As predicted, 'Togami' was not pleased with the ration situation and with Teruteru struggling to regain control of the kitchen, meal times had become a battle field of sorts. The chef seemed particularly fond of stabbing the nearest wooden surface as a form of intimidation.
"Please there is no need for this!" Sonia begged.
"I don't want this low brow dish-rag near our supplies!" The chef barked, brandishing his knife toward the imposter. "We don't have the luxury of wasting food."
"And I refuse to eat anything that cannibal so much as lays a finger on." 'Togami' countered.
"Then you can starve!" Teruteru trembled with rage. It was hard enough for him to practice his craft without some unnamed critic judging his every move.
"That is enough!" Sonia bellowed. "Tanaka-san is already in charge of meals during the day. If you wish to cook, it will have to be at night when Kuzuryuu-san can better assist you." The princess whipped around to the new comer. "And your behavior is rather unbecoming of an heir 'Togami-san'. I expected a little more grace under pressure from you."
"Heir to what exactly?" 'Togami' pressed. While blond, the imposter made no effort to appear like the corporate head, yet all participants insisted on referring to them as such. "You know who I am, or rather who I am not."
"That is no excuse for being a pain in the ass about this." Akane rolled her neck. "I don't like the set up either, but we have to do something or we'll be at each other's throats constantly."
"You just want to eat his food." The Imposter observed.
"It's been so long~" Akane whined.
"Are we going to gloss over the whole cannibal thing?" Kazuichi gapped.
"I'm not a cannibal." Teruteru groaned. "I tricked other people into eating long pork. There's a difference." Gundam quietly observed his company , though only Sonia seemed to understand.
"Why do I get the feeling it's not?" Kazuchi narrowed his eyes, barely holding back a second accusation.
"Drop the righteous act kid killer, like you're any better." The chef rolled his eyes. Kazuichi trembled, masking his expression with his hat.
"That's enough!" The whole room was captivated by Sonia's presence. "We do not ask much; only that no one is harmed and you respect our decision to help you. You do not have to like each other; you do not even have to like us. But lashing out at each other will not get us off this island." She dropped her arms to her sides. "So if you would please agree to disagree we can proceed with orientation. Kazuichi-san, I'm so-" She turned to find the mechanic's seat empty. The imposter leaned close to Gundam.
"Follow him." They whispered. With a nod, Gundam silently pursued the runaway mechanic.
It wasn't long before Gundam found Souda routing through a box of spare parts. With a grunt, he slammed the overflowing tin on the ground.
"Damn it!" He held his head in his hands. "It can't be true, they're – they're just dreams!" The teen was crouched and uncoordinated. If he were to wager a guess, Gundam would assume the technician was going 27 hours without sleep. Souda jolted at the sound of footsteps, aware eyes had fallen on him. "Gundam!" He fell on his rear. "Don't sneak up on me like that!" Gundam said nothing in response, the lingering fragments of sunlight slowly dipping into the ocean. There was a heavy silence that hung between them as Gundam studied him. Souda couldn't tell from the expression on Gundam's face what could be going through the breeder's mind.
To be fair, the mechanic couldn't tell what was going through a lot of people's heads these days, let alone his own. He felt trapped on the island in a way he hadn't felt in the Neo World. Even in despair, Souda had assumed that the Ultimate Imposter waking up would somehow fix everything. He had been a victim unlike the others, so clearly he should have been fine. But seeing him at the meeting acting like that left a bad taste in his mouth. It didn't feel right. None of this did.
"I can't tell if this is your weird way of comforting me, but thanks." Kazuichi crouched down and hid his head in his hands. "He's right, y'know. I made so many of those robots thinking people would finally understand my genius. But it doesn't take a genius to hurt people. And no matter how many times I try to forget, I know they're out there man." He'd been trying so hard all week not to fixate on those nightmares, yet here he was. "This wasn't supposed to happen. We were supposed to be 'better' by now." The more he hung around these deranged versions of their friends, the more he remembered things he wanted to forget. Still Gundam remained at his side.
"Erasing your memories will not erase the past." Gundam muttered hoarsely. Kazuichi froze in place, a chill craweling down his spine. The breeder's stare was dull and emotionless. "If you wish to plung yourself further into delusion, perhaps you should remain on the island?"
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Kazuichi demanded. The breeder said nothing in retaliation. "Don't pull that silent act on me, I know you can talk!" Kazuichi continued to press. Gundam merely turned and began to walk back to the hotel. "Hey, look at me when I'm talking to you!" He grabbed Gundam's shoulder, but couldn't heed his progression. "What the hell's your problem?" Gundam paused, as if considering an answer, only to resume his retreat. He had to report to Junko the news. Kazuishi wasn't on the verge of relapsing quite yet.
That night Akane assisted Teruteru in the kitchen. She acted as his hands, chopping vegetables at lightening speed. They were working on a giant curry, oddly nostalgic in flavor. She was amazed the Neo World could replicate such complex flavors from the chef's memories.
"It'll be nice to finally taste the real deal." She attempted at light conversation. The chef was zoned out in his chair thinking of something else. The dull roar of the heat vents echoed throughout the kitchen. As she slowed her pace, she stared intently at chef. "Uhh… Hello? A few minutes ago you were psyched for this cookout. Campfire on the beach, remember?" She set down the knife, now on high alert. The Teruteru she knew was never this low energy.
"Owari-san, what the hell are we doing?" His head hung low, his arms folded in his lap. Teruteru all but looked defeated.
"We're making curry?" Akane half laughed, feeling stifled.
"I mean after this. When all's said and done, all your little friends awake, then what?" He rubbed his eyes slowly. "Where are we going to go?"" At first, Akane wanted to say 'home', but for her, home was long gone. "I joined the clan when I had nothing left to loose… but, what do we gain by staying here?"
She didn't have any answers. It was, quite frankly, something she had been trying not to think about. There was no one left that would miss them. And thanks to Junko, no one that could forget them. There was no normal life for them in the future.
"We gain great curry." Akane stated matter of factly. "And you get to rub our noses in how great you are."
"How long do you honestly think you'll be able to put up with that?" Teruteru asked with a tired smirk.
"You'd be surprised how patient I can be." Akane puffed out her chest. "I raised ten kids on a waitress's salary! When I put my mind to it, I can tune out anything." She tuned out a lot of things. It made the hard times seem easier. Who had time to feel despair while sparring or cooking or whatever task she set herself on? She's keep waiting until the world found something new to be outraged at.
"That isn't the same as listening." Teruteru shook his head.
"I'm listening now, aren't I?" Akane shrugged.
"Kinda," Teruteru chuckled, "though not when I told you to stop eating ingredients."
"What was that?" Akane gapped through a mouthful of chicken. "Sorry, couldn't hear over the pan and my stomach. Cooking can be so noisy."
"I said stop eating-"
"Oh so loud!" Akane slapped her spoon into the pain, deliberately making as much noise as she could.
"It's good to see you happy again after all these years." Of everyone from the clan, he was glad that Akane was the one who forgot everything. At least one person got to have their wish from Junko granted.
Everyone gathered around the warm glow of the bonfire, eagerly snacking on an assortment of curry and beef skewers. It was the liveliest it had been on the island in a long time. Even the former Remnants of Despair had dropped their pretenses to enjoy a warm home cooked meal under a setting sun.
"This really was worth the wait!" Akane cried as she shoved another handful sized portion of curry into her mouth. It was almost nostalgic in a way, to be gathered by the coastline eating Teruteru's cooking.
"You're the one that did all the work." Teruteru laughed, with the slightest grimace as Akane whipped her mouth on the back of her arm. "But I'm glad the recipe is to your liking."
"Damn it," Souda hung his head, "I was really going to try and hold a grudge, but it's so fucking good. Give me another bowl" They had also justified their indulgence as a celebration of half the students returning to reality. For, even though only four Remnants had awoken, they had never celebrated the fact that they had survived the killing game at all.
"The feast is adequate." 'Togami' relented. The group tensed, watching the two back and forth with bated breath.
"Quit your peacocking," Teruteru grinned, "I can tell when my cooking's brought a man to tears and that is a tear!"
"I'm honestly surprised you haven't tried to taste test it for poison." Fuyuhiko joked.
"Oh he did," Akane gestured wildly at Sonia and Gundam who were eating quietly next to Peko, "those two had to act as armed escorts for the food. It was like trying to keep a sheep from a wolf."
"I am not some animal that has to be corralled!" 'Togami' said and held his chin up high.
"Then why was Gundam able to herd you so well?" Souda snickered, and through the whole group into a laughing fit. As the bowls were collected and the satisfied hum of cicadas faded into the night, the group sluggishly decided it was time to wrap up the evening.
Hinata had been especially quiet throughout the night. So, as people were saying their goodbyes, Souda quickly took a seat by his friend who stared intently at the flickering flames.
"I drew the next pieces." Hinata said quietly, breaking the silence.
"Hey, we're doing alright." Souda gave Hinata a pat on the back. "We've been able to handle four of them so far, and the only injury sustained was when Gundam grabbed a hot pan with his bare hands."
"The next are Hiyoko… and Mikan." Hinata said morosely. Souda withheld a string of unnamed curses, trying to find a positive spin on it.
"Well we knew this day would eventually come." Souda shook his head. "And we have way more man power. Hell, doesn't she have a kink for the injured and feeble? Teruteru could finally have a girl that was into him-" His attempts at levity did little to ease the brunette's anxiety.
"What if we just… waited a little longer." Hinata suggested, though he already knew the answer.
"Come on man, we promised we'd be fair. Besides, no offense to Fuyuhiko, but we could use someone on the island that knows a thing or two about medicine. We've done great with others, what's got you so freaked out about her?" Hinata sighed and looked at his friend.
"We didn't know what they'd be like, and honestly, we've been really lucky that no one's gotten hurt. But with Mikan- We know she'll want to kill people and how good she is at lying. She's too dangerous to be around the others when they're so fragile." Hinata was honestly afraid of what the purple haired girl would try to do to him. She knew intimate details about their health history well before the doctors on the island had. It wouldn't surprise him if she had a hand in helping with the experimentation Hope's Peak did on him. It was harder to turn an optimistic eye on reviving her when he had seen what she was capable of in a single night.
"We can't just leave her there Hinata. We owe it to her." Souda argued. "The old Mikan would never leave us in a coma." Hinata wasn't so sure that was true.
Peko was just about finished cleaning up after everyone on the beach as the bonfire slowly drowned in the tide. At her insistence, the other day-shifters had retired for the evening. It was frightening how easily they trusted her now. She watched as Fuyuhiko and Hinata carried back the last of the dishes used for the evening's merriment.
"Upupupu, gullible little things aren't they?" 'Togami' chuckled. Even without an elaborate costume, the likeness was uncanny.
"Knock it off, this is no time for one of your impressions." Peko glared at the imposter over the dying embers.
"Look hun, I know the pig-tails were iconic, but they would simply die without conditioning. Pixie cuts are very en vogue right now, especially with the cast-away crowd." The imposter huffed. "Sue me for thinking you wanted to talk to a girl with more than two brain-cells." Every movement a pose, Peko could tell there was a deadly, underlying sincerity to those words.
"What makes you think I need to talk to you?" Peko remained guarded, cursing her separation from her blade.
"Aww," 'Junko' cooed, "you know I'm starting to think no one missed me when I bit the big one." What followed was a manic laughing fit. "Each reunion fills me with an even sweeter despair! It almost makes all this worth it!" In an instant, Junko took on a regal air. "We don't recommend biting the hand that feeds you dear. An impudent pet like yourself should have already learned that lesson, no?"
"This about my master?" Peko resigned. Of course, even here she managed to garner judgment for following him.
"Bitch, last I checked I was your master!" 'Junko' flipped her off. "I don't give a fuck what you do with your baby daddy as long as you have a plan for that fetus fanny pack you're smuggling under those second hand sweaters!" Peko felt her body grow cold.
"I'm not- I never-" She stammered. It was her worst nightmare coming through.
"Darling, you're the one who came crying to me, begging me for help." 'Junko' purred. "I gave you so many creative ideas too. Seppuku during a gender reveal party with the family sword is still my favorite. I really spent hours trying to craft the perfect way to get off while solving your petty problems." She stroked Peko's cheek with a loving hand. "But, I just can't help but notice that it's still alive." Peko swatted her hand away with a shaking hand. These details were terribly personal, and she had made sure no one would know about it. No one, except for Junko, her once closest friend and confidant. Was she really back? Or had the model violated her trust and told this person her darkest secret? Both were possibly, and she wasn't sure which was worse. "You didn't forget your promise did you?"
"The doctors said it was a miracle we both survived the Neo World, I…" She had three more months before it would become noticeable. Barely enough time to get everyone off the island in time to run and hide. Not enough time to come up with a better plan.
"He doesn't know." Junko smiled wider than a Cheshire cat. "And here, I was on your ass for not doing it yet!" Her complexion grew gray and sullen. "Imagine… the look on his face… when you murder your child… A child he doesn't remember creating… in front of everyone… just as when they think they can leave the island… I'm so happy I could die all over again."
"Please, I- If there is any part of you that truly was my friend don't-" She couldn't go through this again. The deep ocean of despair was all that awaited her. "I need you to help me."
"Peko, dear Peko, I love you like a sister." 'Junko' held her in a sweet embrace as the last of the fire died out. "That's why you'll do this for Big Sis Junko. It's the last order you'll ever receive." She could hear the others returning, but she couldn't stop shaking.
"Hey, is everything alright?" Hinata asked.
"Peko's feeling a little under the weather." 'Togami' replied in an even tone. "She's having trouble standing. I offered to carry her, but-"
"It's okay," Fuyuhiko said, "I got her. Come on, Peko, let's get you inside." In all this time, Peko had never once cried in front of her classmates. For the first time, she really wished she could.