Trial 1-3: Turnabout Denial
"What is ze meaning of this?" Lucille was dumbstruck. "I'm not JJ's murderer!"
"Yes, Hideki, please explain!" I begged him, "I can't think of Lucille as the killer - I just can't!"
"You saw how she was in tears after JJ accused her!" Hideki practically yelled. "You can't ignore that, nor can you ignore the possibility !"
"Motive alone isn't grounds for a conviction," argued Sasha.
"Look who's talking, little miss hypocrite." Maya snarked back.
Taken aback, but not finished, Sasha continued, "How was that in any way hypocritical? I-In any case, there's no other evidence that points to Lucille as the killer! Seriously, every other clue in our arsenal points to either Todd, or literally anyone. And don't call me miss."
"Yeah, yeah, whatever."
"Misgendering isn't 'whatever'-"
"Off-topic." Hideki cut her off, before continuing, "Still, Lucille has the most motive to kill, of anyone."
"Well, can you backup your accusation with evidence?" This time, it was Ava. "Because I know Lucille couldn't have been the killer!"
"And why is that?" He asked in return.
"Simple. I am her alibi."
==Nonstop Debate!==
Weak points are in italics, break points are in both bold and italics.
==Begin!==
Ammunition loaded: Ava's Account, Monokuma File #1, Lucille's Account
Ava: I was with Lucy in her room, until she fell asleep.
Ava: Thereafter, I returned to my room, and only woke up due to Jackson's BDA.
Hideki: Are you sure Lucille stayed asleep?
Lucille: I'm very sure of zhat, Hideki. I don't sleepwalk ei-zer.
Ava: Besides, by the time I left, at 4.30, Jackson would already have been dead.
Matthew: Did you see anyone suspicious, then? JJ's real killer could have still been active.
Ava: Nothing out of the ordinary…
Ava: I mean, all the cabin doors were closed, so there wasn't much to see.
Faen: I see...That does mean both Ms. DuCarde and Ms. Tremblay are in the clear.
Johan: That's good and all, but now what?
Tien: Is there no one left to accuse?
I blinked. Something seems very fishy about one of their claims...But I don't know what.
Perhaps I should replay the conversation once more.
Ava: I was with Lucy in her room, until she fell asleep.
Ava: Thereafter, I returned to my room, and only woke up due to Jackson's BDA.
Hideki: Are you sure Lucille stayed asleep?
Lucille: I'm very sure of zhat, Hideki. I don't sleepwalk ei-zer.
Ava: Besides, by the time I left, at 4.30, Jackson would already have been dead.
Matthew: Did you see anyone suspicious, then? JJ's real killer could have still been active.
Ava: Nothing out of the ordinary…
Ava: I mean, all the cabin doors were closed, so there wasn't much to see.
There!
==Counter!==
Ashley: Wait! That's not-! (Fired: Ava's Account)
BREAK!
"Ava."
I coughed. "You confirmed earlier that this statement is wholly accurate, is that correct?"
"Yes…" Ava tilted her head to the side, quizzically, "Where are you going with this, Jung?"
"Yeah. Where are you going with this, huh, Ashley?" Maya smiled sinisterly. Something in her expression told me she figured it out before me long ago, but oh well.
"Well, then, that begs the question...How did you know Todd's room was unlocked?"
That incited a new smattering of discussion between the rest of my classmates. It wasn't an accusation of any sort, but...
At the very least, I think Ava knows more than she's letting on.
"Maybe she meant all but Todd's?" offered Lucille.
"No, because if the opening of the door had been significant enough to point out in the morning, she most likely would have brought it up now," Matthew pointed out.
"He's right!" Jackie wholeheartedly agreed. "Ze door was completely closed as far as I recall."
"I...thanks, Jackie." Matthew smiled. "I really appreciate the support."
"There's a murder trial going on, and you people are flirting?" Maya raised an eyebrow. "Get a room, you two."
"Yeah, this fic is rated T for a reason!"
"Huh?" was the general collective reply. We couldn't make head nor tails of it, nor what it was supposed to imply.
Looks like one of them's gone bonkers. Probably Ataru, the poor guy - having to deal with Yukari until the end.
"In any case, my answer is simple - I had stumbled upon it yesterday, already after Dunham disappeared the first time. I was the one to close the door for him, after all." Ava reasoned.
"Oh, well…" I deflated. I hadn't expected such a cop-out response to deflect my argument just like that-
"Hold it!"
There was a gleam in Hideki's eyes. "When exactly, yesterday, did you close it?"
"Morning, just after I woke up."
"I see. Johan," he grimaced, before her turned to his left, "Sasha, did the either of you see Todd's door open yesterday morning?"
"I don't remember seeing it open, no," said Sasha. "And I definitely looked at all the doors. I like to contemplate my surroundings on my early morning walks."
"I didn't notice anything either," affirmed Johan.
Hideki nodded, before turning to look at Ava. "That's two people who never noticed Todd's door being open - and those two were definitely up much earlier than you."
"And your point?" she coolly replied, although her eyes betrayed her anxiety.
"You're the only one amongst us who knew Todd never actually locked his door," he accused, "And thus, the only one who would have known to open it this morning, when you went into his room-!"
Lucille: Your logic needs a tune-up!
"Just as Ava is my alibi, I am hers!" Lucille shrieked. "She was with me for the entire night inside my room, so she couldn't have entered Todd's room!"
"That's not-" Hideki looked somewhat flustered. "I'm going to have to disagree with you on that - heck, Ava herself said-"
"No!" Lucille cut him off, "Ava didn't do anything! And that much I can prove!"
The orange light separated us from being able to see the two, but the last thing I saw before the result was Lucille biting her lip, a determined look on her face.
==Cross Swords!==
Usable Swords: Lucille's Account, Letter in JJ's Room, Dishwasher
Lucille: Ava stayed in my room throughout the entire night ==/== and never left!
Lucille: If she had ==/== I would have known it!
Lucille: But she stayed there all night ==/== just to help me feel better!
Lucille: How can any of you insist ==/== a kind-hearted person like Ava is the killer?!
Duel!
How strong is your will? Fight for your point!
! /) | (\ !
! /) | (\ !
! == /) ==!
Progression!
Hideki: Why won't you ==/== see reason...?
Hideki: Stop lying to ==/== yourself, Lucille!
Hideki: Ava visited Todd's room this ==/== morning, and you know it!
Lucille: But she visited it only during investigation time!
Lucille: That doesn't mean she wasn't ==/== in my room the entire night!
Hideki: I'll slice your arguments wide open! (Chosen sword: Lucille's Account)
Break!
"Lucille, you admitted it yourself." He calmly explained as he brought up her transcript. "After crying yourself to sleep, Ava could have left anytime."
"Which I did."
Surprisingly, Ava herself confirmed the statement. "I did leave, and maybe I did enter Dunham's room, but what you've forgotten to prove is how that matters."
At that, Hideki blanched. "I- um, well, that is to say-"
"And with that, I ask. What does entering Dunham's room have to do with Jackson's murder? We've already established that he is innocent of Jackson's murder, at least, so there would be nothing in his room that would help in any way."
I started, "But-"
Ava: You're wrong. I'll show you what's right!
...Before I was cut off.
"Haven't you spent too much time trying to accuse me instead of finding his murderer?" Ava smirked, "It seems like I'll have to clear my name once and for all before you decide to get back on the right track."
But I am on the right track-
"Out loud, Jung. I don't like that." Her stare turned cold, and the smile left her lips. "Let's do this."
Gritting my teeth, I tried to match her stare-for-glare, as the orange light enveloped us.
There's no one else left that fits the bill...It's gotta be Ava.
But how do I prove it?
==Cross Swords!==
Usable Swords: Footprints in Todd's Room, State of Todd's Room, Dust Wipe
Ava: I'll humor you - assume I ==/== actually went to Dunham's room.
Ava: Then what? I'd just go in and ==/== come out none the wiser.
Ava: There's nothing in his room that is of ==/== any interest or value to me.
Ava: And there'd certainly be nothing ==/== in there to help anyone kill Jackson!
Duel!
How strong is your will? Fight for your point!
! /) | (\ !
! /) | (\ !
! == /) ==!
Progression!
Ashley: But there's definitely ==/== a reason that you were in Todd's room!
Ashley: You were ==/== taking something!
Ashley: Something that is vital ==/== to this case!
Ava: That's preposterous! ==/== I did no such thing!
Ava: In any case, you haven't ==/== proven that the two events are connected.
Ava: So what's your proof that I was doing ==/== something in his room, eh?
Ashley: I'll make you face the music! (Chosen sword: Dust Wipe)
Break!
"What's...that?" Eric studied the picture we took of the dust wipe, before shrugging his shoulders, "I can't tell if there's something I'm supposed to see there."
"I think the point Ms. Jung was trying to present is that we're not supposed to see anything there, perhaps?" Faen answered inquisitively.
"Exactly." Zooming in, I focused on the area where there wasn't any dust. "If you look closely, it looks like something has been taken from Todd's table, judging by how the dust settles around it, along with the trails of dust that indicate whatever it is, it got swiped."
"Weren't there also footprints in there?" asked Nico, "If I remember correctly, there was a line of barefoot footprints tracked across the floor, right?"
"Now that we know it isn't Todd, that means it was intentional. Someone removed their socks and shoes and walked in to take something off of the table," said Sasha.
"Hmm… what could zhat something be?" asked Jackie.
"Easy. Sasha, there wasn't any rope missing from the storage room, right?" asked Matthew.
"Nope," she confirmed.
"I see where you're going with this...But do you really think Todd had rope?" asked Tien.
"Yeah. He's an acrobat, after all - impromptu tightrope practice probably wouldn't be out of the question."
"Did that kid even need to practice?" muttered Eric, "I mean, he was freakishly good to begin with…"
"Either way, what was taken from Todd's room was the rope that we found around JJ's neck," finished Matthew.
"Hey, I didn't-" Ava started, before a new voice cut her off.
"Actually...I don't think that's all she took."
Xiang had a resolute look on his face. "She took one more item - one more crucial piece of evidence."
==Epiphany Anagram!==
_/_/_/_/_/_
…
_/_/C/_/_/_
…
_/_/C/K/_/_
…
_/_/C/K/_/T
…
_/O/C/K/_/T
…
_/O/C/K/E/T
…
LOCKET
...
Xiang: I do believe this is it!
Break!
"After all, how else could JJ end up with Todd's Locket?" Xiang turned to address the rest of us. "Unless JJ personally obtained the locket, it means someone planted it on his corpse. And who could that someone be, other than the murderer?"
"An accomplice, or someone who messed with the crime scene!" yelled Ava.
"Well, that depends." Hideki turned towards Monokuma. "Would an accomplice benefit at all if the murderer got away?"
"Nope! They would be punished just like everyone else, and trust me - you do not want to be punished!"
"There you have it," he turned towards the rest of us. "So if anyone here interfered with the crime scene at all, please speak up now."
No one said anything.
"I guess that means the killer did everything," said Tien.
"Looks like it…" said Johan.
"Well."
Maya grinned. "Nearly everything. Let's just hammer in another nail into the coffin, shall we?"
==Nonstop Debate!==
Weak points are in italics, break points are in both bold and italics.
==Begin!==
Ammunition loaded: Maya's Account, Dishwasher, Knife
Maya: Let's step back for a moment to think.
Maya: We've established that the murderer had to use the bloody knife-
Eric: Language!
Maya: ...In any case, the knife and the frying pan were involved in JJ's murder.
Nico: Wait a minute. Is no one else going to deal with the fact that Eric said 'Language'?
Ashley: Not the time, Nico.
Ava: Well, there's certainly nothing connecting me to the knife.
Ava: And I know there's nothing to connect me to the frying pan either!
Maya: Heh. Nah, there is.
Maya: After all, there's no way you could have ever fully hidden the murder weapon.
Ava: ...Oh shi-
==Assent!==
Sasha: Hmm, that makes sense! I concur! (Fired: Maya's Account)
BREAK!
"Doesn't anyone else find it mildly suspicious that, while the floor of the kitchen and the frying pan were clean, yet the knife was still bloody?" Sasha explained.
"Well," Matthew theorized, "Maybe they forgot to put the knife in the dishwasher to clean?"
"Lolnope!" Maya put her hands up in the air in a surrender-pose. "I broke that. Guilty as charged. If they wanted to clean up, they would have needed to have water beforehand."
"Right. But who would have the foresight and lack of alibi to prepare the water, yet completely bungle it up on trying to fully hide the evidence?"
Sasha turned to Ava, who was visibly fidgeting. "Ava, you're the most suspicious of us all here - heck, you've visited Todd's room to frame him, and everything else just screams that you are the murderer. Do you have anything to say to that before we start voting?"
"I-" Lucille began, before she was cut off.
"Yeah. I totally got something to say to that."
A chill ran down the back of my spine. That voice...It didn't sound anything like her.
Ava looked back at me, a crazed look in her eyes. "So, you all think I'm the murderer, huh? Well, there's one thing you're missing…"
She banged the podium with one fist, and pointed at me with the other hand. "WHY? WHY WOULD I KILL JACKSON?!" she roared.
Nearly everyone was taken aback by her sudden outburst - Eric, who was standing to her left, squealed, and tried to hide behind Tien, who was merely struck speechless.
Following that, however, Ava seemed to cool down almost instantly. "If I don't have a motive, I wouldn't have any reason to commit murder in the first place, no? In fact, no one has a motive here."
"But-" I started, before I was cut off as well.
"In other words, your theory just doesn't cut it." The fire in her eyes was almost overwhelming, "I have no reason to kill Jackson! And you can't prove otherwise!"
"You know that a motive isn't necessary for a murder conviction if all the evidence points to the culprit, right?" asked Sasha. "No one ever established my motive, but you had no trouble believing that I was the killer."
"That's irrelevant! Unless you prove I had a motive, you can't say for sure it was me!"
"I can, though."
Ava turned white. "There's no way-"
"Ava," I said slowly, composing myself for what was about to be the final stretch. "At this point, we can prove conclusively that you were the murderer."
"I-Impossible…"
Ba-thump. Ba-thump.
Suddenly, an entire flurry of words erupted from Ava's stand. Her screams and shouts completely filled up the holographic sphere, until her very being was obscured by her words..
"Woah, woah!" Johan turned to Monokuma, "What the hell's going on?!"
"Hah, this is the best part!" He grinned, "Welcome to the Panic Talk Action segment, kiddos!"
Panic Talk...what now?
"Are you deaf or something?! Panic Talk Action! Those large bursts of words you see? Those are her soul shields - her last line of mental defenses before she can give up and reveal the truth! Your job is to argue, and use your words as truth bullets to destroy those shields - and eventually, you'll have a chance to silence her once and for all! A high-speed dispute battle where you beat down a panicked opponent's excuses and nonsense…"
Monokuma shivered, in what appeared to be anticipation, "It's making me despair so much! In any case, you better have good tempo, because those words will be flying at you a mile a minute - you don't have a lot of time to shoot them down, y'know? So who's the lucky bastard who wants to take Ava down a peg, huh?"
"Ava..."
Throughout Monokuma's explanation, Lucille had not been paying attention to him at all, but was instead trying to project her voice through the maelstrom of words.
"Ava, please end zis charade...Please, I'm on my knees and begging you!"
The flow of letters didn't stop - if anything, they appeared to increase in magnitude!
"There's no charade, Lucille! I'm innocent!"
Something has to be done...I need to convince Ava to stop! Other than Nico, I'm the only one here that has a talent in music, so...
"Monokuma! I'll initiate the Panic Talk Action!" I cried.
A dark shadow loomed up, and encompassed me, and the stand where Ava originally was. I steadied my nerves - this was going to be a first.
I just hope I'm not outmatched!
==Panic Talk Action!==
([+])([+])([+]) AVA TREMBLAY ([+])([+])([+])
Shield x6! [6 remaining]
...
Begin your assault! Fire at will!
...
([+])([+])([+])([+])([+])([+])
([You can't be serious in accusing me!])
[|Yes, I am.|])
Crack!
Shield fracture! [6 remaining]
…
([+])([+])([+])([+])([+])([-/-])
([What proof have you that I killed JJ?!])
[|I've shown you all the proof I can.|])
Break!
Shield break! [5 remaining]
…
([+])([+])([+])([+])([+])([==/==])
([I didn't frame anyone! Moreso, I didn't kill anyone!])
[|Lies...Please, Ava, stop! We know you did both!|])
Break!
Shield break! [4 remaining]
...
([==/==])([+])([+])([+])([+])([==/==])
([It was Dunham, or Oryolov, or anyone else!])
[|We've already proved them innocent!|])
Break!
Shield break! [3 remaining]
…
TEMPO UP!
...
([==/==])([==/==])([+])([+])([+])([==/==])
([Jackson had it coming. Anyone else could have killed him!])
[|But you are the most likely one, and have yet to produce a valid alibi.|])
Break!
Shield break! [2 remaining]
…
([==/==])([==/==])([+])([+])([==/==])([==/==])
([There's no way you can prove that I dealt the killing blow!])
[|No one else had the opportunity!|])
Break!
Shield break! [1 remaining]
…
([==/==])([==/==])([+])([==/==])([==/==])([==/==])
([I'm not guilty! I didn't kill anyone!])
[|Just accept it, Ava! We know you're the murderer!|])
Break!
Shield break! [0 remaining]
…
([==/==])([==/==])([==/==])([==/==])([==/==])([==/==])
((I have no reason to kill Jackson! And you can't prove otherwise!))
Lack! Of! Real! Motive!
Ashley: Sorry, but it's all over for you!
Break!
"Monokuma hadn't given us any real motive - so we have to take a look at personal vendettas against JJ."
As much as I hated to say it, I did. I gritted my teeth as I continued, "Out of everyone present who had something against JJ, you and Lucille had the most. However, you're a competitive person, and unlike Lucille, you would never stand down from being disrespected - or hurt."
"As a pro-league hockey player, and a team captain, you would never let the pride of one of your friends - our friends - be completely torn apart like that. But you were a competitor, and you wanted to get into Hope's Peak just as badly as the rest of us, to make your father proud."
"So, please, Ava! I know you killed JJ, so own up to your crimes!" I pleaded, unsure of how much my words even meant. "Please have the integrity to admit to your faults!"
…
…
"Alright. I'm sorry."
All of the words coalesced into a ball, which faded away into nothing, leaving Ava's tearful expression re-facing the rest of us. "I'm sorry I killed him. There, you happy?"
"You're sorry?" screamed Sasha, "You're a murderer and framed two people to try and get away with it! Sorry just isn't going to cut it!"
"Mx. Oryolov, please calm down," Faen tried to reassure us all, "I'm sure that Ms. Tremblay has a perfectly reasonable and not morally objectionable explanation for all of this madness."
...He didn't seem quite convinced of his own words.
"Why'd she do it, though?" asked Johan. "Well? Why'd you do it, Ava?"
"..."
"Ava…"
Wiping away the tears that were now freely flowing down her face, Lucille faced her directly, and said, "I-I implore you, please, tell us. We faile- I failed to stop you, but I don't want to- I can't abandon you! Please, give me a reason- tell them why I'm such a klutz and couldn't-"
"That's enough, Lucy."
Ava's knuckles were white as she gripped the podium. "Hate. That was it, pure and simple. I committed murder out of hate."
Silence followed, before Monokuma broke it. "Well, there's that. Normally, I'd proceed to the voting, but since I might as well, one of you bastards should probably, oh, I dunno, go through the entire incident from beginning to end to make everything clear? Just to spell it out for the slower-minded buffoo- oh, forget it, everyone knows I'm talking about Andrews."
"Hey! I take bloody offense to that!" hollered Eric, slamming his fist down onto the stand, before retracting it with a quiet "Ow."
"Language!" he snapped his fingers, "And that is mahogany! Now, I dunno, Jubilee, since you were so happy to take down your classmate, why don't you do it?
"Ashley, if you don't think you can handle this I can take over," offered Hideki.
"No, I'm the debate champion. I'll do it," said Sasha.
"She framed Todd! Let me at her!" screamed Nico.
"No." I sighed. "I'll do it." I looked Ava straight in the eye. For a few moments, I pitied her.
Is this really right? She wouldn't have done this ordinarily, after all - gah! This is all Monokuma's fault. And now I have no choice…
Ava stared me in the eyes. I could see her terrified, yet resigned look. "Just do it."
...Except to prove my friend guilty of murder.
==Climax Inference!==
Act 1:
:The killer had not thought to kill JJ until the debacle in the ballroom yesterday.
:Their closest friend, Lucille, had been grievously maligned by the Lawyer, and in a moment of impulse, they had decided to murder him as retribution.
:They started by addressing a letter to him, promising the one thing that they knew he needed the most - information about Todd's untimely death.
Act 2:
:Until the time they had decided on for the murder, they stayed with someone else, so that they could have an alibi.
:But that someone conveniently doesn't remember any of the night past a certain time, due to having fallen asleep.
:So the killer left, in order to carry out their murder plan. They probably had the syringe and tranquilizer with them by this point as a safeguard.
Act 3:
:On their way to the kitchen, they noticed Todd's door was open, and decided to frame him for the crime they were about to commit.
:Entering his room, the killer retrieved Todd's rope and locket, intending to plant them on JJ's eventual corpse.
:They then proceeded to the kitchen, and, taking a knife, laid in wait for their target.
Act 4:
:When JJ arrived, the killer ambushed him, and stabbed him thrice from the front.
:They had then turned to clean their knife, but JJ probably wasn't dead yet, so the culprit had to finish the job with the frying pan.
:They cleaned the frying pan and the floor with water they had prepared earlier, but they didn't have enough water left to fully clean off the knife.
:So they threw it in the pile, hoping that it would be concealed.
Act 5:
:They dragged JJ to the Luxury Sitting Room, hoping to throw off the true scene of the crime.
:Following that, they planted the rope around JJ's neck, hid the syringe and tranquilizer, and painted the walls of the Luxury Sitting Room with red paint from the storeroom, all to make it look like JJ had truly died there and not in the Kitchen.
:Then they headed back to the room where they had been beforehand, re-assumed their position, and waited for the body to be found.
Ashley: That is the chain of events that progressed this morning...
Ashley: And they could only have been instigated by the real culprit of this case...
Ashley: And that's you, isn't it? Ava Tremblay?
Trial 1-3 FIN
14 Students Remaining + Todd
A/N: Bet some of you didn't see that one coming...upupupu.
Yes, Ava was indeed JJ's mystery killer. She also tied as the most likely suspect last poll, but considering her opposition, we're none too surprised.
So, this chapter, the poll will have nothing to do with the trial, but rather with what happens afterwards. You see, after each trial that they survive, the students get access to a new section of the plane (duh). On the other hand, for every Act that you readers survive, you get a bonus chapter that will hopefully be pretty cool. The bonus chapter will consist of two parts:
1) You may ask questions of any topic to any of the characters, SD or myself. For this chapter all characters are eligible, however a character is only eligible in the last Act that they appear in. So this is the last chance you get to ask the trio of JJ, Ava, and probably Todd, your dying (pun intended) questions. By the way, the pilots are also counted as characters (together or individually), in case any of you have questions for them. Monokuma as an entity is also fair game. You can ask whatever you want, but in case of spoilers, the interview-ee will probably just give you a non-answer, so be cautious. But other than that, go wild (and yes, you can ask the fire extinguisher). You can ask through review or PM - but the answer will only be in said chapter. You are limited to three questions, however, so pick your questions wisely. (If you want to ask an inanimate object, such as Sasha's supposed romantic partner, I won't count it. Not gonna penalize someone for some humor...or am I? Upupupu)
2) There will be a poll on my profile displaying the options for the other content of the chapter. This will generally be extra free-times for one of the deceased, or the victim(s)' execution. This Act, the options are bonus free times with Ava, Todd, or JJ, and either JJ or Todd's unused execution. Additionally, you can vote for the 'write-in' option and leave your ideas in the reviews. This can be anything from 'another day in the life' to 'A Sasha-themed parody of United States of Whatever (which exists, btw)' to 'non-despair AU!SashaxFire Extinguisher fluff' to 'Lime writes out an entire hecking page of the Scott Pilgrim AU'. I would suggest everyone look over reviews before voting, to see if they really like a write-in option. And if I like one enough, I'll just do it for the vine.
...you know what, I'm adding 'assorted AFoFD-themed song parodies', 'Ashley Jung VS The World', 'HotHead at Hope's Peak' and 'Lime and SD Flip Their Heck And Write A Thing' to the poll. Because why the heckie not. Write-in option still stands, though. Pick two, and we'll do the top two choices that are voted in. Keep in mind, this may be the last chance you get to vote for two in one of these polls, so use it wisely.
Also, Yukari and Ataru have their own intro cards now! The 'Mile High Club', as their pairing is known, can be found on our tumblr, and Khrono's DA page. Do we ship them? Maybe. Do we think they're hotter than most of the main cast? Definitely for Ataru. (*swoon*)
Okay, that's settled, to the review replies.
HeroNoMore: And now the truth is absolutely crystal clear, beyond a doubt! What do you think? Is it what you expected?
I am a being living in constant, never-ending torment. Collaborating with SD and Arcana is pretty much the least of my worries. (It probably is mine, though. - SD) (I'm the least of your worries? That's just sad. You need a hobby. Try fist-fighting bears. That always gets me in the spirit. - Lime) (Already have marksmanship. What do? - SD) (My hobby is murdering bears with my bear [*giggles*] hands. Like how we do it in Soviet Russia. - Lime) (Save it for the Q&A. - SD)
That sounds perfect, except for one thing. Technically, it was extinguisher-chan who made the first move. That sounds like a kouhai trait right there. Sasha is clearly the senpai in this situation.
A Dingus With Sweet Shades: Well, it isn't Lucille. What did you think of the outcome, though?
GinMerric: How awful. You get to voice your opinion on two pieces of quality writing. How sad. Everyone clap for this poor, lonely man, who can do nothing but read great literature and exposit on his opinions about it. Four for you, GinMerric. (Seriously though I appreciate you. I know how exams are. No hard feelings).
In our defense, SDR2's Trial 1 had just about this much tension too, up to Nagito going bonkers. I suppose our exposition did last a little too long, but it was necessary. (You should have seen how much SD wrote in the Skype chats…)
Hmm… that's a valid question. In true Limeade fashion, I'm going to respond to your question with another question. Where did we ever say that everyone lost their belongings? We didn't comment on it directly, but everyone has changes of clothing, and Eric pulled a foil out of some sort of hammerspace so...clearly they weren't robbed of all their assets. Not to mention Ava's hockey stick - if that doesn't sound like a personal belonging I don't know what does.
Also, the Medical Room has just about everything Tien needed - we were going to reveal that in her Free Time - but she never got one, so we had to wing it. Which is why all of you should vote for the people who you don't know will be relevant in each chapter. Predicting the future is the only way to get the 100% authentic AFoFD experience.
I'm glad to see that we managed to up the tension this chapter. Of course, what's a murder trial without tension? And yeah, we tried to balance out participation, because honestly most of the characters in the fic are eventually going to get their chance to shine in a class trial. And many of them (I'm thinking Matthew, Tien and Hideki mostly) are even more competent than the main character.
Sasha and Nico were indeed put under fire, and they both will be in the future. Nico was, of course, one of the main focuses of this trial, and I think that the readers really got to see another side of her these past two chapters. (Nico is my darling little angel, after all - but her complexity will present itself in due time. - SD)
Sekrin- Lord of Monsterds: Aw, what? Lucille is the token hot one!
Saiynt: JJ is your favorite design? *shrugs* Okay. About the tattoos...we don't actually know where they are, or what they say, but most of them sound like Law and Order quotes and they're all over his body. What that means is up to you to decide.
You can indeed have this AU in your life, should everyone vote correctly. I'm counting on you guys - don't let me down. I genuinely want this AU to be a thing. Ashley has to deal with Sasha's seven evil exes - Eric, Faen, Xiang, Tien, Ataru, Ava and Yukari. Now featuring Nico as Wallace. Except engaged and not gay. So...not really Wallace at all. But the closest thing possible, really.
Well, Sasha is a national debate champion. You've also got to consider her title - her whole shtick is a mixture of creative psychology and sociology, wording things well, and convincing masses of people that she's right, often on the fly. At the same time, it'd make sense that someone logical like Hideki would mistrust Sasha - she's all over the place and it's pretty clear at this point that she's either evil, unstable or a massive troll. Or perhaps a combination….
Yeah, Nico and Todd were the best of friends, and she really did want to defend him to the death. To Nico, Sasha accusing Todd would have seemed more like a personal attack than anything, which is why she was eventually able to disprove it. She was so cornered by Todd being cornered that inspiration struck.
Khronovision: Yep, although I can guarantee Monokuma isn't normally this helpful. Remember, for all you know it's two pissed-off SHSL Pilots behind the robot - they're no Junko.
Yukari and Ataru, and any possible co-conspirators, are probably SHSL Despair, considering that they use Monokuma and all. But are they the same SHSL Despair as what we know and love? I'll leave that up to interpretation.
Why does SD get donuts? This isn't fair. #SpreadTheDonuts #JusticeForLime #LimeRights I'm an LRA. Lime Rights Activist.
PowerPlayer: Hmm… Well, either your question was answered now, it will be later in the story, or it's meant to remain a mystery. So...not really much else I can say, really.
CaptainQuackin: Yeah. Hideki is definitely great in class trials.
ezmonee6: Go to your browser window. Type in .com. Replace an actual dot. Press enter. You've got it. You're on the tumbles. And play Europe's 'The Final Countdown' as you do so, for some victorious music. Why that song? IhadanArrestedDevelopmentphaseok thatphaseisstillathing iflippingloveArrestedDevelopment
HeroinOfDarkness: SD wasn't offended. He just has a weird twitching problem. IDK what's up with it. (Yeah, not offended. Just slightly ticked. twitch - SD)
And yes, HotHead is a meme at this point. Look at all those reviews.
I saw the sprite, and reblogged it to the blog. For the record, anyone who has anything to contribute to the blog can either submit, or tag their stuff as #afofd (or #check this out kass, I guess, but that's more for my personal and I rarely check it).
dashunterman: Welp. Your character gets to survive. Congrats. *throws confetti* But for how long?
Next chapter...Well, it's gonna get painful.