The sun was setting, and the fountain in front of Hope's Peak was deserted save for two teenagers sitting together on the bench, furiously pounding away at their game systems.
Hajime, as always, was being completely dominated. By the time his last spaceship was blown up, his thumbs had already gone numb, and he could only lean back and look up at the sky with a dejected sigh. Chiaki, on the other hand, was still blazing through her own game, lost in concentration. From what he could see of her screen, she hadn't lost a single life.
"Geez. You're really on fire today. I mean, more so than usual."
Chiaki kept on playing, her face glued to the screen. "Yeah… today's a good day for me, I guess. I was able to find copies of some old games I haven't played in a long time."
"Oh yeah? Which ones?"
"Kirby Super Star Ultra and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. I'm so excited, I don't know which one to play first!"
Hajime just looked at her for a long moment before he burst out laughing. That seemed to be enough for Chiaki to finally put down her own game and look back at him.
"Hmm. What's so funny?"
"You like all kinds of games, don't you?"
"Well, of course. No matter what genre they are, each one was made with a lot of heart and soul, and each one is its own challenge. They're… sort of like people, I guess."
"Hmm. I see what you mean."
"Like… my classmates." Now Chiaki seemed to have forgotten her game entirely; she was thinking about the one thing that could hold her attention just as much. "They're all so different. Some of them were a little scary at first. They're not the kind of people I would ever get to know if I hadn't come to this school. But… we've all grown so close, and they're all such wonderful people when you really get to know them."
She sighed, holding her Game Girl Advance up to her chest. "I love all my classmates," she said with a distant-looking smile.
Hajime stayed quiet. This topic was a sore spot for him, not that he'd ever say so in front of her. He'd never met the other Main Course students, but if they were all as amazing as Chiaki… he wondered why she even bothered spending time with him, when he was just a nobody. Having a talent of his own sure would be nice…
"Well. I'm sure they all love you too," he finally said.
Chiaki looked at him in surprise. "You really think so?"
Hajime felt the temperature start to rise in his face, and he turned away. "Of course. How could they not?"
––
Hajime opened his eyes, wearily threw his arm over his face, and sat up. It took him a moment to collect his thoughts, to parcel together which memories of yesterday were real and which were nightmares.
Sonia was dead. Gundham was dead.
He'd seen Chiaki.
He hadn't told any of the others about that last one. Nor would he. As much as he wanted to believe it was true, his Izuru side wouldn't let him. He couldn't allow his emotional investment to cloud his judgment. He had to be rational about this.
He'd chased after the vision of her, past the cottages and into the trees, but she had vanished without a trace.
After thinking it over, he'd come up with three possibilities about last night.
1. He had really seen Chiaki.
2. He had simply imagined it, seeing what he wanted to see.
3. Monokuma was messing with him.
As much as it depressed him, he recognized that Possibility #3 was by far the most likely.
It was well before 7 am, but he wouldn't be getting any more sleep. He threw off his blanket, got dressed, and headed over to the hotel.
Just as he'd predicted, there was one other person already sitting at the restaurant.
"Kazuichi?"
The mechanic was all alone, seated at the table, nursing a mug of coffee that was largely untouched. When he looked up at Hajime, there were circles under his eyes, and when he spoke, his voice was faint and wavering.
"Hey… Hajime…"
Hajime sat down across the table from him. "Anything you want to talk about?" he asked. "And don't lie and say you're okay. I can't be tricked."
"Yeah… I know." Kazuichi didn't say anything else for a long moment, but he didn't need to. It was obvious what they were both thinking about. Sonia's execution. Watching her falling into the lava. It was burned into their minds. And it always would be.
"What did she mean?" Kazuichi finally asked, so much more subdued than he usually was. "I don't know anything about her? How… how could those be her last words to me?"
Hajime just looked at him for a moment, wondering how that, of all things, could be what was on Kazuichi's mind. Although this was something that had always bothered the mechanic. As time went by, he'd seemed to accept that Sonia preferred Gundham over him. But he'd never understood why.
"Kazuichi… you've known her for years now. You know she's not just some fairy tale princess," said Hajime. "I mean, think about her interests. Serial killers? The occult? She even knows how to drive a tank."
Kazuichi looked away from him. "…Y-yeah? So what? None of that matters… she's still Sonia."
"But all of that is Sonia." Had no one ever sat him down and had this talk with him? Well, now was the time… even if it was too late.
"You've always had this romanticized image of her in your head. Of what a princess should be like. And you've always clung to that, instead of just talking to her and getting to know the real her." Hajime sat back and folded his arms. "That's what she meant."
Kazuichi just sat there, staring down at the table, still as a statue. This couldn't be easy for him to hear. Especially after last night.
"…I guess… if you say so, then it must be true." He let out a sigh, then put his elbows on the table and covered his head with his hands. "I'm such a mess, aren't I?"
"We're all messes here. I don't know if you've noticed."
Kazuichi didn't respond. But his shoulders were shaking, and he let out a small noise that might have been a laugh or a sob.
The minutes ticked by, and gradually the other students began filing into the restaurant. Teruteru made a beeline for the kitchen to start making breakfast. It was probably his own personal way of keeping his mind off yesterday.
"We… haven't really talked about yesterday yet," Mahiru said softly once she and Hiyoko were seated. "Does anyone have something they want to say?"
"There's nothin' to say. Except that Monokuma's a big asshole, and I'm gonna pound his furry little face in," Akane muttered.
"Poor… poor Sonia…" Ryota whispered. His eyes were shimmering. "How… how could anyone possibly enjoy this? How could anyone side with despair?"
No one said anything in response. Ryota was the only one who didn't know firsthand what it was like to be drowned in despair. To be despair personified. If the others could preserve that innocence in him, they would.
"Hajime… you brought up a good point yesterday," said the Imposter, sensing the best thing to do was change the subject. "Assuming each of the Monobeasts is guarding one Monocrystal, that still leaves one unaccounted for. I don't suppose you've figured out where it is?"
Everyone else looked at Hajime in interest.
"I have my theories," he admitted. "But it's not like I can say anything out loud, where Monokuma can hear. All I can say is… Monokuma doesn't want us to find it. So it's somewhere we would never think to look."
Ibuki's eyes got huge. "Ooh! Everybody check your pockets!" she cried and started frantically patting herself down. She apparently found nothing, as she soon stopped and grew a crestfallen look. "Aww… I thought I was on to something."
"Anyway. There's something else we need to talk about," said Hajime. "How we're getting out of here."
Mahiru looked surprised. "What do you mean? Doesn't the program let us graduate when we've finished our objective?"
"Yes. That was before Monokuma took over." Hajime had a grim look on his face. "Now we need his permission. And if this is anything like last time… graduation is not going to be a desirable option."
"I-if we do that… Junko could take over our bodies… for real this time," Mikan said quietly.
Hiyoko looked irritated. "Well what other option do we have, skanky bitch?!"
Hajime gave her a disapproving frown. Hiyoko had been trying to be nicer to all her classmates, including Mikan, during their time on the island, but all this stress was clearly making her fall back into old habits.
"Well, there is one other way," Nagito said in a low voice. "I'm talking about the shutdown sequence. Isn't that right, Hajime? That's what you were going to bring up."
"Yeah, it is. If we do that, we'd essentially be crashing the program. It would still get us out of here… those of us that are still alive."
"Yeah, but… we need more than half of us to do the shutdown," Kazuichi spoke up. "And there's no Future Foundation to bail us out this time."
"More than half? That means we need… nine people to cause the shutdown!" said Ibuki, sounding entirely too cheerful. "Ha! Ibuki is great at math! …Oh wait, that's bad. What if we don't have enough people?"
"Is that even an option anyway?" asked Ryota. "What would that do to Nanami?"
That was the burning question, wasn't it. How could they possible save themselves and Chiaki from Monokuma… assuming she was even here to begin with? How could they make it so that all of this wasn't for nothing?
There was nothing more anyone could say, so they all resumed eating, mostly in silence, until they heard a familiar sound.
*Ding-dong, bing-bong*
The television in the corner of the room switched on, and there sat Monokuma.
"Gooooood morning, everyone! The time is now 7 am, and that means your next Adventure Phase has officially begun!" he said cheerfully, nursing a tropical drink in one hand. "So hurry your sorry little butts over to Second Island right now!"
And the TV switched back off.
"Well, that's our cue," said Nekomaru, standing up and stretching. "Kinda wish he'd give us some more clues about what we're in for."
Hajime stood up as well, along with all the others. Even after yesterday, everyone was still going along with Monokuma's game, putting their lives on the line.
What did that say about them?
Once they had all stepped outside, Hajime glanced down at himself, expecting to find himself in some strange video game costume again. But he was in his regular old uniform.
"We didn't change clothes this time," said Peko. "Perhaps Monokuma has something different planned for us today."
"So where are we supposed to go, anyway? Where's the Monobeast?" asked Fuyuhiko.
"I'm not sure… but regardless. There's someplace we definitely need to go," said Hajime.
Everyone set off on their long walk back to Central Island, then through the newly opened gate over to Second Island. It was a beautiful morning. The clouds from last night were all gone, and the walk across the bridge gave them all a spectacular view of the rising sun sparkling on the ocean waves.
Monokuma just had to ruin this too.
Once they reached Second Island, Hajime gathered them all together. "Okay… Nagito, you come with me. The rest of you can come too if you want."
"W-wait a minute," said Mikan. "Akane… we should get you over to the pharmacy. Then we can do a better job of b-bandaging your leg wound."
"Aw, geez… not this again. I told you I'm fine…"
Mikan ignored Akane, looping her arm under the gymnast's and resting her hand on her shoulder. "We'll… meet up with you later, everyone," she said timidly.
"I'm worried about that crazy woman," Nekomaru muttered as he watched Mikan lead Akane away. "She's not taking her injuries seriously. I keep telling her that staying in peak physical health is step one to becoming a truly great athlete."
"Yeah, she's never been good at listening," said Hajime. But there was more than that behind the worry in Nekomaru's voice, and Hajime felt it too.
After that, everyone followed him as he led them over to their first destination… the Ancient Ruins. They looked mostly the same as they had before – swathed in thick, enormous vines that reached up to the sky, with trees sprouting from its roof, giving the impression that it had been abandoned for hundreds of years.
But the number pad on the door, as well as the gatling gun, were missing. Now there didn't seem to be any way inside.
Hajime gazed longingly up at the building.
"She's right in there," he said. "We're so close to her."
"You think she can hear us?" Ibuki wondered. Suddenly she cupped her hands over her mouth. "HEEEEEEEEEEY! CHIAKI! IT'S US! WE'RE HERE TO RESCUE YOU!"
"HEY! Knock it off! You'll disturb the local wildlife!" came a voice, and Monokuma sprang up among them while wearing a pith helmet and toting an elephant gun. "Now then! I was looking for you kids, but it looks like Hajime's already led you to the right place!"
Hiyoko put her hands on her hips. "Yeah, yeah… what are we doing here, anyway? You're just wasting our time, you stupid bear! Unless you're gonna give Chiaki back to us right now…"
"'Fraid not, sweetheart! However! I would like to direct your attention over here!"
Everyone looked where he was gesturing. Resting on the ground was a huge boulder, taller than any of the students, and carved into it was a deep indentation in the shape of a six-pointed star.
"Hajime, I'm sure you can explain this one to your classmates, right?"
"Fine," Hajime muttered. "Everyone, this is probably where the Monocrystals go. Every time we collect a new one, we'll have to put it in here. So, Nagito…"
Nagito's face lit up. "Ah! Of course! I'm always delighted to be of help to my classmates!"
He walked over to the large rock, pulled out the Monocrystal he was still carrying with him, and lifted it up. When his hand was just inches away, some unknown force caused the Monocrystal to leap from his fingers and embed itself in the indentation.
It gave off a brief flash, and then everything was back to normal. The Monocrystal was resting firmly in place, but there was clearly room for five more.
"How interesting…" Nagito mused. "So once we've collected all six Monocrystals, their combined power will open the door to the Ancient Ruins… how exciting! I'm honored to be a part of this!"
"…It's really not that interesting," Kazuichi muttered.
"O-kay! Now that we've gotten that little chore out of the way, it's time for this game to really get under way!" said Monokuma. "So, kids! I'll see you all over at the diner!"
Everyone stood around in confusion as he vanished.
"Did he just say, the diner?" said Nekomaru. "What the heck are we doing over there?"
"Well, who cares," said Kazuichi. "There's no way anything in there can be dangerous to us, right?"
––
He was wrong.
The parking lot in front of the diner was absolutely flooded with the same creatures from yesterday. Although this time, they didn't look interested in attacking the students. They were milling around, hopping back and forth and chattering up a storm, and they were looking awfully impatient about something.
"H-hello everyone! I'm so sorry we're late, we had to – EEEEEEK! Not those things again!"
Mikan had just arrived with Akane in tow, but at the sight in front of them she immediately screamed and threw her hands over her face.
"Take it easy, Mikan. It doesn't look like they want to fight us," said the Imposter.
"Puhuhuhu! That's riiiiiiight!" came a singsong voice as you-know-who appeared again. "They're not here for fighting! They're here for feeding!"
Hajime narrowed his eyes at the bear. "Excuse me?"
Monokuma spread his arms. "Welcome, kids, to your second Adventure Phase! You see, those guys got really worn out from all that fighting yesterday. They need to eat lots and lots to get their strength back! And since you kids are the ones who beat the crap out of them, it's only fair that you're the ones that feed them, don't you think?"
A deep knot of annoyance began twisting in Hajime's stomach.
"So you're saying… we're playing Diner Dash."
Teruteru's eyes lit up. "Are… are you serious?" He clenched his fists together. "YAHOOOOO! Finally, it's my time to shine! This will be the ultimate test of my culinary genius!"
Fuyuhiko turned away in irritation. "Well, at least someone's excited."
"Your goal is to feed each and every person on this island! Then, and only then, will you be able to confront the Monobeast!" Monokuma went on. "And you'd better make sure your customers are satisfied, too! If not, the results could be… unpleasant…"
"Is that supposed to be a threat?" asked Peko, sounding unimpressed. "We defeated them quite soundly yesterday, as I recall."
"Yesterday, you kids were badass fantasy heroes. Today, you're nothing but lowly fast food workers! You sure you wanna push your luck?" Monokuma let out another devilish little laugh. "Well then! Have fun, kids…"
And he vanished just as quickly as he had come.
"Well, what are we waiting for! Let's hurry on in there!" Teruteru cheered. "We're going to transform this place! As long as I'm in charge, this will become the most successful, succulent diner ever!"
And he charged straight into the crowd of rainbow creatures… at least he tried, but their sheer number forced him right back out in seconds.
"Umm… a little help?"
Hajime shook his head. "Nothing for it, I guess," he said, and he led the others across the parking lot.
––
A/N: The flashback at the start is actually based on a dream I had about those two… except in the dream, Hajime straight up said "Marry me" XD
