.’.

“Ahhh, we meet again, Miyuki-san,” he purred, sauntering toward her.

Miyuki looked up, lowering her small notebook with a nod of her head. Her glasses had slipped down her nose. “Shinya-san. I see you’re making the rounds. How’s everyone holding up?”

“It varies,” he said. “I haven’t had time to talk to nearly everyone yet. but I _did_ cheer Hayate-chan up.”

“well, that’s good.” She said, pushing her glasses up with her knuckles “the poor boy seemed out of sorts. Like he was about to jump out of his skin.”

“Well, I think he’s a little calmer now,” he nodded. “I expect more than a few people could use some help like that. What about you, Miyuki-san?”

“you’re not wrong about that.” she said “…most people are taking this poorly.” 

She frowned, brushing her finger over her face where he knew she’d been splattered with blood only an hour or so ago. “I’m alright. I’m used to grim scenes in my line of work.”

“Although not as a participant, I’d imagine?”

“no.” She snorted. “not in the _immediate_ incident anyway. It’s my responsibility to put those criminals who dare disturb the peace behind bars.”

“And you’ve done a lot of that I imagine,” he said, leaning on the wall next to her.

“plenty.” She said, snapping her book shut with a grim smile “i’ve got a real talent for ferreting out untruths and dragging them into the light.”

“We’re all very lucky to have you here then, Miyuki-san,” he nodded.

“You are.” She purred. “I have a perfect win record, you know. I’ve never lost a case. I have a **100% conviction rate**”

“How lucky for your to only end up on cases where the defendant was guilty!” Shinya declared with a broad smile.

Miyuki’s eyes went cold in an instant. “If I were you, I would retract that insinuation, Nagano-san.”  she said with a voice that dripped with ice.

“I’m afraid I don’t have a clue what you’re talking about, Miyuki-san. Are you suggesting that the defendants that you prosecuted successfully _weren’t_ guilty?”

Miyuki’s fingers clenched tight on her book, and she sucked in a sharp breath “Nagano-san.” 

She took a step forward, and leaned in with a firm glower “Every criminal who steps foot in my court is guilty of something. Every confession is genuine. Every bit of evidence is true. I’ve never let a guilty man go free. Do I make myself clear?”

His broad smile didn’t waver for even a moment. “Oh my! Crystal clear, Miyuki-san. I would never be so rude as to suggest otherwise.”

“you had better not.” She snarled, before backing up and pushing up her glasses. The aura of ice still dripped around her, her fingers tight on the book itself.

She turned, as if to leave. “Don’t get in my way. I’ll be _ensuring_ that nobody succeeds at this little game of death.”

He blinked at her. “Well, I hope you mean ‘no one succeed at murdering’!” he chuckled.

“That, of course is the hope.” She said with a slight frown, tapping the cover of her notebook with her pen “but it’s clear that simply locking us together isn’t the end of it. We can try all we like to prevent a murder, but should we fail to find an escape in short order, the bear will tighten the noose around our necks and drive someone to act.”

She turned to face him again and pointed the pen “at which point I’ll ensure it closes around the throat of the one foolish enough to commit murder.”

“Oh certainly, certainly,” Shinya nodded. “After all, at that point it would be the only way to save the rest of us.”

She nodded seriously, her eyes cool as she looked back at him “and that’s the finest point you could put on it. I’ll ensure the bulk of us survive, at the expense of one who acted in desperation.”

She pushed her glassed up “…I won’t break my streak now, not when my life is on the line.”

“Well that’s an interesting way to put it, but I certainly agree,” he nodded. “Supposing someone _does_ commit a desperate act like that, we can’t let it doom the rest of us, so you can count on my support, ne?”

“Well.” She said with a thin smile “I suppose that means we’re working together, doesn’t it?”

She offered her hand “I hope the opportunity never comes up, but in the …nearly inevitable case that it does..”

Shinya answered her thin smile with his own, and took her hand. “Nearly inevitable– yes. But still possible to avoid. After all, maybe we’ll find a way out before anyone gets that desperate.”

She shook his hand firmly “Which is the exact reason I’ve taken to mapping this place out…along with giving me full knowledge of it’s nooks and crannies in case of the worst.” 

She nodded grimly “we can hope. But hope is a …thin and frail thing…in situations like this. Much better to rely on cunning and skill.”

“I’m afraid I have to agree with you there, Miyuki-san,” he nodded. “Let’s hope we’re up to the task, hmm? Oh– have you figured out the monopad yet?”

“Yes, i have.” She held it up, and scrolled through the options. “There’s a lot of features, but it has no connectivity to anything outside these walls. I’ve tried to see if there was any way to get a message out or access any other communications, but no. Nothing thus far save for the IRC in the Pet Game.”

“Indeed. I wouldn’t rely too much on the IRC in an emergency either, would you, Miyuki-san?”

“certainly not.” she snorted. “It’s bound to fail the moment things get difficult. Downed communication , false messages, and no connection to anyone of value outside save for the ‘mastermind’ behind whatever’s happening here.”

She frowned, tapping on the screen “it’s purposefully flawed.”

“Not to mention certainly monitored!” he agreed.

“absolutely monitored. That goes without saying.” She snorted and gestured around “we’re filmed from every angle…it stands to reason the pads are bugged beyond belief.”

“Absolutely,” he nodded. “I wouldn’t use it to communicate anything you want to keep secret!”

“no. Like, say…an escape plan, or clandestine coordinates.”

“Precisely.”

_Though I suppose when you think about it, it could be used for a feint or distraction…._

“Regardless.” She said, almost in mirror of his thoughts. “when the time comes it _will_ have it’s uses.”

“On that we’re agreed too,” he smiled. “Well.. I suppose I should let you get on with your map?”

“Yes, I supposed you’d better.” She said, opening the notebook again “….do be safe, Shinya-san. And don’t do anything rash.”

“Same to you, Miyuki-san,” he said, giving a little bow, before he headed off.

0000000000000000000000000000000

As Tsuda approached the kitchen, he heard the unmistakable sound of utensils on dishes. Chopping and scraping.

“sounds like someone’s workin’ on makin’ some grub.” Tsuda chuckled as he strolled into the room, making his way towards the kitchen. “hope there’s enough for me, eh?”

In the kitchen, Yo had put an apron over his robe, and had laid out a number of ingredients which he was busily preparing with a large knife. From the look of it there would be plenty.

Tsuda didn’t want to disturb him, or surprise a man with a large knife, so he simply leaned  on the doorframe. Once Yo finished chopping for a moment, he grinned and spoke up.

“Hey there, fella.”

He paused in his chopping and looked up with a serious expression, giving Tsuda a nod. “you can come in.”

Tsuda slipped into the room, planting his elbows on one of the side counters as he watched the man work. “you makin’ dinner for tonight?’

“I think I am the only one of us with an official cooking related talent,” he said, starting to put together the ingredients on a seaweed mat. “Besides, its what I do when I’m… ya know…”

“Stressed out?” Tsuda asked, nodding his head “trust me, I get that..”

“You too, huh?” he smiled at him slightly. “You don’t show it too much. You were brave back there.”

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck with a grin “hey, what can i say?” he shrugged his shoulders. “someone had to keep their cool, you know? I’ve gotten a lotta practice pretendin’ I ain’t as scared as I really am.”

“Then you’ve learned it well,” he said. “I guess I have a way to go where that’s concerned.”

“ain’t always a good skill.” he rubbed his neck “and it ain’t always one worth learnin’.”

He looked up at Yo “you seemed to be keeping your cool alright, though.”

He shook his head. “My knifework is sloppy. My hands are trembling.”

Tsuda leaned in to watch “Shaky hands do a number on talents like ours.” he said “ones where ya gotta be precise.”

“Exactly,” he nodded. “My father would be…. disappointed.” He sighed and tried to steady himself as he worked.

“your pa, huh?” Tsuda asked as he watched him work “I know a thing or two ’bout that.”

Despite his harsh opinion of his work, Yo’s movements were quick and precise as he made roll after roll, and sushi after sushi.
“Something we share then? A stern father.”

“well. yeah…a lil’ stern. But mostly…” Tsuda said “…he slipped right to disappointed on his way to dead.”

Yo frowned. “Ah…. My condolences, then.” He picked up a pair of chopsticks, and deftly grabbed a sushi, offering it to Tsuda like a peace offering.

Tsuda was halfway through the motion of waving way the condolences when the sushi was held out to him…he leaned in and took it, popping it in his mouth with a nod of his head.

It was… delicious. The perfect size. The perfect cut. The sushi was steamed and vinegared perfectly….

After swallowing, Tsuda whistled “…well hot damn ,I know why they call ya the best now.” he said “ain’t had a better piece of sushi in my life.”

He bowed his head. “You honor me. I hope you’ll have a chance to eat many more good sushi. … I hope we all will.”

Tsuda winked at him, leaning on his hand “trust me fella…I’ll be doing my damndest to make sure of it. We just gotta find a way outta here before tensions get too high.”

“Easier said than done,” he nodded. “But yeah we do.”

“hey, no trap’s perfect, right? You ever been huntin’?” Tsuda asked with a smile

Yo shook his head as he arranged the sushi on large platters. “No, never. Why?”

“Traps.” Tsuda said, leaning  back and stretching “Hunters, they use ’em to snag their prey, you know? And there’s all kinds of traps out there, and every time a new one’s invented folks claim it’s **perfect** or **inescapable**. But there’s always a flaw. And a clever beast’ll find it’s way out and give you hell for tryin’ to cage it.” 

He tapped his temple “In this scenario, we’re the beasts. And this bear-lovin’ bastard? that’s our hunter. We put our minds to it, we’ll find the weak spot in the trap and slip away…maybe even close it around the bastard’s own throat on the way out.”

Yo paused and seemed to think about it for a moment, and then he nodded. “Thats an interesting way to to look at it. But sometimes an animal has to chew its own leg off to escape a trap I have heard.”

Tsuda met his eyes “and? it’s still a way out. Sure…sometimes it bleeds to death tryin’…but other times it’ll still survive. ‘specially if it’s got a pack or a herd alongside.”

Again, Yo paused, thought about it, and nodded. “Brave and also wise. I admire you, Tsuda-san.”

Tsuda smiled easily, and shrugged “shucks, man. I ain’t that admirable, but thanks.”

He chuckled, looking up at him. “…just don’t give up hope. Sure…things may get worse ”fore they get better…but we gotta work together if we’re gettin’ outta here at all.”

“Even I am not one to give up hope quite so soon,” he said with a smile. He pushed the beautiful platter of sushi forward. “There…. at least we have something to eat now.”
There was a huge amoung of sushi… definitely enough for everyone.

“well hot damn.” Tsuda said with a smile ‘I’ll be sure to let everyone know that there’s good eatin’ tonight, huh?”

“Please do,” Yo said with a smile. “Its best when its fresh you know.”

Tsuda leaned in, and plucked a few pieces from the tray with a wink “And lucky me, I get the first bites. I’m honored, pal.”

“Help youself,” Yo said with a smile. “A chef is happy to have his work appreciated.”

“what gotcha into the chef life, anyhow?” He asked, chewing one of the sushi pieces thoughtfully.

“My father, and his father were both renowned sushi masters.”

“ahh, born into it.” Tsuda nodded, chewing on another piece. “hence the stern pa.”

He nodded. “My father wanted me to be the best that I could be.”

“well…you’re certainly real talented. Best I’ve ever had, that’s for sure.”

He winked “and not too hard on the eyes while ya work, neither.”

At first Yo looked puzzled , and then the meaning seemed to dawn on him, and he flushed, nodding. “More flattery.”

Tsuda chuckled “what can I say?” He said with a wide grin “I wanted to pass my _compliments_ to the _chef_, eh? eh?”

He chuckled, still pink. “well, it would be rude not to accept them, so thank you.”

“you’re welcome” Tsuda chuckled. “I’ll make sure folks know to drop on by for a lil’ grub, too. Alright?”

“Thank you, Tsuda-san. And… I hope to see you around too. You;re are not… hard on the eyes either.” He gave him a small smile.

Tsuda turned a bit pink, and grinned as he rustled his hair “hey, thanks. Scruffy guy like me’ll take any compliment I can get.” He winked “i’ll see ya around.”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

The Mall, it seemed, was the place to be. Not long after he left Miyuki, Shinya found Tomo jumping for joy inside the general store, an ear to ear smile on his pale, freckled face.

Shinya waved to him as he approached. “Tomo-chan! you look pleased.”

Tomo whirled around, surrounded by the pleasant, almost old fashioned decor of the general store, and held out a lighter “i can _smoke_ , Shinya-kun!!.”

Shinya smiled broadly. “Congrats, Tomo-chan! I was planning to look around for a lighter for you but it seems like you don’t need me.”

Tomo tossed the lighter in his hand, before sauntering closer “oh handsome…” he cooed “don’t say that…maybe I _do_ need you..”

Shinya smiled, raising his eyebrows. “Oh?”

Tomo brushed his silky blond hair away from his smouldering pink eyes, a sly smile on his face. “I mean…an attractive guy like you, a scary place like this… lil’ ol’ Tomo-chan could **use** someone to watch his back…side…”

He chuckled. “Oh I see…. well, I’m not sure i’m the _ideal_ candidate for that, but…”

“No?” Tomo asked with a small pout “am I not cute enough?”

“Oh no, you’re very cute!” he said with a smile.

Tomo bat his eyelashes as his hair fell back over one eye “aww, thanks…then what’s the problem?”

“well, its just that I _did_ promise that I’d go around and check on everyone,” he said with a smile. “Which sadly means that I can’t just stick to your back… side like glue.”

“awwww.” Tomo pouted , poking his fingers together “well… I get it, but you’re not gonna find anyone as adorable as me to hang out with”

He winked “maybe we can find somethin’ fun to do later…skinny dip maybe?”

He chuckled. “You’re right. I won’t find anyone more adorable than you. Well… skinnydipping later might be fun”

Tomo chuckled, leaning on the wall and fishing out a pack of cigarettes. “i could be up for it…nothin’ like getting a little hot and wet with good company, you know?’

He flushed a little and smiled. “Now Tomo-chan, you’re not trying to lure me into a vulnerable position just to take a stab at me are you?”

“trust me handsome, any stabbing I do is bound to be non fatal.” he purred

“Well as long as you promise that, then I’m game,” he purred back with a smile.

Tomo bat his eyelashes. “You don’t get a lotta reaccuring customers in my gig if you kill ’em. so… you can trust me with that much.”

“I’m pleased to hear it,” he smile.d “Though as for being a _customer_….”

“Hey, I get it.” Tomo giggled, holding his hands up  before he lit a cigarette and placed it between his lips “Cash ain’t exactly easy to come by up here…so I’ll allow a few freebies.”

He chuckled. “I appreciate it. If circumstances change, we can always work something out then.”

“oh of course.” Tomo said, smiling from ear to ear. “I promise, in here or outside? i’m **always** a great boyfriend.”

Shinya smiled. “The best, I’d wager, ne?”

“SHSL Boyfriend.” he purred. “if you pay the right price.”

Shinya smiled. “is it a talent you enjoy?” he asked curiously.

“well…” Tomo rubbed the back of his neck “I’ve always been a people person, you know? I like people…spending time…hanging out….and my talent’s really just being good with ’em..”

“So really in a way, your talent i being a great people person,” he chuckled.

“yeah , exactly.” Tomo bounced on his heels “I know people, you now? I know the way to someone’s heart…how to get them to like, even love me in short order…how to give ’em a date to remember, even if I’m gonna be gone the next day.”

“It seems to me like an ability like that has a lot of interesting applications.”

“Oooh?” He asked , taking a drag off his cigarette “you think so, huh?”

“Oh sure,” he chuckled. “for instance, if you wanted to be a politician.”

“Oh geeze, one of those stuffy old geezers?” Tomo blew smoke from between his lips “I’ve dated a few of them on my job, and lemme tell ya, they’re a real bore.”

“No doubt, no doubt,” he smiled. “But still im sure you can see the potential.”

“Yeah, I guess so.” Tomo said, leaning on a display of night vision goggles as he took another drag from his cigarette “But like…if i’m gonna use my talent, I’m gonna use it for somethin’ I enjoy. Not somethin’ for money.”

He smiled. ” Well that very much answers my question then. I’m glad you’ve found a way to use your talent in a manner you enjoy!”

Tomo grinned widely “uh huh! It’s always worth it to do whatcha love.” He bobbed his head. “besides…I make a lot more money than you’d expect doin’ what I do.”

“Really?” he asked, cocking his head.

“People pay a lot to be cared about and pampered with attention.” Tomo said “…people get lonely, and that means they’re willing to pay me plenty to help.”

He chuckled. “I quite agree. I suppose I meant that I already believe you’d make a lot of money from that.”

“ohhhh.” Tomo giggled. “a lotta people are surprised when I tell ’em! They think, like, that it ain’t a valid career, but…” he gestured down at his skirt and sailor suit “i’m rockin’ it.”

Shinya shook his head. “well you certainly don’t have to convince me. I’m told they call it the ‘oldest profesion.”

“oh yeah, it absolutely is.” He said with a grin “though I don’t _always_ sleep with clients, hon.” He primped his hair, the cigarette dangling from his lips “…Quite a few of them I take out on nice dates…let them treat me…compliment them..”

“Of course,” he nodded. “People need companionship of all varieties.”

“Absolutely, and it’s my job to find out exactly what they gotta have, and give it to ’em.” Tomo nodded. “I’m everyone’s fantasy guy, gal, whatever ya want from me.”

“Well, I find you very charming right now,” he chuckled.

Tomo blushed, and took a drag off his cigarette “Charming enough to spend a little time with later, despite the…dire circumstances?”

He beamed. “…you’re makin’ me blush.”

Shinya chuckled. “well, I’m not disappointed to hear that, certainly.”

He flushed a little deeper, grinning playfully “flatterer.”

Shinya chuckled, and winked at him. “Two can play the flattery game, ne?” he teased. “But I’m glad you’re in good spirits, considering.”

“Well.” Tomo said with a chuckle “….look, our teacher died, and that’s….it’s awful. It is. But crying about it isn’t gonna do anything….and if I panic, things’ll just get worse…”

Shinya nodded. “I quite agree. Its best to stay calm and flexible as possible until we find a way to deal with our situation.”

“yep, so I’m indulging in a few vices and trying to let the stress of today melt away…..put Ms. Sakai outta mind…and…try to keep cool.”

He chuckled. “and admirable outlook. Aside from checking on the others, I’ll be doing much the same.”

“you and I got the right idea, Shinya-kun.” Tomo purred. “we should find an excuse to celebrate soon, you know? A party to take everyone’s mind off this entrapment and shit.”

“A party…. that might not be a bad idea. I’ll consider it, as I jduge everyone’s spirits.”

“Tell me whatcha think when you do, alright? ’cause I can organize a killer party!”

He wagged a finger at him. “Now now Tomo-chan, _do_ have a care with your language.”

Tomo cocked his head, before flushing red “Fuck! shit! I mean uh….” He fumbled his cigarette, nearly dropping it. “S-sorry.”

Shinya caught the cigarette for him and offered it back to him. “I understand. But we wouldn’t want to curse our party, ne?”

“no, no we wouldn’t.” Tomo grimaced, taking the cigarette “bad choice of words.”

Shinya patted him on the back. “Either way, a party sounds like a fun time. I’m sure at least some people would be interested.”

“Spread the word around, alright? maybe we can get sushi boy to make us some grub, too!”

“That would be excellent,” he said. “a useful talent for us to have around, wouldn’t you say?”

“real useful.” Tomo chirped. “and hey, maybe the clown can do a lil’ entertaining…and the dungeon master can run a campaign…ya know, all that fun stuff.”

“It sounds like we have the makings of a great party,” he mused, smiling.

“Doesn’t it?” Tomo grinned “man I’m gettin’ _excited_ for this, actually.”

“Perfect!” he smiled. “I’ll let everyone know its an idea when I see thm.”

Tomo impulsively jumped forward, and gave him a big hug , an ear to ear smile on his face. “you got it!!”

Shinya stumbled backwards slightly in surprise, but put his arm around Tomo, patting his back with a chuckle.

Tomo squeezed him tight before he let go, smiling warmly “I’ll see if there’s anythin’ I can do to get it goin’ while you do that, alright?”

“Alright, Tomo-chan. Let’s both do our best.” he gave him a thumbs up.

“let’s do our best.” Tomo nodded with a wink “you got it, hot stuff.”

“With that in mind, I’d better get checking on the rest of everyone, ne?”

“Oh of course.” He bobbed his head “Enjoy okay? I’ll see ya around.” 

he blew him a kiss “tell everyone I say hey.”

000000

As Tsuda entered the school store he heard the familiar rattle and clatter of a gacha machine in operation.

“Now that’s a familiar sound to an ‘ol gambler like me.” Tsuda said with an amused grin as he slipped into the school store with his hands in his pockets. “Win anythin’ nice?’

Tomoyo turned, fixing her single visible eye on Tsuda. “I’m not sure yet. Find out with me?” SHe picked up the capsule from the slot.

Tsuda leaned on the capsule machine with a nod “I’m right here with ya, Tomoyo-chan. Open it up?”

Tomoyo opened the capsule, and had a look at what was inside.

Inside was a slip of paper. It read

**You won…. THE TOMB OF NIGHTMARES COLLECTORS EDITION**

_In this brutal, crushing campaign, players are forced into a game of life or death amongst one another. Trapped in the walls of a decaying old tomb, a fiendish force declares only one shall survive the hellish gauntlet ahead…and great riches are promised to the one who crosses that threshold intact. 

BLOOD, Chills, GHOSTS goblins and party kills await in this classic dungeon adventure! Collectors Edition includes: Poster, Fingerbones of the Fallen Rogue , Premium Bardic Album, ‘The Necromancer’s loincloth’ and a list of victims!_

At the bottom in fine print it read **this item will be delivered to your room**.

“I see,” she considered, after reading it out loud to Tsuda. “I think the machine is probably rigged.”

“you think?” Tsuda smirked “lemme give it a go, see if I get, I dunno…a popgun.”

Tomoyo nodded, and stepped back from the machine. “Be my guest.”

He put his pad in the machine…and down tumbled a capsule, which he opened up.

Inside was another sheet of paper, that he grabbed and read.

“Captain Gunsworth’s Cap” he read out loud “This cap once belonged to a twisted bureaucrat stationed aboard the immense battlestation known as the Killing Moon, under orders from the Galactic Imperium. Desperate for a chance to rise the ranks, he took position aboard the station, only for it to be blown up by a plucky farm boy and his rebellious friends. This hat was later found drifting in the cosmos, before being rescued for you…today. Live out…your dreams…of being a mid-tier politician for an evil empire.” 

He paused, “huh. Yeah no that…ain’t specially tailored for me at all.”

“Huh. No I guess not,” she said, shaking her head. “Must have had a lucky roll I suppose.”

“luckier gal than me.” Tsuda chuckled with a nod “ah well, always next time.”

He gestured to her hand “gonna run it?’

“Yeah the Tomb of NIghtmares is a great one to keep everyone’s mind off of reality,” Tomoyo said dryly.

“hey.” he shrugged “maybe ya wanted to stay on theme, I dunno.”

She smirked. “I guess I won’t count it out completely, but…. It doesn’t seem like the best idea to me.”

“probably ain’t.” he chuckled “don’t want us at one another’s throats over somethin’ that ain’t even real.”

He shrugged his shoulders. “Maybe you can use one of yer own campaigns. Could be fun.”

She smiled, and tapped her head. “You’re right. I have everything I need to run a game up here. Well, aside from paper, pencils, and dice. But we can use the dice from the Tomb of NIghtmares.”

“And paper and pencils ain’t gonna be hard to come by.” he nodded. “also..there might be somethin’ in the mall if need be, for dice.”

He chuckled “I’ve played a few of your campaigns, ya know.”

She cocked her head. “You have? Color me a little surprise.d”

“what? Don’t look the type?” He chuckled “s’alright, believe it or not I’m a pretty big reader. Had a few friends interested too, back in middle school. We played together.’

She smiled. “I’m glad you enjoyed it. I take a lot of pride in my work, you know?”

“I bet.” he said with a nod. “You’re real good at it too. Top tier stuff.”

She pushed her hair out of her face, and for a moment Tsuda got a clear look at the patch over her eye before the hair fell back. “Top tier… well, I guess that’s why I got into Hope’s Peak for it.I never got into it with the idea to set out to be the best, it just sort of happened to me.”

“I mean…some people set out to be the best.” Tsuda nodded. “pluggin’ away all their time to becoming amazin’ at what they do with the goal of superiority in mind.”

he shook his head “for other folks, like you an’ me, it just kinda falls on our laps when we find a passion, yeah?”

“It was like that for you too huh? With gunplay?”

“yeah.” he nodded. “I didn’t go into it really to be the best. Just…picked up the hobby. I had a problem at first with the noise, but…I kept pluggin’ away to get myself used to it, and before I knew it..”

He mimed shooting “I was the best of the best.”

“I guess we just got lucky and were interested in things that happened to be our talents,” she said with a little smile.

He chuckled, smiling back at her “yeah, I guess we did. Plenty of folks go through life without findin’ that special talent of theirs I reckon.”

She nodded. “Its something I’ve thought about a lot.”

“that so?” he asked, cocking his head.

She shrugged. “You haven’t? Imagine, if you’d never picked up a gun, or I’d never discovered tabletop games, neither of us would be here right now. Someone else would be in our place.”

Tsuda leaned his head back against the machine “….you ain’t wrong about that.” he agreed.
“…if I never picked up a gun, I’d still be some orphan kid with nothin’ to his name but a bad attitude.”

“And I’d be some random honors student on my way to a job at an accounting firm,” she sighed. “In a situation like this– do you think that would be a worthwhile trade?”

Tsuda shook his head. “…nah.” he murmured.

“working your whole life to become some accountant at a job ya don’t even like….living on the streets an’ havin’ shit get worse and worse for ya…” Tsuda ran his hand through his hair with a frown “nah. I’d rather have a few fleeting years doing somethin’ that makes me happy, that I love, than a lifetime of misery doin’ something safe and dull.” 

He held up his hands “But that don’t matter, ’cause we’re gettin’ out of this shit. We can all look forward to a long fuckin’ life ahead of us, eh?”

“You’re optimistic about it, huh?” she asked with a little smile.

“Gotta be.” he chuckled “with Goto around we’ve got enough pessimism hangin’ in the air.”

He shook his head “…but yeah, I’m optimistic. Maybe not all of us, but…the more we work together, the more of us can live.”

Tomoyo nodded seriously.  “I agree. And I’ll be working hard to get us all to the end of the campaign without a TPK.”

“I believe in ya, DM-chan.” He saluted with a wink “you can count on your party rogue to help out, eh?”

“Rogue hmm? I would have pegged you for ranger. Consider my files updated.”

“oh ho.” he chuckled “ya think I’m a ranger? I’m shit with animals, Tomoyo-chan.”

“Oh?” she cocked her head. “It almost sounds like there’s a story behind that.”

He pointed to his face, and the number of scars. “One of these fuckers is from a bear.”

“You didn’t have an early run in with our new friend, did you?”

Tsuda snickered “I dunno, the way he’s actin’ maybe. But, the bear I remember was a black bear, an’ he sure wasn’t waist high.”

“And you survived that?” she asked. “you’re pretty high level.”

“Had to shoot the fella.” He said , “nearly took my head off, but I managed to get a shot across his face…scarred him back and escaped before he could finish the job. He’s probably still out there, fuckin’ pissed about some scruffy kid who got one over on ‘im.”

Tomoyo shook her head. “That’s pretty impressive, rogue.”

He grinned widely,sticking his hands in his pockets. “i got a few tricks up my sleeve.” 

He cocked his head “how about you, any close calls?”

She brushed her fingers through her hair again. “Not with anything as wild as a bear, but I’ve roller some ones in my time.”

“that uh…how that happened?” he gestured to his eye.

“it was…. A fireworks accident, in a manner of speaking.”

Tsuda grimaced, with a visible wince “…not a good way to lose an eye.” he said “…glad ya made it outta that. Fireworks ain’t a joke. Explosives are….rough stuff.”

She nodded. “Rough stuff… yeah. Definitely.”

“sorry.” He held his hands up with a smile “I know there’s a scar or two I ain’t keen to talk about too. So…let’s consider the matter done eh?’

She gave him a thumb up. “Don’t worry about it. But lets keep some of our backstory’s secret for now so its harder for the DM to kill us off.”

“good fuckin’ point.” he chuckled ‘…gotta keep some of that shit in the bag for a last minute reveal, right?”

She nodded. “Exactly. But  hey, we’re already doing alright. We have full names.”

“oh yeah.” Tsuda nodded “that’ll go a long way, right?”

“If nothing else, we’re not just fodder.”

“I don’t like to think of myself as fodder.” Tsuda chuckled softly “I’ve made it this far without bein’ killed off for someone elses narrative. i’d like to continue that trend.”

“Same here,” she nodded. “I’d also like to solve the mystery of what thi is all about…”

Tsuda offered his hand with a lazy grin “you and me both, sister. Let’s make an effort to solve it, the lot of us, eh?”

Tomoyo took his hand and nodded. “Glad to have you in the party, Tsuda-kun.”

He nodded “Lead us well, DM. Don’t let me step on a trap or drink some kinda unholy water or some shit like that.”

She chuckled. “I’ll do my best.”

He grinned at her “I believe in ya. I’ll pull my own weight too, promise.”

he paused “as an aside, there’s sushi in the kitchen. Damn good stuff, too.”

“Sushi huh? I am kind of hungry, so, I hope you don’t mind if I…..”

“step out and grab some? Nah. Don’t let me keep ya, Tomoyo-chan.” 

He flashed her a thumbs up “we’ll catch up later.’

“Later, Tsuda-kun!” she returned the gessture, and hurried off out of the store.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

The Mall, full of shops as it was, was still only limited in space.  After the pleasant conversation with Tomo, Shinya stepped out to realize there were only a few shops left to check…and he saw someone scamper into one…a clothing store, before he could get a good look of **who** it was.

Curious, Shinya clasped his arms behind his back and followed the figure inside.

He found, of all people, a very chipper looking Sadahiro poking around the racks of clothes and shelves with a broad smile on his face. He looked, for the moment, like he was in heaven as he flipped from starched shirt to starched shirt.

“Oh! Hello Sadahiro-san. What have you got there?”

Sadahiro jumped, and stammered over his words before he turned, pushing up his glasses with a grin “_buisness casual attire!_” he chirped , like it was the greatest of gifts.

Shinya chuckled. “Not interested in what’s in your closet?”

“oh, I already saw all _that_.” Sadahiro beamed “I mean…like, those suits are great and all but a guy could use a little variety right?”

“Oh absolutely, though I’m not sure our ursine pal will be pleased– though he was probably joking about that.”

“joking…about what?” Sadahiro asked, his eyes widening “am…am I breaking a rule? Am I going to be executed?? I… uhm..”

Shinya held up his hands. “No no, I’m sure if the clothes are here, its fine. Monokuma-san made a joke about only giving us one outfit because it was easier to draw.”

“….easier….to draw….” Sadahiro’s nose wrinkled “are we going to be in a manga??”

“It sounded more like a dating game,” he admitted.

“This…is a dating game.” he said slowly “oh…oh I thought it was a _murder_ game! Hold on I…” he took out q notebook and began scribbling in it “dating game…got it…”

“Ahhh….. it may be both,” he admitted. “But I suppose we’ll have to find out together.”

“dating and murder, how horrible of a combination..” He said with a slight pout, as he snapped the book shut “but, i’ll be sure to log everything and make sure all rules are understood and followed.”

“you’re a rules following type, ne?”

“Well of course!” Sadahiro said with a bob of his head. “see…Shinya-san, in the corporate workplace, rules are everything. Rules, manners…duty…observation and efficiency. Those are the makings of a secretary.”

“Ahhh of course,” Shinya nodded. “The corperate world is a very orderly place, isn’t it?”

“It is. Order is everything. You need it to do your best, after all…the machine doesn’t work with a loose cog, after all! And I don’t want to be a loose cog!” Sadahiro bobbed his head. “You do your best with a smile, and that’s all you can do.”

“Always do your best with a smile… yes, I suppose I follow that philosophy too.”

“you do?” Sadahiro asked with a cock of his head.

“Well… I always try to do my best,” he nodded. “and a smile never goes amiss.”

“oh but of course! But I wonder what it was you **did** with a smile.” Sadahiro mused “I mean…you’re a real mystery man.”

“I wish I could say,” he said with a smile.

He came up close to Sadahiro and started looking at clothes on the rack as well.

Sadahiro stiffened slightly…but he fell into looking through clothes after only a brief, tense moment. “It has to be hard…losing  memories like that.”

“You think so?” he asked, cocking his head. “What do you think it would be like for you if you couldn;t remembe your talent?”

“…..” Sadahiro’s smile grew a little stiff “miserable. Terrible… I’d be adrift with no purpose.”

“Well… that _does_ sound bad,” he admitted, watching Sadahiro carefully.

Sadahiro had a look in his eyes, even as he smiled. A sad emptiness to his stare as he shuffled clothes along the rack. “I’d be nothing. A disappointment.”

“Oh I don’t think _that_’s true,” he said, following along after him. “we’re more than the sum of our parts, don’t you think?”

“No.” Sadahiro shook his head. “no , maybe you are, sir, but not me.”

“Really? I wouldn’t say that,” Shinya said, cocking his head. “i think everyone must be.”

“Maybe…but I’ve already given my life to my company.” Sadahiro said “I’ve tied my success to them, if I faltered in my duties, well…” 

He smiled a  little less genuinely “what would I be? Sadahiro, just some kid.”

Shinya smiled at him. “Well, I’m _shinya_,, just some kid. I hope that’s okay with you.”

“O-of course it is.” He said with a nod, and wide eyes “yes sir! I’m sure you’re great, just the way you are!”

Shinya chuckled. “Well thank you. I certainly hope so. You seem pretty great too– and I haven’t even seen you do any secretarying.”

“Well…” he said with a soft laugh “it’s a lot of behind the scenes work but I’m actually already starting. I’m learning everyone’s preferences so I can start providing service and aid to everyone!”

He raised an eyebrow. “You don’t mean to say that you’re going to be _everyone’s_ secretary here?”

“Of course I am! This killing game needs proper management! an…and I’m going to provide the backbone for any manager! Their **secretary**.”

“You do realize there’s something like 15 of us, yes?”

“And?” Sadahiro cocked his head with a smile “I’m SHSL for a reason!”

“Well, I suppose that’s true,” he said. “But wouldn’t it be more efficient if you conserved your effort to a smaller number of people?”

“Maybe, but that’d require figuring out who’s in charge here!” He bobbed his head “I…suppose I could become Mr. Monokuma’s secretary…”

“Helping out our enemy seems like it might be a bad idea too…. though I suppose I can’t say for sure.”

“enemy or no he **is** our principal, right? And he’s the one in charge here..” Sadahiro mused “we should at least respect him so he doesn’t…go off on us.”

“Ah.” Shinya nodded. “I see…”

_Poor Sadahiro has some history with authority figures it seems._

Sadahiro held a shirt up to himself with a small smile “A..anyway, I’ll start trying to make sure you’re all as comfortable as you can be and go from there…once a leader emerges, I’ll assign myself as their subordinate.”

“Well, that’s very kind of you I suppose,” Shinya said with a smile. “I’m sure everyone will be pleased for the help.”

“I hope so.” Sadahiro said with a slight nod of his head. “…I’d like to help everyone smile in the face of this, you know?”

“I hope that will make you smile too, Sadahiro-kun.”

“I-it will.” He nodded firmer “Of course it will.:

Shinya put a hand on Sadahiro’s shoulder. “Great! and hey, if you need any help, don’t be afraid to ask me, ne? It could be fun to play the secretary’s secretary a bit.”

“the secretary’s secretary??” Sadahiro stared at him with wide eyes “oh!”

Shinya beamed. “oh?”

“I mean…I don’t think…” His brow furrowed “that’d be very…”

He cocked his head to the side “wow…”

Shinya smiled. “I absolutely insist.”

_I don’t think anyone’s ever given this poor young man assistance a day in his life…_

“no, no no, i couldn’t possibly accept! I couldn’t! ” he said, waving his hands in front of him

“I’d be heartbroken if you refused.”

“I…don’t want to break anyone’s heart…” Sadahiro said in a quivering voice “but…it’s not…I mean…”

“wow.” Came a voice from inside the clothing rack “this is pathetic to watch!”

“hmm?” Shinya blinked, orienting on the voice.

Monokuma came tottering out of the clothing rack, pushing the shirts aside “it’s like watching a baby weened on office dramas fall face first into a paper shredder.” 

Sadahiro winced “S-sorry sir!”

Shinya crossed his arms. “Ah, here you are again.”

Monokuma put his paw to his mouth “upupupupu, sorry I was tied up , I couldn’t give everything my personal touch, but…I’m all free now!”

Sadahiro had shrunken down a bit, looking away .

“I’d love a secretary to help me out here, but uh, the one we’ve got? Big loser, no good at _all_ despite all that talent baloney.”

Shinya put hi hand on Sadahiro’s shoulder. “Well _that’s_ an awfully cruel thing to say. And untrue, I’m sure.”

“no? Look at the guy! Cringing from a little _professional criticism_”

“Geh…” Sadahiro recoiled, tears beading at the corners of his eyes.

“Cringing from a bit of a bully, Monokuma-san,” Shinya tutted.

“me? a bully?” Monokuma asked, hands on his hips “The last guy who called me a bully jumped off a skyscraper!”

“You b-bullied him that badly???” Sadahiro yelped.

Shinya stepped closer to Sadahiro. “Monokuma-san, must you?”

“Upupupupu, you’re in a killing game and you can’t take a lil’ light ribbing??” Monokuma cackled. “geeze, sorry kid!”

Sadahiro smiled weakly “i..I can deal with it. I’m fine.”

Shinya shook his head. “My my…. “

Sadahiro flashed as bright a smile as he could “Don’t worry, everything’s A-ok! I’ll get myself together and provide valuable service to _everyone!_”

“I’m sure,” Shinya smiled. “Oh by the way, Monokuma-san, these clothes….”

“mm hmmmm” Monokuma grinned “you like ’em huh? This shop’s luxury you know. top of the line stuff here from the fashion shows in Paris!”

They did not, upon a glance, seem to be that luxury.

“Like the toys in the toy shop?” he asked with a smile.

“Those old things?” Monokuma waved his hand “eh, just a bunch of scraps from a cut rate nobody.”

“y-you’re the better stuffed bear, Monokuma-sir?” Sadahiro said with a shaky smile.

“I’M NOT STUFFED, you DUNCE!” Monokuma roared , making Sadahiro flinch

“I think he’s all metal, Hiro-kun,” Shinya said, his arm still on the other boy.

Sadahiro nodded his head “Y-yeah that makes sense.” he bobbed his head “Got it, sirs! I’ll note it down!”

“Good! And don’t forget it! I’m 100% **military grade machinery** babyyyy.”  Monokuma bragged

“Oooh? Is that true?” Shinya asked. “Military-grade?”

“not **actual** military.” Monokuma cackled “but I sure was made from the same sort of stuff! I’m **high tech!**. A real wonder of bearitude!”

“Hmmm, I see,” Shinya nodded. “Yes, Monokuma-san you seem very high tech.”

_Real military tech is often made from the cheapest possible components. I suppose its too much to hope that the bear would be the same._

“Uh huh.” Monokuma bobbed his head “now, I can’t bear to see any more of your sniveling faces! So…I’m gonna go bother the Prosecutor! She seems like she’ll be fun to get a rise outta! rawr!”

Sadahiro grimaced “Poor Miyuki-san…”

“Good luck with that, Monokuma-san,” Shinya said, giving him a little wave. He immediately turned back to the clothes racks. “Maybe I ought to try a different outfit, ne?”

“You should!” Sadahiro bobbed his head “I’m no fashionista but…wearing different outfits…there’s something about picking out a new wardrobe that just feels nice.”

Monokuma, feeling ignored…slunk away

Shinya smiled. “Hmmm, you know I think you’re right. Maybe it’ll make me feel more ready for whatever’s next, ne? After all, I picked these clothes out for school, not for escaping a kidnapping at sea.”

“Likewise…it’s just one of my standard suits because I had work right after school…” Sadahiro grimaced.

Shinya patted his back. “Well, now you can pick out something different! We can compliment one another’s taste in clothes,” he chuckled.

“ohhh.” Sadahiro beamed “that sounds like fun, doesn’t it??”

“It certainly does! Let’s get looking, ne?”

“Yeah!!!” Sadahiro beamed “it’ll be FUN.”

0000000000000000000000000000000000000

When Tsuda came by the pool he heard the gentle sounds of splahing.

it’d taken him a while to finally wind back there…but when he pushed open the door, he peeked inside “hot damn this place is lovely. Might have ta take a dip myself.”

Naoki was in a swimsuit, sitting on the edge of the pool with his feet dipped in it, splashing them back and forth. HIs long purple hair was up in a braid, and he was wearing a sporty swimsuit like a body-boarder might wear.

“howdy!” Tsuda said as he approached with a wave. “Lookin’ good, pal.”

He looked up at Tsuda and gave a shy wave. “Oh! Thank you, Tsuda-kun….”

“yer welcome.” He took off his boots and rolled up his pants to sit alongside him “how’s the water?”

“Its nice…” he said with a little smile. “I’m thinking about taking a swim…”

“you should.” Tsuda grinned “I’m mighty tempted to join ya.”

“Oh? You’re welcome to… there are swimuits and towels in the closet over there….”

“Wow.” He chuckled “damn bear thought of everything, eh?” 
He walked over to the closet and opened it…inside were cubbies, each locked with the monopad protected slot and labeled with bit of pixel art depicting each of them “guess he doesn’t want me stealin’ one of the lady’s swimsuits to wear or nothin'” he joked

“I guess not,” Naoki said, looking over his shoulder to watch Tsuda. “it’d be kind of neat if it weren’t part of an evil plot…..”

“It sure would be.” Tsuda laughed “…like a real luxury vacation kinda thing”

“Instead it might be the last vacation of any of our lives…”

“nah, don’t think like that, fella.” Tsuda said as he unlocked his cubby and grabbed his suit and towel from it. “that’s what the bear wants, ya know?”

“What the bear wants,” Naoki mused. “you mean about what he said…. despair…..?”

“yep.” Tsuda nodded, looking over his dark brown suit and flipping it over in his hands. “he wants to inspire that kinda negative thinkin’…probably ’cause it breeds bad feelin’s and shit.”

“Breeds bad feeling…” Naoki bit his lip. “Do you think he’s some kind of demon that feeds on bad feelings?”

“ya know.” Tsuda said with a nod “i’d bet. He could be some kinda newfangled yokai out there trying a new way to harvest a few bad vibes.”

Naoki covered his mouth. “A yokai… then… maybe there’s a hero who’ll come and save us….”

“Maybe.” Tsuda grinned “maybe one of us is that hero, eh? Lyin’ in wait for right opportunity.”

Naoki smiled gently, splashing his feet in the water. “Maybe… if that’s the case, then I’ll try to hold out until that hero shows their face….”

“Don’t think it’s you, Nao-kun?” Tsuda asked as he came over and dropped his towel by the poolside.

“Me?” Naoki’s pale violet eyes widened, shining in astonishment.

“could be.” Tsuda chuckled “I mean, everyone starts somewhere.”

“I suppose…. but calligrapher isn’t exactly a hero’s talent….”

“you sure about that? Seems pretty noble to me.” Tsuda shrugged “but hey I’m just a guy who’s good with guns an’ shit , so…who am I to say?”

“A hero, maybe?” Naoki offered with a smile.

“maybe.” Tsuda winked “But I could also, I dunno, be the smartass bad boy in the party. The whatchama call it…lancer.”

He chuckled softly, “well, even so, that’s still a hero, right?” he slipped his body gently into the pool, and looked up at Tsuda, curious about his swimsuit.

Tsuda’s swimsuit was boxer style, a deep sandy brown with a few little cacti upon the bottom in green , as a border. 

He slipped into the water with Naoki , chuckling “guess so, but it ain’ your **main hero** . “

“If you say so,” Naoki chuckled, treading water next to him. “Mr. Cowboy.”

Tsuda sunk up to his shoulders with a smirk “I ain’t a cowboy, but thanks partner.”

He rolled his shoulders “I’m an _assistant_ to the hero, thank ya very much.”

Naoki smiled. “That’ll be how I know the hero then.”

“guess so.” Tsuda laughed, and splashed the young man gently “but seriously, don’t go sellin’ yourself short. it’s just a talent. You probably got more goin’ on than just that.”

He shook his head. “Well, I mean, more yes, but not reallly better. I’m the best there is at calligraphy. Everything else is kind of background to that I guess.”

“true ’nuff.” Tsuda paddled into a backstroke, looking at the lights above “but, maybe something ya know how ta do’ll come in handy or somethin’.”

“I can’t imagine how, but  maybe…..” He swam after him,  a little clumsily.

“Ya never know.” He chuckled as he paddled through the water with a little more grace. “You swim much?”

“Not really,” he said, shaking his head. “How about you?”

“A lil’. Back when I was touring the states I hit a few of the big beaches…and as a kid I grew up down south…on the seaside, so I got in a little but…”

“Wow… beaches in the US. That must have been fun….”

“it was pretty neat.” he said with a chuckle “a buddy of mine wanted to try surfin’. Didn’t go so great.”

“Didn’t turn out to be the super high school level surfer, huh?

“naw.” he laughed. “not quite. That would be kinda cool though, wouldn’t it? “

“It sounds pretty exciting, yeah,” Naoki smiled. “I wonder if I’d be any good at it.”

“I wonder too.” Tsuda chuckled “maybe this place is a wave pool and ya can try it out, eh?”

“You think?” he chuckled with him. “I probably won’t be very good, but it would be fun to try.”

“I can see it. You got the right limber kinda form for it.”

He winked “You’d look cool, Nao-kun.”

He tugged on his swimsuit. “I guess I’m dresed right for it at least. If there IS a wave pool, I’ll give it a try…”

“i’ll see if I can bully it outta the bear, eh?” Tsuda grinned  “get him to turn the waves on to give you your time to shine.”

He chuckled. “I don’t know if its a good idea, but thanks for thinking of me, Tsuda-kun.”

“Not a problem, man.” He said , winking before he dove under the water, and surfaced to smooth his hair out of his face. “you seem like a nice guy.”

“You too, you know?” he smiled.

“Me?” Tsuda grinned “well, that’s a compliment. Thank ya.” he bowed his head to him, before leaning back and floating “I try. I ain’t always the nicest but…I do my best.”

“Well, you’ve been nice to me,” he said with a smile. “That definitely counds. Esspecially in a situation like we’re in right now….”

“I get exactly whatcha mean.” Tsuda bobbed his head “it means a lot, and i’m happy to give it.”

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Shinya had finally managed to get himself out of the mall when he saw yet another of his classmates lingering about. It was Eriko, holding something in her hand with a slight frown on her face. She was loitering by the ballroom with a sigh…before she walked in.

Shinya raised his eyebrows curiously, and followed her in, not exactly stealthy, but rather quiet.

He opened the door to the ballroom just in time to see Eriko begin to dance to the strains of music filtering out from the mechanical band. 

She was graceful…but no means the SHSL Dancer, but as she moved with her eyes closed, she incorporated the limber, flexible moves of a gymnast. 

On the ground nearby was a short but hefty pipe, which she’d tossed near the snack table.

HIs eyes glanced between the pipe, and the gymnast’s graceful moments. He lingered in the doorway, watching her.

Her eyes half opened as she bend over, flexibly flipping backwards to touch her heels with her fingertips when her eyes opened….and she stared at him with wide eyes “_YOU_. ” she said, nearly falling backwards “were you **spying** on me?”

Shinya smiled broadly, and clapped his hands together. “I hardly think watching such a lovely performance counts as spying, do you?”

She turned, spinning on her heels with a “hmph”

She dusted her shoulders off with a sigh “no I suppose **not**, but you should have announced yourself!”

“Well I didn’t want to interupt you!” he declared. “But my apologies, Eriko-san.”

“I graciously accept.” She put her hand to her chest with a smile “and how can I help you _mr._ Shinya.”

“Oh, I’m just checking in,” he said. “I wanted to see how you were doing after Monokuma-san’s dire pronouncement and…. all of that business.”

“….oh.” She said with a frown. “I…” She was quiet a moment before she said “I’m not doing well, no. Which is why I came here to dance…and maybe do a little gymnastics. it’s…how I relax.”

“I thought that might be the case,” he said with a nod. If you wanted to talk about it though, I can lend a friendly ear.”

“…what’s there to talk about??” She said with a voice that cracked with barely hidden grief “our lovely teacher died in front of us, soaking us with her blood…and the bear says…says we’re trapped here to die.”

Shinya came near to her. “Well, that seems like it could be quite a lot to talk about.”

She wiped her hand across her face…had she been crying? 

“M-maybe. I don’t know. You don’t have to pretend to be nice to me, ya know…”

“Oh! Good to know,” he smiled. “I’ll only be nice to you for real then.”

She brushed her hand through her short red hair before fixing the lily pinned there with a sly smile “charming.” She shook her head with a sigh “fine, but ….but don’t try anything, understood? no funny buisness…no murder.”

Shinya held up his hands. “Don’t worry I have zero intention of murdering anyone,” he promised. “Its really not the right way to approach any of this.”

“your approach….?” She asked with a slight pout “…and what kinda approach _do_ ya have?”

“Well, I suppose a cautious one,” he said with a smile. “Yes… cautious and…. cooperative.”

Eriko brushed her hair from her face with a slight pout “cautious and cooperative…I _guess_ that would be the best way to go about it…”

“Think about it, if _everyone_ cooperated, then we wouldn’t have any murders, ne?” he smiled. “and if someone _does_ resort to murder, the only way to save all the rest of us…..”

“is to solve the murder by working together.” She sighed “…yes, I get the concept but..”

He cocked his head. “But?”

“People aren’t beings of cooperation, trust me on that.” She sniffed “…even people with the best intentions…”

“That’s not true though,” Shinya smiled. “we wouldn’t have built cities, if people couldn’t cooperate, at least for a little while.”

“maybe old timey folks were…but in the modern day? It’s dog eat dog…people looking out for themselves…” She hugged herself. “You really think everyone’ll work together? Because I’m sure someone’ll stab me in the back any moment.”

“I suppose the problem with expecting people to stab you means it pushes people away who might not,” he mused. “But on the other hand, if you trust people you do leave yoruself open…”

“You see the problem, right? Even if I wanted ta…and I _do_, I can’t trust any of ya, ’cause you could do me in.” She hugged herself tighter “if Ms. Sakai was here, we’d be alright…she was so pretty, so smart and inspirin’…”

“true,” he nodded. “She was very inspiring. But we’ll have to soldier on by ourselves… I’m not trying to tell you what to do of course I just want to remind you that eschewing ties DOES make you a target when someone else decides to pick a victim.”

Eriko shuddered, her eyes flicking to the side “dont you think I know that?”

Shinya held up his hands. “Sorry. Just trying to be helpful.”

“I…” Her expression softened slightly “sorry…I don’t deal with stress well. I ain’t…good company when I’m like this.”

He shook his head. “That’s alright. I do understand. I suppose I’m having a bit of a stress reaction myself. Trying to manage things. People.”

“You do that when you’re stressed huh?” She laughed a little bitterly “…I guess it’s a hell of a lot more useful than…than me and my dancing.”

“Oh I don’t know about that,” he said with a smile. “Just think about all the enemies I could be making after all.”

“….” She raised her eyebrow “and who have ya been cheesin’ off, huh?”

He chuckled. “well, so far ive chatted with… you Miyuki-san, Morio-san, Tomo-chan, Hayate-chan and Sadahiro-kun, not counting Tsuda-kun of course,” he said, counting on his fingers as he listed them.

“and you’ve pissed in each of their wheaties?” She asked with wide eyes “What kinda people skills do you even _have_?”

He laughed and held up his hands. “No, no, you misunderstand. I’m not certain I’ve upset them– but I’m not certain I haven’t, hmm? Like you were saying about hidden grudges and motivations.”

“oh…” she said with a chew of her lip “yeah….I mean, you coulda already tipped a killer off that you’re wise to stopping ’em. You’re just kinda paintin’ a target on your back for any mook lookin’ to end a life.”

He chuckled. “You’re not wrong at all, Eriko-san. Its entirely possible.”

“Your funeral then.” She said, crossing her arms “I get playin’ nice and all…but try and be careful. You ain’t _too_ bad for a weird , shady creep.”

“Well, I’ll take that for the compliment it is, Eriko-san,” he said, bowing. “And thank you for not minding me watching you dance.”

She bowed back “It’s alright.” She said “…feel free ta join in next time if you want. I ain’t a real dancer…but gymnastics ain’t too different, so I have fun doin it.”

“i have two left feet, but I’ll remember the invitation,” he said with a smile. “For now, I’ll leave you to your thoughts.”

She nodded “See ya around, Shinya-san. “

She walked over to the snack table to lean on it, looking at the stage and it’s musicians beyond. “Just be safe out there,.”

“You too, Eriko-san.”

She smiled weakly, half closing her eyes “yeah. Sure. sure…”

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

The dripping wet sharpshooter tracked slick footprints down the hall, and heard grumbling and muttering as he rounded the corner into the residential hall.

“….everythin’ alright?” Tsuda asked, shrugging his jean jacket back on as he carried his boots in one hand by the tied together shoelaces.

The PR kid.– Watanabe Ryota– had his shirt sleeves rolled up, and was pacing up and down the corridor with a cigarette in his mouth.

“didn’t figure a straight laced lookin’ guy like you for a smoker.” Tsuda chuckled as he approached “Ryota-kun, right?”

He pulled the cigarette out of his mouth and bit his lip. “That’ me…. look, its a stressful time, yeah?”

“Hey, sure is. I ain’t judgin’. I was doing the same thing earlier. Helps the nerves.”

He took another drag on his cigarette and leaned on the wall. “Yeah… yeah. Sure does.” Despite saying this, he looked like he was about ready to shake apart.

“You uh, holdin’ up okay there, sport?” Tsuda asked, leaning on the wall beside him

“Oh fine, absolutely d-dandy,” he said, taking another long breath of smoke. “How about you? Peachy?”

“eh, dunno if I’m as far along as peachy, but I just got outta the pool with some real nice company so..” he shrugged “I’m doin’ alright for bein’ trapped on a deathboat.”

“You got in the pool?” he asked. “you didn’t think it might be filled with acid or something?”

“…what kinda sick freak would fill a swimmin’ pool with acid.” Tsuda said, one hand in his pocket.

“I donno!! Maybe the kind who kidnaps a bu-bunch of high schoolers and tries to get them to kill one another!”

“Well yeah, but if we all melted in the pool what kinda fun would that be for the guy? He already stated he wants us to kill eachother. Dont’ seem the guy’s style to just off us all like that at once, or he woulda already done it.”

“So maybe one of _us_ filled the pool with acid!” he said. “I’m just saying, I’m surprised you’re ready to trust _anything_ here. I was half convinced the cigarettes in the vending machine would kill me!”

“Man, if my murder plan involved filling a pool with acid…” he shook his head “All I’m sayin is that’s some ‘Saw’ the movie level shit. Batman villain type crap.”

He leaned on the wall with a grin “somethin’ out of a manga, not real life.” 

He shook his head “…maybe, but…look, I get this place is designed for death but…if I can’t trust nothin’ , i’m gonna go stir crazy and wind up keelin’ over from a heart attack or something.”

“I feel like that’s how _I’m_ gonna go,” he grumbled.

“uh huh, ’cause you’re too worried about everythin’ trying to do ya in. You need to relax, man.”

“How am I supposed to relax when our teacher just died in a spike trap, man? Seriously tell me your secret!”

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “honest answer, or smartass answer?”

He rubbed his temple. “Get the smartass one out of your system first I guess!”

“Trauma.” He said, tapping out a cigarette.

Ryota snorted.  “Yeah, okay.”

Tsuda stuck the cigarette between his lips “honest answer…ain’t too different. I’ve seen some shit, pal…faced death in the eyes before…done some stuff I ain’t proud of.”

He rolled his shoulders “after a while you figure out how ta keep…mostly…calm.”

“How to keep calm,” he grumbled “well… some of us aren’t gunslingers you know ? I’m more of a paper pusher.”

“I hear that’s a high stress kinda job.” Tsuda said with a raise of his eyebrow.

“It is! but not the same _way!_ None of my…. _coping methods_ work here.”

“…what kinda coping methods are those, pal?” He asked casually

“Sending strongly worded emails for one!”

“Write strongly worded notes.” Tsuda said “ya got paper in your room, I’d bet. Just …really go ham on ’em.”

“You think… I should write a note?? TO WHOM?” he demanded.

“The fuckin’ bear.” Tsuda said with a roll of his eyes. “Write some notes tellin’ him how you REALLY feel.”

“Doesn’t that strike you as _unwise_?” he asked.

“What’s the bear gonna do? kill ya?” Tsuda said with a slightly sharp grin

“Yes!” he snapped.

“No.” Tsuda rolled his eyes “didn’t ya hear the guy? As I said before. He wants us to off _one another_. He said so himself. He ain’t gonna kill ya unless you…I dunno…” 

he waved his hand “break the rules or whatever.”

“You’re right about that,” he said, biting his lip. “Maybe I COULD at least _write_ something. Even if I don’t give it to him.”

“exactly.” Tsuda grinned “It’ll get some of that stress out, ya know? Constructive anger an’ all that shit.”

“I don’t know about constructive but…. maybe you’re right.”

Tsuda grinned “I ain’t a public speaker or a ..whatever ya are…but I have my points.”

“Public relations,” he said, crossing his arms. “I design media campaigns.”

“Well, Then ..uh, maybe design an anti-campaign for bear boy.” he grinned “Smear campaign against the bear.”

“I’m not sure he needs it,” he said, frowning. “But maybe.”

“I’d wanna see that.” he snickered, his hands jammed in his pockets as he pulled out his lighter.

“Should I forward it to you?” he asked.

“Please.” he said with a wink “why not. You got my chatname on the monopad, after all.”

“Oh right, the monopad….” he rubbed his chin. “That could be useful.”

“got an idea, mr. Spokesman?” Tsuda asked

“Maybe some kind of… positivity campaign…..” he pulled out another cigarette and started chewing on the end.

“positivity campaign, eh?” Tsuda lit his cigarette, and leaned in to offer to get Ryota’s.

Ryota leaned forward, allowing himself to take the light. He took a long drag. “Like…. well… propaganda,” he admitted.

“Ahhh.” He said with a nod ” Saw plenty of that overseas…back home too. Can’t walk five feet without runnin’ into it.”

“Well, it works,” he said, puffing hi cigarette. “if you know how to make it work anyway.”

“You know all the secrets to that, huh?” Tsuda nodded “…might actually come in handy …maybe it’ll help us counter Monokuma’s psych games.”

“Psychology versus pyschology…” he bit his cigarette. “I _am_ the best, but the problem is there’s a handicap…”

“Handicap?” Tsuda asked with a dock of his head.

“Negative ideas. Pessimism….. its easier to put in someone’s head than positive ones,” he said. “The brain _wants_ to believe its in danger. It has millions of years of evolution on its side.”

“So he’s preying on panic, which we’re all pretty wired for, and you gotta prey on **hope** instead?”

He nodded. “Exactly. Which can be done, but….” he shook his head. “It’ll take work….”

“Hey, if there’s anythin’ I can do, just hollar alright?” Tsuda smiled

“I might want to test some slogans on you,” he nodded.

“lemme be your test-case, yeah.” He said with a wink “and feel free to use my handsome mug as a poster boy, eh?”

Ryota looked him over. “A poster boy? Hmmm… maybe….”

Tsuda brushed his long black hair away from his scarred, but handsome face. “Like the fellas on them cigarette ads.”

“You do have a kind of japanese marlborbo man quality,” he admitted.

“I’ve been told it’s part’a my charm.” Tsuda said with a wink “Folks overseas loved me.”

“Huh. Well if I need any glamour shots I guess I know who to calll…”

“Put me up on posters. ya know? ‘say no to despair’. ‘don’t **bear** with it, stand up and fight’.”

“Those are…. _really_ terrible slogans,” he said, “But… the sentiment’s alright.”

Tsuda grinned “well, that’s what we got you for, Mr. PR.” He slugged Ryota on the shoulder.

Ryota winced, but gave Tsuda a pained smile, and returned the gesture weakly. “Yeah, I guess it is.”

Tsuda didn’t rock under the boy’s fist, but did grin a little wider. “Between the two of us? Shit’s as good as solved.”

“Good as solved…. You know what?” Ryota said. “Maybe it is. After all, we’re SHSL. And who’s this bear. Huh.”

“SHSL bear.” Tsuda said with a nod. “Which ain’t shit compared to us.”

“Yeah….” he said hesitantly. Then more firmly. “Yeah! Alright! I’m going to get to work on this!”

Tsuda punched his fist with a grin “hell fuckin yeah! You can do it, man! Go for the gold!”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Wandering back through the hallway, away from the ballroom, Shinya became suddenly aware of the sound of cheerful music drifting from the direction of the parlor outside the kitchen. It was a bright, upbeat little calliope tune that drifted airily down the hall to his ears.

Shinya looked up curiously, and let himself drift toward the sound of the music.

He followed it all the way to the parlor , where a table was shifted into the center of the room, and atop it…Chitose. 

She was juggling a series of pins with her tongue half stuck out from between her teeth, as her pad sat between her feet, playing the cheerful, circus-like music at full volume.

Shinya clapped as he approached. “Bravo!”

Chitose looked over with a wide grin, as all three pins reached their zenith…and clonked down one at a top atop her head with a hollow sounding **’bonk, bonk bonk’** 

“Oweeeeee.” She waved her hands in the air, as she fell bottom first atop the thankfully sturdy table…and caught the pins one by one between her skillful fingers as they ricocheted off her head.

She bowed her head with a dopey smile “ta daaa…”

Shinya chuckled with amusements. “Very nice, very nice. I see you’re practicing, hmm?”

She nodded, and tucked the pins under her arm as she kicked her feet back and forth. SHe leaned over to turn off the music. “uh huhhh.” 

She bobbled her head “that’s right Shinya-ya-ya…I wanted to relax, you know…maybe make someone smile if they saw me.”

“Well, you made me smile,” he said. “How about you get a soda with me?”

Chitose clasped her hands together with a gasp  “wow! You’d share a soda with me?”

She hopped up with a lazy smile “yes…yes yes yes.”

“Absolutely,” he said with a smile. “I’m a bit parched honestly, and I;d be happy chatting for a bit if you don’t mind.”

“not at all.” She shook her head with a small smile “I want to make friends here…even with the …bad stuff.”

She nodded her head for him to lead the way

“Can I tell you a secret, Chitose-chan?” he asked, heading for the vending machines.

Chitose cocked her head towards him, her pale blue braids drifting over her shoulders as she smiled “i do like secrets.”

“Well then!” He smiled at her and put a finger at her lips. “I’d wager _making friends_ is one of the best strategies in this game. So you’re onto something.”

“wowww…” she said with widening eyes. “you really think so?” she put her fingers to her cheeks , nearly dropping the pins under her arms “I didn’t think of the strategies but…that’s pretty great, huh?”

Shinya nodded, and gave her a sly smile. “Isn’t it? So don’t think you’re doing something wrong with trying to make friends!”

He put his monopad in the vending machine and bought them a couple of sodas.

Chitose bounced on her feet “I guess not, Shinya-ya-ya!” she bobbed her head “I ran into Hayate-te earlier and tried to get him to watch my show but he ran off as fast as he could, so I was worried!’

“Oh? Hayate-chan ran off hmm? That was probably before we met at the pool…” he smiled. “Don’t worry, I think you might have better luck with Hyate-chan next time.”

“oooooh?” Her head cocked again as she held out her hands for the soda “did you help cheer him up??”

“I did my best,” he said with a smile. “We played some games in the mall.”

“oooh.” Chitose beamed as she took her soda and opened it with a small laugh “Crane games?”

“No, actually. Fighting games,” he chuckled. “It was at my request– and I got a bit trounced to be honest.”

“Fighting games??” she gasped “oh wow, I wouldn’t have guessed! But…” she sipped her soda, before tapping it against her lips “i’m _reallly_ bad at them myself…I keep forgetting the combos and stuff.”

Shinya chuckled. “Yes, that was kind of my problem too. But Hyate-chan was surprisingly good.”

“Maybe it’s all the crane games…they require like, hand eye stuff, right?”
He flipped her soda in the air…with the cap off, and juggled it carefully so that not a single drop spilled, catching it again with a grin …as it began to foam over. 

She yelped, and tried to sip it down before it spilled “whoop!”

Shinya laughed. “Well, I hope that you manage to drink _some_ of that,” he teaed. “But yes, they do require hand eye stuff. And memorization.”

“true, true.” She bobbed her head “Maybe he’s gotten a lotta practice while waiting for crane games?” she mused, “or maybe he’s got a _seeecret_ talent.”

Shinya laughed. “Oh you think so?” he smiled. “Or maybe I’m just very bad at them in comparison, ne?”

“maybe.” She said with a smile “we should find someone okay at them and put it to the test, huh?” she bobbed her head “a tournament…to the pixelated fatality!”

“You know, maybe we _could_ organize a little tournament…” he smiled. “That sounds like fun. After all, we’re supposed to have a dinner party as well.”

Chitose perked up, drinking down her slightly overly fizzed soda before asking “a _dinner party_??”

“Mmmhmm,” he nodded.

She chewed her lip “I should think of a big act then…something to really wow everyone…”

“Only if you want to!” he said with a smile.

“It’s what a clown’s gotta do.” She said with a nod of her head , and a slightly serious expression. “….I told you before, right? Clowns cheer people up…and a party without a clown…it’s not a party at all.”

“I suppose they do call them party clowns,” Shinya nodded.

“uh huh, which are actually a little different than circus clowns, you know!” She said with a smile “But no less highly trained!”

“I see,” he said with a smile. “You’ll have to tell me more about clown specializations.”

“Welll.” She said, counting on her fingers. “you’ve got the different **styles** of clown…whitefaced clowns, hobo clowns…stuff like that…you’ve got the specializations…circus….street performer…party clown… you’ve also got the different **roles** too, like…you know, the prattfall guy.”

Shinya nodded along with interest. “I see, I see…. it sounds like it can get pretty detailed and specific, ne?”

“uh huh.” she bobbed her head “but I’m pretty good at **most** styles of clowning, and can adjust my performance pretty easy depending on what i’ve got to work with an’ stuff.”

She beamed “when you get into clowning….like, gosh, there’s **so** much to learn. It’s a lot deeper than most people think!”

“I think most people don’t think it goes much deeper than the face paint,” he agreed. “How wrong they are.”

“Very wrong.” she sipped her soda with a small smile  , her eyes looking down towards the carpet below “it’s a science, really. There’s techniques, styles…skills….visual language…there’s so much there and if even one piece is missing the whole act falls apart.”

Shinya nodded. “Like any complicated performance.”

“You know about that kinda thing?” She cocked her head with a smile

“Oh a little,” he said with a smile. “really it just seems logical you know?”

“Yeah.” She said , brushing some of her bright blue hair from her face with the back of her hand “It does, doesn’t it? But most people just see a silly person dancing about and slipping about and think ‘what an easy job’.”

She smiled , looking up at him “but at least it makes them happy, at the end of the day.”

Shinya smiles. “Maybe thinking its easy is part of what makes them happy, hm?”

She bobbed her head again, her eyes half closed “that’s what I think. They don’t wanna think about the work behind it, they just see a show that lifts their spirits and leave happy that the clowns could make their lives a little happier ya know?”

She sipped her soda “And that makes it all worth it, even if some people think I’m wasting my time studying clowning. Don’t you think so , Shinya-ya-ya?”

Shinya smiled and gave her a thumbs up. “I definitely think so. Sometimes people not seeing the work behind something that entertains them makes it much more like a magic trick.”

She returned the thumbs up with a close of her eyes “uh huh! And people love magic tricks….and that makes me almost a magician!”

“It certainly does,” he smiled. “And I certainly don’t think you’re ‘wasting your time’ with clowning.”

Chitose smiled back at him , and despite the sleepiness in her eyes she looked genuinely happy. “Thank you, Shinya-ya-ya…you’re a really nice guy.”

She held out her hand as if to shake “So I’m gonna call you a friend, officially!”

“That’s fine by me, Chitose-chan.”

She wiggled her hand to him with a smile “Friends, then!”

He wiggled them back in a returning gesture. “Friends.”

Chitose broke down into a fit of giggles, before brushing her hair from her face with an ear to ear smile. “You can count on me to try an’ keep people’s spirits up , up up, so we can make it back home! And then we can all become school friends!”

000000000000000000000000000000000

Tsuda had wandered his way into the mall, looking around with a casual interest at the different shops….drug store, toy store, game store and arcade (where Hayate was still hammering away at the fighting game with a wide grin), clothes shop an’ jewelery store….some general grocery type general store….

But it was the last shop at the far end that gave him pause. A large shop bearing a black and white motif, with a massive monokuma head peeking out over the sign with a big grin. Under the grinning mouth read “the Mono/Mono Store!!” 
And it’s doors were plush red velvet. 

He froze, staring at it with a grimace, before he walked towards it “bears…”

There was a crash from inside.

His steps hastened, and he threw open the doors to what had to be the _tackiest_ store he’d ever seen. 

It was a  large, open floorplan interspersed with racks of merch and golden statues of the bear himself in various comedic poses. His eyes scanned the checkered storefront…moving over the racks of films (Monokuma’s Day Out, The Monokuma Files, Despair Babes 1: Hope’s Peaks.), the plushie Monokumas (and body pillows proudly on display), figurines….erotic mousepads, posters (Let’s DESPAIR MURDER!, and “DONT HANG IN THERE” jumped out first and foremost), Monokuma brand cutlery set. Every tacky merch tie in he could think of was all there.
the whole place was manned by another automated checkout counter at the back…this one with a weird mannequin dressed in black leather and spikes …that loomed over the checkout’s register.

“Well.” He said slowly “I fuckin’ hate this.”

There was a shattered bear figurine laying in pieces on the floor, and standing over it was Masako, who had changed clothes, and was now in a rather daringly cut black dress and boots.
“Fucking bear,” she growled.

Tsuda whistled as he approached, his his thumb hooked in his belt as he peeked down at the bear, and slowly up to her eyes. “I’d say ya trashed the bastard pretty good, Masako-chan.”

He grinned “and gotta say, the new look’s real fetchin’.”

She poked the shattered pieces with the toe of her boot. “It’s more my style than the uniform. Thanks.”

“No wonder it suits ya better.” he said, grinding one of the pieces of Monokuma’s head under his boot as he came over and leaned on the shelf “but this place? This place is fuckin’ tacky. Fuckin’ bear’s goin’ above and beyond the call of duty on this one. ” 

He gestured to the body pillows “I mean, lookit those things.”

“Yeah,” she nodded, making a face. “I came in here to see if there might be some clues, but all I can find is bear, bear bear!”

He looked around “like a palace built in testament to an unbearable king.” he said with a wry smirk.

“Bearly a clue to be found.”

Masako groaned. “_Must_ you?” she shook her head. “Come on, lets look around the back.”

He winked at her “Just tryin’ to lighten the mood.” he said, knocking some more of the merch off the shelves as he followed. “but seriously. this place sucks. Like he’s rubbin’ it in his face that he’s got us.”

She smirked as he knocked down the bear items. “That’s probably exactly what it is. But if this is his… hub… maybe it has some information, or some clue… I’m starting to doubt it, but maybe.”

“hey, ya never know, right?” He said with a shrug “probably in the back room , past our gothic fashionista host.” He pointed to the mannequin behind the counter.

Masako glanced at the mannequin, giving it a hard and searching look. “Hmmm.”

The mannequin was feminine, dressed in a spiked leather dress and a few blooming roses. She had a wig of red hair atop her head, and a blank and featureless face. 

“I think it’s like those fellas in the big band. She probably moves about when ya buy somethin’.”

“Creepy,” Masako said. “Nice dress though.”

He nudged her “you should swipe it.” he said “it’s a good look.”

“I just might,” she nodded. “If we don’t find anything else in here worth a damn.”

He offered her a fist bump as he moved behind the desk “might as well, huh? Gotta get _something_ outta this waste of space.”

She fistbumped him, and moved behind the desk along with him.”Assumig its useless, I doubt I’ll come back in here again.”

“You know, same.” he said with a note of amusement as he walked along the back edge of the shop…and then stopped at one point in the painted wall, knocking on it. “…door.” he said “I can see the faint outline of it. “

Masako put her hand on the spot beside it. “Wait, really?”

He nodded, and pointed with his finger “lookit…” 
In the black and white paint that made up the large painting of Monokuma…there was a thin, nearly imperceptible line running through it, and a slight inward **divet** on the eye that could easily be mistaken as an eyeshine. 

“they tried ta hide it…probably for the aesthetics, but it’s there.”

“Well… we can’t just bash it down,” she said with a frown. “as much as I’d like to. But lets see if there’s some way we can get it open.”

“Probably a switch somewhere.” He guessed “looks like’ll probably unlock and swing  back or somethin’.”

Masako bent down, and started searching under the desk for a switch. “Just what I was thinking.”

He leaned on the desk, looking it over with her.

But it was Masako who found the switch…it was under the ‘shopkeeper’, built into a small dome under the register. A button.

“Aha!” she grinned. “Alright, gunslinger, be ready for anything. I’m gonna press it.”

He put his hand on the pistol by his side and grinned “ready when you are, hot stuff.”

Her body tense and ready to move in event of a disaster– she pushed the button, watching alert for what happene.

There was a sudden blare of a siren…all the lights dimmed and a red flashing light flared up in the monokuma painting’s eye from a hidden lamp…..

And slowly, the door slid back and away. 

Once it’d opened….

That was it. The lights came back on, the dim red glow disappeared and the siren faded. 

The door was open.

“huh. Kinda expected…I dunno, a security response or somethin’.” Tsuda drawled.

Masako had lept out of the direct sight line of the door the moment that it had opened– and now cautiously stepped back toward it. “I was expecting guns,” she agreed.

“likewise.” He said, his hand lowering away from the pistol at his side as he let himself smile “how about we investigate, eh? Maybe we’ll get lucky. Find a lifeboat or somethin’.”

Masako nodded. “Lets do th– hey– is that your gun? where’d you get it?”

He pulled it from it’s holster, and spun it around his finger with a grin “Sure is. Found it in a vendin’ machine, believe it or not.”

“A vending machine huh? You’ll have to tell me which one,” she said. “But… after we investigate this. Can I trust you to cover me?”

He offered her a hand to shake, winking at her “Much as ya can trust anyone, Masako-chan. But I’ve got your back.”

“Lets stop wasting time then.” She nodded at him, and approached the door, entering cautiously.

He followed, his gun still in hand as he slipped into the door with her. 

It lead into a short hallway…to the left were a few racks of Monokuma themed clothes that hadn’t been wheeled out, and a bin of merch that was unsold…and a door at the end. And to the right, another set of doors, and yet another along the wall opposite them. “looks like some kinda backroom for employes.”

“Tch,” Masako shook her head. “Disappoint…. but lets have a look around anyway…. There’s a lot here.”
He moved to the doors on the right first.

“there sure is.” he chuckled, heading over towards the right. The first door was in the wall opposite them next to a poster.

Strangely enough…it was a poster for **Hope’s Peak**

“Hey, what…”

Suddenly, Monokuma leapt out from a pile of unsold Monokuma T-shirts “HEY HEY HEY HEY HEY HEY HEY!! this area is VERBOTEN to DORKY SIDE CHARACTERS” 

“…’scuse me?” Tsuda asked 

“Now hold on, i wasn’t askin’ the comic relief!” Monokuma cackled. “Back off, shoo. I’m not **ready** back here yet!”

“_Excuse_ me?” Masako demanded– though she did start backing away.

Tsuda took a step back, and aimed the gun at Monokuma with a grim smile “not ready for us, eh?”

“shoo, shoo shoo! It doesn’t have my Personal Touch yet! I don’t want this to be a case of premature e**fact**ulation! That’d be **embaaaarassing!**” The bear whined

“This is ridiculous,” Masako grumbled as she backed out of the door into the monomono shop– without taking her eyes off monokuma.

Tsuda stepped out of the room with a grimace…and it shut tight behind them with a slam “well, guess we interrupted the fella.”

“Hmph!” she snorted. “Well– it sounded as though he meant for someone to go in, eventually– so I suppose I don’t care _what’s_ in there.”

“yeah, whatever it is is probably… I dunno, a tease.”

he paused “though I did see a poster about our school in there before he shooed us out…”

She nodded. “I saw that too…” she sighed. “How about you show me that vending machine? Oh I’m so mad I could burn the whole place down.”

“you and me both, sister.” He said with a grin as he waved for her to follow “….but that’s playin’ into the fucker’s hands. If we pull a stunt like that? We’re both dead…unless we wipe out every single version of him he’s got skulking about.”

“Yeah,” she sighed, sauntering after him. “But that doesn’t mean I can’t think about it real hard.”

“Must be a damned beautiful image.” He said with a wink , “nothin’ would make me happier to see this fuckin’ fancy cage go down in flames …preferablly while we’re bookin’ it away on a lifeboat.”

“Maybe even a rescue helicopter,” she agreed, stalking through the hall with him.

“hell. I’d take a fucking door and an oar , if it meant gettin’ away from this shit.” Tsuda agreed, shaking his head. “….Monokuma’s got us trapped like rats, an is hopin’ to panic us.”

“The bastard,” she said with a frown.

“Real bastard.” Tsuda said “reminds me of some guys I ran into before…real pieces of work who operated by playin’ on people’s fears. “

“Interrogators?” she asked.

“….” Tsuda chuckled softly “yeah, somethin’ like that…” 

He lead her down the hall, towards the vending machine nook. “Bottom line, they weren’t nice fellas.”

“I can relate to that,” she nodded, heading with him to the vending machine. “My talent brings me into contact with… all types, really.”

“That so?” He said, as he passed the various paintings in the hall, his fingers going for his pocket and his pack of cigarettes “i imagine, bein’ an assassin and all.”

She nodded. “Does that disturb you?” she asked. “And can I bum a cigarette off you if it doesn’t?”

He pulled out his cigarette pack, and offered it to her “nah, don’t disturb me at all.” 

He smiled over at her “It’s a job like any other, I s’pose. Impressive, honestly.”

She took the offered cigarette gratefully. “You think so?” she asked with a smile. “Some people think I’m a bit sinister for ending lives like someone might put a stamp on paperwork. I wouldn’t be surprised fi someone suspected me of all this stupid business.”

He shrugged his shoulders “I’m a sharpshooter. Just a sportsman, but…” He shook his head, and flicked his lighter for her “I ain’t a stranger to the harsher side of life. sinister? not really. I ain’t gonna judge someone for that.” 

He stuck a cigarette of his own in his mouth as they came to the vending machines “you’re honest about it. Open about whatcha are. You know?”

She lit her ciagrette in the offered flame and took a puff off of it. “As far as I’m concerned, I only need to hide in the shadows when its time for a job.”

He lit his own, and leaned on the wall beside the vending machines. “Which I respect.” he nodded “….means i trust ya. This ain’t a job to ya, or nothin’ like that. You’re in as bad a place as the rest of us poor bastards.”

She sucked on her cigarette, and nodded. “That’s the truth,” she nodded. “Between a rock and a hard place.”

“exactly. We’re all on the same literal boat.” he took a drag, and pointed to the vending machine “it’s in there, by the by.”

“The one that says ‘danger’?” she snorted. “I should have figured. Here I was guessing it was poison in there.”

“Looks like there’s somethin’ special for each of us in there but we don’t know what it is until we use our pad.” he mused. “I got my gun from it.”

“let’s see what kind of special surprise inside is there for me then,” she said, stepping up to it

Tsuda watched, puffing at his cigarette “gonna guess somethin’ deadly.”

She put her monopad in the slot. “I’d think so. Unless I’m being singled out.”

There was a small jingle…and there was a loud….thunk…and a click. 

The front of the vending machine, several inches deep, suddenly came open to show a large square steel case resting within a ‘item slot’.

“huh. Deadly briefcase.”

“Oh!” she smiled widely and pulled it out, giving the case a hug, before she opened it.

Tsuda leaned over to peek inside as she opened it.

Inside was a rifle. Or rather…a rifle in pieces. The stock, the clip, the stand, the body…and several rounds of amunition. It was a high power rifle with a massive scope. A deadly piece of accurate artillery. 

“hot damn, I’m jealous of that big fella.” he said “gorgeous….”

She ran her fingers over it with a smile most women reserve for babies, or expensive shoes. “Isn’t it? I’d love to use it on Mr. Monokuma…. but not without a plan of escape.”

Tsuda’s eyes flicked over it appreciatively “Save the shots then , ’cause we’re gettin’ outta here in short order.”

She nodded seriously to him. “Got it. For now…. I’ll put it together and take it apart again. …for my nerves.”

He chuckled softly “like how I clean my lil’ lady over here.” He pat the handle of his pistol. “Does wonders for the ol’ nerves….but I ain’t gonna waste a shot till I see our way outta this joint.”

“I’m better at taking orders than making plans,” she admitted. “So I’ll wait for your signal. Assuming I don’t got entirely batshit bonkers from being cooped up here,” she chuckled dryly.

He smirked “eh, there’s better ways to work off that kinda tension than a shootin’ spree.” 

he winked “I’m sure we could work somethin’ out. And I’ll give ya the signal when it’s time ta move.”

She flushed a little and gave him a sly look. “Don’t hesitate to tell me when its time to blow off steam, either.”

Tsuda winked, a sly smile of his own gracing his face. “Don’t you worry, ma’am. I won’t hesitate.”

“Good,” she grinned. “You wanna see this baby when he’s all together?” she indicated her gun.

“you’re damned right I do.” he said with a grin “The fella’s drop dead gorgeous, even in pieces.”

“then stick around, handsome. You’ll like what you see.”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

By the time Tsuda wandered his way back over to the lobby outside the ballroom, Shinya was already there.

Shinya was sitting there already, sipping at the rest of the soda he’d bought with Chitose, and playing the pet game on the monopad.

Tsuda waved as he approached, an ear to ear grin on his face “Shinya-kun! How ya doin’ good lookin’?”

Shinya chuckled and looked up at him with a smile. “Pleased to see you in such good spirits, Tsuda-kun”

“hey, what can I say? Spent the day gettin’ to know the fellow inmates in this funky lil’ brig.”

Shinya pat the spot next to him for him to sit. “As I did. Glad you had a good time.”

Tsuda took a seat beside him, shifting his gun as he did. “how about you? Find out anythin’ fun?”

“Oh all sorts of things,” he chuckled. “I learned about types of clowns.”

“types o’ clowns huh?” he chuckled “what , like ‘funny ones and scary ones’?” He joked.

“Did you know it goes deeper than that?” he offered. “But I spoke to around half our fellow ‘students, and did find out a few interesting tidbits.”

“And I spoke to the other half, I imagine.” he said with a sly smile. “Learned a few interestin’ things myself…but you first.”

“Well, for one thing, I’ve I think an amount of time has probably passed since we were kidnapped.”

“I’ve been gettin’ that impression too.” he said, leaning back with a frown. “…things ain’t linin’ up if you think of it any other way.’

“No. Not the clothes in the closets, certainly,” he mused. “And I also learned something interesting about the toys in the toyshop.”

“toys in the toyshop huh? What? are they fulla knives or somethin’?” Tsuda joked

“No,” he laughed. “well, not any i saw. no– some of them were made by our new Toymaker friend.”

“our toymaker….” He paused “wait, they were _Morio-san’s_ dolls?”

“Some of them at least,” he nodded. “he recognized them. And that’s not all.”

“…well, I’m all ears, pal.” Tsuda said with a thin smile.

“Moiro-san recognized some of the dolls. And more than that, they were specific commissions or gifts. They **shouldn’t be here** at all.”

Tsuda frowned deeply “well…I ain’t a fan of that…how the fuck they end up here th..”

He paused “actually…I should show ya something.”

Shinya perked up as well. “Oh? Hmm?”

Tsuda unfastened the holster at his hip, and pulled out an elegantly engraved gun with a pearl-grip. It was a revolver…a large one, with a long barrel and the carving of a coyote on the barrel in silver inlay. 

“It’s mine.” he said. “This gun’s my tournament revolver. Found it when I put my pad in the mystery vending machine.’

Shinya ran his fingers over the gun. “My, what a beautiful weapon you have, Tsuda-san,” he said.

Tsuda flushed slightly, a grin on his face “I know right? ain’t she beautiful? had her custom made for me after my first big win.”

Shinya gave him a sly smile. “It suits you,” he purred. “But– you say that you got it from the vending machine?”

“yep.” He said “…the one marked ‘dangerous’.”
He looked down at his gun “tested it with two others and…well. Looks like it’s contents are **one per person** and **specialized per pad**. Goto got some kinda shock glove he’d made a while back…and Masako got her rifle. A weapon from everyone’s past, or somethin’ else deadly.”

“Oh now _that_ is interesting,” he mused. “I’m not exactly someone who has much use for weapons, typically.”

“isn’t it? ” he chuckled “…you don’t strike me as the sort but who the fuck knows what else is in the fuckin’ thing. I just know it ain’t great.”

“I suppose we could find out,” he mused with a rather serious look on his face. “Hmm, I shouldn’t be surprised the bear wants all of us armed.”

Tsuda shook his head “me neither…I mean, he basically handed us all the ‘go on and do it’ card. The grim party favors to his lil’ murder ball.”

He nodded. “Exactly. Exactly. Hmm… I wonder if it would be a good idea….”

“…a good idea ta what? go get your own party favor?” He chuckled

He chuckled. “Well I certainly want to see that! No, I was wondering if we ought to do a little ‘I’ll show you mine if you show me yours’.”

“ahhh.” He smirked  “A little exhibitionism to uh, remove the element of surprise.”

“Precisely,” he said with a smirk. “If everyone knows who has what… well, it certainly makes tracking things a little easier.”

“It does.” he agreed with a grin “means nobody can use their shit to their advantage, eh?”

He shrugged “everyone knows…use your weapon, get caught.”

“Exactly,” Shinya nodded. “It incentivizes–should someone want to kill someone– using someone else’s weapon to frame them. Which introduces another step to a murder plan, ne?”

“which makes it just a lil’ less likely someone’s gonna wanna do it!” he agreed

“So it does,” he said, stroking his chin. He stood up suddenly. “well! if we’re going to be showing them around, we might as well go see what mine is now, ne?”

“might as well.” Tsuda stood easily and offered his hand with a wink “come on, pal.”

Shinya took his hand with a smile and a bit of a flourish. “What a gentleman you are, Tsuda-kun,” he teased.

Tsuda winked at him “awww, I can be, fella. When the mood strikes.”

Shinya graciously allowed himself to be led to the vending machine,, taking out his monopad when they approached. “Its this one, right?”

“that’s the one.” Tsuda nodded, pointing to the blank-faced vending machine marked “Dangerous”.

“Dangerous…. yes I suppose it is,” he chuckled. he put his monopad in it.

There was a soft chime of victory…and it kept playing, and playing….

For a moment the machine seemed at a loss…

And then out plunked a heavy package wrapped in paper bearing a frowning monokuma.

“Hmmm?” Shinya frowned, as he gingerly touched the package. “Was yours like this, Tsuda-kun?”

“n…no, it sure fuckin’ wasn’t.” he said 

The package was kind of lumpy….but didn’t explode upon his touch or anything

“Well… lets see what it is,” he said. He sat down, and carefully opened it in his lap.

He found…. a puzzle cube. and slapped over it was a piece of duct tape reading “Consolation Prize: Sorry pal, no interesting skeletons in your closet!”

“I see,” Shinya nodded. “well, its not that surprising. I guess I’m not a secretly gunslinger like you, Tsuda-kun.”

“guess not.” Tsuda chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck “…guess the bear couldn’t dredge anythin’ up for ya.”

“Dear me,” he sighed. “That’s almost as suspicious as Miyuki-san thinks I am.”

“it kinda is, ain’t it?” he said with a shake of his head “…shit, sorry pal.”

“Ah well,” he sighed. “I’m glad I had you here with me to see it come out, otherwise I’m sure everyone would think I was hiding a weapon.”

“I’ll vouch for ya, man.” Tsuda agreed, nodding his head “…because yeah, it’d look real sketchy.”

“I do appreciate it,” he said, standing. He curiously started to play with the little puzzle cube.

It was like a rubix cube…but he could feel that the pieces had a bit more maneuverability than a typical cube. like they would **unfold** into a more complex shape if he got it right into alignment. 

And he could see, in some of the pieces.. strange notches in the metal that seemed entirely random…or maybe…

They formed something when lined up?

“hey, i got your back, man.” Tsuda said with a smile

“Its appreciated,” he said with a smile. “Well, lets see, what else have we learned today?

“there’s some kinda secret room behind the Mono/Mono shop in the mall. Monokuma wouldn’t let me explore it, sayin’ it wasn’t ready yet, though.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Secret room, you say….”

“not _too_ secret. It’s some kinda employee’s back room…but I **did** see a Hope’s Peak poster in there before he shooed Masako and I out.”

“Now that’s fascinating…” he nodded. “we’ll _certainly_ have to go and have a look.”

“Yeah, hopefully next time the bear won’t jump in the way and tell us to buzz off.” he chuckled.

“Hmmm… shall we investigate now, or do you think we ought to give Monokuma-san more time to lay his deadly trap?”

“He’s just gonna throw a fit if we try. said things weren’t ready and the ‘Goofy Background Characters’ Should butt out.”

“Oh I see,” he chuckled. “well, maybe we can look into it tomorrow, then?”

“Hey, I’d be real happy to go with ya.” he chuckled “why not, right?”

“It _sounds_ as though the worst he’ll do is kick us out,” he nodded. “So I’ll put it on tomorrow’s agenda.”

“Anythin’ else? Learn any juicy secrets ’bout our classmates?”

Shinya tapped his lip thoughtfully. “Welll…….let’s see. Miyuki-san is making a map of the premises.”

“Clever.” he said with a grin “That might be the ticket to findin’ a way out.”

“I’m certain it’ll be useful one way or another,” he nodded. “She’s going to take a photo and send it to everyone– well, if she does as she said.”

“If she don’t, we should push her to in the mornin’.” he said with a firm nod. “…because a map’ll be good to have.”

Shinya nodded. “Certainly. Lets see, beyond that…. she wasn’t exactly in the best of spirits. But I think I convinced her its important to at least try to be cooperative.”

“I ain’t surprrised.” he said with a chuckle “she seems like an ‘all buisness’ kinda gal.” 

He shook his head “Oh, I talked ta Tomoyo and some others…we’re talkin’ about maybe holding a party soon…you know, to ease some tensions.”

“Ah, yes! Tomo-chan said the same thing. I think its a wonderful idea.”

“well.” he said with a grin “sounds like we got a few folks interested already….maybe we’ll spread the word around and start gettin’ ready.”

“Fantastic,” he chuckled. “That’s about what I got out of Tomo-chan. That and cigarettes.”

“cigarettes, huh?” He chuckled “Yeah, they’re  lifesaver. Had some with Masako-chan.” He said “…I convinced her to help us shoot our way outta here if the opportunity ever presents.’

“Oh! I gather she got a gun from the machine then?”

“Yep.” he nodded “a rifle. The kind that’s real obvious to lug around. “

He grinned “she showed me it in her room. it’s a beaut.”

He pushed his glasses up with a smirk. “I see. Good to know. I didn’t get a tour of anyone’s room, but Hayate-san and I _did_ visit the game shop.”

“Oh yeah?” He raised his eyebrows “what’d ya find with Hayate-san?”

“Our crane-game playing friend is ALSO very good at fighting games,” he chuckled. “Hayate-chan needed a bit of cheering up, so…”

“Fightin games, huh? wouldn’t have expected that. might have to see the kid in action some time.”

He raised his eyebrow “was he uh, real bad off?”

Shinya nodded. “Unfortunately, yes. He was a bit messed up over the whole thing, which is really understandable.”

“I mean…” Tsuda nodded slowly “…our teacher was murdered right in front of our eyes to kickstart some kinda sick murder game… I can’t blame the kid for bein’ out of sorts.”

“No,” he shook his head. “Not at all. I’m till in shock over it, really.”

“yeah.” Tsuda nodded “…I feel pretty fucked up over it…but the best I can do is keep smilin’ and pushin’ through for the rest of ya, right?”

“Otherwise we’ll just be playing right into the bear’s claws,” he nodded.

“that’s the nature of traps…they rely on folks behavin’ as expected.” he said with a shake of his head “he expects us to panic…then …**snap**.”

He nodded. “I’d wager that that’s exactly what he expects. Staying calm– as far as we’re able– may be key.”

“Well. I expect a party’ll help people unwind enough to avert fuckin’ disaster.” He grinned “maybe we can make it a pool party or somethin’?”

“a pool party could be a fun choice,” he said with a little smirk. “Unless you have another idea.”

“Nah, I think that’s the right way ta do it.” He said with a grin “We got the pool, after all…and any shows can be done by the poolside. Hell, we can even play tabletop games in the poolchairs if we wanted to.  Everythin’ we need…and.” he winked “…since everyone’s in swimsuits, nobody can bring any hidden weapons, eh?”

“Good point,” he smirked. “I think some games at the pool chairs are an excellent idea. Not everyone will want to swim.”

“yeah.” Tsuda bobbed his head in a nod “Yeah…thinkin’ about it? Pool party’s just the thing.”

“Then lets say its a plan, and spread the word,” he said with a smile. “Hmm, actually…..”

Tsuda leaned against the wall with a quizzical smile. “hm?”

“We ought to send a message to everyone– have us all meet up in the mornings for a little head count, don’t you think?”

“shit, great idea.” Tsuda pointed “that way we can make sure everyone’s alright…and maybe talk about plans for the day if folks are interested.”

“Just what I was thinking, Tsuda-kun,” he said, getting out his monopad. “Is cleverness a qualifier for sharpshooter, by any chance?”

Tsuda flushed, rubbing the back of his neck with a smile “naw, I just got lucky, I s’pose.”

Shinya chuckled, as he sent a message to each person about the morning meeting. “I suppose you did. Or we got lucky to have you here.”

Tsuda clicked on the message to mark it read, and grinned “Flatterer. I’ll take it,  you guys _are_ pretty fuckin’ lucky.”

He winked “Between the two of us we got at least two braincells.”

“I’d say at least,” he chuckled. “I can’t think of any more truely interesting gossip I learned today– well, other than the poor secretary being _alarmingly_ overworked.”

“sounds like him and the PR guy are both uh, in desperate need for a lil’ R&R. That’s the corporate life for ya, I guess.” Tsuda nodded

“Such is the life of a salryman,” he nodded mournfully. “Even in high school, apparently.”

“Yeahh…you’d think…I dunno, they wouldn’t let a kid overwork himself half to death, but you’d be fuckin’ wrong.” Tsuda snorted softly

“So it would seem,” he said, shaking his head. “It seems this dire circumstance might be a vacation to some.”

Tsuda laughed, and was about to reply when a chime rang through the speaker systems 

**DING, DONG, BING BONG** 

“Attteeention students!” Monokuma’s voice rang through the speakers as the monitors illuminated to show the bear sitting in front of the ship’s steering wheel with a glass of champagne in his hand “it’s officially **nighttime**. Please note that some areas will not be open at night, including the Monokuma Mall! Tread lightly at your own peril! Maybe one of your classmates is already skulking about with a knife!”

Shinya looked up with curiosity. “Oh, now that’s interesting, wouldn’t you agree?”

Tsuda raised his eyebrow “i guess he doesn’t want us sneaking around the mall when it’s time for lights out.” He said with a slight smirk “…maybe that means there’s somethin’ worthwhile in there.’

“It might,” Shinya tapped his chin. “I suppose it would be worth a look.”

“tomorrow, ’cause I’m gonna bet you the guy’ll punish anyone who tries breakin’ in at night.”

“Too likely,” he nodded. “well, I suppose we’d better retire, then.”

“I suppose so.” He stretched with a slim smile “Walk ya to your room? you know, just to be safe?”

“It would be a pleasure,” he said with a smile, offering his hand.

Tsuda took his hand, and lead him back into the hall with a low whistle “Here’s to one day in this hellhole down…and another day closer to freedom, eh?”

“One day closer to freedom,” he agreed with a smile. “No matter what, those of us still here have survived day one.”

“exactly. We just gotta remember that at the end of the day, right?” He said as they walked through the halls. Ahead they saw some others trickling towards the residential area as well.

“So we do,” he nodded. He waved to the others that were milling around.  “what’s life, after all, if not a succession of days that we’ve made it through?”

“**A-fuckin-men**.” he said in english, before he returned to Japanese with a grin “That’s the way I live life…I mean…it gets dangerous out there, ya never know what’s gonna do you in…so you should live your best, and take every day as it comes.”

“I quite agree, Tsuda-kun,” he smiled. “And here’s to another day tomorrow, should we be so lucky.”

“And another after that.” He said as they passed through the lobby and into the residential area. “All the way to old age, if we luck out.”

“Agreed,” he chuckled. “Or til we steal fire from the gods and live into eternity.”

“Well.” Tsuda smirked “Sacrilegious, but if it’s Eternal Life, I guess I’m game.”

“Are you much of a religious man, Tsuda-kun?” he asked with a smile.

“A lil'” Tsuda shook his head “…I picked it up as a kid, you know? One of the few folks to take pity on me when I was at my lowest was a local priest.”

“Ahhh,” Shinya nodded. “Thank goodness for helpful stereotypes,” he teased with a grin.

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “well.” he chuckled “understandable stereotype, I guess. Pretty sure it’s part of their like, duty an’ all that to help folks in need. The guy had charities an’ shit goin’ on…I just happened to run into him personal like and he let me sleep in the church sometimes after my folks died.” 

He shrugged his shoulders. ” He was a good guy, so I attended some of his sermons now and again. Guess I picked a lil’ of it up before I set out on the path of a sharpshooter.”

“My my, it sounds like you’ve lived a quite eventful life, Tsuda-kun,” he nodded. “I hope that I get to hear about it some time.”

“Don’t worry, pal.” He chuckled with his hands in his pockets. “we’re stuck together for the long haul ain’t we? You’ll hear all about me eventually.”

“I look forward to it,” he said, putting his hand on the door to his room. “Hmm…”

“Well. Here we are, save n’ sound.” Tsuda said with a grin.

“So we are,” he nodded.
_I wonder if I’ll be able to get any sleep, alone, in an unfamiliar place, where people may be plotting to kill one another…_

Tsuda leaned on the wall “you gonna be alright?” He asked pleasantly “Your room looked average enough, I s’pose but with this place who the hell knows.”

“I suppose I’m just a little nervous,” he admitted with a smile. “Sleeping alone in a new place, hmm? and with circumsstances as they are…”

Tsuda nodded , meeting his eyes as he leaned against his door “I can’t blame ya there. Things are…unsettlin’, to say the least. Especially when yer alone.”

“It’ true,” he nodded. “Will you be alright?”

“I’ve gotten some experience sleepin’ alone in dangerous places.” Tsuda said with a slim smile “how about you? You gonna be alright?”

“I’ll manage the same as anyone else I suppose.”

“Alright.” Tsuda put his hand on his shoulder, patting it with a wink “But if ya need anything, just knock on my door, alright pal?”

Shinya nodded. “And the same for you, Tsuda-kun. Have a good night.”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Shinya found himself once more in his utterly average looking room…exactly as he left it. The only thing that changed was the light outside seeming to dim…and the utter stillness in the air.

The first thing Shinya did was look for vents, or a fan to turn on.

There was a small ‘climate control ‘ panel on the wall by the door.

Shiny took a look at it.
_Now here’s the question. Some kind of puzzle, or just your average hotel panel?_

At first glance…it seemed to be nothing more than an average panel. But…Shinya had an eye for this sort of thing.

He could see that the dial affixed to it had an extra notch just beyond the coldest temperature, and a nearly imperceptable marking..and there was something in the side, perhaps a switch under a panel.

“Ah!” He smiled, pleased, and switched the dial to the secret notch.
_Now lets see what you unlock…._
If nothing happened, he’d try the little switch in the side, too, if he could reach it.

As he reached the secret notch, he felt the switch on the side yield. It looked like it unlocked the switch.

“Aha!” Encouraged, he tried the switch.
_Lets hope it doesn’t electrocute me or something. Oh dear, would Monokuma-san stoop to killing someone himself and trying to frame someone else?_

The switch clicked, and there was a moment where nothing happened…a moment of tense anticipation where it almost seemed like there **would** be a shock…before he noticed that the lamp by his bedside had begun to lightly flicker.

He relaxed slightly. “Well, no shock anyway,” he murmured. 
_And no reason not to talk to myself, since the walls are so insulated…_
He moved over and inspected the lamp curiously.

The lamp was flickering..perhaps due to a faulty connection…but..

It was flickering in a rhythm, not randomly…

“Hmmm…..” he watched as it flickered… was it a code of some kind perhaps?

It was hard to see…but after a few cycles of it it looked like **yes**.

It was a code.

Morse, it seemed

“How unsurprising,” he chuckled. He got a piece of paper out, and jotted it down.

He came up with a code… “— -. / – …. . / -.-. …. .- -. -. . .-.. / — ..-. / -.. . .- – …. –..– / . -. – . .-. / .—-. -.. . … .–. .- .. .-. .—-. / ..-. — .-. / .- / ..-. ..- -. / … ..- .-. .–. .-. .. … . -.-.–“

As he scratched it out, he spelled it out with his lips, until he read. “On the channel of death, enter despair for a fun surprise..’ Hmmm, well it’s no ‘be sure to drink your ovaltine’, hmm?”
He looked for a television, and a way to turn it on to channel 4.

The television and it’s remote sat upon the desk opposite his bed…and it was currently tuned ‘off’.

He picked up the remote, and turned the TV ‘on’, first of all.

It came on to a screen full of static imposed over the Hope’s Peak logo…only with Monokuma’s bright red eye painted over the right side of it.

“Hmmmm….. well that’s not very entertaining at all, is it? Let’s try something else.” He switched it to channel four.

On Channel Four, there was a still image of a city in flames….and , barely visible, a small text box that could be selected on the menu interface.

He raised his eyebrows– and his monopad, taking a picture of the screen– as he read the text box.

It read “input here”, quite simply

“Ah, of course, enter ‘depair’…” he typed it out in the box using the controller.

The letters appeared in the text box one by one…until the box itself flashed. 

The screen went dim, and the word **Despair** flashed upon the screen in big red letters, followed by the word “Congratulations!” In english. 

A soft song , lilting and cheerful , drifted from the speakers along with a digitized voice, not unlike Monokuma’s, crowed out “Helloooo, Shinya-kun…or…well, I suppose anyone else is hearing this, if the poor idiot died earlier than expected.”

“I didn’t,” Shinya said with a smirk, not expecting an answer– rather, merely answering the recorded message.

The screen flicked on, and showed him an image of Hope’s Peak Academy. “well, whoever you are…you deserve a reward for solving that little puzzle. If it was you, Shinya-kun, well…I imagine it was  hardly a challenge.”

“Is that so,?” he smirked. He carefully watched the image, trying to pay attention to any details that stood out.

While at first it seemed normal…the more he looked, the more strange details he could spot. A number of windows were smashed, with a bright pink splash of blood just barely visible on the third floor window’s interior. 
The trees were dead, and the sky seemed choked with smog. 

The city seemed strangely desolate beyond it as well…

“Oh, don’t be so modest!” The recording cackled. “Under your bed, there’s a small gap in the frame. It’s waiting for you there. Enjoy, alright?”

“Hmmm…. interesting…” He took a close picture of the screen with his monopad, and– after he was satisfied that the screen wasn’t going to change– bent down to look under the bed.

Under his bed, he saw the wooden bedframe…and knowing what he knew, he could see the space where there was a gap cut into the frame about a foot from the headrest on the left.

He dug his fingers into the small gap, and tried to open it up.

He felt the wood slid slowly out of place, and he was left holding a hollow block.

“Hello…” he musted. He turned it over, trying to figure out its secret. He also peered in the gap it left behind.

Inside the gap was a little carved writing , hard to read at an angle.

As he turned the block, however…he felt something flutter down into his hand. 

It was a small , folded up photograph bound with string to a folded up letter.

“Oh my,” he purred. “Now this _is_ a jackpot.” 
He set the brick down, and looked at the photograph first.

 (pinned)
The photograph was bright, cheerful even. It showed a group of students having fun on the bright green grass of Hope’s Peak Elementary’s sports lawn. 

The focus of the shot was a young man and woman talking. She had deep blue hair, and a pensive frown on her face as she wound flower stems together in her fingers. She wore the elementary school uniform, and a long white coat as she looked to be saying something to her friend.

Her friend had long black hair, slightly messy and disordered and vivid red eyes, though one was blackened with a bruise. She had a big grin on her face as she mussed up the other girl’s hair while trying to put a flower crown atop her head. 

Running behind them was an older student, probably late middle school, running past them in a long black and white dress with her head just out of frame. Just a few pale whisps of hair, and a clipboard held to her chest as she scurried past. 

In the background though…men with clipboards and sharp suits loomed with clipboards in hand, watching with cold and analytical eyes. One of them was pointing towards the subjects of the photo.

 (pinned)
“Now _this_ i interesting,” he murmured. He took a photo of the photo. 
_Do any of these kids look like my fellow students?_

Some of them…maybe.

The somber , pensive looking girl’s hair was the same color as Chitose’s but…she didn’t have the face paint on, and this girl looked far from the sleepy exuberance that Chitose usually exhibited. 

The other one…well. It was possible as well. She had red eyes…a trait some of his classmates had, and dark hair…

as for the figure running behind them, there was too little to actually see…

“Hmmmm…” he tapped his lip thoughtfully, and unfolded the letter to read it.

 (pinned)
It was an old letter from the desk of Hope’s Peak’s Principal.

“Hope’s Peak has always held itself as the gold standard for education in Japan. Standing tall outside the city of Tokyo , gracing those with the talent and skill a place to hone their crafts and better become the hope for our nation’s future that we know they can be.”  It began, before continuing on.

“In recent years, we have seen the SHSL system create world leaders, scientists , brilliant thinkers and entertainers who forge the very nature of culture with their every breath. It’s a **resounding success**. One that would bring our Founder, Kamakura, no small amount of joy. But…

Why stop there? 

The world, despite the hope we’ve brought into it, continues on it’s long…slow path towards entropy and stagnation.  As dissidents rise in the shadows and the common rabble are roused to their cause we need to step up against them in the pursuit of Hope.

Which is why I need you, my faculty and staff, to keep a close eye on your students. Watch them. Find those with the brightest embers of hope within them and enroll them in our **special program**. Those students. Those children will become Mankind’s future. 

Remember, report all findings and observations to my desk, or to the head of Project **Atlantis**. This project is confidential, and if I catch any  breach of trust, you will be dealt with accordingly.

Signed,

Principal Jiro Shinsato.”

“I… see,” Shinya mused. “A special program…. maybe this _is_ all school sanctioned. How awful, if so.”
He took a photograph of the letter.

That was the end of the letter…and the photograph perhaps was evidence of that sort of…’talent hunt’ in action.

_It certainly does seem to be one interpertation.” he mused. He lay down on his back, and tried to shine the light of his monopad so he could see what was written in the empty space below the bed.

 (pinned)
It simply read, in even handwriting carved into the bed itself “Careful who you trust.”

Shinya chuckled. “well, not the most shocking of messages.” He took a picture of that too.

“Upupupupupupupu” came a voice from directly behind him.

Shinya twitched, and came up from under the bed, looking for the source of the laugh. “Good evening, Monokuma-san.”

Monokuma stood behind him, one paw to his mouth “find anything interesting?” He asked cheerfully “any dirty pics hidden away under the bed?”

“Nothing so risque, I’m afraid. Are there any of those in your mall?” he asked with a cheerful smile.

“Plenty!” He cackled, clapping his hands together “Dirty mags galore in the general store! But you kiddos shouldn’t buy them, alright? they’re for Monokuma’s Only!”

“What a shame,” he said, shaking his head. “And I suppose next you’re going to say we shouldn’t be smoking!”

“Actually… I was considering making a rule about that…” Monokuma shuffled his feet “Kids these days don’t worry about their lungs enough. I mean…think about how terrible it’d be if you got lung cancer…or choked on a whole mouthful of cigarettes??”

“Oh but Monokuma-san, if you outlawed smoking, you’d be cutting off so many good avenues for murder, ne?” Shinya offered with a smile. “After all, wouldn’t it be clever to burn someone in their bed and blame it on falling asleep with a cigarette?”

“Oh!” Monokuma perked up “oh I  like the way you think!!! A little murderer in the making, aren’t ya?” 

He cackled “You’re doin’ me proud, boy!”

“I _do_ try to be a pro-active problem solver,” he agreed with a smile.

“well. I won’t ban the smokers from poisoning themselves just _yet_ but I’m gonna keep it in reserve for later.” monokuma cackled

“Generous of you,” Shinya nodded. “So, did you just come to see how I liked the room?”

“Welll. maybe! I wanted to get your opinion! And to remind you that there’s a **special outfit** in your closet, you know…just in case!”

“Ah, yes, thank you,” he nodded, and stood, going to the closet.

“You’re welcome! Wouldn’t want you to be the only one left out of the surprise after all!” Monokuma bobbed his head “I’m always thinking about the happiness and wellbeing of my students, you now?”

“That’ very kind of you, Monokuma-san,” he nodded. He opened the closet and checked it curiously.

Inside were a number of copies of his outfit…and at the very end, one outfit that stood out from all the rest.

A very **familiar** outfit.

A white tuxedo, with a red cravat, white top hat, and white porcelain mask. There was, additionally, a red cane.

“Why, Monokuma-san, this is The Puzzler’s outfit.”

“that’s right.” Monokuma said, tilting his head with that uncanny grin on his face “Wonder why that’s there.”

“Why indeed,” he purred, taking the outfit down, and laying it across the bed. He put the hat on his head, and looked in the mirror. “I certainly can’t have the others see these.”

“Afraid your little secret’ll get out?” Monokuma cackled , cocking his head to the side.

“Oh I’m sure it will, sooner or later,” he said. “But why spoil it so soon, ne?”
He grabbed the bag that held the clothes he’d picked out with the Secretary, and dumped it onto the bed, too.

“upupupu, fair enough.” Monokuma said with a boisterous laugh “I for one can’t wait until it’s out…..I wonder what they’ll think of you then mr. SHSL Amnesia?”

He laughed. “Yes, they’ll probably be a bit cross when they find out I’ve been faking that,” he sighed. “But I can hardly be blamed. The stakes were admittedly much lower when I initially decided to hide my talent,, you know.”

He folded the puzzler outfit up in the bag, and started to undress.

“Kind of an oversight for someone like you, huh?” Monokuma leaned on the bed with a cock of his head “misjudging the situation like that.”

“Not really,” he said. “It not any more suspicious than if they know I’m the SHSL Puzzler right away.  My talent i about the most suspicious one you could have in this kind of situation.”
He tossed his school uniform and jacket onto the bed, standing there for a moment in his underwear and fluffing out his hair.

“Want a little privacy there, kiddo.” Monokuma snickered “or do you get off on having a captive ursine audience?”

“I don’t see what difference it makes, since you’ve got cameras in my room anyway, ne?”  He started putting on the clothes that he’d gotten from the mall; a pair of tight black skinny jeans, white turtle neck, and red scarf, with a hip length, white kimono-inspired jacket, with wide sleeves and a pattern of lillies and flying cranes. “What do you think, Monokuma-san?

He did a little turn.

Monokuma cocked his head, looking him over. “hm, hmm…hmmmmm.” 

He nodded once “Like a metrosexual on parade. LIke fashion week threw up all over a boy band idol.”

Shinya laughed and gave a flouncy little bow. “Perfect, then!” He put his school outfit on the hanger that his Puzzler outfit had been on.

Monokuma snickered “you’re going to make things hard on the animators but…ah well.” He shrugged and waddled his way towards the closet “Settle in it’s almost time for the nightly show.”

“Oooh, we get a show? I should have saved some sushi,” he chuckled and sat down on the end of the bed. “Have a nice evening, Monokuma-san.”

Monokuma left him with an excited cackle….the closet door slamming shut behind him as he vanished inside.

Shinya shook his head. After a moment’s thought– he stowed the bag with his puzzler costume under the bed. 
_Not the **best** hiding spot, but I can think of something better later._

Bent over, under the bed, he could hear his television suddenly turn on and a soft chiming melody begin to play.

He hopped up from where he was, and looked at the television curiously. “This must be the promised show.:

 (pinned)
Upon the screen was the image of drawn curtains, with the cheerful bubbletext over them reading 

**MONOKUMA THEATER**

“My my; a bit of pride there,” he observed, watching.

The curtains parted over a sign of a boat being tossed upon the high seas. It was made of paper, against a cardboard background, and it rose and fell against the waves.

The camera zoomed in, and sharply cut to a cardboard cutout of a ship’s command deck, with Monokuma leaning on the wheel. “You know. A long time ago I dreamt of being a sailor. Setting out on the high seas….swashing a few buckles, living with the salt water kissing my face. Maybe even finding a mermaid wife to call my own…”

Shinya leaned on his hands, watching, and listening curiously. “How funny….”

“So I did what any bear would do…set out to stake my claim on the wild blue yonder! Manifest destiny! Ur**sign** my life away on a decades long contract!” 

He leaned on the wheel…slipped, and the whole ship suddenly pitched sharply to the left. In the window, an iceberg could be seen ahead of him. “Only, when I got out there I realized just how big and empty the ocean really is! Not only were pirates _boring as heck_ , but the salt water aggravated my allergies! and the mermaids stole my wallet and committed identity theft!”

“What a shame.”

“That’s right.” He sighed “a life at sea was just as despairful as a life on land.” 

The boat moved ever closer to the iceberg ahead “No matter what, I couldn’t escape it. And now, all that’s left to do is to go down with the sinking ship!”

The boat hit the iceberg and began to shake…but Monokuma cackled and ran out the back door “JUST KIDDING! MONOKUMAS AND CAPTAINS FIRST! have fun DYING, SUCKERS!”

“Well, that’s dire,” Shinya said thoughtfully.

The curtains snapped close…and the television turned off.

“Well, that was certainly…. fascinating,” he mused.

He sighed and waited to see if the TV did anything further of interest.

He clicked through screen after screen of static until…he came to a channel titled “Mono/Mono Channel”

It was channel 11.

He raised an eyebrow. “Oh… now what;s this?”

It appeared to be running late night programming like you might find sponsored by a fancy hotel or resort. 

What was currently playing was a slideshow presentation to royalty free music depicting different parts of the ship.

“Hmmm, doesn’t look like anything to get excited about right away. Maybe I ought to get some sleep– or try anyway.”

_After all, I wasn’t lying. It **will** be hard for me to sleep in such an unfamiliar location without anyone to keep watch…_

The lights buzzed softly above him, and despite the soft music from the television…he could tell that everything was completely still. 
The walls, after all, were soundproof…leading to an uncanny silence that hung in the air.

_Probably better if its silent, too… I wouldn’t want to miss the sound of someone creeping in my room. Actually…._

Shinya turned off the television and stood, taking inventory of the items in his room. He looked for a few small items to stack in front of the door that might alert him to someone trying to enter.

There were a few scattered about . There was a small writing pad, a package of **misc items**, and some stuff  on the table like the TV guide and remote.

“Not too much to work with. I’ll make a soda can alarm tomorrow. Assuming I live to see tomorrow anyway.” He pawed through the miscellaneous items in case anything looked particularly interesting or breakable.

There was a few drink glasses which seemed pretty breakable, as well as a collectible pen with Monokuma’s face on it and a …huh

Little toolkit with a hammer and other misc tools inside.

“Interesting….” He put the hammer and tools on his dresser, and stacked the drinking glasses in front of the door.

they made a little tower that would **absolutely** fall and break if they were to topple over.

“Perfect,” he declared, delightedly. With that done, he looked around to see if there were any pajamas.

He found them in relative short order. 

Pajamas, themed with little question marks, inside the drawer under where his puzzler mask was hidden.

“Perfect then!” he disrobed for the second time in short order, putting his clothes on the chair, and getting into his pajamas, before settling in to bed.

As the boat rocked gently under him, and the silence of the room closed in…it seemed there was nothing more to do than to go to sleep.

Shinya closed his eyes, and let the motion of the ship rock him to sleep as best he could.

It took some time…but soon troubled dreams and weariness took him, drawing him into a deep, deep sleep as the world around him rocked and swayed upon the Open Sea.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Whatever dreams, restful or no, Shinya had were abruptly shattered as a resounding **DING DONG, BING BONG** resonated through the ship’s speaker system, and the TV flicked on at the foot of the bed to cast sharp blueish light through his closed eyelids.

Shinya shot up to a sitting position like a rocket the moment the alarm sounded through the PA, and he look around, taking stock of the room.

The room hadn’t changed…the glass tower by his door was upright…and the room was comfortably silent and still as he’d left it.

He sighed with relief, and glanced at the television.

On the television was Monokuma, swirling an alcoholic drink in his hand “Goooood morning students! can’t have you lazy bastards oversleeping so this is your **wake up call**! You’re welcome!”

“Naturally,” Shinya sighed. He got up, made his bed, and tried to decide whether he was going to head to breakfast in his pajamas or not.

As he deliberated, there was a small chime from his door… a doorbell, it seemed.

“Ah!” 
_So that’s it. I’d been wondering how you’d knock on a soundproofed room._
He hurried to the door– was there a peephole, or did he have to open it blind?

He did, in fact, have a peep hole in the door.

_Well then, let’s peep, shall we?_

He peered out into the hall.

He saw, first, an eye…and then as the figure backed away…Tsuda with his hands in his pockets as he waited on the door with a pensive look on his face. He seemed to be whistling, but Shinya couldn’t hear.

Shinya sighed with relief, and moved the glasses quickly aside from the door before he opened it.

“Good morning, Tsuda-kun.”

Tsuda stood on the other side of the door with a grin “Didja hear me knock, or ring the bell?” he asked

 (pinned)
“Only ring the bell,” he nodded. “It seems **knocking won’t work** on soundproofed rooms.”

“Now that makes a lotta sense.” He said with a chuckle “something to keep in mind if I ever need to ask ya for a lil’ help. Don’t try knockin’….good mornin’ by the by.”

“We should share that at the breakfast table,” he agreed. “About the knocking. Speaking of which– should I change before we go?”

He gestured to his pajamas.

Tsuda looked his pajamas over with a wry smile “those are kinda on the nose, huh? Given uh, the amnesia and all that?”

“I thought so too,” Shinya chuckled. “Did you have some pajamas?” he asked, waving Tsuda into the room, and closing the door behind them. He went over to the heap of clothes, and started to change.

Tsuda’s face turned pink, and he quickly averted his eyes towards the ceiling as he leaned against the wall. “Yep. Sure did. LIttle six shooters on ’em. real cutesy.”

“That’s adorable, Tsuda-kun,”  Shinya chuckled. “There, you can look now.”
He was dressed differently from how Tsuda had seen him before– in the kimono-jacket outfit from the night before.

Tsuda looked down and looked him over with a raise of his eyebrow “well hot damn. That’s a handsome getup ya got, ain’t it? Lookin’ good.”

Shinya grinned and fluffed out his hair. “Why thank you, Tsuda-kun. Hopefully I don’t stain it at breakfast, ne? It seems white is my color.”

“White’s your color all right.” He said with a wink “real classy.”

He gestured with his thumb over his shoulder “speaking of breakfast, wanna accompany me?”

“It’d be my pleasure,” he smiled, offering him his arm. “How did you sleep last night?”

“eh.” he said, taking his arm with a little shrug “not the best sleep of my life, but far from th’ worst.”

“I suppose the same for me,” he nodded, as they headed out of the room. “If I had nightmares, blissfully I don’t recall.”

The two of them headed down the narrow hall, over the jarring carpet of checkerboard, and towards the kitchen area. “Likewise…though I did wake up once or twice feelin’…I dunno…watched.”

“Unsurprising,” he sighed. “we’re being monitored constantly. Monokuma-san even showed up in my room last night.”

“well.” he said as they passed a groggy looking Miyuki Karuma. “that ain’t reassuring to hear. He uh, have anything to say?”

“Critiquing my clothing mostly,” he shrugged. “oh and I convinced him not to outlaw smoking.”
He gave Miyuki a little wave as they passed.

Miyuki looked at him with dark circles around her eyes, but waved anyway. 

“well, you’re my personal hero, pal.” Tsuda grinned “I uh, got myself a bit of an addiction, sadly.”

Shinya chuckled. “Did you pick it up here, or in America?” he teased

“America.” He said with a smile “though it’s followed me back over here…and proved a right pain in the ass ever since.”

“I can imagine its troublesome,” he nodded as they headed to the kitchen. “Now’s probably not the moment to quit, considering.”

“Nah, not with tension already in the air. Too volatile of a situation, ya know?”

He pushed open the door to the kitchen, and there was the sound of a muted cacophany of voices. It seemed they weren’t the first to arrive.

“Good morning!” Shinya greeted loudly, with a smile.

Several pairs of eyes fell on him…Sadahiro’s, Ryota’s, Chitose’s, and Masako’s specifically.

Tsuda waved with a wide smile “mornin’ fellas. Sleep well?”

Chitose nodded enthusiastically, but Sadahiro looked like he’d been hit by a truck. Still…he nodded with a weak “uh huh!” 

Behind them, Miyuki entered and made straight for the coffee machine.

Ryota was already next to the coffee machine, drinking out of a paper cup. He had bags under his eyes, and didn’t look like he’d slept.

“The rooms are unsettlingly quiet,” Masako remarked. She gave Tsuda a good morning wave.

Tsuda waved to her with an ear to ear smile “sure are. Soundproof, as the guy promised.  Meanin’ none of those usually comforting sounds make it in.”

Sadahiro shook his head “I m-mean I won’t complain about a lack of traffic sound while I’m trying to sleep, at least!”

Chitose was nibbling on the edge of what looked like a fresh waffle. “quiet.” She agreed with a nod of her head. “but slept really nice.”

“I left the tv on all night,” Ryota admitted, between coffee sips. “Helped me focus.”

Shinya raised his eyebrow. “Huh. Fair enough. well. the sound proofing also means no one will hear knockning, by the way. Tsuda and I tried it out.”

“yep.” Tsuda nodded “meaning if you gotta get someone’s attention? Ring the bell.”

Miyuki poured herself a cup of coffee with a soft snort “the soundproof rooms…they’re bound to cause us no end of trouble.”

“That’s probably the point, Miyuki-san,” Masako nodded. 

“I _suppose_ we could all agree to sleep with our doors propped open,” Shinya said. “Though that’s likely to cause even more trouble.”

“And let a killer in?” Miyuki shot him a look “I don’t trust half of you quite that much.” 

Chitose bit her lip “…I can keep my door open a little…but …”

Sadahiro leaned on the table with a smile “It’s a trust exercise if we do, that’s for sure!”

Ryota bit his lip. “A trust exercise…. its certainly hopeful, isn’t it?”

Shinya held up his hands. “now now, I’m not exactly expecting anyone to actually DO it. Although one wonders– would the benefit of being able to call for help in an emergency outweigh the risk of leaving yourself exposed?”

Tsuda shook his head “dunno, myself. Means putting a lotta faith in folks.”

Chitose closed her eyes “hm. I suppose it would all depend….” she said sleepily “but all this stuff is way above _my_ head…”

“Sorry, I know it a little early for that kind of philosophical discussion,” Shinya chuckled

Sadahiro bobbed his head. “A little bit. But I think i see what you’re saying, honestly… there’s the question of if anyone would risk it if they knew they could be heard, possibly.”

“Yeah,” Ryota nodded. “Its worthless if only one person does it. And uh…. well.. you know _girls_.”

“Excuse me?” Masako snorted.

“I’m just saying! About social propriety!”

Miyuki’s eyes whipped to Ryota with a slight sneer on her face “Social propriety hm? Well, Good for you and your propriety.” 

She grabbed a plate of fruit, and sat at the table with a harsh look “It’s not an experiment that I feel any inclination to try.”

Shinya chuckled. “fair enough, fair enough.” He started to root around in the refrigerator for something to eat.

Ryota grimaced. “h-hey I didn’t mean it that way!” he said, eyes wide at Miyuki’s look. “Geez!”

She smiled thinly “I’m sure.”

Chitose cocked her head before she said quietly “I’m uhm…not sure I get it actually…”

“Ugh! Don’t worry about it, alright? Ryota sighed. “Never mind.”

Sadahiro chuckled softly “It’s just a matter of ah, changing and the like, I imagine.” He waved his hand with a smile “but don’t worry. I’m sure we’ll just remember to use the doorbells and this whole matter is moot anyway.”

Shinya smiled. “That does seem to be for the best. My apologies for bringing up such a thing.”

Tsuda shrugged “makes for an interestin’ experiment an’ all, but may not be the time to uh, play that kinda game.”

“No, I suppose not,” Shinya shook his head.
_Though it would have made a very interesting move inside the game. But it seems the rocks in the stream won’t move._

“A-anyway,” Ryota said, pouring more coffee. “I’ll have some things to share later. Over the network.”

“Something to share?” Chitose asked, cocking her head with a broad smile. “What kinda somethin Ryota-ta-ta?”

He fidgeted with his tie. “Its what I was working on last night. Just some… hopefully… inspiring material for all of us.”

Sadahiro cocked his head “Inspiring material? Like…a speech or the like?”

“Not exactly,” he said. “It’ll make more of an impact if I just share it instead of you know….”

“Well.” Tsuda winked at him “i for one am real keen to see it, Ryota-chan.” 

Chitose chewed her lip, with a nod of her head “me too! After breakfast maybe? Please please??”

Miyuki shook her head, before taking a long sip of her coffee “….after **coffee** at the very least.”

“Definitely after coffee” Shinya nodded. “Speaking of which, I’m dying for a cup myself.”

Miyuki stood “come on. I’m getting another.”

As she walked towards the coffee machine…the latecomers arrived, filtering in one by one. Most only came to exchange a few words. To grab some food. To say they were alive…but by the end of breakfast, Tsuda and Shinya had seen everyone , though…some seemed worse off than others.

Eriko, for example, hadn’t refreshed her makeup, and it was leaking down her face in dark streaks.

“Long night, Eriko-chan?” Shinya asked, offering her a sympathetic cup of coffee when she came in.

Eriko blinked at him, taking the cup of coffee with a nod of her head “…how could any of you sleep, knowing what…what we’re here for.”

“Exhaustion, mostly,” Shinya admitted. “And of course someone would be unlikely to be desperate enough to make an attempt on the first day.”

Eriko looked down into her coffee with a weary frown. “Wonderful.” She grimaced “then it’s from here on out that I’ve got to worry about someone planting a knife in my back.”

“I’m afraid so, Eriko-chan. Perhaps you can find someone to count on to watch your back, ne? Sometimes it easier to trust one person than a whole group.”
_Well, if anyone’s going to snap and murder someone, Eriko’s shot straight to the top of my list._

“….” She looked at the others, and sipped her coffee “hah. What a novel concept. Trusting in someone during a call to murder.” She murmured.

“….”

She walked over and sat beside Masako with a smile on her face “if you insist.”

Masako raised her coffee to her. “I have some make up remover if you need it.”

Eriko raised her coffee in return , sniffing softly “that’d be nice, Masako-chan. I would be delighted if you’d share.”

Shinya watched them for a moment as Masako dug it out of her purse and offered it to her. He shook his head.
_Well, hopefully they’ll get along. That would be best._

Breakfast went without incident, for the most part. Tensions were high, of course…but a few people seemed to be trying to keep the peace. 

One of which was surprisingly, Miyuki , who ran damage control whenever she saw someone start to argue, such as when Morio began to lay into Hayate for nearly spilling his miso on the square of cloth he was sewing. 

But, no disasters occured…and soon people began to filter out, mostly two by two…to see what the day had in store.

The sight of people natruallly pairing up didn’t surprise Shinya– esspecially not when he’d been encouraging it, but it did make him feel slightly relieved.
He looked around for his own buddy system partner.

Tsuda was chewing on a piece of bacon, leaning against the wall with a thoughtful look on his face as he cast his gaze Shinya’s way with a nod. “howdy.”

“Howdy, partner,” Shinya smiled. “That went alright, hm?”

“not the worst get together I’ve ever seen.” He agreed with a bob of his head. “nobody tried bashin’ anyone’s head in at least.”

“Not yet anyway,” he nodded. “Though there are a few people who might merit watching.”

“You think so too, eh partner?” Tsuda asked, waving him towards the door and away from the kitchen.

Shinya followed along with him nodded. “Glad to see we’re on the same page.”

 (pinned)
“Absolutely.” He said as he tapped at his pad. As it booted , Shinya saw the name display on it.

It read _Dead-eye Coyote_ instead of Tsuda’s name  “anyone spring ta mind?”

Shinya raised his eyebrow. _Well, that’s interesting._

“Sadly, perhaps Eriko-san,” he sighed. “Morio-kun and Hayate-chan also seemed a bit high strung.”

Tsuda tapped at the screen, and the name went away. He seemed to be checking an amount on his monocoin reader. 

“Yeah, I noticed that too. Miyuki-chan’s a little tense too but I get the sense she’s more on the ‘prevention’ side of things.”

“Yes, and she’s at least logical. I don’t think she’s going to jump to killing anyone– not yet anyway.”

“Not unless things get real…ya know, tense, real fast.” He agreed. “…we should spend a little time gettin’ to know folks today. See if we can calm people down.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” he nodded. “And why don’t we meet up afterward? in case we have anything we need to discuss.”

“sounds like a mighty fine idea to me.” he said with a lopsided smile

“Perfect!” he nodded. “oh! actually, before we spit up–“

Tsuda cocked his head and glanced sidelong at him “hm?”

“I’ll probably do a little snooping around while I chat,” he said. “Would you like me to wait for you, before I go into that hidden area you mentioned?”

Tsuda thought for a moment , before he shook his head “nah, Just give me the rundown of whatcha find. I’ll see if I can find anything else while I’m bouncin’ about.’

Shinya nodded and gave him a thumbs up. “you got it, partner. If I haven’t poked my nose in there by this evening we can check it out then.”

“it’s a plan, Shinya-kun.” he winked “lookin’ forward to it. Best of luck out there, eh?”

he tapped his pad “oh, and don’t forget…ya wanna probably check out that Mono/mono machine. I tested it yesterday. there’s some good shit in there.”

“I’ll go have a look there now,” Shinya said with a smile. “Who knows, maybe I’ll find something worth using as a bribe.”

“A bribe, eh?” He chuckled “yeah, maybe they got the crown jewels or somethin’.”

He chuckled with him. “You never know. Happy hunting, Tsuda-kun.”

“Happy hunting, Shinya-kun.” Tsuda winked at him with a parting salute…and he was on his way.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 (pinned)
**Mono/Mono Machine: START**

Shinya found himself at the door to the ‘school store’, standing before it as the sound of the cheerful Mono/Mono machine jingled and sang it’s siren call.

The siren call of _chance-based gambling_.

Shinya approached the machine with some amusement, getting out his pad.
_I’m usually not a fan of games of pure chance, but… this one’s almost interesting._

The Mono/Mono machine loomed over him, it’s slot blinking away under the defunct coin slot and turn crank.

“Well well, we meet again, bear,” he said with a smile. He plugged his monopad into it– and then gave the machine a curious once-over to see if there were any hidden mechanics.

There didn’t seem to be…though, there was some kind of counter that lit up as he inserted his slot.

it seemed there was a percentage of him getting a duplicate item…and currently it was at 0%.

“Ah, naturally.” He shook his head, and turned the crank.

A ball rolled it’s way down to the slot as the machine chimed a catchy little victory tune…and it landed in a small receiving area at the bottom.

“Let’s get lucky!” he hummed happily. He picked it up and opened it to read what his prize would be.

Out came a piece of paper, reading. 

**Mr. Towa’s Nameplate:**
_This nameplate once belonged to THE CEO of Towa Group, the largest tech conglomerate in Japan. After an unpleasant merger after Y2K, both The Towa Group and Mihara Corporation went down in flames as their stock value crashed and ventures failed. Many blame a world that was just too boring for the kind of advancements these technological superstars were aiming for. 

Everyone wants flying cars and rich boy space vanity projects, and nobody appreciates a good old fashioned giant killer mech powered by a mad AI!_

“Well, that’s certainly interesting,” Shinya said. “The sort of thing you’d get off of an auction site.”

He tried again.

It came rattling down, and he got another slip of paper, this one reading

**Hearswith’s Guide to Clowning in Style**

_This tell all guide by famous clown Hereswith Roscoe details the ins and outs of running and performing in the high stakes world of circus entertainment. From sideshows, to the art of a good creampie gag, there’s nothing this book won’t teach! And if that’s not all….this tell all goes into more detail than your clowny heart could desire about the ins and outs of the circus’ nightlife!

Forward ( “I’m so tired. So Tired.” ) by Rubber Rita Starnitsky”_

“Well, I know someone who’ll be interested in this,” Shinya nodded.

It seemed like the items in this machine would make good gifts for his fellow students…maybe even help ease tensions.

“It certainly can’t hurt to have a few more on hand.” He glanced at his funds.

He had around 20 monocoins left. 

And on the counter…the chance of a duplicate in fact went up.

“Hmmm….I need more money.”

He tried once more.

There was a soft jingle, and down came a ball bearing another slip of paper… and then…

*DING BING BONG BING!!!* rang the machine, as a second ball came tumbling down with a flashing of lights reading **LUCKY** on the display.

Shinya raised his eyebrows, examining the machine warily. “Hmm?”

The two balls lay in the return slot…it looked like some random chance triggered.

He’d gotten an extra prize.

“Huh, lucky then!” he smiled and checked the paper in each of them in turnn.

The first one read:

**The Masked Gymnast’s Cursed Mask**

_Once, a long time ago, a masked gymnast took the world by storm. Flexible as she was mysterious, she wore this feathered mask as she twisted and danced for enraptured audience members from Tokyo to London and beyond. It was said, however, that her great skill was the result of a mystic bargain, and if any were to see her true face, disaster would befall the world. 

But, after being rebuked backstage, a young man tore the mask from her face in July 1914, exposing her face to the cameras and crowd. 

And not long after, the world erupted into war…. and now all those FUN TIMES can be YOURS! Congrats!_

“I see…. well, maybe Eriko-chan knows more about this than I do.”

The second one opened to reveal yet another prize.

**Ultimate Fighter 9: Championship edition**

_After 6 FAILED RELEASES and **Janky as fuck** offerings, Nyanco is PROUD to present the DEFINITIVE EDITION of Ultimate Fighter 9. All your favorites come head to head in this fine tuned, balls to the wall action-packed fighter that’s meant to be played by the PROS. 

Get ready, because we fine tuned the movement. We took beloved characters out and put **technical** third string fighters in to improve **gameplay balance** (DLC plans : Reintroduce Toxin, Guyo, Ben and Bragger the Kung Fu Fighting Mayor post release)

Featuring AI Programmed off ACE PLAYER and WORLD CHAMPION Nakayama Kotomi’s world record strats! Can YOU beat the SESL Gamer at HER OWN GAME?

**Nyanco is not responsible for frustration, broken tv’s , seizures from flashing lights, frustration , or dissatisfaction**_

“And something for Hayate-chan too,” Shinya smiled. “Well, that _was_ pretty lucky.”
He put the papers in his bag, and gave the machine a friendly pat.

The machine beeped and whistled it’s appreciation at him in response.

Shinya chuckled and headed out to start his day.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 (pinned)
**Free time event (Shinya Side) 1 : START**

Shinya found himself wandering back into the cheerful embrace of the Monokuma Mall. With it’s cheerful storefronts, and it’s bright and colorful signs and piped in pop music through the countless speakers…it was deceptive in it’s innocence. Like any underground mall anywhere in Tokyo, or any shopping plaza in the countryside. 

If it weren’t for the bear and the sway of the ship underfoot…it might have been enough to take one’s mind off the killing game. 

Which, it seemed, someone was trying to do. In the Arcade and Game store, the sound of cheerful music and the whirring of mechanical parts rang through the air , occasionally drowning out the jpop that chirped away.

Shinya followed his ears, a placid enough smile on his face as he strolled through the rolling ship. He was looking for Hayate, and suspected he might find the SHSL crane game enthusiast in the area.

He wasn’t wrong…as he walked past the threshold and into the arcade area, he found Hayate leaning over the controls, his single eye narrowed as he moved the joystick with his tongue half stuck out between his teeth. The horns he often wore were discarded, placed on a neighboring machine for safekeeping. 

So far, he’d yet to win a prize.

Shinya stayed quiet for the moment, not wanting to ruin the master’s concentration.

He watched as Hayate moved the joystick…it crept along, carefully inching it’s way to hang over a plush toy of Monokuma doing a split….

He hit the button and the crane lowered…lowered…lowered …only to grab the Monokuma’s leg just a hair off center…it lifted about a foot before it fell to the pile below.

Hayate’s one eye widened in frustration, and he kicked the machine with the sole of his boot “COME ON, you…you stupid broken piece of crap!”

“Having a problem, Hayate-chan?” Shinya asked, coming up behind him.

“Kyaaa!!!” Hayate shrieked, staggering forward and into the machine. His skin visibly prickled on the back of his neck, as a startled jerk went through him, enough to send the crane down from an accidental hit of the button…

This time, it managed to grab a small plush wolf, and pulled it up and into the item slot with a cheerful bingle. “O-oh! oh geeze Shinya-san! you nearly gave me a fuckin heart attack.”

Shinya chuckled and put a hand on Hayate’s shoulder. “Sorry about that.”

Hatate took a deep breath, his slender shoulder moving under Shinya’s hand as he looked up at him with a sheepish expression on his freckled face “I just…I think I’m having trouble getting used to the ship’s sway. Between that and the stress of…of…all this…”

“I suspected the ship’s motion might have added an extra challenge! Looks like your skill got you through anyway though.” He picked up the prize and offered it to Hayate.

Hayate held up the stuffed wolf with a shaky smile “y-yeah, looks like! You can’t keep the SHSL Crane Game Master down, right?”

“Look like you can’t!” he agreed. “Cute prize, too, ne?”

Hayate bounced the wolf in his hands with a smile, making him wiggle his paws in the air. The wolf was dressed in combat gear, with a little stuffed headset on his head and a camouflage uniform. 

“Hey there, i’m Mr. Fenris McWolf, and i’m here to kick butt and chew bubblegum, and I’m all outta gum!”

Shinya chuckled. “Well, Major MacWolf, I bet you can get some bubblegum from the vending machine,” he joked

Hayate giggled, brushing his fluffy hair from his face with a weak smile “yeah. I might buy him some gum in a bit. He’s pretty cute, though, huh? I…It’s exactly the one I was going for.”

“I’m not surprised to hear that,” he said with a smile. “He’ very charming.”

“yeah, he really is, huh?” Hayate smiled as he held up the wolf. “s-so hey, what’s up, Shinya-kun? Here to uh, learn a few tips and tricks?”

“I wouldn’t say no!” he said with a smile. “But I came to see how you were doing?”

“how I was doing?” Hayate asked, his eye widening “…oh, OH! because of me and Morio havin’ a fight, right?”

“It DID look like it was going to turn into a bit of a tiff,” he nodded.

“don’t worry about it.” Hayate said with a shake of his head, as he reached over to grab the horns off the other machine. “Morio-san’s just got a stick up his ass.” 

Still, he had a note of hurt in his eye as he fastened them back under his wavy hair

Shinya frowned, and put a hand on Hayate again. “Well, I think everyone’s a bit high strung. But his behavior _was_ uncalled for. Did he not apologize?”

Hayate flushed, chewing on his lip as he glanced at Shinya with a slight squirm of his shoulders “It was. I mean…yeah, I almost spilt my soup on whatever he was sewing but…but I didn’t! and it was an accident…but he blew up at me and …and said those nasty things about my talent.”

He chewed his lip “…he didn’t apologize, no.”

“That’s a shame,” Shinya said. “I’d say it reflects poorly on him, though, not  on you.”

“You think? I mean… I …I guess I can be kinda clumsy sometimes, but..”

“Being clumsy isn’t a sin, Hayate-chan.”

HIs voice dropped into a murmur “But it’s not something that befits the SHSL Crane Game player.” he said softly. “I shouldn’t be clumsy…, or get nervous and make silly mistakes like…like dumping ramen on someone’s shoes.”

“I don’t see why not,” Shinya said. “Can you explain it to me?”

He cleared his throat, and tilted his chin up “The SHSL Crane Game master…is always precise, in perfect control of his actions. With steady hands and dashing charisma, he wins any prize he sets his eye on with skill and patience alone!” 

It was like he was reciting something from memory

“I see…” Shinya nodded seriously. “Well, as charming as that sounds, it not very realistic… I’m afriad motor skills from one area don’t always translate to another.”

“I mean…n-no, but what about my reputation.” he murmured as he poked his fingertips together “I can’t …go around making an ass of myself or people will…will nobody’ll respect me, right?”

“My my….” he touched his finger to his chin. “Well, respect’s a funny thing you know.”

Hayate looked at him with a quizzical furrow of his brow that creased the strap of his eyepatch “huh?”

“People tell you to earn their respect but everyone has a different metric for how.”

“….” Hayate chuckled with a wry smile on his face “that doesn’t exactly give me hope, Shinya-kun.”

“Oh? I wasn’t really trying to give you hope,” he shrugged. “Maybe its a controversial opinion but you can’t please everyone.”

“Oh…” Hayate said with a nervous smile “O..of course you ain’t. that’d be silly.”

He rubbed his neck with a shrug of his narrow shoulders “I…guess ya can’t, honestly. You’ve got a point, Shinya-kun….I mean…no matter how hard I try I always wind up disappointing _someone_.”

“Exactly!” he nodded, his arm around Hayate’s shoulders now. “Which is why the one person you should bother trying to please is yourself, ne?”

Hayate had started to turn as red as a tomato from the physical contact, and he was laughing awkwardly as he tried to answer “heh..heheh.. y-yeah! I mean…w..who cares if some stuffy toymaker thinks I’m a ‘walking joke of man’, if I know what makes me happy and I d-do it, right?”

“Exactly! Certainly you don’t exist to please Morio-san with your masculinity, do you?”

Shinya paused. “That might have sounded a little more risque than I meant it but I think you get the idea!”

Hayate was about to enthusiastically respond, when the double entendre of Shinya’s statement caught up with him “Yeah exac—“

He turned bright red all the way under his bomber jacket, and started to sputter “Pl..please Morio-san with my…my…my…” 

For a moment the young man looked faint.

Shinya chuckled and put his hand on Hayate’s back. “My apologies, Hayate-chan.”

“_well it’s most certainly not!_” Hayate said with a slight squeak to his voice. “He’s not my type! So…so _gloomy_ and _irritable_.”

Shinya nodded. “You’re more interested it more cheerful types, hm?”

“I don’t have any time for anyone who’s gonna bring me down.” Hayate sniffed, crossing his arms “I mean, like, dontcha wanna have a _nice_ time with someone? A guy like Morio…he’s just gonna tell ya to shut up and to be more like his dolls. Then like, glare at you like it was some kinda lame drama CD.”

“Oh absolutely I very much agree,” he nodded. “The appeal of a serious man is making him smile, not him making you cry.”

Hayate’s eye widened, and his mouth fell open in a little ‘o’ of surprise “oh wow…. Shinya-kun, that’s **really sweet**.” 

He giggled, rubbing the back of his neck with his gloved hand “Making him smile, huh? that does sound pretty nice.”

Shinya flushed a little and pushed up his glasses. “Does it? well, I’m glad you think so. but, I didn’t mean to derail our conversation with my philosophy about boys, ne?”

“N-no, it’s alright. I mean I’m not uh…” he murmured “I mean…”

He fidgetted “it was a nice tangent, Ain’t nothin to worry about.”  He was quiet a moment before he said “Don’t worry, though. Morio-san’s a jer, but I ain’t gonna hurt him over it. I’m just…gonna try to avoid him, I guess.”

“I figured,” he said with a smile. “It’d be awfully petty to kill someone over a single insult– and you don’t seem like a petty person to me, Hayate-chan.”

“no way!” Hayate said with a bob of his head, his fluffy hair falling in his face “I take things real seriously, yeah…but I’m not a petty guy! I …try to let the bad things roll off my back, you know? Try not to let people teasing me or…or insulting me get under my skin.”

He flashed a smile “I always prove them wrong, anyway…you know?”

Shinya noded. “I’m sure you tend to get the last laugh.”

“Always.” He said , flexing his fingers by his side. “Because…no matter what anyone else thinks…. I’m N-Nakayama H-H-Hayate. The SHSL Crane Game Player and Master of Akihabara’s Arcades! The Daemonic Master of the W-Way of the Crane!”

He posed, one hand on his hip and the other pointed out and towards the crane game beside him. “And when I’m d-done, the laughter dies on their tongues, and in it’s place grows **r-respect!**”

It was a dramatic speech, but there was something painfully rehearsed about it. Especially with how often he stuttered during it.

_There’s definitely something a little off about Hayate-chan…. but its charming, anyway._

“Bravo!” Shinya declared, doing a little fist pump of enthusiasm.

Hayate pumped his own fist with a wide, ear to ear grin “YEAH! Thank you Shinya-kun!” 

He brushed his hair away from his one good eye even as he looked sheepishly away “Thanks for coming to try and cheer me up and check up on me. A lotta people wouldn’t have done the same.”

“People get wrapped up in their problems,” shinya said. “But I find other people’s problems _much_ more interesting than my own. And I didn’t want to see you sad all day after breakast.”

Hayate flushed, and stuck his hands in his bomber jacket with a coy smile “Maybe you’re the SHSL Therapist or something. Or….the SHSL Good Friend.”

“I’d be honored to even approach that level,” he said with a smile. “I’m just glad I could help cheer you up,”

“You did.” he said with a warm smile, “i’m already feeling much better…”

He was quiet a moment before he spoke up again, looking off towards the crane game . “hey, Shinya-kun…on…that note…I was wondering something…”

Shinya cocked his head. “Oh? What is it Hayate-chan?”

“Well…” He chewed his lip “I guess ’cause of your situation, you know with the amnesia n’ all….you probably don’t got a solid idea of what your future’s lookin’ like, huh?”

He poked his fingers together “like… **your future’s a book unwritten** or somethin’. Fulla possibilities.”

Shinya tapped his finger against his lips. “I suppose you’re not wrong about that.”

“You ain’t , you know…obligated to nothin’…you can be whoever you wanna be.” Hayate said, some of his goofy tone seeping away into something more distant and frail. “I guess I was curious if you, like…had any dreams of the future that you can remember. Anythin’ that you **wanna do** when you get outta this place. If ya get out..”

“Any dreams of the future….well, that’s quite the question…” he looked thoughtful. “I think I’d like to make a discovery, or uncover a secret. Maybe an important one, or just about someone important to me.”

Hayate cocked his head “huh…” 

He closed his eye “That’s a pretty interesting dream you got there, Shinya-kun.” He said “…a secret or discovery. Somethin’ big, or about someone important to you. I can…I think I can see how that’d be nice…the sense of discovery and understandin’ and stuff….”

“What about you, Hayate-chan? Do you have a dream for the future?”

Hayate’s eye opened and he looked over at Shinya with a weak smile “I mean…isn’t it obvious? To…become the world’s greatest crane game master…and make sure everyone knows the name Nakayama Hayate wherever crane games beep an’ hushed whispers speak amid chiptune anthems and victorious fanfare.”

Shinya crossed his arms. “Now Hayate-chan, you don’t have to lie to me you know. Just because its your talent doesn’t mean its the only dream you have.”

“I’m not lying!” Hayate said with a note of defensiveness to his voice “i mean…it’s my talent, but…it’s…”

He chewed his nail “That’s my **Dream of the future**. That’s what life’s given me, ya know? That’s the only future I got, ‘side from abject failure an’  disgrace.”

He put his hand on his shoulder. “well, if you _insist_. But I’m sure you could follow any dream you wanted.”

“It’s not always that easy, Shinya-kun.” Hayate said, looking up at him with his crimson eye. “…dreams are nice and all, but…sometimes you **have to do something**.”

“Oh, did you think I meant it would be easy?” he asked, cocking his head. “Following your dreams when there’s a path already set for you is hard.”

Hayate chewed his lip “It would be. Because everyone wants you to follow it. To be …someone better, I guess.”

“Someone _they_ think is better. BUt isn’t that your choice too?”

Hayate looked off to the side “Yeah, It’s Hayate’s choice.”  

He flashed an awkward smile “look, don’t worry about it. I was more curious ’bout you anyway! You’re the mystery man here an’ all that.”

He chuckled and pushed back his hair. “Well, I suppose I can;t begrudge you that. I do give off quite the air of mystery.”

“It’s pretty striking.” Hayate said with a smile “that air of mystery looks good on ya! Like, in a subjective kinda way. Not like… I mean…”

He started to sputter “it’s cool.”

Shinya pushed his glasses up and gave a little bow. “You flatter me, Hayate-chan.”

Hayate gave him a thumbs up with a lopsided smile “Hell yeah, man. I mean it. You’re like some kinda protag or something, straight out of a light novel. You give that kinda vibe, you know?”

“My my,” he held up his hands. “I’m pleased you think so, but I really think I might be a little more second string than that.”

“ya think so?” He cocked his head “then who do ya think’s the first stringer?”

“Oh I’m not sure,” he said, touching his chin. “But you have a certain ‘shonen jump’ quality….”

Hayate’s eye widened “woah, me? No way! I mean… I guess I do got a bit of pep in my step but…”

“Absolutely!” he said with a smile. “And, after what you just confided in me, I feel like we’re in your manga’s first chapter, Hayate-chan!”

Hayate flushed once more, fluffing out his hair with a laugh “My first chapter huh? Whatever you say, man.”  

He laughed, shaking his head “I’m pretty sure you’re just teasin’ me anyway, I can tell.”

He pressed a hand to his chest and smiled. “How could I be anything but sincere in this? you make a very charming protagonist.”

“C-charming protagonist, huh?” Hayate tugged his gloves a little tighter on his hands with a lopsided smile “well, I mean. I do got the attitude down, don’t I?” 

he grinned “m-maybe I’ll be able to stop that bear and get us outta here with my can do spirit an’ shit!” He paused “if I’m the protag, what’s your role, Shinya-kun?”

He tapped his finger on his lips. “Well, I’d say we’re too good friends already to be rivals. I must be the handsome but cowardly companion who grows to stand by your side.”

Hayate laughed into his hand “man, I think maybe th’ whole cowardly thing’s a bit rough on yourself, but if it means you’re on my side, I’ll take it.”

he flashed a thumbs up with a grin “Glad to have ya standing by my side, man! Let’s crush this killin’ game together!”

Shinya returned the gesture, smiling. “Let’s crush it, sensei!”

“Yeah! No surrender!” Hayate said with an ear to ear smile “we can do it!”

**Would you like to give Hayate a gift?**

_Give Hayate: Ultimate Fighter 9: Championship edition_

Hayate’s eye widened as he took the gift in his hand, and for a moment his breath hitched sharply inward in a gasp of surprised “Gah! U…U…Ultimate …Fighter 9???” 

His fingers closed against it, holding it’s spine tightly as he turned it over to read the back “and it’s even the championship edition with….”

Shinya smiled broadly. “It came out of the mono mono machine, and I thought of you. Do you like it, then?”

“I … I do! I like it a lot.” he said, and his voice didn’t hold any trace of insincerity. 

He held it up with a smile “I …well… this game’s _really_ good. Like, as far as fighting games go, it’s the best of the best, even with all the coolest characters behind a paywall!”

“What a nasty business practice! but… if we can find something to play it on, I’d love for you to give me a lesson, sensei.”

“Y-yeah?” he said, straightening up with a broad grin “i’m not as good at fighting games as I am with the crane, but…but uh, I can give you a few pointers, yeah! Maybe you’ll even be able to beat the super-honed AI!”

“If I could, it would truely prove what a great teacher you are,” he chuckled.

“you’ll need it.” He giggled “after all…it’s special, even by AI standards.”

“Oh yes, the box said something about that, didn’t it?”

“y-yeah, sure did.” Hayate bobbed his head “It was trained and programmed according to the playstyle of one of Japan’s top players.”

“What a clever idea!” he smiled. “An honor for whoever that player is, wouldn’t you say?”

Hayate’s eye flicked away  from him, and instead seemed to stare down at the case “Yeah, I’m sure she’s real honored Shinya-san.”

“well, like I said, I’d love to get the opportunity to play with you. In the mean time, maybe we can play a round of that one you beat me at last time?”

Hayate jumped up and grinned “Yeah! yeah that sounds **Sick**. let’s do that!”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 (pinned)
**Free Time Event (Tsuda Side) 1 Start**

After a brief stop of his own at the Mono/Mono machine, Tsuda headed out and into the hallway with his hands in his pockets. A smile crossed his face as he whistled a jovial tune and headed in search of one man in particular. 

A man he knew was in bad spirits.

Someone he hoped, maybe, he’d be able to cheer up.

The dour cyberneticist Goto.

He found him in the mall area, picking through the shops with a sour look on his face, and a basket with only a scant few items in it. He was grumbling something under his breath.

Tsuda grinned as he closed the distance between them to clap his hand upon Goto’s back with a grin “Hey pal! Doin’ a little shoppin’ about?”

Goto’s gaze whipped back at him as he turned. “Something like that,” he drawled. His gaze bored into the spot where Tsuda was touching him.

Tsuda removed his hand with a genial smile. “sorry, sorry.”

He held his hands up with a wink “need a hand?”

Goto raised an eyebrow. “Do you think I’m incompetent?” he asked. “…I _suppose_ I could use an assistant.”

“Ain’t sayin’ anything about your competence.” Tsuda said with a shake of his head “but everyone can use an extra set of hands now and then, eh?”

He shrugged easily “I’d be happy ta help. “

Goto sighed. “You’re not wrong. very well. I’m looking for anything that might be useful when taken apart,” he said. “The rules state clearly that we’re disallowed from destroying _school property_. Do you see my point, or must I spell it out for you?”

“But the stuff here ain’t school property, so it means ya can tear apart all the gizmos ya need to maybe make somethin’ useful.” Tsuda said with a cock of his head “right?”

Goto’s expression of irritation lifted to slightly more neutral. “Perhaps you’re not a complete idiot. Yes, that’s exactly the idea.”

“High compliment.” Tsuda snickered “i’ll take it.”

He gestured with his thumb “whatcha thinkin’ of making? A lil’ robot fella? some mecha arms? a ray gun?”

The dubious look returned. “A raygun is of little use in this predicament unless one is ready to give up. While cybernetics and robotics are my specialty, I think that what we’ll be _best_ served by in this situation is an independant watercraft.”

“Ya ain’t wrong.” Tsuda agreed. “but the problem is gettin’ _outta_ here to use it”

“Hardly,” Goto snorted. “breaching the hull will be a simple matter. The difficulty is not drowning, or being pursued and caught by that damnable bear once you have.”

“That’s part of the problem, ain’t it?” Tsuda said, picking up a set of night vision goggles from one of the tables and turning it over in his hand “We’d have to worry about what the bear can do once we piss ‘im off.”

He looked over at Goto “i mean, how far’s his reach? Can you build us a boat to outrun it, or is there a whole army of the things surroundin’ us?”

“An army….” Goto frowned, and looked at his basket. “Not with _these_ resources.”

“Yeah.” Tsuda agreed “we gotta find somethin’ _real_ useful…somethin’ that he ain’t gonna consider ‘school property’, but has enough parts to be worth shit.”

He glowered at his basket, seemingly wrestling with himself. “Well…. we’ll get _nowhere_ if we just wait for an opportunity.” He stalked forward, looking at merchandise again.

“hey, maybe you can make somethin’ that’ll…I dunno, jam the guy’s signal? Make him go uh, bearserk?”

“There’s a thought,” he considered with a frown.

“ain’t it? one of them EMP type things.”

Goto smirked. “Tsuda-san, you make a fine assistant. Help me find these pieces.”

Tsuda grinned at him with a salute “you got it, boss man.” 

He stretched, cracking his fingers “so, what are we gonna need? Maybe somethin’ we can harvest from one of the automated shopkeeps?”

He held up his hand. “We can’t damage school property, remember?”

“…yeah, I guess they’d count.” He sighed “maybe some of the shit in the game store, though?”

“That’s a possibility,’ he nodded. “Let us make an examination. I believe this place is exhausted.” He waved for Tsuda to follow, and marched toward the game store.

Tsuda followed him with a whistle as he stuck his hands in his pockets. “Shame there ain’t a tech store. Some kinda electronics depot for ya to raid or somethin’.”

“I imagine there’s a good reason there isn’t,” he said. “and I am that good reason.”

“yeah, that makes sense I s’pose. Can’t have you breakin’ us all out easy as that. Guy’s at least a lil smarter than that.”

He followed along, humming as he went. “I imagine shit’s a lot easier to come by back home? Parts and all that.”

“In a manner of speaking,” he agreed, jaw tightening. “Anything is available, assuming one can purchase it.”

“That’s what they tell me.” Tsuda grinned “But I suppose that ain’t always easy.”

“No, it certainly isn’t,” he said. “Its criminal how much time a scientist has to spend writing grants to beg for funding rather than actually doing research.”

Tsuda cocked his head to the side “huh, yeah? I admit, I ain’t much of an academic, so I ain’t familiar with the process. Color me curious.”

Goto pinched the bridge of his nose, and sighed. “No,, I don’t expect they force you to beg for the money to preform a service to humanity as crucial as shooting at targets for sport, do they?”

“Nah.” Tsuda said , his shoulders shrugging. “they don’t make ya do that….they tell ya what to shoot, you do it, you get the payday and ya go home.”

“Naturally,” goto said, with obvious irritation. “well, when it comes to science, they make you jump through hoops first.”

“I can see why it gets your ire up, Goto-san.” Tsuda said with a nod “I mean, means you can’t jump right into your passion…you’re hampered by what folks wanna give ya.”

“Hampered is exactly it,” he sniffed. “Imagining what I could do without the necessity of limited financing sends me into a fury.”

“Hey, I can’t blame ya.” he said with a slight smile “….what _would_ ya do if you had unlimited funds?”

“Oh you know, trifling things,” he drawled. “Perfect nanotechnology to kill disease in the body. Replace failing organs with mechanical duplicates. Silly things like that.”

“Silly things he says.” Tsuda smiled easily “just the kinda thing that woulda saved…shit…plenty of folks I saw die.”

“Is that so?” he asked cocking his head. “More lives on the heads of the infernal administration and their purse strings then.”

“yeah.” Tsuda said , his eyes lidded “Saw plenty of folks die of stuff that something like that coulda stopped. It happens, I suppose, but it’d be nice if we had ways to stop it.”

He shrugged his shoulders “…maybe you’ll get the chance when ya get outta here.”

“One can always hope,” he sniffed.

“Yeah, hope.” Tsuda agreed, shaking his head “Can’t say I understand why the powers that be would wanna snuff that kinda tech out…unless, ya know, to line their own pockets.”

“I’d imagine that its the second one,” he said. “There;s money to be made in sickness and death.”

“yep.” Tsuda agreed “…in some cases people pay good money to cause it ,and reap even more from it happenin’.”

“Indeed,” he nodded. “Its a sad fact of our world, and one I’m intimately familiar with, that sometimes the dastardly, cruel, and criminal, pay much better than the benevolent.”

“Yeah.” He said with a tired smile “sure is.”

He gestured. “Our _host_ i’m certain is also familiar with it.”

“Without a doubt.” Tsuda said, gesturing back towards the auditorium. “I mean, he did kickstart this whole thing by killing our teacher and shriekin’ about human nature.”

“So he did,” Goto nodded, He tapped his chin. “Its possible its some kind of personal grudge.”

“Possible. ” Tsuda said with a frown “there’s a lotta folks it could be then…and the question becomes ‘who the fuck did we **all** piss off’ ?”

“Now that’s the question, isn’t it,” he said. He looked over Tsuda. “I don’t _believe_ you and I have met before now…”

Tsuda smiled at him “i woulda remembered a guy as  memorable as you, Goto-kun.” he said with a pleasant growl to his voice

“Hmph,” Goro snorted, but didn;’t look altogether displeased. “Well then, lets do something useful, and look through this place for parts, shall we?”

“You got it, boss man.” Tsuda winked.

**would you like to give Goto a gift?**

“Hey, actually, hold on. I got somethin’ that might interest ya.” Tsuda chirped “close yer eyes, hold out your hands.”

Goto gave him a look. “You’re asking for a lot of trust you know.”

Rather surprisingly however, he obeyed.

A moment later, he was rewarded with a sudden heavy weight in his hands. Not…too heavy…but it was solid, and it seemed to be made of metal.

“I assume I may open my eyes now?”

“yeah, now’s when ya open your eyes.” Tsuda chuckled.

Goto opened his eyes, to see what he’d been given.

It looked like a mechanical spider. A mechanical spider with a small lid on it’s top, and delicate little legs with a smooth chrome body.

“Cool, huh? Doesn’t seem to work but it says it’s ” He pulled out a slip of paper.

**Spider guy’s Dronespider**

” *Watch out, here comes the Spider Guy! This drone spider was once used by one of America’s foremost vigillantes in his unbroken spree of civilian violence in the name of justice.  Used to carry small items in his arsenal, the Dronespider once held an advanced AI within it’s mechanical brain (since removed after _The Retcon_, an event involving supervillain Retconnie and her Anti-plot Bombs) , and trotted alongside the hero-criminal on his quest for Violence-justice.*”

Goto narrowed his eyes at Tsuda. “Are you _sure_ we haven’t met before?”

Tsuda blinked at him “uh, I’m _pretty sure_ but hey, I meet a lotta guys in my line of work I guess?”

“Its just surprising is all,” he said. “That you’d know to give this to me. There was exactly _one_ good run of Spider-guy.”

“What? One Bad Day?” Tsuda asked , his hands in his pockets “that’s the only one I ever read and ehhh, wasn’t that great.”

“Not that one,” Goto snapped. “Absolute drivel. No, the spider-drone was only used during the Supreme Spider-Guy when the mantle of spider-guy had been taken over by his former, intellectually superior, arch-nemesis. Hence the AI and the retcon, you see? I could explain it to you if you had several hours.”

“Sounds like comic book stuff to me.” Tsuda held his hands up with a grin “let’s save the in depth comics chit chat for the second date, eh?” 
He chuckled, shaking his head “I’m glad you like it, seemed like something you’d be into…robots and the like.”

Goto opened his mouth to protest at the first part, but in the end, just snorted. “Yes. I am very much into ‘robots and the like’. ….thank you.”

Tsuda snapped him a couple of finger guns with a lazy smile “yer welcome, Goto-kun. Glad ya like it.”

“If we can’t use the parts we scavenged to get out of here, maybe I can at least use them to get this little fellow working.”

“wouldn’t that be a sight to see.” Tsuda nodded hid head “i’d love to see when ya do.”

“you’ll be the first to know.”

“I’m lookin’ forward to being astounded, Goto-kun.” Tsuda said with a grin, before he turned to walk away “Be seein’ you around.”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 (pinned)
**Free Time Event 2 (Side Shinya) START**

After leaving the anxious Hayate behind and venturing out into the ship’s halls once more, Shinya heard the telltale sound of quiet humming, and the tap of feet as someone busied themselves near the door to the pool. 

It was a familiar voice. 

Eriko’s voice.

“Headed for a swim?” Shinya called, padding after the sound.

He found Eriko in a revealing swimsuit, her body clad in a one piece bedecked with the pattern of white lillies , and slung over one shoulder…which bore cloth draped in a manner not unlike the flower she wore in her hair in striking white against the black of her swimsuit. 

“I am.” She said, fluffing her hair “I thought I might take a dip to calm my nerves.”

“Lovely swimsuit, Eriko-chan,” he purred. “How would you feel about some company, ne?”

“thank you. The bear did one thing right…” she gestured to it “He knows my style.” 

She paused a moment before she shrugged “…sure. Some company wouldn’t go remiss.”

He smiled. “Excellent! I was hoping for a swim, but didn’t want to disturb you!”
_A little lie doesn’t hurt. A swim WILL be nice after all. But mostly I did want to check on her._
“I’ll join you right after I’ve changed.”

Eirko brushed her hair over her ear. “Then I’ll wait for you inside.” she put her hand on the door with a thin smile “Don’t keep me waiting, Shinya-kun.”

Shinya went to grab his swimsuit. _This is the first time I’ve looked at it, since Hayate-chan wasn’t interested in swimming._

He found it…swim shorts with a styalized light blue set of question marks on the leg of a deep blue swimsuit. It was nothing fancy, but it had a bit of modern style with the asymmetric pattern. 

The button up matched, blue and short sleeved, with a continued pattern of question marks over the breast pocket in the same style as the shorts.

He changed quickly and threw the shirt over his shoulder, whistling as he headed into the pool.

He opened the door to find Eriko balancing a glass in her hand with her feet delicately dipped in the water.

Her eyes were lidded and her gaze faraway as she stared out at the glittering water and novelty shipwreck inside the pool.

“What an interesting sight,” he said, smiling as he entere.

“isn’t it?” she said, almost to herself. “Someone really went out of their way to make it a classy kinda institution.” 

She laughed “the kind of place I grew up wishing to frequent.”

“Oh? I take it you haven’t had much occasion before this,” he said, sitting down beside her and slipping his pale legs into the water.

“Of course i’ve been to fancy shindigs and the like.” She huffed quietly. “Everyone wants to rub elbows with the SHSL-to be Gymnast… my performances caught plenty of eyes.” 

She looked into the water with a shrug “I just meant when I was younger. When I didn’t know my own talents.”

“Ahhh,” he nodded. “Well, _I_ haven’t had much occasion before this,” he chuckled. He slipped fully into the water and started to tread. “But I certainly can imagine life is very fancy for someone so talented.”

“it’s the tops.” She said, slipping into the cool water after him. She shivered, very briefly, but quickly became accustomed to the temperature. “Parties, gifts, attention…everythin’ someone could  want, right?”

“It sounds very glamorous,” he said with a smile. “Just the kind of party I’d love to crash.”

“You and me both.” She said with a slight giggle, leaning back into a backfloat “I _earned_ it, you know? with my talent. I had to, after all.”

“Oh?” he cocked his head. “I’m sure you did earn it. everyone who gets into Hope’s Peak has I suppose.”

“Not everyone.” She said with a scowl “you know…some people here have had their lives handed to them on silver platters.”

She flipped up to look at him, paddling in the water with narrowed eyes “…born into a family that could get them training…taught by the finest teachers. Manufactured into talents worthy of Hope’s Peak.”

She scoffed “one family… _one family_ even had a SHSL Heir. Who’s entire _talent_ as far as I could tell was being born into a well to do _family_”

She sunk a little lower into the water “…i couldn’t find a lot of information, but it gets my point across…not everyone has to earn or work for their talent. Some people have it _practically given to them_.”

“Ahhh,” he nodded. “well that _does_ seem unfair, if its like that. I suppose that’s the way the world is in general… sometimes people have things handed to them.”

She sunk lower into the water, nearly to her mouth as she looked out at the shipwreck. “….well that just makes those of us who’ve **worked** for it all the better. More talented…”

“I have to agree,” he nodded. “Someone who’s earned what they’ve got is much more impressive.”

“I’m pleased you agree.” She smiled , her eyes still lidded “it makes me think that maybe, just maybe, you’ve done it too.”

“Well, I’d _hope_ I’m not someone who got everything handed to him,” he said with a smile. “If I was, maybe its best forgotten.”

“I would agree with that.” She said with a note of warmth. “And you can build up something new from scratch.”

“It would be more impressive that way,” he chuckled. “But I think I’ll be at a disadvantage. How long have you been honing you amazing talent, Eriko-chan?”

She cocked her head, paddling over to the shipwreck a little ways away “oh for years.” She said as she tread water. “ever…ever since I was a child, actually. There was a dance studio in Osaka that let me practice there after school, in between their classes. They didn’t even charge me.”

“Ah, Osaka, where you’re from, yes?” he smiled. “It was kind of them not to charge you.”

“yeah.” She said with a slight smile “you probably can’t tell… I don’t have much of the accent any more,  but it’s where I was born and raised.”

She paddled in the water “…it was. they were good people who saw the potential in me even if I wasn’t their usual clientele.”

“Its true, you have barely any of the accent left,” he nodded. “Its another thing that shows how long you’ve been at this.”
_Though now that i’m listening for it, I **can** hear it._

“you travel Japan long enough you start picking up this an’ that.” She said “plus, you’d think they wouldn’t, but some people judge you if you even talk slightly different, you know? They may start judging you before you even hit the stage.”

“That’s such a shame,” he nodded, “but you’re not wrong. I’ve always thought an Osakan accent was very pleasant to listen to myself, but there’s no accounting for the taste of others.”

“you think so?” She asked with a cock of her head “I suppose you got good taste then.” 

She submerged briefly to wet her hair, and surfaced while brushing it away from her face “Some folks only want local talent, I guess.”

“Some people are terrible snobs,” he agreed, paddling around lazily.

“I have to agree with that.” She said with a soft snort. “….but you have to appeal to them if you’re going to go anywhere. You have to impress them and work harder than everyone else, or you’re in the gutter like th’ trash.”

“Something to think about if I try to cultivate a talent I suppose.”

She nodded slowly “For people like us, even if you’re doing what you love, it’s a competition. There’s always gonna be someone rooting for your spot in the pecking order…” 

She ran her hand through her hair “…..this killing game’s just a distillation of that.”

“Oh?” he cocked his head. “What do you mean by that exactly?”

“it’s the outside world.” She said , looking over at him “distilled and twisted into it’s most cruel and savage extreme.”

She waved her hand “out there…with your SHSL talents…the hostile workplaces, the endless attempts to stay ahead or fail and be cast out onto the street to starve….It’s a competition. A deadly competition where people’s futures are at stake.” 

She put her hand to her chest “and here, it’s taken to the logical extreme. A _competition_ with _people’s lives_. Kill or be killed and be smart about it or you’re on the choppin’ block.”

“Ahhh, I see what you mean,” he said, nodding. “That’s certainly how Monokuma-san wants us to take it certainly.”

“Without a doubt.” She agreed with a nod and a frown “….I don’t wanna be a part of it, but I sure ain’t gonna roll over and let someone kill me , you know?’

“Absolutely,” Shinya nodded with agreement. “But I hope that doesn’t mean you’ll try to kill someone first.”

“tch.” Eriko shot him a dirty look “what kind of person do you _take me for_ ? that’s _stupid_.”

He held up his hands with a smile. “I thought not, Eriko-chan. Its obvious you understand the situation.”

She waved her hand, splashing some water in the air “It’s _obvious_ that anyone who kills is just asking to die. I mean…once you kill someone it’s _everyone v one_, and no matter what they say you _can’t fool them all_.”

Shinya nodded, leaning against the wall of the pool and letting his feet float up. “No you can’t. A murder will inevitably have two deaths. The victim, and the killer. Leaving the rest of us freshly demoarlized of course.”

Eriko bit her lip in thought “and with us demoralized…nobody will be able to trust one another. Which’ll lead to another pair of deaths, so on and so forth until the final two strangle one another out of blind panic and paranoia.”

“that seems to be the idea,” Shinya said with a sigh. “Which means our best bet is to try to trust each other and **hope** we can all hold out long enough to find an escape or be rescued.”

“I suppose so.” She agreed, her brow furrowing “…some place for a gymnast, right? I mean, we’ve got an assassin, and a sharpshooter and a cyberneticist and so on and so forth…but some of us .”

She laughed bitterly “Like fodder, I guess.”

“I wouldn’t say so, actually,” he said. “as a gymnast you make a bad target, given the likelihood you might be able to fight back.”

She paddled back in a lazy backstroke, looking up at the ceiling. “Because at the end of the day I’m an athlete, right?’

“and a slippery one at that, Eriko-chan!”

She giggled softly into her hand “I mean, maybe when I’m in th’ pool.”

He chuckled. “Well _I’m_ a noodle compared to you wet or dry. So, I feel like my point stands.”

She grinned , with a little nod of her head “it’s true. I guess you’re right about that. Between the two of us, I guess I can see which one someone might mistake for an easier target.”

“Unfortunately,” he nodded. “I was a bit worried about it last night even. I stacked up glasses behind my door as an early warning system.”

“_Huh_” she mused “and how’d it work out? I mean…I assume nobody tried, but …did it seem like it’d work?”

“It seemed like it,” he nodded. “I’d recommend doing the same if you’re nervous.”

“Maybe.” She chewed her nail “Maybe. I’m already making it a point to not open the door until the morning announcement under _any_ circumstances. Maybe….an alarm would help ease my nerves a little more.”

“It made it a little easier for me to sleep,” he said.

“Sleep.” She said with a wry smile ‘what’s that? Only one night in this place and I feel like I forgot the word.”

“Well…” he put his fingers to his lips thoughtfully. “Maybe you could have a nap during the day? People aren’t likely to expect that.”

She floated on her back , the flower in her hair damp and drooping as she did. “A nap during a day…you’re not wrong, that might throw them off some…”

“I suppose all I’d advise is it not be in a public area,” he chuckled.

Eriko huffed, though…it seemed almost more good natured than usual “as if I’d let myself be _that_ easy a target.”

He chuckled. “Hardly, of course. Well, want to do some laps with me? It might help your nap afterward.”

Eriko bobbed her head “…sure, why not.” 

She chuckled under her breath “who knows…maybe if we wind up getting along, we can make a habit of it.”

“That sound lovely to me, Eriko-chan. On my mark?”

“On your mark.” She said with a competitive smile crossing her face as she got into position.

**would you like to give Eriko a gift?**

Give Eriko: The Masked Gymnast’s Cursed Mask

“Oh by the way, Eriko-chan,” he said, after they were toweled off and just about to head their seperate ways. “This came out of the mono mono machine and I thought you might like to have it.”

Eriko balanced the beautiful mask in her hand. It was a half mask of a woman’s face, with a feathered headband and numerous hanging beads over where her mouth would be. 

Her eyes widened as she looked between it, and him “oh _wow_.” she breathed “do you have any idea how _significant_ this is?”

” was sort of hoping you’d be able to tell _me_,” he said with a smile.

She held it up “this is the mask that some say _caused the first world war_! Or..like, In a _magical nonsense_ kind of way. It belonged to a world famous gymnast and dancer who performed the world over…she never showed her face until one fateful night…when someone ripped the mask from her and exposed her to the world. And not long after that? World war.”

She grinned widely “it’s a _historical  artifact_ and it’s a piece of GYMANSTICS history! Like….they say anyone who wears it is gifted with extraordinary skill on stage!”

“Well _that_’s fascinating,” he said. “And its not cursed at all?”

“well, I mean, probably not.” She said “unless you think a third world war’s going to start just because I decided to wear it.” She laughed into her hand.

“Oh, Eriko-chan I highly doubt it,” he chuckled with her.
_If ther’s going to be a third world war its likely either started or happened already after all_
“I suppose I meant, usually an artifact like that comes with a terrible warning for the wearer. You know, like in the first Persona game.”

“……..” Eriko held up the mask with a puzzled expression “I didn’t own a playstation.”

“Ah,” Shinya chuckled softly. “well, no need to worry about it then. If you’re going to put it on, can I see?”

“well of course.” She said, and placed it upon her face. It obscured her from view…but he could see the trace of her ear to ear smile under it. “so how about it? Do I look mysterious? Alluring?”

Shinya smiled and put a finger to his lips. “Both. Not to mention enchanting.”

“Enchanting, huh?” She said, fussing with the drooping flower in her hair as she worked to make sure it pinned properly with the mask. “…well, you’re not my _usual_ target for enchantment, but I’ll take it~” 

She giggled into her hand “…thanks Shinya. This…helped.”

“Its my pleasure. You cheered me up too, Eriko-chan. I hope you manage to have a nice nap.”

Eriko tilted her head, the beads jingling under her mask as she nodded. “I’ll let you know how it goes….I’m glad I could help, I guess…talk later, alright?”

She started to head out with a weak smile “night.”

000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

 (pinned)
**Free Time Event 2 (Side Tsuda) START**

Tsuda left Goto behind, and after a quick snack in the lunchroom, was off to the Mall once more. 

The mall, after all, was a social hub. A real **gathering place** for all sorts of people…and he was looking for someone in particular. A certain mysterious Dungeon Master.

He found her in the game store, going through all the shelves, and putting books into piles with a frown on her face. She took one off the shelf, flipped through it, and set it into a pile.

Tsuda slowed as he approached, until he was leaning against one of the low shelves holding a number of puzzles and games. He cocked his head to the side 

“Lookin’ for something in particular? Should I get the shopkeep?” he asked with a jovial smile

“I don’t think they’ll be much help,” the one eyed girl said,, gesturing to the automaton behind the counter. “But I _could_ use an extra eye or two.”

“Yeah, they look a lil’ stiff.” He said with a chuckle as he came over to stand beside her. “Lucky you, I’ve got the keenest eyes around.”

She held up the book in her hand. It seemed to be an RPG sourcebook of ome kind. “Do you recognize this specific book? have you seen it before?”

She paused. “I mean the _work_ not the specific copy I’m holding in my hand.”

Tsuda leaned in and looked it over. “Well, I’ve played a few games an’ read a few magazines in my time.” he said as he looked over the cover. “But I _dunno_. I don’t exactly think so.”

She stared at it as well, with a suspicious look and put it in the shorter pile, and reached for another book. “Hmm.”

“So uh, might I ask what’s so funny ’bout these sourcebooks?” He asked “you think they’re all…I dunno, Monokuma originals or somethin’ ?”

She tapped the shorter pile. “Probably not _all_ of them. But if any of them are, I want to know.”

Tsuda picked one of the books up, and began to leaf through it “It’d be good to know.” He said with a nod ” I mean… _hell_, any game he’d make probably be all about pittin’ player against player in the least fun way possible. Hardly a tabletop experience at all.”

“I’m not as interested in the crunch as the fluff,” she said. With a blazing eye she said. “I want the _lore_, Tsuda-san.”

Tsuda glanced over at her with a raise of his eyebrow “You seek the deep lore?” he said with a lazy smile.

“Sounds like a hell of a quest. I’m on board.”  He tapped the book in his hands. “hey, as an aside, what edition did Temples and TPKs leave off on?”

“Four,” she answered instantly. “The fifth edition was in closed early previews only. … why?”

He tapped the cover “looks like it’s either leaked, or been released in the day since we’ve been kidnapped. ’cause this says it’s 5E Anniversary Edition. “

“Shit,” Tomoyo hissed. “I forgot to factor that in. Alright. Third pile.”

Tsuda placed the book on the floor between the others. “so you’re more interested in the lore of these things than the mechanics, huh? Makes sense, what with the adventures ya write.”

“What makes it make sense?” she asked curiously, pausing in her search for a moment.

“I read a few of ’em. They’re real lore heavy.” He said “more about the story to be told through the players and DM than like…gettin’ the gold and getting a big fuckoff sword to impress barkeeps back home with. The adventures you write are more ’bout the setting and lore than the braggin’ rights….least as far as I understand it.” 

he shrugged “could be wrong. I ain’t a bright guy.”

She chuckled lightly. “You’re not wrong, but– Tsuda-san, I want to know the lore of these games, because Monokuma may have hidden a clue there as a ‘clever haha’. It’s what I’d do as a DM.”

“……” He raised an eyebrow at her “…holy fuckin’ shit. That’s brilliant.”

She smiled, and gave a little bow. “Thank you, Tsuda-san. But, my plan _is_ a little bit stymied by trying to tell the difference between ‘books by monokuma’ and ‘books that came out during our memory gap’.”

Tsuda leaned on the shelves with a nod of his head “yeah, it makes sense that it’d muddy the waters a bit. But I got a surefire way to figure it out.”

“I’d be thrilled to hear it.”

His smile was unabashed, and his tone completely unironic as he said “check the author’s name! Guy’s egotistical enough that he wouldn’t wanna go without credit, right?”

“Hmm… you might actually be on to something.” She nodded, and checked the books in her “unknown” pile.

A few books in she managed to find one…

_The Ocean of Nightmares, by M. Kuma_

“well… in hindsight this should have been obvious,” she drawled. She handed him the book.

“Hindsight’s 20/20.” Tsuda said with a bob of his head as he took the book and looked it over. 
It’s cover at least looked like any other adventure module…with an illustration of a number of heroes holding their own against a massive octopus that was tearing their ship to splinters. 

“Hope he doesn’t have a big octopus waitin’ in the wings. That’d be stupid.”

“Very stupid,” she agreed. Shall we see what’s in it?”

“Alright.” Tsuda waved her closer as he opened the book. “huh…”

he frowned suddenly “the date ain’t right, for one thing.”

“Oh?” she cocked her head, and peered more closely as well.

 (pinned)
He tapped his finger on the date of publication, which…rather strangely was **2016**.

“That’s a lil’ less than two years from now, by my estimation.”

Tomoyo raised her eyebrows, and leaned in.”2016. Interesting. It could be a deliberate misdirection, but somehow I doubt it.”

“It could also mean some time’s really gone flyin’ , despite us remembering the first day of school like it was literally yesterday.”

“Like it was literally yesterday,” she agreed. She brushed her fingers against the pages. “How old does this book seem to you?”

He held it up “it’s in decent condition.” he said, as he turned it around “but ya can see a little wear and tear around the pages. So it ain’t **brand new** by any stretch of the imagination.”

“Which, if it was actually printed in 2016, probably makes it at least 2017 now,” Tomoyo mused.. She touched her eyepatch. “Hmm.”

“…..well.” he said with a weak laugh. “ain’t a fan of that.”

he flipped the page and glanced over at her “you alright?’

“If several years have passed, it might be possible to tell from our bodies.”

Her fingers didn’t leave where they rested on the bottom of the patch.

Tsuda looked at her seriously, eyes tracing to her eyepatch  “….alright. Ya got my attention.”

She made a face. “The loss of my eye was… relatively recent, from my personal timeline. If the scar is older….”

“sorry about your eye, Tomoyo-chan.” he said , patting his hand on her shoulder “sorry it’s a fresh wound. But…if it’s older then…it means at least a lil’ time’s actually passed.”

“Do you think you can stomach it if I were to take a picture?”

Tsuda smiled at her, meeting her eye with a shake of his head. “I’ve seen worse, trust me. No matter what’s under there.”

She nodded, and turned away from him, taking out her monopad. She flipped up her eyepatch, and took a quick selfie, before flipping the patch down again.

Tsuda streatched, and cracked his knuckles “so. How’s it lookin’, fearless DM?”

She glanced down at the picture for a long moment, and then handed it to him.

He took it, and looked it over with a momentary look of seriousness on his face. “huh…”

In the picture…the scar from Tomoyo’s incident was healed over, scar tissue formed over what was once a rather fresh wound, but no longer. “…well that’s irrefutable.”

Tomoyo nodded. “Some amount of time has passed. And we weren’t in cryostatis of some kind. Or, if we were, it was imperfect.”:

“…shit, I didn’t even think of cryostasis.” he said with a low whistle “…that brings up some nasty possibilities, don’t it?’

“It does,” she nodded. “But unless we’re actually in space, being shot across the galaxy in hope of populating a new planet, I think we’re pretty close to 2017.”

Tsuda rubbed his neck “if uh, they wanted us to populate a new planet they sure chose an interestin’ bunch. There’s uh, a few folks i’m pretty sure ain’t interested in ‘populatin’  if you catch my drift.” 

He chuckled “…yeah, I’m gonna agree with ya though. It’s probably close to 2017 which…” he rubbed his chin, scratching the stubble “…also has some nasty implications.”

“I agree. But what are _you_ thinking, Tsuda-san?”

He pointed his finger at her with a weak smile “….begs the question of how long it’s been since we got nabbed. And why nobody’s come lookin’ for us if it’s really been over three years. Makes my imagination run wild. “

“It does,” she nodded. “Anything could have happened to us in the meantime.  I’ve plotted– and played in– some games like this you know.”

“have ya?” Tsuda asked with a cock of his head “…well, ya got my curiosity goin’. Don’t think I read any of those.”

“They were a little heady for Dragon magazine,” she admitted. “But it makes me think about the shock value twist. Because in fiction, you set up this kind of memory gap for a shock value twist, right?”

“I mean, yeah that’d make sense.” he said with a nod “you’d build up the mystery of the time gap and then _boom_ you’re all a bunch of AI in a machine simulation or somethin’.”

“Exactly,” she nodded. “You know what the twist was in two of those? A twist that would explain why no help has arrived.”

“….” Tsuda ran his hand through his hair “yeah, you know what? lay it on me.”

“The players had chosen to be there.”

“….” Tsuda grimaced “…that sure is a fuckin’ twist…”

He looked down at the book in his hands “In your game, did they have a good reason for it?’

“In my game, yeah,” she nodded. “In the other one, well, it was just a cheap twist for shock value. Everyone at the table hated it.”

Tsuda chuckled “yeah, I imagine you pulled it off with a degree of finesse.” he said with a wink. “can I ask the reason? In your game, I mean.”

“It was in hopes of stopping a kind of memetic virus,” she said. “I doubt its the case here. But it could be.”

” a memetic virus.” He said with a whistle “Dunno what that means, but it sounds nasty. Let’s hope it ain’t the case, eh?”

Tomoyo sighed. “Let’s hope, but….” she paused. “In my game, chosing to forget was an act of love. The virus was corrupting people, and turning them into dark versions of themselves. The players had all formed a tight bond before the game ever started, but chose to forget that bond, believing that they could forge it again, even without their memories. They chose to forge ahead and trust themselves rather than cling to a past that was leading to a dark future.”

Tsuda leaned back against the shelf, looking at her with an expression of curiosity as she described the scenario.

After a moment he nodded his head ‘…wow…yeah, I see whatcha mean about it being a bit heady for Dragon Magazine.” he smiled , brushing his hand through his hair. “An act of love and trust, huh? That’s a powerful statement…choosin’ to forget part of your life and the people close to you with the trust that you’ll be able to make things right , even if it took a fresh start.”

he chuckled “…I can see why yer the SHSL Dm.”

She smiled a little bashfully, and pushed her hair out of her face. “Well, thank you. Its not like I’ve never gotten any complaints, but, I do put my heart into my campaigns…”

Tsuda flashed a warmer smile as he held up the Monokuma campaign. “unlike a certain bear, anyone can tell you put a lotta heart into your writin’, Tomoyo-chan. It’s pretty clear…and it makes for one hell of a story, every time.”

She smiled. “Thank you. I don’t think we should run whatever campaign the bear’s written in here– but I _am_ curious about it.”

“i’m gonna guess it ends with rocks fallin’ and everyone dyin’.” He said with a low chuckle “in a scripted , unbreakable sequence.”

“I wouldn’t be surprised if he was a total railroader,” she agreed.

Tsuda offered her the book with a smirk “wanna find out with me?”

She took it from him and smiled. “Lets do that.”

He gestured towards a set of chairs and a desk at the corner of the came store. “Let’s take a seat and get readin’!”

She followed him and sat down, spreading open the book with practiced ease so that tehy’d both be able to see it weell.

Tsuda settled in next to her , as the two of them began reading the long, and intricate adventure. 

A few hours passed by the time they were finished, and Tsuda closed the last page with a soft snort of breath. “wow. That was the most pessimistic thing I’ve read in a while.”

And it was. What started as a standard adventure setup (you are on a journey across the ocean en route to an island holding an adventurers college when your ship is struck by a number of unseasonable storms) soon began going slowly off the rails. 

First  a number of the NPCs were to kill themselves in terror at the writing creatures beneath the waves, leaving the party with a skeleton crew and no support network, and THEN a mind-manipulating elder god in the shape of a bear with squid legs was to appear and declare that the only way to safety was blood sacrifice.

The party was then urged to turn on one another, destroying one another one by one as the boat began falling apart around them. 

If someone ‘won’, and managed to slaughter the rest of the party, they were given freedom and safety at the college…only for it to be revealed at the end of the session that the player’s character in fact was sent to hell, and would be tormented for all eternity.

“like. It _really_ sucked.”

“Uuuugh, so edgy,” Tomoyo rolled her eyes. “When I did some editing for Dragon I had to turn stuff like this down all the time.”

“You know?” he said with a low chuckle “i fuckin’ bet….it’s like something a teenager would write while thinkin’ he was being _cool_ and _subversive_.”

“Baby’s first horror game,” she nodded. “But, it does reaffirm that this is whoever’s in charge of Monokuma’s work. Since its pretty much exactly what he’s trying to do here, plus bad d20 encounters.”

“It ain’t subtle, that’s for sure. The question is if it was an early warning or threat…or if it was published _after_ we got snatched up.’

“Good question. And one we don’t have an easy answer to.” She turned back to the cover, and examined the heroes.

They were your standard generic fantasy fare, though there was one with a distinctly ‘american western’ look to him, and a female rogue with an eyepatch posed by a tiefling mage with flowing hair and long horns.

“Hmm…. its… ambigious,” she sighed. “I can’t tell.”

“Probably meant to be.” Tsuda shook his head “guy doesn’t wanna tip their hand too soon.”

“Likely,” she sighed. “I hope you don’t feel like we got nowhere.”

Tsuda shook his head “nah. For one thing, it was a pretty nice time readin’ with good company.”

he stretched back “for another…we know time passed , more than we think, and we know the guy behind it likes playin’ mind games.”

She sighed. “We probably knew that before, but now its definitely confirmed.”

“absolutely.” he said with a smirk “plus, we know they can’t write for shit.”

The comment broke her stern expression, and she laughed. “well, you’re right about that.”

He snickered with her. “certainly ain’t the best tabletop I’ve ever read, that’s for sure.”

“I’d say its in my bottom five of games that weren’t just a mess of spelling errors and no punctuation.”

“**oof**.” Tsuda grinned “I say we write a review of it, post it in the window and see if it makes him cry.”

“I might have to do exactly that,” she said, a little smirk tugging at her serious face.

“Promise me you’ll post it when I can see it.” he said with a chuckle “i wanna see the look on the guy’s mechanical face.”

She gave him a lazy salute. “You got it,” she nodded. “Tch. Our kidnapping even has its own mascot.”

“it does.” He said with a shake of his head “Talk about tacky, right?”

“Extremely. It makes it feel like a game show.”

“maybe that’s the intention.” Tsuda mused, crossing his arms “i mean. the guy might be tryin’ to create an atmosphere like a game show or somethin’.” He said quietly, thoughtfully “like…there _are_ cameras around.”

“The cameras,” she nodded. “I didn’t think about that. There’s been so much already. maybe someone _is_ watching.”

“Using their mascot to ensure they get one hell of a show.” Tsuda snorted “…like something outta a deepweb horror story.”

She sighed. “And not a very good one. Although, I suppose its all in the execution– if you’ll forgive the term.”

“tch.” Tsuda snorted out a laugh “yeah, i’ll forgive it.”

he crossed his arms with a smile “we’ll just have to make it _real painful_ for the fella to watch, eh? No matter how lame his comedy act mascot is.”

“Lets do our best to be as boring as possible. Like sitting quietly and reading for an hour.”

He snickered “made good headway then…but , no matter how fun it musta been to watch, I had a good time.”

“Me too,” she said with a small smile. “Maybe when we’re out of here, I can show you some of the other worst RPGs and we can laugh about it.”

Tsuda grinned “sounds like a plan, Tomoyo-chan.” 

He put his hand on his hip, hooking his thumb into his belt with a smile “i’ll be lookin’ forward to it. Let it be another thing to carry me through this shit and out the other side.”

“If we stack those things up, we won’t lose our focus,” she nodded.

He offered her a handshake with a smile “Let’s keep that in mind and push on to freedom. Trustin’ you to lead our party outta here, DM.”

“I’ll do my best, gunslinger,” she said. “We’ll see if we can beat this ‘killing game”s DM and defend my title.”

“I got faith in ya.” Tsuda said with an easy smile.

**Would you like to give Tomoyo a gift?**

“By the way.” he said, “before we head out, I got somethin’ for ya.”

She cocked her head. “Oh? For me?”

He nodded “yeah, I won it from the ol’ Mono/Mono machine.” he said as he pulled out a small felt pouch, which he offered to her. “Lemme read ya it’s description.”

He cleared his throat, and read off a small card. 

” **The 8 Sided Die of the Spider**

_These die once belonged to a powerful pirate said to have been born on a planet far, far away. Beautiful cerulean gemstones were carved into perfectly weighted dice that hold an unspeakable power within their geometric forms. Legend says the pirate who once used these dice could summon great beasts and decimate armies with the merest roll of the die, bringing out their powerful magicks to rule the seven seas.
Can you unlock the power of these dice and decim8 your foes? Or will you perish like the rest?_”

Tomoyo’s eyebrows raised. “I’ve heard of it. I thought it was only a legend….. Tsuda-kun, are you sure you want to give it to me?”

“I think you’ll get better use outta ’em than me.” He said with a chuckle “…I dunno if I stand a chance of unlockin’ that kinda power, but the SHSL DM? “

She smiled. “Well then, I’ll strive to be worthy of it. Assuming its real of course. Could be a cheap knock off.”
The idea didn’t seem to displease her either way.

“Hey, won’tknow unelss ya try. Either way…glad ya like it”

He snapped a finger gun her way with a wink.

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Shinya was waiting for Tsuda outside of the ballroom, his back against the wall as he played ‘cat’s cradle’ with some string he had gotten somewhere in the mall.

Tsuda waved as he approached, an easy smile on his face “i’d say today went pretty well so far, got some info …got to know a few new friends. How about you?”

“I’d say it went well,” he said with a smile. As Tsuda got closer, he could see that Shinya’s hair was damp, and he smelled slightly of chlorine. “I didn’t end up getting to search that spot we discussed yet, however.”

“Well, still got a few hours before the mall closes.” Tsuda said , his hand on his hip “wanna walk and talk?”

He chuckled ‘I see ya took a dip. That musta been nice.”

“Eriko-chan was at the pool,” he chuckled. “It _was_ nice in fact. I wouldn’t mind another some time soon.”
He offered Tsuda his hand as they started down toward the mono mono store.

Tsuda took his hand, walking alongside him with a lazy smile on his face “now that sounds mighty nice. How’s she holdin’ up? lil’ better?”

“A bit, I think,” he nodded. “It seems she has a very utilitarian view of the world.”

“Utilitarian, eh? You’re gonna have to use a smaller word.” he joked pleasantly.

“Ah… practical,” he said. “Dog eat dog. I think she’s had a pretty rough upbringing.”

“Dog eat dog…s’pose I can relate to that in a way. It’s easy to fall into that kinda trap, ya know?”

He squeezed his hand “I wouldn’t be surpirsed if that’s the case.”

Shinya squeezed him back. “yes, nor I. But, it does seem as though she at least recognizes that killing someone _isn’t_ the best move to take here. She’s just worried someone’s going to see her as an easy target.”

“I can understand the concern…I mean, it’s sad she can’t trust folks , but I can’t blame her…and there’s somethin’ to be said about the anxiety that ya present an easy target.’

“I agree,” he nodded. “I shared my  own anxiety with her– as well as my opinion that she’s hardly the easiest target among us.”

“and did it put her a bit at ease?” He asked curiously as the pair of them headed into the mall, passing the currently empty stores.

“It did seem to,” he smiled. “As did the gift I gave her. Thank you for the tip about the mono machine.”

“Hey, figured it would come in handy.” He chuckled “anything to keep spirits up, right?”

“Definitely,” he nodded. “I also chatted with Hayate-chan again.”

“Hayate-chan, eh? ” he said with a grin “how’s the lil’ guy doin’?”

“A little high strung from the conflict with Morio-kun, but I smoothed that over,” he said. “I’m more concerned with Hayate-chan’s sense of fatalism.”

“Fatalism huh? He didn’t strike me as the type..” he mused as the two of them made their way to the Mono/Mono store.

Shinya paused to peek in the store as they reached it– he hadn’t seen it yet.

“No, nor me,” he agreed. “But it seems that our SHSL Crane Game believes in a path Hayate-chan must follow.”

It was a large store…themed with the Monokuma aesthetic. The large neon sign over it’s door…the black and white color scheme and the figures and statues of Monokuma posing over different sections of the store. 

It was like a store right out of Tokyo Disneyland….only themed around their current captor. 

“…a path Hayate-chan must follow, huh?” Tsuda raised his eyebrow “huh. and what’s that path?”

Shinya strolled into the store curiously still hand in hand with Tsuda. “*To become the world;s greatest cranegame master, and make certain everyone knows the name Nakayama Hayate.”*

Tsuda followed him, stepping over some of the toppled merch from his and Masako’s actions the other day. “huh, kinda weirdly phrased, but I guess I understand the sentiment.”

“Yes, so do,” he said. he paused and leaned against a counter. “The only thing is, Hayate-chan seems to feel its something that _must_ be done, rather than something that is desired.”

“huh…” Tsuda strolled next to him, and hopped up onto the counter by the gothic-themed store animatronic. “I wonder what that’s all about..”

“I’m not certain,” he said, hopping up with Tsuda in a slightly awkward motion. “But I know whatever it is causes Hayate-chan significant stress.”

Tsuda nodded, and shifted around to put his legs behind the counter, hopping over with an easy motion and offering his hand to Shinya as he did. 

“Sounds like the kid’s got a lot more goin’ on than he lets on.”

“I imagine he does,” he nodded, letting Tsuda help him over. Once he was up again on the other side, he fixed his hair. “Though I suppose the same could likely be said for everyone here.”

“Yeah.” Tsuda agreed “you and me included, eh?” he said with a smile “…well. whatever the kid’s deal is, I hope he’ll hold up alright.”

Shinya nodded. “I hope we _all_ hold up alright,” he said. “What about you? may I ask what you were up to?”

Tsuda lingered by the back door. “well.” He said with a low chuckle “paid a visit to a few folks… startin’ with our curmudgeonly cybernetics expert. I helped him shop around a bit, collectin’ stuff that he might be able to work with.” 

He leaned against the wall “He told me all about the horror of academia.”

Shinya lingered with him, listening and leaning against the counter. “The horror of academia?”

“About how he’s had to bow and scrape for funding for his research.” Tsuda said “how his talent’s limited and hampered by how much the powers that be wanna give him to further their own agendas.”

“Ahhh,” Shinya nodded. “It sounds like science is a harder world to exist in than I would have thought.”

“That’s pretty much what I said.” he chuckled. “It sounds tougher than bein’ a sharpshooter, at least.” 

He shook his head “….he’s pretty understandably pissed about the whole thing.”

“No wonder he seems to be in such a foul mood all the time,” he nodded.

“That’s about the gist of it.” Tsuda nodded. “Other than that, we talked a lil’ about possible means of escape with gadgets. and I got a sense of ‘im. He doesn’t seem like he’ll kill without the proper motivation at least, so that’s a plus.”

“Well, that’s a relief; if only a mild one.” he nodded. “Did you chat with anyone else?”

“Yep.” he said with a grin. “Tomoyo-chan. We looked at sourcebooks together and had a nice chat. She’s pretty cool, ya know.”

He tapped his fingers on the wall in thought, it sounded hollow. “there’s a bit of news you should know that I got outta that conversation by the way…. for one thing, she had a recent wound. The thing that took her eye? It’s all healed up now. Scarred over. And the sourcebooks we were lookin’ at were from 2 to 3 years from now.”

He raised his eyebrows. “I see. Its not that surprising at this point, but its good to have confirmation. It sounds like we’ve missed all of high school then.”

“that’s the concern.” he grimaced “so much for my SHSL education, eh?”

He shook his head “other than that we read one of Monokuma’s RPG scenarios…it was basically just what’s happening now…and talked about shaming him for how bad it was. She seems keen on running a game , and for poking fun at bad RPG scenarios with me when we get outta here.”

“I see,” he nodded. “well it sounds as if she’s in good enough spirits. And a keen enough investigator.”

“Real keen.” He said with a nod. “I like her, got a good feelin’ about her, ya know?”

“I’ll remember that,” he chuckled. “Well…. is this about where our mysterious area is?” he asked, geusturing.

“That’s right.” He knocked on the wall again, and it rang hollow “there’s a door hidden in this wall for employees and the like.”

“I see,” he nodded. “And is there some switch that opens it, I assume?”

“yep.” he said, pointing to the space under the register “right there, just hit the switch and it’s open sesame.”

“Ah of course, the likliest spot,” he chuckled, and reached over, clicking the switch without even looking.

There was a click…and the door opened just a fraction, with Tsuda pulling it the rest of the way “And we’re in.”

“Now, what did you say Monokuma-san said about this place? that it wasn’t ready?” he peered inside.

“yeah, that’s what he said. He probably…ya know, messed around in here. Said it wasn’t ready for the ‘protagonist’ or whatever.”

Inside the door was a hallway. Short, with a door on one side, and two on the other end of the hall.
A poster lay against one wall, by a billboard of rules and notices, bearing Hope’s Peak’s logo (which had been defaced and scratched out with marker)

Shinya raised his eyebrow. “For the protagonist. What a funny thing to say.” 
He brushed his hair back, and stepped into the hall, carefully. He glanced at the defaced billboard.

 (pinned)
Tsuda followed him, hands in his pockets “he’s  a funny kinda guy like that.” He said as he leaned in to look with him.

The billboard was mostly employee notices…there were a few memos and a schedule with names on it….
Next to it, however, was the defaced poster. 

“Hope’s peak!” It read “Where the ~~Hope~~ Despair of Tomorrow is born!” 
Someone had written despair in crude characters, drawing little horns and fangs on the students posed before the grand tower and front gate of Hope’s Peak. 

“Reserve Course, Open Now!”

“Reserve Course?” he mused. He tapped his finger on the poster.

“huh.” Tsuda leaned in to look the poster over “Not sure what that’s all about.”

“It doesn’t sound familiar to you either?” he asked

“Not really…I mean…” he thought for a moment “…Maybe? but I don’t remember what it means.”

“Y-essss….” shinya said thoughtfully, tapping his chin. “its like I’ve heard it but…..”

He shook his head. “No, I don’t know what it means either.”

“Yeah, that’s what I’m gettin’. Weird. Must have been somethin’ they were planning on startin’ around the time we were meant to begin.”

“Something to think about,” he nodded.

“Damn right.” He said, glancing at the memos for a moment “It looks like Monokuma wanted to deface this poster, ’cause it wasn’t scribbled over last time I was in here.”

“I see….Tsuda-san, lets see if we can take it off the wall without tearing it. I have an idea.”

“…an idea?” Tsuda asked, as he reached up to start peeling at the edge “alright, man.”

Once he’d pried it off the wall, Shinya held his hands out for it. “Hand it to me, and turn on the flashlight on your monopad for me.”

Tsuda handed it to him and flicked his flashlight on. “Alright?”

Shinya held the poster up, close in front of Tsuda’s flashlight so the beam shined through brightly. He looked to see if it illuminated any of the defaced areas enough to see what was below them.

It did, in a fashion. He could see that at the bottom, hidden under the mischivious attempts to turn Hope’s Peak into Despair’s Peak…there was a small bit of text. 
“Contact a recruiter today to enroll your student in the Reserve Class. NO talent needed, and your child earns a future worthy of a SHSL Talent for variable rates! Ask about our dorm policies!”

“Ah! Look, I was right, there’s a little more you can see!” he read the text that he could make out aloud to Tsuda.

“…huh, so it sounds like the Reserve Class is an alternate uh, method of gettin’ into Hope’s Peak for a price…”

“Putting a price tag on success. Huh. that’s rather blunt, wouldn’t you say?” Shinya sniffed.

“It sure is.” Tsuda grimaced. “kinda mercenary if ya ask me.”

“Hmmm…” he stuck the poster back on the wall. “Well, its fascinating to say the least. lets see what other secrets are in here.”

“Wanna head down to the left, or right?”

“Left. I think always left first,” he nodded.

“left it is.” He said with a grin. “gives us the one door before we hit the side of the hall with two.”

He headed that way, past a rack of monokuma-themed clothing items that hadn’t been put out yet.

Shinya followed– glancing briefly at the rack as he passed it.

“Hmm.”

The rack was predominantly hoodies and T-shirts, though there were a few bomber jackets and even a set of tight-fitting cargo pants. 
Most of them had a black and white color scheme, and the bomber Jacket sported Monokuma’s jagged eye on the shoulder , along with a red stripe down the arm, intersecting the black and white design.

Shinya shook his head, and followed Tsuda to the door on the left, putting his hand on it, and testing to see if it opened.

The door swung open….it appeared to be an employee changing room and bathroom area. It wasn’t very big…with a few lockers on one end, and the open door to the bathroom in the other, and it was neatly kept. 

The Hope’s Peak emblem adorned the space on the far wall…though it had been defaced as well with Monokuma’s eye, and a drawn picture of Monokuma roasting someone on a spit over a fire.

“Well, this is interesting, isn’t it?”  Shinya observed. He strode over and started trying to open the lockers

Most of them were locked, but when he came to the third one…it actually opened. 

There was a windbreaker in there, black, with neon pink, bloodlike spatters  and drips around a skull design on the back. It was hanging on a hook, along with a few necklaces of a pentagram and a sigil from a popular anime Shinya remembered from nearly a decade back.

There was a bag at the bottom of the locker, and a notebook in a sleeve on the door. 

It looked like someone had hung their stuff up for work, and never retrieved it.

“sure is.” Tsuda agreed, leaning on the lockers. “looks like some kinda employee room.”

“It certainly does,” he agreed. “And it looks like someone left some things behind. “
Shinya shrugged out of the jacket he was wearing, and tried on the windbreaker, chekcing its pockets as he did so.

It was a little tight in the shoulders, but mostly it fit alright with his slighter frame. 

It was comfortable, and swished gently as he moved. 

In the pockets he found a few items… something metal and oblong, a crumpled up piece of paper, and a wallet.

“Come closer, Tsuda-kun,” Shinya beckoned.

Tsuda walked over, and leaned over his shoulder “what’s up?”

Shinya handed him the wallet and crumpled piece of paper as he started to examine the metal oblong thing, trying to determine what it was. “Hold these, please.”

As he pulled it out of the pocket, the ‘oblong thing’ turned out to be a switchblade knife. There was a small trigger for it on the side. 

Tsuda took the wallet and paper carefully with a chuckle “you got it, pal.”

Shinya opened the knife with a motion, and inspected the blade. “Well well. Our little employee was a bit of a delinquent.”

The blade flicked out with a **snikt** and gleamed in the light. It was about as long as his palm, and serrated at the edge.

“huh looks like.” Tsuda mused “i’ve seen a knife like that one someone before. Does a lotta damage if ya know where to hit.’

Shinya nodded, holding the blade up to the light and turning it back and forth for a moment. “You’re certainly not wrong!” he chuckled and flicked it closed, putting it back in the pocket. “Well, lets see the crumpled paper, first.”

 (pinned)
Tsuda uncrumpled it. 

It seemed to be a note, written in a messy scrawl of characters. 

_Hey Na-chan! 
Can you believe we lucked out with this assignment? 
They were only accepting ex-SHSL applicants and we somehow managed to nail those interviews and get in!
I mean…imagine, a job on a luxury cruise liner, helping the world become a better place. 

I know you always acted grumpy about **altruistic crap** (as you always put it) but I know how excited you really are about all this too! I mean!
if nothing else, it’s practically a vacation. We just have to run a shop for a bunch of kids! Easy as Pie and we get to enjoy the lovely weather!
So cheer up and I’ll treat you to a drink at the cruise liner bar, huh?
– K_

“Well no, that’s _very_ interesting,” Shinya said, tapping his chin. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

“hmm…” Tsuda squinted at it in curiosity “yeah, that’s pretty interestin’…sounds like this liner once had more folks on it than just us….”

“Perhaps it was meant for SHSL students at the outset,” he considered. “Hence wanting former SHSL students to work in its stores.”

“that’s what it sounds like.” he mused “and it means that the ship used to belong to Hope’s Peak….or maybe still does. Dunno which option’s worse.”

“Honestly, it depends,” he sighed. “Well, lets look through the wallet, hmm? maybe there’s another clue.”

Tsuda opened up the wallet, and flipped through a couple of cards for gothic boutiques in Tokyo before he found a student ID and license. “huh.”

Shinya peered at it. “Now, what’s the name we have here?”

“Natsume.” He said , reading it out loud “Oma Natsume. Looks like she was the SHSL Street Artist in her day. Now that I think ’bout it, I think I’ve seen some of her stuff back home.”

“Ah, that must be Na-chan then, from the note,” he nodded “And this must be her jacket I’m wearing. I wonder who K-san is..”

“Her friend, likely.” Tsuda said, looking over the ID picture.
It pictured a young woman in a bit of street fashion. Dark hair and a sullen expression with long lashed eyes. She was looking up at the camera with a note of disdain. 

“Wonder if we’ll find more info?”

“As do I,” he said. “Lets keep these things in ‘evidence’ shall we?”

“Let’s.” Tsuda agreed “might as well, right? you got a bag?”

He lifted up the little bag he’d been carrying around. “I try not to go anywhere without one,” he said. “I just didn’t want to start shoveling evidence onto my person until I cleared it with you, Tsuda-kun.”

Tsuda bumped his shoulder with his own, smiling widely “Man, go for it. it’ll help us all in the long run, eh?”

Shinya tucked away the objects in his bag, and shrugged the jacket off, putting it over his shoulder instead. “Exactly! well, lets give the rest of the room a once-over.”

“why not.” he said with a grin. “if nothin’ else there’s the rest of the stuff in her locker, eh?”

“So there is,” he nodded, peering inside.

There was the notebook, and the bag it seemed, as well as the jewelery hanging on the hook.

Shinya examined the jewelery first, picking it up and showing it to Tsuda.

Tsuda held it up “…Pentagram…and huh, I think I saw this sigil before.” He held up the sigil necklace, watching it catch the light. “in uhhh….what was it? Dragon Slayers? That ol’ anime from a while back.”

“Hmm? from an anime?” he took a look at it. “Ive watched a few in my time, maybe I’ll recognize it.”

“It is. yeah. One of the demon generals sigils I think. They show the whole tree of ’em right that start of the intro song.” Tsuda said, handing it over to him.

Shinya looked it over curiously, turning it in his hand. “Seems our Na-chan may have been a bit of a chuuninbyo.”

_Not that I have much of a right to throw stones as the Puzzler._

“Seems so.” Tsuda chuckled “well…who hasn’t had that phase in their life, eh?”

Shinya chuckled. “Have you, Tsuda-kun? I know I’ve been guilty.”

“I might’a.” He said with a slight smirk “Fancied myself ‘the dark gunslinger of the underground’. Fancied myself some kinda vigilante cowboy.”

“A vigilante cowboy. Now that _is_ a charming aesthetic,” he mused with a smile. He slipped the jewelery in with the evidence, and checked the bag next.

It was a small bag, decorated with a design that looked like the teeth of a great beast, it’s luminous eyes painted upon the bag’s back. It was edgy, just like the rest of the outfit.

It was also _heavy_.

“Oh my,” Shinya mused. “There’s either a lot of things in this, or one very heavy thing. Also– its rather cute, don’t you think?”

“yeah it is.” Tsuda chuckled “in a spooky kinda way.”

“A always liked that kind of thing myself,” he chuckled. He started going through the bag, careful of his fingers for anything dangerous.

Out came a bundle of spraypaint canisters, as well as what seemed to be a binder with a photo on it’s cover.

Shinya set the cans aside, and checked the photo on the binder. “Well this may be interesting.’

 (pinned)
The binder was heavy, and was likely where most of the weight was coming from.

On the cover was a photograph of a class of students from Hope’s Peak. 

There was the girl from the licence, leaning against a classmate with short, spiky hair and a scowl on her face. She wore a spiked leather jacket and  a pair of ripped jeans, as well as a number of pieces of occult jewlery. 

Near her was another familiar face….their teacher. Sakai Kira stood smiling for the camera with her hands folded before her in stark contrast tot he other girl’s scowl. Her long hair draped over her shoulder as she stood there wearing a brown suit hooked with a row of microphones ready for use like bullets in a bandoleer. 

There were others…the punky girl…Na-chan…was leaning on another girl with a bored smile on her face. Her hair was mussed and tangled, and her arm was half around her friend as she flashed a peace sign. She was scarred, all over…but she looked like she was in good spirits despite it.

“Ahhh,” Shinya nodded. “I wonder if K-san was our unfortunate teacher?”

“…huh, ya know, that’s a possibility.” Tsuda mused “I mean…the look of this class says it mighta been her year, after all…and she IS standin’ near Na-chan and her pal.”

“Mmmhmm,” he nodded. “So my mind wants to connect the two. Though, it could easily be someone else.”

“hard ta say without more info.” Tsuda agreed “but we can at least say this for sure…looks like some folks from Teach’s class were hired to staff this place for some reason…maybe from other years too, but we can’t say for certain.”

“Not yet at any rate,” he nodded. He opened the binder and leafed through it.

_Invading the privacy of the likely-dead for fun and profit._

Most of the photographs in it were of street art…great, towering and intricate works of art on the sides of buildings or under the overpass. They depicted everything from a glorious vision of the future, to a shocking and brutal critique of the Japanese Educational System. 
Pages and pages of the photographed memories…some with little bits of stone pinned in baggies on the pages…but a few of them happened to have figures in them.

Four to be exact.

“Hmm, well, some of these are interesting. Look here, Tsuda-kun.” He pointed to the first picture with figures.

Tsuda looked it over. 

It was Na-chan again, flipping off the camera with a grin as she leaned on the scarred girl’s shoulders. 

The scarred girl was flashing a peace sign as their teacher, Kira-san, lingered nearby , reading a paper intently. It seemed she’d forgotten that a photograph was being taken, or she didn’t want to pose for it. 

Still, they were framed by a massive mural of a curling serpent wrapping it’s way around the tower of Hope’s Peak.

“I wonder who the girl with the scars is?” he murmered. He looked her over, trying to take in the details of her appearence beyond the scars.

She had dark hair, falling in cascading waves around her face, though she’d pulled it back into a rough ponytail in this picture. She was muscular, in a gymnast sort of way…more lithe than stocky, 
She was wearing a jacket that reminded him a little bit of something from his Puzzler days. 

She looked like a detective. Specifically, the detective who’d released a statement stating that she’d find him and bring him to justice to answer for his ‘fun and games’ on a live broadcast months before he wound up here.

“Oh.” Shinya blinked. 
_How old was she again? Was she a student or with the police?_

She wasn’t that old…he remembered her now…
Karuma Himiko…Detective Karuma with the Special Investigations Unit. She was once the SHSL Investigator, before graduating and being appointed to the SIU as their crack unsolved case investigator.

….she’d been hunting him, and he outwitting her for a few months before he got the invitation to join the Hope’s Peak class.

“Karuma!” he said, suddenly, having quite forgotten that Tsuda was with him in the room.

Tsuda jolted, nearly dropping the items in his hands “holy fuckin’ shit!” he said in surprise “uh…what about Miyuki-chan?”

Shinya jolted Tsuda startling him in return. “Ah! No, ah, not Miyuki-san. Her…. sister? I would have to imagine.”

Tsuda leaned over and looked at the picture “…huh, I didn’t know you knew Miyuki-san’s sister.”

“I wasn’t aware I did either,” he said. “The memory just…. overtook me.”
_its not **entirely** a lie._

“huh…wonder if you worked with the police in the past.” Tsuda mused “it’d explain how you’d know someone like that.” 

He rubbed the back of his neck “i’ll be honest, actually, I didn’t put two and two together on their relation until just now.”

“No, its definitely a surprise,” he agreed. “Hmmm.”

“Hot damn.” he said with a shake of his head “well hey, if Miyuki is here, that means the SIU is gonna be out in force lookin’ for her. so…that’s a plus, right?’

“Is it, Tsuda-kun?” he asked. “It actually deepens the puzzle when you think about it. You’re the one who told me that its nearly certain we’re missing nearly 2 or 3 years.”

“….” Tsuda grimaced “So why hasn’t the SIU of all people found us already.”

“Exactly,” Shinya said. “My theory right now– well it not a fully fleshed out theory– but I’m leaning toward the idea that we’re somehow meant to be here.”

“…meant to be here, huh?” He went a little pale, “heh…Tomoyo-chan…she was talking about something  earlier. How she had games with similar ‘locked in a small area and have to find out why’ storylines. In hers, they were meant to be there too…”

“Did she?” he cocked his head. “I suppose as a DM she understands mystery tropes like that.”

“Yeah, that’s what I thought.” He nodded “…in her story, everyone had chosen to forget one another and lose their memories and be in that shitty situation ’cause they all got some kinda horrible memetic virus that was turning people nasty or somethin’.”

“Well, that’s certainly an interesting idea,” he said. “My my…. I suppose for now we just have to focus on putting the pieces together rather than jumping to conculsions.”

“Yeah.” Tsuda chuckled weakly “I just hope it ain’t a twist like that….or somethin’ harsher..”

Shinya shook his head. “Yes, me too.” 
He picked up the notebook last, and looked through it.

There were a number of entries…most of them appeared to just be little rants about day to day life…attempts at poetry, and ideas for street art…normal stuff…

But one entry near the end stuck out. 

_Ugh._ It started _What is this? I can’t believe they’re making us stock that weird bear crap. I mean…The boss didn’t know anything about it, the school staff know jack shit about where it came from too. I just started seeing it’s dumb black and white face cropping up in storage boxes, and a bunch of the **life sized dolls or whatever** inside one of the storage rooms. I asked the boss and he said he thinks it’s part of a promotion. Some **mascot** or something designed by someone. One of the students maybe?I dunno. Whatever it is, I don’t like it. Dumb bear gives me the creeps.

Maybe I’ll throw the whole box off the boat, not like they’re going to fire me…_

He read it aloud to Tsuda as he looked to see if the entry was dated. “Interesting, no?”

“huh, pretty interesting.” He mused.

It seemed the date had been scrubbed out….and torn from the actual page. Frustratingly, he had only the text of the note yet.

“It looks my monokuma’s been through here. That means this is something we’re meant to find. which isn’t surprising, given what you said about earlier.”

“yeah, that’s what I’m gettin’ out of it.” He said with a shake of his head. “…guess the only way we can find out is to push on.”

He nodded, and added the notebook to the mounting list of ‘evidence’. “Do you think there’s anything more in this room, or shall we move on?”

“Didn’t look like it to me.” He shook his head “Most of these things are locked, and I ain’t gonna risk breaking them open and making the bear pissed.”

“No destroying property after all,” he agreed. “Yes, lets lok elsewhere. We can always come back if we get desperate.”

“Sounds good ta me.” Tsuda grinned, and offered his hand “come on, There’s two other doors , ain’t there?”

“So there are,” he said, taking Tsuda’s hand and heading back into the hall. “Lets go methodically and take the next door closest to this one.”

The two of them crossed the short hall, passing the rack of monokuma merch, as they headed back towards the pinboard of notices , and the doorways…one on their left as they approached, and one straight ahead.

Hand in hand with Tsuda, Shinya led him to the door straight ahead. 
_Always best to make a circle, after all._

The door stood before them, painted with the same black and white color scheme that plagued the rest of the store. Upon reaching it, Tsuda touched it, and pushed it open with little difficulty.

“looks like it ain’t locked.”

“No, it looks like its another area that Monokuma-san wants us to see,” he nodded. “So keep that in mind.”

He pushed the door the rest of the way open and stepped inside.

They stepped into a room that must have once been a storage room…but now housed a door at the back with the massive face of Monokuma upon it. An eerie red light gleamed from the eye on it’s dark half, staring at them with a gentle pulsation from the door’s face. 

The room was empty save for that other door….and the fixed gun emplacements that stood looming over it, blinking steadily in time with the door’s ‘eye’. 

There was, however, a keypad on the door itself.

“Oh my,” Shinya said under his breath. “Well that’s……. ostentacious.”

Tsuda paled “those are some big fuckin’ guns.” he murmured under his breath

“They certainly are. My, my,” he mused. He stepped up– cautiously– and watched the guns.

They slowly tracked to follow his movement. 

Tsuda made a low noise “Careful…ya don’t want to be shot by somethin’ like that, trust me.”

“Not your idea of a good time?” he asked wryly. He didn’t step any further, but peered curiously at the keypad– what did it look like?

It looked like an alphanumeric keypad…likely for the lock and the guns. 
BUt with the way the guns trained on him as he looked at the pad…it was probably set to activate them if the keypad was messed with.

 (pinned)
“Not a good idea to mess with that,” he said. He took a photo of it.

“Yeah , I ain’t gonna recommend it…” 

He shook his head. “but…it tells us one thing…the bear’s lookin’ to hide something… and it’s probably behind that fuckin’ door.”

“If there’s a good way out, its probably back there.”

“Which gives me a bit of hope , honestly.” He grinned “just gotta find a way past one lil’ door.”

“And two big guns,” he agreed. “Well, there’s nothing else in here. Lets check the last door.”

“Sounds good ta me.” He said with a grin “maybe it’ll be an office or somethin’ .”

“That would be useful,” he chuckled. “Maybe too useful to hope for.” 
Taking Tsuda’s hand gaain, they headed to the last door.

It wasn’t far, only a few steps down the hall and they came before the door, which…as it turned out …had a nameplate upon it. 

It simply read “Administration”

“Well, Tsuda-san, it seem you can tell the future,” he teased. he tried to open the door.

“Maybe.” he chuckled “Or maybe I spotted it when we walked past it the first time.” 
The door clicked open under Shinya’s hand.

Shinya chuckled. “How devious,” he teased. he pushed the door open and peered inside.

The door opened , as Tsuda bumped shoulders with Shinya.

Inside was a small office with a desk at the back end, and a number of papers framed on the wall. It looked like a middle manager’s office…or maybe like a teacher’s office that Shinya had seen once at his old school. 

There were papers on the desk…a computer….some bookshelves …

And a corpse shriveled up in the corner, a bullet hole between the eyes.

“Well this i–” he stopped short as he saw the corpse. “Ah. Oh. Oh dear.”

Tsuda stared at it with a low sigh. He didn’t look phased as much as disappointed. “well. Damn. I was hopin’ we wouldn’t run into anything like that.”

“As was I. though, it was probably a vain hope.” he reached into his bag and fished for a pair of white leather gloves he’d gotten from the outfit store. “Can you help me look over the body?”

“yeah, no problem Shinya-kun.” he said with a nod of his head as he bent down by the corpse.

“you have any experience with this sorta thing?”

“Not outside of video games, honestly.” He bent down on the other side of the corpse and examined it.

Tsuda bent down with him. The smell was…not pleasant in the least. Stomach churning, really. 

But as he handled the corpse, he came to realize a few things.

First…this was a man in his late 20’s. maybe early 30’s. He was in a fairly decent blazer and pants, and had dark hair that had once been swept back but was now falling out and matted.

And he had a bullet hole through his head.

“Cause of death is _apparently_ obvious,” he remarked, indicating the bullethole. He looked for other injuries.

There was a gunshot wound in the leg…shattered his kneecap from the look of it. But those were the only two wounds, aside from a bit of blood on his fingernails…but was that his?

“Looks like there may have been a struggle,” he said. He looked around the office for any other signs that may have been the case.

It was hard to tell with the advanced decay…but he certainly looked like maybe there was a struggle from the rip in his shirt along the arm, and what looked like maybe cuts on his palm and neck.

“Tsuda-kun– do you see any bloodspatter in this room? I’d love to know if he died here, or was brought afterward.”

“uh…” Tsuda pushed the guy over “it’s real crusted over, but yeah. Looks like there’s some spatter on this wall.”

He pointed, and there was indeed…a large spatter of blood behind the guy’s head once he lifted it away “real nasty shot, too. “

Shinya peered at it, and took a picture. “Interesting. Horrible. but interesting. Alright…. I’m going to check his pockets.”

“careful. if he’s got anything sharp in there, you’re likely to get an infection. He uh, ain’t in great shape. So just feel around carefully, alright?”

He wiggled his fingers, showing the white leather gloves. “I’ll be gentle. But thank you for worrying over me, Tsuda-chan.”

Tsuda laughed “hey, what can I say? you got nice hands, and this place probably don’t got a good infirmary.”

“If I cut my hand open I trust you to sew me up,” he teased. He knelt over the body and started patting it down for objects.

He found something in the front pocket on the left, and something else in the jacket pocket…

He checked the jacket pocket first–cautiously.

He pulled out a badge…it was a small wallet on a chain that had been worn in his pocket rather than around his neck, bearing the Hope’s Peak crest and the text “Hope’s Peak Recruitment Team.’ on the badge itself

Shinya held the badge up curiously. “Recruitment team. I see.”

It glimmered in the light of the room, and underneith it he could see an ID card, along with a small sheath of photos and cards.

“huh, I remember those folks.” Tsuda mused. “One of ’em came to one of my competitions and had a big ol’ talk with me and my agent.”

“And that’s how you ended up at school?” he asked, turning it over to see the id.

“yep. That’s right. You probably don’t remember a recruiter , huh? Given?”

The ID had the name Inoue Akio, Recruitment Team on it, and the picture of a lazy looking, smiling man with swept back black hair and lidded eyes. He had an easy look about him, and a pair of half moon glasses.

Shinya _had_ in fact run into a recruiter– but not this one.

“Well, I’ve never seen _this_ man before, that’s for certain….”

“neither have I…but I ain’t surprised.” He said “from what I remember it’s a big fuckin’ team of ’em.”

“Inoue Akio. Hmm.” he checked sheath of photos and cards.

There was a photograph of him and his daughter, it looked like, someone a little younger than them if the timeline was correct. There was a photo of him and an older man standing in front of Hope’s Peak with a warm grin on each of their faces

And there was a photo of him …next to the recruitor that he DID see. They were discussing files over ice cream.

The cards seemed to be mostly from a pachinko parlor.

Though at the back, there was one that stood out

“Hmmm,” he frowned, focusing on that detail.

it was a slim, silvery card that was tucked behind one of the others…it was different, in that it was laminated instead of simple cardstock.

“Hmm, this is interesting,” he murmured, pulling the laminated card out and holding it up.

The card bore an image…it was black and white, and marked with a red slash across one side, and a number of strange dots upon the other, glittering in silver inlay. It looked, perhaps, like it may have been some sort of **security keycard**. 

On the back it simply read “Hope’s End”

“I see. This looks like it might go to that door. Though I’m loathe to try it.”

“Nah, I don’t think so.” Tsuda said, leaning heavily over his shoulder “….that was a keypad, this looks like it’s for a keycard swipe.”

Shinya paused, and then frowned. He sighed. “I suppose the stress is effecting me more than I thought. You’re absolutely right. I was overexcited.”

“Hey, me too pal.” Tsuda said with a thin smile “but hey…might go to somewhere else on this ship…hidin’ away. Another secret for you to find, right?”

He chuckled. “True enough.”
_But I’m a little embaressed that I got ahead of mysef…_

Tsuda leaned his chin on his shoulder with a grin, looking at the wallet with him “so what I’m gettin’ from this is our friend the recruiter may have been uh…working with whoever designed this bear.”

“That certainly appears to be the case,” he mused.  “There’s a link, without a doubt.”

“There is.” He said with a nod. “Now here’s the question…was he doin’ it in official capacity ? Or was he a rouge recruitment officer?”

“If he was doing it officially it certainly says some things, doesn’t it?” he raised an eyebrow.

“sure does…that Hope’s Peak was either up to some dirty pool, or things got way, way , way outta hand real fast.”

“And we don’t have enough information to judge which,” he paused and frowned. “You don’t suppose….”

Tsuda cocked his head to the side “hm?”

Shinya touched his finger to his lip. “You don’t suppose Monokuma is a mad talent-identifying AI that’s gone rogue….”

“…….” Tsuda grimaced “oh I _hate_ that. I hate that  a whole fuckin’ lot.”

“So do I,” he frowned. “Its very sci-fi….but we certainly can’t rule it out.”

“A rogue AI.” Tsuda laughed awkwardly “I mean, shit, if that’s the case, maybe Goto can help us out eh?”

One would hope,” he agreed. He glanced over the body again- there was still another pocket to go through. “Its probably nonsense anyway…”

“Maybe, maybe not.” Tsuda said “stranger shit’s happened, right? …let’s just keep it in our pocket, just in case. And if it turns out ta be a thing? well.” 

He aimed his fingers like a gun “we’ll take the fucker offline.”

Shinya smirked and nodded. He returned the gun motion. “Take him offline. Absolutely.”
Reached carefully into the other pocket to see what was there.

Shinya pulled out a smooth, black object from the man’s pocket.  It was rectangular, and at first glance seemed to be a hard drive….but upon closer inspection, appeared to instead be a **pocket safe**.

“huh.” Tsuda mused.

It was locked by a dial on the side where you had to input a numerical code.

In contrast to the wallets, Shinya looked delighted. “On this is just like Interior Menace!”

“Interior Menace?” Tsuda asked with a raise of his eyebrow

“A series of horror puzzle games that started in the 90s,” he chuckled. “I was a fan when I was younger.”
He started fidling with the numerical dial almost idly.

The numbers clicked solidly under his fingers, but he’d need to get the right combo of 6 in order to open the thing, and it’d take some severe dumb luck to crack it just by fiddling. 

“huh.” Tsuda grinned “maybe when we get outta here, I can stop by you can show me, huh?”

Shinya looked up and smiled at him. “Why, Tsuda-kun. I’d love to. In the meantime, would you do me a favor?”

Tsuda raised his eyebrow “hey, anything partner. What’s up?”

He handed him half the cards. “Help me check if any of these have birthdays or any other six digit string on them.”

Tsuda grabbed the cards “huh, alright.” He began flipping through pachinko cards ‘guy might have somethin’ on his computer, too.” he nodded his head towards the desk as he flipped through old cardstock and colorful logos.

Shinya flipped through some of them too, and nodded. “Yes, I ought to check the computer now,” he agreed. He hopped up and away from the body.

Tsuda tapped the photograph of the man and his daughter “see if you can find anythin’ about the kid.” he advised. “I’m bettin’ it’s her birthday.” 

He stood, and stretched. “That’s what a lotta parents do when they got a lock to keep safe.”

“That was my thought as well,” he chuckled. He sat down at the computer.

Tsuda held up a pachinko parlor card “i’ve been to this one, by the way.” he grinned “it’s shit. The machines are rigged and the guys runnin’ it are raking in the cash at everyone’s expense. Wouldn’t recommend it to anyone, but this guy sure seemed to fuckin’ like it.”

The computer hummed to life as Shinya sat before it and brushed the mouse. It appeared it’d never been properly shut down.

Shinya glanced at the card. “Well, I won’t visit then,” he said rather amusedly.

It was for the “Diamond Rain Parlor”, in downtown Shinjuku .

“Diamond Rain Parlor. Hmm.” He shook his head and took a look at the computer instead.

The computer booted up , and it seemed he didn’t even set a password.
It simply opened to a background image of a famous goth idol posing atop a motorcycle, and a small smattering of folders to the upper left

Shinya scoffed. “_really?_.” He clicked on the first folder. “Not even a password. Or maybe Monokuma disabled it.”

“Guess he didn’t care about security _that much_.” Tsuda snorted 

The first folder was of inventory. It appears before this was the Mono/Mono shop it was a ‘Hope’s Palace’, a boutique for SHSL-designed items and clothing.

“Hope’s Palace,” he said. “Like Hope’s Peak. More evidence this was official.”

“yeah…but it got changed somewhere along the way.” Tsuda mused.

Most of the reports of inventory in the folder were fairly normal…. megaphones endorsed by some people with talents in leadership, school notebooks, inventions…clothes designed by SHSL designers…things of that nature.

But one report was entirely of one item _Monokuma, the hit new sensation!_

Shinya clicked on it to check it out. “This might be helpful….”

It seemed the store got a number of ‘life size bear statues, metal, Monokuma the New Hit Sensation’.

There was a note attached to it that simply read “Is this a fucking shipping mistake? What _is this crap_, we can’t sell these things! I don’t care if they’re some idiot’s design or not, they look stupid!”

“The new hit sensation? and yet it doens’t sound like they were much of a hit, hmm>?:

“It also sounds like how the fuckers got on the ship…at least some of ’em anyway.” Tsuda mused

“Disguised as the latest hip craze the kids will die for,” he murmured.

“Looks like it didn’t go so well.” Tsuda drawled “Given we’re stuck on here and held captive by an army of ’em and the whole place has been gussied up in his fuckin’ image.”

“Or you could say it went well for whoever gifted us Monokuma,” he drawled. He clicked on the next folder.

The next folder was of notes.

This one had a series of memos that ranged from 

“Stop drinking all the coffee in the lounge. starting monday it’s only for managerial staff. Clerks need to get coffee from the cafeteria.”

to

“Dignitaries are visiting today, so play nice”

and finally 

“Don’t forget. 03/20/10, if you miss her birthday her mom’ll kill ya”

“Ah! and here we have our birthday!” Shinya said, pleased as he read the notes aloud. He picked the portable safe up again and started to input the code.

As he got to 10….it clicked open with a satisfying sound, it’s lid lifting a millimetre from the latch.

“Lucky!” he declared with a broad smile, and opened it the rest of the way.

It opened to a small stack of documents, as well as a few small items.

The documents were neatly folded so as to fit in the pocket safe, and the items were… a ring, folded photograph labeled ‘Project Atlantis’ and a usb stick.

“well, this was more than I expected,” he admitted. “Take a look, Tsuda-kun.”

Tsuda peered over his shoulder “…huh. Yeah that’s….a lotta shit, ain’t it?”

He frowned slightly “project Atlantis don’t sound good.”

“No it certainly doesn’t,” he agreed. “Alright lets be methodical. Photo first. The documents. Then USB stick.”

“You’ve got it, pal.” Tsuda grinned, and picked up the photograph.

He slowly unfolded it, making sure not to rip it as it came open. 

It was a blurry, dimly lit photograph of a what looked like a massive dock with a number of people milling about what may have been an immense ship emblazoned…at least in the section they could see…with a massive Hope’s Peak Academy insignia.

“I’d imagine we’re meant to assume that this is the ship we’re on. And I suppose that’s the likeliest answer.”

“Maybe, maybe not.” Tsuda agreed with a shake of his head “I mean, I’m gonna guess it is given we’re on a big fuckin’ ship, but…”

He grimaced “it could be a feint planted by the bear to throw us off our reasonin’.”

“Exactly what I was thinking. We can’t trust the information that he’s deleberately given us. but we still need to know what it i. Alright, the documents next.”

Tsuda opened up the documents to find…they were mostly redacted. 
It was only one page that was legible aside from a few scattered words, and it was labeled ‘Orders: Agent Inoue of Hope’s End.’

“Ah, now this is interesting. _Agent_ Inou? Is that what they typically call their recruitment officers?”

“Not as far as I know.” Tsuda said “and uh, last I heard Hope’s Peak didn’t get a name change, neither.”

“No, I doubted it,” he nodded. “Hope’s End sounds…. quite dire an ominous wouldn’t you agree?”

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “yeah, heh, ominous is right. Sounds like cloak and dagger shit to me. I ain’t much a fan of that.”

“No me either,” he agreed. “Hmm. Well, I suppose its the USB next. Does it have any kind of label?”

“naw, not that I can see. Just a few lil’ scratches.” Tsuda said as he handed it over.

“scratches? What kind? Where?” He murmured to himself as he turned it over in his hand.

He found them on the back of the stick. A short series of dashes and dots cut into the stick.

“Well well well,” he mused. “Tsuda-kun is there any printer paper here?”

“uhhh.” Tsuda looked over and grabbed a sheet from the printer under the desk “yeah, got some here.”

Shinya got out his pen and carefully drew the shape of the USB onto the paper. And then he transcribed the dashes and dots that were cut into the stick exactly as they appeared on the physical drive.

He beckoned Tsuda closer with a crooked finger to whisper into his ear.

Tsuda leaned over and listened with a raise of his eyebrow. “hm?”

Shinya cupped his mouth so that his lips weren’t visible. “This might be a message Monokuma doesn’t know.”

He folded the paper and slipped it into his bag, looking at the USB itself again. Was it morse code?

“huhhh..” Tsuda said under his breath.

It appeared to be morse again, and it read ‘decryption key’

“Hmmm….” He surfed the computer again– was there anything that needed decryption.

Not on _this computer_ it seemed. It was all pretty mundane.

“looks like it’s somethin’ ya should hold onto for now.” Tsuda mused

“That’s just what I was thinking,” he agreed. He slipped it into his breast pocket. “There goes my theory I suppose. Oh well.”

“eh, there’ll be others.” Tsuda grinned at him “…that looks like about it for in here, though. See anythin’ else you wanna poke about or should we call it a night?”

“No, I think we’ve got more than enough to chew on for the moment, don’t you?” he offered Tsuda his hand as he stood. “Hope’s End, and Project Atlantis.”

“Both soundin’ fuckin’ ominous as shit, too.” Tsuda took his hand and helped him up “….Got a lot to think about tonight, dunno how I’m gonna manage to even sleep.”

“If you think you’ll have trouble, I could offer to give you a back massage,” Shinya smirked a little as he started out of the room with Tsuda.
He glanced over to see his reaction.

Tsuda’s face flushed the slightest trace of pink around the various scars that criss-crossed it, and he coughed into his hand “well damn, ai-aint’ that an offer.”

Shinya’s smirk grew wider. “It certainly is. Feel free to consider it.”

“Hey, if you’re offerin’ I may take you up on it.” Tsuda said, smoothing his hair back as he walked. “If you’re bein’ serious, I mean.”

“You think I’m not being serious?” he teased.

“Maybe. I mean. I’d be out a back massage if ya weren’t, so I’m coverin’ all my bases here.” Tsuda smirked, his face still pink as they passed back out into the Mono/Mono store.

Shinya strolled with him, keeping an eye out just in case he happened to notice anything as they walked. “well! consider your bases covered, Tsuda-kun. I’m perfectly genuine.”
_Though not NOT teasing of course._

**Bing Bong Ding Dong** Went the intercom, followed by Monokuma’s voice as it chirped through the speakers.

“Helloooo everyone! It’s now **night time**, anyone still lingering about in the mall should scurry on home as it’s now **off limits**! Nighty Night, students!”

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck, looking up at the speaker first, and then at him “well. …a-alright, sure. Why the fuck not.” he shrugged “I’m tense. I could use a lil’ company.”

“Let’s hurry on to your room then, before Monokuma-san comes to harrass us while wearing a very adorable little security guard outfit or something.”

“Dunno about adorable.” Tsuda snickered “nothin’ looks cute on a bear, trust me.”

He pushed the door open, and walked out into the lobby with a shake of his head and an amused smile “but I wouldn’t put it past th’ guy.”

“Me either,” he chuckled. “Maybe I feel more in control if I call Monokuma adorable though, ne?”

“huh?” Tsuda cocked his head “whatcha mean by that?”

“Oh, you don’t follow?” he cocked his head. “I feel like… if you speak of something scary with language that diminishes it, it can change your perception, and make you feel more in control of the situation.”

Tsuda walked along beside him with a quiet “huh”

“ya know, I never thought of it like that. Real psychological stuff, but…ya got a point. It makes it, I dunno, less threatenin’ in your mind, right?”

“Exactly,” Shinya nodded. “He may be the avatar of our mysterious and faceless captors, but he’s also a fuzzy-wuzzle widdle bear with a funny voice yes he is.”
Shinya’s voice dropped into that tone one used when talking to a particularly troublesome cat.

Tsuda choked , he actually _choked_ with laughter as Shinya mocked Monokuma “holy _shit_, Shinya-kun!” 

“awww you weawy think so , uwu?” Came the voice from behind them “I’m a fuzzy-wuzzle widdle bear?”

“aw fuck, you summoned him.”  Tsuda whispered

Shinya smiled and kept his arm around Tsuda’s as he looked at the little bear. “Ah, Monokuma-san! Not ready to turn in for the night? Or do you only hybernate?”

Tsuda glanced over his shoulder. “I’d like ta know the same fuckin’ thing.”

“Bears never sleep, stupid!” Monokuma said “it’s part of our life cycle! We stay up for months on end and then die, painfully, of sleep deprivation before being replaced by the next bear! Obviously!”

“Ah of course,” Shinya nodded. “Like moths. What a shame, we’ll never see you in an adorbale pair of honey and bee patterned jim-jams.”

“I mean, if you _really want to_ there’s a calendar for sale in the Mono/Mono Shop.” Monokuma chirped “featuring _saucy pin ups_ of me in _all kinds of situations_. Maybe your wish’ll be granted there!”

“Oh my. Well, I’ll have to check tomorrow, since the shop’s closed, ne?”

“That’s right.” Monokuma waved his paws “you kiddos better scoot scoot back to bed! I’ve got a **big surprise** for tomorrow morning!”

“Good to know, Monokuma-san,” Shinya said with that same smile. “we’ll get to bed then. Good luck with your painful death from sleep deprivation.”

“Sweet dreams, my pwecious wittle students, uwuuuu,” Monokuma said as a panel opened in the wall and he **sloooowly** slid inside “furless wittle things, uguuu…..***”

And with that, he was gone.

“I fuckin’ hate that bear.” Tsuda muttered as the panel slid shut.

Shinya nodded in agreement. “I’d be pleased if he _did_ die of sleep deprivation. Oh well.”

“Guess it’s about time we head back to the room and try an’ prepare for whatever ‘big surprise’ the fucker’s got planned…” Tsuda frowned “tch, great. Looks like he’s got somethin’ up his sleeve.”

“We’ll definitely need to sleep as well we can then; well rested to take on this ‘fresh hot bullshit’, as they say.”

“That’s what they say. “Tsuda chuckled “…fuck, alright.”

He lead him down, back to the residential hall “…then we better get some rest.”

“Still interested in that massage?” he asked.

Tsuda leaned on his door as they came to it ‘ya know what? why not. I _am_ hopin’ for the best sleep I can get, and I’ve racked up a _lotta_ tension today.”

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

Not long after, the two of them were in Tsuda’s western themed room, laid out for a massage. Tsuda had stripped down to a tank top, stretching out as he glanced over his shoulder at Shinya “alright. Figure you probably wouldn’t want me in the jacket while we do this, right?”

HIs shoulders were scarred as his face, pale scars against tanned skin all down his arms and back.

“Yes, the less clothing there is the better it should feel,” Shinya chuckled. He glanced over Tsuda’s back, rather appreciatively as he laid down. 
A moment later, Shinya’s hands were on him– they were soft, his nails smooth and trimmed, and his fingers long. It seemed that he was also rather _good_ at the skill.

“where’d ya learn this, Shinya-kun?” Tsuda asked as he lay upon the bed, the tension being worked out from his shoulders and back. “You ain’t half bad.”

“Would you believe internet videos?” he offered, pressing his knuckles into the tense spots and rubbing downward. “I guess I couldn’t resist the idea of learning.”
It was true, too.

“huh.” Tsuda mused “I can believe it. It’s the kinda thing that comes in handy, that’s for damn sure.”

He grinned, half turning his head to look at him out of the corner of his eye “I’ll tell ya one thing…it feels great.”

Shinya, who was a little flushed, smiled at him, as he worked his hands up and down his scarred, muscular back. “Well, I’m very glad, I hope it’s relaxing.”
_Its not **exactly** relaxing to me,_  he thought to himself. _My my, Tsuda-kun **is** very handsome._

“Ain’t ever felt so relaxed in my life.” Tsuda said with a wink, a flush crossing his face as their eyes met. “heh. I’ll try helpin’ you out after but I don’t gotta lotta experience with massage.” 

He opened his mouth, about to continue when they were suddenly interrupted by the television flicking on by itself. “…the fuck?” 

A cheerful ditty began to play, as a pair of velvet curtains on the screen parted to reveal the title card 

**Monokuma THEATER**

“Oh dear, this again,” Shinya’s flushed smile slipped into a little pout, as he rubbed Tsuda down. “You didn’t see it last night?”

Tsuda shook his head. “I passed out…didn’t pay much attention to anythin’ but the inside of my eyelids.”

He watched with a frown as the segment started.

Accompanied by a cheerful , upbeat tune, Monokuma waddled his way out onto a stage filled with fake waves and cardboard sea monsters. 

“Have you ever looked out at the sea and wondered what’s out there?” He began , leaning on  a strut of wood likely meant to be the railing of a dock. “…I have. People tell me there’s nothing but **hope and potential** out there among the waves. That with the spirit of exploration and discovery we can find great things to _do_ great things.”

Shinya paused the massage, but kept his hands on Tsuda’s back as he carefully watched the message.
_Hope and potential…_

Tsuda watched with a puzzled expression as it continued. 

Monokuma turned his head, and a cardboard boat began floating off into the fake waves…only for a tentacle to lash out and smash it to pieces. “But if you ask me, they _really_ fail to account for the **despair** there is out in the unknown! I mean, who knows what’s out there, right? Despair, hope, they’re two sides of the same coin!”

He cackled “one without the other’s like peanut butter without the jelly! And these dumb idiots keep sailing out into the unknown thinking there’s sunshine and roses on the horizon, while tipping over the edge of the world and into a _monster’s gullet!_.” 

He turned, facing the camera with a shrug as the boat sunk behind him. “or maybe I’m wrong! Why the hell would I know? I’m just a _bear_ for fucks sake!” 

And with that, the screen shut off.

Shinya frowned. “I…. see. Last night it was an iceberg. Now its a kraken.”

“I guess they’re tryin’ to tell us to be ready for a sinkin’ ship, eh?” Tsuda laughed awkwardly.. “….huh.”

Shinya shook his head, and started to massage Tsuda’s back again. “They want our mind on disaster, certainly.”

“Not the biggest fan of that.” Tsuda drawled, even as he lay back on the bed. “…certainly ain’t gonna help my dreams tonight.”

“Mine either,” Shinya said with a sigh. “I suppose……no….”

Tsuda pressed his face into the bed with a low sigh, before he looked up with a weak smile “hey, ya mind if I just…pass out here for the night?”

“I was actually just about to ask if you minded if I stay over.”

Tsuda laughed, shaking his head “…well. you know what?” he shifted under him with a half smile “..I think that’d help me feel mighty comfy . Knowin’ I got someone to watch my back’ll do wonders.”

“I was thinking just the same,” he agree. He shed his jacket, and his shirt and shoes. “We can watch each other’s backs. And anyone who tries to creep in will get a surprise two for one deal.”

Tsuda laughed, and rolled out from under him. “I don’t think they’ll stand a chance.” He fell back to the pillows and stretched out on the bed. “…and tomorrow we’ll get ready for whatever the fuck that psycho’s got planned for us.”

“Well rested and ready to take on the bear, hmm?” he smiled and collapsed into the bed in the space that Tsuda made for him.

Tsuda tugged the covers up on them, as he leaned over to flick off the light. “Night partner. Let’s _bear_ it tomorrow, eh?”

Shinya wheezed, and curled up under the covers with him. “Grin and bear it, even. Night, partner.”

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

As the early morning light filtered in, and the world came into focus…Shinya was awoken all too suddenly by a blaring 

**DING DONG BING BONG**

“Students! Your beloved Captain-Principal has a **Special Surprise for you**. Please report to the ballroom **right away**! Any delays will be shocked with a cattle prod!” 

Beside Shinya, a heavy weight shifted, grunted in annoyance, and unburied itself from the covers beside him to resolve as a very tired looking Tsuda, his hair mussed and unbrushed “Fuck that bear.”

“I’d rather not,” Shinya murmured rousing from sleep. “Can we kill it instead?” he groped for his glasses.

He found them on Tsuda’s nightstand…right by a cow skull humorously topped by a cowboy hat. 

“I”m fuckin’ tempted.”

“Me too,” Shinya said. He blinked as he put his glasses on and murmured, “good morning, skull-san. Good morning, Tsuda-kun.”

“g’mornin’ Shinya-kun.” Tsuda said as he stretched out. “Guess we better get goin’ or he’ll come storming in with a bad comedy routine and a cattle prod.”

“I can’t handle that before I’ve had my coffee,” he said, climbing out of bed, his body sliding gently against Tsuda’s for a moment. “The comedy routine I mean.”

“Neither can I.” Tsuda grumbled “But it seems he’s not givin’ us any fucking choice, is he? Th’ bastard.”

He looked over at Shinya with a slight flush, but shifted to hop out of bed so he could grab one of the overshirts and pants from the closet.

“The utter asshole,” Shinya agreed. He hurried to dress in the same clothes as the night before. This early in the morning his charming smile wasn’t quite fixed in olace yet.

Tsuda threw his jacket over his shoulders, and brushed out his hair with a brush he’d left lying on the tv stand, looking at Shinya with a sly smile “so this is whatcha look like when you first wake up.’

“A terrible disappointment, I know,” he purred, fixing his hair with a run of his fingers through it.

“nah.” Tsuda chuckled “kinda charmin in it’s own way.” 

He offered him the brush if he wanted it.

Shinya took it gratefully, but his fine hair didn’t take much to fall back into place. “Well, I’m pleased you think so.. You too, Tsuda-kun. But, as soon as Monokuma-san’s shenangigan is over, I’m having a shower and some coffee.”

“why thank ya.” Tsuda purred. “and ya know what? Same. I’ll join ya for that coffee.”

“But not the shower?” he teased. Fully dressed, he offered Tsuda his hand.

Tsuda took his hand and winked “off to see the wizard?”

“we’ll see if we can find some ruby slippers on the way, but I’m not expecting much.”

“Yeah well, if ya find them remember to take me when ya head back to Kansas, eh?” 

He chuckled as they headed out into the hallway, seeing a number of other students filtering sleepily out as well.

“I imagine you’d fit in well there,” he said. He waved at people lazily as they made their way.

He got a few waves in return, but Miyuki was the closest to them

She glanced over with a thin smile “…good morning, Tsuda, Shinya.” She nodded her head. “shared a room? Not a bad strategy if you trust one another…safety in numbers and all that.” 

She looked noticably more tired than usual, with dark circles under her lidded eyes and a tenseness to her shoulders. “I imagine you’re also pretty concerned with this ‘big surprise’ ?”

“Can’t put anything past you, Miyuki-chan,” he nodded with a little smile. “Yes we did– and yes we are. I hope you don’t mind me saying so, but you don’t look like you slept well.”

“The damned bear.” She growled “told me that he was planning something when I went out to get a drink from the vending machine, and I couldn’t sleep a wink after that.”

“Sounds to me like a calculated attack,” Shinya mused.

“That’s exactly what I’ve been thinking.” Miyuki said, her fingers clenched around her monopad. “He was waiting for the opportunity to put me off guard and wreck my sleep schedule. Probably so I won’t be as _effective_ at countering whatever bullshit he’s planning.”

She grimaced “tch. I hate him.”

“You’re far from the only one who does,” Shinya nodded. “Sorry to hear he managed to get to you that way.”

“It’s…fine.” She murmured, keeping her tired eyes staring straight ahead “it won’t stop me from getting in the way of whatever this is.”

“I doubt much could, Miyuki-chan. Shall we find out what horror awaits?”

Miyuki shook her head “I doubt we have much choice….so  _let’s_”

Tsuda chuckled, rolling his shoulders as the small cluster of them came to the ballroom doors. “lemme get those.” He pushed them open and gestured with his other hand “After you.”

“What a gentleman,” Shinya purred. “Shall we?” he gestured for Miyuki to come in with them.

Miyuki snorted softly, brushing her hair over her ear as she walked inside with them “alright, fine…”

Tsuda followed them into the large ballroom , where everyone else was already gathered….it looked the same as the other day save for the grand stage, in which the mechanical music pit had primed itself to play and held itself in suspended animation.

“Looks like we should expect a serenade,” Shinya murmed as they approached and took their places.

Tsuda chuckled “i ain’t in the mood for a ballet, you know?”

That made Eriko snort from nearby “…no class…” 

The group sort of milled there…snippets of awkward and nervous conversation drifting in the air as they all waited for…whatever it was…Monokuma was planning.

Shinya glanced around at each of them, curious if anyone in particular was doing well or poorly.

“Roused us out of bed without so much as time for a coffee,” Goto was grumbling.

“Maybe he’s going to tell us doom’s canceled and we can all go home,” Momo said with a yawn.

Hayate seemed a little extra agitated , looking around awkwardly while hugging his coat around himself. “t-there aren’t even any energy drinks in the machine right now, I think he took them all out last night…” 

Morio was practically radiating a dark cloud. He was dressed, however, as perfectly regal as always , with his eyes locked upon the stage as he worked on sewing a small doll together. 

Tomo was tapping a pack of cigarettes on the back of his hand with a bored look in his vivid pink eye, a nonchalant little look on his face “eh, it ain’t gonna be bad. He’s probably just gonna whine about us not doin’ any murders or anythin’.” 

Chitose was sitting upon the floor, looking up at the ceiling with a vacant look in her eyes and a small pout. But she looked more _in thought_ than anything.

Yo frowned. “He took the energy drinks out of the machines? what would he even do that for?”

“Obviously because he doens’t think he’s pissed us off enough yet,” Masako hissed.

Sadahiro held his hands up “I mean, look, it’ll b-be okay right? we’ll get coffee after this and everything’ll be fine!”

“….” Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “I guess if ya wanna get a bunch of overachieving high school kids in a tizzy , ya take away their caffeine.”

“I have to agree, it seems to be working,” Shinya nodded.

Ryota didn’t even look like he was _functioning_ half sagged over.

Chitose looked up at Ryota with a pout “….do you need to lean on someone?”

He regarded her nervously. “…sure?” he mumbled.

Chitose stood, and offered her shoulder to him…she was shorter, but if he leaned he would be able to at least prop himself up.

Tsuda looked at his wrist, not finding a watch “Monokuma’s sure taking his sweet ass time.”

It was like a switch. Like a magic word summoning the bear himself . 

**click** went the lights, all turning off at once.

As the class began to panic in the darkness, the strains of a waltz came playing from the now invisible stage, drifting through the room and drowning out the anxious murmurs and yelps of surprise.

“Here’s the serenade,” Shinya said–on alert, but not _exactly_ surprised. Still, he kept ahold of Tsuda’s hand.

Tsuda squeezed his hand tighter “…here we go…”

Miyuki hissed in the darkness, taking a step back and bumping into Shinya in the dark “…..what is this? another one of those stupid monokuma theaters?”

Spotlights flared, and spilled upon the stage, where the musicians cast long shadows upon the velvet backdrop, and Monokuma stood in the center of it all, beaming that eternal, serrated grin at them with a cock of his head. “Hello and welcome, welcome, **welcome** to our show!”

“Well, it commands attention anyway,” Tomoyo murmured.

The waltz played around them as Monokuma clapped his paws together. 

“I bet you’re all wondering what I’ve got planned for you today! well..”
 Monokuma cocked his head “you spent yesterday having **so much fun** and being **so buddy buddy** that I thought ‘gee, am I doing something wrong?’ “

“Yeah!” Tomo called out from the darkness “you fucking _suck_ at this murder game shit, bro, you should quit!”

“Give me one look at who’s pulling your strings and we’ll have a murder, bear!” Masako called, perhaps egged on by Tomo.

Shinya sighed. _Oh dear. This is going to get ugly, isn’t it?_

Morio hissed from the shadows as well “You’re nothing but a poorly made puppet. I agree, give us the one pulling the strings.” 

Spurred on by the general rumbling of discontent…the dissent…Eriko spoke up “I’ll wring their neck with my bare hands! _watch me_!” 

“wow…you guys sure are violent.” Monokuma sagged “and **cruel**…and after I spent all day thinking about what was missing…”

He sighed, and dropped a rock onto the stage and **kicked it**. 

Sadahiro shouted, and there was the sound of him tumbling into someone with a yelp. “ow! why??” 

“A **motive!!!!** You can’t have a massacre without a motive! I mean, that’s the stuff of prime time crime thrillers, not real life!”

Naoki reached down to try to help Sadahiro up. “Are you okay?” he murmured.

“So you don’t think this whole scenario is motive enough,” Tomoyo said. “Huh.”

“I’m alright. ” Sadahiro replied in a quiet whimper “He kicked a rock into my head.” 

“Clearly not, given how you’re all still so **buddy fucking buddy** over here! I mean, the things i’ve seen…the _things_. I’ve. Seen.” Monokuma griped. “Hand holding! Hugs! Girl on Girl Stares of Intense Longing! Skinny dipping! **BACK MASSAGES AND SLEEPOVERS**, ugh! It’s enough to make a bear puke blood! You guys are so lovey dovey it’s almost **toxic**.” 

Eriko make a choking sound from nearby at the whole speech

“Huh? You guys had a sleepover and didn’t invite me?” Momo pouted.

Shinya sighed again. _Well, so much for making things bearable. I suppose I should have known better._

“who had a sleepover?” Hayate squeaked “l-lucky!!” 

“that’s not the POINT you idiots!” Monokuma roared. “you know what though? You’re all playing nice when you don’t even **KNOW ONE ANOTHER** , none of you do! If you knew the kinds of people you were shacking up with well…”

He began to laugh “upupupupupupupu….why don’t we just find out?”

“What do you mean, f-find out?” Naoki asked with wide eyes.

“I’m sure he’ll tell us,” Tomoyo drawled.

Miyuki huffed, her arms crossing in irritation as Monokuma shouted through the ballroom “…what? You’re going to spill whatever skeletons in the closet we may or may not have to try and convince us to panic?”

“…oh, **I’m** not going to!” Monokuma said “I’ve invited a few **spectral** guests to our little class celebration…and they’ve got a **lot** to say.”

Lights in the ceiling began to flicker, before spilling lines of multicolored light down from above…and slowly, holographic human forms began appearing all around them. 

They took all sorts of shapes. Men, women, children, adults… but what was clear was that it had a reaction. A few scattered gasps, a noise of distress…

And Shinya recognized a face among the crowd , dancing slowly beside someone who looked nearly identical to Hayate. 

It was Inspector Karuma, of the SIU, her severe bob cut short around her shoulders as she turned to look at him…dead in the eyes…with a slim smile and a cool, crimson-eyed stare. 

“My guests will have full reign of this floor of the ship.” Monokuma said cheerfully. “And they’ve got a **lot** to say about each and every one of you! The only way to shut them up before the secret’s out…well…”

His red eye began to glow. “you know what to do. Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock…time’s ticking away, kiddos. It’s only a matter of time until you’re _all_ laid **bear**. Every sin and tragedy!”

Shinya grimaced. _Ah. So that’s his plan. Its blackmail. Well…. someone’s probably going to die. Its doubtful that anyone will be able to convince everyone to share their secrets._

“No way, ghosts?” Shiba asked with eyes wide. “Come on you can’t be serious!”

“He seems deadly serious,” Tomoyo grimaced. “Wonderful.”

Miyuki grimaced, recoling away as her eyes fell upon a young man with mussed black hair and a pair of thick glasses. She’d gone pale in the flickering light…but not nearly as pale as when she glanced over and saw Inspector Karuma “Sis…what…no…I…” 

Her eyes flicked back to the boy, and she took a few steps away “this is insanity.”

Chitose’s eyes were wide from where she stood, stock still and shaking as her haunted expression fell upon an older woman in a labcoat and hair the same color as hers. She had lines around the corners of her eyes…and her expression was harsh and unyielding. 

Around them, people began to bunch inwards against the ghosts…but as Monokuma’s words set in, there was a buzzing of anxious energy….of **discord** that began to hum it’s way through the group. 

Eriko screamed when she saw a young woman with curly brown hair and a winner’s smile, and Sadahiro began to sweat the moment a man in a stark suit and thin framed glasses danced by, his voice dying in his throat. 

“I can see you’re all worried.” Monokuma purred “So I’ll let you stew in that…you’ll see my friends around, don’t worry. Can’t keep them away for long ~~” 

The lights snapped off…and he vanished from the stage. 

“D-dammit.” Tsuda hissed as a man in an open vest and high collared shirt danced by “..fuck. This can’t be happenin.”

Tomoyo stepped to the front of the group as Monokuma vanished, her own expression clouded. “Okay _look_,” she said, commandingly. “There’s an easy way to defeat this motive you realize.”

Someone danced past her. A young man with curly sand-colored hair and slightly tan skin, his eyes a brilliant pink and **staring daggers** at Tomoyo as he passed. He wore a school uniform with a magic sigil pinned to the collar…and his eyes didn’t leave hers as he moved past. 

Tomo, shockingly, reacted to the figure with a sharp gasp. “K-Kenji?” 

Chitose tore her eyes from the older woman and looked at Tomoyo “…to share our secrets, right Tomoyo-yo-yo…?” she managed in a quiet squeak.

Tomoyo found herself taking a step back from the figure. Sweating a little she nodded. “Y-yeah. That would take all the wind out of Monokuma’s sails here….”

Shinya notice the interaction. _She certainly doesn’t sound as gung ho about that as she did before. Now, here’s the big question…. do I volunteer to share?_

Miyuki took a few steadying breaths “….We should…” her eyes flicked to the dark haired boy “…share. It’s important to shatter the motive.”

“l-l…” Hayate whimpered, as his twin stared at him with an expression of contempt ” uhm…I …well…I …ah…”

Sadahiro shook his head vehemently “n-no. No I’m not…I …I didn’t do anything. I’m not …I just… I need some fresh air, e-excuse me.. I…”

“Like hell you’re goin’ anywhere!” Tomo snarled “we’re trapped here. And I wanna hear what _all about_ what you sick fucks mighta done. I gotta share space with you, I ain’t letting you all worm outta this!” 

A spectral pale young woman with dandelion-soft white hair looked at Morio with unfocused eyes as he stepped back, and turned “Goodbye, You’re all painfully dull now.” 

Eriko whimpered, and hid her face “I don’t want to, Miyuki-chan, Tomoyo-chan, forgive me.”

“Y-yeah, I’m gonna go make breakfast guys, feel free to show up at the kitchen in a bit for some,” Shiba said, heading for the door.
“Coffee, I need coffee,” Ryota mumbled, slinking away as well.

Shinya sighed, and looked at Tsuda, gauging how nervous he looked. _I suppose there won’t be a better time._

Sadahiro shoved his way past Chitose, who stumbled a bit and fell to her knees with a quiet sob, and hurried out the room. 
Eriko left with clipped steps behind him as Morio vanished. 

Tsuda looked…concerned. Anxious. His eyes were focused on the man in the partially open shirt and vest…a man with tattoos peeking out along his shoulders. But he shook it off and shoved his way over to the sobbing Chitose, and bent down to gently help her up “hey, hey, there there Chitose-chan, it’s gonna be alright.”

Hayate hugged himself tightly, and looked at Miyuki and Tomoyo with a kind of quiet desperation as Miyuki glanced over at her sister’s specter instead of the dark haired young man. 

“…”

“Is NOBODY going to tell me why my fucking _DEAD BROTHER_ is there?” Tomo shrieked, hand going to the back of his skirt, to a small bag “Because he sure as hell ain’t here for ME!” 

“The same reason my sister’s here.” Miyuki snapped at him. “because he’s here for someone else.”

Shinya finally stepped to the front of the group with a few quick strides. “Indeed…. it appears that all of us are more involved than it would appear. I’d like to help puzzle this out– and I think Tomoyo had a good idea, even if she seems a little spooked now, ne?”

Tomoyo swallowed, and looked at Tomo. “I…. I’m not sure it _was_ as good an idea as I thought.”

Tomo had the handle of what looked like a large box cutter clutched between his fingers as they rested behind his back. “why’s that, Tomoyo-chan?” He asked with a twitch of his smile “ya got some kind of reason to be spooked?” 

Miyuki interjected herself between Tomoyo and Tomo, her eyes hard as she held her hand up “I sentenced a young man to death” She spat. “for a crime he didn’t commit. It wasn’t on purpose…I genuinely believed he’d done the crime he was accused of, but I used…shaky evidence…to secure the verdict.”

She pointed to the dark haired boy dancing in the corner “he’s dead because of me, and It’s my fault and DAMN IT if I’m going to let the BEAR turn my crushing guilt into a weapon against me!”

“Here here!” Shinya called. “And I’m not any more amnesiac than the rest of you, ne? I’ve been trying to protect my secret identity as the Puzzler.”

Masako blink. “Excuse me?”

Goto had been in the middle of trying to slip out of the room, but paused at the door, watching the turn of the discussion.

Tsuda looked over at him with a raise of his eyebrows “that…guy on TV? the…fuckin’ tricky son of a bitch who’s been tormentin’ the rich and powerful? That’s you?”

Hayate’s eye widened. “…o-oh  _geeze_. I thought he was like…some kind of mystery group, you know?  A bunch of guys in the same mask..” 

Miyuki stared at him with a thin smile “…well that explains my sister. She’s been talking endlessly about how she’s been trying to bring you down…”

Chitose looked up from the ground, cocking her head “The Puzzler…gosh…You…you were hiding it, Shinya-ya-ya?”

Shinya sighed and gave a flourishing bow. “I was. I had hoped to preserve my anonymity, but, well it was important at thsi point to drop the act. My apologies for deceiving you all– and yes, Hayate-chan. I’m just one guy.”

“oh.” he said limply, his eye cast downwards “d-do we all have to go now?”

Tomo hissed “you better, so I know who to fuckin’ **have a little chat with**.” The click of the boxcutter cut through the air. 

“Now ain’t the time for that kinda shit!” Tsuda snapped at Tomo “put the kiddie knife away and calm the fuck down, pretty boy, or I’ll make ya calm down!”

Miyuki gave Shinya a look that said ‘we’ll talk later’, before she nodded. “We need to remain calm…this is what Monokuma wants, after all. “

“Well I’ll be damned if I’m going to let the bear hold some bullshit over me,” Masako said, stepping forward. She pointed at Shinya.”You’re a creep. Anyway, you all already know I’m an assassin. I’m also…. also….” she started to flush, hestitating and choking up as it came time to actually say it.

Tsuda glanced at her with a raise of his eyebrow “…go on, ain’t nobody gonna judge ya.” 

One of the spectres, a slightly rough looking man in a suit, gave her a wiggle of his eyebrows.

Masako covered her face with her hands and leaned in. “Tsuda-kun…. could you help me please?”

“Well this is getting interesting,” Goto murmured.

Tomoyo, meanwhile, was looking more and more uncomfortable.

Tomo hissed softly, his eyes snapping around between everyone before falling on Tomoyo’s increasing anxiety with a glare. “you?” 

Chitose squirmed, tears flowing down her face and mussing her makeup as she kept silent…and Hayate simply watched with a grimace, shifting from foot to foot. 

But Tsuda leaned in, and nodded “i’ll help ya, Masako-chan.”

Masako leaned in and whispered something to Tsuda, before covering her face again.

Tomoyo held her hands up. “Lets… let Masako finish,” she murmured.

Tsuda turned pink, rubbing the back of his neck “well damn, that ain’t nothing to be ashamed of, hon.”

He cleared his throat “Masako here sometimes moonlights as a _lady of the evenin’_ in addition to pullin’ hit jobs.” 

Hayate turned a bright crimson, and nearly stumbled over “oh _w-w-wow._ uhm, well hey, that’s real cool!” he stammered out. 

“Lady of the evening…” Chitose asked in her sleepy, tear-choked little voice. 

“Hooker. Paid escort.” Tomo said with a wave of his hand “Same shit I do but the next level up.”

Masako turned bright red and turned around, covering her face. “…y-yes. Anyway, I can’t think of anytthing else the bear would try to hold over my head.”

“Well, Masako-chan I agree, nothing to be ashamed of,” Shinya said. “Who’s next?”

“Me,” Tomoyo said with a leaden tone.

Tomo’s eyes fell on her “alright, Fine. I’m listenin’.”  he said in a low, dangerous tone.

She flipped her eyepatch up, and confronted everyone with the reality of her injury. “A ‘fan’ who had a grudge against me sent a bomb to me. Along with a suicide note.”

“And that’s your secret?” Shinya asked, slightly confused.

“It would have been a scandal that impacted my career,” Tomoyo said in the same leaden tone.

Tomo’s eyes widened slightly, staring at the scarred surface of her face and her missing eye. “…he sent a bomb to you…”
 
His eyes began to tear up, and he grimaced, showing the slightly sharp points of his teeth as he began to cry. “nobody…nobody said anything about that. Just that…just the fucking suicide note. why the fuck would Kenji send a bomb??”

“He was in one of my game groups online,” she said dully. “His character died. It was during competitive play. He took it hard. I’m sorry.”

“Oh my…” Shinya put a hand on Tomo’ shoulder. “There there….”

Tomo pressed his hand , the knife still held in his palm, to his face with a low whine under his breath “….over a fucking _game_. Kenji-chan, what the **fuck** were you thinking…” he sniffed, taking a deep breath . 
“….”

He bowed low “I’m s-sorry for threatenin’ ya. And I’m so…sorry for my brother’s actions. W-with th’ bomb. I’m sorry. That shit..I shoulda been a better brother and stopped it from happenin’.” 

Still, he looked tense…like he’d been robbed some kind of vengence. “thanks for sayin’ somethin’.”

Tomoyo sighed and flipped her eyepatch down, offering Tomo her hand. “Thank you for understanding. I would never—” her voice hitched. “Your brother’s death affected me deeply.”

“Fucked her up, I’m guessing,” Masako said quietly.

Tomo took her hand with a weak smile, shaking it firmly “…yeah. Me too… that’s two of us fucked up by my idiot fuckin’ brother, Tomoyo-chan.”

He closed his eyes “…when I inevitably fucking die, I’m gonna kick him in the fuckin’ nuts.”

Tomoyo squeezed his hand gently as she shook it. She made a soft noise at his last statement. “Well…. lets try to make sure that takes a long time. Anyone else want to clear the air?”

Hayate was hiccuping “uhm m-m0m…mm..mmm…” he stammered awkwardly  as he stood on shaking legs “Mmmfgfngld.”

His twin was staring at him with a look of absolute disgust on his face.

“…is Hayate-chan fuckin’ havin’ a stroke?” Tomo asked, looking over his shoulder as he wiped the makeup running down his face with the back of his hand.

Shinya chuckled and strode over to Hayate, putting his hand on Hayate’s shouler. “Would you like me to tell them?” he asked, rather gently.

Hayate stared at him with a widened eye “…you KNOW???”

“Since the pool, I’m afraid,” he nodded. “I’m not the SHSL Puzzler for nothing, Hayate-chan.”

Goto was still watching from the door like this was some prime time drama.

Tsuda rubbed the back of his neck “Since the pool? What do ya mean by that?”

“…..” Hayate sniffled, wiping at his eye “….y-yeah, alright. Sure. G-go for it. It’s not like it’s…it’s not…”

“Were we in class rather than on a ship, Hayate-chan would be in gym class with Miyuki-chan and Tomoyo-chan,” Shinya said, putting it delicately.

“Huh?” Masako blinked. “….Oh.”

Hayate winced visibly. 

Miyuki looked over at Hayate and closed her eyes “ah. Well. I suppose that makes sense.”

“I…I..” Hayate squeaked. “we-…well..”

Hayate’s twin  danced by, and from the hidden speakers in the room a slightly deeper voice spoke. “ugh. Thanks for nothing Kotomi-chan.” he said “you can’t even keep a fucking secret, can you?” 

Hayate tensed, looking over their shoulder at the twin as he leaned closer.

 “That’s why nobody expects jack shit from you, little miss anti-charisma.” 

“B-but I’ve been tryin’  Hayate-kun, I have been..” they said with a furrow of their eyebrows. “I’ve been doing my best, you know! I even.. Bro, I even ….even…” their hand went to the eyepatch on their face “so I…you know…could look more like you, just like ya wanted!” 

“I’ve seen enough of this.” Tomo hurled his knife through the air, and it cut through the hologram, disrupting it enough to break whatever illusion it was having as it sunk into the stage. “Fuck off, ghost bitch, and leave my pal here alone!”  

The hologram flickered, and snapped off. “fuckin’ piece of shit.”  Tomo sniffed, and rubbed under his nose. “Whatever’s goin’ on, that kinda shit ain’t gonna fly around Tornado Tomo.”

Masako pointed at where the hologram had been  the hologram as well. “Ignore it. That’s no ghost, its just some stupid recording created by a person who hides behind a cartoon bear.”

“Agreed,” Goto said suddenly, striding back fully into the room. “And I’m not about to be bullied by a hologram. I see I’m in…. good company when it comes to secrets.”

Hayate sniffled, looking at the place where the hollogram was “…that was my brother.” They murmured, “he’s dead. And I… uhm…”

They rubbed their arm “…a-anyway. Yeah. Next person I guess.”

Hayate sagged until they were sitting on the ground and looking up at Goto “you too..?”

Goto sniffed. “Not…. exactly. But my condolences regarding your brother. What should we call you from now on?”

“Well, this is the nicest we’ve seen from Goto-san yet,” Shinya said quietly to Tsuda.

Tsuda nodded slowly, his eyes lidded “yeah.” He whispered “same…” 

Hayate rubbed the back of their neck “uhm, w-well.. I mean..Hayate-kun’s dying command was that I continue his legend.” 
They bit their lip “my parents agreed…he…he was the one with the real potential.” 

“For fuckin’ _crane games_? Were your parents on _crack_?” Tomo asked with a snort. 

“…..” They laughed awkwardly. “Kotomi…I suppose…is…is…fine. f-for now…but…I’ve been kind of hoping to change it to som…somethin’ a little more gender neutral. Or I _had_ been before I…you know…”

They seemed to be a little out of sorts, in kind of a quiet panic.

Tomoyo nodded. “As a DM I have to say, that kind of last wish seems tailor made to drive someone crazy. Your parents were out of line too.”

Shinya smiled. “I have to agree. But we can talk about about that later, ne? I think Goto-san and Chitose-chan wanted to share too, ne?”

Kotomi…Hayate…they simply sat back down on the ground and ran their hands through their hair with a weak smile “u…uh huh. Y-yeah. For later.”

Tsuda raised his hand “me too, but mine ain’t all that special.”

Shinya smiled at ‘Hayate’  compassionately. _Well there will be time for that later._.

“Well then,” Goto snorted. “Do you want to get it out of the way?”

‘Hayate’ gave him a weak smile. 

Tsuda nodded “Yeah, well. Alright. I work for the Yakuza. A lil’ extortion, a little robbery. Killed a guy ’cause he was gonna rat out the boss to a cop once. General…odd jobs…and all that shit. “

The slight grimace that crossed his face for the briefest moment spoke to a few moments he wasn’t proud of, despite his lax, lazy delivery.

“I knew I liked you,” Masako said, sticking her tongue out.

Shinya smiled a little deviously. “Oh my.”

Tsuda smiled at them, giving each of them a coy wink “yeah. I got that outlaw mystique, just like you Masako-chan.” 
he chuckled “…glad you understand too, Shinya-kun.” 

“oh.” Chitose said, blinking her big eyes “Yakuza.”

Miyuki stared him down with a cool stare. “Delightful. I’ll…figure out what to do with that information later.”

Goto sidled up to Tsuda as well and drew himself up. “I think you’d best _decide_ that you’re unconcerned, Karuma-san. Given the nature of our current situation, what’s more important? The law, or trusting one another? Think _carefully_ before you answer.”

Miyuki pinched the bridge of her nose “…….” 
She sighed out a deep breath “Goto-san. I was being **delicate**. ” she waved her hand “When I say I’ll figure out what to do with that information later I mean I’ll _ fucking deal with it later_. I’m not going to the police…_what police are here?_, I’m just going to take _note_ of it.” She waved her notebook at him “I take notes on _everything_. ” 

She sniffed, and turned her nose up “obviously trusting one another is most important. I just want the most accurate picture of everyone I can. The **truth** . It’s a lesson my younger self learned all too harshly and I don’t intend to forget it.”

“I hope you’ll forgive me for wanting to be clear on that,” he said dryly. “Given that I’ve been engaging in blackmail in exchange for obtaining research grants.”

“Good to know.” Miyuki marked it down in her notebook. “I honestly don’t care. we have an officiated assassin slash hooker here. A yakuza sharpshooter, a blackmailer, a walking disturbance of the piece, and who knows what else. You’re my classmates first and foremost, and half of you are _literally authorized_ by Hope’s Peak. So…”

She waved her hand towards Goto “Don’t blackmail me, and we’re fine. Sorry about your research grants.”

Chitose bit her lip “I understand having to d-do that sort of thing for research money…”

Goto nodded. “Indeed. On to the next poor soul then.”

Tomo waved his hand “I’ll go. It ain’t shit compared to some of you guys, but…” 

He shrugged his shoulders “I steal from my clients. Like, a lil’ thing most of the time unless they’re a real bastard. But one guy.”

He pointed his lacquered finger towards a snake-like man with slicked back hair “I absolutely fuckin’ destroyed him by stealin’ something precious.”

Shinya raised his eyebrows, looking at the man. “Well, he _does_ look like a villain in a manga, anyway.”

“Heh.” Tomo grinned with his arms crossed “He sure fuckin’ was. I’ll tell ya about him sometime…but he got what he fuckin’ deserved. Anyway, that’s me. No good thief, Tornado Tomo. Hottest paid date in Tokyo.”

Shinya nodded. “Good then, well done.” He smirked, feeling in good enough company as the Puzzler

Tsuda chuckled “huh, I think I mighta heard about that, actually. Now that I think ’bout it.” 

“am I the only one left?” Chitose whispered, looking up at them from where she sat near the stage.

Shinya turned to her and nodded. “I’m afraid so, Chitose-chan.”

“Oh relax, I doubt you’ve done anything worse than anyone else here,” Goto grumbled.

Chitose winced. “…..” 

Her eyes flicked to the side, and the clownish , lazy smile was all but absent from her face. “….”

Slowly she stood and took a deep breath before she whispered. “I wasn’t always the SHSL Clown….I…attended Hope’s Peak Elementary and was trained in a different field by my mother and father.”

Masako cocked her head curiously. “A different field?”

“I was set to be the SHSL Virologist. I was a scientist.” She said with a cock of her head and a serious , sad look in her eyes. “I created viruses , varients and strains, cures…. all before I was officially enrolled in Hope’s Peak Academy.”

“another scientist? I don’t see what’s so secret or troubling as that.” Miyuki said , tapping her finger on her elbow “which says **something else** must have happened to make you quit, and take on a new field.”

Goto looked at her with surprise. “You’re a scientist? Why then– ah. Hmm.”

Shinya nodded. “I’m certainly going to guess it wasn’t a decision by your parents, ne? for you to change fields?”

Chitose tilted her head to the side, the makeup running down her face. “It wasn’t. They aren’t in the position to make any decisions for me anymore.”

She glanced at the severe woman with the labcoat in the spectral crowd “they’re dead. I created something terrible, because I was a gifted child trying to do good, and it killed them and numerous others when it escaped the family lab. You may have heard of the Towa Quarantine Massacre.”

Miyuki’s eyes widened, and she made a sudden, choked noise. 

It was ‘Hayate’ who spoke up “…the incident in which an entire apartment complex was put in isolation due to some disease outbreak and wound up…”

“yes.” Chitose whispered. “I faked my death after that, and reinvented myself as Chitose” She put her shaking fingers to her cheeks “SHSL clown. Someone who can’t hurt anyone ever again.” 

Suddenly, Shinya remembered the photograph of the sad looking girl who looked like Chitose …the one he found of the elementary students.

Shinya frowned. “Ah. Chitose-chan…” he reached out and put a hand on her shoulder.

Tomoyo immediately pointed at Chitose. “Okay you were a _literal child_ and something like that is _not_ your fault.”

Chitose leaned her head against Shinya’s wrist, her eyes half closed as she sighed. “I created it.” She said quietly “Even if I was a child, I was a child with responsibilities…” 

‘Hayate’ bit their lip “….I …I still don’t think it was your fault.” Something in their expression said they had more to say…there was a strange familiarity there, but they didn’t continue to press, falling silent. 

Tsuda hissed through his teeth “…damn, I wouldn’t have guessed it.”

“Tch. You were a virologist, not a safeties expert,” Goto grumbled. “Its regrettable, but accidents happen in science”

“Yes,” Shinya sighed. He squeezed Chitose’s shoulder. “Well, no one is going to hold it over your head now. It’s nice that we’ve all come clean with one another, ne?”

“Yeah…” Chitose agreed quietly “now the bear can’t …twist our secrets against us.” 

Miyuki nodded “yes…while not everyone has, we have time to convince them…thus rendering this motive obsolete.”

Tomo rubbed the back of his neck “yeah, provided people don’t fuckin’ snap before we manage it.”

Chitose spoke up “…..party. Pool Party…like we talked about. Something t…to cheer people up and keep their minds off their secrets.”

“Hmm?” Shinya cocked his head, and then smiled. “Ah, yes the party. Chitose-chan i right, this is the perfect time for it.”

Tomoyo frowned a little bit and stroked her chin, but didn;t say anything to the contrary.

“O-oh yeah!” Hayate squeaked , hopping up with a smile “I can wheel in one of the fighting games from the mall if we wanna have a competition too! I mean…games, a pool party, some talent shows…drinks…with enough distraction we can loosen everyone up until we manage to..you know….get them to help us break the motive!”

Shinya chuckled. “I have to agree. That sounds like a fine way to soften everyone up a bit.”

Chitose nodded slowly “..yes.” She whispered, her eyes still haunted even as she smiled at them. “exactly.”

Tomo pumped his fist with a grin “hell yeah! Count me in. I’ll spread the word around, alright?” 

Running his hand through his hair, Tsuda nodded “…yeah, I mean, if nothin’ else it’s a good way to keep an eye on folks.”

“To keep an eye on things, yes,” Tomoyo nodded. “Hopefully tempers won’t spill over.”

“That’s my hope…”  Chitose said, bobbing her head in thought. “People should try and run damage control on those who left in a huff…”

Miyuki glanced at Tomoyo “Do I have your help in that, Tomoyo-chan?” she asked “I agree with her, it’s important.”

Tomoyo nodded. “Of course. I was thinking the same thing.”

“I’d be happy to help with that as well,” Shinya said.

“Likewise.” Tsuda nodded “I’m gonna chat with a few folks today, see if I can calm ’em down some.”

Shinya nodded. “We should make it our mission. between the lot of us, I’m sure we can manage.”

There was a group consensus…an agreement to do their best to make things work out and break the motive…and the group slowly dispersed, leaving Tsuda and Shinya with the field of ghosts. “…well.” Tsuda said “looks like it’s gonna be a busy fuckin’ day.”

“Looks like,” shinya said, leaning slightly against him. “Lets meet up at the end of the day again.”

Tsuda leaned back with a nod “Sounds like a plan to me. Same place?”

“Works for me, partner,” he said with a smile. “And ah, another apology. For the deception.”

“eh, it’s alright.” Tsuda shook his head “… I mean, I dunno why ya hid it, but I forgive ya.”

He smiled “long as you forgive me for bein’ a gangster and a sportsman.”

“Nothing there to forgive. I suppose we’re both on the wrong side of the law, hmn?”

“looks like.” Tsuda smirked “I knew I liked you, Shinya-kun. We’ve got some in common.”

“I’d have to say the same,” he said, his smile like a slice of the moon. “Now, we’d better see about our more tempermental friends…”

“Yeah, we can talk more about you and your Puzzler thing later. ” Tsuda winked “….we got some classmates to wrangle.”

“Later, Tsuda-kun,” he said, giving him a flourishing bow. He went off to track down some students.

Tsuda saluted him…and headed off the other way.

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Mono/Mono Machine Start**

“Well, lets see what we can shake out of this thing now, hmm?” he checked his monopad, to see if his coin total had gone up.

it had, it seemed for both his investigation the day before, and as a ‘daily allowance’ he’d gotten a number more coins.

“Interesting,” he mused. He put the device into the machine and pulled the lever.

He heard a cheerful jingle, and down tumbled a ball containing a slip of paper reading

**Sailor Sukeban Suit**

_Stolen from the set of the hit mashup magical girl and sukeban serial ‘Justice Biker Minako’ , this sailor uniform and matching helmet and crowbar will make you feel like you’re ready to kick some ass, flash some panties, and magically transform your way into the violent punk of your dreams!

Stand up against injustice, stomp on the balls of the opposition, and grab your magical crowbar and assault rifle…because it’s time to get MAGICALLY MALICIOUS_

“Well,” Shinya mused. “I think I know a few people who’d enjoy this. BUt I’m almost tempted to wear it myself.”

He went for another pull.

Down came another ball, tumbling down to the slot below.

It opened to a slip of paper reading

**The Whip of Law and Order**

_This heavy leather whip holds the power of perfect victory. Perfect Poise. Perfect bearing in the court room. Wherever Evidence becomes shaky, it’s whipped into shape. Whenever witnesses quiver, this whip snaps them to attention. The tool was once used by the SIU’s Top Prosecutor in her attempts to purge corruption from the very system itself.

But can you handle it? can you wield the whip with the uptmost authority? or are you a fool, who’ll crumple under it’s power?_

“Oh dear,” he murmured. “Well. Well well.”

He went for another try, assuming he had the coins.

The coins ticked down…but he absolutely had enough for another roll.

Down came another ball, and this one opened to another slip of paper. 

**The Haunted Dolls of The Forgotten Village**

_Said to be created by a dollmaker in Hokkaido, this ancient doll is said to carry the soul of a forgotten noblewoman. Though it’s body is scarred and marred by age and neglect…the mechanisms of this work of art are in perfect condition, and it retains a sense of life even now.

Careful…for it’s said the curse of the doll may fall upon you if you disturb her slumber… 

TOO BAD FOR YOU, LMAO_

“Perfect, I was planning to see Morio after all,” he mused. “I don’t have anything for Sadahiro though…. Lets try again.”

Down tumbled another item

**The Swingtime 3000**

_this pen. this PEN. This space age pen is the stuff of secretarial dreams. It’s the kind of thing that gets CEO’s dancing on tables, and mail clerks hot and bothered.  

Can it write upside down? yep. In space? Hot damn yes. In **four different ink colors**? you bet your sweet TIE it can! This pen can do it all ! And Let me stop you before you ask ‘if it’s so great, can it blow me?’ because you KNOW it can!_

“Ah! Lucky get!” he declared with a smile.

“Now I think I’m equipped for the afternoon.”

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Free Time Event 1 (Side Shinya) Start!**

Shinya had stopped in his room for a quick change before he chased down Morio- and was now wearing his Puzzler costume, minus the mask, which he brought with him in his bag.

He found Morio humming as he worked away at one of his dolls in the depths of the cafeteria. In the furthest seat from the door. He ignored the sound of the door opening as his needle passed in and out of delicate doll parts, binding them together.

“Good afternoon, dollmaker,” Shinya purred. He lurked by the door, arms crossed.

Morio jerked, and looked up with a sharp hiss of breath “I don’t want company right no…”

He stared at Shinya with lidded, long lashed eyes “…what is that outfit?”

He gave a deep bow with a flourish of his hat. “My secret. Morio-san I owe you an apology.”

“…your secret is that you have a terrible fashion sense?” Morio asked with a serious , hard stare.

He pouted. “Aw, Morio-san…. you’ve never heard of the Puzzler?”

“The…puzzler.” Morio stares at him “…the notorious Puzzler. That is you?” 

He sighs, and puts down his needle “…then I suppose the amnesia, as I suspected, was a ruse.’

He pulled out his mask and held it up to his face. “I’m afraid so.”

“…..” Morio huffed, looking back down at his doll. “I understand why you’d keep it a secret.”

“I’m pleased that you do understand, ne?” he said, coming nearer. “But the stakes have raised considerably, so… I have dropped the act.”

“I imagine it was taken well by the other fools who lingered with the spirits of the dead.” Morio said in a slow, careful tone

“well enough,” he said. “We all had a little heart to heart.”

“It sounds …” Morio closed his eyes “exhausting. But I’m glad it helped.”

“It helped ease everyone’s minds I think,” he agreed. “Everyone who was there, anyway.”

“I hope you don’t expect me to open up and reveal my deepest self to you.” Morio got back to work “i’m a private man.”

“I understand,” he said. “Actually, when you think about it, revealing your secrets protects others, not you, ne?”

“That’s right.” Morio agreed “I’ve lived with my secrets in silence for a long, long time.” 

he sewed the arm onto the doll “…and nothing would come of revealing it now.”

“I suppose you might feel better,” he offered. “But I won’t twist your arm.

Morio smiled at him “I feel as fine as ever. And my secrets are nothing earth shattering. But they’re a part of me, and I don’t share that easily.”

He offered him the small stuffed doll , letting it rest in the palm of his hand “here.”

Shinya picked up the doll and looked it over with a smile.

It was a small ‘person’ doll, with fluffy white hair and a long dress. Warm eyes peeked out from under the puff of hair, and rested softly against his fingers. 
“You can have it.”

“Its adorable. I suppose I’m collecting these now,” he said with a smile.

“It’s nice to collect dolls.” Morio said “…they’re friends. They’re company that won’t leave you. They’re good listeners.”

“Do you find yourself at a loss for good listeners usually?” he asked. “I don’t disagree, of course.”

“Always.” Morio said “you’d be surprised how often nobody listens when you have something to say.”

He shook his head “Or how they offer unwanted criticism…advice…opinions ….to judge your craft.”

“I can relate,” he nodded, sitting by him, and putting the doll in his lap. “Part of why I wear the mask.”

Morio cocked his head “is that so?”

He nodded. “When you wear a mask it puts distance between you and anyone who wants to offer advice or criticism.”

“it makes you mysterious. It keeps your privacy and the sanctity of your own thoughts.” Morio agreed “…the same with dolls.’

Shinya nodded. “Absolutely. A doll and a mask can be very alike in a way.”

“they are.” Morio smiled slightly “I see you understand.”

“A little more than you might have imagined, yes,” he chuckle. “Now here’s the question. Is the Puzzler the mask, or is Shinya?”

Morio stared him down, silently. His cool, long lashed eyes bored deeply into Shinya’s. 

After the longest moment, Shinya got a soft, little “hmm.”

Shinya chuckled, and picked up the doll and held him at eye level. “_This_ fellow liked my joke, anyway.”

“You’re right. He did.” Morio nodded “so. Which is the mask? The puzzler or Shinya?”

“Its a trick question,” he said with a smile, holding a finger to his lips. “We’re both masks.”

“and what’s your true face?” Morio asked “if you don’t mind sharing.”

“Well, I usually make people _work_ to learn my secrets,” he said, batting his eyelashes cutely.

Morio leaned on his hand, the needle resting against his cheek “work how?”

“I _am_ the Puzzler,” he smiled. “I make puzzles. Rather like you make dolls.”

“So you say I should solve a few puzzles to get to know the real you.”

“Ordinarily,” he said. “maybe even jump through a few hoops.”

Morio raised his eyebrow “…I’m not good at jumping through hoops. Not for other people. Not usually.”

“No, I expect you’re not. But.. you _have_ given me these charming dolls,” he mused. “They’re like a piece of yourself, aren’t they?”

Morio nodded “…dolls are vessels. For souls, or parts of their creator. For the will, and the spirit.” he gestured “…in giving you dolls, I give you a part of myself. In giving dolls to the sick, downtrodden, I give them part of my spirit to uplift their own..”

“Well, you’ve given me pieces of yourself, so I’ll give you a little piece of me in return, hmm? Fair’s fair?”

“..fair’s fair.” Morio agreed with a slight nod.

“Well,” he put his finger to his lips. “The truth is, even I’m not sure about the real face. But if it exists, its probably somewhere _between_ the two masks.”

“You’re a little bit the Puzzler, a little bit Shinya. Your true self is something in between…if anywhere at all. I can relate.”

Shinya nodded. “I thought you might. We have more than just a bit of our fashion flare in common.”

“I think we do. More than you would expect, I think.” Morio said with a smile that parted his thin lips over slightly sharpened teeth.

Shinya smiled back at him with his own enigmatic look. “I do hope we’ll get a chance to know one another better.”

“If neither of us dies tonight, yes. I expect we’ll get the chance.”

He chuckled. “I was thinking just the same thing.”

Morio offered his hand with a tilt of his head, pale hair falling down his shoulder “Then do your best to survive. I have the feeling someone won’t.”

Shinya took his hand and nodded. “I have a feeling too. But I hope I’m wrong.”

Morio’s delicate fingers closed on his “…me too.” He agreed. “….but time will tell. Let your new friend protect you.” 

He nodded towards the doll.

Shinya patted the doll on the head, and then tucked him into his suit’s breast-pocket like a flower. “I’ll do just that. And I hope your friends will protect you too.”

**Do you want to give Morio a Gift?**

give: The Haunted Dolls of The Forgotten Village

“…..” Morio’s eyes widened slightly as he lifted the human sized doll in the air “….they aren’t _those_ dolls, are they?” 

He turned it over, looking at her beautiful eyes and the cracks along her face “…no, that craftmansship…those beautiful joints…that intricate modeling…it _is…_ It is the same doll. The masterwork of Sanjo Village’s dollmaker…”

“I thought of you the moment I won them,” he said.

“You did…?” He smiled “i’m touched….did you know…these dolls are made from the bones of the ancient dead?”

“Are they? I thought it might be bone, but I had no idea it was that old.”

“They’re anxient.” Morio said with a bit of glee entering his voice as he moved the doll’s arm “it’s said the soul persists through it…carrying the noblewoman’s will through the ages.”

“Her will, hmm? Should I be pleased, or sorry she’s trapped here with us?”

“I think she’ll be happy to help us.” Morio said, brushing her hair from her face as he met the doll’s eyes. “….after all. She must know something of being trapped….perhaps she sees kindred spirits in us.”

Shinya smiled. “I’m honored to share her company then.”

“Me too. She’ll keep me company, in my room.” Morio said with more warmth than Shinya had heard from the man. “….she’s beautifully crafted…perhaps someday I can learn these techniques…”

He bowed to Morio. “I hope that she inspires you, and is a good friend to you, Morio-kun.”

“Thank you, Shinya-san.” He said with a gentle smile “…thank you.”

“i’m pleased you like it,” he said with a smile. “I’ll see you around, ne?”

Morio nodded quietly “See you around, Shinya-san. I’ll be…here…for the moment.”

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Free Time Event 1 (Side Tsuda) Start**

Tsuda walked through the halls on a mission…seeking out a certain nervous pencil pusher…Ryota Watanabe.

He thought he might be on to something when he heard frantic pacing up and down the mall area.

He followed the sound of frantic footsteps, his hands in his pockets as he approached “Yo, Ryota-kun.”

Ryota had a cigarette jammed in his mouth, and the pack and lighter in his hands. He nodded, jerkily at Tsuda, and stopped pacing for a moment.

“Hey man. You ran off from the big show this mornin’. Missed our lil’ share and care.”

“Share and what?” he demanded, offering Tsuda a cigarette with shaking hands.

Tsuda took a cigarette, and placed it between his lips ‘we shared our secrets.” He said “…so the bear can’t use ’em against us.”

“Yeah?” he said pouting. “well, its nice to know I don’t have to worry about you killing someone then.”

“not anyone here, anyway.” Tsuda smirked and lit his cigarette.

He snorted, and took another puff off his own cigarette. “Great. The problem is everyone else.”

“A lot of ’em ain’t gonna kill you neither.” he cocked his head to meet his eyes “…are you gonna be alright, Ryota-kun?”

“Sure,” he said, dragging the ash of his cigarette all the way down to the butt, and holding it in for a minute, until he let it out all at once. “Until somebody kills me for overhearing something they don’t want me to. Or until someone else decides to blackmail me.”

“got some especially juicy secret then?” Tsuda asked with a stretch “huh. I don’t take you for some kinda serial murderer or somethin’.”

“W-what if I was?” he demanded, lighting a fresh cigarette in trembling hands.

“Like that American movie….”

“A…american psycho?” Tsuda guessed

“Yeah.”

Tsuda laughed out loud “man, no. No way.” 

He grinned “you don’t got that dead-eyed , buisness-card obsessed , fitness bro energy. I can’t see you goin’ on about Huey Louis and the News before braining someone with an axe.”

“I could snap!” he insisted, puffing on his cigarette. “I could snap any time you know! anybody could.”

“hey, man , you got me there. You seem pretty fuckin’ on the edge, dude.” He smirked “a real live wire, ready to blow.”

“And don’t forget it!” he said, brandishing the cigarette. Then all the fight went out of him and he sagged. “but no…. I haven’t killed anybody.”

Tsuda puffed his cigarette “yeah, I figured ya hadn’t. Frankly, ya seem too nice for that kinda thing.”

“Tch. I know. Its why I got sent to school instead of being put in charge of an actual ad agency.”

“hey, you gotta have the hard knocks of school to really bring out that mean streak , right?” He chuckled “get you rarin’ to go for when it comes time to really become an Ad Man.”

“That’s the theory, anyway,” he mumbled.

“How about it?” Tsuda asked “you feel like it’d work?”

“I don’t know,” he said, looking down at his chest. “Mostly it’s just driving me to drink.”

Tsuda put his arm over the guy’s shoulder, patting his back “You know, a high stress job and responsibility like that? I can’t blame ya..”

He flinched at the touch, grimacing. “yeah, thanks.”

Tsuda gently rapped his knuckle against his arm before he let go, holding his hands up “You drink a lot then, huh?”

He looked away. “Of course not.”

“Heyyy.” Tsuda said “don’t give me that. I’ve seen enough drunk salarymen to know you ain’t a stranger to it.”

“F-fine, maybe a bit,” he said, grimacing. “To take the edge off.”

“You and me both, brother.” Tsuda said “…sometimes ya gotta get that edge off.”

“…or it’ll take you out at the knees”

“That’s a fucking mood,” he grumbled.

“I get it, you know? High stakes business ain’t too different from workin’ for the Yakuza.”

“You work for the Yakuza?”

“yep.” Tsuda nodded “They needed a sharpshooter and I needed a way off the streets.”

“Hard knock life,” he mutters puffing on his cigarette. “You don’t think the Yakuza put us here, do you?”

“nah, ain’t their style.” Tsuda said “too indirect. Too ostentatious. Somethin’ like this would cost too much and be too much of a fuckin’ show to be their sorta game.”

“Yeah they’re more the cut off your pinkie kind of outfit,” he said nervously. “This is more something a deranged ad man would come up with.”

He points a finger. “But it wasn’t me! Uh. As far as I remember.”

Tsuda snickered “man, I get the feelin’ that if it were you, you’d go outta your way to give yourself cushier accommodations, if nothin’ else. But uh, you seem a lil’ high strung for that.” 

He winked “don’t worry, I don’t suspect ya.”

“Good!… good,” he nodded. “if it was me, I’d be somewhere with a tall drink and a bank of monitors. And no offense but I don’t even know just about anyone here, and if it was me you bet it would be loaded with my enemies.”

“You and me both, buddy.” Tsuda agreed “This kinda thing ain’t right…pullin’ this kinda shit with perfect strangers. Turns it into just murder, ain’t even revenge or nothin’.”

“Really pointless,” he nodded. “Which is why, with the cameras and everything, I think it must be some kind of twisted reality show. If you think about it this….. _fucking motive_ is just another kind of reality show challenge.”

“…..” Tsuda blinked “…holy shit.” 

He frowned ‘You know, you ain’t _wrong_…but the question is _why_? You’re the propaganda guy, what’s the motive here?”

“Depends,” he said chewing on the end of his cigarette. “Inherent psychopathy is a possibility. Someone trying to make a point is possible. Like some kind of horrifying social satire, or even a science experiment.”

“huh.” Tsuda took a drag off his own “either way it don’t spell good news for us, I suppose. I ain’t keen on being a lab rat.”

“No, me neither,” Ryotaro grimaced. “We’re, at best, disposable entertainment right now. That’s if someone didn’t pick us specifically because they hated us.”

“I can think of plenty of folks who might want to do _me_ in, but I dunno about the rest of ya.” 

He blew the smoke from his lips “Well. I mean, we all got our enemies but I ain’t sure we all got a _common_ one, you know what I mean?’

“The only thing we all have in common is Hope’s Peak.”

“and as far as we know for certain, we haven’t even gone there.” Tsuda tapped out some ash on the hotel carpet. “though that may be fuckin’ false, given.”

“Given the memory thing? Yeah, could be,” Ryotaro nodded. “We can’t trust _anything_. And that’s…. well, I feel like I’m doing an addmirable _fucking_ job with the circumstances.”

“Hey, if you ask me you’re doin’ alright.” Tsuda said “though I do wish ya stuck around during our little post-motive meetin’…but i get feelin’ nervous about the whole thing.”

“I can’t…. I just…. can’t, okay?” he said, lighting yet another cigarette. “I’m not– I’m not gonna _kill_ anybody just cause they might here it, but I can’t…. I can’t just fucking say it okay?”

“I get it.” Tsuda said, taking a drag “and I ain’t gonna push…just seems like you got a lot on your mind. If you ever wanna unload some of it, feel free to chat me up, alright?”

He nodded. “Thanks,” he said. “I might… I might need somewhere to lay down in a few days. If this… keeps going.”

“Feelin’ a little worn down, eh?” Tsuda asked, “Need some kinda pick me up?”

Ryotaro grimaced, an nodded, not looking Tsuda in the face. “You could say that.”

“If I see anythin’, I’ll let ya know.” Tsuda winked “maybe we’ll have some drinks at the party we’re plannin’ .”

“Might help take the edge off at least,” he muttered. “Thanks, Tsuda.”

Tsuda saluted him with a wink. “hey, anytime, man. I know I’m a lil’ rough around the edges but I’m here to help.”

He held his cigarette up in a little salute of his own. “We’re all gonna be a little more than rough around the edges if this keeps up.”

“Tell me about it.” Tsuda grinned “None of us are in the best shape , huh? Not exactly _boardroom-ready_?”

“Hah, boardroom ready. Yeah, more like day after the office party.”

“Sounds like you got a few stories about those, Ryotaro-kun.” 

he winked “why don’t ya tell me a few sometime.”

“The ones I don’t have NDAs for sure,” he grinned.

“_damn_.” Tsuda grinned “now you got me fuckin’ curious, pal.” He nudged him with his arm and a playful wink ‘you got a deal.”

Ryotaro nudged him back. He still seemed to be shaking to pieces. But at least he was smiling.

**Would you like to give Ryotaro a gift?**

Tsuda snapped his fingers “hey, By the by, man. I got you a little somethin’.”

He pulled box out from behind his back and offered it to him, as he took a slip of paper and read it out loud. 

**The Mad Men’s Tie**

” _This tie once belonged to America’s greatest Ad man. A master of public relations, public manipulations and corporate espionage, he wined and dined his way to the top of the PR echelon, turning public sentiment into a fervent frenzy with his attention to color theory, sociology, and really, really sharp suits._

_Ever since then it’s been passed down from PR guy to PR guy, accruing stains, sure, but also **experience**. And now, young propagandist…it’s yours._ “

“So yeah.” Tsuda said “it’s some nice , rich guy’s tie or some shit.”

Ryotaro blinked and accepted it. “Holy shit. Tsuda-kun, this is the _ultimate power tie_. Do you know the kind of _coperperate aura_ it gives off? The holy grail of wardrobe accessories.”

“I didn’t know there _was_ a holy grail of wardrobe accessories.” Tsuda puffed at his cigarette “I ain’t a fashionable guy.” He grinned “Think it’ll look good on ya?”

“It’ll practically make me six inches taller just by virtue of being on my person.”

Tsuda winked at him “loomin’ over the competition?  I like it. Wear it to the party, huh?”

He grinned. “I absolutely will.”

Tsuda punched his shoulder with a grin “That’s the fuckin’ spirit, Ryotaro-kun.”

Ryotaro wobbled a little on his feet. “Heh… heck yeah.”

He looked up at him, and bowed. “Thank you very much for the gift.”

Tsuda bowed in return “And thank you for the cigarette an’ good company,man.”

he rose with a smile “See ya around?”

“See you around, cowboy.”

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Free Time Event 2 (Side Shinya)**

Shinya sought out Sadahiro, still wearing his costume after the chat with Morio.

He found Sadahiro by the snack machine nook , leaning against the wall with an energy drink in his hand as he stared off into the distance with a thoughtful expression on his face.

“Hiro-kun,” Shinya cooed, peeking around the machine.

Sadahiro jolted in surprise, before looking over at Shinya with a bright and cheerful smile “ah, Shinya-kun! uhm..”

He looked him over for a moment. “Wow! That sure is a look, huh?”

“Isn’t it?” he smirked. “It was the other outfit in my closet. I was telling the others about it, but you left too quickly I’m afraid.”

“Ah, during the secret sharing.” Sadahiro sipped his drink with a shake of his head “sorry, I was just a bit stressed out, ya know?”

Shinya slid down the machine to sit next to him. “I certainly understand. Its a very stressful thing.”

Sadahiro ran his hand through his hair, chewing slightly at his lip “Just…a lot of people I bet nobody wanted to see.”

“Very much so,” he nodded. “The detective hunting me showed up.”

“….the detective hun…”

he narrowed his eyes at him “you’re a criminal??”

Shinya chuckles. “A bit of one, I’m afraid. I’ve been keeping it secret.”

“oh.” Sadahiro said with a lopsided smile “w-well, you know, there’s nothing wrong with that! You do you, the best you that you can be!” 

He gave him two thumbs up, his glasses slipping down his nose

Shinya chuckles. “well, its very encouraging to hear you say that, Hiro-kun. Do you really mean it?”

“well, of course” Sadahiro bobbed his head with a little smile “I’m all for supporting people no m-matter what!”

He chuckled. “Well that’s a lot of support. Do you support yourself?”

Sadahiro’s eyes briefly hardened behind his glasses “A…are you calling me a _criminal_?” he hissed

Shinya sputtered, thrown off. “W-what? I _wasn’t_, no.”

Sadahiro huffed, and sipped his energy drink “….oh.” He smiled “well of course I do, then.”

“Good,” Shinya smiled. “But if you _were_ a criminal, I’d support you.”

“…tch.” Sadahiro glanced off to the side “thanks. I appreciate it.”

He didn’t seem all that enthused, though. “but I’m just a secretary…i work in an office, I do paperwork, and I don’t even steal funds or anything like that. I’m just…good at taking orders.”

“Not even stealing office supplies?”

“nope.” Sadahiro smiled brightly “I put in an order with the proper department every week for any supplies I might need! And I’ve never come up short!”

Shinya chuckled. “What a loyal worker you are,” he said, shaking his head. “I’ll admit I’m someone who challenges the status quo a bit.”

“Ah..” Sadahiro smiled weakly “you are, huh? I…I’ve just learned how to listen and work effectively. The status quo , even if it can be unpleasant, simply works.”

“Well, it works for the people in charge of it, certainly.”

“Well I’m hardly in charge.” Sadahiro laughed “I’m just a cog in the machine, ya know? I’m there to make sure everything keeps going in tip top shape!”

“Have you ever wanted to sabotage that machine?”

Sadahiro’s lip twitched “nope.” he said, through a bright smile. “Not even once.”

Shinya leaned on his hand, smiling. “I see.”
_He’s lying. Interesting. Lets see if we can get his secret._
“have you heard of the Puzzler?”

“the puzzler?” Sadahiro bit his lip with a nod “yeah. I have.  I watched some of the exploits on tv during a few of my workbreaks…”

Shinya grabbed his mask and put it up to his face, showing the painted smile to Sadahiro.

Sadahiro shivered. “oh I…” 

He laughed “you know, this whole thing feels like something the puzzler would do to a bunch of SHSL students..”

He holds up his hands. “If I did it, no one told me. Besides, I’m not interested in murder.”

“that’s not what some of the authorities say.” Sadahiro said with a shake of his head “but …what _are_ you interested in.”

“Some authorities are slandering me,” he purred. “but well, I’m interested in puzzles. Minds. Mysteries.”

“puzzles, Minds, and mysteries huh?” Sadahiro smiled “then you must be having an absolute blast with all this, huh?”

“Not really,” he said, shaking his head. “Finding out who’s behind it and all, yes, but, its all a bit brute force.”

“brute force?” Sadahiro cocked his head “what do you mean by that?”

“It lacks nuance, you know? Locking people somewhere and forcing them to kill one another.”

“huh, I guess I didn’t think of it like that.” Sadahiro mused, rubbing his neck with a thoughtful smile “heh…but I guess it kind of does, huh? it’s real blunt.’

“Extremely,” he nodded. “Its really just a very simple and brutal institution of the prisoner’s dillemma, or any other kind of zero sum game.”

“a zero sum game…a game where there’s no winner, right?”

“A game where there can be only _one_ winner, and so everyone is incentivized to sabotage one another rather than work together.”

“ohh.” Sadahiro nodded slowly ‘yeah, that makes sense given the rules Monokuma gave us.”

“exactly. He’s presented a situation like a prisoner’s dillemma, and is trying to get us to turn on one another.”

“Looking at everyone else” Sadahiro said with a grim smile “he’s doing an ok job..”

“Is he?” shinya smirked, putting a finger to his lips. “I think this morning’s little event says otherwise.”

“..you think so?” Sadahiro asked

“Absolutely,” he nodded. “It means the culprit has no faith in the motivation to kill one another he’s already presented. Thus, he has to increase the pressure”

“You think because he’s introduced an additional motive he doesn’t think it’s gonna _work_?”

“Exactly,” Shinya noded.

“I dunno.” Sadahiro said “…I think the culprit knows we’re hesitant, and he’s gonna keep increasing the stressors until someone snaps…w-which we’ll have to keep from happening, but it’ll be _hard_.”

“It will be hard,” he agreed. “but hopefully we can keep easing tensions, ne?”

“It’s important to stay positive, even when things get hard!” Sadahiro agreed vehemently

Shinya nodded. “Exactly! You seem pretty good at staying positive, Hiro-kun.”

“i’ve had a lot of practice!” Sadahiro smiled, cocking his head to the side “my father always said that a secretary who doesn’t smile…well.. ” he rubbed the back of his neck “should be fired, or worse.”

“Well, that’s not very nice of him, Hiro-kun, but it sounds like he imparted you with a valuable skill along with a lifetime of trauma!”

“….” Sadahiro’s smile went a little rictus. “i’m not traumatized, I’m fine!”

“Of course you are.”

“I mean, my father taught me the right skills I needed to survive in the workplace!” Sadahiro said “which is exactly what it is! survival! I mean, you’re some…some puzzle guy, you don’t know what a salaryman’s life is like! it’s _hard!_”

He held up his hands, unable to keep himself from a little chuckle. “I’m afraid you’re right. I _am_ just some puzzle guy. I’ve never worked a day in my life. And I never intend to.”

“then how do you expect to survive?” Sadahiro asked “I…I mean, there’s bills to pay! Mouths to feed! There’s NOTHING in the world for free!”

“well, frankly mostly I expect to steal,” he replied with honesty.

“o…oh.” Sadahiro said with a smile “well hey! Good for you! I hope you can steal everything your heart desires, mr. Shinya-san sir!”

Shinya chucked. “Thank you, Hiro-kun. But really my point is, I think your father may have ah…. well, given you anxiety for starters.”

“o.oh…” Sadahiro said with a twitch of his smile “I don’t really have the _time_ for anxiety, so…I probably don’t have it…”

Shinya reached out cermoniously and placed his hand on Sadahiro’s shoulder. “Its further along than I thought.”

“No it isn’t!” Sadahiro tried to protest

Shinya gave him a very grave, serious look.

He left his hand right where it was.

Sadahiro attempted to worm out of his touch “look, I get what you’re trying to do, but it’s not going to work, it w-won’t.”

A tall man with square glasses and a sharp suit walked by, spectral in the harsh lighting, and Sadahiro shuddered . 

“It won’t.”

He forced a wide smile to his face “because I’m fine.”

Shinya noted the man with interest, and squeezed Sadahiro’s shoulder. “Of course, Hiro-kun. Sorry to have implied otherwise.”

He had deep green hair brushed back over his head, and a fastidious appearance. 

“Thank you Shinya-san. I”m just…still a little shaken. But I’ll be okay. I promise.”

“Okay enough to come to a party tonight?”

“….yes.” Sadahiro said, looking away “yeah.”

“you don’t sound very excited. If you’d prefer to rest for tonight that’s alright.”

“no! No I’ll be there!” Sadahiro grinned from ear to ear. “I’ll be there.”

“Are you sure? Because I don’t want to pressure you. you look like you could use some rest.”

“I.. I’m coming to the company party, dammit!” Sadahiro said “geeze!”

“well! If you’re sure, I look forward to seeing you there!”

“I am sure, and I’m excited to see you there! we’re gonna have _SO_ much fun!”

**would you like to give Sadahiro a gift?**

GIve: Mr. Towa’s Nameplate

“oh!” Sadahiro gasped “this is the ….the … _THE NAMEPLATE OF MR. TOWA???_” He gushed “this’ll be _perfect_ for my nameplate collection. do you have any idea how special this is??”

“I’m curious to hear in your own words,” Shinya said, nodding happily.

“He only had three produced during his reign at the head of the Towa Group…which crashed and burned with the Mihara Corporation after their failed merger…but before that? Both companies were the highest earners and product developers in Japan! I have Mihara’s but… I thought I’d never get a Towa Nameplate!”

“Well, I’m pleased to have happened upon something with such history, and of such interest to you!”

“You were really lucky!” Sadahiro said, starting to sniffle “this is _great_ . I’m…I’m so happy.”

Shinya put a hand fondly on Sadahiro’s head. “Then I’m happy too, Hiro-kun!”

“Thank you.” Sadahiro said again, and gave Shinya a hug. “I..should go.” he said, “thank you so much again!”

“I’ll see you at the party, Hiro-kun!” he squeezed him bvack.

WIth that , Sadahiro vanished down the hall, energy drink clutched firmly in his hand.

Shinya watched him go with a warm smile.
_They ruined a perfectly goo secretary. Look at him. He’s got anxiety._

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

**Free Time Event 2 (Side Tsuda) Start**

Tsuda rounded the corner out of the hall into the lobby sitting area outside the kitchen. Upon seeing Naoki, he started walking over… He was…after all… _exactly_ who he’d been looking for. 

“Naoki-kun, how you doin’, man?”

Naoki was curled up in the corner, writing carefully in a notebook. His head snapped up as Tsuda approached.  “O-oh! um, hi, Tsuda-kun…. I’m just…. you know, scribbling away….”

Tsuda gave him a little salute, before sitting next to him and draping his arm out over the back of the couch. ” Yeah? anything fun?”

He held the notebook nervously as he smiled. “Its just…. you know…. calligraphy practice…. helps me um, think.”

Tsuda nodded “You know , I bet? it’s got that calmin’ sort of precise movement to it.”

Naoki nodded. “Yeah…. um, so I just… you know, write whatever comes into my head when I’m practicing…”

Tsuda leaned over to idly read it “yeah? and what’s on your mind right about now?”

Naoki flushed and brushed his pale hair out of his face. “Just nonsense, really…. random words.”
But they were hardly random. It seemed to be a little fairy tale about a prince trapped in a haunted palace and menaced by an evil bear.

“for a buncha random words they sure came together nice.”

He leaned over with a grin “almost looks like a story”

“Not really, but thank you for thinking so!”

“I mean, it’s got a runnin’ narrative at least.” Tsuda chuckled “…and it looks cute, even if it ain’t that long.”

He glanced down at the page, with its beautiful looping letters. “I guess…. I wanted to make something a little nicer… with all the stuff that’s happening here.”

“I can’t blame you there.” Tsuda agreed “..I think it’s pretty valuable of a thing to make somethin’ beautiful even with everythin’ happening here.”

He winked “so…the prince in the story, is it you?”

He blushed and pushed his hair out of his eyes. “I know its not the most creative thing ever…..”

“Nah, If I was much of a writer , I’d make myself th’ handsome prince charming.”

he winked “even if I’m more the wacky rogue.”

Naoki giggled. “A wacky rogue, huh?”

“yep.” he said with a grin. “troublemaker, kind of a crook, but in a charming and fun way. Not the moral focus, but damn good to have on your side. you know, that kinda guy.”

“Oh I think you mean the _charming_ rogue then, Tsuda-kun,” he said with a smile.

“Didn’t wanna sound conceited and say I was all that charmin’.” Tsuda winked. “but thanks.”

Naoki smiled. “I don’t think its conceited, you seem pretty charming to me….”

Tsuda flushed, rubbing the back of his neck with an ear to ear grin “well. You’re awful sweet.”

He winked “I can be the charmin’ rogue to your dashing prince.”

Naoki smiled and averted his gaze, looking down at the page. “I’ll have you come in on the next page.”

“I hope I can read it when ya got a bit more of it done. Now ya got me hooked, Naoki-kun.” He winked.

He looked up at Tsuda with wide eyes. “You really like it? You’d want to read more?”

Tsuda nodded, brushing his mussed hair over his ear with a grin “Well yeah, I’d love ta. Ya don’t mind, do ya?”

He shook his hea. “N-no… I don’t usually show my stories to anyone though.”

“nah? Because you haven’t found folks who were interested or because somethin’ else?”

“I mean…. kind of both?” he murmured. “People only look at my writing because it’s pretty.”

“I mean, it _is_ nice ta look at.” Tsuda said with a shrug “but the words seem pretty nice, too. Like I said, seems like a damn cute story. I’d love ta read more.”

He smiled wider and flushed. “I’ll let you read it then, if you promise to tell me what you think of the story…”

“I’ll give you as good a review as I can.” Tsuda smiled ‘I ain’t good with words, but I’ll try my best. “

“Honestly anything you wanted to say would be nice,” Naoki said, holding his book nervously.

“then I’ll give ya a review on your words, in _my_ own words.” he winked. “…I’m lookin’ forward to it.”

“I’m glad! Oh, n-now I have to actually write more!” he laughed happily.

“Sounds like you got a fun time ahead of ya.” Tsuda grinned, punching his shoulder lightly “you been writin’ like that a while?”

“Since I was little,” he admitted quietly.

He punched Tsuda back gently.

Tsuda grinned, leaning back on the seat. “wow, yeah? and …nobody said shit about it ‘cept for the handwriting? were they fuckin’ illiterate?”

“I-I’m sure they meant well… I sometimes wish my handwriting weren’t so nice though….”

“ya ever think about tryin’ to write your stories on like, a computer or somethin’? Then they couldn’t fawn over your fuckin’ handwritin’ and just give ya thoughts on the words.”

Naoki bit his lip. “I g-guess I worried if I wrote on the computer no one would pay attention at all…”

“Hey, that’s fair.” Tsuda nodded “…but if ya want people to talk about the words and now how they’re written.” He shrugged “…you gotta take that leap and hope, you know?”

He smiled slightly. “If we ever get out of here, Maybe I’ll take your advice….”

Tsuda offered him a fistbump, with a small grin on his face. “And i”ll be right there wantin’ to read it.”

Naoki fistbumped him hesitantly. “we better get out then, because I’m excited for that.”

“hey, if we pool our resources…prince, rogue, uhhh….mage, and ect? We’ll burst the hell outta this haunted castle in no time.’

“Who’s the mage?” he asked. “Oh! Shinya-san?”

“Yeah.” he grinned “he strikes me as a mage type. Or some kinda priest/trickster type.”

Naoki giggled. “He does sort of seem like the kind of person who’d have his eyes closed all the time if he were in a manga.”

“Don’t he?” Tsuda laughed “We should ask Tomoyo-chan to help us class out the rest of these bastards, eh?”

“Oh! we should!” he smiled. “I bet she’d have good ideas.”

“As th’ ultimate DM? Yeah, probably.” he grinned “she’s pretty cool.”

He chuckled “…between us, maybe we’ve got a short story on our hands, eh? Or a fuckin’…D&D campaign.”

“They have a lot of the same elements,” he nodded.

“Sure do.” Tsuda chuckled “guess the big difference is the involvement of random chance ‘an other folks.”

“Its collaborative, instead of all by one person, so… it comes out different.”

“Yeah.” He chuckled “…you know we may play some at the party tonight?”

“O-oh? There’s a party?” he asked, mouth opening into a little ‘o’.

“Yeah, we’re spreadin’ the word around, but we’re plannin’ on holdin’ a pool party tonight. Sounds fun, right?”

Naoki nodded. “It _does_ sound like fun! I hope people will be in the mood to party though….”

“Me too.” Tsuda chuckled “…I mean, the hope’s that we can get everyone there to…ya know, try to relax. I know the motive shook everyone up, but…if we can relax, we can overcome it. Least that’s what I think.”

Naoki nodded. “I was pretty shaken up… I can’t blame anyone… everyone has secrets they don’t want found out…”

“yeah…some of us stuck around and shared ’em…to admit to somethin’ hard to remove the chance of it bein’ used against us.”

“Some of you shared them?” he asked in a little voice. “Wow…  that’s really brave…”

Tsuda nodded “yeah, the folks who didn’t leave.”

He smiled with a little shrug of his shoulders “…it was scary, but at the end of the day it’s a weight off our shoulders..”

Naoki smiled nervously. “I’m glad…. I’m kind of sorry I didn’t stay but… I got so upset….”

“That’s…honestly fair.” Tsuda pat his shoulder “it was frightening and upsetting, ya know?”

Naoki nodded. “Thanks for not thinking too badly of me for it…”

“it’s alright.” Tsuda chuckled “…look, if you wanna tell me, I can tell ya mine. We can keep it a secret between us, if you’d like.”

He bit his lip. “If you don’t mind… I…. I’d like to,” he nodded.

Tsuda nodded, keeping his hand on his shoulder “alright. Lay it on me, Nao-kun.”

Naoki shyly leaned in. “Th-the truth is… a really… I _really_ hate being the ultimate Calligrapher….. I just want to be a writer…. even if I’m not the best… but my parents say that Calligraphy’s what I’m best and it’s fate and I have to do my family proud….”

Tsuda squeezed his shoulder “fuck fate.” He said “i ain’t one to say you should follow what fate dictates…if it ain’t makin ya happy, then fuck it. Become the best damn writer you can be.” 

He winked “I get it.”

Naoki smiled at him, maybe even flushing a little. “Thanks, Tsuda-kun….”

Tsuda leaned in , and bumped lightly against him. “You’re welcome, Nao-kun. I’ll help support ya. You already got a fan, and you only just started out.”

Naoki impetuously tugged him into a hug. “It feels good to have one….”

Tsuda gave him a squeeze, smiling warmly “it does, doesn’t it?”

“Yeah…” he smiled. “Is…. _your_ talent something yiou like doing, Tsuda-kun?”

“Sharpshootin’?” Tsuda flushed “heh, I mean…” 

He rubbed the back of his neck ‘yeah, It is. But I went outta my way to learn it, you know? I wanted to uh…be like them cowboys in American flicks…”

Naoki smiled. “Oh that’s fun though! That’s really neat.”

Tsuda flushed “aww…heh, ya think so? It ain’t dumb?”

“Why would it be dumb?” he asked wide eyed.

“because I’m chasin’ a talent based on a love of ol’ western action flicks?” He chuckled awkwardly

“I think its cool that you were inspired that way though.”

Tsuda flushed, with a widening grin “…heh, Nao-kun, you’re gonna make me blush…thanks.”

“I mean, I want to tell stories, so, it’d be sad if I thought it was stupid that stories inspired you…” he smiled.

“You’ve got a good point about that.” Tsuda chuckled “and hey…maybe someday your stories’ll inspire some street kid like me out there to try learnin’ some skill and becomin’ a hero like the folks you write about too.”

Naoki’s smile widened. “If one of my stories could inspire someone like that…. I’ love it….”

“only way to find out is to go for it, and put that work out there.” Tsuda grinned, lightly punching his shoulder.

“I guess you’re right!”

**would you like to give Naoki a gift?**

“hey, actually..” Tsuda said with a grin “we’re in luck…I’d gotten you something from the Mono/mono machine, but…”

He winked “…now that we had this chat, I actually won somethin’ that’ll suit you better.”

“O-oh! you don’t have to give me anything!”

“I wanna.” Tsuda said, as he fished in his bag…eventually he pulled out a small digital notebook. 

“it’s uh..” He pulled out a piece of paper 

“**The Think-Machine 2000**
_Brought back in a time machine from the far off future year of 2000, this pad revolutionized how writers of the future did their work! By interfacing with the fingertips on a **holographic keyboard** it allows you to WRITE without PAPER! wowzers! This miracle of science could surely never be surpassed! It’s so high tech! it’s so new! it’s so **aesthetically pleasing** with it’s **rounded corners** and **wood paneled backboard**!_”

“Oh wow! Tsuda-kun! This is so neat! I can work on my writing on this without anyone seeing my handwriting!”

“exactly!” Tsuda chuckled “I got pretty lucky…wasn’t sure who I’d give it to but…”

He slapped his back “it’s perfect for ya.”

Naoki beamed, and grabbed Tsuda into a hug again. “I love it!”

Tsuda squeezed him tight , patting his back with a wide grin “i’m real glad.”

“look forward to seein’ what you write with it, Nao-kun.”

“and I look forward to your feedback!” he agrees excitedly.

“you got it.” He winked “I’ll be lookin’ forward to it, pal.”

00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

A while later…Tsuda wanders back towards the meeting place outside the ballroom, his hands in his pockets as he grins from ear to ear “hey, Shinya. Ready to set up a shindig?”

Shinya gave him a flourishing bow. “I am, if you are, Tsuda-kun.”

“Very much so.” Tsuda chuckled “did good work. Helped some folks out…and now it’s ready to make sure everyone’s fuckin’ relaxed.”

“I did as much of that as I could too,” he nodded with a smile. “I suppose we’ll see how we did, hmm?”

“Guess so.” He said, cracking his knuckles ‘since we’re doin’ it in the pool, we don’t need to decorate much or anythin’ like that…but we should maybe start movin’ some shit in with the others…see if we can get everythin’ set up.”

“‘Doing it in the pool’. Oh my, when you say it like that,” he chuckles teasingly.

Tsuda wiggled his eyebrows “I mean, maybe, if they actually have booze in this joint. Might happen.”

“Now wouldn’t _that_ be something!” he chuckled. “I wonder if Monokuma-san would want us drinking?”

“probably.” Tsuda said , gesturing to the cameras “makes for good TV, y aknow?”

“I;d argue it would raise the ratings but I’m not sure about that.”

“Ratings schmatings.” Tsuda grinned “maybe we’ll get lucky, huh? Who knows. We won’t unless we look, right?”

“If nothing else, maybe Yo-san’s found some sake to cook with, ne?”

“Exactly.” Tsuda nodded sagely. “we might be in luck, eh?”

“We won’t know unless we try,” he agree.

He offered his arm “come on. Let’s go huntin’ around the mall for some good shit, huh?’

Shinya took his arm, and let him lead the way. “So, any interesting gossip that wouldn’t be a betrayal to share?”

“Nao-kun’s doing better.” He chuckled “we had a heart to heart. He’s gonna be sharing some stuff he writes with me. Seems real excited, too.”

“Oh that _is_ good to hear,” he nodded. “It sounds like you lifted his spirits.”

“sure did.” he chuckled “….Now, uh, Ryo-kun? he’s a little twitchy still but…I think I got him to calm some.”

“Ah, our little Advertising Agent, yes?” he mused. “The salarymen are not okay, Tsuda-kun.”

“Nope.” Tsuda shook his head “the world of business creates some real pieces of work, man. I see more well adjusted people every day and I’m in the Yakuza.”

“Certainly. Our resident assassin seems broadly fine as well,” he nodded. “But not poor Sadahiro-kun.”

“She sure does.” he chuckled “…Sadahiro’s not doin’ well, huh?”

“Shaking himself to pieces with a smile.”

“…sounds fuckin’ horrible.” Tsuda grimaced as he pushed the mall’s door open. Inside, they could see a few of the ghosts…including the glasses-wearing man in a suit with green hair, who was menacing Sadahiro as he attempted to pick out a suit from the rack of them in the clothes shop.

“Definitely terrible,” he sighs. “Hey, you there! scat!” He tries to wave the ghost off.

The ghost looks up at him with a disdainful glare…and vanishes.

The shaken looking Sadahiro smiles nervously at the two of them, waving as they approach “oh hey guys! I’m just looking for party clothes.”

Shinya gave him a thumbs up. “Can’t wait to see them!”

“yeah!” he grinned wider “Is this a buisness casual kind of thing or…?”

“man, it’s a pool party.” Tsuda chuckled

“Wear something easy to take off,” Shinya teased.

“…” Sadahiro flushed bright red “y-y-yes sir!”

Shinya winked at him, and headed off with Tsuda.

Tsuda shook his head “I see what ya mean. He looks like he’s about to implode at any moment.”

“_with a smile._”

“Like an atomic bomb painted with a big ol’ grin.” He chuckled as he headed towards the game store “we should see about that arcade setup, right? maybe a tabletop board game or somethin’ ?”

“Oh yes, a tabletop game sounds like an _excellent_ idea. We probably won’t want to drag any electronics to the pool though.”

“yeah, probably a good plan.” he chuckled “don’t want someone gettin’ electrocuted or some shit.”

“No that would be….” Shinya paused for a moment, and imagined an arcade machine falling in the water while everyone was swimming. “….bad.”

Tsuda brushed his hair over his ear “so a tabletop game’ll be good enough. Our lil’ gamer friend’ll be able to set up a fighting game tournament another time.” 

Speaking of, their ‘lil’ gamer friend’, was over by the arcade machines, , looking them over with a thoughtful pout.

Shinya gave Hayate a wave. “Hey there!”

Hayate startled…it seemed they’d gone and left the demon horns behind, though they still wore the eyepatch.

Now they were dressed in a different bomber jacket…this one bearing a pixellated sprite from some fighting game on the back. “hey, yo! Shinya-san!” they said with a nervous smile “what’s up?”

“We’re grabbing some games for the party, ne? Nice new look, sensei!” he beamed.

“you’re still callin’ me that, huh?” Hayate said with a soft laugh “thanks, I uh..” they rubbed their neck “…I wanted to try…shaking it up a little, you know? At least so nobody mistakes me for that ghost…”

They hesitated before saying “v-video games, or?”

“Tabletop,” he chuckled. “we thought maybe electronics in the pool would be a poor choice.”

“oh yeah, man, you don’t wanna fuck around with that.” They said with a grimace “I saw a dude get electrocuted once. He gamed too hard on a faulty machine, and boom, up in flames, wires and all that shit.”

“….” Tsuda blinked for a moment before he said “I don’t think that’s gaming too hard, I think that’s a fuckin’ lawsuit waiting to happen.”

“I mean, I suppose it could be both,” Shinya chuckled. “But yes. Oh hey, I wanted to ask– did you have something you wanted us to call you?”

They grimaced a smile “hh…hehh…I hate my birth name, ya know? but…H-Hayate. you know…i mean…It’s hard..””

Shinya nodded. “I understand. Is there a name you’d _like?_ I’m sure anyone would be willing to use the name of your choice.”

Hayate tapped their fingers together. “I…I mean… It’s not something I’ve been allowed to think about, really…My parents told me to …you know….b-become him, as best I could…”

Shinya squeezed ‘Hayate’s’ shoulder. “Take some time to think about it. I’ll call you sensei til then, ne?”

Tsuda nodded “yeah , pal… what your parents did? that’s some fucked shit.” 

He crossed his arms “I’ll call ya sensei too until you think of a name you wanna be called.” 

Hayate flushed, rubbing the back of their neck “geeze guys… you’re real sweet…”

Shinya smiled. “You’re a friend, ne? And I’d like to get to know you better, too. The real you.”

“the real me, huh?” They smiled timidly “…yeah. The real me… I..I’ll see if I can still find it buried in here, so we can keep bein’ friends.”

“I believe in you, sensei!” Shinya promised. “We’ll see you at the party, right?”

“you know it! I…I e-e-even found a s-swimsuit.” They said with a broad smile “One that ain’t.. ya know..”

“You did? I’m delighted to hear it!”

“I did.” They bobbed their head with a little laugh “and I’ll j-join you guys in the pool, alright?”

“Perfect! we’ll see you there then. I’m very exicted to, aren’t you, Tsuda-kun?”

Tsuda nodded, giving Hayate a little salute. “Lookin’ forward to it, sensei. It’s gonna a damn good time, and wouldn’t be half as great without ya.”

Hayate blushed, and grinned timidly at the two of them “…you guys are real nice..”

“And why shouldn’t we be? we’re just a couple of outlaws after all.”

“that’s right.” Tsuda grinned “and you can pretty much trust that outlaws like us are the nicest folks around.”

“If games taught me anything.” They giggled “…it’s that you’re right about that…the noble outlaw and all that.”

“Exactly! But right now these outlaws have some games to steal for the party, ne? We’ll see you there.” Shinya winked and started to head off.

Hayate laughed “g-good luck. Pick some good ones, alright?”

Tsuda gave them a little salute as he passed “you got it, partner.”

Shinya smiled and headed over to the tabletop games to grab a few manuals and some dice.

Tsuda skimmed with a discerning eye, before he took a few adventures from the wall, and grabbed a board game based around community building  as well.”This should set the right kinda tone.” he chuckled

Shinya glanced over his shoulder. “Oh perfect.”

It was _Settlers of The Unknown_, kind of a wild west base building game…
IN SPACE. 

“I played this one with some of the guys before.”

Shinya chuckled. “With the Yakuza?”

“Hey, we had a lot of down time.” he chuckled “we had time for a lil’ fun and games.”

He shrugged “…and also, with my sharphootin’ team.”

“I’m certainly not judging! I just thought it was a pretty fun image, ne?”

“not exactly what you picture when ya imagine the yakuza?” He teased

“It doesn’t exactly mesh with the public image, I’d say. But when you think about it, it fits perfectly,” he smiled. “Shall we look for alcohol next?”

“Damn right we should. ” he chuckled ‘though, wasn’t there a bar in the pool? Wonder if it’s stocked with soda or booze.”

“You know I’ve been so preoccupied every visit to the pool I’d forgotten to look. That seems the right place to check first, hm?”

Tsuda nodded with a chuckle “gives us the chance to cart these things over there, if nothin’ else.”

“Simple and elegant,” he agreed. He headed out with Tsuda, arms full of gaming paraphenalia.

Tsuda winked at him “and we really don’t need much to get this party started. Lil’ drink. Lil’ gaming, some swimsuits and some tunes . Oh, and good fuckin’ vibes.” The two of them began heading out, passing into the main body of their nautical prison, and down the hall .

“It’ll be the vibes that are the hardest, but I think that we can manage between us.”

“So long as the ghosts don’t make themselves too much of a pain in the ass, we should be alright.” Tsuda said with a thin smile as they passed the vending machines.

“Maybe we can chase them off with squirt bottles or something.”

“you know what? ” He said with a grin “i’m a sharpshooter. I’m sure I can nail each and every one of ’em.”

“I’m positive you can,” he nodded. “And it might make a good show for the others.”

Tsuda chuckled as they made their way around the corner, and past the kitchen (which was alive with the sounds of food prep)…, and towards the residential area.

“Ya think so?”

“Oh absolutely,” he nodded. “For one thing, I’d wager you’re quite a showman. For another thing it robs the ghosts of their dignity, and thus, the fear they hold.”

Tsuda passed by Eriko, who was eagerly talking about swimsuits at Masako, who she’d cornered by her room. 

“Robbin’ them of their fear’s an important thing. Hey Masako-chan” he winked at her as they passed.

Masako gave him a wave, and a small, rather devious smile as they passed. “Tsuda-kun. Getting set up?”

“Sure are.” he grinned “we’ve got some games, some plans.”

He winked “i’m gonna see if there’s booze at the pool bar.” 

Eriko pouted as they passed, and fixed her hair with a performative sigh “I’m going to be making sure I’m all dolled up in my best swimsuit for the occasion.”

“Why don’t we get ready together?” Masako offered.

Shinya gave them both a wave, and headed over to check out the bar.

As they left, Eriko had blushed deeply, and stammered out a “s-sure!” 

Tsuda chuckled, hands in his coat pockets as he pushed open the pool door, and headed in.

Shinya was waiting for him just inside, and pushed up his glasses. “Shall we try our luck?” He headed over to the bar area.

There was, hidden over by the hot tub…a rather nice **tiki bar** with an overhanging straw awning, and wooden stools  carved to look like statues of mermaids and masks.

There was a panel on the back wall (likely for an automaton to come through if needed) but it seems to be a pretty open bar with a number of bottles lining the racks behind it. 

Tsuda looked closely “Soda…juice, mixers… AH HAH! rum and whiskey and more, We’re in buisness!” 

“I’ve always liked encouraging a little bad behavior!” came a voice from behind them “As long as you guys keep it pG-13 anyway.”

Shinya turned toward the voice with a smile. “Ah, Monokuma-san. Cheers, then.”

Monokuma waved at him, and hopped up on the stool with a bob of his head “You guys are planning a party, huh?”

“Oh no, monokuma-san,” Shinya smiles, pushing up his glasses. “The party is already planned. Now we are executing the plan.”

“ohh, I see, I see.” Monokuma nodded “i’m kinda hurt, honestly. You guys didn’t invite me to participate? I’m a great party planner!”

_I bet if I asked him to provide fireworks, something truly nuts would happen_, said a small, evil part part of Shinya.

“I’m sorry, Monokuma-san. I feel like everyone is a bit stressed from this morning, ne?”

“Aww.” Monokuma said, leaning on the bar “You guys didn’t like my surprise huh?” He sighed “…it’s enough to drive a guy to drink.”

“Then why dontcha drink bleach or somethin’?” Tsuda asked.

“Sounds very cleansing,” Shinya nodded.

Monokuma paused a moment, and then slapped the bar “One round of bleach! for all of us!”

The panel opened, and one of the automatons popped out and began mixing bleach into cups, shaking it with ice. 

After only a moment, three heavy glasses of bleach were slid before the three of them.

“Oh dear, I’m afraid bleach upsets my stomach, terribly,” Shinya cooed. “But it’s the thought that counts, ne? Cheers!”
He raised the glass, and made a gesture like he was going to drink it, only to toss the liquid  over his shoulder instead.

Tsuda simply dumped his on Monokuma’s lap. “Opps. m’ hand slipped.” 

Monokuma sighed,  the smell of bleach heavy in the air. “well.”

He splashed the bleach onto his own face “if you can’t beat ’em, join ’em.”

Shinya chuckles. “Cheers, Monokuma-san. And as you said, I’m sure the party will stay PG-13 so no worries.”

“it’d better, or I’ll have to call the police!” Monokuma nodded “rowdy kids and their over the top parties, geeze…someone could die!” 

“they ain’t gonna.” Tsuda said dryly.

Shinya nodded. “We’ll be keeping watch to stop any tragic accidents.”

Monokuma slapped the bleach covered bar with a bob of his head, before hopping down “that’s the kind of responsibility I like to see in today’s youth! Real go getters. Good kids! I wish you the best!”

Shinya gave him a thumbs up. “Come on, Tsuda-kun, let’s finish setting up. We can’t let down Monokuma-san after all.”

Tsuda hopped down, and cracked his knuckles “yeah. Party ain’t far away, and we got a bit of work ta do.” he winked at him “let’s get going.”

0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000

After the setup, It was time for the party.

Their follow students filtered in, most of them already changed into swimsuits. Eriko in her ornate lily-patterned suit, looking a little flustered as she sauntered in. Chitose in a diamond patterned , almost leotard looking suit..and minus her usual clown paint, showing quite pale skin. Miyuki entered soon after in a severe gunmetal grey and black bikini, marked with a few studs of pointed metal  along the shoulders and hips. 

Morio entered …in a full body wetsuit patterned like a doll and it’s joints,  his kimono draped around himself even as he stormed inside in a quiet, dark cloud of sullen silence followed by Tomo, his opposite mirror in his exhuberant bikini in striking pink and white. It was like a magical girl’s uniform that someone hacked to be as scanty as possible, and it clung to his flat chest and gentle curves as he blew a kiss at the others. 

Sadahiro, not getting the swimming memo, entered in a full on suit, his jacket thrown over his shoulders. It was a subtle green and black pinstripe, with a deep green undershirt. He looked around at everyone’s…lack of fancy dress…and pat his jacket, a pair of green shorts covered in different typefonts bunched up with his suit jacket. 

And finally, Hayate, dressed in a black compressive tube top decorated with the _SOUL BLADE_ logo, and a pair of crimson red swim shorts bearing the step by step movements of a sword-wielding character striking out in a combination attack along the bottom
They grinned, a barrette holding the hair from their good eye as they waved to Tsuda.

And Tsuda, in his simple swim trunks with the cacti and cowboy design along the edges of the leg, grinned. “looks like people are showin’ up, lookin’ good.”

Shinya too was in his previously seen question mark shorts and open top. He’d found a floppy fisherman’s hat somewhere in the shops and added that to the outfit.

Masako was in a _very_ revealing strapless black suit that was technically a one-piece but really more of a bikini with some crisscrossing straps between the top and bottom.

Yo was in a pair of white shorts with a sushi-roll design.

Naoki was in a body hugging sports swimsuit, like a body boarder, that cut off at the mid-shoulder and thigh.  Mainly black with purple highlights, and a purple sarong around his waist.

Tomoyo was in a shimmering green and pink bikini with ruffled edges and a pattern like dragon scales. The same pattern was copied to the filmy, translucent robe over her shoulders.

Royota was in a simple pair of black shorts, and a white button up with a logo of some company across the back.

Momoko’s one piece swimsuit was covered in card suit pattern, and she wore a red button up over her shoulders.

Goto had shown up in a red and white striped suit that looked like it hailed from turn of the century europe.

And with everyone present….the party had begun. 

It didn’t take long for people to start swimming, and it took even LESS time for people to hit the bar. While it was inadvisable in such a situation…tensions were high, so the drink began to flow. 

Tsuda tossed his jean jacket on a chair, and joined the rest in the pool, as people took turns picking music out of a player that Hayate had dug up in the electronics shop. 

Some were content to lounge in the hot tub, like Sadahiro, with his drink balanced in his hand, and Miyuki, who watched the proceedings with heavy-lidded eyes as people ran about, while others took to the water with an enthusiasm…like Eriko and Hayate, who quickly attempted to enter into a swimming competition.

Tomo, however, was lounging by the bar, and taking shots of hard liquor with a little grin on his face.

It was while Tomo was doing shots that Tomoyo came over and sat down next to him. “Pour one for me?”

Tomo tensed slightly, but nodded, his blond hair bouncing over his eye as he poured her a flight of them , and pushed it over. “you got it, Tomoyo-chan.” he said.

She picked up the shot and raised it to him. “Cheers!” She knocked it back in one go, and then started coughing.

Tomo laughed, before knocking his own back, and leaning on his hand “not uh, well versed in boozin’ are ya?” He asked.

“I’ve gotten practice on my paid dates an’ such, first time’s always a little rough.”

She sucked in a breath and pounded on her breast bone. “First time,” she admitted.

Tomo raised another shot with a sharp toothed little smile “Wanna go for another? Practice makes perfect, huh?”

She laughed. “Well, I’m not sure if this one will kill me yet but, _why not_.”

He raised the glass, and tipped it back in a smooth  motion. “eh, I’ve had plenty of these and they ain’t killed me yet.” He said with a snicker as he cleared his throat. “though, I dunno, you’re still a newbie to it, Ms. Dungeon Master, so maybe we’ll leave it at two for now, eh?”

“Two sounds good,” she nodded. “I can already feel it going to my head.”

Tomo nodded, leaning on the bar with a soft chuckle as he pushed the rest of the flight away . “Don’t want that…not at a party like this anyway. I imagine you wanna remember it, at least.”

“I’d hope so! Who wants to forget a party?” she did end up taking the second shot– and didn’t cough as much this time.

Tomo smiled a little “there, you’re gettin’ the hang of it.”

He pushed his hand through his hair “sometimes ya wanna, depending on how it goes. but…by and large, yeah. Better to remember.”

Tomoyo nodded. “Yeah. definitely.” She looked thoughtful, or maybe dizzy, for a moment.

He glanced over at her through the veil of his dyed blond hair. his lacquered fingers tapping softly on the table. “somethin’ on your mind, DM-chan?”

“Well,” she turned to face him more directly. “I wanted to talk to you, you know? After this morning. A little more in private.”

Tomo grimaced slightly, rubbing the back of his neck “oh…about the whole…secrets thing…yeah.” He chewed his lip, turning to face her as well with a weak smile “sure…alright.”

“I don’t want to bring up negatives,” she promised. “I just want to make sure there isn’t bad blood between us.”

“I could say the same ta you, you know.” He chuckled softly “…I mean, my bro blew up your face”

“Sure,” she nodded. “But I got the feeling this morning you didn’t know jack all about it, huh? So, its definitely not your fault.”

“all I knew was he killed himself.” Tomo murmured “and the note said he blamed someone for his death. I spent _years_ tryin’ to figure out why…I didn’t know he’d done anythin’ like that, or that it was because of something so….petty.”

She shook her head. “I know I’m not at fault, but at the same time, I can’t see your brother’s action as completely petty, either. Some people get so wrapped up in a fantasy game, its more meaningful than the rest of their life. “

Tomo ran his hand through his hair with a sigh “well, yeah…they can. I get it, honestly, but…I wish he’d said somethin’, or…I dunno, talked to someone. Me. Instead of killin’ himself and ..” 
He grimaced “….I mean, He hurt you, and he sure as hell hurt me with that fucking mess. I was so _angry_ after it happened.”

Tomoyo nodded, and put a hand on Tomo’s shoulder. “Your brother was hurting, and instead of telling anyone about it, he hurt everyone around him. And me. It…. sucks.”

Tomo nodded, tucking his hair over his ear. “it does suck.” he murmured, glancing over at her “I just wish I coulda done something different. that’s all. “

he bit his lip “…and I’m sorry about your eye. That..sucks too. To get hurt because someone else lashed out like that.”

“It does suck,” she agreed, rubbing her fingers over the patch gently. “I wish I could have done something different too, you know?”

“what even _happened_? I know he was real deep into playing it but…”

“He had entered as a finalist in a competitive show match for an online convention I was running for,” Tomoyo sighed.  “The kind of game where the players play against the map and each other. You know, like Dungeon of Terrors?”

Tomo chuckled “I don’t uh, really play a lotta tabletops. It was more his kinda thing, but…I think i remember him talkin’ about those kinds of games.”

“He probably should have been disqualified for previous behavior, but I gave him a chance,” Tomoyo shook her head.  “His character died about three quarters of the way through the game and he just kin of… lost his shit.”

“yeah that sounds like my bro alright.” Tomo said, tipping one of the glasses back and forth with his finger “he blew up at everyone, huh? I think I mighta heard that through the walls, actually..”

“Yeah, it was pretty dramatic alright,” she sighed. “My moderator had to ban him over it.”

“and that must be when he decided to go fuckin’ above and beyond the call of duty with his shitfit.” He grimaced “shit.”

“Yeah.” Tomoyo sighed and slumped over the bar. “i never revealed what happened publically. I didn’t want to shame his reputation, or mine, you know?”

Tomo was quiet before he pat her back gently “yeah. I get it. It ain’t your fault that it blew up….and my parents’ll probably be happier that way. Appearances and the like..”

“Society’s like that,” she nodded. “But if you’d prefer that I do say something, like, to you parents, or publicly…”

“I’ll think about it.” Tomo said “it means a lot, but…I’ll think about it.” 

He offered his hand “don’t worry..there ain’t any hard feelings between us. “

Tomoyo took his hand. “No hard feelings, Tomo. I’m glad to have met you. Well… the circumstances could have been better, but still.”

“Yeah.” he chuckled softly “…I’m glad to. Maybe we can be pals, ya know? Provided none of us kick it anytime soon.”

He winked “…circumstances could be better, but hey. We’ll get out. And maybe ya can show me what all the hype about tabletop shit’s about, eh?”

“Yeah! I know Tsuda-kun and Shinya brought some games. Two drinks in sounds like the right time to crack them open, right?”

“Sounds like the right amount of alcohol to get me ta roleplay, yeah.” He grinned “outside of, ya know, being paid to do it”

She snickered “sounds like fun.”

Tomoyo chuckled and stood– getting dizzy an holding herself on the bar. “Yeah! –whoops!”

Tomo giggled, and helped right her on her feet “woah there. Kinda a lightweight , aintcha?” he winked “s’alright. Hang out with me long enough and you’ll do fine.”

She grinned. “I wouldn’t say no to the help.”

Tomo offered her a fistbump, grinning “Good. ’cause as of now you got a new pal, got it?”

“Got it pal!” she said, fist bumping her back.

“alright!” Tomo pointed “Let’s fuckin’ PARTY!”

000

The party shifted gears after that, with a lot of people gathering around the table to play a game run by Tomoyo, the legendary DM.

Tomoyo ran a short ‘one-shot’ campaign. A modern fantasy setting about a group of new friends who’d been drawn together because of their unique magical abilities. The story involved one of their companions (the dmpc) being wounded by a despair inducing demonic bear, that stalked the other players through the hospital they had taken her to.

The session went over well, though Eriko commented that it was a “little on the nose, don’t you think?” at the start…most everyone got into it by the end. They played as well as they could, pooling their efforts to defeat the demon bear once and for all.

Tsuda, frankly, looked fucking delighted by the end of it.

They got to see exactly why Tomoyo was considered the ultimate DM. She was able to manage to make the game tense and challenging enough to make it feel like an earned celebration when the bear was slain, without ever making it feel completely hopeless.

Tomo clapped upon it’s ending, grinning from ear to ear “well shit. Now I see why people enjoy these fuckin’ things. That was epic, Tomoyo-chan.” 

Hayate, as well, was practically vibrating in their seat in quiet excitement. “I punched a hole through a bear!” They finally blurted out “Heck yeah!!!” 

And once the game ended…another round of dancing (Eriko danced eagerly , showing off her skills on a drier patch of the pool room , dancing like a ballerina to a beautiful tune from the radio), drinking, and swimming commenced.

Shinya grinned, splashing in the pool. “That was quite the game!”

“you can say that again.” Hayate said, as they paddled and did a little spin in the water, giggling cheerfully. “I punched a bear!”

“It was fuckin’ neat, that’s for sure.” Tsuda said as he leaned against the wall of the pool, grinning “Tomoyo-chan’s one hell of a DM.”

Morio , who was simply sitting with his feet in the water, nodded “…yes.” he said softly “it was..fun.”

“Yeah!!!” Ryota agreed, raising his glass, only to lose his grip on it, and let it fall into the pool. “You where amasshiiinggg.”

“…..” Tsuda looked up at him “you alright, man?” 

Eriko snorted as she passed “little man can’t even hold a drink, ugh. Disgraceful.”

“I can hold a druck!!” Ryota grinned. “I’m very drink! Good at drunk! Good. rinking!”

Masako snorted. “I’d say so. Very drink.”

“Are you gonna be alright, dude?” Hayate asked, paddling to the edge. “like, you sound like my pop after one of his _bad_ nights.”

“Oh yah! I feel great!! reaaaalll greaaaaat,” Ryota was the next to fall in, after his drink.

“Uh…. is he gonna be okay?” Yo asked, watching him sink.

Sadahiro winced, walking over from the relaxation area by the sunlamps and looking down into the water as Ryota neared the bottom “i don’t think so…” 

Tsuda sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose before he dove down and dragged the guy to the surface, hoisting him back to dry land with a low grunt of effort. He was certainly a _strong_ young man, after all. “Alright…alright…”

“Tuesday!!! my hero!” Ryota declared.

“Sorry man, Tuesday’s my cousin.” He drawled “I’m more of a Saturday kinda guy.” 

Chitose hurried over, a towel around her shoulders “oh no!! Ryota-ta-ta! are you alright? Do you need some coffee or something?”

“Mmmm…. fiiiiiiiine,” Ryota said, smiling. “Pretty clown face.” He fall over against her.

Shinya frowned. “My my…. I suppose no one was watching how much Ryota-kun was drinking?’

“I didn’t see him drink that much…” Morio murmured from the edge of the pool. “not any more than anyone else, at least.”

“…come to think of it, me neither.” Eriko sniffed “unless he was drinking something _ridiculously strong_. ” 

Chitose bit her lip, patting Ryota’s back “thank you, Mr. Ryota-ta-ta…do you wanna sit down somewhere cozier?”

“Huuuuuh? Sureeeee…….” He nodded sloppily.

Shinya touched his chin. “Is that so? He should have some water at the very least….. “
He climbed out of the water, and started going over to the bar.

Sadahiro helped Chitose as they brought Ryota over to the lawn chairs, helping him sit down.

Tsuda hopped out, stretching as he walked over to follow Shinya “water should help, yeah.”

Shinya started examining the bottles at the bar, and which ones seemed to have been opened and used.

There were a number of bottles. 

There was some opened Rum , Vodka, Whiskey, and Sake that had been opened and partially drained.

A few empty bottles of beer. A smaller, empty bottle that was balanced between the Vodka and Whiskey, some single shot bottles dumped in the trash, and tipped over bottle of tequila, which someone had put back rather clumsily.

“Well, we certainly hit the booze didn’t we,” Shinya said. He hadn’t had any.  He sniffed the bottles and looked them over.’

Most of them smelt of alcohol, sharp and strong with different notes to it…plum, honey, agave…
The empty bottle near the rum smelt like nothing more than perhaps vanilla. It was a sweet smell. They all had generic labels, though some of them were scratched off, or peeled away, leaving plain glass. 

Tsuda pat his back “yeah, sure did. Let’s get the guy that water, huh?’

“Hmmm…. yes,” he picks up the vanilla smelling bottle an looks for a label. “Grab him a bottle, hm?”

There wasn’t a label on it. It was one of the ones where it was removed. 

“you got it, partner.” Tsuda grabbed a cup, and filled it with water from the tap under the bar. “hey, let’s get this over to him huh? Party’s probably gonna start wrappin’ up soon.”

Shinya nodded, and followed after him. “I was just thinking the same thing.”

He kept the bottle with him.

Tsuda handed over, and passed the glass of water to Ryota. “Alright everyone.” He announced “it’s nearly time for the fuckin’ pool to be closed for night time…so uh, best everyone start wrappin’ it up, eh? I’ll tidy up here, and we can head on out.”

Ryota smiled incoherently and took the water. “Thaaaankssh buddy.”

Shinya waved the bottle in front of Ryota. “Did you drink from this one?”

Ryota shook his head. “Nopesies!”

Shinya shrugged. “Thank you. Also, in the future, friends, lets leave the labels on these, ne?”

“you got it.” Tsuda chuckled “You hear that folks?”

Morio murmured an acknowledgement as he passed, nodding before he vanished off to his room.

Miyuki raised her eyebrow…and for a moment looked like she was going to say something, before she shook her head , and gathered up her things “…I’m too tired . We’ll talk in the morning, Shinya-kun…I have a question but…exhaustion calls.” 

Sadahiro waves, heading out with his suit jacket and towel under his arm as he heads out beside Miyuki and the slightly more upbeat ‘Hayate’. 

Chihiro lingers around, her hand upon Ryota’s back and a concerned furrow to her brow “He’ll be okay…right?” 

“probably ” Tsuda chuckled “I think he just drank too much. Send the guy off to bed and let’s get some shut eye, eh? he’ll be right as rain in the mornin’.”

“I’ll help him get to his room,” Masako offered. “Make sure he doesn’t pass out on his back.”

“How kind, Masako-chan,” Shinya purred. “Thank you.”

“Uh, can he walk? Need somebody to carry you, buddy?” Yo asked.

Ryota gave a drunken thumbs up, ready to be taken– or if necessary, carried.

Tsuda and Masako both helped Ryota to his feet. Once he was up…he was steady enough to walk on his own. “let’s get him towards his room, eh?” Tsuda said.

“Unless you want me to come along, I’ll clean up here,” Shinya offered. “Will you come back, Tsuda-kun?”

“i’ll come back.” Tsuda said with a bright smile. “See you soon, alright?” 

WIth that, he lead Ryota out with the rest of the crowd.

000000

As Shinya finished cleaning up, Tsuda came back in with a slight frown “hey, did uh, did you find Ryota’s pad around here? We got him to his room but he couldn’t find it.” 

He in fact, had not.

Shinya raised an eyebrow. “No, I haven’t seen it. Hmm…. I hope he didn’t drop it in the pool.”

“That’s my hope too.” Tsuda murmured “but they’re supposed to be waterproof, so..’

He shook his head “..anyway. Clean up went alright?” He asked  , looking around the room “it’s nearly closin’ time.”

Shinya nodded. “No problems here. Just the astonishing amount everyone seems to have decided to drink. ” He chuckled, and helped Tsuda look around.

The room was in…relative order, at least. 
The rest would probably be taken care of by Monokuma in the morning. 

“hey, I guess folks gotta cope somehow, right?” Tsuda shook his head with a chuckle “tensions were high…this’ll help.”

“I certainly think it eased tensions,” he smiled. “And we were relatively ghost free as well.”

“relatively.” Tsuda chuckled “there was that unpleasant run-in with sensei’s brother’s ghost again , and that one with that pale haired girl sendin’ Morio into a panic, but. …we smoothed shit over real good.”

“No party is without a hiccup or two,” he said. “Though I admit most of the parties I’ve been to, I’ve been that hiccup.”

Tsuda laughed out loud “no shit?” He asked with a grin, and tapped his back to lead him out of the room “you gotta tell me about that.”

Shinya grabbed Tsuda’s hand as he followed him out and laughed. “Oh, I’d be happy to. It’s really quite funny. Showing up in the middle of society parties and declaring they have have to solve a puzzle before something terrible happens.”

The two of them left the room, hand in hand, as they walked down the short hall and towards the residential area….but Tsuda kept going at least a little bit to peek into the lobby “you know.” He said with a grin. “that sounds fucking hilarious. I wish I coulda seen it.”

He paused “…huh. Looks like Ryota must have found his pad. Don’t look like he’s there anymore.”

“Well, lets hope he gets some rest after all that.”

“He’s gonna need it. Poor bastard’s an addict, I think.” he murmured “I talked to him earlier, and he seemed fuckin’ twitchy . Withdrawal. He probably overcompensated with the booze.”

“Withdrawl, hmm? Yes, I suspected.” Shinya shook his head. “The life of a salryman really is hard.”

“It really is.” Tsuda agreed “all the more reason not to fuckin’ live it. Fuck the office.”

He opened his room, and ushered Shinya inside.

Shinya strolled inside happily. “Oh Tsuda-kun, we _very_ much agree on that.”

Tsuda entered the room with a stretch, and began to strip out of his shirt… his jacket was missing. 

“damn right we do.” he chuckled “oh…hey, before we hit the sack…didja find my jacket in there when you were poking about?”

“No, I’m afraid not. Seems like a lot of missing items at the party,” he said with a little frown. He stripped out of his own outfit too, and threw his shorts in the bathroom to dry.

“Shit,” he sighed “at least I got a dozen copies of it.”

he slipped out of his swimshorts, and pulled on a pair of sleep pants. “I guess it’s to be expected, ya know? everyone was havin’ a good time. Drinkin’. Plenty of shit goes missing after parties.”

“It certainly is expected. Maybe someone liked the look of it, hm?” he too changed into his sleep clothes and rolled into bed.

“I mean…it’s a sick jacket.” Tsuda said as he slipped into bed. “I can’t blame ’em for wantin’ it.”

“No I agree,” he chuckled. “Well, maybe if you catch them you can trade wardrobe items.”

“you know, might just do that.” He said, as he settled under the covers and winked “…tomorrow’s gonna be alright. “

“Each day a new start,” Shinya agreed, settling in beside him.

“Damn right, Shinya.” He said, patting his shoulder “WIth the motive breakin’, we’ll have more opportunity to  actually do a little good and work towards gettin’ out of here.”

“Your optimism is positively contagious, Tsuda-kun.” he put an arm around him. “Lets do good work together tomorrow.”

“Damn right.” Tsuda leaned against him, as he began to close his eyes “Let’s do damn good work tomorrow.”

0000000000000000000000

As the two of them slept, the television illuminated the dark room in the wee hours of the night. A cheerful little tune played as the sing song tones of 

**Monokuma Theater** began. 

Monokuma, who had a tie around his head, and a partially unbuttoned business suit, was staggering around the pool area holding a liquor bottle in his hand. He turned to face the camera, a blush painted on his cheeks. 

“Hey… yoush…yoush guyssh….” He slurred “you’re feeling comfy cozy tonight aren’t you? There’s nothing like the horrible sleepsh you get when you’re drunk as a sschkunk and fresh off a bunch of bad dec…decisions!” 

He cackled “Desshpair. That’s the name of the game! From drinks come bad decisionch…and from bad decisionch come tragedy! WHy, the last time I got drunk, I drowned my wife in her own schoup! WHoopsies! The copsh weren’t too happy with me after that! But that’s okay!! I’ve got…diplomatic b-bearmunity!” 

He fell down, slammming face first into the ground as he began to snore.

000000000000000000000000000000000000000

As morning came around, Tsuda stirred against Shinya, murmuring softly as he sat up to run his hand through his hair.

**DING, DONG, BING , BONG** “The Time is Now Morning! Up at At ’em you LAZYBONES” came the morning announcement.

Shinya sighed, and curled himself against Tsuda. “Even without drinking I could do without the early wake up you know,” he mumbled.

“guhhhh…” Tsuda groaned “it ain’t great, I’ll give ya that.” he murmured as he slipped out of bed “…let’s get some coffee, huh?”

“Tsuda-kun, you have the best ideas,” Shinya nodded, slipping out of bed, and getting dressed. He decided on the outfit he’d gotten from the mall for the day.

Tsuda dressed himself in one of his usual outfits, humming softly as he dressed. “You know, I have my moments.” he chuckled. “we’re all gonna need it after last night.”

“I imagine there’s going to be a number of full pots drunk,” he chuckled. “Someone should bring some to Ryota-kun if he doesn’t manage to get out of bed.”

“that’s what I was thinkin’ ” Tsuda laughed “the guy’s gonna need a whole pot just to get the hell outta bed.”

He shoved his hands in his pockets, and hooked his gun on his belt, before he gestured with his thumb “ready to head out?”

Shinya tugged on his flowing, kimono-like jacket and smiled. “All set, Tsuda-kun. Let’s face the day.”

“let’s hope it’s a good one.” he said, as he pushed the door open.

Shinya headed out into the hall with him curiously.

As the two of them walked down the hall..they saw a slight commotion by the chairs. 

Sadahiro was looking sick, while Miyuki stared down at a spot on the floor with a sharp frown, rubbing her chin. 

Naoki and Goto were there as well.

Shinya raised his eyebrows. “Oh dear…. is something the matter?” he approached and looked at the area Miyuki was examining.

Miyuki was staring down at a patch on the carpet. It appeared to be vomit. 

Vomit mingled with bright pink blood that had soaked in and stained the carpet itself. 

She sighed, pushing up her glasses “….something’s happened. I think we need to take roll call, asap.”

Shinya took out his monopad and snapped a picture. “Oh dear. I quite agree, Karuma-san.”

Goto pinched the bridge of his nose. “I should have known a party would be a terrible idea.”

Sadahiro grimaced, looking down at it with a nauseous expression “it’s so untidy.” he whispered “I mean…i’m sure whoever puked is fine but…u-ugh….” 

“I don’t think they’re fine.” Miyuki snapped “that much blood means something’s _wrong_. ” 

She snaps her finger “Someone ping the others on their pad. Now.”

“O-on it!” Naoki squeaked, tapping on his pad.

Shinya leaned down and inspected the vomit with a hand over his mouth and nose.

There was clearly some food residue, as well as quite a bit of blood mixed in with the bile. Even through his hand it smelt…bad. 

“ugh…” Tsuda grimaced, as the pings went off on each of their pads. 

They began getting pings back.

One by one, everyone checked in…except for Ryota

He stood up and stood back. “That’s a lot of blood. I’m going to go check on Ryota-kun.”

“Someone should go with him,” Goto said. “A fool goes alone in these circumstances.”

“I’ll go.” Miyuki said, just as Tsuda was about to offer. “I’m worried about him.”

She ran her hand through her hair with a hiss “and I need to start gathering evidence.”

“gathering evidence?” Sadahiro asked with wide eyes “you don’t think he’s really dead, do you? He could just be really sick!”

“Don’t be an idiot, man,” Goto snapped. “Blood in vomit isn’t something you survive unless you’re rushed to the hospital. That said, if you find him clinging to life– I’ll try my best.”

Shinya nodded to Miyuki. He pointed to Tsuda. “Keep an eye on everyone here. A sharp eye, gunslinger-san.”

Tsuda saluted Shinya with a nod “you got it, boss.” 

Sadahiro winced slightly as he was barked at “I’m not a doctor!” he said “i just…is it wrong to have **hope?**”

With a soft scoff, Miyuki waved for Shinya to follow. “We’ll try knocking on his door, but I doubt that’ll get us anywhere.”

Shinya nodded, already matching Miyuki stride for stride. “If we have to, we’ll summon Monokuma-san and see if he’ll unlock it for us.”

“mmm…though I’m going to guess he’s not in there.” Miyuki murmured “…from the looks of it, that vomit stain’s probably his…and he was out of it. It’s possible he never made it back to his room.’

“…. you’re almost certainly right,” he said, stroking his chin. “That means we’ll have to search. Karuma-san, we both agree he’s unlikely to be alive, yes?”

“He’s dead.” Miyuki murmured “Shinya-san. It’s likely he was dead mere moments after he left that party.” 

Her fingers tensed by her side “…..if I had stopped and addressed my suspicions then…maybe…”

He sighed. “I thought the same thing. Unfortunately I didn’t have any immediate **evidence**.”

“Neither did I.” She said, pinching the bridge of her nose “…and I’ve been trying not to..jump to conclusions…ever since that damn case that nearly ruined my life.”

“Yes, accusing someone of trying to kill poor Ryota-san would have been a mood killer at the end of the party if we were wrong,” he agreed. “Well, it looks like we were right to worry.”

“looks like it.” She sighed “…and now it begins. The cycle of death and litigation. Delightful, isn’t it?” 

She stopped, and knocked at Ryota’s door to…predictably…no answer. “hm.”

“We should start searching. Search parties, Karuma-san? Or just the two of us creeping about?”

“We don’t know who we can trust.” She said with a shake of her head. “I think we should make sure people bunch up, but we should leave the serious investigation to ourselves.”

“I agree. Do you have someone you trust–or want to keep an eye on– or should the two of us pair up?”

“Let’s pair up.” She said “I trust Tomoyo-chan. Have her lead a second investigation team with someone…I have…thoughts.”

She waved for him to follow “…let’s go see if there’s anything in the party room, and then we’ll see about the kitchen. If nothing’s there, we’ll burst into the bedroom.”

Shinya nodded, following at her heel with quick strides. “I was about to suggest the same course of search.”

“oh good.” She smirked “…we’re on the same page then.” 

She put her hand on the poolroom door…and pushed it open to a shocking scene.

Shinya stopped just behind her an took in the scene.

The pool area was still a disorganized mess from the night before…but a new fixture now decorated the glittering water of the massive swimming pool.

Ryota’s body, floating facedown amid a cloud of his own drifting blood, a brutal bullet wound to the back of the head glistening under the fluorescent lights. 

“Oh hell..” Miyuki hissed

“That’s…. not what I expected at all,” Shinya admitted, swallowing hard. “Damn.” 
He took his camera out, fingers shaking slightly and took a photo.

Miyuki clutched her hand over her chest for a moment, before she let her eyes harden. “…let’s canvas the area for clues. Starting with the corpse.” 

**DING…DONG…BING…BONG** Rang the announcement intercom “**A BODY HAS BEEN DISCOVERED** A class trial will begin later today , use your time wisely and see if you can gather clues to find out whodunnit!”

Shinya makes a disgusted noise at the announcement an nods. he goes right over to the edge of the pool observing it closely before he changes anything.

The first thing he notices is the blood cloud, while seeming large at first glance is **a little thin**.

Sadahiro floats on his stomach, a few feet from the pool’s edge. Below him, on the bottom of the pool, is a small, square black object.

“That’s interesting. Not as much blood as you’d expect,” Shinya observed out loud. “There’s something on the bottom of the pool. Lets get the body out and retrieve it.”

“Good plan.” Miyuki agreed “then we’ll check out the surrounding area after we look over the corpse.”

She takes her glasses off…and strips down to her shirt and skirt before she dives into the water , and makes a break for the bottom.

She grabs the small pad, and comes up to try and nudge Ryota’s corpse towards the edge of the pool, despite the blood that soaks into her shirt. “Alright. Grab him.”

Shinya grabbed the corpse, holding his breath as he did so, dragging the corpse of the frail young man to the edge. “What a shame.”

“A dreadful shame.” She agreed as she hopped out of the water, and shook as much as she could from herself “but he’s gone now. Now we find his killer and force them to face justice.” 

She helps Shinya get Ryota to the poolroom floor, before she brandishes the object.

It’s a Monopad with a cracked screen.

“Yes, Ryota-san isn’t the one who has to worry any more,” he sighs. He looks at the pad. “Ah. So it was in the pool after all. “

Miyuki sighs, looking down at the body “Yes, seems like.” she murmurs. “….alright, let’s begin examination. FIrst off…bullet wound to the back of the head. Really nasty stuff.”

“Very nasty,” he agrees, taking a picture. “What’s the blood like? There wasn’t as much in the pool as I would have expected.”

“It looks like it would have bled like a bitch.” She says with a grimace, pulling on a pair of gloves to push the hair out of the way “…whatever kind of bullet it was, it was high caliber.”

“High caliber. Unsurprising. Its not like we don’t have guns floating around.”

“it was close range, too.” She murmurs “right to the back of the head. though…it doesn’t look like the bullet breached the forehead. It’s lodged in there. but wouldn’t someone have heard it if it went off in the pool room? We’ll have to see if anyone was out at night, depending on the time of death.” 

She looks up “check his pockets. I’m going to go see if I can find the shell casing.”

Shinya nodded and started patting the corpse down. “Its possible the shot was fired after everyone was in their rooms. Sound proofed.”

“That’s true.” Miyuki mused as she wandered over near the door. “But consider this…the pool is closed most of the night.”

As Shinya patted the body down he heard a wet **crunch** in one of the pockets….like paper being scrunched. wet paper.

“Ah….” he very carefully reached in, being delicate not to tear the wet paper. “When does it close?”

“After 10pm. ” She mused, picking something up with gloved fingers. “and opens again an hour before the morning announcement. The party ended about 9:30.” 

The wet paper read in careful lettering that was smudged somewhat by the running of ink
“I know your secret…you’re an addict. Your drug dealer’s ghost been lurkin around lately, partner.
Look, I have something that’ll take the edge off. Come to the pool this morning and I’ll give it to you

-Tsuda”

“I found the casing.” Miyuki said “…strange looking. It doesn’t look like it’s from a conventional firearm. Maybe a specialized single shot?”

“Oh dear,” Shinya murmured. “Someone’s trying to frame Tsuda-kun.”

“…..frame him?” Miyuki raised her eyebrow “…I mean, I can see why. This man was executed with a firearm, and he’s ‘yeehaw cowboy’ toting one around everywhere.”

She looked around the room “….the angle from here is off. I …if he shot him from here, it wouldn’t line up.”
She paced along the edge of the room

Shinya took a photograph of the note with his pad, an then opened the messenger. “Oh? Can you find the alignment?”
He sent a quick message to Tsuda. _[Tsuda-kun, could you please make a note of who’s with you right now? On paper or a napkin or whatever you have. Not electronic.]_

“mmm…” She froze “Shinya-san. Look at this.” 

She pointed up towards the vent shafts near the bar. 

[Got it, partner] came the reply.

Shinya stood, and came to look at what Miyuki was pointing at.

There was a sharp **dent** in the pipe. “you think maybe it was a trick shot? Fired from the door…ricochet and then…”

“A trick shot– or a misaimed one,” he said, taking a picture. “Either way, its even noisier than a single clean shot.”

“Something to take into account.” She murmured as she looked over the bar. “…..bottles and bottles and bottles….if only people hadn’t drunk so much last night.”

“Yes,” he nodded. “I still have the one I was most suspicious of– but Ryota said he didn’t drink from it. –someone could have poured from it into a mixed drink though.”

“…yes.” she mused “that bottle is suspicious. Hold onto it, will you?” 

She looked around “…we should check some of these clothing piles and the hampers. I’ve seen people try throwing things away like that…hoping they’re unnoticed until things go through the wash.”

Shinya nodded. “I’ll check. I found a note in Ryota’s pockets, but otherwise they were empty.”

“And the note was the one that seems to be framing Tsuda-san?” she asked, pushing up her glasses “….interesting. Very suspicious, too.”

“Very suspicious,” Shinya nodded. “Obviously I won’t count out that it _could_ be Tsuda-kun as the killer, but if so, he had a very narrow window of time. We spent the whole night together.”

Miyuki raised her eyebrow with the trace of a flush “…good choice in bed partner.” She murmured. “…but that does put a damper on that theory.”

She began rooting through some towels on chairs.

Shinya helped her with it, carefully rooting around the room.

“Doesn’t it? Like I said, not impossible, but. Unlikely.”

They worked their way through discarded piles until they came to the hamper…that was when they found Tsuda’s missing jacket wadded up and shoved under some towels. 

And it was smeared with blood along the front.

“Ah, well, there’s Tsuda-san’s jacket,” Shinya said, taking a picture of it. “He asked me last night after the party if I had seen it, so it’s been missing since then at least.”

“And it looks like it’s got a nice amount of blood spatter on it.” She murmured. “Interesting. But still…less blood than I’d expect.”

“Yes…. I have to agree,” Shinya nodded. He looked at the blood. Did it look like a natural spatter, or like it had been smeared on? “Actually…”

It looked like it’d spattered, and then got a bit smeared up.

“Hmm, there is some actual spatter. So they were likely wearing this when they took the shot. What do you think a spatter like this tells us about range, Karuma-san?”

Karuma leaned down to look “…I’m no CSI, usually I had people who did this for me.” she murmured. “but…it looks like it was either fairly far away or…well…there wasn’t as much blood as there should be.  Maybe they were at an angle, or…”

“I agree,”he nodded. “Either way, it seems odd. For instance, if it was a trick shot, as you suggested why would the shooter be close enough to be spattered at all?”

“that is odd.” She mused. “It’s something to keep in mind while we look into it further.”

“is there anything in the coat pockets?”

“Lets find out, shall we?” he nodded. He checked jacket over, looking additionally for any tears, loose threads, stray hairs or other possible evidence.

There was something in one of the pockets. A card for Ryota’s ad agency, with his name written in kanji “渡辺 亮太”

“Hmm.” He turned it over.

It was just a card for the ad agency. it detailed their address and a few portfolio details.

“well, I know they’ spoken several times anyway,” he mused. “But it _is_ a link. After we’re done in this room I’d like to examine the lobby.”

“Sounds good.” She mused. “we should also check some of the other rooms too…” she said “maybe the kitchen. Maybe the vending machines…”

“Absolutely,” he agreed. “I’m not yet at the point where a sequence of events is suggesting itself to me.”
He looked around the pool room– was there anything else to check? The garbage by the bar, maybe?

The garbage by the bar was there, yes…he could check there…

“me neither.” Miyuki mused “…but…hm.”

“Thoughts?” he asked, starting to go through the trash.

“We have a man who was incredibly drunk, who vomited blood in the lobby. who was shot in the head, but the angle and spatter make no sense, and we have the gunslinger drawn into this too.” she murmured “… a number of different strands but none of them want to connect.”

“Exactly,” he nodded. “I don’t want to jump to conclusions, but as you suggested earlier, its likely he was dead soon after he was left alone in the lobby. I _suspect_ the gunshot happened after death.”

“that’s my suspicion too.” She mused “but we lack the hard evidence.”

“Lets see if we can find some then,” he said. “Anything to connect it to the real culprit.”
Anything useful in the trash?

There were a bunch of bottles, and some random packaging, but nothing that jumped out…a few shards of plastic, maybe?

“Nothing jumping out to me here,” he frowned. He made a note of the plastic just in case. “I think its time to search the other rooms.”

Miyuki nodded “yes…we’ll…leave him for now.” She sighs “let’s try the hall…and maybe his room before the lobby?”

Shinya nodded. “that minimizes the back and forth, ne?”

“it does.” she agreed. “And we’ll go out from there…and see how far the clues take us.’

Shinya stood and dusted off his jacket. “Lets go then. To the hall!”

“to the hall.” She said as she stood, pulling her coat back on and pushing the door open “what a mess…”
As they walked out into the hall, they found Chitose talking to Monokuma 

“So…can you let me into Ryota’s room, Monokuma-ma-ma?” she asked gently “…the announcement said there was a body and everyone else…”

Monokuma laughed “I guess a CORPSE doesn’t’ need privacy! why not!” 

Chitose winced.

“Ah! Monokuma-san! You’re letting us into Ryota-san’s room? I was about to ask myself.”

Chitose nodded “I thought we should see if he was in his room…” She said softly.

Monokuma cackled “I’ll let you in, but only because it’s an INVESTIGATION, got it? otherwise it’s a NO GO. “

“Thank you, Monokuma-san,” Shinya nodded. “I’ll remember this rule.”

“So we can’t ask you to open something that’s locked any other time?” Miyuki asked “Interesting.” 

Monokuma hit something on the door…and it swung open “Yup! You need the right pad or the right timing to get things open usually!”

Shinya peered into the room over the top of Monokuma, and took a picture from the doorway before anyone entered, just in case.

He got a good photograph of the messed up bed , and…the few slight spatter of blood that soaked into the ground at the foot of the bed.

“Well, now _that’s_ interesting,” he murmured. He stepped inside, careful not to disturb anything.

The room was sparse, as most were at this time of day, but there was the fancy pen that Tsuda had given him on the desk.

He looked at the bed, and the blood spatter– was the bed messed up at all?

The bed wasn’t covered in blood, but the sheets were unusually mussed for someone so normally fastidious. 

On the desk, with the pen, were a number of papers and sketches , pinned with paperweight, all framed under a large “We Can Do It” Propaganda Poster

“Hmmm… nice poster,” he chuckled. He looked over the papers curiously.

“Very nice” Miyuki agreed, even as she looked over the papers as well.

They appeared to be plans for an “Anti-Despair Propaganda campaign” to cheer everyone up and encourage cooperation for escape.

“well this is…sort of ironic and sad, isn’t it?”‘

Shinya sighed. “Very ironic and sad. What a shame. These are pretty good ideas, too.”
Did they seem to have been tampered with in any way?

They were not. Whoever did this…didn’t touch them. They seemed more or less intact.

“Hmmmm…. Most of the room doesn’t seem to have been disturbed. But the bed was.”

Shinya frowned. _That’s odd….._

“and there’s blood on the floor.” Miyuki murmured. “Interesting.”

“I’m starting to develop a thought,” Shinya murmured. “But its not clear yet. Do the specifics of the blood here say anything to you, Karuma-san?”

“It’s not a lot. But yes. I’m starting to get a picture as well.”

She rubbed her chin “….It’s possible Ryota was shot in here. But we should probably try and find the murder weapon.”

“Not a lot of places to look. I’m going to check under the bed,” Shinya said, as he got on his knees to do so.

Under the bed…he didn’t find much. Some lint. Monokuma , who was waving at him with that big cartoon smile…

“Oh, hello, Monokuma-san,” he greets loudly. “Have you seen the murder weapon around here?”

“not in here, buddy! Just my little secret napping spot!” Monokuma replied

“Thank you, Monokuma-san,” Shinya sighed, as he got up. These rooms had bathrooms, right?

“they sure do!” Monokuma laughed “they’re full of great acoomodations too! Like a tub! And bleach!”

“Yes, bleach,” Shinya frowned. He opened the bathroom door, camera at the ready.

The bathroom seemed to be entirely undisturbed…no, actually…it looked like someone had tried to clean blood off of something in the sink, but that was about it.

Shinya took a photo of the sink, and examined it closely.

There were just a few smears of blood around the drain. Like someone had tried rinsing something off…their hands perhaps.

He shined his light down the drain, just in case there was anything stuck in it– though he didn’t expect there to be.

There wasn’t. It was clear.

He shook his head, and stepped out. “Someone washed something in the sink. Maybe their hands. But the weapon isn’t here.”

“damn it.” Miyuki hissed “well we’ll just have to keep looking.”

Shinya nodded. “Not much here. Lets keep searching.”

“To the lobby then?” She pushed up her glasses “we have no idea how much time we have and we need all the evidence we can get, or it’s ALL our necks on the line.”

He nodded, and headed out, motioning for her to follow. “Oh trust me, Karuma-san I can’t forget we’re on the line here.”

She followed “I didn’t think you would…I just thought it important that we _say it out in the open_.” she followed closely behind him “especially since the case is far from crystal clear.”

“Fair point, Karuma-san,” he nodded, heading toward the lobby. “Its important to keep the audience engaged.”

“…the audience? Fuck the audience” She hissed, and glanced up at one of the cameras as they passed, Chitose was standing anxiously in the hall, fidgeting sleepily from foot to foot. 

“U-uhm…”

“Chitose-chan,” Shinya says, beckoning her to follow along. “Did you see anything? or have something to share?”

“Uhm…” she stammered quietly as she wrung her hands “there’s something in the kitchen…”

He stopped mid stride. “In the kitchen, you say. Karuma-san, a detour is in order.”

Chitose nodded nervously “I didn’t want to touch it , Shinya-ya-ya…f-follow me, okee?” 

She started hurrying along towards the kitchen, past Tsuda and Sadahiro who were guarding the spot with the bloody patch on the carpet. 

Tsuda saluted him as they passed “how’s it goin’ partner?”

“Oh its going, partner,” Shinya said with a smile, returning his salute. “Interesting stuff. Oh! Do you have that thing I asked for?”

“oh yep.” He nodded, patting his pocket. ” right here.”

“Hold on to it, ne? We’ll need it soon enough.”

“You got it, man.” Tsuda nodded, giving a little nod “I’ll keep it safe for now.”

Shinya blew him a little kiss. “And keep careful note of anything people say. I have to go check on the kitchen.”

He hurried toward it.

Miyuki gave Tsuda a suspicious little glance as they passed…but the three of them, Shinya , Chitose and Miyuki, entered the kitchen.

Chitose lead them towards the trashcan in the corner “in here..”

“Ah, the trash,” Shinya strolled up to it, and peered into the trash can.

Inside, half buried in wadded up napkins …was a dueling pistol with a small clip attached to it.

Shinya put it on the nearby table, took a photo, and started to examine it. “This was certainly deliberately hidden.”

The dueling pistol was high caliber, and held a small clip of five bullets…but upon examination, one had been fired. 
It was also…

Familiar.
It was one of the set that had been hanging in the Game Shop.

“Karuma-san, this was on display behind glass in the game shop. It’s been fired. This is definitely the weapon that was used to shoot Ryota-san.”

“I’d have to agree with that.” Miyuki said, looking it over. “You should hold onto it, unloaded, for the trial.”

He took a picture of the clip. “You’ll verify that it was loaded like this when we found it, yes?”

“I’ll verify it, yes.” She nodded “we’re on the same side in this.”

“I would hope so, but its good to say it out loud, ne?” He unloaded the gun, and put it with his other evidence.

“For the audience?” she asked dryly.

“For the audience,” he agreed. He did a quick once over to see if anything else had been disturbed in the kitchen.

It seemed the only thing that was disturbed was the trash bin…the rest of it looked the same as ever.

“Alright,” he nodded. “Chitose-chan, thank you for finding this, it was very helpful. May I ask how you noticed it?”

“Well.” Chitose chewed her lip “I was trying to help find some clues as to what was going on…I was worried because of how he was acting yesterday so I was checking trash cans. I  finished the ones in the pool area, and was checking this one when I found it…”

He gave her a thumbs up. “Goo work, and quick thinking, Chitose-chan! Alright, Karuma-san, lets get back to the lobby before we run out of time.”

Chitose returned the thumbs up. “I’m trying to be useful!”

“Good thinking…I’d like to check that, and the vending machines, if you don’t mind.” Miyuki said

Shinya nodded. “Good idea, Karauma-san,” he agreed, heading out of the room.

They stopped first by the lobby…where Tsuda was still watching over the stain. Sadahiro had vanished for the moment, though. 

Tsuda nodded at him ‘hey. Welcome back.”

“Anything to report, partner?”

“Sadahiro-san went off with Eriko-chan.” He said “They’re going to check out the ballroom.” He said “…I ain’t an expert or nothin’ but I can tell you this spot don’t look good. Same shit you saw, though.”

He nodded. “Any idea how old it it, by the way?”

“ehh….I’d say it probably  happened last night. It’s fairly dry, ya know?”

“I wondered about that,” he nodded. “Well… we’ll see how things shake out, ne? I have to go check the lobby. And the vending machines.”
_I wonder if our killer spent the night with a corpse…_

“good plan.” Tsuda nodded “I’ll be here, keepin’ an eye on shit.”

Miyuki looked at him for a long moment before she sighed “vending machines first.”

Shinya nodded and saluted Tsuda again. “Come along, Karuma-san.” 
He lead the way to the vending machines.

Miyuki followed him, her hands folded in front of herself “Shinya-san…” she murmured “I don’t like the look of this case.”

“Nor do I. Tell me what;’s on you mind, hm?”

“It’s…complicated.” She said. “But it seems to me like someone likely had murder on their mind all last night.” 

They came to the vending machines, and she went right for the one marked _”DANGER”_

“That’s exactly the conclusion I was coming to. This was extensively premeditated.”

“meaning we’ve got to ensure we find the right culprit” She paused, and looked it over “…a few of these are sold out.”

Shinya looked it over, seeing if he could tell who’s was whose, or any other information he could glean. “Hmmmm….”

It looked like there was a light panel with each of their talents on it. 

The ones who’d taken their items were Tsuda, Masako,Sadahiro, Ryota, and Goto, Eriko, and Shinya himself.

Miyuki put hers in the slot, and “prosecutor” lit up, as a large package fell down.

As she unwrapped it, it was a whip “oh.”

“Ahhh, there it is,” Shinya chuckled. “Now we’re really in trouble.”

She unfurled it with a slight smirk “well. This trial should be interesting.” She purred “I missed this thing.”

“So glad to see you reunited,” he purred. He took a picture of the machine and the lighted names. “We can ask people what they got from the machine, ne? I know what Tsuda-kun got. And it’s another object that makes it unlikely he’s the real culprit.”

“maybe we’ll save that for the trial.” She murmured “put people on the hot seat.”

“Your style I imagine? well, we need all the time we have to look at the scene now in any case, ne? I realized we should run to the Game Store if we can, as well as the lobby. Damn it.”

She nodded, and snapped the whip in the air with a wide grin “it _is_ my style.” She said “…but yes. We need to run . Who knows how much more time we have.”

He nodded. “Lets check the lobby, an keep the game store on our stretch goals. Come on.” He grinned at her with the whip, and hurried toward the lobby.

She smiled back at him, before curling the whip around her arm, and following him briskly down the hall “The lobby outside the kitchen, right?” She asked “the one with the vomit stain?”

“The one where Tsuda-kun and Masako-chan parked Ryota-san while they were looking for his datapad. Is that the one then?”

“Yes.” She nodded as they approached it “that’s the one. It’s right outside of the residential area, so it makes sense.”

He snapped his fingers. “For some reason I had thought it was another area. Well, back there, then, yes.” He hurried back that direction.

She followed him, shaking her head “who knows how much time we have….Monokuma didn’t even give us a countdown.”

“To keep us on our toes I’m sure,” he murmured. Once he got back to the lobby, he started looking around the area carefully, as he gave Tsuda (presuming he was stlll there) a silent wave.

Tsuda waved back, sitting on the couch in thought. 

What he found was that the vomit stain was by one of the chairs…and there was some slight scuffing at the edges.

Scuffing that continued down the hall in little patches all the way to Ryota’s door.

“Now this is interesting,” he murmured, taking a photo. “Karuma-san, what do you make of this? ‘Something’ was dragged.”

“that’s what it looks like to me.” Miyuki said, crossing her arms “do you think it was Ryota?”

“That would be my guess,” he nodded. “Its dragged to Ryota’s doorway, and we didn’t see anything strange in there, ne?”

“Aside from the bloodstain on the carpet.” She said “….and the sink.”

“Exactly. So maybe they were washing blood off after he was dragged?” he suggested. “But we need to observe now and put the pieces together later, ne?”
was there anything else of note in the lobby area?

There did not seem to be anything more of note in the lobby.

He waved his hand. “Come on, lets dash to the game store, Karuma-san. The game is afoot!”

He started to hurry in that direction.

Miyuki followed him, holding tight to her whip “what’s your thought? That something was taken from there?”

“The pistol that was used to shoot Ryota-san is from there. It was behind glass,” he explained. “It probably will not be important but I’d like to see if the glass was broken, or if it was unlocked.”

Miyuki nodded as she followed, the two of them bursting into the mall, and turning for the game room “now that’s interesting.” She mused “….I wonder if it was even locked to begin with.”

“Good question, I suppose I never specifically checked, but it was in one of those cases that are usually locked.”

He hurried to the game room, though he kept an eye out here for anything suspicious.

They didn’t really see anything suspicious until they got to the game room…but when they did….

They saw that the case was flung open…and one of the pistols was missing from the rack inside.

“Well, its definitely the pistol I thought it was,” he said. He frowned. “Its a shame fingerprinting is probably useless here. Glass takes beautiful fingerprints.”

He came up to the case, and inspected it for anything odd or noticable.

“that is a shame.”She said “A few modern forensics would go a long way. 

Unfortunetly, there wasn’t much. Someone had opened it…and taken the gun. 

**Ah HEM** Came Monokuma’s voice behind them.

Shinya turned. “Monokuma-san. What have you got for me?”

“I forgot, but Miyu-chan’s rambling reminded me! You guys don’t need forensics teams when you got ME!”

he snapped his claws with a digital snapping sound…and their monopads all pinged.

“Oh? How helpful of you, Monokuma-san,” Shinya purred, checking his monopad.

His opened to show the 

**MONOKUMA FILE #1**

It showed a detailed description of the state of the body
Identity: Ryota Watanabe
Talent: SHSL Public Relations
Time of Death: Unknown

The body was lit up in several areas in pink blotches. The eyes, the back of the head and cranium, around the mouth…

Injuries: Gunshot wound to the back of the head, fractured skull. 
Notes:

 Elevated temperature at time of death, 
signs of internal hemmorage and burst blood vessels. 
Blood on teeth, trace of a bloody nose.

“Well, this is interesting, wouldn’t you say, Karuma-san? We observed, or could infer most of it, but its nice to see written out.”

“it sure is.” She said with a nod “I don’t trust it, there’s probably some…misleading elements inside it, but….it’s good to have the data to show the opposition once we start the trial phase.”

“oh.” Monokuma cackled “funny you should mention that because….”

**DING, DONG, BING BONG** went the announcements 

“all students please report to the Ballroom immedietly! Investigation time has ended and it’s time for your very FIRST class trial!!”

Shinya sighed. “As expected. Well, ready for round one, Karuma-san?” he asked with a smile.

She nodded, and brushed her hair from her face “….I’ve never been more ready for anything in my life. The killer **won’t** get away with this.”

“I’d bet my life on it,” Shinya nodded, cracking a smirk.

“I think we’re betting _all_ our lives on it.” She drawls with a smirk of her own “Now come along…justice awaits.” 

000000000000000

When they arrived, they found themselves to be the last people to gather in the open ballroom It’s empty, the orchestra long since gone silent and only the ghostly holograms hovering around them in silent judgement. 

Chitose had sat cross legged on the floor, her arms crossed and a serious expression on her freshly made up face as she bobbed her head to some unheard internal narration. 
Sadahiro paced anxiously around, his eyes flicking to the faces of the others, as well as the hovering ghosts. His brow was knit as he kept his best attempt at a smile plastered on his face.
Passing by him in a pace of her own, Eriko chewed her nail with a furious expression on her face, muttering under her breath “what kind of fucking idiot kills someone right after a party? this is why you can’t trust anyone, you can’t trust anyone at ALL”

“I concur with that.” Morio whispers, as he stitches together fabric to start a doll “The party was a dreadful idea.” 

The Gamer Formally Known as Hayate was trembling, taking a deep breath as they looked around at the group with a widened eye “I just…just can’t believe, I mean..geeze…a …a frickin’ trial to kill someone…I…” 

With a growl, Tomo waves his hand in disgust “some idiot did the crime, and now they make us suffer the pain of killin’ them too.” He sniffs “I’m gonna beat their ass when we find out who it was…and then beat MONOKUMA’S ass for making us damn ’em!” 

Tsuda nodded “you know what partner, I agree with that.”

“Tch.” Morio said in his low, neutral tone “you are the likeliest culprit, Tsuda-san. If you agree to be damned perhaps we can avoid this tedious trial alltogether and simply call for the execution.” 

Tsuda winced , and cast him a look “….I didn’t say that.” He looked up “Shinya-san, you know I didn’t do it, right?”

Shinya nodded, a placid look of concentration on his face. “Tsuda-kun, the idea that you could be the culprit is the first notion that I’ll dispel. Promise.”

Naoki looked up from where he was nervously making looping strokes in his little book. “D-does that mean that you know wh-who did it?”

“That’d be convenient huh?” Momo said, leaning against the wall with her arms crossed behind her head. “Maybe he knows cause it was him.”

“It’s cruel to simply accuse one another,” Yo murmured. “Poor Watanabe-san….”

Goto stood with his arms crossed, silent, and watching his fellow students with suspicion.  Masako was quiet too, but looked more comfortable, if not exactly at ease.

Tomoyo sighed. “I agree with Yo. Let’s at least take a moment to remember Ryota-san before we drop into our bear-enforced witch hunt.”

Tsuda nodded “yeah… let’s try and remember him as he was for a moment. I know he could be a little snappy and abrasive but…he was a real good guy. Clever. Warm at heart, and looking for a way to help. Just…anxious, and a stretched a lil’ too thin.” 

Hayate murmured “…I uhm…I liked him even if he got mad at me for spilling ramen…and coffee…and an energy drink on him.”

Eriko ran her hands through her hair with a furrowed brow “oh, hold on, save the sappy remembrance for the memorial service!” she said  “why should we dispel Tsuda-kun???” 

“Save it for the trial, Eriko-chan.” Miyuki warned “Tomoyo’s right. We should remember Ryota-san for a moment. He was the victim…no justice can be found if we whip ourselves into a frenzy without thinking of him first.”

Shinya’s gaze on Eriko for a moment and he smiles. “I did not know Ryota-san for long, but he seemed dutiful, and energetic.  I hope he will move on to a place where he can finally relax.”

Yo nodded. “He seemed really wound up, you know? But I think he was trying to do his best.”

Naoki nodded. “I-I can relate you know? He may have been on edge but he didn’t deserve to die. I would have liked to know him better.”

Momo shrugged. “I didn;’t exactly think he was a peach, but, it’s true. He didn’t deserve to get killed. Plus he was kind of hilarious at the party last night.”

Shinya smirked to himself. _I call this segment ‘shame the culprit into an agitated state. I wonder if that was Kanzaka-san’s intention?_

Eriko nodded slowly, biting her lip “…yeah, he was an energetic little guy wasn’t he…he…was a good guy, there aren’t too many of those around anymore…” 
Sadahiro nodded tensely, glancing nervously at the ghosts again “Yeah, we got along pretty well while he was alive…he was a real nice guy, a hard worker” He flashed his brightest smile “I hope he gets a real good filing job in heaven!” 
Chitose stood, and clasped her hands together with a sad look in her eyes “…he was kind. Ryota-ta-ta…he was working on a propaganda campaign to help us. To keep us from falling into Despair. It just did not come soon enough. I’ll always remember him. Always, always…I tried to help him smile at the party, before he got drunk and sick…I’ll remember that smile.” 
Morio stitched another line in his doll. “He’s a corpse now.” he said “just a body. Nothing more.” He began to sew hair onto it. “an empty vessel. “

Tomoyo nodded. “He’s gone. We remain.  What happens now is in all our hands.”

“Well said, Kanzaka-san,” Shinya nodded.

Miyuki nods to Tomoyo “precisely…very well said indeed…so let’s make sure we bring justice to this courtroom, and not blind arroagance.” She looks at the others. 

“The facts will shine a light on the responsible party. So let’s work together an—-“

“WOW, I step out for five seconds and you guys arrange an entire whiney little pity party for a strung out junkie  and give rousing speeches about boring crap like justice and duty and blah blah UGH it’s enough to make me spill my stuffing all over the floor!” 

Monokuma leaps up from behind the orchestra “are you chumps ready to go to trial?”

“Ah, good morning, Monokuma-san. Visiting the little bear’s room?” Shinya smiled. “Yes, I think we’re ready for trial.”

“Hey, you know what they say.” Monokuma said while patting his tummy “when nature calls, you gotta answer!”

“Disgusting.” Eriko scowled at him “you crass little bastard of a bear!”

Monokuma cackled, “Whatever, it’s TRIAL TIME”

The stage began to rumble….and then it SPLIT, the curtains parting to reveal a large door hidden behind them as the two halfs of the stage turned, forming a sort of tunnel towards it lined by the animatronic musicians as they lept to life, and began to play an ominous melody.

“Okay. That’s an impressive effect,” Tomoyo muttered.

Goto furrowed his brow. “This is ridiculous.”

“Ominous,” Shinya said with a smile as he immediately started to approach the newly created tunnel.

Miyuki stared at it for a long moment before she walked forward with a huff “it’s a scare tactic.” 

Morio moved without a word, as Tsuda fell into step beside Shinya “Like walkin’ to your own execution, eh partner?”

Shinya squeeze Tsuda’s hand. “Not if I have  anything to say about it, partner.”

One by one they filed through, the nerves of the group palpable.

Through the door they stepped, and into a large chamber populated by the judgmental ghosts from their past in high seats ringed around a central set of podiums.

It was decorated like a grand hall, with high arching windows that lead to an endless, multicolored void outside, and a stately judge’s platform in the back, onto which Monokuma leapt with a surprising vertical leap. 

Banners hung, one reading HOPE, the other DESPAIR, with the Hope’s Peak Logo on each…though the despair one had Monokuma’s signature eye painted over it. 

The wooden podiums were set in a circle  , each with a screen set in a small rectangle upon the podium’s inner face. 

A courtroom for a trial of life or death.

“Well now, this is ceremonious,”  Shinya commented. He squeezed Tsuda’s hand again, and made a circuit around the podiums, looking at them before he took his place.
_I wonder how this fits into the ship’s layout._

He found the podium with his name on it, standing opposite Miyuki’s and one away from Tsuda’s.
Everyone followed into their proper place soon after, standing behind their podiums. Sadahiro looked to his left, to stare at the portrait of Ryuto that stood in his place. A grim funeral portrait of him , crossed out with hot pink pencils. 

As for the ship’s layout…it was likely set in the space between the kitchen and the ballroom…in the big empty space taken up by the long hall with the vending machines.

Tsuda leaned on the podium with a frown “Yeah. It sure fuckin’ is.” he agreed quietly “I don’t like it.”

“Nor I,” Shinya said, shaking his head. “But we’ll make the best of it.”

One by one the others filed in, and stood behind their podiums. Yo paused first, beside the funeral portrait of Ryota, and said a quiet prayer– a gesture which Tomoyo repeated before she took her own place.

Chitose stopped by the portrait, and left a small trinket on it’s face. It seemed to be a pocket watch. “I hope you take this with you to the afterlife, Ryota-ta-ta…” she whispers, before she walks over to stand by Masako.

Soon , everyone took their place, some following suit with the prayers, and others standing anxiously at their podiums.

Monokuma stood atop the judge platform with a bearish grin “well! We’re finally here, aren’t we? The big trial!”

“Your big showpiece, right?” Tomoyo said, taking her place behind the podium. “I assume your puppetmaster– sorry– I assume “”Monokuma-san””, wants to make a big speech, or lay some ground rules.”

“Oh that does seem likely,” Shinya nodded.

“if you think this is my big showpiece, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet.” Monokuma purred. “but I do have to lay out the rules of the trial!” 

He cleared his throat. “Okay, listen up , chumps…during the class trial  you will present your arguments for who the killer is and vote to decide whodunnit . ” he clapped his paws together with a cackle “If you vote correctly, only the Blackened will be punished for their crimes! But if you make the dreadfully wrong choice everyone BESIDES the blackened will be punished! and the blackened will be set free on a boat trip home to have allll the fun they want back shoreside!!”

He paused “once a verdict has been reached, we’ll begin the voting process! Beyond that, have _fun_ that’s what this is all about, right?”

“That seems fairly straightforward, ne?” Shinya nodded. “Oh however– do we have a time limit?”

“I don’t want this to go on forever.” monokuma replied “I’d say you’ve got to the end of the afternoon.” he said with a grin “I mean…as long as you finish by the end of the day , whatever. If I get bored, I’ll end the trial early.”

“that’s hardly fair.’ Miyuki snapped. “hardly fair at all.”

“life ain’t fair, hon.” Monokuma grinned “Don’t let it get to you.”

“How unsurprising,” Shinya sighed. “we didn’t get a clear limit for the investigation either. Well, we’ll make the best of it, hmm?”

“We’d better, since we all know that this guy wants to screw us over,” Masako said. She’d produced a nail file and was filing her nails in a show of bored bravado. Or maybe a nervous habit.

 (pinned)
Sadahiro bowed deeply to Monokuma “alright, sir! we won’t fail you! We’ll do our best to find the culprit!”

“Don’t look so fuckin’ happy about it, you dipshit.” Tomo snapped “it’s a murder investigation.”
He crossed his arms “…we’re gonna figure this shit out no matter what.” 

Chitose cocked her head with a smile “I’m sure…we can even figure out why it happened, right?” 

“Maybe.” Hayate said, leaning on the podium “if the bear gives us enough time…”

“Stop worrying about it! everyone understand the rules?” Monokuma crowed “because it’s TRIAL TIME!!!!”

**TRIAL FOR RYUDA WATANABE…BEGIN**

Shinya put his hands behind his back. “Karuma-san, would you like to begin with an opening statement?” he offered.

“Oh wow,” Momo said. “Is this gonna be like an actual actual trial? wild.”

Miyuki stood tall, and looked out among them with a cool and serious expression on her face.

She pushed up her glasses, and opened her notebook to begin. “….of course, Nagano-san.”

Turning to face the others, she holds her notebook up, and slaps a page. “Last night, Ryota-san was murdered sometime between the pool party and the morning announcement. The obvious wounds suggest a shot to the back of the head as the cause, but there is room to doubt.”

She looks at each of their expressions in turn. “Someone took his life, in a fit of selfishness, on the very eve of our attempt to build rapport and cooperation. The irony is far from lost on most of us, I’m sure.”

“Its terrible,” Naoki said softly. “Who would do such a thing?”

“Someone with a gun, obviously,” Goto added dryly.

Tsuda held up his hands “look, I know what you’re all probably thinkin’ hearin’ that. but it ain’t me.”

“Defensive.” Eriko said, looking at him suspiciously “but most of us hardly even know how to shoot one of the damn things, and you’re Mr. Sharpshooter, aren’t you?” 

Hayate’s eye widened “oh no, Tsuda, did you really do it??” He leaned on “it had to have been someone **with a gun** right? and you’re strapped with dozens of ’em!” 

“…it’s one gun.” Tsuda said with a grimace “and it ain’t missing a single round. I didn’t fire it.”

“Tsuda-san, would you like to present your gun as evidence for us?” Shinya asked politely. “For the record, ne?”

Masako looked up. “For the record, I have a gun too, but if it had been used on Ryota, his head would not have been in one piece.”

Sadahiro’s eyes widened as he stared at Masako “it _what_???” he yelped “Holy s…heck!”

Tsuda took the gun off his belt, and slammed it down on the podium. “look at it. It’s a sport revolver. High caliber.  And it’s fully loaded. not a bullet fired.”

“I should state for the record.” Miyuki said “it seems it was a high caliber round that struck Ryota in the back of the head.”

Sadahiro spoke up again “What’s the say he didn’t have **more ammo** and just reloaded the thing?? I mean…he’s the sharpshooter isn’t he?”

Momo nodded. “Right? who’s to say there isn’t ammo lying all around here like it was a 2000s era survival horror!”

Shinya smiled. “I’m afraid whether Tsuda’s gun has been reloaded or not is irrelevant. We already have the weapon that was discharged.”

Sadahiro gasped in surprise “you do?”

Eriko waved her hand “Show it to the class then. It doesn’t change the fact that the murder weapon was still **a gun**. and that points right to our resident _gun nut_ “

Tomo snorted “I mean. Anyone can shoot a gun, right?”

“Not true.” Sadahiro said “I mean, you could break your arm with one of those things if you’re not careful!”

“I’m sure our resident gun otaku can tell us more about that, Sadahiro-san,” Shinya says, taking out the gun and the clip. “But here for the record, is the weapon. Chitose-san is the one who discovered it, in the kitchen trash can, hidden under some napkins.  It is, as you can see, a high caliber dueling pistol, and its clip has had one bullet discharged from it.”

Sadahiro cocked his head “oh geeze, so they tried to **hide it** huh?”

Morio’s brow furrowed “i’m sorry. but why was it in the kitchen trash? If it was only under napkins , it’s not like they **hid it well**.” 

“Who knows.” Tsuda said , as he picked up the gun, and ejected the clip “this gun is one used in professional duels and sharpshooting tournaments. It’s a recreation of an old design from the turn of the century, with an added clip function. Accurate as hell, but has **less of a recoil than you’d think.** , it’s well stabilized”

Masako held a hand out. “May I see it, Tsuda-kun?”

Tsuda handed the gun to her. It was heavy, but well weighted…it seemed the weight of the barrel would compensate for the kickback somewhat.

She looked it over, and nodded. “I second the opinion. Its heavy, but it’s very balanced. There wouldn’t be enough kickback to seriously injure someone even if they didn’t know what the fuck they were doing.”

“Thank you both of you for your assessment,” Shinya nodded. “So, it was possible for someone **unfamiliar with firearms** to fire the gun.”

Tomo grimaced “So that brings us back to square one, don’t it?”

“Not quite.” Miyuki says “…after all, we do have evidence of a **strange occurance** in the pool room, don’t we? with the angle of the shot.”

“Huh? What kind of strange occurrence are you talking about?” Yo asked

“Oh!”  Momo raised her hand. “Are you suggesting that **a ghost might have shot him?**”

Shinya pushed up his glasses. “Hardly. No, Karuma-san is referring to the **dent in the ceiling pipe** in the pool area.”

“Not to mention the angle of the shot was off.” Miyuki said “implying that perhaps someone **shot the pipe** at the right angle to ricochet it into Ryota’s head.” 

Chitose’s eyes widened behind her makeup “oh gosh. Do you think a **GHOST SHOT HIM** with a **trick shot**?”

Tsuda looked at Chitose with a puzzled expression “…_what_. where are you guys gettin’ this ghost shit from?”

Momo put a finger in her mouth, and pointed another at the audience. “Well there are ghosts all over! and Miyuki-chan said it was a strange occurrence.”

“Don’t be stupid,” Goto snapped. “It was obviously one of us. And if it was that kind of **trick shot** it points the finger back at Tsuda again.”

“Remind me not to flower my language around you, Momo-chan.” Miyuki drawled. 

Sadahiro stared at Tsuda with wide eyes behind his glasses “it does…the only person who could pull off a shot like that is you. You’re the ONLY person who could have killed Ryota-san!” 

Morio frowned “…what was the angle of the shot?”

“It’s simple,” Shinya said, looking at his notes. “Miyuki traced the angle of the shot in the pool room. The shot didn’t seem to line up cleanly, and suggested the bullet may have **ricocheted** off the pipe to hit Ryota-san.”

“which would make it a trick shot.” Morio said dryly “which lines up with the accusations of Tsuda-san.”

Tomo grimaced “no way. Tsuda-san’s a cool dude! he wouldn’t go around shooting people in the pool room in the **middle of the night**, would he?”

Shinya waved a hand. “Oh this is soooo tiresome and messy. Karuma-san, can we get all the evidence against Tsuda-san out of the way at once?”

“Huh, all at once?” Yo asked. 

“yes, there’s a lot of it and its all stupid,” Shinya sniffed. “Its getting in the way.”

Karuma stared at him “…Shinya-san. You are aware that an important part of a trial is actually examining every angle. Including the mounted evidence against Tsuda-san.” 

She pinches the bridge of her nose. “Fine. to lay it out we have the fact that he was the last person, with Masako, to see Ryota. The murder involved a firearm and possibly a trick shot. His bloodied jean jacket was found stuffed in a hamper at the pool…and this.”

She slaps the carefully written note down on the table “A note from Tsuda-san to Ryota-san , claiming to know his secrets and offer him something to help with them…”

Chitose gasped “a note? Do you think Monokuma-ma-ma wrote it?”

“As IF! I don’t interfere in your business, kid, so don’t drag ME into this!” Monokuma barked. 

Morio leaned in to stare at the note with a soft ‘hmmmmmmm’.

Goto raised an eyebrow and looked at the note and the rest of the evidence. He looked at Tsuda. “You have to admit this is all pretty damning.”

“Its an absolute glut of evidence,” Tomoyo said. “If this is true its open and shut. But as a dungeon master, it feels way too obvious.”

“Sometimes life isn’t like one of your games you know, “Goto drawled. 

Yo scratched his head. “Wow, with all that evidence I can’t see how it **wouldn’t** be Tsuda. I’m sorry, pal, but….”

Shinya smiled an raised a finger. “It is a lot of damning evidence, but Kanzaka-san is right it **too obvious.** The truth is that someone **planned to frame Tsuda from the start** and I can prove it.”

Hayate looked around, taking in the zeitgeist around them before stammering out “I d-dunno, it’s REALLY damning, guys… you say he’s framed but like, what if he just was sloppy, right?I mean…the sharpshooting, the coat, the note…the….everything…”

Sadahiro grimaced “someone tried to _frame him_? I dunno guys that seems kind of …convoluted, huh?” 

Tomo pointed at them “Shut the hell up and let the man talk!” 

Miyuki spread her fingers, gesturing them out towards Shinya with a smirk “why don’t you _tell them_, Nagano-san.”

Shinya smiled brightly and gave a little bow. “I’d be happy to. Let’s start with the note, ne? Has everyone taken a good look at it?”

Momo nodded. “Looks like a note to me.  Ryota-kun was an addict huh? I’m not surprised but that sucks. And then Tsuda used it as an excuse to lure him out and kill him. Bang!”

Morio nodded “I took a look. It seems pretty evident…though admittedly, Tsuda’s handwriting is more ….elegant…than I expected from such a ruffian.” 

“Hey, I resemble that remark.” Tsuda drawled 

Chitose wrinkled her nose at it “…poor Ryota-ta-ta…he was struggling and nobody even knew…”

Sadahiro blinked “oh geeze, wow, yeah? Ryota-kun was an addict? I couldn’t have guessed!”

“_Really_?” Eriko scoffed “I knew from day one. The guy had the jitters like an alcoholic on a cleanse.”

“The chain smoking and the way he was drinking at the party kinda gave it away,” Masako said.

“Not to mention his pallor, sweating, etc,” Goto drawls. “But that hardly matters now. What matters is this note that Tsuda seems to have carelessly written.”

“C-carelessly…. it sounds like it was planned, so that’s not careless, right?”  Naoki asked softly.

“We’ll see in a moment just how careless it might have been,” Shinya purred. “Tsuda-kun– for my first trick– I asked you to **write something down** for me while Karuma-san and I were investigating. Can you produce that for me now, please”

“oh yeah.” Tsuda said, and handed him the paper. “There ya go, man. It was just Sadahiro, though Tomoyo joined us for a moment, so I wrote her down too.”

“Thank you kindly,” he purred, taking the note and unfolding it. “But it isn’t the contents of the note that interests me in this case.”

“Huh? not the contents?” Yo blinked.

“Oh. Clever, Shinya,” Tomoyo nodded.

“What’s clever?” Momo asked. “I dun geddit.”

Shinya smoothed the two notes. “Let’s **compare the handwriting**, shall we?”

Miyuki smirked “and so the clever little gambit finally pays off.” She flipped her hair away from her face, and pushed up her glasses “I’m going to bet they look _nothing alike_.” 

Chitose gasped, and a delighted smile crossed her face “oh WOW , that’s super smart! Shinya-ya-ya…you’re comparing the kind of paper he uses, right?? wow!!!”

“…..” Morio stared at Chitose with an expression of disdain. 

The handwriting…was vastly different. Tsuda’s handwriting was kind of messy. It wasn’t unreadable, but the strokes weren’t hardly as neat and careful as the note sent to Ryota. Neither one was _beautiful_ but Tsuda’s was far messier.

Shiyna passed them around. “You’re quite correct, Karuma-san. They’re far different. And I have to say, if Tsuda _were_ the killer and bothered to sign his name, I truly doubt that he’d bother taking his time with careful handwriting.”

Goto pushed up his glasses as he looked them over. “yes, they’re very different indeed.”

Sadahiro spoke up “maybe he was trying really hard to be careful? You know. To try to deflect people suspecting him if they were to look at his handwriting?”

Tomo waved his hand “that sounds convoluted. What kind of moron would waste time doing that?”

“The same one who’d send a note to their intended victim while signing their own name, perhaps?” Eriko snorted “some people are so _stupid_.”

“I question how someone could be _that_ stupid,” Goto drawled. “But I suppose  I shouldn’t given some of the idiotic ideas I’ve already heard here today.”

“Well, it doesn’t make too much of a difference anyway,” Shinya smiled. “Because it’s almost certainly impossible for Tsuda-san to have killed Ryota-san. He wouldn’t have had the time.”

“Huh? What, like he was really busy that night?” Yo asked.

Tsuda grinned at Yo. “Somethin’ like that….I had someone right next to me most of the night, they woulda noticed if I got up.”

Shinya smiled brightly. “Tsuda-kun spent all night with me. We woke up right next to one another.”

“Whaaaat?” Momo sputtered. “Oh man, I _totally_ knew Shinya-kun was into men but I wouldn’t have guessed about Tsuda!!”

Tsuda flushed deeply “hey, look. I swing both ways, Momo-chan.” 

Hayate blushed brightly “heheh…heheh…oh gosh, you do huh?” they blinked at him “that’s the s-same as me. that’s so cool.” 

“Must we talk about romantic blather? There’s a problem.” Morio said, before Sadahiro cut in. 

“I mean, that’s really cute! It is…but **what if he got up in the middle of the night to do it**? While you were dead asleep?”

“Mazeltov,” Tomoyo drawled. “But I’m curious about that too.  It’s possible enough that he could.”

“_Is it though?_” Shinya smiled. “To determine that, we have to determine the **time of death**, don’t we?”

_Good to know, Tsuda-kun, lets put a pin in that…._

Miyuki nodded her head “we should…though , I have to point out there’s something that helps **narrow that considerably**…and it’s in the very rules we’re forced to follow.”

“Huh? What rule is that?” Naoki asked.

Shinya smiled. “Of course. Would you care to make it obvious for us, Karuma-san?”

“Rule #2: “Nighttime” is from 10 pm to 7 am. Some areas are off-limits at night, so please exercise caution.” she intones “Of which, the pool is closed. The party ended at **9:30**, and the morning alarm went off at **8**” 

She laughed , and unfurled a whip from her side to snap it across the open area between them “meaning the only time for the murder to have been **committed at all** if it happened in the pool was between **9:30 to 10** or from **7 to 8**. A total of an hour and a half!”

“That’s a heck of a narrow margin, wouldn’t you say?” Tomoyo nodded.

“Exactly,” Shinya smiled. “Which means that Tsuda-kun certainly couldn’t have slipped out of my grasp last night to commit the murder.”

“Alright, fine,” Goto said. “Let’s be thorough about this though. Why couldn’t Tsuda just have killed Ryota between 9:30 and 10 pm?”

Shinya laughed. “Oh Goto-san, thank you. That’s simple. Remember how last night, Masako-san and Tsuda-san took poor drunk Ryota-san back to his room? That was at about 9:30, ne?”

Tsuda nodded. “then we **couldn’t find his pad** so we put him in the chair. Masako went to go check the kitchen area, and I went back to check the pool with Shinya. That took at least 15 minutes, and by the time we got back to the bedroom, it was nearly 10 anyway.” 

Tomo muttered softly, looking perhaps a little jealous at the whole ‘sleeping in the same room thing’ “musta been nice having a sleeping partner, Real cozy. Hmph.”

Masako pouted a bit too. “It sure does.”

“We sort of fell in together, ne?” Shinya said with a smile. “To watch each other’s backs. In any case– I was at the pool the entire time that Tsuda-san was gone, and then when he returned, we were together from that time forward. Likewise, when we woke up this morning, he seemed to genuinely have been asleep, and I didn’t notice any evidence that he had changed clothes, or taken a shower, or anything of that nature.”

“And there woulda been , if my jean jacket got jacked up.” Tsuda said. Though he did give Masako a sly wink. 
“Anyway, I couldn’t have possibly done it.”

“…that is…compelling..” Morio murmured.

Sadahiro bit his nail. “…but what if he broke the rules?  I mean, maybe Monokuma let him break them for the sake of a murder?” 

Chitose suddenly spoke up “What if someone had **time powers**.”

Goto slowly reached up and pinched the bridge of his nose. “And what if the moon were made of green cheese? My dear clown, no one here has time powers, for the simple reason that if they did, the first thing they would do is remove themselves from the situation entirely.”

“And the other question we can get an answer to,” Tomoyo said. She looked up at Monokuma. “Would you let someone break the rules that way?”

“Oh…” Chitose murmured softly . “sorry I..uhm…”

She rubbed her arm “…you know how strange talents can be…that’s…that’s all. Sorry.” 

Monokuma cackled “no way. You need to kill fair and square. No cheating from me!”

Momo pointed at Chitose. “Hey hey it was a fair question! Talents are weird! Buuuut, science boy’s kinda right. Time powers? I’d book the heck out.”

“And we have our answer about the timing then,” Shinya said with a smile. “Regardless of when Ryuto-san actually died, he must have ended up in the pool either at some time between 7 and 8 am this morning, which is the most likely, or –and this is just barely possible– *immediately* after Tsuda-san and I left the pool last night, between 9:50 and 10pm.”

“Do you really think it could have b-been last night?” Naoki asked quietly. “That’s not a lot of time. And people were still probably wandering around a bit after the party.”

“No, I definitely think it was in the morning,” Shinya replied. “But its important to make certain to acknowledge the possibility, despite being slim.”

Sadahiro thought for a moment “it was probably in the morning, I guess. but it could have been during that slim margin at night…”

Eriko pointed ” **it’s impossible!**” She suddenly says “if it were at 9:50 or so, I would have HEARD it! I was getting water from the kitchen, and I THINK I would have recognized a gunshot.”

“Is that so?” Shinya smiles. “Excellent to know. Was anyone else out and about at that time?”

“Yes.” She said with a little grin  “Masako-chan was there with me. I got my water and we looked for the data pad together before Monokuma kicked us out for the turning of the hour.”

Masako nodded. “I was looking for Ryota-kun’s monopad, and Eriko-chan helped me out with it, so I can confirm that.”

Shinya nodded, and clapped. “excellent! Then we can confirm for certain that both **the gunshot** and **Ryota’s body in the pool** happened between 7 and 8 in the morning.”

Miyuki nodded “Meaning that it happened in the early hours of the morning…” Her lips parted in a thin smirk “thus rendering Tsuda’s alibi intact.”

Sadahiro spoke up “But what about the **trick shot** that killed Ryota-san?”

Chitose’s brow furrowed, and she looked like she was going to say somehting…but then bit it back “**…**”

“Chitose-chan, you look as though you have a thought, ne?” Shinya said with a smile. “I’d like to hear it.”

Chitose shook her head “I don’t want people to think I’m dumb.” she whispers.

Shinya shook his head. “I want to make it clear that there are no dumb questions here, ne? We need to interrogate this puzzle from **every angle possible** to make certain that its only the guilty party who receives the punishment. So please.”

Chitose took a deep breath “I just was thinking that **maybe the bullet didn’t kill him** is all.” She says “if he died earlier that night, it’d be easier for the killer to set things up in the morning..”

Momo’s mouth fell open. “Oh shit you’re right.”

Tomoyo nodded. “That’s not stupid at all, Chitose. I’ve been thinking the exact same thing.”

Chitose smiled at Tomoyo “you too, Tomoyo-yo…?” 

“huh.” Tsuda mused quietly “now that’s a good point. Ya think he was shot somewhere else then? Do we got any evidence that shows he wasn’t shot in the pool?”

Shinya smiled broadly. “Indeed we do, Tsuda-san. Some _very interesting_ evidence indeed. While you were standing watch in the lobby hall you might have noticed that there was a **drag mark** there.”

“…yeah. I noticed that.” he said with a nod “…a little scuff of blood, right? from the pool of uh…bloody puke that we found where we’d left Ryota last night.” 

Sadahiro blinked at him “you mean that you think someone **shot him** in that chair? that’s crazy!”

Shinya frowned. “That’s highly unlikely, though I suppose, not technically impossible. But as with the pool, someone would have **heard the gunshot**. No, I believe an **unconscious or semi-conscious Ryota was dragged into his room that night.** We have several pieces of evidence more that suggest this.”

Morio raised his hand “and how were they able to get into Ryota’s room. Did Tsuda not say the pad was lost?”

“sure was.” Tsuda said “But in that brief time frame that we left him and Masako was searching the kitchen…someone mighta had it.”

“Indeed,” Shinya nodded. “Karuma-san and I **found the pad in the pool this morning.**.”

Tsuda leaned over, and looked at the pad “…huh, it was in the pool? Does the thing still turn on?”

“You know I hadn’t yet tried to find out,” he said, taking it out, and attempting to turn it on, after he showed the cracked pad around to everyone.

It turned on, and displayed the screen name of Ryota Watanabe (渡部, 亮太 ), despite the crack in the screen, it seemed to work just fine.

Shinya smiled. “As you can see it does indee–” he stopped all of a sudden, his eyebrows raising. “Now hold on…” he purred.

Yo blinked. “Huh? What’s up? Did it turn off all of a sudden?”

Tsuda raised his eyebrow “somethin’ wrong, Shinya-san?”

Chitose put her finger to her cheek “did something happen? did it shock you?”

Sadahiro stared at him with a cock of his head “…huh?”

“Come on spit it out!” Momo urged.

Shinya took another piece of evidence out of his pocket– and put it next to the pad. “This is **Ryota’s Card** which was found in Tsuda-san’s missing vest. But the characters for Ryota-san’s name don’t match what’s on his monopad. See?”

Goto frowned. “Could Monokuma have misspelled Ryota’s name in the monopad?”

“nope! I know all about you idiots.” Monokuma cackled “besides. After the initial login you guys are free to change it any time!” 

Chitose furrowed her brow “well that is strange…”

Tsuda nodded in agreement. “…actually. ” he mused “I found that out. I changed it to my screenname in the pet game a while back.”

Shinya’s smile widened considerably. “Oh I see. Well if that’s true we may have just solved the case, my friends.”

“You’re k-kidding,” Noaki breathed.

Tomoyo shook her head. “No. if he’s right about what I think he’s suggesting, it might be true.”

Miyuki smirked , crossing her arms “it appears there may have been a fatal error in the killer’s logic.”

Shinya smirked back. “Indeed. It would seem that our killer must have changed the name in this datapad. And for what possible reason? **to make it appear as though it were Ryota’s.**”

“S-so that one’s not Ryota’s?” Noaki asked.

“If not his, then who’s is it?” Yo frowned.

“Isn’t it obvious?” Goto asked. “It must be **the killer’s**.”

Morio nodded slowly “ah…that does make sense.” he stitches a small vest onto the doll he was working on, and looks up “so the pad is the killers,a nd the killer changed the name to make it appear to be Ryota’s…._why_?”

Tsuda thought for a moment before he guessed “Because they stole the actual pad and wanted to try covering up that he had the wrong one? The fact it was at the bottom of the pool means they probably tried destroyin’ it.” 

Sadahiro’s brow furrowed “…I mean, that’s pretty crazy, right? I can’t follow the logic of doing that at all.” He put his hand on the podium “but it doesn’t explain anything about how the murder even happened, if it wasn’t a **trick shot**.”

As they discussed between them, Shinya thought to himself. _Well this is a bit of a pickle. On the one hand I’m fascinated to continue to tease this out and put together all the little bits into a picture of what happened. On the other hand, I may have a short cut, and we **are** on a time limit. Should I ask everyone to get out their monopad and show it now, or should I wait until later? Even if it doesn’t solve the case immediately it could provide a valuable clue we’d otherwise miss. Or it could solve the case…._

“It could have been a total accident,” Momo said. “Like, the gun went off by mistake and just happened to hit Ryota by cooincidence.”

“How does that even begin to make sense?” Goto grumbled.

“No…that wouldn’t account for the angle.” Chitose mused softly “I mean…there’s also **something else** that’s bugging me.”

Miyuki was rubbing her chin, looking thoughtful as she stares down each of the faces around her in turn. 

Tomo raised his hand “You know what, I got somethin’ that’s buggin’ me too. This shit’s fucking nuts.”

“What is it, Chitose?” Tomoyo asked. “Your last question was a pretty good one. Curious if you and Tomo are on to the same thing, too.”

“…he got very sick last night.” She whispered softly “really really sick. And very quickly too. I think everyone thought he was drunk but…the blood in the vomit bothers me.”

_I think I’ll keep it as my ace in the hole for now,_ Shinya mused. _I’m curious to see how far we can track this without it. I can always pull it out as a showstopper. And I DO love a showstopper._

He spoke up after his silence. “Ah yes, the blood. I was hoping we’d get around to discussing that. And was that the same thought you’d had, Tomo-chan?”

Tomo blinked “well, actually yeah. I was gonna bring up the fact he was acting like a fucking lunatic last night. All that stumblin’ around. For an addict you think he could handle one fucking drink.”

He shook his head “and it was one drink. ’cause I was at the bar a lot of the night. I didn’t see him get anything all that strong, Shinya-kun.”

“No, you’re absolutely right,” Shinya nodded. “I suspected it last night but I didn’t have any **evidence**. Ryota-san was probably **poisoned**.”

“HUuuuh?” Momo frowned. “I thought he was shot? what’s with the gaping bullet hole then? Did it appear by magic? Was it **lead poisoning**?”

Chitose put her finger to her cheek “oh no…lead poisoning isn’t that fast, Momo-mo-mo….But I think he was poisoned…” 

Eriko grimaced “…cowardly. Whoever would poison someone is a damned coward.”

“Let’s not be so judgmental, Eriko-san,” Shinya said with a smile directly at her. “Poisoning is smart and forward thinking, ne? It wasn’t a crime of passion, if he was poisoned. It was a tactically planned, well executed, clever even. Its doing a murder at all under these circumstances that makes the killer a coward.”

Masako drummed her fingers on the podium. “Sure. But lets not get off track, right? Lets actually _find_ the coward so we can be done. I haven’t even had breakfast.”

Eriko snorted softly “so what you’re saying is someone came to that party _prepared to kill someone there_. We were partying it up with a _murderer_ the whole night. Great.” 

Miyuki frowned “..that’s what we believe.” She leaned on the podium, pointing to each of them in turn “one of you showed up to the party , premeditating murder….and struck while we all tried to forget our dire predicament. Cruel, isn’t it?” 

Sadahiro raised his hand with a smile “Permission to talk, prosecutor?”

“…sure” Miyuki said slowly . 

“I mean, I guess there’s the vomit, but what makes you so sure it was poison? They’d have to get it from **somewhere**, right? And I didn’t see any poison for sale in the mall or in the machines or anything..”

“Oh yeah, that’s right,” Yo nodded. “You have to have poison to poison someone.”

“I’m afraid that’s just not true,” Shinya said. “There’s plenty of things that aren’t poison that one could poison someone with. Why in fact, Monokuma-san was just sharing a tall glass of bleach with Tsuda-san and I, yestrday, isn’t that right?”

He looked up at Monokuma with a smile.

Monokuma snapped his fingers “that’s right, bucko! I sure was….but that bleach is from my PRIVATE stash! None for you!”

“…honored you drank it in my presence then.” Tsuda drawled

Shinya chuckled. “That’s alright, Monokuma-san, I was really just pointing out the fact. Actually I believe that someone here could **easily have access to some kind of actual for real type of poison.**.”

A ripple of shock went through the crowd, and a quiet murmur of activity ensued. 

After the initial surprise wore off, Chitose cocked her head to the side “you think so?” 

Miyuki nodded “I think I know where you’re going with this, Nagano-san.”

Tomo cocked his head to the side “huh…was it at the mall, then? or from Monokuma?”

“Huh? If there’s poison around we should definitely know about it,” Yo said. “That stuff’s really dangerous.”

“Not from the mall, and not from Monokuma-san either. At least not directly,” Shinya said. “Karuma-san, you’ve been restraining yourself this whole time. Why don’t you show everyone what you got ahold of earlier today.”

“i’ve already given them a hint of it.” Miyuki purred, and snaps the whip out again, cracking it in the center of the circle with a wide grin on her face. “Isn’t it beautiful? It’s the whip I use as an…accessory….in court.”

“….” Tomo raised his eyebrow “they let ya play kink games in court?? why ain’t I a lawyer then? I’m missin’ out!” 

Morio snorted ” ugh…lowbrow….no, the question should be **where she got it**.”

Momo nodded. “Yeah!! I want a whip!”

Shinya smiled. “Well then, maybe you can get one from the **Danger Vending Machine.**.  Or maybe you’ll get a gun. or maybe you’ll get **some deadly poison**.”

Sadahiro’s eyes widened “the machine _doles out **weapons**??? that’s insane! Why would Monokuma put such a workplace hazard around!” 

“to help people kill.” Eriko growled “it’s …it’s meant to give people access to something deadly so they can kill.”

Tsuda nodded “that’s right. that’s how I found my revolver. And Masako found her rifle.”

“Indeed,” Shinya said with a smile. “In fact, the machine keeps an exact list of who has gotten something out of the vending machine.”

Tomo grinned “hell yeah, Shinya-kun! you should lay it out for us!”

Shinya flourished a hand. “Shinya, Tsuda, Masako, Sadahiro, Ryota, Goto, Eriko, and of course, Karuma-san– those are who have used the machine so far. It seems that the machine dispenses one item at no cost for each of us, and it is an item somehow linked to the person who receives it. For instance my own ‘prize’ was a puzzle cube that included the note “Consolation prize. No skeletons in your closet’ with it.”

Yo scratched his head. “Huh, do you think maybe it has my special sushi knife in there?”

“probably, Yo.” Tsuda said with a nod. “it’s probably in there…unless ya got some other deadly weapon in your pocket. I got my gun.”

Eriko sighed, and reached into her purse…and slammed down a **tire iron** . “I got this.” She spat. “So don’t go thinking I’m some kind of poisoner.”

“No one is accusing anyone right now, Eriko-san,” Shinya purred. “Thank you for sharing yours. How about the rest of you?”

“I got my own gun obviously,” Masako said. “I didn’t bring it to trial, its locked in my room.”

Goto lowed his hand below the podium. There was a clicking noise. He raised it, and showed the metallic gauntlet enclosing his hand. “And I received this. My own creation.”

“That just leaves Ryota himself,” Momo pointed out.

“Not quite,” Shinya said. “There’s also Sadahiro-san.”

“I can confirm the gun Masako has.” Tsuda says “…Ryota might have gotten something , yeah, but there’s also Sadahiro-san to consider.”

“It wasn’t really anything.” Sadahiro said, pushing up his glasses with a shaky smile  “just some consolation prize. that’s all. Like you got, really.”

Shinya smiled at him. “Oh ne? what kind of consolation prize, Sadahiro-san?”

“Just a drink.” he said “l-like you’d get as a consolation prize in pachinko.”

“A drink,” Shinya nodded. “I see. And did you drink it?”

Tomoyo tapped her chin. “Out of curiosity, why do you think you got a drink? The link between Shinya and the the puzzle is obvious.”

“I uhm….” Sadahiro shrugged “I guess Monokuma just thought I was kind of boring, you know?” 
He smiled “sorry it’s all gone, Shinya-san. If i get another, I’ll share it with you, alright?”

“I see, thank you, Sadahiro-san, you’re very kind,” Shinya said. “Let’s see…. regardless where it came from, do we all pretty much agree that it seems like poor Ryota-san was poisoned at the party last night?”

Chitose nodded “…yes. I’ve seen people become ill…and poisoned  before… It is pretty clear that he was poisoned during the party.”

Tomo grimaced “fucking shit…that’s fucked up.”

Masako nodded too. “Not my usual MO, but I’ve seen it too. Thinking back on it the symptoms were clear.”

Yo rubbed his neck. “Now I feel bad for not checking up on him more.”

Tomoyo shook her head. “Don’t feel too bad, Yo. There’s only one guilty party here. And we’ll find them. Since we know that Ryota was poisoned at the party now, why don’t we talk about what happened after that. And see if we can figure out that, and the gunshot.”

“Alright.” Miyuki purred. “Let’s talk about **last night** from 9:30 -10.”

“Agreed,” Shinya smiled. “Lets start with Masako-san and Tsuda-san. The last ones to see him alive. Can you remind me as best you can how that encounter went?”

Tsuda nodded “alright, so…we lead him to his room right around 9:30. He was kind of out of it and babbling away. We got him to his room, but he couldn’t find his pad. So We put him in the chair and split up to look for him because neither of us wanted to pat the guy down and frisk ‘im, ya know?”

Masako nodded. “I was kind of worried he’d throw up on me. When Tsuda and I split up, that’s when I ran into Eriko and she helped me look.”

“and I found you, Shinya-san, and we looked around the pool room and found jack shit. Not even my missing jacket.”

“yes, we searched pretty hard, and found neither jacket nor datapad– both of which would end up there in the morning,” Shinya nodded. “And then we went to bed, and saw that Ryota-san was not where you left him. Around what time would you say that was?”

“Probably around 9:50.” Tsuda said. “I thought maybe he found the pad, or Masako did so i didn’t think to go check…then we hit the sack.”

Shinya nodded. “Indeed. So in the 20 minutes between 9:30 and 9:50 **the killer** came and dragged Ryota-san into his room, using his datapad which they had earlier stolen, to open the door.”

“Huh, the killer stole Ryota’s datapad?” Yo asked.

“It follows,” Goto nodded. “While we haven’t discussed it specifically its imminently **logical.**.”

“it would explain why they swapped them. It’s possible they changed the names as early as the party.” Miyuki mused “and simply never had the chance to swap them back. 

“…so you think someone stole the pad, used it to open the door and …and let Ryota die in his own room?”

“hm.” Eriko grimaced “…that…does follow. I don’t like it but it follows.”

“The **bed was mussed** and there was **blood spatter** on it,” Shinya said. “There was also **traces of blood** on the sink. I would suggest that the killer shot Ryota on the bed, after he had died of poison, and then washed themselves in the sink.”

“why would they do that??” Sadahiro asked, cleaning his glasses with  shaking hands “I mean. to desecrate a body like that…” 

“to cover the crime up.” Morio said in a dry tone. “obviously. You simpleton.”

“Its a valid question, Morio-san,” Shinya said with a smile. “Since Sadahiro-san is asking, I’ll further clarify that they shot Ryota-san while they were **wearing Tsuda-san’s jacket** in order to later incriminate him. Unlucky for them, that they didn’t check its pockets, ne? Then they would have seen the correct spelling of Ryota-san’s name. What an unlucky turn of events.”

Sadahiro stared at him “w…what? The correct spelling of Ryota-san’s name? This again?”  

Chitose punched her hand with a soft “oh!” , it was a cute, soft sound “…I had noticed that too, actually…I thought something looked a little weird about it…but I couldn’t place why. “

Tsuda raised his eyebrow at Shinya “…huh. I forgot that card in my pocket, yeah…the killer spelt it wrong. The second character is off.”

Masako snorted. “Wow, what an amateur mistake. whoever the killer is, they shouldn’t quit their day job.”

“No indeed,” Shinya chuckled. “I mentioned it when I turned the pad on, didn’t I? It seems it was a bit glossed over in all the commotion. but yes, The killer spelled his name with the wrong character, and they’d had the right spelling all along. But where were we? Oh yes. The killer coldly ejects a bullet into Ryota-san’s body, and then washes the blood off. I wonder– did they spend the night in Ryota-san’s room with a corpse? or did they go back to their own? It hardly matters but I can’t help imagining it.”

Eriko **shuddered** and looked downright sick “….now I can’t stop imagining it.” She whispered “…spending the night with a corpse until…until morning….oh hell.” 

Morio sewed a pair of pants onto the doll he was making, not looking up. “Grim. And careless. Whoever it was…they may have signed their death warrant with a mistaken character. Dreadful for them.” 

Chitose chewed her lip “…so they shot the body in the soundproof room…gosh…and dragged it out to the pool in the morning.” 

Sadahiro spoke up , leaning on the podium with a wide, shaky smile “but what about the dent in the metal!? the thing that made everyone think it was a trick shot? I mean…we’re talking about all kinds of stuff, but everyone forgot about _that_.”

“Oh I haven’t forgotten, Sadahiro-san,” he said with a smile. “It’s the one thing I haven’t put together yet, and while it will likely turn out to be completely irrelevant I *am* very curious about it. Help me through this, won’t you all? The gun that I showed you, the murder weapon, it only had one bullet missing from the clip, ne, gun otaku?”

Masako looked at Tsuda. “I’m pretty certain?”

Tsuda nodded “that’s right. One shot was missing.”

he stuck his hands in his jacket pocket “which was the one lodged in Ryota-san’s head, so…I doubt our killer could pull off a trick shot like that, given that it sure wasn’t fuckin’ me.”

Momo nodded. “So… how did the dent get in the pipe? Did a bird fly into it? was there a gas explosion?”

Shinya chuckled. “I don’t think so. Karuma-san, why don’t you share with us what you found at the pool. An **odd shell casing**, wasn’t it?”

Miyuki brushed her hand through her hair “…yes. It was dropped by the door to give the impression of that being where the gun was fired. It may be the same casing as the shells from the dueling pistol.”

Shinya took the shell casing out of his evidence, and handed it to Tsuda. “Does it look as though it comes from the gun we found?”

Tsuda took the casing and nodded “yeah. that’s from one of these. Ya can tell ’cause they’re built for the gun’s unique barrel and firing mechanism.”

“well then!” Shinya clasped his hands together. “It sounds like our killer **took the shell casing from the bedroom** and planted it in the pool area to make it look as though a trick shot was preformed. Meanwhile they **dented the pipe some other way.**”

“Uuuh, okay,” Yo said scratching his head. “But like, how would they get up there to do that?”

Miyuki frowned “…there’s got to be some kind of evidence…something that points to it…..maybe it was the **plastic pool chairs**? But those shouldn’t safely  carry a person’s weight like **that**, not as a stool or something…they’d **break**.”

Chitose waved her hands “maybe they stacked a bunch of chairs up , in a big stack ! and they were tiny!”

Shinya closed his eyes, thinking back to the scene in the pool. 

Momo nodded. “Oh they could have stacked them up! Like a towering throne.”

“Thrown?” Yo asked. “Could they have thrown something heavy enough?”

Shinya saw the scene at the pool…he saw the glittering water befouled by a floating corpse…he saw the bar where he found the small bottle…he saw the barstools……the chairs by the table they’d used to play tabletop…

They were in rougher shape than the night before. 

Was one of them missing??

“Oh! That’s true.” Chitose nodded “they could have thrown something! Like the tablet, or uhmmmm, a weighted exercise ball”

“no…” Morio said “that’s stupid.” He looked up “it’s clear that what they did was fashion something long enough to strike at the spot.”

Sadahiro raised his hands “has anyone considered that maybe it was **still** a gunshot?”

Shinya’s eyes snapped open, and focused on Sadahiro. “No, Sadahiro-san, we haven’t. Because it’s impossible without a second gun. And there’s no reason for the killer to have used a second gun, ne? That would just have been more evidence to hide. No I think we can’t know for sure but its **very likely** that the culprit stood on a chair and **hit** the pipe with something. Maybe even with **the datapad**, which would explain how it became cracked, ne?”

Sadahiro winced against the power of Shinya’s hard stare, and he recoiled a bit from the podium with his arms half raised “….Hit it with the datapad I…”

“oh it _is_ cracked” Tomo said “shit, YEAH! that’s probably exactly how it went down!”

“….” MIyuki frowned ” The **plastic pieces in the trash with the gun**.” she simply said.

“Ah,” Shinya smiled. “You remembered them, ne? So did I.”

“I’ve been trying to find out their place in this the whole case.” She muttered darkly “Now I think I’m getting a clearer picture.”

Sadahiro held up his hands “w-well what if the killer hid the gun in their room. The second one I mean.” he said with a shaky smile “you know? It’s not impossible, it was just a suggestion, but if you insist boss I can drop it! I’ll strike it from the record, sir!”

“Yes, I’ve been trying to think of it too,” he agreed, ignoring Sadahiro. “At first I thought it was possible they were unrelated. But….”

“D-don’t ignore me!” Sadahiro said  with an uptick in the pitch of his voice. “don’t _pretend I don’t exist_!” 

Miyuki briefly glanced at him, before she turned to Shinya “I think perhaps the plastic came from the pool chairs. One of them might have broken when it was being used as a stool for the killer to strike the vent.”

He smiled. “Karuma-san, you read my mind. Cracked under the weight. Even if that weight was not particularly considerable…” he turned to Sadahiro. “Sadahiro-san, I’m sorry for ignoring you. Are you having a problem?”

“You ignored me!” He said, tears welling up in his eyes “you don’t care about anything I have to say. I just…just was trying to help and you _ignored me_ except when you had something to criticize!” 

“Is this really the time to have a meltdown over nothing?” Eriko snaps “this is a murder trial, not your fucking therapy session!”

Shinya sighed. “Eriko-chan, he’s not having a meltdown over nothing, unfortunately. He’s been trying to **lead us away** the entire trial. I picked up on it earlier. Every time we would start on the right track Sadahiro-san asks why it couldn’t be another way.”

Chitose’s eyes are sad behind the clown makeup, and she looks at Sadahiro with a tilt of her head “…oh Sadahiro-ro-ro…” 

Tsuda grimaced “Son of a bitch…ya ain’t wrong, are you Shinya-san?” 

Sadahiro winced, looking at Shinya from behind tears and his askew glasses “n-no I haven’t! I’ve been trying to help….It’s important to examine all the angles, sir. To make a proper assessment of the situation. It’s just good sense. it’s what I …what I _do_ as a secretary. I help. I serve, that’s it! I’m just serving the court  in …in trying to help you make the right call!”

He shook his head. “I know, Sadahiro-san. I know. Life has been very hard for you. I wish I had managed to convince you to take a break, ne? Sadahiro-san… **please hand me your monopad**.”

Sadahiro took out his monopad, and passed it over to him with a shaky smile “t-there, and you’ll see that **nothing is wrong**. Nothing at all!”

He looked Shinya dead in the eyes “you…you’re on the wrong track, Shinya-san.”

Masako filed her nails, watching with interest.

“Even if it was him, he could have changed the name on his own,” Goto pointed out. 

“Oh I know,” Shinya said, nodding seriously. “But its more than the name we can check, ne? Tsuda-san, please look over my shoulder while I do this, so you can confirm for me.”

He booted up the monopad that Sadahiro had handed him.

The monopad booted up , and displayed Sadahiro’s full name in kanji. 

Morio looked at Sadahiro for a long moment…and then began sewing green hair onto the doll, humming under his breath as he did. 

Chitose just curled up “oh Sadahiro-ro-ro…you didn’t have to do this…”

Eriko looked away with a noise of disgust “wretched. Awful. Sleeping in the same room as a corpse….killing some junkie….” 

Sadahiro tensed, his eyes snapping over to them “Don’t look at me like I did it! I didn’t _do_ anything! He’s wrong! My pad’ll prove it!”

Tsuda leaned over Shinya’s shoulder “i’m watchin’. Let’s finish this, partner.”

Masako shook her head. “Never had drugs, Eri-chan?  But sleeping in the same room as a corpse. Ick. That’s never fun.”

Yo frowned. “Wow…. Sadahiro-san…..”

Momo bounced on her feet. “I wish I could see too!”

The first thing that Shinya checked was the **name** on the monopad that came up.

“I’ve had drugs.” Eriko said quietly, a note of pain in her expression  “…but just…it was clear that Ryota was suffering. And to kill him at his lowest like that..” 

Sadahiro’s tears flowed down his face as he took several shuddering breaths “I’m not…I’m not….I’m not the killer , I didn’t do it…”

He got to the login page….it showed the name as Noda Sadahiro.

And then it prompted him to scan his thumb print.

Shinya held the pad out for Sadahiro. “if you would unlock it please?”

Sadahiro stared at the pad through watering eyes like it was a snake “….”

His hand reached out and grabbed the pad, shaking as he did, and he put his thumb to it. 

The trial room heard a soft , harsh buzzer sound. **BZZT**.

He put his thumb to it again with a painted on smile, tears still trailing from his face.  **BZZT**. **BZZT**, **BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT BZZT** 

“hahah…oops. I think my thumbprint isn’t scanning right…that’s…modern…modern technology for you…”

Tomoyo sighed. “And there it is.”

“Huh?” Yo frowned. “It’s not working? Mine’s never locked me out like that.”

“Do we need to get Monokuma to unlock it?” Momo asked. “Wait, nope! that must mean he did it!”

Naoki hung his head. “Oh, Sadahiro-san…. h-how could you?”

Goto sniffed. “You know, we really could have solved this matter with the pads half an hour ago, if anyone had bothered to pay attention.”

“No, Goto-san, I wanted to see the whole picture first, ne?” Shinya shook his head, and took the pad back. “I’m sorry, Sadahiro-kun. Would you like to talk about it a little?”

Sadahiro stared at him with tear filled eyes “I’m sorry…I’m sorry.” His eyes flicked around the room at all the judgemental stares , all the disappointment. He pulled inward , hugging himself “Don’t look at me like that! Don’t…don’t _criticize me_ anymore. Don’t…don’t….” 

Tsuda grimaced “…why’d you try framing me, Sadahiro-san? I was nothin’ but kind to you. And you tried to throw me under the bus to save yourself?”

“Selfish.” Eriko slapped her hand on the podium “Why the fuck should we show this selfish pencil pusher any kind of _sympathy_. It’s dog eat dog, and he’s been **eaten**. Let’s **end this**.” 

Tomo seethed, his pink eyes settled on Sadahiro with a burning hate as his fingers dug into the podium. 

“…I think Sadahiro-kun should have a chance to explain himself.” Miyuki said grimly “I agree. But _after_ the vote.”

Monokuma perked up “whoo boy, you guys are finally done prattling on? Its voting time?”

“Don’t ignore me! Don’t.. _HATE_ me!” Sadahiro started to wail, sinking down onto his knees and laying his head on the podium with a weak, racking sob. “I didn’t do it…I…didn’t want to. I…I…just want to be good enough, I want to do things **right**, is that a crime? To want to be …be…be…be…”

“Cut the waterworks, kiddo! Save ’em for the brief post trial breather!” Monokuma cackled “it’s **VOTING TIME**”

The pads on each of the podiums lit up and showed each of them in sprite form. “Just hit the portrait of the blackened and awwwayyyy weeee goooo!”

Shinya sighed, and pressed the button for Sadahiro.
_Another puzzle solved. Human nature is such a sad thing sometimes._

Around him, the others hit there button’s. Masako with a shrug. Yo bowing his head a moment to pray. Tomoyo with an unhappy grimace. Momo with a moment of hesitance. Goto with a derisive sniff. Naoki with a look of sad betrayal.

Tomo slammed his hand on the pad , tears welling up in his eyes as he scowled darkly.

Morio simply pushed it without a care, and went back to making a doll that more and more began to look like Sadahiro himself. 

Eriko pushed it with a sneer, even as her finger shook as she made her selection.  

Tsuda sighed, shaking his head as he pressed his finger on the button “…you coulda come to us for help.” he murmured, as he made his selection.

Miyuki pressed her hand over her eyes for a moment with a low hiss of breath…before she sighed and pressed it with a slight frown. “I don’t like doing this.”

As Sadahiro’s hand reached up, he slammed it down on his own portrait…

And Monokuma cackled “One moment while we tally the votes!”
He hit a button, and revealed a large slot machine. Numbers ticked up under it…and it began to spin, spin…spin…Until landing on a pixel sprite of Sadahiro.
One…two…three in a row. 

“The BLACKENED ISSSS…. Sadahiro Noda! you _lucky scamp you_.! In the case of the first class trial…you chumps chose **CORRECTLY!**.”

Sadahiro sunk to his knees again, his shoulders shaking as he sobbed and babbled to himself in a shaking voice.  “i’m sorry. I’m sorry, sir…I’m sorry. I’ll do better sir…I’ll do better. Please…don’t ignore me…Please let me help. I’m a good secretary, I promise. I …I won’t let you down sir…I won’t… I’ll be the best employee you have ,Father, please just don’t…don’t.” 

Tsuda grimaced “h…hey, Sadahiro-san. I know it’s…kinda too late, but…”

He drifted off before he said “….why’d you do it?”

Shinya sighed. “Sadahiro-kun….. you poor thing. Was it the secrets? Were you afraid that someone would find out what you had done?”

Sadahiro stood, hugging himself with a shaking smile “I had to…I had to poison him.” he said in a shaking voice. “The boss. My dad. He was a _horrible man_. Awful…and he was running the company into the ground with his…his needless spending and bad decisions. But he never listened to me. No…no he only paid attention to me when he had something to _criticize_. When he had a sharp word or a backhand.” 

his lips twitched “so I hired someone to kill him. To poison him at his favorite sushi place…oh…oh yes…b-because if I got away from him m-maybe I could work for someone better…or m…maybe even save the buisness. right? it’s a sensible decision! It’s the _right_ decision!” 

He pointed to the ghost in the balcony “but he’s THERE, still there, and he’s still _judging me_. and he kept…kept telling me what I did..a.nd if you all found out _YOU WOULD JUDGE ME TOO!_” he pointed , sobbing “and then i’d be _alone_!” 

“I just…want…to work…and be useful…but why does _everything_ try to get in my way? Why can’t I just be…. _important_ to someone for once? Instead of _this_!”

Monokuma laughed, leering down at him “upupupu…aw…a poor little worker drone without a hive. No wonder you’re such a neurotic little pest. Don’t worry… you’re important to me! An _important example_ of what happens when you’re a _loser_.” 

Tsuda grimaced “Don’t call him a loser, you fuckin’ bastard bear.”

“Agreed,” Tomoyo nodded, her single eye shining. “Sadahiro was pushed to this point by you, bear, and by this horrible father of his. Its awful. Its a tragedy!”

Shinya sighed.  “Sadahiro-kun, it really is a shame. If you had told us, we would not have judged you. But now its forced that we must.”

Chitose walked over, and gave Sadahiro a hug, even as he trembled “sorry Sadahiro-ro-ro….I wish we could have helped you more.” She murmured “…I know what it is like to be afraid of your past and your family..” 

Eriko looked away, her eyes hard…though her shoulders shook “….it was so pointless…so pointless…”

Morio finished his doll…and placed it in Sadahiro’s shaking hands. It was a replica of himself, with a relaxed and smiling expression. He turned and walked back to his podium without a word.

Tomo grit his teeth “A tragedy…a _tragedy_….we could have STOPPED this, you IDIOT!” he barked at Sadahiro, who flinched “i’m…I’m sorry for what your company did to you…your dad…and I’m sorry that this happened but _DAMMIT_.” 

Miyuki sighed, and crossed her arms “….I hope in the next life Sadahiro-kun, you are born into something…better. I hope the best for you. ” 

Sadahiro stood there, holding the doll of himself in his hands, hugged by a sniffling clown girl…and looking lost, hurt, and afraid “…You…I…” he sniffled, and looked up at them with closed eyes and a genuine smile “you all actually care, even if I…” He bowed his head. “Than…thank you. I’m sorry again. I guess this is my retirement after all, h-huh? I’ll…” 

“Ughhhhhh” Monokuma said “this is _boring_.”

He snapped his fingers. “alright boys and girls! it’s **PUNISHMENT TIME!!!!**” 

Tsuda winced, as Monokuma slammed his paw down on a large red button that rose slowly between his plushy little legs. 

As it depressed, it showed a little pixel cartoon of Sadahiro being dragged off by the laughing Monokuma.

“Goodbye, Sadahiro-kun,” Shinya said quietly, watching as he was taken. “Good luck next time.”

Naoki squeaked. He was already crying, and now he burred his face in his hands.

“Terrible,” Goto grumbled. “What a tragic waste. This will not be forgotten.”

“I’m adding it to the bear’s list of sins,” Tomoyo hissed. 

Yo closed his eyes in prayer. “Poor Sadahiro-san.”

Masako shook her head, watching. “Its the office culture. It’s deadly.”

Momo’s lip twitched. “He’s not really gonna die, right? Right? Oh no…. this sucks.”

Miyuki nodded to Tomoyo “it won’t be forgotten.” She agreed darkly. “Judgement will be _harsh_ once we find his puppetmaster.” 
Tsuda gripped the podium, looking away “Damn….damn it…” 

Chitose refused to let go of him, hugging him tightly as if that would stop what was about to happen…

But it didn’t. 

Hands reached out from behind Sadahiro….mechanical hands like the ones of the orchestra…and grabbed him all at once. 

He yelped…and in no time at all, the animatronics had dragged him out of Chitose’s arms, and towards the darkness under the Judge’s podium. 

Eriko hid her eyes with a sharp intake of breath “this isn’t fair…” she whispered “They can’t possibly kill him…can they?” 

“They killed Kira-sensei.” Tomo said in a tense, choked voice. “They’ll kill him too…that bear is gonna pay….”

As the panel slammed shut behind Sadahiro …the podiums they were on began to move…down….down….about a floor before it came to a stop in a large dark room.

“Remember what happens here,” Shinya said, rather harshly, his eyes with a hint of steel. “Remember it, and remember that none of the rest of us will let you get away with murder. Not Karauma-san, or Kanzaka-san, or Tsuda-san, and especially not me. You’re not more clever than the Puzzler. This is the kind of fate that awaits someone who commits a murder here.”

Eriko winced…forcing herself to look forward with pinpricked yes “….The fate of anyone that commits a murder. It’s going to be grisly.”

Morio looked at him with a slight nod “…. indeed.”

Miyuki crossed her arms “The puzzler….a prosecutor who’s never lost….a sharpshooter’s eye, and a dungeon master’s keen mind. You’re not more clever than any of us.” She murmured as the lights flicked on ahead of them…

a small neon sign flickered, reading “**OFFICE WORK IS KILLER**” as it dangled on threads ahead of them.

As the lights illuminate more of the room they see Sadahiro strapped to a desk chair within a cubical absolutely surrounded by others exactly like it. 
As his eyes flicked around, he tried to pull his hands up to grab the small knit doll that Morio had given him from it’s spot on the desk…only to find his fingers held to a keyboard by bolted straps around his wrists.

He swallowed, looking at the screen ahead of him with tear-filled eyes, which began to prompt him to type. Swallowing he types, quickly, tapping out the lines of text as appear as instructions on a second monitor. The words displayed themselves on a screen that dropped down in front of the watching students, resolving to form a manifesto of despair  and a description of his own frenzied state as the cubical began to shift around him. 

They moved, shifted, dragging him closer to a massive dropoff…a dropoff containing a huge paper shredder whirring away just below the lip . A lip his desk was being tugged towards one cubical at a time. His head half turned to look at it, his eyes widening as the sound of the papershredder filled the air. However…the moment he stopped typing, the belt began to move him faster towards the shredder. Sweating visibly, he begins to type again. 

The text prompted him to ‘do better’, and to ‘go faster’ as he tried to type fast enough to appease it…but as he wrote the final sentence “I’m Sorry , I can’t…I can’t…I’m not fast enough, I’m sorry I killed Ryota-s…” The desk tipped over the edge of the dropoff, and fell into the papershredder. There was a loud, hellish grinding sound…before a spray of blood flew from the whirring blades, and into the air.

It rained down..landing atop Monokuma’s desk as he siged, and pushed his glasses up. 

“Newbies just can’t take the heat, can they? Kids these days.” 

Another Monokuma by the watercooler nodded, as the small, blood smudged handmade doll of Sadahiro flew down through the air and landed at Shinya’s feet with a thump

Naoki screamed. He wasn’t the only one, but he was the one who had grabbed on to Chitose in a tight hug. Even Masako was white as a sheet. No one was unaffected. 

Shinya reached down and picked up the doll gently. He closed his eyes, and engaged in a brief fantasy of still images.

*Sadahiro and Ryota working together in a filing office in the afterlife, a big red oni in a business suit breathing down their necks

They two of them band together, pushing the demon over and making a run for it.

Escaping a horde of bureaucrats in a heavenly city.

And finally, together in beach chairs sipping exotic drinks by a celestial sea.*

“It’s over,” he told the others, as he opened his eyes, fingers shaking a little around the doll.

Chitose screamed out, her arms wrapping back around Naoki tightly as she trembled against him, tears smudging her makeup as she watched the second death of the week  play out before her terrified eyes. 
Eriko choked back a scream by shoving her fist against her mouth, tears welling in her eyes as she took a step back, looking for any comfort at all.

Morio simply sighed…closing his eyes and bowing his head before turning to walk away without a word…but bumped into Tomo, Who **shoved him aside** to try to reach Sadahiro…but when he got to the neon sign, a net of narrow wires lit up with electricity, and sent him flying back , skidding on the ground with a wince. He stood, shaking, and couldn’t say a word.

Hayate…frozen in silence…as they had been most of this trial, terrified….simply watched the whole thing with a single wide eye, screaming out in a shriek as the blood poured, and hiding their face from the scene. “they made a _joke_ out of it..they turned it into a …a show, man…a _show_.” 

And Miyuki put her hands together in a quiet prayer. 

Nobody was unaffected….and Tsuda put his shaking hand on Shinya’s shoulder “….let’s go” he murmured. “…we’re all gonna need some time to recover from this.”

Shinya nodded, and slipped his hand onto of Tsuda’s hand. “Yes, let’s go.” he nodded, and turned to the others. “No one should stay here. Let’s move.”
He started walking.

The soft scuffle of feet followed him as they all retreated from the execution room. 

An elevator ride, and the shutting of the trial room behind them later…and they were left with the consequences and memories of the **First Killing Game Class Trial**.

00000000000000000000000000

**Chapter 1: Bullet as a Punctuation Mark. END**

00000000000000000000000000