For a girl like the Ultimate Pop Sensation, life had had more than its share of ups and downs. For her to get where she was and achieve what she had, there had been things she had had to do that even now made parts of her churn. On some nights, when she would lie awake, restless and unable to sleep, she might even wonder if it was all worth it.
It was.
Every step of the way had been worth it, and she now had friends and a life and a dream accomplished and a dream reached, all of which that she treasured dearly. Everything up until just a few days ago, all the good and the bad, made up who Sayaka Maizono was, who she hoped she would always be, and she treasured it all. Giving up any of it would mean giving up all of it.
However, with this said... Sayaka was fairly certain this did not apply to recent circumstances.
She couldn't say she treasured the fact that she was currently locked in a school with the only means of escape being to commit murder. The notion that she or any of her fellow classmates were even a little fond of the idea was a sick joke, really. And to say that she had ever encountered anything like the situation she was in now would simply be untrue.
Well, at least as far as she knew, anyway. Poor, pitiful Sayaka Maizono had no idea... And because she had no idea, naturally, she could only act on what she did know.
Regardless, Sayaka had all the reason in the world to want to leave. Not to commit murder, most definitely not... Certainly not... But everyone did want to leave, didn't they? Who would just lie down and accept such a chaotic, ridiculous idea? Even if no one ever killed a single person, being kidnapped like this in and of itself was horrible...
There was... one thing, though.
Amidst this chaotic world that had been presented to her, a world she had been thrust into with no say or choice of her own, threatening to swallow her with despair, a small flash of familiarity had been thrust before her. It was a saving grace of sorts.
It was like a rope had been cast down to her from outside of the abyss. The fact that it had been cut down before she could climb it to freedom, that it found itself alongside her in this dark pit of despair was of no importance.
It was here. It merely existing was enough. It being by her side... was enough.
It cheered her up again. It gave her courage again. It allowed her to put her mask back on again- and maybe even, just maybe, take it off for a little while as well.
This piece of familiarity, this reminded of what laid beyond this prison school's walls, it was unlike the rest of those gathered here, however. It wasn't a renowned baseball champion so talented it felt changing careers on the drop of a pin would be easy. It wasn't a martial artist so strong that every other person in the building combined didn't strange a chance against them.
It was just a boy. A lucky boy, no doubt about that, a small and kind boy, a boy whom Sayaka had longed to speak to once again upon a time, unaware of the way in which this wish would finally be granted... but that was all he was.
A terrifying, fleeting thought had crossed Sayaka's mind that first day when she saw him flung across the gymnasium. It had only taken a single punch, not even thrown by the strongest of their number, and not even thrown at full strength at that. She had been in the industry and even scouted for drama and movie roles enough now for such a thought to be natural to her.
"Cute looking, hope inspiring boys like him are always the first victim, aren't they?"
He had no talents. He had no "Ultimate" to rely on like the rest of them did in this situation. He was just there by chance. It would have been the most unfortunate of unfortunate things if that all happened, only for him to be the first one to die, right? She had passed on no less than three scripts where she had been to play the very same role...!
Seeing him so helpless made her sure of what she had to do. It made her sure it was the right course of action.
It had given her the courage to speak up to him again and confirm whether or not he remembered her as she did him. It had given her the drive to offer to watch over him and make sure he came to the group's meeting once he woke up.
Most of all... It had given her the resolve to lie to him.
Oh, it wasn't all that bad. It was a white lie. A harmless white lie. Just a little fib, a not-so-tall tale of no real consequence. Yet to Sayaka, this lie was extremely important. She couldn't rest until she saw it through until the end.
Under the pretense of getting a weapon for her own self-defense, now fragile Naegi was the one to have a means of defending himself. It had all worked out perfectly. Getting the weapon, telling her story to him, only to change her mind when they were alone... She had wanted to be as prepared as possible, knowing what the other students could be capable of.
And so, Sayaka had specifically planned out their retrieving of the weapon hoping they would be seen, hoping any snoops would assume they had gone off to go get something for her rather than for him.
It was a way, an admittedly oh so small way, of defending them both.
Anyone who might have seen would assume Sayaka was the one who was now defended by what they retrieved from the gym, and at the same time, any of those sneaky peeping toms would also not expect Naegi to be the one to come away with something to defend himself instead. With how Sayaka had led the flow of things... Now, even if the chances were slim, Sayaka had armed Naegi with moments, maybe even only seconds, of surprise in addition to that gaudy golden sword.
He would be safe.
She had to tell herself that.
She had to.
If anyone came after him, if he ever were to let someone in with his unwavering kindness, not knowing what they were intending for him, too wrapped up in their foul plans to pay it any mind, they wouldn't know it was there. He would be able to hold them off.
If someone came after him, it might just buy him some time to escape, perhaps to scramble out the door and get help. She would be able to let him into her room.
Wasn't it just so lucky that their rooms were right next to each other?
With this, they would be able to be each others' closest allies! It was just like Naegi said... They would definitely be okay together!
As she laid in bed that night, safe under her covers, she felt safer simply with the knowledge that he would be safer.
After all, Sayaka Maizono had no reason to truly panic... Not yet, anyway.
The outside world, as far as she knew, was fine.
The outside world, as far as she knew, could be on its way to find them any day now.
Even then...
The outside world, as far as it knew, understood that Sayaka Maizono, idol sensation, had recently been accepted into Hope's Peak Academy. She would be staying in their dorms, going to classes there, and adjusting to her school life over the next few days, even weeks.
In other words, the world and the dreams thats she had fought so hard for... Even in an absolute worst case scenario...
It wouldn't fall apart with her trapped here for a little while. Her absence... to a degree... was... expected. Whether she was in class, in a coma, being kidnapped, or even dying under mysterious circumstances, so long as she wasn't gone for too long... her fans had been notified and the world she had left behind to come here had been prepared. Her friends... Her career... It would be okay. It would all be okay.
Her dream wouldn't die.
She wouldn't have risked going to a school like Hope's Peak, no matter what the grand benefits for her future were to be, if that wasn't the case to begin with.
And so... As terrible as it was...
Sayaka Maizono could take a small comfort in this.
Her friends had known this before she had left them. Her fans had known this before she had left them.
It wasn't like this could possibly go on forever, right?
She'd be out of here before she knew it. And if she ever doubted it, she knew...
Naegi was safe. And because Naegi was safe... She was safe.
Naegi would protect her until the time came. He had given her his word. He had filled her with courage again. She believed that. She believed in him. She could count on him.
It was the only thing she could count on anymore.
It was because she believed in that that she knew that she had to protect him.
If he would save her, then she would save him.
No one else knew each other here. Even if the two of them only had something as convenient and insignificant as "we went to the same school once upon a time," it was more than they had. It had impacted them both — it had impacted her, anyway — and she would use it and together, they would be saved.
Perhaps this was all, in more than a few ways, merely a self-serving form of protection, a protection far from Naegi's so kind and so warm selfless protection that he genuinely wished to wrap around her.
But in the end... So long as he was protected... Did it matter? She didn't think so. She too genuinely wished that much, she was sure of that... She was fairly sure she was sure of that much.
So what was a little white lie between friends?
Did it matter if they were safe? Did it matter if they were together? Did it matter if no one got hurt as a result?
She didn't think so.
Worries at last fading away in the face of this answer, Sayaka Maizono's breathing settled as she finally found herself drifting off to sleep.
She dreamed a peaceful dream of a frail samurai boy in gaudy golden armor, complete with a tacky golden sword, saving her from all which came their way. A happy dream of a dancer hand in hand with the samurai escaping an evil warlord's castle, a happy ending for them both.
For those few hours... She knew for sure. She actually felt happy, if only in her dreams.
She would make those feelings a reality someday. She was sure she had.
Just like she knew that, she was positive... She had protected Naegi by giving him that sword. He was safe now.
She was no fortune teller, but she knew it.
After all...
"I'm an esper."