Hi Rob!

I'm so excited for today! I've got butterflies in my stomach! Well, I also haven't eaten breakfast yet so maybe that's it. Either way, I can't wait to see you. Before you leave your place, please put the entire game on a portable storage thingie and bring it to where you found Monika. Once we get the gateway open, you and Monika can come in and make sure all the details on the birth certificates are right. I'm going to have some food and then wait for you. I can't wait to see you! Did I say that already?

Love,
Sayori

Wait a minute. You want ME to come in there? Are you sure that's a good idea?

Of course, silly! Once I leave with the birth certificates, I won't be able to make any changes the way I can here. We have to be thorough. This is also my only chance to show you the cool house I made. Don't worry, we won't stay too long. All of us are eager to see your world too!

Rob tilted his head slightly and stared at his laptop. Something was weird about this. Why couldn't Sayori just show him a picture of the birth certificates if she wanted to make sure they were done correctly? Maybe it really was something as simple as wanting to give a quick tour of the house. As long as he had the code and the game information on the USB, they could theoretically open the tear as many times as they needed to, so there probably wasn't much reason to be nervous.

Monika was just finishing up her breakfast when he got up from his chair. Rob's injured left knee suddenly buckled and he wound up stumbling onto the floor. It hadn't done that in a while, but he knew that some of the damage from the accident had been permanent.

Monika rushed in and crouched next to him. "Are you okay?!"

"Yeah," he said, trying his best to sound reassuring. "Could you grab my cane out of the bedroom? I didn't think I needed it as much but I might have been wrong."

"Of course."

Once the boys were at school and Kate left for work, Rob and Monika began preparing for their trip to the field. Along with his cane, he was carrying a brown paper bag that clearly had something in it. Monika assumed she would eventually find out what was in it - probably some sort of present for the girls.

It took mere minutes for the two of them to drive to the field. Monika realized she hadn't been here since the day she arrived. As they got out of the car, she did recognize the large rock she had slipped on. Not the most graceful way to enter this world, but no harm done.

Rob shut his car door and looked at her. "Are you ready?"

Monika reached over and took his hand. "Yes. Let's bring them home."

Just like before, Rob took the USB drive out of his pocket and set it down on the ground in front of him. He must also remembered Monika's tumble since he was avoiding that rock. They waited quietly for a few minutes and sure enough, that same ripping noise rang out and a dark tear appeared in front of them. Any car that drove by in the next few minutes was in for a shock.

Through the tear, Monika could see part of the world she had left - that little city street with the bus stop where MC spoke with Sayori in the game's first scene. She was there too, of course, but not in her school uniform. It was an outfit Monika didn't recognize, probably one of the many she had created with Rob's help. Speaking of him, he was being awfully quiet given how long they had all been anticipating this moment. Monika turned her head to look at him and was taken aback by the emotion on his face.

As he quietly walked towards Sayori, his demeanor confirmed something Monika had suspected for some time. Despite how harshly he had criticized MC for his treatment of Sayori, there was part of Rob that believed he was to blame for her suicide. Monika was forced to acknowledge to herself once again that she had inflicted this pain on him. She had actually made it worse by coming to this world since it had proven to Rob that this character he already cared about was someone who might still be suffering even though the game was over. In one of Monika's more selfless moments, especially in those early days when she still felt so jealous, she had opened up communication between the two of them. It had helped reassure Rob that she was safe and started a chain of events that led to this very moment.

Rob cautiously stepped through the opening and appeared next to Sayori. He was immediately reimagined as a character that wouldn't look out of place in a visual novel like Doki Doki Literature Club. It was a flattering rendition of him, although that Iron Maiden t-shirt would have gotten him in trouble if he showed up at the school.

"Please don't cry," Sayori said, pulling him into a tight hug. "I'm right here. I'm safe...thanks to you."

As she held one of his hands and lovingly stroked his face with the other, Monika considered telling them to "get a room," but didn't want to give them any ideas. Witnessing such a tender moment between them must have been some other punishment, so she would try to bear it like she had the others.

Sayori turned to face her. "Come on, Monika."

"Wait," Monika said, feeling the early stirrings of panic. "Sayori, I can't go in there. I was just going to wait for Rob."

"Why not?"

"Because then I'll be the president again! And...and who knows what will happen then?"

"Hmm," Sayori said, putting a hand on her chin. "That's a good point. You should probably resign."

"Huh?"

"Resign your position as the president," Sayori said. "Then you won't have to worry. Besides, isn't that what leaders who abuse their power are supposed to do anyway?"

"These days they're more likely to just lie about it," Rob muttered.

"Okay," Monika said. "I hereby resign as the President of the Literature Club."

"As the current president, I accept your resignation," Sayori said. "You are now Club Cupbearer."

"What?"

Sayori laughed. "Well, I think Yuri is planning on making some tea so it will be your job to bring everyone their cups."

If that was going to be the extent of Sayori's revenge, Monika figured she was getting off light. She cleared her throat and took a deep breath before walking towards the tear. She couldn't believe she was doing this.

"Hurry up, slowpoke!" Sayori said. "We'll be here for a few hours, tops. It's not like you're moving back."

Monika sighed heavily and stepped through the tear. Once through, she felt the sun beating down on her. It wasn't autumn anymore, it was the same generic sunny weather that had persisted through the entire game. One thing was different, however. Even though it was strange to be back here again, that horrible existential terror she still remembered so well was gone.

Rob turned his head to look at her. "Are you doing okay?"

"Yeah," she answered. "It's weird, but I feel fine."

"See, no problem!" Sayori said. "Let's hurry up and get to the house. The others are waiting." She gripped Rob's arm like she was holding on for dear life. Monika rolled her eyes and walked behind them. It wasn't her place to be jealous, but she couldn't help but feel like Sayori was trying to irritate her.

A few minutes later, they arrived at a building Monika didn't recognize. All the houses in the game were big but this one dwarfed them.

"It's the bachelorette pad!" Sayori announced, practically vibrating with excitement and pride. The front door opened and Yuri and Natsuki tentatively walked out. Sayori led Rob over to greet them with a rather formal handshake. Typical Rob - no matter how much he might want to, he was not going to hug them first. The others were similar in this respect. Yuri was far too timid to hug someone on their first meeting and Natsuki would never display that kind of affection so easily, although she looked a bit perplexed by the handshake.

Monika kept her distance and it took them a couple of minutes to notice her. When they did, she gave an awkward wave. Natsuki made a bit of a sour face but Yuri walked over and immediately embraced her.

She hadn't seen this coming. It was her turn to cry. "I'm sorry, Yuri. I'm sorry."

"I know you are," Yuri said gently. Monika buried her face in her shoulder and cried harder. This was so embarrassing. She didn't want to have a meltdown in front of the others, but the emotions would not be contained.

"You know," Yuri said. "Your hair is significantly shorter than when I last saw you."

Monika pulled away and wiped her eyes.

"Yeah," she said with a smile. "It was a lot harder to take care of out there. I'll be very curious to see how you manage."

"Me too." The conversation was interrupted by a shrieking sound coming from inside the house. "Oh! The tea is ready!"

"Make sure Monika gives everyone their cups," Sayori said as Yuri rushed back through the front door. "That's her job now."

Once inside, Monika accepted her new role and brought a cup of tea to everyone else in the dining room. Natsuki put up one hand to silently decline. She still hadn't directly said anything to Monika. Sayori directed everyone over to a small round table.

"We're going to sort this out once and for all," she said. Yuri and Monika obediently approached the table and took their seats, but Natsuki didn't move.

"So we're just going to sit around and drink tea like nothing happened?!"

"I didn't say that," Sayori said. "But we do need to talk."

"Forget it!" With that, she stormed out the front door.

"I'll go with her," Rob said. "You guys talk."

Natsuki sat on a bench by the empty road outside the house, thoroughly disgusted. Angry as she was, there was a lot of confusion as well. How could she expect to live out in the "real world" when she could barely stand the sight of Monika? How would she ever find closure about everything that had happened? She had no idea, which made her feel hopeless in addition to angry.

"Natsuki?" She turned her head to see that Rob had followed her. "Can I sit here?"

"Whatever," she answered.

If he was put off by her attitude, he didn't show it. He sat and looked around the area for a moment or two. She had gotten used to knowing how the other girls felt just by looking at them, but this guy with his fancy cane still felt like a mystery. What did he even want? If he was going to beg her to be nice to Monika, she might have to slap him.

"There's something I've wanted to tell you for a while now," Rob suddenly said.

"What's that?"

"You're a really great poet."

That wasn't what she expected to hear at all. Natsuki had to remind herself that he had read everything she had written for the Literature Club. "Of course!" she replied, trying to sound confident. "Everyone knows that."

"The 'Because You' one made me cry," he said casually.

She turned to look at him. "Huh? No it didn't."

"MC didn't cry," Rob answered. "But I did. It was really beautiful."

This felt strange given that she had written it for MC, not him. But then again, where was the boundary between them? If she understood everything correctly, it was Rob who pointed MC in Natsuki's direction in the first place.

She crossed her arms. "You're just so nice."

"No need to exaggerate."

"You're so nice…and it's a problem."

"Hmm?"

She had tried to avoid this topic, but it was just bothering her too much. "What's the deal with you and Monika? You keep telling Sayori that you love us, so why do you want her attached to your hip like she is?"

He looked dismayed. "Natsuki-"

"Doesn't it make you angry when you think about what she did to us?!"

Rob suddenly had a gentle look in his eyes that made her uncomfortable. "It makes me sad…because when I think about her actions, they strike me as the actions of someone who was being manipulated."

"What do you mean?" Natsuki asked.

"Think about her plan for a minute," Rob said. "The idea was that by using her power over the game to exaggerate the problems you were dealing with, you guys would alienate MC, and by extension me, to the point where I would prefer her company. But if she really thought that would work, then she didn't know me at all. Natsuki, I would never have cut you off just because you were having more trouble at home. Same with the others."

"Like I said, you're too nice." She wasn't happy to be reminded that this person, who was practically a stranger, knew so much about her troubles.

"But don't you think there would have been easier ways to get the outcome she wanted?" he continued. "What if Monika just made you all attracted to girls instead of boys? What if she just made you act so mean to the player that I would have felt terrible spending time with you? It would have been so much simpler, but instead she went with the plan that was so over the top that it destabilized the entire game. What does that tell you?"

Natsuki ventured a guess. "That she's a moron?"

Rob chuckled a bit and then looked guilty. "She would never have chosen an easier plan because it wouldn't have been scary. The game wanted to frighten me so Monika had no real option but to choose the plan that led to the scariest scenes. She felt like she was in charge of things, but she was a tool of the storyline."

Unprepared for such a challenging response to her initial question, Natsuki turned away from him. He came close to putting a hand on her shoulder but chickened out.

"I'm only talking about my own feelings," he said. "I saw it all, but you had to live through it. I'm not trying to make you feel guilty for how you feel about things, okay?"

"Okay," she said. "You know, you're a lot smarter than MC."

Rob rolled his eyes. "Most people are."

She suddenly laughed hard, to the point where she covered her mouth. He smiled at finally having gotten a positive response out of her.

"I brought you something," he said, reaching into a brown paper bag that Natsuki hadn't noticed until now. He pulled out a huge book and handed it to her. It must have been at least a thousand pages by the sheer width. On the front was a drawing of some cute looking characters and the title "Bone: The Complete Series."

"What is this?" Natsuki asked.

"I didn't know what you had and hadn't read in terms of manga said," Rob explained. "So I went outside the box a little. This is basically an American manga. It's even drawn in black and white."

She flipped through a few pages and saw he was right. There was something immediately endearing about the art style. How did he know this would appeal to her? How did he know her so well even though they had never met? It still felt so strange.

He was waiting patiently for a response. "Thanks," she finally said.

"You're welcome."

"I'm not hugging you so I hope you're not waiting for that!" Natsuki added.

Rob laughed briefly. Something about that was funny to him and she wasn't sure why.

"I would never presume such a thing."

Meanwhile, the other three girls sat at the table in uncomfortable silence. Everyone knew what needed to be discussed, but nobody was quite sure how to begin. Monika saw an impish grin flash briefly across Sayori's face as she pulled out an official looking document.

"Have a quick look to make sure it's okay," Sayori said as she handed it to Monika. She was also stifling laughter.

It didn't take Monika long to figure out why. Her full name was listed as "Monika Poophead." Her birthplace was "a toilet." Her parents were "Buffalo Wings" and "Spicy Taco." When Sayori saw the look of bewilderment on Monika's face, she burst out laughing. Who knew she was so fond of toilet humor? Yuri just looked embarrassed.

Sayori handed her a different sheet. "This is the real one. Hee hee hee…I'm sorry, that's the last prank."

"Thank you for doing this," Monika said, trying to forget the absurd moment that had just transpired.

"We had a deal," Sayori said. "You kept your part, I kept mine. But we still need to talk about what happened."

Monika sighed. "Is there anything else to say? I've tried to apologize to all of you."

"But why did you do it?" Yuri asked. "I understand that you're sorry and it's plain as day that you've changed a lot in the time you've been away. But I want to know what you were thinking back then."

"Yuri, the game-"

"No!" Sayori interrupted angrily. "That's not what I want to hear from you right now. We all know what the game does, Monika. I've been president for months and Yuri and Natsuki have both taken over during the times I've been away. We know how hard it is, but we didn't do what you did. The game can't take all of the blame. You made a decision and I want to know why you decided to do what you did."

Monika pressed her fingers into her forehead in frustration. "Sayori…you don't know what I know. You haven't had the opportunity to read about this game from the outside."

"What do you mean?" Yuri asked.

Monika sighed, nervous about how they would react to this, but she knew it had to be done. She wasn't sure they would able to reach a real understanding otherwise.

"Things ended the way they did because of how Rob chose to play. He was basically doing all three of the story paths at once. He would write a poem for one of you, spend time with you in the club the next day, and then load the game at an earlier point to do the same thing with someone else. By the time things went off the rails, he had grown close to all three of you."

Yuri was curious. "But why would he choose to do it that way? Seems cumbersome."

"I haven't asked him directly," Monika said. "But he has two very active little kids to take care of. He was probably trying to make the most out of the time he had for the game. When he moved me out of the game, which the programming interpreted as me having been deleted, Sayori inherited the title of President."

Monika and Yuri turned to her, eager to hear a response. She glared at Monika. "That was the second worst moment of my life. I felt like my brain was being ripped apart and mashed back together. But then…I could see everyone's memories and how MC had spent time with everyone even though that shouldn't have been possible. This was also the moment that I became aware of Rob's existence."

Sayori began to tear up. "I felt like if there was someone who loved us enough that he was basically time traveling to try and make us all happy, then our lives had some meaning. So I held on."

Monika knew this was the key moment. She made eye contact with Sayori. "You must know what would have happened if he didn't play the way he did. If he had just gone straight from beginning to end."

Sayori turned away. She didn't want to say it.

"You would have deleted them on the spot," Monika said. "You would have tried to seize Rob's attention the same way I did. For a lot of other players, that's exactly how it ended."

Yuri's eyes widened and she was clearly shaken. "Monika….is that really true?"

"It's true!" Sayori suddenly cried out. She laid her head and arms on the table and started sobbing. "I'm so sorry, Yuri! Please don't hate me."

Yuri rested a hand on Sayori's arm. "I'm not going to hate you for something that didn't actually happen."

She lifted her face back up. "But it could have!"

"That's something for a different Yuri to worry about," she replied, before pointing to herself. "This one is very grateful for your friendship. It seems that we are more indebted to Rob than I ever knew." Yuri held Sayori's hand as she composed herself.

"I'm going to try and really answer your question," Monika said. This would be hard, but it was important. "When I learned what this place really was, I realized that I was different from the rest of you. I'm a supporting character. You three would love the player and he would love you, but nobody would love me. I would be just standing around alone on the outside, like John Wayne at the end of The Searchers."

Yuri blinked a few times. "I'm sorry, like who?"

"Sorry, I've been watching a lot of movies at Rob's place."

"But Monika," Sayori said gently. "We loved you."

"I know that now," Monika said, tearing up again. "And I ruined it. In the end, I wasn't a supporting character at all…I was a villain."

Sayori was still holding Yuri's hand, but she slowly extended the other one in Monika's direction. She looked at Monika with a tender expression Monika didn't think she would ever see again…at least not directed at her. She cautiously took Sayori's hand.

The three of them sat that like for a while. Yuri and Monika still had a free hand and eventually they all looked over at the one empty chair at the small table they were sitting at.

"Natsuki should be here," Sayori said.

"She's not ready," Yuri replied. "And we can't force it."

"Yeah," Sayori agreed sadly. "Well, I guess that's enough crying for now. Let's go get the others." As everyone stood up, Monika threw her arms around Sayori. It didn't matter if Sayori didn't hug back, she just wanted to make the statement at least once.

"Okay, okay." Sayori rubbed her back softly and returned the hug, if lightly. They went out the front door to find Natsuki and Rob sitting on a bench near the road.

"You guys all set?" Rob asked. "We should start getting all your stuff together."

"Rob, I haven't been completely honest with you," Sayori said, making that sheepish expression she had perfected. "There was a special reason I wanted you to come here."

"I wondered about that," he said back. "So what's going on?"

"Well, it would be easier to just show you. Can you take a walk with me to the school?"

"The school? Sure, I guess."

Monika saw Yuri and Natsuki share a concerned look. They had some idea what this was about, but were keeping quiet. Without saying anything more, the group began walking down the empty road. After a few minutes, Rob slowed down enough for Monika to catch up with him. "Are you doing okay?"

"Yeah," she said, briefly taking his hand. "Thanks for not forgetting about me. It must be exciting to meet everyone. I'm old news."

"It's not so bad," Rob said mischievously. "I'm in my thirties, I've been old news for quite a while now."

Monika playfully elbowed him in the ribs as the school came into view. Her mood changed immediately as the sight of the building brought a strong feeling of dread. The inside was just as unsettling as the loud hallways she vaguely recalled were now totally empty. Finally, Sayori stopped in front of a specific classroom. As they stepped inside, Monika recognized it immediately. At the height of her mania, she had deleted everything except for this very room.

The other three girls gasped, which brought Monika's attention back to the present. Standing at the other end of the room was MC, who was wandering around looking extremely confused.

"It worked!" Sayori shouted joyfully. "It worked! MC, you're back!"

She rushed into his arms but he seemed to barely comprehend what was happening. "Sayori? I don't understand...I..." His voice trailed off.

"Oh man," Natsuki said. "Sayori, give him a little space. He's back but he's obviously not at a hundred percent."

"Do you need to sit down?" Yuri asked.

"No," MC said blankly. "I have this feeling I've been sitting for a while."

"What's the last thing you remember?" Sayori asked.

"I remember the last few days at a club. But...it's strange. Sometimes you're there, Sayori. Sometimes you're not. What happened to me?"

"MC," Yuri said. "This might be a shock, but you have been sitting at that desk for nearly a year."

"Huh?! But-" It was then that MC began to look around the rest of the classroom. Rob and Monika were keeping their distance but now he had noticed them.

"Who's this guy? And-"

Monika felt a chill as MC's eyes fixed on her. She turned to Rob. "I think I'm gonna step outside for a bit."

"You," MC growled. "I remember now. You did this! You did this to us!"

The other girls were startled as he rushed forward, running towards Monika with his hands out. Monika believed he was going to strangle her, but was frozen in fear as he approached. Instead, he fell forward and slammed his face into the floor. Rob had tripped him with the cane. Before he could get his bearings, Rob placed a foot on his upper back and pinned him to the ground, an unnerving expression of tranquil fury on his face.

"Don't hurt him!" Natsuki shouted.

Like the time when Nicole's dad showed up at the family home, Monika wasn't sure whether to feel thankful or afraid. The others were on the verge of panic, but they didn't know the half of it. Monika was the only one who knew about Rob's violent protective streak. She was the only one who had heard his bitter criticism of MC over how he had treated Sayori. She was the only one who knew there was a knife hidden inside that cane.

He already had one hand on the dragon's head atop the cane, ready to turn it at any time. He wouldn't actually do it. He wouldn't impale MC in front of all the girls no matter how angry he was.

Would he?