Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

There's a lot of noise coming from down the hall when I step out. I didn't bother looking at my face first; I'm sure I look like a mess. Yoshida's door is slightly ajar; that's where the noise must be coming from. It's really loud, like she's...screaming...shit.

I'm not the only one who rushes over when I hear it. Abe is only a few steps behind me. "Yoshida!" I open the door quickly and step inside, only to find Yoshida, still in her pajamas, standing on her bed and cursing out Monokuma. "Um...what's going on?"

"Monokuma just appeared in my room and woke me up!" Her glare doesn't lessen any. "Scared me half to death."

He blinks up at her, trying to look innocent despite being the exact opposite. "Promise?"

Yoshida looks like she wants to stuff a pillow over his face and smother him. Abe crosses his arms, wearing the same irritated expression he was wearing when I met him. Some things don't change, I guess. "What, pray tell, are you doing in Yoshida's room?"

"Handing out the last piece of the motive. What rotten luck that she just happened to wake up! I would've already been done by now." He huffs, tossing a sleek black tablet onto her bed. "Whatever. I'm over it. Explanation to follow."

She climbs down from her bed and picks up the tablet between her thumb and index finger like it's something nasty. "Motive. Wonderful."

"Don't do anything with that yet." It's a snap decision, but I think it'll work. "Bring it with you to the dining hall. We'll talk about them there before we do anything."

A tiny grin splits her face. "You got it, Boss. Now, if you don't mind, I'd like to get dressed." She shoos us out into the hall before shutting the door completely, sealing all the noise inside.

"We should catch everyone on their way to the dining hall," I continue, not even sure if Abe is listening. "If we didn't notice the tablets, I don't think anyone else will without them being pointed out."

Abe studies me for a moment. There's a very minute shift in his eyes. "I suppose that makes sense. Let's grab ours quickly first, then I'll watch by the trash room in case anyone goes by that way."

A plan of action. Not to mention, that was relatively painless. See, I knew we could get along if he gave it a shot. At this point, I don't even know if the morning announcement played yet. It's entirely possible that I either slept past it or got up before it.

The tablet itself doesn't seem to be anything special. I didn't even notice it among the books on my desk. Oh- I guess that means that Monokuma was in my room while I was sleeping. That's totally not creepy at all.

I bring it with me outside, keeping watch. It takes a while, but I make sure that all fourteen of us are accounted for and have our tablets. Hopefully Miyuki doesn't mind that I made this call.

Abe comes back to me after about a half hour. Now, at least, I can be certain that the morning announcement has played; Oshiro wouldn't be up otherwise. "Everyone from my hall is accounted for."

"Same here-" I pause, redoing my mental math. "Wait, no, I haven't seen Ueda yet. Have you?" He shakes his head. I nearly panic, but then I remember what we found yesterday. "She probably already went to the ice rink and straight to the dining hall from there. So if she's not there, she's at the rink."

"Noted. Let's check the dining hall first." His tablet is at his side, his grip almost slack, like it's an afterthought. I can imagine how that would be the case. Still, I can't keep my grip from tightening as we walk.

I'm relieved beyond belief when Miyuki emerges from the dining hall almost as soon as we get there. "Where did all of the tablets come from?" she asks, noticing that we each have one as well.

"They're the motive. There should be one in your room somewhere." I look down sheepishly for a moment. "I may or may not have made a call about this. Sorry."

I'm afraid of what she'll say until she actually says something. "That's good, definitely saves time. Don't be sorry; you've got good intentions in mind." When I look back up, she smiles and nods in approval. "I'll go grab mine, then. Wait for me to start?"

"Naturally. We need everyone present for a discussion like this," Abe interjects before going into the dining hall. I follow close behind, taking my seat and grabbing an orange. He, I note, takes nothing.

"So, what's up with the tablets?" Maeda asks as soon as we sit down. "How did they even get into our rooms?"

Yoshida snorts, obviously still uncomfortable with what she'd woken up to. "You haven't heard? Monokuma snuck into our rooms while we were sleeping to leave them."

Everyone looks both horrified and disgusted by that. As I'd expect them to be, really.

Miyuki returns before more can be said, placing her tablet on the table in front of her. "Not to change the subject from whatever it was, but do we know what's on these?"

"We could boot them up to find out," Ikeda suggests, drumming his fingers on the screen of his tablet. "That would clear things up quickly."

"But if it's a motive, wouldn't it be better to not turn them on?" Sasaki points out. She's exactly right, too. Doing anything with these will be playing right into Monokuma's hands- again. We can't afford to lose anyone else.

"It would probably be a lot better to leave them be, at least for now. It's not like Monokuma can force us to watch them." While Miyuki is technically right, I'm sure he'd be able to find a way to make us.

Yoshida snaps her fingers and turns to me and Abe. "That's right! Didn't he say he was going to call us down to the gym to explain the tablets?"

Oh, yeah. Right. "If that's really the case, he'll likely call us down within the next hour," Abe says. His plate is still empty.

Maeda groans, burying his head in his arms. "Can't he just leave us alone?"

"He wouldn't." Aoyama seems a bit more like his usual self today. I don't know if that's supposed to be a comfort or not. "His entire thing is this being a game to him. We're just his pawns; no way he'll leave us alone, not until someone wins."

"Someone wins, as in graduating?" Yasu shakes her head in disbelief. Of course graduation implies a successful murder.

Aoyama folds his arms. "All I'll say is that I don't plan to lose."

When did he start thinking about this again? Why did he? All Miyuki and Yasu and everyone else are trying to do is keep the peace so nobody else has to die. Nobody else should die.

Yeah, because that worked so well last time.

My stomach flips. I put down the last section of my orange, not fully unnoticed. But instead of it being Miyuki who notices, like usual, it's Sasaki, who looks like she's taking a mental note.

Three minutes of relative silence pass as everyone else finishes their meals. The monitor blinks on with a warning bell. Everyone looks up to the screen in equal parts annoyance and indifference. "Everyone, gather in the gym at your earliest convenience! And by that, I mean right now!"

Of course he's ready. That's the only thing that could make this worse.

Save for another murder.

God, what is wrong with me today?

"Let's get this over with," Nakamura sighs, standing up and leaving with his tablet in hand. We all follow suit, trudging along to the gym in silence. There's a depressed, anxious sort of air on and around us. I hate it.

And still he keeps us waiting a good minute or so to actually show up. Because of course. His gaze sweeps across us, all scattered across the gym in splintered groups rather than in one mass. "Why all the long faces? Today's a beautifully murderous day!"

"Just tell us what the motive is so we can leave," Fujimoto says, playing with both the tablet and his notebook. I note the slight shakiness of his voice.

Monokuma scoffs, shaking his head. "That's no way to talk! Not when the motive of all motives could be in your hands!"

"Why phrase it like that?" Saito asks, shifting her stance. "'Could be.' Aren't the tablets the motive?"

Aren't they? Unless… "They are, but they aren't," I say, just loud enough for everyone to hear.

He points to me with one of his paws. "And Red's on the board with a point! I knew either you or Blue would figure it out!"

"What does that mean? Tell us!" Oshiro demands, stomping her foot like a little kid throwing a tantrum. Her hands curl into fists around bits of her jacket, crumpling it.

Monokuma tsks at her. "A little patience goes a long way, you know!" He spreads his paws in presentation, though once more he has nothing to present to us. "Thirteen of the fourteen tablets are completely blank, nothing on them! The fourteenth, however, shows the outside world. And that knowledge is just to die for! After all, I'm sure you're all curious as to why help hasn't come."

Six days. Nearly a week since we woke up here. If help was going to be arriving, it should've already.

"So your motive hinges on us powering up the tablets." Abe looks full-on incredulous. "You realize that there's a very good chance of none of us opening them."

"Like I said before: I'm not worried about this one." He laughs, long and hard. "Curiosity always gets the better of people, and imagine how that'll fuel the jealousy you'll feel when you find out who has the motive!"

I don't know about anyone else here, but curiosity is in my nature. I'm actually a bit worried about this motive, more than the last. I study the tablet in my hand intently. Will this by my downfall? In the time I take to do that, Monokuma disappears without a trace.

"Let's continue what we're doing." Miyuki's voice is a bit strained, but still confident, leader-like. "Don't open them. If we're all on equal standing, we should be fine."

Again, I notice her wording and the seed of doubt laced in it. After Rikimaru took the last motive, anything could happen this time. Just as there's no reason to believe nobody will take it, there's no reason to believe nobody won't. We don't know each other well enough for that.

My stomach turns again. All of a sudden, the room starts spinning. I feel like I'm about to keel over. "I'm going back to my room. I don't feel well." I don't look to see if anyone follows. I almost hope they don't.

The entire way back, my knees feel too weak to support me. I lean hard against the walls when I can, nearly collapsing a few times. My hands shake when I try to insert my key into the lock. My stomach clenches as I lay down on my bed. The ceiling looks like it's spinning a little. I'll probably pass out if I try standing again right now.

Time passes slowly. I don't feel like reading, not in the least. Translating will definitely give me more of a headache. I don't go to the dining hall for lunch. I think I'll actually throw up if I eat or drink anything more than that orange. All I want right now is the sleep that for whatever reason refuses to come.

A knock comes to my door a few hours after. It takes me a minute to get to the door and open in. "Oh my god, you look awful." Sasaki covers her mouth with her free hand as soon as she says that. "Sorry, I shouldn't have- that just came out."

"What do you need?" I ask, bracing myself against the doorframe so I hopefully don't pass out. At least she's spinning a little less than the room was earlier.

She holds up a couple small white bottles. "I brought some medicine from the nurse's office if you want it."

Ah, yeah, I almost forgot that she's one of the appointed nurses. "Come in." I wobble a little as I turn, and I feel her slip her arm around my waist, helping to keep me steady. She's surprisingly strong.

I sit back on my bed and take a quick look at the medicines she brought. One for fever, one for headache, one for general symptom relief. I choose the latter, hoping it'll be the one to help the most. She finds a paper cup in my bathroom and fills it with water for me. "Thank you."

"No problem. I would've made something out of the mini garden in my room, but I didn't know what your symptoms were, exactly." She puts the caps back on the bottles and collects them into her arms. She's halfway to the door before she pauses and turns. "Oh, right. In case you're interested, Ueda is arranging a full day of skating tomorrow. Just thought I'd let you know, in case you feel up to it." She bows her head quickly before leaving, the door shutting behind her.

I do start to feel better after about half an hour, but I stay in bed. I don't want to chance overexerting myself or eating anything that'll make this worse. I continue to lay there with my light off, no sound. It's almost nice- though it would be nicer if I weren't staring the motive straight in the face.

Curiosity courses through my veins. I know we agreed not to. I know how dangerous the motive can be.

But if I keep it to myself, can it really hurt?

I can't see a world in which I murder someone in cold blood, so I pick it up and put it on its side. That way, I can see it upright as I lay on my side. Another minute of deliberation passes, and then I press the button to power it up.

The screen flashes, acknowledging the command. The loading sign appears, then stays steady at 99%, then turns black with white text across the screen. "Sorry, this is not the motive," I whisper to myself. I should be relieved. I won't have a target on my back. But all that means is that someone else will.

I do nothing more than stare at the screen for the rest of the day, the words repeating in my mind over and over.

Not the motive.

Not the motive.

Not.

The.

Motive.

Then whose is?

MONOKUMA THEATRE VII

"Some people are just jerks."

"They'll say anything to get their way, manipulate anyone."

"But bears? They don't do that."

"Bears are better than people."

"Don't you think that's true?"

"Don't you think I'm right?"

The motive still weighs heavily on me in the morning, but at least I feel a lot better. The medicine Sasaki brought really helped. I'll have to remember to thank her.

"Ishikawa. Feeling better, I assume?" Saito asks as I enter the dining hall, sipping a steaming cup of tea. She and Abe are the only ones in here.

"Much, thanks." I take my seat and glance at the empty one to my right. "Um, Ueda's probably at the rink again, right?"

"If you're wondering whether or not you should worry about her, don't." I'm almost surprised at how harsh Abe's words come out. "I'm positive that all of us have the willpower to not turn a tablet on. We're safe from the motive."

Except that I didn't have the willpower. He shouldn't be so certain. And obviously, nobody's going to own up to watching the video if they had it. Still, his words…

I look a bit closer at him. The bags under his eyes look worse than they did when I first noticed them. How much sleep has he been getting? There's no way that's healthy. But then again, I don't want to be the one to call him out over it.

The room stays mostly silent as everyone shows up, at least until Oshiro and Yoshida come in. The moment Oshiro sees Maeda, she shakes her head. "Dead man walking," she mutters in a singsong voice before taking her seat.

"Will you stop?" Maeda grumbles, turning in his seat to face her. "I told you, that legend is a bunch of bull!"

"I'm sorry, I don't want to tempt what's obviously fate!" she says, scooting her chair a little more away from him than she already was.

"What's up with that?" I ask Ikeda, who just looks tired and resigned about the issue at hand.

He glances over at them and shakes his head. "By chance last night, we all had dinner around the same time, so there were thirteen of us at the table. Maeda got up to leave first, and Oshiro just kind of went ballistic. She said something about a legend saying that when thirteen people dined at the same table, the first to rise would be the first to die."

"Which means nobody gets up until Ueda gets here!" Oshiro declares, obviously having heard us. "There's thirteen of us here now and I will not have another death prophecy!"

Wow. I know I noticed it before, but she really gets serious when it comes to this stuff. It's a good thing the fruit is already out, so I don't have to get up. Hopefully nobody needs to use the bathroom anytime soon. "Got it, no death prophecies," Sasaki agrees, shifting uneasily. "Ueda will probably be here soon, anyway."

"In the meantime," Aoyama interjects in his loud voice, and already I have a bad feeling. "Did anyone check their tablets? Anyone give into the temptation?"

"No, and frankly, I don't know how it would be considered a motive," Fujimoto says. His pencil taps lightly against the table. "I mean, a video only one person gets?"

Abe makes a tent with his hands, just like a history teacher I once had did when he was lecturing. "It's like this: the one person who has it has that information about the outside. If they choose to divulge that they have the video, they have the means to fill the rest of us with envy. That could drive any of us to murder. Or the video itself will convince the recipient to kill. Additionally, the mere thought of anyone possibly having the video puts everyone on edge, which in turn makes it easier for, ah, accidents to happen."

He's...really thought about this, hasn't he? "That was thorough," Nakamura says, his eyebrows raised. "You seem to know a lot about people."

Abe sighs, his eyes pointed towards the ceiling. "History, also known as social studies, as in studying people and cultures." Sounds like he's had to explain that before, and that he's not really happy about having to do it again.

Lucky for us, before the situation can get any more awkward, Miyuki comes in, a definite spring in her step. "Who's ready to skate?" she asks, super excited. I grin up at her. She's definitely a force to be reckoned with this morning.

"Good, you're here." Oshiro breathes a sigh of relief and leans back in her chair. "Sit down so we'll have fourteen."

"Okay, I guess." But she practically vibrates in her seat, she's bouncing so much. "I mean it, though! I set the rink up, so even if you don't know how to skate, I'll teach you!"

Aoyama yawns loudly and obnoxiously. "Pass."

"I'll be there," I say quickly, shooting him a glare I'm sure he doesn't see. "I haven't been skating in years."

A good portion of us are going, most of us except for Aoyama, Hamasaki, and Fujimoto. And the only reason the latter two aren't going is because they want to prepare a musical performance for us. I can tell just by looking at her how excited Miyuki is about this, so there's no way I'll be missing it. "I'll be there all day, so feel free to come by whenever."

"I'm ready to go now," Yoshida says with a wild grin. "I don't want to wait any longer!"

Miyuki's smile can't possibly get any larger. "Let's go, then!" She, Yoshida, and I are the only ones who get up right away. I suspect most of the others will be there later, and not for nearly as long as the three of us will be.

Miyuki talks excitedly the entire way to the rink. Quite honestly, I'm not paying too much attention to the details, but Yoshida nods and asks questions in all the right places. I'm more occupied with what was being discussed before.

This motive, even more than the last, is all about deception. It's too important to ignore. And even though I know she's excited to have her days back on schedule, if she doesn't do something a leader would, like talk about it, the others are going to think she's avoiding it. Which, I hate to say, is likely right on the nose, given the amount of time she's spent on the ice already.

I wonder if she looked at her tablet.

"-don't need to change if you don't want to, but I brought winter stuff up here," I catch her saying as we wait to get into the locker room. "I can just see better with my contacts and my hair out of my face."

Yoshida nods, swiping her e-Handbook. "Gotcha. I'm fine with pigtails, then." Her outfit looks prepared enough anyway; just torn jeans, a t-shirt, and a scarf from the pile of winter clothes.

I glance down at my knee-length skirt. ...I can probably risk it. I don't plan on falling too often. Good thing she brought coats up; I'd be freezing otherwise.

It's easy to tell that Miyuki is in her element the moment we step inside. "Make sure your skates are on tight," she instructs us as we search for pairs in our size. "That way, you don't run as much risk of hurting your ankles, but they'll likely be sore later anyway."

She's already on the ice by the time we're done lacing up. I guess that doing it for so long makes her pretty fast at getting ready. I can feel myself start to fall the moment I step out. I grab the low wall of the rink before that can happen. Yoshida looks like she's putting in some effort, but she doesn't look shaky at all. "This is easier than I remember," she remarks with a grin, gliding along.

"Harder than I remember." I keep one hand near the wall, ready to steady myself when I need to. Miyuki skates up next to me and offers her hands. I take them, sighing to myself. "You must think this is pretty pathetic."

"I've seen worse." Amusement dances in her eyes as she pulls me along. I can't imagine skating backwards like she is. "I'm glad you're feeling better."

"So am I." I don't even know what caused it. Stress? It couldn't have been a virus, I would've had to get that from someone else.

Yoshida skates around us with a smirk. "Okay, you two, break it up. You're almost as bad as Fujimoto and Hamasaki, really."

Miyuki's cheeks redden furiously, and she drops my hands. Hers clasp behind her back while mine drop to my side. At least I'm not unsteady now. And I'm definitely warmer than before…

She snickers at our reactions, turning and waving as one of the locker room doors opens. I skate alone as Miyuki helps get the newcomers situated.

Thankfully, the rink is big enough for everyone to be able to move freely without bumping into each other. I expect everyone to be at least as decent a skater as Yoshida, but there is one surprise in the mix.

"Need some help?" I ask, holding a hand out to steady Abe. He's apparently worse at this than I am, but he pushes my hand away and straightens himself. I skate alongside him anyway, just in case. And maybe out of curiosity. "Have you checked out the library any more?"

He nods, keeping his eyes ahead of him. "Not much in there that's helpful to us, at least that I've found."

I look at him strangely. "You didn't even look for something to read for yourself? Why only do it for the game?" Why think about the game when there's perfectly good fiction to distract ourselves with?

His eyes grow cloudy. "Because I seem to be the only one here who wants to get out alive." He skates off from me, still wobbly. Before I can go after him, Miyuki catches my eye. I skate a bit closer to her.

"I think I'm going to head in soon," I tell her, my arms wrapped firmly around my torso. "I don't want to push it, you know?"

A lie. Still, she nods with a knowing look. "Skating when sick sucks. Come find me if you need anything."

I nod and force a smile, wondering if I'm a good liar or if she's too trusting.

I head out unnoticed once my skates are off, shedding my coat in the locker room. My ankles already feel sore, almost unbalanced. Even with the ice, it was starting to get warm in there, so I welcome the cool draft of the hallway. I breathe it in, rolling my shoulders back. Now, to get on task.

If there's one thing I know about old-looking libraries like ours, it's that they usually have a secret to them. I've been in a fair share of dead-end secret passages my friends in other countries have shown me. A lot of them were dusty and some were blocked off partway through, but at least one had a secret exit. So maybe, if I know where to look, I'll find ours.

The library is even chillier than the hall, but still pleasantly so. I must still be running a slight fever. As expected, there's nobody else in the library. Mostly everyone is still at the rink. I figure I'll be alone for a good bit of time. The less people around, the less I have to explain my train of thought.

I start by moving the random stacks of books away from the walls. That'll give me a more clear view of the walls; you never know if there's a hidden door. That alone takes about twenty or so minutes, probably more. Only now do I realize how big this library is. And wow, there really are a lot of books.

I scan the perimeter now that all of the books are away. Nothing catches my eye right off the bat. Didn't really expect it to. I run my hand along the wall, feeling for any small discrepancies. At the very least, there should be an archive. I wondered only briefly before why there wasn't one. Especially a school like Hope's Peak should at least have an archive of yearbooks from past classes. They could probably fill an entire archive with those alone.

"What do you think you're doing?" I kick over a stack of books as I turn quickly. Aoyama stands just inside the door, irritation and the barest hint of curiosity laid out on his face.

"Looking for an exit." It sounds stupid when I say it out loud. It just looks like I made a mess.

He makes a noise that sounds like a cross between a scoff and a laugh. "You still delirious from that stunt you pulled yesterday?"

My eyebrows knit together. "I wasn't delirious and it wasn't a stunt, thank you very much." At least, I don't think I was delirious. Maybe I should check with Sasaki on that. "And I happen to be serious about this. There might be a hidden exit or something in here."

I right the books I knocked over and go back to my search, but I can hear him stifle a laugh. "This isn't some fairy tale, Ishikawa. I doubt there's a secret passage."

Now would be the perfect moment to find one to prove him wrong. Of course, that fails to happen. "Why are you here? Just to bother me?"

"You wish." No, I really don't. "I'm here looking for some reading material."

I look at him out of the corner of my eye. "You don't seem like the type." I know I shouldn't judge a book by its cover- pun intended- but I can't help it this time around.

He picks a book off of a shelf, and immediately I know he's bluffing. "You don't know me. For all you know, I love reading this. It's one of my favorite books."

I don't even bother looking at him over my shoulder. "That's a dictionary printed in German."

Seconds later, I hear the book hitting a pile. He abandoned that lie fairly quickly. "You sure are nosy."

I start shoving the piles back. Kinda disappointing that I didn't find anything. Then again, the only secret passage I can think of is one leading to the mastermind's headquarters. The library seems inconspicuous enough to serve that purpose, but evidently not. "Well, I'm done now. The library's all yours."

He stays still and watches while I push the final few piles back. He doesn't say anything, doesn't even look like he's going to. Fine by me, I finish quickly and leave without another word spoken between us. At this point, I don't even care why he was there. I just want a nap. Interacting with him drains my energy.

I notice as I walk by that Hamasaki's door is open. She and Fujimoto must still be working on their collab; I can hear the soft strumming of her guitar and some murmured whispers between them. I can't wait to see what they can come up with together. Two Hope's Peak students working together on something like that are sure to make something great.

I slip into my room and make a mental note to not actually fall asleep. I don't want to miss dinner tonight. My naps have never really included sleep; they're more like little rest periods where I just relax. We used to have siestas in my family, especially whenever we were in Spain, but I pretended to sleep and read instead. After two days ago, I think I need a siesta.

I grab another one of the books in one of the semi-organized stacks. I would read Don Quijote, but I don't know when Miyuki will want me to read it to her again. This one is in Spanish, too, so I know it'll help me relax, like Mom and Abuela are right next to me reading over my shoulder.

I'm a few pages into the story when I remember the tablet sitting on the desk. God, every time I see it, I keep worrying myself over who has the motive. Is it worth it to recheck the video to make sure I wasn't delirious like Aoyama said?

My hand is halfway to the tablet before I fully realize what I'm doing. I never should've looked at it in the first place. Looking again will not only not change anything, it'll also make me more anxious than I already am. I can't look again, and I definitely shouldn't. This is just want Aoyama wants.

No matter how hard I try, though, it keeps distracting me from my book. Temptation and curiosity are often the downfalls of the characters in the books I've read, no matter the language and folklore. I refuse to let them be mine.

I finish a couple chapters before I decide that I should get around to eating. It's probably around three in the afternoon if I'm guessing right, and I haven't had anything to eat since breakfast. Y'know, it would probably be worth it to find some clocks in the store room and set them to Fujimoto's watch so more than one of us knows what the time is at any given point.

He and Hamasaki are both in the dining hall when I get there. So are Oshiro, Ikeda, and Abe. I assume the rest of them are either in their rooms or at the rink with Miyuki. Oshiro is the only one talking, as I've come to expect. "And that's why you should never trust an aquarius! Real crazy how that works, huh?"

I disappear into the kitchen before she can rope me into a conversation about things I don't understand. Look, I like her, but she can be a bit much.

My dinner is just a peanut butter sandwich, nothing too big. I only linger in the kitchen long enough to make it painstakingly slow. Any longer and I won't have a viable excuse. Abe's finishing up his meal in silence while Hamasaki and Fujimoto nod along to whatever story Oshiro's telling now. I glance over at Abe a few times in hesitance before saying anything. "Hey, I'm sorry about earlier. I probably shouldn't have assumed."

He shakes his head, looking down at his plate. Why does he never make eye contact with me? Is he just shy and I didn't notice? "I shouldn't have snapped. That was my fault." He takes a breath, maybe collecting himself? "Everything here seems normal until it's not, and it's setting me on edge. Everyone who acts like this is some normal situation- it's like everyone's given up on getting out. I can't let myself forget that escaping…" He trails off, returning my gaze for the fraction of a second before turning his entire body away. "Ueda said to tell you that she wanted to talk to you." Before I have the chance to ask, he leaves. A frustrated groan escapes my lips as I bite into my sandwich. I'm never going to understand him, am I?

Still… If Miyuki wants to talk to me, I don't want to keep her waiting. I take my sandwich with me, etiquette be damned. Besides, it's not like anyone is really gonna care.

I'm a little surprised that so many people stayed at the rink for so long. A few hours I can understand, but the majority of the day? I don't have the stamina. Miyuki obviously does, though, especially for not taking breaks. Maybe I should've brought her a sandwich, too.

For the most part, though, it seems like this is just a hangout spot. Yoshida and Yasu aren't even skating, just sitting to the side and chatting. Maeda looks like he's trying to skate circles around Miyuki while Sasaki and Nakamura laugh. Naturally, Aoyama is nowhere to be found, but neither is Saito. She's probably in her room or the gym, now that I think of it.

Yoshida waves me over when she sees me. "Hey, Ishikawa! Catch a second wind?"

"Something like that." I sit next to Yasu and angle myself towards them, though my eyes are trained on the ice. I should probably wait until Miyuki isn't occupied to talk to her. "What's been going on?"

"Nothing too much. It's been fun hanging out in a more casual setting with everyone, but…" Yasu glances over at Yoshida. "We were talking about the motive."

"Like, is it really smart to try to ignore them?" Yoshida keeps her voice down, likely so Miyuki doesn't hear us. I frown slightly. "Wouldn't the best course of action be to lock them somewhere or something? Or at least not have them right there in front of us as a temptation."

That makes sense, but… "Is there even somewhere we can keep them, though? I don't think there's anything here with locks that none of us have access to." The look that crosses Yoshida's face when I say that is nothing short of disappointed. "But that doesn't mean we can't figure something out," I rush to say. "Why don't you bring it up tomorrow at breakfast? That way we can get everyone's input at once."

Yasu nods. "That'll be good. We don't want to do anything unless we have the majority on our side. That way we can keep the peace, right?" It's a rhetorical question, but something in me sits uneasily when she says it. She stands and offers a hand to Yoshida before addressing me. "I think I'm gonna get something to eat, wanna come?"

"I just ate, thanks. I'll see you later, though." They nod and exit the rink, leaving five of us in here. I lean on the low wall, standing on my tiptoes. "Miyuki! You wanted to see me?"

She smiles and skates over, ignoring Maeda's reaction to my using her first name. For a moment, I forgot other people were here. Sasaki and Nakamura don't really react much, if they even heard it to begin with. "Yeah, actually. Care to stick around until everyone else is out?"

Another one of those warning signs goes off in my gut even though I know I can trust her. I need to stop being paranoid for no reason. "Absolutely. Until then, let me get some skates on so I can join you."

She brightens, and I realize that I made the right decision. Skating earlier was fun; I really should've stayed for longer. "I still haven't gotten over that it's easier to skate than rollerblade," Nakamura says, skating slowly nearby. "How does that work?"

"Maybe it's because the land has more things to trip over. And potholes." Sasaki shrugs. "Do you rollerblade a lot?"

"I tried it once a few years ago. It didn't work out well." He smiles and laughs like it's nothing. I can feel myself relaxing somehow as I come onto the ice, trying not to slip like I did before. Especially since there's more people here, I don't want to make a fool out of myself, even though normally I really wouldn't care.

Sasaki sighs, stretching her arms above her and somehow managing to stay steady on her feet. "I might go in soon. It's about time to eat and unwind." Funny, now that I think of it; this is one of the first few times I've seen her and Yasu apart. Well, once we all have the people we're the most comfortable with, the comfort is worth it.

Nakamura doesn't say anything, just winks at the two of us and follows. Maeda is close behind, but still I can't help the blush that rises in my cheeks. I shake my head to get rid of it as if it's that easy. I turn back to Miyuki once the locker room door swings shut with a decisive click. "They really need to stop assuming things."

Miyuki giggles and shakes her head, but doesn't say anything on the topic. I stay on the ice with her, skating in slow circles around the perimeter. "Am I doing well, being the leader?" she asks, somewhat out of the blue. Of all the things she could've wanted to talk about, I didn't think this was one of them.

"What do you mean? Of course you are." Her face is clear of any tell, despite having no physical curtain from her hair. Now would be the time to be transparent with me, but she's more guarded now than ever. "Where did this come from?"

She shrugs. "Probably just common worries. But...the game started, even when I thought we were all aligned together. I thought we could avoid anyone dying at all, but…" She slows down, her gaze lifting to the ceiling. "I just wonder if I'm doing this leader thing right. If I can prevent any more deaths."

"That's the big question, isn't it? Everyone's doing all they can, but we can't control everything. It's like Abe said before- we have to trust in each other to a certain degree. Like me? I trust you with everything. I trust that you know how to control your emotions and I trust that you won't kill anyone. I trust you a lot, Miyuki." Slowly, her gaze shifts back down to me, and she nods. I smile in what I hope comes across as reassuring. "And this motive. We can't control if anyone is going to see it, but we can control our responses to that."

She stiffens at the mention of the motive. I really, really hope that doesn't mean what I think it means. Please, please don't let it mean that. "You're right. I just need to keep a clear mind. Easy as pie."

"That's it." We take another lap around in silence. She could easily outpace me here, but she stays right beside me anyway. Her company is nice, comforting. She's definitely the easiest friend I've made in years. Friends like I've already found here are hard to come by. Damn it, why does this game have to be in the way?

She stops after another half a lap. "I need to get some food in me. I haven't had anything to eat since…" She thinks for a second. "Actually, I don't think I even had breakfast today."

"You didn't. That's not very healthy of you," I tease, poking her arm.

She groans and presses the heels of her hands against her cheekbones. "I know! I know. I need to be better about that like I was before. I'm kinda surprised I lasted all day without any food."

I laugh and step off of the ice, only wobbling slightly this time. "You get yourself some food, I'm going to finish organizing the books in my room."

"Oh! Can we read more of that book after?"

"Sure, I'll meet you in the library so we don't fall asleep again." I unlace my skates and place them neatly with the others, some of which are not as nicely placed. Miyuki hovers near them before I wave her off. "Go eat, I can take care of this."

She nods and scurries off. I then become acutely aware of how alone I am. Everything I do resonates through the room. Yet, for some reason, I don't feel as threatened as I've been before. Still, I hurry to get done and go back to my room, fiddling with the key.

More music comes out of Hamasaki's room, smooth and light. It sounds like an entire song now, but I can't tell if it's a new one or a cover of an older song. It's nice to hear either way, though it disappears after I close my door.

I make quick work of the rest of my books; I had most of them sorted out already. I don't want to keep Miyuki waiting, so I grab the book, start back up to the library, and settle in on one of the chairs. They're actually pretty comfortable, all things considered.

It's still chilly in here, and I swear that it could be coming from a draft from a hidden window or door. But there are no windows, let alone unbarred ones, and I already checked for doors. It makes no logical sense for there to not be some kind of exit here.

"Ready!" Miyuki comes nearly crashing into the library, a giant grin on her face. Her hair is down again, and her glasses are back on; she's done skating for the night. This version of her is more familiar to me, if only by a couple days. She sits down eagerly in the seat near mine.

"You really enjoy this, even though you don't understand it?" She nods and I laugh. I don't understand that sentiment myself, but then again, I have no way to. I understand just about everything I hear and read now. "Well, then, let's start right where we left off."

We read until the nighttime announcement plays before walking back down to our rooms together. My voice feels a bit raw, but in a good way. She was right in what she said the other day; this really does help as a distraction. If I weren't so tired, I would keep reading. Lord knows I need the load off my mind.

MONOKUMA THEATRE VIII

"Are crossovers really worth the hype?"

"Nine times out of ten, they end with loose ends."

"Beloved characters meeting for the first and only time spells disaster."

"Besides, the fans can often come up with better content."

"So why all the hype if it's not done right?"