Interlude II – A Step Towards Hope – Start
It's been a week since what Makoto could only describe as 'the worst day of his life'.
Still, outside of getting a little bit famous because of the incident, nothing too major really happened since then.
Now, the brunette is getting back home after doing some errands for his mother.
While walking down the street towards his home, the boy starts thinking about everything that has happened to him up until now.
The hot springs incident, meeting Chiaki, helping that wounded crane, going to the beach with Komaru, befriending Tsumugi.
Really, a lot has happened in his life even if he himself didn't notice and now, he was here, about to start high-school.
Stopping on his tracks, the brunette looks towards the horizon, not really paying attention to his surroundings that much.
"So much has happened." He closes his eyes and sighs.
While Makoto was happy that Chiaki got into Hope's Peak, he couldn't deny that he missed her dearly.
The two haven't spoken since she went away, mostly because they both knew that her life was going to get a lot more hectic going forward, so it was best for her to focus mainly on the academy and her new friends there.
Komaru has matured surprisingly fast after that incident on the mall, not just mentally but also physically.
Heck, she was even starting to get taller than her brother, which he never would admit bothered him, even though it really did.
Tsumugi has opened herself even more during this last year, now being way more comfortable being herself around her friends.
She wasn't afraid of engaging in topics that she loved when around him or Komaru, it actually made Makoto really happy knowing that she considered him one of her dearest friends.
Even though he still thinks is a bit weird of her to call him 'onii-sama' but oh well, if she's happy with that, he sure wasn't going to take that away.
And finally, Makoto himself.
If one was to ask the brunette what he thought of himself at this point, he would have a hard time finding a answer.
Mostly because to him, he hasn't changed a lot from when he was younger.
Yet, his parents, Komaru, Tsumugi and everyone around him would say otherwise.
Makoto couldn't see it himself, but his presence, his ever hopeful attitude and his drive to help people, all of that had an impact on those around him.
To him, there was nothing special about himself.
Yet, even though he didn't knew it, his life was about to change course.
Was it was for the better or for the worse?
Only time would tell.
At a hotel somewhere else in the country, a lavender-haired girl sits on the bed and speaks calmly on her phone.
"Yes, Oji-sama, I'll be accepting the invitation." Her voice calm like a nightly breeze.
" I still believe that to be a waste of time." A gruff voice replies through the phone, it sounding disappointed. " But, if you wish to cut ties with that man, go ahead."
The girl shakes her head. "Thank you for your understanding." She looks down at her gloved hand and continues. "This shouldn't take very long."
After changing some more pleasantries, the girl finishes her call and sighs.
Getting up, she approaches the window and grabs her gloved hand. "Soon, it will finally be over." She moves her thumb on the gloved hand, making small circles. "It will be over." Her tone turns cold as she watches her own reflection on the window.
"Thank you gentleman, it was a pleasure making business with you." Standing in front of a old and abandoned warehouse, a black-haired girl wearing a European style dress and a white theater mask, bows slightly, by her side a black suitcase is sitting on the floor. "I hope we meet again-" She smiles happily and grabs the suitcase, before turning around and whispering to herself. " -suckers."
The girl leaves the warehouse, leaving behind a bunch of angry, well-dressed men wearing masks just like her own.
Once out of sight from the man, the girl stops and opens the suitcase, revealing a large sum of money. "Idiots." She says while taking her mask off, revealing her pale face and crimson red eyes. "It's too easy to make money off of them." Tossing her mask inside of the suitcase, the girl closes it and gets up, dusting her beautiful dress in the process. "Hopefully this will be the last time I'll see any of them." She starts walking away as the sun fades away behind her. "Let's see what Hope's Peak has in store for me." With that said, the girl disappears in the middle of the other warehouses.
At a completely average neighborhood, a family is outside of their house watching as their daughter prepares to leave.
"Take care of yourself." A woman says while hugging a girl with brunette hair in a high ponytail and toned skin. "And try to make some friends okay?"
"Okay, okay, I got it!" The girl separates herself from her mom and gives her a thumbs up.
"Make sure to call us if anything happen okay?" A tall man says, now taking his turn in hugging the girl.
"Sure thing!" She replies hugging him back.
Lastly, a boy younger than her and also with toned skin, approaches the girl and raises his fist. "Good luck Nee-san."
The girl smiles the two fist bump. "For you too, Yuuta."
Opening a mischievous smile, the boy adds. "And try to find a boyfriend will ya?" He pulls back his hand and starts laughing as the girl closes deeply.
"YUUTA!" Now having her embarrassed replaced with anger, the girl grabs the boy in a arm lock. "You little brat!"
"Okay, I give, I give!" He cries while still laughing.
The two parents smile to each other, before the girl and her dad enter their car and drive away.
At a underground arena, a large burly man is thrown against the wall, hitting it so hard that the concrete breaks and forms a crater.
Standing in opposition to the now unconscious man, is a tall burly girl with darker skin and long white hair.
Smoke can be seen coming out of her hand, thanks to the speed in which she punched her opponent.
"THAT'S IT LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" The booming voice of the announcer yells as the crown goes wild. "FOR THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROLL, THE OGRE DEFENDS HER TITLE OF UNDERGROUND CHAMPION!" He continues doing his job of hyping up the crowd as the girl starts heading out of the arena.
Once finally out of earshot from the rest, the tall girl closes her fist and looks at it, words ringing in her head.
' There is more to being strong than just physical strength. '
"Kenshiro-kun…" She whispers to herself, while closing her fist.
The girl walks away, still being able to hear the crowd calling for 'The Ogre'.
At a luxurious apartment, a girl with blue hair is swaying her hips in rhythm with the music coming out of her speakers.
Her moves are precise and swift, but still have a soft and cute aspect to them.
"Hope's Peak~" The girl sings in a sweet voice as she keeps on moving, only stopping when the instrumental she's listening to comes to an end. "I wonder what awaits me there." Putting a hand over her heart, the girl closes her eyes and sighs.
Maybe I'll even see him again.
"Hehe." She giggles to herself. "That's wishful thinking." Turning around and walking towards her the counter of her kitchen, she then grabs her phone which is sitting by the side of the speaker and changes the music to another instrumental, her hips starting to move as soon as the music starts, almost like second nature. "But hey, I can dream too right~" She sings again, before going back to her dancing.
At a suburb in the other side of the country, loud shouts can be heard at a particular house.
"Guh!" Inside of a bedroom in this house, a girl with dark purple hair in two braids. "J-Just a w-week." She whispers to herself while using her pillow to cover her ears. "O-One m-more w-week and I'll b-be f-free f-from t-this h-hellhole." She closes her eyes and waits, while the shouting on the lower part of the house keeps getting louder and louder.
Eventually, the girl falls asleep.
Suddenly, she opens her eyes and giggles to herself.
Her once gray eyes, now are a of a bright red color and the grin on her face is a uncanny one.
Getting up, the girl grabs her round glasses from the bedside and pulls her long skirt up.
"Gehehehe!" She maniacally giggles while grabbing two scissors that are hidden in her underwear. "In a week we're gonna meet fresh blood!" Turning towards the bedroom's window, the girl opens it, letting the cold air fill her room. "I can barely wait!" She opens her mouth, making her long tongue fall out.
With a leap, the girl jumps out of the window, only leaving the empty bedroom behind.
At a extremely expansive hotel room, a tall girl with long blond hair comes out of the shower.
She looks towards another girl, this one with blue hair, and says. "Shinobu, how long until my flight?"
The blue-haired girl bows. "Just a moment, Byakuya-nee-sama." She then closes her eyes and takes a deep breath.
The girl named Byakuya sits down at the bed and starts drying her hair.
Just then, the girl with blue hair opens her eyes. "Your flight is scheduled to take off in two hours."
The blond closes her eyes. "Tell them to be here in one hour." She orders and the other girl looks uncertain. "Have I made myself clear?" She opens her eyes and coldly stares at the blue-haired girl.
"Y-Yes, Byakuya-nee-sama." Bowing once again, the blue-haired girl walks out of the room.
Now alone, the blond continues to dry her hair. "Let's see how things will go from here." Looking at the giant mirror in the room, the blond smirks. "Hopefully, the academy won't be so dull."
"Chihiro." A male voice calls from outside a bedroom. "Are you ready?"
Inside, a petite girl with short layered brunette hair is finishing packing her things.
"Yes, Otou-san!" She yells back, while getting up.
The small girl looks around her room, it seemed so empty without her plushies, video-games and computer.
Still, she had accepted the invitation to Hope's Peak, so she had to move on.
Opening the door to her room and stepping outside, the girl's father, who has a resemblance to her, is waiting.
"Let's go?" The man asks and the petite girl nods.
"Let's go." The two walk towards the stairs, and before going down, Chihiro looks back to her room once more, with one last silent goodbye, she walks downstairs.
The curtains close at a old theater, as the actors and actresses start to head backstage, between them, one stands positively radiant.
A girl with bright pink hair in two long pigtails, she is wearing a princess costume.
"You look happy Utsugi-san." One of the older actresses says as the girl smiles.
"Yeah!" The pinkette does a little twirl and puts her hands behind her back. "I'll be going to Hope's Peak next week." She can contain her excitement. "It's gonna be so totally awesome!"
The older actress smiles. "It will be a shame to lose a talent like yours in our company, but you need to shine on your own." The woman then turns to the other actors and says. "How about a party for Utsugi-san?"
Everybody yells in agreement and the pinkette giggles.
She so gonna enjoy Hope's Peak.
At a barely lit room, a green-haired girl stands in front of a computer.
Her fingers effortlessly dash across the keyboard, pressing the keys before most normal people can even register.
On her screen, multiple feeds of cameras are shown.
"Urgh, nothing to do." The girl says as her eyes scan all of the multiple camera feeds. "Hacking the tower's security is staring to get stale."
Pulling her wheelchair back, the girl turns around and sighs.
"Hope's Peak better have a top notch security, or might just quit halfway." She spins around once again and looks at the her computer screen. "Although, I wonder what kind of juice secrets the academy holds on their database." She smiles creepily. "Hehe, I'm getting excited!"
After that, the girl rolls her wheelchair back to the front of her computer.
The security system at the tower might be boring, but she will squeeze every little bit of fun she can out of it, before going to Hope's Peak.
The light of the TV is the only thing that illuminates the dusty room.
Sitting down at a broken couch in only her underwear, a blond girl flips through the channels.
Sitting by her side in a metal chair, is a pale girl with black hair and freckles on her face, her eyes are staring straight into the darkness.
Suddenly, the blind throws the remote at the television, breaking it and making the room completely dark.
"Gah! This is so fucking boring." The blond yells. "Go get a candle slave." She orders and the black-haired girl nods.
Just as the other girl makes her way out of the room, the blond gets up and walks towards the broken TV.
She grabs the remote and waits until the other girl walks in again, now holding a candle.
Without any excitation, the blond tosses the remote at the black-haired girl's face with her full force.
The pale girl is taken slightly aback and trips on her own feet, falling down and breaking the candle in the process.
"Pfff! Hahaha!" The blond laughs giddily to herself. "You look fucking pathetic!" The other girl doesn't say anything, she just waits until the blond stops laughing. "Okay, that was a good laugh, now go grab another one."
The black-haired girl nods and gets up, before walking away.
The blond, now alone in the room, looks at a calendar on the wall.
Even on this darkness, she was still capable of seeing the date marked on the calendar.
"You better be prepared Hope's Peak." She says to herself with a malicious smile. "Because Enoshims fucking Junko is coming!"
Makoto kicks his shoes off and walks into his house.
"I'm home!" He announces, before listening to quick footsteps in his direction.
"ONII-CHAN!"
"ONII-SAMA!"
Komaru and Tsumugi both yell his name as they make their way into the entrance.
"What's up with you two?" The boy asks and the each of them grabs onto one of his arms, quickly pulling him inside. "Hey, hey, what's going on?"
They don't say anything, both girls just guide him to the living room, where both of his parents are anxiously waiting for him.
"Can someone explain to me what's going on?" The brunette asks and his father simply motions with his head towards the small table in the middle of the room. "Seriously what's go-" Makoto stops on his tracks once he sees what's on top of the table. "-ing on…" His eyes fall into a simple envelope.
Well, until he noticed the seal in it.
The seal of Hope's Peak Academy and right under that, his name.
Naegi Makoto – Ultimate Lucky Student
Interlude II – A Step Towards Despair – End
Welp, that's a lot of new faces isn't it?
At first, I was going to introduce every member of class 78, but decided to just introduce the girls, because they are by far, the most important aspect of this story.
Also yes, Kotoko and Monaca will be members of class 78 and they also will have different backstories, for obvious reasons.
Now, to Hope's Peak we go, finally.
Anyways, hope ya'll enjoyed reading this chapter and see you around!