Chapter 39: Day 36

The musical notes filled the concert hall with a soft ambience as Togami's fingers moved along the keys of the grand piano on the wooden stage. Unable to find any more violin pieces of music, he nevertheless discovered a collection of piano pieces within the tower of items Monokuma provided. Deciding to play along for Naegi's sake, Togami took the book and figured learning a few songs for the planned "school festival" wouldn't be the worst way to spend his time. He knew Maizono and Kuwata were already practicing a number to perform, but from the sounds of the others, the majority were planning on having stations for games rather than actual live events. That meant Togami could sit on stage, play piano to create some background music, and otherwise get out of participating.

Just the way he liked it.

The sound of the door to the concert hall opening caught his attention, and he stopped briefly to see Naegi carrying two cups of coffee his way. He smirked and continued playing, finishing the piece with a final soft keystroke before turning in his seat to face Naegi. Naegi set the cups on the stage, climbed up, then handed one over to Togami, who inhaled the fresh scent. "How's the practice going?" asked Naegi as he took his seat on the stage floor.

"I'm a bit rustier on piano than I anticipated," Togami admitted. "Though I suppose I shouldn't be surprised."

"What you were playing sounded really nice," Naegi replied, sipping his coffee as he spoke. "It was a lot softer than I thought it'd be."

"If I'm going to play music while people are doing things, I'm going to play something lighter in order to avoid drawing attention away from the events," Togami explained as he sipped his own cup of coffee. "The idea is to create an ambience without bringing attention to the ambience created."

"I'm sure the others will like it."

Togami shrugged. "I suppose we'll see… It gets me out of Hiro's Tarot readings, which is really all I can ask for at this point."

Naegi laughed airily as he said, "Yeaaaaah, if you could give me a reason to skip it, I'd be appreciative."

"Sorry, you need to bring me food and coffee on stage. Maybe turn a page or two of the booklet if I'm playing a particularly complex piece. You can't be bothered."

"That…might actually work."

"And it would keep Fukawa clear of you and me."

"That too." Taking another sip, Naegi smiled and asked, "So, did you often play music in public? Or for family things? You seem really confident about being up on stage in front of all of us."

"Not as often as you would probably think. We typically hired a musician or group to perform at events. I mostly played for Aloysius during holidays."

"'Aloysius'?" Naegi blinked at the name. "Who is that?"

"My butler." Togami took a long sip of his coffee before sliding off the bench. He was loath to sit on the floor; however, the bench wasn't long enough for the both of them to sit comfortably on, and the need to be closer to Naegi demanded he make the sacrifice. He took his seat next to Naegi, letting his legs hang off the edge of the stage, and set his cup down next to him on its saucer. Naegi moved forward to sit directly next to him, and Togami was happy to see that the doors to the concert hall were closed, giving them some privacy.

"I didn't know you had a butler. Although… I guess that makes sense. A lot of sense. Were you close to him, then?"

"He looked after me more than anyone else in the family, particularly when I began to do battle with my half-siblings," Togami answered. "He always gave me constructive criticism and was never shy about telling me when I could do better. However, he would also compliment my performances and admitted he enjoyed listening to the music I played. If he gave me good feedback, I knew it was sincere. Therefore, as a thank you, I would sometimes have him request a song."

"Did each of your half-siblings have a butler or maid or…something?"

"Most of us did. One or two didn't, deciding to be arrogant. They'd try to defeat us without the support. As you can no doubt imagine, they were easily picked off first."

"And what happened to them once they were…exiled?"

"I already told you. They were kicked out."

"No, I mean the butlers and maids. Like, if you had lost, what would have happened to Aloysius?"

"Oh. They were taken in by the corporation. Most became staff for the actual conglomerate. A few remained in the house to continue daily tasks. They know too many secrets to be let out into the world, but obviously if you lost the competition, you lost the privileges that came with the Togami name."

Naegi slowly nodded. "Ah…" He chuckled and shook his head. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh, but it sounds so strange to hear you talk about it. It's like a completely different world from anything I've ever been around."

"Your family life, no doubt, would sound just as foreign to me," Togami remarked. "The fact that you do not see your sister as a competitor is incredibly bizarre from my standpoint."

Naegi blinked in surprise. "I mean… Yeah, I guess that would be weird to you. But no, she's just my sister. Sometimes she gets on my nerves, sometimes she helps me out. We get along pretty well on the whole, though." Naegi sighed heavily. "I wonder… I wonder what she's doing right now…"

"I…" Togami cleared his throat, realizing the mistake he had made. What was he to say to that? He didn't want to give Naegi false hope; that wouldn't be right or fair. But what could he say behind these walls? "I hope that everyone important to us is safe out there," he finally conceded, speaking as much about Aloysius as about Naegi's own family.

"Yeah… Well, nevermind, sorry I mentioned it," Naegi stuttered, throwing back his cup of coffee and drinking the rest of it. Wiping his lips, he glanced up at Togami and asked, "So tell me… Even though it's kinda weird… Were there any other siblings who won contests? I can't imagine you were the only one going around and, uh, kicking them out."

"No, I wasn't," Togami responded. He was surprised at Naegi's choice of conversation, but he leaned into it as he answered, "I had an older half-brother who took out about a quarter of the competition for me. In doing so, however, he had worn himself down and began making careless mistakes. A half-sister took him out shortly before I could."

"So what was the hardest thing you had to do? Like, who was your biggest competitor?"

"The middle half-brother, the one right in the center. He and I were both quite competent in the humanities, and he challenged me to a language competition. The rules were simple. We had one year to master a language and present a thesis to Father." Togami smirked as the memory of that year played out in his mind. "I chose French, while he chose Arabic. I worked furiously with a tutor. I made an absolute fool of myself at times by visiting French cafes and other establishments where French was spoken. I even tried to get a visa to go abroad, but Father said that would be cheating, as my brother couldn't travel at the time.

"But after a year, I presented a full thesis on a French novel to my father in French. My half-brother did the exact same in Arabic. Father called it a tie and demanded a repeat thesis." Togami chuckled in amusement. "Four theses, two arguments with interpreters, and five native speakers later, I was declared the victor. My half-brother was furious, but he made a slip-up in the final competition and misused a colloquialism. One line destroyed his future and secured mine."

"Geeeeeez… And I was just kinda passing in Japanese classes," Naegi muttered. "I couldn't imagine that kind of pressure. But that explains how you're reading those French novels so easily. Do you know any other languages?"

"No, though I plan to learn some eventually. After a year of French, I decided to take a break and delved into trading stocks. It was completely different, which I needed. Even I have my limits."

"How did your age not prevent you from doing that?" asked Naegi.

"From doing what?"

"Stocks."

"Because I'm Togami Byakuya."

Naegi blinked at the straightforward answer, then smiled as he burst out laughing. "You know…" he said between laughs. "If I had heard that answer a few weeks ago, I'd probably think you were the most arrogant prick around."

Togami smirked and finished his cup of coffee. "It's the truth," he answered simply.

"I know. Which is why I can understand it now." Smiling warmly, Naegi added, "And… I'm happy you're you."

Naegi's expression caused a sudden warmth to spread in Togami's chest. He felt his lips twitch at the sentimental statement. Naegi didn't fully understand Togami's background, and perhaps he never would. As Naegi pointed out, they grew up in entirely different worlds. But he accepted Togami for who he was and what he had to overcome. Rather than seeing Togami as boastful, he saw him as a product of his environment, and he liked him regardless of that.

It was…a shocking revelation. One that made Togami's heart beat oddly in his chest, one that caused a fuzzy feeling of warmth to spread throughout his body.

Feeling flustered, Togami grabbed his cup of coffee and stood. "Well, I think I'm going to keep practicing for a bit," he stated. "I need to get this done if we're to spend any amount of time investigating over the next few days."

"Mind if I stay here?" Pulling out a small book from the pocket of his hoodie, Naegi said, "I'd like to listen to you but don't want to make it awkward."

"How would you listening to me make things awkward?" Togami asked as he retook his seat on the piano bench.

"I just didn't know if you would want your privacy or not."

"Naegi, come here." Gesturing with a single finger, Togami waited for Naegi to slowly stand and approach him. Once he was in range, Togami pulled Naegi slightly forward, gently so as not to hurt him, before planting a soft kiss on the boy's lips. Looking into confused, hazel eyes, Togami said, "How many times do I have to tell you? Do what you want. You will never make me feel awkward or embarrassed or anything of the sort. Otherwise, I wouldn't choose to be sleeping in the same bed as you."

Naegi's confusion quickly gave way to elation, and before Togami could tell himself it was a bad idea, he leaned forward and firmly kissed him. Naegi pressed back, and Togami had to smirk at how the kiss tasted of coffee. He pulled back before nodding towards the back of the stage. "Grab a chair, stay here with me, and listen," he whispered.

"Okay…" Naegi practically breathed the word out as he rushed over behind the curtains. Togami watched, reflecting on what he had just said to Naegi. It seemed odd and overly sentimental given that they had barely restarted a forgotten relationship, and yet Togami sincerely meant it, perhaps even more than Naegi was aware of.

Despite their differences, Togami would never feel embarrassed by Naegi. Even if his father despised the boy, which he no doubt would, even if his mother thought Naegi was beneath her son's status, even if Aloysius critiqued Naegi to no end…

No, at the end of the day, he was Togami Byakuya, and he would have what he wanted. That included a relationship with the hopeful, optimistic, carefree, happy-go-lucky, common-to-a-fault Naegi Makoto. He would figure out the Togami Corporation once he took over, and he would determine a way to have an heir take over once he was to retire. But to forgo one thing for the other, to give up Naegi for the corporation that he had fought tooth and nail for or vice versa, was a bleak future that Togami suddenly wanted nothing to do with. It meant failure, and Togami didn't accept failure. He would have both and demand nothing less.

He briefly watched Naegi set up a chair next to his bench and wondered if his past self had had some sort of similar revelation. Before he could ponder too much on it, he turned his attention back to the piano, flipped the booklet to a new song, and began to play.