Chapter Text
Maki knew where she would find Kaito, tonight. At this point, she doesn't think he had asked Shuichi to be his training partner yet. But Kaito was bound to be restless, so Maki was sure he must be wandering the school somewhere, or even training by himself. So, once night fell, Maki slipped out of her room and started to sneak towards the courtyard, where she hoped to find him.
For Maki, slipping through the darkness of night was an easy task. She moved as silently as a ghost, long pigtails trailing behind her like the tail of a spectre. However, before she could get outside, she heard the sound of a single floorboard creak. She immediately ducked into a shadow, making herself small, and peered around the corner.
Oh. It was Kokichi. That couldn't be good.
The troublesome boy was beelining down the hall, holding his pillow to his chest. He glared forward, a man on a mission. Maki leaned forward a bit, watching as Kokichi stopped directly in front of Kaede's door. He stared up at it with a determined gleam in his eye, clearly debating something in his mind.
Maki's eyebrows furrowed. Did this happen in the first game? No one had mentioned anything, but then again, Kaede and Kokichi never really chatted with her. If no one else remembered but her, then this must have happened in the first loop.
Decision made, Kokichi suddenly reached up and knocked a funky little rhythm on Kaede's door. He waited for a response, but the door didn't move for a second. He almost had time to look concerned before the door swung loudly open. Maki ducked a little further into the shadow, avoiding being seen by Kaede.
The pianist's eyes widened, clearly surprised to find Kokichi waiting with a pillow outside her door.
"Hey girl! Sleepover?"
Maki's eyes widened as well. What a strange request from such a loner. Maki watched as Kaede kindly acqueisced, turning her body sideways to allow Kokichi into her room. Her eyes took one cautious sweep of the hallway before turning and closing the door, cutting the two of them off from Maki's view.
Maki rose from her hiding spot, frowning. That was very suspicious, coming from a guy like Kokichi. However, Maki knew better than to assume he was going to try and kill Kaede. Kokichi was scummy, but he wasn't an idiot. He wouldn't risk killing anyone this early in the killing game. He hadn't, the first time they had been through this.
Coast clear, Maki slipped back out of the shadows and walked outside of the dorms. Predictably, she found Kaito, all alone, laying in the grass in the moonlight.
No, not laying. On closer inspection, he was doing sit ups. Rather impressive sit ups. She always knew Kaito was athletic, but now that he was temporarily unhindered by his illness, she could see the full extent of his strength.
She approached, perfectly silent, like she was stalking her prey. As she got closer, she could hear the grass shift beneath Kaito's back, and the quiet mumbles to himself, counting upwards.
"You wanna die?" Maki asked him from behind. Kaito yelped in unhidden shock, scrambling to his feet and facing her. He quickly wilted with relief upon seeing her, grabbing at his chest.
"Maki Roll! You scared me! How did you sneak up on me so quietly?" he asked. "And what the hell do you mean, do I wanna die?"
"You're in a killing game, Momota," Maki crossed her arms over her chest. "Waiting out here in the open, all alone, makes you an easy target."
Kaito cocked his head, a playful smile tugging at his lips. "Why? You gonna kill me?"
"Obviously not, idiot," Maki rolled her eyes. "I'm just saying-"
"You want me to be careful," Kaito finished for her. "You're secretly really sweet under that tough exterior, huh, Maki Roll?"
Maki could feel her cheeks heating up, and she sharply turned her head away, using her long hair to curtain her face from view. "You're delusional."
"So, what brings you out here?" Kaito asked, turning the tables on her. He didn't sound accusatory at all. The old Maki probably would have gotten defensive, but now she could see Kaito for the genuine guy he really is.
"Just doing the rounds. Making sure everyone's okay."
"Wow, you really are a Caregiver, huh?" Kaito chuckled. "Taking care of everyone like that. Be careful, Maki Roll, you have to take care of yourself, too."
"I can handle myself," Maki grumbled.
"I'm sure you can!" Kaito's laughter didn't sway under Maki's glare.
"Don't act like you know me," Maki hissed. "You've only just met me. You've only just met any of us. What makes you so trusting, so quickly? I could be a killer, you know." She knew that even then, Kaito wouldn't care. But she still couldn't understand why.
Kaito simply shrugged. "I dunno. You don't seem like you're going to hurt me, or anyone."
Maki looked him up and down. "I'm not."
Kaito grinned. "I know. Hey, you wanna join me?" he motioned down to the ground, where he had been doing his sit-ups. "I have to keep up my physical training to be an astronaut, but I think everyone should do it! Exercising the mind exercises the spirit."
Maki glanced down at the grass. Working out with Kaito could risk revealing her true nature. However, Kaito may not question it. He was naive that way. "Alright, I guess I'll join you."
"Great! Just a warning, I'm not going to go easy on you just because you're a girl!" Kaito pointed out, sitting back down on the ground and tucking his hands behind his head. Maki joined him in the grass.
"You won't have to, trust me."
After quickly and easily beating Kaito at a hundred sit ups in the grass, Maki sat up and braced herself against her hands, barely breaking a sweat. Meanwhile, Kaito collapsed breathlessly back into the grass, eye closed, arms splayed at his side. Despite his chest heaving with breaths, his lips still pulled up into a smile.
"Damn, Maki Roll, you're no joke."
"My idea of fitness may have been...heavily influenced by how I was raised," Maki admitted. "My view has been skewed dramatically, but I'm pretty sure you are impressive in your own right, Kaito."
Kaito cracked one eye open, smirking. "Is that your way of complimenting me?"
Maki's cheeks went red, and she huffed a little, tugging at a strand of hair. "Yes, it was."
Kaito chuckled, closing his eyes back up again, resting his hands underneath his head. "I know you try to act all scary, but you're just a big softy, aren't you?" Sensing her frown, he opened his eyes again, looking up at her. "Sorry, I know we just met, that may have been a weird thing to say."
"No, it's okay," Maki said quietly. "For some reason, you seem like a guy who can read people really well."
Kaito grinned. "I like to think I can! I'm a great judge of character," he grunted, pressing himself up into a seated position beside Maki. "So, what do you make of this whole 'killing game' business? You think it's legit?"
"What do you mean?" Maki furrowed her eyebrows, confused.
"I mean, do you really think they're going to try to force us to kill each other?"
"Yes," Maki answered. "Because that's what they said they were going to do. What do you think they're trying to do?"
Kaito shrugged. "I'm not sure. Make us scared? See how we react? Maybe it's some kind of social experiment."
Social experiment? That was a theory Maki never even entertained in the first loop. Had Kaito had the same suspicions before, or is this a new development? "Even if it is some sick experiment, people may still die. Everyone has the capability to kill, if pushed far enough."
Kaito frowned at that, clearly disagreeing with her. Maki kept speaking before he could argue.
"I know you want to see the best in people, Kaito, and sometimes that is a really great quality to have. But the world isn't all good, and you can't afford to be naive. Not here, not anywhere. You can be surprised what people will do when pushed to their limits. You're a kind guy, with a good heart, but you can't be blind, Kaito."
Kaito blinked at her, and Maki realized she went a little far there. She shrunk away, feeling her entire face heat up. Kaito stared at her in surprise, before his face softened into a gentle smile.
"You talk as if you've known me for a long time."
Maki's eyes widened. Shit, I said too much! She let her guard down. Damn Kaito and his stupid smile. Maki is far less defensive now, and clearly she needed to be more careful.
"But," Kaito continued, cutting into her spiraling train of thought. "Despite that, we did just meet today. You're not wrong, I like to see the best in people. But I don't think I'm naive either. I do think there is a limit to every human, and I do think if pushed hard enough, anyone could kill. That's why I have to make sure that never happens. I won't let anyone here ever feel that desperate. That way, no one will kill anyone. I'll protect us." Maki jumped as Kaito rested his hand on top of her head comfortingly. "I'll protect you too, Maki Roll."
Maki felt her face go embarrassingly red. She let herself enjoy the touch of Kaito's hand on her head for .02 seconds before ducking out from under him, swatting his hand away.
"I don't need protection," she snarled, before realizing that her defensiveness was coming across as aggression again. She attempted to soften the scowl on her face, but she wasn't sure how successful she was. "Just, don't spend all your energy worrying about me, okay? Or the others. You need to focus on yourself, too."
Kaito smiled. "I will. I promise."
"Good," with an air of finality, Maki leapt off the ground, holding out her hand to him. "Now, it's late. We both need rest."
Kaito sighed, accepting her hand and letting her help him off the ground. "You're right. It'll be easier to escape this place if we're rested. Come on, let's head back inside. And hey, Maki Roll," he glanced down at her with a cocked grin. "Thanks for hanging out with me. I feel like I got a little bit closer to you today."
Maki let her lip twitch upwards, ever so slightly. "Yeah. Me too."
Kokichi could tell that Kaede was weirded out by his intrusion. Not skeptical, as he hadn't donned the antagonistic persona that he had last time, but still strange. He quickly made himself at home, sitting cross-legged on her bed without invitation, hugging his pillow to his chest. Kaede raised an eyebrow, but her lips did quirk upwards slightly, and he took that as a win.
"So, what makes you want a sleepover with a total stranger?" Kaede asked. "Some people would find the request inappropriate."
"Not if you're a guy like me, asking a girl like you," Kokichi said. "Not to judge on first glance, but I have a feeling I'm not your type."
Kaede chuckled at that. "You got me pegged, huh?"
"I like to think I'm good at reading people," Kokichi grinned.
"Still, that doesn't answer my question," Kaede pointed out, sitting down beside him on the bed. "Why are you here?"
Kokichi sobered up at that, rather theatrically. He pretended to wilt into his pillow a little bit. "I dunno...the whole situation is freaky, isn't it?"
"Aw," Kaede scooted closer and wrapped her arm around Kokichi's shoulder. A friendly gesture that she never would have done the first time around, Kokichi did actually jump a bit in surprise. Kaede kept talking though, as if she hadn't noticed the flinch. "I'm freaked too, Kokichi. But we'll find a way out of here."
"Hopefully no one is stupid enough to think killing would be their only hope of escape," Kokichi said, glancing up at her. Maybe a little on the nose, but he was dealing with life or death here.
Kaede frowned. "Of course not. We all have a better chance of escaping if we work together than if we try to kill someone."
"Good. I would never have the temptation to," Kokichi, feeling like he was laying it on a little thick now, looked away, ducking his head and fiddling with his fingers, arms still wrapped around the pillow. "I wouldn't even kill the mastermind."
"Mastermind?" Kaede questioned. "You mean, the person running the killing game?"
Kokichi nodded, still not making eye contact with Kaede. "I would never let them manipulate me. And if I tried to kill the mastermind or anyone else here, that would just be giving them what they want."
Kaede hummed. "Well, luckily it won't come to that. We'll find an escape route long before anyone thinks to kill anyone else."
Kokichi thought back to the futile attempts at escape from the first loop. He supposed Kaede hasn't felt true desperation yet, so of course she would agree with him, that killing wouldn't work. But he knew her mind would change, sooner or later. He needed to make sure that didn't happen. He needed to make sure Kaede never starts the killing game.
"Do you promise, no matter what happens, that you won't kill anyone?" Kokichi whispered, finally looking back up at her. "No matter how desperate you get, you won't try to kill anyone else?"
Kaede's eyebrows drew in with concern. "Of course," she answered, as quietly as him, and very earnestly. "I promise."
Despite the genuine tone, Kokichi couldn't bring himself to believe her. Everyone was a liar, after all.
Kokichi woke up on the floor, a pillow under his head and a blanket wrapped snugly around him. It took him all of two seconds to remember why he was here. He sat up and looked over and, sure enough, Kaede was there, sound asleep on her bed. Kokichi banished himself to the floor that night, even after Kaede offered to let him sleep on the bed. He yawned, reaching up and cracking his back. He must have beaten the Monokub's morning announcement, since all was quiet. Kokichi gathered up his pillow and rose to his feet, sneaking over to the door. He moved slowly, opening the door just a crack and slipping out into the hall, as to not wake Kaede.
Which brought him face-to-face with Kirumi.
The maid blinked, staring down at him in surprise. Kokichi froze under her gaze, clutching the pillow to his chest.
"Whoops. Caught in the walk of shame," he joked, trying to pull his lips up into a playful smile. Kirumi's surprised expression wavered into something like fond irritation.
"I have a feeling this is not what this was, so I will keep my questions to myself," she sighed.
"And what are you doing wandering around so early, hm?" Kokichi asked skeptically. "Going to try and kill someone in their sleep?"
"Hardly," Kirumi barely took the accusation as a serious threat, brushing right over it. "I am used to waking up early, so I was going to head to the kitchen and see if I could make some breakfast for everyone. Since you are already up, would you care to join me?"
"Wow, the Ultimate Maid recruiting help? Sounds like you're slipping," Kokichi taunted, but once again, Kirumi was unwavering.
"I was more asking so you can provide some insight on what to make. You can tell me what you prefer to eat for breakfast."
"The souls of the innocent," Kokichi's face morphed into a terrifying grin.
"I will take that as a yes. Come along."
Swept into hanging out with Kirumi before he could blink, Kokichi found himself following the maid to the kitchen. His pillow still dangled from his hands. He left it on one of the kitchen chairs.
"I am most adept at Japanese-style breakfast, though I can make anything you wish to have," Kirumi explained, turning on the kitchen lights and sweeping gracefully across the room like a dancer on a ballroom floor.
"I know you said you don't need it, but I wanna help!" Kokichi said in his best childish voice, launching himself up to sit down on top of the counter. "I'm actually the Ultimate Chef, you know!"
Kirumi shot Kokichi a confused look. "Though I cannot tell for certain, something is telling me you are lying."
"Now why would I lie about a little thing like that?" Kokichi cocked his head playfully.
"Why do you refuse to tell anyone your Talent?" Kirumi answered his question with a question of her own.
"Maybe my Talent is dangerous," Kokichi taunted. "Too dangerous to tell any normal people, like you."
"I see," Kirumi didn't look like she believed him, not for a second. That's good, Kokichi didn't want her to believe him anyway. "Well, since I don't have everyone's personal orders yet, I suppose we should just make a little bit of everything. Since you insist on helping, Kokichi, would you check to see if we have any eggs?"
Oh, they had eggs, alright. Cartons and cartons of eggs, along with a completely stocked fridge. Kokichi found himself working in a surprising silence, beating eggs together in a bowl while Kirumi worked on the more complex dishes. They fell into a comfortable flow, reminding Kokichi why he liked Kirumi so much in the first place.
He shook himself. No, he had to remember. Everyone here was capable of murder. Kirumi herself proved so. He can't get too comfortable.
The silence was interrupted by the ear-grating sound of the Monokuma Morning Announcement. Kirumi, usually stoic, startled at the abrasive sound, whirling around in shock to watch Monokuma appear on a screen behind her. She clutched her chest with one hand, eyes wide. An earnest look of surprise. Kirumi, without trying, proved that she didn't remember the last killing game at all.
"Jeez, what an obnoxious bear," Kokichi mumbled, eyes on the screen. "World's worst alarm clock."
"Well, I imagine a sound like that woke everybody up," Kirumi sighed, shaking off her shock. "Which means we should move faster to get food out on the table."
"You spoil us, Kirumi. You're like our mom," Kokichi sneered, picking up a couple plates and taking them out into the dining hall, where it seemed some students had begun to gather. In the group was Kaede, looking relieved to see Kokichi.
"So here's where you went, Kokichi!" she exhaled, moving to greet him. "Did you make yourself breakfast?"
"I made everyone breakfast. Courtesy of the Ultimate Butler," he winked up at her, just as Kirumi was exiting the kitchen. Kaede looked up, spotted the Ultimate Maid, and smiled.
"Sure Kokichi. Ultimate Butler, let's go with that," she affectionately ruffled his hair.
"Kokichi was actually an excellent help," Kirumi pointed out. "Please, everyone, help yourselves. I wasn't sure if there were any personal preferences or dietary restrictions so please let me know if there is anything else I can get for you!"
"This all looks great, Kirumi!" Kaito exclaimed, pulling out a chair. "You didn't have to do this for us!"
"Nonsense. It gives me purpose to serve you all. And you will need your strength, as I imagine we have another long day of investigating ahead of us," Kirumi pointed out.
"That's true. It's probably best if we split up into groups today, try to cover as much ground as possible," Kaede said.
"Good idea," Kaito, unsurprisingly, agreed.
The last time they did this, Kaede has split up to investigate with Shuichi. That was when, presumably, they found the library. While that happened, the others would find the Road to Despair, which Kaede would encourage them to try over and over again. Not ideal, as that was the event that pushed her to such desperation that she ended up resorting to murder. Kokichi mused to himself as he picked at his breakfast, thinking more than eating. There were a couple routes he could take here. He could force himself onto Shuichi and Kaede's group, and see how the discovery of the library really went down. Or, he could leave with the others, and try to prevent anyone from finding the Road to Despair.
No. Whoever was running this killing game wanted them to find the Road to Despair. It wasn't a secret escape, it was a trap. One the true mastermind wanted them to fall into. Which means, they would make sure the Road to Despair would be found, no matter what. It was literally designed to be discovered.
"Kaede, can I investigate with you?" Kokichi leaned towards his new 'best friend', beaming his begging, puppy-dog eyes at her. She smiled in amusement and knocked her shoulder into his amicably.
"Of course you can. Shuichi, you wanna come too? I bet having an Ultimate Detective around would be super useful!"
Shuichi, predictably, agreed, though still shying under his hat. Whatever, Kokichi wasted enough energy on him on the last game, and he knew how that turned out. Kaede had more of a chance of sticking by his side.
"Yay! What a great team! The Ultimate Detective, the Ultimate Pianist, and the Ultimate Hide and Go Seeker! We'll find an exit for sure!" he cheered showily. Maybe it was over the top, but that was his brand, and he was sticking to it. Kaede chuckled, amused.
"What happened to the Ultimate Butler?"
"Ultimate Butler? Who's that?" Kokichi asked innocently, causing Kaito to groan.
"You are exhausting, man."
Kokichi bared his teeth to the astronaut in a wide grin. It seemed no matter what character Kokichi decided to play, it would end up on Kaito's nerves. Good. It was fun to pick on him anyway.
"I'll pair up with Kaito," Maki, surprisingly, spoke up. "That is, if that's alright."
"Of course, it's more than alright!" Kaito threw an arm over Maki's shoulder, making the 'child caretaker' flinch. "We'll be an unstoppable duo!"
Kokichi studied Maki carefully as she shrunk under Kaito's arm but didn't push him away. That was...strange. He didn't remember much of how Maki acted at the beginning of the first game, but that was because she so often went off on her own. Kokichi had found that suspicious from the first second. However, she seems to be sticking with the group now. Perhaps to avoid such suspicion?
Does Maki...remember the last loop?
No, that must be impossible. He knew the assassin well enough to know that she would have called him out long ago on changing his Ultimate title. If she had remembered, she would have pointed out the inconsistency in his story. In fact, she probably would have already tried to kill him again, to end the killing game once and for all.
But if she's making different choices, then perhaps there's a small part of her that does remember. Maybe everyone could remember, deep, deep down. But it seemed as if Kokichi was the only one who truly knew what was going on.
Maki was noticing inconsistencies right and left. Aside from pretty much starting the exact same, everything that had happened in this new game was completely different than the first time around. Sure, there were similarities, like Shuichi's hat, and Himiko's old, lazy personality. But now Kaede was friends with Kokichi? And he helped Kirumi make breakfast? Did she really not notice this, the first time around?
No, things were different. The mere fact that she remembered the last killing game was enough to completely change the course of this one. No matter. She wasn't really trying to steer the killing game any sort of way. It was going to happen, whether she liked it or not.
No, her main priority was making sure Kaito survived it. No matter the cost.
As the rest of the group finished breakfast and split off, Maki ate her breakfast in silence. It seemed Gonta and Korekiyo decided they would join Maki and Kaito while investigating. Maki didn't exactly want them around, but complaining would only make her more suspicious. She wasn't going to get sloppy, like last time. This time, no one was going to figure out her identity.
As they investigated, Maki kept her eye out for anything new. There was nothing particularly of note. They were rather limited in where they could look, as almost the entire school was locked up like before. But there was something they did find, that Maki admittedly kind of forgot about.
"Do you think that's the exit, way on the other side?" Kaito asked as the four of them stood at the entrance to the Road to Despair.
"Or it's a trap," Maki grumbled skeptically.
"But look at all the booby traps!" Gonta exclaimed. "Someone try to keep us away for reason, right?"
"I think I agree with Maki on this one," Korekiyo mused. "All of the various booby traps may not be trying to keep us away. It's so over-the-top, that it seems more sadistic than actual security. Perhaps whoever brought us here is trying to do a study on human nature. I'll admit, it's intriguing. Gather a group of teens and see how they behave when facing deadly obstacles, for only the promise of freedom."
"N-No way someone be that cruel!" Gonta exclaimed, looking horrified. "Doing all this for some sick study?"
"Or for their entertainment," Maki muttered darkly, crossing her arms over her chest.
"Jeez, you two are such pessimists!" Kaito scoffed, waving off their theory.
"Is there an optimistic way to look at this?" Maki asked, motioning to the long corridor of deadly traps. "Because I would love to hear it."
"There could be an escape on the other side," Kaito said stubbornly. "We just need to work together."
"Gonta don't think we can get through alone," Gonta said, studying the path ahead. "We should get everyone."
"Right!" Kaito punched his fist into his open palm. "We have a lot of really capable people here! We got the Ultimate Akido Master, the Ultimate Detective-"
"We also got people like the Ultimate Cosplayer," Maki deadpanned. "They're not all the most useful Talents in the world."
"What about Ultimate Mage? Himiko can use magic to disarm booby traps?" Gonta offered. Korekiyo chuckled and patted him on his large shoulder.
"Gonta, your trust in others is admirable."
"So we should go get the others, right?" Kaito asked, fists planted on his hips. "We should go get the others and take on this Road to Despair!"
Or, we could not, Maki thought to herself. I could probably get through on my own. Open the door for myself. Show them that this is not an escape. It's a trap, and the outside world they used to know is gone.
She remembered when they finally got that door open, after Gonta's execution. There is nothing on the other side of that door but a painful reminder that the Remnants of Despair had destroyed the world.
That's why I killed Kokichi, she thought. I thought he was a Remnant of Despair.
But if he was, then how was she here? How was this happening again?
How much of that Flashback Light was a lie?
...How much of this world was a lie?