Hello all you lovely readers! I have been a huge fan of the Danganronpa series and have finally decided to try writing out a fanfic of my own for the fandom. While I do find the story of Ultimate high school students being put in a kill or be killed scenario an exciting read. I wanted to add something new and decided to go with my own fairytale/fantasy/musical story staring characters from the franchise. I plan to incorporate different fandoms into this story along with Danganronpa (kudos to anyone who can figure out what references I use).
I will warn you that since I am in college, my updating schedule will be inconsistent. I can only update when I'm able to.
I also have an opening for a beta reader for this story. If anyone is interested, please let me know through PM.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy your reading!
Prologue
"Led through the mist
By the milk-light of moon
All that was lost, is revealed."
A young mother sat on a rocking chair, cradling her two-year-old son. As she slowly rocked back and forth, she watched her sleeping child nestle closer to her embrace as she continued to sing their lullaby. Her son was such a handsome boy, taking after his father's appearance. The only feature he seemed to inherit from her were her eyes.
"Our long bygone burdens, mere echoes of the spring,
But where have we gone, and where shall we end?
If dreams can't come true, then why not pretend?"
As the young mother laid her son down on his bed, she heard another voice join in with her song. Looking up, she saw her husband walking from the door frame of their son's bedroom. With a smile, she took his hand as they watched their son sleep soundly without a care in the world.
Staring at his wife and child, the young father couldn't help but once again think about how lucky he was to have such a wonderful woman enter his life. No amount of wealth or power could be compared to the happiness he felt when he married his wife and when their son was born. The young father could already picture the future he would share with his wife and son, from watching their child take his first steps and learn his first words to him growing up and starting a family of his own.
"How the gentle wind,
Beckons through the leaves
As autumn colors fall"
Unfortunately, that future would never come to pass…
A lone figure in a pitch-black hooded cloak waited just outside of the family's home. Seeing that they were alone, they raised their hands to the full moon and began to chant an incantation.
"Ecneirepxeotemrofdewollaevahuoytahtriapsedemasehtreffusylimafruoyyam
Esirsnomedwodahs!"
With a wave of their hands, the lone figure was surrounded by a thick black mist. The mist began to take form, transforming into shadow-like demons that began to howl and shriek into the night.
The sounds of the shadow demons drew the attention of everyone within the vicinity. A group of weary knights decided to find the source of the ungodly sounds and found the hooded figure.
With an angelic smile, the figure lazily raised a finger and gave one simple command.
"Kill them."
Without any hesitation, chaos unleashed as the shadow demons dug into knights without any mercy. While most of the shadow demons decided to kill the men with their own bare hands, other demons took the liberty of possessing the poor knights and used their physical bodies to kill off any survivors. As soon as the last knight was murdered, the shadow demons began to roam around the vicinity of the home and killed everyone they came across.
Not a single soul could escape the wrath and bloodlust of the shadow demons. Gender, race, status, and age meant nothing to these creatures. The only thing they knew of was to follow their master's every command. Before anyone knew it, people began to run amuck killing everyone around them. No one could no longer tell who was possessed by a shadow demon.
The dark figure couldn't help but laugh at the chaos of everything around them. How they enjoyed every moment of it! The utter shock and confusion of a young boy being stabbed through the heart by his friend, the desperate cries of a little girl crying out that she didn't want to die, a young lady begging for mercy as she and her lover were pierced by a single spear, a crazed young man driven by the need to survive killing everyone and anyone he could get his hands on, shadow demon or human! This was beautiful!
It didn't take long for the shadow demons to kill off every person within the vicinity of the family's home. The dark figure continued to make their way through the front entrance of the home, all the while giggling to themselves as they pictured the look of the family's corpses.
Sensing that something was wrong, the young father let go of his wife's hand and looked out the bedroom window only to be greeted by a grinning face of a shadow demon. The young father was speechless, no one had ever seen a shadow demon and lived to tell the tale. Only a person with powerful dark magic had the ability to summon them. If shadow demons were lurking around their home, then that means-
"What's wrong?" The soothing voice of his wife broke his train of thought and brought him back to the dangerous situation they were about to have.
Without sparing another thought, the young father turned to his wife and yelled, "Take our son and run!" The sudden fear in his voice was all his wife needed to hear as she snatched their son from his bed and began to run out of the room, her husband behind her and her son wailing in her arms.
Sadly, the family was unable to get to far from their son's room as they were greeted by the mysterious figure in their hallway along with their shadow demons.
"I suppose congratulations for your son are in order?" the figure taunted as their minions surrounded every possible exit.
"How dare you come here?" the young father snarled, "You were- "
"Banished?" the figure asked, walking towards the young mother. "Yes, I was. But I'm sure you know that being banished is no fun at all. Not when I have a debt to repay to the two of you."
Kneeling, the figure took one look at the wailing boy with amusement. "You have given me a wonderful taste of despair and, with me being the most generous person I know of, I decided to pay back my debt in full to not just you, but to your entire kingdom. And of course, I have saved only the best for your son-"
"DON'T YOU DARE LAY A HAND ON MY SON!" the young mother screeched, hugging her child and glaring at anyone who would dare harm her boy.
"Hurt him? Oh no, I would never lay a hand on the little prince." Laughing, the figure stood up and began to walk around the two parents in a circle in a taunting manner. "After all, you were the one who made it so, isn't that right your highness? As strong as my magic may be, everyone knows that the most powerful, the most unbreakable kind of magic in this world and every other world known is true love." The shadow demons recoiled in disgust at the very mention of "true love".
"However, your spell only protects your son from me. It cannot protect his loved ones and it cannot protect him from anyone other than myself."
As the figure pointed out the spell's loophole, the young father – no, King quickly rose up in a dueling stance as he chanted out a quick incantation.
"Evolisenoehttcetorpdrowslufhtiaftsomymtel!"
In his hand, a white sword magically appeared, and the King stared at his enemies with killing intent.
"I've always believed in giving my enemies a second chance, but you have wasted every chance I have given you!" Without any warning, the King began to slash his sword toward the shadow demons, desperate to protect his son and wife. Turning to his wife, the Queen, he simply stated, "You know what to do my love. We have to believe that he will find his way back home."
With a tearful nod, the Queen gently kissed her son, who had managed to calm down, on the forehead and whispered her final goodbyes. "I'm so sorry that it had to be this way, but we have to give you your best chance. Goodbye my son, remember that your father and I will always love you."
The Queen's gaze never left her son, as she tried her best to memorize his face and began her own incantation.
"Emohkcabemocyadenolliwehtahtepohehthtiwyawarafdnaefaserehwemosnosruoekatesaelp!"
With the spell now casted, the parents and mysterious figure could only watch as the young prince vanished from the Queen's arms. Before the figure could cast anymore magic, the Queen and King grabbed each other's hands and began chanting together as one.
"Nosruoetacolotseirtohwenoynamorfmodgnikruodleihsesuacrehdnarehstroppusohwenoynadnahctiwwodahsehtfocigamehtmorfmihedihdnanosruotcetorpevoleurtforewopehtnommusew!"
Once the spell was completed, the King and Queen turned to face the mysterious figure, hand in hand, and, together, they both charged forward to the mass of shadow demons. Ready to face the unknown.
Somewhere far away from Jabberwock, another young mother and father had just finished putting their son to bed. As her eyes rested on the sleeping, one-year old child, the sound of a wailing child caught the young mother's attention. Turning to her husband, the young mother saw that he too had heard the cries. After making sure their son was sound asleep, the two parents left the nursery and made their way to the front entrance of their home.
As the young father carefully opened the front door, the young mother saw the source behind the wailing: a young child wrapped in a blanket. Shocked to find such a young boy to be by himself at night, the young parents did not hesitate to take him inside. As the young mother tender hugged the young boy, she noticed a letter attached to the child's blanket along with a silver locket that was engraved with an emblem of what appeared to be a heart connected to a cross.
With her arms full, the young mother gestured towards the letter as her husband began to read its contents out loud. "We have done everything we could to protect our child. Unfortunately, we were unable to take care of our beloved son. We hope that he can have the loving, caring home that he deserves. We have left him a locket in hopes that he will one day be able to return home when the time is right. His name is Hajime."
Looking down at Hajime, the two parents found him asleep, nuzzling into the young mother's warm embrace. With a gentle smile, the young mother turned to her husband about to ask him a question, when he smiled softly and said, "We can introduce Hajime to Makoto tomorrow morning. I'm sure the two of them will become the best of brothers."
Dancing in a swirl,
Of golden memories,
The loveliest lies of all
The hooded figure stood over the body of the dying Queen. Her husband had fallen at the hands of a shadow demon. Brave and valiant though he was, they both knew that fighting an enemy without any knowledge on them would be futile.
Even though her husband was lying next to her dead, she couldn't help but feel some relief that their son was able to escape. With a bittersweet smile, the Queen offered her final words of wisdom to their enemy.
"You will lose. No matter how much power you might have, no matter how many allies you gain, the kingdom of Jabberwock will never truly be yours. One day, our son will return, and he will take his rightful place as heir to the throne."
Bending over the dying mother, the hooded figure flashed a demonic smile and laughed.
"Oh, I have no doubt that he will return. But who's to say that he will be able to defeat me? It doesn't matter if he defeats me and my grand master plan or falls under my power, as long as hope thrives despair is sure to follow."
With a swoop of their hooded cloak, the mysterious figure disappeared. The only ones left in the hallway were the corpses of the kingdom's beloved king and queen as well as a single black rose.
The loveliest, lies of all.
And here is where the prologue ends. Please let me know what you thought about it in the reviews and let me know if there's anything that needs to be fixed.
Songs used:
Into the Unknown from Over the Garden Wall