Hello again, everyone! First of all, thank you for all your feedback – especially on the changed murder. You have my boyfriend to thank for that – I was about to keep the murder the same, but he told me it needed to be switched up, which it did. Did you know in my initial plan for the story Chapter Two was only supposed to be one chapter long? Yeah. But once again, what was intended to be one chapter has been split. The trial will be up by this weekend.

Also, tws: discussion of wounds and disability, including internalized ableism.


Chapter Two, Part Four

Even as he was watching her die, Hinata tried to remember Pekoyama as he had always seen her in the park – strong and silent, unknowable on some level but never hostile. He felt like he'd gotten to know her better than he'd ever expected to over the past few days, and he wondered if that was why he didn't feel nearly so numb as he had when Komaeda and Hanamura had died.

But then, the length of their acquaintance aside, the deaths had been quite different. Komaeda's had been a shock, and Hanamura's over in less than a minute, but Pekoyama's had carried on to the point where the actual moment of her death had hardly sunk in for Hinata at all. More comprehensible was the anticipation vanishing from the faces of his classmates, the beginnings of tears in the eyes of people like Koizumi and Nidai who cried at times like these, and the tension of the announcement still ringing in the air.

The trial. There was going to be a trial. And whoever the killer was – and Hinata remembered with a jolt that her killer was standing among them at that very moment – they would either have to die, just like Hanamura, or they would be the only one to live. So he wasn't yet done losing friends. At least one, he knew, was already lost.


The announcement ended. Nidai lowered his head. Tanaka bowed and shook his fist. Nanami pulled her hood over her head and apologized softly. Kuzuryuu yelped, but only because Tsumiki had rubbed ointment across a split blister. He bit his lip to prevent any other sounds, then looked down, so Hinata could not see his face.

"That…" Owari grabbed Nidai by the wrist. "No way…that's too much…"

"Peko-chan…" Koizumi crouched down, tears streaming freely down her face. "No, don't…don't do this…"

"This can't be happening…" Sonia held her hand over her mouth, and behind it her voice was hardly more than a whisper. "After all we did, and how hard we worked…"

"What – no, no!" Souda turned to face her, looking more scared than reassuring. "It's not our fault, Sonia-san! Especially not yours!"

"I am agreed," Tanaka said. "In this game, we were but pawns placed in a realm where only the puppetmaster can be victorious. Our only escape is not to lose heart...a difficult path for many, but be assured that they have vastly underestimated my power!"

"I…I see. Thank you, Tanaka-san." Sonia smiled at Tanaka, and wiped her eye with a flick of her hand. "I only wish I knew what we could have done, and when…"

"What we could have done?" Togami took his hand off Pekoyama's body and stood to face them all, his hands straight at his sides. Far from the stony calm he had held through the last investigation, he now looked absolutely furious. "Are you saying you don't know the answer to that?"

Several people gave him uncertain looks. "What, and you do?" Saionji said. "Good job keeping that to yourself."

"I think you know that preventing Pekoyama's death would have been a simple matter of not setting fire to her cottage." Togami folded his arms and straightened his back, as if to look even taller. "Yes, you heard me, and I know you're listening. We've solved a murder before, and we'll do it again. You know what this entails, and you can save us all a lot of trouble by confessing now. Go on."

No one said a word. Togami didn't look disappointed – Hinata wasn't sure whether Togami actually expected a confession. Perhaps this was just a test, his way of determining whether he was up against passion or confidence. But the only one who actually looked intimidated was Monomi, and until she began shaking and trembling Hinata had, once again, forgotten she was there. "N-no one's saying anything," she said. "M-maybe that means no one did it…M-maybe it was just an accident…"

Togami was just opening his mouth when Hinata cut him off – not intentionally, though this didn't stop him. "Monomi, do you even believe what you're saying?"

"I…ohh…that would be…" Monomi shook her head. "I know you're all better than this…I know… oh, if only I'd kept my Magic Stick, nothing tewibble would ever have happened…"

"But you didn't, and good riddance, I'd say!" Hinata looked over at the wreckage with a tinge of annoyance – Monobear was standing by the edge of the boardwalk. "I mean, can you even imagine my little sister bossing you around all the time? What a bore, am I right?"

"What makes you think we're even interested in answering that?" Hinata said. There were various voices of assent all around him, plus an uncertain whimper from Monomi.

"Yeah!" Souda shouted. "Just give us the file or whatever and go!"

"I wouldn't be so polite as that." Togami directed his stare at Monobear. "You want us to investigate, and we will. Once you leave."

"Wow, what are you going to do, make me? Just for that whole spiel, I'll celebrate extra long!" Monobear jumped up and down, spinning and bouncing as he went. "WOOOOO! WHOAAAA! KABOOM! POW! Wasn't that exciting? The correct answer is yes – I don't care about your opinion!"

"Ibuki is a big fan of things that are on fire," Mioda said, "but not people! People are not things!"

"Nope, don't care! Upupupu!" Monobear produced a popcorn bag out of nowhere and held it up over his head. The popcorn fell, bounced off his grin, and clattered uselessly to the ground. "How bombastic! How entertaining! How romantic, even! It's just the kind of death Taeko Yasuhiro might have wanted. Isn't that right, Togami-kun?"

"Taeko Yasuhiro? Who…" Togami hesitated, and then gritted his teeth. "What are you talking about?"

"Oh, never mind, it's just a joke," Monobear said. "You bastards really are no fun! It would have been so much better if you were struck so numb by despair you couldn't even bear to begin the investigation…but, fine! If you want the file, take it! I'll even throw it on the ground, just for extra emphasis! But first, I have an announcement for the culprit!"

Kuzuryuu's head snapped up, clunking Tsumiki in the jaw as he went. "For the culprit?" he said.

"Oh, don't get so excited, it's just some technical stuff!" Monobear waved his hand dismissively. "You see, when you destroyed the cottage, you also destroyed the security camera and monitor inside in direct violation of the school rules! Ordinarily I'd kill you right now, but I've decided that, if you hide your guilt, all your crimes will be forgiven in accordance with the school rules. But if not, your punishment will serve for them all!" Monobear scratched his chin. "Well, that isn't always how I've interpreted that rule, but I may be going easy on you just because of how spectacular this was. I wouldn't have put so much effort into that stupid eating contest if I'd known this was coming!"

Monobear pulled the File out of nowhere, and threw it to Hinata's feet as promised. "There! And may the screen forever be greasy!" He dumped the remainder of his popcorn on the tablet, smeared it across the screen, and then vanished.

There were some whispers between pairs, but no sweeping pronouncements from Togami or anyone else. Hinata bent to pick up the tablet, and as he did he ended up on level with Tsumiki, Kuzuryuu, and Pekoyama's body. Kuzuryuu had lowered his head again. Tsumiki was tapping him on the shoulder. "Kuzuryuu-san…" she said softly. "It's…this environment …we need to move inside…"

Kuzuryuu did not respond. Hinata straightened up, frowned at the popcorn-covered screen, and used his shirt-tail to try and wipe it off. He tried to focus on this and not on anything else, but he could still hear Tsumiki growing louder. "Your wounds… if I can't sterilize them properly, they'll get infected –"

"I'm not moving," Kuzuryuu snapped.

"But –" Tsumiki jerked back, and let out a small sob. "But – no – I'm sorry –"

"Mikan-chan, if you need any help –" Before Koizumi could finish her sentence, Kuzuryuu stood under his own power, bandages trailing from his hands, and marched straight through the rest of the group toward Tsumiki's cottage.

"Ah – Kuzuryuu-san, wait!" Tsumiki set off after him, leaving half her supplies behind. Kuzuryuu got to her door before she did, and slumped himself against it until she could open it.

"I think we've spent enough of our limited time gawping." Hinata expected to see Togami looking annoyed with him when he turned back, but it was clear from the shuffling of feet that his words had been meant for everyone – and the look he gave to him alone was more inquisitive. "Hinata, I believe you have a file to show us."

"Oh – right, yeah." Hinata held the file so that everyone could see it, and opened it to display a silhouette of Pekoyama. There were several cartoonish bursts of fire across her body, plus a splatter of blood on her head and several pink marks on her right arm.

The victim was removed from the rubble of Peko Pekoyama's burned-down cottage at 1:55 AM and died shortly afterwards, the text read.

The cause of death was a combination of blunt force trauma, third- and fourth-degree burns, and carbon monoxide poisoning. The victim also has several cuts on her right arm from her attempt to break down her door to escape.

There are no other wounds on the body, and no traces of drugs.

"So that told us a lot of nothing." Saionji said, rolling her eyes.

"Well, what did you expect?" Souda said. "This is Monobear we're talking about."

"Actually, I think this tells us something very important," Nanami said. "If she tried to break down the door, then it means that she couldn't open it."

Togami's eyes went wide. "And would that directly lead to the culprit?"

"If we can find out why the door wouldn't open, then maybe." Nanami looked over at the wreckage. "We should start looking for more clues."

"An excellent idea. Other important details would be the source of the fire, or anything here or in your memory that would tie this to a specific person." Togami paused, and scanned the crowd. He lingered longest on Hinata. "Above all, remember that all of our lives are at risk. But do not let that knowledge trouble you. I promise –"

He paused again, and before he could continue, the majority of the crowd left for the wreckage. Only Sonia, Mioda, Hinata, Nanami, and Monomi remained, all searching his face curiously. His brow had softened, Hinata could see, and he looked distracted, or turned inward. Between them, Pekoyama's body lay like a barrier.

"I promise I will not let any harm come to you, no matter how great the odds. I swear it on my family name." Togami spoke so softly Hinata could hardly hear him. His eyes fell briefly on Pekoyama, then turned back up to all of them, their power restored. "Don't you have something you should be doing?" he said.


Hinata began his investigation by joining Mioda, Koizumi, Tanaka, Souda, Nanami, and Nidai in the wreckage. Saionji sat at the edge of the boardwalk, watching them. Sonia stood guard by Pekoyama's body. Togami was with her for a short time, but soon began pacing back and forth along the girls' side of the hotel, occasionally crouching to examine the boardwalk or a cottage. Tsumiki and Kuzuryuu were still in Tsumiki's cottage, to the most of Hinata's knowledge, and Owari had gone to check the supermarket for anything flammable. Monomi had vanished to parts unknown.

Hinata picked through an area by the east wall between Mioda and Koizumi, hoping to find a lighter or other source of the blaze, but found nothing more than shattered beams and the charred remains of Pekoyama's possessions. While they were searching, he asked Mioda about what had occurred before he had arrived – not with any goal in mind, but simply out of curiosity. As it turned out, she was just the right person to ask.

"Ibuki was going to go visit Byakuya-chan and Hajime-chan, but when she left she saw Peko-chan's roof and windows on fire!" Mioda gestured wildly with her hands as she spoke. "So she started yelling, but Peko-chan didn't answer, and Ibuki couldn't open the door…"

"No one could, it seems like," Hinata said. "I wonder what was holding the door shut."

"Something strong, because Nekomaru-chan couldn't open it and Ibuki thought Nekomaru-chan could pull the door off and throw it halfway across the island! But when Ibuki couldn't get in, she started banging on doors and waking people up. Kazuichi-chan and Akane-chan went to get the buckets, and a bunch of people went to get Byakuya-chan and Hajime-chan but then they showed up." Mioda tossed a bit of wood over her shoulder.

"Okay, the –wait a minute." Hinata's eyes narrowed. "You said you woke everyone up. Why was Kuzuryuu still asleep?"

Mioda cringed. "Ibuki never left the girls' side, so she didn't know Fuyuhiko-chan wasn't there until he ran by…"

"You don't have to apologize, Ibuki-chan," Koizumi said. "It was a stressful situation, and you weren't responsible for him. The rest of us forgot, too."

"And anyway, oversights happen," Hinata said. "I can understand perfectly."

"Especially with Kuzuryuu. The way he keeps to himself, I'm not surprised this happened." Koizumi looked down. "It's strange, though. He seemed so distressed, and now his hands…"

"I didn't even try making sense of it," Hinata said. It was true – Kuzuryuu's frenzied behavior and efforts to save Pekoyama went against everything he knew about him. And it didn't make sense for them to be on first-name terms. As far as he knew they'd only been in each other's company during the eating contest.

"Exactly. And if I keep thinking about it, it'll just distract me from…from…" Koizumi picked up what looked like the remains of a bath towel, and sighed. "I hate this. I hate this whole setup, I hate the mutual killing, I hate that we just have to jump right into the investigations…Peko-chan was my friend, and we don't even get time to mourn for her…"

Koizumi buried her face in the towel. Hinata debated whether to extend a hand to her, but before he could Mioda interrupted him. "Ibuki is really sad about that too! But she's channeling her sadness into the investigation, and that's why Ibuki will not rest until the culprit is caught! Not even the sight of Byakuya-chan's rolled-up sleeves will distract her from this goal!"

Mioda looked back over at the boardwalk, and Hinata turned to see Togami standing near Saionji's cottage. His sleeves were indeed rolled up to his elbows, though he failed to see what Mioda found so exciting about this. After just a quick peek she began to turn back, but halfway there she paused, pounced into the water, and came back up with what looked like an overlarge, unburnt tube of toothpaste.

Everyone in the wreckage crowded to see it, and their examination revealed it to have once contained industrial-strength rubber cement. "Aha! So that was it!" Nidai said. "No wonder none of us could pull the door open!"

"I'll say!" Souda said. "This stuff won't come apart unless you ram a truck into it."

"Or set it on fire," Saionji called down from above. Her legs swung from under her kimono.

"Great observation," Hinata called back. "You know, you could help us."

"I'm supervising," Saionji says. "It's like what Mr. Porkfeet does, except he's over there and I'm over here."

"But Byakuya-chan isn't a supervisor!" Mioda called back, looking indignant. "He's a leader!"

"Not so loud, you guys," Koizumi mouthed, but the conversation didn't continue. Tanaka, who had not joined them to see the tube, came over to announce that Pekoyama's plumbing had been cleanly cut, likely to prevent her from using it to put out the fire. Once this was discussed they went back to their positions, but Hinata didn't find much more of interest, and from the sound of things he wasn't going to.

He moved back up to the boardwalk, where Pekoyama's body still lay. Togami's coat was wrapped around her legs like a blanket, while Nidai's, pulled over her head and torso, looked more like a shroud. He reached for the collar of the jacket, but hesitated. "I…really only need to see her arm, don't I?" he said, mostly to himself.

"That is true," Sonia replied. She knelt by the body, her hands folded in her lap. She was looking at the contour where Pekoyama's face had been, her expression melancholy. "Sometimes I wonder why we cover our dead, and whether it is out of respect or fear."

"I've…never thought of that." Hinata lifted the corner by Pekoyama's right arm, and sure enough there were shallow gashes and large splinters in the red, raw skin. "Her hand's all curled," he said.

"Togami-san told me she was holding her wooden practice sword when they found her, but that it crumbled to ash when she was moved," Sonia explained. "Perhaps it was what she used on her door?"

"That makes a lot of sense." Hinata examined her hand. Sure enough, it was smeared with grey ash.

"She was always so resourceful." Sonia turned her head away from Hinata. "It was one of the things I admired most about her."

Hinata covered Pekoyama's hand. Something in Sonia's tone of voice had stirred a pang in his chest. "I know what you mean," he said. "And I thought everyone else did, too…I can't think of why anyone would kill her."

"You spent quite a lot of time with her," Sonia said. "I can't imagine how hard this must be for you."

"Yeah, but…it's weird. It's not that I'm not sad… I don't know. I can't really explain it." In truth, Hinata hadn't had the chance to focus much on his own feelings at all, and he didn't want to start now, not before the case was over. But he wasn't sure how much of that he wanted to explain to anyone else. Before he could decide, he saw some movement out of the corner of his eye. "Owari's back. I should go see what she found."

"Alright," Sonia said. "I should stay here. But you'll have to tell me all about the sweet loot she found."

Not the words I would have used, Hinata thought, but he did not comment further. He stood and met Owari by the boardwalk entrance, where several others had already gathered around her.

She was carrying two items – a cigarette lighter and a matchbook – and explained that they were the only two fire-starting items for sale at the supermarket. Nanami said that several metal items had survived the fire, but no one had found a lighter anywhere around, and if the culprit had disposed of the rubber cement by throwing it in the water there was no reason to believe they wouldn't have done the same with the lighter. Besides, Koizumi added, they would have had to throw the lighter onto the roof in order to set it ablaze. So the murder weapon was determined to be a matchbook like the one Owari had brought.

But how much did that really matter? Hinata thought as he returned to the body. It did give him a clearer idea of how the murder had occurred, but, just like last time, he had little to no idea who had done it. The matchbook might have provided a clue, but only if the murderer had kept it on them, and from the look of things they had not. He arrived to find Togami having a conversation with Sonia, which cut off abruptly when his presence was noted.

"Hinata," Togami said, looking up at him. "I've been looking for you."

"For me?" Hinata said. "Why –"

"Pardon me, Sonia." Togami stood, walked over to Hinata, and steered him toward the central path with a wave of his hand. "Over here," he said in an undertone. "We have important work to do."

"Wait, what?" Hinata said, but Togami set off without answering him, so Hinata had to follow after him, taking long strides just to keep up. "I think I'd like to know what we're doing, if it's this important."

"Isn't it clear, from where we're going?" Togami came to a sudden stop in front of Tsumiki's cottage. "I would hope you understand that this can't be ignored."

Hinata's memories of Kuzuryuu flew back into his brain. "Then you think Kuzuryuu knows something?"

"I'll find out soon enough," Togami said. "And I'll have your judgment to assist me."

"That's…a pretty tall order," Hinata said.

"Then you're overestimating the role I'm giving you," Togami said with a humph. "Assistants allow a person of power to transcend human error and the limits of perception. They do not presume themselves superior."

"I hadn't really thought anything like what you said," Hinata said. "I guess…it's a compliment. In a way."

Togami took a step towards the door, and then stopped. "Hinata, are you aware of your position in this case? Our positions, in fact?"

"I think I missed whatever it is you're thinking of."

"We're the only ones whose night locations can be confirmed. You know I didn't leave your sight, and neither did you leave mine. I can trust, without a doubt, that you are not responsible for Pekoyama's death." Togami's shoulders fell. "I'm glad, at least, for that trust."

Togami continued for the door, and as he did Hinata felt it again – the ache in his soul that acted something like an alarm bell whenever he was thrust into some part of Togami that he didn't understand. But it was over quickly. Togami knocked on the door, and when they heard a shy "I-It's open!" from inside he opened it and he and Hinata stepped in.


Hinata had never been in Tsumiki's cottage. It looked like a doctor's office, which was more or less how he had expected it to look. Tsumiki sat in a chair by a desk, fastening a cloth bandage around Kuzuryuu's left hand. Both of his hands were completely encased in bandages, and looked more like paddles than anything else.

Kuzuryuu looked up, then did a double-take and jerked away from Tsumiki. "You!" he said, and Hinata knew he wasn't talking to him. "What are you doing here?"

"Ahh…!" Tsumiki fumbled and dropped the roll of bandages. "Kuzuryuu-san, you only need to hold still one more moment…"

"You think I give a shit?" Kuzuryuu snapped back at her. Tsumiki crouched, apologizing in a steady stream, and moved her chair to better reach his new position. "Are you gonna stand there or answer me? Huh?"

Togami waited until Tsumiki had fully fastened Kuzuryuu's bandage before addressing her. "Tsumiki, if you will, I would like to have a private word with your patient. I will not take long."

"Oh –!" Tsumiki stood immediately. "Y-yes…I'm sorry, I didn't mean –"

"Tsumiki, you have done nothing wrong. There is no need for this." His expression was neutral, but soft. Tsumiki nodded, and stepped past them and out the door.

As soon as she had left, Kuzuryuu moved to her chair and sat backwards on it. He draped his bandaged hands over the backrest and swiveled the seat back and forth with his feet. "A word in private?" he said. "Thanks for letting me know. If it's so private, what's he doing here?" He inclined his head towards Hinata.

"Hinata is here as my security," Togami said. Hinata shot him an odd look.

"Always thought that worked the other way round." Kuzuryuu set his elbows on the backrest and waved his wrists. He looked positively cocky – not uncommon for his interactions with Togami, but odd when Hinata remembered him screaming in pain. "Are you mocking me?"

"No, you've misunderstood me." Togami stepped forward. "Kuzuryuu, why are you injured?"

Kuzuryuu's smirk vanished in an instant. Hinata thought he looked uncomfortable, even threatened. "Stop fucking around," he said. "Ask your real question."

"Very well," Togami said. "What is your connection to Pekoyama?"

"None."

"Don't take me for a fool," Togami said, a hard tone entering his voice. "What is your connection to Peko Pekoyama?"

Kuzuryuu turned away, trembling slightly. "None of your business."

"All of our lives are in danger. This is very much my business."

"I don't have nothing to do with nothing."

"I don't think you understand that you do," Togami said. "I have looked over every inch of this hotel and considered every known movement of everyone on this island in the last twelve hours. I have found nothing to lead me anywhere, except for you. You are the only means we have of finding her killer."

Kuzuryuu shook more violently than before – then, suddenly, he stopped. "I don't care," he said. "I don't know anything."

"You don't?" Togami said. "Kuzuryuu, you seem to think that I am going to somehow dismiss that you ran to stick your hands into a burning pile of wreckage on the off chance you might save her. Or that in the moments before her death you not only referred to her by her first name, but begged her to recognize you."

The emotion in Togami's voice had grown with every word, but after a brief pause, it leveled abruptly. "Kuzuryuu, when the rest of us were at the eating contest, what were you and Pekoyama doing?"

Hinata's blood ran cold. For the first time that evening he remembered Pekoyama asking Kuzuryuu to guard the game, Kuzuryuu accepting, and the looks in their eyes as they walked away from the park. He wanted to say something, wanted to be shocked, wanted to be accusatory, but the words weren't coming in any way that wasn't hysterical.

Kuzuryuu didn't turn around, but he did shift slightly, and leaned back in the chair. "I already told you to stop with the fake questions," he said. His voice sounded just as restrained as Togami's. "If you're going to accuse me of something, then get on with it."

"From the look of things, I don't need to." Togami moved back several steps. Hinata realized that he was blocking the door. "Are you going to confess, or will I have to pry it from you at the trial?"

Kuzuryuu swung slightly, and began to shake again. Hinata quickly realized that he was laughing, but his expression was far from anything Hinata would call mirth. In fact, tears were staining his cheeks. "God, Togami," he said once he could. "Are you that convinced I killed her?"

Togami's eyes went wide, but he said nothing. Kuzuryuu turned all the way round and stood up, his hands hovering near his pockets. Then, without warning, he banged his left hand hard against the desk, biting his lip to hold back any signs of pain. The clasp fell off, the bandage loosened and unraveled, and Hinata could see the raw, blistered skin underneath.

"You know what Tsumiki said about these?" Kuzuryuu came closer to Togami and Hinata, holding his hand up for them to see. "Three weeks. Three weeks and maybe it'll stop hurting. And maybe I'll be able to use my hands again. You know how many things I use my hands for? I can't dress myself, I can't eat by myself, I can't – I'm rapidly running out of time before someone else has to wipe my ass. And you know who that'll be? Tsumiki. Do you think I want Tsumiki that close to my ass?"

"Kuzuryuu-"

"I'm completely defenseless," Kuzuryuu went on, cutting Togami off. "If anyone wanted an easy way off the island they could do just about anything to me. Ain't that right, Hinata?" Kuzuryuu rounded on him. "You've been quiet, what do you think? Wouldn't it be easy to walk up to me and snap my neck?"

"Wait, hold on!" Hinata had never seen any expression like Kuzuryuu's – it was despair and mockery rolled into one. He took several steps back. "Why would I ever do that?"

"Heh. Never mind. You're too much of a goody two-shoes to try." Kuzuryuu turned back to Togami. "I think you get the point. But you know what, Togami? I'd do it a thousand times over again if it meant I could get her back. So, no, I didn't fucking kill her."

He sniffled loudly, and a pained smile stretched across his face. "But maybe I did play the game. And maybe I do know who the killer is. Actually, I have a very good idea of who it is. Is that what you wanted to hear?" Kuzuryuu tilted his head up. "What's the matter, cat got your tongue?"

Togami's overall expression hadn't changed very much, but Hinata knew that silence from him meant nothing good. "Togami?" he dared to say.

"Who is it?" Togami said. "Who did it? Who killed her?"

"Oh, I'll tell you," Kuzuryuu said. "But not yet. This is my revenge, not yours." The screen next to them flashed to life, and Monobear appeared, announcing the trial. "I don't have to stay here anymore."

He walked past Hinata, made a point of shoving past Togami, and stopped at the front door. "I can't open this," he said after several seconds, so Hinata walked over and opened the door. Kuzuryuu walked through, and then slammed it behind him with his foot.

Monobear vanished from the screen, and Hinata could hear voices outside, presumably as everyone headed for the central island. Hinata looked over at Togami, who remained rooted to the spot. "We should probably get going," he said. "Everyone else is –"

"She let him play the game," Togami said.

Hinata's eyes went wide. He hadn't really had time to process this information, nor was he completely sure how or why it had come about, but now it felt like a knife through his chest. "She did," he said, "I know. But there's nothing we can really do about that."

"But didn't I tell her, explicitly, to keep an eye on him? Did I have any reason to doubt she'd keep her word?" Togami clutched at the sleeves of his shirt. "I gave her the clothes off my back. I did everything I could to keep her alive…"

"Togami…" Hinata remembered Pekoyama, and the nod she'd given them just before they'd left – and then, unbidden, he remembered Komaeda, and his betrayal, and the calm, determined expression Togami had held throughout that investigation. He wondered, suddenly, how much effort it had taken him. "I-I'm sorry," he said. "I don't really know what to say. Really, I'm as confused as you are, and –"

"No, no no no. I can't do this. Everyone's in danger." Togami spun around, threw the door open, and marched out. Hinata followed after him, but no matter how fast he went he couldn't catch up.


- Carth