Chapter 11: Hiyoko's Habits, Teruteru's Tab

Hope's Peak Academy

General School Grounds

Friday, August 13th, 2010

Afternoon

Hajime, in spending his time with his Super High School Level friends, had almost forgotten to take care of some assignments for math and history, and thus had spent yesterday night focus-studying. He wasn't sure how he had misplaced the due dates for his assignments and when he found it, he went into a bit of a panic at first.

Fortunately, luck was on his side and he managed to turn in his work due today on-time and complete with pretty good work. It wasn't top of the line, but it was good enough work considering it was cram work done the night before. For that much, he was grateful, and he had spent most of today making sure that he was caught up with his school work.

During lunch break, he briefly chatted with Natsumi before going off on his own. Then it was back to classes for the rest of the day. The day went by faster than usual.

Instead of going back to his dorm and changing after classes, Hajime sat down on a benches next to the fountain, slouched over, and took a long breath in and out. He really needed to make sure that he kept school as a priority. As much as he wanted to spend everyday with his newfound friends, he needed to remember the reason why he came here. Like he had told Miss Yukizome, his parents were paying a pretty penny to get him here.

He felt a responsibility and a desire to succeed for not just his own sake, but for theirs as well.

"It's alright, Hajime. You've got this." The boy stood up, psyching himself up. "I just need more energy."

His thoughts turned to Nekomaru and Akane. They would no doubt have ways of physically helping him. They had energy that was simply not in his realm right now, but he sure as hell wanted it. Perhaps this weekend he could go and see them for tips on increasing energy so that he could really do stuff with less pause and fatigue.

Hajime gazed around himself. He had been here dozens of times the course of this semester to think, to talk to people, to do work, or to just doze off. It was strange that he didn't find this place more busy than he did, not that he was complaining. This place would change in atmosphere if groups came here. A few people and maybe a small group might be okay, but nothing too big.

"Squish, squish!" A girl's voice echoed somewhere nearby.

"What the?" Hajime paused to listen.

"Squish, squish!"

"That's definitely a girl." The boy confirmed this after hearing it once again. "You'd have to be either stupid, delusional, or crazy to think otherwise."

"Squish, squish!"

"Okay, now it's just getting weird." Hajime shook his head. "I'd better find out who's doing that unless I want to go insane."

With his new goal in mind, he recalled the last area that he heard the voice coming form. Judging by the way that it repeated, he was likely to hear it at least once more if not multiple times. It wasn't a particularly unpleasant voice to hear, but the frequency and the words themselves were just downright creepy.

"Squish, squish!

Hajime whipped his head to his seven o'clock. It sounded very close now, somewhere close to the path leading to the center fountain. He retraced his steps back to where the fountain was located, then began to walk on the straight path adjacent. From there he looked to his left, then to his right. He thought he had heard the sound of rustling grass and a swish of something. He was getting closer.

"Squish, squish!"

There! He spotted the girl that was saying those words… and yet he halted once he rounded the corner of the cluster of mini trees.

It was a girl just like he had heard, but she was really small, tiny to be honest. Her long blonde hair was tied into two equal and neatly-done ponytails. She wore a traditional furisode kimono with white floral decorations.

Who is this? Hajime hesitated. Is she another student here? She doesn't look like a high school student, but she's here…

"Squish, squish!"

"Um, excuse me?" Hajime kept his neutral. "What are you doing?"

"Oh, a stranger talking to me?" She perked up from her spot on the ground. "Nobody's ever walked up to me and introduced themselves so casually."

… she definitely not a kid. Hajime's mind processed. That tone is just way to off to be a child talking.

"My name is Hajime Hinata." He simply chose to ignore what she had initially said. "And you are?"

"I'm Hiyoko Saionji." She did a sort of curtsey in return.

"Right… I was wondering what were you doing just now?" Hajime ventured. "I kept hearing your voice."

"I was squishing ants." Hiyoko answered as if it were obvious. "Have you never done that before?"

"... not with the level of enthusiasm that you show." Hajime replied in an off put tone. "I just swat them away and that's that."

"Aw, that's no fun, but then again, you don't look like fun yourself." Hiyoko looked him up and down. "Wait, you're one of those Reserve Course students. Boring."

Okay, seriously? Hajime bristled, but kept his cool. It hasn't even been a minute and she's trash talking me.

"So… you're an ultimate, right?" Hajime asked her, once again pushing past her demeaning words.

"Of course I am!" Hiyoko stated with indignation. "I'm the Ultimate Traditional Dancer. What are you, stupid or something? Can't you tell?"

Hajime felt just a slight twitch in his features. What is the girl's problem?

"Oh, no, wait!" The girl looked him up and down. "You've got a shady face, a bum!"

"Hey!" The boy growled.

"No, you've got to be a sicko pedo." She declared haughtily. "Yeah, that's what you definitely are!"

Hajime could be called a pushover in some respects. He had been insulted and belittled before in his previous school for wanting to be someone. Those insults, even though they hurt, had become normal in his life, so much so that sometimes, he simply never engaged back, opting to mentally tell them that all he wanted to do was just become someone, become something more than just another person living. It usually wasn't in his nature to fight back verbally, but this time, he just couldn't take it. A line had been crossed and he wouldn't take this one lying down.

"Take that back!" Hajime yelled at her. "I've never even met you before! What do you have against me?!"

He wasn't sure what he was expecting to happen, but he sure wasn't expecting his fervent response to work as effectively as it did. The insults ceased to come his way and he watched as the girl in front of him began to blubber and then cry, and though he wasn't familiar with girls and their emotions, he was certain that she was crying actual tears.

"Waaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah!" Hiyoko wailed loudly. "You're so mean!"

Shit! Hajime began to panic. This is going to look bad if someone sees this right now. I've got to fix this!

"Whoa, easy!" He raised his hands in surrender. "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to get mad at you! Please stop crying!"

For every second that she didn't look okay, it was just another seconds towards his own downfall. If he became known for making trouble with an Ultimate, he would probably be castrated. Even worse yet, the fact that it was a girl did more than make him a little angry. Seriously, what sort of guy was he to make a girl cry, even though she had insulted him in a way no one else had ever done before. He should have handled this better; reacting like this didn't make him out to be good in any way.

Thankfully, she heard him and her tears and crying subsided. Her eyes were now red and she looked like she could still unleash more if she was provoked again. She was very vulnerable right now. And volatile.

"Hmph." Hiyoko rubbed her eyes. "If you're really sorry, then do me a favor."

"...okay." Hajime tentatively agreed. "What do you want me to do?"

"There's this sweet I want." Hiyoko began. "It's shaped like a star. It's small, but it's cute and sweet."

Hajime paused. "Wait… you're talking about confeito, right?"

She nodded. "I'll give you fifteen minutes!"

"That's not enough time for me to buy them and get back here." Hajime protested, fighting off his annoyance.

Then he saw what looked like another outburst about to happen.

"Fine! I'll be back in fifteen minute!"

This was blackmail, he was sure, but there wasn't time to be thinking about that. Whether this girl planned to do anything or not, he wasn't willing to chance the possibility of his name being tarnished. There was also the fact that he was still the one and only candidate for the Hope Cultivation Project. He needed to stay out of the spotlight until a decision was made. Exposing himself could have disastrous consequences.

"Confeito. Where do I get that?" Hajime stopped to think. "Where would I…"

Then an idea came to mind. It was a longshot, but given his time frame, he didn't have much time to waste.

Hope - - - Despair

Friday, August 13th, 2010

Afternoon

Teruteru Hanamura hummed a little tune to himself as he prepared his latest dish. As of recently, he had begun a habit of creating party dishes and foods for part environments. His homeroom class was hosting a multitude of events that needed party food to liven things up. It might not always be necessary, but as the Ultimate Cook, he did have a tendency to go overboard quite often, and he wasn't strictly talking about his food.

Yes, he could see it now. Peko Pekoyama did indeed have black thongs, he was sure of it. The girl was super uptight and talked to no one, but it was the quiet ones that often had the most kinky things going on in private. He could only speculate on what else there was behind the mask of the Super High School Level Swordswoman, but if he ever found out, well… life would be really good for him.

Perhaps he ought to consult with Nagito. His Super High School Level Luck was bar none when it acted positively. Maybe that luck would be enough to get him that look that he was dying to get, and maybe he would get more. Who knew?

Teruteru hummed to himself as he carefully tasted his newest recipe. On the surface, tofu was little more than a white rectangular-like shape, essential bean curd. The near tasteless flavor made it boring when in comparison to more flavorful dishes, but that was where tofu was at its best. Tofu wasn't meant to be consumed by itself. It was meant to augment flavors and textures within a dish. Anybody who ate tofu alone was insulting.

"Okay, just a little pinch." Teruteru carefully measured out some seasoning, watching with a close eye. "That's it. Perfect."

Satisfied, he carefully let the seasoning fall into the shallow pot. He then proceeded to mix gently. Tofu was delicate and couldn't be handled without steady hands. Unless someone was just mixing it into a stir fry, retaining its shape was kind of important in terms of presentation, not that most people could really explain it that well. That didn't detract from its importance. There was a reason why the most famous restaurants across the world had a presentation of perfection. It mattered in developing the ideal atmosphere for dining, otherwise, it was the same thing as taking a plate of food and simply sitting in a cafeteria.

"Hello?" A boy's voice called out. "Is anyone here?"

Teruteru lifted his head, not familiar with the voice that he was hearing. Once he registered this in his mind, his mind began to work. New customers were always a delight for him. He was always in need of someone to test out his dishes. While Class 77-B was indeed among his closest group of friends, there was something very satisfying about meeting others. These past few months had him getting more and more familiar with his homeroom, and despite knowing some of the tricks to making them tick foodwise, new faces were uncharted territory, a new opportunity.

"COMING!" Teruteru instantly raced out of the kitchen into the semi-empty halls of the cafeteria. Aside from a few students eating either alone or in small groups, there was a largely quiet atmosphere all around. There was only one person standing, and it was a taller boy with brown hair and olive-green eyes, but most striking of all was his uniform, which was not a Main Course uniform, but rather a Reserve Course uniform.

That'll work just as well. Teruteru wasn't a picky person when it came to people. I'll just see where this goes.

"I am Teruteru Hanamura, the Super High School Level Cook, although I prefer the term chef." He introduced himself with much energy. "How may I serve you?"

"You're the Ultimate Cook?" The boy looked at him. "Good, then I need confeito, and I need it in five minutes."

"Not a problem my good man!" Teruteru nodded his head. "Now might I ask who this is for? A friend perhaps? Maybe a girlfriend?"

"...no to all of them."

"Well have no fear. I will whip up the most delicious confeito you've ever tasted. By the way, what's your name? I can hardly serve a customer if I don't have a name."

"It's Hajime Hinata."

"Hajime Hinata. I see."

The Ultimate Cook let that name process in his mind. It was a common name to be a sure, but one that did mesh well together. It certainly did roll off the tongue. It also seemed strangely familiar. Where had he heard the name?

"So… might I ask who you need these for?" Teruteru let his curiosity get the better of him. "I might know who you're doing this for."

"I don't know if you do, but sure." Hajime shrugged his shoulders. "It's… what's her name… Hiyoko?"

"Hiyoko Saionji?!" Teruteru grabbed his fellow male student by the hands. "The Ultimate Traditional Dancer?!"

"Um, yeah." Hajime grimaced a bit. "Wait, you know her?!"

"Know her?! She's part of my homeroom!" Teruteru exclaimed. "Although I have to say, Peko is more my type. So mysterious, so calm."

"Peko Pekoyama?" Again, Hajime recognized another name. "Then you're… part of Miss Yukizome's homeroom."

"You got it, my friend!" Teruteru smiled as he thought of his homeroom teacher. "A feisty one, she is, but still no less enjoyable!"

Wait a minute. Now that he was thinking about it, his classmates as of late had been involved with a Reserve Course student, and not just one or two, but a lot of them. If he remembered correctly, then…

"Wait, I do know you!" Teruteru snapped his fingers when the pieces all came together. "You're the one that everyone is talking about!"

It was king of surprising to think that this was the boy who was catching the attention of everyone in 77-B. Not to sound rude or condescending, but there wasn't anything that seemed particularly special about him, but that was okay. There was nothing wrong with indulging in more common things. Besides, if everyone liked him for some reason, then there had to be something to him that was unique, something hidden inside that wasn't clear on the surface. Yeah, that had to be it.

"Wow… that's not surprising somehow." Hajime deflated a bit. "I guess I should expect to meet everyone soon."

Okay, that wasn't exactly the most flattering tone Teruteru had ever heard, but all things considered, and he had a lot of things to consider, it wasn't the worst tone ever taken with him. No, if anything people who were somewhat unfriendly from the start had some interesting stories to tell, not to mention they were probably real freaks when all was said and done. Perhaps deep down, Hajime was more adventurous than his aura now was giving off. Yeah, that was probably it. As for his color underneath…

"Hello?" A hand in his face made his mind return to the present.

"Apologies, my good sir." Teruteru said, letting a small grin plaster on his face. "A good idea just popped into my mind."

"Right…" Hajime took a step back. "So about that confeito…"

"Oh, right!" Teruteru remembered what he was supposed to be doing. "I'll get them for you! Wait one moment!"

Of course he knew that Hiyoko had a soft spot for all things sweet and confeito was to be expected for the Ultimate Traditional Dancer. He had even gone the extra mile of making his own confeito in preparation for something like this. It would be accurate to say that he had developed some knowledge about the preferences of food that all of his classmates had. It wasn't perfect granted, but he knew enough.

It only took a minute to carefully collect a bag of his best confeito batch and return to give it to Hajime.

"By the way, if I might be so bold as to ask." Teruteru just remembered something. "Do you have a favorite food?"

"Me?" Hajime pointed to himself while collecting the bag of treats. "Well… I've always liked kusamochi."

"Ah, excellent!" Teruteru nodded in understanding. "Well, if you do come back, I can have some whipped up for you."

"Um, thanks, I guess." Hajime gazed at the confeito in his hands. "I'd better get going. Thank you."

"Best be on your way then!" Teruteru shooed him away. "It's not good to keep a lady waiting, especially Hiyoko. She can be rather demanding."

The Reserve Course student waved a goodbye before taking off again. The chef watched as his latest customer rushed off, feeling satisfied that he had done his job, even if it was a really easy job. Well, in any event, he had gained another customer, so there was also that, and who knew? Maybe something better would come out of all this.

Despair - - - Hope

Friday, August 13th, 2010

Afternoon

Hiyoko looked at the rather pitiful sight in front of her. The boy, Hajime Hinata, stood in front of her as she sat on a bench. In his hand, he held a wrapped bag of confeito. He looked absolutely worn out. He must've been running like hell to get this to her. It was kind of pathetic how she was able to manipulate this entire thing and he had to go along with it. Still, even if he was kind of wimpy, he did get her what she wanted in the timeframe that she specified, so there was that. He was reliable, even if stupid.

"Man, you're such a pushover." Hiyoko snatched the snacks into her hands. "You were so taken in by my fake tears."

"...you're welcome." Hajime said back evenly, albeit with a vexed expression.

He must've been thinking more than what he just said. If anything, his words were simply his way of ignoring her and not rising to her bait. She had to give him credit for at least trying to man up in a way.

Hiyoko opened the bag carefully so as not to spill anything and took a bite of the first confeito piece that she got her hand on. She knew that confeito always tasted good, but something about this one seemed better than everything else that had come before. It was the perfect blend of actual taste and sweetness. The texture was also something to behold as well, chewy but not too much so.

"So you like sweets." Hajime commented as he watched her. "Good to know."

"Not just any sweets!" Hiyoko declared while eating. "Japanese sweets! Foreign sweets have too much sugar and no real flavor!"

"Close your mouth." Hajime scolded her. "It's bad manners to eat and talk at the same time."

"Hey, don't talk to me like you're my father!" Hiyoko pushed back, not liking that tone. "And slaves shouldn't talk back to begin with!"

"Your slave?" Hajime repeated as if she were insane.

"Are you stupid and deaf?" Hiyoko glared at him. "I'll say it one more time. Slaves have no right to talk back to their masters!"

"And when did I become your slave exactly?"

"When I ordered you to get me confeito."

"That was only because it would've looked bad if I didn't."

"You really do love to bitch, don't you?"

"...if you want your slave to continue to do things for you, you might want to watch the mouth, otherwise a revolt's just waiting around the corner."

Hikoyo thought about saying something back, then decided to put a filter on it, as unusual as that was for her. Truthfully, she didn't have many people she called friends. Among those in Classs 77-B, she only had a few people she could say were true friends. Sure, camaraderie was fine for the class overall, but in terms of people she would bother to spend time with, they were limited. Ibuki, Mahiru, and Mikan were her go-to girls. She didn't really care much for any of the boys. Maybe they were just all too out there.

So why this one? He wasn't special at all; a Reserve Course student was nothing compared to herself, an Ultimate. Boring didn't even begin to describe what she was looking at. A uniform that represented normality, a face that could be missed in a crowd, a personality that was so bland, the entirety of everything she had experienced was normal, and being normal in her mind was the worst. Being normal meant being forgettable, and who in their right mind wanted to be forgotten?

Of course, she couldn't deny that someone getting her things was kind of nice. It saved her the effort of getting things herself.

"Hmph." Hiyoko huffed in agitation. "I'm in a good mood, so I'll let it go this time, but don't make it a habit of it."

"Yeah…"

The way he spoke had Hiyoko looking up from her snack to look at the boy. He carried a strange look on his face. It was definitely not creepy, but there was something about it that she couldn't quite figure out. It almost felt like he was trying to look into her soul and find something inside. Creepy might not be the right word to describe that look, but it certainly did feel more than a little off putting.

"What?" Hiyoko asked, maintaining an even tone.

"You're from Class 77-B, right?" Hajime questioned her.

How does he know that? Hiyoko thought about it for a second. Wait, did something mention me?

Who would talk about her to someone else? The only people that she talked to on a regular basis were Mahiru, Mikan, and Ibuki. As for the rest of Class 77-B, she talked with them on an inconsistent basis. She wasn't BFF's with all of them by any stretch of the imagination, but they were all stuck together for better or for worse. Everyone knew everyone, so it was easy to pick out who would do what with relative ease. The Ultimate Traditional Dancer pondered if one of her classmates could have mentioned something about her to someone else.

That's when another thought came to her mind. There had been talk of a boy within the Reserve Course who had been making waves with her homeroom. It didn't really concern her at first, but now that some pieces were coming together, things were beginning to make more sense, things that she had not thought about before.

"Does the name Mikan Tsumiki mean anything to you?" Hiyoko decided to take a stab at her suspicion.

"That came out of nowhere." Hajime frowned, though not in confusion. "But yes, she's a friend of mine. Why?"

"Well… has she mentioned me?" Hiyoko considered how to phrase what she wanted to say. "How did you know that I'm from 77-B? Either you heard it from someone or you're a real-life stalker."

"Okay first if all, I resent that last accusation." Hajime said with a tint of ire. "Second, I didn't hear that from Mikan."

"Then who told you?" Hiyoko began to interrogate him. "Mahiru? Ibuki? The gamer girl? One of the weirdo guys? Who?"

"Why do you care how I know?" Hajime threw a question back at her.

"What did I say about slaves talking back to their master?!" Hiyoko really didn't want to lose this argument.

"Will you st-." Hajime began, then put his head in his right hand, took a deep breath, then made eye contact again. "I'm guessing that you know… what's his name… Teruteru?"

"Wait, that creep!?" Hiyoko put down her sweets and glared up "He told you about me?!"

"Yeah, he did… wait, did you say creep?" Hajime glanced at her curiously.

"Yeah, and that's a nice way to describe his problems." Hiyoko grumbled. "Of all the people to talk about me."

"So… I wasn't imagining that weird feeling." Hajime rubbed the back of his neck. "I knew something was off about him."

"Yeah, and if you know what's good for you, you would stay away from him."

"But… he's your classmate."

"Hope's Peak screwed up assigning him to our class!"

"...you're eating something he made."

"...what?"

"You heard me."

Hiyoko felt revulsion at first, and for a moment, she was about to toss her treats aside, but then she was stopped with a hand around her wrist. Her eyes trailed back up to Hajime's face, and his face didn't betray his disapproval of what she was about to do.

"Let go of me!" Hiyoko tried to free herself.

"Don't throw that away." Hajime scolded her. "Yes, it came from Teruteru, but I can tell that he's dedicated to his talent. I doubt Hope's Peak would call him the Super High School Level Cook for no reason!"

"I don't care!" Hiyoko screeched back.

"How would you like it if someone told you your talent was worthless?" Hajime's face hardened. "How would you feel if people insulted your talent? How would you feel if someone watched you dance and call it terrible? How would you feel if you had to deal with that every single day?"

That hit just a bit too close to home for the Ultimate Traditional Dancer's liking. Whether she admitted it or not, the reality was that many traditions of Japan were slowly fading away into obscurity and being replaced with norms that didn't have roots in Japan. It disheartened her when tradition was thrown away without much thought. Did tradition mean so little to people now? Why didn't people care?

"Well?" Hajime pressed her for an answer. "How would you feel?"

"I wouldn't like it, okay?!" Hiyoko retorted back. "It's part of who I am!"

"And I'm sure that for Teruteru, cooking is a part of who he is too." The boy used her logic on her. "By insulting him, you're contradicting yourself."

A pause full of tension ensued. She tried to face him with all of her fury and frustration. He met her gaze with her own emotions, albeit with more control. They stared each other down for another minute. Then, with a huff, she turned her head, losing all motivation to throw a fit.

"Thank you." Hajime let her go.

"Whatever." Hiyoko didn't look at him.

Hope - - - Despair

Friday, August 13th, 2010

Evening

Ryota Mitarai felt his head against the cold surface that was his desk. When did he fall asleep again? How long had he been doing this? What time was it now? Actually, what day was it to begin with?

The Super High School Level Animator lifted his head and was immediately greeting with a stinging sensation. His mouth felt extremely dry his insides even more so. He needed to drink something. At this point, he wasn't going to be picky about what he drank as long as it was healthy and it would hydrate him. He noticed a cup nearby and reached carefully for it. When he lifted it up, he found it more heavy than he expected.

When's the last time I ate something? Ryoto realized he felt hungry too, which was likely a factor in how weak he was now.

With a great deal of effort on his part, he moved the cup to his lips and tipped it to his lips. It was cold coffee apparently, but his brain was still trying to wake up, so he swallowed with almost no regard for how it tasted or how it felt. It might as well be the most delicious coffee that was on this Earth.

I need to get back to work. Ryoto felt the cold beverage enter his systems, making him more alert. I'm not even close to being done.

The boy found his right hand to be empty, so he shifted himself to start looking for his pen for his drawing tablet. He must've dropped it when he fell asleep. His eyes first scanned the floor around his chair. His vision was blurry, not surprising considering that he had woken up not even five minutes ago. He rubbed his eyes to clear away the mucus that had built up before returning to his search.

Eventually, he came upon it at the back of his desk and he had to crawl on all four to get to it. Checking it for damage and seeing nothing wrong, he tested it on his tablet. When everything checked out, he began to refocus his mind on what he was doing. He had been in the middle of outlining another scene before he succumbed to sleep. It looked like he would need at least another few more minutes to make this part more coherent with the stuff that he had already finished. If he had help doing this, he could have had this done sooner. Even one person helping him would've been appreciated.

"Hey, Ryota, you in there?" Right on cue, the Ultimate Imposter knocked on the door. "I've got some stuff for you."

"It's open." Ryota replied weakly, not sure if he was loud enough.

The door opened to display what looked to be a fatter version of himself. At first, the Ultimate Animator was unnerved by this disguise. How was anyone supposed to fall for such a thing? Then he saw it in action and he never questioned it again. This was actually good for him too. Now he could dedicate all of his time animating since attending class wasn't mandatory, which he was thankful for.

"Man, you really need to take a shower." His double said to him. "And actually eat three meals a day. You look terrible."

"I need to keep working." Ryota replied with the same thing he always said. "The world needs this."

The world needed lots of hope.

Hey guys. Sorry for the late chapter. College was really on my case the entire semester. I'm so close to graduating and getting a job that it feels kind of surreal I've been going to school for so long that I wonder what it'll be like once I leave the system.

So in regards to the story, I've developed some more ideas and plots in regards to the overarching plot. Focusing on character building is my primary concern, but let's not forget that in Danganronpa, as much as we wish we had a game with strictly Free Time Events and nothing else, there are darker things to come. Introducing Ryota and the Ultimate Impostor will have a dramatic effect on events.

So do you guys have a particular character you want to see next? If you do, please let me know. While I can't guarantee that your character will show up, I can say that when he or she does, the part will be written with careful attention to details.

I hope you guys are doing well, and if you celebrate a holiday at this time of year, the Happy Holidays!

"In every conceivable manner, the family is the link to our past, bridge to our future."

Alex Haley