“👎︎□︎■︎🕯︎⧫︎ ⬧︎♋︎⍓︎ ⧫︎♒︎♓︎■︎♑︎⬧︎ ●︎♓︎🙵♏︎ ⧫︎♒︎♋︎⧫︎📪︎ ✋︎ ❍︎♓︎♑︎♒︎⧫︎ ♌︎♏︎●︎♓︎♏︎❖︎♏︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎📬︎” he looked down at his feet, chuckling softly, “❄︎❒︎♋︎⬧︎♒︎ ●︎♓︎🙵♏︎ ❍︎♏︎ ♎︎□︎♏︎⬧︎■︎🕯︎⧫︎ ♎︎♏︎⬧︎♏︎❒︎❖︎♏︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎❒︎ ⬧︎⬥︎♏︎♏︎⧫︎ ⬥︎□︎❒︎♎︎⬧︎ ●︎♏︎⧫︎ ♋︎●︎□︎■︎♏︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎❒︎ ●︎□︎❖︎♏︎📬︎”
Shaking her head. sh3 grippppped her lover’s hands in her own, “☟︎♏︎⍓︎📪︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎🕯︎❒︎♏︎ ⧫︎♒︎♏︎ □︎■︎♏︎ ♋︎●︎⬥︎♋︎⍓︎⬧︎ ⧫︎♋︎●︎🙵♓︎■︎♑︎ ♋︎♌︎□︎◆︎⧫︎ ♒︎□︎◻︎♏︎📪︎ ♋︎❒︎♏︎■︎🕯︎⧫︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎✍︎ 👎︎□︎■︎🕯︎⧫︎ ♑︎□︎ ♑︎♏︎⧫︎⧫︎♓︎■︎♑︎ ♋︎●︎●︎ ♎︎♏︎⬧︎◻︎♋︎♓︎❒︎📫︎□︎♌︎⬧︎♏︎⬧︎⬧︎♏︎♎︎ □︎■︎ ❍︎♏︎ ■︎□︎⬥︎📬︎”
“✋︎🕯︎❍︎ ■︎□︎⧫︎📪︎ ✋︎🕯︎❍︎ ■︎□︎⧫︎📬︎"
“☝︎□︎□︎♎︎”
~~
“Hey!”
Head shooting up, (Y/n) looked around for the source of the voice, finding Chiaki, the peacekeeper huffed, rubbing at her eyes, “Did I fall asleep after Monokuma’s tai chi lesson?”
“Yeah,” the other girl yawned, “I almost did too…” her face suddenly morphed into something sterner, “You looked like you were having a nightmare, are you okay?”
“Well, just strange dreams… to be honest, I’m not sure that they’re nightmares…”
“What happens in them?” Chiaki moved to sit down beside (Y/n).
“I don’t know, that’s what’s so weird about them… I can never remember anything about them as soon as I wake up.”
Chiaki tapped a finger to her chin, looking to the ceiling, “That’s certainly strange… when did they start?”
“Since we got to the Funhouse, at least, that’s what I can tell,” bringing a hand over her face, (Y/n) sighed at her own situation, “I always feel a sort of, eh, nostalgia afterward, I’ve been having that since we were knocked out by the gas on our way in here.”
“Hmm, maybe it could be memories coming back to your sleep… probably…”
“Oh, yeah, maybe,” (Y/n) stood, offering a hand to Chiaki, “We should probably be getting back to the others.”
Letting out another yawn, Chiaki nodded sleepily, following (Y/n) down the corridors, still gripping her hand tightly, “I’ve been pretty tired lately.”
“Maybe it’s the no-food?”
“It’s definitely the no-food,” the gamer confirmed, doing her best to give a lighthearted chuckle.
It was a true misfortune, their situation - that was the only, and somehow best, way to describe it.
~~
“Why…?”
“Is it not so despair-inducing? So horrific and terrible that it will one day bring us a wonderful hope?”
(Y/n) held the limp, pale, rotting hand in hers before delicately covering it with the glove Nagito insisted on carrying around for Junko Enoshima’s hand, “Nagito, this was an awful idea.”
He ripped Junko’s hand away instantly, clutching it to his chest as if it were a precious family heirloom. His eyes narrowed at his own beloved, “Don’t even think about taking it from me.”
“I won’t,” she sighed, stepping closer and grabbing Nagito by the waist to bring him into her arms, tucking his head into the crook of her neck and laying kisses to any of his exposed skin she could get to, “✡︎□︎◆︎🕯︎❒︎♏︎ ♋︎●︎●︎ ✋︎ ♒︎♋︎❖︎♏︎📬︎”
Nagito’s brows furrowed, arms coming tighter around the woman’s waist, nose pressing into the skin of his beloved’s neck, “✋︎ ⬥︎□︎◆︎●︎♎︎ ♎︎♓︎♏︎ ♋︎■︎♎︎ ●︎♓︎❖︎♏︎ ♐︎□︎❒︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎📬︎ ✋︎🕯︎♎︎ 🙵♓︎●︎●︎ ♋︎■︎♎︎ ⬧︎♋︎❖︎♏︎ ♐︎□︎❒︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎📬︎ ✋︎ ●︎□︎❖︎♏︎ ⍓︎□︎◆︎📪︎ ♌︎◆︎⧫︎ ✋︎ ♍︎♋︎■︎🕯︎⧫︎ ♑︎♓︎❖︎♏︎ ◆︎◻︎ ⧫︎♒︎♓︎⬧︎ ♒︎♋︎■︎♎︎📬︎ ✋︎⧫︎🕯︎⬧︎ ♌︎♓︎♑︎♑︎♏︎❒︎ ⧫︎♒︎♋︎■︎ ♏︎♓︎⧫︎♒︎♏︎❒︎ □︎♐︎ ◆︎⬧︎📪︎ ✋︎🕯︎❍︎ ⬧︎□︎❒︎❒︎⍓︎📬︎”
“Don’t apologize,” she shook her head, carding her fingers through Nagito’s matted hair, “I love you.”
“Forever and always?”
His voice was soft, broken - fragile. Fingers grasping tight at the cloth of her shirt.
She nodded, holding the man in her arms tighter.
“Forever and always.”
~~
It was something nostalgic, she clenched her eyes as she laid in the mattress of her room.
She hoped Chiaki was right, she truly did. Even if the memories didn’t remain inside her brain upon awakening, it was at least comforting to know that her memories would play within her subconscious.
It was a little comforting that her brain hadn’t completely let go of what was once hers.
The hamsters squeaked as they raced into Sonia’s tender, loving arms. Hurried, anxious movements as they darted into the princess. Tears soaked at their fur. Sobs bobbed them in her arms.
(Y/n) took Sonia into her embrace, holding the Novoselic girl as she wailed her sorrows just outside Monokuma’s court. She carded her fingers through the girl’s blond hair.
Silence was passed between the girls in the period of Gundham Tanaka’s death.
Nagito stood off to the side, watching the two.
Such despair. How sad.
He hated seeing Ultimates cry, but he couldn’t say he felt so terrible. Gundham had been in despair, Sonia had been in despair - they’d given themselves over to tragedy and pain. He felt the general guilt and sympathy one feels when watching tears fall from someone’s eyes, but it was all surface level. He’d continue about his day all the same.
To think (Y/n) was sullying herself with such a despaired girl.
Well, to be fair, she had been a despaired girl herself. At one point.
It was in the past. They were in the program now, she was being redeemed. She’s fine. She’s hopeful. It’s not bias… she’s just the peacekeeper. Of course, she’s hopeful.
Nagito waits off to the side, watching as Sonia slowly stumbles to Gundham’s cottage for hamster care supplies, denying any help offered to her by the others. He waits for (Y/n) to see him. He waits for her to give him an uneasy smile.
“How long were you there?”
“Not long.”
She knows he’s lying, but neither of them mention it.
“Was that what you found out… in the Final Dead Room?”
He nods, “Something like that.”
“You scared me in there.”
“I’m sorry to have frightened you,” he turns towards the cottages, “I should know better.”
“‘Something like that,’” she repeats as he walks away, “What did you mean by that?”
Silence persists between them as Nagito leaves, leaving only the twinkling stars they once bonded under to blink at them from the heavens above.
The sky was deep-inked in red, ash and screams rising from the ground.
A cheek pressed to the woman’s shoulder as she looked to the ground. More specifically, a cotton doll laid upon the ground. It reeked of smoke and despair, the scent floating up and into the air.
(Y/n) laid her head against Nagito’s, “✋︎⧫︎🕯︎⬧︎ ♋︎●︎●︎ ☺︎◆︎■︎🙵□︎📬︎ ✋︎ ♒︎♋︎⧫︎♏︎ ♓︎⧫︎📬︎”
“⚐︎■︎♏︎ ♎︎♋︎⍓︎📪︎ ♒︎□︎◻︎♏︎ ⬥︎♓︎●︎●︎ ♍︎□︎❍︎♏︎📬︎ ✋︎⧫︎🕯︎⬧︎ ♋︎●︎●︎ ⬥︎♏︎ ♒︎♋︎❖︎♏︎📪︎ ❒︎♓︎♑︎♒︎⧫︎✍︎ ✋︎⧫︎🕯︎⬧︎ □︎◆︎❒︎ ♑︎❒︎♏︎♋︎⧫︎♏︎⬧︎⧫︎ ♋︎●︎●︎⍓︎ ♓︎■︎ ⧫︎♒︎♏︎ ♌︎♋︎⧫︎⧫︎●︎♏︎ ♋︎♑︎♋︎♓︎■︎⬧︎⧫︎ ♎︎♏︎⬧︎◻︎♋︎♓︎❒︎📬︎” he smiled softly, pressing a kiss to his lover’s shoulder before pulling away and linking his hand with hers. Never Junko’s. Junko had already ruined the world, she wouldn’t ruin (Y/n) as well.
“Nagito, you shouldn’t speak to Hajime that way! He’s trying to get us out of here!”
“It’s easy for you to say, Ultimate Peacekeeper, but I know he’s just an imposter trying to run with the big dogs.”
~~
“Please, don’t, limiting yourself to a position of servitude is cruel, Nagito, you deserve better.”
“I don’t deserve anything, (Y/n). Not even you,” it was pure greed that he stayed.
He wanted more than anything to stay by (Y/n)’s side for as long as she could stand him. Which, to be honest, he didn’t expect for it to be this long. He was fully expecting that after a day, he’d be thrown out with the rest of the garbage.
~~
“Nagito, I don’t want to sound harsh, but please, stop interjecting for just a moment. We need time to figure things out and you’re just confusing everybody right now.”
“If you can’t overcome a little red herring then how are you Ultimates supposed to even overcome despair? Huh? Huh?”
~~
“I won’t fight it, and neither should you.”
Nagito’s brows furrowed, hands clasping and unclasping, fingers running over the deteriorating nails and rotting knuckles of Enoshima, “I don’t want you getting hurt.”
“I won’t be. I’m certain,” (Y/n) reassured, “They’re trying to restore hope, I thought you’d be the first person to submit.”
“It feels… wrong…” Nagito murmured his insecurities.
“I believe in him,” she extended a hand to the one belonging to Nagito Komaeda, “I believe in 💣︎♋︎🙵□︎⧫︎□︎ ☠︎♋︎♏︎♑︎♓︎, do you?”
~~
Reaching over, (Y/n) grabbed Sonia’s hand, shaking her head, “I know it hurts, but we need to listen to Hajime.”
Sonia pursed her lips, tears springing along her waterline, squeezing back at (Y/n)’s hand before slowly nodding. She clenched her eyes shut as Hajime hesitantly continued, her pale fingers tightening around the hand in hers.
“It hurts…” the blond princess squeaked out to the girl beside her, voice raspy and withholding sobs.
“I know, I know,” the peacekeeper murmured, reaching out another hand to hold Sonia, “Don’t let Monokuma win, just make it out of the courtroom. That’s it. Can you do that?”
~~
Extending a hand to the girl, a wide grin spread over the boy’s lips as he uttered his own name, “Nagito Komaeda. Ultimate Lucky Student; lame, I know”
“(Y/n) (L/n). Ultimate Peacekeeper,” she shook his hand right back, returning a smile, “I don’t think your talent is lame, it’s kind of fun, no?”
The soft sound of waves crashing into the sandy shores wove itself into the pair’s ears. Nagito chuckled softly, rubbing the back of his neck, “It’s not much…”
“It’s a talent, of course, it’s incredible.”
~~
“I have prepared a very special punishment for the Ultimate Breeder, Gundham Tanaka! It’s Punishment Time!”
“It’s bad enough we can’t eat,” Hajime grabbed at his stomach, “but no spare clothes is really taking a bigger toll on me than I thought it would.”
“It has been pretty gross only living in this,” (Y/n) gestured down to her own outfit as the others cleared out from a morning of Monokuma Tai Chi, “The sweaty workouts are not helping at all.”
Watching the group pass by, (Y/n) pursed her lips. Fuyuhiko and Nagito were already rather skinny but no food for days straight was turning them from slightly underweight to severely so. Their cheeks were empty and sunken. Akane was barely able to move herself from place to place, only managing to do so out of pure stubbornness. Sonia and Chiaki were doing their best to show that their symptoms of hunger weren’t so bad but it worked less the longer they were starved. Kazuichi and Nekomaru seemed thinner on patience. Gundham appeared fine but anybody could tell he was starving, he forced on a show of contented weight.
Hajime…
Hajime could barely walk. He needed to lean on the others lest his wobbling knees and shaky sight be exposed.
(Y/n) looked at the green walls, swallowing around her own dry throat.
“Hajime…”
He blinked slowly, inhaling deeply before sluggishly turning his head to the girl, “Yeah?”
“Monokuma said that we can get out if someone gets killed, right?”
“Yeah. What about it?”
There was silence.
“(Y/n). Don’t.”
Shaking her head, the peacekeeper closed her eyes, swallowing down lumps in her dry throat once again.
“I wasn’t going to…”
What a liar.
“I was just worrying about the others.”
A dirty, dirty liar.
But who would? Who would do it?
Nagito would be the first to volunteer to die but there’s no way she could ask that of him. She wasn’t entirely sure she’d be able to kill him anyway. No, she was certain she wouldn’t be able to. A look of fear on her classmates’ faces was nightmarish; a look of fear on Nagito’s face was haunting.
Sonia wouldn’t have the heart to. Hajime clearly wouldn’t. Kazuichi was too much of a coward. Nekomaru was too focused on keeping everyone alive and friendly. Fuyuhiko seemed more to bark than bite. Akane… maybe.
Gundham? Also maybe.
While Akane was beginning to fall into crazed desperation, Gundham was just a complete wild card. He didn’t seem as intent on escape as anybody else but surely he’d realized how dismal the situation was by now.
Maybe Akane didn’t have the energy for it by now. One quick strike and she was out.
Gundham was able to stand perfectly fine. He could talk much more clearly than the others. He showed no sway in his movements or depth perception. He was tired and hungry but he wasn’t out of the game.
Sure, she’ll ask Akane and then Gundham.
It was only as she stood outside Akane’s bedroom that second thoughts began washing over her. Who would look after Nagito when she was gone? Last time he was alone he’d been tied up and nearly left to starve.
Maybe it was concern over Nagito, maybe it was the realization that she didn’t want to die - but (Y/n) turned back to her own room for another uneasy night of rest.
~~
It was another weird dream over the night, she didn’t remember anything. They were getting less comforting and far more disturbing to have as time went on.
A monitor lighting up sent (Y/n) careening down the hall until she too stumbled upon the corpse of their newly mechanized friend, Nekomaru Nidai.
Akane was just standing over the metallic body, swaddled in its blue blood as she cradled the heavy head to her chest. Barely hidden tears were coming down her cheeks as Monokuma conversed with Hajime, Chiaki, and Sonia.
It was after receiving double her rations of food and the Monokuma File, (Y/n) approached Akane, setting a hand over the woman’s back and feeling her heart sink at how Akane flinched, “You should eat.”
The brunette girl glanced between (Y/n)’s offering hand to Nekomaru’s dismantled body before taking the food and hurriedly uncapping the milk.
“Slowly,” (Y/n) reminded, shifting so that she was sitting beside Akane, “Your body isn’t used to intaking food right now, if you eat too fast it’ll be bad news.”
Her nod was slow, soul washed out from her eyes, fire in her soul put out.
“Here, why don’t we move to the side so the others can find out who did this?”
Once again, it was a slow nod of agreement before standing and following after the peacekeeper. Akane pulled apart her bread, salivating at the first sight of food she’d gotten in days before the guilt was crawling in her gut. She was eating, unhealthy but alive, while Nekomaru laid dead a few feet away.
Waking up to the cursed sound of Monokuma’s voice, (Y/n) let her body remain in the warm confines of her duvet. Her eyes were heavy and burned whether she had them open or not. Turning, she let her back rest against the mattress, endless stare settled on the ceiling.
Every time she went to close her eyes, Byakuya’s bloody corpse was staring her in the face. His voice festered between her ears as it called her name. Quite possibly the last thing he’d said to anybody was him calling her name for help.
Stabbed over ten times between his abdomen and throat.
It must’ve been excruciating. To be working to bring everyone together only to be brutally murdered in your endeavors.
She can only hope death was quick to lay its merciful hands upon Byakuya’s soul.
And to be boiled alive, even.
A hand came up and over her heart, scrunching up the fabric of her sleepshirt, a new wave of misery banging at her brain as she thought of Teruteru. The Ultimate Cook. No, their Ultimate Chef. The least she could do was honor his wishes in her mind.
To be slathered in slimy batter and caked with breading was a mere inconvenience in comparison to being boiled - being cooked. The heat. The bubbling and popping of your skin as you quickly simmer.
It made her queasy just to think about.
All that pain, all that suffering - brought about by the hands of Nagito Komaeda. The sweet-faced, gentle-smiled boy of luck. The same boy she was planning on meeting in the dining hall.
Sighing through her nose, (Y/n) slowly rose from her bed before swinging her legs over the edge of her bed frame and pushing up to a complete stand. Her body felt like gelatin, mind in a foggy haze as she moved towards her closet, pulling off her makeshift pajamas and trading them in for cleaner versions of the clothes she already had on.
Exiting her cottage, (Y/n) was sure to lock her door before stowing the key away and heading towards the dining hall before anybody sent out a search party for her. The sand crunched under her shoes as she made her way to the dining hall, hopefully, the others had somehow forgotten about the entire night prior. If she could be the only one with the horrid memory of their friends’ deaths, she’d be happy.
Ultimate Peacekeeper and yet she couldn’t even keep two people alive.
Clenching her teeth, (Y/n) shook her head - if she thought like that then she’d be too busy throwing herself a pity party to focus on any of her peers. She reached out to open the dining hall door and stepped inside, and for a split second, her heart picked up at the thought of finding another body.
A corpse laid across the floor and Monokuma’s wretched voice bringing about another body discovery announcement.
Once again, she forcefully shook off her thoughts and pushed forward. Everyone was there. No, two people were missing.
Fuyuhiko, which was no surprise, seemed an avid supporter of being the “lone wolf” of their group. Nagito, on the other hand, was almost never by himself - despite his previous exclamations of being unworthy of a friend, he surely liked the company of the people on the island.
(Y/n) sidled herself up beside Hajime, giving the boy’s side profile a gentle, unnoticed smile - he looked exhausted, “How’re you feeling?”
“Hm,” Hajime flinched at the sudden noise, turning to lock eyes with the mediator, “I feel…” he looked down at his plate sadly, “fine.”
“Alright,” she pat his back, “if you need anything, I’m always available. It’s what I’m here for, Hajime.”
“Right,” the brunette nodded, he let his shoulders droop, defenses falling ever so slightly, “thanks, (Y/n).”
“Of course,” she nodded, looking around the dining hall once again and quirking a brow, “is it just me or… are there people missing?”
Before Hajime could answer her question, Monokuma appeared suddenly inside the cafeteria - frightening a few of the students. Hajime’s brows furrowed, “You can't just pop up out of nowhere like that!"
"Puhuhuhu, but I can!" what a high-pitched drawl, (Y/n) suddenly thought - she’d always been taught that villains have sickeningly deep voices and here Monokuma was, proving her entire life wrong, "I'm here to deliver the next motive!"
"A motive?" Hajime tilted his head in the midst of his confusion.
"It's not that I don't think you all love participating in my super fun killing game or anything..." Monokuma fidgeted, faking a new shy persona, "But, of course, I thought it would be even more fun to give you guys a motive!"
"Well, we've taken care of everything,” Kazuichi immediately rebuffed, “No one is going to kill anymore, no matter what your motive is!"
(Y/n) swung her head to look at the Ultimate Mechanic, “‘Taken care of’, what are you talking about?”
"Whatever you say!" the black-and-white bear waved off, clearly in disbelief of the boy’s words anyway, "If you're interested, there's an arcade machine in Jabberwock Park with a game on it that might have some cool info for you! And that’s as much as you’re getting from me, bye for now!"
"Ooh, fun!" Ibuki blurted out as Monokuma disappeared.
"Fun?” Hajime shook his head, irritation clear on his face, “No! Guys, we absolutely cannot play that game. This is Monokuma's attempt to trap us. Who knows? The game could be filled with lies to get us to kill each other!"
“Hajime’s right,” (Y/n) nodded, “If anyone plays that game, a murder is likely. I know it’ll be hard but we have to do our best to keep alive.”
Hajime could be a good leader. Strong, independent, commanding - a good man. He could be great. Then again, so was Byakuya.
Mahiru looked around and asked the question (Y/n) had before Monokuma arrived, "Wait, where's Nagito?"
Hiyoko giggled, covering her mouth with her hands as she did so, "He's probably too ashamed to show his ugly face around here.”
"No," (Y/n) interrupted, “I don’t think he’d be so self-conscious.”
"Don't worry about it,” Kazuichi waved off, locking his hands behind his head, “He isn't going to bother us anymore."
"What did you do?" (Y/n) pushed herself away from Hajime and toward the mechanic.
"Kazuichi, you probably shouldn't say stuff like that..." Nekomaru’s voice was strange - hasty, as if he was trying to hide something.
"Nekomaru, Kazuichi," (Y/n)’s brows furrowed as she looked between the boys, “Tell me, right now, what did you two do?”
"Well, we..." Kazuichi glanced at Nekomaru, "Took care of him this morning."
"You guys killed someone?" Mahiru exclaimed, face running pale.
"No! What the hell? Of course, not, we didn't do that!" Nekomaru shook his head as if he couldn’t fathom how his suspicious behavior could lead to that conclusion, "We found him on the way here and... tied him up. So he couldn't do anything drastic again! He's on the floor of the room we had the party in, he's- he'll be fine."
"So you guys - without telling anyone - kidnapped Nagito this morning and just left him tied up?" Hajime turned his head between the two, obviously done with the idiots, "Do you understand why that possibly wasn't the most fantastic idea?"
"What were we supposed to do, just let him run around acting like that?" Kazuichi asked, exasperated, "It's fine! He'll live, we just have to bring him food or something once in a while..."
"Now that we're in this mess, it will be difficult to pull us out," (Y/n) crossed her arms, thinking over the situation, “I’ll keep watch over him. I was going to do so anyway, but two people,” she glared directly at the boys of the hour, “decided to act without consulting the group,” as Mahiru prepared a plate, (Y/n) continued, “Just leave Nagito to me, I’ll be a babysitter for him - if anybody has an issue with him, please don’t act on your own until necessary. It could do more harm than good.”
Handing over the plate, Mahiru gave the peacekeeper a nervous smile, "Be careful, okay? Just run outta there if anything weird happens."
“Right,” (Y/n) nodded, taking the plate, “Kazuichi, Nekomaru,” the two hesitantly looked over to her - it felt horribly similar to facing a disappointed parent - she pursed her lips before giving a sympathetic grin, “I get where you two were coming from and I appreciate it, but don’t do something like this again. It’s dangerous.”
The two murmured out their agreements as (Y/n) left.
Crossing from the dining hall to the old building, (Y/n) flexed her fingers as she walked, gut knotting up inside her. Byakuya died there. Her friend, and to some extent, a role model. All because of the man she was going to be spending the rest of their stay at Jabberwock with. She had to. She needed to keep tabs over him if they wanted to avoid something like the party again.
Her hand stopped at the door handle, fingers resting against the cool metal.
She could just let him starve, it’s not like anybody would care. Nobody would check the old building anyway.
Shaking her head, (Y/n) pushed the door open - she’s supposed to be the Ultimate Peacekeeper and she was already dropping the ball with two deaths and a kidnapping. Letting Nagito starve was just a cruel and unusual punishment. An impulsive thought she'd never act on.
And so, putting one foot in front of the other, she continued down the hall Teruteru did. To find Nagito.
Loading everyone onto the contraption, (Y/n) was last to enter the elevator, sliding up beside Hajime and glancing around at her peers.
One of them was a murderer.
One of them would die.
Well, assuming they had all their evidence.
Clenching her eyes shut, (Y/n) ignored the doubts swelling deep within her gut, trying to ignore the creeping sense of dread looming inside the metal box going down.
Down…
Down.
down
Entering the trial room, (Y/n) wanted to toss up what little she’d eaten that day at how extravagant the whole decor was.
Byakuya might’ve liked it.
Shaking her head, (Y/n) huffed, stumbling over to a podium in the circle as the others did. Hands shaking as she gripped the wood in front of her for purchase, Monokuma began explaining the process of the trial - only serving to bunch the knots inside (Y/n)’s stomach tighter.
She finally forced herself to stand straight and look around, eyes going from her left - Nekomaru Nidai - to her right - Sonia Nevermind - back to her left. Byakuya Togami.
“Didn’t that Byakuya bastard get killed in the dining hall, huh? Then everyone there is a fuckin’ suspect,” Fuyuhiko grinned as if he’d just earned some leg up against everyone else at the trial.
(Y/n) looked over to Nagito once again, then to his hands, and back at his face.
“...there’s something I have to do.”
“BE CAREFUL! The first kill will happen tonight. Someone will definitely kill someone.”
Night-vision goggles.
Green paint.
Knife.
“Helloooo, Ultimate Bimbo, you in there?!” Hiyoko shouted at (Y/n).
“H-huh?”
“We’re asking you a fuckin’ question!” Fuyuhiko followed up, “Shove your head up your ass when we won’t die because of it!”
Nagito gave the girl a sympathetic beam, “Go easy on her, there was just a murder after all. Besides, she was closer to Byakuya than any of us were.”
Hajime quirked a brow, “We’re asking about the cases Byakuya brought in. Do you know what was in them?”
“Oh, yes, sorry,” (Y/n) shook her head, rubbing at her arm awkwardly under the stare of her classmates, “The night-vision goggles is what you mean, correct? Yes, they were in his case. He’d brought them in the event of, well, a blackout.”
“And the knife wasn’t in there, right?”
“Right,” she nodded sternly, “he’d definitely had to have found it under that table.”
“But why?” Mahiru burst out, hands on her hips.
“Well,” (Y/n) crossed her arms, brows drawing tight towards her face in slight hesitance, “Byakuya knew something would happen tonight.”
“(Y/n),” Hajime interrupted, unrolling a piece of paper from his pocket, “you’re talking about this murder threat, right?”
“Exactly,” she agreed, “he’d shown me the threat yesterday while we were planning the party.”
“By gathering everyone in one place, he tried to create a situation where everyone could keep tabs on each other,” Nagito tapped his temple, “In doing so, he tried to put the writer of the letter in a situation where they couldn’t act.”
“He couldn’t risk ignoring it, and he knew that everyone might panic if he said anything,” (Y/n) followed up, “We weren’t sure who wrote it, even now… I’m not totally certain…”
But she had a guess.
But a guess was never quite good enough.
“I have (Y/n)!” Hajime called, pointing to the girl, “During the blackout, we were together.”
“Yeah, he grabbed onto me during the blackout, so I can say without a doubt Hajime has an alibi.”
“Hmm,” Teruteru rubbed at his chin, “Grabbed onto you, you say? Grabbed what?”
(Y/n)’s brows furrowed, “My arm, and can you please keep your mind out of the gutter, a man has died.”
Once again, her gaze floated to the black-and-white photo of Byakuya. His stern, commanding face crossed out with what (Y/n) could only hope was paint suspiciously colored in the fashion of blood. Her fingers intertwined before scrambling apart, only to knot together once again. She felt her lungs shrink and burn at the sight of his picture.
He called out for her. He needed her. Right before he died, he called for her.
She doesn’t know what she possibly would’ve done to help, but she’s sure she could have. She’s sure she could’ve stopped his murder. She’s sure his blood is on her hands.
“Isn’t that right… Teruteru Hanamura?!”
She wasn’t even paying attention to the trial. (Y/n) looked over as Teruteru screamed and wailed in defiance, none of the others on his side.
A voting panel lit up the wood at (Y/n)’s podium, all her classmates’ faces illuminated with the exception of Byakuya Togami - in his stead was a dim, black-and-white likeness. If it wasn’t for Hajime, (Y/n) wouldn’t even know who to vote for.
With heavy heart and shaking fingers, (Y/n) voted for the Ultimate Chef as the murderer of the Ultimate Affluent Progeny.
Once all the votes were tallied, Monokuma giggled to himself before dragging out a large gavel from seemingly nowhere and banging down on a red button, “I have prepared a very special punishment for the Ultimate Cook, Teruteru Hanamura! It’s Punishment Time!”
Rivulets of sweat and tears rolled down Teruteru’s cheeks, his teeth gritting and grinding with absolute dread, mortification bubbling just below the skin. This is it.
His death.
His repentance.
A claw on thick chain shot out and directly latched around the criminal’s neck before dragging him violently across the floor and through heavy, metal-barred gates. They slammed shut as soon as Teruteru was pulled through.
Deep-Fried Teruteru
Battered.
Breaded.
Boiled.
(Y/n) watched, horrified, alongside her classmates on the large projection screen as Teruteru Hanamura was punished for his irredeemable crime. As he was cooked alive.
As Monokuma dismissed the teenagers, they slowly moved out of the courtroom and towards the cottages. (Y/n) looked onwards at Hajime and Nagito, brows furrowed.
"Let's cut to the chase... You're correct! It was my doing all along!"
“I was only trying to stop Nagito from murdering one of you!”
“I saw him. I saw Nagito, in the middle of cleaning duty, putting the knife under the table!”
“Byakuya was probably trying to… protect Nagito.”
“So Byakuya gave his life to protect Nagito? Even though he was trying to take the knife?”
It’s all his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault. It’s his fault.
Byakuya Togami is dead because of Nagito. Teruteru Hanamura is dead because of Nagito.
Byakuya.
Byakuya was dead. And there was nothing (Y/n) could do.
Quietly, (Y/n) approached the boy freshly living on her mind. She tapped his shoulder, pressing her lips into a tight up curl despite his clear shock. Hajime’s eyes widened at the display before shaking his head and walking away.
Ignoring the brunette’s exit, (Y/n) spoke to the boy before her, “Hey, Nagito,” she forced her smile to be livelier, “wanna… walk back to our cottages together?”
“Don’t worry, as long as I’m the leader, I won’t let anyone become a victim.”
Then she wouldn’t either. Even if it meant giving her life… just like Byakuya.
“It could be awkward for the others to see me leaving your cottage,” Hajime spoke in the silence after Monokuma’s morning announcement, “The last thing we want is for someone to make… assumptions about us.”
“Just don’t let it come off awkward,” (Y/n) giggled as she pulled on her shoes, “It’s easy!”
“I don’t see how ‘just don't’ is a valid way of avoiding awkwardness…”
“Nobody can make fun of you if they don’t know what you’re doing wrong,” the girl stood, hand on the doorknob of her cottage, “In other words, if you’re confident, people won’t poke holes in what you’re doing! I’ve seen people walk into movies without getting tickets because they were just super confident. Look like you know what you’re doing and people will leave you alone,” she pulled the door open, letting Hajime out first, “Except Hiyoko.”
“Huh?”
“Don’t worry about it.”
Hajime hesitated as he walked off, but his posture suggested an allusion of bullheadedness unmatched by even Kazuichi. And, just as he’d desired, nobody approached him with teasing remarks or questions as he went to his own cottage to change. He could’ve done so while (Y/n) was changing in the bathroom, but apparently, her furniture was especially distracting - locking him in place on her bed.
Upon entering the dining hall, (Y/n) was struck into stunned silence. Her eyes widening in shock at the scene before her - Akane was wailing over the possible upcoming death of Nekomaru, Ibuki was mindlessly nodding along to any rude thing Hiyoko said, and Nagito… Nagito wasn’t even there.
Approaching Sonia, (Y/n) quirked a brow as she gestured to the group, “You know what their deal is?”
Shaking her head, the princess crossed his arms as she stared over her peers sadly, “Mikan said they feel warm, well, besides the obvious… ailments.”
“(Y/n)...” a loud groan came from behind the pair, both turning to see a paler-than-usual, sweaty, miserable Nagito stumbling over to them, “You look so disgusting today! So irrevocably horrific I can’t stand it, I hate that I have to see you! My day was perfect until I saw you!”
“Nagito, what the hell?” Hajime spat from the doorway, brows furrowed at the luck's rudeness, “She’s been nothing but nice to you this entire time- "
“What if he’s sick too?”
“Huh?”
“I feel fine!”
“Look at Akane and Ibuki,” (Y/n) pat her friend’s shoulder, she was ever so grateful for Hajime stepping in even though it probably wasn’t necessary, “they’re acting totally different from usual. It probably wouldn’t be much of a stretch to say Nagito was affected as well,” she placed a hand over the sickly boy’s forehead, “He’s warm too. He was warm yesterday.”
“No, I wasn’t!” Nagito’s breath grew ragged, sweating profusely in (Y/n)’s grasp, “I’m perfectly fine! Don’t touch me! I’d rather die than let you touch me!”
His eyes widened before rolling back, spittle flying from his mouth as he fell back - landing on the dining hall floor with a harsh ‘thud’. Rushing down to his side, (Y/n) took up the convulsing boy’s head and cradled it, looking to the Ultimate Nurse for guidance when loud giggling interrupted the group.
Monokuma held his little conniving paws in front of his mouth, clearly finding enjoyment out of the group’s hazy confusion, “Oh, dear! It seems that some of your friends have caught the Despair Disease!” at the group’s continued confusion, he huffed, forcing on a charisma of television’s finest host, “Surprise! It's your next motive! Ibuki has the Gullible Disease, Akane has the Coward Disease, and Nagito has the Liar Disease!" he gave a last few giggles and a warning of it being contagious before disappearing.
“Hajime, lift Nagito with me,” (Y/n) instructed, taking up the unconscious boy’s body as carefully as she could while speaking to the group, “Mikan, there’s a hospital on the third island, right?”
"R-r-right, we could c-care for them th-there," Mikan nodded.
As the group headed out, some straying farther away than others in fear of catching the Despair Disease, (Y/n) thought back to the things Nagito had said to her. It was silly, especially in a scenario such as theirs - but she couldn’t help but be transfixed on what he meant behind his lies.
~~
Once everyone had been settled in the hospital and the communication device was being worked on by Kazuichi, (Y/n) found herself in a difficult situation. Jammed between two friends she cared for deeply.
“Hajime, you can’t be serious right now. He has the Liar’s Disease.”
“(Y/n)’s exactly wrong. She’s too stupid to figure it out.”
“He said he wanted me gone.”
“Hajime,” she muttered, taking the bridge of her nose between forefinger and thumb, “What do you think Liar’s Disease means?”
“It still hurt,” Hajime crossed his arms before turning towards the door, “I’m going to find Mikan…”
“Ask her to do another check-up on Nagito when she has the chance, please? He’s doing worse than the others and I’m not sure why,” (Y/n) had an inkling, but she shouldn’t spill secrets so openly.
A mere nod and Hajime was walking out, Nagito smiling as he spoke, “You’ve been such a nuisance this entire time. I need a better caretaker.”
It took a brief mental translation before (Y/n)’s heart was warming, “Oh, how sweet, I’m glad to be of service.”
“I really do hate your face, it’s hideous.”
“Never thought I’d take that as a compliment but there’s a first for everything, right?”
Upon Mikan’s entrance to the room she glanced between the patient and caretaker, her fingers racking together as she stepped towards Nagito’s IV, “H-how has he b-been doing?”
“Not well, he’s been talking about being extremely hot and keeps saying he feels great.”
“I…” Nagito’s eyes fluttered, coughing as he spoke, “I feel… amazing… my vision is perfectly clear too, how incredible… so hot…”
“There’s spare blankets in the storage room, correct? I can grab some,” (Y/n) rose from her seat as Mikan gingerly took the boy’s temperature.
Hospitals sickened her deeply. The scent of sterilization and the shiny linoleum floors sent shivers down her spine at something so macabre. Lying in the beds where others have died didn’t exactly sound like good motivation for healing. This hospital was barely different - grime in the grouts and dirt collecting on surfaces not touched in however long the building had been here. Not that it helped.
If anything, it was only more bizarre and discombobulating fashioned as an abandoned hospital than a lively one. And she tried to avoid the disturbing scene playing behind plexiglass beside her in the hall best she could.
Fuyuhiko and (Y/n) arrived at the storage room synchronistically, giving each other a stare before shaking themselves out of their respective trances and entering the small, dimly lit room.
The blond spared a glance to the peacekeeper, “How’s uh- " he grimaced, hating the man attached to the name he was about to spew, “How’s Nagito?”
“Not well,” (Y/n) took out two folded blankets before handing one to Fuyuhiko, “Mikan’s checking up on him right now. He’s been looking worse than the others, I’ve noticed - it’s a little worrying. What about Akane?”
Fuyuhiko’s face fell at the reminder of his patient, “Louder than what I’m used to from her,” he held up the blanket in his grasp, “She’s soaked through two of these fuckin’ things already.”
“Oh, that’s unfortunate,” (Y/n) muttered sympathetically, patting Fuyuhiko’s back, “Good luck with all that, eh? I’ll be with Nagito if you need any help,” her chest ached at the blond’s new eyepatch, “Make sure you take of yourself, alright?”
Flustered, Fuyuhiko looked away from the girl, “I’ll be fine.”
“Glad to hear it, but, if you ever need help - we’re all here for you.”
“I didn’t come to sing kumbaya in the storage closet,” the short boy snarked before stalking off.
“Fair,” (Y/n) sighed, largely to herself, before following his example and heading back to Nagito’s room.
By the time she’d arrived, Nagito was already fast asleep with Mikan nervously watching over him - switching between his body and his vitals. The poor nurse jumping when (Y/n)’s voice suddenly peeked out in the silence - asking if she was clear to lay the blanket over their patient.
“Ah!” Mikan calmed down once she saw who it was, a hand coming up and over her chest, “(Y/n)! Y-you sca-scared me…”
“Sorry,” the girl chuckled, hoping to release the awkward tension, “Am I though? Good to put down the blanket? I don’t wanna screw with anything.”
“You-you’ll be good… just be c-careful of his l-left arm…” Mikan pointed to the IVs attached to Nagito.
Nodding, the peacekeeper carefully laid the blanket over the shivering boy’s body, tucking it where she deemed necessary. Pity plundered her poor pattering heart at the distressed furrow in his brows. She sat at one of the stools around the Ultimate Luck’s bedside, taking his right hand and brushing her thumb over the bony knuckles.
She didn’t think Despair Disease would work so heavily with his cancer and dementia. It was worse than his luck cycle, it was God pointing and laughing at a young man who had been delivered pain merely for existing.
“He sh-should be fine for n-now,” Mikan nodded to herself, still checking Nagito's vitals, “He’ll be out fo-for a while… if an-anything like th-that happens, let me know!” even her exclamations sounded so timid in her soft voice.
“In seconds,” (Y/n) confirmed, still focused on the ill boy trapped in his hospital bed, just before the nurse left she called to her, “Hey, Mikan? Thank you. It’s admirable how quickly you stepped up to do this, I’m sure the others feel the same too.”
“It’s n-nothing, really…” Mikan smiled softly to herself despite the dismissal, a light blush festering over her cheeks, “B-but thank you!”
