Greetings, and Happy Holidays. Though I suppose with how late in the evening I'm posting this, most of the world has already moved on from the holidays. And most people who read this in the future aren't going to be reading it on Christmas day. Either way, perhaps I should change that "Happy" to "Trigger Happy." (Wait, I made that joke last year, didn't I? Oh god oh fu-)

I'm sorry this took so long, but y'know, the holidays get in the way of schedules and such. Still, I got this one out just in time for Christmas, and if memory serves I posted a chapter last Christmas, too. Maybe I'll make this a tradition.

This chapter doesn't really progress the story at all, but it is important for two different relationships, those being Maki and Peko, and Albert and Byakuya. If either of those pairs developing in any way sounds interesting to you, read further. If not, I guess you can ignore this chapter. It'd hurt my feelings, though.

Either way, I hope you enjoy this chapter.


Chapter 12

Duelling Ideologies

The following morning, Peko found herself standing by the pool, thinking about recent events. Given all that was happening, with the divides in the group, and the new motive, she knew it was going to only get harder to fulfill her duties. She glanced over her shoulder at the bamboo sword she carried. Perhaps the tropical environment had made her too lax. Her skill was rusty. And a rusty blade was worthless.

She turned to make her way out of the hotel grounds, to find a tree or something similar to practice against. Of course, it would be best if she could practice against a human opponent, but few on the island seemed to have skill with any weapon, much less a blade. She would have to work with what she had.

However, before she reached the gate, she heard footsteps approaching from behind, and turned to see Maki making her way toward her.

"Hey, Peko. Looks like I almost missed you." She said.

"Hello, Maki. I see you didn't get the drop on me like last time we spoke." Peko remarked.

"What, at the library? Huh, now that I think of it, that is the last time we had a real talk. Feels so long ago, now."

"...What are you getting at?"

"Well, I've managed to get a grasp on everyone else here during the last few days, but I haven't had many chances to talk with you. I can appreciate the "mysterious" vibe you give off, but I just can't help myself, I just have a compulsive need to get an idea on how everyone around me thinks. So, I was wondering if you wouldn't mind indulging me. You were leaving, right? Maybe we could take a walk together or something."

Due to her upbringing, Peko had a hard time saying no when someone told her to do something, so she found herself instead saying, "If you wish to join me, I won't stop you. However, I'm afraid I won't be able to do much talking. I'm planning to hone my blade for a while, you see."

"Oh, that's fine. There's only so much you can learn from someone by talking with them, you know. Maybe there's another way I could get to know you..."

"What did you have in mind?"

She eyed the other girl for a moment, before a smirk made its way across her face. "Do you have a spare sword I could use?"


"Are you ready?" Peko asked, preparing her kendo stance.

"I think so!" Maki called from the other end of the beach. Her lab coat was discarded off to the side, though didn't seem particularly restricted by her dress shirt and pants. She held her shinai in front of her in a very calm way, not one of the standard kendo stances.

"Are you sure you don't want to wear the kendogu?" Peko asked. She was surprised that a newcomer would choose to go without the protection.

"It's too hot for something like that." She groaned. "Besides, I think I'm more cut out for a fighting style relying on speed. No point in slowing me down."

"Very well. Let us begin." With that, she threw off the kendo stance and sprinted toward the Criminologist. She angled her sword for a strike at Maki's chest, but just before she made contact, her opponent's sword met her in a parry.

Peko was holding back, only going at a fraction of her usual speed, for the sake of her opponent. But even so, Maki held up a lot easier than she expected. Peko sent a series of swift strikes, aiming at various angles toward Maki's head and torso, but the other girl blocked every one of them, only moments behind Peko in terms of reaction speed. She's playing on the defensive, Peko thought, but this is certainly not her first duel.

At one point, Maki managed to parry Peko hard enough to temporarily throw her off balance. She took the opportunity to switch to offensive tactics, and swung for Peko's head. Fortunately, it was similar enough to some moves that Peko had seen before, and she dodged it in time. And with Maki's defences down, Peko was able to get in a clean hit.

"Ah!" Maki fell to the ground, clutching her side and breathing heavily.

"Are you alright?" Peko asked. "I tried to hold back."

She held up a hand. "I'm good. Just winded. It's been a couple of years since I did... well, any sports, really. Good thing you did hold back, too, or I'd have a few shattered ribs."

"You held yourself well. Surprisingly well. In fact, you lasted more than a minute against me. Not many others have done that."

Maki took a deep breath. "...Yeah, maybe. But you were just toying with me, weren't you?"

"It was that easy to tell?"

"Remember by talent? Analyzing data and people is my specialty. And," She slowly stood and met Peko's eyes. "I think I'm starting to understand you a bit more."

"From analyzing my fighting style?"

"Yeah. For starters, your sword strikes are quick and precise, like brush strokes. You're an artist of battle, one could say. But despite this, you swing your blade with a passion. Swordfighting isn't just something you're talented in, I would almost say it's your whole world. But there's more to it than that. You don't just do swordfighting for the sake of discipline or the glory of victory. You swing your blade with conviction. You have something to protect, something that's more important to you than your sword. Am I right?"

Peko stared at the girl for a few seconds, unsure what to say. "...You were able to tell all of that just from our single fight?"

Maki didn't respond with words, but rather smug chuckling. "Well, that's enough of me showing off, I think. Is there anything else you'd like to talk about?"

"Well... to tell you the truth, I have been wondering one thing." She admitted. "Is there a specific reason you seem to have a grudge against the yakuza?"

Maki scoffed. "I mean, doesn't everyone hate the yakuza?"

"That may be true, but... From the way you speak, it seemed to me that you have a more personal reason for disliking them."

"Well yeah, my career is in law enforcement. Of course I'd hate criminals, and crime organizations are even worse. By having people be part of a crime organization, it makes them more willing to do things that they would otherwise be too scared to try, since now they have the connections and backing to get away with certain things. Others in my field are typically against busting these organizations, though, because it creates a power vacuum that just makes everything worse. But I'm an Ultimate, so I'm not afraid of such things. As the Ultimate Criminologist, I plan to reduce the crime rate of Japan to zero. If I have to stir the pot a little to make that happen, so be it. It'll save more lives in the long run."

"A 0% crime rate, huh...?" Peko considered the idea in her head, but knew well enough that it was impossible, even for an Ultimate. No matter how Utopian the nation became, there would always be those who attempt to cheat or steal to gain power. She also knew now that Maki's goal and her own background were incompatible. Maki would only serve to get in the way of her duties. Subconsciously, she tightened her grip on her sword.

It may have been a coincidence, but Maki seemed to shift the way she held her own sword to a more defensive position. Despite this, her expression was curious. "Is there a problem with what I said?"

"Ah, no, it's just... You're quite skilled at saying very little in so many words."

Maki's expression shifted to one that was almost offended, before she loosened her posture and laughed, giving Peko a light punch on the shoulder. "I suppose in that way, we're quite a pair, huh? You know how to get your meaning across in as few words as possible."

"Thank you. It's just another skill you pick up when they teach you discipline." She held up her blade. "Speaking of, are you ready to continue?"

"Round two, huh? Sure, just give me a second..." She took a few deep breaths to steady herself.

"And... if you don't mind, could I ask you another question?"

"Fire away."

She pointed just above the girl. "Why is it you wear that hairband?"

"What, this?" Maki raised a hand and started stroking the cat ears. "I just have a thing for felines, I guess. Not enough to get myself fake whiskers or anything that crazy, but we dad a lot of them around the house growing up. Plus, I think it adds to my charm, don't you?"

Ignoring that last comment, Peko nodded. "I see... I always wanted a pet growing up, but it would never work with my living arrangements."

"Landlord didn't like animals?"

"Something like that. On top of it all, animals seem to fear me. My presence is enough to scare them away."

"I've known some people like that. Though, Gundham's hamsters don't seem scared of you. Maybe you could ask him for advice." Maki suggested. "...Anyway, like I was saying, I hardly go anywhere without this thing, even if it's not exactly "formal." And it's not one of those cheap toys you buy a little girl for a costume party, I got this custom made. It almost feels like real cat fur. Just my own-"

"Real fur, huh...?" Peko thought for a moment. "If you don't mind... could I feel for myself?"

Maki hesitated, seemingly caught off-guard. "I'm usually not one for touchy-feely stuff. Tell you what, we'll keep duelling like you want to, and if you win every single time, I'll let you pet my ears. But if I win even once, the deal's off the table."

"Sounds fair to me." Peko agreed.

In the end, Peko was allowed to pet Maki's ears to her heart's delight.


The archive was very quiet. Usually, there was supposed to be someone sorting through and managing everything, but either they were resting, or they weren't on the island with us, because I was completely and utterly alone, surrounded by shelves upon shelves of books. My old self would probably piss himself, being alone in a place like this, but now my head was a host of even more nightmarish figments. A quiet library was nothing special.

I had a history book cracked open on the table before me. Well, the term "history book" makes it sound old, but this book couldn't be older than a year. "The Tragedy: What was "The Incident" all about?" by Yoichi Muraoka is a compilation of the events leading up to the Tragedy that are known to the public (which aren't a lot), and what measures could be taken to prevent further issues in the future (which are a lot). Next to that book, I had some documents the Future Foundation has around that goes into a little more detail about the pre-Tragedy events. What I was mainly looking for was an indication, any indication, that I had changed anything. Well, anything beyond saving Chiaki's life and... generally existing. Anything that could have lead to Junko changing her tactics, or explaining why someone named Maki Yugami would suddenly invade our program. No dice.

I heard the creaky door open and shut, and footsteps making their way toward me. Looking up briefly from my work, I saw Byakuya arrive.

"At least you take your work as seriously as your ideology." He said.

"Hello to you too, Byakuya." I said rather quietly.

"I take it you haven't found anything useful." He guessed, taking a seat across from me. He placed what was in his hands on the table: a stack of documents, and a steaming mug.

"Civet coffee?" I guessed from the scent and his own preference.

He gave me a look that was a mix between impressed and annoyed. "Correct. I'm surprised I was able to find it. Apparently, the Future Foundation is in possession of most of the last of it. At least, until the world is in good enough shape for civet farms to be rebuilt."

"From what I hear, those farms are actually pretty shitty to the civets." I informed him.

He gestured to the cup. "The brand that I drink is known for collecting from wild civets. It makes it more expensive, but it tastes much better that way."

"Well, it's nice to know you don't enjoy the taste of animal's suffering. Though, uh, you do know that that shit's made from... well, shit, right?"

He rolled his eyes. "It's not made from the fecal matter itself, obviously. They wash the coffee cherries before using them, so it just leaves behind the taste. It's like how you commoners cook chicken with beer in it or something. The beer boils away, making it non-alcoholic, but the taste remains."

"Yeah, I-I know all that. I just meant..." I paused and shook my head. "Whatever. Enjoy your shit-flavoured coffee."

He sighed and took a sip. "I don't understand why you feel the need to antagonize me."

"Same to you, dude. I'm not gonna try to be delicate when talking to the guy who plays with corpses for fun."

"That wasn't-"

"-for fun, I know. Jeez, you gotta stop taking everything I say so seriously."

"In case you hadn't noticed, we don't have time for games or stupid jokes. Every moment we spend sitting on our thumbs, the Despairs are planning their next move. And currently, our entire class bar Hina is stuck here dealing with this case. We have all these things on our backlog that need to get done, and it's only wasting our time."

"Stop that!" I snapped. "Seriously, Byakuya, you need to just... stop talking to everyone like your the only one who understands the stakes. You think a global scale is too big for my commoner brain to imagine? Toshihide sure fuckin' fixed that when he left."

"I was just-"

"In fact," I got to my feet. "you don't got your goddamn family backing you anymore. The only things special about you anymore are your past, which isn't helping much at the moment, and your blood, which is gonna look exactly the same as everyone else's when it spills."

"Is this-"

"And I don't think you quite understand who I am, so let me remind you. I'm the one who's actions and inactions allowed the Tragedy to happen in the first place, and that didn't stop me. I'm the one who was willing to let Monokuma kill me if it meant the future would be corrected, and that didn't stop me. I'm the one who waded through a war-torn Towa City like it was a fucking retail job, and that didn't stop me. I'm the one who got kidnapped from my only home, dropped into the goddamn apocalypse on this one, and forced to save as many people as I could, and that sure as shit didn't stop me. My "commoner" ass has dealt with more bullshit in the past six months than any noble before our time, but I haven't given up yet, and I won't let someone like you get in the way of that. So get it through your head, you pompous windbag. You're not the leader of this here project. I am. And my "ideals" that you like to rag on are the only shield left keeping me from becoming a full-on Ultimate Despair, so you best watch your tone when you address me. Peasant."

When silence took over the archive, it lasted for a while. Eventually, Byakuya raised one of his furrowed eyebrows and asked, "Are you done?"

"Yeah, I guess... I mean..." I shook my head and took my seat. "Fuck, man... What more is there to say?"

"I don't know, you seemed pretty enthusiastic there. I'm sure you could come up with more." He scoffed. "And after Kyoko convinced me to come here and try to apologize to you. Perhaps I should just take my leave."

"Look... I'm sorry, okay? I-I never wanted to hate you. When I first saw you, when I first played Danganronpa, I loved your design, and while your personality was shitty, I thought you'd have a turnaround at some point. I took every chance I could to hang out with you, just hoping in vein that there was something I was missing. But there wasn't. We just have two different world views, and that's all there is to it. Sometimes I wonder if you even want to change..."

"Of course not. Right now, I'm working on changing the world, for the better. It would be a waste of time to shift my worldview when I could be shifting the view of others."

"Sometimes, if you want others to accept your ideas, you have to be able to change tactics and see things from their point of view." I explained. "Besides, it's not like you've never had any character development. I know there's something there, you started changing your tune after Sakura's trial."

He was quiet for a moment. "...I could say the same for you. I feel like that trial was the point where you finally started growing up. For one thing, you were able to start calling our dead classmates by their names, instead of just "victim"."

"You noticed that, huh? That's..." I shrugged. "I couldn't bear to think of them as real people. I used words like "victim" because it made them a statistic, it made it easier to bear the guilt. But then at Sakura's trial, I decided I was ready to trust you guys with my burden, so I didn't need to shield myself from the guilt anymore."

"By sharing the burden with friends, the weight is spread out and easier to carry." Byakuya paraphrased. "You said something to that effect when I left Towa, if I recall."

I nodded. "I know you spent most of your life seeing humans as tools or obstacles, but there's more to us than that, you have to believe me. I... used to think similarly to you."

He almost spat out his coffee. "You? Thought like me?"

"I know, it's hard to believe. It's even harder for me to admit. But it's true. I was never the most personable guy around. I didn't have many friends, back in my home world. I dealt with bullying for a long time. And on the internet, all I would see are articles and posts about how horrible people can be. Theft, drugs, embezzlement, animal abuse, sexual assault, rape, murder, terrorism, war..." I grimaced and shook my head. "After a while, it really drills into you. I became a pessimist, a cynic, and saw humanity through a blackened lens. Humans were animals, that's what I told myself. Animals who did whatever they could get away with to fulfill their selfish desires."

"If you're about to tell me that that view was wrong, you're more naive than I thought." He warned.

"No. As much as I hate to admit it, there are plenty of horrible people out there, even without the Ultimate Despairs running around. But there is one part of that worldview that I eventually had to correct."

"And that was?"

"Not every human is like that. A select few people are completely selfless, almost entirely void of sin, kind. After I had this realization, I started to look for the good in everyone. And I realized that even the worst monster has something to give, has the chance to be redeemed. I decided that human life was worth protecting, no matter what. And that's where my ideals come from."

Byakuya stayed silent for a while, sipping his coffee a few times. From his expression, I could tell my story at least reached him. As he analyzed it in his mind, all I could do was prepare myself for his reaction. Eventually, he just asked, "When you say "everyone deserves to be redeemed," do you include Junko in that clause as well?"

"Of course." I said without hesitation. "She had people she loved, she had dreams and aspirations. With a proper psychologist, she could have been rehabilitated." A better psychologist than me. We both thought it, but neither said it.

"And, hypothetically, if Junko did have the chance to be tried and rehabilitated, would you hold yourself accountable if she escaped and committed even more atrocities?"

"Yes."

We were both quiet for a long time after that. I took the moment to read a few passages from the documents.

Once more, Byakuya broke the silence. "I'll admit... I may have been wrong in my earlier assessment of you. I know from firsthand experience that your words aren't empty. You are emotional, sometimes to an annoying degree, but... you've never avoided the responsibility of your actions. Not many commoners are like that. Hell, many nobles like to pass blame on those below them."

"...What are you trying to say?" I asked.

"I... suppose I can let it go, this time."

"Huh?"

"I'll let you keep command of this project. I won't get in your way. If you demand that Maki Yugami is dealt with non-lethally, then I'll follow your lead. But I hope you're ready for the consequences if this bites us in the rear later."

I gave him a smile. An actual, genuine, non-smirking smile. "Byakuya, that's great, but... I don't want this to be a dictatorship."

"Hm?"

"That's why I'm always pushing you back. Because you're always trying to take control of everything. I don't know how it is for nobles, but on the level of society I grew up in, a good leader knows to listen to those he leads. That's the kinda leader I want to be. Your opinion is important, as is mine, but I want this to be everyone's decision. That way, we all share the responsibility."

Byakuya considered this, and a smile played upon his face. It was less genuine than mine, but for Byakuya, it was better than nothing. "So that's it. In the same way you hate to bear the burden of guilt on your own, you were trying to "help" me by making it so I didn't have to bear the burden of leadership." He tsked at me a few times, his smile becoming a smirk. "Ridiculous. You didn't think I, Byakuya Togami, would be able to handle such a burden? I've been trained my whole life for something like that."

"Whether or not you can isn't the question." I told him. "The important part is that you don't have to. That's what it means to be part of a team. And whether you like it or not, you're a part of class 78... just like me."

He nodded. "Alright then. If that's your decision, then I'll tell Kyoko to arrange a conference tomorrow. This time, we'll hold a vote regarding the fate of Maki Yugami. But are you prepared to deal with the cons of a democracy?"

"What do you mean?"

"In a democracy, only the majority is ever heard. This makes it so that the largest number of people possible are happy, but if you're not part of the majority, there's nothing you can do except try to sway others to your side. So, hypothetically speaking, if the majority of our friends decide to kill Maki, will you accept that?"

"I can't accept her death, if that's what you mean." I admitted. "If it turns out we kill an innocent girl, I'd be furious. But I'll accept everyone's decision. And I'll accept my part of the responsibility."

"Hmm... I suppose that's all we can do for now, isn't it?"

"You got that right. After the vote, our next course of action will be decided. For now, all we can do is watch where the pieces fall."

We read in silence for another little while. At the time just before it would've become awkward, Byakuya spoke up. "One last question, Al. Earlier, you spoke of how you hated humanity in the past, but a realization caused you to change your worldview. What caused this realization to occur?"

I smiled. "I guess you could say a friend of mine helped me see the light."

I'm not sure why I didn't tell him that it was Makoto's speech at the end of Danganronpa that changed my worldview, but I let it go unsaid. That was in the past, after all. We had to focus on our future for now.


Once again, Maki proves herself to be proficient in another skill. If you are starting to get to the point where you're thinking maybe she's too perfect, trust me, I'm going somewhere with this shit. Like I said at the beginning, no matter what your opinion of her is, it's likely intentional. Unless you want her to be your waifu, in that case, oops.

I usually try to keep Albert level-headed outwardly, even during stressful moments. It's just sort of how he is, he always tries to think things through logically, even when his emotions are boiling inside. This way, when he has an OOC moment and snaps at someone, it can be shocking. In the first story, he ranted about how crazy his classmates are, and straight-up cried in front of Chihiro after his escape plan failed. In AE:AH, he snaps at Komaru and breaks her down after she assumes he doesn't know what it's like to struggle. And during all of these stories, his relationship with Byakuya was always strained due to their differing worldviews. This chapter is basically the culmination of their duelling ideologies. (Hey, that sounds like a cool chapter title!)

In the next chapter, we'll get on with the story, but there might be deadly consequences for that...