Deliver me from Hell: Abnormal Days
Oonishi couldn't even scream. A wave of nausea hit him like a truck. Unable to contain himself, he turned and ran, wanting to get away, as if running from the horrible truth. He reached the counter on the opposite side of the room, his knee crashing into the side painfully in his haste. His throat burned as he choked up stomach acid, vomiting into the sink, eyes squeezed shut. His head felt hot, and he began to sweat as he vomited again, his sinuses starting to run. As he finished, he let out a groan of disgust, displeasure, and distemper. He coughed and spat into the sink, trying to get the taste out of his mouth.
Oonishi stood strait, trying to catch his breath. Saitou was gone, having run to get help. Oonishi hadn't even heard him leave.
Oonishi wiped his eyes, but he wasn't crying. An emotion bubbled that was less than familiar to the Critic, so resistant to harsh words: rage. He pushed the sadness away: he would not cry for Kotobuki, because there was something he needed to do.
Her killer was out there.
He had to find them.
Reveal their misdeeds.
See that they were Executed.
Kotobuki had wanted one thing from him. He could not let her down, not now, not ever again. He would carry her Hopes. He would survive this, Super High School Level Despair be damned.
As he fumed, Oonishi Eiji waited quietly in the Chem Lab, taste of vomit still lingering in his mouth. He spat into the sink again as he waited, not daring to disturb anything more. His eyes glanced between the bloodstained wall above Kotobuki's corpse and Katsuragi's on the wall farthest from the door. He was eager to start the investigation.
Taiyoshi arrived first, an expression of fear on her face. Ignoring Oonishi, she looked around, seeing both corpses, becoming downcast as the body discovery announcement played twice, once for each of the girls. Tsujimoto and Saitou arrived moments later, their expressions grim.
Saitou scratched his head, looking at Oonishi, asking, "How are you holding up?"
Oonishi grumbled, "I'll be fine. Where's Monokuma?" No one answered, waiting for the bear's arrival. But the first one to show up was Tachibana Chiyoko, barging in, smile ever present. The morning announcement played, indicating it was seven AM.
"What's going on in here? Oh, two announcements...five of you..." Looking around, she looked around, saying without a hint of compassion, "Oh no. Not Katsuragi and Kotobuki. Whatever shall we do without the Dreamer and the Luckster?" She smirked, snarking, "Are those even really Talents? I guess it's not like they were worthwhile people in the first place." As she giggled, Oonishi gritted his teeth, fist clenched. Someone moved faster though, fist smashing into Tachibana's face, sending the Director crashing to the ground.
As Tachibana groaned in pain, propping herself up on her elbow, her other hand over her nose, Taiyoshi stood over her, livid. She hissed, "Say that again, and we'll be having another Victim."
Monokuma appeared, hopping in between the Runner and the Director, "Slow down, Runner! Two Victims and two Culprits is a possibility, but if you think I'm going to let there be a third Victim, you're going to be beary sorry when I Punish you!"
Taiyoshi gritted her teeth, "Fine, I won't kill her. Now get out of the way, I'll break her arms as gently as I can!"
Tsujimoto grabbed her by the shoulder, interjecting, "We have more important things to be worrying about, Taiyoshi-san."
"Upupupu, yes you do!" Monokuma laughed. He pulled out five Files, Passing them around. "You're all here and awake for once! That's more surprising than the identities of the Victims! Can't wait to see you at the Trial! Good Luck, you'll need it without poor old Kotobuki!" He turned to leave, adding, "And keep it clean, folks! Save it for the Trial." With that, he scampered off, leaving them to their own duties.
Oonishi cracked open the Monokuma File 5 without hesitation. There were two pages with two diagrams, one for each Victim. The first was for Katsuragi. There was one blood colored spot, on the head, around the mouth. The entry read:
The Victim, Katsuragi Yumi, was discovered in the Chemical Lab at 6:58 AM.
The Victim was killed by a gunshot to the mouth. The caliber of the pistol was 9mm. The death was nearly instantaneous. There are no other wounds on the body.
Flipping the page, Oonishi looked at the other diagram, this one for Kotobuki. He felt his breath come a bit harder for a moment, but he calmed himself. It was almost identical to Katsuragi's: there was only blood around the head area as well. It read:
The Victim, Kotobuki Kanata, was discovered in the Chemical Lab at 6:58 AM.
The Victim was killed by a gunshot to the mouth. The caliber of the pistol was 9mm. The death was nearly instantaneous. There are no other wounds on the body.
Closing his File, he looked up. Taiyoshi, looking around, suggested, "I'll...stay here. Keep the crime scene from being touched."
Saitou nodded, "I'll stay with you. Oonishi-kun. Tsujimoto-san: would you take care of the investigation?"
Oonishi said determinately, "Gladly." Tsujimoto nodded as well.
Tachibana smiled, "Leave it to me!"
Saitou glared, "You screw off."
Tachibana whined, "Like a knife through the heart, Saitou-chan! You should be nicer to girls, you know." Flashing one last smirk, she turned and hopped off, seeming to enjoy the whole situation.
Oonishi took a breath, ready to start looking. Tsujimoto at his side, he went to the first object of note: the pistol on the counter in the center of the room.
Tsujimoto picked it up, looking it over. "It's got a little blood on the muzzle. And is that...something else?" she noted. Holding it up to Oonishi, he gave it a look himself. There did indeed seem to be something translucent mixed with the blood.
"Saliva?" Oonishi suggested. "It appears they were both killed the same way: a gun to the mouth, so the Culprit probably..." he trailed of, shuddering. "Sick bastard," he hissed.
Tsujimoto nodded, before looking over at Katsuragi. Going over, she mumbled, "Hmm, was that her gun on the counter, or Kotobuki's?" Oonishi grimaced, knowing it could easily be either. Tsujimoto looked over the corpse, checking Katsuragi's pockets, but not finding anything of note.
Oonishi frowned as he looked at the corpse one last time. Her face was almost relaxed, as if she invited death with open arms. At least at first. Oonishi leaned in, seeing something dried at the corner of her eyes. "Hey, is that..." he said, pointing it out.
Tsujimoto leaned in, suggesting, "...Tears, maybe?" The thought made Oonishi let out a frustrated sigh. He could almost picture what had happened: the Culprit had grabbed her from the hallway, dropping her hat, before taking her here and killing her. She'd probably struggled, but she wasn't exactly the most physically adept, probably resigning to her fate. But why bring her here? He'd sit on that question.
Looking up at the streak of blood, Tsujimoto pointed out, "She must have been shot while standing, then slid down the wall." Oonishi nodded, not disagreeing.
The two stood and turned. Oonishi swallowed as they approached Kotobuki's body. Tsujimoto saw him tense, then asked, "You...didn't have anything to do with this, did you?"
Oonishi replied forcefully, "What do you mean?"
Tsujimoto didn't back down, replying, "You've been out of it since you talked to her yesterday, and now this. And explanation would be nice." Oonishi didn't respond, looking away.
Taiyoshi nodded, getting fierce as she said, "You know, if you don't want to talk, we could beat it out of you."
Oonishi replied, "Fine." He took a deep breath, trying to come up with the best way to put it into words. "She was...she wanted me to get out. Like...she said that if there was only one of us that could get out of here, she'd want it to be me. She suggested I...kill her. I...told her to wait and I'd think about it, but I couldn't! I could never even consider it! I..." he trailed off, shaking his head, trying to regain his composure.
Saitou studied him, before looking at Kotobuki's corpse, before suggesting, "You don't think she...killed herself, do you?"
Oonishi suddenly shouted, "No!" He shook his head, "Kotobuki...Kanata...she was too Hopeful. She wouldn't kill her friends, let alone herself! She wouldn't accomplish anything by killing Katsuragi: how would that help anyone get out of here? If she killed anyone, wouldn't it be Tachibana?" As he reasoned, the others didn't reply.
Tsujimoto finally said, "Let's just...finish up the investigation." Oonishi concurred.
Tsujimoto crouched over Kotobuki's body, looking around. "It looks like she fell backwards from next to the counter towards the wall after she was shot. There's blood everywhere, yeesh."
"Is there any way to tell who died first?" Oonishi asked.
Tsujimoto shook her head, "No, it happened a little while ago though. I don't think anyone had an alibi either." Oonishi clenched his fist: the Culprit could have been anyone. Tsujimoto checked the corpse. After a moment, she pulled out a blue pen. Oonishi felt his heart jump and he frowned: it was the same one he'd lent her weeks ago. Tsujimoto shook her head, retuning it, "Nope, nothing."
Oonishi blinked, "No? She doesn't have her gun?" Tsujimoto shook her head. "We should check their rooms then," he suggested, as that was the only place the firearms could be.
Taking another look around, Oonishi spotted something on the countertop next to the door. Approaching, Oonishi let out a gasp of realization. Sitting on the countertop, standing upright, was a shining bullet casing. Oonishi and Tsujimoto leaned in closer. "That's weird. No way it would land like this," Oonishi said, looking around.
Tsujimoto nodded, "It's too far from the corpses. Do you think..."
"It was placed here by the Culprit?" Oonishi suggested. Tsujimoto nodded grimly. Oonishi thought for a moment, before ordering, "Taiyoshi-san, Saitou-kun, let's look around, the Culprit might have messed with the scene." As they shuffled about, Oonishi looked back at the one on the counter. Why had the Culprit placed it there? And why only the one? There should have been two shots...
As they searched, the first one to find something was Tsujimoto, who called everyone over. She pointed at two streaks of blood on the door of one of the cabinets, under the sink Oonishi had vomited in earlier. Before she could say anything, Oonishi held two fingers over them, noting, "Looks like these were made by fingers. Hmm..."
Tsujimoto replied, "Oh, yeah, that's probably it. Who's though?"
Saitou sighed, "No way to tell. Whoever did it could have easily washed their fingers, since there was plenty of time."
Taiyoshi, coming up with something, said, "Hey, if they washed up here, there should be some evidence, towels maybe, or the sinks would be a bit cleaned of dust, since I doubt anyone has used them." She looked over at the one Oonishi had technically used, before grumbling, "Crap, never mind."
Oonishi replied, "Still worth a look though. You two can do that. We're going to check out some of the other areas, see if we can't find anything of note."
Tsujimoto nodded, "Good luck." Turning, the two headed out, leaving Saitou and Taiyoshi to search some more.
Knowing there was likely nothing of note on the rest of the Third Floor, they only gave the rooms a cursory look. Going downstairs, they did the same on the Second and First Floors, their suspicions being confirmed: there was nothing of note.
Reaching the Dormitory level, they headed over to the hallway. As they approached, they heard footsteps. Tsujimoto put her back to the wall, carefully peeking around the corner. Oonishi suddenly saw a pair of hands pop out from below, clapping loudly as a voice yelled, "Bang!" Tsujimoto wasn't too fazed, but she backed away, her fist clenched.
Tachibana laughed, turning the corner, "Gotcha! I know I did. Look at you, all spooked."
Oonishi snorted, "Your cheap tactics are childish and inefficient. You seem to have lost the magic you had when directing the Gangrene trilogy. Perhaps I only rated those highly because you were young: I may have had fewer expectations. Perhaps upon rewatching them, I would find them to be like most horror movies: cheap and shallow. I could only imagine how bland this broadcast is in your hands. In other words, what I'm trying to say is, you were a better Director when you were twelve. Such a shame your slump comes so early in your career." There was no end to the venom in his voice.
Tachibana froze, gawking. Clutching at her heart, he gasped, "So...Despair...inducing...it hurts." She giggled, "I'll show you. Gangrene was garbage in comparison to what I'm planning. And this Killing Exam Broadcast? Well, I can't speak for it until I see it through, but you know the ratings are off the charts! There's only like, two channels anyway, so not much competition. But with you rating my work...a Super High School Level Director taking notes from a Super High School Level Critic. It's a match made in heaven! Why are we both still single? Come on, you're all free now with what's-her-face dead."
Oonishi glared, baring his teeth. Tachibana took the hint, covering her grin with one hand as she backed away. The two heard her close her door.
"Just...ignore her. She'll get her just deserts," Tsujimoto said, trying to keep Oonishi in check. Realizing his nails were digging into his palm, he stopped, taking a few calming breaths.
Getting back to business, the two decided to check Kotobuki's room first. Turning the corner, they found the door already unlocked. Tsujimoto grumbled, glancing back at Tachibana's door, "She better not have messed with anything."
The two entered. Oonishi looked around, seeing that nothing had changed. They split up, giving the room a thorough look. While Tsujimoto check out the bathrooms, Oonishi checked the dresser. He frowned when he saw a stack of books. Files, to be exact: the four from the previous Trials. Oonishi, like most of the others, he imagined, had discarded them, but Kotobuki had kept hers. Curious, he took out one randomly, reading Monokuma File 2.
Opening it, he flipped through it, memories rushing at him as he read what she'd written from their investigation. As he reached the end, the last thing she noted down: the time it took for Tsujimoto to wake up after getting hit with the Knockout Drug, he remembered how important that page was to uncovering the Culprit.
However, that wasn't the last page. Oonishi flipped it once more, finding a sort of afterword. He quickly read through it.
The Trial is over. This time, we made it through again. Eiji was a big help this time too. He realized the Mizunoe could enter both rooms because he couldn't read, but when he called him out, he got knocked out. Tsujimoto is taking care of him...I hope he'll be alright.
Saitou helped us realize that everyone but me has some connection to a former Hope's Peak student. Akumada and Katsuragi didn't say anything, but I should have realized it sooner! Urushibara Yuugo, Kirifuji Yuuji, Kinashi Rentarou...I wonder if Katsuragi Sejiro or Katsuragi Kumin is related to Yumi? It's a pretty common surname. I still need to ask. Maybe I was just so hyped to be meeting kids who might have been in my class if we went to Hope's Peak Academy, I didn't think about their relatives. Maybe it's still not impossible to go to Hope's Peak though.
But I messed up again. I couldn't stop Mizunoe from killing Iketani. I should have paid more attention to him! I need to keep trying to breakthrough with Kirifuji and Akumada! Maybe Urushibara and Taiyoshi too.
Oonishi was very tempted to see what else she'd written in the other Files, but Tsujimoto came out of the bathroom, and he hastily put the File away. Standing, he shook his head, "Nothing in there." He wasn't sure why he was hiding it, but he felt like...he wanted to see them first, before anyone else. He swallowed as he realized: it was all that was left of her. He wanted to read it now.
The two gave a search of the rest of the room, not finding anything else of note. Leaving, they began to make their way to Katsuragi's Dorm, but Tsujimoto stopped. Changing course, she headed to Toyoguchi's door, examining the doorknob. Shaking her head, she said, "Nope, the dried herb is still there, it hasn't been touched."
Relived, the pair returned to their original course, making their way to Katsuragi's room, not touching that hat still on the ground. Like Kotobuki's, it was mostly bare, except for the bed. It was made, except there was an extra blanket, and more than a few extra pillows. The way it was situated, the gap in the blankets, it looked like Katsuragi could just crawl in and sleep in her little nest.
Tsujimoto admitted, "I'm not going to lie, that looks pretty comfortable." Oonishi couldn't deny it, but they had more important things to do.
Again, they searched around. This time, something came up. Oonishi found a black pen and a notebook in the nightstand. Looking it over, two words were written on the front: 'Patrol Journal'. "Ah! Tsujimoto-san, come check this out!" Oonishi called out.
Tsujimoto moved over from the closet, looking at the book Oonishi held up. "Oh! That...so she never did stop. And now look what happened," she sighed.
Oonishi frowned, remembering, "Er, Tsujimoto-san, I never said this, but Katsuragi said that Kanata was considering helping to patrol as well. Yesterday, I mean."
Tsujimoto came over, giving him a hard look. "Anything else you've been forgetting to mention?" she said accusingly. Oonishi looked away out of shame, but didn't respond.
With a sigh, Tsujimoto joined him as he sat on the bed, opening the notebook. He read the first entry aloud, "Night 1: For my first patrol, everything was quiet. A good sign, no one sneaking around but me. Well, I ran into Kotobuki in the morning. She wanted to get into the Kitchen earlier to cook, but it was locked. When the morning announcement rang, I had to get to my room so no one would suspect me of being outside. My mistake: next time, I'll ensure I sleep around six thirty, and wake up with everyone else."
They skipped through the next few, which were fairly uneventful. They did notice she checked the Supply Room and Emergency Food Storage on occasion, though less and less frequently as time went on. She also mentioned when the Second Basement Level opened up on the fifth day. However, on the eighth day, she mentioned seeing Saitou and Iketani, indeed mentioning that she thought nothing bad was going to happen.
They kept going, noting either nothing happening, the opening of new locations, or her being a murder suspect due to her patrolling. That was until Night 17, the day after Monokuma's handgun incentive. She went to the Emergency Storage for the first time in four days, just after Urushibara broke down, finding a large quantity of food and water missing. From there, she took great care in noting down how much was there. Her first suggestion was Urushibara, but there was nothing to evidence that he'd taken more than a bottle of water, much to her chagrin. Then, the last entry was the night before last, Night 23, a few entries being skipped with her unconscious. There was another decrease in foodstuffs during that period as well, though that was Tachibana, as she'd admitted herself. But that was the last entry: Katsuragi had never made it past Night 24...
As Oonishi closed the notebook, Tsujimoto sighed, "Well, that didn't say much."
Thinking, Oonishi shook his head, "We still have no idea where that food went. Maybe Tachibana did it to mess with her?"
Tsujimoto replied, "Well, she did have her memories the whole time...but I think she'd do something more than that if she wanted to mess with us, like the votes during the last two Trials. That was probably her..." Oonishi swallowed, nodding.
"Although, it doesn't look like Katsuragi ever intended to do anyone any harm. Though, she just might not have written that, since there was a chance of it being found," Oonishi noted.
Returning the notebook, the two finished their search. However, there wasn't a gun to be found. "Okay, that's...troublesome," Tsujimoto sighed.
Exiting, Oonishi scratched his head, saying, "That can't be all there is... There has to be something we're missing!"
Tsujimoto sighed, "I'm going to look around a little more. Be careful, okay?" Oonishi nodded as she headed off, going upstairs.
Oonishi waited for a moment, before going back to Kotobuki's room, looking around before entering. Locking the door behind him, he went back to the dresser, pulling out all four Monokuma Files. Keeping his head steady, he read, hoping to learn something. He started from the first Monokuma File.
The first Trial is over. I couldn't believe that Kazuko was the Culprit until we figured it out. Akumada still worries me though: he almost found it funny that he was being suspected for murder, like saying he was actually the Super High School Level Knitter. There was nothing funny! If we'd voted for him, we'd have died. I need to get close to him, learn more about him. I should get close to everyone! If I can do that, I can stop a murder before it happens, I know I can. I just need to get Monokuma to leave us alone somehow...
Oonishi put it down, grabbing Monokuma File 3. He remembered looking through it before, as he had been unconscious during the investigation.
The Trial is over. It was a close call, but we somehow worked it out. Akumada/Akutsume was the Culprit this time, and he tried to pin it on Eiji. But I trusted Eiji, and we pulled through. But someone didn't trust him, they voted against him. I don't understand: Kirifuji wouldn't work with anyone to get out, would he? How could anyone believe that?
I completely misjudged him. If I could go back in time to get a second chance to talk with him, I would. I always assumed he was a bad person because I heard about what he'd done, but...I was too harsh. If I'd have been nicer to him, maybe we could have worked something out. Akutsume didn't really kill Kirifuji, Kirifuji killed him, trying to help us. What have I done in comparison?
I haven't done anything. I'm not on the file Akutsume had, I'm not involved in this. Why did my only Hope's Peak related experience have to be this phony Exam?
Oonishi frowned, seeing her mood deteriorate. The day after she'd written this, he met her in the Park. She'd considered murder around this time, though she pushed that thought away. She really did want to get to Hope's Peak that badly, but now they all knew it was gone, and there was had never been a chance for her to get there. Looking again, he noticed a spot on the page that was wrinkled. The only thing he could imagine it being was a tear. Putting it aside, he grabbed the last one.
I'm such and idiot. I couldn't do anything this time. I let Eiji do the investigation, but then I turn around and yell at him, trying and defend the one who turned out to have done it. I said I trusted him, but I just couldn't see Kinashi's tears being false. She manipulated me. I won't let it happen again, but I can't stop the Trials from happening. I don't know what to do. I don't want to suspect anyone, and I never want to be suspected, especially not by Eiji. Maybe he can come up with some kind of plan? The breakout didn't work, but there must be something. Anything.
The passage ended. Eiji closed the book hard, slamming the thin File shut. Taking a steadying breath, he regretted not trying harder to keep her calm. He could have done something, somehow.
He shook his head: no he couldn't have. Or rather, he didn't. It was too late. What was in the past was in the past. He couldn't Despair. He had to have Hope. Hope that he could uncover the Culprit. Hope that he could keep everyone together until they could get out of here.
Putting the books back where he found them, he stood and left. He gave some of the lower floors a look, before heading back up, running into Tsujimoto on the stairs. "Oh, Oonishi-san. Find anything?" Tsujimoto asked.
Deciding to tell her everything, Oonishi nodded, "Yeah, in Kotobuki's room. She had her Monokuma Files from the previous cases. I checked them out again: she wrote some final thoughts at the end of each one. Maybe you'll see something I didn't."
Tsujimoto nodded, asking, "Where were they?
"The dresser," Oonishi replied.
Tsujimoto blinked, raising an inquisitive eyebrow, "The one you said nothing was in?"
Caught off guard, Oonishi replied, "Er, I mean, you know. I didn't think they'd be important. I gave them a look, but I didn't think she'd written anything extra until I checked again."
Tsujimoto thought for a moment, before nodding, "Okay, I'll check them out." With that, she headed off.
With his investigation done, Oonishi looked at the Dining Hall door, realizing no one had eaten yet. He wasn't hungry, but...
Entering, he tried not to think about Kotobuki as he went for the Kitchen. Grabbing a few pastries, he somehow managed to stuff it down, giving one to Tsujimoto, before taking to to the stairs, going up. Heading back to the Chem Lab, he opened the door, seeing that Saitou and Taiyoshi were still about.
Seeing him, Saitou said, "Nope, sorry, didn't find anything else." He lit up when he saw the food, and Oonishi passed out the snack.
They had just enough time: once the pair had finished eating, a familiar set of bells was heard, followed by Monokuma's voice: "Excuse me, your attention please! It is now time for the Peer Assessment Trial. Surviving applicants, please enter the red door on the stairs on the First Floor staircase. See you soon! Strive for the Peak of Hope!"
There was silence from the three, until Saitou finally said, "This is it, huh? This whole thing feels too..."
"Clean," Oonishi agreed.
"There's got to be some way to narrow it down," Taiyoshi mumbled as she made her way to the door.
Saitou and Oonishi followed, heading down the sets of stairs until they came to the open red doors, heading inside to the elevator. Tsujimoto was already there, and Tachibana loudly arrived minutes later. She chortled, "Oh boy oh boy, the ratings have got to be spiking! The Trials always get everyone pumped. Especially with Koto-"
"Stop talking, or I'll make you," Oonishi said suddenly. Tachibana stopped, smirking slightly as the elevator began to descend noisily, feeling empty with two more Applicants gone.
Katsuragi Yumi: while he presence in the realm of dreams made her question realities such as friendship, she never meant anyone any harm, risking herself to keep everyone doubting that they would be alone while sneaking in the halls at night.
Kotobuki Kanata...Oonishi took a sharp breath as he thought of her. She was always there, doing her best to keep everyone's spirits up, cooking meals or lending an ear. But something had happened to her in her past that made it hard for her to accept her Luck and Hopefulness.
Perhaps...one of the five of them here had deliberately taken their lives. Oonishi didn't know who yet, but he Hoped everything would come to light soon enough. Now, for the last time, they descended to the Peer Assessment, a Trial of Trust and Doubt, a Trial of Life and Death.
A Trial of Hope and Despair.
All things must come to an end. Dangan Ronpa: Hopelessly Misplaced concludes with 5-5, the Epilogue, and a bonus chapter in a pastebin (containing SDR2 spoilers, mind, sorry to say). Another thing I'm a little sorry about: there is evidence being withheld until the Trial, so good luck trying to guess who dunnit! I don't think it hurts the Trial though, so stay tuned!
Someone else faved the fic too. Thank you, LBR! And thank you all for reading thus far! See you next time!