"Hope!" Normal Speech

'Despair!' People's thoughts

"Truth!" Flashbacks

Disclaimer: I have as much ownership of the Danganronpa series as you do dear reader.

AN: Thanks to both RWBYJNPR and Zephyrius29 for beta-reading this chapter.

AN2: Other tags for this story (since the site only gives you 2): Mystery/Friendship/Drama.

Special Omake at the end!

Chapter 13

Declaration Of Intent

"This…this can't be good…"

Strange sights were the norm in his life.

At one point he had simply learned to roll with most of them, knowing that any question he would have about the matter would either be answered or just completely ignored.

Whether the situation was brought up because of his luck, or because of the Ultimates surrounding him, by now he could say for certain that he had gotten better at taking things in a stride.

For one of the advantages that he had was that most of said situation tended to happen inside the walls of Hope's Peak Academy.

That meant that he could always steel his heart before setting a foot on that school, to prepare his wit before the inevitable elephant that was Hope's Peak daily happenings came to stomp him.

…Some days the elephant was even literal.

But just like they said, there was always an exception to the norm.

And today' said exception just turned out to be resting right outside of his house.

And as brown eyes looked from side to side while trying to decipher the complex code in front of him, his ears were able to catch on the whispers from his neighbors, who apparently deemed the situation worthy enough of their comments.

Then again, he was aware that there was a bet going on among them as to how long his house would last before it got set on fire.

He certainly hoped such a thing wouldn't happen today, for he knew it would become nothing short of an international scandal.

Cold sweat broke on the Luckster's brow right before his body moved on nothing but impulse towards the door of his house.

For if there was at least something that Naegi Makoto could do with ease, it was basic math.

And last time he checked, his family owned no limousines.

However, there were now two different limousines parked right in front of his house.

That was two limousines too many.

How they were able to fit both in such a narrow street was beyond him.

Not like such a thing worried him at the moment.

No, the only thing worrying him just as he opened the door to his home was if his house would be remembered in the history books as the place in which World War 3 started.

"Onii-chan, you're back!"

His second sign of trouble that evening ended up being the presence of his own little sister.

For instead of the usual, high-spirited greeting he normally got from her, this time her voice held nothing but a quivering distraught. Her gaze even shook as soon as it met his own, almost as if she was going to start spilling tears of relief at any second now.

Her greeting even came in a hushed whisper, and she even glued herself to his arm as if such a thing would protect her from whatever menace had taken their living room hostage.

Oh, and she was also wearing a kitchen strainer on her head as some sort of make-shift helmet, with even her ahoge popping out from one of the holes.

That one probably gave it away more than anything else in retrospective.

"W-what is it…?" He asked in the same hushed tone as his little sister, even though something inside of him told her he should be asking about who rather than what.

The only response he received was that of Komaru slowly dragging him towards the living room with such a level of care to not make any noise that one would think being heard meant an imminent death.

And then the younger girl simply pressed herself to the wall and slowly took a peek from the corner that he knew led to the living room of the building.

He easily took the hint and followed her action soon after.

And it less than a second he understood firmly just how bad the current situation was.

For even though he truly cared for the two individuals sitting on opposite sides of his living room, there was no denying that right now, in his eyes, they didn't even look human.

No, they looked like nothing but sheer forces of nature simply as a result of the clash that their gazes made against one another.

He could have sworn even his mind was playing tricks to him, for he was sure that he could even see a blue-eyed white Dragon growling on one side, while the other held an army of golden Knights framed by dozens of blades, with both beings sizing up the other, waiting for the right opportunity to strike.

"Woof!"

And said opportunity came as soon as the albino dog resting on one of the duo's lap suddenly barked on his own direction, seemingly alerting the blonde couple of his presence.

"Welcome home, Makoto-san."

"You sure took your time, Naegi."

And right there he was greeted by the Ultimate Princess, Sonia Nevermind, and the Ultimate Affluent Prodigy, Togami Byakuya.

And something told the Luckster that the chill that went down his spine at that moment was only matched by the one also traveling down his sister's back.

It was in moments like this that he truly understood what people meant when they said that the tension in the air could be cut with a knife.

He sat as still as a board, his hands keeping a hold on his knees just as he kept his gaze glued to the floor while cold sweat still went down his forehead, a shaky smile filling his lips at the same time.

Against his better judgment however, he ended up slowly raising his head and turning his eyes to his left, allowing him to take a look at the individual sitting on the couch to the left of the table resting on the middle of the living room.

He himself was sitting on the couch right in front of the table itself, allowing him to properly keep his eyes in pretty much the entire room.

And as soon as his gaze turned left, it was as if the sun itself had decided to fill his entire body with nothing but warmness.

For sitting on his couch was a figure that could only be described as beautiful. He wasn't sure if it was the regal aura which she released just with the way she sat, the kindness in her blue eyes aimed directly at him or the lovely smile that was planted on her lips.

The only thing he knew was that he couldn't keep looking at her for more than five seconds before being forced to lower his gaze once more. He knew that someone like the Ultimate Princess was on a whole different level than him, but it normally wasn't this bad!

There was something else today with his blonde senpai, that much he was certain of. It was even worse for his own sister, however, who sat quietly to his side while hugging her knees to her chest and muttering about traitorous pets.

It probably had to do with how happy their pup looked on Sonia's lap.

With his gaze lowered once more this time he decided to look at his right, just to check on the other resident of his living room.

And in contrast with the warmness that he had felt before, this time it was as if a sudden snowstorm had hit his body with vengeance. He almost shivered at the spot just as a result of being the target of the frozen cold eyes of the Ultimate Affluent Prodigy.

It was as if the blonde was trying to decipher his very own soul, to the point that the Luckster almost felt as if he was naked under a spotlight.

While he was certainly used to his classmate's rather sharp gaze, wasn't this too much too?!

Maybe being on the receiving end of just one of such looks would something that he could handle, but against the two? No wonder Komaru had been so alarmed.

He certainly knew how much of a…character, Byakuya could be.

And while he definitely had nothing against Sonia, he couldn't deny just how…intense her presence could be sometimes. He had certainly gotten used to it, even if the necessity of kneeling still popped up from time to time, but he was well aware of the phobia Komaru was developing towards princesses of all things.

He knew, however, especially by the way Komaru kept throwing glances at him from the side, that he was supposed to say something right about now.

So with a light cough on his fist that drew everyone's attention, even though he already had it from the start, he directed the first thing he could think off to the older Ultimate in the room.

"I didn't know you were returning today, Sonia-senpai!" He spoke with a shaky smile, true wonder sipping from his tone as he did his best to keep eye contact with the obviously delighted blonde. "I thought you were coming back by the end of the week…"

"I wanted to make it a surprise." Sonia answered with the greatest of ease, her head tilting slightly to the side while she kept her hands busy by stroking the fur of the small dog on her lap. "I…needed to do this without interference, after all."

The Luckster certainly didn't miss the way Sonia's gaze moved towards her fellow blonde right at the end of her words.

Byakuya certainly didn't miss it if the snort that left him was any indication.

Makoto still felt more than a bit lost on the matter at hand, however, for as far as he knew the Ultimate Princess was supposed to visit her Kingdom until the end of the week, or at least that's what the blonde had told him before leaving last week.

He could only hope that things had gone without any complications. She never did tell him about why she was going back, and the last thing that he wanted was another sudden excursion to the Princess' Kingdom.

"Do what exactly?" The time-traveler continued, his words turning Sonia's previous smile into an expression that told him that whatever it was, it was a serious matter.

It immediately made him tense up, his mind already wondering if anything wrong had happened.

"I…actually wanted to talk with your parents, Makoto-san."

Her declaration simply made him blink in response, his gaze then moving to meet the one of his little sister, who simply shrugged in response.

"Wait… where are my parents?" The sudden thought that the two older members of the Naegi household weren't present finally dawned on the Luckster.

"H-He got rid of them!" His only answer to his doubt was for Komaru to suddenly point at Byakuya while declaring such, the suddenness of her words making the Luckster's eyes to go wide while the blonde in question simply rolled in his eyes.

"I sent them to a free dinner on a restaurant even more expensive than this house." Byakuya explained with ease, getting Makoto to release a breath he didn't even know he was holding. "They didn't even think twice before accepting."

"Traitors." Makoto certainly heard the reproach coming out from Komaru's lip, and in the girl's defense what else could she think after her parents left her to fend by herself against these two?!

"Thank you…I think." Deciding to ignore how he was starting to sound like the Ultimate Gamer, Makoto simply frowned at his blonde classmate. "But…why?"

"I would like to know that too, Togami-san." And right behind his own question was Sonia's, who simply kept a neutral face now that she was looking at the Ultimate Affluent Prodigy, who returned said look with nothing but a smirk.

"Don't think you can fool me, Nevermind." Byakuya declared while crossing his arms over his chest. "You are awfully naïve if you really thought no one would intervene."

"So you knew I was coming here today." What came out of Sonia's lips wasn't a question but rather a simple statement.

"Of course I did. Nothing happens in this city without me knowing."

"And you found the need to interrupt us?"

"It would be too easy if I left you to your own devices."

And as the conversation between the two blondes progressed, Naegi Makoto found himself more lost with each second that passed, his eyes moving from side to side with such a speed that one would think he was watching a game of tennis.

"W-what are they talking about, Onii-chan?" Komaru pulled on his sleeve to get his attention, but the only thing he could do was to open his mouth slightly before closing it once more, his mind still trying to come to terms with whatever the reason for the sudden visit was.

"Your presence here then… I'm supposed to assume that you object?" The debate, however, ended once a small sigh left Sonia's lips, right before she threw her question towards Byakuya, who kept a steady gaze on the Princess before simply shaking his head while one of his hands moved to adjust the glasses resting on his face.

"Do whatever you want, Nevermind." Byakuya spoke right before raising from his seat. "I know how this family works so I just decided to not let you have everything so easily."

And without warning the blonde simply started walking out of the room, presumably towards his own room if the way he was walking upstairs was any indication to the Luckster.

"Naegi." Even so, Byakuya still found it on him to leave a few parting words, his blue eyes easily matching Makoto's confused brown ones.

"We're having a talk after this." The way in which the Togami heir spoke left no doubt that it wasn't a request, but rather an order, one that had the Luckster simply nodding dumbly to the retreating blue-eyed Ultimate.

Turning his gaze back to the remaining Ultimate in the room besides him, he was once more graced by a smile from the Princess, one that for reasons beyond him was leaving him far more nervous than usual.

"If it is something private then…" He spoke in wonder, still feeling more than a bit lost but knowing that if even Byakuya had decided to exclude himself then it had to be something important, which was why he found himself throwing a sideglance look at Komaru.

However, the look that his sister gave him in return told him that there was no way she was leaving. If it was because she didn't want to leave him alone or because she herself didn't want to be alone in a house that still had Byakuya in it, it was anyone's guess.

"That won't be necessary." However, Sonia was quick to ease his concern with another smile right before taking a deep, calming breath, almost as if she was doing her best to steel her nerves.

It honestly just made the Luckster even more worried.

Then, Sonia slowly raised her body from her seat while carefully putting the small Shiba-Inu that had been resting on her lap on the floor.

And with slow, almost shy steps, the blonde Princess came to a stop right in front of him, something that forced him to stand up from his seat without even realizing it, confused brown meeting blue eyes that were showing way too many emotions for the Luckster to name them all.

Happiness, excitement, melancholy, nervousness, fear, there were so many things behind those pools of crystal blue that he almost felt as if he would get lost on them if he tried to decipher them all.

Luckily, he didn't have to, considering that he was promptly distracted by the sudden feeling of Sonia's soft hands grabbing his owns and bringing them right between them.

"S-Sonia-senpai?" He could feel the heat reaching his cheeks by such an action, but his obvious embarrassment did nothing but earn a small giggle from the older girl that had a hold on his hands.

"I first wanted to thank you, actually…" Sonia began slowly, a tint of pink covering her cheeks right before the corners of her lips tugged upwards into a bigger smile, with the look of her eyes telling anyone that whatever was crossing her mind was a precious memory.

"I wouldn't be able to be here and keep studying with everyone if it wasn't for you, after all." The Princess continued as soon as she noticed the confusion mixed in with the embarrassment clearly showing on her Luckster's face. "So for that, I still can't be thankful enough."

"But that was-" A finger on his lips silenced whatever complains the Luckster was about to raise, courtesy of course of Sonia, who saw it coming from a mile away.

It wasn't the first time they had a similar exchange, after all.

"You helped me convince Father, Makoto-san. Without you, that wouldn't have been possible."

He certainly remembered how his little excursion to the Kingdom of Novoselic had ended. One tended to not forget about having to act as a Princess' fake fiancée, after all.

"You also helped stop the growing rebellion that came out of nowhere."

He decided to not comment on how said rebellion had been just a massive misunderstanding caused by more than a couple of their own classmates, something told him that it was the best, for everyone's sake.

…That reminded him how they still owed Byakuya a plane. The one he had ended up exploding, after all.

"Our Kingdom still hails you as the legendary Hero."

He had been forced to ditch his hoodie during the trip, leaving him only with a white shirt. Suffice to say, he had never gotten so much attention from complete strangers before. At least he had stopped them from building that weird statue.

"Father and Mother love you already."

There wasn't much he could say to that one. They were a nice couple.

"And you even helped me rescue the royal Golden Makango."

'Rescue' was a big word when it came to what happened, he decided. The poor thing had pretty much jumped on his arms the first chance that it got.

Not that he blamed it or anything…

Celestia Ludenberg could be really scary when she tried.

"And that's why I…well…" Suddenly it seemed that Sonia found herself struggling to find the right words to express her thoughts, something that simply had the Luckster wondering where all of this was going in the first place.

Not that being praised by someone like the Ultimate Princess wasn't already quite the experience, but it was obviously leading to something else.

It seemed he would get his answer soon enough though, for after taking another deep breath, the blonde in front of him gave him another look, this time one filled with nothing but determination, right before she finally moved to release the hold that she had on his hands.

"I planned to do this with your parents first, but…" Sonia bit her lip right before moving her gaze to the side, or to be more precise aiming her blue eyes at the other member of the Naegi family sitting on the couch to the Luckster's side.

Komaru's increasingly amazed look turned into one of alarm as soon as she became the target of said look. Being at the end of that smile already made her more nervous than anything else!

"My parents?" Makoto asked, to which Sonia simply nodded resolutely.

"I have investigated the customs of this country," Sonia explained before moving to stand in front of the still wary Komaru. "So I know what had to be done first."

That sentence itself was enough to send more than a couple of alarms ringing in his head.

But before he was able to react, the damage had already been done.

Damage to both his and Komaru's psyche, that is, for it certainly wasn't every day that you had the Ultimate Princess kneeling right in front you while looking up with nothing but earnest shinning in her gaze,

Suffice to say, Komaru found herself thrown out of a loop just with that one.

It became somehow worse once Sonia's forehead touched the floor in a bow so deep that Makoto himself could count with one hand the number of times he himself had done such a thing.

However, the killing blow was, without a doubt, the polite words that escaped Sonia's lips right at that very moment.

"Komaru-san, I want to ask for your blessing in pursuing a romantic relationship between Makoto-san and me."

And at that moment, Naegi Makoto was more than sure that he heard the sound of something breaking.

He didn't know if it was his own sense of normality, at least whatever remained of that one, or maybe it was Komaru's, but he was more than sure that his own brain had decided to stop working momentarily after hearing those words.

Not that it was any better for the younger Naegi, for the stress of the day, alongside the unbelievable sight of a Princess no less bowing in front of her and asking such a thing was simply too much for the ahoge-girl.

Credits to her though, she at least lasted a couple of seconds before promptly passing out on the spot.

"Komaru!"

A sigh left his lips, his shoulders sagging just as he closed the door to his sister's room. It definitely wasn't his first time carrying her unconscious form back to her room, but it normally was because she ended up falling asleep either in his room or on the living room.

Passing out made things a bit more worrying on that regard.

"I'm sorry about that." And waiting for him right outside his sister's bedroom was the one that could be considered responsible for Komaru's current condition, with the Ultimate Princess in question looking down in shame at doing such a thing to his sister no less.

"It's fine, I'm sure it was just the shock…" The Luckster himself could only scratch the back of his neck awkwardly, truly not being able to look at the older Ultimate.

It was a bit hard to considering he had just received one heck of a confession from the young woman herself.

"I meant what I said though." It seemed Sonia didn't want to leave any doubt between them whatsoever though, for she suddenly looked at him with an honest smile on her face. "I just…thought this would be the best way to go about it… but your parents weren't here so I…"

"I-I understand." He actually didn't, but he knew that someone like Sonia definitely didn't mean for anything bad to happen.

He could only wonder about where she had even gotten that idea in the first place. Sure, he knew that there were some people that it still did it like that, but now he was really glad that his parents hadn't been home.

He could only imagine how that scenario would have gone.

"B-but, Sonia-senpai…" He spoke awkwardly, the ramifications that the actions and words of the Ultimate Princess brought now truly setting themselves on his mind.

Suffice to say, he was in shock in more ways than one.

But to the blonde watching him carefully, such a reaction was to be expected in her opinion. Naegi Makoto was simply that kind of young man, one that after putting hours of research she had been able to finally label properly.

He was, as a certain fellow from her same year had not so kindly put it when she had asked, dense.

And it was such a key factor that had made her go with a more traditional approach.

That, and the fact that such approach seemed to work just fine in the couple of literature pieces that she had found herself immersed with thanks to her classmates.

Such were the wonders of manga, she supposed.

But in the end, Sonia Nevermind was a determined young woman.

She was a Princess and future Queen of the Kingdom of Novoselic.

A future Queen had to be decisive. A future Queen couldn't go around second-guessing herself or wondering about 'what ifs'.

For the longest time, she had been more than happy by simply living for the sake of her Kingdom and nothing else. She had been ready ever since she was a child.

But now? Now that she truly wanted something, or rather someone, for herself? A desire that she harbored not as Novoselic's Princess, but rather just as a woman in love. Was it that much of a surprise that she wanted to hold to that someone and never let go?

Was it so bad that she wanted to be a bit selfish, just this once?

Her heart had been in doubt for far too long, but after her last trip to her Kingdom, she knew what she wanted without a shadow of a doubt.

So when the object of her affection started to lowly mumble, there was only one thing she knew she could do to ease his troubled mind.

Without saying anything she moved closer towards him, not the closest that the two had been, but definitely more than enough to have his eyes go wide in surprise.

And before he knew it she had her palm resting on his right cheek.

And without hesitation, she drew herself even closer.

The next thing he felt was another soft sensation on his other cheek, courtesy of the blonde's lips suddenly making contact with him.

To say he was left stunned would be an understatement.

"You told me that I could be selfish when it was between the two of us…" Sonia whispered just as she retreated back, albeit without moving her hand from the Luckster's burning face. "I think you spoiled me too much when you told me that."

He definitely remembered saying something along those lines a long time ago, but he could have never imagined that it would lead to something like this.

"It isn't like I'm going to demand an answer right away." Sonia suddenly declared just as she retracted her hand from the Luckster, with sadness suddenly sipping in both her gaze and tone. "I just…with this being my last year…I didn't want to have any regrets."

That was something he truly did understand, for just knowing that by the end of the year all of his senpais would be graduating was enough to make his heart ache in sorrow. He could only imagine how much worse someone like Sonia had it, considering that he knew the chances of her meeting anyone after graduating would be pretty slim.

Not that he would ever let her become a stranger or just a memory. He certainly hadn't planned for that before, and now that she had bared her heart to him it was practically impossible for him to allow such a thing to happen.

But first… first he had to protect her last year, to make sure that it was one that she, alongside everyone else, would always look back with fondness.

And not one filled with the nightmare that was Despair.

"Sorry…" So, in the end, he could only offer a low whisper in response, truly feeling horrible about not being able to give her a proper response. His head was a mess right now, and the last thing that he wanted to do was to give her a half-assed answer to her feelings like that.

Romance had been the last thing that had crossed his mind on the past two years. It wasn't something that he was particularly good at, after all, especially when he had been forced to bury old feelings that he had.

His priorities had been somewhere else, to say the least.

"It's alright, Makoto-san." And as if to show that she was taking it on a stride, the Ultimate Princess raised her arm while putting her other hand on top of it. "But you still shouldn't make a girl wait. I might curse you if you do."

To his wide-eyed look, Sonia simple chuckled once more, this time actually dragging a rather small smile from the Luckster's lips.

"Besides…" A sudden seriousness took over the blonde's expression, with her eyes seeming to look right behind him. "I think he isn't going to wait for much longer."

To such words the only thing he could do was to turn his head around, easily allowing him to catch a glimpse of the scowling blonde standing behind him right beside the door to his room.

With the current events, he had honestly forgotten about his classmate, something that made him smile sheepishly at the obviously not amused Togami heir.

"Did you…hear us?"

"Even if I hadn't, it was obvious enough what she was going to do."

"It was?!" Perplexed, the Luckster asked, for he certainly had not expected for Sonia's sudden visit to result in such a way. The way Byakuya spoke, however, left it quite clear that he wasn't surprised on the slightest.

"Not my fault you're too blind to notice such an obvious thing." Byakuya's biting response only had the time-traveler looking down at the floor of his room with a bit of shame dancing through his eyes. Had he not paid enough attention that it still seemed so bizarre to even think about it?

It wasn't every day that someone like his blonde senpai, the Princess of an actual country no less, pretty much told you that she had feelings for you, after all. If it wasn't because Byakuya was here he would have thought that it was just a really weird dream.

A weird and really scary dream if he had to be honest, even if his heart still refused to calm itself down.

"I didn't come here to waste my time talking about Nevermind." Byakuya continued without missing a beat, however. "So you better don't let yourself be distracted by that woman while you're on my presence, Naegi."

…He decided to think that those words were just Byakuya's way of telling him to not worry so much about it right now.

"Why coming here then…?" If it wasn't because of their senpai then, what reason could Byakuya have? The blonde wasn't one to just pay visits, after all, but whenever he did it wasn't just to spend time playing catch-up.

Rather, the Togami heir preferred to simply have him dragged into whatever the blonde needed.

"Tell me, Naegi." And with Byakuya's voice taking a turn into the threatening side, Makoto could only do his best to match the glare he was receiving at the moment. "How many times have I told you that you fail miserably when it comes to lying?"

"…More than I can remember." Sure, he knew that he was far from the best at hiding things, but he would like to believe that he had gotten better at it considering the things that he had been forced to hide from everyone.

Byakuya seemed to disagree, however, if the way the blonde had described him as an open book several times in the past was any indication.

"And yet you keep trying to lie to my face, or rather the monkey's face."

He didn't know if the fact that by now he knew Byakuya was referring to Mondo whenever he said monkey was a good thing or not.

"I don't know what you-"

"I have let you keep to yourself whatever secret dealings you have had with the Headmaster before." The Ultimate Affluent Prodigy declared while looking down as the Luckster of his class. "But I'm tired of that coming from you."

"So, care to explain yourself?"

The air of finality that followed the blue-eyed heir word's was actually enough to make the ahoge-boy more than a bit nervous, for even though he knew that Togami Byakuya could be described as quite the curious person whenever something actually caught his interest, he still hadn't expected such a confrontation to happen like this.

"I-I'm sorry, Togami-kun…" But even if it was unexpected, the answer that came out of his lips was still the same as always, with a shake of his head following his words.

Such an answer did not amuse the Togami heir in the slightest.

"You speak as if I would reveal whatever you're hiding to everyone." Makoto didn't know how, but he was sure Byakuya's voice had become even colder somehow. "Unless the Headmaster has a way of keeping an eye on you in your own bedroom, I see no reason for you to not share it with me."

"It isn't about the Headmaster…" The Luckster struggled to find the right words, both knowing that making Byakuya drop the subject wouldn't be easy and that lying wouldn't work very well. "I just…this is something I need to handle by myself."

That much he could honestly say that it wasn't a lie, especially considering the obvious leak of information that there was if there was someone out there knowing his secret of all things.

"Hearing that from someone that likes to preach about working together, aren't you quite the hypocrite, Naegi?" Byakuya's words felt like someone had hit him straight to his face, for he truly couldn't deny what the blonde had said.

Was he being a hypocrite? Most likely.

Would that make him change his ways right now?

Well…

"I think if someone can understand it, its Togami-kun." Makoto spoke carefully while making sure to keep an eye for whatever reaction his fellow student of class 78 could have. "There are some things that I need to do by myself so that everyone can keep being together like we are right now."

He knew he was being stubborn, but with an unknown enemy around him, who knew what sort of consequences would it bring if he were to tell anyone about his situation?

Would he be putting a target on their back?

What if it somehow spread and it reached Junko of all people? One Ultimate Despair with apparent knowledge of the future was bad enough, the last thing he needed was Junko becoming even more of a threat.

However, if his words actually reached Byakuya he sure didn't show any sign of it, and instead simply kept glaring against his own resolute gaze, for he knew that showing weakness in front of someone like the Togami heir was nothing short of a mistake.

The staring match, however, wasn't meant to last very long, for before he even got the time to say anything else Byakuya had simply shaken his head before turning around abruptly.

"It seems you are at least growing a spine." Makoto blinked, not knowing if to take that as a compliment or not. "It doesn't matter anyway, I'll get my answers soon enough."

"W-wait, that's it?" In the back of his head he felt stupid for asking such a question, but considering that the blonde was suddenly taking his leave from his room, he just wasn't able to stop himself.

The Byakuya he knew was a lot pushier than this, after all.

Wasn't this just too…easy?

Had he passed out too after hearing Sonia's words and was this all just some sort of dream?

"I don't have the time to deal with your stubbornness all night, Naegi," Byakuya explained as if it was the most obvious thing on the world. "And I have my ways. Whatever the Headmaster and you are hiding, I'll know it soon enough even if you don't tell me."

Those words left room to plenty of scary possibilities, but the Luckster knew that pushing more on the subject would be an attempt at courting death itself.

"Togami-kun." One last doubt still plagued his mind, however, for even though he knew how the blonde could be when something interested him, he still wanted to make sure. "Why do you care so much about this…?"

Another glance from clear blue eyes was his answer, followed by a simple and yet firm statement.

"Because it concerns you."

"I thought you would be gone by now, Nevermind." Blue orbs met their equal just as the Ultimate Affluent Prodigy walked out of the Naegi household, his gaze steady as he carefully looked at the Ultimate Princess seemingly waiting for him right outside of the modest house.

"I wanted to confirm some things first, Togami-san." Sonia spoke in a neutral tone, by now used to dealing with someone as difficult as the Togami heir.

"Say your piece then, we don't have all night." It was obvious that the younger blonde just wanted to ditch her already, but she would be damned if she left with no answers.

"How did you know what I was going to do?" She didn't even bother asking how he knew that she had arrived earlier, for it was like he had said. It was difficult for something to happen in this country without the Togami Empire knowing it.

But still, her intentions should have been only for her and her alone to know.

"Ho? You think yourself too smart for your own good." A smirk filled with superiority appeared on Byakuya's face, one that Sonia couldn't help but find unpleasant. "Naegi might be too much of an idiot to do his research on your traditions, but I'm not."

His implications didn't escape her grasp, something that showed the moment her gaze narrowed.

"So you're aware of…"

"Of course I am." Sonia found no need to hide it if he knew, just like how Byakuya found to reason to hide that he was already aware. "What a troublesome tradition your people have."

"Why not stop me then? If you knew about it then, you obviously don't like me enough or else you wouldn't have intervened, but you still left me alone with him." The Princess decided to ignore the jab at her people in favor of getting some answers. In her mind, the heir's actions simply made no sense if he wanted to keep the Luckster away from her.

"On contraire, Nevermind." His smirk got somehow bigger if that was even possible. "I actually approve of you quite a bit."

"I beg your pardon?" A carefully raised eyebrow was Sonia's response.

"It's no secret that Naegi's list of suitors isn't what one would call short." It was more than obvious that the Togami heir found amusement in the way the Princess became tenser at being remembered that she wasn't the only one with particular feelings towards the Luckster in question. "So you should feel glad, for among the bunch of idiots we call classmates you're the only one that has my blessing."

It actually took Sonia more than a couple of seconds to understand the fact that, at the end of things, she was pretty much being praised by Togami Byakuya of all people.

She didn't know if to feel glad or utterly disturbed by such a fact.

"And yet… you still meddled too much."

"I can't have you messing too much with Naegi just yet, he still has his uses after all." This time it was a frown what made itself present on Byakuya's face. "I have already made quite the investment in him, so I can't have you ruining that for me just yet."

The blonde decided to skip the part in which he still had an ace up on his sleeve to properly tie one Naegi Makoto to him, in the form of certain other Togami attending at Hope's Peak.

But that was neither here or there.

"Makoto-san always defends you whenever someone badmouths you, you know? He truly considered you a good friend." To say that the Princess was displeased by the apparent way in which her fellow blonde saw her Luckster would be an understatement. "And yet, do you really see him as just an investment? How despicable."

It wasn't easy to anger the future ruler of Novoselic, but anyone that looked at the glare she was sporting at that one moment would found themselves frozen to the bone.

Not that Byakuya cared if the snort that left him was any indication, something that was followed by him seemingly finding no more interest in his fellow blonde, with the younger Ultimate's legs dragging him towards his own vehicle.

And with a last sigh, Sonia was more than ready to follow his example…

"Oi, Nevermind!"

But just as she was about to turn around, she ended up simply glaring one more time at the obvious rudeness coming from the Togami heir.

What caught her off guard though, was the amount of heat packed into Byakuya's own glare.

"I don't know when you're going to tell him about the two of you." His voice almost came out as a growl, one that her honestly shocked by the sheer amount of animosity behind it. "But for your own sake, you better not try to take advantage of that idiot's foolishness. You might run that little country of yours, but don't forget who controls the rest of the world."

And with what was clearly meant to be a threat, Togami Byakuya said no more before taking his leave.

For Naegi Makoto might be an insufferable naïve fool most of the time.

But he was his insufferable naïve fool.

Well I do have to validate the romance tag on the fic's description somehow, don't I?

There's still a bit more after this AN however. Just me trying something out of the heck of it since I don't know in which part of the actual chapter to put it.

I swear this is not me playing favorites. If I did, believe me, it wouldn't be a chapter with just Sonia and Byakuya. If I went full personal favorites you would all have nothing but Hifumi chapters.

I wish we had more on Novoselic but oh well, I think it's easy enough to figure out what Byakuya meant by traditions. If not, feel free to ask, or wait until Makoto gets a stroke when someone finally tells him. This is why Chiaki mentioned Sonia back in chapter 6 by the way, Byakuya isn't the only one aware.

I wonder what will I put out first, if a Natsumi chapter of a Novoselic chapter. That's what polls are for, I suppose, but we are not quite there yet

Not much happened in this chapter, it even has the lowest character count among all the chapters so far. I found it necessary though, especially with the next one having a bunch appearing for the first time. (This is also why there aren't any V3 ones).

As always, thank you all for reading this far. All of your support is greatly appreciated!

Next Chapter: Conflicting Harmony.

OMAKE

Tales of Two Friends

"He…hehe….hehehehehehe."

Sakakura Juzo, the Ultimate Boxer, could handle many things.

His friend and fellow Ultimate, Yukizome Chisa, laughing like a deranged lunatic while looking at her phone was not one of them.

He could swear she was even drooling and- was that blood dripping from her nose?

That was it.

"Hehe-hey!"

So with a swift movement, he took her phone out of her hands, and with a frown he looked at whatever was making Chisa act in such a way.

It was a picture of a sleeping Naegi Makoto, of course.

A slight frown appeared on his face.

Chisa just tried to laugh it off.

It took less than five seconds for their position to change.

"Noooooooo!"

"Release me, you mad woman!"

"You're going to tell Kyosuke-kun!"

"Damn right I will! What part of proper conduct went over that head of yours?!"

"You just don't get it!"

"Tell that to the police."

"You…You just want Makoto-chan for yourself! You already took Kyosuke-kun and now you want him too!"

"Are you on drugs?!"

And with Chisa hugging Jizo by the waist while he tried his best to push her away from him, the tale of two old friends continued.