Disclaimer: I don't own Dangan Ronpa.
Chapter 7: Mahiru Koizumi
There was a somber mood the next day as the remaining students gathered for breakfast. "I can't believe this," Nekomaru said, "All Teruteru wanted to do was find out what happened to his mother, and he suffered the ultimate penalty for it." "It's how that blasted bear is playing this game," Byakuya said, "His antics are getting rid of those with the weakest wills first. If we hope to prevent any further casualties, we need to pull together in a unit. Above all, we must not fall victim to his mind games. Remember his talk of a traitor after he dropped the bombshell that our memories were removed?"
"You don't think there is one?," Peko asked. Byakuya shook his head. "That was simply a ruse to put us all on edge, and start to mistrust each other. That likely contributed to Teruteru not informing me of Nagito's plans." At that moment, Hajime and Hiyoko rushed up to the restaurant. "You guys are little late," Byakuya said, "What kept you?" "Hiyoko wanted to take a quick shower," Hajime said, "But needed help getting her kimono back on afterwards." Mahiru blinked. "Hiyoko, I would have gladly helped you if you just asked." Hiyoko bowed apologetically. "Sorry, Big Sis Mahiru, but I didn't want to come to breakfast all stinky, and... Well..."
The rest of the students suddenly became wide-eyed. "Well," Byakuya said with a slight cough, "That's one way to bring the group closer. Not that I'm encouraging it, mind you." Peko seemed to blush for some unknown reason, then hurried off. "What's her deal?," Akane asked. "Dunno," Kazuichi said, "But she's outside right now talking to Fuyuhiko." The group looked on in shock as not only did Fuyuhiko seem to be openly talking to Peko without getting angry, but the conversation ended with them walking towards the cottages holding hands. "So," Sonia said in confusion, "Did Peko have a crush on Fuyuhiko?" "If she did," Mahiru replied, "Fuyuhiko must have secretly held those same feelings."
Monomi had somehow managed to take out one of the Monobeats, opening up a new island for the students. On it was a small diner, a pharmacy, and a nice beachhouse. Later that day, Monokuma introduced his next "motive", a video game called "Twilight Syndrome Murder Case". Chiaki was obviously excited about there being a video game, but the idea that it was meant to be a motive for murder concerned both Byakuya and Hajime. "We should learn all we can about this game," Byakuya said, "Hajime, you and Chiaki should play this game first to see what the content is. We'll decide our next move from there."
The game proved surprisingly simple. In fact, it was little more than an interactive novel. Not to mention, it started on day 2, with five girls discussing a recent murder that had occurred. Then it skipped ahead to day four, where one of the girls, named Girl E, was killed. On the game over screen were the words "Down five...". As Hajime was about to leave, Chiaki restarted the game. "You're not gonna find anything else," Hajime protested. But Chiaki moved the control stick in such a way that something changed on the start screen. "It's a secret code," Chiaki explained, "Like the words say, press down five times. Then just press start and see what happens. Looks like this game has a second mode."
The new mode showed what happened on the first and third day. As it turned out, the first victim in the game suffered a severe blow to her head. Just before discovering the body, a shattering noise was heard. The four girls headed for the room the noise was heard in to meet Girl E. Girl E mentioned that her swimsuit was stolen. There was a broken window and broken fish tank in the room. The game then skipped to the third day, where Girl D confronted Girl E about her possible involvement, citing that she had found a broken vase in the room next to where the first victim was found. While she had cleared away the debris, she had taken a picture of it.
Girl E then grabbed the photos and tried to dispose of them, but they were spotted in the trash by a male character name Guy F. He managed to connect the dots and began suspecting Girl E of killing the first victim, who was apparently his sister. Then the credits rolled. This is where Hajime gasped. The names of the people in the game were names he was familiar with. Tsumiki, Saionji, Mioda, Koizumi, Sato, Kuzuryu, and Kuzuryu. "Five of those names are the last names of people on this island," Chiaki said, echoing Hajime's thoughts, "And Fuyuhiko's is given twice." "That can't be coincidence," Hajime said.
"Good instincts," Monokuma said as he popped up. He then handed Hajime a manille envelope. "This little gem is based on reality. A little nugget from your missing memories. This is for the first person to win the game. I was hoping for it to be given to one of the people who were actually in the game, but this may prove just as interesting. Now what will you do with the information you've received?" And with that, he vanished. Chiaki and Hajime looked at each other before opening the envelope. Inside were more detailed photos. The first was a picture of Mikan, Hiyoko, and Ibuki in school uniforms. Hajime remembered the character Girl D had taken a picture of the three girls she had been with, so this was likely that same photo.
The second photo was that of a blonde girl wearing the same uniform, collapsed on the ground with blood coming from her head. "This would be the first victim," Chiaki said, "I remember Girl D had taken a picture." The third picture was the broken vase Girl D had mentioned, and the final was similar to the game over picture from the normal game. "So Girl D also took a picture of E-ko's dead body," Hajime said, "I think it's time we showed these to Byakuya." When the two of them got back to the restaurant, Byakuya was panting loudly, a half-eaten plate of food in front of him. Akane had a similar plate in front of her, but she was still eating.
"I'm not used to eating so fast," Byakuya said, "I always take my time so I can enjoy the meal." He then noticed Chiaki and Hajime. "I take it you learned something interesting." Hajime showed Byakuya the photos and explained exactly what the game was about. "These resemble Hope's Peak Academy uniforms," Byakuya said, "But this is supposed to be the start of our freshmen year, and we're in the middle of a so-called 'field trip', so we shouldn't have been assigned school uniforms yet. Moreover, this picture in conjunction with the credits of the game suggest a connection between Mikan, Hiyoko, Ibuki, Mahiru, and Fuyuhiko. Get them together and see if you can learn anything from them. I need some time to recover."
When Hajime gathered the students in question, he wasn't surprised to see Fuyuhiko didn't show up. "So," Hiyoko said, "Is this some sort of harem route? 'Cause, I wouldn't mind trying that sort of thing, at least not with Big Sis Mahiru..." Ibuki scratched her temple. "But Ibuki likes Byakuya..." "I doubt that what he's going for," came Fuyuhiko's voice as he walked into the diner they were all in, "Otherwise he wouldn't have involved me." He raised an eyebrow. "Unless you're into that sorta thing..." "This has nothing to do with that!," Hajime said, "I assume Chiaki told you what we found from the game?" Fuyuhiko nodded. "Yeah, what of it? There's no way it can be possible..."
"Then how do you explain these photos?," Hajime asked, and he placed the photos on the table. Everyone else's eyes went wide as they looked at them. "There's no way...," Fuyuhiko muttered. Hajime then proceeded to explain the full details of the game. "From what I've pieced together from the game," Hajime said, "I can guess who is playing who." He pointed to Mikan. "You're the girl playing Girl A. Hiyoko is Girl B. Ibuki is Girl C. Mahiru is Girl D. That would make Sato Girl E. And finally, Fuyuhiko is Guy F. This I gathered by matching your personalities, as well as events from the game in general."
"This is crazy," Mahiru said, "I don't remember taking any of these photos. And this girl, Fuyuhiko's sister... Was she really killed?" "No way!," Fuyuhiko said, "If she were that easy to kill, I'd have done it myself years ago! Screw this crap, I'm outta here!" And with that, he stormed out of the diner. Mahiru excused herself as well. Ibuki simply looked at the photo and smirked. "Hey, Hiyoko. Your figure is much more curvy than Ibuki thought it would be." Hiyoko pouted. "That's because my kimono covers up my gorgeous figure." She then hugged Hajime's arm. "But Hajime knows how beautiful I really am, and that's all that really matters to me."
Ibuki shrugged and headed out, followed shortly by Mikan. The next day, Kazuichi walked over to Hajime. "Dude, is it true you were having a secret meeting with some of the girls?" "What do you care?," Hajime said, "It's not like Sonia was in on it." He knew full well about Kazuichi's adoration for the young princess, which she found slightly off-putting. "I know dude," Kazuichi said, "I never said I was jealous. Well... Maybe I'm a little jealous at your ability to attract women, but that's beside the point." "Byakuya got a little suspicious about the game Monokuma set up," Hajime said, "And some of the girls were cited as cast members for some reason."
Kazuichi put a hand to his chin. "That's weird. Why would there be anything like that? Anyway, there's something important I need your help with." The next thing Hajime knew, Kazuichi had roped him into trying to sneak his way into an all-girl swim party Sonia put together. Setting themselves up in the diner ahead of time, it didn't take much for Kazuichi to convince most of the girls he and Hajime had coincidentally considered hanging out at the same beach. Ibuki had even brought her new guitar that she had gotten from the supermarket.
After Sonia arrived, she looked around. "That is odd," Sonia said, "Where is Peko? She was invited as well." At that moment, the body discovery announcement came in loud and clear. "Wait...," Hajime said, "Someone got killed? Who? Where?" A moment later, Hiyoko burst into the diner. "Everyone! Quick! The beach house!" The group all followed her to the beach house near where the party was supposed to take place. Mahiru was standing outside the door, completely pale. "It's... It's inside," she said. When Hajime walked in, he gasped. Peko was lying on the floor in a pool of her own blood, with Fuyuhiko kneeling next to her actually crying.
"Damn it...," he said, "I finally tell her how I really feel... And then someone goes and steals her from me..." He then noticed Hajime and the others. He got up and did his best to wipe the tears, but he knew it wouldn't do any good. "Fuyuhiko," Hajime said, "Did you know Peko before all this?" Fuyuhiko sighed. "She had been raised by my family right alongside me. My pop meant for her to be my personal bodyguard, as well as a part-time hitman. The latter I was okay with, but her being a bodyguard for me would basically mean I'd be relying on the family's resources, which is going against my policy. I still kept her around though, because... As we grew up together, I found myself falling in love with her, but I could never say it out loud. Not until we got to this island."
"What made you finally decide to?," Hajime asked. "You and Hiyoko," Fuyuhiko said, "When Byakuya made mention about how it was one way of bringing us together, Peko decided to go ahead and make her own feelings known. I was so surprised to learn she shared my feelings, that I blurted out I felt the same way. I've never seen her so happy. All her life she thought I only saw her as a tool to be used. That's how she grew up. But no... I never saw her like that. Hell, my pop never saw her like that. We all saw her as a part of the family. And now..." The rest of the students soon joined the group. "Damn," Byakuya said, "Not again."
"Ouch," Monokuma said, "Didn't see this coming. Then again, I've been surprised before. Oh well, such is life... And death. Well, you know how this goes. You guys have to find out who killed Peko Pekoyama. Oh, and for those of you who played or know of my game, please keep in mind that your suspect pool isn't necessarily limited to the students who starred in it. After all, Peko wasn't even involved in the game, so who can really say? But I will be asking you to solve the mystery of my game first just in case. Keep what you've learned in mind for the trial." Hajime sighed as he took the file. "Let's get started."
Peko had died as a result of a single blow to the head. From the amount of blood, it had to be a significantly heavy blunt-force tool. There was also a bat in her hand, but it didn't look like it had been used. Fuyuhiko explained how he had come to stop Peko from making a grave mistake of some kind, but instead found her dead body lying in the middle of the beach house. Koizumi had shown up shortly after that, and then Hiyoko had come out of the storage closet shortly after that. Hiyoko explained that she had been invited to the beach house by Mahiru, but once she got inside someone had snuck up behind her and rendered her unconscious after placing a tissue over her mouth. Mikan surmised that it was the result of some of the anesthetics from the pharmacy.
Mahiru said that she received a letter from Hiyoko, which also invited her to the beach house. She had already made plans to meet with Hiyoko to discuss the game, but then she got the letter requesting a change in meeting place. Hajime looked at both the letters and noted the handwriting was identical. From the position of the body, the person had snuck in from the back entrance near the beach. There was no evidence the body had been moved. Outside the entrance, several faint footprints were noted. From their shape, they were made by bare feet without shoes or sandals. However, no one in the group had sand in their feet.
Returning to the diner, Kazuichi noticed there were wet footprints starting from the door. Thinking back, he remembered how Ibuki had come in just before Sonia and seemed to track water everywhere she went. Mikan went to her usual task of performing and autopsy and found something interesting. The weapon used was very thin, barely a centimeter in width, but still heavy enough to kill Peko in one swing. Finally, to make things easier for everyone regarding the Twilight Syndrome game, Hajime and Chiaki explained everything they had learned from it. "It doesn't add up," Byakuya said, "That game was supposed to be our motive, but Peko did not seem to have any involvement. Why would someone kill her?"
In the trial room, Monokuma started things by demanding the students solve his mystery first. "Since we've all discussed the mystery during the investigation," Byakuya said, "Our first objective is to find out why Girl E was murdered." "From the context of the mystery itself," Gundham said, "It is clear Girl E was killed for revenge. This Guy F, supposedly Fuyuhiko, suspected her of killing the first victim in the game, who was his sister. In which case, we must try to determine how exactly Girl E pulled off such a murder without the police finding out about it." Chiaki brought a map of the school based on the context of the game. "We know the first four girls, Girl A through Girl D, were in the entrance hall when they heard a crashing noise, like shattering glass."
"Right," Kazuichi said, "Girl E said it was likely some kind of pervert who had killed the first victim then broke the window to escape. Of course, since we're going with the fact that it was actually Girl E, that's clearly a lie." Nekomaru rubbed his chin. "We need to first determine how Girl E was able to commit the murder so quickly. Not much time passed between when the window broke and when the other four girls showed up. Since the room was locked, and Girl D had to retrieve the key from the teacher's room..." "I'm not so sure it was a window breaking that they heard," Hajime said. He showed the picture of the broken vase. "I think it was this."
Byakuya adjusted his glasses. "A vase shattering... Yes that would perfectly disguise the time of death. If we go off that, our perception of the events changes. Girl E killed the first victim prior to when the other girls were in the entrance hall, broke the window, locked the door and returned the key. She then waited until a point in time she knew the other girls would be in the entrance hall and shattered the vase. Well, Monokuma, how are we doing so far?" "Very good," Monokuma said, "Very good indeed. But there's still one other part of the mystery that should be solved... The matter of the murder weapon. It was shown in the game as well, after all."
"Judging from the injuries the first victim is shown to have in the picture," Mikan said, "And from the context of the game, we know the victim died from blunt force trauma after being rendered unconscious due to lack of oxygen, after Girl E had tried to strangle her." "A fish tank was broken in the game as well, right?," Ibuki said, "Maybe it was some of the gravel?" "That's too stupid," Kazuichi said, "Gravel's way too small. It's gotta be something bigger." Hajime thought for a second. "It may not be as stupid as you think, Kazuichi. If enough of the gravel was placed inside as bag that was then tied up tight, it would make the perfect weapon for the job."
"And if the weapon was shown in the game," Chiaki said, "Then likely the bag was too. I remember Girl E saying her swimsuit had been stolen, but given what we know so far, I think it's more likely she used the swimsuit as a makeshift bag. That way she could kill two birds with one stone. By claiming to be the victim of a pervert, she could reinforce the idea that such an individual killed the victim, and dispose of the swimsuit as both a means of supporting her claim and getting rid of evidence against her." "But there's one more thing about this mystery," Hajime said, "If the police had found that shattered vase, it still would have led them right to Girl E. Which meant she had an accomplice."
Mahiru sighed. "That... Was me... As Girl D. She was the one in the game who got rid of the pieces of the vase, but still took the picture to confront Girl E with." Hiyoko seemed to be downtrodden at the thought of her best friend being an accomplice to murder. "That's everything about this mystery, right?," Hajime asked. "That's it," Monokuma said, "And it's such a wonderful feeling to have a mystery you've written solved." "But that brings us to the murder in the present time," Gundham said, "And the victim is none of the individuals from the game. In fact, Peko had nothing to do with that mystery."
"Actually," Hajime said, "That's not entirely true. Fuyuhiko admitted that he and Peko knew each other long before coming to Hope's Peak Academy. That opens up a number of possibilities. In fact, just like Nagito, I think Peko was planning a murder herself. Only this time, for Fuyuhiko's sake." He held up the two notes. "These two notes were given to Mahiru and Hiyoko. They were meant to draw them to the same place, but at two different times." Nekomaru nodded. "And to top it off, the two notes have identical handwriting, meaning the same person wrote both notes."
Fuyuhiko's eyes widened. "Are you really suggesting Peko wrote those notes?" Hajime nodded. "Not only that, she had a bat in her hand when she died. And I think I know who her intended victim was." He pointed to Mahiru. "Her note had her coming at a later time than Hiyoko, meaning Peko's plan was likely to kill Mahiru and try to frame Hiyoko for it." "Then she must of overheard us when I invited Hiyoko to talk more about the game," Mahiru said. "Does this mean Mahiru has to be the culprit?," Sonia asked. Fuyuhiko shook his head. "She can't be. She and Hiyoko were there with me to trigger the body discovery announcement. In fact, she had come in just a little while after I found Peko."
"About that," Byakuya said, "Can a murderer count as someone who has discovered a body?" "Nope," Monokuma said, "Because the murderer made the corpse in the first place, they cannot count as having 'discovered' it." Sonia breathed a sigh of relief. "Then Mahiru, Hiyoko, and Fuyuhiko are in the clear. The announcement gives them all alibis." "I was unaware I was a suspect to begin with," Fuyuhiko said, "Why would I wanna kill Peko?" "It's a matter of principle," Byakuya said, "We have to consider anyone connected to the mystery a suspect." Mikan became nervous. "That means me and Ibuki are the only real suspects here!"
"Mikan can't be the killer," Chiaki said, "She, Ibuki, Akane, and myself were at the supermarket picking out swimsuits. Ibuki and Akane found their's quickly and left, but Mikan was having trouble finding one she wouldn't feel embarrassed in." "Wait," Kazuichi said, "Akane was able to leave so quickly? With her bust size?" Akane smirked. "I found a great swimsuit that I could fit in comfortably rather quickly." "Was Ibuki with you up until the time you reached the diner?," Hajime said, "I don't remember you arriving at the same time." "There's a reason for that," Nekomaru said, "On their way to the diner, they ran into me. Akane did her usual thing and challenged me to a fight. During that time we lost track of Ibuki."
"Whoa, let's hold our horses here!," Ibuki said, "You guys can't really think Ibuki'd kill someone... Right?" The others all looked at her, making her nervous. "Right...?" "There is something I found interesting," Kazuichi said, "There were footprints leading out the back of the beach house, made by bare footprints." "But Ibuki's feet are sand-free," Ibuki said, "No trace of the beach." Kazuichi shook his head. "No one has any sand on their feet. But when I went back to the diner, I saw wet footprints on the floor. I think you made those footprints, Ibuki. After all, you were tracking water everywhere you went inside that diner."
"So Ibuki took a little shower before leaving and forgot to towel off," Ibuki said. Chiaki shook her head. "That's not possible. You were perfectly dry in the supermarket." Ibuki rubbed the back of her head. "Yeah, but... Ibuki doesn't even know what the murder weapon is. None of us do." "We know the murder weapon had to be five centimeters in width," Mikan said, "But still be heavy enough to kill someone with a single blow." Hajime put a hand to his chin. "Come to think of it... Ibuki, you had a brand new guitar when we met at the diner, right?" "Yeah!," Ibuki said in excitement, "Ibuki just saw that eerie, blood-red guitar and thought, 'Gotta have it!'"
"A guitar would match the parameters to make the lethal wound," Mikan said, "But I don't remember seeing any blood on it." Byakuya shook his head. "Ibuki just said it was a blood-red guitar. Even if she hadn't washed it off completely, whatever blood was still there would be invisible. As for when she could have washed it, it was likely around the same time she washed the sand from her feet." "B-Byakuya...," Ibuki said, looking a little forlorn. Monokuma began chuckling. "It seems you guys have made your decision. Then let's get to the voting, shall we?"
Once the votes were tallied, the fanfare could be heard again. "Good work! You guys got it right! Peko Pekoyama was killed by Ibuki Mioda!" "Ibuki?!," Hiyoko said in shock, "Her of all people?! But why?!" "I think I know," Fuyuhiko said, "Hajime was right, Peko was planning on killing Mahiru for my sake. The way she saw it, either you found her guilty and she was sacrificed, or you fell for the ruse she was planning, after which she'd ask to trade places with me." "Not like I'd do that," Monokuma said, "It's against the rules for starters." "I guess Ibuki must have overheard Peko's plan," Sonia said, "And tried to stop her from hurting Mahiru."
"Ibuki never actually meant to kill her though," Ibuki protested, "Ibuki underestimated how heavy my new guitar was. Ibuki was already out the door when Peko dropped." "That explains it," Chiaki said, "Ibuki was just as shocked as the rest of us when she heard the body discovery announcement. Then when we discovered the victim was Peko... I can only imagine her confusion." "When Ibuki was in the tunnel," Ibuki said, "Ibuki saw a small water fountain, where Ibuki washed off her feet and guitar." "Um," Sonia said, "Why were you barefoot in the first place?" "Ibuki just wanted to feel the sand between her toes," Ibuki said. Then she frowned. "Guess that's the last joke Ibuki gets to tell, huh?"
"'Fraid so," Monokuma said, "You may not have meant to kill Peko, but you still did. And now comes the glorious execution! And I have the perfect one set up for the Ultimate Musician!" And with that, he hit the big red button, causing Ibuki to be dragged into the execution chamber. She found herself strapped to a simple chair, and a pair of large headphones were lowered onto her head. In front of her was a giant sound system. Monokuma popped up behind it, and turned the volume all the way up to eleven. The intense noise was so powerful it actually caused devastating brain damage to Ibuki, leaving her dead in the chair.
After the remaining students got back from the trial, Mahiru invited Hajime to her cottage. "Byakuya looked almost devastated by Ibuki's execution," Mahiru said. Hajime thought it a strange time to be taking about the trial when she was making him give her a bare breast massage. "Um, Mahiru... If you were gonna give a 'I need a stress relief' speech, couldn't you have done it before the foreplay?" Mahiru blushed. "Oh... Sorry, but when Hiyoko mentioned about how she wouldn't mind if you and I got together... I got kinda curious." Hajime sighed and pinched Mahiru nipples, causing her to hiss in delight. "You're very good. No wonder Hiyoko was satisfied."
She gently guided his hand down to her womanhood. "Down here next." Hajime nodded, and gently tugged on her clitoris. Mahiru let out a gentle moan. "Keep it up... I feel myself getting even wetter." "In that case," Hajime said, and and he unzipped his pants. "Already...?," Mahiru said. "Not quite," Hajime whispered, "I want to make sure it won't hurt you." He then used his manhood to rub Mahiru's pussy gently, causing her to go into serious overdrive. "Damn, Hajime. I underestimated you. You're more reliable than I thought." Hajime chuckled. "And you needed me to have sex with you to realize this?" Mahiru smirked. "You know what I mean."
Finally, she decided to get it done, and guided Hajime's cock inside her. "Hey, the extra moisture worked," Mahiru said, "I barely felt anything, and it's my first time. Guess I should be lucky I'm so sensitive." She turned her head and kissed Hajime. "Keep it up, please. I need this." Hajime nodded as he kept rubbing his tongue across Mahiru's. The movements became so intense Mahiru almost felt like she would explode just from the pleasure of it all. Finally she felt Hajime release a massive load inside her womb. She panted from the effort, but it was clear from the smile on her face that she enjoyed every second. "Thanks. You know, if we ever get off this island, I may just move in with you and Hiyoko." Hajime smiled. "I'd like that."
To be continued...
It's not easy writing a different scene for each of these girls. Oh well, read and review.
