Chapter 52: Day 45

"I can't believe we're almost done. Feels like we've been doing this for forever."

"I can. This process has been such a waste of time and energy."

Naegi chuckled as he set the mugs in the dishwasher. The two had just finished eating lunch, and while the rest of the students were lazily exiting the dining hall to find something to do with their free time, Togami purposely stayed behind. He wanted the others to find the open gate on their own; bringing attention to it, he feared, would slow down their Ultimate Detective. And he knew without a doubt that Kirigiri would have found the open gate by now. Perhaps she was already investigating. He hadn't seen her at lunch.

Not that he himself wasn't going to investigate. He was on the initial investigation team, after all, and it was his right to go where he pleased. He didn't know what to expect up the small set of stairs beyond the open partition, but he wanted to get a headstart so that when the others finally noticed the change, he could be ready for their reactions.

"At least we have your template to go off of with this stupid Warlockuma," Naegi noted, bringing Togami's thoughts back to the present. "Your designs have made this process so easy. I mean, really, Monokuma just thinks we can create something from a list of items? Sure, we're Ultimates, but come on."

"Monokuma probably didn't expect Taka to rapidly turn these into 'effort projects,'" Togami retorted, causing Naegi to laugh again.

"'Effort projects,'" he repeated. "I'm using that in the future."

Togami smirked and glanced out into the dining hall. Only Fukawa was still standing around, and there was nothing to be done about her. All the others had wandered off to do their own thing. He sighed and looked down at Naegi. "Are you ready to go?"

"Yeah." Naegi's tone turned serious as he nodded and met Togami's gaze. "I'm ready. Whatever we see, I'm ready."

Togami's initial idea had been to leave and wander off on his own, but while the two worked to collect items, he realized the folly in such a plan. If Togami was injured by Monokuma again, he would be all alone. Not that he couldn't defend himself, but he wasn't going to chance a second gas attack, either.

More importantly, there was the simple fact that Naegi would eventually figure out the partition was open anyway. Naegi would ask Togami if he noticed it, Togami would say yes, and Naegi would ask him why he hadn't told him from the start. It was a form of lying, when Togami boiled it down, and the idea of once again lying to his boyfriend didn't sit right with the corporate heir. He wanted to protect Naegi, but meeting the brunette's hazel eyes, he realized part of protecting him was being honest with him. And so, he had informed Naegi of the raised gate and asked him to come along to investigate. Going against his natural instincts to protect Naegi hadn't been easy, but Togami had to remind himself that, in a way, this was also a form of protection. After all, if something happened to him, Naegi wouldn't have to search alone. And if something happened to the both of them, he knew they could handle whatever Monokuma tried to throw their way.

"Then let's go," he stated. Grabbing Naegi's hand, Togami led the two out of the kitchen and through the dining hall, making a point of ignoring Fukawa outright as they brushed past her. Entering the lobby, they turned right down the hallway to the warehouse. Togami watched out of the corner of his eye as Naegi blinked in shock at the open pathway.

"You were right," he whispered. "It is open."

Togami nodded. Steeling his nerves, he pressed on, leading Naegi underneath the open partition and up the small flight of stairs. They reached a landing and turned, climbing another short set of stairs. It was darker in this wing, and as they reached the second floor and began walking down the hallway, his breath caught in his throat.

He heard Naegi gasp. "This is…!"

Togami tightened his grip on Naegi's hand. "Come on," he whispered. "Let's keep moving."

The sight before them was like something out of a movie. To their left were a line of classroom doors, most of which were barricaded shut by steel bars or so badly broken that there was no point in thinking of entering. Sections of the stone wall were crumbled inward, as if a wrecking ball had struck from the outside, with cement and stone bits scattered on the floor. The lights in the ceiling barely illuminated their pathway, some flickering on and off, and the tile flooring had too many spots of scattered, dark blood for Togami to count. In either blood or red paint, messages, scribbles, and wicked smiley faces were plastered on the floor, walls, and glass that looked out into an isolated courtyard. The plants in the courtyard were overgrown and decaying from a lack of proper care.

It reminded Togami of a horror movie, but the fact that it was reality made his stomach churn. "My parents died in this chaos," he realized. "My whole family did. The corporation was consumed by it… Gods above, it must be awful outside."

"What happened here…?" Naegi whispered, his head moving to scan their surroundings as they walked. Their feet echoed off the tile flooring, and Togami realized that Fukawa hadn't followed when he didn't hear her footsteps behind them.

"The Tragedy," Togami curtly answered.

"This is… This is insane…"

Not wanting to hurt Naegi's hand with his tight grip, Togami instead interlocked their fingers together, making sure their palms connected. The two continued walking slowly this way, their gazes looking all around them. Soon they came to a corner in the hallway and turned right. A doorway to their left was left relatively undamaged, and Togami led Naegi over to try and open the door.

Only to find that the door was already cracked open.

"Hmm?" Using his free hand, Togami cautiously poked the door open and peeked inside only to sigh in relief. "Well, look who's here."

Indeed, a head of lavender hair turned to face him, and Togami released his grip on Naegi as the two entered the room. Naegi rushed forward and sighed in relief. "H-Hey Kirigiri!" he greeted. "Byakuya figured we'd find you here."

"Oh did he now?" Kirigiri quirked an amused eyebrow at him, causing Togami to scoff.

"As though the Ultimate Detective would ignore a new clue," he countered.

"What did you find?" Naegi asked as he approached her. Togami took a second to scan the room; the walls were lined with what appeared to be lockers, most of them with the doors busted in at odd angles or barricaded by boards to prevent someone from opening them.

"Old memories," she cryptically answered. Togami quirked an eyebrow in confusion and looked over to see her holding up a small notebook. "I managed to find my locker," she explained. "Found this and a few other items in it. More clues. It will assist me in determining what happened to the administration."

"You mean your father?" Togami asked.

"Yes."

"Any idea on that mystery?"

"I do… But I need to see it for myself, first."

"Hmph." Approaching one of the locker doors that wasn't completely damaged or destroyed, Togami went to pull it open and growled in frustration when it didn't budge.

"You need to use your e-Handbook."

"What?" He glanced over to see Kirigiri pull out her own handbook and hold it up.

"Hold it up to the pad. If it's your locker, it'll click open."

He watched as Naegi swiftly pulled his e-Handbook out and scanned it on one of the unbroken doors. It beeped but didn't open. He moved down two more busted doors to a new locker, then repeated the action. It still didn't open.

It was the fourth attempt that Naegi was successful, gasping in surprise when the locker door popped open. Unable to contain his curiosity, Togami slid forward and stood behind Naegi, glancing into the boy's locker. He smirked. "I see you treat your books as well as you treat your clothes."

"H-Hey!" The books were piled carelessly on the bottom shelf of the locker. An old hoodie hung on the side smelling of dust. Togami took a step back and began to try his own e-Handbook on the doors when Naegi suddenly asked, "Wait… Isn't this what you said you dreamed of?"

"Hmm?" Togami glanced over to see Naegi holding up a photo. Approaching to get a closer look, Togami felt his eyes widen and his lips part at the scene before him. "Th-that–!"

It was just like his dream. The two were sitting under a large tree on a bank of snow with the school building behind them. Naegi was wrapped in the brown, winter coat he had bought him for Christmas. Cups of hot chocolate were in their gloved hands. Naegi was smiling widely and holding up a peace sign at the photographer, while Togami smirked. Snow was just beginning to fall, it seemed, for a few snowflakes were visible hovering in the air.

Togami slowly took the photo from Naegi and looked it over. His hands shook. Footsteps broke his attention, and he looked up to see Kirigiri staring in worry at him. "This… This is exactly what I saw in my dream," he stated. "When Monokuma attacked me. When I was in the nurse's station. This is what I dreamed of."

"We must have had quite the photographer in our class," Kirigiri remarked. Togami glanced over, as did Naegi, to see her holding up a different photo in her gloved hand. It was another holiday picture, evidently one from Halloween, that appeared to have been taken in their classroom. The room was heavily decorated with Halloween posters, lights, and boxes of candy. Kirigiri, Ogami, and Hina were all in the middle and dressed up as detectives. Togami could see himself and Naegi sitting together near the back looking at some book; the corporate heir was appalled to find himself dressed in what appeared to be a vampire outfit, while Naegi looked like a techno DJ of some sort. The others, too, were dressed for the occasion.

"Do you have any photos in your locker?" asked Naegi, turning his attention to Togami. Togami began flashing his e-Handbook across the line of lockers, stopping when one of the doors finally popped open. He swiftly opened it fully and looked up and down at his former belongings.

A few textbooks were neatly arranged with their appropriate notebooks next to them. A school schedule was on the inner side of the door. He saw a picture of the Togami Corporate logo attached. The idea that he had no recollection of his belongings or his former classes made him feel uneasy, yet he pushed those concerns to the side as he rummaged through the contents. A manila folder near the end of the line of books caught his attention, and he grabbed it and opened it to see some items fall out to the floor. Two were obvious photos, one a sort of school agenda…

…and a letter.

He blinked and leaned down as he picked up the letter only for his eyes to widen. "Aloysius…" He read the name aloud.

"Aloysius?" Naegi repeated. The brunette kneeled down next to him and glanced at the letter. "This is from your butler?"

"That's the man you said wasn't listed in the newspaper article Monokuma gave to us," Kirigiri recalled. Yet Togami's mind was racing. His eyes scanned the outside of the letter, yet he found himself unable to open it to read. Something was holding him back. His chest suddenly felt heavy. His heart began to race. Emotions of all sorts rushed his very being. He realized his hands were shaking.

With a gasp of air, he shoved the letter back into the folder and closed it. "I'll read it later," he breathed out.

"Byakuya…?" Naegi placed a comforting hand on his shoulder, and Togami quickly shook his head.

"I just… I'll read it later." He pointed at the photos on the ground. "Let's look at these first."

"Well, one is obviously of you two," Kirigiri jested, as she, too, kneeled down to be eye level with them. He watched as she held up one of the photos, which showed Togami and Naegi sitting together at a dining room table with other students walking around in the background.

"And this must have been one of your concerts," Naegi added. The second photo was taken in the concert hall, near the front row of seats. A majority of their classmates were in attendance and surrounding Togami, who was holding his violin in his hand.

Togami's eyes widened at the sights. "To think I became so involved in this school…that I grew close enough to these people to do all of this, only to forget…" He swallowed hard as he took both photos and set them in the folder.

"Byakuya?" Naegi whispered his name.

"I'm fine," he answered.

"I know." Kirigiri's words forced him to look up, and she nodded. "I know. All these memories that may be gone… We have to get them back. Somehow. But not right now. We have to escape first."

"Yes, you're right," Togami lamented as he stood up, the other two quickly following suit. He glanced back down at the folder, practically feeling the letter inside. "Aloysius… What did you send to me? What information did you tell me?"

"Might I ask a favor?"

Both Naegi and Togami glanced over at Kirigiri. All three were now standing. "What is it?" Togami inquired.

"Can I borrow Naegi for a bit? I'd like him to help me investigate this wing of the school."

"Why are you asking me?" Togami questioned. "He's not my property. Though if something happens to him–"

Naegi chuckled. "I can definitely help out," he stated. "Though I'm not sure how useful I'd be. Byakuya was the one who cracked the archive puzzle, after all. Shouldn't he be better?"

"You two have very different perspectives, and my instincts tell me that you'll be a better assistant in this affair," Kirigiri replied.

While Togami didn't like the idea of leaving Naegi's side, he realized this was the perfect opportunity to return to the warehouse. "Very well, I'll head back," he stated. "I want to check these items anyway."

"Sounds good."

"What, we're leaving now?" asked Naegi, his eyes widening in surprise.

"If that is all right with you," Kirigiri stated. "Or would you rather Togami continue scolding you for leaving your belongings in a mess?"

"H-Hey!" Naegi's cheeks turned red as both Togami and Kirigiri smirked. Togami watched as the two left, with Naegi scolding Kirigiri and telling her Togami didn't need the help. He slowly looked back down at the folder once the two had left and immediately felt a sense of dread.

"No… Not right now. Whatever is contained in this letter isn't going anywhere." He inhaled and slowly exhaled. Reopening his locker, he grabbed a few more of the notebooks, then closed it back shut. His eyes landed instinctively on the Togami Corporate logo as he did so, however, and he swallowed hard at the clicking sound of the locker door shutting. "I'll rebuild. I have to. But that depends entirely on us escaping this place."

Togami shook his head. "Priorities. You said you would plan something for Makoto, and he's busy now. Get the items from the warehouse. Set up a night for the two of you. Then read the letter, determine a plan of action, and proceed from there."

He nodded to himself and exited the room, shutting the door behind him. Retracing his steps back down the hallway and the stairs, he entered the warehouse and found a set of gym bags next to spare clothing. Grabbing one, he looked around and easily found the massive tower of items Monokuma had given to them. "Now for the most difficult part of this whole process… Finding something entertaining for us to do."