"I need to get out of here! I need to get out of here! I need to get out of here! I can't die!" Hiyoko Saionji repeated these words like mantra mentally.

She remembered Monokuma advising the students who didn't feel optimistic about their fighting chances to stay put in the academy. She desperately wanted to hide in a bathroom, lock it up and never leave it again.

However, there was a far safer option she was willing to risk. Not long before Monokuma called her to leave the classroom, Mahiru had departed herself. The image of looking up to her faucet-eyed best friend promising and wailing that everything would be okay would be burned in her memory for eternity.

She had to find Mahiru. The Ultimate Photographer had whispered in her ear before she left that she would take the left route the forest. And that's where the Ultimate Traditional Dancer was heading. Perhaps it was for the best, there would be too many people who would choose to stay in the academy. Too many enemies to look out for.

"You're so smart, Mahiru… Had I followed my instincts, I'd probably be dead by now… Where are you? You said we'd stay together and survive this with each other. You promised everything would be okay… Please, Mahiru, I need you… Why aren't you looking for me…?"

She was quietly crawling in the silence of the night, in order to avoid merciless gazes; not very far from the initial classroom. Stress was spreading through her mind like ink on a paper so much that she was having an easier time mitigating the sound she made by creeping through the earthy, bushy ground than the sound of her sobbing.

"Damn this stupid kimono! Why must it be so colorful…! I never liked it anyway…"

She feared that her bright orange kimono would signal her whereabouts and end up getting her killed. A shame. Had it not been given to her by her treacherous mother, she would have loved it. Had it not been the root of her misery she would have felt nothing but passion for it.

"Damn you mom, and damn your stupid mom too. It's because of you losers that I turned out like this. It's because of you idiots that I'm so weak. You 2 were subtle, but I'm not stupid like you! You pampered me and made everything for me, not because you loved me, that much was evident, but because you wanted me to stay dependent, by not learning how to take care of myself. If I kept relying on you, then I'd have no choice but to do what you wanted… Shitty stink piles…"

As she crawled rather silently through the forest's grass, the faint moonlight allowed her to spot a much better hiding place: It was a particularly thick tree surrounded by tall bushes, perfect for concealing her tiny body, especially considering it was nighttime.

She was so ecstatic that she didn't even consider the possibility of there being someone hiding in there as well. She simply charged at the attractive hiding place.

"Perfect! Now I can see what's in my backpack… On the other hand, Mahiru won't be able to see me… Mahiru, you moron. Where the hell are you?"

Entering the bushes was dangerously noisy and uncomfortable, but she had to be quick or else someone would see her. When she settled, she started slowly opening the zipper of her given backpack, as if the noise drained her life force. Hiyoko found 3 bottles of water, 3 plasticized sandwiches, a flashlight…

"So far that asshole Monokuma hasn't been lying… What's this…? A pair of sewing scissors? Is this my weapon? What the fuck?! I'm one of the tiniest people in here! I totally deserved a gun or something! How am I supposed to defend myself with this! Why is everyone always screwing me up!"

The scissors were sharp and rather long, they could pierce through flesh quite easily, but Hiyoko was just a small girl. Even with a decent weapon like that, her odds of surviving were very low and she knew this. Not only was she physically weak, she also lacked cunningness and initiative. She was about to burst into tears and cry for Mahiru, when she heard movement…

She peered through the bushes to check the source of the sound. The hands that removed the leaves out of her sight trembled so much that she was producing her own deal of noise.

She saw… a human figure. Judging by the massive bulk and size, they were obviously male. That or Sakura… She had to adjust her pupils to the intense darkness to make out who it was exactly. With some effort, she noticed the person was wearing a suit with some shade of brown and had long hair.

"Gonta! It's Gonta Gokuhara! Oh no! He's one of the strongest guys in the academy! He arm wrestled with Nekomaru once and it was a draw!"

His movements were strange, to say the least. He was walking upright, seemingly leisurely. And he sporadically stopped and looked around. It was hard to make out his facial expression in the darkness. Did he look scared like her? Did he look bloodthirsty? Desperate? Insane? Was his expression neutral? Could she trust him and ask to team up? Could she jump on him once he got close? Would he attack her?

"That failed abortion was raised in the wild. Raised by wolves. I heard he has superhuman vision and hearing. He probably knows I'm here already! But why won't he attack me? Is he scared too? Why isn't he scared? He's strong... He has worth... I guess comfort breeds weakness. I'd rather be raised by wolves than by my stupid, selfish mother... Oh daddy, what I'd give to have been by your side... What I'd give for you to be here and protect me, like you used to. Like you protected me from my own retarded clan..."

Gonta's face turned toward her... His blackened face was pointed in her direction... He spotted her.

When she was about to wet her panties, she saw a rock flying behind him. It looked like someone threw it. His head shot to his opposite direction when he heard the rock colliding with the floor. He stood paralysed for a moment, not knowing what to do. After a few seconds of indecisiveness, he ran away.

"Huh? Why is he running? Someone strong like him should be confident. Is it because his weapon is shitty? That can't be the case, he can smash anyone's skull with one hand. What a nasty pigshit. If I had his body, I'd slaughter everyone in here... Right? I mean, when you're strong there's nothing to fear, right? There's no need to act tough when you're actually not, right? I don't know what I'd do... Can I even kill anyone? I want to get out of here, but... am I really capable of committing the lowest of the low?"

"Hey! Over here!" she heard a nearby female voice calling.

"Huh? Was that... Mahiru? I'm not sure if that was her voice... It must be somebody else. A girl... Should I form an alliance? Or should I try and kill her? I don't know. I don't know. I don't know. I have to do something... If I stay here and cry I might get killed."

"Hiyoko Saionji? Is that you? Come here. He's gone. It's safe now." she heard the ladylike voice call again.

She must act. She scanned the area and failed to detect any other sound. No movement either. Therefore, her little legs shot up and sprinted like she was running on a minefield. Once she approached the voice who summoned her, she noticed a tiny cave, formed under the roots of a large tree. However, she saw no one in there.

"Come hide here with me. Oh God, I'm so scared." the girl in question pleaded inside the cave.

It was Celestia Ludenberg, the Ultimate Gambler. Her pitch black hair and clothes were a perfect camouflage in the nighttime. She could only see her contrasting porcelain skin.

"H-Hey... Don't move, you bitchlet, or I'll..." the Ultimate Traditional Dancer threatened, as she stuttered uncontrollably and trembled the hands that firmly held the sewing scissors as if she was in a fridge.

"Hey, come on now, let's stay calm. There's no need for that. I... I saved your life from Gonta. I could have very well let him kill you, but I didn't, because I want to cooperate with you." Celestia persuaded desperately, raising her hands in peace. "I know you don't want to that. I know that you act all tough and brash all the time, but you don't really mean it, do you?"

It was like the red-eyed girl had read her mind. She longed for someone who would understand her. She longed for someone who she could trust. She started crying uncontrollably and her nose produced shameful quantities of mucus.

"How do I... How do I know you're not playing the game and you're just lying to me." she whispered fervid, still pointing her weapon toward the girl who helped her.

"It's okay... Here, I'll put my weapon away." she answered calmly yet clearly frightened, as she slowly took off a canister with pepper spray from her backpack and placed it one meter away from her. "Okay, now it's your turn to prove your peacefulness." the gambler nervously muttered, as she slowly closed the distance between their hands.

She seriously considered slashing the other girl's hands away with her weapon. But Celestia was a professional gambler, meaning her hands were extremely skilled, right? She might react quickly and counterattack. Nonetheless, as the other girl reached for her scissors, all she could so was cry even more and tremble more forcefully.

"There, let's put this pointy thing away, okay?" the ebony haired girl gently removed her weapon and threw it near the pepper spray.

"You are... Celestia Ludenberg, right? From class 78-B?" she asked, still trying to calm herself.

"Yes... Hiyoko, do you want to form an alliance with me? This place is filled with the nastiest of people, who'll kill us without thinking twice, like Byakyua Togami, for example, we should fear guys like him. We need to stick together. We need to keep our friends close if we want to survive." Celestia responded, placing a pair of innocent hands on her chest.

"F-friends..." the very word send another wave of tears.

"Hey, it's okay... I lost my friends too. But we can look for them together. We need the largest group we can possibly get. I... I assume you're looking for... Mahiru, was it? I know you 2 are very close. Have you any idea where she went so we can go look for her together?" the gothic young woman inquired sweetly.

"She said... She said she'd take the left route to the forest but I didn't find her. I know she wouldn't abandon me either. She's too kind and pure to just give in and play the Killing Game... Something must have happened. Maybe she saw Gonta or someone else and got scared... Oh Mahiru... I need to find her."

"Yeah, let's do that. But we should stay put for a while, Gonta might be still nearby, and we should let the others scatter around too. And.. And..." the Ultimate Gambler started crying erratically as she spoke. "I'm sorry... I'm such a crybaby... It's just... I miss my dad so much..."

"R-Really? Me too! I miss my daddy! I wanna go home!" their cries and whimpers harmonized. Celestia tried to hug her, but she pulled away. She was still too sceptical of the girl she barely knew.

"Too soon? Sorry... So, um... Wanna talk about it while we wait until everything's okay?"

It was hard for Hiyoko to explain, but for some reason, she felt like Celestia was the only person who understood her. She knew the Ultimate Gambler had quite the sour reputation, just like herself. But she probably only had a rough upbringing as well, right? But at that moment, all that she saw was a frightened girl, just like her. A frightened girl who puts on a tough, strong act, when in reality she's perfectly aware of how feeble and insecure she was, just liker her. A frightened girl who missed her father dearly, just like her...

"Well, my stupid mom and her mom are from the Saionji clan. A clan where we have to uphold strict traditions regarding dancing. I was fine with carrying out the legacy, until they thought it'd be best if I moved to the clan full time so I would focus on it, meaning I had to say goodbye to my dad. He did everything for me, and then just like that I barely got to see him. He was the only one who cared... The only one who didn't betray me." she started opening her heart, as she opened the flood gates from her eyes. Maybe it was due to intense stress and imminent demise, but she needed to get that out of her burdened heart.

"That's awful..." Celestia whined, as she placed a hand on her surprised mouth.

"I hated my mom. She was all pride and no talent. Only the clan mattered to her. She didn't even care when I feared for my life. You see, my clan had plenty of rivals, so we were constantly stalked and sabotaged by jealous onlookers. I've woken up with dead mice scattered over my bed. I've been dropped on while performing. And what did that toilet-clogging bitch do about it? Nothing! She never gave a fuck!" Hiyoko yelled almost too loud.

"Yeah, I understand how you feel... Some people in my family acted like my only worth came from my gambling skills. They made me believe that my talent was the only valuable aspect of me. They pampered me, did everything for me; even when I asked them to teach me useful things, they refused. I know they did this so I would keep on relying on them-"

"So that you would remain dependent, and therefore, wouldn't rebel!" she interrupted. "Oh my God! That's exactly what my granny did with me! I wanted to do things on my own too, but they never taught me anything to keep me in my place. They didn't even teach me how to tie my kimono, even though I ask them to teach me... but Mahiru was kind enough to do it."

"That Mahiru girl sounds lovely... I've seen you guys together, and you seem quite overly attached to her. I bet you like her not only because she's kind to you, but also because she helped you learn the basic things your clan didn't teach you, which in turn made you more independent and consequently, more confident. Is that why you have the reputation of a bully? You want to appear fearless, when in reality, you're quite insecure." Ludenberg hypothesized serenely, with detectable amounts of empathy on her voice.

She took some time to absorb what she had just heard, as she sniffed several times. Normally, she would deny her words and call her a nasty pigshit or something like that. But given her threatening situation, she stopped and self reflected for the first time in years. "Yeah... I guess you're right... I wanted my dad to be there and protect me. He tried to stand by my side, but since he married into the family, he had no say in what I did in the clan. Since we were separated and he couldn't protect me anymore, I had to come up with a way to protect myself..."

"With bullying? So you put on that sour mood to intimidate others, in order to make them fear doing anything to you, is that it? Yeah, I remember you were pretty cruel toward Mikan. Poor thing, she couldn't harm a fly... You focused your bullying on a weak target so you would feel bigger..." Celes nailed one more theory.

"Y-Yeah... I guess... It wasn't enough that I got stuck in this hellhole, throughout all me life, my misery was caused by having to take on the Saionji name and by the people and bullies who wish to harm me, because of it. My whole life I had to feel insecure and weak, fearing the real intentions of everyone I interact with." the Ultimate Traditional Dancer gave rise to another wave of crying.

"I understand... Hiyoko, we have a lot in common. I feel like I can relate to everything you said... This is something that has been on my mind lately, and I was wondering if you agree with me: The worst feeling one can experience, is feeling weak and unprotected. I think that protecting someone else is the greatest gift you can give." the Ultimate Gambler preached emotionally with watery eyes.

"Have you read my mind?! That's exactly what I think! That's why I like Mahiru so much… And Mikan… Oh Mikan, I was so mean to her. I've called her a whore, a bitch, a slut, I never wasted an opportunity to talk shit about her, and she was always like an angel to me. I remember my first day in Hope's Peak. I was so nervous and insecure… I had to go to the infirmary that day, and she was the person who treated me. I sensed how meek and insecure she was. She was so desperate for friends that she even accepted a bully like me. That's when I became so confident, because I told myself I was better than her, a girl who cried for the smallest of reasons… No more… the first thing I'll do when I see her is apologizing! I don't need to belittle others to feel bigger… I just need protect others and be protected by them. That's the only way to improve as a person!" she spoke with newly found resolve in her voice, she felt like she instantly became a whole new, better person.

"Exactly! Let's go look for them together!" Celestia hugged her. She wasn't scared anymore, because she felt like she could trust her. She could relate to that girl. And so she reciprocated the kind act. "Any idea where she might be?"

"Yeah! Let's go! Mahiru took a picture of the classroom's window with the high-tech camera she carries around her neck, and zoomed it, while Monokuma was talking. Apparently, he noticed, but was okay with that. She said she saw a safe-looking building that looked like an hotel in the zoomed picture, that should have been to the left side of these woods, and whispered in my ear that we'd go hide there with Ibuki and Mikan, before Monokuma called her. That's where I was heading." she sniffed.

"Oh, Hiyoko. That was all I wanted to hear." the gambler whispered calmly, still embracing the blonde's frame.

"I hope they got to the hotel safe by now… We'll have to look out for enemies on the way. I don't think I can trust anyone, aside from Mahiru, Ibuki and Mikan. The others might be playing the game."

"Oh yes. I have no doubt most of them will." Celestia agreed nonchalantly.

"That reminds me. How did you see me in the darkness?" she inquired curiously, as the raven haired girl stroked her blonde hair.

"I saw your bright orange kimono and recognized you right away… But if you ask me, you'd look way better in red." Celestia flashed a heartless grin as she quickly reached out for the sewing scissors.

The Ultimate Traditional Dancer was the physically weakest competitor. Her miniscule, girly body could be effortlessly overpowered and outran by anyone, including Celestia. The former didn't take advantage of this, though. She could have easily restrained Hiyoko by grabbing her hair and killed her right away, but that would be to easy. She wanted to hunt.

She let Saionji make a run for it for 5 seconds, and only then did she resolve to pursuit the blood she craved for.

Unfortunately for Celestia, the hunt proved tediously easy. She was like a ferocious lioness chasing a wounded gazelle . When she caught up with the screaming blonde, she charged the bladed weapon into the side of her victim's neck. The latter broke her attacker's fall, as blood gushed out with an horrendous sound.

"Did you really believe my bullshit? You do realize that your life story is not a secret, right? I can't believe I actually found someone retarded enough to believe a sob-story like that, right of the bat. Whatever, I got what I wanted. Now I know where 3 of my enemies are hiding. Thank you for that. I'll make sure to tell them you doomed them right before I slash their throats." Celestia sadistically informed as she moved the scissors from the side of her neck to the front, while enjoying every second of cutting skin and flesh.

Neither of them was sure how the hell was Hiyoko not dead yet. But at least one of them was glad that that was the case. The gambler dug the bladed weapon deeper inside the dancer's windpipe, staining her huge hair extensions and the grass with a fresh puddle of blood. The life in Hiyoko's eyes was fading.

"Thank you for your weapon, by the way. It'll come real handy, more than my pepper spray... What were you thinking? That we'd all stay together and happily live side by side? Everyone helping everyone mutually?" she giggled darkly. "Not my scene. I'll hunt down and strike all the miserable insects I smell. And if I am to die... THEN I'M GOING DOWN FIGHTING!" she roared viciously as she violently removed the bloody scissors from the lifeless carotid artery, releasing a fountain of blood that gushed out crimson vital fluid.

If Celestia Ludenberg weren't in such a hurry, she would have felt very tempted to bathe in her victims blood. But she didn't have the time, she wanted to get out of that damn island.

"I was wrong. You look like shit in red." she sighed casually. "Sorry, honey. But only one of us gets to walk way from here and that's going to be me." she asserted aggressively.

Afterward, she sneakily reclaimed her pepper spray, as well as her victim's supplies, and proceeded to head off to the mentioned hotel, where at least 3 of her enemies waited to suffer the same fate as Hiyoko.

"I gotta get rid of these... They'll get in the way." she thought as she cut her gigantic, bloody hair extensions and her tight dress with the sewing scissors, before removing her golden earrings.

She abandoned those items in the bushy ground of the woods, as she proceeded her hunt, concealed by the darkness of the night.

Author's Notes:

The first kill. So, was it too obvious that Celes would kill Hiyoko? XD

Anyway, I think it's important to point out that Celes knew very well that Gonta was too pure to harm Hiyoko, even though he saw her, so she decided to take matters into her own hands, otherwise she would have let Gonta kill her and then she'd kill him.

I'll have to thank Weeby Newz. It was because of her analysis video of Saionji that I was capable of writting this chapter the way it is. I wanted to give a good character arc for Hiyoko, a majorly disliked character by the fandom, that would stay true to the canon original source. And it was thanks to Weeby that I pulled this off.

With that out of the way, please leave a review. It really helps out.