A/N -

Okay, so, first and foremost! Content warnings! Content warnings ABOUND!

This fic focuses on the Warriors of Hope from Danganronpa, who ALL have extremely upsetting backstories. I will be delving into their backstory and trauma.

Their trauma includes such things as:

Child molestation, child neglect, child abandonment, child abuse, child suicide, child endangerment. Generally just being exceptionally shit towards children.

But also, adults going through similar mental issues.

I figure people know what they're getting into when they read a Warriors of Hope fanfic, but - better safe than sorry, you know?

Anyway, with that out of the way -

I want to give a special thanks to my BF Crow, for suggesting the title! I'm awful at titles, I can write for days but when it comes to titling things? Fuck that.

Back on track - This fic takes place in an alternate universe to the Danganronpa 3 anime!

In short, instead of launching herself into space - Monaca is arrested by the future foundation…

There are more differences, but I can't exactly spell them out or I'd have no fic :P Keep an eye out!

One last note, this is mostly a prologue chapter. I promise, the story will pick up :P

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The peculiar but distinct warble of a rubber mallet slamming against a wooden coaster rung through a shoddily built Kangaroo Courtroom. This was followed by an uncharacteristically gruff throat-clearing from the Judge - Future Foundation's head, Kyosuke Munakata.

After the events of the all too recent 'Monokuma Hunter' Killing Game, he had stepped up and taken the bull by the horns - and was now steering the ship. He intended to mold the group into an antidote, one to mitigate the lethal dose of poison that Junko had fed the world.

Well, that's the way he saw it. Others described the group as a collection of old-world stragglers desperately trying to stick to the traditions of a world gone by, ones that made less and less sense by the day - All in the sole attempt to cling to diminishing sanity. But, to each their own!

"Please be seated, everyone, for Court is in session. Our primary goal today is to separate the fact from the fiction surrounding the recent events in Towa City, and in doing so - determining who's to blame."

His voice was elegant, sophisticated, but weighty enough to make everyone listen. To punctuate his points, he had a small projector casting images on a screen beside him - Primarily various photos of the Towa City incident, but also a recently taken mugshot.

"Initial reports lay it all on the hands of a woman named Monaca Towa, but we can't discount the strong possibility that she was a scapegoat - following a plan put together by the late Junko Enoshima which she was forced to carry out. After that's determined, we shall come to a decision on what to do with her - if we believe she can be rehabilitated, or if she's too far gone."

Even though he was the judge, he was far from impartial. If it was solely up to him, she'd already be hanging from the gallows. But… Makoto Naegi had made good headway in proving that the Remnants of Despair weren't beyond salvaging - and in that there was something that could be saved. It was inevitable that he would want to try the same thing with Junko's mini-me.

But just because Kyosuke was willing to hear the boy out, didn't mean he wasn't going to do what he thought was right.

"Prosecutor Kirigiri, would you please make your opening statement?"

At his request, Kyoko stepped towards the stand. Leaning into the mic, and continuing the explanation for the audience - interweaving her primary argument.

"According to gathered intel, The massacre in Towa City was the work of a group of five children - calling themselves the 'Warriors of Hope'. Monaca Towa was the group's leader, who created a cult of personality around herself. The other four Warriors were essentially her inner circle of fanatics. Pushed and prodded by her to go a little further every day, eventually culminating in a city wide takeover and mass murder of adults in an attempt to create a child's paradise. Thank you."

"Next, the defense." Ordered Kyosuke.

In this role, was the Ultimate Hope - Makoto Naegi. He struggled tremendously in preparing for the trial, he didn't really consider himself the most articulate person… He had a bad feeling that if he didn't tread carefully that he was going to be led into a trap or logical fallacy. But… No, no, he had to have faith in his coworkers that that wouldn't happen. Byakuya might do that, But Kyoko wouldn't. What the two of them were after was the truth - and he knew he could get to the heart of the matter.

Speaking of Byakuya, while he was a strong presence in this trial - being scheduled for a witness testimony and contributing several key pieces of evidence, he ultimately decided that he had too much personal stake in the case to give an unbiased view. On account of being held hostage by the Warriors of Hope, and all.

Anyway, after a moment to catch his breath, Makoto took the stage. "I would like to start by making my side clear. To some extent, Monaca Towa is guilty. But to what extent? That is what I aim to find. According to a duo of first hand witnesses, Monaca had a close relationship with Junko Enoshima, the Ultimate Despair. Idolizing Junko, plastering pictures of Junko all over the walls of her bedroom walls… Junko may have even saved the life of the Warriors of Hope."

Makoto paused his speech, that last sentence having whipped the crowd into an uproar. Kyosuke banged his gavel and ordered "Quiet!", but it took a minute before he could continue.

He took that small break to think. That last bit, it'd come from deep dives into the Hope's Peak archives. It was an incident that the School tried to cover up, for obvious reason.

Five Children in the Elementary School division had seemingly tried to commit mass suicide.

Convinced at the last second to not go through with it by Junko Enoshima.

Their names were Monaca Towa, Maisaru Daimon, Nagisa Shingetsu, Kotoko Utsugi, and Jataro Kemuri. The same five that later became the Warriors of Hope.

They were notorious problem students, too, spending more time in detention than in class.

Makoto was no child psychologist, but there was no way those children were in a healthy state of mind.

He didn't know if they actually intended to go through with it. But that didn't matter. What it was, was a cry…no, a wail for attention.

One that was answered by a person who used these ill children as pawns to spread despair.

He saw Junko's damn smile in his mind's eye, as if saying "Yea, I did that! So what?"

It absolutely tore his heart to pieces.

He needed to fight for them. He knew nobody else would.

"I believe there is strong evidence to suggest that Junko Enoshima used these children as puppets, ultimately orchestrating these events behind the scenes. She set up the dominos, Monaca just pushed them over."

Makoto did his best to argue. He wasn't too good at it, he felt like he could've phrased it better - but ultimately he got his point across.

While Monaca did walk down the path of despair, she was led by Junko's hand.

The Judge nodded, once again slamming the impromptu gavel for the attention to return to him. "Before hearing the witnesses and their testimonies, I believe it's in the court's best interest to hear from Monaca Towa herself. Bailiff, Please fetch her, and bring her to the stand."

"Yes, sir!" Said the bailiff…the ever peppy Yasuhiro Hagakure! He ran off, alongside a small parade of Future Foundation grunts - Monaca was considered threat level omega, and in this situation an excess of caution was highly preferable to an absence.