Hello again, my lovely readers. Guess what day it is? FTE Day! Well, FTE Part One Day! Isn't it exciting? I'm excited. But you probably don't care about this, so I will get on with the review replies so that you can get on with the chapter.

Crimson Spider Lily: I always love seeing what details you pick up on and comment on, and what theories you create from those details. It's nice for me because it lets me see which bits of foreshadowing are working and which might not be. But yes, death never comes for the protagonist. Usually. Sometimes. Maybe. Get ready for FRIEND TIME!

liammarklh88: I honestly do love Shouko too. She's a joy to write. But I could also see how overwhelming she could be in real life. Shoma is also me low-key. Let me stay in my room. My computer is there. That's all I need. (Food is optional.)

TheUbermenschWriter: We probably got a little bit still before someone get their hands dirty, but be patient! The wait will (hopefully) be worth it. As for your suggestion... I'm not sure. I'll have to think about it and how it fits.

alucard deathsinger: I'm having a lot of fun with the various interactions too. We have a lot of colorful personalities in this cast, and it's fun to bounce them off of each other. But yeah, there's a couple of death flags raised for both Zettai and Sumire. We shall have to see if they're proper flags or red herrings!

MasterSaixus: And so daily life begins. Yeah, I'm planting a couple of ideas for the first murder. They live in a dangerous place, you know. Got to be aware of any and all potential hazards!

Misa looked up at her ceiling thoughtfully, specifically at the camera attached to her ceiling. It was small, black, round, and probably had 360 degrees on this whole room. No blind spots. That would defeat the purpose of a camera to begin with. And sure, there are a lot of shitty cameras on the Ship, but she had a funny feeling that this was not one of them.

See, Misa had a problem. She really wanted to take a nap. And for a solid half hour, she had a very nice nap. Her bed was soft and warm. Her pillow was squishy. But there this reoccurring thought that kept her from getting any kind of real sleep. She was being watched. It wasn't really an issue last night. The room was dark, she was exhausted, her mind was busy with thoughts of psychotic, monochromatic teddy bears… But now? Her stupid brain was fixated on the stupid camera.

She narrowed her eyes at it and pulled out her Monopad, skimming quickly through the rules. There technically wasn't anything that prohibited her from covering it up. She just couldn't break or deface it. That left her a lot of wiggle room. Potentially. Maybe. At the very least, she could see just how far she could push Monokuma and his rules. Someone had to see just where the boundaries were. Why not her?

Misa suddenly grinned. If there was anyone watching the cameras at that moment (and there was someone watching the cameras at that moment, two someones, actually), then they should have been very, very nervous. Misa remembered that she had duct tape. She could do a lot with duct tape, including make what looked like a decent-sized salad bowl. She flipped it around in her hands a couple of times. Yeah, that should work.

She dragged her desk chair over to the center of the room and climbed up, wobbling only slightly. She carefully placed her makeshift bowl over the camera and secured it to the ceiling with two more strips of tape.

"Ahem."

Misa froze, eyes trained on the ceiling. Crap. She hadn't heard him come in. How did he even get in here? She didn't hear a door or hatch open. Did he freaking teleport? This place had fancy shit, but teleportation was where she drew the line.

"'Ello. What's up?" she asked.

"Just what exactly do you think you're doing?" Monokuma asked. Misa forced a grin before turning her head to look at him over her shoulder. Yeah, he looked pissed. That red eye of his was absolutely gleaming with barely restrained fury. There was even a red flush over his face.

"Covering up the cameras?" she offered, holding up her duct tape like a peace offering. She was very proud that her hand wasn't shaking. "Wait, no, sorry, decorating my room to express my individuality."

"You can't mess with the cameras, dumbass."

"Hey, you're the one who wanted to be a pervert and watch us sleep or change or whatever. You know, some of us here are minors!"

He gasped, as if genuinely offended. "How else am I supposed to make sure that my dear, dear charges are safe and sound?"

"You literally want us to kill each other," Misa told him.

Monokuma was silent for a few, very long seconds. Misa kept grinning. Finally, like a switch had been flipped, the bear burst out laughing.

"You're a clever one, aren't you?"

"I have my moments."

Monokuma laughed again, quieter this time. And yes, it did feel exponentially more sinister. His arm lashed out, knocking Misa's chair over and sending her sprawling onto her bed. "I'll take that!" he said, plucking the duct tape from her hand. By the time Misa had sat up and gotten her bearings, he was gone.

"Oh, no you don't," Misa muttered. She threw herself onto the floor and crawled around, searching every inch of the space for a seam or a handle or anything that would indicate that there was a secret door hiding there. Nothing. She sat back onto her heels with a huff. "He's not teleporting. He's not."

Damn it. She was going to ask Shouko about teleportation, wasn't she? Maybe Tsuyoshi. No, definitely Tsuyoshi. He was easier to deal with. And Scientist could really mean a wide range of things, including… well, whatever it would take to beam cells and atoms from one place to another. Physics? Biology? Ugh, she really should have gone to school at some point during the last, what was it now, five years?

At least Monokuma left her makeshift shield. Misa half-expected him to steal that away along with her tape. Still. Little victories. She stood and stretched her hands over her head before heading to the showers. It was super inconvenient that they didn't just have mirrors in their room. Maybe she could steal a mirror. No, that would probably be a step too far. She would actually get in trouble for that one.

The showers were empty as Misa headed to one of the sinks. She let the water run for a couple of seconds while she studied her appearance. Her braid was a mess, the red strands circling her head like a halo of fire. But other than that, she still looked okay. She didn't look that stressed or tired. She looked fine, and that meant that she looked competent.

Good. She was about to potentially do something stupid in her hunt for alli – friends, and she needed whatever edge she could get. She bent over the sink to wash her face, and quickly redid her braid.

Misa found her target in the lounge. It was empty except for two people; everyone else must have cleared out to go do other things. Sumire and Zettai sat opposite of each other with a chessboard in-between them. Judging by how many pieces each of them had captured, the game was nearing its end. Sumire looked perfectly calm and composed, just a hint of a smile gracing her lips. Zettai, predictably, looked inordinately pleased, as if Sumire was a dog that had just performed an amusing trick for the first time.

"Well, this didn't take long," Misa said as she leaned against the doorway. Sumire's smile widened as she turned to look at the smuggler. Zettai barely looked up from the chessboard.

"Hello, Misa. You don't play at all, do you?" she asked.

"Please tell me that wasn't a serious question," Zettai said. He shifted one of the chess pieces. "And it's your turn."

"I do believe that I was just insulted," Misa said as she walked further into the room, eventually taking up a post directly behind Zettai's shoulder. She shoved her hands into her pockets and leaned over to get a look at the board. She was close enough to the tactician that she could hear the small, annoyed exhale he made as he leaned away from her.

"I do believe you were," Sumire said. "Care to prove him wrong?" Misa laughed and shook her head.

"Nah. I can't. I just know the romantic metaphors and stuff." Both of them looked at her in surprise, and it was enough to prompt Misa to grin and shrug. "What can I say? My partner and I watch way too much TV in our downtime." That was one of the few things that they brought with them from place to place, a small, portable screen that had thousands of movies and shows downloaded onto it. It had been a gift from a client. Okay, maybe it had been more of a bribe, but it gave them something to do when they couldn't leave their room.

Sumire leaned forward, steepling her hands together. "Really? Please, enlighten me on these metaphors."

"You're only delaying the inevitable, Sumire. I'm going to win. It won't matter how much time you have to think about your next move."

"Fine," she said with a wave of her hand. She played her turn, the piece hitting the board with a definitive click. "Now, you were saying, Misa?"

"Oh, yeah. There's all these shows were the lead character is this cold, aloof, intellectual man caught in some kind of cosmic struggle with his opponent. And right where the hour is darkest, there's always this internal monologue as he stares at a chessboard. And, of course, he's talking in all of these tactical terms about how the bad guy had captured his queen or whatever and how it's the most important piece and has totally destroyed his strategic power, and what he's really referring to is the competent, spunky, beautiful woman who's always by his side as his trusted advisor and who he's deeply in love with but will never admit it until a life and death situation."

Sumire's eyes sparkled and Misa's grin widened. For once, it wasn't forced. "My, my, that almost sounds like Zettai here! I don't suppose you have a spunky, competent, beautiful secretary or something at your company, do you?" she asked sweetly.

Misa leaned to the side a bit in order to truly appreciate the look of utter distaste on his face. She decided to take it a step further. If he was going to walk around like a dick, acting like he owned the place, then he could handle a little teasing. Even if it did potentially sabotage her original intent of tracking him down in order to foster some kind of relationship. The guy was an ass, but at least he actually knew his stuff. Probably.

"Don't be ridiculous, Sumire," Misa said. "That's not Zettai's genre. He's really from an otome game. The first love interest released is always the cold, cruel bastard of a leader just waiting for a meek, submissive girl to revive his dead, dead heart." Sumire burst out laughing, although she had the decency to try and hide her grin behind her hand. Misa had no such reservations.

"And I suppose you play these games with your business partner as well?" Zettai asked dryly. Sumire saved her from answering.

"You do certainly have the looks for it," she said, as if commenting on the weather, not that weather was really a thing on the Ship since things like seasons or rainstorms kinda needed a planet to exist. There was a slight hitch in Zettai's movements as he played his next turn. It was a small moment, but still one that made Sumire straighten her posture.

"If you're trying to distract me, you're simply wasting your time," he said, taking a moment to glare at Misa. Still, she didn't miss the way his gaze traveled the length of her body before returning to Sumire.

"Am I? Checkmate," the chess grandmaster said. Zettai frowned, his eyes darting over the board. A muscle in his jaw twitched once, and then twice. She smoothly rose to her feet. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go find some dinner. Let me know if you ever want a rematch."

There was silence for a few seconds after she left. Misa hovered, wanting to say something but also not wanting to simply be insulted and dismissed. Zettai reset the chessboard and gestured sharply to the now vacant seat in front of him.

"Sit. We're playing." It was not a request. Misa stayed where she was, waiting until he finally sighed and looked up at her.

"I don't know how to. You'll obliterate me. It won't even be fun for either of us."

"You wanted to talk to me. This is my price." Misa inclined her head slightly and took her seat. "And before you ask, yes, you really were that obvious. If you didn't want to speak with me, you would have left with Sumire."

"Actually, I was going to say that you must be real eager for an ego boost."

"You are free to leave. Just know that I won't offer this opportunity again."

"Why? Why aren't you just telling me to fuck off? That's kinda what I expected here."

"So, do you know anything about chess or are you completely ignorant?" Zettai asked instead. His gaze didn't waver as Misa thought over her options. Okay, screw it. This was basically what she wanted anyway. She might as well go with it.

"I know that the queen is really good and that the horse moves weirdly," she said. Zettai looked as if her words physically pained him, but valiantly pushed past it. What followed next was a rather curt series of instructions about the goals of the game and how each piece moved. He never repeated himself, and Misa felt like she was mostly just nodding along.

The games, because Zettai insisted on several, went about as well as she expected. That is, she was thoroughly beaten. There was not a chance in hell that she could have actually won, but he seemed pleased by the time he finally sat back in his seat. Misa only relaxed when he made no move to set up the board again.

Zettai: Seems my theory was correct. Naturally, of course, but it's always good to get confirmation.

Misa: You gonna share your theory, or do I have to guess?

Zettai: Sumire told me of your exploits. I simply wished to test your intellect for myself.

Misa: Sorry to disappoint you.

Zettai: Oh?

Misa: My partner is the brains of the operation. I just stand around and look pretty.

Zettai: I find that very hard to believe.

Misa: Aw, are you saying that you don't think I'm pretty?

Zettai: …Don't try to be cute. It's not nearly as endearing as your limited mind thinks it is.

Misa: Annnnnnd there's the insults. Like clockwork.

Zettai: It's hardly my fault that the masses can never hope to measure up to me. It is amusing to watch them try, yes, but only mildly.

Misa: Anyone ever tell you that you're a dick?

Zettai: Please, I do read. But what does it matter? Thanks to me, my family's company is more successful than ever. That would hardly happen if I took things like feelings into account.

Misa: You guys sell soda? It's hardly a matter of life and death.

Zettai: It's soda right now. There's no reason to be complacent.

Misa: Today, soda. Tomorrow, the Ship?

Zettai: Don't you worry your pretty, little head about it. It would hardly concern a criminal like you, anyway.

Zettai left the conversation at that, leaving without even bothering to say goodbye. Misa stared at the seat that he had just left for a few, long moments. He wasn't the most pleasant person to be around, and he was very insulting, but there were also moments where he seemed almost… not impressed because probably nothing impressed him, but pleased, maybe? She shook her head. Maybe she should have followed Sumire after all.

Zettai's Profile Card: Entry One

This should be obvious, but Zettai sees himself as a cut above nearly every other person on the Ship. This is probably why he seems completely unconcerned about other people's thoughts or feelings, especially if they get in the way of his apparently very lofty goals.

Misa cleaned up the chessboard and put it away before leaving the lounge herself. Her growling stomach led her to the kitchen. If there had been a set time for a group dinner, she had obviously missed it. The room was empty except for Satsuki, who sat curled over a plate of sushi. She nodded in greeting but otherwise said nothing.

Misa ordered a bowl of chicken soup from the machines and joined the astronomer once it was ready. "You don't mind if it sit here, right? Be kinda awkward if we at opposite ends of the table saying nothing."

"I don't mind silence," Satsuki said quietly.

"Oh. Probably should have guessed that."

They were silent for a few minutes while they ate. Misa's soup was too salty, which was annoying, but she probably should have seen it coming after the quality of the eggs that she had for breakfast. But while Satsuki seemed perfectly content to just sit there, the silence made Misa a bit antsy. She technically could sit in silence, but it had to be with someone that she knew and was comfortable with. That wasn't the case here.

"So… what did you do all day?" she asked. The question hung in the air for a moment while Satsuki took a bite of her food.

"Fujiko dragged me around places. We did a lot of group things. Apparently, I need to have a support system," she said, her tone turning sardonic on the last sentence.

"Sounds exhausting. Especially for someone who likes the quiet," she said. The other girl nodded with a small smile.

"I might need to just stay in my room tomorrow. I get…" she trailed off and looked back down at her mostly empty plate. Misa waited for her to finish her sentence, but the end never came. The smuggler switched tactics.

"Don't suppose you've seen Shoma at all, have you? You two might get along."

Satsuki looked confused. "I'm not sure if I've met him. Was he the one with the red headphones?" Misa nodded. "No, I haven't seen him. Or talked to him at all. I guess that's why my profiles aren't complete."

"He's the Ultimate Gamer, apparently," Misa told her.

"Oh."

"But yeah, I was just wondering if people had seen him out yet. Guess not."

"No."

Satsuki finished her meal and stood. It felt a little bit like she was trying to run away from the conversation, but Misa tried not to take it too personal. Tried, being the key word there. "Good night," she said. Misa waved as she left, and finished her dinner in silence.

Breakfast the next morning was a far more social affair. Everyone sat in the same seats as yesterday, since apparently people have this need to be consistent in their seating arrangements, which definitely wouldn't get awkward at all once the bodies started dropping. Misa didn't even bother to correct herself. One day without murder was fine. But two days was when the idea started to creep up on people. Presumably. Even if someone decided to commit a murder the moment Monokuma announced the rules, it would still take them time to plan it out and choose a victim.

But that was neither here nor there. Misa forced herself instead to pay attention to the discussion that Hoshina and Kotoko were having. They were apparently in charge of Team Support System, and needed to find some kind of group bonding activity to do.

"Hmm… how about the art room?" Kotoko asked. Hoshina hummed softly as she considered it.

"That would be nice. Art is generally stress reducing, and we don't have any particularly talented artists that could lead to feelings on inadequacy or inferiority," she said with a nod. "Will you come with us this time, Misa?"

"Yeah, we missed you yesterday," Kotoko quickly agreed. Misa wasn't quite sure how they could miss her already considering that they barely knew each other – she was charming, but not that charming, even she knew her limits, mostly, sometimes – but she grinned and nodded anyway.

"Sure. Got nothing better to do."

"Great," Hoshina said with her gentle smile. She turned to catch Miyu's eye and nodded. The genetic engineer immediately brightened, her eyes positively sparkling. Misa's grin absolutely did not soften into a smile. Nope. Definitely not.

"Oh! Science people!" Misa said, leaning halfway onto the table in order to get their attention. Ryuu gave her shoulder a shove in order to keep her from leaning directly into a plate.

"What is it? Do you need help?" Tsuyoshi asked with seemingly genuine concern. Misa quickly shook her head.

"Nah, not really. Just had a question for you guys that is probably stupid but needs to be asked anyways. Can Monokuma teleport? Because we can't do that yet, right?"

Shouko immediately burst out laughing. She mimed wiping away tears. Misa didn't really think that what she said was all that funny. "Only the genius of Doktor Sakamura could make such a thing!"

"D-does that mean that you've m-m-made it?" Itami asked. He had his teddy bear in his lap and was absentmindedly rubbing one of its ears. Shouko deflated slightly.

"Nein."

"It's not really my area, but I haven't heard of anything like that," Tsuyoshi said thoughtfully. Miyu nodded.

"Yeah. I have some friends who are inventors and dabble in those areas. No one is anywhere close to that kind of technology," Miyu agreed. "Why? Did you see Monokuma yesterday?"

If anyone wasn't paying attention before, they were now. Misa shrugged and leaned back in her seat, aiming for casual and not quite sure if she completely made it. "Uh, yeah. He came into my room and we talked for a minute or two before he disappeared." The tension in the air skyrocketed.

"Whatcha talk about?" Fujiko asked, leaning forward in her seat. No one stopped her from dipping her sleeve into some syrup.

"Nothing really. He just showed up, threatened me a bit, said some vague shit, and then left. Look, it was no big deal. I'm more worried about the fact that he could enter my room without using the door. And no, I didn't find a hatch or anything. Trust me. I looked."

"You must have missed it," Ryuu said, although he sounded pretty unconvinced.

"Maybe Monokuma is a ghost or a demon or something!" Rudolph said, his eyes wide. "That would explain how he can disappear! And how he trapped us here!" Zettai sounded pained at the very suggestion, and most of the more… scientific minds at the table had looks that varied from pity to confusion to annoyance.

"But… ghosts don't exist. Right?" Ryo asked, head whipping around as he looked for confirmation. "And definitely no demons! They aren't really real! Right?"

"Probably," Ryuu muttered, shrugging when Misa caught his eye. "What? I've seen some weird shit."

"Okay, this panic is helping no one," Miyu said. Sumire nodded. "We can add the Monokuma question to the list of things that we need to figure out, but we're not getting anywhere here."

There were quiet agreements from the table and breakfast continued. Still, it was pretty awkward. Misa had a sinking feeling that every group meal was going to be awkward. At least, it should be. If they got to the point where everyone was completely comfortable with each other, then that meant that they had been stuck here for far too long.

Finally, everyone finished eating and the groups started to break up. Satsuki went back to her room, like she said that she would yesterday. Hoshina went to deliver food to Shoma and just generally check on his wellbeing. Zettai, Shouko, Ryuu, and Sumire went off to do their own thing, and everyone else headed to the art room. Miyu quickly fell in step with Misa.

"Monokuma threatened you?" she asked quietly. Her hand lightly touched Misa's elbow. Misa grinned at her, which only made Miyu's frown deepen.

"Relax. I was just messing with the camera in my room. It's no big deal." She bumped her shoulder against hers. "I'm fine. He didn't touch me. He can't, remember? Only you guys can."

"No one's going to be touching anyone," Miyu said, and really that was just asking for trouble. Misa very carefully poked Miyu's cheek.

"Touch."

"Hey!"

She poked her shoulder.

"Touch again."

"Misa, I swear – "

"Touch. Touch. Touch."

"Fine! Touch!"

And it just devolved from there. By the time they made it to the art room, Misa's arm was sore from where Miyu poked her too hard and they were both out of breath from laughing and trying to dodge each other. Which was slightly concerning. Misa thought that she was in better shape than that. Apparently not, judging by how fast her heart was beating.

The art hang out wasn't really all that well organized, but it was surprisingly fun. The quieter people gathered together to sketch things or paint, the louder, more… explosive personalities decided to craft makeshift sculptures and see how far they could drop them before they shattered, and Misa went straight for the wet clay, giggling quietly to herself as she squished a lump of it in her hands. Messing with it gave her hands something to do as she rotated between the groups, not really staying with any one of them for too long.

It was… a little weird. People seemed to have formed groups surprisingly quickly. Or, maybe it wasn't so surprising given the circumstances. But they had kinda formed without her. Misa had no problem talking with basically anybody; the drifting between groups didn't really bother her. But everyone was closer to each other than they were to her, which was just… weird. Even Miyu. She had Tsuyoshi and Misa had… she usually had her partner.

But there was no point in worrying about it now. If she didn't like her social standing, she would just have to change it. She surveyed the art room, rolling her clay into a ball. He would be a good choice. Friendly, excitable, and innocent enough that he would probably vouch for her if things went bad. Perfect, really.

Misa pressed her ball of clay flat against the table before walking across the room to join Rudolph. He wasn't necessarily near any of the others, quietly looking through a book that he had pulled from his bag while making notes in a small notebook. Misa slid into the seat next to him with an easy grin.

"'Ello. What's up?"

"Oh! Hi, Misa!" Rudolph said with a bright smile. "Just looking for inspiration for my next book." He shifted the book so that Misa could look at it. Each page was devoted to a different supernatural creature, with numerous, detailed illustrations that accompanied a short blurb explaining what the creature was. It was admittedly pretty creepy.

"You're thinking about writing even now?" she asked, idly flipping through the pages until she got to sirens and mermaids. Rudolph nodded enthusiastically.

"Yep! This whole thing is like one big inspiration! And it's not like we have a TV where we can watch movies or something. Ooh! Maybe I could write a story for you! Do you want to look through the book with me and pick your favorite creature?"

Misa laughed. Damn, she had forgotten just how energetic he was. But still, she nodded and scooted her chair over so that the pair of them could easily see the book. Rudolph insisted at starting at the beginning, and he wouldn't let Misa decide on a creature until she saw all of them. And, of course, he provided commentary and pointed out his own personal favorites to use too. But he was quick to remind her that she didn't need to pick those, she could pick any one that she wanted. She eventually chose the kitsune, mostly because they looked cool and could shapeshift.

Misa: You really like this stuff, huh?

Rudolph: Yep! Ever since I was nine.

Misa: Your parents let you see horror movies that young?

Rudolph: Well… technically my older brother showed me them. But they weren't scary!

Misa: Really?

Rudolph: Yep! It was just really, really cool! So I wanted to write my own things.

Misa: Huh. That's kinda cool, I guess. You were a lot younger than I would expect, though.

Rudolph: Why? How old were you when you started smuggling?

Misa: …Old enough.

Rudolph: Hey, that's not an answer!

Misa: Older than when you started your career.

Rudolph: That's still not an answer.

Misa: So, what was the first movie that your brother showed you?

Rudolph: Oh! The Ring. Have you seen it? It's really good! One of my favorites!

Misa: Is that the one with the videotape and then the girl crawls out of the TV?

Rudolph: Yep! I just thought that scene was so cool! It was such a surprise, and it really helped send the theme about the anxieties over technology home. If you're going to have a twist, that's how you do it!

Misa: Yeah… I just thought that it was a scary scene.

Rudolph: That too!

There was a loud and sudden crash. Misa and Rudolph whipped around to see Ryo on the ground, his legs tangled up in a chair. The adventurer laid there, dazed, as Kat and Kotoko rushed over to help him up. Misa decided that this was a good enough place to end their conversation. Rudolph nodded happily and smiled at her, promising to have a draft of her short story soon.

Rudolph's Profile Card: Entry One

Rudolph's love of horror started when his brother showed him The Ring when he was nine. He thought that it was the coolest thing ever, and really like how one of the later twists supported the overall theme of the movie.

"What the hell happened?" Misa asked Fujiko. The navigator had been hovering around Ryo as if she wanted to do something but couldn't figure out what.

"He fell!"

"Yeah, I heard that part. I meant how?"

"Oh, he jumped off the table so that he could drop his creation from a higher height. But he went out instead of up. I really thought that he would have a better sense of direction than that!"

Misa wasn't quite sure what a decent sense of direction had to do with anything, but nodded anyway. By this time, Ryo had made it onto his feet, a goofy grin on his face.

"I'm okay, everyone! Don't worry!" He sounded so damn happy about it that it brought a smile to Misa's face. "Let's do it again!"

"No, please? Sorry, I just don't want anyone getting hurt," Kotoko said, gently grabbing Ryo's arm so that he didn't immediately climb back up onto the table. Ryo's shoulder slumped forward. "I'm sorry…"

For whatever reason, Misa's eyes landed on Miyu. Miyu playfully shook her head and rolled her eyes, as if to say What can you do? Misa smiled.

I just want to take a quick moment to thank everyone that's reviewed so far. I really do appreciate all of your kind words, and they are great motivation for me. So if you liked the chapter, drop me a line and tell me! If you didn't like the chapter, drop me a line and tell me that too!

Next week, the motive is announced!