Author's Note: Hello again! No plans this weekend, but I've been in a depressed mood this past week, so I wanted to post on Thursday again. I might make it a habit of doing so - I like checking in and writing over the weekend. Plus it's an early weekend present to you all!

Anywho, hope you all enjoy!

Chapter 14: Day 13

"Kuwata, you freakin' rocked last night!"

"Yeah, Kuwata, I had no idea you knew how to sing!"

"And Maizono, you were so cool up there on stage!"

The voices rang out of the dining hall, and for a brief second, Togami inhaled and slowly exhaled, hoping to calm the ringing in his head. The students had been up well into the early morning hours, listening and dancing to the music played by Maizono and Kuwata in the 4th floor music hall. It was an odd duo, Maizono's pop lyrics with Kuwata's thrash punk vibes, but everyone seemed to enjoy themselves regardless.

Everyone except Togami, who still had a raging headache from the noise.

He went to step inside the dining hall when the sound of footsteps caught his attention. He glanced over and glared when he saw a familiar face. "You know, for someone who was so adamant about me spending time with others..." he trailed off, watching as Kirigiri smirked and approached him. Crossing his arms over his chest, he said, "I noticed a certain someone was absent from last night's events."

"Well, how else was I going to have the archive all to myself?"

"Hmph. Not even trying to hide the fact that you used last night as an opportunity?"

"You're intelligent, Togami. You'd have figured it out. And if I lied, then you'd be even more suspicious of me."

"I'm already suspicious of you."

Kirigiri crossed her own arms, returning the gesture. "I know. But you still went through with last night's concert, giving me ample time to look over that archive. Which, no doubt, you've already scoured through."

"Meaning I could have told you there was very little of value in there."

"You mean in regards to this school?"

"What else would I be referring to?"

"I suppose… Although I'm still happy you went last night."

"Why's that?"

"This did your reputation some good. After all, the others were talking about you in...less than polite ways."

"So I gathered. And so we've been over."

"Having you participate in an event helped put some minds at ease," Kirigiri remarked. "Everyone's a little on edge right now, if you didn't notice yesterday."

"You're referring to Hina's comment?"

Kirigiri nodded. "People are starting to put together that this school… There's something wrong with this place. Beyond just the surface situation. I've been doing my best to scout out some areas, and Fujisaki's fixing the laptop to begin searching the databases. But anytime I approach a locked door or gate, Monokuma blocks me and tells me to leave. He is definitely guarding certain rooms, and I can't tell if it's worth pursuing or not."

"What would he do if you broke in?" Togami asked, a little taken aback by how talkative the girl was this morning.

"That… That I don't know. But something tells me it wouldn't be pretty."

"You seriously think the bear would harm you?"

"I seriously think that the mastermind would. There's a reason all these cameras are set up. There's a reason we have food, clothing, and everything needed to survive for quite an extended period of time. I have yet to ascertain what happened that caused a clear change in plans, but this whole idea of us building backups… This clearly wasn't the main reason to gather us here." Frowning at him, she let her hands fall to her sides and said, "I'm going to continue investigating, regardless, though it's going to be a slow investigation. I will be sure to keep you in the loop, given that you yourself seem to be committed to your own inquiries. And should you find any information, please let me know first. Don't share with the group. I… I have a bad feeling about what we may find."

Togami slowly nodded. "An odd alliance, but I'll accept it…for now. So long as I'm no longer roped into any more group activities."

Kirigiri chuckled, then smiled, as she began walking towards the dining hall. "Even you have to admit. Even if last night was a pain…" Turning and shooting a knowing smirk his way, she observed, "You clearly made Naegi happy. Isn't that worth something?"

Togami blinked in surprise, but before he could pursue the conversation, a pair of footsteps caught his attention. He turned to see Hina and Ogami walking together down the hallway, indicating that the morning meeting was about to begin. Togami turned and strolled into the dining hall, where a majority of the students were already seated or standing. Taka and Owada stood at the head of the table, as did Kirigiri, while Naegi sat amongst the group. A few heads, including Naegi's, turned to watch as Togami entered, and the smiles and waves the corporate heir received served as a complete 180 from previous days.

"Perhaps Kirigiri was right," he thought. "Not that it bothered me before, but if attending one little gathering was enough to stop any rumors, I suppose it was worth it." His headache thrummed behind his eyes as he took his seat, however, reminding him of the price he had to pay. He sighed and looked down, preparing to pull out his e-Handbook and skim the assignment once more, but he was surprised to already find a cup of coffee on the table. He glanced over to see Naegi smiling at him and raising a cup in his direction.

Togami smirked, held up his own cup, and took a sip of the delicious brew.

"Gooood morning!" Hina cried out, rushing into the dining hall. "Oh my God, last night was sooooo awesome!"

"Maizono, your lyrics were very catchy," Ogami added. "And Kuwata, I didn't know you knew how to play guitar."

"We should do something like this again once we finish our next backup!" Fujisaki exclaimed, clasping her hands together in joy. "It was so much fun!"

"Yeah, but we gotta finish this new backup first," Enoshima remarked as she looked down at her nails.

"Don't worry guys!" Hiro proclaimed. "My readings tell me that this will be the easiest backup yet! We'll have it done in no time!"

"Now I'm worried," Celeste muttered. A few nodding heads revealed she wasn't the only one.

"Well then, let's begin with assignments and officiate this meeting!" Taka declared.

"You got it, Bro!" chimed in Owada.

"Cleaning crew, you are scheduled as normal," Kirigiri remarked, holding up Naegi's notebook as she did so. "Ogami and Hina, you will explore the gymnasium."

"You got it!" Hina's voice called out from the kitchen.

"Data center will be Maizono and Hiro. I'll be taking the music hall. Naegi and Owada, you both will take the physics lab."

Togami blinked in surprise. "Wait…"

"Enoshima and Kuwata, you both will scour the classrooms. Make sure you don't end up playing soccer like before."

"D'awww, but it was so much more fun!" Enoshima complained.

"And that's all for today."

Togami set his cup down despite the confusion rushing through his mind. Clearly anticipating such a reaction, Kirigiri immediately turned and began approaching his table. He waited until she stood before him before asking, "And just what am I-"

"You're taking the day off."

"I'm - what?" Togami glared, his grip tightening on the cup. "Just what is the meaning of this?"

"Naegi, Taka, and I all sat down last night before the concert began," Kirigiri explained. "We're noticing signs of fatigue amongst the group, even with the afternoons off. Only one day a week without work isn't cutting it, and with the backups becoming more and more complicated, we'll need everyone in peak shape. So we decided that, starting today, we're going to assign days off individually. And since I know the concert was less than enjoyable for you, I assumed you'd like a day to get some extra rest or perhaps be alone in the library."

Togami's eyes widened. The thoughtfulness of the idea clashed with his concern that he would appear weak...but he couldn't deny a day off was more than welcome. Collecting himself, he merely shrugged and muttered, "I suppose that's fine, though I wish I had been consulted beforehand."

"Don't worry, you'll be back with Naegi tomorrow. Or the next day, since I suspect Monokuma will force us to take another day off, given his previous behavior."

Togami rolled his eyes. "And why do you insist on consistently bringing him up?"

"Monokuma?"

"Naegi."

"Why do you consistently become upset when he becomes part of the conversation?"

Togami turned his attention to his coffee. "And here I thought you wanted me to help you investigate…"

"You will. Because you're too smart to let me get in your way."

She was reading him like a book, and he despised it. Refusing to send another insult her way and look weak, Togami sipped at his coffee and waited for her to leave him alone before taking a peek over at the long table. His gaze naturally landed on Naegi, who was smiling and talking to Maizono and Fujisaki.

He could feel a small smile tug at his lips, but upon recognizing the sensation, he cleared his throat and broke his gaze away. He could have smacked himself for the ridiculous reaction. "Perhaps I really do need the day off…" Sipping his coffee, Togami merely stared down at his handbook without seeing it until his breakfast finally arrived.