Never Say Never

Disclaimer: I do not own Danganronpa or the characters associated with it.


Chapter 4

Act 5

Mukuro could feel the blood drain from her face. Even with the confusing presentation, the next motive was easy to translate. Whoever identifies the traitor would get to leave…while the traitor would be executed. However, if any of them accused the wrong person of being the traitor, the accuser would be executed instead!

And to top it all off, the traitor wasn't allowed to reveal themselves…or they'd be executed.

Amidst this realization, Mukuro finally understood why Junko had been so lenient earlier. This was the reason Junko had spared Mondo, Chihiro, and herself when they arrived semi-late. And while she didn't doubt that they would have been executed if they hadn't reached the trophy room in time, it seemed that Junko preferred that they survive…at least until the motive was announced.

"Killing us like that wouldn't lead to as much despair as letting us betray each other. The motive wouldn't have as much effect if some of us were eliminated just before it took effect," Mukuro seethed internally, a cold sweat trickling down her back. Glaring at Monokuma, the disguised soldier's nails dug into her palms. "Confirming that there actually is a traitor…she must really want to kill me. Or maybe…?"

As surreptitiously as possible, Mukuro briefly stole a glance in Kyoko's direction. To her horror, she found the detective doing the same, their eyes meeting for only an instant before each of them averted their gazes. Clicking her teeth, Mukuro suddenly regretted forming that alliance.

"Dammit…Teaming up with Kyoko for the last trial must have really pissed Junko off."

Deep down, she wanted to believe that Kyoko wouldn't give in to the Mastermind. But sadly, there was no guarantee that the amnesiac detective wouldn't fall to temptation at some point…especially after their disagreement last night. Junko probably heard part of their argument and decided it was the best time to use this motive. Why else would she reveal there was a traitor and offer a bounty for their exposure?

Taking a deep breath, the soldier did her best to settle her nerves. Much in the same way she prepared to meet death on the battlefield, Mukuro slowly began to resign herself to her eventual fate. Even if Kyoko didn't betray her, there was a good chance that her previous allegiance would be uncovered.

Take Byakuya for example. He had proclaimed his suspicions of her on multiple occasions, and she couldn't blame him. If the situation was reversed, Mukuro couldn't deny that she'd view everyone around her with a suspicious gaze. And it didn't help that she'd inadvertently made herself stand out amongst her classmates.

"If I get discovered here…everything I've done will be for nothing. And even if no one figures it out, the motive itself will tear us apart!"

Glancing around the room, she grimaced as her fears became realized. Byakuya was grinning maliciously, obviously proud of himself. He'd undoubtedly work to uncover who the traitor was, as this was the perfect way for him to escape without facing any real punishment. The threat of execution if he was mistake probably didn't even occur to him. He wouldn't make a baseless assumption, especially if his life was on the line. He'd wait until he was 100% certain his deduction was accurate and then mockingly present his case, as he always did.

The Togami Heir aside, there were also the wild cards like Hiro and even Taeko.

Hiro would undoubtedly try and uncover the traitor's identity…though Mukuro doubted that he'd have any degree of success. Considering his past displays of intelligence, he'd probably end up just asking everyone if they were the traitor and not believe any of them. And given his manic nature recently, he may end up just guessing, even with the possibility of getting it wrong and being executed!

Taeko, on the other hand…was a complete mystery. If it had been 'Celeste', the gambler would have undoubtedly used her manipulation skills to try and assess who the traitor was. But considering that Taeko seemed less than interested in this new motive and more interested in becoming a NEET who never left their room…it was doubtful she'd actively pursue this chance. Although that could be just another rouse. Which made it all the more frustrating!

And to make matters worse, the division in the class had already begun…


"Can I go back to my room now?" the annoyed tone of Taeko rang out, her disinterest almost staggering. Slowly, the entire class shifted their gazes to her, but she weathered their incredulous looks. "What? You can all debate this pointless motive, but I really couldn't care less—".

"It's YOU isn't it?!" Hina interrupted her, angrily pointing at the disgraced gambler. If possible, Taeko's frown deepened as the swimmer shouted at her. "Liars like you and the Mastermind are cut from the same cloth! It wouldn't surprise me in the least if you turned out to be the traitor—".

"…Is that your final answer?"

A sudden chill ran down everyone's spine as Monokuma called out from the podium, a microphone materializing from behind him. Leaping down, and with speed unseen by the students, the demented bear dashed up and shoved the microphone in Hina's face, eliciting a horrified expression from the swimmer girl.

"Go ahead, speak directly into the microphone and let the ENTIRE SCHOOL know of your declaration!"

As he spoke, the students suddenly noticed his voice echoing from all around them. Overwhelmed by the sudden change in atmosphere, Hina blanched and began to stammer, "Uh…I…um…"

Each syllable that came out of Hina's mouth loudly echoed from the gym speakers, intensifying the growing feeling of tension. Fortunately, before the disoriented swimmer could utter something that would condemn her or some else, a large muscular hand clapped onto her shoulder, pulling her back and away from Monokuma.

"Bastard!" Sakura roared as she ushed Hina behind her, a dangerous glint of rage sparking in her usually gentle eyes. "I don't know what you're…planning…but…" she trailed off, noticing that Monokuma seemed increasingly disinterested.

As with Hina, her voice had echoed in all directions, startling her as her own voice reverberated around the room. With an audible sigh, Monokuma's paw clicked a button on the microphone and said, "False alarm. No convictions…for now."

"…What was that?" Sakura demanded, her eyes regaining their fierceness.

Monokuma's red eye flashed as he let out a deep, malevolent chuckle, nearly matching Sakura's intensity. "…Oh, I'm sorry. I thought that one of my precious students wanted to be the first to attempt to identify the traitor. So, as your magnanimous headmaster, I decided to let her voice be hear ALL THROUGHOUT the school!"

A tense moment of silence followed the bear's words, but it didn't take long for it to be broken.

"Seriously, I want to go back to my fucking room, now." Taeko's lack of interest in the whole affair was beyond off-putting, as was her casual tone. Everyone eyed her but she merely shrugged and said, "I know you'll all freak out if I just left on my own, so can one of you chuckle-fucks 'escort' me back already?"

As expected, no one immediately volunteered. She probably expected that, but Taeko didn't seem to care at the moment. Despite being her 'real' self, she was still incredibly hard to read.

"You're acting rather calm," Byakuya spoke up, denying her request without directly imposing. Pushing up his glasses, he smirked as he continued, "Does the news of a traitor in our midst not matter to you now that you've 'fallen from grace'?"

To everyone's surprise, Taeko let out a heavy sigh, tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, and stoically answered, "It's not like this is news. Plus, it doesn't matter one way or another. This motive is more about psychological manipulation than an actual threat. In other words, it's completely pointless and I couldn't give two shits about it."

"Care to elaborate?" Byakuya questioned, his smirk suddenly replaced with an aggressive frown. "I know at this point your pride is all but nonexistent, but at the very least the confirmation of a traitor among us—"

"—Doesn't change anything," the gambler cut him off, her bored tone agitating the Togami Heir. "Whoever the traitor is, all they've been doing is spying, right? If whoever's running this shit-show wanted them to kill one of us, it'd be done by now."

"That's not necessarily true." Everyone was shocked to hear Sayaka raise an objection, her expression grimmer than usual. "It could be that the Mastermind and the traitor are one in the same. And this whole motive is simply a way to cause distrust between all of us."

"Fat chance," Taeko said with a scoff, obviously getting tired of this conversation. "We're not even required to participate in this motive. We could all just pretend it didn't happen and nothing would fucking change."

"Whoa, hold on! Does that mean we don't actually have to guess who the traitor is?" Leon abruptly asked, his perplexed expression proving he was still working to piece it all together. "There isn't, like, a punishment for not guessing or anything?"

Although he was trying to sound confident, the mere mention of punishment caused his voice to tremble, even if only for a moment.

An exasperated sigh escaped Taeko as she hung her head. "Why do you bother having ears if you don't fucking use them?" She sounded strangely exhausted, or perhaps just fed up with the whole situation. "In case you didn't get the hint, I'll spell it out; no one is required to do shit. We don't have to try and find the traitor and report them. There's no 'punishment' or anything for just sitting on your ass and doing nothing. Which is what I plan to do."

Despite her condescending attitude, the rest of the class seemed to understand Taeko's explanation. Leon breathed a sigh of relief, and smiled toward Sayaka, who nodded at him. The gambler openly gagged at their display, drawing frustrated glares over to her. Seemingly unfazed, she turned her back to the group and began speaking very loudly.

"Now…can someone PLEASE escort me back to my room so I can get away from all this stupid! Apparently, it's contagious—".

"W-Wait!"

A soft but concerned voice interrupted Taeko, causing her to glance over her shoulder. The gambler raised an eyebrow as she saw that it was Chihiro who'd called out to her. Flanked by her trusty friends, Mondo and Taka, she nervously began speaking.

"B-Before you g-go…we should…talk about what we all found while exploring," she reasoned, reminding everyone that they'd been summoned while investigating the new floor.

"Huh?!" an aggravated Taeko seethed, finally beginning to lose her patience. Chihiro recoiled, practically hiding behind her 'entourage' as the gambler let loose her frustration. "Why the hell would I care about new floors that I can't even visit?! Just let me go back to my room already, you goddamn pansy-ass—"

*SMACK*

A harsh slap reverberated in the gym, a grunt escaping Taeko as her face was jerked to the side. When she turned back, so was only half surprised to see Junko standing next to her, retracting her palm. The disgraced gambler narrowed her eyes, her burning hatred on open display as the Fashionista spoke.

"I'll take you back to your room. If you promise to stop being such a bitc—".

Junko's hand flew up as she narrowly caught the slim wrist of Taeko. A look of shock overtook the Fashionista, not expecting the disgraced gambler to physically fight back. Smirking at her with a reddened cheek, Taeko yanked her arm back, taking advantage of Junko momentary surprise.

With a cocky smirk, Taeko said, "Been a long time since someone tried to give you a good smack, huh 'Princess'?" She reveled in the frustrated glare that Junko gave her, barely holding in a chuckle. "Now that the 'bullying trial' rules aren't a thing, there's nothing stopping me from hitting you back. So think twice before you try call me a 'bitch' again."

A hush fell upon the students as this new side of Taeko overwhelmed them. Even the likes of Byakuya seemed shocked at how vastly different she'd become overnight. In hindsight, it shouldn't have been surprising. Hell hath no fury like a woman scorned, after all…

Furrowing her brows, Junko met her gaze and replied, "I'll keep that in mind," before turning back to the rest of the class. "I'll take her back to her room. You guys can just fill me in on whatever I missed when I get back."

"I'm afraid I must object!" Taka shouted, taking the floor. "Our leader, Chihiro, has said that we need to share information first! You shouldn't disrespect her by disobeying her first order! Isn't that right, Chihiro?!"

"Uh…maybe?" a flustered Chihiro stammered as all attention suddenly fell on her. As their gazes fixated on her, the programmer felt her cheeks burning. Fighting through the embarrassment, she squeezed out, "I-I mean…I don't really see the problem with…J-Junko…taking her back…do you?"

Aiming that remark at Mondo, the biker folded his arms and said, "If we were in the gang, that would be showin' a sign of weakness, which ain't good—"

"But we're not in a bike gang, are we?" Junko interrupted, rendering Mondo silent and therefore allowing her to address Chihiro directly. "I promise I'll come right back. Unless the two of you want to put up with Taeko's bitching while we talk."

"And don't think I won't do it! I have not even begun to bitch at you yet," the gambler said with a haughty huff, tapping her foot impatiently.

"Would you just shut your filthy mouth already!" Hina suddenly shouted, obviously at her breaking point. "Why don't we finish the job and just throw her into the incinerator?"

"At this point, she might actually enjoy that…" Leon muttered, earning an elbow from Sayaka.

"Enough!" the commanding voice of Taka cut through the chatter. Once silence was achieved, he turned to Chihiro and said, "It is your decision. As our leader, you get to make the call."

As one the entire class turned toward a fidgeting Chihiro, who obviously felt very uncomfortable. Struggling to find her voice, she eventually squeaked out, "J-J-Junko…could you take her back to her room…please…"

Flashing him a reassuring smile, the Fashionista waved and said, "You got it. I'll see you all soon. And please…don't accidentally accuse anyone while I'm gone."

Though it could have easily been taken as a joke, it was plain to see that she was very serious. Not only that, she angled her gaze directly at Hiro, who was in the process of trying to sneak away, very unsuccessfully.

"Fina-fucking-ly," Taeko sneered as she started heading for the door, Junko right on her heels.

As the two of them left, Kyoko cleared her throat to get everyone's attention and said, "Let's go over what we've found so far. If that is alright with you, Chihiro?"

"Y-Yes, l-let's, uh…do that…" the programmer stammered, pleased that someone else was willing to head the conversation.

"Very well, I will go first…" Kyoko said, swiftly explaining what she'd discovered before allowing her classmates to do the same.

As everyone began sharing what they'd found on the new floors, a nervous Hiro slunk along the back wall, hoping no one noticed him. And even though most of the class were aware of his cowardly departure, only Makoto watched as the clairvoyant rushed out of the gym, a sour expression on the lucky student's face.


Strangely, it was actually a very quiet walk back to Taeko's room/cell. Mukuro had expected the gambler to complain but was oddly pleased when she elected to stay silent. Opening the door for her, Taeko heaved a heavy sigh as she walked in and plopped onto her bed, not giving a damn how disgraceful she looked. Mukuro stepped inside and shut the door behind them, giving them the slightest bit of privacy.

"I'll be back later with lunch or are the cheesepuffs enough?" the disguised soldier inquired, watching with grim fascination as Taeko, face buried in her pillow, used her hand to search for the large contained of puffs.

"Lihh…ihh…chare…" the gambler's muffled voice barely reached her. After a few moments of her fingers racking around in all directions, Taeko's hand eventually smacked into the cheespuff container, grasping it bringing it closer. Lifting her face up just enough to shove a few cheesepuffs into her mouth, she loudly chomped on them before plopping her face back down into her pillow, leaving orange stains on it.

A part of Mukuro was surprised, seeing how low her classmate had fallen. Then again, this was actually the second time she'd witness this kind of behavior from the gambler. Back before the mind wipe, when Taeko had received news that her cat was missing (likely dead), she'd reacted in a similar manner. She had stayed in her room for days, refusing to see anyone. And when she did emerge, she was practically a shadow of the person they'd come to know. It was then that she'd told everyone her real name, showing her vulnerability to her classmates for the first time, and finally broke down into a sobbing mess.

She wasn't the first, or last, of the students to crumble under the pressure of the apocalypse. But considering how much pride she usually had, it certainly had been an eye-opening sight. Or at least, it was for most of the class.

At the time, Mukuro hadn't thought much of it. She knew that once the killing game started, Taeko wouldn't remember being that vulnerable with her classmates. But now that everything had changed…after how much Mukuro herself had changed…it honestly kind of hurt to see her in such a sorry state. At the same time, the soldier didn't have any idea how she could help, especially after the gambler had tried to 'graduate'.

Not to mention that Taeko had made it very clear how much she resented the 'Fashionista'. Despite wanting to genuinely help her classmates, it was obvious that Taeko would never see it that way. Even now, she still viewed everything from a self-centered perspective. And unless she was willing to change that, there was nothing anyone could do for her.

Still, that didn't mean that Mukuro would give up on her entirely. After all, she'd seen Taeko's softer side before the game started. And although it was buried deep down inside, the soldier hoped that someday she might be willing to show that vulnerability once again.

As for right now, all Mukuro could do was play the role of the 'Fashionista' and hope for the best…

"Yeah well, sooner or later, the cheesepuffs are gonna run out…probably sooner by the look of things," Mukuro chided, earning a sideways glare from Taeko. Slightly pleased with that minor victory, she continued, "Someone will come by and make sure to get you some real food before the end of today—".

"Cut the bullshit, I know it's you."

Taeko's harsh but firm words silenced her, and it took every ounce of her will not to physically react to what the gambler had just proposed. They both knew what she meant, but Mukuro couldn't let her know that. It was her worst fear come to live…but there was still time to circumvent it. Or at least she hoped so…

"Keep acting like that and I may 'forget' to bring you dinner tonight. Hell, if you're that opposed to it, I can always ask someone else to do it, since you're being such a prude," Mukuro replied, doing her best to redirect the conversation, knowing that she was only delaying the inevitable.

Hearing that 'excuse', Taeko rolled over, sat up and dangled her legs off the edge of the bed, staring daggers at the 'Fashionista'.

"You're one of the traitors. No matter how you look it, it's the only thing that makes sense."

Knowing that she'd been caught, Mukuro's demeanor stiffened. Even though Taeko was right, that didn't mean she couldn't sow seeds of doubt. At this point, it was her only chance to survive…

"Oh yeah? How do you figure that?" she questioned, folding her arms and leaning against the wall. Even though inside she was panicking in every way imaginable, she somehow was able to maintain her Fashionista guise, though for how long she had no idea.

Now it was Taeko's turn to smirk, obviously enjoying having some form of control again after being deprived of it for so long. "Honestly, it's not that hard to figure out. It has to be either you or Kyoko, since the two of you obviously knew more than anyone else during the last trial. And while Kyoko may be aloof and hard to read, she's also incredibly straightforward. You on the other hand, keep surprising me…"

"Surprising you?" Mukuro questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Standing up, Taeko began to pace around the room as she spoke, "A Fashionista that used to be homeless? One that knew how to do a blood transfusion? That was already suspicious enough. But there's also one more thing that makes no sense about you."

The gambler came to a stop not far from Mukuro. Half-smirking at her, the gambler's red irises practically daring the Fashionista to challenge her. Scowling at her, Mukuro felt like a fool for pitying Taeko a moment ago. Despite her disheveled state, the gambler was just as sharp as ever, and if Mukuro wasn't careful, it would spell her undoing.

"And what would that be?" she questioned, knowing that backing down now would only make her even more suspicious.

Sitting back down on the bed, Taeko suddenly laughed maliciously and exclaimed, "Figure it out for yourself. If you manage to puzzle it out, I'll keep my mouth shut and not report you to Monokuma. Sound fair?"

A gamble…that really shouldn't have surprised Mukuro. At this point, there was no way to know if Taeko was actually being serious with her or not. This whole thing may just a stunt to alleviate the gambler's boredom. A part of her wanted to scoff and call her bluff…but she knew that wasn't wise. The consequences could be very deadly for Mukuro regardless of the outcome. Because she would either have her status as a former traitor out in the open…or she might be exposed as an impostor.

And in either case…it meant she'd be executed. An inescapable death trap…

And yet, something about the way Taeko was smirking at didn't feel all the malevolent. Cruel, certainly, but not evil or malicious. For now, all Mukuro could do was hope that this was just a sick joke the gambler was playing on her and hope for the best. She literally had no other choice in the matter.

Regaining her confidence, the soldier finally answered, "Not sure what kind of game you're playing, but I'm not interested. Besides—" she turned and opened the door, glancing over her shoulder as she finished, "—if you really were that confident, there's no way you'd reveal your cards upfront like this."

She turned and was about to leave when she stopped and reached for her back pocket, where a folded magazine had been nestled. Tossing it toward Taeko, it landed on the floor not far from the bed, leaving the gambler a bit perplexed as she saw it.

"You said you wanted something to read. Well, there ya go. Have at it." It was an old fashion magazine that probably wasn't very interesting, but at least she fulfilled the selfish gambler's request.

Without waiting for a response, Mukuro stepped outside and shut the door, gripping her chest as her heart pounded furiously against her ribcage. Only when she knew the door was fully closed and that she was truly alone in the hall did she let out a deep sigh before clenching her fists.

"…Fuck."


A long moment of silence settled in Taeko's room after Junko departed. The gambler stood there, eyes downcast, glaring at the magazine she'd been 'gifted'. Walking over, she bent down and picked it up, tossing it onto her bed without much fanfare. Then, knowing that no one (aside from the Mastermind) could hear her, she cocked her head back and let out a viciously victorious laugh.

"Damn…that went even better than I thought it would!" Taeko continued chuckling as she flung herself back onto her bed, smiling triumphantly. "She wasn't expecting that, I bet! Oh, the look on her face was priceless! Ahaha!"

It was petty. Very petty. But at the moment, Taeko didn't care. Even though Junko had hidden it well, the gambler would bet the last of her savings that the 'Fashionista' was sweating bullets right about now. She knew that either Kyoko or Junko had more information than they let on. And even though that didn't guarantee that one of them was the traitor Monokuma wanted 'revealed', that didn't mean she couldn't use this new motive to torment the overly optimistic Fashionista.

"Even if it's just a bluff, I'll play this hand until it's no longer amusing," Taeko mused to herself, settling in for a long day of lonely confinement.

Despite her declaration, Taeko had absolutely no desire to play Monokuma's game anymore. Sure, she'd have her fun messing with Junko, and possibly even Kyoko as well if she could manage it. But no motive Monokuma presented to her could possibly sway her mind, not anymore at least. Not because she particularly cared about her classmates, but because there was absolutely no benefit for her…

Her utter humiliation during the trial taught her a valuable lesson. The house always wins…and around here, Monokuma was the house. There was no victory to be gained from 'graduation'. After all, there was no precedent for Monokuma to keep their word once the game was over. Not only that, even if someone did manage to get away with murder (literally), there was nothing stopping the Mastermind from simply revealing that information to the public via the security cameras.

So really, even if she had managed to 'graduate', the police more than likely would have arrested her for the part she played in killing her classmates. Sure, it was possible the justice system would go easy on her because of the fucked up situation she'd been forced into, but she doubted it. After all, she chose to try and 'graduate', knowing it would leave her the only survivor. Even if she wasn't convicted, the court of public opinion would forever be against her, and that was almost just as bad.

"A god-damn double bind. I'm so frustrated with myself for not seeing it sooner…fuck, I'm stupid…" Taeko chastised herself, finally able to see things more clearly now that she'd taken herself out of the running.

Her skills and status as a student of Hope's Peak had blinded her to the truth. If anything, the Mastermind was preying on their inflated egos, making it easy to sway them toward becoming murderers. Hell, even someone as kind and sweet as Hina had turned ruthless after—

"Uhg! Why did I have to remember that?" Taeko grunted, willing herself not to think about what happened yesterday. It was all her fault that Hina had turned into such a vicious person, and despite trying to lie to herself that it didn't affect her, the pit in her stomach was clear evidence it did.

Rolling over onto her stomach, the gambler glanced toward the beat-up magazine and shrugged her shoulders. "Better than nothing," she told herself, rolling over and flipping the magazine open to read the latest fashion trends. However, she got bored rather quickly. She wasn't the type to 'order' outfits. Now when she could make them herself…

Almost unconsciously, her eyes drifted over to her partially torn and frazzled 'Celeste' outfit, which lay unceremonious on the floor. Since she'd been wearing it yesterday, it was the only dress that had survived. The longer she stared at it, the more antsy she became, her inner perfectionist unable to stand the sight of the 'ruined' outfit.

Swinging her legs over the edge of the bed, she opened the drawer of her nightstand and huffed. "No one though to get rid of the sewing kit, huh?" she said, pulling said kit out from the drawer. Standing up, she walked over to her discarded outfit, picked it up, and carried it over to her bed.

"At least it's something to do…" she told herself as she opened the kit and began the process of repairing the torn outfit.


"Aww, that's boring…" the real Junko said, watching the interaction between Taeko and her sister. She could easily analyze that the gambler had no interest in actually participating in the new motive. She was just using it to torment her sister. "As fun as that'll be to watch, that is not why I purposed this motive, young lady! Bad gambler! Bad! You're boring me now!"

Junko spun around in her chair, hair whipping her in the face as she sighed heavily.

"I figured this might get the lazy bitch motivated again, but I guess I broke her a little too hard yesterday. Oh well, at least there's one person who might make this latest motive worthwhile."

Slamming her feet down to stop spinning, she now faced the monitor that displayed Hiro, who was tiptoeing down the hallway and back toward his room, constantly on the lookout for anyone. Though the chances of him succeeding in discovering Sakura or her sister's traitor status were slim, they weren't zero. In fact, if Hiro of all people were able to use the graduation rule and get a full class punishment, that would be oh so deliciously despairing!

"All he needs is a little…shove in the right direction," the gleeful Mastermind said to herself, already having calculated 154 ways to get him off and running.


To Be Continued…

Greetings, my beautiful readers! It has been years, hasn't it! I know this chapter is short, but I'm taking my time to get back into the swing of things and finally get this story finished!

So, going forward, I plan to release one chapter every month. That way, I won't get burned out, and I'll also have enough time to write and craft the story to the best of my ability! I will still be working on my other Danganronpa related stories and hope to have them finished in the near future!

Regardless, thank you all for the wonderful comments so many of you left these last few years! Life has been difficult since the pandemic but I'm finally back to writing! I hope that you all continue to enjoy the story and have yourself a beautiful day, my beautiful readers!