A/N: Thank you all for your reviews! I really appreciated them.
Martial Arts Master:
Hehe, I can't answer all those questions quite yet, but as the story progresses, I'm sure you'll find out! Thanks for pointing out the typo! It's been fixed. Also, I enjoyed reading your thoughts on all the characters. It was really neat to see what you thought!
Anonymous568:
Thank you! And oops, totally overlooked that! It's been fixed now OuO
Miss Usami
I like him too! The ruder characters are some of my favourites. Of course, I adore all of them! The mean ones are very thought-provoking to write, though.
LightBlueRoses
Haha, Umeko is really out there, isn't she? She's fun to write. And are mods in the habit of deleting SYOCS? I'll take it off, just in case.
Masuyo Takishima
Thank you! To be honest, one of my biggest worries was that it would come off rushed. I'm glad it didn't!
chiaki ebooks
Thank you! I'm glad I did a good job introducing everyone.
Ok, now that that's over, there's one thing I'd like to point out. This chapter contains a kind of gross comment made by a character in regards to rape. I talked to the character's creator, and she's ok with me having them do that, but if you are triggered by rape jokes, message me, and I can send you the chapter minus that section.
Thanks, and enjoy!
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Sudden, blinding light was illuminating the auditorium. After everyone's eyes had adjusted to the light, they were able to examine the large room more clearly.
It was a fairly standard auditorium. Two sets of spotless bleachers on both sides of the doors, all of a maroon coloration. The pale yellow tile floor gleamed up, reflecting the students in it's shine as they walked aimlessly around. The walls were off-white, the left and right walls sporting banners displaying past student's athletic achievements. In between banners, black metal squares block what they could only assume were windows. At the front of the room, a raised stage stood. Near the back of it, a deep read curtain that bore the Hope's Peak crest hung. In the centre, an oak podium stood.
After a few minutes, most people were merely content to investigate the area. There were a few exceptions. Natsuko seemed to be chatting up Haru near the right wall. The soccer player looked very uncomfortable, given that their height differences and (lack of) distance from each other meant that Natsuko's chest was way too close to her face. Haru didn't dare say anything after the ballerina's freakout earlier, though, and just scrunched up her face as Natsuko kept talking. What a trooper.
Meanwhile, Chiemi and Yohaku were speaking quietly on the first row of the left bleachers. They seemed to be engrossed in what the other was saying, cheerfully chatting and taking in the new information.
The people who were exploring, for the most part, did so separately. Saburo was checking out the black metal covering the windows. His face showed that he wasn't pleased with what he was learning. Meanwhile, Himukata was kneeling down, looking under the bleachers. He didn't seem to find anything of note, besides the spiderwebs and dust bunnies that had formed a small city down there. He chuckled a little at the thought.
Iko and Ritsu, however, were investigating together. More specifically, the were investigating the podium, making small talk.
"Hey, you said you were a lawyer, right?" Ritsu turned his head away from the odd scratches on the left side over to Iko, who was running his hands over the crest at the front.
"Huh? Oh, yep! Lawyer or attorney. Either one is fine." He smiled at the taller boy.
"So that means you must be smart! And from what I know about you so far, you seem sweet, too. Hmm... You're not very tall, and you have a cute, feminine face... That makes you the perfect candidate for the protagonist of a romantic visual novel!" Ritsu smacked his fist into his palm. "You'd go well with a more outgoing, strong tempered girl. Hmm, maybe Nobuko or Haru could be two of your love interests!"
Iko's cheeks went red. "Aha... A romance story? Oh, that's a bit much... My face isn't that feminine, right?" Self-consciously, he brought up his hand to touch his face.
Ritsu laughed. "Don't worry, I mean that in a good way!" With that he knelt down to investigate the floor.
Iko looked like he wanted to say something else, but decided against it and resigned to just look over the top of the podium.
"This is a bit odd..." Ritsu spoke quietly to himself as he touched the wooden floor behind the podium.
"Hmm? Is something wrong?" Iko looked down at the blonde, and knelt down next to him.
"Look closely." Ritsu ran his finger around the floor behind the podium. "It's a bit hard to see in this light, but there's a very slight outline. I think this is a trap door!"
Iko squinted. "... You're right! That's really weird! What sort of purpose could this serve?"
Before they could look over it more carefully, there was a rattling sound from under it. Quickly, both boys backed up, hurrying off the stage. The rattling got louder, and most of the students started slowly inching over to see what was wrong.
BANG!
The door swung open, and a projectile flew out, landing right on top of the podium.
... It was a monochrome teddy bear.
It was still for just a moment, lying face down on the podium. Then there was a 'click' and a whirring noise, and the bear popped to life, jumping up and standing on the edge of the podium. The white half bore a friendly, typical teddy bear face. The black half, however, bore a red slash for an eye, and a jagged, sharp grin.
"Hello, you bastards!" The bear squeaked out. His voice was unpleasant- it had a scratchy undertone that reminded most people of sandpaper. "Welcome to Hope's Peak Academy! I'm your headmaster, Monobear!" He bowed dramatically, throwing his paws into the air.
Nobody moved.
"... Headmaster...?" Chiasa cocked her head, looking confused. "But you're a stuffed bear!"
"It's probably just a joke. Don't worry." Haru nudged Chiasa, who didn't seem to be any less confused.
"Joke? Why, I'm no joke! I'm the cutest, cuddliest, realest headmaster you'll ever lay eyes on!" Monobear spoke up. Haru didn't look convinced.
"Anyways, I'm here to tell you bastards about the wonderful school life ahead of you! As you've noticed, the windows are all blocked off."
Those who didn't think too hard about the auditorium's appearance were now looking over at the black metal sheets, surprised.
"The outside doors are blocked off too! Of course, there aren't any in this room, but just look around this place, and you'll see!" Monobear giggled. "Upupu, Of course, this is all for a reason! You hopeful students all locked in here for life."
There were a few concerned murmurs throughout the crowd of students.
"Life? Come on, this isn't funny anymore." Kin took a small step towards the bear. "This could upset someone. Having us wake up in that room was creepy enough, alright?" They scowled at Monobear, who merely cocked his head at them.
"Huh? Oooh, I see! You think it's a joke! I can assure you this isn't a joke. You're going to be locked in this school until the day you die."
By now, a steady stream of panic was rising through the room. Shion's breathing was audibly picking up, getting faster and faster.
"Oh, but there is one way to get out!" Monobear beamed (as much as his single-expression face allowed him to).
"And what might that be?" Conner asked the bear with a furrowed brow.
"Easy! You just have to kill someone."
WHUMP WHUMP
Everyone spun around to see a collapsed Shion with a red face. Although nobody knew it at the time, she'd been suppressing a panic attack ever since the bear popped up. As soon as that last sentence was spoken, her breath stopped coming, and she fainted.
What they DID know at the time was that she'd fallen right into Akari, taking the ringleader down with her. Although this definitely cushioned Shion's fall, it meant Akari went back first into the hard floor. The ponytailed girl swore quietly.
"Ah, Akari, are you alright?" Yohaku, who was somehow managing to stay half-calm throughout this nightmare, leant down to help her up.
"Oh, yeah. I think I broke my tailbone, but I'm fine." She took his hand, squirming out from under Shion. "Thanks." She nodded politely in his direction before stuffing her hands in her jacket pockets.
It was now when Monobear spoke up again. "Great! Now that that mess is over, I can elaborate more. You can kill them however you want! Stabbing, shooting, poisoning, decapitating, choking, anything your little hopeful brains can dream up!" He twirled once, excitedly. "Once a body is discovered, we'll hold a school trial to find the culprit! And if you do that correctly, the black sheep will be executed! However, get it wrong..."
The bear cackled again.
"You'll all be executed, and the killer will be allowed to leave! So make sure you get it right!"
Before anyone could even speak up, Monobear kept going. "Anyways, I recommend you all check your pockets right now! Being such a thoughtful headmaster, I put a card in there for you!"
After a few seconds of being frozen in place, most students snapped back to the harsh reality and stuck their hands in their pockets to discover a thin, dimly glowing card.
"These are your Electronic Student ID cards! They include your name, age, gender, all that important stuff! There's a map of the school if you swipe to the left. It also serves as your room key, so don't lose it!"
Monobear scratched his chin. "Hmm, what else? Oh, yeah! The school rules are all listed on the card if you swipe up. Read those over, ok? Teenagers of today need to learn rules, so really, I'm helping you bastards!"
Finally, an angry voice came from the front. "Just knock it off already!" It was Umeko. "You're just some stupid stuffed toy trying to make us feel bad!" She stomped her feet angrily.
"Stupid? Umeko, that's not nice!" Monobear buried his face in his paws. "I'm bear-y hurt!"
"Umeko, please be careful." Olivier warned her. "It seems volatile."
"Stupid stupid stupid!" Umeko took three steps forward, grabbed Monobear off the podium, and shook him wildly. "Take that you stupid bear!"
"Umeko! You're a babysitter, don't you know not to shake babies?" Monobear, even though he was being violently rattled, maintained a clear voice. "Fine, I'll show you, missy!" Monobear went limp, and started to beep.
Umeko stopped shaking him. "What's wrong with you?" Suddenly, Chiasa gasped.
"U-Umeko! Get rid of it! T-That's a b-bomb!" The tomb builder screeched, panicking.
Umeko looked horrified. She turned to the crowd. "Take it!" She whipped it at Haru. Haru held it for a moment before yelping, dropping it, and kicking it as hard as she could into the air.
Which, for a Super High School Level Soccer Player, was very, VERY, hard.
Monobear flew almost straight up. Just before he hit the ceiling, he exploded, creating a boom that knocked most of the students onto the ground. Small bits of debris rained down on them.
"Umeko, you idiot!" Conner yelled, shielding his head with his hands. "You could have killed all of us!" Natsuko made a 'hmph' of approval.
"Shut up! Shut up! You're all so mean to me!" Umeko wailed, rocking back and forth on her knees.
"Umeko, please don't cry... Nobody wants to see you sad." By now, the debris had stopped falling, and Yohaku had gotten up to go squat next to the pigtailed girl. "You just made a little mistake. Ok?"
Before Umeko could respond, there was another BANG, and another Monobear jumped from the trap door, landing on the podium.
"You got lucky, Umeko! Next time, I'll make sure you're blown to bits." The bear laughed.
"M-Monobear!" Chiemi looked horrified. "That could have killed someone!"
"That's what I was hoping for! That's why I'm warning Umeko, silly! Oh, this reminds me: Rule number one is 'No violence against the headmaster'. I'll cut you all some slack, but if it happens again, you'll face the music!" Monobear cackled, throwing his head back.
"I should take my leave, but I think you should all find your rooms and get comfortable! You may not have the chance to for long! Goodbye for now, and enjoy your school life of mutual killing!" With that last announcement, Monobear jumped behind the podium. There was another banging noise, and then nothing.
"... Hmm. What an odd situation." Olivier broke the silence.
"Odd situation?" Himukata bent forward so he could see Olivier past the line of people. "This is more than just odd!"
"Not really," Olivier adjusted the strings on his black hoodie. "Death and murder are normal. I don't mean to say that it is pleasant, but it's just another aspect of life. But being in a situation like this? Now that's unusual."
"Maybe for you, but to me... Ah, I don't even want to think about it!" Himukata rubbed his arms anxiously before digging in his pocket. He pulled out a pixie stick, but also knocked his student ID card on the ground. "Oops!"
Chiasa picked it up for him. She looked at it, head cocked. "Ah, the map says the cafeteria is open." She brought a finger to her lips thoughtfully before giving it back to Himukata. "Maybe we could all meet there in an hour?"
"A great plan!" Akari clapped her hands together loudly, causing Chiemi to wince.
"Heh, sorry... I just have a migraine." Chiemi laughed awkwardly, tugging at the hem of her black tank top.
"Really? That must suck. Maybe there's medicine or something around here?" Akari cocked her head, black ponytail falling over her shoulders.
"I don't see an infirmary on the map. Perhaps we could ask the bear?" Yohaku was scrolling through his card, revealing a Japanese flag tattooed on the back of his right hand.
"... I don't think you should." A voice came from the back of the room. It was Itami. He hadn't moved from his spot on the edge of the bleachers since they got into the room.
"What a freak." Saburo mumbled. "Still, gotta agree with him. I don't think he'll give wannabe-goth here any medicine if he's tryin' to make us kill each other."
"Hey!" Chiemi barked, but grabbed her head again. "Ouch... "
From a few feet away, Haru noticed Chiasa becoming distressed again. Saburo did that to people, she guessed. Jerk. Although it was true Haru wasn't the most trusting of people she'd just met, she didn't want to see the poor girl break down again. Haru quickly made her way over to Chiasa, tapping her on the shoulder.
"Hey, the map says our rooms are next to each other. You and I should go there together."
Chiasa looked up from fiddling with the fabric of her long black skirt to meet the soccer player's eyes. "Ah... Alright, I'd like that." Chiasa looked nervously at the soccer player. As much as Haru seemed like a nice girl...
"Erm, Kin? Want to walk to the dorms with us?" Chiasa called out to the protester, who seemed to be far too shocked to protest their current situation. They turned to look at the pair before regaining their composure and smiling.
"Sure. It'd be nice to take my mind off of all this, right?" Kin trotted up to the pair. Just when they were about to take off...
"Haru-chaaaaaan!"
Natsuko practically jumped on Haru from behind. "Haru-chan, I'm scared! Can you guys take me with you?" Kin raised an eyebrow, and Chiasa just stared blankly at the blonde girl.
"Natsuko... You're a stranger. Look, I don't really trust strangers, ok?" Haru looked exasperated. Nobuko's eyes watered up.
"B-But Haru-chan! Don't leave me here with our stupid classmates..."
Haru groaned quietly. "Jesus christ- Ok, ok, fine."
"Yaaaaay! Thank you Haru-chan!" Nobuko hugged her tightly from behind, once again subjecting the poor girl to the feeling of Natsuko's chest against her head. The other two party members were mostly confused by Natsuko's sudden change of attitude. Where was the girl who threatened to kill Umeko earlier today? Regardless, the group of four exited the room, Natsuko clinging to Haru like a lost child the whole time.
Back in the auditorium, Ito, Ritsu and Himakata were talking quietly.
"You don't think he's serious about that, right?" Ritsu looked concerned. "I couldn't dream of killing anyone..."
"I'm sure he's not serious!" Iko tried to comfort the blonde. "That'd be incredibly illegal. And even if it is for real, the police will be on their way once they find out we're all missing."
"Iko's right!" Himakata smiled brightly. He was cute- in his own way. "This is probably just the upperclassmen hazing us, anyways. It'll be over in a flash!"
Ritsu smiled, along with Iko. Himakata's enthusiasm was contagious. "Yeah, for sure!" Ritsu thought about something for a minute. "Hey, do you two want to sleep in my dorm tonight? A sleepover sounds fun!"
"Definitely! How about you, Iko?" Himakata turned to Iko, who was looking a bit concerned.
"Uh, sure! I'd love to!" He eventually replied, adjusting his red tie while speaking.
"Sweet! Come on, let's go!" All three of them left out the same door the last group had parted from.
Akari looked down at Shion. "Uh, we should probably do something about her. It'd be pretty dangerous to leave her here with-" The ringleader jabbed a finger in the direction of Itami "- that guy."
Saburo chuckled, hands in his tan pants. "Hey, I'd happily take her to my room. I'll make sure she's comfortable." He wasn't even trying to hide the fact that he meant something more than 'make her comfortable'.
Most everyone was disgusted by that joke, but Conner was the first to react. "That's disgusting. I know you're a gross asshole, but that's crossing the line. Only absolute pigs joke about taking advantage of an unconscious girl." Saburo turned sharply, his gold eyes meeting Conner's blue ones.
"Oh, so we've got Mister Moral High Ground here to rescue the damsel in distress? You're a fuckin' smartass, kid. All of you are." With that he took a cigarette and lighter from his pocket, flicking the lighter as he walked out of the room.
Olivier cracked a small smile. "That was good of you, Conner." Just as soon as it came, the smile disappeared, leaving the same blank expression.
"It certainly was!" Chiemi smiled. "I joke around a lot, but that Saburo's just a jerk."
"Perhaps that's the right wording. He must have something worthwhile to teach us... It's just hard to find." Yohaku sighed, scratching his ear. "Oh, Akari, I should have followed up. Are you alright? That was a hard fall."
"Huh? Oh, yeah. I'm good. I've done a lot of tightrope walking. I know when it's a serious fall." She cracked a smile.
"So as long as you're not bleeding, or it doesn't need to be amputated, you're good?" Chiemi grinned at the black haired girl.
"Exactly! You could be a first aid worker at the circus!" Akari giggled. Both girls seemed pleased to be able to laugh over something, even in such a serious scenario.
"Hate to break up the gigglefest, but I'm going to my room. I'm being serious when I say don't kill each other, ok?" Conner dropped his hands in his parks pockets and headed for the door. Olivier nodded politely at the group.
"I should go as well. Take care."
After the forensic investigator had left, only Yohaku, Chiemi, Akari, Shion, Umeko and Itami remained. Soon, Umeko made some half-hearted excuse to go, and Itami didn't even speak at all, only giving the smallest of glances to the group as he left. Not long after, the small talk switched to the subject of Shion.
"I can carry Shion out. Would it be alright to place her in your room, Akari?" Yohaku asked. Akari looked down at the girl.
"Sure. I'll make sure that creep Saburo doesn't get to her while she's unconscious." The ringleader smiled, rocking back and forth on her brown boots.
"That's good of you, Akari. Shion would probably prefer waking up near someone who could explain what happened, rather than being alone in a strange room." Chiemi affirmed the idea.
Soon, the remainder had all left, talking and laughing a bit. Still, the heavy reality of this situation hung over their heads. No matter how badly they wanted to believe this was a joke, a part of them-some large, some small- knew that it wasn't.
You know, it's important to listen to that little part of you. It's usually right.
A/N: Chapter 2! Thank you guys, and I hope to update again sometime this week!